'Villains' Trailer: Bill Skarsgard And Maika Monroe Pick The Wrong House To Invade

Stop me if you've heard this: a home invasion goes wrong when the perpetrators discover the home's occupants aren't what they seem. That's the basic idea behind Villains, a dark comedy in which Bill Skarsgard, who stalks kids as the terrifying Pennywise in It: Chapter Two, finds himself on the receiving end for once.

Villains also stars It Follows breakout Maika Monroe as Skarsgard's accomplice. Together, they make for a Bonnie & Clyde duo on the run who break into a home looking for a place to hide out. Sicario's Jeffrey Donovan, and The Closer's Kyra Sedgwick play the residents, and while they might appear to be normal wealthy homeowners, it quickly becomes apparent that's not the case when a young woman is found chained in the basement.

The tone is what catches you offguard here. While you expect something dark and twisted, it turns into a wacky comedy in which the creepy couple keeps the invaders around like houseguests. The film comes from writer/directors Dan Berk and Robert Olsen (The Stakelander), who clearly have a messed up sense of humor and a stylish way behind the camera.

Movies about bad people are my joint, so this has just leaped near the top of my must-see list.

Villains hits theaters on September 20th.

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Review: 'Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil And Vile', Zac Efron Slays As Ted Bundy

*NOTE* This is a reprint of my review from the Sundance Film Festival. The film hits Netflix on May 3rd. 

A sense of deja vu hit me while watching Joe Berlinger's buzzy Sundance film with the eye-catching title, Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile. The feeling that I had sat through a similar film at Park City with a lot of buzz, a loaded cast of stars, and a big name playing an infamous figure in celebrity history. That film, sadly, was Lovelace, and like it, Berlinger's movie doesn't have much going for it other than a charismatic, perfectly-cast lead.

Zac Efron's All-American good looks and boyish charm make him the right choice to play serial killer Ted Bundy, who seduced his way into murdering dozens of women. Even as charges mounted against Bundy in multiple states and he fought to defend himself in a court of law, women were willing to throw themselves at his feet, taken by his smile and magnetic personality. But Berlinger's film teases more than just a look at Bundy's prolific murder career. One woman totally swept off her feet by Bundy was Liz Kloepfer(Lily Collins), a single mother who let's him into her home and into her life.

Berlinger teases us with a movie that he gives up on way too early, one that explores Bundy's duality as a family man living with Liz, while hiding his darker side from her; a hug and a birthday celebration with a butcher knife clutched in his hand.  We see Liz falling in love with Bundy, and accepting his excuses as his name mysteriously comes up as a suspect in a series of killings, always of young women. Bundy's got an excuse for everything, and Liz is eager to hear them.

The perspective Berlinger chooses is a fascinating one and something we haven't seen before. Berlinger's documentarian instincts kick in exploring the personality of the one person who was duped by Bundy more than anyone.  But Berlinger doesn't show us how he won her over to such an extent that she was willing to overlook the obvious signs of danger. We see their first date, in which he picks her up at a college bar (the idea of Bundy stalking a place frequented by young women is chilling in itself), perhaps with the idea of killing her, if she hadn't revealed to him that she is mother to an infant. From there, Berlinger jumps ahead a few years just as the accusations are beginning to swirl, and it feels like some crucial context is missing.

Still, if Berlinger had stuck to his guns we'd be talking about a much better movie than the finished product. However, Berlinger can't help but veer into less-interesting, oft-covered territory. Soon the movie is less about Liz and more about Bundy's many arrests and the eventual circus trial in Florida, with much of the insane dialogue pulled straight from the actual televised event. Despite the title, which is quoted from the statement by Judge Edward Cowart (John Malkovich) when sentencing Bundy to the death penalty, we don't see any of the murders take place. The Bundy we see, at least in the beginning, is the caring man Liz fell in love with. Later, as certain revelations about Liz come to light, it makes the decision to show things from her point-of-view confusing.  Berlinger could almost be accused of romanticizing Bundy, especially by refusing to show his crimes, but I found him to be pretty heinous simply for the mental abuse he was willing to inflict on the women around him. I didn't need to see him in action.

