Raya and the Last Dragon – Movie Review

Directed by:  Don Hall, Carlos Lopez Estrada, Paul Briggs, and John Ripa

Written by:  Qui Nguyen and Adele Lim

Starring:  Kelly Marie Tran, Awkwafina, Benedict Wong, Gemma Chan, and Izaac Wang

Runtime:  95 minutes

Kelly Marie Tran and Awkwafina make a delightful and dynamic duo in ‘Raya and the Last Dragon’

“At its core, it’s an action movie.” – screenwriter Qui Nguyen, March 2, 2021

“Note to self, don’t die.” – Raya (Kelly Marie Tran)

And how...and please don’t!

In Disney’s “Raya and the Last Dragon”, Raya (Tran) – an early-20-something - and her trusty companion Tuk Tuk - a 10-foot long, pill bug/armadillo-like, four-legged friend, who best resembles an organic Fiat 500 – carry us on a dazzling animated journey.  Their quest is to search for the last remaining dragon, Sisu (Awkwafina), and find pieces of an ancient Dragon Gem, one that will hopefully reunite Kumandra’s Five Clans and rid the kingdom of a hideous, faceless enemy called the Druun.

Whew, that’s a tall order, but the world’s survival is at stake in a movie that offers elements of “Avengers: Infinity War” (2018), “Avengers: Endgame” (2019), martial-arts pictures, and the Greek story of Medusa, because the Druun, a menacing race of purple brushfires, turn their victims into stone.  Human beings and animals - including dragons – are not safe.

Raya does find Sisu, and since she’s made of flesh, scales, and blood, this towering, turquoise reptile is a key ally to have when purple clouds of vitriol could overrun the kingdom and beyond.  Not only is Sisu a two-ton wrecking crew, but she also sports a keen sense of humor and quirky, warm vibes.  Awkwafina is a perfect choice as Sisu, and both voice actor and on-screen heroine offer some genuine – physical and emotional - surprises (that will not be revealed in this review).

It isn’t a surprise that Raya’s quest takes her far and wide.  She belongs to the Heart Clan and hunts for the aforementioned, magical jewels through the other four territories: Fang, Spine, Talon, and Tail.  Each one offers distinct, striking visuals of desert, water, or marketplace scenery.

Although this critic watched directors Don Hall, Carlos Lopez Estrada, Paul Briggs, and John Ripa’s picture on a 43-inch television, the big-screen experience must be a wondrous cornucopia of sights and sounds of another time, another place.  Speaking of which, Kumandra is the film’s fictional locale, but screenwriters Qui Nguyen and Adele Lim designated this vibrant spectacular in Southeast Asia.  The Five Clans’ territories represent neighboring countries in this part of the world.  Not only did the filmmakers devote meticulous efforts in capturing the region’s visuals, but the movie favorably bathes in the cultures too.

“The sense of community.  The fact that there (are) so many cultures in Southeast Asia, so many nations, but there’s this feeling of togetherness between them.  They all belong to this region and are very proud of it.  That is very special,” Estrada said in a March 2, 2021 interview with LRM Online.

Estrada also mentions that spirituality and food play major themes that shepherd the picture.  A little boy named Boun (Izaac Wang) – who also works two vocations, as a ship captain and master chef – is a spreader of good cheer through hot, tasty food.  Hey, Boun makes a mean bowl of congee.

Please take note of Raya’s relationship with food and its evolution throughout the film too!

Still, Raya, Tuk Tuk, Sisu, Boun, Tong (Benedict Wong), and a few other new comrades don’t have oodles of idle time, as bona fide dangers and hand-to-hand clashes litter the path on the wide-open spaces, like 5,000 6-inch rusty spikes swarming on a ballroom dance floor.  The directors, animators, and visual effects teams deliver breathtaking wide shots that drill down into personal battles that are seemingly filmed with rapid-fire, silky-smooth eye-level Steadicams.

“Raya and the Last Dragon” has just about everything in a Disney picture, including massive, sweeping moments, meaningful discourse, swashbuckling adventure, and laughs.  Meanwhile, the Southeast Asian backdrop wraps us up with astonishments that keep our eyes darting to every corner of the screen and square inch in between.  The time flies as Raya, Sisu, and their new team bond towards a hopeful destiny.

Kelly Marie Tran and Awkwafina make a delightful and dynamic duo, but in a broader sense, this gorgeously crafted film says a lot about friendship, family, and community.  Not many action movies can claim that.

Jeff’s ranking

3.5/4 stars

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Coming 2 America – Movie Review

Directed by:  Craig Brewer

Written by:  Barry W. Blaustein, David Sheffield, and Kenya Barris

Starring:  Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall, Leslie Jones, and Tracy Morgan

Runtime:  101 minutes

Coming to America (1998) and Coming 2 America (2021)

‘Coming 2 America’ is more of a nostalgic celebration than a winning comedy

It’s been 33 years since we last saw Prince Akeem (Eddie Murphy) and his best friend Semmi (Arsenio Hall) travel from The Kingdom of Zamunda to Queens, NY.  Why Queens?  By name alone, it must be the locale where Akeem can find a worthy match for a royal wedding, right?

“Coming to America” arrived in theatres in June 1988, and Murphy and Hall’s buddy flick quickly became one of the most memorable comedies of the decade, at least to me, a Gen Xer, who was on summer break between my freshman and sophomore year of college at the time.  Although I can’t be the only one who loves the movie, because this rated-R Prince-out-of-Water story was the second highest-grossing film of that year with a box office take of $128 million, only behind “Who Framed Roger Rabbit”.

Not to take away from the groundbreaking live-action/animated bunny-film wonder, but I have fonder - and more easily accessible - memories of “Coming to America”.

“While you’re in a clapping mood, I’d like you to give a big round of applause to my band, Sexual Chocolate.” – Randy Watson (Murphy)

“I have recently been placed in charge of garbage.” – Prince Akeem

“Yes, yes.  F*** you too.” – Prince Akeem

The list goes on and on.

Well, it’s three decades later, and screenwriters David Sheffield and Barry W. Blaustein are back for a long-overdue follow-up to their 1988 hit.  Screenwriter Kenya Barris (“Girls Trip” (2017), “Shaft” (2019)) along with director Craig Brewer (“Footloose” (2011), “Dolemite Is My Name” (2019)) join the sequel-party.

With great regret, I don’t think that “Coming 2 America” is a worthy sequel, at least as a comedic running mate.  Instead, it seems that Brewer, Sheffield, Blaustein, and Barris were hyper-focused on celebrating the original film by constructing a movie that feels like a family reunion rather than a brand-new, forward-thinking comedy.

The new picture does take painstaking effort to find special moments to reintroduce several familiar, beloved characters – both major and minor ones – to the screen.  Fans should experience legitimate thrills seeing these on-screen personalities from Queens and Zamunda again, and from that perspective, the filmmakers kept the original movie’s devotees in mind.

On the other hand, the script maddeningly flies on autopilot.  Our aforementioned, well-acquainted friends only declare slightly different versions of the same jokes and gags from the original picture.  Sure, it’s a ball to reunite with them, but there’s nothing fresh or new here.

If it’s not broken, then don’t fix it.

I suppose that’s true, but the “Police Academy” series kept that same mentality for seven pictures, and those films became tiresome in a hurry.  You get the point.

What’s the point of “Coming 2 America”?

Well, Prince Akeem and Princess Lisa (Shari Headley) live in lush harmony and riches in Zamunda.  Although Lisa seems frequently bothered, and she carries all the warmth an OCD librarian coping with Johnny Knoxville screaming the alphabet through a megaphone.  If Akeem and Lisa are enjoying a happy marriage, Murphy and Headley offer zero evidence of that (potential) fact.

However, they do have three daughters, but Akeem does not have a male heir, which creates regal problems for the royal lineage down the road.

Like magic – or rather, the birds and bees – Akeem does have a son, one conceived 30 years ago during his first trip to Queens, and now, he and Semmi return to The Big Apple to meet him and fly him back to his new home in Africa.

Lavelle Junson (Jermaine Fowler) is the young man in question and agrees to visit, along with his biological mom Mary (Leslie Jones).  His Uncle Reem (Tracy Morgan) joins a bit later.  It turns out that Lavelle falls into the same life-pattern as his dad and wishes to marry a woman for love rather than through a formal arrangement.

Unfortunately, Lavelle and a royal hairdresser Mirembe (Nomzamo Mbatha) chew up precious screen time through a meandering courtship.  This creates two painful impacts.  Yes, they seem like a lovely couple, but neither one utters a funny line throughout the entire picture. Simultaneously, their on-screen presence takes away from Murphy, Hall, Jones, and Morgan.  This “joke-well” runs dry from about the movie’s halfway point until the last 10 minutes, as I wondered – for an awfully long stretch - how “Coming 2 America” became a 1990s Sunday afternoon Lifetime Network TV movie.

The film goes that far off the comedic rails as Zamunda morphs into Dullsville.

Still, the locale is a spectacular paradise with massive, manicured grounds, a sprawling palace, and big-game African mammals frequenting the frame.  Kudos to art directors Thomas Valentine and Kristen Sherwin and costume designer Ruth E. Carter and Kairo Courts.  Carter worked on “Black Panther” (2018), and wow, her style and talents are on full display.  With a film budget of $60 million, Carter makes it seem that $50 million was spent on costumes, as scores of extras and our leading players sport luxurious, opulent dresses and Dashikis.  She and Courts contribute to a fully-honored ambiance during every second spent in Zamunda.

The fashions and several impressive, extravagant dance sequences offer plenty of sights and sounds to distract us from a predictable, rote script that contains infrequent spots for genuine belly laughs.  As far as new characters, Jones’ Mary could be the lone highlight, although Wesley Snipes – as General Izzi - has some amusing moments too.  Jones is a blast, and in addition, some very big cameos pop on-screen.  Indeed, “Coming 2 America” carries tip-top star power, but we need it.

Sigh, 33 years seems so long ago.

Jeff’s ranking

2/4 stars

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Boogie - Movie Review

Dir: Eddie Huang

Starring: Taylor Takahashi, Taylour Paige, Pamelyn Chee, Perry Yung, and Pop Smoke

There is an undeniable formula that composes the structure of a basketball sports film. You'll often have a headstrong coach, a talented superstar who must understand their true potential and seemingly insurmountable odds that the team must come together to defeat. "Hoosiers," "He Got Game," and "Hoop Dreams," while entirely different basketball movies, still each embody the formula but in different ways. At the center of all these films are characters just like Alfred "Boogie" Chin (Taylor Takahashi), talented young men trying to balance the harsh realities of the world with the dream of playing basketball on the professional level. 

What separates writer/director Eddie Huang's film "Boogie" from other sports films it resembles is you don't often see basketball stories told from the perspective of a Chinese American protagonist. Huang understands the teenage sports melodrama, taking the familiar elements we are accustomed to and weaving components of culture, tradition, family dysfunction, and adolescent insecurity into the spaces that will ultimately frame the sports formula being manipulated.

Boogie has just transferred to a new elite private high school, one with a losing basketball record and desperate need for a superstar to lead them into the winning bracket. Boogie, however, is more concerned with how this opportunity can help him gain more exposure and help him receive a full scholarship from a top-ranked university. Boogie isn't just eyeballing a college scholarship, he has dreams of playing in the NBA and hopes of helping his family get out of the constant financial struggle they have been in since he was born. 

Boogie’s brash ego complicates the route into a college program. He is consistently at odds with his coach (Domenick Lombardozzi) to the point that he gets kicked off the bench and sent to the locker room because of his attitude and defiance; all this happens in clear view of a college scout who is watching from the bleachers. Making matters worse are Boogie's dysfunctional parents, Mr. and Mrs. Chin (Perry Yung and Pamelyn Chee), who continually tear into one another and often use Boogie as the bargaining vessel for their anger and frustration. Both parents see a life for Boogie that is strictly their own.

Huang does a great job of composing the core relationships for Boogie. When the family is sitting around the dinner table, talking about the future and what Boogie might do to make it to the next level, they are wonderfully composed. Pamelyn Chee, playing Boogie's mom, is completely convincing in her cold and impatient demeanor. Perry Yung, playing Boogie's dad, also has a few shining moments, one in particular when he talks about the importance of the 1989 French Open match between Michael Chang and Ivan Lendl, he calls it "the greatest moment in Asian American history." 

