Weekly Movie Recommendations – Page 37

GONE GIRL: 2014’s best Hollywood movie

March 24, 2020 by movie gourmet

In the marvelously entertaining Gone Girl, Ben Affleck plays Nick, a good-looking lug who can turn a phrase. At a party one night, he’s on his A game, and he snags the beautiful Amy (Rosamund Pike). She’s smarter, a good rung on the ladder more attractive than he is, has parents with some money and is a second-hand celebrity to boot. Not particularly gifted and certainly not a striver, he knows he’s the Lucky One. He has married above himself, but he doesn’t have a clue HOW MUCH above until she suddenly disappears.

Based on the enormously popular novel by Gillian Flynn (who also wrote the screenplay), Gone Girl is the mystery of what has happened to Amy and what is Nick’s role in the disappearance. Plot twists abound, but you won’t get any spoilers from The Movie Gourmet.

This is Rosamund Pike’s movie. Her appearance is so elegant – she looks like a crystal champagne flute with blonde hair – that pulling her out of the Victorian period romances that she was known for and into this thriller was inspired. And Pike responds with the performance of her career. She’s just brilliant as she makes us realize that there’s something behind her eyes that we hadn’t anticipated, and then keeps us watching what she is thinking throughout the story.

Gone Girl is directed by the contemporary master David Fincher (Fight Club, Se7en, Zodiac, The Social Network, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo). Here, Fincher has successfully chosen to rely on Flynn’s page turner of a story and the compelling characters, so Gone Girl is the least flashy of his films, but one of the most accessible. I’ll say this for Fincher – I can’t remember a more perfectly cast movie.

Kim Dickens (Treme, Deadwood) is superb as the investigating detective – this time almost unrecognizable as a brunette. Tyler Perry is wonderfully fun as a crafty celebrity attorney. The previously unheralded Carrie Coon is excellent as Nick’s twin sister (she’s gone on to cash in on the Avengers franchise). Missi Pyle does such a good job as a despicable cable TV personality that I thought I was actually watching a despicable cable TV personality. And David Clennon and (especially) Lisa Banes positively gleam as Amy’s parents. (Carefully observe every behavior by the parents in this movie.)

Just like the thug in The Guard who forgets whether he had been diagnosed in prison as a sociopath or a psychopath, I had the ask The Wife, who turned me on to this passage from Psychology Today. It’s useful to read this because, although you don’t realize it for forty-five minutes or so, Gone Girl is also a study of psychopathy.

Psychopaths … are unable to form emotional attachments or feel real empathy with others, although they often have disarming or even charming personalities. Psychopaths are very manipulative and can easily gain people’s trust. They learn to mimic emotions, despite their inability to actually feel them, and will appear normal to unsuspecting people. Psychopaths are often well educated and hold steady jobs. Some are so good at manipulation and mimicry that they have families and other long-term relationships without those around them ever suspecting their true nature.
When committing crimes, psychopaths carefully plan out every detail in advance and often have contingency plans in place. Unlike their sociopathic counterparts, psychopathic criminals are cool, calm, and meticulous. Their crimes, whether violent or non-violent, will be highly organized and generally offer few clues for authorities to pursue. Intelligent psychopaths make excellent white-collar criminals and “con artists” due to their calm and charismatic natures.

Gillian Flynn changed the story’s ending for the movie. The Wife, who is a big fan of the novel, didn’t mind. Gone Girl is recommended for both those who have and have not read the book. I understand that there’s more humor in the movie, as we occasionally laugh at the extremity of the behavior of one of the characters.

It all adds up into a remarkably fun movie and one that I was still mulling over days later. Gone Girl was the best big Hollywood studio movie of 2014 (not counting releases from the prestige distribution arms of the major studios). It’s now available to stream on Amazon, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube, Google Play and Redbox.