As the film begins to drag on, Liz fades into the background although Berlinger keeps tabs through brief scenes of her downward spiral. Bundy won't stop calling her, despite having a new woman (Kaya Scodelario) ready to defend him privately and publicly. Liz drinks and smokes herself into a tailspin, but still manages to find a safe new boyfriend (Haley Joel Osment) who, we know instantly, doesn't stand a chance against the spectre of Bundy. As she sits riveted by TV coverage of the trial, we're also taken by the sheer lunacy of it. But as the credits roll minutes later, and Berlinger shows archival footage of the real events he just depicted on screen, it dilutes rather than enhances their impact. If Berlinger wanted to do a documentary, he should've. Oh wait, he did, and it's already available on Netflix.

Rating: 2.5 out of 5

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Review: 'Sicario: Day Of The Soldado', A Grim Sequel At War With Itself

In yet another summer full of sequels, Sicario: Day of the Soldado (which translates loosely to Hitman: Day of the Soldier) is the least likely. Some would say it's also the most unnecessary. 2015's Sicario was a dirty-black convoy ride through the drug war, the bloody violence and murderous politics of combatting it, seen through the eyes of a naïve federal agent played by Emily Blunt. She doesn't return for the sequel, nor do director Denis Villeneuve or cinematographer Roger Deakins, but arguably the best parts of the movie did return. That would be screenwriter Taylor Sheridan (also of Hell or High Water and Wind River), along with Josh Brolin and Benicio Del Toro as the shadowy operatives fighting that war in the cover of darkness.

The Sicario story is broadened in a sequel that feels a little too much like an attempted franchise starter, but still has enough of the cynicism, moral decay, and tense action of the first film. With Villeneuve out, Italian director Stefano Sollima steps in and does a capable job replicating the oppressive, murky atmosphere. Best known for directing episodes of the TV series adaptation of mob film Gomorrah, Sollima adopts a Traffic-style approach; quick cuts and parallel narratives. Each and every one of those narratives is as bleak as the other. A devastating ISIS-style bombing in a Kansas City grocery store has Black Ops agent Matt Graver (Brolin) on the hunt for the Mexican cartel members that helped the terrorists sneak across the border. Called into action by a bunch of stuffed shirts (including Matthew Modine as Secretary of Defense) who won't get their hands dirty, Graver dives into the filth eagerly. His job is to start a war between the Mexican cartels so as to make them easy to pick off. To do it he brings in his "bird dog", the ruthless mercenary Alejandro (Del Toro) to help foment chaos by kidnapping Isabela (Isabela Moner), the feisty daughter of a cartel boss, the same one that murdered Alejandro's family.

Sicario: Day of the Soldado is almost like two separate movies. One a timely vengeance thriller penned with all of the muscular affectations we've come to expect from Sheridan. That film feels exactly like how a sequel to Sicario should feel.  The body count stacks even higher this time, so too does the number of black helicopters and ominous convoy journeys. Sollima and cinematographer Dariusz Wolski (The Martian) favor capturing the action from the inside; inside vehicles during crazy car chases over dirt roads; inside the helicopters stalking them down. When the bullets fly the gunfights are as slick and cool as ever, largely because Brolin and Del Toro are as cool as ice. They slide in and out of danger like ninjas, and when they get hurt it's like a minor inconvenience. 

"That's going to need stitches", Graver is told by one of his bosses (Catherine Keener) after a blown op.

"The good thing is I'll still need them tomorrow", he replies.  Tough guy! He'd have made a great Spartan.

The other, less watchable movie is Sheridan in a crowd-pleasing mode we've never seen from him before. There's a certain level amount of coincidence that occurs in all of Sheridan's films, a twist of fate that usually has disastrous consequences. It happens here, too, but Sheridan messily handles the two competing storylines, one involving a Mexican teen just making his bones within the cartel. They're always at cross purposes so when they finally intersect, it never feels natural.  Also baffling is the hard turn towards sympathy for the most vicious character in these movies. The dynamic between Alejandro and the kidnapped Isabel is...well, it's a little too cozy considering he's the same guy we saw coldly murder an enemy's entire family at the dinner table. If Sheridan wanted to remake The Professional, he should just go ahead and do that. I'd watch Del Toro in that role in a heartbeat, but it doesn't make sense for Sicario.

Sheridan cops out in other ways that edge too close to spoiler territory. At times Sicario: Day of the Soldado is exactly what we'd want a sequel to Sicario to be. Other times it is virtually unrecognizable and you wonder why it even exists when Villeneuve's film was so masterful. If the only reason is so we can continue to see Del Toro grimly perpetuate the cycle of violence then so be it, but we should be expecting more.

