First Cow

First Cow

This is an art house movie which generates a small box office but gets numerous nominations and accolades (Rotten Tomatoes gave it a score of 95). It has the feel of a documentary and the pace is very slow. The cinematography  is unimpressive and  the visual scenes  monotonous.

The film takes place in the 1820’s in the northwest territory, it is referred to as historical fiction. The essence of the film is the friendship between two strangers. One is a Chinese man who is running away from a murder he committed   and the other character is a cook named Cookie. One day Cookie see a girl walking with a small buck of milk. Cookie tells his partner he can make small cakes with the milk which they can sell. They call them oily cakes and they are instantly popular making them money (the cakes are like the zeppoles at the San Janeiro festa on Mott street) . Food in the wildness is bland and repetitive so the cakes are a popular treat. The milk comes from the first cow in the territory and at night they steal  milk to make their cakes. For the rest of the story is they are pursed by men of cow’s owner. Apparently stealing milk is a high crime in the wildness.

The acting is passive. Aside from the milk cow theft there is no real action. Except for two Indian women there are no female actors. The two recognizable actors are Toby Jones (Truman Capote) and Scott Shepherd (Die Hard) who have supporting role. I am unfamiliar with the protagonists , which means nothing or diminishes their performance. I watched this movie twice since the first time I feel asleep and missed some key  scenes.

Why am I writing this review? In case you want to see film  (VOD on Amazon) I  want to give you a heads up. The film gives you the milk but no cookies.

The Old Guard

The Old Guard

I will watch anything Charlize Theron is in: a perfume commercial,  as a one armed truck driver (Mad Max Fury Road), as an assassin with bad hair (Atomic Blond), as an overweight serial killer (Monster), even having sex with Seth Rogen, yuk (Long Shot). Since Charlize was in this movie I watched it. I was lost, I had no idea what was going on. My befuddlement is age related. I did not know the movie was based on a comic book of the same name. If you are over the age of thirty I recommend you to the  summary plot in Wikipedia. The Old Guard is  a band of immortal mercenaries. They do not age, their wounds heal and they can not be killed. They never say how old are but drop hints like the Crusades (one and two). One deficit of the movie their immortality is not explained.

Charlize leads of a group of three male mercenaries. A young female marine joins their ranks when she discovers she is immortal after a terrorist cuts her throat. Here too there is no backstory how she became immortal. The plot is not complicated, good guys fighting bad guys. To demonstrate their  indestructibility there is a lot of shooting, I mean a lot. They have Deadpool like regeneration with bullets popping out of their faces. There is a subplot concerning their immortality which makes it more interesting than just a shoot-m-up.

The villain in this movie is a pharmaceutical CEO who has nefarious plans for the immortals. This movie must have been made before the current pandemic because once vilified pharama CEOs are now our saviors. God help us.

Comic movies do not require much acting, but this film has some serious players. Charlize Thorn is an Oscar winner for Monster. Chiwetel Ejiofor may not be familiar to American audiences but he is an excellent British actor (see Pretty Dirty Things). The female marine is played by Kiki Layne. I do not know her work but she received very good reviews for her part in If Beale Street Could Talk.

If you have Netflix the movie is included in your package. Should you see this movie?  Sure, it beats dusting.

p.s. From the last scene, there will be a sequel.

Ford vs Ferrari

Ford vs Ferrari                                                                                                                 June 22, 2020

I do not know why I missed this movie on video on demand, my loss. This is a terrific movie based on true events. The characters are strong and dynamic and their interactions/conflicts  drive the movie. Ford vs Ferrari refers to the competition  between these two motor giants at La Mans. Ferrari being the powerhouse and Ford the upstart. Carroll Shelby, played by Matt Damon, is the chief designer for the Ford racer. Christian Bale is Ken Miles the brilliant but mercurial driver.  Bale is fantastic in the role. He literally morphs into the character incorporating the accent, facial expressions, and explosive personality. His weight loss here is reminiscent of his role in the “Machinist” but not as extreme.

