Bublé returns

Michael Bublé charms and croons to adoring Toyota Center crowd

Michael Buble Houston Toyota Center 2019

The earnest Bublé brought the hits and connected personally with the audience.

Photo by Jamaal Ellis

Toyota Center transformed into a 1950s Las Vegas casino as Canadian singer Michael Bublé took a packed audience on a time machine thrill ride on March 26.

The performer was back on the touring circuit, promoting his new album, Love, after a three-year hiatus following his son Noah's liver cancer diagnosis, treatment, and recovery. He looked rejuvenated and svelte in a dapper, blue designer suit and tie, his award-winning vocal prowess on full display.

To many music fans, Bublé is too earnest and too much of a throwback to earn their attention, but he won over the crowd composed of a wide demographic almost immediately with a charm and charisma very few artists can claim. He started the night with the early hit, "Feeling Good" from 2005's It's Time, a James Bond theme if there ever was one, walking down a massive bandstand that harks back to the days of Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Sammy Davis Jr.

A 32-piece orchestra, including strings, brass, piano, keyboards, and guitars brought a huge sound to the arena while an extended runway allowed the singer to get intimate with a large portion of the audience.

Bublé referenced The Rat Pack early and often with a set comprised mostly of cover songs. But that's part of his schtick and what makes him so adored by audiences worldwide. At one point, he told the well-known story that he first got into the era of crooners through his grandfather, who loved big band, '60s swing, and a time when men drank hard, told off-color jokes, and could woo women with their silky-smooth vocals.

Bublé performed his perfunctory hits, like "Haven't Met You Yet" from 2009's Crazy Love, "Everything" from 2007's Irresponsible, and "Nobody But Me" from the 2016 album of the same name, but the show really soared when he gave into his old school impulses, performing much-loved cover songs.

No surprise that Sinatra got some love early on with "My Funny Valentine," which Bublé joked "was kind of a dark song." Dean Martin got time in the spotlight with "Sway (Que Sera)," allowing Bublé to show off his fluent Spanish (his wife is Argentinian model Luisana Lopilato)," and the classic "You're Nobody 'Til Somebody Loves You."

Louis Armstrong featured on two-songs with "Lazy River" and "When You're Smiling (The Whole World Smiles with You)." A three-song interlude in the middle of the arena that Bublé likened to his early days of playing seedy nightclubs included the Louis Prima smash "Just a Gigolo," and Chuck Berry's "You Can Never Tell," perhaps the best moment of the night.

But the singer's major talent, other than his beautiful singing voice, was his ability to connect with the audience. He came with a Rolodex of jokes, talking about the sexiness of the Texas accent, recalling the zombie-like appearance of Floridian fans at his first tour stop in Sarasota, or sharing his love of Kenny Rogers — at one point busting out into an impromptu version of "The Gambler."

He took the time to sign posters, greet kids in the audience, FaceTime with a young fan at home, and even sing a duet of "Me and Mrs. Jones" with a woman in the audience, who was absolutely, and in no way was a plant (she totally was).

Very few performers can exude the charm to win over 15,000 concert-goers, including jaded music critics, but Bublé did so with panache and professionalism that left all those who came to see him very happy for his return to the stage.

Setlist
"Feeling Good"
"Haven't Met You Yet"
"My Funny Valentine"
"I Only Have Eyes for You"
"Sway (Quien Sera)"
"Such a Night"
"Lazy River"
"When You're Smiling (The Whole World Smiles with You)"
"You're Nobody 'Til Somebody Loves You"
"When You Fall in Love"
"Love You Anymore"
"Forever Now"
"Home"
"Buena Sera"
"Just a Gigolo"
"You Can Never Tell"
"Nobody But Me"
"Cry Me a River"

Encore
"Where or When"
"Everything"
"Always on My Mind"

Movie Review

Chris Pratt fights for his innocence in popcorn thriller Mercy

Photo courtesy Amazon Content Services

Chris Pratt in Mercy.

It seems like every other movie set in modern times being released these days includes either a reference to or a plot revolving around artificial intelligence. In the real world, the benefits of the technology compete with its downsides, but when it comes to movies A.I. is almost always seen as a threat, including in the new film Mercy.

The audience is thrown headlong into the slightly futuristic story involving LAPD Detective Chris Raven (Chris Pratt), who finds himself strapped in a chair in a sparse room, being told that he is on trial for killing his wife. Turns out he’s in a court dubbed “Mercy,” which is overseen by an AI judge named Maddox (Rebecca Ferguson). By the rules of the court, Raven has 90 minutes to provide reasonable doubt of his guilt, or he will be executed on the spot.

Raven is in a multi-pronged quandary: Not only does he believe he’s innocent despite a trove of evidence pointing to his guilt, but he’s also the poster boy for the law enforcement side of the equation, having arrested the first man who went to Mercy. Anger and disbelief for Raven turn into acceptance, which then turns into him tapping into his detective skills, scrutinizing every shred of evidence the court provides him in a desperate attempt to save his own life.

Directed by Timur Bekmambetov and written by Marco van Belle, the film is a relatively propulsive thriller despite having a so-so story and even worse acting. The film is told in real time (with a few fudges here and there), so the concept alone of a man trying to prove his innocence in a short amount of time provides good intrigue. Bekmambetov’s use of digital elements as Raven scrolls through files or calls potentially exculpatory witnesses like his partner, Jaq Diallo (Kali Reis), keeps the film visually interesting.

On the other hand, the swift viewing of videos and documents by Raven, not to mention the high degree of cooperation by Judge Maddox, opens up more than a few plot holes. The filmmakers try to explain away a few leaps in logic by having Raven falling off the sobriety wagon the night before, but they can only use that excuse for so long. They also have the AI judge experience technical glitches along the way, errors that seem to point toward a wider conspiracy until they’re completely forgotten.

More than anything, it’s difficult to get over the wooden acting of Pratt and the misuse of other usually reliable actors. Pratt has no real presence, especially when he’s confined to a chair, so any emotion he tries to conjure up comes off as contrived. Ferguson is done no favors by a role that shows only her upper body and has her alternating between robotic and oddly sympathetic. Reis earned an Emmy nomination for True Detective: Night Country, but has little to do here, a fate that also takes out Chris Sullivan as Raven’s AA sponsor.

If you’re okay with turning off your brain for a little while, Mercy can be an enjoyable watch. But if you find yourself scrutinizing why characters make the odd decisions they do, or the wishy-washy way the film approaches AI in general, then you’re likely to find the whole thing lacking.

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Mercy is now playing in theaters.

movies film chris pratt rebecca ferguson movie review