Just Mercy

Just Mercy (2019)

Starring Michael B. Jordan, Jamie Foxx, Brie Larson, Rob Morgan, Rafe Spall, O'Shea Jackson, and Tim Blake Nelson

Directed by Destin Daniel Cretton

Written by Destin Daniel Cretton and Andrew Lanham

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating: B

Captain Marvel

Captain Marvel (2019)

Starring Brie Larson, Samuel L. Jackson, Ben Mendelsohn, Djimon Hounsou, Lee Pace, Lashana Lynch, Gemma Chan, Clark Gregg, Annette Bening, and Jude Law

Directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck

Written by Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck, and Geneva Robertson-Dworet

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  C

The Glass Castle

The Glass Castle (2017)

Starring Brie Larson, Woody Harrelson, Naomi Watts, Ella Anderson, and Max Greenfield

Directed by Destin Daniel Cretton

Written by Destin Daniel Cretton, Andrew Lanham, and Marti Noxon
***This film is currently streaming via Amazon Prime***

Summary (in 500 words or less):  In the 1970s, a family with four children moves from place to place as they live in poverty that is self-inflicted by an artist mother (Naomi Watts) and an anti-establishment, anti-government father (Woody Harrelson).  When the 1980s roll around, the children have grown and left their parents, but find themselves having to reconcile with their past.

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  C-

Free Fire

Free Fire (2017)

Starring Sharlto Copley, Armie Hammer, Brie Larson, Cillian Murphy, Jack Reynor, Babou Ceesay, Enzo Cilenti, Sam Riley, Michael Smiley, and Noah Taylor

Directed by Ben Wheatley

Written by Amy Jump and Ben Wheatley

***This film is currently streaming via Amazon Prime***

Summary (in 500 words or less):  A group of criminals meets up with weapons salesmen at an empty warehouse when chaos erupts and bullets start flying everywhere.

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  C-

Kong: Skull Island

Kong: Skull Island (2017)

Starring Tom Hiddleston, Brie Larson, Samuel L. Jackson, John C. Reilly, Corey Hawkins, Jing Tian,  John Ortiz, Thomas Mann, Shea Whigham, Toby Kebbell, and John Goodman

Directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts

Written by Dan Gilroy, Max Borenstein, and Derek Connelly

Summary (in 500 words or less):  A team (both military and scientific) head to Skull Island in order to investigate some strange findings.  Upon their arrival, they soon discover the island is home to many larger-than-life creatures including the titular simian Kong.

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  C+

Movie Review - Room

Room (2015)

Starring Brie Larson, Jacob Tremblay, Joan Allen, Sean Bridgers, Tom McCamus, and William H. Macy

Directed by Lenny Abrahamson

The biggest compliment I can pay Room is that I wanted director Lenny Abrahamson's film to be Boyhood-levels of epicness in terms of length.  I found myself so incredibly enveloped and taken in by the story of the flick's two main characters that I didn't want to leave their journey.  When something like that happens in a movie theater, you know you're in for a treat and Room is a fascinating film that captivated me like no other I've seen from 2015.

I had such high expectations for Room simply based on its initial reviews and a broad concept of the story that I tried as hard as I could to stay away from learning anything about it prior to seeing the film -- and somehow I achieved that goal, not even watching a trailer for the film.  So, with that said, if you'd like to have as "pure" of an experience as me, perhaps you should stop reading now.  For those who wish to continue, be prepared for some gushing.

Told in essentially two acts, Room details the story of five year-old Jack (Jacob Tremblay) and his Ma (Brie Larson).  Jack and Ma (whom we later learn is named Joy) live in a ten-by-ten room, never glimpsing the outside world except for the sky through a small skylight.  As we wonder why these two people are stuck in this tiny place, Joy's story is gradually revealed and we come to understand that she was kidnapped as a teenager and has been held captive for seven years.  Jack has never once been outside Room (as he calls it) and his Ma has made up a variety of stories to tell him about how everything outside of Room is fake and their abode is the only thing that's real.  Every Sunday evening, Old Nick (Sean Bridgers) pays a visit, bringing Jack and Ma's weekly allotment of food, but Ma never lets Jack meet Old Nick, forcing Jack to go to bed behind doors in Wardrobe whenever he is due to arrive.  Needless to say, despite bringing them sustenance, Old Nick isn't a good guy and on Jack's fifth birthday, Joy begins to have the courage to contemplate an escape plan.

