Iowa-born actress Jean Seberg was an as an icon of French New Wave cinema who made 34 movies in Europe and Hollywood. Her signature pixie haircut was a sensation, inspiring a generation to cut their hair and Madonna to copy the look for her “Papa Don’t Preach” video. Seberg was a favorite of Jean-Luc Godard and Francois Truffaut who wrote, “When Jean Seberg is on the screen, which is all the time, you can’t look at anything else.” She was also one of the best-known targets of the FBI COINTELPRO project, an illegal surveillance operation aimed at disrupting American political organizations. A new film starring Kristen Stewart as the star details the how the FBI ruined her reputation.
As Australian director Benedict Andrews begins the story Seberg is already a famous. She makes headlines when she publicly supports the Black Panther Party and privately carries on an affair with Black Power leader, Hakim Jamal (Anthony Mackie). Her interest in political causes—and financial support of civil rights organizations—also attracts the attention of the FBI who place her under surveillance. The big brass are determined to undermine her career but when Agent Jack Solomon (Jack O’Connell) sees the toll the operation is taking on Seberg’s mental health and her marriage to French novelist Romain Gary, he tries to intervene.
“Seberg” is a by-the-book retelling of the defining time of Seberg’s career but it never allows us to get to know her. Half the film is eaten up by the procedural aspects of the FBI’s campaign, spending too much time with side characters like Vince Vaughn’s villainous agent and O’Connell’s goody-two-shoes agent. The heart and soul of the story should be Seberg. The thing that should drive the story is how she was pushed to paranoia by the surveillance, not the surveillance itself.
Stewart does what she can with the clichéd dialogue but the inertness of the storytelling doesn’t allow her to portray Seberg’s innate renegade charisma.
“Seberg” is well appointed—the costumes and sets evocatively conjure up the late 1960s setting—but never creates a convincing character.
“The Jesus Rolls,” John Turturro’s revisiting of his classic “Big Lebowski” bowling alley character Jesus Quintana, is a story of bad decisions made and acted on but one can’t help but wonder is the worst decision was to resurrect Quintana in the first place.
The ride begins with Quintana leaving Sing Sing prison where he served time for what he calls a misunderstanding about indecent exposure in a public bathroom. Hooking up with his best friend Petey (Bobby Cannavale), he struts and swaggers his way back into trouble starting with the theft of a vintage muscle car. When Petey is shot by the auto’s owner, a hairdresser played by Jon Hamm, they hit the road, putting some space between them and the law. Quintana already has two strikes, another arrest and he’s going to jail and never coming out. Along for the ride is Marie (Audrey Tautou), a shampooist and the hairdresser’s former girlfriend. Their adventures, both criminal and erotic, begin with a visit to Quintana’s prostitute mother (Sonia Braga). “She’s better than no mother at all,” he says.
“The Jesus Rolls” is not a “Big Lebowski” sequel. The Coen Brothers gave the OK to bring Jesus back to cinematic life but Turturro opted to base his story on the freewheeling 1974 French farce “Les Valseuses” (“Going Places”).
Sequel or not, tribute flick or not, “The Jesus Rolls” is a gutter ball. As a character Jesus is best seen in small does. He’s a standout in “The Big Lebowski” because he’s an oddball in a film that celebrates oddballs. His two scenes are memorable, blessed with quotable dialogue and quirky tics—he licks the bowling balls before launching them at the pins—but a little of him goes a long way. He’s like garlic. One or two cloves adds flavor; the whole head is overkill.
“The Jesus Rolls” may share a character with “The Big Lebowski” but it has none of its charm. Despite a poignant performance by Susan Sarandon as a woman fresh out of prison and a well-chosen soundtrack, Turturro’s film proves that in the case of Quintana, sometimes less is more.
It’ll take more than a few White Russians to wash “The Jesus Rolls” down.
In the world of canine coming-of-age stories Jack London’s “The Call of the Wild“ is the alpha dog. The survival tale has been given a new, high tech sheen in a film starring Harrison Ford and a CGI dog named Buck.
Buck, a domesticated St. Bernard/Scotch Collie stolen from his comfortable life in California is transported to Yukon where he is sold to a mail delivery sled team. “He’s not bad, “says his owner Perrault (Omar Sy) after a bad initial run, “he’s just got California feet.” Soon Buck learns the ways of the pack and for the first time listen to his own voice not his masters.
Belonging to the pack brings with it a growing confidence and joy that fades when the 2400-mile mail delivery route is cancelled and he is sold to Hal (“Downton Abbey’s” Dan Stevens). A citidiot with Gold Rush fever but no clue how to navigate the North’s weather or handle a dog team, his animal cruelty catches the eye of John Thornton (Harrison Ford). A drifter, the loss of his young son provoked Thornton to move north looking for solace. “I know there may be no peace,” he says, “no home for me in this world.” He senses something special in Buck and, as their paths cross, he develops a bond with the hard-working animal.
