Transformers One

My View:  Transformers One  (2024)  PG  Transformers One tells the origin story of Optimus Prime and Megatron, who, when they were young, were friends who bonded like brothers. Little did they know that the two would change the fate of Cybertron forever after discovering what they had always been told was false. I am not a big fan of the Transformers films (other than Bumblebee (2018) and Transformers (2007)), but I know there are a lot of fans out there who love the series going back to the 80s TV show and the legendary The Transformers: The Movie (1986) that had a voice cast that included Orson Welles and Leonard Nimoy. I’ve lost count of how many live-action films there are, most of which were directed by Michael Bay. Having said all that, this is maybe one of the first films in the series that is not only good but is fun to watch, and not just for fans of the series. Transformers One is an origin story, so if your knowledge of the Transformers universe is only knowing that they are giant robot-like beings that turn into cars and trucks, you will be okay. We get to see how Optimus Prime and Megatron, who we learn were best friends, became the leaders of two warring factions that battled for control of the universe. The voice cast is outstanding, with great performances by Chris Hemsworth as Optimus, and Brian Tyree Henry as Megatron. Hemsworth worked with Peter Cullen, who has been the voice of Optimus for the franchise, to get ideas on how a young Optimus might sound. The rest of the cast isn’t too bad either with Jon Hamm, Laurence Fishburne, Steve Buscemi and Scarlett Johansson taking key roles. There is one voice actor who steals almost every scene he is in, Keegan-Michael Key, as B-127 (soon to be Bumblebee, a fan favorite in the Transformers world). Key is brilliant as the overly excited young worker who wants to be with the guys he sees as heroes, only to discover that he can become one. Transformers One is an old-fashioned origin story of how a villain is created by gaining power (both physically and emotionally) and a voice to express that power. It is also about how we need heroes to stand tall and be willing to sacrifice to stop those villains from wielding their power. So take the kids and, for once, have a good time yourself at an animated Transformers movie. My Rating: Full Price  Transformers One Website  Now playing in theaters nationwide. 

My View:  Never Let Go  (2024)  R  Never Let Go is about a mother (Halle Berry) and her two sons (Anthony B. Jenkins, Percy Daggs IV) who have been haunted by an evil spirit for years. Even when traveling outside, they keep themselves connected by tethering themselves with ropes, ensuring they are always linked back to their house. When one of the boy’s questions if the evil is real and the ties that bind them together are severed, their fight for survival becomes life and death. This film starts with an interesting premise: you have grown up only knowing what your mother has told you, that there is an evil force outside your home and the only way to survive is to stay connected to the house. Samuel (Anthony B. Jenkins) and Nolan (Percy Daggs IV) are becoming older, and Nolan is beginning to question whether what Mamma tells them is true or not. Is there really an evil force that wants to kill them as soon as they lose connection to their home? The film tries hard to create a horror aspect that it never delivers, as very early on, what Momma believes and sees is a very evil and scary world that constantly tries to trick her into letting her guard down. Even when some gross-looking characters come to torment Momma, the chills don't register. I thought Berry gave it her all with a character that, at times, is fierce and strong but also tilts on the side of madness. Both Percy Daggs IV, as the ever-questioning Nolan, and Anthony B. Jenkins as Samuel, always on the side of caution, always backing up his mother, even when it seems things aren’t what she says they are. Unfortunately, the final third of the film becomes a big mess, as the film fails to deliver what it has set up. The film becomes less of a horror film and more of a movie about who will win a will of beliefs. And while I won’t give it away, I hated the final bit of information the film gives us, a horror trope I have always detested when used.  My Rating: Cable  Never Let Go Website   Now playing in theaters.

My View:  Child Star  (2024)  The documentary Child Star explores the world of being a child star and how growing up in the spotlight and their ascension to fame, riches, and power affects their adult lives. Demi Lovato provides us with an inside look into the pressures and pitfalls that arise when children become stars at a young age. Lovato, whose own troubles were seen in the documentary Demi Lovato: Dancing with the Devil, takes us on a journey to explore what happens to children who often become the breadwinners of their family and are under constant pressure to preform, often at a nonstop pace. Lovato interviews former child stars Christina Ricci, Drew Barrymore, Raven-Simone, Kenan Thompson, JoJo Siwa, and Lovato’s fellow Rock Camp star Alyson Stoner. It’s a fascinating and, at times, horrifying look at an industry that often treats children as commodities to make money, and then when they grow up, or the ratings have gone down, to be let go without a support system to help them transition back into the real world. The film looks primarily at the world of Nickelodeon and the Disney Channel and how those two channels battled it out to make as much money off of their stars as they could. The documentary shows us too often that the star-making machine creates insecurity, eating disorders, and, ultimately, looking to drugs and alcohol as a way to escape. What I loved was that the blame wasn’t always put on the parents, as often they were only trying to make their children’s dreams come true. It's shocking to see how many child stars end up with almost nothing after their stardom ends due to mistakes and con artists. The film, unlike the documentary Quiet on the Set, doesn’t go into the seedier side of child exploitation but concentrates on the mental well-being of the children that grow up on sets, constantly being told they need to lose weight or they are pretty enough to get a role. And what we come away with is that Lovato is passionate and caring about making things better for the child star of tomorrow. My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Child Star Website  Now playing on the Hulu platform.

