Despite Dave Bautista and Kumail Nanjiani’s best efforts, the ride-along cop comedy “Stuber” can’t ever gain any speed thanks to a lame premise and dependence on annoying slapstick.
Coming off a small yet another amusing turn as Guardian of the Galaxy Drax in “Avengers: Endgame,” Bautista finds himself in one of the two lead roles in “Stuber,” about Stu (Nanjiani), an Uber driver – hence the nickname Stuber – who finds a ride from hell with Detective Vic Manning (Bautista). Vic has horrible vision without his glasses on, a condition that led to a tragedy involving his detective partner. Wisely, Vic gets Lasik surgery, but shortly after he had the procedure is done and his vision is still poor, the detective gets a tip about the criminal that’s been eluding him.
AUDIO: Tim reviews “Stuber” with Paul Douglas and Jordana Green on “Paul and Jordana” on WCCO-AM. Segment brought to you by Mike Bryant and Bradshaw & Bryant.
Vic’s only option is Stu the Uber driver, who reluctantly carts around the hard-hitting lawman, who seems to leave a thousands of dollars of damage in his wake everywhere he goes. And even though he’s hoping for a golden 5-star Uber rating for driving Vic around, Stu is hoping to get out of the mess as soon as he can so he can meet up with his business partner, Becca (Betty Gilpin), who he’s in love with but can’t quite muster up the courage to tell her.
There’s no question Bautista and Nanjiani make for a likeable duo in “Stuber,” but overall, the film relies too heavy on action comedy tropes that run the film right into the ground. Besides, a plot about a visually challenged cop who damn near kills people because he recklessly insists on getting bad guy is completely unrealistic and is more maddening than funny.
There’s a reason this film was dumped into an unfavorable summer slot the week after “Spider-Man: Far From Home” opens and a week before “The Lion King” dominates the box office. It’s a one-note comedy that will try to make a splash before it’s gone in theaters and likely forgotten.
Lammometer: 3 (out of 10)
AUDIO: Tim talks to the top movies of the summer (so far) and reviews “Stuber” with Tom Barnard on “The KQ Morning Show” on KQRS-FM. Segment brought to you by Mike Bryant and Bradshaw & Bryant.
Tim Lammers reviews movies weekly for “The KQ92 Morning Show,” “KARE 11 News at 11” (NBC), WCCO Radio, WJON-AM, KLZZ-FM, “The Tom Barnard Podcast” and “The BS Show” with Bob Sansevere.
Tom Holland is back in his second webslinger solo film in “Spider-Man: Far From Home,” a very entertaining follow-up to “Spider-Man: Homecoming” and first chapter in the Marvel Cinematic Universe post-“Avengers: End Game.” Fans will almost instantly feel that the new “Spider-Man” movie is considerably lighter feels more comic book than the momentous “Avengers: Endgame” and its predecessor “Avengers: Infinity War.”
While “Endgame” bid farewell to some pivotal team members including Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), those team members, “Far From Home” reminds us that while they are gone, they’re definitely not forgotten. “Far From Home” picks up, naturally, after the events of “Endgame,” where “the blip,” as everyone is deeming it, brought back the half of humanity that Thanos destroyed with a snap of the fingers at the end of “Avengers: Infinity War.” Among those returning after five years in cosmic limbo is Peter (Holland), who came back in time to help defeat Thanos, but saw Tony sacrifice himself to destroy the omnipotent enemy and his dark forces.
AUDIO: Listen to Tim’s review of “Spider-Man: Far From Home” with Paul Douglas and Jordana Green on “The Paul and Jordana Show” on WCCO-AM. Segment brought to you by Mike Bryant and Bradshaw & Bryant.
Still struggling with the loss of Tony in “Far From Home,” Spider-Man learns that there are still threats in the world that need superheroes like him to defend. Peter, for the time being, though, would rather ignore those threats and enjoy a simpler life, and take a class trip to Europe instead so he can tell MJ (Zendaya) how he really feels about her. He even wants to leave his Spider-Man suit behind, but Aunt May (the always wonderful Marisa Tomei) makes sure that doesn’t happen and Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau), also feeling a huge hole left in his life by Tony, is just a phone call away.
