Captain America: Civil War

Film Review by Kam Williams


Avengers Split into Adversarial Factions in Clutttered, Over-Ambitious Action-Adventure


After overkill during an Avengers mission gone horribly wrong in Lagos, Nigeria exacts a terrible toll in terms of collateral damage, the U.S. Secretary of State (William Hurt) calls the team of superheroes on the carpet. He proceeds to chew them out for behaving like vigilantes with unchecked power, before suggesting they agree to be supervised in the future by a United Nations panel. 
 
While a remorseful Iron Man (Robert Downey, Jr.) is willing to submit to the Anti-Hero Registration Act, Captain America (Chris Evans) is much more suspicious of these Sokovia Accords ratified by 117 nations. Next thing you know, the Avengers have split into factions over whether or not they should abide by the governmental regulation. 
 
What ensues is a visually-captivating battle royal in which the allies-turned-adversaries inexplicably fight each other rather than resolve their ethical differences civilly. What does that tell you about whether they might need to be reigned in? 
 
Among those siding with Iron Man are Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), War Machine (Don Cheadle), Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman), Vision (Paul Bettany) and Spider-Man (Tom Holland), And Captain America's freedom lovers include Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan), Falcon (Anthony Mackie), Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) and Ant Man (Paul Rudd), 
 
Fans of the franchise are certain to delight in seeing so many of their favorite superheroes together in the same episode. Regrettably, that is both the primary strength and weakness of this 13th installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe series. For, co-directors Anthony and Joe Russo (Captain America: Winter Soldier) have cluttered the screen by introducing and then failing to develop over a score of prominent characters, unless engaging in combat counts.

Too bad they couldn't come up with anything more interesting for the shattered, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. confederacy to do besides battling each other. Clocking in at 2 and 1/2 hours, even the eye-popping special f/x-tend to gets a little tedious once the wow factor wears off.

An underwhelming exercise in sound and fury strictly for brains on pause. .



Fair (1 star)
Rated PG-13 for extended sequences of violence, action and mayhem
in English, German, Russian, Romanian and Hausa with subtitles
Running time: 146 minutes
Distributor: Walt Disney Pictures


To see a trailer for Captain America: Civil War, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKrVegVI0Us

Where to Invade Next

DVD Review by Kam Williams


Latest Michael Moore Mockumentary Arrives on DVD


Oscar-winner Michael Moore (for Bowling for Columbine) has been challenging the power structure ever since releasing Roger & Me way back in 1989. That groundbreaking expose' indicted General Motors for the outsourcing of jobs which devastated his beloved hometown of Flint, Michigan. Over the intervening years, Moore has exhibited a knack for tackling a variety of hot-button topics from a leftist perspective, including the Iraq War (Fahrenheit 9/11), the healthcare industry (Sicko), and the global financial crisis (Capitalism: A Love Story), to name a few.

With Where to Invade Next, the inveterate rabble-rouser sets his sights on the subject of American imperialism. You may remember that the Bush Doctrine, as espoused by President George W. Bush in 2002, asserted the United States' right to wage preemptive war whenever deemed in the national interest. Well, relying on that dubious notion, Moore proceeds to play agent provocateur as he circumnavigates the globe visiting countries with cultural and social constructs supposedly worth emulating. 
 
So, instead of conquest with intent to plunder, the focus here is merely on borrowing ideas which might improve our quality of life. For instance, in France, he asks public school cafeteria chefs how they manage to serve their students such fine cuisine compared to the slop American kids are forced to settle for. And his mission in Finland is to discern why its educational system is far superior to ours, while in Italy he learns about the generous employment benefits not only for maternity leave but for honeymoons as well. 
 
This faux invasion mockumentary features the affable Moore in virtually every tableau, mugging for the camera in his trademark style. Yes, his tongue-in-cheek brand of humor is frequently sublime, and his earnest arguments are often persuasive, even if the format feels a little stale after a quarter-century of the same sort of shenanigans. 
 
Yet another progressive political primer from a proven master at questioning authority!



Very Good (3 stars)
Rated R for profanity, drug use, violent images and brief graphic nudity.
In English, Italian, French, German, Finnish, Norwegian, Portuguese and Arabic with subtitles.
Running time: 120 minutes
Distributor: Anchor Bay

To see a trailer for Where to Invade Next, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ly4_QiXv8es

To order a copy of Where to Invade Next on Blu-ray, visit:

Deadpool

DVD Review by Kam Williams




Ryan Reynolds Is Simply Sublime as Irreverent Superhero


Technically, Deadpool is the 8th installment in the X-Men film franchise, although it's different enough from the others to stand on its own. In fact, it's not only the first R-rated offering in the Marvel Comics series, but the first humor-driven episode to boot. 
 
