"The Edge of Seventeen"

"The Edge of Seventeen" Movie Review

"The Edge of Seventeen"

Posted on Nov. 18, 2016 on CWAtlanta.cbslocal.com

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“The Edge of Seventeen” (2016)

We see Nadine (Hailee Steinfeld) swiftly walk down her high school hallway to Mr. Bruner’s (Woody Harrelson) classroom, then plops down in front of his desk as she dramatically proclaims “I am going to kill myself. I just thought that an adult should know.” Mr. Bruner tells her that he wishes he knew what to say, then proceeds to tell her that he has written his own suicide note. He begins to read the note which talks about his only fleeting minutes of happiness during his lunch period is taken up every day by the same badly dressed student.

It seems that Nadine has always been the fish out of water type of person, the painfully awkward girl who just doesn’t fit in anywhere, including her family. As she puts it “There are two types of people in the world; the people who radiate confidence and naturally excel at life, and the people that hope all those people did in a big explosion.” Nadine’s lives with her mother, Mona (Kyra Sedgwick), who has never gotten over her divorce and hijacks any conversation to turn it into talking about how horrible her life is. Also at the house is Nadine’s older brother, Darian (Blake Jenner), an all-American kid who is the star athlete, who happens to be the most popular boy in school.

Nadine is all alone in this world, except for her best friend Krista (Haley Lu Richardson). They have been friends since early childhood when the two became inseparable. Krista talked Nadine off the ledge when Nadine got a hairstyle that made her look like Pedro from the film Napoleon Dynamite. Nadine has never been on a date, but has a crush on bad boy Nick (Alexander Calvert), who she thinks has gotten hotter since he got out of “juvie.” Little does Nadine recognize that there is a guy interested in her, Erwin (Hayden Szeto), who happens to have a big crush on Nadine but is extremely bad at small talk.

When Mona goes on a weekend getaway with her latest boyfriend, Nadine and Krista see this as a perfect time to have girl time, drink, dance and talk about boys. That’s all ruined with Darian brings over some of his high school buddies to have a pool party. It’s not your run of the mill party, rather a pivotal point that will has the possibility to alter Krista and Nadine’s lives and possibly change their friendship forever.

Writer/director Kelly Fremon Craig brings us the adolescent adventures of Nadine in the hilarious and smart The Edge of Seventeen. Many filmmakers have tried to document the hardship of the awkward teenage years of young women who just don’t quite fit in. Juno, Kings of Summer, Ghost World, Spectacular Now and of course, Sixteen Candlesimmediately comes to mind. This film is their equal with smart writing, quick dialogue and superb performances, especially from Hailee Seinfeld and Woody Harrelson.

Craig never lets us feel sorry for Nadine because most of her problems are directly due to her defeatist attitude and her incredibly bad choices. While we don’t feel sorry for her, we ultimately root for her to find a place in the world that contains the happiness that seemingly is just out of reach. Nadine must figure out that the world, God and her family aren’t secretly plotting her downfall; it’s just life, and we all must plow through it. Craig also gives Nadine that sense of self-awareness. She knows she is acting aloof at a party and gives herself a pep talk in the bathroom mirror “Don’t be so weird. Go talk to people.” Nadine knows what needs to be done; she just hasn’t figured out all the steps to get herself there.

I have been a fan of Hailee Steinfeld since she burst onto the scene in 2010 as Mattie Ross in the Coen brothers True Grit. She is dazzling in this film, commanding the screen, even when with scene-stealers such as Sedgwick and Harrelson. She embodies this role so completely that we fully believe that Nadine is as socially awkward girl who is just a little “weird.” Steinfeld’s scenes with Harrelson are some of the best of the film. They work well off each other, Steinfeld as the frustrated teen who just wants answers and the teacher who isn’t about to spoon feed them to her. Harrelson is brilliant in the film, being the just-right amount of sass combined with a deep down compassion for Nadine. Sedgwick is up to the task of the mom who doesn’t know how to relate to her daughter because it’s much easier to rely upon and relate to her “perfect” son. Jenner, hot off his winning performance in Everybody Wants Some, has a couple of scenes with Steinfeld that stand out and make this film more than just an ordinary teen comedy. Hayden Szeto is fantastic as the nice guy, who will take the few crumbs that Nadine throws his way and hopes that someday she will wake up and notice him. Szeto has a beautiful comedic style and makes us fall in love with his shy, but resilient character.

