Dark Waters (2019)

I was switching TV channels last days, and on some I've run into "World War Z", on another into "I Am Legend", so if you don't get enough apocalypse from the news, you have a fair share of choices... I still say it's better to not look for an appropriate episode from TWD. On the other hand I've never been too much into comedies, which would probably be a more appropriate subject for cutting some tension off during these times, so sorry about that. And I also didn't have much time and options to choose from this week - so I've ended up with something very close to a documentary = "Dark Waters".

As an intro, I have to confess that despite catching lots of non-essential info to make me prepared for pretty much any trivia quiz, I didn't hear about the Teflon case. Or to not make everybody throw their cooking pans out the window, it's more precisely about a chemical named PFOA used in Teflon fabrication up to 2013 and which apparently was present in the final product only in very small quantity. At least that's what a very quick online search reveals, because the movie doesn't provide a clear conclusion on that. But still, what's this PFOA and what's in the movie?...

"Dark Waters" is a biopic, following the activity of a lawyer, Rob Billott, from 1998 until 2015. The guy was the employee of a law firm specialized in defending corporations, and one day got a visit from an angry farmer who had a problem with his cows. Precisely, no place left to bury them. The cause: the contaminated water in a nearby river. And like that, Rob Billott, step by step, ends up discovering something called PFOA - as mentioned above, a compound used in fabricating Teflon by DuPont - one of the largest companies in the chemical industry worldwide. Which company found a place to dump their toxic waste exactly near the farmer's land. The situation aggravates when it's discovered that also the drinking water in the area is contaminated, and further gets worse when it's found that company employees involved in the production process have cancer. And like that we're getting to a real legal war between Billott vs DuPont. Who wins? Let's not spoil it :)

Even though I'm neither much into documentaries, I have to admit that the main positive part of "Dark Waters" is its documentary trait. Obviously, you shouldn't expect something like a legal thriller by John Grisham. And probably that's the reason for the less positive part. Not that it isn't like a John Grisham based movie, but that it tries to much to be. I found some parts to be overly dramatized. In any case, the story deserves watching for your general knowledge + I added Teflon & PFOA info to my data bank :)

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Cop Car (2015)

"Cop Car" is a bizarre movie, from the title to the end of it. Two kids, of about 10 years old, who ran from home, find an abandoned police care near a field. Despite manifesting a level of intelligence that seems similar to "dumb & dumber" in the kindergarten years (the comparison's not mine, but I don't remember where I heard it), the two kids manage to start the car, make a couple laps with it, hit the road through a fence, reach over 100 speed and get alive out of this. But they don't get away from the owner of the vehicle... a local sheriff involved in some really unorthodox stuff, from dumping a corpse in the woods to dumping some bags of drugs in his toilet. We don't get a clear image of what's going on. What's certain is that he's a bad guy who wants his car back. Especially because of what's hiding in the trunk.

The movie runs relatively quiet for its first half, the action level rising towards the end. I liked the dynamic = lately I appreciate a moderate dosing of the tension . The cast is small in size, Kevin Bacon clearly being the star here in the sheriff's role. The camera work is nice and the score has a minimalist sound which seemed familiar, but I don't know where I heard it before.

I said that "Cop Car" is bizarre starting with its title - which might be related with what we see on screen most often, but still seems picked like... well, what's the first idea for naming the movie? The main issue though is the contrast between the kids actions. They either shine in their capacity to handle things, or they make you wonder why the script says 10 years instead of 5 (and that's not as positive remark). Or looking at tit from a different perspective, if such an improbable sequence of events can take place, maybe we should play the lottery more often. Anyway, it's an ok thriller, no lengths in it, and can get you away from the daily issues for a bit of time.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

El Camino (2019)

A more educational topic for the current global context would've probably been an appropriate episode of TWD (very useful generally for analyzing the group psychology during crisis, even though it's just fiction). On the other hand maybe not = let's not add more panic. Anyway, it's another week when I don't have a proper subject, but I told myself maybe find something to keep the usual blog frequency + watching movies fits with solitary indoor activities, which doesn't hurt promoting these days. So I got to "El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie" to provide the complete title - which I've recently watched.

To start with, it doesn't make much sense to watch the movie if you didn't watch the series (++more solitary indoor activity :P). Ergo, if you didn't see "Breaking Bad", also what follows it won't make much sense. As in "Deadwood"'s case, I've seen the series at 6-7 years after ending (long live project-free periods!). In different words is quite fresh, thing that might count on how much you'll like the movie. For me it was like a sort of epilogue for the finale episode - quick recap: Walter White guns down pretty much everybody who's "bad", including himself. Except Jesse Pinkman, his oldest associate, who we could say redeemed himself after a year of solitary confinement and slavery as an expert meth cook. That's the story of "El Camino": the torment of Pinkman during that time and his run for a new life after the end of the series, in chronological order: find car, find money, lose money, find escape route to Alaska, find money again and wrap up some unfinished business, final escape.

There's enough post-"Breaking Bad" material, but we also have plenty of flashbacks with former characters in the series. That's why I was saying that the time when you watched that has probably an impact in how much you'll like "El Camino". After a 6 years break from the series finale there are chances to like this more, and after all the "retro" material has also the role to remind you of stuff you might have forgot. If you watch "El Camino" immediately after the series it might seem that such extra sequences inserted here and there don't add any value to it. As example, there's a scene with some lunch in a diner from when Walter White & Jesse Pinkman were meth cooking partners. It would've been terribly disappointing to have zero Walter White in "El Camino" for somebody who took a break from "Breaking Bad" since 2013. On the other hand, as I said, that's just an extra sequence = it doesn't bring any significant content to the rest of the movie. Anyway, overall it's an ok movie, and it brings some "closure" feeling, which might have seemed a bit incomplete at the end of the series. That's all for today, 'til next time: stay safe ;)

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Brawl in Cell Block 99 (2017)

After watching "Bone Tomahawk", the topic of last time + "Dragged Across Concrete" a while ago, I decided to try what was left in the brief list of movies by S. Craig Zahler: "Brawl in Cell Block 99". Especially given the ratings, which are quite good. Well, the choice was bad. But I doubt I have the time for another for what's left of this week, so we're stuck with this as subject.

Bradley Thomas is a guy with principles, who getting fired from an auto repair shop, and almost left by his wife, takes a radical decision to start a much more profitable career as a drug runner. The new job makes his life better indeed for a short while - new house, happy marriage, a child on the way. Until a transport gets bad due to some of his less trusted co-workers who attack a police crew. Between deciding to either run away or join them, Bradly picks the worst option for himself - he takes the part of the police in the gunfire. Action that first seems to get him a lighter sentence or even get him close to escape it completely. But since Bradley is a guy with principles, he refuses to confess on his boss involvement, and gets locked away for seven years. The bad part though comes one day after sentencing - an unknown visitor tasks him with an impossible mission - to kill somebody in a different prison, under the threat of losing his wife and unborn child.

As in the other two movies mentioned before, on the negative side here we're again served with a bit two much violence (somehow better dosed though...), and not receiving a very happy ending. Unfortunately, unlike "Bone Tomahawk", the positive side is missing. The dialogues are ok-ish, but "the witty factor" is far from what we had there. The acting is the same: ok-ish. Above all the film feels like a cheap B movie, feeling that was not obvious in the other cases despite the similar low budget. We also have some exaggerated scenery more close to middle ages, from a maximum security prison with some underground cells, which maybe you could find in some other place but doubtfully in the US. The only plus to count on the action is a sort of twist that cuts what otherwise looks like a linear development. Although, if I think better where this twist leads...

Rating: 2.5 out of 5