The movie marks the daring directorial debut of Tim Miller who deserves nothing but praise for eschewing formulaic fare in favor of uncharted waters, when it would've been oh so easy to avoid taking any risks. In a bit of inspired casting, Tim tapped Ryan Reynolds for the title role, a proven master of both the comedy (Adventureland, The Proposal and Definitely, Maybe) and action hero genres (Green Lantern, Paper Man and Blade: Trinity). 
 
Here, he plays Wade Wilson, aka Deadpool, a Special Forces Agent disfigured by a medical experiment gone horribly wrong. In this origins tale, we learn that the accident left him with an uncanny ability to heal himself almost instantly (except for the skin), a trait likely to come in handy whenever he's shot, stabbed or otherwise injured. And he also morphed him into a compulsively-wisecracking vigilante.

At the point of departure, we find Wade embarking on a whirlwind romance with Vanessa Carlysle (Morena Baccarin), the proverbial prostitute with a heart of gold. After a year of perfect bliss, their year-long euphoria comes to an abrupt end when he is diagnosed with terminal cancer. 

 

Out of desperation, Wade agrees to allow a mad scientist named Francis (Ed Skrein) perform the unorthodox procedure that turns him into a freak of nature. Inconsolable about the prospect of losing Vanessa, he becomes obsessed with exacting vengeance on the quack. Revenge proves easier said than done, since Francis just happens to be Ajax, an evil mutant with a formidable henchwoman (Gina Carano) as well as his own set of special powers. 

 

But forget the plot, this iconoclastic adventure is meant to be relished for its generous supply of unforced belly laughs elicited from beginning clear through the end of the closing credits. For example, an exasperated Deadpool addresses the audience to complain about his underwhelming sidekicks, Colossus (Stefan Kapicic) and Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand), saying "It's like the studio couldn't afford another X-Men." On another occasion, he forces a red hot cigarette lighter into an adversary's mouth with the warning "Don't swallow!" 

 

A relentlessly-hilarious cross of Kick-Ass (2013) and Watchmen (2009) that absolutely leaves your appetite whetted for a sequel. 
 

Excellent (4 stars)
Rated R for sexuality, graphic nudity, graphic violence and pervasive profanity
Running time: 108 minutes
Distributor: 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack Extras: Deleted/extended scenes with optional audio commentary by director Tim Miller; gag reel; From Comics to Screen...to Screen; gallery (concept art, costumes, storyboards, pre-vis and stunt-vis); Deadpool's Fun Sack; audio commentary by Ryan Reynolds and screenwriters Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick; and audio commentary by director Tim Miller and Deadpool co-creator/comics artist Rob Liefeld.



To see a trailer for Deadpool, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frRFOrbPfNc

To order a copy of the Deadpool Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack, visit:

Top Ten DVD Releases for 5-10-16

This Week’s DVD Releases

by Kam Williams

Top Ten DVD List for May 10, 2016

Deadpool

Wildlike

Where to Invade Next

Bob Hope: Entertaining the Troops

Creative Control

No Evidence of Disease

Scream: The TV Series [Season One]

Even Though the Whole World Is Burning

Lego Scooby-Doo! Haunted Hollywood

The Last Ship: The Complete Second Season

Honorable Mention

Doomsday: 3 Catastrophic Min-Series [Blackout / Meteor / Pandemic]

Bubble Guppies: Fun on the Farm

10 Items or Less: The Complete Series

The Boy

Regression

Vampires

Kam's Kapsules for Movies Opening 5-13-16

by Kam Williams

BIG BUDGET FILMS

The Darkness (PG-13 for profanity, mature themes, disturbing violence and brief sensuality) Supernatural horror flick about a family which unwittingly brings back a demonic force from its Grand Canyon vacation. Co-starring Kevin Bacon, Radha Mitchell, Jennifer Morrison, Ming-Na Wen and Lucy Fry.

Money Monster (R for brief violence, some sexuality and pervasive profanity) High-octane crime thriller about a bombastic host (George Clooney) of an investment advice TV show who, along with his crew and producer (Julia Roberts), is taken hostage by an irate viewer (Jack O'Connell) after a stock he'd promoted mysteriously tanks. With Dominic West, Giancarlo Esposito and Caitriona Balfe.

