Reviews

Sage femme (2017) is a French film written and directed by Martin Prevost.

Catherine Deneuve stars as Béatrice Sobo, an elegant woman who seeks out the daughter of her former lover.

Catherine Frot portrays Claire Breton, the daughter, who is a dedicated midwife. Unfortunately, in her city, midwifery is changing from a personal attachment of mother and midwife to a "big box" one-size-fits-all institution.

One plot line is how Claire will deal with this situation. The other plot line is, of course, how Claire and Béatrice will interact in this confrontation, made even more difficult because Béatrice is ill.

Deneuve was 74 when this film was produced, but she looks much younger. However, it's not her beauty that impressed me, but the fact that she can really act. Frot matches her skills, and their interaction is very powerful.

Midwife has a pretty anemic IMDb rating of 6.7. I'm not sure of why the rating is so low. I loved the movie, and rated it 9.

The Company You Keep (2012) was directed by Robert Redford, who also starred.

Redford plays Jim Grant, a former member of The Weather Underground, the militant Marxist group that opposed the War against Vietnam. He's charged with driving the getaway car in a bank robbery in which a guard was killed. In fact, we learn that it was his car, but he didn't participate in the event.

Shia LaBeouf plays Ben Shepard, a local reporter who follows the case and starts to make connections.

I was an antiwar activist, but a nonviolent one. I never knew anyone who knew anyone in The Weather Underground. In fact, many of us felt that The Weather Underground did more harm than good to the antiwar movement.

Nonetheless, I can empathize with the immense frustration of everyone in the antiwar movement as the war dragged on and on.

Redford does his usual excellent job as the aging activist. I think LaBeouf was miscast. He was 26 when the movie was produced, and he looked more like a boy reporter than a skilled journalist who was ahead of the FBI in understanding what was happening.

This movie has a really weak IMDB rating of 6.4. I thought that it was much better than that, and rated it 8.

Say Anything (1989) was written and directed by Cameron Crowe.

John Cusack plays Lloyd Dobler, a high school graduate who plans to be a professional kickboxer. He's madly in love with Diane Court (Ione Skye).

Naturally, they get together and the chemistry is there. Also naturally, Diane's father has high hopes for his daughter's academic career. He doesn't think much of kickboxing as a profession for a future son-in-law.

(OK--I also don't think much of kickboxing as a profession. I looked up the data, and good professional kickboxers make a decent living. Kickboxing coaches can earn enough to survive.)

The problem I had was that John Cusack doesn't strike me as a person who could become a kickboxer. He's big enough, but he's portrayed as relatively gentle, not aggressive. I don't think his character has the mental toughness for a combat sport.

The movie has a quiet charm to it, and it has aged pretty well. Say Anything . . . Has a pretty strong IMDB rating of 7.3. I agreed, and rated it 7.

Friends with Benefits (2011) was directed and co-written by Will Gluck.

This movie is your typical 21st Century Rom-Com. Mila Kunis as Jamie is very beautiful and Justin Timberlake as Dylan is Justin Timberlake. The film moves between New York City and Hollywood, so there's plenty of opportunity for great location shots.

You can write the plot yourself. There's no reason for me to spell it out for you. However, how you get from A to B is probably reason enough for you to watch the movie if you want a film that won't tax your brain.

This movie was listed as one of the top Rom-Coms. If true, that's very sad. I gave it an IMDb rating of 7, just above the overall rating of 6.5.

6.5 is anemic, but not awful. However, if you want a great Rom-Com, watch Woody Allen's Annie Hall. IMDb rating 8.0.

Me Before You (2016) is a British film directed by Thea Sharrock.

Sam Claflin portrays Will Traynor, a successful banker and athlete. Within the first few minutes of the movie, we watch as Will is hit by a motorbike and becomes paralyzed from the neck down.

Emilia Clarke plays Lou Clark, a local young woman hired to keep Will company. (He has a nurse who cares for his medical and personal needs.)

Of course there's a chemistry between the two, but the movie didn't take the obvious, "Now that you're here I want to live" plot line. It's much more complex than that.

I found this film in a list of "great romantic comedies." It's not a romantic comedy, it's a romantic drama.

Me Before You has a solid 7.4 IMDb rating. I thought that it was better than that, and rated it 9.

Nicholas Stoller directed Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008). Jason Segal was the scriptwriter, and also stars in the film.

Segel plays Peter Bretter, a composer who has a dead-end job with a TV crime show. Kristen Bell portrays Sarah Marshall, who has been his girlfriend for five years. The film opens with Sarah dumping Peter, which is why he has to forget her.

