Tag: movie review

Of ‘Asteroid City’

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

The thing about Asteroid City is it’s beautiful to look at. But, otherwise, it can sometimes come across as shrill and overwrought. I will try not to spoil it for you, but, let’s just say it has an….interesting…framing device that is rather convoluted.

But it was interesting. In fact, I never once felt like walking out, which is something I do all the time with movies because I’ve become something of a storytelling snob of late. The more I think about it, the more the movie reminds me of weird movies of the 1990s that I used to see with my girlfriend of the time. They were weird, thought-provoking movies that lingered in your mind.

Of note — the movie was not in any way “woke.” It just told a story that was interesting and thought-provoking. That’s it. It didn’t browbeat you with some sort of overarching Leftist political message. It was not until I had had time to marinate on the movie that this just occurred to me.

Anyway, I liked Asteroid City…I guess? There were elements of it that could easily enrage someone who might not be into the art-house aesthetic. But, lulz, it was nice to see an interesting movie that was Just A Movie, not some sort of political manifesto about how we need to slay the patriarchy.

A Casual Review of ‘Free Guy’


by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I just got back from the Ryan Reynolds vehicle “Free Guy”and it was pretty good. For once I didn’t walk out from a movie the moment it reached the inciting incident.

I can see how this movie was probably pitched as “The Matrix meets Ready Player: One meets The Truman Show.” It definitely had the vibe of a movie drafting off of movie-going race memory of The Matrix. “What if The Matrix was a comedy?”

The movie sells itself, in that respect.

But this definitely being a Ryan Reynolds vehicle is all over this movie. One thing that was interesting to me was that Jodie Comer was given a make under. She’s a beautiful woman and yet the producers made sure to make Reynolds the center of attention. Though, there were a few times during the movie when I couldn’t figure out who the protagonist was supposed to be.

And, yet, I was pleased with the movie overall. It was sold entertainment and it had Reynolds’ established sensitive male sense of humor that has been pretty consistent throughout much of his Hollywood career.

It is notable that the female lead’s name was “Mille” and the guy who was in love with her is one of the stars of Stranger Things. Makes you wonder how the decision to name the character that was made.

Anyway, I really liked Free Guy. It even gave me some inspiration as to how to make the third act of the first book in the thriller series I’m working on more — thrilling.

Review: Ad Astra

Shelton Bumgarner

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

*Spoilers*

Ad Astra is a good movie, not a great movie. The closest movie I can compare it to in spirit is Ex Machina. Both movies linger in the mind after you watch them. But Ex Machina is a far better movie.

I get the vision of the movie intended by this Brad Pitt vanity project. It’s supposed to be a melancholy rumination on the human condition and a man’s relationship with his distant father. Ok, I get it. And I get why they kept talking about aliens only for there to be no aliens.

And, yet, the movie is a little too subtle for its own good. It might benefit from the very thing didn’t want to have — aliens. I say this because the movie is obviously inspired by 2001: A Space Odyssey. Though the more astute of you will notice an homage to the campy space classic Dark Star. (In Dark Star an astronaut rides a piece of his ship into a planet’s atmosphere like a surfboard. Pitt does something a little similar at one point.)

In a sense, I think the lack of aliens is kind of a cop-out. Much of the rest of the movie was serviceable adult-oriented entertainment. It wasn’t hackish at all. It’s just the whole thing could have been a whole lot more…profound. The whole thing was so slight, so subtle that it felt lacking.

I have to be a nerd and point out the producers of the movie apparently are completely oblivious to the difference in the gravity on the moon and Mars compared to earth. But you can’t have everything, I guess.

But I did honestly like the movie. It’s going to be a great on-air entertainment for people flying to Walla Walla.