Movies to See Right Now

March 20, 2020 by movie gourmet

Jeanne Moreau in ELEVATOR TO THE GALLOWS

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, no one should be going to movie theaters right now. The San Francisco International Film Festival (SFFILM) made the right decision and cancelled, as did the famed Cannes Festival. So, there will be no “OUT NOW” recommendations from me for a while, but I’ll try to double up on movies to WATCH AT HOME.

ON VIDEO

My video pick this week – for St. Paddy’s Week – is the warmly funny The Commitments (1991), the affectionate tale of an unlikely aspiration and an unnecessary fiasco. The Commitments can be streamed from Amazon, iTunes, YouTube and Google Play, usually for less than the cost of a pint of Guinness.

Here are my comments on the Best Movies of 2019, all of which are now available to stream.

ON TV

On March 21 and 22, Turner Classic Movies will present one of my Overlooked Noir, Elevator to the Gallows – such a groundbreaking film that you can argue that it’s the first of the neo-noir. It’s the debut of director Louis Malle, shot when he was only 24 years old. It’s more difficult now to appreciate the originality of Elevator the Gallows; but in 1958, no one had seen a film with a Miles Davis soundtrack or one where the two romantic leads were never on-screen together. The Czar of Noir, Eddie Muller, will provide his famous intro and outro,

Movies to See Right Now

March 13, 2020 by movie gourmet

This would have been the ending weekend of CINEQUEST which will resume in mid-August when, hopefully the COVID-19 pandemic will have peaked. Until then, we’ll all be watching our movies at home.

REMEMBRANCE

Sixty-three years after the chess game with Death himself in The Seventh Seal, actor Max Von Sydow has finally succumbed. Von Sydow is justifiably most well known among cinephiles for his many roles in a cascade of Ingmar Bergman’s grimness, including The Seventh Seal, The Magician, The Virgin Spring, Through a Glass Darkly, Winter Light, Shame and The Passion of Anna. And in The Magician, he had to don the most off-putting of facial hair. His biggest hit, of course was as the title character in The Exorcist. Contrary to his image, he had the capacity for hilarity, which he demonstrated in Hannah and Her Sisters as a ridiculously pretentious and selfish artist. Along with that role, my favorite Von Sydow performances were in Jan Troell’s The Emigrants and The New Land, as a Swedish settler in frontier America.

OUT NOW

What She Said: The Art of Pauline Kael is the remarkably thorough and insightful biodoc of the iconic film critic Pauline Kael and her drive for relevance.
Of the new films I haven’t yet seen, Seberg, with Kristin Stewart, looks the most promising.

And here’s what I’ve written about the best Oscar-nominated movies. They’re all available to stream:

ON VIDEO

This week’s video pick is the superb 2013 drama Short Term 12, with a cast of then-emerging actors – Brie Larson, Kaitlyn Dever, LaKeith Stanfield, Rami Malek and John Gallagher Jr. – all before they became stars. You can find it on most streaming platforms.

ON TV

On both March 14 and 15, Turner Classic Movies is presenting one of the earliest films noir, I Wake Up Screaming. I Wake Up Screaming has proto-noir style, the matter-of-fact sexiness of Carole Landis, the easy-to-root-for pair of Betty Grable and Victor Mature, and the amazing performance of Laird Cregar as the most menacing and creepy of stalkers. Plus there’s the most incongruous use of the song Somewhere Over the Rainbow. It’s one of my Overlooked Noir, and Czar of Noir Eddie Muller will add some tidbits before and after.

Betty Grable and Laird Cregar in I WAKE UP SCREAMING

Movies to See Right Now

March 6, 2020 by movie gourmet

THE LONGEST WAVE, tonight at Cinequest. Photo courtesy of Cinequest.

Of course, I’m deep into Cinequest as usual: The best of Cinequest 2020. If you’re going, look for these three world premieres: Before the Fire (Saturday at the Hammer), 3 Day Weekend (tonight in Redwood City, Monday at the Hammer) and Small Time (Saturday in Redwood City, Sunday at 3Below). I’ve linked ten feature stories and 21 movie recommendations on my CINEQUEST page.

