Maggie (2015 film)

Directed by Henry Hobson and written by John Scott 3, Maggie is the story of a young girl who had been bitten by a zombie as she turns to her father for help who struggles to take care of her just as she is declining. The film is an unusual zombie movie where a man deals with what happened to his daughter as well as struggling to contain her humanity. Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Abigail Breslin, and Joely Richardson. Maggie is a chilling yet somber film from Henry Hobson.

Set in a post-apocalyptic zombie epidemic in the American Midwest, the film revolves a man who takes his daughter home after she had been bitten by a zombie as he struggles with her condition and wonder if she could be cured or not. It’s a film that is about the possibility of death coming as well as what a father is dealing with as he wonders if he would lose his daughter. John Scott 3’s screenplay begins with the titular character (Abigail Breslin) talking on her phone though it’s only heard through dialogue as nothing is shown until her father Wade Vogler (Arnold Schwarzenegger) drives through a war-torn city to pick her up as he is forced to face the reality of what might happen to his daughter. Upon returning home where his wife Caroline (Joely Richardson) is getting ready to send their two youngest children Bobby and Molly (Aiden and Carsen Flowers, respectively) to their aunt out of fear that Maggie might harm them.

It adds to the dramatic stake as Caroline is wondering when her stepdaughter will change as she eventually leaves while Wade also realizes what is happening around him as he would encounter two people he knew who have become zombies prompting to take action. Yet, he also copes with the fact they were once people as he has to contend with what will happen to his daughter who is aware of what is happening to her. Even as she tries to maintain some normalcy, she also knows what will happen as she doesn’t want to be quarantined where other zombies that she know would be sent to. Especially as there’s local police who are telling Wade to do something or else they would have to handle it themselves prompting Wade to decide on what he will do for his daughter.

Henry Hobson’s direction is straightforward in terms of the compositions as it doesn’t go for a lot of style by maintaining a sense of restraint in terms of the zombie violence in favor of the dramatic stakes of the film. Shot on location in areas near New Orleans as parts of Kansas and Kansas City, the film does play into something that does feel like a Midwestern film with its fields and farms as some of them are being burned with people no longer part of traditional society. While there are some wide shots, Hobson would emphasize more on medium shots and close-ups for the dramatic elements including a few scenes of suspense such as Wade encountering the two zombies. Still, Hobson just keep things straightforward while maintaining that air of suspense of when Maggie will fully become a zombie as he builds up very slowly and with a restraint. Especially in the third act as Maggie’s condition worsen where she struggles to retain whatever is left of her humanity and Wade doing everything he can as he tries to accept the inevitable. Yet, there are a few moments during the second act between Wade and Maggie as they talk about Maggie’s late mother whom Wade loves as it would be a simple and tender moment that would be key to its climax in what Maggie wants to retain the most. Overall, Hobson crafts a riveting yet touching film about a man dealing with his daughter becoming a zombie.

Cinematographer Lukas Ettlin does excellent work with the film’s cinematography with its emphasis on low-key yet de-saturated colors for much of the film to play into stark weather of the exteriors as well as some scenes set at night. Editor Jane Rizzo does brilliant work with the editing as it is straightforward for much of it with some rhythmic cuts to play into the suspense. Production designer Gabor Norman, with set decorator Ryan Martin Dwyer and art director Frank Zito, does fantastic work with the look of the hospital in the film’s early scenes as well as the home where Wade and his family lived in. Costume designer Claire Breaux does nice work with the costumes as it is mostly casual for what the characters wear.

The special makeup effects work of Bailey Domke, Marcos Gonzales, Elvis Jones, and Matthew O’Toole is amazing for the way the zombies look as well as how Maggie would look through each passing day through its effects. Visual effects supervisor Ed Chapman does terrific work with some of the film’s minimal visual effects as it relate to a fox as well as a few of the flashbacks involving zombies. Sound designer Chris Terhune does superb work with the sound from the way it creates sound effects to what Maggie is hearing in her deteriorating condition to some of the things that are presented naturally on location. The film’s music by David Wingo is wonderful for its low-key score that is mainly driven by piano with some string instruments to play into the film’s somber tone while music supervisor Laura Katz creates a soundtrack that features some contemporary music in the background including a song performed by Oscar Brown Jr.

