A week visiting my grand daughter resulted in viewing three "family" films, and they were all pretty good--FINDING DORY, THE SECRET LIFE OF PETS and Spielberg's THE BFG. Here in descending order are all the first run films I saw this past month.
My favorite from SIFF this past May is a film I greatly admire, but it is difficult to love. Based on a novel by Phillip Roth, INDIGNATION, which opens nationwide this weekend, tells the story of a young Jewish man who avoids the Korean war conflict by becoming a college student, but his values and philosophy come into conflict with the mid-western sensibilities of this Protestant school. The casual viewer may think that nothing much is happening here, but several extended sequences involving his sexual relationship with a non Jewish woman with issues, his conflict with the head dean of the college over housing decisions (!), and a devastating rebuttal from his mother lead our protagonist to life changing consequences. The astonishing supporting performances by Tracy Letts and Linda Emond as the dean and the mother, should be immortalized in stone. The tone is comic, cynical and sarcastic, but the tragedy is eerie and lingering. This is the first film directed by James Shamus, a renown writer and producer who has worked extensively with director Ang Lee (BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN, LIFE OF PI) among others, and was the co-founder and former CEO of Focus Features. To coin a cliche, he hit's this one out of the park in a thoughtful, subtle and disturbing way. This is the Best Film of the Year, so far. GRADE------------A
Opening across the nation during the past month is another SIFF favorite. Set during the end of World War II and inspired by a true story, THE INNOCENTS tells of a small convent that was set upon by the Red Army. Several nuns have been raped and impregnated and are in desperate need of medical attention. The film focuses on a female doctor who tries to help medically, but finds herself overwhelmed by the emotional distress that these nuns have with their situation. The film plays like a more serious super sized episode of the PBS TV show CALL THE MIDWIFE in French, and there is nothing wrong with that show at all. GRADE-----------A-
Somehow during the final 20 minutes of FINDING DORY, the new Pixar film sequel to FINDING NEMO from a number of years back, I began laughing like an idiot, finding that nearly every gag and joke was hitting the mark. In retrospect, I'm not sure those jokes were as funny as they seemed, but I had a very fine time with Dory and company. I was very conscious of Dory and her lack of memory retention. Here's a film that showcases the main character with dementia and alzheimers
symptoms, yet manages to be warm and funny as well. GRADE----------B+
A witty and charming New Zealand comedy, HUNT FOR THE WILDERPEOPLE is an exotic adventure chase film featuring a hip hop loving, smart aleck "bad egg" of a kid who's been kicked out of a number of foster homes due to his irrepressible anger towards society. He finally ends up at a family that just might work, until a sudden twist of fate sends him into the wilderness with his caustic foster father, played by the irrascible Sam Neill. To be honest, the film does run out of comic energy by the final 10 minutes, but any film that can find laughs along the way with sentimentality, gun control, child abuse, bad cops and survivalism gets my vote. GRADE----------B
Written and directed by comedian Mike Birbiglia, DON'T THINK TWICE feels very much like a true life film. A close knit group of friends live together as a comedy/improv group, while each works a day job, trying to hit the big time. When one of their group does hit the big time (in this case a late night comedy TV show very much like Saturday Night Live) the group begins to splinter with jealousy and anger, just as they lose their theatre lease. The tone is comic and ironic and each member is well played by young actors/comedienes including Birbiglia, Keegan-Michael Key, Jillian Jacobs and others. GRADE-----------B
Two films ago, the STAR TREK series was successfully rebooted, but now with this new film STAR TREK BEYOND it feels like that reboot needs to happen again. It's not bad, but the plot feels familiar, and how many times can the Star Ship Enterprise be damaged beyond belief and still fly????? He didn't have much to do in this latest film but I'm going to miss Anton Yelchim as Chekov. I'm glad that some of the characters are given more character development, and I look forward to the next adventure. Just wish I was a little more excited about this OK trek. GRADE-------------B-
