Category: Reviews

There’s something about the fall and the beginning of the school year that forces us to crave weightier matters. Popcorn nonsense like Independence Day Resurgence makes way for more thoughtful science fiction fare. While a lot of attention was devoted to the serious Arrival, there was another offering that had some strong themes undercut by weak execution.

From producer Ridley Scott came Morgan, out this week from 20^th Century Home Entertainment. The film, starring Kate Mara, Michelle Yeoh, Toby Jones, and Paul Giamatti, came and went in a blink so don’t be surprised you don’t recall it.

Today, in our world, scientists are actively growing organs and meat in test tubes, perfecting the process before unleashing their work on society. In Morgan, things have progressed much further, having developed Morgan (Anya Taylor-Joy) in an isolated lab. Coming to check it out is corporate risk assessor Lee Weathers (Kate Mara) and as she speaks with Dr. Lui Cheng (Michelle Yeoh) and Dr. Simon Ziegler (Toby Jones), the moral and ethical issues of their work is up for debate.

Lee and Morgan spend a lot of time together, as the human tires to determine if the five year old lab experiment is a good thing or not. Dr. Alan Shapiro (Paul Giamatti) is also brought in to probe it, not her, and he asks a lot of questions without following what appears to be proper lab protocols for an experiment. He delves deep and given that it’s Giamatti asking the aggressive questions, it’s done with verve. He and Taylor-Joy, she of the large, expressive eyes, do a great job together, giving us all issues to chew over.

Many of these themes came up last year in the superior Ex Machina, but given how close this issue is coming to fruition, we should have having these debates with regularity. Starting in our entertaining makes the most sense since news pieces on this topic normally would be glossed over or more easily ignored.

Of course it’s not all talk as Morgan snaps and becomes a threat, attacking Kathy (Jennifer Jason Leigh), maiming the aide, thus summoning Lee to investigate.

If only the Seth Owen’s story were better crafter and weak characterization and pacing made more sense. Scott’s son, Luke, makes his directorial debut here and between the two, they should have recognized these weaknesses and addressed them. The twist at the end is fairly clear to those paying attention but here, Luke Scott pulls it off nicely.

The high definition transfer looks just fine and is well matched with the audio.

There are handful of special features, the best of which is Modified Organism: The Science Behind Morgan, with a good look at the real world issues the film addresses. There are some Deleted Scenes, a mildly interesting Audio Commentary from Luke Scott; his short film Loom (complete with a commentary track, and a Still Gallery.

Last week was an odd one for Warner Bros.’ Suicide Squad. On the same day it received three Grammy nominations for the soundtrack while Time named it one of the ten worst films of the year, and the Honest Trailer folk skewered it.

Now, Warner Home Entertainment is releasing the film on disc tomorrow, complete with Theatrical and Extended versions so if you liked it, you get 11 more minutes.

I’m biased. With writer and ComicMix columnist John Ostrander, we created the comic series the film is based on. There’s a building named after him in the movie and he’s a talking head in one of the extras where I get name checked twice (thanks, John). I can see our collective fingerprints all over the film, where David Ayer lifted tone, theme, or plot points from our first 18 months on the title. It’s something I never expected to see.

And yet…I am also cognizant that the film is incredibly flawed for a variety of reasons, starting with the idiotic idea that Ayer can writer and prep a film in a mere six weeks. Then there was the heavier than expected third act reshooting followed by word there were as many as seven different cuts of the film. When you have that many cooks, the results are rarely what one hopes for.

If anything, the film is wildly uneven as we veer from exposition to action to conversation to exposition to action, etc. At worst, it failed to live up to the expectations set by the brilliant trailers and marketing campaign. At best, it was a step in the right direction to a more enjoyable DC Cinematic Universe but not quite there yet.

The Squad is simply too large to properly service the characters with some having little to do so had their roles been combined, we might have had a tighter story. While Captain Boomerang (Jai Courtney) was sleazy and amusing, he had nothing substantive to do, for example. When Slipknot (Adam Beach) shows up without exposition, he may as well have been wearing a red shirt. That they traveled to Midway City to rescue Amanda Waller (Viola Davis), not once but twice, without explanation for why she was there, was weak.

Worse, the villain was sexy and all, but her ultimate goal made little sense. Like Apocalypse in the year’s earlier X-Men: Apocalypse, Enchantress (Cara Delevigne) is an ancient goddess now in the modern world and finds it wanting. She wants to build a “machine” to fix things and recruits her brother to help her achieve her goals since Waller literally holds her heart. We see energy and a ring of debris then we see she has tapped Waller’s mind and is taking out America’s satellites but exactly what was the end game? Dunno.

Yes, Will Smith’s Deadshot and Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn are the film’s brightest spots. Their easy alliance, thanks to having starred previously in 2015’s more entertaining Focus, gives the movie an emotional core.

On the other hand, Jared Leto’s Joker is nicely distinct from his cinematic predecessors, but is entirely superfluous to the story. Cut his scenes and the story still works so it would have been better to keep him to the flashbacks, as a carrot motivating Harley’s actions.

Speaking of which, the bulk of the new footage are the flashbacks deepening their backstory at Arkham Asylum, as the Joker manipulates Dr. Quinzel into helping him escape and then he can’t shake his unhinged groupie.