Also reminding Peter that he has obligations is Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), who purposefully interferes in the teen superhero’s plan to take on the destructive villains the Elementals, which appear to take shape of the natural elements to wreak havoc in different parts of the world. Fury has already joined forces with Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal), a mysterious, crimson caped crusader from another dimension on Earth, who no doubt possesses strong capabilities, yet could use someone the caliber of Spider-Man to end the Elementals threats for good. While he reluctantly takes part with Mysterio in the battle against the Elementals’ Molten Man, Spider-Man realizes that he shouldn’t have been so lax in upholding the justice around the world the way he should have, especially since Tony willed him a powerful tech weapon that could spell disaster if it falls into the wrong hands.
If you’re steeped in the “Spider-Man” comic book lore, it shouldn’t surprise you that not everything is as it seems in “Spider-Man: Far From Home” – and to that end, the more familiar you are with the comic book franchise, the quicker you’ll catch on to which direction the film will go. On the flip side, if you’re a casual fan of the series not necessarily versed in the webslinger’s stable of characters, mostly what you see in “Far From Home” will seem status quo until some big reveals in the third act which catch you by surprise. Either way, serious and casual fans should be entertained just the same when all is said and done, it’s just that diehards have a slight advantage with their knowledge of the material going in.
“Spider-Man: Far From Home” is strong on all fronts, and while Holland is charming, Gyllenhaal is impressive as usual and Jackson is his usual, entertaining badass self, director Jon Watts can’t help but put the trio in the middle of explosive third act that’s loaded with all the CGI that the film can muster. That’s not to say the visuals aren’t incredible (they’re in fact, refreshingly trippy at some points as Spidey enters different dimensions), it just feels par for the course for a genre movie. There is a huge payoff, though, as a mid-credits scene already lays out Peter’s path for the next “Spider-Man” movie with a pair of huge surprises, to boot. After the credits, too, is another revealing scene that, while not as eventful as the mid-credits scene, gives us an inkling what other MCU characters are up to post-“Avengers: Endgame.”
Speaking of “Endgame,” while “Spider-Man: Far From Home” doesn’t come close to matching the greatness of its MCU predecessors (not that any solo MCU film could have – “Endgame” and “Infinity War” was a massive undertaking), it definitely has a life on its own and suggests that the franchise as a whole has healthy legs sans Downey moving forward. “Far From Home” reminds us that there’s still a home for Marvel superhero movies on the big screen, even though the direction of where exactly the franchise is going isn’t mapped out yet.
Lammometer: 8 (out of 10)
Tim Lammers reviews movies weekly for “The KQ92 Morning Show,” “KARE 11 News at 11” (NBC), WCCO Radio, WJON-AM, KLZZ-FM, “The Tom Barnard Podcast” and “The BS Show” with Bob Sansevere.
A bright new day is dawning for the music of The Beatles with “Yesterday,” a funny, sweet and oftentimes poignant romantic comedy that examines the simple notion of a world never exposed to the music of the Fab Four until it’s brought to the fore in a most unusual way.
British TV actor and Hollywood newcomer Himesh Patel stars as Jack Malik, a struggling musician who concedes to his longtime manager Ellie Appleton (Lily James) that after 10 years after trying to make it the big time, he’s ready to call it a day with his career. Jack’s fortunes mystically change overnight, though, when, after a worldwide power blackout and his bike’s collision with a passenger bus, he wakes up to learn that people have never heard of the music of The Beatles.
AUDIO: Listen to Tim’s review of “Yesterday” with Tom Barnard on “The KQ Morning Show” on KQRS-FM. Segment brought to you by Mike Bryant and Bradshaw & Bryant.