This is an ensemble performance with all  actors  making compelling contributions. Matt Damon is the legendary Carroll Shelby, driver and auto designer (e.g. Shelby Mustang). He plays Shelby in an understated and controlled manner but with passion. When pushed he is capable of  punching  Miles in the face or telling the Ford execs to go pound sand. They are two opinionated great friends. The Ford execs do not come off  well (except for Lee Iacocca). Henry Ford II comes off like a jerk, and this was confirmed by Wikipedia. The Ford executives want to win La Mans, which  frames the movie.

Ken’s wife is played by Caitriona Balfe gives a strong and touching performance. She plays the supportive wife but under her calmness she knows a wrong turn could be fatal at any time. Their son gives a tender performance and humanizes Ken Miles.

Those who know me, know that  my Italian is slightly limited. But you do not have to be a polyglot to read the expression on Enzo Ferrari’s face when he reacts to the insulting offer Ford made for his company. The Italians come off just a bit elitist.

The racing scenes are intense and a big part of the narrative. The camera work is impressive given the high speeds and  the demanding course. There must have been an army of drivers.

As they say, better late than never.

The King of Staten Island

The King of Staten Island                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    June 16, 2020

This is not a funny movie. It is a semi-autobiographical story about Pete Davidson. His father died at 9 11 and much of the film deals with painful consequence of this event. Pete’s character  is a slacker named Scott. He has self-destructive traits attributable to his father’s death. What makes the memories worst is that he lives on Staten Island where half the population are firemen  and the other half cops. Also his mother, Marisa Tomei, is dating a fireman. When a boy loses his father at a young age he has to blame someone to answer the “why” question. With age he understands  there may be no answer, but not Pete.

The first half of the movie is rough with Pete doing drugs being subjected to tough love and bad relationships. The latter part of the film is a redemption movie. Pete goes from the bottom to finding acceptance from the people he pissed off. The director is Judd Apatow (Knocked Up, Trainwreck, Superbad) and this is probably his most unfunny movie he has made. There were some comic scenes, but overall this is a dark tinged drama

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Pete Davidson pulls off the dramatic acting. Given his background his angst is genuine. He delivers his performance in his usual phlegmatic style with eruptions of rage. He has reprehensible traits. He uses drugs, has no job or interest in work, a lazy lover and has a far fetched dream of opening a tattoo restaurant. As a counterbalance , in one scene he is taking two kids to school and he is very tender and caring with them, like a father.

Marisa Tomei plays the mother. This was an easy role for her in the fashion of Spiderman’s Aunt May. Since I know nothing of Staten Island culture I can not comment on her accent or style of dress. Steve Buscemi plays a fireman, which in his past life he actually was. He is a bridge between Pete and his late father since they worked together. It would have been nice to have more meat on his role.

Since we are in a movie desert any mirage is welcomed. But this mirage costs $20.00 bucks. Thank you Amazon.

Cats

Cats                                                                                                                                                                       March 30, 2020

I saw the theatrical version of Cats twice. The essence of Cats is its beauty and simplicity.  Wonderful songs, great dancing and minimal  staging defined it. The story  is based on a collection of poems by T.S. Elliot. Why Tom Hooper, the director, decided to blow up this story into a rambling quasi Busby Berkeley  production is a mystery? The cast members are extremely talented, well known and expensive. They include: James Corden, Judi Dench, Jason Derulo, Idris Elba, Jennifer Hudson, Ian McKellen, Taylor Swift, Rebel Wilson, and Francesca Hayward. The production cost $100m and the box office was $76m. Adverting costs usually doubles production, so we are talking about $200m all in. You may remember  NYC cabs with plastic roof advertisements sporting cat ears.

Is this film in the company of past cinematic bombs like, Heaven’s Gate, Pluto Nash or Hudson Hawks; I think not. Jennifer Hudson sings a powerful rendition of Memories. There were some impressive dance numbers and Francesca Hayward ,who is a principal ballerina,  gave  graceful performances. Some actors were nearly unrecognizable such as Idris Elba. I think the silliest thing in the movie were the giant sets. If a cat sat in a chair the chair was huge  making the actor look small (if you ever saw the children’s movie The Borrowers, you know what I mean) . Their cat tails danced and ears wiggled thanks to CG. The costumes were an abundance of fur but the makeup was very good. Judi Dench looked like a huge dust ball. Ian McKellen was wasted and had a minor role. Rebel Wilson kept on spreading her legs with her tail in between. If she was trying to imitate a cat, she looked more like a plump burlesque dancer.

