Latino movie reviews

Rise of the Guardians (Movie Review)

If you pay money to see ‘Rise of the Guardians’ in 3D, you most likely will be watching the film that will win the Oscar for Best Animated Feature Film of the Year (Disney’s ‘Wreck-it-Ralph’ is a very close second). It’s simpatico characters, wondrous-action-packed universe and crisp-immersive 3D, make this a fun and overwhelming joy to watch with adults, teens and young children, not kindergarden kids.

The story is very similar to the Avengers – a group of the most powerful childhood legends, called The Guardians (Jack Frost, Santa Claus, The Easter Rabbit, Tooth Fairy and Sandman), assemble to put an end to The Bogeyman, a villain that has attained ultimate darkness and whose mission is to erase the Guardians from existence by robbing children of their hopes and dreams. Jack Frost, a reluctant new recruit who’d rather enjoy a snow day than save the world is who the film revolves around.

‘Rise of the Guardians’ is an epic animation with loads of adventure, touching moments, humor, and some twists to keep you sharp. The voice actors, formed by Alec Baldwin (Santa Claus), Hugh Jackman (Easter Bunny), Chris Pine (Jack Frost), Isla Fisher (Tooth fairy) and Jude Law (Bogeyman), do a commendable job. The best voice actors are those whose voice changes enough to not discern who they are immediately. Law doesn’t quite live up to those standards, yet his is a pleasing and soothing voice worth listening to. The rest of the cast provide are enjoyable vocal performances and don’t overshadow the visuals. 

Speaking of visuals, this film is a 3D spectacle. I am not a technical graphics animator, but I can recognize when my eyes and mind have a psychogenic orgasm. I remember seeing ‘Avatar’ and not feeling as wowed by the 3D as James Cameron had promised, but here, for the first time in my life I felt I was actually inside a movie. The skin texture of the characters, the universe where they reside in, the color richness, lighting, and cinematography were just sublime. Perhaps the greatest cinematographer Hollywood has is Roger Deakins and he served as the visual consultant to the production in selecting and composing the shots that would best be suited to 3D. The 3D technology used here is called “Tru 3D” – it’s a standard in all DreamWorks Animation films – and is utilized here in an organic way that was integral to the story, not as a stunt or an afterthought. As a result, the movie has a sense of wonder and magic, not to mention a lustrous feel to it all. The best moments to appreciate the 3D are during Jack Frost’s scenes. The snowflakes falling from the sky feel like they’re falling inside the theater and the characters close-ups look like they’ve popped out of the screen. Just wonderful.

Worthy to mention, award-winning, Mexican filmmaker Guillermo del Toro, who collaborated with DreamWorks Animation as a creative consultant on “Megamind” and was an executive producer on “Kung Fu Panda 2” and “Puss in Boots,” returns as an executive producer for the movie. 

Overall, ‘Rise of the Guardians’ is an ambitious, visually stunning and sophisticated animation that has a wonderful message at its core – a quest to never stop believing in goodness. If there is one family movie to see this year it’s this movie… and in 3D. 

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Lincoln (Movie Review)

Imagine being able to travel back in time and see history unfold before your very eyes when Abraham Lincoln, arguably the best President in US history, fought to abolish slavery no matter the opposition, dirty politics or the burden of seeing thousands massacred for the cause. That is what master director Steven Spielberg has provided us in ‘Lincoln,’ a beautiful, powerful and lasting film that is the definitive Lincoln movie ever made. Daniel Day-Lewis not only plays Lincoln, it feels like he is Abraham Lincoln. It is almost eery.

If you think ‘Lincoln,’ is a movie about his life, think again. Astutely, Spielberg limits the action only to the 16th President’s tumultuous final months in office where a nation was divided by war and the strong winds of change. Due to the perpetual torment the country was going through, Lincoln was obligated to pursue a course of action designed to end the war, unite the country and abolish slavery. His choices during this critical moment is where the movie begins.

Spielberg has not lost his directorial touch at all. Even ‘War Horse,’ which was nominated Best Picture at the Oscars earlier this year, was aesthetically and expertly directed. But without doubt, ‘Lincoln’ is his best film since ‘Saving Private Ryan’. By using Tony Kushner’s adaptation of Doris Kearns Goodwin’s book, ‘Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln’ as a template, Spielberg was able to meticulously capture that period in the White House and return us to what it would have been like if we were a fly in the Oval Office. Amongst all of its virtues, the one thing that this film won’t be recognized for is for its rousing emotional fulfillment. It won’t be met with a thunderous applause or a profusion of enthusiasm the way ‘Rocky’ or even 1984’s ‘The Karate Kid’ made one feel. You’ll be a witness to history, but with mixed emotions for the  way that Lincoln had to achieve the liberty of blacks. 

The performances of the cast for ‘Lincoln’ are the best of the year. Expect SAG and Critics Choice awards for the ensemble. Day-Lewis is sure to win the Oscar for Best Actor, as well for other award galas, for his strong and memorable portrayal of Lincoln. Also worthy of mention is Sally Field, as Lincoln’s volatile wife, who I have not seen deliver an emotional acting punch in years, if not decades. The rest of the cast is fantastic including Tommy Lee Jones, David Strathairn, John Hawkes, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. It truly is the best ensemble cast of 2012. 

There are so many ways to have wrecked a biopic of a historical figure like ‘Lincoln’. All you need as proof is Clint Eastwood’s ‘J. Edgar’. Soporific is one word to describe that film, not to mention overly-acted and melodramatic at times. We are fortunate to have seen a biopic, like this one, done the right way. I feel Lincoln himself would not have objected.