The Big Parade 1925

      This film is adapted from the autobiographical novel Plumes by Laurence Stallings.  The time setting is from 1917 to 1918 and this is the period the United States fought in WWI.  James Apperson is the son of a rich businessman and his father pressures him into joining the Army.  He is sent to France with the Army Rainbow Division and he makes friends with two working-class soldiers.  James receives a cake in the mail from his long time girlfriend and he shares it with his friends Bull and Slim.  James meets a young Frenchwoman in the village of Champillon in the Marne and they quickly fall in love.  James tells Melisande about his American fiancé Justyn and they aren’t sure what they are going to do about this new relationship.

      I didn’t know before viewing that this movie is a silent film and in black and white.  WWI was a very devastating war and the Rainbow Division is sent to advance against snipers and machine guns in the woods.  There is also poison gas and artillery shelling.  As the men march in a horizontal line, many are killed.  The survivors shelter in a shell hole during the night.  James is in a hole with Bull and Slim.  3 1/2* (I liked this movie)    

131 min, Drama directed by King Vidor, George W. Hill with John Gilbert, Renee Adoree, Hobart Bosworth, Claire McDowell, Claire Adams, Robert Ober, Tom O’Brien, Karl Dane, Rosita Marstini.

Note:  Imdb 8.3 out of 10, 100% critic 92% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Amazon 4.4* out of 5* with 82 reviews, TCM Leonard Maltin 4* out of 4* 4.5* out of 5* user rating.

Special Note:  Filmed in Culver City, Orange and Los Angeles, California; San Antonio, Texas.  Originally, King Vidor had a contract that entitled him to 20% of the net profits.  MGM accountants persuaded him to sell his stake in the film for a small sum.  The film ran for 96 weeks at New York’s Astor Theater and grossed $5 million (approximately $50 million in 2003 dollars).  It was the most profitable release in MGM history.  Over time, the film grossed $22 million worldwide (approximately $220 million in 2003 dollars).  Vidor could’ve made $44 million in 2003 dollars.  The production cost was $245,000.  The War Department loaned the producers over 200 Army trucks, approximately 4,000 soldiers and over 100 airplanes.  The doughboy costume worn by John Gilbert was housed in The Crocker Museum in Hollywood for a time.  Included in the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die list edited by Steven Schneider.

Beatriz at Dinner 2017

     Beatriz arrived in Los Angeles as an immigrant from a poor town in Mexico.  She has built up a practice using holistic medicine.  She goes to treat her client Kathy and Beatriz can’t get her old car to start.  Beatriz tells Kathy that a mechanic friend is going to come by after he gets off work to look at the car.  Kathy suggests that Beatriz have dinner with them that evening.  Kathy’s husband Grant is not sure about this because he is having his boss and business clients come to this dinner.  Shannon arrives with her husband Alex and they begin discussing how much money they will make off this latest business venture.  Doug arrives later with his wife Jeana and he is Grant’s boss.  Everyone moves outside to talk and Beatriz is introduced to the guests.  She tells Kathy that her mechanic friend won’t be able to come until tomorrow.  Kathy suggests that Beatriz spend the night.  Beatriz learns that Doug had previously developed a building project in her area in Mexico and there had been protests.  Beatriz explains to the group that the promised jobs and opportunities for her community didn’t happen and the building destroyed the area.

     It was a mistake for Kathy to invite Beatriz to the dinner.  She’s not appropriately dressed and she doesn’t fit in with the other people.  She is the opposite of everything they believe and stand for.  Beatriz believes in people and life.  They believe in the business of making money.  I didn't think there was any comedy?  2* (I didn’t like this movie)

92 min, Comedy directed by Miguel Arteta with Salma Hayek, John Lithgow, Connie Britton, Jay Duplass, Amy Landecker, Chole Sevigny, David Warshofsky, John Early, Enrique Castillo, Soledad St. Hilaire, Amelia Borella, Sean O’Bryan, Natalia Abelleyra.

Note:  Imdb 6.2 Out of 10, 77% critic 57% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 3*, Amazon 2.4* out of 5* with 138 reviews, Metacritic 68 out of 100 with 36 critics 5.2 out of 10 with 27 reviews, The Guardian 4* out of 5* review by Benjamin Lee, Rollingstone 3* out of 4*.

Special Note:  This movie was filmed in Los Angeles, CA from August 15, 2016 to September 3 2016, just 19 days.

Miracle at Midnight 1998

     This film is based on a true story and the setting is September 1943.  Dr. Karl Koster is a Danish physician and he lives in Copenhagen with his wife Doris.  They have a teenage son Henrik and a younger daughter Else.  Dr. Koster is Chief Surgeon of Christiana Hospital and he protects a young resistance fighter when the Nazis shoot him.  Henrik is secretly working for a group commandeering weapons sent to the Nazis.  On September 29, 1943, it is three years into the occupation of Copenhagen by the Germans.  Doctor Koster learns that all Danish Jews will be arrested on Friday at midnight.  This is the beginning of Rosh Hashanah.  The Koster’s start their work by hiding Jews in their attic.  As soon as they can, they take them to be sent away in small boats.  Sweden has agreed to shelter all Jews that are able to escape to this country.  Soon, the Koster’s are fleeing by boat to Sweden also.  The Nazis take Doris prisoner and she doesn’t reunite with her family until after the war.

