1982: Greatest Geek Year Ever!
1982: Greatest Geek Year Ever!
1982: Greatest Geek Year Ever!
Collector’s Edition (MVD Blu-ray)
Was 1982 a miracle year in cinema? The critics, directors, writers and cast interviewed for this superbly assembled documentary all agree that something special happened that year. 1982 saw the release of E.T., Poltergeist, Blade Runner, The Thing, The Wrath of Khan … like all of them or not, they made an impact still felt today. Much of what is now formulaic seemed new back then. Leonard Maltin, a freshly-minted TV film critic at that time, recalls that the wonder of 1982 escaped him as it was happening—but affirms that the contrast between then and now is hard to miss.
What happened next is one of the persistent questions asked in Roger Lay Jr.’s documentary. In the early ‘80s the venturesome auteurism of the ‘70s lost its cynicism and found hope. Several commentators ascribe this to Ronald Reagan, not his policies as much as his persona. The studios had not yet been entirely consolidated into units of transnational corporations and were still competing for new ideas. The phenomenal success of Star Wars opened the studios to science fiction and the genre flourished, without the doubtful benefit of CGI.
“High concept” became Hollywood’s goal, but the concepts had the capacity to provoke reflection as well as provide entertainment. Aside from a struggle against evil, Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan was a meditation on responsibility, aging and mortality. Roger Corman comments that when the major studios realized there was money to be made in genres such as horror and science fiction, the indies “knew we’d be in trouble” competing against big budgets. Generation X grew up in the ‘80s roaming free from cell phones and helicopter parents. Catching a ride to the movies was an escape into an imaginative world where fantasy commented on reality.
The Collector’s Edition of 1982 features audio commentary by the director, deleted scenes and other bonus material. (David Luhrssen)
Gladiator II
(In Theaters Nov. 22)
Twenty-four years after making the original Gladiator, 86-year-old Ridley Scott returns to direct this sequel. He casts Paul Mescal as Lucius, the exiled son of Maximus (Russell Crowe, the heroic gladiator of the original) and Lucilla (Connie Nielsen). Sent to Africa as a child, Lucius becomes a warrior in Numidia, captured when General Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal) arrives to conquer North Africa.
Landing in Rome in chains, Lucius, (his true identity unknown), is trained by former slave turned gladiator-wrangler Macrinus (Denzel Washington). Lucius prevails in the arena before his mother, Lucilla, discovers his true identity. She and Macrinus harbor separate plots to overthrow Rome’s cruel brother emperors (Joseph Quinn and Fred Hechinger). Scott employs CGI to flood the colosseum for a contest between battleships in shark infested waters, or to pit unarmed human combatants against a pack of crazed baboons, or to place a murderous gladiator astride a jewel-encrusted rhinoceros. At two-and-a-half hours, this action-packed epic delivers on thrills. Doses of humor and drama round out a crowd-pleaser that nevertheless seems more like a remake than a sequel. (Lisa Miller)
Wicked
(In Theaters Nov. 22)
Set in the land of Oz, this origin story details the ascendence of Glinda the Good Witch (Ariana Grande) along with the fall of Elphaba, who becomes the Wicked Witch of the West (Cynthia Erivo). The film adapts the successful Broadway musical, itself adapted from the 1995 book, Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, by Gregory Maguire. The story imagines that before becoming wicked, Elphaba is a gifted young sorceress betrayed by the Wizard of Oz (Jeff Goldblum) who conspires with Elphaba’s professor of sorcery (Michelle Yeoh). Glinda and Elphaba meet as freshman roommates at Shiz University and develop a friendship until both women fall for the same handsome student (Jonathan Bailey). The writers leave the musical largely intact, adding more scenes and songs to stretch the screenplay into two films (the second part due in 2025). Director Jon M. Chu works in glassy pastels that can be fearsome, or soothing depending upon his color combinations. He’ll need to cast just the right spell “My Pretty,” if he’s to equal the Broadway musical’s billion-dollar-box-office take. (Lisa Miller)
Bonhoeffer: Pastor. Spy. Assassin.
(In Theaters: Nov. 22)
Portrayed by Jonas Dassler, Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a Christian scholar who opposed Hitler’s efforts to unify Germany’s churches under the Fuhrer's leadership. Born in 1906 into a family of eight children, this biopic from Angel Studios, chronicles how Bonhoeffer’s theological education shaped his beliefs. Studying in Berlin and London, Bonhoeffer briefly visited New York City where he connected with Harlem’s Black churches. Well-known for his theological writings, Bonhoeffer returned to Germany, joining a small group of Christian leaders who refused orders to detach Christianity from Judaism. The extent of Bonhoeffer’s role in a plot to assassinate Hitler, is a subject of conjecture for writer-director Todd Komarnicki’s screenplay. His non-linear dramatization depicts events in no particular order. Dassler’s portrayal is praised, although the confusing timeline lessens the film’s impact. (Lisa Miller)
