The Polka King

The Polka King (2018)

Starring Jack Black, Jenny Slate, Jason Schwartzman, J.B. Smoove, Vanessa Bayer, and Jacki Weaver

Directed by Maya Forbes

Written by Maya Forbes and Wallace Wolodarsky

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating: B-

Poms

Poms (2019)

Starring Diane Keaton, Jacki Weaver, Pam Grier, Celia Weston, Alisha Boe, Phylis Somerville, Charlie Tahan, Bruce McGill, and Rhea Perlman 

Directed by Zara Hayes

Written by Shane Atkinson

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating: C

Bird Box

Bird Box (2018)

Starring Sandra Bullock, Trevante Rhodes, John Malkovich, Daniele Macdonald, Jacki Weaver, Rosa Salazar, Lil Rey Howard, Tom Hollander, Machine Gun Kelly, BD Wong, and Sarah Paulson

Directed by Susanne Bier

Written by Eric Heisserer

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating: B

Life of the Party

Life of the Party (2018)

Starring Melissa McCarthy, Molly Gordon, Gillian Jacobs, Jessie Ennis, Adria Arjona, Luke Benward, Heidi Gardner, Maya Rudolph, Matt Walsh, Julie Bowen, Stephen Root, Jacki Weaver, and Debby Ryan

Directed by Ben Falcone

Written by Ben Falcone and Melissa McCarthy

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  C+

Movie Review - The Voices

The Voices (2015)

Starring Ryan Reynolds, Gemma Arterton, Anna Kendrick, Ella Smith, and Jacki Weaver

Directed by Marjane Satrapi
***This film is currently streaming on Amazon Prime***

More amusing than I expected, The Voices is a dark horror comedy about Jerry (Ryan Reynolds), a factory worker in a small town who had some psychological problems in his past, but has moved on from them...maybe.  You see, with his dog Bosco and his cat Mr. Whiskers talking to him in an angel-on-your-shoulder/devil-on-your-shoulder kind of way, Jerry may not quite be 100% sane yet.  When Jerry goes out to a restaurant with three secretaries from work (Gemma Arterton, Anna Kendrick, and Ella Smith), he begins to think that he may have a chance of starting a relationship with one (or perhaps more) of them...except Jerry's mind has more deviant thoughts and murder is certainly not out of the question.

Embracing the quirky nature of the script, director Marjane Satrapi allows the cast to feel at home with either over-the-top (Ryan Reynolds, Gemma Arterton) or subdued (Anna Kendrick) acting, rather surprisingly meshing the two styles thanks to the dark comedy that runs throughout.  Relishing in comedic gore (which some could admittedly find offensive), The Voices humorously presents the story of a deranged guy desperately trying to better himself with less than successful results.

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review - Magic in the Moonlight

Magic in the Moonlight (2014)

Starring Eileen Atkins, Colin Firth, Marcia Gay Harden, Hamish Linklater, Simon McBurney, Emma Stone, and Jacki Weaver

Directed by Woody Allen

I've come across Woody Allen rather late in my life and I've admittedly still got a lot of catching up to do with his repertoire. While I've kept up to date on his current pieces, his supposedly "good" era of the 1970s and 1980s still is strongly underrepresented in my filmgoing experience.  Nevertheless, Magic in the Moonlight is Allen's latest directorial and penned piece and while it's light and amusing, it's almost too airy for its own good.

Colin Firth is Stanley, an illusionist whose stage act as Chinese magician Wei Ling Soo is renowned across Europe.  Stanley also happens to be well known for debunking soothsayers, fortune tellers, and afterlife believers and he is called upon by his good friend Howard (Simon McBurney) to head to his friend's house in France where a beautiful psychic named Sophie (Emma Stone) is working her charms on Grace and Brice Catledge (Jacki Weaver and Hamish Linklater), a mother and son who find hope in the young woman for different reasons -- one is amazed at Sophie's ability to purportedly contact her dead husband and the other is amazed at Sophie's ability to make him fall in love with her.  Upon Stanley's arrival, he is adamant that he will debunk Sophie's powers, but as he spends time with the psychic, he finds himself being taken in by her charms and begins to think his entire philosophy on life may need to be readjusted.

