Tag Archives: movies

The Social Reckoning

Is Facebook evil? Well, yes and no.

It connects people. It informs people. You may have, in fact, clicked on a link posted on Facebook to find this review of the new movie The Social Reckoning. But Facebook is guilty of many sins, several of which are explored in this film.

Its leader Mark Zuckerberg (Jeremy Strong) is portrayed in The Social Reckoning as a hard-nosed strongman whose mission is to grow Facebook’s user numbers and its stock price. 

Aaron Sorkin, who wrote the script and directed the movie, shows Zuckerberg’s boardroom meetings in stark black-and-white. The most telling scenes of Zuck’s ego and insecurity come when he is being prepped for testimony before congressional committees. During that media training, Zuckerberg is peppered with advice from early Facebook investor Charlie Garrigan (Bill Burr) but pushes back against that input.

Wall Street Journal reporter Jeff Horwitz (Jeremy Allen White) arrives in San Francisco to investigate what’s going on at Facebook. He messages numerous employees via LinkedIn and gets one response, from Frances Haugen (Mikey Madison).

She believes in Facebook as a force for good, for connecting people. But she sees the dark side, too, and begins sharing information with Horwitz. She even chooses to move beyond being an anonymous source to being identified as a whistleblower.

Zuckerberg regards Facebook as a vessel for content though not the generator of that content. He calls the platform a “corkboard.” But Haugen’s inside info shows that Facebook controls who sees what. And that leads to Trump and the January 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol building. Clips depicting that event are included in the film.

Two big differences between this film and 2010’s The Social Network:

The earlier film shows Zuckerberg (played by Jessie Eisenberg) as an energetic young college student, maneuvering to seize control of the emerging platform. The new film shows him as a more settled adult. Also, in 2010 Facebook was still new and fresh, unknown to many and less known than now even to heavy users. Today Facebook and its sibling Instagram are part of popular culture, accessed daily by a large portion of the world’s population. (Sorkin wrote the screenplay for the the 2010 film which was directed by David Fincher.) 

The Social Reckoning is the sort of movie that, considering its story, could just crawl but it moves along at a good, tight pace, clocking in at just under two hours. There are a few humorous throwaway lines which are worth a few chuckles. Curiously, Madison who played a sex worker in the film Anora, shows up for some of her meetings with Horwitz in provocative attire—Sorkin’s attempt to add a bit of allure to her character?

Unlike with the buzzy at the time 2010 Facebook movie, there may be less urgency to see The Social Reckoning. Not that it is flawed but because much of its tale has been told already. The Social Reckoning is rated R.

Leave a comment

Digger

In the first few days following its release, Digger has become moviedom’s most polarizing film since Napoleon Dynamite. And, as was the case in 2004 with that oddball comedy, the extreme opinions shared about Digger make it a film that must be seen.

Either to join the chorus of those who offer angry putdowns of the film as a misguided ego trip. Or to praise the film as a work of genius. Which is it? 

The creativity of Digger cannot be denied. It is filled with memorable scenes and memorable lines of dialogue. The structure of the film which is gradually revealed is clever. Oh, there are clues along the way but some are subtle and part of the suspension of belief that is necessary when viewing many films, even those that are more direct in their exposition. 

The transformation of Tom Cruise from a fit, athletic action movie star to an overweight middle-aged guy with thinning hair is an impressive prosthetic trick. You saw Tom in his underwear in Risky Business but this version of Tom in he underwear is not so sexy. And his Texas accent is spot on.

But, is the movie… um, good? Um, yes.

Digger digs (pun intended) into the ecological crisis that the world has been mired in for decades and does it in a way that’s not overly preachy. But the film’s point is clearly made.

Digger Rockwell (Tom Cruise) is awakened with news of a disaster brewing in Greenland. Drilling for oil has caused a chunk of ice to break away and float in the direction of Europe. His reaction is to go into damage control. He consults with the US President Compson (John Goodman) and science consultant Ganesh (Riz Ahmad). 

