One Bad Driver A Day

Unsolicited Movie Review - Oscars 2026 Edition

2026-03-15T20:30:00.000-04:00

Here we are again. Oscar time is upon us. It is the most wonderful time of the year! At least for me. Every year's crop of Best Picture Nominees is a marvelous, mixed bag of styles and themes and genres. This year even a little more so. Small independent character studies, a classical horror legend often overlooked for its depth and a new original horror praised for its complexity. There are two foreign language entries, super-fast racing cars, a grief-laden tale of a literary legend, multiple “conspiracy” theories run amok and often running into multiple revolutions. There are lumberjacks, secret spies, assassins, kidnappers, a modern underground railroad and vampires……don’t sleep on the vampire. That’s not even mentioning the aliens, the Santa Clauses, gangsters, the Klan, possibly the next Bond, wildfires, a bluegrass, the blues and a cold-war, global Ping-Pong championship.

It was a full year!

It’s a different crop. While there are obviously some shared themes and commonalities of similar human emotions the styles of films really are drastically different…..which is awesome. But, it does make it hard to compare and contrast. I didn’t hate any of them. Which isn’t as much fun because I don’t get to be as snarky. Luckily, unlike some years, both of my favorite films are nominated for Best Picture. Not typically the case. There are always headscratchers and snubs. If I were going to put a blockbuster on the list, F1 would not have been my choice but it’s not a crime against nature.

These are the films we have. They vary in story, style, scope and theme. They are all worthy additions to the world of movies and some to the snootier world of cinema even if they are not your cup of tea!

These are listed in my order of rankings. Top to Bottom for the Best Picture Award.

This is NOT necessarily what I think is going to happen with the award. Do not use this list to make bets. You will lose your house. These are listed in the order that I would rank them if I had such a vote for Best Motion Picture. I would love to hear from you and know what you think.

SINNERS – This is my favorite experience in cinema. Going in blind, not knowing much about what I am about to see. Then, I’m completely immersed in a story where I don’t know where the story is going to take me or how it is going to get me there. A story that confounds and surprises my jaded expectations. Sinners, surprised me in all the best ways. Not because it was unclear if it was a thriller or a horror film. Not because it had vampires mashing up Buzby Berkley style musical numbers with bluegrass music. Not because it had an extraordinary cast that seemed to lift right off the screen or that it was a fascinating visual experience.

It surprised me because the director, Ryan Coogler weaved all these elements seamlessly into a fascinating film that blends Jim Crow-era drama with American and African folklore, while pounding out themes of community, survival, family, ancestral trauma and sacrifice.

Sinners achieves the rare accomplishment of seeming familiar and absolutely surprising all at once. It won’t be for everyone but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have a ridiculously wide appeal. Ryan Coogler doesn’t have anything to prove as a film maker. But films like Sinners are career defining and may hint to more to come. Let’s hope.

ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER – There aren’t many years OBAA wouldn’t me nominated for Best Picture. Putting it second on my list took a lot of internal arguments. The scope and scale of the film is quite amazing. Paul Thomas Anderson has firmly established himself as an auteur. His writing is so engaging and allows the characters to endear themselves to an audience without the audience ever realizing they are being sucked in.

Desperate out of control Leo is hysterical and compelling. Teyana Taylor is electric. Sean Penn is so over the top it borders satire. Chase Infiniti is a rookie seasoned pro. Benicio Del Toro was effortlessly hysterical and stole every scene he was in. PTA took all these insane performances, wrapped them in a series of gorgeous and sometimes disparate vignettes. He smothered them in a singular soundtrack and topped it off with one of the finest edited chase scenes ever and in the end told a tale that included revolution, secrecy, murder, conspiracy, friendship, desperation, civic duty and courage……..of a single Dad raising a teenage girl.
Seriously, it is meticulous film making.

MARTY SUPREME – To call this movie frantic is an understatement. I’m getting anxious just reflecting on the film while writing this review. Of all the films this year this was my most pleasant surprise. Because of the onslaught of marketing and self-promotion from Chalamet, my expectations were that this would prove to be a snooze-fest and they were just doing damage control. Completely to the contrary, the movie blew my doors off. There is no reason this film is as compelling as it is. Listen to this pitch……

“Ok, so its post WWII and we are following an astoundingly annoying lout who is antagonistic, egotistical and manipulative. He works for his uncle selling shoes, but he is willing to lie, cajole and scam friends and strangers alike to keep his dream alive of becoming the greatest Ping Pong player on the planet”

Luckily the pitch worked. What we get is a detestable, yet compelling character completely focused on achieving his personal goal of greatness. It is his singular vision and dedication that is so endearing and counterbalances the vitriol he creates with his willingness to harm anyone is his path to get what he wants. As maddening and contemptible as he is, his effort and tenacity and sheer stubbornness force you to cheer for him.

The movie has its foot on the gas from the opening credits. It never lets up though a string of events that would cause anyone else to throw their hands up in defeat…but not Marty. Every struggle, every setback, every dangerous or desperate catastrophe that should end his struggle just acts as fuel for him to double down and take an even bigger chance that’s sure to fail.

It’s a ride. Chalamet was not over selling it…..however annoying he was…maybe he was just channeling Marty.

BUGONIA – One of us is crazy……is it me…….or is it you? Or is it us? Or, nevermind. It is everyone else.

I doubt there are 2 other actors over the last 10-12 years that have better resumes than Emma Stone and Jesse Plemmons. Or as he is called in our house, Meth Damon. Emma is the bigger star but Jesse, as her mentally fragile kidnapper, is the most convincing element it this film. His earnestness and authentic portrayal force the viewer to question what they know for sure may not actually be for sure what they know. But is the viewer’s indecision based on the kidnapper’s reasoning and facts or is he just so sympathetic and affable that you what him to be correct. Bugonia has the confidence to never let you know who is crazy. You are pretty sure it isn’t you but then again…..

Superbly acted, frustratingly crafted and specifically ambiguous for the discerning movie goer. The beauty of the film is that it keeps you wondering up and to the last moment when it proves you wrong….probably.

HAMNET – Over the years I have watched famous actors who are closely associated with their works of Shakespeare discuss their love for his work. Their reverence at his ability to express such a wide array of emotion. Whatever condition one finds themselves and needs a way to express it can be found in the vast works to portray any emotion sufficiently. Art, at its best, at its very best, can aid human experience in processing, if not actually understanding, any range of human emotion. But what is that transformative process that allows the artist to go from grief to art?

It has often been said that writers write what they know. Hamnet is a beautiful, albeit devastating piece of filmmaking that portrays William Shakespeare channeling the grief from the death of his 11-year-old son into works of art. Stories and sonnets and poems of such beauty and depth and resonance that they have remained relevant for centuries. How else could stories have such powerful messages if not born of such powerful feelings to begin with? To transform or not to transform, that is the question? (see what I did there).

Is that how Shakespeare transformed his grief? Who knows. What I do know is the film’s exploration of that transformation results in a movie that’s an emotionally charged onslaught for the viewer. Hamnet is anchored by brutally honest portrayals from Paul Mescal as Bill Shakespeare and Emily Watson has his mother. But the drive and heart and fire of the film come from Jessie Buckley as Agnes. Her grief is beyond emotional and slips into palpable.

TRAIN DREAMS – Proof that a slow, methodical, quiet movie can be interesting and emotional. Couple that along with 3 superb performances and the fact that it may be one of the most beautifully shot films I have ever watched. What do we need in life to make us happy? What are we willing to do in life to protect that happiness? As we progress what is that progress worth? What can we live with? What can’t we live without? And how much loss is too much?

Based on Denis Johnson’s novella, Train Dreams asks all these questions, not necessarily answers them though, through the eyes of a simple woodsmen of the American west during the early 20^th Century. Joel Edgerton continues a string quality work anchoring this film leaning into his character’s decency and humility. Felicity Jones and William H. Macy also give nomination worthy, if not realized, performances.

And let me say it again for unsubtle affect…..Train Dreams is one of the most beautifully shot films you will ever see.

THE SECRET AGENT – I love movies that show you a time or event of real drama and suspense that you never even knew existed. In 1977, Brazil was in the middle of a military dictatorship. The film follows the journey of Marcello. His real name is Armondo. He comes into the coastal town in a beat-up VW bug with no money and coasting into town on fumes. The opening scene deftly leaves the viewer unsettled at the most and full of questions at the very least. He’s desperate and alone but has a destination and purpose. His story unfolds acting as the vehicle to expose the truth of the violence and a tragedy suffered upon those who find themselves in conflict with a corrupt system. He and his family are one of countless trampled and discarded in the fog of such tragedy’s. We learn the answers to all the questions we are asking ourselves in the opening scenes. Unfortunately, we rarely like the answers. We learn of bravery and character and principles. We also learn tragedy and greed and sacrifice. We also learn that most, if not practically all, of these stories fade and are so quickly and easily forgotten. Their impact, however important and vital are also fragile and quickly erased. There is importance remembering and documenting and reminding everyone of the truth.

FRANKENSTEIN – FYI! I’ve never been a particular fan of Frankenstein. The old Boris Karloff flick was cool when I saw it on a tv in 70s. But that was a far cry from the grander, more important tale that Mary Shelly wrote about Victor and his monster. Guillermo del Toro is as skilled and talented as any filmmaker. His vision and composition are inventive and singular. His movies are a feast for the eyes. More importantly you realize when you watch his films, how complete and clear a vision, he must have had all along. It doesn’t feel as if there are any accidents. Everything is in concert with the idea of telling the story and vision he began with. Frankenstein is no different. The story’s themes of the dangers of knowledge, revenge, isolation, responsibility are all on display. It is done beautifully and great acting and stunning visuals……and I didn’t really care. Probably because I just don’t dig Frakenstein.

F1 – There is nothing wrong with F1. This marks a continuing trend since they opened the Best Pic category to 10 films. There is usually one huge box office success that’s always popular but more that likely never would have made the cut if there had been only 5 nominees. It is action packed. The sound and editing and special effects are all riveting. You’ve got Brad Pitt and races and exotic locales. Grab the popcorn. Besides its technical prowess, the story and emotional punch fell flat. This really isn’t the best use of Pitt’s earnestness. If you were looking for a Blockbuster, Avatar Fire and Ash or Superman would have been the better options.

SENTIMENTAL VALUE – There is art here. There is exceptional acting as two daughters navigate life after losing their mother. This is made more dramatic as they discover the new dynamics of the relationship with their famous and mostly estranged father. This film is a study in regret and missed opportunities and the consequences of our decisions. It is also terribly slow and plodding and not entirely unpretentious. Again, there is skill in its construction and execution, but I didn’t find it particularly entertaining.

USMR - Jimmy Stewart Westerns

2025-08-12T09:44:00.000-04:00

USMR - Jimmy Stewart Westerns

Unsolicited Movie Ranking - Jimmy Stewart Westerns Version

So a couple of weeks ago Shelli Hamer York came in as I was watching an old Jimmy Stewart western. Then, much to my bewilderment she asked me....."Did he do a lot of Westerns?"

DO WHAT?  Uhhhhh, YEA!.

With films like Its A Wonderful Life, Anatomy of A Murder, Mr. Smith Goes To Washington and four different Hitchcock Classics to name a few,  it is easy to overlook that Jimmy Stewart was one of the most successful Western stars in Hollywood. Outside of John Wayne, Jimmy's western catalog is as impressive as anyone's. Stewart was the leading box office draw of the 1950's and his westerns played a huge role in that success.

So, once I set my astonishment to Shelli's questions aside I did what anyone else would do. I made a list of all of Stewart's westerns and decided to re-watch and rank them all. Just like anyone!

Stewart starred in 17 westerns over his career. I'm ranking 13  looking at the 20 year period from 1950 to 1970. Excluded are Destry Rides Again (39) which was a huge hit but sort of stands by itself 11 years prior. I am also excluding How the West was Won (62) and Cheyenne Autumn (64) because he was part of huge cast and not central to the success. Also excluding the Shootist because that was Wayne's film...period. And before anybody asks, Shenandoah isn't a western...don't get me started.

A few observations.....I had seen all the films at least once except for Firecreek. How I missed a western starring Jimmy Stewart and Henry Fonda is beyond me but I had never even heard of it until now. It wasn't a big hit but still.....I should have known. It had been as much as 30+ years since I had seen some of these. Certain impressions I had from years ago have definitely changed. Here are a few things that stuck out.

One, probably because I'm a father of a 19 year old daughter the number of instances in these films where Jimmy's love interest eventually ended up being an actress less than half his age was glaringly obvious. Stewart, by all accounts was a good guy and a gentlemen. But I have to admit when watching these films with matured eyes it adds a creepier aspect to a lot of films from this era....not that the same doesn't still go on.

Two, the films that relied heavily on a detailed depiction of interactions with Indian tribes invariably hurt the overall quality of the film. It just leaves such a believability gap. (Don't get me started on the ridiculous gun fights) It is easy to knock how Hollywood portrayed Native Americans....which was blatantly racist. That alone shouldn't diminish the film when watching it in proper context. My problems come from just bad film making. The writing and acting and direction, even when really good film directors like Anthony Mann tried to depict Native American life and lives, really stands out and hurts some of the films. It hurts them contextually and it hurts them as sheer entertainment.

Three, the number of actors who pop up in multiple films is pretty amazing. It was common with the studio system and directors to use actors they were comfortable with. Some practically play the same character with different names. Will Geer (Grandpa from the Waltons), John McIntire, Andy Devine, Arthur Kennedy, Harry Morgan (Col Sherman Potter), Millard Mithcell, Dan Duryea and Jack Elam were all staples. Not to mention future stars who made appearances like Rock Hudson, Shelley Winters, Tony Curtis, Audie Murphy, and Shirley Jones.

Finally, and this is important, there isn't a bad movie in the bunch. Some come off as a bit campy for today's viewers to be sure but watching them with context and era in mind it is an amazing body of work. Especially when you consider these are only 13 of the 17 westerns and constitute less that half the films Jimmy starred in between 1950-1970...SHUT UP!

13. Broken Arrow ('50) A classic Anthony Mann western based on a true story. If you want to talk authenticity issues....Jeff Chandler, born Ira Grossel to a Jewish family in Brooklyn, got nominated for an Oscar for his portrayal of Apache War Chief Cochise. To its credit, this was one of the first movies that showed Indians as something other than savages. Cochise was portrayed as a wise and thoughtful leader. That aside, all the interactions with the Indians are so clumsily filmed and written it just has a difficult time translating to a current audience.

12. Firecreek ('68) Not a bad movie at all. Even with two huge stars it feels a little like a TV movie. There was a lot to explore here that the script or director just never chose to exploit. Would have loved to see a director like Peckinpah shoot this. It wanted to be edgier but just never got there.

11. Two Rode Together ('61) Great cast. Stewart plays a scheming, opportunistic sheriff to a tee. Great chemistry with Richard Widmark. Like John Wayne's Searchers this movie is about finding and "rescuing" white captives of Comanche war raids. Definitely inspired by actual events it is still awkward to view the portrayals of the Native Americans especially with Chief Quanah Parker being played by German born Henry Brandon. The movie tries to show the complexity involved but again, maybe because of censor rules or just the melodramitic acting style, or should I say overacting, really dings what is otherwise a very enjoyable film.

10. The Naked Spur ('53) Robert Ryan eats up his scenes and Janet Leigh takes her turn as the lady who is half the age of the men she is likely to show interest in role.

09. The Rare Breed ('66) This was actually the only film that I wasn't able to re-watch. But I have seen it 3 or 4 times so I thought I was good. Stewart, Maureen O'hara and Brian Keith. It's a return to the gruff loner Stewart played so many times eventually making a connection and caring for something or someone besides himself.

08. Bandelero ('68) When Jimmy isn't playing a gruff loner he's probably playing the cowboy with a heart of gold who is out to save his ne'er-do-well brother who is almost always on the wrong side of the law. Here the brother is Dean Martin and the love interest was Raquel Welch. All wrapped up with George Kennedy as a jealous, obsessed sheriff.

07. The Cheyenne Social Club ('70) A real buddy movie with two real buddies. Fonda and Stewart were roommates as young actors and they had a lifelong friendship. Their comfort and ease with each other is great in this western comedy. Light-hearted and charming.

06. The Man From Laramie ('55) Another great mysterious loner who gets wronged and gets even. A stranger in a strange land taking on a rich land baron and his crazy son. I knocked this down to 6 cause of some silly Indian stuff but it really is top notch.

05. Bend of the River ('52) I could easily shuffle 6 through 3. All four with solid stories. All four about grit and determination and fighting the odds. Along with Far Country this is the some of the most gorgeous cinematography of all the films. The other thing you will notice is some of the stars are actually pretty solid horsemen. Filming where they take some of the wagons in this movie really gives you a good idea to how difficult some of these drives and conditions were. Arthur Kennedy is great in this film as he goes mad over making money....and Aunt Bea from Mayberry makes an appearance.

04. Night Passage ('57) Along with Winchester 73 this has one of the better scripts. Throw in Audie Murphy and Brandon DeWilde (the kid from Shane) and the railroads traveling through the Rockies you have a really special film.

03. Far Country ('54) One of the few films of the era set in Alaska. It was the 4th Anthony Mann western and they were were in their stride. Plus no goofy interactions with the natives. This movie's famous climax was set up all through the film starring Jimmy's horse Pie. Jimmy rode Pie in 17 films and often said he was the best costar he ever had. That's some pretty good company. When Pie died he was buries on the Stewart family ranch.

02. Winchester 73 ('50) This was the one that showed people Jimmy could be a believable tough guy. It started the 20 year western run and it was a superb story and well written. The throughline with the rifle changing hands held the narrative. Rock Hudson as a 20 year old Indian chief and Tony Curtis as an Army grunt and Shelly Winters as the damsel.

01. Man Who Shot Liberty Valance ('62) Often the greatest casts on paper don't make the greatest films. It is hard to imagine a better cast than Stewart, John Wayne and Lee Marvin. That's heavyweight. Directed by one of the masters John Ford. Funny that a film full of legends is remembered for the famous line. "When the story becomes legend...Print the legend."

Unsolicited Movie Reviews - 2025 Oscar Edition

2025-03-02T19:12:00.001-05:00

Here we go again. Oscar time is upon us. It is the most wonderful time of the year! At least for me. Every year's crop of Best Picture Nominees is a mixed bag, and this year is no different. Two major blockbusters that take place in imaginary worlds but one has more music. One slapstick comedy with hookers, gangsters, drug dealers and sex. A real bio pic about a poet and pseudo-bio pic about an architect. Next year they’ll make a gangster film about a plumber. There are Popes, witches, Cardinals, prisoners, drug kingpins, oligarchs and the strangest set of twins……ever.

It’s a different crop. I didn’t hate any of them. If I’m honest my favorite film of the year wasn’t even nominated. If you get a chance check out Sing Sing. It was superb. But these are the films we have. They vary in story, style, scope and theme. They are all worthy additions to the world of cinema even if they are not your cup of tea!

These are listed in my order of rankings. Top to Bottom for the Best Picture Award.
This is NOT necessarily what I think is going to happen with the award. Do not use this list to make bets. You will lose your house. These are listed in the order that I would rank them if I had such a vote for Best Motion Picture. I would love to hear from you and know what you think.

Conclave Conclave is a tense political thriller set against the backdrop of Vatican secrecy. It is exactly the grown-up dramas filled with gripping dialogue, amazing performances, stunning visuals and intriguing plots that are why many of us fell in love with cinema. It is the real deal. Such an amazing follow-up for Edgar Berger after his amazing All Quiet on the Western Front. His status as auteur is solidified. Raph Fiennes continues to be as steady and dependable actor/star as we have. Villian, hero, character actor you name it. Fiennes’ resume is elite. Have Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow and Isabella Rossellini as your “supporting” cast doesn’t hurt. In a landscape where cinema seems like Pop Country, Berger is playing that good jazz that is so entertaining that you don’t even realize how complicated it is.

Dune: Part Two When Part One came out I said it was the first time I felt the way I did when I saw Star Wars for the first time. There have been countless worlds imagined in faraway places with Sci-Fi dreams of flying saucers and grand story telling tropes of battling dynasties and messiah figure heroes.

But Denis Villeneuve’s Dune was the first one that felt complete to me. It felt fully throated and dare I say believable. This first came to the screen in 1984, by David Lynch no less, and it was awful. I know some people loved it back then but even with adjusted eyes for 1984 viewing…. it’s just bad. It was campy, synthetic and devoid of anything organic to relate to. Let’s face it. This nomination is for both Part One and Two. Much like Lord of the Rings Return of the King. They may just reward the entire work. Maybe they should because they both delivered mesmerizing visuals, emotional storytelling and a faithful adaptation of the script to a beloved source material.

The Substance Coralie Fargeat’s The Substance may have achieved the status of the “PERFECT DATE MOVIE”. Is ts a rom-com, or a period piece or a love story with a little action or violence that can pacify women and men alike? NO! It is a body-image horror film that delves into themes of transformation and self-destruction. How does that make the perfect date movie? Well, it speaks to, especially women, about the unattainable levels of perfection that can destroy self-esteem and confidence turning their lives into a quest for society’s image of beauty. It has subtexts of the horrors women experience around self-loathing, body image, representation, feminism and agency. For men, it is at its core a Sci-Fi drama with violence and gory imagery. But most importantly for the guys, and this can’t be overstated, Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley spend a lot of time naked…..I mean a lot. See, perfect date movie! But in all seriousness, The Substance was the most surprising of all the films this year for me because I liked it much more than I was expecting. The film’s grotesque imagery may not be for everyone, but it offers a unique viewing for everyone because it will speak something different to everyone based on their own background. It has as point of view to be sure, but the really special quality of the script is the massive amount of subtext that the viewer can pull from their own life. And, in many cases, probably more than the authors could have even intended.
Demi is probably gonna get her Oscar and hats off to her, it will be well deserved. But, make no mistake, Margaret Qualley is superb as well and her career can be a long time if she chooses.

Wicked Listen, if you don’t like musicals…. I don’t know what to tell ya. You’ll probably hate this. If you do love Broadway musicals then you almost definitely have an opinion about Wicked and it’s most likely positive. It has worked its way into the pantheon of American Musical Theater. It is every bit an

Oklahoma, South Pacific, Les Miz or “fill in the blank”. It is a huge and popular show and that is what makes bringing it to the screen so perilous. It’s possible that absolutely nobody will be happy with the final product. Keeping it exactly the same as the show you risk ignoring the natural differences in medium from the stage to the screen. Make too many or the wrong adjustments and you risk the seething disdain and monumental hatred of 10 million drama kids of all ages!

So, I’m going to make this simple. Wicked (PART ONE) is great. It works on every level. The two stars are STARS in every way you need to be in musical theater. Are they both a little “diva-ish”? Sure. But they are also two obscenely, talented mega-stars that you need to carry a film like Wicked. If Elphaba and Ga-linda don’t work the movie don’t work. They are both exquisite. Especially when you consider that all the music was recorded live on set. Art, Costumes, Make-up, Sets, Special Effects….you name it the film hits all of its notes. I honestly can’t imagine a fan of the musical not liking the film. Will it win best picture? I doubt it but if it did it would be worthy. My guess is that the academy will wait till part 2.

Anora Sean Baker’s Anora is at the least a polarizing film. I have seen it billed as a modern-day Cinderella story. A more accurate analogy would be Cinderella’s drug induced, sex-ladened, pretty, damn hysterical fever dream. The movie felt like it had two definitive halves. The first is dark and meandering as you learn of Anna’s (Anora) circumstances. The second part, and it turns on a dime, is a border line slapstick comedy, albeit dark comedy. It goes into overdrive until the it comes to its sad, poignant and probably inevitable stop. While these things are fickle, Anora should be a star turn for Mikey Madison who has been doing quality work for the last 10 years. She is engaging and most importantly believable. Even in some amazingly unbelievable situations.

