Movie #2120 ........................."Fahrenheit 451 "(2018) (DVD)

 Movie #2120 "Fahrenheit 451" (2028) (DVD) --- I am well acquainted with Truffaut's rendition of this book, and I hold it in high esteem ---- this does not measure up to that one at all --- save the burning sequences and production design.  In fact, the opening promises so much more than the film delivers --- it is what I would expect in this particular time period it is exposing --- when there's just one source of news and it is like twitter, when censorship is at its peak, and when there's all flash and no substance to the entertaininment.  That's what is  lacking in this rendition --- substance.  Michael Shannon does well in his forceful bad guy portrayal --- he's getting too good at it, so he risks being playing this role ad infinitum.  And I expected so much more from Michael B. Jordan, one of my favorite actors --- his character is skeletal ---- yeah, he's getting "burned out" but without a wife who just watches t.v. all day, and a neighbor who poses ideas other than what Beatty delivers, it's hard for him to start questioning --- the scene where everything changes --- the self-immolation of the book lady --- is the best in the movie and it has to be to make him change his mind.  But the rest is just a steady pace to  , what I would consider, a silly ending.  There are two big surprises in the original novel, and they ruined both of them here by telling us the info too soon.  And exposition is greatly lacking here --- not enough is told -- the director wanted to show, I guess -- but once again just flashing images.  There is no doubt a great need to revisit Bradybury's great book  again --- to remind us what we could be losing by censoring  and bending to the will of a misguided movement, but this isn't the vehicle.  So my advice?   Go read the book!  I give it 3 out of 5 --  it may spark the watcher into having a burning desire to pick up the book and read it!  (excuse the puns)

"FAHRENHEIT 451"         2018      1 hour and 40 minutes

In a terrifying care-free future, a young man, Guy Montag, whose job as a fireman is to burn all books, questions his actions after meeting a young woman and begins to rebel against society.

Director:  Ramin Bahrani

Writers:  Ramin Behrani and Amir Naderi (screenplay writers)

Stars: Michael B. Jordan, Michael Shannon, Sophia Boutella (who isn't written in the IMDB credits - huh?)

PS -- this is from someone who writes far better --- just in case I wasn't clear in my blog, this is from a Roger Ebert writer:

I wish “Fahrenheit 451” had been as dynamic and fiery as its very effective opening credits sequence. Bahrani shoots extreme close-ups of book pages burning, their words and images contorting and exploding grotesquely across the screen. There’s a kinetic energy to it, a promise of something far more daring than we get. Despite boasting a darker fate for Montag than Bradbury envisioned, this version of “Fahrenheit 451” lacks the burning commentary that would justify why the filmmakers wanted to revisit this story in the first place.            

Movie #2119 ........................."The Thing About Pam " (NBC, miniseries)

 "The Thing About Pam" --- well, I went out of my way to dvr this every time it was on because I like Rene Zellweger, and crime stories are interesting to me, but by the end of this, I was very disappointed.  The character started out really quirky (and evidently this person in real life is like this, because they showed some video of her at the end of the series) , but the script was very weak to me.  It gradually got worse and worse while I watched it --- the cops were too "stupid,"  the district attorney was too spineless, the defense attorney a little too dogged, the husband too "Out of it," her kid too creepy, and her neighbor too clueless....and the list goes on.  I can't believe that the screenplay writer didn't take some liberties with this story, but if he/she didn't, then I don't think I ever would have made the movie because the story is just too silly to believe.  Here is this Pam who has read all of the mysteries, making bonehead mistakes  ---- I guess I prefer smarter criminals who are outsmarted by smarter police persons, so this series was just too silly for me.  Maybe I missed the whole boat and this was a comedy?  in that case, the score might be higher, but then  I would complain about the inconsistent tone throughout.  Either way, I would rate this 2.5 out of 5 --- There were some moments that worked, but not enough for a 6 part series.  

PS -- maybe I missed something, which is quite possible, but some things were left unexplained --- I'll just give one example --- her slippers --- they made a big deal about it, but ?

'THE THING ABOUT PAM"        2022      4 hours and 18 mins 

Based on the 2011 murder of Betsy Faria that resulted in her husband, Russ' conviction, but he insisted he did not kill her.  This brutal crime set off a chain of events that would expose a diabolical scheme deeply involving Pam Hupp.

Stars :  Renee Zellweger, Josh Duhamel, Judy Greer

Writers:  Travis Sentell and a crew of 6 other writers (Ah!  therein lies the problem!)