However, the film's shining star belongs to Boogie's love interest, Paige, played with confidence and energy by Taylour Paige. Her character challenges Boogie, forcing him to see beyond the self-pity of a problematic family, uncertain future ambitions, and the cultural identity that consistently plays a role in Boogie's decisions. Taylour Paige is magnetic throughout the film.

Unfortunately, even with such interesting characters, the narrative is a mess of unnecessary sports and teenage melodrama troupes that undermine Huang's realistic and authentic approach. The pacing fluctuates; in one moment, you are provided a fascinating conversation about race and growing up in strict cultural boundaries. In the next moment, you get a lackluster basketball scene that is devoid of energy or tension. For a film that balances much of the dramatic stakes for Boogie on a basketball game against a city legend named Monk, the first and final performance from Brooklyn rapper Pop Smoke, killed in February 2020, the build-up doesn't work. The showdown feels like an average regular-season game instead of the championship it should resemble. 

Eddie Huang displays an engaging filmmaking style that will hopefully continue to develop as he makes more movies. The characters are fascinating to watch, and the story of a young man trying to carve a path through culture, family issues, and adolescence can be amusing from Huang's perspective. Unfortunately, "Boogie" struggles most with finding a balance between these elements and the sports story it is trying to tell.

Monte's Rating

2.75 out of 5.00

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Chaos Walking – Movie Review

Directed by:  Doug Liman

Written by:  Patrick Ness and Christopher Ford

Starring:  Tom Holland, Daisy Ridley, Mads Mikkelsen, David Oyelowo, Demian Bichir, and Nick Jonas 

Runtime:  98 minutes

The narrow, orderly focus trips up ‘Chaos Walking’

Tom Holland is rightfully enjoying massive success in the movie biz these days.

Hear!  Hear!

Holland, 24, easily fits into the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Spider-man, but he’s not just a red-and-blue superhero.  He’s starred in other big-studio films, like “In the Heart of the Sea” (2015), “The Lost City of Z” (2016), “Onward” (2020), and “The Devil All the Time” (2020).

His characters handle themselves just fine when saving humanity or diving into a one-on-one scrap, and his friendly bravado translates into real-life.

Holland is a certified star, but no one ever labeled him as the strong, silent type, especially when he’s known for giving away an MCU secret or two before the films are released.  Frankly, that’s a little unfair.  Still, loose lips sink ships.

In “Chaos Walking”, his character Todd Hewitt gives away secrets as frequently as he breathes.  You see, throughout the day, his inner thoughts radiate out loud - from the top of his head - like a crazy radio frequency, accompanied by a bluish, purplish mist that also projects the objects from his inner self-talk and into the world.

For example, my constant internal-wish for coffee 24/7 would audibly project “I want coffee,” or “I need to start another pot,” – along with an image of a hot cup of Joe or a French press - into my current space.  During the COVID lockdown over the past year, this means my living room, dining room, or kitchen.

So, Todd’s wild gift might seem benign, but what about a life-or-death secret?

“The nuclear launch code is 94-33-22-001”

Yikes!  For Todd, his circumstances aren’t that dire, but thinking-speaking, “I like her hair.  She’s pretty,” to a woman - he just met - can lead to red-faced embarrassment.

Todd’s gift is called his “noise”, and it is literally out of this world in director Doug Liman’s science fiction picture.  Todd’s heritage may be from Earth, but he was born on New World, and currently, the year is 2257 A.D.

Not just Todd, but every man on New World possesses this noise, but women don’t have this bizarre attribute.  To every girlfriend, fiancée, or wife who wishes that their boyfriend, fiancé, or husband would communicate more effectively, well, this could be your solution.  Right?

Maybe not.

Anyway, life on New World, for the most part, resembles Earth, and Liman’s crew filmed in Quebec, and thankfully in the summer.  Life isn’t chock full of Star Trek technology, as Todd’s home is Prentisstown, a farming community with little creature comforts.  A hot shower is an impossible dream, as the town resembles something out of “Little House on the Prairie”.

Only men live in Prentisstown, but that will immediately change.  Viola (Daisy Ridley) is the only survivor on a new ship, actually a capsule, that crash lands on the planet.  Viola eventually finds her way into Todd’s village, and he’s never met a girl before, so trust becomes an issue.  She doesn’t have noise.  Mayor Prentiss (Mads Mikkelsen) sees her as a threat, so Todd and Viola bolt (mostly on foot) through a deciduous forest and towards the nearby town of Farbranch.

On the surface, “Chaos Walking” – starring Spider-man and Star Wars icons - is a sci-fi action picture set on another planet over 100 years in the future.  That’s a heck of a marketing campaign, especially with 20-somethings Holland and Ridley as the leads!

The on-screen reality, however, falls short.  Liman and his team open our hearts and minds into vast concepts within this science fiction world, but we only experience a small portion of them.  For instance, Viola’s ship travels an ungodly number of years (which will not be revealed in this review) to reach New World, but we only experience her crash landing.  Several settlements could dot this planet, but Prentisstown and Farbranch are the only ones that appear.  What else is out there?  New World humans ride horses, but we discover that these stallions and mares aren’t indigenous to this planet.  They were transported from home, so what other animals in this Noah’s ark traveled from Earth?

A native New World species called the Spackle looks quite intimidating (at about 8-feet tall) and lives nearby, but we only see one being for about three minutes of screen time.

The point is that “Chaos Walking” – with a limited runtime of 98 minutes – reduces the scope of this massive science fiction universe to a fairly routine on-foot chase picture through the woods.  It feels like an ordinary western, as Todd and Viola search for food, climb up several buttes and hills, and even get caught in river rapids, which brings back thoughts of the Jimmy Stewart, Janet Leigh western “The Naked Spur” (1953).  This movie, of course, has a giant alien, and every thought in our male protagonist’s head – verbally and visually - projects within the immediate vicinity.

It’s frustrating, but “Chaos Walking” is based on a series of young adult books by Patrick Ness, who also co-wrote the screenplay.  There’s a whole lot of story out there, and the material would be better suited for a 10-part series rather than a dialed-down feature film.

To make it work, one also has to suspend disbelief, like Viola’s capsule crash lands about a mile or two from Prentisstown, and the chances are about as remote as an asteroid landing in my backyard.  (I’m knocking on wood, by the way.)   Our big-screen pair also reach an abandoned ship.  It’s been there for decades, but its electronics still function quite well.  That must be one resilient Duracell battery.  Another technological introduction appears in the third act, but out of the blue with all the convenience and magic of an arriving Amazon package after ordering it just minutes before.

Yes, to squeeze the narrative into this feature, the scope and some sci-fi logic were slashed.  Still, Holland, Ridley, Mikkelsen, Demian Bichir, David Oyelowo, Nick Jonas, Liman, and his team give it their best within the narrow construct.

Well, I wouldn’t mind seeing a “Chaos Walking” series someday.  That’s my thought, and I hope that someone hears it.

Jeff’s ranking

2/4 stars

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Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry – Movie Review

Written and directed by:  R.J. Cutler

Starring:  Billie Eilish, Finneas O’Connell, Maggie Baird, and Patrick O’Connell 

Runtime:  140 minutes

‘Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry’ opens a door and delivers some insider clarity

“I had a dream.  I got everything I wanted.” 

- Billie Eilish, “Everything I Wanted” (2019)

Princess of the Pop-Star Universe Billie Eilish has 50 million monthly Spotify listeners and 38 million YouTube subscribers.  Her song “Bad Guy” has over a billion YouTube views.  She’s played live in over 20 countries, and on January 26, 2020 – at the age of 18 - Ms. Eilish won five Grammy awards.  

Five Grammys!  And what did you accomplish at 18?  Yea, same here. 

She also stars in a movie: a documentary helmed by R.J. Cutler.  Cutler’s docs feature prominent figures, like Oliver North (“A Perfect Candidate” (1996)), former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney (“The World According to Dick Cheney” (2013)), and John Belushi (“Belushi” (2020)), but a 5’3” teenager – currently 19 – could be the biggest of them all.  

Who is this soprano with a few musical styles – such as EDM and Industrial – and has captured the world’s collective ear?  Well, she doesn’t croon about bubble-gum good times, like some of her previous female contemporaries.  In her videos, Billie does not hop on the back of a pickup truck, sport Daisy Dukes, and cheer about a “Party in the U.S.A.”, or traverse through a tropical wilderness, transform into a Queen of the Jungle, don a Sheena-like outfit of animal skins, and “Roar”.  

No, this Los Angeles native strikes different chords – while frequently wearing drapery that resembles outfits from “New Zoo Revue” (1972) but designed by artist Daniel Johnston - about struggling relationships, nightmares, and thoughts of suicide, at least that’s what I gathered.  Admittedly, my pulse on the current music scene and fashion choices track somewhere between dismal and nonexistent, so my knowledge of Billie approximates my know-how on nuclear physics or keeping a house plant alive for more than a week. 

…but I digress. 

“Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry” is an insider’s look into this superstar’s daily life, behind the bright lights and sold-out arenas.  In effect, the film serves a broad spectrum of audiences, between her most die-hard fans and Eilish novices.  

Cutler divides his picture – which serves a lengthy 140-minute runtime – into halves and includes an actual intermission.  

During the first hour, the documentary follows a familiar pattern.  For instance, “Katy Perry The Movie: Part of Me” (2012) and “Justin Bieber: Never Say Never” (2011) offer retrospectives into the singers’ humble beginnings, climbs towards fame, behind-the-scenes looks at their travels between concert venues, and intimate conversations.  Both movies feature plenty of B-roll, in other words, the oceans of elbow grease and piles of pixie dust needed to drive the human and actual machinery towards – and to maintain – a global reach of the catchiest, 3-minute radio tunes.  

Those films successfully deliver their stated intentions:  to inform and entertain while also double as public relations productions by extending their messaging into cinema.  These aren’t gripping storylines, but the films do hit their marks.  Not all such movies deserve such moderate praise, and please refer to the recent Shawn Mendes doc as a prime example.  The paper-thin Shawn Mendes vehicle - “Shawn Mendes: In Wonder” (2020) – carries all gravitas and blatant commercialism of an 82-minute Susan Powter infomercial.   

Yes, Mendes’ film is truly that painful to sit through, but hey, he seems like a nice kid. 

Thankfully, “Billie Eilish:  The World’s a Little Blurry” lands near Katy’s and Justin’s films, even though Billie’s tracks don’t resemble her fellow performers’ styles whatsoever.  R.J. finds lots of moments at home.  We discover Billie’s relationship with her close family.  Her eccentric, caring parents – Maggie Baird and Patrick O’Connell – introduced a home-school environment of learning and support in which Billie and her older brother Finneas thrived.  The family remains tight and devoted, although the freedoms of a make-your-own Montessori school also break norms, as the f-word occasionally flies around without a second thought. 

The movie’s first-half, however, seems to buzz like an attention deficit disorder patient, as casual discourse at home then jumps to tiny concert snippets from around the globe.  Cutler’s vision gets a bit frustrating because we’re only treated to - seemingly - 20 or 30 seconds of live on-stage footage at a time.  Granted, editors Greg Finton and Lindsay Utz don’t force us into dizzying, endless micro-cuts of “Moulin Rouge!” (2001), but it would be pleasant to sit and rest for a bit.  Still, the camera lingers long enough at times to capture celebratory moments and also Billie’s insecurities.  

At one point, she declares to her adoring, loyal fans, “This is so weird.  I’m a nobody.  I don’t know why you like me.” 

Well, they love her and hang on every word, as plenty of smiling, doting young people sing her lyrics back to Billie and appear entranced with awe.  

The film takes a marked, decisive turn just before the intermission with a landmark event and then continues with Eilish’s real-life narrative through some brooding twists and sincere smudges of self-doubt.  Uncertainties and mental chaos litter most humans’ teen years, and Billie is no exception.  That creative energy fuels her songs, but Finneas takes sharp notice as well, as the film drives home his producing and writing work.  He’s a supportive, creative force, and remember, Billie is 19 now, but the bulk of this film runs before her 18th birthday, so our heroine comes with all the trappings and failings of any teen.  She’s too grounded to be a diva, but she isn’t immune from occasional adolescent declarations.  

These authentic hiccups and missteps, however, do give the documentary discernible weight and sobriety, and provide the audience opportunities for empathy.  The film is an insightful open door, and while it doesn’t shy away from Billie’s struggles, there’s no doubt that Cutler and his team offer plenty of moments of her kindness, glory, joy, and wild success.  This includes – finally – offering full compliments of a couple of songs during the film’s second hour.  

