October 30, 2017

The last movie I saw at the theatre was Professor Marston, so I have been watching more on Netflix and catching up.

First was the Netlfix film the Meyerwitz Stories (New and Selected) was one of those, reviewed at RogerEbert.com and given 4 stars. I was intrigued. After seeing it, I cannot agree with the assessment. Not sure what all the fuss was about. Here a good cast is playing a family in NYC. Dad (Dustin Hoffman) is a multiple married older sculpture/artist who never has quite made it. Some of his contemporaries have and it is a sticking point for him. He is focused on one thing, and one man, and that is himself. He has three children, two from one woman (played by Adam Sandler and Elizabeth Marvel – almost not recognizable from her role in House of Cards), and then youngest with another woman Ben Stiller. Dad’s children have not “made it” as artistic people, much to his disappointment. The children come together as something happens and then interact with one another and their father. The film is told in chapters with the focus being outlined by that chapter title. For me, I found the chapters truncated, and they can end quickly and with little notice. There is a flow and direction, but I am not sure I need nor want to follow. I feel sympathy for the children, and recognize that this would not have been a fun childhood in those households, and later the broken homes. We adults can shape and impact those offspring in undetermined ways in the future by the acts of selfishness at the time. Well, I can only speak for myself but it holds true. Anyway, despite the glowing review, mine won’t be. I found this slow, and not engaging and not worth my time. Sandler does a better turn once again as being a more serious actor; as opposed to the yelling and profane man-child. Emma Thompson plays the latest wife who is drunk and forever locked in the 60s. In the end, there were some smiles but they were too few and far between.

We began watching Stranger Things 2, and finished 4 episodes. On the whole it started off fairly slowly in re-introducing these characters. I found myself asking aloud, “what happened in the previous season” and once finally coming up with it, seeing where this one takes us. Clouds and storms are the horizon and poor Will from the first season seems to be the target once again for visions and bad things. The rest of the younger cast continues on in school and deals with some new characters. The adults are forging some new paths it would seem, and it moves along. While episodes 1 and 2 were slower, episode 3 starts to get things moving, and episode 4 follows. For me, there is the plot but I almost enjoy as much the staging and homes from back in the mid-80s. Set design people had fun finding games, and trinkets, food and commercials. I will continue with this and see where it ends up. It is an 80s horror film cliché that hiding the unknown from people who may help can cause serious consequences (just ask the cat!)…..

As an aside, I wanted to see what the Top Box Office so far during 2017 has been. It is recognized that this year (and particularly this summer) has been one of the slowest and lowest revenue years in quite some time. There have not been many films to be excited about. When I look at the list I have a few observations.

2017 box office pic

First, like the years before it I am amazed at all the Superhero movies. I also recognize that Star Wars will blow away the competition this Christmas season once again. But check out some of the other titles here (Boss Baby $175M, Transformers $130M, Emoji Movie ??! $85M!!!) Boss Baby made more than Blade Runner AND Alien Covenant COMBINED! It makes me shake my head with the moviegoing public. How sad when they spend money on absolute junk, and a movie like Atomic Blonde comes in at $51M. I am still amazed at how Blade Runner has fallen off a cliff at the box office. Beauty and the Beast was not the original, and Emma Watson cannot sing. Dunkirk at $187M is NOT an American film so I am not surprised, but still it is in my opinion the best film of the year. We will see if it can hold that title. I am saddened and disappointed. Did you know that there is a new Mary Poppins coming out and Emily Blunt is the star? Some good films are coming, and I hope to get out again at some point.

October 16, 2017

This past weekend we ended up seeing one of the worst opening films of the entire year. I was reading box office numbers for this past weekend and Happy Death Day made more money than Blade Runner 2049 which dropped 40+% in box office in a week. I am astounded at that actually. A movie that gets almost universally positive reviews is beaten out by a terrible Groundhog Day slasher film. It says a great deal about the movie-going public, and what they seek. It’s no wonder that Hollywood pushes out sequels and superhero movies with abandon – and can often just get it wrong with the Oscars. Anyway, in the same Box office article it talked about Professor Marsten and the Wonder Women, and how it earned a year-long low of $700,000 or about $600 a screening for this past weekend.

We saw it! The over/under bet before going into the theatre for the number of patrons early was 15 for me. (I won the bet)….

