Manchester by the Sea

I like Casey Affleck- I like his face much better than Ben's. I love Michelle Williams and Kyle Chandler. I like this story. I like the scenery. I like good stories. But more importantly, I like SHORT stories-not sad stories that run for over 2 hours. It is about 2 scenes or 2o minutes too long.
 There have been a few long movies I've liked- Gone With the Wind is an example. And, if you are going to tell a morose story- a brutally sad one in fact, then the lead actor needs to look and sound more like an interesting person. Casey Affleck is just plain not right for this lead. You lose a lot of empathy while you look at your watch. And what saves this movie?? I'll tell you- it is Michelle Williams. The heartbreak and yearning and love in her face steals the movie in about 2 minutes of your time. It is then that surely you realize the reason this movie feels as if something is off is because they filmed it from the wrong point of view. The true star is Michelle Williams. And then you'd have the real story.

The Big Short

This is about the housing bubble caused by the promotion of subprime mortgages. If you REALLY want to understand that, go online and search for "PBS Money power and wall street" and park yourself in front of your laptop and watch it. It lasts a lot longer than the movie, but it is VERY clear about how it happened. Not a snippet like this. Steve Carrell just doesn't do it for me in the acting department. He always seem to look like he is acting- Master Thespian- but pulled back a bit. And on the upside, Christian Bale is doing better with that lisp, Brad Pitt shows up, and Ryan Gosling does a good job. Is this really "Oscar worthy"? I'm not sure about that, but it was worth going to see. Again, go watch the PBS frontline on it.

The Revenant

OH, yeah, I am back just in time for the Academy Awards. Now, we all know Leo will win for this. I've never seen a bleaker movie in which a handsome man looked more like frozen crap. This movie is a good half hour too long. We get it- the role of villain is really played by the cold. I do have to say there is a special irony watching Leo freeze- I wanted to send him some global warming. His face is really frozen- even his runny nose freezes to his face. In order for Leo to win an award, he figured he would have to NOT be so handsome. Okay, Leo- whatever makes you happy. But for the sake of Minerva, be smart and don't let them freeze your boogers. That is just wrong. WRONG. I realize we are supposed to feel as exhausted, cold, hungry and sick as the character- but trust me, after about an hour of it, it just doesn't matter. You just want it over. So it is up to you- I'll give it 2.5 stars for effort- it succeeded in making me sort of miserable for a couple of hours.  That was their goal.

The Man from UNCLE

You know, this was exactly what I expected. Henry Cavill and Armie Hammer bring this sort of updated coolness to the genre. If there is a drawback, it is probably that no matter how hard they try, it is still a rather dated (and possibly unfamiliar) genre. So, there they are- stuck in the middle of old meets new. I liked it because, well, it is Cavill and Hammer. Both charming and debonair and full of mid-century modern panache. The movie drags in spots, but it is still fun. It isn't great, but it isn't bad. It was the perfect movie for a rainy day.

Trainwreck

I like Amy Shumer, and I really, really like Bill Hader. But for the life of me, I don't know why Amy Shumer has to be gross. It isn't necessary. She can tell the story without the sort of off-putting "I'm a slut and you'd better like it" act. There are a million ways to be funny without having to degrade yourself. I saw Shumer in Vegas- she was funny, until it got sort of boring. This movie is the reverse. The beginning is as boring as watching golf- except it is watching boring sex. But then it grows to be a real story that has real feeling. Bill Hader's physician character is, of course, far nicer man than Shumer's character would seem to need. The ending feels contrived because it IS contrived. I know that Shumer is everyone's favorite female shock comedian, but I think she really is better than that. And in fact, she is much funnier when you can relate to her.  So get past the first 25 minutes, and you'll see a decent film that stops being a comedy act and starts being a fun and sort of nice movie.

Danny Collins

Well, lookey here- finally Al Pacino uses his acting skills. I don't know what happened to Al Pacino. I thought he'd had a face lift a while back, so either this is incredible make up OR his face is melting. Either way, maybe he should worry a bit because he looks awful. I know he's 74, but he looks worn and tired. Or maybe it is that I once thought Al Pacino was gorgeous. I'll watch him the Godfather a million times. Oh okay, I'll stop being shallow and allow him to live as a cautionary tale. Just be prepared.  He plays Danny Collins, a sort of good former rocker a la Neil Diamond. Just as I am sure Neil Diamond is sick and tired of Sweet Caroline, Danny is tired of his signature song. But money is money. Surgeons probably get tired of performing appendectomies, too, but they do it. In his heyday, Danny had a liaison with a groupie that gave him a son- and the son is, of course, now an adult with a problem but hates Danny. It makes no sense because Danny did send money but the kid and his mom wouldn't use it. That's just plain stupid and not Danny's fault. Oh well- it turns out that Danny is going to always be an addict but a good hearted one. I am going to give him a break because the little girl in the film is so cute and is willing to give Danny a break, too. This is a pretty good movie. Predictable. But pretty good.