One really bad scene was when the cats were rummaging through garbage cans and eating what were obviously cheap plastic props. It was cartoonish. Also Hooper interjected dialogue which was not part of the original Carts and it did not help the production.

Why did I spend $20 to see this on Amazon Prime? I guess it was morbid curiosity. The director is no light weight. He directed the King’s Speech and Les Misérables . The cast is outstanding and the songs are classics although they did add some diddlies that fell flat . The original Cats was a small tight production. What Hooper did was supersize it  which diminished its essence and soul. Unless you want to send your unemployment money foolishly for On Demand wait for HBO.

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A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood                                                                             March 28, 2020

I never watched Mr. Rogers on TV. On the Lower East Side when a middle aged man wearing a red sweater, or more likely an old Budweiser t-shirt, invited you into his room nothing good came of it. Enough of my cynicism. This a wonderful touching movie. The film is not only about Mr. Rogers but also his relationship  Lloyd Vogel, the Esquire writer.

Tom Hanks wonderfully conveys the genuineness and sincerity of Mr. Rogers. For humans Mr. Rogers was too perfect and this idle was the root of Lloyd Vogel’s skepticism. Lloyd Vogel is damaged goods and it is hard for him to believe in the goodness of Mr. Rogers. The heart of the film is Vogel’s resurrection of humanity after meeting Mr. Rogers.

Tom Hanks’s acting is sublime. His mannerisms and intonation capture the real Mr. Rogers. It is not simply an impression but an dramatic interpretation. Aside from the ubiquitous red sweater Tom Hanks does not resemble Mr. Rogers but his acting transforms him. Hanks received an Oscar nomination for best actor.

Lloyd Vogel is  brilliantly played by the Welsh actor Matthew Rhys. He is not a fan of Mr. Rogers and feels the assignment to interview Rogers below him. His character has a lot of baggage mainly from a strained relationship with his father. Rhys conveys skepticism and wears  his pain on his face. His  reconciliation with his father comes from his friendship with Mr. Rogers. Chris Cooper plays the father who is trying to mend things with his son but does a poor job of it. Cooper is the consummate actor and  portrays Vogel’s father as  a self-centered irresponsible cad seeking forgiveness. 

The movie’s production design is very clever. Intermittently Lego like cities are shown to depict different locations. Mr. Roger’s TV set and puppets are also featured. This makes the story more believable. It is a true story.

I watched the movie on Netflix. I had no desire to see it in the movies since I thought it was silly, my loss. In a quarantine your choices are limited, a feel good movie is a terrific substitute for Haagen Dazs.

The Invisible Man

The Invisible Man                                                                                                           March 21, 2020

I saw the Invisible Man; that’s an oxymoron. Prior to this film there were five other Invisible Man movies not including Hallow Man with Kevin Bacon. This modern interpretation has come a long way from the early versions where the invisible man was swaddled in mommy wrap with dark sunglasses and invisible thread  knocked over objects.

This movie’s strength is its ability to maintain suspense and tension, which says a lot since for three fourths of the movie you do not see the evil protagonist. Technically this is a science fiction horror movie. It had an invisible budget of $7m and a box office to date of $124m. Elisabeth Moss is lead actor. She does anxiety and fear well,  as witnessed in her other roles In Mad Men and the Handmaiden’s Tale. Her other attribute is resilience and fighting back which she does with aplomb here. The plot is not complex, but it is the waiting for something to happen that is the hook of the movie. It is like when you feel a breeze on the back of your neck and turn around and no one is there.

The other actors are not of note but give good support to Moss’s character. I would have liked to see more of the relationship with her husband to layout some foundation  from the start of the film.

For a small movie it has a big impact a big impact. Streaming now on Amazon Prime.