Gold (2016)

Gold is a lot better than the reviews will have you believe. It's not perfect but it offers a fairly entertaining and well plotted tale of the rise and fall of the "American dream." Bastardized from the real life story of the Bre-X, this slick drama balances the right amount of gravitas and coolness and is centred around a strong performance by McConaughey.

Yes we've seen this movie before and perhaps Gold doesn't offer us anything new. But that doesn't make it bad. From the poorly put together trailers and the less than stellar reviews, I expected Gold to be a disappointment. Fortunately it wasn't. And McConaughey plays his role well without going over the top or chewing scenery.

Gold isn't a masterpiece. It may end up being fairly forgettable. But its well structured story is entertaining and lays out the hows and whys of this sort of scheme fairly well. Wall Street can be confusing for many and Gold does a good job of making it make sense. This isn't The Big Short or anything but it's a sold film and worth checking out.

It is too bad they had to fictionalize it and set it in Reno. 

Gold
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Bryce Dallas Howard, Edgar Ramirez
Director: Steve Gaghan
Writers: Patrick Massett, John Zinman

Trespass Against Us (2016)

What Trespass Against Us has going for it is its amazing leads. Its story of a low rent crime family ends up being fairly pedestrian but it is saved by the opportunity to watch two amazing actors do what they do. Brendan Gleeson and Michael Fassbender are always good and here they are as good as always. They not only craft fascinating characters individually but together they create a relationship which is intensely complex. It's a bit of a masterclass in acting.

The story isn't bad. A second generation criminal struggles to get himself and his family out from under the influence of his dad who does what he can to keep them intertwined in his community of poor thieves. They live in a circle of trailers in the countryside with a gaggle of other crooks. Fassbender tries to dig himself, his wife, and their kids out of the hole his father has created for them to predictably disappointing results. The film actually does a good job of showing just how difficult it can be to climb out of your station in life when everything is stacked to keep you there. It just felt that Smith's film doesn't take us anywhere we're not expecting to go. In some ways it is like we have seen this film before.

But it is the combo of Gleeson and Fassbender who really make this worth seeing.  There are a few set pieces (an encounter with some paint and another member of the clan, a day when the children go missing) which truly come to life due to the actors giving their A game. Trespass Against Us works even if it is a bit forgettable, as it's leads certainly are not.

Trespass Against Us
Starring: Michael Fassbender, Brendan Gleeson
Director: Adam Smith
Writer: Alastair Siddons

The Great Wall (2017)

The Great Wall has all the hallmarks of trying too hard and very few of the hallmarks of actually being a good movie. Produced and directed by Chinese film makers, the film is written by and stars westerners. It ends up feeling neither Chinese or western but sort of the least of both.  Okay least is an overstatement. It's really not terrible. It's just not that great either.

Director Yimou is one of my favorites but The Great Wall doesn't have much in common with his other films. His films are usually beautiful, staged in a manner which sets them apart visually. He uses visual cues like colour and space to add depth to the way he tells his stories. The Great Wall doesn't feel like he's added any of that. Instead it feels like it's trying to be The Lord of the Rings.

Critics have been upset about "whitewashing" and the film makers have spoken out saying that's not what's happening here. They say it's a Chinese film made by Chinese film makers and that the western actors are just part of the ensemble. Did they see the same movie I saw? The film centres the story around the westerners, we experience the story from their point of view. Perhaps there is a different edit shown in China but that's not what I understand to be truth. So instead we see this film where Matt Damon really does ride in and save the day.

Perhaps if the film had been more compelling and less typical that might have been overcome. But the story of The Great Wall is standard pedestrian action fantasy fare. Without anything setting it apart, it just feels, well, standard. Its story is fine enough. The effects are fine enough. The battle set pieces are fine enough. Nothing made me go "wow!" It has none of the mystical depth that Yimou's previous films enjoyed, nor any of the beautiful craziness of recent Chinese blockbusters like The Mermaid for example. Instead it just feels like another action movie. Just another like we've seen before.

The Great Wall
Starring: Matt Damon, Jing Tian, Pedro Pascal, Andy Lau, Willem Dafoe, Zhang Hanyu
Director: Zhang Yimou
Writers: Carlo Bernard, Doug Miro, Tony Gilroy

I Am Michael (2016)

Director Justin Kelly's film, I Am Michael is a bit of a struggle to watch. He takes on the story of controversial figure Michael Glatze, former gay activist who no longer identifies as gay and instead works to "convert" gays to Christianity. Made by predominantly gay film makers and cast, the film clearly goes out of it's way to try to appear unbiased while in the end showing this as tragedy, showing Michael as a victim of hateful rhetoric. But it's not entirely successful at either.

Kelly does his darnedest to not proselytize. He tries to let Michael's story play out the morality play itself. Michael ends the film having failed to convert the only gay christian we see him attempt to fail. The film shows his heterosexual relationship to be loveless and barren. And it ends with him facing his parishioners in his homophobic church of his own creation with a look of terror on his face. But the film never gets us to understand why. 

I think most of this stems from a fear the film has of truly approaching the difficulties around gay conversion therapy, about the ex-gay movement. It felt like the film wanted to give Michael as much benefit of the doubt as possible but in doing so mutes the very things which make his journey a failure. Franco and his cast do as good a job as any with what they work with but the film remains to sterile for Michael's conversion to have any palpable meaning. 

