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‘Supergirl’ S3E13 Recap: “Both Sides Now”

By
John Nolan
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After last week’s faceoff between Lena Luthor (with some help of her deranged mother) Morgan Edge in Supergirl, it’s time to get back to Supergirl dealing with the oncoming Worldkiller threat.  While we know that Julia will be the next one discovered, Kara knows she is one, and it’s up to the DEO to intervene before she unites with Reign and then is one step closer to enacting their “justice.”

Kara knows that Julia is the next Worldkiller on their list and along with the DEO go to her house to confront her.  When they get there, she’s not Purity, this dangerous killer that she was led to believe.  Instead, Julia is just a scared woman, begging Supergirl for her help.  Alex on the other hand, is in full bad cop mode as she approaches the scared Julia.  This pretty much activated her fight or flight mode and activated Purity.  Julia’s eyes whiten and then Purity activated.  Her powers are a little different that Reign’s as she has Banshee-like sonic screaming powers.  We find out later that these screams affect Kryptonians, so Kara’s not completely invulnerable against her.  After easily dispatching the DEO cannon fodder, Kara uses her ice breath to create a barrier between them and Purity, and then J’onn phases through the barrier to subdue Purity.

Back in the DEO, Kara and Alex are having trouble with how to deal with Julia/Purity.  Kara, ever the hopeful person, sees the scared person that they first encountered and wants to try and reach her “human” side, and not the evil engineered monster they are facing.  In a nice Hannibal Lecter homage, Purity finds a way to get under both Kara and Alex’s skin.  She prays on Kara’s endless hope and optimism and Alex’s insecurity since her breakup with Maggie.

Purity wasn’t the only catch from the raid.  While searching Julia’s house, the DEO came across a Kryptonian crystal that could provide them with some insight to the Worldkillers, and even help them find out where their Fortress of “Sanditude” was if they could crack the code.   Winn tries to at first analyze the artifact so that they can learn more.  However, Mon-El needs some help repairing his spaceship.  The battery for it has died out and J’onn has the spare parts to help them from his Martian Bel-Air/spaceship.  So, the three of them spend some of the episode trying to basically “fix a car” and have some guy time.  When Imra comes in to help, she and Mon-El bicker amongst each other.  It’s clear that their loving marriage isn’t as great as one would expect it to be.  J’onn later shares a bottle of aged Martian rum with Mon-El to try and offer some advice.  Mon-El reveals that he and Irma married in a Game of Thrones type of alliance to ferment peace in the galaxy.  While they eventually fell in love, him being back on Earth with Kara has brought back all sorts of feelings he thought were buried.  While Kara and Alex are trying to interrogate Purity and the guys are working on spaceship repairs, the crystal activates, giving Purity a much-needed power boost to escape her cell.  She easily defeats the guards as well as Kara and manages to escape from the DEO.

Samantha, who is oblivious to her Reign persona, and is having trouble with all the lost time she’s been having, is ordered by her boss Lena to take some time off.  At first, she resists at the idea of being told that she has to stop working, but she then relents and sees it as an opportunity to spend some time with her daughter for a “free mental health day” at the skating rink.  At first, this seems like a great idea.  However, when the crystal is activated, she goes into a trance and then abandoned her daughter.

Kara and the DEO manage to catch up with Purity at a subway station.  Even though they have more numbers, they are still barely a match for her.  Kara suffers while fighting, as does J’onn and Mon-El (who didn’t ask Irma to join them).  Just as Purity is about to deliver a death blow to Kara, Alex appeals to Julia.  As she pleads with her human part, she finally reaches to Julia who stops fighting.  Just when all seems well, Reign comes in and starts attacking Alex.  Realizing that Alex is about to be killed, Julia pleads with Reign and tells her that she will go with her if she spares Alex.  Of course, this means that Purity will be back despite that Alex and Kara reached Julia.