In a scene that has the feel of a classic movie moment, Digger delivers a passionate speech to a gathering of world leaders, chastising them for failing to embrace alternate energy sources because they are addicted to his product, oil. I was reminded of the passion of Ned Beatty’s speech directed to Peter Finch in Network. One can imagine Digger might even have included Colonel Jessep’s line from another Cruise movie: “You can’t handle the truth!”

The real question this movie asks is “is Tom Cruise Oscar-worthy?” Digger’s director and co-writer Alejandro Iñárritu got Leo his Oscar for The Revenant. He almost got Michael Keaton an Oscar for Birdman. (Keaton was excellent anchoring that best picture winner but lost to an actor playing a more sympathetic character.) 

And now, Tom Cruise, who has never won an Oscar, is making his bid with Digger. Will it work? The film has received numerous pans from critics but its IMDB user rating is 7.3 which is not bad. The old line “it’s an honor just to be nominated” may be true but after a while it must get old. 

In addition to Cruise who does a masterful job with a unique (for him, anyway) role, others in the cast must be lauded. Goodman does not hold back one iota in his over the top performance. Ahmad, Jesse Plemons, Michael Stuhlbarg, among others, add to the overall high level of screen presence.

And how about that soundtrack? Credit Cosmo Sheldrake for the odd music touches, another signal that this is an unusual film.

Digger is rated R. 

Leave a comment

Primetime

Another bravura performance from Robert Pattinson! If you’re a Pattinson fan, here’s one more example for you of his talent and his range as an actor.

Primetime is a behind-the-scenes look at Chris Hansen (Pattinson) and NBC-TV’s To Catch A Predator. Hansen has a healthy ego. He is hungry for TV ratings. And confronting would-be sex offenders on camera turns out to be ratings gold. 

NBC programming chief Jeff Zucker (played by… Jeff Zucker!) makes it clear that he finds Hansen’s show distasteful but that since his work attracts viewers, the show it is about to get a primetime time slot opposite Lost.

A key to Hansen’s efforts comes from his support team and from the decoys he employs to lure the men when they physically show up for sexual favors. Producer Andie (Merritt Wever) and keyboard guru Xavier (Matthew Maher) try to keep the show and Hansen under control. Del (Phoebe Bridgers) and “Decoy Dan” (Skyler Gisando) are bait for the pervs. These four actors bring commendable performances to their roles.

The tale is full of conflicted people. Hansen assumes high moral ground with his “gotchas” but is cheating on his wife. The organization that launched TCAP wants to stop predators but sells thongs on its website. Dan has qualms about what he’s doing but keeps at it to get TV credits and, ultimately, his union card. Andie is loyal to Hansen but ponders a job offer from ABC-TV.

Director Lance Oppenheim adds stylish touches to the film without overwhelming it. Hansen has a reddish tone to his face through much of the film. Lighting effects add an air of mystery to the later scenes of the movie. Parts of the film have the feel of a documentary. (Oppenheim’s prior works have been docs.) TV camera perspectives and hand-held camera shots add energy to what would otherwise be static scenes. 

The script is by Ajon Singh based on an Esquire magazine article about the TV show and Hansen. Rooted in true events, the film has dramatic embellishment. Not that that’s a bad thing.

As Zucker tells Hansen in the film, TV was changing in the early part of this century. Spending less money on “reality” TV shows not only makes economic sense but also brings plenty of viewers to the various networks. If To Catch A Predator seemed sleazy or sordid back in the day, compare it to what’s on your television as you flip through cable channels tonight (or to what’s on certain true crime podcasts) and maybe reconsider your appraisal.

Primetime is rated R for various sexually related elements and one scene of graphic male nudity.

Leave a comment

Coyote vs. Acme

Coyote vs. Acme is an excellent film. It’s funny, it’s clever and it features cartoon characters we’ve known and loved for decades. And it features some fine work from all the humans involved as well.

