Love Wedding Repeat

My View:  Love Wedding Repeat  (2020)   Jack (Sam Claflin) is trying to make sure that his little sister has the perfect wedding day. Little did Jack expect that the girl of his dreams (Olivia Munn) that he let get away will come back in his life while the wedding falls apart at the seams. I loved the first half of the film, as everything that could go wrong with the wedding reception does. I didn’t quite enjoy the 2nd half of the film, once a plot twist happens and I felt the ending felt a little rushed and weak. Overall, I enjoyed the film, especially the two leads, Sam Claflin and Olivia Munn, who have incredible chemistry with each other and play off of each other with beautiful results. I also thoroughly enjoyed Aisling Bea, who plays Rebecca, a loudmouth, very opinionated friend of the bride who has a crush on one of the members of the wedding party. Bea has a fabulous, humorous presence that lets her dominate the too few scenes she is in. Overall it’s a fun romp about a wedding that is destined to go wrong, or is it?    My Rating: Bargain Matinee     Love Wedding Repeat Website   Currently available on Netflix.

Indiefest: Extra Ordinary (2019) R   Rose (Maeve Higgins) looks like an ordinary driving instructor, but this sweet, lonely Irish woman has supernatural talents. Rose is determined to use her powers to save Martin’s (Barry Ward) daughter from the clutches of a washed-up rock star (Will Forte) that has made a pact with the devil to return to his glory days. This is one of those movies that if you saw it at a midnight showing at a film festival, you would have had a great time. It’s a film full of interesting characters that are put in some humorous situations but doesn’t always hit the funny bone the way you want it to. Barry Ward, playing the widower whose dead wife is a ghost that is still trying to run his life from the afterworld, has some sweet comedic moments in the film and shows a knack for physical comedy. Maeve Higgins, as the driving instructor who reluctantly helps Barry with his wife/ghost, is mildly funny but has a hard time keeping up with the antics in the plot. I got tired of Will Forte as the one-hit-wonder who is willing to do anything to get back into the limelight. Forte lays the act of the pompous rock star a little too thick, and it drags the film down a bit. It has a plot that isn’t quite funny enough to be a hit other than with that late-night crowd.    My Rating: Bargain Matinee    Extra Ordinary Website   Currently available on the KinoNow digital platform.

Indiefest: Almost Love (2019)   Ensemble comedy revolving around Adam (Scott Evans) and Marklin (Augustus Prew), whose once hot relationship has forced them to reconcile with each other’s shortcomings while their friend's lives are crumbling around them. I saw this delightful romantic comedy at the Out on Film Festival last year in Atlanta under the title of Sell By. It’s a smart, funny film with a cast that continually hits their performances out of the park. Evans and Prew, as the central couple that everyone revolves around, are perfect as the struggling artist and his hugely successful social influencer. While the film does revolve around Adam and Marklin’s eroding relationship, what I enjoyed was each of the supporting cast is allowed to shine with their own storylines. Michelle Buteau gives an inspired performance as Cammy, a single woman who gets involved with a homeless guy against her better judgment and Zoe Chao, who plays Haley, a young woman who is desperately fighting her attraction to a high-school student who she is tutoring. The film is bolstered by notable actresses Kate Walsh, who plays Adam’s best friend and Patricia Clarkson as a pretentious artist whom Adam moonlights for. Almost Love treats all it’s characters with respect and love, all the while allowing us to have fun with a bunch of people who are all trying to find ‘the one.’    My Rating: Full Price    Almost Love Info    Available for rent on participating on-demand services.

Forgotten Film: Bite the Bullet (1975) PG   A motley group of cowboys go on a 700-mile race in the desert to win a monetary prize. Writer/director Richard Brooks gives us a gripping tale of grit, determination, and survival when the cowboy way of life was just about done. Two of the contestants are played by Gene Hackman and James Coburn as two former Rough Riders who are looking for one last bit of glory. Candice Bergen plays an ex-prostitute that can ride with the best of them and Jan-Michael Vincent as a brash cowboy who is willing to do anything to win. The film was shot on location at the White Sands National Monument, and it uses the rough and harsh location to show just how hard the completion is on both man and horse. Made during a time when westerns were out of favor, Bite the Bullet is everything you would want in the genre and more.    My Rating: Full Price    Bite the Bullet Info

Weird Credits: From the credits of Extra Ordinary: Finger Man

Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You: The Green Knight (2020)   The story of Sir Gawain (Dev Patel), King Arthur’s nephew, who is determined to make his own legend as he takes on the Green Knight, a gigantic green-skinned stranger. When I studied the classics in college, this was one of my favorite stories.    The Green Knight Website

Until Next Time!