In the aftermath, Mon-El and Irma finally have their heart to heart.  He apologizes for his distance and reveals that he’s not sure if he’s still in love with Kara or not.  Irma then reveals that she knew this was a risk when they went back in time.  She then tells him that she wasn’t 100% honest herself, and proceeds to tell him their true mission (we’ll have to wait for that).

Samantha’s daughter Ruby called Lena when her mother left her.  During their conversation, Lena tells Samantha that she told Ruby that her mother was having problems.  This angers Samantha and for a brief moment, Reign comes through and almost threatens Lena.  When she snaps back Lena asks her if she just blacked out, and Samantha is bewildered.  Lena says she knows what’s wrong with Samantha.

We’ll have to wait until April to see what Irma tells Mon-El as well as what Lena tells Samantha as Supergirl is about to go on hiatus.

James Mangold Gets Behind The Wheel For Film On Ford Vs. Ferrari Rivalry

By
John Nolan
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It’s possible you may have missed it, but Logan director James Mangold has been on something of a tirade. What about? Post-credit scenes. Yeah, he hates ’em. Hates ’em like guys named Wolverine hate guys named Scott Summers. He unleashed on them in a Twitter rant a couple of days ago but that was preceded by what he had to say during the Writers Guild Association Beyond Words Panel last week…

“Now we’ve actually gotten audiences addicted to a fucking bonus in the credits. It’s fucking embarrassing. It means you couldn’t land your fucking movie is what it means. Even if you got 100,000 Twitter addicts who are gambling on what fucking scene is going to happen after the fucking credits it’s still cheating.”

Damn, son! Relax! It ain’t that serious. Suffice it to say there won’t be any need to stick around at the end of Mangold’s next movie, which may be shaping up to be about the competition between Ford and Ferrari to develop the fastest car in time for the 1966 Le Mans World Championship. Here’s how Variety describes it…

Based on a true story, the film follows an eccentric, determined team of American engineers and designers, led by automotive visionary Carroll Shelby and his British driver, Ken Miles, who are dispatched by Henry Ford II with the mission of building from scratch an entirely new automobile with the potential to finally defeat the perennially dominant Ferrari at the 1966 Le Mans World Championship. The project doesn’t have a formal title, but is known internally as the “Untitled Ford vs. Ferrari Project.”

The project is set up at 20th Century Fox and has screenwriters Jez and John Butterworth attached. If this all sounds slightly familiar, it’s because Fox has spent quite a bit of time trying to bring Ferrari’s story to the big screen. Most recently it was Christian Bale attached to play Enzo Ferrari in Michael Mann’s adaptation of the book, Go Like Hell, but he backed out due to physical concerns. That project has since moved to Legendary.

It’s unclear if this will be next up for Mangold but he should have an opening since his Patty Hearts biopic was canceled. That said, he’s got a lot on his plate already with an adaptation of Don Winslow’s The Force, the giant cat movie Crenshaw, and a possible X-23 movie all in the works.

Uma Thurman Forgives Quentin Tarantino For Dangerous ‘Kill Bill’ Stunt

By
John Nolan
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Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill has always been my favorite movie by the filmmaker, and I watch it every chance available. It also stands as my favorite performance by Uma Thurman, and her collaboration with Tarantino was one I and many others thought would last a long time. But it sorta fizzled out, and over the weekend we got a look into why when she revealed her horrific experiences with Harvey Weinstein, as well as a terrible on-set accident while performing an unsafe vehicle stunt during Kill Bill, an accident she says was forced upon her by Tarantino and her left her with potentially severe injuries…


“The steering wheel was at my belly and my legs were jammed under me. I felt this searing pain and thought, ‘Oh my God, I’m never going to walk again.’ When I came back from the hospital in a neck brace with my knees damaged and a large massive egg on my head and a concussion, I wanted to see the car and I was very upset. Quentin and I had an enormous fight, and I accused him of trying to kill me. And he was very angry at that, I guess understandably because he didn’t feel he had tried to kill me.”

