Sully
Directed by Clint Eastwood
Written by Todd Komarnicki, adapted from the book by Chesley Sullenberger

Rarely do true heroes want accolades and admiration, think police officers, fire fighters, doctors, etc., instead most of them are quick to say that they were simply doing their job. In Clint Eastwood’s new film, Sully, he depicts the pilot Capt. Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger (Tom Hanks) as a stoic, no frills type of hero. This isn’t a film about a man wearing a cape saving the world, instead it is about a man who saved dozens of lives or “souls” as he says, and lived to tell the story that would forever define his life.

The film is set on the real life events that occurred on January 15, 2009, also known as the “Miracle on the Hudson,” when US Airways flight 1549 was set off course by a flock of geese that crippled both engines. Instead of heading back to La Guardia airport as suggested by radio air traffic controllers, Sully and his co-pilot Jeffrey Zaslow (Aaron Exckhart) made the decision to land the plane on the Hudson River. A feat never done before and one that is rarely if ever successful. The plane landed in the water and every single passenger and aircrew member survived. To say that what happened that day was a miracle, is an understatement.

Much like Eastwood’s most notable previous film American Sniper, he once again brings audiences up-close and personal through life and death matters. The traumatic event isn’t shown as expected, as in the beginning of the movie, instead the events are shown in a dispersed manner. They are cut with Sully’s nightmares of what could have been that day, scenes that look reminiscent 9/11, with the plane coming tremendously close and exploding into New York City buildings. One of the main features of the film that I enjoyed was that all the credit was not given to Sully, the point is made that it was a combined effort of the pilots, first responders, and everyone involved in the rescue that made this event not turn into a disaster.

The film vacillates between the heroic landing and the life that Sully must now endure, he is now a hero in the face of the public, but in his eyes he was just doing his job. He used his over 40 years of aviation experience and gut instincts to nail the landing and do what he knew was right in order to save everyone. Sully remains uncomfortable with the limelight and when he walks into a NYC bar and sees his face all over the television, he almost doesn’t want to look up and see the news. He can’t seem to contend with that fact. The bartender quickly recognizes him and serves him a drink aptly created after the incident, a grey goose on the rocks with water, of course. We get light moments like this throughout the film, but the majority of it is tense and a bit nerve-wrecking, despite the fact that we know everyone will survive.

Although he was considered a hero, Sully must face the National Transportation Safety Board and withstand the second-guessing of his actions by investigators Charles Porter (Mike O’Malley) and Elizabeth Davis (Anna Gunn), who believe that he could have gone back to La Guardia without endangering everyone onboard by performing an emergency water landing. The courtroom scenes despite being repetitive were pivotal in helping the audience understand that what Sully did was the right thing and that without his quick-thinking actions it could have been a national disaster.

Hanks delivers on every level, his performance was subtle and nuanced. There was no dramatic breakdown, or moment where he empties out the mini-bar, instead we get the feeling that Sully is an everyman type of guy who loves his wife and family and just wants to do his job. Hanks remained calm and collected and didn’t over-perform the role, which in this case completely worked. Hanks’ performance took me back to the years where it seemed that he was winning an Oscar every year. It is likely that he could get nominated for his portrayal and it will be well-deserved.

Eastwood hit it out of the park with this one and I enjoyed every minute of the film. This movie deserves to be seen and if you enjoy dramas Sully is the one to watch.

}}Melissa

Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping
Written by Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer, Jorma Taccone
Directed by Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone

The guys from Lonely Island, best known for their hilarious SNL digital shorts where they typically team up with famous singers or actors and make faux music videos, were finally handed the keys to make their own full-length feature film. Naturally they took their usual style and spin on music and created a mockumentary about a Justin Bieber-esque character. In the film Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, we see the rise and fall of the legendary rapper and pop star Conner 4 Real (Andy Samberg). The film is treated literally like a documentary, there are pauses where they ask to turn the camera off and subtitles for when the subjects are talking too low for the mic to catch.

Conner 4 Real was once a member of the notorious Style Boyz, think the Beastie Boys mixed with the Backstreet Boys, he and his childhood friends Owen (Jorma Taccone) and Lawrence (Akiva Schaffer) started the group out of their backyard and became mega stars. One of their most popular albums and songs was the Donkey Roll, a song that even had a dance to go with it. While the backstory is played, they show home videos from when the guys were young and interject them with interviews from such notorious artists as Nas, 50 Cent, Pharrell Williams, and Usher, all who talk about how the Style Boyz touched their lives and inspired their music. This touch makes the movie pretty funny and laughable.

The problem lies in that Conner 4 Real leaves the Style Boyz to become a solo artist, in the process disowning Lawrence and hiring Owen to be his backup DJ, where in Owen just becomes another one of his people he bosses around. Conner is now a huge star and does the craziest of concerts, with everything from set changes, a Daft punk like helmet for Owen to wear on stage, and multiple holograms of Adam Levine. The film follows the release of his newest album, Connquest, one where he has now gone above and beyond with ludicrous lyrics and horrible beats. Conner like many stars of today is followed by minions of “yes” men, basically an entourage of people who just tell him how great he is all the time, so he can’t see how crappy his music has really turned out.

All Owen wants is for Conner to realize how crappy his music has really turned out and for the Style Boyz to get back together. Lawrence is now stuck on a farm doing really random weird things like whittling wood and hanging out with goats, and doesn’t want anything to do with Conner. His manager (Tim Meadows) also tries to steer him in the right direction, but he just won’t listen. What ensues from here is a journey in which Conner has to realize who he is and how to reconnect back with his passion for music.

The movie was really funny, I found myself laughing nonstop at many of the ridiculous moments. I could see this film becoming a staple for college kids to watch. There’s not much substance to the film though but I am not sure how much of it is it supposed to have? I mean it’s a movie about a ridiculous Vanilla Ice slash Justin Bieber type character. I can’t pinpoint it one hundred percent, but I left feeling like something was missing. The film served its purpose in being hysterical, but it almost just felt like a really long SNL sketch.

Samberg and Taccone were hilarious and did a great job at creating many funny sarcastic scenes. Meadows always delivers in his usual cynical and ironic tone. The cameos in this film worked because they only made the material even more absurd. Especially Will Arnett who plays a character like Harvey Levin from TMZ, sipping tons of water and laughing at celebrities like they do on the show.

The film is a great one to watch if you are in the mood to just sit back and laugh. If you are looking for something with more substance and an edge, then this is not the movie for you. Overall, the Lonely Island men did a great job of making me laugh nonstop and if you are a fan of their digital shorts, then you will definitely enjoy this flick.

}}Melissa