Patriots Day

First Hit:  This was an interesting perspective of a very tragic event in Boston and America’s history.

This dramatization of a horrific event was both; interesting from a historical perspective and not very engaging from a character standpoint. The film took a very broad perspective of the people to be included as characters. It included the various law enforcement agencies including; the Boston Police Department, the FBI, Watertown Police Department, MIT Police Department and a couple of other US Government agencies. From a citizen perspective, there were both students and citizens from various neighborhoods.

The filmmakers made attempts to provide backstories, or history per se, of certain characters, however despite being helpful at a small level it was difficult to engage with anyone at an emotional level. For example; Police Officer Sergeant Tommy Saunders (Mark Wahlberg) was the lead character and we learn early on he’s got a history with the department and is on probation. Why? We never really find out but there are multiple references to alcohol and there are a couple scenes where he drinks when it might have been better if he didn’t.

But this isn’t the story, but it nagged at me that we didn’t have this history. The story is about how Boston and others captured the brothers, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and Tamerlan Tsarnaev (Alex Wolff and Themo Melikidze respectively), who become radicalized Muslim bombers and exploded two bombs at the finish line of the Boston Marathon.

The film tries to track a lot of people including: the Tsarnaev brothers, Tamerlan’s wife Katherine Russell (Melissa Benoist), Officer Saunders, bomb injured married couple Patrick Downes (Christopher O’Shea) and Jessica Kensky (Rachel Brosnahan), MIT Officer Sean Collier (Jake Picking), car jacked Dun Meng (Jimmy O. Yang), Boston Commissioner Ed Davis (John Goodman), Boston Mayor Thomas Menino (Vincent Curatola), FBI Special Agent Richard DesLauriers (Kevin Bacon), Watertown Police Sergeant Jeffery Pugliese (J. K. Simmons), Carol Saunders (Michelle Monaghan), Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick (Michael Beach), and a host of others. It begins the evening before the bombing and goes to when they were captured (Dzhokhar) and killed (Tamerlan). One thing that was interesting was that this film had one of the largest credited and uncredited casts for any film in recent memory.

The filmmakers used some archival footage as well as re-enacted scenes in following the brothers, law enforcement, and citizens over subsequent week as the brothers tried to escape, go to New York to place another bomb, and how they were captured through the use of technology, law enforcement officers, and the bravery of citizens.

Wahlberg was very good as the film’s key focal point. I wanted to know more of why he was being punished, but from a character point of view he was very strong. Wolff and Melikidze were both very solid as the brothers who brought this havoc to Boston. I think they did a great job of emoting the attitude as affected Muslim radicals. Bacon was wonderful as the FBI agent trying to get the bombers identified and captured quickly. O’Shea and Brosnahan were wonderful as the married couple that lost limbs, survived, and made it back to a subsequent race. Yang was really good as the young man whose car was hijacked by the brothers during their escape. Simmons was OK as the Watertown Sergeant. Goodman was strong as the Commissioner. Picking was wonderful as the caring officer that was shot by the brothers. Monaghan was engaging as Officer Saunders’ wife. Peter Berg, Matt Cook, and Joshua Zetumer wrote a very ambitious screenplay that attempted to cover numerous stories around this very tragic event. In this ambitious effort, it lost a little heart and focus. Peter Berg did his best to cover this expansive story.

Overall:  This is an amazing story to tell and it does honor the affected people.

Films I Saw and Liked in 2016

These are some of the films I saw in 2016 that I liked and why. Eye In The Sky:  Gave a view of how war has changed through the use of drones and electronics. This was also Alan Rickman’s last film.

Where To Invade Next:  A Michael Moore Documentary about our inability to provide US Citizens with aspects of living we founded but never implemented.

Knight Of Cups:  This film is not everyone’s cup of tea but its esoteric nature touched me.

Hello, My Name Is Doris:  Sally Field was spectacular as a woman who tried to find love with a much younger man.

Deadpool:  Despite the thoughts of most other reviewers, I thought this was a very funny film.

Money Monster:  I like Clooney and the premise of this film about television stock pickers.

Golden Kingdom:  I loved the young monks and their clear devotion to their Buddhist practice.

Dark Horse:  Sweet film about a group of Welsh villiagers.