Imagine seeing the world for the first time -- quite frankly, we can't even begin to contemplate what the cacophony of sounds, the frenetically paced movement, and the sheer brightness of something as commonplace as sunlight would be like to us if we were seeing it for the first time.  So imagine how little five year-old Jack feels upon stepping outside Room for the first time.  Not only is he seeing the world for the first time, but he's also dealing with the fact that for five years, his mother has told him that Room is real, while outside Room is fake.  Pitch-perfectly portrayed by young Jacob Tremblay, we as adults are taken in by the nine year-old actor who is depicting the awe-inspiring, frightening, and bewildering emotions of his character with such precision and childlike innocence that it's a wonder this little guy hasn't been on the cinematic radar sooner.  The youthful zest for curiosity is ever-apparent in Jack, and Tremblay -- who is just as much a lead as his counterpart mother -- deserved to be recognized by the Oscars rather than be ridiculously overlooked.  (Admittedly, one of the reasons for this is that the film studio was marketing him as a supporting actor while he is very much the lead here which may have led to some split voting amongst Academy members unsure of which category in which to place him.)

Brie Larson popped onto my radar with the brilliant Short Term 12 -- my #2 movie of 2013 (it's streaming on Netflix so there's no excuse for not seeing it) -- and her choice of Room as her next "serious drama" was yet another reason this flick was on my Must See 2015 Movies.  Room is really a tale of two movies for the actress.  In the first half, despite obviously being deprived of the outside world, she exudes both a strong will for survival and a desperately loving demeanor to her son to whom she is his only source of communication, compassion, and contact.  By the time that second act rolls around, though, Larson is able to really run a gamut of believable and thought-provoking emotions -- some that I wasn't expecting despite all of them being perfectly legit.  Obviously, it was going to be a change of pace -- and a difficult one at that -- acclimating her son to the world outside of Room, but Joy never could have expected how difficult it would be for her to return home to her mother (Joan Allen) whom she hadn't seen since her teen years.  I found it utterly fascinating to see Larson's Joy almost revert back to her stubborn seventeen year-old self once the weightiness of the real world -- and the choices that led to her being captured and those she made while being captured -- began to reign down on her.

Larson in particular owes a huge part of her character's depth and intricate emotions to screenwriter Emma Donogue who is adapting her own novel (which I now cannot wait to get my hands on).  Donogue nails the tricky and tenuous emotional roller coaster for not only Larson and Tremblay's characters, but also for Joan Allen whose role as Joy's mother and Jake's grandmother is also a delicate balancing act.  Without ever feeling strained or cloying, Donogue's script is a riveting one, packed with heart, compassion, and gutsiness.

Director Lenny Abrahamson is not a name I am particularly familiar with and his one prior film I had seen -- Frank -- didn't quite gel.  Fortunately, everything comes together here brilliantly.  Not only does Abrahamson master the mother/son emotional relationship, but he proves that he's also a master of creating suspense thanks to the edge-of-your-seat nature of Jacob and Joy's escape from Room -- a ten minute sequence that runs the gamut of emotions from fear to joy to sadness to compassion.  Considering that the first hour of the film takes place entirely within the confines of Room, Abrahamson keeps the audience riveted and fascinated by the proceedings, and once we step outside of Room, the film doesn't lose any momentum.

A lot of times when I see a movie I really like, I hold off on writing my review as I'm not quite sure how I want to frame my thoughts.  With Room, it was the exact opposite.  I wanted to hash this one out as quickly as possible to get out "on paper" the emotional impact this flick had on me.  I can't recommend this one highly enough.  Get yourself to Room immediately -- I think I'll be heading back as well.  As I said in my first sentence of this review, this was a film I didn't want to end.  I wanted to find out more about all of the film's inhabitants as I rooted for them to find the happiness they so richly deserved.

