Gabriela Cowperthwaite’s ‘Our Friend’ is a cancer movie weepie – destined to wring out tears in you. We’ve seen this story before, we’ve seen this movie before, but for me, because I am sometimes a masochist, I still watch, hoping for something new.
I am happy to report that the film got some tears out of me (but then again maybe that’s from my pandemic low-key depression) even though the story was familiar – I mean we all know how this will end – the main ace for the film here is the good acting by the principals. Dakota Johnson is really a good actress, and she shines through the scattershot script here, giving dignity to the dying Nicole, who gets diagnosed with cancer. Casey Affleck also gives complex to a cardboard character, but it is Jason Segal who is the top here – funny and vulnerable as the selfless friend who glues the family together.
There are some holes in the story, and for what it is I felt the film was a little bloated . but this film is exactly what you need if you want to release some sadness out of you.
If we were still living in a ‘normal’ world and ‘The High Note’ was shown in a movie theater, there would have been no doubt I would have showed up. This is my kind of movie – films that have personal stories. I consider this film a romantic comedy, perhaps not of the ‘traditional’ kind. The ‘romance’ is between Maggie (Dakota Johnson) and her boss Grace Davies (Tracee Ellis Ross) If this were a different film, it would have been like ‘The Devil Wears Prada,’ but screenwriter Flora Greeson gives Grace a little more depth, not making her a cliched diva monster. But really, this is Johnson’s film, and in my opinion, her most charismatic performance. The story may have a string of tropes, and her character may be a tad inconsistent, but her Grace never wavers. Her screen presence, along with a soft thoughtful performance, makes us care for her character. And Ross is a formidable partner. Those expecting a character like her real-life mom would be a little disappointed as her Grace Davies is a lot more modern and human. She lights the screen when she is on, and the two of them together, sparring, is movie magic. Sure, the story is a bit unbelievable, but who cares? This is a great quarantine film – it will take you out of whatever world you are in and take you to a dreamy Los Angeles where dreams can be realized.
Tyler Nilson and Mark Schwartz’s ‘the Peanut Butter Falcon’ is earning raves from critics. At the screening I attended, the audience burst out in applause when the credits started to roll. But I hate to say this, but all I felt saying was “it was nice.” It’s earnest, it means well, and it is certainly a crowd pleaser, but I found myself not connecting deeply with the film or any of its characters. Its genteel Southern charm is a tad too sleepy for my taste, and I found myself getting bored a couple of times. Plus, it is not lacking from good performances. The center character, Zak, is played by Zack Gottsagen, and I bet the real life actor has a lot of similarities with the character (I read that the filmmakers wrote the script specifically for him) Plus, I had forgotten how Shia LaBeouf is such a natural and charismatic actor (Dakota Johnson, too, for that matter) To be honest, I kind of feel bad that I don’t love this as much as everyone else, but really, the heart loves what it loves.
‘Bad Times at the El Royale’ could have been good, but it lives up to its title. Written and Directed by Drew Goodard, it is a lot of style with some substance with a whole lot more self-indulgence along the way.
Whenever I try to explain to people why I completed watching all three Fifty Shades movies, I answer with two words: Jamie Dornan. I mean, I am on Moviepass so the movie is basically free, so I don’t think it is such a major waste of time to spend two hours with Jamie Dornan almost completely naked. Right? Right? I mean, I can justify that, right?
‘A Bigger Splash’ fits the definition of ‘art film’ in every sense of the word. It is loosely based on the 1969 movie ‘La Piscine,’ and also on David Hickney’s piece which shares teh same title of the movie. Tilda Swinton plays Marianne Lane, an androgynous-looking rock star (a la David Bowie) who undergoes a surgical procedure for her vocal chords and is spending her time healing and resting in the Italian island of Pantelleria, near Sicily. She is with her companin Paul, a documentary filmmaker played by Matthias Schoeneartes, Their quiet existence is disrupted when Lane’s producer and ex Harry (Ralph Fiennes) arrives with his daughter, Penelope, played by Dakota Johnson, and sexier here than she ever will be in that Grey movie. All this seems to be just a simple story, right? But no, director Luca Guadignino isn’t interested in somethign simple. Here, he creates a world so vivid, so languid that you feel the heat of the Italian sun, and you feel the simmer of all the desires – culinary, sexual, emotional – of these characters.
Luha Thoughts 