Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul.

My View: Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul (2022) R  Trinitie (Regina Hall) and her husband, pastor Lee-Curtis (Sterling K. Brown), used to be the king and queen of a prominent Southern Baptist Mega Church. However, that was before a major scandal, and now they must rally and put the pieces back before it all goes away. I loved the performances of the two leads, especially Regina Hall, who dominates every scene she is in. Hall can do more with a look to the camera than most actors can do with a whole speech. Unfortunately, the film doesn’t know what it is. Is it a mockumentary? Is it a comedy? Is it a drama? Most of the film is shot as if it is for a documentary, but there are times when the film isn’t part of the documentary, as in a bedroom scene where the couple attempts to have sex, which makes for a very confusing mess of a film. I will say that there is a hilarious scene during a car ride where the two get into a rather profane rap song, but that’s the film's highlight as far as humor goes. The problem is that the film is a one-trick pony on how a Christian couple is more concerned about their wealth than their souls, and it pounds us over the head with that notion throughout the film.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee   Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul. Website   Now playing in theatres nationwide and is currently on the Peacock platform.

My View: Love in the Villa (2022)   Julie (Kat Graham) is a woman who always has a plan. After a long-term boyfriend breaks up with her, she takes the ‘romantic trip’ to Verona, Italy, that the two had planned together. Once there, she discovers that the villa she reserved has been double-booked, and she’ll have to share her vacation with a cynical British man (Tom Hopper). Come on, what more do you want in a rom-com than a trip to Italy with two mismatched, great-looking soon to be in love people. Predictable, but with the beautiful scenery, who cares? The first third of the film is a bit rough (a little too much of a grab for humor), but Graham and Hopper give the movie a bit of a spark, and you get an ending that you want. And there are all those shots of Italy.  My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Love in the Villa Website  Now playing on the Netflix platform.

Indiefest: Gigi & Nate (2022) PG-13   Six weeks away from his first year at college, Nate (Charlie Rowe) suffered a horrible accident, leaving him a quadriplegic. His world seems small and cold in that wheelchair until a unique service animal entered Nate’s life. A tiny capuchin monkey named Gigi. This is a film that is in two parts. The first part is an enjoyable film about a young man who finds hope and solace in a service animal. The film is enjoyable as Gigi and Nate slowly bond, and both Nate and his family begin to heal. The second half of the film takes a hard turn to try to give us a message that seems very heavy-handed, making a statement that it doesn’t know how to deliver without hitting us over the head with it. The film takes a big swing and misses. It's too bad because the first half is winning look at overcoming a horrible thing with the help of love and family.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee   Gigi & Nate Website  Now playing in select theatres. 

My View: Wire Room (2022)   New recruit Justin Rosa (Kevin Dillon) is working in ‘the Wire Room,’ where federal agents monitor in a remote facility the most dangerous criminals in the world. Rosa is watching a cartel member, Eddie (Oliver Trevena), who he has been told to keep alive at all costs. Things go wrong when Justin sees that a team of assassins has descended on Eddie’s house, and Justin warns the man of the danger. It’s a move that could cost both of their lives. It is tragic this is the last film that Bruce Willis will be in, and it is evident that he was having trouble with lines, with all the one-shots he is involved with, speaking one sentence at a time. Most of the film is horribly put together, with a plot line that stretches any sort of reason. It’s sad that your two leads only have action sequences near the film's conclusion, and then it’s mostly a shoot-out that ends with a whimper. Sad end to what was a great career.   My Rating: Cable    Wire Room Website  Now playing in theatres.

Indiefest: The Good Boss (2021)   With his company up for an award that could save it, Blanco (Javier Bardem) is willing to do just about anything to ensure it happens. First, I went into this film thinking it would be a comedy, but it’s more a drama with humorous undertones. Blanco is a man who is used to things going his way. He is all bluff and bravado, thinking he can talk his way out of anything. However,from the start, we see cracks in Blanco’s life and work. A worker he has let go of is causing a scene right at the film's beginning, and things get worse as Blanco tries to control an out-of-control situation. Blanco's world is slowly crumbling around him, from his right-hand man having a breakdown to a fling that turns horribly wrong. Javier Bardem is brilliant in a role that is very different from most that he has done in the past. This is a performance for the ages, as the more that Blanco tries to put out the fire, the more the flames rise up to bite him. It’s a character that, at first, we like, but as we get to know him, the more we detest his ability to charm. But is Blanco as slick as he thinks he is, or will everything come tumbling down? You will have to watch to find out.   My Rating: Full Price   The Good Boss Website  Now playing in select theatres.

