Adnerb the Movie Nerd

Movie reviews from a middle school teacher's perspective

Patriots Day

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I found this to be a very well-done movie that recreates the Boston Marathon bombing of 2013.  This movie reminded me of some of the events and taught me some things about the investigation that I didn’t know.  Mark Wahlberg plays a composite of several police officers who were on site when the bombing took place and helped with the subsequent manhunt.  J. K. Simmons adds a little well placed comedy relief to this story.   The movie also features some of the survivors at the end, including Dun Meng (played by Jimmy O. Yang) whose carjacking and escape ultimately led to the capture of the Tsarnaev brothers.  You will need to dab your eyes several time throughout the story but especially when retired baseball player David “Big Poppy” Ortiz gives a short, inspiring speech at the end.  Also featured in minor roles are Kevin Bacon, John Goodman, Michelle Monaghan.  This is definitely a movie worth watching!

Passengers

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Do not listen to some of the poor reviews this movie is getting- I thoroughly enjoyed this sci-fi love story, and think you will too.  Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt are passengers on a 120-year journey to another planet. Something goes wrong and their hibernation pods wake them up 90 years early.  Themes explored in this movie are: making the most of whatever situation you find yourself in, living life to the fullest, overcoming isolation and finding love in the most unlikely places. There is a central ethical dilemma that should cause discussion among friends who see this movie together.  Would you have made the same decision Pratt’s character is forced to make?  I loved Michael Sheen as a witty android bartender who accidentally spills the beans on Pratt’s choice.  Laurence Fishburne is surprisingly poignant in his brief appearance as Gus Mancuso ,who brings some much needed pathos and some timely advice.  Andy Garcia is the only actor I found with an unsatisfying part in this movie; he appears for about 5 seconds and has no lines.  I hope he at last earned a decent paycheck! I highly recommend this movie and think you should see it for yourself and make up your own mind.

Why Him?

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Listen, this movie is definitely mindless entertainment, with hit or miss comedy.  That being said, if you want to get away from the hustle and bustle of Christmas for a few hours, there are worse ways to spend an evening.  James Franco plays an internet millionaire who has fallen in love with Bryan Cranston’s daughter ( I can only assume that the Emmy award winning actor was paid well for this movie).  James Franco is super-eccentric.  He has a paperless bathroom and a chef who serves food that looks exactly like newspaper (this in honor of his future father-in-law who owns a printing business).  Keegan-Micheal Key plays an equally eccentric “butler” who sneak attacks his employer a la The Pink Panther.  I did laugh in some spots, but my advice is to wait until you can watch this one on television and go see Rogue One or Fantastic Beasts instead.

Rogue One

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This is definitely a movie for Star Wars fans although you do not have to know anything about the franchise to enjoy this movie.  I, for one, loved it!  This movie takes place right before the original 1977 Star Wars.  Remember that movie started off with a message from Princess Leia to Obi Wan Kenobi delivered via R2D2.  This movie explains the origin of that message, how the Death Star was built and how the rebels knew the Death Star had a weakness that ultimately helped them destroy it.  There is a lot of fighting, I especially enjoyed Donnie Yen who played a Jedi Knight who is sort of in control of The Force.  Diego Luna and Felicity Jones were fine, but I enjoyed some of the supporting characters even more.  The comic relief was supplied by the new K2-SO (voiced by Firefly’s Alan Tudyk), a sarcastic but resourceful droid.  It was nice to see Mads Mikkelsen play a relatively normal and heroic character.  But the biggest surprise was the appearance of Peter Cushing as Grand Moff Tarkin.  Why was this a surprise, you ask?  Well, Peter Cushing died in 1994!  The technology needed to create that special effect just boggles the mind.  If you are a fan of the Star Wars movies, you will love the last scene – no spoilers from me though, my lips are sealed.  If you are going, get there early to avoid running into a sold out show, and may The Force be with you!

Westworld

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Wow!  What a great show.  If you haven’t had a  chance to watch this fascinating HBO series starring Anthony Hopkins, Jeffrey Wright, Thandie Newton, Evan Rachel Wood and Ed Harris, you are missing out.  The series is based on the 1973 sci-fi movie thriller that starred Yul Brenner as a robot gone rogue.  This reboot builds off of that premise and runs with it.  Imagine an adult theme park  for rich vacationers manned by automatons who interact with you as if they are human.  Would you like to pretend to be a gunslinger, gambler, confederate soldier?  What about  school marm, madame or a Calamity Jane type?  Westworld caters to the basest and darkest sides of humanity.  You can kill (robots) with impunity while at the same time, they can not harm you……or can they?  There is so much to think about after every episode.  The first season ended over a week ago and I am still pondering the human and moral implications of what has happened so far.  I eagerly await season two!