Eddie the Eagle

— A cute little underdog film that doesn’t quite make it into the “inspirational” category but, while it’s nothing remarkable, at least it's nothing offensive as well. Hugh Jackman does his scruffy but charming performance and Taron Egerton, as the underdog, is adequate, making the quirky but unexceptional film fine for lazy afternoon viewing or a family night at home. [DVD]

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[2016. 106 min. Directed by Dexter Fletcher. Starring Taron Egerton, Hugh Jackman, Tom Costello, Joe Hartley, and Keith Allen.]
http://variety.com/2016/film/reviews/eddie-the-eagle-review-1201691900/

War Dogs

— Two fairly decent actors don’t necessarily make a decent film. “War Dogs” never settles into a groove and, by the end, you’ve seen a buddy film with buddies who really aren’t any fun, a film about the international arms market that’s low on excitement, and a glimpse into flawed government spending practices that requires detaching yourself from the film to feel any outrage. This film desperately needs a focus and is lucky it came out when there’s not much box office competition.

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[2016. 106 min. Directed by Dexter Fletcher. Starring Taron Egerton, Hugh Jackman, Tom Costello, Joe Hartley, and Keith Allen.]
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/war-dogs-2016

A Hologram for the King 

— This is sort of an off-kilter film and I should have been prepared by the odd opening scene with Tom Hanks reciting “Once In a Lifetime” lyrics. I didn’t read the novel, but I may now that I’ve seen the film. Hanks’ character is something of an everyman in the global village, a technology salesman in the Willy Loman tradition, dealing with identity and change, struggling to adapt to new and shifting values, figuring out how to find order in chaos, and accept his own obsolescence. The fact that the film is somewhat chaotic itself may help bring this out and, of course, Tom Hanks does everything he can with the role. The images are beautiful and, although I gritted my teeth while watching, thinking it never seemed to get to the heart of things, I felt much better after it was over. Somehow the main characters’ loss of relevance, the country’s loss of manufacturing and political prominence, and the feeling that we may all share a part of our downfall and just need to start over came through loud and clear. It would be interesting to see if age of viewer and praise for film correlate. At my age, I liked it. [DVD]

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[2016. 98 min. Directed by Tom Tykwer. Starring Tom Hanks, Alexander Black, Sarita Choudhury, and Sidse Babett Knudsen.]
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/22/movies/review-a-hologram-for-the-king-is-elevated-by-tom-hankss-portrayal-of-an-american-everyman.html

London Has Fallen

— Sometimes enough should be enough, but I still enjoyed the excitement even if it went a little overboard with one-on-one killings. We’ve certainly grown accustomed to a lone secret service agent protecting and saving the President from a gaggle of terrorists aided by an inside connections but, say you may, the basic plot is still more believable than some “classier” blockbusters. I’ll admit there’s nothing new in it and it’s not as good as “Olympus Has Fallen” or “White House Down”, but it is what it is. [DVD]

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[2016. 99 min. Directed by Babak Najafi. Starring Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart, and Morgan Freeman.]
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/london-has-fallen-2016

Florence Foster Jenkins

— This is certainly a crowd-pleaser! Florence Foster Jenkins' love of music considerably outshines her ability but she’s never really aware of her shortcomings thanks to sympathetic friends and a husband who protects her using every trick possible. Meryl Streep is always incredible and she offers the perfect mix of emotions throughout the film, to say nothing of having an amazing ability to sing off key. Her considerable talents have been well documented over the years but it is Hugh Grant’s ability to mostly hold his own that comes as a bit of a surprise since he normally churns out the same, glib and funny, endearing, rakish performance, making it look easy after so many iterations. This time, there's more depth to things and, while he’s still charming, there’s a softness to his love of Florence that really makes the role special. I liked this film quite a bit since it succeeds at being both funny and touching, has a great cast, and the hand of a competent director. Some people in the audience applauded when it ended, so others liked it as well. (I also liked the 2015 French film, “Marguerite”, based on the same story but with less plot than this film. I think it’s worth seeing both films if you can since they are both concerned with the lines between encouragement and manipulation, when politeness becomes patronization, whether art is in the eyes of the artist or the audience, and the power of art and love. )

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[2016. 110 min. Directed by Stephen Frears. Starring Meryl Streep, Hugh Grant, Simon Helberg, and Rebecca Ferguson.]
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/apr/13/florence-foster-jenkins-review-meryl-streep-hugh-grant-stephen-frears

Jason Bourne

— If you’re a “real” Bourne fan and can forget “The Bourne Legacy”, you’ll like it. Matt Damon’s back along with Julia Stiles and more pieces of the puzzle are revealed even as Bourne’s amnesia persists. Like previous installments, the film is pretty much a continual chase and the audience is comfortable rooting for the trained killer over the CIA. Previous installments were based on Robert Ludlum novels and this one suffers from only being based on those characters. There are decidedly fewer twists and turns as the writers spend more time making sure they’ve set things up for additional films in the franchise to follow. It would be more satisfying with a bit of intrigue, with some agenda other than an unknowing Bourne being chased by unknowing spies whose knowing supervisor is privy to past secrets. Meanwhile, Damon is holding up well at age 45; I don't think there will be a need to title one of the films “Wheelchair Bourne” for several more years.

