Terminator: Dark Fate

My View:  Terminator: Dark Fate (2019) R    Two decades after Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) saved humanity from Judgement Day, she must again take on a Terminator, this time a new Terminator called the Rev-9 (Gabriel Luna). Sarah, with the help of an enhanced super-soldier from the future named Grace (Mackenzie Davis), must keep a young woman named Dani (Natalia Reyes) safe. I really enjoyed this film as it picks up where Terminator II left off (forget all those other Terminator movies, in this cinema world, those don’t exist). I thought the film did a great job of incorporating Sarah into the story, as the feisty but damaged Connor fights to right the wrongs of the past. Mackenzie Davis brings a spark to the film as the soldier from the future who has been sent to save Dani at any cost. The action scenes are brilliant, and yes, a certain Terminator comes back to help the gang keep Dani safe (no spoiler here as Arnold is in the trailer and is featured prominently on the movie poster). If you enjoyed the first two films, you will have a great time with this film.    My Rating: Full Price    Terminator: Dark Fate Website

My View: Harriet (2019) PG-13   The story of Harriet Tubman (Cynthia Erivo), who went from escaping from slavery to becoming one of the forces that transported slaves to freedom using the Underground Railroad. I wish this was a better movie, but it feels like it’s a made for TV movie from 1985. If you are to believe this film, Harriet did most of her contact with her family and friends during the daytime, out in the open, even though she was a highly wanted person. The film wants us to know that when Harriet escaped from her plantation and made it to safety, it was an impossible trek that no woman alone had ever done. The problem is we see about five minutes of this journey, and we never get the feel of just how amazing this escape was. I found the film boring at times as there is a lot of debate on whether Harriet can go back to save her family. The film is not helped by a musical score that seems so out of place for most of the movie. I just wish this had been a more exciting and engaging look at a historical figure that we all need to know more about to truly appreciate all that she did.   My Rating: Cable   Harriet Website

Indiefest:  Motherless Brooklyn (2019) R   Set in 1950s New York, a private detective named Lionel (Edward Norton), afflicted with Tourette’s Syndrome, sets out to solve the murder of his friend and mentor, Frank Minna (Bruce Willis). I am sure that a lot of critics are going to bring up the 1974 Oscar-winning film Chinatown, starring Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway since the plot of that film and this one are similar with a detective in each film trying to piece a mystery together while everyone else is telling him to drop the case. The similarities end there with Norton’s portrayal of Lionel, a detective who has Tourette’s Syndrome, a condition that hampers both his ability to investigate without attracting attention and picking up women. My favorite scene is when Lionel goes into a bar to ask a few questions. A good-looking woman comes up and starts to flirt with Lionel, pulling out a cigarette and asking a light. Lionel keeps lighting a match, and then before she can light her cigarette, he blows it out, causing the woman to walk away. I enjoyed this film, which Norton both wrote and directed, and it is evident that he loves the style and look of the detective films of the 40s and 50s. The film does get bogged down a bit in a very complicated plot and slows a little too much in the middle of the film. Regardless  I still enjoyed Norton’s performance and his directorial effort to give us a modern-day ‘film noir.’   My Rating: Bargain Matinee     Motherless Brooklyn Website

Indiefest: Pain and Glory (2019) R   A famous film director (Antonio Banderas) must confront both his past and present as a film festival wants to celebrate the movie that made his career. Antonio Banderas gives a tour de force performance, one that surely will get him an Academy Award nomination. Banderas is perfect in the role of a man who, because of pain, both physical and emotional, can’t find a way to live his life. This is a vibrant and compelling movie about talent wasted and the stupid mistakes that we make when we think we are better than the rest of the world. I loved the flashbacks to his younger life, living with a mother (played by Penelope Cruz) who is continually being let down by her husband. What I loved about this film is that Banderas's character slowly makes discoveries about his life (both present and past) that help him become a better man.   My Rating: Full Price    Pain and Glory Website

