Spencer Provides A Complexed Portrait Of Princess Diana That's Elevated By Kristen Stewart's Commanding Performance

      Traditional biopics rely on two things to make them successful with audiences. The first is skillful filmmakers with a focused narrative for covering that individuals story, and a capable actor/actress who can transform into the person in question while convincing audiences of the switch. With Princess Diana, any actress chosen to play the iconic figure would be held to the highest standard regarding their performance which makes the choosing of Twilight's Kristen Stewart for the role an unconventionally brilliant one. Not only does Stewart defy all expectations with playing the part, she carries the film on her shoulders with the end result being a flawed yet hauntingly effective character study of a princess on the edge as her marriage breaks down combined with mounting family pressure. 

       Based on true events surrounding the life of Diana, Princess Of Wales, Spencer's plot has her attending Christmas Dinner with her family. While doing so, she decides to end her decades long marriage to her husband Princes Charles upon discovering that he cheated. Spencer's intent to focus on the holiday dinner between the royal British family is an interesting one that makes logical sense as the intent is to show Diana's mental state being impacted by the restrictions the royal family had over both her life and marriage. Although its avoidance of presenting a more traditional image of Diana's life along with the exploring of her characters mental State will be off-putting for some viewers, Spencer is elevated by Stewart's performance which adds a tremendous amount of emotional weight to the story, as well as supporting the films notion that fitting into a royal family is hugely intense with the pressure of doing so being greater than what can be handled.

      The acting by Spencer's cast adds a tremendous amount of believability to the story with Stewart  giving a performance that's as focused as it is mesmerizing. If one found themselves doubting her casting as the Princess Of Wales, they'll be pleasantly surprised by the depth of range she puts up on screen. Sally Hawkins also impresses as Maggie, Diana's only friend at the Estate and her Royal Dresser, who encouraged her to both combat the royal family and fulfill the obligations expected of her. Timothy Spall is excellent as former soldier Major Alistar Gregory, who is revealed to be both unflinching and uncompromising in his efforts to keep Diana in check. Another superb performance delivered is Jack Farthing as the icy Prince Charles of Wales with him often showing visible anger and frustration towards Diana despite being the cause of their divorce. The performances delivered by the young cast are phenomenal with Jack Nielen and Freddie Spry wonderfully aiding Stewart's work as both Prince William and Harry.  Whereas Spencer's cast is fantastic overall, it's Stewart's performance that commands the film with her brilliantly capturing the same mannerisms as soft-spoken Diana to the point of being completely convincing with the rest of the cast backing up her performance.

      Spencer's directing by Pablo Larrain gives off a look and feel that's similar to 2016's Jackie with it using the same style cinematography including close-up images being beautifully captured with wide-angle shots of the films lavish scenery. In terms of tone. Given the depressing nature of the  story, Lerrain utilizes a bleak tone while providing moments that are both funny and uplifting. He also incorporates bits of disturbing imagery to emphasize the bleakness of the story such as the shooting of birds for sport with them shown laying dead on the ground. The score is beautifully composed with it alternating between being a beautiful piece to a more haunting one depending on the emotions flowing throughout the story. At 111 minutes, Spencer's pace is a Slow-moving, though Stewart's performance maintains the audiences interest. With both the visuals and haunting score, Larrain creates a surreal tone that places audiences into the mindset of the characters, particularly Diana with them witnessing the constant shifting of emotions as she feels. 

      When it comes the writing, Spencer's script explores royal family traditions along with themes regarding infidelity, gender roles, paranoia, love, freedom, succession, and scandals. The story is structured to give audiences insight into the kind of treatment which Diana received from her own family, along with feeling trapped in a loveless marriage and her desire to be free from her families grip. Diana's mental health is explored with it declining as her marriage falls apart despite her family pressuring her to remain in it. She's also shown to be having suicidal thoughts such as throwing herself down a flight of stairs, having hallucinations of deceased former queen of England Anne Boleyn, and ripping off her pearls along with eating them when they fall into her soup. Other interesting angles added are Diana's paranoia being fueled by the increasing intrusiveness from the British press and experiencing an eating disorder that makes her deliberately become routinely sick after meals. Despite her struggles, she's shown to always be a loving mother towards her two sons, making her eventual break from her family an uplifting moment although it becomes debatable on whether the same kind of message that the film conveys could've been given with a different outer layer of the story. 

