July 10, 2017

Have a few movies to review with a recent trip on an airplane to California. There were a few to choose from as well as another watched on Netflix.

Draft Day – Kevin Costner doing his thing as the GM of the Cleveland Browns. Alison had previously reviewed this Ivan Reitman film. Plenty of name dropping and known NFL people on this draft drama. It is predictable and decent.

Logan – watched on the plane. Still don’t get it. X Men in this are basically dead. But we have this new group of kids all “mutant” in their own way. The little wolverine girl kills at least 50 people with razor fingers ablazin’. So violent. Not sure what to make of it, but I won’t kill any brain cells worrying about it either.

Beauty and the Beast – the live remake with the wrongly cast Emma Watson, who can’t really carry a tune and with a story that is supplemented with new and unremarkable songs. There are a couple small twists but really just window dressing. The original animation film was captivating, and deserved to be left alone. As far as I can tell, this is just a cash grab. I like Kevin Kline, but I don’t think he either was cast properly here. But then again, I may be too focused again on the chubby, eccentric father figure in the original.

Suicide Squad – the most disheartening aspect of this movie is the ending where they clearly indicate that there will be a sequel. But why? Jared Leto, you’re no Heath Ledger. All the shiny dental work and green hair doesn’t give you that sense of foreboding that Ledger created. The performance is just a little too over the top. And that holds true for the rest of this crew, who really is a modern day (and mutant style) Dirty Dozen. But the Dirty Dozen was a better film, and the underlying story was better. Our villain here is weak as a personality — but then again, who is possibly left who can mount any formidable attack against all the super-people flying around and destroying cities. Damn NYC gets hit a LOT! Their re-building and construction costs must be astronomical. Anyone working in those office buildings better back up their files, and take their laptop home . Just in case.

June 26, 2017

This week was a Netflix week. I saw two films.

Vacation – minus National Lampoon is a sequel of sorts to the original Chevy Chase Vacation from long ago. It even has unrecognizable Beverly D’Angelo in a brief appearance. Rusty has grown up and has a wife and two kids. He gets pushed around but as an airline pilot he is doing okay. His wife (Christina Applegate) goes through the motions. Rusty decides to take his kids to Wally World on a road trip. The family goes along but barely. Then the hijinx ensues as they befall on one piece of bad luck and another. There is much Adam Sandler type humour here and not unlike the original. I was never a fan of Chevy Chase and this movie doesn’t make me nostalgic. It was mind candy. There were a couple of guffaws but that was about it.

Moana is recently added to Netlfix and this is a Disney animated film about a Polynesian girl who is uncertain about who she is and what her destiny is. She has an overbearing father (don’t they all) who tries to keep her focused on land and at home. Grammy is a little more savvy and adventurous and knows the family’s roots and traditions. She meets in time Maui, voiced by The Rock and he was just fine. He has the smarmy cockiness required of a Demi God. Together they have an adventure worthy of Disney and worth the time to check out. It has emotion and some twists and turns but doesn’t stray too far from the familiar. In the end you are glad to have met Moana and seen some of her beautiful islands.

June 18, 2017

I have to admit that during the viewing of Cars 3 that I was looking for handles on the car doors. All of that continuing the silly but satisfying debate on whether humans inhabit the fictional world of Cars on any level.

Here is Pixar who have become the pillar of animation excellence milking a story for all the coin it can get. All very true. They are also milking one of the current themes touched by many movies these days (like Wonder Woman) around equality. And more specifically gender equality.

I still don’t like Owen Wilson. His voice grates on me and likely because every time he speaks I see that oddly shaped object in the centre of his face 🏻

The romantic side of this film is back burnered. Remember the budding romance between legal baby blue Porsche and Lightning? Anyway instead this film focuses on an aging champion racer being challenged through technology and younger competitors.

There is quality animation throughout. The story turns a couple of times but nothing is too shocking. In the end the boys enjoyed a visit back to Cars land. I was entertained but the story won’t stay with me nor will I feel the need to purchase and re-watch this (I never purchased the first and best in this series). But there are worse ways to spend time. For a night out and getting a young boy away from the computer screen and games this is effective.