And it's difficult to watch a man destroy himself without having anything cathartic for the audience to work through. Unfortunately I didn't' feel much watching I Am Michael and a film like this needs to truly get us feeling.  It is a beautifully shot film and shows some potential for film maker Kelly but it's not there yet.

I Am Michael
Starring: James Franco, Zachary Quinto, Emma Roberts, Daryl Hannah
Director: Justin Kelly
Writers: Justin Kelly, Stacey Miller

The Founder (2016)

The Founder works both as entertainment as and morality play. This examination of the American dream through the development of the quintessentially American McDonald's plays out subtly at first, as film maker Hancock sets out to tell a compelling story of a persistent if not completely likable man reaching for the American Dream and finding it. But as it goes along, the sinister nature of the story comes through until the quite bleak ending comes through and The Founder becomes a critique of American capitalism.

Michael Keaton is compelling as Ray Kroc, the man who took the idea of McDonald's and made it into what it is today.  He plays him just odd enough, just awkwardly salesmany enough, while keeping us generally on his side. This works well as his tactics become more and more despicable, and his success by the use of unethical tactics grows. Keaton makes it hard for us to dislike him too much, as he breaks promises, swindles people out of fortunes, and leaves his wife without her share. But this is the point really.

Kroc is the poster child for American capitalism. We are supposed to be conflicted over our dislike for his actions and our attraction to him and his success. This is the cognitive dissonance which makes the movie more than just a biopic, more than just a "based on a true story." Hancock, whose work up to this point hasn't show a great deal of cultural analysis (The Blind Side), here triumphs by subverting our self-righteousness by making us complicit in Kroc's deeds and taking us along for the ride. And Keaton's performance helps sell it all to us.

And as the credit role and Hancock employs the tried and true gimmick of showing us pictures of the actual people who were portrayed in the movie with a summation of what happened to them after the movie's plot ends, we are forced to face the results. The "bad" guy wins in this system. The guy who doesn't play by the rules and takes advantage of all his advantages scores while those who lived more honestly, more decently, were taken advantage of. And as the lights come up and we contemplate going for a burger and fries, we know deep down that yes, this is the world we live in. Based on a true story indeed.

The Founder
Starring: Michael Keaton, Nick Offerman, John Carroll Lynch, Laura Dern, Linda Cardellini, B. J. Novack
Director: John Lee Hancock
Writer: Robert D. Siegel

The Red Turtle (2016)

The Red Turtle is a quiet little beautiful thing. Its story is simple yet profound and it's art is simply gorgeous. It is both big and intimate. It is an accessible story to pretty much anyone who comes across it.

A co-production between Studio Ghibli (one of the best animation studios in the world) and the distributor Wild Bunch, The Red Turtle doesn't feel like typical Ghibli fare yet fits wonderfully into its tradition. It certainly has a different look yet remains something exquisite to look at.

The choice to use no dialogue (a la Les Triplettes de Belleville) opens up the story in more ways than one. It allows the story to just tell itself and be interpreted by its audience on their own. It also makes it accessible by any audience even though the story is a bit esoteric.

The Red Turtle is certainly something to be seen. It is a reminder of how animation can push the boundaries of what films can be. And it is a hard film not to like.

The Red Turtle
Writer/Director: Michaël Dudok de Wit

20th Century Women (2016)

20th Century Women is a beautifully disjointed love letter from a son to his mother and the women who raised him. This semi-autobiobraphic film is drawn more as remembrances than memoir, like pieces of moments, milestones, depicted more as how things felt then how they were. And it's all the more touching for it.

Writer/director Mike Mills' portrait of his teenage years sometimes feels a bit lost. While this may keep it from being great, it is, in many ways, appropriate and completely natural for this story. So while it lost me occasionally, it always found a way to make me smile.

The film is a bit rose-coloured in how it avoids seriousness ever getting us too down. But again, this is consistent with the film's "love-letter" tone. It makes us yearn a bit, despite not glorifying anything, for a different time, a different failed optimism. What I found so lovely about 20th Century Women is how it both made me melancholy and nostalgic at the same time. It's an incredible effect.

A big part of this success is the performance by Annette Benning who almost always captivates me each time she is on screen. Once again she shows us that the Oscars have no idea what they are doing until she gets one.

20th Century Women is a slightly flawed but completely forgivable film that creates a lovely set of mixed emotions and is a showcase for one of the best working actors around.

20th Century Women
Starring; Annette Benning, Lucas Jade Zumann, Elle Fanning, Greta Gerwig, Billy Crudup
Writer/Director: Mike Mills

Split (2017)

Split isn't going to be for everyone. It is challenging on a number of levels. But it is one of the most cleverly satisfying horror films I've seen in a long time centered around what is certainly going to be one of the best performances of 2017.

I am not an M. Night Shyamalan fan. While one of his films, Unbreakable, is one of my favorite films ever, I struggle with most of his work generally liking the idea behind the film more than the execution of that film. His most recent before Split, The Visit, was a trend in the right direction but still wasn't something that excited me. It appears that lightning has struck twice for me with me finally loving one of films again after so long.

First I have to praise the fact that the film does not play it's idea as a gimmick like his films so often do. The idea of a central character living with Dissociative Identity Disorder is not new (ever heard of Psycho?) but the idea of exploring it as a true condition instead of a dangerous liability is new. I found Shyamalan and McAvoy treated the subject with not only the utmost respect but with understanding and insight. Yes the character's DID does lead to his role as "villain" but the film goes to great lengths to not only have you understand the "heroes" but also the so called villain. Similar to the characterization in Unbreakable, Shyamalan seems interested in who these people are and why they do what they do. In Split, we explore why different identities within McAvoy's character do what they do.

