VICE (2018) – My rating: 9/10

Vice is a biographical comedy/drama written and directed by Adam McKay. It is the second theatrical film to depict the presidency of George W. Bush, following Oliver Stone’s “W” and the third collaboration between Bale and Adams, following The Fighter and American Hustle. The plot follows Cheney in his pursuit to become the most powerful Vice President in American history. All I can say is, this film is brilliant and well put together and true.

**** SOILERS ****

Vice is narrated by Kurt (Jesse Plemons), a fictitious veteran of the Afghanistan and Iraq Wars and opens with Dick Cheney (Christian Bale) along with White House officials responding to the September 11 attacks. The film then flashes back to Wyoming, 1963, where Cheney finds work as a lineman but struggles with alcoholism, which led him to drop out of Yale. After a traffic cop stopped Cheney for driving while intoxicated, his wife Lynne Cheney (Amy Adams) convinces him to clean up his life, using powerful verbiage and ultimatums.  The film then flashes forward to 1969 when Cheney finds work as a White House intern during the Nixon Administration. Working under Nixon’s economic advisor Donald Rumsfeld (Steve Carell), Cheney becomes a savvy political operative as he juggles commitments to Lynne and his two daughters Liz (Lily Rabe) and Mary Cheney (Alison Pill). While working at the White House, Cheney overhears Henry Kissinger (Kirk Bovill) discussing the secret bombing of Cambodia with President Richard Nixon (himself on film), which revealed the true power of the executive branch. Rumsfeld’s abrasive attitude leads to a suddal detachment between the two men from Nixon that worked in their favor; after Nixon’s resignation, Cheney rises to the position of White House Chief of Staff under President Gerald Ford (Bill Camp) while Rumsfeld becomes Secretary of Defense.

After Ford is voted out of office, Cheney runs to be representative for Wyoming. After giving an awkward and uncharismatic campaign speech, Cheney suffers his first heart attack. While he recovers, Lynne campaigns on her husband’s behalf, helping him to win a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. During the Reagan Administration, Cheney supports a raft of conservative, pro-business policies favoring the fossil fuel industries. Cheney next serves as Secretary of Defense under President George H. W. Bush (Sam Rockwell) during the Gulf War. Outside of politics, Cheney and Lynne come to terms with their younger daughter Mary coming out as gay. Though Cheney develops ambitions to run for president, he decides to retire from public life to spare Mary from media scrutiny.

During the presidency of Bill Clinton, Cheney becomes the CEO of Halliburton while his wife Lynne raises golden retrievers and writes books. A false epilogue claims that Cheney lived the rest of his life healthy and happy in the private sector and the credits roll, only for the film to continue. Cheney is invited to become running mate to George W. Bush during the 2000 United States presidential election. Recognizing that the younger Bush is more interested in pleasing his father than attaining power for himself, Cheney agrees on the condition that Bush delegates “mundane” executive responsibilities like energy and foreign policy to him. As Vice President, Cheney works with Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld, legal counsel David Addington (Don McManus) and Chief of Staff Scooter Libby (Justin Kirk) to exercise control of key foreign policy and defense decisions throughout Washington.

I especially enjoyed Vice because I am sort of a political junky.  I th0ught Vice was well thought out and outlined Cheney’s agenda as close to the truth as possible.  For those who are not that political, Vice was easy to understand and delivered it’s message for all  to process.  44 year old Christian Bale had to gain 40 pounds for the role of Cheney and was barely recognizable.  I’ve provided a picture of the transformation from Bale to Cheney — now that’s dedication.  I think Vice is worth seeing, you will learn a lot of not so good historical events such as the rise of the Islamic State of Iraq, caused by Cheney.  There is also a monologue at the end of the film you wouldn’t want to miss.  Vice will probably be nominated for an Oscar.   Check it Out!

