Bad Boys of 'Last Vegas'

Sometimes old men just want to act like young men. That's the message of Last Vegas, which brings some talented veteran actors into the territory settled by the likes of a young Nicolas Cage, Bradley Cooper and Ashton Kutcher. In the film, four childhood friends meet up in Las Vegas for a bachelor party and a wedding, each going through their own personal crisis. Billy (Michael Douglas) is marrying a woman half his age, but is conflicted over whether he really loves her. Sam (Kevin Kline) is recovering from yet another joint replacement surgery and is unsatisfied with the way his life has become. Art (Morgan Freeman) recently recovered from a stroke but feels coddled at the hands of his worrying son. Paddy (Robert De Niro) still mourns the loss of his wife a year before, and has some unresolved issues with Billy. As they arrive in the city of sin, each is rearing to let loose and have a good time, but they're not prepared for what is thrown their way in Las Vegas, and what it will mean for their friendship as a whole.

The boys are back in town

Naturally, the best part of Last Vegas are the interactions between the main actors themselves. Each performer has their own distinct strength to bring to the table, from Douglas' easygoing charm to Kline's peppy spryness to De Niro's tough guy attitude to Freeman's mellow voice and quick wit. From then opening scene (which features the characters as children), we understand the balance of their friendship, and it helps when the actors are diverse enough to be distinctive but alike enough for the audience to understand why they would be friends (you know, just like real life). That said, I do wish the pairings had been more diverse; De Niro and Douglas are almost always paired with one another, while Kline and Freeman play more of a comedic duo when they're by themselves. De Niro, meanwhile, never pairs with Freeman or Kline with Douglas, meaning their interactions are sadly limited. Still, the script does a good job of giving each lead their own arc, and of integrating Mary Steenburgen into the all-male cast, even if it is just as the love interest torn between two men.

Well, she's got a captive audience.

As director Jon Turteltaub has done in the past, he proves he can create a film that appeals to broad segments of the population. While perhaps not as kid-friendly as The Sorcerer's Apprentice or the National Treasure franchise (mainly because of Las Vegas' well-deserved reputation in general), Last Vegas can easily be enjoyed by any adult watching. In effect, it is the complete opposite of the gonzo, up-the-ante humor method that The Hangover and its sequels employed. The laughs here are certainly innocuous enough, relying mainly on the interplay between the main characters and generic jokes about old age, though the quality of the actors does raise the quality somewhat. There are some genuinely laugh-out-loud moments but to be honest, most of the film will only get silent chuckles, though the point should be raised that never does the humor fall flat.

...and special celebrity referee Morgan Freeman!

If there's one place Last Vegas fails, it's the dramatic story between Billy and Paddy. Without giving away too much, their off-screen feud is one of the oldest cliches in Hollywood storytelling, not to mention one that they reenact in the present day (past and future reflecting one another is another Hollywood cliche). Despite both Douglas and De Niro performing well enough to carry the tale, they can't get away from the fact that their story is nothing new, even with the unique (though not as much as it used to be) setting and strong acting performances to back it up. It also doesn't help that Kline and Freeman's characters have nothing to add to that mix; as I mentioned before, they're mainly for comedic relief, adding no dramatic tension to the overall plot.

To another year of relevance!

Despite the film's many flaws (Turteltaub will never be confused as a "great" Hollywood director), Last Vegas is still very much a fun time at the movies. It's relatively safe, taking no risks whatsoever with its plot and character development, but the humor stands out, as does the fact that we never get to see veteran performers have so much fun on the big screen. Usually, this kind of movie is a young man's game, and these four actors put Hollywood on notice that old men can -and want to - have fun, too. Now they just need a better vehicle to do it with, as Last Vegas is a decent, but not quite worthy effort to get these four men out of supporting roles and back into the limelight where somebody seems to think they still belong.

The Ass-Kicking of 2012

The career of director Steven Soderbergh has been a strange one. After his debut film Sex Lies and Videotape made him a household name (and earned him the Palm D’Or at Cannes) back in 1989, Soderbergh went on to become one of the most popular directors of the modern era, with a filmography that includes Out of Sight, Erin Brockovich, Traffic, and the unimaginably successful Oceans trilogy. While some of his work is perhaps a bit overrated (the mediocre Contagion comes to mind), anyone should be able to appreciate the boundaries he attempts to breach with his filmmaking. That creativity of his has become more pronounced in recent years, as 2008’s Che was so long it had to be split into two parts for theatrical release, and he took an enormous chance in hiring then-active porn star Sasha Grey to headline his street-level look of humanity in The Girlfriend Experience. He’s even the director behind the Channing Tatum stripper biopic Magic Mike, due out later this year. But the most anticipated of his new films, at least in my eyes, has been the female-centric action film Haywire, starring former MMA fighter Gina Carano. Carano had been approached by Soderbergh to star in his new action film back in 2009, and as she had just lost a high-profile match to Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos and was looking to get out of the MMA spotlight, she took him up on the offer. It would not be her first film appearance (That would be the cult film Ring Girls), but this would be the first major motion picture to feature the potential action star out in front, where the world could see what so far only a few had actually witnessed of her abilities.