And, like Psycho, this is a straight up horror film. Shyamalan knows how to shoot a great horror movie and he does so here with perfection. It is a homage to the genre and doesn't reach to transcend it. He embraces the horror movies esthetic and shows us exactly how it is done. The one trope he explodes a bit is the one about people in horror movies making stupid choices. He plays with that a bit and shows at least two of our heroines reject that idea by acting smart and heroic. He takes us to some pretty dark places (which I believe is part of the respectful way he treats his subject) and that makes it all the scarier.

But if that's not challenging enough for most audiences, what will be challenging for others is his use of the fantastic. While Split could have been told based entirely in realism, he adds supernatural elements which may turn off a certain audience. It pushed my boundaries a bit as I hoped he would keep within realistic parameters, but having been pushed, I came to understand what he was doing by adding the mythical and tying it to his real world story. 

Watch to the very end for a clear goal of where he was going with this story. As the final frames played out my jaw hung open with excitement. There is something truly exciting going on. It's not a typical M. Night Shyamalan twist ending. It's a very logical conclusion to all that he has been building. And it made me want to see more.

McAvoy is to be praised. I find he often gives incredible performances but this one is one of the most impressive I have seen. His authenticity and respect for his character brings forward a truly realized human being even when the fantastic elements creep in. Without him Split would likely not have worked so well. Also great is Anya Taylor-Joy, so good in last year's The Witch, in another complicated role which is an essential piece of the film.

Split surprised me, impressed me, moved me, terrified me. Mostly it made me very excited and I hope I'll get to return to this world again.

Split
Starring: James McAvoy, Betty Buckley, Anya Taylor-Joy
Writer/Director: M. Night Shyamalan

XXX Return of Xander Cage (2017)

It doesn't take long into the running time of XXX Return of Xander Cage to get confused. If watched with any kind of a thinking mind at all you feel like you are watching a spoof of spy movies along the lines of Austin Powers. Everything about XXX Return of Xander Cage is so silly you think this is a comedy. But the film is sincere and you start to figure out, no they're serious, and you begin to wonder how anyone thought this was a good idea.

The plot is ridiculous. Sure there are better movies with similarly ridiculous plots so that doesn't sink the film. The dialogue is so inane and childish, you expect "that's what she said" to be uttered after every line. The film is often unintentionally hilarious I found myself laughing out loud at moments which were supposed to be cheer inducing. And then there are the set pieces, the action sequences, which are designed to be as unrealistic as possible. This is the major failing of this movie. Perhaps we could have bought into all the rest of the silliness if the action hadn't been so headshakingly over the top, so physics defyingly maddening, so teenage boy fantasy inducing that you can't buy it at all.

You see XXX Return of Xander Cage is for 14 year olds, well 14 year olds who don't understand that women are human beings, who think that being a man is about being stronger/faster/bigger than the next man, and who have little to no need for facts about technology or global politics. XXX Return of Xander Cage feels like a joke, like you're designing a film to be as asinine, as cliched, and as down right stupid as the cliche of an action movie can be. Only it's not aware that it is the joke it is. It thinks this is how an action movie should be. And it's just not.

The diverse cast is a bonus but having them in such a mindnumbing film is a disappointment. Having Yen, Padukone, Collette, Jaa, Rose, and Samuel (frickin) Jackson in this is a waste. Vin Diesel's never had the believable screen presence to feel anything more than silly on screen and XXX is the highlight to that truth. This is for the most adolescent out there and I fear even many 14 year olds will find this a bit tired.

XXX Return of Xander Cage
Starring: Vin Diesel, Donnie Yen, Toni Collette, Deepika, Padukone, Kris Wu, Tony Jaa, Ruby Rose, and Samuel L. Jackson
Director: D. J. Caruso
Writer: F. Scott Frazier

I, Daniel Blake (2016)

2016 winner of the Palme d'Or at Cannes does what it does very well. This is the story of a working class British man, who suffered a heart attack at work. The film follows him as he works his way through the system to get the medical attention he needs. The system clearly is broken, or it is designed to fail him. His journey through this is laborious and humiliating. That is the point.

The problem with I, Daniel Blake is that is that it does such a good job of walking its audience through the tedium of the system, that the film itself feels tedious at times. Director Ken Loach's direct style has him focus on Daniel's day to day struggle through the system. Its effectiveness comes in accurately portraying how much of a struggle this is and unfortunately the film is a bit of a slog sometimes too.

The film comes to life at certain moments, especially when he's connecting to a poor young woman and her family. Her struggle with working class poverty is a bit more engaging as she considers taking more dramatic steps. His remembrances of his dead wife are touching. Loach does succeed when he's getting into his characters' hearts. He paints a very honest portrait of the way the working poor are always pushed behind the 8 ball. The film makes a powerful argument against the idea of the "lazy poor."

Dave Johns does a great job of playing Daniel, even if his character is a bit of a stereotype. He imbues an integrity into his working class hero who has taken a stand against a society which is turning him out. Harley Squires is also quietly powerful as the mom who can't keep her head above water. Loach resists giving them overly dramatic moments of tragedy and instead keeps the pace on their grind.

