CLOUD ATLAS: Six Stories, One Adventure

Note: This review may contain minor spoilers, including videos of the actors in their various character guises (some which should be kept a surprise for first-time viewers). - Zack

The Wachowskis, Andy and Lana, were discouraged. Their latest film, Speed Racer - a high-octane family action movie - failed to find an audience (years later, it was finally accepted) in the midst of a superhero-ruled summer of 2008. Then, they met with director Tom Tykwer, most famous for directing the entertainingly repetitive Run Lola Run. Sensing a kinship, the three began meeting regularly and Lana Wachowski remembered a novel that Natalie Portman had given her on the set of V for Vendetta, a film the Wachowskis produced.

The novel was "Cloud Atlas", a 2004 book written by David Mitchell. Featuring different characters with different genres across different time periods, both the Wachowskis and Tykwer felt this was something they had to bring to the screen. After taking the multiple plots and characters and condensing them into one script, the filmmakers approached Mitchell himself for permission to move forward. The Wachowskis were fearful of rejection; they had previously dealt with the infamously reclusive and Hollywood-hating Alan Moore, writer of the original V for Vendetta graphic novel (and Watchmen). Fortunately, Mitchell was nothing but supportive and even remarked, "This could be one of the few film adaptations better than the book."


However, one more obstacle stood in their way: getting the movie financed. The Wachowskis and Tykwer often found it hard to describe to studios what exactly the movie would look like. Even after acquiring name actors like Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Hugo Weaving, Susan Sarandon and Jim Broadbent, the studios were still wary. They then decided to seek out non-studio investors in Europe and Asia. When the filmmakers had enough money that they wouldn't put themselves under, Warner Bros. finally agreed to distribute the film in the United States, with Focus Features handling the international release.

1849, The Pacific Ocean. Adam Ewing (Jim Sturgess) is a shipwrecked lawyer dying from a mysterious illness. Ewing desperately wants to return home to San Francisco to see his wife, Tilda (Doona Bae) again. His physician, Henry Goose (Tom Hanks), tends to him daily. Along the way, he also bonds with an African slave named Autua (David Gyasi). Both are more than they seem; one has the best of intentions and the other has much darker motives.

1935, Scotland. Robert Frobisher (Ben Whishaw) is a young aspiring musician working for an established composer, Vyvvyan Ayrs (Jim Broadbent). Challenged by Ayrs to write a new piece of music that he's only dreamed about, Frobisher creates the "Cloud Atlas Sextet", inspired by his secret romance with Rufus Sixsmith (James D'Arcy). However, the music Frobisher and Ayrs bond over may prove to be more dangerous than they think.

1973, San Francisco. Luisa Rey (Halle Berry) is an ambitious journalist wanting to break through a story involving a nuclear power plant mogul (Hugh Grant), whose company is in the process of building a nuclear reactor. She happens upon a meek scientist (Hanks) who reluctantly agrees to help her out, though they are closely watched by a paid assassin (Hugo Weaving). Rey is undeterred and uses her wits and a sympathetic security guard (Keith David) to unleash the truth.

2012, London. Timothy Cavendish (Broadbent) is a tabloid reporter who has just signed a publishing deal with an unstable mobster (Hanks). When the mobster is arrested for murder and his brothers threaten him for  a large sum of money, Cavendish goes on the run and takes refuge at a nursing home run by a megalomaniac nurse (Weaving). Mysteriously, no one in charge at the nursing home will allow Cavendish to leave.

2144, Neo Seoul. A young waitress clone named Somni-451 (Bae), working in an underground café, is caught up in a political conspiracy when it is discovered she is the key in a plan of revolution. She meets a stranger (Sturgess) who tells her she doesn't know how important she is yet. Together, she has to outrun her oppressive government in order to survive.

Post-apocalypse, Hawaii. A benevolent islander, Zachry (Hanks), discovers a woman (Berry) who is a member of a once prosperous but now lost society and agrees to assist her in re-establishing contact with her people. Zachry is constantly berated by a being known as Old Georgie (Weaving), the devil to his native people. As they travel, he overcomes his fears and doubts in himself to become a true hero.

Still here? Great. A lot to take in, right? You definitely get your money's worth with this movie. It's good to have the Wachowskis back again making movies; likewise, I saw Run Lola Run in my "Introduction to Film" college course, so I was excited to see what Tom Tykwer brought to the project. Together, the three of them are the only ones to capture this unwieldy novel on film. Each section is told with care and detail that accentuates the actors' performances. Speaking of which, the ensemble cast is fascinating. Every main actor is literally given something to do in each section; keep an eye out for them. Most of their work in the film is under extensive makeup (without any digital add-on assistance). This allows men to play women, women to play men, black people to play white people, etc. The genres in the film are just as diverse as the cast: sci-fi, drama, comedy, romance, thriller. Six movies in one, with a central storyline and universe. Take that, Disney/Marvel!

Different faces, different places. Yet all have the ties that bind: a story about one soul transforming from a villain to a hero. To be fair, there have been films with similar cinematic structure - 1916's Intolerance, 1993's Being Human and 2006's The Fountain. However, none of these films have been done on the modern-day, massive scale that the Wachowskis and Tykwer are bringing to it. It is immense. Regardless of how the film does box office-wise, Cloud Atlas is a happy anomaly: perhaps we may never see a film made like this again, but because we have it, it's that much more special and endearing. It may not grab everyone, and it's really not meant to. Those are willing to accept it on its terms reap the rewards. Again and again and again and again...

P.S. I will definitely have to see this film theatrically one more time. Once to absorb it, once to appreciate it more.

P.P.S. Am I the only one who thinks The Matrix universe shouldn't have ended on the sequels? Let the Wachowskis write/direct more movies centered around DIFFERENT characters in the same universe. 

