The Wasteland Reviewer

The Wasteland into the Past: 2014

Welcome to The Wasteland into the Past! Join this journey backwards in time as I take a cinematic look at years past. Each article will focus on a singular year and my Top 5 films from that year. Turn back the clock with me…and let’s get started! 

2014

The Grand Budapest Hotel

When was the turning point of evolution of Wes Anderson’s career? The Grand Budapest Hotel. Anderson has always had a specific voice and style that has made him so successful and beloved (and honestly hated by some as well). But it was The Grand Budapest Hotel that saw him take the next leap in terms of maturity, experimentation, and filmmaking. This is a film that tells a story within a story within a story within a story within a story. This Russian doll of a film sees a young girl reading a book in the voice of its author who recounts his young self as he has dinner with an aging hotel owner who recounts his journey at this iconic hotel. None of it feels unnecessary because of the style and care that Anderson injects into each layer. This might seem like just an experiment but the story that Anderson tells is so poignant and entertaining. This is not a simple tale either. This is a murder mystery, prison break, on-the-run thriller, comedy, romance, with tinges of horror and suspense. There are even chases and shootouts. The Grand Budapest Hotel has just about everything and that makes it feel so unique and engrossing. The music from Alexandre Desplat is gorgeous, unique, timeless, and vintage in a way that helps create such a classic feel to the film. The production design and costuming are perfect with a bright color palette, precise symmetry, and unique classic feel to everything. This is a period piece in a fantastical version of our world that is brought to life with beautiful miniatures and impressive cinematography. The anchoring force of this film is the career best turn of Ralph Fiennes as Gustave H. He is funny, cunty, and classy. There is something cheap and scrappy under the dolled-up veneer. Fiennes is hilarious, biting, charming, and loving. The layers are impressive, and this performance should have been recognized. F Murray Abraham’s rich and textured voice is perfect as he recounts his story and Jude Law is the perfect supporting narrator as well. There is a whole cast of incredible talents like Willem Dafoe, Adrien Brody, Tilda Swinton, Saoirse Ronan, and so many more. This is an emotional resonant, thrilling, hilarious, and quirky romp that checks all the boxes.

Interstellar

Do you think Christopher Nolan loves 2001: A Space Odyssey? He certainly does and you can tell by simply watching Interstellar. This is Nolan’s ambitious science fiction journey that delivers so many homages to Kubrick’s classic film as well as capture some sprawling and epically scaled space elements for sure. Nolan went into so much detail to make sure that he could capture wormholes and other cosmic occurrences in the most authentic way possible. He was even so bold in creating a strings-based tesseract that traced both time and space. Interstellar is a truly compelling and ambitious science fiction film that few films can match up to technically. Each shot gives the vibe that Nolan traveled into space and to other planets to capture the wonders of them on screen. But what is such a technically ambitious and daring film is also the film that delivers the most emotion out of any of Nolan’s cinematic efforts. The theme of love is what carries so much of the story of Interstellar as Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) leaves Earth behind to find a new home for humanity while making the promise to his daughter, Murph (Mackenzie Foy & Jessica Chastain), that he will return. His whole motivation is to save humanity for his daughter (his poor son Tom is certainly an afterthought). There are deeply emotional moments where McConaughey gets to flex his surprising acting chops. The cast is stacked for sure with Nolan alums like Anne Hathaway and Michael Caine joining the likes of John Lithgow, Timothee Chalamet, Casey Affleck, Matt Damon, and others. There is a great standout voice performance by Bill Irwin who portrays one of the artificial members of the crew. TARS is a not-so-subtle homage to the monolith from 2001 and its unique design makes for some interesting technical moments throughout. But his dynamic with McConaughey is one of the most unexpected pieces of the film. The big sprawling adventure feels epic and few science fiction films in recent memory have felt this expansive and ambitious. The themes about humanity, our resolve, and the connection we have with each other are tested at every turn including the unfortunate confrontation with one of Earth’s greatest minds, Dr. Mann (Damon). But the last piece of this epic puzzle is the incredibly epic and poignant score from Hans Zimmer. Organ…that is all you need. The bombast of Zimmer’s work is here but the emotion that comes from the music is unparalleled in most Nolan films. Something about that organ sound just brings so much awe and feeling.

