THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE

reviewed by Patrick Gibbs

GRADE: A -
Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Woody Harrelson, Liam Hemsworth, Jena Malone, Sam Claflin, Elizabeth Banks, Lenny Kravitz, Donald Sutherland and Phillip Seymour Hoffman
Based on the novel by Suzanne Collins
Screenplay by Simon Beaufoy and Michael DeBruyn
Directed by Francis Lawrence

Picking up where The Hunger Games left off,  Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark return home to District 12 to as victors, hoping to try to resume their lives. But of course their lives will never be the same: they have fast death, and they have killed. They have also become the hottest celebrity couple since "J-ffleck" or "Brangelina"  (Peeniss?)

President Snow (Donald Sutherland) visits Katniss and explains that her actions in the Games have inspired rebellions across the districts. He orders her to use the upcoming victory tour to convince everyone her actions were out of genuine love for Peeta, not defiance against the Capitol.

As the tour begins, Haymtich (Woody Harrelson), mentor to Katniss and Peeta, warns them that the "show" of their relationship must continue for the rest of their lives. Katniss suggests a public engagement between herself and Peeta, which is carried out and congratulated by Snow at his mansion in the Capitol.
Returning home, Katniss warns her friend Gale (Liam Hemsworth) of Snow's threat to kill both their families. Peacekeepers crack down on District 12 and Gale is publicly whipped after attacking new Head Peacekeeper. Snow announces a special Hunger Games, the Third Quarter Quell, where all tributes will be selected from previous victors. Katniss immediately devotes herself to ensuring Peeta survives, recruiting Haymitch's help to do so. At the reaping, the names drawn for District 12 are Katniss and Haymitch,  but Peeta immediately volunteers to take Haymitch's place.

At this point in the book I felt that Collins fell back too much into familiar territory and it just became Die Hard 2, but somehow director Frances Lawrence (I Am Legend, Water for Elephants) manages to make it feel fresh. While it is the political jockeying and the growing threat of the increasingly frightening Capitol in the first half that really grabbed me, the Quarter Quell is a thrilling and spectacular non stop action ride. It certainly helps that the visual effects budget has gone up considerably since the last movie (the "Girl on Fire" actually looks like she is on fire this time), but Lawrence seems more at home helming an action blockbuster than Gary Ross, who directed the first film, and this film is allowed to take it's time to further develop the the characters.

Lawrence is terrific as usual, letting her new found superstar status coming off her Oscar for Silver Linings Playbook work in her favor as Katniss becomes a larger than life figure; she is part pop idol and part political great white hope, and the stress of this position weighs on her heavily. Josh Hutcherson continues to bring a subtle sincerity mixed with stage smart charm to Peeta, who is living his dream  but knows it isn't real, and is both elated and dying inside. Hutcherson is not given the credit he deserves as an actor, partially because he is surrounded by such a stellar cast in these films, but if you look at his ability to carry big movies from a young age (opposite far less talented co-stars such as Kristin Stewart and Dwayne Johnson) not the mention actually making Red Dawn watchable, it's really time to give this kid some credit. But the real standouts are, once again, Harrelson, who never ceases to amaze, and Jena Malone as rival tribute Johanna Mason. Phillip Seymour Hoffman seems a bit underused as the gamemaker, Plutarch, but his role will only increase in the next two films, and he adds a lot in what little we do see. In truth, the only drawback to such an impressible ensemble of actors is that this time around it is even more apparent that Lenny Kravitz just doesn't belong among them, and while he's not terrible by any means, he seems more than a bit self conscious this time around to be surrounded by such polished thespians.

The Hunger Games series is really coming into it's own as a blockbuster franchise, and while it may not be Lord of the Rings or even Harry Potter, it certainly succeeds at knocking Twilight on it's sparkling white butt.

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire is rated PG-13 for violence, profanity and  sensuality.

FROZEN

Reviewed by Patrick Gibbs

GRADE: A +

Kristen Bell, Idinia Menzel, Jonathan Groff, Josh Gad, Santino Fontana
Based on The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Anderson 
Story by Jennifer Lee and Shane Morris
Screenplay by Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck
Directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee
The era of the Disney Princess is back with a vengeance. My feelings about this are decidedly mixed: while I am a lifelong Disney fan and grew up on Snow White, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty, I'm also an ardent feminist who believes that the role model of the demure young Princess waiting for true love's kiss to define her life and make her everything she can be is more than a bit archaic. In addition, it is my hard held belief that the Prince Charming archetype has caused as much damage in creating an unrealistic ideal of manhood as the Barbie Doll has done for women. So it was a mixture of anticipation and dread that I went into this latest entry in the genre, which, like Tangeled before it, combines the old fashioned fairy tale with modern computer animation.

