Blu-ray Reviews: The Martian (2015) & Everest (2015)

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Teamwork is at the heart of these two tonally different yet thematically similar tales of survival against all odds.

Featuring a bevy of Oscar winners and nominees on both sides of the screen, while both pictures are ensemble driven overall, Ridley Scott’s humorous and heartfelt Martian shines particularly bright as a veritable one man show for actor Matt Damon.

From its tongue-in-cheek soundtrack of ‘70s disco era hits (which provide endless opportunities for comedic counterpoint) to its high key lighting and bright color palette, the undeniable appeal of The Martian as an all-around crowd-pleaser is so strong that the film inexplicably garnered multiple Golden Globe nominations and wins in the category of Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy.

Infusing what in someone else’s hands might’ve been an overwhelmingly bleak and cerebral storyline with unexpected optimism and charm, The Martian benefits from Damon’s most affable and charismatic turn since his breakthrough role in Good Will Hunting.

Hoping to prove that there can indeed be (plant) life on Mars, Damon’s astronaut/botanist Mark Watney is forced to rely on outside-of-the-box thinking after he’s erroneously mistaken for dead by his crew and left behind on the red planet during the horrific sand storm which opens Scott’s strongest character driven feature since his 2003 sleeper, Matchstick Men.

Storms of an altogether different kind factor into director Baltasar Kormákur’s Everest, which (in stark contrast to Scott’s science fiction adaptation of Andy Weir’s eponymous novel penned by longtime genre specialist and former Joss Whedon co-scripter Drew Goddard) is rooted in fact.

Set during the catastrophic climbing season back in the spring of 1996 where over the course of a single day countless souls lost their lives in their quest to the top of the world’s highest and deadliest mountain, Everest aims to make viewers feel as though we’re right there on the mountain alongside its many larger than life personalities.

A globe-spanning epic that, much like the intergalactic Martian has been captured in 3D, while unfortunately I’m unable to judge Martian’s usage of the format since Everest was the only Blu-ray I received for review in 3D, to its immense credit Everest does much more than just dazzle the senses with out-of-this-world three-dimensional cinematography.

Lensed with the stunning clarity of an IMAX documentary, Everest makes the most of the medium’s ability to enhance our understanding of the experience in an experiential approach.

Whether they're dangling us on the edge of the icy ladders alongside the mountaineers or making sure we can practically feel each gust of wind during a blinding snowstorm, the filmmakers do a tremendous job recreating the harrowing events of May 10 as that long, hellish day journeys into an unforgiving night.

Working from an ambitious and emotionally potent screenplay by 127 Hours scripter Simon Beaufoy and former Ridley Scott collaborator and Gladiator scribe William Nicholson, Kormákur and his talented cast including Josh Brolin, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Keira Knightley are able to elevate the film beyond the level of a mere visual effects spectacle.

Thematically similar to The Martian in its celebration of mind against matter and creative problem solving, both Everest and The Martian soar in part thanks to the empathy, compassion, and integrity inherent in the performances of the stars that embody the films’ many characters.

Yet, much like their differences in tone, their reliance on the alignment of these stars varies from one film to the next.

Cool, quotable, and compelling right from the start, even though Goddard’s screenplay sets the stage for a much more memorable cinematic experience, intriguingly whenever it cuts away from Damon and chronicles the roles that others (including Jessica Chastain, Donald Glover, and Chiwetel Ejiofor, among others) are playing in trying to bring our Martian home, the film loses a little of its hold on the audience.

Alternatively, in Beaufoy and Nicholson’s thoroughly researched Everest, the actors manage to disappear so seamlessly into their well-written roles to such an extent that we know (at the very least) one or two important character-defining details that sets each one apart from the rest.

Yet surprisingly more often than not when it comes to The Martian, the only discerning characteristic a supporting player has to set them apart from another person in the scene is the name of the celebrity playing them.