I’m Still Here To put it plainly, this is a wonderful film set in Rio De Janeiro circa 1970. It based on

the true story of Eunice Paiva and the arrest and disappearance of her husband Rubens at the hands of the Brazilian military regime. It is a subtle and sweet movie about love and resilience. It is a powerful reminder of the strength of family and sheer will need to survive.

The Brutalist I saw one article that touted Brady Corbet’s The Brutalist as “an ambitious architectural

drama”. Man, that’ll sell it. First the good/great about the movie. The acting. Brody is phenomenal but the so is Guy Pierce in a role that is quite different. Even for an actor who can’t really be typecast. The cinematography is its own character of the film. Its addition to the nuance and tone of all the scenes is
palpable. It’s a grand story both narratively and visually with hints and inspirations of Citizen Kane. The not so good…. it’s just too damn long. I’m perfectly fine with long films. I love them in fact. But for a three plus hour film the ending seemed rushed and rather un-satisfying by comparison the exquisite nature of the rest of the film. I’m glad I watched it, but I doubt I’ll ever watch it again.

A Complete Unknown James Mangold’s biopic of Bob Dylan, A Complete Unknown, offers an intimate yet enigmatic portrayal of the legendary musician. That seems entirely appropriate for a figure who has been enigmatic and intimate for his entire career. Timothée Chalamet’s performance is beyond commendable. It is transformative as he performed all the music live and himself. It does add a realness and familiarity that is hard to describe. As with all biographies, there are some questionable dalliances with accuracy. Many of these can be attributed to Bob himself who was heavily involved in the story working to continue those enigmatic tendencies he obviously thrives upon. It’s a solid film. It’s not the best biopic I’ve ever seen. Had it not been about Dylan and if Chalamet’s performance was less than stellar it would have never made the nomination.

Nickel Boys Based fictional novel that is based on actual events, Nickel Boys is a harrowing tale of
human injustice and the resilience and eventual consequences of surviving the injustice. I’ve not read the book but if the movie captures half of the emotional weight effectively it would be a tough read. The movie’s somber tone may feel unrelenting and while you think you probably “know” where it’s going it keeps you unsure till the end. The use of perspective and point of view worked for me as a matter of storytelling. I can see how it may be off-putting for some people. Man’s cruelty to man is always so devastatingly sad and unfortunately all to believable.

Emilia Pérez Emilia Pérez is a bold gender-bending film that mixes musical elements with crime drama. Ironically, the film comes across as not exactly knowing what it wants to be. There are two words (maybe three) in that sentence that will keep a lot of people from ever seeing the movie. Gender-bending and Musical. Both are pretty polarizing, lol. That’s unfortunate. While the characters in the movie seem to know exactly who they are, the film itself is more confused. Don’t get me wrong. It is a terribly engaging story with intrigue, tension, mystery and scope. I personally think the biggest problem with the film is the musical aspect. The musical numbers are fine, but they cause tonal shifts that distract from the narrative. That’s not to say musicals can’t be serious, they can. But here, the story is strong and works on its own. I wish the makers had trusted that and left the music….in the closet. (I’m Sorry). Kudos for ambitions and experimentation, just missed the mark a little.

Unsolicited Movie Review - 2024 Oscar Edition

2024-03-10T13:54:00.002-04:00

Here we go again. Oscar time is upon us. Its the most wonderful time of the year! At least for me. Every year's crop of Best Picture Nominees is a mixed bag and this year is no different. Two major blockbusters from films that more than defied expectations. Four period pieces set with historical backdrops and two fantasy films examining feminism though the eyes of reanimated women, one dark...one pink. On courtroom drama, One Nazi Family Circus, One Asian Sleepless in Seattle, One Musical Genius and a real life Cowboys and Indians horror story. There is literally not a bad film in the bunch. They vary in story, style, scope and theme and they are all worthy additions to the world of cinema.....or not.

Oppenheimer – Oppenheimer is not just a thought-provoking exploration of science, power, and the consequences of human ambition. It’s not just a masterpiece that adds to Nolan's concrete reputation as the greatest filmmaker of our time. It’s not only a serious and scrupulous examination of one of the most consequential events of our brief human history. It’s not just a showcase of the exceptional talents of Murphy, Downey Jr., and Blunt and others. It’s not just that in an industry monopolized by CGI this is an analog film shot on actual FILM with no CGI. It’s all these things……AND…..it made a crap ton of money. It is a reminder that people, a lot of people, when presented with excellent options will come see wonderful films whose heroes don’t wear capes and spandex.

Cillian Murphy is gripping as Oppenheimer. Every line of his face portrays the complex, conflictions between the confidence of his genius and the humanizing weight of his moral responsibility. Robert Downey Jr. reminded people that when he takes off his spandex, there is still a tremendously special actor with equal parts charisma and talent. Emily Blunt's portrayal of Oppenheimer's wife, Katherine, adds depth and emotion to the storyline. Oh, and Matt Daman and Rami Malek and Gary Oldman and Jason Clarke and Florence Pugh and and….well….come on. This is old-school, Hollywood Legend greatness.

Chris Nolan is riding a sweet spot that very few directors get close enough to see much less enjoy for over 2 decades. He is creeping into Spielberg Territory where Movies and Cinema intersect. Artistic and meaningful films, constructed so eloquently, that they enjoy a level of commercial success their subject matter and “artistic” achievement would normally belie. Nolan is a master and has been for some time. Without Oppenheimer he still has several films to be considered masterpieces or his opus.

The film's stunning visuals and haunting score further enhance the viewing experience, leaving a lasting impact on audiences. It’s fair to note, there are detractors who feel the film has a huge gaping hole. Primarily, regarding political implications or personal preferences of Nolan choosing not to include visuals of the destruction these awe-inspiring weapons wrought. It is not an entirely unfair criticism. However, this or any film cannot be everything to all people. The title of the film isn’t Nagasaki. It’s not The A-Bomb. It’s not Holy Shit What Have Done? This is Oppenheimer. His life story and his point of view. Its masterfully and seamlessly told by weaving together the personal and professional aspirations of the genius with the devastating personal and emotion consequences that were suffered by the man.

BARBIE –

The movie about the most iconic toy for girls in American history, written, produced, directed, and crafted by women and nearly broke the internet and made so much freaking money they almost changed the word blockbuster to BLOCKBUSTIER.

There is a ton to say about the social, political, and business aspects of what BARBIE has been to the world of film this past year. That is an article in an of itself….if not a book. The fact that the female director and the female lead who were also the producers of an iconic female story weren’t nominated in their respective categories, but Ryan Gosling was, and their film was nominated for Best Picture is quite possibly the most On Brand ending in the history of the Academy.

But this is about the movie "BARBIE" and as a movie it is a stellar achievement under one of the most dependably, great directors working, Greta Gerwig. This isn’t a fluke. Couple that with Margo Robie's performance as both star and producer, the film shattered all expectations, be they artistic or economic. Let’s face it, this could have been an absolute train wreck. Instead, it was a juggernaut of a movie that’s not only entertaining but breathes a deserving reassessment of what can easily be dismissed as a beloved child’s toy. It has offered a bitingly truthful perspective on femininity and empowerment and has done it brilliantly through the expanded narrative of a “simple” doll.

Don’t underestimate Margo Robie's contribution and dedication to the project. It is evident in every frame, elevating the film with an Oscar worthy performance. Barbie had to be breathtakingly beautiful. I’ve seen other actresses who were up for the role that would have been interesting choices. But let’s face it, If Barbie isn’t BARBIE, the rest of the movie loses credibility and poignance. Not dissimilar to a movie like The Hulk. If the CGI Monster doesn’t play, then nothing is believable. But Robie’s overwhelming contribution, beyond the looks is her marvelous acting. She’s a star, for all the right reasons. The music and the art direction and the phenomenal supporting cast and the script are all amazing accessories. But if they didn’t have a Barbie to display them on, the film would not work.

It is a stellar collaboration and a showcase for creativity and perseverance. The struggles to get it made and greenlit with be part of Hollywood lore. Gerwig’s and Robbie’s influence and street cred have only grown. Success like this has long coattails. But, for all its new ground and wake up calls and social influence, "BARBIE", at its core is a throwback and a testament to the power of passion and innovation in storytelling.

The Holdovers –

Holdovers is set in the 1970’s. Many period films about that era portray it over the top with garish costumes and disco everywhere. One of the great things about this film is the aesthetic it achieves. Not just the costumes or the hairstyles, it’s everything. The movie not only looks like it is set in the 70’s it looks like it was shot in the 70’s. It has a throwback look and feel that is almost palpable. Hell, you can almost smell it. If you saw that Sidney Lumet or Sydney Pollock had been the director, you wouldn’t be surprised.

The Holdovers refer to a student at a new England boarding school who gets left behind over Christmas break and the teacher and cook who are left to supervise. They are 3 disparate souls. All struggling with life and the circumstances in their different phases. They are each traveling through this world alone and by chance or timing or both they find each other.

While not as heavily laden with star power as a film like Oppenheimer, The Holdovers is just as well acted of a film. Paul Giamatti may finally get his Oscar as may DaVine Joy Randoph. Both would be worthy choices in any year.

The Holdovers is a story of broken and lost hearts learning to heal from the love and care that they surprisingly seem to find only in these other shattered souls. It’s a story of love and commitment shown through compassion and decency.

The Zone of Interest -

The Zone of Interest is easily the most disturbing film of the year and that includes movies about the invention of nuclear war, a full-sized doll coming to life, a “mini” genocide and a reanimated woman who has her brain replaced with the brain of her unborn child.

Zone is the story of a typical nuclear family with a hardworking ambitious father, a devoted and concerned mother and their inquisitive and active children. All living in a beautiful home in the gorgeous countryside of Poland. They take family outings to the scenic riverside nearby. The father is working hard for his next promotion. The mother is concerned about their home and the neighbors and their place in the community. The kids are worried about their schools and their toys and their friends. The one thing the family isn’t worried about is their next-door neighbors. Did I mention that the dedicated father of this family is the German SS member in charge of Auschwitz?

When I say this is a disturbing movie, I mean it. The garden where this picture post card family spends their leisure time shares a wall with the most infamous site of murders on the planet. The most chilling aspect of the film is that you never, I mean never see any violence or mayhem. You never see any of the starvation or testing or shooting or vile depravity. But you know it’s there. Tucked away behind the wall. Just out of sight and seemingly completely out of the minds of those committing the atrocities.

It’s not that the family comes across as hateful or incensed. You never see any contempt or disgust of those they so obviously disdain. What you see is complete and utter indifference. You see the absolute compartmentalization of the fact that these “creatures” are even human. It’s not fiery or blatant or even intentional. The hate and dehumanization are so entirely engrained and second nature that the horror is not even horror. It’s just mundane. Murder and torture aren’t atrocious or special. It’s just business as usual. There is not one once of shame. But the gardens are beautiful.

The more I reflect on it, the more disturbing it is.

American Fiction –

The Academy loves films about the world of artists and entertainment. It stands to reason. Artists see compelling drama in the creation of art. We write what we know. American Fiction is about a frustrated writer who has had some critical acclaim without the accompanying commercial success.

The story is told through the eyes of Thelonious “Monk” Ellison played by Best Actor nominee, Jeffrey Wright. Monk is a talented yet frustrated writer whose critical acclaim has never garnered the commercial success it deserves. He’s frustrated at his lack of success. He’s angered by “lesser”, “sell-out” authors who have commercial success. He’s a black author who isn’t considered black enough by the publishing world. A world he thinks is disingenuous and exploitive of black culture. What’s a literary genius to do?

American Fiction succeeds by telling 2 parallel stories. One is compelling as an exploration of race, identity, morality, and character of a man deciding how he wants to use his voice in the world. What is important for the world to know about him. Is his art for sale? What is his responsibility to his community. What is his contribution to society?

The second story weaved through the film is an exploration of Monk and his place in his own family. He has an aging Mother, a distant sister, and an estranged brother. They have lost their father, and the family dynamics are in flux as the children are transitioning to the adults of the family.

Both story lines are anchored by a viciously smart screenplay and an impeccable cast. They tackle race, commercialism, political realities, heartbreak, aging, death, love and maybe most importantly reconciliation. The beauty of stories, this story, or our stories, is that we have a chance to continually change our ending. We have a choice to determine the stories we want to tell, how to tell and whom to tell them to.

Anatomy of a Fall –

A German woman marries a French man who dies under seemingly, suspicious circumstances. The police, her lawyer, her son, and the French courts attempt to discover if his death is murder or a tragic accident.

One of the most interesting aspects of the film for me was seeing the differences of how the French courts are conducted in contrast to an American court. The rules of the court and some of the differences and allowances of questioning and evidence are fascinating. The courtroom scenes make for some exceptionally good drama. They can also be maddening to someone not familiar with the French process. I found myself wanting to object on multiple occasions.

The protagonist, Sandra Voyter, is played by Sandra Hüller who is having a heck of a year. She also starred as the mother of the Nazi family in The Zone of Interest and could have easily been nominated for that role as well. She went from a suspected murderer to the matriarch of a family of Nazis who oversee a death camp…….that’s range.

But seriously, she is phenomenal in both. Without her performance Anatomy of a Fall could have easily been forgettable. While the film is unfolding the layers of the murder, it is also examining the effect instant notoriety and attention has on those involved in an instantly notorious story. What damage can be wrought by media scrutinization of heretofore private, unknown people? Hüller’s ability to distinctly express the range of emotions of someone dealing the with compounded traumas of her husband’s death, her instant loss of privacy, the immediate “celebrity”, her concern for son and the harrowing legal scrutinization, carry the film to its ultimate if not ambiguous conclusion.

Killers of the Flower Moon –

Killers of the Flower Moon is a devastatingly emotional adaptation of David Grann’s book of the same name. It retells what can only be described as a series of frauds and murders perpetrated on a vulnerable community. While the book describes the depravity and personal horrors of those involved. Scorsese somehow elevates the book’s more forensic retelling and humanizes the evil. He humanizes deceit and humanizes the gross betrayal people can enact on other people while staring them in the eye and feigning love.

KofFM is beautifully shot and exquisitely acted. It is also a serious attempt to show the tragedy from the eyes of the betrayed as opposed to using a more neutral point of view, which is in many ways why it is so emotionally disturbing. Its biggest problem is pacing and the fact that it is just too, damn long. Don’t get me wrong, long movies are great but here Scorsese just seems to spend copious amounts of screen time in musing and contemplations that do not advance the story. The runtime could have easily been cut by 40 minutes without losing a single shot or line of dialogue.

But what the hell do I know? Scorsese has earned the right to shoot what he wants, and the film works on the most important level. It works emotionally. Lily Gladstone is more than worthy of the accolades she has received. DiCaprio got snubbed but I think he will survive. DeNiro is fine but let’s not go crazy. I would have given a nod to Jason Isbell how was as believable and unsettling in his small role as any of the heavyweights he shared the screen with.

Poor Things –

This is a film that has been described as “What if the Frankenstein Monster was a Woman?” An intriguing question to be sure. Taking a bunch of parts and sewing them together to create a new creature. Poor Things is without a doubt one of the more visually and artistically captivating films of the year. Its voice and originality are present in the make-up, the set design, the cinematography, the lighting, the script…..everything. The director has created a world from head to toe and all the pieces of the film are on the same note. Nothing is out of step and all the parts seem to tell the same tale. The movie as vision and a message and voice. That is no small feat that you don’t often find. The acting was deep and intentional. The story is thought provoking. The film is art. That being said, Im certain I’ll never watch it again.

Maestro –

I’m a sucker for biography pic. It is, at least for me, a formula that normally seems to work. Movies like Maestro often get a bad rap and get tagged as “Oscar Bait”. That shouldn’t disqualify them as worthy or artistic but it’s a pretentious way to seem smart or clever and a little sanctimonious. Since I am neither smart, nor clever and only occasionally sanctimonious, my opinion should be OK.

Bradley Cooper is cutting out an impressive career for himself. First as an actor and quickly as a director. This is his second feature film, and it is a beautiful piece of film making. The academy loves films about artists and personalities and Leonard Bernstein was both. It’s also about a classical musician and conductor which adds a little fuel to the Oscar Bain fire.

Regardless, it is a worthy contender, albeit a long shot. The makeup is astounding. The cinematography and artistic design is exquisite. Cooper’s portrayal of Bernstein is compelling and miles above a simple impersonation. That’s hard enough to accomplish as an actor. But, to direct yourself to a performance like that is a whole other level of achievement. The nomination here is the prize. Click bait or not.

Past Lives –

In another reality this film could have been entitled “What If?” Past Lives is a seemingly simple story of girl and boy whose paths cross as children, then diverge, then cross again 20 years later. The film has a wonderful script with sharp dialogue. The themes are relatable. What if life had opened or closed different doors? How would life be different depending on which love was allowed to grow? Does love have a window?

You get the idea. It is not a grand movie. It isn’t particularly stimulating visually. It’s not an event. But it is smart and contemplative and by the end you are hoping the everyone involved ends up ok. You are rooting for them all. There is no villain here other than timing.

2023-03-12T17:18:00.005-04:00

Well, here we go again. The Oscars are upon us. I have to admit 2023 is as approachable and entertaining a group of nominees as you will find. A complete slate with the max of 10 films nominated for the year. 5 of which are legitimate money makers. Imagine that. With Maverick and Avatar you actually have two full blown blockbusters. Usually, you are lucky to get one. Couple that with a jarring war film, a time bending sci-fi romp, a film legend bio, Amish feminists and a film so dark and depressing it has to be Irish and you have a really great slate of entries for this year’s race. Don’t fear. There are also a couple of entries to satisfy the Academy’s need for well-made yet overly pretentious screeds. But this year there is way much more to love than to hate. All that being said, judging and ranking art is pretty much pointless in the grander scheme of things. That doesn’t mean it isn’t fun.

These are my rankings. This is NOT necessarily what I think is going to happen with the awards. Do not use this list to make bets. You will lose your house. These are listed in the order that I would vote for them if I had such a vote for Best Motion Picture. I would love to hear from you and know what you think.

All Quiet on the Western Front : Agonizingly painful to watch. Not because it is bad but because it is so exquisitely well made. Visually moving and emotionally heart wrenching, AQWF painfully displays the idiocy and futility of World War I and by extension war in general. Based on Erich Maria Remarque
novel by the same name on his experiences as a soldier in the German army during WWI. WWI has had a bit of a resurgence in recent years after decades as the forgotten war. Especially when it came to film. Then Wonder Woman (of all films), 1917, They Will Never Grow Old and others and suddenly WWI is relevant again. Who knew? AQWF works on every level. Through the eye, through the ear and the through the heart it surrounds you with fear and frustration and anger at those with such arrogance who recklessly and dismissively exploit and destroy the lives under their charge. STELLAR FILMMAKING.

Everything Everywhere All at Once : So much has been written about EEAO and it has been dissected from credit to credit. There have been representation stories and nostalgia stories and “oops
did the director say that” stories and more. There has been a lot of noise surrounding this film that unfortunately can draw attention away from the film itself. Strangely enough that is a pretty good description of the actual movie. It is so easy to get lost in the time travel and the universe in peril and the killer fight scenes and the mind bending timeline of the multi-verse that you forget to notice the core of a movie. Its about a mother and a daughter remembering and recognizing their love for one another and the epic struggle that sometimes takes.

Elvis : Never in the history of Elvis was he ever described as subtle. Garish, vulgar, energetic, charismatic, simple and dangerous….sure. But never subtle. The same can be said for Baz Lurhman’s visually bombastic bio ELVIS. Let’s face it, when doing a movie about one of if not the most iconic public figures of the 20^th century there is going to be a great deal of scrutiny on the actor and the performance of the leading role, justifiably. It is fair to say Austin Butler’s inhabitation of the role has been all but universally praised. It really is remarkable. If he wins the Best Actor it will be more than deserved. But this is for Best Picture so I think its important not to lose sight of great the film itself. Just like the King himself it could never be described as subtle. Garish, vulgar, energetic…..you see what I mean. The movie’s direction and presentation was as much an onslaught to the viewer’s sense’s as Elvis’ pelvic thrusts were to a a million teenage girls in the 1950’s. The constant barrage of montage’s and fast paced editing helps emulate the constant turmoil that was the 30 ring circus Elvis’ life turned into. Praise the performance because it deserves it. At the same time don’t forget to recognize the service it plays to the greater goal of an exceptionally made film.

Women Talking : Of all the films in this years crop Women Talking is easily the least “cinematic”. That’s not so say that it isn’t beautifully shot. It is. However, the subject matter requires a visual aesthetic that is bare and sparse. Much as you would expect from a film about abused and suppressed
women of a remote Amish community. So the color spectrum is….well…..limited. But this film is about the text and the subject matter and the phenomenal actresses and actor who bring the words to life. Inspired on the actual events of an Amish colony in Bolivia in 2010, Women Talking is a study in faith, courage, duty, conviction and will. If that sounds like a lot, well it is. Good art can represent a universal truth by focusing on a more localized struggle. This is not just good art it is exceptional art.

Banshees of Inisherin : The fact that this film was entered in the Golden Globes under the category of Film Comedy and Musical is somewhat mind boggling. Don’t get me wrong, if anyone can take sadness, loss, sorrow abandonment and grief and turn it into something funny….its the Irish. Is there comedy in the movie? Sure. Again, because its Irish. But make no mistake about it. The Banshees of Inisherin is a dark and foreboding film. In case you didn’t know, a banshee is a female spirit in Irish folklore who heralds the death of a family member, usually by screaming, wailing, shrieking, or keening. While there aren’t any actual mystical spirits, part experiencing the story is trying to figure out whose death is being foretold. Wrapped in maybe an even sadder tale of loss and abandonment of one poor soul by his best friend, his only living family and eventually his last vestige of love. See, isn’t this hysterical? The views and vistas are extraordinary. The acting and cast are as good as any movie you will ever see. This story is layered and complex but the emotions are common and visceral and continually, increasingly heartbreaking.

Maverick: Top Gun: The single most important quality of a movie is to be entertaining. That isn’t to
say a movie can’t make social commentary or analyze history or question our existence or any number of things…they can. However, if it doesn’t do it in an entertaining way all the other goals will fall by the wayside. Maverick : Top Gun succeeds at its most basic level because it is really freaking entertaining. Its funny and charming and packed with action. It plays on nostalgia and star power and sex appeal. As a matter of a night at the cinema its hard to argue that it succeeds on practically every level. As a movie it knows exactly what it is, exactly what the viewer wants from it and it never…..not for one single frame attempts to be something it isn’t. Additionally, it has a surprisingly refreshing, grown-up love story that isn’t salacious or vulgar which makes it that much more approachable to an even wider audience.
Throw in some of the most amazing, filmed flight action to ever to be seen on screen and the biggest honking movie star of my lifetime and you have Maverick Top Gun!

Avatar: The Way of Water : I hated the first one. I thought it was visually marvelous but the story left me flat. Avatar The Way of Water was even more brilliant visually than the first one. The technology scares me at its realism is ridiculous. There were several moments in the film where I forgot I was watching digitally capture and manipulated images. That is due to the technology for sure but also due to a much better plot and story line than the original. Supposedly there are 4 or 5 more films in the series. I can’t say that I am that excited about visiting this world that many more times but it is fair to recognize this film for what it is and for my money fixing a lot of problems portrayed in the original story.

