"INFERNO" (2016) ReviewAuthor Dan Brown has written at least four novels featuring the character of Harvard University professor Robert Langdon. At least three of them have been adapted for film by producer Brian Grazer and director Ron Howard. Although three years had passed between the first two movies, "THE DaVINCI CODE" (2006) and "ANGELS & DEMONS" (2009), Grazer and Howard waited another seven years before their third adaptation, "INFERNO", hit the movie screens. Based upon Brown's 2013 novel, "INFERNO" begins with a mystery. Robert Langdon awakens inside a hospital room in Florence, Italy, with no memory of what happened to him during the past few days, but with occasional visions of a scorched Earth. One of the doctors tending him, Dr. Sienna Brooks, reveals that he is suffering from amnesia, due to a bullet wound to the head. When the pair discovers that another doctor is actually an assassin after Robert, Sienna helps him escape. The pair find a "Faraday pointer", a miniature image projector with a modified version of Sandro Botticelli's famous painting "Map of Hell", which is based on Dante's 14th century painting, "Dante's Inferno". Robert and Sienna realize this is the first clue in a trail left by Bertrand Zobrist, a billionaire geneticist who believed that rigorous measures were necessary to reduce the Earth's growing population. Zobrist had earlier committed suicide after being chased by armed government agents. As Robert and Sienna set about finding the virus created by Zobrist, they are chased by two parties. One of them is the hospital assassin, a woman named Vayentha, who works for a private security company called "The Consortium", who is acting on behalf of Zobrist. They are also being chased by agents of the World Health Organization (WHO)."INFERNO" proved to be a box office flop . . . at least in the United States. International moviegoers, on the other hand, embraced the film, making it an international hit. How did I feel about the film? To be honest, I rather liked. Actually, I like all three film adaptations of Dan Brown's novel. But I would place "INFERNO" at number two. I would not regard it as fascinating as "THE DaVINCI CODE", but I certainly found it more interesting than "ANGELS & DEMONS" due to a twist to the narrative that I did not see coming.Was there anything I found negative about the film? A part of me wished that Robert Langdon's talent for religious iconology and symbology had played a stronger role in the movie. No, I take that back. Langdon's talent in these field did play a strong role. Through him, he was able to find the virus created by Zobrist. He was also able to find the location where Zobrist and later his followers planned to release the virus. But like "ANGELS & DEMONS", the narrative for "INFERNO" did not provide that much insight in the world of religious and historic iconology as the one for "THE DaVINCI CODE". It seemed a bit of a let down for me. I also have one other problem with "INFERNO" - namely the film's showdown between Langdon, the W.H.O. agents and Zorbrist's followers. Visually, I found the sequence's location inside the Basilica Cistern in Istanbul more than satisfying and strong in atmosphere. But I had a problem in how the leader of Zobrist's followers died. It seemed vague. And when I discovered that particular character had died before Langdon's struggle with another Zobrist follower, I was taken by surprise. Unpleasantly so.But despite its flaws, I still enjoyed "INFERNO". It had a good, solid cast led by Tom Hanks. It was nice to see him portray Robert Langdon again. More importantly, I enjoyed how he conveyed Langdon's reaction over the unusual situation that the character found himself in the movie's beginning. I must admit that I was not that impressed by the news of Felicity Jones being cast as his co-star in this film. I simply could not imagine a possible screen chemistry between the pair. And yet, they worked well together. It helped that Jones gave an excellent performance, especially in those scenes in which her character seemed a bit overwhelmed in the situations in which they found themselves. The movie featured other first-rate performances. Hanks had another female co-star - Sidse Babett Knudsen, who gave a warm and skillful performance as Langdon's former lover, W.H.O. director Elizabeth Sinskey. Omar Sy was exceptionally complicated and superb as Christoph Bouchard, leader of the SRS team (Surveillance and Response Support) of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control team looking for Langdon. Ana Ularu struck me as particularly intense as the Consortium agent ordered to follow Langdon. Ben Foster's performance as the transhumanist scientist Bernard Zobrist only appeared in a few scenes in the movie. Yet, the actor did an excellent job in conveying his character's charismatic personality. My favorite performance was given by Irrfan Khan, who was spot-on as head of "The Consortium", the security firm hired by Zobrist to ensure that the latter's virus would be found. I found Khan's performance to be not only entertaining, but also complex and ambiguous.However, the performances were not the only aspect of "INFERNO" that I enjoyed. I will admit that I felt a bit of disappointment with the movie's Italian setting . . . especially since the previous Langdon film, "ANGELS & DEMONS" was also set in that country. However . . . I must admit that I found Salvatore Totino's sharp and colorful. I thought the cinematographer did an excellent job in capturing the beauty and color of Italy, Hungary and Turkey. And I thought both Tom Elkins and Daniel P. Hanley did a first-rate job with the film's editing - especially in the various action sequences and Langdon's flashbacks. Despite my complaint that the film's narrative failed to engage in deeper exploration of Langdon's knowledge of iconology and the vague details of the main protagonist's death, I really had no problems with the narrative for "INFERNO". I thought it was a pretty damn good story. I liked how author Dan Brown and screenwriter David Koepp utilized Langdon's specialty to create a nail-biting thriller in which humanity's fate was threatened. Zorbrist proved to be another one of Brown's protagonist, whose extremist views set the story in motion. For some reason, I found myself admiring how the narrative for "INFERNO" combined elements of art history, philosophy, politics, a travelogue, and a James Bond thriller. All I can say is . . . good job.I realize that "INFERNO" had received mainly negative reviews from critics. And personally, I would never regard it as one of the best films of 2016. But considering the original manner in which the plot commenced and the way screenwriter David Koepp balanced various elements to create an interesting story. And thanks to Ron Howard's slick direction and a first-rate cast led by Tom Hanks, "INFERNO" also proved to be very entertaining.