OUT NOW

What She Said: The Art of Pauline Kael is the remarkably thorough and insightful biodoc of the iconic film critic Pauline Kael and her drive for relevance.
Of the new films I haven’t yet seen, Seberg, with Kristin Stewart, looks the most promising.

And here’s what I’ve written about the best Oscar-nominated movies. They’re all available to stream:

ON VIDEO

This week’s video pick, the Norwegian suspense thriller Revenge, comes from the 2017 Cinequest. Revenge can be streamed from Amazon, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.

ON TV

On March 10, Turner Classic Movies will air Monterey Pop (1968). This is one of the few DVDs that I still own, for the performances by Mamas and the Papas, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Otis Redding, Canned Heat, Simon and Garfunkle, Jefferson Airplane, Eric Burdon and the Animals, Country Joe and the Fish and The Who.

It’s okay with me if you fast forward over Ravi Shankar. Don’t miss the reaction of Mama Cass Elliot, sitting in the audience, to Janis Joplin. Pete Townsend and Jimi Hendrix had a guitar-destroying competition, which Hendrix, aided by lighter fluid, undeniably won. The Otis Redding set is epic.

Cinequest Stream of the Week: REVENGE – the web is spun

March 3, 2020 by movie gourmet

Cinequest opens tonight, so this week’s video pick comes from the 2017 fest. In the Norwegian suspense thriller Revenge, the slightly creepy Rebekka (Siren Jørgensen) appears at a hotel on a remote fjord under the false pretense that she is a travel writer. The hotel is otherwise empty because it is off-season (think The Shining). She ingratiates herself with the hotel’s owner Morten, the most economically and socially significant person in town, and his wife (Maria Bock). It turns out that twenty years before, Morten date-raped Rebekka’s little sister, leading to her suicide. Now Rebekka wants to exact vengeance.

Revenge becomes a tick-tock suspenser as Rebekka deliberately lays her trap. We’re able to see some, but not all, of the web that she spins, which will put in jeopardy Morten’s reputation, marriage, business and his very health and survival. Can she pull it off? And how lethal will her revenge be?

It’s the first feature for Kjersti Steinsbø, who adapted the screenplay and directed. She has created a real page-turner here. In one very effective touch, it turns out that one of the characters knows FAR more than we initially suspect.

Revenge is uniformly well-acted, but Anders Baasmo Christian, as Bimbo the bartender, is exceptionally good. Just keep your focus on Bimbo. There’s more there than initially meets the eye. And Bimbo’s relationships with both Rebekka and Morten are very conflicted and complicated.

The ending is satisfying, and Morten’s ultimate fate is unexpected. Revenge was one of the world cinema high points of the 2017 Cinequest. Revenge can be streamed from Amazon, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.

Movies to See Right Now

February 28, 2020February 28, 2020 by movie gourmet

BEFORE THE FIRE: world premiere at Cinequest. Photo courtesy of Cinequest.

I’m gearing up for my unparalleled coverage of Cinequest, which opens on Tuesday. Here’s my First Look at Cinequest from last month. I’ve already seen about twenty Cinequest films, and on Sunday I’ll be posting my festival preview with specific recommendations.

OUT NOW

What She Said: The Art of Pauline Kael is the remarkably thorough and insightful biodoc of the iconic film critic Pauline Kael and her drive for relevance.
Of the new films I haven’t yet seen, Seberg, with Kristin Stewart, looks the most promising.

And here’s what I’ve written about the best Oscar-nominated movies. They’re all available to stream:

ON VIDEO

My video pick is We Believe in Dinosaurs, a thought-provoking documentary on scientists being totally outmatched by a monumental creationist theme park and its hordes of believers, massive private investment, capacity for technical wizardry and even state support. We Believe in Dinosaurs can be streamed from Amazon, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.

