Category Archives: Drama

1980's, Biography, Drama, Movie Reviews, Movies, Music

REVIEW: “STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON” (2015) Universal Pictures

08/12/2015 Peggy Marie 7 Comments

Art comes in many forms. A Masterpiece for instance is usually a word used in the art world as a painting or portrait that is brilliantly done and is usually invoked by inner thoughts and feelings of so many emotions. That could sum up the feeling of this story and what a story it is. This film has everything you see invoked in a masterpiece painting. Love, war, death, money, drugs, power, sadness, happiness and most of all, music. It’s a story about art in the truest sense of the word. These 5 young men –
Andre ‘Dr Dre’ Young,
Eric ‘Eazy-E’ Wright,
O’Shea ‘Ice Cube’ Jackson,
Lorenzo ‘MC Ren’ Patterson, &
Antoine ‘DJ YELLA’ Carraby
changed the world with what they did and this more or less, is their story.

Director F. Gary Gray takes us through the years from the group’s origin in 1986 to Dr. Dre’s founding of Aftermath Records in 1996 and while it’s the N.W.A. story..it’s mostly a three-man show focusing on Dre, Cube & most especially Eazy-E. It does justice in recreating a Compton from back in the day so perfectly and dare I say it, beautifully, as if the time & place and what the street life of the city truly was like, came straight out of a time machine. This is a big plus throughout the film.

Opening with a drug deal gone bad for Eric ‘Eazy-E’ might seem somewhat cliched way to enter the story but is actually quite fitting especially since Eazy is the truly the main focus of the first half of film. He was the money, albeit it was from those deals, that enabled them to get studio time to record “Boyz in the Hood” and it was that song that attracted and brought manager ‘Jerry Heller’ (Paul Giamatti) to them. Heller knocks on the doors and pounds the pavement to connects them to their 1st label, Priority Records and we all get a laugh when we find out from that the only group ‘Bryan Turner’ (Tate Ellington) and the company had ever recorded before signing N.W.A was the California Raisins. Yep..you have dig real deep and go way back to remember that one!! But cash those checks from that Turner did, enough to land the company N.W.A. As we watch the group go from playing skating rinks to huge massive arenas across the nation. Meanwhile, Jerry also manages to finagle himself into part of starting up Eazy-E’s Ruthless Records where we see everyone but E get underpaid & overlooked.

This leads to acrimony between the guys and while on tour Ice Cube, reminding everyone that he is the one who has written most of the music, departs the group. But before he leaves though we do get the anthem that penned the groups title as ‘the world’s most dangerous group‘ mainly because they scared the bejesus out of middle America with their anthem “F**K the Police” which comes straight from Cube after we witness multiple scenes of humiliation and harassment of not only him, but the group, their friends, their neighbors for just basically being.

The movie clearly focuses on the big three of the group, ‘Dr. Dre’ (Corey Hawkins) and ‘Ice Cube’ (O’Shea Jackson Jr.) with ‘Eazy-E’ (Jason Mitchell) taking the lead, with ‘DJ Yella’ (Neil Brown Jr.) & ‘MC Ren’ (Aldis Hodge) getting only minor attention. They easily brush right over their misogynistic lyrics as women here are barely given the time of day and only the wives or girlfriends of the moment get a few lines at best. Though as with most bio-pics, while we might not be getting the complete story here – it’s still a very good story.

We see bits of the infamous East Coast/West Coast rivalry that started up. And once Cube is gone we get right in the middle of his lyrical riffs with the remaining members of the group badmouthing each other back n forth through their music giving us surely what is only a glimpse into this and then with Dre also going his own way with the ever and still unscrupulous ‘Suge Knight’ (R. Marcos Taylor) – showing the forming of and his subsequent abandonment of Death Row Records.

We catch beginning snippets of ‘Tupac Shakur‘ (Marcc Rose), ‘Snoop Dogg’ (Keith Stanfield) (or as his character notes – that’s Snoop D. O. double G.), ‘Jimmy Iovine’ (Mark Sherman) & the beginnings of Interscope Records. Along with this, we get clever allusions to what is to come – Everything from Cube’s films ‘Boyz N The Hood’, ‘Friday’ and it’s sequels, to Dre when walking out on Knight, almost cheesily referencing Aftermath. The film closes with updates on the band members careers post-1996 with various interview clips in large focusing on Dre and Cube’s successes, Kendrick Lamar, Eminem, and 50 Cent, among others, paying homage to Dre showing the fruition of what both his and Cube’s visions came to be. Also, the sad and untimely passing of Eazy-E from AIDS. Noticeably absent are updates on DJ Yella and MC Ren.