"COWBOYS AND ALIENS" (2011) ReviewEver since its theater release in July 2011, many have contemplated on the box office failure of the highly anticipated movie, "COWBOYS AND ALIENS". I could go over the many theories spouted about its failure, but I would find that boring. I am simply aware that the movie only earned $34 million dollars short of its budget. And all I can say is . . . this is a damn pity. "COWBOYS AND ALIENS" had some big names participating in its production. Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford were the movie's stars. The cast also included well known names such as Sam Rockwell, Adam Beach, Keith Carradine, Paul Dano and Clancy Brown. Jon Farveau, the director of the two successful "IRON MAN" movies, helmed the director's chair. At least five of the screenwriters - Damon Lindelof, Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci, Mark Fergus, and Hawk Ostby - have been associated with projects like "LOST" and the "STAR TREK". And big names in the film industry such as Ron Howard, Brian Grazer and Steven Spielberg acted as some of the producers. But despite all of this "COWBOYS AND ALIENS" remained one of the flops of this summer. Again, pity. I realize that I keep using the word "pity" as a response to the movie's failure. But I cannot help it. I really enjoyed "COWBOYS AND ALIENS". In fact, I enjoyed it so much that it has become one of my favorite movies from the summer of 2011. The movie was based upon the 2006 graphic novel by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg. It told the story of an alien invasion that occurred in the New Mexico Territory in 1873. The story focused upon a mysterious loner that awakens in the desert, injured and wearing a strange bracelet shackled to his wrist. He wanders into the town of Absolution, where the local preacher, Meacham treats his wound. After the stranger subdues Percy Dolarhyde, who has been terrorizing the populace, Sheriff Taggart recognizes the loner as Jake Lonergan, a wanted outlaw, and tries to arrest him. Jake nearly escapes, but a mysterious woman named Ella Swenson knocks him out. Percy's father, Colonel Woodrow Dolarhyde, a rich and influential cattleman, arrives with his men and demands that Percy be released to him. He also wants Jake, who had stolen Dolarhyde's gold. During the standoff, alien spaceships begin attacking the town. Percy, Sheriff Taggart and many townsfolk are abducted. Jake shoots down one ship with a device concealed in his wrist band, ending the attack. Realizing that the bracelet that Jake wears stands between them and the aliens, Colonel Dolarhyde, Meacham and Ella convinces Jake to help them find the aliens and the kidnapped townspeople, despite the fact that he has no memory of his own identity, let alone of any previous encounters with the aliens. Their expedition leads them Jake's former gang and a band of Chiricahua Apaches, who have also been victims of the aliens. "COWBOYS AND ALIENS" is not perfect. It has its flaws. To be honest, I can think of one or two flaws. Perhaps one. Although I understood that the aliens were taking the gold found near Absolution to power their starship, the script never made it clear on why they were taking the populace, as well. The only thing that the script made clear was that the kidnapped populace were being experimented upon. When it comes to human experimentation of reasons behind an invasions, many plots for alien invasion movies and television series tend to be rather weak in this area, including some of the best in this genre. And my other problem was that the script failed to reveal how Ella, who turned out to be another alien whose people had been destroyed by the invaders, ended up on Earth. But despite these flaws, "COWBOYS AND ALIENS" really impressed me. I thought that Jon Favreau did an excellent job in combining action with the film's dramatic moments. And his eye for location, greatly assisted by Matthew Libatique's photography of the New Mexican countryside, gave the movie's visuals a natural grandeur. In my review of another 2011 release, "SUPER 8", I had commented that it reminded me of an old "STAR TREK VOYAGER" episode. I cannot say the same for"COWBOYS AND ALIENS". But it did remind me of a "STAR TREK VOYAGER" fanfiction story called "Ashes to Ashes". At least Jake's experiences with the aliens before the movie began. And "COWBOYS AND ALIENS" must be the only alien invasion movie I can think of that was set before the 20th century. It occurred to me that if the two most famous adaptations of H.G. Wells' novel, "War of the Worlds" had been given its original setting, this would not have been the case. Unless someone knows of another alien invasion movie with a pre-20th century setting. Ever since I first saw the trailers for "COWBOYS AND ALIENS", I wondered how the screenwriters would combine the two genres of Science-Fiction and Westerns. Hell, I wondered if they could. Mixing Jake's history as an outlaw with his experiences with the aliens did the trick. At least I believe so. More