An outspoken teen must navigate a loving but
turbulent relationship with her strong-willed mother over the course of an
eventful and poignant senior year of high school.
Rated R for language, sexual content, brief
graphic nudity and teen partying Runtime: 1h 34min
Review:
Lady Bird is the kind of indie gem that pops
up from time to that perfectly nails the coming of age story.Coming of age stories are a dime a dozen but
Greta Gerwig’s film captures the flawed humanism of that makes these characters
feel thoroughly authentic. She directs an efficient film that never feels
rushed even though it’s just over an hour and a half long.At its center is Saoirse Ronan who’s
perfectly loveable as the titular Lady Bird.Her performance is subtle yet totally convincing.Laurie Metcalf’s turn as Lady Bird’s mother
is just as impressive.Her ability to
juggle the many facets of her character, from the passive aggressiveness,
loving and perpetually frayed, seamlessly is impressive to watch.Tracy Letts is a solid counterpoint to
Metcalf’s character as the loving but depressed father.There’s very little to dislike about this
charming tome even if the story plays out exactly as you’d expect with little
to no surprises.It’s a testament to the
talent at work that’s it still manages to engage the way it does.
Dearest Blog: A heavy slate of January releases and an unusually chaotic real life (ughhhhh...real life!) have conspired to set me behind at the cinema, so yesterday I burned an afternoon's PTO to head to Marquee Cinemas for a pair of films that didn't particularly excite me: The Commuter and The Shape of Water. If you thought one was markedly better than the other, you would be mistaken.
Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing you wouldn't know from the trailers.
First up: The Commuter.
Liam Neeson Liam-Neesons his way through the sort of crisis that seems to follow Liam Neeson, this time on a commuter train.
A moviegoer could be forgiven for assuming that The Commuter is merely Taken on a train...or Non-Stop on a train...or Run All Night on a train, but I'm sorry to tell you it's a whole lot worse than that. Sure, the Taken movies are getting samey, but I enjoyed all but the middle one. Non-Stop was pretty good fun, and I actually loved Run All Night. The Commuter's every turn is obvious, every character as easy to figure out as the ending of a Nicholas Sparks novel. The dialogue is pitiful, and the delivery just as bad. The fight scenes are ho-hum, and even the daring train stunts are so poorly executed as to be laughable. Sam Neill and Patrick Wilson, two pretty extraordinary actors, are wasted on small, easy-to-peg roles. If there's any good news, it's that the insufferable Vera Farmiga enjoys similarly little screen time. When I heard Liam Neeson planned to retire from action films, I felt a bit sad, but if this is what he's being offered, it's probably the right decision.
The Commuter clocks in at 105 minutes and is rated PG13 for "some intense action/violence, and language."
One of The Commuter's early scenes shows a poster for Paddington 2 hanging on a train station wall, almost as if the movie itself were pointing you towards a better use of your time. Of a possible nine Weasleys, The Commuter gets three.
Fangirl points: Shazad Latif! ("Yes I can hear you, Clem Fandango!) Kingsley Ben-Adir!
Next on the docket: awards darling The Shape of Water.
A laboratory cleaning lady forms a relationship with a captive creature.
I did not expect to love The Shape of Water. I did not expect it to be my top pick for Best Picture. I DID expect it to be a great movie that just isn't my cup of tea, but I was mistaken.
The Shape of Water is extraordinary on several fronts, the first and most obvious being its performances. This movie is an acting master class! Sally Hawkins is breathtaking in the lead role, expressive and sympathetic. Michael Shannon and Richard Jenkins, on opposite ends of the likability scale, turn in layered performances. Michael Stuhlbarg is incredible as usual, and I'm delighted he continues to get such high-profile work; however, it's Octavia Spencer who is the film's highlight, sometimes serving as the movie's comic relief, other times as its foot in reality. The Shape of Water also boasts glorious visuals, carrying through the water theme in lovely, unexpected, and sometimes uncomfortable ways. It takes itself seriously, but it's also very funny at times. Part love story, part monster movie, The Shape of Water is, at least, a pretty interesting idea.
