One of the best sources for absolute film escape is that of the genre of fantasy. Anything can happen in one of these films which makes the imagination run rampant in the mind of a screenwriter. People or animals can disappear and reappear, one can enter another dimension, time or even die and come back to life. The options are limitless. With "Miss Peregrine's School for Peculiar Children", we have total fantasy which makes any moviegoer able to escape their humdrum, 'normal', problematic life and be able to enter into another time and another world even if it's only for a couple of hours.
After a family tragedy involving Granddad, Abe (Terence Stamp), Jake (Asa Butterfield) discovers clues to a mystery that spans different worlds and times. All this information brings him to Wales where he finds a magical place known as Miss Peregrine's School for Peculiar Children headed up by one, Miss Alma LeFay Peregrine (Eva Green). But the mystery and danger deepen as he gets to know the residents including Emma (Ella Purnell), Enoch (Finlay McMillan), Olive (Lauren McCrostie), Millard (Cameron King and others, and learns more about their peculiar powers... and their powerful enemies including Baron (Samuel L. Jackson). Ultimately, Jake discovers that only his own special 'peculiarity' can save his new friends. Jake soon comes to realize that his inherited ability he received from his Granddad, Abe was something that was meant to be long before Jake knew anything.
Others to round out the cast are Judi Dench as Miss Avocet, Rupert Everett as Ornithologist, Allison Janney as Dr. Golan, Chris O'Dowd as Frank, Jake's dad, Hayden Keeler-Stone as Horace, Georgia Pemberton as Fiona, Milo Parker as Hugh, Raffiela Chapman as Claire, Dixie Davies as Bronwyn, Louis Davidson as Victor, Kim Dickens as Jake's mom and O-Lan Jones as Shelley.
This was darkly yet whimsically directed by veteran Tim Burton ("Pee-wee's Big Adventure" '85, "Beetlejuice" '88, "Batman" '89, "Edward Scissorhands" '90, "Ed Wood" '94, "Sleepy Hollow" '99, "Big Fish" '03, "Corpse Bride" '05, "Alice in Wonderland" '10, "Frankenweenie" '12, "Big Eyes" '14) plus many others. I always look forward to a Burton film, because he has the ability to present to his audience that dark film that not only one can escape into, but one where it speaks volumes in the form of a message we all can learn from. He chooses dark, unfairly treated characters (which matches his background) in a way so we can see why and how these characters end up the way they do. Hence a message in which to learn. If, like me, you like Burton's films, "Beetlejuice 2" with Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder has been announced. It was brilliantly written by Jane Goldman ("Kick-Ass" '10, "X-Men: First Class" '11, "Kingsman: The Secret Service" '14) plus others. One of the best attributes of a Goldman screenplay is the ability to produce a slickly, well orchestrated film that is as cohesive as it is fluid. Each and every film she's written involves rich, well thought and well developed characters as with this film. And, like with Burton, if you like her work, "Kingsman: The Golden Circle" is in post production as I'm writing this.
When I saw my first trailer of this film, my gut said that this was going to be the perfect movie in which to sit back and escape enjoying the roller coaster ride it produces. It has adventure, thrills, humor, fantasy all in a nifty 3D format. See this one in the multiplex lest it will lose everything on a 40 incher. Grab the popcorn!
Out of 4 Stars: 4 Rated: PG-13 127mins.
We've all seen films in which a certain amount of revenge must be exacted to make things right, but typically they end up going awry and start falling apart. As I went to see "The Dressmaker", I went through a bit of trepidation thinking, since this is a 'revenge' film, will I really like this? To be honest, I originally wanted to see this for the cast, but the storyline was intriguing. So I went and was pleasantly surprised.
An accomplished dressmaker named Myrtle 'Tilly' Dunnage (Kate Winslet) returns to her backwoods hometown in 1950's Australia, which she fled at a young age after she was accused of murdering a boy. While running a local dress shop, Tilly investigates the murder mystery that ruined her life, and plans her revenge on those responsible.
Through reconnecting with certain residents of Dungatar, the name of the small town, she gets to know Teddy McSwiney (Liam Hemsworth) once again. She did have a degree of admiration for him since she came to realize that he was responsible for looking in on Tilly's mother, Molly (Judy Davis) to make sure she was alright. Through her investigating, she picked the brain of the town's Sergeant Farrat (Hugo Weaving) in extracting information of what actually happened that fateful day of the killing of the boy, and she was able to transform the different women of the community using her dressmaking talents so as to establish their trust.
