THE BATMAN, THE OUTFIT, MARRY ME, DEATH ON THE NILE, UNCHARTED, JANET JACKSON DOCUMENTARY, THE 355

Originally posted Feb 6, 2022

THE BATMAN  | Warner Bros | Writer/Director Matt Reeves | Co-Writer Peter Craig

It’s curious why we love to re-examine, re-imagine and re-interpret these superhero characters. It’s similar to the way “A Street Car Named Desire” or “Death of a Salesman” and other classic plays continue to attract audiences under various theater marquees, so many decades after their original runs.  With Superhero movies, it’s more than just the fact that studios know movie-goers will flock to the theaters – there’s something that makes the artists behind the films want to put their stamp on beloved comicbook icons, never fearing that all has been said and done.  

No doubt you’ve already heard how cinematic this latest examination of the Cape Crusader comes across on screen.  It’s dark, but somehow even more artful than Nolan’s The Dark Knight Trilogy.

I like this description: Cinematographer Greig Fraser pulls off the same sort of stunning magic trick he did with his Oscar-nominated work in Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune”: Through pouring rain and neon lights, there’s both a gauziness and a heft to his imagery. His use of shadow and silhouette is masterful, and does so much to convey a sense of foreboding and tension – Christy Lemire  

Reeves & Craig got their inspiration from the issues Batman: The Long Halloween (1996–97) and its sequel Dark Victory (1999–2000) going back to Batman’s origins of more hard-boil detective and less vigilante; although, his catch phase is “I am Vengeance” rather than “I am Batman”.  Robert Pattinson is sufficiently brooding in and out of the suit; yet I was more drawn to him as Bruce Wayne, dark stringy bangs, each strand effectively hanging across his enigmatic face.

Zoë Kravitz becomes the 30th Catwoman (Selina Kyle) according to “Insider”, this includes TV shows and video games. She doesn’t even try for feline-esque, she plays up the independent biker side, with a definite agenda.  Paul Dano as Riddler presents deadly puzzles as a disgruntled, serial killer. He veers away from the super villain full of bounce and pithy puns. Colin Farrell as The Penguin, What!?! Whose genius casting idea was that? Who knew Farrel could truly disappear behind makeup and a fat-suit?  Jeffrey Wright as James Gordon gets more screen time than Gary Oldman’s Gordon, but then again, this is a 3 hour flick, everyone gets plenty of screen time.  Lastly, the Batmobile is stripped down with a cool, raw, drag racing look.

Here’s my bottom line:  I totally admire The Batman for all of the above and more. Yet at the same time, I was often bored by the slow pacing, lack of snappy dialogue, and too many corrupt city officials.

T&T LAMB rating: 4.5 outta 5 for execution | 3 outta 5 for personal enjoyment

THE OUTFIT  | Focus Features | Writer/Director Graham Moore | Co-writer Johnathan McClain

I worked for a man who flew to London’s Savile Row most every year to have a suit made by these Master Cutters. He spoke so highly of the whole Bespoke world of meticulous tailors, that when I finally got to travel to London, Savile Row was one of my first stops. I wasn’t looking to have a suit made, of course, but I needed to be on the street where all this finery, elegance and top-notch-ness takes place.

The Outfit’s main character is Leonard, played by the outstanding Mark Rylance (Bridges of Spies, Don’t Look Up).  He is a Master Cutter from Savile Row, now living in 1950’s Chicago.  He runs a small but expensive tailor shop.  He has a receptionist/bookeeper, Mable (Zoey Deutch) but he does all the work creating these fine suits himself, he’s so precise in every aspect, he wouldn’t have it any other way. Even when Mable helps him fold some silk scarfs, he’s got to refold them to his satisfaction. These two, however, have a very good working relationship, almost like family, although neither of them feels comfortable admitting that. 

