Film Review: “The Suicide Squad”

DC brings a Gunn to a knife fight

The Suicide Squad
One of six (or seven) team poses in the movie.

DC, which obviously stands for Demolition Crew due to their incessant need to destroy CGI buildings in each film they release…. Oh, wait, it stands for Detective Comics? Ah. Well, in that case, they have a lot of repairing to do, both to their brand and to their movies, which have suffered from every production snafu, PR mess, and critical upheaval possible in the last decade. With the exception of the first Wonder Woman film in 2017, and delightful detours with Shazam! and Birds of Prey, the headlining slate of Batman, Superman, and Justice League-related films have been atrocious, including 2016’s Suicide Squad. Thankfully, The Suicide Squad (emphasis on ‘The’) pulls no punches as it blows up any trace of the previous film’s legacy. It’s a fun movie that requires no homework; you can enter the theater a DC expert or fresh-faced, and Suicide Squad provides a gory good time at the movies. Sure, it’s too long. Sure, its middle third is boring, forgettable, and obnoxiously sullen. Nevertheless, Director James Gunn has infused a sense of silly violent fun that studio rivals over at Marvel have been employing for over a decade, and which DC has been incapable of featuring until now (note: Birds of Prey was actually a better, under-appreciated righting of the ship). The Suicide Squad is not perfect, but it’s a helluva good time.

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Film Review: Ratchet and Clank

Like a bunch of cut scenes without any of that fun video game stuff

RatchetClank
Ratchet and Clank star in the movie based on their popular and long lasting video game series.

The Ratchet and Clank series of video games have long contained the best cut scenes and voice acting of any games of their type. From the very first game on the PS2, the strong characterizations and fun action have made for consistently entertaining games with real character arcs for both our main characters and some of the side characters as well. So how do you condense hundreds of hours of story into a 90-minute animated film?

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Film Feature: Chad’s Top 10 Films of 2015

Spinning Platters film critics present their top 10 films of 2015

Spinning Platters film critics Carrie Kahn and Chad Liffmann each share their ten favorite films of 2015. Here is Chad’s list, presented in reverse-awesome order. Also check out Carrie‘s top ten list!

10.) Cinderella
Lily James emerging from her pumpkin-turned-coach.
Lily James emerging from her pumpkin-turned-coach.

A lack of the classic Disney song ‘Cinderelli!’ didn’t prevent Kenneth Branagh’s live action version of Cinderella from reaching magical heights. After a plethora of disappointing “re-imaginings” and “discover the true story” versions of classics — Maleficent, Alice in Wonderland, Oz the Great and Powerful — it was time for a movie to play it straight, and Cinderella did just that. With amazing performances from Lily James and Cate Blanchett and beautiful costumes and set designs, Cinderella (hopefully) represents the first in a new series of live action Disney remakes that stick to the strong source materials without egregious silly additions. (Read my full review of Cinderella here.)

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Film Review: Creed

Rocky franchise not yet down for the count: Coogler’s newest entry invigorates series

Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone, l.) gives some pointers to his old friend Apollo Creed’s son, novice boxer Donny (Michael B. Jordan, r.).

Ryan Coogler, who grew up in Oakland and Richmond, was an unknown filmmaker with just a few shorts under his belt when he became the toast of Sundance in 2013, winning both the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award for his very first feature, the Bay Area-centered Fruitvale Station. The film went on to garner 52 award nominations and 38 wins, and now, just two short years later, Coogler is at the helm of the seventh movie in one of the most renowned, revered film franchises in cinema history: Rocky. Fortunately, Coogler proves his Sundance success was no fluke, as his second feature and the newest Rocky film, Creed, maintains the spirit of its predecessors while bringing fresh energy and depth to the storied series.

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