      For those looking for a more broader and straight-forward portrait of Princess Diana's life, Spencer is bound to disappoint as it main plot works as being more of a complexed character study that's centered around a dark time in the Princess of Wales life, which ultimately became her awakening. In retrospect, that's the best way to the view the film with Stewart's mesmerizing performance serving as the anchor for the story. Although audiences will find themselves hoping that Hollywood will bring a more thorough and satisfying exploration of Diana's life someday, Spencer's unique yet gritty character study possesses enough striking scenery, serviceable writing, and devotion from its cast to make it an honorable effort, though not one that will stand as being the definitive film to represent its main female subject.

Final Verdict: Worth watching for Kristen Stewart's terrific performance and those fascinated by the legacy of Diana, Princess Of Wales.

Images Courtesy Of Topic Studios

Uncharted Delivers A Paint-By-Numbers Action-Adventure That's Both Entertaining And Forgettable

       Adapting a popular video game into live-action film format while remaining faithful to the source material is as equally challenging as presenting audiences with a fresh story that isn't heavily reliant on previously established works in order to entertain. In the case of Uncharted, the newest action-adventure starring Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg, struggles to represent it's bestselling video game while feeling like a combination of Indiana Jones and National Treasure merged together. Despite boasting an appealing cast and delivering reasonably mild entertainment, Uncharted can't help but find itself in the shadows of far superior adventure films. 

      Based on the popular video game series of the same name, Uncharted has Treasure hunter Sully recruiting street-smart Nathan Drake (Tom Holland) to help him recover a 500-year-old lost fortune while the latter simultaneously searched for his long-lost brother. It's no question that Uncharted's plot heavily leans on classic globe-trotting adventures like Indiana Jones and Tomb Raider, making it's plot appear to be glaringly formualic. Although it lacks originality, the films solid action set-pieces combined with its appealing cast make Uncharted a Serviceably fun action-adventure ride that's one of the more bearable video game movie adaptations.

      The performances given by Uncharted's cast inject some much needed energy to the film to the films with Holland and Wahlberg making for an interesting duo with their on-screen chemistry helping drive the story. Holland is charismatic in the role of young bartender and fortune hunter Nathan Drake, whose recruited by Sully to find the fabled treasure of the Magellan expedition, along with finding his missing brother Sam. Wahlberg is solid as seasoned fortune hunter Sully, who previously worked with Sam. Wahlberg plays his character as being a mentor type and father figure role to Nathan. Both leads make their quirky bromance entertaining to watch while elevating the material to be somewhat engaging. Sophia Ali impressed as fellow fortune hunter Chloe Frazer, who partners with Sully and Nate to find the treasure while sharing a relationship with the latter. Antonio Banderas chews up the scene as the films antagonist and ruthless treasure hunter Santiago Moncada. Though his character feels like every other generic villain in a treasure hunt themed story, he plays his role to maximum effect while appearing to have a blast in doing so. Other noteworthy performances include Tati Gabrielle stealing the show as mercenary Jo Braddock, who works with Moncada against Nathan and Sully with Rudy Pankow in a brief yet effective role as Nathan's long-lost brother Sam. As a whole, Uncharted's cast proves reliable in elevating the story to the level of being watchable as the stories predictability becomes more glaring.

      Directed by Ruben Fleischer who previously helmed Venom, his work comes across as being standard for the genre despite crafting some well-staged action sequences including one involving Drake both climbing and leaping his way up a series of crates swinging around from the back of a plane, or another sequence involving a helicopter airlifting an old treasure infested pirate ship out of a cave only to reveal a second ship being airlifted out as well. Though the action sequences aren't on the same level as those from a typical Marvel flick, they remain impressive set-pieces that stand out in the film. Boasting stunningly bright cinematography, Fleischer beautifully captures the films exotic locations that drive the adventure aspect of the story. Though Uncharted's score is effective, it's also nothing particularly memorable to write home about. With an 116 minute running time, it keeps things moving at a relatively fast pace while allowing for key moments of character development. While Fleischer does nothing here to reinvent the wheel, he does a fairly decent job of bringing Uncharted's video game world to the big screen while using the films action sequences to maintain the audiences interest in its rather generic story.