The Fabelmans : As long as Speilberg has been making feature films I have been on this earth. I have seen them all. He is by almost any reasonable criteria the most important figure in cinema or at least in the discussion with a very small number of people. He is at his core a storyteller of the highest order. This is his life story…roughly, so he tells it like he tells all his stories, actors and images. Spielberg’s
technical expertise as a filmmaker is only matched with his ability to direct actors. The Fabelmans utilizes both wonderfully. There are magical vignettes from start to finish. Shots that encapsulate the moments that we can only assume are seared into his mind’s eye and thankfully now seared into ours. We see through the story his desire to tell stories would have come out in some way in his life. The storytelling was inevidable. If he had discovered an ability for music maybe he would have been a Bach. If he had learned to paint maybe he would have been a Picasso. Luckily for us he was mesmerized by flickering images on a screen and he became a Spielberg. This is his story. A love letter, with all the pain and joy and sorrow and struggle, to his journey. The journey he took to realize who he was and how to tell the stories he wanted to tell. It’s a storyteller telling the story of how he became a storyteller….and its pretty fabulous.

Tar : Tar isn’t a particularly pretentions movie. That’s not say it isn’t about pretentious characters….it is. But the film making is sharp and effective. The director has a definite vision and point of view and every shot fits. The lead character is bold and larger than life. She is a giant and charismatic. She is amazingly portrayed by Blanchett who chews up the screen every minute she is on it. Which is most of the film. There is a menacing sense of dread that carries through out the film that seems more sinister than the payoff divulges. Maybe that was the point all along. Regardless, at 2.5 hours its pacing drags and has you looking at the clock about halfway through. That coupled with a perplexing final image that just seemed out of character of the rest of the films drops it on my list a few spots. As a character study is it still a strong piece of cinema.

Triangle of Sadness : If Tar is a straightforward filmmaking about pretentious characters…..Triangle of Sadness is pretentious filmmaking about pretentious characters. I understand the social commentary the film was trying to make. It wasn’t particularly veiled. I even appreciate some of the subtle humor and

social jabs at the uselessness to society of the uber rich. Not to say it isn’t somewhat balanced with the poor and meager being corrupted by power. Regardless I just found it way too self-indulgent and a little too vain for its own good. If you watch it, wear a black beret and use a cigarette holder to smoke your cloves cigarette. It will put you in the mood.

2022 Academy Awards Best Picture

2022-03-27T15:21:00.003-04:00

Here we go again. Oscar time is upon us. I refuse to say this has been a strange year because that seems to be all we’ve said for the last 2 years. This has been a great year. You know why? We got to get back into theaters. We also got to see a lot of films via streaming. This year’s crop is a wide variety of styles. It has newcomers and old guard. Small quiet films and loud brash movies join some political satire and dark, moody film noire. There is a little something for everyone. A complete slate with the max of 10 films nominated for the year. Judging and Ranking of art is borderline pointless in the grander scheme of things. That doesn’t mean it isn’t fun.

These are my rankings. This is NOT necessarily what I think is going to happen with the award. Do not use this list to make bets. You will lose your house. These are listed in the order that I would vote for them if I had such a vote for Best Motion Picture. I would love to hear from you and know what you think.

BELFAST– Quite simply my favorite film of the year. It is soul stirring and heart breaking. It is as tragic and menacing as it is warm and gracious. It is a condemnation on the evil in this world and the forces that only seem to hurt the innocent and it is a celebration of hope and sacrifice and joy of the possibilities of life. Like the family whose story it tells it is scared and remorseful and angry. Also like the family whose story it tells it is proud and gracious and forgiving. We see the “troubles” of Northern Ireland in the 1960s through the eyes of young boy named Buddy. We don’t understand it any better than he does. He just wants to live his life and love his beautiful family. Director Brannagh has written a love letter to the innocent and brave of Belfast during this time. The characters are rich and warm and caring. The relationship between Buddy and his Grandparents are life affirming. Cirian Hinds as Pop is the grandfather every child deserves. Dame Judi is as good as you would expect, and the biggest acting Oscar snub this year is the absence of Caitriona Balfe for Best Supporting Actress.

To say it warms the soul doesn’t do it justice. If a huge pot of Irish Stew and a fresh loaf of soda bread was ever made into a film….it would be Belfast.

DUNE -I was 6 years old with Star Wars was released. Mom and Dad took all three of us kids to see it and I woke my father up at the end. He just said, “Was that all there is?”
As for me, I was mesmerized. Even at 6, I remembered being transported to a world of lasers and x-wing fighters and wookies. In a lot of ways, it completely set a foundation for how I viewed movies from that point forward. I’ve got to believe the 2021 version of DUNE will be that for tons of young movie fans.
As much as any film as I have seen the last 30 years Dune engulfed me in a world and mythology as quickly and as easily as Star Wars did. That’s a tough task considering the horrible version of Dune that came out in ’84.
Let me stop you there…..YES THE ORIGINAL DUNE WAS HORRIBLE! It looked like it had been filmed in the basement bathroom of my house. It was cheesy and unemotional and may have singlehandedly been responsible for 26% of all the sadness in the world for the latter part of 1984. (That’s just an estimate.)

This Dune is soaring and epic. It is beautifully cast and acted. It understands its pace, respects the original texts, and deftly transfers the singular excitement of reading a book to the communal experience of seeing it on screen. How Villeneuve was not nominated for best director is ridiculous.

WEST SIDE STORY (2021) – Some movies are the gold standard of their genre, or at least one of a few films in each genre that define and are sacrosanct. The original West Side Story is one of those films. It is High Noon, Citizen Kane, Casablanca, and Star Wars of the Movie Musicals. So you have to have a huge set of brass balls to even consider remaking it.

Enter Steven Spielberg. This iteration of WWS is darker, more menacing, deeper, and more nuanced than the original. And as technically impressive as the original was in 1961 and still is today…..its not Spielberg. West Side Story is as visually satisfying and technically gratifying as any film in Spielberg’s unparalleled catalog. The shooting, the design, the vision, the staging and …….well, it’s just amazing. It is as high a level of the art on display. The casting and performances are spot on. Visually it succeeds, emotionally it succeeds, musically it succeeds. It is true to the original and original all at the same time.

NIGHTMARE ALLEY – With all the hullabaloo with the Academy deciding to deemphasize some of the award categories this year I think of Nightmare Alley. In a year of some strikingly beautiful films (Dune, West Side Story, Belfast, and Power of the Dog) Nightmare Alley maybe the most luscious feast for the eyes of all of them. Not because of vast landscapes or colorful musical numbers but because of the exquisitely detailed set, costume, and art design. What is the old saying, “Talking about music is like Dancing about architecture” That is how I felt trying to describe the visual symphony Nightmare Alley uses to spoil the viewer. I am not exaggerating when I tell you the artistic design, costumes, and sets are so effective I you can smell this movie. It is an excellent story with superb acting in a dark and sinister film noir that really does have a feel of a flashback to old Hollywood.

LICORICE PIZZA – Quirky is an understatement. Loosely based on some real-life exploits of one of the film’s producers, Gary Goetzman. Licorice Pizza is a coming-of-age ensemble piece set in 1970’s Los Angeles about an entrepreneurial teenager obsessed with a young woman in her twenties. It is a strange dynamic. The obsession is never consummated but I cannot help but wonder how well this film would been received had the teenager been female and the 25-year-old had been male. At times the movie feels like 20 different, unrelated vignettes filmed separately but not necessarily a coherent film. Some of the scenes were violently funny and there are a lot of nods to famous LA spots and Hollywood legends.

Bradley Cooper gave a hysterical portrayal of Hollywood UberProducer Jon Peters. It was worthy of a best supporting nod, but nobody asked me. Sean Penn chews up the scenery as an aging movie legend that was obviously supposed to be William Holden.
Paul Thomas Anderson’s films are usually well received in Hollywood. They aren’t always as consumable to the rest of the movie going universe. That being said I found myself laughing at this film much more than I expected.

KING RICHARD – King Richard is a pretty, formulaic biography pic. Here is the thing, formulas are formulas for a reason…..they work. Will Smith is and always has been extremely watchable and endearing on screen. With films like Ali he has proven he can be more than an amiable star. He has acting chops and deserves the Best Acting nod from this role as does his on-screen bride Aunjanue Ellis. King Richard is an entertaining film and gives a deeper appreciation of the struggles faced by the Williams family. It is inspiring and funny and familiar because of who it is about. The audience has a built-in ownership. That familiarity can be a double-edged sword but not here. My only knock and its not even a knock is that we have seen this film before and will see it again because, and here is that dreaded word again, the “Formula” works. That’s not the film’s fault. It does its job and is there for all to enjoy. There’s just too much high-level competition to be film of the year.

CODA - This year’s quiet sleeper. It is a heartfelt, adorable film about a young girl who is the only hearing member in her family. CODA stands for Children of Deaf Adults. In this case she’s a sister as well. Film at its best can illuminate and show the view a life or a struggle of a person over obstacles they themselves may never have considered. How do there struggles over obstacles things we take for granted relate to our lives. Thus, giving us all a better connection and understanding to those around us. CODA does that. Is the most complex story? No. Is it visually stimulating or cinematically intriguing? No. But it is honestly acted and portrayed, and it most definitely succeeds in the most important way. It makes you care. Not every film has to be complicated. Sometimes and not often enough the film just has to be honest and sincere. This could have easily been an Afterschool Special and it would have been a great one because of its sincerity.

THE POWER OF THE DOG – Couple of things first.
First, Just because a movie has horses doesn’t make it a western.
Two, no movie is going to reinvent or redefine the American Western…..nor does it need to.
That being said, The Power of the Dog is a psychological drama set in the American west…Montana to be exact. There are horses and cowboys. If you want to call it a “Western” or a “Drama” or a box of skittles I don’t’ care. What is the story and at the end do I care? That’s pretty much how I judge all films. Benedict Cumberbatch plays, Phil Burbank, a crass, vile, cruel bully of a man. He’s contemptible and works to make the lives around him more miserable than himself. The drama unfolds when his brother George, (Jesse Plemmons), takes a wife, (Kirsten Dunst) and brings her and her exaggeratedly, effeminate son to live on the family cattle ranch.

The film asks many more questions than it answers. Its characters and textured and complex. There is mystery and intrigue. There is a menacing overtone to the film that distracts you from what you are seeing until the conclusion. Exquisitely shot, it is a beautiful film to watch if not necessarily to experience. It is contemplative and thought provoking if not emotionally satisfying or efficient. There is some expert filmmaking here and the story has a surprising and effective finish. The problem is the pace of the film is so slow by the time you get to the payoff you’ve almost forgotten why you are supposed to care.

DON’T LOOK UP – Funny, smart, well-acted with some great “against type” casting for DiCaprio and Streep. It was also self-absorbed, way too long, scattered and for my money a little too preachy. I didn’t hate it but if I was a filmmaker, I would aspire to make it either.

DRIVE MY CAR –To be fair I was unable to finish this film. Not because I didn’t want to, but technical difficulties disabled the subtitles and surprisingly my conversational Japanese is not nearly as functional as you may imagine. That being said I saw the first 2 hours……unfortunately it felt like 6 hours, and I still had an hour and half to go. Normally, I’m not against a three- or four-hour film when it is needed to convey the story. Unfortunately for the viewer, Drive My Car doesn’t have anywhere near 3 hours of story to tell you. The prelude to the film lasted over an hour before the opening credits rolled to “start” the movie. WTH? Not every movie should be quickly paced and efficiently shot. Pensive, methodical, slow burn films are fine and even phenomenal until they cross the line of being pretentious, self-absorbed and the most dreaded BORING!

SEE YOU NEXT YEAR!!!!

Unsolicited Movie Listing – Sean Connery’s top 10 Performances Ranked

2022-02-18T10:03:00.004-05:00

To be fair this list is actually 11.
Sean Connery is James Bond. There have been adequate and exceptional bearers for the standard Connery set but make no mistake….Connery is Bond…James Bond.

This listing is for the more than respectable career the legendary Scotsman had irrespective of the Bond series. This isn’t a ranking of his best movies. Although it would be similar list it wouldn’t be identical. Additionally, I admit I have not seen Mr. Connery’s entire catalog. His feature film career started in 1954 and includes 79 films. That’s a good sized body of work for anyone and Connery, sans Bond, still has an impressive career.

This one hurts.

Rest in Peace Sir Sean of Fountainbridge

1 - Jim Malone – The Untouchables
Connery hadn’t gone anywhere since Bond. He had been working but not nearly at the commercially successful level as Bond. The Untouchables vaulted Connery to a different level of legend. It won him his Oscar and set off a string of blockbusters for the next 16 years as an A-List Hollywood star.

2 - Juan Sánchez Villa-Lobos Ramírez – Highlander
If you were a teenager in the late 80’s you probably didn’t go see The Highlander in a theater. Not that many people did. But you probably bought the VHS or rented it a dozen times. It puts the cult in cult classic and just a fine SciFi piece of gold. Connery"s flamboyant Spaniard was brilliant and his death was heartbreaking and he was only on screen for about 15 minutes.

3 - Captain Marko Ramius – The Hunt for Red October
You want to know how good Connery was as Ramius? He played a Russian/Ukranian submarine commander with a Scottish accent and NOBODY gave a damn.

4 - Robin Hood – Robin and Marian
Any list of greatest Robin Hood projects that doesn’t included Robin and Marion is just not credible. Connery as the middle-aged Robin and Audrey Hepburn as Marian turned nun is the perfect “ending” to the fabulous love story….with a dramatic fight at the end to boot.

5 - Joe Roberts - The Hill
Lesser known character study from 1964. Soldiers in a North African prison and lets just say the guards are not very pleasant. Proved Connery had chops and was more that the glitz of 007 which is exactly what he wanted.

6 - Jack Kehoe – The Molly Maguires
Lesser known film but absolutely awesome. SC and Richard Harris as immigrant coal
miners in 1876 Pennsylvania. Intrigue, sabotage, murder, betrayal….and its loosely based on actual events. LOVE this movie. Maybe my favorite of the 10.

7 - Jesse McMullen – Family Business
If anyone ever questioned Connery’s straight up acting chops just send them a link to Family Business. In a straight up drama with industry acting darlings like Dustin Hoffman and Matthew Broderick and SC was their Daddy…and Granddaddy respectively.

8 - Henry Jones Sr. – Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
Completely played against type. There are few enough people on the planet who could have been Indiana Jones/Harrison Ford’s Dad but SC topped the list.

9 - William Forrester – Finding Forrester
Totally believable as the reluctant and regret filled genius. Movie was a bit manipulative but terribly effective.

10 - Daniel Dravot – The Man Who Would Be King
Possibly SC’s favorite film. Mainly because he got to drink and smoke and gamble with his dear friend Michael Caine.

Clint Eastwood Non-Western 1965-1990

2022-02-07T20:01:00.000-05:00

For my money, no one has a better or more complete career in the history of Hollywood since Charlie Chaplin than Clint Eastwood.
I know that is a debatable statement to say the least, but I’ll stand by it. I am open to contrary suggestions. But remember, I didn’t say Clint was the best actor. I didn’t say Clint was the best director. What I said and what I’ll defend is that over his career there isn’t another figure who has the combination of successes, both critical and financial and in sheer volume, in all phases as an Actor,

Director and Producer and even a composer. There are a few that come real close IMO. Robert Redford makes a more than a compelling case behind and in front of the camera. Mel Brooks could be a fun argument. Mel Gibson, lunacy aside, has a strong resume for my criteria. But when you add everything up you still have Clint. And truth be told…. Clint is not my favorite actor or director by a long shot. But the body, the size and the success of the work are hard to deny.

Probably a year ago I had ranked all of Jimmy Stewart’s Westerns. I enjoyed the process so a few months ago I asked a question on Facebook about what I should do next. The winning suggestion was to revisit and rank all of Clint Eastwood’s Non-Westerns. By the way, Clint has a substantial film catalog and while planning I realized it was probably going to be too many films to work with. So, I made a not so arbitrary cutoff in 1990. I did this for 2 reasons. First, starting with Coogan’s Bluff in ‘68 through 1990’s the Rookie there were 25 films that hit my criteria. That seemed like a good round number. Secondly, and this can’t be overstated, there is a clear demarcation in Clint’s career starting in 1992 with the release of Unforgiven through last year’s Cry Macho. To put it plainly, he got better. At least his movies did, especially his non-westerns. To be fair his westerns have always been held in high esteem. It is hard to get better than The Outlaw Josey Wales in 1976. But his non-western films were much more inconsistent until 1993’s In the Line of Fire. He hit a creative groove with non-westerns after Unforgiven with Million Dollar Baby, Grand Torino, In the Line of Fire, Bridges of Madison County, A Perfect World etc that deserves to be looked at separately.

So…Here we go.
Clint Eastwood 1968 – 1990 Lead Feature Films, Non-Westerns…..Don’t hate me in the morning!!

25. Coogan’s Bluff ’68 – Somewhere, someone decided Clint needed should make a hippie movie. This was his. He wasn’t the hippie, but he tried to have sex with as many hippies as he could. It is horrible. Just a mess of a film.

24. The Rookie ’90 – Ill-fated, buddy cop movie with Charlie Sheen. Enough said!

23. White Hunter Black Heart ’90 - Did you ever see the movie where John Wayne played Genghis Kahn…. Well, Clint Eastwood impersonating John Huston isn’t much better. Stay in your lane Clint!

22. Play Misty for Me ’71 – Clint’s directorial debut. It was a hit and a well-received psychological thriller. Unfortunately, it DOES NOT hold up over time. Sensibilities have just changed.

21. Pink Cadillac ’89 – Anytime you expect Clint to be the over the top, extravert it may not go well. A bail bondsman with a heart of gold who will dress up in disguises really feels like a last grasp at a once successful action formula.

20. The Eiger Sanction ’75- The movie is never sure if it is trying to be an American pseudo-James
Bond spy film or a mountain climbing adventure
. There is a good movie of either one in there but not both. Also having a inter-racial love interest seemed progressive until you realized her name was Jemimah……. even in 1975…. My goodness.

19. Honkytonk Man ’82 – I remember seeing this at the theater when I was 11. I liked it. None of the adults I knew were as enamored as I was. It has got its problems but I’m personally fond of the film. Sadly, Eastwood’s son can’t act, and his dad can’t sing. Not a big deal but the movie just happens to be about a guy who can sing.….so…. I still find it to be one of Clint’s better acting performances.

18. Firefox ’82 – Two movies in One. A potentially, exceptional cold war espionage thriller ruined by a deplorably awful plane chase for the last 30 minutes.

17. City Heat ’84 – Two of the biggest stars of the 70’s and early 80’s were Clint and Burt Reynolds. This should have been a hit. IT WASN’T. Much of the reason may have been the marketing. I remember it being billed as a slapstick comedy. It had funny moments but was much more a period crime piece. Not nearly as slick or sophisticated as The Sting from a decade earlier but along those same lines.

16. Sudden Impact ’83 – Dirty Harry Callahan was back after an 8-year hiatus. He hadn’t really learned anything since he left. How in God’s name can he always be shocked that there is a Constitution and a Bill of Rights and Police Procedure. I get that Harry’s appeal is how he’s willing to ignore those things to get the bad guy, but he acts surprised every time he gets in trouble. This is the 4^th movie for God’s sake. When will he learn? This was a huge hit, but the film had most of the same problems as the earlier Dirty Harry films.

15. Tightrope ’84 -Psychological thriller from different source material. Not Clint’s typical flick. The parallels between Clint’s character and the serial killer he is chasing was deeper and a little out of character for Clint. He plays a much more vulnerable character and really ramps up the tension. I liked it much better than I did in 1984. I was expecting Dirty Harry.

14. Paint Your Wagon ’69 – This was the first time Clint sang on screen. Sadly…. very sadly it wouldn’t be the last. By all counts Clint is an accomplished musician. Unfortunately, he is a deplorably, awful singer. Regardless his handsome, straight arrow next to a crusty, scene-chewing Lee Marvin proves to be pretty funny even if the premise is pretty outlandish. Not a movie to overthink. Just enjoy for what it is and the time it came out.

13. Every Which Way but Loose ’78 – It is hard to imagine but adjusted for inflation THIS is Clint Eastwood’s biggest hit and one of the top 250 grossing pictures of all time…WTH? On the surface it’s just horrible. The plot is non-existent and seems like Clint is trying for a Burt Reynolds level of silliness. The acting is bad. Sondra Locke sings and she may be a worse singer than Clint if that’s possible. Then the level of ridiculousness achieved by the nemesis biker gang, the Black Widows of Pacoima, can’t be overstated. ….BUT and this is important…Philo Beddoe and his strange, colorful family are terribly likable and watchable characters. Plot be damned. Not to mention that everyone loves Clyde the orangutan…and the monkey maketh the movie!

12. The Enforcer ’76 – Disgruntled Vietnam vets and drugged out hippies are terrorizing San Francisco but they didn’t count on Harry Callahan. This was the 3^rd of 5 Dirty Harry movies. Killer opening and seriously the whole counter-culture gang of hippie bad guys works. All the Dirty Harry films have some head scratching moments but here the good outweighs the confusing.

11. Heartbreak Ridge ’86 – There is a lot to love about Heartbreak Ridge. Clint is superb as the aging Marine nearing retirement lamenting the mistakes of his life and fearing a future outside of the corp. Every nook and cranny on his face tells a story. He’s believable and sympathetic and really gives a great performance. But the festering boil of this film is the downright absurd way it portrays the Marine Corp unit Gunny Highway is taking over. The dialogue, the scenarios, the acting and the premises are laughably awful. I must fast forward through about 6 scenes and
then I love it.

10. The Dead Pool ’89 – While not the most popular, Dead Pool is probably the Dirty Harry movie with the least warts. Story is much more coherent, and Harry’s popular antics at least advance the story as opposed to just popping up out of the blue. Future heavy weights Liam Neeson and Jim Carrey in supporting roles was fun to revisit.

9. Dirty Harry ’71 – Tip of the hat and props to the original. With Dirty Harry, Clint now has another iconic film character that is the standard bearer for its genre and this one actually talks. Not too shabby.

8. Magnum Force ’73 – The second of the Callahan movies and the best story of the bunch. A rogue group of vigilante cops making life hard for Harry. Great early roles for David Soul, Robert Urich and Tim Matheson. None of them are Jim Carrey but not shabby.

7. The Gauntlet ’77 – It would be easy to think The Gaunlet was a Dirty Harry movie, but it isn’t. It looks like one. Sounds like one and probably smells like one but…. It isn’t. This is Clint’s 2^nd of 6 films with Sondra Locke and their chemistry is very good. It turns into a bit of a travel/buddy movie with the most marvelously ridiculous final sequence someone could imagine. But…and this is important…. It works…. regardless of how ridiculous it is….it works.

6. Thunderbolt and Lightfoot ’74 – Really enjoyable buddy/heist movie with a painfully, young Jeff Bridges and a nasty, mean, larger than life George Kennedy who plays a great foil for Clint and Jeff’s lovable losers. A strangely, sweet film when all is said and done.

5. Any Which Way You Can ’80 – The only reason I put either of these in the top 10 is because as horrible as they are there is a certain charm and likeability for the characters and they both made so much damn money it’s hard not to acknowledge them. This movie was strangely better that the original. No, this is not a Godfather vs Godfather II situation. However, there is a slightly better plot and they made sure to use the orangutan every chance they got. He even has a love scene…but Fellini it ain’t.

