SPOTLIGHT
Directed by Tom McCarthy
Screenplay by Tom McCarthy and Josh Singer
Starring Rachel McAdams; Mark Ruffalo; Michael Keaton; John Flattery; and Live Schreiber
The true story of how the Boston Globe Spotlight Team uncovered the massive scandal of child molestation and cover-up within the local Catholic Archdiocese, shaking the entire Catholic Church to its core.
This is a really good film. One that many will not go see. "Honey lets go out to the movies and watch the story about priest molesting children". Yeah. That is not going to happen. However I will tell you anyway...it is a very good film.
Why?
It takes you back to All The Presidents Men. When newspapers did not have an agenda. They just worked hard on a story to get the truth out. And, as in this story, you push for the truth despite all the obstacles in front of you. Lets face it. These reporters wee not just fighting priests they were fighting the beliefs of most of Boston who were catholic. In the face of all the push back...they worked very hard to get the truth out to the public. These reporters were heroes who opened up a can of worms.
Why?
Every single actor in this film gives a fantastic performance. Highlighted by Ruffalo as Rezendes. He pushes and pushes and gets emotionally involved.
Yes. it is a hard film to see. However it probably is the front runner for an Oscar. Would it get my vote for the Oscar? Probably not. Just because of the subject matter and I tend to lean toward less depressing films. Still....I am open minded enough to tell you...this is the frontrunner right now with Jenifer Lawrence's Joy. And Dicaprio's Revenant still to come.
If you want to see a really good film the harkens back to All The Presidents Men and good journalism go see this 4 1/2 out of 5 stars.
TRUMBO
Directed by Jay Roach
Screenplay by John McNamara
Based on the book by Bruce Cook
Starring Bryan Cranston; Diane Lane; Elle Fanning; and John Goodman
In 1947, Dalton Trumbo was Hollywood's top screenwriter until he and other artists were jailed and blacklisted for their political beliefs.
The film sounds deep and thought provoking, touching on the Hollywood Blacklist. However in reality, the film almost comes across as funny, because of the combination of Trumbo's eccentric behavior and the way he got around being black listed.
There is a lot of talk about Cranston being a front runner for an Oscar here. I know so far it is a weak field as we wait for the Dicaprio film, but I just think that this performance is one note and that is hold the cigarette and lecture. Also, his character is mean, which makes it hard to cheer him on. He treats everybody around him like employees including his family. Communist or not, he is sort of an ass.
Diane Lane really does not have much to do here, Her talents were wasted. Elle Fanning (My favorite young actress) also, not much to do here. John Goodman however as Frank King a producer is awesome and hilarious, and maybe could get a best supporting Oscar nod.
Louis CK as Arien Hird is quietly good as a friend of Trumbo who also gets treated like an employee also. His part is just sad.
Well it was an interesting film, it just seemed, a little better than okay. I never felt bad for Trumbo. I felt bad form his friends and family, and I do not think that was suppose to be the point of the film. 3 stars out of 5.
HUNGER GAMES MOCKINGJAY PT 2
Directed by Francis Lawrence
Screenplay by Peter Craig and Danny Strong
Based on the book by Suzanne Collins
Starring Jennifer Lawrence; Josh Hutcherson; Liam Hensworth; Julianne Moore; and Donald Sutherland
As the war of Panem escalates to the destruction of other districts by the Capitol, Katniss Everdeen, the reluctant leader of the rebellion, must bring together an army against President Snow, while all she holds dear hangs in the balance.
I am kind of glad I did not read the books. I hear that this film has a lot of differences from the book. I can clearly judge this based on just the film, and it is a very good film. In fact I would rank it 2nd best just under the first Hunger Games film.
It is a very exciting film, it is pretty much a war movie, and because it is a war film it is violent.
I am almost shocked this was a youth novel. Still this film was just under 2 1/2 hours and it flew by going from one battle scene to another. Just edge of your seat excitement.
Negatives?
I never really took to Peeta/Josh Hutcherson. I thought he was miscast and always annoying and to the end I never really saw what Katness did see in him. That negative I have is a big flaw I find in the film because it is the underlying theme of the film, love and war.
I also thought the character of Gale Hawthorne/Liam Hensworth was not really fleshed out (However I hear he was in the book). Which is sad because I found him more interesting than Peeta.
My final thoughts:
Two actors. First Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss. I know a lot of people are waiting to see if her performance in Joy is Oscar worthy. Well what about here? Katness has been in almost every scene in all 4 films. Here in the last one, she is an emotional mess and you feel for her and cheer her on. Yes, I know the best actress field this year is crowded but there should be room for her for this role.
Donald Sutherland as President Snow. The evil button pusher. Through the past films he has had a slow burn coming into this one, where here he shines at pure smiling evil. Best Supporting Oscar Nomination??!!
Well 4 out of 5 stars for Mockingjay Part 2. Coming off the awful part 1, the series redeemed itself in the big finally.
The Good Dinosaur
Directed by Peter Sohn
Screenplay by 7 people
What if the big meteorite missed. Thus begins an epic journey into the world of dinosaurs where an Apatosaurus named Arlo makes an unlikely human friend.
Yes going in I knew that this Pixar film has had a lot of trouble. I mean 7 writers. I hear that at one point they scrapped a storyline and all the artwork and had to start over again. I also knew going in that this Pixar film had the tough job of following in the foot steps of this years Inside Out. I tried to go in however with a fresh look. Just judging the film on its own merits. This film is not bad but it really has many a problem.