Still, how did Billie Eilish command so many astonishing accomplishments?  Why does her music resonate with so many people?  Where will her career go next?

“Billie Eilish:  The World’s a Little Blurry” doesn’t really respond to these questions.  Then again, at ages 16, 17, 18, or 19, most of us didn’t have many answers either.  

Jeff’s ranking

2.5/4 stars

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Nomadland - Movie Review

Dir: Chloé Zhao

Starring: Frances McDormand, David Strathairn, and Linda May

1hr 24min

Quartzsite, Arizona, with a population of fewer than 4,000 residents, is a blink-and-you-missed-it border city with a string of fast-food restaurants and gas stations just off Interstate 1o. In the summer months, Quartzsite is an almost deserted desert city with empty roads and some boarded-up shops in the Arizona heat. However, in the winter months, Quartzsite turns into a haven for RV travelers, swap meets, and various festivals found in big tents on open lots. 

Writer/director Chloé Zhao utilizes this location for a portion of her melancholy and mesmerizing film Nomadland. Quartzsite is a road trip stop for Fern, played with nuance and raw honesty by Frances McDormand, who has modified a van into a living space on wheels. During the winter holidays, Fern, working in an Amazon warehouse, travels to Quartzsite as a retreat from the cold weather. She encounters a group of nomads just like her, a group of resilient and resourceful people living on the margins, some by choice and some because of necessity. 

Fern is still learning the lifestyle, and her venture to a place with like-minded people helps her understand how to maintain freedom while staying safe. She meets Dave (David Strathairn), and the two strike up a friendship, sharing experiences from their lives before they pulled the roots. Fern finds peace in the solitary moments of her life, keeping those who may want to help at arm's length. Even old friends, who knew Fern before her husband died and before she lost her job in the town she lived in, are only provided short visits and the most basic forms of information. Fern is either unable or unwilling to connect with those around her; the answers are rarely provided easily in Nomadland.

Chloé Zhao's minimalistic approach to the film composes some affecting emotional moments centering on isolation, both the beautiful moments someone can find in a place not consistently walked through and the heartbreaking moments when the world begs a person for some companionship. Nomadland embraces loneliness that echoes more pertinent amid a pandemic.

Except for Frances McDormand and David Strathairn, Nomadland is supported by nonprofessional actors. These real people aren't playing a role in a film but live the experience the story is trying to explore; this makes Nomadland so compelling. They add authenticity, so much that the viewer sinks deeper into the meditative rhythm Zhao narrates with the meandering yet contemplative story structure. 

McDormand vanishes into the role. It's a performance that feels overly composed initially, as Fern is committing to the transient lifestyle. But as Fern grows more comfortable, so does McDormand in crafting the version. By the end of the film, it doesn't feel like an act or a routine at all. 

Chloé Zhao continues to grow as a remarkable storyteller, composing films that delve deeply into complicated characters' emotions and feelings without straightforward questions or easy answers. Instead, her films wander and roam to places that force analysis and engage a sense of understanding. Nomadland builds and unfolds beautifully, painting a portrait of independence and peace found in a solitary existence. 

Monte's Rating

4.25 out of 5.00

I Care a Lot – Movie Review

Written and directed by:  J Blakeson

Starring:  Rosamund Pike, Dianne Wiest, Peter Dinklage, Eiza Gonzalez, Chris Messina, and Isiah Whitlock Jr.

Runtime:  118 minutes

Pike, Wiest, and Dinklage embrace this modern-day crime story

“Caring is my job.  It’s my profession.” – Marla Grayson  (Rosamund Pike)

Marla Grayson loves her job.  She’s a caregiver.  Well, that’s not correct.  She’s a legal guardian, one for the elderly, and she has dozens of clients, those who need a robust, proficient personality to help make decisions for them, for both day-to-day happenings and grand issues. 

Wow, Marla sounds like a godsend, and perhaps she’s doing the Lord’s work, a real Mother Teresa.  Not so fast.  We soon discover that she carries all the selfless, kind altruism of Alec Baldwin’s Blake from “Glengarry Glen Ross” (1992).  You know, the executive who announced a sales contest by saying, “As you all know, first prize is a Cadillac Eldorado.  Anybody want to see second prize?  Second prize, a set of steak knives.  Third prize is you’re fired.”  

Well, the professional in this movie – with an endless supply of impeccably-tailored power suits and skirts for every bright color of a rainbow – always searches for her next pot of gold in the form of siphoning cash and possessions from her unsuspectingly clients, who may or may not be mentally capable of making decisions for themselves.  

If one hopes that Marla sports a soft spot for someone within her vulnerable target market, please shoot that notion down.  

It’s a zero-sum game out there in Brydon County, as she proclaims that human beings fall into only two categories:  “The people who take and those getting taken.”  

As writer/director J Blakeson’s movie suggests – accompanied by Marc Canham’s playful synthesizer score that frequently stirs warm memories of Suzanne Vega’s “Luka” (1987) - Marla does care a lot!  About herself.  Her scheme – which she’s smoothly and slickly carried on for years – has finally run into a stumbling block, a troubling one, when she discovers and recruits a new mark, Jennifer Peterson (Dianne Wiest).  Marla places this mild-mannered, comfortable, and competent 70-something under massive restrictions at Berkshire Oaks, a nursing home with all sorts of creature comforts but no real freedoms.  Think of the mental institution in “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” (1975) with larger bedrooms and finer linens.  

Actually, Pike – in this film - resembles Sarah Paulson and her turn in “Ratched” (2020), a Netflix “Cuckoo’s Nest” prequel series that captures the early-life and deadly times of Nurse Ratched.  Marla is a cool, unscrupulous opportunist who games the system.  She doesn’t forcibly dole out abusive medication, but she has no shame in giving the orders to those who will.  Look, if you see Ms. Grayson fiercely marching your way - and you’re over the age of 65 with a pocket full of Benjamins - turn around, run for cover, and call for an Uber lickety-split.  

Avoid this wolf in Stepford Wives’ clothing.

Blakeson’s film owns a similar analogy, as his script takes some head-spinning genre turns, but at its heart, it’s a wicked black comedy, a satirical take on life in 2021.  Unless someone recruits 10 other henchmen to break into The Bellagio’s vault, the days of outlaws robbing banks are long gone.  Nowadays, a crook can pick your pocket – with an alluring white, porcelain smile - while sitting down for coffee in a spotless, modern, minimalist office or servicing some well-placed sociable words in a court of law.

Yes, an opportune legal summons, a shifty backroom conversation, or some nifty keystrokes on a Mac have replaced a steel drill bit, a blowtorch, or explosives.  Sure, this take on 21st-century crime isn’t a hyper-recent phenomenon, but cruelty or apathy towards our fellow man may have reached new highs in 2021.  Just turn to your news app of choice for hundreds of examples.  Better yet, don’t.

“I Care a Lot” is a model example of intriguing storytelling, and it mercilessly dives into the aforementioned and brutal current events vibe.  Pike – a thespian-chameleon who can perfectly accommodate any genre and character – is devilishly terrific here (of course), as this critic admires Marla’s ingenuity and despises her heartless game.  Marla’s a villain, but then she meets her match with Peter Dinklage’s Roman Lunyov, a man with a keen interest in Jennifer Peterson’s well-being.  Dinklage seems to have a blast internalizing Roman’s rage, which also sometimes explodes outside the surface.  Not to expand on the Grayson-Lunyov storyline, let’s just say that both parties care a lot.  

If you can manage the stress for 118 minutes, you might too. 

Jeff’s Rating

3/4 stars

"Palm Springs" Interview With Actors Andy Samberg and Cristin Milioti

“Palm Springs” is a hilarious, wondrous comedy about two strangers meeting at a Palm Springs wedding, but due to a pair of bizarre, out-of-this-world of mishaps, Nyles (Andy Samberg) and Sarah (Cristin Milioti) are stuck with one another and need a miracle to free themselves.  This film gifts more surprises, chuckles, and genuine smiles than a Times Square New Year’s Eve celebration filled with laughing gas.  Samberg and Milioti share boundless chemistry and comedic timing in a film – directed by Max Barbakow and written by Andy Siara - that never loses momentum or authenticity.

Andy and Cristin graciously shared their time on a Zoom call with the Phoenix Film Festival and several other media outlets for a light, fun, and engaging Q&A.  The stars spoke about the film’s premiere at Sundance 2020, the script striking the right balance, and Cristin also mentions her experience with desert weather, and as Arizona residents, we can relate! 

“Palm Springs” is available to stream on Hulu. 

Q:  A year ago, “Palm Springs” had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival.  What do you remember about that screening, the energy in the room, and the audience’s reaction?

AS:  How great it was to be in a movie theatre and surrounded by people.  (The premiere) went better than I was expecting, and (I was) excited by that.  I (shared) looks with Cristin and other people who worked on the movie (during) the screening and afterwards and (felt) glad (that) everyone seemed (to enjoy) it.  

CM:  It was incredible.  Obviously, (watching a movie in a theatre) takes on extra significance now.  It was amazing to feel people react in the same ways that I reacted when I read (the script) and hear an audience of hundreds of people laugh, scream, cry, and not know any of the twists.  (To) not only laugh so hard but (also) be moved by (our movie); it exceeded my wildest expectations.  To be there as a cast and crew (too); we hadn’t seen each other since we shot (the film), and it was beautiful.  I really want to go back in time. 

Q:  What were the unique challenges to “Palm Springs”?

AS:  The biggest challenge was not (having) a lot of money (in the budget).  That makes everything more challenging, but all of us (decided) that we still wanted to be very ambitious with how much we (shoot) and the scope of the things (that) we (shoot).  Once we were up and running, it was more about the crunch of the schedule.  It was the challenge of (making) this movie look (the way) we all envisioned it.  

Q:  How many days did you have to shoot?

AS:  21 and a half.  (That half did make a big difference) because we spent half of it driving.  It was at Joshua Tree.  We got some great stuff with the tortoise out there. 

CM:  The goat, the tortoise.  There was a whole cast of characters.

AS:  A whole zoo! 

Q:  The weather in the film was a little misleading.  It looked warm on camera, but that wasn’t always the case in reality.  

CM:  Oh yeah.  It was freezing.  (We wore) summer clothing, (but we) were constantly doing night shoots that were 30 degrees.  That’s something that I didn’t understand about deserts.  I don’t live on the west coast.  It’s so unimaginably hot during the day, and then at night, it somehow plummets 90 degrees.  

Q:  What made Max Barbakow the perfect director in capturing the voice of this film?

AS:  The whole script was born of Max’s and Andy’s imagination.  They conceived it together, and Andy wrote it through many different iterations based on conversations and brainstorms.  The tone of the movie really (is) the Andy-and-Max tone.  

Q:  Cristin, you said that you really had to believe that Nyles and Sarah would fall for each other, so how did you and Andy workshop the dialogue and chemistry? 

CM:  We were blessed enough that we had chemistry from the first time we met.  We just had ease with each other.  I met Andy (for) – what was supposed to be – a 20-minute meeting with him and Becky, our producer, and it ended up being three hours.  We couldn’t stop talking.  As performers, it was just there.  (Andy and I) did a lot of talking about (the script), and we have similar sensibilities and a similar sense of humor.  We like a lot of the same things.  I know that sounds basic or something, but I never felt, “I really have to work for this.”

AS:  It’s the same reason that you are friends with someone in real life.  You just share a worldview, and it made it easier to fall in. 

Q:  “Palm Springs” is a smart film.  It’s a tight balance to be funny and clever and then be philosophical, profound, and emotional.  What were the challenges to strike the perfect balance and be all of those things?

AS:  The real trick to it is having a great script.  (That balance) was there the first time I read it.  So many really great people agreed to be a part of the movie (because of) the source material.  You read it, and it’s threading the needle between comedy, drama, rom-com, existential dread, and all the space in between.  The sci-fi parts are so fun and interesting (too).  You read a lot of stuff that attempts to cross genre-blending, and it doesn’t necessarily all work, and you end up with a lot of cool scenes that (don’t) feel like one story, but for whatever reason -  and the reason is Andy Siara - “Palm Springs” does.  

CM:  Everyone involved (in the movie) believed in (that balance) and wanted to do it justice.  It is rare that one film can encompass so many different aspects of life.  

Q:  Was it a choice not to reference other movies or television episodes?

AS:  Definitely.  We were hoping the movie would be a little more timeless than referencing anything (in) pop culture.  I know there are a lot of songs in the (film), but we never wanted (them) to be within the diegetic space. 

