Arrival

Science fiction films tend to stratify into 3 categories, in my mind. The most commercially successful are really just adventure films set in a science fiction universe. These focus on action and fantasy, with futuristic or high-concept elements. They leverage classic story archetypes and superlative visuals to produce enjoyable escapism. Star Wars is the exemplar of this sub-genre, and although Star Trek aspires to greater scientific rigor, it belongs here too.
 
The second set similarly uses science as a backdrop for noir. These are the darker films, the dystopian adventures. They may not be as hopeful or as fun, but they tend to be more pointed. These films typically propound on a "what if" premise, plumbing the dingy depths of possibility. The best are often imaginative, twisted interrogations of human nature or society. This is Blade Runner, The Matrix, Dark City.
 
Finally, there are what I like to call "thinking" films. They are headier, and explore ideas that fundamentally change reality or alter our perception of it. They eschew spectacle and adrenaline to allow the audience to dive deep on a single premise. These films are typically smaller in focus, slower, often centering around the journey of a single character. Usually less accessible movies, Hamlet might opine that these "pleased not the million, (but) 'twas caviar to the general". I would count 2001, Interstellar, K-PAX and others as "thinking" sci-fi. Arrival fits securely in this group.
 
Arrival is a big budget take on a small story, focusing almost myopically on Louise, a linguistics expert who is conscripted to help communicate with extra-terrestrial beings who arrive suddenly above the Earth. Her journey of consciousness as she learns to comprehend the aliens serves as the plot, using the events of the story more as context than narrative. Director Denis Villeneuve deftly uses arresting visuals and frank, realistic sensibilities to relate a story that might otherwise be esoteric. It's fantastic elements are believable because of his steady hand, and even the few quibbles i had in hindsight melted away while watching the screen.
 
Arrival is an experience. It is thoughtful and beautiful, and has lingered in my thoughts since viewing.

9/10
Content is appropriate for teens

Silence

Martin Scorsese’s “Silence” is not entertainment. It offers neither thrill, nor escapism, nor joy. It is not education in that It does not aim to convey facts or impart knowledge. It is not as didactic as a homily, or as quizzical as a kōan. I imagine it is best described simply as art. That seems an apt label, since the exercise of watching “Silence” resembled to me the ponderous study of a painting in a museum. A painted masterpiece does not merely depict the beauty of its subject, but conveys also some aspect of truth. The nature of this truth is imbued partly by the master, and reflected partly from the observer who explores it. The Mona Lisa does not force you to understand why she smirks, nor does she demand that you respond in kind. Yet each man appreciates her differently, and each in his own way gleans a bit of her truth viewed through the lens of his own. Such is the nature and quality of “Silence”.
 
This is a sober, challenging film in every respect. The heady subjects of faith and doubt in the apparent absence of absolution are explored with an unflinching honesty. Scorsese refrains from tugging at heartstrings or welling up emotional responses through music. He refuses to tell the audience what to think, preferring instead to simply depict a story worth thinking about. The lack of emotional manipulation is stunning, almost unsettling. It is a masterwork of restraint in a milieu typified by pretension and hyperbole.

9/10
Content is appropriate for adults only

Star Trek Beyond (2016)

I think Abrams set the bar too high for me in 2009. "Beyond" is not bad, but it fails to recapture the magic that made the reboot so satisfying. The visual effects are still top notch, and the film delivers some wonderful eye candy, but it all just feels a bit hollow. It is as if they wanted to tell a smaller story, but were forced to shoehorn in a spectacle, and the resultant film does not quite work as either.

It needed more character moments, more for Sofia Boutela to do, and plot beats that land more like a drama, and less like a music video.

6/10
Content is acceptable for tweens

Ghostbusters (2016)

I really hoped this film would surpass its uninspired marketing campaign. Unfortunately, after seeing the movie I think better of the trailers. Ghostbusters is a lackluster mess with terrible writing and abysmal comedic timing. The four leads were likable, and performed well considering the sludge they had to work with. I especially liked McKinnon and Jones; they seemed to be coloring outside the lines a bit while everyone else was paint-by-numbers. Zach Woods was the only supporting cast member that brought anything funny, and I would have liked to see more of him in the film.

Sadly, the story amounted to a disjointed stream of gags that were marginally funny at best. None of the characters were relatable, and I was never invested in what happened to any them. The film had no heart, no grounding, nothing for the audience to grab a hold of and identify with. The bones for a good movie were there, but everything else was phoned in.

Perhaps Paul Feig simply cannot relate to a PG-13 audience. His usual rough edges and raw wit were gelded in this film, resulting in flat dialog from characters that barely resembled human beings at all. The jokes were such obvious pablum that I half expected a "laugh" sign at the bottom of the screen. Frankly, that might have helped.

3/10
Content is acceptable for young teens

Stranger Things

I am not a horror fan, and there is so much bad sci-fi television out there, that I initially steered clear of Stranger Things. What a mistake!

This show is richly atmospheric and engrossing, with characters you cannot help but invest in. It elevates and humanizes familiar tropes that might otherwise be formulaic. It kept surprising me with quality moments where I expected schtick, and resolved almost every thread with satisfying continuity.

The 80's setting was cheesy, but in the way that the 80s WERE cheesy - it felt lived in and palpably down to earth. Quality work, well suited to long form storytelling and eminently binge-worthy.

9/10
Scary at times, but otherwise appropriate for young teens.

The Get Down

I nearly bailed on The Get Down in the middle of episode 1, primarily because it did not deliver the serious reflection and historical commentary I had expected. The tone was too kitschy, too cartoonish, too Luhrman, frankly. The pioneers of hip hop had interesting things to say, and I was eager to listen. Instead, Netflix had produced a Blaxploitation Grease: garish and trite.

 

I kept watching because of the breathtaking magnetism of Herizen Guardiola and Justice Smith, and I am glad I did. While the show may not be all I had hoped, it has an undeniable heartbeat. It is less a story well told than a poem boldly spun. Better yet, it is a rhyme spat with feeling and heart and chest-thumping base. When I was able to let go of my intellectual critiques and simply feel the rhythms of joy, malaise, cynicism and aspiration, I found it thoroughly intoxicating. 

 

The Get Down does not need to be accurate or intricate or insightful to be enjoyed. It is not a story about music so much as it is, itself, music. It evokes an ineffable nostalgia for the hopefulness and smiling sophistry of youth. For all its faults, this quick 6 episode binge lightened my worries and got my toes tapping, and that was enough.

 

7/10
Not child friendly.

Luke Cage

Luke Cage should have been the knockout blow that followed 1-2 stunners Daredevil and Jessica Jones. Colter is quietly charismatic as the reluctant hero, foiled by confident, believable villains from Ali and Woodard. It is impossible to take your eyes off of Simone Missick’s Misty Knight, and Theo Rossi brings a creepy, unsettling menace to Shades. Harlem is a character here too, lived-in and strutting to an incredible musical backdrop.

For all of these qualities though, Luke Cage fails to impact like it should. Stretched at 13 episodes, the narrative meanders into worn-out tropes without depth or interest. Diamondback’s storyline is particularly over-the-top and out of place.

Finally, the hero is at times over-powered. It is hard to build tension when Cage is casually crushing pistols like an idle Superman. His potency felt false, like there should have been more struggle to his struggle. Perhaps my expectations were a bit too high. There is plenty to enjoy here, but I must lament a missed opportunity for greatness.

7.5/10
Definitely not for children.