Sequels and video game movies…sigh. Oh, June. You used to offer so much more! There are some interesting indies opening in town this weekend, and hey, you can still check out The Lobster!
The Conjuring 2
The thing that made James Wan’s 2013 ghost story The Conjuring so effective – more than the solid cast, more than the tense atmosphere, more than those hideous Seventies fashions – was Wan’s use of practical effects.
That woman on top of the wardrobe?! Terrifying!
So, what’s wrong with C2? A few things.
The story never feels particularly cohesive – more like a series of vignettes strung together. Because of this, characters never seem fully formed, relationships feel forced, and supernatural clues and plot twists border on the nonsensical.
There are two demonic images in the film – both excellently chosen nightmare images from childhood (mine, anyway) – but some video game editing and CGI identify them quickly as movie magic, leeching their power.
Most importantly, there’s no inspired, memorable, terrifying jump scare. Wan is an absolute master of the spooky longshot, the creeping camera, but in this film’s predecessor those unendurably tense spans were punctuated by some of the best spook house scares in recent memory. Think clapping hands.
Though there are some startles and above-average scares, there’s nothing to elevate this film above mediocrity.
Grade: C
Now You See Me 2
Director John M. Chu’s Now You See Me 2 tells us “the best tricks work on many levels,” while the film itself works best when it digs no deeper than embracing the fun of its own ridiculousness.
Billionaire Walter Mabry (Daniel Radcliffe) wants the Four Horsemen to rectify the financial pain their last gig caused him by stealing an incredibly powerful new piece of computer technology. It all gets much more convoluted, weaving in returns for both Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman, and serving up the coup de grace of Woody Harrelson, in an “old man pubes” wig and fake teeth, going full McConaughey to play his own twin brother.
By that point, you’re not far from the unhinged universe where John Travolta and Nicholas Cage exchange faces, so none of the preposterous plot turns in Ed Solomon’s script should be taken too seriously.
Enjoy the flash and likable cast, stop wondering why the title isn’t “Now You Don’t,” and give in to the moments of over-the-top fun that Now You See Me 2 brings center stage.
Just don’t expect anything of substance behind the curtain.
Grade: C
Warcraft
Warcraft is a medieval fantasy with Orcs, dwarves, elves, bearded magicians – basically it’s a movie based on a series of video games that amount to little more than Lord of the Rings fan fiction. But if anyone can turn this into a worthwhile cinematic experience, it’s Duncan Jones. Moon (2009) and Source Code (2011) proved his mettle with fantasy and action, and showed him to be an inventive craftsman.
Though Warcraft proved too great a task, even for him.
Gaudy CGI and caricatured performances rob the film of any chance to pull the viewer in – the video game itself looks about as realistic. Weak writing by Jones and Charles Leavitt (who’s never written anything worth seeing) doesn’t help matters. The plotting itself just makes you sad – so much time is wasted setting up sequels that will never, ever happen.
Unfortunately for Jones, it is impossible not to draw comparisons to Peter Jackson’s trip to Middle Earth. To say Warcraft pales by comparison is like saying American politics has taken an odd turn.
No, no. It’s gone horribly, hideously wrong.
Grade: D-
Also opening in Columbus this weekend:
- BE SOMEBODY (PG)
- THE FINAL MASTER (NR)
- FROM THIS DAY FORWARD (NR)
- HOLY HELL (NR)
- HOW TO LET GO OF THE WORLD… (NR)
- MAGGIE’S PLAN (R)
- OUR LAST TANGO (NR)
- RABIN, THE LAST DAY (NR)
- RANGE 15 (R)
Reviews with help from George Wolf.
Read more from Hope at MADDWOLF and listen to her weekly horror movie podcast, FRIGHT CLUB.
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