The film may struggle to entertain all the way throughout but it sits with you and as you reflect on it its true power comes into focus. Loach and his cast give us a quiet but powerful experience which hopefully has some impact on the choices we make about the kind of society we want and how all of its members are treated.

I, Daniel Blake
Starring: Dave Johns, Harley Squires
Director: Ken Loach
Writer: Paul Laverty

Silence (2016)

I appreciate that for director Martin Scorsese, Silence is his passion project, a film he has wanted to make for ages and he clearly poured his heart and soul into it. However he didn't manage to stir any passion for me in his tale of the apostate priests. While the struggle against religious persecution is a powerful one, much of that power is tempered by a lack of focus on colonial aspects of the story. Scorese's take is very narrow and often feels like it is leaving much out, making me ask questions for which there aren't answers, seeking perspectives not considered, and wishing for more.

Scorses focuses his story on the journey of Sebastião Rodrigues from Portugal on his quest to find the lost priest Father Ferreira, who went missing while in missioning in Japan during the Japanese purges of Christianity. It is Rodrigues' travels through espionage, then ministering to clandestine Japanese Catholics, through torture and eventually his own denunciation of his faith which is the story of Silence. The narrow focus is good in that it keeps us on path. It weakens the film as it ignores so much of the story, so much of the why, for the perspective of just one man.

For Scorsese Silence feels like a vindication of faith through the worst. His climax is the spiritual overcoming of everything the foreign oppressor has inflicted. But Scorsese's flaw is how he ignores levels of oppression to preference another. The Catholic westerners are colonialists, even Rodrigues' eventual triumph only comes because he has successfully colonized his Japanese bride, a family he inherited due to stepping into the place of a Japanese man. The religious oppression is terrible, and the film spends a great deal of time on driving this point home, but the film completely ignores what it is in response to. I believe the film, and it's message, could have been so much stronger if that relationship could have been explored. But Scorsese's piety is too strong to admit an analysis of that to his narrative, making the story feel lopsided.

Scorsese chooses not to glorify the Japanese empire through filming the beauty of the nation. Instead he focuses more closely, almost claustrophobically on his characters in their landscape. Silence is a beautiful film but Scorsese doesn't go overboard with that. Silence remains deeply personal and eschews an "epic" quality for a more individualistic approach. This heroic arc is also a very western imposition on a story set in the east.

And the theology is difficult as well. I am not sure I felt Rodrigues' religious passion. His relationship with Christ feels very much wrapped up in the trappings of Christianity as opposed to having a more personal relationship with God.  The film, and the Japanese purges, feel focused exclusively on the appearance of Christian worship and not any true connection to God. Only near the end do you feel Rodrigues start to demonstrate any true relationship with Jesus. But even by the final moments of the film, the ones designed to be the most powerful, it becomes about the ritual, the relic, the trappings of the western Christianity. Perhaps that's a telling statement about so much of Christian faith at the time (and now) but it didn't inspire me to be moved by the spirit.

So for me, while Silence had much about it which was fascinating, it left me wanting so much more. For a 2 and a half hour film, it moves along well and doesn't bore. But it rarely inspired either, focusing almost entirely on the passion (suffering) and not the passion (faith) for God.

Silence
Starring: Andrew Garfield, Liam Neeson, Adam Driver, Tabanobu Asano, Shinya Tsukamoto
Director: Martin Scorsese
Writers: Martin Scorsese, Jay Cocks

Monster Trucks (2017)

I know, I know. A film called Monster Trucks, a film about 

a monster driving a truck, I shouldn't expect a good film. Perhaps I could expect a film that isn't written so badly the story doesn't make logical sense. Perhaps I could expect a film with dialogue which isn't groan and wince inducing. Perhaps I could expect a film where the acting isn't so phoned in and ridiculous that you can barely stand to watch it.

perhaps... but I probably shouldn't

Monster Trucks is as bad as it sounds. Everything you would expect about what a cheese-fest it could be is true. So instead of me critising that let's talk about the few redeeming qualities of this pile of stinking you-know-what.

The titular monster, named "Creech," is super cute. There is a certain amount of pleasure to be had just from watching him pull himself around the movie. Stupidly, he is hidden for most of the film inside a super rednecky truck, but when he is on screen he's adorable, and so are his fellow family of monsters.

And remarkably the film has a great environmentalist message which lead me and my son to have a great discussion after about our responsibility for stewardship for land, resources, and wildlife. The film is very literal about it and hit you over the head with it, but at least it's a positive message that kids will get and take away something from this if the quality of the film doesn't turn them off movies all together.

And then there's...

wait...

I'm trying to come up with something else positive about Monster Trucks but I am coming up blank. It's really a bad movie but like anything there are a few almost redeeming features.

But still it's pretty much worth skipping all together so that we don't get a Monster Trucks 2 or something horrible like that in the future.

Monster Trucks
Starring: Lucas Till, Jane Levy, Thomas Lennon, Barry Pepper, Amy Ryan, Rob Lowe
Director: Chris Wedge
Writer: Derek Connolly

Live By Night (2016)

I have a soft spot for gangster films, and apparently so does writer/director/star Ben Affleck. His adaptation of the novel Live By Night is richly shot, if only a little drawn out. It is luscious to watch and it has a number of great set pieces which get the blood pumping (literally onscreen, figuratively in the audience) peppered between the morality play which puts our broken good man up against systemic and powerful forces of racism, classism, and sexism.

