Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping Review

Hey now, you're a pop star---Andy Samberg as egotistical music icon Conner4Real in Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping
                 In 2007, The Lonely Island, a group of incredibly talented performers made up of Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone, made Hot Rod, a shockingly funny comedy that tanked at the box office but found the fan base it deserves on home video and cable. Now comes their next film, Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, a film that made me laugh so hard so often, I feared my jaw dropping off spontaneously multiple times during my screening.

                 This is a slam dunk of a mockumentary about Conner4Real (Samberg,) an arrogant, egotistical, maniacal pop star who leaves his band, The Style Boyz to pursue a solo career. He becomes successful, with former band mate Owen (Taccone) playing as his DJ and other former band mate Lawrence (Schaffer) out of the picture. Conner even has a manager (Tim Meadows) and many others who act as his confidence boosters. However, his newest album doesn't connect with audiences and through a series of shenanigans, he even becomes hated on a personal level by many people. With everything looking down, Conner needs to find a way to revive himself.

                     What really, really, really works here is Samberg. This is definitely his movie. I mean that not only in the fact that he completely owns this role but also in that if you are not sold on him yet, this is not the film to win you over. For people like myself who love Samberg's style of humor, this is something to behold. He injects Conner with such arrogance that it's refreshing when the pop star shows his kind side and his delivery of a man who must be loved by everyone is consistently pitch perfect. As written and performed, this is likely to become a beloved comedy character. There is also a lot of clever  and hilarious stabs at the music business, from the fact that awards shows are taken too seriously to the fact that a lot of musicians will forever grasp onto that one hit to out of touch musicians who write "message songs" about issues that have already been resolved. All of these bits are done in a way that not only makes you laugh but also brings up some good points.

                          The mockumentary style is also very cleverly used. It provides a realism that makes the satire all the more hilarious. The fact that Conner4Real is presented, with a straight face, as a real person makes him even more absurd and funny, mostly because you know musicians like this do exist. Also, cameos from real musicians discussing him as if he influenced them is often very funny (although some more than others.)

                           The film does have a few problems, however. Although a good amount of the real life cameos are clever and funny, there are just too many. Just like in Zoolander 2, some of them just fall flat. It's not funny to simply say "look, it's celebrity A and they're right near celebrity B." There has to be context with the celebrity's role, which this film does often enough that it's disappointing when it really doesn't work for others. Also, not every single joke in the film sticks. Just like Airplane!, this film throws so many jokes at you, you're likely to find something that doesn't work for you. For me, a scene with the usually hilarious Maya Rudolph fell completely flat from start to finish. But the fact that I can only really think of one small bit that didn't work for me shows just how much works here.

                              The jokes stick too much and with such precision that it's impossible not to highly, highly, highly recommend. There are a few jokes that had me literally falling out of my seat from laughter. For me, a scene with Bill Hader and a running gag involving wacko paparazzi are the prime examples of that. It may not be a flawless film but I'd be shocked if Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping doesn't end up being the funniest and most clever film of 2016. Now I just hope The Lonely Island doesn't wait another nine years to release their next film!
(4 and 1/2 out of 5 Stars, The film is rated R for some graphic nudity, language throughout, sexual content and drug use.)

Born To Be Blue Review

Musically declined----Ethan Hawke as Chet Baker, the trumpet player who led a fairly miserable life in Born To Be Blue
                              Often times, biopics about musicians just don't work. Even more often, the answer as to why is very clear---they're too paint by numbers. Now comes Born To Be Blue, an incredibly inventive take on the life and downfall of Chet Baker from writer-director Robert Budreau. It features smart, layered performances from Ethan Hawke and Carmen Ejogo but it's the way in which Budreau introduces all tactics of stylistic storytelling that really elevates this material.

                                 The film follows Hawke as Baker in a very specific time of his life---when he's planning to make his huge comeback by starring in a film about his life, only to fall in love with co-star Jane (Carmen Ejogo), have the production be cancelled on a dime and fall back into his drug filled ways. Meanwhile, black and white flashbacks and inserts are used to thoroughly put the audience in the position of Baker.