[Vice is Oscar nominated for BEST: Picture, Supporting Actress, Actor, Supporting Actor, Director, Original Screenplay, Makeup and Hairstyling and Best Film Editing]

 

JUSTICE LEAGUE (2017) – My rating: 8/10

Justice League is a superhero film based on the DC Comics superhero team of the same name consisting of Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Aquaman, and Cyborg. The film is directed by Zack Snyder with a screenplay by Chris Terrio and Joss Whedon, from a story by Terrio and Snyder. There are many reasons I’m glad Justice League was created.  I was a very unhappy camper when they decided to kill off Superman, especially by the likes of Batman, who actually has no super powers.  That was the biggest injustice in super hero history, in my opinion.  Justice League redeemed that unfortunate event, which made my day.  I also got to see Aquaman in all his glorious action, which also made my day.  So much eye candy, so little time!  I was well entertained as well.

Thousands of years ago, Steppenwolf (Ciarán Hinds), an alien military officer from Apokolips and his army of Parademons attempted to conquer and remake Earth through the combined energies of three “Mother Boxes”. They were foiled by a unified army that included Olympian Gods, Amazons, Atlanteans, humans, and Green Lanterns. After repelling Steppenwolf’s army, the Mother Boxes were separated and hidden in three locations around the world.

In the present, all the world is in mourning over the death of Superman (Henry Cavill), which has triggered the Mother Boxes to reactivate along with Steppenwolf’s return to Earth in an effort to regain favor with his master, Darkseid.  When Steppenwolf retrieves a Mother Box from Themyscira, Amazonian Queen Hippolyta (Connie Nielsen) warns her daughter, Diana Prince / Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), of his return by lighting the invasion fire located in the palace.  As a result, Diana joins Bruce Wayne / Batman (Ben Affleck) in an attempt to unite other Meta-humans.  Bruce Wayne goes after Arthur Curry  / Aquaman (Jason Momoa), a member of the Justice League and heir to the throne of the undersea nation of Atlantis and Barry Allen / Flash (Ezra Miller), also a member of the Justice League and a Central City University student, who can move at superhuman speeds due to his ability to tap into the Speed Force. Diana Prince tries to locate Victor Stone / Cyborg (Ray Fisher), another member of the Justice League and a former college athlete who, after being cybernetically reconstructed after a near fatal car accident, has powers that allow him to fly, turn his arms into cannons, and manipulate technology.  Once the team is assembled, they go into action to keep Steppenwolf from acquiring all three of the Mother Boxes, but fail.  The team receives intel from James Gordon (J. K. Simmons), the Commissioner of the Gotham City Police Department and close ally of Batman, leading them to Steppenwolf’s army, based in an abandoned facility under Gotham Harbor.

As usual, I’ve said enough.  The story gets even more interesting and how the Justice League keeps Earth from being destroyed by Steppenwolf is exciting.  Flash and another member of the Justice League have similar powers and are always in competition.  There are many funny scenes, as well as  lots of muscle flexing.  Alfred Pennyworth (Jeremy Irons) stepped up his role as Bruce Wayne’s butler, chief of security and trusted confidant.  Also Diane Lane reappears as Martha Kent and Amy Adams as Lois Lane.  Justice League is a great super hero film with an all-star cast and a good story to back it up.  I recommend it to all – check it out for yourself!
 

NOCTURNAL ANIMALS (2016) – My rating 7.5/10

This unusual psychological thriller is a story within a story that takes you on a surprising journey. Not knowing what to expect, I was delighted by how well Nocturnal Animals kept the audience fine tuned into the events as they happened, despite the constant flipping between the novel and the real life story of the reader.

Susan Morrow (Amy Adams) received a manuscript written by her x-husband, Edward Sheffield (Jake Gyllenhaal) along with an invitation for dinner during Edward’s upcoming visit to Los Angeles. Susan is currently married to businessman, Hutton Morrow (Armie Hammer) who is unfaithful and currently having an extra marital affair throughout the movie. During her marriage to Edward, Susan deemed Edward a failure as a writer and ended their marriage when she terminated their child by having an abortion without his knowledge, 20 years ago. She is convinced his novel, which he sent to her, asking for an opinion, was nothing more than revenge for her behavior when they were married.