June 12, 2017

This past weekend I went and saw Wonder Woman. On the whole I have to say that I was entertained. I will say for me Lynda Carter is and has always been Wonder Woman. But Miss Gadot did an admirable job. She has a terrific smile and she is very expressive with other emotions. She and Chris Pine seemed to have good chemistry as well. The female cast on the Amazon Island was well thought out and Robin Wright with longer hair shows strength and determination despite a lousy accent.

My challenge with the film was in the selection of the bad guy. If you have not seen the film, I won’t go on at length about it. But suffice it to say that the helmet was a tremendous improvement in badness. Sometimes casting makes all the difference in the impression about the character, and maybe that was the point. But I remain unconvinced.

In the end it was fun. It had a couple of laughs. I liked the theme about a powerful woman (from an island with only women) who joins early 1900s and is relegated to a second class citizen. It isn’t lost on me that a scant 100 years ago is when this takes place (nearing the end of World War I). We decided to see this rather than The Mummy which is what I gather the rest of the movie going public did as well. I cringe at the thought of this whole Justice League thing, although not as much as the resurrection of The Mummy, Dr Jekyll, The Invisible Man, Frankenstein etc.

June 5, 2017

I had every intention to go see Wonder Woman at the theatre with youngest son and girlfriend but the weather was better than expected this past weekend, so we didn’t. I would rather see WW than Captain Underpants anyday, despite Underpants getting better reviewed on rogerebert.com. So I have been catching up on Netflix.

First was Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Kids, where an impressive cast is given little to do by Tim Burton and his team. The one review summed it up by saying that it is X-Men meets Groundhog Day. Eva Green plays a headmistress for kids in a house from 1943, and each of the kids is “peculiar”. In other words they can be called mutants. although none of them puts on spandex and thinks like a superhero. Samuel l Jackson plays the baddie here with some enthusiasm, but in the end it made little sense. I can’t really recommend.

Chappie was a horrible mess. Set in South Africa, with the look and feel of District 9, this is a story about a robot that is programmable and a group of low-life thugs who want to use such a robot for their bidding. The catch is that Dev Patel, who is the creator, has the robot re-boot and start in a child-like state. The robot has to learn – to speak, to do things etc. It is slow and painful. The mannerisms of the robot become comical as he parrots those who influence him. In the end I had no connection with the robot, nor anyone else.

Sophie and the Rising Sun. Set in 1940s South Carolina where an Asian man is dumped from a bus heading south and becomes the centre of attention. He is taken on by a woman with a garden and he assists with this. This is a made-for-TV quality film that shows the small mindedness of people and once again the atrocities of how asians were treated during this time. Small towns and small minds.

Much of my time is catching up on series that I have not seen. Season 6 of Downton Abbey, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Yes, the series, like it’s Christmas and New Years setting, finishes up with a bright red bow tied up around it, and the stories have all a feel-good quality about them. New relationships, new life, second chances, and all have a smile on their faces. Maggie Smith is so good in this, but also a quality supporting cast. I simply don’t agree with the finish for Mr Barrow. And Edith becomes a much more interesting character than her sister.

I began watching House of Cards, with a new season just released, and have finished the first season and started Season 2. Kevin Spacey is so very good. I like that he interacts with the viewers to explain who he is dealing with and what the strategy with that person. His looks are precious. But we also have a character, and a wife capable of anything where the end justifies any means. Claire his wife, played by Princess Bride Robin Wright is the Lady Macbeth to his ambitious king. It is fun and fascinating to watch. I will continue to plough through Season 2.

Saturday May 20, 2017 – Alien Covenant

Alien Covenant. Saw this on Thursday. In short I enjoyed it. I think it does a very nice job of tying in with Prometheus and making more sense of a story that was quite disjointed. Girlfriend who has never seen an Alien film thought that there were some “scary moments”. I would agree. So no spoilers just sit back and enjoy. I think the re-watching of Prometheus will prepare you well.

