Re-Porter Blog: The Porter Report #2

Sand Trials

A Closer Look at Warner Bros' Large Scale Sci-fi Epic & Gamble 

by: Brandon Porter

"I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer." 

    That simple quote seems to speak volumes to an entire nation and world dealing with the continued calamity of the COVID-19 pandemic. Fear of the unknown, fear that things will get worse, fear that things won't change, fear that things will change, fear of what the next chapter of all of our lives holds. Fear can make us act irrationally and impulsively causing us to descend deeper into self-doubt and anguish. How we chose to confront fear shapes us into the people we are destined to be. Therefore, It's no wonder that this quote is one of the many moments in the trailer for Denis Villeneuve's Dune that leaves an impression for what is shaping up to be the year's most anticipated epic of 2020. With summer pretty much wrapped up, fall and winter are prepping to conclude the year that has been littered with uncertainty and its fair share of tragedy. Bestowed the honor of being the year's holiday cinematic epic, Dune comes into the spotlight as a highly anticipated event while also facing a particularly challenging road of obstacles in its quest to the silver screen.   

For some added context, I'm not familiar with the literary source material. But over the last few years, I've gotten to know a little bit about the series' cult following and how David Lynch's adaptation from 1984 has a lot to do with the anticipation of this new update. So from my perspective, I am treating this as the arrival of a brand new ambitious IP and a potential new franchise from one of the powerhouse studios in Hollywood. That in itself gives this film a pretty steep hill to climb. Introducing a new franchise to cinematic audiences is hard enough. Doing it in the midst of a global pandemic makes the task all the more challenging. That said, the team that Warner Bros and Legendary Pictures have assembled for this film could be what is required to stick the landing.  

Starting at the top, if anyone is more than equipped to handle a film of this magnitude, this scale, and with this cast (trust me, more on them in a minute), it's director Denis Villeneuve. Speaking on Villeneuve as a filmmaker, his resume speaks for itself. Sicario, Prisoners, Arrival, and Blade Runner 2049 are some of his most notable and acclaimed works. His attention to detail and passion for his craft has made him one of the most reliable directors in the industry. So it should make fans of the series and those familiar with his work excited that he sees Dune a passion project. A fan of the novel since he was a teenager, Villeneuve sees this as an opportunity to craft an adaptation of the 1965 novel that honors the source material while bringing in new fans as well. The movie will only be as good as the work that the director puts into it and lucky for Dune they got a director with a passion for the source material and an eye for detail. 

Besides the director, this film has arguably one of the most incredibly stacked casts I've seen for a film this whole year. To say that the talent is impeccable would undercut the sheer scope of this loaded roster of actors and actresses. The list itself is almost impossible to not faint over. A plethora of young up and coming talent as well as seasoned veterans round out the on-screen players. Academy Award nominee Timothée Chalamet leads the pack as the protagonist Paul Atreides with Josh Brolin, Oscar Issac, Rebecca Ferguson as Gurney Halleck, Duke Leto Atreides, and Lady Jessica respectively. Additionally, Zendaya Coleman, Jason Mamoa, Javier Bardem, Dave Batista, Stellan Skarsgård, David Dastmalchian, and Sharon Duncan-Brewster round out the collection of talent billed to light up the screen. Directing a cast this size is a big task in itself. But Villeneuve has proven he can handle the challenge and do it with grace and ease. So you have the director, the cast, one of the best composers in Hans Zimmer doing the score, and all the pieces in place to make this a hit. Unfortunately, current circumstances could derail not just the box office haul but the appeal for the general audience to make the trip to see it first hand.

COVID-19 has put Hollywood in a state of emergency that has left a gaping hole in a large chunk of the year. The summer movie season was all but completely wiped out with various theaters shut down since mid-March. Even now with theaters reopening, the amount of unknown still lingering in the air puts the rest of this year and possibly the next few years into question. For Dune, this creates a variety of obstacles that Villeneuve and company will have to overcome. It's already hard enough to not know if your film will even make it to theaters this year but now you have to couple that with the fact that you're the new kid on the block in a market of giants. Disney, Universal, and Paramount all have mega franchises that bring in billions in box office revenue year after year. Warner Bros has its share of franchises and is credited with delivering the first blockbuster to theaters in COVID-19 with the release of Tenet this past weekend. So for them, introducing a new franchise during one of the most important release periods of the year is the right move to stay ahead of the curve. Plus, during a tumultuous year where the studio's competition is pulling out or pushing back its heavyweight IPs, Dune has enough of a cult following and possibly enough intrigue in place to get the general audiences' attention. I'm hoping the film ends up being more of a rebooted Planet of the Apes type of reception and doesn't end up like Warner Bros' other attempt at a sci-fi franchise-starter Jupiter Ascending. 

