WIDOWS (2018) – My rating: 8.8/10

Widows is an action drama directed by Steve McQueen from a screenplay by McQueen and Gillian Flynn, based upon the 1983 ITV series of the same name. Widows is a British-American co-production. The plot follows a group of women who attempt a heist in order to pay back a crime boss after their criminal husbands are killed during a botched job.  I was thrilled to see Widows, as I heard it received raved reviews and 93% rotten tomatoes.  They were right, Widows deserved every good review it received.

Harry Rawlings (Liam Neeson) is a renowned thief who is killed alongside his partners, Carlos Perelli (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo), Florek Gunner (Jon Bernthal) and Jimmy Nunn (Coburn Goss), during a botched robbery. Harry’s widow, Veronica Rawlings (Viola Davis), a Chicago teacher’s union delegate, is threatened by crime boss turned politician, Jamal Manning (Brian Tyree Henry), from whom Harry and his partners robbed $2 million. Jamal is running against Jack Mulligan (Colin Farrell), the son of the incumbent, Tom Mulligan (Robert Duvall) and needs money to help win the election.

**** SPOILERS BELOW ****

Veronica discovers Harry’s notebook, which contains a detailed plan for what would have been his next heist, worth $5 million. She decides to carry out the heist to repay his debt to Jamal who has his blood thirsty brother, Jatemme (Daniel Kaluuya) watching the women’s every move.  Veronica recruits two of the other widows, Alice gunner (Elizabeth Debicki) and Linda Perelli (Michelle Rodriguez), to assist her. Since the fourth widow, Amanda Nunn (Carrie Coon), didn’t show to their initial meeting, Veronica visits her and learns she has a newborn child, so she opts not to mention nor include her in the heist. Alice is responsible for buying the getaway car and guns, while Linda is tasked with deciphering the blueprint in Harry’s plan.  Alice uses David (Lukas Haas), a real estate executive who identifies the blueprint as a  safe in Jack Mulligan’s home. In the meanwhile, looking for information, Veronica’s chauffeur, Bash O’Reilly (Garret Dillahunt) is murdered by one of Manning’s men. Linda recruits Belle (Cynthia Erivo), her children’s babysitter, to be their driver and Veronica visits the Mulligan home to ask Jack for protection from Jamal and to case the premises in advance of the heist, while the other women investigate the external security.

Obviously, I really enjoyed Widows.  The cast were the crème de la crème of actors who played their roles with outstanding precision.  The plot heats up with an intensity that will keep you guessing to the very surprise ending.  Widows has more twist and turns than you can imagine.  The style and flow of Widows reminds me of “How to Get Away With Murder”, only much more understandable.  I recommend this film to anyone who wants to see a good suspense feature with lots of twist, action and excitement.  Check it Out!!!

 

BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY (2018) – My rating: 9/10

Bohemian Rhapsody is a biographical film about British rock band, Queen and  is Directed by Bryan Singer, written by Anthony McCarten, produced by Graham King and former Queen manager, Jim Beach.  Bohemian Rhapsody follows singer Freddie Mercury’s life leading to Queen’s Live Aid performance at Wembley Stadium in 1985.  Queen members Brian May and Roger Taylor served as creative and musical consultants on the film. I was pumped to see Bohemian Rhapsody because I really love Queen. I was not disappointed.

**** SOME SPOILERS BELOW ****

In 1970, Farrokh Bulsara / Freddie Mercury (Rami Malek), an Indian-British Parsi college student and baggage handler at Heathrow Airport, watches a local band, called Smile, perform at a nightclub after following them for some time. After the show, he meets Smile’s guitarist, Brian May (Gwilym Lee) and drummer, Roger Taylor (Ben Hardy) and offers to replace their singer, Tim Staffell (Jack Roth), who has quit the band to join Humpy Bong. With the addition of the bassist, John Deacon (Joseph Mazzello), the band, now known as Queen, plays gigs across Britain until they sell their van in order to raise enough money to produce their debut album. Their musical style lands them a contract with EMI Records. At the same time, Farrokh legally changes his name to Freddie Mercury and becomes engaged to Biba a store clerk named Mary Austin (Lucy Boynton). The album hits the charts in America, and during the band’s U.S. tour, Freddie begins to question his sexuality.

