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 almost epic “The Return,” the apocalyptic musical “The End” and the nostalgic disaster flick “Y2K.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
SYNOPSIS: Taking its inspiration from an ancient text, “The Return,” a new historical drama starring Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche now playing in theatres, is the story of a disgraced king returning from the disastrous Trojan War.
CAST: Ralph Fiennes, Juliette Binoche, Charlie Plummer. Directed by Uberto Pasolini based on Homer’s Odyssey.
REVIEW: A story of loyalty and vengeance, “The Return” is a stripped-down version of the Greek poem “Homer’s Odyssey.” Epic in its themes if not in its execution, the story derives much of its power from the performances of Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche as lovers separated by the ravages of war and time.
Director Uberto Pasolini, who co-wrote the script with John Collee and Edward Bond, skips past the more fanciful parts of Homer’s poem. There’s no cyclops, divine intervention or multi-headed monsters. Instead, it skips to Odysseus (Ralph Fiennes), the legendary Greek king of Ithaca, returning home after twenty years at war. Assumed dead, unrecognizable and mistaken for a beggar, he finds his former kingdom in disarray.
His wife Penelope (Binoche) never remarried, despite the dozens of suitors who vied for her hand. As she is pressured to choose a husband to take the throne, her son Telemachus (Charlie Plummer) is threatened with death by ambitious wannabe-kings.
Before he can return home to his wife, son and throne, Odysseus must come to grips with his past as a warrior responsible for his vanquished army. “What will the people say when they see I have returned alone?” he asks. “That I led all their men to their deaths.”
Fiennes embraces this more earthbound adaptation. His Odysseus is a man beaten by war, scarred mentally and physically. “It’s everywhere,” he says of war. “It’s in everything you touch.” Just as the movie is stripped down, so is his performance. Divested of the formality and archaic language that frequently comes along with adaptations of ancient stories, “The Return” allows Fiennes to concentrate on what fundamentally makes the character interesting, his humanity.
Weary from war, he is defeated, but we still get a sense of the warrior he once was and the guile that helped him survive. It’s a terrific performance that showcases the character’s duality, at once sorrowful and frail and yet, able to muster the power that made him a king.
And, at age 61, Fiennes is ripped, sinewy and shredded, as revealed by his loose-fitting toga and a full-frontal nude scene.
Binoche is regal, displaying the kind of dualism that makes Fiennes’s Odysseus so compelling. She’s mournful at the loss of her husband, the wreck her kingdom has become and the political maneuvering that threatens the life of her son. And yet, she persists, using her wits to control the situation.
“The Return” is not a spectacle by any means. The sets and wardrobe are kept to a minimum, but the simplicity works, bringing focus to a story that could easily have been distracted by flashier design or a load of CGI.
“The Return’s” slow-ish pace and conversations with more pauses than dialogue may take some getting used to, but they are all in service of building tension, which eventually explodes in the film’s fiery climax.
SYNOPSIS: In “Close to You,” a new family drama now playing in theatres, Academy Award Nominee Elliot Page stars as Sam, a trans man visiting his family for the first time in four years. The trip home is a journey of self-discovery as Sam confronts the past and reconnects with Katherine (Hillary Baack), an old flame.
CAST: Elliot Page, Hillary Baack, Peter Outerbridge, Wendy Crewson, Alex Paxton-Beesley, Janet Porter, Daniel Maslany, David Reale, Andrew Bushell, Sook-Yin Lee. Directed by Dominic Savage.
REVIEW: Led by strong performances, “Close to You” is emotional, therapeutic and just a little bit messy. It feels intimate, up-close-and-personal, as tensions grow in Sam’s family and a past romance rekindles.
There’s an immediacy to director Dominic Savage’s work as he captures the fraught interactions between Sam and his family. With no formal script, the actors improvise, bringing a naturalism to the scenes of Sam’s homecoming.
Unfortunately, while some of the movie sounds natural, much of the dialogue meanders around in search of a point. The improvisational nature brings with it unfocussed scenes as the actors look for a way to forward the action. There’s lots of repetition, as the characters speak in circles, and yet the important stuff, like motivations, are left unsaid.
There are exceptions. A scene between Sam and his father Jim (Peter Outerbridge) is tightly focused on their relationship and Jim‘s acceptance of his son. It’s beautifully performed, with passion, but also with restraint. As mother Miriam, Wendy Crewson navigates difficult waters, misgendering Sam in a heartbreaking conversation.
A later scene at the dinner table is a climatic high in terms of the film’s story and Sam’s journey, but its cathartic effectiveness is muted by histrionics.
The stand-out is Page who radiates the apprehension and anxiety Sam feels in subtle and interesting ways. It’s a raw and real performance that helps smooth over some of the film’s rough patches.