Q:  In this movie, you both really had to go for it, and critics and audiences both noticed.  Is there another time in your life when you just had to go for it, and it worked out well for you?  

CM:  A lot of things, actually.  By its very nature, what we do for a living can be so embarrassing, to show up in front of a group of strangers, and (say), “It’s this, I think!”  I did this episode of “Black Mirror”, and I didn’t get the script until two weeks before we started (shooting).  I remember reading it and thinking, “Oh my God,” and then showing up in London and (saying), “I think it’s this,” and hoped for the best.  

AS:  I’m basically known for mostly going for it.  (With) SNL, there’s no time, and you’re just going crazy-big and arched.  Everything’s crazy.  “Palm Springs” and “Celeste & Jesse Forever” with Rashida (Jones) (were) my (versions) of going for it, because (I) was not going for it, which was more a change of pace for me.  I (put) my faith in the material more and was less going to be a rubber-faced hambone and power my way through (it).  

Q:  Have you considered doing a sequel or turning “Palm Springs” into a series?

AS:  It hasn’t come up.  I love everyone involved, so I’d love to work with everyone again.  The story feels pretty resolved, but I also hear they are writing a sequel to “Edge of Tomorrow”, which I thought was almost a perfect movie in its own right.  Nothing’s impossible. 

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Judas and the Black Messiah - Movie Review

Dir: Shaka King

Starring: Daniel Kaluuya, LaKeith Stanfield, Jesse Plemons, Dominique Fishback, and Martin Sheen

TRT: 2 h 6 m

The moment the credits rolled in director Shaka King's impressive "Judas and the Black Messiah," my primary emotion was anger. Heartbroken anger over the many injustices forcefully dealt to people of color throughout America's history. Frustrated anger that progress for equal rights and treatment of people of color doesn't seem too far removed from the feelings found during the 1960s where this film takes place. 

If we judge films based on how they can make you feel, whatever emotion that may be, "Judas and the Black Messiah" wins, hands down. But what director Shaka King and co-writer Will Berson do with this remarkable film is provide a form of clarity to a precarious moment in time, through a cinematic lens and with heartfelt, honest, and controlled storytelling. Pulling the past back into the present to clear the fog of time off events and try to bring the focus back to situations history might otherwise try to forget. 

The situation focused in "Judas and the Black Messiah" centers on Fred Hampton (Daniel Kaluuya), chairman of the Illinois branch of the Black Panther Party in 1968, and J. Edgar Hoover's (Martin Sheen) paranoia over the rise of African-American militants who he deemed the greatest threat to national security. 

Bill O'Neill (LaKeith Stanfield) is a thief who often impersonates an F.B.I. agent to steal cars. After he's caught, an actual agent, Roy Mitchell (Jesse Plemons), recruits O'Neill to invade the Black Panther Party's ranks to take down Hampton and the societal movement he is leading. 

Shaka King utilizes two characters, Hampton and O'Neill, to build a tense and provocative story. Betrayal, as the title implies, is the ultimate focus of the story here. A betrayal that reaches beyond just personal ties, showcasing a more tragic and upsetting reality of betrayal, one where America betrays the African-American community. These narrative motivations are always present. During scenes of persecution by authority figures, during moments of peaceful protest, and even in unexpected scenes in fancy restaurants or during intimate moments between two people falling in love. The issues and politics of race are handled deftly by King and Berson throughout the story, layering this historical depiction with subtle and blatant representations of what it was like to be a person of color in an urban community in the 1960s. 

LaKeith Stanfield is spectacular in only a way LaKeith Stanfield can be. Examples of this might be the twitchy, nervous, and anxious moments like when two Black Panther organization members interrogate O'Neill. Or the relieved and happy-to-be-paid demeanor when sitting across from Agent Mitchell, a calm yet downright menacing Jesse Plemons, while devouring a steak and snapping his fingers for more wine; Stanfield wholly owns the character with his unique characteristics. 

And even with Stanfield's impressive performance, Daniel Kaluuya has an equal amount of shining moments playing the embattled Fred Hampton. It's not the bravado of fiery speeches or the impassioned motivational dialogs he provides his comrades that are most striking for the performance (do not be dissuaded, these moments are memorable). It's the smaller personal moments that give substance to the character. The way Hampton falls in love with fellow activist Deborah Johnson (Dominque Fishback) or the sadness in his eyes when he is forced to watch the world he built crumble through newspaper headlines, the anger he indulges when every small step forward is countered with violent pushback resulting in friends and fellow activists' death. These moments that Kaluuya embraces provides the tragedy and subsequent fury felt when Hampton's fight song comes to an end.  

"Judas and the Black Messiah" is a powerful and poignant piece of cinema. Taking a moment in history and shaking off the dust that clouds the underlying sentiments felt during a moment in time, a moment where feelings and attitudes were not so different from what is supposed today. That's the power of filmmaking and its ability to boldly hold a mirror up to the past.  Its power to display that anger and frustration felt then, isn't so different from how we feel today. Its power to show that change and hope are worthy and essential to continue to pursue, so that one day that mirror will begin to show the difference made by revolutionary people.

Monte's Rating

4.50 out of 5.00

The Map of Tiny Perfect Things – Movie Review

Directed by:  Ian Samuels

Written by:  Lev Grossman

Starring:  Kyle Allen, Kathryn Newton, Josh Hamilton, Cleo Fraser, and Jermaine Harris

Runtime:  98 minutes

‘The Map of Tiny Perfect Things’ isn’t flawless, but you’ll discover heartfelt smiles

Mark (Kyle Allen) is too cool for school, and quite frankly, he seems too cool for any formal or informal institution.  He walks in the kitchen for breakfast with an assured confidence that most adolescents lack.  Without a second thought, this know-it-all helps his father (Josh Hamilton) with a crossword puzzle, verbally duels with his sister (Cleo Fraser), catches a ceramic dish falling off the table with the reflexes of The Flash, and heads outside – that’s filled with miles and miles of blue skies and bright sunshine - to conquer the world.  It’s more like seize his hometown, one that has all the feels of a modern-day Mayberry.  

Director Ian Samuels did film his quirky and charming but also a bit frazzled teenage rom-com in the deep south, Fairhope, Ala. to be exact, with a population of about 15,000 (according to the 2010 Census).  In this place – that sits on Mobile Bay’s east coast - everyone should know your name.  As previously and briefly mentioned, Mark’s dexterity is extraordinarily memorable.  It’s uncanny.  Think 1988-Jean-Claude van Damme, as our young protagonist pops on his bike, ditches it, hops on the back of a moving pickup truck, finds a fresh cup of coffee on a car roof, climbs on a house rooftop, and slides through a window to visit his best buddy Henry (Jermaine Harris).  Mark also pulls a slew of other head-scratching stunts within the first few minutes of “The Map of Tiny Perfect Things” that will have you asking, “What in the name of Fairhope is happening in this movie?” 

Mark’s secret will not be revealed in this review, but he unexpectedly meets Margaret (Kathryn Newton), who harbors similar gifts.  The two connect and search for the meaning of life, in a way, by traveling every square inch all over this charming municipality and finding tiny perfect things.  Not things, but moments, like a first bike ride without training wheels or a flawless score on an impossible algebra test.  These two events don’t specifically occur in Samuels’ movie, but you get the idea.

A couple of filmmakers have attempted Samuel’s specific idea/gimmick (again, which will not be revealed in this review) with huge success, including an iconic 1993 comedy, but this movie doesn’t score as many movie-points.  Through most of the 98-minute runtime, we are flying blind to the rhyme or reason behind Mark and Margaret’s shared extrasensory perception and the ultimate remedy for the pair to land safely.  

So, Samuels and screenwriter Lev Grossman take us on an indie teenage ride and ask for their trust.  Ever been talked into riding a towering, loop-de-loop metal roller coaster or perhaps taking a 3-hour tour off the coast of Hawaii in 1964?  No, there are no real hazardous dangers that throw us off the rails or catastrophic storms that strand us on an uncharted island.  Instead, the narrative runs in a place for long stretches, while wide-eyed Mark – an inspiring and inspired artist – pines for answers and a hopeful romance with the emotionally unavailable Margaret.

It’s a familiar case of dating-desires versus friend-wants, but it’s darn-near impossible to root against these young teammates.  Will they find love?  It isn’t certain, but Allen – who is an exceedingly likable kid – can carry a movie, while Newton capably plays Margaret as dispassionate and distant to guard against her vulnerabilities.  Newton just played a teen possessed by a serial killer in “Freaky” (2020), but rest assured, Margaret isn’t guarding against any sketchy, deadly notions.  While Mark sketches piles of penciled artwork, she – a math whiz – plugs together calculations like a 17-year-old Einstein.  

Together, their collection of tiny perfect things could add up to enormous rewards.  For us, our heartfelt smiles are enough.   

Jeff’s Rating

2.5/4 stars

The Mauritanian -- Movie Review

Directed by:  Kevin Macdonald

Written by:  Michael Bronner, Rory Haines, and Sohrab Noshirvani

Starring:  Tahar Rahim, Jodie Foster, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Shailene Woodley

Runtime:  129 minutes

‘The Mauritanian’ gives us another reason to never forget 9/11

It’s difficult to believe, but the September 11 tragedy is almost 20 years old, and indeed, the lasting impact of losing 3,000 human beings on American soil during that horrible day will never fade.  The United States has been changed forever, not unlike how The Civil War, The Pearl Harbor attack, and JFK’s assassination altered the country’s optimistic trajectory.  Yes, I believe that the U.S. is still a hopeful place, but certainly, 9/11 wounded the U.S.A.’s psyche and removed chunks of our collective soul.  

Its aftermath cost American blood and treasure during the Iraq War and the Afghanistan occupation, but while attempting to locate the masterminds behind the attacks and other terrorists, the U.S. also lost more of its soul through enhanced interrogation techniques (EITs).  These EITs included waterboarding, sleep deprivation, assault, and sexual violence at black operation sites.  In addition, The Guantanamo Bay Detention Camp became notorious for imprisoning suspected connected persons of interest without due process, which violates one of the key pillars of our democracy. 

In 2019, Scott Z. Burns’ “The Report” followed U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein staffer Daniel J. Jones’ (Adam Driver) herculean, historic efforts to uncover the CIA’s aforementioned EITs.  Jones produced a 6,700-page report that documents their ugly, un-American moments, and the film dives into the intricate details of his discoveries and flashes back to several torturous torture scenes that visually express the horrors captured in the voluminous paperwork. 

Kevin Macdonald’s “The Mauritanian” might be a worthy companion piece to Burns’ movie because this film follows one man’s story, a person who lived through the broken system of inhumane cruelty and flagrant disregard for legal rights.  Mohamedou Ould Slahi (Tahar Rahim) – from Mauritania (in North Africa) – began his painful journey in November 2001.  Local authorities detain Mohamedou – through American wishes - because his cousin called him from Osama Bin Laden’s phone.  No matter what they discussed, this particular conversation proves to be extraordinarily costly.  

Guilt by association.  

The U.S. imprisoned Mohamedou in Guantanamo Bay, but Albuquerque attorney Nancy Hollander (Jodie Foster) picks up his case via pro bono in 2005.  She looks to free him and brings along her associate Teri Duncan (Shailene Woodley) to help with the heavy legal-lifting.  Meanwhile, U.S. military lawyer Stuart Couch (Benedict Cumberbatch) stands in opposition, as he and his superiors seek the death penalty.   The stakes couldn’t be higher in this grim bureaucratic maze that’s pitted with more roadblocks than on NYC streets during Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Macdonald and three screenwriters walk a balancing act by portraying Nancy’s, Stuart’s, and Mohamedou’s journeys equally over the film’s long 129-minute runtime.  Nancy and Stuart get plenty of screen time discovering Mohamedou’s winding travels of abuse and incarceration.  The correctional officers and interrogators (who can be mistaken for mercenaries) have zero regard for his welfare, because during this dark period in our history, gaining information through any sordid means was paramount.  

Forget the cold, hard truth that extracting intel through emotional and physical carnage is a fruitless exercise, like beating a dog until it solves quadratic equations.  

The attorneys – from both sides - attempt to uncover the truth, not only the reasons for Mohamedou’s arrest but the painful years after his initial capture.  Those previously mentioned roadblocks take the form of thousands of manual redactions, so the government stymied paper trails through the abundant use of black Sharpies.  Although we don’t get much of Hollander’s and Couch’s backstories, Foster and Cumberbatch deliver their characters’ emotional clarities.  Both masterclass actors offer memorable on-screen presences through Hollander’s tenacity and Couch’s focused, southern persona.  

