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Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Film Review: A Plot You Didn’t Like Doesn’t Equal No Plot

Posted on May 4, 2016 Written by Pinar Tarhan

batman_v_superman_dawn_of_justice_poster — Image via http://www.joblo.com.

I watched Batman vs. Superman, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Now, I get where the unsatisfied portion of comic fans comes from. It’s natural to expect loyalty to the source material. If I loved a book and they fundamentally changed things, I am bound to refuse to watch the result.

I saw the first scene from Runaway Jury, and I ran away. It wasn’t a bad scene. The movie has a great cast. It was based on one my favorite books: John Grisham’s Runaway Jury, and that was the problem. They changed what the main trial was about, and I lost my appetite. After loving Batman v Superman despite the negative reviews (mostly about how it defies who Batman and Superman are), I will shut my mouth and watch a well-rated movie with a cast I love. I will forget about the book, and then I will come back and talk about it.

But as I haven’t read the comics, I don’t have anything to compare the movie to other than the Batman and Superman movies I have seen, and I’ve seen them all apart from the one starring George. I have enjoyed Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer and Christian Bale as Batman. And I totally loved Affleck too.

I grew up with Christopher Reeve’s Superman movies, but Henry Cavill did a good job in Man of Steel. Now, I would have enjoyed that film more if the battle scene and sounds were edited better and cut shorter. But overall, it was a fun experience. And movies cast like that help if you are a total movie geek and don’t mind mainstream stuff. Russell Crowe as Superman’s father, Michael Shannon as the main villain, Kevin Costner as the stepfather, Diane Lane as the stepmother? Oh, and Amy Adams is Louis Lane? That was a decent experience.

Some people hate director Zac Snyder as a principle, whether or not they liked 300. I don’t like 300, but Watchmen was a dark, decent and engaging film.

Then there are the massive directorial style differences between Snyder and Nolan. So everyone knew the movies were inevitably going to be different.

Now, there’s a line I heard over and over. Sometimes it was uttered to harshly criticize the movie. Sometimes to state the obvious in a neutral way: “This wasn’t like a Batman movie. Or a Superman movie.” Exactly!

It was a Batman vs. Superman movie. It had them both. It had a more depressed Batman (although Bales’ Wayne/Batman was no ray of sunshine either), and a Superman who was having a bit of crisis. What sane being, alien or human, would feel comfortable with being adored and feared by the masses? When his fathers are dead, and his girlfriend is constantly in danger to her personality and job? And now he has a vigilante out for him, whose psychology isn’t that far off when you consider his childhood, history with villains and most recently, the death and distraction he witnesses in the beginning of the movie? (Sure, letting us know Robin was dead would make it even more rational, but I do love Batman overreacting and being irrational. It suits the character.)

As far movie having no plot/ characterization, that’s ignoring a lot of elements. You may not like it. You might find some clichés although I can’t really think of superhero movies without them.) but tell me how this is not having a plot:

(There might be spoilers. And so many things happened, I might confuse the order of stuff and leave some things out.

About two years after Superman’s fight with, and victory against, General Zod, United States is polarized about Superman’s existence. People are bothered by his powers, and how he doesn’t answer to anyone. On the other hand, people he saved or people who witness his saves are more fans/worshippers.

One person who’s extremely mad is Bruce Wayne. He’s seen the destruction the battle has caused. He lost many employees. He saw the panic, fear and pain with his eyes. Of course, a saner person would blame it on Zod, but our Batman is prone to extreme reactions. (Didn’t he hide away for years in a previous movie?) So he obsesses over how to beat (and kill) Superman while increasing the violence in his vigilante ways.

Rich and psychotic businessman Lex Luthor wants to destroy Superman for his own twisted reasons and uses the government’s doubts and his resources to get his hands on a batch of kryptonite.

Distracting Wayne a little is a gorgeous woman who seems to be rich socialite of sorts and “steals” the info Wayne wanted to steal from Lex Luthor.

And there’s the fun irony that Clark Kent, Superman’s journalist persona, wants to go after Batman as he sees him as an uncontrolled vigilante who doesn’t care about collateral damage or ethics when going after criminals.

In their distracted states and crises, neither hero sees what Luthor is up to until it’s too late. Will they see they are on the same side before it’s too late?

I still left a lot of details out, but basically you have a decent plot with a solid antagonist who is working on unleashing a more dangerous creature just in case, a superhero trying to fit in and shaking off Bruce Wayne, a US senator (Holly Hunter) who undermines and underestimates a disturbed genius, and of course two protagonists who have to deal with a lot of demons, action and each other.