What We Do in the Shadows

Where did one of the best comedy shows of the last decade get its start? Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement came together as a writing and directing duo to bring life to the dead in the form of What We Do in the Shadows. The show is in its twilight, but it has delivered so many laughs and emotional moments over the last six seasons…it will be sorely missed. But things started off in Wellington, New Zealand with a crew of vampires sharing a flat together. A crew of brave humans follow this group of awkward, silly, and foolish vampires as they navigate group dynamics, chores, roommate conflicts, former flames, and other mythical creatures. This mockumentary is the perfect style for our vampiric protagonists to connect with the audience in their aloofness and naivety. The tone of the film is pitch perfect as Waititi and Clement can capture a dry wit that delivers endless laughs for this lean and compact affair. But it is not just the laughs that draw you in. There are some legitimately creepy and unnerving elements that will keep your attention as well. There is a chase through the house where our vampiric pals show their darker side as they haunt and play around with their present food and soon to be new roommate. The final werewolf sequence towards the end is quite terrifying thanks to the impressive practical effects as well. All the way up to the final jump scare, this film knows how to navigate those horror-comedy elements. But the laughs and scares are not unaccompanied by some effective emotional resonance. You feel for this group of friends and the connections they grow with the new members of their crew. This is the type of depth you expect from Waititi’s best efforts, and it stands out well. The humor is bone dry, and these vampires are…not the smartest. Their ignorance opens the door for plenty of silliness and good laughs. The world building is great too with the werewolves (Rhys Darby is an absolute treasure), vampire society, and the zombies. The cast is impressive too with the likes of Waititi and Clement themselves leading the way as a “dandy” vampire and Vlad the Impaler (I mean Poker) respectively. The potential was so great for this comedy that two of the best comedy shows on television of the last 10 years rose up from this project.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

What is the peak of the Planet of the Apes franchise? The original starring Charlton Heston was a game-changing science fiction effort that brought impressive thematic depth and revolutionary make-up work for the time. War was an incredibly epic and emotional finale to the modern Caesar trilogy (and my personal favorite film in the franchise). But the film that has received the most consistent praise and stands out at the top of most people’s lists is Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. Rise does a great job of setting things up, but Dawn finds the modern leg of the franchise coming into its dystopian own. First off, the special effects of jaw-dropping for sure. The CGI that brings these apes to life is state of the art. The fact that this film did not get award recognition for its effects is a darn tragedy. The apes are so lifelike that you would think they are real apes. Even more impressive are the performances that fill out this flick. Andy Serkis delivers an award-deserving performance that is rich with emotion and plenty of layers of complexity. Caesar is an incredible character who is trying to do right with his apes but still has a tender and warm heart for humanity. But his foil is Koba who is a vicious and vengeful entity who wants apes to stand tall against humanity. Toby Kebbell delivers a dynamic and electric performance. Also…nothing is cooler than watching Koba dual wielding machine guns, riding a horse, and jumping through flames. The human characters are engaging and interesting in this film as well. Jason Clarke, Keri Russell, Gary Oldman, and Kodi Smit-McPhee deliver (particularly Oldman delivers an antagonistic turn with depth). The world in Dawn is evolving and balances the rising ape kingdom and the falling human civilization. The conflicts are dynamic and complex mixing the apes and the human characters. The shining light and MVP of the film though is director Matt Reeves. This filmmaker is the real deal and has proven so with Apes and The Batman. The impressive visual presentation of Dawn is engrossing and dynamic. From the opening shot of Caesar staring down at the audience with the rain and his tribe behind him is impressive. The camerawork is bold and dynamic as we see how the POV navigates the battlefield with tanks, horses, gunfire, and flames. Reeves took this franchise to new heights, and it is still soaring today with Dawn as the crowning achievement so far.

X-Men: Days of Future Past

What is the most ambitious and bold edition in the X-Men film franchise so far? X-Men: Days of Future Past did something incredible and impressive as it brought the original crew and the First Class team together into one time spanning apocalyptic conflict. Based on one of the most beloved and famous comic book runs for everyone’s favorite mutants, this film takes a bit of liberties with this time traveling mission to stop the havoc and bloodshed caused by the murderous Sentinels. The figurehead of the Fox X-Men universe has been Wolverine ever since Hugh Jackman donned a pair of adamantium claws. This Logan is one from an apocalyptic future and he has plenty of wisdom and knowledge to bring the X-Men and Magneto together in the past to stop the launch of Bolivar Trask’s program (with Peter Dinklage making his Marvel debut). Jackman delivers a confident, powerful, and impactful performance has he gets to be the man of reason (for once). The future sequences are dynamic and exciting as they bring some fan favorite mutants to the big screen for the first time like Bishop and Blink. Seeing Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen back is an absolute delight along with the likes of Halle Berry’s Storm, Elliot Page’s Kitty Pryde, and Shawn Ashmore’s Iceman. The layers of young Charles and Erik shine thanks to the superb performances of James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender. The action is awesome with the X-Men taking on evolving Sentinels in the future and the newly created versions in the past. One of the coolest scenes in the history of comic book films occurs with Evan Peters’ Quicksilver taking out a whole crew of guards with his super speed. The use of Jim Croce’s “Time in a Bottle” is perfect and creates such a perfect fusion of music and visuals. The iconic original theme is back as well with John Ottman’s impressive score. There are plenty of surprises around every corner in this sequel/prequel hybrid that makes for a cinematic experience of epic scale. This cast is enormous and talented with the most impressive crossover event pre-Infinity War and Endgame. The MCU has a big mountain to climb in order to outdo this beloved flick.