     I liked this movie and it’s another angle of a country and people helping the Jews to escape the concentration camps and murder.  The Jews in this area would have been transported to the Theresienstadt camp.  Everyone involved with saving the Jews risked their lives.  3 1/2* (I liked this movie)

90 min, Drama directed by Ken Cameron with Sam Waterston, Mia Farrow, Justin Whalin, Patrick Malahide, Benedick Blythe, Barry McGovern, Daisy Beaumont, Nicola Mycroft, Alan Devine, Mario Rosenstock, Halinla Froudist, Andrew Scott, Eva Birthistle.

Note:  Imdb 7.0 out of 10, Amazon 4.6* out of 5* with 166 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Ireland.

The Circle 2017

     This film is based on a novel by Dave Eggers published in 2014.  Eamon Bailey is the founder of the world’s largest and most powerful tech and social media company.  Mae is very excited to start at an entry level working for this company.  She is called a 'guppy' as a new employee.  Eamon encourages her to participate in a groundbreaking experiment by the company.  It will push the boundaries of privacy, ethics and personal freedoms.  

      I didn't like anything about this movie and I don't think I have ever started a review with this sentence??  This is very much like Big Brother tech is every part of your life and personal business without you having a yes or no say about it.  They are watching everything you are doing in your life and that includes brushing your teeth to start a day!!  (1 1/2* I really didn't like this movie)  

110 min, Drama directed by James Ponsoldt with Emma Watson, Tom Hanks, John Boyega, Ellar Coltrane, Glenne Headly, Bill Paxton, Karen Gillan, Beck, Nate Corddry, Mamoudou Athie, Roger Joseph Manning Jr.

Note: The novel has 3.5* out of 5* with 3573 reviews on Amazon, Amazon 3.3* out of 5* with 99 reviews, Amazon Video 2.7* out of 5* with 335 reviews, Imdb 5.3 out of 10, Roger Ebert 1 1/2*, Metacritic 43 out of 100 with 32 critics 5 out of 10 with 130 reviews, The Guardian 2* out of 5* review by Benjamin Lee.

Special Note:  Filmed in Pasadena, Manhattan Beach, Angeles National Forest, El Camino Village, Los Angeles, Altadena, Santa Clarita, Piru, Topanga, Glendora, Filmore, California; Scotland, UK.  Bill Paxton passed away before the film’s release.  Glenne Headley died the same year after the release.  The Circle’s headquarters looks similar to Apple’s new campus Apple Park.  The logo of The Circle was created first but it is similar to the Uber redesign.  Alicia Vikander was originally offered the role of Mae but she chose to work on Jason Bourne of 2016.  In the UK, this film went straight to Netflix without being shown in a theater.

The Very Thought of You 1944

     Army Sgt. David Stewart and Sgt. 'Fixit' Gilman have a three-day pass in Pasadena, California.  They have been out of the country for a year and a half.  The time setting is during WWII and they will be shipped out again soon after their pass expires.  David meets Janet Wheeler and they remember seeing each other at the soda shop where Janet worked.  She remembers his order but now she works in a parachute factory.  Janet’s friend Cora meets David’s friend Fixit and the two couples spend the three days together in Pasadena.  Cora also works in the parachute factory with Janet.

     Janet has been living with her parents, her brother and her two sisters.  Janet invites David to her home for a Thanksgiving dinner since he has no relatives in Pasadena.  The family treats David horribly and Janet is very angry.  Everyone except her youngest sister disapproves of Janet seeing David.  Her sister Molly is married to Fred, a sailor in the US Navy and she is very bitter about it.  She hasn’t seen or heard from Fred in two years.  Molly advises Janet to break off her new relationship right away or she will regret it later like Molly does now.  3 ½* (I liked this movie)

99 min, Romance directed by Delmer Daves with Dennis Morgan Eleanor Parker, Dane Clark, Faye Emerson, Beulah Bondi, Henry Travers, William Prince, Andrea King, John Alvin, Marianne O’Brien, Georgia Lee Settle, Richard Erdman, Francis Pierlot.

Note:  Imdb 7.1 out of 10, 100% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, TCM Leonard Maltin 2.5* out of 4* user rating 4.11* out of 5*.

Special Note:  Filmed in Burbank, Mount Wilson, Pasadena and Los Angeles, California.  Ida Lupino was set to play Janet but she was replaced due to illness.  David and Fixit wear the shoulder patch of the US Army’s 7^th Infantry Division.  They saw action on the Aleutian Island of Attu.  There was also fighting on Kiska Island in Alaska before moving to Hawaii for rest and refit.  They returned to the Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands, the Philippines and Okinawa.  Originally in the film, Janet is notified about David being injured by reading a casualty list in the newspaper.  The War Department objected to this scene and all prints were recalled to reflect that she was sent a telegram.  There is a song with the same title recorded in 1934 by Ray Noble and His Orchestra with Al Bowlly on vocals.  There is another movie with the same title from 1999. 

