The Prom

 Note to readers: I currently am not willing to risk my health (I’m 62 and an asthmatic) by visiting a theatre. All films that I have seen for review have been screened in my home. I am not going to tell you whether or not to attend a theatre. Just be aware of the risks, do your research, and follow the instructions to the letter.

My View: The Prom (2020) PG-13   Two down on their luck Broadway stars (Meryl Streep, Jame Corden) travel to a small Indiana town to support a high school girl, Emma (Jo Ellen Pellman), who, against the wishes of the townspeople, wants to take her girlfriend to the prom. First, I didn’t expect that this film would go longer (2 hours eleven minutes) than some proms have. The film must have twenty musical numbers. So many musical numbers that they kind of all just crash into each other. I loved the lead actress, Jo Ellen Pellman, who has a beautiful singing voice and is perfect as the sweet, innocent Emma. The film is based on a somewhat actual event and was performed on Broadway. This film's star power should have made it much more fun than it is with a cast that includes Nicole Kidman, Kerry Washington, Keegan-Michael Key, Andrew Rannells, Tracey Ullman, Kevin Chamberlin, and Mary Kay Place. The film feels slapped together with a storyline stretched so thin it collapses under its own weight as it goes over the top, time after time. Now, don’t get me wrong, Meryl Streep steals the spotlight every time she is on the screen, and her numbers are bright and campy. That being said, I never found myself loving or even liking most of the film that was, for this musical film-loving critic, a chore to watch.    My Rating: Bargain Matinee   The Prom Website     Available on the Netflix platform and currently playing in select theatres including Landmark Midtown Art  and Springs Cinema and Taphouse in the Atlanta area.

Indiefest: Wild Mountain Thyme (2020) PG-13   Rosemary (Emily Blunt), against her family's wishes, is head over heels in love with her neighbor Anthony (Jamie Dornan). The problem is Anthony is cursed, as madness runs in the family, and he remains oblivious to Rosemary and her advances. In walks, an American (Jon Hamm), who wants to buy Anthony’s family farm and also, just might take Rosemary away too. I wanted this film to be as good as its premise, but unfortunately, the film fails to capture any magic that its location of Ireland deserves. The on-location shots are beautiful, but the film never can find its footing, as it tries to get us interested in what the movie feels are star-crossed lovers, but we never quite get a hold of why the characters are supposed to be together in the first place, other than the fact that they grew up next to each other. Christopher Walken plays Anthony’s father, a man who I couldn’t understand where he was coming from, what his reasoning was because he seems to change his mind as many times as he lights a pipe. I love Emily Blunt, and she is the best part of this film, but the chemistry between her and Jamie Dornan isn’t there. In fact, as soon as Jon Hamm shows up, there are more sparks between him and Blunt in just a few scenes than there is for the rest of the movie between the two main characters. The last third of this film will baffle you, making you wonder what the heck happened and also ask: ‘What the heck kind of accent was Christopher Walken using?”   My Rating: Cable    Wild Mountain Thyme Website    The film is currently playing in select theatres including Landmark Midtown Art and Springs Cinema and Taphouse, and is available to rent on participating on-demand services.

Indiefest: Wander Darkly (2020) R   New parents Adrienne (Sienna Miller) and Matteo (Diego Luna) are in a troubled relationship that gets harder when they are forced to reckon with trauma. They must revisit their past while trying to unravel the truth to face their uncertain future. This film takes you a while to get into as Adrienne is dealing with a horrible tragedy, but about halfway through the film, I started to really enjoy the format the movie used to let Adrienne explore her feelings and grief. It’s a film that allows Sienna Miller to shine, and she is brilliant as the difficult, headstrong woman who has trouble even admitting that she loves Matteo, much less think their love can last. What I loved about this film is that we see everything through Adrienne's eyes that it is her story to explore and understand. I wasn’t sure where this film would end up, but I was pleased with the exploration of Adrienne and her life that the movie took us on.   My Rating: Full Price    Wander Darkly Website    The film is available to rent on participating on-demand services 

Indiefest: The Dark Divide (2020)  Urged on by his wife’s (Debra Messing) last wish, renowned butterfly expert Robert Pyle (David Cross) barks on a trip he has long put off, to trek through the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. The problem is Robert has never hiked on his own for such a dangerous and lengthy journey, a trek full of beauty and challenges. Oh, man is this a beautiful, gorgeous film to watch that makes me miss movie theaters so much. The scenery is breathtaking, and the musical score is perfect for the film. Shot on location, the film makes the forest its main character, full of beauty but also full of danger and, at times, a mystery. The Dark Divide isn’t a high-action film but a movie about a man who has suffered a devastating loss and has gone on a trip to explore not only the wilderness but also deal with his own personal grief. While a good deal of the film is Robert by himself, he does come across a few people during his travels, and that lets us explore how man deals with the wilderness in various ways. As an Everyman, David Cross is very relatable in the film, as he plays a man who isn’t an outdoorsman but is willing to keep going on his journey of discovery, no matter how hard or scary it gets. If you love the wonder and beauty of nature, along with the exploration of the human character, then this is a film for you.   My Rating: Full Price    The Dark Divide Website    The film is available to rent on participating on-demand services. 

