Transformers: Age of Extinction 3D Review

Rated PG-13 (Intense Sequences of Sci-Fi Violence and Action, Language and Brief Innuendo)

Running Time: 2 Hours & 45 Minutes

Cast-

Mark Wahlberg-Cade Yeager

Nicola Peltz-Tessa Yeager

Jack Reynor-Shane Dyson

Stanley Tucci-Joshua Joyce

Kelsey Grammer-Harold Attinger

Titus Welliver-James Savoy

Li Bingbing-Su Yueming

Sophia Myles-Darcy Tirrel

T.J. Miller-Lucas Flannery

James Bachman-Gill Wembley

Thomas Lennon-Chief of Staff

Peter Cullen (voice)-Optimus Prime

John Goodman (voice)-Hound

Ken Watanabe (voice)-Drift

John DiMaggio (voice)-Crosshairs

Robert Foxworth (voice)-Ratchet

Reno Wilson (voice)-Brains

Mark Ryan (voice)-Lockdown

Frank Welker (voice)-Galvatron

Directed by Michael Bay

Director Michael Bay returns with his latest cinematic abomination, "Transformers: Age of Extinction."

Note: Screened on Wednesday, June 25, 2014 at AMC Loews Lincoln Square 13.

One of the most talked-about moments in the fourth season of HBO's critically-acclaimed television series "Game of Thrones"—based on George R. R. Martin's on-going series of epic fantasy novels A Song of Ice and Fire—is Tyrion Lannister's trial-by-combat, where his champion Oberyn Martell of Dorne battles the hulking Ser Gregor 'The Mountain' Clegane to the death. Despite wearing light armor with only a spear as his weapon, Oberyn manages to fatally wound his more heavily-armored opponent but his repeated attempts to get the Mountain to confess to the rape and murder of his older sister Elia proved to be his undoing. The Mountain catches Oberyn unawares, tripping and pulling him to the ground, grasping him around the neck and slamming his fist squarely into the Dornish prince's face, instantly knocking out many of his teeth. While sadistically admitting to Elia's rape and murder, the Mountain gouges out Oberyn's eyeballs with his thumbs and brutally crushes his skull with his bare hands, leaving behind a bloody mess of skull bits and brain matter. Now why am I recounting all of this? Because watching "Transformers: Age of Extinction" is like having your skull crushed by the Mountain himself.

Although his work was never considered to be high watermarks in capital-C Cinema, there was a time when you could actually say that Michael Bay made good films without bursting out into laughter or having a sudden seizure. Well, maybe 'good' isn't the right word; 'fun' and 'enjoyable' feels more appropriate. In fact, one of Bay's most underrated films is the 2005 sci-fi action/thriller "The Island," which fell victim to a poor marketing campaign and flopped at the domestic box office. Whatever flaws his directing style had (and there were many), you could always count on Bay to at least entertain you for two-and-a-half-hours. And then "Transformers" happened. Now, I liked the 2007 film for the most part, in spite of its fair share of dumb moments. It was loud and bombastic in all the right ways, and it had a relatable coming-of-age story with a *gasp* good performance from Shia LaBeouf! However, its 2009 and 2011 sequels—"Revenge of the Fallen" and "Dark of the Moon"—are cinematic abominations of the highest order but audiences around the world lapped it up like brain-dead dogs, to the tune of $836.3 million and $1.1 billion, respectively. What little creativity that Bay had was replaced with these soulless, live-action adaptations of Hasbro's famous toy line, where any semblance of coherent story or characters was thrown out the window in favor of an ugly mess of incomprehensible CGI. Still, I held out hope for "Transformers: Age of Extinction" as it was a fresh start with a new cast and a new story. Bay rejuvenated his creative juices with the surprisingly good "Pain & Gain" last year and it looked like he was seriously taking the criticisms of the "Transformers" franchise to heart, promising a darker, grittier tone with the fourth installment. Boy, was I f*ckin' wrong. I've seen quite a lot of bad films yet "Age of Extinction" marks one of those rare times where I left the theater absolutely infuriated. Bloated, overlong, poorly-written, noisy, and headache-inducing, "Transformers: Age of Extinction" is by far the worst film of 2014, a god-awful, piece of sh*t addition to an equally sh*tty franchise supported by moviegoers who have no taste at all. The fact that this 'film' will earn close to a billion dollars at the box office makes me wish extinction upon the people who eat up this cinematic trash.

Mark Wahlberg gives it his all but there's only so much he can do when the film around him is complete garbage.

It has been five years since the Battle of Chicago, in which Optimus Prime (Peter Cullen) and his Autobots defeated Megatron and his Decepticons, along with their collaborator, the rogue Autobot Sentinel Prime. Due to the devastation they wrought upon the city and the thousands of lives lost in the initial Decepticon attack, the U.S. Government has severed all ties with the Autobots. High-ranking CIA official Harold Attinger (Kelsey Grammer) launches 'Operation Cemetery Wind' and tasks ruthless field agent James Savoy (Titus Welliver) and his elite black ops unit with hunting down the remaining Transformers on Earth. As a result, Optimus Prime and his Autobots have gone into hiding. In Texas, a widowed robotics engineer named Cade Yeager (Mark Wahlberg) stumbles upon a beat-up truck while gathering abandoned parts at an old movie palace set for demolition. Cade brings the truck to his work shed, where he discovers—much to his friend/assistant Lucas (T.J. Miller) and seventeen-year-old daughter Tessa's (Nicola Peltz) apprehension—that the vehicle is none other than an injured Optimus Prime in disguise. Before they can decide what to do with him, federal agents led by Savoy suddenly come knocking on the Yeagers' door. Cade, Tessa, and Lucas narrowly escape with the help of Optimus and Tessa's race car driver boyfriend Shane Dyson (Jack Reynor). Gathering his remaining Autobots Bumblebee, Hound (John Goodman), Drift (Ken Watanabe), and Crosshairs (John DiMaggio), Optimus and his new human allies set out to stop Attinger and Savoy, who are hunting down Transformers and turning them over to Kinetic Solutions Incorporated CEO Joshua Joyce (Stanley Tucci). The eccentric billionaire has managed to reverse engineer Transformers and is in the process of making his own, dubbed 'Galvatron' (Frank Welker), who bears an uncanny resemblance to defeated Decepticon leader Megatron. Attinger has also struck a deal with mysterious Transformer bounty hunter Lockdown (Mark Ryan), who desires Optimus Prime for his own reasons. In exchange for the Autobot leader's capture, he will give Attinger a device known as 'The Seed.'

Where to even begin with "Transformers: Age of Extinction"? First off, this film has a bloated running time of two hours and forty-five minutes. That's almost three f*ckin' hours of your life that you're not getting back at all. Ehren Kruger's script—if you can even call it that—is an absolute mess. I wonder if he scribbled it on a piece of toilet paper that he subsequently wiped his a**hole with. There are so many plotlines competing for our attention but none of it ever coalesces into a coherent whole. Frankly, it's insulting and what's worse is that the audience doesn't even know that they're being insulted at. They just continuously eat it up, blissfully unaware of the sh*t that they're being fed while Michael Bay once again laughs all the way to the bank. The director argues that his films are meant for the 'little kid' in all of us. The only way that this could be true is if said 'kid' is racist, homophobic, sexist, antisocial, afflicted with an attention span approaching zero, and lacking in anything remotely resembling a creative impulse. Sadly, too many moviegoers around the world fit this category.

Despite its photorealism, a lot of the visual effects just blend together in an ugly mish-mash of indecipherable grey environments and strobe lighting.

