While some films examine issues such as racial injustice and gender inequality in ways that help audiences understand the world and think more carefully about it, HIDDEN FIGURES encourages its viewers to see the world in a more simplified form.
Filmmaker Theodore Melfi (ST. VINCENT) finds a powerful narrative in the untold story of the influential women (Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monae) whose brains were behind NASA’s successful launch of astronaut John Glenn (Glen Powell) into orbit, but he holds the film back from reaching its full potential by embracing a warm and fuzzy storytelling method that’s too safe.
This particular approach may irritate some adults who are wanting something with more dirt under its nails, but on the other hand, it’s also the appropriate direction to take — considering how it opens its storyline up to a larger audience, most notably children.
Under the film’s exceptional acting and feel-good vibe, there is a strong message that encourages one to want to do math. As fun as it is to watch superheroes fly around the globe and save lives in comic book adaptations, it’s inspiring to see real ones who are passionate and use their brains.
Grade: B+
Extras: A making-of, a featurette on filming in Georgia, deleted scenes, gallery, an audio commentary by Theodore Melfi and Taraji P. Henson.
While I may be completely biased because I love this show, its creator (Mike Judge) and its cast (Thomas Middleditch, T.J. Miller and Matt Ross among others), SILICON VALLEY is one of the best series on television. Even after three seasons, it manages to expose more aspects of business, amaze with its characters and sting with relevancy.
Naturally, SILICON VALLEY’s third outing picks up where its second season left us: Richard Hendricks (Middleditch) was voted out as CEO of his own company and demoted to Chief Technology Officer, and is now threatening to quit and sue to regain his intellectual property.
There’s a lot at stake this season (a necessary direction to take to keep things fresh), with even more going on with all its side characters, but the show continues to showcase its strength in balancing both the hard truth of running a company and making its audience laugh — and that’s good TV.
VEEP — which now would make more sense being called “Peep,” because of Vice President Selina Meyer (an always magnetic Julia Louis-Dreyfus) being made president when the acting POTUS suddenly stepped down at the end of Season 3 — is entering its sixth season next week. So if you haven’t caught up, now is the time to binge and purchase its laugh-a-minute fifth season.
Like SILICON VALLEY, VEEP gets down to the nitty-gritty. Season 5 takes many unexpected turns, all of which lead to a brutal finale. The dry humor and fast pace are still there, but things are only getting better for the viewer’s enjoyment. So best hop on that bandwagon.
Many thought this movie was never going to come out. Its release date kept getting pushed back and its silly storyline about a monster living inside the engine of a high school teen (Lucas Till) seemed, well, too silly.
As surprised as you may be to read this, if you can accept this movie for what it is, it’s harmless viewing for the whole family. Whether you enjoy it for all the wrong reasons or enjoy because it’s fun, kid-friendly entertainment, MONSTER TRUCKS has some heart.
Grade: C+
Extras: A gag reel, deleted scenes, production diaries, and three featurettes on making the film and creating its characters.
Let’s face it. When people buy new houses in horror movies, it never ends up being a good investment. This is especially true for a trio of twenty-somethings (Douglas Smith, Cressida Bonas and Lucien Laviscount) who purchase a house off campus which contains the secrets to a malevolent entity called the Bye Bye Man (Doug Jones).
While there are admittedly a few moments of intrigue in THE BYE BYE MAN, including a rather wild opening, there’s nothing new or exciting about this dead-teenager fest to persuade you to want to see what’s lurking in the shadows.
Grade: C-
Extras: It includes both the theatrical cut and an unrated version that adds three minutes (and doesn’t improve anything).
This buddy-cop/black comedy stars Michael Peña (CHIPS) and Alexander Skarsgård (BIG LITTLE LIES) as two corrupt Albuquerque detectives who run around a movie that’s barely linked together by it scenes. The cast do their best to ignite filmmaker John Michael McDonagh’s Tarantino-esque dialogue, but the jumbled plot and forceful attempts at humor mark it forgettable.
Hello, there! My name is Preston Barta, and I am the features editor of Fresh Fiction and senior film critic at the Denton Record-Chronicle. My cinematic love story began where I was born: off planet on the isolated desert world of the Jakku system. It's there I passed the time scavenging for loose parts with my good friend Rey. One day I found an old film projector and a dusty reel of the 1975 film JAWS. It rocked my world so much that I left my kinfolk in the rearview (I so miss their morning cups of green milk) to pursue my dreams of writing about film. It wasn't long until I met two gents who said they would give me a lift. I can't recall their names, but one was an older man who liked to point a lot and the other was a tall, hairy fella. They got me as far as one of Jupiter's moons where we crossed paths with the U.S.S. Enterprise. Some pointy-eared bastard said I was clear to come aboard. He saw that I was clutching my beloved shark movie and invited me to the "moving pictures room" where he was screening the 1993 film JURASSIC PARK to his crew. He said my life would be much more prosperous if I were familiar with more work by the god named Steven Spielberg. From there, my love for cinema blossomed. Once we reached planet Earth, everything changed. I found the small town of Denton, TX, and was welcomed into the Barta family. They showed me the writings of local film critic Boo Allen. He became my hero and caused me to chase a degree in film and journalism. After my studies at graduate of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, I met some film critics who showed me the ropes and got me into my first press screening: 2011's THE GREEN LANTERN. Don't worry; I recovered just fine. MAD MAX: FURY ROAD was only four years away.
Preston Barta // Editor
SILICON VALLEY: SEASON 3
VEEP
MONSTER TRUCKS
THE BYE BYE MAN
WAR ON EVERYONE
