Category Archives: Crime

The Ugly Stepsister

Leave a reply

The Ugly Stepsister 4 1/2 suns

The Ugly Stepsister (from Norway) takes the fairy tale Cinderella and turns it upside down and inside out making it a body horror movie about envy and body image.  In this take of the classic we see things from the point of view of Cinderella’s stepsister, Elvira who is on a mission to get the attention of the kingdom’s prince at the ball and marry him and save the family from poverty. The problem is that she is rather homely and fat. That won`t do so with her mother’s help, a doctor’s facial modifications, a finishing school and an internal parasite, she sets on a scheme to make herself beautiful. Oh, and there is also the little problem of that attractive annoying stepsister that must be dealt with.  I had never heard before that there was so much sex and baudy language in this classic story.  I guess I must have missed something.  The actress playing Elvira really goes through a range of emotions going from a naive yiung girl to a monster who will do whatever it takes to reach her goal.  The body mutilations become more and more extreme as she seeks to become attractive and meet the world’s expectations of female beauty. There were many exclamations from the audience during each cringeworthy step. It all culminates with the fitting of the slipper and the removal of the “parasite”. The theme is on par with last year’s “The Substance” though maybe not to that extreme.  It’s all about how society sees women as objects,  judging them by some impossible standard and how some women seek to meet them.  And for fans of horror genre it’s a lot of fun.

Cruella

Cruella                  4 ½ stars

Disney films make their return to the theaters with an origin story of that most iconic Disney villain, the evil and chic Cruella de Vil. The live action comedy crime movie stars Academy Award winner Emma Stone as young street urchin Estella who through tragedy must live on the streets of 1970’s London with her young thief friends Jasper (Joel Fry of Yesterday) and Horace (a funny as always Paul Walter Hauser). The incredibly smart and ambitious Estella’s greatest desire is to break into the world of high fashion. Somehow she snares a low level job working at the House of Baroness where she gains the attention of owner and CEO Baroness von Hellman (played by two time Academy Award winner Emma Thompson) and is promoted to dress designer to turn out very eye catching designs for the London elite. An additional star of the film is the amazing dresses that appear throughout. Is it too early to predict the winner of the Best Costumes Oscar? Of course, we finally arrive at the appearance of Cruella with her signature white and black hair and learn how she came to be with her evil intentions and especially her motivation for going after dalmatians for their skin. The best Disney movies feature some of the most evil villains imagined and that title must go to the Baroness who is a true psychopath as played by the brilliant Thompson. She delivers some great lines (“Gratitude is for losers.”) and is rarely taken off her game as she treats people with contempt including her own employees. Cruella is aided greatly by a sound track featuring classic rock songs of the sixties and seventies that are well placed throughout the movie (The Zombies’ Time of the Season). I had to do a second take on the dogs in the film to realize they are some of the best CGI creatures I have seen. With Cruella and the earlier release of the Disney Maleficent movies we seem to be having a new trend of classic villains getting their own star treatment and with it a more complete picture of their life stories.

Zola

Zola                        4 stars

Back in 2015 there was a tweet thread that went viral on the internet written by a stripper named Zola giving a real time account of a wild ride of her and her “friend” through harrowing experiences in Florida. The thread created quite a sensation but for those of us not addicted to Twitter, the movie Zola by director Janicza Bravo is here to tell us of this ride through hell. The story follows the exploits of Zola (Taylor Paige), a young black stripper and Stefani (Riley Keough), the white girl she meets at a restaurant who insists they will be friends, and convinces Zola to take a trip to Tampa, Florida to make some money performing at a strip club. (If the premise turns you off, you should probably pass on this one.) The driver on this journey is X, Stefani’s “roommate” while Derrek, Stefani’s boyfriend is also along for the ride. The adventure is all fun and games for a while until things turn much more sinister for the two young women. Without going into detail it is up to Zola, the only sensible one in the bunch to protect Stefani from the chaos and major crimes. All the while, Zola is writing an account of the experience on her smart phone which of course goes viral. The movie is both a comedy and a cautionary drama/thriller about a situation getting out of control. If you liked Spring Breakers and Hustlers you will likely be entertained by Zola. Be forewarned that there are scenes involving strong language, sexual scenes and nudity, so the film is not for everyone. The performances by the two lead actresses are what really makes the movie entertaining.

Stillwater

Stillwater                             2 stars

Many of us remember the case of Amanda Knox, the young American woman who was held in an Italian prison for several years for the murder of her Italian roommate and was ultimately exonerated of the crime by an appeals court.  The movie Stillwater, written and directed by Tom McCarthy borrows heavily from that case, so much so that for a while I thought it really was about the case. Unfortunately, the movie only uses some elements of the Knox case, building instead a slow moving drama turned thriller about an Oklahoma father who travels to Marseilles, France to pursue a lead in the case against his daughter who has been serving a sentence for murder. The movie has outstanding performances by Matt Damon as the fish out of water American who looks more like Josh Brolin, Camille Cottin, the French mother who takes an interest in his predicament and offers her assistance, and Abigail Breslin as the imprisoned daughter. Eventually, the story takes an unlikely turn that stretches the viewer’s ability to believe the events on screen. I enjoy well written films about real life people that offer new insights into their circumstances and actions. And I enjoy thrillers that have original and unpredictable plots. This movie tries to be a blend of those two types of films and ultimately fails. I would understand how the real Amanda Knox would be very offended and frustrated by the release of this movie. Let’s hope that Tom McCarthy can return to movies like his previous successes Spotlight and The Station Agent.