Professor Marsten and the Wonder Women: Here is the biopic backstory about the creators of Wonder Woman and the genesis of their creation. Principally it was created by this Professor Marsten who was Harvard educated, and one of the inventors of the early lie detectors test devices (he gave away the technology without a patent, because he felt that it was something for “everyone”). He had a Wife, who was an academic herself who early in the film is denied a Harvard Doctoral degree because she was at the sister college, Radcliffe in Cambridge. She is smart and abrasive and to-the-point. She is played by the female lead from The Town. Together they as a couple teach and run across a young student who becomes a Teaching Assistant. Then she becomes more as they begin a relationship at a time when no one was ready for it (late 20s and 30s). They had children and lived a suburban lifestyle, but also enjoyed kink and sex play. This translated into the Wonder Woman character who the movie is quick to point out the bondage, the lesbianism and other aspects of their lives that became Wonder Woman. In truth, the Wonder Woman story is the back half of the tale, and it is the relationship that was the focus of the piece. Unless I had read the review beforehand, I would not have known anything about this film. Girlfriend went in with no knowledge of the story and it surprised her. Even as I knew it showed another story of people who lived an unconventional life, but who loved and supported one another, yet still had social and environmental challenges that pressured them and pulled them apart. This did not have to be a big screen film to see, like Stronger before it (and unlike Blade Runner) but it was interesting and I certainly will not look at Wonder Woman the same after viewing it.

Upon your suggestion, I did watch a few episodes of Big Mouth. It was funny and rude and on point from a 13 yo pubescent Grade 8 student (youngest son’s age). The Hormone Monster is funny (especially his sensitivity at being called a Fairy)! I will keep watching it. Girlfriend cringed at the white shorts and the Statue of Liberty school trip. It’s a miracle really that any of us managed to get through this time without serious therapy required! Perhaps I can be more sympathetic for my youngest son, who turns 13 shortly, as he gets through this time in his life!

October 9th, 2017

I will write the easier review for this week, which is Netflix film Southpaw, with Jake G.

Having seen Jake recently in Stronger, I am reminded here that he is a versatile actor. Here is a boxer at the top of his game, but growing longer in the tooth. He is taking worse beatings and his Wife (Rachel McAdams) is concerned. He has an entourage and all the trimmings and uses the rage inside him to fuel his athlete ability. Then disaster strikes and he loses everything, in every way that a man can lose it all. The story then becomes one of redemption and fighting back from your demons and yourself. This movie I cheered for, and I was air punching right along with the fighter himself. It is well done, like a Rocky before it, and follows along the tried path with other boxing movies. Worth a viewing if you choose to keep Netflix.

Ah Blade Runner 2049, the new Denis Villeneuve film that is a sequel to the original first from Ridley Scott back in 1982. This movie takes the original premise and then builds on it. The plot is thick and you need to pay attention, and that is harder than it seems with all the scenes on the screen. Magnificent scenes of cities and garbage dumps and inside vast buildings with cool views and cold visuals. The rain, the snow, the environment draws you in to this futuristic world.

Mr Villenueve again is creating a film I know that I will need to re-view and re-visit. He layers the story, and takes his time in a film over 2.5 hours long. Parts are slow and you wish would move faster. Still you stay with it. We were in an IMAX film filled with people at noon today. No one was leaving, no one was talking. There is an Oscar for production design here. There is some startling CGI, and on the whole a movie that did not disappoint for me. Girlfriend disagreed and did not like it, nor feel compelled to see it again. She had seen the original Director’s Cut, but it does not grab her. For me there are deep themes that stay with me, and I will think on for a few days ahead, and even more so when I can read and share with others (like Prometheus) when everyone has seen the film. I won’t be giving away any spoilers.

So a thumbs up for me who is target audience for this film (one who saw the original years ago and really liked it) and who came in with some higher expectations — I am thankful for not reading about this one too much. Still trailers can be a bad thing, as there are points in the movie when I was anxious to see the trailer shown part already (like Gosling and Ford meeting to talk) but which the film approached from a different angle. So see this film, and make up your own mind — and then we can talk! I give away nothing by telling about a trailer scene, which is fair game in my opinion, and has been in the public eye for months now.

September 22, 2017 (NOT a Monday – so what of it?!)

Yea it’s not Monday but so be it.
Two movies to talk about.

First – some movies are just plain fun and entertainment for entertaining for a short while. John Wick Chapter 2 is such a film. This was fun. The first was a sleeper hit when it was released as a simple revenge tale for a “retired” hired gun. The world calls him “The Boogeyman”. Here is a follow up where the premise means very little and our protagonist looking for some peace and solace (after the loss of his wife and dog) is more involved as the story continues. The sets are more elaborate and the travel more extensive. The killing is more intense and it’s just bigger with more of everything. Keanu did Speed which is the same type of fun film. Roger Ebert said the same about it. Now he has John Wick. There was a cool cameo in this film too which just felt right. So I am glad to have watched this.

