Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021)

The original 1984 Ghostbusters film is essentially revered by members of my generation. (Though within the last month I showed it to my teenage niece and nephew for the first time, their response was lukewarm, to them 'Ghostbusters' was no 'Back to the Future' or 'The Goonies'.) That film is very much an example of lightning in a bottle, a product of a very specific grouping of talented individuals at a specific place and time; attempts to recapture that magic on film have been wanting. 

The 1989 sequel is largely a beat for beat redo of the first film and now mostly ignored now, while the 2016 reboot with female leads generated huge backlash even before it was released. I frown on the misogyny that prompted much of that films premature condemnation, yet concur with the subsequent critical consensus that the movie turned out to be pretty bad. So my expectations for 'Ghostbusters: Afterlife' were guarded, even with the talented Jason Reitman, son of the original films director Ivan Rittman, directing and co writing. 

So now that I've seen it I must say I was surprised to find 'Ghostbusters: Afterlife' to be satisfactory. It's not great, it's not on par with the original film, but it is good and works better as a companion piece then 'Ghostbuster II'.

The plot concerns Egon Spangler's estranged daughter and her children inheriting an Oklahoma farm following the ghostbusters passing (actor Harold Ramis who played Egon passed away in 2014). The change of local from the big city and the young cast of 'junior ghostbusters' (thankfully the film does not use that phrase) is a nice mild twist on the urban thirty-somethings of the first film. 

The movie leans heavily on plot elements and homages to the original film, including Elmer Bernstein's memorable score. There were times when this was all a little much and I desired more originality. The ending lays the schmaltz on real thick. 

Yet I liked these characters, I liked that seating. The derivative elements were made to mostly work, I've gone back and forth on how much this movie ties into the story of the first one, and if they should have tried for a completely fresh story, but I get the comfort factor and its done well enough that at the end of the day it works, though under lesser hands it could have easily been a disaster. 

So yeah, Ghostbusters: Afterlife is a satisfying sequel, they've finally broke the curse. ***

The Vast of Night (2019)

 I really enjoyed this movie, it made what was old new again. The film it reminded me the most of is 'Close Encounter's of the Third Kind', and 'The Vast of Night' really does that kind of sense of awe alien movie better then any film since at least 'Contact'. 

I loved the late 1950's small town New Mexico setting, this movie has a just wonderful sense of atmosphere and of place, you even get a decent sense of the relative locations of things due to the long walk sequence near the beginning, and that incredible tracking sequence around mid way through.  

The 'Twilight Zone' homage sequences, I didn't hate them but I didn't love them, maybe mildly distracting with the fuzzy black and white. 

When the whole screen goes dark so you can just hear the caller on the radio, so unexpected, but it works. From the expansive visuals to nothing, like an alien eye expanding and contracting. 

The simple characters, how they feel true to the time an place. The social commentary is nicely subtle, it's not overly judging, it's showing you how things were. I love the way Mad Men would do that as well. 

I liked the lead girl, I thought she was a fine and interesting character, the radio guy I also liked, but he was more of a generic lead type then she was. 

A lot of the back story or implied backstory, that was neat. 

The whole idea of everyone being at the small town basketball game, and the way that was shot, just wonderful. 

How everyone know each other, that was just great. 

This is a movie that has long talkie sequences of people telling you stories not showing them, it would seem to go against all cinematic storytelling conventions, especially sci-fi, yet it worked. 

The ending worked for me to, completely set up, yet somehow I didn't see it coming.  

***

Finch (2021)

 The new Tom Hank's vehicle 'Finch' reminded me of a lot of movies while watching it, Wall-E, Silent Running, I Am Legend, The Road, The Martian, Twister, Cast Away, Rain Man, Nomad, Short Circuit, The Book of Eli, yet it never equals the sum of any of it's parts. A derivative uninspired work, and while Hanks gives a typically fine performance I simply don't want to see him a depressing post apocolyptic story. The film is 60% through by the time it really gets going, has only two sequences worth much of anything, and tries way too hard in pouring on the cheap sentimentalism at the end, it simply wasn't earned. Technically competent and little more. *1/2

Hawaii (1966)

 Epic film based on portions of James A. Michener's 900+ page epic about our then recent 50th state. It is essentially the story of how a missionary becomes a Christian. Arriving on the islands in 1819 with his wife (Julie Andrews) a very puritanical Max von Sydow comes in time to actually love the local people. He changes from trying to shape them into white folk, to trying to protect them from the same. Quite beautiful in both story and scenery, the film is also a shockingly harsh indictment of cultural genocide, especially given that this film comes out of 1960's Hollywood. I was very impressed. ****

The Warriors (1979)

 'The Warriors' is a rather stylized film about delegates from the various street gangs of New York, attending a big pow-wow at which a charismatic leader, who might have united them is assassinated. One gang, based in Coney Island called The Warriors is framed for this, and the film chronicles their desperate night flight 27 miles through the city to the safety of home. It's an unusual piece that I'm surprised a major studio green lit, but it worked out the film made $22.5 million box office off a $4 million budget. The only other film I could think of that was kind of like this was 1984's 'Streets of Fire', turns out they had the same director, Walter Hill. **1/2 

Local Hero (1983)

 Along with Danny Boyle, Bill Forsyth is that rare director who had success with films set in contemporary Scotland. Forsyth had a sleeper hit in 1981 with 'Gregory's Girl', a kind of Scottish proto- Napoleon Dynamite. As result of how well that movie did the director had a fair bit of added leeway in making his next project, he chose to tackle something that was then very much an issue in contemporary Scotland, the oil boom. 

Peter Riegert plays "Mac" MacIntyre, a mid level executive working at Knox Oil & Gas in Houston, Texas. "Mac" had some success the previous year negotiating oil leases in Sonora, Mexico, and that combined with his Scottish last name (though he later revels to a work friend that his ancestry is actually Hungarian and changed their name to MacIntyre upon immigrating, thinking it sounded more American) leads his bosses to send him to Scotland to negotiate the purchases of a small village, bay, and surrounding area for construction of a new refinery, and distribution point for oil coming from their rigs in the North Atlantic. 

In Scotland "Mac" is joined by a local Knox employee played by future Dr. Who Peter Capaldi. The two travel to the idyllic village of Ferness and meet various eccentric locals, most of whom are thrilled by the prospect of selling their land, making a bunch of money and moving on. But of course there is one stubborn and vital hold out. 

A charming film, full of charming sights and characters that cause "Mac", who had been living a very superficial life, to question what he's been doing with it. This is paralleled by a plot line concerning the corporate big boss Mr. Happer (Burt Lancaster) who travels to Ferness when negations, stall and finds this place might hold the key to personals dreams far beyond mere oil exploration. 

I really enjoyed watching this film and know that it is going to warrant return viewing. It's also inspired me to look into other of Mr. Forsyth's films, he had something to say, he was no one hit wonder. A kind, lightly melancholy Capraesque meditation on what really matters. ***1/2

Friday the 13th Part II (1981)

 I watched this because it was free on Prime. My experience watching the original 'Friday the 13th' last year was that it underperformed even my low expectations. As a result my expectations where even lower for the sequel, but were modestly exceeded. This movie I think knew what was more then the previous film, the pacing also improved, I am still surprised how slow the original film was. That all being said this ain't no good movie either. *1/2