Review: "22 Jump Street"

Directors: Phil Lord & Chris Miller
Runtime: 112 minutes

Though it's possible that directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller will eventually make a misstep, it's difficult to ignore what the pair have accomplished over just four feature films. In both live action and animation, Lord and Miller have become Hollywood's go-to team for a bizarre category of projects: those that, on paper, should be absolute disasters. Earlier this year, they gave us the zippy, delightful The Lego Movie, and now they're back with, of all things a live action comedy sequel. 

Sequels can go any which way, but comedy sequels are notoriously difficult to pull off. In short, most are rather terrible (look at the diminishing returns on those Hangover sequels). And yet, through whatever magical chemistry Lord and Miller have, they have once again defied conventional wisdom. 22 Jump Street, a sequel to the 2012 surprise hit adaptation of the late 80s TV show, isn't just a passable comedy sequel. It is, for the most part, even funnier than the original. 

And this is before one even digs into the film's very meta take on what it means to be a comedy sequel. Whether or not 22 Jump Street is basically doing the exact thing as its predecessor but with double the budget (as Nick Offerman's police captain tells us), it's perfectly hilarious when taken on its own terms. 

This is largely due to how well the screenplay, from three writers, is able to mix broader jokes with the quick visual jokes and carefully buried references. This is a film that includes Jonah Hill screaming like a loon as he's attacked by an octopus, then later throws out a reference to Benny Hill-esque chase scenes and rolls out a spot-on parody of college slam poetry shows. Even 22 Jump Street's dumbest moments somehow seem smart when one takes into account the level of self awareness from everyone involved. 

Also noteworthy is the directing duo's ability to direct comedy from a visual and narrative standpoints. Setpieces are cleanly staged, and the film never strains to be more than a fun, goofy comedy. Lord and Miller ensure that the film is as easy to watch as it is to laugh at. Though I'd label something like Bridesmaids as being a much funnier film, Jump Street is easily the better directed and edited effort. Editing duo Keith Brachmann and David Rennie are astute at cutting both small, awkward moments, as well as the handful of fights, shootouts, and chases. They know how to move from shot to shot without getting in the way of the flow of the joke-a-minute humor.  

The work in front of the camera is also hugely enjoyable. Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum are even more comfortable in their roles as before, and handle the actual jokes as well as the winks to the audience with equal skill. New cast members, like Amber Stevens' art student love interest and Jillian Bell as her no-nonsense room mate prove to be valuable female additions, which Ice Cube earns some of the biggest laugh as Hill and Tatum's direct supervisor. Bell deserves special mention among the supporting cast, namely for a ridiculous fist fight she has with Hill's character. Meanwhile, comedy duo The Lucas Brothers (Keith and Kenny Yang) are scene stealers in their handful of scenes as the protagonist's fast-talking dorm neighbors. 

On the whole, 22 Jump Street is so enjoyably silly and funny that it's hard to nitpick without feeling like a Debbie Downer. Yet there are two small issues to take note of. The first is that, after a certain point, the references to the film's status as a sequel feel forced compared to the jokes that are coming out of actual situations. The second is that, as fast as the pacing is, the film feels just a hair too long. It builds to what seems like a climax only to take a breath and then rev its engine up again for the real finale. 

There. That's it. That's all that's really, noticeably wrong. Otherwise, this is a rare comedy sequel that surpasses the original. Not only that, but it packs in so many jokes and references that it's practically required that you watch it multiple times to see what you missed while you were laughing at the bigger jokes. The end credits of 22 Jump Street do a great job of poking fun at Hollywood's over reliance on sequels and franchises, yet, in the hands of Lord and Miller, it's hard to see this franchise outstaying its welcome. At least for one more movie. 

Grade: B/B+

Review: "The Wolf of Wall Street"

Director: Martin Scorsese
Runtime: 180 minutes

Though billed as a raucous dark comedy, it would be more accurate to describe The Wolf of Wall Street as a big, loud, three hour parade of horrors. This chronicle of real-life stock broker Jordan Belfort's rise and fall is a slice of excess that is, itself, excessive in execution. Despite stunningly committed work from Leonardo DiCaprio, and some very entertaining debauchery, The Wolf of Wall Street still feels too big for its own good, and this is after a hour of material has already hit the cutting room floor. 

Set amid the coke-fueled heyday of the late 80s and early 90s, Belfort's story begins when, at 22, he walked off of the bus at Wall Street hoping to make a name for himself. And, of course, he did, albeit in all of the wrong ways. As was the case with American Hustle, Wolf isn't terribly concerned about giving the actual plot developments the spotlight. Instead, it's content to allow the plot to momentarily pop up from its gopher hole, while it spends most of its time reveling in the big and insanely loud lives of the characters. 