INDEPENDENT & FOREIGN FILMS

I Am Wrath (R for profanity and violence) Revenge thriller about a grieving widower (John Travolta) who takes the law into his own hands after corrupt cops fail to find his wife's (Rebecca De Mornay) killer. With Amanda Schull, Christopher Meloni and Sam Trammell.

Last Days in the Desert (PG-13 for disturbing images and brief partial nudity) Biblical saga revolving around Jesus' (Ewan McGregor) 40-day battle with the devil while praying and fasting in the desert. Cast includes Ciaran Hinds, Susan Gray, Tye Sheridan and Ayelet Zurer.

Love & Friendship (PG for mature themes) Adaptation of "Lady Susan," the Jane Austen novella about a beautiful widow's (Kate Beckinsale) search for husbands for herself and her daughter (Morfydd Clark) while living on the estate of her well-heeled in-laws. With Chloe Sevigny, Xavier Samuel and Stephen Fry.

Pele: Birth of a Legend (PG for smoking, mature themes and mild epithets) Soccer boiopic chronicling the legendary Pele's (Kevin de Paula) rise from the slums of Sao Paulo to lead Brazil to its first World Cup victory when he was just 17 years-old. With Colm Meaney, Vincent D'Onofrio and Rodrigo Santoro.

Search Party (R for drug use, sexuality, graphic nudity and pervasive profanity) Road comedy about the buddies (T.J. Miller and Adam Pally) of a jilted groom's (Thomas Middleditch) attempt to help him find the bride (Shannon Woodward) after she leaves for their Mexican honeymoon without him. With J.B. Smoove, Alison Brie and Lance Reddick.

Sundown (R for crude sexuality, graphic nudity, pervasive profanity, teen partying and drug use) Spring Break comedy about a couple of BFFs (Devon Werkheiser and Sean Marquette) who travel to Puerto Vallarta hoping to hook up with their high school crushes. With Teri Hatcher, Camilla Belle and Sara` Paxton.

Sunset Song (R for sexuality, nudity and violence) Coming-of age epic, set in 1910, about a Scottish farm girl (Agyness Deyn) torn between tradition and change. Cast includes Kevin Guthrie, Peter Mullan and Jim Sweeney.

From #Black Lives Matter to Black Liberation

Book Review by Kam Williams

From #Black Lives Matter to Black Liberation

by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor

Haymarket Books

Paperback, $17.95

286 pages

ISBN: 978-1-60846-562-0

“The eruption of mass protests in the wake of the police murders of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and Eric Garner in New York City have challenged the impunity with which officers of the law carry out violence against Black people and punctured the illusion of a postracial America. The Black Lives Matter movement has awakened a new generation of activists.

In this stirring and insightful analysis, activist and scholar Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor survey the historical and contemporary ravages of racism and persistence  of structural inequality such as mass incarceration and Black unemployment. In this context, she argues that this new struggle against police violence holds the potential to reignite a broader push for Black liberation."

-- Excerpted from the Bookjacket

How did the Black Lives Matter movement manage to emerge at a time when so many people considered America to be post-racial? After all, the nation had not only elected its first African-American president in 2008, but had witnessed the emergence of black political elites both in Washington, D.C. and in cities all across the land. 

 

Recall how the Congressional Black Caucus, led by John Lewis, endorsed Hillary Clinton while questioning Bernie Sanders' civil rights credentials. That support delivered over 90% of the African-American vote to Clinton, and has made the difference in her quest for the Democratic nomination. 

 

But according to Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, there is a "growing polarization between black officials and ordinary blacks living in urban communities." She further asserts that African-Americans in positions of power "are just as eager as white officials to invoke racial stereotypes to cover their own incompetence, from claims about cultural inferiority to broken families to Black criminality."

In From #Black Lives Matter to Black Liberation, Professor Taylor explores why opposition to police brutality suddenly became a rallying cry, despite its having already been an issue for generations. The author, who teaches African-American Studies at Princeton University, also devotes considerable ink to a historical discussion of icons like Dr. Martin Luther King and Lyndon Baines Johnson as well as such hot button topics as colorblindness, American exceptionalism, the criminal justice system and the roots and rise of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Overall, a scathing indictment of "racism, capitalism and class rule" as continuing to oppress the black masses, President Obama's occupying the White House notwithstanding.

To order a copy of From #Black Lives Matter to Black Liberation, visit: 

 

Ali Wong

The “Ali Wong: Baby Cobra” Interview

with Kam Williams

All's Right with Wong!