Yes you can see that they had an idea boy meets dinosaur but I really don't think they knew where to go with it. It felt like I was watching the same scenes over and over again, Walk attacked walk attacked walk attacked. It became boring a bit. Another problem I did not care for the dinosaur or the boy. I found them both annoying, and like most good Pixar characters you fall in love with them and care about them. Here, not so much. This film just seemed flat and by the way...very violent. Animals are getting eaten constantly it seems like. The film can be scary.
Now I know this film is not meant for me, it is for kids and the kids in the theatre seemed to sit still and enjoy it. So I will push my rating up a notch just for that.... 2 1/2 stars for The Good Dinosaur. A Pixar miss.
BROOKLYN
Directed by John Crowley
Screenplay by Nick Hornby
Based on the book by Colm Toibin
Starring Saoirse Ronan; Domhnall Gleeson; Emory Cohen; Jim Broadbent; and Julie Walters
An Irish immigrant (Ronan) lands in 1950s Brooklyn, where she quickly falls into a new romance. When her past catches up with her, however, she must choose between two countries and the lives that exist within.
I will not go long with this review, I just feel just talking about it will give up spoilers.
Ronan as Ellis gives an Oscar worthy performance as a confident and brave yet scared Irish girl establishing a new life in Brooklyn. Ronan says so much by just a look.....just wonderful.
I love a good dinner table scene and in this film there are many highlighted by another Oscar worthy performance by Julie Walters who is hilarious as the house mother for all the girls.
Now the real stars in this film are Yves Belanger the cinematographer and Odile Dicks-Mireaux as the costume designer. This film looks beautiful, every seen is perfectly shot. The look almost steals the film away from the great acting and screenplay.
Acting....screenplay...look...altogether a wonderful film. 4 1/2 out of 5 stars. A must see romantic, beautiful film.
CREED
Directed by Ryan Coogler
Screenplay by Ryan Coogler and Aaron Covington
Starring Michael B Jordan and Sylvester Stallone
The former World Heavyweight Champion Rocky Balboa serves as a trainer and mentor to Adonis Johnson, the son of his late friend and former rival Apollo Creed.
I love a good sports film that really is not about sports. The Natural ...Good vs Evil/Darkness vs Light. Rocky to prove he is not just a bum from the streets. League Of Their Own...women finding their way in war time. Cinderella Man...surviving during the depression.
Now we come to Creed!! It is wonderful. Close to perfect. How does it work?
Well you have to have Sylvester Stallone be willing to take a backseat. Not only to Jordan but also letting Coogler direct and Coogler and Covington do the writing. By stepping back, Stallone gives an Oscar worthy performance. Maybe his best performance since the original Rocky.
Michael B Jordan here reteams with Coogler after they did Fruitvale Station together, like Stallone, is perfect in this film. He may not get the recognition that Stallone gets in this film just because his character is angry and seems to always keep his head down and almost growls. He just does not get the funny and touching lines that Stallone gets.
It is a sports film but it is more of a film about two characters finding out who they are at different stages of their lives and finding purpose.
Exciting (The boxing match), Funny (Cloud), even touching (The last scene on the art museum steps). Finally the city!! The city looks beautiful. Philadelphia the city I love.
4 1/2 stars out of 5 for Creed. Close to perfect (That damn silly bike scene??!!). One of the best films of the year. What a great surprise!
THE NIGHT BEFORE
Directed by Jonathan Levine
Screenplay by 5 People!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Starring: Joesph Gordon-Levitt; Seth Rogan; Anthony Mackie; and Jillian Bell
On Christmas eve, three lifelong friends, two of whom are Jewish, spend the night in New York City looking for the Holy Grail of Christmas parties.
I will get to the point...except for the church scene, which you see in the trailer, this film is shockingly not funny. Sooooo flat. And as I noted it was written by 5 people!!!
The three leads are just too old to be behaving this way and they come across as pathetic and self absorbed. There is nothing there.
Positives?
Michael Shannon as Mr Green the pot dealer is amazing in this movie!!!!! He steals the film. I would go as far as saying he give an Oscar worthy performance in a supporting role. He is that good...and yes Michael Shannon is funny!!! Who would have thought????!!!!
Lizzie Caplan......James Franco....Jillian Bell...Mindy Kaling....Miley Cyrus (Yes that Miley Cyrus) are all really good and funny here in their short time on the screen. They get more laughs then the three leads. Problem is, the three leads are in every scene.
1 1/2 out of 5 for this disappointment. Save your money.
SECRET IN THEIR EYES
Directed by Billy Ray
Screenplay by Billy Ray
Based on the screenplay by Juan Jose Campenella
Starring: Julia Roberts; Nicole Kidman; Chiwetel Ejiofor
A tight-knit team of rising investigators Ray and Jess (Roberts and Ejiofor), along with their supervisor Claire (Kidman), is suddenly torn apart when they discover that Jess's teenage daughter has been brutally murdered.
Well, it is hard to come into this movie knowing the whole story and already knowing what is coming. I have seen the Argentinian version of this film. The Argentianian version is better. Still...that is not saying much, as in the Argentinian version, this American version is creepy and sad.
Positives?
