A Review Too Far - 091715

This week our cinema geeks review Martian Successor Nadesico: The Prince of Darkness, Dear White People, and out in theaters now, The Perfect Guy!

Up first, Martian Successor Nadesico: The Prince of Darkness is the film sequel for the popular 90's anime of the same name and tells a dark story that takes place three years after the end of the series. With previous main characters dead, former ship's information officer and child prodigy Ruri Hoshino is now in command of the Nadesico-B and has to unravel a conspiracy that aims to overthrow the governments of the entire solar system. Representing a shift in tone from the series and stuffed full of characters and plot threads that require knowing about and playing the video game companion that never released in America, The Prince of Darkness is fraught with issues that might be overwhelming to the general audience.

After that, we review Justin Simien's film on race relations in an Ivy-league school entitled Dear White People, where both the students and the staff are grappling with what it means to be black in what some would dub a "post-racial" society that clearly isn't. Doing its best to give a balanced look at modern race-relations, Dear White People only struggles when its characters start delivering messages without the philosophical evidence to back them up. The performances and overall feel of the film counters those issues, particularly when it comes to main characters Sam (Tessa Thompson) and Lionel (Tyler James Williams).

Finally, we take a look at our cinema release of the week which is the relationship-thrilller The Perfect Guy, where Sanaa Lathan thinks she's found the man of her dreams in Michael Ealy, but soon comes to realize that he is far from the idea mate. While Ealy shows plenty of both charisma and creepiness, the film is burdened by a bloated third act and shoddy direction.