When Hal endangers not only himself, but his companions and the dog pack Thornton intercedes. As they get to know one another, Buck and his new master fill a role in each other’s lives left by the loss of a pack and a son. “You’re not my pet,” Thornton tells Buck. Together they heed the call of the wild and head off on an adventure that will lead them to a place “off the map” and to their destinies.
The Call of the Wild” is an old-fashioned action adventure created with newfangled technology. Beautiful scenery, a pantomime-style villain and a couple of exciting close calls could be straight out of many old-school Disney kid’s adventures. Buck, however, is a different story. His, and the other dogs faces are expressive in a way photorealistic-animals in movies like “The Lion King” and “Lady and the Tramp” were not. It’s often subtle but a raising of the eyebrows or a concerned look in the eye gives Buck considerably more personality than some recent animated animals and that is important for a dog who not only understands home décor (antler hanging) but also human psychology.
“The Call of the Wild” is a handsomely made movie that allows the story’s adult themes of love and redemption to occur without bogging down the part that will appeal to kids–the adventure. Parents should not that there are a couple of animals-in-peril scenes you might want to consider before bringing the young children.
Google “homecoming movies” and page after page of films, most of which are called something like “The Homecoming” or “Homecoming: Insert Name Here,” about a prodigal son or daughter returning home after a stay away. The newest entry to the genre, “Standing Up, Falling Down,” follows all the familiar “you can never go home again” genre formulas but is elevated by charming performances.
“Parks & Recreation’s” Ben Schwartz is Scott Rollins, a 34-year old failed stand-up comedian. Four years in Los Angeles chasing his dream have left him broke and dispirited. Returning home with his tail between his legs, he moves back into his parent’s place in Long Island. “The comedy world’s slowest rising star comes back home!” they joke.
Without much a plan on how to move forward, Scott looks to the past, most notably to his ex-girlfriend Becky Brookes (Eloise Mumford). He unceremoniously dumped her before leaving for L.A. and while he didn’t move on, she did, getting married and becoming a successful photographer.
His life begins to change when he meets Marty (Billy Crystal), an alcoholic dermatologist who seems to be the only person in town Scott can relate to.
“Standing Up, Falling Down” doesn’t add much to the homecoming genre as a whole but it doesn’t need to. Schwartz and Crystal are an appealing odd couple, trading quips with the ease of two seasoned comedians. More than that, though, they are believable and compelling when they aren’t being funny, when they are displaying the flawed sides of their personalities. Both have made mistakes that have hurt other people but both are working, in their own ways, to make amends. “Regret is the only thing that’s real,” Marty says as they work up the courage to face their failures.
“Standing Up, Falling Down” falls prey to some of the inherent clichés of the genre but, like its main characters, it works through its flaws with panache.
IN CONVERSATION WITH… BILL NIGHY : SAT | FEBRUARY 8 | 7:45 PM | THE VIC
Join us for an intimate evening of lively conversation with one of the greatest British actors working today–Bill Nighy. From Love Actually to The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel to Harry Potter and many, many other notable works, this multi-award winning actor is sure to entertain with his hilarious dry wit and incredible experiences both on and off set. Following the conversation, there will be a special screening of Nighy’s 2019 UK indie hit Hope Gap.
Hope Gap is the heartbreaking and heartwarming tale about the intricacies of the dissolution of a marriage between Edward (Bill Nighy) and Grace (Annette Bening) – and the ensuing emotional fallout their divorce has on their only grown son, Jamie (Josh O’Connor)
Host of In Conversation is Richard Crouse
Richard Crouse is the host of the CTV talk show Pop Life, and the regular film critic for the 24-hour news source, CTV’s News Channel, and CP24. He is also the author of nine books on pop culture history including Who Wrote the Book of Love, and the best-selling The 100 Best Movies You’ve Never Seen, and its sequel. From 1998 to 2008, Crouse was the host of Reel to Real, Canada’s longest-running television show about movies, and is a frequent guest on many national Canadian radio and television programs.
MORE INFO HERE! READ MORE ABOUT THE EVENT HERE! EVEN MORE HERE!
It has been a big year for the 26th annual event, which opened last week. Among the early highlights was a much-celebrated appearance by Bill Nighy, who attended a festival party on Feb. 7 before sitting for an hour-long chat with critic Richard Crouse in front of a sold-out audience at the Victoria Conference Centre on Feb. 8.
Kay said Nighy’s appearance at the opening gala “was a nice surprise.”
An actor of his renown is never expected to rub shoulders with the public, but his genial nature was a refreshing turn in the era of increased public scrutiny.
“When he came out on stage [at the conference centre], there was a standing ovation, and the same again when he finished,” Kay said. “People were so excited.”