      Uncharted's scriptwriting suffers the most with its plot feeling repetitive of previous glory days in the action-adventure genre. The writing lacks innovativeness and creativity with much of its subplots appearing borrowed from other films in the genre, along with the main characters feeling like stereotypical cardboard cutouts from other adventure stories. Both characters of Nathan and Sully are predictable yet work mainly because of the actors performances, as their characters lack true development. Although Nathan's search for his brother Sam is believable, it lacks sufficient development to make audiences invested in their subplot. The relationship between Nathan and Sully never really gets the opportunity to grow throughout the film despite misleading moments and situations promising that their dynamic will evolve yet ultimately never does. Not to mention the partnership/romance between Nathan and Chloe feeling undercooked. Santiago is ultimately wasted in the film despite having a solid character outline as a cunning treasure hunter. Although the script makes attempts at throwing surprise twists at the audience regarding the plot and actual villains, they're ones that come across as feeling completely predictable. One example includes Sully's character being given the choice of keeping a bag of gold or helping save Nathan's character during a moment of crisis. The moment ends with him choosing to help Drake, making it a fitting one for Sully's character yet doesn't hold much emotional weight given that audiences see the twist coming a mile away. Uncharted's writing overall, feels like a combination of incomplete ideas and character situations introduced that could've worked far more effectively had they've been thoroughly fleshed out.

      Given the films intent in representing its video game, it makes attempts at delivering nods to such like the films eye-catching opening with Holland's character dangling off a cargo net strapped to the back of a plane, being lifted straight from the games. The film desperately aims to please those who enjoy the games while delivering a story that pays homage to the Indiana Jones era of adventure films. Even with a strong cast and thrilling action set-pieces, Uncharted's lack of memorability doesn't allow it to be anything much more than just a mildly fun though forgettable adventure.  

Final Verdict: Worth a watch if you're a fan of the PlayStation games. Otherwise, look towards the classic action-adventure films that it draws heavy inspiration from. 

Respect Is A Faithful Music Biopic That Has Jennifer Hudson Delivering An Electrifying Performance

       It often feels like biographical dramas have become a normalized standard in today's realm of cinematic filmmaking, particularly ones that are based upon legendary musicians. What makes music biopics appealing to audiences are the distinct stories that each one possesses with the audience finding relatability to those individuals, along with the mesmerizing performances from the main actors/actresses playing them. With Respect, audiences are given insight to the remarkable

yet troubled life of American singer Aretha Franklin with Jennifer Hudson giving a career-defining performance in a solid biopic, which gives audiences insight into the transcending career of Franklin which gave her the title "Queen Of Soul". 

      Respect's plot covers the success and personal turmoil in the life of Aretha Franklin (Jennifer Hudson) beginning as a gifted 12-year old who sung in her father's (Forrest Whittaker) church choir to be coming an international singing sensation. Respect does a fine job of exploring the key points of Franklin's life including the major accomplishments throughout her music career, as well as personal challenges regarding an abusive relationship with her ex-husband, and her struggle with battling alcoholism. While it may come across as feeling like a standard by-the-numbers biopic, Respect is a well-crafted tribute to its female music legend that comes from a place of deep respect and admiration for its main subject with the combining of serious themes mixed with stellar song pieces blending together beautifully. 

      When it comes to performances, Respect's cast deliver fantastic work with Hudson's electrifying portrayal of a young up-and-coming Aretha Franklin. She beautifully shows the formers desire to sing and progress with her career while emphasizing the strength that her character showed through hardships. Hudson's performance is so fantastic, it feels like a tragedy she didn't receive an Oscar nomination for her powerful portrayal. Along with Hudson showing tremendous talent on the screen, Marlon Wayans shocks with his impressively dramatic performance as Aretha's former boss and abusive husband Ted White. Wayans plays White as being a damaged man with good intentions for Aretha's career. Whereas he can be motivational and supportive of Aretha one minute, he's also shown to be abusive and controlling the next. Forest Whitaker commands the screen as Aretha's God-fearing yet controlling father C.L. Franklin, who groomed his daughter to begin her music career by singing in his local church. The rest of Respect's supporting cast deliver strong supporting parts including Audra McDonald as Aretha's mother Barbara, Marc Maron as her record producer Jerry Wexler, Albert Jones as Ken Cunningham, Leroy McClain as Aretha's older brother Cecil, Titus's Burgess as James Cleveland, Saycon Sengbloh as Aretha's older sister Erma, Hailey Kilgore as her younger sister Carolyn, and Mary J. Blige as singer Dinal Washington. Much of the reason that Respect works so well as being an affecting music drama, is because of the admirable work that its stellar ensemble cast puts into the production with Hudson's performance being downright remarkable. 