There's a charm present throughout Magic in the Moonlight and it certainly is thanks in large part to the actors, all of whom exude a 1920s flapper-esque joie de vivre.  Unfortunately, charm doesn't make a movie completely sing and there's not much else the film has going for it.  Allen's film is supposed to be a comedy, but the laughs are few and far between.  Sure, you may smile at Colin Firth and Emma Stone's repartee, but in the end what they're saying is rather inconsequential.  Then again, I always appreciate Woody Allen's use of music in his films and even when his jokes fall flat, his film soundtracks don't.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - Parkland

Parkland (2013)

Starring James Badge Dale, Zac Efron, Colin Hanks, David Harbour, Marcia Gay Harden, Ron Livingston, Jeremy Strong, Billy Bob Thornton, Jacki Weaver, and Paul Giamatti

Directed by Peter Landesman

Parkland looks at the immediate aftermath of the John F. Kennedy assassination not through the eyes of the Kennedys or the conspiracy theorists, but through the lens of "normal" folks on the ground in Dallas, Texas, that fateful day in November 1963.  While an interesting concept, the film lacks an emotional undercurrent throughout, forcing the audience to feel distanced from everything despite first-time director-screenwriter Peter Landesman's attempts to pull us in visually with his camerawork.

Landesman's film certainly is a good debut for the director, but considering the heft of the subject matter, the piece lacks that emotional connection you long to feel.  Part of the reasoning behind this is likely due to the fact that Parkland is truly an ensemble piece.  We see the doctors and nurses at the Parkland Hospital (played by Zac Efron, Colin Hanks, and Marcia Gay Harden) trying to save Kennedy at the beginning, but then we're whisked away to meet with Abraham Zapruder (Paul Giamatti) to see how he dealt with doling out his famous film to the media and the government.  We also get glimpses into the world of the various FBI and Secret Service agents (David Harbour, Ron Livingston, and Billy Bob Thornton) and their reactions to that day before we're welcomed into the world of Lee Harvey Oswald's brother Robert (James Badge Dale) and crazed mother (Jacki Weaver) and their varied reactions to the horrific events that his brother/son (Jeremy Strong) caused.

Quite honestly, all of these four story threads are quite intriguing and they're all buoyed by strong performances by the cast.  Unfortunately, with the ensemble nature of the piece, we're never with any one of them for any long period of time.  Just when we're starting to feel compassion for the medical workers and their unenviable task that November day, we shift to another storyline.  While I appreciate the different angles Landesman brings to the table, it does keep the audience at an emotional distance from the goings-on.  Nevertheless, Parkland is an intriguing piece that certainly gives a different perspective of the Kennedy assassination and if you're a history buff it's well worth watching.

The RyMickey Rating:  B-

Movie Review - Stoker

Stoker (2013)

Starring Mia Wasikowska, Matthew Goode, Nicole Kidman, Phyllis Somerville, Jacki Weaver, and Dermot Mulroney

Directed by Chan-wook Park

I've only seen two Chan-wook Park films -- Thirst and now Stoker (I've heard great things about Oldboy so I probably should check that out) -- but I feel like I understand the director's quirky tendencies when it comes to choosing stories to lense, peppering his films with oddly uncomfortable moments.  Then again, two films does not a director make, but the similar aesthetic is certainly intriguing.  That isn't to say that Stoker doesn't feel "weird for weird's sake" at times because in the film's first half, I was certainly getting a bit antsy wondering if this was simply a director taking an unusual screenplay (by Prison Break's Wentworth Miller) and failing to inject anything other than a unique stylization behind it.  However, once some of the screenplay's secrets are revealed, the story kicks into high gear and doesn't take a whole lot of breaths, providing an unusual homage to Hitchcockian films of the past.