Both Peter and Sarah wind up at a resort in Hawaii. Sarah is with rockstar Aldous Snow (Russell Brand). Mila Kunis portrays Rachel Jansen, receptionist at the hotel.

OK--now we have a love quadrangle with two attractive women and two attractive men. In Hawaii.

The problem with this movie for me is that Sarah Marshall is portrayed as a mediocre actor and a mediocre person. Why has Peter stayed with her so long? Why is it so hard for him to forget her? The premise just didn't work.

The best part of the film comes at the end. If you decide to see it, and can't stand it, fast forward to that. Or don't see it--just fast forward to the end.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall has a decent IMDb rating of 7.1. I disagreed, and rated it 6.

Spencer (2021) is a movie about Princess Diana that was directed by Pablo Larraín.

The film stars Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana. Timothy Spall portrays Major Alistar Gregory, who is in charge of maintaining order when the queen's family members are together.

Sally Hawkins has a major supporting role as Maggie, Princess Diana's dresser.

The film takes a very pro-Diana position. She wants to be herself, rather than adhere to the princess behavior demanded of her. The movie succeeds in making you sorry for the princess and her life.

However, the film--as in real life--doesn't explain why Diana married Charles. She wasn't a simple country lass--she was Lady Diana Spencer. Surely she knew the behavior that would be expected of her as the future queen of England.

I thought that Stewart, Spall, and Hawkins were superb. They are gifted, experienced actors, and they know how to move the movie forward.

Spencer has a low IMDb rating of 6.6. I thought that it was much better than that, and rated it 8.

Aaahh Belinda (2023) is a Turkish movie directed by Deniz Yorulmazer.

It stars Neslihan Atagül as Dilara/Handan. The fact that she has two names is the key to the plot. Dilara is a supermodel, who is shooting a commercial for the shampoo Belinda. The shampoo company wants to attract buyers by not just having a model who is taking a shower, but by putting her into an imaginary family. Suddenly, Dilara realizes that she is living in the world of Handan, the name of the wife of the imaginary family.

The problem is that it is, indeed, a real family. Dilara knows that it's not, but no one--including her husband--will believe her.

Neslihan Atagül is, of course, very beautiful. Her role requires her to be beautiful--she's a supermodel. She's also a good actor. The plot has been done before, but it's still enjoyable to see how it will play out.

Aaahh Belinda has a terrible IMDb rating of 5.3. It's not that bad. In fact, I liked it and rated it 8.

Faraway (2023) is a German movie that was directed by Vanessa Jopp. It stars Naomi Krauss Zeynep, a 40-something Croatian-Turkish woman who runs a restaurant in Munich. She realizes that her entire family--husband, father, daughter--take her for granted.

Zynep's mother has just died, and has left her a little house on a Croatian island. Zeynep leaves Germany and travels to the island. When she arrives, she discovers a Croatian man Josip (Goran Bogdan) living in her house. To no one's surprise--at least not to my surprise--there is a chemistry between them.

The plot moves forward as Zynep's family arrives to convince her to go home. To know what happens next, watch the movie!

Faraway has an anemic IMDb rating of 6.7. I thought that it was much better than that, and rated it 8.

About Time (I) (2013) was written and directed by Richard Curtis.

On Tim's 21st birthday, his father (Bill Nighy) tells him that the men in their family can travel backwards in time. They can't go to the future, and they can't change anything they didn't experience. However, they can fix mistakes.

Tim is portrayed by Domhnall Gleeson and Rachel McAdams plays Mary, the love of his life. Nighy, Gleeson, and McAdams are all seasoned, capable actors, and they deliver excellent performances.

Of course, for the movie to work, you have to accept the time travel premise. Once you're past that, you can enjoy an interesting romantic comedy.

About Time has a very high IMDb rating of 7.8. I agreed, and rated it 8.

Archipelago (2010) was written and directed by Joanna Hogg. It stars Tom Hiddleston as Edward. Edward has quit his job and is planning to volunteer in Africa.

His mother invites Edward and the other family members to join her for a farewell party on the beautiful Isle of Scilly.

This is Hogg's specialty--bring a group of adults together, and watch what happens next. Edward fights with his mother and his sister. His girlfriend wasn't invited. He considers seducing Rose, the professional cook hired for the occasion.

Hiddleston is a great actor--he's Hogg's muse. Scilly is a glorious island. The movie makes you think. I enjoyed it.

Archipelago has a terrible IMDb rating of 6.3. I thought it was much better than that, and rated it 8.

Unrelated (2007) is a movie from the UK written and directed by Joanna Hogg.

Kathryn Worth portrays Anna, a woman in her 40's. She travels to a Italy to stay with an old friend and her friend's family. There are two groups at the villa--the Olds and the Youngs.