Gun play thankfully is kept to a minimum

Told in flashbacks, Haywire relates the story of how mercenary Mallory Kane (Carano) has come to be on the run from her former employers after they framed her for a crime she did not commit. The scion of a military family and a former marine in her own right, Mallory was the best agent the firm had, and was just about to take her earnings an move on to more relaxing climes. Now she must fight her way through a private army of goons, assassins and generally unlikable sorts to learn why she has been betrayed, and attempt to reclaim her old life by any means necessary.

Yes, our old friend (and Oscar snub) Fassbender is here...

There’s one important thing to remember when watching Haywire: if a character other than Mallory has an ass, it’s most likely going to get itself kicked. Soderbergh designed Mallory to be a versatile weapon of mass destruction, and Carano fills that gap admirably by beating up anybody that gets between her and victory. Mallory is also shown as being extremely dedicated, living by a moral code, incredibly intelligent and knowing exactly what she wants and how to get it. The only real flaw with Mallory is that she really HAS no flaws, with only the diminutive stature she brings against her larger, male opponents anything close to a weakness. Seeing her in action, it’s apparent that slight edge doesn’t last long, and as one character advises another, thinking of Mallory (or Carano, for that matter) as just a woman “would be a mistake.” With amazing camera work, Soderbergh captures elements both beautiful and ugly in the fight scenes, moving between graceful athleticism and brute force whenever necessary. There are precious few action heroines in the business, and Carano’s addition is one not to be taken lightly, even for a moment.

Turning an Uzi into a blowtorch in six easy steps...

Speaking of Miss Carano, I would have settled for her performance to be dry, dull, and propped up by the more experienced names on the cast list. I honestly wasn't sure an untrained actress would be able to carry such a burden on her first major attempt, and figured that the reason Soderbergh surrounded her with such talent was to offset her own limitations. Silly me. Carano, while not always perfect, still manages to do a whole lot correctly, turning Mallory from a potential black hole of personality into an real life character, one with all the strengths I listed earlier. I don't doubt that the offers will start rolling in, and Carano will amass a decent film career thanks to this amazing start. That said, her supporting cast slouches only slightly, and while not everyone is worth their weight in gold, they do enough to help propel the story forward. Ewan McGregor is smarmy and sly in the main antagonist role, a reversal put to good effect in the case of his usually charming demeanor. In small roles, Michael Fassbender, Channing Tatum and Bill Paxton do their share of adding to the film when need be. And Michael Douglas chews the appropriate amount of scenery as a government suit. Despite a sagging Antonio Banderas, this is a well-acted film with deep characters and believable interactions, and is as great as it is thanks to Carano being able to carry it on her shoulders for most of the time.

Guess who'll win this one

Despite a well-told and fast-paced tale, a few details still manage to go missing, and some leaps in the film's logic aren't always cleanly explained when they are. Regardless, Haywire should be considered a success both in the final product and in the casting of Carano in a leading role. What the MMA hoarded for four years is finally out of the box, and I'll be sorely disappointed if this talented young woman doesn't go from being the "Face of Women's MMA" to the face on movie posters across the nation. There are a few female action stars in Hollywood right now, but I have little doubt that this woman has the strength, charisma and determination to best them all. At least for now, she stars in the #1 film of 2012.

The Ballad of Rich People

Oliver Stone is arguably well past his career peak. His films haven't received any major award nominations in over fifteen years. Many of his recent titles have barely made back the money spent in making them. W was the presidential film nobody who lived through Dubya's two terms really wanted to see. Alexander was on the same historical fiction plateau as Kingdom of Heaven that filmmakers wanted to create despite nobody filled audience chairs to see them. Any Given Sunday and World Trade Center were successful, but harbor no hopes of being remembered decades from now. No, Oliver Stone will be remembered not for his recent releases, but those released twenty years ago that we still talk about today: titles like JFK, Platoon, and Wall Street. Having not had ample opportunity to make it to the theaters this week (and with few exceptions any reason to go anyway), I dropped by the Redbox and grabbed the sequel to one of Stone's classics Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, taking the chance to catch a film I'd missed last year in the theaters. Though I've never seen the original, this seemed ample opportunity to catch up on the role that won Michael Douglas his Academy Award, and the trailer had been appealing enough to me that I was sure I didn't need to see the original to understand what was going on.

