I love variety. In flowers. In food. In movies.
Algorithms that suggest “If you loved that, you’ll like this” rarely work for me.
So here are my reviews of 3 very different movies I saw over my 3 day weekend.
There is a “2nd run” discount theater one town over, so I got to see a double feature of the first two movies for $8 total! Popcorn & a coke for $5. What a deal!
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
Directed by Marielle Stiles Heller (She also directed Can You Ever Forgive Me?)
Director Marielle Heller blurs the lines between childhood and adulthood with such remarkable storytelling that it seems nothing short of genius. It is a delightful doffing of the hat to the legacy of kindness….
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is among those rare films of post-truth era that makes you believe that good people do exist-- even among television hosts.” www.news18.com/...
Why see this movie?
Stylized presentation and story-telling
This movie is not a straight biopic of Fred Roger’s life. We are invited to enter the neighborhood set, just as character Vogel is able to view the stage-front and backstage all at the same time. We view the set/story as observers; Together, the audience and Vogel emotionally become a character on the set.
As Rogers creates a safe environment for children, so all adults are invited to re-visit childhood difficulties with the safety of his love and support.
Great performances especially by:
Tom Hanks, Matthews Rhys, Susan Kelechi Watson, and Chris Cooper.
Fred Rogers was an American Hero
Lloyd Vogel was assigned an article on Rogers as part of Esquire’s focus on American Heroes. He went looking for clay feet. He found a hero whose superpower was his capacity to listen with a kind heart.
- I know of people who pride themselves in being relentlessly honest.
- What if we all pledged to be endlessly kind instead?
Harriet
Directed by Kasi Lemmon (She also directed Eve’s Bayou — if you haven’t seen Eve’s Bayou, then rent/watch as soon as you can!)
Wide vistas celebrate the south’s pastoral landscapes; golden sunsets, a blanket of stars and the river that flows north to Philadelphia are depicted as holy guidance. “The hole in my head just makes God’s voice more clear,” Tubman says of a head trauma suffered as a child… Lemmons re-imagines her religious devotion as its own gift and propulsive force, even utilizing singer Erivo’s soulful rumble to communicate its power. Tubman sings slave songs to communicate with plantation workers, invoking the gospel tradition of call and response. www.theguardian.com/...
Great performances especially by:
Cynthia Erivo, Clarke Peters, Leslie Odom Jr., and Janelle Monae.
Why see this movie?
When you can take a story that everyone thinks they know, and make it exciting and new, you have done it right. I had to keep reminding myself she was never caught.
Harriet provides a beautiful handling of her visions/conversations with God/ prescient understand of coming events. Even an indifferent believer like me could view them with wonder and awe.
Harriet Tubman was an American Hero
Harriet Tubman was the name she chose for herself after she escaped enslavement. Not knowing this basic fact, makes me realize how much more I need to read and learn about her.
Her intelligence, raw courage, unshakeable faith, and innate leadership shine through every scene in this movie. No wonder Trump & Co are too frightened to put her on our $20 dollar bills.
Need some light entertainment?
Knives Out
Directed by Rian Johnson (He also directed Looper)
“Knives Out” is one of the most purely entertaining films in years. It is the work of a cinematic magician, one who keeps you so focused on what the left hand is doing that you miss the right. And, in this case, it’s not just a wildly fun mystery to unravel but a scathing bit of social commentary about where America is in 2019. www.rogerebert.com/...
Great performances especially by:
Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Don Johnson, and Christopher Plummer.
Why see this movie?
The script is clever without loose ends, the casting is spot on, and the acting is a delight. So many characters you can love to hate, without the movie becoming bitter, angry, or cynical.
Set dressers must have had so much fun!
You may anticipate some of the twists and turns, but I doubt you will see all of them coming. It is a puzzle and a laugh together.
See all 3 movies if you can!
One More Baby Animal!
(This maybe selfish, but I wanted a light diary before more weighty impeachment hearings. I want to go back to boring times.)