Quarantine Reviews 10: Some movie I give one star or less...

Hello Fellow Film Fans,
I hope all is well with you as we head into the summer months. Here are six movies I do not care for and I'm reviewing them for your safety. Happy Viewing Everyone.

Jeffrey Wright on the hunt. photo credit: rogerebert.com

Hold the Dark (released 2018). Ryan's Rating: ✯ (out of 4). 

A good idea, a great location, and one excellent shootout sequence all wasted in a slog of a movie. The good idea: A baby disappears in a remote area of Alaska, possibly carried away by wolves. The baby's mother writes to an aged but noted wolf expert (Jeffrey Wright), asking him to come to Alaska to hunt and kill the wolves responsible but when he arrives something more sinister is a foot. Great location: the foreboding isolated snowy wilderness is well shot. Best scene: involves a police standoff between the local authorities and a Native American veteran. This sequence is so visceral and expertly staged it seems a shame the rest of the film is not better. After the first fifteen minutes the pace is nearly immobile. The atmosphere is ominous, and the performances are (I think purposefully) lifeless trying to make a comment on the darkness and mystical elements, but all that does is make the scenes boring. There's also a sequence featuring the baby's father in battle in Iraq that felt completely out of place to me. Too bad because it had promise.

Rambo ready to inflict pain. pc: IMDB

Rambo: Last Blood (released 2019). Ryan's Rating: zero stars 

I'm a big Sylvester Stallone fan and I like the previous four Rambo films but this one is a waste. Gruesomely violent in the extreme, it is more violent than the previous Rambo movies and feels overly violent even for a Rambo/Stallone picture (which is saying something). Please note I fast forwarded through several sequences because of the violence. John Rambo (Stallone) lives on a ranch in Arizona (as we saw him returning at the end of the previous movie). He suffers from PTSD from his Vietnam War (and other) experiences but seems to find peace raising horses, all the while he's built a giant underground tunnel system beneath the ranch. Also on the ranch are a woman who works for him and her teenaged daughter. The daughter wants to meet her estranged father living in Mexico. Against everyone's wishes the girl crosses the border, she's quickly captured by bad guys, pumped with drugs, and sold into the sex trade. Rambo goes to find her and get revenge on the big Mexican cartel. The abuse of the teenage character is also tough to watch and it becomes clear the movie will hurt/kill anyone for a shock. It's a poorly made off-putting film and all the worse if this is the end of the series. While the title indicates this may be the final film the ending leaves it open. Maybe Rambo: Final Blood, or Rambo: New Blood?

Tom Berenger & Melanie Griffith out in NYC. pc: IMDB

Fear City (released 1984). Ryan's rating: zero stars 

A serial killer is attacking strippers in New York City, a detective and some mafia backed club owners band together to find the psycho. Great cast: Tom Berenger, Melanie Griffith, Billy Dee Williams, Jack Scalia (all fairly early in their careers). Directed by famed independent filmmaker Abel Ferrara with his usual mix of grime and neon. Terrible, but then again you never know with Ferrara.

Brad Pitt with his Doodle partner. pc: IMDB

Cool World (released 1992). Ryan's Rating: ✯

I've always been curious to see this movie but I should have just stayed curious and avoided it. As many have described, this is a crazy (also bad) version of Who Framed Roger Rabbit. An animated world exists in an alternate dimension but it is threatening to merge with our Earth and we need to stop it. The animation seems unfinished and when the live actors interact with the animated world everything suddenly looks like cardboard cutouts. This may be on purpose, but it was distracting and makes the film look cheap. There's an unnecessary prologue and the movie as a whole drags and drags. Only interest is the pre-fame Brad Pitt (though his performance is not great) and Kim Basinger is fun as the cartoon (or Doodle as they're called here) who comes to life. While I am not a fan, this movie does have its supporters. 

Forger and Historian on the run. pc: IMDB

Incognito (released 1997). Ryan's Rating: ✯

An art forger (Jason Patric, zero charisma here) creates a fake "lost" Rembrandt painting but is double crossed by his employer and framed for murder. He goes on the run with an art historian (Irene Jacob) at his side. Beautiful European scenery/locations in a variation on a Hitchcock plot but a poor movie. Director John Badham is a decent director but he is unable to do anything here. Also despite Patric's 1990s good looks he shows no appeal and no ability to carry this type of adventure/thriller. He and co-star Jacob also have very little chemistry. There is a neat sequence showing how the forgery is created. That scene and the locations are all we have here.

Detective and Professor uncover the crime pc: IMDB

Separate Lives (released 1995). Ryan's Rating: ✯

A retired police detective (Jim Belushi) is studying to become a therapist. One day his professor (Linda Hamilton) hires him to follow her because she is having blackouts with no memory of what she's done. The detective quickly finds out she has multiple personalities (well two), one as the straitlaced college professor, and the other as a night owl who commits crimes. The rest of the story is not really worth your time. This film was released theatrically but looks and feels like a poor TV movie. The only interest for some might be seeing a young Elisabeth Moss (The Handmaid's Tale) playing Belushi's middle schooler daughter.