Others to round out the cast are Sarah Snook as Gertrude 'Trudy' Pratt, Caroline Goodall as Elsbeth, Kerry Fox as Beulah Harridiene, Rebecca Gibney as Muriel Pratt, James Mackay as William Beaumont, Hayley Magnus as Prudence, Gyton Grantley as Barney McSwiney, Teddy's brother, Julia Blake as Irma Almanac, Shane Jacobson as Alvin Pratt, Barry Otto as Percival Almanac and Sacha Horler as Una Pleasance.
This was directed with clarity and a certain amount of wit by Jocelyn Moorhouse ("Pavane" '83, "Proof" '91, "How to Make an American Quilt" '95, "A Thousand Acres" '97). The coolness that Winslet's Tilly exuded was amazingly executed with enough confidence without her looking pompous. Moorhouse doesn't work constantly, but what she's done is eclectic and extremely interesting. It was also written by Moorhouse (" Pavane" '83, "Proof" '91, "Unconditional Love" '02) plus TV. What makes this storyline well laid out is the fact that as she is pouring her heart out with her mother, Tilly relives, little by little, the fateful day of the boy's murder. It's like she shut a lot out because she didn't want to relive it again. Her over confidence is quite evident as she spews out the first line in the film: "I'm back you bastards". This is said as she steps off the bus she arrives in when it enters the town. The combination of drama and the dry comedic moments were executed with finesse, whereas when the comic moments happened, you weren't exactly expecting them. Other than a couple of very small slow places in script, this screenplay was well delineated. There were surprises (both good and bad) that will keep you riveted to the screen, and the different character development was pulled off with finesse, but considering the phenomenal cast, it's no wonder.
What truly makes this film rock is the directing, the way the writer handled a 'revenge' film unlike we've seen prior, and the acting, specifically by Winslet. Her confidence and vulnerability she exuded was something that could be up for consideration come Oscar time. It's a stylish film that is about love, revenge and haute couture.
Out of 4 Stars: 3.5 Rated: R 118mins.
Of all the genres that comprises Hollywood films, one of the oldest is that of the western. We've all grown up watching films and TV shows with guns a blazing and the good guys eventually gunning it out with the bad guys in the street of the town at high noon. So when I saw my first trailer of the reboot of "The Magnificent Seven", I felt in my gut that this film is going to rock and it does in spades.
In this remake of the 1960 classic of the same name (itself a Western remake of Akira Kurosawa's masterpiece, "The Seven Samurai"), seven gunslingers join forces in order to protect Rose Creek, a small town from a mining tycoon, Bartholomew Bogue (Peter Sarsgaard) and his goons who plan to seize the residents' land by force. The seven man army is led by a mysterious bounty hunter, Sam Chisolm (Denzel Washington), and also includes a sharp-witted gambler, Josh Faraday (Chris Pratt), a troubled ex-Civil War soldier, Goodnight Robicheaux (Ethan Hawke), a mountain man, Jack Horne (Vincent D'Onofrio), an expert knife thrower, Billy Rocks (Byung hun-Lee), an outlaw, Vasquez (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo), and a Comanche warrior, Red Harvest (Martin Sensmeier) all hired by Emma Cullen (Haley Bennett), one of the resisdents of Rose Creek.
Others to round out the cast are Luke Grimes as Teddy Q, Matt Bomer as Matthew Cullen, husband of Emma, Jonathan Ross as Devali, Cam Gigandet as McCann, Emil Beheshti as Maxwell and Mark Ashworth as Preacher.