ARGO: A Fake Movie, A Real Thriller

“So you wanna come to Hollywood and act like a big shot without actually doing anything?”

“Yeah.”

“You'll fit right in.”

- John Chambers (John Goodman) and Tony Mendez (Ben Affleck) Argo (2012)

In the early 2000s, Ben Affleck was at an all-time high. His love life had went from the disastrous breakup between him and Jennifer Lopez to the miraculous marriage between him and Jennifer Garner. The tabloids couldn’t get enough of him. Unfortunately, the movie theaters had too much of him. Movies like Paycheck, Jersey Girl (directed by his friend Kevin Smith) and Surviving Christmas were massive failures. Then, he began co-writing a new film, Gone Baby Gone in 2007. He made it his directorial debut. Critics cheered and praised his work. 

Affleck said of his newfound career: “Directing a movie was really instinctive for me. I learned a lot about writing, and a lot about acting, and I learned how all the pieces fit together from the inside. That was really valuable. It was a good thing.” He continued with directing with 2010’s The Town. Critics were again impressed and the box office reflected the goodwill. The following year, Affleck began a new film based on a previously untold story set during the 1979 Iran hostage crisis. Filmmakers making a film about not making a film.

In 1979, Iran was in a state of political turmoil. Islamic radicals stormed the U.S. Embassy and took hostages. However, six Americans managed to escape out a back door and take refuge at the Canadian ambassador’s house. The CIA began putting together plans to getting them out. Tony Mendez (Affleck), an “exfiltration” expert, threw out his superior’s ridiculous ideas and came up with an even more ridiculous idea. Inspired by his son, Mendez explained that he would go to Iran, give the Americans the guise of a Canadian film crew of a low-budget science-fiction film and sneak them back home.

In order to legitimize the plan, Mendez met with Oscar-winning makeup artist and CIA contact John Chambers (John Goodman) and Lester Siegel (Alan Arkin), Hollywood producer. Together they came up with Argo, a clear Star Wars rip-off. Something that needed an exotic location to film in: Iran. After the preparations, Mendez flew to Tehran to meet with the Americans. They react initially with distrust and skepticism. However, Mendez’s resolve to get them home wins them over and they participate in his false charade. What happened then was a story that could only be told in a real movie about a fake movie.

This normally isn’t my kind of film, but the Hollywood angle, of course, attracted me. It’s also my favorite part of the film. Goodman and Arkin are the clear MVPs of the film, playing the comic relief in between the harrowing political drama in Iran. Speaking of which, why hasn’t anyone made a film about the life of John Chambers, ala Confessions of a Dangerous Mind? The guy was in charge of creating the makeup for the Apes of the Planet of the Apes franchise and the ears of Mr. Spock. Yet, he also was one of the CIA’s best civilian contacts. That is a wonderful contradiction that could play out in a feature. Maybe someday.

Affleck is a great director, paying great homage in the details to the time period; specifically beginning the film with the retro Warner Bros. logo from the ‘70s. He shot on film and blew up the images to create graininess. That kind of respect to the old school isn’t found in most young Hollywood directors. However, I would argue it came at a cost. Affleck as an actor in this film seems relatively bland. He legitimately has no emotion other than determination. Even when he’s cursing out his boss (Bryan Cranston), he’s just so calm and deliberate and not shouting or screaming. I can understand that it’s tough to be directing a shot and then step in front of the camera and play a scene. Leonard Nimoy described his role as director/actor in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home as “wrenching”. Affleck has said he’ll never direct a film that he won’t star in. I’d humbly ask him to reconsider that decision.

Still, Argo is a compelling film that throws out the politics when it comes to both Hollywood and international governments and simply tells a story of an unbelievable rescue mission in the middle of a tense situation. The history is given in a very respectable way for those audience members who may not be aware of it, which is very helpful.  It’s an edge-of-your-seat thriller with some humorous elements. It’ll be a definite contender for Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor.

PEANUTS to Return to the Big Screen

Note: I tried writing this article for GeekTyrant. They said no. I tried writing this article for WeGotThisCovered. They said no. Competitive writing is extremely stressful sometimes. Where they fail, you gain. Thanks - Zack

For over 50 years, the characters in Peanuts created by Charles M. Schultz have captivated children and adults of all ages with their witty humor, lovable nature and quirky behaviors. Television specials like "A Charlie Brown Christmas" and "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" have become perennial classics around the holiday season. Four feature-length animated films were made with the characters - 1969's A Boy Named Charlie Brown, 1972's Snoopy, Come Home, 1977's Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown (often called the best and most-remembered of the four) and 1980's Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don't Come Back!!). A popular off-Broadway show, "You're  A Good Man, Charlie Brown", is still performed around the world today. The characters have most recently begun to appear in Metlife commercials; Snoopy has been their long-time mascot, but until recently, had appeared alone in the commercials.

But now, the "Peanuts" gang are about to have their biggest media expansion to date. 20th Century Fox and Blue Sky Studios, the folks behind the Ice Age films, the Rio films, Robots, Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who and the upcoming Epic, have reached a deal with Charles M. Schultz's family. The son and grandson of Schultz, Craig and Brian, have co-written a script that will be directed by Steve Martino (Horton Hears  A Who, Ice Age: Continental Drift). The film will be released on November 25, 2015; five days after The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part II (great decision, Fox...).

With Blue Sky behind the animation, it's obvious the film will be in CG. I'm not sure how I feel about these characters being pulled into 3D, when for the past 50 years, they've been in 2D. Consider me cautiously optimistic. I'm just worried about who they'll get to do the voices of the characters. If, for some dark reason, Justin Bieber is cast as Charlie Brown, I will vehemently refuse to see it.