Owing a significant debt of gratitude to Hitchcock's Shadow of a Doubt, Stoker begins with the death of 18 year-old India Stoker's father from a terrible car accident.  At the wake at the family home, India (Mia Wasikowska) is greeted by her father's brother Charlie (Matthew Goode) and Uncle Charlie and her mother Evelyn (Nicole Kidman) hit it off almost instantly.  Uncle Charlie had traveled the world for close to two decades and neither India nor Evelyn had ever met him, but Evelyn is pleased to have a man around the house.  Soon, however, people start disappearing and India begins to wonder if the charming Uncle Charlie is to blame.  While Evelyn slowly becomes enraptured by Charlie's good look, India also starts to fall under his spell despite her better judgment.

The cast overall is solid although Mia Wasikowska continues to amaze in that her blandness has won her leading roles.  Granted, she's proven herself (see this as validation) and in this role her nonchalance and lack of emotion are warranted, but I am shocked she's a top choice amongst directors.  The rest of cast excel, including Jacki Weaver, Phyllis Somerville, and Dermot Mulroney who make the most out of small roles.  Matthew Goode in particular is fantastic.  Able to convey both an alluring suaveness and frightening slyness, it's as if Goode was picked right up out of a Hitchcock film -- it's a near perfect union of character and actor.  (And although I've failed to discuss Ms. Kidman, she also shines here.)

Much like Thirst, Stoker revels in the sexual tension it creates, at times reaching levels of true uncomfortableness in the audience.  It isn't that the film contains nudity or graphic sex scenes, but there's a sense of unease that's created that has the audience oddly repelled and intrigued at the same time.  Although India is certainly more "adult" than her young eighteen years would suggest, her infatuation with her uncle (and his reciprocation of that) is disconcerting.  But that's part of the game of Stoker and it's why the film works.  Hitchcock wasn't afraid of making his audiences squirm a bit and director Park (in this is first English language film) isn't either.  Park obviously is paying homage to that great director (there's a scene involving a fly that most would overlook, but screamed Psycho to me), but he's also ramping things up just a tiny bit for the modern age.

The RyMickey Rating:  B+

Movie Review - Silver Linings Playbook

Silver Linings Playbook (2012)

Starring Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Robert De Niro, Chris Tucker, John Ortiz, Julia Stiles, Anupam Kher, and Jacki Weaver

Directed by David O. Russell

David O. Russell's last film, The Fighter, had a strong focus on family and his follow-up Silver Linings Playbook carries on that familial theme albeit in a bit more comedic tone.  In fact, the odd mix of humor and drama in this flick is the one problem in this otherwise pleasant romantic comedy diversion. Granted, Mr. Russell manages to almost find the proper balance between the two extremes by hour #2, but its first sixty minutes is a tiny bit slow and off kilter.  Still, thanks to a crowd-pleasing finale and some very nice performances, Silver Linings Playbook proves to be moderately successful.

Bradley Cooper takes on his best role since his stint on Alias as Pat, a Philadelphia native who finds himself recently released from a Baltimore mental hospital after eight months of court-ordered examination.  Locked up after he beat up his wife's lover, Pat returns home hoping to have regained control of his anger (and his diagnosed bipolar disorder) allowing him to rekindle his relationship with his wife.  Pat's parents, Dolores and Pat, Sr. (Jacki Weaver and Robert De Niro), try to convince Pat to move on with his life, but he's hellbent on proving he's a good guy to those he hurt in the past.  While out running one evening, he comes across his best friend Ronnie (John Ortiz) who invites him to dinner with his wife Veronica (Julia Stiles) and her recently widowed sister Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence).  Like Pat, Tiffany's a little off-the-wall, not quite all there mentally, and still emotionally hurt (on the inside) by her husband's death, but her instability creates a bit of an attraction for Pat.  As the two grow friendlier, Tiffany wants to take things a bit further, but Pat refuses her advances as he still believes that his wife will return to him.  Eventually the story shifts to the unstable duo competing in a dance competition, but it comes as no surprise that "dance" really is just a way of keeping these two centered, allowing themselves to grow into more spiritually, emotionally, and mentally steady people.