I think that Michael Fassbender was very good here.

I also watched Extras in Prometheus and others (Alien and Aliens) and think there are some parts that could have made aspects of Prometheus more clear. I will likely see Alien Covenant again or at least get the blu-Ray.

Here are Prometheus extras:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHUhjTo16i8

Now that it is Tuesday and Alison has seen Alien: Covenant I can add a little more commentary here, without spoiling too much.

First, these deleted scenes would have been helpful in Prometheus. They provide some colour and background that are necessary to better understand Peter Weiland and his ambitions. It also talks about the goals to wipe out all human based religion. The one interesting thread of Alien Covenant and Prometheus that comes through for me is the idea of a God, and what meeting and knowing about the entity that created you can do. Weiland believes because he can create a living robot, that he has become a God. In Prometheus, David seems to have a moment of clarity with his Creators (or Engineers if you prefer) when he was speaking to Dr Shaw’s boyfriend, when he was at the pool table. David seems to be disappointed, and he puts the black goop into this man’s glass knowing that he will be changed forever.

Then the events unfold as they do in Prometheus and David and Dr Shaw leave to go and try and find the Engineers. Dr Shaw wanted to know why the Engineers wanted to destroy them, David has other plans with his alien ship payload.

Then in Covenant the opening sequence again builds on David speaking with Weiland. Weiland had believed that by being a God that he would live forever. This was not the case as he found out. In Covenant, David in his discussion with Weiland talks about his God (Weiland) dying whereas David would not. He wondered aloud about that fact, to which Weiland changes the subject for some tea. David is exploring this whole aspect of being a God, and creation, and what it all means. His ideas just don’t have the frail human body as the highest level on the hierarchy.

For me, the beauty of Covenant is how this aspect of the story is moved forward. It was so muddy in Prometheus, but it was picked up and carried forward in a way that made both movies make more sense. Along the way, sure we had some scary bits and some adventure, but at the core it was the search for the Divine, and explaining creation. Interesting too that the James Cameron contribution to the Alien story in Aliens of the Mother Alien is utterly dismissed. The eggs aren’t created and birth by another Alien. Ridley Scott keeps firmly to his own vision.

I know that, like Prometheus, I will see Covenant more times. I will pick up on more to be sure. I will have questions, for example, why would they need James Franco to “play” the Captain of the Covenant, but I will see and pick up on more details. But in the end this movie worked for me. And was enjoyable and I walked away, as you can see, thinking about it further. Another movie of course is to come. I look forward to it.

May 15th, 2017

The one blessing about being away from work is that there is much more time to be viewing films and revisiting some old friends. I had been promised at the end of March that a job was forthcoming, and yet I have not seen the confirmed start date. It is frustrating. But there is always a silver lining and here they are:

Silence: The Martin Scorsese film about the Jesuit priests in the 1600s in Japan trying to spread the word of God, or at least their version of it. There is Liam Neeson being shown priests with him tortured unmercifully. Then there is word back to Portgual that Neeson who is a priest himself renouncing his faith. Two young Jesuits hear this and want to seek him out. They are Adam Driver and Andrew Garfield. This is a dark story, with some interesting philosophical perspectives, like the Jesuits who believe that they are spreading “the Truth”. And the Truth does not have a perspective, it just is. The Japanese and Buddhists would disagree with this. There are then put forth interesting questions about faith and what is the underlying purpose, and who does it serve. Beliefs are challenged and decisions are made. Garfield had a very productive year with this and Hacksaw Ridge. He is showing his acting chops beyond just Spiderman. Driver has less screen time but is effective too. This is not Raging Bull or Good Fellas but a good film.