For all it’s small flaws here and there, this is still a hellava story to be told. N.W.A helped to change the musical culture of the time because they actually told the world what was happening in their own backyard through their music. And in doing so they succeeded in making themselves one of the most powerful groups of the time.
Oscar buzz? Probably not. But fan favorite (and one of mine) – definitely.
RIP Eazy-E.

Grade: B+
@pegsatthemovies

Screening: Wednesday, August 5, 2015 – Courtesy of Universal Pictures

Nationwide release: Friday, August 14, 2015

Comedy, Drama, Foreign Film, Movie Reviews, Movies

REVIEW: “SAMBA” (2015) Q & A w/ Omar Sy – Broad Green Pictures

07/27/2015 Peggy Marie Leave a comment

As “Samba” – a Senegalese immigrant who has been illegally living in France for 10 years, is the wonderful French actor Omar Sy. For those of you unfamiliar with him, Sy had gotten his start as part of the French comedy duo of Omar & Fred and went on to films with his most prominent being “The Untouchables” for which he won the César Award – touted as the French Oscar – for Best Actor in 2011. In “Samba” he is on form here though possibly a bit more subdued and subtle, a likable guy who just wants to stay in the country (France) as he’s been employed and living with his “L’oncle (Uncle) Lamouna” (Youngar Fall) all that time.

He strikes up a friendship with “Alice” (Charlotte Gainsbourg) a shy charity worker who is more or less volunteering at the immigration center and has some problems of her own which are quite hilariously explained during the film. She tries to help Samba with all his legal paperwork but he is still forced to adopt different names and work in different jobs under the radar of the authorities.

This film is by all means not done as a documentary or political statement. The picture it paints of the French immigration system isn’t too bleak or depressing with some of the other co-workers there offering some of the best comedic outtakes of the film. The characters all have an agreeable warmth to them and as we watch the story patiently play out, you can’t help but feel more charmed by their dilemmas rather than disturbed. Gainsbourg is lovely as the depressed executive who slowly opens up to Samba’s easygoing nature, while Sy invests the character with just the right amount of persuasive nonchalance. Both performers are amusingly supported by Izia Higelin as “Manu” Alice’s colleague and Tahar Rahim as “Wilson aka Walid” Samba’s co-worker and our favourite Arab/Brazilian – who steals a high-rise window-washing, Coca-Cola strip off scene like no other!!!

With Sy being reunited here with the team of Oliver Nakache and Eric Toledano from the 2011’s highly acclaimed The Untouchables who make an unappealing subject engaging and worthwhile that is what makes this completely worth the price of a ticket. One of the better films I’ve seen so far in 2015. Go out and support this film!!

Post Q & A with Omar Sy:
Sy charmingly engaged the audience entertaining us in both French and English – which he wants to learn better and gave far more than most do in these. Sy noted that even though he’s now been in a few big “Hollywood” films such as Jurassic World & X-Men Days of Future Past, he was attracted to the screenplay of this film and loved the way the story was told it being an interesting topic at this time not only in France but everywhere. With his family being from Senegal-though born in Paris himself-he met with a lot of immigrants in France who helped him shape his character here.

Also something new to me at least is that Omar came from comedy background – talking about the excitement of dramatic challenges in addition to comedy.
Re: the challenges of learning English and working here vs France, he is still learning – he advises work hard and never get discouraged. On what he would like people to take away from seeing this film?
“It’s always difficult to say what people have to think, what people have to learn or what people have to see. The goal for us is to take a different look on these people. And if someone’s view is different after the movie, it’s a success.”

Grade: B
@pegsatthemovies

Screening Wednesday, July 22, 2015 courtesy of LAFTV & Broad Green Pictures. Q & A: Friday, July 24, 2015 at Landmark Theaters, Westside
In limited release in theaters now.

Comedy, Drama, Movie Reviews, Movies, Music

REVIEW: “MAGIC MIKE XXL” (2015) Warner Bros.

07/02/2015 Peggy Marie 2 Comments

Well it’s been three years since “Magic Mike” (Channing Tatum) retired from his life as a male stripper, now running his own struggling custom furniture business and he decides to reunite with what’s left of his old team with plans of bowing out once and for all after a final performance at a big 4th of July weekend stripper convention in Myrtle Beach, FL.

What happens along the way is what truly makes this a much better film than the first one with one or two exceptions – one of them being no Matthew McConaughey as emcee extraordinaire “Dallas” this time round and as expected Jada Pinkett Smith as “Rome” cannot even come close to filling his shoes. (If you watch Gotham at all, it’s almost the exact same character portrayal here). Two, no Alex Pettyfer and it’s perfectly fine as you don’t miss him in the slightest.

