C'mon C'mon

Movie Name: C'mon C'mon
Year of Release: 2021
Director: Mike Mills
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Woody Norman, Gaby Hoffmann, Scoot McNairy, Molly Webster, Jakoubie Young-White, Deborah Strang
Genre: Drama
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 5
Watch it on Amazon

Synopsis and Review:

Writer/director Mike Mills follow up to the fantastic "20th Century Women" is again a story about families and the ties that unite them, but this time around with a slightly different perspective than his previous endeavors. The film follows the story of Johnny, a radio Journalist who is currently doing an ethnographic style type of project, going around the country interviewing children about their lives and their expectations for the future. He receives an unexpected call from his sister, whom he hasn't spoken with since the death of their mother, asking him for some help. Her husband is dealing with some mental health issues, and she needs to go to Oakland and try to find a way to help him. While doing so, she needs Johnny to take care of Jesse, her nine year old son. Johnny agrees and stays in LA with Jesse, however when Viv asks for more time, he asks her if he can take Jesse to NY. Soon Johnny has to resume his work, and he takes Jesse along, this time around to New Orleans. As uncle and nephew travel around the US and experience daily life together, the more they realize about their own ties, their family relationships, fears, and ultimately reflect on what life has unveiled for them.

What has always been surprising about Mike Mills' films is the way he finds to make his personal experiences and point of view, into something that is humane, and that translates across to so many of his audience's own experiences. Shared experiences is not a prerequisite to enjoy a film of course, but his finest work has a deft mechanism of touching you in unexpected ways, particularly because he creates characters and situations that feel authentic and rooted in something genuine (even if for instance his narratives take place in very specific times and locations). "C'mon C'mon" is the first of his features where the essence of the narrative feels contrived and somewhat artificially constructed around a very precocious nine year old, who strangely enough, feels more like an interpretation of what a nine year old says and does than an actual child. The film fails to materialize a character's point of view, since neither Jesse nor Johnny's really comes across that clearly. There's much to admire in this film, particularly the narrative of Johnny, how he deals with grief, and how his process of listening to others allows him to figure out his own issues, but the film doesn't probe any deeper, choosing instead to deal with the choppy relationship with Jesse. For the first time in all his films, it feels like this particular narrative doesn't really know what it wants to say, at times aiming to be a Spike Jonze exploration on love (without the humor), and at other times, trying to be slightly ethereal in a style that only Sofia Coppola manages to capture so well. While Joaquin Phoenix is always fantastic, he can't save this film, which at times just drags on, because once more it just doesn't know what it wants to say. Gaby Hoffmann provides great support as usual, and the production team is fantastic, particularly the stunning cinematography from Robbie Ryan. Ultimately, this simply isn't one of Mike Mills' best features. 

Portrait de La Jeune Fille en Feu/Portrait of a Lady on Fire

Movie Name: Portrait de La Jeune Fille en Feu/Portrait of a Lady on Fire
Year of Release: 2019
Director: Céline Sciamma
Starring: Noémie Merlant, Adèle Haenel, Luàna Bajrami, Valeria Golino
Genre: Drama
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 8
Watch it on Amazon

Synopsis and Review:

Céline Sciamma made a name for herself with the films "Tomboy" and "Girlhood", but "Portrait of a Lady on Fire" has thus far been her most critically acclaimed feature to date. The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival where it won the award for best screenplay, but went on to win numerous accolades and generally be acclaimed across various film festivals. The film which takes place in the 18th century, follows the story of Marianne, a painter who is commissioned to do a portrait of a young woman named Héloïse, to seal her proposed marriage to a man she has yet to meet (a Milanese nobleman). This commission is being done secretly by her mother, since the previous painter failed to complete his task, due to the fact that Héloïse isn't happy about the arrangement. Héloïse was previously living in a convent, and the arrangement was set in motion after her older sister died by suicide. Since Héloïse's mother doesn't want the same outcome for this painting, Marianne has to act as a hired companion of Héloïse, and draw her from memory. They soon forge a friendship, and Marianne eventually confesses her role and what she has done. Héloïse questions the finished portrait, and Marianne destroys it. After a confrontation with Héloïse's mother, she actually decides to pose for Marianne, and a timeline is decided for the completion of this new version of the painting. However as they go through the process of creating the painting, and their every day life, a complicity between these women emerges, which soon goes beyond friendship.

"Portrait of a Lady on Fire" is a film that manages to capture the blossoming of a relationship between two women in a way that feels tender, intimate and sincere. Both women progressively realize the intensity of their feelings, but also how their relationship has its own limitations and expiration date, due to the society in which they live. While the fantastic "Blue is the Warmest Color" illustrated the maturing of a young woman's identity, one that also included her own understanding of her sexuality, "Portrait..." never really poses the question if the relationship between these two women is sensical or not. These are two individuals, meeting at a specific time in their lives, where a shared intimacy organically evolves and blossoms, until it consumes them both. It is however a film where this blissful intimacy is married with the notion that their lives have to go in their own directions, that a sacrifice will have to be done, which of course only further crystalizes what they felt and experienced together. It's a beautifully rendered and acted film, one that has some dashes of influences from Bruno Nuytten's "Camille Claudel", without the brilliant intensity of Isabelle Adjani, but nonetheless equally impactful even if the characters could have benefited from some extra dimension to themselves. The cast is equally impeccable, with highlights going to Noémie Merlant, Adèle Haenel and Valeria Golino. The cinematography from Claire Mathon is naturalistic, but all the more intimate in the evenings in which the film takes place. A very good film worth watching. 

