Abominable

FamilyFaire: Abominable (2019) PG   Yi (voiced by Chloe Bennet), a young girl, finds a friendly Yeti that longs to go back to his mountain. Yi and two other friends make it their mission to help ‘Everest’ return to its homeland. The gang will have to avoid a wealthy man named Burnish (Eddie Izzard) who wants to put Everest in his collection. While very predictable and at times a little slow, the film is warm look at friendship and how those friends will try their best to make their friends dreams come true. This is a sweet film that families will enjoy and kids will love the action sequences. Sure the plot is a little too paint by numbers kids film, but Everest and his buddies may just make you forget that.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee    Abominable Website

My View: Judy (2019) PG-13   A penniless and considered washed-up Judy Garland (Renee Zellweger) arrives in London to restart her career with a series of sold-out concerts. She must deal with the demons of the past while battling her ex-husband over the custody of her children. The film is let down a bit by its storyline that centers on Judy’s self-destructive behavior but it’s the performance of Renne Zellweger, who stunningly brings Judy Garland back to life with an incredible performance. Zellweger is brilliant in the role and her singing a ton of Judy’s hallmark songs brings this film to life. I loved the flashbacks to when Judy (played by Darci Shaw) is in the middle of filming The Wizard of Oz. We see that the young Judy just wanted to spend a day or two being a normal kid but the Hollywood system wouldn’t let her. I just wish there had been a few more flashbacks in the last third of the film when Judy’s downward spiral becomes almost too much to watch.   My Rating: Full Price    Judy Website

In Case You Missed It (A Film Just Released on DVD / Blu-ray): Yesterday (2019) PG-13   A musician, Jack(Himesh Patel) who realizes he’s the only person to remember The Beatles. He then starts performing their songs and becomes a big star. Patel has a fine voice and what I like about this film is Patel puts a new take on some of the Beatles songs. His version of Help near the end of the film is a perfect example of this; it’s full of anger and angst. I loved Lily James, who plays Ellie, Jack’s manager, who at times is the only one that believes that he can succeed as a musician. I enjoyed the music in the film, seventeen songs of The Beatles are sung, showing just how prolific they were. This is a sweet film that doesn’t always work. The film never quite finds its footing and I hated the ending. You get the feeling that screenwriter Richard Curtis didn’t quite know how to get his characters out of the predicament they find themselves at the end of the film.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee     Yesterday Website

In Memory of Ed Wood (A Movie I've Only Seen in Trailers But Just Looks Like a Bad Idea):  Playing with Fire (2019)   A crew of wild-land firefighters, led by tough as nails Jake Carson (John Cena) meet their match when they rescue a trio of rambunctious children. Why does every action star feel the need to make a movie where they get bested by children that ultimately teach the action hero a lesson on how to let people into your heart?  Playing with Fire Info 

Forgotten Film:   The Big Country (1958)   A New Englander (Gregory Peck) arrives in the old west, where he becomes embroiled in a feud between two families who both claim a piece of land. This film is one of those big, larger than life films with a huge all-star cast that only someone like William Wyler could direct. Two reasons to see this film, Burl Ives, who won a Supporting Actor Oscar for his performance and the amazing shot after shot of the ranch lands in the film. While a good movie, it’s more known for how Wyler pissed off almost the whole cast, including Peck who would never talk to Wyler again after making the film.   My Rating: Full Price    The Big Country Info

Weird Credits: From the credits of Judy: Immigration Consultant

Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You:  Doctor Sleep (2019) R   Years after the events of The Shining, a now-adult Dan Torrance (Ewan McGregor) meets a young girl (Emily Alyn Lind) who has similar powers as his. Dan takes the girl under his wing and tries to protect her from a cult known as The True Knot. Their mission is to find and prey on children with powers so that their members can remain immortal. The words ‘based on a novel by Stephen King’ is enough to get me to see this film.    Doctor Sleep Facebook Page

Until Next Time!

