CTV ATLANTIC: RICHARD AND TODD BATTIS ON NEW MOVIES IN THEATRES!
I join CTV Atlantic anchor to talk about the Christmas actioner “Red One,” the drama “Magpie” and the stop motion animated “Memoirs of a Snail.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
I join CTV Atlantic anchor to talk about the Christmas actioner “Red One,” the drama “Magpie” and the stop motion animated “Memoirs of a Snail.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
I sit in with hosts Jim Richards and Deb Hutton on NewsTalk 1010 to play the game “Did Richard Crouse Like This?” This week we talk about the Christmas actioner “Red One,” the drama “Magpie” and the stop motion animated “Memoirs of a Snail.”
Listen to the whole thing HERE! (Starts at 26:34)
I sit in with CKTB morning show host Steph Vivier to have a look at movies in theatres and VOD including the Christmas actioner “Red One,” the drama “Magpie” and the stop motion animated “Memoirs of a Snail.”
Listen to the whole thing HERE!
Fast reviews for busy people! Watch as I review three movies in less time than it takes to do a high five! Have a look as I race against the clock to tell you about the Christmas actioner “Red One,” the drama “Magpie” and the stop motion animated “Memoirs of a Snail.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
SYNOPSIS: In “Magpie,” a new neo-noir thriller starring Daisy Ridley, and now available on all major platforms for digital rental and purchase, Ben (Shazad Latif) and Anette’s (Daisy Ridley) young daughter (Hiba Ahmed) lands a co-starring role alongside 20-something movie star Alicia (Matilda Lutz). Trouble brews as Anette, stuck at home in the suburbs with a new baby, becomes suspicious that Ben has fallen in love with the actress.
CAST: Daisy Ridley, Shazad Latif, Matilda Anna Ingrid Lutz, Hiba Ahmed, Cherrelle Skeete, Pippa Bennett-Warner, Alistair Petrie. Directed by Sam Yates.
REVIEW: Based on a story idea by star Daisy Ridley, “Magpie” is a revenge drama disguised as a study of a toxic relationship.
That the self-absorbed Ben is a needy man who falls for a glamorous woman while gaslighting his wife and children is nothing new. He’s a cad who thinks his wife has changed, not him, and he’s more than open to the charms of someone younger and shinier. “You made me feel alive,” he whispers to Alicia, “for the first time in years.”
Been there done that in dozens of other movies.
What is unique is Anette’s way of equaling the playing field. No spoilers here, but let’s just say comeuppance is on “Magpie’s” menu in the form of a flashback montage that reveals what was really happening all along. It’s a satisfying way to wind up this tale of twisted relationship dynamics, even if it is somewhat preposterous.
It succeeds because of Ridley’s committed performance. Her recent work in films like “The Young Woman and the Sea” and “Sometimes I Think About Dying” displays a range and an interest in textured material. “Magpie” allows her the chance to dig into another layered character. As Anette battles depression and low self-esteem, but Ridley brings a stoic intensity that sizzles. We’re not told that much about her, but we don’t need to be, it’s all in the performance.
“Magpie” is a slow burn pulpy thriller that pays off with a satisfying third act, but you’ll need to suspend your disbelief during the not entirely believable events in the film’s last few minutes.
SYNOPSIS: “Young Woman and the Sea,” a new period sports drama starring Daisy Ridley and now streaming on Disney+, is the true story of the “Queen of the Waves,” American swimming champion Gertrude Ederle. Her story of triumph includes winning a gold medal at the 1924 Olympic Games, and later, becoming the first woman to swim the twenty-one miles across the English Channel.
CAST: Daisy Ridley, Tilda Cobham-Hervey, Stephen Graham, Kim Bodnia, Christopher Eccleston, Glenn Fleshler. Directed by Joachim Rønning.
REVIEW: A classic underdog sports movie, “Young Woman and the Sea” is a handsomely mounted and passionately performed biopic. Old fashioned in the best of ways, it leans into its inspiring, against all odds story with crowd-pleasing vigor.
Told in chronological order, there aren’t many surprises in the retelling of Ederle’s story, but the portrayal of resilience and perseverance in the face of the era’s sexism, and the physical demands of the sport, make for good family viewing.
Physically and emotionally, Ridley convinces as Ederle. Her ocean swimming scenes, shot in amid fierce currents and chilly temperatures in the English Channel and the Black Sea, translates the swimmer’s struggle, and the drama of the event, to the screen in a way that shooting against a green screen in a pool simply could not. Her blue lips, the treacherous black water, and whatever lies bneath, become characters in her struggle as the viewer is immersed in the journey.
As Ederle, Ridley is a mix-and-match of determination, kindness and tenderness. It’s a bit hagiographic, but suits the movie’s old school tone.
