Isle of Dogs

First Hit: I liked the premise and animation a lot, however, there were scenes that were not needed which made this film longer than needed.

Director Wes Anderson creates quirky and interesting films. Here, Wes uses stop-motion animation to create a world that, at times, reflects current events. The film references earthquakes and a power plant failure that spread radiation. All events that happened in Japan.

The general plot is that Mayor Kobayashi (voice by Kunichi Nomura), mayor of Megasaki, is a cat person as are his immediate family and his ancestors. However, dog lovers have been ruling Megasaki and therefore dogs reign supreme in Megasaki. Coming into power Megasaki sends all the dogs to “Trash Island,” a place where trash is piled up.

The reason he states is because the dogs have a disease that cannot be cured and eventually it will affect humans.

Atari Kobayashi (voice by Koyu Rankin) is a young twelve-year-old boy who wants his dog Spots back. He commandeers a small plane and crashes it on Trash Island. He runs into a pack of dogs Chief (voice by Bryan Cranston), Rex (voice by Edward Norton), King (voice by Bob Balaban), Boss (voice by Bill Murray), and Duke (voice by Jeff Goldblum, who decide to help him find Spots.

Many of the scenes were fun to watch and extremely well developed. However, scenes like when the dogs in the overhead lift going through a destruction and crushing building were not needed. It added little to the overall suspense and only created a unneeded scene and added to making the film longer.

The personalities of the dogs were great and a wonderful combination of animal and human points of view. This held up well. The focus of a boy’s love of his dog works. And when it comes forth that all dogs love twelve-year-old boys was perfect.

Rankin, Balaban, Norton, Cranston, Murray, Goldblum, and Nomura were wonderful in their voice characterizations. Anderson and Roman Coppola wrote a wonderful script although there were scenes that could have been cut to make the film crisper. Anderson’s direction was excellent although some scenes were unnecessary.

Overall: A strong and entertaining film in a format we don’t see very often.

The Death of Stalin

First Hit: There are very funny moments, but I couldn’t help but wonder was his regime filled with that much personal corruptness? Probably.

One of the beginning scenes has Stalin’s chief calling the radio station asking Andreyev (Paddy Considine) to call Stalin directly in 17 minutes. The ensuing discussion between Andreyev and Sergei (Tom Brooke), his co-producer, about when the 17 minutes are up was hilarious. Was it when the phone rang? Was it when he said call him back in 17 minutes? Was it when he hung up the phone?

This dialogue sets the stage about the power Stalin (Adrian McLoughlin) wielded in Russia. Everyone jumped at his every word and wanted to do no wrong or they’d be shot or sent to prison never to be heard from again. They had to get it right.

When Andreyev does call back and Stalin says he wants a recording of the live program he just heard them broadcast, they panic because they didn’t record the concert. So he rushes back into the concert hall, makes everyone sit down in their seats, and perform the concert all over again. Hilarious and pointed in that it notes the fear Stalin put into everyone.

Stalin’s governing group includes his Chief of Staff and second in command Georgy Malenkov (Jeffrey Tambor), Lavrenti Beria (Simon Russell Beale), Vyacheslav Molotov (Michael Palin), and Nikita Khrushchev (Steve Buscemi). This small group with a couple others are all vying to be the next in line and try to create power plays.

When Stalin has a stroke because of a note Maria Veniaminovna Yudina (Olga Kurylenko) sends him, the film then goes to additional funny scenes including Stalin’s governing group kneeling and not kneeling next to Stalin’s body as it lay there on the floor because he had pissed himself was hilarious.

The rest of the film deals with who will get control of the country and how will they do it. It plays through a funny set of scenes around Stalin’s lying in state and his funeral. There are so many funny bits in this film, I’d have to see it again to take it all in, but one thing is clear, what was portrayed was totally possible.

Considine was perfect as the befuddle producer who wanted to make sure he did what Stalin wanted. His questions to his co-producer and then the scenes of how he made the audience go through the performance again was priceless. Brooke was excellent as co-producer who knew well enough to only provide an opinion but not take any responsibility for the concert recording. McLoughlin was wonderful as Stalin. He even looked like some of the pictures I’d seen of him. His casual cruelty was clearly apparent. Tambor was particularly funny as second in command. Always walking a fine line and choosing many different sides as the film went on. Beale was perfect as the plodding technocrat looking for a leg up on the others in the ruling party. Buscemi was sublime as Khrushchev. His slow plotting a takeover obviously worked because he became the President of The Soviet Union. Kurylenko was wonderful as the piano player who instigated Stalin’s demise. Andrea Riseborough as Svetlana, Stalin’s daughter was wonderful. Armando Iannucci, David Schneider, and Ian Martin wrote an engagingly smart funny script. Plenty of history thrown was thrown into this mix of pointed funny scenes. Iannucci did a great job of directing this excellent comedy.

Overall:  This film has enough historical references to make it relevant and by adding comedy a fun way to see history.

Flower

First Hit: The acting lifts this bizarre storyline to funny, engaging and entertaining levels.

Before seeing this film, I was hard pressed to think that it would be well acted and funny. Why? The first scene has a young seventeen-year-old girl giving oral sex to a police officer, then blackmailing him for money so that she can bail her father out of jail.

We learn that Erica (Zoey Deutch) has been doing this often because the bail is over $15,000. She has two friends, Kala (Dylan Gelula) and Claudine (Maya Eshet), that assist by videotaping the oral sex events. This is how they blackmail the offenders.

What makes it funny is the matter of fact, open, and deliberate way the engagements are talked about and happen.