ON TV

Need 100 minutes of uplift? On March 3, Turner Classic Movies brings us the gospel music documentary Say Amen, Somebody. This 1982 art house hit is very hard to find and is almost never on television. The film traces the genre from gospel pioneers Willie Mae Ford Smith and Thomas A. Dorsey to contemporary artists.

Stream of the Week: WE BELIEVE IN DINOSAURS – denying science on a monumental scale

February 25, 2020 by movie gourmet

In the thought-provoking documentary We Believe in Dinosaurs, filmmakers Clayton Brown and Monica Long Ross introduce us to Ark Encounter, a Kentucky attraction with a full-size replica of Noah’s Ark. Explicitly pro-creationism and anti-evolution, Ark Encounter is filled with interpretive exhibits that illustrate the Biblical story of Noah as historical fact, kind of a fundamentalist, evangelical Smithsonian. Ark Encounter is 45 miles from its sister attraction, the Creation Museum.

There’s a lot to think about – and even marvel about – here. First of all, the Ark Encounter is an impressive spectacle. In Genesis, God directed Noah to build the ark to be 300 cubits long, 50 cubits wide, and 30 cubits high. That means that this thing is a football field-and-a-half long and over four stories high. We get to meet and observe the technicians and artists as they build the animatronic Noah family and the reproduced animals.

The bigger story here, though, is the massive investment in anti-science propaganda. To justify their literal acceptance of Biblical content that is inconsistent with scientific fact, these folks behind the Ark Encounter believe that they need to discredit science itself. And they’re not just defending the literal occurrence of every Bible story, but also the chronology of Bishop Ussher who, in the mid 1600s, calculated that the earth was created in 4004 B.C. That means that the Ark Encounter aggressively explains that the Earth and the human race, despite fossil evidence, are each 6,000 years old – and that dinosaurs lived alongside humans (and voyaged on the Ark). It also means that they seek to discredit the Theory of Evolution and the scientific method itself (while enjoying its byproducts – vaccines, for example).

When you distill their beliefs, these neo-creationists are essentially turbanless Taliban. Just for perspective, after suppressing Galileo’s 1615 discovery of the earth-centered solar system, the Catholic Church started backpedaling in 1718. That means that 300 years ago, even the reactionary Church decided not to double down on denying scientific discoveries.

And what about the scientists? And people of faith who accept science? We Believe in Dinosaurs brings us the perspectives of Ark Encounter opponents, most notably a geologist, and a former neo-creationist, both native Kentuckians. There’s also a local Baptist minister, who thinks that people of faith can also accept science.

One of the stunning aspects of We Believe in Dinosaurs is the unexpected David-and-Goliath story. We might expect the science-deniers to be outmatched. But the folks with most primitive beliefs are the creative masters. Anti creationists are the Goliath, supported by hordes of believers, massive private investment, capacity for technical wizardry and even state support. On the other hand, scientists are not often skilled in or equipped with tools for political persuasion and mass communications. The pro-science folks are, like John the Baptist, a lone voice in the wilderness, losing the optics battle.

Brown and Long Ross have a point of view (that science is good), but they don’t make the Ark Encounter people ridiculous. We directly hear the Ark Encounter leadership’s public pronouncements, and we meet the earnest and often sympathetic folks who are using their considerable talents to build and fill the attraction. Brown and Long Ross let us hear from both sides and let us connect our own dots. Watch the closing credits to the very end to get the subjects’ unfiltered view of the filmmakers. And wait for the film’s super-creepy money shot – that of an animatronic figure reflecting on the fate of others.

I saw We Believe in Dinosaurs at its world premiere at the San Francisco International Film Festival (SFFILM). We Believe in Dinosaurs can be streamed from Amazon, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.