"Age of Extinction" actually does start off on a promising note, with an ominous prologue set sixty-five million years in the past. The film's central premise, where all Transformers are being brutally hunted down due to the massive collateral damage they cause, seems to suggest a more serious tone as the story questions whether the Autobots' presence benefit the people of Earth. Yea, that's giving way more credit than Bay deserves as any attempt at nuance is buried under giant layers of asinine humor, inane dialogue, and mind-numbing explosions because 'nuance' is a four-letter word in Bay's limited vocabulary. What's worse is that he doesn't even bother trying to convince us that the Autobots are a force for good, with the director having them frequently plow through buildings without any regard to human life whatsoever. They become every bit the menace that the government has portrayed them to be. "Age of Extinction" is also packed with egregious product placement. This film is so cynically-made that it doesn't even pretend it's anything more than mindless spectacle for the brain-dead crowd. You feel dumber for having sat through this! And don't even get me started on one of the characters discovering a rare new element dubbed 'transformium.'

Speaking of the characters, it took until the end credits for me to learn their names. Mark Wahlberg gives it his all as single father/struggling inventor Cade Yeager. The actor is instantly likable and is the closest the film has to an actual human being. While his overprotective feelings towards his teenage daughter aren't exactly novel, it at least gives viewers something they can latch onto. It's also nice to finally have a main character that's useful in a firefight. Another surprising standout is Stanley Tucci as eccentric, Steve Jobs-like billionaire CEO Joshua Joyce. Tucci understands what kind of film he's in and acts accordingly, chewing the scenery every chance he gets. His character is the only one to have something resembling an arc and he offers the film's few genuine laughs, along with a gone-too-soon T.J. Miller. The rest of the cast are utterly disposable and barely register at all. Nicola Peltz's Tessa is your typical Michael Bay female: blonde, blue-eyed, tanned, and wearing nothing but tank tops and short shorts. She's also irritating beyond all hell as all she does is incessantly scream 'DAD!' over and over again. I wanted to see her grinded into bloody bits when Lockdown ordered his minions to throw her with the rest of the trash on his ship. Faring even worse is Jack Reynor as Tessa's race car driver boyfriend Shane Dyson. The Irish actor is a complete non-entity here, with his character seemingly popping up out of nowhere and serving absolutely no purpose. His only defining trait is his creepy familiarity with Texas' 'Romeo and Juliet' laws. Kelsey Grammer and Titus Welliver take their roles to absurdly serious levels, as if they're in a different film altogether. Finally, there's Li Bingbing as Su Yueming, the head of KSI's factories in China. The actress' presence is for the sole purpose of pandering to Chinese audiences and to allow Bay to display his continued ignorance about other cultures. According to him, every random person in China seemingly knows some form of martial arts.

The only good scene out of this 165 minute film.

Of course, you may be wondering why I'm even bothering to talk about the story and characters. The audience doesn't care about those things, nor do they care about the cast's performances. They paid to see the explosions. There's definitely plenty of that in the film but all that destruction quickly blurs together into a noisy, incomprehensible mess. In fact, the overlong third act—set in Hong Kong in another blatant attempt to pander to Chinese audiences—goes on forever without any end in sight, as if Bay is determined to leave you with a pounding headache. With the exception of Optimus Prime and Bumblebee, I can't even tell one Transformer from the other. They may look as photorealistic as money can buy but it doesn't change the fact that they're nothing more than a visual mish-mash of gears and other random interlocking parts. One sequence set on Lockdown's ship will likely result in epileptic seizures with its putrid mess of grey corridors and constant strobe lighting. The biggest selling point for "Age of Extinction" is the Dinobots. I will admit, their appearance is by far the film's best and most epic moment…and then they're gone in a matter of minutes. As much as the posters tout that the 'rules have changed,' this is still the same sh*tty "Transformers" movie that we've been watching for the past seven years. It's just gotten more bloated, more tedious, more tiresome, and more aggravating. Hey, at least the 3D isn't bad! That's got to count for something, right?!

Released on July 27, 2014, "Transformers: Age of Extinction" has received overwhelmingly negative reviews with an abysmal 18% on Rotten Tomatoes. If you ask me, this number should've been much lower. Critics noted that 'with the fourth installment in Michael Bay's blockbuster…franchise, nothing is in disguise: fans of loud, effects-driven action will find satisfaction, and all others need not apply.' The film is already on-track for a massive box office debut, both domestically and internationally. With the exception of a handful of people, most of the audience at the advance screening ate the film up. Not only were they whooping and cheering but they even applauded at the end. I know I'll catch a lot of flak for this review. Honestly, I don't give a damn. In his review for 2009's "Revenge of the Fallen," Joshua Starnes wrote that 'the people the film was made for won't notice; they'll like it for what it is. Which, on consideration, is probably the saddest thing of all. As long as you're willing to accept crap, you're not likely to get anything better.' This statement continues to stand for "Transformers: Age of Extinction."

Final Rating: 1 out of 5

"A new era has begun. The Age of the Transformers is over."

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Jersey Boys Review

Rated R (Language Throughout)

Running Time: 2 Hours & 14 Minutes

Cast-

John Lloyd Young-Francesco Castelluccio/Frankie Valli

Vincent Piazza-Tommy DeVito

Michael Lomenda-Nick Massi

Erich Bergen-Bob Gaudio

Christopher Walken-Angelo 'Gyp' DeCarlo

Renée Marino-Mary Delgado

Mike Doyle-Bob Crewe

Joseph Russo-Joe Pesci

Erica Piccininni-Lorraine

Donnie Kehr-Norm Waxman

Freya Tingley-Francine Valli

Kathrine Narducci-Frankie's Mother/Mary Rinaldi

Lou Volpe-Frankie's Father/Anthony Castelluccio

Johnny Cannizzaro-Nick DeVito

Troy Grant-Ed Sullivan

Directed by Clint Eastwood

Director Clint Eastwood brings the long-running, Tony Award-winning musical "Jersey Boys" to the big screen.

Note: Screened on Wednesday, June 18, 2014 at AMC Loews Lincoln Square 13.

What comes to mind when you think of a musical film? If your answer is lively, energetic song-and-dance numbers that burst with toe-tapping exuberance, lavish background scenery, and show-stopping choreography, then you would be correct. Unfortunately, you won't find much of that in Clint Eastwood's latest film "Jersey Boys," despite it being based on the long-running, Tony Award-winning Broadway musical of the same name. While a big production number does exist in the film, you'll have to wait until the start of the end credits to even see it. Enthusiastic and buoyant, the closing song-and-dance number—set to 1975's December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night) and involving the entire cast—isn't exactly a show-stopper but it's by far the film's most joyful moment, one that'll actually make you stand up and cheer. If only the rest of "Jersey Boys" were as good as its end credits. With his staid directorial style, Eastwood is a puzzling choice to helm a feature based on a Broadway musical. He's certainly musically inclined, having composed the scores for most of the films he's directed since 2003 and even lent his voice for a song or two (notably in 2008's "Gran Torino") yet Eastwood never appears to be particularly interested in the film's subject matter. Whatever passion he had as a director seems to have left him and now he's just taking on random projects to past the time. That being said, "Jersey Boys" is not a bad film. However, it needed someone with a little more flair at the helm, like Rob Marshall or Adam Shankman. The attention to period detail is impeccable and the film does come alive in its few musical moments but "Jersey Boys" ends up being a long, joyless slog. You're better off watching the musical on Broadway or buying the film's soundtrack.