Fortunately for Scott's film, this hardly amounts to a major flaw since The Martian is much more focused on Damon’s lead as well as the thrilling scientific innovation that he (and others) will have to rely on to try and reunite Watney with his crew.

Still while both pictures suffer slightly in their rushed final acts as The Martian, in particular stretches our suspension of disbelief near its breaking point, in the end it’s The Martian that leaves a far more lasting impression by knowing precisely the right note it wants to end the film on.

Two thrillingly crafted stories of science and survival that play even better together as a double feature, while both possess minor flaws, the greatest successes for each lies in their commitment to championing those who inspire us to reach new heights by daring to dream.

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DVD Review: A Plumm Summer (2007)

This Family Charmer
Arrives on DVD 5/5/09

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Like Martin and Lewis, Abbott and Costello, and Laurel and Hardy, to Montana's own Happy Herb (Henry Winkler)-- the host of the #1 rated children's television show-- his scene-stealing marionette sidekick Froggy Doo isn't just a fuzzy concoction of felt, string, denim, stuffing, plastic eyes, and arts and crafts. No, rather he's the perfect gag man for a series that has kept children laughing for twenty-two years.

Video Clip:
Happy Herb & Froggy Doo's Safety Tip

Needless to say, while others would've simply traded up for a better stitched partner in entertaining crime, after Froggy Doo mysteriously vanishes and the F.B.I. gets involved when ransom demands and suspicious activity start creeping into Herb's small town, the gentle and charismatic TV host goes on hiatus, unwilling to continue without Froggy.

Inspired by the true story of the abduction of Herb McAllister's puppet in 1968 that garnered national media and law-enforcement attention, first time filmmaker Caroline Zelder's award winning retro film uses this peculiar incident as a stepping stone to a nice, homespun, warm and beautifully photographed work.

While on the surface, it's dressed up as a mystery, essentially it focuses on two brothers coming of age amidst not only the case they decide to solve but also as their family unit is threatened by their frequently drunk former boxing hopeful father (William Baldwin).

One of those men who just can't get past the fact that he "could've been a contender" even going as far as to imply that marriage and an unexpected pregnancy halted his dreams-- Baldwin tackles a difficult role with a predictable but believable arc when he and his sons realize they must face their fears and move on.



Narrated by Jeff Daniels (Because of Winn Dixie, Fly Away Home), Zelder's award-winning work, A Plumm Summer recalls the vintage feel of the superior yet tonally and cinematically similar movies My Dog Skip and October Sky as she-- along with her fellow screenwriters T.J. Lynch and Frank Antonelli-- manage to weave some truly tender and moving threads into what could've been a very loose and flimsy, decorative picture about a frog-napping.

As Daniels is heard on the soundtrack recalling that summer of '68 in Montana that was a whole lot more idyllic--at least in the warm-tones of the lush cinematography-- than most of us associate with that politically tumultuous year, we meet the younger version of himself as the adolescent Elliott (Chris J. Kelly).



Shortly after the puppet vanishes, Elliott teams up with his adorable, innocent brother Rocky (Owen Pearce) and a cute new girl next door (Morgan Flynn) as they decide to sleuth out the clues and help get Froggy Doo and Happy Herb back on television where they belong.



Having earned the prestigious seal of approval from both the Dove Foundation and Parents Television Council, this high-quality work that is elevated by superb craftsmanship and a truly likable cast (especially in the form of Pearce and Winkler who are ideal for their roles), Zelder's film which is slated for a DVD release on May 5th has additionally been bestowed with the 2007 Audience Award from the Austin Film Festival as well as the Vision Award for Best Family Film from the 2007 Heartland Film Festival.



Undeniably wholesome yet welcomingly filled with complex issues about the family dynamic both in the relationships of Elliott Plumm and his family as well as Happy Herb and his wife-- it's a refreshing work that should appeal equally well to adults and children.