In 1975, Queen record their fourth album, A Night at the Opera, but leaves EMI when executive Ray Foster (Mike Myers) refuses to have the six-minute song “Bohemian Rhapsody” released as the album’s first single. Freddie has Capital Radio DJ Kenny Everett (Dickie Beau) debut the song on the airwaves. Despite mixed reviews, “Bohemian Rhapsody” becomes a big hit. Shortly after the band’s world tour, Freddie begins an affair with Paul Prenter (Allen Leech), his personal manager. Mary breaks up with Freddie when he comes out to her as bisexual, although she assures him that he is gay. The band’s success continues through to the early 1980s, but tensions arise over the direction of their music and a change in Freddie’s attitude. In 1981, after a lavish party at his home, Freddie falls in love with Jim Hutton (Aaron McCusker), one of the waiters at the party. They shortly part ways, with Jim telling Freddie to look for him when he learns to like himself.

I really liked Bohemian Rhapsody.  I thought it was well put together and showed Queen from their beginnings to their end with Freddie Mercury.  While their were some inaccuracies, the film was close enough.  2 performances really stood out for me, Rami Malek as Freddie and Joseph Mazzello as John Deacon.  Actually, the entire film was brilliantly acted.  I was entertained from the start to the finish while my heart went out to Queen for their loss.  I highly recommend Bohemian Rhapsody — it’s well worth your time and money plus the music was fantastic.  Check it Out!

[Bohemian Rhapsody is Oscar nominated for BEST: Picture, Actor, Film Editing, Sound Editing and Best Sound Mixing]

 

THE LOBSTER (2015) – MY RATING: 5.5/10

The Lobster is a very dark futuristic comedy that I think of as eccentric. I found The Lobster hard to stay focused on and extremely strange. David (Colin Farrell) discovers that his wife has left him for another man and is escorted to a hotel. The hotel manager, (Olivia Colman) reveals that singles have 45 days to find a partner, or they will be transformed into an animal like David’s brother who is a dog. David chooses a lobster, due to their life cycle and his love of the sea. David makes acquaintances with Robert (John C. Reilly), a man with a lisp, and John (Ben Whishaw), a man with a limp, who become David’s quasi-friends. John explains that he was injured in an attempt to reconnect with his mother, who had been transformed into a wolf.  YOU CAN ALREADY SEE HOW WEIRD THIS HAS BECOME!

The hotel has many rules and rituals: masturbation is banned, but sexual stimulation by the hotel maid is mandatory, and guests attend dances and watch propaganda extolling advantages of partnership.

When Robert is caught masturbating, the hotel manager burns his fingers in a toaster. Relationships require partners to have a distinguishing trait in common. John is told a woman has arrived with a limp, but he says she limps from an injury that will heal and is not a suitable match.

Residents can extend their deadline by tranquilizing single people in the forest; each captured “loner” earns them a day. On one such hunt, a woman with a fondness for biscuits offers David sexual favors, which he declines. She tells him that if she fails to find a mate, she will kill herself by jumping from a hotel window.

The remainder of The Lobster is even crazier, so I’ll leave it to you to watch if you dare.  Obviously, I didn’t like it and I don’t recommend it.  The Lobster was a little too weird and convoluted for me, however it’s now on DVD/Blu-Ray for those of you who would like to see how it ends.

