Tag: Friendship

#Oscars: “Elvis” (2022) starring Austin Butler & Tom Hanks

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The life of American music icon Elvis Presley, from his childhood to becoming a rock and movie star in the 1950s while maintaining a complex relationship with his manager, Colonel Tom Parker. -Synopsis

While Aussie director Baz Luhrmann was going over auditions, incl. Austin Butler’s audition for Elvis Presley, Denzel Washington called the director to recommend Butler. Washington and Butler had co-starred in the Broadway play The Iceman Cometh. Washington told Luhrmann (who he’d never met): “You’re in for a surprise when you see the work ethic of this young man.” Butler stated that one of the aspects about Elvis that stood out to him was that he lost his mother at a young age, too. Butler also lost his mother at age 23, just as Elvis had. Butler took tap dancing and swing dancing classes to perfect the dance moves. Though his hair was dyed dark brown, and he wore dark brown or jet black wigs in some scenes, Butler is a natural blonde. Elvis was also a natural blonde. Butler and Elvis are 16th cousins twice removed; Elvis’ father (Vernon) and Austin’s mother (Lori) share a common ancestry- wow! Ansel Elgort, Miles Teller, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Harry Styles also auditioned and screen-tested for the lead. Maggie Gyllenhaal and Rufus Sewell were cast as the parents before the production was shut down (due to COVID-19); 6 mos. later, both dropped out when productions resumed due to scheduling conflicts. This past SUN, Butler (who has an Oscar nom) won Leading Actor across the pond at BAFTA.

[sees an excited girl at Elvis’s first performance]

Col. Parker: [narrates] Now, I don’t know nothing about music. But I could see in that girl’s eyes, he was a taste of forbidden fruit. She could have eaten him alive!

Elvis ended up dethroning Top Gun: Maverick at the box office last Summer. This is the 1st big-screen (theatrical) biographical film about Elvis; it was made for $85M and shot (over a year) entirely in Queensland. Australia. The real “Colonel” Tom Parker was born on June 26, 1909, in The Netherlands as Andreas “Dries” van Kuijk. At age 19, he entered the US illegally. After a few mos, he enlisted in the Army and took the name Tom Parker; he thus forfeited his Dutch citizenship (becoming a stateless person). In reality, he spoke w/ a Southern American accent. At one point in the film, re: money issues, Parker comments that Elvis loved to spend on “hillbillies.” Elvis was generous to a fault (though it isn’t depicted here).

Elvis: If I can’t move, I can’t sing.

Elvis did NOT live up to it’s hype when I saw it recently (on HBOMax). Luhrmann’s direction failed to draw me in, though I’ve liked some of his previous movies. Butler does a fine job in ALL the musical numbers, BUT doesn’t seem to feel the weight of the heavier scenes. I think he has potential- he’s V young still. Parker is basically a caricature (w/ no redeeming qualities) here; IF you’re a big fan of Hanks, then you’ll be greatly disappointed. The opening 30-40 mins come across as messy/chaotic. Scenes somehow felt drawn out and fleeting at the same time. There is little time give to Priscilla, Elvis’ fellow musicians/peers, his friends, and other supporting characters. Some critics (incl. Black Americans) commented that race and civil rights issues were dealt w/ in a simplistic manner. We do see some up-and-coming/young actors: Kodi Smit-McPhee (The Power of the Dog), Dacre Montgomery (Stranger Things), and Kevin Harrison, Jr. (who plays B.B. King). Luhrmann is (oddly) more interested in Parker than Elvis; the iconic pop star remains mostly a mystery. The dialogue is nothing special- perhaps most disappointing of all!

[1] While of course he is a central character in the Elvis Presley story, I felt telling the story through such an unsympathetic character was unnecessary, and I found Tom Hanks Dutch accent and his prosthetic nose a little irritating at times.

[2]. The film feels almost like a bad fever dream, arbitrarily switching from scene to scene with little to no connection. Too much attention is put in Parker/Hanks, when he’s not narrating he’s the focus of every scene he’s in.

[3] For the first two hours it felt like I was watching the longest music video of all time. It was all over the place and extremely rushed. And what was up with the soundtrack?

[4] Firstly Austin Butler was great, he could actually be Elvis as he looked so much like him and clearly worked hard to do Elvis justice, but I didn’t really enjoy the movie, but can’t put my finger on why. The main actors did a good job, but I couldn’t really get an emotional connection with them or the story line until the very end.