And even though Scorsese is much better at balancing free-wheeling character scenes and overall plot than David O. Russell, the scales are still tipped way too far in favor of the insanity. Yet to call Wolf a 'party movie' doesn't really sit right. There are drug-fueled blowouts and orgies a plenty, but their purpose is to repulse rather than to seduce. Belfort and his stock broker friends and associates lived large in the emptiest, most debased way imaginable. At the end of La Dolce Vita, Marcello Mastroianni laments the hollowness of his party-driven lifestyle, but he'd go sprinting back to any of those celebrations if he caught a glimpse of Belfort's exploits. 

Despite the film's considerable excesses, it's almost worth all three hours just to witness the gob-smacking amount of effort DiCaprio gives the role in every frame. Some of his previous collaborations with Scorsese have been held back by stiffness or self-consciousness. Here, however, the actor has truly gotten lost in the part. It's mostly sound and fury theatrics, but DiCaprio's every move is perfectly in sync with Scorsese's tone and vision: in your face, exhilarating, repulsive, and ultimately exhausting. Though it won't go down as his most nuanced performance, there's something impressive with how well DiCaprio simply lets go. A long, but worthwhile, scene involving quaaludes and co-worker Donny Azoff (Jonah Hill) includes some of the most impressive physical acting to hit the screen in the past decade. 

So, despite the expansive supporting cast (including Hill, Margot Robbie, Matthew McConaughey, Joanna Lumley, Kyle Chandler, and Jean Dujardin), the entire three hours truly rests on DiCaprio's shoulders. He certainly carries the whole thing pretty damn effortlessly, which is why it's a shame that Scorsese couldn't have simply given him less to carry. With essentially no change in Belfort's character over the course of the runtime, the nonstop hijinks become exhausting in all of the wrong ways. Scorsese's film is always watchable, but some additional reigning in would have been appreciated. There's simply not enough room for the plot to breathe properly. Had the chaos built to a clearer point, this complaint wouldn't be such a big deal. But the point of the whole thing is something that one can ascertain after the first hour or so. Everything else, however compelling, is merely indulgent to a fault. 

Grade: B-

Review: "Moneyball"

For all of the baseball talk in Bennett Miller's Moneyball, which follows Oakland Athletics GM Billy Beane (Brad Pitt) as he tries to rewrite the rules of scouting, there is something universal about its protagonist's quest. Yes, this is a movie revolving around baseball, but don't confuse this for another The Blind Side or Remember the Titans. At its core, Moneyball is about a man's obsession with finding self-validation in a game he can no longer play. So even though there's a hardly a scene where baseball isn't involved (I counted...2...3?), Miller and co. have fashioned a steady, engaging film that benefits from a charismatic performance from its golden leading man.

The script, co-written by Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin, gets things off to a slow start as it lays the groundwork. Billy Beane is determined to forgo the traditional method of scouting to build up his team, despite widespread antagonism from the rest of his coaching staff. After a chance encounter with analyst Peter Brand (Jonah Hill, pre-weight loss) at an opposing team's office, he discovers that the young man has a radical idea about how building teams should work. After moving Brand over to Oakland, Beane begins to, against considerable opposition, use Brand's method to try and make the team a success.

Once it gets past its opening stretch, filled with more dry baseball statistical talk than anything resembling character development, Miller's film starts to really gain its momentum. The more the film juxtaposes the team's journey with flashes of Billy's history in baseball, the richer it all becomes. Moneyball is not a sappy, inspirational sports story, but it does have any number sincere, rousing moments. Though there are title cards that occaisionally track the A's wins, the focus remains on the behind the scenes action, rather than needlessly protracted scenes of the team playing baseball to fill time. Whenever the film shows the A's in action, there's something to be found for Billy and Peter, whether it's a challenge, a success, or a failure.

And even though the sport of baseball may be a team effort, Moneyball comes down to the efforts of one man (at least, on screen): Mr. Pitt. Though not up there with say, his work in The Assassination of Jesse James..., Moneyball provides Pitt with an opportunity to turn in a more traditional 'star' performance, and it's a task he handles with aplomb. Barring a few quick, charming scenes with Beane's daughter Casey (Kerris Dorsey), just about everything here revolves around his involvement with the team. It's a connection, though, that comes through and connects, which is a good thing because really no one else here, even Hill's Brand, registers much as a character.

If anything, that's the one thing keeping the film from true greatness, for all of its strong moments. Sports tend to ignite a passion in people, and even though there are scenes of elation in Moneyball, the film is so thoroughly centered on Beane that one can only get so connected to images of the team celebrating. Beane's devotion to baseball and the A's is apparent, yet when the final title cards roll across the screen, they feel more perfunctory than moving. The schmaltz has been left behind, thankfully, but at the same time, the film seems to have missed its chance to be more human, and therefore make a greater impact.

Grade: B