The Rock rises in Skyscraper
America’s biggest hero is running out of things to defeat, Chris Lackner writes.
MOVIES
Big releases on July 13: Skyscraper; Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation.
Big picture: Skyscraper is Die Hard meets The Fugitive meets an easy Dwayne Johnson payday. The Rock (i.e. Johnson) plays Will, a U.S. war vet and FBI hostage guru turned “skyscraper security expert.” We know Will knows buildings because of wise observations like, “You have built a vertical city.” Will soon finds himself trapped inside The Pearl, the world’s “tallest” and “most advanced” building, and facing off against arsonists, soldiers and a deadly, criminal fire (for which he has been framed). To make matters worse, his beloved family is trapped above the fire line. To make matters better, he is unkillable and makes herculean tasks look like child’s play.
Meanwhile, the animated Hotel Transylvania 3 is for two kinds of people: People who are already fans of the fangy franchise; and people who haven’t but want to see Dracula, one of pop culture’s all-time greatest villains, ruined by the childish voice of Adam Sandler. The new instalment finds Drac’s monstrously lovable family taking a break from their hotel to enjoy a Monster Cruise Ship. The only catch: the trip is a trap sprung by the descendant of monster hunter Van Helsing.
Forecast: At some point, Hollywood is going to run out of things for The Rock to defeat. In the last two years alone, he has conquered giant mutant animals, a skyscraper, a board game, beaches, and fast and furious cars. When you tack on victories against earthquakes, COBRA, Hera, mortality (i.e. The Mummy franchise) and more, a lack of new opponents may soon find Johnson transitioning into romcom stardom.
TV
Big events: TKO: Total Knock Out (July 11, CBS/Global); How It Ends (July 13, Netflix).
Big picture: At this point, is there anyone left in Hollywood that hasn’t hosted a game or competition show (I predict George Clooney will soon sign on to take over on The Price is Right). TKO finds comedian Kevin Hart helming yet another obstacle-course competition series. This one is billed as Wipeout meets America Ninja Warrior for everyday schlubs — albeit schlubs who want to be pummelled by disk, balls, mallets, foam, water and more.
Meanwhile, How It Ends is a Netflix original movie about an estranged father (Forest Whitaker) and son-in-law navigating a mysterious apocalypse to find a lost loved one. They travel through an imploding world in which all communications are down, the government is silent, and rule and order have been lost — think Mad Max meets The Walking Dead (only it seems to take humanity a matter of days to go to hell). It all sounds a little too familiar. Tell me how it ends. Forecast: TKO is for those who want to see what human whacka-moles.
MUSIC
Big releases on July 13: The Jayhawks (Back Roads and Abandoned Motels); Cowboy Junkies (All That Reckoning); Rick Astley (Beautiful Life).
Big picture: This week finds two groups still chirping after 30 years. For starters, alt-country and folk-rock band The Jayhawks — all melody, melancholy, harmonies and heart — remain one of my all-time favourites.
There’s also no reckoning in store for cult-Canadian rock group, Cowboy Junkies — only more music that cuts the right beats, spins the right words and feeds the soul. In a statement about the new album, the Junkies promise songs about “empty hearts, empty nests, lost paths, lost lives and all the reckoning that brings about the end of things, and the beginnings of something else.” (And that’s already nearly half the total words Johnson speaks in Skyscraper).
Meanwhile, we are about to get Rick rolled all over again. After his 2016 comeback album gave him a surprise return to the charts, the ’80s icon is looking to make his second lease on musical life a beautiful one.
Forecast: I predict The Jayhawks’ new album title will inspire a new reality-competition series set in locations chosen by indie and alt-country artists. Contestants will race each other through Back Roads and Abandoned Motels. (C’mon, you know you’d watch that.)