Category: Movies

The maestro extraordinaire of big, dumb movies, Michael Bay, is with Pain & Gain. While it’s certainly not his biggest movie (hard to top space rocks and transforming robots), it’s definitely his dumbest…but in a good way. For a large portion of the flick, Bay’s manic directing style, hilarious performances, and sharp writing come together marvelously. The only problem is if you know about the real-life story Pain & Gain it based on. If you do, then having a blast with Mark Wahlberg and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson can be uncomfortable and morally questionable. Here are some spoiler-free thoughts on the movie.

Celebrating Villains: For those of you not familiar with Pain & Gain’s plot, it’s based on a true story about a group of criminal bodybuilders in Florida. From what I’ve read about the “Sun Gym Gang,” some of the facts in the movie are accurate, many situations are embellished, and most of the characterizations are way off. In the movie, they’re portrayed as bumbling idiots. While they were somewhat inept in real life, a lot of what they did was cleverly sinister.

The problem some people have with this movie is that the Sun Gym Gang murdered, tortured, extorted, and more. The movie can be lots of fun when you forget that it’s based on actual people and events, but when you remember, it’s hard not to feel guilty and/or uncomfortable. An action-comedy based on people that killed and performed grisly acts can be tough to enjoy.

A Perfect Blend…For a While: The first half of Pain & Gain works so well. Bay’s style is what it is — a frenetic pace that can be exasperating. This time around, it’s complemented (covered up?) by witty writing by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely. I loved the job those guys did with Captain America: The First Avenger and I’m looking forward to their work in the upcoming Cap/Thor movies. The three leads — Wahlberg, The Rock, and Anthony Mackie (Papa Doc from 8 Mile!) — handle the dialogue and Bay’s breakneck pace skillfully (more on them later).

After the villains’ first successful caper, the movie stalls out. When the tone gets more serious, the movie becomes less fun and somewhat tedious. It’s a strange case of the writing changing the feel of the movie. Throughout it all, the visual style is the same — lots of motion, dramatic cuts, fast pace, etc. When the writing focuses on comedy, like much of the first half, the flow is wonderful. When the second act develops and serious events happen later in the film, the blend isn’t as smooth.

Charming Idiots: The lead actors are so charming in their stupidity, but they’re also diverse in their idiocy. The Rock is particularly excellent as the moron that’s sensitive and religious…and also fond of snow (the snorting kind). The role was perfect form him; he got to show off his athletic and comedic chops, while showing a somewhat effeminate soft side. The character was in his wheelhouse and he knocked it out of the park.

I’ve been a fan of Mackie’s ever since 8 Mile and it was fun to watch him excel in this movie. The smartest idiot of the group, this character is loyal to his friends, has a predilection for plus-size women, and is suffering from…performance issues.

On paper, Wahlberg’s character is supposed to be the least likable, but Marky Mark’s boyish charm is tough to resist. His character is the idiot that doesn’t realize the full extent of his stupidity. There are times when Wahlberg is so charming that you find yourself rooting for him…and then you remember that he’s a murderous conman…and you feel guilty for rooting for him.

The Rock, Wahlberg, and Mackie were wonderfully entertaining idiots in this movie. It would have been easy to have them simply be a gang of fools, but thanks to good writing and great performances, each character displays a distinct form of idiocy.

Hey, Remember the ’90s?: I loved all the ’90s music and clothing used in the movie. It was a marvelously ridiculous decade and it’s no wonder that these marvelously ridiculous events happened back then. The Zubaz pants, Stryper references, and “Blaze of Glory” soundtrack brought me back that glorious time. Hmmmm, I wonder if Zubaz are ready an ironic comeback. That would be cool.

Bottom Line: I absolutely loved the first half of Pain & Gain. It was funny and thrilling. All three leads rocked, while Ken Jeong, Rebel Wilson, and Ed Harris were great in their smaller roles. Tony Shalhoub was fantastic as the unlikable victim. Bar Paly, I could stare at for hours (bonus photo below!). It all comes together so well…

…until the writing starts to flatten out and the tone becomes more serious. What starts out as a super-entertaining action-comedy becomes a mediocre and macabre movie in the second half. I definitely enjoyed Pain & Gain and it’s something I will definitely watch on cable. I’m certain that I’ll see it dozens of times on TV and I’m also certain that I’ll fall asleep or change the channel during the second half of the movie for the majority of those viewings.