The Lovers 2017

     Mary and Michael are both unhappy in their marriage.  Mary is seeing Robert and Michael is seeing Lucy.  They both have decided to end their marriage after their son Joel and his girlfriend Erin end their visit.  Joel has warned Erin that his parents don’t even like each other?  Mary and Michael haven’t talked to each other about their plans but they are both glad the time to leave will be soon.  Suddenly, they start to see each other in a different way as the time nears.  Even Joel is surprised to see that they seem to be getting along?

     There are a lot of repetitive scenes in this film and it’s very slow paced.  Mary and Michael don’t seem to have chemistry but they don’t have chemistry with Robert and Lucy either?  Everything is bland in this film as well.  Their home, their neighborhood, their jobs and they treat each other with disregard.  They openly lie to each other but don’t even bother to think up a believable lie.  That would be too much work!!  The people they have chosen to leave their marriage for don’t seem to be any better than what they have?  In fact, they may be more whining, difficult and demanding?  2* (I didn't like this movie)

97 min, Drama directed by Azazel Jacobs with Debra Winger, Tracy Letts, Aidan Gillen, Melora Walters, Tyler Ross, Jessica Sula, Lesley Fera, Barry Eisen, Wayne Alon Scott, Vanessa Christelle, Jeff Cairns, Janine Mitchell.

Note:  Imdb 6.1 out of 10, 84% critic 42% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 3 ½*, Amazon 3.4* out of 5* with 13 reviews, Metacritic 76 out of 100 with 31 critics 5.9 out of 10 with 17 reviews, The Guardian 4* out of 5* review by Benjamin Lee, Rolling Stone 3.5* out of 4*.

Special Note:  Filmed in Santa Clarita, California.  In the film the characters played by Winger and Letts are the same age but Winger is actually ten years older than Letts.  There is another film with the same title from 1958.  

Portrait of Jennie 1948

     This film is based on a novel by Robert Nathan published in 1940.  The setting of the film is New York in 1934 during the depression.  Eben Adams is an artist and he’s having trouble paying his rent.  He goes to a gallery, he sells a painting and that will take care of the rent for a while.  Soon after the sale, he meets Jennie Appleton.  She gives him inspiration and he paints a portrait of her.  He sells the portrait right away.  He doesn’t see Jennie regularly and she seems to be older every time he sees her again?

     Time is separated into different parts in this imaginative film.  It expounds on the idea of love found and lost but with a promise that it will be found again but forever the second time.  Jennie could be a dream, a memory or a lovely ghost from the past?  It’s also possible she has stepped from another world into this present world?  I found this very interesting and enjoyable.  3 ½* (I liked this movie)   

   

86 min, Drama directed by William Dieterie with Jennifer Jones, Joseph Cotton, Ethel Barrymore, Lillian Gish, Cecil Kellaway, David Wayne, Albert Sharpe, Henry Hull, Florence Bates, Felix Bressart, Clem Bevans, Maude Simmons.

Note:  Imdb 7.7 out of 10, 91% critic 86% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Amazon 4.4* out of 5* with 161 reviews, TCM Leonard Maltin 3* out of 4*, user rating & review average 4.51 out of 5, Slant Magazine 4* out of 4*.

Special Note:  Filmed in The Cloisters Museum and Central Park, Manhattan, New York City; Graves Light, Boston, Massachusetts.  Originally, David O. Selznick thought about filming this movie over a period of several years with a young actress in the role of Jennie.  He abandoned the idea as too risky and difficult to film.  Portrait artist Robert Brackman was the painter of the portrait of Jennie.  The painting was prized by Selznick and hung in his home from 1946 until his death in 1965.  This film flopped at the box office and it was released again with the title Tidal Wave in 1950.  It was marketed to a different audience but this release also flopped.  The film is in black and white except the portrait is in Technicolor and the scenes at Graves Light in Massachusetts are filmed in green.  Screen Director’s Playhouse broadcast a 30-minute radio adaptation of the movie on March 10, 1950.  Jennifer Jones was married to Robert Walker, they divorced and she married David O. Selznick, the producer of this film.

The Zookeepers Wife 2017

     This film is based on a true story and a non-fiction book by Diane Ackerman published in 2007.  There is talk of war in Warsaw of 1939.  The Germans have been in the city for three years and everyone wonders if things will just stay the same?  What they don't know is that Hitler is secretly preparing for his invasion of Poland.  Zoologist Jan and his wife Antonina Zabinski are the owners and keepers of the Warsaw Zoo.  German Luftwaffe’s Stukas begin to bomb Warsaw.  Many of the animals were killed during the bombings and others were shot.  Lions, tigers and other dangerous animals could not be running wild on the Warsaw streets.  Some animals remained at the zoo and others came back on their own.  Jan and Antonina begin to hide Polish Jews until safe houses are located for them.  About 300 Jews were saved from the Warsaw ghetto and transport to camps.

