The Fall Guy

My View:  The Fall Guy  (2024)  PG-13   Colt (Ryan Gosling), a former stuntman, comes out of retirement after discovering his ex, Jody (Emily Blunt), is directing a big-budget movie. It’s not a joyful reunion, but Colt is needed when the enormous star of the film has gone missing, and he must find him before the picture is shut down. Sometimes a movie works because an actor’s star power elevates it beyond what the script or the director can provide. This is the case of The Fall Guy, as Ryan Gosling shows us why he has become a major star who has charisma to burn. Gosling is perfect as the burned-out and battered Colt, who was injured doing a stunt on a movie, just as his romance with Jody, a camera person in the film, was just blooming. He takes the job because he finds out that Jody has asked for him and wants to see her again, possibly making amends for disappearing and leaving her behind. Gosling does an outstanding job of playing the lovesick stuntman who will do anything to try to get Jody back, even if it means becoming a bounty hunter, trying to hunt down a missing lead actor, one whom he doesn’t like or respect. Blunt is perfect as the headstrong woman who is getting to do something she has dreamed of for so long, directing a major motion picture, and is still hurt by Colt’s actions, so much so that she is willing to torture him a bit on the set. There is a great scene where, in front of everyone, Jody, using a bullhorn, lets everyone know just how angry she is with Colt while making him do a stunt that sets him on fire, over and over again. The film flies by as the action is fast and the stunts are out of this world amazing. There are shootouts, car chases, fights, and explosions, and those aren’t from making the movie but from Colt’s adventures of trying to find the missing actor. You will have a blast (pun intended) as Colt tries to stay alive long enough to win Jody back, or at least apologize to her. By the way, stay through all the credits. You will see that almost all the stunts in the film were actually done and not through green screens. Also, there is a bonus scene you will not want to miss at the end of all, and I mean all, the credits.    My Rating: I Would Pay to See it Again  The Fall Guy Website   Now playing in theatres nationwide. 

My View: Unfrosted  (2024)  PG-13  It’s 1963, and bitter rivals in Battle Creek, Michigan, Kellogg’s, and Post are rushing to create a breakfast cake that could change how the world eats breakfast. While watching the Seinfeld TV series, you knew Jerry wasn’t a very good actor, but that was some of the series’ charm. He was a guy who was really a standup, moonlighting as an actor on a series where he was playing himself. I had high hopes for this film, primarily because the cast was a who’s who of comedy. I mean, you get actors like Rachael Harris, Christian Slater, Hugh Grant, Amy Schumer, Melissa McCarthy, and more, and it’s got to be good. Right? Right? Sadly, this film is already in the running for the worst film of the year. Painfully unfunny, with a script that keeps throwing jokes up against a wall where nothing, and I mean nothing, sticks. Put Hugh Grant in a Tony the Tiger outfit as an out-of-work Shakespearian actor who has to moonlight as a breakfast cereal mascot, and that’s funny? Nope, as the jokes lay there like the flop sweat of Grant’s character in the costume. Halfway through this film, I just wanted it to end. Instead, we get an hour and a half of unfunny jokes after unfunny skits. I swear I thought the film was over two hours long and was shocked when writing this review that it was only 93 minutes long. That’s 93 minutes, and I will never get back.   My Rating: You Would Have to Pay Me to See it Again   Unfrosted Website  Now playing on the Netflix platform. 

Indiefest:  I Saw the TV Glow  (2024)  PG-13  Two teenagers, Owen (Justice Smith) and Maddy (Brighter Lundy-Paine) who bond over a TV show called The Pink Opaque. As their bond grows, things start getting weird. This is a film that you will either fall in love with or hate it. I don’t think there will be a lot of opinions in the middle. It’s a film where, almost from the start, you question what is real and what is imagined. The blending of real and imagined continues throughout the film, keeping you off center and guard as we follow Owen as he grows up. He meets Maddy in a chance encounter. Owen doesn’t fit in with his fellow schoolmates and sees that Maddy might be someone who doesn’t either. She tells him about the TV show and begins secretly giving him tapes of the show. He becomes a huge fan of the show and wrangles an invitation to see the show with her in her house. I won’t give any more of the plot away, but let’s say it gets stranger and stranger as we follow Owen into adulthood, with Owen’s first thought almost always to run away. The film reminds you of how TV shows can become incredibly important to you, even in this day of binge-viewing and streaming. The film got me thinking of past shows like Buffy and Stranger Things, but also shows that I fell in love with and were canceled, sometimes heartbreakingly so. I guess I’m in the fall in love with side on this film, because this was such an interesting and complex film to watch.   My Rating: Full Price  I Saw the TV Glow Website  Now playing in theatres 