Anna hangs out with the Youngs, where she clearly doesn't belong. They're not a particularly wholesome group--spoiled, careless, and seeking pleasure and danger in equal measures.

Unfortunately, the Olds could be described in the same way. There's not a single one among them that's not spoiled and careless. (They don't do dangerous stunts, but they probably did them when they were younger.)

Of course, Tuscany is beautiful, and the movie is interesting in its own way, but, unless you're a Johanna Hogg fan, I don't recommend it.

Unrelated has an IMDb rating of 6.7. I agreed, and rated it 7.

"American Experience" The Movement and the 'Madman' (TV Episode 2023) is a brilliant documentary directed by Stephen Talbot.

In 2023, if people think of Vietnam, they think of it as a tourist attraction. In the 1960's and 1970's, Vietnam was the site of a horrendous war waged by the United States. This history has been largely forgotten, because the people involved are now in their 60's, 70's, and 80's. (And, of course, many have already passed away.)

Director Talbot has made this brilliant documentary about U. S. resistance to our war against Vietnam. He focuses on the year 1969, when the U. S. witnessed massive opposition to the war.

Talbot concentrates on the 1969 "Mobilizations," when hundreds of thousands of people publicly protested the war. The organizing for these mobilizations was a Herculean task, carried out mostly by people in their twenties.

Both President Johnson and President Nixon pretended that they took no notice of the opponents to the war. And, indeed, the war continued for four more years. However, as the film made clear, both presidents were highly aware of the antiwar sentiment in the U. S., and many of heir decisions were privately influenced by this sentiment.

Director Talbot has done something that I consider brilliant. This documentary is really aimed at young people. Talbot is saying that peace activism can truly be effective. He doesn't show us old people talking about their youthful activism. Yes, we hear the old people talking, but he shows us images of these people when they were young activists.

This important film is available from PBS, and also (for $5.99) from Amazon Prime. If you have any interest in the Vietnam war, peace, or activism, you need to watch this movie.

P. S. Personal note: My wife and I participated in the D. C. Mobilization of October 15, 1969. That's when we joined the peace movement, and we're still peace activists over 50 years later.

The Korean film Da-reun na-ra-e-seo (2012) was shown in the U. S. with the title In Another Country. It was was written and directed by Hong Sang-soo.

Isabelle Huppert portrays three different women, all of whom are named Anne. The movie (well, movies) are set in a small seaside resort.

The first Anne is a famous French filmmaker visiting an equally famous Korean filmmaker and his pregnant wife. The problem is that the husband is attracted to Huppert.

The second Anne is the wife of a wealthy industrialist. She is here to meet her lover, who is a filmmaker.

The third Anne is a newly-divorced woman who comes to the resort with an older woman friend.

The segments sometimes move in the the same direction. For example, she sets out with a young woman to go shopping, but the next scene always is Anne alone on a barren road.

Anne is always looking for a lighthouse, which is a tourist attraction. Joon-Sang Yoo is a very muscular lifeguard that appears in all the segments. He should know the location of the lighthouse, but he doesn't.

Huppert was born to play these roles. She is one of the great actors of our generation and she is believable as all three women. It's worth watching the movie just to see her act.

Unfortunately, I'm in the minority about this film, because it has an anemic IMDb rating of 6.4. I don't like to recommend movies that have a low IMDb rating, but I definitely will make an exception in this case. I thought it was a wonderful movie, and rated it 9.

She Said (2022) was directed by Maria Schrader. It's a semi-documentary, based on the New York Times investigation of Harvey Weinstein by reporters Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey.

(Zoe Kazan plays Kantor, and Carey Mulligan portrays Twohey.)

In a sense, this movie is like many others-intrepid reporters using their professional skills to bring down a truly terrible person. In this case, that person was Harvey Weinstein.

What we don't know-and what the movie shows us-was how difficult it was for Kantor and Twohey to get women to talk on the record.

"Everyone knew" that Weinstein was a sexual predator. However, his position in the film industry was such that he could crush anyone who refused his demands. (He also survived by offering settlements to his victims. These settlements included a non-disclosure clause.)

Even though we know the outcome, this film is still powerful.

Kazan and Mulligan are extraordinary actors, and they bring to life the struggle of getting women to talk on the record. It's worth watching the film to see if they can accomplish this seemingly impossible task.

She Said has a pretty good IMDb rating of 7.2. (Of interest is that women rated it 7.5, while men rated it 7.1.) I enjoyed this movie, and I thought that it was much better than that. I rated it 9.