Yes Live By Night is a critique of American white supremacy, and quite an adept one. The film chronicles the way race and class is structured in an American setting itself up for the future, a future which may only have a place for white men to exercise power. Perhaps this is why so many critics struggle with the film, the way it embraces this critique explicitly. Affleck chooses to call out the power structures which extend his character's privilege only so far and other characters less. It is a hero's tale as he mostly overcomes it, at a truly high cost. He shows us how women are used by men in their lives and how it destroys them. This is not a love letter to American glory days but a cautionary tale of what choices this nation is making.

And he wraps it all up in a classic gangster story filled with fedoras, tommy guns, moonshine, and flappers. His eye finds the tropes of the genre and gives them all to us and in my mind he balances all of the expertly. His film is paced somewhat slowly but never to the point of tedium. Instead he gives us moments with each character. He gives us pieces of why each character is weak and strong, good and evil, well meaning and vengeful.

The film isn't a masterpiece but it's damn entertaining and has a good story with well flushed out characters. It is certainly a good night out at the movies.

Live By Night
Starring: Ben Affleck, Zoe Saldana, Sienna Miller, Chris Messina, Elle Fanning, Brendan Gleeson, and Chris Cooper
Writer/Director: Ben Affleck

Patriots Day (2016)

Stories inspired by true events can be hard to make in an authentic way, especially when they are about recent tragedies. There are different approaches to these stories and some make for better movies than others. There are different purposes in making of these movies and some are more interesting than others. Patriots Day takes the "inspirational" approach, and pretty much goes all in. It ends up being rather manipulative in how it, step by step, walks us through how we are supposed to feel. There is no grey in Patriots Day. You are either with it or you are against it.

Peter Berg isn't the most subtle or nuanced director. His films tend to be rather straightforward and Patriots Day is no exception. He starts his film by showing us all the "good people" that we are going to follow through the movie. It makes sure we know how good they are cause we see them all doing wonderful human wonderfully American things. They are charming and cute and some of them are just flawed enough that we care about them. It's like he puts big stickers on their heads to show us how we are supposed to feel about them.

For example there is a cop who is doomed to die at the hands of the terrorists. The film makes sure he has the most adorable intro, he is shown to be entirely noble, the other actors cry as they describe how heroically he died, and conveniently the girl he loves happens to show up at his scene of death. Thanks Berg. I'm not sure I could have got all that if you hadn't hit me over the head with it.

This problematic approach to film making is most clearly summed up in the choice to centre the film around Mark Wahlberg's fictional character. He is set up to be the American everyman that we want to identify with. Then he manages to be everywhere he needs to be to have the story told. He takes the righteous position at all times, being a holding place for our frustrations, our fears, our passions. He is the surrogate us. So that we, as the audience, can revel in how we are the good guys. And his character just happens to be in every important spot at just the right important moment all the way along. It often feels ridiculous.

The film's climax leads to the "good vs. evil" moment which you know, early in the film, is coming. The bad guys, and they are bad guys because of what they did, but that's not enough for the film. The film has to show them being as despicable as possible at every step. In case we don't get that these bombers are the bad guys. We have to be made to hate them. Because at the end the film needs us to buy into its rousing message of good triumphing over evil. There isn't room for much else in this tale.

Berg's construction of the film is pretty good for what he is trying to do. The kidnapping of Jimmy Yang's character is one of the most exciting and tense parts of the film. Berg tells a thrilling story, even if it does end up feeling like an oversimplification of everything.  Like when Yang's character is finally saved, he gets an action movie throw away line designed to have the audience cheering. "Go catch those mutherfuckers!" he yells like he's Harrison Ford screaming "Get off my plane!" It's silly and takes away from the gravitas of the story the film is telling.

Another action scene, a shootout, which is well staged, and beautifully filmed, is ruined by an extended exchange of "fuck you mother fuckers!" over and over. The writing felt juvenile. That paired with the low level of analysis going on throughout the film, give it an amateurish feel which is in contrast to how well the film is filmed and acted. 

Patriots Day doesn't feel dishonest but it does feel a bit phony. I wish it had found a way to tell this story in a way that didn't feel like it was exploiting the deaths of the Americans who perished that day. I wish it had found a way to explore something more than just good vs. evil.

Patriots Day
Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Kevin Bacon, John Goodman, J.K. Simmons, Michelle Monaghan, Alex Wolff, Melissa Benoist, Jimmy O. Yang
Director: Peter Berg
Writers: Peter Berg, Matt Cook, Joshua Zeturner

Age of Shadows (2016)

There is nothing like a film about a group of spies trying to pull of a doomed mission. The tension, suspense, mistrust, duplicity, all make for great story telling. The setting: WWII. The place: Japanese occupied Korea. The mission, resistance group turns Japanese collaborator to help them ship explosives to assist the rebellion against the occupiers.

Director Kim Jee-woon sets up his little chess game perfectly. He sets out the characters and gives them each a clear motivation and potential areas for double cross. He sets the story into motion filming with a beautiful hazy style which captures the beauty of the classic age. He tells a thrilling, edge of your seat adventure with a beautiful accomplished cast. Age of Shadows is the full package.

One of the pieces which makes this all work so well is the relationship that is built between Gong Yoo's character and Song Kang-ho's character. They both play their roles so intricately, creating rich characters that pull you into their lives, into their stories. The whole cast comes together but it's the bond struck between these two men, who have made very different choices when faced with their time and place, which makes this whole dance so fascinating to watch.

