Pinocchio

Familyfaire: Pinocchio (2022) PG   The beloved tale of the wooden puppet who goes on an adventure to become a real boy. Why does this story keep being made by studios? I probably put Pinocchio near the bottom of the list of all the classic Disney animated films. Other than the signature song “When You Wish Upon a Star” and “An Actor’s Life for Me” (hey, I was a kid actor’), nothing else really stands out for me. Well, now you have a combination of CGI animation and live action that doesn’t feel magical. Tom Hanks is horribly miscast as the puppet builder Geppetto, with an accent that comes and goes, along with one horrible song about his dead son. And who thought it would be funny to have Pinocchio have a lengthy encounter with a pile of horse manure on his first day in the real world? I think small kids will enjoy the antics of Pinocchio, and Wish Upon is wonderfully sung by Cynthia Erivo as the Blue Fairy, plus Joseph Gordon-Levitt has a certain charm as Jiminy Cricket (though Cliff Edwards will always be the standard). However, I felt the whole 1-hour forty-five-minute length as the story drags on and on. My suggestion is to watch the first 15 minutes of the film, look for all the Easter eggs in Geppetto’s workshop and pick out a movie to see from one of those.   My Rating: Cable  Pinocchio Website  Now playing on the Disney+ platform.

My View: Barbarian (2022) R  A woman (Georgian Campbell) rents an Airbnb to find that someone else is already renting it. Subsequently, she reluctantly stays the night, only to find that the home has hidden secrets that could cost her more than the rent. First, if you can, avoid the trailer. The less you know coming into this film, the better. It is scary as heck, with a great setup and an even better 2nd half (though I have a few minor problems with the ending that I won’t go into here). I love the casting of Bill Skarsgard as Keith, the guy who has rented the home also, and agrees to let Tess (Georgian Campbell) spend the night, with him taking the couch. I won’t ruin how Justin Long’s character AJ is involved in the plot, but he is perfect in the role as the vain actor whose life is about to go downhill. There are plenty of scares, and the tension building starts almost from the start of Tess showing up in the middle of a dark, rainy night and goes from there. Once you think you have it figured out, this is one of those films that comes out of left field and knocks you on your butt. If you like terrifying movies that keep you guessing, then Barbarian is one for you. One of the best horror films of the year!   My Rating: Full Price  Barbarian Website  Now playing in select theatres.

My View: End of the Road (2022) R   Brenda (Queen Latifah), her brother Reggie (Ludacris), and Brenda’s two kids are on a cross-country trip. In an isolated motel, they witness a murder. Thereafter, they become the killer's target, and Brenda will have to fight to keep her family alive. Watching this film reminded me of the old movie of the week TV films that used to be a staple on ABC and other networks in the 70s. A film that doesn’t promise a lot, led by a TV star (which is what Queen Latifah has become with her CBS Equalizer show), and gives a simple story of a family in the wrong place at the wrong time that goes from bad to worse for them. The plot is pretty easy to figure out, and there are a few fights (nothing much to see), plus a rather run-of-the-mill car chase. If you are a fan of The Equalizer, you might enjoy this, but for the rest of us, it’s like it's 1977 all over again, and I'm watching TV with my parents. My Rating: Bargain Matinee  End of the Road Website  Now playing on the Netflix platform.

Indiefest: About Fate (2022) R  A tale of two people (Emma Roberts, Thomas Mann) who have always believed in love but have never been able to find its true meaning. A chance encounter puts them together, and the two go on an adventure that will change their lives. Finally, they just might find out what love truly is. This is a fun, sweet rom-com with your usual kooky situations where two people meant for each other find themselves together due to fate. Roberts and Mann make a cute couple and have great chemistry together. The two get into some fun situations, and I liked the understated ending. It helps that the supporting cast is full of people you are comfortable with, like Wendie Malick, Cheryl Hines, and Britt Robertson. About Fate probably won’t be a staple in your rom-com lineup, but for a fun and enjoyable time, it will do. My Rating: Bargain Matinee    About Fate Website  Now playing in theatres nationwide.

