Cindy Prascik's Review of The Finest Hours

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dearest Blog: Yesterday it was off to Marquee Cinemas for the action-thriller The Finest Hours. Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing you wouldn't know from that lone trailer you've been seeing every week since last May. 

 

When a T2 oil tanker splits in half during a brutal Nor'easter, it's up to a small, brave Coast Guard crew to mount an unlikely rescue. Ahhh...the bleak midwinter...that No Man's Land between the awards hopefuls tuckering themselves out and the Lenten glut of Bible stories, where Hollywood dumps all the movies it's given up on or has no idea what to do with. These are movies with no ulterior motive. 

 

They don't expect to win anything, and they certainly don't expect to save your soul; they just want to entertain you. These movies are my friends. The Finest Hours is an old-school adventure, perhaps too old-school for today's audiences. 

 

The heroes are traditional, Ken-doll types, the elements big and threatening, the romance sweet and chaste. There's not much chemistry between Chris Pine and the always-delightful Holliday Grainger, but both are likeable enough to get by. The movie's real star (outside of some nice water and disaster effects) is Casey Affleck, as the de facto captain of the disabled tanker. Ben Foster, perpetually one great performance away from knocking Russell Crowe out of my Holy Trinity, is fantastic in a smaller role, and West Virginia boy Josh Stewart is great as well, though also with not too much to do. 

 

The rescue itself is hold-your-breath tense, and plays out so Hollywood-perfect that I'd call it hokey if not for the fact they've stuck pretty close to true events. Though it may be an unremarkable picture in the grand scheme of things, The Finest Hours a perfectly enjoyable afternoon at the movies for anyone who isn't expecting an Oscar coulda-shoulda-woulda. 

 

The Finest Hours clocks in at 117 minutes and is rated PG13 for "intense sequences of peril." It may not win any awards, but The Finest Hours kept me well and propertly entertained for the duration. 

 

Of a possible nine Weasleys, The Finest Hours gets seven. 

 

Until next time... 

 

Cindy Prascik's Reviews of Carol & Room

 

Dearest Blog: Yesterday it was off to Marquee Cinemas to catch a couple Oscar hopefuls before they beat a hasty path out of town. On the docket: Carol and Room.

 

Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing you wouldn’t know from the trailers if you’ve seen any (which I haven’t).

 

Dear Reader(s), Awards Season is a funny thing here in Smalltown, USA. Unless you’ve got yourself a freakishly-realistic bear attack, your picture may expect a run of about seven days. Thus I found myself at the movies on a Wednesday afternoon in January, watching two films that interested me about as much as one of those “Real Housewives” shows. First on my agenda: Carol. 

 

A young photographer falls for a sophisticated older woman. 

 

Ahhhh…forbidden love. It always sounds just a bit tawdry, doesn’t it? While Carol tells the tale of an affair that was, for the time, utterly impossible, there’s not a hint of dirtiness about it. The romance is a slow burner, with not even a kiss before the movie’s midway point, and the major love scene is as sterile as an operating theatre. 

 

Respect for the subject matter is appreciated, but a taboo affair should feel at least a little dangerous. There are also some weird shots that linger so long as to be almost comical. That’s the bad news is. 

 

The good news is, Carol is a lovely story, slowly paced but never dull. The family drama is well-played, and fleshes out our love story without feeling like an intrusion. 

 

Should Cate Blanchett go home with Oscar on The Big Night, the Academy will undoubtedly be accused of choosing old-and-safe over young-and-edgy (again), but, for my money, she is deserving. 

 

Rooney Mara is equally extraordinary and moving. For all its deliberate pace, the movie never feels long, and, a superhero fangirl stuck in a grownup movie even has a *squee* moment when Cory Michael Smith (Gotham’s Edward Nygma) turns up, so there’s that. 

 

Carol runs 118 minutes and is rated R for “a scene of sexuality/nudity and brief language.” 

 

Carol is a beautiful love story that boasts some very special performances, and, like The Danish Girl, provides nice reminders of how far we’ve come and how far we’ve yet to go. 

 

Of a possible nine Weasleys, Carol gets six.

 

Next up: Room.

 

A young woman who bore a son while being held captive attempts to recover from her ordeal, while the boy experiences the outside world for the first time.

 

In the interest of full and fair disclosure, I’ll always admit when a movie’s main or only problem is that it’s not “my thing.” Room is most certainly not my thing (nor is Carol, for that matter), but it’s got much bigger problems. 

 

The first ten minutes of Room are so insufferable that it was all I could do not to walk out. Most of the first half is barely watchable, and not remotely in the way a capable telling of this harrowing story might make itself unwatchable. 

 

Rather than sympathizing with characters that should be very sympathetic, I was bored and even annoyed with them. The film picks up somewhat once it puts “Room” in its rearview, which might be attributed to happier subject matter or simply to more going on. 

