The Peanut Butter Falcon - Review

The Peanut Butter Falcon

“The Peanut Butter Falcon” tells the story of Zak (Zack Gottsagen), a young man with Down syndrome, who runs away from a residential nursing home to follow his dream of attending the professional wrestling school of his idol, The Salt Water Redneck (Thomas Haden Church). A strange turn of events pairs him on the road with Tyler (Shia LaBeouf), a small time outlaw on the run, who becomes Zak's unlikely coach and ally. Together they wind through deltas, elude capture, drink whisky, find God, catch fish, and convince Eleanor (Dakota Johnson), a kind nursing home employee charged with Zak's return, to join them on their journey.

REVIEW:  I have been hearing so much about this film since its fame - buzz grew from early press coverage during its January 2019 Sundance Film Festival debut. And with an abundance in sentimentality, sweetness and charm and a running time of 1:36 minutes the film takes you on equal parts fantasy and equal parts soft drama journey about the basic principle of the power of kindness from one person to another. And it executes this basic tale through the lens of it being a modern Mark Twain style adventure story where we see principally three misfits’ characters drawn together by the rarest of circumstances but through their comradery and friendship develop a symbiotic bond that becomes unshakeable while rafting on the water.

With solid work all around, I would be short changing my comments if I do not mention the lead Shia LaBeouf who has evolved from being a passing supporting style character in Hollywood films to now a full fledged commanding presence;............, literally holding your attention with his natural ability to be any nuance virtue you can imagine. But in the end it’s the whole story of this character friendship that takes root in your mind and heart. “The Peanut Butter Falcon” is undeniably natural, pure and innocently sweet and at times a bit corny with many more times very soft heartedly funny.

Obviously, I won’t tell you what the title means or how it ends, but I think unintentionally the director may have an even better film story to work with when you see the finale. I think there is a lot more to be told about these three characters in the same bucket full of love interaction with one another.

This is a small film but while small it still has a big heart that it wears throughout on its cinematic sleeve. And while there is not a whole lot of depth of material and character development in the story you will still derive an abundance of joy having watched it as moves its tale on the calms North Carolina waters in its down-home folksy way.

3.75 Stars

Ready or Not - Review

Ready or Not

“Ready Or Not” follows a young bride named Grace (Samara Weaving) as she about to join her new husband in eternal bliss (Mark O'Brien). Yes, Grace couldn't be any happier for today is her special day marrying the man of her dreams at his family's luxurious estate. And as any fairy tale wedding could be the entire evening affair goes off without a hitch. Well, that is until after all the guest have gone home. Seems there is a long-standing tradition as to when anyone marries into the family, they must play a game. And what is the game you ask.

Grace must now “hide” from midnight until dawn while her new in-laws (supposedly) playfully “seek” her with guns, crossbows and other weapons to suggestively kill her for a necessary ritual in their concocted warped elitist self-indulgent eccentric minds to continue living their opulent and wealthy lives (so to speak).  

So, Grace goes along with the game. After all when you marry into families you must respect time-honored traditions…………..and as she said “The rich have always been different”. Problem is Grace soon learns the initially friendly game is not just a playful ritual but in fact a real life and death struggle with her fighting for her survival.

REVIEW: At times filled with robust fun, humor and action and others with eye rolling disbelief, “Ready or Not” ultimately is a commentary on the upper 1% idle minds, idle time and insatiable need to be entertained in exotic ways by lower class people. And in the first 35 minutes of the 1:35 minute running time I thought the directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett had an innovative concept and cinematic canvas to do something different – special here.

But shortly after the moment Grace realizes her in laws are trying to kill her the film slowly starts to fill less exciting and “horrific” into something spiraling downward into underwhelming by making me wonder just what kind of movie the directors wanted to make.

Specifically, ranging from scenes that were witty (making a call on “On Star” for help) and scary (a scene with the kitchen help – butler) to others making no sense where the characters actions seemed on the surface just plain stupid. I mean (for example) if you are running around in the dark with people chasing you trying to kill you with guns, knives and other weapons, …..does it make a lot of sense to keep screaming letting them know where you are?