Quarantine Reviews 9: Six Recommended by Jim Cameron Stan

In honor of my good friend, Jim Cameron Stan, here are six movies he recommended to me and now I recommend them to you all. The reviews are listed in the order they were recommended to me.

Enjoy my reviews, thank you for J.C. Stan, check these films out, and Happy Viewing everyone.

The Half of It, released 2020, Ryan's Rating ✯✯✯1/2 (out of four, highly recommended)

Leah Lewis as Ellie. credit: Roger Ebert.com

Ellie Chiu (played by an excellent Leah Lewis), is the only Asian in her very small rural town and longs of going to art school but does not have the money. Her father, still mourning the years ago death of Ellie's mom, runs the freight train crossing at the edge of town where Ellie works late at night. She is extremely smart, and she is secretly paid by classmates to ghostwrite their school papers. Ellie also has one other secret, she is gay and has feelings for her classmate, Aster (Alexxis Lemire), the daughter of the town's church Deacon. Enter, Paul (Daniel Diemer), a football player who is kind and shy and also has a crush on Aster. He doesn't know how to express himself so he pays Ellie to write Aster some love letters. She reluctantly agrees and the story expands from there. While the plot is a modern variation on Cyrano De Bergerac (or if you prefer a younger version of Steve Martin's Roxanne) writer/director Alice Wu and a great unknown cast fill the movie with so much honesty and heart it made me forget any familiarities of the story and allowed me to truly enjoy an excellently made film. It is rare to see a film of such nuance in today's cinema and I highly recommend this one. [Side note: This film reminds me of another Asian American independent gem called Eve and the Firehorse, directed by Julia Kwan, from 2005. I saw it at the Hawaii International Film Festival and I wish this movie as well was given a platform like Netflix]. 

   

Frequency, released in 2000. Ryan's Rating ✯✯✯.

Dennis Quaid in Frequency. credit: IMDB

I saw this when it came out on VHS but didn't really remember the full story, so it was fun to watch again like it was the first time. In 1999 (present day when the movie was released) a New York police detective (played by Jim Caviezel) finds his father's old ham-radio in the basement and magically the radio allows him to talk to his long deceased New York firefighter father (Dennis Quaid) in 1969. This crux of parents, their children, and time lost is the heart of the story. There is a police investigation plot involving a serial killer that feels a little too much like a standard tv cop show (not surprising director Gregory Hoblit directed and produced a number of episodes for Hill Street Blues and NYPD Blue) and at times this police story feels like a distraction from the father/son story but if I didn't focus too much on the police aspect it worked fine. Another distraction is the attempt at New York accents by the two stars (they aren't very good at the accent), but that's nitpicking. The film also tries to explain some of the magical happenings which seem unnecessary, for instance a phenomenon with the northern lights that happens every thirty years has something to do with the time traveling radio signal. One thing I did appreciate is the nod to the creation of new memories when the past is altered allowing the future to change. In many time travel movies when the past is altered the main characters apparently lived a whole different life that they have no memory of (for instance Marty McFly has no idea what happened in his first eighteen years of life after he changes the events of 1955; he doesn't recognize his house, his family, etc.). If you stick to the heart of Frequency and don't get weighed down in examining the logistics this is a very enjoyable little film and you'll be glad to have seen it. I know I'm glad to have seen it.

Enemy at the Gates, released 2001. Ryan's Rating: ✯✯1/2.

Jude Law as the Soviet Sniper credit: PrimeVideo

During WWII, a Soviet sniper (Jude Law) is built up by a writer in the war department (Joseph Fiennes) as a folk hero to boost the morale during the Nazi invasion. In turn the Nazis bring in their own sniper (Ed Harris) to hunt down this Russian hero. The movie feels like three stories that could have worked well together but never really gel like they should: First story, the two snipers hunting each other (which should be the main story but really doesn't come until maybe forty minutes in); second story, there is a historical drama aspect about the effects of war on the regular people and seeing the war from the Soviet/Russian point of view (this includes an epic opening battle sequence reminiscent of Saving Private Ryan's D-Day opening); and then the third story (personally the least interesting) is the triangle between the Fiennes and Law characters (Fiennes's character eventually resents the fame he's given to this sniper) and a volunteer female soldier (Rachel Weisz). Each sort of work in and of themselves, but they never combine into a single film like the makers want. The best sequence is a stand off between the two snipers in a bombed out factory involving reflections in panes of broken glass. My least favorite of the  movies listed here.

Stranger Than Fiction, released 2006. Ryan's Rating: ✯✯✯✯ (highly recommended).

