MISSING LINK is Missing an Audience (and that's a shame)

MISSING LINK (2019)

Featuring the voices of Hugh Jackman, Zoe Saldana, Zach Galifianakis, Stephen Fry, Timothy Olyphant, Emma Thompson, Matt Lucas, Amrita Acharia. Directed by Chris Butler. (94 min)

ON BLU-RAY FROM 20TH CENTURY FOX

Review by Stinky the Destroyer😺

One thing is certain: Laika Studios – located right in my backyard, by the way – has never made it easy on themselves. In an era when virtually all animated features are CG, they adhere to the painstaking process of stop-motion animation (probably why they've produced only five films in 10 years). When even Pixar has succumbed to franchise fever, Laika continues to take enormous creative and financial risks with concepts that aren’t easily marketable nor conducive to franchising. Laika makes family films without ever dumbing them down or blatantly catering to kids with “cute” characters.

They are films made by artists, not technicians or accountants, so it must have really stung when Missing Link didn’t find an audience while another studio can vomit-out The Emoji Movie and audiences vomit-back $200 million. That’s like a talent show where a classical pianist comes in second place to a kid who can squirt milk out his nose.

Lionel Frost checks for deer ticks.

In a way, I can understand Missing Link being a hard sell. It’s populated with unconventionally-rendered, wildly-exaggerated characters that wouldn’t look good on a cereal box. In fact, the title creature, Mr. Link (aka “Susan”), is initially off-putting, with a snout like a botched nosejob. The humor is often very dry and a lot of the best gags aren’t visual ones.

But like Laika’s other films – The Boxtrolls, in particular – Missing Link develops an infectious, easy-going charm that can sneak-up on the viewer, perhaps without them realizing it. Though seldom laugh-out-loud funny, there are frequent bits of throw-away dialogue that are often uproarious (“You’re utopia sucks!”). The voices provided by an impressive cast are merely adequate (Hugh Jackman seems kind-of underused), but their characters are what matter and they tend to grow on you as the story unfolds.

Mr. Link's '80s love ballad.

Of course, it’s the unappreciated stop-motion animation that ultimately steals the show. The attention to detail is amazing, the characters’ expressions & movements so fluid that one could almost mistake it for computer animation. Even if one isn’t enamored by its aesthetic, characters or story, the technical merits alone make Missing Link worth seeing. Another visually impressive achievement from Laika Studios, it’s a shame their hard work was largely ignored in theaters. On the other hand, since this Blu-ray comes with some fascinating making-of featurettes, maybe it’ll be easier to appreciate at home.

EXTRA KIBBLES

FEATURETTES - “Creating Mr. Link”; “Bringing the Final Battle on the Ice Bridge to Life”; “Animation Inspiration”; “VFX Breakdown Reel: Realizing the Potential of Stop Motion” (how various elements are combined to create scenes); “Oh, What a Mystery: Pulling the Camera Back on Missing Link’s Magic” (time-lapse creation of various scenes – by far, the most interesting of the featurettes); “Making Faces” (promotional featurette); “Inside the Magic of Laika” (a short feature about the Portland-based studio).

GALLERY – Behind-the-scenes photos

AUDIO COMMENTARY – By writer/director Chris Butler

TRAILER

DVD & DIGITAL COPIES

KITTY CONSENSUS:

PURR-R-R...LIKE A GOOD SCRATCH BEHIND THE EARS.

Rest in Peace, Rutger Hauer

Rutger Hauer (1944-2019)

THE INTRUDER: Dennis Gets His Jack On

THE INTRUDER (2019)

Starring Michael Ealy, Meagan Good, Dennis Quaid, Joseph Sikora, Alvina August. Directed by Deon Taylor. (102 min).

ON DVD FROM SONY

Review by Tiger the Terrible😼

The Intruder is a garden variety thriller that doesn’t bring anything new to the table, but made surprisingly palatable by Dennis Quaid, of all people.

Michael Ealy & Meagan Good are Scott & Annie Howard, two beautifully-bland yuppies who buy a rustic old country home from Charlie Peck (Quaid). Having lived there his entire life, he has difficulty letting it go. After moving in, the Howards keep seeing Charlie on their property, mowing the lawn, chasing teenagers of the property, etc. He also frequently shows up at inopportune times and overstepping his boundaries, which begins to worry Scott once Charlie’s behavior grows increasingly unnerving.

