THE CALL OF THE WILD (2020) – My rating: 8/10

The Call of the Wild is an adventure film based on the Jack London 1903 novel of the same name and Twentieth Century Pictures’ previous 1935 film adaptation. The film is directed by Chris Sanders, in his live-action directorial debut, written by Michael Green. Set in the 1890s Klondike Gold Rush, a dog named Buck is stolen from his home in California and sent to the Yukon, where he befriends an old man and begins a life-altering adventure. The Call of the Wild is a classic, so if you know the story, there’s not much here for you but if you don’t, the story is the bonus.

Once upon a time, during the 19th century Gold Rush, there lived a very Large but gentle St. Bernard/Scotch Collie named Buck, who lived comfortably with his master, Judge Miller (Bradley Whitford), in Santa Clara, California. Being so big, Buck was awkward, clumsy and somewhat of a menace to the township and in his home. One night, Buck is abducted and shipped to the Yukon aboard a freighter. During the voyage, a crew member treated Buck badly, kicking him and preforming other violent acts. After arriving in the Yukon, which is the opposite of California in terms of weather and distance, Buck gives chase to his kidnapper. Despite losing the chase, Buck manages to return a harmonica that was dropped by John Thornton (Harrison Ford), moments before being sold to Perrault (Omar Sy) and his assistant, Françoise (Cara Gee). The new owners use a dog sled to deliver mail across the Yukon. Perrault hopes to make the long trek to the mail depot before the deadline. For the first time, Buck is introduced to snow and the other dogs in the pack, including the vicious pack leader, a Husky named Spitz. Throughout their travels, Buck gains the loyalty and trust of Françoise and the other sled dogs, which antagonizes Spitz. This is not the last ower Buck will have, sadly the next owner will be the worse. Buck’s adventures are exciting and sometimes quite emotional. You’ll have to see the movie to get the rest of the story, as it is a good one.

I thought The Call of the Wild was a wonderful story except for the CGI dog, I loved the movie. When I think of how much effort the Lion King team put into creating the movement of each animal so that they appeared as realistic as they possibly could, The Call of the Wild showed that the same effort was not used to make the character of Buck. His movements were weird and unnatural at best! I couldn’t stop thinking that this dog is not real, which spoiled the movie for me. I think it may have been better for Buck to speak for himself instead of being narrated by Harrison Ford. CGI technology ruined this movie for me. Actually, they could have used a well-trained dog for most of the movie, as the only reason I could think of using CGI would be the fighting scenes.

As of February 27, 2020, The Call of the Wild has grossed $32.7 million in the United States and Canada, and $16 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $48.6 million. Due to its high production and marketing costs, the film is projected to lose the studio around $100 million. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 61% based on 161 reviews, with an average rating of 6.03/10. The website’s critics consensus reads: “It’s undermined by distracting and unnecessary CGI, but this heartwarming Call of the Wild remains a classic story, affectionately retold.” Check It Out!

 

THE POST (2017) – My rating: 9/10

The Post is a political thriller directed and produced by Steven Spielberg and written by Liz Hannah and Josh Singer. Set in the early 1970s, The Post depicts the true story of the journalists from The Washington Post and their attempts to publish and expose the Pentagon Papers, classified documents regarding undisclosed information about the involvement of the United States government in the Vietnam War. It was a very long war with no real theme which cost us a great many men. We the people have always wanted to know why. Still unsure of the logic behind this senseless war, only one thing is certain…

In 1965 , State Dept. military analyst Daniel Ellsberg (Matthew Rhys) accompanies U.S. troops in combat to document progress of U.S. military activities in the Vietnam region for Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara (Bruce Greenwood). On the return flight, McNamara expresses to Ellsberg and President Lyndon Johnson his view that the war in Vietnam is hopeless. Years later, now working for a civilian military contractor, Ellsberg surreptitiously photocopies classified reports documenting the progress of the ongoing Vietnam War, dating back to the Truman administration. He leaks these documents, which detail more than 20 years of clandestine U.S. activities and frank admissions that the war has been going poorly, to reporters at The New York Times.

Heiress Katharine Graham (Meryl Streep), who succeeded her father as owner of the Washington Post, and whose husband committed suicide, is conflicted over preparations for the newspaper’s IPO, a move she recognizes as important to strengthening the paper, but fears losing family control. She lacks confidence in her ability as a woman to lead the organization, frequently “overruled” by more assertive men who advise or work for her, such as editor in chief Ben Bradlee (Tom Hanks) and board member Arthur Parsons (Bradley Whitford).