Will Ferrell as Harold finding joy in life. credit: Netflix

Harold Crick (wonderfully played by Will Ferrell in a non-Ferrell performance) is a stuffy IRS auditor who lives in routine because he seemingly knows no other way. He does everything to obsessive precision from brushing his teeth to catching the correct bus and by choice never takes any days off from work. One day he hears a woman's voice narrating his life as if it were a novel and the voice informs him he will die in the next few weeks. Harold seeks out a local college English professor (Dustin Hoffman, who has a really nice office for a professor) to explain the novelistic narration Harold is hearing. This leads them to discover the voice belongs to a reclusive award winning author (Emma Thompson) working on her next book and little does she know that her writings are effecting real life. There's also a sweet and believable love story that grows between Harold and a woman he's auditing (Maggie Gyllenhaal). And that is only the beginning. I truly enjoyed this film, perfectly cast it never goes too deeply into its meta-narrative ideas but is an engaging life affirming tale fully realized by the filmmakers and cast. Check this one out if you haven't seen it.

Mystery Men, released 1999. Ryan's Rating: ✯✯1/2.

The Replacement Heroes. credit: decider.com

When a big time super hero (played by Greg Kinnear) is kidnapped, a group of amateur heroes (Ben Stiller, William H. Macy, Hank Azaria, etc.) band together to save him and the city from the clutches of a mad villain (Geoffrey Rush, clearly having a ball). These low rent heroes (sort of) have powers, with names like The Bowler, The Shoveler, and Blue Raja, but are more of a ragtag misfit team. Based on an independent comic book series the film feels like a comic come to life with its framing and shot compositions and the elaborate sets. It is a fun movie but its pace is a bit slow and like many movies about teams has to take up a lot of story time introducing the characters. My favorite (and this is not a joke toward the Jim C. Stan) is The Bowler played by Janeane Garofalo in another tailor made part. I remember this was a big hit for my freshman class when it came out in 1999.

The Vast of Night, wide release 2020 (festival 2019). Ryan's Rating: ✯✯✯1/2 

Jake Horowitz and Sierra McCormick pc: IMDB

It's the late 1950s in the small town of Cayuga, NM, and it's the night of the big high school basketball game. The town switchboard operator (played by Sierra McCormick) and her friend the local radio DJ (Jake Horowitz) discover a strange sound coming through the phone and radio lines that appears to be otherworldly. While this basic plot has been used countless times (Close Encounters, The Blob, Them, Twilight Zone, Contact, heck this could be a 1950s Stranger Things) first time director Andrew Patterson (and writer under a pseudonym) makes it all seem fresh and surprisingly original. Patterson nods to this familiarity with a framing device of a 1950s TV show "Paradox Theater" (this neat framing has meta-narrative connotations but also works to cover up some edits or possibly moments that were not able to be filmed in the budget). Throughout the film there is a tangible unsettled feeling and the tension builds and builds as the films progresses, al based the way Patterson sets up shots and uses long single takes superior yet subtle performances by the actors. There is a close up/long take of McCormick operating the switchboard as frantic calls come in that lasts for several minutes it is handled masterfully by both the director and actress. To quote reviewer Sheila O'Malley (one of the many who operate under Roger Ebert's team), "It's old-fashioned in a beautiful way: once upon a time, a close-up really meant something, and close-ups really mean something in The Vast of Night." I fully agree. Director Patterson has a great eye for framing and camera movement and while he made this film with a very small budget (apparently paid for almost entirely out of his own pocket) it always looks like a high quality film. Patterson's feature directing career (after many years making commercials) is off to a good start and I hope he has the opportunity to make more films as well put together as this one. 

Quarantine Reviews 8: Academy Award Winners and Nominees (prime for rediscovery, and one current nominee)

Copyright Academy of Arts and Sciences

Oscar Fever, Ryan Reviews: Hud, Lillies of the Field, Only When I Laugh,  Tender Mercies, Starman, and The Trial of the Chicago Seven

With the 2021 Academy Awards coming up this weekend (an event I've watched since I was a little boy) I've reviewed several Academy Award Winners and Nominees that are prime for rediscovery!

Happy Viewing!

Cinematographer James Wong Howe. credit: AFI

 Hud. released 1963. Ryan's Rating ✯✯✯✯ (out of four)

Based on a novel by Larry McMurtry (who just passed away in 2021) and like most McMurtry stories it is a coming of age character study about the conflicts between the old world and the new world.  Hud Bannon (Paul Newman), a young self centered womanizer, is constantly at odds with his father, Homer (Melvyn Douglas who won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar), an aging rancher with an admirable moral code and unflinching principles. They operate a cattle ranch in a small Texas town in the 1950s. Also on the ranch is teenaged Lonnie (Brandon deWilde) who is trying to find his way in the world and is unsure if he should follow Hud's rebellious ways or Homer's more principled lifestyle. Over the course of the story an entire herd of cattle becomes infected with foot and mouth disease which could be the end of the ranch. There is a powerful scene where the entire herd needs to be killed to prevent the spread of the disease. Patricia Neal (who won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar) plays the ranch housekeeper who wants nothing to do with Hud or his continuing advances. Filmed in spectacular black and white with Oscar winning cinematography by James Wong Howe (a truly important figure that should be better known, an innovator in the field and all the more impressive because he was Asian American at a time when there were none or very few behind the camera). Martin Ritt always gets exceptional performances from his actors and here is no exception in a truly moving film.

