BOMBSHELL (2019) – My rating: 8.5/10

Bombshell is a biographical drama directed by Jay Roach and written by Charles Randolph. The film tells the story of Roger Ailes’ sexual harassment affairs during his reign at Fox News and the cover-up that eventually forced him to step down.

A tenacious Roger Ailes (John Lithgow) is the head of Fox News, the primary televised source of conservative politics. He runs the corporation with an iron fist that includes fear and determination. Roger is seen as an icon and only answers to Rupert Murdoch (Malcolm McDowell), who is CEO of the Fox network. The stories of Megyn Kelly (Charlize Theron), Gretchen Carlson (Nicole Kidman), and Kayla Pospisil (Margot Robbie), who are three political anchorwomen employed at Fox are revealed in Bombshell.

Megyn Kelly is one of the most popular anchors/commentators at Fox and is preparing to co-moderate the 2016 Republican debate. On the day of the debate, Megyn becomes sick and throws up, but nevertheless questions Donald Trump on negative comments he made about women. In retaliation, Trump sends out several tweets hurting her reputation.  As a result, Megyn is further ridiculed by reporters and others. One reporter sneaks into Meg and Doug’s home in order to take pictures of their daughter causing her husband, Douglas Brunt (Mark Duplass) to kick him out by force. When Megyn returns to work, Fox hires a security detail to protect her but refuses to go after Trump. Roger, who is a fan of Megyn, becomes paranoid with protecting her and thinks that someone poisoned her the day of the debate.

Meanwhile, Gretchen Carlson is the co-anchor of the popular program “Fox and Friends”, but is taken off and demoted to a less popular show and position. Often Gretchen faces sexist comments by others, on and off the air. Gretchen decides to escalate her situation by hiring legal representation. The lawyers mention that Gretchen should not engage with these newfound enemies then tells her the story of Rudi Bakhtiar who was fired for coming out against her employer who she accused of sexual harassment. The lawyers explain their plan to file a harassment suit against Roger Ailes personally and inform Gretchen that she will need to have other women come out and tell their story.

Kayla Pospisil is the newest hire at Fox, a young conservative from a religious background. She starts off working for Gretchen but is soon offered a position to work for “The O’Reilly Factor”. Gretchen asks Kayla to stay with her and warns her to be careful, but she refuses and questions why she shouldn’t take the job. On her first day, Bill O’Reilly (Kevin Dorff) yells at her and she is consoled by a coworker, Jess Carr (Kate McKinnon). Jess becomes a good friend while Kayla’s situation becomes pretty ugly at Fox.

I thought Bombshell was well laid out, conveying to the audience how one of the biggest sex preditors was caught with his pecker in the mouth of babes.  I think the movie was well-acted and the make-up was phenomenal.  It seems Trump got away with a lot more than just the Iranian crisis.  I’m glad women are coming out and stopping these preditors.  The film received generally favorable reviews, with critics praising the performances of the cast, particularly (Theron, Kidman, Robbie and Lithgow) however they criticized the screenplay and inaccuracies in the storytelling. The film received two nominations at the 77th Golden Globe Awards for Theron and Robbie, four at the 26th Screen Actors Guild Awards for Theron, Robbie and Kidman, as well as Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture and three at the 73rd British Academy Film Awards. I really liked Bombshell, Check It Out!

 

LAST CHRISTMAS (2019) – My rating: 7.5/10

Last Christmas is a romantic comedy directed by Paul Feig and written by Bryony Kimmings and Emma Thompson, who co-wrote the story with her husband, Greg Wise. Based on the song of the same name.  Because Last Christmas had so much hype as a must-see movie, one felt if they didn’t go to see it, they’d be missing a potential future classic. Not having any idea what to expect, I went to see Last Christmas and found the movie to be fun, romantic and a little sad.