I did see the TIFF film First They Killed My Father a story about a Cambodian little girl during the early days of the battles with Vietnam and the leadership of the Khamir Rouge. This was directed by Angelina Jolie. She does an excellent job of setting mood and there is a good sense of here and now. The cinematography is remarkable. The story is a scary one about what a young family goes through and a little girl so young. Still it was slow. The review on it was more glowing than how I felt about it. This isn’t a Great War movie. I don’t think so. But it was a good story.

On Netflix there is a fascinating story about George Harrison. Well worth checking out. Some revelations for me was the drug use. But the interviews are good. Such a talent. Died way too young and impacted so many lives. So many friends. And all people in many facets of entertainment. Racing, film (he financed Monty Python Life of Brian) and of course music. He was ever searching for the meaning of life. It wasn’t possessions. He realized that early on.

TIFF edition 2017 – September 11 2017

TIFF is over for me and I saw two films plus re-visiting a friend from earlier in the year. I have also seen a couple other films as well.

TIFF was generally a sombre affair for me with two films that address loss in different ways. The first was On Chesil Beach which starred Saoirse Ronan who was excellent in Brooklyn a couple years back. Here she is part of a couple that meets and decides to get married in 1962. This is a time where the sexual revolution has not occurred and the couple are filled with angst and misinformation about the physical aspects of love. The wedding night does not goes as planned or as expected and a decision is made. The consequences are then felt for the rest of the film. I liked the performances. The discomfort and level of uncertainty is palpable. In the end you have such sympathy for characters who are prisoners in their own time in a way. The best part of TIFF is when the people who created the film show up to answer questions and provide clarity. Here the writer, director, producer and main male actor were all here. The writer was very insightful.

Next came Euphoria last night where we have the relationship of two sisters explored in detail. Sisters are played by Alicia Vikander and Eva Green. Vikander’s production company produced it. The sisters are very different people. And they have done different things in their lives and chosen different paths. Who ever said that you had to like your siblings, just because you have common life experiences in your youth? The story addresses a difficult subject matter well and shows some aspects of life that for me were new and thought provoking. Alicia was there, but unfortunately Eva Green was not. For me the Green performance was more demanding and impressive. Charlotte Rampling has a small but important part. Girlfriend liked this film more than On Chesnil Beach. She felt the characters and the relationship was better established. I preferred the first as some aspects of this film did not work for me (the the closing choice of song). Still it was a film that stayed with me and I think about.

Alicia Vikander Euphoria TIFF 2017

Sunday as you know was the Cinesphere playing of Dunkirk where Christopher Nolan was in attendance to answer questions and talk about his use of celluloid as opposed to filming digitally. He and James Cameron would have a fun debate. This to me is a marvellous film and one of the best in 2017. On 70mm film it was even better. I cannot recommend this film more highly and it is an event to be seen in IMAX.

On Netflix I have watched The Space Between Us which feels like a compilation of a bunch of better films like The Martian, Star Man, The Fault In Our Stars and even The Boy in the Plastic Bubble. It is a teen angst movie where the two teens are separated by planets; talk about the long distance relationship! He was born on Mars unexpectedly, and somehow managed to connect with a pretty blonde in a classroom. It is quite formulaic and nothing is really much of a surprise.

Finally I watched Demolition with Jake Gyl. Here he plays a guy not fully engaged with his routine life. He goes about his routine and days and then something happens to shake that up. He finds comfort and satisfaction with destruction. First in small appliances and then to a house that is being gutted. It moves to his own house. He does many unexpected things. He meets a woman through letters he wrote to complain about losing change in a vending machine. There are revelations made that surprised me and took this in a new direction. There is a scene with the Customer Service person’s son in the use of a firearm that quite simply had me stunned. This was a TIFF film I had on my list from a couple years back that I did not see. I am glad I did. I am thankful it didn’t cost me $25.

What attracts me to TIFF are the people you meet in lines. The choice of films. You see things here that aren’t in Cineplex theatres. But you get the added bonus of the stars and people that create the film. The extra colour are live bonus materials that shape and give texture to these stories. Sometimes they clear up questions on what was the filmmaker’s intent. On Chesil Beach had that aspect and I appreciated the clarity. I do like the buzz in the city that is created downtown. It’s a fun time of year and I look forward to it next year. Enjoy your films!