Charlie, of course, is not what he seems, which the audience obviously knows from the get-go and Scott learns pretty quickly. Annie, however, remains stupidly oblivious, seeing nothing wrong with this increasingly amorous old man showing up all the time. Good is decent in the role, but her character is almost laughably dumb.

"Heeere's Joh--...I mean Charlie!!"

Or maybe she simply hasn’t seen any recent home invasion movies. Those who have will easily predict every plot turn, jump-scare and ‘shocking’ revelation, probably within the first twenty minutes. In fact, The Intruder would be depressingly mundane if not for Quaid’s wonderfully unhinged performance. He rarely gets to play a villain and it's clear he’s relishing the opportunity. Like Jack Nicholson in The Shining, Quaid almost immediately gives Charlie a subtly sinister quality, his true intentions barely masked by that congenial grin. By the time he goes full-Jack during the finale - even bursting through a splintered door just like Nicholson – Quaid is such delirious fun to watch that a small part of us might actually be rooting for him.

When he isn’t on-screen, however, the interest level tends to wane. Deon Taylor directs with workmanlike skill, but David Loughery’s derivative screenplay offers little we haven’t seen before. Still, The Intruder is ultimately worth checking out just for Dennis Quaid's stupendous scenery-chewing.

EXTRA KIBBLES

"MAKING A MODERN THRILLER: BEHIND-THE-SCENES OF FOXGLOVE” - Your standard promotional featurette with interviews from the cast, along with director Deon Taylor and screenwriter David Loughery.

AUDIO COMMENTARY – With director Deon Taylor, producer Roxanne Avent, writer David Doughery and actors Meagon Good & Michael Ealy.

ALTERNATE ENDING – It isn’t much different, except for a few tacked-on shots of Quaid’s character from other parts of the story.

GAG REEL

DELETED/ALTERNATE SCENES

KITTY CONSENSUS:

NOT BAD. LIKE CAT CHOW.

ASH IS PUREST WHITE: Maybe You SHOULDN'T Stand by Your Man

ASH IS PUREST WHITE (2018)

Starring Zhao Tao, Liao Fan, Feng Xiaogang, Xu Zheng, Casper Liang, Zhang Yibal. Directed by Jia Zhangke. (136 min).

ON BLU-RAY FROM COHEN MEDIA GROUP

Review by Fluffy the Fearless😸

Ash is Purest White is an epic gangster film of a different sort.

Qiao (Zhao Tao) is the girlfriend of Bin (Liao Fin), a powerful Chinese gangster. He has the respect of his peers and, after his boss is murdered, is expected to assume command. Then one night, Qiao saves him from a savage beating by a rival gang and is sentenced to five years in prison for possessing an illegal firearm.

Even though Bin doesn’t visit her in prison, Qiao searches for him once she’s released, tracking him to another city, where he’s-since left the mob – apparently in disgrace – and is working at a nuclear power plant. He also has a new girlfriend. Realizing that picking-up where they left off isn’t in the cards, Qiao is lost (also broke because she was robbed on the way to see Bin). Now truly alone, Qiao is forced to fend for herself and it’s implied she’s never really had to before. However, years of living in the periphery of the mob has rendered her surprisingly resourceful.

When your hotel room has no Wifi.

A character piece presented in three distinct chapters, Ash is Purest White takes place over the course of 18 years. The story unfolds almost exclusively from Qiao’s perspective, meaning the viewer isn’t made privy to the inner-workings of the organization (or the questionable enterprises they’re engaged in). Still, Qiao’s an interesting character because even though she’s likable, she’s definitely no saint. However, she obviously loves Bin, even though the feeling may or may-not have ever been mutual. One of the film’s more intriguing ambiguities is Bin himself, who seems to change – for the worse - with each chapter, yet remains emotionally aloof. 

But it is Qiao who drives the narrative and her transformation is indeed fascinating, as quiet desperation gives way to fortitude and resolve. The second chapter, where she’s essentially directionless, is the most interesting. Zhao Tao infuses the character a strength that isn’t often conveyed in words. In fact, very few of the movie’s most pivotal moments are provided through exposition, which might frustrate some viewers, as will the unexpectedly abrupt resolution. And other than a brutal, bloody beating early in the story, it mostly eschews traditional elements of Western gangster films.

Ash is Purest White isn’t for all tastes, as it requires some inferential effort on the viewer’s part. But it’s beautifully shot, with good performances and two compelling lead characters. Ultimately poignant and even poetic, at times, it’s a quietly rewarding journey.