-Excerpts from IMDb reviews

Two Films re: #MeToo: “The Assistant” (2019) & “She Said” (2022)

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The Assistant (2019) starring Julia Garner & Matthew Macfadyen

Follows one day in the life of Jane (Julia Garner), a recent college graduate/aspiring film producer, who recently landed her dream job as a junior assistant to a powerful entertainment mogul. Her day is much like any other assistant’s – making coffee, changing the paper in the copy machine, ordering lunch, arranging travel, taking phone messages, onboarding a new hire, etc. But as Jane follows her daily routine, she, and we, grow increasingly aware of the abuse that insidiously colors every aspect of her work day, an accumulation of degradations against which Jane decides to take a stand, only to discover the true depth of the system into which she has entered. -Synopsis (Bleecker Street)

We have a V toxic working environment here in this indie film- yikes! The boss (modelled on Harvey Weinstein) is a bully who can reduce Jane and his two male assistants (Jon Orsini; Noah Robbins) to shaking messes. The boss (unseen) barks on the phone at Jane, after she has had a perfectly reasonable phone convo w/ his wife. Jane is invisible to most of her coworkers; they don’t give her eye-contact (even when she’s talking to them). People barely register her presence when sharing the elevator, most notably an actor (Patrick Wilson); his real-life wife (Dagmara Domenczyk) plays a producer. If you are a sensitive viewer, don’t worry, as there is no violence depicted.

Some viewers called this “a horror movie,” BUT re: the horrors of everyday life. Jane seems to have no allies, so nowhere to turn when things get rough. She even missed her father’s recent birthday. One of the main themes is complacency, as writer/director Kitty Green noted; she is a young filmmaker who comes from the world depicted. Jane is blonde, slim, and pretty, though NOT in the obvious (Hollywood) fashion. A stream of wanna-be actresses arrive in the office. Sienna (model-turned-actress Kristine Froseth), a V young former waitress from Boise, suddenly arrives as a “new assistant.” She is put up in a fancy hotel room, which seems V problematic to Jane. After dropping this woman off, Jane goes to see the company’s HR manager, Mr. Wilcock (Matthew Macfadyen), who is no help at all!

[1] How can something appearing so mundane, everyday, lackluster be so powerful. Outstanding piece of work. Nothing happens but still so much happens. Subtlety reigns supreme.

[2] Here we have the toxic world of white men. Pointless jobs that keep the “machine” rolling, I don’t care if this job is about the movie industry or whatever; this girl’s job is reflected in a million offices around the globe in a million industries.

[3] An old Spielberg trick is to increase tension by keeping the “monster” hidden from view: cue the tanker driver from “Duel” and (for most of the film) the shark from “Jaws.” Here, the boss is felt only as a malevolent force and never seen on screen. It’s an approach that works brilliantly, focusing the emotion on the effect he has on those flamed.

-Excerpts from IMDb reviews

She Said (2022) starring Carey Mulligan & Zoe Kazan

Two-time Academy Award® nominee Carey Mulligan (Promising Young Woman, An Education) and Emmy nominee Zoe Kazan (The Plot Against America, The Big Sick) star as New York Times reporters Megan Twohey and Jodi Kantor, who together broke one of the most important stories in a generation- a story that shattered decades of silence around the subject of sexual assault in Hollywood and impelled a shift in American culture that continues to this day. -Official Synopsis

The movie was shot in the New York Times (NYT) building and is the 1st movie ever to use the real offices. The leads, Mulligan and Kazan, had already been close friends for 14 yrs before being cast; Kazan was a bridesmaid at Mulligan’s 2012 wedding. I’ve been a fan of Mulligan for many years; she can play any type of role. I’ve seen Kazan only in a few light/comedic roles; she gets to show her serious side here (and does a fine job). Ashley Judd, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Judith Godrèche (a French actress from The Man in the Iron Mask), who were important sources for Kantor and Twohey’s investigations into Harvey Weinstein, each play themselves in this film. Paltrow and Godrèche appear as off-camera voices on the phone, but Judd plays herself onscreen. Actress Rose McGowan also appears as an off-screen voice, but chose NOT to play herself (her voice is portrayed by Kelly McQuail). James Austin Johnson (voice of Donald Trump) was in 2021 hired into the cast of SNL mainly to play the role of Trump (after videos of his impersonation went viral).