“The Mauritanian” is more of a heavy morality tale than a legal one, and although one can anticipate Hollander’s altruistic, human reactions, Couch’s ultimate path is a question.  For Macdonald, the trial is less critical than presenting the horrific retaliatory stances of those in power, and he lays out their previously closed books on the table.  Although the audience receives these messages – in loud, clear, and visceral fashions – we, unfortunately, get less of a sense of Mohamedou as a person.  

He suffers, struggles, and attempts to maintain his sanity, but his personal hopes and feelings, outside of his current predicament, are infrequently reflected on-screen, or not presented as often as I’d prefer.  It’s not an issue with Rahim’s performance.  He’s awfully convincing here, but there are only so many minutes in a movie, I suppose.  It’s a missed opportunity, but all in all, “The Mauritanian” gets its points across…the brutal, ugly, and extraordinary truths. 

Jeff’s Rating

2.5/4 stars

Minari -- Movie Review

Dir: Lee Isaac Chung

Starring: Steven Yeun, Yeri Han, Yuh-Jung Youn, Alan S. Kim, Noel Cho, and Will Patton

1 h 55 m

By Monte Yazzie

There is tenderness at the core of Lee Isaac Chung's exceptional Minari. This quiet and straightforward sensitivity allows a story of an immigrant family chasing the American dream to feel universal even though the culture and traditions explored may be unfamiliar. Chung, whose own personal story is reflected in Minari, does not depend on extravagant sequences or melodramatic thrills. It's merely a story about family and the struggles of trying to provide the best for them. It's poignant, beautiful, sweet, funny, and life-affirming storytelling.

David (Alan S. Kim) is a young boy moving to Arkansas with his family in the 1980s. His father, Jacob (Steven Yeun), mother Monica (Yeri Han), and sister Anne (Noel Cho) are relocating from California, setting up a home in a mobile residence in the middle of nowhere. Jacob has dreams of starting a farm, producing Korean vegetables, which he thinks is a growing food commodity. Monica is less thrilled but more scared and frustrated that Jacob didn't explain the specifics of their new life in Arkansas and just how hard it would be to change their lives. They argue, frustrations growing more heated as Jacob's small victories get consistently upended by greater, looming misfortunes. 

Chung's film is one of hope and despair, success and failure, easy wins and troublesome losses. It's hard not to grow more invested in the movie as we know the family more intimately. We observe two parents putting on the best show for the kids, even when everything isn't going as planned. We watch frustrations mount to shouting matches between mom and dad. But we also see the happiness blossom between family members who learn to trust each other. We witness a family unit come together and grow stronger solely because they can depend on each other. 

Minari, even with its heavier emotions in moments, is equally as warm and funny. The film gets much of its heart from two characters and their quarrelsome relationship, young David and Monica's mother, Soonja (Yuh-Jung Youn), who moves from Korea to help the family out. Soonja is defiant, challenging, enjoys gambling on cards, uses swear words, and deeply loves her young grandchildren. Soonja and David start on rocky terms, but they grow closer throughout the film. It's delightful to watch. 

Yuh-Jung Youn gives an impressive performance, playing Soonja with a perfect blend of "grandma" qualities; the wise words spoken from a place of experience that is equally as comforting as it can be uncomfortable to hear such honest truths. When paired with young actors Alan S. Kim and Noel Cho, the trio become the heart of Minari. Steven Yeun and Yeri Han give exceptional performances and occupy the married couple struggling to understand what they want out of life and how they will survive the many obstacles that persist through their life in honest and raw displays of emotion. 

The beauty of Minari comes in how it displays the theme of "The American Dream" through the perspective of a family who comes from a different country and culture. It's an intimate portrait of family dynamics and a film that displays how hard it was, and still is, for non-white people to assimilate into America. 

Monte's Rating

4.25 out of 5.00

By Jeff Mitchell

‘Minari’: An absorbing, authentic
American immigrant story

“Nothing’s gonna turn us back now. Straight ahead and on the track now. We’re gonna make our dreams come true. Doing it our way.” - “Making Our Dreams Come True” by Cyndi Grecco, the “Laverne & Shirley” (1976 – 1983) theme song.

“And there ain’t no nothing we can’t love each other through. What would we do baby, without us?” - “Without Us” by Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams, the “Family Ties” (1982 – 1989) theme song

Writer/director Lee Isaac Chung’s “Minari” is an immigrant story about a Korean family attempting to make it in the United States, and more specifically, a small town in Arkansas during the 1980s.

In fact, this is his story, or a small portion of it.

During a January 2020 Sundance Film Festival Q&A, Chung opens up, “I just (wanted) to throw it all out there and go for the film that I’ve always wanted to make.” He adds, “The exercise I went through was to start writing down memories from growing up in Arkansas.”

Chung soon realized that the memories he jotted down surrounded a specific period, when he was about 6-years-old, his daughter’s age now.

In “Minari”, Chung is a little boy named David (Alan S. Kim), and his father Jacob Yi (Steven Yeun) whisks the family to The Natural State to start a farm and grow Korean vegetables. Jacob bets on a reaching a niche market through his know-how and sweat with – hopefully - no blood or tears. He makes a major-league gamble. Jacob risks everything, and his wife Monica (Yeri Han) is quite frustrated with this move. Not only does he change careers, from a day laborer (he separates baby chicks by placing males and females in different boxes) to a farmer, but he relocates their household to a suspect trailer in the middle of nowhere. Their new town in the deep south is complete with stifling heat and a local populous that possibly has only seen Koreans on “M*A*S*H*” (1972 – 1983) reruns.

Jacob, however, is bound and determined to see his farm succeed, so his family can reach the American dream. Keep in mind that financial stability and family-friction over money are inversely related, especially when the couple in question has struggled with solvency and long working hours for years. This dynamic - along with newcomers attempting to fit in with a settled, rural community - are the central focal points in this absorbing American immigrant tale, maybe the best one that this critic has seen since director/co-writer Jim Sheridan’s “In America” (2002), about an Irish family moving to New York City, during the 1980s as well.

Due to their Korean roots, the Yi family physically stands out in their new environment, and Chung makes select, delicate choices to highlight local reactions to the new neighbors. One might brace for the worst, but Chung gets his point across without ugly culture clashes. For the most part, others offer support to the Yis, but hesitations and second looks do exist, and the fact that Jacob’s farmhand (Will Patton) doubles as a village outcast doesn’t go unnoticed. Still, Chung gets the tone right here, so we aren’t distracted from the film’s primary driver: getting the farm up and running.

Almost everything hinges on the farm. For Jacob, it’s a massive uphill climb, figuratively, not literally. The land is as flat as a pancake prepared by a steamroller, but Jacob soon discovers that finding water becomes his most daunting problem, and note that this dramatic hitch also haunted the farmers before him. Since their home sits on his workplace, Jacob doesn’t have the luxury of leaving his problems at the office. Still, he doesn’t take out his frustrations on Monica and the kids - David (Kim) and Anne (Noel Cho) - but they feel his weariness and the marriage strain.

Rather than solely focus on gloom and doom, the kids are regular sources of wonder, smiles, and mischief. When Monica’s mom – played wonderfully by Yuh-jung Youn in an Oscar-worthy performance – arrives to live with the four, she inadvertently becomes a source of contention for just one, young David. Grandma (Youn) has the best intentions, but her frank discourse, foreign quirks, and manners best suited for the front row at a WWE event or midnight trips to the casino aggravate David and his limited world views. David fits a bit of a one-way-war with Grandma, and her refreshing, heartwarming reactions and their rapport help distract us from Jacob’s and Monica’s individual and collective issues.

Many distinct relationships within this family of (now) five bask and twist with fluidity, and since their security is tied to the Arkansas ranch, the cinematic stakes are high. Through Chung’s rich characters and grounded (pardon the pun) script – based on his recollections – we, as an audience, juggle the macro and micro connections simultaneously, as the Yis’ fate becomes ours too over the 115-minute runtime…and beyond.

Hey, they’re trying to make their dreams come true, but please don’t continue marching without us.

Jeff’s Rating

3.5/4 stars

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Ed note: Minari is currently available in theatres or online through A24’s Screening Room. More information is available HERE, or CLICK HERE to purchase tickets.

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Jeff Mitchell Also Goes to Sundance (also from his couch)

Even though the Sundance Film Festival is a big deal and only a 90-minute flight away from Phoenix, I sadly never attended.  After growing up in Upstate NY, shoveling our 60-yard driveway hundreds of times and trudging through blizzards, ice storms, and 3-foot snowdrifts as a paperboy for five years, I tend to shy away from snowy, cold weather whenever possible.  (Living in and embracing one of the hottest cities in the country is reasonably reliable proof, don’t you think?) 

This year, however, I enrolled in Sundance 2021, and through Internet magic, I watched the festival’s movies from my living room, a workable compromise.  Hey, it was cool, figuratively…not literally.  Now, I didn’t catch every film, but I experienced 27 of them.

Here are my five favorite films from Sundance 2021:

Judas and the Black Messiah

Director Shaka King delivers an explosive – literally and figuratively – biopic of Black Panther Party Illinois Chapter Chairman Fred Hampton (Daniel Kaluuya) and Security Chief William O’Neal (LaKeith Stanfield).  Kaluuya is nothing short of electric as Hampton, as he decrees thunderous, mesmerizing speeches that prompt his audiences to repeat in unison, “I am!  A revolutionary!”  King’s film is also a raw, nuanced, and informative history lesson.  He doesn’t pull any punches from the violence caused by the Panthers and police, but King also captures Fred’s empathetic, humanitarian side.  Meanwhile, William is supposedly a loyal ally, but with FBI Agent Roy Mitchell (Jesse Plemons) holding Wild Bill – as he was sometimes called – under potential jail-time duress, Fred unknowingly has a reluctant adversary within his trusted circle.  Stanfield and Plemons are perfectly cast, and Dominique Fishback is a marvelous surprise as Deborah Johnson, Fred’s girlfriend, who may have called out her boyfriend most accurately:  he’s a poet. 

Mass

On an ordinary afternoon, a volunteer and a social worker prepare a pleasant Episcopal church’s meeting room. This unassuming space contains a table, chairs, some snacks, a Kleenex box, and invisible tension. It will house an assembly of four to discuss an unknown topic…to the audience. They (Jason Isaacs, Martha Plimpton, Reed Birney, and Ann Dowd) arrive in two pairs, sit, and debate in this chamber for most of the movie’s 110-minute runtime in writer/director Fran Kranz’s deeply affecting picture, one that feels like a no-frills Broadway play. In his directorial debut, Kranz doesn’t immediately reveal the core event(s) that brought these rational but emotionally-scarred individuals together. He slowly divulges critical tidbits along the way and keep us riveted to the conversation. Isaacs, Plimpton, Birney, and Dowd seem to bestow every one of their acting gifts – like athletes leaving it all on the field – in this consuming, wholly authentic experience.

Passing

By random chance or perhaps fate, childhood friends Irene (Tessa Thompson) and Clare (Ruth Negga) reconnect at a posh New York City restaurant as 30-somethings. They explore their life choices that afternoon and beyond in writer/director Rebecca Hall’s first feature film, an adaptation of Nella Larsen’s 1929 novel. The story dives headfirst into identity and race, as Irene quickly discovers that Clare has been passing as a white woman for years. Filmed in a rich black and white, Hall captures the big-band sights and sounds of the 1920s as well as the rigid racial lines of the period, ones that Clare has routinely crossed without consequences. She, however, might discover what she’s lost, and Negga is a shoo-in for a 2022 Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination.

The Pink Cloud

Smack dab in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, writer/director Iuli Gerbase concocts a toxic brew – in the form of pink clouds - that suddenly encircles the planet and forces humans to remain indoors or suffer certain death within 10 seconds of outdoor exposure.  Naturally, Gerbase’s premise hits way too close to home for John and Jane Q. Public, as she imagines an ill-timed fate for Giovana (Renata de Lelis) and Yago (Eduardo Mendonca), a couple who just met and are now quarantining for an indefinite time.  Not only does Gerbase travel in unexpected directions within the walls of the spacious – but enclosed – modern apartment, but she also stirs anticipated scenarios that are greatly heightened due to Giovana and Yago’s claustrophobic predicament.  “The Pink Cloud'' might spark CPTSD (current pandemic traumatic stress disorder), but then again, at least you and I can open up a window or step outside to breathe some fresh air.  