My View: The Substance (2024)  R   Elisabeth Sparkle (Demi Moore) used to be the ‘it girl’, the woman that every man wanted and every woman wanted to look like. Elisabeth’s star has faded (literally as we see her Walk of Fame star develop cracks and fade during the opening credits), and she is getting old, at least as far as Hollywood is concerned. When on her birthday, she loses her job as host of a workout show (think Jane Fonda) and gets into a traffic accident, where she meets a doctor who slips her a jump drive that promises her a new, young, and improved body if she agrees to take a drug known as The Substance. The drug will transform her into a new person for 7 days, but then she must return to her old form for 7 days. What it doesn’t tell her is that her old body will be dormant for 7 days, while her new body, which is born out of her back, produces a new body (portrayed by Margaret Qualley), who takes the name of Sue. I will warn you that this film is full of incredibly uncomfortable and gross transformations, as the new body is first born out of the back of Elisabeth, reminiscent of horror films like Alien and The Fly. As the movie progresses, it becomes increasingly bizarre and repulsive. While a horror film, it is also a satire, with the film mocking the Hollywood system, controlled by dirty old men, with an emphasis on sex and beauty, always looking for the new fresh face. I became numb at all the incredibly over-the-top scenes, whether it was the extreme close-ups of the executive (played by Dennis Quaid) as he eats like a pig while firing Elisabeth or the constant transformations as Elisabeth suffers bodily disfigurement as the Sue person continues to be young and beautiful. I was excited to see this film because I am a big Demi Moore fan. Hollywood has ignored her for far too long, but after the first 30 minutes of the film, I became more and more disappointed that she was thrown into being the monster in a bad horror film. While I was impressed by the lack of CGI used to create all the special effects, the film went overboard with them and tried to constantly shock us. The film’s ending is as bizarre as the rest of it and makes it feel like a farce, more than a satire, as we end where we started, on the cracked and faded star on the Walk of Fame. I left The Substance feeling disappointed and longing for my two-plus hours back.   My Rating: Cable  The Substance Website  Now playing in theaters. 

Forgotten Film:  Kissing Jessica Stein (2001) R   Jessica (Jennifer Westfeldt) is tired of the dating scene and her bad luck with men. Her job as a copy editor and fact-checker causes her to be a perfectionist and overthink situations. She works for Josh (Scott Cohen), who used to be her boyfriend. After a series of disastrous dates, she decides to try dating a woman and answers a dating ad. Into Jessica’s life comes Helen (Heather Juergensen), who is instantly attracted to Jessica and is willing to try, taking it slow with Jessica. Helen is constantly amused by Jessica’s attempts at being with another woman, much like a person who doesn’t know how to swim, going to a pool and slowly dipping their toe into the water. I love this film, mostly because of the performance of Jennifer Westfeldt, who portrays Jessica as a woman with a good heart but someone who wants to go slow, really slow, in this new relationship, all the while worrying about what other people will say when they find out she is dating a woman. Kissing Jessica Stein is a romantic comedy with heart and wit and a lead that shines in every scene she is in. My Rating: Full Price  Kissing Jessica Stein Info  The film is available to rent/buy on Amazon Prime and Apple TV.

Weird Credits:  From the credits of The Substance:  English Translation

Coming Soon to a Screen Near You:  We Live in Time  (2024)  R  An up-and-coming chef (Florence Pugh) and a recent divorcee meet under some incredible circumstances that brings them together, in a decade-spanning look at life, love and heartache. The film wowed audiences at the 2024 Toronto Film Festival.  We Live in Time Website The film releases in theaters on Friday, October 18, 2024. 

                                                                   Until Next Time!

