Author Archives: Ron

About Ron

I like to watch movies and share my thoughts on them. I have been writing reviews and distributing them since 2013.

Green Book

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Green Book        4 ½ stars

I finally viewed Green Book the much acclaimed Best Picture winner by director Peter Farrelly about Tony Lip, an Italian American bouncer from the Bronx who is hired by Dr. Don Shirley a world class black pianist to drive him on a concert tour that takes them to the Deep South.  Set in the early sixties, the travelers must depend on the Green Book, a travel guide published to allow black people find safe places for them to stay and eat in the days of segregation.  The two very different characters must learn to understand each other and deal with their differences to allow them to safely navigate some of the perils they are bound to face in this time of troubled race relations.  While certainly not a perfect movie, it has certain charms that will please audiences and first rate performances from Viggo Mortensen as Tony and Mahershala Ali as Don Shirley.  While the film touches on issues of racism in America showing us some the effects of it, it is not a deep study of the roots of the problem.  Green Book works best as a human drama showing us the value of trust despite our differences.

The Insult

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The Insult            2 ½ stars

Critics and audiences alike seemed to like this courtroom drama set in Lebanon about a Lebanese man taking a Palestinian refugee to court over an incident in which the Lebanese man provoked an insult from the Palestinian.  The courtroom battle spills over into a giant media circus as the case gets nationwide attention and the population takes sides according to their political beliefs.  It was well acted and directed but I had a tough time relating to the story as the premise seemed somewhat farfetched to me.  Most people would settle such an incident privately.  And of course not being from the Middle East it is hard to relate to the cultural differences that would exist among the ethnic groups in Lebanon.  The Insult received an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language film.

Mother Mary

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Mother Mary     4 stars

I can’t say that Mother Mary by director David Lowery was not what I expected, since I went into the movie without first knowing anything about it. I can say that it is not about what you would think after viewing the first half of the movie and that it defies categorizing in any specific genre. We start out seeing the pop icon, called Mother Mary (Anne Hathaway (The Devil Wears Prada)) on stage at a stadium filled with screaming fans as the voice of someone else is heard expressing hate filled thoughts lambasting the object of their contempt. Mother Mary is a huge pop star a la Madonna or Lady Gaga, who is typically dressed in the most elaborate costumes one can imagine. But she has experienced a sort of nervous breakdown on stage that went viral, and now she feels she is not able to perform for her next gig because the dress designed for her does not feel right. So, she seeks out her former fashion designer, Sam Anselm (Michaela Coel (Chewing Gum, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever)) who was a close friend until a few years earlier. Sam now lives on a large English country estate where she is arranging a show for her work. Mary asks (or begs) her to make a new dress for her show in only three days. Despite being occupied with her own show, Sam agrees but only after making a few passive aggressive remarks to her desperate former friend, revealing how she felt betrayed by Mary. In her enormous barn that serves as her workshop, Sam and Mary have a very long discussion about what the dress should be like that takes up to half of the movie. But this discussion is not really about a dress at all. It’s about two people expressing their pain over a damaged relationship, just as the movie is not just about a pop star and a fashion designer. These two actresses perform the roles expertly, bringing an ever-increasing feeling of pain to the screen. As they delve into the past with previous performances of Mary’s played out on screen, the entire mood of the film changes and it becomes more of a psychological thriller, eventually blowing up into a nightmare. We find out that the two have even more in common than a past friendship. Let’s just say that there is a mysterious creepy presence and that a séance is involved (featuring the artist FKA Twigs). There will be chance for healing but only after the two suffer through some intense pain. David Lowery is previously known for a movie called A Ghost Story, about a couple that shares a connection. This gives a clue as to what Mother Mary is about. The pair of Anne Hathaway and Michaela Coel couldn’t be better matched to play their roles opposite each other. Both are top notch actresses. And it doesn’t hurt that some of the music was written by British pop star Charlie XCX. Hathaway is presently featured in The Devil Wears Prada 2 and Coel is starring in The Christophers, now in theaters. So, there is opportunity to see more performances of both!

At Eternity’s Gate

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At Eternity’s Gate            4 stars

At Eternity’s Gate is director Julian Schnabel’s portrayal of painter Vincent Van Gogh through the last years of his life, when he produced some of his best paintings.  This film stars Willem Dafoe as the master painter in a truly outstanding role.  The story is not told as a typical biopic however, as it includes some very artistic expressions of the emotions that Van Gogh experiences in his life.  Some of these methods may turn off some viewers, but they certainly are imaginative.  Despite the troubles that Van Gogh has, the movie tries to show us the great optimism he has as he tells how he feels about nature and how it can lead people to meaningful experiences and bring us together.  It also shows how he was misunderstood which led to his being placed in an asylum for a period and the alternate theories surrounding his mysterious death.