So to our surprise, Gwyneth Paltrow had a really powerful story of sexual harassment by Harvey Weinstein and of being threatened when her first really important roles were on the line. And early on in the investigation, when almost nobody in Hollywood would talk to us, she did. And she even tried to help us find other women. But she was very scared to go on the record. And it became clear, in the course of the investigation, that Harvey Weinstein was obsessed with the question of whether or not we were speaking to Paltrow. He showed up at a party at her house early. She called us from the bathroom completely panicked. -Twohey and Kantor (in interview on NPR’s Fresh Air, SEPT: 2019)

The German actress-turned-director, Maria Schrader, recently got acclaim for the streaming series Unorthodox (Netflix) and the movie I’m Your Man (2022). It’s difficult to make this subject matter cinematic (as critics on NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast noted). There are no assaults (physical violence) depicted here, though we do see the aftermath (emotional toll). If you’re interested in journalism and liked All the President’s Men and Spotlight, then this may be of interest to you. It’s still rare to see supportive men (husbands of Twohey and Kantor) who happily share domestic duties; many working moms appreciated seeing this aspect of the movie. We learn that Twohey was dealing w/ post-partum depression after having her 1st child.

There are two actresses (well-known to those of us who love Austen/British period series/movies) who steal this movie w/ their terrific/emotional performances. In London, we meet Zelda Perkins (Samantha Morton- a Brit), who describes how a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) kept her from taking action against Weinstein’s behavior or even talking about any aspect of it to family members, friends, or even doctors (incl. therapists). IRL Perkins co-founded an organization called Can’t Buy My Silence dedicated to reducing the use/abuse of NDAs. In the coast of England in a small town, we meet Laura Madden (Jennifer Ehle- an American who primarily works in England), a mother of four young kids bravely preparing to undergo a mastectomy.

#Oscars: “The Banshees of Inisherin” (2022) starring Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, Kerry Condon, & Barry Keoghan

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Set on a remote island off the west coast of Ireland in 1923, THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN follows lifelong friends, Padraic (Colin Farrell) and Colm (Brendan Gleeson), who find themselves at an impasse when Colm unexpectedly puts an end to their friendship. A stunned Padraic, aided by his sister Siobhan (Kerry Condon) and troubled/young neighbor, Dominic (Barry Keoghan), endeavours to repair the relationship, refusing to take no for an answer. But Padraic’s repeated efforts only strengthen his former friend’s resolve and when Colm delivers a desperate ultimatum, events swiftly escalate, with shocking consequences. -Synopsis

“Banshee” is the anglicized term for “bean sí” from old Irish meaning “woman of the fairy mound” or “fairy woman.” She is a spirit in Irish folklore who heralds the death of a family member, usually by screaming, wailing, shrieking, or keening. The Banshees of Inisherin, original title The Banshees of Inisheer, was intended to be the 3rd installment in a series of writer/director Martin McDonagh’s plays dubbed the Aran Islands Trilogy, which incl. The Cripple of Inishmaan and The Lieutenant of Inishmore. This is Farrell’s 3rd project w/ McDonagh (after In Bruges (2008) and Seven Psychopaths (2012)). Gleeson was also in In Bruges; he and Farrell are close pals IRL This is Farrell’s 3rd project w/ Keoghan (after The Killing of a Sacred Deer (2017) and The Batman (2022)). Keoghan and Farrell lived in the same apt while shooting in Ireland; Keoghan admits he drove Farrell crazy by leaving messes and eating all of Farrell’s favorite cereal. Farrell, who Keoghan calls an older brother figure, said the experience was like “living in the episode of The Real World.” LOL! When this film premiered at the 2022 Venice International Film Festival, it received a 15-minute standing ovation.

Pádraic Súilleabháin: Do you know what you used to be?

Colm Doherty: No, what did I used to be?

Pádraic: Nice! You used to be nice! And now, do you know what you are? Not nice.

Colm: Ah, well, I suppose niceness doesn’t last then, does it?

In the Irish culture, comedy is usually also mixed w/ tragedy; this film is an example! It opens up w/ a rainbow (no joke) behind a smiling Padraic, who is planning to meet Colin for a beer at the pub; this is their ritual almost everyday at 2PM. The settings are gorgeous, the production design is spot-on (creating a lived-in world), and the acting is great all-around. Colm’s home was shot on the island of Achill in County Mayo, which is craggy/rugged, to reflect his moral quandary. However, Padraig’s scenes were filmed on the flatter, more uninteresting island of Inishmore. The J.J. Devine Public House (the bar) was built for the film on Achill; since a planning permit had NOT been acquired, it had to be demolished when the film wrapped. All of the main characters’ sweaters were made by the same elderly man, who knitted them by hand.

Pádraic: I am not putting me donkey outside when I’m sad, okay?

Padraic (a simple man) has animals, Colin (who is more complex/troubled) has music (violin/composing), and Siobhan (practical/lonely) has books. Jenny, the miniature donkey- also named Jenny- had never been in a movie before. She was NOT a trained animal actor and seemed to hate the experience. Farrell joked: “She was the biggest diva on set.” There is a brief shot of Siobhan’s books: Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen, Irish idylls by Jane Barlow, Waverley by Walter Scott, and The Golden Dream by RM Ballantyne. Dominic doesn’t seem to have anything to look forward to, though he is NOT as “dim” as people think. He comments: “faint heart and all that” after irritating Siobhan; this is a referral to the proverb: “A faint heart never won a fair lady.”

