Breaking Down "Bayhem"

Is there currently a more widely lambasted director on this planet than Michael Bay? Though critics softened slightly for his last film, the dark true-crime comedy Pain and Gain, the knives are out once again -- perhaps even sharper than before -- with the release of Transformers: Age of Extinction, the fourth entry in the blockbuster franchise that has continued to stuff Bay's pockets with ridiculous amounts of moolah. So is there anything more to Bay than what we already know, i.e. fast cuts, sexy chicks and explosions? In this video essay, Tony Zhou incisively analyses what makes Bay, essentially Bay, and love or hate him, there's no question that the man's a step above the the blander, hack-ier likes of McG or Brett Ratner, at least on an aesthetic level:
Meanwhile, the critical mauling of Age of Extinction has been so bad that talk show host Jimmy Kimmel decided to get a few critics together to say something nice about Bay:

Ridley Scott's The Counselor: "worst ever made"?

Ridley Scott's new film The Counselor has opened in the States to some of the most negative reviews of the director's career. The drug trafficking thriller, penned by renowned author Cormac McCarthy (No Country for Old Men, The Road), baffled and bored critics, even prompting one -- Salon's Andrew O'Hehir -- to deem it the "worst movie ever made". Despite a star-studded cast that includes Michael Fassbender, Penélope Cruz, Javier Bardem, Cameron Diaz and Brad Pitt, audiences didn't go for it either, leaving the film with a miserable box office opening that's also one of Scott's worst. The Counselor opens in NZ on November 7.

Transformers 3: Compendium Post

I was meant to blog something about Transformers: Dark of the Moon post-screening last week but busyness got the better of me, and also 'cos the film was so X-TREME that it temporarily disabled my ability to construct critical thought in a timely manner. So here's a bumper post of all things Transformers 3 from the past week (hopefully that'll cover this film, and Michael Bay, for the next while).

Firstly, some loose, potentially spoilery observations about the film:

• There was a valid, but cautious reason to be pumped: Michael Bay had taken criticisms of no. 2 to heart and vowed to make a better film. He said the "dorky comedy" would be toned down. When the trailer first appeared, it looked like a darker film with no comic relief Transformer in sight. While there might be less comedy than the previous film, it's still there - in abundance - and very bloody annoying and only funny for how unfunny it is. See any scene with John Malkovich, Ken Jeong (WTF dude), Alan Tudyk, Shia's parents, and those two smaller "sidekick" robots. All of this comedy-driven exposition swallows up nearly half the entire running time.
• The 3D was promising in the opening scenes on the moon, and generally better than any post-converted 3D film (a given). But as the film wears on, like most 3D films, you'll mostly forget about the 3D (and remember that it's not a pleasant experience).
  
• Interestingly, shooting in 3D does reign Bay in. Shots are held longer, but not consistently so. You definitely won't forget that it's a Michael Bay film.
  
• Stupid but irresistibly "wow" moments: Shia being flung from Bumble Bee in slow-mo then thrown back inside as it transforms into a car again; those mad base-jumping stunts; Shockwave snapping the high rise in two.
• Rosie Huntington-Whiteley: a shapely vacuum. Her intro into the film is already the stuff of legend (as is a scene that might suggest Bay is a closet tentacle-porn fan).
  
• The film is 157 minutes long. What does Bay think he's making? JFK? Combined with one hour of non-stop destruction, the running time is so punishing the only reaction to feel after it's all over is SWEET RELIEF.
  
• Twitter gets 2 mentions, Facebook only 1.
• Those crappy generic radio-friendly rock songs on the soundtrack...

It might sound that I'm incredibly harsh on the film (yes, it's awful), but the fact of the matter is Transformers: Dark of the Moon is a fascinating film in many ways, inspiring both immediate repulsion and deeper-level discourse. It's been torn apart with acerbic wit by critics (Roger Ebert, Walter Chaw - a must-read!), but I find myself digging those fence-sitters, those writers trying to evaluate Bay in a mixed light and coming up with interesting points of discussion (Nick Schager, Jaime N. Christley). I also love Vern's "software upgrade" description of the film.

Now here's bunch of related stuff that don't require much reading:



Michael Bay reusing scenes from The Island for Transformers 3:



Optimus Prime or Darth Vader?


And if you're wondering what's next on the cards for Bay, he'll be making a "small little movie".

Lights, Camera... 11-Year-Old Critic!

This guy just came to my attention. He's only 11 and a celebrity Emmy-winning film "critic" in America. He publishes his reviews on his own website, which boasts the claim that he began his career at age 7 1/2. This is a clip of him reviewing Inception and Salt. Not quite the next Ebert yet, but kid's got (somewhat annoying) charisma, I'll give him that.

Essential Ebert

Roger Ebert is regarded as one of the greatest cinema critics of our time. His work, especially with long time writing and reviewing partner Gene Siskel, is renowned for being unapologetic opinions and having a joyous sense of humour. Many movie-goers highly respect his views and base much of their attendance on his words. Most will recognise his "thumbs up, thumbs down" approach to reviewing, that has become his personal trademark and and a catch-cry of many critics since.

Early last decade he was diagnosed with cancer and continues to battle illness through his life - to the point where he had his bottom jaw removed (see picture), meaning he could not speak which almost crippled his career.

Esquire magazine paid tribute to him this week in this fascinating, insightful and highly touching glimpse into his professional and personal life: http://tiny.cc/82bCK

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra is 91% Fresh at Rotten Tomatoes!

Yes, the rating is based on only 11 reviews, and will no doubt drop when the film opens this weekend, but right now, it's an interesting look at Paramount's marketing strategy where they've chosen not to screen the film to the majority of mainstream US critics and instead selected a handful who they assume would "get" the movie (incidentally, I watched one episode of the original '80s cartoon for the first time since I was a kid last night, and it's pretty damn goofy stuff).

Starring Dennis Quaid, Channing Tatum, Sienna Miller and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, the movie is touted as the final big-budget blockbuster "summer event" action pic of the year, and also marks the second Paramount-Hasbro collaboration this year after Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. The trailer looks like it could be fun, and I'm slightly excited, though I've placed my expectations pretty, pretty low. I'm hoping it'll deliver at the very least, the kind of brainless escapist entertainment that Transformers 2 failed to do. Read more here.

The Mighty Bay

Michael Bay cannot be stopped. And he knows this. Industry watchers are now observing that his box office-demolishing Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen maybe the worst-reviewed $400 million hit ever. ROTF is packing theatres like nobody's business, and while box office results and critical consensus have rarely been on the same page, the disconnect in this case is larger than ever before. I love this L.A. Times interview with Bay where he addresses the negative reception his film's been getting. Favourite quote: "I am convinced that they are born with the anti-fun gene." Yes, Michael, that's the one...