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[2016. 133 min. Directed by Paul Greengrass. Starring Matt Damon, Tommy Lee Jones, Alicia Vikander, Vincent Cassel, and Julia Stiles.]
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/29/movies/jason-bourne-matt-damon-review.html

Burnt

— There are plenty of great “chef” films, but “Burnt” just doesn’t have enough going for it to make the grade. Oh, it’s a perfectly acceptable film about opening up and the importance of love and sense of family, and Bradley Cooper lacks much appeal, probably because the script paints him into a manic, talented, aloof, recovering drug addict corner. When he isn’t throwing plates and yelling like Gordon Ramsey, he’s being threatened by nefarious debt collectors, blood tested, or counseled. It’s gets to be a little tedious and eventually, sappy. [DVD]

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[2015. 101 min. Directed by John Wells. Starring Bradley Cooper, Sienna Miller, and Daniel Bruhl.]
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/burnt-2015

Suicide Squad

— Given all the unfavorable reviews, I almost didn’t bother with this but really, what were people expecting? With enough new characters to populate a Russian novel, the first third of “Suicide Squad” was destined to be introductions and background information, not characters advancing much of a plot. Even worse, during the introductions the characters are really only vaguely likable and that may be pushing it. Luckily, there is something interesting about the set-up and, even if it feels like filmed Cliff’s Notes, they're very well done vignettes. I really wasn't bored and I honestly did want to see what they did with this mess of non-humanity. Writer/director David Ayer keeps the basic story simple enough that we can focus on all these characters instead of offering up a complicated plot and that’s a good thing because the characters are key as they become their own little family, demonstrate a modicum of decency, and save the world as only Marvel-ians should. Viola Davis is spectacularly frightening as Amanda Waller and the Harley Quinn character has a real, but unsettling charm, and I want to see more of Jared Leto’s Joker. It doesn’t have the charm of “Guardians of the Galaxy” nor the struggle between aggressive and sometimes morbid humor and shock of “Deadpool”, both of which I liked more, but it still did what I’m sure it set out to do—introduce these misfits, maintain a PG-13 rating even if it would have better as an R-rated film, and entice the audience into coming to the next installment. I’m glad I went and I’ll go to the next one.

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[2016. 123 min. Written and directed by David Ayer. Starring Will Smith, Jared Leto, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Viola Davis, Jay Hernandez, Joel Kinnaman, Jai Courtney, Margot Robbie, Cara Delevingne, and Karen Fukuhara.]
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/suicide-squad-2016

Romeo & Juliet 
(The Kenneth Branagh Theatre Company)

— An interesting Garrick Theatre stage production recorded in black and white to enhance its 1960’s New Wave cinema vibe. Think of Fellini directing Shakespeare but with an actor who’s less talented than any Fellini chose. Poor Richard Madden in Ray Ban’s with a James Dean look snarls and furls his brow when he isn’t looking doe-eyed at Lily James’ more accomplished Juliet, hoping that’s enough but he really can’t do the role justice. Worse, with Derek Jacobi as Mercutio, he’s often on stage with someone who really can act. Even with a few problems, the classic tale is mostly whole and enjoyable.

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[2016. 165 min. Directed by Rob Ashford and Kenneth Branagh. Starring Richard Madden, Lily James, Derek Jacobi, and Meera Syal.]
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/theatre/what-to-see/romeo-and-juliet-garrick-review-richard-madden-is-a-maddeningly/

Café Society

— Not Woody Allen’s best, but better than his mediocre. The story of a Bronx boy looking for fortune in 1930’s Hollywood, finding and loosing love, and returning to New York where he does find fame ticks off classic Woody checkboxes and his stars are right for their jobs, particularly Kristen Stewart who’s the best of the bunch. The sets are perfect, the photography great, and all the parts seem fine, save a script that could use a bit more of the kind of humor Woody’s so good at. At some point I grew a little restless but I was encouraged by a perfect ending for this kind of tale, leaving me liking the film overall. It’s no “Midnight in Paris” or “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”, but it’s still a nice little film.

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[2016. 96 min. Written and directed by Woody Allen. Starring Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Steve Carell, Blake Lively, Jeannie Berlin, Parker Posey, Corey Stoll, and Ken Stott.]
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/15/movies/cafe-society-review-woody-allen.html