Alien: Romulus

My View:  Alien: Romulus  (2024)  R  In Alien: Romulus, a group of young space colonizers travel to a derelict space station named Romulus to make some quick money stealing equipment. Little do they know they are about to come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe. I am a huge fan of the first two films of the series, with the first scaring the crap out of me at a midnight showing that I saw while I was a college student. Since then, I haven’t been much of a fan. Alien: Romulus does something that was lacking in those editions: fear. This is a fun thrill ride with plenty of scares, filled with tension as a clock is set for us and the team of young space raiders as they try to get out of a situation that goes from bad to worse. The film takes place between the first and second films, with a group of young people going to raid a ship without any idea what they are getting into. And that’s one of the cool things. As an audience, we know what they are walking into right when we see what's inside the ship they are raiding. The film centers on Rain (Cailee Spaeny) and her android sidekick Andy (David Jonsson), who has a few problems. Rain sees Andy as a brother rather than an android. That relationship is the key to the film, making the stakes higher as terror comes at them from every direction. The film excels in creating its own horror and providing us with a few Easter eggs from the past. There is a glaring weakness in the plot that I won’t go into (which is very apparent when you see it) that brings the film down a bit, but it’s not something that takes away from the overall experience. So get ready and remember: no one can hear you scream in space. But they can hear you scream in a theater.  My Rating: Full Price  Alien: Romulus Website    Now playing in theatres, including IMAX theaters.

My View:  Jackpot!  (2024)  R  Jackpot! takes place in 2030, as a Grand Lottery has been established in California with a giant payout. The only catch is that if you kill the winner (no guns allowed) before sundown, you can claim their prize. Katie (Awkwafina), an out-of-work actress, realizes that she is suddenly the winner and everyone is out to kill her. Her only hope of survival is amateur jackpot protector Noel (John Cena), but can Katie trust him? From the ton of footage accompanying the end credits, I am guessing that much of the film’s dialogue was improvised. While there are some funny scenes, the film feels as if an action film and a comedy film got together to make a movie, but only after each other had filmed their scenes separately. The film wastes the talents of Cena and Awkwafina, who try to right the ship many times, only to put in another action sequence that doesn’t work. I think the film could have done a better job if it had been darker and less slap-sticky. Jackpot! never finds a comic tone and pace to settle on, making it one long adventure to follow Katie around while people try to kill her. There is a bonus scene at the end of all the credits, if you make it that far.   My Rating: Cable  Jackpot! Website  Now playing on Amazon Prime. 

Indiefest: My Penguin Friend  (2024)  PG  My Penguin Friend is the story of a penguin rescued from an oil spill by a heartbroken fisherman, Joao (Jean Reno). Their friendship is so strong that 5,000 miles cannot separate them. Who doesn’t love penguins with their waddle and tuxedo look? Along comes a film about an unusual friendship between a penguin and a fisherman. Saved from near death, Joao, an old fisherman, against the odds, nurses the penguin back to health and is rewarded with a friend who follows him around like a puppy. But everything must come to an end, and one day, the penguin, now named Din Dim, goes back to the ocean and travels back to his breeding grounds, 5,000 miles away. However, what's 5,000 miles between friends? When it's time, Din Dim returns to Joao, and both his friend and the rest of the village are amazed. My Penguin Friend is a charming film that depicts the healing power of friendship and the benefits of showing kindness. Kids will fall in love with the little guy, and parents won’t mind the storyline (though it tries a little too hard to create some problems for the penguin to overcome). Hey, everyone needs a penguin best friend.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee  My Penguin Friend Website  Now playing in theaters.

Indiefest:  Close to You  (2023)  R  In Close to You, Sam (Elliot Page), a trans man, is coming back to his hometown for the first time in years. He will try to reconnect with his family, maybe reunite with his first love, and discover if the world can change or will things remain the same. Close to You, Elliot Page’s first film post-transition, is obviously a way for Elliot to express to the world some of his feelings about his life now and how people see him. The film’s strengths are the performances, especially Page and Hillary Baack, who plays Sam’s old high school best friend, Katharine. Their scenes together are some of the best parts in the film, as Katharine slowly and unsteadily deals with not only Sam’s new life but also the realization that they were each other’s first loves. As the film progresses, their encounters, which become longer, are about two people discovering what they had. We see them feel each other out, figuring out a connection they had forgotten. The film's execution is uneven, with some scenes (with most of the dialogue improvised) feeling choppy and not fully formed, often resulting in an abrupt conclusion to the scene. The film's momentum is lost in the scenes with the whole family because there are too many cooks at the fire. Still, Close to You hits a lot of right notes, and in the end, we feel that we have been on a journey in which Sam has learned a bit more about himself and how to find the happiness that his childhood never gave him.  My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Close to You Website   Now playing in theaters. 

