Movie Review Sunday

Back to the Future Part III – 1990 (PG)

Netflix says: The final installment of the Back to the Future trilogy finds Marty (Michael J. Fox) digging the trusty DeLorean out of a mineshaft and looking up Doc (Christopher Lloyd) in the Wild West of 1885. But when their time machine breaks down, the travelers are stranded in a land of spurs. More problems arise when Doc falls for pretty schoolteacher Clara Clayton (Mary Steenburgen), and Marty tangles with Buford Tannen (Thomas F. Wilson).

Matt says: The weakest film in the trilogy should only be watched for closure on the series. Part II ends on a cliff-hanger and, since this was filmed roughly around the same time, Part III is necessary to wrap things up. Throughout the film Doc keeps mentioning what a huge mistake it was to make the time machine and how, when it’s all said and done, it will be destroyed. (Spoiler Alert) When it finally is, we find that Doc has made another one and is taking his family around changing history wherever he sees fit. I know the first and second movies pretty much gave suspension of disbelief a vacation, but Part III just throws it all out the window. Anyway, it’s mostly a western with Fox playing the fish out of water routine again, but this time everything feels over done. Not the greatest way to wrap up the trilogy, but still a must for fans of the first two. 3 stars.

True Grit – 2010 (PG-13)

Netflix says: After her father is murdered by drifter Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin), 14-year-old Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld), hires Reuben "Rooster" Cogburn (Jeff Bridges), an alcoholic U.S. Marshal, to help her exact vengeance. The disreputable Rooster still has grit though, and mounts an epic search. The pair is joined on their quest by Texas Ranger LaBoeuf (Matt Damon), who is also hunting for Chaney, in this updated Western from Joel and Ethan Coen.

Matt says: Not having seen the original for over 20 years, I went into the Coen brothers’ remake with a fresh, opened mind. The movie itself is above average: it’s got some beautiful shots, the Coens’ unmistakable direction and dialog, and a solid story. What really shines, though, is the acting. Damon, Steinfeld, and Brolin are excellent in their roles, but Bridges steals the show as Cogburn. Each scene Bridges is in is completely absorbed by his presence. The only thing lacking is the Coens’ sense of depth. The film is played straight forward, with no symbolism or sense of subtlety. It almost feels like a Coen film, but as you watch it, something feels lacking. That didn’t effect my enjoyment at all, but don’t expect a “Barton Fink” or an “A Serious Man”. Still, if Bridges doesn’t get an Oscar nod for this, it will be a travesty. 4 solid stars.

The Alamo – 2004 (PG-13)

Netflix says: Based on actual events, this period drama tells the story of a small Texas mission where, in 1836, almost 200 men stood their ground for two weeks as they were attacked by Mexican forces led by Gen. Antonio López de Santa Anna. The brave faction of Texans was headed by three men -- Col. William Travis (Patrick Wilson), James Bowie (Jason Patric) and Davy Crockett (Billy Bob Thornton) -- whose actions made them heroes and symbols of independence.

Marc says: Painfully slow-moving and dull take on the well-familiar Battle of The Alamo mostly concerns itself with myth-busting the folk-heroes who showed up to defend the fort. Deflating these guys, while possibly an interesting concept on paper, sucks all the excitement out of the proceedings and generally seems to portray the fight for Texas Independence as a doomed and foolish endeavor. Not a great wonder why this bombed hard in theaters. Poor Davy Crockett gets the worst of it for sure, depicted here as alternately a self-doubting phony or a pacifistic everyman greatly disturbed by the horrors of war. And yet, when it suits the motives of the director, we get scenes where he snipes the shoulder regalia right off of General Santa Ana from an impossible distance or the almost assuredly fictional (and historically controversial) propagandized account of his execution as the last man standing after the defeat. While I’m certainly not arguing for a remake of John Wayne’s Alamo hagiography, it’s ridiculous to fail to acknowledge the tough, no-nonsense backbone of these frontiersmen that made them legends in their own lifetime, well before the Texas Revolution. One Lone Star.

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford – 2007 (R)

Netflix says: After Robert Ford (Casey Affleck, in an Oscar-nominated role) joins the most notorious gang in the West, he grows tired of the charismatic Jesse James (Brad Pitt) and begins to resent his widespread fame. But by hatching a scheme to gun down James, Ford risks forever being branded a coward. Sam Shepard, Sam Rockwell, Mary-Louise Parker and Michael Parks also star in this big-screen adaptation of Ron Hansen's acclaimed historical fiction novel.

Marc says: Lengthy epic wears the clothes of a Western, but is really a carefully drawn character study. Brad Pitt’s performance was given much praise, but the real standout is Casey Affleck, who hits on every cylinder with his portrayal of Robert Ford as a creepy sycophant. A number of artfully drawn scenes drive the central plot, which seems to coalesce around the idea that James, in essence, engineered his own murder in order to preserve his legend and place in history. Powerful visuals (especially the nighttime train robbery that opens the film) provide a solid hook and the objective, documentary, occasional narration provides an interesting psychoanalytic subtext to the proceedings. Had the runtime be a little shorter, and the pacing less self-indulgent and languid, I would have gone five stars. As it is, four solid stars; a movie I was definitely glad to have watched.