Hustlers

Movie Name: Hustlers
Year of Release: 2019
Director: Lorene Scafaria
Starring: Constance Wu, Jennifer Lopez, Julia Stiles, Keke Palmer, Lili Reinhart, Lizzo, Cardi B, Mette Narrative, Wai Ching Ho, Trace Lysette, Mercedes Ruehl, Devin Ratray, Dov Davidoff, Frank Whalley, Jon Glaser, Madeline Brewer, Steven Boyer
Genre: Drama, Crime
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 6
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Synopsis and Review:

After the little seen "The Meddler" and the TV Movie "This is Heaven", writer/director Lorene Scafaria had the biggest hit of her career thus far with "Hustlers", co-starring Jennifer Lopez, who also produced the feature film. The film, which is based on an article published by the New York Magazine, follows the life of Dorothy, a woman who has had a difficult life since she was a child and her parents left her with her grandmother and went their own way. Dorothy is being interviewed for an article by a journalist who wants to know more about a hustle she and some of her friends did a few years back and how they almost got away with it. The narrative takes us back to 2007 when Dorothy was working in a strip club and going by the name of Destiny. While there, she becomes a protégée of the beautiful and iconic Ramona Vega. Her act gets better, and things continue to go well, till the recession hits them big time, and the clientele dries up. The dancers go their separate ways and in Dorothy/Destiny's case, she has a child, with a partner whom she soon separates from. As Dorothy/Destiny is forced to go back to dancing, she reconnects with Ramona, who now has a new hustle. This new hustle involves targeting rich men in bars. The women in their group pretend to drink with those individuals, while they secretly drug them, and while they're pretty much out, they max out their credit cards. The hustle proves to be quite successful, even if some accidents and fumbling occurs, that is until other strippers start doing the same. Ramona decides to take her group and do things her way, with a different group of women, until things turn sour, when they target a client who is not the typical Wall Street professional, and who reports the incident to the police.

"Hustlers" unlike other stripper related features such as Andrew Bergman's "Striptease" or even Paul Verhoeven's "Showgirls", goes for a more decidedly realistic approach when it comes to the depiction of the life of this group of women, who strip for a living. Lorene Scafaria illustrates this world very much like a family of women, who bond over the challenges they have in their lives, and how stripping is what they have to do in order to survive and make sure they can support their families (or just themselves). The film doesn't portray these characters as victims, but instead as women who resort to what they can in order to advance in life. While this camaraderie is well illustrated, the characters themselves are sadly not very developed beyond some superficial details, all of which fails to register much as character development. The focus ends up being the stripping and the situations these women find themselves at as a result of that particular job, and subsequently the hustle in which they get involved, which at times may be remindful of Steven Soderbergh's "Ocean's Eleven", however without the suaveness and playfulness of that film. It's a film where the narrative keeps deftly moving, even if it doesn't necessarily bring anything different in terms of point of view, though it does give Constance Wu and Jennifer Lopez opportunities to shine. The production team on the film is solid, with highlights going to cinematographer Todd Banhazl and production designer Jane Musky (who has also worked in such films as Jerry Zucker's "Ghost" and James Foley's "Glengarry Glen Ross"). Worth watching.

Death on the Nile

Movie Name: Death on the Nile
Year of Release: 2022
Director: Kenneth Branagh
Starring: Kenneth Branagh, Annette Bening, Russell Brand, Tom Bateman, Armie Hammer, Gal Gadot, Jennifer Saunders, Dawn French, Letitia Wright, Sophie Okonedo, Emma Mackey, Rose Leslie, Ali Fazal, Susannah Fielding, Adam Garcia, Michael Rouse, Rick Warden
Genre: Drama, Crime
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 3
Watch it on HBO Max

Synopsis and Review:

Kenneth Branagh has been extra prolific these past few years, releasing 4 films since he first tackled the character of Hercule Poirot in 2017's "Murder on the Orient Express". Though the pandemic shuffled some of the release of his films, he has had very well received ones, including "Belfast" which recently won him an Academy Award for best Original Screenplay, and very poorly received ones, such as "Artemis Fowl" which is streaming exclusively on Disney Plus. "Death on the Nile" whose premiere got pushed a few times, is another adaptation from Agatha Christie's novel, and also a remake of the film which premiered in 1978, directed by John Guillermin, which at the time featured an equally impressive cast, fronted by Peter Ustinov with support from Bette Davis, Mia Farrow, Jon Finch, Olivia Hussey, Jane Birkin, Angela Lansbury, David Niven and George Kennedy. The film follows another case of Poirot, who this time around, finds himself in Egypt, where he encounters a friend and his mother, also traveling, but as guests of a surprise wedding that took place recently between Linnet, a rich heiress, and Simon Doyle, who was previously engaged to someone else, and who in the space of 6 weeks broke it off and is now married to Linnet. As a group of colorful guests celebrates the wedding, Simon's ex-fiancee makes her appearance, much to everyone's surprise. The group decides to board a cruise ship, in order to escape the attention of Simon's ex, though Linnet trusts Poirot that she does not trust any of her guests on the ship. When Linnet is murdered, everyone on the ship comes under suspicion, since all of them held a grudge towards her, or had a motivation to kill her. Poirot puts his detective skills to good use as he tries to understand what exactly happened during that drama filled evening.