 

Movie #2118 ........................."The Outlaws" (Amazon Prime- t.v. series)

 Movie #2118 "The Outlaws" (Amazon Prime - t.v.series)  Here is another series recommendation --- once again, an oddball show with lots of drama, humor, quirky characters and it all deals with community service, and people trying to change their ways (that landed them in this mess) but are tempted by gangland money they get dropped into their laps.  Just the combination of Stephen Merchant (British Office) and Christopher Walken got us to watch it, and we are glad we did.  We could have done without the gang fighting, but otherwise, we loved the characters and storylines, and there looks to be  a second season (6 more episodes)    .  4 out of 5.

"THE OUTLAWS"   2021       6  episodes       about 40 mins each

Seven strangers from different walks of life forced together to complete a community payback sentence in Bristol (England)

Creators:  Elgin James, Stephen Merchant

Actrors:  Christopher Walken, Stephen Merchant, Thianne Barreto, Darren Boyd, Gamba Cole

Movie #2117 ........................."Resident Alien , Season 2 (FX )

 Movie #2117 "Resident Alien, Season 2 (FX) we loved the first season , and this second season  did not disappoint -- Harry, the alien, is still in rare form, trying to connect back to his home on the other planet -- the plot thickens in this season with a new little alien baby that is introduced (can I compare it to "alien" and not give too much away?)  the storylines continue to be  funny at times, dramatic at others, and overall hysterically scary funny --- if you like quirky, this might be just the show for you ---- it's the first one in season 1 that you have buy into to enjoy the rest of the shows...........I give this second season  a 4 out of 5.

"RESIDENT ALIEN"  season 2, about 40 mins each   2021-22      8 episodes in season 2

An alien, who has crashed landed on earth on a mission to destroy humanity, assumes the identity of Dr. Harry Vanderspeigel, so he can remain undetected by the residents of Patience, Cowhile he searches the snow-covered Colorado Mountains for pieces of his ship.  He learns "to be human " by watching Law and Order and mimicking the late, great Jerry Orbach.  One day the sheriff of Patience, Mike "Big Black" Thompson and his deputy, Liv Baker, show up at his isolated cabin.  There has been a murder in town and they need a doctor.  The murder victim is the town doctor.  Soon, he finds himself as the new town doctor and in constant contact with the people of the town.  Something until now, he has vehemently avoided.  Now as he is spending more time with humans, he is learning more about them and what makes them human.  Which gives him pause, but is still determined to complete his mission to destroy the people of earth . He also discovers there is one person in town who can see him in his true form, which, of course, is less than ideal (and a little kid)  Perfect balance of dark comedy, drama, and a wonderfully oddball sci-fi all packaged into a small town setting. 

Creator:  Chris Sheridan

Actors:  Alan Tudyk 

Movie #2116 ........................."Better Nate Than Ever" (Disney+)

 Movie #2116 "Better Nate Than Ever" (Disney+)  What a wonderful surprise this was when I streamed it on Disney+ last night.  I didn't know anything about it, just saw some amusing trailers on it and knew it was about musicals. If you are one of those people, like Nate, that know a lot about musicals, you will enjoy this film --- it deals with a kid who gets kicked around a lot because no one acknowledges the talent he has --- and that gives him self doubt so he tries to live under the wire  when he is talented enough to be balancing on it.  The opening of this film was a bit of a shocker to me because it seemed really loud and big --- like for a stage, but after you get used to the characters, it calms down and becomes much more believable --- well, as believable as a musical can be when there is dancing and singing, but in this film the dancing and singing is embedded in his tryouts, etc.  So it is really believable!  hah!  I highly recommend it, esp. to junior high kids and/or people who like musicals and have big dreams ....I found it very refreshing.  4 out of 5.