Rating: 3 out of 5



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'Sicario 2: Soldado' Trailer: Benicio Del Toro & Josh Brolin Escalate The Drug War

There are at least two big questions surrounding Sicario 2: Soldado. One is, "Why do we need it?". And the other is, "How do you do it?"  The first film starred Emily Blunt as a naive agent engaged in the U.S.'s dirty drug war with the Mexican cartels, but she is gone and in the sequel we'll instead follow the murky operatives played Benicio Del Toro and Josh Brolin, arguably the film's best characters, anyway. With Taylor Sheridan back to pen the script we can trust this one will be just as much of an edge-of-your-seat ride as before.

Directed by Stefano Sollima with Catherine Keener, Manuel Garica-Rulfo, Isabela Moner, Matthew Modine, and the returning Jeffrey Donovan as co-stars, the film finds agents Gillick and Graver given full license to eliminate the cartels in any way they can now that they've been labeled terrorists by the government.

I worry when a seemingly unnecessary sequel seems to be trying too hard to raise the stakes, but in Sheridan I trust. And this trailer looks damned awesome. Sicario 2: Soldado arrives on June 29th 2018.

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Review: 'LBJ', Woody Harrelson Overshadows An Overshadowed President

While watching Rob Reiner's LBJ, a film that disguises Woody Harrelson under a ton of unconvincing makeup to resemble President Lyndon Baines Johnson, all I could think about was the film Jackie. In Natalie Portman's riveting performance as JFK's widow in the days following his assassination, she tirelessly worked to ensure her husband's legacy, that he and everything he hoped to accomplish would be remembered. She would be a fan of LBJ, I think, which isn't so much about its title subject, but how Johnson was caged into enacting an agenda that wasn't his own.

It's a novel and occasionally rewarding approach to take, but overall you don't get a sense of who LBJ really was. He was a complex figure who enacted the most sweeping range of domestic programs ever: Medicare, Social Security, Medicaid, all the most popular programs this country has ever seen. But he's also the President who escalated the Vietnam War when public opinion said it was a terrible move. There is a richer film here than the generically-told one that Reiner gives us, despite Harrelson's plucky firebrand of a performance.

The film shows LBJ's ability to walk between both factions of the Democratic Party to achieve "endless compromise". The northern democrats saw him as an ally against racial segregation, while the southern Dixiecrats, who would eventually leave and join the Republican Party, relied on him as their champion. It's this ability to talk with and understand everybody that led John F. Kennedy (Jeffrey Donovan, Boston drawl in full effect) to select LBJ as his running mate after defeating him soundly in the Presidential primaries. This flies against the advice of his brother and Attorney General Bobby Kennedy (Michael Stahl-David), who has no use for LBJ's folksy charms and antiquated notions. If there is a less flattering portrayal of Bobby I've never seen it. Hard to believe this mean-spirited, angry, conniving guy is the same one canonized so in Emilio Estevez's Bobby a decade ago.

What follows is a movie mostly about how marginalized LBJ was as Vice President, with his presence barely tolerated by those Ivy League-educated Kennedy boys. It doesn't always make for compelling viewing, although Reiner peppers in colorful anecdotes, some true some a little less so, that give Harrelson plenty to chew on. There's a scene early on when he's still Senate Majority Leader, muscling his power over everybody who dares into the room. At that moment he's a political heavyweight, and plans to remain so as Vice President. But hemmed in by the Kennedys' need to reign in his influence, LBJ is mostly a side player in the larger game, working angles against political frenemies (Richard Jenkins plays powerful southern democrat Richard Russell) to progress the President's signature civil rights legislation.

Flashforwards to Kennedy's inevitable assassination, captured in that familiar slow caravan of cars down Dallas streets, tease Johnson's eventual ascendancy to power. When that moment does come, Reiner teases the awkwardness of the transition (captured more forcefully in Jackie), but not so much the impact on LBJ to have such power thrust upon him. Short of one moment of weakness in which he laments to wife Lady Bird Johnson (Jennifer Jason Leigh, terrific despite a horrible wicked witch nose) about the weight of expectations, LBJ's transition into a forceful protector of Kennedy's ideals is simplistic and unconvincing. That said, the film's greatest dramatic moments are in these final scenes as LBJ reclaims the gusto he once had, straight-talkin', wheeling and dealing to get the 1964 Civil Rights Act passed, over the clear objections of Russell and the Dixiecrats. Emerging from that victorious, Harrelson's most winning moment comes with a rousing speech to Congress, reaffirming his dedication to seeing through Kennedy's vision, while healing the wounds of racism across the country.