importantly, "COWBOYS AND ALIENS" provided plenty of opportunities for character development - and that includes the supporting cast.The cast certainly proved to be first-rate. There have been British actors who have appeared in Westerns before. Come to think of it, Daniel Craig is not even the first James Bond actor who has appeared in a Western. But he is the only one I can recall who appeared in a Western as an American-born character. And if I must be blunt, the man takes to Westerns like a duck to water. More importantly, both Craig's super performance and the screenwriters made certain that his Jake Lonergran did not come off as some cliché of the "Man With No Name" character from Sergio Leone's DOLLAR TRILOGY". Craig made him a man determined to learn of his past, while dealing with the sketchy memories of a past love and his attraction toward Ella. The character of Colonel Woodrow Dolarhyde seems like a far cry from Harrison Ford's usual roles. His Colonel Dolarhyde was not the solid Jack Ryan type or the rough, yet dashing Indiana Jones persona. In one of his rare, offbeat roles, Ford's Colonel Dolarhyde was a ruthless, no-nonsense man who ruled his ranch and the town of Absolution with an iron fist. And Ford did a first-rate job of diluting Dolarhyde's distasteful ruthlessness into something more . . . human and warm. I wondered how I would take Olivia Wilde's performance as the mysterious Ella Swenson, who seemed determined to get Jake to help the rest of Absolution's citizens find the aliens. After seeing the movie, I enjoyed her performance very much. She had a strong chemistry with Craig. More importantly, she gave a solid performance and possessed a strong screen presence. But I really enjoyed about Wilde's performance was that she conveyed an other world quality about Ella that strongly hinted her role as an alien who landed on Earth to find the invaders who had destroyed most of her race.The supporting cast was led by the likes of Sam Rockwell, who competently portrayed Absolution's insecure saloon keeper, Doc; and Adam Beach, who gave a deliciously complex performance as Dolarhyde's right-hand man, Nat Colorado. And actors such as Paul Dano as Dolarhyde's s raucous son, a serene Clancy Brown, Noah Ringer (from "THE LAST AIRBENDER"), who portrayed the sheriff's grandson, and a solid Keith Carradine gave firm support.I do not know what else I could say about "COWBOYS AND ALIENS". I find it a pity that it failed to become a box office hit. Because I really enjoyed it. The screenwriters, along with cinematographer Matthew Libatique, a first-rate cast led by Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford and fine direction by Jon Favreau made it one of my favorite films from the summer of 2011.
Below is my current list of favorite movies set in the 1920s: FAVORITE MOVIES SET IN THE 1970s
1. American Gangster (2007) - Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe starred in this biopic about former Harlem drug kingpin, Frank Lucas and Richie Roberts, the Newark police detective who finally caught him. Ridley Scott directed this energetic tale.
2. Munich (2005) - Steven Spielberg directed this tense drama about Israel's retaliation against the men who committed the Munich massacre at the 1972 Summer Olympics. Eric Bana, Daniel Craig and Ciarán Hinds starred.
3. Rush (2013) - Ron Howard directed this account of the sports rivalry between James Hunt and Niki Lauda during the 1976 Formula One auto racing season. Chris Hemsworth and Daniel Brühl starred.
4. Casino (1995) - Martin Scorsese directed this crime drama about rise and downfall of a gambler and enforcer sent West to run a Mob-owned Las Vegas casino. Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci and Sharon Stone starred.
5. Super 8 (2011) - J.J. Abrams directed this science-fiction thriller about a group of young teens who stumble across a dangerous presence in their town, after witnessing a train accident, while shooting their own 8mm film. Joel Courtney, Elle Fanning and Kyle Chandler starred.
6. Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (2011) - Gary Oldman starred as George Smiley in this recent adaptation of John le Carré's 1974 novel about the hunt for a Soviet mole in MI-6. Tomas Alfredson directed.
7. Apollo 13(1995) - Ron Howard directed this dramatic account about the failed Apollo 13 mission in April 1970. Tom Hanks, Bill Paxton and Kevin Bacon starred.
8. Nixon (1995) - Oliver Stone directed this biopic about President Richard M. Nixon. The movie starred Anthony Hopkins and Joan Allen.
9. Starsky and Hutch (2004) - Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson starred in this comedic movie adaptation of the 70s television series about two street cops hunting down a drug kingpin. Directed by Todd Phillips, the movie also starred Vince Vaughn, Jason Bateman and Snoop Dogg.
10. Frost/Nixon (2008) - Ron Howard directed this adaptation of the stage play about David Frost's interviews with former President Richard Nixon in 1977. Frank Langella and Michael Sheen starred.