The Devil We Know 2018

     A group of citizens in West Virginia challenge a powerful corporation to be more environmentally responsible.  99.7% of everyone in this world has the chemical C8 in his or her blood.  The DuPont Corporation used this chemical in the production of Teflon products.  They knowingly allowed this chemical to infiltrate the water system with people drinking this water every day.  A farmer downstream from the plant lost all his animals due to deformities.  Fish were dying and babies had birth defects.

     Also, former employees and residents of the community were getting sick from the C8 chemical.  The profits for DuPont were more important than the lives of the people and the animals?  DuPont knew there were risks soon after discovering and commercializing this product.  Many people died and others suffer every day from surgeries to keep them alive.  Teflon was used in cookware, clothing, furniture, curtains and carpets.  Dupont and 3M knew about the dangers of Teflon for decades.  They didn’t do anything about it but continued adding it to more and more products.  That wasn’t enough so they dumped the chemical and byproducts into their local environment through the water.  These products were sold across the globe.  DuPont also manipulated the EPA to keep the danger of these products from the public.  This is an amazing story!!  4* (I really liked this movie)      

   

95 min, Doc directed by Stephanie Soechtig and Jeremy Seifert with Bucky Bailey, Melinda Bailey, Joe Kiger.

Note:  Imdb 7.9 out of 10, 100% critic 88% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Leterboxd 3.5* out of 5*, Amazon 5* out of 5* with 26 reviews.

Mystic River 2003

     This film is based on a best selling novel by Dennis LeHane published in 2001.  The setting of this film is the summer of 1975 in a Boston neighborhood.  Dave Boyle and two of his friends, Jimmy and Sean are three kids playing on the sidewalk.  Suddenly, two men abduct Dave and he endures several days of abuse.  He escapes and this event leaves Dave traumatized throughout adulthood.  Jimmy is an ex-con and he is the father of three children.  His daughter Katie is found dead and Dave becomes the number one suspect.  Jimmy is now a homicide detective and he’s investigating Katie’s murder.  He finds himself faced with past and present demons!!  Jimmy learns that Katie had a boyfriend and ballistics turns up a gun belonging to Katie’s father.  The questions now are will Sean find out who killed Katie?  Will Jimmy be able to make it through the investigation?  Will Dave find out what really happened when he was abducted?

     As a child, the author Dennis Lehane’s mother severely scolded him about getting into a car with two men who claimed to be plain-clothes policemen.  This incident contributed to the plot in the novel Mystic River.  There are twists and turns, you think you have the solution early in but are you really sure?  There are very good performances by all the actors.  This is a tough subject since it involves children!!  4* (I really liked this movie) 

  

138 min, Crimed directed by Clint Eastwood with Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, Kevin Bacon, Laurence Fishburne, Marcia Gay Harden, Laura Linney, Kevin Chapman, Tom Guiry, Emmy Rossum, Specer Treat Clark, Andrew Mackin, Adam Nelson, Robert Wahlbergh, Jenny O’Hara, John Doman.

Note:  Imdb 8 out of 10, Roger Ebert 4*, 88% critic 89% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic 84 out of 100 with 42 critics 7 out of 10 with 668 reviews, The Guardian 4* out of 5* Rob Mackie, Empire Online 4* out of 5* Alan Morrison, RollingStone 4* Peter Travers, Amazon Video 4.4* out of 5* with 1098 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Boston, Chelsea, Charlestown, Canton, Dorchester, Jamaica Plain, Mattapan, Massachusetts and Los Angeles, California.  This film earned $156,822,020 worldwide with $90,135,191 in the US and $66,686,829 international box office.  Proceeds were significantly higher than the $30 million budget!!  Sean Penn won an Oscar and a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a leading role, Tim Robbins an Oscar and Golden Globe best actor in a supporting role, Golden Globe Best Motion Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay. 

The Guardians 2017

     This setting of this film is 1915 and life at the Paridier farm.  The men of the family Constant, Georges and Clovis have left fight on the front lines of WWI.  Hortense Sandrail, Henri, Constant’s mother and Clovis’ mother-in-law have taken over the job of running the farm.  Hortense’s daughter Solange also is working on the farm but it becomes too much for Hortense at harvest time.  She contacts the local mayor and he recommends hiring Francine Riant as a housekeeper and farmhand.  Francine is a hard worker and she’s an orphan.  The three women, Hortense, Solange and Francine become a trio of able workers.

    This film shows that there are still fresh stories to tell about WWI.  The work is very difficult and it’s backbreaking to run a rural farm.  Every task falls on the shoulders of Hortense until Francine arrives.  Francine has done all these tasks before and she’s not afraid of the immense farm animals.  They are milking cows, harvesting wheat by hand, making the bales, gathering potatoes from the ground and mucking out the barn.  It all starts over again when they plow and then scatter the wheat seeds for the next harvest.  Hortense asks Francine to stay on after the harvest and they are both happy with this arrangement.   4* (I really liked this movie)   

138 min, Drama directed and written by Xavier Beauvois with Nathalie Baye, Laura Smet, Iris Bry, Cyril Descours, Gilbert Bonneau, Olivier Rabourdin, Nicolas Giraud, Mathilde Viseaux,Xavier Maly, Marie-Julie Maille, Madeleine Beauvouis, Alain Artur, Adrien Denizou, Yann Bean.

Note Imdb 6.8 out of 10, 94% critic 62% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 3*, The Guardian 4* out of 5* Peter Bradshaw, Amazon Video 3.6* out of 5* with 23 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Montrol-Senard, Solignac, Verneuil, Bussiere-Poitevine, Le Dorat, Haute-Vienne, France.  Screened in the Special Presentations section at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival.  Xavier Beauvois also directed Of Gods and Men,  

Nathalie Baye (Hortense Sandrail) is acting with her real life daughter Laura Smet (Solange).  The film was released on the same day that Johnny Halliday died.  He was the ex-husband of Baye and the father of Smet. 