Indiefest: Minding the Gap (2018)   Documentary on three young men who grew up together in the Rust-Belt, using their love for skateboarding as an escape from their volatile family life and the adult responsibilities they now have. It would be easy to say that this is a simple film about three young men trying to grow up in a tough time, but that would be too simple. The filmmaker, Bing Liu, uses his camera to explore what it means to be a man in this modern world. Liu explores not only the lives of his two best friends, the easy going Keire and the charismatic but troubled Zack, but also looks at his own unhappy childhood with a father who abandoned his family and a stepfather who beat both Bing and his mother. Liu, as well, turns the camera on Zack, who has a baby with a girlfriend who he constantly fights with, and Keire, a black teen whose own father died just when he needed him the most. Liu was one of those kids who always had a camera on him, so that we see the three grow up before our eyes and how skateboarding became the base of a family that they needed to go to when things got tough. Minding the Gap is a film that is profoundly moving and is brilliantly shot and edited. It is worthy of its nomination at the 2019 Oscars and is worth your spending time with this skateboarding gang.   My Rating: Full Price    Minding the Gap Website   The film is available on the Hulu platform.

Forgotten Film: Heartbreakers (2001)  PG-13 Max (Sigourney Weaver) and Page (Jennifer Love Hewitt) are a mother and daughter con team. Their specialty; Max romances wealthy men into marrying her, and then Page slides in to seduce the husband, thereby letting Max take them to the bank in a divorce settlement. Their next mark is supposed to be their last, a zillionaire named William B. Tensy, who just might bring the con duo down. Two reasons to watch this comedy; Gene Hackman and all the small roles of actors who soon made it big that fill out the supporting cast. Hackman is hilarious as a wisecracking, awful man who can’t stop being a jerk or smoking. The supporting cast includes Sarah Silverman, Zach Galifianakis, and singer/songwriter Shawn Colvin. It’s a fun film that is a little dated, but it is a blast to watch Hackman have so much fun with a role that he obliviously loved playing.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee    Heartbreakers Info

Weird Credits: From the credits of The Dark Divide: Lepidoptera Consultant

Coming Soon to a Screen Near You: Hunter Hunter (2020) Joseph (Devon Sawa), his wife Anne (Camille Sullivan), and their daughter Renée (Summer H. Howell) are a family living in the remote wilderness, struggling to survive as they earn a living as fur trappers. To their dismay, a rogue wolf has returned and is robbing their traps. Joseph leaves his family behind to trap the wolf, with Anne and Renée to fend for themselves in woods that has become dark and deadly. The trailer looks great, and the film seems to have a lot of twists and turns, which should make it a fun, scary ride to watch.     Hunter Hunter Website

Until Next Time!

Into the Woods

My View: Into The Woods (2014) PG  A childless couple (Emily Blunt, James Corden) makes a deal with The Witch (Meryl Streep) to get the child they have always wanted. That deal will come back to haunt them. Corden and Blunt are the standouts in this very large cast. Blunt just shines on the screen and has a lovely singing voice. Corden has a knack for comedy and belts out his songs with a strong, clear voice. Be warned - this film can be dark and is not your normal Disney fairy tale. There are deaths, double crosses, infidelity, and not every story ends happily ever-after. While I liked this film, I didn’t love it. It tends to start and stop a bit, and the last third of the film bogs down. Also, Johnny Depp plays the Big Bad Wolf, and his scenes with Little Red Riding Hood are so creepy I almost called the police to report child endangerment.  Meryl Streep gives an brilliant performance, as does Anna Kendrick as Cinderella, but the film lacks energy at important parts and, therefore, is a mild disappointment. My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Into The Woods Website

