The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

 The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (2018)

Starring Lily James, Michiel Huisman, Glen Powell, Jessica Brown Findlay, Katherine Parkinson, Matthew Goode, Tom Courtenay, and Penelope Wilton

Directed by Mike Newell

Written by Kevin Hood, Don Roos, and Tom Bezucha

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  B-

Downton Abbey

Downton Abbey (2019)

Starring Hugh Bonneville, Laura Carmichael, Jim Carter, Raquel Cassidy, Brendan Coyle, Michelle Dockery, Kevin Doyle, Michael C. Fox, Joanne Froggatt, Matthew Goode, Harry Hadden-Paton, Robert James-Collier, Allen Leech, Phyllis Logan, Elizabeth McGovern, Sophie McShera, Lesley Nicol, Maggie Smith, Penelope Wilton, Geraldine James, Simon Jones, Tuppence Middleton, Kate Phillips, and Imelda Staunton

Directed by Michael Engler

Written by Julian Fellowes

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  B-

The Sense of an Ending

The Sense of an Ending (2017)

Starring Jim Broadbent, Harriet Walter, Michelle Dockery, Emily Mortimer, Billy Howle, Freya Mavor, Matthew Goode, and Charlotte Rampling

Directed by Ritesh Batra

Written by Nick Payne

Summary (in 500 words or less):  Sixty-something Tony (Jim Broadbent) receives a letter from the estate of the mother of a former college girlfriend stating that she has left him a document upon her passing.  The document is being held by Tony's former girlfriend Veronica (Charlotte Rampling) who Tony hasn't seen in decades.  Completely oblivious to what the document could be, Tony reflects upon his college career via flashbacks that showcase that memory is malleable.

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating: D+

Movie Review - Self/less

Self/less (2015)

Starring Ryan Reynolds, Natalie Martinez, Matthew Goode, Victor Garber, Derek Luke, Michelle Dockery, Jaynee-Lynne Kinchen, and Ben Kingsley

Directed by Tarsem Singh

When the aging billionaire Damian Hale (Ben Kingsley) is diagnosed with terminal cancer, his wealth permits him to meet up with a scientifically creative professor named Albright (Matthew Goode) who has created a procedure called "shedding" wherein one's thoughts, consciousness, and "mental past" is transferred into the body of a younger, healthier body.  Hale agrees to the procedure which is successful as Hale's consciousness is placed into that of a younger man (Ryan Reynolds).  As the new "Hale" starts a new life, he begins to have flashbacks involving a woman (Natalie Martinez) and her young daughter (Jaynee-Lynne Kinchen) whom he never knew.

Who exactly are these two females and why "Hale" is envisioning them are the questions at the center of director Tarsem Singh's Self/less (yes, that '/' is ridiculously part of the title for some reason) which isn't nearly as confusing as that summary may make it sound.  Unfortunately, the premise despite being slightly original feels tired because the screenplay and direction are rote and generic, unable to capture the genuine interest of the audience.  Ryan Reynolds is fine and he, at the very least, makes the flick watchable.  However, Matthew Goode (whom I typically like) is given a role that feels incredibly cookie cutter -- and whose character's motivations are obvious from the get-go.  Also unfortunate, Reynolds shares many a scene with Natalie Martinez, a model-turned-actress who I've seen in a few things now (including an entire season of the tv show Secrets and Lies) and am convinced she can't effectively emote onscreen.  Over-the-top, not believable in the slightest, and oftentimes painful to watch, I don't quite know why she's getting jobs in the entertainment industry.  Maybe she'll grow as an actress, but right now I'm not enjoying what she brings to the table.

Self/less actually isn't quite as painful as this review may make it out to be, but it's certainly not all that entertaining.  It's a bit too much of a slog to sit through in order to make it be considered even average.

The RyMickey Rating:  C-

Movie Review - Pressure

Pressure (2015)

Starring Danny Huston, Matthew Goode, Joe Cole, and Alan McKenna

Directed by Ron Scalpello

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

In the Somali Basin, the DSC Lorimer sailing vessel has discovered a leak in an oil pipeline nearly 650 feet below sea level.  Of course (seeing as how this is a suspense movie), there's a storm on the way, but four men are told to head down in a diving bell to fix the issue.  Needless to say, things go awry and the bell becomes separated from the ship.  Running low on oxygen and with their communication seemingly gone, the quartet must muster all their energy to make it back to the surface alive in Pressure.

Essentially taking place all within the confines of a small diving bell, Pressure is a low-budget thriller that had me completely interested for about fifty minutes before overstaying its welcome for another forty.  Ultimately, the repetition of the whole thing -- "Will we have enough oxygen," "Can anyone on the surface hear us," etc. -- wears thin after a while.  The cast does a decent job of making the most of what they're given, but attempts at fashioning backstories seem silly rather than impactful.  While director Ron Scalpello is adept at creating some tense moments, you can't help but think if there's a reason Pressure received such an extremely limited release in theaters this past summer.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - The Imitation Game

The Imitation Game (2014)

Starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley, Matthew Goode, Allen Leech, Rory Kinnear, Matthew Beard, Charles Dance, Alex Lawther, and Mark Strong

Directed by Morten Tyldum

Paced extraordinarily well, fantastically acted, and cleverly written passing through three timelines which dramatically strengthen one other without feeling gimmicky, The Imitation Game is one of the surprise treats of the 2014 Oscar season.  The raves it received should seemingly negate the notion that it could ever be a "surprise," but it's the type of film -- an historical drama -- that one often finds difficult to feign excitement.  However, I found director Morten Tyldum's film to cast a light on a subject with which I was unfamiliar and do so in a manner that was engaging and extremely well executed.