EXTRA KIBBLES

"DIRECTORS DIALOGUE” - A one-hour interview with director Jin Zhangke, filmed before an audience at the New York Film Festival.

TRAILER

KITTY CONSENSUS:

PURR-R-R...LIKE A GOOD SCRATCH BEHIND THE EARS.

Rest in Peace, David Hedison

David Hedison (1927-2019)

THE THIN MAN vs "Today's Audience"

THE THIN MAN (1934)

Starring William Powell, Myrna Loy, Maureen O’Sullivan, Nat Pendleton, Minna Gombell, Porter Hall, Henry Wadsworth, William Henry, Cesar Romero, Skippy the Dog. Directed by W.S. Van Dyke. (91 min).

ON BLU-RAY FROM

WARNER ARCHIVE COLLECTION

Review by Mr. Paws😺

The Thin Man is one of those old black & white films you show to people who claim to hate old black & white films. We all know someone like that, who probably also cites weekly box office totals as an indication of a movie’s quality. So maybe you can inform them that not-only was The Thin Man a huge hit, it spawned five sequels and inspired a TV series.

"That was then,” they might retort, arguing that movies of another generation wouldn’t pass muster with “today’s audience.” I love it when people throw that term around, as if “today’s audience” - the same generation that made Adam Sandler a multi-millionaire - are somehow more discriminating and sophisticated.

But I get it. The movies of my own generation are generally my favorites, too. And even as much as I love checking-out the classics (i.e., those made before I was born), my assessment often considers the era of when a film was made. The Thing from Another World is wonderful 1950s’ sci-fi, but I wouldn’t dream of comparing it to John Carpenter’s 1982 version.

Then there are movies like The Thin Man. This classic comedy-mystery isn’t simply amusing for a 75-year-old movie. It’s as sharply-written, witty and laugh-out-loud funny as any movie, regardless of decade. Just like a great foreign language film quickly has the viewer forgetting they’re reading subtitles, The Thin Man is so consistently engaging that I find it hard to believe even “today’s audience” would care what color the bedroom drapes are.

"Sorry, my dear, but when there's a dookie on the carpet, he's your dog."

Your ignorant friend who thinks Jaws is the shark’s name is probably right about one thing: A film like The Thin Man might not connect with “today’s audience” because it would be impossible to find two actors to play Nick & Nora Charles as perfectly as William Powell and Myrna Loy (and trust me, they’ve tried). As a husband & wife crime solving team, their onscreen chemistry seems effortless. The innuendo-laced banter between them is as funny, cute and charming as my wife and I always assume we are when trading good-natured quips. Elsewhere, the story is filled with a variety of quirky, interesting characters, including Asta, the Charles’ scene-stealing pooch.

Just like Psycho can still terrify, High Noon remains the perfect western and 12 Angry Men is as culturally relevant as ever, The Thin Man belies its advanced age with a great story, snappy dialogue and two main characters who aren’t your traditional onscreen couple. This is a must-own for classic film lovers and should be mandatory viewing for “today’s audience.” Best of all, there's five more where this came from. Here's hoping some of those are on Warner Archive's pipeline.

EXTRA KIBBLES

"SCENE OF THE CRIME” - An 1957 episode from The Thin Man TV Series, which I didn’t know existed. It’s okay, but Peter Lawford & Phyllis Kirk are no match for Powell & Loy.

LUX RADIO THEATER BROADCAST – An adaptation that first-aired in 1937, also featuring Powell & Loy.

TRAILER

KITTY CONSENSUS:

MEE-OW! LIKE BEING TURNED LOOSE IN A BIRD SANCTUARY.

DOMINO and the Shadow of De Palma

DOMINO (2019)

Starring Mikolaj Coster-Waldau, Carice van Houten, Guy Pearce, Eriq Ebouaney, Nicolas Bro, Paprika Steen, Thomas W. Gabrielsson. Directed by Brian De Palma. (89 min).

ON BLU-RAY FROM LIONSGATE

Review by Tiger the Terrible😽

Once upon a time, Brian De Palma was an indelible brand name. Arguably the most polarizing director of the so-called “New Hollywood” (which included the likes of Scorsese, Coppola and Friedkin), his work was identified by glorious excess. Not just sex and violence – though there was often plenty of both – but a Hitchcock-influenced visual flair.

That Brian De Palma is long gone. In his place is a hired gun whose name still has some market value, but his heart doesn’t seem to be in it anymore.