Likewise it impresses in its DVD debut via a visually superlative digital transfer that boasts a filmmaker commentary track (with Zelder and Antonelli), a gag reel, deleted scenes, the original trailer, as well as two Behind-the-Scenes extras that bring viewers to the Red Carpet premiere along with a music video. So frog-nappers beware--neither the Feds nor a group of well-meaning kids will let you get away with a crime against entertainment. And additionally, this charming little sleeper incidentally manages to solve a crime against bad entertainment with its precious existence in a realm of too many children's releases that revolve solely around bodily humor and sarcasm.

101 Dalmatians (1996); 102 Dalmatians (2000)

One dog can break a franchise's back.

In Lady and the Tramp, we have the famous meatball scene. In Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, we whistled while we worked. And in 101 Dalmatians-- especially in the 1996 live action remake of the animated 1961 classic-- we have the dog version of the Amber Alert. As proud Dalmatian parents Pongo and Perdy go on the rescue for their fifteen kidnapped pups, they enlist the aid of not just every dog in London but sheep, rodents, and every other animal within hearing range as they track down the paw prints of both the pups and their ruthless captors.

In grand Disney tradition, Cruella De Vil played by Glenn Close — who went from boiling rabbits in Fatal Attraction to designing a dog fur coat in this film — masterminded the plan as the most evil female villain since the Wicked Witch of the West. Of course, De Vil’s two henchmen played by Hugh Laurie (pre-House) and Mark Williams receive their comeuppance in the end, thanks to an endless retread of gross-out gags, pratfalls, wasted slapstick, electric shock, and groin hits courtesy of screenwriter John Hughes. Obviously, borrowing heavily from his own screenplay for the Home Alone films as countless critics and viewers have noted and complete with making one of the stooges the brainier of the two simpletons (Laurie is cast essentially in Joe Pesci's role), the film's overly long and juvenile second half bogs it down considerably from its delightful opening.

At its best when it delivers us a story and at its worst when it replaces logic with a vat of molasses (don't ask), the film begins ever so charmingly. Moments in, we're introduced to Roger (Jeff Daniels), a struggling video game designer who keeps getting sent back to the drawing board by his company's precocious, child taste-maker. Living a simple, pleasant life with his best friend, Roger spends his days with his literal caretaker Pongo, a Dalmatian so devoted to Roger that he not only fetches the paper but makes his master's coffee, readies his shower, and gets him up in the morning. However, soon Pongo and Roger find their limited existence livened up when they make the acquaintance of two females, namely the beautiful Anita (Joely Richarson) and her own Dalmatian, Perdy. Obviously as a Disney product, the foursome meets cute in the park as the humans are tugged along by their dogs via bicycle. Although, because it's Disney by way of Hughes, sure enough, they land smack into the filthy pond and Daniels gets struck with a purse full of bricks in the process. Still, Roger and Anita and likewise Pongo and Perdy are irresistible together, reminding me of the fine, wholesome, smart, and contemporary Disney updates of The Parent Trap and Freaky Friday (made before Lindsay Lohan discovered clubbing).

Intriguingly, eventually 101 plays sort of like a silent movie, making it exceptionally appealing to children as the second half of the film is mostly all visual with the bare minimum of dialogue (not to mention it's refreshingly free of celebrity voices). Despite this, the true star of the film isn't Daniels or Richardson nor those precious puppies but the incomparable, Golden Globe nominated Glenn Close.

Launching into her role with a fierce tenacity and seemingly without fear of playing it as high camp, Close immediately reminded me along with several other reviewers (including Roger Ebert) of Nora Desmond in Sunset Boulevard. With her gleefully sinister cackle, her spontaneous shouts, her absurd facial expressions and terrifying aura, Close attacks the role with a tendency towards scenery chewing but one that makes the film distinctly her own. It’s easy to notice the way she completely dominates the film in the clip below which contains arguably one of the greatest villain introductions of the 90's.