My View:  The Union  (2024)  PG-13  In The Union, it has been twenty years since Mike (Mark Wahlberg), an ordinary construction worker, has seen his high school ex-girlfriend Roxanne (Halle Berry). Out of the blue, Roxanne returns to Mike’s life, and the girl he has always loved is back in his life. One problem: Roxanne is a member of The Union, a top-secret government agency that does the dirty work that the CIA doesn’t want to do, and she needs Mike’s help on a mission. Anything for love. Right, Mike? So let me get this straight: a highly trained secret organization that does the stuff that the CIA doesn’t want to do picks a guy like Mike, with absolutely no training, because he was once the boyfriend of one of your top operatives and is a good guy? That right there should tell you how bad the plot of The Union is. Boasting a cast that includes two Oscar-winning actors in Halle Berry and J. K. Simmons, three Oscar nominees in Mark Wahlberg, Jackie Earle Haley, and Lorraine Bracco, and two-time Prime-time Emmy winner Dana Delany, how could a film be this bad? By the way, what bet did Dana Delany lose to be cast in such a throwaway role as Mike's old schoolteacher, who he is sleeping with? Truthfully, I was so bored with the plot that I lost track of who had the list of operatives everyone wanted. It’s in a backpack, no, a briefcase, no, a phone, no wait, it’s back in a briefcase. The sequence where they try to train Mike in all that he needs to know how to be a spy is incredibly badly done, but hey, so is the rest of the film. The end of The Union is so abrupt and badly executed that it makes that training sequence look Oscar-worthy. By the way, there is more chemistry between Dana Delany, as the former teacher, and Mark than there is between Wahlberg and Berry. And guess what? Netflix wants to make two more of these films. That’s the reason they give that Mark and Roxanne never kiss in the film. They want us to leave wanting more. I just want to leave.   My Rating: You Would Have to Pay Me to See it Again. The Union Website  Now playing on Netflix.

Sorry I Missed It (A film that I didn’t see in theatres but have seen recently):  Snack Shack  (2024)  R  Snack Shack takes place in the summer of 1991, when two best friends, A.J. (Conor Sherry) and Moose (Gabriel Labelle), get the chance to run the swimming pool snack shack. In walks a new neighbor, Brooke (Mika Abdalla), who A.J. falls for at first sight. The small town pool and the two best friends will never be the same. It took me a bit to get into this film, as we are bombarded by the make-money schemes that A.J. and Moose are throwing out fast and furious at the beginning. Those scenes include betting at an off-track site across the highway from a zoo field trip from which they have escaped from without the school knowing. Once the idea of taking over a snack shack at a local community pool becomes their money maker (and it is), the film settles down to a fun and enjoyable coming-of-age film with a cast that hits all the right notes. Conor Sherry is just the right portion of geeky awkwardness with a bit of sexiness that you can see why Brooke instantly flirts with him. Mika Abdalla is the find of the movie as she steals every scene that she is in with great charisma and just the right amount of worldliness that her character exudes. Snack Shack is a fun film with some heart and hits a few tender moments as well. Just be warned, the guys smoke, drink (they brew their own beer), and constantly throw out a lot of profanity (sometimes spelled out in ketchup on the hot dogs they sell). So grab some sunscreen and jump in the pool. You’ll need a drink from the Snack Shack to cool down, and the guys will be ready to sell you one.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Snack Shack Website  Available for rent on most streaming services.

Forgotten Film:  We Were Soldiers  (2002)  R  The film tells the story of the first major battle of the American phase of the Vietnam War in 1965. Newly arrived in Vietnam, Lt. Col. Hal Moore (Mel Gibson) takes command of a battalion that is given the task of finding a group of North Vietnamese troops that attacked an army base. The army is unaware that the 400 men under Moore will soon be trapped by an army of 2,000 North Vietnamese. The film follows Moore and his men as they have to shift their objective from finding the enemy to defending a portion of the ground. The movie provides us with insight into the North Vietnamese, as we learn how the commander plans his attacks. We go back to the States to check on the well-being of the wives while their husbands are engaged in a war that America will soon hate. The outstanding cast includes Sam Elliot, Greg Kinnear, Chris Klein, Barry Pepper, Madeleine Stowe, Keri Russell, and Do’n Duro’ng. The film got lost at the box office, overshadowed by Black Hawk Down, but is an action film with some heart.  My Rating: Full Price  We Were Soldiers Info   The film is available to rent or buy on Amazon and Apple TV.

Weird Credits: From the credits of Alien: Romulus:  Offspring Application Team

Coming Soon to a Screen Near You:  Transformers One (2024)  PG  The origin story of Optimus Prime and Megatron, who, when they were young, were friends who bonded like brothers. Little did they know the two would change the fate of Cybertron forever. I’m not a huge Transformers fan, but I do know that this film is based on a blend of the original toys, the first games, and the early cartoons. The voice cast includes Chris Hemsworth, Brian Tyree Henry, Scarlett Johansson, Keegan-Michael Key, Jon Hamm, and Laurence Fishburne.  Tranformers One Website The film is in theaters nationwide on Friday, September 20, 2024. 

Until Next Time!