This is Julia Roberts best performance in a long while. You see her melt before your eyes and never recover.
Ejiofer is terrific as the guilt ridden investigator.
Well that is all I have for positives. There are a lot of negatives.
The film flips back and forth between time periods which can be confusing.
There are ridiculous, almost laughable searches including one at Dodger Stadium.
Nicole Kidman really struggled with the American dialect. She kept slipping, and you can pick up her Aussie twang often.
The so called relationship between Ray and Claire goes nowhere and it almost seems like filler.
The ending almost made the film irrelevant...No Spoilers Here...but that is why the Argentinian version I felt failed also. You are just left with a creepy factor, with a lot of sadness.
This film should not have been remade...2 out if 5 stars for Secret In Their Eyes. If you are really interested in seeing it just rent the other version on Netflix.
It is Wednesday Yay Or Nay trailers. I judge the movie just by watching the trailer!!
ZOOLANDER 2
Release Date February 12 2016
UH OH!!!
This did not look good and I did not laugh once. I see bad plot and bad green screen work. I kills me to say NAY!
DEMOLITION
Release Date April 8 2016
I do not know why I liked the trailer but I did. It looks like it could be depressing. However it looks so different that I wanted to see more. So big YAY!
HELLO MY NAME IS DORIS
Release Date March 11 2016
Yes there is a creepy factor but I did laugh. Like the Demolition trailer it looks so different I am in..plus Sally Freaking Field!!! YAY!!
Since I will not be blogging next week I am giving you two weeks of new releases for home viewing this week. I know!! Settle down!!
I have 2 films of note being released this week, and 4 for next week!! So here I go:
THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E.
Directed by Guy Ritchie
Screenplay by Guy Ritchie and Lionel Wigram
Based on the series by Sam Wolfe
Starring Henry Cavill; Armie Hammer; and Alicia Vikander
In the 1960's, CIA agent Napoleon Solo (Cavill) must team up with KGB agent Illya Kuryakin (Hammer) to battle a secret operative that plans on building a nuclear weapon.
It is the year of Alicia Vikander!! Testament Of Youth!! Ex Machina!! Now she slips into this film and steals it. The film is just okay. It is pretty much spy vs spy, which was done much better in MI Rogue Nation. This is charming but just lays there. The two leads have no chemistry and it is odd because when they are without each other it works.
It takes place in the 60's so the old school spy tools are fun. The outfits are fun. The music is cool (One funny and fun scene of Vikander dancing alone). Still, the screenplay is just flat and when Vikander is not on screen it is less interesting not only because of looks, but because even though the two leads are "super" spies, Vikander seems smarter than both of them and that is fun to watch.
3 stars out of 5 for The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
THE HOBBIT THE BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES
Directed by Peter Jackson
Screenplay Fran Walsh; Phillipa Boyens; Peter Jackson; and Guillermo Del Toro
Based on the book by Tolkien
Starring Ian McKellen; Martin Freman: and Richard Armitage
I will keep this short. This was unnecessarily put into three books. Also unnecessarily not keeping with the book. This last film of the Hobbit trilogy is the best one. However....it has been an exhausting road and unnecessarily long. I had troubles caring. There is more action in this one at the same time the green screen work is .....well not good or just used too much here.
I wouyld give this final chapter 3 out of 5 stars.
Now For Next Week....
AMERICAN ULTRA
Directed by Nima Nourizadeh
Screenplay by Max Landis
Starring Jesse Eisenberg; Kristen Stewart; Connie Britton; and Topher Grace
A stoner, Mike, (Eisenberg) who works at a convenience store, comes to finds he is also a goverment agent. He also finds out he is marked as a liability. So Mike and his girlfriend, Phoebe (Stewart), together, they try to find a way out of this confusing mess.
American Ultra is not a very good film.
There are many problems with this film and it starts with the trailer. All the funny parts that are in the trailer are the only funny parts in the film. In fact the film has a bit of sadness to it, when we see the way Eisenberg's character fights anxiety attacks and is manipulated by the government. The trailer does not show the violence in the film. Without a doubt one of the most violent films of the year. The strange thing is the violence is toward soldiers that are not bad guys but just doing what they are asked and trained to do, so then you end up feeling bad for them also.
Screenplay. You get the feeling by watching this that they had maybe the first 15 minutes on paper and just made the rest up as they went on. The film just seems messy with revelations that make no sense and, most important, I have no idea still why they wanted Eisenberg's character eliminated.
Casting. Topher Grace's was not believable at all. It almost became silly and annoying. Connie Britton's character was not fleshed out at all. She was just there as almost a mouthpiece. So her talents are wasted.
What worked? The chemistry between Eisenberg and Stewart was fantastic and lovely. However even there, they separated about 45 minutes into the film and at that point the film swirls further down into the toilet.
2 out of 5 stars for this disappointment. After watching the trailer I expected it to be much better.
SHAUN THE SHEEP MOVIE
Directed and Screenplay by Mark Burton and Richard Starzak
Starring Well: Shaun Who Is A Sheep
Shaun the sheep is tired of doing the same work at the farm everyday. He decides to take a day off. In order to do that, he needs to make sure the farmer doesn't know. When more happens than they can handle, the sheep find their way in the big city. Now they need to get back to the farm.
SHAUN THE SHEEP IS ON THE LAMB. I just love that tag line!!!