Dune is an ambitious gamble for the studio and one that honestly has more risk of hurting all parties involved if things go south in the coming months. The 2020 box office is set to have a record low yearly total and it is uncertain when things will get back to normal. So the team for Dune has a lot of decisions to make and a lot of work to do to try and convince moviegoers to experience a film they deem to be the must see event in December. Sure, they can push the film back a year or two. But 2021, 2022, and 2023 are starting to get crowded with the studios prepping to get their theatrical mojo back. Now might be Dune's only chance to get a foothold in popular culture and establish itself as a giant in the genre. There is no doubt that the film will have an uphill battle when it comes to being a worthy spectacle for the end of the year. But the quality of the product and good word of mouth could be just what the film needs to make the climb.

Re-Porter Blog: The Porter Report #1

A True Big Deal In The Resistance

In Response To John Boyega and Finn's Impact on The Sequel Trilogy & Star Wars

By Brandon Porter

    We all have moments where we feel our actions and hard work are not rewarded or recognized. Like we are led to believe we are destined for something great and because it doesn't happen the way we envision it, we feel like our time and energy has been wasted. To me, this is the danger of taking things at face value. So caught up in surface-level thinking we don't truly see the beauty of what we create or help build. To add a little bit of context to this intro, a GQ interview was published earlier this week that featured John Boyega, star of Star Wars Episodes 7 through 9, expressing his view on his role in the closing trilogy of The Skywalker Saga. What was said in the article was raw, unfiltered, uncensored, and brutally honest. I won't go into too much detail but from my account, his view is he feels his character's story was pushed to the side and wasn't important to the overall narrative. Other things came up like the notion that the new Star Wars trilogy dropped the ball on the representation of people of color and sidelined those same people's characters for the nuanced characters with lighter pigmentations. While I got plenty of opinions on that topic, for the sake of time (and personal sanity) I'm leaving that alone. One quote from John that really stuck with me and quite frankly hurt me was when he mentions that you shouldn't market a black character as important and then just push them aside. When I read that quote, I was partly hurt that he felt that way but also puzzled that he feels like he was just tossed to the side when his character's story, now looking at it as a whole, is actually pretty inspiring and engaging at least for me.

Let me first emphasize that John Boyega is one of my favorite actors in the business. It's hard not to be in awe of this dude's swagger, poise, and personality. A class act in every sense of the word who deserves every blessing that comes his way. That is what makes this entire article both eye-opening and a bit upsetting. Boyega should definitely be applauded for having the guts to speak his mind without fear of potentially being blackballed in the industry. Not a lot of actors or actresses of color could do that. But the question I raise is...Were me and John watching the same movie? Right from the jump, I was intrigued by the character of Finn. What was he doing in a stormtrooper outfit? Is he a spy? A deserter? a man running from duty? The fact that he is played by someone of African/African-American descent was just a bonus. I try my best to not look at things through a racial lens when it comes to films because it just creates a mental conundrum that kills what is supposed to be a fun time at the movies. Plus, looking at things through a racial lens opens doors for vitriolic and nasty verbal confrontations.



Getting to know who John was before I saw him on screen made me more excited to see him play a character in a franchise I've loved since childhood. When I finally saw him as Finn in The Force Awakens, I was incredibly interested in where his story would go in the latter two installments. As the series progressed, I put together all the pieces and find his story quite uplifting and filled with hope. Let's start from the beginning. Finn's biggest desire in Episode VII is to escape the first order. To run from the entity that stole his old life from him, brainwashed him, and turned him into an obedient weapon of war. He wants out of the life he's been forced to live. He's a child with no home, no identity, no name. Just a number with a blaster and orders. Once he rescues Poe, he starts to kind of craft his own personality and identity. It all starts with Poe dubbing him Finn, the first time he had something of his own in years. Over the course of his story, he still has that selfish desire to run away and disappear but circumstances change him for the better.