The army, the mob, or fame: if you grew up on the mean streets of Belleville, New Jersey in 1951, these were the only ways out of the neighborhood. Despite possessing a golden throat with his unusually powerful falsetto voice, fame was out of reach for sixteen-year-old Francesco 'Frankie' Castelluccio (John Lloyd Young), who tries to make an honest living as a practicing hairdresser while also moonlighting as a lookout during small-time burglaries for his rabble-rousing friend Tommy DeVito (Vincent Piazza). With his brother Nicky (Johnny Cannizzaro) and bassist Nick Massi (Michael Lomenda), Tommy often performs at a local club as the 'Variety Trio.' He invites Frankie onto the stage to sing one night and his performance leaves the crowd stunned. With Frankie, now going by the name 'Frankie Valli,' officially part of the band, the quartet begins calling themselves the 'Variatones' but when his brother abruptly leaves, Tommy scrambles to find a replacement. He learns from talent scout Joe Pesci (Joseph Russo)—yes, the same Joe Pesci that would go on to win an Academy Award for 1990's "Goodfellas"—that singer-songwriter Bob Gaudio (Erich Bergen) might just be the guy the band is looking for as he already has a hit song under his name. After being impressed by Frankie's falsetto voice, Gaudio agrees to join the band, now known as the 'Four Lovers.' In spite of their obvious talent, the Four Lovers fail to catch the attention of record producers, until Frankie runs into an old friend named Bob Crewe (Mike Doyle). With Crewe's help, the Four Lovers reinvent themselves as the 'Four Seasons' and quickly skyrocket to fame during the 1960s thanks to hit songs like Sherry, Big Girls Don't Cry, and Walk Like a Man. Unfortunately, the Four Seasons soon threaten to break apart due to clashing egos and Tommy's growing debt problems.

The music of the Four Seasons may be classics but Eastwood fails to do justice to them with his lethargic direction.

Although the band's peak years are long behind them, the Four Seasons continue to remain in the public eye thanks to the massive success of the critically-acclaimed jukebox musical Jersey Boys, which premiered at San Diego, California's La Jolla Playhouse in 2004 and has been running on Broadway for close to nine years now, having recently passed 3560 performances at the August Wilson Theater in New York City. With its lively energy and toe-tapping hit songs, Jersey Boys is one of the few shows on Broadway that can call itself a billion-dollar business. Given its huge popularity, a big screen adaptation was pretty much a no-brainer but Clint Eastwood has sadly sucked out much of the joy from the musical with his lethargic direction, resulting in a film that's nothing more than a clichéd, surface-level, "Behind the Music" biopic of one the best-selling pop-and-rock groups in America. Having Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice adapt their own musical was a smart move on paper but there's barely any nuance to be found in their script, with events happening without any points of reference at all. Viewers are simply plopped into various eras of the guys' lives, leaving them to wonder what year it is or how much time has even passed. One minute, Frankie is being introduced to Mary Delgado (Renée Marino) and the next, they're already married! For much of the film, I thought they had only one daughter but it turns out they have three, and one of them—Francine (Freya Tingley)—apparently has a beautiful voice. However, we don't hear nary a note from her and then she just unceremoniously dies from a drug overdose. It's hard to emotionally invest in any of the characters with this kind of sloppy storytelling.

It doesn't help that Brickman and Elice's script is just one big pile of clichés. Like many music biopics before it, we have the team-ups, the arguments, the hits, the excess, the 'fatal flaw' (it's usually drugs, money, womanizing, or a combination of the three; this time, it's money), the downfall, the redemption, and of course, the final reunion. This strict adherence to genre conventions turns "Jersey Boys" into a very bland, generic experience. However, that's not the main problem. What really sinks the film is that Eastwood has adapted a musical for the big screen…but has taken out most of the music! Honestly, I'm puzzled as to why he even chose to direct this in the first place because he's clearly not interested in the material. If you're looking to experience the musical's show-stopping song-and-dance numbers in the movie theater, you're going to be in for a long wait. In fact, you'll have to wait until the end credits. Sure, we do see the band recording in the studio and performing live on-stage but outside of two or three instances, none of the songs are ever sung in their entirety. Even when the guys' are performing, the film fails to come alive because of the stiff, boring camera angles Eastwood repeatedly uses. "Jersey Boys" only comes to life toward the end, when John Lloyd Young performs a spirited rendition of 1967's Can't Take My Eyes Off You. Of course, the best part arrives at the start of the end credits, when Eastwood finally gives viewers a musical number set to December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night) with the entire cast involved. Why wasn't the rest of the film like this? I have no idea. The only aspect that I can praise without any reservations is the period detail. It's as if the cast and crew went back in time to shoot the movie.

The cast, which is largely composed of stage veterans, do what they can with the sub-par material.

The main cast, three-fourths of which is made up of stage veterans that performed on the musical, try their best with what they're given but the script fails to develop their characters beyond a few basic personality traits. Tony Award-winner John Lloyd Young gives by far the most nuanced performance as Frankie Valli, whose loyalties are torn between his music career, his friends, and his family. Given that he also played Valli on the Broadway musical back in 2006, Young unsurprisingly nails the singer's distinctive falsetto. As Tommy DeVito, Vincent Piazza (Charles 'Lucky' Luciano from HBO's "Boardwalk Empire") lends the character a roguish charm while admirably acquitting himself during the singing scenes. Unfortunately, Michael Lomenda and Erich Bergen fail to make much of an impression. Lomenda, who reprises his role as Nick Massi from the national tour, spends most of the film threatening to leave the band and forming his own group. His only memorable scene is when his character explodes in front of everyone about DeVito's terrible hygienic habits. Bergen, reprising his role as Bob Gaudio from the Los Angeles and Las Vegas productions, doesn't grow beyond being Valli's loyal friend. The rest of the cast is a mixed bag. Renée Marino goes way too over-the-top as Valli's neglected wife Mary while Mike Doyle's Bob Crewe is nothing more than a gay stereotype, although he does offer a few chuckles with his flamboyant behavior. Lending some star power is Christopher Walken as Angelo 'Gyp' DeCarlo, by far the nicest Mafia boss to ever grace the silver screen.

Released on June 20, 2014, "Jersey Boys" has received mixed reviews with 55% on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics noted that Eastwood's latest was 'neither as inventive nor as energetic as it could be, but there's no denying the powerful pleasures of its musical moments. Box office-wise, the film got off to a quiet start with a weekend debut of $13.5 million. The older audience that the film appeals to doesn't tend to rush out to theaters on opening weekend, which means that "Jersey Boys" could be in for a solid run, especially with its 'A-' CinemaScore. However, these people would be better served by going to the Broadway musical or buying the film's soundtrack. The music of the Four Seasons will continue to be classics but Eastwood's "Jersey Boys" fails to do any justice to it.

Final Rating: 2.5 out of 5

"Four guys under a street lamp, when it was all still ahead of us, the first time we made that sound—our sound. That was the best."

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The Fault in Our Stars Review

Rated PG-13 (Thematic Elements, Some Sexuality and Brief Strong Language)

Running Time: 2 Hours & 6 Minutes

Cast-

Shailene Woodley-Hazel Grace Lancaster

Ansel Elgort-Augustus 'Gus' Waters

Nat Wolff-Isaac

Laura Dern-Frannie Lancaster

Sam Trammell-Michael Lancaster

Willem Dafoe-Peter Van Houten

Lotte Verbeek-Lidewij Vliegenthart

Ana Dela Cruz-Dr. Maria

Randy Kovitz-Dr. Simmons

Milica Govich-Gus' Mother/Mrs. Waters

David Whalen-Gus' Father/Mr. Waters

Emily Peachey-Monica

Emily Bach-Monica's Mother

Mike Birbiglia-Patrick

Directed by Josh Boone

Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort deliver fantastic performances in Josh Boone's "The Fault in Our Stars," based on the New York Times best-selling novel by John Green.

Note: Screened on Tuesday, July 3, 2014 at AMC Loews 19th Street East 6.