Well, Inside Out has some Oscar competition.
It is laugh out loud funny in some parts, highlighted by an operating room scene and a jail scene.
That is all they want is to have a day off and it back fires!!!!
It is a silent film with no talking and it makes me wonder if kids will appreciate it. I think it may have enough action to keep them interested. However, like Inside Out, adults may get more jokes here than the children watching. The screenplay is well done.
Negatives: Well, I always think the Wallace And Gromits and Shaun The Sheeps are better in small doses. This film runs about 85 minutes and it still seems a little long.
Well, still, 4 stars out of 5 for Shaun The Sheep. Stay through the credits. Plus, love Shaun The Sheep song by Mark Thomas, it could be Oscar worthy. Also read the last bunch of lines of the credits...it made me laugh.
NO ESCAPE
Directed by John Erick Dowdle
Screenplay by John Erick Dowdle and Drew Dowdle
Starring: Owen Wilson; Lake Bell; and Pierce Brosnan
In their new overseas home, an American couple (Bell and Wilson) soon finds themselves and daughters caught in the middle of a coup, and they frantically look for a safe escape in an environment where foreigners are being immediately executed.
First I will get this out of the way!! I read in a couple of reviews out there that this film is racist!! What? It makes me sad when the PC police reach into entertainment and make remarks that are untrue to fill their agenda. This is a story of a family...outside of their element..trying to escape and get the heck out. It has been criticized because it only shows the struggle of this white family...not the people living there in their native country!! Well!!!!! That is not what this film is about!!!!!!!! If you want to make a film about what countrymen or women do when there is a coup...well make it. Oh wait a minute Hotel Rwanda showed both sides and how it is ugly. Here you just see a little bit of the slaughter of the locals caused by the uprising. And ...that is enough for me. The PC police made the same remarks about the great film The Impossible. Again if you want to make a film about the locals and the tsunami and the rebuild...go for it. However that film was about a family and their true story of escape (In fact that story showed the kindness of the locals). The odd thing about what the PC police wanted in this was a film about locals hiding. They don't plan on running away to their country because they are living there!!!! So you want a hiding movie...sounds exciting...not.
Now to this film. It is an okay movie.
Wilson is very good playing the brave everyman...family man. Bell, one of the most underrated actresses working today (and a very good writer), is perfect as the mother who really did no want any parts of this move.
The movie is exciting from the get go I mean they check in and crap hits the fan!! The film wastes no time.
The negatives:
Pierce Bronson is really good here and funny. However the trailer is deceiving and so are the posters. Bronson is only in the film for 10 minutes!! When he is not on the screen you miss him because his character brings personality to the film.
The couple's children may be the most annoying children in film this year. I will not say more because it would be mean but ....ugh!!
The film become almost tedious. It is dark so you can't really see the difference of where they move from point to point, and after awhile it gets boring, and you just want them to make a big move and go and end the film. The 103 minutes film felt real long.
And finally!! The director/screenwriter never telling us where they are!! What country?? PC again??
3 stars for this film out of 5.
RICKI AND THE FLASH
Directed by Jonathan Demme
Screenwriter Diablo Cody
Starring Meryl Steep; Kevin Kline; Rick Springfield; and Mamie Gummer
A musician, Streep) who gave up everything for her dream of rock-and-roll stardom returns home, when her daughter is going through a tough time..
Meryl Streep. I know it is Streep!! So miscast.
Diablo Cody. I know it is Diablo!! How did she write something so bad and corny. It is missing Diablo's quickness and her bite.
They try to throw an umbrella around this thought process of...if a man (Jagger) can leave his family to pursue a music career? What can't a woman? No!!!!! You can do both!!!!! Jagger was successful over a long period of time. Ricki was literally a flash in the pan. There is no reason she cannot do both. And it does not make Jagger right either he can do both. UGH!!!!!!! Look up Pat Benatar!! Carole King!!! They did both!!!
There is a break up, played by Streep's real life daughter Mamie, she was unpleasant.
Streep as Ricki was unpleasant and cannot sing and it was hard to watch.
In fact other than Kline everybody in Ricki's family is unpleasant.
The only good thing to watch is Rick Springfield and I don't get his characters attraction to Ricki and they had absolutely no chemistry.
Then throw in a corny awful ending, involving a wedding.
This film is bad.
1 star out of 5 for Ricki And The Flash. It was really unpleasant from the bad singing to the characters.
First some notes. I will not be blogging next week during the holiday week. There will be no review of the new Hunger Games this week because I have a close friend who wants to see it with me next week so I will be pushing it back one week. Lets face it....no matter what me or critics say...people are still going to go. So after Thanksgiving look for a flood of reviews showing up on this blog.
Well this is the Monday recommended of a film that may have passed you by. I am going with a Thanksgiving theme here and recommending:
PIECES OF APRIL
Directed by Peter Hedges
Screenplay by Peter Hedges
Starring: Katie Holmes; Oliver Platt; Patricia Clarkson; Derek Luke; and Alison Pill
A nervous daughter April (Holmes) invites her dying mother (Clarkson) and the rest of her estranged family to her apartment for Thanksgiving dinner.
Back before there was a Tom Cruise/Katie Holmes, you may forget there was a Katie Holmes the actress. She was and still is a very good actress. Here she is awesome as the daughter cooking her first Thanksgiving dinner for her family in New York City.