Foxcatcher

Anyone of a certain age may remember the way things unfolded for John E DuPont in 1996. I thought everyone knew, because it was such a big story- but it was clear that at the end of Foxcatcher, the audience was surprised. So I won't ruin it here, and it is up to you to ruin it for yourself looking it up.
You can also check online for the accuracies and inaccuracies if you want, but in general, except for a few things (like 7 years of time missing), it is more accurate than most Hollywood "based on a true story" films are.
At first, Steve Carell looks just odd. Why would they try so hard to make him look like John DuPont if most people have no idea anyway? It's not like Carell didn't all ready HAVE a big nose. Oh well. I found it a distraction to make his face look so odd. A haircut and some dye would have been okay by me.  He might win some awards, but if you are aware of how really crazy John DuPont was for YEARS, you don't get the aura of insanity off of Carell that you should. You know he's weird, and that he is strange and a little crazy, but not schizophrenic and unpredictable.  He should have channeled more of that. Even without it, the audience knows something is terribly wrong with the guy.
Then there is Channing Tatum playing an Olympic gold medal winning wrestler. He is really amazing. This is a highly physical role, and he really makes it believable. Unfortunately, though his character graduated from college, he is played as if he were an idiot meathead. It is hard to believe even OU would give a degree to someone who was that much of a dolt.  That's not Tatum's fault. The director made it that way.
But the big surprise here is Mark Ruffalo. He plays the Olympic gold medal in wrestling brother of Channing Tatum. At first it is natural to go " oh no, it's Mark Ruffalo being Mark Ruffalo acting like Mark Ruffalo does again". And yep, for a short time, that's true. But then he morphs into the star of it. He comes into the movie late, and he changes everything.
Why? Well, because this movie starts out as a snoozer- no kidding- if it went any slower you'd be watching backwards. And it goes on that way for over an hour.  I have no idea why. Maybe if they'd spent a little time with some action showing how damn crazy DuPont was, there'd have been some action. If you see it, you'll know what I mean.
I'm not going to give it 3 stars because the script was really not that good. I'll give the actors 3.5 stars. But the movie itself gets a 2.5.

Whiplash

Yikes.
This is kind of a sado-masochistic version of jazz band. It's supposed to be the best music college in the United States, with the best jazz band. It is basically about a frustrated and miserably angry jazz teacher (played by the guy who played Juno's father- J K Simmons) and the drummer he promotes up to the elite jazz band (played by Miles Teller).  The student is bullied and brutalized until the predictable ending occurs. It is pretty good- evidently 97% of the critics thought it was just great. I won't go that far because there is SO MUCH implausible behavior in this. Great music schools don't keep teachers who think they have the right to push students to the edge. Music school is not basic training. I hate movies that glorify the image of music and dance teachers as so ineffective at managing students that they have to scream at them. If you don't have a stomach for watching someone bully a kid, then simply don't go see it. I think it is an all right movie- and kind of nerve wracking to watch. It is not something I would care to see again because I felt a little traumatized by it.  But it is still better than August Osage County's yelling. It is definitely up to you. The musicians in this are excellent- and the music is really good. And I don't even like jazz!

The Giver

If you go to see a movie based on a young adult (YA) novel, you'll get a movie that is suitable for 14 year olds, as well as people who want to go to a movie that is entertaining in a really light and simple way. I have to say that YA novels are really fun to read. A lot of them have a very interesting take on the world or the future, and they are fast reads.  The movie is pretty simple- it is the future, and in the future we are all treated the same, raised by surrogates and brainwashed so that there is no discord or even love felt. Medications are dispensed every day. One child is born with the mark on his wrist that means he is going to be trained to be the next Giver. The giver is the person will all of the old knowledge of love, war, history, etc.  You can figure out how it ends if you think for more than 10 seconds about it. But it is nicely done, well acted, and you get what you went to see-a young adult type movie with all the simplicity that entails. If you have a 10-14 year old, you have a movie that will make them feel very grown up when they really aren't.

Godzilla

Holy Mutant Amphibians! Godzilla is a spectacle. The story is pretty funny if you take it at face value, so just suspend your belief entirely. The story is also thin and kind of weak. But the special effects are awesome! I hear the Japanese think the American version of Godzilla is humiliatingly fat. I personally don't think so- but then I'm a little chubby myself and just don't notice it. Maybe he just has more radiation to eat now.  I don't know. If you are a fan of special effects and adventure- then go see it. If not, then don't, because that is mostly what it is. Some people have written some rather grandiose reviews of this- like "a story of human courage". Naw- I think Zero Dark Forty and Lone Survivor do that. This is more like saving the world one lizard creature at a time.