Dominic: Me, I pay no attention to wars. I’m again’ ’em. Wars and soap.

Even in such open spaces, viewers noted feeling the claustrophobia of the characters. The loss of one friend could be a tragedy, some viewers commented, as there aren’t many people around to know! There is no romance (or even potential for some romance) in this story, as one critic sadly noted. The elderly (perhaps witch-like) woman frightens the community w/ her premonitions. The priest is only around on Sundays and doesn’t know how to deal w/ Colm’s “despair.” The local policeman is often drunk and V abusive, esp. to his son Dominic (perhaps the most tragic character).

[1] At first, I was relating to Gleeson’s character, because I’ve felt like him. Life is too short to spend on relationships that don’t add value. But as his behavior gets more and more extreme… […] we start to realize how unwell he is and sympathies shift to Farrell’s character. Until we start to realize how selfish he actually is and how much his own actions are driven more by wanting to be liked than by concern for his friend. […]

The standout of the cast is Kerry Condon as Farrell’s sister. She’s an antidote to the male angst pervading this little Irish village.

[2] Reflecting the friction and war taking place over the water, and the reasons for it, with four outstanding performances, although Barry Keoghan absolutely knocks it out of the park, a film to get you thinking about what it means to get along, and the repercussions when two tribes don’t, even over the most trivial of torments.

[3] It is a well told dark comedy that keeps you wanting more, in a time when Ireland was full of despair, not long after the war of Independence and a long-suffering period that brought about a post-colonial inferiority complex (still hasn’t been addressed to this day), a struggle for an identity, a repressive church, superstitions, isolation, mass emigration, poverty and to top it all off- a brutal civil war.

-Excerpts from IMDb reviews

“The Woman King” (2022) starring Viola Davis, Thuso Mbedu, Lashana Lynch, Sheila Atim, & John Boyega

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The Woman King is the remarkable story of the Agojie, the all-female unit of warriors who protected the African Kingdom of Dahomey in the 1800s with skills and a fierceness unlike anything the world has ever seen. Inspired by true events, The Woman King follows the emotionally epic journey of General Nanisca (Oscar®-winner Viola Davis) as she trains the next generation of recruits and readies them for battle against an enemy determined to destroy their way of life. Some things are worth fighting for. -Synopsis

This historical drama’s title comes from the fact that the people of Dahomey believed in a legend of two kings, a man and a woman who are equals; Nanisca (Viola Davis- at the top of her game) is expected to be crowned a Woman King by King Ghezo (John Boyega- a galaxy way from his Star Wars role). Producer Maria Bello (who acted w/ Davis in Prisoners) was visiting Benin (a West African nation) when she heard the story of the Agojie; she returned to the US, convinced she’d found a great movie pitch. The project stayed in “development hell” for 7 yrs, first at STX (which only offered a $5M budget), then at TriStar. Only after the huge success of Black Panther (2018) was this film greenlit (w/ a $50M budget). Davis and her husband also served as producers; they have a production company.

The actors trained for 4 mos. to get in shape for the action scenes; they’d lift weights for 90 mins, and then train for 3.5 hrs. w/ a stunt coordinator (on martial arts, the use of swords and spears, and did cardio). Most of the department heads are either women or people of color (POC): cinematography, production design, editing, makeup, hairstyling, costumes and visual effects. The screenplay is by Dana Stevens; her work includes: Fatherhood, the adaptation of Nicholas Sparks’ novel Safe Haven, City of Angels, For Love of the Game, Blink, and Life or Something Like It. The movie (directed by Gina Prince-Blythewood) began shooting in South Africa (late 2021), but was interrupted by the Omicron variant of the COVID-19 virus. Production had to shut down for a few weeks; the extra time was used to rehearse the big battle. Prince-Bythewood has said in (recent) interviews that she directs only those movies that she is passionate about.

Izogie: Rule number one: Always obey Izogie.

[she gives Nawi a strict look]

Izogie: I am Izogie!