Now, there were a few very funny moments delivered by actress Nicky Guadagni  who played “Aunt Helene”; a vicious, angry and 100% all the time mean looking “Cruella de Vil” guillotine chasing homicidal maniac and actress Melanie Scrofano who played “Emille” a  cocaine brain fried house wife who dare I say was not the most reliable markswoman with a gun. I also find it coincidental or intentional they made her to look and sound a lot like Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex.

“Ready or Not” is not a bad film, just at times meandering silly. So, no need to rush out to see this. But if in a few months you are home working on your fifth vodka tonic definitely rent it for sure. You will think this is the funniest, madly hilarious and scariest movie of all time. Without the vodka………………Eeeeh, very amusing.

3.00 Stars

Luce - Review

Luce

Oscar winner Octavia Spencer along with Naomi Watts, Tim Roth and Kelvin Harrison Jr. star in the provocative and mind twisting film “Luce”.  

A contemporary piece we find early a loving couple named Amy (Watts) and Peter Edgar (Roth). It's been ten years since Amy and Peter adopted their African son from “Eritrea”. The transition to being American – American culture for their son was difficult largely due to his adolescent emotional trauma of seeing his war torn country. But after much effort their son now with a new name “Luce” meaning ‘”light” Amy and Edgar have thought the worst was behind them. 

Luce Edgar (Kelvin Harrison Jr.) has evolved into a stellar all-star student beloved by his community in Arlington, Virginia. His African American teacher, Harriet Wilson (Octavia Spencer), believes he is a symbol of black excellence that sets a positive example for his peers. But when he is assigned to write an essay in the voice of a historical twentieth-century figure, Luce turns in a paper that makes an alarming statement about political violence. Worried about how this assignment reflects upon her star pupil, Harriet searches his locker and finds something that confirms her worst fears.

REVIEW:  Feeling more like a theatrical screenplay the film “Luce” exudes a lot of raw, nuanced, extremely well-acted emotional power and effort from its beginning to its 1:57 minute running time end. A complicated but highly entertaining story that essentially is a psychological mystery operating in a moving back and forth “who done it” and “why they did it” precisely constructed human puzzle and emotionally political plot.

In what felt like me viewing acting subjects under a microscope that were also living inside a small box under that same microscope the film compels you to examine universal dynamics. Such as a nuclear family’s love and loyalty for their child at all costs. The pressures individuals place on themselves as well as society for them to not only achieve success but  be consumed by it to the point of 100% perfection. The well known dynamics of American racial strife both big and small.The issues of having a racially blended home even with the best of everyone's intentions to making it work. Having suspicions about someone rather justified or unfounded. The broad issues of personal constitutional privacy verses simply being an underage student. The complexity of and what constitutes someone telling a lie verses simply being mistaken. And finally the matters of someone being blatantly deceptive verse being simply naive. This is truly a very fascinating story seemingly compacted into a well-timed modern suburban sociopolitical drama.l to enjoy.

But the real reason to see this film is actor Kelvin Harrison Jr. His work here could be a star making turn for him in the same way Denzel Washington was catapulted into national stardom after his time on the 1980’s TV show “Saint Elsewhere”. Harrison delivers a masterful juxtaposition performance that was part charismatic and charming and equally disturbing and creepy. He owns the screen every second like some veteran actor of 20 plus years developing and executing “Luce” adroitly and very calculating as someone in one moment you really want to get to know better and then equally cause you real tension and anxiety in the same second, the very same sentence.

Overall, Nigerian-American director Julius Onah executes his “Luce” squarely focused for the audience to make the final judgement as to who is telling the truth and more importantly why you believe them?. And it is this very aspect of the film mysterious movement I  savored, as I was never really 100% sure who to believe.

“Luce” is a wonderfully uncomfortable and disturbing film to watch and to ponder to its very uncomfortable disturbing end. 

3.75 Stars