The RyMickey Rating:  A

Movie Review - Trainwreck

Trainwreck (2015)

Starring Amy Schumer, Bill Hader, Brie Larson, Tilda Swinton, Colin Quinn, John Cena, Vanessa Bayer, Mike Birbiglia, Ezra Miller, Dave Attell, and LeBron James

Directed by Judd Apatow

I don't know anything except some peripheral info about Amy Schumer.  I've never seen her Comedy Central show or watched one of her stand-up routines.  I know she's somewhat abrasive and very sexually forward in her comedy, but beyond that, I simply didn't really care to get to know her because (a) I can't tell you the last time I've turned on Comedy Central, (b) I've never really been a stand-up comedy kind of guy, and (c) I didn't think I'd enjoy her sarcastically self-deprecating raw humor.  Trainwreck just may very well have made me a fan.

Written and conceived by Schumer herself and taking on some autobiographical aspects, Trainwreck tells the story of Amy (played by Schumer, naturally), a writer for an edgy men's magazine, who much to her surprise trades in her sexually adventurous, partying lifestyle for a more traditional relationship with orthopedic surgeon Dr. Aaron Conners (Bill Hader) after being sent to interview him by her boss (Tilda Swinton).  This newfound happiness doesn't sit well with Amy who's given her sister Kim (Brie Larson) a hard time for settling down with her husband (Mike Birbiglia) and his son.  Trying to find a balance between her fun recklessness and her toned down persona sends Amy into a bit of a whirlwind as she tries to discover the woman she's most comfortable being.

Schumer may not be the best actress -- there are moments where you feel she's less acting than doing stand-up -- but there are certainly times where you see layers peaking out wherein a little more experience could shape her into a more solid actress.  Schumer is surrounded by a great cast led by Bill Hader who is both the straight man to Schumer's craziness, but also gets a chance to show off his comedic chops as well.  We also get Tilda Swinton as Amy's snooty (and very funny) editor and the lovely Brie Larson as Amy's "normal" sister.  Surrounding Schumer with such a talented cast elevates her rather than making her "stand out" in a negative way.

Those who have frequented this blog know that I think Judd Apatow is one of the most overrated directors and screenwriters around, but I must give him kudos here for helping to shape Schumer's debut screenplay into something that plays both charming and disarming onscreen.  Although Apatow tries to imbue heart into his films, I find them often empty and emotionless -- that isn't the case here as Schumer herself creates a surprisingly balanced film that feels both modern in terms of its raunchy humor and classic when it comes to romantic comedy tropes.  Apatow keeps things moving (which is a rarity in his films) and while there were still minor thoughts of "could they have trimmed this" that ran through my head, Trainwreck is an all around amusing venture.

The RyMickey Rating:  B+

Movie Review - Don Jon

Don Jon (2013)

Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Scarlett Johansson, Julianne Moore, Glenne Headley, Brie Larson, and Tony Danza

Directed by Joseph Gordon-Levitt

***This film is currently streaming on Netflix***

It's tough to feel bad for a guy who's screwing Scarlett Johannson I've come to discover after watching Joseph Gordon-Levitt's feature film directorial and screenwriting debut Don Jon.  Gordon-Levitt is Jon, a tough-around-the-edges New Jersey pretty boy who charms the undergarments right off women mere hours after meeting them.  Each weekend Jon and his two buddies head to the local club and each weekend Jon goes home without a different hottie.  One evening, however, he meets Barbara (Johannson) and is instantly taken by her despite the fact that she won't immediately sleep with him.  Barbara ends up changing Jon's lothario ways...or so she thinks.  Despite Jon exclusively sleeping with her, Jon is unhealthily addicted to online pornography so much so that it has warped his mind into being unable to have a normal relationship.

Don Jon is played for laughs and perhaps that's where the problem with the film comes into play.  There are never really any moments that are purposely driven to make you laugh out loud, yet the film never takes Jon's addiction serious enough to make you feel pity for the guy.  In fact, rather than feel sympathy for his addiction, we start to pity his relationship with Barbara who becomes more controlling as their courtship continues.  Ultimately, this proves to be a bit unsatisfying for the viewer as we flailingly strive to connect with Jon in a way that makes us root for his success.