Trance

James McAvoy, Rosario Dawson and Vincent Cassel team up in Danny Boyle's new film about a stolen Goya, a hypnotherapist, a gang that uses torture, and twisty turns and backflashes and hocus pocus "is it real or isn't it" stuff. Now, I didn't like Inception because of all the stuff that could not POSSIBLY have happened and the crappy scene in the middle with all the fighting. I didn't like Memento because there were real cracks in the logic. REAL cracks. But if you liked those two movies, you'll probably like this one. We spent about a half hour after seeing this debating what really  happened and the order it happened in. Yep- it's that sort of movie. What really helps is the cast is great. So if you get lost, you just watch them act for a while until you can catch back up. I thought it was pretty good- I wouldn't have been sad to have missed it entirely though. I like thought provoking movies but not movies where I have to actually figure out what is happening. There is a difference.Some critics called it "sleek"- I would say it is more like a box of hidden trinkets, and it is up to you to dump it out and see what is there.  So go see it if you like disjointed movies- don't go see it if you don't. There. Ta da.

Wreck It Ralph 3D

This animated 3D color explosion is about a vintage (can I use that word for 20 years ago?) video game character named Wreck It Ralph. Because he wrecks things. In a computer game. What is really fun is the cast of characters because they are familiar to anyone 25 or older and the parents who put the quarters on the console for anyone who is 25 or older. Even one of the pac man  ghosts is cutely portrayed.  Ralph gets tired of being excluded from the after hours socializing of his video game folks, and he goes on a video-gameland adventure. This movie wouldn't be nostalgic for kids, but they won't care. The WORST and I mean the ABSOLUTE WORST thing about it is the continually IRRITATING voice work of Sarah Silverman as Vanellope von Schweetz-  a little outcast character who runs the entire second half of the movie. It is so FAKE-and so contrived and so annoying. There are so many talented kids in Hollywood who do voice work- why some idiot chose to have the cloying little girl version of Sarah Silverman, I do not know. (I can guess but that's an adult topic).  I'd assume little kids would be even more irritated by it because they've never heard a kid talk like that! But aside from that problem, this is a cute and fun film.

Safety Not Guaranteed

From the same folks who brought you Little Miss Sunshine comes another quirky (and sometimes downright odd) indie type film.  It's about a bunch of bored reporters who have no real story but decide to follow up on an ad in their little paper- one asking for a companion to go along on a space time travel mission- and safety not guaranteed. Of course, the acting is spotty- especially the lead actress who should probably stay unknown. But the story is kind of touching - especially because the end is fun. I'll give it 2 1/2 stars because it is almost really good.

Brave

Another Disney epic- this time about a Scottish princess who wants to do her own thing, which is basically not anything her mom wants her to do- like stand like a princess, eat like a princesss. Instead, Princess Merida is a crack archer, horseback rider, etc. It takes you through a celtic sort of romp involving an attack bear, some witches, and then some. It has a lot packed in it, and sometimes it seems a little lacking in direction. But the animation is gorgeous. Just beautiful. The story does have some scary parts for little kids- and so that might make it better seen on a small screen- but it has good music, good action, a female who is fearless- so just use your judgment. I liked it- but  I liked it visually way more than I liked the storyline.  Enjoy!

The Five Year Engagement

If you liked Forgetting Sarah Marshall and The Muppet Movie, then run to buy a ticket because this is the same type of "it's all going to work out in the end" type of movie. Why? Because of Jason Segel, that's why. A wise man said that romantic comedies only work if you actually FEEL this couple is worth it. Now, I didn't. I thought Emily Blunt was woefully miscast- though she does act her heart out it just should be the heart that Jason Segel chooses. Segel may not be exceedingly handsome but to me, Blunt is not very attractive and certainly gives off no aura of sexual attractiveness at all. She is just bland and plain and not someone who, on the big screen, makes the audience believe that she is worth the pain she has handed out. The actual script is clever and believable. Segel is great- a real muppet of a man. But I felt the movie dragged because I couldn't understand why Segel would want to waste years of his life for her.  Sigh.