On multiple occasions, Finn proves he's more valuable standing up and fighting than running. He starts to see that running from the problems of the world is just as bad as contributing to them. A lesson he learned first hand in The Last Jedi after seeing DJ sell out the Resistance survivors to save his own skin. That lesson among others is the main reason why Finn isn't just a great Star Wars character, he is an example of the power one can have when they stop running and start fighting for the good of others. It's what kept him alive in his battle with the riot trooper, it's what gave him the edge over Phasma, and it's what turned him into a beacon of leadership for the Resistance as he led his regime to victory as a general in the Battle of Exogol in Episode IX. It's an arc that may not have the intended impact that some wanted but for me, it is an arc with moments I appreciate more and more as the days go by.

One example, in particular, is this scene from The Rise of Skywalker

When I saw this scene in the theater, It became one of my favorite moments of the movie and possibly the entire saga. Finn and Jannah back to back. Both were taken from their homes, both made to serve an oppressive establishment, both broke free, both forged a new identity and both are now leading an ARMY against the very establishment that took so much from them to ensure future generations won't suffer what they have suffered, and both...look like me. For me, this was one of the most pro-black moments in Star Wars history and no one talks about it. Think about it: two BLACK characters leading an entire army against an oppressive regime in an effort to prevent future children from suffering the same psychological torture they went through. What is there not to love about this sequence and it's symbolism? I had the biggest "hell yeah" face on when this happened and this was one example of why Finn is one of my favorite characters in the new trilogy.

It's a feeling that I didn't think I would get watching a Star Wars film but it is one I am overjoyed to have. This is why it puzzles me that John feels like he was pushed aside like he does. Trust me, if he was truly pushed aside he would not have made it past Episode VIII but that's just me. To clarify, John has every right to feel the way he does and say what he wants about how things went down. But what I would say to him if I could is this: Just because YOU feel your character wasn't important or impactful doesn't mean he wasn't. Finn's story may not be as "nuanced" as Rey or Kylo Ren's but it's still is a full arc of a man who once wanted to run from the problems of the world choose to stand up and secure a better future for those who will come after him. 

I would argue that despite what John, critics, analysts, and fans have to say, Finn, to me, is a Star Wars character I am personally really connecting to more and more as the months past since the trilogy's conclusion. Not just because he's played by someone black. But because I see the overall value in the story that was given instead of harping on what could have or should have been. You can go on and on about execution or think I'm making excuses cause I like a series of movies that you don't. But in this Star Wars fan's humble opinion and it is an opinion, I'm certain that when the current and future generations who are gonna grow up with these movies start to have a voice, some will see John's performance, his character, these movies, and his story the way I see it now...A big deal.

Re-Porter Blog Special Post

A Retrospective By Brandon Porter

    Long time no see followers. Hope everyone is doing well during these crazy times we are living in right now. As you might have noticed, the 2020 summer movie season didn't quite go as planned. In fact, we didn't have one at all. The majority of the big-time releases that were supposed to debut this summer or in the coming months have either been pushed back or forgone a theatrical release altogether and debuted on direct-to-consumer platforms. It's been a real bummer not being in a movie theater for the majority of the year and there is still a lot of uncertainty in the air moving forward. However, the past few weeks saw several theaters start to open back up with updated safety protocols in place to keep moviegoers safe from COVID-19. This is great news for me and others starving for that theatrical experience again but it also makes me nervous about the slippery slope theater chains are walking on to maintain the survivability of their industry.

Once looked at as the year's most anticipated cinematic event,
Niki Caro's live-action Mulan now faces a new set challenges
as it prepares to forgo theaters and premiere on
Disney's much-acclaimed streaming service  

I'll be honest with you guys. As much as I am happy to see movie theaters reopen for business, the road to get here has been rocky, to say the least. The tug of war between studios and the chains that showcase their products, the constant delays that are now starting to affect the next ten years of filmmaking, and we can't forget about all the civil unrest in various parts of the world. This is truly an unprecedented time that no one saw coming and nobody was truly prepared for. It has been especially hard for people who rely on the moviegoing experience as a source for escapism as I do. Not being able to sit down in a large auditorium and get lost in epic stories and characters has been pretty rough on my mental health especially in an age where the internet and social media have become this entity of bitterness, vitriol, and just straight-up bogus nonsense.