The Piano 1993

     The setting of this film is the mid-nineteenth century and it begins in Scotland.  Ada cannot talk and she has a young daughter Flora.  She is in an arranged marriage with Stewart.  They are moving to the rugged forests of New Zealand’s North Island.  Ada manages to convince Steward to bring along her beloved piano.  It’s her only voice!!  Everything seems to change with Ada and also with her marriage after the move.  Stewart leaves her precious piano on the beach and then he sells it to neighbor George.  Ada learns that she could earn back her piano by giving George lessons.  In the beginning, Ada despises George but that begins to change over time.

     This is one of my all time favorite movies!!  I also think that Jane Campion is a very good director and I like her other projects.  There is so much feeling in this film!!  People can live together but still be shut off from each other.  They can be lonely and afraid but help can come from an unexpected place or person.  Holly Hunter does the narration but she has very few lines in the film.  Anna Paquin is the youngest actor and she probably has more lines than anyone else.  5* (I really loved this movie)

121 min, Drama directed by Jane Campion with Holly Hunter, Harvey Keitel, Sam Neill, Anna Paquin, Kerry Walker, Genevieve Lemon, Tungia Baker, Ian Mune, Peter Dennett, Te Whatanui Skipwith, Pete Smith, Bruce Allpress, Cliff Curtis, Carla Rupuha, Mahina Tunui.

 

Note:  Imdb 7.6 out of 10, Roger Ebert 4*, The Guardian 5* Peter Bradshaw, Metacritic 89 out of 100 with 20 critics 8.1 out of 10 with 98 reviews, The Irish Times 5* Tara Brady, ReelViews.net 3*, Amazon 4.3* out of 5* with 676 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Henderson, Auckland; Piha Waitakere, Auckland Region; Karekare Beach, Karekare, Waitakere, Auckland Region, New Zealand.  Hunter learned how to play the piano to prepare for this film.  She won fourteen awards of the fifteen nominations she received for her role in this movie.  Flora’s name is never mentioned throughout the entire film?  Five thousand other girls sent in audition videotapes for the role of Flora.  This the film debut of Paquin and she won at Oscar at the age of nine years old.  She was not allowed to watch the film until she was eleven years old.  Jane Campion was the first woman to win the prestigious Palme d/Or at Cannes for this film.  She was pregnant and unable to receive the award herself.  She was also the first woman to be Oscar nominated for Best Director for directing a Best Picture nominee.

The Vanishing 2018

     The original title of this film was Keepers and it was inspired by a true Flannan Isle mystery.  Three men sailed out to a remote Eilean Mor lighthouse.  They will be tending the light at the most southerly point at Mull Galloway Lighthouse.  The location is in South West Scotland.  This is a tiny isolated island 20 miles off the rugged coast.  The men will stay on the job for 6 weeks and then another crew of three men will replace them. The mystery happened on or about December 15, 1900.  The lighthouse keepers stationed on vanished without a trace?  The men were Thomas Marshall, James Ducat and Donald MacArthur.  At the time of the mystery the lighthouse was new?  There is still speculation about this event 119 years later.  

     This film is rated R for violence and language.  It really deserves this rating!!  The records of the lighthouse show that on December 13, 1900, there was a severe storm for the second day.  The weather records report there were no storms in the area on the December 12, 13 and 14 of that year.  Storms were not reported until December?  Also, the lighthouse was 150 feet above sea level.  There is now way of knowing if the conclusion is the real story of what happened?  2 ½* (This movie is so-so)   

      

107 min, Crime directed by Kristoffer Nyholm with Gerard Butler, Peter Mullan, Connor Swindells, Soren Malling, Olafur Darri Olafsson, Gary Lewis, Ken Drury, Roderick Gilkison, Emma King, John Taylor.

Note:  Imdb 5.8 out of 10, 86% critic 43% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 2*, Metacritic 66 out of 100 with 8 critics 6.7 out of 10 with 12 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Killantringan Lighthouse, Portpartick, United Kingdom and Mull of Gallowway, Dumbfries & Galloway Scotland, UK.  The mystery happened on or about December 15, 1900.  Three lighthouse keepers stationed on Eilean Mor vanished without a trace?  The men were Thomas Marshall, James Ducat and Donald MacArthur.  At the time of the mystery the lighthouse was new?  There is still speculation about this event 119 years later.   

Peppermint 2018

     Riley and Chris North are married, they live in Los Angeles and they have a ten-year-old daughter Carly.  Chris gets an offer from a friend to be a get away driver on a heist.  Riley and Chris are struggling financially and this job would help.  Chris decides it’s too dangerous to try to rob a powerful drug lord and he cancels.  Riley and Chris plan a birthday party for Carly and no one comes?  Another parent has invited the entire class to another birthday party.  Riley and Chris take Carly for pizza and to a carnival where they get ice cream.  Chris’s friend is killed and a hit is taken out on Chris.  Carley and Chris are both killed in a drive by shooting.  Riley is wounded, she recovers and she drops out of sight.  She begins training to gain physical strength plus she starts collecting and stealing an arsenal of weapons.

     I noticed right away the arm muscle development Riley was sporting when she began her drug lord take down mission!!  I thought this was very good with LOTS of action. Riley is not counting how many bullets she needs to use and she’s taking down anyone involved with killing her family.  I would advise Garner’s ex-husband, Ben Affleck to watch his step while Garner is in Riley mode!!  Some of the scenes with the drug lord’s thugs are very funny too.  A lot of reviewers didn’t like the revenge aspect of this film?  4* (I really liked this movie)   

   

101 min, Action directed by Pierre Morel with Jennifer Garner, John Gallagher Jr., John Ortiz, Juan Pablo Raba, Annie Ilonzeh, Jeff Hephner, Cailey Fleming, Eddie Shin, Method Man, Tyson Ritter, Ian Casselberry, Richerd Cabral, Johnny Ortiz, Michael Reventar, Kayla-Drew.

Note:  Imdb 6.5 out of 10, Roger Ebert 1*, 12% critic 73% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic 29 out of 100 with 26 critics 6 out of 10 with 72 reviews, RollingStone 1* out of 5* Peter Travers, Amazon 4.3* out of 5* with 1325 reviews.