Diane

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Diane                                    4 ½ stars

I happened upon Diane purely by accident as I was intending to see something different but was foiled in getting to the theater on time.  Diane is a low key movie starring Mary Kay Place as a sixty something woman living in a rural area who selflessly looks after the well-being of those around her who are in need, whether they be sick friends, the poor needing to be fed at the soup kitchen or her drug addicted adult son whose life is a wreck.  At the same time she loathes those who could make their lives better but refuse.  While Diane appears to be a saint there is something in her past that she clearly regrets and has not gotten over how she wronged someone close to her.  This movie is something you don’t see very often in film, a serious treatment of a person from rural America as a realistic subject.  I really got the feeling that this was a real person going through some very troubling times, thanks to the very realistic and emotional performance by Mary Kay Place.  The film was aided by some outstanding performances by the supporting cast as well.  If you run across this film in your search for movies don’t pass this one up.

Long Shot

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Long Shot                            3 stars

It has been a long time since we’ve had a good rom-com at the movies.  This week’s offering of Long Shot attempts to address that drought and goes a long way towards succeeding.  The movie stars the beautiful Charlize Theron as Charlotte Field, the youngest Secretary of State in US history and the wildly comical Seth Rogen as an out of work sharp witted journalist named Fred Flarsky who crosses paths with the Secretary at a big Gala.  Remarkably, the two have a shared past that involves a shockingly amusing episode when the two were only teenagers.  The Secretary then pitches to Fred the idea of hiring him as a speech writer which he then accepts which leads to more awkward situations.  Since this is a Seth Rogen movie there are plenty of sight gags, awkward sexual encounters and some serious drug use.  As this is also a political comedy, there are gags involving world leaders and celebrities that are based on some pretty absurd circumstances, such as, the president wishing to leave after a single term to pursue a movie career.  (But then in these times we live in who am I to claim something is absurd.)  Although it has its funny moments, it doesn’t quite measure up to the comedy I’m used to seeing in an episode of Veep.  One sign of the film’s shortcomings is the use of actors for the roles of TV news anchors instead of casting real anchors to play themselves.  I felt that would have helped it to look a little more authentic, like other political comedies have done.   One surprise in the film is the casting of Andy Serkis as Parker Wembley, a wealthy billionaire and media owner seeking to influence the politicians to favor his personal political views.  He was amusing and completely unrecognizable.

Ready or Not 2: Here I Come

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Ready or Not 2: Here I Come                       4 stars

I thought I was due for a horror movie, so I went to see Ready or Not 2: Here I Come directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett. (Actually, I have already seen a few this year.) Bettinelli-Olpin and Gillett are known for co-directing both Scream and Scream VI. This is definitely a comedy horror, my favorite kind, and it happens to be a sequel to 2019’s Ready or Not, which I have not seen. But no matter. It was easy enough to pick up the movie’s premise from the opening scenes. A bloodied woman named Grace (Samara Weaving (of Scream VI and Bill and Ted Face the Music)) is seen walking out of a burning mansion and is taken to a hospital for treatment. Once she is well enough to talk, a police detective is there to question her, so we find out that she was getting married in the previous movie, but it turned out that her husband’s family, the Le Domas family, was part of a devil worshipping cult and Grace was being hunted by them in a deadly game of Hide and Seek. If Grace survived until dawn, then she would be free. She succeeded, but the family all died in the fire. While still in the hospital Grace’s younger sister, Faith (Kathryn Newton (Lisa Frankenstein and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania)), finds her and we find out that the two had a falling out and haven’t seen each other for years. Unfortunately, both Grace and Faith are then kidnapped by the devil worshipping cult and brought to the expansive country estate of the Danforth family, one of the cult’s member families. The Danforth family is now led by twins Ursula (Sarah Michelle Gellar (I Know What You Did Last Summer and Scream II)) and Titus (Shawn Hatosy of The Pitt). Both Gellar and Hatosy (especially) give command performances in their evil roles. These families are part of a conspiracy that controls governments across the world. In the Danforth mansion, in the presence of four of the member families, the plan is explained to them by a sort of sinister attorney (Elijah Wood (Frodo in Lord of the Rings)) with a very large book of rules. Since Grace survived the earlier night, she must now be hunted by members of the various families and whoever can kill her will be rewarded by becoming the Chairman of the High Council making them the most powerful person in the world. But if Grace can survive until dawn, she will be freed along with Faith. But the cult has certain rules that must be followed as they are civilized after all. If the head of any family is killed, then the next most senior family member must take their place in the hunt. No person may kill a member of another cult family. (Your own family is acceptable.) If they do, intentionally or not, then that person must immediately spontaneously explode into mass of blood along with the remaining members of that family. So, there is plenty of incentive to follow the rules. In addition, each family is restricted to using weapons that were in use at the time that their family was inducted into the cult. So, they use weapons that vary from broad swords to rocket launchers. Now, such an absurd setup can’t help but make for a hilarious comedy, as the characters inflict extreme violence on one another. At one point Faith takes such a horrendous beating that you would expect she would never walk again, but in true horror movie fashion she is soon back in action, though a bit bloodied. But wait! There may be another way to settle all this chaos. One character identifies a clause in the bylaws that says if the hunted party marries a family member, they can escape, while the spouse may ascend to the chairmanship. This scenario leads to an even more absurd situation by the climax of the film. By the end, Ready or Not 2 reaches Scream levels of violence while inflicting multiple laughs on the audience. The closest thing to it I have seen before was the comedy horror The Hunt back in 2020. Ready or Not 2 was a real hit at the box office. Horror fans should enjoy this one. Now I may have to go back and see the first Ready or Not.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