Cruella's Intro

And it's no wonder the comparison to Desmond was first and foremost in viewers' minds as after a little digging, I discovered that Close starred in the film following the conclusion of her Broadway stint in Sunset Boulevard. While Close owns the role, undoubtedly a great deal of her transformation in getting the actress into the right frame of mind came directly from the physical transformation courtesy of the gifted wardrobe and makeup department as you can see below.

Glenn Close as Cruella De Vil

Recently released on DVD from Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, the film was given a gorgeous digital transfer that really makes the visuals pop especially in the nighttime scenes near the finale. Although the sole extra feature on the disc is the original theatrical trailer, the widescreen digitally re-mastered and Dolby Digital equipped DVD reveals plenty of sneak peeks at other DVD offerings (including an awesome preview of the upcoming Sleeping Beauty anniversary edition). Additionally offering the opportunity to watch the film in English, French or Spanish, Mr. Holland's Opus and The Mighty Ducks director Stephen Herek's 101 Dalmatians also includes closed captioning for the hearing impaired.

Similar features are also available for the live action sequel, Enchanted director Kevin Lima's 2000 film 102 Dalmatians, also re-mastered and re-released on DVD from Walt Disney. However, while the age of the first and far superior version possibly prevented the disc from coming with bonus features, perhaps in order to make up for a truly awful film, 102 Dalmatians is packed with featurettes, commentary and even interactive DVD-Rom opportunities sure to appeal to the puppy lover in all of us. Although this time around, the writer John Hughes, director Stephen Herek as well as stars Jeff Daniels, Joely Richardson, Brenda Blethyn, and Hugh Laurie were smart enough to pass on the gimmicky sequel, unfortunately the same couldn't be said for Glenn Close.

In 102, it's the Glenn Close show all the way and like Nora Desmond, she finally receives her close-up throughout as she's the only redeeming quality in the nearly unwatchable film. Having been rehabilitated after three years in prison by an unorthodox conditioning method courtesy of Dr. Pavlov, Cruella has transferred her hatred for the “little beasts” into puppy love. That is until the sound of the Pavlovian bell (aka Big Ben) goes off and-- like a switch being flipped-- she's up to her old tricks, longing once again for her spotted Dalmatian fur coat, this time with a stylish hood.

Setting her sights on the Dalmatians owned by her parole officer Chloe (Alice Evans), De Vil turns to one faithful henchman and one new one. Tom McInnerny reprises his role as her dutiful sycophantic and long-suffering sidekick, Alonzo (Tom McInnerny) but Gerard Depardieu joins the party as the bizarre furrier Jean-Pierre Le Pelt, who reminded me of a strange cross between a predecessor to Derek Zoolander, blended with 80’s era musicians Billy Idol and A Flock of Seagulls. Much like De Vil herself, Le Pelt seems to be yet another surprisingly fetishistic character. And due to the increasingly strange behavior of the villains, the film's heroes never fail to hold our interest, looking as bland as the white fur on the film's poor, sad Dalmatian Oddball, who doesn't fit in with the rest because he has no spots.

While 101 Dalmatians made suitable if uneven fare for the whole family-- despite its frightening band of hopeful dog killers-- 102 seems aimed directly at the much younger set. Obviously unfamiliar with the phrase “less is more” and learning nothing from the overly long Home Alone styled finale of the original film, 102 piles on the juvenile shenanigans. Soon De Vil is in yet another vat until she’s baked as a cake (in Paris no less) while the puppies exact a gross food fight for revenge and all to the delight of the preschool through kindergarten set and the chagrin of anyone older than seven (yet I'd hesitate to put this on for toddlers). Still, Close looks like she's having a ball but by now the shtick is tired and in dire need of some shaking up.

