Movie Review: The Martian (2015)

by Tony Dayoub


News this week that liquid water has been discovered on Mars and that actor Matt Damon has repeatedly lodged his foot in his mouth (discussing whether gay actors should come out of the closet or not) almost begs for some kind of bad joke about outfitting a spacecraft and exiling the actor to the red planet ASAP. At worst, the news kinda overshadows promotional efforts for Damon's latest, The Martian, based on the novel by Andy Weir. At best, the two soundbites—one overwhelmingly positive, the other decidedly not—cancel each other out and give way to more discussion about this unlikely crowd-pleaser. I'm hoping for the latter, because The Martian fully deserves to be appreciated as a front-runner among the top films of the year.

Double Vision: Tony Scott's Spirit Possesses Ridley Scott's The Counselor (2013)

by Tony Dayoub

The rumblings of a critical debate (or is it grumblings?) have already surrounded Ridley Scott's The Counselor. A script by Cormac McCarthy (The Road) helmed by the director of Thelma and Louise should have been a sufficient enough marketing opportunity for 20th Century Fox to capitalize on as they rolled it out during awards season. And yet the studio held a press-only screening Tuesday night before its opening, a move which signals they're likely as mystified about how to handle the film as critics are in trying to build a consensus around it. Given how peculiar it is, this is not surprising. The Counselor is in many ways an anomaly for Ridley Scott.

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2012 So Far: Midterm Top 5

by Tony Dayoub

We're halfway through 2012, and I thought you might be interested about the handful of films at the top of my best list so far. If I had to find one thing in common in all of these, I would say that each one has some impediment (not a flaw) which might make it difficult for audiences to embrace.

Prometheus (2012)

by Tony Dayoub

Who would have thought that Prometheus, Ridley Scott's triumphant return to science fiction, is not necessarily designed to evoke the picture it shares the most connective tissue with? 1979's Alien, only Scott's second film, was a horrific variation on the traditional haunted house movie trope in which a small crew of seven miners slowly gets picked off by an indestructible monster in the outer reaches of space. Alien's grungy, shopworn technology, its motley crew of unlikeable and all too human antiheroes, and the emergence of the spaceship Nostromo's whiny, female second officer as the film's lead were among the movie's innovative twists, spicing up a once moribund genre. Eventually, Alien inspired so many copycats it all seemed kind of old hat again. While ostensibly a tangential prequel—explaining a few of the more mysterious elements of Alien—Prometheus takes off on a different course, one especially familiar to those of us around in the '70s.

Movie Review: Robin Hood (2010)

by Tony Dayoub

Ridley Scott's Robin Hood opens the Cannes Film Festival today (out of competition, of course). I must admit I went into its screening skeptical that I would find anything to enjoy in yet another visit to Nottingham. My favorite film critic, the estimable Glenn Kenny, often generous with praise for at least some aspect of most movies found little to like in this one (read his review here... I'll wait). That, director Scott and actor Russell Crowe's increasingly poor track record, and the fact the film gives in to the annoying trend to "reboot" a heroic tale à la Casino Royale(2006) and Batman Begins (2005) fed my doubt there would be anything redeemable left to appreciate.

Blu-ray Review: Thrills and Chills from MGM

by Tony Dayoub



A few popular thrillers and chillers were released on Blu-ray last week from MGM and Fox Home Entertainment, just in time for Halloween. Among them are Child's Play (1988), Wrong Turn (2003), and Wrong Turn 2: Dead End (2007). Not the greatest horror flicks, to say the least. But the ones that will most interest fans I've saved for last.

DVD Review: The Andromeda Strain (2008) - Too Many Subplots Muddle an Intriguing Story

by Tony Dayoub



The Andromeda Strain (2008), released on DVD this week, is the second version of Michael Crichton's 1969 novel put on film. Having just premiered on A&E on Memorial Day, I was looking forward to seeing an updated adaptation.


The first time it was adapted to screen by directing great Robert Wise, it was very popular and suspenseful. Tracking the analysis, identification, and attempt to contain a virus from space that wipes out a whole town in seconds, Wise's movie is a minor sci-fi classic. But since much of the story depends on cutting edge science, the passage of time has not been kind to it. Much of what looked innovative or futuristic in the 1971 version looks rather quaint and dated now. So if the remake could keep the same just-the-facts-ma'am procedural tone that Wise established, and update the science, then it would be quite successful. Unfortunately, the filmmakers chose to go further than that simple improvement, and bit off way more than they could chew.

One of the most appealing things in the original version was the dry tone established by casting second-tier actors in the almost anonymous roles of the science team. Little is known of the four clinicians' backstory except what is essential to resolve the plot. That leaves us time to appreciate the painstaking application of the scientific method necessary to solve the rather imminent problem of the virus's potential to decimate mankind. Spookier still is the lack of knowledge on the origins of the virus. The effect is that of being a fly on the wall as the doctors work to contain Andromeda, the name given to the virus.

The new movie just tries too hard. The mystery is robbed of the story by giving us too much information, spending way too much time on the rather hokey origins of Andromeda. It also illustrates the destruction of the town of Piedmont, Utah. In the original, the creepiness of the desolate town was inherent in the absence of awareness one had regarding details of it's decimation.

The core characters are populated by some appealing actors, including Benjamin Bratt, Christa Miller, Daniel Dae Kim, and Viola Davis. We are privy to each of their background angst, but the fact that it usually involves some cliche doesn't invite one to dwell on it for long. Also the cast has nearly doubled in size, adding an investigative reporter (Eric McCormack), an army General (Andre Braugher), and a military doctor (Ricky Schroder). This seems to be designed to give us additional expendable folks we might identify with before they are cut down in service of the plot. So now, in addition to having to follow the scientists take on Andromeda, we also have the media's and the military's. Rather than enhancing the story it gives short shrift to each of the three parallel plots.

Maybe this was an attempt at a backdoor pilot, meant to lead into a series if successful. But between all the cutting back and forth from the military trying to cover-up the incident, to the reporter trying to survive long enough to file his story on the virus, to Bratt's lead scientist confessing his attraction to Miller, his former research associate, the show evokes one of 24'scrazy pre-teaser catch-up montages, more than it does a fully-formed, layered premise. Surprising given that the producers are Ridley and Tony Scott, and the director is Mikael Salomon, who's given us some fine TV work before. By the time you've got Kim slicing off Schroder's thumb and throwing it to Bratt while the three try to shut down a nuclear reactor, you'll be wondering if you didn't switch to one of Jack Bauer's bad days by mistake.

The DVD does have some respectable features. It has an informative commentary from the director and producer David W. Zucker. There's also the usual making-of featurette, and a pretty nice gallery of production photos and design drawings, over 100, in fact. None of these address the obvious failings of the film, which usually makes for far better commentaries than the average so-this-is-how-we-got-this-shot stories.

Saddled with too much to chew on, The Andromeda Strain's central plot of humans fighting an unknown threat on a scientific playing field is lost. Catch Robert Wise's original version instead, and you'll enjoy its suspenseful execution despite the retro science.

This entry first appeared on Blogcritics on 6/7/2008.

DVD Review: Blade Runner: The Final Cut - Neo-Noir Lost in Translation?

by Tony Dayoub



Blade Runner: The Five Disc Ultimate Edition was released on DVD in December 2007. Produced by Charles de Laurizika (producer of Twin Peaks - The Definitive Gold Box Edition), it is the culmination of 7 years of hard work to restore this film to Ridley Scott's definitive version.