We see Holmes go from one nightmare scenario to another while cooking this meal. You fall in love with her and want sooooo bad for her meal to turn out well.
We also see the family coming from Pennsylvania to New York City for said meal. They are miserable and are not excited at all by the trip or for the coming meal. Throw in the fact that Clarkson as mom has cancer and is keeping everybody on edge with her narcissistic behavior. She received an Oscar Nomination for this role.
There is also another storyline that is enjoyable. April's relationship with her boyfriend Bobby played by Derek Luke. They have fantastic chemistry and are fun to watch.
This film may sound miserable but I promise you it is funny and sad and loving. It is Thanksgiving.
4 1/2 stars out of 5 for Pieces Of April. I think Holmes should have also received a nomination for this film.
Pieces Of April is available for rent from Netflix.
Directed by Jessie Nelson
Screenplay by Steven Rogers
Starring Diane Keaton and John Goodman
When four generations of the Cooper clan come together for their annual Christmas Eve celebration, a series of unexpected visitors and unlikely events turn the night upside down, leading them all toward a surprising rediscovery of family bonds and the spirit of the holiday.
Well I was able to go to a screening of Love The Coopers. So thank you Gofo for sending me a pass.
There is a lot going on in this film, so I will break it down for you.
Hank Cooper (Ed Helms) and Angie ( Alex Borstein), are divorced. Hank is soft and struggling to find work. While Angie is on him about being soft. Not an interesting story and kind of negative.
Charlotte and Sam Cooper are the parents of the family who are trying to get through one last Christmas then they are getting divorced. It seemed unrealistic and a downer.
Charlie Cooper (Timothee' Chalamet) is in love with Lauren (Molly Gordon). They are both teenagers and this part was likable and funny. However in the end it is oddly corny. I like corny but it was more odd.
Ruby (Amanda Seyfried) is a waitress and has a regular customer Bucky (Alan Arkin). They are more like dad and daughter. This worked, however the ending of their storyline fell flat.
Emma (Marisa Tomei), sister of Charlotte, is arrested for shop lifting. We see her drive around in the squad car with Officer Williams (Anthony Mackie). Even though they are both very good actors this story was not needed and could have been left on the floor.
Eleanor Cooper (Olivia Wilde) is just hanging out in the airport stalling so she will not have to visit family. There she meets up with Joe (Jake Lacy) and they have kind of have a Before Sunrise relationship. This was very intriguing and enjoyable to watch, until you start to realize that Eleanor is not just funny/smartass, but she is an asshole and you then want Joe to run away quick.
At the end the stories get wrapped up into one big Christmas Bow. However I do not know how it got from sadness in point A to hugs in Point B. It was like the screenwriter tried to push...this will be a happy ending dammit if it kills me!!
The film tries desperately to be Love Actually....there is just too much of an umbrella of sadness to enjoy, like we all enjoyed Love Actually. Yes Love Actually had sad parts but it also had joy and hope. This kind of lacked that. 2 1/2 stars...mainly for a couple story lines for Love The Coopers.
Okay I am a day late... know. I was at a screening of a film last night ...and that review is coming up. However I have I have the Finding Dory trailer.
FINDING DORY
Release Date June 17 2016
I thought the plot would be...Dory got lost. It looks like they are looking for Dory's parents. Interesting...but I am in anyway...I mean you have to get excited right when you heard that familiar score!! YAY!!
BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING 2
Release Date March 25 2016
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Yikes It looks stiff and contrived. Almost sad. I will go with a slight NAY!
HELLO MY NAME IS DORIS
Release Date March 11 2016
This could be real funny or real awkward!! I leaning toward both, and it looks different!!
Big YAY from me!!
TRAINWRECK
Directed by Judd Apatow
Screenplay by Amy Schumer
Starring Amy Schumer and Bill Hader
Amy is well, a trainwreck, a commitment-phobic career woman,who may have to face her fears when she meets a good guy.
The funniest film of the year so far hands down. At the same time there is a sweet love story mixed in with all the humor.
Schumer is fantastic as you would expect. Hader, fantastic also as you would expect. What is great is that there are sooo many comedic moments from other actors. Tilda Swinton is funny!!! Who would have thought??!! Then there are moments that surprise you like an hilarious sex scene with a bare ass John Cena. Lebron James with great comic timing and playing a cheap bastard!! A movie within a movie about dog walking!! Ezra Miller (Perks Of Being A Wallflower) another hilarious sex scene.
I could keep going but if I mention more of the funny parts I feel like I am spoiling the film.
Negatives? Well the film is much too long at 125 minutes. Also, it has a last act that is funny, however it did not seem to fit with the film. The film is soooo well written but the last 10 minutes did not seem believable, it was almost like they did not know how to close the film.
Well, they were just small negatives, 4 1/2 out of 5 stars for Trainwreck. Looking ahead at the releases coming up through the end of the year this looks like hands down to be the funniest film of the year.
MR HOLMES
Directed by Bill Condon
Screenplay by Mitch Cullin
Starring Ian McKellen; Laura Linney; and Milo Parker
The story is set in 1947, following a retired Holmes (McKellen) living in a Sussex village with his housekeeper Mrs. Munro (Linney) and rising detective son Roger (Parker). Holmes's memory isn't what it used to be, still, he is still haunted by an unsolved case, but he only remembers fragments of the case: a confrontation with an angry husband and his beautiful but unstable wife.