Magic Mike XXL is in essence, a comedic guys road-trip movie with a lot of dancing, a couple hits of ecstasy & lucky for us, there is at least one stripping scene per stop ensuring us all a good time on the road with these boys. At points its hard to care that they throw caution to the wind and just pause the plot entirely when so much effort was put into making each stop outrageous, hilarious and insanely sexy. If your only reason for coming to watch just to see hot, sculpted men, you will not be disappointed either.

The film wastes no time reuniting what’s left of Mike’s old male stripper team. Matt Bomer plays “Ken” – the charming pretty boy of the team – who shows off some of his strong Broadway vocal ability here in a version of “Heaven” that slays everyone. Kevin Nash is back as “Tarzan” the big guy who can’t dance but loves to paint. Adam Rodriguez is “Tito” who along with Gabriel Iglesias’s “Tobias” is unsure of his future prospects. The stand out of these guys might just be Joe Manganiello as “Big Dick Richie” who on top of being built like a god, is the most unexpectedly funny member of the team with a convenience store challenge to die laughing for and sure to be new tag-line of the year “How much for the cheetos & water” scene you can’t help but love. Leading the supporting cast is Amber Heard as “Zoe” who at first simply appears to be Mike’s love interest though in the end she is revealed to be much more than that in being a central part of the finale in an very unexpected way. Add in Stephan ‘Twitch’ Boss as “Malik” doing some absolutely amazing dancing routines and Donald Glover “Andre” singing like no other and you just can’t help but smile and enjoy yourself.

Once the road trip gets going, the film spends most of its time just observing the guys hanging out as they travel from place to place running into obstacles along the way, but always finding time to dance and/or take their clothes off. The guys are all charming and with a somewhat low-stakes plot, XXL’s laid back ideals are perfect for a movie that is really contingent on the audiences likability of the cast and that we are able to engage with their characters. The film provides us endless opportunities to do just that as like them we do and not just as sexually alluring beefcake.

In the end, this movie is just fun. That is just about it. Well…except I would be totally remiss to not mention one little last tidbit in calling out the spectacular cameo strip off that Michael Strahan gives as “Augustus” – it’s almost beyond words it’s so fun!!
There is no dramatics here or Oscar-worthy performances. But what there is are a lot of smiles, oodles of good fun & laughter, some really great singing and fantastic choreographed dancing. To sum it up there will definitely be a “Tsunami of dollars” made opening weekend from this one!!

Grade: C+
@pegsatthemovies

Screening Monday, June 27th at The Grove/Pacific Theatres courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures.
Nationwide release – Wednesday, July 1st, 2015

Action, Action Adventure, Disaster, Drama, Movie Reviews, Movies, Thriller

REVIEW: “SAN ANDREAS” (2015) Warner Bros.

05/29/2015 Peggy Marie 8 Comments

Los Angeles and San Francisco – WE ARE DOOMED!! Serious note, I’m not really even sure what to say about this film.

From the moment this film opens with a scene they clearly scooped from the opening sequence of JAWS with dramatic music and a girl – in this one driving a car mindlessly distracted, checking her phone etc..with cars driving narrowly at her on Mulholland Dr. when suddenly BAM..over the cliff she goes AND on que – dramatic rescue, you pretty much get exactly what you need to know about where the rest of the film is headed.

The film and all it’s characters run the all too familiar ball-game gamut of disaster films. “Ray Gaines” (Dewayne Johnson) is a helicopter pilot with the LA Fire and Rescue Dept. “Emma” (Carla Gugino) his soon to be ex-wife whom is now with new boyfriend, wealthy developer “Daniel Riddick” (Ioan Gruffudd) who proves himself to be an untrustworthy one at that when he ditches Ray & Emma’s daughter “Blake” (Alexandra Daddario) after the quake hits to save himself while in San Francisco.

In the meantime Paul Giamatti as Cal Tech Earthquake specialist “Lawrence”, his staff and never flinching reporter “Serena” (Archie Panjabi) found they have just learned they can predict earthquakes..and within moments of being able to do so guess what happens..SURPRISE!! A super earthquake is upon them at Hoover Dam where they didn’t even know fault lines existed. As they of course predict more, within mere minutes Los Angeles is coming apart at the seams and next on the list is San Francisco.
Somehow we are to just not notice or overlook the fact that Ray is supposed to be going to Hoover Dam to help the rescue efforts there but as he calmly watches the destruction ensue from his helicopter he calls Emma who is having lunch with his sister “Susan” in a little cameo from Kylie Minogue here, its like that mission never existed as he rushes to rescue her from the top of a LA high-rise that is crumbling. Best part yet, we never hear him mention a thing about his sis who’s fell off the DTLA high-rise. what? clearly no brotherly love there. Another fun fact is that not one single one of these characters look like they could be even slightly related is just another fact that we must laughably ignore while watching this trainwreck film.