Babygirl

Babygirl                4 stars

The newly released Babygirl starring Nicole Kidman (one of my favorite actresses) has to be one of the most sexually charged movies of the year. Written and directed by Dutch filmmaker, Halina Reijns (who previously brought us Bodies Bodies Bodies (where we enjoyed seeing Pete Davidson die!)), it features a May December relationship between Kidman’s Romy, the CEO of a major tech company and new intern, Samuel (Harris Dickinson), and raises the question of who controls who. Romy appears to have a happy home life with theater director husband Jacob (Antonio Banderas) and two teenage daughters, but we sense that something is missing when we see her watching porn. One day she spots a young man outside who is instantly able to calm down an aggressive dog. Then later she meets him in her office with a group of newly hired interns. He makes some rather odd and inappropriate comments which get Romy’s attention. Later, in a bar, he sends her a glass of milk which she immediately downs, suggesting that she is interested. This is only the beginning as the two secretly meet at Samuel’s urging, where he literally has her lapping milk from a saucer on the floor. Although very young, Samuel is an expert at manipulation through seemingly innocent comments and looks. You get the feeling that he has done this before. Romy objects to this arrangement and the way he treats her, only something makes us think that she doesn’t really mean it. Perhaps this is meeting the sexual satisfaction she is missing at home. The movie tackles the subject of sexual repression and puts a different spin on harassment in the workplace with the subordinate being the one who is exercising control over the boss. Kidman has led the way in portraying characters who have a certain vulnerability but lean toward the kinky. Remember Eyes Wide Shut and The Killing of a Sacred Deer! She displays a wide range of emotions from reluctance to confusion to anger to shame. The movie has a reasonable outcome to the whole situation without delving into stalker mode and only using a little violence. I was impressed but some movie goers might prefer the stalker route. The movie is bound to get some conversations going about control and consent and when do things go too far. Of course, the movie is another example of the wide acting talent of a great actress, Nicole Kidman.

Queenpins

Queenpins          3 stars

This week I found a rather silly comedy called Queenpins that is certainly worth a few laughs. While it’s based on a true story about a pair of suburban women who seek to make some money from couponing, it is not above creating some ridiculous situations and the use of bathroom humor to get some laughs. Kristen Bell stars as the cheerful Connie Kaminski and Kirby Howell-Baptiste is her partner JoJo who love to save money by clipping coupons and buying in bulk. The pair decide to expand their enterprise by selling coupons through the mail which is not illegal. The problem comes when they decide to expand further by “procuring” the coupons from a printing company through a couple working on the inside of a plant in Mexico. That would be the illegal part. Soon they realize they are in over their heads so they seek the help of a computer hacker named Tempe Tina (Bebe Rexha) who advises them how to set up fake businesses and use false identities to cover their tracks. While Connie and JoJo are making millions, their activities are soon noticed by a hapless loss prevention manager of the local food store, Ken (played perfectly as a bumbling fool by Paul Walter Hauser of I, Tonya and Cruella). Ken eventually gets the attention of a Postal Inspector (Vince Vaughn) and the hunt is on. Ken is along for the ride and must constantly be reminded that he is not a law enforcement officer. Vaughn with his serious tone and Hauser as the clueless schmuck play off well against each other.  The caper is reminiscent of the McMillions documentary about the real scheme to steal Monopoly games pieces, but Queenpins is strictly for laughs and is never to be taken too seriously. It is a super light comedy that is a bit of fun to start the fall off with.

Collective

Collective            4 ½ stars

The Romanian documentary Collective is a rare achievement in filmmaking, the filming of an investigation into a scandal while the investigation is unfolding. The film starts with a tragic fire at a night club in Bucharest in 2015 where 27 young people were killed. The scandal occurs later though when it is discovered that the burn victims being treated in the hospitals are dying from bacterial infections at an alarming rate. The investigation being run by a sports magazine called The Sports Gazette, finds that the disinfectant being used in operating rooms has been diluted by a factor of ten rendering it ineffective at killing bacteria. The publication and the journalist, Catalin Tolontan create a sensation when they reveal the company supplying the diluted disinfectant, and the fact that the company supplies the disinfectant used in hospitals throughout Romania. This well constructed documentary goes on to show the extreme levels of corruption that has infested the Romanian government and the health care industry. This is an industry that rewards people connected to the ruling political party with management positions in the hospitals, where they are free to line their pockets at the expense of public safety and abuse the health system employees. We even see the Romanian Health Minister giving a news conference where he assures the press that everything is fine with the disinfectant and that tests show that it is effective, a story that the press is not buying. The Minister is soon forced to resign. It’s an amazing story about a little sports magazine willing to take on a story that the larger media organizations stayed away from, even under threat of retaliation from a group of mobsters. The movie was nominated for Academy Awards for both Best Documentary and Best Foreign Film and it is well worth your while to check out.

