Faisel Pervaiz

The Matrix is a landmark in the canon of science-fiction films. Its special effects were (and still are) cutting-edge, and its story is unsettling, intriguing, complex, and philosophical all at once. The title of this stylishly dark movie by the Wachowskis refers to an elaborate artificial reality created by malevolent machines in the future, designed to distract humanity so that the machines can use people for energy like batteries. Indeed, the Matrix is so expertly constructed that the majority of humanity is blissfully unaware that everyday reality is actually an illusion. This isn’t the case for computer programmer Thomas Anderson, aka "Neo", played by Keanu Reeves. His existential angst and awareness of the Matrix eventually lead him to Morpheus, a sage-like figure who offers to awaken Neo from his illusory slumber to show him the real world, which, as it turns out, is a bleak, dystopian landscape ruled by the antagonists. As a result, Neo joins Morpheus and his band of resistance fighters to battle against the machines, which manifest in the Matrix as suit-clad men known as Agents. Because the Matrix is not real, Neo learns to bend the laws of physics as if he were in a dream, lending the subtext to some of the film’s striking special effects scenes including dodging bullets. Aside from obvious references like the names “Trinity” and “Nebuchadnezzar”, and the Hindu notion of Maya (i.e. that reality is an illusion), religious undertones figure throughout the movie including the themes of prophecy, truth, belief, and the epic fight between good and evil. In this same vein, Neo resembles a prophet who is called to a mission by those who believe in him more than he does himself. The Matrix went on to spawn two sequels along with a third scheduled for release this Christmas 2021. Though there is something missing from this movie that prevents it from receiving a 100% rating, it's more than worth watching for its special effects and intriguing plot about the future of man versus machine.

Beat Bobby Flay is one of my favorite shows. It features incredible food, lively personalities, and an engaging competition with one of the world’s great chefs. The premise is simple: two accomplished cooks compete for the chance to make their signature dish against Bobby. Spoiler: Bobby usually wins. In the first round, Bobby gives the two competitors a single ingredient of his choice that they must make the star of their dish. They have 20 minutes to prepare something and they never fail to impress. Two fellow chefs (or sometimes a chef and a celebrity) judge the first round and decide who will compete against Bobby. As a wordsmith, I love hearing how the judges describe the dishes using terms like “bright”, “sweetness”, “freshness” and “depth”. In the second round, the show features a moment of suspense as Bobby stands face-to-face with the first round's winner and asks “What’s your signature dish?” In response, the chef answers, “My signature dish is...” before taking a pause for dramatic effect and naming the dish. Then Bobby and his opponent have 45 minutes to cook the best possible version of that dish. During this round, the two judges do something silly to distract Bobby, whether it’s making fun of him, stealing his ingredients, or praising his opponent. In the end, three industry experts judge the dishes in a blind taste test to choose a winner. Bobby is a phenomenal chef. He often wins even when he makes a dish he's unfamiliar with based on his deep knowledge of cooking techniques and a clear vision of the end product. And he almost always takes risks by adding a twist to even classic dishes. Throughout the show, I enjoy hearing each chef discuss the techniques they use, and I’ve come to appreciate how cooking is an artform in which ingredients as disparate as calabrian chiles, pickled shallots, lemon vinegarette, and duck eggs can go into food in a way I never would have thought of using. Good food, I’ve come to realize, is all about knowing how ingredients complement each other, how the sweet balances the savory and how acid balances fat. The chefs further demonstrate their creativity through their artful presentations with simple yet effective techniques like smearing sauce on a plate and sprinkling a garnish on top of their creations. The only time the show falls flat is when the judges from the first round lack personality or chemistry (it’s obvious when a judge is purposely laughing out loud for entertainment value at comments from a fellow judge that aren’t that funny). And I roll my eyes when a chef’s signature dish is something boring like chicken pot pie or some kind of soup. But the range of dishes throughout the show’s many seasons is vast so there’s something for everyone’s taste from Italian and Indian to Chinese and Greek. Watching the show has given me an appreciation of how good cooking is honed through endless practice to create delicious food to savor and remember long after it’s gone from your plate. So if you're in the mood to watch a master chef prepare, say, spanish-style eggs benedict with olive oil fennel toast, smoked paprika, and lemon hollandaise, turn on the Food Network and watch Beat Bobby Flay.

SPOILER ALERT: The black vastness of the universe frames the backdrop to this 2016 sci-fi/romance by director Morten Tyldum. Starring Chris Pratt as mechanic Jim Preston and Jennifer Lawrence as writer Aurora Lane, the movie takes place on a space shuttle voyaging to a colony planet, Homestead II, for space pilgrims seeking to leave the Earth for a new life. The passengers are hibernating in pods for the 120 year-long journey, but a disturbance on board the ship causes a malfunction that wakes Pratt up. All alone, Pratty scrambles throughout the gyrating spacecraft to find any signs of life, only to see that all 4,999 of his fellow passengers remain in a deep, restful, air-locked slumber. Soon he befriends an impeccable bartender, Arthur, played by Michael Sheen, his only form of semi-human contact (Arthur is a robot), and the two develop a bond as Pratt sharing his feelings over a daily drink. When Pratt’s loneliness drives him to the edge of suicide, he happens to see a pod with Lawrence in it and thinks of waking her up. An ethical dilemma ensues since he knows any passenger that wakes up with him will die before the remaining 90 years of the spaceship’s journey are complete. But alas he wakes her up in the end, only to hide the fact from her. An inevitable romance kindles between our two attractive space passengers, who learn to enjoy life on what amounts to a futuristic cruise ship until one day, the bartender, oblivious to the consequences, tells Lawrence that Pratt in fact woke her up. Hysteria ensues as Lawrence brings to the surface various shades from her emotional palette: anger, betrayal, panic, disgust. The romance chills as Lane finds Winston insufferable. Then one day, another passenger happens to wake up, Lawrence Fishburne’s Gus Mancuso, a member of the ship crew whose brief appearance is designed to help pinpoint what went wrong with the ship and how to fix it. Now Winston and Lane team up to find a way. Though the film has an interesting plot with moments of suspense, it has an isolating feel and needs to be further fleshed out, lacking the grandiosity and emotionalism of, say, Interstellar (a film that benefitted from a better soundtrack, no less). Most of the movie hinges on the performance of just three characters -- Pratt, Lawrence, and Sheen -- and Fishburne’s appearance is almost a tease. To be sure, Pratt is always most convincing in workingman characters like Jim Preston, but he fails to descend into the kind of genuine madness one would expect in the circumstances (though not for lack of trying with his scruffy beard), while Lawrence brings softer edges to what amounts to a one-dimensional, almost cliched portrayal of the writer looking for the greatest story never told, seeking to plumb beneath Preston’s exterior to uncover his motives for voyaging on this ship. The spacecraft itself is very sleek and impressive, and the scenes of outer space, though brief, are awe-inspiring. Overall, this movie fails to soar to the heights of the cosmos, but as we dawn on the age of commercial space exploration, it offers a glimpse of the kinds of journeys that will one day be possible.