4. Kelly’s Heroes ’70 – Released three years after The Dirty Dozen, Kelly’s Heroes has a similar feel but counter-culture was kicking a little harder. So instead of vile criminals banding together to kill Nazis we get a bunch of goofy burnouts so sick and tired of the war they go on a mission behind enemy lines to steal Nazi treasure. So, nothing like DD and very similar at the same time. You also get Donald Sutherland and Telly Savalas as cross overs between the two. This was released the same year at M*A*S*H and Tora Tora Tora! Those are 3 very different looks at war to be sure. Terribly entertaining!! With a cast for the ages Clint, Don Rickles, Carol O’Connor, Gavin McCloud and Harry Dean Stanton join the aforementioned Hawkeye Peirce
and Kojak!

3. Escape from Alcatraz ’79 – Clint hasn’t made it a habit of playing real live characters. That’s probably not a bad idea especially if you’ve seen his impersonation of Walter Huston in White Heart Black Hunter. He’s not that kind of actor. But in Escape from Alcatraz, he’s playing someone nobody knows so an imitation isn’t necessary. Whether or not the film is historically accurate is debatable because honestly, we don’t know exactly who it ended. However, as a piece of entertainment the film works. The script is tight, and the performances are earnest. You are rooting for the “bad guys” to make it and the suspense is real.

2. Where Eagles Dare ’68 – Clint had made a name for himself. The “Man with No Name”

movies were huge hits. His star was on the rise, but he was still getting 2^nd billing especially to Sir Richard Burton. When you think of Alistair MacLean films you think action-packed, large-scale events. Where Eagles Dare is no different. British spies team with an American to break into a mountain-top, Nazi stronghold to save someone that will turn the tide of the war. The suspension of disbelief required of an audience in 1968 is no greater that required in 2022 but it is different. Fight scenes, special effects and action sequences are just different. That doesn’t make the filmmaking worse or less sophisticated. Since Clint wasn’t the main star, it would be easy to drop this on in the list. This is Burton’s movie. Clint is handsome window dressing but that’s OK cause the film is still that good. Anyway, this would be one of the last times Clint Eastwood’s name wasn’t on top of the marquis.

1. Bronco Billy ’80 – In my experience you either love Bronco Billy or you hate Bronco Billy, and most people hate it. I get it. It’s not typical Eastwood fare. People came to the theater to see Dirty Harry or Josey Wales and instead they got a quirky, almost whimsical, love story. Instead of John Wayne or Clint Eastwood They got someone who actually believed all the John Wayne, Roy Rogers and dare I say Clint Eastwood movies were real…..or at least their ideas and themes were real. Bronco Billy has its issues. The love story feels genuine and believable within the context of the film. However, its campy, over-the-top portrayal of Antoinette’s family is at the least distracting. But Bronco Billy is about truth and honor and working hard and obeying your parents and all the lessons Bronco learned from his heroes and now wants to teach the little buckaroos who come to his show. It’s about protecting your friends and being an example of righteousness and doing good. For Bronco it is not silly and its not hokey. Bronco’s amazing level of naivete and optimism is such a contrast to the image Clint cultivated for years. That’s why it is one of Clint’s best performances of his entire career. And not for nothing, when it’s all said and done, you end up pulling for Bronco. Even though he’s frustrating and oblivious and painstakingly loyal despite the consequences you want him to be right. You want this optimism to actually be the truth and doggone it…..maybe it is.
Such a sweet film.

I’m open for rigorous questioning!!

Unsolicited Movie Review - 2021 Oscar Edition

2021-04-25T15:05:00.001-04:00

Here we go again. Oscar time is upon us. Not to belabor the fact that this has been a strange year……but this year has been exceptionally strange. I did not see any of this year’s nominees in an actual theater. I hated it. However, it was not necessarily devastating to the process. The movies have been streamed and the ballots have been cast. This is me taking a few minutes to reflect on the Oscar nominees and humbly offer my opinions on said list. A few years ago, the Academy expanded the number of movies that could be nominated for Best Picture to 10. This year the voters presumably found 8 movies worthy of the top honor. Unlike a lot of years there really wasn’t a movie in this year’s class that I hated….Dammit! Conversely, I am not sure there is a masterpiece of the ages either. Time will tell. Regardless these 8 films are all worthy and as much as I would love to hate one of them I really can’t.

There are three films that rely heavily on non-actors (real people) to add authenticity to their story, a modern day Grapes of Wrath, 4 period pieces with varying emphasis on the period, Hannibal Lecter losing his mind, the first Asian and the first Muslim Best Actor Nominees, an actor who appeared in The Black Panther playing an actual Black Panther and Borat playing a serious role….sort of and one of the more satisfying revenges in a film I can recall.
All these films achieve connecting you with the stories and most importantly the characters. What else could you ask for? I know. How about popcorn and a theater and sticky floors and squeaky seats and……but that is for a different column.

These are my rankings. This is not necessarily what I think is going to happen with the award. Do not use this list to make bets. You will lose your house. These are listed in the order that I would vote for them if I had such a vote for Best Motion Picture. I would love to hear from you and know what you think.

Promising Young Woman – No other movie smacked me so bluntly and so unexpectedly as Promising Young Woman. No other movie surprised my as much as PYM. Two choices that I just did not see coming. This could have easily been movie of the month or a slasher horror film or a silly romantic comedy. Lesser hands could have and would have made this a less consequential film. Instead, we have a serious examination of one woman’s dedication…even compulsion…for justice or at least vengeance for her friend. While it is a bit cliché to say good people have done bad things and bad people have done good things. PYM expands that and demands accountability for those that did wrong and those that looked another way…..ourselves included. The story takes a few minutes to find its purpose and direction. When it does, be careful. That purpose and direction may be coming to hit you between the eyes.

Minari

Some movies foreshadow their story so poorly that they become predictable and bore you to death. Some films intentionally lead you down a path just to drop the floor out from under you. Those can be fun even if they are ridiculously manipulative. Then on occasion you get a film that is patient and subtle and deliberate. It engages you with characters and a story and keeps you interested with the choices and directions as the story unfolds. On some levels Minari is a standard fish out of water tale. A young Korean family moves to rural….very rural…Arkansas because the father has a dream of making his life as a farmer and he has a vision. It would have been easy for the director of Minari to fall into cinematic tropes of overly aggressive racists or typical cultural differences. Those stories are important, but they are not this story. The director slyly uses the viewers built in expectations to suggest tension that is not even there only to allow the story to develop further without relying on overused cliches. This is a story of family and struggle. It is a story of husbands and wives and making a better life. It is a story of trust and commitment and discovery and most importantly love and eventually understanding.

Nomadland

Stark , raw, believable and touching. Nomadland is a movie of its time yet it has the potential of being timeless. It is also the front runner to win this award. Frances McDormand plays Fern. She is a modern day Tom Joad devastated by events beyond her control. Where Joad has his family on a specific destination to the promised land of California, Fern’s road is more ambiguous but no less desperate and much lonelier. Fern’s is a continual journey with no goal beyond living. She finds a community along the way. Other fellow travelers resigned to a life of constant motion and changing landscapes either by circumstance or self-awareness. Frances McDormand’s ability to strip any sense of ego and pretense from her acting serves her so well. There is no sense of “star” or “privilege”. She blends into this amazing life and community seamlessly. The lives and tales of the people she encounters serves the story. Most importantly it builds in the viewer such a level of admiration for the perseverance of those who have found this life through choice or more often through desperation.

Mank

There are few Hollywood legends more juicy and more famous than the tale of the making of Citizen Kane. Orson Welles commentary on the corruption of power through his veiled expose of William Randolph Hearst was and is a masterpiece. It was Welles’ opus. He was 27 and created this brilliant film where he was the star, the director and the co-writer…….well that’s where Mank comes in.
Mank was Herman J. Mankiewicz legendary screen writer as much for his writing as his drinking and carousing. An amazing writer, Mankjewicz was known as a script fixer and worked on dozens of projects often receiving no credit. He was brilliant and funny and bigger than life and a raging alcoholic whose self-destructive behavior was nearly as legendary has his talent. He was also part of Hearst’s inner circle. Mank the film is much like the man himself. It is quick paced, fast witted, extremely smart and entertaining as hell. The writing is in his style with the same brilliant banter and dialogue Mank made his trademark. Shot in a gorgeous Black and White that stands as such a contrast the to the ever- present grays of morality in the lives of these men. The parallels to Kane are not subtle nor are they meant to be. Just like Kane these stories are about men who may be larger than life, but the real drama and truth only comes once they begin to comprehend just how small they are.

The Father

If Anthony Hopkins had never played Hannibal Lecter he would still have been a legendary actor. His bona fides are second to none. At 83 he would be the oldest actor ever to win Best Actor. He is ridiculously awesome but set that aside. This is about Best Picture, and The Father immerses you in a slow, frustrating demise of an otherwise brilliant mind. Adapted from a stage play The Father attempts to make the viewer feel the anger, fear, embarrassment and helplessness of someone suffering from dementia. What you see and what you hear is not necessarily what you saw and what you heard. Hopkins’ ability of subtly switching his emotions from elation to confusion to anger add vital human effect the director needs to tell his story. You are at times upset, hopeful, sad, offended, surprised, suspicious, exhausted and eventually resigned to the cruel fate the situation. That comes as much from the editing and construct of the film as it does from the brilliant performances by all the cast.

Judas and the Black Messiah

Few actors have had a better run in the last several years than Daniel Kaluuya. His options and choices have been second to none. Judas and the Black Messiah is another stellar film. Excellent performances top to bottom. The Black Panthers elicit such extreme emotions across the political and social landscape that this movie will be completely dismissed by some and overly praised by others just off that basis alone. Because of the current political climate, the film becomes less of a period/historical piece about a turbulent time in the civil rights movement and more of a direct comparison and parallel to current struggles in today’s legal and political system. The more things change. Judas and the Black Messiah gives much deserved depth and dimension to what is all too often viewed through flat, binary, monochromatic lens.

The Trial of the Chicago 7 – Of all the films this year ToC7 is one that I will watch again and again. It will probably find its way to TNT or FX. It has stars, it is an interesting retelling of a famous trial. It is a grand courtroom drama, and it is just entertaining as hell. Aaron Sorkin is phenomenal at his job. He fills this already interesting story with superbly timed dialogue and gives ample opportunities for an absurdly gifted cast to shine. There is civil unrest, legendary characters, an over-the-top villain to hate and a group of passionate, albeit colorful, underdogs fighting for justice. What’s not to like? It is by far the most commercially friendly of all this year’s selections and I do not mean that as an insult. ToC7 does not have the built-in cache or artistic freedom of an indie pic. It works inside stricter parameters and for that may be a bit more formulaic. However, formulas are formulas for a reason……they work.

Sound of Metal – In a bit of theme this year is another film that uses several “non-actors” throughout the story to increase the authenticity of the story and lets me honest…..save money on salaries. Call me a cynic. I’ve listed Sound of Metal at the bottom of my list but that doesn’t mean it is a bad film. To the contrary it is an extremely emotional film and character study of a man losing what he thinks is his entire life after fighting so hard to regain a life he had lost before. Riz Ahamed plays a heavy metal drummer who wakes up one day to find he has lost most of his hearing practically overnight and probably will lose more. From there the movie reveals his struggles with addiction and how losing his hearing is also losing a life he had fought so hard to regain to begin with. This anguish fuels an even greater struggle in Ruben to refuse the reality he now finds himself and a desperation to hold onto this life as he knows it even though it is already lost. The acting is devastatingly good. You truly ache for Ruben and his inability to accept.

So there is the list. 8 really well done films with a broad range of interests, styles, direction and topic. Let me know what you think!!

My lunch with Larry King.....Sorta

2021-01-23T12:51:00.000-05:00

In the summer of 1993 I was living in College Park, Maryland working for my national fraternity as a Summer Recruiter. The chapter was going through reorganization and I was tasked with traversing the state meeting with incoming freshman and their parents.

It was the summer before my last semester. Shelli and I had been dating a couple of years. I was worrying, at least as much as I worry about anything, about the how in God's name I was going to get a job after December graduation.  The two best prospects were going to work full time for my fraternity or trying to get a job on Capitol Hill working for the office of a member of Congress. Neither position paid more that about $12k a year but who needs money?

One of the the prominent alumni of the Maryland chapter was Paul Weller a respected lobbyist (yes I know that is a bit of an oxymoron but true) on K street.  My friend and part-time mentor John Kruse had worked several years in the world of DC fundraising and made sure I got in contact with Paul as someone good to know. If I wanted to work in DC he would be a great resource. Also, I think John was somewhat nervous that without a job after graduation I would be sleeping on his sofa and his new bride Susan probably wouldn't have approved. Paul was very gracious and invited me to lunch right a way.

I was 21 from the Smoky Mountains of NC, driving a beat up Ford Tempo getting ready to have lunch with a DC lobbyist. So on a Wednesday morning I put on my ONE navy blue, double-breasted, worsted wool suit I bought from Steinmart for $99. To be fair, it looked great dressed up with a shirt and tie that cost more than the suit itself. Shelli Hamer York had helped my pick it out for just such an occasion. Got on the train and rode into K street like I was somebody. I had visions in my head of Granny in the back of the truck on the opening of the Beverly Hillbillies. I found Paul's office which was nice but modest. I hadn't tripped or farted and nobody was staring at me. So I was doing all right. Paul came in and we shook hands. The first thing I noticed was he wasn't wearing a $99 suit from Steinmart. Then I noticed his tailored shirt with french-cuffs and his "Presidential Seal" cuff links. Dorothy wasn't in Kansas anymore. After intros and some small talk he asked where I wanted to eat and I am pretty sure I responded with "Its Your Town Paul" . LOL what a schmooz! We walked a couple of blocks up the street to Paul's favorite spot called Duke's. He said it like I was supposed to have heard of it but the only Duke's I knew was a mayo. I was feeling a bit more like a rube. Paul walked at a quick step and I hurried along with my faux-leather portfolio under arm trying to make sure I didn't trip or otherwise embarrass myself. Then we ducked into an office building which I found odd. With a name like Duke's, I was expecting to be standing at a counter eating a greasy dog, a dive with ambiance. Then we got on the escalator. Maybe not a greasy spoon I thought. At the top of the escalator, which I disembarked without falling, there were 2 large double doors. They were opened for us and we entered Duke's. As we stood a moment waiting on the maitre d, I glanced to my left to a huge glass case with three silver trophies. Three Vince Lombardi trophies from the 3 Super Bowl championships of the Washington Redskins. Paul must have seen me standing there with my jaw open and explained to me that Jack kept the trophies here so everyone could enjoy them. You know, Jack. Old salt of the earth, buddy and pal Jack. Or as I would have referred to him Mr. Jack Kent Cook the legendary owner of the skins. I'm sure I grunted and we were led to our seat.

Between the reception area and the table I saw no fewer than 3 Senators, 2 House members, 1 current cabinet member and a future Secretary of Defense all having lunch. If I told you my head wasn't spinning I would be lying. I was star struck as much as if my Mom had met Elvis. I had a romantic idea about Washington and politics and from what I could tell I was currently smack dab in the epicenter. We were seated by a window overlooking L street if I recall. All the waiters in Dukes were middle aged men. I found that extremely odd. Most restaurants I could afford the wait staffs were teenagers and women. All of Duke's linens were crisp. All of Duke's silver was sparkling. Everything was professional. Dukes was famous for their homemade pickles and fresh baked onion rolls. I ate both and I assume they were phenomenal but if I am honest I didn't taste a thing. Paul had a martini and I ordered a Heineken. The only thought that kept going through my mind was "Dear God I hope he offers to pay!"  I literally had $7 in the bank and less than that in my wallet.

Once we were settled I started looking around and glanced to my right. There, two tables over was ....Larry King. Not sure how I missed him before but there he was larger than life. His table was on the front side of a dividing wall. So it looked like he was holding court. There was himself and what I would assume were staff and a couple of lunch guests. One was an author he we going to interview that night. While we sat there everyone who was anyone stopped by to say hello to the King.  I didn't know this at the time but Larry King was famous for his routines. For instance, every morning of his life he darted into the same barber for a touch up and a shave. He also ate lunch almost every day at Dukes. And he must have because it was like he owned the place. It was his world and he was letting everyone else hang around. He was younger and still quick to his feet to shake a hand or hug a neck. Like I said we were close and all the "Hello Senator" "Good to see You Tom" exchanges were just like I was sitting there. I was having lunch with Larry King...sorta.
A few weeks later I was watching the Larry King show and he mentioned lunch at Dukes. Silly as it seems, it felt so familiar. Oh yea, I remember dining there. Just like it was Arby's or KFC. It was was our place. LOL....My old buddy Larry. Do you remember seeing the Senator the other day? Like I said, what a schooz. lol

Paul and I finished our lunch. He assured me I must try the soft-shelled crab. They weren't always in season but we lucked out. He was right. I didn't take a bite till Paul did because I wasn't exactly sure how to attack it. I was feeling a little less like Marcel Ledbetter in a Jerry Clower story but not much. And I have to admit the crabs were divine. Luckily, I was able to come out the ether long enough to talk to Paul about the recruiting efforts at the chapter, some current events and possible job opportunities in DC for when I graduated. Paul and I stayed in touch the rest of the summer and he took me out for Monte Christo's another time but not at Duke's  I must not have been nearly as hopeless as I felt. Paul wrote me a glowing letter of recommendation for which I was always grateful.

I made it back to Raleigh a few days after classes had started for my last semester. Then spent the next semester planning for a job and praying I didn't fail Spanish III. Paul's letter and some other contacts got me a couple of interviews with Congressmen and a shot at working in Kansas for the national fraternity.  In the end, I also got a job offer in the private sector that was an astonishing $22k a year with a company car and promises of exoctic travel to places like Hamden CT, Adairsville GA and Williamston, NC. If that wasn't enough of an enticement it came with the added bonus of letting me stay in Raleigh and not causing Shelli the excruciating heartache of me moving hours and hours away.
I mean seriously, how often was she going to have the opportunity to snag someone who had lunched at Duke's with Larry King?

Unsolicited Move Reviews - 2020 Oscar Edition

2020-02-09T19:45:00.001-05:00

Here we go again. Oscar time is upon us. The tickets have been bought and the ballots have been cast. Every year I take a few minutes to reflect on the Oscar nominees and humbly offer my opinions on said list. A few years ago, the Academy expanded the number of movies that could be nominated for Best Picture to 10. This year the voters presumably only found 9 movies worthy of the top honor. Just between you and me I think they were overly optimistic by about 1. Last year’s crop was the thinnest I can remember. This year’s crop has a lot of depth. Two masterpieces, a sad clown, a happy Hitler, 2 Scarlett Johannson sightings, a Korean Con Game, Batman and Good Will Hunting racing cars and a clunker mob flick that should have been buried with the real Jimmy Hoffa

This is not what I think is going to happen. Do not use this list to make bets. You will lose your house. These are listed in the order that I would vote for them if I had such a vote. I would love to hear from you and know what you think.

1917

World War I was ironically called the War to End All Wars. Now, frustratingly, it is often called the Forgotten War.

After 119 minutes engulfed in Sam Mendes' riveting look at the nightmare that was WWI you will experience a range of emotions. It is at times exciting, horrifying, jolting, heartbreaking and poignant. The one thing it damn sure isn’t is Forgettable!

Mendes accomplished the sensation the movie was filmed in one or two continuous shots. It is a seamless form of storytelling. The viewer goes from watching the events as a witness. Then, without being aware of the transition, is suddenly experiencing the scene from the POV of the protagonists. There are dozens of truly exquisite aspects of filmmaking throughout the movie. But the true test, which 1917 passes with flying colors, is to use these tricks and techniques to advance the most important part of any film which is the story. There is a camaraderie the viewer feels with the heroes from of the sensation of walking this path with the two soldiers almost as if the viewer is a 3rd member of their band. That does not take away from great acting and a great script but it’s astounding what is achieved through the masterful use of technology and technique.

The scope of the film is magnificent. The attention to detail even more so. Mendes dedicated the film to his Great Grandfather who fought in WWI and told his family of the tales and stories that helped build this script. Grandpa must have been one helluva tale spinner. The authenticity of the two men’s struggle, the soldiers and civilians they meet along the way down to the prodigious rats shines through. Regardless of what unthinkable situation they find themselves nothing seems inauthentic. You can smell the fires. You can feel the mud. You can taste the desperation to survive while all round them are constant reminders of the thousands and thousands that didn’t.

It is a masterful piece of storytelling.

UPON A TIME...IN HOLLYWOOD

What is so taking about the movie is the exquisite and exacting nature of every single piece of it is planned, framed and executed. The worry with such exactness is you get a film that is mechanically sound but with no pace or rhythm. But here QT is at the top of his game and visual orchestration of it all is superb. QT takes seemingly unconnected strings of beautiful vignettes and somehow turns them into a cohesive story in the end.

Honestly, there is almost too much to talk about. The music is enchanting. The construction and execution of scenes and shots are exquisite. The casting is beyond great. Right down to the least of parts. If you don’t like Leo or Pitt, I don’t know what to tell you. They are both superb as hyper exaggerated versions of their most cliched selves. Margot Robbie is delightful and whoever decided to cast Damian Lewis as Hollywood Icon Steve McQueen should get a raise.

This is, as it eludes in the title, A Fairy Tale. It is Tarantino’s tale and while Fairy tales aren’t known for their subtlety......neither is the director. While this is one of the most linear story lines Tarantino has ever done it is also one of the least juvenile movies (content not withstanding) he has ever done. There are some flashbacks but as a rule it takes you from point A to point B. Or at least F to Q. It is a departure for the director, but it is a way for him to lull you to sleep and pretend to make you think you aren’t in TarantinoLand. But don’t worry.....I guarantee you will know you were in TarantinoLand when you leave and damned if doesn’t seem to get revenge for the charming Sharon Tate.

JOJO RABBIT

Let’s face it. If you can’t enjoy a whimsical little frolic with the Nazis through war-torn Berlin then what can you enjoy? Not sure there is a better acted film in this year’s bunch. Top to bottom, stellar performances with charm, nuance and passion. Roman Griffin Davis who plays the title character Jo Jo gave an Oscar worthy performance......and he’s 12. Scarlett Johannson inspiring as Jo Jo’s mother trying to raise her son in the middle of Nazi central while still giving him a safe environment to be a little boy. Sam Rockwell plays a closeted, gay SS officer who befriends the boy and Rebel Wilson plays a strangely delightful, yet evil henchwoman for a dying regime. Did I mention that Jo Jo’s imaginary friend is Adolf Hitler......and he’s hysterical.....and he and Jo Jo sort of perform an Esther Williamsesque water ballet? If this all sounds strange, well, it is. But it is also wonderful. The film balances the horrors and ugliness of the reality of the Third Reich by showing it through the eyes and imagination of a beautiful, caring and happy child. It is a narrow path to travel without the movie crashing in the ditch and catching on fire. It is a beautiful story filled with sadness, fear, surprise, humor, whimsy, compassion and love. What else could you ask for? By the way did I mention Scarlet Johannson?

PARASITE

I read one description of this film where someone called Parasite a modern-day fairy tale. I call it it an amazingly sophisticated piece of film making. It has a lot to say and I am not sure it can be digested it one viewing. It is a social commentary on class and social structure. It is a biting satire about family values. It is a bit of screwball comedy of errors with tragic consequences. It is cautionary tale of coveting your neighbor’s life. But, most importantly it is a painful reminder of just how much of our humanity we can lose when we forget to see the basic humanity in others. It says all this wrapped up in suspenseful, edge of your seat black comedy.