These glossy, over produced films while trying to make a case for "adult minded storytelling", have come to represent somewhat hollow attempts at recapturing the prestige formula without much success. And that mostly happens because while Kenneth Branagh has a flair for the staging of the baroque and opulent, one only has to remember both his version of "Hamlet" and his comic book adaptation of "Thor", most of the characters who appear in both "Murder on the Orient Express" and now "Death on the Nile", are thinly categorized and described. And not even B-movie thinly categorized, or for that matter, TV movie categorized: they barely register at all, without much in terms of motivation, interactions or depth. They appear to be as inert and artificial as the visual effects that capture some version of what Egypt in the 1930s was like. And that's what ultimately becomes the downfall of these adaptations: while lush and impeccably crafted, these films fail to register actual characters with motivations, besides most of them just being by-standers. The acting is also a bit all over the place, with some performers always impressing, such as Annette Bening for instance, while others are painful to watch, such as Gal Gadot. Kenneth Branagh is clearly a talented film maker and actor, but this feature raises the question that he probably shouldn't be tackling material that he may not have much empathy with. This film once again demonstrates there's material for which he can't put that much of a spin on, besides illustrating matters with this dazzling array of great production design and cinematography, backed by various names of an eclectic cast, which sadly don't amount to creating an interesting film. Forgettable. 

Mass

Movie Name: Mass
Year of Release: 2021
Director: Fran Kranz
Starring: Jason Isaacs, Martha Plimpton, Ann Dowd, Reed Birney, Breeda Wool, Kagen Albright, Michelle N. Carter
Genre: Drama
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7
Watch it on Amazon

Synopsis and Review:

"Mass" is writer/director Fran Kranz's directorial debut. He has had a prolific acting career, but ventured into directorial waters with this film, which had its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival of 2021, before embarking on a series of Fall Film Festivals, until it was officially released in October of 2021. The film follows the story of two couples who meet in a Church antechamber to discuss what has happened to their children. Jay and Gail's son was one of many who was shot and killed by Richard and Linda's son, who went on a shooting spree in a high school, six years ago. Jay and Gail are trying to understand if there were any behavioral indications, that might have suggested/indicated what eventually took place. Linda and Richard recount the story of what they consider to be the most impactful changes in their son's life, but they themselves can't understand what motivated that brutal occurrence. These two couples whose lives are permanently damaged by that occurrence, are both trying to find a semblance of peace and potential healing.

"Mass" is a film that manages to be equal parts gripping and emotionally devastating, as it tackles the aftermath of a school shooting, and what happens with families who have to essentially rebuild themselves. This group of characters meet each other in somewhat different circumstances, since while one couple is trying to find a justification for the violence that occurred, and for the void that was left in their lives, the other couple is carrying the immense burden of also losing a child, while knowing how much pain their offspring has inflicted on others. It's a powerful narrative, that has some theatrical aspects to it, and some initial artificiality to the dialogue, but one that eventually finds its momentum and basks in the great dynamics between the central characters. Unlike Lynne Ramsay's superb "We Need to Talk About Kevin", where the characters are given extra dimension, by revealing more about the parents of Kevin, their existence, challenges as well as the consequences of his actions, "Mass" omits those aspects altogether. It chooses to focus on this particular cathartic session, where one couple aims to find closure and justification for what happened, and the other somehow looks for absolution while also attempting to shine some humanity and frailties on the monstrous portrait of their own child. This underdevelopment of the characters, is possibly where the film could have benefited of a more nuanced screenplay. It's nonetheless a film that lives from its talented group of actors, where all of them get a chance to shine and bring these characters to life, even if little aside from the horrifying event is ever disclosed. Ann Dowd in particular is fantastic, as she tries to empathize with the people she is talking to, when she clearly doesn't know herself how something as horrifying as that could have happened. Her pain and her bewilderment are gut wrenching. The cinematography from Ryan Jackson-Healy is solid, as is the score from Darren Morze. A solid directorial debut and a film worth watching. 

Diane

Movie Name: Diane
Year of Release: 2018
Director: Kent Jones
Starring: Mary Kay Place, Andrea Martin, Estelle Parsons, Jake Lacy, Deirdre O'Connell, Glynnis O'Connor, Joyce Van Patten, Kerry Flanagan, Phyllis Somerville, Celia Keenan-Bolger, Ray Iannicelli
Genre: Drama
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 8
Watch it on Amazon

Synopsis and Review:

Director Kent Jones has made a name for himself as a movie critic, in parallel with having a varied career as a director of programming for Film Centers and Festivals, before embarking on a career as a documentary film maker. "Diane" is his feature directorial career, and focuses its narrative on Diane, a woman who lives in the Massachusetts area. We witness Diane continuously helping her circle of friends and family, never stopping, always making sure she's available and present for anyone who needs her. Her cousin who is in the hospital with terminal cancer, is one of the persons she visits and cares for frequently, the same going for her son, who is battling drug addiction. As Diane goes through her visits and her interactions, it also becomes clearer that the motivations for what she does are instilled from a need for redemption for actions she took when she was younger, which had a profound impact on the lives of those who were close to her. Her current close group of friends, manages to be her support system, even if some of them are also passing away. 