Emilia Pérez

Emilia Pérez       4 ½ stars

Emilia Pérez by director Jacques Audiard is a movie that defies genre. It’s part crime thriller, part opera and part melodrama. Perhaps most of all it’s about trans identity and redemption of the past. It certainly goes against any expectations I may have had. Early on we meet, Rita (Zoe Saldana), a lawyer who defends criminals in the courts of Mexico City. She is good at her job, but also very alone. She is “called on” by a cartel leader named Manitas Del Monte (Karla Sofia Gascón in a career defining role) who wants to hire her for a most unusual job. Manitas wants to change his life and become the woman that he feels he was meant to be. Rita accepts the offer which entails her finding a doctor to perform the transformation, move Manitas’s family out of Mexico and to help fake his death. Years later, while working in London, Rita meets a woman at a gathering named Emilia Pérez. It doesn’t take long for her to realize that Emilia is the transformed Manitas and that she is not finished with Rita yet. Emilia misses her children and wants to have Rita reunite the family, but with Emilia posing as a long-lost aunt so that even her own family does not know the truth. Even Manitas’s wife, Jessi (Selena Gomez) does not recognize her. To relieve her guilt, Emilia establishes a foundation to find the tens of thousands of victims of the drug wars so that relatives can know the truth of what happened to their loved ones, many of whose deaths she was responsible for. Thus, the movie brings the tragedies of the drug wars out into the open showing what has happened to a society that has lost so much. Mexico has lost more than 100,000 people this way. And all of this is done in performances of song and dance, making the movie an opera with a tragic story to tell. Zoe Saldana is especially talented as a dancer as she condemns the evildoers she has been acquainted as she moves from one tabletop to another. But it is Sofia Gascón especially who gives the greatest performance as both parts of her role. The actress is herself a transgender making her well suited to the role, in addition to her acting ability. Selena Gomez also puts in a convincing performance as the wife in a part that is miles from her Disney girl roles of the past and allows her to connect with her Mexican roots. The movie is probably not for everyone, but if the idea of a crime thriller set to music piques your interest you should give it a try.

Better Days

Better Days         4 stars

The movie Better Days, released in 2019 is a representation of the high stress levels on high school students in China combined with the prevalence of bullying among peers in the schools. Based on actual events it follows the life of Chen Nian, a high school girl going through final exams which determine the fate of millions of Chinese every year. Nian is from an impoverished home where she lives with her mother and where they are being hounded by creditors. As if this isn’t enough Nian is being bullied by some of the girls at her school, but the level of bullying is much more extreme than what kids experience here in America. It rises to the level of criminal behavior, and for poor Nian the police and her teachers are completely ineffective in dealing with the problem, so she turns to Xiao Bei, a local street punk who himself is constantly beaten by local gangs. Bei vows to protect her from the abusive classmates. It is then that the movie turns into more of a doomed romance story between the two main characters. There are more aspects of the story including a police investigation and deaths of some students that I won’t go into, but it is a very compelling story with some good performances. The story does get a little confusing as some of the editing is done with flashbacks and because of the unfamiliar Chinese names the characters have. It helps to be able to do a little rewinding to follow the plot. The movie is significant as the real events led Chinese authorities to examine the problem of bullying in their schools that resulted in reforms that successfully reduced the problem. Be warned that the level of violence toward these kids is more than we would expect in a story concerning high school students. Better Days was nominated for Best International Feature Film in 2021.

House of Gucci

House of Gucci                  4 stars

The movie to see this week is the true crime drama House of Gucci, Ridley Scott’s take on the treachery and backstabbing that went on in the family handbag business of Gucci from the seventies to the nineties. Much of the movie is about the squabbles and double crosses over the differences of opinion on how to run the family business. But the thing that really makes the movie is Lady Gaga’s performance as Patrizia Reggiani, the daughter of a middle-class business owner who married Maurizio Gucci (Adam Driver) and then forces her own ideas of running the business on others with dire consequences for everyone involved. The story develops slowly but gets progressively more interesting with each move turning one family member against another. Al Pacino is his usual convincing self as Aldo Gucci, one of the two brothers that are the primary owners of Gucci. Jared Leto is unrecognizable as Paolo Gucci, the clueless cousin of Maurizio who falls victim to Patrizia’s schemes. I was not familiar with the story of the Gucci empire and you will probably be better off not knowing the background before seeing the movie. With every scene she is in, Lady Gaga proves that she deserves the title of movie star as she determines the mood of the film throughout. She proves that her performance in A Star is Born from four years ago was no fluke.