Adnerb the Movie Nerd

Movie reviews from a middle school teacher's perspective

The Gentlemen

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I have been a semi-fan of Hugh Grant for several years.  He plays doofy and kind of smarmy characters (but with a hidden side of decency and heart that eventually comes out) better than just about anyone.  So what a pleasant surprise to discover a deliciously evil Hugh Grant in Guy Ritchie’s newest movie, “The Gentlemen.”  The story follows American Mickey Pearson (Matthew McConaughey), who has built a profitable marijuana empire in London. Word gets out that he is looking to sell his business and retire.  This piece of news sets off a whole series of events that include extortion, schemes and betrayals, sundry illegalities and even murder as various lowlifes compete to take his empire.  In the middle of it all is a seedy, almost unrecogizable Hugh Grant playing Fletcher,a sleazy private eye who also narrates the story.  Guy Ritchie also employees a cast of characters well played by Charlie Hunnam, Michelle Dockery, Colin Farrell and Jeremy Strong.  There is action galore and several twists and turns keep things interesting.  At one point, a giant pig plays a key, if somewhat disgusting role.  I liked this movie more than I thought it would and it is the kind of mindless, but enthusiastic, entertainment that I like to watch before the Oscar results come out.

Serenity

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If you are a fan of the cult TV show “Firefly,”  I suggest that  you skip this movie, because you will be extremely disappointed by the title ( fellow nerds, you know what I’m talking about).  If you are not a fan of “Firefly,” I still suggest you that you skip this movie, because you are still going to be disappointed.  I expected way more from a movie starring Anne Hathaway and Matthew McConaughey, who are both Oscar winning actors.  If you have seen trailers for “Serenity;” you will likely have been misdirected, as I was, because this movie is totally not what the trailer leads you to expect.  Matthew McConaughey stars as Baker Dill, an Iraq war veteran and fishing boat captain who spends every spare moment hunting a giant tuna called Justice.  His ex-wife, Karen, shows up with a story of being abused by her current millionaire husband (played unconvincingly and as a bland stereotype by Jason Clarke) and the bruises to prove it.  She wants him to take her husband out on a fishing trip and kill  him by throwing him overboard for the sharks.  She offers  ten million dollars in cold, hard cash.  Karen is played by Anne Hathaway with her hair dyed a perplexing and unflattering blond.  Diane Lane and DJimon Honshu are wasted in minor supporting roles, that frankly, don’t really servie to support anything! Up until this point, the action was slow, but the plot  seemed to be headed in the familiar territoy of suspense thriller.  Here is where the movie falls apart, and even gets silly.   I won’t give away the big plot “surprise,” although I feel I would be doing a public service if I did!  Anyway, think of a really bad rip off of Black Mirror’s ‘Bandersnatch,’ but without the myriad choices, and you will get the idea.  I read after the fact, that “Serenity” was scheduled to be released in September 2018, but was pulled and delayed until late January 2019.  It’s almost as if the distributors knew something, isn’t it?

The Dark Tower

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I notice that this movie has been getting terrible reviews, but I have to disagree with most of these critics.  I thoroughly enjoyed this movie.  In fact, I would be happy to see it again.  The basic story involves around The Gunslinger, the last of his kind,  played convincingly by Idris Elba, who is tasked with protecting the Dark Tower.  Once the Dark Tower falls, many parallel worlds, including  Earth, will fall to the dark powers of The Man in Black played deliciously by Matthew McConaughey.  The fuel that The Man in Black uses to destroy the tower is creepy and won’t be spoiled here.  The main thing standing in the way of the evil plans is a young boy with super psychic powers.  The interplay between the Gunslinger and the young boy are heartwarming and the threat to Earth seems very real.  Perhaps some of the poor reviews are from people who have read the books and were dissatisfied with the transfer to the big screen.  I have not read the books, so I had no preconceived idea of the movie. In fact, this movie has actually inspired me to want to read the book.  A lot of Stephen King based movies would not be good for kids, but I think older kids would really appreciate and enjoy this one.  The classic battle between good and evil always makes for a good movie.  In my opinion, skip the reviews and give this one a try!

Gold

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‘Gold’, stars Matthew McConaughey as Kenny Wells, a modern prospector on hard times.  He inherits his dad’s mining concern, but times turn bad and Kenny and a few loyal employees are forced to give up their nice offices and conduct business in a bar after their company goes under. Then comes the turn of fortune that looks to put them back in the money!  Matthew gives a solid performance.  He had to gain a lot of weight to play Wells as a middle aged and dissolute man, but one still with hope.  Bryce Dallas Howard is also featured, but she really doesn’t have much to do.  Edgar Ramirez gives a great performance as the partner whose gold discovery in Indonesia turns the company around, or does it?  After you see the movie, look up the real story of  John Felderhof (fictionalized to Kenny Wells). It is every bit as bizarre and intriguing as the movie!  This movie is not as good as Wolf of Wall Street, which I was reminded of as I watched, but it is still worth seeing.