Numbers' Numerical Numbering: Vol. III, A 2016 Top 50 (COUNTDOWN COMPLETE)

[4815162342]

#49

 

Spoiler

 

 

Directed By: Antoine Fuqua

 

Starring: Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke, Vincent D'onfrio, Byung-hun Lee, Peter Sarsgaard, @CJohn's Muse, and a couple characters who are just there

 

Domestic Release Date: September 23, 2016

 

 

The remake of a remake of a Japanese film, the Magnificent Seven takes one of the original instances of the "disparate, dysfunctional group of misfits on a mission" subgenre and gives it a 21st Century actionized spin. The result, even if a less engrossing and fulfilling ride, is still quite an entertaining one. Denzel is rock-solid in his avenging action hero mode, whereas Chris Pratt, while fine, feels kinda miscast in the McQueen role. A couple other members of the Seven make strong impressions, but at least 2 of them feel utterly tacked on with zero character elements at all. The cinematography is beautiful, if at times feeling a little desaturated, and the final action multi-stage setpiece is a wallop. The pacing could have used a little trim here and there, but overall the film manages to maintain interest with a mostly steady flow and ebb of tension and stakes. While it certainly doesn't measure up compared to its namesake, compared to most of the banal 21st Century action outings we get, it's definitely preferable.

 

 

[4815162342]

#48

 

Spoiler

 

 

Directed By: Richard Tanne

 

Starring: Parker Sawyers, Tika Sumpter

 

Domestic Release Date: August 26, 2016

 

 

Before President Obama had even left office, we had our first biographical film of his life, chronicling his first date with future wife and First Lady Michelle Obama, on a hot summer afternoon in Chicago. Saywers and Sumpter are well-cast as the young Obamas, and their back-and-forth banter represents much of the plot and character movement of this short (84 minute) movie. We manage to get a good insight into both of these people during their formative years, and yet, unlike say Before Sunrise, we never feel that extra magnetism or force to truly draw us in, to the point where we're with the characters instead of just following them around. It's a nice, pleasant time, but in the end it feels just a bit too slight and feathery, and leaves without much of a lasting impact.

 

 

[4815162342]

#47

 

Spoiler

 

 

Directed By: The Russo Brothers

 

Starring: Almost Everyone in the MCU

 

Domestic Release Date: May 6, 2016

 

 

Captain America has been a strange duck of the MCU sub-franchises. The first film was a unabashed aw-shucks patriotic war movie with a modern superhero twist, the second movie started out by borrowing from political thrillers (at least according to the Russos) before transforming into a giant machine death duel over the skies of Washington D.C., and now the third outing is essentially the third Avengers movie. Each movie has gotten progressively bigger and bigger in scope and consequence, and as a result we seem to be getting farther away from the tales of Steve Rogers and just making him a plot cog in a plot machine. Because for the most part we don't have characters in the movie, we just have pre-programmed bots who say and do the things necessary to achieve the plot results and character decisions the MCU wants/needs to happen. Even though if it means a lot of characters acting stupid, or failing to call other characters out on their bullshit, or simply being an immature high schooler in an adult's body with superpowers, as long as it gets from A to B. So the character and plot writing leaves a lot to be desired, but the film does make up for it with some impressive action beats, especially the mammoth airport showdown. That setpiece is probably why it is slightly ahead of Doctor Strange, it's that good.

 

Otherwise I'd probably have it below BvS (confession: I meant to watch the Ultimate Cut of that before doing these rankings but forgot)

 

 

[Plain Old Tele]

I think I might've liked CW better without that airport sequence.  

[4815162342]

#46

 

Spoiler

 

 

Directed By: Jodie Foster

 

Starring: George Clooney, Julia Roberts, Jack O'Connell, Dominic West, Giancarlo Esposito, Catriona Balfe

 

Domestic Release Date: May 13, 2016

 

 

Money Monster is the kind of film we don't really get that much these days. A mid-budgeted, middlebrow adult-oriented drama/thriller. George Clooney plays the rascally host of a financial advisory show that cozies up to various tycoons and wunderkinds of Wall Street to shill their stocks to the public at large, who finds himself under the gun when a watcher who made a bet on a bad call by Clooney shows up with a gun and a bomb and takes the studio hostage. The acting all around is strong, save for O'Connell's dodgy accent, and Foster displays a patient hand behind the camera, slowly letting the tension build up to occasional spikes before a momentary release. The film kinda loses some steam in the third act when it switches from hostage drama to conspiracy expose time, and I think it's because the film does things relatively by the book, rather than going for a sharp, aggressive indictment. So the result is a grabbing drama that keeps you relatively in suspense, but which shies away from going for the kill and ends with more of a whimper than a bang.

 

 

[cannastop]

2 minutes ago, Telemachos said:

I think I might've liked CW better without that airport sequence.  

You don't like the only interesting part of the movie? 

 

[4815162342]

Hints for #45-41 (tomorrow morning):

 

45- from meme to not in the movie

 

44- advocates grand theft auto

 

43- Doom

 

42- Something the Agency will be lacking for the next four years

 

41- Upstairs, Downstairs

[CoolioD1]

when vincent d'onofrio first showed up in mag 7 i laughed so hard i actually had to leave the room for five minutes because i could tell i was annoying the people around me. that's all i got so far.

[WrathOfHan]

3 minutes ago, 4815162342 said:

Hints for #45-41 (tomorrow morning):

 

45- from meme to not in the movie

 

 

[Barnack]

14 minutes ago, cannastop said:

You don't like the only interesting part of the movie? 

