Movie #2158........................."The One and Only Ivan" (Disney +)

Movie #2158 "The One and Only Ivan" (Disney +)  Now here's a really good film for kids and parents to watch, if you can get past the talking animals (like "Babe") And that is fairly easy to do when the gorilla's voice is Sam Rockwell!  and the little stray dog is Danny Davito.  And Bryan Cranston isn't the traditional mean owner, but one who really cares about Ivan, since he had him since he was a baby.  There's lots of good themes about animals deserving freedom, showmanship, friendship, helping others, and a very tender story that has a bit of mystery in it as well.  I'd give it a 4 and recommend it.  I found it a very tender, entertaining story.  And the visual effects were cool --- I kept looking at these animals and wondering:  How did they do that?  

'THE ONE AND ONLY IVAN"        2020             PG      1 HOUR, 35 mins

A gorilla named Ivan tries to piece together his past with the help of an elephant named Ruby as they hatch a plan to escape from captivity.

Director:

 Thea Sharrock

Writers:

 Mike White (screenplay by), Katherine Applegate (book) 

Stars:

 Sam Rockwell, Bryan Cranston, Phillipa Soo , Danny Davito, Angelina Jolie

 

Movie #2157 ........................."Midnight Sky" (netflix)

 Movie #2157 "Midnight Sky" (netflix) Even though this is considered a sci fiction fantasy and I usually don't like fantasies, I liked this story a lot.  I liked the way it connected the two stories (one in the Arctic, where there only seems to be an older man and a little girl who doesn't talk) and the other a crew on a plane that is supposed to go to U.S. but is warned by the older man that something has happened and they shouldn't do that.  There's some mystery, some good visual effects, mighty bad weather the two have to travel through, but a nice ending.  I give this 4 out of 5 stars. 

"MIDNIGHT SKY"   PG-13           2020                1 HOUR, 58 mins

This post-apocalyptic tale follows Augustine, a lonely scientist in the Arctic, as he races to stop Sully and her fellow astronauts from returning home to a mysterious global catastrophe.

Director:

 George Clooney

Writers:

 Lily Brooks-Dalton (based on the book 'Good Morning, Midnight' by), Mark L. Smith(screenplay by) 

Stars:

 George Clooney, Felicity Jones, David Oyelowo

Movie #2156 ........................."Mulan" with real people (Disney plus)

 Movie #2156 "Mulan" with real people (Disneyplus) --- too much fighting ---- I know, it is a steady rant from me, but I just don't like all of it.....it doesn't matter if it is a capable female, just too much, and the film is too long --- I saw it a few weeks ago, and I remember just image upon image of regimented soldiers, all decked out in the same costumes, marching into battle.  Of course, I like a story that sets up the female as stronger than some of her male counterparts, and she is in disguise, but that story I have seen done even better than the one played here.   The pluses are a few:  the female is very strong in a quiet way;  the visual effects are stunning, the amount of people on film is amazing, and just that it is a film with Eurasian elements, entire cast, etc. makes it a winner to me.  Besides the above complaints on the fighting, one big negative is the story --- there isn't much to it, and it becomes repetitive with two final big battles, one too quickly following another.  Also, I felt it spent too much time on the witch character. I would give this a 3.  It earned its nomination, for visual effects,  but I wondered why a song wasn't nominated from here --- the two songs sung at the end by Aguilera were terrific and a huge reward for getting to the end to me!

"MULAN"       2020                  1 hr, 55 mins                    PG-13

A young Chinese maiden disguises herself as a male warrior in order to save her father.

Director:

 Niki Caro

Writers:

 Rick Jaffa (screenplay by), Amanda Silver (screenplay by)  | 3 more credits »

Stars:

 Yifei Liu, Donnie Yen, Gong Li 

MOVIE #2155 ........................."Hunger Ward" (oscar-nominated doc short 2021)

 Movie #2155 "Hunger Ward" (oscar-nominated doc short 2021) focuses on the starving in Yemen, and I thought it was nicely done (in comparison to the others) --- this is a messy topic to US because the Saudis are air striking and then they put up blockades to medicine for their civilians, and the U.N. and US are allies of the Saudis, so very controversial. This short doc  shows overworked doctors who can't deal with all the injuries and deaths as a result.  It makes a case for deportation of children while adults go to war.  I'd give this 4 stars out of 5.   And it made me want to give to Hungerward.com to try to help with this problem. 

"HUNGER WARD" 

Filmed from inside two of the most active therapeutic feeding centers in Yemen, HUNGER WARD documents two female health care workers fighting to thwart the spread of starvation against the backdrop of a forgotten war. The film provides an unflinching portrait of Dr. Aida Alsadeeq and Nurse Mekkia Mahdi as they try to save the lives of hunger-stricken children within a population on the brink of famine.

Director:

 Skye Fitzgerald

Stars:

 Aida Alsadeeq, Omeima Essa Salem Abdullah, Mekkia Mahdi

Movie #2154 ........................."Do Not Split" (oscar-nominated doc short 2021)

Movie #2154 "Do Not  Split" (oscar-nominated doc short 2021)  this was a not a very clear doc short --- it dealt with protests in Hong Kong against police (like in our country)  -- because there was lack of narration, it just showed one protest after another --- and unlike our protests, the police look to just plow over everyone, even when they have no weaponry.  This had little effect on me except appreciate that we have more semblance of order in our protests, most of the time.  I'd give this a 3 out of 5, and I liked it the least of all of these nominees.

"DON'T SPLIT"                  2020                 35 MINS             USA/Norway

• In 2019 Hong Kong was rocked by the largest protests since Britain handed back the area to China in 1997. This is the story of the protests, told through a series of demonstrations by local protesters that escalate into conflict when highly armed police appear on the scene.

  Director:

   Anders Hammer

  Stars:

   Joey Siu, Rocky S. Tuan

Movie #2153 ........................."A Concerto is a Conversation" (oscar-nominated Doc short 2021)

Movie #2153 "A Concerto is a Conversation" (oscar-nominated Doc short 2021)  This was a nice homage to an elderly grandad from his grandson.  They interview each other but I found it not as competitive as the others --- and it never pulled me in.  I thought it might win only because of the topicality of the subject --- the grandad is  an african american jazz musician.   But once again, it depended on just interview techniques.  I would give it a 3 out of 5.

"CONCERTO IS A CONVERSATION"       13 mins                 2020         USA

A virtuoso jazz pianist and film composer tracks his family's lineage through his 91-year-old grandfather from Jim Crow Florida to the Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Directors:

 Kris Bowers, Ben Proudfoot

Writer:

 Ben Proudfoot

Stars:

 Kris Bowers, Horace Bowers Sr., Jim Burke

Movie #2152 ........................."Collette" (oscar-nominated Doc shorts 2021)

 Movie #2152 "Collette" (oscar-nominated Doc Shorts 2021)  This is the one in the package of doc shorts that I purchased through Milwaukee Film Festival and the ones you could see if you rent or buy the bundle of doc shorts.  I wouldn't recommend that for this year because none of them were outstanding --- this one won the oscar, and it is on one of my favorite topics --- Holocaust/Resistance WWII, and I still just found it moderately interesting --- it never pulled me in.  Woman goes to Germany to honor her brother and a younger woman interviews her.  The style of this short doc is mostly using interview --- could have used more variety.  I would give it 3.8 out of 5.

"COLLETTE"     USA      24 MINS                  2021

In Nazi-occupied France, resistance took courage. Seventy-five years later, facing one's ghosts may take even more.

Director:

 Anthony Giacchino

Writer:

 Anthony Giacchino

Stars:

 Colette Marin-Catherine, Lucie Fouble