This was grittily and intensely directed by Antoine Fuqua ("The Replacement Killers" '98, "Bait" 2000, "Training Day" '01, "Tears of the Sun" '03, "King Arthur" '04, "Shooter" '07, "Brooklyn's Finest" '09, "Olympus Has Fallen" '13, "The Equalizer" '14, "Southpaw" '15) plus TV movies and documentaries. This filmmaker is a consummate pro in the ability of getting his actors to emit the right amount of emotion with just the right timing. Of course, working again with both Washington and Hawke as he did in "Training Day" makes this time around that much easier for him. He had mentioned that he'd always wanted to direct a western and jumped at the chance. This film was made for him to direct considering its quality. It was well-crafted by writers Richard Wenk and Nic Pizzolatto. While Wenk has quite a bit of feature film writing experience, Pizzolatto only has TV writing experience. It seems like this was a learning experience for Pizzolatto working under the wings of Wenk. Wenk has written for other Fuqua films in the past, so the working relationship certainly is spot on between writer and director. The continuity, staging, pacing, and cohesiveness of this script was amazing. With the exception of "Ocean's Eleven", this reboot was probably better than the 1960 version. Of course the original version "Seven Samurai" written by Akira Kirosawa, Shinobu Hashimoto and Hideo Oguni was a masterpiece. Another aspect of this that shined was that of cinematographer, Mauro Fiore, asc ("Training Day" '01, "Avatar" '09, "The Equalizer" '14, "Southpaw" '15) plus many others. As with his past films, his photography is distinct, concise and cutting edge. This film has that sweeping feel to its photography being in the wide outdoors, and with that exudes a fantastic look on the large screen.
What makes this film more than it being a well made western is the quality of the people who worked on it. Fuqua, Washington, Pratt, Hawke and many others were at the top of their craft with this production. Even if the western genre isn't your favorite, this is so well made that you will be able to overlook that aspect and be able to escape and not only enjoy the acting, directing and writing, but be entertained as well. Go and enjoy the ride. I know I did.
Out of 4 Stars: 4 Rated: PG-13 132mins.
Usually the summer film season is reserved for the animated movies, but considering the popularity of them growing by the year, they are seen in just about any time of the year. So now with "The Wild Life" in the offing this time around, we see a new twist on a very old story replete with scads of animals and one lone Robinson Crusoe.
Daniel Defoe's classic tale of survival gets a twist in this family-friendly animated adventure. On a tiny exotic island, Mak (David Howard), an outgoing parrot lives with his quirky animal friends, including Kiki (Lindsay Torrance), Rosie (Laila Berzins), Epi (Sandy Fox), Carmello (Celine Metzger) and others, in paradise. However, Mak can't stop dreaming about discovering the world outside the island. After a violent storm, Mak and his friends wake up to find a strange creature on the beach: Robinson Crusoe (Matthias Schweighofer) and his dog Aynsley (Doug Stone). Mak immediately views Crusoe as his ticket off the island to explore new lands. Likewise, Crusoe soon realizes that the key to surviving on the island is through the help of Mak or Tuesday as Crusoe calls him, and the other animals. It isn't always easy at first, as the animals don't speak 'human'. Slowly but surely, they all start living together in harmony, until one day, when their comfortable life is overturned by two savage cats, Mal (Jeff Douchette) and May (Debi Tinsley) who wish to take control of the island. A battle ensues between the cats and the group of friends, but Crusoe and the animals soon discover the true power of friendship up against all odds (even savage cats).
Others to round out the cast are Michael Sorich as Cecil, Jay Jones as Friday, B. J. Oakie as Rufus, Joey Camen as Scrubby and Kirk Thornton as Bosun.
This was wittily directed by Vincent Kesteloot ("A Turtle's Tale 2: Sammy's Escape from Paradise" '12) and Ben Strassen ("Fly Me to the Moon 3D" '08, "A Turtle's Tale: Sammy's Adventure" '10, "Thunder and the House of Magic" '13) plus others. The pacing and staging of the characters were executed with great detail. These guys will go even farther that they already are at now. It was written by Lee Christopher, Domonic Paris and Graham Welldon based on Daniel Defoe's classic story. With the exception of Paris, the other two writers certainly have limited experience, so with that said, I'm willing to be a bit more forgiving when it comes to the writing. Not that the writing was unremarkable, but it did have some slow places in script and some of the lines were contrite and ordinary. the forgiveness not only comes from the lack of writing experience, but also this was clearly written as a children's bedtime story, so its audience is going to be a bit limited instead of marketing to a wider audience. It was simply conveyed, so instead of having a screenplay that's savvy with adult humor like a lot of the animated films, we are presented a story that is simple with humor that a child could certainly appreciate. The original title of this film was "Robinson Crusoe" which certainly is not as interestingly exciting as "The Wild Life".
As stated above, if you're into a simple script with very easy to understand humor, this will appease well, but if you're demand is that of a more sophisticated storyline, this will probably not be a film that will hold your attention for too long.
Out of 4 Stars: 2.5 Rated: PG 91mins.
