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Freud's Last Session
[3 stars]
Mark St. Germain adapts and updates his 2009 play to the screen with the help of Matt Brown (The Man Who Knew Infinity). In doing so, the duo have expanded the scope of the stage version, strengthening some aspects, but in doing so blurring the overall impact.
One of the plusses to the new version is that the danger of the time is much more visceral and interesting. That was a real gap…
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Freud's Last Session
[3 stars]
Mark St. Germain adapts and updates his 2009 play to the screen with the help of Matt Brown (The Man Who Knew Infinity). In doing so, the duo have expanded the scope of the stage version, strengthening some aspects, but in doing so blurring the overall impact.
One of the plusses to the new version is that the danger of the time is much more visceral and interesting. That was a real gap in the stage play. But in a bid to make these talking heads more completely human, it adds distracting elements with Freud’s daughter and lover, Liv Lisa Fries and Jodi Balfour (Rellik) respectively. Both women deliver great performances, but the story felt bolted on rather than integrated with the point of the debate between Anthony Hopkins’ (Rebel Moon: Part 1 – A Child of Fire) Freud and Matthew Goode’s (Leap Year) C. S. Lewis.
The original play was primarily a Socratic debate couched in the volatile political moment of Germany’s invasion of Poland and the beginning of England’s involvement in WWII. This movie uses the same moment in time, but the purpose of the discussion, it’s driving force to occur even given the inherent dangers, feels undefined. It’s happening because the writers want it to rather than any real existential need by either of the men to understand themselves or each other. Or for either of them to just meet one another in a world that might unravel at any second. Also, the adaptation lost most of the very wicked humor and word play the men spar with in the play. It’s pure drama with a couple of jabs rather than two intellects fencing.
So, why spend time with this movie? Simply put: the performances. Hopkins, Goode, and even the women, dance beautifully on an edge trying to navigate a world that had just left WWI behind and who are now facing WWII. However, on a pure story level, I think most folks will either be bored or find it lacking. It is still has a good deal of intellectual debate amidst the pure drama; for many that will also be enough given the figures involved.
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Rebel Moon - Part Two: The Scargiver
[2 stars]
I love how subtle and emotionally nuanced Zack Snyder (Rebel Moon: Part 1: A Child of Fire) is with this latest movie. Yeah, I’m just kidding. The Rebel Moon sequel is so painfully obvious and melodramatic as to be embarrassing at times. This massive Star Wars mask game is just an hour of set-up dialogue followed by about an hour of battle. And while there are some fun moments and some…
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Rebel Moon - Part Two: The Scargiver
[2 stars]
I love how subtle and emotionally nuanced Zack Snyder (Rebel Moon: Part 1: A Child of Fire) is with this latest movie. Yeah, I’m just kidding. The Rebel Moon sequel is so painfully obvious and melodramatic as to be embarrassing at times. This massive Star Wars mask game is just an hour of set-up dialogue followed by about an hour of battle. And while there are some fun moments and some good fights, there are few, if any, surprises.
More importantly, you still don’t care about any of the characters. Not really. There are some manufactured moments that have impact, but it isn’t accomplished through connection, but only through coercion or, if you prefer, provocation rather than evocation.
If you want a lot of big effects and not a lot of brain strain or complication to distract from the action, this is probably for you. If you like a film to have story and emotional tethers to your own life, this is not where you want to spend time. Snyder has a great eye for visuals, but he’s utterly lost the thread when it comes to plotting and characters. Maybe someday he will find that key again, but that is not today.
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Bodies Bodies Bodies
[2.75 stars]
As far as teen slasher pics go, this is probably fine. But, despite some aspects that elevate it (eventually), it really presented some issues for me. Primarily, Sarah DeLappe’s script doesn’t give you a single character you can fully be sympathetic with. Maria Bakalova (Borat Subsequent Moviefilm) comes closest, but even she is more than a little flawed.
In addition, the logic and…
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Bodies Bodies Bodies
[2.75 stars]
As far as teen slasher pics go, this is probably fine. But, despite some aspects that elevate it (eventually), it really presented some issues for me. Primarily, Sarah DeLappe’s script doesn’t give you a single character you can fully be sympathetic with. Maria Bakalova (Borat Subsequent Moviefilm) comes closest, but even she is more than a little flawed.
In addition, the logic and actions of the characters is more than a little suspect and foolish. Yes there are drugs and alcohol involved, but not enough and not all the time to excuse some critical bits of action. While director Halina Reijn handles the story and action fairly well, she didn’t manage to sell me on it.