Knight of Cups: another Terrence Malick film in the same look and feel of previous films like Tree of Life and To The Wonder. There is little structure and much of the film moves with the voiceover. Then there are the images. Malick engulfs his viewers with sights and sounds and images that are still-picture worthy in all of his films. The young are not the audience here again, and they would get frustrated and annoyed by it. I don’t wish to be a pretentious film goer who professes a deep understanding of his films, but I will say that I like them. I take something from each of them. His films require the viewer to bring their own filter and take their own interpretation of the images. For this trilogy I like Tree of Life and then this one before lastly To The Wonder. Here an impressive cast includes Christian Bale as the man looking back upon his life through his past relationships and piecing together what it means and what he has done. Past loves include Natalie Portman, Cate Blanchett, Freida Pinto and Teresa Palmer. The extras are good to watch as well as you learn there is no script to a Malick film. Actors are given rough ideas about what the director seeks and then they are free to improvise. This one was not critically acclaimed but nevertheless a film that I sought out from the cast and the director.

Insurgent and Divergent: I picked these up from the library, as I hadn’t ever recalled seeing the follow ups to the original (which I saw and just as quickly forgot). I did not read the books. But this was a follow up to The Hunger Games and it’s cash grab. Shailene Woodley was the attraction here initially from her performance in The Descendants. For me this and Maze Runner and Hunger Games are the same formula where the dystopian world is to be saved by a bunch of teenagers who have a special gifts (of various sorts) just doesn’t hold my attention. The adults are almost all uniformly evil or stupid. They have wrecked the existing world and the teens will set it straight. Go ahead. The good news is that practically this can never happen as the teenage generation won’t be able to stay away from their phones long enough to do any of this. Having finished the third installment I shuddered at the thought of yet another movie. This was to be released in June 2017. It was cancelled. Sounds like they are looking to make a TV movie out of it, and start a TV series. Can’t imagine Woodley will be interested in that. But we will see. Quite honestly I don’t need to see another one of these again.

Some old friends I re-watched over the weekend were A Fish Called Wanda (written by John Cleese) which I thoroughly enjoy on each viewing and also My Left Foot with a tour de force from Daniel Day-Lewis. The internet helped with finishing off the Christie Brown story where the film stopped. His post-movie life, and married life to Mary was not so grand. She brought him to England away from his family and then apparently slept around, abused drugs and neglected him. He died at the age of 49 choking at dinner. So not a Hollywood ending from a man who overcame so much to live a full life. Brenda Fricker’s performance was also outstanding here and she won an Oscar for it. In 1989, it didn’t win Best Picture, Driving Miss Daisy did.

Well I re-watched Tree of Life yesterday just to refresh my memory and yet again I thoroughly enjoyed it. Moreso than both To The Wonder and Knight of Cups. In thinking about why, I think it’s because there is that Malick style, but there is a little bit more structure about it. There is a thread that runs through it, all the way through it about the Texas family and the boy who becomes the man reflecting back. Man (played by Sean Penn) looks back at his life with Dad, Mom and brothers. The young Jack is played very well, and you see different moments in time with him, especially with the one brother (crucial scenes where the younger brother says “I trust you” while having his body put in perilous positions). Life has moments, life has regrets, every one has done stupid things especially when they were younger where they wish they had a “do over”. And there are the moments with the family and the coming of age scenes too. All of it paints a picture of this man and his time. So there is a wide chasm of just how much better Tree of Life is than the others. I searched again for Roger Ebert’s Top 10 lists of all time and found (apparently) his last list before his death and Tree of Life was on it. He raved about this film and it’s genius and ambition. You added it to your list, and it is in mine. Sadly the other two films did not get there, or were they made as well.

Jessica Chastain in it, too was masterful as the hand of forgiveness and strength with her three boys.

I have booked my seats and tickets for Alien Covenant on Thursday. Looking forward to it.

The other film that I had forgotten to pass along was Elle, with Oscar nominated and Golden Globe winning Isabelle Hubert. This film was summed up in the advertisements about a woman who is raped and then seeks revenge. This just scratches the surface on this film.
Here is an accomplished actress playing a very complex character masterfully. There is much said with her eyes and actions and body language. Her personal circumstance evolves as you see her interact with various others. Hubert finds a way to personalize this person who has her own agenda and reasons for doing everything, where not all are readily apparent. So if you can find this check it out.