The casting by Ryan Glorioso is great as it feature some notable small roles from Aiden and Carsen Flowers in their respective roles as Maggie’s half siblings Bobby and Molly, Raeden Greer as a friend of Maggie in Allie, Bryce Romero as another friend of Maggie in Trent who is also infected, Jodie Moore as Dr. Vern Kaplan who examines Maggie, Rachel Whitman Groves as a neighbor of Wade, J.D. Evermore as a cop named Holt who wants to take Maggie to quarantine, and Douglas M. Griffin as Sheriff Ray Pierce who knows Maggie and wants Wade to deal with her. Joely Richardson is excellent as Wade’s wife/Maggie’s stepmother Caroline who is concerned about what is happening to Maggie as she tries not to create any problems knowing there’s tension between the two as she realizes what she has to do when she knows what will happen to Maggie.

Abigail Breslin is incredible as the titular character as this teenage girl who deals with being bitten by a zombie as well as her deteriorating condition as she struggles to retain whatever humanity she has left as well as know what will happen to her. Finally, there’s Arnold Schwarzenegger in a sensational performance as Wade Vogler as Maggie’s father who is forced to deal with what is daughter is becoming as he also carries a sense of loss and need to protect her as it’s this very restrained and world-weary performance from Schwarzenegger who sheds the action badass persona he’s known for to play someone normal without overdoing it.

Maggie is a marvelous film from Henry Hobson that features great performances from Arnold Schwarzenegger and Abigail Breslin. Along with its ensemble cast and unusual take on the zombie sub-genre, it’s a film that does contain some of its trope but is more about a father and daughter relationship in which a man copes with the fact that he might be losing his daughter. In the end, Maggie is a remarkable film from Henry Hobson.

© thevoid99 2017

Little Miss Sunshine

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 9/4/06 w/ Additional Edits & Revisions.

Directed by Jonathan Dayton & Valerie Faris and written by Michael Arndt, Little Miss Sunshine is the story of a family who go on a road trip to take their young daughter to a beauty pageant as it includes a drug-addicted grandfather, a suicidal gay uncle, and a son who hasn't spoken in months. The film is a unique road film of sorts that explores a family and their dysfunctions as they all deal with setbacks while getting a young girl to a beauty pageant in California. Starring Greg Kinnear, Toni Collette, Steve Carell, Paul Dano, Abigail Breslin, and Alan Arkin. Little Miss Sunshine is a phenomenal film from Jonathan Dayton & Valerie Faris.

The film is a simple story about a family from Albuquerque, New Mexico who go on a road trip to California that a young girl named Olive (Abigail Breslin) can compete in the Little Miss Sunshine beauty pageant. Yet, not everyone is on board as Olive's father Richard (Greg Kinnear) is trying to score for a book deal for an idea he has as a motivational speaker. Adding to the chaos is Richard's stepson Dwayne (Paul Dano) who hasn't spoken in nine months in a vow of silence as he's obsessed with the work of Nietzsche while Richard's brother-in-law Frank (Steve Carell) is recovering from a suicide attempt due to a break-up with his boyfriend who left him for his rival. It would take Richard's wife Sheryl (Toni Collette) and Richard's father Edwin (Alan Arkin) to rally the family to go on this trip where a lot of major setbacks involving the family ensue. Much of it would play into the idea of failure that is prevalent around them where upon their arrival to California for Olive's pageant, some of the family fear that Olive will endure the same kind of humiliation and devastation they had been through.