The Edge of Seventeen is a teen coming of age comedy that feels real. I had so much fun watching this film that I wouldn’t mind spending a day or two hanging out with these characters, even if meant going through the pain of attending high school all over again.   My Rating: I Would Pay to See it Again 

My movie rating system from Best to Worst:  1). I Would Pay to See it Again  2). Full Price  3). Bargain Matinee  4). Cable  5). You Would Have to Pay Me to See it Again

“The Edge of Seventeen” Website

"Christine"

"Christine" Movie Review

"Christine"

Posted on Nov. 11, 2016 on CWAtlanta.cbslocal.com

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“Christine” (2016)

When we first see Christine (Rebecca Hall), a reporter for a small television station in Sarasota, Florida, she is sitting at an empty table in front of some Television cameras. She is practicing her interview techniques pretending to question President Nixon about Watergate. A back door opens and in is wheeled a new piece of equipment, being received by Jean (Maria Dizzia), a producer at the station. Christine questions Jean if she thinks on her last report she was too sympathetic. Jean replies that “You can never be too sympathetic.”

We cut to Jean and Christine watching a report that Christine is getting ready to go on air within tonight’s newscast. Christine keeps nitpicking her performance, where Jean keeps telling her that her performance is fine. The news director (Tracy Letts) stops by and tells the two women that they have a meeting in five minutes. As soon as he leaves the two women make fun of him, doing bad imitations of what he just told them.

In the meeting, the news director gets into an argument with Christine because she wants to work more on her zoning story and not go out and cover a fire. Christine argues that the news should be more issue oriented and not just cut and dried news stories.

The team gets ready for the newscast, and Christine is still making changes to her piece. She decides three minutes before her piece is to air to use a bit on film that she had cut earlier. Christine gets Jean to cut the piece as she puts on her blazer, grabs her copy and heads to the studio, arriving seconds before she is introduced. She intros the piece and then sits back, pleased with how it all came together, even getting a wink from the anchor of the news, George (Michael C. Hall).

We cut to Christine singing loudly and passionately with a John Denver song as she drives down the road. When she passes a car, she checks to see if her window is all the way up. We then see that Christine is performing a puppet show for some sick kids. After her show, she talks with a nurse about problems she has been having with her stomach.

She meets with her mom (J. Smith-Cameron) for dinner at a local restaurant. We see that their relationship seems more like two sisters than a mother/daughter relationship. At home, we see that they live together and Christine doesn’t want to talk about celebrating her birthday.

The next day, Christine gets into a heated discussion with the news director over the direction of the station’s news product. He wants them to start doing stories that will get ratings, citing the term “If it bleeds, it leads.” Christine sees this as the wrong way to go, believing that news should inform and tackle issues, not just air reports about car wrecks and house fires. The news world is changing, and Christine is going to have to make compromises if she wants to stay in the news game, compromises she might not be able to handle.

Director Antonio Campos brings us this film based on a real person, Christine Chubbuck, a troubled and awkward reporter who had lofty goals but was probably destined to work in small markets for the rest of her career. Campos does the almost impossible, making Christine a sympathetic character, humanizing a very complicated person who had a lot of problems. The year the film takes place is 1974, due to the Vietnam War and Watergate, the news world was changing, and Christine was trying to adapt, but not very well. Like the film camera that Christine uses, she is out of date with a world that is changing quickly.

Much of the credit for making a rigid and sometimes unlikable person come to life is Rebecca Hall. Her performance is dazzling, as she makes this socially awkward, determined person come to life. Hall has Christine’s mannerism down, making her a person who has trouble relating to ideas such as dating or dealing with a boss you don’t agree with. Hall works well with the other actors in the film, especially Michael C. Hall, who plays George, the cocky anchor that Christine is so enamored with. Hall’s body language changes when Christine is in the room with George as if she doesn’t quite know how to inhabit the same space. Maria Dizzia, has excellent chemistry with Hall, playing Christine’s one and only friend. J. Smith-Cameron is tremendous as Christine’s mom who is self-centered and never actually sees how troubled her child is.

The production design by Scott Kuzio and art direction by Molly Bailey are impressive, as they recreate a small TV station in the mid-70s down to the details of working quad tape machines and hand cranking film viewers. The dialogue, by screenwriter Craig Shilowich, is sharp and energetic, giving the newsroom a look and feel that seems real.