May 8th, 2017

So what to write about Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2?

I could go on and on about this film, but in the end, the real question is and remains “did it suck”? And the answer to that would be No. I saw this on Friday, at the 3D AVTM Cineplex showing in a mostly full theatre. I went with girlfriend and two young teen boys (12yo and 14yo). They all liked it. For me it was okay. This is mind candy. It’s pleasing to the eye, you have a few laughs (hopefully) and then you leave and forget it. Youngest son asked before we went as he had not seen the first “give me a synopsis of the first film” and after fumbling through trying to remember about stealing this orb thing, I gave up. He watched the first 45 mins on Netflix. See, he had an introduction and got the gist of it, while preventing me from hurting my brain in recall.

What did I really think? I think that the movie, as they all do, pushes the limits on your level of disbelief. For example (like Force Awakens) where there is a battle on a moon-sized planetoid, you are expected to believe that two people coming in different directions and from different actions land next to one another (or very close). It just makes your head shake. Hell I could fall from the sky above Toronto, and totally miss someone two blocks away, let alone a MOON, but never mind. There are the Disney-fied family relations. Every one (mostly anyway) can have this kum-bay-ya moment with a family member and then hatchets can be buried. Ho hum. There is the uber-cute Baby Groot who has a couple really good scenes, including the opening sequence. Now THERE is a character just screaming for Disney to put him on PJs.

In the end, if you take it for what it is and is meant to be, it is fine. As a second installment in a film that took everyone by surprise last year, it is competent. Just don’t expect any performances from actors in our previous Best Of lists.

May 1, 2017

This past week on Netflix I watched Queen of Katwe the Disney film about a young chess prodigy from Uganda. The film is not shy about addressing the living conditions and opportunities for young people in these rural African areas. The young girl, played by a very good newcomer is supported by a teacher who takes upon himself improving the lives of these kids. He is played well by David Oyelowo. Again he is supportive and shows his dedication to these children. They go to chess competitions and he sees her ability to be a Chess Master. Lupita N’Yong plays her Mother and she is not as enthusiastic. We have seen this story before but it is a feel good story with good acting and message to be delivered in difficult times. I was glad that I saw it. I will share with my step-father who is a Chess Champion himself. This weekend upcoming will be Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2.

Another couple actors to bring forward as those I seek out to watch: Adding in Kevin Spacey (who has become more of a TV and miniseries guy) as well as Andrew Garfield who was in 99 Homes, Hacksaw Ridge and Silence (oh and Spider-Man).

April 24, 2017 – Bonus Top Actors List

I was remarking just a week ago after watching Five Came Back and the documentary on the Nazi Prison Camps (used at Nurenberg) how could anyone not believe the holocaust. Well, then there is this week’s review called Denial. This is a true story, about an American Professor, who was sued for libel by a UK character who has professed that the holocaust was a hoax and specifically that Auschwitz was never the site of a death camp. The US professor played by Rachel Weisz wrote in her book about the growth in naysayers and deniers of the holocaust that he was a guy who used misinformation and was a quack. He sued in the UK, where the presumption is that there is guilt, by a wrongsayer, until you can prove otherwise (this is opposite to the US and Canada) where you are presumed innocent. There is some compelling by-play between Weisz and her UK lawyers who explain their strategy, although their bedside manner is a little gruff and dismissive to the professor. She wants to trumpet the “truth” from the rooftop and bring in eyewitnesses to the killings but that is not what the strategy is. Her legal team is played by Tom Wilkinson (very effectively) and the guy who plays Moriarty in the Cumberbatch Sherlock TV series. Anyway, it all very satisfying especially for the lawyer in me. I thought the performances were very good (Timothy Spall plays Denier). Well worth a viewing if there is a slow night.