Certainly the 21st century has its drawbacks as did past centuries, and the biggest pitfall is that of the internet--and the problems with it that ensues. When "Snowden" came along, it was a film that had to be produced, especially with the backlash of what "The Fifth Estate" did for peaking audiences' attention of the problem of privacy vs. national security. You remember "The Fifth Estate", about the founder of WikiLeaks, Julian Assange (Benedict Cumberbach) and his problems of being a whistle-blower.
This docudrama reveals the incredible untold personal story of controversial whistle-blower, Edward Snowden (Joseph Gordon-Leavitt), the polarizing figure who exposed shocking illegal covert surveillance activities by the NSA and became one of the most wanted men in the world.
The story is presented as a series of flashbacks as Snowden has decided to tell his story to documentarian, Laura Poitras (Melissa Leo) with Glenn Greenwald (Zachary Quinto) of the Guardian newspaper interviewing along with Ewen MacAskill (Tim Wilkinson) in Hong Kong in June, 2013. He tells them how he got started with the CIA in 2004 with Corbin O'Brian (Rhys Ifans) as his instructor and boss. And also when and how he meets his girlfriend, Lindsay Mills (Shailene Woodley), and the story then leads them up to present day with all the pitfalls--the snowball just gets larger and larger.
Others to round out the cast are Nicolas Cage as Hank Forrester, one of Snowden's instructors, Joely Richardson as Janine Gibson, Timothy Olyphant as CIA Agent Geneva, Scott Eastwood as Trevor James, Ben Schnetzer as Gabriel Sol, Lakeith Lee Stanfield as Patrick Haynes, Ben Chaplin as Robert Tibbo and Bhasker Patel as Marwan Al-Kirmani.
This was decisively directed by filmmaker veteran Oliver Stone ("Platoon" '86, "Wall Street" '87, "Born on the Fourth of July" '89, "JFK" '91, "Natural Born Killers" '94, "Nixon" '95, "Any Given Sunday" '99, "World Trade Center" '06, "W." '08, "Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps" '10, "Savages" '12) plus several others. One thing about Stone's direction is he does dig deep in drawing out the different nuances of the characters he's dealing with, whether they be based on fact or fiction. This was adequately written by Kieran Fitzgerald and Stone in that another thing also about Stone is his inability to be objective, whether this be purposed or not. Certainly Stone is being a whistle-blower in his own rights, so it's no wonder that he writes a good deal about different individuals who become whistle-blowers themselves. If he could give a bit more info about the other side in which he's writing, I believe it could make his screenplays that much more powerful. This script has Stone's handprint all over it, so Fitzgerald, being a virtual newbie compared to Stone, probably was there to soak up all of Stone's experience which Stone does have aplenty. There were a couple of small slow spots in this, but overall it does give you that one, two punch that has become Stone's trademark.
If you're into governmental cover ups or even conspiracy theories, this is a film that is tailor made for you. This certainly has information that doesn't surprise in some ways, but is revealing in other ways. One thing for sure, if we, as a society, want things to change for the better, we have to react majorly as a people before we can expect anything to change. It's really up to us. If this film is pointing to any message, I believe this is it.
Out of 4 Stars: 3 Rated: R 134mins.
"I'm sorry Dave, I'm afraid I can't do that". This has got to be the most infamous line in the film, "2001: A Space Odyssey" released in 1968 and this line is still known by most today. I went to a theater where this was playing for one night at one time and, yes you won't be able to catch this on the large screen, but if you haven't seen this classic, rent or Netflix it soon. For a film that was considered to be the most misunderstood film of the 1960's, this film has been able to hold its own with a faithful audience that continues for decades.
This mind-bending sci-fi symphony pushed the limits of narrative and special effects toward a meditation on technology and humanity. Written in four movements: 1) The dawn of man, 2) The monolith discovered on the moon, 3) Space travel on spacecraft Discovery on a Jupiter mission, and 4) Bowman's journey to "Jupiter and beyond the infinite", this is a trek of major proportions about the beginning of man to the infinite end of what we know as real.
Sometime in the far distant past, someone or something placed a large monolith on Earth (presumably elsewhere throughout the universe as well). Then someone or thing enabled mankind to reach the moon's surface, where yet another monolith is found, one that signals the monolith placers that mankind has gotten to this point thus far. Now a race begins between computer, HAL 9000 (Douglas Rain) and human, Dr. Dave Bowman (Keir Dullea) to reach the monolith placers. The winner will achieve the next step of what are things to come, whatever that may be.