And that has led to an understandable backlash against Tarantino, who is already taking some heat for having Roman Polanski be a central figure in his upcoming Marilyn Manson movie. Multiple stars came out in support of Thurman and to attack Tarantino, including Jessica Chastain, Judd Apatow, and Asia Argento. 

Whatever blame they heap on Tarantino, Thurman isn’t sharing in it. Posting on her Instagram, Thurman revealed that it was Tarantino who gave her the now infamous footage of the car accident. This despite the harm it would obviously do to his reputation…


“Quentin Tarantino, was deeply regretful and remains remorseful about this sorry event, and gave me the footage years later so I could expose it and let it see the light of day, regardless of it most likely being an event for which justice will never be possible. I am proud of him for doing the right thing and for his courage.”


Thurman also alleges that Weinstein was involved in a cover up to keep what happened to her a secret. I’m sure this isn’t the last we’ll hear of this as Weinstein has yet to make a formal response, other than to deny the sexual misconduct allegations.

i post this clip to memorialize it’s full exposure in the nyt by Maureen Dowd. the circumstances of this event were negligent to the point of criminality. i do not believe though with malicious intent. Quentin Tarantino, was deeply regretful and remains remorseful about this sorry event, and gave me the footage years later so i could expose it and let it see the light of day, regardless of it most likely being an event for which justice will never be possible. he also did so with full knowledge it could cause him personal harm, and i am proud of him for doing the right thing and for his courage. THE COVER UP after the fact is UNFORGIVABLE. for this i hold Lawrence Bender, E. Bennett Walsh, and the notorious Harvey Weinstein solely responsible. they lied, destroyed evidence, and continue to lie about the permanent harm they caused and then chose to suppress. the cover up did have malicious intent, and shame on these three for all eternity. CAA never sent anyone to Mexico. i hope they look after other clients more respectfully if they in fact want to do the job for which they take money with any decency.
A post shared by Uma Thurman (@ithurman) on Feb 5, 2018 at 10:15am PST

DC Readers: Win ROE Passes For ‘Hostiles’ Starring Christian Bale And Rosamund Pike

By
John Nolan
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We’re happy to offer our DC readers the chance to win ROE (Run of Engagement) passes to see Hostiles, starring Christian Bale, Rosamund Pike, and Ben Foster. The film is directed by Scott Cooper, who last worked with Bale on Out of the Furnace.

SYNOPSIS: Set in 1892, Hostiles tells the story of a legendary Army Captain (Christian Bale), who after stern resistance, reluctantly agrees to escort a dying Cheyenne war chief (Wes Studi) and his family back to tribal lands. Making the harrowing and perilous journey from Fort Berringer, an isolated Army outpost in New Mexico, to the grasslands of Montana, the former rivals encounter a young widow (Rosamund Pike), whose family was murdered on the plains. Together, they must join forces to overcome the punishing landscape, hostile Comanche and vicious outliers that they encounter along the way.


These Admit-Two passes are good right now at any Regal theater in the DC area, Monday-Thurs through the film’s theatrical run of engagement. To win, simply send an email to punchdrunktrav@gmail.com with ‘Hostiles ROE’ in the subject line, and please include your full name and mailing address. Ten (10) winners will be selected tonight at 11:59pm and notified by email. So don’t waste time. Enter now!

‘Life Of The Party’ Trailer: Melissa McCarthy Goes Back To School

By
John Nolan
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In Rodney Dangerfield’s classic comedy Back to School, the comedian who never got any respect returned to college, joined the diving team, and made his son’s life a living Hell. I don’t see Melissa McCarthy performing the Triple Lindy in her trailer for Life of the Party, but it’s clear where her inspiration came from.

McCarthy stars as Deanna, a middle-aged housewife who decides to return to college and get her degree after her husband leaves her. Unfortunately for her daughter Maddie, it’s the same school she attends and soon mom is attending the same classes, dressing the same as her, scoring with hot dudes, and referring to her vagina as a Va-Google. Go ahead, ask it anything. I have a question, “Who thought that would be funny?”