Melding cartoon characters onscreen with live action people has not always been done well but in Coyote vs. Acme, the toons and the actors share the same world seamlessly. 

However… seeing and enjoying this great new movie leads to the question: why did Warner Brothers bury it? Oh, supposedly it was an accounting thing. Corporations do it all the time. But, typically, if a company takes a “write down,” it’s for a product or service that has not done well in the marketplace. This movie never even got a chance. Only via the efforts of many individuals has Coyote vs. Acme seen the light of day.

You’ve seen the Roadrunner cartoons. Back in the day they ran just before feature film screenings. Wile E. Coyote fails time and time again in his efforts to nab the speedy Roadrunner. He employs numerous devices from Acme corporation. Often, his failures are due to Coyote’s own missteps but frequently they are the results of flawed products from Acme. Coyote generally suffers severe physical damage.

In Coyote vs. Acme, the frustrated Coyote hires small time Albuquerque attorney Kevin Avery (Will Forte), one of those lawyers whose face is on billboards and TV ads, to seek damages from Acme corporation. Avery’s assistant Paige (Lana Condor) helps keep him on the right track. Acme’s lawyer the arrogant Buddy Crane (John Cena) is condescending in his treatment of Avery, an old law school classmate.

Things go badly for Coyote in the courtroom until a surprise witness shows up in the final act. 

Among the highlights of Coyote vs. Acme are the appearances of numerous Warner Brothers cartoon characters: Daffy, Porky, Bugs, Tweety, Elmer. Plus a personal favorite, Foghorn Leghorn, who is on Acme’s side in this face-off. Also, there’s an animated version of movie great Peter Lorre, a toon who’s been hidden away by Acme for decades.

The whole wacky tale comes from a short story in the New Yorker magazine in 1990 by Ian Frazier. The movie’s script is by Samy Burch and the director is Dave Green. Eric Bauza is the new Mel Blanc. Bauza voices Bugs, Daffy, Elmer, Porky, Tweety and Foghorn Leghorn.

Coyote vs. Acme is a true delight! Fun for all ages. Rated PG.

Leave a comment

Mutiny

For a film director, a cat and mouse game on a large container ship presents a world of opportunities. Such a ship has all sorts of nooks and crannies, ladders and stairs to climb up or down, corners to lurk behind or spring from. Not to mention the containers and what might be inside them.

Intrigue in the innards of a ship (or above on various decks) has been a movie staple for decades, most famously maybe in Titanic.

Director Jean-François Richet has exploited these possibilities well in his new film Mutiny. It helps that he has the excellent action-adventure actor Jason Statham in the lead role. 

Cole Reed (Statham) is the security guy and driver for a Bangkok billionaire Tibu Campallo (Ramon Tikaram) who is selling his shipping empire. On the evening of the event marking his stepping away from the business, the billionaire is murdered and Reed is blamed. Reed, needing to disappear, manages to stow away on a cargo ship, the Artemis, that he discovers is involved in human trafficking.

In an early scene aboard the Artemis, captain Marko Madsen (Roland Moller) fondles a necklace in what may be a reverential nod to The Caine Mutiny in which Caine (Humphrey Bogart) nervously rolls steel balls around in his hands.

Angie Ellis (Annabelle Wallis) is a last-minute addition to the ship’s crew. She quickly sniffs out that something is not quite right. She soon becomes Reed’s ally in the effort to control the ship. She and he are the mice, moving throughout the ship to avoid being caught by the cats, the captain and his henchmen. She also adds sex appeal to a male-dominated cast. 

You might guess what some of the key elements of this drawn out battle are. Gunplay for sure. Knives and other weapons get their turn too. 

After Reed departs the Artemis, there’s more revenge to be taken before the film ends. Run time is just over 90 minutes. The film is tight. Never drags. Yes, it is filled with action-adventure clichés, but it satisfies. Director Richet and star Statham accomplish exactly what this sort of film sets out to do. Kudos to all!