I will not talk about the case he is working on because I think that could be a spoiler. However I will touch on the film and it's view of the elderly Holmes.
There is a sadness in this film. Holmes is now elderly, and failing in health and mind, which as we all know his mind was always sharp. He is becoming unreliable to himself, which obviously frustrates him.
So, he lives a quiet life now. He tends to bees/honey while fighting Drs and fighting father time. He still wants to solve a case that is eating him up, but he cannot remember why. So now he realize on Roger and his sharp young mind to help him with his memory, as he tries to solve/grasp more about the mystery. As the film gets to the end we all see that solving mysteries while ignoring an emotional element, that Holmes was known for, may not resolve the whole problem.
Well McKellen will get an Oscar Nom I should think. Linney is so quiet and so patient and at the same time so hard as the Housekeeper. Then Milo Parker, he steals every scene he is in. His character worships Holmes and sometimes he just watches from a distance not saying a thing but saying so much. A very good film that seems to fly by at 105 minutes.
4 out of 5 stars for Mr. Holmes. An entirely different spin on Sherlock Holmes. As he pretty much says, Watson was full of crap in those books.
There were two other releases this week that I did not waste my time to review and they are Terminator Genisys...which was clearly a money grab by the studio using the Teminator name.
Self/less which is just okay but...odd. Boy Ryan Reynolds needs a hit fast!!
Well as always thanks for your time from the shadows.
Monday recommended is for movies that may have passed you by. This one falls in line with Veterans Day coming up this week on Wednesday. So I recommend:
Fort Bliss
Directed by Claudia Myers
Screenplay by Claudia Myers
Starring Michelle Monaghan
After returning home from an extended tour in Afghanistan, a decorated U.S. Army medic and single mother struggles to rebuild her relationship with her young son.
This film is very raw. It shows the viewer the struggles of veterans returning home but it gives us the rare look of how it is for the female soldier.
This is a vey good film. We see Michelle Monaghan's character Maggie returning home...and trying desperately to reconnect with her child who has been staying with the boys father and his wife while she was deployed. So she is not only trying to assimilate back into the real world but also create a family and almost compete with the family (father and his wife) her son leaves behind. Then throw in her responsibility to her son and her family in the service who she stands for and feels a pull toward.
Is it an exciting movie? No. However it is a very good story showing the reality of being a modern day female soldier.
4 out of 5 stars for Fort Bliss
Available for streaming and rental from Netflix.
Tip of my cap to the veterans for all you did and do.
ROOM
Directed by Lenny Abrahamson
Screenplay and Novel by Emma Donahue
Starring: Brie Larson; Jacob Trembley; Joan Allen; and William H Macy
TRUCK...WIGGLE OUT..JUMP...RUN!!!
Mom (Larson) has been locked away in a shed for 6 years. Kidnapped. Jack (Trembley) has been with his mom for 5 years in the shed in which he calls ROOM. After Jacks fifth birthday, Ma decides it is time to make a dangerous move to break away from their capture.
I waited about 24 hours to post this. Why? It is difficult when you hear such strong buzz about a film like this. I approach it afraid that I will automatically love it subconsciously just because everyone else does. Or I approach it trying to pick it apart a bit because in my head it cannot be as good as what people are saying. So now.....after 24 hours to sit on it....here is ROOM!
The film is real good. It sounds like a depressing film, and at times it makes you feel almost claustrophobic., however it is far from depressing, it is full on inspiring. It shows you the power of never giving up, and nothing is as powerful as a mother fighting for her child and trying to keep him safe physically and emotionally.
For Ma, there is the guilt and fear for what happens in ROOM and what is to come outside ROOM. A great performance by Larson. Sans makeup. Raw. Just the fear and love in her eyes.This is the best female lead performance of the year. It cannot be beat.
Then I come to Jacob Trembley who plays Jack. The film is on his shoulders. His little shoulders and he is amazing. He is in almost every scene. Watching him see WORLD and trying to deal with it (including stairs) is heartbreaking and exhilarating.
What do you do with Jacob Trembley. He just gave the best male lead performance of the year. Now, do you put that on his little shoulders? I do not know. It is a very difficult decision the Academy has to make. Jacob is soooo good often just by watching, not saying a word.
Now for the movie itself. It is funny that I just noted in my Spectre review (Which is an awesome review I must say you should really read it!!) that 2 hours and 25 minutes is too long for a film not based on a book, and here this is based on a book and it is 2 hours and I felt it was too short. I felt once out of room we were rushed through little pieces of their lives in WORLD. I wanted more of Jack talking to grandma (Another great performance in this film by Joan Allen) about life in ROOM and his thoughts on looking back at ROOM. How Jack adapted to Friends. How Ma assimilated into her new world. I even wanted to know more about the female police officer. William H Macy as Grandfather came and went. I wanted the movie to slow down a bit. Maybe because the actors were so good I fell in love with them and I, as the viewer, grew attached, which again is saying a lot about the performances. I wanted more.
4 1/2 stars for ROOM. Trust me...it is not as depressing as it sounds. Yes it can be sad, but it has you cheering and tearing and sometimes laughing. Wiggle out...jump...run...go see it.