Indiefest: Private Desert (2021)  Daniel is a policeman suspended after a violent incident, and his world is crashing down around him. Daniel holds onto the one good thing in his life, his online girlfriend, Sara. When Sara disappears, Daniel travels 2000 miles to find a woman he has never met. Daniel, played by Antonio Saboia, is a man whose world is coming apart. He has done something so horrible to get suspended that news stories keep popping up on the Internet. Daniel takes care of his elderly dad, who is barely coherent and has a rocky relationship with his sister, who he depends on to help take care of his dad. Daniel’s one shining hope is his relationship with Sara, but when she ghosts him, he can’t take it and leaves to find her. Private Desert is a tale about a man who thinks he is in love with a woman he barely knows but is convinced that everything will be better if he finds her. Sometimes what we think will fix things makes things only more complicated.   My Rating: Full Price   Private Desert Website  Now playing in select theatres.

Forgotten Film: Walking and Talking (1996) R  Amelia (Catherine Keener) is a single woman with a history of picking the wrong guy. Amelia has a best friend in Laura (Anne Heche), who has always been there for her, in person or any time Amelia calls. However, recently, Laura has been head over heels in love with her boyfriend (Todd Field), and now, Amelia feels she is losing Laura when Laura gets engaged. I love this film, primarily due to the performance of Catherine Keener, who plays Amelia as a likable but incredibly needy, flaky person that you somehow still like. The dialogue is perfect in this film, and it’s helped by the believable relationship between the two best friends. I will always love Anne Heche, but Keener overshadows her and shines in this one.   My Rating: Full Price   Walking and Talking Info  

Weird Credits: From the credits of Barbarian: Cleaner

Coming Soon to a Screen Near You: Moonage Daydream (2022) PG-13  Documentary about the life and artistry of David Bowie. The film has been sanctioned by the Bowie estate and is by Oscar-nominated filmmaker Brett Morgen (Jane (2017), Cobain: Montage of Heck (2015), and The Kid Stays in the Picture (2002)). I can’t wait to see this film. I never saw Bowie doing his own songs, but I did see him play keyboard/backing vocals for Iggy Pop a million years ago in my youth.   Moonage Daydream Info  Film will be releasing in theatres in mid-September.

Until Next Time!

Memory

My View: Memory (2022) R   An assassin-for-hire, Alex (Liam Neeson), becomes a target himself after he refuses to complete a job for a notorious criminal organization. Now Alex must hunt down the people who hired him. However, Alex is hampered by a memory that is beginning to falter, blurring the lines between right and wrong. We have all seen this plot before; an aging hitman wants to quit but decides to take one last job, then decides not to go through with it because it involves killing a kid. The twist in this film is that the hitman is suffering from the onset of Alzheimer’s. Neeson has, of late, been doing the hitman done wrong in quite a few films lately, and it's getting really old. Sure it has a nice twist where our hero is having such trouble with his memory that he writes stuff on his arm with a sharpie to help him on his hits, but this film drags on and on. There is so much exposition with characters explaining every detail of what they find out (or don’t) that it probably makes this film last 15 minutes longer than it should. What could have been an interesting look at an aging hitman becomes a dull story of revenge that just seems to go on and on.   My Rating: Cable   Memory Website  Now playing in theaters nationwide.

My View: Crush (2022)    Page (Rowan Blanchard) is a talented art student in her senior year of high school. In order to be close to her ‘crush,’ Gabby. Page joins the track team. Although Page stinks at track, she is about to discover that love can be complicated when she finds that she is falling for someone else, Gabby’s sister AJ (Auli’i Cravalho). It’s fun to see a film where ‘coming out is not the main subject and is even used a couple of times as a source of jokes. Instead, being gay is just a part of the high school way of life. This is a pleasant and funny look at high school crushes and romance with a cast that has fun with it. Rowan Blanchard is delightful as Page, a slightly goofy, clumsy girl who has a crush on a fellow high school student. Page joins the track team to be close to Page, but instead of being paired with Gabby, she seems always to be paired with Gabby’s twin, AJ. I had fun watching this film, and while it’s not anything to get excited about, it’s still a blast to watch Page try her best to get close to Gabby, all the while, we know that she will end up with AJ in the end.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee   Crush Website  Now playing on the Hulu platform.

