Review: "Sky High" is Not That High (Happy B'day, Danielle Panabaker)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 131 (of 2005) by Leroy Douresseaux

Sky High (2005)
Running time:  102 minutes (1 hour, 42 minutes)
MPAA – PG for action violence and some mild language
DIRECTOR:  Mike Mitchell
WRITERS:  Paul Hernandez and Bob Schooley & Mark McCorkle
PRODUCER:  Andrew Gunn
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Shelly Johnson
EDITOR:  Peter Amundson
COMPOSER:  Michael Giacchino

FAMILY/FANTASY/SUPERHERO/ACTION/COMEDY

Starring:  Michael Angarano, Kelly Preston, Lynda Carter, Danielle Panabaker, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Bruce Campbell, Dave Foley, Steven Strait, Kevin McDonald, Cloris Leachman, and Kurt Russell, Khadijah (Haqq) and Malika (Haqq), Patrick Warburton (voice), Dee-Jay Daniels, and Kevin Heffernan

The subject of this movie review is Sky High, a 2005 superhero family film from Walt Disney Pictures.  Set in a world where superheroes are a common thing, Sky High follows a young superhero who struggles with being a normal teenager and with following in the footsteps of his parents, the world’s greatest superhero duo.

Will Stronghold (Michael Angarano) is the teenaged-son of Steve (Kurt Russell) and Josie Stronghold (Kelly Preston), who also happen to be the world’s greatest superhero duo, The Commander (Russell) and Jetstream (Ms. Preston).  Will is about to enter the freshmen class of Sky High, the first and only high school for kids with super powers.  The problem for Will is that puberty has not brought about the onset of any powers, so not only does he have to deal with the typical high school problems:  bullies, cliques, and teachers, but he also has to deal his father Steve, who has very high expectations for his son – a son who has no super powers.

The superhero teaching method at Sky High divides the students into two groups, “Heroes” and “Sidekicks.”  Not having any powers gets Will into the latter group, but he fits right in because his loyal childhood friend, Layla (Danielle Panabaker), is also a Sidekick.  However, Will still has to deal with his intimidating gym teacher, Coach Boomer (Bruce Campbell), and Warren Peace (Steven Strait), the son of a villain his father locked up long ago, and Peace, who can generate fire, plans on taking out his frustration about his father on Will.

Will does eventually find his powers, but it goes to his head.  His ego is much inflated when Gwen Grayson (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), a popular senior and head of the senior prom committee, chooses him as her prom date.  A dark villain, however, lurks somewhere in the shadows, seeking revenge against The Commander and Sky High, and Will just may be the key to the villain’s success or the savior of Sky High.

Sky High is in the tradition of the Walt Disney family films situated in fantastic settings or featuring characters that unwittingly encounter magic or the fantastic – films like 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and The Shaggy Dog, or even Disney’s My Favorite Martian, their mid-90’s film version of the fondly remembered TV show.  In fact, Sky High’s special effects are still on the level of My Favorite Martian.  Both Sky High’s concept and final product are basically the kind of thing we’d get from The Disney Channel, but with a bigger budget and with the cast made of actors best known for their film roles, even if most of them are character actors, cult figures, and B and C-list stars.

That is much of the film’s charm – it’s cast.  Some critics and the Walt Disney Company’s publicity has described this as a cross between the Harry Potter series and the Disney/Pixar animated film, The Incredibles, but Sky High lacks the engaging characters and enthralling storytelling of the former and the spectacularly genuine superhero fantasy of the latter.  Basically, Sky High is a cheapie version of superheroes; it lacks the grandeur of classic superhero comics like the Fantastic Four, X-Men, Superman, and Spider-Man (which is something The Incredibles had), all of which have themes similar to Sky High.  The script doesn’t pave any new paths in the sub-genre of high school films, but instead follows the same road as most pedestrian fare set in high schools.  The plot is so predictable that you can see the happy ending and discover who the villains are before the midway point of the film.

However, Sky High (as stated earlier) has a good cast, and it has a good player in its lead character, Will Stronghold, superbly played by Michael Angarano in the teen-angst/awkward teen mode that dominates Disney Channel TV shows and television movies.  Angarano can play it all:  awkward, shy, bold, confident, jerk, hero, loyal son, and friend; he gives Will Stronghold the kind of dimension a lead character needs to sell a film to an audience.  Look for small, but nicely comic roles by “The Kids in the Hall” alums Dave Foley as The Commander’s old sidekick, All American Boy, and Kevin McDonald as Mr. Medulla, the science teacher with the big head that holds a giant and super smart brain.  On the other hand, Kurt Russell and Kelly Preston as Will’s parents are cardboard cutouts with only a few moments where they seem like real parents.

