My Best Friend's Wedding

 My Best Friend's Wedding (1997)

Starring Julia Roberts, Dermot Mulroney, Cameron Diaz, and Rupert Everett

Directed by P.J. Hogan

Written by Ronald Bass

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  C+

The Christmas Train

 The Christmas Train (2017)

Starring Dermot Mulroney, Kimberly Williams Paisley, Joan Cusack, and Danny Glover

Directed by Ron Oliver

Written by Neal Dobrofsky and Tippi Dobrofsky

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  C

The Mountain Between Us

The Mountain Between Us (2017)

Starring Idris Elba, Kate Winslet, Dermot Mulroney, and Beau Bridges

Directed by Hany Abu-Assad

Written by Chris Weitz and J. Mills Goodloe

Summary (in 500 words or less):  When their flight to the East Coast is cancelled due to bad weather, strangers neurosurgeon Ben Bass (Idris Elba) and photojournalist Alex Martin (Kate Winslet) decide to pool their money together and get a local private pilot (Beau Bridges) to fly them to their destination.  Midflight, however, the pilot suffers a deadly stroke and their plane goes down in the mountains of Colorado.  Desperate to survive in the frigid landscape, Ben and Alex band together to make it to safety.

• The Mountain Between Us is unfortunately about forty-five minutes too long...and it's not all that long to begin with at 110 minutes.  
• Despite being anchored by two very strong and capable performances from Idris Elba and Kate Winslet, the film pushes a romantic chemistry between the duo which the survivalist pic didn't really need.  
• Director Hany Abu-Assad's film works best in its first act in the lead-up and immediate aftermath of the plane crash and then falls apart when it pushes Elba and Winslet to fall for one another which just ends up coming off as laughable.  It leads to one of the silliest and foolishly shot sex scenes I've seen in a while.
• It's a bit of a shame the film's script takes this flick where it eventually goes because there were pieces at the beginning that made this seem more promising than it ended up being.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - Truth

Truth (2015)

Starring Cate Blanchett, Robert Redford, Topher Grace, Dennis Quaid, Elisabeth Moss, Bruce Greenwood, Stacy Keach, John Benjamin Hickey, and Dermot Mulroney

Directed by James Vanderbilt

Despite a solid performance from Cate Blanchett (who, lets be honest, rarely disappoints), Truth feels as if it's not quite doing what its title implies.  Based on a true story, Blanchett is Mary Mapes, a producer for the venerable CBS news series 60 Minutes.  With the 2004 presidential election on the horizon, Mapes and segment host Dan Rather (Robert Redford) present a story that claims that then-current President George W. Bush received preferential treatment from Air National Guard officials in the 1970s.  Nearly immediately after the airing of the segment, a variety of sources begin to question the thirty-plus year-old documents that were the building blocks and particularly damning evidence of Mapes and Rather's report.  As Mapes attempts to quell the criticism, she finds herself at odds with her CBS bosses who keep questioning her journalistic ethics.

Taking politics out of the equation, the ultimate problem with Truth stems from the fact that it is based on Mapes's memoir and it makes out her CBS bosses and the litigation team investigating her journalistic ethics to be manically devilish in their attempts to take her down.  You can almost see Dermot Mulroney's lawyer character twirling his comedically villainous mustache as he tries to silence Mapes, and a lengthy and vindictive diatribe against the CBS honchos spoken by Topher Grace's ambitious reporter (and Mapes colleage) proves laughably farcical rather than substantive.  While there may be some truth behind the preferential treatment Bush received (and there may very well not be), the lack of well-roundedness in the side players of Truth and the need to make Mapes seem "right" hinders the film greatly.

As mentioned, Blanchett is good as the strong-willed Mapes who faces a possible career-ending crisis with the actress allowing us to see the pain Mapes internally confronts, but the film steers her wrong at the end and the self-aggrandizing, boastful attitude of the film does Blanchett no favors.  The film is blatantly telling us how to feel about her character rather then letting the audience naturally come to that conclusion.  The rest of the typically solid cast isn't given much to do at all with Redford in particular inhabiting a role that feels underwritten and shockingly sidelined for much of the film.  Then again, this is Mary Mapes's story and despite its attempts at trying to balance both sides, the film, although adequately produced and lensed, just doesn't land in the way it hopes.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - August: Osage County

August: Osage County (2013)

Starring Meryl Streep, Julia Roberts, Julianne Nicholson, Juliette Lewis, Chris Cooper, Ewan McGregory, Margo Martindale, Dermot Mulroney, Abigail Breslin, Benedict Cumberbatch, Misty Upham, and Sam Shepard

Directed by John Wells

I must admit that I avoided August: Osage County in theaters because I had a disappointing experience with the Pulitzer Prize-winning play upon which the film is based.  Four years ago, I remember heading up to Philadelphia on my birthday excited to see both the Phillies play a day game (this was when they were still moderately good, whereas games now are sometimes greeted with exasperation when I have to go) and then go see August: Osage County on stage at night.  The play had garnered gushing rave reviews and won a slew of awards when it had played in New York City, so I told my family that it had to be good.  It wasn't (and my review reiterated this).  I was greeted with a three hour-and-twenty minute soap opera that seemingly kept trying to one-up itself with ridiculous "surprises."  Needless to say, this previous experience with playwright Tracy Letts' material didn't have me awaiting with bated breath his re-working of his own play for the silver screen.  Color me surprised then when I finally put the Blu-Ray into the player and discovered that Letts pared down his play by over an hour and created something that is still steeped in GREAT melodrama, but works a bit better on the screen than it did on the stage.

