Synopsis: We are on the international space station and we are recovering some samples coming from Mars. The massive discovery is that we find very intelligent cells, but we are more intelligent and we keep them up in the sky because it can be dangerous. All that being said, our security protocol sucks. Big time. Guess what? The biggest, nearly 2 hours long, I told you ever seen in human history: the cells grow quickly and they are surprisingly sadistic. Things escalate relentlessly and we still have to find a way to keep that thing away from Earth, which turns out to be surprisingly difficult even though we are in space.
Life is a movie that looked like an Alien ripoff with bigger actors since the very first trailer and, to some extent, it fits in that franchise quite well. Therefore, the plot is quite predictable, you really didn't need my synopsis to guess how the chips were going to fall in this one. I recognized certain aspects of Gravity too, thus, if you really want to define a movie using previous works, it is an Alien-Gravity sci-fi claustrophobic movie.
All that being said, the film presents some differences that at least keep you on your toes for the entire movie. This aspect is enhanced by a very intense rhythm, something that I've enjoyed quite a bit and kept me on the edge of my seat for nearly the entire movie. I think it is not a spoiler saying that some characters are going to die and the choices made in displaying such deaths are all the right one: very intense scenes that hide their inevitable, excruciating, ending and worth themselves the price of the ticket.
The first weak spot of the movie is hidden inside its strong suit: the villain. While this mysterious bunch of cells is absolutely terrifying, at times it goes so over the top in order to move the plot along that may throw you off the narration. In other words, regardless the fast pace, a sapient use of scare jumps, and the constant threat to the characters life, the villain looks so invincible that looses every credibility, thus breaking the spell of the narration.
A second problem is again related to one of the good aspects of Life. The very high-pace narration is good for entertaining the viewer, but doesn't leave much room for the development of the characters (or of a theme for all that matters). The result is that, excluding the 2 very famous actors that you recognize easily, the others are very disposable and do not have any third dimension while the plot moves in front of them. Normally this aspect is not very relevant but, when the entire story is basically in a big room up in the sky, it is easy to notice that you are not very sure on who is who.
Another issue is sadly the one that you bring home and regards the ending of the film. It is supposed to be the scene with more tension, but the climax is ruined by the fact that you see the punch coming from miles, thus falling short in delivering the last impression you will have on the movie.
To sum up, Life is not a movie that I will remember for long, but it is probably a blockbuster that I would keep in my collection for some beer evening on the couch. It didn't fail to entertain me, regardless a concept not particularly original and the almost complete absence of a theme. There is something that resembles a reflection over the role of the scientific research in our society, but it is so sloppy that looks like an accident. If you don't expect some deep cinematographical sci-fi experience, you will probably enjoy your time in the theater.
Synopsys: Wolverine got old in an unspecified timeline of the X-Men universe. He is very much pissed off by how life is unfair: he is an Uber driver, he has a drinking problem, and he as to take care of Professor X that, in this timeline, has some problems with his powers. For a series of reasons, he finds himself in the role of protecting a young girl that has his powers and is chased by some random organization.
Logan is one of the most anticipated Marvel movies of the year, attracting a lot of attention due to the fact that, for once, it is rated R. Let's try to grasp the relevant aspects and remain spoiler-free.
The movie is filled with gruesome scenes, you can thus expect to see a lot of blood and limbs on a regular basis for the entire film. The consequence is fully representing the spirit of Wolverine for the first time on the big screen through a series of excellent action scenes. The character is built to be violent and the movie is very explicit in this sense. The effect is enhanced when we come to the little girl that is, to say the least, a little badass savage animal. On this point of view, the movie is very entertaining.
The main actors bring a very convincing performance. Logan is a broken man, Professor X is ill and filled with guilt, and the little girl really likes to cut people throat open. The three performances are consistent and deliver a good amount of emotion to the viewer. I can't say the same about the antagonists: their presence is constant but never charismatic. In other words, they are very disposable villains. I am almost sure you will not remember their names, why they do what they do, or what they do.
A possible reason for this underwhelming presence is that the main villain can be identified as the past of Logan, now constantly battling against himself, crushed by his past actions and losses.
The introspective aspect of what can be called the main theme is thus reflected in the challenges that our heroes have to face. However, the theme is not strong enough to fully define the purpose of this film. The quest is to save an innocent mutant from a mysterious evil organization; this is something we have already seen many times in this very franchise. The result is a movie that lacks meaning and purpose, it is, to a great extent, an empty movie.
For comparison, if you look today at the first two X-Men movies (early 2000's), you can recognize a deep theme (that was the role of discrimination in our society) and a plot that brings that theme to the viewer and made it awesome. The same philosophy was later transposed in more recent movies of the franchise, with results that went from bad to less good than the previous level. Here, the theme is new and well displayed by the actors, but not supported by a plot, by a context. The feeling is that, without the existence of the previous movies, this film would not entertain anyone beyond the action scenes: something that a YouTube clip could do as well, by making you save time.
Another issue, in a way related to the previous one, is that for the entire movie there are references to something happened in the past, one or more terrible events that shaped the current reality. The spotlight on this mystery is constant and, at times, strong. However, everything simply stays in the darkness, bringing that sense of emptiness. I am not saying that they should have explained, but if you focus so much on a mystery and you develop no aspect of it, the result is not going to be good or satisfying.
In conclusion, I wasn't displeased for spending my time to watch a movie that I was waiting for a fair amount of time. However, and this is something that I recognize on the faces of everyone in the theater with me, I was left with the feeling of a missed opportunity. The kind of feeling that makes harder to focus on the various good aspects of the movie.