And since every film now has to have a token Brit in it, even though it’s a disaster pic about earthquakes in the Golden State of California, we throw in our British tourist on a job interview “Ben” (Hugo Johnstone-Burt) as a love interest for Blake and his little brother “Ollie” (Art Parkinson) and you’ve got your human drama all neatly summed up for you in a nice little square package once the fault line starts a rocking.

I’d be lying if I said some of the action sequences weren’t a bit fun, and also very silly as there were points I couldn’t stop laughing yet I don’t think I was actually supposed to. I mean the film was so spectacularly bad in ways that it was..well good. And most will know exactly what I mean by that.

There is a small sub-plot about a dying daughter/sister which I believe was thrown in to make it reasonable to the audience of first off why Ray went to get Emma before anyone else and how both are so hell-bent on rescuing Blake.

But the real star of this disaster upon disaster pic is the earthquake itself and the ensuing tsunami – and they don’t seem to stop coming until SFO & LA are completely bulldozed down and there is nothing left of either city or our brains for that matter. The end fact is while having lived through a few of the big quakes here and being petrified myself of them, this film with it’s complete lack of feeling, barely scares me into making another earthquake kit.

Grade: D
@pegsatthemovies

Drama, Movie Reviews, Movies, teen

ME AND EARL AND THE DYING GIRL (2015) Fox Searchlight

05/11/2015 Peggy Marie 1 Comment

Not being a huge fan of this genre of ‘dying’ teen movies, it would be so easy to sum up this film with just the title alone and leave it at that.

It would also be easy to criticize the fact that Me & Earl & the Dying Girl is directly aimed to the young teen Fault in Our Stars crowd with whom it’s guaranteed to be a summer box office moneymaker.

And while all of that is true, what people will be missing if they don’t go to see this film is a truly good, touching, funny, quirky and well acted film. I went in to this film wanting to dislike it for so many reasons, the sheer fact of its utter teen-dream marketability and knowing how it will end thanks to the title. And to my pleasant surprise, while watching, I felt my mind change, change and then change again. I was reminded that movies like this do exist and some times they can not only be really good, but they also can be commercially successful at the same time and that’s a-okay for me.

The film chronicles the senior year of “Greg” (Thomas Mann), his best friend/co-worker “Earl” (RJ Cyler), and “Rachel” (Olivia Cooke), who at the behest of his mother (Connie Britton) has been told to go ‘be friends with her’ as she has been diagnosed with leukemia (aka get it..Me & Earl & the Dying Girl). Rachel of course, sees right through his initial ‘pity’ visit but slowly and surely Greg begins to win her over with his cheekiness and charm.

And yes, all of the teen dramedy tropes are present and accounted for. The awkward parents, most especially Rachel’s mom “Denise” (Molly Shannon) who practically mauls Greg she is so happy he is there for her daughter, the role of tatted up cool teacher who ‘gets it’“Mr. Walker” (Jon Berenthal) whom while he goes into some original territory – though maybe a little to much for me as I think there might be a line or two that is crossed. Add in the exploration of high school cliques as Greg seems to be the master of his universe as he somehow cultivates relationships in each clique in his school. He glides from circle to circle seemly effortlessly, not alienating anybody or anyone which if I remember high school as I do, is pretty near the impossible to make happen. Though with all this accomplishment, he doesn’t want to call anyone his ‘friend’ as he doesn’t want to emotionally connect with them fully, so he calls Earl, his actual best friend, a co-worker. The two share a bizarre, but fun love of cinema and re-create about 40 spoofs of films such as A Clockwork Orange & The Seventh Seal among others. These are some of the high points of the movie as it’s rather hysterical to see these kids become so creative over the years doing these oh-so-bad-they-are-good mini movies.

A good supporting cast keeps the film fresh and rolling along. Greg’s eccentric parents (Connie Britton and Nick Offerman) add a fun jolt of parental weirdness to their scenes, While I found myself wanting a bit more in regards to Rachel’s character, the film’s treatment of her friendship with Greg is both darkly funny and realistically somber. This is one movie that it’s safe to see regardless of its given ending.

Screening at Landmark Theatres Westwood – Wednesday, April 29th, 2015
Nationwide release date: Friday, June 12th, 2015
Grade: B
@pegsatthemovies

RATINGS SCALE: A = OSCAR-WORTHY; B = ABOVE AVERAGE; C = AVERAGE; D = NOT RECOMMENDED; F = SKIP IT ENTIRELY (+ OR – GIVES IT AN EDGE UP OR DOWN)

Drama, Movie Reviews, Movies, Romance

“FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWD” (2015) Fox Searchlight

04/28/2015 Peggy Marie 2 Comments

Release date: Friday, May 1st, 2015 in select theatres

Being the film adaptation of a book I read so long ago by Thomas Hardy, that I couldn’t really remember the entire plot. And I’m glad because this film reminded me of what stunning story this literary classic really truly is.

