Day Zero 2007

     Three good friends who grew up together, Feller, Rifkin, Dixon all receive military draft notices in the mail.  They live in New York and they are to report for duty in 30 days.  Each man is thrown into a tailspin over this letter.  Feller has written a novel and he writes out a 10-item bucket list to get done before he goes in case he dies.  Rifkin is really set on not going, he’s worked hard to make partner in his job as an attorney, his wife battled cancer but she’s reached the five year mark and he doesn’t want to die.  Dixon drives a cab and he likes his job.  He meets Patricia and they start to date but he doesn’t tell her until the last minute about the draft notice.  He has a daughter.

     There isn’t enough development of the characters.  I can’t get a feeling that I care enough about them to worry about them going to war?  Each man is totally different from the other even though they’ve been friends for a long time.  They are searching for a reason to go to war when the country is protesting our involvement.  2 ½* (This movie is just so-so)

92 min, Drama directed by Bryan Gunnar Cole with Elijah Wood, Chris Klein, Jon Bernthal, Ginnfer Goodwin, Elisabeth Moss, Ally Sheedy, Sofia Vassilieva, John Rothman, Daniel Oreskes.

Note:  Imdb 6.0 out of 10, 24% critic 45% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Amazon 4.0* out of 5* with 22 reviews.

The Immigrant 2013

     This film is set in New York of 1921.  Ewa Cybulska and her sister Magda arrive for a new life in New York from their home country of Poland.  At Ellis Island, the doctors tell Ewa that they must quarantine her sister because of tuberculosis.  The immigration authorities also tell Ewa that the address she has for her aunt and uncle is fictitious.  This address doesn’t exist and the relatives were not there to meet the sisters.  Ewa is placed in a line of people to be deported back to their home country.  Bruno visits her in the line, he offers to help her, give her a place to stay and a job to earn money.  What Ewa doesn’t know is that this is not a life she would choose for herself if she had any choices.  She also later finds out the address for her aunt and uncle.

     There were many times I wanted to punch Bruno through my screen!!  He’s heartless, cruel and he’s supposedly in love with Ewa.  He had mental problems and the way he treats Ewa is no way to treat anyone you care about.  Ewa thinks she has found someone else when she meets Bruno’s cousin Orlando.  3 1/2* (I liked this movie)

120 min, Drama directed by James Gray with Marion Cotillard, Joaquin Phoenix, Jeremy Renner, Dagmara Dominczyk, Jikcy Schnee, Elena Solovey, Maja Wampuszyc, Ilia Volok, Angela Sarafyan.

Note:  Imdb 6.6 out of 10, 88% critic 60% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 3*, Amazon 3.4* out of 5* with 40 reviews.

Special Note:  In 1917, Charlie Chaplin made a movie also titled The Immigrant.  In this film, Chaplin's Little Tramp persona gives a secretive kick to the rear end of an immigration official.  The name Ewa is pronounced like it was spelled Ava.  The director James Gray has said this film is based on the stories he heard from his grandparents.  The working titles for this film were Low Life and The Nightingale.

The Lightkeepers 2009

     The setting of this film is Cape Cod of 1912.  It is based on an old Cape Cod story by Joseph C. Lincoln in the book titled, The Women Haters with an original copywrite date of 1904.  Seth Atkins is the keeper of the lighthouse and he does not like women.  He finds John Brown on the beach and brings him up to the lighthouse.  They agree that John will take over as the lighthouse assistant replacing the former one who has recently left.  Seth impresses upon John the need to avoid all women.  What they do not know is that two women have moved into a nearby cottage for the summer.  Ruth and her companion Mrs. Bascom. 

     There are a lot of problems with this film.  It’s not very interesting, the characters are not developed enough for you to care anything about them.  The actors aren’t given very much to work with and they can’t bring any life to the material.  2 ½* (This movie is so-so)

97 min, Comedy directed by Daniel Adams with Mamie Gummer, Tom Wisdom, Richard Dreyfuss, Bruce Dern, Blythe Danner, Julie Harris, Stephen Russell.

Note:  Imdb 5.3 out of 10, 38% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Amazon 3.8* out of 5* with 204 reviews.

Special Note:  This movie was filmed in Barnstable, Massachusetts. 

Deep Impact 1998

     Secretary Alan Rittenhouse has suddenly quit his government position and he says it is because his wife is ill.  MSNBC journalist Jenny Lerner learns he is getting ready to leave on his yacht and it looks like he will be gone for a long time?  The real story is that a meteor was discovered a year before by a high school student and an astronomer.  The meteor is the size of Mt. Everest and it is on a collision course with Earth.  The acronym for this type of occurrence is ELE, Extinction Level Event.  The US government is sending a joint US-Russian team of astronauts into space to intercept the meteor, plant explosive devices and attempt to blast it into pieces.  Unfortunately, the plan doesn’t work and the meteor splits into two sections instead.  There is now one smaller piece and one large piece.  The smaller piece is due to hit the Atlantic with enough impact to send a 350 foot tidal wave 650 miles inland.  The larger part will hit Canada and the dust clouds will cause a “nuclear winter.”  All governments across the Earth are working together to select a set number of people to be transported to underground safe zones for two years.  This will save mankind since the plants and animals will quickly disappear after the impact of the meteor on the Earth’s surface. 

