The Movie Press
  • Movie Reviews
  • Twitter News/Updates
  • News & Notes
  • DVD
  • Box Office Results
  • Contact
  • About Us

Ladies may flock to “Magic Mike,” but it’s surprisingly fascinating

6/28/2012

0 Comments

 
Magic Mike
I’m not gonna lie. The allure of male strippers on my movie screen is what originally piqued my attention. Throw in a dash of Alcide from True Blood (Joe Manganiello), and I was already sold. But wait, wait, wait...this is a Steven Soderbergh flick? Hrm...color me intrigued. While the trailers for Magic Mike are definitely hoping to draw on the hordes of horny women who want to ogle Channing Tatum, Alex Pettyfer, Matt Bomer, and Matthew McConaughey hairless, shirtless, and grinding their bodies into the camera, the movie that follows is a surprisingly Soderberghian film: it’s raw, fast-moving, and a realistic glimpse into a world rarely seen.

Magic Mike is, at its core, the story of a male stripper/entrepreneur (Tatum) who dreams of making his dollar bills by producing custom furniture instead of selling his body. One day at his roofing gig he meets Adam (Pettyfer), a 19 year-old fuck-up who blew his football scholarship and is now crashing on his sister’s Brooke’s (Cody Horn) couch. Mike, being the brotherly type, takes Adam under his wing and introduces him to his other place of business, Xquisite, where he’s Magic Mike and one member of the “Cock-Rocking Kings of Tampa.”

Adam quickly becomes one of the group and a rising star in the eyes of Dallas (McConaughey), the kinda sleazy owner of the club who dreams of taking his male revue to the big city of Miami. Of course, Adam’s sister struggles to approve of his new gig but finds time to flirt with Mike in the process, and Adam slowly devolves into the darker world of ecstasy pushing and constant partying.

While Magic Mike doesn’t have a revolutionary plot, the movie succeeds on several components. The biggest one of all is, by and large, Channing Tatum himself. While some of the plot is allegedly ripped from Tatum’s own stripper days, Tatum is almost downright magnetic here. With his recent comedic turn in 21 Jump Street, Tatum is becoming quite the leading man. He’s quietly funny without being showy, he’s mesmerizing when he dances (oh, Step Up, how I miss thee), and he just oozes charm. His scenes with the rest of his stripper comrades also border on the incredibly bro-y with more male bonding than Soderbergh’s Ocean’s 11.

Many people are lauding McConaughey’s go-for-broke performance as the douchey nightclub owner, and while he does steal several scenes, I couldn’t help but feel like it was just a grosser, more adult version of his Dazed and Confused character and an extreme caricature of his own personality. Nevertheless, I still enjoyed watching him shed off his rom-com image and just go for it.

Also, Soderbergh’s voyeuristic camera and the dialogue’s almost improvisational feel really lend an air of reality and a sense that we’re peaking into this world and culture. Magic Mike may be about male strippers, and that may get the ladies into the seats, but the movie is surprisingly fascinating and a far cry from the film the trailers are promoting.  

-- Darcie Duttweiler

0 Comments

“Brave” does not live up to the Pixar legacy

6/22/2012

1 Comment

 
Brave film
When I first saw the trailers for Brave, I was reallllllly excited. I thought it was going to be the perfect mix of the Pixar I know and love with a dash of the old school Disney princess tale I grew up on. I was looking forward to seeing a tough cartoon princess on the big screen again.

But then I actually watched Brave, and I was slightly disappointed.

It’s not that Brave is baaaaaaad. It’s not. If it was produced by any other studio than Pixar, I might feel more enthusiastic about it, but I expect more from Pixar. Plus, the flick caters to the lowest common denominator at points (we get it...people don’t wear anything under kilts) that it’s almost reminiscent of a Shrek film. And that is NOT a compliment. Also, about exactly halfway through the movie, it completely changes plot, and I thought to myself, “Wait...this is not what the trailer sold me on!”

Brave is the story of Merida (Kelly MacDonald), a skilled archer and the headstrong daughter of King Fergus (Billy Connolly) and Queen Elinor (Emma Thompson). Wanting to be independent and not follow the traditional princess route, Merida defies an age-old custom sacred to the lords of the land, voiced by Kevin McKidd, Craig Ferguson, and Robbie Coltrane, who erupt in fury. And then, randomly, she turns to a crazy, old Witch (Julie Walters) for help, and wishes to change her fate. What transpires after that is...well, not really what you expect since you thought you were getting just your typical “impetuous heroine doing brave things” movie a la Mulan.

This isn’t to say that Brave doesn’t have its cute moments—it does, and you’ll even smile a couple of moments. But, this is the same studio that gave us Ratatouille and WALL-E, and Brave is just NOT up to par with their legacies. It doesn’t even have the same resonance or weight as the third act in Toy Story 3. I just didn’t seem to FEEL anything when watching it. And, while the imagery and Scottish highlands are beautiful, as are Merida’s horse and her unruly curls, the 3D just isn’t as worthwhile as you would imagine from Pixar.

Kids will probably still love Brave, but this Pixar outing doesn’t have the same cleverness or smile-inducing moments that will keep the parents as entertained. I’m gonna go pop in my Ratatouille Blu-Ray and reminisce...

-- Darcie Duttweiler

1 Comment

    Archives

    October 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    July 2018
    June 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    March 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010
    October 2010
    September 2010
    August 2010
    July 2010
    June 2010
    May 2010
    April 2010
    March 2010
    February 2010
    January 2010
    December 2009
    November 2009
    October 2009
    September 2009
    August 2009
    July 2009
    June 2009
    May 2009
    April 2009
    March 2009
    February 2009
    January 2009
    December 2008
    November 2008
    October 2008
    September 2008
    August 2008

    Categories

    All
    Austin Film Festival
    Darcie Duttweiler Reviews
    Derrick Mitcham Reviews
    Eric Harrelson Reviews
    Eric Pulsifer Reviews
    Eric Pulsifer Reviews
    Fantastic Fest
    Greg Maclennan Reviews
    Greg Wilson Reviews
    Jessica Hixson Reviews
    Mark Collins Reviews
    Monte Monreal Reviews
    Reviews
    Rob Heidrick Reviews
    Rob Heidrick Reviews
    Sxsw

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.