Unlike Top Gun: Maverick (2022), which also centers on a strong/middle-aged leader and an ensemble of younger “warriors” (pilots), The Woman King is a balanced blend of action and character drama. How much do we know about Rooster (Miles Teller), Hangman (Glen Powell), Phoenix (Monica Barbero), Bob (Lewis Pullman), etc? They have little character development, as Maverick- and to a lesser extent- Penny (Jennifer Connelly)- is the obvious star. In this film, we get to know (and care about) 3 different warriors under Nanisca’s leadership: Nawi (Thuso Mbedu- a petite/20s South African actress in her 1st movie), Izogie (Lashana Lynch- a British actress recently in the Bond franchise), and Amenza (Sheila Atim- a British-Ugandan actress known for Shakespearean theater roles). Izogie brings in moments of (needed) humor, 19 y.o. Nawi is the newbie/audience surrogate, and Amenza is thoughtful/spiritual. Though Nanisca is their experienced, tough, and respected general, she has suffered trauma in the past. Each the women fights in her own unique way, specializing in different weapons.

Nanisca [to Nawi]: Your tears mean nothing. To be a warrior, you must kill your tears.

This a film focused on women, though there are supporting roles for a few men also. Boyega does a fine job (as expected), perhaps channeling Denzel Washington and Eddie Murphy (from his African prince role in Coming to America), as some viewers commented. He says “my love” in a different way when he addresses each wife. The (fictional) white/Portuguese-speaking slave trader, Santo (Hero Fiennes Tiffin- nephew of actors Ralph and Joseph Fiennes), is welcomed by King Ghezo, but fails to maintain in good relations w/ him. Yes, the main villain is named Hero- LOL! Santo was perhaps loosely inspired by Francisco Félix de Sousa, a Brazilian slave trader who helped King Ghezo gain power IRL; these events are portrayed in Werner Herzog’s Cobra Verde (1987). I don’t want to give too much away, but there is another male character who adds flavor to the story. I smiled, I cried (3x), and it stood up to re-watch! You can rent this movie (Amazon Prime).

#Oscars: “Top Gun: Maverick” (2022) starring Tom Cruise, Jennifer Connelly, Miles Teller, & Val Kilmer

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After thirty years, Maverick is still pushing the envelope as a top naval aviator, but must confront ghosts of his past when he leads TOP GUN’s elite graduates on a mission that demands the ultimate sacrifice from those chosen to fly it. -Synopsis

I know what y’all (regular readers) are thinking: “You watched this movie!?” Heck yeah, I watched it for Glen Powell (looking gorgeous, BUT should’ve gotten more characterization)! Powell (who plays Hangman) lobbied for the role of Rooster (which went to Miles Teller- sporting a thick mustache). Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw is the grown-up/pilot son of Goose (played by Anthony Edwards in the 1986 movie) who is NOT on the best of terms w/ Pete “Maverick” Mitchell when this story starts.

Maverick [to younger pilots]: You think up there, you’re dead, believe me.

There is a diverse ensemble of attractive (and super-fit) young pilots; we don’t know much about them, as this story is concerned re: Maverick and the (impressive) action. I learned that a few scenes btwn Rooster and Phoenix (Monica Barbero) were cut. Bob (wears glasses, doesn’t swear or drink) is played by Lewis Pullman, son of actor Bill Pullman. Maverick is still in the rank of captain; he takes risks and bucks authority, though Adm. Tom “Iceman” Kazansky (Val Kilmer) covers his back. Ed Harris and Jon Hamm (who some thought looked older than Cruise- LOL) play two of the experienced Naval officers who are NOT quickly impressed by Maverick’s skills/charm. Many viewers were emotional after seeing Maverick and Iceman (in poor health) reunite!

Iceman: One last thing, who’s the better pilot, you or me?

Maverick: This is a nice moment, let’s not ruin it.

Unlike in the 1986 movie, we see a much better romance! Maverick (single/no kids) reunites w/ his former gf, Penny Benjamin (Jennifer Connelly- good in any role), a bar owner/single mom to a teen daughter. Penny was “the admiral’s daughter” mentioned in the original movie (a few astute viewers noticed). There is a V cool scene where Penny and Maverick go sailing on her boat; the actors are actually doing the work! Their love scene looked tame, BUT this has a PG-13 rating.

The opening of the movie is nearly identical to that in the 1986 movie. There are many call-backs (nostalgia); some will find it touching, while others will think it’s repetitive. The cutting-edge plane that Maverick flies past the speed of Mach 10 is sleek and expensive. The “fight” btwn Rooster and Maverick during one of the training exercises is (potentially) deadly, yet V exciting. In the 3rd act, there are some surprises (which I didn’t see coming). Who is the enemy? We don’t know, as the filmmakers chose to keep it apolitical. No doubt that this movie (filmed in 2018) is a technical achievement which became a box-office hit. If you want to check it out, it’s streaming on Amazon Prime (Paramount+). Powell looked V happy promoting the movie- that’s good enough for me!