Movies

A SIMPLE FAVOR IS ANYTHING BUT SIMPLE

What a delicious surprise! A Simple Favor is a movie written BY women ABOUT women and the male director didn’t louse it up – he got it just right! It has everything a woman wants in a movie – gorgeous fashion and style, beautiful architecture and design, smart conversation, sophisticated humor, compelling but hilarious characters, and a PLOT! Blake Lively rises to the occasion – her impossibly glamorous and darkly sarcastic character is SO on the mark – and Anna Kendrick is perfectly cast as a supposedly “innocent” mommy vlogger. Of course, what’s NOT to love about the astute and very decorative Henry Golding. Never a dull moment in this movie – don’t want to say more – just see it right away!

Afterthought: No WONDER Blake Lively has been wearing all those fabulous power suits…
Photo: Lionsgate

What do YOU think?

By Janet / September 16, 2018

3 Comments

Custody French Movies Scarey movies

FRENCH FILM “CUSTODY” IS THE SCARIEST MOVIE OF THE YEAR

During a summer of testosterone-fueled supermovies, it’s almost hard to remember what a really good film looks like. The subtitled French movie Custody is one of the most amazing movie experiences we have ever had. A few weeks ago we saw what was supposed to be a “scarey” movie, “Hereditary,” but it turned out to be silly and a huge disappointment. Custody tells the story of a REAL LIFE situation and THOSE can be far more frightening than monsters or ghosts. This brilliant and subtle movie starts off documenting an ”ordinary” divorcing couple and slooowly builds up to a shocking and unbelievably frightening finale. (It could happen to YOU!) When it was over, the audience was visibly shaken – and many were in tears. Need we say more? (Opens today)

What do YOU think?

By Janet / July 13, 2018

2 Comments

Fashion Javier Bardem Movies Penelope Cruz

PENELOPE CRUZ AND JAVIER BARDEM: WHAT EVERYBODY DOESN’T KNOW

Now that the Met Gala has past, we turn our attention to The Cannes Film Festival – the next major fashion event. Spain’s power couple Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem are as fabulous as anyone at the Met. They costarred in a new kidnapping thriller “Everybody Knows” that opened the festival, and the movie really looks interesting. Penelope’s character and her teen daughter fly to her family home for a large wedding. Her daughter disappears in the middle of the night and Javier’s character (an ex-boyfriend) steps in to help find her. All the family members are under suspicion and surprising things happen…

Photo Credit: BACKGRID-USA

What do YOU think?

By Janet / May 8, 2018

3 Comments

Movies Switzerland The Divine Order Women's Rights

THE DIVINE ORDER REVEALS SWITZERLAND’S DIRTY LITTLE SECRET

Suddenly it turns out that Switzerland is not the superior progressive country we always thought it was! Screenwriter/director Petra Volpe has let us in on Switzerland’s dirty little secret in her new movie The Divine Order – women didn’t get the vote there until 1971! Impossible to believe, but TRUE. Switzerland’s patriarchal system kept women oppressed THAT long! Despite the timely subject matter, the movie, about small town women waking up to the desire for equality, is charming, sometimes funny, and quite likeable. The best part about it is it teaches men what they did and still do wrong. It’s a nice lesson to be learned.

What do YOU think?

By Janet / November 28, 2017

3 Comments

James Franco Movies The Disaster Artist

THE DISASTER ARTIST: TRUTH IS FUNNIER THAN FICTION

Usually we recommend to filmgoers that they avoid reading too much about a movie before seeing it because it spoils the element of surprise. But “The Disaster Artist” is the exact opposite – read all you can about it ahead of time and it will be even FUNNIER. James Franco directed and stars and he does a bang-up job for a change. It’s about a very peculiar and eccentric aspiring filmmaker who happens to have enough money to make his own feature film and proceeds to do so without any experience. The resulting film is called “The Room” and has been described as one of the worst movies ever made and a cult classic. Knowing this twisted story is true makes it extremely entertaining.

What do YOU think?