Elsa, princess of Arendelle, possesses the ability to create ice and snow. One night while playing, she accidentally injures her younger sister Anna. The king and queen seek help from trolls, who heal Anna and remove her memories of her sister's magic. The royal couple decides to lock the family away in their castle until Elsa learns to control her powers. Afraid of hurting her sister again, Elsa spends most of her time alone in her room, causing a rift between the sisters as they grow up. When the girls are teenagers, their parents are lost at sea during a storm.

When Elsa comes of age, the kingdom prepares for her coronation. Among the guests is the Duke of Weselton, a tradesman seeking to exploit Arendelle for profit. Excited to be allowed out of the castle again, Anna explores the town and meets Prince Hans of the Southern Isles, and the two immediately develop a mutual attraction. Despite Elsa's fear, her coronation goes off without incident. During the reception, Hans proposes and Anna hastily accepts. However, Elsa refuses to grant her blessing and forbids their sudden marriage. The two sisters argue, culminating in Elsa's abilities being exposed to everyone as she is unable to control her emotions. Panicking, Elsa flees the palace, inadvertently unleashing eternal winter on the kingdom in the process.

High in the mountains far from Arendelle, she builds herself a solitary ice palace, and unknowingly brings to life her and Anna's childhood snowman, Olaf. Meanwhile, Anna sets out in search of her sister, determined to return her to Arendelle, end the winter, and mend their relationship. While getting supplies, she meets mountain man Kristoff and his reindeer Sven. She convinces him to guide her up the North Mountain.

Frozen strays so far from Hans Christian Anderson's story The Snow Queen that it makes The Little Mermaid look like a reverential adaptation. But Disney animation has never been about telling the most faithful story: it's been about telling the best one. And Frozen is up there with Disney at it's very best.
From the first song, "Do You Want To Build A Snowman?" the audience is hooked. The relationship between the two sisters is both beautiful and tragic, and Anna's resentment and hurt grows at the apartment shunning of an older sister who only wants to protect her. Many of the films most touching moments plays out in song, as this is more of a full fledged musical than Disney has done in years. The songs, by husband and wife team Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez, are glorious, right up there with the very best of Alan Mencken, and the voice cast, lead by Kristen Bell and Idina Menzel, shines brightly in every single moment.

Yes, there are the requisite goofy, Happy Meal character sidekicks and conventions of the tried and true Disney formula, and they are all realized perfectly.  The snowman Olaf, who I feared may be a bit too annoying, is so kind hearted and lovable  impossible that it's impossible not to become a fan. and the action sequences are thrilling and visually stunning.

Frozen is a love story, without question, but it's a more complex love than the Disney films of old, and even pokes some good-natured fun at the old cliches of love at first sight. In the end, the best thing about the film is it's broad definition of love and the many forms it takes, and for that reason above all others (and there are many) Frozen ranks among my very favorite Disney fairy tales.

Frozen is rated PG for some action and mild rude humor.

12 YEARS A SLAVE

Reviewed by Patrick Gibbs

GRADE: A+

Chiwetel Eijifor, Micheal Fassbender, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Dano, Paul Giamatti, Lupita Nyong'o, Sarah Paulson and Brad Pitt
Screenplay by John Ridley, based on the book by Solomon Northup
Directed by Steve McQueen

20 years ago, Steven Spielberg's masterpiece Schindler's List was released.  It was a groundbreaking, brilliant film that transcended the boundaries of mere art to stand as a document to history, and more importantly, to the truth. In the two decades since then, we've seen some classic films, but nothing that can truly be compared with this genuinely life changing work.

Until now.

In 1841, Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor) is a free black man living with his wife and two children in Saratoga Springs, New York.  He makes his living playing the violin. One day he is lured into a lucrative touring gig by a pair of men . After a night out in Washington, D.C. with the two men, Northup awakens to find himself chained to the floor. In shock at what has happened, Northup realizes he has been drugged and sold into slavery.

Now under the name of Platt, Northup is transported by ferry to New Orleans, where he is purchased as a slave by plantation owner William Ford (Benedict Cumberbatch of Star Trek Into Darkness and the BBC's Sherlock). Enduring his new life, Northup stays on good terms with Ford as he assists him by engineering a waterway for transporting materials more swiftly. Northup's musical ability is also discovered, with Ford providing him with a violin. Because of his success on the plantation, overseer John Tibeats (Paul Dano) becomes jealous of Northup, leading to many quarrels between the two, and eventually, violence.

Northup is handed over to another plantation run by abusive slave driver Edwin Epps (Michael Fassbender), a cruel and vicious man who takes a genuine religious pride in his abuse of his slaves, but harbors a fondness for Patsey (Lupita Nyong'o), a young woman who consistently out picks every other slave in the cotton fields. Epps' creepy sexual fixation on Patsy is obvious to all, especially his wife (Sarah Paulson), and she is a constant pawn in a war between the couple. Throughout all of this, Solomon both suffers and witnesses countless unspeakable acts, and must do his best to follow his conscience while at the same time keeping one simple and singular goal in mind: survival.