McCarthy debuted the footage on The Ellen Degeneres Show and they seemed to dig it, so maybe I’m in the minority.  Life of the Party is directed by McCarthy’s husband, Ben Falcone, and features a Bridesmaids reunion with Maya Rudolph. Gillian Jacobs, Molly Gordon, Julie Bowen, Matt Walsh, Adria Arjona, and Jacki Weaver co-star.

Life of the Party opens May 11th.

Review: ‘Permission’ Starring Rebecca Hall And Dan Stevens

By
John Nolan
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I’ve known a few “childhood sweetheart” couples in my lifetime, the ones who swear they’ve only loved one another and been with nobody else. They’re always regarded with suspicion, because how can you possibly know if you’re with the right person if there’s no one to compare them to? Brian Crano’s sophomore film Permission explores the practicality of monogamy with honesty and thoughtfulness, which is more than can be said for others that take on this potentially thorny subject matter. Being authentic and forthright are desirable traits, especially for a movie concerned with adult issues, but it doesn’t always make for the best drama.

Ironically, the best moments in Permission come from those who give the film a comedic punch in the nose. Or the movie’s B-plot which has a flair of soapy theatricality to it. The central story is just barely engaging with the elaborate British performances of Dan Stevens and Rebecca Hall as Will and Anna. They’ve been together since college, both virgins at the time, and have been with no one else. We could say they’ve settled into a comfortable, playful groove that consists of joking about Will’s terribleness in bed, but honestly it seems as if things have always been pretty bad there. Anna seems happy with it and Will has no reason to improve, so why bother? Besides, he’s building a home for them in the heart of Brooklyn and that should be sufficient, right?

Of course not. Any relationship that has a chance in Hell of going anywhere will need a test for that commitment. As the walls of domesticity close in it’s natural to get curious about what else may be out there, and Anna proposes something radical: She and Will are free to sleep with other people, just to confirm what they already know which is that they are destined to be together.

Danger, Will Robinson.

Permission succeeds in the small, heartfelt moments shared between Will and Anna, but their dating escapes are never quite as engaging. Anna finds success first, hooking up with Dane (Francois Arnaud), a musician she meets with Will acting as her super-awkward wingman. There are, naturally, mixed messages everywhere, and Crano is smart to pinpoint how half-truths and passivity can lead to disaster. Moments from bedding down with Dane, Anna stops to fire off a text to Will to make sure he’s okay with it. “I am if U are” he shoots back.  Meanwhile, he adds a notch to his empty bedpost with Lydia (Gina Gershon), a rich divorcee who just happened to wander into his artisanal carpentry shop looking for some wood. The jokes write themselves.  Anna’s romantic trysts never spark with the kind of energy Crano’s script seems to think they have, while Will is introduced to hallucinatory drugs by Lydia. She’s also willing to let him do the kinds of things sexually that he’s unwilling to do with Anna, like spitting into her mouth which is as gross and shocking as it sounds. Gee, I wonder why Anna doesn’t want him to do that?

This entire misadventure was the brainchild of Will’s business partner Reece (Morgan Spector, Hall’s real-life husband), who happens to be the lover of Anna’s brother Hale (David Joseph Craig). They regret the encouragement immediately, perhaps realizing they’ve thrown a grenade into what had been a blissfully happy relationship. But Hale and Reece have their own problems to deal with, starting with Hale’s desire for a family and Reece’s unwillingness to give up that level of freedom. Jason Sudeikis, who co-starred with Hall in the excellent and similarly-toned Tumbledown a few years ago, plays a new father that Hale begins to latch on to, causing Reece to get a little bit jealous.

While there is little spark in Will and Anna’s sexual escapades (They both bed a couple of random strangers, too), Crano finds surprising inspiration in the chemistry between Hale and Reece. Their dynamic has a lived-in, heartbreaking edge but there is mutual love and sexual attraction. That feeling is sadly missing from Will and Anna, with the heavily-mannered performances by Hall and Stevens never quite right for a young, hip Brooklyn couple. Put that aside, though, and what you have is a film that isn’t afraid to ask tough questions and provide some difficult answers. Permission very easily could have devolved into the Farrelly Brothers comedy Hall Pass (Coincidentally co-starring Sudeikis!) under lesser guidance, but Crano is making a movie for adults to experience and discuss. I expect Permission will lead to some serious conversations about what true happiness means, and the steps that must be taken to achieve it.