                                      Hawke and Ejogo have instant chemistry, showing this real life couple as they probably were, through thick and thin and not looking back with any large regrets. However, Budreau also helps them out by cleverly telling the story of their relationship in a somewhat scrambled fashion. He doesn't show thing A happening then thing B happening and so on and so forth. Rather, Budreau will show chunks of their ups, chunks of their downs and put them together such so that there's not exactly a pattern to it all. This makes the emphasis on both sides of the coin all the more powerful. As well, Budreau shows that he has clearly done his homework by filling the story of Baker himself with all sorts of personal viewpoints. He really puts the audience inside the mind of Baker. Whether every little thing he says about Baker is 100% accurate is up for question (there's a few moments that feel exaggerated for dramatic purposes, as they often are) but knowing a lot about this story prior to seeing the film, I can certainly say he does all he can to be as accurate as possible and doesn't betray the troubles he went through.

                                             A few pacing problems aside, the film magnificently delivers on everything you hope to have seen. By the end of the film, you will also be amazed by what Hawke and Ejogo have both done. They have completely transformed into these characters, giving complete dedication to everything about who Chet and Jane were. Even with the missing front tooth and slick backed hair, Hawke especially never lets his portrayal of Chet go into caricature mode. He IS this person the entire time he's performing. This is an original, completely satisfying biopic wonderfully made by Budreau and crew and wonderfully performed by Hawke, Ejogo and the supporting players around them. It's a must see for anyone who is fascinated by Chet Baker's story or just likes music in general.
(4 and 1/2 out of 5 Stars, The film is rated R for drug use, language, some sexuality and brief violence.)

Take Me To The River Review

Family hazard--Logan Miller as a teenager in a sticky situation and Robin Weigert as his concerned mother in Take Me To The River
                     On a scale of first time writers/directors, Matt Sobel falls somewhere in the "they should be in MENSA" class of filmmakers. Right off the bat, he makes Take Me To The River, an incredibly assured, absolutely riveting drama that is much more than first meets the eye. While it may seem like very little happens here (especially by the standards of a traditional Hollywood film,) I dare anyone to watch this through anything but splayed fingers and increasingly sweaty palms. There is tension that builds with every passing moment and by the end, you just kind of have to sit there, amazed at what you just saw.

                       The story--Ryder (Logan Miller) is a well meaning teenager going to visit his enormous family in the south. He wants to finally come out as gay to them but his mother and father (Robin Weigert and Richard Schiff) assure him that may not be the best idea. One day, nine year old cousin Molly (Ursula Parker) insists Ryder come with her to play in a barn. Molly comes back screaming with blood on her pants. This leads Molly's father, Keith (Josh Hamilton) to insist that Ryder go nowhere near Molly and reveal some dark family secrets.

                          While the film may not be for everyone (Sobel seems to go out of his way to make each and every revelation be incredibly far from literal,) there is an underlying sense of dread with every reveal. This is not only due to Sobel's amazing writing and direction but also because every performance is pitch perfect. Miller is excellent as the scared young man hiding while Hamilton makes a perfect counterpart, giving Keith the kind of terrifying grit that makes you forget you're watching a performance. Parker is convincingly innocent as Molly but also provides her with a fantastic undercurrent of conniving that gives the character the edge she needs. Meanwhile, Weigert and Schiff are excellent as the parents who know Ryder did nothing wrong but can't do anything about the situation. Weigert, in particular, steals practically every scene she's in. For 99.9% of the film, I completely forgot I was watching a film and that most of these actors are people I'm familiar with.

                             Special shout outs need to go to production designer Maggie Ruder and costume designer Rebecca Luke. It's often because of what they do more than the performances or the writing/direction (not to take anything away from those, though) that this world feels so lived in. The furniture, the barns, the clothes that people wear, make this film feel 100%  authentic, which makes this situation being presented all the more tense. Cinematographer Thomas Scott Stanton is also fantastic, giving even a shot of a field of grass a creepy atmosphere that makes the skin crawl in the best way possible.

                               I must also point out that the last 35 or so minutes of this film are the most wonderfully uncomfortable I've been in a theater in a long time. Although there is tension through the entire film, the last third is what really makes this story an inventive and masterful one that builds to an incredibly satisfying and very original conclusion.


                                 I doubt there will be many films better this year than Take Me To The River. It is essentially tied for first place on my favorite films of 2016 list as of now. This is a masterpiece of filmmaking that reminded me of why the smaller films are often the ones that most get under the skin. It's not for everyone but if you want to cringe and love it, then see this ASAP!
(5 out of 5 Stars, The film is Not Rated.)