 

 

Well it did hurt the movie in many ways imo.

 

They are having a debate about being a group that need supervision or not, and they are fighting in a public airport (for no reasons), causing an evacuation of part of the cities, millions in property damage, that didn't fit much with the movie. A bit worst, one big motivation for Tony Stark seem to have been the kid that die during Age of Ultron, yet he bring the young Spider-Man to the airport fight ? That was a bit ridiculous.

 

It must be fun for fans that did wanted to see that fight no matter what, but it did broke most of the character motivation and made little sense to me, let alone the fact the audience know full well that they will just be playing, and no one important will get hurt, removing all stake and tension to the fight. Well made technically, but did look like a set-piece that had little to do with the characters in the movie.

[Plain Old Tele]

21 minutes ago, CoolioD1 said:

when vincent d'onofrio first showed up in mag 7 i laughed so hard i actually had to leave the room for five minutes because i could tell i was annoying the people around me. that's all i got so far.

 

I think I laughed out loud at every single one of his lines. (Not sure how annoying that was for @Jay Hollywood and @Water Bottle sitting near me).

[RobinHood26]

26 minutes ago, Telemachos said:

 

I think I laughed out loud at every single one of his lines. (Not sure how annoying that was for @Jay Hollywood and @Water Bottle sitting near me).

 

I couldn't hear you because I was laughing too, he was hilarious.

 

We did share that moment when the James Horner cue came in haha

[Plain Old Tele]

7 minutes ago, Jay Hollywood said:

 

We did share that moment when the James Horner cue came in haha

 

Yessssssss!  

[DeeCee]

[aabattery]

3 hours ago, CoolioD1 said:

when vincent d'onofrio first showed up in mag 7 i laughed so hard i actually had to leave the room for five minutes because i could tell i was annoying the people around me. that's all i got so far.

 

Just imagining this is making me laugh lmao.

 

 

Anyway, I'm liking the list so far. Digging the writeups.

[The Stingray]

The airport showdown in Civil War was arguably the best action scene of last year.

[4815162342]

#45

 

Spoiler

 

 

Directed by: Paul Greengrass

 

Starring: Matt Damon, Alicia Vikander, Tommy Lee Jones, Vincent Cassel, Julia Stiles

 

Domestic Release Date: July 29, 2016

 

 

After nine years away, Damon and Greengrass return to the spy franchise in an attempt to return it to the path of success following the underwhelming reception to The Bourne Legacy. Do they succeed? Well partially I guess. As always Greengrass knows how to stage frenetic action setpieces and the film doesn't disappoint there, even if the final chase in Las Vegas is the first time the series allows itself to indulge on excess. The problem is that the story and characters aren't quite up to snuff, alternating between paper-thin and somewhat obscured. No one can accuse any of the other prior Bourne movies of being deep, but there was a still a weight and a feel to them that simply seems lacking in this one. Damon is in fine form back in the driver's seat and most of the rest of the cast acquits themselves ably, though maybe they could have had Vincent Cassel do more Vincent Cassel things. It's a fun time, but at the end of the day...

 

Bourne Legacy was better.

 

 

[4815162342]

#44

 

Spoiler

 

 

Directed By: John Carney

 

Starring: Ferdia Walsh-Peelo, Lucy Boynton, Jack Reynor

 

Domestic Release Date: April 15, 2016

 

 

The man behind Once and Begin Again comes back for the third act of his musical film series, this time a period piece in 1980s Dublin about an outcast boy who forms a band as a scheme to win over an alluring teen girl. It's a nice pleasant ride for a film, even if it gets a bit too cutesy or twee a few times. The characters outside of the main boy are mostly stock standard models, each performing their own particular task, though the film does lend some nice characterization to Raphina as it moves along. The pacing is solid, never letting things subside for too long before jumping into the latest song or scheme, and the songs themselves for the most part are pretty good. Drive it Like You Stole It is probably the anthem for the musical fans in the forum who oppose a certain other movie. Special shout-out to Jack Reynor, he of the infamous R+J Law Scene in Transformers 4, who does pretty well as the stoner, slacker, musically inclined older brother. There's not a lot of depth to this movie, but you'll leave with a smile on your face.

 

Unless you're one of the people here who wishes the film ended with the boat sinking and Conor and Raphina drowning. I remember who you are.

 

 

[4815162342]

#43

 

Spoiler

 

 

Directed by: Steven Spielberg

 

Starring: Mark Rylance, Ruby Barnhill, Penelope Wilton, Jemaine Clement

 

Domestic Release Date: July 1, 2016

 

 

After back-to-back adult dramas, Spielberg returns to a genre that for many years was his bread-and-butter. Adapted from the Roald Dahl children's book, The BFG is a dazzling mix of live-action, CGI, and mo-cap that brings fantastical worlds and creatures to life with light-hearted whimsy. Mark Rylance gives a great performance as the title character, a solitary, kind-hearted giant who catches dreams for release into the human world. Ruby Barnhill performs ably as Sophie, the young orphan girl who stumbles into the BFG's world and worms her way into his heart. It's an endearing movie with a lot to like and appreciate, even if it never quite seals the deal. John Williams' work is solid as ever. The film likely would have been higher for me but it felt like it was missing just a little something extra to put it over the top.

 

 

[That One Girl]

Jesus Christ it's Jason Bourne on the list