Hope Gap
Director: William Nicholson
UK 2019 100 min
hopeful + tender + brilliant cast
After 33 years together, Grace and Edward’s marriage is on the rocks. Their blissful, bohemian lifestyle, on the Southern English coastline, has reached a cliff edge. When Edward urges their son Jamie (God’s Own Country’s Josh O’Connor) to return for the weekend only to reveal to all that he’s had enough and his bags are packed, it’s clear that an almighty storm is about to descend.
Hope Gap, Oscar-nominated screenwriter William Nicholson’s second film as director, tracks the unravelling of three lives through stages of shock, disbelief and anger, to a resolution of sorts. Though Jamie attempts to act as a mediator between his parents, his own relationship struggles are a reminder of how silence breeds silence down through the generations, how gaps echo from parents to their children.
Annette Bening gives a barn-storming performance as the acidic and often unreasonable Grace, firing out snappy one-liners whilst undergoing an emotional apocalypse, and Bill Nighy is superb as a quiet, though unacceptably cowardly man, who just wants to update Wikipedia in peace…
Shot with a ravishing sense of design and colour, making the most of the lush English coastline, this is an emotionally astute portrait of a marriage at the end of its life; of regrets uncovered, decisions made too late and the precariousness of hope. But in the end, it is also a story of survival. A story of hope.
As “Joker” sweeps through Awards Season, scooping up a motherlode of Best Actor gold for Joaquin Phoenix, along comes the standalone story of the Clown Prince of Crime’s former female sidekick. “Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)” sees Margot Robbie revisit her unpredictable “Suicide Squad” character in an R-rated film that is part action, part comedy and all attitude. More in tune with the antics of “Deadpool” than the serious tone of “Joker,” “Birds of Prey” is a fourth-wall-breaking story that doesn’t feel like other superhero movies.
Picking up after the events of “Suicide Squad,” Gotham City has become a cesspool of crime. Batman has flown the coop leaving the city unprotected from the likes of crime lord Black Mask (Ewan McGregor). The baseball wielding Quinn has rid herself of her former “partner in madness,” the Joker—” I am so over clowns!” she says—and now travels with a new squad of vigilantes. “As it turns out, I wasn’t the only dame in Gotham looking for emancipation,” she says. Black Canary (Jurnee Smollett-Bell), Huntress (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) and Renee Montoya (Rosie Perez) come together to help Harley protect Cassandra Cain (Ella Jay Basco), a young pickpocket who had the bad luck of coming into possession of a diamond ebcoded with a valuable secret, a secret Black Mask desperately wants. “I’m back on my feet,” Harley says, “ready to embrace the fierce goddess within.”
“Birds of Prey” is a story of survivors, of feminism, of tough women out on the town and it is the most fun DC has offered up at the movies. The stripped-down story sheds “Suicide Squad’s” nihilistic nonsense in favor of empowerment and general kick assery.
It gets off to a slow start, establishing the characters and situation, but erupts in the last third with bombastic action choreographed by director Cathy Yan and “John Wick” fight maestro Chad Stahelski. Forget the CGI finales of the Marvel Universe, this is blood-soaked up-close-and-personal stunt action with a wicked sense of humour.
Robbie has a gleeful, cheeky commitment to the character that sets the tone for the movie’s 80s new wave kaleidoscopic aesthetic. With a habit of settling disputes with a baseball bat to the groin she isn’t a role model but is unpredictable, scrappy fun to watch on screen. Ditto McGregor who actually seems to be having fun wearing Black Mask’s hyped-up wardrobe after a series of movies that have left his charisma relegated to the backroom.
“Birds of Prey” is loads of fun but manages to weave some serious ideas about not needing men to survive into the chaos. Most of all, though, it feels like a welcome antidote to the monotony of so many comic book inspired films.
Family reunions are often fraught with tension. Old wounds are opened by familiarity bred by contempt but few reconciliations have turned as dark and twisted as the father and son get together in Elijah Wood’s new thriller “Come to Daddy.”
Wood is Norval, a self-described music industry big deal, raised by his single mother in Beverly Hills. After receiving a letter from his estranged father requesting a face-to-face meeting, he makes the trip to a remote California home to meet a man he barely knows. He’s met by Brian (Stephen McHattie), a flinty, drunken older man with a sharp tongue. When Brian tries to impress the older man by dropping Elton John’s name, Brian calls him out in an embarrassing and cruel way. The situation doesn’t improve with the introduction of alcohol and soon the situation becomes dangerous.
That’s it! No spoilers here. Trust me when I say that unless your family gatherings include torture and excrement dripped shivs, you haven’t experienced a father and son situation quite like this before.
Darkly humorous and disquieting, “Come to Daddy” is a gonzo thriller that revels in the off-kilter nature of the escalating intrigue of the story. As the running time clicks through to the end credits the stakes for Noval surge in increasingly outrageous ways. It’s all good, gory fun that plays up the absurdity of the situation while still maintaining the complexity of the father-son relationship. It’s a mish mash of revenge, squeamish violence and surreal family drama that should please midnight madness fans but leave others reaching for a barf bag.