Strawberry Mansion

Writers/directors Kentucker Audley and Albert Birney dispense a wildly bizarre cinematic acid trip that seems like an uninhabited mix of a long-lost Philip K. Dick short story, “Sigmund and the Sea Monsters” (1973-1974), Terry Gilliam’s “Time Bandits” (1981), and a good, old-fashioned love story.  That’s a lot to absorb, right?  Take a deep breath and step into the Strawberry Mansion.  It’s 2035, and mild-mannered James Preble (Audley) is a government dream auditor.  His job is to assess and tax dreams using far-fetched technologies with some throwback 20th-century remembrances.  Accompanied by practical and special effects last seen during the groovy 1970s, Preble meets his latest client Arabella Isadora (played by both Penny Fuller and Grace Glowicki), and her particular dreams enchant him outside of his regular 9-to-5 duties.  Well, Audley and Birney’s entire film sparks enchantment…and frequent daydreams too. 

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Monte Goes to Sundance (from his couch)

The largest independent film festival in the United States, the Sundance Film Festival, wrapped its new and innovative virtual program this week. The event, which typically takes place in Park City, Utah, transitioned its program to a virtual platform, offering festival-goers the opportunity to enjoy some of the best independent cinema from America and around the world from the comfort of their living room. 

Perhaps the best part of this year's festival was the convenience of watching these movies, most of which were World Premier viewings, from the comfort of your home. I wouldn't want this format to be the new way to film festival. Part of the joy of going to a festival is discovering new movies and the camaraderie of watching these indies with cinephiles of every variety. Still, this year and for the sake of safety, this was a great way to experience one of the most iconic film festivals in the world.  

This year's festival's big winner was Siân Heder's CODA, taking home the coveted Grand Jury Prize, the Directing Award, U.S. Dramatic Audience Award, and a Special Jury Prize for Best Ensemble. The film is a dramatic comedy about a 17-year-old girl named Ruby, played by Emilia Jones, the only hearing child in a deaf family. Emilia, the communication translator for her family, is torn between pursuing her dream of making music and staying to help her famil

Similarly, in the World Cinematic Dramatic category, Blerta Basholli's Hive swept in numerous types winning the Grand Jury Prize, the Directing Award, and the Audience Award in the World Cinema Dramatic category. The film follows a single mother in the aftermath of the war in Kosovo, trying to survive in a patriarchal society that doesn't support her efforts.

Here are 5 of the films I watched at Sundance 2021:

Censor

Dir: Prano Bailey-Bond

A "video nasty" was a term used in the U.K. in the early 1980s that described films, mostly low-budget horror slashers, that had excessive amounts of violence and gore. These films received criticism by family and religious groups and prosecution for distributors who would sell and trade these films. Censor, directed by Prano Bailey-Bond, focuses the story on a film censor named Enid, a committed performance from Niamh Algar, who is trying to solve the mystery of her sister's disappearance. Enid slowly loses grasp of the line between reality and fiction. Censor is a confident debut for director Prano Bailey-Bond, a heartfelt homage to the horror films of the 1980s.

Wild Indian

Dir: Lyle Mitchell Corbin Jr.

The lives of two Native American boys have been torn apart after the murder of a schoolmate. As adults, they must confront the past trauma and deal with a secret they thought was buried. Writer/director Lyle Mitchell Corbin Jr. composes a fascinating character study that brings about themes of historical trauma, reservation life, and the lingering effects of violence. Wild Indian does a great job of playing against type, specifically for Native American characters who are often one-dimensional compositions in crime dramas. Actor Michael Greyeyes gives a threatening and conflicted performance that provides the film with a beautiful foundation to build emotions. Wild Indian is a refreshing and intriguing film featuring Native American artists in front and behind the camera. You don't hear too often, but this film demonstrates that perspective and culture are essential storytelling pieces. 

Coming Home in the Dark

Dir: James Ashcroft

Coming Home in the Dark doesn't waste time letting you know the kind of journey you are taking. In the film's beginning moments, a shocking event occurs, placing a family on vacation in the middle of a bleak and nightmarish scenario. Director James Ashcroft confidently builds tension and atmosphere throughout, constructing a frightening landscape on lonely backroads and within the haze of the night. Daniel Gillies, an actor most known for playing the same role on The Vampire Diaries and The Originals, provides a startling and menacing presence as tormentor of the family. Coming Home in the Dark is a horror of the purest kind, one that is unrelenting, inescapable, and bleak.

In the Earth

Dir: Ben Wheatley

Myth and science mix with creative storytelling in writer/director Ben Wheatley's film In the Earth. Wheatley, known for his immersive and assaulting engagement of the senses, builds a claustrophobic yet open-air world set in the middle of a pandemic stricken society. The story centers on a research hub deep in the forest that a doctor and park scout are trying to reach. After a nighttime attack, they find assistance with a man living off the grid, but intentions are not what they seem. Wheatley's film impressively suffocates the atmosphere of the vast forest, making it seem inescapable. Add the human element of those guided by science and those persuaded by myth and In the Earth embodies the many conflicted emotions people have experienced while watching the entire world make sense of a pandemic.

Prisoners of the Ghostland

Dir: Sion Sono

Director Sion Sono's films have been called genius, crazy, extravagant, exploitive, and audacious. And these descriptions were explained before the great Nicolas Cage came to bless his presence on Sono's new film Prisoners of the Ghostland. The premise concerns a notorious criminal tasked with saving a girl missing in a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Oh, and he has to do this before the leather suit he is wearing explodes. Offering a few Nicolas Cage outbursts that will have you smiling with pure glee, Sono's film is a mess of wild images and bonkers storytelling. It might be everything you are looking to watch.

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Bliss – Movie Review

Directed and written by:  Mike Cahill

Starring:  Owen Wilson and Salma Hayek

Runtime:  103 Minutes

Wilson and Hayek’s manic journey is anything but ‘Bliss’

“Ignorance is bliss.” – Cypher (Joe Pantoliano), “The Matrix” (1999)

“Most people say, ‘Ignorance is bliss.’” – Isabel Clemens (Salma Hayek), “Bliss” (2021)

Greg Whittle (Owen Wilson) daydreams about a different life, and why not?  He works at Technical Difficulties, a call center for customers who have….well, you know, and the office and everyone else are painted in dank, gray hues.  Greg’s workplace may not be as cheerless as Joe’s (Tom Hanks) in “Joe versus the Volcano” (1990), a factory of mindless misery, but passions throughout the cubicles run as thin as a Geo Metro’s tire tread after a year-long trek in the Canadian Rockies.  

Our hero’s world becomes infinitely rockier when he accidentally causes a freakish mishap at his company and then runs into an urban gypsy named Isabel.  She claims to wield magical powers, and sure enough, before you can say “Yapple Dapple”, Isabel manipulates the space around her.  Cosmic storms don’t suddenly rain down on Los Angeles, but a flick of Isabel’s wrist causes a bar server’s tray full of glasses to swoop out of his hands and crash to the floor.  Are you not convinced that Isabel can bend physics in this Matrix-like existence?  You soon will be.  Greg is.

Writer/director Mike Cahill knows a thing or two about trippy cinema concepts and turn to his “Another Earth” (2012) and “I Origins” (2014) as prime examples.  On this planet, Cahill’s greater Los Angeles is every bit as gloomy as Greg’s office.  Ambulance sirens, abandoned construction sites, closed-up businesses, graffiti, trash, cheap motels, and smoggy skies dominate the landscape.  The local chamber of commerce wants no part of this movie because everything around Greg and Isabel’s immediate present is anything but a paradise.

Randy Newman doesn’t love this LA.

However, Cahill offers a gateway to another place, one of bliss, that exists right where our heroes stand.  “Bliss” is a science-fiction picture, but an ugly, haphazard one to stomach.  In addition to the environmental grime and more grime, Isabel is strident, harsh, and manic.  She has a curt answer for every question and carries all the warmth and stability of the snide kids in “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” (1971).  Ugh, remember the gum-chewing girl.

Sure, she opens Greg’s eyes to this real-life Matrix and another other-worldly locale (that will not be revealed in this review), but Isabel doesn’t truly possess Morpheus’ (Laurence Fishburne) or Trinity’s (Carrie-Anne Moss) steely confidence.  Then again, Greg is no Neo (Keanu Reeves).  He twists in the wind and allows Isabel to wrap her hands around his neck and drag him all across town and beyond.  Meanwhile, in slow motion – like the hands on a clock – this kooky couple appears to become increasingly disheveled and unkempt as the minutes drone on.  Not only is this an unhealthy relationship, but these two don’t seem very healthy on their own either.  

Cahill has a masterplan in mind, and looking back, it’s an earnest one.  Still, he yanks his audience through confusing double-talk, contradictions, and some blabbering – but purposeful - nonsense.  Concepts like a brain box, fake generated people, synthetic biology, asteroid mining, and a thought visualizer (which resembles as 56 inch Etch A Sketch) fly through these realities like two extended rounds of Pictionary at a modern-day “Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome” (1985) and “Elysium” (2013).   

Many kudos to Cahill, production designer Kasra Farahani, and art director Jordan Ferrer because they offer some fascinating world-building here, but these universes are also deliberately frustrating throughout most of the movie’s 103-minute runtime.  “Bliss” is not an ignorant film, not by a longshot, but it’s certainly not a blissful experience.

Jeff’s Rating

1.5/4 stars

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Interview with "News of the World"'s stars Tom Hanks and Helena Zengel, and Director Paul Greengrass

Helena Zengel and Tom Hanks in “News of the World”

In “News of the World”, Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd (Tom Hanks) meets an 11-year-old orphaned girl (Helena Zengel) who lost her German and Native American families.  This Civil War veteran – who is now a newsreader traveling across Texas - decides that he will take Johanna (Zengel) to her aunt and uncle’s home in Castroville in writer/director Paul Greengrass’ affecting, soulful western. 

“News of the World” is a reunion for Greengrass and Hanks because they made “Captain Phillips” in 2013.  That film’s screenwriter Billy Ray hosted a Zoom call Q&A with Paul, Tom, and Helena.  The Phoenix Film Festival wasn’t part of the interview, but Universal Pictures graciously shared the link with us!  

Tom discussed the positives about shooting his first western, Helena reminisced about her approach to the role, and Paul explained the origins of newsreaders.  The three spoke about much more in this wonderfully insightful interview.  

“News of the World” is playing in theatres and is also available to stream at home. Helena just earned a Golden Globe Best Supporting Actress nomination for her work as Johanna!

Q:  “News of the World” is set in the west, but is it, for you, a western?

PG:  I grew up with westerns.  I watched “Bonanza” as a kid on Saturday nights (in the U.K.).  You can say (this movie) is in the west, but it’s a post-Civil War film.  In the end, it’s the story of a lonely newsreader who lost everything, who wanders Texas in the aftermath of the Civil War.  He comes upon the girl, and they go on an adventure, a journey out of dark times towards something hopeful.  That, for me, made it incredibly contemporary and affecting.

TH:  Outside of the standard things that go along with the genre – wagons, horses, and kerosene lamps – (this movie) is no different than the stuff that goes along with any film.  Westerns, if you are going to talk about them as (a genre), (have) a lot of arguments against them, (including) worldwide box office.  The (things) that westerns have for them (are) some brand of gunplay and justice against long odds.

That wasn’t nearly as interesting as what we had in hand, which is the story of Captain Kidd and young Johanna, the timeless theme of very damaged people becoming better because they have come across each other and the friendship that forms between them. 

What I liked about the (movie) being a western is the lack of technology made immediacy a real plot point.  You couldn’t get from here to there very quickly.  The news that Captain Kidd (reads) is weeks or sometimes even months old because that’s how long it (takes) information about the Brooklyn Bridge to get from New York City all the way down to Dallas.  You’re always looking for obstacles that can keep the story from happening too (easily).  

In that regard, the western (is) absolutely fantastic, that along with this great truth:  you can get an awful lot of people to almost volunteer to work on a western because they’re outdoors.  The demands are so specific.  It’s just different.  You’re out in nature, and I just ended up liking the slower, plodding pace.  You can’t get from Point A to Point B any faster than our horse Wimpy would walk.

Helena Zengel as Johanna in “News of the World”

Q:  Helena, you’re sitting in Berlin one day, and someone shows you a script called “News of the World”.  What do you think when you first read it?  Johanna doesn’t speak English or understand Captain Kidd.  