Overall, Sky High is a light, funny fantasy film in the tradition of G and PG-rated family fare that Disney does so well – perfect for the kiddies and grown folks who take this light-hearted fare for what it is.

6 of 10
B

Updated:  Thursday, September 19, 2013

The text is copyright © 2013 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

First Poster for Alexander Payne's "Nebraska" Released

NEBRASKA

Director: Alexander Payne

Cast:  Bruce Dern, Will Forte, Stacy Keach, June Squibb, Bob Odenkirk

After receiving a sweepstakes letter in the mail, a cantankerous father (Bruce Dern) thinks he’s struck it rich, and wrangles his son (Will Forte) into taking a road trip to claim the fortune.  Shot in black and white across four states, Nebraska tells the stories of family life in the heartland of America.

MPAA rated R — Restricted

IN THEATERS NOVEMBER 15th

Official Site: NebraskaMovie.com

Facebook: Facebook.com/NebraskaMovie

Twitter: Twitter.com/ParamountPics

Winner- Cannes Film Festival 2013- Best Actor Award (Bruce Dern)

Review: "Phantom Lady" is for Fans of the Genre (Remembering Franchot Tone)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 79 (of 2004) by Leroy Douresseaux

Phantom Lady (1944) – Black and White
Running time:  87 minutes (1 hour, 27 minutes)
DIRECTOR:  Robert Soidmak
WRITER:  Bernard C. Schoenfeld (from a novel by William Irish)
PRODUCER:  Joan Harrison (associate producer)
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Woody Bredell
EDITOR:  Arthur Hilton
COMPOSER:  Hans J. Salter

CRIME/FILM-NOIR/MYSTERY with elements of a drama, romance, and thriller

Starring:  Franchot Tone, Ella Raines, Alan Curtis, Aurora, Thomas Gomez, Fay Helm, and Elisha Cook, Jr.

The subject of this movie review is Phantom Lady, a 1944 film noir and crime and mystery film from director Robert Soidmak.  This film is based on the 1942 crime novel, Phantom Lady, which was written by author Cornell Woolrich and published under his pseudonym, William Irish.  Phantom Lady the film follows a secretary who risks her life trying to find an elusive woman that may be able to prove that her boss did not murder his selfish wife.

Although photographing a film in black and white was not an artistic choice but a matter of being the only choice for many directors during Hollywood’s Golden Era of the 1930’s and 40’s, some directors took advantage of black and white cinematography to create some of the most compelling and beautiful looking films in movie history.  Case in point:  German-born director Robert Soidmak took a Universal Studios B film, Phantom Lady, and turned it into a work of black and white movie art.

In the film, unhappily married Scott Henderson (Alan Curtis) takes a woman wearing a strange hat for a night on the town, but the woman insists that the two remain on a no-name basis for this one-night only date.  However, Scott’s wife is found strangled in their apartment, and Scott takes the rap for it because he has no alibi.  No matter how hard he and the police look, they can’t find the mysterious woman with whom he spent an anonymous date, and everyone whom Scott claims saw him and the woman together only remembers Scott being alone.

When Scott is convicted of the murder and sent to death row, his loyal secretary, Carol Richman (Ella Raines), and Inspector Burgess (Thomas Gomez), the policeman who has a change of heart about Scott, begin another search to find the mystery woman.  Someone, however, doesn’t want them to find the woman and actively interferes in the case with deadly consequences.

Phantom Lady is mostly a curiosity; it has a few good moments, and while it falls far short of being forgettable, it’s not really memorable.  Siodmak and his cinematography Woody Bredell compose countless exquisite black and white shots, staging the first three quarters of the film as if it were a series of artsy photographs.  While the look is classic film noir, the meat of the story is low rent noir.  The story stumbles towards an end, and the hammy killer, replete with pseudo psychological reasons for his killer tendencies, doesn’t help.  The cast is strikingly B movie, being made of character actors – most of them solid, except for Ella Raines’ wildly inconsistent performance.  Look for a nice sequence featuring Elisha Cook, Jr. (the "gunsel" from The Maltese Falcon) and Ms. Raines that is rife with overt and almost raw sexual energy.  Overall, this is mainly for those who love film-noir mysteries and crime dramas, but there’s little else for the average-Joe film fan.

6 of 10
B

Updated:  Wednesday, September 18, 2013

The text is copyright © 2013 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

Happy Birthday, Cale

It is shocking and a little hard to accept, but you're 21 now!  You weren't even two-years-old when I first met you.  Have a Happy Birthday and a great day.

Barbra Streisand: Why Is It Easier to Get an Assault Weapon Than to Vote?

From Reader Supported News:

Why Is It Easier to Get an Assault Weapon Than to Vote?
By Barbra Streisand, Reader Supported News
07 September 13

A great democracy does not make it harder to vote than to buy an assault weapon." - President Bill Clinton

The former president is absolutely right about what a great democracy should do. Unfortunately this is not the case in the United States today.