We're all going to die 'someday' and while it's an unfortunate inevitability, we tend not to dwell on it very much because 'someday' is still a long ways off for many of us. However, people suffering from terminal cancer don't have the luxury of 'someday' as they already have one foot on death's doorstep. Cancer has often been treated as a battle, something you 'fight' and 'survive' due to how much pain and death this disease causes. We frequently call these people 'brave' and put them on a pedestal for 'fighting until the very end' but these are all just hollow, feel-good clichés, a way for society to deal with an uncomfortable subject. The reality is much more different. There's a pivotal scene in Josh Boone's cancer-themed teen drama "The Fault in Our Stars" where the main character, Hazel Grace Lancaster, rushes over to a nearby gas station after receiving a troubling phone call from her boyfriend Augustus Waters. When she arrives, she finds him sitting in his car, covered in his own mucus and vomit. His G-tube tract in his abdomen appears to have become infected, with Augustus himself reduced to a blubbering, incoherent mess. This is the harsh reality of living with terminal cancer: it turns people into frightened and helpless creatures. Where is the so-called 'bravery' in all of this? "The Fault in Our Stars" is an atypical film to release during the summer, a season usually dominated by big-budget blockbusters but it doesn't matter. A good film is a good film. However, "The Fault in Our Stars" is more than just a good film, it is a great film. Anchored by excellent performances from Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort, Josh Boone's big screen adaptation of John Green's 2012 critically-acclaimed, best-selling young adult novel will definitely make you shed a few tears but it earns this reaction not through maudlin sentimentality, but by facing its difficult subject matter head on. As written in Hazel's favorite book, 'Pain demands to be felt.'

Set in Indianapolis, Indiana, Hazel Grace Lancaster (Shailene Woodley) is a sixteen-year-old girl living with stage four thyroid cancer that has metastasized to her lungs. Because of her disease, she uses a portable oxygen tank in order to breathe adequately. At the behest of her worried mother Frannie (Laura Dern), Hazel attends a cancer support group, held in the basement of a local Episcopal church that she cheekily dubs the 'Literal Heart of Jesus.' While on her way to the group one day, Hazel bumps into eighteen-year-old Augustus Waters (Ansel Elgort), who came to lend support to his best friend Isaac (Nat Wolff) as he is about to lose his second eye to cancer. During the meeting, Augustus reveals that he is a survivor of osteosarcoma and has fortunately been in remission ever since his right leg was amputated. He now wears a prosthetic. Following the meeting, Augustus approaches Hazel, and the two immediately form a bond. However, Hazel is afraid of letting him get too close and compares herself to a grenade, explaining to him that she wants to 'minimize the casualties.' Augustus remains undeterred and slowly but surely, he wins over Hazel with his charming sense of humor and profound understanding of her feelings. After introducing him to her favorite novel An Imperial Affliction by Peter Van Houten (Willem Dafoe), Hazel learns that Augustus has begun corresponding via email with the famed Dutch-American author…and received an actual reply from him! When Van Houten extends a written invitation to his home in Amsterdam, Hazel is ecstatic. Unfortunately, her doctors reveal that she is just too ill to safely travel. Knowing that her time is already limited, Augustus—with the help of Hazel's parents—does everything he can to make this trip a reality for the girl he loves.

"Gus, my love, I cannot tell you how thankful I am for our little infinity. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. You gave me a forever within the numbered days, and I'm grateful."

Prior to the screening for "The Fault in Our Stars," a three-minute trailer was shown for FOX's upcoming teen dramedy "Red Band Society," set to debut this fall. Taking place in the pediatric ward of a Los Angeles hospital, the series (which is executive produced by Steven Spielberg and is a remake of the 2011 Catalan television show "Polseres Vermelles") follows a group of children and adolescents who are hospitalized due to their serious, often life-threatening conditions. I'm not going to bother mincing words here: this trailer was embarrassing to watch. It drowns you in cheesy, cringe-inducing sentimentality in order to provoke an emotional reaction. I know the showrunners are trying to go for earnestness and want to tug at our heartstrings but rather than tears, that trailer prompted derisive laughter from much of the audience. I feared that this was the tone that Josh Boone had taken for "The Fault in Our Stars" but I'm glad to report that he avoids the heavy-handed, manipulative tactics that plague other films dealing with similar subject matter (remember the 2002 Nicholas Sparks schlock-fest "A Walk to Remember"?). Aside from some cutesy text bubbles, there's nothing particularly remarkable about Boone's direction yet that's precisely the reason why "The Fault in Our Stars" succeeds as a coming-of-age teen romance. He stays out of the way of his cast and allows them to bring the drama to life through their performances. Hazel and Augustus' romance is still, by and large, an adolescent fantasy but their love is backed-up by achingly real emotions thanks to the people portraying them.

Shailene Woodley is fast becoming one of my favorite actresses and she's predictably wonderful as Hazel Grace Lancaster. Even though she's playing a teenager, Woodley's infectious performance will resonate with all viewers, regardless of their age. Her character has an appealingly acerbic wit and doesn't mince words but what's refreshing about Hazel is that she's not a pitiable person, nor would she want to be either. Having terminal cancer has given her a somewhat cynical outlook on life yet Hazel doesn't let her disease define her. She is not 'the girl with cancer,' she is a teenager and Woodley is absolutely convincing in the role as she brings her character's desires and insecurities to life but without overselling it for cheap, easy pathos. The biggest surprise is Ansel Elgort. The twenty-year-old actor previously had supporting roles in 2013's "Carrie" and this past March's "Divergent" yet his performances were largely forgettable. Elgort is a revelation here and while his character Augustus can come across as a bit cocky at times, it's nicely balanced with his charming, 'Aw, shucks!' attitude. Ironically, Woodley and Elgort played brother-and-sister in "Divergent" but that memory instantly vanishes once you see them embody their characters. It's a joy to see Hazel and Augustus' love blossom, culminating in a moving eulogy (or more accurately, a 'pre-eulogy') that is both devastating and uplifting. I'll come right out and admit it: I was teary-eyed.

Although I haven't personally read John Green's book, I can say with confidence that the script from Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber—whose previous credits include 2009's "(500) Days of Summer" and last year's "The Spectacular Now"—is pretty faithful to the source material, judging from the audience's reaction. The story serves as a reminder to cherish our time on Earth and make every moment count but what sets "The Fault in Our Stars" apart from similar films is its view on suffering, specifically its inevitability. Life comes with a fair bit of suffering and a majority of Boone's film involves the characters making peace with that fact. However, that doesn't mean your life is any less worth living. Pain is unavoidable and that's doubly true for Hazel and Augustus yet they still took a chance with each other despite the knowledge that tomorrow, in a very real sense, may not come. HitFix's Drew McWeeny said it best in his review: 'love never arrives on our perfect timetable, and it is an act of courage to reach out and embrace it when it is offered, and this film understands just how big and scary and amazing that can be.' Yes, it'll hurt when one of them passes away but that 'scar' you leave behind means you mattered to the ones you love. Without pain, there would be no joy.

Despite its bleak subject matter, there's still a lot of humor to be found in Boone's film.

I've already mentioned how excellent Woodley and Elgort's performances are but I would be remiss if I didn't mention the fantastic supporting cast. Laura Dern exhibits genuine warmth as Hazel's mother Frannie and it's nice to see a mother and daughter so in-sync with each other. Nat Wolff brings quite a lot of laughs as Augustus' best friend Isaac. At one point, Isaac tells his friend that if 'scientists of the future show up at my house with robot eyes and they tell me to try them on, I will tell the scientists to screw off, because I do not want to see a world without [Augustus].' That is both hilarious and touching at the same time and it's refreshing to witness two male friends so openly honest about their feelings for each other. Finally, there's Willem Dafoe as Dutch-American novelist Peter Van Houten, whose uncompromisingly 'tough love' demeanor serves as a reminder that reality rarely lives up to your personal expectations.