Mutiny is rated R. No sex or nudity but violence galore.

Leave a comment

Disclosure Day

What a beautifully constructed movie! Everything works. The visuals, the script, the acting. There’s reality and fantasy. Incredible tech. Religious overtones. Symbolic animals. Jackie Gleason—what? Memorable shots that make you say, “wow!” All fueled by that eternal question: Do aliens exist? 

Steven Spielberg keeps asking that question. And answering it! His newest film Disclosure Day tells the story of a massive conspiracy to keep information about the presence of aliens on our planet a secret. (For fear that it would cause the world’s populace to panic.)

Margaret Fairchild (Emily Blunt) is a Kansas City TV meteorologist who gets a visit from a cardinal—a bird, that is, not a cleric or a ballplayer. That visit stirs a mental upgrade that gives her extraordinary insight but also causes bizarre behavior. After an MRI, she senses that she needs to leave town.

Meanwhile, Daniel Kellner (Josh O’Connor) wants to share the secrets he carries with him, which he obtained from the Wardex corporation, an outfit that has worked with the U.S. government for decades to keep the keep the alien info hidden. Kellner, too, has incredible vision in his mental makeup.

Wardex, led by Noah Scanlon (Colin Firth), wants to stop Kellner before he is able to spill the beans. Is Scanlon a bad guy? Well, kinda but not totally. Scanlon has the ability to teleport himself and does so as he tries to track down Kellner via his girlfriend Jane (Eve Hewson. Bono’s daughter!) and grab the evidence that Kellner carries. 

Scanlon employs a device, a handheld geometrically-shaped object about a foot long, that gives him powers including teleportation. 

(Wardex headquarters, by the way, has more video screens than any NASA mission or any TV network control room. It looks real.)

Fairchild and Kellner go on the run together and their journey includes a car versus train collision that results in a memorable escape from peril, one of those “wow” shots. 

Hugo Wakefield (Colman Domingo) is a former Wardex employee who offers guidance to the two via cell phone as they manage to elude Wardex goons and law enforcement. 

The pace of Disclosure Day slows noticeably in the third act when more backstory is introduced. Fairchild revisits her childhood. And the fantastical resolution of the story steps gingerly to its conclusion. 

Disclosure Day has Spielberg trademarks like an excellent John Williams soundtrack that is not at all subtle in telegraphing moods. There are creative uses of lighting as seen often in Spielberg movies. But no shooting star, dang it, another treat enjoyed in several of his films. Is it his best movie in twenty years, as some critics have said? I’d say it’s his best since Minority Report (2002.)

Emily Blunt is an established star but her performance in Disclosure Day will move her another notch up the Hollywood ladder. Firth is, as always, solid. Domingo continues to be a perfect “go to” guy for strong supporting characters. (He’s also the lone American born actor among Brits Blunt, Firth, O’Connor and Irish born Hewson.)

Disclosure Day runs two hours and twenty-five minutes. According to Wikipedia, screenwriter Daniel Koepp developed forty-two drafts of his screenplay. The result of his work that you see onscreen is impressive. 

Disclosure Day is rated PG-13. 

Leave a comment

Pressure

Bob Dylan was wrong. Sometimes you DO need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows. Especially if you’re planning a really big event.

We’ve all cancelled outdoor plans because a huge rainstorm was predicted, only to sit at home as the sun shines. And we’ve plowed ahead with plans because the forecast for nice weather was wrong and we got soaked.

If your big event is, say, the Allied invasion of Normandy in 1944, an accurate forecast is vital. But a forecast is just that… an educated guess. Which is why the local TV people with all the modern Doppler radar and satellite images at their disposal are still often dead wrong when they try to answer the simple question “is it gonna rain?”