Like any shop, there must be customers. Leonard happened to attract a crime boss, with good taste as his primary client, who gets suits made for everyone in his organization, including his son Richie (Dylan O’Brien) and right-hand Francis (Johnny Flynn). These two have become very familiar with Leonard and his shop over what seems to be at least a year or possibly more as it’s an established practice for their organization to use the shop as a safe house, a place to get and send crime related messages via a box in the back room.  

Moore explains that “The Outfit” was a real criminal organization which existed in mid-century America. It was formed as a kind of united nations of crime.  Different gangs operated independently in different cities, but were also part of this overarching network.  The title of the film The Outfit also works as a play on words in the fact that the main character is a tailor; however, get this, it turns out in FBI history, the very first bug that was ever used was planted in a tailor shop in 1956! Moore and Mcclain developed Leonard’s character first while writing the screenplay and later found out the rest which ties it all together synchronistically. 

I’m not usually much for crime dramas, people rubbing each other out, betrayed loyalties and all that, which this does have in spades; yet over all it’s a psychological thriller with fine twists and turns I never saw coming.

T&T LAMB rating: 4 outta 5

MARRY ME  | Universal Pictures | Director Kat Coiro | Screenwriters John Rogers, Tami Sagher, Harper Dill

Jennifer Lopez has appeared or starred in over 30 movies since she came on the acting scene in 1986, in varying genres; but she’d be the first to admit she’s just a romantic at heart, which makes her gravitate most often to a rom/com.  All of which I’ve hated – The Wedding Planner, Maid in Manhattan, The Back Up Plan, Monster-in-Law , Second Act, terrible. Not because I don’t like JLo, I’m a fan. Not because I don’t like rom/coms, I’m a fan.  But all of these movies have been cheesily written, with horrible pacing and very little chemistry.  Until now.  I couldn’t believe it, but I honestly enjoyed Marry Me!

I’m not typically an Owen Wilson fan, (has his nose gotten worse?) but somehow his nerdy mathematician caught up in a celebrity’s romantic crises is endearing.  He plays Charlie, a divorced father of a bi-racial pre-teen, Lou (Chloe Coleman). He teaches at a New York middle school and is the coach of the Vipers, a competition math club, like Glee for the algorithmic. He’s friends with a extroverted Guidance Counselor Parker (Sarah Silverman) who has tickets to the hottest concert in town, one where Kat Valdez (Lopez), international superstar is going to marry Latin singing sensation, Bastian (Maluma). Their song “Marry Me” has already been topping the charts and the couples’ fans are going crazy in anticipation of this wedding extravaganza concert to be streamed around the world live! 

Just as the bedazzling nuptials are about to take place, Kat realizes everyone is looking at their phones and that some news has broken. Page Six has gotten ahold of a video of Bastian hooking up with a member of Kat’s team.  Rather than run off stage, Kat addresses her fans with her feelings, only the heartfelt moment goes a little lopsided when she looks out in the crowd, sees Charlie, who happens to be holding Parker’s Marry Me sign, which is just a novelty, similar to wearing your team’s jersey to a football game, and tells him, “Sure, I’ll marry you” and beckons him to come up on stage.

I like that Jennifer Lopez is ostensibly playing herself – a glamorous, super celebrity with a bad track record in love. Someone who’s good at balancing being famous, constant social media and endorsement commitments, while still seeming honest with a down-to-earth quality. There’s a number of lines in the movie which seem to speak to her own experience of love and fame.  It’s this part of Kat that convinces Charlie to go along with staying married for a few months, as Kat and her team have decided to spin the impulsive moment into a kind of social experiment for the world to witness. What happens if you marry a stranger?

I don’t think anyone’s ever gonna be able to capture the sheer rom/com magic of the early 90’s, but in terms of good pacing, nice moments and a well-executed concept, this one comes close.