Erica has an odd and permissive relationship with her mother Laurie (Kathryn Hahn). Laurie is desperate for a relationship and finds Dale (Eric Edelstein) who also has an overweight son Luke (Joey Morgan) about Erica’s age. However, Luke has been in rehab for over a year because of opiates.

When Luke gets out of the rehab he stays with Laurie, Dale, and Erica. He’s a sad soul and clearly troubled. Erica does her best to engage him including offering oral sex. "It's not like we're related" and "I'm an expert at oral sex." The way these lines are delivered are priceless.

What we discover is that Luke hides his feelings and emotions through eating and drugs because he indicates he was sexually assaulted by Will Jordan (Adam Scott) a grade school teacher.

Erica, Kala, Claudine and Luke set out to expose Will and in this way, get some revenge for Luke and blackmail Will for money that Erica can use to get her father out of jail.

When we get to the end, we find out the truth and the characters find out their own truth.

The events and the way this story unfolds is amusing and quirky. The characters are odd, believable, and fun.

Deutch is excellent. Her laissez faire yet intelligent approach to getting through her life was amazing. I loved watching her be this character on the screen. Morgan was wonderful as the young man attempting to do right at the detriment of his own health. Gelula and Eshet were perfect as the supportive friends. They wonderfully added to this comedic adventure. Hahn was wonderful and the supportive yet exasperated lonely mother. Edelstein was good as the new man in Laurie’s life. Scott was strong as the accused former teacher who loves bowling.  Alex McAulay and Matt Spicer wrote a funny and engaging script. Max Winkler did a wonderful job of making this film work.

Overall: I was pleasantly surprised at the acting and the funny bits in this film.

Gringo

First Hit: This was a quirky film that I liked more than I thought I would with a few over the top scenes.

I didn’t know what to expect from this film and that was a good thing.

The premise is that Richard Rusk (Joel Edgerton) and Elaine Markinson (Charlize Theron) run a pharmaceutical company that is struggling to survive. Working for them is Harold Soyinka (David Oyelowo) who is a close friend of Richard.

Harold oversees their drug producing operations in Mexico. Unbeknownst to Harold, Elaine and Richard have made a deal to sell the company and a new formula to someone else. However, another group knows about this new formula that will make someone a lot of money. This formula is in a safe in the Mexican operational building.

Additionally, Harold is out of the loop about his wife, who has asked him for a divorce. He doesn’t know that his wife is having an affair with Richard.

Despondent over his impending divorce, and discovering his bosses do not support him, he quits his job and plans to disappear in Mexico.

Throughout all this, the deal with the purchasing pharmaceutical company is falling apart, the formula has been stolen and warring factions are brought into play. Then Richard hires his mercenary brother Mitch (Sharlto Copley), to find Harold, kill him if needed, and help resolve the theft.

All of this sets up situations that are both suspenseful and over the top funny. Some of the funniest scenes are with Elaine as she uses her sexuality to lure people to decide things her way.

Edgerton was good as the sex charged company man. Theron was over the top funny and bawdy in her portrayal of Markinson who wanted to get ahead using any means possible. Oyelowo was very funny as the trusting husband and employee believing that if he worked hard and obeyed all the laws, he’d be successful. The ending helps this ongoing riff. Copley was great and over the top and a skilled mercenary. Anthony Tambakis and Matthew Stone wrote this quirky screenplay that I enjoyed. Nash Edgerton did a fine job of getting the actors to engage in this film.

Overall: This film had enough laughs and engaging scenes to make it worth its’ while.

The Leisure Seeker

First Hit: This film is, at times, funny, sad, and depressing, and well acted.

Donald Sutherland and Helen Mirren are two very strong actors and I’d be hard pressed to find two other actors capable of pulling these characters off as well as they do.

Donald plays John Spencer a former literary professor who loves the writing of Ernest Hemingway. He’s losing his memory but can remember long passages of Hemingway’s writings. He often forgets much of his past life including the names of his grown children. But his wife Ella (Mirren) remembers almost everything, likes to talk to strangers freely but has cancer and it’s taking over her body.

The film opens with son Will (Christian McKay) coming by John and Ella’s house with a cake for John’s birthday. He finds no one home. He calls his sister Jane (Janel Moloney) who is on her way over for the party asking her if she knows where their parents are.

Not discovering anything, they look in a covered storage area next to the house only to find their Winnebago Indian, they call the Leisure Seeker, gone. This thing is old and hasn’t been driven for years.

The audience catches up the John and Ella as they tool down the highway, Ella navigating and John behind the wheel.

Many of the scenes and dialogue while they are in the Leisure Seeker and during their stops, allows the audience to learn about their histories, current foibles, and mostly how they really adore each other.

There are some very funny scenes, like when they visit Ella’s first boyfriend. The ending is apropos in that, they do not want to be a burden to each other or their children.

Sutherland did an excellent job of being lucid in sparse moments. The color of his life were added in these moments showed why he was a good man. Mirren was excellent at putting up with having to be John’s memory as well as keeping herself together. The character liked to talk and would talk with anyone, and she did this extremely well. Her flowing segues were perfect. Moloney was wonderful as the daughter. When John shares his pride of her, her reaction was perfect. McKay was good as the son who was more lost in life and used his parent’s challenges for his martyrdom. Stephen Amidon wrote a smart script as it had a wide range of emotions. Paolo Virzi did a great job of putting enough of these wide-ranging emotions to us.

Overall: Although most critics didn’t give this film much regard, my own experience tells me the writers had some real life experience to draw upon.