Special Note:  Jennifer Garner trained for months in MMA fighting, knife fighting and how to handle firearms.  She uses both handguns and assault rifles plus knives in her role as Riley.  This was filmed during the height of the #MeToo movement.  Garner requested a special changing room instead of changing on the set.  Garner wears a wig in scenes where Riley’s hair is short.  Riley eventually kills 43 people with 5 off-screen kills.       

The Graduate 1967

     This film is based on a 1963 novella by Charles Webb.  It was written shortly after Webb graduated from Williams College.  Ben Braddock has recently graduated from college and his parents expect great things from him.  No pressure!!  He has a homecoming party and Mrs. Robinson has Ben drive her home.  She is the wife of his father’s business partner and they begin an affair.  It eventually ends but then Ben finds himself falling for her daughter Elaine.  Doesn’t Ben think there will be complications with Elaine and Mrs. Robinson?

     There is so much to be said about this film that it could fill a novel!!  This is a pivotal film and it became an instant classic.  It’s not really generational to be young and have anxiety about the future!!  There may be even more pressure now because the future is a skilled trade or college.  If a young person has any aptitude for tech, that’s where the money and jobs are now.  Selecting Americans between the ages of 25 to 34, 37% have at least a bachelor’s degree.  Those 55 and older, just under 30% have a four-year degree.  4* (I really liked this movie)

106 min, Comedy directed by Mike Nichols with Dustin Hoffman, Anne Bancroft, Katharine Ross, William Daniels, Murray Hamilton, Elizabeth Wilson, Buck Henry, Brian Avery, Walter Brooke, Norman Fell, Alice Ghostley, Marion Lorne, Eddra Gale, Elaine May, Robert P. Lieb.

Note Imdb 8 out of 10, Roger Ebert 4*, The Guardian 5* Peter Bradshaw, Rotten Tomatoes 89% critic 90% audience, Metacritic 77 out of 100 with 10 critics 7.3 out of 10 with 163 reviews,

Special Note:  Filmed in Beverly Hills, Calabasas, La Verne, Los Angeles, San Francisco Bay, Berkeley, West Hollywood.  Hoffman came for a casting interview at the office of Producer Joseph E. Levine.  Levine mistook him for a window cleaner so he cleaned a window?  Mrs. Robinson is supposed to be much older than Benjamin but Hoffman and Bancroft were just under six years apart in age.  He looked naturally boyish and she was made up to look older.  Brancroft was only eight years older than Elaine and William Daniels were only ten years older than his son Hoffman.  Hoffman felt wrong for the role and he was worried that his screen test was not going well.  He left thinking he didn’t get the role but his awkwardness was what Director Mike Nichols wanted to Benjamin Braddock. 

Beneath the Helmet 2014

     This film profiles three young Israeli high school graduates and two of their officers.  The young men have been recruited to serve in the army paratrooper brigade to fulfill their compulsory military service.  This event is viewed as a rite of passage into Israeli society.  Private Oren Giladi is a young volunteer soldier from Switzerland.  Private Mekonan Abebe is an Ethiopian immigrant volunteer.  Private Eilon Cohen has a lot to learn to become a successful soldier.  First Lieutenant Eden Adler is a commander and this is his first assignment.  Coral Amarani as the unit commander is a female sergeant who originally planned to evade army service.  Most of the private’s have never handled a weapon and they don’t understand the dangers of combat.

     This film is very interesting plus educational.  It follows the countdown of the number of days involved in the training process.  The families are also featured and they relate their feelings about the military service.  The common denominator of the group is their shared values of protecting their homes, peace, equality, opportunity, democracy, religious tolerance and also the rights of women.  Israel is small in size as a country and always facing the imminent danger of attack from outside countries.  Lebanon is to the north, Syria to the northeast, Jordan and the West Bank to the East, Egypt and the Gaza Strip to the southwest.  4* (I really liked this movie)

 

80 min, Doc directed by Wayne Kopping.

Note:  Imdb 8 out of 10, Amazon Video 5* with 12 reviews, Letterboxd average 2.5* out of 5*.

Special Note:  Conscription exists in Israel for all Israeli citizens over the age of 18 who are Jewish, Druze or Circassian.  Arab citizens of Israel are not conscripted.  Sweden, Thailand and Venezuela also have compulsory military service.  In the United States, all men between 18-25 must register in the Selective Service System.  This is so that conscription can be enacted should the need for it arise.    

The English Patient 1996

     This film is based on a novel by Michael Ondaatje.  The book has become widely read and loved by many.  The setting of this film is October of 1944 in war torn Italy.  Hana is a French-Canadian Nurse working in a mobile army medical unit.  She feels like everything she loves in life is dying on her.  There is extreme difficulty in traveling and it's very dangerous.  The landscape in this vicinity is heavily booby-trapped with mines.  At this time, everyone has left the medical unit except Hana.  She has volunteered to stay behind at a church to care for a dying semi-amnesiac patient.  He is badly burned and disfigured.  She will catch of the the est of the unit after he passes away.  The patient can only remember that he is English and that he is married.  A Canadian David Caravaggoi is part of the Intelligence Service and he arrives at the church.  He is certain that he knows the patient as a man who cooperated with the Germans.  David believes that the English man can remember everything but he's running away from his past.  The patient does begin to converse and he talks about his work as a cartographer in North Africa.
     This is one of my favorite films and it has many of my favorite actors!!  I could watch this over and over and not tire of seeing it!!  The theme is that we do not choose love but love does the choosing.  There are layers of mysteries and puzzles but they eventually are all solved.  There are also many questions and the answers come to the surface as the film moves along.  War usually brings out the deepest depths of emotions in those involved!!  4 1/2* (I really liked this movie)  
     
162 min, Drama directed byAnthony Minghella with Ralph Fiennes, Juliette Binoche, Willem Dafoe, Kristin Scott Thomas, Naveen Andrews, Colin Firth, Julian Wadham, Jurgen Prochnow, Kevin Whately, Clive Merrison, Nino Castenuovo, Hichem Rostom.