Indiefest: Anaïs in Love (2021) R  Anaïs (Anaïs Demoustier) is a 30-year-old woman floundering in life. She meets Daniel (Denis Podalydes), an older man who almost instantly falls for her. However, Daniel lives with his long-term girlfriend, a writer named Emilie (Valeria Bruni Tedeschi). Anaïs becomes obsessed with Emilie and makes it her mission to have Emilie fall in love with her. Anaïs is a young woman you will fall in love with despite being impulsive, self-centered, and flighty. She is the type of young woman who thinks nothing of letting a boyfriend know that she is pregnant and will have an abortion while breaking up with him. She gets by because she is beautiful and is full of life, the kind of young woman who can talk her way out of owning back rent or taking off at the last minute to go to a conference that she hasn’t been invited to. Anaïs is floating by in life until she meets Emilie, an older woman who is a distinguished writer. It doesn’t matter that Emilie is involved with Daniel, a man that Anaïs has had an affair with. She has set her sights on Emilie, and nothing will get in the way of getting close to her. Anaïs Demoustier is perfect in the role, an actress that fills the screen with life and self-confidence, something that Anaïs, the character, is abounding with. Anaïs in Love is a fun and lovely film that makes you want to fall in love and have that excitement and thrill of seeing a person who makes your world go around.   My Rating: Full Price   Anais In Love Website  Now playing in select theatres.

Indiefest: Charlotte (2021)   Charlotte is a young German-Jewish painter who comes of age in Berling on the eve of the Second World War. Charlotte has dreams of becoming a famous artist but realizes that her world is changing quickly and dangerously, and she leaves Berlin for the safety of the South of France. She finds new love and begins painting again, but a family secret threatens her work and life. This is an animated story of Charlotte Salomon, an artist who died in a concentration camp but not before creating 1000 paintings that told her life story. Charlotte is a gorgeous film that lovely tells her story and gives us an insight into many of her paintings. It’s a sad story but one that is also full of love and beauty.   My Rating: Full Price   Charlotte Website  Now playing in select theatres.

My View: The Mystery of Marilyn Monroe: The Unheard Tapes (2022)    The life and death of Marilyn Monroe has fascinated the world. Now a documentary explores the end of the icon with unheard interviews with both Marilyn and her inner circle. Will these previously secret tapes uncover the mystery of Marilyn? The life and death of Marilyn is probably one of the world’s most documented lives. Marilyn continues, even after so long to fascinate us, and her death has always been shrouded in mystery and conspiracy theories. Does this film give us much more insight into her life and her untimely death at age 36? Not really. I didn’t learn much more about Marilyn than I already knew. There certainly isn’t anything shocking or revealing about what was most likely an accidental overdose or a suicide. We do get to hear interviews with some somewhat shady individuals, but mostly they only confirm that Marilyn had affairs with both the Kennedy brothers while John was the President and maybe long before. Overall, if you don’t know much about Marilyn’s life, it’s a good primer, but will you learn anything new? The answer is no as I think the mystery has long been solved.    My Rating: Bargain Matinee   The Mystery of Marilyn Monroe Website  Now playing on the Netflix platform.

Forgotten Film: The Art of Getting By (2011) PG-13   George (Freddie Highmore) is a high school kid who just doesn’t try to do anything in life. He is proud of the fact that he has never done anything in high school because George doesn’t see why he should. Then he meets two people, Sally (Emma Roberts), a fellow student who suddenly takes a liking to him, and his art teacher (Jarlath Conroy), who thinks that George has talent and could be an artist if he just found some inspiration. George has a lot of people in his life that want him to apply himself, but until Sally, there was never a reason to do so. I love this movie because of the chemistry between Highmore and Roberts, who work incredibly well on screen. The plot is a little predictable, and I am not totally happy with the 2nd half of the film, but Roberts and Highmore make it a movie worth watching.   My Rating: Full Price   The Art of Getting By Info

Weird Credits: From the credits of Crush: Mural Scenic

Coming Soon to a Screen Near Your:  Senior Year (2022) A cheerleading accident left her in a coma for 20 years. Now she is awake and ready to return for her senior year of high school…as a 37-year-old. Senior Year stars Rebel Wilson, and that’s enough for me to see it.    Senior Year Website

Until Next Time!