Michael Ardnt's script takes it time to explore many of the dysfunction of the family as Edwin is a heroin addict who got kicked out of his retirement home as he would be the one teaching Olive how to dance for the upcoming pageant. Ardnt's approach to the script does have a lot of tropes and conventions that is expected in a road film but adds a lot of layers into the idea that a family might face failure and the whole trip would've been for nothing. Even as characters like Frank and Dwayne are individuals who are on the brink of depression as the latter is hoping to become a pilot by going into this act of silence. Adding to the tension is Richard as he has this theory about being a winner yet his thoughts would rub the family the wrong way as it would play into Olive's insecurities until her grandfather has this great monologue about what being a loser really means and says that Olive is none of those things because at least she's trying. Much of Richard's ideas would be ironic as he would put his own family finances and such into great danger as the third act is about Olive at the pageant. It's a moment in the film where it tests the sense of hopelessness of the family and what they might face as Olive is clearly the underdog against a bunch of young, sexualized girls in the pageant.

Directors Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris help create that spontaneity of the road film by adding a lot of situations like a family pushing the van while running after it to get in or the repeated honks of it. They also give each character something to do while dealing with their own situations as when they together, it works. When it comes to the comedy, it's very natural and often deadpan from the likes of Carrell and Dano who play the more miserable personalities dealing with their own situations. Then when the third act comes for the world of young little beauty pageants. It shows a world that can be very discomforting, even with the recent event concerning the Jon Benet murder 10 years ago. Still, Dayton & Faris don't exactly make fun of it nor take it totally serious as they show what it is and how people react to it. Overall, they created a wonderfully funny, heartfelt film that brings in a lot of caring moments and huge laughs.

Helping out Dayton/Faris in their visual presentation is cinematographer Tim Suhrstedt whose color schemes of yellow highlight the American Southwest of its vast deserts while the interiors have some nice, grainy shades of blue as the film is wonderfully shot to convey the vastness of the road. Production designer Kalina Ivanov along with art director Alan E. Muraoka and set decorator Melissa M. Lavender do great job in capturing the realism of the dysfunctional family home while doing a great job on the design of the pageant in all of its cheesy glory. Costume designer Nancy Steiner does great work in presenting the bland clothing of the adults with the exception of Alan Arkin's character while giving Paul Dano some cool t-shirts to wear while the real standout in the clothing goes to Abigail Breslin from the headbands, the boots, and everything including her costume.

Editor Pamela Martin does some great work in the editing playing to the rhythm of a road film with some jump cuts and perspective cutting to convey what the characters feeling while giving time for a specific scene. Sound editor Stephen P. Robinson and mixer Steven Morrow also do great work in conveying the humor of the film, particularly the honking of the van-bus which makes everything funny. Composer Mychael Danna along with the group Devotchka create a whimsical, offbeat score that also includes music by Sulfjan Steven and some beauty pageant music that is cheesy with the exception of an 80s funk classic.

Finally, there's the film's great cast that includes some funny small performances from Geoff Meed as a biker, Dean Norris as a state trooper, Robert J. Connor as the pageant host, Mary Lynn Rajskub as a pageant official, Julio Oscar Mechoso as a mechanic, and the incomparable Beth Grant in a very funny performance as a pageant official. Other notable minor roles from Bryan Cranston as Richard's agent, Stan Grossman and Justin Shilton as Frank's ex-boyfriend Josh are excellent in their brief appearances to convey the problems for the respective characters of Richard and Frank.

Of the main cast, no one conveys the showiness of comedy better than Alan Arkin as the grandfather. Arkin brings all of the troubling and discomforting innuendos of a drug-addict grandfather who says all the wrong things that disturbs the family while being very supportive of Olive as he teaches her to dance as Arkin brings all the right humor. Paul Dano gives probably his best performance to date as the moody Dwayne where in the film's first half, Dano brings a lot of humor with the things he writes in a notepad while not saying anything. When Dano breaks down, he channels a lot of angst while he has great chemistry with Steve Carell.