There have always been attempts by conservatives to restrict the franchise. It took women well over a century and painful struggle to get the right to vote. For African Americans in the South, activists were beaten and killed before the federal government stepped in to end "Jim Crow" laws against voting. Then it took massive voter registration drives in an atmosphere of intimidation to fully extend the right and access to vote for all citizens.

Until recently, there was a movement in the states towards making voting more convenient and accessible. Now, conservative governors and legislators are turning back the clock on progress.

Many Americans suffer from the difficulty of voting on a Tuesday in November instead of the weekend -- a relic of an agricultural nation. But it wasn't enough for some conservatives.

So, they discovered a "solution" in search of a "problem" -- the infinitesimal amount of voter fraud. But the real motive was stated by GOP Pennsylvania House Majority leader Mike Turzai, "Voter ID, which is going to allow Governor Romney to win the state of Pennsylvania, done."

According to the authoritative Brennan Center, since the beginning of 2011, 19 states have passed 25 laws and two executive actions restricting voting. The laws vary, but all have the same impact. In these states, it is now more difficult for those Americans who typically have the least access to power in our democracy to participate. Some of the restrictions are particularly perverse.

Texas allows a state-issued "concealed carry permit" for guns to count as a voter ID but not a duly authorized ID from the flagship University of Texas. Tennessee and North Carolina also prohibit university identification from their own systems. A student without a driver's license essentially loses his/her rights while a gun owner, simply by owning a gun, does not. On Election Day 2012, Florida had hours-long lines because of new restrictions on early voting. North Carolina also eliminated same-day registration and reduced early voting. Indiana now allows other voters to challenge and demand proof of registration from fellow voters before they can vote.

The purpose of these voter restrictions laws is to make it more difficult for the young, the elderly, the poor and minorities to vote. Our voter participation rates are already among the lowest in the world's democracies, but conservatives seem intent on lowering it further.

But guns, why, owning them should be easier than ever. Congress failed to renew the assault weapons ban, but one can buy an assault weapon from an individual or a gun show without having to show any identification. Even after the movie theatre carnage in Colorado and the slaughter of school children in Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut by individuals wielding assault weapons and large ammunition clips, Congress failed to provide enough votes for simple background checks.

A recent study by two professors at Cleveland State University estimated that Americans own between 262 and 310 million firearms. The U.S. population is less than 314 million. Over 30,000 Americans die every year from firearms, and one person in three knows someone who has been shot according to the Brady Center. There are many suggestions about reducing gun violence in the United States. But allowing someone to buy an assault weapon without showing any identification surely is not one of them. Despite the paranoia fostered by the gun lobby, no government agency is going to come and take away guns from American citizens. In fact, the only national database of gun ownership is controlled by the NRA!

It is time to promote sensible reforms about gun violence and to stop further restrictions on voting. The only way this will happen is if enough Americans vote for politicians willing to oppose the NRA and its backers -- the gun manufacturers, and vote out those politicians who seek to restrict Americans' right to vote for their own narrow partisan reasons.


Reader Supported News is the Publication of Origin for this work. Permission to republish is freely granted with credit and a link back to Reader Supported News.

"Naruto Shippuden: The Lost Tower" Now on DVD and Blu-ray

VIZ MEDIA ANNOUNCES THE RELEASE OF NARUTO SHIPPUDEN THE MOVIE: THE LOST TOWER ON DVD AND BLU-RAY

The World’s Most Popular Ninja Returns In His Seventh Anime Feature Film For An Action-Packed Time-Travelling Adventure

VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest distributor and licensor of anime and manga in North America, announces the latest NARUTO anime feature film to fans everywhere with the release of NARUTO SHIPPUDEN THE MOVIE: THE LOST TOWER on DVD and Blu-ray September 17th. The newest film of the venerable ninja action property carries a rating of TV-14, a DVD MSRP of $19.98 U.S. / $24.98 CAN and a Blu-ray MSRP of $24.98 U.S. / $27.50 CAN.

The DVD and Blu-ray editions each contain a bevy of extra features including a hilarious anime short, NARUTO AND THE THREE WISHES, as well as the original Japanese theatrical trailers. The Blu-ray edition also features a bonus production art gallery.

In NARUTO SHIPPUDEN THE MOVIE: THE LOST TOWER, the Rogue Ninja Mukade is about to be caught by Naruto's team when he summons forth the power of the LeyLine - an ancient underground channel of chakra. Naruto gets caught up in the chakra and is sent back in time to the city of Loran, known for its thousand towers. There he encounters the future Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, on a top-secret mission, and the Queen of Loran, Sarah, whose rule is threatened by Mukade. Will Naruto be able to return to his own time, and can a chance encounter in the past save the future?