Jason Bourne

My View:  Jason Bourne  (2016)  PG-13  Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) now remembers who he is, so, it's time to find some answers.  I have liked the Bourne series, especially the action sequences. After a great opening scene where Bourne takes a fighter down in one punch,  the film quickly goes downhill with sloppy fight sequences shot in “shaky cam” style and a car chase sequence that was so badly done it was hard to figure out what was happening. The chase through the streets of Las Vegas was so ludicrous that, when the chase ends with one of the cars crashing into a casino, I was expecting a close up of a slot machine dinging and giving up coins. Some of the dialogue, especially those delivered by Tommy Lee Jones, are laughable. I was disappointed in the bland performance that Alicia Vikander gave, though I suspect that the script, which has her n line to be the CIA director at age 28, had a great deal to do with said performance. Mr. Bourne, it's time to retire.   My Rating: Cable   Jason Bourne Website

My View:  Nerve  (2016)  PG-13  A high school Senior, Vee (Emma Roberts), tries out an online game of truth or dare. At first, the game is easy, and the rewards are worth the risk, but soon, it is very evident that Vee is in over her head, and this game could become deadly.  Back in 1995, when The Net was released, we didn't know enough about computers to know that Sandra Bullock couldn't really bring down the internet with a floppy disk. It's 2016 and even I know that a couple of teen hackers are not going to be able to take down an internet game with a couple of keystrokes, but that's what this film wants you to believe.  I enjoyed the first half of this film, mostly because the dares that Vee gets were creative and fun. The film starts running out of gas when the dares become more dangerous and less creative. I did enjoy the performance of Emily Meade, who plays Roberts’ more adventurous best friend, which gives some life to the film. Unfortunately, the film's ending, which can be seen from a mile away, is just too simple to really work.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee   Nerve Website

My View:  Bad Moms  (2016)  R  Three moms (Mila Kunis, Kathryn Hahn, Kristen Bell) have been pushed to their limit by the PTA, making lunches and managing after-school activities for their kids. It's time for the moms to hit back and have some fun. I had a great time watching this movie.  While it takes a little while to take off, once Kathryn Hahn’s raunchy mom shows up, the film is a blast to watch. The three women play off each other effortlessly and they all have great comedic timing. Christina Applegate is perfect as the mom who runs the PTA with an iron hand. Go have a glass of wine and enjoy your time with some “Bad Moms.”   My Rating: Full Price   Bad Moms Website

Indiefest:  Café Society  (2016)  PG-13  Bobby Dorrman (Jesse Eisenberg) leaves his home in New York in the 1930's and moves to Hollywood to try and make a name for himself. He lands a job with his Uncle Phil (Steve Carrell).  While in Hollywood, Bobby meets Phil's secretary, Vonnie (Kristen Stewart). He begins dating Vonnie not knowing that she is secretly having an affair with his uncle.  Who would have thought that after that first Twilight film I would be saying this, but Kristen Stewart has become one of my favorite actresses, and she doesn't disappoint  with a dazzling performance in this latest Woody Allen film. This is a beautiful film to watch, and it's clear that Allen has a reverence for the Hollywood of yesteryear. This is an enjoyable film, though I did want it to be funnier as it has too little out and out laughs.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee   Cafe Society Website

Indiefest:  Eat That Question: Frank Zappa in His Own Words  (2016)  R  In-depth documentary about the life and music of legendary avant-garde musician Frank Zappa. This is one of the best documentaries of the year. The film does not have a narrator but lets Zappa, appearing on talk shows and interviews with reporters, tell his story. I never have been a fan of his music, finding it very strange and involved, but I always was a fan of the man, himself, and this film just confirms my admiration. The film is full of rare footage of concerts that show just how crazy Zappa's music was.  This is a fascinating film about a very complex and complicated man.   My Rating: I Would Pay to See it Again   Eat That Question Website   

Forgotten Film:  The Night Before  (1988)  Winston (Keanu Reeves) wakes up in the middle of the street, his date is missing, his car is gone, and his tux jacket is full of money. When he starts remembering his night, he will probably want to forget it. This is a strange coming-of-age teen comedy that I like because halfway through the film, it becomes a little dark. It seems that Winston, in a drunken state, has sold his prom date (Lori Loughlin) to a local pimp, and he has to rescue her before she gets sold to a sex slave dealer. I told you it goes a little dark. It's not a great film, but if you want something a little different, this will fill the role.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee   The Night Before Website

Weird Credits:  From the credits of Jason Bourne: Special Effects Teeth

Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You:   The Edge of Seventeen (2016)  High school life for Nadine (Hailee Steinfeld) is already pretty bad, but it gets worse when her best friend (Haley Lu Richardson) starts dating her popular older brother (Blake Jenner).  I love Woody Harrelson in the trailer as Nadine's teacher that she looks to for guidance.   The Edge of Seventeen Info

Until Next Time!