     A lot of the underground activity is shown in this film.  There is a room in the back of a bakery where documents are forged.  The black hair of some of the women is died platinum blond.  Bribes allow Jan to enter and exit the Ghetto as an official.  Jan picks up the food leftovers from the Ghetto and he hides children under the scraps.  The things they are doing are very risky and their lives are on the line every day.  3 ½* (I liked this movie)

127 min, Bio directed by Niki Caro with Jessica Chastain, Johan Heldenbergh, Daniel Bruhl, Timothy Radford, Efrat Dor, Iddo Goldberg, Shira Haas, Michael McElhatton, Val Maloku, Martha Issova, Daniel Ratimorsky, Frederick and Theo Preston. 

Note:  Imdb 7.0 out of 10, 61% critic 77% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 2*, Amazon 4.5* out of 5* with 457 reviews, Metacritic 57 out of 100 with 36 critics 7.3 out of 10 with 36 reviews, Pluggedin 2 ½* out of 5*, The Guardian 3* out of 5* review by Simran Hans.

Special Note:  Filmed in the Boscolo Prague Hotel, Senovanzne namesti and Prague, Czech Republic.  All the animals used in the film are real.  The current Warsaw Zoo opened on 11 March 1928 but its roots can be traced to private menageries from the seventeenth century.  The unpublished diary of Jan and Antonina Zabinski inspired author Diane Ackerman.  The first film cut was nearly 3 ½ hours long and the final film was reduced to 2 hours.

Get Out 2017

     Chris and Rose have been seeing each other for a while.  They take a weekend road trip to visit her parents.  They have an interracial relationship and Chris wonders if Rose has mentioned this?  Rose says she didn’t know how to bring it up?  Chris feels that her parents, her brother, the groundskeeper and the housekeeper are very nervous around him?  Missy Armitage is Rose’s mother and she wants to hypnotize Chris.  He’s against this but when he wakes up, he thinks she has hypnotized him without his permission?

     I was nervous when I saw that Blumhouse Productions are involved in this film.  All their films are scary films!!  There are two sides to this film.  As a viewer you are anxious about how scary this is going to get and there are times when you are not scared at all but laughing?  Everyone at Rose’s house is interested in Chris but you don’t know the reason yet?  The groundskeeper and the housekeeper seem like the strangest people you’ve seen on this planet?  They look OK but they could be zombies??  3* (This movie is OK)  

104 min, Horror directed by Jordan Peele with Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Bradley Whitford, Caleb Landry Jones, Marcus Henderson, Betty Gabriel, Lakeith Stanfield, Catherine Keener, Stephen Root, LilRel Howery, Ashley LeConte Campbell.

Note:  Imdb 7.7 out of 10, 99% critic 87% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 3*, Amazon 4.1* out of 5* with 1199 reviews, 84 out of 100 with 48 critics 7.6 out of 

10 with 708 reviews, Metacritic 84 out of 100 with 48 critics 7.6 out of 10 with 710 reviews, The Guardian 4* out of 5* review by Mark Kermode.

Special Note:  Filmed in Fairhope and Mobile, Alabama.  This movie was filmed in 28 days.  Director Jordan Peele was inspired to write this movie from Eddie Murphy: Delirious of 1983, Poltergeist of 1982 and The Amityville Horror of 1979.  The title comes from a joke about Jordan immediately leaving if he heard a ghost whisper ‘get out!!’  Eddie Murphy was originally chosen to play Chris but Peele decided he wanted a younger actor.  This film was in the box office Top 10 for the first two months of release.  Daniel Kaluuya did about five takes of a key scene for his audition and his character needed to cry.  He released a single tear at each take.  Chance the Rapper bought all the tickets from Chicago theaters so people could see the film free.  Peele earned the first $100 million for an African American writer.  There is another film with the same title from 2010.

Miss Potter 2006

      The setting of this film is 1902 in London, England, UK.  Beatrix Potter has always loved to draw, paint and tell stories.  She is a spinster and she lives with her controlling parents.  They introduced her to several very eligible bachelors.  These men met their approval for her to consider for a marriage.  Not one of these men had any drive or imagination?  Beatrix decides to offer her stories and drawings to a print house.  The brothers who own the house don’t think anything will come of this book.  They decide to turn the job over to their youngest brother so they can see him fail.  They would like him to leave the business and go back home!! 

     I had a feeling where this was going and I didn’t want to go in that direction but it does.  I knew that Beatrix had her works published and they became very popular.  Her parents think she will always remain under their roof and they will be in control.  Beatrix begins to earn a large sum of money on her own and she believes she has the right to determine how her life will proceed.  The scenes of the countryside are very beautiful.  4* (I really liked this movie)

88 min, Bio directed by Chris Noonan with Renee Zellweger, Ewan McGregor, Emily Watson, Barbara Flynn, Bill Paterson, Matyelok Gibbs, Lloyd Owen, Anton Lesser, David Bamber, Phyllida Law, Lucy Boynton, Oliver Jenkins, Justin McDonald.