SYNOPSIS: In “Good One,” a new drama now playing in theatres, Chris (James LeGros), his 17-year-old daughter Sam (Lily Collias) and his best friend Matt (Danny McCarthy) take a weekend backpacking trip in the Catskills. When tensions arise, Sam is caught in the middle, between her bickering father and his oldest friend.
CAST: Lily Collias, James Le Gros, Danny McCarthy, Sumaya Bouhbal, Diana Irvine, Sam Lanier, Peter McNally, Eric Yates. Directed by India Donaldson.
REVIEW: You could be forgiven for expecting something more from “Good One.” The in-the-middle-of-nowhere set-up seems familiar, as though there is danger lurking around every corner, but this is not that movie. Not really, anyway.
The low-fi debut from director India Donaldson defies expectations with a movie that takes a simple coming-of-age idea and amplifies it with slow burn intensity. This is not a horror film, a cabin in the woods deal, this is an emotional tale about the dread of being belittled and unappreciated.
Sam, the youngest but perhaps most mature of the member of the hiking trio, learns valuable life lessons as she confronts her father’s controlling nature and microaggressions and Matt’s loutish, inappropriate remarks.
Not that she elucidates them.
She doesn’t need to because Collias, in her biggest role to date, does a remarkable job of allowing us to read the thoughts written on her face. Her expressions portray the complexity of the performance, but the beauty of her work is in its simplicity as she effortlessly (or so it seems) acknowledges the hard truths about her relationship with her father and Matt. The look on her face when she unburdens herself to Chris, only to have him respond “C’mon… can’t we just have a nice day?” tells us more than any lines of dialogue could.
She is the “good one” of the title; younger but wiser.
Instead of simply painting LeGros and McCarthy as oblivious older guys, Donaldson, who also wrote the script, gives them something to work with. They have backstories, insecurities and quirks that make them human, and not just avatars for clueless behavior. LeGros and McCarthy are excellent, handing in naturalistic, relatable performances.
“Good One” takes its time to get where it is going. The bucolic backdrop, with its gently rolling hills and babbling brooks, sets the tone. It can sometimes feel like nothing is happening, but somehow, Donaldson delicately ramps up the tension, one crossed boundary at a time.
I’ll be reviewing four movies this week, everything from aliens and penguins to a coming-of-age story and a family drama. All reviews posted on Thursday, August 15!
Set between the events of “Alien” and “Aliens,” “Alien: Romulus,” a new sci fi flick now playing in theatres, sees a group of young space colonizers scavenging a derelict space station, only to discover the most terrifying life form in the universe.
In “My Penguin Friend,” a new family film starring Jean Reno and a penguin, and now playing in theatres, a Brazilian fisherman discovers an injured penguin drifting alone in the ocean, near death and covered in oil from a spill. He rescues the animal and rehabilitates it, forging an unconventional lifelong friendship.
In “Good One,” a new drama now playing in theatres, a father, his daughter and his best friend take a weekend backpacking trip in the Catskills. When tensions arise between the old friends, the daughter is caught in the middle, wedged between the clash of egos between her father and his oldest friend.
In “Close to You,” a new family drama now playing in theatres, Academy Award Nominee Elliot Page stars as a trans man who returns to his hometown for the first time in years.
I join Shane Hewitt on his Bell Media Radio Network show to talk about Maya Rudolph returning to “Saturday Night Live” to play Kamala Harris in the show’s upcoming, landmark 50th season, the impact of pop stars like Ariana Grande on the upcoming American election and why Hollywood now says, “Our movies are for everyone!”
Listen to the whole thing HERE! (Starts at 11:01)
Then, I returned to the show for “Boozwe and Reviews.” This week we talk about the up-lifting prison set movie “Sing Sing” and learn how to make “toilet wine.”
Listen to the whole thing HERE! (Starts at 31:29)
SYNOPSIS: Based on real events, “Sing Sing,” a new drama starring Colman Domingo, and now playing in theatres, sees a group of Sing Sing Correctional Facility prisoners, members of the Rehabilitation Through the Arts program, stage their own original play, the time travelling comedy “Breakin’ The Mummy’s Code.”
CAST: Colman Domingo, Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin, Sean San José, Paul Raci, David “Dap” Giraudy, Patrick “Preme” Griffin, Jon-Adrian Velazquez, Sean “Dino” Johnson
REVIEW: The unusual story of a group of prisoners who discover the power of art as a vehicle to break the self-imposed stereotypes that have shaped their lives, is a powerful, moving one. Dripping with empathy, “Sing Sing” has a theatre kid vibe, in an unconventional setting, that is infectious.
“Oz,” this ain’t.
