Cast propels breezy Instigators
There’s nothing particularly memorable, or for that matter,
unique about Doug Liman’s The Instigators. Be that as it may, the film is not
without its charm, provided primarily by the tremendously overqualified cast, all veterans who bring a sense of enthusiasm to this project that it doesn’t
deserve. The result is a pleasant caper film with a great deal of heart that
will likely have viewers grinning from beginning to end.
The role of Rory is not the sort Matt Damon usually
tackles. Unsure throughout, he’s an
anachronism who brings a sense of honor and a bit of naivete to the scheme
hatched by Besegai (Michael Stuhlberg), a local front with inside info on the
corrupt mayor (Ron Perlman). When he’s not taking notes with a pen on paper
regarding what he’s to do during the heist, he’s asking far too many questions
about the most obvious things. That Damon conveys the character’s uncertainty
and morality in such a relatable way has us pulling for him from the word “go.”
Not so much with Cobby, a role Casey Affleck wrote for
himself. Imagine his character from Good Willing Hunting, having not matured a lick, becoming more of an irritant
as the years have gone by. His function is to irritate, which the actor can do
in his sleep when called upon, but he wisely gives Cobby a solid backstory that
goes a long way towards explaining his behavior and our accepting him.
The rest of the cast is an embarrassment of riches, each
performer shining when given their moment in the spotlight. Rapper Jack Harlow
continues to impress as the third in the trio of thieves, Scalvo, while Alfred
Molina, playing Besegai’s partner Richie, wisely underplays his scenes,
complimenting Stuhlbarg’s over-the-top turn. Paul Walter Houser is underused
but makes an impression as Booch, the worst bounty hunter in history, while
Ving Rhames glowers and menaces as only he can as the mayor’s enforcer. But
it’s Hong Chau who steals the film, delivering a quiet, stealthy performance as
Rory’s therapist, the most understanding, capable doctor you’re likely to meet.
The heartfelt conversations between her and Damon provide the emotional
touchstone around which the chaos revolves.
When the heist goes sideways and the requisite car chases
and gunfights ensue, Liman brings a degree of humor to these sequences, the
banter between the characters often juxtaposed with pop tunes that belie the
seriousness of the situation.
Clocking in at 100 minutes, The Instigators is a
breezy, engaging entertainment buoyed not only by its wry humor and clever
twists but, more importantly, its sympathetic characters. These two men
struggle not simply with the world itself, but their own faults, which they
fully recognize but are often unable to combat.
Who can’t relate to that? Streaming on AppleTV+.
Artificiality undercuts Ends important message
Based on the best-selling novel by Colleen Hoover, the serious subject matter in Justin Baldoni’s It Ends with Us is undercut by the director’s Hallmark aesthetic. A glossy sheen permeates the film’s ornate, and at times overwrought sets, creating a sense of artificiality that is reflected in its story. Even worse than the physical artifice is the emotional hollowness that runs throughout.
Unable to speak at her father’s funeral, Lily (Blake Lively)
retreats to her new home in Boston where she has an odd meet-cute with handsome
neurosurgeon Ryle (Baldoni). It’s evident from this moment – about 10 minutes
in – that the film is on shaky ground as there’s no chemistry between the two
leads. Their interactions are forced throughout, passion between them is absent
and their conversations are of the most facile sort. If I didn’t know any
better, I’d swear the source material was a YA novel.
And though they part, Boston proves to be a very small town
(more on this later) as Lily runs into ole Ryle again, when he saunters into
her flower shop. Wouldn’t you know it, he just happens to be the brother of her
sole employee and best friend, Allysa (Jenny Slate). Coincidences continue to
occur when Lily crosses paths with Atlas (Brandon Skelner), who was her first
love that she hasn’t seen in over 15 years, who’s also opened a business in Boston.
What are the odds???
As the passionless romance between our heroine and Ryle
unfolds, it's intercut with flashbacks recounting her relationship with Atlas
(these names!). Seems he was a homeless classmate of hers who happened to take
shelter in an abandoned home right next to her family’s. Why there is an empty,
battered house such as this in an upper middle-class neighborhood, right next
to the mayor’s residence, is a matter you’re not supposed to think too much
about in movies such as these.
What emerges is a story of regret, denial and damage seen
through an idealized lens. As we come to find out, Lily witnessed her father abuse
her mother and realizes only too late that she has followed in her footsteps
when Ryle displays violent behavior as well.
Domestic behavior and breaking the cycle of violence are
serious issues that demand a mature approach. Unfortunately, the slipshod
screenplay, which relies on ridiculous circumstances to move the story along,
lays a shaky narrative foundation that fails to treat these problems with the
weight they deserve. The artificiality of the world Lily inhabits, as well as
the teenage romanticism that suffuses it, clash with these vital concerns, so
much so that they come off as a melodramatic punchline rather than a genuine
examination of abuse and its effects.
If any in the audience identify with Lily and come to take
decisive steps in their own lives, then Ends serves some positive
purpose. Yet, its simplistic approach smacks of soap opera sensationalism,
which may tug at the heartstrings of Hoover’s fans, but in the end manages to
do a disservice to real-life victims. In theaters.
Trap aptly named
Things get off to a rocky start in M. Night Shyamalan’s Trap and go quickly off the rails. Cooper (Josh Hartnett) is earning big-time dad points by taking his teen daughter, Riley (Ariel Donoghue), to see the pop sensation Lady Raven (Saleka Shyamalan). Yet, from the moment they arrive at the venue, something seems off. The security presence is akin to what you’d see in a warzone, prompting Cooper to notice other unusual protocols in play. You see, he has to be aware of these things because – here comes the twist – he’s a serial killer, who has slain 12 area youths and currently has another chained up in an undisclosed location.
With this shaky premise in place, Shyamalan unspools a game
of cat-and-mouse that depends on incredible circumstances and coincidences to
function, all the while asking us to identify with a psychopath. It’s fortunate
Cooper crosses paths with a loose-lipped vendor who clues him in on key pieces
of information that allows him to evade the authorities, while his
oh-so-coincidental encounter with Raven’s uncle sets up a situation that gets
him and Riley backstage. And the fact that there’s hundreds of officers on duty
to catch one guy? C'mon!
The film is replete with instances such as these and it all
becomes too much to swallow. Some
critics read the film as a comedy – granted, seeing huge glass jugs of cooking
oil next to a bubbling fryer is funny – but the overall tone of the film
doesn’t support this. Unless Cooper has some sort of supernatural abilities we’re not privy to, there’s no logical explanation for the many improbable
escapes and quick costume changes he pulls off. There’s a fine line between
winking at the audience to let them know this is a parody and insulting them,
one that Shyamalan crosses with impunity throughout.
If there’s a highlight, and it’s a small one, its
Hartnett. Having acted only sporadically
for years, he’s made a bit of a comeback recently and is obviously having a
good time. Beginning by projecting a guise of normalcy, Cooper’s gradual
unraveling is the sort of blatantly over-the-top role actors love to sink their
teeth into. Hartnett does just that and it is a delight to see him become
progressively unhinged. The rest of the cast accord themselves as well as they
can, while the presence of Hayley Mills as criminal profiler Dr. Josephine can
only be explained as a nod to her starring role in The Parent Trap …I think.
By the time we got to the third act reveal in which we see
how Cooper was set up, (it’s really too stupid to go into) I had given up.
While I tend to cut Shyamalan more slack than others, this lackluster effort
proves impossible to defend, a film I suspect was made simply so the director
could showcase his daughter. It’s a Trap indeed. In theaters.