Others to round out the cast are Gary Lockwood as Dr. Frank Poole, William Sylvester as Dr. Heywood R. Floyd, Daniel Richter as Moon-Watcher, Leonard Rossiter as Dr. Andrei Smyslov, Margaret Tyzack as Elena, Robert Beatty as Dr. Ralph Halvorsen, Sean Sullivan as Dr. Bill Michaels, Frank Miller as Mission Controller, Bill Weston as Astronaut, Glenn Beck as Astronaut, Edwina Carroll as Aries-IB Stewardess, Mike Lovell as Astronaut and Martin Amor as Interviewer.
This was brilliantly directed by Stanley Kubrick ("Paths of Glory" '57, "Spartacus" '60, "Lolita" '63, "Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb" '64, "A Clockwork Orange" '71, "Barry Lyndon" '75, "The Shining" '80, "Full Metal Jacket" '87, "Eyes Wide Shut" '99) plus others. His subtleness in how his actors are portrayed is not only realistic but also makes a statement that high emotion doesn't always need to be used in a sci-fi film to be effective. The director was a consummate professional and it's sorrowful that he will not be able to entertain us with his incredibly well crafted film since his demise. This was eerily and quirkily written by Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke based on the story "The Sentinel" by Clarke. Again, Kubrick was an incredibly gifted writer and this film was no exception. Of all the sci-fi films out there (and there is a plethora), this film virtually stands out way beyond the rest with originality and creativity.
I'm not a huge fan of the sci-fi genre, but this movie not only is my favorite sci-fi film, but also one of my favorite films of all time. So much so that when I was in college in the 1970's, I studied architecture and my architectural seminar and project was to redraw the sets of this film and in making slides and presented it orally, I gave my explanation of how the film was created architecturally. It was certainly a labor of love. The special photographic effects that were supervised by Douglas Trumball, Wally Veevers, Con Pederson and Tom Howard were actually given a special Academy Award for their incredible creativity. This was amazing considering the Academy hadn't even had that category back then. When the film was released in 1968 it was presented in both Cinerama and Super Panavision 70 which was unusual considering only a small handful of films were presented in this format at that time.
Surely, as I mentioned above, you won't be able to see this on the large screen, but if you have a large screen TV or know someone who does, rent or Netflix this film and enjoy this gem. Watching this film is not to see it but to experience it. Grab the popcorn and enjoy! I know I did.
Out of 4 Stars: 4 Rated: G 149mins.
OK, it's time to fess up. I'm not overly fond of the horror film genre, so when they're released, I have a tendency to avoid them at all costs. Why? Because, demographically, they have a tendency to be extremely predictable, contrived, poorly written with gratuitous violence that grabs you by the juggler. I had heard that "Don't Breathe" was different, so as I went to the theater with great trepidation, and my fears were confirmed to a certain degree.
Three friends, Rocky (Jane Levy), Alex (Dylan Minnette) and Money (Daniel Zovatto) plot to end their money woes by burglaring the home of a wealthy, but blind recluse (Stephen Lang) who happens to reside in one of the worst neighborhoods of Detroit, however the heist quickly goes awry when they discover that their target is concealing a horrifying secret--and realizes that he isn't as harmless as they thought. So when this blind man turns out to be more than he seems, the trio must find a way to escape his house before they become his newest victims.
Others to round out the cast are Emma Bercovici as Diddy, Rocky's younger sister, Franciska Torocsik as Cindy, Christian Zagia as Raul, Katia Bokor as Ginger and Sergej Onopko as Trevor.
This was intensely and grittily directed by Fede Alvarez ("Evil Dead" '13) plus shorts and TV. Obviously, this filmmaker is a virtual newbie and even with this fact acknowledged, he was able to deliver the right amount of fright and energy that one would expect in a film of this type. He is certainly comfortable with this genre considering his experience. Considering the other horror films I've seen, he is truly he best. It was adequately written by Alvarez and Rodo Sayagues. This is where the trouble lies with this production. Even though the script was carried out in a thoughtful way, there were too many areas of storyline that needed more explanation. I would bring up a couple of those questions, however it would spoil part of the plot in doing so. There was a certain degree of predictability, but with this genre, to be objective, there usually is some. Even in the best of horror screenplays, some predictability reigns true, it's just so disappointing to see predictability run this genre to the degree it has done for years.