Not being a romantic film lover by nature, I will say this film completely surprised me out of the blue of how much I truly liked it.

For those of you who like me, might not remember this story, or have never read it at all, it’s the story of the inordinately named “Bathsheba Everdene” (Carey Mulligan) a headstrong, and independent woman who within a short period of time, attracts the proposals of three very different men the times being what they were and all. The first, a sheep farmer named “Gabriel Oak” (Matthias Schoenaerts), then “William Boldwood” (Michael Sheen), a wealthy, older bachelor who owns the farm next to the one Bathsheba has inherited from her uncle who passed, and lastly, the oh-so-handsome, though completely reckless gambler, “Sergeant Frank Troy” (Tom Sturridge).

Mulligan really does a fine job here considering the original film had the wonderful Julie Christie in the same role. She comes across as clever and strong, so quick in her feelings, expressing in clear voice when noting to her suitors that she has no need to be married or owned by a man as she puts it bluntly. Haughty, yet at the same time, fickle and so vulnerable and silly in her choices at times she holds all the contradictions of this character very well.

Of the three suitors, Michael Sheen stands out the most as he is so convincing in his adoration of Bathsheba, you can hardly watch as you feel his torment wafting over you. Flashy, and very much the cad, is Sturridge, who dreamy good looks, don’t change the fact that you just don’t like his character much even though you completely get why she falls for him because at the beginning he challenges her and her feelings like the others have not. When the mistake of this relationship is realized, we go back to our hero, the ever faithful Mr. Oak, played well here by go-to good looking man of the moment, Matthias Schoenaerts. From moment one, when he bashfully gains the courage to ask her to marry him after meeting only once, you spend the whole film rooting for her to just come to her senses already and see what has always been standing right in front of her. Him.

This film definitely does the book justice and I loved the many plot twists and turns the story takes. It’s a wonderful ride and visually stunning. For a self-professed non-romantic film lover such as myself, this movie was simply beautiful to me.

Grade: B

Screening: Thursday, April 23, 2015 at Arclight Sherman Oaks

*see ratings scale*

Comedy, Drama, Movie Reviews, Movies, War

“LITTLE BOY” – PREMIERE REVIEW (2015) Open Road Films

04/25/2015 Peggy Marie 2 Comments

“Little Boy” is one of those ‘feel good’ films in which deals with the story of a 8-year-old boy trying to bring World War II to an end so that he can see his father again.

It follows the story of “Pepper Flynt Busbee” (Jakob Salvanti) having a crisis of life that children can have, after his father, “James” (Michael Rapaport), is drafted to war after his brother “London” (David Henrie) is deemed unfit for being flat-footed. While his mother “Emma” (Emily Watson) can only stand by as the local priest “Father Oliver” (Tom Wilkinson) gets the unusually small boy, who is given the nickname “Little Boy” by all the townspeople of O’Hare, which is one of those picturesque little towns that you only see in postcards, to think that he can actually ‘will’ his father back home if he follows a list of good deeds to do.

While the film does capture the magic-obsessed boy trying in trying to navigate the fine line between the reality of his life with the delusion of his fantasies because of his love for his father, it’s also very predictable and a bit dangerous in stating that all the boy has to do is wish it, and it will happen. Add in our country’s anti-Japanese resentment during the war, depicted in a bit too cartoonish strokes at times, as once Pepper befriends the only Japanese man in town, “Hashimoto” (Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa), in part as its one of the things on said list, and of course changing the way he thinks about the prejudices of the times. The little town is full of racists, including his own brother, who so readily buying into the delusion as Little Boy is part of a magic trick that really sends his imagination, and theirs over the top. In one scene, at the precise moment the boy’s attempt to ‘move a mountain’ coincides with an earthquake striking the area with the towns newspaper then reporting the boy has done it.

All in all, I think it might be trying to be a well-meaning film but is quite manipulative on a very misguided scale. In this case, Little Boy is the rare faith-based type film that many viewers may find legitimately offensive because of what it suggests is just too much. By telling kids to just ‘wish’ for something to make it happen by doing a few good deeds, is truly not a good thing. They should’ve stuck to just doing good things for all the right reasons, not the one depicted here.