Rating: 3 out of 5

Lando Rocks His Cape In New ‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’ Character Posters

By
John Nolan
-

Well, we can’t complain about not seeing enough of Solo: A Star Wars Story anymore! After a Super Bowl teaser and a trailer released just hours ago, Lucasfilm has come right back with a handful of new character posters. The images feature Alden Ehrenreich as the roguish pilot of the Millennium Falcon himself, the best and furriest co-pilot in the entire galaxy Chewbacca, Donald Glover as Lando Calrissian rockin’ that sweet cape, and Emilia Clarke as Qi’Ra.  Interesting that there isn’t one for Woody Allen as Solo’s mentor, Beckett, but I’m sure that will come soon enough. 

Here’s the film’s synopsis:   Board the Millennium Falcon and journey to a galaxy far, far away in Solo: A Star Wars Story, an all-new adventure with the most beloved scoundrel in the galaxy. Through a series of daring escapades deep within a dark and dangerous criminal underworld, Han Solo meets his mighty future copilot Chewbacca and encounters the notorious gambler Lando Calrissian, in a journey that will set the course of one of the Star Wars saga’s most unlikely heroes. 

Solo: A Star Wars Story takes off on May 25th, directed by Ron Howard. 

Strap In For The Full ‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’ Trailer!

By
John Nolan
-



“I’ve been running scams on the streets since I was ten. I was kicked out of the flight academy for having a mind of my own. I’m gonna be a pilot, the best in the galaxy.”

And so begins the first full trailer for Solo: A Star Wars Story, which promises the origin of one of science-fiction’s most enduring characters. The teaser premiered yesterday during the Super Bowl and, I’ll be honest, it came as quite a relief. Why? Because it didn’t suck, which I think we were all worried about. Well now we’re getting to see a lot more and you know what? It still doesn’t suck.

The big question mark has revolved around Alden Ehrenreich as Han Solo, and let’s face it he’s not going to be Harrison Ford, okay? But he’s got swagger and that counts for a lot. We see him joining a crew run by his eventual mentor, Beckett, played by Woody Harrelson, and also looks at Donald Glover as Lando Calrissian, Emilia Clarke as Kira (She knows who Han Solo really is, apparently), Joonas Suatomo as Chewbacca, and I think that’s Phoebe Waller-Bridge as the droid. Look fast and you’ll also notice Thandie Newton sportin’ a space fro, which I’m giving a thumbs up right now.  And of course there’s some cool aerial work in a tweaked version of the Millennium Falcon.

This feels like a big, fun sci-fi heist movie and if that’s all it turns out to be then I’m going to call that a win. Directed by Ron Howard, Solo: A Star Wars Story opens May 25th.

‘Skyscraper’ Super Bowl Trailer: Dwayne Johnson Leaps Tall Buildings With A Single Bound

By
John Nolan
-

*UPDATE* Dwayne Johnson hit up The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and brought along with him the full trailer for Skyscraper. You an check it out below!

There’s going to be a lot of Dwayne Johnson saving the world this summer. Hope you’re ready for it. He’s already got the #1 movie in the country with Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, and now you’ve got Rampage coming up in April, and this summer he’ll leap between buildings with a single bound in Skyscraper.

The Super Bowl spot for Skyscraper finds Johnson in hero mode, playing a former Hostage Rescue Team leader who now assesses the safety of skyscrapers. That’s a real thing.  While assessing the tallest building in the world in China, the whole thing goes up in smoke and he’s framed for the crime. Oh, and he needs to rescue his family from the building before it collapses.  This is based on an original idea by director Rawson Marshall Thurber (We’re the Millers), and it looks ludicrous and perfect for summer.

