"The Upside" Review: Solid Performances, Formulaic Story
The Upside is one of those films that tackle how two vastly different people’s lives can intertwine to help one another see the brighter side of life. The film is based off a true story and a remake of the 2011 French film The Intouchables. While the performances are solid, this version ultimately lands a bit flat.
Philip (Bryan Cranston) is a quadriplegic in need of a live in assistant. Dell (Kevin Hart) is an ex-con in search of employment. After Dell stumbles upon the job interview, Philip hires him as the worst candidate for the job in hopes that he might just kill him with his lack of experience. As the two get to know one another, they are called out on their excuses that they make for the cards that life has dealt them.
This film is certainly Hart’s film. When he’s in scenes, they come to life, and when he’s not the film’s energy is sucked out. As a comedian at the top of his game, this film is Hart’s vehicle that will help him crossover in being taken seriously as a dramatic actor. The interactions between Hart and Cranston are authentic and at times hilarious. Due to their blunt honesty with one another, we’re able to analyze life truths that resonate. Nicole Kidman turns in a subtly wonderful performance as Philip’s executive in charge of his affairs.
The issue with the film is that it’s full of beautiful but formulaic moments. These moments are loosely strung together with choppy start-stop pacing. Furthermore, it fails to pull you in and genuinely care for its main characters. You may appreciate Dell and Phillip’s relationship, but you don’t really feel the connection to them that is necessary for the film to soar.
If you’re looking for a feel good film to take grandma to see this weekend, this is it. However, this is a film that I’d suggest you wait to catch when it’s streaming. You’ll forget about it moments after leaving the theater.
Rating: C
"The Upside" Review
Based on a true story, The Upside is a film that is both unexpectedly hilarious yet humbling. Bryan Cranston plays a wealthy quadriplegic named Phillip and Kevin Hart is his caretaker, Dell. Both Cranston and Hart are an unstoppable duo on screen. The duo are no strangers to comedy which makes their interactions more genuine and comical. Their endearing relationship gives you hope for humanity. Alongside the serious moments, the comedy is well written and delivered with perfection.
The acting is great; the relationship between Dell and Phillip in the film seems genuine and playful. The actors are able to portray the writing in a beautiful way that exposes a different aspect of the relationship Dell and Phillip have (they are still friends to this day). In a way, both of the characters are outcasts of society; Phillip as a quadriplegic doesn’t often receive the respect he should, even in small interactions; Dell has a similar experience being formerly incarcerated and now looking for a job. Their relationship builds off of their differences and in result of their friendship growing, they come to find that they are very similar. This development alone is one of my favorite aspects of the film and it is the first reason to go and see The Upside. Cranston and Hart lead the film with great acting but one cannot overlook the talented performances of Nicole Kidman and Golshifteh Farahani as supporting actors as well.
The second reason to go see the film is for the writing, the comedy is innovative and edgy, especially with the quips that Dell and Phillip throw at each other. I found that some of the humor is so awkward and cringe-worthy, you can’t help but laugh. The comedy delivered through the acting carries the film as Bryan Cranston and Kevin Hart truly have a positive chemistry which makes it even better. Together the duo forces the audience to experience every emotion they’re experiencing, and they don’t hold anything back. Both of the characters go through significant change with each other and it is a beautiful process to see.
Alongside the writing and acting, the camera work is lovely and even whimsical. The director of photography, Stuart Dryburgh captures the film in a significant way; at times the cinematography reminded me of a painting, especially when the visuals are paired with dramatic moments. The director uses a technique with the cinematographer to expose bits and pieces of Phillip’s past through imaginative visual representations in a way that’s well executed. Joined with the drama and comedy within the film, the cinematography allows space when it is needed, the breathtaking shots are peaceful and meditative; it is almost as if the audience is supposed to feel the peace the characters do. These small decisions of the director and cinematographer makes the film stunning in a unique way.
Overall The Upside is great, it forces the audience to think differently about how to treat the outcasts of society and how much we take for granted on a day to day basis. If you wish to see a film that is action packed with explosions, this is not the film for you. However, if you wish to view the world differently and open your mind to new perspectives, this is a wonderful film to watch. I highly recommend this film if you are familiar with the actors, they certainly hold true to their acting reputations. See The Upside in theaters while you still can, the lovely visuals are made to be seen on a big screen.
Grade: A
"Night School" Review: A Lesson in Bad Comedy
Let’s start with an alliteration. Night School begs for comedy charity chuckles. Let’s do the math. Kevin Hart plus Tiffany Hadish doesn’t make comedy gold. Now, let me take you to school.
Directed by Malcolm D. Lee, Night School follows the story of Teddy Walker (Kevin Hart), a high school drop out who has used his quick wit and charm to get ahead in life. He has it all. His girlfriend Lisa (Megalyn Echikunwoke) is a beautiful businesswoman, and the porsche he drives is equally elegant. The only problem is he’s maxing out on his credit cards to keep her impressed and in his life. After a freak accident following his proposal to Lisa, Teddy finds himself unemployed and unable to keep up the facade. So he decides to go to night school in an effort to become a financial analyst.
From there we’re introduced to the ragtag bunch of night school students in Teddy’s class. There’s the stressed and under-appreciated stay at home mom Theresa (Mary Lynn Rajskub), woke brother Jaylen (Romany Malco), former jock Mackenzie (Rob Riggle), high school teen queen Mila (Anne Winters), wanna be pop star Luis (Al Madrigal), and in confinement convict Bobby (Fat Joe). They’re all led by an underpaid teacher named Carrie (Tiffany Haddish).