"BETTER NATE THAN EVER" (disney+)   1 hour and 34 mins     PG    2022

13-year-old Nate Foster fantasizes about becoming a big Broadway star.  He and his best friend Litty mastermind a daring trip to New York City to audition for "Lilo and Stitch:  The Musical"

Director:  Tim Federle

Writer:  Tim Federle

Cast:  Rueby Wood (Charlie in "Charlie  & the Chocolate Factory" Broadway)  Joshua Bassett, Aria Brooks, Norbert Leo Butz, (tony winner for "Catch Me If You Can," and "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels"),  Lisa Kudrow, Brooks Ashmanskas (tony nominated for "Prom")

 

Movie #2115 ........................."The Lost City" (movie theatre)

 Movie #2115 "The Lost City" (movie theatre) -- here we go, the march of the February/March/April movies that are in between Oscar- nominated ones and Summer spectaculars.....very rarely do any of these movies  ever get  mentioned again during awards season, but once in a while there's a good one.   "The Outfit" was a really good one, but this is just okay.  Disclaimer:  I am a big Sandra Bullock fan, so anything I watch with her is usually okay with me --- This is supposed to be one of those rom coms with adventure --- the adventure works in that it was entertaining and kept moving along (my favorite part was the car scene, followed by, of course, the leech scene), but I have seen much better rom coms -- these two, as good looking as they are, didn't quite click, and the chemistry between them was nil.  She had much better chemistry with Melissa McCarthy and Ryan Reynolds, so I'm kind of blaming it on Channing Tatum, a bit --- or maybe his character?  Because he was playing a dumber guy, he kept talking through the jokes, explaining them or making himself look dumber by talking more, and to me, the humor didn't work --- it got in the way of the timing.... it could be the script, too.  But anyway, that's why it was just okay to me.  If you are looking for fluff when weather is ruining your time to get out and do something else, this would qualify as a good choice.  I give it 3.5 out of 5.

"THE LOST CITY"  1 hour and 52 mins       2022     PG-13

A reclusive romance novelist on a book tour with her cover model gets swept up in a kidnapping attempt that lands them both in a cutthroat jungle adventure.

Directors:  Adam Nee, Aaron Nee

Writers:  Oren Uziel , Dana Fox, Adam Nee

Actors:  Sandra Bullock, Channing Tatum, Daniel Radcliffe

Movie #2114 ........................."The Outfit" (in a movie theatre! Wow!)

 Movie #2114 "The Outfit" (in  movie theatre!  Wow!)  I know this is kind of early to make an oscar nomination comment, but I did it last year early in the  summer when we saw "Coda," so here goes.  The script to the movie "The Outfit" is better than any I have seen in a long time --- and it's written by a previous oscar winner for "Imitation Game" so he does have that going for him.  And the writer is from Chicago.  Anyway, I highly recommend this little gem of a film, starring Mark Rylance (a fabulous theatre actor that we got a chance to see on stage ) and a damn good script full of twists and turns that keeps  you guessing until the very end.  I noticed last week when I started looking for this film that it wasn't being shown in a bunch of theaters, and the theaters it was being shown in this week, didn't say it was there again for another week, so we skedaddled out to the theatre yesterday so that we could make sure to see it, and we were very glad to have done that.  I don't want to say too much about the film, but i can say it is quite talkie, almost play-like because of the amount of dialogue  and  it is mostly in one set.  It deals with mobsters and a tailor (oops, I should say cutter ) who teaches us in his narration the fine art of make a suit jacket.  The shop is supposed to be in Chicago so all the actors but Rylance cop a chicago accent, but the film  is British in all other aspects, like tone and Hitchcock-like red herrings and Macguffins.  I give it a 5 out of 5 and it is already better than the list of nominated films from last year.  If you miss it in the theatre, look for it on DVD or streaming.

"THE OUTFIT"  2022      R    1 HOUR AND 45 MINUTES

An expert tailor must outwit a dangerous group of mobsters in order to survive  fateful night

Director:  Graham Moore

Writers:  Jonathan McClain, Graham Moore

Actors:  Mark Rylance, Zoey Deutch, Dylan O'Brien

Movie #2113 ........................."Hand of God" (netflix)

 Movie #2113 "Hand of God" (netflix) This is the last of the oscar-nominated movies that I watched (everything but 2, that I couldn't get) and it wasn't very good at all.  It was, to me, a rip off of "The Graduate" without the wonderful acting, the great music, and the terrific direction/editing/photography.  So what's left?  A story of a young guy having sex with an older woman --- for his first time --- that's only part of the story, but it was the creepiest part of the movie for me --- most of it was a big Italian family (in Naples) arguing with each other --- the only thing I actually thought was funny was that the young guy in the film (Fabietto)) had a mother that liked to play pranks.  The humor was a high spot of "The Graduate" and this film just depended on all the quirky relatives that I couldn't tell apart --- there are wives and mistresses to keep track of, too.  Yikes!  And they just continually make fun of each other and their neighbors.  Toward the end of the film, grief is dealt with (what movies doesn't deal with it these days?) and, in my opinion, it was the worst film nominated for foreign film category.  3 out of 5, and don't bother attitude from me.  