Movies to See Right Now

February 21, 2020 by movie gourmet

Jenna Lyng Adams in BEFORE THE FIRE, an indie thriller premiering at Cinequest

This time of year, there are good movie-viewing choices – they’re just not the ones being newly released into theaters. Now it’s the time to catch up on unseen Oscar-winners and to binge good episodic TV.

For example, this week’s new Will Ferrell/Julia Louis-Dreyfus release Downfall (which I haven’t seen) is by all reports a very dumbed-down remake of the sharp Swedish Force Majeure. Stream the original instead.

I’m currently buried in screening films from the upcoming Cinequest (March 3-15). The best of this year’s festival is pretty good, and here’s a teaser – I’ll be recommending at least three premieres:

the world premiere of a gripping thriller, written by its female star and the first feature by its female director. Hang on to your seats.
the world premiere of a gay Muslim romantic comedy.
the North American premiere of the year’s best Czech film.

Stay tuned.

OUT NOW

The masterpiece Parasite explores social inequity, first with hilarious comedy, then evolving into suspense and finally a shocking statement of the real societal stakes. This is one of the decade’s best films.
Adam Driver and Scarlett Johannson are brilliant in Noah Baumbach’s career-topping Marriage Story. A superb screenplay, superbly acted, Marriage Story balances tragedy and comedy with uncommon success. Marriage Story is streaming on Netflix.
Martin Scorsese’s gangster epic The Irishman is tremendous, and features performances by Al Pacino and Joe Pesci that are epic, too. It’s streaming on Netflix.
Rian Johnson’s Knives Out turns a drawing room murder mystery into a wickedly funny send-up of totally unjustified entitlement. Knives Out is streaming.
Refusing to play it safe, director Francisco Meirelles elevates The Two Popes from would have been a satisfying acting showcase into a thought-provoker. It’s streaming on Netflix.
1917 is technically groundbreaking, but the screenplay neither thrilled me nor moved me.

ON VIDEO

My Stream of the Week is Jirga, from my list of 10 Overlooked Movies of 2019. A man goes on a quest in this parable of atonement. The film was shot guerilla-style, under cover in wartorn, terrorist-infested Afghanistan. Stream from Amazon, iTunes, Vudu and Redbox.

ON TV

Turner Classic Movies’ 31 Days of Oscar continues on February 27 with the classic film noir Kiss of Death. Victor Mature plays an ex-con with horrific luck – he gets caught on a heist and takes the rap for his cohorts; this leads to a long sentence and a double-cross with impacts to his wife and kids. Seeking to see his kids again, he is released back on the streets to set up the double-crossers for the DA. Mature, too often dismissed for his campy sword-and-sandal movies, did his finest work in film noir – especially I Wake Up Screaming, Kiss of Death and The Long Haul. Kiss of Death includes Richard Widmark’s breakthrough performance as psychopath Tommy Udo.

Stream of the Week: JIRGA – a quest to atone

February 18, 2020 by movie gourmet

In Jirga, the Australian soldier Mike (Sam Smith) returns alone to Afghanistan three years after his tour of duty. Mike begins a quest that takes him into the stark desolation of the hinterlands, where he must survive both the unforgiving elements and the Taliban. We don’t know his objective until it is revealed 44 minutes into the film. What we do immediately understand is that the stakes are very high.

The tension builds as we wonder if Mike will survive, but Jirga is a contemplation. How do you redress a wrong that you’ve committed? By paying compensation? By asking for forgiveness? By an act of atonement? Or of self-sacrifice?

The Afghanistan in Jirga is as dramatic a desolate landscape as I’ve ever seen, often starkly beautiful. At one point, Gilmour relieves the severity of the desert by dropping in a totally incongruous and unexpected paddle boat in the form of a pastel swan.

Sam Smith is in almost every frame of Jirga, and his performance is impeccable.

