2/24 Movie Trip

Paul McGuire Grimes, creator of Paul’s Trip to the Movies, weighs in on two shows that are streaming and one movie out in theaters.

THE LAST OF US (HBO, HBO Max)

Not many of us have “appointment viewing” shows anymore, but The Last of Us is the latest series to grab audiences and demand you watch new episodes as they air every Sunday. The series is based on the video game of the same name from Naughty Dog Productions. It takes place in a post-apocalyptic 2023, twenty years after a fungal infection stemming from the Cordyceps plant wiped out most of the population. There are few survivors and hoard of zombies known as the Clickers. Pedro Pascal (The Mandalorian) stars as Joel, a survivor who has had many losses along the way, including loved ones. He finds himself protecting young Ellie, a 14-year-old girl who was infected but seems to have an immunity against the virus.

The first season will consist of nine episodes with six having aired so far.

Starring: Pedra Pascal and Bella Ramsey with appearances by Nick Offerman, Murray Bartlett, Melanie Lynsky, Rutina Wesley, Anna Torv

Don’t disregard this show as “just another zombie series” The zombie characters basically take a backseat despite their ever-looming presence. This is focused on Joel and Ellie’s survival and how the few remaining survivors try to build back society and local governments.

The production design of the series is stunning. I’m always blown away with how they’ve designed a desolate and inhabited Earth. We see damaged store fronts, crumbling towns and architecture while nature seems to be growing as vines, plants, and vegetation have blossomed over the bridges and streets.

I’ve never played the video game, but I’ve never felt like I’m missing backstory or intricate details that would stem from knowing the game. The writing team has opened this up for anyone to enjoy.

Every episode is a testament in character building and storytelling almost treating each episode as its own little movie and story arc based on who Joel and Ellie are meeting. You’ll get introduced to characters only to have your heart broken by the end knowing they don’t make it. It builds high stakes and keeps the series fresh each week knowing not a single character is safe from the Clickers.

Already renewed for Season 2 after the first two episodes aired. It’s unclear if that will directly pick up with the second video game as they have already introduced a character from the second game in Episode 6.

RATING: 4.5 out of 5 TICKET STUBS

STAR TREK: PICARD Season 3 (Paramount +)

The third and final season of Star Trek: Picard will be an epic one for old and new fans of these characters. It’s the 25^th Century and all Admiral Jean-Luc Picard would like to do is settle into his home and write his memoir. That all changes after getting a distress video message from his old friend and flame, Beverly Crusher, who he hasn’t seen or spoken to in over twenty years. She warns him not to trust Starfleet and to trust no one. Picard knows he must help her and brings along his old buddy William Riker to board the Titan and find Beverly’s location. It would take them to the edge of the Federation in hopes of finding her. The stakes become deeper when it’s revealed Beverly has another son, Jack, who is the one being hunted. Meanwhile, Starfleet officer Raffi is posing as a junkie to gain intel on a terrorist attack. She’s warned to “Find the Red Lady” but is too late and witnesses the Starfleet Recruitment building attacked and destroyed.

Ten episodes airing weekly on Paramount+, two of the ten episodes have aired so far.

Starring: Patrick Stewart, Jeri Ryan, Michelle Hurd, Jonathan Frakes and welcomes back the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation to the world of Picard with Gates McFadden (Beverly Crusher), Michael Dorn (Worf), and LeVar Burton (Geordi La Forge)

A majority of the cast of Season 1 and Season 2 are no longer on the show as this series shifts to storylines to connecting Picard back to his old friends from The Next Generation as a way to wrap up the series and bring it back home again.

Trekkies will be pleased to have the old crew again. There’s an easiness and history felt between these actors and their characters. A core foundation to this season belongs to the theme of families – both biological and chosen. Like all families, tensions mount, there are disagreements, and a sense of loyalty is being tested given the expectations they’ve had on each other over the last twenty years.

Picard features non-stop action from the beginning with each episode ending on a cliffhanger holding you out for another week. The writers know audiences are tuning in for The Next Generation characters, but they’ve wisely spaced out their appearances, so it feels organic to the storytelling and not overly gimmicky up front.

Jean-Luc Picard questions whether we look to the past to define ourselves and does not seem concerned by legacy, but this season feels like he will change his mind by the end as he reunites with new and old friends.

RATING: 3.5 out of 5 TICKET STUBS

ANT-MAN AND THE WASP: QUANTUMANIA (in theaters)

If you don’t already know Jonathan Majors from Lovecraft Country or Da 5 Bloods, add him to your list of top Hollywood talent on the verge of superstardom. Before we see him in Creed III, he squares off against Ant-Man in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. We first saw Majors as Kang the Conqueror in the final episode of Loki Season 1. He’s been teased as the next massive Marvel villain rivaling Thanos. In Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, we learn he’s been stuck in the Quantum Realm with Michelle Pfeiffer’s character Janet Van Dyne. To recap, the Quantum Realm is a subatomic universe that is full of mystery and power. Back on normal-sized Earth, Paul Rudd’s Scott Lang would like a break from being an Avenger. He’s written a memoir but would rather just spend time being dad to his daughter Cassie, (Kathryn Newton). She’s following in the family footsteps by studying quantum and giving herself powers. That is until her new device sucks herself, Scott, Janet, Hope, and Hank into the Quantum Realm. It’s a world unlike anything they would have expected but full of danger once they learn Kang the Conqueror is after Scott and Cassie.

Starring: Paul Rudd, Jonathan Majors, Michelle Pfeiffer, Kathryn Newton, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Douglas

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is the third Ant-Man film and marks the beginning of Phase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The Ant-Man movies have always leaned into the sillier side of Marvel given the nature of his character. Director Peyton Reed and his design team lean into this heavily with the third outing giving it a Star Wars feel with its creatures, goblins, and environments. This brought me right back to those syndicated Sci-Fi series of the 1990s like Babylon 5 or Stargate.

The challenge for me is that, much like Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, they’re relying heavily on CGI to build these worlds. Yes, many Marvel movies do this, but Black Panther Wakanda Forever and Spider-Man No Way Home still feel grounded.

It’s hard to feel that tangible reality or have high stakes here, especially when the special effects feel quite sloppy at times. It’s very apparent when actors are running around a set but don’t know where their markers are where the sets and creatures will be added in around them.

The story sets up these questions of “Who is Kang?” and “Who is Janet?”, and it’s that mystery that keeps the story going despite some bad dialogue. Once we get the first showdown with Jonathan Majors and Michelle Pfeiffer, the film starts to have some energy and fervor. Majors and Pfeiffer are electric together and remind us of the stakes at hand. Pfeiffer always knows how to slay a role, and Majors is an absolute force with the stillness he brings to Kang. There’s a menacing quality bubbling under the service while still building an empathy for him. T

There continues to be discussions on the multiverse, and Kang’s chapter is far from over. A moderate recommendation thanks to Majors and Pfeiffer.

Make sure to stay for the two credit sequences. I’m pretty confident in saying I enjoyed the first one far more than the actual movie itself.

RATING: 3 out of 5 TICKET STUBS