Although the handsome Ioan Gruffudd rivals the puppies for the most adorable sight onscreen, despite a few feeble attempts for cuteness as his character and Evans' reenact Lady and the Tramp, it ignores the humans all together in favor of 102's preferred heroes Oddball and Waddlesworth (voiced by Eric Idle), a macaw who thinks he's a Rottweiler. With such a reliance on suspending our disbelief and a talking bird no less, the overly animated, campy and farcical 102 seems like it would've been better off as an animated film altogether. Of course, that would mean we would miss Glenn Close but at least we'd have 101 to fall back on. (View the Trailers for 101 and 102)

Note: Incidentally, an unrelated animated sequel to the original animated classic was also released on DVD this month. Although I didn't have the chance to review, I'd feel safe in venturing a guess that it's probably preferable to this grating unequivocal mess better suited for a doggie bag than a DVD.

Traitor

Go see it
(but don't tell your friends about it).

One of the great things about going to the movies is the post-mortem discussion where not only do film geeks exchange their own views about what they just saw but they get to dissect everything from the actors to the music to the structure itself. Admittedly, a good percentage of casual moviegoers are happy to just sort of dismiss or recommend a film with one sentence — namely, they either dug it or they didn’t. However, for film buffs it goes several steps beyond that and for critics, often the discussion can get far more intense.

The press screening for Traitor was no exception as a small group of the Phoenix media exited the darkened theatre into the brightly lit lobby in the early afternoon (a time that I think most will agree isn’t the most conducive for the “event atmosphere” of theatre-going). In an impromptu conversation, we quickly moved away from the general consensus of liking it and recommending the film (for the note-taking studio PR rep) and focused our attention to an entirely different and more urgent problem altogether.

More specifically, our problem was this: just how the hell were we supposed to write about a film that demands such an extreme element of surprise?

A few critics joked it would be the shortest summary in movie history and lamented the fact that even the title gives something away! Likewise we didn’t envy the studio marketing team who obviously would have their work cut out for them in not revealing spoilers. And while the first few trailers for writer/director Jeffrey Nachmanoff’s film (which surprisingly came from an original story idea by comedian Steve Martin) just showcased the film’s breakneck pace, emphasis on action, and globe-hopping structure, sure enough the most recent commercials reveal darn near every single surprise.

Therefore, if you find yourself face-to-face with a Traitor trailer or commercial, close your eyes and plug your ears as they should be avoided at all costs. Simply put — Traitor is the cinematic equivalent of a house of cards and its success will topple if word gets out too soon.

So in the spirit of trying not to give anything away and avoid forcing my readers into the legions of those already in the know thanks to the ads, you’ll have to forgive a perfunctory synopsis. Essentially Traitor tells the story of elite, contemplative FBI investigator Roy Clayton (Guy Pearce) who pursues the path of American citizen Samir Horn (Don Cheadle) who is linked to a group of international terrorists. Predictably, Clayton discovers — and I’m sure the title does cause most imaginations to run overtime — that there may be more to Horn’s story than it would appear.

Quicker than you can say “Jack Ryan meets Jason Bourne,” the film steps into high gear at its halfway point, making the second (and far more successful hour) all about political espionage, intrigue and conspiracy. A high tech version of cops and robbers in our post 9/11 world, Traitor does suffer from its delusions of grandeur and the fact that a revelation about two characters that comes in at the hour mark may have made the film’s script much stronger if audiences had been in on this from the start.

Not to mention, seven years after 9/11, we’ve begun growing weary of similar sounding rhetoric and Traitor’s screenplay is in desperate need of a polish as — due to its sometimes overly politically correct and sound-byte heavy dialogue — Pearce and Cheadle are forced to preach about religion far too often. And in the same token, the terrorists deliver speeches that sound like your run of the mill, anti-American propaganda we’re faced with on a daily basis in the media.

Still, while it falls short of its goal to be a new Bourne Identity entry or successor to Tom Clancy’s famous Jack Ryan series, Traitor never fails to entertain and does that job quite well. Additionally, it’s bolstered by wonderfully edited action sequences that ratchet up the tension as well as a top-notch cast headed up by one of my favorite character actors, Don Cheadle (who also produced).

