December 31, 2017December 31, 2017 “I, Tonya” (***1/2 out of four) was a sweeping biographical drama about Tonya Harding (Margot Robbie) showing her redneck upbringing with an abusive and domineering mother (Allison Janney) who nurtured her fierce and competitive spirit which led her to ice-skating in the Olympics and one of the most historic and controversial sports events of all time when she allegedly had her opponent Nancy Kerrigan assaulted. Director Craig Gillespie easily does his most dazzling work ever using in-your-face Scorcesean style of mock-interviews, humor, and great soundtrack detail. Robbie is sensational in the lead role but Janney is even better in a melting, Oscar-worthy performance as her mom. Bullseye! Continue reading →
December 31, 2017 “Call Me By Your Name” (**1/2 out of four) was a reverent but remote drama set in Northern Italy in 1983 in which a 17-year old (Timothee Chalamet) discovers love and homosexuality for the first time as he falls in love with his father’s visiting research assistant (Armie Hammer) and the two begin a passionate but forbidden affair. Film is well-acted and has beautiful location cinematography in Italy but it’s hard to connect with these characters or their plight on an emotional level; while film is certainly interesting in parts, nothing in the film resonates. Yet another film which has received rave reviews and award nominations but stops short of hitting the mark. Good script by James Ivory adapted from Andre Aciman’s novel. Continue reading →
December 30, 2017December 30, 2017 “Permanent” (*1/2 out of four) was a permanently dumb adolescent comedy set in 1982 in which a young girl (Kira McLean) moves with her redneck parents (Patricia Arquette and Rainn Wilson) to a new city where she is ostracized and made fun of because of her “perm hairstyle” but she is determined to persevere and not give up in life. Story of adolescent growing pains, ostracization, and southern-fried comedy lacks any conviction and laughs. You may as well watch re-runs of The Jerry Springer Show instead. What the hell is Arquette doing in this movie? Continue reading →
December 30, 2017December 30, 2017 “Deadly Exchange” (*1/2 out of four) was an unusually mean and dull melodrama about a foreign exchange student (Valentina Novokovic) who is taken in by a kindly mother (Lindsay Hartley) and her daughter (Victoria Bonefal) and she soon proceeds to turn their lives upside down as she kills several people they know and tries to insinuate herself inside their household. Anyone who has seen a thriller (especially “Fatal Attraction”) will be miles ahead of this at every turn. This could have easily been spit out of a computer. Continue reading →
December 30, 2017 “Thirst” (** out of four) was a dehydrated knockoff of “The Hills Have Eyes” and “Aliens” about a group of teens (John Redlinger, Jes Macallan, Karl Makinen and others) who arrive at a desert boot camp which is remote and cut off from society and they are soon stalked and besieged by a man-eating monster who preys upon humans to live. Derivative movie moves fast enough but pretty soon- you may find yourself rooting for the monster to put all of the cast out of their misery. One chilling scene aboard a helicopter towards the end is the only real scare in the movie. Continue reading →
December 30, 2017 “The Florida Project” (** out of four) was a so-what story about a single mother (Bria Vinaite) who struggles desperately to raise her children while living in a Florida hotel under the supervision of a tough but sympathetic hotel property manager (Willem Dafoe). You keep thinking something significant is going to happen or story is going to build and develop but it never does. Dafoe is solid as usual but he’s played this role multiple times before in better films. Many critics cited this as one of the best films of the year but I’m not among them. Continue reading →
December 30, 2017 “The Red Maple Leaf” (** out of four) was a misguided underworld thriller about an alcoholic detective (Frank D’Angelo) grieving over the recent tragic death of his wife (Mira Sorvino) and daughter and is assigned to find the kidnapped daughter of a U.S. ambassador (Michael Pare) but finds that the path to the truth is a minefield of coverups and hidden information. Star-laden thriller turns out to be a vanity project for writer/director/star D’Angelo; he peppers this story with such great supporting actors as James Caan, Paul Sorvino, Eric Roberts, and Robert Loggia but gives them almost nothing to do! D’Angelo is strong in the lead role but story offers little surprises and thus has little impact although admittedly it remains watchable throughout. Continue reading →
December 30, 2017 “The Disaster Artist” (** out of four) was an occasionally funny story about the bizarre filmmaker Tommy Visseau (James Franco) and how he created the notoriously awful 2003 film “The Room” and how he clearly had more ego and eccentricity than talent. Franco (who also directed) shows his admirable risks and taking chances again with offbeat material but his self-indulgent, mumbling performance and severely unpleasant character makes this tough to stick with all the way through. Dave Franco is good as his actor friend and Seth Rogen is funny as the script supervisor who later became the film director. The real Tommy Visseau is shown in footage at the very end. Continue reading →
December 28, 2017 “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” (** out of four) was a tepid melodrama about an older mother (Frances McDormand) whose frustration with the local law enforcement and their failure to solve her daughter’s murder leads her to create 3 local billboards which sends a rippling effect through the community and antagonizes the local sherriff (Woody Harrelson). Both McDormand and Harrelson are excellent as usual but story meanders and is limited in its emotional power. Many critics thought highly of this so you may want to judge for yourself. Continue reading →
December 27, 2017 “Lady Bird” (*** out of four) was a sweetly engaging coming-of-age story set in the early 2000’s in which a precocious 17-year old nicknamed Lady Bird (Saoirse Ronan) tries to figure out her direction in life while coming to terms with her relationship with her volatile mother (Laurie Metcalf) and her supportive dad (Tracey Letts). Not a great film as many have said and doesn’t have much plot per se but still a nicely done story of a girl trying to find her place and path in life at the confusing age of 17. Ronan is strong in the lead and both Metcalf and Letts are equally good as her parents. Strong soundtrack selections from that era are also a definite plus. Continue reading →
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