It has been said “Fairy tales do not tell children that dragons exist. Children already know that dragons exist. Fairy tales tell children the dragons can be killed.” Chesterson

If PARASITE is a fairy tale then Ho is showing us if we lose our humanity by not seeing others as human, then we become the dragons ourselves. JOKER

20 years ago, I visited the Holocaust museum in Washington DC. I was blown away by the emotional journey the curators constructed for the visitors to help them, if even just slightly, understand the awful and terrible events they had been entrusted to explain. It is an experience I value and an experienced that changed me but it also somewhere I never feel the need to visit ever again. My 17 year old asked me what I thought about JOKER. Well, I said. Not to be in anyway disrespectful, it reminded me of the Holocaust Museum. I was blown away by the emotional journey of the movie. As burnt out as I am of the comic book world this movie was only tangentially related to that world. The movie was a strong commentary on loneliness and mental illness. Joquin Phoenix was truly exceptional in his descent into madness. You hear of people acting with their entire body? No better example that his performance. The cinematography really complimented and enhanced the rest of the film. It was tiring and emotional…..and I have absolutely no desire to ever see it again. FORD V FERRARI

Great Story - Check Huge Stars – Check Interesting Characters – Check Fast Cars – Check This movie is a bit of a throwback. If it would have been made in the 60s Newman and Redford could have played the roles or Doughlas and Lancaster. It was entertaining as hell. The humor was organic within the story and within the situations. The two main characters were perfectly cast in Bale and Damon. They made the leads people you cheered for even if we may not have liked them in real life. Let’s face it. That is still the true test of any film. Do you care what happens to the characters on screen? You hope they succeed, or you may hope they crash and burn but at least you care what happens to them. If you don’t care, well then......you don’t care.

LITTLE WOMEN

Beyond, beautifully acted. Saoirse Ronan is one of the best actresses in Hollywood. She already has a wide variety of roles under her belt and we have yet to find something she can’t do. It is hard to breathe new life in a story that is so well known and been told so often. But the director Greta Gertwig has proven to be an astoundingly capable director. The movie felt contemporary despite its 1860’s.

MARRIAGE STORY

There is something to be said about really, talented and thoughtful actors portraying the characters envisioned by smart, inciteful writers. MARRIAGE STORY, for unfair comparison drawing purposes, is the 2019 version of Kramer vs Kramer. The similarities are obvious. Both stories are about the divorce of couples with a small child and the devastating effects it has on all involve. Each film has two superb actors and each movie is raw and emotional and sad with some hope in the end. Driver and Johansson have some powerful scenes and the rage and pain the find seems real as does the moments of caring the show even in the worst parts of this horrible process. The dialogue is great but there are several moments where the film crosses from smart and thoughtful to douchey and pretentious. Luckily, those moments are few and far between.

THE IRISHMAN

It is always cathartic to hate at least one of the nominees. This year it is THE IRISHMAN. I started to write a long diatribe about this film and the director and why he felt compelled to make this film. I went on so long because I found so much about this film I did not like. The story has been told countless times by much better films. Many of those better films were made by Scorsese himself. It is slow and meandering with no sense of pace. The technology used to make DeNiro and Pesci look 40 years old didn’t work. It removed some wrinkles, but you never forgot the actors were still in their 70’s. Pacino was the second worse miscast of any actor in any of this year’s nominees. He just tried to “pacinoize” Hoffa and was terrible. The only reason this film was nominated is because of the star power of the Director and the Cast. Not the first time that has happened or the last but don’t let that fool ya. The movie was mediocre at best. Some people might have called this a modest film. Well, it had a lot to be modest about. Well there you go. That’s how I would rank them if I was voting.

Good-Bye Sweet Lady

2019-05-11T22:17:00.000-04:00

The first time I met Virgie Virginia Smith Hamer was coincidentally or maybe prophetically in her kitchen. Little did I know that over the next 28 years I would eat hundreds of meals prepared in that very kitchen. Her daughter Shelli and I were friends at college and lived in the same apartment complex. Shelli was desperately interested in dating me. But I thought it was wiser to just remain friends. If you believe that I have a bridge to sell you. I was smitten with Shelli but we had yet to start dating. Wanting to introduce their friends to their parents and also wanting to try out a bar in their home town, Shelli and her roommate invited several of us to Sanford, NC. She wanted to take me and some of our friends to dinner and introduce us to the folks. So, on a cool Friday evening about 8 of us loaded up and headed down the road.

The first place we stopped was 276 Chris Cole Road. Since we were with Shelli, we climbed the back steps to a small landing and entered the back door. It entered right into the kitchen and Virgie was there to meet us. In retrospect we might have been a bit of an opposing sight. I stand 6’ 3” and at the time weighed 220 lbs. And 4 of the other guys with us were all over 6 feet and none of us had ever pushed ourselves away from a dinner table. This is only important because I can’t imagine what poor Miss Virgie was thinking. Years later she told me that after she met all of us, she never worried about Shelli being safe at school again. If we couldn’t keep her safe, she didn’t know who could.

Everyone headed to the living room and there was this strange glow emitting from the front wall. The Hamers had an intriguing 4ft by 3ft mural over their television. It was a rather nice mountain lake vista but it wasn’t hanging it a frame. The frame was actually part of the wall and in the hollow behind the picture was a fluorescent light bulb so you could make this huge lake vista glow. It was different.

We all sat in the living room with Shelli going around the room introducing the lot of us. I had positioned myself at the end of the sofa directly under the heavenly glow of the amazing wall art mentioned above on the same side of the room as Virgie. So, I couldn’t see her but I could hear her and Shelli talking.

“Mama”, Shelli would say, “That is Monte and that is Ryan and that is Don.”

Virgie would nod politely or say hello after each name.

Then Shelli finally got to me.

“Mama” she said, “That is Brandon down on the end.

I turned my head a little and I could see Virgie sit up in her seat. Then she leaned over and stretched her neck around to see me. Then I heard her say, “Oh yea. I’ve heard about him.”

I wasn’t sure if that was good or bad but at least I knew Shelli had been talking about me.

A few minutes passed and Shelli’s Dad, Robert came in the door. He was a truck driver and had just returned from a run. Robert opened the door, saw all these strangers sitting in his living room. He never batted an eye. He just said hello and nodded. Then proceeded to take off his shoes, move to the middle of the living room and right there in front of everyone got down in the floor and laid flat of his back. Apparently, Robert had back issues and he could only find relief laying on a hard, flat surface. It is fair to point out that Robert was a mountain of a man. A little over six feet tall he was well over 300 lbs. And, while he was definitely rotund, he was equally solid as rock. So, I have to admit it was a strange sight to see him nonchalantly sprawl out it the floor in a room full of strangers.

For their part, Shelli and Virgie were completely unphased and just continued the conversation. Occasionally, Robert would roll over on his side and prop his head up to ask a question. He would get his answer and go right back to the flat position. While I have to admit I found it amusing sitting in the Hamer house that night, I also learned something very important about Virgie and Robert. Both of them were wholly without pretense. They didn’t play games or put people through tests. There was no deception or false face with anything they did. They were, at their core, honest and comfortable with who they were. If they had a question they asked. If they had something to say they said it. Always polite but never with an agenda. It was how they lived their lives and I correctly assumed it was how they raised their family.

So, I’ve learned more things about about Virgie over the last three decades. Here are a few.

Virgie was by any definition a World Class Conversationalist. The woman could talk. She was so good at talking it wasn’t even necessary for the other member of the conversation to be aware of their participation. Forget their awareness, their presence in the same room wasn’t even necessary. For Virgie to be standing in the kitchen having a conversation with you while you were sitting in the living room completely oblivious of the situation was not an anomaly but a common occurrence.

My first experience with this was soon after Shelli and I started dating. We made the trip to Raleigh to go to church one Sunday morning. Afterwards, as was customary, Virgie laid out a feast. A few hours later it was time to head home. We said our goodbyes and headed out the same back door I had first walked through a few months earlier. Virgie was talking with us as we left and she followed us out the door. She stayed on the stoop as we headed down the steps and she kept talking. About what I have no idea. I dutifully walked around and let Shelli into the car and Virgie was still talking. I was trying to nod and acknowledge while I walked around to get in and Virgie was still going at it. I got into the car and rolled down the window before I closed the door because Virgie was still talking about something and I didn’t want to be rude. I got the door shut and there she was still telling us whatever vitally important story she was involved in. As I sat there patiently waiting for her to finish Shelli poked my arm and said, “Roll up the window and just back out.”

“What? I can’t do that, she is still talking.” I replied

“Well, she’ll be here this time tomorrow if you don’t drive off. Trust me.”

So, begrudgingly, I started the engine. I didn’t have the heart to roll up my window. Then I put the car in reverse and backed down the drive. Virgie never missed a beat. As we pulled out into the road and headed towards home I looked into my rearview mirror and there she was, standing on the back stoop leaning on the railing just talking away. Arms were crossed and looking at no one in particular but whatever she was saying seemed to amuse her. I often wonder how far down the road we got before she realized we were actually gone. Not that it would have stopped her.

In addition to her ability to talk, another quality that stands out to me about Virgie is that she was so funny. Not tell a joke funny but it was that special kind of funny where she never intended to be funny or realized exactly why she was funny.

Going out to dinner with Virgie could be an experience. Upon returning to the table from the bathroom or from visiting a buffet in was not an uncommon event for Virgie to take her seat at someone else’s table. This invariably elicited some shocked amusement from her new table mates and just plain, old regular amusement from her family. Virgie would be shocked and spend the next 10 minutes explaining to the “victims” how she made such a mistake.

There was at least one confirmed instance of Virgie getting into the wrong car in a parking lot. Luckily, before she called a tow truck because she couldn’t start the car with her keys, she realized the mistake. Looking in the rearview mirror she saw a car seat and being almost 70 years old she surmised it wasn’t hers.

As sweet and kind and Virgie was, she also had a competitive streak. She was meticulous about her appearance and everything had to be just so. One time on a trip to the mountains she was in a restaurant and when she came to the table, on the first try no less, she mentioned that she had seen another lady a few tables over wearing her exact outfit. She chuckled and brushed it off saying that it was OK because the outfit looked much better on her anyway. Virgie was more than a little surprised to find out she had been seeing herself in a wall-sized mirror to help the dining room look larger than it was.

The most Virgie of Virgie stories that I remember was from a conversation she had with one of her grandkids. Holly was about 12 and was talking about what movie to rent that evening. Holly asked her Grandmother, “What is your favorite movie?”

Virgie gave it some thought, made up her mind and said, “Well, if I had to pick my favorite movie I’d have to say “Snow White and the Seven Dwarves”.

Being an inquisitive child, Holly had a follow up question.

“Oh really. Why do you love Snow White so much?” she asked.

“Well” Virgie replied. “I’m not sure. I’ve never actually seen it.”........That was Virgie.

It is important to note that all of Virgie’s humor didn’t come from her aloofness. She could deliver a zinger when she needed to.

One year at Christmas her son Mark was in another room. Apparently, he was less than thrilled with the toy haul he had under the tree and mentioned he had not gotten a lot of stuff that year. Virgie, with her ever vigilant radar, heard the young man’s angst and quickly snapped back for all to hear, “You better enjoy. Cause it’s going to be a lot less next year!”

A few weeks after Robert had passed away, Virgie was going to come spend the week with me and Shelli. We came to pick her up and took her to church. As we were leaving, we stopped to shake hands with the Preacher Morrison who had married us a couple of years before. Exchanging pleasantries, Virgie told the preacher that she was going to spend the week with us. I winked at the Reverend and told him I had just bought a new mop and broom to mark the occasion. Virgie didn’t miss a beat. She clutched her purse, clicked her tongue and said, “Well, that broom and mop will still be new when I leave.”

She didn’t say another word. Turned on her heels and headed out the door. The preacher and I just laughed.

She could be aloof. She could deliver a one liner in a pinch. She could also be so silly. Especially with the grands. They LOVED getting Virgie, and sometimes Robert, to play along outside of their typical selves. The girls would teach Virgie the lyrics to some new rap or hip-hop song. Then when Virgie would attempt to perform it back to them the hilarity ensued. She would always want to know the new sayings the kids were using. She would get Mark or Shelli to tell her a popular phrase. Then she would spring in on the grands to just watch them laugh hysterically. “Yo Dana, what up?” or “Hey Stacy, are you Lit?”

My favorite example was one night at the Relay for Life. The girls convinced Virgie and Robert to play along and dance by “Raising the Roof”. Both of them did and it was quite hysterical. But it wasn’t nearly as funny as listening to the girls laugh. That’s all they wanted to do. Virgie and Robert had no clue as to why Raising the Roof was funny. But they knew how happy it made the kids and grandkids and that was enough to bring the silly.

If it isn’t obvious, I loved Virgie. We hit it off early. The term, Twinkle In Her Eye, could have been coined about her. There was never any tension or animosity that is so sterotypical with in-laws. Shelli always joked that I was Virgie’s favorite. She could never leave me because Virgie would never forgive her. Shelli’s brother Mark believed there was something to me being the favorite as well. He used to call and make sure Shelli and I were coming home particular weekends. Mark swore Virgie only cooked big meals if I was in attendance. He wasn’t totally wrong. But, while it makes a great story and good family jokes nothing could be further from the truth. Virgie loved her family completely. There was Robert and Lynn and Shelli and Mark and each and every grand. Tim and Jim before him and Danielle and myself were welcome and loved additions by marriage and gracefully added to the fold. But the idea of anyone taking a front seat over those kids is crazy.

Virgie was a fiercely loyal to all of her family. She was a caregiver of the highest order. Time and time again through her life she showed grace and compassion to those who needed her. Whether it was her parents or grandparents or siblings, In-laws, nieces and nephews if there was a need and Virgie had any way to be of assistance she was. If it was a meal, or place to stay or visiting or money she was there in times of need time and time again giving what she could and sometimes more.

I have written before about Virgies’s brother who was wounded in WWII and was never the same. For 50+ years he needed help and his family responded year after year. Virgie was a huge piece of the help and aid. The kindness, care and concern she showed Charlie and others over the years was who she was. It was who she was raised to be and it was the example she shared with her children and her grandchildren.

That type of loyalty does not go unnoticed. Examples are powerful things. As Virgie spent the last several weeks gradually nearing her end on this world she was continually surrounded by love. Children, grandkids, friends, neighbors, church members and all were with her in this final walk.

To walk into the room soon before she passed and see the circle of daughters, granddaughters, great-granddaughters and sister-in-law sitting vigil with this sweet, sweet soul was a sight to behold. Strong, brave, caring women showing this precious soul the same comfort and grace they had seen her share with so many others. They showed the same love to Virgie that was taught to them in great part by her own example.

Trying to sum up anyone’s life, especially someone as vibrant and full of energy as Virgie Smith Hamer is practically impossible. I assure you whatever words I am able to muster for the task are entirely inadequate. That in and of itself is a testament to the life she led and the love she gave. Much of that was the love she shared and received with the people sitting in this church and the ones who are here in spirit.

Tim – The junior son-in-law – and Virgie were having a conversation a few years back. I don’t remember the subject but there was a difference of opinion. Virgie just couldn’t imagine why Tim thought the way he did about whatever it was. Tim said something I am reminded of that speaks to the day. He said Virgie, “There are a whole lot more people out there like me than there are like you.”

If I recall her reaction was vintage Virgie. Her eyes got big and she moved her head back and said, “WOO HOO” and she chuckled.

Not for nothing but Tim was onto something and I’ll take as many like Virgie as the good Lord is willing to pass my way.

I cannot help but think about that first meeting with Virgie and Robert. I learned they were honest people who were without pretense. I learned they were kind and warm. Nothing I have seen over these last, nearly 30 years has given me a reason to doubt my original assessment. I have also learned that they were hardworking, patient, caring, devout, charitable, capable, funny, smart and 1000 other things that make me proud to have been so graciously accepted as part of their lives.

On behalf of Lynn, Shelli, Mark and ALL of the family thank you for being here to celebrate Virgie, her gorgeous soul, her powerful example and her beautiful life.

Unsolicited Movie Reviews - 2019 Oscar Edition

2019-02-24T17:56:00.003-05:00

Honestly, this is the thinnest year for nominees that I can remember. There is some fine filmmaking to be sure but for me some of the candidates did not rise to the level of Best Picture. For the purposes of this ranking I try my best not to factor in the current political climate. This is not my best guess of who is going to win. If you don’t like Bryan Singer, and apparently you probably shouldn’t, because he’s accused of some bad behavior or you think Spike Lee is a lunatic, great. That isn’t what this list is about. This is strictly which films I liked best and how I would vote given the opportunity. Anyway, I love to hear your thoughts on the films and your thoughts on my opinions. I especially like it when you decide to shower me with praise.

BlacKKKlansman

Sharp, funny, poignant, blunt and unambiguous. This could have been a kooky, dark comedy. It could have been a gritty, biting drama. With Lee at the helm it is both. The movie is at times a reverent homage to the civil rights struggle and at other times a viscously, funny parody punking the Klan. The movie is at its best when it is saluting the righteous while emasculating the bigoted and ignorant. It is an impressive balance struck between solemn and silly. John David Washington leads a great cast that includes Adam Driver in a supporting role worthy of a nomination. Ashlie Atkinson sweetly playing the overly, eager and willing wife of a member of the Klan is just downright disturbing. Like him or love him it is almost impossible not to respect Spike Lee simply as a film maker. When you think back over his career it is more than mind boggling that he has never won a directing Oscar. He isn’t the only one this have ever happened to. He won’t be the last. It took Spielberg 21 years with arguably the most impressive directing career in history. Well it has been 30 years since Do The Right Thing and I hope the Academy sees fit to....you know.....are you gonna make me say it....really.......ok.....Do the right thing.

The Black Panther

Thank goodness they nominated The Black Panther for an academy award. How else would it find an audience? Seriously, on the off chance there is anyone out there who hasn’t seen this film, like my wife who doesn’t “do” super hero movies, I beg you one last time to see this film. All too often we exalt films much higher than is reasonably necessary. We make them “triumphs of the human condition” or “masterpieces of the cinema” or “The next Dumb and Dumber”. 99.9% of the time it is ridiculously pretentious. Occasionally though, something happens with a film and it does take on a more significant role culturally and socially. I have been watching movies for over 40 years in the theater. It is amazingly rare to see a film with the same combination of entertainment and social value. It works on an entertainment level because it is a freaking Marvel Super Hero movie and for right or wrong, they have figured out an amazingly lucrative formula. The stories, the special effects, the jokes the whole flipping universe seems to work and, in this case, it works exceptionally well. Socially, it put black faces and female faces in roles and scenarios where they have not been traditionally seen. And it didn’t do it as a gimmick or as a “one off’ event. It did it like it was supposed to be that way and that it wasn’t anything extraordinary. In doing so the normalcy made it extraordinary. But the effect of those faces in those roles was further reaching and more consequential than we could really know. I don’t mean to make the movie out as a miracle or a salve for the world’s ails. I’ll just say that has much as it meant to me, I easily understood how much more it meant to so many others.

A Star Is Born Simply put, I loved it. It is textured and nuanced. It is an excellent retelling of a tale that has already been told 3 other times. That is no easy task. The music is superb throughout. The music, all new, is so good because it enhances the story but doesn’t become the story. When Jackson plays songs that are supposed to be classic hits, they are so good you start wondering if you have heard the song before. It adds a level of believability to the film that is hard to describe but it is special. Sam Elliot is superb as usual. I really hope he gets the statue for Best Supporting and GaGa more than held her own. But make no mistake about it this is Bradley Cooper’s film. Not just because he directed it. It is a more that admirable offering for any first-time director but I do think his performance has gotten overshadowed and a little overlooked. His desperation and loneliness are heartbreaking. He really did disappear at times. Still, if Star suffers from no awards, I think it will have to do more with the producers “overselling” to the Academy. My Lord they have been everywhere and saturated the viewers. Either way it is still a very moving film even if it isn’t transcendent.

Roma

A very good chance this film wins Best Picture. It clicks a lot of boxes. First of all, it is absolutely gorgeous. Shot in a stunning black and white. Movies like this are why it is sinful to suggest that Best Cinematography not be televised. Secondly, it is an extremely, personal film from a well-respected director. Alfonso Cuarón made this movie as a testament to the nanny who helped raise him. She was a loved member of his family and his dedication to the project has been well documented. Third, the acting is quite stellar. Yalitza Aparicio is marvelous in her role as the nanny as was Marina de Tavira as the beleaguered mother. Both were unassuming to their core. There are also some headscratcher aspects of the film that just leave you bewildered. The “naked martial arts exhibition” and the “rebel training camp” scenes follow a small arc in the story that is hard to reconcile with the rest of the film. But the ending is more than satisfying on a visual and emotional level. There is a lot here to like and just enough to leave you a little confused.

Green Book So, what happens is that Jessica Tandy is a black piano virtuoso and Morgan Freeman is a punchy but lovable Italian tough guy who needs a job......wait......what? Honestly the only thing really wrong with this film is that we have seen it so many times before. Two very different people placed into uncomfortable circumstances become great friends because in the end all that matters is the person inside, their humanity and how we treat each other. It is a formula for a reason. It works. But it can get tired from time to time. That doesn’t take away from how well it is acted or how compelling the story is. The fact that it came from the horse’s mouth and based on the recollections of the actual participants makes it interesting as well. Viggo Mortenson and Mahershala Ali are two of the better actors on the planet. It is well worth your time to see just not the best picture of the year.

Bohemian Rhapsody

In spite of one phenomenal performance and a ton of great music from an iconic band this movie is an absolute mess. The story is convoluted and the series of events are not only ridiculously convenient but obviously embellished. Major plot points are contrived to build suspense when none was actually there. And the script was so insulting and overtly manipulative that it would have the viewer accept Freddie Mercury tracked down the love of his life, came out of the closet to his father, revealed he had Aids (which we wouldn’t be diagnosed with for several more years) and did this all on a 45 minute care ride to Wembley Stadium before giving the single most important performance in the history of the human race. Give me a break.

As a rule, I try to mostly judge movies on how they made me feel. Was I happy, sad, irritated etc.? When I walked out of Bohemian Rhapsody, I have to admit my toe was tapping. I enjoyed myself and the nostalgia stirred by the music was great. As a two-hour long retrospective of the band and their music it was fun. The last 15 minutes recreating the infamous Live Aid Concert was nothing short of awesome. Rami Malek as Freddie Mercury is almost certainly going to be this year’s Best Actor winner and more than deservingly so. But as a film telling a story it has huge elements that are laughably bad and the worst part is that they didn’t need to be.

Vice
Man, I was excited about this film......then I saw it. Expectations are a funny thing. After “The Big Short” a few years ago I thought Adam McKay doing a film about Dick Cheney was a slam dunk. He had proven he could take convoluted material that was also sensitive and explain it in a creative way while finding some dark humor at the same time. Here’s the thing. VICE isn’t The Big Short. Somebody should have told the director. He tries to use many of the same story telling devices that worked brilliantly for him before but they come off as tired and even bitter. The saving grace of the VICE is Christian Bale as Cheney. Rami Malek will most likely win the Best Acting award but don’t let that take away from how ridiculously great Bale was in this film. McKay has plenty to say about Cheney and his effect on world politics, domestic politics, civil rights, the rule of law and the role of the executive, and that’s fine. Hell, that is awesome. At its best film can do that like no other medium. And a filmmaker should have a point view. But the movie comes off as petulant and wholly void of nuance. Two hours of banging the viewer over the head of how dumb and evil a character leaves you wondering.....”Ok, got it, where is the rest?”

The Devil may be most effective when he’s boring. Maybe that’s the point. But as a matter of film making it leaves you with a two-hour long film full of one-dimensional characters and no counterbalance to root for or compare to.