Note:  Imdb 7.0 out of 10, 66% critic 68% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Amazon 4.7* out of 5* with 3263 reviews, The Guardian 1* out of 5*, Metacritic 57 out of 100 with 29 critics 7.2 out of 10 with 48 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Kingston-upon-Thames, Yew Tree Farm, Lake District, Bluebell Railway, Horsted Keynes Station Isle of Man, Whitehaven, Brentford, Hammersmith, Lincoln’s Inn Fields, Loughrigg Tarn, Loughrigg Terrace, Low Millgillhead Cottage, Osterley Park House, The Reform Club, London, England, UK; Crotamie, Stirling; Loch Lomond, Argyll and Bute, Scotland, UK.  McGregor was Zellweger’s first choice in the role as her publisher.  The cast wore original pieces of clothing and none were reproductions.  Hill Top house in the film is actually Yew Tree Farm and Beatrix owned it in the 1930’s.  Britain’s National Trust now owns the property.  In a railway scene with rain, the actors were heavily sprayed down with water for an authentic look.  The attorney Beatrix consulted about property was William Heelis and they became close friends.

The Ice House 1997

     Phoebe Maybury, Diana Goode and Anne Cattrell live together in Penny’s large manor home.  The estate is hidden away, it's peaceful and secluded.  They have a gardener and a cook/maid.  Phoebe’s husband disappeared about 10 years ago and there was a big investigation but the case was never solved.  The gardener has found a decomposed body in the ice house.  The ice house is over 50 years old and it hasn’t been used recently.  The police aren’t sure if the body is Phoebe’s husband?  The people in the local community were not very happy that nothing was solved about the husband’s disappearance.  Now they are up in arms again over the body on the property. 

      Daniel Craig is Detective Sergeant McLoughlin and he’s young at 30 years old.  There are a lot of plot leads going at once that keep you from knowing what really happened.  There is also a lot of probing of the dark sides of human nature.  The police department doesn’t seem to mind casting a wide net of blame.  The community doesn’t care who did the crime, they just want someone convicted this time around!!  Detective Chief Inspector Walsh feel the same way.  3 ½* (I liked this series)

172 min, 2 part TV mini-series with Frances Barber, Kitty Aldridge, Corin Redgrave, Penny Downie, Daniel Craig, Danny Midwinter, Dave Hill, Gerard Horan, Ann Bell, Luke Garrett, Niven Boyd, James D’Arcy, Jack Galloway, Belinda Sinclair.

Note:  Imdb 7.4 out of 10, 82% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Amazon 4.3* out of 5* with 150 reviews.

Special Note:  There are other films with the same title and also titled Ice House from 1969, 1987, 1989, 2010, 2017.

Rock Dog 2016

     Bodi is a Tibetan Mastiff dog and he is surprised to see a radio fall from a passing airplane in the sky.  His job has been to guard a peaceful village of self-shearing wool-making sheep.  They are in danger from Linnux the wolf and his pack.  Mastiff leader Khampa forbids all music from the mountain to avoid work distractions.  Bodi decides the radio is a sign to leave his home on Snow Mountain in Asia and pursue his dream to be a musician.  He heads for the city of Rock Park to locate legendary musician Angus Scattergood.  Bodi is hoping he can talk Angus into giving him music lessons on his koto/guitar. 

     This film is a Korean/Chinese co-production with American animation artists.  It’s based on a Chinese graphic novel titled Tibetan Rock Dog by Zhen Jun.  Jun is a Chinese rock musician.  I am usually not much into a lot of animated films and this one doesn’t change my mind.  2 ½* (This movie is so-so) 

90 min, Animation directed by Ash Brannon with the voices of Luke Wilson, Eddie Izzard, J.K. Simmons, Lewis Black, Kenan Thompson, Mae Whitman, Jorge Garcia, Matt Dillon, Sam Elliott, Will Finn, Ash Brannon, Liza Richardson, Julie Craig.

Note:  Imdb 5.8 out of 10, 46% critic 45% audience, Roger Ebert 2 ½*, Amazon 4.4* out of 5* with 42 reviews, pluggedin 3.5 out of 5*, 2* out of 5* The Guardian, Metacritic 48 out of 100 with 16 critics 6.4 out of 10 with 18 reviews.

The Last Kiss 2006

     This film is a remake of Gabriele Muccino’s comedy drama L’Ultimo Bacio.  Michael and Jenna have been a couple for three years.  They have started talking about getting married and having a family.  Later, Jenna tells Michael she’s pregnant and they learn from an ultrasound that they are having a girl.  Michael starts to get worried about his life all planned out and this life as a young man is over.  He meets Kim at a friend’s wedding and he starts to feel alive again.  He looks at the people around him and none of their relationships are happy or stable.  Michael’s friend Chris is thinking about leaving his wife even thought they have an infant son.  Chris feels they are not getting along at all and he doesn’t see this changing.  Even Jenna’s parents are recently separated because of their marriage problems.

      Michael has a severe case of cold feet.  If he’s not careful he will leave behind Jenna and their baby before they have even started a life together?  Jenna’s dad is a psychologist or psychiatrist and he can’t keep his own marriage together?  What is that saying to Michael?  Chris has a baby and he’s leaving because he can’t do anything right?  3 ½* (I liked this movie)    

104 min, Drama directed by Tony Goldwyn with Zach Braff, Jacinda Barrett, Rachel Bilson, Casey Affleck, Michael Weston, Eric Christian Olsen, Marley Shelton, Lauren Lee Smith, Harold Ramis, Blythe Danner, Tom Wilkinson, David Haydn-Jones.