Gordon-Levitt deepens his voice and picks up a thick Jersey accent to play the title character and he certainly embodies the persona.  Unfortunately, even towards the end when conversations with an older woman (played by Julianne Moore) try to get him to come to grips with his addiction, we can't sympathize with the guy.  Maybe it's because he's got ladies like Barbara fawning over him who, in Jon's own words, is a ten.  [That would be on a scale of one to ten with ten being the best, for those mathematically challenged.]  Johannson also does a nice job with the Jersey attitude (although her portrayal seems a tinge more like a caricature than Gordon-Levitt's) and she certainly plays the part of a sexy tease quite well.  Despite some cute moments of dialogue between the two, though, Gordon-Levitt's screenplay never really had me squarely in their camp hoping for their success.  Maybe it's an unconscious jealousy on my part -- "seriously, he's screwing Scarlett Johannson and still has to look at porn to get his jollies?" -- but something just didn't coalesce for me.

While I'd be interested to see what else "Joseph Gordon-Levitt, the Non-Actor" has down the pike, Don Jon is a bit too generic in both its script and its direction to really showcase any fantastic talent the fine young actor has behind the camera.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - The Spectacular Now

The Spectacular Now (2013)

Starring Miles Teller, Shailene Woodley, Brie Larson, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Bob Odenkirk, Kaitlyn Dever, Masam Holden, Dayo Okeniyi, Jennifer Jason Leigh, and Kyle Chandler

Directed by James Ponsoldt

In this day and age when teens flock to movies like the Twilight and Divergent series that supposedly tell stories to which they can relate, I can't help but think we're also in the midst of a great era for dramas focused on the regular everyday stories of American youths -- you know, without vampires, werewolves, and dystopian governments.  I may not have loved 2012's The Perks of Being a Wallflower, but it was a film I could appreciate for what it brought to the table in its surprisingly dark and somewhat depressing look at teenage angst.  2013 ushered in The Way Way Back which proved to be another solid piece that gave new energy to a coming-of-age tale.  

Towering over both those films, though, is The Spectacular Now, a flick that earned significantly less dough at the box office than either of those aforementioned flicks, but is a gem that absolutely should be seen.  Led by two fantastic performances from Miles Teller and Shailene Woodley, The Spectacular Now is a touching look at young love and how early relationships can shape us into the person we grow up to be.  Teller is Sutter Keely, a hard-partying high school senior whose mixture of class clown-ish/cool guy demeanor masks the fact that he can't make it many hours throughout the day without sneaking a drink from his secret flask of alcohol stashed in his pocket.  His girlfriend Cassidy (Brie Larson) has just left him for Marcus (Dayo Okeniyi), the quarterback of the football team and the class president, in the hopes of finding a more serious relationship as she heads off to college.  While this upsets Sutter and certainly was a blow to his esteem, it doesn't stop him from partying even harder in an attempt to find a lady to latch on to even if it's just for a night.

After a night he can't remember, Sutter finds himself sprawled out on some unknown yard, discovered by Aimee (Shailene Woodley), a mousy, smart, yet certainly attractive senior at Sutter's school as she performs her morning paper route.  While the two had maybe seen each other in passing, they definitely belonged to different social cliques.  However, with Sutter woman-less, he sees an opportunity to perhaps make his ex feel a little jealous that he's moved on from her.  Although their relationship begins thanks to a somewhat deviously selfish notion on Sutter's part, he begins to find himself falling for Aimee's simplicity and mild-mannered nature -- the complete opposite of his lifestyle.

Director James Ponsoldt previously directed 2012's Smashed and my complaint about that film was that Ponsoldt didn't allow his camera to linger long enough in certain scenes in order to gain the full emotional impact that the story inherently had going for it.  Ponsoldt has certainly learned his lesson as The Spectacular Now is rather beautiful in its usage of simplistic long takes, taking its time to allow the story to unfold.  There's a naturalness to the dialog that almost languidly and off-the-cuff transpires between leads Teller and Woodley that gives you a sense of improvisation, never feeling forced and creating an incredibly believable world these two characters inhabit.