The cast, at least, commits entirely to their ugly parts. Rachel Sennott (Shiva Baby) and Myha’la (Leave the World Behind) especially. And Amandla Stenberg (The Hate U Give) attempts to ride a narrow line of a recovering addict in the face of friends and temptation nicely. Even Lee Pace (Foundation) found some grounding as the over-aged outsider in the young cast. But Pete Davidson (Transformers: Rise of the Beasts) and Chase Sui Wonders (Daniel Isn’t Real) didn’t do much for the story or me, though they do server their purpose.
Ultimately, even with the cleverest bits of the tale, I can’t recommend it. At least not for everyone. It is simply just a lot of screaming and carnage capped with a too-long-delayed joke.
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Lola
[3 stars]
I’m not usually a found-footage fan for movies. They can be fun and entertaining, but they always end up a little contrived and breaking their rules to get scenes or angles that just wouldn’t exist in real life.
So why am I suggesting this odd little indie? Basically, this funky bit of scifi is a nice play on some old tropes. Also the story is well thought through, as much as these…
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Lola
[3 stars]
I’m not usually a found-footage fan for movies. They can be fun and entertaining, but they always end up a little contrived and breaking their rules to get scenes or angles that just wouldn’t exist in real life.
So why am I suggesting this odd little indie? Basically, this funky bit of scifi is a nice play on some old tropes. Also the story is well thought through, as much as these kinds of stories can be. And some of the reworked historical video is very clever.
In addition, director and co-writer Andrew Legge worked hard to avoid the forced footage conundrum. In doing so, the film is also a bit hard to watch if you can’t handle a lot of abrupt cuts, shaky cam, and light flashes. But there is a cohesive story that forms as it goes along, and a solid conceit for the existence of it at all. Even the rushed ending, while frustrating in some ways is fair and, frankly, I think you get the info you need to understand how it gets resolved.
The two sisters at the center, Stefanie Martini (Prime Suspect (1973)) and Emma Appleton (The Witcher) build a great tension and sense of family together. Appleton also gets to inhabit a rather different kind of woman for the 1940s, and she does so with gusto. There is more to the cast, all with nice credits, and all deliver. But it is better to experience them as they come.
It is clear you’re going to be dealing with alternate history and such in this tale from the beginning. But how that relates to our world and theirs is the fun of watching. And at about an hour and a quarter, it isn’t a huge risk to take.
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Strange Way of Life
[3 stars]
Much like short stories I love short films because, when done well, they are perfect little gems to appreciate. Pedro Almodóvar’s (The Human Voice) latest 30 minute flick is a good example, if not quite as flamboyant as Wes Anderson’s deliveries last year.
But I also understand why having such prominent directors entering the short market is worrisome. Short films are often the purview…
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Strange Way of Life
[3 stars]
Much like short stories I love short films because, when done well, they are perfect little gems to appreciate. Pedro Almodóvar’s (The Human Voice) latest 30 minute flick is a good example, if not quite as flamboyant as Wes Anderson’s deliveries last year.
But I also understand why having such prominent directors entering the short market is worrisome. Short films are often the purview of new talent. It’s their calling card and exemplar of what they could do with the right funding and backing. But if known directors follow the streaming world into this realm, it could squeeze down that pathway to success much as the closing of Broadway theatres in the 80s forced top tier actors into off-Broadway, off-Broadway into off-off-Broadway, and the rest to whatever they could find. It was not a good time to be a new actor in NYC.
But it isn’t just the skill and budget known directors bring to their shorts. They also have access to talent that new directors and writers wouldn’t. In this case: Pedro Pascal (The Mandalorian) and Ethan Hawke (Leave the World Behind). The two play off of one another wonderfully and with complete commitment. And there is a lot of story packed into the movie, much simply inferred.
Politics of the short film market aside, I’m thrilled to see more high-quality offerings. It doesn’t have to be a problem and, in fact, could open up the market if more people start watching these delightful diamonds of cinema.
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Argylle
[3 stars]
Matthew Vaughn (The King’s Man) films are never quite what you expect. Argylle is no exception…but they also so blew the PR on this movie that I didn’t even know I would want to watch it, so I’m only getting to it now. It was sold, at least based on the few ads and interviews I saw, as a satire of spy films. The sense I got was something in the orbit of Austin Powers. As sacrilegious as…
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Argylle
[3 stars]
Matthew Vaughn (The King’s Man) films are never quite what you expect. Argylle is no exception…but they also so blew the PR on this movie that I didn’t even know I would want to watch it, so I’m only getting to it now. It was sold, at least based on the few ads and interviews I saw, as a satire of spy films. The sense I got was something in the orbit of Austin Powers. As sacrilegious as this is, that is not a selling point for me.
However, the movie is much more interesting than that. It is satire, but with a clever structure and a real base of emotions. Without giving anything away, it is about a writer of spy stories, given delightful life by Bryce Dallas Howard (Jurassic World: Dominion), who gets pulled into a complex web of spy agencies at war.