That’s not to say Domino isn’t a decent film. It’s a watchable little thriller with Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as Christian Toft, a Danish cop trying to avenge his partner, murdered by suspected terrorist Ezra Tarzi (Eriq Ebouaney). However, Tarzi himself is forced by CIA agent Joe Martin (Guy Pearce) to hunt for a vicious ISIS leader, Wold, which is convenient since Tarzi wants the man dead, too. Meanwhile, Wold engineers a horrific attack at a film festival and plans another one during a bullfight in Spain. It becomes sort-of a race against time as Tarzi hunts for Wold while Toft hunts for Tarzi with the help of Alex (Carica van Houten), who was having an affair with Toft’s partner.

Not a member of the Dollar Shave Club.

Domino is fairly well-paced with a story just interesting enough to keep our attention, punctuated by bursts of violent action (the mass shooting at the film festival is actually pretty disturbing). The performances are also uniformly decent, Pearce being a particular stand-out. But other than a knock-out rooftop chase that epitomizes classic De Palma, the film simply lacks the flamboyance and panache of his glory days. In short, it could have been directed by anybody.

So while Domino is definitely better than some of Brian De Palma’s recent films, it’s kind-of a shame it isn’t more memorable. Enjoyable enough in the moment, there’s nothing about it that sticks with the viewer for too long afterwards.

EXTRA KIBBLES

DIGITAL COPY

KITTY CONSENSUS:

NOT BAD. LIKE CAT CHOW.

MASTER Z and the Tenuous Legacy

MASTER Z: IP MAN LEGACY (2018)

Starring Max Zhang (Zhang Jin), Liu Yan, Xing Yu, Kevin Cheng, Dave Bautista, Michelle Yeoh, Chrissie Chau, Tony Jaa. Directed by Yuen Woo-ping. (108 min).

ON BLU-RAY FROM WELL GO USA

Review by Tiger the Terrible😼

Fresh from having his ass handed to him in Ip Man 3, Cheung Tin Chi (Max Zhang) is ready to move on. Leaving martial arts behind, he seeks the simple life of a grocery store owner while raising his young son.

But life gets more complicated after he saves two girls from gangster Tso Sai Kit (Kevin Chang), who retaliates by burning down Cheung’s store. Their conflict escalates when Cheung torches Kit’s opium den. That-alone is enough story for a decent action film. Instead, Master Z, a spin-off of the popular Ip Man franchise, throws in a lot more plot than it really needs.

It turns out the local gang – the Cheung Lok - is actually run by Kit's older sister, Tso Ngan Kwan (Michelle Yeoh). She wants to end the organization's illegal activities and tries to de-escalate the rift between Kit and Cheung, to no avail. Kit further defies her by getting into the heroin business with American businessman Owen Davidson (Dave Bautista). As if that wasn’t enough bad guys, Tony Jaa pops in and out of the story to kick a few asses.

"You ran this through the dishwasher...didn't you?"

The continually shifting narrative is like a puzzle where the pieces don’t fit as neatly as they should. Subplots are introduced and later dropped, while the overall importance of certain major characters constantly changes (a few of them even turn out to be inconsequential). For example, Yoeh's character could easily be removed from the film with only a few minor script revisions and I still don't know Jaa's purpose. One gets the impression the film’s impressive cast was lined-up before concocting a story to fit ‘em all.

On the other hand, Master Z delivers action in abundance. As the only tenuous tie to the Ip Man franchise, Max Zhang is no Donnie Yen, but he’s a solid martial artist in his own right. He’s engaged in a majority of the fight sequences, squaring-off against most of the cast at various points. His showdown with Yeoh is a definite highlight, a virtual ballet of hands, feet and blades. At 56, Yeoh shows no signs of slowing down (though there is something unnervingly Joan Crawford-like about her appearance). Another great set-piece has Cheung taking-on several thugs among the neon signs hanging over a city street.

And ultimately, the action is what drives the film, its busy plot mostly serving to link the impressive fight scenes. Like The Bourne Legacy, it’s really an Ip Man film in-name-only and not nearly as character-driven. Still, martial arts fans probably won’t have many complaints.

EXTRA KIBBLES

5 PROMOTIONAL FEATURETTES

ENGLISH LANGUAGE OPTION

TRAILERS

DVD COPY

KITTY CONSENSUS:

NOT BAD. LIKE CAT CHOW.
(But what does 'Master Z' even mean?) 

MASTER Z: IP MAN LEGACY Blu-ray Giveaway!