Note:  Imdb 7.4 out of 10, Roger Ebert 4*, 84% critic 83% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic 87 out of 100 with 31 critics 7.4 out of 10 with 142 reviews, Amazon 4.5* out of 5* with 500 reviews.   Amazon has 3.9* out of 5* for the novel.
Special Note:  Filmed in Mahdia, Degache and Nefta, Tunisia; Veneto, Lazio, Tuscany, Friuli-Venezia and Tunis Italy.  The Germans who shoot at Almasy's plane in the beginning were actually tourists.  They were actually tourists asked to be in these scenes because the production couldn't afford any more extras?  Kristin Scott Thomas was cast after writing a letter to Minghella that said, "I am 'K' in your film.  It took 5 hours each day to apply the burn make-up to Fiennes.  Juliette Binoche knew she wasted to be in this film after she read the scene where Kip shows Hana the fresco paintings on the walls of the church.  The original cut was 4 hours and 10 minutes long.  In 2005, Binoche had her Oscar touched up by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences at no cost to her.  Her three-year-old son had played with it until it became tarnished and peeling. 

Between Land And Sea 2016

     The subject of this film is a year of life on the Atlantic coast in the west of Ireland.  It was filmed in and around Lahinch in County Clare near the spectacular Cliffs of Moher.  Ireland has become a prime surfing location since about 2000.  The sport has really changed the sleepy town and provided new business opportunities for the people who live here.  Some surfers have enough sponsors that they don't need to do other jobs for a living wage.  Others teach surfing or sell surfing gear.  They are dependent on a 10 week summer season and not a rain out.  Some work another job they have trained for or are good at.  One man is an organic farmer and another works in the mining industry.
     I didn't realize how phenomenal the waves were in this region with Riley's Wave and Aileen's Wave at the base of the Cliffs.  They seem so powerful that you wonder how they can be surfed?  The surfers all look like they are just gliding through them but the force of the water could injure them severely.  The non-surfing members of the community feel they need to fit in with the surfers instead of the other way around.  They do appreciate the influx of people and customers to the community.  I thought this was very interesting!!  Sometimes the Irish brogue is like another language?  4* (I really liked this movie)    

87 min, Doc directed by Ross Whitaker with Shane Dorian, John McCarthy, Ollie O'Flaherty, Fergal Smith. 

Note:  Imdb 8 out of 10, 100% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, The Guardian 3* out of 5* Cath Clarke.
Special Note:  New Jersey based Irish surfer Frank Nolan IV was scheduled to appear but he had to decline.

Interiors 1978

     This film is the story of a very dysfunctional family.  They are already having problems but now the parents are contemplating getting a divorce.  Eve and Arthur are in their 60's and they have recently separated.  Eve is an interior decorator and she has always been a negative type of person.  Arthur is a wealthy narcissistic corporate attorney.  Eve's personality has had a toxic effect on her children.  Eve and Arthur  have three adult daughters, Renata, Joey and Flyn.  Renata is a poet and she is married to Frederick, he is a struggling writer.  Joey is in advertising and she is in a relationship with Mike.  Flyn is a vain film and TV actress usually involved in  low quality films and she is not married.  
     Woody Allen films are usually about relationships and so is one is too.  There is a LOT going on in the family even without an the threat of an impending divorce!!  Joey cannot settle on a career and she resents her mother for favoring Renata.  Also, Renata resents their father's concern over Joey's lack of direction.   It is filmed like a Ingemar Bergman movie with red clothing worn by women outside the family unit.  Red is used also for the exit sign in a hospital and the candle holders at the church.  The colors worn by the family and in the design of the rooms are all grays, greens and pale blues.  4* (I liked this movie)

92 min, Drama directed and written by Woody Allen with Kristin Griffith, Mary Beth Hurt, Richard Jordan, Sam Waterson, Missy Hope, Kerry Duffy, Nancy Collins, Diane Keaton, Geraldine Page, E.G. Marshall, Maureen Stapleton, Penny Gaston, Roger Morden. 

Note:  Imdb 7.5 out of 10, Roger Ebert 4*, 77% critic 79% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic 67 out of 100 with 9 critics, Letterboxd 3.7* out of 5*.
Special Note:  Filmed in Church of St. Ignatius Loyola; Riverdale, Bronx; Southampton; Westchester County, New York.  This is the first dramatic film directed by Woody Allen and also the first without Allen as one of the characters.  He usually is known for comedy.  This is the film debut of Mary Beth Hurt.  Allen and Waterston have also worked together on Hannah and her Sisters 1986, September 1987, Crimes and Misdemeanors 1989.

Arabesque 1966

     This film is based on a novel by Gordon Cotler titled The Cipher.  Professor David Pollock is an expert in ancient Arabic hieroglyphics.  A Middle Eastern Prime Minister convinces Pollock to infiltrate the organization Beshraavi.  He becomes is involved in a plot to assassinate the Prime Minister.  The details of the plan may be found in a hieroglyphic code.  Yasmin Azir is Beshraavi’s mistress and she becomes mixed up in the plot.  Pollock needs her help with the hieroglyphics but she repeatedly double crosses him.  Pollock can’t figure out what side she is on?  If he works with her, can she be trusted?

     This film is somewhat dated plus there is a lot of mindlessness and complexity.  It’s difficult for the audience to determine which side Sophia Loren is on too??  Arabesque is somewhat like Charade 1963 with Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn.  Charade has 8* out of 10* on Imdb.  One BIG difference between the films is that Charade is a film by Alfred Hitchcock!!  3* (This movie is OK)   

105 min, Action directed by Stanley Donen with Gregory Peck, Sophia Loren, Alan Badel, Kieron Moore, Carl Duering, John Merivale, Duncan Lamont, George Coulouris, Ernest Clark, Harold Kasket.