While I did not enjoy the final scenes of the film, those can be overlooked because of the Academy Award level performance by Rebecca Hall. You may not always like Christine, but because of Hall, you get to know her and understand why she ultimately did what she did.    My Rating: Full Price

My movie rating system from Best to Worst:  1). I Would Pay to See it Again  2). Full Price  3). Bargain Matinee  4). Cable  5). You Would Have to Pay Me to See it Again

“Christine” Website

The film is playing in Atlanta at Landmark Midtown Art Cinema and Lefont Sandy Springs

"Loving

"Loving" Movie Review

"Loving"

Posted on Nov. 11, 2016 on CWAtlanta.cbslocal.com

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“Loving”  (2016)

Richard  (Joel Edgerton) and Mildred (Ruth Negga) are an interracial couple in 1958 Virginia’s Caroline County. We first see them in an afternoon street car race. Richard is the mechanic for the group of guys that are running. It’s apparent that Richard has been a part of this team for years and that his dating Mildred is accepted by the group. When their car defeats some guys from the area, and Richard celebrates openly with Mildred, they get quite a few ugly looks from the white crowd.

Later that night there is quite a celebration at Mildred’s family’s home, where once again Richard is accepted as part of the household. The next day, a nervous Mildred tells Richard that she is pregnant. He reacts with joy and insistence that they get married. They tell their families, with the only resistance from Mildred’s sister (Terri Abney). Richard and Mildred head to Washington D.C. to get married. The civil ceremony goes off without a hitch, and the couple head back to Caroline County. A proud Richard hangs their marriage certificate on the wall.

In what seems like just a few days, someone has told the authorities about the wedding. We see several cars drive up to the house in the middle of the night. A sheriff (Marton Csokas) and his men break down Richard and Mildred’s door. It seems that Richard and Mildred Loving are in violation of a Virginia law that forbids interracial marriage.  The couple are thrown in jail (in separate cells), and now both are going to go on a journey that will test their love for one another and put them, their friends and family in danger.

Jeff Nichols is one of my favorite directors. He has written and directed the fantastic “Take Shelter” (2011), my Atlanta Film Festival favorite “Mud” (2012) and the Sci-Fi blast of a film, “Midnight Special” (2016). He doesn’t disappoint again with bringing us a tale of unending love and incredible pain in “Loving.”  It’s a story of incredible courage, and we suffer at every indignity the Loving’s suffer in this film. Being told that your love is illegal and you must leave your home and family if you want to stay together, is heartbreaking and focus the Loving’s to make incredibly tough choices. Nichols lets us into their world slowly, letting us understand the time-period and just what they were dealing with on a daily basis.  Nichols has created two people that while different, fit perfectly together. Richard is a man who just wants to protect his wife from the outside world. He is a man of few words, feeling if he can just build a life for himself and his family, everything will work out. Mildred is a fighter, willing to speak her mind when it’s necessary and goes through life with a strong-willed determination. Nichols lets us see that through their love and determination, the Loving’s have a chance to survive in this world, but it’s not going to be easy.

The pacing feels perfect in this 2-hour film. Nichols lets his characters live in the moments, both big and small. The dialogue is sometimes sparse but those moments are helped by the beautiful score of David Wingo. Director of photography Adam Stone and production designer Chad Keith bring out the stark backwoods of Virginia, contrasting to the big city when they are forced to move out of the Virginia.

Joel Egerton absolutely embodies Richard Loving, the bricklaying country boy who falls in love with his whole head and heart. It’s an incredible performance of a man who takes simple pleasures and makes them his to savor. He has found a channel into this man’s soul and lets us all understand the man with a screen presence that while strong, also seems to sink a little into doorways. Ruth Negga gives an equally powerful performance as the woman who is defiant in her love for a man that is her soul mate. Negga gives Mildred an air of strength and steely resolve, whether trying to survive alone in a cell or deciding where to have her child. Edgerton and Negga work well on screen together, giving us a feeling that their characters belong together. While Edgerton’s performance is powerful, it’s Negi’s brilliant take on this amazing woman that makes this film work and worth watching.