Lilies of the Field released 1963. Ryan's Rating ✯✯✯✯ (out of four)

Sidney Poitier. photocredit: TCM

This film is probably best known today for Sidney Poitier winning the Best Actor Academy Award making him the second black actor to win a competitive acting award (Hattie McDaniel was the first) and making him the first black man to win Best Actor (he would be the only one to win Best Actor for nearly forty more years). I wonder how many of today's viewers have actually seen the movie? I must confess I had always wanted to see it but never took the time until 2020. It is prime for rediscovery. Poitier plays Homer Smith, a man who can fix anything and is good at construction. He is driving west to find work but makes a pitstop at a farm in Arizona occupied by five German nuns. The head nun (Lilia Skala, Oscar nominated) believes he has been sent by God and convinces (really tricks Homer) into staying with them to build a chapel. This dynamic, the push and pull between the two headstrong characters (Homer and Mother Maria), is the heart of the story, and the plot is almost like a bible parable. It is a very small and simple movie but I found it very moving and Poitier is as always commanding to watch. I highly recommend it for an old fashioned film and it is only 90 minutes long.

Only When I Laugh released 1981. Ryan's Rating ✯✯✯ (out of four)

Marsha Mason and Kristy McNichol pc:Prime Video

Based on Neil Simon's play The Gingerbread Lady, with a screenplay adapted by Simon, follows a once successful Broadway star, Georgia (Marsha Mason), who lost her career to alcoholism and as the film opens she is leaving a rehab center. She returns to her New York apartment and her two best friends, one an unemployed actor (James Coco) and a debutant who is obsessed with appearing young (Joan Hackett). Shortly after returning home, Georgia's teenaged daughter (Kristy McNichol), who normally lives with Georgia's ex-husband, comes to live with her. The story continues with Georgia working to stay sober, create a relationship with her daughter, and working to get her Broadway career back on track. There is a very theatrical feel to this (showing its stage origins) and I had to get used to the rhythm of Simon's dialog here because it is not quite realistic. Once I became accustom to the film's style I enjoyed the movie, especially the acting, and I love the location filming in New York. The four main actors are great but Coco and McNichol really stand out (Mason, Coco and Hackett were all nominated for Academy Awards). Prime for rediscovery especially for fans of Broadway and Neil Simon's work. That being said I want to note, the alcoholism is not presented in a very credible way, and there is an assault of the main character (off screen late in the film) that is also not handled well, both are simply here as plot devices. This offhanded use of very real issues may effect your enjoyment of the movie or may make you not want to see it (Siskel & Ebert hated this movie for this and several other reasons). While watching the film it didn't bother me as I was swept up in the story, but as I was thinking about the film for this review it rubbed me the wrong way. I'm still very glad to have seen this film and do recommend it.  

Tender Mercies released 1981. Ryan's Rating ✯✯✯1/2 (out of four)

Duvall and Tess Harper. pc: IMDB

Mac Sledge (Robert Duvall) is a once successful country musician who lost his career and family to alcoholism. As the film opens Mac wakes up from a days long blackout in a roadside motel located in a vast open area of Texas. The motel is owned and run by a young widow (Tess Harper, in her film debut) whose husband died as a young soldier in Vietnam about ten years prior, she also has a ten year old son. He asks if she needs an employee in exchange for a place to stay. She agrees and eventually they fall in love and get married. Now, that could be a story in itself but this all happens in the first ten minutes. Hotron Foote's Academy award winning screenplay is really a series of loosely connected scenes/vignettes all centered around the Mac character. For such a low key role Duvall commands the screen and is mesmerizing, he even does his own signing. This role won him a well deserved Best Actor Oscar. The entire cast is excellent and while I thoroughly enjoyed the film (and was moved by it) this may not be to everyone's liking since it is so quiet. If you're willing to stick with it there are a lot of rewards.

Starman released 1984. Ryan's Rating ✯✯✯1/2 (out of four)

Jeff Bridges and Karen Allen. pc: blu-ray.com

In response to the invitation from the Voyager 2 space probe, a being from outer space comes to earth. In Starman's initial arrival to Earth the ship is shot at by the military and crashes in Wisconsin near the home of a young widow (Karen Allen). Reviewing photos and home movies, the starman takes the form of the woman's recently deceased husband (Jeff Bridges). Soon Starman and the widow (against her will) are on a road trip to Barringer Crater Arizona where he must meet his pick up ship in four days. The basic story and several scenes are very similar to E.T. (which was released two years earlier) but this is a very different movie. I was pleasantly surprised when it turned into a road picture with the two characters traveling cross country, initially I thought the two would stay on her farm so this change of scenery was an exciting change and despite the fact that this is an easy way to show Starman interacting with American life it all rings true. There are some truly great shots of the open desert as they near Arizona. There is a scene where they hitch a ride in the back of a pickup with some migrant workers and we see the clouds and mountains expand in the background in a single shot/long take. I found it breathtaking. Bridges (nominated for Best Actor here) is great as the alien in an unfamiliar skin. Critic Roger Ebert notes that one of the best parts of Bridges's performance is that he never fully becomes human. His speech and movements are always slightly off center and it provides for a great performance. For me, the real key to the film is Karen Allen, who has the less showy and therefore more difficult part. Her progression from fear and uncertainty to warmth and affection is the heart of the movie. This is director John Carpenter's most a-typical film and it is arguably his best. Highly recommend by me.