Nerve:  Although nothing great about this film, it was a blast to watch, which is enough sometimes.

Captain Fantastic:  I loved the premise and story of this film.

Southside With You:  I thoroughly enjoyed this version of Barack and Michelle’s first date.

Hell Or High Water:  Really evoked the old west with fine performances.

Lo And Behold, Reveries Of The Connected World:  Wonderful documentary about how we got the World Wide Web.

Samsara:  Powerful images showing the cycle of life.

Snowden:  I really liked how Oliver Stone told this sotry.

The Beatles:  Eight Days A Week – The Touring Years:  Outstanding documentary about The Beatles earliest years.

Sully:  Tom Hanks was great in telling this amazing true story.

Certain Women:  Very interesting study and story about these women's lives.

Nocturnal Animals:  I loved the acting in this film.

The Edge of Seventeen:  Wonderfully acted film about how hard it can be to be a 17-year old girl.

Loving:  Genuinely sweet film about how love can conquer – even the law of the land.

Moonlight:  Another film that opened the doors to a way of life that needs to be seen and accepted.

The Handmaiden:  Wonderfully filmed story about deception and love.

Arrival:  One of my most favorite films of the year as it shares the concept of non-linear time.

Hacksaw Ridge:  Well executed film about a conscientious objector and a very bloody battle.

Fences:  Although very “play like”, it is a wonderful study of a family.

La La Land:  A thoroughly wonderful engaging film about love.

Elle:  Powerfully acted film about the strength of a woman.

Manchester By The Sea:  The acting in this film is sublime.

When the Oscar Award listing comes out, I’ll share my opinions and best guesses.

Miss Sloane

First Hit:  A very engaging and intense look at winner take all lobbying through a no-holds barred lobbyist.

I didn’t have any idea what kind of life or upbringing Elizabeth Sloane (Jessica Chastain) had, but to witness her "win at any cost" actions made me wonder. As one of her bosses asked; “were you born this way?”

Notwithstanding, I bought Sloane’s character because all her actions supported it. Early on there’s a statement where she says something like; one must be fully prepared so that when your opponent plays their trump card, you play your trump card, trumping theirs.

One of the beginning sequences she’s asked by George Dupont (Sam Waterston), her high-powered boss at the large lobbyist firm she works in, to support the NRA in creating a program to get women to want to become gun owners to protect their family. They want this because the lobby wants the Brady gun law bill to be defeated in the Senate. Sloane balks, and when pressed by her boss to take the assignment, she quits and joins a small boutique firm run by Rodolfo Schmidt (Mark Strong) to lobby for the Brady bill and against her old firm. When she leaves this firm she takes most of her staff except her primary aid Jane Malloy (Alison Pill), who says she's thinking of getting out of the lobby business.

The film flashes ahead where she is being held for illegal lobbying practices in a hearing chaired by Congressman Ron M. Sperling (John Lithgow). In these flash ahead scenes, we get a sense of the pressure a congressional hearing might bring against someone.

Likewise, we see how hard she works to find out material that she can use to make her point, win the votes. In befriending Esme Manucharian (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), one of the people on her team, she sees Esme’s intelligence and commitment to this cause but also exposes her secret to the public.

Does she care? That is one of the film’s points. There are many different levels of caring and it doesn’t always look like what most people expect it to be. To this end, when she sacrifices herself to win her cause and not involve others, some of these questions are answered.

Chastain is this film. Her characters intensity, focus, and work effort to deliver on made promises is absolutely amazing. A tour de force performance. Mbatha-Raw is fantastic. The unfolding vulnerability she shows as her past is revealed is totally believable. Pill is perfect as Sloane’s work partner. Strong is really good as the head of a boutique lobbying firm. His support and questioning of Sloane’s tactics was spot-on. Lithgow as the Congressman who gets compromised was very good. His pushiness and superior attitude falling away to shock at being found out, was sublime. Waterston was very good as the head of a lobbying firm that just wants his business to grow. Jonathan Perera wrote a very interesting script. It was a fascinating look at the lobbying industry. John Madden clearly guided Chastain to take charge of the character and this movie. This was an excellent idea.