On a side note, I did enjoy meeting the cast and director of the film. All very nice people and of all the oddities of this premiere I sat next to Tara Reid and the Jedward Twins, whom I had no idea who they were until I got home and researched Irish twins. ha! They were sweet and nice as anything, told me I would cry during the film, I didn’t. And Tara for all her bad press, was so nice and fun. Kind of went in tone for the film for me, Don’t always believe everything you see or read.

Premiere: Tuesday, April 14th, 2015 at Regal Cinemas DTLA – Film is now playing nationwide
Grade: ‘D’
@peggyatthemovies

(See ratings scale)

Drama, Movie Reviews, Movies, Romance

“AGE OF ADALINE” (2015) Lionsgate

04/23/2015 Peggy Marie 2 Comments

Release date: Friday, April 24th, 2015

The Age of Adaline plays like preposterous story, booby-trapped for maximal ridiculousness, with little tasteful conviction and is far from the tearjerker suggested by the trailer. While it’s not entirely an unpleasant film, it is more than a bit dull, reining in the inherent silliness of its material and taking few risks — in other words..Sappy, Sappy and then more Sap. Throw in some absolutely terrible dialogue and some mediocre acting and you have yourself “The Age of Adaline.” While the plot might be unrealistic, at least it’s based on something a lot of us might actually wish could happen, whereas the actual dialogue is not even something the bigger stars of this film can save, and it’s hard to watch that kind of talent be forced to actually repeat this script.

As we plod through this story of “Adaline Bowman” (Blake Lively) a woman who has miraculously remained youthful 29 years old while actually being 109 years of age, they never pull us inside Adaline’s head space or make the premise, which could actually be interesting if done well, meaningful. For example, they never really delve into the fact that the character is being a woman at once old and young at the same time..Instead, they stick to a fairly bland romantic storyline, reducing Adaline’s presumably terrifying, enlightening experience to a predictable choice between following her head or her heart.

In this little ditty of sappy movie gone bad, Adaline has remained ageless for nearly eight decades due to a freak lightening storm-car accident combination that happened to her. After years of a solitary life of never allowing anyone to get close to her lest they find out her big secret, lo and behold, on a completely ‘chance’ encounter..she meets a man, a charismatic philanthropist named “Ellis Jones” (Michiel Huisman) on a one-night stand and yep, you guessed it, he immediately falls in love with her..literally within 12hrs and wisks her away to his parents house in the country to meet them. Because yeah, that always happens. Without giving to much away, it turns out his father, “William Jones” (Harrison Ford) might already know her. Cathy Baker is “Connie Jones” Ellis’ mother and she can see something is up from moment one, but neither one of these good actors can save the really awful dialogue they are made to spout out.

If you haven’t figured out by now or what’s going to happen next while cringing in your seat, well, then this film is perfect for you. And yes, I know there is a niche’ audience for these types of films, and I can roll with that. What I can’t roll with is bad writing and while Blake Lively has done some really good supporting turns in such films as The Town, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and Savages, she cannot yet carry an entire film as not even Ellen Burstyn as her ‘daughter’ “Flemming” can save this confected cream puff of a melodrama. This film never lunges into four-hankie territory, nor does it melt into Nicholas Sparks type corny romance. It had potential, sadly they missed it.

Screening at AMC Century City 15 ~ Wednesday, April 15th, 2015
Grade: D
@pegsatthemovies

(See ratings scale)

Drama, Fantasy, Mystery

“LOST RIVER” (2015) Review/Q & A interview w/Ryan Gosling

04/20/2015 Peggy Marie 3 Comments

Note: Screening at Sundance Sunset Cinemas ~ Sunday, April 12th.

Ryan Gosling has always moved to the beat of his own drum..and in his directorial debut “Lost River” definitely shows you it’s no ordinary drumbeat that he’s moving to.

The once vibrant town known as simply as “Motor City”, Detroit is sadly now decaying and it’s newsworthy abandoned-house scary-ness, sets up the rather miserable and macabre foundation of this story of “Billy” (Christina Hendricks), a single mother of two, who is swept into this bizarro underworld trying to do what is needed to survive with her family, while “Bones” (Iain De Caestecker) her teenage son, discovers a secret road that leads him to a underwater town.

The broad overline of this ‘fairy tale’ gone bad, looks at the lengths to which a single mother will go to avoid defaulting on her mortgage. As her attempt to renegotiate terrible loan terms fails, and the sleazy wolf of this tale is her bank manager,“Dave” (Ben Mendelsohn), who not only will make you think twice about ever walking in to your bank branch again, but offers her work in the macabre vaudevillian fetish den he manages on the side. With “Cat” (Eva Mendes) as her “mentor” in this macabre world with scenes that will definitely not be for every one, as while they are shot in amazing fashion, not always easy to watch or even make sense for that matter.