One-line summary of Oblivion: Ethan Hunt, Nelson Mandela, and Jaime Lannister fight an evil space triangle.

What? That’s not enough to get you to see the movie? Fine, I’ll share some random thoughts on it so that you can see if the movie is worth your money. While I very much enjoyed Oblivion, I feel that it’s important to note that I had really low expectations going into last Monday’s screening. First, I’m still not over my disappointment with G.I. Joe: Retaliation, so I was kind of down on 2013 movies in general. Secondly, I read a couple of reviews that said that the movie was like a stereotypical high-school cheerleader: beautiful to look at, but not a lot there. While the movie’s cinematography was definitely superb, I also enjoyed the story and performances. Oblivion didn’t blow me away by any means, but I had fun with it as a sci-fi spectacle with a touch of romance. Now for some random thoughts (with minor spoilers)!

Story and Writing: Like so many sci-fi movies before it, Oblivion tells the tale of a post-apocalyptic Earth. Tom Cruise plays Jack Harper, a repairman who is stationed on Earth to oversee the mining of the planet’s remaining natural resources. He lives in a lovely sky studio (that looks like it was designed by Philippe Starck) with his lover and computer operator Victoria Olsen. The two believe that they’re on the final two weeks of their mission, counting down the days before they can go to Titan (Saturn’s largest moon) and rejoin the rest of humanity…but things aren’t what they seem.

Jack, being the naturally curious repairman that he is, believes that something is amiss and suffers from constant flashbacks (that may or may not have been the result of too many viewings of Sleepless in Seattle). Through a series of plot twists, he’s captured by the Scavengers. He believed that the Scavs are aliens that destroyed the Earth, but in reality they’re just a bunch of guys that dress like the Helghast from Killzone and know the truth behind Earth’s demise. Some critics have said that the movie’s writing is derivative; while it’s true that it borrows several conventions and twists found in other sci-fi movies, I thought that it was put together in a way that stands on its own.

Cinematography: This is one of the most beautiful movies I’ve seen in the last five years. There are several shots that will take your breath away (like in the old Tom Cruise movie). By my completely unscientific estimation, at least 50 percent of the movie consists of scenes featuring Cruise by himself. The DP and director did a masterful job with these scenes, creating palpable feelings of isolation and desolation. (Shooting Cruise by himself also helps mask his height. Bonus!) If you’re a sci-fi or videography fan then it’s worth paying money to see this movie on the big screen. Some of the shots are that good.

Music: One of the few problems I had with the movie was with the score. There are three scenes where the score’s sound is pumped up to create a sense of drama. The technique only worked in the last instance, which was near the end of the movie. That scene felt appropriately climactic and triumphant, aided by the stentorian score. In the other two scenes I was wondering, “Why is the music so loud?” It felt out of place at best and forced at worst. Overall this was a minor problem, but the pair of scenes that featured inappropriately loud music pulled me out of the fantasy and reminded me that I was in a movie theater in Culver City. That’s not what you want a movie’s soundtrack to do.

The Kingslayer: It was fun seeing Nikolaj Coster-Waldau outside of HBO’s outstanding Game of Thrones. He doesn’t do a whole lot and my friend Paul theorized that some of his scenes were added after he became famous. Certainly some of his action sequences feel tacked on and don’t really serve much of a purpose other than to get moviegoers to think, “Sweet! Jaime Lannister is a badass with guns as well as swords!”

Bottom Line: Oblivion is an undeniably beautiful movie. It’s full of scenes that look amazing and will dazzle moviegoers. The movie’s story is the easiest part to criticize. I understand why some people feel that it borrows from several other sci-fi films and mashes them up into a hodgepodge that doesn’t quite work, but I disagree with that opinion. For me, Oblivion was just on the right side of the line between having a plot that’s entertainingly smart and one that’s too clever for its own good (see Prometheus). While I don’t think it will go down as a sci-fi classic, it’s a fun movie that deftly blends drama and action, while topping it off with a bit of romance.