Nichols has done a masterful job of making this true story real and meaningful. The Loving’s story is one for the ages, and this film will stay with you for a long time.   My Rating:  I Would Pay to See it Again

My movie rating system from Best to Worst:  1). I Would Pay to See it Again  2). Full Price  3). Bargain Matinee  4). Cable  5). You Would Have to Pay Me to See it Again

“Loving” Facebook Page

The film is playing in Atlanta at Regal Tara 4 Cinema and Regal Atlantic Station 18

"A Man Called Ove"

"A Man Called Ove" Movie Review

"A Man Called Ove"

Posted on Nov. 2, 2016 on CWAtlanta.cbslocal.com

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“A Man Called Ove” (2016)

 

Ove, a 59-year-old man (played by Rolf Lassgård and Filip Berg / Viktor Baagoe in flashbacks), wakes up and begins his rounds checking on his Condominium community. He walks with a purpose on the well-manacled streets. He looks for any sort of what he considers violations of the community rules. A cigarette butt is picked up as he mutters under his breath and notes across from whose house it was located. He checks the doors to all the garages on the site. He yells at a woman walking her small dog, threatening to turn the dog into a shoe if the owner doesn’t stop the dog from peeing on the sidewalk. He refuses to make small talk with his neighbors and when asked for help with simple things like bleeding a radiator, tells them to fix it themselves.

Ove makes his way to a local market and gets into an argument with a clerk when he tries to use a two for $70 coupon to buy only one bunch of flowers, thinking he should get the one bunch for 35 dollars instead of what the clerk wants to charge at $40. We find out that Ove wants the flowers to place at his newly dead wife’s grave. He talks with her about all the stupid people in the community and how it’s going to hell. It’s evident that he loved his wife and misses her deeply. Ove leaves with the promise that he will be seeing her soon.

Ove heads for home, first stopping a car from traveling through his little fiefdom. The car barely stops before a man from some sort of government position tells Ove he has a permit that allows him to drive anywhere and Ove has no say in the matter. The man speeds off, leaving a lit cigarette at Ove’s feet. Ove, frustrated by the encounter, heads inside and changes into a coat and tie. He fixes his hair and heads downstairs. There we see that he has placed a noose to a hook hanging from the ceiling. Saying good-bye to his wife’s picture, he steps on a stool and puts the noose around his neck. Just as he is about to kick the stool from his feet, he sees out the window as a car with a trailer is attempting very poorly to back up, destroying his mailbox. He takes the noose off and heads angrily outside, to confront a family of four who are moving into the neighborhood. Little does Ove know how much his new neighbors will have an effect on him and even more shockingly, how much he will affect his new neighbors.

Director/screenwriter Hannes Holm brings us a tale of a grumpy old man who sees the need to follow the rules and only to depend on you and you alone, much to the grief and frustration of his neighbors. We learn from a series of flashbacks beginning with his childhood and continuing through his life with Sonja, his wife (played by Ida Engvoll), that he feels that he has no choice to live this way. His life has been severely impacted by people not following the rules. It’s through these flashbacks we get to meet and understand Ove, a man who is deep in his heart is good, kind and willing to help others. That man is still in there now that Ove is a widower, it’s just going to take someone or maybe a group of people (like the new family that has just moved in) to help bring that Ove out into the open.

Holm’s brings us a story (based on the novel by Swedish author Fredrik Backman) that deftly moves back and forth between Ove’s present, where he continually tries to commit suicide (always failing to comedic effect) and his past, where we see what made him this way. I loved these contradictions in the film where the young Ove is constantly fighting to live a better life and the old Ove, who just wants to end his life to see his beloved wife again.

Rolf Lassgard gives a beautiful, nuanced performance as the gruff, rule-obsessed Ove. His interactions with Bahar Pars, who plays his new, very pregnant neighbor, Parvaneh, are some of the comedic highlights of the film. Pars brings the playful but determined Parvaneh to life.  Her character sees that there just might be something inside Ove worth knowing and is going to try her hardest to bring that someone out. Lassgard and Pars have great chemistry on screen and they play off each other with ease as the two characters battle over whose personality is going to win in this struggle of strong wills.

This charming and funny film can be summed up in a line that Parvaneh gives to Ove after being frustrated by his inability to share what is bothering him: “No one manages completely on their own.” It’s an idea that Ove and we learn together in this fantastic film.     My Rating: Full Price

My movie rating system from Best to Worst:  1). I Would Pay to See it Again  2). Full Price  3). Bargain Matinee  4). Cable  5). You Would Have to Pay Me to See it Again

The film is currently playing in the Atlanta area at Lefont Sandy Springsand Regal Tara Cinemas 4

“A Man Called Ove” Website

"Arrival"

"Arrival" Movie Review

"Arrival"

Posted on Nov. 1, 2016 on CWAtlanta.cbslocal.com

Wayback Machine Archive Post

“Arrival” Savannah Film Festival Movie Review

 

Film was reviewed at the Savannah Film Festival screening.