'Til about the midway point, I was prepared to say I didn't hate The Shape of Water as much as I thought I would. Sadly, it hit a downhill skid that culminated in the most ill-fitting movie scene since the ending of La La Land, and at that point I gave up and called it a total loss. In the interest of avoiding spoilers, I make no comment on the scene itself being good or bad, happy or sad, only about how the scene felt IN the movie, which was so far off it took me out of the picture entirely, and I did nothing but check the clock from that point on. The creature doesn't appear much removed from 1954's Creature from the Black Lagoon, which I imagine is meant as a sort-of love letter to old school horror, but--in 2018--it makes taking the film seriously pretty difficult. Unsubtle parallels are drawn between prejudice against the creature and other prejudices that were prevalent just a few decades ago; this is a message movie trying to hide behind a fairy tale and failing miserably.
The Shape of Water runs an interminable 123 minutes and is rated R for "sexual content, graphic nudity, violence, and language."
The Shape of Water is lovely music with nonsensical lyrics, aesthetically pleasing but not good for much else. Of a possible nine Weasleys, The Shape of Water gets four.
Settled in with the Brown
family, Paddington the bear is a popular member of the community who spreads
joy and marmalade wherever he goes. One fine day, he spots a pop-up book in an
antique shop -- the perfect present for his beloved aunt's 100th birthday. When
a thief steals the prized book, Paddington embarks on an epic quest to unmask
the culprit before Aunt Lucy's big celebration.
The first Paddington was
a surprisingly fun adaptation of the classic children’s book. It was the rare film that actually captured
the spirit of the character instead of just mining the source material for a
quick buck. Having lighting strike twice
seemed like a long shot but Paul King’s lovingly made sequel continued the
first film’s legacy. It’s nearly
impossible not to be charmed by the story from the start. It’s the best kind of kid’s film, one that
never panders to its audience and has a tangible heart beat. Ben Whishaw is just a perfect in this sequel
as the titular bear, making him endearing and lovable. The returning cast members like Hugh
Bonneville and Sally Hawkins are solid throughout with Hawkins getting more to
do in the second half of the film. Hugh
Grant is clearly having a ball as Phoenix Buchanan, the villain in this
chapter. Buchanan’s character is a lot
more memorable than the first film’s adversary which is to the sequel’s
benefit. Add in a fun supporting turn by
Bredan Gleenson and you’ve got the rare kids sequel that improves on original
while never losing the spirit of the characters.
Katharine Graham is the first female publisher of a major American
newspaper -- The Washington Post. With help from editor Ben Bradlee, Graham
races to catch up with The New York Times to expose a massive cover-up of
government secrets that spans three decades and four U.S. presidents.
Together, they must overcome their differences as they risk their careers --
and very freedom -- to help bring long-buried truths to light. Director: Steven Spielberg Release Date: Jan 12, 2018 Cast: Meryl Streep,Tom Hanks, Sarah Paulson,
Bob Odenkirk, Tracy Letts, Bradley Whitford, Bruce Greenwood, Carrie Coon Rated PG-13 for language and brief war
violence Runtime: 1 hr. 56 min. Genres: Biography, Drama, History
Review:
The Post is a highly polished,
well acted prestige film from Steven Spielberg that couldn’t feel timelier if
it tired. The film is set the in 70s but
it hard not to see modern day parallels throughout. Spielberg tries his best to keep the film
self contained but its hard not to see it as a message movie. In the hands of a lesser talent the film
would have come off as more overtly preachy.
The top tier cast helps that by putting on some stellar performances. Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks are front and
center for most of the film and each turns in impressive but varied
performances. Streep turn as Katharine
Graham is a study in subtleness and nuance as we watch her character find her
place and ultimately her resolve to lead.
Tom Hanks is a rougher around the edges but still likable and relatable
even though he and Streep play fairly Waspy characters. The supporting characters are all played by
top level character actors, like Bob Odenkirk, Carrie Coon and Bradley
Whitford, and they give the film a strong steady feel throughout. While the film has all the right ingredients
there’s just something about it that keeps the audience at arms length that
keeps it from being a classic. The Post
is still strong enough to make for a perfect companion All The President’s Men.