Leading the charge is Domingo, hot off an Academy Award nomination for “Rustin.” His John “Divine G” Whitfield is an erudite character. In prison for murder, he writes plays, always has words of encouragement for fellow inmates and believes in the power of art to build community. But under a serene façade is boiling resentment and anger, disguised by a broad smile or studious look. It’s a lovely performance, filled with heart and hope, but also a hint of anguish for a life spent behind bars.
The rest of the cast, almost entirely made up of former Sing Sing Correctional Facility convicts, adds not only authenticity, but proof that the Rehabilitation Through the Arts program works. Their natural, committed performances show the inmates in a different light than we’re used to seeing in prison films. These are people who have made mistakes, no question, but who are much more than their mistakes and intimidating face tattoos. They are real people, who, as one of them says are in the group “to become human again and enjoy things that are not in our reality.”
The uplift and empathy on display is such a departure from prison set movies, it would be easy to be cynical about a movie like “Sing Sing.” But in its specificity the story becomes a universal story of the redemptive power of art and community. It’s a crowd-pleaser, and if you are prepared to give yourself to it, you may want to bring along some Kleenex.
LOGLINE: In “Daddio,” a new drama starring Sean Penn and Dakota Johnson, and now playing in theatres, a woman taking a late-night cab ride from JFK strikes up a revealing and soul-searching conversation with the cab driver as they head toward Manhattan.
CAST: Dakota Johnson and Sean Penn. Directed by Christy Hall.
REVIEW: A two-hander between passenger and driver, with no supplementary characters, “Daddio” has a stage-bound feel. From front seat to back seat with the meter running, the two strangers speak in monologues, detailing their lives, revealing deeply hidden secrets. It is, if nothing else, a showcase for Penn and Johnson’s ability to hold the screen. Each are in top form, subtly and sincerely inhabiting their characters as they reflect on their lives.
It is an intimate, simple film that focusses on the connection between the actors. Do I think this is a realistic exploration of the way complete strangers converse? I do not, it’s over-share central in this cab, but I do think it is an interesting look at the way people can find a rapport with someone they’ll likely never see again.
The characters, Clark and “Girlie,” lay themselves bare, and it is both tragic and tender. Life advice is offered and absorbed, and power dynamics shift, as their journey through the streets of Manhattan, and their personal histories, takes some unexpected turns.
Penn plays Clark as a hard-edged, old-school Hell’s Kitchen New Yorker. He’s opinionated, a know-it-all, unafraid to use his personal experiences to make sweeping generalizations on the dynamics between men and women. He hasn’t always been a great guy, but Penn gives Clark the world-weariness of someone who has actually learned from his mistakes. There is compassion in his eyes, even if many of his ideas about gender politics and relationships are old-fashioned. Still, when “Girlie” asks if he ever misses his ex-wife, the bravado fades and his one-word answer packs an emotional punch.
Johnson makes the confines of the cab her stage. Shot, by necessity, in close-up, the subtleties of her performance fill the screen. Like her work in “The Lost Daughter,” “Cha Cha Real Smooth” and “A Bigger Splash,” she allows the internal work to tell the tale. “Girlie” is strong, but without emotionally firm ground to anchor the character, Johnson allows a deep, ever present hurt to seep through.
“Daddio” was apparently partially inspired by the reality show “Taxicab Confessions,” but writer/director Christy Hall uses the genre to strip away the tawdry aspects of that series to reveal more about humanity than any backseat sex or nudity could.
LOGLINE: DJ, drummer, writer, director, and web series creator D.W. Waterson makes their feature directorial debut with “Backspot,” the story of a cheerleader (Devry Jacobs) whose perfectionism manifests itself with compulsive behavior. When she and her girlfriend (Kudakwashe Rutendo) are selected to be part of an elite squad, under the eye of an uncompromising coach (Evan Rachel Wood), the anxiety attacks intensify.
CAST: Devery Jacobs, Kudakwashe Rutendo, Evan Rachel Wood, Wendy Crewson, Shannyn Sossamon. Elliot Page is listed as one of the film’s producers.
REVIEW: Like a riff on “Whiplash” set against the rigors of elite cheerleading, “Backdrop” is a choppy examination of the pursuit for excellence. With a restless, jittery camera, Waterson captures the “no apologies, no fear” intensity of the training sessions and the frenetic excitement of the cheerleading performances, even if their fondness for close-ups over establishing shots gets in the way of showing those performances to full effect. But it’s in the actual storytelling where the film fails to stick the landing. Issues of respect, body image and abusive relationships are broached, but never meaningfully examined. Instead, the movie skims along the surface, leaning into its maximalist style, entertaining the eye, at the expense of engaging emotionally.