My View:  The Idea of You  (2024)  R   The Idea of You takes place after a chance encounter at the Coachella Music Festival, Solène (Anne Hathaway), a 40-year-old single mom, begins an unexpected romance with 24-year-old Hayes Campbell (Nicholas Galitzine), the lead singer of August Moon, the hottest boy band on the planet. It’s not long before Solène discovers that life in the spotlight might be more than she bargained for. I am a big fan of Anne Hathaway, and she doesn’t disappoint in this winning rom-com that pares a 40-year-old single mother who owns an art gallery with a 24-year-old who has been in a huge boy band since he was a teen. This is a fun rom-com that has two dynamic leads with tons of charisma and sparks that fly every time they are on screen together. The film puts together two people who are looking for love and have been burned before. I thought that by making Hayes a vet of the boy band scene, where he has been in the spotlight for years, was wise. Yes, he is 24, but because of his life in the spotlight, it’s an old 24, making the attraction between the two seem natural and not at all creepy. I was surprised by the amount of music in the film, as we get a lot of songs that Hayes is singing with his bandmates, as well as his exploring creating music on his own. I enjoyed this film and wanted the two to enjoy their time together, even if it, like a good song, will eventually end. Although, there is always that 'repeat' function.   My Rating: Full Price  The Idea of You Website  Now playing on the Amazon Prime platform.

Indiefest:  Wildcat  (2023)  R    Flannery O’Connor (Maya Hawke) is determined to be a writer. We follow her as she works on her craft and commits to deeply personal writing, so personal that it will haunt her until she can get the words on paper. I saw this film last year at the Rome International Film Festival, right here in Georgia, the birthplace of Miss O’Connor. Ethan Hawke was at the festival and told us he wrote the film because his daughter, Maya, wanted to play Flannery before she got too old for the role. The film takes place as Flannery is visiting her mother (Laura Linney) when she finds out she has Lupus, the same disease that took her father’s life. As Flannery struggles to become a writer, she starts writing stories that blend reality with fiction. Wildcat is a film where we see the day-to-day struggle of Flannery trying to become the writer that she knows she can be while we are transported into her stories, with Maya playing a character and her mother another character, as Flannery tells tales that weave her experiences in the south with her fiction. This film doesn’t always work, as Flannery’s real life and fiction blur too much, and it’s hard to tell where reality ends and the fiction starts. I like Maya Hawke as O’Connor, but we spend too much time in the fictional stories and not enough time in the real world, where we would get to see what makes this interesting writer tick.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Wildcat Website  Now playing in select theatres.

Indiefest:  The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed  (2023) R The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed is about Ann (Joanna Arnow), a woman going nowhere fast. She is stuck in a low-level job she hates, has been in a long-term BDSM relationship with a man who barely remembers her name, and her family loves to argue at the drop of a hat. It’s time to change things, but that won’t be easy. This is one of those films that will never be a big hit, so when you see it, you feel like you are part of its fan club. It’s a very funny and sometimes a little strange, centering around a mid-thirties woman who loves being a sex slave to an older man, is good at her job even though it looks as though she isn’t even trying, and loves her parents, who happened to be some of the most boring people on the face of the earth. Joanna Arnow, who not only stars in the film but wrote and directed it, spends about half the film naked, mostly lying on a bed with one of her lovers, who are also her master, as Ann gets off by being made to do repetitive things or just being made to wait for a command that may never come. Ann is a woman who seems to be happy just being in the moment, whether it’s with a lover or with her parents. The film is little slices of life, as we go from her naked on the bed being ignored by her ‘master’ or sitting with her parents as her mother complains that Ann isn’t spending enough time with them. This film reminded me a bit of some of Woody Allen’s films, where we just got little slices of life, bits of weird and funny moments that suddenly move on to the next moment. The sum of the moments makes for an enjoyable film that stars a very strange but lovable character who we want to be happy, just not too happy.   My Rating: Full Price The Feeling That The Time Website  Now playing in select theatres. 