Trial of the Chicago 7 (2021 Nominee) released 2020. Ryan's Rating ✯✯✯1/2 (out of four)

pc: nytimes.com

Currently nominated for six Academy Awards is another fine film by Aaron Sorkin, who in my opinion has yet to make a bad film. As the title explains this film focuses on a ludicrous trail of initially eight but eventually seven anti-Vietnam war protest leaders who were brought to trial as a scapegoat for the Nixon administration under claims that the seven started the riots at the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago. As many reviews have stated, Sorkin plays with the facts and rearranges some of the events in order to tell his story so this should not be taken as a complete reenactment but more a commanding film inspired by real events. Perfectly cast. Sasha Baron Cohen (Oscar nominated here) is excellent as Abby Hoffman and this was the first time I have seen Cohen in a film where I forgot it was him. The film is ultimately timely in its depiction of a corrupt government and legal system (Frank Langella as the deranged judge is infuriating), as well as abuses of police power are all unfortunately relevant. Originally intended as a theatrical release (it had a very short run) but made its wide release on Netflix due to the pandemic. It seemed more suited to the TV screen I'm not sure why. It is a fine film and I was enthralled, engaged, and entertained.

Quarantine Movies Reviews 7: Four small town murder mysteries

Watch out who you chat with in these small towns (really three small towns and a big estate)!

Ryan's Reviews of Cookie's Fortune, Clay Pigeons, Drowning Mona, and Gosford Park.

Janeane Garofalo and Vince Vaughn in Clay Pigeons. pc: IMDB

Clay Pigeons (released 1998) Ryan's Rating ✯✯1/2 (out of four)

I have wanted to see this film since I saw the VHS cover in Blockbuster Video but at the time it was a little older than my sixth grade mind could handle so my family was not going to rent it for me. I never got around to watching it till now (though the Amazon Prime Video version is a pan & scan, seemingly copied from a VHS which maybe takes it all full circle). 

Clay (a young Joaquin Phoenix) is a lazy guy living in a small town (possibly in Texas though the film was shot in Utah) and has been sleeping with his best friend's wife. His best friend kills himself and makes it look like a murder committed by Clay. Soon a mysterious drifter, with a creepy laugh (early career Vince Vaughn), shows up and insinuates himself into Clay's life. Within a week more dead bodies start showing up all with a connection to Clay and then the FBI arrives (Janeane Garofalo) to look into it. This is a mix of Neo-Noir and a black comedy, the opening scene really pulls the audience in and the first thirty minutes are so good that the rest of the film doesn't sustain the greatness of the beginning. On top of that the pace slows down at about the halfway mark. I enjoyed the movie overall, though the ending is not a satisfying resolution and sometimes the country songs on the soundtrack dilute their scenes instead of enhancing them. It is very reminiscent of the 1980s and 1990s independent Neo-Noirs or crime films like Blood Simple, One False Move, and Red Rock West (among many others). If you're a fan of Neo-Noir and have an hour and forty five minutes give this one a whirl.

Cookie's Fortune (released 1999) Ryan's Rating ✯✯✯ (out of four).

Charles S. Dutton and Liv Tyler in Cookie's Fortune PC IMDB

During Easter weekend in a small Mississippi town, a wealthy eccentric woman named Cookie (played by the always lovely Patricia Neal) dies in her sleep and her money hungry sister (played by Glenn Close) claims it was murder. Soon Cookie's longtime friend and handyman (Charles S. Dutton in one of his most appealing performances) is charged with the crime, though most of the town doubts his involvement. This Robert Altman film, like all Altman films, is an ensemble piece with a wonderful cast (including Julianne Moore, and many1990s familiar faces like Liv Tyler, Chris O'Donnell, and Lyle Lovett) and a more whimsical lighthearted approach than I am used to from Altman. And like other Altman films it is more of a character study than a true mystery as the audience knows full well what happened but we are watching to see how the story plays out with the these wonderful characters. It is a sweet funny film.

Drowning Mona (released 2000) Ryan's Rating ✯✯ (out of four).