During the Christmas season, a young lady who lives in London named Katarina “Kate” (Emilia Clarke), has been given a second chance at life, but abuses everyone she used to cherish. With the help of Tom Webster (Henry Golding), a mysterious gentleman who rides a bicycle and volunteers at a homeless shelter, she begins to slowly improve her attitude and heal her body. Working a dead-end job as an elf selling Christmas ornaments all year round, Kate goes out on singing auditions but is never hired. Her boss, who is referred to as “Santa” (Michelle Yeoh), bends over backward to keep Kate in her employment. On a more friendly side, Kate sets up Santa with a Danish man (Peter Mygind) who she befriends in front of the shop.  Kate is currently homeless after being thrown out by her flatmate. By choice, she remains homeless until she has no choice but to live back home at her mother Petra (Emma Thompson) and father’s Ivan (Boris Isakovic) house. The environment there is not the greatest, as her mother is a Yugoslavian immigrant who is suffering from depression and a father who was a successful lawyer back in Yugoslavia but is now driving an Uber cab because of money issues and is never home. Kate has a sister Marta (Lydia Leonard) who is a successful lawyer practicing in the UK.  Marta lives with her girlfriend Joyce (Patti LuPone) who is ignored by the family, as her mother doesn’t accept their relationship.

I thoroughly enjoyed Last Christmas, which was a far cry from the Emilia Clarke (Game of Thrones: Mother of Dragons) I was used to.  Emilia is a brilliant actress, however, Last Christmas received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the performances and chemistry of Clarke and Golding but criticized the screenplay, clichés, and plot twist, and has grossed $67 million worldwide. I recommend this film to everyone.  Check It Out!

 

FAST & FURIOUS PRESENTS: HOBBS & SHAW (2019) – My rating: 7.5/10

Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw (also known as Hobbs & Shaw) is an action film and a spin-off of The Fast and the Furious franchise. The plot follows the unlikely marriage of the Hobbs & Shaw characters introduced in the main series, as they are forced to team up with Shaw’s sister when a genetically-enhanced terrorist and his organization threaten the world with a deadly virus. The film is directed by David Leitch and written by Chris Morgan and Drew Pearce, from a story by Morgan.  For me, this was a must-see but soon became more of the same despite one of my favorite actors at the helm.

A crew of MI6 agents from the terrorist organization, Eteon, attempts to retrieve a virus labeled Snowflake, which can be programmed to decimate millions of people. Brixton Lore (Idris Elba), an Eteon operative with advanced cybernetic implants that allow him to perform superhuman feats, arrives and kills all agents except for their leader, Hattie Shaw, (Vanessa Kirby) who injects Snowflake into herself as a dormant carrier and escapes. Brixton frames Hattie as a traitor who killed her team and stole Snowflake, forcing her to go on the run.
Luke Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) and Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham), Hattie’s brother, are both informed of the missing virus by the CIA and are assigned to work together, against their better judgment, to track it down. Shaw leaves and goes to Hattie’s house, while Hobbs manages to find Hattie; after a brief scuffle, he brings her to the CIA office. Just as Shaw then returns, the office is attacked and Hattie is taken by Brixton, who Shaw recognizes as an old colleague he previously shot and killed before he was resurrected by Eteon. Hobbs and Shaw pursue and rescue Hattie during an ensuing car chase. They manage to escape from Brixton, who falls off his motorcycle and crashes through the second level of a double-decker bus, creating an opportunity for Brixton to frame the three agents. Hobbs, Shaw and Hattie manage to locate Professor Andreiko (Eddie Marsan) Snowflake’s creator, who informs them that to prevent Snowflake from eradicating humanity, Hattie has to either be killed or use an extraction device, which is located within the Eteon factory in Ukraine, an almost impossible mission.

Okay, I’ll admit Edis Elba’s character was a little different but the rest of the film was pretty much the same old stuff.  The special effects and acting were brilliant as was the flow of the story.  But how long can Hollywood keep making these types of movies and keep them fresh and interesting?  While they continue to be entertaining, the clock is ticking, something new has got to give.  Series star and producer Vin Diesel first said in 2015 that possible spin-offs were in early development. Hobbs & Shaw was officially announced in October 2017. Hobbs & Shaw has grossed $437 million worldwide and received praise for “the charisma of Johnson, Statham, and Kirby”, as well as its “visual style and action choreography finesse”, though some critics “had trouble getting past just how much the film was attempting to fit into its two-hour-and-15-minute runtime”. Personally,  if you are still thrilled by the Fast and Furious franchise, you will not be disappointed by Hobbs & Shaw.  The very least I can say is that it’s similar to other movies of this type.  I still recommend it — Check It Out!