Having memorized most of the songs by John Lennon and Paul McCartney by heart (moving versions of “Yesterday” and “The Long and Winding Road,” among them) Jack – realizing the profound impact the tunes have on everyone he plays them for – sheepishly decides to pass the songs off as his own, resulting in a meteoric rise to the top of the world’s music scene. But the more successful Jack becomes, the more guilty he feels about living the lie, and the more distant he feels from the true love of his life, Ellie, who seems to be left behind as Jack achieves the fame he was always looking for.
With a story by Jack Barth and Richard Curtis and a screenplay by Curtis (the genius behind “Four Weddings and Funeral,” “Love, Actually” and the undiscovered gem “About Time”), “Yesterday” is a complete breath of fresh air in the Hollywood’s ever-increasing stale environment of sequels and remakes. The source material is completely realized by director Danny Boyle, who adds visual pizzazz to the relatively simple story, which ultimately makes for one of the best films of 2019.
With the “Slumdog Millionaire” Oscar-winning director calling the shots, Boyle clearly had the clout to properly execute Barth and Curtis’ vision, and the first great movie was casting Patel – a relative unknown, at least to American audiences – in the crucial lead role. Patel is a complete revelation as Jack, a clearly talented musician who can not only sing and play guitar and piano but maintain a magnetic presence throughout the film. Patel’s performance is elevated by the undeniable charm of James, who continues to impress with every film she’s in. James’ character’s strength is matched her vulnerability, and complete realization of the role makes James completely relatable. Thanks to stunning turns in “Cinderella,” “Baby Driver” and now “Yesterday,” James has become Hollywood’s quintessential girl-next-door.
While Patel and James anchor “Yesterday,” the film is loaded with several key supporting performances, including “Saturday Night Live” star Kate McKinnon, who is wickedly hilarious as Jack’s agent, Joel Fry as Jack’s gloriously misinformed roadie and pop superstar Ed Sheeran as himself. Sheeran is particularly amazing, given he’s playing a heightened version of himself as he instantly recognized Jack’s talents and brings him aboard his tour as an opening act, effectively swinging his protégé’s door wide open to worldwide fame.
“Yesterday” wouldn’t be complete, though, without the music of The Beatles, as the film perfectly captures the hole left in pop culture as Jack encounters people clueless to the group’s music at every turn (similarly fascinating would be a scenario of a world that never knew Elvis Presley). And while there are arguments to be had with the “What if?” scenario of The Beatles music not existing (if John, Paul, George and Ringo weren’t around, how could the countless acts they influenced be?), Boyle, Curtis and Barth have clearly captured lightning in a bottle with “Yesterday,” as countless filmmakers are no doubt kicking themselves, asking, “Why didn’t I think of that?” On a smaller plane, the film also examines people’s trajectories had not everything in life gone according to plan, resulting in a moment that is bound to leave audience members with goosebumps.
No matter whose idea great art is, somebody has to break the mold to make classic music as The Beatles did, and as it relates to film, “Yesterday,” is a perfectly-formed collaboration of filmmakers and actors who collectively crafted a near-perfect movie. Sure, it’s a fantasy movie that can’t be completely described but only experienced in person in order to realize its full impact; but fans will be happy to know that it has the same sort of life-altering impact that The Beatles had on people when their music was heard and felt all those years ago. “Yesterday” is not only a movie for today, but many tomorrows to come.
Lammometer: 9 (out of 10)
AUDIO: Tim reviews “Yesterday” and more with Paul Douglas and Jordana Green on “Paul & Jordana” on WCCO-AM. Segment brought to you by Mike Bryant and Bradshaw & Bryant.
Tim Lammers reviews movies weekly for “The KQ92 Morning Show,” “KARE 11 News at 11” (NBC), WCCO Radio, WJON-AM, KLZZ-FM, “The Tom Barnard Podcast” and “The BS Show” with Bob Sansevere.
