Home Alone 2: Lost in New York

Chris Columbus, 1992

Can I Stream it?

3/5

There is something different about revisiting films from your youth. Many of these revisits come around the holidays, when you can put up with that joke you've heard a hundred times. That comfortable predictability of a familiar premise. The Hughes’-penned Home Alone films certainly provide comfort. I remember being a kid and seeing this film in the theater in New York. I was 9 years old. I remember eagerly anticipating Kevin Mcallister's trap setting. I remember the movie going on and on and me sitting there thinking “when is it going to happen?”.. “Now? Now?”. And then it happened and I sat there in cathartic bliss.

Home Alone 2 builds upon the first film by of course recasting Culkin (which is absolutely critical to the franchise, the sequels after this do not exist). He’s grown a little older, but still has the innocence and charisma that he had in the prior picture. He’s the low kid on the totem pole. If he mouths back to his elder relatives, he gets put in the bed with bed-wetting cousin Fuller. The movie is very anti-authority, or at least pro-kid and pro-independence. It certainly spawned a whole generation of 90’s vicarious youth who were desperate to be put in similar circumstances. It puts a lot of faith into the kids of the world. Oddly enough, one of the antagonists is the hotel concierge played by Tim Curry. The concierge is immediately suspicious when he sees young Kevin walking confidently through the Plaza Hotel. He follows Kevin, explores the room, hoping to expose him as a little con artist or some kind of thief. But realistically, he’s not a bad guy. If it were real life he would probably have been praised for being so investigative. But the world of Home Alone isn’t real life. In real life, antagonists don’t get hit in the head with bricks from four stories and have a square imprint on their head. In real life, they have brain bleeding. But that’s the appealing element to the Home Alone movies. They are non-threatening, cartoonish, fun, nostalgic. They exist in a Hanna Barbara created universe where you can sustain serious injury only to be quite okay in the next scene. This film is good if only viewed as a time capsule. A preserved version of New York. A preserved style of 90's comedies. 

The Lego Movie

Phil Lord & Christopher Miller, 2014

Can I Stream It?

4/5

Emmet (Chris Pratt) is a very ordinary man. He is happily fulfilling his daily duties at the city construction site when he accidentally stumbles upon the "Piece of Resistance". He soon learns that it's an object designed to disengage a weapon called the Kragle, owned by Lord Business (Will Ferrell); a powerful leader of the city dead-set on solidifying strict order. Because he is the one who discovered the relic, Emmet is considered to be the fabled prophet that old mystic Vitruvius (Morgan Freeman) said would appear to save the Universe from Lord Business' destruction. He is brought to see some Master Builders, people who are capable of building anything without instructions. When they realize that Emmet himself has no creative abilities, they have immediate doubts about his capabilities to fulfill the prophecy.

It's always nice when a film is produced that not only can appeal to the innocent youth, but it can also cater to adults as well on some level. Like so many of the great Pixar films released over the years, The Lego Movie is fueled by solid writing, humor and detailed animation. It cleverly riffs on The Matrix while also maintaining a splashy visual aesthetic similar to 2012's Wreck-it Ralph. An ordinary man, reluctant to believe he may be the most important person in the world, takes on an insurmountable force. A fun take on the age-old David vs. Goliath premise. An underdog story. A collective desire to break free from the shackles of totalitarianism. And the humor hits it's target. The emo-singing Batman (hilariously voiced by Will Arnett). The constant call-backs to Emmet's double-decker couch idea. Green Lantern's (Jonah Hill) relentless pursuit of companionship with the much-resistant Superman (Channing Tatum), quite ironic seeing as the two are paired up in the Jump Street franchise. Many cultural references that never really get old. Not enough can be said about the visuals of the film. The entire Lego universe depicted in the film is so astonishingly elaborate. The colossal buildings. The waves of the ocean. The smoke emanating from the train as it moves down the tracks. Although all of the animation in the film is done with CGI, it skillfully maintains a stop-motion feel and really gives you the impression that the film was made using 3,000,000 Lego pieces that were animated bit by bit. The film hits it out of the park in the final act with a reveal that catches you by surprise. The Lego Movie is an exciting eye-candy-laced thrill-ride that will have you humming "Everything is Awesome" for hours after watching. 

The Great Outdoors

Howard Deutch, 1988

Can I Stream It?

2/5

Chet Ripley (John Candy) is looking forward to spending some quality time with his family on their vacation in rural Wisconsin when his in-laws Roman (Dan Akroyd) and Kate (Annette Benning) suddenly show up expecting to join in on the fun.