In a town where everyone still drives a Yugo brand car because it was used for market testing in the 1970s, the most hated resident Mona Dearly (played with gusto by Bette Midler) is murdered when her brakes fail. The sheriff (excellent Danny DeVito) begins to investigate and finds a town full of suspects but all evidence seems to point toward his soon to be son-in-law (pre-fame Casey Affleck). This is a very black comedy, with much of the "humor" being downright mean. Through flashbacks we see events told by different characters and how the story changes depending on which character is speaking. The plot is a traditional small town "whodunit" mystery but run through a wacky filter and by the end I did not really care to figure out who the culprit was. The movie feels too long even at 96 minutes and the excellent cast that includes Neve Campbell (the sheriff's daughter) and Jamie Lee Curtis (not given much to do as a chain smoking waitress). It would have been better shorter and maybe as an HBO TV movie instead of a theatrical feature. There are some funny ideas, like the Yugos.

Gosford Park (released 2001) Ryan's Rating ✯✯✯ (out of four).

Another wonderful late career gem by Robert Altman. At the British Estate of the title a wide array of aristocracy and their servants gather for a weekend party where the host is killed. While there is a murder and a solution, the murder element of the story doesn't really happen till quite late in the film. This is really a "upstairs/downstairs" ensemble piece as we see the lives of the wealthy and their servants juxtaposed. The Oscar winning screenplay by Julian Fellows is a precursor to Fellows later success. He took many of the elements in his story here and several years later created the extremely successful Downton Abby TV Series. An enjoyable ensemble piece that is not really a mystery but just an interesting character study with great cinematography, excellent set/costume design, and wonderful performance by a great cast.

  

Quarantine reviews 6: Mank (or maybe Citizen Mank) a film for film buffs.

Mank (Netflix released 2020) Ryan's rating ✯✯✯ out of four.

Amanda Seyfried as Marion Davies & Gary Oldman as Mank (Still: Indiewire) 

The latest Netflix production from top tier director David Fincher tells the story of famed screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz (played by Gary Oldman in another fine performance) and his writing of the screenplay for Citizen Kane (RKO Pictures 1941). Mank, like Kane, uses a non-linear storyline where the present story is set in 1940 with a bedridden Mankiewicz writing the first draft of Kane and we flashback to various moments between 1933 and 1937 that inspired his writings.

This story which is rarely if ever told from Mankiewicz's point of view is controversial in some film circles as there has long been a debate (most famously articulated by critic Pauline Kael) that Herman Mankiewicz really wrote the screenplay for Citizen Kane and Welles' writing credit was simply for show. Others believe that the alcoholic Mankiewicz merely provided ideas and Welles wrote the screenplay alone. The film takes the view of the former with Mankiewicz writing the screenplay alone and Welles picking it up. There is a scene near the end of this film where Mankiewicz requests screen credit though he originally agreed to none which does not please the young Welles, but he grudgingly agrees. I personally take the middle road Mankiewicz wrote an epic screenplay (since he was a friend of William Randolph Hearst, the inspiration for Charles Foster Kane, it only makes sense) but Welles edited it down to what we see on screen much like he did with his famed Mercury Theatre adaptions of Shakespeare and the War of the Worlds radio play to name a few.

The screenplay for Mank, by the director's late father Jack Fincher (a longtime dream project for the older Fincher which sat unmade for decades), is similar to Scorsese's The Aviator (2004) as Mank is only focused on a very specific time in the protagonist's life. We do not see Herman from childhood to the end of his life we see a set year and snippets of the preceding decade which makes for a good story. 

The film Citizen Kane (1941) looms large here, with many of the scenes in Mank intentionally staged to resemble or reference famous scenes in the earlier film. In Mank when L.B. Mayer gives an oration to his studio staff about pay cuts it resembles one of Kane's campaign speeches, the sequence between Mankiewicz and his guilt ridden friend Shelly on election night fully calls to mind the scene between Kane and Leland after Kane's unsuccessful election. A scene late in the film where Mankiewicz and Marion Davies have a picnic the background appears to be a matte painting common for 1930s films and used for a number of scenes in Citizen Kane, particularly the opening scene of the castle on the hill. 

The black and white cinematography (by Erik Messerschmidt) also evokes a 1930s style, the shadowy noir-esque lighting is also employed, and there is even a use of deep focus photography in a number of scenes which Kane pioneered. During some of the more romantic flashback scenes a circular "cue mark" flickers in the top right corner of the screen as if we are watching the film in a grand 1930s palace and the projectionist is being signaled.

Despite the 1930s setting and look it is intriguing/sad how many of the film's 1930s issues reflect today, especially the use of "Yellow Journalism" and smear campaign that was created by MGM big wigs during the real life California Gubernatorial race Upton Sinclair and Frank Merriam. As well as the concept of wealthy owners asking workers to take cuts while they do not during the Depression. Fears of communism and socialism, etc. 

Overall, I am glad the film sheds light on the often overlooked writing abilities of Mankiewicz though I really hope the film will work to clear Marion Davies history. Davies was a talented and very successful comedic actress in the 1920s and 1930s though she is often confused with the fictional untalented character Susan Alexander from Citizen Kane. There are several scenes where Mankiewicz emphatically states Susan is not Marion, usually falling on deaf ears, but her portrayal here by Amanda Seyfried is one of the best I've seen (she has also been played by Kirsten Dunst, Melanie Griffith, and I still need to see the 1985 TV film portrayal by Virginia Madsen) and Seyfried really brings out Davies humor, and good spirit here.