      Respect's directing by Liesl Tommy in her feature film debut is commendable with her giving audiences an intimate portrait of Franklin's life while providing historical tibits to audiences regarding the civil rights era, as well as the globalization of soul music. Both the films set and costume designs are impressively spot-on with the stories era with the cinematography being stunning. Liesl steers audiences through each new decade of Franklin's career as the hair styles and  fashion change with each different era. The soundtrack works as a powerful element of the story with many of the songs chosen for the film being intentional to show Franklin's ability to improvise. At 145 minutes, Respect never feels too slow-moving nor boring because audiences are engaged by Franklin's story with much being attributed to Hudson's performance driving the film. Whats most noteworthy about Tommy's work is how she maintains restraint in showing the troublesome aspects of Franklin's life with those moments going hand-in-hand with the ones showcasing her performing on stage in front of large audiences. The real Franklin was mesmerizing to watch perform with Liesel working extra hard to show that through Hudson's performance. 

      Respect's script covers Aretha's life as a young girl from Detroit who loves to sing with her father forcing her to sing at church services. Along with showing her rise to stardom, the screenplay also explores some of the more controversial elements of Franklin's life including a sexual assault encounter which left her pregnant. Aretha's career as a singer is revealed to have been an intense clash with the men in her life from her father running her career to her abusive ex-husband, which ultimately fueled her depression while fighting for control over her life and voice. The film also shows Aretha often being controlled by her "demons" which include heavy alcoholism, stemming from the realization that the men in her life who supposedly help her depression also make her suffer in other ways. With Respect's script, the film doesn't just explore all sides of Aretha's life, but also examines those surrounding her which include C.L being both a respectable preacher and controlling father, who rightfully despises her husband because he serves as a reflection of his own flaws.

      Whereas audiences may not enjoy seeing some of the more tragic elements of Franklin's life regarding child, sexual, and domestic abuse, they'll greatly appreciate the personalized account of the Queen Of Soul's life which is respectfully handled. As strong as a biopic that Respect appears to be, it finds itself skipping over briefly introduced subplots such as Aretha's sexual abuse at a young age with no reverting back to it afterwards, or the relationship that she pursues after leaving her abusive husband. Though the film gives off the vibe of being an honorable music biopic, it's Hudson's work as Franklin that elevates it to being memorable due to her capturing the singers spirit on-and-off stage. Given that her voice could never match that of Franklin's, she carries her soul while showing her immeasurable talent, making Respect a loving tribute to its music icon. 

Final Verdict: A must see biopic for both music and fans of Aretha Franklin.

Images Courtesy Of Universal Pictures

Matt Reeves The Batman Reinvigorates The Franchise With A Thrilling Detective Story

      Making a difference is a challenging choice that ultimately comes with consequences. When looking at comic book characters, none represent that more perfectly than Bob Kane's Batman. On film, the character has experienced a wide variety of  filmmakers who brought their own distinct interpretations of the caped crusader to the screen from Tim Burton, Joel Schumacher, Christopher Nolan, Zack Snyder, and now Matt Reeves. With the casting of Robert Pattinson, The Batman takes the franchise in a much darker and grim direction than any previous Batman film before it with the results being one of the best live-action adaptations yet. 

      The Batman's plot revolves around a young Batman (Robert Pattinson) early in his career working with Lt. Gordon (Jeffrey Wright) to catch a sadistic serial killer named The Riddler (Paul Dano) whose murdering prominent politicians in Gotham. Reeves takes a more personal approach in exploring the character with his vision being more brutal, grittier, and feeling like a combined mixture of David Fincher's SeVen meets Zodiac. The new film gives the character an appropriate clean slate while laying out a solid new foundation of films that promises to go further with developing the characters along with building off the strengths of previous Batman works. With The Batman, Reeves takes the character back to his roots as being a terrifyingly effective savior for Gotham.