The Stranger (1946) was directed by Orson Welles. Welles also stars as Prof. Charles Rankin. We learn at the beginning of the movie that Rankin was a key player in developing and operating German concentration camps.

Edward G. Robinson portrays Mr. Wilson, who tracks down former Nazis and brings them to trial. He knows that this central Nazi commander is alive, and presumably is in the U. S. His job is to find him.

Loretta Young plays Mary Longstreet, daughter of a Supreme Court justice, who is in love with Rankin.

Welles, Robinson, and Young were three of the finest actors of the mid-20th Century. The movie shows its age--over 75 years old--but great acting is still great acting, and that's what we see in this film.

Welles is mesmerizing as the prototypical ruthless, evil Nazi, who covers this evil well under the guise of a distinguished educator. (Rankin is an early version of Harry Lime in the 1949 movie, The Third Man.)

The Stranger has a solid IMDb rating of 7.3. I thought that it was even better than that, and rated it 9.

Tár (2022) was written and directed by Todd Field.

Cate Blanchett stars as Lydia Tár, a brilliant, successful orchestra conductor and composer. I didn't enjoy this movie, but I'll agree with others that Blanchett is absolutely brilliant. She inhabits the role, and you don't doubt for a moment that she is Lydia Tár.

However--other than some beautiful music--I don't have anything good to say about this film. The music industry, at the highest level, is a dog-eat-dog world. No surprise. Not much fun to watch.

Tár is at the top of this world, and therefore people are out to bring her down. The movie is filled with characters who are angry at each other and/or at Tár.

Truth in reviewing: there were so many people angry at each other and/or at Tár that I lost track of where each one fit in the anger spectrum. I had to read the plot in Wikipedia to understand what I had watched. If you can understand it without Wikipedia, all the more power to you. I couldn't do it.

Tár has an outstanding rating of 7.6. The film has been nominated for six Oscars. People loved it, but I didn't. I rated it 6.

The Goldfinch (2019) was directed by John Crowley. The real star of the movie is the painting itself, painted by the Dutch Golden Age artist Carel Fabritius.

In the movie, the painting comes into the hands of a young man named Theo Decker. Oakes Fegley plays the young Theo Decker and Ansel Elgort portrays the adult Theo Decker. Nicole Kidman plays Mrs. Barbour, who takes Theo in when he needs a place to stay. All three do an excellent job.

Actually, Kidman's role is relatively small, but she's an Oscar winner and a marquee name, so she is listed as a star. (Incidentally, she looks great and, as always, her acting is superb.)

The concept of the film is interesting, but I had trouble with the constant back-and-forth among times and places. Also, there were too many coincidences, and--at 2 1/2 hours--it's too long.

The Goldfinch has a dismal IMDb rating of 6.4. I thought it was somewhat better than that, and rated it 7.

Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears (2020) was directed by Tony Tilse. It's based on the TV program Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries.

The TV program is great. It's based in Australia, and the plots range from very good to excellent. The magic comes from the work of Essie Davis as Phryne Fisher. The supporting players are all solid, but Davis is one of a kind. She inhabits the role and makes it her own. She is Phryne Fisher.

However, the movie has a weak script. The director decided to "open it up," so that we see more of Palestine and London than we do of Australia. (The Palestine plot is Palestinians vs. The English. The situation was very complex, but in this movie it's just good guys against bad guys. The British were the bad guys.)

Even the talented Ms. Davis can't turn this script into a decent movie. The film carries a terrible IMDb rating of 6.0. I agreed, and rated it 6.

Verdi's opera Rigoletto (1987) was directed by Jean-Pierre Ponnelle. Ponnelle was a brilliant operatic director. He directed many operas on stage, almost always to great critical acclaim.

What makes this Rigoletto different is that it's not a filmed opera performance. It's a movie, where Ponnelle can use his talents to embellish the great voices in the cast.

The excellent Swedish baritone Ingvar Wixell stars in the title role. The Czech Nightingale, Edita Gruberova, portrays Gilda, and Luciano Pavarotti is the Duke of Mantua.

If you know opera, you'll love this movie. If you don't know opera, you'll love this movie. This is the greatest opera on film that I've seen. It has a very strong IMDb rating of 8.1. I thought that it was even better than that and rated it 10.

The Good House (2021) was co-written and co-directed by Maya Forbes and Wallace Wolodarsky.

Sigourney Weaver stars as high-profile realtor Hildy Good. Weaver is perfect for this role. She looks and acts like the person for whom the role was written.

In an interesting twist, Sigourney doesn't just play the part. She also confides to the audience watching the film. This has been done before, but I've never seen it done as well. (You could consider Shakespeare's soliloquies in the same light. However, most actors I've seen do soliloquies appear to be talking to themselves. Sigourney Weaver is definitely talking to us.)