One of the most interesting aspects of "Diane" is the fact that the film doesn't impart judgement on its characters. It just matter of factly represents this slice of life of a woman, who when she was younger, made some decisions which altered the life of her family, something she regrets doing, and is always attempting to compensate for. This race of hers to help, care for and support, is in a way, a salvation path for her own soul, even if she ultimately always remains her own worst critic. Her relationship with her son, as difficult as it is, eventually comes to a point of stability, even if it's not necessarily as she envisioned. This is a film that allows for these characters to have interactions, to showcase their frailties, dreams and how they overcome life's challenges. There's no illustration of an instant recipe for life's meaning or a dazzling special epiphany which summarizes the narrative. This film focuses instead on the observation of how the choices people do in life, will at times haunt them forever, and how aging is in itself a distancing process for people, particularly at a time when they become all the more vulnerable. It's a wonderful tale, with terrific performances from the whole cast, in particular of Mary Kay Place, who makes Diane both someone you can empathize with, with a generous kind heart, all the while also having another aspect to her personality that slightly saltier and realistic. The cinematography from Wyatt Garfield is solid, as is the score from Jeremiah Bornfield. Worth watching. 

Spencer

Movie Name: Spencer
Year of Release: 2021
Director: Pablo Larrain
Starring: Kristen Stewart, Sally Hawkins, Timothy Spall, Jack Nielen, Freddie Spry, Jack Farthing, Sean Harris, Stella Gonet, Richard Sammel, Elizabeth Berrington, Laura Benson
Genre: Drama
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 6
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Synopsis and Review:

Director Pablo Larrain continues his singular career of tackling narratives focused on tumultuous times in his central character's lives. After the well received "Jackie", which gave Natalie Portman one of her finest performances, he followed that endeavor with "Ema", which while critically well received, still flew under the radar. Since then he tackled the mini-series "Lisey's Story" with Julianne Moore, and then premiered "Spencer" at the Venice Film Festival of 2021, where the film was well received, before embarking on its festival circuit. The film which takes place on Christmas Eve of 1991, focuses its attention on the progressive disenchantment and meltdown that Diana, Princess of Wales is experiencing in her life. Her relationship with her husband has become strained, due to his affair with another woman, whereas everyone at the service of the Queen treats her as if she is a woman on a verge of a nervous breakdown, and unable to care for herself. She drives to the Queen's estate in Norfolk, and her behaviors, clothing, what she eats, where she sits and even what she says, are thoroughly scrutinized. While her children are also in attendance, Diana realizes that the property where she grew is nearby, which reawakens memories and feelings she had long brushed aside. Her only friend at the estate is her dresser Maggie, who encourages her to stay firm to who she is. While Diana struggles with the burden of people's expectations, the deceitfulness of her husband, and living in the public eye, she finds support and love in her children, whom she wants to protect above all.

Films and TV Shows about the British Royal Family are starting to become a staple of prestige productions, but also a topic that is borderline burned out (much like the constant adaptations of "Peter Pan" and "Robin Hood", please give it a rest). What has always been interesting about Pablo Larrain's take on iconic women, firstly with Ms. Jackie O and now with Ms. Diana Spencer, is the period which he chooses to focus on and also, the challenges these women are facing at that time. For "Jackie" the period coincided with the death of the President, and how her facade and persona had to somehow reveal the humanity of someone going through a traumatic and debilitating event such as that one in the public eye. With "Spencer", Larrain focuses his attention on the period where Diana Spencer realized the eminent dissolution of her marriage, and how her current life had been staged and artificially crafted for her to inhabit, in a way suppressing who she really was, once more, for the sake of the public eye. These are fascinating moments in time for these characters, ripe for good drama, which in this case is cleverly staged, even if it is almost too glacial to allow the characters to emote much. And though that is indeed the intention, to denounce Ms. Spencer's unshackling of this cold universe in which she was a prisoner, the film itself also feels prisoner of the environment that it creates (the film needs more of a jolt of the energy which keeps flowing through Kristen Stewart). And sadly, it's a story that has been told countless times, including Oliver Hirschbiegel's "Diana", featuring the superb Naomi Watts, and more recently the Netflix show, "The Crown", created by Peter Morgan. The film succeeds in crafting this environment, and also in providing a great canvas for Kristen Stewart to excel and bring her interpretation of Diana Spencer to life. It's a solid interpretation, one that brings the persona of the Princess of Wales to life, without excessively trying to be a copycat. She has great support from the always fantastic Sally Hawkins and Timothy Spall. While not as memorable and impactful as "Jackie", it is worth watching nonetheless. 

Drive My Car

Movie Name: Drive My Car
Year of Release: 2021
Director: Ryusuke Hamaguchi
Starring: Hidetoshi Nishijima, Toko Miura, Reika Kirishima, Park Yu-rim, Jin Dae-yeon, Sonia Yuan, Ahn Hwitae, Perry Dizon, Satoko Abe
Genre: Drama
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 6
Watch it on HBO Max

Synopsis and Review:

"Drive My Car" had its debut at the Cannes Film Festival in May of 2021, where it eventually won the award for best screenplay. It was the beginning of the number of accolades the film has been collecting since. The narrative is focused on actor and theater director Yusuke Kafuku, who is married to Oto, a screenwriter. They've been married for quite some time, and experienced some personal tragedy in their lives with the death of their child. Even though Yusuke knows Oto has extra marital affairs, their relationship continues and is seemingly unaffected by it, that is until Yusuke returns from work one day to discover his wife dead, due to a brain hemorrhage. Two years later, Yusuke takes a residency in Hiroshima, where he's supposed to direct a multilingual adaptation of Chekhov's Uncle Vanya. The organizers who are supporting his residency warn him that one of the essential requirements for him to stay, is him being driven by an actual chauffeur, due to issues that have occurred in the past. While he objects at first, he eventually becomes accustomed to Misaki Watari, the young woman who is driving him around. As he goes through the casting and then rehearsals, Yusuke starts to progressively know more about his group of actors, and also about Misaki, his driver, who also bears within the pain of some events that took place in her hometown. As some additional events come into light, Yusuke is forced to make a decision about the show, but before doing so, he asks Misaki to drive him to her childhood home.