While I knew Shailene Woodley from her role in The Descendants, Miles Teller was a new face to me -- although I'd apparently seen him before in a film called Rabbit Hole.  What a breath of fresh air Mr. Teller is.  First, it should be mentioned that nearly all of the main actors playing teens here are in their mid-to-early twenties, yet they all believably jumped back into the roles of high schoolers.  That's what took me by surprise first as I found myself checking Teller's age while watching the film to see rather selfishly if I could place him on my Best Younger Actor/Actress list at the 2013 RyMickey Awards.  Second, Teller lands on a perfect mix of smarminess, cockiness, and angst-i-ness for his character of Sutter.  Sutter outwardly seems to have it all, but his constant drinking obviously hides an inner disappointment in himself and Teller captures that wonderfully.  When he finally is able to open up to Aimee, the more mellow side of Sutter rings just as true as the "bad boy" side.

Admittedly, upon her introduction, I was slightly disappointed by the obvious way the filmmakers decided to portray Shailene Woodley's Aimee.  She was given more homely clothes, wore significantly less make-up, and had more tussled hair than Sutter's ex-girlfriend Cassidy.  It just seemed like too obvious a set-up for the audience -- "See!  Aimee is the nice girl!"  However, as the film progressed, I appreciated the fact that Aimee as a character didn't change.  She stayed the down-home, sweet, and calming presence that we first witness from her.  Yes, Sutter opened her eyes to love, but she was strong enough to recognize that she didn't need to change for him.  For some reason, this felt rather refreshing and Woodley's performance was subtle and gentle, lacking a showiness that we so often see.

The script isn't quite flawless -- there's a subplot involving Sutter's estranged father that plays out a little too melodramatically to work with the rest of the film, as an example -- but the relationship between Sutter and Aimee and the camaraderie between the two actors that play those characters more than makes up for it.  The Spectacular Now is one of those under-the-radar films that you may not have heard of, but is absolutely worth seeking out.

The RyMickey Rating:  A-

Movie Review - Short Term 12

Short Term 12 (2013)

Starring Brie Larson, John Gallagher Jr., Kaitlyn Dever, and Keith Stanfield

Directed by Destin Cretton

I'm not sure there's a movie created that doesn't want us to connect with its characters.  I'm not saying we have to like the personalities that a film presents, but the goal of a filmmaker and screenwriter is to get us to feel something about the people onscreen whether that be a good or bad attachment.  Destin Cretton's Short Term 12 had me empathizing with what I saw more than any other movie I've seen (thus far) from 2013 and it's that type of emotional rawness I've been waiting to see this year.

Grace (Brie Larson) is the lead supervisor at a temporary shelter (a "Short Term" facility) for troubled foster teens.  She's quiet and private, yet darn good at what she does, garnering much respect from both the kids and coworkers she helps.  However, while Grace desperately tries to get "her kids" to open up to her, she has an incredibly difficult time following that guidance herself, particularly to her long-term boyfriend and co-worker Mason (Delawarean John Gallagher Jr in an understated, yet important role).  Grace isn't without her share of baggage (of both the old festering and new panicky kinds), yet she pushes everything unhealthily inward.

I'll leave the summary segment of this review at that as Short Term 12 is better to just see unfold in the natural and simplistic, though never "easy," way its story is unveiled.  Along the way, we meet two foster kids in particular who resonate with both Grace and the audience -- eighteen year-old Marcus (Keith Stanfield) who is on his way out of Short Term 12 and the younger Jayden (Kaitlyn Dever) who is just beginning her stint there.  Both Marcus and Jayden shape Grace's life in ways she likely never would have dreamed possible, yet in a manner that never rings false or condescendingly sentimental.  Writer-director Destin Cretton could've easily taken any one of his characters down the cheap path of maudlinness, but that never happens for a second.