And Kim Jee-woon's action directing is spot on. A good action director makes all the difference for a film like this. His structuring of each scene creates a building energy which propels you through the story. It's adrenaline. The combo of the fascinating tango of a relationship between two men who can't be sure who to trust, and the riveting, well choreographed action, makes for an exciting thriller which is completely satisfying.

Age of Shadows
Starring: Song Kang-ho, Gong Yoo, Lee Byung-hun, Han Ji-min
Writer/Director: Kim Jee-woon

A Monster Calls (2016)

We often think of "children's movies" as light hearted affairs as if our children can't handle real world themes. Do we condition our children this way to seek out escapist entertainment instead of films and stories which may have a real impact in our lives? I know for me, many of my favorite memories of films from my childhood involve films which spoke to something in me and didn't just feature cute animals singing songs and making funny jokes.  A Monster Calls is one of those "family films" which will speak to something inside all of us, whether we are children or used to be.

This is the story of a boy dealing with his mother's terminal cancer. It isn't an easy story no matter how you look at it. But it is a beautiful story and one whose triumph lies in its honesty. 

“Your mind will believe comforting lies while also knowing the painful truths that make those lies necessary. And your mind will punish you for believing both.”

A Monster Calls speaks this level of truth and speaks it in a way that a child will absorb it. 

I haven't until now been a fan of director J. A. Bayona. But A Monster Calls has changed all that. His eye here is remarkable. He has told a story which resonates so honestly and done so with incredibly sensitive visuals. This is a triumph both narratively and cinematically  And young actor Lewis MacDougall shows so much promise.  

A Monster Calls is a film which recognizes children are human beings with a full range of emotions and understandings. It will get into some deep places of your emotions and provide some comfort as well as catharsis. And it will do so in one of the most beautiful films you'll see all year. This is a must see, with your child or with your inner child.  

A Monster Calls
Starring: Lewis MacDougall, Sigourney Weaver, Felicity Jones, Liam Neeson
Director: J. A. Boyona
Writer: Patrick Ness

Hidden Figures (2016)

Hidden Figures is more than it pretends to be. Often movies about past racism or discrimination are congratulatory ("weren't they so bad then?") exercises. The best of these films instead connect the past to the present exploring the ways marginalization continues happening today. Hidden Figures, with its inspiring story, and powerful performances from its leads, accomplishes a minor miracle. It teaches us about ourselves while entertaining us with a kick ass story that was just meant to be told on the big screen.

Hidden Figures gets through some of the complicated layers of structural racism and sexism from its first scene. Our heroes are stuck on the side of the road, fixing their own damn car by the way, when a cop pulls up behind them. For many the sight of a police officer when you are stranded is a welcome sign of relief. The film shows us right away, without hitting us on the head with it, that this is not good news. The women skillfully manage the situation and turn a potentially dangerous situation into their own personal triumph, placating the cop, as they will placate many other white folks through the film, to get where they need to be.

Hidden Figures highlights many of the little way institutional racism and sexism underlines everything in 1960 America, showing us the daily impact. The audience feels each microagression. There isn't a scene where one ugly racist is confronted or defeated while the good white people cheer on our black heroes. There isn't a moment where a man hits a woman or puts her in her place. Instead, we are witness to daily, moment to moment big and little incidents which show us just how entrenched in our culture racism and sexism are. And it is all done with a lovely smile, a "may you have a blessed day," and an entertaining as hell story so that we can't help but enjoy ourselves.

There is an especially powerful arc about bathrooms which plays very well into today's issues. There was a time when people just believed it was natural for white people and people of colour to use different bathrooms. Yes it sounds ridiculous today but at the time folks walked around thinking it was normal natural. How will people look back at us 50 years from now with our prejudices?

Taraji P Henson is superb, cast against type, as the pioneering Katherine Johnson. She plays her with a constant integrity but also vulnerability, balancing a perfect performance, making her real. The film doesn't have time to give many other characters the depth it gives her but she is the centre of the film.

Hidden Figures is everything it should be and remains as entertaining and accessible as any audience would need it to be.

Hidden Figures
Starring: Taraji P Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monae, Kevin Costner, Kirstin Dunst, Jim Parsons
Director: Theodore Melfi
Writers: Allison Schroeder. Theodore Melfi

Underworld Blood Wars (2017)

I am someone who enjoys all kinds of films. Most people have certain genres they limit themselves to but that's never been a problem for me. As long as a film commits itself to what it is trying to do and does so in a way that is visually stimulating and not insulting to my intelligence, I can enjoy any sort of film.

Included in what I can enjoy are B movies, most often defined as shorter than regular films, shot with more limited budgets, often camp influenced, often part of a series featuring main characters which return for many adventures, often genre films of some kind. A good B movie can be a great treat. It may not meet the standards we hold for the headlining features but that doesn't mean it can't be enjoyed.

One such series of B movies is the Underworld series, the chronicles of vampire Kate Beckinsale in tight black leather caught in a war between vampires and lycans (werewolves). I have enjoyed the mythology created for this series, the politics and characters with their intricate backstories, the stylized method of filming, and the unabashed embrace of its story, gore, and lead character who gets to be not just a female version of a male lead but a truly independent female character at the heart of this epic.