"Drive My Car", while being a film that touches upon the topics of harboring pain & trauma derived from decisions made in the past, still manages to showcase aspects of hope and beauty, which manifests itself not only in the process of staging the Uncle Vanya play, but also of how the central characters eventually get to share the pain and the burden they carry within. It's a film that while taking its time to showcase the relationships between its central characters, it's also somewhat slight in showcasing what they actually want from their own existence (or maybe their pain, is what justifies their existence). The detours that the director captures, for instance illustrating the staging of the play, including the read throughs, the rehearsals, while contextualizing the process and the complicity between the group, don't necessarily add much to the understanding of the characters themselves. And that's one of the most perplexing things about this film: in all its runtime, nearly 3 hours long, not much is ever understood of what drives some of the main characters, including why Misaki is just a driver (is she doing it part-time, does she do this job to compliment her income much like an Uber Driver), or even what is it that Oto does, besides narrating some stories (which by the way, is she writing them down, are they just open ended threads she concocts?). The journey of the central characters, particularly as they drive around and get to know each other, is indeed redeeming and affecting, but it's a film that while trying to depict the staging of a play as a rebirth of something, and ultimately the devices which people find in order to deal with grief, seems to forget that characters are more than just one single trait or aspect. The cast is uniformly solid, as is the cinematography from Hidetoshi Shinomiya. It's worth watching, but not entirely fulfilling. 

The Batman

Movie Name: The Batman
Year of Release: 2022
Director: Matt Reeves
Starring: Robert Pattinson, Zoe Kravitz, Paul Dano, Colin Farrell, Jeffrey Wright, John Turturro, Andy Serkis, Peter Sarsgaard, Barry Keoghan, Jayme Lawson, Gil Perez-Abraham, Peter MacDonald, Con O'Neill, Alex Ferns, Rupert Penry-Jones, Hana Hrzic, Stella Stocker, Sandra Dickinson, Joseph Balderrama
Genre: Action, Crime
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7
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Synopsis and Review:

Writer, producer and director Matt Reeves is back, following his work on the "Planet of the Apes" franchise, where he tackled the last two films of that franchise, which was started by Rupert Wyatt. The film follows the story of Batman, who has become well known to Gotham City in the past two years. The city is in the middle of a mayor electoral race, and the crime is running rampant. One of the candidates and mayor elect gets murdered in a particularly grisly manner, and Batman is asked to come in and help the investigation, courtesy of Detective Jim Gordon, one of his greatest allies (most of the police force still thinks he is nothing but a vigilante). They soon find out the killer left a card for Batman, in the shape of a riddle, something he has to crack the code on, which he eventually does with the assistance of Alfred, his butler. Batman's investigation leads him to a club owned by Carmine Falcone, a mob boss in town, who has ties with everything taking place in the city. While there he gets information from one of Falcone's lieutenants, Oz/The Penguin, and also crosses paths with Selina Kyle, who is on a mission of her own. Soon Selina proves to be more than meets the eye, and in parallel, the amount of victims the killer goes after, keeps increasing, all of them characters of great prominence in Gotham. The more Batman investigates, the more he also realizes the ties and strands of corruption are everywhere in Gotham.

After the latest incarnations of Batman were met with somewhat of a tepid response, in all the films directed by Zack Snyder, Warner Brothers smartly decided to move in a different creative direction. Matt Reeves and Peter Craig have tackled the script for this latest iteration of the Batman, and craft this film as a thriller, one that has influences ranging from both Frank Miller's take on the character in graphic novels, but also from David Fincher's features, "Seven" and even "Zodiac". Matt Reeves, much like he did in his previous films, including the underrated remake of "Let The Right One In" which was titled "Let Me In", crafts a very thorough and meticulous context, this time around truly focusing on making Gotham feel like an additional character of the film itself. While in Christopher Nolan's films, Gotham took a progressively more muted backdrop to what was happening with the characters, Matt Reeves cleverly realizes that the terrain in which Batman moves, is one of the main propellors for what he does, not to mention, it also taints and influences who he is on a profound level. It's a film that plays itself as a procedural, with a somewhat inexperienced Batman trying to understand the motivations of this killer, and slowly realizing the extents of corruption and its role in the city he has been trying to save. It's a well written film, one that while epic and ambitious, fails to add some extra dimension to its central characters, something that could have helped ground the narrative a bit further. It's nonetheless an impeccably crafted film, with a strong cast led by Robert Pattinson, with strong support from the always terrific Colin Farrell, Paul Dano, John Turturro, Jeffrey Wright, and Peter Sarsgaard. The production team of the film is truly stellar, featuring the beautiful cinematography from Greig Fraser, score from Michael Giacchino, production design from James Chinlund and costumes from Jacqueline Durran, Glyn Dillon and David Crossman. While still playing in the comic book arena, there's much to be savored in this film. Very entertaining and worth watching.

What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?