FREE KITTENS MOVIE GUIDE is giving away a Blu-ray copy of WELL GO USA's MASTER Z: THE IP MAN LEGACY to one lucky reader.

Available on Blu-ray, DVD 7/30

The newest entry in the celebrated IP MAN universe, MASTER Z: IP MAN LEGACY debuts on digital, Blu-ray Combo Pack and DVD July 23rd from Well Go USA Entertainment. Legendary action director Yuen Woo-Ping draws on a stellar cast of Max Zhang (The Brink), Tony Jaa (Triple Threat), Michelle Yeoh, and Dave Bautista to create the hard-hitting martial arts blast that follows the story of Wing Chun master Cheung Tin Chi (Zhang) after his defeat by Ip Man.

TO ENTER: Simply drop us a message at freekittensmovieguide@gmail.com. CONTEST ENDS 7/29.

What's New, HELLBOY?

HELLBOY (2019) 

Starring David Harbour, Milla Jovovich, Ian McShane, Sasha Lane, Daniel Dae Kim, Thomas Haden Church. Directed by Neil Marshall. (121 min). 

ON BLU-RAY FROM LIONSGATE

Review by Tiger the Terrible😽

I should be up-front and state I’ve never seen either of Guillermo del Toro’s Hellboy movies, for no other reason than I simply never got around to it. I don’t read comics, either, so I couldn’t tell you a damn thing about the character, his origins or even the basic premise.

I only mention this because the shadows of Guillermo del Toro and Ron Perlman loom large over the newly-rebooted Hellboy, especially since the corpses of the originals aren’t really that cold yet. But as someone with no basis for comparison, I don’t carry any preconceived expectations or fanboy baggage. However, I’ve enjoyed some of director Neil Marshall’s previous films – The Descent, in particular. He's no del Toro, but at the very least, it would probably be watchable. All that being said, while Hellboy won't ever be mistaken for a masterpiece, I can't say I was disappointed.

Hellboy vehemently contests his library fines.

An unrecognizable David Harbour plays the titular character, a gruff, trash-talking manbeast who was born in Hell, but rescued and raised to be a demon-slayer by his adoptive father, Trevor Bruttenhorn (Ian McShane). Refreshingly, this isn’t yet-another origin story. Not directly, anyway. Other than a few flashbacks and an outlandish revelation of Hellboy’s aristocratic lineage, the story focuses on the present, where the world is threatened by the Blood Queen (Milla Jovovich), a sorceress once defeated and dismembered by King Arthur. Hellboy himself figures into her agenda, a seduction which has him questioning his loyalties (tempted by the likes of Jovovich, who can blame him?).

He isn’t working alone, though, getting help from plucky young medium Alice (Sasha Lane) and Ben Daimio (Daniel Dae Kim), who turns into a jaguar when he’s pissed off (though he tries like hell not to). I couldn’t tell you if they’re also lifted from the comic, but both are interesting, the latter being particularly amusing when he finally gives in to his animal side. Speaking of amusing, as someone unfamiliar with Hellboy lore, the overall tone of this film is quite similar to Deadpool. Though not as consistently funny or uproariously vulgar, it has its moments, unquestionably earning its R-rating through perpetual profanity and buckets of blood & gore. Visually, Hellboy is typical of most CGI-heavy action films, save for one wonderful sequence where our hero battles three carnivorous giants, which looks almost like Terry Gilliam took over the director’s chair while Marshall was out grabbing a smoke.

"No, thank you, ma'am. Six children is my limit."

As Hellboy himself, Harbour gives a serviceable performance, but buried under that much make-up, just about anybody of similar size and able to adequately deliver their lines could have played the character. I suspect the general fan consensus will be that he’s no Ron Perlman, similar to my view that Kane Hodder made the best Jason Voorhees.

At just over two-hours, the film could have used some trimming, particularly during the middle act, which tends to meander a bit. Still, I found this version of Hellboy enjoyable enough on its own terms. That may be faint praise for die-hard fans of the comic series or del Toro’s films, some who probably had their minds made-up before watching a single frame of this one. But for those who don’t know Hellboy from Hellraiser, it’s an agreeably gory way to spend an evening.

EXTRA KIBBLES

"TALES OF THE WILD HUNT: HELLBOY REBORN” - An hour-long, three-part documentary with a lot of interviews.

DELETED SCENES

ANIMATED STORYBOARDS

DVD & DIGITAL COPIES

KITTY CONSENSUS:

NOT BAD. LIKE CAT CHOW.