In the new movie Pressure, Scottish meteorologist James Stagg (Andrew Scott) is charged by General Dwight Eisenhower (Brendan Fraser) with predicting the weather for D-Day, June 5, 1944. 

Wait—June FIFTH? Well, that was the plan but as you likely know the invasion actually occurred on June SIXTH. What happened? Stagg told Ike to hold off because the weather looked iffy for 6/5/44. And here’s where the film’s narrative conflict lies.

Stagg’s arrogance is met with that of a similarly confident American soldier/weatherman Irving Krick (Chris Messina) who looks to weather patterns from years past to inform his D-Day conjecture. They disagree on the outlook but Stagg has final word and because he notes the way the wind blows across the North Atlantic, he calls off a June 5th action.

The buildup to that decision consumes the thoughts of all the key characters including British Field Marshall Montgomery (Damian Lewis) and Ike’s right hand woman Kay Sommersby (Kerry Condon). The nature of her relationship with the American commander is seen in this film as mainly professional—there has, of course, been speculation about the personal nature of their work together.

D-Day has been documented in fiction and non-fiction films for decades. It is a singular moment in twentieth century history. Pressure covers ground that has been well trod but also brings a different wrinkle to last minute preparation for the invasion focusing not on Ike or the troops but instead on the weather forecasters.

The tension is palpable and this film captures the concern shared by all its major players. Yes, there’s more than a bit of melodrama. Brendan Fraser is passable as a chain-smoking Eisenhower but his gravitas doesn’t quite match up to that we’ve seen from other male actors. Part of the pressure Ike is under is the result of a catastrophic rehearsal for D-Day in April 1944, an episode not particularly well-remembered, which is referenced at the beginning of the film.

Pressure is directed by Anthony Maras who co-wrote the script with David Haig who wrote the stage play from which it was adapted. 

Despite depictions of wartime violence, Pressure is rated PG-13. 

Leave a comment

Project Hail Mary

I have qualms.

I’d expected that I might be jumping up and down, waving my arms and telling one and all that the new movie Project Hail Mary is a MUST-SEE film. Its clever story comes from a best-selling book. It has a cute, non-threatening alien. It stars Ryan Gosling. The visuals are stunning.

But I have qualms about anointing Project Hail Mary an all-time great movie. Others will and that’s their opinion.

Why do I have these qualms?

The book is better than the movie. Yes, they are two different things. Most people who see the movie will not have read the book. Good for them or you!

The narrative is similar to those we’ve seen in other space/sci-fi movies: mission underway, problems/peril, tension, resolution. Just check ‘em off as you go. PHM does have distinctive features including some trippy images and, presumably, the science, while over my head, is legit or close to it.

The mixture of tension and humor seems unnatural, contrived. Well, it IS contrived—it’s fiction! But still, those two elements could’ve been blended better. Does PHM want to be a serious movie or a lightweight movie?

The depiction of the alien Rocky, to my eye, is a bit hokey. Like a Jim Henson Muppet reject. Is that the best they could come up with?

The German gal Eva (Sandra Huller) is just a bit TOO German. Rather off-putting.

The effects are quite good but I’ve seen better.

Is my lack of passion and zeal for PHM because I’ve seen so many of these films and I’ve become weary about yet another one? Maybe. But this genre has given us numerous true classics from 2001 to Apollo 13. (I do admit to disagreeing with the high IMDB user rating for Interstellar. #18? Seriously?)

On the upside, Ryan Gosling as middle school teacher turned astronaut Ryland Grave is excellent as usual. He never fails to deliver. The novelist Andy Weir has given Gosling a cool character to work with.

And the depiction of the alien Rocky’s subjective visions—sort of like a fuzzy pre-cable UHF signal—is impressive.

Also in the cast in minor roles are Lionel Boyce who plays Marcus on The Bear. And Milana Vayntrub who did those AT&T Wireless TV spots for years.