Bradlee notices Times’ investigative reporter Neil Sheehan’s lack of publication, as of late and concludes he’s on to something big. Bradlee tries to find out what it is but does not. Meanwhile, McNamara, who is Katherine’s long term friend, confides in her that he is about to be the subject of unflattering coverage by the New York Times that will include long term public deception. However, the series is halted by a count injunction.

Washington Post assistant editor Ben Bagdikian (Bob Odenkirk) tracks down Ellsberg as the source for the leak, who provides Bagdikian with copies of the same material given to the Times. A small team of Post reporters sort through the disorganized papers, trying to piece together parts of the larger story. The Post’s lawyers become aware of the project and advise against publishing the material, lest the Nixon administration bring criminal charges against them.

Graham fields the input and advice of the men around her, including McNamara, Bradlee, and trusted Post chairman Fritz Beebe (Tracy Letts), agonizing over the decision of whether to publish. If the legal fallout goes badly, she could destroy the newspaper she sees as a family legacy, but if they are successful, it could instead establish it as an important journalistic institution. She chooses to run the story.

The results of this story is well known but I decided not to post any more of the story for those who don’t know. At the 75th Golden Globe Awards, the film received six nominations: Best Motion Picture – Drama, Best Director, Best Actress – Drama for Streep, Best Actor – Drama for Hanks, Best Screenplay and Best Original Score. The Post is an intense film and is well acted.

[THE POST received an Oscar nomination for Best Picture and Best Actress (Meryl Streep)]

 

GET OUT (2017) – My rating: 8.7/10

I went to see “Get Out” thinking it was going to be a horrible horror flick focused on race, the rich and immortality.  I’m so glad I did go to see the movie instead of forming an incorrect opinion.  Jordan Peele wrote a very creative story that borders on science fiction, dark comedy and horror.  The surprises are multiple and starts when a deer ends up flying across the road after being hit.  The story is filled with a bunch of rich, sinister people who are hard to figure out, so don’t look to solve “Get Out” easily. I particularly liked that this film didn’t go for cheap thrills using extremely loud sounds and surprise pop-up appearances, like a lot of other horror flicks.

TSA Officer Rodney “Rod” Williams (Lil Rel Howery), was just tasked with dog sitting for his best friend, a Brooklyn-based photographer, Chris Washington (Daniel Kaluuya).  Chris and his girlfriend, Rose Armitage (Allison Williams) are preparing for a long weekend drive to meet her parents, Dean (Bradley Whitford) and Missy Armitage (Catherine Keener). Chris is apprehensive because Rose has yet to reveal to her parents that her fairly new boyfriend of 5 months is African American.

As Chris and Rose arrive at the Armitage estate, they pass an African American groundskeeper, Walter (Marcus Henderson). Rose’s parents welcome Chris with big hardy smiles and hugs.  Dean proudly offers to give Chris a tour of the house, at which time they encounter their maid, Georgina (Betty Gabriel), who is also African American. While the family sits with Chris for a friendly get-to-know you-better-chat, Missy innocently queries Chris for personal information and finds out that his mother died in a hit-and-run accident when he was eleven years old. They also discuss Chris’ smoking habit, and Missy, a psychiatrist, offers to help him overcome his addiction through hypnosis, which Chris declines. At that time, Rose’s brother Jeremy (Caleb Landry Jones) arrives and they all sit down for dinner.

That night, when Chris goes out into the backyard to smoke a cigarette, he observes strange behavior from Walter and Georgina. When he re-enters the house, Missy brings up Chris’ smoking habit and invites him to sit down with her. She again offers to hypnotize him before asking him about the night his mother died. Chris reveals his guilt for not calling 911 as soon as he realized his mother hadn’t come home, and that he instead sat watching television. He finds himself unable to move or stop talking about his mother,  realizing he is being hypnotized. Missy commands him to sink into the floor, and he falls in an endless void while looking at Missy through a large screen; Missy tells him that he is now in “the sunken place”.  Chris suddenly wakes up and believes that the encounter with Missy was just a nightmare; however, after a conversation with Walter, he realizes that the encounter was real and that he had been hypnotized because he no longer wants to smoke, not remembering anything else.

From this point on, the film takes on a more sinister approach.  Get Out is different and leaves us wondering if such things really go on.  Without revealing any more of the story, I urge you to see this really good horror movie for the answers to what’s going on with this family.  BTW: the family is having an annual weekend party with many other friends who will bring more drama and questions to the game.  I thoroughly enjoyed Get Out and highly recommend it to everyone.

[Get Out is nominated for BEST: Picture, Actor, Director and Original Screenplay]