Mr. and Mrs. Adnerb continue to haunt the local theatres in hopes of seeing a great movie. Except for “Tenent,” expectations have fallen short. “Let Him Go” is another mediocre movie being released by the studios hoping to entice the crowds back. It is not working. The more into the pandemic we get, the more we don’t need a depressing downer of a movie. Kevin Costner and Diane Lane play George and Margaret Blackledge (I love both actors by the way) who have overcome several tragedies in their life, including the death of their adult son in a freak accident. Mrs. Blackledge finds solace in her grandson. Eventually their son’s widow remarries and moves away; but not before Margaret witnesses the new husband physically abusing both mother and child. Fearing for the safety of their grandson, the Blackledges decide to see if they can rescue the boy. The clan that won’t give him up are some of the most stereotypical villians I have seen in a serious drama. There is a side plot featuring a Native American young man that was interesting, but perplexing. It didn’t add or detract from the story, it was more like filler. The acting is topnotch and the cinematography is breathtaking. The first half of the story is super slow and takes a long time to set up the action of the second half. So, I wasn’t expecting the brutal violence and heavy handed cruelty of the matriarchal clan, (John Boorman pulled off hill people violence with far more style and impact in ‘Deliverance.’ This time around, it’s just violence for visceral effect), and leads to an almost predictable and extremely unsatisfying ending. We counted about 15 people in the theatre. If studios want to find a market for their movies, I suggest releasing a few of the bigger budget movies like “No Time to Die” or “Wonder Woman 1984.” Until that happens (likely not ’til the really big markets like LA or New York open back up), even a mediocre movie is better than nothing.
Molly’s Game
Anyone who likes to watch the World Series of Poker on television, has ever played in a live poker game or is curious to learn how the other half lives, will enjoy this movie. Molly’s Game is based on the true story of Molly Bloom. Molly, as played by Jessica Chastain, was a world-class skier on the fast track to the Olympics. Sidelined by a freak accident, Molly uses her drive and smarts to turn a secretary jog into an exclusive high stakes poker game. When one of her players ruins her game in California, she simply moves to New York and re-establishes her very exclusive set up! But…before long, she finds herself under arrest by the FBI on federal charges. Why? It’s complex, you will need to see the movie to understand! The movie doesn’t use any of her customers’ real names, but according to a little internet research, they included Toby McGuire, Ben Affleck and Leonardo DiCaprio as well as professional poker player Phil Ivy. Idris Elba plays the lawyer who helps Molly when she is arrested by the F.B.I. (apparently, some of her clients turned out to be members of the Russian mafia). Kevin Costner, Michael Cera and Graham Greene round out the cast. I have heard there is some Oscar buzz for Ms. Chastain in this movie, I am afraid I would not go that far, although she does give a good performance. However, the movie gives us a fascinating glimpse into the world of high stakes gambling and the kind of people who are involved.
Hidden Figures
This movie definitely deserves the Oscar buzz it is getting. Those of you who have been reading this blog know that I love movies based on true stories, and this was no exception. Did you know that African American women contributed to the NASA space program in the early 1960s? I sure didn’t! This movie explores the lives of three ground-breaking women who did just that. Janelle Monae plays Mary Jackson, who became NASA’s first Black engineer. Ocatavia Spenser plays Dorothy Vaughn who became the first Black female supervisor and one of the first female supervisors at NASA. The meat of the story though is Taraji P. Henson’s Katherine Johnson, the mathematician par excellence who calculated trajectories for the Mercury Program, as well as Apollo 11 and Apollo 13. Kevin Costner also gives a good performance as the director of the Space Task Group. Jim Parsons appears as an engineer who, like all too many, resented and mistrusted the presence of a woman in the previously male only group of engineers and math whizzes; but comes to value her intelligence and hard work in the end. This is a moving story about some amazing women who didn’t let anyone stand in their way. I hope you get a chance to see this spectacular movie!