In theaters and available on Peacock Premium

T&T LAMB rating: 4 outta 5

DEATH ON THE NILE  | 20th Century Studios| Director Kenneth Branagh | Screenwriter Michael Green |Based on book by Agatha Christie

Kenneth Branagh has found himself a nice little cottage industry here, remaking films based on Agatha Christie’s novels (owing that cast personal issues don’t damage the box office).  This could be a franchise with longevity. It certainly brought me back to the theater, as I had taken a break after Christmas when the Omicron surge was at its height. But knowing how sumptuous his 2017 Murder on the Orient Express was (click for T&T #MiniMovieReview) also shot with 65mm, I knew seeing Death on the Nile on my laptop just wouldn’t do.

The film begins with a little backstory on Inspector Poirot (Branagh), which explains why he seems perpetually single and why he wears such an elaborate mustache.  We then fast forward many years to what appears to be an exotic vacation for the Inspector in the Middle East, where he overhears a young woman, Rosalie Otterbourne (Letitia Wright) demanding payment upfront for her Aunt’s performance, Salome Otterbourne, a sultry jazz singer (Sophie Okonedo).  He also witnesses the friendship between two hard to miss women, Jacqueline de Bellefort (Emma Mackey) excited to introduce her fiancé, Simon Doyle (Armie Hammer), to Linnet Ridgeway (Gal Gadot). 

We fast forward again, only 6 weeks, Poirot still in Egypt, runs into his old friend Bouc (Tom Bateman) who honestly, I don’t really remember from The Orient Express.  He invites Poirot to meet some friends, where once again, the Inspector finds himself in the company of Bellefort, Doyle and Ridgeway, only now Simon Doyle has switched fiancés. More players enter the scene – Bouc’s mother, Euphemia (Annette Bening); Linnet’s old flame Dr. Linus Windlesham (Russell Brand); Linnet’s cousin, lawyer Andrew Katchadourian (Ali Fazal); her personal assistant Louise (Rose Leslie); her Socialist godmother Marie Van Schuyler (Jennifer Saunders), and Marie’s companion Mrs. Bowers (Dawn French ); along with the aforementioned Otterbourne’s.

Murder does not actually take place for quite awhile. Instead we get to see these character’s interactions for sometime, particularly when the party boards the gorgeous Cruise Ship the S.S. Karnak and begins their journey down the Nile. Production designer Jim Clay‘s rendition of this grand paddle boat is, as intended, another character in the film.  Costume designer Paco Delgado‘s rich, extensive wardrobe for the entire ensemble is of course, my favorite part. I even found myself taking particular note of the nattily dressed Inspector Poirot’s impeccable attire, as much as I did the women’s sophisticated gowns and accessories. Although, most of the film was shot on a sound stage, Cinematographer Haris Zambarloukos does provide some magnificent B roll on location. There’s a shot of the SS Karnak at night, under a full moon, fully lighted, that I wished I could capture for my screensaver.

I admire the fact that not only is Death on the Nile a diverse cast, but it’s not blind casting. Michael Green adds a sprinkle of reality for the black and brown characters in terms of race and their relation to the white characters, without making them any less than. The entire production makes for a glamorously entertaining Who Dunn-it.  T&T LAMB rating: 3.5 outta 5

UNCHARTED  | Sony Pictures Releasing| Director Ruben Fleischer | Screenwriters Rafe Lee Judkins, Art Marcum, Matt Holloway

Opening scene is just that of a ring on a leather necklace flying upwards, camera zooms in on the figure wearing the necklace, Nathan Drake (Tom Holland) is also flying, sort of, as his foot is caught in some cargo which is half hanging out of a plane. An almost Mission Impossible action sequence ensues, until we go back in time to find out how this character found himself in this predicament.

Brothers Sam and Nate are caught by museum security trying to steal the first map made after the Magellan expedition. The orphanage that houses both boys kicks Sam out. Before he leaves, Sam promises his return to Nate, and leaves him a ring with the inscription “Sic Parvis Magna”.

