Expend4ables

My View: Expend4ables (2023) R  The team has reloaded with new members, and they are armed with every weapon they get their hands on. The Expendables are the world’s last line of defense, and they are out to stop a terrorist group from getting a group of nuclear missiles. It’s time for the new members to show what they can do. With some of the worst green screen CGI I have ever seen combined with a plot that a third grader could do better with and no star power beyond Jason Statham and Sly Stallone, this is a dud of a movie right from the first frame. Action fans will be pissed as there are only two full-out action sequences, one of which takes place on a cargo freighter. There are also two chase sequences, one of which is with motorcycles on said cargo freighter. There is so much talking in this film, full of guys being guys, that I almost applauded when one character takes a vow of silence. Statham does virtually all the heavy lifting in both the plot and the action sequences. There are so many bad guys on the cargo freighter that it reminded me of the old circus clown car, as the bad guys kept popping up just in time for Jason to kill a few more. The first Expendables film was fun, bringing together all the old action stars, but as the series has gone on, they have run out of the old guard and giving us Megan Fox instead. I think the crew, as Stallone might say, is finally expendabled out.   My Rating: You Would Have to Pay Me to See It Again   Expend4ables Website  Now playing in theatres nationwide.  

My View: It Lives Inside  (2023)  PG-13  Sam (Megan Suri), an Indian-American teen, is struggling to fit in, and it’s not helped by her former friend, Tamira, who has started carrying around an empty mason jar with her. In a fit of anger, Sam breaks Tamira’s jar and unleashes an ancient force that feeds on loneliness and shatters reality with terrifying visions. The review will be up Friday night. Unfortunately, It Lives Inside is another run-of-the-mill horror film with only a few scares coming your way. The film is interesting, taking the viewpoint of immigrants and their cultural beliefs as part of the main plot. However, the scares aren’t there, and you can see the ending coming from a mile away. Overall, the film feels like many horror films lately, and that’s too bad; it could have been more with the Indian aspect. My Rating: Bargain Matinee    It Lives Inside Website   The review will be up Friday night.

My View: No One Will Save You (2023)  PG-13  There are over 1.5 million home invasions yearly in the US. Brynn (Kaitlyn Dever) is a homebody about to experience a home invasion. But this invasion is different; the threat is not human but extraterrestrial. This is a highly enjoyable horror film with extraterrestrials that are genuinely frightening and a performance by Kaitlyn Dever that is moving and emotional. What sets this film apart from your ordinary horror film is that Brynn says nothing during the movie. Everything is without dialogue. There is a reason why, and it’s not that she can’t speak but because she is alone and is ostracized by the community because of a past that we see slowly revealed to us during the film. I loved the experience of being swept up into Brynn’s world, which is invaded in the middle of the night, and how she is determined to defend her home against incredible odds. No One Will Save You is a film that may give you a few nightmares, and you will never look at brown spots on your lawn the same ever again.   My Rating: Full Price  No One Will Save You Info Now playing on Hulu.

My View: Stop Making Sense (1984) PG  Considered by critics as one of the greatest concert films of all time, the film was shot over the course of three nights in 1983 as the Talking Heads performed at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood. If you can’t have fun watching this film with The Talking Heads rock group giving one of the greatest performances of all time, then I don’t have any hope for you. The music is magical; David Byrne is mesmerizing as the lead vocalist, and the band is as tight as they come. The opening numbers set the stage for the rest of the film as the band members, one by one, join Byrne on stage for each new tune. Stop Making Sense is one of those concert films that is so good you don’t miss not seeing the performance live. See Stop Making Sense in a theatre with a great sound system to get that concert feeling experience.  My Rating: I Would Pay to See It Again  Stop Making Sense Website   The film is in theatres, expanding next week and is in IMAX theatres for a limited time.