Cretton also gets amazing performances from his cast.  Brie Larson is fantastic as Grace, perfectly balancing the somewhat tricky aspects of a character that asks her to console others despite the fact that she can't do the same for herself.  Her Grace has a quiet strength that makes it all the more difficult to watch as we long for her to reconcile with her past and come to peace with whatever demons may have crossed her path.  We want to console her...and that's not a bad thing at all.

Adding to the across-the-board acting superlatives, both Keith Stanfield and Kaitlyn Dever give bravura performances.  Stanfield's Marcus is quiet (much like Grace), but it's moreso out of defeat than anything else.  He's been at Short Term 12 for a not-so-short term and his sense of worth has been deflated exponentially.  Stanfield so easily could've taken this his character in an overly harsh or overly sympathetic direction, but he finds the happy medium and embodies what I think may be one of the best characters we've seen onscreen this year.  Young Ms. Dever takes the the opposite approach with her Jayden who's not afraid to get rambunctious, yet eschews that bellowing personality at times in order to show that she's really just a young girl unable to cope with what the adults around her have put her through.  Both get scenes that had me this close to tears simply because in the short time I'd been given to get to know these characters, empathy had taken root.

And that empathy is what makes Short Term 12 the winner that it is.  This film could've easily turned into an ABC Afterschool Special if it so desired, but Dustin Cretton instead creates an authentic atmosphere with characters who never once feel "forced" into any action they're undertaking onscreen.  Dialog never rings false, so much so that I sometimes found myself marveling at the sheer simplicity of what Cretton wrote -- how did the most basic of words convey so much emotion?  Because of this naturalness, we in the audience immediately become intimately involved with the film...and it's really a beautiful thing.

The RyMickey Rating:  A

Movie Review - 21 Jump Street

21 Jump Street (2012)

Starring Channing Tatum, Jonah Hill, Brie Larson, Dave Franco, and Ice Cube

Directed by Phil Lord and Chris Miller

2012 seems to be the year of Channing Tatum, but 21 Jump Street is only the fourth time I've ever seen him act.  I'm not quite sold on the guy, finding him to have an onscreen presence that's rather arrogant and cocky, and the flick didn't really change my mind on the newfound star.  Still, this comedic reinvention of a dramatic 80s tv show (that I never watched once) has enough laugh-out-loud moments to make this worth checking out.

In 2005, Morton Schmidt (Jonah Hill) and Greg Jenko (Channing Tatum) are both in their senior year of high school, but they are definitely on two different sides of the tracks when it comes to popularity.  Jenko is the popular school jock, while Schmidt can't find a date to prom.  Their lives barely intertwine and when they do, it's only for Jenko to throw a slightly demeaning joke Schmidt's way.  Cut to six years later and both young twentysomethings find themselves in the same class of recruits at Metropolitan City's police academy.  With Jenko failing miserably at the written exams and Schmidt bombing the more physical tests, the two team up to help one another and become good buddies.

Unfortunately, Jenko and Schmidt aren't given much respect and are relegated to patrolling on bikes through a typically serene park.  When they perform a drug bust that goes a bit awry, the young duo is sent on an undercover mission headquartered at 21 Jump Street in which Jenko and Schmidt will act as high schoolers in order to try and find the source of a new drug that is making the rounds amongst the teens in the area.

Though we get the standard comedic go-to's like mistaken identities, drug-induced hallucinations, and a bit of gross-out humor, 21 Jump Street is really a buddy comedy that works thanks to Hill and Tatum's chemistry with one another.  While I may not care much for either actor overall, together they are surprisingly appealing to watch.  Sure, I never got any sense that they were anything other than "Jonah Hill" or "Channing Tatum," but they both bring a nice sense of comic timing (a first for Tatum to display) to the affair.

What's perhaps most impressive and also quite promising is that directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller's only other feature film is the charming and hilarious Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.  For 21 Jump Street to be their first foray into live action is moderately astounding.  Yes, the movie isn't perfect -- a few of the scenes with the high schoolers fall a bit flat, some of the supporting cast like Rob Riggle as a gym teacher are a bit too over-the-top, and the whole thing runs about ten minutes too long -- but it's a darn good first try at live action.

The RyMickey Rating:  B