Yes, it’s not a Batman movie or a Superman movie. But it’s a great hybrid with a lot to offer if you don’t go into the movie expecting it be loyal to comic books.

It does however have more realistic superheroes in the sense that they have problems like the rest of us. Maybe it’s not money or health, but they grapple with who they are, what they should be doing and their levels of humanity.

And Jeremy Irons’ Alfred is like a combination of Michael Cain’s Alfred and Morgan Freeman’s Fox: butler, scientist and life coach with a snappy sense of humor. Frankly, I would watch a lot more Batman movies with that Alfred.

All in all, I think Batman v Superman Dawn of Justice is the Keanu Reeves of movies. People are polarized. As with Keanu Reeves, I like what we get.

What do you think?

PS Bang2write’s awesome Lucy V Hay has a great e-book on the movie. She basically evaluated the script. After reading it, I do agree with some of the scenes being redundant like the nightmares.

Pathology: Review for The Twisted, Irrational and Entertaining Thriller

Posted on January 29, 2016 Written by Pinar Tarhan

pathology movie poster — Image via movieheritage.com

Before going into the plot summary and my review, I should first give you a “suspension of disbelief” warning. Most movies require it to a certain extent, but gory thrillers tend to need more than other flicks.

In Pathology, you are supposed to be okay with the idea of a group of borderline genius doctors committing murders for fun while seducing a more rational, seemingly nicer doctor into their games. If you are good, let’s move on.

And disregard the horror tag on IMDB. There’s nothing scary about the film. It’s, however, bloody, twisted and disturbing. But of course an R-rating has its limits (as opposed to NC-17 or unrated), so if you can handle a lot of blood and some autopsy scenes, you should be fine. (I was less freaked by this film’s gore than Tarantino’s typical blood baths, just to give you an idea.)

Pathology Plot Summary

Smart and seemingly strait-laced Ted Grey (Milo Ventimiglia) joins a group of brilliant yet arrogant pathologists who seem to dislike him at an instant. But soon, their leader Dr. Gallo (Michael Weston) takes an interest in Grey as Grey is intrigued by this tight, weird and generally obnoxious group. As he spends more time with Gallo, he realizes they are playing a game of “who commits the most original and untraceable murder,” and they seem to be only killing people who commit atrocious crimes. But when Grey joins the game and starts sleeping with Juliette (Lauren Lee Smith), who seems to be sexually open to anyone and yet is “owned” by Gallo, (according to Gallo), things soon get out of hand.

With drugs, murder and sex wrecking havoc on his life, how can Grey get out of this?

Pathology Review

As for as murder-based plots go, I liked that the movie focuses on the how and flat out gives you the motive. You know who did it and why. You get to learn how. But you don’t have a clue who will be next. You don’t know if someone’s lying. And you really don’t know when/if Grey’s morals will kick in.

As far as unrelatable and unlikeable protagonists go, Grey is pretty up there. He seems okay enough in the beginning: he’s successful, decent and nice most of the time and a loving fiancée (Alyssa Milano) until Gallo helps reveal his darker side, and then he’s only a human being if you compare him to Gallo and gang, which isn’t saying much.

The plot, acting and soundtrack are solid. There were some scenes that didn’t need to be there, and some parts that felt either irrelevant or repetitive. It could have been shorter than it’s 95 minutes and more engaging.

But as I said before, once you get your head around the premise, it is a fun, albeit flawed ride. It has some clichés, but they are outdone by some decent surprises. And I quite enjoyed the ending.

If you like twisted movies but have a limit on how much gore and weird sex scenes you can take (the sex scenes are weird when you consider the location and timing, as well as the blood involved), give this a go.

Written by Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor (credited as Neveldine and Taylor). Directed by Marc Schölermann.

Trivia:

Supposedly it’s similar to the German movie Anatomy, but I haven’t seen it, so I can’t comment on that. However it’s supposed to be more disturbing, so brace yourselves if you want to check it out.
House fans will recognize Weston as Cuddy’s boyfriend from later seasons.

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Navigating the Heart starring Tim Matheson and Jaclyn Smith

Posted on October 25, 2015 Written by Pinar Tarhan

Navigating the Heart starring Tim Matheson and Jaclyn Smith.Image via ice poster.com.

How I love a good old-fashioned romance film with a happy ending!

Well, if you want a more expensive, sadder yet less realistic seaman falls in love with a city woman film, watch Message in a Bottle. It has Kevin Costner, Paul Newman and Robin Wright, and is beautiful to look at. It’s also nicely shot, directed and acted. The problem? It’s based on a Nicholas Sparks movie.

Now, I’m not against Nicholas Sparks. I actually like how he creates bestselling romances, and that they are made into films where I get to see a lot of actors and actresses in sweet, escapist roles. My problem is with Nicholas Sparks’ endings.