In the meantime, Bones is stealing metal scraps to fund the repairs to the broke-down vehicle that seems to be thought of as his only viable means of escape. At night, him and his wannabe girlfriend “Rat” (Saoirse Ronan) are stalked by local thug king “Bully” (Matt Smith), who sits atop an actual throne that’s affixed to his souped-up motor city chariot, in another case of where the fairy tale references are too roundabout and evasive.

All the while this two waaay different sides of the film is going on, we find out about an urban myth which blames the residents’ poor fortunes on a curse of bad town planning, which P.S. also gives you the meaning to the film’s (and the town’s) name. As Bones finds the existence of this underwater city, long since drowned out, he goes to retrieve a piece of it as this will ‘end the curse’

By this time, trust me, you are pretty lost in following whatever story/fable it is that is trying to be told here. Truly, see this film at your own risk. All I can say is Ryan Gosling, I adore you, but if this is what’s in your head..

Luckily for me, this was a Q & A screening and I got “Hot Fuzz” director Edgar Wright and Ryan Gosling himself to talk about the film. Gosling opened up about the process of making his first film, stating that his biggest surprise was the production timeline.

“I didn’t know it was going to take three years. You don’t know how to make a movie until you make one. As many as I’ve made as an actor, it doesn’t prepare you at all,” he admitted. “But that’s also the best part about it, the thing that I love the most. I got to spend this big chunk of time with this one thing. When you act, it’s amazing, but it’s a few months and that’s it. So the long game of it all was really a surprise to me, but in the end, it’s probably one of the best parts.”

He also noted that though he didn’t realize it, it was pointed out to him that it’s his version of dark ‘Goonies,’
Gosling also said he confided to director Nicolas Winding Refn, telling him that he wasn’t sure if the $5 million he raised to make the film would be enough; “$5 million?” replied Refn. “You can make ‘Star Wars’ for $5 million!” This gave Gosling the confidence to follow through with making the film. “That’s bullshit by the way,” Wright jumped in at the Q&A, referring to Refn’s claim.

Before he had even had a story in mind, Gosling started gathering footage around Detroit. Later, he wrote the script to accompany what inspiration he took from the decaying Detroit landscape. Gosling said he then took the footage and the story idea to director Guillermo del Toro, who told him, “If you don’t direct it, I will.” Gosling said he “felt like the wizard had given me my sword and my shield and sent me off on my mission.”

So at least I understand now the ‘how & why’ it got made, it didn’t change my mind about the movie I’d just watched, but it did make me hopeful that Gosling’s next venture will be so much more.

Grade: ‘D’
@pegsatthemovies

(See rating scale)

Crime, Dark Comedy, Drama, PaleyFest, TV

My “Last Call” with the cast of “Justified” ~ Paley Center Event

04/10/2015 Peggy Marie 10 Comments

Note: Series final for Justified is Tuesday, April 14th, 2015

Being this was my #1 in my review of “Top 10 Shows I am watching right now” with Justified being my numero uno to watch, saying goodbye to it and everyone on it was heartbreaking yet so fun..as they say, parting is such sweet sorrow. So to bid it one last adieu tonight as The Paley Center for Media in Beverly Hills hosted “An Evening with FX channel’s Justified”. Featuring some of it’s top cast members: Timothy Olyphant “Raylan Givens”, Joelle Carter “Ava Crowder”, Erica Tazel “Rachel Brooks”, Jacob Pitts “Tim Gutterson” and the shows creator, Graham Yost who all came to say farewell.

To start off with, with some fun tidbits from the press line interviews:

Jacob Pitts..When I asked him about Tim and Rachel, you know everyone loves them – what are the chances of a spin-off for The Tim & Rachel show?
His answer being he doesn’t think there is much of a chance..though he would not be opposed to it..but said “that’s a small ship in big seas.”
I made the 2nd question a fun one of “Who is the prankster on the set?” and with no hesitation whatsoever, Tim! He’s gotten the writers a few times with what he thinks should be in a scene..and Jacob helped him on some of those capers (lots of laughter) though “we are grown adults who have a professional job to do and we do it coldly and with precision”.. (more laughter)

Joelle Carter.. when I asked what’s next for her, she put it out there that she would love to do another character as strong as Ava..while having a few juicy movie roles come her way also. Which is something I think we all would love to see also. As for rolling around in the dirt and getting battle scars from filming, yeah, when it came to the end of the series, she was glad that part of it was done.

Graham Yost.. As I was going to pitch him the Rachel/Tim spinoff idea as he’s the creator riiigght.. Jacob came running up behind him and wanted to pitch it himself, we had a few good laughs as I called him out on totally trying to poach and pitch my idea..heyyy.. 🙂 it was all in good fun as while Graham likes it too, sadly..it’s not gonna happen.