Note:  Imdb 6.5 out of 10, 64% critic 55% audience on Rotten Tomatoes,  Amazon 4.1* out of 5* with 118 reviews, TCM average user rating 3.24* out of 5*.

Special Note:  Filmed in Caerphilly, Wales.  Bershire, West Sussex, London, Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Pinewood Studios, England, UK.  Gregory Peck suffered from an old leg injury from horseback riding.  This made the stunts difficult.  He had to keep telling Loren to slow down when they are riding double on a horse.  None of the actors in his film are Arabic.  Vic Armstrong began his career as a Stunt Man on this film.  He is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the World’s Most Prolific Stunt Man.  The Rolls Royce Phantom IV was one of only eighteen ever made.  Previously, it belonged to Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, son of King George V.  Prince Henry was born 31 March 1900 and he died 10 June 1974.  He was the third son of King George V and Queen Mary.  He served as Governor-General of Australia from 1945 to 1947 and the only member of the British royal family hold this post.

The Help 2011

     This film is based on a book by Kathryn Stockett and it was rejected 60 times before publication.  The setting is 1963 in Jacksonville Mississippi.  Everything and everyone in the town is divided between black and white.  The black women are maids in the houses of the white women and it's been this way for a long time.  There are published laws regarding the interaction and separation of the two races.  Eugenia is a part of this society but she is white and she sees things differently.  She wants to be a writer and she decides to interview a black woman.  She starts talking to Albileen about what it is really like to be a maid and they encourage the other maids to begin to tell their stories.  This single event turns the lives of her friends and this Mississippi town upside down!!
     This is very good, it's a story that most of us don't know anything about.  Black women raising white children but not raising their own children, not being able to use the same bathroom as their employer, cooking, cleaning doing everything and facing being fired for very little reason.  Times are changing but they may need for to be forced?  4 1/2* (I really liked this movie)
 
146 min, Drama directed by Tate Taylor with Emma Stone, Viola Davis, Bryce Dallas Howard, Octavia Spencer, Jessica Chastain, Ahna O'Reilly, Allison Janney, Anna Camp, Eleanor and Emma Henry, Chris Lowell, Sissy Spacek, Cicely Tyson, Mike Vogel.

Note:  Imdb 8.1 out of 10, 75% critic 91% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 3*, Rolling Stone 3 1/2* out of 4* Peter Travers, Plugged In 3* out of 5*, Amazon 4.7* out of 5* with 10,102 reviews.  Goodreads gives the book 4.5* out of 5* with 1,851,845 votes.
Special Note:  Filmed in Greenwood, Jackson and Clarksdale, Mississippi.  It's not mentioned in the book how Eugenia got the nickname "Skeeter."  The book says when she was born, her thin leggy appearance caused her older brother to remark that she looked like a "skeeter" (mosquito).  Director Tate Taylor and Kathryn Stockett were childhood friends in Jackson, Mississippi.  Stockett makes a brief appearance as one of the ladies sitting in Hilly Holbrooks meeting.  Civil Rights Activist Medgar Evers was assassinated in Jackson.  Real national news headlines of this event are used in the film.  There are seven Oscar winners in this film.  Davis, Stone, Spence, Sttenburgen, Janney, Spacek and Tyson an honorary winner.  Chastain was an Oscar nominee     

Paddington 2 2017

     The Brown family is happy to have Paddington living with them in London.  His Aunt Lucy wanted to come to earlier London but she suddenly she had a bear cub to raise.  Now it’s time for her one-hundred-year old birthday and Paddington wants to get her a very special gift.  Mr. Gruber has a unique pop-up book in his antique shop that would be the perfect gift!!  Paddington will need jobs to raise enough money to purchase the book.  He starts with window washing in the neighborhood.

     This is funny from the beginning to the end!!  This is the second time I've seen this film.  I think it's easier to watch the second time because you don't need to tense up and some of the events!!  There were so many times I said, “This is so ridiculous!!”  Paddington has a LOT of experiences trying to earn money to buy the gift for Aunt Lucy.  Then, he has MORE experiences regarding the pop-up book.  He has such admiration, thankfulness and love for Aunt Lucy that the gift needed to be perfect!!  The pop-up book seems just right.  He feels a sadness that Aunt Lucy didn’t get to come to London and now she’s in a retirement home for elderly bears!!  I wonder if Hugh Grant would've taken his role in his younger years?  4 1/2* (I loved this movie)    

  

103 min, Animation directed by Paul King with Ben Whishaw, Hugh Grant, Hugh Bonneville, Madeleine Harries, Samuel Joslin, Sally Hawkins, Hugh Bonneville, Julie Walters, Marie-France Alvarez, Sanjeev Bhaskar, Ben Miller, Jessica Hynes, Robbie Gee.

 

Note:  Imdb 7.9 out of 10, 100% critic 88% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 3*, Amazon 4.7* out of 5* with 461 reviews, Metacritic 88 out of 100 with 38 critics 8.2 out of 10 with 157 reviews, The Guardian Gwilym Mumford 5*.

Special Note:  Michael Bond was the creator of Paddington Bear and he passed away at the age of 91 just six months before the release of this film.  His last book was released in April 2017 and the books have sold more than 35 million copies.  The 2014 Paddington was the highest grossing independent family film and the highest grossing film in the UK of 2014. 

Special Note:  The pop-up-book of London was released for a limited edition collectors item with six scenes taken from the film.

For Whom the Bell Tolls 1943

     This film is based on a book with the same title by Ernest Hemingway.  The setting of this film is Spain of the 1930’s in the Guadarrama Mountains near Segovia.  There is a civil war going on with the Spanish Republic fighting against the fascist Nationalists.  Robert Jordan is a man of action.  He has joined up on the side that appeals most to him most.  About 60,000 foreigners have come to fight for Spain’s freedom.  He chooses to side with the idealists of this era.  He has knowledge of explosives and he plans to blow a bridge.  Pilar is a gypsy and she is in charge of this group.  She has the ability to foretell the future and she sees something in his palm but she won’t tell him what she saw.  Maria is a young woman with the group and she was the daughter of the major of the town.  The soldiers killed her father and her mother.