Movie Name: What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?
Year of Release: 1962
Director: Robert Aldrich
Starring: Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, Victor Buono, Anna Lee, Maidie Norman, Wesley Addy, Julie Allred, Anne Barton, Bert Freed, Russ Conway
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 6
Watch it on Amazon

Synopsis and Review:

After making a name for himself in the 50s, particularly with "Apache" and "Vera Cruz", "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane" marked a huge success in his career, which also gave him the opportunity to go on to make such eclectic films as "Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte" and "The Dirty Dozen", to name but a few. "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane" follows the story of two sisters, both of whom have worked in show business. Baby Jane Hudson was a child star in the 1910s, but saw her popularity decline, whereas her sister's Blanche only increased as she got older. The relationship between both sisters got strained as a result of these different career paths, but now that they're somewhat retired, they're living with each other, since Blanche suffered an accident which has rendered her a paraplegic, whereas Jane now resentfully takes care of her. Jane still harbors resent towards her sister, and treats her rather viciously at every chance she gets, whereas Blanche wants to move on and away from her, though the secret of how she became a paraplegic somehow gives her little power over Jane, as does her financial means. As Jane ludicrously tries to stage a comeback, based on her numbers as a child star, the people who she interacts with start growing suspect she may be doing something to her sister, whom she mysteriously keeps quiet at all times.

Unlike Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho", which came out in 1960, "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane" while fairly entertaining, never really reaches the classic stature of Hitchcock's classic. The film has of course always been celebrated for its reunion of the classic Hollywood rivals which were Bette Davis and Joan Crawford. However for all its celebration and at times campiness, the film definitely belongs to Ms. Davis who embodies Jane Hudson with a savage bitterness and progressive detachment from reality, whereas Ms. Crawford has a more subdued and muted performance as the passive Blanche. It's a film that doesn't necessarily showcase much about who these characters actually are, broadly defining them as former stars, but never elaborating on how they lived their lives, or even how long they've actually been together. The film is almost staged as a play, with the sibling rivalry and tortuous relationship between these two women at its core, with the supporting characters barely registering. For all its psychological tension, it's a film that doesn't go the extra mile (if you want to actually see someone lose its mind, Kathy Bates in Rob Reiner's "Misery" may be a good example), neither from a narrative perspective, nor from a character development perspective. The cinematography from Ernest Haller is impeccable, as is the score from Frank De Vol. Worth watching.

Free Guy

Movie Name: Free Guy
Year of Release: 2021
Director: Shawn Levy
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Jodie Comer, Joe Keery, Utkarsh Ambudkar, Taika Waititi, Lil Rel Howery, Channing Tatum, Aaron W Reed, Britne Oldford, Camille Kostek, Mark Lainer, Mike Devine
Genre: Comedy, Adventure
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 6
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Synopsis and Review:

Producer/Director Shawn Levy has kept himself quite busy since his previous directorial release "Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb" which came out in 2014. Since then he has directed (and produced) episodes of the successful "Stranger Things" for Netflix, and also other shows, which includes "Imaginary Mary". "Free Guy" which was originally slated to premiere in 2020, and got delayed due to the pandemic, is based on a screen story by Matt Lieberman and Zak Penn, and was actually part of the Black List, an annual list that is typically released of the best un-produced screenplays. The narrative focuses on Guy, an every day bank teller, who has a rather mundane and repetitive life, which suddenly changes when he crosses paths with Millie/Molotovgirl. His infatuation with her, forces him to change his habits, and he suddenly realizes his world is a lot more than it seems. Turns out he lives in a video game, he is an AI, whereas Millie/Molotovgirl is an actual person, more so, one of the authors of an application whose code is being used to sustain the world Guy lives in. In order to get Millie's attention Guy starts learning the mechanics of the game, and consistently winning points, until he is able to get to her, and understand why she keeps back to the game and what is it she so desperately wants to get from it.

"Free Guy" has the immediate benefit from having Ryan Reynolds headlining its narrative, in a role that combines his natural comedic abilities, with a certain level of innocence that his character Guy exhibits, only an innocence that reads more like obliviousness and not so much creepiness (something that "Forrest Gump" for instance always borderlines on). It's a film that doesn't take itself very seriously, treating most of its characters and narrative like a massive game, providing just enough of character dimension and motivation to keep the engagement going. While the human characters are scarcely defined, what happens in the game, particularly when Guy is involved, turns out to be quite entertaining since him, much like ourselves the viewers, are discovering the rules of the game and what he can actually do in that world. It's a film where there are some interesting side remarks/criticism on the lack of scruples that is somewhat associated with some Tech companies, the same going for the world of online gaming and social media, but it's so cleverly imbued into the narrative, that it never feels very heavy handed or out of place. Ultimately it's a breezy and well executed comedy, which could have benefited from some additional character work, but one that is nonetheless worth watching, with a solid leading performance from Ryan Reynolds. The production team is impeccable, with highlights going to the cinematography from George Richmond, the score from Christophe Beck and the visual effects teams. Worth watching. 

Sylvie's Love

Movie Name: Sylvie's Love
Year of Release: 2020
Director: Eugene Ashe
Starring: Tessa Thompson, Nmandi Asomugha , Eva Longoria, Aja Naomi King, Jemima Kirke, Tone Bell, Rege-Jean Page, Alano Miller, Erica Gimpel, Lance Reddick, Wendi McLendon-Covey, John Magaro, Ryan Michelle Bathe, Raquel Horsford, Tucker Smallwood
Genre: Drama
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7
Watch it on Amazon

Synopsis and Review:

"Sylvie's Love" is writer/director Eugene Ashe's follow up to his directorial debut, "Homecoming", which premiered in 2012. The film follows the story of Sylvie Parker, who in the 1950s is engaged, but whose fiancee has been drafted to go to war (the Korean War). In the meantime she's been working in her father's record store in New York. Sylvie loves music and TV shows, and her world is suddenly upended when her father hires Robert, a Jazz musician to work in the store. He's equally smitten with her, and their relationship deepens when they go to a small party, where Sylvie's cousin Mona, also strikes a brief affair with one of Robert's band partner. Robert has a chance to go to Paris with the band, while Sylvie suddenly discovers she's pregnant. They go their separate ways, and 5 years later we discover Sylvie has married her fiancee, and Robert and the band are making some waves with their music. Sylvie in the meantime starts a new job in television, and by coincidence reunites with Robert. Their attraction is rekindled, which pushes Sylvie to question her life choices.

