Pain & Gain

Pain & Gain - Dir. Michael Bay (2013)

I'm not sure what's more unbelievable about Pain & Gain, the true life story upon which it was based or the fact that this was Michael Bay's idea of a low-budget indie movie.

Daniel Lugo (Mark Wahlberg) has a great body, but not a lot of brains to go with his delusional view of the American dream or his staunch sense of entitlement. After doing time for a Ponzi scheme, Lugo goes to work as a personal trainer at the Sun Gym in Miami. Formerly a rundown spot for old folks, Lugo turns it into a haven for the built and beautiful. However, he's not satisfied and spots a big, fat payday in his obnoxious client Victor Kershaw (Tony Shalhoub). Kershaw openly brags about his wealth, his offshore accounts, and the Schlotzsky's Deli he owns at the airport. Lugo hits on the idea to kidnap Kershaw and hold him hostage until he signs over all his assets. This ersatz mastermind recruits his best pal Adrian Doorbal (Anthony Mackie), a fellow bodybuilder who has been rendered impotent by steroid abuse, and Paul Doyle (Dwayne Johnson), an ex-con who has traded his coke habit for Jesus. After several bumbling attempts, the muscle-bound trio snatches Kershaw and tortures him for nearly a month inside a warehouse full of sex toys. Lugo and his crew are able to enjoy their ill-gotten gains primarily because Kershaw is such a prick that the police have a hard time believing or sympathizing with him. When Doorbal and Doyle blow their newfound wealth on penile injections and cocaine, Lugo is forced to abduct a new mark with disastrous consequences.

Pain & Gain is unmistakably a Michael Bay film even without the widescreen mayhem and deafening explosions. His garish aesthetics are simpatico with the bizarre, true-life events adapted for the screen by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely (Captain America, Chronicles of Narnia). For once, it actually makes sense for Bay to populate the backgrounds with buxom babes since the story involves strippers galore. The saturated orange and teal color palette accentuates the sun soaked paradise of Miami. The camera whips along at a frenzied pace with super slow motion employed to great effect during a SWAT team raid. When Doyle barbecues a pair of dismembered hands to destroy fingerprints, an intertitle is stamped onto the screen to remind you that this is still based on fact. The question remains: is Bay just doing what comes natural or has he developed a sense of awareness that allows him to lampoon his own style?

As Bay flirts with the notion of self-parody, he walks a thin line between glorifying and condemning the actions of his characters. There's no doubt that these men aren't the least bit sympathetic, not to mention aggressively stupid. The fact that their brutality was played for laughs has upset the real victims of the Sun Gym Gang. The dark humor eschews closely to the works of Guy Ritchie or the Crank films. Stomachs may turn when chainsaws are broken out to chop up corpses or when a severed toe comes into play.

The cast really sinks their teeth into their respective roles with Mark Wahlberg excelling as the archetypal meathead. His Daniel Lugo is definitely cut from the same cloth as Dirk Diggler with a more sinister side. Tony Shalhoub brings Victor Kershaw to odious life while Rebel Wilson, Michael Rispoli, and Peter Stormare fill out the colorful supporting cast. Ken Jeong is thankfully utilized in small doses as a motivational speaker ("Be a do'er, not a don't'er") that inspires Lugo.  Ed Harris portrays the straight man as a retired cop turned private investigator. He essentially takes on the Tommy Lee Jones role in No Country for Old Men as the one good man in an insane world. The best performance in Pain & Gain belongs to Dwayne Johnson, who bulked up to bigger proportions than he ever had in his WWE career. There's a naiveté initially displayed by Johnson that makes Doyle a gentle giant, then shows deft comedic timing when he reverts into a desperate coke head.

Pain & Gain is easily Michael Bay's best picture, which may be a backhanded compliment when his filmography includes Bad Boys 2 and Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.

Rating: *** (*****)

Pitch Perfect

Pitch Perfect - Dir. Jason Moore (2012)

The trailers made Pitch Perfect look like Glee: The College Years, which sounds about as entertaining as being waterboarded. However, this peppy little picture might be one of the nicest cinematic surprises of 2012.

The adorable Anna Kendrick stars as Beca, an aspiring DJ and record producer. Beca strikes a reluctant deal with her estranged father (John Benjamin Hickey), a professor at the fictional Barden University. Beca will attend for at least one year in order for daddy to pay for her move to Los Angeles.

At Barden, a capella is king and just about every clique is involved. The big men on campus are the Treble Makers while the most glamorous gals are The Barden Belles. There's even a stoner group known as The High Notes. The Belles saw their chance at winning nationals go up in smoke when co-captain Aubrey (Anna Camp) projectile vomited on stage. Aubrey isn't too happy when her best friend Chloe (Brittany Snow) recruits Beca and a motley crew of girls to rebuild the Belles. The new team must pull together if they want to make it to the championship in New York City. It won't be easy because Aubrey runs the team with an iron fist. She steadfastly sticks to a rigid regime with the Belles portrayed as prim and proper while performing ditties by Ace of Base and The Bangles. Meanwhile, Beca wants to change things up with a hipper and livelier set list.

Pitch Perfect was based on the non-fiction book by Mickey Rapkin, a senior editor at GQ, who covered a season of competitive collegiate a capella. Yes, that's a real thing. It was adapted for the screen by Kay Cannon, a writer/producer for 30 Rock and New Girl. She injects a quirky sense of humor to the film, which is skillfully handled by director Jason Moore, best known for the stage musical Avenue Q. Moore keeps the picture energetic as evidenced by a montage as hopefuls audition to Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone."

Pitch Perfect works because there isn't a cynical bone within its body. Yes, the whole idea may be silly, but the movie never treats its characters with any sort of snarky condescension. Perhaps, the most ridiculous sequence in Pitch Perfect is the Riff-Off as various groups do battle while armed with musical bullets from Rihanna, Salt-N-Pepa, and Foreigner. It might seem like an eye-rolling endeavor, but it's hard not to join in on the fun when everyone on screen is clearly enjoying themselves.

Anna Kendrick is an absolute delight though her star-crossed romance with Treble Maker Jesse (Skylar Austin) isn't as interesting as her interactions with the other girls. There's the usual second act breakup before they reunite in the third act. No, the camaraderie between the Belles forms the spine of Pitch Perfect with terrific performances by Rebel Wilson and Hana Mae Lee. Wilson is getting the lion's share of attention for her outrageous role as Fat Amy, who calls herself that so "twig bitches" don't do it behind her back. However, it is the relatively unknown Lee who makes a breakthrough appearance as the demure Lilly. She has a great singing voice, but her speaking voice barely registers as a whisper. Thankfully, no one can hear her because what she says are psychotic non sequitors ("I ate my twin in the womb."). Christopher Mintz-Plasse pops in for a cameo as do Donald Faison, Har Mar Superstar, and Joe Lo Truglio as an a capella group of alumni, who don't know when to leave campus. John Michael Higgins and Elizabeth Banks (who also produced) also appear as a pair of commentators in the vein of a Christopher Guest mockumentary. Do they actually have commentators for a capella?

Pitch Perfect does for a capella what Bring It On did for cheerleading and Step Up for street dance. Despite not being a fan of the majority of the music used, I thoroughly enjoyed the film. Even the most jaded moviegoer will have a tough time holding back the smile on their face.

Rating: *** (*****)