"The Fault in Our Stars" was released on June 6, 2014 to positive reviews with 80% on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics hailed it for being 'wise, funny, and heartbreaking without resorting to exploitation.' Made for a cheap $12 million, the film is already a box office success with its $132.2 million worldwide gross. The audience heavily skewed towards female at the advance screening and…well, let's just say that Kleenex will be experiencing quite a large sales spike for the rest of the month. Unless you have a heart made of literal stone, you're almost guaranteed to shed a tear while watching "The Fault in Our Stars." Josh Boone rightfully allows his talented cast to do the heavy-lifting, letting them sell the drama without resorting to mawkish, emotional manipulation. If there's one thing that you should take away from the film, it's that love—real love—arrives when you least expect it. There will be pain and there will be joy but one thing's for sure, you'll be glad to have taken that leap of faith.

Final Rating: 4.5 out of 5

"I can't talk about our love story, so I will talk about math. I am not a mathematician, but I know this: there are infinite numbers between 0 and 1. There's .1 and .12 and .112 and an infinite collection of others. Of course, there is a bigger infinite set of numbers between 0 and 2, or between 0 and a million. Some infinities are bigger than other infinities. A writer we used to like taught us that. There are days, many of them, when I resent the size of my unbounded set. I want more numbers than I'm likely to get, and God, I want more numbers for Augustus Waters than he got. But, Gus, my love, I cannot tell you how thankful I am for our little infinity. I wouldn't trade it for the world. You gave me a forever within the numbered days, and I'm grateful."

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The Signal (2014) Review

Rated PG-13 (Some Thematic Elements, Violence and Language)

Running Time: 1 Hour & 37 Minutes

Cast-

Brenton Thwaites-Nic Eastman

Olivia Cooke-Haley Peterson

Beau Knapp-Jonah Breck

Laurence Fishburne-Dr. Wallace Damon

Lin Shaye-Mirabelle

Robert Longstreet-James

Roy Kenny-Hazmat 1

Timothy Holmes-Hazmat 2

Ricardo Campos-Hazmat 3

Drew Sykes-Hazmat 4

Jeffrey Grover-Gas Station Clerk

Patrick Davidson-Boy Playing Claw Game

Directed by William Eubank

It doesn't live up to its potential but William Eubank's "The Signal" remains a gorgeous film to behold.

Note: Screened on Thursday, June 12, 2014 at AMC Empire 25. There are spoilers within this review.

William Eubank's latest film "The Signal" desperately wants to leave the audience feeling 'agitated' with its "Twilight Zone"-style storytelling but once the 'big twist' is revealed and the end credits begin to roll, you're likely going to be left feeling baffled, frustrated, and maybe even a little angry. Original science fiction films—characterized by think-pieces like Jonathan Glazer's brilliantly-made "Under the Skin"—are something of a rarity nowadays, having been largely subsumed by mindless, effects-driven blockbusters like Michael Bay's upcoming "Transformers: Age of Extinction." Occasionally, a talented director is able to strike a balance, satisfying the studio's blockbuster sensibilities while not betraying his or her own artistic integrity. A perfect example of this would be Christopher Nolan, the British auteur who thrilled and confounded viewers with 2010's "Inception," and he's about to do it again with November's highly-anticipated "Interstellar." Eubank isn't Nolan but the up-and-coming director—who made his feature debut with the 2011 sci-fi drama "Love"—is certainly no less talented behind the camera. Unfortunately, his screenwriting skills leave a lot to be desired. Despite its atmospheric and moody visuals, Eubank's "The Signal" ultimately fails to make much of an impact, with its ambitious script devolving into sci-fi silliness and finally closing with a shrug-worthy reveal.

MIT student Nic Eastman (Brenton Thwaites)—a bright young man suffering from the early stages of multiple sclerosis—is driving his girlfriend Haley Peterson (Olivia Cooke) to Pasadena, California as she is transferring to Caltech. Tagging along on the trip is Nic's best friend and fellow computer wizard Jonah Breck (Beau Knapp), who is working with Nic to track down a mysterious hacker known as 'NOMAD,' responsible for the infiltration and destruction of several of MIT's servers. Nic is none too happy about Haley moving away and he decides to end their passionate but embattled relationship during the trip. When the breakup doesn't go down smoothly, Jonah appeals to his friend's bruised confidence and renews his focus on finding NOMAD. The two manage to pinpoint the hacker to a dilapidated shack in the middle of the Nevada desert. Nic and Jonah investigate the shack while Haley waits in the car. However, the two friends rush back outside when they hear Haley suddenly scream. An unseen force plucks her out of the air but before Nic and Jonah can do anything about it, they are knocked unconscious. Nic awakens in a sterile facility, dressed in a white hospital gown and unable to feel his legs. The hazmat suit-wearing staff wheel Nic to a secure room, where he is questioned by a Dr. Wallace Damon (Laurence Fishburne), who reveals little in the way of cohesive information. Growing frustrated and increasingly desperate, Nic hatches an escape plan but discovers that not all is what it seems.

"The Signal" is one of those twisty sci-fi films that slowly build themselves up to a massive reveal. Unfortunately, said reveal ends up inviting shrugs rather than shock or surprise, with hardcore sci-fi fans likely figuring out the 'twist' long before the film is over. At its core, this is an alien abduction picture, which is a subgenre I'm incredibly fond of but Eubank's script—co-written with his brother Carlyle and David Frigerio—is too underdeveloped and it's never entirely clear what point he's trying to make. In fact, the whole affair feels more like a demo reel, a résumé submission to movie executives showcasing the director's ability to build worlds and work with visual/special effects. I'll give credit where it's due: "The Signal" does look spectacular, with Eubank and cinematographer David Lanzenberg taking full advantage of shooting on-location in New Mexico to create a bizarrely beautiful yet foreboding atmosphere of paranoia. Despite its tiny $4 million production budget, the visual effects and prosthetics work from Legacy (formerly the Stan Winston Studio) are quite good and hold up to close scrutiny. Nima Fakhrara's score is appropriately moody. If nothing else, "The Signal" proves that Eubank has a bright future working in the big leagues…but only if he is paired with stronger material.

"R U Agitated?"

Although this is ostensibly a sci-fi thriller, "The Signal" does feature some horror elements. Nic and Jonah's investigation of NOMAD's shack briefly skirts with found-footage territory and conjures up a nice sense of dread but the film takes a turn for the worse once it begins dabbling in body horror. It is eventually revealed that the reason Nic can't feel his legs is because they've been replaced with bionic ones, turning him into something along the lines of the 'Six Billion Dollar Teen.' More silliness ensues once Jonah reunites with his friends (how he escaped from the facility is barely elaborated on) while sporting a pair of bionic arms, leading to a ridiculously cheesy 'HULK SMASH' moment. The latter half of "The Signal" is spent with Nic and Haley on the run from Damon and his omnipresent military forces. Flashbacks are shown of the couple during happier times but they offer nothing for viewers to latch onto besides some more pretty imagery. In a recent interview with Topless Robot, Eubank mentions that the story is 'about choices and…what drives somebody—the decisions we make, whether we make them based off of thinking logically or thinking emotionally.' Although I can see glimmers of this on-screen, it just feels too vague and undercooked to have the impact Eubank is going for. The central mystery is at least mildly engaging, keeping the picture from becoming a total disaster. However, too much is frustratingly left up to the audience to fill in the gaps while the narrative's many loose ends—such as a strange experiment involving a cow—suggest key scenes were discarded on the cutting room floor.

The cast is largely composed of young up-and-comers. Brenton Thwaites acquits himself admirably as Nic and does a fine job conveying his character's fear, rage, and increasing sense of paranoia. The Australian actor has been quite prolific this year, having starred in the low-budget horror flick "Oculus" back in April and having a minor part in Disney's "Maleficent" last month. Thwaites is set to appear this August in the lead role in Phillip Noyce's big-screen adaptation of Lois Lowry's 1993 young adult novel The Giver. As Nic's best friend Jonah, Beau Knapp's character is a genre cliché but he remains a nice foil to Thwaites with his slightly nervous demeanor. Olivia Cooke is unfortunately wasted on a go-nowhere role that finds her confined to a hospital bed for long stretches of the film. The standout is by far Laurence Fishburne, whose immaculately unnerving way of speaking makes for some of the best moments in "The Signal." Eubank was lucky to snag such a well-known actor. Lin Shaye (from the "Insidious" films) also pops up as a creepy character that crosses paths with Nic and Haley.