While Pearce, Jeff Daniels, and Neal McDonough are all uniformly excellent, look for Traitor’s surprising scene stealer Said Taghmaoui (The Kite Runner, Vantage Point) who can next be seen playing Breaker in the hotly anticipated big screen adaptation of the Gen X favorite action figure — G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra.

Mama's Boy

Director:
Tim Hamilton

They say that the best way to uncover just what a man truly thinks of women is to see how he treats his mother. In fact, right up there with “sense of humor,” one of the most desirable qualities female friends rattle off when listing the ideal man seems to be “gets along well with his mother.” Of course, one can’t help who their parents are just as much as one can’t help who their children are and there are definite understandable exceptions to this rule. And granted, chivalry may be on its last legs but often times the little things men do to show their affinity or compassion for women from simply holding a door, offering a coat, walking us to our car in bad neighborhoods, or not trying to grope us in the first instant we’re alone are often internally, instinctually ingrained at a young age by their relationship to the first woman in their life-- namely "mom." However, this being said, there’s a definite difference between loving one’s mother and being a mama’s boy and I know plenty of relationships that went south precisely because of this difference in what attracted a woman in the first place was just a sneak preview of the mother issues her mate had once they’d gotten together. But truth be told, when it comes to mama’s boys, Napoleon Dynamite star Jon Heder’s character Jeffrey Mannus takes the cake in the aptly named film Mama’s Boy.

Like Matthew McConaughey in Failure to Launch, Jeffrey is one of those twenty-nine year old late bloomers who still lives at home but while McConaughey’s alter ego in Launch used it to an advantage as the perfect excuse to end a relationship without doing any of the heavy lifting or awkward “we need to talk” conversations most of us try desperately to avoid, Jeffrey prefers that the only woman in his life is his mother Jan (Diane Keaton) and that likewise, he should be her only man. Predictably things change when Jan approaches the cheesy if innocuous "success coach" Mert Rosenbloom (a hilarious Jeff Daniels), like a smitten groupie after a lecture and she accepts a date to see him perform with his jazz band, aptly named “The Mertones." While great for the desperately lonely Jan, this agreement sounds an insecurity alarm in Jeffrey who-- similar to his mother-- hasn’t dated in three years and cruelly reminds Jan that as a middle aged widow she’s “not some trollop from a Jackie Collins novel.”

Thankfully she ignores her son’s advice, not to mention his insistence to stalk his mother’s every move during her courtship with Mert, between his hobbies of collecting comic books, role-playing intricate outdoor battles with other Dungeons and Dragons types, obsessively watching and listening to all things 1980s dressed like a New Wave Smiths devotee, and usurping control of classic video games at the local arcade. Then flirtation finds Jeffrey and he's equally thrown for a loop after meeting cute with Nora Flannigan (Lost in Translation’s Anna Faris), a rebellious coffee shop employee whose real hobby is as “plucky songstress” writing protest anthems about corporate America including her own favorite track, “Bed, Bath and Bulls**t.”

While Nora’s interest in the mean-spirited loser who demands that his mother continue to make his daily lunch and walk him to the bus (since he refuses to drive), seems far-fetched at best, Faris is so genuinely likable that she’s the one singular breath of fresh air in this slightly stale straight-to-DVD, forgettable confection that wastes its gift of Diane Keaton, makes Heder a far creepier version of the geek he played in School for Scoundrels, and gives both saving grace Faris and the amazingly diverse and resourceful Daniels too few opportunities to shine.

But admittedly it's much better than one would assume, even with an overly padded ending that seems tacked on simply to try and lighten up the film’s tone after a painfully unfunny turn of events sours us on the main characters, it’s sure to garner more support on DVD due to the commercial appeal of the leads. Despite this and I note this with affection as someone who was forced to move back in with mom for grad school budgetary reasons-- mama’s boys be warned as director Tim Hamilton’s Mama’s Boy may provide one more stumbling block for men in their late twenties who still live at home in trying to meet a romantic mate. For a more flattering—if admittedly just as predictable—view of homebound males as "McConaughey-like shirtless hotties," it’s perhaps best to rent Failure to Launch if you’re choosing a film to share on a date... just before revealing that you still sleep in your childhood bedroom.

