Power Rangers

*SPOILERS*

Millions of years ago, a team of Eltarian warriors called Power Rangers were betrayed by one of their own: Rita Repulsa (Elizabeth Banks). Their leader, Zordon (Bryan Cranston), in his final act secured the Power Coins and brought down a meteor that sent Rita into the water, where she sank to the bottom. The story then picks up in present day Angel Grove, where football captain Jason Scott (Dacre Montgomery) is pulling a prank towards a rival school. Things turn south quickly when the cops show up and he has to make a getaway. Just when he thinks he got away, he gets into an accident and the film cuts to a black screen with the title in the corner.

3 weeks later, Jason's off the team, under house arrest, and has to attend Saturday school (he made it sound like he acted alone instead of with his teammates). We're now introduced to a couple of our other leads: Kimberly Hart (Naomi Scott) apparently spread an embarrassing photo around of another classmate then punched out her boyfriend, and now her old friends want nothing to do with her. Billy Cranston (RJ Cyler) is an autistic genius, and seems out of place in detention with the rest of the troublemakers. (We learn later it's because an experiment blew up in his locker.) When he's bullied by one of the other students, Jason steps and gets him to back off. In exchange, a grateful Billy does some GPS spoofing with Jason's ankle monitor, giving the young man back his freedom.

The two then drive to a mining quarry on the outskirts of town, where Billy's intent on digging for something. Jason wanders off and runs into Kimberly, who's swimming in a grotto. He's concerned when he doesn't see her resurface, only for her to show up behind him. They have some character moments, having gone from popular to outcast in the span of a few weeks, and are just about ready to give up on their town. However, they're not the only teens in the area. Zack Taylor (Ludi Lin) is out for some peace and quiet, and spots Trini Kwan (Becky Gomez) doing some meditation exercises. When Billy sets off an explosive, the teens run back in his direction and discover the Power Coins in the rubble. Unfortunately, the authorities are also attracted to their location, prompting a getaway. It's an incredibly haphazard escape, which ends with the teens getting hit by a train...and waking up in their beds on Monday morning. Meanwhile, Jason's father is working on a fishing boat when they manage to net Rita's body and leave her in the cargo hold, where she begins to revive.

Recent season of the show have given the Rangers physical enhancements in addition to their morphing powers, and that's what manifests first: super strength and super jumping. Jason, Kim, and Billy agree they have to go back out there. They run into Zack and Trini again, but have to chase the latter down before falling into a grotto. They discover they're glowing in the water and swim down to the bottom, where an air pocket leads to Zordon's Command Center.

Alpha 5 (Bill Hader) reveals himself and is overjoyed to meet them. The little robot instantly endeared himself, and serves as a friendly counterpoint to Zordon (his consciousness placed in the ship before his death), who explains to the teens that they are the new Power Rangers, and need to be able to morph so they can stop Rita from reviving Goldar and destroying the Zeo Crystal, which is buried somewhere under Angel Grove. They try to morph and fail, so the training montage begins. The Rangers are pitted against holographic representations of the Putty Patrol, who are far more rocky and monstrous in this version. While their fighting continues to improve, attempts at morphing are still met with failure. While all this is going on, Rita gradually takes on a more humanoid appearance while killing people and stealing gold.

Zordon's patience is running thin, and Alpha tries to incentivize the team by showing off their Dino Zords: powerful robotic vehicles who took the form of the strongest creatures on Earth at the time. They're not ready for them yet, but that doesn't stop Zack from taking his out for a spin. This puts him at odds with Jason when he gets back, prompting Billy to put himself in between the two to stop the fighting...which somehow gets him to morph into the Blue Ranger. Unable to trigger the transformation a second time, Zordon sends them out for the day. Jason stays behind and discovers another reason Zordon needs them to morph: it would open up the Morphing Grid and allow Zordon to step back into the land of the living, where he would presumably take back the Red Coin and stop Rita himself. Jason storms out in anger.