My View: The Interview (2014)  R   Dave Skylark (James Franco) is the star of a popular celebrity tabloid TV show called, "Skylark Tonight." It's the type of show that focuses on such topics as, “Does Miley show too much,” or that Rob Lowe is bald. Skylark’s producer, Aaron Rapoport (Seth Rogen), wants to do more serious news items but is always being shot down by Skylark. When the two discover that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is a big fan of the show, they attempt to land an interview with him, one of the most isolated leaders in the world. They land the interview and prepare to travel to Pyongyang when the CIA comes knocking on their door with a request - take out the Supreme leader, Kim Jong-un. The film starts on a high note with a North Korean girl singing a song that promises the downfall of the U.S. Unfortunately, the film never is as funny as that moment and gives you the feeling that you are seeing a poor man's “Anchorman.” This film is about what you would expect from a film co-written/co-directed by Seth Rogen with lots of jokes about sex acts and bodily functions. While I wasn't surprised by the crassness, I was shocked by the amount of violence. There are some laughs, but the film never sustains any topic very long, which makes it extremely predictable. It’s that un-predictability made Rogen and Franco’s last film, This is the End (2013), so much fun. I think the hackers should have just let the film be released It would have died very quickly, much to the happiness of the Supreme Leader. My Rating: Bargain Matinee  "The Interview" Website  

My View: Selma (2014) PG-13   Martin Luther King Jr. (David Oyelowo) changed a nation with his civil rights marches at Selma, Alabama. After the bombing of a church in Birmingham which killed four young girls, King decided that the right to vote was his next mission, and Selma was the place to start. Let me start out by saying Oyelowo’s performance is one of the best of the year. He has King’s cadence down pat, and your eyes (as they should) are always drawn to him. The film is moving and shows how hard it was to tackle the issues of the day, not only with the government, but within King’s ranks. Stephan James stands out in this big cast as a very young John Lewis. My favorite scene in this film is where King is driving John Lewis in a car, and Lewis conveys to King, in a very moving speech, just how important King is. I highly recommend this film. My Rating: Full Price  Selma Website

Indiefest: Big Eyes (2014) PG-13   Margaret Keane (Amy Adams) has a secret. Her husband (Christoph Waltz) isn’t the painter the world thinks he is. Margaret is the creator of the “big eyes” portraits that the world has fallen in love with. Both Adams and Waltz give superlative performances, with Waltz bringing another of his trademark disturbed characters to the screen. What I didn’t like about this film is it never could quite decide what type of film it wanted to be. Tim Burton directs, and I don’t know if he meant the film to be a satire, a drama or a comedy. It’s all three but at no time stays in one genre for long. It’s a provocative film that never finds its footing. My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Big Eyes Website

My View: Unbroken (2014) PG-13   Louis Zamperini (Jack O’Connell) was an Olympic runner who had a bright future ahead of him. After a near-fatal plane crash in World War II, Zamperini now must survive a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp. Before anyone had seen this film, critics were saying this could become an Oscar contender. Unfortunately, in my opinion, it’s not. While it does have some excellent performances, especially Jack O’Connell as Zamperini, the film at no time hits the emotional points that it needs to. I wanted the film to peel away the layers of Zamperini’s psyche, but we never get that. Angelina Jolie directed the movie, and while it’s a first-rate film, there never is that spectacular shot nor is there ever the big, moving scene that I needed from this type of film. Instead of marveling about the man, you just walk away thinking “he went through some bad times.”   My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Unbroken Website  

Indiefest: The Imitation Game (2014) PG-13   English mathematician Alan Turing (Benedict Cumberbatch) is given the task of breaking the Enigma code used by the Nazi’s during World War II. Cumberbatch gives another one of his compelling and complex performances in this film. It’s an absorbing film about a man who saved lives without the recognition. I would have liked the role that Keira Knightley plays – a woman who works on the project - to have been more quirky. I just didn’t believe that she would still be alone at age 25. I mean, it’s Keira “she’s striking” Knightley, for God’s sake. It’s a thought-provoking film that makes what could have been a rather dull subject into a film that keeps moving at an enticing pace. My Rating: Full Price  The Imitation Game Website

Forgotten Film: We’re No Angels (1955) Three convicts (Humphrey Bogart, Aldo Ray, Peter Ustinov) escape from Devil Island and find themselves in a tiny French coastal town. The three decide to con a small family until they realize that the family's financial situation is in dire straits. They decide to use their vast criminal skills to help the family out and make their Christmas a little better. Who doesn’t want a little Bogart magic in their holiday film? The three principals have a blast, and it’s just so much fun watching them perform. Do not confuse this with that 1989 stinker of a film that starred Robert De Niro and Sean Penn. My Rating: Full Price  We're No Angels Website

Weird Credits: From the credits of Into the Woods: Crashing Tree Sounds

Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You: Leviathan (2014) This Russian film about a man who tries to fight the system in a small coastal village is getting great reviews by critics. It’s nominated for a Golden Globe and is on the short list for the Academy Awards Best Foreign Film.  

Until Next Time!