The Devil isn’t the only thing that was boring.

Just as an aside, I will for the life of me never understand why someone would spend 3 or 4 years writing, editing, casting, shooting and promoting movie with all the effort and work that is involved to make a film about a subject for which they are so obviously loathsome. (See “Iron Lady” for another example). At least if you are going to do it you should make a better movie.

The Favourite

Queen Anne ruled England, Scotland and Ireland from 1702 til her death in 1714. During her reign England and Scotland merged as a realm and for the final 7 years of her life she was Queen of Great Britain and Scotland. I only bring this up because with what was most obviously a consequential reign the film makers chose to make a movie about the Queen’s rather violent lesbian affairs and the torrid rivalries that were born within her court to curry the Queen’s, um, favor.. Oh, yea and somehow this is represented by a bunch of rabbits. I swear to God.....rabbits. But don’t you worry. This is high art. I mean there are phenomenal actresses in juicy roles (true actually), exquisite costumes (also true) and the director has to be an unadulterated genius because of his indescribable brilliance to shoot the whole damn thing with a fish-eye lens to assumingly suggest the distorted sense of reality lived inside the walls of the monarchy. OOOOOOOOh, originality (finally sarcasm). Ah you pretentious mistress, I have seen thy face and this is the Favourite.

There you have it. Enjoy the show!

Unsolicited Movie Review - 2018 Summer Edition

2018-08-26T23:02:00.001-04:00

Unsolicited Movie Review - 2018 Summer Edition

The best time of year in the world of movies is Oscar Season. Late fall through the end of the year most of the contenders get released to beat the awards deadline and still be fresh in the voter’s minds.

A close second is the summer blockbuster season. For the most part, these are different kinds of films. Big budget, popcorn eaters with action and stars typically rule the day. Traditionally, there are a few good comedies and rom-coms, mystery/capers, horrors and now what has seemingly turned into its own genre Super Hero Movies. It is a mixed bag and a little something for everyone except for pretentious think-pieces that question the innersoles of the characters and the righteousness of humanity. You’ll have to wait till at least October to learn the meaning of life.

So every year I usually do a quick run-down of a few of my favorite summer pics. My number of enthusiastic recommendations was fewer than expected this year. It has been a little different season so I’ve changed it up to include a look at a lot of films from the summer.

Personally, I can’t remember a more disappointing summer movie season. There were some bright spots but as a rule I rated it Extra Medium. Just BLAH! Some I have already written about but here is a quick breakdown of what I saw this summer. Worst to Best! Sort of! Don’t Agree? Tell me about it I can handle it.

Alpha – OMEGaaaaahd I hated it. (Movie was gorgeous. At least it had that.)

Equalizer 2 – Should have been called FERTILIZER 2. What a turd. Don’t get me wrong I love Denzel and loved the first Equalizer. It had that unexpected element like Taken. But the sequel is an absolute mess. Aside from a few great fight sequences and some promising new characters the rest of the story is all over the place. There are ridiculous holes in the script that are just unforgivable at this level of movie production. Denzel famously hasn’t done sequels in his career…..this is why.

Breaking In – Despite a clichéd premise the movie had a better than average cast. They made it watchable until the end but when but it was over you just wanted to punch the writers in the privates.

Ocean’s 8 – Ocean’s 11 was such a good movie Steven Soderburgh decided to make 2 sequels. Ocean’s 12 and Ocean’s 13. Those were pretty good so he deep fried the script and made Logan Lucky. Never one to resist beating a dead horse he then decided to produce an all-female version. It was fine. A similar concept to the Ghostbuster’s remake with much better results to be sure but please, Steven Soderburgh, for all that’s holy stop. Unless of course you want to make Ocean’s 300 with me and a bunch of fat actors dressed up like Spartans trying to rob a Dunkin Donuts. Now, that would be worth watching.

MEG – Read the book 15 years ago and remembered thinking this would make a great movie one day when the special effects were doable. After the first Jurassic Park all special effects were doable. So I watched it in a matinee and didn’t fall asleep. There were way too many characters to care about any of them and the blatant pandering to the Asian movie market was a tad obvious. Don’t expect Jason Statham to have too many emotional moments but the sharks are cool and a few laughs.

Jurassic Park Fallen Kingdom – What do you want me to say. It was slick and they have this premise figured out to be entertaining. Nothing new but at least they do the same stuff over and over pretty well.

Sicario: Day of Soldado – Not nearly as compelling as the first film. The loss of Emily Blunt’s character and the absence of any counterbalance to del Toro and Brolin hurt the movie. That being said it set up a 3rd film perfectly. The writer, Taylor Sheridan, has had as good of a 3 year run as you will ever see penning 3 of the best 15 movies since 2015. (Sicario, Hell or High Water and Wind River). This film isn't as good as those three but still worth a watch and a study.

Incredibles 2 – It was fun and smart and everything you would expect. It was also been way too long since the first movie.

Avengers: Infiniti Wars – My Mom loved elephants. She had elephant earrings and necklaces and shirts. It was her thing. She also had a number of elephant figurines she had collected over the years. Some were from gifts some from purchases and there were probably 30 of them. One time she decided to display them on top of a cabinet in my bathroom. I would sit there pondering all these elephants with tusks and trunks intertwined as I conducted my business. One day I remarked to my mother that the top of that cabinet looked like a Pachydermal Orgy. She took them down a few days later.
I tell you this because that is what I was reminded of watching Avengers Infinity Wars. It just looked like a big super hero spandex orgy with no sex. I keep saying I’ve almost hit critical mass with super hero movies. Was this the one that pushes me over the edge? Probably not though. I’m a glutton.

DeadPool 2 – If Iron Man got to use the F-Bomb and was poor.

The Spy Who Dumped Me - Better that it had any right to be. Kate McKinnon is funny. She has to be directed and a good director is needed to edit her and make her look “all the time” funny. Here she was great. Kunis was a more than respectable Abbot to McKinnon’s Costello.
I have to admit, maybe because there are more female directors getting big films, I’ve seen more male genitalia in main stream films in the past 3 years than I saw in the my previous 43 years on this earth combined. I’m all for girl power and hats off for more opportunities but are all the saggy, old man balls really the legacy these ladies want to give to film?

Solo – The amount of butt hurt over poor little Solo only grossing 400 million dollars aside, I thought it was a great prequel. Ron Howard stepped out of the traditional Star Wars script and turned in an intergalactic Buddy movie. Don’t believe the whining. This is superb film making.

AntMan and The Wasp – Compared to the Spandex Orgy that was Infinity War it was nice not to have the fate of humanity hinge on the outcome. Paul Rudd is superb and extremely likable but the supporting cast is equally as watchable. Please, so I don’t pull the cord, more super hero movies like this please.

Mission Impossible Fallout – IMO, Tom Cruise is a bit of a nut. Ok, he is all of a nut. But there are two kinds of crazy. One type is when you strip off your clothes and go into your back yard and howl at the moon. The second type is when you strip off your clothes and come into my back yard and howl at the moon while upsetting my dogs. The first one I don’t mind. The second, I take kind of personal. That’s Tom Cruise. I don’t care what he thinks about psychoanalysis or Prozac or that he thinks he’s an alien. That’s howling in his back yard. I take more offense at the fact of how horrible Mission Impossible II was. It sucked out loud and I’m sure I pissed away $20 watching. That’s howling in my back yard. It was the one aberration in this series. Luckily, starting with MI3 he put all his proverbial clothes back on and just howls at the box office. Slick, sophisticated with phenomenal action sequences involving honest to goodness stunts. Yes he’s as crazy as a loon but he is a full blown movie star and knows what to do with an audience.

PS
An outlier from the summer BlacKkKlansman is worth its own writeup that I'll do at a later time

Unsolicited Movie Reviews – 2018 Oscar Edition

2018-03-03T20:26:00.000-05:00

Unsolicited Movie Reviews – 2018 Oscar Edition

Every year’s crop of Oscar Best Picture nominees seems to share a similar or predominant theme. Last year’s was misery and sorrow. Practically all the movies were ridiculously sad. Two years ago the common thread seemed to be struggling against overwhelming forces or odds. This year’s lot is much more tonally confused on the whole. This makes for an interesting year and forces you to watch an unusually, broad variety of films in both story and style.

For our consideration we have 2 historical dramas that show two views of the same event and could not be more different films. There is 1 revenge epic, 1 satirical horror, 1 coming of age tale, 1 First Amendment anthem and 3 creepy love stories for three different reasons.

For the purposes of this ranking I try my best not to factor in the current political climate. This is not my best guess of who is going to win. If you don’t like Gary Oldman because he’s accused of some bad behavior or you think Lady Bird will ride to victory because of the Me Too movement, great. That isn’t what this list is about. This is strictly which films I liked best and how I would vote given the opportunity.

There are always head-scratchers as well. One glaring omission in this year’s crop, Wind River, was beyond worthy and I think it is a shame that it was omitted. Additionally, Gil Birmhingham’s performance as a grieving father of a murder victim was grossly overlooked as well. But those are the breaks. I promise you there are greater tragedies in this world. The sun will come up tomorrow.

Again and for the record, these are listed in my personal order ranked by how I would vote if I were voting and not what I think will win. DO NOT use this for betting unless you want to lose your house.

Dunkirk – Best movie I saw this year. One of the better movies I’ve seen in the last decade. Dunkirk,

to put it plainly, is a masterpiece. From the first minute of the film there is not a single moment to let your guard down emotionally. There is not one minute to control your senses. There is only a race against time and an unseen enemy that is palpable and real throughout the entire movie. Some were put off with Nolan’s penchant to play with time and sequence. To each his own but part of the brilliance of the movie is the way Nolan intertwined 3 story lines of 3 chronological lengths into a single 2 hour arc and showed practically every svrmr from 2 and sometimes 3 points of view. That would be amazing on a technical level alone and I haven’t even mentioned what a great history lesson it tells.

Dunkirk is a worthy tribute to the spirit and will of the soldiers stranded on that beach and the nation that rallied to protect their protectors. Strong, Calm, Determined, Unflappable…..Britain!

Honest to goodness, at times it took my breath away. Phenomenal Film Making

Three Billboards Outside Ebbings, Missouri – At times heartbreaking, infuriating, surprising and often brutally hysterical TBOEM is more than worthy of Best Picture. The movie is loosely inspired by an unsolved 1991 rape and murder that prompted the victim’s father to rent billboards critical of the investigation. That’s where the similarities stop.

TBOEM speaks to rage and sorrow and the debilitating effects of violence,of all kinds. It shows the consequences of desperation and helplessness on otherwise good people. It makes you question to what lengths you yourself would go for justice. But as dark as it remains throughout it reminds us how powerful the mere hope for redemption can be.

It would be impossible to assemble a better cast. Frances McDormand was great and should win. Woody Harrelson continues to build a ridiculous acting resume for the same guy who was Woody on CHEERS. However, if Sam Rockwell doesn’t win for Best Supporting it will be a shame. His was a brutally raw characterization and somehow this is his first nomination after an impressive career.

Get Out – Sharp, funny, disturbing and occasionally a little scary. This was marketed as a “horror” film. Not sure it falls into that genre but then again that is all about perspective. More accurately it is a brilliant piece of scathing satire.

Daniel Kaluuya would have a great shot at the Best Actor trophy if not for Gary Oldman's Churchill. Kaluuya's gradual realization of his predicament was so well paced it set the tone for the entire film. It also made the final revelation that much scarier. Jordan Peele showed depth as a film maker outside of comedy. Get Out came out of left field and will reap career rewards for all involved.

As a matter of odds they stack up against Get Out. It is a “horror”. It made a ton of money and it was released in February. Why does that matter? Most Oscars go to the films released in the latter part of the year. The last February release to win Best Picture was Silence of the Lambs 26 years ago. However, if there is a shocker, no pun intended, this will be it.

Darkest Hour – I don’t trust myself to objectively critique this film. I am a huge Churchill buff. Few historical figures rise to the level of adoration that I feel for Winston. I have read reviews that thought this movie was overly sentimental and formulaic. Other reviewers felt it unfairly portrayed Chamberlin and Halifax. There is an argument to be made, that the film makers completely wasted Kristen Scott Thomas as Clemmie. That may all very well be accurate and further more I don’t really give a damn.

This film is about Churchill. It is about his words and his deeds and his struggle to hold a nation together at times by what seemed to be his own bare hands at times. It is about his dogged determination to “KEEP BUGGERING ON” even as the world and many in his own government were hiding in the shadows. It is about a masterful performance by Gary Oldman who literally disappears in the role. The film is at its best when Churchill is at his lowest. It does a stellar job of conveying the utter isolation and personal responsibility this man had to feel.

Lady Bird – I struggled placing Lady Bird on the list more than the other films. It is an Academy darling. It is small, contemplative with sharp dialogue and eccentric but relatable characters.

What I liked about the film was the acting. Saoirse Ronan is the real deal. She was nominated 2 years ago for Brooklyn and 10 years ago for Atonement. That is 3 nominations and she is only 23. She would be unrecognizable between the two roles. She has such a memorable presence on screen where it just seems like she belongs.

I also loved Laurie Metcalf as the Mom who may have redefined the apex of passive aggression. She was marvelous and were it not for Allison Janney I think she would be a shoe-in for the Best Supporting Actress award.

It didn’t have as much of an emotional punch for me but my wife tells me I’m wrong and she is usually correct.

The Post – Spielberg directs Streep and Hanks in a story about one of the biggest news stories in the nation’s history. Honest to God if this film hadn’t been nominated the world may have stopped spinning on its axis. Everything about this film works. The writing, acting, directing, lighting, cinematography etc. all work wonderfully.

The only problem with this, and a few other more recent films by SS, is that they are like a 7’ tall man dunking a basketball. It is what you expect. Excellence and continued success raise a bar so high it is hard not to raise expectations. Then if doves don’t sweep in and carry you off to a land of rainbows and gold you feel like you have been let down. Spielberg, Hanks and Streep are somewhat victims of their own success. I think they will get over it while they are sitting around polishing their other Oscars with $1000 bills.

This is a really, really, fine film. Unfortunately, it will unfairly be compared to the better “All the President’s Men”. It won’t go down as Spielberg’s greatest but that doesn’t make it bad it just doesn’t make it transcendent.

The Shape of Water – I keep reading that this is the best bet for Best Picture. Here is the thing. It is all about the buy-in. Every movie you see requires a certain degree of disbelief suspension. The degree required for The Shape of Water is off the charts. To put it plainly, it is just weird. Now, cross-species stories aren’t new exactly. We’ve had Beauty and the Beast, Starman and Julia Roberts’ marriage to Lyle Lovett. So how is it otherwise?

Take the weird out of it and you have a rich, beautifully filmed love story set to the backdrop of espionage and world politics. You have two sympathetic heroes, compelling supporting characters and a creepily strange villain. Visually, the movie is nothing short of gorgeous and all the technical aspects of the film work.

But here is the thing. It’s just freaking weird. If you get past that you’ll probably love it.

Phantom Thread – Can a movie be exceptionally well made being full of brilliant direction, exquisite acting and an attention to cinematic detail that is nothing short of amazing and still make me dislike it? Phantom Thread proves that the answer to that question is YES.

I didn’t hate it. It just pissed me off and not because it was trying to piss me off . That would have been fine. The problem is that it was trying to surprise the viewer. It was being pretentiously clever. If this movie were a college student it would be sitting in a café smoking cloves and making puns about Proust. All the while it would be feeling superior to its friends that didn’t get the reference.

There is some fine craftsmanship all through this movie. Supposedly it is the last film of Daniel Day-Lewis, arguably this generation’s greatest actor. I find this rather disheartening because the movie itself is a little bit of an asshole.

Call Me By Your Name – FINALLY, this is the first nominated film in 2 years that I actually hated.
First, it was shot beautifully. If it were a travel log for the Italian countryside it would have been a raging success. Or even better, think of the most beautiful painting you have ever seen. Whether it is in a book or a museum, just imagine whatever painting you consider the most beautiful. Then get some popcorn, pull up a chair and stare at the painting in a dark room. Just look at it sitting there. Keep looking. It doesn’t move. Oh, you notice something in the corner. Keep looking……..Keep………Looking. Now, it has been a couple of hours and you check your watch and you realize, “Holy crap! That took ten minutes”. That is what this movie is like.

This movie was marketed as a young gay man’s coming of age story while living in Italy. He falls in love with one of his father’s older students. This movie should have been marketed as “Hey look, gay people can be just as frigging boring as the rest of us!”

I’m not saying there isn’t a story here or the acting was awful. It was just so lifeless especially for a film that is supposedly about passion. I also think it is fair to point out that I found the age difference of the love story a bit creepy. I realize the young man’s character was 18 and an adult but visually the actor that played his looked significantly younger especially compared to his love interest Armie Hammer.

There you have it. That’s all I got.

Unsolicited Movie Reviews - Summer Edition 2017

2017-09-03T21:09:00.000-04:00

Unsolicited Movie Reviews – Summer Edition 2017

There has been a mixed bag of quality in the theaters this summer. Why in God’s name there was any need to extend series like the Transformers and Pirates of the Caribbean is beyond me. Judging by ticket sales it was beyond the audiences as well. Conversely, I’ve written how I thought DUNKIRK was a masterpiece and the War for the Planet of the Apes capped a phenomenal trilogy that was always better than it had any right to be. But huge movies like that are going to have an audience either way. Here are four other, less hyped, pictures that I had time to dig into the last few days.

Wind River – A tracker for the Fish and Wildlife Service finds the body of young girl, who has been murdered and raped, in a remote part of the Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming. It is a great story with an exceptional cast and it is beautifully shot. But, what is really notable about the film is all that it gets done in a short amount of time. It is a rare film indeed that: (1)Delicately portrays a palpable sense of loss after a tragedy; (2)Provides a totally satisfying and visceral, revenge plot; (3)Shines a glaring and troubling light on the continued struggles of an often overlooked and forgotten segment of our population

Wind River does all three. If it had carried off just two it would have been a really good film. Consequently it is an exceptional movie. Jeremy Renner is sneaky good as is Elizabeth Olsen. But for me the most notable performance is by Gil Birmingham as the father of the victim. He’ll break your heart.

Lucky Logan – I wanted to like. I planned to like. Trust me I tried to like. I should have liked it. Turns out, I didn’t really like. No doubt the film has its funny parts. It is quirky and fast paced like a lot of Soderbergh’s films. What I don’t understand is why Soderbergh would even come back to the genre after 3 Ocean’s movie. The film is even billed as Ocean’s 7-11. This plays off the fact it takes place in West Virginia and North Carolina and has a “hillbilly” cast of characters. Actually, cast of caricatures would be more like it. I’m quite certain they just had a script for a 4^th Oceans movie and decided to add a few Ya’lls and Howdys. Unfortunately, where the Oceans movies were sleek and smart LL is strained and dull. There were plot holes big enough to drive a jacked up 4x4 through. Not the least of which was leaving the impression that Charlotte, NC and West Virginia were fairly close together geographically as opposed to several hours apart.

Channing Tatum continues to prove he is a good actor and the story line with his family is interesting. Daniel Craig is genuinely funny in his role but despite a few good parts there just isn’t enough for me to recommend it. The film as a whole was a disappointment.

What Happened to Monday – This is not a theatrical release. It is a NETFLIX exclusive that dropped in August continuing the onslaught of projects produced by the streaming giant. Not having to worry about distribution apparently makes way for an enormous about of studio productivity.

This is a classic sci-fi, action tale. It stars the wonderful Noomi Repace as the Settman siblings. Set 40 years in the future, in an attempt to combat over-population, the earth’s governments have taken drastic actions implementing the One Child Policy. Additionally, using the Child Allocation Bureau they secretly exterminate the “overages” while misleading the people claiming they are just putting the children in cryogenic storage until they find a solution for the over-population. It is all very Logan’s Run. The Settman siblings are 7 identical sisters who have been raised in hiding. To avoid detection they eventually share the public identity of one person, Karen Settman. Each sibling takes a day of the week out in the world. Coincidentally, their day of the week is also their name, Sunday takes Sunday. Monday takes Monday etc.

Very, Very Entertaining. Well worth a stay-in date night. The action and suspense is very good. There is quite a bit of violence and at least one very steamy love scene. You’ve been warned.

The Hitman’s Bodyguard – Another straight up, grab the popcorn and turn your brain off action movie. The jokes are smart. The buddy relationship works and all in all it never takes itself too seriously. It isn’t a classic like Die Hard or as well-crafted as Kingsmen but it is still very entertaining.

Ryan Reynolds is as dependable an actor as there is in Hollywood. He’s just likeable. He also has superb comedic timing. Samuel Jackson is Samuel Jackson. He is brash and loud and says the F-word A LOT! If that type of thing bothers you I would suggest another movie. Between the violence and language it earns its R rating.

Unsolicited Movie Review - Dunkirk

2017-07-28T10:50:00.004-04:00

Unsolicited Movie Review – Dunkirk

It’s the age old question. If you could go back in time what event would you like relive or even try and change if you could?

There are an infinite number of answers from the birth of Christ to 9/11 and on and on. Well, I have a new entry. I would like to have been in the movie executive’s office circa 1999 when they decided to have Michael Bay direct the upcoming moving Pearl Harbor. Had I been there I would have gently yet forcefully persuaded them to rethink such a decision and hire Christopher Nolan for the position. Then, just maybe, we would have had a raw, emotional, accurate retelling of a quintessential moment in our history that captured the base communal fear and courage it took to survive an event that helped define the nature of our national character and not a 3 hour long, CGI enhanced turd.

Dunkirk, to put it plainly, is a masterpiece.

From the first minute of the film there is not a single moment to let your guard down emotionally. There is not one minute to control your senses. There is only a race against time and an unseen enemy that is palpable and real throughout the entire movie.

The acting is exceptional all around by stars you know like Kenneth Brannaugh and Tom Hardy as well as those you don’t, like Fionn Whitehead and Barry Keoghan. Also, continuing a stellar 32 year-overnight success acting career, Mark Rylance beautifully encapsulates the stoic, responsible, patriotic, dutiful British citizen to perfection. He like thousands of others answered the call.

But make no mistake about it, film is a director’s medium and Nolan has marshaled his team to make a brilliant film. This is not your father’s war flick. Heck, this is not your war flick. Dunkirk simultaneously makes you concentrate and distracts you. The sound, not just the music, is its own character. And it isn’t a showering of noise like you expect in battle and war films. The sounds are almost laser focused and distinctive to the fear and desperation Nolan is wrapping you in at the time. The noises and sounds have feeling and depth all their own. The cinematography expresses scale and scope like you rarely see on screen. (It reminded me of Lawrence of Arabia.) Every inch of the frame is important and the camera placements show you angles and lines and perspective you aren’t used to seeing. This keeps you on your toes the entire time.

It is also fair to point out that Nolan is famous for playing with sequence and time in his movies. It is his signature. He does it here as well but it is not distracting. It’s brilliant. He not only interweaves three different story lines of three different lengths of time he does so by showing you every major event from three different points of view: the land, the air and the sea. Sometimes you don’t even realize it till its over.

And I haven’t even mentioned what a great history lesson it all is.

Dunkirk is a worthy tribute to the spirit and will of the soldiers stranded on that beach and the nation that rallied to protect their protectors. Strong, Calm, Determined, Unflappable…..Britian!

Honest to goodness, at times it took my breath away.