 

I attribute it mostly to Joan Allen, a great actress who elevates anything that’s lucky enough to have her. Brie Larson is as good as you’ve heard, though not my Best Actress winner, if the Academy gives me a vote. (Hint: it does not.) 

 

Kid actors are never less than a risky proposition, and, while it may seem unfair to place such a big burden on such small shoulders, it’s youngster Jacob Trembley who ultimately could have made Room fully engaging, but, sadly, does not. 

 

There are a fair few emotionally wrenching moments where you think the film might be finding its feet, but it overstays its welcome so badly that those are barely remembered by the time the picture reaches its longed-for conclusion.

 

Room clocks in at 118 minutes, and is rated R for “language.”

 

Room is this year’s Boyhood, an unjustified critical darling for what it should have been more than for what it is. 

 

Maybe next time they should consult Tommy Wiseau. 

 

Of a possible nine Weasleys, Room gets three.

 

Until next time…

MOVIE REVIEW: DIRTY GRANDPA

Straight-laced lawyer Jason (Zac Efron) goes on a road trip to Daytona Beach with his horndog grandfather Dick (Robert De Niro), who was recently widowed and is eager to party hard on spring break now that he's a single man. Along the way, Dick prods Jason to let loose and have fun, and tries to convince him that he shouldn't get married to his controlling fiancée (Julianne Hough). Aubrey Plaza, Dermot Mulroney, Zoey Deutch, Jason Mantzoukas, and Adam Pally co-star. Directed by Dan Mazer. ~ Jack Rodgers, Rovi

Director: Dan Mazer

Cast: Robert De Niro, Zac Efron, Julianne Hough, Aubrey Plaza, Dermot Mulroney

Release Date: Jan 22, 2016

Rated R for crude sexual content throughout, graphic nudity, and for language and drug use.

Runtime: 1 hr. 42 min.

Genres: Comedy

Review:

If you walk out of Dirty Granpa offended then I’m not sure exactly what you were expecting.  It’s a crude vulgar comedy that always shoots for the lowest common denominator.  It hits its marks a handful of times due to the cast and Dan Mazer’s speedy direction.  Mazer doesn’t let his film linger too long on anything.  As a result, you almost don’t notice the clichéd characters and paper thin story.  It’s easy to forget when you see Robert De Niro and Zac Efron clearly having a blast film the bawdy comedy.  Some have decried the downfall of De Niro with roles like these but he seems to really enjoy them otherwise he wouldn’t make as many of them, it helps that he’s got some comedic chops.  So personally, I don’t fault him too much.  Efron does a solid job of playing the straight man to De Niro’s wild man.  The film is helped along by a strong supporting turn from Aubrey Plaza who deserves more movie roles to take advance of her comedic talents.  All in all, Dirty Grandpa isn’t anymore or less than it says it is.  It won’t be a classic but it’s good for a chuckle.

C+

MOVIE REVIEW: 13 HOURS: THE SECRET SOLDIERS OF BENGHAZI

13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi is an action thriller based on the 2014 non-fiction book written by journalist Mitchell Zuckoff with the Annex Security Team. The film depicts the harrowing true story of the attack on a CIA annex in Benghazi, Libya, on September 11, 2012, which killed four Americans. After the assault begins, a U.S. Special Ops team are sent to the annex to protect those still trapped within the compound. Directed by Michael Bay, the film stars John Krasinski, James Badge Dale, and Pablo Schreiber. ~ Tom Ciampoli, Rovi

Director: Michael Bay

Cast: John Krasinski, Pablo Schreiber, James Badge Dale, Max Martini, Toby Stephens

Release Date: Jan 15, 2016

Rated R for strong combat violence throughout, bloody images, and language.

Runtime: 2 hr. 24 min.

Genres: Action/Adventure, Drama, Suspense/Thriller

Review:

13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi is a surprisingly mature and somewhat restrained effort from bombastic director Michael Bay.  It still has many of the hallmarks of most of Bay’s work but it’s not as garish as it’s been in his most recent films.  Bay doesn’t take any time before he throws the audience into a series of well choreographed action sequences which make up the better part of the films runtime.  The characters don’t get nearly as much time as they deserve to get properly fleshed out and what little characterization there is falls into some well worn clichés.  It’s a shame Bay didn’t spend more time with some of these characters because John Krasinski and James Badge Dale are game with their performances.  You get the feeling that if they had a bit more to work with we might have had something more meaningful.  As it is Bay gives us a solid auctioneer that feels like a modern day Alamo on more than a few occasion.  It’s a tad overlong and some clunky dialogue hampers some of the slower sections.  Even though it’s an imperfect film it still qualifies as one of Michael Bay’s best films in recent memory.

B-

Cindy Prascik's Review of Spotlight & The Danish Girl

 

 

Dearest Blog: Yesterday I had the opportunity to catch a couple of awards darlings before they're chased out of town by Adam Sandler or Transformers 47: The Search for Shia LeBeouf. On the docket: Spotlight and The Danish Girl. Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing you wouldn't know from the trailers. 