Forgotten Film:  The Indian Runner  (1991) R  Joe (David Morse) has made a good life for himself and his family as the deputy sheriff in a small country town. His younger brother, Frank (Viggo Mortensen), has decided to return to town after having had some bad times. Frank tells his brother that this time will be different, and he just wants a fresh start. However, Frank is a man with a temper, and seemingly, his only skill is getting in trouble. Sean Penn directs the film and has an outstanding cast that includes Patricia Arquette, Sandy Dennis and Charles Bronson, who gives one of his best performances of his career. The Indian Runner is a film where the good guy isn’t always good, and the bad guy has some good qualities. We don’t know until the end if good will win out over bad.   My Rating: Full Price  The Indian Runner Info Available on various streaming services. 

Weird Credits:  From the credits of The Fall Guy:  Art Runner

Coming Soon to a Screen Near You: The Dead Don’t Hurt  (2023) Right before the Civil War, Vivienne (Vicky Kreips) meets a Danish immigrant, Holger (Viggo Mortensen), who convinces her to follow him to his ranch outside of a small town in Nevada, where they start their life together. The outbreak of the Civil War happens, and Olsen joins the Union Army to fight for his newfound country, leaving Vivienne to fend for herself on their homestead. It’s a decision that will haunt them for the rest of their lives. The film is written and directed by Viggo Mortensen. The Dead Don't Hurt Info  The film will be in theaters on Friday, May 31st.

Until Next Time!

Priscilla

My View: Priscilla (2023) R   Priscilla tells the story of teenage Priscilla Beaulieu (Cailee Spaeny), who meets rock and roll superstar Elvis and begins a romance that the world followed until his death. Priscilla tells the story of the one woman who knew Elvis the best in private moments: a thrilling crush, an alley in loneliness, and a vulnerable best friend. The film is Pricilla’s story, and it is not always a pretty one. I can see why the Elvis estate did not allow any of his music to be put into the film, as the ‘King’ doesn’t come off very well. Cailee Spaeny does the impossible, effectively playing a young girl of 15 to a young mother in her late 20s when she left Elvis. The film gives us an inside look at what it was like to live in Elvis’s shadow, a prisoner of his celebrity and lifestyle. The film makes it clear that Elvis groomed Priscilla to be his wife, almost from their first meeting when she was just a teenager in Germany living on a base. Watching Priscilla can be uncomfortable, especially when Elvis relies on his friends and family to court her. Jacob Elordi does an outstanding job of playing the Elvis we rarely got to see, a man full of insecurities and one who was addicted to pills from the first moments that he met Priscilla. This is a beautiful-looking film, and we get to see what it was like to live inside the halls of Graceland. The opening shots of Cailee walking on the now-famous shag carpet of the home of Elvis is marvelous. The film's visuals and the main cast's performances were enjoyable, but the storyline became boring during Elvis' run in Las Vegas. I am not sure how fans of Elvis will react to this film, but fans of Priscilla will love it. I, on the other hand, just liked it.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Priscilla Website  Now playing in theatres nationwide. 

