The Big Sick

— I’d heard the praise but still wasn’t prepared for how good this film is. So often lately I’ve focused on a film’s clever script or fine acting, and I seem to have forgotten what it is like to be swept into a love story with starts and stops, and laughter and tears, and with people who really are people you might know. It’s a world where everyone’s a little anxious all the time and the humor is within some oddly dark contexts, cultures are sometimes at odds, and life’s not all that tidy, but it is real. The two main characters are great, but imagine having Holly Hunter and Ray Romano in the supporting rolls—they both are a joy, one for her frenzy and the other for his calm. The whole film is a wonderful balancing act and sure to be one of my favorites for the year.

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[2017. 120 min. Directed by Michael Showalter. Starring Kumail Nanjiani, Zoe Kazan, Holly Hunter, and Ray Romano.]
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-big-sick-2017

The Beguiled

— “The Beguiled” is a mesmerizing film, that’s executed with precision. It moves at a perfect pace as a wounded Union soldier is taken in by a handful of compassionate Southern women remaining at a ladies seminary. The women are proper nearly to a fault, with passions simmering just below the surface as they tend to the handsome stranger’s wounds. In the end, it’s hard to know who the real enemy is. It’s an intriguing film with melodrama, sensitivity, desire, black comedy, and enough turns and twists to keep us watching. Definitely worth seeing.

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[2017. 93 min. Directed by Sofia Coppola. Starring Colin Farrell, Nicole Kidman, Kirsten Dunst, and Elle Fanning.]
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-beguiled-2017

Beatriz at Dinner

— “Beatriz at Dinner” was disappointing in spite of having Selma Hayek and John Lithgow carrying it. The script was just too heavy handed. A look at the entitlement of those with money and the sufferings of those without, while certainly topical, was just too overt. It isn’t a terrible film, but it should have been much, much better.

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[2017. 82 min. Directed by Miguel Arteta. Starring Salma Hayek, John Lithgow, Connie Britton, and Jay Duplass.]
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/beatriz-at-dinner-2017

Silence

— “Silence” was much worse and much better than I expected. The basic story is pretty simple as faith is tested and the merits of bringing Christianity to other cultures questioned. About three-quarters of the way into it, just as it was verging on being too tedious, it shifted to a more coherent subtext, looking at silence, at depth of belief, and at prices paid, and ending up with thematic layers focusing on things like spirituality, temptation, apostasy, deceit, and resolution. I liked the film a lot, and while I have a Catholic heritage that may affect my level of interest, there’s no denying that this is incredible filmmaking. It is elegant and subtle, which is appropriate when dealing with a person’s interior struggles of faith and conscience. You can feel Scorsese’s hand throughout and you know you’re watching something special, but it may still be difficult, in the end, to know if it’s been made special to viewers, or only remains special to Scorsese. [DVD]

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[2016. 161 min. Directed by Martin Scorsese. Starring Andrew Garfield, Adam Driver, and Liam Neeson.]
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/silence-2016

Monterey Pop

— A documentary that’s held up well and offers a good glimpse of the summer of love. When I saw it again for the 50th anniversary, the audience was mostly gray and a few had come with kids or grandkids, most of whom probably didn’t understand that Monterey Pop was the start of something, if not the Summer of Love, at least of the modern concert festival as we know it—and maybe better since all the groups were treated equally and none of them was paid to appear. It took only seven weeks from start of planning to the first day of music history. It was also the first concert film to use multiple, synched, cameras modified for the film to be "hand-held." And it may have been the first time we’d see the kind concert shots we’re now used to seeing, with severe close-ups, or performers in silhouette because there's a bright light almost behind them. But mostly, you’re amazed that Janis Joplin was pretty much unknown outside California at the time, or that Otis Redding had never really played before a white audience, or that Jimi Hendrix was previously unknown in the U.S. (thank you Paul McCartney for suggesting Jimi be invited to Monterey Pop). It’s also a good reminder of the diversity of audiences at the time, some of whom are dressed in caftans and have flowers in their hair, while others could just as easily be on the fraternity steps or at the country club. It was nice to go back to 1967 for an hour and a half, and then to look at where we’ve gone since then.

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[1968. 78 minutes. Directed by D.A. Pennebaker. Featuring Scott McKenzie, the Mamas and the Papas, Canned Heat, Simon and Garfunkel, Jefferson Airplane with Grace Slick, Big Brother and Holding Company, Janis Joplin, Eric Burdon and the Animals, The Who, Country Joe and the Fish, Otis Redding, Jimi Hendrix, and Ravi Shankar.]
https://nowtoronto.com/movies/reviews/fifty-years-later-monterey-pop-is-a-powerful-reminder-of-the/

Paris Can Wait

— “Paris Can Wait” is one of the those unhurried films with a middle-aged or beyond American woman in Europe, softly oozing love, wisdom, and empowerment. In this case, the woman is Diane Lane, evidently at a turning point in her life with a successful but inattentive husband. She finds herself riding to Paris with Jacques, one of her husband’s business associates, who also happens to be a fun-loving, flirty Frenchman. Instead of taking the direct route, Jacques stops frequently and takes a circuitous path filled with more wonderful restaurants than you can imagine, all suitable for leisurely meals and conversations. It’s a pleasant enough little film thanks to Lane, but it all seemed very familiar, probably because there wasn’t much original in the idea. Still fun though.

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[2016. 92 minutes. Written and directed by Eleanor Coppola. Starring Diane Lane, Alec Baldwin, and Arnaud Viard.]
http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/reviews/peter-travers-paris-can-wait-is-a-rom-com-travelogue-joy-w481711

My Cousin Rachel

— This is a nice reminder of what good, moody, period pieces were like and, based on a Daphne du Maurier novel, it has exactly the right feel including, of course, a good-sized country estate with moors in the background. The script, direction, and acting all fit the spirit of the story well and it was nice enough to watch, even intriguing at times although familiar enough that you weren’t always surprised by some of the plot twists and ambiguities. Forgetting a rather unsatisfying end, it was a good diversion and if you like romantic thrillers, its worth seeing. It may also be worth checking out the earlier version with Olivia de Havilland and Richard Burton.

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[2017. 106 min. Directed by Roger Michell. Starring Rachel Weisz, Sam Claflin, Holliday Grainger, and Iain Glen.]
https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2017/06/my-cousin-rachel-movie-review/529182/

Norman: The Moderate Rise and Tragic Fall of a New York Fixer

— This is a good little film that showcases an actor’s talent but it's also is a neatly packaged tale about a wheeler-dealer who lucks into a ride on an up-and-coming politician's shirttails, only to find out it’s a mixed blessing. Gere’s character is both irritating and likable, and you can’t help but fall into his world and root for his schemes to work. I applaud all efforts to remind us that any praiseworthy event is really the last page of an interwoven story and, ultimately, the people and events elevated to a place in history really represent the sum of all those who came before and behind them, many of whom remain anonymous and unsung. I liked the film a lot and the only slight detractor was music that was sometimes annoying. If you like tidy tragic comedies—or maybe it’s a comic tragedy—it’s well worth checking out.

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[2016. 118 min. Written and directed by Joseph Cedar. Starring Richard Gere, Lior Ashkanazi, and Michael Sheen.]
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/13/movies/norman-review-richard-gere.html