Indiefest: JoJo Rabbit (2019) PG-13   A young boy, Jojo (Roman Griffin Davis), wants to be in Hitler’s army at age ten and finds out that his mother is hiding a Jewish girl (Thomasin McKenzie) in their home. So, you got to love a film where the kid in the story’s imaginary friend is Adolf Hitler (played by director/writer Taika Waititi). Taking in the place the last years of the war, JoJo, who is only ten, is desperate to go fight on the battlefield. Unfortunately, his mother (Scarlett Johansson) thinks better of JoJo’s plan and keeps him nearby. This film is full of humor, a great deal brought on by imaginary Adolf, who constantly gives advice to the boy (most of it nothing to do with Jojo) and offers JoJo cigarettes. The film is about prejudices and how propaganda can cloud your vision of the world. Griffin Davis is a delight as the young Nazi wannabe, and he has excellent chemistry with both Johansson and McKenzie. Sam Rockwell, as a failed army officer, is hilarious, and Stephen Merchant gives a tremendous short appearance as a SS agent looking for Jews. The audience I saw this film thoroughly enjoyed the movie and so did I.  My Rating: Full Price    JoJo Rabbit Website

Indiefest: Where’s My Roy Cohn? (2019) PG-13   Documentary on controversial lawyer Roy M. Cohn, who grew to prominence as Communist hunter Joseph McCarthy’s right-hand man in the 1950s to a trusted advisor to the rich and powerful, including Donald Trump. Roy Cohn was a bad and dishonest man who reveled in aligning himself with the rich and powerful, no matter if they were guilty or murderers. The film takes a hard look at Cohn and how, even after he was disbarred, he continued to manipulate the legal system to his and his client's financial gain. The film shows Cohn warts and all, including the last years of his life, when he refused to publicly come out as gay and HIV positive. This is a fascinating film about a man who trail-blazed the way for Donald Trump and the political landscape that we live in today.   My Rating: Full Price      Where is My Roy Cohn? Website

Indiefest: Greener Grass (2019)   Life is hard in suburban America. Soccer moms are always competing against each other for ‘best mom’ as their kids settle their differences on the soccer pitch. Families are judged by how fancy their golf carts are, how their lawns appear, and it’s all the while a serial killer is on the loose in their neighborhood. Just a fair warning that this film is a wild, crazy ride where serial killers try to get noticed but don’t, mothers give away their children on a whim and where it’s more important how you look than if you are happy. The film is nuts, and we see that at a lawn party where two great their wives with kisses and then they all realize that they have kissed the wrong wife. Sometimes the jokes don’t quite work, and the film goes on just a little too long, but it’s still fun to hop on a golf cart and ride down the street with this bizarre community.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee     Greener Grass Website

Forgotten Film: The Last of Sheila (1973)   A millionaire’s wife is killed in a hit and run accident. A year later, he invites friends and family to his yacht in France for a week of fun and parties. The millionaire (James Coburn) knows that the murderer is on the yacht and starts a very complicated game of mystery that his guests must solve. What the guests don’t know is that the millionaire plans on exposing not just the murderer but also all his guest's secrets that they have so carefully hidden in their lives. This is a mystery in the style of Agatha Christie, and it is a blast to watch as the guests slowly realize that they are being played. Like a Christie mystery, there is a great plot turn around the middle of the film, and we, as the audience, have to figure out what happened. If you like mysteries, then this is a film for you.    My Rating: Full Price    The Last of Shelia Info

Weird Credits: From the credits of Terminator: Dark Fate: Immigration Coordinator

Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You: Frozen II (2019) PG   Anna (Kristen Bell), Elsa (Idina Menzel), Kristoff (Jonathan Groff), Olaf (Josh Gad), and Sven leave Arendelle to find the origin of Elsa’s powers to save the kingdom. When I walked out of the screening of the first Frozen I told the rep, Disney has a massive hit in ‘Let it Go!” Let’s hope this one has one too.     Frozen II Website

Until Next Time!

