Tag: Korean War

DEVOTION(2022) – Review

It’s important to keep in mind when sitting down to the big holiday meal in a day or so, that many families will have a temporary missing seat at the table. That’s the case with so many households with loved ones serving in the military. And then there’s the empty seat that goes from temporary to permanent. This Thanksgiving weekend’s new film release touches on that with a tale of real-life heroism in the sky. Oh, but it’s not another TOP GUN wannabe, although it features one of the recent sequel’s hunky young stars. This is based on a conflict 72 years in the past. And, as I said, it’s all true concerning a group of men who possess a very special kind of DEVOTION.


The saga starts at a naval air base in Rhode Island as Navy fighter pilot Tom Hudner (Glen Powell) arrives for his new assignment. After checking in with his CO Dick Cevoli (Thomas Sadoski), Tom heads to the locker room and nearly runs into another pilot Jesse Brown (Jonathan Majors). He’s the only African American flyer Tom’s ever met, but the men find they have much in common. Ditto for the rest of the elite squadron. However, Brown rarely socializes with his co-workers (he doesn’t even drink), preferring to spend all of his time with his wife Daisy (Christina Jackson), and their toddler daughter in their rented house. One night, Tom sees Jesse stranded after his car breaks down and offers him a lift home where Tom and Daisy share a beer. Soon after, time at the base gets more intense as Korea becomes a “hot zone. The whole squadron must get familiar with their new Corsair fighter jets in preparation for the “big show”. And things pick up even more when the squad is transferred to an aircraft carrier off the coast of Italy, where Brown must deal with on-deck landings and a group of racist Marines. Tom offers his help, but Jesse wants no special treatment. Everybody has a relaxing shore leave in Cannes, France (and rubs shoulders with an iconic silver screen starlet), But Tom and Jesse butt heads over dealing with equality and confronting prejudice. This flares up in Korea when Jesse ignores orders from Tom (put temporarily in command) during a bombing raid on a bridge. But they’ve got to put their “beefs” aside when they’re sent to back up ground troops during a deadly battle with an overwhelming horde of Chinese forces. Can they become a tight team and make it back home alive?

This story provides another terrific role for a star on the rise, Majors (he’ll soon face off against CREED before, reportedly, taking on the Avengers). His Brown is often quiet, even stoic, but we see that his emotions are bubbling beneath the surface. When he does vent, in a powerful solo sequence facing the camera as a mirror, Majors is riveting and heartbreaking as he rattles off a litany of racist bile he’s endured. Yet he also shows his tender side with his two loves (other than flying), Daisy and his sweet baby. When seeing this, Powell as Tom subtly sneaks in an envious grin. Yes, in many of the scenes, particularly with the French ladies, he’s got that Han Solo roguish charm, but Powell gives us much more of the inner soldier loyalty, building on his scene-stealing turn in the last TOP GUN flick. Sadoski projects a patriarchal warmth as the best “old man” these hotshots could ever hope to follow. He’s tough but doesn’t hide his pride and affection for his “guys”. And speaking of affection, Jackson shines as the apple of Jesse’s eye, who quietly worries for her spouse, but tries to coat her fear with a sassy, “no BS” demeanor. We also get an energetic group of young actors, including pop star Joe Jonas, who provide superb support for the lead duo.

Director J.D. Dillard has ably recreated the nostalgic look of the early 1950s tempered with the rise of tension in the early start of the “Cold War” (and those frozen Korean battlefields illustrate it). He shows us the monotony of the constant readiness for that siren to blare, ushering the guys into their cockpits. The screenplay by Jake Crane and Jonathan Stewart, adapting Adam Makos’ book, avoids several flying ace cliches while giving the Browns a rich, romantic backstory. At times the film gets bogged down with too many heated exchanges between Jesse and Tom over the racial bias of the era. Oh, but when this film gets airborne, it soars. with scenes almost as stunning, well as that other aerial epic from a few months ago. The planes twirl and twist, breaking formation and cutting the clouds from every possible angle. The dog fights are just as deadly as the ones in that “galaxy far far away”, and the sequence with the pilots making practice landings in their new rigs is a tense nail-biter. It all leads to an ending that’s a true emotional “gut punch”. It makes us wonder whether if in the similar type of situation, we’d have the same level of DEVOTION.