Note:  Imdb 6.5 out of 10, 45% critic 59% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic 57 out of 100 with 27 critics 5.2 out of 10 with 63 reviews, Amazon 3.8* out of 5* with 124 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Saint-Lambert and Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Madison, Wisconsin.  Originally Rachel McAdams was cast as Jenna but she had other commitments.  This is the first film for Rachel Bilson.  This film was shipped to theaters under the code name French.  There is another film with the same title from 2002.

Secrets of the Manor House 2012

     This series is based on a book Hilary Brown.  Each episode concentrates on the history of two houses in Britain during the Edwardian age.  Maderson located in Berwickshire and Dunham located in Greater Manchester.  Aristocratic families owned them but the houses passed on during modern times need a current function.  They can be a tourist attraction or the setting for a movie or TV drama.  The impact of WWI on the British social-class system and the influence of American wealth changed the history of these manors.  Many of the officers in WWI came from the aristocrats but the military ranks were filled with the working class.  Fighting the enemy side by side changed this class system.  British landholders marrying wealthy American women brought changes as well.

     The popular long running series Downton Abbey from 2011-2016 and another earlier series Upstairs Downstairs from 1971-1977, 2010 and 2012 sparked renewed interest in the British class system, their homes and their way of life.  They are basically soap operas with a lot of gossip and many ups and downs.  The class system involved hereditary transferring of property, occupation, social status and influence.  Industrialization caused constant revision of the classes and the addition of new factors such as education as identity.  Until recently Parliament was the upper class and the House of Commons was everyone else.  The British monarch is viewed as the top of the social class structure.  WWII also changed the class system with education more available and more home ownership.  There are more service jobs, more immigration and a change in the status of women.  3 ½* (I liked this series)

55 min each episode, 5 episodes, Doc TV Series by PBS, narrated by Samuel West, directed by Susannah Ward with Elisabeth Kehoe, Geoffrey Dymond,Mary Gledhill, Julie Herbert, Matthew Hughes, Lawrence James, John Norman Ide Leslie, Tarka Leslie-King, Loraine McMurrey, Adrian Palmer, Lady Palmer, Sarah Richardson.

Note:  Imdb 8.0 out of 10, Amazon 4* out of 5* with 33 reviews, PBS

Special Note:  Also titled in Sweden as Slottens Hemligheter.

Priceless 2016

     James tragically loses his wife and he falls into depression.  He also lost custody of his daughter and James’ mother is caring for her.  He agrees to drive a small box truck across country.  He doesn’t care what he’s picking up, just that it’s not drugs.  He’s making this a quick run and he falls asleep at the wheel.  The truck runs off the road but there is just minor damage.  He hears crying when he goes to the back of the truck.  He uses a rock to remove the lock and he discovers two young sisters from Mexico are in the truck.  James knows he’s been conned into human trafficking.  He takes them to a rest stop to get cleaned up, buys them each dresses and they get burgers.  He asks them to ride in the cab with him.  They are being sent to New Mexico in payment for their father’s debt.

     Everything changes about this trip for James when finds Antonia and Maria.  He doesn’t know where they are going but he soon learns when the girls are picked up.  There is a large crime ring operating in this city and there are dirty cops in on the action.  James meets Dale and they start working together to get Antonia and Maria back.  3 ½* (I liked this movie)

97 min, Crime directed by Ben Smallbone with Joel Smallbone, Bianca A. Santos, David Koechner, Jim Parrack, Amber Midthunder, Travis Hammer, Luce Rains, Sarah Minnich, Sierra Rose Smith, Ines France Ware, Cru Ennis, Jodi Lynn Thomas.

Note:  Imdb 6.0 out of 10, 78% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 1 ½*, Amazon 4.6* out of 5* with 315 reviews, www.pluggedin.com 4* out of 5*, Metacritic 41 out of 100 with 4 critics.

Special Note:  Filmed in Albuquerque, New Mexico.  Ben and Joel Smallbone are brothers and they are from Australia.  Ben has previously filmed documentaries, ads, music videos and shorts.  Another brother Luke and their father David are producers.  Joel Smallbone is the co-lead singer of the band For King & Country.  The song Priceless by King & Country was the inspiration for the Priceless movement including a book and this film.  This movie was filmed in 17 days. 

Swimming Pool 2003

     John Bosload is a London publisher and he has been working with British mystery writer Sarah Morton.  John suggests that Sarah spend some time at his villa in France.  She’s feeling burned out and tired of London plus she needs inspiration.  Sarah travels to the South of France and she really begins to write again.  John’s daughter shows up at the villa and they are like wine and water at first but then they start to get along. 

     There are some twists in this film.  Even at the end, you are not sure what was real in the scenes and what was from the new novel?  The scenery is beautiful in this part of France.    

102 min, Crime directed by Francois Ozon with Charlotte Rampling, Charles Dance, Ludivine Sagnier, Jean-Marie Lamour, Marc Fayolle, Mireille Mosse, Michel Fau, Jean-Claude Lecas, Emile Gavois-Kahn, Lauren Farrow, Sebastian Harcombe, Frances Cuka, Keith Yeates.