Like I said, this is one of the better films of this genre I have seen recently, which doesn't give much credit to this, but there were still problems with it. And not to spoil anything, but at the end, all's I can say is S-E-Q-U-E-L. Bottom line is if you like horror, you'll love this, and if you truly don't, rent the video or Netflix it and save yourself some bucks.
Out of 4 Stars: 2 Rated: R 88mins.
There are some films that makes one wonder why did they produced a film based on that event or person. Did they simply run out of ideas for subject matter or was it for the shear ca-ching factor? Well if any film was rife for making an effective film based on true events, it would be that of "Sully".
On Thursday, January 15th, 2009, the world witnessed the "Miracle on the Hudson" when Captain Chesley Sullenberger, nicknamed "Sully" (Tom Hanks) glided his disabled airline jet onto the frigid waters of the Hudson River, saving the lives of all 155 on board. However, even as Sully was being heralded by the public and the media for his unprecedented feat of aviation skill, an NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board) investigation headed up by Charles Porter (Mike O'Malley), Ben Edwards (Jamey Sheridan) and Elizabeth Davis (Anna Gunn) was unfolding that threatened to destroy Sully's reputation and his career even though his first officer, Jeff Skiles (Aaron Eckhart), being his obvious witness, was by his side continuously.
Others to round out the cast are Laura Linney as Elaine Sullenberger, Sully's wife, Valerie Mahaffey as Diane Higgins, Delphi Harrington as Lucille Palmer, Holt McCallany as Mike Cleary, Ahmed Lucan as Egyptian limo driver and Jeff Kober as LT Cook.
This was seamlessly directed by the consummate veteran, Clint Eastwood ("Play Misty for Me" '71, "The Outlaw Josey Wales" '76, "Pale Rider" '85, "Unforgiven" '92, "True Crime" '99, "Mystic River" '03, "Million Dollar Baby" '04, "Gran Torino" '08, "Invictus" '09, "J. Edgar" '11, "Jersey Boys" '14, "American Sniper" '14) plus many other films too numerous to list. Suffice it to say, this filmmaker knows how to get his actors to emit the right emotion, to convey a believability of character to make a film soar like no other. For an 86 year-old professional, this is amazing--it would be an amazing feat for a director 30 years Eastwood's junior. This guy obviously loves films so much that he will probably pass away on a set of one of his films. It was surprisingly written well by virtual newcomer, Tom Komarnicki ("Resistance" '03, "Perfect Stranger" '07). Sure this writer has experience, but considering the lack of longevity in a field that lives by the adage "practice makes perfect", this was an extremely well-crafted script. Of course, this film being based on the book, "Highest Duty" by Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger and Jeffrey Zaslow certainly was an amazing reference in which to write a stunning screenplay. And with Hanks at the top of his game here, certainly at his top in a long time, how could this be anything of a questionable film in all circles? Even the visual effects predominantly created by MPC (Moving Picture Company) didn't take away from the seriousness of the subject matter, not to mention the message it holds, but they actually enhanced the film. I'll tell you, anyone who is curious to see how the 'system' of an investigative effort in the arena of aviation would be taking notes during this--it is that detail oriented.
When this happened back in 2009, I knew it would be made into a film, it being fraught with plenty of circumstances that would make for a stellar story, and after viewing this, my thoughts back then were founded in a film that is both informative and entertaining all in a 96 minute running time.
Out of 4 Stars: 4 Rated: PG-13 96mins.
We, as a society, seem to have a fascination in creating something artificial from an natural source, and in most cases, the object is that of another human being, and believe we can get away with it. We've seen many incarnations of this in films: "A.I. Artificial Intelligence" '01, "Godsend" '04, "Ex Machina" '15 plus others. This concept of film ideas basically came from "Frankenstein" '31 and has not let up since to the point that we have yet another in the form of "Morgan".
A corporate risk-management consultant, Lee Weathers (Kate Mara) must determine the fate of a mysterious bioengineered artificial being called Morgan (Anya Taylor-Joy), which has begun evolving at a faster rate than anticipated. When Morgan inexplicably attacks one of her creators, Dr. Kathy Grieff (Jennifer Jason Leigh), the group including Dr. Simon Ziegler (Toby Jones), Dr. Amy Menser (Rose Leslie), Dr. Lui Cheng (Michelle Yeoh) and others surrounding her are pressed to make a decision. They even attempt to bring in an outside psychiatrist, Dr. Alan Shapiro (Paul Giamatti) to assist in their findings, but eventually to no avail.