     There are a lot of dark scenes that are difficult to tell who the people are and what is going on.  I think 170 minutes is overlong and the film needs tighter editing.  Otherwise, the story is very good.  The acting by Cooper and a young Bergman (the film was released in April 1943 and she was 29 in August) is also very good.  I thought it was interesting that a person on a horse can make it out alive but without the horse they will probably be killed.  Ernest Hemingway and his friends would also have joined up with the idealists.  3 ½* (I liked this movie)   

170 min, Adventure directed by Sam Wood with Gary Cooper, Ingrid Bergman, Akim Tamiroff, Arturo de Cordova, Vladimir Sokoloff, Mikhail Rasumny, Fortunio Bonanova, Eric Feldary, Victor Varconi, Katina Paxinou, Joseph Calleia, Lilo Yarson, Alexander Granach, Adia Kuznetzoff, Lilo Yarson.

Note:  Imdb 7.0 out of 10, 77% critic 63% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, TCM Leonard Maltin 3.5* out of 4* average user rating 3.2 out of 5,  Amazon 4* out of 5* with 1056 reviews, Goodreads gives the book 4* out of 5* with 227,591 votes.

Special Note:  Filmed in Sierra Nevada Mountains, Blue Canyon, Sacramento, Kennedy Meadows, Relief Canyon, Sonora Pass and Paramount Studios, California.  As he was writing the novel, Hemingway had Ingrid Bergman in mind for the role of Maria.  This is the first of three films in three years that were nominated for the Best Actress Oscar for Bergman as well as Bet Picture and Best Actor.  The other two are Gaslight 1944 and The Bells of St. Mary’s 1945.  The novel was a best seller in the 1940’s and was reportedly sold to Paramount Pictures for $100,000.  Throughout the film Cooper is riding a gray horse.  During the ending scenes, he is riding a brown horse but the horse was painted gray for continuity.  The film was later cut to 130 minutes for general release.  A restored version was released with 166 minutes and an archival print was 156 minutes.  This film was banned in Spain until 1978. 

The Devil Wears Prada 2006

     This film is based on a best-selling novel by Lauren Weisberger.  Andrea Sachs has just graduated from college in New York.  She is hired to work as the second assistant for the powerful and sophisticated Miranda Priestly.  What Andrea doesn’t know is that Miranda is ruthless and merciless as the executive of the Runway fashion magazine.  Andrea would like to be a journalist and she sees this job as temporary and a professional challenge.  Andrea gets the lay of the land from first assistant Emily.  She tells Andrea that Miranda is cruel and always looking to find fault!!  Andrea changes her attitude and behavior plus she dresses more to suit her current environment.  These changes begin to affect her private life and her relationship with her boyfriend Nate, her family and friends.

     I thought many scenes in this film were funny.  Andrea doesn’t have any idea how to please Miranda.  Possibly, Miranda can never be pleased??  She’s supposed to perform in this job as if she had been doing it all her life?  Unfortunately, what happened in this film often happens in real life!!  At least Miranda has dignity and intelligence so she’s not just a Boss From Hell!!  3 ½* (I liked this movie

109 min, Comedy directed by David Frankel with Anne Hathaway, Meryl Streep Adrian Grenier, Stanley Tucci, Simon Baker, Tracie Thoms, Rich Sommer, Daniel Sunjata, David Marshall Grant, James Naughton, Tibor Feldman,Rebecca Mader.

Note:  Imdb 6.9 out of 10, Roger Ebert 2*, 75% critic 76% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Empire Online 4* out of 5*, The Guardian 2* out of 5* Peter Bradshaw, Amazon 4.6* out of 5* with 1478 reviews, the book has 3.5* out of 5* with 1052 reviews.  Revenge Wears Prada: The Devil Returns is a sequel book with 3.2* out of 5* and 1202 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Paris, France; Manhattan, Queens, New York City, New York.  Many current fashion designers allowed their clothes and accessories to be used in this film.  As a result, this film became the most expensively costumed film in history.  Supposedly, Anna Wintour as the formidable editor of Vogue was the inspiration for Miranda?  Emily Blunt’s husband John Krasinski claims to have seen this film 75 times??  Just two days of the production took place in Paris.  The scenes with Meryl Streep were shot in New York because it was too expensive to fly her to Paris.  Anne Hathaway prepared for her role by volunteering for a week as an assistant at an auction house.    

Only Angels Have Wings 1939

     This film is based on a story written by Howard Hawks.  His story is based on a number of real incidents he witnessed.  Also, based the films Air Mail 1932, Night Flight 1933, Ceiling Zero 1936, Flight from Glory 1937.  The ship San Luis makes a stop at the port of Barranca in the Andes Mountains to deliver mailbags and load bananas.  Cabaret singer Bonnie Lee leaves the boat to look around.  She meets a group of American flyers and they work for a Dutchman with warm heart.  He is the owner of a scruffy hotel and bar.  This location is also the headquarters of the Barranca Airways.  Geoff Carter is the leader of the pilots.  The only way to fly out of Barranca is through a deep pass at 14,000 feet above ground.  The weather is often stormy and foggy, the flights are extremely difficult and several flyers have been killed.  Joe Souther is killed soon after Bonnie arrives.  Bonnie thinks she’s in love with Geoff and she wants to stay for a while after the boat leaves.  Geoff is scared of being held down by a woman?

     I think this is the first film with Jean Arthur that I’ve watched?  She is very beautiful and a good actress.  This is the breakout film for Rita Hayworth.  I thought the men’s clothing in this film was funny!!  Their pants are a light color, baggy and their belts hike them up about 2” above their actual waist??  The men are rough and tough daredevils and the women must choose to accept it with trying to change them.  They can be here right now and gone tomorrow.  3* (This movie is OK)

    

121 min, Adventure, black and white directed by Howard Hawks with Cary Grant, Jean Arthur, Rita Hayworth, Richard Barthelmess, Thomas Mitchell, Allyn Joslyn, Sig Ruman, Victor Kilian, John Carroll, Don ‘Red’ Barry, Noah Beery Jr., Milisa Sierra.
 

