Thursday, July 16, 2015

Quick Reviews: Maggie (2015)

I'm not going to let the Internet down.  You all want to know how I feel about 'The Governator's' attempt to do serious Drama.  The fact that it is a Zombie Film (of sorts) is just a bonus.  This is...
A mysterious Plague is affecting the World.  It is killing many and leading to many more being placed in Quarantine (not to be confused with the Zombie Film of the same name).
Those that die become Zombie-like creatures that only eat.  One man- Schwarzenegger- is just trying to keep what is left of his family alive.
Unfortunately, with his wife dead, that just leaves his Daughter...who is infected with the Virus.
In this bleak Town dealing with the Plague, you may have to make hard choices.  Can he?
More importantly, can he do anything to save his Daughter from the Plague or...
Will someone else have to step in?  Will he let them though?  To find out, watch the Film.
Not really a fun watch, but a pretty good one.  The Story is dark, the Tone is bleak and the Setting is very washed-out.  I don't know how much of it is Digital Color Correction, but I'm guessing that it is a pretty fair amount.  The big draw here is Schwarzenegger playing straight, somber and not really doing Action.  In that regard, it really does work.  He seems to do a good job of underplaying the Role in just the right way.  I will note that he doesn't slip out of his Austrian accent...but I guess that is a given at this point.  If he was going to lose it, it would have been some time in the last 40 years.  Not surprisingly, Abigail Breslin is quite nice here.  She gets alot of good moments with Schwarzenegger, as well as with some other Teens dealing with the Plague.  She does a good job of trying to play it cool, but also really getting emotional when the Story calls for it.  She is definitely the strongest part here.  There's not much in the way of on-screen Gore, which will certainly help the appeal for some of you.  In one of my little Pet Peeves, they never quite explain what the Plague is or how it got started- it just kind of is there.  Not a big one for most of you, I know.  One thing I couldn't get past is how much of the imagery here seems to be ripped right out of Interstellar's Earth portions.  It could be a coincidence, but it is *really* hard not to see.  Again- not the biggest thing for most of you.  I'm just a bit OCD like that.
Overall, a good, but bleak Film.  Even if he can't change his accent, Schwarzenegger does prove that he can still do something different at this point in his Career.

1 comment:

  1. I didn't think it was bad...just blah...nothing new to see here, still, no denying it was gorgeously shot. And there's Arnold of course. But thats about it.

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