'The Bikeriders': Hectic, Tragic, Yet Electric

One of the posters for The Bikeriders. Photo courtesy of William Beavers.

Austin Butler and Tom Hardy did a great job acting in Focus Features' The Bikeriders. There was occasional Johnny Cash and June Carter Walk the Line-esque chemistry between Jodie Comer and Butler's characters, enjoyable humor watching Butler act like Patrick Swayze and Hardy act like Robert De Niro, and amazing blues and rock and roll music depicted in the film. The Bikeriders was also a great combination of tragedy and togetherness when it told the tales of humanity and inhumanity in members of a biker gang in the 1960s American Midwest.

Based on a book by real-life photographer Danny Lyon, played by Mike Faist from Challengers, The Bikeriders tells the story of the Chicago chapter of the Vandals motorcycle club, led by Johnny, played by Hardy. One of his members and closest friends, Benny, played by Butler, is caught between enjoying the life of a dangerous biker or freeing himself and settling down with his love interest, Kathy, played by Comer, from Free Guy. As all three quarrel with their individual lives, questions of loyalty and change follow them.

Boyd Holdbrook, Austin Butler, and Tom Hardy in The Bikeriders. Courtesy of Focus Features.

In the beginning, Butler's character of Benny reminded me of Patrick Swayze, with the whole tough-guy act and the crazy Road House-style action. Then it got funny and tender watching him and Comer as Kathy riding with a nice expressway skylight and "Out in the Streets" by The Shangri-Las. As I said earlier, it reminded me of Johnny Cash and his future second wife June Carter in Walk the Line. But, later, it seemed that the relationship was one-sided given that Benny was willing to get in more fights and break himself rather than just be a great man for Kathy, similar to Bradley Cooper's A Star is Born.

Jodie Comer and Austin Butler in The Bikeriders. Courtesy of Focus Features.

Despite his occasional rowdiness, I did like Butler being a cool troublemaker. Going to Hardy, I couldn't tell which type of accent he used as Johnny. It seemed like a Jersey or New York accent, or a hint of Sylvester Stallone, but, still, it was amusing watching him be a mellow and tough cat when it came to protecting the Vandals. He's a little removed from Bane in The Dark Knight Rises, then goes back to Bane with fights reminiscent of West Side Story.

Other than Butler and Hardy, you may enjoy the crazy hair (like mullets or bobs that could remind you of Priscilla Presley) and costumes from the 1960s, songs from artists such as Muddy Waters, Cream, or the Sonics. Though I got them all wrong, I saw some Vandals club performers who looked like Christopher Walken, Daryl Sabara (Juni Cortez from Spy Kids), Evan Peters from X-Men: Days of Future Past, and Andy Serkis.

One note is that they should've given more screen time to Comer. 

All in all, I enjoyed watching The Bikeriders. Maybe a 7.5/10. I hope you enjoy it, too, if you watch it. Only in theaters. Rated R.

'Inside Out 2'-Emotional, Stunning, and Real

'Inside Out 2'. Copyright 2024, Disney/Pixar.

Good afternoon, everyone.

This morning, I saw Inside Out 2. From a scene that resembles Pandora from Avatar to a good blend of emotion, real-life perspective, and humor, it was a well-executed sequel courtesy of Pixar Animation Studios.

After the original Inside Out, Riley Andersen, now voiced by Kensington Tallman, is 13, at hockey camp, and on the cusp of puberty and an identity crisis. 

Sadness (voiced by Phyllis Smith), Joy (voiced by Amy Poehler), Disgust (voiced by Liza Lapira), Fear (voiced by Tony Hale), and Anger (voiced by Lewis Black) in Disney/Pixar's Inside Out 2. Courtesy of Disney.

Even though Joy, Sadness, Fear, Anger, and Disgust are working well together now, more complex emotions such as Anxiety, voiced by Maya Hawke, have run amok, and they all must find a way to solve Riley's identity crisis together.

Embarrassment (voiced by Paul Walter Hauser), Anxiety (voiced by Maya Hawke), Envy (voiced by Ayo Edebiri), and Ennui (voiced by Adèle Exarchopoulos) in Disney/Pixar's Inside Out 2. Courtesy of Disney.

At first, I was skeptical of Inside Out 2, given that I want fewer sequels and more original stuff from Pixar. But they proved me wrong in many cases. For example, Tony Hale and Liza Lapira made great close seconds to Bill Hader and Mindy Kaling as the voices of Fear and Disgust. Hale, in particular, was great bringing back his crazy energy from voicing Forky in Toy Story 4. 

Next, new emotions Anxiety and Envy, voiced by Hawke and Ayo Edebiri from Mutant Mayhem, were funny in making Riley cool and awkward in trying to fit in with her hockey camp teammates. Anxiety started being funny when she tried to understand Riley's social skills, then came off as an antagonist in challenging Joy and rebranding Riley altogether.

Joy (voiced by Amy Poehler) and Anxiety (voiced by Maya Hawke) in Inside Out 2. Courtesy of Disney.

However, it wasn't all bad, because I empathized with being anxious about my future and present just as Riley did. In addition, it was impressive when Joy learned to be vulnerable telling her frustration of trying to control everything with Riley. Once she did that, the other emotions learned to be a team. In a way, Anxiety and Joy could be foils to each other. 

Back to the team talk, I was glad to see Anger, voiced by Lewis Black, be more than just a hothead when guiding the team back to the core of Riley's mind. And Sadness, voiced by Phyllis Smith from the American version of The Office, held her own again in trying to rebuild Riley.

There were also other funny suppressed emotions, cool hockey action, and astounding animation reminiscent of classics such as Blue's Clues.

To conclude, Inside Out 2 was worth watching because it tells that life's not too scary with the right emotional work and support system. If you want a film that feels real instead of just for entertainment for you, go watch Inside Out 2.