Project Hail Mary is a good, well-made, entertaining movie. Go see it and enjoy it. You might have your mind blown. Or not. Rated PG-13. First showings are set for Thursday, March 19.

Project Hail Mary is directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller.

Leave a comment

Crime 101

Crime 101 has all the ingredients. Blended together nicely. Overall, a decent, fast-moving caper film set in Los Angeles. However, there’s nothing particularly distinctive or unique here. It’s good but not quite great. Enjoy Crime 101 for what it is!

The players: Davis (Chris Hemsworth), a jewel thief who robs without killing. Lou (Mark Ruffalo), an observant LAPD detective who is rough around the edges. Sharon (Halle Berry), a wellness-obsessed insurance exec who courts high money clients but has yet to make partner at her firm. Ormon (Barry Keoghan), a violent thug who steps in to pull a theft that Davis passes on. 

Also: Maya (Monica Barbaro), Davis’s girlfriend who can’t figure out what he’s hiding. (She was Joan Baez in A Complete Unknown.) Angie (Jennifer Jason Leigh), Lou’s soon to be ex-wife. And Nick Nolte! He plays Davis’s mentor. So… a pretty good cast here!

The story involves jewel thefts that occur nearby to the 101 freeway, hence the title. The “101” designation on a college course connotes that the material to be covered is basic stuff. And since many of the tropes in Crime 101 are those that provide the foundation for many such stories, it’s an appropriate title. (If rather generic for marketing purposes, to be honest.)

A few plot elements are curious. Like why is it necessary for a cache of diamonds to be couriered in from Antwerp to LA for a rich guy’s wedding to his young trophy wife? On the day of their nuptials? (Except, of course, to provide fodder for the film’s climatic scene!) 

Crime 101 is written and directed by Bart Layton. (From a novella by Don Winslow.) Layton’s upside down cityscapes add a different touch to the skyline/freeway transition shots that many films and TV shows use as punctuation. And one scene late in the film with Hemsworth and Ruffalo is written and performed beautifully—what does each of them know about the other? 

Crime 101 is rated R.

Leave a comment

Mercy

The movie Mercy moves fast. As it must. 

In Mercy court in a lawless near future Los Angeles, a defendant—who is presumed guilty—has 90 minutes to prove his/her innocence before an AI judge. Failure to do so results in swift execution. 

Alcoholic LA policeman Chris Raven (Chris Pratt), an early supporter of the Mercy court system, is accused of murdering his wife. Circumstantial evidence makes it look like he did it.

Ah, but in this scenario, he has access to multiple digital platforms as the courtroom clock counts down. 

As in a couple of current TV shows, High Potential and Tracker, the access to cell phone data, CCTV footage, emails, financial transactions, criminal records, etc. is quicker and easier than in real life. In Mercy, from his well-connected courtroom, Raven is able to get that digital info at lightning speed.

How realistic or even imaginable is all that? Not very. But when you consider that twenty years ago iPhones didn’t exist and in a few weeks you will be able to watch this movie on your iPhone, what the near future holds… well, who knows? 

Judge Maddox (Rebecca Ferguson) is the AI judge. Like some of our real life AI, she doesn’t handle nuance well. 

Jaq Diallo (Kali Reis) is Raven’s LAPD partner who provides a link to his investigation in the real world. (Reis co-starred with Jodie Foster in that Alaska-based season of True Detective.)

While the main part of Mercy is set in the Mercy courtroom, the videos and phone calls and surveillance footage take the story into the outside world. And, yes, there is even that classic element of thriller films… a chase scene on LA’s freeways!

The main virtue of the film Mercy is its breakneck pace. Nary a slow moment. And like Chris Raven’s trial, it’s over and done in just over ninety minutes. Also, Chris Pratt is a likable actor. So he’s a good choice for this lead role.

Mercy is a juicy chunk of escapism. Directed by Timur Bekmanbetov. Written by Marco van Belle. Rated PG-13. 

Leave a comment