Hot Pursuit

My View:  Hot Pursuit  (2015)  PG-13   A by-the-book cop (Reese Witherspoon) and a widow of a drug kingpin (Sofia Vergara) are on the run as they race through Texas trying to avoid mobsters and crooked cops.  Let me say that this film is guaranteed a spot on my Bottom Ten Films list for 2015. I kept thinking, why would Reese Witherspoon, hot off an Oscar nomination, make this crappy film?  The movie is full of bad jokes with a script full of loopholes. Vergara’s acting is horrible, and Witherspoon’s isn’t much better. It’s sad when even the outtakes (shown during the credits) are unfunny.    My Rating: You Would Have to Pay Me to See it Again   Hot Pursuit Facebook Page

My View:  Far From the Madding Crowd (2015)  PG-13  In Victorian England, a beautiful, headstrong, independent woman named, Bathsheba (Carey Mulligan), is courted by three suitors.  Carey Mulligan is exceptional as the self-sufficient woman who holds her own. There are some superb scenes between Mulligan and Matthias Schoenaerts, who plays the sheepherder who falls in love with Bathsheba. The film is beautifully shot, showing off the glorious English countryside. The problem with the film is the story, itself. It has this strong woman who falls for a guy because of his looks alone, which makes her seem very shallow.   My Rating:  Bargain Matinee   Far From the Madding Crowd Website

My View:  The D Train (2015)  R  The head of the high school reunion party, Dan (Jack Black), is worried that no one will come. So he decides to travel to Los Angeles to track down the most popular guy, Oliver (James Marsden).  Dan knows if Oliver attends, everyone else will too.  Be careful what you wish for!  There is a huge twist in this film and, while I didn’t mind the twist, itself, I hated everything that happened after the twist. I rarely laughed at the jokes, and I thought the plot was downright stupid. Black and Marsden do work well together on screen, but the film wastes the talents of the supporting cast of Kathryn Hahn and Jeffrey Tambor. The ending of the film is just awful and insults the audience. There will be some critics who will love this film, but I am not one of them.  My Rating: Cable   The D Train Website

Indiefest:  5 Flights Up  (2015)  PG-13  Alex (Morgan Freeman) and his wife, Ruth (Diane Keaton) have been living in the same apartment for forty years. They decide to move to a more convenient neighborhood, but is it worth giving up the place where they have made so many good memories?  The film follows the couple for a few days as they try to sell their home and buy a new one. Keaton and Freeman have a nice rapport, but the film has few dramatic moments and feels very slow moving. I did like Carrie Preston and Cynthia Nixon as two real estate brokers. Both are very funny in their roles. This isn’t a bad film, but you just want it to be more with the cast it has.    My Rating: Bargain Matinee   http://www.focusfeatures.com/5_flights_up       

Indiefest:  Noble  (2014)  PG-13  A woman, Christine Noble (Deirdre O'Kane),  overcomes her harsh childhood to help orphans in Vietnam.  Noble is a moving, heartfelt true story, and O’Kane shines as Christine as an adult. She is insanely likable in the role and works well with the children in the film. This is a film that celebrates a woman who refused to be told she couldn't succeed. Instead, she kept moving forward and spread her love to the children of Vietnam, making a real difference in their lives. You will come away from this film inspired and hopeful, a rare feat these days.   My Rating:  Full Price   Noble Website  

Indiefest:  The 100-Year Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared (2013)  R  After traveling the world and experiencing the most unbelievable things, Allan Karlsson (Robert Gustafsson) finds himself stuck in a nursing home. On his 100th birthday, he climbs out his window and starts a new adventure.  This film is supposed to be a comedy, but the humor falls flat, and I have misgivings about a film that mixes violent death with comedic elements.  The film jumps back and forth between when Allan was a young man and present day, which never lets the film pick up steam.  The film is a poor man’s version of Forest Gump without the humor or the heart as Allan interacts with a number of famous people in flashbacks from the past. The film has an interesting premise but never delivers its potential.   My Rating: Cable   The 100-Year Old Man Website