By Janet / November 13, 2017

3 Comments

Daddy's Home 2 Mark Wahlberg Movies Will Ferrell

DADDY’S HOME 2 – ONCE WAS ENOUGH

Sorry to say Daddy’s Home 2 is nowhere as entertaining as the first one – and the first one was merely tolerable. The idea of dad vs stepdad was interesting the first time around, despite the lack of subtlety and overacting by Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg. The second movie is like the first, but on STEROIDS. Bigger budget, worse script, cornier acting, and more special effects. Will Ferrell falls down a lot, but never gets hurt. Mel Gibson’s stereotypical character was a poorly written obnoxious bully – not a good comeback. Mark Wahlberg looked appropriately embarrassed much of the time – so did the audience…
(Above, Mel Gibson promoting the film on Good Morning America)

Photo Credit: AKM-GSI

What do YOU think?

By Janet / November 9, 2017

5 Comments

Movies The Florida Project Victoria & Abdul

VICTORIA & ABDUL AND THE FLORIDA PROJECT ARE BOTH ENDS OF THE SPECTRUM

We were lucky to see two excellent movies last weekend and they couldn’t have been more different.
Victoria & Abdul is a crowd pleaser – surprisingly entertaining and humorous. There’s nothing funnier than the uptight English making fun of THEMSELVES. Beautifully written, and the visuals of the voluptuous royal lifestyle and the palace are breathtaking. It’s a very personal view of Queen Victoria and her odd friendship with an Indian servant. Heartwarming.

The Florida Project is not easy to like – the theater was more than half empty and several people walked OUT. It starts out with a joyful pack of young mischievous kids – their language is harsh and they know far too much for their ages. It becomes obvious that they live with family members on government assistance in a dreary motel in Orlando, Florida, not far from Disneyworld. My first thought: this is how the other half lives. These families struggled for life basics and their kids seemed doomed to repeat the same mistakes as their parents. It’s a painful dose of reality, but mesmerizing and heartbreaking and wonderful.

What do YOU think?

By Janet / October 2, 2017

3 Comments

Catherine Deneuve Movies The Midwife

CATHERINE DENEUVE SCORES AGAIN IN THE MIDWIFE

Anyone exhausted by the proliferation of summer action movies will probably enjoy the tranquility and social observations in the French movie The Midwife. It’s the story of two very opposite women thrown together by circumstances, who learn to appreciate one another. (Stories about women are always more introspective than those about men.) What a delight to see Catherine Deneuve as the free spirited self-indulgent ex-wife of Catherine Frot’s conservative character’s late father. We recall bumping into Catherine Deneuve a few years ago at the flea market in Hollywood. To say we were SHOCKED is an understatement. She looked beautiful (that skin!) and was happy and friendly as she browsed for amusing items to take back to friends in France. This wonderful film is not for those addicted to speed, but a treat for anyone interested in human behavior.

What do YOU think?

By Janet / July 23, 2017

1 Comment

Dunkirk Harry Styles Movies Tom Hardy

DUNKIRK WARNING: TOM HARDY’S FACE IS COVERED THROUGH THE ENTIRE MOVIE!

Let’s be honest – Dunkirk is a movie made BY men, ABOUT men, FOR men. (There’s nary a female onscreen except for a nurse who died immediately) If you like to watch men fighting and torturing each other nonstop – this is your ticket. Director Christopher Nolan apparently realized that he needed a little something to attract a female audience so he included Harry Styles for the young ones and Tom Hardy for adult women. Unfortunately Nolan put Hardy in a plane, wearing a full helmet and face/gas mask for his ENTIRE performance (what a waste!) so we got no satisfaction. We never got to know and feel for the characters, who appeared and died abruptly, – no backstories, no connections, no sentiment. In spite of all that, it was a well-made film with a haunting soundtrack. Just know what to expect before you buy a ticket.

What do YOU think?

By Janet / July 20, 2017

5 Comments

Movies The Big Sick

“THE BIG SICK” WILL SURPRISE YOU IN A GOOD WAY

The mere IDEA of a romantic comedy makes us WINCE – picturing the same awkward silly scenes we’ve seen dozens of times with the likes of Katherine Heigl or Jennifer Aniston. For us, having not-so familiar actors like Kumail Nanjiani and Zoe Kazan makes a movie more relatable and believable. Experiencing the movie The Big Sick is like reading a very satisfying book – you love the characters and don’t want it to end. It’s smart, well-written, funny and serious- everything you hope for in a story.

What do YOU think?

By Janet / July 14, 2017

3 Comments