It’s the weekend again, and that means Film Focus. Here’s Mike Laidman with what’s new in local theaters.
It’s truly a summer for sequels, and it seems like there is at least one sequel coming out every other week. It’s refreshing then, to get a decent original property to enjoy.

This week, Demolition is just such a movie, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, and joins Now You See Me 2 in theatres.

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Mike Laidman

Welcome to another edition of Film Focus. I’m Mike Laidman.

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Demolition (2016, Jean-Marc Vallee)
A man who lost his wife wipes his old life to start a new one.

Let’s a take a quick look at Demolition to gets things rolling.

Davis is a successful investment banker who is struggling after losing his wife in a tragic car crash. Despite pressure from his father-in-law, Phil, to pull it together, Davis continues to unravel. What starts as a complaint letter to a vending machine company turns into a series of letters revealing startling personal admissions. Davis' letters catch the attention of customer service rep, Karen, and, amidst emotional and financial burdens of her own, the two form an unlikely connection. With the help of Karen and her son Chris, Davis starts to rebuild, beginning with the demolition of the life he once knew.

With average reviews, the movie has its share of faults, mostly a somewhat confusing story that tries a bit too hard to be profound, instead settling for cliches. What it gets right, though, is its cast, with Naomi Watts, Chris Cooper, and lead Jake Gyllenhaal all doing their best with the material.

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Now You See Me 2 (2016, Jon M. Chu)
The Four Horsemen return and are recruited by a tech genius.

Moving on to Now You See Me 2, we find a lot of what made the 2013 movie so fun.

One year after outwitting the FBI and winning the public's adulation with their magic spectacles, the illusionists resurface for a comeback performance in hopes of exposing the unethical practices of a tech magnate. The man behind their vanishing act is none other than Walter Mabry, a tech prodigy who threatens the Horsemen into pulling off their most impossible heist yet. Their only hope is to perform one last unprecedented stunt to clear their names and reveal the mastermind behind it all.

This sequel is all about the spectacle, the sleight-of-hand. As long as you don’t go in expecting true magic you’ll leave satisfied.