Indiefest: Maggie (2015)  PG-13   A zombie outbreak has hit the U.S. hard, and society is hanging on by a thread. Humans bitten by a zombie do not turn right away, but take weeks, sometimes months before they become fully controlled by the virus. Maggie (Abigail Breslin) has become infected, and her father (Arnold Schwarzenegger) has brought her home so she can be with her family before she turns. Breslin is dazzling as the headstrong girl who wishes she had treasured her family before all this happened. As good as Breslin is, it's Schwarzenegger who makes this movie so moving and heartfelt. In an incredibly restrained portrayal, Arnold gives possibly his best performance of his life. He is brilliant in the role of the father that holds out hope that his daughter will survive. I loved everything about this film, and especially it's touching finale.    My Rating: Full Price    Maggie Website

Forgotten Film:  Cactus Flower  (1969)  A dentist (Walter Matthau) pretends to be married to avoid a long term commitment. He falls for his girlfriend (Goldie Hawn) and proposes.  The only problem is that his girlfriend thinks he is still married. So he needs a wife to divorce…enter in his long-time nurse (Ingrid Bergman).  This film is so much better than the remake (Just Go With It) that starred Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston. Goldie Hawn, in an Oscar-winning role, is brilliant as the loveable, slightly goofy girlfriend. Matthau is outstanding as the playboy dentist, and Ingrid Bergman shows a real talent for comedy (I wish she had done more).  Cactus Flower is an excellent film that still holds up 45 years later.   My Rating: Full Price   Cactus Flower Info

Weird Credits:  From the credits of Hot Pursuit:  Dialect Coach: Pre-production

Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You:  Tomorrowland (2015)  PG   George Clooney and Britt Robertson in Sci-Fi film? Yes, please.   http://movies.disney.com/tomorrowland/

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Until Next Time!

Carrie

My View:  Carrie  (2013)  R  Carrie (Chloe Grace Moretz) is a shy girl who is made fun of at her high school.  Her home life isn’t any better as her life is run by her deeply religious mother (Julianne More).  Carrie soon learns that she has telekinetic powers, powers that she may use to get revenge on everyone who has made her life a living hell.  When a remake is done, new ideas and scenes must be developed to make the current film stand out from the original.  Unfortunately, this film brings nothing new to the subject and has a number of weak points.  I love Chloe Moretz, and I feel she is one of the best young actresses out there, but she is just too good looking to play the part of the isolated, quirky and disliked Carrie.  Moretz tried to cover her appearance with no makeup, tangled hair and slumped shoulders, but she is still beautiful on-screen.  When Sissy Spacek put on the prom dress in the original, she came across as kind of cute but still quirky.  When Moretz puts on the prom dress, she is gorgeous.   I did like the destruction of the prom sequence, but the rest of the film felt as though it was just a retelling of the original and not something new to watch.  Also, one of the great things about the original 1976 film was the supporting cast, filled with stars of the future like Nancy Allen, P.J.Soles, Amy Irving, William Katt and especially, John Travolta.  There isn’t anyone, other than Gabriella Wilde, who plays Sue, the good girl of the bunch, that stood out.  I was also disappointed in the performance of Julianne Moore, who didn’t bring a lot to a role that Piper Laurie played so well in the original.  My Rating:  Bargain Matinee   Carrie Website

My View:  12 Years a Slave  (2013)  R   Based on a true story, this film is about Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a free Black man living in upstate New York with his wife and child in the year 1841.  On a business trip, he is kidnapped and sold into slavery.  His life is filled with misery and hard work as he is shipped from plantation to plantation in Louisiana at the mercy and whim of the plantation owners. This is an incredibly moving film with some of the best performances of the year, including Ejiofor, who plays the lead of Solomon.  What I really liked about this film is that it took its time at the beginning, so that we could get to know Solomon and his family, which makes it much more heartbreaking when he is wrongfully taken from his family and put into slavery.  Michael Fassbender gives a fascinating performance as the sick and tortured plantation owner, Epps.  Lupita Nyong’o is astonishing as the defiant slave Patsey, who would rather die than keep living under the conditions of the plantation.  Ejiofor is the heart and soul of this film, and he has us in the palm of his hand with one of the best performances of the year. This is a film that you may only see once, as it is hits you to the core, but it’s an experience you will never forget.  My Rating:  I Would Pay to See it Again   12 Years a Slave Website