The Great Outdoors is probably one of those films that you put on thinking you've never seen it before, and when it hits a couple of the key scenes you realize that you've seen it. The Old 96'er steakhouse scene. The bat loose in the house scene. Or perhaps the quintessential 80's romance scenes are enough to jog the memory. The point is, those comical scenes stand out in what's ultimately a rather forgettable film. While John Hughes has plenty of notable writing credits over the course of his career (Home Alone, Ferris Bueler's Day Off, The Breakfast Club), not all of them are winners (Curly Sue, Beethoven, Career Opportunities). The presence of two of the great Canadian imports Dan Akroyd and John Candy are certainly enough to pull you in. What's interesting with both of them is they do what they typically do, and as long as that's within the proper framework it's fine. Akroyd is always the fast-talking chubby(ish) robotically-toned force who relies on and shifts in accent and facial expression rather than slapstick comedy. Candy typically uses more physical comedy and is more limited as an actor, but is certainly more of a warm force on screen. There's a familiarity with him, a sentimentality. Whenever you see John Candy on screen it reminds you of how much you miss him. The Great Outdoors certainly has it's flaws. Distracting edits, poor set design, weak story, too much bear, too much raccoon subtitling. Why did they have to talk so much? At times the very heavy animal presence is as wearisome as watching bears pick through the garbage heap like they do in the film. Perhaps their was a SAG quota for animal trainers' working hours in 1988.

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation

Jeremiah S. Chechik, 1989

Netflix

3/5

There is probably nobody in Chicago that gets as excited for Christmas as Clark Griswald. He imposes his holiday traditions on his close family who are for the most part supportive, while also putting up with his annoying in-laws and his own parents all under his own roof as one big dysfunctional family.

In 2011 Forbes did a list of the top ten Christmas films. Christmas Vacation didn't crack the list. Is that fair? It possesses a lot of the qualities one is eager for when it comes to a holiday film. Tradition, laughs, positive energy, reinforcing the importance of family. When looking for a satisfying Holiday film, one looks for familiar elements that are relatable and engaging but also light-weight. One would hope that the film makes an impact that becomes repeatedly triggered come Christmastime and become ingrained in our memories.

Does Christmas Vacation get better with age? Actually, not really. In fact, it appears to have grown a bit stale. We need to be honest with the fact that Chevy Chase is not a remarkable actor. He has a limited bag of tricks, which to his credit he does put to use here. But he is more effective as an actor when he a bit more restrained but still goofy, like his role in Funny Farm. It's mostly slapstick here, with a sort of innocent imprudent approach to fulfilling his holiday rituals. His imposing family staying with them for the holidays come off as largely caricaturish. The animation at the beginning of the film seems very out of place. There's not a lot of depth to the characters. But perhaps it's not fair the judge this film so harshly. For what it is, it's good, right? What will history be kinder to? Come twenty years from now, will we all be more inclined to put on Christmas Vacation or Elf? You know what? It will likely be Elf. Although a more modern story, it's one that is more generic and heartwarming with some timeless laughs. Perhaps Christmas Vacation is one of those holiday films that is hard to let go of, but maybe its time to after 24 years. Maybe it's time to put it up in the attic for some time and see what the next generation thinks of it. 

Finding Nemo

Andrew Stanton & Lee Unkrich, 2003


3/5

Set in the Great Barrier Reef, overprotective single-father Clownfish Marlin gets separated from his only son Nemo who gets caught by a fish collector who places him in a dentist's aquarium. Realizing that his son is in Sydney, he desperately attempts to rescue him and be reunited with the help of some newly acquired friends.

You know that when watching a Pixar film that there's something in it for everyone. The simplistic story structure and memorable characters are going to impress the young viewers, and there's still something engaging for the older ones. There's always clever twists, some kind of moral dilemma. The characters are going to provide some reflection of humanity. There's always going to be a consistency, and a standard of quality to Pixars films. And there's always going to be beautiful visual elements. Colorful coral reefs create a vibrant landscape, with a lot of activity. The characters themselves, while exaggerations of real life creatures, are given distinctive personalities like the surfer-turtle, or the recovering fish addict sharks. It's something you will obviously see in any animated feature, but Pixar does it flawlessly. And in the end, this is a film without any noticeable flaws.

With Nemo, you can sit back and hear Albert Brooks be Albert Brooks. That's never a bad thing. You're going to sit back and hear other familiar voices, like Ellen Degeneres, or Willem Dafoe - all well-placed. And while it may not make as much of an emotional impact as some of the other Pixar movies, it still carries weight and it's probably the most nice-looking of all of them. But the emotional impact is obviously a subjective thing. Perhaps a father would be more affected by this film losing a son, more than he would watching Woody get taken away from Andy in Toy Story. Everything ties together well in the end and Nemo is certainly one of the better Pixar films made.

Wreck-It Ralph

Rich Moore, 2012


3/5

Ralph (John C. Reilly) is sick of being the "bad guy" in his popular arcade game while watching good guy Fix-It Felix (Jack McBrayer) get all of the praise. After feeling ignored when he didn't receive an invitation to the 30th anniversary of the video game, Ralph decides to rebel against the long-enforced arcade rules to try to prove himself as the good guy. If Tron and Toy Story had a baby, it would be Wreck-it. The film is loaded with eye candy that at times make you feel like you're playing Candyland on acid. Sarah Silverman really delivers the stand-out performance as Vanellope. Wreck-it feels nostalgic, with recognizable video game characters from my youth. The vibrant visuals are augmented by an 8-Bit soundtrack. While Wreck-it is imaginative, positive, and loaded with familiar cultural references - it ultimately feels formulaic and predictable. But that's okay, because there's really something in it for everyone.