"Sylvie's Love" manages to be an ode to classic Hollywood love stories, but with a fresh point of view, one that is undaunted by the limitations of what could be captured on celluloid during those days. It's a film that talks openly about issues such as adult relationships, unexpected pregnancies, racism, sexism, all within this narrative which takes place precisely during the times where all these topics were being discussed head on. And it's also a love story at its very core, one that is about two people who are simply meant to be together. There's an easiness and rapport between the two leads, which makes the narrative all the more meaningful and engaging, though one of the underdeveloped aspects of this feature, is the lack of dimension that those two central characters actually have. Robert is a saxophone player, who apparently only lives for that, and has very little in terms of additional motivation in life, whereas Sylvie for all her initiative and pluck, seems like she falls into situations, without truly having an ambition of her own. The supporting characters also don't fare quite as well, most of them falling into the traps of certain cliches, namely the slightly boozy female agent, the cousin who is more liberal in her approach to sexuality, the conservative mother, and the list goes on. However, the feature itself, manages to focus on the relationship between the central characters, and that's where it excels, since Tessa Thompson in particular, is nothing short of fantastic. She makes Sylvie a truly memorable character, with longing, pain and reserves of strength to ultimately pursue what she wants. Much like her other performances in films such as Rebecca Hall's "Passing", she's truly magnetic, going from dazzled young woman, to more assured matriarch with great ease. The production team on this film is also impeccable, with the beautiful cinematography from Declan Quinn, score from Fabrice Lecomte and production design by Mayne Berke. Worth watching!

West Side Story

Movie Name: West Side Story
Year of Release: 2021
Director: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Ansel Elgort, Rachel Zegler, Ariana DeBose, David Alvarez, Rita Moreno, Brian d'Arcy James, Corey Stoll, Mike Faist, Josh Andres Rivera, Iris Menas, David Aviles Morales, Sebastian Serra, Ricardo Zayas
Genre: Musical, Drama
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 6
Watch it on Amazon

Synopsis and Review:

"West Side Story" premiered in 2021 after being delayed due to the pandemic. It follows Steven Spielberg's "Ready Player One" and it's also another remake to join his "Always" (which was a remake of Victor Fleming's "Pal Joey"). The film which takes place in 1957, follows the story of Tony and Maria, a couple of young star crossed lovers, who live in San Juan Hill, on Manhattan's West Side. Tony who is on parole (for nearly killing a man from a rival gang), wants to stay away from trouble, but his best friend Riff, the leader of the gang the Jets, is on a collision path with Bernardo, the leader of the Puerto Rican gang, the Sharks. Tony and Maria meet at a local ball, and fall in love, much to her brother's Bernardo discontent. As violence escalates between the two gangs, dramatic losses occur, all the while Maria and Tony just want to move past all that noise. 

"West Side Story" is of course a well known classic, which came out in 1961, and won 10 Academy Awards. It has since become one of the most iconic musicals, thanks to the lyrics from Stephen Sondheim and the score from Leonard Bernstein, not to mention of course the choreography from Jerome Robbins (and additional direction from Robert Wise). This version of the material, which the wonderful Tony Kushner adapted for the screen, stays closer to the original stage musical, but it still bears many resemblances to the original film incarnation. At this point in his career, Steven Spielberg can pretty much do whatever he wants, and do it impeccably. His mastery of the cinematic language is truly phenomenal, and this film is a perfect testimony to his ability to distill the language of a musical, through his point of view. It's a film that is visually stunning, with a top notch editing, where the production design, costumes, cinematography, all align to create a sumptuous spectacle. However while watching this film I couldn't help but think: why was this film remade? It's an interesting revisionist exercise, but one that feels unnecessary, since the original film is in itself so present and so iconic, and ultimately casts such a large domineering shadow. It's one of those films that is easier to admire than it is to love, since it is a great example of how fantastic of a storyteller Mr. Spielberg is, however this rendition of the Romeo and Juliet saga ultimately doesn't actually bring a new angle to this story, and it's definitely not a novel take on the musical, much like Damien Chazelle did with "La La Land". The cast does a fair job of bringing these characters to life, but the real highlight goes to the cinematography from Janusz Kaminski, the production design from Adam Stockhausen and the costumes from Paul Tazewell. It's a watchable feature, but not a memorable one. 