HZ:  I was excited to do it.  I read the script, (and) I thought it was going to be pretty hard to play because you (have to say the lines) with your eyes.  It wasn’t that easy sometimes to take the emotions and show them with your eyes.  You really want (the audience) to read your mind when you don’t talk because (Johanna) unfortunately (doesn’t).  It’s very interesting to play the role and to learn the Kiowa language.  When you Google it, you won’t get a translator for the language.  Nobody (speaks) it anymore. 

(It was great) to get to know the Kiowa elder, Paul, and Tom.  I saw “Captain Phillips”, and for a German actress, Hollywood is a goal (that) you will never reach, especially at my age.  So, it was a dream when I read the script.  I was very excited to meet Paul, (but) my English wasn’t as good, so I was like, “OK, everyone, I don’t understand anything.”  It was ridiculous, (but) I was very excited, and to go to Hollywood was something that I never imagined.  

TH:  Were you glad that you were making a movie when “System Crasher” (2019) came out because you didn’t get to go off and really embrace it?  You had to come to work every day, sit with me, and listen to Paul, when back in Germany and Europe, everybody was talking about you. 

HZ:  Yea, I thought it would be nice to be in Germany, but on the other side, it was good to be somewhere else because I knew a lot (was) going on.  (In) my hometown, there were so many posters with me.  My friends texted me every day.  It may have been a little bit weird if I had seen my friends every day, but I was excited to get a new movie.  Back then, I’ve never (been) in the U.S.  My mom was, so I always dreamt (of getting) to the U.S. and (seeing a) whole other part of the world.

Q:  What do you think is broken in Captain Kidd?  Had he not found Johanna, what would’ve happened to that man?    

TH:  Paul and I talked about this constantly.  Everything about your character, backstory-wise, is something (that) you can only carry around in your pocket.  It can only be this burden or weight that you bring into every scene because there’s not a lot of ways to dramatize it.  With this guy coming across this young girl, Paul was able to find (the) verbiage that (Kidd) did not necessarily want to communicate.  Captain Kidd (didn’t) want to talk about his past (and) didn’t want to face up to the terror and the loss that he’d been through 10 years prior.   

Captain Kidd is not a young man.  To have his latter life completely ripped apart, I felt as though he wanted to sneak into town, do his bit, and sneak right out, leaving as little a ripple as possible.  Had (Kidd) not stumbled upon this task at hand, I think he would’ve shriveled up and died in nothingness.  He was born again thanks to the connection and dare we call it - and this is the timeless aspect of (the movie) - love that he ends up feeling for another human being and is felt for him.  

His loneliness and his solitude were the same thing.  For a healthy human being, that’s not the case.  Solitude is good for you; loneliness will cripple you.  I think he was crippled, and he had been for the better part of 10 years before this young lady came along and brought him back to life because of her need.  She needed to be taken care of, and it had been an awfully long time since Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd had taken care of anybody.  

PG:  All of the profound and tragic events have occurred before the film starts.  Captain Kidd and Johanna both had intensely dramatic and tragic pasts.  The temptation was: do you show (their pasts)?  Do you start flashing back?  If this (is) a film about finding hope, to show the past felt like a cheap shot.  You just understand it as they came to confront it, almost wordlessly actually, because they never – apart from one very brief exchange – discussed what’s happened to them, each of them.  They are both going on this journey together to restore each other.  

Q:  Had Johanna never met Captain Kidd, what would’ve happened to her?

HZ:  I don’t think she would have died because she’s too smart and self-confident.  I think she would’ve found a way to survive.  It would have definitely been very hard for her (though) because being alone as an 11-year-old girl in the desert at that time was very dangerous.  It wouldn’t have been very easy, (and) she probably wouldn’t be as happy. 

Q:  There seems to be a moment when Johanna starts to trust Captain Kidd.  When was that moment for you?  Was that something you were always playing towards, or did you figure it out as you went along? 

HZ:  I think it’s a mix of both.  There was one part when Captain Kidd and Johanna start to explain their languages on the wagon.  They get to know their habits, their way of thinking.  Johanna also tries to explain to him that she thinks about (life as a) circle: to think about what (happened) in the past and then move on.  He says, “No, you got to forget what is in the past and move on directly.”  

I think that’s the moment (when) they trust each other.  

Q:  Paul, what makes you decide that “News of the World” is a movie that you want to write as well as direct?

PG:  Happenstance, really.  Making movies is quite like making music.  It’s fun to play with different musicians, because your music is different.  Sometimes you want to make a solo album because there’s something you’ve got to say.  I had the great privilege of working in Hollywood, and before I came, I used to write and make tiny movies which (cost) about $4.60, maybe $.65, if I was lucky.  One of the interesting things about coming to work in big (movies) was the interchangeability.  You direct, you write.  Tom directs, writes, produces, and acts.  You make tea sometimes, don’t you, Tom?

TH:  I do!

Q:  Helena, during the shootout in the hills, Captain Kidd tells you, “Run.  Save yourself.  Just get out of here.”  What do you think made Johanna stay? 

HZ:  First of all, she didn’t want to be alone.  The scene is not (at the end), but it’s getting closer to the end, so they already started to know each other.  She doesn’t tell (Captain Kidd), but I think she likes him and appreciates him.  There are some moments where you see that she’s very grateful for him.  Also, Johanna is smart.  If he dies, she (knows) that it (won’t) be good for her either. 

Q:  In one scene, Captain Kidd uses the news or the truth to stir a group of laborers.  It has such echoes for today about news and truth, and what they can do to incite people, good or bad.  Do you think for Kidd, the news became his version of preaching?

TH:  In that, the news is the truth.  We didn’t plan on making a movie with themes ripped out of today’s headlines.  We were taking the concept of reading the news from this perspective:  There are no such things as alternative facts.  There are interpretations of facts, but the truth is the truth.  You can’t alter the temperature of the sun, nor the speed of the water, nor the numbers of people who are dying because of a scarlet fever.

The fever that a preacher will have, I think, is to liberate the enslaved - either cosmically, physically, theoretically, (or) spiritually - with an undeniable truth.  Once you grasp it, it can’t be bent.  In that scene particularly, (Kidd talked) about the dynamics between the haves and the have-nots.  An awful lot of times in stories, it comes down to behavior and procedure.  

(In) that scene, Kidd was saying, “I’m not powerless here, because I know the behavior of a crowd, and I know the procedure (for them) to reach their better selves.”  

That is a discussion of a trope that nobody can deny.  So, he does have a lot of the same calling cards of an itinerant preacher with LOVE on one fist and HATE on another one, like Robert Mitchum in (“The Night of the Hunter” (1955)), but I think (Kidd) has LOVE on both fists, maybe LOVE and TRUTH.

PG:  The roots of the traveling news readers lay in the nonconformist preachers.  It started in the U.K. in the 17th century.  Nonconformist preachers were not allowed to preach in churches, so they came to town squares and old farms, and they (preached) to the masses.  They would bring the good news.  Over time, that became a feature of American life.  Slowly the “good” dropped out, and it became the news.

One of the things I loved about (costume designer) Mark Britches’ wonderful work is the black coat that (Kidd) wore at the readings.  It made him slightly an authority figure, but he was one of the crowd.  He knew those people.  He came from them, but when he came to town for that one hour, that was entertainment.  You didn’t get anything else.  There wasn’t television or social media in 1870 in Texas.  

TH:  And he put on a good show.  He made sure the people got 10 cents of quality entertainment.  

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Interview with "Promising Young Woman"'s Carey Mulligan and director Emerald Fennell

Carey Mulligan deserves an Oscar nomination as a femme fatale striking fear in the hearts of men in “Promising Young Woman”.  Cassie (Mulligan) is a vigilante of sorts, as she frequently pretends to be inebriated in local watering holes, dance clubs, and Irish bars.  She then terrifies her aggressors when they overstep their bounds.  Director/writer Emerald Fennell’s sobering - but also playful - screenplay takes dark turns and steers into some levity with Bo Burnham’s breezy, accessible arc.  Ryan (Burnham) could be the male outlier to melt Cassie’s heart, as Mulligan masterfully portrays a lady standing on a knife’s edge between potential bliss and endless cynicism.

Carey and Emerald graciously hosted a Zoom call with the Phoenix Film Festival and other media outlets for an enlightening and thoughtful chat.  The ladies spoke about Cassie’s methods for revenge, the film’s prominent color schemes, and much more!  Please be warned:  the interview does reveal some spoilers, including the reasons for Cassie’s motivation.   

“Promising Young Woman” is playing in theatres and is also available to stream at home.

Director Emerald Fennell on the set of “Promising Young Woman”

Q:   People I know who are generally not interested in small, independent films are talking about this movie.  Emerald, when writing the film, were you trying to create a dialogue?

EF:  When you start (writing), you’re just trying to tell the story, but yes, as it went on, I wanted to be honest and think about what revenge is.  Inevitably, the truth or an approximation of the truth can be provocative.  In terms of making it accessible, I definitely (wanted) to make (the film) accessible, (but) I didn’t want it to be a lecture or medicine or a dodge.  It (will) hopefully reach a wide audience because I do think this stuff is regrettably, unbelievably common, but still something hard to discuss in an open and widespread way.  

Q:  Because the film explores sensitive subjects, such as rape, what kind of research or preparation did you do to authenticate the story?

CM:  What was so immediately obvious to me (while) reading the script was how regrettably commonplace so much of this was.  The biggest challenge in my approach was so myopic in a way.  I just wanted to be as truthful as I could about this one experience.  There (are) endless amounts out there to read about these issues, and so, of course, it’s important to have a broader understanding.  It felt like such a tragedy, a familiar story, that there are countless examples of things like this happening to people (who) you know, people (who) you love.  

I think every woman has a connection to somebody who has been through something close to this.  For myself, there’s a very helpful book by Jon Krakauer called “Missoula” that investigated the subject from a lot of different angles.  The majority of (my) work before the film was with Emerald, just talking about our shared experiences.  

EF:  It’s really a film about the kind of culture that I grew up (in), and the culture that every girl I know grew up in, which is probably the same worldwide as it is in America and England.  There’s nothing in this film, sadly, that wasn’t in comedies that I was growing up with.  

The conversations that I’ve had since the film came out - with people I know and people I don’t know - is what Madison (Alison Brie) says to Cassie, which was, “Things happened all the time.”  

Carey Mulligan in “Promising Young Woman”

Q:  Can you speak to what ultimately Cassie aims to achieve, whether it’s accountability or revenge, or is it something else entirely?  



EF:  It is a revenge movie, but it’s a revenge movie about how revenge is sort of impossible at the moment and futile, which as a pitch, it (is) quite bleak.  (Emerald laughs)  I’m glad that I didn’t go with that pitch.  How can you find a resolution?  How can you find justice when it’s such an uphill struggle?  It’s so much easier to let it go.

It’s just one person actually saying, “I won’t let it go because I shouldn’t, and I can’t.”   

It’s not only other people in the movie who are incredibly uncomfortable with that, but (for Cassie), the option of letting go is so irresistible.  It’s irresistible to us as an audience, and it’s irresistible to her.  To have somebody going on this journey, not just for themselves, but (also) for their friend, because of the injustice.  She’s (also) really trying to forgive herself.  She’s begging for somebody to prove her wrong.  Mostly, it’s an exercise in futility.  It does make the film sound very dour.  I also hope that there’s some hope (in) there, and hope for redemption and forgiveness.  

CM:  From the outset, (the movie) is so much about love and loyalty and friendship.  (Cassie is) somebody who will go to that degree for their friend.  That comes from a place of really deep love, and there is a part of her that’s stuck as a young girl wanting to be forgiven, wanting to be absolved of the whole thing.  The revenge narrative doesn’t really play into (that) plane.  I don’t think it’s even on a conscious level.  I don’t think (revenge) is a word that would come into her vocabulary.  She’s simply putting something right that’s so wrong.  

EF:  I love the revenge genre, but I’ve never felt like I’ve seen a woman exacting revenge in a particularly female way.  There’s nothing I love more than a bloodbath, but (violence) is not something that would ever personally occur to me.  It’s just not innate, I suppose.  What power do (women) have?  That power is different but in no way less impactful.  That’s what is brilliant about Cassie and amazing about Carey’s performance.  She is violent, but the violence that she commits, the maiming that she does, is completely psychological.  It’s so much more harrowing. 