Eijiofor, a British actor who is perhaps best known to American audiences for his villainous role in Joss Whedon's cult classic Serenity (and also played a supporting role in Spielberg's underrated slavery epic Amistad), gives a subtle yet utterly mesmerizing performance as Solomon. One of the many brilliant choices made by director Steve McQueen (not to be confused with the star of The Great Escape and Bullit) is letting us get to know Solomon and his family as people,  leading ordinary, comfortable lives. Despite the time period, as a viewer you find yourself not defining The Northup's by the as black people: they are the same as anyone else for the most part, though subtle moments involving the glances from passersby or a sequence where the family encounters a slave who wanders into a shop, betray the attitude of racism that still exists toward them.

But being a free man, Solomon chooses to live as such and not dwell on such things. This makes the harsh awakening to his new reality all the more brutal and unthinkable both to Solomon and the viewer. How can this be happening to this man? And yet . . . what exactly is the difference between Solomon and the other slaves? Does he deserve this life any less than they do? What is the difference between the black slaves and the paid white workers? And ultimately, of course, what is the difference between the dominant white race and the subjugated Africans.

Director McQueen tells his story with an unflinching hand, but never with a heavy hand. While I vehemently disagree with Spike Lee and others who insist that such stories should only be told by black directors, it is undeniably interesting to think that the white actors playing the vicious slave owners are in fact working for an artist who is himself black. Both McQueen's closeness to the subject matter and his distance from it (McQueen comes from West London and his history as artist has never been defined by making angry, racially charged films) make him the perfect choice to tell Northup's story. His deft and expert hand reveals a master filmmaker at work, and he gives us the full impact of the violent brutality and hatred these characters endure without wallowing in blood, showing a surprising amount of restraint without ever compromising the impact of the harsh truth that must be understood. It's impossible not the contrast McQueen's brilliant work with last year's best picture nominee Django Unchained, wherein director Quentin Tarantino not only spared no violent image, but reveled in it to the point where whether it was the black protagonist getting his vengeance or the cruel slave owners committing atrocities, even at it's harshest, it was ultimately meant to be a work of entertainment , and if that didn't bother before now, it might after seeing 12 Years A Slave. And the answer to the question Tarantino will inevitably be asking at some point, "why is no one upset that this film uses the N word so many times but it's not getting the negative reaction that it did with Django is ridiculously simple: McQueen uses it to tell the truth, and never uses it as a punchline.

The cast is nothing short of amazing all around, and Eijiofor should be considered a major contender for Best Actor, but the really serious talk is surrounding Fassbender and Nyong'o, who are truly unforgettable. It's impossible not to see strong similarities between Fassbender's Epp's and Ralph Fiennes famous portrayal of Nazi Commandant Amon Goeth, or Nyong'o's Patsy  and Embeth Davidtz'  Helen Hirsch, but it's merely in the real life similarities between the devilish yet pathetic men and the victimized but strong women the actors portray, and while the quality of the performances is comparable the details are not. much of the supporting cast is made up of recognizable, even iconic, names and faces, and in the hands of a lesser director this might take away from the sense of reality. But McQueen uses it to the film's advantage; each one of these stars, from Paul Giamatti to Brad Pitt, are cast as characters that plays such a pivotal role in the expereince that is being burnt into Northup's mind, as well as the audience's, that there is every reason why they not only should but need to stand out as larger than life.

As if all of this wasn't enough reason to single out 12 Years A Slave as something truly special, there's the added factor of Hans Zimmer's inspired score. While I've long been a fan of Zimmer's work, ranging all the way back to Driving Miss Daisy, he's become the McDonalds of film music, churning out forgettable, made to order scores by the dozens over the past 8 years or more, with only a few memorable ones standing out, and certainly nothing that could be called inspired. In my opinion her reached a personal all time low with his lazy, cookie cutter score for Man of Steel only a few months ago. He redeemed himself more than a bit with his gorgeous work on Ron Howard's Rush, but it was still unmistakably a Zimmer score from the first few chords. This is not inherently a bad thing: style is welcome as long as it remains sincere.  But I sat through this film without a clue as to what great composer was responsible for this beautiful, haunting and subtle score than always supported the film but never overpowered it, suspecting that it might be Alexandre Desplat, but never once suspecting it might be Zimmer. Reading his name on the ending credits I beamed with delight at the reminder of why I ever counted him among my favorites, and hope he is given a chance to stretch his wings like this again soon.

In the end, this is a movie that needs to be seen, and that I would recommend to anyone, even those who do see R-Rated films. It stands as a powerful reminder that racism is not only a shameful part of American history, but still flourishes today in this country, it' modern form less obvious but perhaps for that very reason alarming and worthy of our attention. 

Simply put, 12 Years A Slave is the best and most important film since Schindler's List. If that doesn't make you want to see it, I hope it makes you feel like you have to.

12 Years A Slave is Rated R for brutal violence, racial slurs and some profanity (though interestingly, I don't recall a single F-word being spoken in the movie), nudity, and sex.