Note:  Imdb 7.7 out of 10, Amazon 4.4* of 5* with 136 reviews, Slant Magazine 4* by Zach Campbell, Metacritic 86 out of 100 with 10 critics, The Guardian Peter Bradshaw 4* out of 5*

Special Note:  Filmed in North Hollywood, Los, Angeles, California.  The port of Barranca is fictional.  Richard Barthelmess in the role of Bat MacPherson had deep scars from an infection after plastic surgery.  Hawks convinced Richard not to wear heavy makeup but to let his scars tell his story.  Calling Baranca became a recurring line in LooneyToons/Merrie Melodies cartoons?  This film was supposed to be among 12 American titles selected for the first ever Cannes Film Festival.  It was scheduled for September 1, 1939 but the war delayed the festival by seven years.  Hawks was also inspired by a true story of a real-life couple he met while scouting Mexican locations for Viva Villa! of 1934.   

Searching 2018

     David Kim’s 16-year-old daughter goes missing and he contacts the police.  A detective is assigned to the case and she is working closely with Kim.  After 37 hours they don’t have a single lead about Margot and it becomes discouraging.  Kim starts checking on his daughter’s computer and he learns a lot of things about her that he didn’t know.  She stopped going to piano lessons six months ago and she’s been banking the $100 a week.  His search also leads to other things he doesn’t know about Margot.

     I think I would’ve liked this movie more if it was a detective story and not a computer and social media story.  It becomes tiresome always looking at the computer in the movie?  I can look at my own computer and I think that's more than plenty!!  The ending is a surprise but I wonder if it’s really believable? 3* (This movie is OK)   

102 min, Drama directed by Aneesh Chaganty with John Cho, Debra Messing, Joseph Lee, Sara Sohn, Alex Jayne Go, Megan Liu, Kya Dawn Lau, Michelle La, Dominic Hoffman, Connor McRaith, Coln Woodell.

Note:  Imdb 7.7 out of 10, Roger Ebert 3*, 92% critic 88% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic 71 out of 100 with 34 critics 7.9 out of 10 with 218 reviews, Rolling Stone 4* out of 5* Peter Travers, Amazon 4.3* out of 5* with 507 reviews.

Special Note:  Originally, the idea for this film was as an 8 minute short film.  The production company passed on this idea and suggested it be made into a movie instead.  Every TV/phone/computer screen was recreated for the German, Spanish, French, Russian and Portuguese versions of this film.  Shooting was done in just 13 days but 2 years were required for the prep, editing and animating.  Total worldwide gross was $75.5 million.

Holiday 1938

    This film is based on a 1928 Broadway play by Philip Barry.  Johnny Case meets Julia Seton and they instantly fall in love during a holiday in Lake Placid, New York.  They want to be married right away but first Johnny must meet Julia’s family.  Johnny learns quickly that the Seton family is very wealthy and this might not be as easy as he thought?  Julia has a sister Linda and she wants to plan their engagement part.  Their father Edward overrules this party and plans his own engagement celebration instead.  Julia’s brother Ned has given up on life and he just drinks.  Johnny isn’t sure if he’s ready to settle down to big business like Edward.  Johnny is thinking that he would like to spend the beginning years of his newly married life on “holiday” instead of pursuing wealth. This idea doesn’t sit very well with Julia or Edward?

     There is a twist at the end of this film that I didn’t know was going to happen?  The only down to earth people in this film are Johnny, Linda and Johnny’s friends the Potter’s.  Susan Elliott Potter and Professor Nick Potter.  They think Johnny really needs to think everything over very seriously before he jumps into this marriage.  Linda also has the same advice and Ned is always too drunk to give advice.  3 ½* (I liked this movie)

  

95 min, Comedy directed by George Cukor with Katharine Hepburn, Cary Grant, Doris Nolan, Lew Ayres, Edward Everett Horton, Henry Kolker, Binnie Barnes, Jean Dixon, Henry Daniell.

Note:  Imdb 7.8 out of 10, 100% critic 90% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Three Movie Buffs.com average 3* out of 4*, TCM Leonard Maltin 3.5* out of 4* average user rating 4.7* out of 5*, Amazon 4.4* out of 5* with 2918 reviews. 

Special Note:  The play was adapted for film twice.  The first was released in 1930 and the second in 1930.  Filmed in Los Angeles and Bishop, California and New York City, New York.  Studio boss Harry Cohn was upset at negative publicity focused on star Katharine Hepburn.  He proposed to take out an ad in Variety but Hepburn cautioned against the idea. 

School for Scoundrels 1960

     This film is based on the Stephen Potter books One Upmanship and Lifemanship.  Henry Palfrey tries hard to impress but he always loses out to his boss or the rotter Raymond Delauney.  He discovers the Lifeman College run by Professor Potter.  He learns the secrets to success.  Does he have the courage to put all his lessons into action?

     Henry meets April Smith but Raymond Delauney muscles in and he’s trying to win April for himself.  Raymond has a very nice and speedy car.  Henry goes to buy a car and he’s cheated into buying a worthless car with a LOT of problems.  It’s because of these incidences that Henry decides to get a backbone by going to the College!!  There are a LOT of funny scenes in this film!!  3 1/2* (I liked this movie) 

94 min, Comedy directed by Robert Hamer, Hal E. Chester and Cyril Frankel with Ian Carmichael, Terry-Thomas, Alastair Sim, Janette Scott, Dennis Price, Peter Jones, Edward Chapman, John Le Mesurier, Iren Handl, Kynaston Reeves, Hattie Jacques, Hugh Paddick, Barbara Roscoe.

Note:  Imdb 7.5 out of 10, Metacritic 44 out of 100 with 28 critics 8 out of 10 with 76 reviews, 71% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Amazon 4.6* out of 5* with 177 reviews,

Book Reviews:  One-Upmanship 5* with 4 reviews,  Lifemanship 5* with 1 review.