Indiefest: Flora and Son (2023) R  Flora (Eve Hewson) is a single mom who is at her wits’ end with her son Max (Orén Kinlan), who seems almost at war with his mom. Flora decides that Max needs a hobby and rescues a guitar from a dumpster. Max rejects the gift, so Flora tries to learn how to play it. Music is the one thing they might have in common, and one person’s trash can be a family’s salvation. The film is from John Carney, one of my favorite filmmakers of the last 15 years. He loves music, having been in a band in the early 90s (The Frames), so all his movies involve the love of music and how it can change lives. Flora and Son is a brilliant film about a mother and son who seem always at odds, but there is a connection, and their love of music brings it out. Flora takes up the guitar with the help of an online teacher, Jeff, played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Eve Hewson is magnificent as the mom who speaks her mind and has been hurt by love. Her chemistry with Gordon-Levitt feels natural, and you can see the connection they have from their first scene together. I loved Orén Kinlan as Flora’s son Max, who can’t seem to stay out of trouble but has a talent for creating music. The music is terrific, with Hewson and Gordon-Levitt showing off their musical chops. By the way, Eve Hewson has some music in her blood. Her dad is Bono. Be sure to stay through the credits to hear the song that Jeff writes for Flora. Shot entirely in Ireland, Fora and Son is a fun, fantastic journey into discovering how music can connect people, even across the internet.  My Rating: I Would Pay to See it Again  Flora and Son Info  The film is in theatres and will be on the Apple TV+ platform on Sept. 29th.

Indiefest: The Origin of Evil (2022) R  Stephane (Laure Calamy) works in a fish factory and is about to be kicked out of her apartment. In desperation, she makes a phone call to a man called Serge, a father she has never known. Stephane is invited to visit Serge and his family, which will change her forever as no one she meets is what they appear to be, including Stephane herself. This is a film that will keep you guessing right until the very end. Incredible performance by Laure Calamy as the daughter Serge never knew he had. To say that Stephane walks into a landmine of family upheaval is an understatement. Calamy makes us like her, even when you think maybe she isn’t quite the innocent woman you think she is. Early on, we learn her girlfriend is in prison, so there is that. Stephane just wants to meet her father, but he sees her as a way to make his wife and daughter very uncomfortable, and the film takes off from there. The family is full of secrets and intrigue, and Stephane has to figure out things as they come up, mostly right in her face. The Origin of Evil is a tale that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Be warned, its a movie that takes so many twists that you might get whiplash, but be careful; someone in the film might say it’s your fault.   My Rating: Full Price    The film is in theatres.

Forgotten Film: Marvin’s Room (1996) PG-13  This is the story of two sisters. One sister, Bessie (Diane Keaton), has stayed home to take care of her long-suffering father (Hume Cronyn) and her aunt (Gwen Verdon). Bessie has learned she has cancer, and a bone marrow transplant might save her life. Her only potential donor is her sister Lee (Meryl Streep), whom Bessie hasn’t seen in years. Lee has two sons, and the older son, Hank (Leonardo DiCaprio), has just burned down their house and is constantly in trouble. Will Lee come to her sister’s rescue? This is a film to see because of the star power (Robert De Niro also shows up as Bessie’s doctor), but also to a strong script that depends on the characters that the story has created. Marvin’s Room is a story about relationships, family, and how the past can cloud the future if you aren’t careful.   My Rating: Full Price  Marvin's Room Info   The film is available for rent or buy on Amazon and Apple TV.

Weird Credits: From the credits of No One Will Save You: Audio Description Script Writer

Coming Soon to Screen Near You: Killers of the Flower Moon (2023) R  The Osage tribe was given land no one wanted to create their reservation. However, oil was discovered on their land, and the tribe became wealthy. The tribe is being murdered one by one under mysterious circumstances, and the FBI is on the case. Directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, and Lily Gladstone, this film has become a frontrunner for the Oscar.     Killers of the Flower Moon Info  The film will be in theatres on Oct. 20th.

Until Next Time!

 

Spelling the Dream

My View: Spelling the Dream (2020)   An Indian-American has won the Scripps National Spelling Bee for the past 12 years. This documentary explores this trend, which is one of the longest in sports history, highlighting four students as they compete to win the tournament. You are going to fall in love with these kids, and how can you not. They are funny, sometimes a little quirky, and unbelievably smart. All the kids profiled have incredibly supportive families, where not just the parents help the kids study. Still, the whole family becomes involved with the preparation and work to get ready for this incredible feat. What I came away from this film is not only how wonderful these families are but how much the kids participating enjoy the challenge and some, the spotlight. Spelling the Dream is a feel-good film that is helped by interviews with comedian Hari Kondabolu and CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta. Enjoy getting to know the kids and get ready to be on the edge of your seat, rooting for them when they start spelling words that you have never heard of.    My Rating: Full Price   Spelling the Dream Website    The film is currently available on Netflix.