Given a limited release on June 13, 2014, "The Signal" has received largely mixed reviews with 54% on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics noted that Eubank 'clearly has big ideas and an impressive level of technical expertise; unfortunately, [he] fritters them away on a poorly constructed story. The audience reacted negatively to the film at the advance screening, with many baffled at the ending. It subsequently failed to gain much traction at the box office, grossing a paltry $155,642 at 120 venues. Now, I don't mind sci-fi films that are abstract in their meaning and themes. In fact, I quite enjoy watching them but beyond the central mystery, "The Signal" has very little going on beneath the surface. Eubank shows enormous potential with his work here, which makes it all the more disheartening to report that his sophomore effort is such a disappointment. Hopefully, his next feature is more developed script-wise.

Final Rating: 2.5 out of 5

"As advanced as we are, it’s amazing that we still have use for something as crude as a pen."

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22 Jump Street Review

Rated R (Language Throughout, Sexual Content, Drug Material, Brief Nudity and Some Violence)

Running Time: 1 Hour & 52 Minutes

Cast-

Jonah Hill-Morton Schmidt

Channing Tatum-Gregory 'Greg' Jenko

O'Shea Jackson/Ice Cube-Captain Dickson

Amber Stevens-Maya

Wyatt Russell-Zook

Jillian Bell-Mercedes

Peter Stormare-The Ghost

Nick Offerman-Deputy Chief Hardy

The Lucas Brothers-Keith and Kenny Yang

Jimmy Tatro-Rooster

Marc Evan Jackson-Dr. Murphy

Caroline Aaron-Annie Schmidt

Joe Chrest-David Schmidt

Eddie J. Fernandez-Scarface

Rye Rye-Jr. Jr.

Craig Roberts-Spencer

Johnny Pemberton-Delroy

Stanley Wong-Roman

Dax Flame-Zack

Dave Franco-Eric Molson

Rob Riggle-Mr. Walters

Directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller

Schmidt and Jenko are going undercover again in "22 Jump Street."

Note: Screened on Monday, June 2, 2014 at AMC Empire 25.

Bad ideas are a dime a dozen in Hollywood (remember Disney's $215 million disaster "The Lone Ranger"?) but the film industry is a crazy, crazy place and sometimes, miracles do happen as movies based on ideas that sounded truly horrible at the time emerge as bona fide hits that nobody was expecting. A perfect example would be 2012's "21 Jump Street." Annouced back in 2008 by Sony/Columbia Pictures, the idea of a cinematic revival of a late-1980s cult television show wasn't exactly welcomed with open arms and people naturally took to the Internet to air their grievances. The biggest point of contention was that the person adapting it for the big screen was none other than Jonah Hill, who's primarily known for his comedic work. Considering that the television show was a cross between a police procedural and a teen-issue drama, shoehorning the film adaptation into an R-rated comedy vehicle for the "Superbad" crowd just seemed like a recipe for a huge disaster. Enter directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, who managed to turn a bad idea into a fresh and hilariously funny spin on both the high school and buddy cop movie. Lord and Miller have since become the go-to guys for turning terrible ideas into great films, as evidenced by this past February's "The LEGO Movie," one of the best films of 2014. Given the critical and commercial success of "21 Jump Street"—which grossed $201.6 million worldwide against a $42 million production budget—a sequel was pretty much a no-brainer and was put on the fast-track by Sony/Columbia Pictures. Comedy sequels almost never live up to the original (see "The Hangover" sequels as an example) but Lord and Miller manages to surprise us once again by bucking that trend. Better, funnier, smarter, and even more self-aware, "22 Jump Street" is one of those rare comedy sequels that improves upon its predecessor in almost every way, making it the best comedy of the year so far.

After surviving a second stint in high school while also taking down a drug trafficking ring in the process, undercover police officers Morton Schmidt (Jonah Hill) and Gregory 'Greg' Jenko (Channing Tatum) are back on the beat as they attempt to apprehend a notorious drug lord known only as 'Ghost' (Peter Stormare). Unfortunately, Schmidt and Jenko's pursuit of the drug lord ends in complete disaster, allowing Ghost to escape arrest. As a result of their incompetence, Deputy Chief Hardy (Nick Offerman) puts the duo back on the Jump Street program with Captain Dickson (O'Shea Jackson/Ice Cube), now located across the street at the bigger, more expensive-looking Vietnamese church at 22 Jump Street. Dickson reveals that a new synthetic drug dubbed 'WHYPHY' (stands for 'Work Hard? Yes. Play Hard? Yes') has been making the rounds on various college campuses, which means Schmidt and Jenko will once again have to go undercover, only this time they'll be posing as college students at Metro City State College. Utilizing their old undercover identities as brothers, the duo tries to do what they did last time: infiltrate the dealers, find the supplier. However, that's easier said than done when the pair's relationship finds itself put to the test once more as they hit the halls of higher education. Jenko joins the football team and befriends fellow dimwitted jock Zook (Wyatt Russell) while Schmidt, left on the outside, falls in with the bohemian art major scene and strikes up a romance with Maya (Amber Stevens). Will Schmidt and Jenko reunite in time to solve the case and stop the drug dealers?!

Good luck trying not to cause any property damage!

Humor thrives on being fresh and unpredictable, which is why comedy sequels often turn out to be major disappointments. What was funny the first time becomes less so when repeated ad nauseam. Unlike action or science fiction films, comedies are rarely made with sequels in mind. If a follow-up is made, it only exists because the original unexpectedly happened to make a boatload of money. Just look to "The Hangover" trilogy as a perfect example. The first "Hangover" film grossed over $460 million worldwide in 2009 against a cheap $35 million production budget. Even before it became a hit, director Todd Phillips was already approached by Warner Brothers to make a sequel. 2011's "The Hangover: Part II" is basically a carbon copy of the first film, just set in Bangkok, Thailand rather than in Las Vegas. Despite its $586.8 million haul, "Part II" received largely negative reviews, with 2013's "The Hangover: Part III"—which eschewed the formula of its two predecessors—faring even worse both critically and commercially (although it wasn't an outright box office flop). Given the high failure rate of comedy sequels, why in the hell would Phil Lord and Christopher Miller make a film that feels like a rehash by returning to direct "22 Jump Street"? The answer: so that they can make fun of sequels!

Hilariously self-aware, "22 Jump Street" is a winking, post-modern take on the nature of sequels, while also ironically being a sequel itself. Following a handy 'Previously on…' segment and an over-the-top action scene that would feel right at home in a "Fast & Furious" film, Schmidt and Jenko find themselves reprimanded once again by Deputy Chief Hardy, who explains to them (and by extension, the audience) that their latest screw-up is because they weren't doing the same thing again. Hardy goes on to say that 'nobody gave a sh*t about the Jump Street reboot. But you got lucky, so now this department has invested a lot of money to make sure Jump Street keeps going.' Cue numerous meta-jokes about the film's increased production budget, with Captain Dickson poking fun at Hollywood's weird economic system by sarcastically saying at one point that 'two times the budget means two times the profit, right?' The budget even 'runs out' halfway through the film due to Schmidt and Jenko overspending on police equipment. Dickson angrily orders the duo to make the rest of their investigation less expensive but ten minutes later, Schmidt and Jenko are involved in a ridiculous car chase where they futilely try not to cause any more property damage! The script—written by Michael Bacall, Oren Uziel, and Rodney Rothman, with Jonah Hill also contributing—intentionally mirrors the original film, with our hapless police officers being repeatedly told to 'do the exact same thing.' Sounds simple enough, until Schmidt and Jenko discover that doing the same thing doesn't work! Not content with just roasting the whole idea of sequels, "22 Jump Street" also mocks college-movie and romantic comedy clichés, with Lord and Miller wringing out a lot of humor through role reversals, from Schmidt's post-hookup 'walk of shame' to Jenko being the popular one this time around. At almost two hours, the film would've benefited from some minor trimming in the editing room but this is just nitpicking on my part as there's not a second that goes by where you're not laughing. However, nothing, and I mean nothing, compares to the glorious closing credits so make sure to stick around once the film ends.