There’s a good story buried amidst the wreckage that the film proves to be and it’s a shame Ayer didn’t have the time to find it, shape it, and deliver it to the fans.

The high definition transfer of both versions (stacked one atop the other in the case) is excellent, capturing the shadows and colors with equal intensity. The Dolby Atmos soundtrack is equally good, so if you like those songs, they sound great at home.

The combo pack comes with two Blu-ray discs, the DVD, and a Digital HD code. It should be noted that Warner has partnered with Vudu for something new, dubbed VUDU Extras+. If you buy the theatrical cut of the film from them for use on an iOS or Android device, there’s an app that will allow users to watch the movie and simultaneously experience synchronized content related to any scene, simply by rotating their device.  Synchronized content is presented on the same screen while the movie is playing, thus enabling users to quickly learn more about any scene, such as actor biographies, scene locations, fun trivia, or image galleries.

There is a nice assortment of extras available on the discs, starting with Task Force X: One Team, One Mission as Ostrander, Ayer, Geoff Johns, producer Charles Roven, and others talk about the Squad’s comic book roots, dating back to The Brave and the Bold and the members. Jai Nitz is also there to talk his take on El Diablo, the one which made it on screen. There’s nice behind-the-scenes footage that shows how tight the ensemble grew together.

Additionally, there are other features focusing on different aspects of the production including Chasing the Real, Joker & Harley: “It” Couple of The Underworld, Squad Strength and Speed, Armed to the Teeth, This is Gonna Get Loud: The Epic Battles of Suicide Squad, The Squad Declassified, and of course, the Gag Reel.

The film has been an unexpected financial windfall for Warner given its global box office so the movie definitely struck a chord with some of the fans. Will there be a sequel? One hopes but Ayer seems out of the picture and the announced Harley Quinn solo film may preclude the need for a Squad 2. Time and final financial tallying will tell.

There is a weight and heaviness to being Jason Bourne, nee David Webb, given that your life is constantly being manipulated and/or endangered. Trust doesn’t come easily and those around him tend to get hurt. Through three films, we’ve thrilled to Matt Damon’s interpretation of Robert Ludlum’s espionage hero in part thanks to the excellent filmmaking from directors Paul Greengrass and Doug Liman.

After skipping an installment that shifted the focus to a new agent played by Jeremy Renner, Greengrass and Damon returned this summer with Jason Bourne. Things have changed since 2007’s The Bourne Ultimatum as skullduggery has increasingly gone digital so the lengths required to keep secrets buried have to go further. The film, out now from Universal Home Entertainment, explores what all that means.

Bourne has been in hiding these last few years, travelling the world as a bare-knuckled boxer, using physical pain to tamp down the metal anguish he has been dealing with. After all, he knows bits and pieces about his previous life and has questions that haunt him, notably about his father’s involvement.

One of the few people he likes and trusts, Nicky Parsons (Julia Stiles) unexpectedly turns up with the answers. She has chosen to go rogue, taking stolen data from the CIA, and is on the run in the hopes of exposing the US Government’s dirtiest secrets. Unfortunately, she is also being hunted by a man known as the Asset (Vincent Cassel), kicking off the first of the anticipated action set pieces the series has been known for.

There is globetrotting, there are car chases, there are fistfights, and of courses there are twists and turns. Greengrass keeps things moving, throttling back when we need some exposition and then kicking things back into high gear as Bourne gets closer to the truth and the Asset gets closer to Bourne.

Orchestrating things from Washington is the new CIA director Robert Dewey (Tommy Lee Jones), aided by an ambitious and smart analyst Heather Lee (Alicia Vikander). Bourne doesn’t know or trust them (he, like I, miss Joan Allen) and yet, he can’t be rid of them either. All the threads come together in Las Vegas for the final portion of the film and it’s an overly extended assortment of chases, fights, and betrayals.

As a popcorn film, this is a cut above as it offers up thrills and raises topical issues. Bourne is one of the few figures on screen whose mere presence makes other characters truly worried (not something you can say about Superman, Bond, or Optimus Prime). His search for identity continues to propel him and things get explained at last but there are also contrived connections that undercut the drama.

Overall, it’s fun but Bourne never seems to change and grow from these experiences and Washington’s players seem to have traded in their humanity for ambition.

The film is offered in a variety of formats including the latest version of a combo pack: 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and Digital HD (goodbye DVD). Visually, the Blu-ray transfer is very good, which it needs to be considering the constantly changing pace, setting, and lighting. The DTS:X is also very good so you can hear the gun shots, tires screeching, and eavesdropping with clarity.

Damon turns up as host for several of the film’s by-the-numbers special features. There’s Bringing Back Bourne (8:15), a brief overview of how the team reuniting for a new chapter; Bourne to Fight, a three-parter featuring Bare-Knuckle Boxing (7:55), Close Quarters (4:27), and, Underground Rumble (5:59); The Athens Escape (5:37); and the two-part Las Vegas Showdown which focuses on Convention Chaos (6:36) and Shutting Down the Strip (8:24). Overall, you get a sense of the scope and scale of the physical action but the lack of attention to theme and character is actually quite telling.