Real Steel

The title is actually a description of what you need to put in your undies from sitting for 127 minutes in order to watch a movie that, from the first frame, you know how it will end. But end it will. What happens in those 127 minutes? Okay- if you are a 10 year old boy- EVERYTHING- robots boxing, a kid reunites with his long lost dad and becomes his own hero, a pretty girl wears Daisy Duke shorts and no bra at times, and fighting- lots of fighting!  If you are an adult who tripped over your kid's transformers until your feet bled, it's a pleasant, winsome and at times funny movie. It is also the most blatant piece of commercial product placement I have EVER seen! If you get bored, just play "count the products".The final scene takes place in the Bing arena, sponsored by XBOX 720, Pepsi, redbull or whatever the kid is drinking with enough caffeine to kill him, and numerous other products. But you can see that the producers figured this movie might be a dicey sell to the audience, and so they had to sell out while they could. Look, I liked it. I found the kid to be a great little actor. Hugh Jackman acts like he is sleep walking through the mugging machine, and Evangeline Lilly acts like the patient girl who knows Jackman really has a heart of gold-yada. OF COURSE it is lame and you've seen it a thousand times before- it's generic and sappy in parts. But the kid- the kid is great.Oh- and the robot, too. We humans think that anything else that has eyes also can see the world as we do, even if it a newt or a muppet. The robot has a real relationship with the kid-I blame it on the eyes- at least as far as the kid is concerned. So, you've been forewarned. Reread this two or three times and be sure you are signing up for the right movie.

Horrible Bosses

This movie is a huge hit at the box office. Hmmm. There are 3 guys, all with ridiculously bad bosses- never mind that they really could quit, never mind that their bosses could all be fined for HR violations, etc. The guys try to hire a hit man then decide to try to kill one another's bosses. This story is a comedy- except that for the first half, it isn't.  If reviewers were totally honest they'd tell you to watch the first 15 minutes, then come back about 20 minutes later and enjoy it when it gets really funny. Is it worth it? well, yes, because the last half is realllllly funny. I don't like Jennifer Aniston, so my review of her performance might be unfair. She is dull. DULL. Her voice is always a monotone and with the botox and fillers, her face doesn't move too much either. And the storyline there is ludicrous.  Jason Sudeikis is great, as is Jason Bateman. I have no idea who that third guy was. If he does another big movie, I'll bother to learn his name.  Jason Sudeikis is cetainly the all-American guy (hard to believe his uncle is the guy Norm on Cheers). Bateman is  almost a leading man.  There are a lot of cameos- my fav was Ron White. It isn't consistently funny, but it is worth it to sit through. I am not going to jump on the "awesome" band wagon.  So, see it, but don't worry if you have to get up to walk the lobby at times.

Get Low

Robert Duvall has a curmudgeonly turn as a rustic recluse (think Boo Radley) with a reputation for being a dangerous and crazy sort. He wants his funeral done before he dies so he can hear the stories about him. He harbors a secret about his first love. The movie builds and builds until the truth outs- but unfortunately, it's a real let down. This is the part where YOU get low. But, up until that point, there is a well acted, well directed charm about this movie. Just don't expect a decent ending. Sissy Spacek does her part as the sister of the first love. Bill Murray is always believable as a low key funeral director who seems capable of bad behavior at any moment. I'd say you should see if it you can, and definitely rent it at some point. It manages to be interesting without being overwrought.

SALT

Angelina Jolie is Evelyn Salt- cia agent, possible spy, kickass fighter and loving wife. The whole movie is a "is she or isn't she" sort of thing punctuated by relentless chases and running. Funny thing is that what annoyed me SO MUCH in Inception, was rather entertaining in SALT. Just one fight after another. Perhaps because it was unnecessary in Inception, and very necessary in a spy movie like this. Jolie is a bucket of miscellaneous adjectives, but the first on the list is skinny. Really, really skinny. She is also rather adept at staying in character because you actually believe that one day you'll find out that she is really working for the CIA in real life. I liked this movie and I wasn't prepared for that. I went in with bias. I'd read a few reviews that hated it-as in , skip it. But in the end, I thought it was just lightweight, fluffy, predictable and fun. Go figure.

Percy Jackson &The Olympians:The Lightning Thief

Okay- I am going to try to be fair. I never heard of this book series. Strike one. I am not between the ages of 9 and 13. Strike two. I cannot help but compare it to Harry Potter. Strike three. Percy is the son of Poseiden- thus explaining his love of sitting at the bottom of the pool. Someone has stolen Zeus's lightning bolt. The daughter of Athena and the satyr, Grover, go with Percy on the mission to find the bolt- where they run into hellfire and brimstone, Medusa, etc. So this is the fair part- IF you have a kid between 9-13 who doesn't scare easily and who is smart enough to be interested in mythology, this is a terrific film. It does have some adult humor but the kids won't get it. The special effects are a tad dated, but still scary enough. The movie is so simple that most kids wouldn't even ask you to explain anything. I give it two and a half stars because, well, in the words of the flickerchick: "It is what it is."