Note:  Imdb 6.8 out of 10, 84% critic 67% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 3*, Amazon 3.9* out of 5* with 379 reviews, slantmagazine 2.5* out of 4*, BBC 4* out of 5* reviewer's rating and 4* out of 5* user rating, Metacritic 70 out of 100 with 37 critics 6.1 out of 10 with 21 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Luberon, Vaucluse, France and London, England, UK.  Charlotte Rampling had a sister named Sarah and she died at a young age.  There are some mistakes when Sarah is typing her novel.  She presses keys at random and sometimes several at once?  She also never presses the space bar while typing?  It must be that Charlotte doesn’t know how to type or she was not really trying to type?  There is another film with the same name from 1969.

The Great Gilly Hopkins

     This film is based on an award winning young adult novel by Katherine Paterson.  Katherine also wrote Bridge to Terabithia.  Gilly Hopkins is 12 years old and she’s moving to another foster home.  Right away, she wants to escape her new foster mother Maime Trotter by gathering enough money for a trip to San Francisco.  She saw her mother’s address in her caseworker’s file and she thinks she can go live with her.  Gilly also writes a letter about how terrible it is to live with Maime Trotter and another foster child, called W.E.  Gilly tries to belittle her math teacher Ms. Harris.  It’s a weak attempt and Ms. Harris has had a lot worse treatment in her years as a teacher.  Ms. Harris says she has not had such a laugh from a note in a long time!!

     Gilly is very tough to get along with for everyone at the foster home and everyone at school.  She has a very large chip on her shoulder and she thinks living with her mother would be a dream come true?  This is a good family movie.  3* (This movie is OK)    

99 min, Drama directed by Stephen Herek with Sophie Nelisse, Kathy Bates, Glenn Close, Octavia Spencer, Julia Stiles, Bill Cobbs, Billy Magnussen, Zachary Hernandez, Clare Foley, Sammy Pignalosa, Toby Turner, Richard Topol, Cara Cooper.

Note:  Imdb 6.5 out of 10, 65% critic 56% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 2 ½*, Amazon 4.7* out of 5* with 51 reviews, Metacritic 47 out of 100 with 9 critics 5.3 out of 10 with 6 reviews, Slant Magazine .5* out of 4*.

Special Note:  Filmed in New York City.  Katherine Paterson has a cameo as the shop clerk in the bus station scene.  Actress Sophie Nelisse in the role of Gilly is from Canada.

In the Line of Fire 1993

     Frank Horrigan is a secret service agent and he was on duty when President Kennedy was killed in Dallas.  Mitch Leary starts to call Frank and he says he’s going to kill the current president.  Mitch is a former CIA assassin and he’s spent a lot of time studying Frank.  Mitch is angry because he was removed from the CIA and they are trying to have him killed.  Frank feels a lot of guilt that he couldn’t save Kennedy and he doesn’t want another death he might have stopped. 

     The other agents know Frank is getting these calls from Mitch but they don’t want to take the threats seriously.  They think Frank is going over the edge in checking and rechecking everything.  Frank is sure that Mitch is going to try to kill the president.  Some of the clothing and hairstyles, especially on the women are dated.  Malkovich has a gift for playing the bad guy!!  He knows how to be creepy and pull their strings to get people mad.  He could make you very uncomfortable if he showed up at your front door!!  3 ½* (I liked this movie)

 

128 min, Action directed by Wolfgang Petersen with Clint Eastwood, John Malkovich, Rene Russo, Dylan McDermott, Gary Cole, Fred Dalton Thompson, John Mahoney, Gregory Alan Williams, Jim Curley, Sally Hughes, Clyde Kusatsu, Steve Hytner.

Note:  Imdb 7.2 out of 10, 95% critic 79% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 3 ½*, Amazon 4.5* out of 5* with 1632 reviews, Metacritic 74 out of 100 with 16 critics 8.8 out of 10 with 76 reviews.

Special Note:  Clint Eastwood was 62 years old at the time of filming and he hung six stories above the ground on a ledge with a safety belt.  Malkovich lived in almost total seclusion for a month prior to filming.  He wanted to connect with Mitch’s sense of isolation.  This is the first time the Secret Service cooperated on the making of a film.  The character Frank Horrigan was inspired by Secret Service Agent Clint Hill.  He was with JFK in Dallas and he felt responsible for the President’s death.  The scenes with digital effects showing a younger Eastwood’s face in real-life footage of the JFK, Bush and Clinton campaign rallies cost 4 million dollars.  Eastwood and McDermott use Sig Sauer 9mm pistols, the standard weapon of the Secret Service.  In the opening scenes, Eastwood uses a Smith Wesson .44 Magnum revolver like his character Inspector Harry Callaghan in Dirty Harry of 1971.  There is another film with the same title from 1989.  Wolfgang Petersen also directed Das Boot about German submarines of 1981.

Manhattan Night 2016

     This film is based on a novel by Colin Harrison titled Manhattan Nocturne.  Porter Wren is a New York City tabloid writer.  He’s always looking for a scoop and a scandal.  He's married to Lisa Wren, she is a surgeon and they have two children, a son and a daughter.  Caroline Crowley’s husband Simon died and she wants Porter to find out more information about the unsolved murder.  The case becomes more and more complex until it threatens Porter’s job, his marriage and his life.