The Rangers figure that the reason they can't morph yet is because even as they become a better team, they're all still strangers, so they bond over a campfire swapping their own stories. Zack has been taking care of his sick mother, but doesn't go home at night to avoid facing the possibility of her death. Billy's father has been dead for some time, but as he spends more time with the others, he doesn't miss him as much. Kimberly doesn't want to talk, but confides in Jason later when they're alone. Trini's family is constantly moving, which she doesn't mind too much, but it doesn't give her much time to discover who she is (the subtle implication is that she's lesbian, bisexual, or at least queer; not a lot of detail).

After these character moments, we're thrust back into the story when Rita interrogates Trini in her home, and in what's definitely a true Power Rangers moment, the team decides it's time to go after her whether they have powers or not...This does not go well.

Rita overpowers the teens easily, capturing them and forcing Billy to reveal the location of the Zeo Crystal, something he worked out on his own. Having what she needs, she drowns Billy and sets the others free. They pull him out, but he's already dead. It's a complete shock that they would do this not just to a main character, but to the one member of the team who had the least baggage.

Desperate, the Rangers take Billy's body back to the Command Center, but there's seemingly nothing that they can do. The quartet mourn their fallen comrade, wishing they could trade their lives for his. Suddenly, the Morphing Grid is active. This would be Zordon's chance to step through, but he doesn't take it, allowing Billy to come back in his stead. The Rangers are finally ready and it's not a moment too soon, as Rita has begun bringing Goldar to life. It's Morphin Time. (Finally!)

The suits took some getting used to when they were revealed, but once they're on-screen, they look great. After an all too brief fight with the Putties, the Rangers get to the Zords and drive off to fight Goldar, the old theme playing briefly as they ride off into battle.

There's a lot going on in the fight, and while the show often doesn't waste any time getting to the Megazord, here we see each vehicle get to do something and fight off the monster. However, Goldar still succeeds in digging up the Zeo Crystal under the local Krispy Kreme. The Rangers try to hold the line, but are still pushed into the pit...only to emerge as the Megazord. The team takes a moment to figure out how to pilot it together, and manage to win. Rita remains defiant, but is slapped into space (the Green Coin no longer on her person as she gets iced over). The townspeople cheer, the day is saved, and our heroes settle back into their everyday life, ready for when the world needs the Power Rangers again.

It's an enjoyable origin story, that admittedly takes a little too long to get to the climax. The cast and characters fortunately manage to keep you engaged. Our troubled teens each go through a character arc. Jason and Kimberly specifically have redemption arc, as does Zordon, so there's a great underlying message that it's never too late to overcome your past mistakes and do something good. There's even a more subtle scene with Jason and his father about fixing up his truck from the night of the accident. Jason and Kim are the atoners, Zack and Trini are the outsiders, and Billy is the heart keeping the team together.

Goldar makes for an imposing visual, but it is disappointing he didn't have a personality or identity like his TV counterpart. By contrast, Rita is fantastic. Elizabeth Banks walks a fine line between camping it up and being a very serious threat. She got her hands dirty and fought the Rangers directly, which is something the old Rita never did. Zordon's a far more reluctant mentor than he used to be, but it's a relief that he does come into the role and grows to care for our heroes enough to give up his one chance at resurrection. His holographic wall also makes for a unique visual effect and lets him interact with the team more than just being a head in a tube. Bryan Cranston actually used to do monster voices in the original show, so his full circle presence here is a treat.

With the origin story out of the way, I hope later films follow up with something a bit more action oriented. What we got was great, but it makes up maybe the last 25 minutes of a 2 hour movie. If the rest of the story hadn't fallen into place as well as it did, this would have been a disappointment. I'm glad I saw this movie and am really looking forward to what these teenagers with attitude do next.

Finding Dory

"I forget things almost instantly. It runs in my family...at least, I think it does...where are they?"

Recalling this line from Finding Nemo, and then learning the title of the sequel, I was able to accurately predict the plot of this film. One year later, Dory has stayed close to Marlin and his son Nemo, even helping Mr. Ray out during school. Then during one field trip, the class is being taught about the undertow, and Dory has a sudden flash of memory that she had a mom and dad. One day when she was a tiny, adorable child, she got pulled away into the current and lost. In her forgetfulness, she doesn't stay still very long, asking fish after fish if they've seen her parents. This goes well into her adulthood until she can't remember who she was looking for. Then a boat passes above her, Marlin bumps into her, and the rest was history.