  

      With much animosity being directed towards his casting, Pattinson exceeds expectations with playing a more tormented Bruce Wayne, whose consumed by his desire to fight crime while still  bearing trauma from his parents murder. His Batman not just comes across as being extremely brutal and vengeful, but also struggling with insecurities in catching The Riddler. Along with Pattinson, Zoe Kravitz is mesmerizing as Selina Kyle/Catwoman with Kravitz brilliantly playing a cat burglar trying to score while showing concern for others. Their chemistry is fantastic with both making for thrilling partners in crime, who show a clear attraction for each other. Paul Dano delivers a chilling performance as Edward Nashton/Riddler with him playing a more serial killer type version of the character, who seeks to unmask the truth behind the corruption in Gotham's political arena. Jeffrey Wright is phenomenal as Batman's ally Lt. James Gordon, and the only cop whom Batman trusts. Like Gary Oldman before him in the role, Wright portrays Gordon as being a righteous cop who believes in the Batman. Other noteworthy performances include Colin Ferrell in a scene-stealing performance as mid-level mobster Oswald Cobblepot/Penguin, with Andy Serkis playing a more aggressive version of Bruce's butler, Alfred Pennyworth. Both John Turturo and Peter Starsgard deliver admirable work as Selina's father/crime lord Carmine Falcone, and distasteful Gotham district attorney Girl Colson. Overall, Batman's outstanding cast brings a tremendous amount of realism to the screen.

      The directing by Reeves is impressive with the film carrying stunning visual work for Gotham. The cinematography is breathtaking with some of the films images consisting of rainy backdrops, a warmish brown tone, orange and brown highlights which emphasize both a weariness and desperation to the story. With the violence, Reeves delivers the most brutal Batman film yet along with Riddler performing a series of killings which push the boundaries of its PG-13 rating. Some of the more gruesome images include a severed thumb along with showing bodies wrapped in tape. The sequences in which Batman's character steps out of shadows and fights his opponents are intense like the opening train station sequence, or a thrilling car chase involving the Penguin and the new Batmobile that's electrifying. Michael Giacchino's score is brilliantly effective in enhancing the mood of a crime-ridden Gotham in need of a savior. Given the films 175-minute running time, it movies relatively quick with audiences becoming immersed in the story, though it could've been trimmed down by about 15 minutes. With his directorial work, Reeves gives an extremely confident take on Batman, that feels refreshing and further redefines what's possible for comic book movies.

      The Batman's script incorporates relevant themes including vigilantism, lawlessness, political corruption, restoring faith in institutions, wealth division, and vengeance along with playing out more like a detective story and giving more complexed versions of the characters like Bruce shown as obsessive over being Batman with little regard for his public image as Philanderpist Bruce Wayne. One example is his character being called out for his lack of charity in comparison to his parents work. Though the script leaves little room for audiences to see Pattinson portray the traditional Bruce, it nails the Batman arc in going from being a vengeful figure to becoming the saviour that Gotham needs. A brilliant technique that the script does is allowing Pattinson's Batman to narrate his own story with such a choice proving enormously effective because it gives a deeper insight to Bruce's inner turmoil as Batman. Like all the previous films, the story combines multiple villains and balances them well without feeling overcrowded or eclipsing Batman's main arc. Reeves also manages to strike a clever balance between being serious and incorporating humorous bits including one clever piece of dialogue exchange between Gordon and Batman in which the latter comments on his lack of gun usage with Gordon replying "Yea that's your thing." 

      Despite Batman's script being well-rounded, it has moments of weaknesses. The lack of development for Bruce Wayne is glaring, along with Alfred's character having minimal development despite their back and forth bantering. As effective as Riddler's character comes across at being a Zodiac type killer, it would've been even more effective if he was shown less with the omitting of video messages with his character being more in the background for most of the movie. It's also ridiculous that Batman got knocked unconscious and the police don't seize the opportunity to unmask him. Despite these issues, The Batman remains a dark, gritty, and more intense version of the character thats extremely faithful to the comics, although it doesn't surpass the work of previous films, preferably The Dark Knight and Batman Begins. 

Final Verdict: For both Batman and comic book fans, Matt Reeve's The Batman is a must see. 

Images Courtesy Of Warner Brothers