Jack Reacher: Never Go Back. Disappointed. There is some charm in its weird parent-comedy moments, but missed the mark for me. Still a big fan of the first one.
Tag: film
Hush
Hush. There’s a pretty bullshit moment near the climax but it’s mostly pretty fun. I had a few shouting-at-the-TV moments, which is mostly what I’m looking for in this kind of movie.
Kubo and the Two Strings
Kubo and the Two Strings. Absurdly gorgeous for stop-motion animation. I’m so impressed. The plot drags at times, but always dazzling in some way or another.
Hell or High Water
Hell or High Water. A western family heist movie that has it all: quiet moments, comedy, high-stakes action, strong relationships. One of the best of the year.
Man of Tai Chi
Man of Tai Chi. Good fightin’. It’s rare that martial arts movies work in some good grappling and wrestling, but it really takes this one to another level. This makes a nice pairing with 99 Homes – about a hero’s incrementally ignoble choices leading to self-destruction. Filed under: Keanu Reeves, martial arts
99 Homes
99 Homes. A tale of greed and selfishness. I think the lead’s motivation is borderline too irrational to hold up, but you never know. Wasn’t expecting so much from Andrew Garfield, but he’s legit. Shannon is the king.
The Ides of March
The Ides of March. I don’t think I remember a single thing about this one. ¯(ツ)/¯ Seems like a shame, with Hoffman, Giamatti, Tomei, and Wright on the cast.
Eastern Promises
Eastern Promises. It’s fine!
Gone Baby Gone
Gone Baby Gone. Second viewing (I like my first write-up). One thing I hate in this movie is how a disfigured villain character distances us. Seems like kind of a weasel move. You see similar in True Detective, which also really bothered me. So much of the series lingers in mundane evil and violence, and then… the final villains are freakshows. Lame. I suppose it’s a bit different here with the denouement, but the earlier raid still gets under my skin.
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. It’s an odd one. Absolutely gorgeous at times. I like the olde-timey lens distortion and sepia tones. And the slow-burn obsession is awesome. Reminds me a bit of Public Enemies, with the possessive attraction to a charismatic criminal.
Force Majeure
Force Majeure. Domestic dramas are better when they are also dark comedy. I really liked the balance here. So much awkwardness, the couple tentatively probing and exploring what they’ve learned about each other, figuring out how to break the silence when vulnerability is high.
Into the Blue
Into the Blue. One of the mid-level ‘00s action/adventure films that holds up. I love some of the cliche characters here. Like, yep, that new friend is definitely going to ruin everything by doing something dumb. You know it instantly. And I’d totally forgotten about Brolin’s role in this. If a movie makes you envy a lifestyle even if it’s not a great movie, it’s still doing something right.
Midnight Special
Midnight Special. This was one I liked so much in previews and during the majority of its runtime that there was probably no way for it to conclude in a way that I loved. Good ride. Jeff Nichols is on a roll.
The Thin Red Line
The Thin Red Line. A little weaker each time I see it, some parts seemed kinda limp, but it’s still great. Filed under: Terrence Malick
Blow Out
Blow Out. Last movie I saw at Ebertfest, and man what a way to go out. Love the cold open with a terrible horror film shoot… which we revisit later on. The movie does this throughout, working with both highbrow and lowbrow, exploiting genre trappings while mocking them. John Lithgow is amazing. I love how much old tech is in this: tape recorders, 16mm film, photo development, paper flipbooks, wearing wires. The climax, so ecstatic and lush and colorful and heightened through its slowness, is perfect. There’s something about the idea of truth in this one. Audio isn’t enough. It’s seeing that’s believing.
Love & Mercy
Love & Mercy. Biopics are not my strong suit and I usually complain about them. This was a good one, alternating between an older and a younger Brian Wilson, some of the scenes echoing each other. It didn’t delve into the drug stuff as much as I expected, or the long years he spent in bed. I wonder if that was a PR thing? Or maybe it just doesn’t lend itself to picturization. Still an interesting view of mental illness, and mental illness in a particular time and place without stuff we take for granted now. Also an atypical romance here, where the collapse happens in a way that you’re sympathetic to both. He’s a broken man; she’s a woman who knows she can only give so much. I left wondering about how thwarted and overwhelmed he must have felt. Not just the creative struggle to take what’s in his head and make it real. There’s also the conflicting and belittling messages from father, doctor, bandmates, etc. Wicked sound design at times playing against all of those in a few scenes, like when he rejects his father and picks up the headphones, some studio breakthroughs, some moments wrestling with schizophrenia.
After seeing this, I’m also curious about The Wrecking Crew, a doc about the session musicians who helped create the original sound for the Beach Boys and many others.
Filed under: Ebertfest
Radical Grace
Radical Grace. This was a fun documentary. It tracks a group of feisty nuns and their guerrilla battles with the patriarchy in the Catholic church. They come under a lot of fire for more progressive outspokenness on a variety of issues. The sisters keep alive a sort of old-school community-based hippie evangelist approach. There’s some good droll “those wild women need supervisin’!” humor throughout. The nerve! Favorite line was from Sister Jean Hughes, when she said something like “God is not a man with a beard. God is the impetus for good.”
Force of Destiny
Force of Destiny. In this one a sculptor gets liver cancer and falls in love. One of those sweet gentle ones, very weepy and slow. Every now and it’s intercut with trippy scenes: a heron flying with a stick; the hero with his mother as a child; scenes from Italy travel and boats; a masked ball with people in the hospital. One thing it captures well is that special sort of quite terror and anxiety of waiting in the hospital, surrounded by other people’s grief and afflictions. The autobiographical overtones here made me wonder if it’s self-indulgent, and if that’s bad, and why it matters, and why it bothers me, and what it means that it colors my reaction to the film so much. Also a little bit of a not-too-subtle organ donation promotional, and I’m on board with that. Filed under: Ebertfest.
Eve’s Bayou
Eve’s Bayou. One of my absolute favorites from Ebertfest. Maybe my favorite, period. Stands out superficially with some impressive child actors, female leads throughout, and no white people. I love how it accumulates little moments. There’s a vibe here I’m not savvy enough to describe other than “very 90s” that’s very… old-fashioned. Full orchestra. Soft film image. Evening glow. It felt like a play at some points, with some of the momentum and delivery in the dialogue, and how the scenes were staged. The scene where Mozelle tells the story of her husband confronting her lover is a little masterpiece. Highly recommended!
Disturbing the Peace
Disturbing the Peace. A documentary about how former militants – Israeli and Palestinian – changed their minds, joined up with the enemy, and started to work for peace. It opens with personal stories of transformation. Confessions of wrongdoing. Stories of victimhood. The moment they decided to do something different than fight the other side. In form, it’s a mix of talking heads, reenactments, news reel footage, and live documenting protests and nonviolent demonstrations.
My favorite part was this really great scene between husband and wife. The wife holds a more angry and strident pro-Palestinian stance. She sees the nonviolent, loving approach as a surrender. There’s this awesome parental tension I’d never considered – how do they decide to expose their daughters to that greater world and their perspective, when to introduce them to certain ideas, etc.
There’s also the fact that the rest of the populations (Israeli and Palestinian) sometimes aren’t just ambivalent but sometimes strongly anti-nonviolence, strongly against peaceful protest. Gave me a new appreciation, of how hard it is to do protest work when the rest of your community hates what you’re doing…
I forget whether this was in the movie or in the post-movie conversation, but I also like the idea that forgiveness is not altruistic. It’s one of the best things you can do for yourself.
Filed under: Ebertfest.
Mark Larson 