SPECTRE
Directed by Sam Mendes
Screenplay by John Logan; Neal Purvis; Robert Wade; and Jezz Butterworth
Starring Daniel Craig; Christoph Waltz; Lea Seydoux; Ralph Fiennes; Ben Wishshaw; and Naomie Harris
A cryptic message from Bond's past sends him on a trail to uncover a sinister organization. While M battles political forces to keep the secret service alive, Bond peels back the layers of deceit to reveal the terrible truth behind SPECTRE.
If this is indeed the end for Daniel Craig as Bond, this film does a good job of putting a bookend to the Bond Craig action. The plot almost puts an umbrella over the past three films and picks apart Bond's demons. No spoilers here but the trailers does give up that plot point. Well any way it works well fro fans. If you have not watched the last 3 Bond movie you may be a bit lost and you will just have to go with it.
The movie is exciting, with car chases and helicopter fights and car chases and train fights and car chases. It also adds in a little romance and some humor. In addition to all the ...well car chases.. the film looks beautiful on the big screen. Every landscape shot has an, almost smoke/haze faded look that engulfs the characters, it almost steals the film. Every shot is just framed perfect and beautiful. The interior scenes are also perfect with clean lines, and almost a "sterilness". As for green screen work? I really could not tell what was filmed with stunt people or on green screen. Again the look of this movie is fantastic.
As with most Bond films, I come to the score!!! The score plays during every second of the film. It sets the tone and it is just fantastic.
As for Craig's costars? They let Ben Wishshaw as Q and Naomie Harris as Moneypenny do a lot more in this film and they are an important element. I just love both of them! No spoilers here
Bond is only as good as the bad guy and as you would expect...the great Christoph Waltz is a very good bad guy.
The negatives?
At 148 minutes, I do not know if a film that is not based on a book should be that long. Editors?
I keep debating this in my head if I am nit picking. There are a lot of coincidences that happen in this movie. I mean from helicopters and cars and boats that happen to be there. To one big scene where he lands on a couch. To one scene where there is an elaborate trap set up but he just seems to stumble on it. How did the bad guys know he was going to be there. Then I think if this was Sean Connery, in the 60's maybe I would not question it, maybe just I would go with it and enjoy, I mean maybe that is what makes Bond films fun. Maybe we are to sophisticated as movie goers now. Not sure. However what I do know is this comes down to FOUR SCREENWRITERS!! There are holes yes, however it seem part of plot comes really close to Mission Impossible Rogue Nation. Plus, the Madeline Swann part seems like it was taken out of Man From U.N.C.L.E. Again four screenwriters?
Lea Seydoux (Blue Is The Warmest Color) is okay as the Bond Girl, Madeline Swann. However the age difference is soooo glaring. What is bothersome is that the great Monica Bellucci, is in the film, and is being promoted as being in the film, but is really only in the film for 5 minutes. If you have her available why couldn't she have been the Bond Girl?! She is beautiful. A great actress. Most important she is more toward Craig's age. I am just saying.
Sooooo many scenes with no one around. Either they did not want to pay for extras or wanted to keep the script quiet. Either way..well when you see the film...The Train Scene.
Okay okay I am too negative about a movie I really enjoyed and I think you should see because it is a fun watch. Yes, I am picking a bit. 4 stars out of 5 for Spectre. Get out and see it on the big screen if you can, it is beautiful. I hope Craig does just one more, he is so good!
My Favorite Bond/Craig films?
1-Casino Royal
2-Skyfall
3-Spectre
4-Quantum Of Solace
Boy. Tough subject to go to the movies and enjoy!! It does have a fantastic cast. And because of that cast I am going with a slight YAY!
THE BIG SHORT
Release date December 23
I just saw the film 99 Homes and it was hard to watch a bit. People making money off other peoples problems. This seems to be under that same umbrella. Like Spotlight...it has a really good cast and the trailer is pretty good, so again I am going with a slight YAY.
LEGEND
Release Date November 20
Well I think Tom Hardy is a very much underrated actor. However he seems to really have trouble picking his movies (He is in the Revenant with Dicaprio in December). Here, I think the trailer tries to make it funny. Odds are it is not. It looks just weird...NAY.
I have three new releases worth noting this week!!!
INSIDE OUT
Directed by Peter Doctor
Screenplay by Peter Doctor; Ronaldo del Carmen; Meg LeFauve; and Josh Cooley
Starring the voices of: Amu Poehler; Phylliss Smith; Richard Kind; Bill Hader; Lewis Black; and Mindy Kaling.
After 11 year old Riley is uprooted from her life in Minnesota (in fact she plays ice hockey which I love about her) and moves with her parents to San Francisco, Joy (Poehler), Fear (Hader), Anger(Black), Disgust(Kaling) and Sadness(Smith) - conflict on how best to navigate her new surroundings and her brain/emotions.
Now director Peter Doctor also did UP, and if you think back there is a umbrella of sadness in UP. Carl lost his wife and it is emotional for him, and you can feel it coming off the screen. Now UP had Dug to add a little levity. In Inside Out Doctor pokes at our emotions again...without much levity. This film is heavy. Riley is sad through about 85% of the film. You feel her sadness. You feel the parents sadness. At times it is so real it is heartbreaking. This does not make the film bad, just different. I think the the film is not for young children, not that there is anything bad for them to see, they just may not get it. Riley is 11, and I think the film may be for 11/ 12/teenagers/and parents.