As Susan starts to read the novel titled, Nocturnal Animals, she becomes so engrossed in the story she can’t put the manuscript down. Edward had sent the novel to prove that he was not a failure and that he was quite capable of writing a successful novel. The movie actually flips to the novel about a family man, happily married to India Hastings (Ellie Bamber) with a daughter on family vacation, when they encounter the Ray Marcus gang (Aaron Taylor-Johnson – gang leader; Lou (Karl Glusman – gang member); Turk/Steve Adams (Robert Aramayo – gang member), who forces them off the road. The three thugs beat Tony Hastings, (Jake Gyllenhaal) the family man in the novel, kidnap Tony’s wife and daughter then drive off with Tony and dump him somewhere along side the road, unconscious. With Tony’s wife and child missing, he eventually hooks up with a Lt. Graves (Graham Beckel) who helps him search for his family and the Marcus gang.

Nocturnal Animals continues to flip between the novel and real life showing us and Susan the terrible flaws in her character and judgement. The novel holds you to the edge of your seat and will keeps you guessing about what becomes of Susan, her husband and his affair. I was well entertained, surprised and thrilled — Nocturnal Animals is definitely worth seeing, great performances, great story.

{BTW, Aaron Taylor-Johnson won the 2017 Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in any Motion Picture,  for Nocturnal Animals!}

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ARRIVAL (2016) – My rating: 9/10

What a profound message at a time when we really need it. Arrival is spot on. Too bad it’s just a figment of someone’s imagination! This nation could use a shot of reality. Arrival delves into some pretty deep philosophies. Louise Banks (Amy Adams) a Linguist who speaks several languages has a doctorate and teaches at a near by university. Having been called upon in the past to service her country, Louise continues to have top security clearance when she’s called again for this new and very different assignment.

When 12 alien vessels land across the earth settling in several countries, without explanation, Louise is called on to lead a special team of military personnel to try and communicate with the aliens who landed in Montana, as to why they are here. Senior US Army Colonel Weber (Forest Whitaker) pays her a visit to explain just enough information to get her on board.  After turning him down, he leaves to pursue another linguist but soon returns.  Every country has their own agenda on how to deal with these alien invaders and after a while, block communications between themselves and all other nations. As a result, there is no sharing of each others progress or future plans.  Over time, several attempts are made to teach our language to the aliens through a glass partition.  For the purpose of  backup and a secondary approach, a second team headed by an equally distinguished Theoretical Physicist, Ian Donnelly (Jeremy Renner) was called to work side by side with Dr. Louise Banks  Together our government hoped to make headway into establishing answers to our many questions. The Military named the alien ships “shells”.  The plan to learn and  share information between us and the aliens (called “Heptapods”, because of their structure) wasn’t working as the Heptapods used a written language, based on time, that proved to be extremely complicated.

Director, Denis Villeneuve did a fantastic job building up to an ending that was so emotional and intense that it brought tears to my eyes.  The key to Arrival is togetherness.  Without spoiling a great work of art, I cannot say any more about the movie, except go see it.  Keep your eyes and ears glued on every word and every scene.  There’s not a lot of fast paced action or destruction or even special effects.  Arrival is purely a lesson in being compassionate human beings — something we seem to have forgotten.  I was moved and entertained as well.

[ARRIVAL is Nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Film Editing, Production Design, Sound Editing and Sound Mixing]

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BATMAN V SUPERMAN: Dawn of Justice (2016) – My rating: 7/10

As a loyal fan of Superman, especially the last remake “Man of Steel” I am truly upset with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.  There’s a lot to be said about this film, which is actually a follow-up to Man of Steel.  I will try to be as fair as I can in bringing you the facts as I know them.  Both films were directed by Zack Snyder (how could he do this to us?)  Both films starred Henry Cavill as Superman/Clark Kent, Amy Adams as Lois Lane, Kevin Costner and Diane Lane as Superman’s adoptive parents, Jonathan & Martha Kent, respectively and Laurence Fishburne as Perry White.  Somehow, Jimmy Olsen was pretty much left out except for a voice in Dawn of Justice as a CIA agent.

