New Releases For Home Viewing

Well..............not a strong week of new releases to note but...still Pirates Dead Men Tell No Tales surprised me a bit.


PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES

Directed by Joachim Ronning and Espen Sandberg
Screenplay by Jeff Nathanson
Starring Johnny Depp; Javier Bardem; Geoffery Rush; Brenton Thwaites; and Kaya Scodelario



This was the best Pirates film since the original.
It does a lot right:

-Casting Bardem. He is really good as the bad guy or....pirate. The other newbies Thwaites as Henry Turner and Scodelario as Carina Smyth have wonderful chemistry and personality. They get you to really care for them...and cheer them on.

-Depp is comfortable in these shoes as Jack and it is nice to see Rush and Depp to pull back their characters. Almost soften them. There is one moment when Rush and Bardem are squaring off and I thought I hope the audience appreciates two of the great actors of our time are squaring off on screen right in front of you!! A special moment.

-The screenplay is basic. It sounds like a negative but often these movies and/or the screenplay goes way out there and that makes it feel like they are making it up as they go along. Here there is action and a very sweet conclusion....plus wait thru the credits.

Yes there are negatives;

-Back to the script.....they had trouble closing the action faze. It felt like too many endings. It felt long. Finding the trident should have been the goal. But they a lot of things or add ons after they fail or not fail (No Spoilers Here)...just close it out...not need to add more action after this. This film would be fine coming in under two hours. Over two hours felt long. It overstayed its welcome.

-Violent. This film is reaaaallly violent. Stunningly violent. I just worry about kids whom like the Disney ride......and watching this....nightmares galore.

Well 3 1/2 stars for the best Pirates since the first. It is fun that is for sure.




THE BOOK OF HENRY
Director Colin Trevorrow
Screenplay by Greg Hurwitz
Starring Naomi Watts; Jacob Tremblay; Jaden Lieberher; and Maddie Ziegler




Well there is a lot happening here:
Naomi Watts as Susan Carpenter, is a mom who is not ready to adult...or does not know how to adult.
Jaden Lieberher is Henry Carpenter, who is ready to adult, but is ill.
Jacob Tremblay is Peter Carpenter....mmmmm I do not know why he is in this.
Maddie Ziegler is Christina. Who is quietly wonderful in this film. She has to act without saying much.
Wrapped around this is a lot of sadness.
A child dying.
A young girl being molested.
Yeaaaa lets watch this movie!! UGH!

I know I am not being fair...
It does have some good points:
A very good performance by Naomi Watts (often sans-makeup) in a very difficult part.
Jaden Lieberher is spectacular. You really believe he is a kid who is the adult in the family.
And like noted before, Maddie Ziegler adds a lot to this film.

Problems?
This film is all over the place. It just seems like there is too much going on. Also it feels like it is in a make believe world where problems get solved with a snap of the finger. Do not get me wrong, I did like the sweet ending...but getting there was a bit loopy.

Well this is a tear jerker and if you are looking for a good cry this is your film.
2 1/2 stars out of 5 for The Book Of Henry.

From the shadows as always thanks for your time.