Before we move forward, let’s get caught up to half of lightspeed. We start off in space where no one can hear you scream, watching the smartly designed Starship Avalon on its course. Although there has never been an issue before, the Avalon bursts through a large meteor storm, diverting power to the main shields and everything; however, one rock appears to break through the barriers. This causes some system problems that are all fixed except for mechanical engineer Jim Preston’s (Pratt) pod, forcing it to prematurely open. We quickly learn that the Avalon is 30 years into its 120-year journey (that’s 90 years remaining for those counting back on Earth) toward the dreamy Homestead Colony planet for new beginnings.
It’s at this point that I believe the movie shines brightest. Chris Pratt is still Chris Pratt in this film and gets to show his goofy side a bit, but this is also his best performance I’ve seen from him—there’s nuance to his somewhat shy, talented engineer character. I wish this whole sequence was longer, but for obvious reasons, the movie wanted to yippee ki yay over to Jennifer Lawrence. But regardless, the sequence quickly runs through uh oh, I’m trapped with everyone else still in hibernation, to trying and giving up on everything he can think of, to making the most of what the expansive WALL-E-like Avalon has to offer, to Cast Away levels of loneliness, his only companion being robot bartender played well by Martin Sheen. Quick side note: I want to give props to the film for paying homage to The Shining, but the bar is honestly too similar and is less of an homage and more of a copy.
Naturally, when a man gets lonely and seeks companionship, he starts reading up on one of the pretty girls that’s in deep sleep on his ship. I am of course referring to New York journalist Aurora played by Lawrence. And as you may guess, Lawrence isn’t just sleeping through the whole film, Pratt eventually relents against his better judgment and awakens her from her sleep. Also, the acting award goes to Pratt in this film; other than looking fabulous in a swimsuit, Lawrence’s performance is pretty forgettable here.
This is where in the movie the kinks in the armor start showing. The movie had to sell tickets somehow (especially when it takes over $100 million to make—over $30 million going to the leads), and sex appeal does the trick. So cheers to all that PG-13 love-making. But in all seriousness, we are treated to some Chris Prass. What a man.
The romance isn’t awful, but it’s also not particularly interesting. Not to mention the film yada-yadas pretty hard over Lawrence ultimately getting over Pratt determining her fate when he decided to wake her up. Yeah, she ends up forgiving him after Arthur spills the beans. Don’t tell me you didn’t see that coming even over the course of reading this review.
In comes act numbro tres. We’ve been treated to the visuals and the romance, now we just need a thrilling climax to complete Hollywoodization of this film. And how they pull it off actually brings about more interesting concepts that ties the movie together, however convenient and deus ex machina it may be. That’s not really the issue. What I think really makes this movie wasted potential is how safe it plays it. Passengers is such a Hollywood ending that it’s not even really satisfying to see the characters’ conclusions. The credits come by and you’re left feeling like well, that could’ve been better. But this isn’t a bad movie! It’s entertaining and piques intrigue, just doesn’t go far enough.
The movie is nominated for two
Oscars, one being for production design. This is probably the most deserving
aspect of the film (and was unfortunate enough to have to compete against the
winner La La Land). The clean, white,
futuristic look razzles and dazzles, and it truly feels like the Avalon is a
well-thought out oiled machine. I was going to say that the other Oscar
nomination for score by Thomas Newman was forgettable, but upon giving it
another listen, it’s better than what I originally thought and is actually a
good listen for wanting to multitask. There’s quite a lot going for Passengers: charming leads, compelling sci-fi
story, action and romance, and lovely visuals. Unfortunately, it never fully comes
together the way it wants; and as a result, even though it’s only a couple
years old, it seems to have already been all but forgotten. It’s not really
necessary to go out of your way to watch this movie, but if you have the chance
or the time, it’s still entertaining fare.
In Brief:
·
With more time over the summer comes hopefully
more reviews. Been watching film after film, so I’m currently in the process of
building up a repertoire of reviews to release.
·
Since I’ve already done a review on the original
John Wick, I’m leaning towards not
doing one for Chapter 3. With that
said, super impressed with 3. I hope
action movies take notes because this is how I like my action. Keanu Reeves
also impresses even if he’s becoming more and more a Clint Eastwood type of
character where he only says stuff in a deep, gruffly, dramatic voice. You
know, stuff like, “Yeah,” and “I need guns… Lots of guns.”
·
There’s been a bit of controversy from Annapurna
for not marketing the new film Booksmart enough
or correctly. My only feelings are yeah, it’s getting rave critical reviews,
but the trailers were unimpressive, and it isn’t the type of movie that really
compels people to pay money to see it immediately. You can’t force people to
watch your movie no matter how good it is. With that said I’d absolutely be
willing to see it not for new time director Olivia Wilde, but actually for costar
Kaitlyn Dever who has impressed me in TV shows Justified and Last Man
Standing and movie Detroit.
·
As always, and especially now because of
summertime, I will take any and all suggestions under consideration in deciding
what to review next.
·
I still have interest in ranking all of the
Marvel movies, and I have a general idea of what that list would look like; but
in order to be fair, I’d have to watch them all again and that’s no small task.
No comments:
Post a Comment