With this memory returned, Dory decides to set off to California and find them. Marlin, after failing to talk her out of it, decides to go with her, and Nemo tags along as well. It doesn't take long for Marlin to lose patience with her, tho, as a run in with a giant squid nearly gets Nemo eaten. Suddenly, Dory is netted by some marine workers, tagged and taken to quarantine, and it's revealed she and her parents lived in an aquarium.

As the two clownfish try to get her back, Dory continues to retrace her memories to find her old home. A cranky 7-tentacled octopus named Hank agrees to help her in exchange for her tag (he doesn't want to go back to the ocean). She also meets a beluga whale named Bailey, and is reunited with her old friend Destiny, a friendly but nearsighted whale shark. Both provide some insight in how to get around the aquarium.

Animation is standard for Pixar, which is to say it looks astonishing. You really get swept in by the vibrant colors of the ocean, aquarium, and various marine life our characters come across. As predictable as the premise was, the story and humor are still pretty great. It was endearing to see Nemo have a more active role in this one, interacting a lot more with Dory and Marlin than in the first film. Marlin still worries about him, but he gives his son a bit more room to grow, and learns to have that same faith in Dory, who overcomes her own memory issues to great effect here.

If there's a downside, it's a bit repetitive. While going through the aquarium, the characters go back and forth to a few locations. However, the frequent change in scenery is also welcome, since in contrast, Nemo spent a good portion of his own movie stuck in a dentist's fishtank.

The flashbacks to Dory's childhood will melt your heart. We get an idea of what is was like for her growing up with a bad memory, but also how caring and patient her parents were, which gives their reunion an additional impact.

The title and idea seem so simple, and yet has so many meanings to it. While Marlin and Nemo are trying to find her, Dory's trying to find her family, and manages to find herself too. It turns into a great lesson in appreciating others, overcoming personal handicaps, and giving people a chance. If you like the first film, this is a perfect follow-up for people of all ages.

Batman: Return Of The Caped Crusaders

Adam West's incarnation of Batman has been a staple of nostalgia for over 50 years. The campy, often ridiculous plots and props, the scenery-chewing guest stars, and some good old superhero fight scenes complete with sound effects popping up on the screen. West himself always had a wonderful charisma, and this impact has been seen throughout his career. His cameos and voiceover roles frequently pay homage to this iconic role, usually in the form of parody. It's no surprise that fans would rejoice when a direct to video animated feature was announced, in which Adam West and Burt Ward were set to reprise their 1966 roles as Batman and Robin.

The nostalgia trip begins as soon as the credits role, with an instrumental variation of the TV theme music, while the Dynamic Duo swing into action through Golden and Silver Age comic covers. The plot itself at first fits right at home in the old show. It could also be seen as a sequel to the theatrical movie, as it features the same four villains: Joker, Penguin, Riddler, and Catwoman (reprised by Julie Newmar). They steal a duplication ray from some scientists, and manage to subdue our heroes after their first fight. Catwoman drugs Batman in hopes it will turn him over to their side, but at first it appears not to work, so the villains leave him and Robin to their fate in an elaborate deathtrap. Of course they escape, and continue on the trail. And every time you think the movie's over, it just keeps going.

Setting aside potential spoilers, this movie is a treat from start to finish. The look and atmosphere of the 1960s is recreated beautifully, from stately Wayne Manor, to the Batcave, to the Batmobile, and most of the character models themselves. Some note that the animation looks a little stiff compared to other modern animated features, but it's not particularly noticeable, and may be a reference to TV animation of the time, which was often limited in movement, but could still create a unique and memorable look. It's great hearing West, Ward, and Newmar return, their age having barely an impact. They get right into character and you can tell they're having a lot of fun with the material. The supporting cast filling in for deceased actors all do a great job as well, and everybody gets a moment to shine. Burt Ward does a particularly good job, and Robin gets quite a bit of focus through the second half of the story.

The best thing of all, it's fun. Superhero films (especially DC) have been going down a dark path, with films like Dawn Of Justice and The Killing Joke drowning out some of the enjoyment in favor of edgier atmosphere. So the Adam West and Lego versions of Batman provide a much needed break from more adult elements in favor of something family friendly and thoroughly entertaining.