Q:  Carey, this your first film as a producer.  Did it change your experience as an actor on the set?

CM:  I felt so lucky to work on (the movie) at an earlier stage and watch the production take shape.  It felt like a privilege.  I wish (this film) came out when I was 18.  My role (as an actor was amazing).  I was such a jobbing actor on-set.  I was just there to be told where to stand.  It was very liberating.  I just had so much faith in Emerald as a director (and) had absolute faith in her vision and felt like I could have fun for the most part.  

Q:  Can you speak about the look of the film?  What made you choose bright pinks and blues and the old-fashioned decorum at Cassie’s parents’ house? 

EF:  Every single visual choice tells you so much about the character.  So often, we feel that people in distress look distressed.  If we think of Cassie as an addict or a self-harmer, (she knows) how to hide.  (She knows) how to stop (others) from asking too many questions, both the people (who she loves) and people on the street.  For Cassie, it’s doubly-important because in her own life, she’s in costume.  Like a lot of women, she is very, very adept in using her costumes, her nails, and her hair to hide her pain and seem innocuous and seem innocent.  

It makes sense that the film felt the same way.  The things that we still think of as light and frivolous - light pink, Britney Spears, and (other) things in this movie - are often not treated seriously.  Also, these are things that I love, and this is how a lot of people’s lives feel and look, so it felt right to me.   

The specific thing (about) Cassie’s parents’ house, it tells us so much about her mother.  She’s just a woman for whom the surface (covers) everything.  (It covers) up all (the) pain.  (The house) is the most hyper-oppressive, feminine space.  There couldn’t be more cherubs.  There couldn’t be more crystal.  When you look closer, you can’t sit on anything.  The beautiful, intricate tablecloth is plasticated, so no one makes a mark.  This stuff tells you so much about the house, the world (in which) Cassie grew up.  

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The Little Things - Movie Review

Directed and written by:  John Lee Hancock

Starring:  Denzel Washington and Rami Malek

Run Time: 127 Minutes

‘The Little Things’ isn’t big enough

Kern County sits north of greater Los Angeles and east of San Luis Obispo.  Strikingly shaped like Montana, it’s over 8,000 square miles - about twice the size of its little sister, Los Angeles County - and it sports wide-open spaces, agriculture and gasoline production, and Bakersfield, its anchor city.  Although Kern and Los Angeles Counties are related, they couldn’t be more opposite.  

Kern County Sheriff’s Deputy Joe “Deke” Deacon (Denzel Washington) - a casual, matter-of-fact, going-about-his-business assistant lawman – spent much of his career in The City of Angels.  For years, he investigated complicated, vicious homicides as a lead detective.  His current post is a “retirement” of sorts, but is it forced or by his design?   Well, his superior officer sends him to L.A. for a one-day assignment, but through old habits and muscle memory, Deke stays in town via the hypnotic pull of a serial killer on the loose, as four victims have fallen in just two months.  

Set in 1990, writer/director John Lee Hancock’s (“The Founder” (2016), “The Highwaymen” (2019)) police drama carries shades of the real-life Richard Ramirez case from the 1980s. Ramirez murdered 14 people – chosen at random - in grizzly fashions.  Although this critic hasn’t seen the Netflix documentary series “Night Stalker: The Hunt for a Serial Killer” (2021), I’ve been told that watching it will trigger several sleepless nights.   

Yikes!

For “The Little Things”, no worries.  You should find restful slumber after experiencing this crime story.  A hefty glass of warm milk isn’t needed. 

Admittedly, the film does open with a creepy, disturbing chase – on a lonely road and then at a gas station – where a faceless villain hunts down an innocent 20-something (Sofia Vassilieva).  Later, Deacon and L.A. Detective Jim Baxter (Rami Malek) look over an ugly, bloody crime scene or two, but otherwise, “The Little Things” is a slow and surprisingly tame drama.  It’s light on thrills, and instead, it navigates – over a 2-hour 7-minute runtime – as an in-depth character study, rather an intricate puzzle.  The movie’s title doesn’t refer to the small details needed to solve a case because Hancock makes any audience-investigator work extremely easy.  

For instance, Deacon mentions that roast beef could be a clue in finding their man, and in the very next scene, an ordinary sidewalk “Roast Beef” sign sits, like a flashing Las Vegas billboard, in the frame.  Naturally, Deacon and Baxter’s suspect frequents this particular modest sandwich shop.  Now, perhaps this dubious individual – who shall be nameless in this review – is not the sick baddie in question, but the script – straight away – seems to release all the air out of its whodunit balloon.  

As an alternative, “The Little Things” attempts to fill its spaces with noir atmosphere.  Hancock, costume designer Daniel Orlandi, and production designer Michael Corenblith get the period exactly right as clothes, cars, and technology have all the feels of 1990, as the film fits nicely as an “NYPD Blue” west-coast tale.  Meanwhile, the movie’s real journeys lie with Deacon’s history and Baxter’s present.  Baxter - the police department’s head, with a secure, settled, and lovely family in the suburbs – bids to learn from his weathered, well-traveled elder.  He realizes that Deacon’s closet stores a few piles of skeletons, or perhaps just one bulky, shadowy bag of bones, but either way, this sheriff’s deputy earned his well of anxieties.  

Deacon buries his memories as deep as his faculties will allow, but his past leaks to the surface through constant reflection and physically slower steps.  Think of Anthony Hopkins’ turn in James Ivory’s “The Remains of the Day” (1993), as Stevens (Hopkins) – a loyal butler – always swallows his feelings, despite the potential for love (Emma Thompson) standing right in front of him and his employer appeasing the Nazi Party.  Deke’s suppression is more contemporary and visceral because ducking under yellow crime tape and examining entry wounds on a nightly basis for 10-plus years is all about his environment rather than an innate character flaw.  

“The Little Things” isn’t flawed, but it’s relaxed and cliché.  Some - and perhaps most - moviegoers will enjoy the deep analysis of a lonely, semi-broken man’s history, and especially with one of America’s best actors offering his gifts.  For others, this particular Los Angeles-Bakersfield-Los Angeles excursion won’t be big enough.  

Jeff’s Rating

(2/4 stars) 

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Saint Maud - Movie Review

Dir: Rose Glass

Starring: Morfydd Clark, Jennifer Ehle, Lily Fraser, and Lily Knight

Run Time: 84 Minutes

A24

"Saint Maud," a bold, beautiful, and brutal debut from writer/director Rose Glass, focuses on the lifesaving, soul-saving work of a hospice care nurse named Maud (Morfydd Clark). The film, composed with a quiet and purposefully ambiguous assuredness, blends the power of religious fanaticism and unwavering faith with sexuality and the devastating nature of trauma experienced by working with the death and dying process. It yields a psychological drama that is shrouded in a strikingly dark vision of horror. 

Maud has experienced a life of trauma, some self-inflicted, but other ways experienced because of her job as a nurse. She is a recent convert into the religious faith, and her home displays the faith-based artifacts and pictures as a shrine of worship. She talks about her life committed to a higher purpose and finds her work in healthcare as focused on saving people's souls she is comforting before their death. 

Maud begins a new job in an unnamed British seaside town in a hillside manor belonging to Amanda (Jennifer Ehle), a well-renowned artistic dancer who is now suffering from late-stage lymphoma. In her daily duties and with her obedience to a higher power, Maud's faithfulness fascinates and intrigues the faithless Amanda who becomes more consumed with living her final days in the full indulgence of everything and anything she wants. Maud becomes obsessed with saving Amanda's soul.

Writer/director Rose Glass takes lovely care of building her characters and working in the genre elements that create an atmosphere of doubt and unease. Maud's character is never wholly detailed with a back story or over-saturated with unnecessary pieces to push the film too far into a defined genre. It also never details the type of trust the viewer should put in Maud. It continuously makes you question Maud's purpose and mission, whether it's faith or fear that influences her choices or something more sinister, promoting her drastic changes in behavior. 

Morfydd Clark, playing Maud, contributes a compelling performance. The way her character transforms, at first offering narration into the specifics about her life and the relationship with her faith and then being overwhelmed with stomach pain and becoming entranced in spells that she connects as signs and connections from above. Clark handles all these transitions with ease, offering a multilayered portrayal that is devastating, deranged, yet also delicate. 

"Saint Maud" is a beautiful debut from an engaging creative voice. It's many different shapes of horror. It completely understands what it wants to portray, no scary monsters or spooky ghosts, but rather the questions of what exists beyond our recognition and the choice we must make in the pursuit of what we believe and put our faith within. "Saint Maud" is here for your cinematic soul. 

Monte's Rating

4.00 out of 5.00

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Five Troubling Crime Thrillers from the 2010s

Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, and Jared Leto star in a serial killer story, “The Little Things”. Director/writer John Lee Hancock’s film opens in theatres and on HBO Max on Jan. 29.  To commemorate this star-studded movie, let’s look back at five recent crime thrillers that may have flown under your radar.  If you appreciate the genre, these five outstanding – but deeply troubling – pictures are worth a look.  Just lock the doors and turn on the lights.  You’ve been warned.      

Compliance

(2012)

In director/writer Craig Zobel’s surreal psychological movie, Indie Queen Ann Dowd – who is outstanding in everything (see also “American Animals” (2018), “Hereditary” (2018)) – plays Sandra, a stressed-out fast food restaurant manager.  She worries about bacon and pickle shortages before the upcoming dining rush, but as the locals order combo meals with supersized fries, a policeman’s phone call interrupts...everything.  Zobel works his twisted narrative like a maniacal puppeteer, as he plays on our fears and frustrations in the most maddening of circumstances during an ordinary night in Small Town, U.S.A.

Headhunters

(2011)

 Director Morten Tyldum’s borderline-insane Norwegian cinematic creation grabs us by our throats and drags us down two flights of stairs laced with rusty nails.  Before the bloody carnage begins, Tyldum’s movie starts more peacefully in the lap of luxury.  Roger Brown (Aksel Hennie) works for a high-end corporate headhunting firm, and although he pulls down a hefty salary, his weekly paychecks cannot possibly fund his expensive cars and multi-million dollar home.  They don’t, because Roger has a criminal side-gig, but he faces a bigger, tougher baddie (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) who – while traveling at 200 kilometers an hour - wishes to stop our hero dead in his tracks.  Geez, does crime pay?  You’ll have to watch this kinetic 96-minute thrill-ride to find out.  

“Hounds of Love”

(2016)

John (Stephen Curry) and Evelyn (Emma Booth) kidnap teenage girls for the sport of it, as director/writer Ben Young’s camera enters the couple’s home and documents the daily, grimy details.  The picture is raw and seems so authentic, as Young captures a documentary-like feel that crawls into the darkest space in your brain and burrows itself into your permanent memory.  Vicki’s (Ashleigh Cummings) memory is permanently scarred when John and Evelyn choose her as their latest prize, and escape seems hopeless except for a longshot idea by playing the lovebirds against one another.  Creepy, intense, and unforgettable, this Australian thriller/nightmare truly is a frightening gem.  

Loveless

(2017)

Unfortunately, a significant portion of marriages fail, and this includes the nuptials of Zhenya (Maryana Spivak) and Boris (Aleksey Rozin).  They not only exist in a loveless marriage, but they despise each other and are not afraid to viciously express their ire.  Zhenya and Boris do still live together but are in the process of selling their apartment and physically going their separate ways, but their son (about 10 years old) suddenly leaves on his own.  Now, this cheerless couple suffers more heartbreak as they desperately search for their missing child.  Director Andrey Zvyagintsev’s (“Leviathan” (2014)) Oscar-nominated picture purposely mires in misery and hopelessness, and the famous analogy “finding a needle in a haystack” does not even begin to describe the scope of the couple’s new struggle.  Skillfully filmed and constructed under a gloomy atmosphere, “Loveless” is a stunner.

Prisoners

(2013)

 In broad daylight on a gray Thanksgiving afternoon, two little girls – without warning – go missing, and the remaining family members lose their minds with grief.  Thankfully, the police find a suspect (Paul Dano), but officers let him go after 48 hours.  For a desperate father (Hugh Jackman), his anguish turns into rage, revenge, and madness.  Director Denis Villeneuve (“Sicario” (2015), “Arrival” (2016)) weaves an intricate 2-hour 33-minute story down bleak, sobering paths and straight into a demented human car crash that leaves its characters emotionally or physically broken.  Sometimes both, and Jake Gyllenhaal plays a detective who tries to pick up the scattered pieces. 

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