In a year that has seen portrayals of LBJ hit a fever pitch, Harrelson's is by far the most entertaining in his colorful use of vulgarities. But it's also the least authentic, as Harrelson always looks like he's about to rip off the pounds of prosthetics and start reenacting scenes from Zombieland. It reminded me of Bill Murray's performance as FDR (Did all Presidents use acronyms back then??) in Hyde Park On Hudson; a lively outlier in what is ostensibly an Oscar-worthy drama. But despite Harrelson's best efforts, LBJ doesn't offer enough insight to ascend to that level.

Rating: 2.5 out of 5

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Review: 'Shot Caller' Starring Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Jon Bernthal, & Lake Bell

I don't know if a movie like Shot Caller would have seen the light of day without a robust streaming distribution model, but it's a good thing it ended up where it did. The film is a prison drama commanded by the lead performance by Game of Thrones' Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, in the kind of role I don't think we've ever seen from him. It's a transformative performance most actors get maybe once in a career, and he sinks into every bit of it. Add in the experienced crime-drama cred of Snitch and Felon director Ric Roman Waugh, and Shot Caller is a solid little indie worth seeking out.

The particulars are nothing we haven't seen before, but it's the deep characterization of Waldau's character that sets Shot Caller apart. He plays Jacob Harlan, an ordinary family man with a gentle wife (Lake Bell, a minor but strong role) and son. One night while out on the town with some friends, Jacob has one too many and has a car accident that kills his friend (Max Greenfield, in a "why are you here?" role). Basically dead to rights, Jacob accepts his fate and does whatever it takes to get back to his family. And that means, the white collar businessman needs to find friends, protection, and a new persona altogether. His transformation from innocent newbie to hardened soldier nicknamed Money is a believable one. It starts with simple assault to gain cred; then once recruited into a group of Aryans his crimes mount by degrees: drugs, intimidation, and finally murder.

Again, it's nothing we haven't seen before, but the film does a good job of showing how someone like Jacob can become addicted to such a radical change in lifestyle. Jacob was a powerful figure in the business world and there's power to be had within the prison walls, too. Waugh's screenplay helps us piece Jacob's logic together through flashbacks to his early days behind bars, contrasted with his latter activities as a boss running guns alongside a shady crew that may or may not have his back. There are compromises Jacob makes that the old him would be horrified by, but make perfect sense in the kill-or-be-killed world he's willingly become a part of as Money.

The evolution is pretty fascinating, and Waldau gives the finest performance of his career outside of Westeros. His track record away from HBO's hit series has been spotty, but he's found highlights in films such a Headhunters, A Second Chance, and Netflix's Small Crimes which is another crime movie in which Waldau plays another criminal in search of some kind of redemption. He's surrounded here by strong supporting performances by actors with the skill to make the most of limited screen time. Jon Bernthal as a member of Jacob's street crew, and Jeffrey Donovan as the seemingly benign gang leader  who recruits Jacob initially. Also, you'll scarcely recognize Holt McCallany as the appropriately named Beast, the gang's monstrous enforcer. Omari Hardwicke of Power fame overdoes his tough-guy act as Jacob's hardass parole officer, while Emory Cohen is miscast as Money's naïve follower.

Waugh knows the prison genre but it doesn't change that he's merely efficient as a filmmaker. He knows pacing and can stage a competent shot but you won't find much creative in his style, and that occasionally makes Shot Caller seem like a run-of-the-mill movie when the material is far superior than that. There isn't a ton of violence but when it does you probably won't be expecting it. The blood flows quickly and brutally, adding to Money's growing apprehension and acceptance of the events around him.  There comes a point in Shot Caller where there's simply no turning back for Money. We can see it in his eyes, and despite all of the horrible things he's done we still feel something for the loss of what he used to have. It's a powerful moment captured beautifully by Waldau, helping to make this a film that shouldn't be overlooked.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5



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New Trailer For Rob Reiner's 'LBJ' Puts Woody Harrelson In The Oval Office

Given the current state of the presidency it's nice to look back at a time when the office still meant something. Given director Rob Reiner's politics I imagine LBJ, which stars Woody Harrelson as President Lyndon B. Johnson, is his way of making a statement. Whether that statement also leads to Oscar nominations for himself and Harrelson we'll just have to wait and see, but the trailer certainly has promise.