     Certain groups of people are featured and their lives are told more broadly to draw you into this drama.  We have to care about the people in this film in order to appreciate the catastrophe.  If we don’t care, everything becomes just illustrations of what this type of disaster would bring.  3* (This movie is OK)

120 min, Action directed by Mimi Leder with Robert Duvall, Tea Leoni, Elijah Wood, Vanessa Redgrave, Morgan Freeman, Maximilian Schell, James Cromwell, Ron Eldard, Jon Favreau, Laura Innes, Leelee Sobieski.

Note:  Imdb 6.1 out of 10, 48% critic 43% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 2*.

Special Note:  A lottery is used to select the people to be saved.  In the US 800,000 people will be selected and 200,000 previously chosen people.  Also, genetically viable populations of significant animals and the seeds of every species of plant will be saved.  No names of people over the age of 50 will be included in the lottery.

The Lost Valentine 2011

     This film is based on a novel by James Michael Pratt.  Caroline Thomas visits Union Station on every Valentine’s Day to honor the memory of her husband.  In 1944, she said goodbye at the Station to Neil, he was Navy pilot leaving for WWII.  The day was Valentine’s Day when he left and also their first anniversary.  Caroline had their son while he was away.  Neil was declared missing in action has not been found for 65 years.  Susan Allison works at a local television station as a human-interest reporter.  Her boss gives her the assignment to film the story of Caroline and Neil.  Everything is going well until Caroline suffers a minor heart attack.  Susan’s boss wants to cancel the story because of her health and it’s not finished.  Susan and Lucas, the grandson of Caroline, think the filming has meant a lot to her and they would like to continue the interviews.

     This is good and interesting and you get very involved with the characters.  Who can resist Betty White?  This film is also a tribute to all the soldiers who have fought for America.  4* (I really liked this movie)

100 min, TV Movie, Drama directed by Darnell Martin with Jennifer Love Hewitt, Betty White, Sean Faris, Billy Magnussen, Meghann Fahy, Nadia Dajani, Will Chase, Mike Pniewski, Helmar Augustus Cooper.

Note:  Imdb 7.5 out of 10, 96% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Amazon 4.9* out of 5* with 177 reviews.

Special Note:  This movie was filmed in Georgia.  Betty White was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance for a Female Actor.  She was born January 17, 1922 and she is now 93 years old!!  WOW!!

Hello I Must Be Going 2012

     Amy is in her 30’s, she was married to a lawyer and her father is a lawyer.  She was recently blind-sided when her husband asked her for a divorce.  She didn’t have any  choice but to move to the Connecticut home of her parents.  Amy is having a difficult time and she stays in the same t-shirt for several days or longer.  Her parents are glad for her to be back but not under these circumstances.  Amy meets 19 year-old David, he is an actor and she’s surprised he is interested in “an old lady” like her?  Her parents are worried Amy may sabotage a big business deal between her father and David’s father.

      Living with her parents is not where Amy saw her life going?  She doesn’t know what to do with herself?  She thought she had it all and now she has nothing?  She doesn’t want to live with her parents but she doesn’t have money and she doesn’t have a career.  David is the only person seeing her and not the nothing she is doing right now.  3 ½* (I liked this movie)

95 min, Comedy directed by Todd Louiso with Melanie Lynskey, Christopher Abbott, Blythe Danner, John Rubinstein, Sara Chase, Daniel Eric Gold, Tori Feinstein, Dave T. Koenig.

Note:  Imdb 6.2 out of 10, 74% critic 54% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 3*.

Special Note:  This film the selection for the opening night of the Sundance Film Festival of 2012.

Miss Julie 2014

     This film is based on a play by August Strindberg.  It takes place over one Midsummer Night’s Eve at a country estate in Fermanagh, Ireland in 1888.  Miss Julie is an unsettled daughter of a count of the Anglo-Iris aristocracy and she has taken a liking to Jean, her father’s valet.  There are problems with this infatuation.  She is a noblewoman, he is a servant and he is engaged to Kathleen, the kitchen maid of the household.

     Rermanagh, Ireland is in Northern Ireland near the shores of Upper Lough Erne.  There are only three actors in this film and I thought it was based on a play.  I usually don't care for films based on plays and everything about it says from a play.  Jean has traveled the world with his Master but Miss Julie doesn’t have these advantages.  She has wealth and social status instead.  I could not get interested and it seemed a waste of my time?  2* (I didn’t like this movie)

129 min, Drama directed by Liv Ullmann with Jessica Chastain, Colin Farrell, Samantha Morton, Nora McMeanamy.

Note:  Imdb 5.8 out of 10, 48% critic 29% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 3*. 

Special Note:This film was made in 2009 with Marco Bonini and Martina Codecasa, Imdb 3.9.  Filmed in 1999 with Saffron Burrows and Peter Mullan, Imdb 6.4.  TV movie 1991 with Sean Galuszka and Eleanor Comegys.  TV movie 1986 with Sandra Pinsloo and John Kani, Imdb 5.2.  TV movie in 1972 with Helen Mirren and Donal McCann, Imdb 7.2.  1951 with Anita Bjork and Ulf Palme, Imdb 7.4.