Category Archives: Mystery

The Tragedy of Macbeth

The Tragedy of Macbeth               4 stars

Joel Coen does his take on Shakespeare’s play Macbeth in an unusual style. Oscar winner Denzel Washington is excellent as the power hungry Macbeth who is driven to be the king of Scotland by the combination of his wife, Lady Macbeth (Francis McDormand) and the three witches who help him hatch his murderous plan. Of special note is Kathryn Hunter who portrays the three witches in a scene where she seems not human as she contorts her body into odd shapes and utters the scheming words of all three parts. Brendan Gleeson is very appropriately cast as the loved king who is doomed to die by the hand of Macbeth. The scenery is very stark and minimal with the filming all done in black and white. It serves to bring all the viewer’s attention to the performances on the screen by the very talented actors. Some parts of the film have a fantasy like quality to show how Macbeth seems to be losing his mind as his mad plans fall apart. It has been a while since I heard the story of Macbeth, that is, when I was a senior in high school so I confess I could not follow the whole story. The movie uses the Shakespearean manner of speaking so it will be tough to get used to. If that doesn’t turn you off you would be well advised to see The Tragedy of Macbeth. I have to agree that Washington is deserving of his Oscar nomination for this role.

The Outfit

The Outfit           4 stars

Writer-director Graham Moore of The Imitation Game has created a tense well-crafted crime drama in The Outfit, starring Academy Award winner Mark Rylance as Leonard, a soft spoken tailor who operates a tailor shop in 1958 Chicago where he makes finely crafted suits. That is, a shop that is also frequented by shady gang figures who use a drop box inside to pass thick envelopes with mysterious markings and who also will have Leonard make new suits for them. Rylance is very low-key as Leonard who stays intensely focused on his craft and only wants to be able to survive the night when the mobsters become aware that there is a “rat” in their midst who is informing a rival gang of their comings and goings. The movie is unique in that the entire story takes place within the rooms of the shop, most of it in a single night filled with suspicion and murder. Two of the gangsters are played by Dylan O’Brien and Johnny Flynn who speak with convincing Chicago mobster accents. Simon Russell Beale is equally effective as the mob father figure, Roy Boyle, who wants to get to the bottom of the evening’s events, even if he has to kill someone. Zoey Deutch appears glamorous in 1950’s wardrobe as Mable, the receptionist, who is treated like a daughter by Leonard. (Deutch is the daughter of actress Lea Thompson.) The show really belongs to Rylance who gives a fascinating performance of a man who must always keep his wits about him even with a gun pointed at him. There are many lies and misleading stories being told so, the audience too must stay focused on who said what to who and who really knows the truth. I chose to see the movie based solely on seeing the trailer and am glad I made that choice.

Where the Crawdads Sing

Where the Crawdads Sing                             2 stars

I have not read the book that Where the Crawdads Sing is based on, but judging by the talk about it the book by Delia Shannon it must be a real page turner. It’s too bad that the feel of the book did not translate very well in Olivia Newman’s on-screen adaptation. The movie follows the life of young Kya (Daisy Edgar-Jones of Normal People) who must live on her own in the swamps of North Carolina after suffering the abuse of her father and being abandoned by her entire family. Kya is considered a pariah by the local people and is referred to as swamp-girl. She has few friends as she must fend for herself starting at age seven. The story involves a possible murder when a body is found at the bottom of a fire tower so naturally it is assumed that the loner Kya must have been the murderer despite a total lack of evidence. Enter retired lawyer Tom Milton (a very lawyerly David Strathairn) who volunteers to defend the accused Kya for no pay. One should not think of this movie as a murder mystery as doing so will leave them disappointed. The less said about that the better. Rather it should be viewed as a story about surviving against all odds and as a love story. Even so the story was not all that convincing perhaps because of some of the supporting performances or not taking full advantage of the southern setting of the movie. The abusive Chase (Harris Dickenson) who Kya initially falls for is very two dimensional. I saw it as so much melodrama that did not grab my full attention. None of this is the fault of the lead actress, Edgar-Jones who gives a creditable performance as Kya.