Silver Linings Playbook, unfortunately, lacks some groundedness.  Like its two main characters, it's almost searching for what it wants to be.  The first hour places quite serious with some nice comedic punches thrown in, but the last hour is almost sitcommy at times.  I understand David O. Russell was going for a bit of awkward quirkiness, but the film plays like two different movies and it never successfully melds into one cohesive piece.

That being said, the film rises above the average thanks to some great performances.  As previously mentioned, Bradley Cooper has finally stepped out of Douche-Land, a place where he's been stuck in ever since he became a "movie star."  He's still a guy with a hot-headed streak, but Cooper's finally allowed to give a character he portrays some quieter, emotion-driven moments and he succeeds.

It's also a complete pleasure to see Robert De Niro finally choosing a movie that has good intentions.  Just look at his 2011 -- New Year's Eve (which I started watching on a plane ride to Europe and couldn't complete), Killer Elite (which I started watching on Netflix and couldn't complete), and Limitless (which I shouldn't have allowed myself to complete) -- and you'll see how far he's slipped in recent years.  Here he plays a rough-around-the-edges die-hard Philadelphia Eagles fan with complete accuracy (just listen to Philly sports radio stations and you'll understand the portrayal).  It was nice to see him commit to a role that isn't in a film that scrapes the bottom of the barrel.

But the true star of Silver Linings Playbook is Jennifer Lawrence.  Tough, strong, feisty, and sweet, Lawrence is fantastic.  She has a scene in which she essentially tells off Robert De Niro (not an easy thing to do with his strong onscreen presence) that is one of the best moments I've seen all year.  Her Tiffany recognizes her foibles and is attempting to better them, but Lawrence never once plays her as a victim which she so easily could have done.

This has been a very difficult review to write because the acting in Silver Linings Playbook deserves a film that better understands itself.  I completely understand the awards buzz for the actors, but the movie plays a bit like a really, really good Hallmark movie.  And maybe that's what it always wanted to be.  Sweet and charming.  And it succeeds at achieving those characteristics.  But I don't think that's all that it wanted to convey.  I think it wants to delve deeper than that, but when it tries, it doesn't really win.

The RyMickey Rating:  C+

Movie Review - The Five-Year Engagement

The Five-Year Engagement (2012)

Starring Jason Segel, Emily Blunt, Chris Pratt, Alison Brie, Rhys Ifans, Mindy Kaling, Mimi Kennedy, David Paymer, Jacki Weaver, and Kevin Hart

Directed by Nicholas Stoller

I don't understand why comedies in this new century can't seem to find the money to pay for an editor.  I think Judd Apatow single-handedly harmed the genre in the last eight years or so with his inability to make the necessary trims to create a properly paced laugher.  It should come as no surprise that Mr. Apatow produced The Five-Year Engagement, yet another one of his films to clock in unnecessarily at over two hours.  It's a bummer, too, because the film is pretty goshdarn charming.  Yes, it's an R-rated flick and has its moments of raunch, but there's some serious heart here and the comedy stems naturally from those realistic and sometimes touching moments (which, I'll admit, is the one thing Apatow does really well).  And yet the producers and co-writer/director Nicholas Stoller make me have to knock this down a few notches because it just doesn't know how to move things along.

Co-writer and Muppet lover Jason Segel is Tom who meets the lovely Violet (Emily Blunt) at a New Years' Eve costume party.  After dating a year, Tom pops the question to Violet who immediately accepts and the two begin the process of planning their wedding.  A few unforeseen circumstances present a few roadblocks, the biggest of which is Violet's acceptance into the University of Michigan's graduate program for psychology.  Tom, who has a great job as a chef in their current home city San Francisco, agrees to move with Violet for the two years it will take for her to complete the program.  Two years, however, turns into a bit more and Tom finds himself wallowing in disappointment unable to find ways to better himself and his career in the small 'burbs of Michigan.  While they don't call off the wedding, their planning for the event shifts to the wayside as Violet's schooling takes precedence.