Prisoners

My View: Prisoners (2013) R  When Keller Dover’s (Hugh Jackman) young daughter and her friend go missing, the families of the two girls start to panic.  A main suspect is released due to lack of evidence, and that’s when Keller decides to take matters into his own hands.  How far will he go to find his daughter?  The film is highlighted by two brilliant performances by Jackman, as the father who will do anything to find his daughter, and Jake Gyllenhaal, a detective who has always solved his cases.  The problem with this film is its length (almost 2hours and thirty minutes), and its pacing.  It just takes forever for anything in this film to develop.  The film does have some nice twists and turns to the plot that keep you guessing, but I would have liked to have gotten to the end quite a bit sooner. My Rating:  Bargain Matinee   Prisoners Website

Indiefest:  Thanks for Sharing (2013) R   Adam (Mark Ruffalo), Neil (Josh Gad) and Mike (Tim Robbins) come from different backgrounds and seem like they wouldn’t have anything in common, except they are all addicts in a support group… a support group for sex addiction.  Ruffalo is outstanding as the troubled Adam, a man who is tempted at every corner by provocative ads but is determined to stay clean.  Josh Gad is becoming one of my favorite actors, and he does a great job playing Neil, a doctor who hasn’t fully realized that if he doesn’t change his ways, his life could be ruined.  I also like Pink (acting under her given name of Alecia Moore), a sex addict who becomes friends with Josh Gad’s character.  The film tackles a tough subject with humor but too many times goes into melodrama, which make the characters, especially Adam’s new girlfriend (played by Gwyneth Paltrow), seem one-dimensional.    My Rating:  Bargain Matinee  Thanks for Sharing Website

Family Faire:  The Wizard of Oz  (1939) PG  Dorothy (Judy Garland), her dog Toto, The Scarecrow (Ray Bolger), The Cowardly Lion (Bert Lahr), and The Tin Man (Jack Haley) are off to see The Wizard (Frank Morgan).  The Wicked Witch of the West (Margaret Hamilton) is out to stop Dorothy from finding a way home.  This timeless classic is worth seeing in the theatre because the restoration brings out the vibrant colors in the film, and it is so much fun to experience the film with an audience, especially kids who haven’t seen it before.  At the screening that I attended, kids were laughing and having the best time watching this beautiful film.  The 3-D aspect doesn’t add too much, but seeing the film on the big screen is a great experience.  My Rating:  I Would Pay to See it Again  The Wizard of Oz Website

Indiefest:  The Short Game  (2013) PG  The World Championship of Junior Golf brings 1500 young golfers from 54 different countries to compete in a tourney that will crown the next possible “Tiger Woods.”  This entertaining film follows 8 young golfers, ages 7 and 8, from around the world, in their quest to win the championship.  Some of the kids are adorable, including little Sky Sudberry, who is a tiny little girl with a big heart, and Zamokuhle Nxasanna, a roly-poly kid from South Africa, who is just there to make friends, play as well as he can and have fun.  There are a couple of kids that you sort of root against, including Alan Kournikova, the brother of tennis star Anna, who is the epitome of the rich, stuck up kid who thinks he’s God’s gift to golf (and he maybe, since he is that good), and Amari “Tigress” Avery, who is coddled by her dad and has temper tantrums on the course when she hits a bad shot.  This is a must for any golfer, though throughout the film,  you will say to yourself “Man, why can’t I hit the ball like that?”  My Rating: Full Price   The Short Game Website

Forgotten Film:  The Last Waltz  (1978)  PG   A documentary, directed by Martin Scorsese, about the last concert that the legendary group The Band performed at in 1976 at San Francisco’s Winterland.  The film contains interviews with the band members about their 16 years of being on the road.  Singers such as Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young and Emmylou Harris appear on stage to sing in celebration of one of the ground breaking groups of the 60’s/70’s. This is one of the best concert films of all time.   My Rating:  Full Price  The Last Waltz Info

In Case You Missed It (A Film Just Released on DVD / Blue-ray):  World War Z  (2013)  PG-13  Gerry Lane (Brad Pitt) just might be the world’s only hope to stop the zombie apocalypse that is at the brink of destroying all mankind.  Pitt is a former UN investigator who served in some of the world’s worst war-torn areas.  He is given the job to find out where the Zombie outbreak came from and determine if he can find some sort of cure. I really didn’t like this film as I felt the film had dull moments, the Zombie attacks were mostly shown in long shots, and the ending was ill-conceived and a little forced.  My Rating:  Bargain Matinee   World War Z Website

Weird Credits:  From the credits of Prisoners (2013):  prop body and snakes

Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You:  12 Years a Slave  (2013) R  This film about a free black man (Ehiwetel Ejiofor), who is abducted and sold into slavery, was the talk of the Toronto International Film Festival.  The film is being talked about as a sure thing for a nomination for Best Picture.

Until Next Time!