Jirga is a notable achievement in filmmaking. Gilmour had received permission to film among the Pashtun in Pakistan’s tribal areas, but was frustrated (and finally harassed) by the ISI, Pakistan’s notorious intelligence force. Gilmour bought a small Sony camera in Islamabad and flew himself and Smith to Kabul. There, under the constant protection of bodyguards, Gilmour was able to shoot the film on the fly; conditions were safe enough to shoot during 20 days of a two-month sojourn. Only two of the Afghan cast had ever been in a movie. Gilmour’s previous film Son of a Lion was also set among the Pashtun and is available on Amazon Prime.

I saw Jirga at Cinema Club Silicon Valley, with a Q&A with writer-director-camera operator Benjamin Gilmour. Gilmour got the idea for the film in his other work as a paramedic, encountering the PTSD of Australian veterans of the Middle East wars.

Gilmour observed that “male bravery is taught as how well you can fight”, and focused Jirga on Mike’s non-violent courage in risking – and even offering -his life. Gilmour developed Mike’s story so the “moral injury he suffered doesn’t take the tragic path” of alcoholic self-medication or suicide that Gilmour has observed firsthand in combat vets.

Jirga was Australia’s submission to the Academy Awards. It made my list of 10 Overlooked Movies of 2019. You can stream Jirga from Amazon, iTunes, Vudu and Redbox.

Movies to See Right Now

February 14, 2020February 14, 2020 by movie gourmet

Well, the Oscars were, for once, a happy surprise. As I wrote last week, I knew Parasite would win the Best International Oscar and I was rooting for Bong Joon Ho to win either for screenplay or directing, but I never dreamed that Parasite would sweep four major awards. As a bonus, the lovable Bong made the most classy and generous acceptance speech. Parasite is now streaming widely (and only $3.99 on Amazon Prime right now).

I do have two friends with good movie taste who, surprisingly, did not like Parasite. The film’s ending is shattering and not for everyone, I very much admired and enjoyed it. As I’ve been saying since I saw it on October 24, it’s a masterpiece.

Chaos caused by a family medical emergency kept The Wife and I from our traditional Oscar Dinner. But if we had, we would have taken advantage of our friend Keifer’s wicked suggestion of featuring shaved peach fuzz from Parasite. Since it’s February and I’m in North America, the challenge would have been to source a fresh fuzzy peach.

OUT NOW

The masterpiece Parasite explores social inequity, first with hilarious comedy, then evolving into suspense and finally a shocking statement of the real societal stakes. This is one of the decade’s best films.
Adam Driver and Scarlett Johannson are brilliant in Noah Baumbach’s career-topping Marriage Story. A superb screenplay, superbly acted, Marriage Story balances tragedy and comedy with uncommon success. Marriage Story is streaming on Netflix.
Martin Scorsese’s gangster epic The Irishman is tremendous, and features performances by Al Pacino and Joe Pesci that are epic, too. It’s streaming on Netflix.
Rian Johnson’s Knives Out turns a drawing room murder mystery into a wickedly funny send-up of totally unjustified entitlement. Knives Out is streaming.
Refusing to play it safe, director Francisco Meirelles elevates The Two Popes from would have been a satisfying acting showcase into a thought-provoker. It’s streaming on Netflix.
1917 is technically groundbreaking, but the screenplay neither thrilled me nor moved me.

ON VIDEO

My video pick, John Sayles’ City of Hope, is almost thirty years old, still searingly relevant on race in America and still one of the most incisive films on American politics. Life is complicated, so is America and so are politics. Most political films are NOT complicated, but Sayles respects the audience enough to give us a realistic story in a realistic community setting. City of Hope may be streamed from iTunes, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.

ON TV

Turner Classic Movies’ 31 Days of Oscar continues on February 15 with the John Sturges masterpiece Bad Day at Black Rock. Spencer Tracy investigates a disappearance in an especially hostile, racist and sinister town. Besides having Tracy at his best and being a great looking movie, Bad Day at Black Rock is notable for its menacing crew of Bad Guys – Robert Ryan, Ernest Borgnine and Lee Marvin.