3 Out of 4

DEVOTION is now playing in theatres everywhere

SPIRITWALKER – Review

A scene from SPIRITWALKER. Courtesy of Well Go USA Entertainment

Bear with me, dear readers, since I’m in new territory with this high-octane Korean action flick, SPIRITWALKERS. What is not new are the usual cops, crooks and the some-who-may-be-both premise that grounds many of these Asian actioners, nor is an added dimension of sci-fi, as our hero jumps from one body to another every 12 hours, with no memory of who he was before this chain of events began or why it’s occurring. What is new is that even though an explanation emerges, I’m not sure whether it covers what we’ve just seen. So this is the first time I recall endorsing a movie I ultimately didn’t understand.

I’ve enjoyed a slew of Korean action flicks lately, making them a newly acquired taste. In general, the action choreography has been exceptional, as it is in this one. They’ve been cranking out urban grittiness as well as anyone, and better than most – especially in terms of frenetic pacing and acrobatic stunt work, with less dependency on CGI and special effects.

When our guy awakens beside a wrecked SUV with a bullet in his shoulder, his search for identity and backstory begins, while an assortment of bad guys variably embrace or try to kill whoever he happens to look like at the time. We’re never sure if he will prove to deserve our empathy or condemnation, since we never learn anything before he does.

For some, the suspense of his MEMENTO-esque quest (without the benefit of tattooed clues) will last to the end; for others, including me, even partly beyond. As often as I’ve berated movies or TV fare for endings that leave us hanging on key plot points, their (or my) failure to find full closure is surprisingly non-problematic. As the scriptwriter, Jae-guen Yoon may have been clearer about his intentions than in what he delivered in directing his own screenplay. Notwithstanding, his team staged fights and chases so well and frequently, that getting lost on aspects of the denouement taints the product much less than I’d normally conclude.

So if you’re in the mood for an adrenaline rush, free of romance and other emotional subplots, this one’s a worthy candidate for 108 minutes of your attention. And anyone who understands the given reason for this journey better than I did, is invited to reply in the manner provided below. All theories are truly welcome.

SPIRITWALKER, mostly in Korean with English subtitles, is streaming on digital platform Hi-YAH! as of March 18 and will be available on most digital platforms, as well as on Blu-ray and DVD from Well Go USA Entertainment beginning April 12.

RATING: 2.5 out of 4 stars

Review: ‘Gran Torino’

Ram Man:

Clint Eastwood is back pulling double-duty again in his new film ‘Gran Torino’.   Eastwood directs and stars in  a film that is best described as “Dirty Harry retires to the suburbs”.   I can’t think of a better guy to be in charge of the neighborhood watch! Dave Johannson penned the story of a chiseled war veteran who must adapt to the changing world around him.

Eastwood plays Walter Kowalski, a retired auto worker and hard nosed veteran of the Korean war.   Walt is a recent widower and spends his retirement filling his days with home improvement and sucking down beer on the front porch. That is until a family of Hmoung (Loas and Taiwanese mountain people) move in next door. This forces Walt to begin a patrol of the perimeter of his yard to keep the “gooks” off. If you didn’t know any Asian slurs before following ‘Gran Torino’ you will be well versed. Thao and Sue Lor are the lucky kids living next door to grizzly old Walt. They live there with their mother and grandmother who continually gives Walt the evil eye from her porch. I feel a battle brewing.

There is but not between the AARP cast. Thao is being forced to join an Asian gang run by his cousin Spider. Thao, a good kid at heart, caves to the pressure and decides to go through with the initiation…..He has to steal Walt’s mint condition 1972 Gran Torino out of the garage next door. As you could probably guess, Thao gets caught and luckily escapes unhurt with Walt shooting a round into a beer sign instead of Thao. Thao must work off his shame by doing tasks for Walt. Walt soon develops a friendship for the kids and the family. He is closer to them than his own kids. Walt also drives away Spider and his gang of thugs by telling them to stay away from Thao or else. They ask or else what and Walt proceeds to explain how “in Korea they would kill gooks and stack their dead bodies up and use them for sand bags”. Walt explained, “Kid no one would ever miss you”. That would be enough for me, but I’m not a stupid gang-banger.