Fifteen years later, Nate works as a bartender in New York City and on the side also pickpockets wealthy patrons. Victor “Sully” Sullivan, (Mark Wahlberg) a fortune hunter who worked with Sam tracking treasure hidden by the Magellan crew, explains to Nate that Sam vanished after helping him steal Juan Sebastian Elcano’s diary. Nate, who has had no contact with his brother, with the exception of several postcards received from Sam over the years, warily agrees to help Sully to find his brother and the treasure. Their adventure begins at a New York City auction, with some very Spiderman-like scenes for Holland, and eventually takes them around the world in search of this 16th century fortune.

Of course they are not the only ones seeking this bounty – there’s also a fellow fortune hunter and former associate of Sully’s, Chloe Frazer (Sophia Ali). And Santiago Moncada (Antonio Banderas) a ruthless treasure hunter and the descendant of the Moncada family. Working for Moncada is a mercenary, Jo Braddock (Tati Gabrielle) who I sometimes kinda rooted for because she’s a badass black female.

For those not in the know, this movie, like Lara Croft Tomb Raider‘s origins, is based on a video game of the same name, designed by Naughty Dog. It started development back 2008 and took 14 years to make it to the screen, with a whole host of different producers, directors and stars attached for short periods of time. At one time, it was gonna be directed by David O. Russell (Silver Linings Playbook, American Hustle) can’t imagine this being the right vehicle for him at all!

Uncharted has some very fun action scenes, some National Treasure type moments, mix in a little Indiana Jones and some The Hitman’s Bodyguard. I enjoyed myself, but for something that went through as many iterations as this movie, it should have been extraordinary.

T&T LAMB rating:  3.5 outta 5

JANET JACKSON 2 night Docu-Series  | Lifetime & A&E| Director Benjamin Hirsch | Rick Murray, Workerbee Documentary Films

THE 355  | Universal Pictures | Writer/Director Simon Kinberg | Co-writer Theresa Rebeck

150 miles outside of Bogota, a Kingpin of some sorts is selling a tech weapon, some massively encrypted program which itself is a decryption program capable of downing planes mid-flight, taking water treatment plants offline, infiltrating government agencies, basically it can super hack the most secure systems with a cyber attack.  Agents from all over know about this weapon and want to prevent it from getting into the wrong clutches. Colombian agents are first on the scene lead by super handsome Edgar Ramirez. They take out the designer of the program, but still the operation goes awry. 

Next on the case is German BND agent Marie Schmidt (Diane Kruger) she’s relentless when on a case and could take on any MMA cage fighter with her extraordinary hand to hand combat skills. At the same time CIA agent Mason “Mace” Browne (Jessica Chastain) and her sexy CIA partner Nick (Sebastian Stan) are undercover as Honeymooners while tracking the program (aka MacGuffin). Mace and Marie don’t play nice when they get in each other’s way, in pursuit of the item. Mace is also an excellent fighter, but Marie often gets the best of her.  Mace eventually enlists the help of an old “friend” formerly from MI6, Khadijah (Lupita Nyong’o), a tech-specialist who is now retired with a nice University teaching position and very sweet boyfriend, she’s not happy to see Mace.  Graciela (Penélope Cruz), is a psychologist working for Colombia’s DNI, she had no idea what kind of danger she was putting herself into when taking on the assignment.  Rounding out the players is MSS agent Lin Mi Sheng (Fan Bingbing) who shows up at a critical juncture in the second half.  Although, all 5 Women come from different alliances they all wisely agree working together is the obvious solution. Unfortunately, their personal lives become a liability to their mission.

This was my first movie watched in the New Year with a 2022 release.  I was hoping to start out with something strong. I was expecting The 355 to be a little slicker, a lot more fun and just over-all more cohesive.  It’s a decent action/spy caper, I would say on par with the other star studded female cast vehicle Ocean’s 8. But it’s not nearly as engaging as Hustlers . Yet at least the team comes together quicker than Birds of Prey.
T&T LAMB rating: 2.5 outta 5

Check Out:
#MiniMovieReview Extravaganza 1 
#MiniMovieReview Extravaganza 2
#MiniMovieReview Extravaganza 3
#MiniMovieReview Sundance