"We Jump Street, and we 'bout to jump in yo ass!"

Given how hysterical "22 Jump Street" is, it's hard not to imagine Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum having the time of their lives playing Schmidt and Jenko. Like Lord and Miller, the two are obviously aware of the joke and gleefully embrace the film's over-the-top craziness. The chemistry they share is phenomenal and spontaneous, with the two actors rapidly bouncing jokes off each other like a pair of Gatling guns. After forming an unlikely friendship in the first film, Schmidt and Jenko find themselves stuck in a rut in the sequel. They frequently bicker like an old married couple, with a lot of the humor being derived from how homoerotic their friendship is. Fortunately, the pair's 'bromance' never devolves into moronic 'gay panic' territory and instead functions as a sincere, affectionate ode to male friendships everywhere. Hill and Tatum bring so many laughs to "22 Jump Street" but the film's biggest scene stealer is Ice Cube. Reprising his role as Captain Dickson, Ice Cube is an absolute riot to watch. There's a scene set in a restaurant that will leave you doubled over in your seat from laughing so much. Hell, I was literally crying! Another scene stealer is Jillian Bell (from Comedy Central's "Workaholics") as Maya's creepy, misanthropic roommate Mercedes. Everything she says is just comedy gold, with the character displaying an exuberant unpredictability as you never know what she's going to do next! Amber Stevens is appealing as Schmidt's love interest Maya while Wyatt Russell excels as Jenko's equally dimwitted dude-bro Zook. Fun cameos also abound, from the perpetually-high Lucas Brothers to the hilariously deadpanning Nick Offerman.

Released on June 13, 2014, "22 Jump Street" has received fantastic reviews with 83% on Rotten Tomatoes. Calling it 'the rare [comedy] sequel that improves upon the original,' critics praised the film for 'boasting even more of the bromantic chemistry between its stars and…the goofy, good-natured humor that made its predecessor so much fun.' When I saw "22 Jump Street" at the press screening, the theater frequently erupted in laughter and if this reaction is any indication, Lord and Miller is poised to have another box office hit on their hands. The directors may often poke fun at Hollywood's lack of creativity and their overreliance on reboots, prequels, and sequels but as "22 Jump Street" repeatedly affirms, these guys definitely know what they're doing and I'm confident that when they return for the inevitable third installment, they'll pull off another impossible feat: break the second-sequel curse.

Final Rating: 4.5 out of 5

"SOMETHING COOL!"

Make sure to stick around during and after the end credits!

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How to Train Your Dragon 2 3D Review

Rated PG (Adventure Action and Some Mild Rude Humor)

Running Time: 1 Hour & 42 Minutes

Cast (voice)-

Jay Baruchel-Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III

America Ferrera-Astrid Hofferson

Jonah Hill-Snotlout Jorgenson

Christopher Mintz-Plasse-Fishlegs Ingerman

Kristen Wiig-Ruffnut Thorston

T.J. Miller-Tuffnut Thorston

Gerard Butler-Stoick the Vast

Cate Blanchett-Valka

Craig Ferguson-Gobber the Belch

Kit Harington-Eret

Djimon Hounsou-Drago Bludvist

Randy Thom-Toothless the Dragon

Kieron Elliott-Hoark the Haggard

Philip McGrade-Starkard

Andrew Ableson-Ug

Gideon Emery-Teeny

Simon Kassianides-No-Name

Directed by Dean DeBlois

Hiccup and his dragon companion Toothless take flight in "How to Train Your Dragon 2," the sequel to the 2010 critically-acclaimed animated hit.

 Note: Screened on Saturday, June 7, 2014 at AMC Loews 34th Street 14.

It never ceases to amaze me how fast time flies. Twenty years ago, Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg, and David Geffen co-founded DreamWorks SKG together following Katzenberg's abrupt departure from Disney. Prior to his exit, Katzenberg was in charge of Disney's then-ailing Feature Animation division (now called Walt Disney Animation Studios) and under his management, the studio ushered in the so-called 'Disney Renaissance,' a creative resurgence that culminated with the release of 1994's "The Lion King," widely considered to be one of the best, if not the best, animated film of all time. Unfortunately, Katzenberg left the company that same year when then-CEO Michael Eisner refused to promote him to President following Frank Wells' untimely death. Put in charge of DreamWorks SKG's fledgling animation department, Katzenberg made a conscious effort to differentiate itself from their main competition by producing animated films that were 'edgier' and skewed older (their early features were often rated PG). Critical reception to their early work ranged from overwhelmingly positive (1998's "Antz" and 2000's "Chicken Run") to middling (2000's "The Road to El Dorado") but the animation studio didn't become the major player they are today until 2001. With Disney's "Atlantis: The Lost Empire" stalling at the domestic box office and Fox outright crashing-and-burning with "Titan A.E." the year before, the nascent DreamWorks Animation sent shockwaves through the industry when they released "Shrek," directed by Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jenson. The Katzenberg-led animation studio was finally a prime competitor in the field of feature film animation.

A gleeful satire of Disney's films as well as a clever deconstruction of the fairy tale genre, "Shrek" went on to become a critical and commercial success, grossing over $480 million worldwide against a modest $60 million production budget. It also netted DreamWorks Animation's first Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, beating out Pixar's "Monsters, Inc." A sequel, simply titled "Shrek 2," followed in 2004 and reception was once again immensely positive (89% on Rotten Tomatoes) while its box office haul was gargantuan to say the least, with the film making over $900 million worldwide. To this day, "Shrek 2" still holds the record for highest-grossing animated film in America at $441.2 million.

DreamWorks Animation eventually spun-off as its own entity five months after the release of "Shrek 2," having finally proven itself as a force to be reckoned with in the animated film industry. Unfortunately, such success came at an artistic cost. Instead of refining their storytelling techniques like Pixar, the studio began relying more and more on big-name celebrity casting and obnoxious pop-culture references, mistakenly believing that it was these elements that made the first two "Shrek" films so beloved. DreamWorks Animation may have achieved box office success (ten of their films have grossed over $500 million worldwide) but their work is almost never held in the same high esteem as Pixar. The studio that started out as a more adult alternative to Disney had now turned into a producer of safe and mass-market friendly talking-animal pictures. Now I'm not saying DreamWorks Animation makes bad films (although sometimes they do) but more often than not they settle for just 'good enough.' An example would be this past March's "Mr. Peabody & Sherman." Rob Minkoff's film is certainly entertaining yet it was also utterly forgettable. However, there is one exception to the rule: 2010's "How to Train Your Dragon." Based on the popular children's book series of the same name by Cressida Cowell, "How to Train Your Dragon" received fantastic reviews with a stellar 98% on Rotten Tomatoes and grossed a robust $494.9 million worldwide. It was by far the most 'Pixar-like' of DreamWorks Animation's oeuvre and proved that the studio had it in them to produce a film that didn't just pander to kids. Four years later, we have the highly-anticipated sequel, "How to Train Your Dragon 2." Beautifully animated and wonderfully scored, "How to Train Your Dragon 2" represents franchise filmmaking done right, boasting a nuanced script that not only packs a powerful emotional punch but also builds upon its established world, taking it in exciting new directions without losing sight of the integrity of its characters. This is the best film of the summer by far and I dare say that DreamWorks Animation has finally out-Pixar'ed Pixar after two decades in the animation business.