Here’s the synopsis: Global icon Dwayne Johnson leads the cast of Legendary’s Skyscraper as former FBI Hostage Rescue Team leader and U.S. war veteran Will Ford, who now assesses security for skyscrapers.  On assignment in China he finds the tallest, safest building in the world suddenly ablaze, and he’s been framed for it.  A wanted man on the run, Will must find those responsible, clear his name and somehow rescue his family who is trapped inside the building…above the fire line.


Skyscraper opens July 13th.

Review: Netflix’s “The Cloverfield Paradox” Starring David Oyelowo, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, And Daniel Bruhl

By
PunchDrunkCritics
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Earlier this evening, the news dropped that not only is the
third Cloverfield movie happening, but it’s now titled The
Cloverfield Paradox. Also, it would be dropping on Netflix. Tonight. I
burst into tears of joy. Bad Robot’s enigmatic, cinematic Twilight Zone has been
near and dear to my heart since the original’s release ten years ago. I’m a
huge fan of 10 Cloverfield Lane, and now with Paradox we’ve suddenly
rounded out the trilogy in a way that’s never before been attempted.
I don’t want to take away from the signature Cloverfield-ian
secrecy by explaining too much about the movie, but what I will say is: it’s
pretty rad.
Similar to Lane, Paradox begins with a
pretty intense, almost-silent short introducing the world to us. We meet a Star
Trek-style crew of scientists from all over the world (including Daniel
Brühl, Chris O’Dowd, David Oyelowo, and an intense and captivating lead
performance from Gugu Mbatha-Raw) out on a mission to solve the energy crisis
through the firing of an experimental particle beam. When this goes wrong, the
crew find themselves trapped in the titular time paradox, and that’s about all
I can say.
Part of what’s fun about these films is their mysteries, and
the mystery surrounding their very existence. Both Clover films so far (and
the spiritually similar Super 8) have been built up with plenty
of online guessing games in the form of viral marketing hints that act as
prequels. As a super nerd, I’ve followed these quite closely, including the
scraps of viral links dropped so far for Paradox. Because of this, I found
myself “squee”-ing with delight at all the inside references and callbacks to
the online world surrounding the franchise. As a super-fan, I saw how deeply it
tied the world together, and was on the edge of my seat the whole time scanning
the screen for easter eggs. I’m glad to have participated in the game leading
up to Paradox, because in all honesty, without this back-knowledge, I
might not have known the film tied in at all. That’s not to say it’s a
disappointment, that’s more to warn casual fans not to get too hyped up about it.
The film knows its genre, and takes full advantage of all
the tricks and tropes we expect from a claustrophobic space movie. It has body
horror. It has paranoia. It has creatures. It has those general human fears
like loneliness and loss. And most importantly, it has winks at Alien,
letting the audience know it’s aware of the holy ground it stands on. And it
works. It’s Alien, it’s Twilight Zone, it’s Star
Trek. It’s the best of sci-fi filtered through the mystery box of Bad
Robot. The horror aspects of the film are legit thrilling. There’s a lot of
really messed up stuff in Cloverfield Paradox that I just
loved, all handled masterfully by fairly new director Julius Onah. Which brings
me to my final point.
This is a big, epic, intense, space thriller. It deserves to
be experienced and paid attention to.  It’s
amazing, ambitious, exciting new ground to drop a movie this big so suddenly,
and I’m in love with the doors it opens for future films on Netflix, but it won’t
play anywhere near as well on an iPhone as it would in a theater. I hope
Paramount figures out a way to give this movie the release it deserves.
Ultimately, although it drags a bit toward the end, The
Cloverfield Paradox is an awesome space movie with fun ties to the Clover-verse,
if that’s what you’re into. Both newcomers and die-hard fans will be happy,
with neither alienated. It has great performances and a lot of clever ideas,
but first and foremost is an incredible feat in viral film making. That this
movie exists is incredible. It also happens to be very good.

 

4 out of 5
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