BRICKS IN SPACE

MOVIE
The Lego Movie: The Second Part
Chris Pratt, Emily Banks, Will Arnett
Director Mike Mitchell
Review Ray Chan

The first Lego movie ended up being one of the most wholesome hits of 2014, to the surprise of many, so much so that a sequel to the adventures of optimistic everyman Emmett (voiced by Chris Pratt) always seemed a foregone conclusion.
    The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part has followed real time and is therefore set five years later, when things have changed dramatically for the residents of Bricksburg. The city has been laid to waste by confrontations with Duplo invaders from outer space, who wreck everything faster than the Lego legions can rebuild it.
    Everyone's now living in a dystopian setting, where all the characters have become dark and brooding, apart from Emmet, who is still happily singing about how “Everything Is Awesome”. But his demeanour is upset when the aliens from the Systar system end up taking girlfriend Lucy, Batman and all of Emmet's other friends, leaving him to find a way to save them and stop the so-called Our-mom-ageddon (the genesis of which is revealed later in the story).
    On his journey to the Duplo homeworld, Emmet teams up with Rex Dangervest, a galaxy-defending archaeologist, cowboy and raptor trainor, who's basically an amalgamation of Pratt's post-Lego roles. It's a clever tongue-in-cheek nod at the the contrast between Pratt's Parks and Recreations' good-natured Andy Parks character, and his more recent dabblings with dinosaurs and galactic guardians.
    We're introduced to a new batch of characters from Systar, including an upbeat vampire DJ, a sentient ice cream cone, and the Duplo queen Watevra Wa'nabi, who can transform into anything she wants. She introduces herself through the song "Not Evil", in which she dispels any ulterior motives on her part.
    Indeed, the movie contains more than its fair share of musical numbers. Some fall flat but others work well, such as "This song is gonna get stuck inside your head", which it certainly does.
    As in the first Lego film (and the Batman one, which earned bouquets for the brick Bats), writers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller excel in their unique brand of self-referential humour, with characters ranging from various DC heroes to Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Bruce Willis. There's also another real world lesson mirroring the events in the film, this time involving sibling rivalry and conveying the message of learning to get along with one another when things aren't really awesome.
    It's worth noting that the chief appeal of the Lego movies has always been in watching the plastic playthings come to life. It's a delight to see how the Lego builders face up to new modelling challenges, particularly with ephemeral constructs such as smoke, clouds, water and fire. In this movie, the futuristic Mad Max-style vehicles and intergalactic vessels certainly exemplify terrific imagination and do not disappoint in their creativity.
    As it is though, with its recycled jokes and revisited tropes, the film can't help but highlight the fact that the original movie was, well, indeed quite original. That being said, it does fit snugly into the franchise with heaps of heart and humour, although many of the references are so adult-themed that they will not be understood by the younger viewers, whom one would assume are the chief demographic this offering is directed at.


#thelegomovie2 

SIGHT FOR 'SAUR EYES

Movie
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom
Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard
Review Ray Chan

How much longer can the Jurassic franchise continue without becoming stale?
    When the dinos of Jurassic Park first roared on the screens in 1993, the novelty was fresh, and moviegoers flocked to view mechanical monsters as much as they were hoping for an entertaining story.
    But now, four sequels later, cynics can be forgiven for feeling that an invigorating shot in the arm is needed to rejuvenate the premise of reptiles gone wild due to human intervention.
    Fallen Kingdom, thankfully, offers that infusion of adrenaline. Returning writers Derek Connolly and Colin Trevorrow come up with a clever script that takes the majority of the action out of its usual element, adding a refreshing change of tack and scenery.
    Director J. A. Bayona, lately of A Monster Calls, manages to deliver effective scenes that are genuinely filled with terror and suspense, so vital in an era where viewers are jaded and bored with even the most sophisticated CGI effects.
    The story takes place three years after the events of Jurassic World, with a dormant volcano on the abandoned island of Isla Nublar, home of the jurassic sanctuary, threatening to bury the revived dinosaurs. 
    This catastrophic natural disaster compels former velociraptor trainer Owen (Chris Pratt) and Jurassic World manager Claire (Bryce Dallas Howard) to team up once more as they try to save the creatures. At least this time Claire doesn't run around in high heels.
    But instead of any hint of romance being rekindled, there’s little emotional investment in the pair, as they spend more time thwarting attempts by profiteers to auction off the island’s occupants as weapons of mass destruction, along with the potential of cloning them.
    Indeed, the film shines brightest when the spotlight falls on the real stars, the computer-generated godzillas, who roar and rampage longer and stronger than their predecessors.
    Bayona, Trevorrow and Connolly also showcase the dinosaurs in a different light, generating a sense of sympathy for the creatures as they struggle to exist in the present world. 
    Ultimately, the movie is a fun romp, but it does pose serious questions, challenging viewers to consider whether it’s worth saving species once extinct, reproducing them and returning them to modern times.
    The poignant moments where innocent dinosaurs are killed by the volcano’s lava further raises the point of this dilemma. 
    This angle is scantly touched on, although the conclusion of Fallen Kingdom indicates it could well be the focal point of the next chapter, already projected to be the final instalment in the series. 