Steve Carell proves his comedic genius by going into minimalism as he plays a moody, quiet suicidal professor who brings a lot of funny moments by doing so little and not saying much. Carell, like Bill Murray who was considered for the role, proves that showiness doesn't have to be the only way to be funny as Carell brings a lot of depth to a character who is going through a lot of troubles and frustration as its one of his best performances. Greg Kinnear also proves his brilliance as an actor in comedy and drama as a man filled with irony as someone who talks about winning but is really a total loser. Kinnear brings a lot of struggle and depth to a man who tries his best for his family but ends up saying the wrong things and tries to find ways to do right as Kinnear proves himself to be a very versatile actor.

If Dano and Carell brings misery, Arkin brings misogyny, and Kinnear brings a straightforwardness, Toni Collette is the glue that brings everyone together. The Australian actress who knows how to pull off an American accent is great as the maternal figure of the family who tries to get everyone back on their feet while dealing with frustration of their dysfunctions. Collette also shines in being the normal one of the family as she stands out with her comedic talents and drama as she brings out another great performance. If Collette is the glue that keeps the cast together, it's the young Abigail Breslin who is the heart of the movie. Breslin steals the show as the optimistic Olive whose chance to compete for a beauty pageant comes true. Breslin brings a lot of depth to a young girl wanting to have her family on her side despite their dysfunctions while dealing with her own physical features as it's the family that supports her. Breslin is the real breakthrough as she proves her worth in every scene, especially her dance in the competition as she knocks everyone dead.

Little Miss Sunshine is a phenomenal film from Jonathan Dayton & Valerie Faris as it features a great cast, an amazing script, and strong themes about family. It's a film that is very accessible to families while not being afraid to say crass language and such that is controversial. Yet, it plays true to what families go through and not matter the obstacles they face. They always come together to beat the odds. In the end, Little Miss Sunshine is a tremendous film from Jonathan Dayton & Valerie Faris.

Jonathan Dayton & Valerie Faris Films: Ruby Sparks - Battle of the Sexes (2017 film)

© thevoid99 2014

Rango

Directed by Gore Verbinski and screenplay by John Logan from a story by Verbinski, Logan, and James Ward Byrkit, Rango is about a pet chameleon who finds himself in a desert town where he becomes an unlikely sheriff to fight off villains. The animated film is a modern-day approach to the western as it features various film references while making it accessible for a wider audience. With a voice cast led by Johnny Depp, Isla Fisher, Abigail Breslin, Ned Beatty, Alfred Molina, Bill Nighy, Harry Dean Stanton, Ray Winstone, and Timothy Olyphant. Rango is a stylish and very entertaining animated-western from Gore Verbinski.

An unnamed pet chameleon (Johnny Depp) gets stranded somewhere in the middle of the desert where he meets a wounded armadillo named Roadkill (Alfred Molina) who is trying to find the mysterious Spirit of the West. With the chameleon trying to survive the hot desert and its surroundings, he meets up with a desert iguana named Bean (Isla Fisher) who is a rancher’s daughter trying to save her land. She takes the chameleon to a town called Dirt as the locals are trying to deal with a water shortage where the chameleon ends up calling himself Rango where he deals with a small posse led by Bad Bill (Ray Winstone) and later a hawk whom he accidentally kills. Rango’s antics impress the town’s mayor (Ned Beatty) who appoints him as sheriff as Rango’s claims of his adventures has him trying to figure out the water shortage.

Rango gathers a posse that includes Bean to figure out what’s going on as the water jug bank had been stolen by a group of moles led by Balthazar (Harry Dean Stanton). During the journey, Rango and the posse makes some discovery as they retrieve the jug only to realize something is up where Balthazar isn’t the one they’re after. Rango suspects that the mayor is involved since he states that he who controls the water controls everything where Rango is forced to deal with a vicious gunslinger named Rattlesnake Jake (Bill Nighy). After revealing what he really is, Rango reluctantly leaves town until he meets the mystical Spirit of the West (Timothy Olyphant) who provides him with the answers Rango needs.