Ali Wong is a stand-up comedian living between Los Angeles and New York. After SF Weekly selected her as “The Best Comedian of 2009″ and the SF Bay Guardian awarded her “Best of the Bay,” she decided that it was finally time to depart her hometown. In 2010, Comedy Central listed Ali Wong as one of 7 “Comic’s to Watch.”

In 2011, Variety Magazine named her as one of the “10 Comics to Watch” and Ali appeared in the 2011 and 2012 Just for Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal. Since then, she has performed on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno”, appeared in Oliver Stone’s “Savages” and was a series regular on NBC’s “Are You There, Chelsea?”

In 2012, Ali hosted the Golden Globes live coverage on E! and in 2013 she joined the reboot of VH1′s “Best Week Ever,” MTV’s new show “Hey Girl” and performed on the new season of “John Oliver’s New York Stand-Up Show.”

Here, she talks about her comedy special, “Ali Wong: Baby Cobra,” which is set to premiere on Netflix on Friday, May 6th.

Kam Williams: Hi Ali, thanks for the interview. Congratulations on the baby!

Ali Wong: Thanks, Kam.

KW: How do you think motherhood might affect your career?

AW: I can't go on the road to perform stand-up as much, and I also have to say "no" to a lot more projects. But, ultimately, it cuts the fat out, and I had a problem saying "yes" to everything before I had the baby. I look to women like Jessica Alba, who turned motherhood into a weapon by founding the Honest Company. I'm hoping to do the same thing in some regard with my stand-up.

KW: What inspired you to shoot it while you were 7- months pregnant?

AW: I've been doing stand-up for 10+ years now, and I had been wanting to film a 1-hour special. When I got pregnant, I knew that if I didn't shoot it before having the baby, it would never happen. So, it was hard, preparing for it while I was so tired and nauseous, but it was worth it. And I'm excited to show the special to my daughter one day, and tell her that both of us were on stage together in that special.

KW: What's the theme of the show?

AW: The life of a stand-up comedian is extremely unconventional. So, outside of that, all I wanted was a traditional life: love, marriage and the baby carriage. And I got it all, but the way it all happened did not go exactly as I had planned. The special is all about that twisted journey.

KW: What is your favorite dish to cook?

AW: Chicken noodle soup! My husband and I eat a bastardized version of Chicken Pho, probably 10 times per week. It's so easy, fast and healthy.

KW: Ling-Ju Yen asks: What is your earliest childhood memory?

AW: I had a nightmare in my crib when I was a baby. I was at the bottom of a hill in a stroller and my parents just kept on walking up the hill and forgot about me. Maybe that's why I do stand-up, because I always have the urge to shout: "Hey! Listen to me! I'm HERE!"

KW: Who loved you unconditionally during your formative years?

AW: I have three siblings who are all 10+ years older than me. I was an accident, or as I prefer to call myself, a "blessing." My two sisters and my brother were so loving and attentive to me. They spoiled me with attention, brought me on dates when they were in high school, introduced me to great art and music, and taught me how to have confidence.

KW: When you look in the mirror, what do you see?

AW: A tired, lucky, 34-year old mom that's just trying to get through the day.

KW: Sherry Gillam would like to know what is the most important life lesson you've learned so far?

AW: If you're a woman who wants to have a career and a family, choosing the right life partner is the most important decision you'll ever make.

KW: What's the craziest thing you've ever done?

AW: I've eaten a still-beating cobra heart.

KW: If you could have one wish instantly granted, what would that be for?

AW: Asian Mary Poppins to live in my house, take care of my child, and cook yummy Asian food all the time.

KW: What is your guiltiest pleasure?

AW: Chris Brown's music.

KW: Larry Greenberg asks: Do you have a favorite movie monster?

AW: Mike Wazowski from Monsters, Inc. His name also cracks me up so hard.

KW: Judyth Piazza asks: What key quality do you believe all successful people share?

AW: I think all successful people are people of action. They don't get bogged down by jealousy and they don't focus on their limitations, they just do what needs to be done, at the end of the day.

KW: What advice do you have for anyone who wants to follow in your footsteps?

AW: Stop collecting advice and go create.

KW: Finally, what’s in your wallet?

AW: So many coupons.

KW: Thanks again for the time, Ali, and best of luck with Baby Cobra.

AW: Thank you, Kam.

To see the trailer for Ali Wong: Baby Cobra, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vzk-bj5bRNs