And so a new chapter. How does it stack up? I appreciate that this series has found a way to take the story in new directions each film while retaining the things we have come to love about it. Blood Wars adds to the mythology by creating a new political status quo for its world and makes it feel like we are moving the story forward. By abandoning the series' initial concept (the Romeo and Juliet story set in the monster world) the series has not only freed Seline to be a hero on her own, but also allows the political analogy to flourish. The power struggle narrative between factions on both sides of a never ending battle speaks volumes. Also, Blood Wars allows for plenty of the campy rhetoric which the series thrives on.

I admit Underworld isn't for everyone. Yes, the film revels a bit too much in some of it's CW style dialogue. Bekinsale utters some ridiculous narration that induces a bit of cringing. The special effects remain B grade meaning you need to dispel your disbelief a bit more than you might want to. But my defense of this is how the film embraces this reality. It doen't try to be A grade while remaining essentially superficial (like the Transformers or Fast and Furious series for example). It leaps right into the B movie world and lives it proudly. I can get behind that while recognizing the flaws. I'm not saying it's great. It's all a bit trashy but it entertains me and doesn't attempt to insult me so I'm all for it.

And one of the great things about these sorts of films are the casts. Often you get great scenery chewing out of slumming A list actors in these things. Everyone from Bill Nighy to Derek Jacoby to Michael Sheen and now Charles Dance and Lara Pulver have graced these films giving delicious performances that are so much fun to watch. I would recommend the casting for Underworld 6 (a facetious title for a film I know is coming but remains unnamed - I do respect their choice to never number their sequels - I hate sequels with numbers in the title generally) cast a more diverse world of vampires and werewolves.

So all in all a satisfying chapter if you're a fan looking for more Underworld fun. Not for the faint of heart or those looking down their noses at it.

Underworld Blood Wars
Starring: Kate Bekinsale, Theo James, Charles Dance, Lara Pulver
Director: Anna Foerster
Writer: Cory Goodman

Favourite Films of 2016 (#1 - #10)

In a year when I saw 151 films, a year which produced so many that I truly enjoyed (see my previous list), these were the 10 that moved me the most. I cheered, I cried, I fell in love, I was brought back to the feeling I had when my parents took me to the movies for the first time and I was transported. 2016 reminded me why I love films, and these 10 films were my favorite cinematic experiences of the past 12 months. 

#1 Moonlight

Moonlight is the single most beautiful piece of film I have seen all year. Luscious and devastating, it took my breath away. My pulse races when I see it, no matter how many times. I never get tired of watching it. There isn’t a moment I want to look away. I fall in love. Old wounds are opened. Emotions are aroused. Moonlight is the kind of film which reminds me why I love movies.When they can do this to me, they are perfection.

 

#2 I Am Not Your Negro

The earth shattering words of my favorite writer James Baldwin. The stunning visual esthetic of Raoul Peck. The powerful voice of Samuel L. Jackson. All of it comes together as a defiant triumph in the face of racist America and a stunning piece of art on every level.

 

#3 Midnight Special

This quiet little film takes us on an incredible, fantastic adventure. It may be a "science fiction film" but any parent in the real world of a child who is unique will relate to this story, these emotions, the fear, the drive. It will break your heart. Michael Shannon’s multilayered performance is breathtaking and a high point in an already stellar career.

#4 When Marnie Was There

This is a reminder of how beautiful hand drawn animation can be in an age when all the "cartoons" are CGI. The gorgeous art is even more so when it is used to tell such a lovely story about two young women, both outsiders, and their magical connection. When Marnie Was There is a bittersweet, gorgeous relationship transcending time, across barriers, and beyond imagination.

#5 Hell or High Water

Thoughtful, remorseful, philosophical, and passionate, this backwater crime film captures a dying world lashing out in the only tragic way it can. Director David Mackenzie finds the beauty in a wasteland, both a real place and a metaphorical state. Jeff Bridges, Chris Pine, and Ben Foster are all at the top of their game in his meditative crime movie/modern western which is a must see.

#6 Batman v Superman Dawn of Justice

This unfairly maligned opus is one of the richest cinematic experiences of the year, visually, emotionally, intellectually.  It is especially profuse in its exploration of complex themes such as the false dichotomy of good/evil, the struggle with violence and fascism, genderd responses to crises, and even the nature of God itself. A truly fascinating and rewatchable epic, despite how trendy it is to dismiss it. And damn if it doesn't make you want to see more Batman, more Wonder Woman, more Flash, more Superman!

#7 La La Land

This is a movie as gloriously jazzy as the music running through it. It is a love story that riffs off classic musicals but invents something completely new. It is almost anti-Hollywood while simultaneously paying tribute to movies and the industry which produces them. Beautifully filmed, scored, and performed, La La Land is lovely, melodious melancholy.

 

#8 Kubo and the Two Strings

A reminder of how beautiful puppet stop motion animation can be, especially when used to tell this non-linear hero’s quest. The artists at Laika have yet to disappoint, or repeat themselves. Here’s hoping they don’t fall into the sequel trap that Pixar has succumbed to and continue to make these original animated films.

#9 Loving

Writer/director Jeff Nichols’ second film on my list (the first is Midnight Special), is this very intimate, delicate portrait of love overcoming everything, literally. Nichols doesn’t get bogged down in courtroom drama or political spectacle. Instead he zeros in on the power of a relationship between two real people which actually changed a nation. Ruth Negga is especially perfect as one of America’s unsung heroes. 