Oscar Picks 2017 Best Picture

2017-02-24T18:39:00.001-05:00

Glitz, Glamour and Glory are all on the table for Sunday night’s Oscars. Diamonds and Limos and Gowns and Tuxedos to celebrate what is quite possibly the saddest bunch of films I can ever remember being nominated for Best Picture. They aren’t bad, quite to the contrary, but good Lord they are sad. Grief, sorrow, loss, misery, shame, if you suffer from it then it probably plays a major role in this year’s selections. I have to admit it was not easy getting through all of them this year. Not because they weren’t entertaining, they were. It was because they were brutally emotional. That is a good thing to be sure but not always an easy thing.

If I have said this once I’ve said this a thousand times. We love movies when we care what happens to the characters. Everything else is just window dressing. How does it make you feel? Do you the viewer buy into what the director is selling? Are you cheering or jeering? If you are doing neither there is a problem. Movies work or don’t work because of the emotional connection made with the viewer. Everything else like lighting, cinematography, editing, music, etc…..can all be great but at the end of the day if we don’t care then nothing else really matters.

This year’s crop contains 3 movies based on actual events, 1 adapted from a play, 1 rewritten from an unpublished short story, 1 musical, 1 alien encounter, 1 modern day western and 1 cinematic kick in the gut! They are all exceptional films. There is no proverbial turd in this year’s Oscar punch bowl. No particular controversy over nominations. I like it better when there is at least one stinker I can hate. Alas that is not this year. Some I obviously liked more than others but really not a bad one in the bunch.

These are listed in my personal order ranked by how I would vote if I were voting and not what I think will win. So, for the record, I wouldn’t use this for betting unless you want to lose your house.

LION: All these reviews are to a great extent a gut reaction. How did the movie make me feel? This will be my shortest review. I’m not even going to talk about plot because if it weren’t a true story it would be ridiculously unbelievable. Simply put, Lion is the best film I saw this year. It is easily my vote for Best Picture. The story by itself is awe inspiring. Every step of this young man’s life balances between disaster and survival. Of all the movies in this year’s class Lion won’t get out of my head. The journey of this young man shown by the film elicits shock, sadness, survival, despair, kindness, exhaustion, fear, perseverance, joy and most of all love. It is some kind of beautiful ride.

HIDDEN FIGURES: Hidden Figures follows a tried and true formula. That is not an insult. Historical dramas like this have a formula for a reason. The formula works. I guess I could go into how the Space Race is used as a mirror image for Civil Rights and how in the end the only way to succeed in either is for the best and brightest of us all to work together regardless of race or color or creed……I could but I won’t. It is much simpler than that. This is a great movie because the film makers took a phenomenal, mostly unknown, story and told it in a compelling albeit formulaic way. The movie is perfectly cast. Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monáe are superb and deserve all the accolades thrown at them. Through their character’s previously hidden perseverance we are finally shown a more complete picture of our shared history. It’s a history that many thought they knew inside and out. Yet it reminds us that our greatest glories are always the work of more than just the glorified. More importantly it provides long, over-due credit where credit was so obviously due. That is no small or insignificant thing.

Hacksaw Ridge: The real life story of Desmond Doss is more dramatic than anything Hollywood could invent. Most “true stories” that make it to the big screen are skewered for taking what are usually unnecessary liberties with the story. In stark contrast director Mel Gibson actually had to tone down and cut some the acts of bravery Doss committed on Okinawa in WWII. Gibson didn’t want the audience to think he was embellishing the story. He couldn’t make this stuff up……literally. You want to know how good this movie is? Mel Gibson, Hollywood Persona Non Grata Extraordinaire, directed it and it still got nominated. Gibson is a skilled film maker. He understands the medium and has as good a connection with his audience as anyone. He recognized that Doss’ entire life was as much the story as his acts of heroism. In lesser hands this film could have been a debacle. It could have been made into a hundred things it was never intended to be by ignoring all the little things that were actually what was important. Luckily an unbelievable story about bravery and kindness and duty and faith was made into a powerful movie about bravery, kindness, duty and faith…… What a novel concept.

HELL OR HIGH WATER: Chris Pine is an exceptional, leading man known for big budgets and action. Ben Foster may be the best character actor working in Hollywood. Jeff Bridges successfully occupied both of those positions at different times in his career. Now he’s a grizzled veteran of the screen and as good as ever. Hell or High Water is a well-crafted film. It packs more into less than any film I’ve seen in a long time. A script so well written with dialogue so efficient they succeed in telling an intricate story with as few words as possible. It is quite impressive.

The story is timely, compelling and most importantly entertaining. There isn’t a single character, even the not-so-good guys, that you aren’t compelled to care about. What else do you need from a film?

Did I mention Jeff Bridges is great?

MANCHESTER BY THE SEA: Upon hearing “He Stopped Loving Her Today” for the first time George Jones reportedly looked at his producers and said, “Great song. But nobody is ever gonna play it on the radio. It’s just too damn sad.”

It would be hard to imagine the makers of Manchester by the Sea didn’t hear the same sentiments. Luckily for country music, and for cinema, grief is a helluva thing and Manchester by the Sea is a helluva movie. It is gripping and methodical and while the pace is slow it never drags. Every single scene moves the story forward. It continually builds anticipation to learn what happens in these people’s lives and you’re just praying they can finally catch a break. I did find the music to be a distraction in some places but that’s just me being picky. Casey Affleck should and probably will win the Oscar for Best Actor. This is a heartbreaking look at the debilitation grief can have on a life and lives.

MOONLIGHT: This may be the best film of the year. Initially I thought I just didn’t identify with the lead character in Moonlight. I’m not gay. I’m not black and I didn’t grow up in a place of such violence and despair with a drug addicted mother. Additionally, it reminds me of another nominated movie from two years ago that I hated titled, “BOYHOOD”. Both follow the main character from youth to manhood. Unlike Boyhood which follows a working-class white kid and uses the same cast of actors filmed over a 7 year period, Moonlight shows the main character at three distinct stages of his life all played by different actors and in my opinion with much better results. It’s not fair to draw such a straight line between two movies. However, I find it interesting how much more emotionally invested I felt after watching Moonlight even though it never remotely resembles my own life experience.

You are dropped into this boy's, Chiron, life and vividly see what it is like living every day in a constant state of fear. It’s palpable. Mahershala Ali is outstanding as the local drug dealer who becomes a somewhat. stable father figure for the boy. So to be sure Chiron finds rays of love and kindness along the way but even then he’s never more than a step away from danger and fear. Everything and everyone is compromised. How do you trust? How does that effect and mold a soul, even one as kind and beautiful as Chiron's? Moonlight may not be the easiest film to watch which makes it the one film you probably should.

LA LA Land: Taken in pieces La La Land is a mess. The whole first hour is painstakingly dull. While the jazz is great it doesn’t always meld well with some of the more “musical friendly” songs. Additionally, the numbers are charming and artfully staged. I wouldn’t say any of them are show stopping or all that memorable. Not to mention that Gosling can’t sing and over halfway through the film I couldn’t imagine why in God’s name this movie had been so well received.

Fortunately, we don’t take films in pieces. We take them as a whole. Stone and Gosling are both excellent actors and even more importantly they have superb chemistry. Very much like the chemistry I imagine I would have in real life with Diane Lane if I ever…. You know…. actually meet Diane Lane. But that’s beside the point.

For the record, I like musicals. Oklahoma, South Pacific, West Side Story, Singing in the Rain, Top Hat, Yankee Doodle Dandy…you name it and I’m in. La La Land is not in that class but if you give it time and musicals don’t freak you out then the payoff is worth it.

FENCES: Films adapted from plays often choose one of two ways to go. Either they totally embrace the play format and limit the sets and visual aspects of the film (12 Angry Men) or they ignore those limitations and embrace the complex visual opportunities offered by the medium of film (A Few Good Men). Fences it seems tries to hedge its bets. Washington as the director never seems sure which tactic to use. The few times they break away to shots outside the “set” it never really advances the story. It is like they found some extra budget and decided to add a location shot. It is a minor complaint but it does disrupt the flow. Regardless, this movie isn’t about the editing or the setting. It is about the acting and the dialogue and on both those counts Fences is exceptional. Denzel Washington and Viola Davis have few peers. Her rage is fueled by her desperation about his rage and his rage is born from his desperation. It is a vicious circle. It isn't always clear how to make a good movie.

A great cast speaking the exquisite words of August Wilson is not a bad place to start.

ARRIVAL: I liked Arrival. I liked it even better when I saw it two years ago as Interstellar.

No, they aren’t the same movie but, you know, they are the same movie. One major difference is Interstellar was actually awesome and Arrival was pretty good. There were also hints of Sphere, Inception and Contact to be fair.

Don’t get me wrong there is no shame in stealing from other movies and making them into great movies. Steven Spielberg is a master of it. But in order for it to be forgiven the end product needs to be a lot better than Arrival. The acting is strong and it has a great, if not totally original, twist to explain their Sci-fi premise. Unfortunately, it causes more questions than answers. Amy Adams is continuing to amass an impressive body of work. I hope she is going to be around a long time. Again, not a bad film, I think Arrival gets lost in translation up against this year's field of nominees.

Unsolicited Movie Review - LOVING

2017-02-06T16:53:00.002-05:00

Unsolicited Movie Review - Loving

With the Oscars coming up I go through a ritual to try and see all the nominated films for Best Picture. By accident I was under the impression that LOVING was nominated for Best Picture. It was not. Although Ruth Negga did receive a nod, well deserved mind you, for Best Actress. However since it isn't nominated for Best Picture I figured I would go ahead and share my review.

This movie is beautiful.  

This movie is important. 

This movie is well written.  

This movie is delicately acted. 

This movie is boring as dirt.

Good Lord could somebody have a seminar with the director about pace?

I wouldn't say it is a bad movie. The script and quality of acting are both top-notch. The talent it takes, especially by the two leads, to portray characters with personalities resembling cardboard is impressive. There is meaning and there is value to this film. Let me put it this way. Nobody ever complained that it wasn't longer.

The tag line of this film was “A Landmark Movie”, apparently playing off the landmark Supreme Court decision that it focused on.

The tag line for it should have been “Even boring people can change the world!”

Unsolicited Movie Review - The Magnificent Seven

2016-10-09T19:07:00.000-04:00

Unsolicited Movie Review - Remade Classics Edition - (part 1) – The Magnificent Seven

My Dad always gets angry at the thought of remakes. He can't understand why they would remake a good movie. Why not redo the crappy movies? It is a fair point. I suppose it is the same reason Home Depot and Lowes build the same stores side by side. The consumers who want what they have are there. It is the same thing with movies. A good story is a good story. You could argue that all plays, movies and TV shows ever made are all just variations of 6 common stories. You could argue that but you’d also need to be wearing a black turtleneck, sitting in an overpriced cafe wearing a hipster beard and smoking cloves. Regardless we are if nothing else an unoriginal people. We like our comfort food and remakes are basically the mac-n-cheese of the entertainment industry. Sure Mom’s mac-n-cheese was amazing because it was your first and it was seasoned with the salt of emotion. Then your sister-in-law added some smoked gouda and cheddar to her mac-n-cheese and the next thing you know you are wondering what in God's name your Momma was thinking with that crap in the blue box. By the way I'm hungry.

Anyway, back to remakes. To be fair there are some exceptional remakes (or re-visionings for those readers wearing peg-leg pants and smelling of patchouli) that are way beyond entertaining and equaling or bettering the originals on which they are based.

For example:

Scarface with Al Pacino was actually a remake of a 1932 gangster film.

Scorsese's The Departed was a remake of a Japanese thriller

Ocean's Eleven was a dramatically better film than Sinatra's original

Mel Gibson replaced Glen Ford in a new and better Ransom

The Cohen Brother’s True Grit wasn’t as good as the original but it was beyond a solid film.

Pale Rider is nothing but Shane with a girl kid as opposed to a boy.
Heck, the latest Star Wars episode 7 is all but a remake of Star Wars episode 4.

The list goes on and on and on.

The fact is some remakes are really good and some just pound sand. You have to take each on its own merits remembering you can always watch the original anytime. Thank You Amazon!

All of this to tell you about one of a couple of high profile remakes this summer.

The Magnificent Seven – This may be the ultimate remake because the “original” 1960 film is actually a remake itself!!!!! When Steve McQueen and Yul Brynner starred in this classic western they were remaking Akira Kurosawa’s masterpiece “Seven Samurai” and as far as we know Kurosawa got the idea from a traveling puppet show which is strange because I didn't think they had mac-n-cheese in Japan but now I may be mixing my metaphors. Did I mention I’m hungry?

Regardless, the 1960 version is the gold standard of the western genre. Any list of greatest westerns that doesn’t include it is just not credible. In addition to Brenner and McQueen you have Eli Wallach, James Coburn, Robert Vaughn and the only member of the Magnificent Seven and The Dirty Dozen, Mr. Charles Bronson. It has everything: Screen Legends, awesome character actors, Heroes and Anti-Heroes, Good Vs Evil, hungry peasant villagers, EPIC THEME MUSIC, gunfights, humor, show downs, and…well… everything. Let’s face it. If you could put all that into a movie why in God’s name wouldn’t you want to remake it?

So how does the 2016 version compare? I don’t really care. The newest version is its own film and to be fair the mass majority of people who see it will never have even heard of the original much less have seen it. But, while comparing them is a bit pointless it is also a bit inevitable. So here we go.

The 2016 version is an extremely entertaining, well made movie. It’s got everything.
Screen Legends – Denzel Washington is as close to “legendy” (my word) as you get and adding Chris Pratt you get the hottest box office star of the last 5 or 6 years.
Exceptional character actors – Ethan Hawke is superb and at times unrecognizable. Vincent D'Onofrio steals every scene he’s ever in. - Check
Heroes/Anti-Heroes - They are all over the place in the form of hired killers who learn to fight for something besides themselves and gold. - Check

Good vs. Evil – You will want to kill Peter Sarsgaard yourself. Check

Hungry Peasant villagers – Check
EPIC THEME MUSIC – They bastardized the 60’s theme so – check

Gunfights, Humor, show downs – check , check and check well you get the point.

The movie works. Is it as good at the original? No, but it isn't necessary to be legendary to be great. Like any good film the story is king and it's goal is to make you care for the characters. Cheering for success and mourning defeats is why we are in the seats. The relationships and motivations make sense. For example, the friendship between Goodnight Robicheaux (Hawke) and Billy Rock (Byung-hun Lee) feels so genuine and the ease with which the actors interact conveys such a realistic camaraderie that you can’t help but be moved. There are explosions and jokes and show downs and vengeance and justice and loss and the action sequences are fast and furious and have a little twist for good measure. That’s a full movie remake or not!

Then, after the lights come up, you realize your bucket is empty. This is confusing because you don’t remember eating the entire bucket of popcorn. You realize you must have eaten it because it is gone but the more you think about it the popcorn was awesome. It was warm and filling and….this sounds crazy….but you are pretty sure…Yep! The popcorn wasn’t popcorn at all. It was your favorite bowl of mac-n-cheese and it was GOOOOOOOD!

Unsolicited Movie Reviews - Summer 2016

2016-08-15T10:45:00.000-04:00

Unsolicited Movie Reviews – Summer Edition

The wife and kiddos are taking their annual trip to the lake. I am forced to stay behind with the dogs and hold down the fort. Ok, forced may be a bit of an exaggeration.

Luckily I get to pick all the movies I go see regardless if they are kid friendly. In truth as my kids keep getting older that list of movies that they can’t see keeps shrinking. I’m taking advantage of the free time regardless.

Nobody's opinion of Finding Dory, Avengers Civil War, Star Trek and the Secret Life of Pets is going to keep them from making obscene amounts of money and they should. They are solid entertainment. For my money the best one of the bunch this summer was X-Men Apocolypse, but that is beside the point.

I picked two movies that are still in the theaters and two I watched at home. A true crime story, a buddy flick/ period piece, a sci-fi action thriller and the most recent installment of an iconic franchise made the list. Each has a good to great story with compelling characters and A-List actors across the board.

Jason Bourne – Did you love the first three Jason Bourne movies? Well you’ll love this one. That doesn’t mean it’s a canned remake of past success. It is a true continuation of the story but it could stand on its own. Some sequels are wholly reliant on the previous films. This movie is so good and complete that if you’ve never seen the first films this movie will make you want to go back and watch the others.

Phenomenal action sequences that are actually action sequences and not some whored-out, cgi, BS cartoon of an action sequence. The chase through the Athen’s riots will be studied by film students for years. Fast paced, succinct dialogue, rich backstory and awesome action, throw in Matt Damon, Tommy Lee Jones and the finest film actress of her generation Joan Allen and it is hard not to just love this movie.

To be clear I liked it…….a lot.

The Infiltrator – After a career-altering role like Walter White many actors would coast away. A role like that has a tendency to permanently typecast an actor. Let’s face it most everything after that could be a letdown. Think Dennis Franz and Andy Scipowitz. Bryan Cranston is refusing to take that path.

The Infiltrator is a true story based on a novel written by a US Customs agent. He worked undercover in Miami during the height of Pablo Escobar’s cocaine empire. This story follows the efforts to go after Pablo by going after his money and international network of businesses that enabled the cartels to operate with impunity by washing their billions.

To be fair we have seen this story before, Donnie Brasco, Prince of New York and most recently American Hustle to name a few. That could be a bad thing but luckily this genre lends itself to drama, thrills and apparently a never ending supply of engaging stories to tell. The pacing is a little slow at times but the performances are strong and regardless of familiarity to the subject it is a compelling chapter in history. It is also the story of a patriots and heroes sacrificing and placing themselves in harm’s way and that is never a small thing.

Nice Guys – Funniest movie and the most fun movie I’ve seen this year. It is a buddy movie where both buddies are really down on their luck and more than a little, ethically challenged. Los Angeles in the 70’s looks awesome and thankfully they don’t make it look like the costume party so many period pieces like this seem to become.

The best way I can describe it is China Town goes disco with a lot more jokes and without all the incest.

Admittedly, the mystery our heroes are hired to solve is rather typical including an unsolved murder, a lost girl and ties to the seedy underground of LA. That is OK . This movie works because the two leads work, period.

Ryan Gosling is quickly becoming one of the most reliable quantities in Hollywood. Gosling proves the comedic chops he showed in The Big Short were not a fluke.

Russel Crowe is not aging gracefully and it’s a beautiful thing. Out of shape and looking like he ate all the animals from the ill-conceived Ark he plays a great down on his luck enforcer. When Crowe played The Gladiator he was the man all men wanted to be and all women wanted to be with. Now he’s playing the overweight , recovering alcoholic that men realize they could be and women are afraid they’ll have to settle for. Now that’s range.

The chemistry works and ironically its Crowe playing Bud Abbot to Gosling's handsome Lou Costello. It is not family friendly but simply put it made me laugh.

Criminal - his isn’t Citizen Kane. This is a 90 minute popcorn eater of a film with great actors and great action. It’s sci-fi in the vain of Face-Off but lacking the same cheese over-acting and self-indulgent direction.

It is a common tale. Spy has information that will save the world. Spy has uber-hot wife. Spy get’s killed. CIA uses experimental treatment to transfer the dead spy’s memories to the mind of a homicidal sociopath. Hilarity ensues!

Kevin Costner, Gary Oldman, Tommy Lee Jones and Gal Gadot!
Stellar cast for a really entertaining movie. The film is definitely violent but not sadistic.

There they are. Four movies without any superheroes with great actors and great action! Enjoy

Mid-Donut

2016-03-07T12:37:00.003-05:00

Mid-Donut

Recently an old friend from high school posted a picture on FaceBook. It wasn’t a very good picture. It was overexposed, not level and the subject was off center. There was a young lady getting ready to take what appeared to be her second bite of a succulent little pastry. The caption read:

“Caught Mid-Donut”.

All of a sudden everything was clear.

What an exquisitely simplistic and clarifying phrase: “Mid-Donut”.

That’s the place. That’s the goal. Take me to there. Take me to the “Mid-Donut”

Before going further I must confess there is a possibility I may be placing an exaggerated emphasis on pastry treats. For the last month I have been attempting to change the way I eat. There are a number of reasons for this. None of which are unique to me. They include my health, my appearance and an inseparable sense of duty and love for my wife and kids. Consequently, the last 4 weeks have seen my diet stripped of things that have been held sacrosanct to me for nearly 45 years. Potatoes, pasta, buscuits & gravy, cookies, cakes and what often seemed to be every sliver of human goodness and decency have been left by the plate side of my life’s dinner table. Let’s face it. If you are addicted to carbs as I was and suddenly remove them from your diet be prepared. There will be moments of longing so fierce for a bowl of mashed potatoes or a slice of wonder bread that you would seriously consider strangling a complete stranger.

This is to say. My judgement is either clouded in a fog of longing and regret or it is clarified and focused as it has never been before. You’ll have to decide.

But, since I am in this ethereal, emotional limbo where I cannot be entirely certain of my motivations or judgement it is the perfect time to make a life altering decision. Check That!, A WORLD ALTERING decision.

I am starting a cult!

Welcome to the Order of the Mid-Donut!

Easy Now! My cult is different. But to be fair I would imagine that is exactly what every cult leader would tell you as well. But reaaaaaally, it’s different. Every time we see a cult they are having a shootout with federal authorities, burning up in a ball of flames, committing mass suicides, raping and pillaging their members or attempting to get Donald Trump the nomination for President. Cults, heretofore, require you to turn away from your past and your heritage. Cults make you replace your faith with something vapid and fake. Cults make you forget yourself. Well, not this cult.

We don’t want your money.
We don’t want your allegiance.
We don’t want you to ignore your past.
We don’t want you to fear the future. Period.
Most of all, and this can’t be overstated.We don’t want you coming to live with us.

First of all I don’t have the room and the only good thing about communes is that it is easy to avoid a lot of people I probably don’t want to be around in the first place.

Just stay where you are!

The Order of the Mid-Donut just wants you to strive every day to find and recognize the beauty, the joy, the simplicity and the hope that is Mid-Donut. It is by no means a religion. But it is more than a state of mind. It is more than an attitude. It’s a philosophical sugar high, as it were. It’s the ideal of an esoteric plane of consciousness or unconsciousness as the case may be.

I know what you’re thinking. “FROM A DONUT?”

Hear me out. Donuts are like life, I think. Screw it! It is my blog. Donuts are like life.

No two are ever the same. It takes a series of complicated events and reactions to create a donut and then to mold a donut into the donut it is meant to be. They come in countless varieties: Jelly, chocolate, cream-filled, crullers, long johns, colored sprinkles, powdered and now with the CRONUT

apparently the French have finally joined the rest of humanity, albeit reluctantly. Heck, I’m sure there is some gluten-free donut out there made with garbanzo bean flour, coconut lard and sprinkled with GMO-free, organic paprika that was ground under the hooves of free-range, pygmy yaks. It takes all kinds. The options are limited only to the imagination. Some won’t be to your taste but each one is somebody’s tasty treat. Sound familiar?

Think about it. Mid-Donut is that glorious moment where those two exquisite feelings of

elation-realized and elation-anticipated finally coexist. You have just bitten into the donut and felt the exhilaration and satisfaction that you had been anticipating. AND, Oh a beautiful word AND, as you enjoy all its pastry goodness, now you get to start anticipating taking your next bite. You know why? You have MORE donut left to eat. That is a pretty phenomenal crossroad of emotions.

What if we made it a point to find that emotional crossroad all of the time?

What, if every day we not only savored the extraordinary journey we have all taken by appreciating the life we have led? All the life we’ve led with the good and the bad. We should celebrate the triumphs and appreciate the failures. We should awe at the struggle and the fact of still being here. At the same time, what if we embraced, regardless of where we are on life’s journey, having the opportunity to take another bite of our proverbial donut. It may be a small nip or a huge mouth full. It doesn’t really matter. It is the fact as long as we are here we have more servings to come of this joyous, maddening, affirming, frustrating, incomparable donut we call life. That is the essence of "Mid Donut".