Timothy Olyphant.. I asked him what’s next for Timothy Olyphant and as he’s noted on various shows like Ellen & Conan..he’s looking for a job!! And yep..he is. We talked tennis for a moment as I’ve sat by him at Indian Wells for a match watching his good friend Mardy Fish play, and asked if maybe the pro-tennis circuit was on his radar. Fear not all, he’s sticking with acting. And on him being the prankster of the set.. naaahhh..we agreed he’s an angel and they have no idea what they are talking about. ha!
Sadly I didn’t get the chance to interview Erica Tazel as press line was being wrapped up and I had to choose between that or running in and getting a seat at the panel.

Moving along to the panel – you can tell how much this cast not only enjoyed working with each other and on this show, but the respect they have for each other, and most definitely Elmore Leonard, who passed away in 2013 during the 4th season of the show, acknowledging how much they missed working with him. There is no doubt the man had a way with words, but this cast delivered those words like no other. He definitely made an impact on all the cast who worked with him and that they wanted to carry on his legacy in the right way was made apparent.

The fantastic guest stars that they had over the years who made fantastic characters, some of the favourites names by the cast: Margo Martindale “Mags Bennett”, Jere Burns “Winn Duffy”, Ron Eldard “Colton Rhodes” and Sam Elliott “Avery Markham” to name a few. They loved all their guest stars and for those of you wondering..while not a villain.. Patton Oswalt aka CONSTABLE BOB LIVES!!

Jacob puts it out there that he would have been fine with Boyd Crowder killing off his character Tim, though hey..he just might as we won’t know until next week!
They all seemed to agree that on favourite scenes, the #1 by far was the animal in the bag with Dickie and Coover. And the shows willingness to always just ‘go for it’ and ‘swing for the fences’ is something Olyphant notes that he just loved.
One of Joelle’s best scenes was of course probably one of ours also, where Ava gets her hair cut in prison. Now little did we know at the time, that was actually her real hair stylist who she kept saying she was sorry she was hurting her but she’d never cut hair with a shiv before!!!

While we got no spoilers for the finale..though trust me, some people tried, but hey, we REALLY don’t want it spoiled do we!! I for one, want to see it unfold as it happens because there are so many ways it can go and I’m excited for it, but we did get a note that the finale will have a lot of flashbacks from the past as Graham Yost appreciates that the fans pay close attention to these facts. Also, we do find out ‘What matters to us’ as Raylan has said to Boyd.

Now right smack in the middle of all this, Jacob Pitts announces he’s gotta use the restroom and to the ensuing laughter that comes with that announcement, Graham Yost asks to “please leave his mike on for this”. Stellar moment of laughs with this stellar cast.

And yes, they all took some souvenir’s from the set: Graham Yost – a “Welcome to Harlan County” sign which received a big collective “ahhhh” from the audience as I think we ALL want one of those. Erica Tazel – took her nameplate. Joelle Carter – took her parking spot nameplate. Timothy Olyphant – took something he had made during early during the shooting of the show, didn’t name what it was tho..maybe his awesome hat..we don’t know..but he pretty much readily admitted he took stuff all along..ha! Jacob Pitts – I think he said socks.. yep..socks.

Favourite violent scene – hands down the arm-chop and the Winnebago fight won!!

As I’ve noted before in panels like this, some of the best questions and funniest moments are when the audience gets to ask questions as you NEVER know what will happen.
First off Timothy being asked on his being possibly being type cast in Western type series i.e., Deadwood and now Justified, though not exactly a western..kinda the genre is what the point was being made..his response was priceless “you mean being cast as a badass, yeah that would be awful wouldn’t it” in other words, nope not worried.
Then asked about his similarity of looks to Garrett Dillahunt (Ty Walker) not worried at all..he’s a great actor and had a beard after all.

And yes, Walton Goggins teeth are that white in real life!! says Joelle..she’s seen them up close..

The character of Boyd Crowder was actually supposed to die in Season 1 but the chemistry between Raylan & Boyd was undeniable so they decided to keep him around for awhile.. and here we are at the series finale and he’s still standing..as of now.

I think the fact that they noted they were all brought to tears on set at the end of filming says a lot of how much they noted they will all miss working with one another.

And with that we say goodbye to the wonderful cast and creator of Justified. Thank you for an amazing six seasons and for entertaining us so well through it all. To everyone from cast, guest stars, writers, producers and crew, a heartfelt–Thank You!

And that concludes my fantastic last ‘date’ with the cast of “JUSTIFIED” Hope you all have enjoyed the show as much as I have and be sure to tune in for the series finale, Tuesday, April 14th.

@pegsatthemovies
peggyatthemovies.com

Peggy at the Movies