Dusted lightly with schmaltz, “Young Woman and the Sea” is predictable, but its sheer pluckiness and eagerness to uplift earns it a recommendation.
A movie best described as a melancomedy, a mix of melancholy and comedy, “Sometimes I Think About Dying,” now playing in theatres, is a subdued, tender study of social anxiety and disconnection.
Daisy Ridley pauses the blockbuster phase of her career to play Fran, a withdrawn office worker who avoids eye contact, lives alone and rarely says a word. Her jocular co-workers mostly just ignore her, leaving her alone, save for her computer and spreadsheets, in the faraway corner of their workspace.
At night, in the privacy of her own home, she passes the time imagining herself dead, her body displayed in various, artful tableaus, like a Viking funeral or pastoral forest setting. She doesn’t have a death wish, she’s just fascinated with the morbid idea of it all, of how it might feel to be dead. Of how the void of death would differ from the void that is her life.
She is invisible to everyone at work, except new hire Robert (Dave Merheje). He’s a chatty, friendly guy who fills the air with stream of consciousness observations about what would happen if an armchair was actually shaped like an arm, and the like.
On his first day on the job, he tells everyone he likes Thai food, going to the movies and uncomfortable silences. Sounds like he and Fran will get along just fine.
And they do.
Their friendship begins with a work-related e-mail exchange which blossoms into a movie date. Desperate for connection, they are drawn to one another, uncomfortable silences and all.
“Sometimes I Think About Dying” is a quiet film that revels in its mundanity. From the idle chit chat around the office and the casual bonhomie of friends playing a murder mystery game to the awkward getting-to-know-you stage of a relationship and falling asleep while watching a movie, it’s a case study of everyday life, from the perspective of a person overwhelmed by life.
Ridley hands in a career best performance as someone uncomfortable even in her own comfort zone. Fran could have been a cipher, a character with no discernable traits, but Ridley does a lot with a little. Her extreme reserve is a mask, and Ridley haltingly allows personality to peek through. It’s a beautiful, quiet performance that could have been dreary, but Ridley creates something in the absence of any front facing personality traits.
Another stand-out is Marcia DeBonis as Carol, a former workmate who delivers a devastating, but understated monologue near the end of the film. Carol and Fran have nothing in common except for occupying the same space while they worked together, but in a heartfelt, and heartbreaking way, Carol gives Fran hope. No spoilers here, but this scene and the one immediately following are the film’s payoff.
“Sometimes I Think About Dying” is beyond low key, with no real conflict to speak of, other than one unexpectedly caustic remark that, given the quiet tone of the film, lands with the power of as punch in the mouth. Driven by ideas rather than story points, the movie requires patience, but for a film about the absence of emotion, delivers a sensitive and emotional conclusion to Fran’s story.
Richard finds the perfect cocktail to enjoy while having a drink and a think about the dystopian young adult drama “Chaos Walking.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
On paper “Chaos Walking,” a new dystopian movie starring Daisy Ridley and Tom Holland and now on PVOD, seems like a can’t fail for sci fi fans. In execution, however, the story of a world where men’s thoughts are manifested for all to see, is a letdown.
Based on “The Knife of Never Letting Go,” the first book of the Patrick Ness “Chaos Walking” trilogy, the story takes place in the year 2557 in a place called Prentisstown on the planet New World. Colonized by refugees from Earth, New World’s original inhabitants, the Spackle, fought back, slaughtering many of the male settlers and all the women. The surviving men contracted something called “The Noise.”
“It happened when we landed on the planet,” says Mayor Prentiss (Mads Mikkelsen). “Every thought in our heads is on display.”
Prentisstown residents, like Todd Hewitt (Holland), walk around with their thoughts exposed like wisps of multicolored cigarette smoke swirling around their heads.
When her spaceship crash lands on New World it leaves earth woman Viola (Ridley) stranded in this strange world. Todd, who has never seen a woman before, helps her navigate the dangers of her new home, as they both discover the deeply held secrets of New World.
“Chaos Walking” has ideas that feel ripe for satire, social commentary and drama but squanders them in favor of crafting a tepid young adult friendly dystopian story. Todd’s “Noise” reveals the kind of thoughts a teenager may have when first laying eyes on a girl, although in a g-rated fashion. His inner voice mumbles “Pretty” in Viola’s presence, but that’s about as deep into his psyche we get. It’s a shame because the “Noise” device could have been used to provide some much-needed humour into this earnest story. Or to more effectively drive the plot or the tension between the two characters. Instead, it is inert, a ploy to add some interest to a generic dystopian tale.
“Chaos Walking” was shot in 2017, deemed unreleasable, and has been fiddled with ever since. It hits PVOD as a film of unrealized potential, a minor footnote on the IMDB pages of its stars.