Heavily altered under a ton of makeup, Harrelson takes on the role of LBJ as he ascends to the presidency in the wake of John F. Kennedy's assassination. Basically it looks like a companion piece to Jackie, and follows a similar tract as he attempts to honor Kennedy's legacy while the country is in mourning. Here's the synopsis:

After powerful Senate Majority Leader Lyndon Johnson (Woody Harrelson) loses the 1960 Democratic presidential nomination to Senator John F. Kennedy (Jeffrey Donovan), he agrees to be his young rival’s running mate. But once they win the election, despite his extensive legislative experience and shrewd political instincts, Johnson finds himself sidelined in the role of vice president. That all changes on Nov. 22, 1963, when Kennedy is assassinated and Johnson, with his devoted wife Lady Bird (Jennifer Jason Leigh) by his side, is suddenly thrust into the presidency. As the nation mourns, Johnson must contend with longtime adversary Attorney General Bobby Kennedy (Michael Stahl-David) and one-time mentor Georgia Senator Richard Russell (Richard Jenkins) as he seeks to honor JFK’s legacy by championing the historic Civil RightsAct of 1964.

Playing the POTUS hasn't done anybody favors in the Oscar race lately. Leonardo DiCaprio was overlooked for J Edgar, Bill Murray was ignored in Hyde Park On Hudson, and Parker Sawyers was left out for Southside with You. Expect Harrelson's performance to get a big push later in the year anyway. LBJ opens November 3rd.

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'Sicario' Sequel Plot Details Reveal A Bigger Mexican Drug War

Denis Villeneuve's amazing drug thriller Sicario was such an intense, tightly-written film that most of us couldn't imagine it having a sequel. It certainly didn't need one and would have been fine standing on its own. But then we learned about Soldado, a follow-up that would have multiple changes to be concerned about. Emily Blunt wouldn't be back as Kate Macer, and Villeneuve wouldn't return, either, replaced by Stefano Sollima. But one thing it would have back is writer Taylor Sheridan, along with stars Benicio Del Toro, Josh Brolin, and co-star Jeffrey Donovan, who revealed to Collider previously-unknown plot details...

“I know I was in it, but as a fan of Sicario, I can’t believe they’re making another one, which is so awesome. And I’m in it, which is even more awesome. I thought Sicario was one of the best films, in the last five years, that I’ve seen. I really believe that. I was just lucky to be in a small portion of it. The story picks up with the same male characters that were in Sicario, which was Josh [Brolin] and Benicio [Del Toro]. Emily Blunt’s character is not in it, but my character, Forsing, is also brought back. It focuses on these three characters now, going down into Mexico to basically start a war, on purpose, between the rival Mexican cartels. There’s a bigger reason for it, but that’s the beginning of the movie.”

He adds that the film won't necessarily be a true sequel, but more like a standalone effort or spinoff...

“It’s more of a stand-alone spin-off. It’s not a sequel or a prequel. It really is yet another examination told from this male point of view, rather than from a female point of view. It’s pretty cool.”

That sounds crazy. We've already seen how far they'll go in Sicario, but imagine them now when they're the ones lighting the match.  Filming on Soldado begins next year and suddenly I'm feeling okay about this whole thing. 

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Sure Shots: Suck City; Bill Hader; J. Edgar

* The cast for Another Bullshit Night in Suck City is shaping up to be one of the best going right now. The adaptation of Nick Flynn's memoir about his reunion with his estranged, alcoholic father in a homeless shelter, already has Robert De Niro, Paul Dano, Olivia Thirlby and Julianne Moore keyed in. Well you can add Lili Taylor(High Fidelity) and Dale Dickey(who should've been nominated for Winter's Bone!) to the cast as well. Production began today on the Paul Weitz directed drama.

* Bill Hader(Superbad) is poised for a super breakout turn. I'm not sure Paul will be the film that does it, but one of these upcoming projects might be it. The SNL funnyman is up for two big time leads. The first is Vaughn Meader, based on the brief career of the former JFK impersonator. Rob Siegel(The Wrestler) is scripting that one.  Also there's Henchman, directed by SNL writer/director Akiva Schaffer, about two guys who realize they're working for a Jason Bourne-type badguy.

*Robert F. Kennedy and J. Edgar Hoover had some pretty heated arguments, particularly when it came to dealing with the civil rights movement. So hopefully we're gonna get a chance to see some of that tension play out on screen, as Jeffrey Donovan(Burn Notice) has been cast as the slain Attorney General in Clint Eastwood's J. Edgar. This'll be a reteaming for Donovan and Eastwood, who last worked together on Changeling back in 2008.

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