Labour Day – September 4th, 2017

This week past was catching up on some old friends. This past weekend it was the 40th anniversary of Close Encounters of the Third Kind on the big screen. Spielberg’s space masterpiece. And it looks marvellous on the big screen where it belongs. The scene of the interior of the space ship was removed (as it should be) but the Magic remains. Girlfriend had never seen this. I had. Together we enjoyed this. The last 30 mins of this movie remains incredible. Spielberg says it was the most difficult editing sequence of his career. It is seamless. Between the music (Arrival borrows heavily from using the concept of alternate means of communication for aliens). The building blocks of ET are borne here. I can go on and on about this film but the simple recommendation is to see it on the big screen with big sound where it belongs.

I have also seen the ending to Game of Thrones. Season 7 started slowly but when the dragons got more involved it had an energetic pace. I await to see the Jon Snow reaction to his “news”. From him especially. No GOT for 2018 so this one will have to wait.

TIFF begins this week. I have two movies on tap. I look forward to the knowledgeable crowds, the lines and the buzz on the streets of Toronto. With any luck I will see a few stars. Happy TIFF. Enjoy Dunkirk at the Cinesphere.

August 23, 2017

As I am pouring over the latest TIFF schedule and listing of films for 2017, yesterday I managed to find at the library a copy of last year’s TIFF Top Pick, LaLa Land. I had vowed that I wasn’t going to see in the theatre nor spend money on a musical on film as previously discussed. In short I have found Hollywood’s attempts to generate a buzz about this genre to be less than successful (even when such films were awarded the top prize for a film during that year). The Artist, Chicago and others of late have not resonated with me, even when I had seen the film on stage (Chicago was seen by me in London).

Now with Lala Land we have the story starring Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone.

I think I entered this film with an open mind. There was the hype to be sure and all the awards, but I was looking forward to it. The story is a simple one; aspiring actress is frustrated by the whole Hollywood scene, when she meets frustrated jazz pianist (Gosling) who wants to revive the dying jazz clubs and music. I did like the bright and colourful costumes and sets. They showed joy and positive energy when so much around us can be down and dark. There are a couple cute scenes. The music I felt was good, with some catchy songs. Still this didn’t excite me, and I wasn’t enthralled. I found the singing ability lacking, and in some cases hard to hear the voices of the leads. They aren’t singers. Not in a Russell Crowe or Peirce Brosnan horrible way, but not accomplished singers. And perhaps that is one of the frustrations, is that there ARE triple threats out there who can sing, dance and act. Ryan Gosling has confidence in what he is doing, it is true, but I don’t pretend that he is playing the piano. Some of it, yes but much of it is done by others I suspect. His dancing was competent but he wasn’t channeling Fred Astaire. It is a bit forced. Like the relationship between the leads. They don’t have electric chemistry together. Alison’s description about Emma Stone’s face is right on point. The math just simply doesn’t add up. She is not very attractive; she doesn’t have a killer body; she is not a singer as we have established; she is a decent actor. Her turn in Birdman as the daughter was one of her better performances, and garnered her a Supporting Actress nomination. She is quirky and simply just doesn’t do anything for me. That she WON the Best Actress award for this just floors me. If you have seen Elle, Isabelle Huppert who won the Golden Globe had a better performance. I suspect Stone won for her song performance when she auditioned for the movie in Paris, and that song about her aunt. Still I remain perplexed. In the end the romantic in me was not satisfied with the ending, but then again that was a twist that was to be expected I suppose. It made sense. There are paths that we all choose to take and they direct our lives and have consequences. The same holds true here. That we have a review of a different path and how things could have been just highlights one of life’s truths.

Despite the gaffe at the actual Awards with Warren and Faye fumbling with the wrong Best Picture card – I am pleased that this did not win. It wasn’t the Best Picture, but then again almost a year later neither was the winner Moonlight. The movie that I will remember best, and re-watch for last year will continue to be Arrival.

July 31, 2017

Last day of July, it is hard to believe really. But movies keep being released and Netflix keeps posting more films as well.

I saw War for the Planet of the Apes in the theatre this past week and it didn’t disappoint. The reviews have been good all around for this third installment of the rebooted series. The performances are good and Andy Serkis plays Caesar very well with equal leader and parent. A leader wishing for peace for his kind but one who has very human struggles internally and externally to contend with. My minor quibble with this is how they are trying in their own way to connect with the original POTA from 1969. Some is clever like an explanation for how humans become mute. Others though like Nova and Cornelius are more troublesome since the timelines just wouldn’t sync up. At least not from the original. Caesar and the Lawgiver were long since dead and buried for centuries before Taylor ever crashes into their world. But besides these minor issues this is not just a shoot em up film with endless battles. There are aspects borrowed from Apocalypse Now, channeled in many ways by Woody Harrelson. Also The Great Escape and further Schindler’s List. Add to that a little political commentary about building walls and there is a film that covers much territory. This reboot was well worth viewing and the effort.