"How to Train Your Dragon 2" boasts some truly majestic visuals.

It has been five years since Hiccup (Jay Baruchel) and Toothless, his loyal Night Fury dragon companion, successfully united dragons and Vikings on the fantastical island of Berk. While his girlfriend Astrid (America Ferrera) and the rest of his friends—Snotlout (Jonah Hill), Fishlegs (Christopher Mintz-Plasse), Ruffnut (Kristen Wiig) and Tuffnut (T.J. Miller)—thrill Berk's citizenry with high-flying dragon races, Hiccup and Toothless spend their time in the skies, charting unmapped territories and exploring new worlds. Meanwhile, Hiccup's father Stoick the Vast (Gerard Butler) wants his son to settle down and take his place as chieftain one day but Hiccup just doesn't fancy the responsibility and stress. While exploring with Astrid, Hiccup comes upon an unnatural ice formation and encounters Eret (Kit Harington), a dragon trapper who takes orders from a mysterious warlord named Drago Bludvist (Djimon Hounsou). After thwarting Eret's attempts to capture their dragons, Hiccup and Astrid return to Berk to warn Stoick about Drago. Stoick orders a complete lockdown of the island but Hiccup believes he can reason with the warlord and goes to find him. While in the air, Hiccup runs into an armored figure riding a majestic Stormcutter dragon. Upon noticing Hiccup's scar on his chin, the figure reveals itself to be Valka (Cate Blanchett), his long-lost-and-presumed-dead mother! For the past twenty years, Valka has resided in a hidden dragon sanctuary, where she protects the beasts from those who would do them harm. While Hiccup makes up for lost time with his mother, a storm brews on the horizon. With a massive leviathan in tow, Drago begins enslaving the dragons so that he can conquer all those who dare stand in his way.

If I had to sum up my feelings about "How to Train Your Dragon 2" in one word, it would simply be: WOW. It's not a 'Wow' that one yells out; it's a 'Wow' that one whispers under their breath and is reserved for those rare occasions where you just witnessed something truly extraordinary. This is one of those rare occasions. Where to even begin with "How to Train Your Dragon 2"? First off, the animation is astoundingly gorgeous and the 3D is used to great effect here, adding an incredible sense of depth without resorting to cheap, in-your-face gimmicks. There's a scene that was used for the teaser trailer that shows Hiccup (in his new wing-suit) and Toothless enjoying a private flight together and the 3D goes a long way in expressing the joy that comes with being able to fly. The direction from Dean DeBlois (working solo this time as Chris Sanders is busy on "The Croods 2") is flawless as he takes full advantage of the freedom of animation, utilizing camera angles and allowing characters to pull off actions that would be impossible or very dangerous to do in live-action. Also, I would be remiss if I didn't mention John Powell's amazing score. Thrilling, bombastic, and emotional, Powell's work here deserves to be placed with the upper echelon of John Williams and Howard Shore.

Sequels are very tricky to pull off, especially in this era of massive franchise-building where almost every film is just one piece of a bigger puzzle. Too often, sequels fall victim to setting up the next installment and neglect to focus on the current film itself (last month's "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" had this problem). While DeBlois has mentioned that "How to Train Your Dragon 2" is designed to be the center film in a trilogy, he doesn't concern himself with what happens next and instead focuses on the story that is being told now. Of course, sequels are—by nature—bigger and more expansive than the original and DeBlois goes to great lengths to organically build upon what was established in the previous installment. The 2010 film was largely localized to the island of Berk and the Red Death's Mountain Nest but "How to Train Your Dragon 2" reveals that dragons are actually a pretty common phenomenon, with an entire culture based around them. New dragon-types are introduced, with the most fearsome being the gargantuan 'Bewilderbeasts,' which look like something straight out of an H.P. Lovecraft book. Now DeBlois could've just thrown a bunch of new dragons at us and called it a day but he doesn't. In addition to expanding upon the mythology, he also shows how much the characters have matured since the last film. Hiccup is much more assertive and confident now as he is unafraid to venture off and explore new lands while his knack for invention has only grown with time. Along with his new wing-suit, Hiccup also wields a retractable flame sword (it's basically the Viking equivalent of a lightsaber), with a hilt that can release a combustible gas. I love these little details because its evidence that that these characters are markedly different from when they were introduced yet still fundamentally the same at their core.

One of the new characters that Hiccup encounters is Valka, his long-lost-and-presumed-dead mother.

DreamWorks Animation's films tend to feature a lot of silly humor to appeal to kids and while "How to Train Your Dragon 2" doesn't shy away from that, it's largely downplayed. In fact, the film feels more like a drama instead, with DeBlois' script going in some shockingly dark and upsetting territory, especially for an animated film. It would be so easy to give all the characters a clichéd happy ending but that's the lazy way out. When we first met Hiccup in the original film, he was still just a teenager. Now he's an adult and adulthood comes with responsibilities where actions have real consequences, some of which no one can predict. There's an emotionally powerful 'loss of innocence' moment late in the film but Hiccup doesn't allow himself to fall into despair. Instead, he uses this moment as a reminder to do better and he comes out of the film stronger for it. One common theme that DreamWorks Animation frequently goes back to is the concept of parenthood. In 2011's "Kung Fu Panda 2," Po's goal was to achieve catharsis and come to terms with his adopted parentage. In "How to Train Your Dragon 2," Hiccup reunites with his long-lost-and-presumed-dead mother Valka and comes to realize how much he takes after her. It makes for some genuinely heartwarming moments as DeBlois explores how a person's personality is often the sum of two other people. There's an eco-friendly theme as well (fortunately not beaten over our heads like April's "Rio 2"), with the film boasting a strong, positive example of the bond a person can share with an animal, to the point where it almost becomes instinctual. This is the kind of sophisticated storytelling that DreamWorks Animation should be fostering and I hope the studio uses the high bar they've set for themselves here as a way to continuously challenge themselves.

Like the animation and story, the voice acting is strong across the board. Jay Baruchel does an excellent job showing how much Hiccup has grown over the past five years while also playing up his still-lingering insecurities. Even though you're just hearing her voice, America Ferrera exudes tremendous charm as Hiccup's girlfriend Astrid while Jonah Hill, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Kristen Wiig, T.J. Miller, and Craig Ferguson bring the laughs with their respective characters. Wiig in particular is quite hilarious as Ruffnut finds herself caught in a complicated love triangle. However, the standouts are by far Cate Blanchett and Gerard Butler. These two do such a phenomenal job communicating the still-strong love and affection their characters have for each other despite being separated for twenty years. There's a beautiful scene where Butler's Stoick serenades Valka with the Celtic-style ballad For the Dancing and the Dreaming and I have to say, I got emotional. The only disappointment is that Blanchett didn't provide the vocals; when Valka sings, it's actually Mary Jane Wells. Djimon Hounsou fully immerses himself as villainous warlord Drago Bludvist, which leaves Kit Harington as the only voice actor not quite meeting the high bar set by the rest of the cast. That's not to say the "Game of Thrones" actor is outright bad but when everyone else is so good, adequate just isn't enough.

To be released on June 13, 2014, "How to Train Your Dragon 2" has received stellar reviews so far with an astounding 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. Unfortunately, that score won't likely hold as there is always that one critic that just has to give a negative review. Still, it's highly improbable that the score will fall below 95%. Box office wise, it's pretty much guaranteed to hit $300 million domestically given the relative dearth of animated films this summer. Yes, there's "Planes: Fire & Rescue" in July but it's hardly a fair comparison. Regardless, "How to Train Your Dragon 2" is going to be a big hit because the film is, to put it quite simply, an animated masterpiece. In fact, I don't think anything else that's being released in the next two-and-a-half months will even come close to the quality of DreamWorks Animation's latest.

Final Rating: 5 out of 5

"You were only a babe. But a mother never forgets."

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