Movies to See Right Now

Charlie Hunnam in THE LOST CITY OF Z photo courtesy of SFFILM
Charlie Hunnam in THE LOST CITY OF Z
photo courtesy of SFFILM

Recommended movies to see in theaters this week:

      • My top recommendation is The Lost City of Z, a thoughtful and beautifully cinematic revival of the adventure epic genre.
      • In Norman: The Moderate Rise and Tragic Fall of a New York Fixer, writer-director Joseph Cedar and his star Richard Gere combine to create the unforgettable character of Norman Oppenheimer, a Jewish Willy Loman who finally gets his chance to sits with the Movers and Shakers.  This may be Gere’s best movie performance ever.
      • Free Fire is a witty and fun shoot ’em up.
      • Their Finest is an appealing, middling period drama set during the London Blitz.
Richard Gere in NORMAN: THE MODERATE RISE AND TRAGIC FALL OF A NEW YORK FIXER
Richard Gere in NORMAN: THE MODERATE RISE AND TRAGIC FALL OF A NEW YORK FIXER

And four movies to avoid:

      • Kristen Stewart is excellent in Personal Shopper, a murky mess of a movie; don’t bother.
      • I found the predictable Armenian Genocide drama The Promise to be a colossal waste of Oscar Isaac and Christian Bale.
      • Song to Song is yet another visually brilliant storytelling failure from auteur Terence Malick.
      • Also avoid the horror film The Blackcoat’s Daughter, which is out on video and, UNBELIEVABLY, getting some favorable buzz.

My DVD/Stream of the Week is The Founder starring Michael Keaton as Ray Kroc, the man who created the global corporate superpower that is McDonald’s. It’s both the vivid portrait of a particular change-maker and a cold-eyed study of exactly what capitalism really rewards. The Founder is available on DVD from both Netflix and Redbox and tp stream from Amazon, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.

On May 11, Turner Classic Movies will air not one, BUT TWO movies on my list of Least Convincing Movie MonstersThe Giant Claw and The Black Scorpion.

THE GIANT CLAW
THE GIANT CLAW

Least Convincing Movie Monsters

Killer Shrews

In honor of Godzilla, here’s my list of Least Convincing Movie Monsters.  Note that Godzilla himself (even in the original 1954 Gojira) is too realistic to make my top ten. Enjoy.

Least Convincing Movie Monsters

The Killer Shrews: This is a dog in a fright mask.

Given the Cowboys & Aliens hubbub and my post on 1994’s Oblivion, I’ve been thinking about phony looking movie monsters.  So here’s my list of the Least Convincing Movie Monsters.  These monsters are so bad that Godzilla doesn’t even make this list.  And the dogs wearing fright masks in The Killer Shrews (above) are only #3.  Enjoy.