Hearts Beat Loud

 Hearts Beat Loud (2018)

Starring Nick Offerman, Kiersey Clemons, Ted Danson, Sasha Lane, Blythe Danner, and Toni Collette

Directed by Brett Haley

Written by Brett Haley and Mark Basch

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  B+

Three Men and a Baby

Three Men and a Baby (1987)

Starring Tom Selleck, Steve Guttenberg, Ted Danson, Margaret Colin, Celeste Holm, Nancy Travis, Philip Bosco, Paul Guilfoyle, and Cynthia Harris

Directed by Leonard Nimoy

Written by James Orr and Jim Cruickshank

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating: C

Movie Review - The One I Love

The One I Love (2014)

Starring Mark Duplass, Elisabeth Moss, and Ted Danson

Directed by Charlie McDowell

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

The less said about The One I Love, the better in terms of its plot.  Let's just say that married couple Ethan and Sophie (Mark Duplass and Elisabeth Moss) have hit a rough patch.  Ethan cheated on her and Sophie is having a tough time forgiving so their therapist (Ted Danson) sends them to a secluded house in the lovely California hills for a romantic couples weekend.  There, they find themselves reconnecting, but also are forced to deal with a very unusual situation that could either hinder or help their relationship.

Difficult to discuss without spoiling things, The One I Love is a unique spin on the relationship drama -- I've certainly never seen anything like it before.  About twenty minutes into the film, something weird happens and the flick takes us down a path that hasn't been trodden (to the best of my knowledge).  While I did find myself twiddling my thumbs a bit during the middle act, The One I Love does a really nice job of creating a believable relationship between Ethan and Sophie at all points in the film.  As they fight at the beginning, I believed their contentiousness, but also believed they wanted to work it out.  As they begin to reconcile, I bought into their rediscovered joy.  As weird stuff begins to happen at the retreat, I understood their reactions to it and how it affected their connection with one another.  Kudos to first-time screenwriter Justin Lader for crafting characters that I could buy into and giving them relatable dialog despite the somewhat unrelatable situation going on around them.

The fim is essentially a two character piece and Mark Duplass and Elisabeth Moss bring Lader's words to life in a way that feels genuine.  I was drawn in right away by Duplass and Moss who have much more to do here than I can actually discuss.  The film gives them an opportunity to push their characters' boundaries a bit and both actors succeed.

Admittedly, there are times one when ponders whether The One I Love may have fared better as a short film.  While that wouldn't have allowed us to see the progression of Ethan and Sophie's relationship, the twisted premise does wear a little thin at moments.  Still, debut director Charlie McDowell does a nice job getting great performances from his (essentially) two member cast in this wholly unique take on a troubled relationship.

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review - Creepshow

Creepshow (1982)

Starring Leslie Nielsen, Ted Danson, Stephen King, Ed Harris, Hal Holbrook, and Adrienne Barbeau

Directed by George A. Romero

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

A horror anthology directed by George A. Romero (of Night of the Living Dead fame) and written by modern horror master Stephen King should have worked.  Based off of a series of comic books, Creepshow is an unfortunate blunder.  Made up of five stories, none of them prove to be overly scary or humorous despite the fact that horror and comedy are supposed to mix and mingle in this flick.  There are segments that work better than others -- the middle tale featuring a decidedly nasty Leslie Nielsen playing a vengeful husband pitted against his wife's lover in Ted Danson is the best -- but I couldn't help but think that the whole affair which runs over two hours dragged on for at least thirty minutes too long.  Despite an interesting premise, Creepshow is a bit of a disappointment.

The RyMickey Rating:  C-