Nope

Nope                     4 ½ stars

Nope is Jordan Peele’s the third horror production and this one brings all the classic aspects of traditional Hollywood monster movies together, only set against a wide-open western frontier. Like his previous movies Get Out and Us, Peele tells his stories from a uniquely black perspective. In Nope, early on we are introduced by Keke Palmer’s Emerald Haywood to a story about the first “moving picture” which featured a two second clip of a galloping horse with a black rider, whose name is missing from history. Emerald claims that the man was her ancestor and in a way this reminds us of the role that Black Americans played in taming the West and in the early days of moviemaking. Emerald’s brother is OJ Haywood (Daniel Kaluuya) who runs the family ranch in the foothills of northern California that they inherited from their father who dies mysteriously early in the movie. Eventually OJ becomes aware that there is something strange going on as mysterious lights appear in the sky and the horses have a tendency to get spooked and run away. With the help of a tech store clerk, (Brandon Perea) the team puts together a video surveillance system in order to capture the alien visitors on film. Before we get a good look at the aliens there is a good indication of the level of horror we are in for when in a flashback we see an especially troubling incident involving one of the characters that occurs on live TV. (We learn there is a reason that chimpanzees do not appear in commercial TV shows.) Midway through the movie Peele takes us from glimpses of the threat, ala Jaws, to the full-on terror of facing the enemy. He gives us a cacophony of voices and noise and blood-soaked terrain as our heroes struggle to get the images recorded while at the same time surviving the assault. Through it all, the quiet OJ is amazingly cool and calm as he plans what his next move should be, (sort of a Clint Eastwood character in a classic western). Palmer, though much more vocal shows how resourceful her character can be. Peele’s hit blockbuster of the summer expands his story telling skills beyond what we have seen before. You will have to go see it in the theater to really get the full experience of this horror movie.

Bodies Bodies Bodies

Bodies Bodies Bodies     4 stars

Bodies Bodies Bodies by director Halina Reijn is billed as the slasher movie of the summer. This hip comedy horror features a young Gen Z cast full of digital social media references and a hip hop soundtrack so it is obviously meant for a younger audience. That said, the script is surprisingly smarter than one would think. The premise is that a group of young people of privilege gather for a night of partying at one of the member’s father’s house in the path of a hurricane because that is a thing that people do. The young cast includes Amandla Stenberg (star of The Hate U Give) as Sophie who is just out of rehab and Maria Bakalova (from Borat Subsequent Moviefilm) as young immigrant Bee who is in a romantic relationship with Sophie. (Don’t worry if you don’t remember Maria Bakalova because Rudi Giuliani will.) The pair arrive at the house where the rest of the partiers have already gathered. There is a history of relationships among the group that will become apparent as the night progresses. As the storm approaches the group plays a game called Bodies Bodies Bodies, a sort of role-playing murder game that serves as a precursor of what is to come. Among the group is David whose father is the owner of the afore-mentioned house. As played by SNL’s Pete Davidson, David is a first class dick and really gets on the nerves of some of the partiers as he ridicules some of the jargon they use. Inevitably one of the members turns up dead from horrible injuries which leads to the chaos of the rest of the movie. Waves of suspicion and accusations emerge among the group as they try to cope with this rapidly changing situation. Conflicts based on relative wealth and race emerge as the arguments rage. Much of this is filmed with low lighting and hand-held cameras which lends itself well to the confusion among these Gen Z children of privilege. The intelligently written movie is not so much a slasher film, but more of a lesson in the consequences of a breakdown in trust and understanding. Of course there is more than enough blood and mayhem to satisfy the true horror fans out there.