A Walk in the Woods

My View:  A Walk in the Woods (2015) R  Bill Bryson (Robert Redford) is a world famous travel writer whose humorous books were once on the best seller list, but he hasn’t written a thing in 5 years. Bryson decides to hike the 2,200 mile Appalachian Trail with an old friend, Stephen Katz (Nick Nolte).  Robert Redford has been trying to make this film, based on Bryson's book of the same name, since the late 90s. He initially wanted to star with Paul Newman in the Katz role. While that would have been fun to watch, the pairing of Redford and Nolte in a movie based on a beloved and hilarious book should have been a hit out of the park. Unfortunately, I think the script has been rewritten so many times that the final product, by screenwriters Bill Holderman and Rick Kerb, feels flat and stale. The film never really gives Redford and Nolte much to work with. The brilliant supporting cast is given nothing to do, with the exception of Kristen Schael, who briefly breathes some comedic life into the film.  While the +50 age crowd may have an enjoyable time watching the two old master actors stumble about on-screen, I think the rest of us, and especially fans of the book, will not want to go on this trip.    My Rating: Cable   A Walk in the Woods Website   

My View:  The Transporter: Refueled  (2014)  PG-13  Frank Martin (Ed Skrein) is a former special-ops mercenary who is now transporting classified packages for questionable people.  He gets caught up in a cat and mouse game between some bank robbers and a Russian kingpin. This is the typical movie written by Luc Besson, who created the Transporter series. The film has lots of action and flash but no real character or content. Ed Skrein is asked to fill the very large shoes of the star of the first three Transporter films, Jason Statham. Unfortunately, Skrein doesn’t have the charisma or screen presence. The action, while well-choreographed, is almost comical, reminiscent of an old Jackie Chan film, where the hero uses various devices like a life buoy to subdue his attackers. The acting is horrible, with the exception of Ray Stevenson, who comes off stylish and cool as Frank Martin’s father, an ex-CIA agent. The film is one big ad for Audi.  Instead of “Refueled,” I think this whole series needs to be retooled.   My Rating: Cable   The Transporter: Refueled Website

Indiefest:  Learning to Drive  (2015)  R  As Wendy’s (Patricia Clarkson) marriage falls apart, she decides to take driving lessons from a Sikh instructor (Ben Kingsley) who has relationship troubles of his own. This is a charming film about the development of a friendship between two lonely adults. Clarkson and Kingsley work extremely well together in this understated film. It’s a film about learning to believe in yourself and that a person can succeed if they just give it their all.  I especially enjoyed the performance of Clarkson, who just sparkles on the screen. Kingsley gives a powerful yet restrained performance.  This is a movie that moves at a slow pace, but that’s OK, because, like with good friends, sometimes it’s just fine to sit and talk for a while.   My Rating:  Full Price   Learning to Drive Website

Indiefest:  Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine (2014)  R This is a documentary by filmmaker Alex Gibney on Steve Jobs, the founder of Apple. Through archival interviews and videos of Jobs, Gibney lets Steve do most of the talking in the film, making him almost a personal tour guide to the story of his life. Jobs had the uncanny ability to spot talent and the ability to inspire people who worked for him to achieve the impossible. Gibney interviews former employees from both the early days of Apple and the latter years, when the company that Jobs started had become a powerhouse not only in the computer world, but in the business world. Gibney shows Jobs as a driven man who expected his employees to create perfect products but demanded that the job take over their lives, so much so that their personal lives suffered. With this film, Alex Gibney shows us that Jobs was a man who helped connect the whole world through his products, but he couldn’t connect to people in his own personal world. It is truly ironic that Jobs created products like the iPhone, something that was meant to connect us to other people, but instead seems to isolate us as we stare at our iPhones at the bus stop or at the dinner table. The film is a fascinating, unflinching look at an extremely complicated and ego driven man. I just wonder that after seeing this film, will the fans of Apple and Jobs hold him in such high, almost god-like esteem and will they look at his products with the same reverence? Or will they just go back to staring at their iPhones?    My Rating: Full Price   Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine

Forgotten Film:  The People Under the Stairs  (1991)  R  Two adults and a juvenile break into a suburban home rumored to have a large stash of cash. What they find is their worst nightmare, a house filled with secrets, secrets that may cost them their lives. This is a film written and directed by the master of horror, the late Wes Craven. It’s a film that starts out as an ordinary heist film that quickly turns into a film filled with mystery and horror, and with any Craven film, it also has some humorous bits. It’s a brilliant piece of filmmaking that is just plain fun to watch.   My Rating: Full Price   The People Under the Stairs Website   

Weird Credits:  From the credits of The Transporter: Refueled:  Patina & Tint

Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You:  The Visit  (2015)  PG-13  A single mom sends her two young children to visit their grandparents. Something very wrong is going on in the house, and their grandparents are acting strange. I have high hopes for this horror film, but writer/director M. Night Shyamalan’s track record lately hasn’t been stellar.   The Visit Website   

Until Next Time!