Benedict Cumberbatch plays Alan Turing, an incredibly intelligent young man only recently graduated from university with a talent for solving a wide variety of puzzles.  This piques the interest of the British Intelligence Agency who hire Turing to try and decode Germany's encoded messages to one another during the height of WWII.  Germany had created a machine known as Enigma which provided millions of different codings making it near impossible for the Allies to figure out what the Nazis were relaying to one another.  Cleverly, the Germans changed the settings on Enigma on a daily basis so unlike Turing's hired colleagues who put pen to paper in order to solve the intricate Enigma messages (only to be devastated at day's end having their work prove all for naught), Turing believed that the only way the Allies could fight Enigma was to build a machine that matched Enigma's prowess.  Although most thought the quirky sensibilities of Turing pointed towards him being crazy, the genius eventually managed to convince his fellow brainiacs (and the British government) that his plan would be a success.  Needless to say, the Nazis didn't overtake Europe, so -- spoiler alert -- he succeeds.

In and of itself, the historical plot of The Imitation Game is worth the price of admission, but there's a devastating personal aspect as well with Turing discovering his homosexuality as a teenager and having to hide his sexual orientation seeing as how being gay was a criminal offense in England through the 1950s.  This adds another layer to the story and makes Turing's life all the more painful in the end.

Director Morten Tyldum keeps the film moving at a surprisingly rapid clip without any lulls.  He very deftly moves the film from WWII era to Turing's youth (when he's played by the wonderful Alex Lawther) to the 1950s when Turing is being investigated by the police for indecency.  Each of these segments builds upon one another to give us an extremely well-rounded glimpse of the complicated individual that is Alan Turing.  Much credit goes to the young Mr. Lawther who makes it entirely believable that he was playing a younger version of Benedict Cumberbatch's Turing.  Through Lawther's portrayal, we can see the obvious evolution of Turing and I found this a pleasant addition to the film.

Benedict Cumberbatch is surprisingly soulful as the adult Alan Turing.  His unique tics and idiosyncrasies coupled with the extremely intelligent manner of speaking give us a character that while awkward is also heartbreaking without ever feeling treacly or emotionally forced.  His supporting cast includes Keira Knightley, quite good as an intelligent woman with whom Turing finds himself a bit infatuated, and Matthew Goode as another smart codebreaker who finds himself often at odds with the shy, introverted Turing.  There's truly not a bad performance in the bunch.

The Imitation Game could easily have been a boring historical docudrama, but, much like The King's Speech several years ago, it rises above the stolid, heavy feeling that sometimes accompanies period pieces and becomes a movie that emotionally resonates while also teaching a little bit about an important part of our past.

The RyMickey Rating:  A- 

Movie Review - Belle

Belle (2014)

Starring Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Emily Watson, Tom Wilkinson, Sam Reid, Tom Felton, James Norton, Miranda Richardson, Penelope Wilton, Sarah Gadon, and Matthew Goode

Directed by Amma Asante

Belle is by no means a bad movie, but I'm flabbergasted that this British period piece sits at an 83% Fresh rating on RottenTomatoes.  While it's true that it tells a story we haven't seen before (not easy when it comes to this genre), the film is quite simplistic, lacking a fervent bite that I feel like it could have had.

Belle tells the tale of Dido Elizabeth Belle Lindsay, the daughter of Captain John Lindsay (Matthew Goode), a well-respected British naval officer who falls in love with a black woman while in Africa who ends up having his baby.  Upon her mother's death, Captain Lindsay takes Dido to England where he asks his uncle Lord Mansfield (Tom Wilkinson) and his wife (Emily Watson) to look after Dido while he's off at war.  Much to their initial chagrin for fear of how this mixed race child will appear to the rest of society, they agree to raise Dido (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) as a free woman along with their other niece Elizabeth (Sarah Gadon).  Years later, Captain Lindsay dies and leaves Dido a significant amount of money.  This dowry is quite appealing to some English men despite the impropriety that stems from the possibility of marrying a black woman.  Although Dido and Elizabeth were quite close growing up, Dido's bequeathment is more substantial than what Elizabeth can offer which sets up much tension amongst the Mansfield's nieces.

Ultimately, this PG-rated film tells an interesting tale -- one that next to no one is familiar with -- but it fails to lift itself to something truly appealing.  The acting is all quite good -- Gugu Mbatha-Raw makes the best of what I think is a surprisingly underwritten role -- but with the exception of one or two scenes, the flick lacks any drive or excitement.  What could've been a somewhat interesting take on racism in the late 1700s devolves into a love triangle that just doesn't carry the same weight as the story deserves.  A nice effort -- with well-done below-the-title craftsmanship and adequate direction -- but Belle misses the mark a little bit.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

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+