 

First up: Spotlight. The Boston Globe exposes the cover-up of a horrifying pattern of sexual abuse by Catholic priests. Spotlight is simultaneously one of the most brilliant and one of the most difficult-to-watch movies I've ever seen. 

 

The events depicted in the film turned my stomach more than any death-defying stunt or gratuitous gore, not just a systematic failure to protect the defenseless, but, worse, a conspiracy to hide and excuse (EXCUSE!) such abuse. 

 

Performances are top notch across the board, with Mark Ruffalo especially impressive in what amounts to the leading role among the strong ensemble. Liev Schreiber is outstanding as always in a smaller part, one of the top five actors in the world, for my money. 

 

The plot is gripping, as the reporters dig deeper and deeper into a plot that reaches higher and higher into the hierarchy of the Catholic Church. Despite a runtime that's well over two hours, I was riveted the entire time, even though I wanted to scream at the screen as family members, Church authorities, and legal officials made excuses and attempted to keep the story from getting out. 

 

As the end credits began to roll, and the film presented a list of the many, many communities impacted by this epidemic, I was overcome with grief, not only for what happened, but for how much could have been prevented. 

 

I cannot remember the last time a movie left me this angry and heartbroken. Spotlight runs 128 minutes and is rated R for "some language, including sexual references." 

 

This year's Oscar Best Picture race is a tight one, but Spotlight has won my heart and my vote. 

 

Of a possible nine Weasleys, Spotlight gets nine. 

 

Next on my agenda: The Danish Girl. Oscar winner Eddie Redmayne stars as transgender pioneer Lili Elbe. 

 

Whereas Spotlight is a captivating story featuring stunning acting, The Danish Girl is mostly noteworthy for the performances alone. 

 

The story itself *should* be fascinating, but, as told here, is just slow and somewhat dull. 

 

Though much decorated, I find Eddie Redmayne an awkward performer, almost painful to watch in this film. It's undeniably a brave performance, but I'm not sure it's a great one. 

 

Ben Whishaw, delightful in a smaller role, would have been far more effective in the lead, if you ask me. (And, if you're reading this, I guess you're asking me!) 

 

Alicia Vikander is stellar, really a co-lead even though she's been considered a "supporting" player for awards purposes, and Amber Heard provides some welcome light in what's overall a pretty angsty tale. 

 

The film boasts beautiful locations and a lovely score, and, though we may have a long way to go, it's a nice reminder of just how far the world has come on the issues faced by transgender individuals. 

 

The Danish Girl clocks in at 119 minutes and is rated R for "for some sexuality and full nudity." (And they really, really mean that last bit!) 

 

Though sluggishly paced, The Danish Girl is worth seeing for its solid performances and important subject matter. 

 

Of a possible nine Weasleys, The Danish Girl gets six. 

 

Until next time..

Cindy Prascik's Review of The Revenant

Dearest Blog: After suffering through The Hateful Eight on New Year's Day, a short-and-cheery flick would have been welcome this week. 

Alas, Oscar nominations drop Thursday, so instead I found myself at Marquee Cinemas for another marathon of misery, The Revenant. Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing you wouldn't know from the trailers. Survival and revenge are a long and painful road for a man who has lost everything. 

Dear reader(s): When I tell you The Revenant is miserable, I mean that happy is not in its dictionary. I do not mean I didn't like it; on the contrary, I absolutely loved it. 

Most news about The Revenant focuses on the physical difficulties of making the picture, no doubt to convince the Academy that Leonardo DiCaprio deserves that elusive Best Actor trophy. DiCaprio's Oscar desperation is so palpable the movie might as well have been called, "Please Let Me Win This Time." 

Luckily, his performance is mostly brilliant, dipping only the occasional toe into unintentional comedy with his overacting. (To clarify, Leo's deserved an Oscar since Gilbert Grape, but he definitely sells it a little too hard at times.) Tom Hardy, Domhnall Gleeson, and Will Poulter are equally fantastic, with far less histrionics. 

The story is fascinating, beautifully told, but full of deception and brutality. A lovely score underlines the film, taking a quiet backseat but for its powerful climax. The Revenant's real stars, however, are its stunning locations and the expertise with which they're filmed. Magnificent snowy mountains, icy rivers, and majestic forests are presented in such striking big-screen glory it takes your breath away. 

I'd ordinarily complain about a runtime so far in excess of two hours, but I happily could have watched two more hours of this beauty. The Revenant runs 156 minutes and is rated R for "strong frontier combat and violence, including gory images, a sexual assault, language, and brief nudity." The Revenant doesn't have many flaws, but, if we're being honest, I'd have forgiven it just about anything for its visual splendor alone. 

Of a possible nine Weasleys, The Revenant gets eight and a half. 

(Small bonus for having an actual Weasley!) Until next time...