Forgotten Film: Silvia Prieto (1999) R  Silvia (Rosario Blefari) is a woman in her late twenties who is perfectly happy going from job to job, moving around when she feels like it. It all changes when she finds out a second person is also called Silvia Prieto, and her life changes. Unfortunately, these changes are not what she hoped for. This delightful film from Argentina works because of the performance of Rosario Blefari, who is marvelous in the role of the strange and flighty Silvia. The film is full of wit and an excellent supporting cast. Truly a gem of a film and well worth watching.   My Rating: Full Price   Silvia Prieto Info

Weird Credits: From the credits of Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul: Child Labor Coordinator

Coming Soon to a Screen Near You: Barbarian (2022) R  A woman (Georgian Campbell) rents an Airbnb to find that someone else is already renting it. She reluctantly stays the night, only to find that the home has hidden secrets that could cost her more than the rent. The film is getting great word of mouth. The film is in theatres nationwide on Sept. 9, 2022.  Barbarian Info

Until Next Time!

The Rhythm Section

My View: The Rhythm Section (2020) R   Stephanie (Blake Lively) will go at any length to seek revenge against those who orchestrated a plane crash that killed her family. I enjoy films about bad ass women that can fight and hold their own against all the odds. One of my favorites in this genre is the Luc Besson 1990 film La Femme Nikita, where a drug addict is kidnapped and is turned into an assassin. Like Nikita, Stephanie, reeling from the death of her family, has become an addict/prostitute who is trained by an ex-MI-6 agent (Jude Law) so that she can wipe out the terrorists responsible for the plane crash. The problem is Stephanie is no Nikita; she sucks at being an assassin, and it gets old very quickly watching Stephanie blunder her way through her attempts to kill people. Why Blake Lively, who I think if given that right part, can be outstanding, along with top-notch actors like Law, Sterling K. Brown would ever take on this project is beyond me. The stops and starts so many times that it seemed much longer than its hour and forty-nine minute run time. The Rhythm Section is meant to be the start of a film series, but I have great doubts that another film will ever be made for us to see Lively as Stephanie gets her butt thoroughly kicked again.   My Rating: Cable    The Rhythm Section Website

My View: Gretel & Hansel (2020) PG-13   A young girl, Gretel (Sophia Lillis), leads her little brother, Hansel (Sam Leakey), into the woods in search of food and shelter. They come across a woman named Holda (Alice Krige) who claims that she wants to help the children, but Gretel senses that there is something evil about the woman. This is a movie that once you have seen it (and I hope you never do), you will go ‘what the heck was that and what happened?”. So, there is a witch, and I guess that she wants to train Gretel to be her replacement (?), while all the while wanting to eat Hansel (I think). The film never delivers any scary moments, and there is a lot of sitting around a table while the witch lectures Gretel on how to be a woman/witch. To say that I hated this film would be an understatement as I had flashbacks to the awful European horror films from the 60s and 70s that I saw as a kid.   My Rating: You Would Have to Pay Me to See it Again     Gretel & Hansel Website

My View: 2020 Oscar Nominated Short Films (2020) The live-action and animated shorts that are nominated for the 2020 Academy Awards.     2020 Oscar Nominated Short Films Website

   

        Oscar Nominated Live Action Short Films: There are five films nominated: A Sister (Belgium), Brotherhood (Tunisia/Canada), Nefta Football Club (France), Saria (USA), and The Neighbors’ Window (USA). The two that stood out for me were A Sister, a taut, suspenseful film about a 911 operator that gets a mysterious call and The Neighbors’ Window, an exciting take on mild voyeurism about a happily married couple with two kids and one on the way, who have a young couple move into the apartment across the street that do not have any blinds on their windows. Both films have nice twists that make the movies a smart and clever watch.   My Rating (for all five films): Full Price

       Oscar Nominated Animated Short Films: There are five films nominated: Daughter (Czechia), Hair Love (USA), Kitbull (USA), Memorable (France), and Sister (USA). Note: There are four other excellent animated shorts that fill out the Animated program. I love that three of the films nominated are stop-motion and one, Kitbull, was hand-drawn. The two that stood out for me were Hair Love, a lovely tale about a father trying his best to style his daughter’s seemingly unmanageable hair and Kitbull from Pixar, about a friendship that develops between a homeless kitten and a poor, mistread pitbull.   My Rating (for all five films): I Would Pay to See it Again

Forgotten Film: The Great Mouse Detective (1986) G   Basil (voiced by Barrie Ingham) is a detective in the vein of Sherlock Holmes, and he is on the case of a kidnapping of a toy-maker by Basil’s arch-enemy, the evil Professor Ratigan (voiced by Vincent Price). I love the character Sherlock Holmes, and this film is a treat for fans of the master detective. The animation is beautifully done, back when animation was hand-drawn, and the plot is fun to watch as we see Basil solve a crime that just might even save the Crown. Sadly, this film has long been lost in the vaults of Disney, as it is worth watching if to hear Vincent Price create one of the great villains in the annals of animation.   My Rating: Full Price     The Great Mouse Detective Info

Weird Credits: From the credits of The Rhythm Section: Storeman

Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You: The Times of Bill Cunningham (2018) Documentary on the legendary NYTimes photographer Bill Cunningham who took some of the most iconic pictures in newspaper history and kept shooting pictures until he died at age 87.     The Times of Bill Cunningham Info

Until Next Time!