Christopher Nolan's ambitious sci-fi thriller now is
looked at by many as the jumping-off point
for restarting the cinematic box office.

All that aside, the fact that the blockbuster films will start returning to cinemas as early as today with the release of Christopher Nolan's Tenet has me excited that I'll be able to get that immersive movie theater experience again. Unfortunately, some considerable damage has been done to the 2020 box office and its film lineup as well. For instance, today also marks the long-awaited release of Disney's live-action adaptation of Mulan. What was once looked at as one of the must-see films of the year will now reach audiences not from an auditorium with booming surround sound and reclining seats, but from the comfort of people's own homes. Prior to now, both Tenet and Mulan were seen as the supposed saviors of a summer movie season that was pretty much DOA. However, Disney made the decision to release one of it's most ambitious (and expensive) films to its popular streaming service Disney +. The move sent shockwaves through the industry as many saw this as not just bold but potentially telling about how things might go moving forward.

After a plethora of delays, DC and Warner Bros are finally looking
to release their anticipated sequel Wonder Woman 1984 this October.

Let's not beat around the bush, going to the movies, especially with a large group of friends or family, can be an incredibly stressful time on the wallet. Theater chains haven't made it that much easier with increasing prices year by year. Streaming services delivering quality content for fractions of the price make staying at home a much more affordable, convenient, and in this case safer option. Mulan moving to Disney + might actually be just a one-off move but it's something to pay attention to now that the possibility of big-budget, large scale blockbuster films coming directly to the consumer is being tested. That said, studios like Disney, Warner Bros, Universal, and Paramount have not given up on the movie-going experience. Despite the beating, the 2020 spring and summer box office took, fall and winter may point to maybe not a complete resurgence but a jumping-off point in starting up a car that has been collecting dust for the majority of the calendar year.

In a scenario almost unheard of since 2010 to 2012, Marvel Studios'
Black Widow film will be the sole theatrical release for the
Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2020.

Tenet finally arriving in theaters is just the beginning. Over the next few months, big-time movies will start arriving in cineplexes across the country allowing a chance for more people to get that theatrical experience they have longed for since before the pandemic. October sees the release of DC's Wonder Woman 1984, Universal's remake of Candyman, and Kenneth Branagh's Death on the Nile, the sequel to 2017s Murder on the Orient Express. November starts the holiday movie season and for the most part, it remains relatively intact. Things start off on November 6th with the release of Marvel's only movie this year Black Widow. Yes, you read that right. After years of 2 to 3 movies from the shared heroverse, circumstances have the latest film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the only film releasing this year from the studio. A scenario not seen since the release of 2010's Iron Man 2 and 2012's The Avengers. November also sees the release of the latest installment of the 007 series No Time to Die and Pixar's latest potential masterpiece Soul starring Jamie Foxx. Rounding out the year for December will be 20th Century Studios' Free Guy starring Ryan Reynolds. The week prior to Christmas has heavy hitters all around. The much-anticipated sequel to Eddie Murphy's beloved 1980s classic Coming 2 America, Steven Spielberg's adaptation of West Side Story, and Denis Villeneuve's ambitiously large scale adaptation of Dune, based on the novel by Frank Hubert.

Denis Villeneuve's ambition adaptation of Frank Hubert's 
acclaimed novel will serve as one of the
year's tentpole holiday year-end epics.

Despite all that I just mentioned, every single theatrical movie release after labor day is going to have to have a giant asterisk on it. There is still so much uncertainty in the air and everything could go sideways in a matter of days or even after this post is published. I'm hoping that won't be the case. I pray we will be able to see all of these films and the ones next year and the year after without fear of contracting a dangerous disease. I truly missed not writing reviews for you all and sharing all that the summer movie season has to offer. In an alternate timeline, I would have been preparing my summer movie awards and wrapping up the season until next year. But that isn't the case right now. I look forward to seeing things get back to normal in more ways than one. Who knows. It may start tonight. Thanks for sticking with me as I shake the cobwebs off and get back to writing. Look forward to being in the cinemas with you all again soon. Stay safe, stay healthy, and have a wonderful holiday weekend.