The set up of the animated THE SECRET LIVES OF PETS is great--what wacky things might our dogs and cats and birds be doing when we are not home? Indeed, during the first 10 minutes, things are pretty funny. The problem starts when two dogs go missing (that darned animal control) and another fluffy dog decides to track them down. The plot device leads to chases through construction sites, sewers, "gangster" animals (with Kevin Hart as Snowball--a cute white bunny with a foul temper as a standout voice) and other ho hum locations. The film is watchable and engaging at times, but not nearly as funny or clever as it could have been. GRADE-------------B-
There is much to admire technically about Steven Spielberg's newest fantasy, THE BFG. The big friendly giant in question is nicely played by recent Oscar winner Mark Rylance (for Spielberg's BRIDGE OF SPIES) and there are a dozen other giants---even bigger!--that are not so nice. In fact they want to eat the young girl that BFG has kidnapped (for friendly reasons) at the start of the film and much of the conflict comes from escaping their clutches. BFG and the girl decide to ask the Queen of England for help, and there is a funny sequence involving flatuance at the palace. I wasn't so impressed with this story, however, and there is a sluggishness in the pacing that tried the patience of the younger kids in the audience. Still, visually the film is delightful and the imagery triggers a totally new imaginary world that has stuck with me for several weeks. GRADE------B-
The original GHOSTBUSTERS film is still quite vivid in my mind, and I've recently seen that first landmark comedy--it holds up very well. Now comes a new remake with an all female cast (yeah!) and as much as I enjoyed it, I kept feeling that I'd seen it all before. The story is basically the same, the ghosts are all very familiar-looking (including another visit from the Stay puff man) , and once again the city is besieged by these slimmers from the great beyond, and only the GHOSTBUSTERS can stop them. Yawn. The good news is the cast, with Kristen Wiig and Melissa McCarthy getting the lion's share of the plot and gag lines, and they are pretty funny. Kate McKinnon is interesting as one of the scientists, but for me the scene stealer is Leslie Jones, who joins the team recently from the New York transit scene--and doesn't know much about the mechanics, but knows a ghost when she sees one. Hopefully this film will verify once and for all that a cast of all women can get the job done on any film coming out of Hollywood-----I just wish the film had been more original in plot. GRADE----------B-
This new version of the series, now just called JASON BOURNE after the title character, features all the chases and fights and car crashes and spy shenanigans that you'd expect from this series that set Matt Damon on the road to action hero/star. Unfortuantely, the director has continued his reliance on jiggly hand held camera work, and half way through this film I was forced to move from a middle section seat to the very last row, because the camera action was making me nauseaus. The film could be improved by the introduction of some humanistic responses and traits from Bourne--he has become an icy cold killing machine with little to no character empathy. I did, however, like the new agent added to the film, played with her usual intelligence by Oscar winner (for THE DANISH GIRL) Alicia Vikander. I won't however be seeing any more films by Paul Greengrass unless I'm sure he's learned to make a film without twirling the camera around so that most scenes look like a bleary blur. GRADE-----------C+
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Films viewed on DVD-------
THE LADY EVE (1941) --Perhaps Preston Sturges best film, this comedy of the sexes has Henry Fonda as the son of a wealthy beer magnate, and Barbara Stanwyck the daughter of a card shark. She and her father try to swindle Fonda out of big bucks aboard a cruise ship, but their scheme falls apart when she falls for him, and vice a versa. Hilariously, this is only the first half of the film. Many great lines, wonderful supporting performances (including Charles Coburn as her conniving father and William Demarest--a Sturges regular-- as Fonda's man Friday) and cracker jack dialogue keep this comedy floating above the others. GRADE------A
AND THEN THERE WERE NONE (2016)---This BBC movie version of Agatha Christie's novel is the best version I've seen, mainly because of the three hour time spent on characterizations, and the cast, which includes Miranda Richardson, Sam Neill, Charles Dance, Aiden Turner, Toby Stephens, Noah Taylor, Anna Maxwell Martin and newcomer (for me) Maeve Devmody and others...and they are all superb. Each character has secrets that slowly come out, and there are many twists and turns. Even though I've seen this story several times and know the finale, it still surprises me. Set on a private island, ten strangers are invited to dinner by a mysterious guest, and one by one they are killed off because of their crimes against society. Moody, creepy, sinister and fascinating, this is an excellent adaptation. GRADE-------A-
