Rocky Horror Picture Show, 2016
How do you make a version of
Rocky Horror Picture Show that's appropriate to air on Fox from 8-10pm?
Yes, you're correct, it's a trick question. You can't.
After rewatching the original, I decided to check out the 2016 television remake, a film that reveals through its polish that it's not coming anywhere near the soul of the original, but rather staging a high-budget sing-along of sorts.
There are some things to praise about this ill-fated remake. I was excited to see Adam Lambert's name in the credits, and he turns his powerhouse voice to great use as Eddie the biker. Annaleigh Ashford (who I was not familiar with) is one of very few actors involved who seems willing to put her own spin on her character, channeling some of the vibe of the original but making certain line readings her own. Laverne Cox also seems to be having fun with her lead role of Frank.
HOWEVER. This whole film is like someone took the original and sanded off all of those rough edges that make it such a gem in the first place. I don't even know where to begin. Rocky wears board shorts instead of a speedo---does that register? Frank tells Janet that a mind "game" can be nice--yikes. The whole thing is lip synched and choreographed to a fault. The party-goers at this castle are all the same height and approximate age and have sexy Hollywood dancer bodies. And while Cox has a good time in her role, within the universe of the film there's not much freaky about her. Cox is a stunningly beautiful transgender woman, and there's nothing that alarming or edgy about the presentation of her character. A female Frank could easily work--that's not the problem. The problem is that from her makeup to her wardrobe to her dance moves it all reads as polished and glamorous, not edgy or outsider. This lack of grunge or spontaneity extends to the whole cast, and the whole film feels safe.
Ad Astra, 2019
I'm still mulling over how well I feel that the gorgeous visuals cohere with the central character story of a man searching for his long-lost father and grappling with his own sense of self.
Those visuals, by the way, are amazing. I recently watched ]B]The Lost City of Z[/b], and everything that I loved about the way that Gray portrayed the South American jungle applies to the way that he portrays outer space. It's a lovely balance of understanding how something can be beautiful and seductive and yet deadly at the same time.
Brad Pitt's central performance is incredibly strong. I have nothing against Brad Pitt, but to me he has always been an actor where I've never felt him vanish into a character. Even in roles I enjoy, I've always felt, "There is Brad Pitt, pretending to be _____." In this film, that dropped away and it felt very immersive to me. (I actually had a hard time with the supporting cast in this regard: "Hey! It's Loren Dean!" "Hey! It's Ruth Negga!" "Hey! It's Natasha Lyonne!") It's a nuanced performance from Pitt, in which every encounter seems to have both an external result and an internal one for the character.
I was definitely anticipating more of an action/thriller. And don't get me wrong: there are some heart-pounding, memorable action sequences. But the plot itself (energy surges and anti-matter pulses and secret missions) isn't what counts here. The search is really a man trying to find meaning in the world and understand his place in the universe. My only complaint was that I felt that the character's endpoint was a bit too evidence. But at the same time I can concede that it's not evident to the character himself, and watching him come to those realizations is rewarding.