See How They Run

See How They Run           4 stars

For a fun time you won’t be disappointed with the new whodunit “See How They Run” by director Tom George and writer Mark Chappell. The comedy mystery does a variation of the play within a play theme, using Agatha Christie’s popular stage play “The Mousetrap” that has reached its one hundredth performance in 1953 London’s West End. There is a plan to turn the hit play into a film version to be directed by Hollywood director Leo Kopernick (Adrien Brody who I have not seen in ages) and written by Mervyn Cocker-Norris (David Ayelowo). Early on in the movie one of the film crew turns up dead at the play’s after party, done in by a mysterious dark figure in a coat and hat. In steps Inspector Stoppard (Sam Rockwell of Seven Psychopaths and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri) of Scotland Yard to be aided by rookie officer Constable Stalker (Saoirse Ronan of Brooklyn and Lady Bird) who are tasked with identifying the murderer. Stoppard sets about interviewing the myriad of suspects all of whom seem to have a possible motive while the enthusiastic Stalker tries to help in amusing fashion. (She writes everything down in her notebook including Stoppard’s advice of Do not jump to conclusions.) The suspects even include famous actor Richard Attenborough (Harris Dickinson) who stars in the play. The movie features multiple flashbacks and on screen titles to show the passage of time that all serve to fill in the details. Especially entertaining are the interactions between the experienced but put upon Stoppard and the rookie Stalker who proves to be somewhat annoying, but observant. Of course, we eventually reach the inevitable gathering of the suspects in a room that even includes the famed Miss Christie where the murderer is to be revealed. For Agatha Christie enthusiasts there are many references to her works and characters that I will not go into. The movie is a good time with a story containing many red herrings and a few twists as a good murder mystery should. The advice “Do not Jump to Conclusions” is a very good rule to follow.

Don’t Worry Darling

Don’t Worry Darling        2 ½ stars

By now everyone has heard some of the behind the scenes drama about Don’t Worry Darling, the Olivia Wilde directed vision of a utopia of married couples set in a 1950’s suburban paradise where the wives relish in house cleaning, modern dance lessons and preparing epicurean meals for their husbands who spend their days at work on a mysterious project called The Victory Project that no one understands. That drama is something I don’t need to go into, but in the movie itself it doesn’t take long to get the feeling that something isn’t right in paradise. Alice (Florence Pugh does a fantastic job!), the housewife to husband Jack (Harry Styles) starts to see signs that things are amiss in her world. She hears strange tunes, sees food that is not real and imagines the walls of the house are closing in on her. Her seemingly happy neighbors who all share the same cul-de-sac and with whom they all indulge in wild drunken parties don’t see the same signs and deny that there is anything sinister going on. The one exception is Mary (Olivia Wilde) who wants to put a stop to Alice’s suspicions. There is plenty to be suspicious about as the head of The Victory Project, Frank (Chris Pine) is treated like the worshipped leader of a cult. There is something demon like about him and in this case Pine is suited to the role. This type of dystopian society film has been done many times before only in a less preachy manner. Eventually, we get to an explanation via a heavy use of flashbacks. There is a definite feminist message against a very repressive society and a praise for those who would rebel against it. One gets the feeling that there was a lot of anger behind the writing of this film. For a superior treatment of a similar theme, only from a racial perspective I much prefer Get Out, the 2017 horror film by Jordan Peele. But it does appear that Don’t Worry Darling has its fans. Don’t count me among them.