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Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3     3 stars

I continue with my catch up on Marvel movies I missed with Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3, the third iteration of these heroes who are always there to save the galaxy, courtesy of writer/director James Gunn. This one could be called the one where Rocket finally realizes that he is a racoon. While it has all the action and the wisecracking of the earlier two movies of 2014 and 2017, it does have a more somber tone to it. Both Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) and Rocket (Bradley Cooper) are in a funky mood near the beginning, and the end of the movie feels like the gang is breaking up. The heroes are tasked with a mission to save the life of Rocket who has been gravely injured. They must retrieve a computer file from a ship that seems to be made of living tissue that belongs to the High Evolutionary (Chukwudi Iwuji). We are introduced to Rocket’s backstory while he is in a coma and find out that when he was a small racoon cub, he was captured by this villain for the purpose of experimentation to produce a perfect species. (This explains Rocket’s extraordinary powers.) Now the High Evolutionary wants to capture Rocket again to learn his secrets, but in the meantime, he tries to destroy an entire civilization that he created since they are not perfect. (Does that sound like a familiar theme?) So, the stakes are certainly high enough to deserve the Guardian’s attention. The membership of the Guardians has expanded since the first movie with past differences being put aside. They include Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Drax (Dave Bautista), Mantis (Pom Klementieff), Nebula (Karen Gillan), of course a full-sized Groot (Vin Diesel), Kraglin (Sean Gunn) and Cosmo the Spacedog (Maria Bakalova). The movie is worth seeing based on the emotional way that Rocket’s story is told. However, the overall tone feels off with Peter Quill and others going through internal struggles that take away from the usual upbeat feel of these movies. Of course, the soundtrack features a variety of popular seventies rock music as always. The special effects are quite impressive which explains why Guardians earned a Best Visual Effects Academy Award nomination. The ending feels like this is the end of the franchise, though of course, you can’t be sure.

Icarus

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Icarus                                                                    5 stars

Icarus is the award winning documentary by sports enthusiast and film maker Bryan Fogel about the folly of anti-doping efforts in international sports.  Like some of the best documentaries the film set out to do one thing then ended up going in a very different direction.  In this case Fogel sets as his objective the discrediting of the anti-doping efforts of WADA by enlisting the help of Grigory Rodchenkov, the director of the anti-doping center for Russia.  But what follows is the revealing of the astounding efforts that the Russians have gone through for years to cheat at international sports.  It is Rodchenkov who plays a pivotal role in the story as he leaves his life and family behind in Russia to become a whistleblower on the scale of Russian cheating and so becomes the central figure in Fogel’s film.  The film goes into detail about how the Russians went about their scheme at the Sochi Olympics by swapping out urine samples for hundreds of athletes before they could be tested.  It is remarkable how they were able to get away with this.  Finally, the truth was revealed before the Rio Olympics in 2016 and many Russian athletes were banned from the games.  It is also clear from the movie that Vladimir Putin played a role in this fraud which he has of course always denied.  Anyone who has a keen interest in competitive sports should be sure to see Icarus.

The Miseducation of Cameron Post

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The Miseducation of Cameron Post          4 stars

I recently saw The Miseducation of Cameron Post, a little seen movie from last year by director Desiree Akhavan and recipient of the Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize.  The film tackles the subject of gay conversion therapy for wayward teens in 1993, which was a prevalent thing then.  It stars Chloe Grace Moretz as Cameron Post, the teen girl caught making out with her female best friend who then gets sent off to a Christian gay conversion camp by her relatives.  The topic has been tackled before but feels real here as Moretz gives a convincing performance that is aided by two costars playing teens that she connects with at the camp.  The camp directors (John Gallagher Jr. and Jennifer Ehle) use half thought out methods on their subjects that seem to mainly make the kids feel badly about who they are.  (Each has to create an iceberg on paper that lists what they don’t like about themselves.)  One nice thing about it is how the film is not all heavy drama but includes several moments of comedy (making it different from Boy Erased also from last year).  Miseducation does show us the pain that these young people go through as they experience what can only be described as abuse.  One scene near the end involving a troubled teen is especially shocking.  See it if you can find it.  It is just too bad that so few people saw it when it hit the theaters.