Sam Rockwell (See How They Run) is Howard’s main touchpoint as the two make their way from adventure to adventure trying to solve the issues. And Henry Cavill (Enola Holmes 2) pops in regularly as Howard’s inner voice on how to make it through her travails.
This isn’t a subtle film. It is loaded with many of Vaughn’s trademark moments, a bunch of fun actor surprises, and plenty of his twisted humor. Jason Fuchs’ (Pan) script is also highly predictable if you’re paying attention. But the payoffs still work.
Basically, this is a fun ride, but not a brilliant genre-buster like many of Vaughn’s earlier films. However, it’s worth the time for at least a single watch… and watch through the tag in the credits for a bit more fun and a gift.
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The Greatest Hits
[3.5 stars]
Writer/director Ned Benson (Black Widow) delivers an utterly delightful twist on some old tropes in this slightly-dark romance version of Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist (without the singing). More importantly, Benson thinks through the implications of his choices and tries to keep it all grounded and fair. Even if (or when) you get ahead of the results, they’re delivered…
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The Greatest Hits
[3.5 stars]
Writer/director Ned Benson (Black Widow) delivers an utterly delightful twist on some old tropes in this slightly-dark romance version of Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist (without the singing). More importantly, Benson thinks through the implications of his choices and tries to keep it all grounded and fair. Even if (or when) you get ahead of the results, they’re delivered wonderfully.
This is Lucy Boynton’s (Bohemian Rhapsody) movie from start to finish. While she and Justin H. Min (Shortcomings) work well together at the center of it all, everyone is there in support of her touching journey. This is especially true of Austin Crute (They/Them) and David Corenswet (Pearl). Both are perfect for their purpose, but with broader lives that are only hinted at rather than explored.
I have to admit, the fact that the story reflects Sliding Doors in some ways certainly helped my opinion. Both films have outrageous premises, but are done with intelligence and humanity. Both allow life to be messy and choices to be difficult, even if headed to the best answer. Grab someone you care about and watch it together. It’ll leave you smiling.
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#4stars#datenight#Fantasy#indie#Musical#popcorn#Romance#Science Fiction#SeeIt#Movie Review#Streamed only
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True Detective: Night Country
[3.5 stars]
For better or worse, and for various reasons, Alaska and the far northern regions attract extreme personalities. Put another way, as a young female tour guide explained to our group when visiting the glaciers (and asked about the male/female ratio of the state): The odds are good, but the goods are odd.
Fabulists take advantage of this reality for stories as diverse as 30 Days of…
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True Detective: Night Country
[3.5 stars]
For better or worse, and for various reasons, Alaska and the far northern regions attract extreme personalities. Put another way, as a young female tour guide explained to our group when visiting the glaciers (and asked about the male/female ratio of the state): The odds are good, but the goods are odd.
Fabulists take advantage of this reality for stories as diverse as 30 Days of Night and Insomnia. And now, for the fourth season of True Detective, new showrunner and writer Issa López has created an intriguing and odd bit of detective fare. It will keep you guessing at least into the final episode as to where it will go and who will survive.
This is not a pretty or even just a gritty tale. It’s a brutal one in a harsh environment and with high stakes. Fortunately it’s taken on by some serious talent as well. Lead by Jodie Foster (Nyad) and Kali Reis, we are pulled into the long night of the far north that’s as much metaphor as it is reality. And much like the ear in Lynch’s Blue Velvet, we are pulled down a rabbit hole of the past and present.
Along with the main characters are some strong supporting ones. Fiona Shaw (Andor) is at the top of that list along with Finn Bennett (The Nevers). At the periphery is also a truly slimy John Hawkes (The Peanut Butter Falcon) and an oddly wonderful Joel Montgrand. There are more, but these six drive the whole thing forward, pulling all the others in their wake.
Definitely see this, but strap in for a dark and frigid ride. Reality is always suspect in this series, so that has stayed constant. However, this particular season is couched in nearly pure horror or science fiction/horror. You’ll have to watch till the end to know what’s what. For the right audience, it is a great ride.
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#4stars#craft#Dark#Drama#Fantasy#Horror#LGBT#Mystery#Science Fiction#SeeIt#sequel#Suspense#Streamed only#TV Review
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The Zone of Interest
[3.5 stars]
I admit that I was silently dreading the time I was going to spend with this film given its subject matter. As it turns out, the time spent wasn’t as intense or nightmare inducing as I’d feared. Don’t misunderstand, this is a quiet horror piece whose depiction and inferences will haunt you if you are remotely human. But it isn’t the overt, dark evil I was expecting given decades of…
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