Rush Hour 2 is less enjoyable than its predecessor, but this 2001 sequel by director Brett Ratner advances the same formula that made the first movie a hit: plenty of action and laughs that center on the irresistible chemistry between Jackie Chan (Inspector Lee) and Chris Tucker (Detective Carter). The duo embarks on an international criminal case that takes them from Hong Kong to L.A. and Las Vegas. Jackie Chan's fighting sequences remain remarkable for the fact that he does all his own stunts, while Chris Tucker's comedy keeps the laughs coming. That said, the freshness of Chan and Tucker's dynamic fades and comes across as more predictable than in the first movie. Joining the cast are Zhang Ziyi (Hu Li), whose performance adds to the film given the contrast between her silent, mysterious persona and the bullets she fires and daggers she flings. Also present is Rosalyn Sanchez (Isabella Molina), a beautiful agent whose ambiguous loyalty adds an element of intrigue. Compared to the first film, the plot feels less straightforward and less compelling, though it delivers plenty of laughs including a hilarious scene involving Tucker giving a lesson on race at a craps table. All in all, this movie delivers what fans of action-comedy want, and was followed by the third installment in 2007.

(SPOILER ALERT) Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, the 2018 film by director J.A. Bayona, is an entertaining blockbuster featuring elaborate visuals and fast-paced action sequences along with an expanding cast of dinosaurs. But an inconsistent plot, forgettable character performances, and darker visual aesthetic all combine to make this a thoroughly mediocre production that ranks near the bottom of the five films in the franchise. The setup of the movie is compelling enough: an imminent volcanic eruption on Isla Nublar threatens to kill off the dinosaurs. Should they be saved? Bryce Dallas Howard’s Claire Dearing, who by now has swapped in her corporate heels for more accomodating footwear, thinks yes. A dinosaur rights activist, Claire soon seeks to transfer the animals to an island sanctuary sponsored by the industrialist Benjamin Lockwood (James Cromwell), a once-friend of John Hammond’s who shares in his vision of eco-dino-preservation. Lockwood’s associate Eli Mills (Rafe Spall) recruits Claire for the mission given her know-how of the park’s animal-tracking system -- and in the process, she recruits Chris Pratt’s Owen Grady to track down Blue, the intelligent velociraptor from Jurassic World. The first half of the movie takes us to Isla Nublar as Owen and Claire -- joined by technician/hacker Franklin Webb (Justice Smith) and paleo-veterinarian Zia Rodriguez (Daniella Pineda) -- embark on a Noah’s ark-style mission of capturing several species of dinosaurs to save them. They’re joined by a team of military-style dino-hunters led by Ken Wheatley (Ted Levine), an unsavory character who clashes with Claire’s team, which results in complications that include a few of the characters almost being left behind on the island. None of the film’s performances stood out, with Pratt lacking the confidence that propelled him during the first movie and Howard failing to resonate in any meaningful way (ditto for Spall’s performance). But more troubling is the fact that this film (along with its predecessor) left out Sam Neil’s Dr. Alan Grant, the quintessential Jurassic Park character who balances an astute intellect with a protective instinct that makes you want him to be around him when things go awry. After leaving Isla Nublar, the second half of the movie takes place in Lockwood’s estate, where the lush vistas of our tropical island give way to a darker aesthetic reminiscent of a dungeon. We see dinosaurs running through hallways, breaking out of jail cells, and crashing through glass ceilings. An auction ensues and forms a centerpiece of the plot, pointing to Eli Mills’s true motives of wanting to rescue the dinosaurs: which is to sell them to fund more genetic research. The auction is also where we are introduced to the Indoraptor, a hybrid between the Indominus Rex and a velociraptor. Impressive though it is, the Indoraptor’s spiky, piranha-like teeth, overly agile movements, and insatiable bloodlust makes it come across as more of a monster from a horror movie than an animal from a sci-fi enterprise. What’s more, the Indoraptor lacks any of the grace and fearsome power that the original Tyrannosaurus Rex invoked in Steven Spielberg’s 1993 classic. Grossing $1.3 billion globally, Jurassic Park: Fallen Kingdom tries to carry the torch forward in this wildly successful series of films about the dangers of bringing these ancient creatures back to life. Another sequel, Jurassic Park: Dominion, is scheduled for release next year, and I can only hope that that film goes a step beyond its blockbuster sentiments to deliver something more worthy of its potential.