The problem with the film is that at the script level its thinner than a sheet of paper. With six names on the writing credits you would think that someone would say, “hey, let’s make sure the stakes are more than our main character has to hide educating himself from his fiance.” There is no major emotional investment for the viewer to take the ride on this unlikely story. Yet, the six writing credits may explain why the story goes into so many different directions. It’s a caper comedy, teen comedy (equipped with choreographed dance moves from a group of students during a prom scene), buddy comedy, and more. So we’re forced to hope that the banter amongst the characters will be worth the entry. It’s not.
You start out wanting to see more of Haddish, but quickly realize she’s underused in her role. Hart works too much and brings nothing new to this character. So the lesser names in the ensemble wind up bringing more creativity to the mix. Romany Malco is almost unrecognizable as Jaylen and he brings a full character to the screen and some good moments of humor. Even though Fat Joe can’t act, you can tell he was being himself as the Skyped in convict, and it makes for some good bits. In fact, the small details in the film are worth paying attention to. I’ve compiled my top five things to look for if you dare to go:
1) Fat Joe’s graduation jewelry.
2) The names of the sodas at Christian Chicken where Teddy works. Names like Ruth’s Beer and Coconut Christ Water were pretty funny.
3) How (Jaylen) Romany Malco brushes his hair. If you pay attention to what he’s doing, you’ll see it’s pretty funny.
4) Poor editing during the film. There are more than a few times when an action takes place from one angle and then the same thing happens again in the very next cut. (Haddish hitting Hart in the Christian Chicken parking lot for one.)
5) The terrible dub-overs in the film. There were plenty of times where you wonder if the audio is out of synch. My theory is that to keep the rating PG-13, certain dialogue had to be changed. There is a specific moment where heffer is used instead of the clear f-bomb Haddish actually said.
Overall, this film is a great pitch concept and nothing more. Kevin Hart and Tiffany Haddish are talented comedians at the top of their game, but this experiment didn’t produce a great outcome. I stayed awake through the end in order to write this review, but the man snoring extremely loud in the last ten minutes of this twenty-minutes-too-long movie provided more laughs and conversation amongst the audience than the movie itself. Save your money on this one!
Rating: D
"Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie" Review
Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie is the type of film that makes me go look up the property it’s based on. Not because I was enamored with the film, but because I want to know why this film was made. The children’s novel sold more than 70 million books worldwide! Unlike some of the animated features that share the same space, you have to dig through the sophomoric humor to get to the heart of the film but it’s there. With that said, I’m not sure the book should have been put on the big screen.
George (Kevin Hart) and Harold (Thomas Middleditch) have been besties ever since they heard their kindergarten teacher say Uranus. Since that moment, they spent as much time together as possible, telling jokes, pulling pranks, and creating comic books about a superhero they’ve created called Captain Underpants along the way. Their jokes and pranks never go unnoticed by teachers (who are usually on the receiving end), students, and especially their principal, Mr. Krupp (Ed Helms). Their latest prank pushes Mr. Krupp over the edge and he decides to separate the two.
With the doom of their friendship on the horizon, George acts quickly and uses his ring to hypnotize Mr. Krupp. And it works! He believes he’s Captain Underpants. His mission, is to put fun back in the school. Too bad Professor Poopypants (Nick Kroll) has other ideas as a dastardly villain in disguise as a teacher.
The film feels exactly like it should if an elementary school boy wrote it and a top notch animation house produced it. (No offense to writer Nicholas Stoller.) The narrative quickly derails, comes back and goes off in other directions much like a conversation with an elementary student, but traded for side bits within the film. It’s smart enough to know what it is and make self deprecating jokes. It has a great underlying theme of how friendship can overcome all.
Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie might be a good time for youngsters, diehards who read the novel, and adults who still get a kick out of fart jokes. If that kind of thing doesn’t float your boat, then this movie is not for you. If anything, the film might just take you back to your childhood and what the definition of best friend meant then.
Rating: C
"Central Intelligence" Review
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Kevin Hart team up to save the world in Central Intelligence. It’s a shoot ‘em up, buddy comedy that seems far too familiar with decent laughs sprinkled in. In fact, if Twins, 48 Hours, and Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion met up at the bar to discuss making a film, Central Intelligence would be the outcome!
In high school, Bob Stone (Johnson) was picked on and bullied, while Calvin Joyner (Hart) was the man on campus. (It should be noted the CGI work on the two stars to make them look younger is pretty dog on good.) Twenty years later, Calvin is an accountant, married to his high school sweetheart Maggie (Danielle Nicolet), but that may be the only accomplishment he’s had in life post high school that he is proud of. After getting a Facebook friend request by Bob Stone, Calvin decides to meet with him on a whim.
The meeting reveals Bob to be a handsome, muscle bound man with a few lethal fighting skills under his belt. No longer a nerd, Bob seems to have a low key infatuation with Calvin for sticking up for him in high school. As the film moves forward, Calvin quickly gets wrapped into the mysterious world of Bob, the CIA, and his forensic accounting skills are needed to save the world. All of these revelations are made by the time of their high school reunion the next night.
The film has its laugh out loud moments, with hilarious cameos from some of the best in the business. While The Rock is a great actor and he commits to his role in this film, the man child in a giant’s body (especially compared to Hart) feels a little forced at times, thus making Bob seem more like a caricature. At the same time, the film's underlying spy duality keeps the audience guessing as to what's what and who is who as the Rock flips between moments of the nerd in a stud's body to CIA action hero star we're accustomed to seeing. Hart playing the straight man in this buddy comedy is a change that works to let him show his acting chops while still hitting his unique, spastic physical comedy.
Directed by Rawson Marshall Thurber, Central Intelligence is a popcorn flick probably best served for Netflix and chill. You’ll laugh while you’re watching, but forget that you saw it by the end of the year. While saving the world takes a little Hart and a big Johnson in this film, me saving you some money this weekend just took you reading this review!
Rating: C+