@JurassicWorld

RETRO HITS FOR CURRENT HIT

This review was published in The West Australian dated May 3, 2017.

MOVIE
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
The Guardians: Peter Quill (Chris Pratt), Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista), Baby Groot (voiced by Vin Diesel), and Rocket Racoon (voiced by Bradley Cooper)
Director James Gunn

Review Ray Chan

With the enormous success of the first Guardians of the Galaxy (GOTG) movie, you can’t blame the moviemakers for sticking to the same formula of irascible humour and frenzied action in the much-anticipated sequel.

    The film boasts a prodigious chunk of both eye and ear candy, with returning director and co-writer James Gunn once again delving into his box of musical mementos from the 60s, 70s and 80s to serve as the soundtrack.

    This combination of well-crafted sequences and retro hits is demonstrated none more spectacularly than in the opening scene, when the team of five quarrelsome heroes take on an octopoid creature intent on attacking the world run by a race called The Sovereign, whom the guardians have been hired to protect, all to the background of ELO’s ‘Mr Blue Sky’.

    Despite defeating the alien, the group incurs the wrath of The Sovereign when the opportunist Rocket Raccoon decides to steal the very batteries the alien had aimed to acquire.

    Thus on the run again, the Guardians end up on a distant planet, deliberately lured there by celestial being Ego (Kurt Russell), who eventually reveals himself to be the father of Peter ‘Star-Lord’ Quill.

    Meanwhile, the harangued and hapless leader of The Sovereign, Ayesha, played wonderfully by Elizabeth Debicki, employs old Guardians adversary Yondu (Michael Rooker) and his band of mercenaries to capture our heroes. The dart-wielding buccaneer, who manages to capture Rocket and the sapling-sized baby Groot, is in turn betrayed by one of his lieutenants .

    Somewhat predictably, Ego is not the altruistic totem he claims to be, and it takes his pet empath, Mantis, to warn Peter and the team just as Rocket, Yondu, and Groot arrive, having teamed up to escape their prison, resulting in an all-out battle with both Ego and drones from the persistent Sovereign troops.

    In between the major confrontations are several episodes which help flesh out the movie further, such as Mantis’ readings of Peter’s affection for Gamora, Drax’s increasing acceptance of the team as a surrogate family to replace the one he lost to the villain Thanos, and Gamora’s conflict in dealing with her estranged sister Nebula.

    Indeed, family is a key theme of the storyline, with Peter coming to grips with finally finding his father, only to discover a more patriarchial link with another. The climax results in the sacrifice of one character in a moment sure to bring a tear to even the most jaded eye.

    Yet while the new film is clearly more expansive, more beautiful, and conveys a deeper insight into the characters, the level of intentional humour it employs can be jarring for some.

    The portrayal of Ayesha, in particular, is so over-the-top that moviegoers could be forgiven for thinking that GOTG2 is more of a comedy than a serious action offering.

    The credits are replete with teasers for the next instalment of GOTG, so make sure you stay till the very end. Comic book fans who are well-versed in the history of the Guardians will no doubt be thrilled at the possible inclusion of the original incarnation and the introduction of cosmic entity Adam Warlock.

    The obligatory Stan Lee cameo is perhaps the most significant of all his appearances in the various Marvel movies. Cast among a group of beings called The Watchers – whose sole purpose is to watch and record events throughout the universe – Stan references his previous characters, inferring that, perhaps, he has been portraying a Watcher in disguise all this time.