I enjoyed Mank and recommend it but it is geared for insiders and film buffs, the story will most likely be confusing to those unfamiliar with the characters or some of the history. For instance, if a viewer has no knowledge of William Randolph Hearst (it could happen) and his media empire of the 1880s-1930s there is not much explanation here. There are also a number of Hollywood notables that briefly appear in the story (Charlie Chaplin without his famed tramp mustache, Norma Shearer, David O. Selznick) that are given little background or introduction. 

The acting is uniformly strong, the look of the film is great, but to fully appreciate Mank you'll want to see Citizen Kane, as well as one or both of these following films: the 1996 documentary The Battle Over Citizen Kane and/or the excellent HBO Film version of this documentary RKO 281 made in 1999 (where Mankiewicz is played by John Malkovich). 

Happy film viewing my friends.

Quarantine Movie Reviews 5: Movies I did not care for...

 Hello Readers,

I hope you are doing well despite these uncertain and often confusing times. I know I get worried and have this anxiety seemingly lingering under everything I do. I have experienced people just losing all sense of manners or common sense for instance someone I've never met before threw pebbles at me because they claimed I was slamming my closet doors. I would like to hope that in a normal non-pandemic time this would have been handled differently on their part. Either way I did not care to have pebbles thrown at me for something that I was not aware I was doing. In the end since it seems people are so free to share what they do not care for below are some movies I've seen during this pandemic that I did not care for. In alphabetical order, I hope you stay well and positive.

6 Underground (2019). Ryan's Rating ✯1/2 out of 4

This expensive Netflix movie is directed by Michael Bay and stars Ryan Reynolds as the leader of a group of "Ghosts," spy like mercenaries with special skills (sharpshooting, get away driving, gymnastics, etc.),  and they are working to prevent a military takeover in a European country. With a screenplay by the team that wrote the Deadpool movies Reynolds is pretty similar to his character there wisecracks and all, but this is a Michael Bay movie through and through so the action scenes are gargantuan and well done but the movie is long and not terribly interesting save for the action and Reynolds charism and sarcasm to carry the rest of the movie. A film scholar could also argue this is Michael Bay satirizing his own style in a way similar to Joel Silver making Fair Game back in the 90s. If you truly love Bay you'll probably like this, I found myself fast forwarding between action scenes.

The Assignment (1997) Ryan's Rating ✯✯ 

A fictionalized account of the hunt and capture of real life terrorist Carlos The Jackal. Starring Aidan Quinn as a US Naval officer who looks like Carlos and Donald Sutherland and Ben Kingsley as his CIA trainers/handlers. I remember when this came out it received a number of good reviews and I remember being interested because I liked Aidan Quinn. The movie did not really hold up as it plays more like a 1990s cable movie that focuses more on the day to day process of tracking Carlos rather than the action movie it seems to want to be. The three main actors give good performances but this will be one of those movies probably relegated to late night TV.

Backtrack or Catchfire (1990) Ryan's Rating ✯1/2

There are two versions of this film one a 98minute movie and the other a two hour director's cut. I saw the 98minute version. The story follows an artist (Jodie Foster) who witnesses an LA mob murder and then must flee for her life when a contract is put on her head. The mob hires a strange hitman named Milo (Dennis Hopper who also directed) to track her down but he falls in love with her and they take it on the lam. Hopper having regained some of his clout in the 1980s (after losing much of it in the 1970s) seems to be trying to make a film that takes the oddness of David Lynch's work but wrap it in a more upbeat almost comedic view. There are a number of big action sequences and also cameos from the likes of Joe Pesci, Bob Dylan, Charlie Sheen, Catherine Keener, Julie Adams, and Vincent Price among others. To be fair Hopper disowned this shorter version that had a limited release saying the studio messed up his movie. His director's cut was released on video after the success of Silence of the Lambs made Foster a box office star. So this longer version may be better but I found this short version more of a neat time capsule than anything else.

Drive (2011) Ryan's Rating ✯ 

An LA stunt driver (Ryan Gosling) moonlights as a getaway driver for anyone who is willing to pay his fee and agree to his terms. He falls for an attractive neighbor with a young son but when the woman's husband is released from prison his old criminal connections threaten the family and Gosling steps in to help which goes terribly wrong. This movie has split audiences and reviews, some love it some hate it. I didn't care for it, the cinematography is good and the big name cast brings depth to flat roles but the story or lack of story is poorly paced and the bursts of extreme violence in the second half really sunk it for me. Wants to be something along the lines of Michael Mann's Thief or Collateral but does not come close.