But Navigating the Heart is more me because well, there are no kids, dead or cheating spouses, hidden identities that will cause huge fights, terminal illnesses or deadly accidents.

It sure has a lot of arguing stemming from the early proud and prejudiced moments of the two main characters, who will later discover that they actually have a tone in common and hell of a chemistry.

Okay, I should tell more about the plot at this point. Here we go:

Manhattan magazine’s well-known writer Edith (Jaclyn Smith) isn’t happy with the direction the magazine’s taking and grudgingly accepts an assignment on the high prices of salmon. Heading from Manhattan to a small fishing village in Ottawa would causes the expected culture shock, but things get more unpleasant when she meets handsome yet grumpy fisherman John Daily (Tim Matheson). While he is loved by everyone there, he’s not at all in the mood for a know-it-all reporter who’s after a superficial story.

And if she wants the best story, she will have to find a way to survive a few trips on John’s boat without killing him.

But while these two think the other one is insufferable, nature decides to throw in a deadly storm and a leak to make matters worse.

And this time, what doesn’t kill you, can make you fall in love.

Navigating the Heart movie — Navigating the Heart image via timewarnercable.com.

Of course there’s the difference of lifestyles and locations, but things might not be as complicated as they initially seemed…

You might very well hate this movie if you’re not a romantic. But even as someone who doesn’t like eating fish and can’t imagine herself on a fishing boat, it became one of my favorite romances.

Because when you want to feel good, you might need some clichés.

It also helps if you like Tim Matheson. (I really do.)

Inspired by a true story, 2000 TV flick Navigating the Heart was directed by David Burton Morris, written by Cathleen Young and Lee Guthrie. Based on the novel Fishing with John by Edith Iglauer.

PS If you want something depressing, darker and with sci-fi, try Another Earth. You can read about it my writing blog. But worry not! I warn before the spoilers come.

The Disappearance of Alice Creed Review: A Fun, Low Budget Kidnapping Thriller

Posted on July 18, 2015 Written by Pinar Tarhan

For a movie junkie, nothing quite beats the feeling of delaying sleep because you don’t want to take a break from what you’re watching.

The Disappearance of Alice Creed was one fun ride. But of course, expectedly from a kidnapping plot, it had its uncomfortable and disturbing moments.

Let’s go over the plot for this British flick:

Two ex-convicts, Vic (Eddie Marsan) and Danny (Martin Compston), kidnap Alice (Gemma Atterton) – the daughter of a rich guy – after some very thorough planning. They bring her to the secure location, lock her up and make sure she doesn’t have any opportunities to escape.

And while a two-man team has its advantages, it presents a set of weak points, especially when kidnapper Danny seems to be attracted to the beautiful victim. And while we think we know what’s gonna happen from the trailer (and our vast experience of watching kidnapping movies), we’re still in for a couple of surprising (and enjoyable) twists.

Sure, the movie doesn’t provide answers to every question the twists cause, but it does entertain from the first point to the next.

The ending is also satisfactory though a different outcome wouldn’t have disappointed either. Let’s say the ending is the least surprising part.

Written and directed by J. Blakeson, this 2009 flick is also a great study for screenwriters and filmmakers who want to write a solid low-budget action/thriller.

Now that I’ve offered my non-spoiling two cents about the film, let’s move to the fun bit for those who have seen the movie or just don’t mind spoilers:

The Kidnapper and Victim Mistakes from The Movie

Kidnapping someone one of them is attracted to. Sure, the other one isn’t even aware this is a possibility, but why take the risk of potentially thinking with your you know what?
Kidnapping an ex. Again, Vic doesn’t know this is even possible. But how dumb could Danny get?
Kidnapping with someone they’re intimate with. No explanation necessary. 😀
Humiliating the victim for more than necessary. Sure, she will hate you and fear you, but were the naked pictures and peeing without a bathroom really necessary? They made their plans easier, only for the short run. Danny’s plan B backfired because of the extra humiliation factor too.
Not trying to go all Liam Neeson when you’re kidnapped instead of kicking and screaming for no good. You know, count. Just count so that you can give the police an estimate of where you are.
Say who kidnapped you, for crying out loud! Again, it would make their job easier, and in this case, possible. You know the dude’s identity, and the name of the other one!
Don’t piss the kidnappers off. Sure, you can inflict a second of pain and irritation, but it’s not really worth it, and it will come back to bite you in so many ways.
Make them throw the key to you. Always make them keep the distance.

Have you seen The Disappearance of Alice Creed? What did you think? What are some of your kidnapping-plotted movies?