Aquaman (2018)

There are some really good things about this superhero movie at a time when we're all sick of the genre. James Wan's direction is notable. I saw tinges of Furious 7 in the action sequences (and the final battle is Tolkien-esque). I love the zooms, in and out, in the Sicily scene, giving us a sense of scale and continuity between the separate chases. The underwater visuals are spectacular. The production design for Atlantis and the other underwater realms is visually stunning. And I also liked some of the music. There are some interesting choices (Pitbull singing Africa?). But every now and then, you hear music reminiscent of Vangelis's score for Blade Runner. I thought I might have caught a reference in the beginning too, when Nicole Kidman's character says the sea washes away tears in Atlantis, like teardrops in the rain (from the monologue at the end of Blade Runner). That's the best line in the movie. The rest of the dialogue is really cheesy. And it's a shame because there are some real nuggets of inspiration in the writing. The central conflict between Aquaman and his brother is quite interesting. We are engaged in the war between land and sea over pollution and warships because these are genuine problems in our world. Much less consequential is the conflict with Black Manta. It's obviously setting something up for a future movie, but he is totally insignificant and uninteresting  in this movie. Finally, I have to mention the acting because Amber Heard and Jason Momoa are just terrible. They can only do so much with bad writing...

The Founder (2016)

This movie tells the story of Ray Kroc, founder of McDonald's--that's not McDonald's the restaurant, but McDonald's the chain. It was a very interesting story that I didn't know about, a story of American business. It is really specially American. Ray Kroc essentially steals the idea and runs with it. He's concerned with money and money only. Who's the hero in this movie? I don't think it really glorifies American business. Michael Keaton does not play a particularly likable character. And his character does despicable things in the name of greed. And really, we have him to thank for America's fast-food reputation. Fast food could've been tasty and fresh and still fast if the McDonald brothers had any say. They were about quality control. Where is that now?

And the movie is really all about business. Ray's personal life is totally secondary. Laura Dern's role is very small. She plays his wife. And as their marriage falls apart, we don't really get to much insight. His second wife features in a few scenes. But we don't really see their relationship develop. It's all business all the time.

The best scene is the one in which the McDonald brothers explain their brilliant concept to Ray Kroc. There is a great rhythmic cadence to the scene that has excitement and momentum. It's really magical how they build their restaurant from the ground up bringing a new restaurant design and concept to the world. The brothers have fantastic awkward chemistry with each other, co-telling this story. The scene works really beautifully.