With a huge esteemed acting ensemble in tow, August: Osage County tells the story of the Weston family whose patriarch Beverly (Sam Shepard) has gone missing at the film's start.  Ailing matriarch Violet (Meryl Streep) calls her three daughters -- Barbara, Ivy, and Karen (Julia Roberts, Julianne Nicholson, and Juliette Lewis, respectively) -- back to their old Oklahoma home to help their cancer-stricken mother find their father.  Taking place almost entirely in and around their childhood home, the three daughters find themselves having to deal with their abrasive and over-medicated mother, her somewhat crazy, though lovable sister Mattie Fae (Margo Martindale), and their own significant others all of whom are creating trouble for their own personal lives.

This is a film that despite being nearly balanced in terms of the gender make-up of the cast is all about the women.  While Ewan McGregor, Dermot Mulroney, Chris Cooper, and Benedict Cumberbatch may try to act like they're important, the core relationship this film is focusing upon is that of Violet and her three daughters and all four of the actresses portraying those characters hold their own.  Of course, Meryl Streep is quite good, playing the incredibly off-putting and sharp-tongued no-nonsense Violet.  In my opinion, however, she's upstaged by Julia Roberts who brings a quiet resilience and strength to Barbara, a character who, in my opinion, is just as much a lead as Violet despite the fact that the film and play may try and convince you otherwise.  Unfortunately (and this isn't Roberts' fault as I felt this was an issue in the theatrical production as well), the character of Barbara is a tiny bit flawed.  [Moderate Spoiler:  Tracy Letts attempts to make us feel that Barbara is "becoming" her mother in terms of personality, words, and actions, but I never was convinced of that.  Despite literally being told, "You're becoming our mother," Barbara is much more grounded than we ever see Violet and, I believe being the oldest daughter, she feels simply that she needs to smack a little bit of sense into her sisters considering that she's had her own troubles and doesn't want to see her siblings fall down a dark path.]

August: Osage County isn't a perfect film, but its flaws abound from the Pulitzer Prize-winning (for some reason) script.  This is absolutely a convoluted family soap opera -- epic almost in its laughable plot twists at times.  Still, thanks to a fantastic cast of actors -- not a single one of whom disappoints in the slightest -- they elevate this sometimes silly material and make us give a damn about this crazy Weston family.

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review - Jobs

Jobs (2013)

Starring Ashton Kutcher, Dermot Mulroney, Josh Gad, Lukas Haas, Matthew Modine, J.K. Simmons, Lesley Ann Warren, Ron Eldard, and Ahna O'Reilly

Directed by Joshua Michael Stern

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

The best I can say about Ashton Kutcher's portrayal of Steve Jobs is that he's at least trying.  In fact, it's so obvious he's trying that I never once felt that I was watching anything other than an aspiring thespian attempting to act and emote his way through the life story of the founder of Apple computers.  I'm sure Kutcher studied Jobs' motions, mannerisms, and dialect, but he never embodies the man -- he comes across as some lower-grade B-movie actor attempting to be older and wiser (which is pretty darn accurate to the actor Kutcher is in general).

Putting aside Kutcher's sometimes laughable performance (man, when he tries to cry, it's painfully hilarious), Jobs as a movie just isn't good either.  The film begins by delving a little bit into Jobs' personal life, but that aspect thankfully is pushed to the wayside about thirty minutes in, focusing instead on the more boring (but less corny) incorporation of Apple as a company.  From that point on, it's just a series of "battles" Jobs must duke it out amongst his colleagues as they fail to see his vision for what Apple and its computers were meant to be in his eyes.

Listen...I'm an Apple guy all the way.  I have been forever and likely always will be.  While the film did make me want to read the giant Steve Jobs biography that came out a few years ago, director Joshua Michael Stern simply doesn't have the goods to deliver here.  The film plays out very by the book (a discredit to the screenwriter as well -- Matt Whiteley in his debut) and Stern doesn't do a thing to differentiate itself from anything we've seen before.  Just when one conflict is resolved, we move on to the next one.  Scenes are bathed in appropriate lighting (dark for somber moments and glorious golden for the happier ones), coupled with soaring or pensive music in a very paint-by-numbers manner that's not the least bit innovative or imaginative.  For a film that focuses on a guy who was all about thinking outside of the box, Jobs is anything but that.

The RyMickey Rating:  D+

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 - The Grey

The Grey (2012)

Staring Liam Neeson, Dermot Mulroney, Frank Grillo, and Dallas Roberts

Directed by Joe Carnahan

The cinematic equivalent of a Bear Grylls Man vs. Wild adventure, The Grey strands a group of oil workers in the cold Alaskan wilderness after a horrible plane crash.  Not that the extreme weather elements wouldn't have been enough, but the survivors are faced with the fact that they crashed in the midst of a large wolf den and the wild beasts are none too happy about their uninvited guests.  Fortunately for the survivors, they happen to have John Ottway (Liam Neeson) with them -- a man whose sole purpose at the refinery is to kill wolves before they attack the oil men.

For the most part, The Grey is a success.  Liam Neeson, who lately has seemingly been taking any film that comes his way for a paycheck, finally finds himself in a movie that's actually got some purpose and depth behind it and he takes on the headstrong Ottway with gusto.  His supporting cast is all incredibly strong as well with nary a one of them succumbing to the curse of stereotypes -- "The Quiet One;" "The Tough One;" "The Smart One" -- that often befalls ensemble flicks having characters with distinct personalities.

Of course, the actors are helped by a solid script co-written by director Joe Carnahan who manages to give each character a presence that isn't usually felt in movies like this.  Carnahan takes things slow and admittedly could have sped things up a bit as the film has a tendency to drag when it drifts into the pseudo-religious philosophizing of Ottway's mind, but I can't necessarily say that I ever found myself longing for the flick to be over.  Still, it should be noted that despite its "action" premise, The Grey is much more of a character-driven drama than anything else.

The RyMickey Rating:  B