Overall:  I was transfixed by Chastain’s character, which required complete commitment to her goals.

Man Down

First Hit:  This film powerfully brings the point home about PTSD through one soldiers experience.

Writer Adam G. Simon and Director Dito Montiel effectively brings together the effects of war through one soldiers eyes by using three visual amalgamated stories.

It is important to note that every night there are 200,000 vets sleeping on the streets in the United States. And that there are 20 US veterans committing suicide every single day. This film sheds light on the cause.

Gabriel Drummer (Shia LeBeouf) and best lifelong buddy Devin Roberts (Jai Courtney) join the Marines together. They suffer and succeed together. Gabriel is married to Natalie (Kate Mara) and have a son Johnathan (Charlie Shotwell) who Gabriel loves dearly.

The film's stories are interesting and effective. But, until I connected the dots, about two-thirds the way through, the post war apocalyptic scenes didn’t work for me. I was initially frustrated and questioned these scenes, until the clarity came.

The interview scenes with Counselor Payton (Gary Oldman) were excellent. The use of this as a vehicle to share the knowledge that our government knows we have a problem and doesn't necessarily have the best tools to help soldiers was fantastic.

The scenes of the actual firefight were very strong in that they showed the bravery and risk soldiers take in a war such as the ones we fought in Afghanistan and Iraq. To have made a possible error with lives on the line is difficult to accept. To learn of a betrayal while overseas only compounded and added tinder to the raging bull within him.

LeBeouf was outstanding. To show the audience internal rage inside, while controlling the exterior of his face is a rare skill and here it was amazing. I felt the on-the-edge of bursting so much my heart ached. Courtney was excellent as his close friend. Having his back in war and in the apocalyptic world despite the betrayal, was perfect. Mara was wonderful in her role. The way she wanted and needed Gabriel to be there for her was palpable. Oldman was very good as the Marine counselor who worked on getting Gabriel to share his story and feelings. Shotwell was great as the young boy who loved and idolized his dad through it all. Simon wrote a very engaging and strong script. Using “Man Down” as the title and Gabriel and Johnathan’s code words – really worked for me as it expressed it all. Montiel had a great handle on this film. The lighting, sets, and sounds were very effective and he got powerful performances while telling a “need to hear” story.

Overall:  This film is haunting and important.

Elle

First Hit:  An excellent, detailed and complex study of a woman who has had a life filled with misfortune.

Michele Leblanc (Isabelle Huppert) is strong, independent and lives in a large home in Paris. Although there is a hint of compassion in her eyes, she is a coldish acting company owner that creates video games. There is a power struggle with one of her game developers but she’s supported by her assistant Anna (Anne Consigny) who is a longtime friend.

To develop Michele’s character, we witness her being raped and the filmmakers choose to show us this multiple times from slightly different perspectives in the first third of the film. She is having an affair. She supports her mom Irene (Judith Magre), who continues to have plastic surgery and courts young men to sleep with. Her son Vincent (Jonas Bloquet) is in a relationship with Josie (Alice Isaaz), a woman she doesn’t approve of because this girl is somewhat abusive of her son.

There are other things going on in her life, but it is the slow unfolding about her childhood and reason her father is in jail that provides context to her direct coolness in dealing with the people in her life.

As the film winds towards its end, Michele learns more about herself and the deep-rooted feelings residing within while beginning to change what needs to be changed.

The reuse of the rape scene, although difficult to watch, was effective because each time she (and we the audience) learns something about herself. It was a risky film making move and it worked. The work environment felt current in that the way the staff interacted. Each scene in this film had a place and a reason although, at times when the scene played out, it seemed over done or misplaced.

Huppert was excellent in this role. Her intelligence, beauty, and clarity in this role came through powerfully. She was the film. Cosingy was very good as Michele’s best friend and work partner. Magre was funny and excellent as the woman who wanted to defy what happened to her family. Bloquet was interesting as the son that was ruled by his mom and wanted to begin to define his own territory. Laurent Lafitte was really good as the neighbor who had things to hide. Isaaz was perfect as the on-edge girlfriend with a power chip on her shoulder. David Birke wrote a complex screenplay that was effectively film and directed by Paul Verhoeven.

Overall:  This was a complex film as reflected by the complex character.