Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016)

Starring Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterston, Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Ezra Miller, Samantha Morton, Jon Voight, Carmen Ejogo, and Colin Farrell

Directed by David Yates

Written by J.K. Rowling

Summary (in 500 words or less):  In 1926 New York City, wizard/British author/magical creature zoologist Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) finds himself caught up in a city under siege by some mystical entity that seems to be a beast that he may be able to catch.  Can the magical wizards keep their secrets from the Muggles of the USA?

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating: C

Movie Review - Decoding Annie Parker

Decoding Annie Parker (2014)

Starring Samantha Morton, Helen Hunt, Aaron Paul, Alice Eve, Marley Shelton, Rashida Jones, Corey Stoll, Bradley Whitford, and Richard Schiff

Directed by Steven Bernstein

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

Anyone who knows me knows my teenage infatuation with Helen Hunt.  Quite possibly the only teenager to fall for the Mad About You actress, Ms. Hunt still holds a special place in my heart.  And she's probably the only reason I even thought about watching Decoding Annie Parker.  Debut screenwriter-director Steven Bernstein's first feature film details the true story of Annie Parker (played by Samantha Morton), a Canadian wife and mother who has had her share of tragedy in life with multiple members of her family succumbing to breast cancer.  When she is told that she also has breast cancer, Annie sets off on a mission to learn all she can about the disease, trying to fight the then-popular opinion in the 1970s that there was no genetic familial connection.  In her research, Annie uncovers works by researcher Mary-Claire King (the aforementioned Hunt), one of the few scientists attempting to link breast cancer to genetics.

Bernstein's film bounces back and forth between Annie and Mary-Claire's stories and also meanders to and fro in the realms of comedy and drama.  The opening line of the film is a quote from Annie -- "My life was a comedy.  I just had to learn how to laugh." -- and despite the subject matter, Bernstein attempts to lighten things up.  Unfortunately, he doesn't quite succeed in creating an adequate balance and his script never quite elevates to anything more than a tv movie.

That being said, however, thanks to a nice performance by Hunt and an even better performance by Morton, Decoding Annie Parker manages to be a little better than the sum of its parts.  Helping as well is the true story of Dr. Mary-Claire King, an undersung hero in the field of genetic research whose contributions to the medical profession are nicely documented here.  It's still nice to know that movies have the ability to open our eyes to certain aspects of our history that we know nothing about.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - John Carter

John Carter (2012)

Starring Taylor Kitsch, Lynn Collins, Samantha Morton, Willem Dafoe, Thomas Haden Church, Mark Strong, Ciarán Hinds, Daryl Sabara, and Bryan Cranston

Directed by Andrew Stanton

While John Carter may not be worthy of the ridicule that came its way thanks to its extremely high budget and disappointing box office returns, this Andrew Stanton-directed picture was already at a disadvantage in my book as its premise simply isn't up my alley in the slightest (remember, you're talking about the guy who's never seen Star Wars and likely never will).  Ultimately, the film's biggest problem is that there's way too much story here for 130 minutes.  We've got introductions to multiple alien races, at least two civil wars amongst rivaling sanctions on the planet we know as Mars (but known to the natives as Barsoom), and, perhaps the most intriguing aspect (yet least focused upon) that some Civil War-era American has been transported to Mars and rather nonchalantly becomes the savior of some of Barsoom's peoples.

I could delve into more plot, but if I did it'd just take too long, so that last sentence in the above paragraph will have to do.  That said, that last sentence is really the reason the film isn't successful.  I understand that this was likely setting up any future films (that will now never happen), but I'm still not sure why there was a need to place so many different plotlines into this first movie.  If anything, these various storylines fight for prominence and oftentimes become incomprehensible due to the plot's overly ambitious nature.  Ultimately, the fault lies in the director and co-screenwriter Andrew Stanton (to whom this was a pet project for years) for failing to either simplify (or at the very least condense) the various plotlines to create something a bit more enjoyable to watch.

I should say, though, that for Stanton's first foray into live action, he does a fine job in terms of creating an aesthetically pleasing landscape and he has quite an eye for mixing humor and action especially at the beginning of the film.  And, given the enormity of the plot he tries to present, the film's pacing is actually decent.  But in the end, there's simply too much story where there doesn't need to be.

Taylor Kitsch is fine, but bland, as the title character.  He's given very little to do despite being in nearly every scene.  I had hoped his character would've been given a little more emotional oomph considering this American got mystically transported to Mars, but after an amusing few minutes of Carter getting used to differences in gravity, the character almost acts as if this new planet is nothing he hasn't seen before.  The rest of the acting is par for the course.  Nothing exceptional, but about what is to be expected in a sci-fi/fantasy flick.

The RyMickey Rating:  C-

Movie Review - The Messenger (2009)

Starring Ben Foster, Woody Harrelson, Samantha Morton, Jena Malone, and Steve Buscemi
Directed by Oren Moverman

Little did I know walking into this movie that I would be watching some of the most gut-wrenching scenes put on film this year, getting a small glimpse at some of the most intimate moments of a soldier's family's life.

The Messenger revolves around two casualty notification officers -- men who are tasked with informing the family members of U.S. soldiers that their loved ones have died. Captain Tony Stone (Harrelson) is the veteran officer and he is in the process of training newcomer Staff Sergeant Will Montgomery (Foster), an Iraq war veteran who has returned home from war with both physical and psychological ailments. As they go from home to home, Will becomes enamored with one particular army widow, Olivia. Both Olivia and Will have their share of problems and their relationship is anything but easygoing.

What touched me the most were the scenes in which Will and Tony reveal the sad news to the family members. The varying reactions of the families and the acting on display of both the family members and of Foster and Harrelson was just stunning here. The muted strength and emotionally vacant faces of the two soldiers (obviously masking their palpable sadness) countering the utter devastation of the family members set up such a dichotomy that one can't help but be moved. There was an uncomfortable feeling in nearly every one of these scenes and they really were quite emotionally gripping.

Certainly helping these scenes earn their gravitas is the fantastic work of Ben Foster and Woody Harrelson. Harrelson, in particular, is pretty darn spectacular here. Always the steadfast and strong one of the pair, Harrelson's Tony is obviously suppressing some horrible "survivor's"-type guilt as evidenced by his past alcoholism and womanizing ways. And Foster, while feeling that same guilt, reacts to things in a much angrier way. It's this balance of the two personalities that make the film work so well -- at first, Will and Tony think they are quite different from one another, but, in the end, they realize they share more than they think. There's also some great (although subtle) work from Samantha Morton, and Jena Malone definitely stands out in what is essentially a glorified extended cameo.

Director Oren Moverman allows things to linger, but manages to never make things seem slow-moving. There's a several minute-long shot of Foster's Will and Morton's Olivia during which Olivia breaks down for the first time that was just stunning, exemplifying the director's idea of not shying away from things. He stays with this emotional scene for an extended period of time, just as he pulls us into every single one of the scenes in which the two officers must deliver the awful news to the next of kin of the fallen soldiers.

Ultimately, the film isn't perfect (although it's close) -- the film doesn't allow the audience to really connect with Will in the way that is necessary to be pulling/rooting for his character. By the film's end and in the final scenes, that emotional connection is finally achieved (boy, is it ever...), but for 90 minutes, I felt a wall up between myself and the main character.

Still, when you look at everything else that's so right with the movie, that feels like a minor quibble. Similar to The Hurt Locker, The Messenger is about war, but doesn't take an (obvious) pro or con stance. They both allow the viewer to make up their own minds and bring their own personal views into the film experience. And The Messenger was quite an experience.

The RyMickey Rating: A-