Nearly 24 years after the original film revolutionized the movie industry, the wow factor is as big as ever for the “Toy Story” franchise with “Toy Story 4,” a funny, emotional and visually stunning family film that is every bit as great as each one of its predecessors.
Even though it’s been nine years since the release of the tear-jerker “Toy Story 3,” the fourth installment in the Disney-Pixar franchise is set directly after the events of the last film, where Andy gifted his beloved toys Woody the Cowboy (voice of Tom Hanks), Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen), Jessie the Cowgirl (Joan Cusack) and a host of others to a young girl named Bonnie (Madeleine McGraw), who loves her new play pals every bit as much as Andy did. However, she’s not allowed to bring any toys to her kindergarten orientation, so during playtime she creates a new toy out of a plastic fork and calls it Forky (Tony Hale) and forms an instant bond with the odd-looking utensil-turned-toy.
AUDIO: Tim reviews “Toy Story 4” with Tom Barnard on “The KQ Morning Show” on KQRS-FM. Segment brought to you by Mike Bryant and Bradshaw & Bryant.
But when her family takes one last trip before school starts and Forky flies out of an open window in their RV, Woody springs into action to save Forky, knowing how much it will devastate Bonnie if she loses her new best friend. The quest leads Woody to an antique shop, where he finds the porcelain statute Bo Peep (Annie Potts), from whom he was separated from years before (the character only appeared in “Toy Story” and “Toy Story 2”).
Getting Bo Peep and Forky out of the shop isn’t so easy for Woody, though, as the antique doll Gabby Gabby (Christina Hendricks) and multiple versions of the ventriloquist dummy Benson (Steve Purcell) try to thwart their big plans.
Like the “Toy Story” films before it, “Toy Story 4” is bolstered by an original story that manages to capture the imaginations of kids of all ages, whether through relatable situations for everyone involved and the adult nostalgia that resurfaces as the film visits toys from yesteryear. Naturally, the action in toy story in completely engaging and situations and dialogue is laugh-out loud funny, but amping up the comedy is the sly employment of Gabby Gabby and the ventriloquist dummies as the film’s villains, who have a natural creepy quality about them. It’s not the sort of creepiness that won’t scare little kids, however, as the characters’ presence is really there to evoke memories and nervous laughter from its adult audience members who once owed (and were petrified) by the vintage playthings.
Also providing for huge laughs is the introduction of new characters, including the stuffed animal duo of Ducky (Keegan-Michael Key) and Bunny (Jordan Peele), and the Duke McBoom (Keanu Reeves), the Canadian version of action figure and motorcycle rider Evel Knievel. The characters perfectly fit in with the menagerie of toys the “Toy Story” films have introduced to us over the years, including Hamm (John Ratzenberger), Rex (Wallace Shawn), Dolly (Bonnie Hunt), Trixie (Kristen Schaal), Mr. Pricklepants (Timothy Dalton), Slinky Dog (Blake Clark) and Buttercup (Jeff Garlin) – who all appear once again in this fourth chapter.
For as many feel great vibes that “Toy Story 4” gives, the film is rounded out by its emotion, so get ready to shed the same amount of tears in the film’s third act as you did at the conclusion of “Toy Story 3” when Andy bid farewell to his longtime toy pals. Like “Toy Story 3,” there’s a feeling of finality with “Toy Story 4,” as the film is indeed – at least for now – the last film in the “Toy Story” film series. Easily one of the best films (if not the best) this year so far, there’s no doubt that this final adventure will not only be admired for years, but for generations to come.
Lammometer: 10 (out of 10)
Tim Lammers reviews movies weekly for The KQ92 Morning Show,” “KARE 11 News at 11” (NBC), WCCO Radio, WJON-AM, KLZZ-FM, “The Tom Barnard Podcast” and “The BS Show” with Bob Sansevere.
AUDIO: Tim reviews “Toy Story 4” and “Dumbo” (new on video) with Henry Lake on “The Paul and Jordana” show on WCCO-AM. Segment brought to you by Mike Bryant and Bradshaw & Bryant.