Special Note:  Filmed in Hendon, Temple, Lambeth, London and Hertfordshire, Middlesex, England, UK.  This is the first screenplay written by Peter Ustinov and originally he was chosen for Dennis Price’s role as Dunstan Dorchester.  The two used car salesmen were based on characters from a BBC radio comedy series.  The In All Directions program was broadcast during the 1950’s.  The tennis club featured here later appears as The Elizabethan Hotel in the Avengers episode Wish You Were Here of December 2, 1969.  Miss Scott was 22 years old, Ian Carmichael was 40 and Terry Thomas was 49.  The age differences were important in real life but totally ignored for the film Industry.  The Aston Martin DB3S Bellini is listed as one of the top 10 British cars in films.    

The Magnificent Ambersons 1942

     This film is based on a Pulitzer Prize winning book by Booth Tarkington published in 1918.  Eugene Morgan wants to marry Isabel Amberson.  She is the daughter of the richest upper-class family in Indianapolis, Indiana of the beginning of the 20^th century.  Eugene brings candy, he brings flowers but he’s never admitted inside the house by the butler?  The reason may be that she felt publicly embarrassed by Eugene?  Instead, Isabel marries Wilbur Minafer even though she doesn't love him.  They have one child, George.  He grows up as a spoiled brat, a terror in the town and everyone hopes someday he will get his comeuppance!!

     This is a black and white film and it features the first model of a gasoline engine car.  The first car in America with a gasoline engine was developed in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1893.  Everything is interesting about this film but there is a certain gloom?  There are times when someone needs to stand firmly against George and his decisions!!  3 ½* (I liked this movie.

88 min, Drama directed by Orson Welles and Fred Fleck with Joseph Cotton, Dolores Costello, Anne Baxter, Tim Holt, Agnes Moorehead, Ray Collins, Erskine Sanford, Richard Bennett, Orson Welles as narrator. 

Note:  Imdb 7.9 out of 10, 89% critic 85% audience, Empire Online 5*, Slant Magazine 5*, Metacritic 93 out of 100 with 17 critics, 4.2* out of 5* with 118 reviews, Book on Amazon 4.1* out of 5* with 203 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Hollywood, Encino, Los Angeles, Culver City, San Bernardino National Forest, California.  Dolores Costello was formerly a silent star and this is one of her last roles.  She was forced to retire because the early film make-up scarred her face and it was highly caustic.  I thought this was terrible to happen to Dolores!!  This film was recut and it caused a deep rift in Orson Welles’ friendships with Robert Wise and Joseph Cotton.  Joseph wrote several letters of apology to Orson and the two later reconciled.  There were always acrimonious feelings between Orson and Robert for 42 years.  At the Directors Guild of America program to honor Orson with a Lifetime Achievement Award in 1984, Robert was brought on stage and they shook hands.  The crowd rewarded them with a standing ovation. Twenty years later, Orson still planned an epilogue starring Joseph Cotton, Anne Baxter, Agnes Moorehead and Tim Holt.  The set for the Ambersons mansion was one of the most elaborate and expensive sets ever built at the time.  RKO later used the set for other films.

Bonnie and Clyde 1967

     The setting of this film is in 1934 and it’s based on a true story.  Bonnie Parker works as a waitress.  Clyde Barrow is a criminal just released from prison.  They meet by chance in West Dallas, Texas.  Bonnie and Clyde are immediately attracted to each other.  Bonnie is fascinated with Clyde’s criminal past, his matter-of-fact attitude and bravado.  Clyde sees that Bonnie is sympathetic to his gals in life.  Bonnie has never been in trouble with the law but they decide to join forces to embark on a life of crime.  They plan to hold up every establishment that makes money and to have fun.  Banks are the places to get the most money.  They have plenty of guns but they don’t plan on hurting or killing anyone.  They amass a small group of willing accomplices. 

     I have seen this movie before and I recently read Bonnie and Clyde: the making of a legend by Karen Blumenthal.  This book traces the footsteps of Bonnie and Clyde.  It gives new information and lays to rest many persistent myths.  I thought it would be interesting to see the film again after reading this book.  One item I was surprised about is how many cars Bonnie and Clyde stole for their getaways.  Their favorite car was the 1932 Ford Fodor Deluxe.  This car had a V8 engine that could go up to 75 mph.  This was considerably faster than the older and slower cars that the police drove at this time.  Clyde wrote a letter on April. 13, 1934 to the Ford Motor Co. to tell them what a fine car they had produced.             

111 min, Action directed by Arthur Penn with Warren Beatty, Faye Dunaway, Michael J. Pollard, Gene Hackman, Estelle Parsons, Denver Pyle, Dub Taylor, Evans Evans, Gene Wilder.

Note:  Imdb 7.9 out of 10, Roger Ebert 4*, 88% critic 88% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic 81 out of 10 with 8 critics 8.6 out of 10 with 87 reviews, Amazon 4.6 out of 10 with 478 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Red Oak, Rowlett, Waxahachie, Denton, Garland, Dallas, Midlothian, Trinity River, Maypearl, Pilot Point, Venus, Lemmon Lake, Ponder, Lavon, Texas.  Albertson Ranch, Triunfo and Warner Brothers Burbank Studios, California.   Warner Brothers has so little faith that this film would be profitable that they offered first-time Producer Warren Beatty forty percent of the gross instead of a minimal fee.  The film grossed over fifty million dollars and Beatty was paid 20 million dollars!!  The estimated budget was $2.5 million.  Gene Hackman noticed a guy standing behind him on the set.  The man said, “Buck would’ve never worn a hat like that.”  The man said, “Nice to meet you, I’m one of the Barrows.  This is the film debut of Gene Wilder.  Director Arthur Penn wanted to make the character of Blanche as hysterical as possible.  This would make Bonnie look cooler?  Originally, Beatty’s sister Shirley MacLaine was set to play Bonnie.  When Beatty decided to play Clyde it would not work for his sister to play Bonnie!!  There are a lot of filming errors in this movie and also factual mistakes.  4* (I really liked this movie)