Part of the film's problem, however, is that the time spent in Michigan could have been condensed by at least thirty minutes, if not a little more.  While I enjoyed the many (many) side characters that the writers introduced, they were completely unnecessary and literally did nothing to advance the plot.  At a certain point, the scissors need to come out and the trimming needs to be made, but this is the whole Apatow attitude and mindset and it's why I've really never found myself loving many of the films he's had his hands in (Step Brothers and Bridesmaids being two notable exceptions).

Segel and Blunt (whom I admittedly find incredibly charming and attractive) work very well together which for some reason surprised me.  Perhaps it was wrong of me to think the two actors wouldn't connect at all, but they proved to have nice chemistry.  Alison Brie and Chris Pratt are also given sizable supporting roles as Violet's sister and Tom's friend, respectively, who meet at Tom and Violet's engagement party and end up marrying each other soon after.  Both known best for their work on NBC sitcoms, Brie and Pratt were certainly nice additions to the cast.  And the rest of the supporting cast is also fairly top notch, but unfortunately most of them, as mentioned above, just didn't need to be in the movie.

I really wanted to give this movie a better rating.  There were moments while watching it where I thought this was quite possibly the best movie I had seen so far in 2012 (it's been a really weak year thus far).  And then the second hour hits and the film bogs itself down with extra characters and a more dramatic tone and it loses me.  Granted, it didn't lose me completely -- there's still much about this film to enjoy -- but it makes me wonder whether I should head out to Hollywood for an editing job.  There must be positions open since films like this don't seem to utilize that role to its fullest potential.

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review - Animal Kingdom

Animal Kingdom (2010)

Starring James Frecheville, Guy Pearce, Joel Edgerton, Luke Ford, Sullivan Stapleton, Ben Mendelsohn, and Jacki Weaver

Directed by David Michôd

While Animal Kingdom certainly wasn't off my radar (what with Jacki Weaver's Supporting Actress nod at this year's Oscars), I wasn't expecting to be completely riveted while watching it...but riveted I was.  This Australian modern-day crime drama slowly reveals its diabolical and surprising cards at just the right moments, creating an ominous tone throughout and proving that, along with 2010's release of the superb The Square, Australia is the new breeding ground for excellent thrillers.

Ultimately, I don't want to give much away here.  It's great to see this film unfold without knowing a whole lot, so I'll simply say what I knew going into it.  Seventeen year-old Josh Cody (James Frecheville) is left orphaned when his mother overdoses on heroin.  Not knowing where to turn, he calls his grandmother Janine (Jacki Weaver) whom he hasn't seen in years.  The outwardly pleasant Janine takes the teen into her home which she shares with her sons who all happen to be mixed up in various crimes, from robbing banks to selling drugs.  That's it.  That's all I knew...that's all you should know...now move this thing up towards the top of your Netflix queue.

First-time director David Michôd does a great job here.  Lensing his own screenplay, I was honestly amazed at how many times I was genuinely surprised by the direction the film veered.  And to keep things nervously tense for two hours is not an easy feat, but Michôd makes it seem like a piece of cake.

Of course, helping keep things interesting is Michôd's cadre of talented actors, including newcomer James Frecheville as Josh, who, much like the lead in the aforementioned The Square, plays things extremely solemn and gloomy, but manages to hold our attention nonetheless.  Couple his glumness with Jacki Weaver's exuberance (and the underlying sheer nastiness underneath the pleasant façade) and you've got a pretty nifty duo to watch.  But it would be a disservice not to direct your attention to the actors I list above underneath the title at the top of this post because everyone in this Australian crew is darn good.  Particular kudos to Ben Mendelsohn who managed to truly skeeve me out every time he came onscreen.

Despite a slight bit of a lag in the film's first act, Animal Kingdom is absolutely a must-see and one of the best films of 2010.  I doubt you'll be disappointed if you check it out.

The RyMickey Rating:  A-