Hildy is a top-notch realtor, but it's a tough, dog-eat-dog world, and she is holding her own, but not thriving. One problem is that she's an alcoholic. Not a sleep-it-off-and-have-a-hangover alcoholic. She's an alcoholic who drives while drunk, and who has blackouts that are scary.

Kevin Kline portrays Frank Getchell. Getchell is a wealthy businessman, but we are supposed to accept him as a grizzled New Englander. (Inigo Montoya, yes; The Pirate King, yes. Grizzled New Englander, no.)

The movie shows us how a talented realtor works to match owners and buyers. It also shows us views of the beautiful Atlantic seacoast.

(Actually Nova Scotia, not Massachusetts.)

I enjoyed The Good House, mostly because of Sigourney Weaver's outstanding performance. The film has a very weak IMDb rating of 6.4. This is a case where I say, "Did they see the same movie that I saw?" I rated the movie 8. I recommend it.

The Iranian film Sokout (1998) was shown in the U. S. with the translated title The Silence. The movie was written and directed by Mohsen Makhmalbaf.

The protagonist of the film is Khorshid, portrayed by Tahmineh Normatova. He is sightless, but manages to eke out a living tuning musical instruments. In order to get to his work, he has to be brought to the bus by his sister, and taken from the bus to the workshop.

The problem is that his hearing is so acute, and he loves music so much, that he often follows a musician and becomes lost. It's hard to tell whether he's good at his job or not. However, he's often late, so he's about to be fired. He needs his salary to pay the rent to prevent the family from being evicted from their home.

Director Makhmalbaf is a genius, and the film is very moving. For example, when Khorshid puts his fingers in his ears, he can't hear anything, and neither can we.

The movie drifted into magical realism at the end, and I didn't think that worked, but I still thought that it was a great film. The Silence has a tepid IMDb rating of 6.9. I thought that it was much, much better, and rated it 9.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (2018) is an English film directed by Mike Newell.

The movie stars Jessica Brown Findlay as Elizabeth McKenna, a London-based author, and Michiel Huisman as Dawsey Adams, a man who lives in Guernsey.

Truth in reviewing: I didn't know anything about the island of Guernsey before I saw the movie. After I had watched the movie, I did some research to see if what was depicted could, indeed, have happened. In my opinion, the movie depicts events that really could have taken place,

Just for the record, Guernsey is an island in the English Channel, located close to France. When WWII started, the English demilitarized Guernsey, and evacuated most of the children. The German troops occupied the Island until the end of WWII.

Unlike other occupied regions, there was barely any resistance to the Germans. One reason for this is that Hitler was obsessed with Guernsey. He sent an enormous number of soldiers to the island, and fortified it far beyond its military worth. There was one German soldier for just three of the populace. Most of the resistance came in the form of trying to help the people brought to Guernsey as forced laborers.

The movie presents the type of symbolic resistance that occurred in Guernsey--people gathering on a regular basis to discuss literary and other matters free of German interference.

The basic plot--sophisticated young woman goes to a rural area and is changed by it--isn't very subtle. However, an interesting movie isn't hurt by a romantic plot. The film was, indeed, an interesting movie, and I enjoyed it.

The movie has a solid IMDb rating of 7.3. I thought that it was better than that, and rated it 8.

Love, Lights, Hanukkah! (2020 TV Movie) is a Hallmark movie directed by Mark Jean.

Mia Kirshner portrays Christina Rossi, a young woman who was adopted as an infant. She is culturally Italian, but when she takes a DNA test, she learns that she's half Italian and half Jewish. She receives email messages from people who think they may be related to her, and the plot moves on from there.

Because it's a Hallmark film, everything and everyone glows. However, the plot has some surprises, and Mia Kirshner is a good actor, so I liked the movie.

Love, Lights, Hanukkah! Has an anemic IMDB rating of 6.8. I thought it was better than that, and rated it 8.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (2019) was directed by Marielle Heller. Of course, it's about Mr. Rogers, but it's not a biopic. The plot involves an investigative journalist, Lloyd Vogel (Matthew Rhys) who is assigned to write about Mr. Rogers as a hero.

Rhys is excellent, but Tom Hanks plays Mr. Rogers so well that it's hard to see anyone else when Hanks is on the screen.

The plot is really about the writer's life, and how Mr. Rogers enters into it. (A writer named Tom Junod did, indeed, write an article in 1998 for Esquire magazine. The film is loosely based on the events of Junod's life at the time.)

A Beautiful Day has a pretty good IMDb rating of 7.2. I thought that it was much better than that, and rated it 9.