CAKE (2014)--A stunning characterization by Jennifer Aniston as a woman who survived a horrific accident that killed her child and left her nearly paralyzed with daily pain is the heart of this fascinating and moving story. Based on a true story, this woman has lost not only her son, but her marriage, her sanity, her friends, and spends her days taking pain killers and talking to the ghost of another victim who commited suicide because her pain was so dibilitating. Her only comfort--her Mexican house keeper--who is paid to stay by her side, but provides her with much needed sympathy and support. Well done. GRADE-------B+
MURDER AT THE GALLOP (1963)---One of four films made that featured the delightful Margaret Rutherford as Miss Jane Marple in versions of Agatha Christie's novels, this one benefits from some sterling peoformances by Robert Morley and Flora Robson as relatives under suspicion of murdering the deceased for his estate money, but of course several new murders limit the guilty suspect. GRADE----------B
THE GREAT MCGINTY (1940)--The first film Preston Sturges was able to direct (as well as write)--this amusing fable stars Brian Donlevy as a homeless man who is hired to vote numerous times for the city mayor, who takes him under his wing as a "heavy"--but McGinty is so effective that he quickly becomes promoted to governor of the state, and discovers that he is really an honest person. Sturges apparently sold this story to the studio for one dollar, on the condition that he alone could direct it, and that started a string of a dozen popular films that he directed in the 1940's.
GRADE---------B
LUV (1967)---This comedy of the absurd will not be for everyone's taste, but the sparkling cast includes Jack Lemmon as a suicidal man, Peter Falk as an old college buddy who rescues him only to pawn him off on his depressed wife that he wants to divorce, and Elaine May plays the wife who only wants to keep her faithless husband. Some of the lines fall very flat, others are brilliant, and the supporting cast is amusing. This was first an unsuccessful play, and it is now a sometimes brilliant if odd film. GRADE--------B-
CHRISTMAS IN JULY (1940)--Preston Sturges wrote and directed this slight comedy about a naive young man (Dick Powell) who mistakenly believes that he has won the best slogan award from a coffee company, and, incredibly, convinces a major department store that he has a check for $25000 to cover the cost of his spending spree. The film is light weight and short (less than 70 minutes) and is not his best effort, but the cast is game, and gives William Demarest (again) the best gag at the end.
GRADE---------C+
GOODBYE CHARLIE (1964)--Director Vincente Minnelli gives this odd film some sparkle, and Debbie Reynolds is fascinating in the roll of a philandering man who is killed by a jealous husband (Walter Matthau with a funny eastern European accent) but returns to his home "reincarnated" as
a woman. In life, his/her best friend is Tony Curtis, who tries to figure out what happened, then realizes he is attracted to her, but the film does not deal with that situation seriously. Too bad. Ellen Burstyn has a small early role as a woman who had a relationship with the Reynolds character before his death. It's easy to see what attracted Blake Edwards to want to remake this film in 1991 as SWITCH. He tried to give it a feminist sensibility, but most reviews I've seen complained that is was
tasteless and sexist. I haven't seen it yet, but it is curious to me. GRADE--------C+
YOURS, MINE, OURS (1968)--Lucille Ball is a widow with 8 kids, and Henry Fonda is a widower with 10 kids, and they meet cute and marry (both are in the service) and this giant family provides most of the laughs and drama that comes with so many family members. Unfortunately, the film tries to be even handed and serious, taking much of the fun out of the proceedings. GRADE------C+
PHFFFT! (1954)--Based on a Broadway stage play, this one has Jack Lemmon and Judy Holliday divorcing after a long marriage. They start to date others--a young Kim Novak for Lemmon, and Lemmon's best friend Jack Carson for Holliday, but they soon long for each other again. The film is very talky, without much effort to "open it up" so the film feels claustrophobic, although each character has their moments. GRADE---------C+
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The Lady Eve has always been a favorite of mine.
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