I also caught on Netflix Toni Erdmann which was a German film nominated for Best Foreign Film and was at TIFF. It is a father and daughter film with an aging Dad and his older busy daughter. She is working on an outsourcing deal which will cut many jobs with plenty of office politics. He wants to get a glimpse into her life. I heard that Hollywood wants to remake this. It troubles me where I imagine that they would take it. The story here is subtle and touching and you have two complex people just sorting through things. There are some very funny moments. And moments that at times you think are just improbable. But I enjoyed it and wished I had seen this at TIFF. It didn’t win the Oscar. Worth checking out as well.

I read a glowing review of Valerian and it surprised me. This was not on my radar. But maybe it should be. Not sure.

I did start Miss Sloane with Jessica Chastain last night too. So far so good. She plays a driven, hard hitting lobbyist. It has the look and feel (and actors from) The Newsroom.

July 24, 2017

There was a recent be a story that a veteran from Calgary wanted to attend the film Dunkirk as he was there when it happened. He came out praising the film and realism. I will add my voice to many who have sung the praises of this film. Christopher Nolan has put together an excellent war picture that builds on the previously successful stories like Saving Private Ryan. He accomplishes this by using a story with multiple tales that in quite a few cases overlap. You need to pay attention to ensure you stay straight on this mostly linear storyline. He also in many cases keeps the dialogue to a minimal including the opening sequence with a young man running through the streets and onto the beach.
This is gripping, intense and emotional. It is scary. But scary because of the realism and randomness of war. As German attacks begin on British and French troops lined up like bowling pins along the desolate beach (with no cover) you can sense the anxiety. And fear.
I didn’t notice the Hans Zimmer score as much here as I did in Interstellar. But I did notice the high pitched buzz like in Batman as things began to ramp up and tension is rising.
This is worth seeing on a big screen. I did not see in IMAX but did in AVX. I fully expect that there are a number of awards that this should garner. Maybe even Best Picture. Maybe even Best Director. Performances are very good with Tom Hardy, Cillian Murphy, Mark Rylance and Kenneth Branuagh being notable. Few female characters at all. Rylance is so very good once again following his Oscar performance in Bridge of Spies.

Episode 2 of Game of Thrones thankfully was better than Episode 1. Somebody at long last has put together the idea that the dragons may be useful against the white walkers. There are also alliances being forged that seem inevitable and necessary. Battle lines are being drawn and it is going to get interesting. The production value here is remarkable.

July 17, 2017

I have some commentary on a number of fronts today. First a further comment about expectations and how they impact one’s viewing and filter on a film or show. After much anticipation and reviewing of the previous final episode Game of Thrones returned last night. It was in a word underwhelming. Very little seemed to happen and it was more of a set up for the rest of this short season. I am hopeful that it gets ramped up quickly. Although I will say that the looking to mine dragon glass isn’t an episode I look forward to much. My memory of the past episodes can be fuzzy and I wonder about Danny in that war room that looked like Stannis was there previously – I just don’t remember the dragon stuff everywhere. More to come.

I saw Baby Driver in the theatre last week. It had some positive reviews but I knew very little about it. It had Jon Hamm (Mad Men) Jamie Foxx and Kevin Spacey. Add to this a young unknown actor to me as the baby faced driver. There are times when it becomes almost a music video with dancing and choreography. They almost lost me with that. But the underlying story about a young boy (Baby is his name) who keeps to himself and suffered a horrible accident when he was a child is compelling. He “owes” Kevin Spacey’s character and drives with various crews to pull off bank heists. He meets a girl and the story moves on from there. I like the performances. Some over the top a bit but it held my attention. Unlike GoT I didn’t have anticipation or preconceived ideas on what I was about to see and how good it will be. That helped. It is worth a viewing but likely can be seen on Netflix or TMN with not much lost.

I found Off Camera a show that interviews various celebrities and I have watched almost four. Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Chris Pine and almost finished Lake Bell. It talks about the movie industry and the experiences of these actors. I was interested to hear about the commitment to the craft and unfailing belief that they would be actors. There was no Plan B and they knew at around age 8 or earlier. Damon and Bell both wrote screenplays to create roles for themselves. Pine’s parents were both working actors – Dad was the sergeant from Chips Tv show. I didn’t know that. He is so grounded. Damon too. So I will continue to watch as I see others who intrigue. There are plenty more seasons than those on Netflix. It seems that Pine of those four had the easiest path since Star Trek came to him fairly early on and he has never looked back. Lake Bell dominates conversation and really is a one person show all herself. She wrote, starred in and ending up directing In A World.