Indiefest: Tommaso (2019)    An American, Tommaso (Willem Dafoe), living in Rome with his young European wife, Nikki (Cristina Chiriac), and their daughter, is preparing for his next film. Tommaso is haunted by his past mistakes, so much so that he begins to question his life and his sanity. I am a huge Willem Dafoe fan, and even in films that I don’t like (The Lighthouse), I always find his performances fascinating. Dafoe doesn’t disappoint as he is on screen the whole time, but I just wish I liked the film more. This is a film where a character is dealing with being sober for the past six years and has a young wife and daughter. Add to the pressure of planning/writing a movie and teaching, Dafoe’s character is being stretched thin, and he begins to experience things that are not part of reality. Tommaso is a film that you never know what you see is happening, or is it just a figment of his imagination, like drinking coffee in his regular hangout, but this time, the barista is naked. I never entirely connected with the movie or with Tommaso, who, for most of the film, isn’t a likable person, someone who can only see his point of view. It’s one of those films that after you see it, you feel exhausted both mentally and physically.    My Rating: Bargain Matinee     Tommaso Website    Available for rent on participating on-demand services.

Indiefest: Shirley (2020) R   Shirley (Elisabeth Moss) is a world-famous horror writer who is as well known for her writing as for her gloom and doom nature. Her writing of a new project is disturbed by the arrival of newlyweds Fred (Logan Lerman) and Rose (Odessa Young). This is a visit that the young couple will never forget. Moss is brilliant as the moody and troubled Shirley, a talented writer whose world revolves around her writing and her husband, played by the bombastic Michael Stuhlbarg, who, at first glance, loves her, but their relationship is far more complicated than we could first imagine. Moss dominates the screen in every scene she is in, though I was also impressed by how Odessa Young, as the headstrong but very young newlywed, holds her own on the screen with Moss. The film is complex, and we slowly, along with Rose, learn that Shirley isn’t the monster that she seems to be at first. The film has a bit of a mystery in it, as a young woman from campus has gone missing, and Shirley starts to write a novel based on what could be behind her disappearance. We never solve the mystery of the missing woman, nor do we ever fully understand the enigma of Shirley, but it’s a captivating and compelling ride nonetheless.   My Rating: Full Price    Shirley Website    Available for rent on participating on-demand services.

My View: And We Go Green (2019)   Documentary on the International Formula E circuit, the world’s fastest-growing Motorsport. The film follows the professional drivers on the circuit as they race for victory across ten major cities. I really enjoyed this film about a sport I knew very little about. The race cars look like formula one cars but are powered by electric motors. The film does a great job of showing us that the handling of the vehicles is very different from any other race car, without a combustible engine to listen to and a braking system that, just like your hybrid cars, uses those brakes to replenish the batteries. The film follows a group of drivers, giving us up close and personal insights to the drivers and their pasts. The racing is fast and furious, with great in-car shots and audio that gives you insight on just how challenging the races are. As I said, I didn't know much about this sport before, but I’m a fan now.   My Rating: Full Price     And We Go Green Website   The film is currently available on Hulu.

Forgotten Film: Stop Making Sense (1984)   One of the greatest rock concert documentaries ever! If you can’t have fun watching this film with The Talking Heads rock group giving one of the great performances of all time, then I don’t have any hope for you. The music is magical, David Byrne is mesmerizing as the lead vocalist, and the band is as tight as they come. This is one of those concert films that is so good, you don’t miss not seeing the performance live.   My Rating: I Would Pay to See it Again     Stop Making Sense Info

Weird Credits: From the credits of Shirley: Historical Magick Consultant

Coming Soon to a Screen Near You: Babyteeth (2019)   A seriously ill teenager named Milla (Eliza Scanlen) falls for a parents worst nightmare, a small-time drug dealer, Moses (Toby Wallace). Milla’s new love gives her the freedom to find things to be joyous about and to take chances on life. I look forward to this film that cleaned up awards on the international film festival circuit.     Babyteeth Website

Until Next Time!