Indiefest:  A.C.O.D.  (2013)  R  Carter (Adam Scott) finds out that he was an unknowing participant in a study about children of divorce when he was younger, and now the study wants a follow-up.  When Carter’s younger brother (Clark Duke) decides to get married, Carter must get his long divorced parents (Catherine O’Hara, Richard Jenkins) to not only attend the wedding, but also not wreck it with their bickering.  This film has a great cast, which makes it more disappointing to watch as it never finds its comedic voice.  I liked Adam Scott in the sort of everyman role who attempts to deal with his crazy family.  Richard Jenkins steals every scene he is in with an over-the-top performance that is a joy to watch. The film doesn’t give the rest of the cast much to do other than scream at each other, and the second half the film just gets silly and unbelievable.  This should have been a fun film to watch, but it comes off boring and unfunny.  My Rating:  Cable   A.C.O.D. Website

My View:  Escape Plan  (2013)   R   A world renown security expert (Sylvester Stallone) is asked to test the world’s most secure prison from the inside, as a prisoner.  Now he realizes that he was set up and must gain the help of one of the prison's most notorious criminals (Arnold Schwarzenegger) for help to escape.  When is an action film not an action film?  When your two stars are getting up there in age and can’t handle a full-fledged action film.  The film can’t decide if it wants to be a drama, an action film or a snarky comedy and, therefore, fails at all three.  There are holes in the plot the size of Schwarzenegger’s chest, and this has to be the worst run maximum security prison in the world for our heroes to get away with some of their escape plans.  It is fun to see Stallone and Schwarzenegger on-screen together, but this film has way too much talking and not enough action to make it worth watching.  My Rating:  Cable  Escape Plan Website

Indiefest:  Wadjda  (2012)  PG  A young Saudi girl’s dream is to own a bicycle.  She enters a school competition where she will need to recite the Koran better than her schoolmates.  This is a smart, touching film with a great performance from the actress who plays Wadjda (Waad Mohammed).  We instantly like Wadjda, as Mohammed has a charisma that just comes across on the screen.  The film is told with a deft touch as it deals with a number of complicated subjects that guides us through them without hitting us over the head with an agenda.  This film shows beautifully that even under very difficult circumstances, if you are determined and have faith in yourself, you can achieve your dreams.  My Rating:  Full Price   Wadjda Website

Forgotten Film:  The Spitfire Grill  (1996)  PG-13  A young woman named Percy (Alison Elliott) is released from prison and arrives in a small town in Maine, hopeful that she can start a new life.  She gets a job at the local restaurant run by a set-in-her ways woman (Ellen Burstyn).  Elliott does a masterful job of giving us a multilayered performance in a film filled with powerful scenes and makes the film worth watching.  It’s a film about redemption, forgiveness and the need of people to accept the help of others.  My Rating:  Bargain Matinee  The Spitfire Grill Info

In Case You Missed It (A Film Just Released on DVD / Blu-ray):  The Heat (2013)  R  I love this film about a button-downed FBI agent (Sandra Bullock) who has to team with a reckless detective (Melissa McCarthy) to bring down a ruthless drug lord.  Paul Feig (Bridesmaids) directed this very funny film where Bullock held her own on screen with McCarthy.  My Rating:  Full Price

Weird Credits:  From the credits of Escape Plan:  Acting coach for Mr. Schwarzenegger

Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You:  The Counselor  (2013)  R  Michael Fassbender plays a greedy lawyer, only known as The Counselor, who becomes involved with the seedy world of drug trafficking. This could be an Oscar contender with Ridley Scott directing and a cast made up of Penelope Cruz, Cameron Diaz, Javier Bardem and Brad Pitt.   The Counselor Website

Until Next Time!