Inventing Anna

TV Show Name: Inventing Anna
Year of Release: 2022
Created by: Shonda Rhimes

Directors: David Frankel, Ellen Kuras, Nzingha Stewart, Tom Verica, Daisy von Scherler Mayer 

Stars: Anna Chlumsky, Julia Garner, Arian Moayed, Katie Lowes, Alexis Floyd, Anders Holm, Anna Deveare Smith, Jeff Perry, Terry Kinney, Laverne Cox, Tim Guinee, Anthony Edwards, Rebecca Henderson, Armand Schultz, Kyle Beltran, Chris Cafero, Caitlin Fitzgerald, Tracy Pollan, Christopher Lowell, Kate Burton, Donna Murphy, Joshua Malina, Bryan Terrell Clark, Debra Mooney

Genre: Drama

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 5
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Synopsis:

Writer/Producer Shonda Rhimes who has made a name for herself with the very successful shows "Grey's Anatomy", "Scandal" and "Private Practice", has started her partnership with Netflix, with this limited series focused on a very publicized and recent, media case which centered around Anna Delvey/Sorokin, and how she nearly swindled some big institutions of millions of dollars. The narrative focuses on journalist Vivian Kent, who is very pregnant, and trying to re-establish herself, since one of her recent journalistic pieces exploded on her (the person she interviewed for that particular piece lied, painting her in the process as someone who forced the news article itself and basically portraying her as a poor journalist). She becomes aware of this young woman who is imprisoned, someone by the name of Anna Delvey, who was interacting with financiers, architects, technologists, all with the intent of starting a new type of prestige club in an iconic building in New York, and who has suddenly fallen from grace. Vivian wants to know who Anna is, how she managed to get that far in that procurement, and where everything started to crumble. For that matter, Vivian asks for help from Anna's lawyer, who initially refuses to interact and provide much help, the same going for some of Anna's supposed friends. But as Vivian visits Anna, and starts peeling away at the stories hailing from all these characters, her story becomes clearer and clearer. All this while Anna herself is going through a criminal trial, which may land her squarely in prison. 

"Inventing Anna" is an interesting show, and much like the recent documentary, "The Tinder Swindler" from Felicity Morris, once again demonstrates how social media at times creates and perpetuates illusions about individuals, illusions that can be leveraged to dazzle, extort and manipulate people. The show is constructed in a way, where each episode focuses on the point of view or insights of those closest to Anna, who can somehow help build the puzzle of who this character actually is. It's an interesting perspective, but one that is never truly well explored, since for the most part, the show illustrates the situations in which Anna was involved, but fails to go over the facade, over the glitz. For a mini-series this long, it's one that essentially illustrates in very broad strokes what happened with this person and her web of lies, but one that fails to also ask the questions of what prompted people to believe in her, and who Anna actually is (which is something that a fictional tale could take into a different level, by inserting a point of view, since this isn't after all a documentary). This lack of an actual storytelling with some actual depth, is where the show ultimately fails, since it goes for the sensational and most visible aspects of the story, while failing to mine or even build the journey of this person who comes from Germany with nothing, and who bamboozles so many of the high society in NY. In the end, the show is indeed watchable since it does have a very talented array of actors, and the production team is equally solid (the cinematographers include Maryse Alberti for instance), but it fails to be truly memorable, since for the most part these sketches of characters and situations are superficial, much like the social media devices that it uses to illustrate Anna's ascension.

Texas Chainsaw Massacre

Movie Name: Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Year of Release: 2022
Director: David Blue Garcia
Starring: Elsie Fisher, Sarah Yarkin, Moe Dunford, Jacob Latimore, Olwen Fouere, Jessica Allain, Nell Hudson, Alice Krige, William Hope, Mark Burnham, Jolyon Coy, Sam Douglas
Genre: Horror
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 1
Watch it on Netflix

Synopsis and Review:

Another successful audience feature release for Netflix, this new version of "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" is the second directorial endeavor from film maker David Blue Garcia. This new version of the "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" legacy, also comes courtesy of co-writer and producer Fede Alverez, who has in the meantime made somewhat of a name for himself with the remake of "Evil Dead" and the successful "Don't Breathe". The film takes place in our current times, and focuses on a small group of entrepeneurs who are on their way to the small town of Harlow, Texas. This small town is nearly abandoned, and has been bought by this group of individuals, all with the purpose of revitalizing it, bringing new businesses and hopefully more population to it. This small group is comprised of Dante and his girlfriend Ruth, and Melody and her sister Lila (a survivor of a high school shooting which took place not that long ago). They're all expecting a large bus filled with people to show up later in the day, to also visit the town. Upon arriving in the small town the group explores it a bit, and are surprised to notice an elderly woman still living in one of the houses. Dante is certain she is trespassing since all the properties were bought, something the lady denies, claiming she has the title for the property. Soon the lady and her adult and silent son are taken by the police, alongside Ruth who wants to make sure everything goes well, however while transporting her, the elderly woman has a heart issue and passes away. Her son becomes enraged, and goes on a lethal rampage, which leads him back to the small town and the remaining party there.

The original "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" hails from the late Tobe Hooper, and was released in 1974. Since that film was launched a plethora of sequels and remakes have been crafted, including one as recent  as 2017's "Leatherface", directed by Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo. This newest incarnation of the terrifying killer, uses the premise from the original film as a starting point, and assumes Leatherface was never caught, suddenly making his reappearance after the passing of his mom. It's a film that attempts a critical view of the gentrification that is occurring a bit everywhere, particularly how that movement translates into an overwhelming homogenization of habits and styles, which in turn can clash with contexts which are not entirely able to co-exist. It's also a faint criticism at how people and audiences these days respond to visceral and brutal violence that they're confronted with. However both of these observational stances, are fairly superficial, and they soon give way to the gore fest that is ultimately what the film seems to be more focused on. Largely all the characters in this film aren't given much to do in terms of arc or motivation, with some aspects of it feeling gratuitously manipulative (the survivor who comes back, and is oddly unable to do much), which ultimately makes this film feel unnecessary. Much like many of the films of this franchise, this director also fails to convey a more specific point of view, basically making this film just another slasher without much depth or resonance. Nothing much to see here.