"HAND OF GOD"  2021            R       2 hours 10 minutes 

In 1980s Naples, young Fabietto pursues his love for football as family tragedy strikes, shaping his uncertain but promising future as a filmmaker.

Director:  Paolo Sorrentino

Writer:  Paolo Sorrentino

Actors:  Filippo Scotti, Toni Servillo, Teresa Saponangelo

Movie #2112 ........................."Lunana: Yak in the Classroom: (Apple - rented)

 Movie #2112 "Lunana:  Yak in the Classroom" (Apple - rented) -- out of all the Oscar prep I did this year, I found this one the oddest film that was nominated --- but as a teacher, it has been the one I have been thinking about the most in the days since I viewed it.  It was  a nominee for foreign language film,  and  I found it better than most in this category --- similar to the winner ("Drive my Car") in pacing -- s-l-o-w, but I found it much more entertaining --- maybe it was because I was a teacher and it concerned one, but then on the other side of the coin, "Drive My Car" was about theatre, but it never pulled me in that much.  Anyway, back to Lunana, it is a simple story: a young man dreams of being a singer in Australia, but he's got to finish out a contract he made with a government teaching job in Bhutan.  His heart isn't in the teaching job, to the point that he dreads waking up each morning and his grandma whom he lives with has to drag him out of bed.  He finally tells the principal he doesn't want to do this any more, so she suggests he be sent to the remotest village in Bhutan for his last job ---he asks  why? She says, it will be a short stay because it gets so cold & they close for  several months, and they NEED anyone, so  even he would probably do okay.  So he agrees, and about 20 minutes of the film is just traveling to the gig --- on a train, on a bus, and then walking, walking, walking up hills for 8  DAYS!  no electricity, no bathrooms, sleeps on floor, and big thing when he gets there ---- no HEAT!  And when he gets there finally, there's a big group of people who have been waiting for the TEACHER!!!! the title refers to a gift he gets -- a Yak, because the Yak's dung is so important to use like coal to heat your home (or in this case, the school).  Yes, I found it slow, but I found it so  interesting with the quirky  characters and  the newness of  all the adventures to him and me.  It would make teachers laugh, I think, because it underlines all the sacrifices teachers go through to make  the magic  happen in each and every classroom they helm.  Kudos to all the teachers out there --- you have your own yaks in the classroom that you have to deal with, and we are so grateful that you do!   I give this 4 out of 5.  Not for everyone, but once again, I thought it was entertaining.

"LUNANA:  YAK IN THE CLASSROOM" (apple - rented)     1 hour 50 mins      2019

An aspiring singer living with his grandmother in the capital of Bhutan dreams of getting a visa to move to Australia.

Director:  Pawo Choyning Dorji

Writer:  Pawo Choyning Dorji

Actors:  Sherab Dorji, Ugye Norbu Lhendup, Kelden Lhamo Gurung and a little girl named Pem Zam, playing herself and she nearly steals this movie from the adults!

just in case, my plot synopsis wasn't clear, here is one on IMDB:

A young teacher in modern Bhutan, Ugyen, shirks his duties while planning to go to Australia to become a singer. As a reprimand, his superiors send him to the most remote school in the world, a glacial Himalayan village called Lunana, to complete his service. He finds himself exiled from his Westernized comforts after an arduous 8 day trek just to get there. There he finds no electricity, no textbooks, not even a blackboard. Though poor, the villagers extend a warm welcome to their new teacher, but he faces the daunting task of teaching the village children without any supplies. He wants to quit and go home, but he begins to learn of the hardship in the lives of the beautiful children he teaches, and begins to be transformed through the amazing spiritual strength of the villagers.

Simple In Structure. Sincere In Approach. Soothing In Quality.

Nominated for Best International Feature Film Oscar at the upcoming Academy Awards, Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom is simple in structure & earnest in its approach but the drama it packs in is a familiar one minus any conflict or complexity that's expected from such setups. Instead, it serves better as a fascinating insight into the Bhutanese culture & modest living through the unassuming ways of their countryfolk.

film is in Dzongkha -- subtitled

• Trivia
  All the actors in Lunana are highlanders, many of whom had never seen the outside world. They had never seen a movie, and had never seen cameras before. It was the also the first time they were using toothpaste.