Others to round out the cast are Michael Yare as Ted Brenner, Chris Sullivan as Dr. Darren Finch, Boyd Holbrook as Skip Vronsky, Vinette Robinson as Dr. Brenda Finch, Brian Cox as Jim Bryce, Crispian Belfrage as Charles Grimes and Jonathan Aris as David Chance.
One thing I've noticed about newer directors and writers is that they are either very good or very bad in their execution. This was remarkably well directed by Luke Scott ("Loom" (short) '12) plus TV. Of course, his father being that of famed Ridley Scott, some of his talent had to of rubbed off on son, Luke. The emotion (or lack thereof) that he was able to exude from actors Mara and Taylor-Joy was phenomenal. I am interested in what he will be handed next. It was written by virtual newcomer Seth Owen ("Peepers" '10) plus TV. Again, considering the lack of theatrical experience, this script was well thought out. Surely, there were some areas of choppiness and slowness, but certainly not enough to distract from the premise at hand. The real stunner here was Mara's role as the cold, calculating risk management consultant. She absolutely made that role just off the pages of the screenplay. And Giamatti's small but pivotal role as the psychiatrist was one of his best.
As with the other films, this certainly teaches us that we can't and should not attempt to alter anything that is natural, whether it be in cloning, artificial intelligence, or even genetically modified organisms (GMO), lest we run into a plethora of problems that we should come to expect.
Out of 4 Stars: 3 Rated: R 92mins.
As the summer film season is slowly coming to an end, it's time for Hollywood to start rafting out their certain dose of dramas--mostly smaller productions. Case in point is that of "The Light Between Oceans" whereas its core premise centers around a younger couple and their desperation in having a family and will do just about anything to obtain one. We've seen films of this type before, but not as carefully crafted as this one.
An Australian World War I veteran, Tom Sherbourne (Michael Fassbender) takes a position as a lighthouse keeper in the year 1918 on an isolated island off the coast of Western Australia. He meets his future wife, Isabel Graysmark (Alicia Vikander) at a social function her parents, Bill Graysmark (Garry Macdonald) and Violet (Jane Menelaus) are giving at the nearest coastal town, and the two hit it off almost instantly. Soon they wed and the two start their new life alone at the lighthouse. Once settled, they notice a small dinghy that washes ashore with a newborn inside, and after much discussion, they decide to raise the infant as their own. This obviously brings in a barrage of questions: who is this infant? Even though the father appears to have died, where's the mother? Should they tell the authorities?
Others to round out the cast are Rachel Weisz as Hannah Roenfeldt, Florence Clery as Lucy-Grace, Bryan Brown as Septimus Potts, Jack Thompson as Ralph Addicott, Emily Barclay as Gwen Potts, Thomas Unger as Bluey Smart, Anthony Hayes as Sgt. Vernon Knuckley and Leon Ford as Frank Roenfeldt.
This was painstakingly well delineated by writer and director Derek Cianfrance ("Brother Tied" '98, "Blue Valentine" '10, "Cagefighter" (Documentary) '12, "The Place Beyond the Pines" '12) plus shorts and TV documentaries. The subtleness of the different character emotions, given certain pivotal scenes, were incredibly realistic, however with actors such as Fassbender and Vikander, it certainly helps. His writing of this was cleverly honed with such pathos from his characters that one felt that you were eavesdropping into someone's life. And really other than a couple of small places of slowness, this seemingly ordinary couple living lives with good and bad times just jumped off its pages and certainly kept my attention throughout this two and a quarter hour running time. I don't want to give too much away, but suffice it to say this story certainly lives by the old adage, "oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive". You be the judge.
If fine acting, directing and writing is your passion, this is the film that will appease that yearning, however if something shallow, back-stabbing, conniving is more your thing, this film is something that not only you might not like, but even more to the point, it probably is a film you shouldn't see as well.
Out of 4 Stars: 3.5 Rated: PG-13 133mins.
One of the best sources for absolute film escape is that of the genre of fantasy. Anything can happen in one of these films which makes the imagination run rampant in the mind of a screenwriter. People or animals can disappear and reappear, one can enter another dimension, time or even die and come back to life. The options are limitless. With "Miss Peregrine's School for Peculiar Children", we have total fantasy which makes any moviegoer able to escape their humdrum, 'normal', problematic life and be able to enter into another time and another world even if it's only for a couple of hours. 
