Corey Stoll – Movie Smack Talk

If you’re as sick of watching Johnny Depp play eccentric, weirdly dressed characters, or dudes in guyliner as I am, then Black Mass will be a welcome respite for you. This movie sees Depp go back to his roots, as one of the best method actors around.

The premise is based on the real life drama that saw one of the biggest criminals in history, Whitey Bulger, become an FBI informant. It focuses on FBI Special Agent (Joel Edgerton), a man who actually knew and admired Bulger when he was growing up in South Boston. Of course, Connelly went the other way with his career and eventually tried to turn Bulger (Johnny Depp) into a FBI informant. Of course, this informant deal is a bit well…unethical. In this case, Bulger won’t inform on any of his Irish mob buddies. Instead, he’ll be ratting on the Patriarca crime family. It isn’t long before Bulger uses the opportunity to get the FBI to take out the competition for him, with bloody and catastrophic results.

The acting in this was extremely well done. Depp is barely recognizable as the balding, paunchy Bulger and Edgerton stand out as an agent whose own moral compass becomes increasingly skewed. Ironically, Edgerton actually reminded me a bit of when Depp played Donnie Brasco.

I liked that they stuck to accuracy in the Whitey Bulger story. Much of what was presented is widely believed to actually have happened, though there are a few disputes from some of the key players, for obvious reasons. They had to mess with the timeline a bit to make it work, but in reality, I liked that they tried to go with the story and not embellish a story that was pretty good on its face.

On the flip, I think they tried a bit too hard to make Bulger likeable. In one scene, that I highly doubt ever happen, Bulger stops to help some old lady with her groceries, because deep down, he’s just a gentlemanly south Boston boy. Oh, please…I think enough court records and information exists to make it pretty darn believable that if Bulger did ever help a woman with her groceries, it was for the purpose of stealing them. Why does every gangster movie need to focus on the goal of turning said gangster into Robin Hood?

The sad fact is, sometimes, people are just sociopathic monsters. Bulger falls far more on that side than he does of a saintly robin hood. I can accept the fact that he wasn’t a saint. I don’t need to sympathize with him to understand him. In fact, I don’t want to. I have no desire to join any kind of criminal fraternity. If I need moral ambiguity, I’ll get it from Connolly, the truly sympathetic character in this film.

But that slim complaint aside, I will say this is an enjoyable, well written piece that returned Depp to his element of playing complex characters. I had my doubts about him playing Whitey, but he pulled it off. That alone makes this movie worth the watch.

WE GIVE IT: 4.5 STARS!

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Ant-Man is the newest super hero release with a comedic twist, and it’s pleasing critics and audiences alike. This snarky sci-fi flick, with an unlikely hero, it’s one to watch this summer. Here’s why.

Our hero is Scott, a thief with a master’s in engineering. When he runs into a reclusive scientist with a special suit, he’s more than happy to try it on. With the push of a button, he’s the size of a dime. What follows is an interesting scene involving Scott getting sucked into vacuums and such. Realizing his new power, Scott does the whole becoming a super hero thing and even finds an arch nemesis. He’s a dude that can turn into a yellow jacket.

While it sounds stupid, it’s stupid in the right way. It’s stupid in the way that Shaun of the Dead was stupid. It’s also hilarious, interesting and even kind of visually stunning. Of course, a lot of the visuals are recycled. Take the Ant-Man suit for example. It’s pretty much an Iron Man Suit. They didn’t even change the color scheme that much.

However, for a movie that does such a good job on using the standard super hero tropes, with some self-aware tongue in cheek humor, recycled visuals can be ok. Especially with such a unique storyline. Edgar Wight is credited with some of the story line creation, which explains the similar feel to movies like “Shaun of the Dead”.

Paul Rudd was a fantastic choice for the lead. He’s unheroic enough to give the character a certain lack of grace and gritty realness, but he also has awesome comedic timing, which this movie relied on. The great thing about the movie is that the same thing that makes Ant-Man heroic is what makes him vulnerable. The danger of being squashed while in insect form would have been hard to pull off if not for Rudd’s performance.

It’s a fresh take for a summer filled with big budget blockbuster action movies. Not that it isn’t well done. It’s just a bit lower key and a more slapstick and funny than other movies in the sci-fi genre. The movie knows how to laugh at itself, while keeping viewers entertained.

I have to say, I was a bit disappointed with the main female character Hope (Evangeline Lilly). In a way I was kind of expecting her to emerge as some sort of femme fatale, but instead, her character stays pretty flat and sees no growth at all. So in that, I was disappointed. The two father-daughter stories were sweet, but not overtly so, and they managed to put a bit emotion into the script, in a way that doesn’t feel too over the top for this movie.

But all in all, I have to say Ant-Man was pretty well done and very enjoyable. It was a bit long in the run time, nearly 2 hours, but at least they used their time wisely. If you’re looking for a great action movie, with some good humor, then Ant Man could be one to watch this summer.

WE GAVE IT: 4 Stars – Watch the Official Trailer and Official Movie Poster below!