     Adrien Brody has cornered the market on the hangdog look and manner.  He will really go out on a limb to get a story and he’s willing to sacrifice.  He’s afraid he won’t have a job every day so he’s very hungry for any story.  It’s a good thing that a lot of this film happens in the dark because that’s where it really belongs.  2 ½* (This movie is so-so)

113 min, Crime directed by Brian DeCubellis with Adrien Brody, Yvonne Strahovski, Campbell Scott, Jennifer Beals, Raul Aranas, Thomas Bair, Will Beinbrink, Steven Berkoff, Kevin Breznahan, Jahni Brown, Stan Carp.

Note:  Imdb 6.2 out of 10, 33% critic 54% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 2*, Amazon 3.5* out of 5* with 123 reviews, Metacritic 44 out of 100 with 14 critics 4.6 out of 10 with 14 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in New York City. Campbell Scott is the son of actors George C. Scott and Colleen Dewhurst.

Top of the Lake: China Girl 2017

     This is the second season of this TV series.  The first season was shown in 2013.  Detective Robin Griffin has been assigned to a police station in Australia.  There were a lot of complications with the case she previously worked in New Zealand.  She didn’t have counseling for some of the things that happened and she feels very fragile about her return.  Some of the new recruits openly mock her because of the other case.  Her new assignment involves a suitcase washing up on the New Zealand beach.  The suitcase as been in the water for a while and there is hair and blood coming from the light blue case.  There are additional story lines running along with this main story.  Robin and Miranda are assigned to work together probably because no one likes either of them.  They also have no friends.  Robin contacts the daughter she gave up for adoption when she was two days old.  Mary, her daughter is now 17 and Robin was 16 at the time of her birth.

     There is a LOT going on in this film and it’s interesting to see the beautiful scenery of Sydney, Australia.  Elizabeth Moss is a very good actress and she won a recent Emmy for The Handmaids Tale.  Nicole Kidman has an interesting role as the adoptive mother of Robin’s daughter.  She has different shades of gray for her curly hair and she has either freckles or some kind of spots on her face.  Her character is Julia Edmonds, she’s estranged from her husband and daughter because of her affair with another woman.  Mary hates her adoptive mother Julia.  There were some holes in the screenplay about some of the characters?  I don’t know if they will be further explored in another season?  Some information was continued in this series from the first series.  4* (I really liked this series)

TV Drama, 56 min each Chapter, 6 Chapters, directed by Jane Campion with Elisabeth Moss, Kathleen Haynes, Nicole Kidman, Ling Cooper Tank, Kim Gyngell, David Dencik, Angjee Douangphoumy, Michelle Ny, Linda Ngo, Merlynn Tong, Clayton Jacobson, Hoa Xuande. 

Note:  Imbd 7.4 out of 10, 70% critic 55% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Amazon Video 3.1* out of 5* with 36 reviews, Slant Magazine 1.5* out of 5*.

Special Note:  Filmed in Sydney, Australia.  This series screened in Cannes with one intermission and one lunch break.  This is the first time in the history of the festival a series of this length was screened in one session.  It was also released immediately after on BBC iPlayer.  Both seasons have Jane Campion as the director but the first season was co-directed by Garth Davis.  This new season is co-directed by Ariel Kleiman because of scheduling conflicts.  Nicole Kidman was not in the cast of the first season.  The titles for the chapters are China Girl, The Loved One, Surrogate, Birthday, Who’s Your Daddy, The Battle of the Mothers.

The Russia House 1990

     This film is based on a novel by John Le Carre.  During a Russian book conference, three notebooks supposedly containing Russian military secrets are given to a British publisher.  The British secret service is keen to learn if these notebooks are real.  They ask Barley Blair to investigate the notebooks.  Blair has a lot of experience with Russia and the Russian people.  He doesn’t respond well to authority and he may be in over his head with this project. 

      I just couldn’t see Michelle Pfeiffer in her role as a Russian??  There isn’t a LOT going on in this film despite the subject?  A spy continually sits in a room for hours waiting for something to happen with people not doing very much?  Maybe grass growing and paint drying in Russia takes a lot longer because of the cold temperatures.  Maybe more patience is required to watch??  I read a very interesting novel while viewing and I don’t think I missed anything??  2* (I didn’t like this movie)

123 min, Drama directed by Fred Schepisi with Sean Connery, Michelle Pfeiffer, Roy Scheider, James Fox, John Mahoney, Michael Kitchen, J.T. Walsh, Ken Russell, David Threlfall, Klaus Maria Brandauer, Mac McDonald.

Note:  Imdb 6.1 out of 10, 75% critic 50% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 2*, Empire Online 2* out of 5* review by Angie Errigo, Amazon 4.1* out of 5* with 153 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Lisbon, Portugal, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; Moscow, St. Petersburg and Sergiyev Posad, Russia; London, England, UK.  This film is the first major production from the West to be filmed in the Soviet Union with full permission from the Russian Government.  The meaning of the title The Russia House is a reference to the nickname given to the section of the British Secret Service involved with investigating the Soviet Union.