As an aside I caught the Director’s Cut of Das Boot. Yes, it is old school models in bath tubs and small sets, but it’s a well told tale of the life of a U Boat crew, and what all had to endure during WWII. 30,000 German soldiers were in U Boats over the course of the war, and 20,000 never came home. This tale shows the environment and feeling of these cramped quarters and the terror as destroyers circle above trying to blow them out of the water.

On to the Top Lists for living actors, as requested by girlfriend to me. And I put it to you both. For me, these are actors that I seek out and if they are in movies I want to see them. I said living because we can talk about the merits of Lawrence Olivier, or Vivien Leigh or Elizabeth Taylor but that doesn’t serve us for now.

Actors:

Edward Norton: I wish he would work more. His recent efforts were less interesting than his earlier efforts. There is an impressive body of work here, even with the Hulk as a miss (and others).

Daniel Day Lewis: three-time Oscar winner, and seemingly nominated for almost everything that he does, he chooses his projects carefully and works sporadically. He should work more. He becomes the characters that he portrays and he is uniformly great.

Michael Fassbender: the third of a listing of impressive actors that I seek out, even though he can do some stinkers and make questionable choices (like Assassin’s Creed – has there ever been a decent video game movie?) he has tremendous range in roles like Steve Jobs, Prometheus, and 12 Years a Slave. I really enjoyed his Macbeth and sought it out last Christmas time, and I am glad that I did.

Other notables: Robert Deniro, Al Pacino – if this list was 30 years ago, YES! But as they age these greats are more acting as caricatures of themselves – more Deniro than Pacino as he does more comedies. Morgan Freeman (I am reminded of this as I re-watched Shawshank last weekend), Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington.

Actresses:

Meryl Streep: the greatest living actor in my humble opinion. Her earlier work and body of work is just stunning. From Sophie’s Choice, to Out of Africa, to Deer Hunter and Bridges of Madison County this 20-time Oscar nominated actress (yes 20!!) can just do it all. Sing (Mamma Mia, and badly too in Florence Jenkins) and be a bitch (Devil Wears Prada and Doubt) and lead actress. Do I seek her out? Not really, but I do still manage to watch what she does.

Cate Blanchett: since she was robbed of the Oscar for Elizabeth where she stole that film, I think she quietly has become a force as an actress. An impressive body of work, she is doing more theatre work lately and she could work more in films. She has been nominated 7 times and won twice.

Dame Judi Dench: this third choice is the hardest because so many can be here for so many reasons. I will mention Jessica Chastain of course as I do seek her out, but as a great actress, it’s hard to put her above Dame Judi. Philomena from her most recent films was excellent. Add to this roles in Bond films, and Shakespeare in Love, she has longevity on her side.

Oher notables: Kate Winslet, Charlize Theron, Dame Maggie Smith and then Sally Field. Each of these has Oscar on their mantle, and each can play a range of roles. All rarely disappoint and deliver. I will note that acting ability is at the premium here, and not necessarily sex appeal which is a different list altogether.

Add Marion Cotillard – simply excellent, and I do seek her out. She came to my attention in Ridley Scott’s A Good Year. She and Fassbender in Macbeth were excellent.

So there it is for what it is worth. It required plenty of thought and reflection. Like Best Movies lists, I expect that other names will pop up that I would say “of course!!”. I stand to be corrected or supplemented.

I had asked girlfriend earlier about what other actors that we had talked about for this list. I have now remembered: Christoph Walz who has won 2 Supporting Acting Oscars is a tremendous villain. Bursting onto the scene with the movie stealing Inglorious Bastards, he follows up with Django Unchained. Although a disappointment with Tarzan as well as being typecast a bit – he still can steal a scene. I wish he would work more. This also can be said for another character actor who burst onto the scene in Rob Roy; Tim Roth is another excellent evil doer. As he seems to relish it. He plays similar roles (recently as Arkansas Governor Wallace in Selma) and acted in tv and film. He works plenty as over 100 roles according to IMDB yet he disappears into those roles. So two more actors that I would add as notable.