We want you to love, honor and remember your past. All of it.
We want you to embrace your faith or find your faith as a promise of what is to come.
We want you to taste different donuts.
We want you be excited with what is around the corner and the opportunities and promises of donuts to come.
We want you to share your donuts.(Proverbially and literally. If you go to Krispy Kreme what would it hurt to get an extra dozen? JUST SAYING!”

I recognize the irony. At least for the time being I can’t even have a donut. But God knows I have had my fair share to this point. I also don’t mean to belittle the precious and sacred gift that is life by comparing it to a ball of lard, flour and sugar. I know life isn’t that simple. For certain the struggles, challenges and evils that will surely be faced throughout any life are neither easy nor trivial.

What I also know is at this very instant we are standing here in our entirety. A complex compilation of the moments in our lives that led us to HERE! The struggles, the chances, the wins, the losses, the tragedies, the triumphs, the horrible mistakes and the lucky guesses all blended and got us to HERE! Right smack dab in the middle of the donut. We have the opportunity of what’s next. We get another bite. We may get thousands of bites to go along with all the other bites. We should do what we can to be thankful or at least content, if not joyful, for the past. They, for better or worse, have prepared us for the awesome opportunity we have to come. It has given us reason to be hopeful and daring and faithful and really anything we care to be. That’s a gift. That’s a helluva intersection! That’s a place to spend some time.

OK, I’ll admit it. I’m not starting a cult.

Like I said, my mind is either foggy from sugar-withdrawal or it is cosmically clear. The jury is still out. For the record though, I would make a horrible cult leader. Communal-living creeps me out and let’s face it. Eventually, “THE GROUP” is gonna expect me to eat quinoa and to make my own soap and that’s just crazy. Put more simply and to paraphrase Groucho Marx: “I wouldn’t want to be part of any cult that would be willing to have me as their leader!” Maybe we can just get t-shirts made or coffee mugs. Coffee and donuts mmmmmmmmmmm. That is a whole other post.

I would however like to find it. That crossroads, that millisecond, that blink in time where appreciation and anticipation intercede. I want to find and keep finding the Mid-Donut. It is exactly where you are whether you realize it or not. It isn’t always easy to see. It occurs constantly all the while changing second by second. It is there for the taking but at times you’re going to have to search and search hard. But, Oooooh, when you find it……..goodness, gracious that’s a good donut.

Remember! Pick up an extra dozen to share!

Oscar Picks 2016 Best Picture

2016-02-28T18:50:00.002-05:00

Oscar’s night is nigh. It snuck up on me this year so I have been scrambling to view all the nominated films for Best Picture. Just finished the last one and thought I would put down a few thoughts. Strangely enough I really enjoyed all the films this year. I can usually find at least one of the nominees that I truly hate. Last year with Birdman and Boyhood I had two. No such luck this season. To be honest I’m a little disappointed. It makes ranking them extremely hard. Oh well, I’ll survive.

All you can do is judge the films in front of you for how they made you feel. Every year has its snubs. Is racism the reason “Straight Outta Compton” or Will Smith weren’t nominated? Maybe, but I guarantee you that if Harvey Weinstein had produced either of those films there would have been bundles of nominations. The process is a little rigged. Some people do a better job marketing (BUYING VOTES) than others. Way of the world I suppose but that’s where we are. Life goes on. No movie has ever been snubbed as bad as “Color Purple” and they may have been as much racism as it was that fact that the Academy didn’t really like Spielberg for a long, long time. Truth is when your vote is subjective you get results that can be suspect. Again, it’s the Way of the World.

Movies based on true or actual events rule the day. This seems to be a pretty familiar Oscar trend. The one truth to take away from all the pictures is that even with the truest movie they are full of inaccuracies. Funny enough, Brooklyn, which is a total work of fiction, came across more realistic than any of the actual “real stories”. But here is the thing and it is hard to get around this fact… IT IS JUST A MOVIE! Chill out.

Again, I really liked all of the movies this year. While there is no runaway film there is also no stinker. Does that make it a stronger or weaker crop of movies? I don’t know but it can make for interesting conversation I suppose.

These are listed in my personal order ranked by how I would vote if I were voting and not what I think will win so I wouldn’t use this for betting unless you want to lose your house.

Room:

No other way to describe it but HEART WRENCHING. Imagine trying to explain the world to a child who has never known anything but a 12x12 room. The film is at its best when showing us how much we take for granted. Things like “outside” and “across the street” are not real if you never knew they existed. The sense of loss and then the sense of awakening that you see in the child is both heart breaking and life affirming at the same time. That is not easy to pull off. Did I say this movie was heart wrenching?

Brie Larson should walk away with the Best Actress award and deservedly so.

Spotlight:

There is a lot of anecdotal proof that investigative reporting is all but dead in American journalism. The story of Spotlight is the greatest argument for not letting it stay dead. There is a long list of classic films that have dogged reporters as the antagonists of the story. All the Presidents Men, Killing Fields, Salvador all come to mind. Spotlight easily belongs on that list. A true story of how a team of reporters at the Boston Globe unearthed one of the largest and most insidious conspiracies in history.

The reporters didn’t want to believe what they were learning. They were skeptical and questioning. The work was mundane and the odds were huge. They were going against arguably the most powerful force in Boston if not the world and doing so came with risk of professional ruin and worse. THAT’s drama and Spotlight does it well. A superb cast telling an unthinkable tale in a fine movie.

The Big Short:

As much as I like films as a release and a getaway I really love films when I learn something. Whether that something is about me, the world or the human condition it doesn’t matter. When I get a film that does both then it is a homerun. The Big Short is a master class in high finance and economics wrapped up in a sleek, funny and if you think about it ANGERING film. It is a master class because it uses a half-naked supermodel in a hot tub to explain some of the more complicated aspects of the story in a simple way. Who could look away?

The movie does pull a little switcharoo. It goes through great lengths to show you what happened with the US economy in 2008 and how it was extraordinarily complex. Many, many smart people missed it or at the very least willfully ignored what was happening. Then, almost miraculously, you find yourself rooting for the handful of folks who figured out the coming demise and made huge financial bets on the crash of the U.S. economy. That’s right. People profiting billions as folks are losing their homes are the heroes.

As I said this is a funny, fast paced, smartly written and wonderfully acted film and if it doesn’t make you madder than hell you weren’t paying attention.

The Revenant:

You will wince…..a lot. This movie is definitely “High Art” but it is also a little bit of “Torture Porn.” It very well may be the best picture of the year but PLEASE can we stop hearing about how hard everything was? I get it. You were cold and wet. Well, so were the masseuses and caterers.

Seriously, this film will take you on an emotional ride. DiCaprio deserves the Best Acting Oscar not because it was so hard but because he was that good. Showing the brutality of the life these men led is accomplished with every aspect of the film. The music, the cinematography, the costumes, everything adds to the story and doesn’t take away. Let’s be clear. This isn’t a new story. We have seen the movie many times. This is a tale of revenge plain and simple but it is told in an astonishingly, breath-taking way. That’s pretty impressive.

FYI: Tom Hardy’s speech describing how he “found the Lord” is acting gold.

Brooklyn:

Any other year Saoirse (Seer-sha) Ronan would have my vote for Best Actress. She’s going to be around for a long time. Brooklyn is probably handicapped in the Oscar race because it doesn’t deal with some unimaginable set of ridiculous events like Revenant or Room and it isn’t set on another world like Martian or Mad Max. It is a more common tale of a young Irish girl leaving her family for a chance at a better life. It is a beautiful love story and no less dramatic, well-made or deserving in its own right than the more outlandish films in the category. It does the most important thing a film can do and that is to make you care for the characters and what happens to them. What else do you want?

Mad Max: Fury Road:

With George Miller, Mad Max and Rocky Balboa all on the big screen I feel like the 70’s are back! MMFR in a lot of ways is what movies ought to be: an epic in scale, visually stunning story of an anti-hero, outcast loner who overcomes all odds to save the day. It is not typical Oscar Bait because fantasy doesn’t always bode well with the Academy, some notable exceptions notwithstanding.

MMFR is violent, quirky, over the top and it lacks subtlety but to be fair George Miller has never claimed it to be subtle even in the original Mad Max in 1979. So now that he has a digital palette to play with he has taken brash and bold to a digital level. It really is a fascinating film to look view. I found myself wondering what the first movie would have looked like if the technology had been available.
Oh and forget Tom Hardy. Charlize Theron owns this movie!

Bridge of Spies:

Spielberg / Hanks tell a cold war story of quiet espionage and backroom diplomacy. Seriously if it hadn’t been nominated the earth may have shifted on its axis. To be honest it is not Spielberg’s greatest but that’s a pretty high bar. It is thoughtful, temperate and deliberate telling more of a famous story that has been know till this point. The movie is not a genre changer or a ground breaking event. However, it is a film that is told with a steady and trusted hand by skilled filmmakers. In that way it is not unlike the hands that guided the events in the story it tells. It is a story of patriotism that is as concerned with idealism behind the acts as the acts themselves. It didn’t take place on a battlefield but in boardrooms and governmental office. It is a different type of patriotic tale but a patriotic tale none the less.

The Martian:

The greatest trick of “The Martian” is how is took a painstakingly technical, high minded

sci-fi novel and turned it into a highly entertaining and watchable film. You have to credit Ridley Scott and Matt Damon. They know what they are doing. The Martian is a funny, inspirational and uplifting film that while it was “unbelievable” it stayed “believable”. You find yourself aching for this poor guy to finally get home. If I’ve got one complaint, well two actually, is that the movie didn’t do a good job of showing exactly how long he was gone. But it didn’t really matter because it would have been impossible to root for him any harder. The second complaint was about the “science” For the most part all of the science made sense. Until the end and that’s why it dropped from my number 1. I’m still not over the ending. But on the whole it is a great film.

Don't let the rankings throw you. All these movies were superb. Again this was a tough year to rank.

Let me know what you think!

Roaring Sound of Silence

2015-09-12T13:13:00.001-04:00

What I remember was the silence. I remember thinking the silence was strange because of the number of people bustling about. The doctor and a couple of nurses were taking care of my wife Shelli. Four other nurses, maybe more, were calmly but quickly taking care of my newborn son. I stood at the foot of my wife’s bed staring at the stainless steel and ceramic tile walls of the delivery room. I was rattled but I didn’t want Shelli to see I was nervous. Nervous hell! I was scared. When a child is born you don’t want to hear silence. You want to hear crying and laughter and cheers and ‘Congratulations Dad!’ All I could hear was my heart thumping in my chest and the prayers in my head pleading that he was OK.

Our first pregnancy was just too easy. I understand only a man can say a pregnancy was easy but as pregnancies go it was smooth. Excited and nervous as we were things seemed to go as planned. There was a bathtub, an aerobics ball, a midwife, hippie music and a delivery room that looked like a hotel suite. Shell did it all without an epidural and it was pretty much perfect and our little baby girl was perfect.

So when we found out we were pregnant again I was convinced we were that couple that has easy pregnancies. Yes, I know there is no such thing. Did I mention I am a man? Seriously I thought we had this thing licked. The plan was good. We were on schedule to have our daughter potty trained before our new one arrived. Vacations and sick leaves were all set for the new arrival. With a due date in early March Shelli would miss being “very pregnant” in the heat of summer. She had the added benefit of celebrating the holidays with a good excuse to eat anything she wanted. Then on the Saturday before Christmas we were about to leave for some last minute shopping. Shelli was in the floor with our daughter and she said something didn’t feel right. She didn’t act shocked or scared but I could tell she was concerned. We called the doctor and fifteen minutes later we were at the hospital. Ten minutes later Shelli was on bed rest for the foreseeable future. She was in premature labor and needed to be on IV medication. But even then I wasn’t panicked. Concerned? Absolutely but I’m a cockeyed optimist and figured all we needed was time, medicine and a deep breath. Shelli was just pushing herself too hard and this was God’s way of telling her to slow down. Got it! Message Received! Thanks God. We’ll see you in March.

Not so fast.

After making sure our daughter was squared away at a friend’s house I began calling family to let them know Christmas plans had been altered. I still remember telling Shelli’s mother about the premature labor. “Oh no. It’s so early.” she said. The words were so faint that to this day I’m not sure she even knew she said them out loud. That was the first time I got nervous. That is when the questions started flooding my head. Early? What does that mean for the baby? Would there be birth defects? What kind of defects? Could they be mental or physical? Eyes? Ears? Arms? Heart? Lungs? EVERYTHING!!!! In that moment I realized how much I didn’t know.

The next few days, while tedious, were also very special. We sat in a hospital room trying to watch TV or talk. There were obviously discussions with doctors and ultrasounds and shots. Shelli even had her hair washed by a nurse and I remember thinking it was funny that they caught the water in a 20 gallon trash can. It is odd the things you remember. There was also a lot of laughing and hand holding and hugs and tears. Most of the time was spent choosing a name.

Well a girl’s name at least. As agreed upon before we were married if the first child was a girl my wife would get to pick the name and if it was a boy I would get the honor. The other spouse would choose the next child’s name regardless of sex. Each of us had veto powers. Since we chose not to learn the sex of either of our children it was important to be prepared. I always knew my first son would be named Daniel. But I had never selected a girl’s name and in my defense I thought I had eleven more weeks to decide. So, we embarked on a quest for a girl’s name. There were dozens we liked but more we hated. Names with “history” got nixed. Former girlfriend’s names were out immediately, go figure. We had a white board up so we could visualize the names. It turned into a game. Once we narrowed it down to 5 sets of names with no clear favorite we let the nurses vote. If our baby was a girl her name would be “Sela Rose”. For the record my wife used veto power on my first choice “Matilda”. I still think it was a mistake.

Wednesday morning we got good news. Shelli got to go to the bathroom and take a real shower. She literally cried with excitement. The labor looked like it had stopped and we had a girl’s name. It was the most optimistic we had been in several days. Then all hell broke loose. We had a couple of visitors that morning. Shelli started feeling uncomfortable. A little while later the doctor confirmed that labor and started again. He explained that it may be possible to slow the labor again but it was unlikely to stop completely. His suggestion was to deliver this baby and deal with any issues they may arise. Again your mind starts racing with possibilities. We took a deep breath and said OK. For the next couple of hours Shelli kept progressing through her labor. The doctor and I spent most of time at the foot of her bed talking about the Harry Potter books we had just read. Did I mention the doctor and I were both men?

It was time. Contraction intervals, dilation centimeters and effacement ratios were all aligned. There was no hippie music, no midwife, no aerobics ball in the corner. There were doctors and nurses wheeling Shelli into what looked like an operating room. There was stainless steel and lights and tile and a small bucket at the end of the bed. There was a team of nurses waiting in the corner. Everyone was in scrubs and there was a sense of urgency. In short it was entirely different from our first pregnancy. At 29 weeks our baby was obviously not very big. The delivery itself was relatively short. After a couple of pushes it was “Hello and Welcome to the world”.

After a quick look the nurses whisked him way. It’s a Boy! Daniel was here. The doctor turned his focus to Shelli and the nurses had Daniel under a heat lamp doing whatever it is they do. I faced the wall trying to catch my breath. There it was, that silence. Why wasn’t he screaming? My daughter screamed immediately. I didn’t know much but I knew he was supposed to scream. Pleads and prayers were still pounding. I stood there for what seemed like 10 minutes and heard nothing. It was just so damn quiet.

“Woo hoo” was the first thing I heard. It cut through the air. It wasn’t Daniel but a nurse. It was followed by “He’s peeing Dad. Daniel’s peeing.” Finally came the faintest cry. A wail or a screech or whatever you want to call it from his tiny little lungs. Then everything came rushing in. I heard him and the nurses and all the other sounds surrounding me. I didn’t know everything that was to come but I knew right then he was crying and peeing and I’ve never felt more relief in my life. I wiped my eyes and walked back to Shelli. Daniel was taken to the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) for further assessments. As soon as we were settled we got word from the nursery that Daniel weighed 3 lbs 9oz., more optimism. That was huge for 29 weeks. We didn’t know when we would get to see Daniel. We did know he had 10 fingers and 10 toes and a little stuffed goat that was a gift from the staff. We knew he didn’t need a respirator and that was everything.

It would be seven weeks before we got to take Daniel home. This would be seven weeks of hospital gowns, NICU beds, hand sanitizer, IVs, doctor’s rounds, late nights and getting to know the caring and dedicated staff of the NICU. September is NICU Awareness Month and that is why I decided to share this story. My wife and I became AWARE of our NICU the hard way. The dedication and care shown to my family by the administrators, nurses and doctors of East Carolina University Medical Center leaves me a debt of gratitude I will never be able to fully repay.

The day after Daniel was born was Christmas. Our neighbors broke into our house to “steal” the presents Shelli and I had bought each other and wrapped them for us. We could only see Daniel a few hours a day and our daughter was at her Grandmother’s house. So we spent that Christmas eating snacks, watching movies, sitting quietly and feeling grateful for the showers of blessing that were being rained down upon us. I had a beautiful wife, a wonderful 2 year old daughter, my son Daniel Darrow York and I had quiet. But, this quiet I heard wasn’t scary. It was soothing and peaceful like a good quiet should be.

Thanks to My Movie Loving Father

2015-06-21T10:26:00.001-04:00

Thanks to my movie loving Father.

Inspired by a family friend, my 14 year old daughter and I have embarked on a task to see the American Film Institute's (AFI.com) top 50 movies of all time. This seems like a great exercise to 1) spend time with my teenage daughter and 2) give her a leg up on annoying her friends with useless movie quotes applicable to any situation for decades to come.

Win-Win!

Concerning the latter, it has been suggested on occasion in the course of regular conversation I will, to a somewhat annoying degree, quote movie lines and draw parallels using arcane film references. I submit the complaints are exaggerated but after you hear the same observation a few thousand times you begin to lend it some credence. If it is true then the only person to blame is my father. So, why wouldn’t I want to pass along such a glorious trait to my daughter? It is a family tradition.

Growing up in the dark ages of the 70’s and 80’s with no internet, heck we didn't even have cable tv. So, my father was a boiled-down, human version of IMDB.com. He was notorious for picking out actors in old movies and tv shows and pointing out all the other movies where they appeared. He was particularly adept at cast members of old westerns but he loved musicals, dramas and comedies equally. Daddy was also prone to break into songs that related to whatever subject he happened to be discussing at the time but that is a story for another day. Regardless, when he talked about movies it usually led to stories about what was going on in his life at the time. “Oh, I saw that in college" or "Your Mother was pregnant with your sister when we saw this.” It would lead to other tales and stories and the next thing you know we had a conversation and I had learned something about my Dad I didn't know before. Films acted as a time line and mental post-it notes for our family history.

Now this isn’t necessarily a project I could do with my 12 year old son. He cannot stand B&W films and is suspicious of my “old movies” in general. My daughter on the other hand likes to humor her old man and even loves classic movies. Charlie Chaplin is a particular favorite. Now, because of Chaplin’s movies my daughter has new appreciation and points of reference to help her understand things like the Great Depression (The Kid) or industrialization (Modern Times) or fascism (The Great Dictator). It has also given us another line of conversation and anyone with teenagers knows you don’t take those opportunities lightly. But hey, I had a good teacher.

I just got off the phone with my Father. I told him about this little project with his granddaughter and then spent an hour listening to him talk about films he remembered from when he was young. He is 78 and can still remember going with his older sister to see Wuthering Heights when he was 6 or 7. As a boy of 9 or 10 he would go see serial westerns at the Strand on Main St. in our hometown. The small college he attended in the mountains of North Carolina would have a movie night in the auditorium and he vividly remember seeing Martin Luther and in his words it really “…dug into me.” I asked him if he remembered the family going to see Star Wars when I was 6 and if he remembered falling asleep about an hour into it. He just laughed. Then I recalled us going to see Pete’s Dragon and having to keep it a secret from my Grandmother for some reason. Then he reminded me it was because we skipped a church event to go see it and that was a BIG NO NO. Then we actually couldn't remember which movie we skipped church to go see but we are certain about skipping! HA!

Movies are and have always been more than my entertainment. They are topics for conversation. They encompass and reinforce life lessons. They give me a sense of time and historical reference for different eras and places. They are escapism. They are educational and even though I didn’t always realize it at the time they have been a way for me to bond with both of my parents but especially my Dad. I want to open that same line of connection with both my children and in doing so connect them a little more with their grandfather. I’m just thankful I kept an open mind, listened to my Old Man and watched a bunch of “dumb old” movies even the black and white ones.

In honor of Father’s Day here is a list of 11 movies I first watched on the recommendation of my father. Thanks a ton Old Man. I love you!

11 Movies I'm Grateful My Dad Got Me to Watch! (in no particular order)

Inherit the Wind - No other film describes the relationship with my Dad and films as this one. It led to conversations about faith, science, truth and principle. It led to a life long interest in the career of Clarence Darrow. So much so that my son's middle name is Darrow. It is deep, thoughtful and poignant. Spencer Tracy and Fredrick March chew up the screen and I might never have watched it if it weren't for my Dad.
"As long as the prerequisite of that shining paradise is ignorance, bigotry and hate, I say the hell with it." Henry Drummond

Yankee Doodle Dandy – Single favorite scene of any movie ever. James Cagney tap dancing down the steps of the White House is as satisfying of an ending I’ve ever watched on film. Anytime you mention this scene my Dad still smiles.

Lilies of the Field – My father is as kind and gentle a person as I have ever known. He has always tried to do what is right to the best of his ability and often to his detriment. I think about him and my mother every time I see acts of decency in movies and in life.

The Big Country – My Dad was a huge Charlton Heston fan. Me, not so much but he is great in this movie in a supporting role. Gregory Peck stars and Burl Ives won his Oscar. Dad is also sucker for a brunette and Jean Simmons was no slouch.

Mister Roberts – Daddy reveres this movie. He constantly misquotes Ensign Pulver’s last line but never the less it was one of his favorites. WWII was such a huge part of Dad’s childhood and all the great war movies from the 40’s were popular.

“What’s all this crud about no movie tonight?”

The Cowboys – “We’re burning daylight!”

Daddy was a true fan of the Duke. “The Alamo”, “Chisum”, “Rio Bravo”, “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance”, “She Wore a Yellow Ribbon”, “The Searchers” and on and on and on. Dad would say “Of all the movies John Wayne walked through the Cowboys was the best.” ha!

Brigadoon – Dad is a sucker for musicals, which was great because so was my Mom. He was also a fan of Van Johnson. I think he was just enamored with big guy who could tap dance. This may be my favorite Gene Kelly movie.

Blazing Saddles – My mother used to tell the story of going to the theater with Dad to see this movie. My father laughed so hard during the “Campfire Beans” scene that he was leaning over the edge of his seat slapping the floor in the aisle. The visual of my father laughing that hard always makes me happy.

To Kill a Mockingbird – If Daddy said it once he said it a thousand times, “How great it would be if more people viewed the world like Atticus Finch.” Amen!

The Quiet Man –
Just an epic fight scene.

Dad used to laugh at how silly movie fights were. “Dear Lord” he would say. They beat on each other for an hour and nobody even has a bruise.

No Time for Sergeants - Being from NC we were huge Andy Griffith fans. I remembered being shocked to find out Andy did more than just the TV show. I watched it for first time 35 years ago and it still makes me belly laugh every time I see it.

“Ah, listen there. Somebody must have brung their bugle.”

I will never be able to say thank you enough!