The Lookout

Director: Scott Frank

Although he’d discussed and worked on his long-time pet project, the screenplay for The Lookout with directors including Sam Mendes and David Fincher, it wasn’t until Academy Award nominated screenwriter Scott Frank (Little Man Tate, Get Shorty, Out of Sight) talked Michael Mann out of directing the film that he realized that he wanted to do the job himself. Explaining his creative mid-life crisis to Elvis Mitchell on KCRW’s The Treatment (see below: available as a free podcast on iTunes), Frank shared that he was in danger of getting bored and wanted the new challenge of controlling a set. Cinematically inspired by the visual look of 2005’s Capote along with the classic films of William Wyler (most notably The Best Years of Our Lives) and Dog Day Afternoon, Frank took the character of a young man with a brain injury, derived after a friend of his suffered a similar injury and decided to place him in a heist film.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt who is quickly becoming one of Generation Y’s most impressive actors with turns in Mysterious Skin (that seems to have inspired Ledger’s Brokeback performance) and Brick, worked on his role as Chris Pratt for roughly one year before shooting the film. As the film opens, it’s nearly black and white in an impressive visual sweep as Pratt speeds along a deserted rural road along with his girlfriend, best friend and best friend’s girlfriend all dressed in prom attire. Feeling that ridiculous and dangerous sense of invincibility and as Mitchell and Frank explained, the idea of “self destruction” meets the “American sense of entitlement,” Pratt switches his headlights off to show off the fireflies and ultimately gets into a car accident so horrifying that the two occupants in the backseat end up dead, his girlfriend is left maimed and he is left a shell of the person he was—the star hockey player whom the town constantly reminds was once great. Picking up a few years later, we meet Pratt as he struggles with everyday tasks, sequencing difficulties, and memory issues—everything from extensive labeling of items throughout his apartment to remind him to shower with soap, to writing down important things in a little notebook, he spends his days trying to learn how to live with his condition, rooms with a blind man named Lewis (Jeff Daniels) and works as a night janitor in a bank. Lewis serves an important function in a film that has the danger of becoming far too grim as the comic relief and Frank seasons the film with humor and surprises that turn what begins as sort of a younger version of Memento, brimming with more tragedy, into a fairly complicated heist piece as Pratt is befriended by Gary Spargo (Matthew Goode) and Isla Fisher (Luvlee) who the audience and Lewis realizes are really using the young man as a pawn to get inside the bank. Literary but without pretension, the film seems to play out with a prologue and epilogue as noted on The Treatment with as Frank calls a two act as opposed to a three act structure consisting of his trademark as a screenwriter, which according to Mitchell is his “divided character” struggling with identity and self-destruction while another character (Lewis) serves as the voice of common sense.

With a nearly forgettable camera, The Lookout is stylistically impressive and aided by deft classical direction by Frank who uses clever blocking to keep his leading man in corners to heighten his sense of alienation and loneliness as everyone else dominates the young man, he told Mitchell that it proved challenging to make sure that Chris Pratt was a reactive character rather than an easier passive character and indeed he turns out to have a satisfying ark, as he must fight his condition and use the skills he struggles with to try and get himself and Lewis out of an increasingly complicated situation that audiences know will lead to foul play. Excellent, clever and unfairly dismissed by audiences—as of this review and research it received a national critical ranking on Rotten Tomatoes as 87% fresh (or positive), it’s a nice twist on an old genre and an even more impressive entry in the disability genre for its accurate, unapologetic portrayal of life with a head injury without once falling into an overly sentimental television drama or gimmicky film mold. Frank, like his leading man Gordon-Levitt, is definitely someone who just keeps getting better with each new cinematic venture.

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