My View: The Marsh King’s Daughter (2023) R   Helena (Daisy Ridley) has a past that she has tried to forget. Her father, known as the Marsh King, kidnapped Helena’s mother, and two years later, Helena was born. At age ten, the Marsh King was caught and put away. Now, he has escaped and is after Helena and her daughter. Helena will use everything he taught her about surviving in the wilderness to keep her family safe. This is another in a long line of films based on a book where the source material is far better than the film. I wanted to love this film because I read a lot of books like this one, but the film doesn’t deliver the needed suspense and has an ending that we can see coming from a mile away (maybe with a rifle’s scope). I liked Ridley as the woman whose first ten years of life were spent in the wilderness, being shown how to survive using your senses and hunting skills. The film has a series of flashbacks about Helena’s life as a ten-year-old and then shows us her life as a mom and a wife. It’s a contrast that doesn’t always work, as the flashbacks are far more interesting than what is happening in the present day. I wanted more of a cat-and-mouse game between Helena and her dad after he escapes from prison, but most of what should have been thrills are wasted as just slight hints of what could happen.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee  The Marsh King's Daughter Website  Now playing in theatres nationwide.

My View: Quiz Lady (2023) R  Anne’s (Awkwafina) mother owes eighty thousand dollars to the mob because of gambling debts and has run away from the nursing home. Anne and her sister (Sandra Oh) devise a plan to get Anne on a game show to win the money to get their mother off the hit list. Quiz Lady is a film that is perfectly suited for seeing online. This film is light and funny, though it doesn't always hit the mark with its jokes and has a weak middle part. However, it ends on a high note, making it a fun watch. I am a fan of Awkwafina, and she is perfect in the role of a woman who tries to be the sensible one between her mother, the gambler, and her sister, who never can settle on what she wants to do in life. I got a little tired of Sandra Oh’s performance; it was just a little too broad for my taste, but Awkwafina is always able to reel Oh in with a look or a line. Quiz Lady is bolstered by a cast that includes Jason Schwartzman as a smarmy quiz show champ, Holland Taylor as the grumpy next-door neighbor, and, of course, Will Ferrell as the quiz show host who is loved by his audience. So, find a comfy place on the couch and take a trip to a quiz show that isn’t great, but still a fun ride.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Quiz Lady Website  Now playing on the Hulu platform. 

Indiefest: Radical (2023)  Sergio (Eugenio Derbez) is a teacher in a Mexican border town where his students live in a world filled with neglect, crime, and violence. However, Sergio is a different type of teacher who challenges his students’ curiosity and drive to succeed, even when the odds seem against them. I haven’t always been a big fan of Eugenio Derbez, as he tends to overreact in his comedies. However, in this film, Derbez gives us a powerful and moving performance of a man who wants to teach kids but doesn’t want to follow the rules. Sergio, we find out, is a man who has lost his faith in his abilities to teach and reach young children. He takes a job at a school that no one wants to teach at and try something different to inspire his students to think independently and not be force-fed a curriculum that becomes a babysitter for a few years. I loved that what we see on the screen feels real, and Derbez gives off an energy that excites us to the possibilities his character is trying to do might work. Radical is helped by a cast of students that are all believable and touching. So join the class and sit down to be wowed by a teacher who might teach you a thing or two while having fun doing it.   My Rating: Full Price  Radical Website  Now playing in theatres. 

My View: Rustin (2023) PG-13  Rustin tells the story of civil rights activist Bayard Rustin (Colman Domingo), who broke barriers everywhere he went, including helping Martin Luther King Jr. and others organize the 1963 March on Washington. Colman Domingo gives a performance that needs to be seen to be believed! It’s a brilliant portrayal of a man who was forgotten for too long because he was Black and gay at a time that either could get you arrested, beaten, or killed. Rustin, the true architect of the March on Washington, was a charismatic force of nature who used his brains and charm to get things done. However, Rustin paid a heavy price, often being put in the background because of his being gay, and never got the credit he deserved. The film drags a bit before Rustin comes up with the idea of a gathering of 100,000 people in Washington, DC, to make the President and Congress act on Civil Rights legislation. Rustin is a film where a performance of the leading actor dominates every scene, and Colman Domingo is nothing short of brilliant in this story that needed to be told.  My Rating: Full Price  Rustin Website  Now playing in theatres and on Netflix on Friday, November 17th. 