Killing Them Softly (2012) Ryan's Rating ✯1/2

I only watched this half way and then turned the movie off, so I can only review the first half. Set during the 2008 presidential election and economic recession a mafia protected gambling den is robbed and the mob calls in a hitman (Brad Pitt) to find who is responsible. Despite the advertising showing Pitt wielding a shotgun this is not really a gangster movie it's pace is lethargic and a number of scenes (especially those between Pitt and the late James Gandolfini) seem improvised or unedited to the point where they feel like a rehearsal for a theater production. Pitt is good in these type of character roles but he is not given very much to do in the first half, most of the time he is just listening to other people talk. Also many scenes are punctuated by a news story from 2008 featuring then Senators Obama and McCain and then President Bush and the parallel was not really clear to me in the first half anyway. Fine cast and a dark look to the film that sets the tone but left me cold.

Serenity (not related to the Joss Whedon Firefly franchise) (2019) Ryan's Rating ✯1/2 

Be warned this review contains some plot spoilers. I'm on the fence about this one it is not a good movie but I was able to watch it all the way through without losing interest. Matthew McConaughey plays Baker, a fishing boat captain on a Caribbean island, who is obsessed with catching an elusive yellowfin tuna. one day his ex-wife (a blonde Anne Hathaway in femme fatale mode) shows up on his boat and asks Baker to kill her current abusive husband. He reluctantly agrees and [SPOILER] this is where the movie pulls the rug out from under the viewer and turns into science fiction. There are a number of hints and strange happenings that suddenly make sense when this twist occurs but it is such an elaborate change I actually said, "What?" to the TV. The first half of the film is fully a film noir/neo noir picture, Hathaway's fake blonde hair is clearly a reference to the classic Double Indemnity which has similar murder plot points, then it changes to a Sci-Fi mystery like The Thirteenth Floor or Total Recall. Some of the scenes and dialogue are very awkward, even over the top, but that may be the point I don't know when it was finished I knew this was not a good movie but I was not completely sorry I watched it.

Quarantine Movie Reviews 4: Searching for Bobby Fischer, Where the Money Is, and Scorpio

 Hello dear readers, 

I hope you are doing well, three more fun reviews, two movies I enjoyed and one I did not. Check out the reviews and if they spur you check out the movie. Thank you for reading, stay safe. (movie poster images from IMDB and Wikipedia)

Searching for Bobby Fischer (released 1993) Ryan's rating ✯✯✯1/2 out of four.

Inspired by a true story, and based on the non-fiction book of the same name by Fred Waitzkin, this film tells the story of a New York City sports columnist (played by the always reliable Joe Mantegna) whose young son turns out to have a natural gift for chess. The father then finds his young son a teacher (Ben Kingsley) and begins entering the boy in competitive tournaments around the country quickly losing sight of his son and becoming fixated on winning. This is the directorial debut of master screenwriter Steven Zaillian (he wrote Awakenings and Schindler's List at this time but has gone on to write a number of other great films) he gets strong performances out of his actors and great use of NYC locations, though the beautiful look of the film is most likely thanks to legendary cinematographer Conrad Hall. The real life chess grandmaster Bobby Fischer, though name dropped in the title, really has very little to do with the movie aside from brief mentions of his career. Film critic Roger Ebert lamented that the film marketing at the time failed to make clear the movie is not a biography of Fischer. It really is an examination of how parents lose sight of being parents while living vicariously through their children and how parents can unknowingly use their children to fulfill their missed dreams. This is a must see film for any parent and a touching and very well acted story.

Where the Money Is (released 2000) Ryan's rating ✯✯ maybe two and a half...

Paul Newman plays an aging bank robber who fakes a coma to be moved from prison to a nursing home in the country in hopes of escaping custody. One of the nurses (Linda Fiorentino), who feels stuck in the dead end town, figures out his scheme and convinces him to help her rob an armored car route that runs through a number of stops in the nearby town. The film could/should have been much better, it plays more like an edgier Hallmark TV movie and no surprise that the film's director worked mainly in British television before making this film. I did enjoy the film because of Paul Newman. This was one of his last live theatrical films (he did a number of animation and narration in his final years) and he is a joy to watch. His charisma and obvious acting abilities carry the simple film, he can grin or wink and it carries more than some actors can do in an entire hour. I'm a classic movie fan so it is always nice to see one of the greats get to do what they do, I wish the overall movie was better but Newman makes it worthwhile, Fiorentino is also good as the nurse. It is interesting to note that Newman's longtime friend Robert Redford made a similar film (which was much better) in 2018, The Old Man and the Gun. If you are a Paul Newman fan this is a movie to check out especially with its short 88 minute running time.

Scorpio (released 1973) Ryan's rating ✯

This is a bad movie, it could have been good but it is not. Familiar story involves an aging spy/assassin (Burt Lancaster) who the American CIA believes is now a liability so they hire his French protege, named Scorpio (Alain Deleon), to kill him. What is set up as a thrilling chase is nothing of the sort, most of the movie focuses on office bureaucracy, the two assassins personal lives, plans of where the other may go, and faux discussions of morality. The two stars are good and it is filmed in Europe. There is a great action sequence right in the middle of the film involving a chase and fight at a construction site which is easily the highlight. Worst of all is the final showdown between the two assassins, it's a big let down especially after nearly two hours. Skip this one.

Until next time readers.