Some 18 months after Superman destroyed General Zod in Man of Steel, he has moved in with Lois Lane and is seen as a threat to humanity by Batman.  However, after learning of Batman’s (Ben Affleck) intentions and accusations against him, Superman believes Batman is also a threat and plans to stop him by using the Daily Planet articles as Clark Kent.  Meanwhile, Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg) CEO of LexCorp has his own set of ideas to take down Superman.  Lex Luthor’s plans also include creating meta humans which would include Diana Prince/Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) who is also the daughter of Zeus.

While all plans are put into motion by Batman, Superman and Lex Luthor, the audience is left to be confused and bored to death by the rantings and ravings of Lex Luthor.  Some of his speeches were so long, I began to doze off.  Things really got out of control.  I didn’t know where I was at times.  Jesse Eisenberg is a fantastic actor but one cannot help the script they’re handed.  It was brutal and ambiguous.  It was never made clear why Superman was targeted as a villain.  It didn’t make sense why someone who fought the good fight for decades suddenly was deemed bad.  Batman was so angry throughout the entire movie that I thought he was going to bust a gasket.  Ben Affleck made the worst Batman I’ve seen, bar none.  He looked fat and stocky in the Batman suit and his face seemed so fat under the mask, I couldn’t help but laugh.  He seemed gigantic and reminded me of Humpty Dumpty.  And who’s idea was it to cast Jeremy Irons as Alfred Pennyworth?  That was a mismatch I couldn’t quite understand.  In conclusion, because I know the future of the next sequel, I’m no longer upset with the outcome of this film but I will say Batman V Superman was a bad idea.  I absolutely hated the Batman character and wasn’t too thrilled with the movie.  I really felt the Batman character killed the movie plus the long Lex Luthor speeches finished it off.  The script made little sense and the ending really pissed me off.  I for one, am looking forward to “The Justice League Part I”, starring Henry Cavill as Superman,  now in production — due to be released in 2017.

BIG EYES (2014) – My rating: 8.5/10

Big Eyes is based on the true story of Margaret Keane who gave away her rightful ownership for creating paintings of children with very large eyes.  Her paintings were brilliant, beautiful and sometimes sad.  Amy Adams plays artist Margaret Keane,  who married Walter Keane, the name she painted under.  Because of Walter’s savvy marketing abilities and the fact that women artist were not taken seriously, he was able to convince Margaret that he should take credit for the paintings and she agreed.  Walter is magnificently played by Christoph Waltz (known for Django and Inglourious Basterds among a huge list of cinematography) .  As the couple became well known for Margaret’s paintings, their relationship began taking a tremendous hit, due to Margaret’s resentment of her husband taking credit for something he didn’t create.  Her weakness to step forward and tell the truth about who was really creating the paintings became the focus of her being.  In the end, Margaret had to sue her husband in order to reclaim recognition and ownership of her work.  Big Eyes is intense and well written spanning through the 1950s and 1960s in Miami and San Francisco. However, the courtroom drama takes place in Hawaii.  There’s talk of Oscar nominations for best actor and best actress.  Obviously, Big Eyes is a big hit and is worth a ticket to the big screen.

AMERICAN HUSTLE (2013) – My rating: 7.5/10

I was expecting so much more from this film.  After hearing all the hoopla and seeing the trailer, I really thought I was in for a real thrill ride.  Between all the plots and the flash backs, it became a little difficult to focus.  I’m not saying that it wasn’t good because it was a decent flick but it dragged in some parts.  The great acting really saved this movie.  Several spurts of energy from Amy Adams and Jennifer Lawrence reeled me back into focus.  Bradley and Christian were superb, lending a lot of character to the scenes.  Bale looked fat and cheap as a con man in the 70s while Cooper looked more like a fashion plate, odd for an FBI agent.  I got a few laughs out of American Hustle as well as an opportunity to see a little bit of history.  They say some of this really happened, they just don’t say which parts.  Because there are so many movies out right now, I recommend waiting for the DVD.  If you are an Oscar buff, you might want to see it now, since there is a great chance it’s going to get an Oscar nod.