The screenplay is very good. The look of the film is awesome, in fact it is like nothing you have seen from Pixar. There are layers of colors muted and also very bright, it takes a bit to get use to.
A quick note of maybe two unsung people: Richard Kind as Riley's imaginary friend Bing Bong is just ...words cant say (no spoiler)!! Kaitlyn Dias is Riley and this film relies on us loving Riley, so her voice makes it work.
We learn there is no joy without sadness and no sadness without joy, so sadness is okay just talk it out with your parents and do not hold it inside. And also memories and time can be sadly fleeting.
4 1/2 out of 5 for this very different Pixar gem!! Tissues!! Please note: stay for the credits, you see in the mind of teachers, dogs, cats and so on
LAVA the Pixar short with the film...I thought it was a bit creepy. It involves a volcano wanting love. It was just strange. However the music was cool.
THE END OF THE TOUR
Directed by James Ponsoldt
Screenplay by Donald Margulies
Based on the book by David Lipsky
Starring Jason Segel and Jesse Eisenberg
The true story of a five day road trip following David Wallace (Segel) and Rolling Stone writer David Lipsky (Eisenberg) as Wallace finishes up his book tour for his 1000+ page novel Infinite Jest.
I love a good road trip movie. This one is really good. In fact it may be the one of best films of the year.
It does not touch on the life of Wallace but it touches on the relationship and conversation between the two writers.
Segel as Wallace, gives an Oscar worthy performance, is so relaxed and at the same time nervous. He has awful social skills and is more relaxed and relates with his dogs than with most people. He says so much with his ticks and stares and when he talks he sucks you into every word. Often you wonder who is interviewing who on the road trip because he asks as many questions as Lipsky.
Eisenberg is also wonderful, stepping back just enough to let Segel command the screen.
The film captures a moment in time, watching Wallace, who is aware of all going on around him ( a great speech about TV screens is almost seeing into the future). He is kind but not a pushover. He does not lecture he just suggests and he is almost embarrassed by the attention and at the same time a little proud. Still, after all the success of this book, which he seems to not understand, he still fights with depression, he talks about his depression history in one heart breaking scene. It is so honest and raw.
At the end, we realize, for Lipsky it was more than an interview on a road trip. As Wallace says at one point "This is nice". It may have started out as just an interview but looking back I think he sees, it was two friends enjoying, laughing, arguing during a moment of time that was captured on tape.
The film is so different, so interesting, so relaxed, and so sad. 4 1/2 out of 5 stars for The End Of The Tour. Find it and see it!! Watch during the credits.
VACATION
Directed and Screenplay by John Francis Daley and Jonathan M Goldstein
Starring: Ed Helms; Christina Applegate; Skyler Gisondo; and Steele Stebbins
Rusty Griswold takes his own family on a road trip to "Walley World" in order to spice things up with his wife and reconnect with his sons.
You watch telling yourself over and over again to be fair and do not compare it to the original. However it is hard because it refers to the original often.
I can tell you this, this Vacation is an R, and it earns it. This is not your old school Vacation, there are many crude jokes and crude visual jokes. Many of those jokes fall very flat.
On the other hand, it has many jokes that work, including a very funny visit to Chris Hensworth's farm. Who would have thought Thor could be so funny??!! And we already know that Applegate and Helms have fantastic comic timing.
You go and see this film to laugh and I can tell you that this film was much funnier than I thought it would be and I laughed out loud often. So in that respect I have to give it 3 stars out of 5 for Vacation, a little bit of an enjoyable surprise.
BEFORE SUNSET
BEFORE SUNRISE
BEFORE MIDNIGHT
Directed by Richard Linklater
Starring Ethan Hawke And Julie Delpy
It Started With This In 1995
BEFORE SUNRISE
How did this work?! Two people meet on a train and spend time together walking and talking. It should not work but it does. Before IPhones.
It is just two likeable characters and a great director in Linklater. Add in, that all three...Delpy/Hawke/Linklater were all involved in the writing.
It is like a roadtrip film but on feet. Is it love? Or maybe just ships passing in the night? Either way in this moment of time and place they enjoy life.
Then 9 years later in 2004 they do it again!!
BEFORE SUNSET
Yes Nine years later. In real time on the screen!! Yes...not as good as the first one. How could it be? Still, the chemistry is still there. Linklater is back directing and writing with help again from Hawke and Delpy with the screenplay. The film sucks you in.
Yes it has been nine years. Hawke's character Jesse has written a best selling book about their time together (Note Hawke is actually an author). And who stops in to visit at a book signing but Celine (Delpy).
Again it works. I think romanticizing the thought of meeting a stranger in a foreign country and being life long friends or maybe something more draws people in. Whatever it is... you have to love the film.
Then 9 years later in 2013!!
BEFORE MIDNIGHT
Again filmed nine years later in real time!!
Things have changed and this is the hardest to watch maybe. The conversations are heavier. More arguing. They are older and it seems the weight of life and issues of being pulled in many directions are sinking them. Though because of their chemistry it seems so real and almost raw.
Like most people I would rank this one 3...with Sunrise 1 and Sunset 2. Here you wish for their youth to come back. The bounce in their step. Still...I liked it.
It is a very good trilogy with a cult following.
And it starts with a boy and a girl on a train just taking a chance and a walk. Yes they plan on doing a fourth in 2022.
All three films are available form rent on Netflix.