My View: Fingernails (2023) R Anna (Jessie Buckley) and Ryan (Jeremy Allen White) are in love, and their love has been proven to be confirmed by a controversial new technology. Anna has doubts and begins working at the company that uses the technology to put people together. Soon, her doubts will become more than just thoughts when she becomes attracted to her co-worker Amir (Riz Ahmed). The reason to see this film is the on-screen chemistry between Riz Ahmed and Jessie Buckley. From their first meeting, we know they will end up being drawn together. We can feel that draw right from the get-go. Unfortunately, the script doesn’t let us enjoy this very much as it revolves around a technology that doesn’t make a whole heck of a lot of sense. The film takes a long time for the two main characters to realize that maybe, despite the odds, they are meant together, no matter what technology says. Fingernails spends a lot of time on how stupid the technology is, but this isn’t a comedy, and it tries too hard to be a black comedy. I still had fun watching Buckley and Ahmed together, but in the end, it wasn’t worth the effort.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Fingernails Info  In select theatres and on Apple TV+.

My View: The Persian Version (2023) R  The Persian Version takes place when a large Iranian-American family gathers, and a family secret is uncovered that will force an estranged mother, Shireen (Niousha Noor), and her unconventional daughter, Leila (Layla Mohammadi) into a journey of exploration. It turns out that mother and daughter are more alike than ever imagined. Leila is a lesbian who just broke up with her wife and decides one drunken Halloween night to have sex with a guy (though it must be said he was in a Hedwig and the Angry Inch costume). Leila's mother is an unstoppable force, having come from Iran to the U.S. with her husband and now manages a big family and successful real estate business. The two do not get along. Shireen disapproves of her daughter’s lifestyle, and Leila doesn’t feel she fits in with the family. Then things happen. The Persian Version is one of those films you long for as a film critic. It’s a funny, smart, moving film that touches on a ton of subjects, including marriage, single living, religion, politics, and the love of family. The two leads are so much fun to watch. Layla Mohammadi is funny and gives us, through her character’s narration, a look at a family that has roots in Iran and its culture but has found a place in America. Niousha Noor has the tougher part of giving us a mother that we don’t always understand where she comes from, but we soon learn that her past has shaped her present. There are a couple of fantastic dance sequences, including a rousing number done to ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun,’ courtesy of a very young Leila smuggling in a Cyndi Lauper cassette tape into Iran. The Persian Version is a film about fighting for your rights as a woman, as an Iranian, and as a family member. The Persian Version is a dazzling look at two women who seem to be miles apart but learn that they share a lot more than just the family bond. My Rating: I Would Pay to See it Again  The Persian Version Website  Now playing in theatres.

Forgotten Film: Miracle of St. Anna (2008) R  Set in Italy during the Allied invasion during WWII, four African-American soldiers (Michael Ealy, Omar Benson Miller, Laz Alonso, and Derek Luke) are behind enemy lines taking refuge in a small village after rescuing a small boy caught in the firefight with German soldiers. Now, its citizens and the four men must unite to protect the town and the boy against impossible odds. Miracle of St. Anna is a Spike Lee film, and with many of his movies, there are some fantastic moments and some that don’t work at all. The battle sequences are brilliant, and there are some beautiful moments between the soldiers and the young boy. However, there are a few scenes that seem out of place, including a dance that takes place in the village as the enemy surrounds them. Still, Miracle of St. Anna has some powerful moments, and the battle sequences are some of the best war scenes of the last 20 years. My Rating: Full Price   The film is available to rent or buy on most online platforms.

Weird Credits: From the credits of Rustin: Background Taylors

Coming Soon to a Screen Near You:  The Fall Guy (2023) PG-13  Colt (Ryan Gosling), a former stuntman, comes out of retirement after discovering his ex (Emily Blunt) is directing a big-budget movie. It’s not a joyful reunion, but Colt is needed when the enormous star of the film has gone missing, and he must find him before the picture is shut down. This looks like it will be fun to watch with Blunt and Gosling. Based loosely on the 1980s Lee Majors TV show, which was loosely based on a real-life stuntman.   The film comes out in March 2024.

Until Next Time!