The film is essentially a modern-day genre-bending film where a pet chameleon, with a wild sense of imagination, suddenly finds himself in a Western town where he faces a world of corruption where a bunch of locals are finding hope in this horrible drought. That’s pretty much what the film is about as it’s filled with numerous film references including the classic westerns of Sergio Leone and Roman Polanski’s Chinatown in relation to the drought storyline. Screenwriter John Logan does manage to infuse these storylines and film references to create a very compelling yet fun western that is filled with lots of silly humor and character development. Notably for the titular character who is just a lizard that likes to act as indicated in the opening scene while he realizes that he might have to go full-on with this role.

While the script is sort of predictable in its set-up and creating characters that are essentially archetypes of various characters in the western genre. They all manage to still be very interesting and engaging while Logan also adds surreal elements that play up with the genre. Overall, Logan creates a very crafty and thrilling script that doesn’t get boring and create a western that does a lot for what is expected in its genre.

Gore Verbinski’s direction is definitely full of style as he creates lots of wide compositions, character close-ups and scenery where some of it is really a tribute to the visual style of Sergio Leone. The animation from supervisor Hal T. Hickel is truly whimsical in the way Verbinski wants to create this world where it’s a clash between the old world and a new one that the mayor wants. With additional help from renowned cinematographer Roger Deakins for the visuals, Verbinski is able to create a look that is true to the western but also dream-like for some of its nighttime scenes. Overall, Verbinski creates a truly engaging and visually-astonishing film that brings more to what an animated-western does and make it a whole lot of fun.

Editor Craig Wood does superb work with the editing to play up with some of the film‘s humor and suspense along with some amazing rhythmic cuts for a huge chase scene and stylized ones for the showdowns. Production designer Mark “Crash” McCreery, along with art directors John Bell and Aaron McBride, does excellent work in the set pieces created for the town of Dirt where everything looks decayed. Visual effects supervisor John Knoll does fantastic work with the visual effects to play up some of the surreal imagery that Rango encounters in his journey. Sound designer Peter Miller and sound editor Addison Teague do amazing work with the sound to help set a mood for some of the film‘s suspense and in the showdowns that occur.

The film’s score by Hans Zimmer is marvelous for its mixture of bombast and orchestral flourishes that is also very operatic. Notably as the score is very similar to the music of Ennio Morricone with its huge arrangements, twangy guitars, and blaring trumpets to help set the mood. Along with some contributions from Johann Strauss and Richard Wagner to play with the score and contributions from Los Lobos for some of the original songs and the industrial band Lard in the score. The music that Zimmer creates is definitely one of his best as it’s a major highlight of the film.

The voice casting by Denise Chaiman is brilliant for the cast that is assembled as the actors that contribute to smaller characters in the film include Beth Grant, Vincent Kartheiser, Alana Ulbach, Chris Parsons, Blake Clark, Patrika Darbo, director Gore Verbinski, and Stephen Root who voices some of the characters including the bank manager Merrimack. Other notable small voice roles include Timothy Olyphant as the mysterious Spirit of the West, Alfred Molina as the Don Quixote armadillo Roadkill, Abigil Breslin as the witty cactus mouse Priscilla, Ray Winstone as the gila monster Bad Bill, and Harry Dean Stanton as the old-timer mole Balthazar. Bill Nighy is excellent as the cool, Lee Van Cleef-inspired villain Rattlesnake Jake while Ned Beatty is funny in doing a great John Huston impression as the town’s corrupt mayor. Isla Fisher is wonderful as the cunning desert Iguana Beans who tries to fight for her land while helping Rango out. Finally, there’s Johnny Depp in a fantastic performance as the titular character as he brings a lot of humor and swagger to his character making it one of the most enjoyable animated characters on film.

Rango is an extraordinarily rich and whimsical animated film from Gore Verbinski. Thanks to a very talented voice cast led by Johnny Depp, the film is truly an animated film that appeals more than just a young audience. Notably as it features numerous film references that film buffs can enjoy and elements of the western that western aficionados can love. In the end, Rango is a superb animated-western from Gore Verbinski.

Gore Verbinski Films: (MouseHunt) - (The Mexican) - (The Ring (2002 film)) - (Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl) - (The Weather Man) - (Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest) - (Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End) - (Lone Ranger (2013 film))

© thevoid99 2012