Halloween Ends

Halloween Ends                2 ½ stars

It has been four years since the night of terror in the town of Haddonfield when the inhabitants tried to take revenge on Michael Myers only to have him mysteriously escape. Things are quiet now as Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) is putting her thoughts into a book about her fight against the evil entity, while some people continue to blame her for the cursed events. This third film by director David Gordon Green takes a departure from the earlier Halloween movies as we get a lot more back story about the characters that includes a relationship between Laurie’s granddaughter Allyson (Andi Matichek) and the bullied Corey (Rohan Campbell) who is blamed for an unfortunate babysitting accident. (Nothing turns out well for babysitters when it’s Halloween.) Frankly, it takes too long for Michael Myers to turn up along with his version of mayhem, but he is still there when October 31st arrives. When he does emerge he carries out the usual knife wielding bloody executions in his efficient style. We get a montage of past scenes from the earlier movies and that familiar theme music as well as a view of a scene from John Carpenter’s The Thing. We even get the long anticipated final showdown between Laurie Strode and Michael Myers as promised, even though Curtis doesn’t have the focused role we see in the earlier films. Jamie Lee Curtis says this is her final Halloween movie. Will there ever be another repeat of this franchise? It’s hard to see how but I wouldn’t bet against it.

Passing

Passing                 4 stars

In 2021 one of the most sought-after tickets at Sundance was for the movie Passing. I couldn’t get one then but recently saw this offering written and directed by the actress Rebecca Hall (The Prestige, Vicki Christina Barcelona, The Town). The name of the movie comes from the practice of light skinned Black Americans passing as white to escape discrimination. This first effort of Hall’s tells of the relationship between two former classmates, two young Black women who meet by chance one day after twelve years at an upscale hotel dining hall in New York. It is the 1920’s so Jim Crow is very alive in this setting. Irene (Tessa Thompson (the Creed movies and the Avengers movies)) is light skinned so can be mistaken for being white, though that is not her intention. The other, Clare (Ruth Negga (Loving)), blonde and appearing to be white, gets Irene’s (Rene) attention and introduces herself. Rene finds out that Clare now has a white husband and a daughter and that the husband (Alexander Skarsgärd) has no clue that Clare is actually part black. (He also has severely racist views!) Rene lives in a nice Harlem brownstone and is married to a black man (André Holland) who is a doctor. They have two sons and a live-in maid. After some time, Clare works her way into Rene’s life saying she misses her old life. Rene lives comfortably, volunteering for the Negro League, attending balls and tea dances and associating with a white novelist (Bill Camp). All of this is very intriguing to Clare who recklessly finds a way to join in the fun. Clare even flirts with Rene’s husband who insists that he doesn’t care for her. It is clear that Rene is uncomfortable with Clare’s actions but puts up with the behavior for the sake of being civil. While Clare is the one who is pretending and playing with fire, the movie is really about Rene’s reaction to this new presence. Rene has a comfortable life but is forced to face the presence of racism that brought these circumstances to reality. Both actresses are superb in their roles with Thompson getting credit for an emotionally subdued performance. The feeling of the story is aided by the black and white filming, the old fashioned 4:3 aspect ratio and a great jazz score accompanying the film. I recommend it as a drama that will make you think.

The Vast of Night

The Vast of Night              4 ½ stars

I first heard of The Vast of Night in the early days of the pandemic and finally saw it recently. This is a very low budget science fiction thriller set in a 1950’s small town in New Mexico. Two nerdy teenagers, Everett (Jake Horowitz) and Fay (Sierra McCormick) are not interested in the night’s high school basketball game, preferring to spend the evening talking about their technical pursuits like recording conversations on Fay’s new tape recorder and going to their night jobs as a radio DJ for Everett and a switchboard operator for Fay. But this is a night unlike any other when they hear strange sounds over the telephone and learn of bizarre reports of something in the sky. Things are slow through the first half hour of the movie but pick up as the pair track down older people who have stories from their past about strange happenings involving government UFO projects and disappearances of people. The film pays homage to some of the science fiction movies of the 50’s and uses some interesting techniques like filming with a camera soaring through windows and through the streets of the town. McCormick performs magnificently in one scene where she works the switchboard for what seems like ten minutes gradually picking up clues from callers that something is amiss. The scene is done in one continuous take. The film really picks up the pace in the final twenty minutes as the two get closer to the truth about what could be an alien invasion. This is the first movie made by Andrew Patterson who filmed it in Texas on a shoestring and came up with something that is truly original.