#10 Rogue One

Because hope is something we need more than we have in a long time, Rogue One a Star Wars Story came along at just the right time. It is both a companion film which makes its inspiration even richer, and a spin off which takes the familiar concept in a new direction. This engaging adventure reminds us of the magic of movies. It stars a diverse cast which points us in the direction of films of the future. Rogue One is undeniably movie magic. 

 As I said, I saw many more films I loved in 2016. This is just the cream of the crop. See my further list for the rest. When there are so many to choose from you really should see as many of them as you can.  

Favourite Films of 2016 (#11 - #20)

While 2016 may have been hard in many ways, it was a year where I could turn to my love of movies for solace and inspiration. Every year I list my 10 favorite films but in 2016 I saw so many films I loved that I couldn't just limit it to 10, I had to expand my list of loved films to 20 of the best 2016 had to offer. In 2016 I saw 151 one films and narrowed the list down to these 20 gems,  which (perfect or not) entertained me, moved me, and that I return to time and again to remind me why I love cinema as much as I do.  Here are the first 10 of that list. I hope you'll make a point of seeing any you haven't seen again.  

#11 Hunt for the Wilderpeople

Hilarious always. Touching truly. But never without being hilarious.  Writer/director Taika Waititi’s unconventional tale of what it means to be family is the smartest funny thing I saw all year, and speaks volumes about love.

#12 The Handmaiden

Park Chan-wook returns to my favourites with a deceptively complex, shockingly erotic, and surprisingly romantic tale of love and revenge with a great grift thrown in for shits-n-giggles. Transporting the shell game of the novel it is based upon from England to Korea allows for this exceptionally gorgeous film to celebrate a glorious era for fashion and design, an era only Korea can offer. Like the other movies on this list, this is a strikingly beautiful film.

#13 Nocturnal Animals

Upsetting. Unsettling. Infuriating. Designer turned director Tom Ford turns his fashionable eye to a destructive tale of revenge and lost love. It’s one of those story-in-a-story stories which forces you to question all that you think you know. I don’t know which reading of the events I prefer and I see more possible ways to understand what we are seeing. Nocturnal Animals is an enigma, and it is down right disturbing right up to it’s last bitter moment.

#14 The Girl With All the Gifts

If you think a Zombie movie can’t offer you something new you need to see The Girl With All the Gifts. The film is not just a highly engaging adventure about the end of the world, it is a comment on profiling, a challenge to the politics of “us vs. them,” and a powerful debut for actor Sennia Nanua. 

#15 Zootopia

The smartest social commentary of any film this year is packed into this consistently entertaining and smartly funny family adventure. Two of the best crafted characters in any film this year headline this buddy cop comedy which contains the single funniest scene in any 2016 movie (Sloths!) making this the complete package. The best "family" movies teach us (all) something about who we are and Zootopia takes a difficult lesson and makes it not only entirely entertaining but an easy lesson to learn.

#16 10 Cloverfield Lane

This isn't just a genre movie. It is a portrait of an abuser, his tightening control, his gaslighting techniques, his increasing levels of violence. Or perhaps 10 Cloverfield Lane an analogy for the security state. Or both.  All of this is wrapped up in a thriller format which grabs you and doesn’t let go. We are captivated in this claustrophobic treatise on liberation. John Goodman proves why he remains one of the best character actors working today. 

#17 Southside With You

This charming retelling of the Obamas’ first date is my idea of romance. Smart dialogue, fascinating characters, and a palpable chemistry are the ingredients which make me fall in love with a movie.  Romantic movies rarely feel this honest to me. But even more than that, as we say goodbye to that era, and enter an era of uncertainty, this reminds of the human beings who inspired us to hope for a better world. Who wouldn't fall in love with that?

#18 Closet Monster

Yes one of my favorite films of the year features a talking hamster (Isabella Rossellini). Closet Monster reminded me of what the best Canadian cinema does, it reaches into lovely dark places and finds redemption. It finds a sense of optimism without the sentimentalization or rationalization that other nations' films do. It is a lovely, heartbreaking, upsetting film which references a number of my favorite Canadian films of the last two decades.

#19 Love & Friendship

This hilarious adaptation of Jane Austin’s Lady Susan (not to be confused with her story actually called Love and Friendship) is one of the sharpest films of the year and certainly one of the funniest. Kate Beckinsale has fallen from A list to B list to C list in the last decade but here she reminds us of her true talents playing a villain you can't help but fall for, completely. 

#20 Don’t Breathe

This little surprise was far better than I expected it to be and shows true promise for a new director who will be one to watch. Not perfect (few films are) but down right scary, thoroughly entertaining, and beautifully executed. A powerhouse performance by Stephen Lang is the icing on the cake of what really shouldn't have been such a great movie.

Check out my top ten films (yes 10 films even better than these) and that's not all 2016 had to offer. I enjoyed all of these as well, even if they didn't quite make my top 20: The 13^th, American Honey, Arrival, Barry, The BFG, Deadpool, Denial, Elle, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Fences, Florence Foster Jenkins, Ghostbusters, Hacksaw Ridge, Hardcore Harry, Hidden Figures, Indignation, Jackie, Jungle Book, Just la fin du monde, The Little Prince, Live By Night, London Road, Macbeth, Manchester by the Sea, The Meddler, Miss Sloane, Pete’s Dragon, The Profit, Queen of Katwe, Suicide Squad, Star Trek Beyond, Swiss Army Man, Toni Erdmann, The Wave, Weirdos, Where to Invade Next, the Witch, X-men Apocalypse, and Your Name