The battle that is brewing the entire film is set off by a brutal rape of Thao’s sister Sue that sends Walt for his rifle. The end of this film is not what you would expect from a Clint Eastwood picture. When you see how Walt handles the gang and the repercussion for Thao, Sue and Lor family your jaw will hit the floor. Some people aren’t able to look past the slurs and racism. If you can you will find a very good performance by Clint Eastwood in a fine film that will have you cheering. Stick around for the closing credits for  The original song “Gran Torino” performed by Clint Eastwood and his son.

[Overall: 4.5 stars out of 5]

Travis:

“Crusty Old Man.” This could have easily been the title of Clint Eastwood’s newest film. He’s back as the hard-nosed, no BS, straight-shooting character that would just as much kick your a** around the block as give you the time of day that we all love and remember from his earlier films as Dirty Harry. However, Clint’s put on a few years since then and it adds a marvelous layer of character depth to ‘Gran Torino’.

Eastwood plays Korean War veteran Walt Kowalski. Walt recently lost his wife and now lives alone in his home, which is smack-dab in the middle of what now might be referred to as a Detroit ghetto. Walt can be described as an angry, belligerent old man that’s stuck in the 1950’s and has about as much faith in humanity as he has nice things to say about just about anyone. When a Hmong family moves in next door to Walt, he finds himself resisting their traditional ways and relatively kind nature as a result of his prejudice. It’s not until he sees an uncommon spark of humanity in the neighbor boy Thao and a series of horrible events take place at the hands of a local gang that he decides to take action for himself, changing his life and the lives of those close to him forever.

At once shockingly humorous and appallingly forward, Eastwood manages to take the clashing of two very different eras and cultures and combine them into and wonderful tale of one man’s ability to find his own redemption for an unforgivable act in the selfless sacrifice for another. Walt has a super-sweet 1972 Gran Torino and makes us laugh with his rough-edged wit and insults, but it takes time for him to wiggle free of racist stereotype we place him into and become the decent human being that is created from the violence and indecency that surrounds him. Eastwood’s performance in this film is singular and well-received, but the remainder of the film unfortunately falls short of anything Oscar-worthy. Nonetheless, ‘Gran Torino’ is well-worth seeing and is more than just a film with humor or nostalgic Eastwood violence.

[Overall: 4 stars out of 5]

Melissa:

Only Clint Eastwood can get away with calling African Americans spooks in a movie… Only Clint Eastwood…

Gran Torino is the story of Walt Kowalski (Clint Eastwood), a Korean War vet with a major chip on his shoulder. His wife just passed on and his neighborhood has become overrun with by Mexican and Asian gangs. He tries aimlessly to protect his home, and more importantly his prize possession, a 1972 Gran Torino that he helped build during his career at the Ford Motor plant.

During a brawl that happened to happen in his lawn, he ends up protecting his Asian neighbors with his shotgun… More importantly, Thao (Bee Vang), the boy next door who is being pressured to join his cousins gang. They will stop at nothing to get him initiated… that is… until Walt steps in. During Thaos punishment, in which he is made by his family and traditions to work of his crime (his cousin forced him into trying to steal Walt’s Gran Torino), Walt, Thao, and his sister Sue begin a friendship. Walt takes the kids under his wing, more so than his son’s, or his family that absolutely hate him.

See… the thing is… Walt is a racist bastard. He will say anything about anyone! He calls people spooks, zipperheads, and every other name in the book. That’s why I say that only Clint Eastwood can pull it off. Almost every line of his has something negative and wildly inappropriate included in it. His delivery left the screening audience, a nicely eclectic crowd roaring with awkward laughter.

This movie was AMAZING. The only thing that was slightly disappointing was Bee Vang’s performance. Vang was a little less than realistic and believable in parts… which is a shame because in other parts he was very respectable. This movie gives you a hard dose of what is happening to once respectable neighborhoods in America. I am not talking about minorities. I am talking about the senseless violence that a lot of us have to deal with on a daily basis. It was a little hard to swallow (in a much needed way) as someone who has been held up at gunpoint more than once. I can honestly say that this movie is a MUST SEE.

[Overall: 4.5 stars out of 5]