Didn't I see this the same street on Sex and the City?

WSMNS is a revenge tale set astride a backdrop of the current global recession. After eight years of imprisonment for insider trading and securities fraud, Gordon Gekko (Douglas) is released from prison in 2001. Fast forward seven years, and Gekko has become a best-selling author and celebrity lecturer, his face all over CNN and any major network that will have him. Meanwhile, Jake Moore (Shia LaBoeuf) is doing well as an investment banker with Keller Zabel (KZI), a major Wall Street bank. He may be relatively wealthy, but he has good influences in his life, like his girlfriend (and Gekko's estranged daughter) Winnie (Carrie Mulligan), a successful blogger and social activist. He is also raising money for his pet project, a green energy company. All in all, he's a good kid. That changes when  That changes overnight when KZI, which had apparently been just treading water, finally goes under. A bailout to get the company back on track fails thanks to rival banker (Josh Brolin) and with the company in ruins, Jake teams up with Gekko to try and strike back at the man who destroyed Jake's company.

In an attempt to make them more sympathetic, Stone put them on a train. Genius!

If it all seems overly simplistic, that's because I haven't explained everything. There's a LOT going on in the plot, mostly involving character development over moving the actual story forward. This is a positive turn, as far too often character development can be strewn along the wayside in making a concise story, easily followed by the audience. Unfortunately, the story itself is not as good as the characters portrayed, and while the backdrop especially is relevant to the issues we face today, the fact that this story is told from the perspective of which collar rich folk dulls the impact for the average viewer somewhat. Even the poorest characters in the film are a Blogger who racks up fifty times more hits daily than I've had for the entire run on my blog and an author whose media attention is more than that of Steven Levitt and Ben Mezrich COMBINED. Even though some of their causes are noble, not one character's motivation isn't to be wealthier than they currently are.

Brolin still has the occasional Jonah Hex flashback

The acting is pretty amazing here. Of course most of the attention (and rightfully so) has fallen on the shoulders of Douglas, who was nominated for a Golden Globe for his reprisal of the inimitable Gekko. Though it's been more than twenty years since he played this role, Douglas took to it like a second skin, adding bits of new to the comfortable layers of greed and manipulation that he's famous for. Most notable is his desire to reconnect with his daughter. LaBoeuf is surprisingly good as the story's protagonist, Jake. I say "surprisingly" even though he's been good in the few things I've actually seen him in. I guess it's more his choice of movies that puts me off, from Disturbia to Eagle Eye to Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. These are NOT good movies, but LaBoeuf is a good performer, and as a good-hearted conniver who sees everything spiral out of control around him, It's easy to forget how privileged he is when you see how hard he works and his faith in good will. I didn't see An Education, so this was the first film I've seen Carrie Mulligan in, and she's also quite good. Torn between her social ethics, the man she loves and the father she can't forgive, she's probably the most sympathetic character in this tale. Brolin once again rides high on his late-career surge, this time as the film's main antagonist. While Brolin does a good job overall, his role is perhaps a tad oversimplified and while still a serious threat, not one you can't imagine being overcome. Frank Langella and Susan Sarandon appear in the film also, and though Langella's role is somewhat on the smallish side as Jake's boss and mentor, he does a good job early on setting the table for the rest of the film. Sadly, Sarandon is a cipher as Jake's real estate investor mother and hence cannot add a lot to the small role she has been assigned.

Obviously never told not to sit with his eyes that close to the screen

For what the original film represents, it's almost too bad this sequel wasn't better reviewed upon release. Then again, since the original existed in Stone's "golden age", it simply simply be that this new film is nowhere near the quality of the first. That wouldn't be surprising, especially given Stone's propensity for visual elements, such as the NYC skyline overlaid with a stock price chart. Stunts like that alone wouldn't be bad, but Stone seems to enjoy doing things like this a bit too much, since every time there's a break in the story, he fills the void with endless similar visual trickery as a bridge. At best, Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps is a timely, relevant look at the market crash through the eyes of those directly involved, a great exercise in character development, and hosts at least good performances from all involved, and a great one from Michael Douglas. At its worst you have largely useless characters, meandering plot threads and unnecessary twists that make the finale predictable and anti-climactic. In the end, I liked this film, though I feel my appreciation for it would dwindle were I to revisit the original. Stone might no longer be at his peak, but if this is the standard fare he introduces these days, I certainly won't reject any future films of his out of hand.