“Anime fans can take an amazing journey back in time as Naruto tries to save a noble Queen in NARUTO SHIPPUDEN THE MOVIE: THE LOST TOWER,” says Charlene Ingram, Senior Marketing Manager, Animation. “Don’t miss all of the action as Naruto takes on Mukade and meets the future Fourth Hokage in this exciting new feature film release!”

Additional information on NARUTO and NARUTO SHIPPUDEN is available at www.Naruto.com.

For more information on VIZ Media anime properties, please visit www.viz.com/anime.

Review: Cruise Dominates Visually Splendid "Oblivion"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 63 (of 2013) by Leroy Douresseaux

Oblivion (2013)
Running time:  124 minutes (2 hours, 4 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for sci-fi action violence, brief strong language, and some sensuality/nudity
DIRECTOR:  Joseph Kosinski
WRITERS:  Karl Gajdusek and Michael deBruyn (based on the original graphic novel story by Joseph Kosinski)
PRODUCERS:  Peter Chernin, Dylan Clark, Duncan Henderson, Joseph Kosinski, and Barry Levine
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Claudio Miranda (D.o.P.)
EDITOR:  Richard Francis-Bruce
COMPOSERS:  Anthony Gonzalez (score), M83, and Joseph Trapanese

SCI-FI/DRAMA/ACTION with elements of a mystery

Starring:  Tom Cruise, Morgan Freeman, Olga Kurylenko, Andrea Riseborough, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, and Melissa Leo

Oblivion is a 2013 post-apocalyptic science fiction drama from director Joseph Kosinski.  The screenplay is based on an unpublished graphic novel that Kosinski created for Radical Comics.  Oscar-winning screenwriter, Michael Arndt (Little Miss Sunshine), wrote the final draft of the screenplay under the penname, Michael deBruyn.  Oblivion the film stars Tom Cruise as technician who begins to question his mission on a war-torn future Earth, now a dying planet.

Oblivion opens in the year 2077.  Earth was nearly destroyed 60 years earlier by an alien race called the “Scavengers” (Scavs).  Most of humanity has moved to Titan, one of Saturn’s moons.  Jack Harper, Tech 49 (Tom Cruise) and his lover and partner, Victoria “Vika” Olsen (Andrea Riseborough), are among the last humans on the planet.  Jack is a drone repairman, maintaining the planet’s defensive drones that guard massive ocean-borne power stations.

After a crippled starship enters his territory, Jack discovers that its sole occupant, a mysterious woman named Julia (Olga Kurylenko), seems familiar.  This leads Harper to make some shocking discoveries about himself and about the world.

My friend and colleague, Hervé St-Louis, wrote a review of Oblivion, from which I’ve selected the following lines:

...the plot is rather thin and much of the movie is lengthy and boring. It was a film produced for Tom Cruise’s ego...  This movie is meant to show Tom Cruise on the best possible angle at all time and nothing more. (http://www.comicbookbin.com/Oblivion001.html)

Tom Cruise apparently received good notices for his performance in Oblivion, but as is the case with most movies in which he appears, the film becomes about Cruise.  Here, the focus on Cruise/Jack Harper comes at the detriment of the other actors and the characters they play.  Thus, the mysterious, intriguing Julia remains a cipher, her captivating past and purpose subverted to serving the interests of Jack Harper’s quest.  This is the case with the equally captivating and cagey Vika, as it is with other characters I won’t name here in order to avoid creating too many spoilers.

That is not to say that Harper isn’t a great character.  There is so much to him, and while this isn’t among Cruise’s best performances, he makes Harper worth following.  However, it is as if we never really get into any depth with Harper.  Perhaps, the problem is the film’s screenplay.  Conceptually, Oblivion is like a novel, covering events that occur over a period of 60 years and happens on a worldwide level.  The actual screenplay for the movie mainly focuses on what would be the equivalent of two short stories at the end of the Oblivion saga.

That makes the film’s plot thin, but Oblivion offers good character drama and sci-fi.  Still, there are long, empty spaces in the story that seem to amount to nothing more than Harper staring off in the distance or flying in that cool Bubble Ship (which I want).

Oblivion is visually striking.  The aforementioned Bubble Ship, the drones, the power stations, and Tower 49 (Jack and Vika home and base) are sleek, showing off a production aesthetic that recalls The Matrix, 2001: A Space Odyssey, and 1970s science fiction films like Logan’s Run, Silent Running, and Star Wars (of course).  It is the visual experience of Oblivion that makes me a fan of this film, in spite of my misgivings about the plot/screenplay and the diminishing of the supporting characters.

7 of 10
B+

Friday, September 13, 2013


The text is copyright © 2013 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.