[THE LOBSTER is nominated for Original Screenplay]

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The Divergent Series: Allegiant (2016) – My rating: 8/10

Confusing is not the word for the new category of “the world has ended” movies. Usually the youth are shut out, which causes them to fight the older population for any information that can lead to their freedom and a better functioning world.  Their goal is a world that will allow them the right to make their own decisions with less stringent rules and a more flexible future for all. Included in these world ending series where people are also categorized by class, is the Maze Runner/Scorch Trails, The Hunger Games trilogy, Tomorrowland, The Giver, District 9 and Elysium. I found myself getting confused and overlapping stories, making Divergent and Maze Runner fitting nicely together as one story. Having pointed out Hollywood’s new obsession, let me add that it isn’t all bad. While these movies are dealing with similar themes, some are doing it better than others. I like the Maze Runner series better than the Divergent series. I found the Hunger Games to be a little over the top, given the ending. In this third installment of the Divergent series, we find Tris (Shailene Woodley) and Four (Theo James) along with her brother Caleb (Ansel Elgort) and Peter (Miles Teller) running away from their home.  No one is allowed to approach the wall which is heavily secured by members of Evelyn’s (Naomi Watts) coalition.  However, they manage to get through and are greeted by an unknown army.  The soldiers take the them to the Bureau of Genetic Welfare, a highly advanced city where they learn the truth about their society. Many years ago, the government believed that society’s problems were caused by “bad genes”. In an attempt to create a better society, they began to modify people’s genes, with disastrous results. The government set up “experiments” in an attempt to repair this mistake, establishing isolated cities across the remains of the United States. The hope was to raise enough genetically pure Divergent individuals to fix the “genetic damage” left in the wake of the Purity War.  The bureau is headed up by David (Jeff Daniels) who deems Tris to be a pure Divergent and is therefore suited to help him get funding from the council he reports to in order to extend his experiments that will ultimately include the destruction of Chicago.  Of course there is much more going on, but as usual, I don’t want to give away any more of the plot.  Allegiant concludes with some very good turn of events. In my opinion, Allegiant is the best of the trilogy. The director (Robert Schwentke) ties events together quite nicely bringing good closure to this final sequel. Great acting and great special effects. There’s lots of adventure and the story is interesting and will keep you guessing.

DELIVERY MAN (2013) – My rating: 6/10

While this movie isn’t a complete waste of time, it’s close.  Vince Vaughn plays David/Starbuck a man who, at a low point in his life, donated his sperm to a fertility clinic, 629 times for $24,000, over a period of time.  Somehow the fertility clinic managed to inpregnate 533 women from all walks of life.  Because Starbuck signed a confidentiality agreement, he does not have to disclose who he is.  But again, somehow his donor name “Starbuck” is revealed and 142 of his children file a class action suit against the clinc for the right to know who their biological father is.  The whole premise for this movie brings a very profound issue to the surface.  How do you (the product of donor sperm) know when you meet someone, it’s not your sister or brother?  If you rely on the institution for protection from this sort of thing from happening, you’re screwed.  Things that make you go umh! Delivery Man drags at parts but was interesting enough not to walk out.  I kept wondering where this movie was going, so I watched till the end.  It was just okay.  I’m glad I didn’t spend the price of a movie ticket to see it.  Delivery Man is available on DVD, which is where it belongs.

REVENGE – My rating 8.5/10

Revenge is in it’s 3rd season.  It started out with all the potential, action, and cunningness necessary for a fantastic series.  A wealthy  family (the Graysons) who live  in the Hamptons, framed their executive employee (David Clarke) to take the fall for treason and a couple of other crimes that were actually committed by them (the Graysons).  David’s daughter Amanda Clarke returns to the Hamptons as Emily Thorne to seek revenge on the Graysons and anyone else who participated in her father’s demise.  Agents of the Graysons had David murdered in prison to make sure there wouldn’t be any backlash or loos ends.  There are many, many twist and turns as we progress through the seasons of Revenge.  I for one, was lured into Emily’s world of deceit and cleverness but after a few seasons, have decided this season should be the end.  It’s becoming unbelievable and turning into a soap opera.  I can’t imagine what a 4th season would bring.  You might feel differently, as this is just my opinion.  However, keep in mind, there is just so much exposure one can endure before a revenge plot falls apart.

UPDATE:  Season 4

This season has transformed quite nicely to more revenge but not from Emily.  Apparently, this series has some excellent writers because they have managed to go where I couldn’t imagine.  After all has been said and done, Revenge is still kicking strongly.  I’m still enjoying the series as much now as I did in the beginning.  Kudos to ABC and their Revenge writers.