Dr. Louise Banks (Amy Adams) is reliving her life with her daughter in her dream. We see her give birth and experience that first bonding moment between a mother and her child. We see happy times as Louise interacts with her baby, and she grows into a toddler, exploring the world in the wondrous ways that young children do. We see her birthday parties and having picnics outside. We also see heartbreak, when as a teenager; Louise’s daughter acts up just like any other teenager do. All this happiness comes crashing down when we see that her daughter in her teens is suddenly sick. We see the torment of having to see your child suffer as she slowly dies, experiencing her last breath in a hospital. Louise is only saved from further pain from the alarm clock.

Louise is a professor of comparative linguistics teaching language and linguistics at a local university. It seems since the death of her daughter her world is all about teaching and studying languages, living alone in the big house her daughter grew up in. As she walks towards her classroom on campus, she notices that the student body is much more animated and active than usual. She makes her way into her classroom, which contains only a handful of students. Almost in an instant, the student’s phones start ringing. A student asks her to turn on the TV, and they are shocked to find out that twelve massive alien spaceships have landed in various spots around the earth. It’s very evident that no work is going to be done on this day.

Back at her office, she is visited by a group of men from the Army, led by Col. Weber (Forest Whitaker). They want help communicating with the aliens, and since Dr. Banks had previously helped the Army translate some Farsi for a military operation, she has security clearance. Col. Weber even plays a bit of recorded audio that the Aliens have voice, seemingly attempting to communicate, but Dr. Banks can’t make much from the recording. She insists that the only way she has a chance to figure out what the aliens are saying is to meet them in person, which is a deal breaker for Col. Weber. Days pass by with the whole world wondering why the aliens have come and do they mean to hurt us? In the middle of the night, Dr. Banks is awakened by a military helicopter landing on her front lawn and Col Weber telling her to come and meet the aliens. Louise is about to go on a journey that is not only going to change her life but change the way the world works.

With splashes of Spielberg’s “Close Encounters of the Third Kind,” Nolan’s “Interstellar” and Zemeckis’s “Contact”, director Denis Villeneuve brings us highly creative, original and moving film about attempting to communicate with a species that seems so different from us, but just might be coming from the same common ground. Louise has to use not only her intellect to try to communicate with the aliens but also must use her humanity as well. The closer she comes to breaking through to communicate with the Aliens, the more she has to deal with the pain and loneliness of her life without her daughter. It seems that with every encounter with the aliens, Louise has more and more flashbacks about her daughter’s life. Louise is forced to work with Halpern (Michael Stuhlbarg), a CIA agent who sees the aliens as a threat and Ian Donnelly (Jeremy Renner), a military scientist who thinks science, not linguistics will be the key to communication. The team is hampered by the world’s government’s that not only don’t trust the aliens but also don’t trust each other enough to share valuable information. Countries such as Russia and China see the aliens as a threat and begin preparing for war. Louise and her team are under the gun to communicate with the aliens and prove that they are not anything to fear but someone to embrace.

The screenplay, written by Eric Heisserer (based on a story by Ted Chiang) is full of twists and turns that slowly reveal an ending that I found completely satisfying and potent. Villeneuve’s direction skillfully moves back and forth from a Sci-Fi story line to more of one that has the makings of a political intrigue film. The cinematography by Bradford Young is at times magical in its look and feel, especially the first few encounters between Louise’s team and the aliens.

Adams is scintillating as the woman who is the key to being able to communicate the aliens. She gives a multi-layered performance that shows Louise’s strength and her vulnerability, sometimes at almost the same time. Adams has always projected a likeability in her performances, and it’s essential in this film as we, the audience, have to be able to root for her character to persevere, no matter how small the rabbit hole she is taking us down. There are some charming moments between Renner and Adams, especially as the film moves along and their two characters experience together things that no one else will ever have the chance to do.

“Arrival” is full of wonder and amazement while creating a tension-filled ending that you will be thinking about long after this film has left the theaters. If we do ever encounter aliens, let’s hope we have the brains and leadership that are displayed in this film.    My Rating: I Would Pay to See it Again

My movie rating system from Best to Worst:  1). I Would Pay to See it Again  2). Full Price  3). Bargain Matinee  4). Cable  5). You Would Have to Pay Me to See it Again
For more information on the Savannah Film Festival, go to www.filmfest.scad.edu

“Arrival” Webpage