Another Round

 This is Danish director, Thomas Vinterberg's latest movie staring Mads Mikkelsen as Martin, a high school teacher who has lost his way as a teacher, a husband, and as a father. He has become by his own estimation (and to some degree others') boring. Life has overtaken Martin and the years of routine have found him settled into a complacent existence, that is until he discovers (maybe rediscovers) the liberation provided to him from the joys of consuming alcohol. Martin and three of his close friends and fellow teachers embark on an experiment - keep their blood alcohol level in their blood stream at .05% during the day. The idea being, we are better versions of ourselves with a few libations coursing through our system. This film is billed as a comedy, but it's more drama than anything. It's about our relationship with alcohol and society's relationship with alcohol - both at times revered and shunned. There is a societal respect for characters like Hemmingway and Churchill who accomplished so much, often drunk, whereas the gym teacher caught day-drunk is shunned. Vinterberg explores this dichotomy by pointing out that Demark, like Canada, promotes drinking and it's built into our culture - however calling someone "a drunk" carries much shame. These ideas are tossed around by Vinterberg, like he was sharing a bottle of booze with friends. Another Round is more sad than funny, like the guy at the bar who has had one too many. Vinterberg has made a film that feels like it was made in that sweet spot of a few drinks, where inhibitions are lost and we are doing our best work. Drink this one up on streaming services. 

  

The Outpost

What you need to know: This is based on a true story of an American army outpost in Northern Afghanistan in 2009. The outpost is a regular target by Taliban fighters - they seem to take daily pot-shots at the base; sometimes they get lucky, most often though, these Taliban fighters get picked off like Star Wars stormtroopers. There is a local Afghani who is helping the Americans. He often appears yelling, warning, "The Taliban are coming, the Taliban are coming!" This never-cry-wolf scenario plays itself out until, well, guess what, the Taliban show up. Big time. Then the battle happens which is what this movie is all about. I didn't think I would enjoy The Outpost because I thought it would be all rah-rah-America, a kind of, aren't-we-great movie. So I went in with low expectations. It's a bit rah-rah-America and I'm okay with that because let me tell you what this really is: It's an outstanding action picture. This is one of the best action pictures I've seen in a long time. The problem with all the super hero movies we are constantly inundated with is all the action that takes place, nobody really gets hurt. It's cartoon violence. When people get shot in this movie, well they are real people who could die - the stakes are high. I'm not familiar with director, Rod Lurie, but he has done a remarkable job with this film. If you want to see the best action film of the year, catch The Outpost on Netflix. 

Wayne

If Quentin Tarantino were to make a TV show about a teen romance, I think it would look a lot like Wayne. The show has a White Stripe' soundtrack and the whole show feels dirty and gets under your fingernails. What's it all about? Its main character is Wayne, played by Mark McKenna. Wayne doesn't have a whole lot going for him. Wayne's mom took off when he was a wee guy and he lives with his dying father in an impoverished area of Brockton, Massachusetts. They are dirt poor and Wayne has nothing to lose - this fact combined with Wayne's indignation with the world and his need to right all wrongs with his fists make Wayne a kind of anarchist-vigilante superhero. Wayne meets Del, played by Ciara Bravo, who he immediately asks to be his girlfriend. After Wayne bites off her dad's nose and beats the shit out of her twin brothers, they head off to Florida to get back Wayne's dad's gold Trans-Am. The police and the high school principal and Wayne's only friend are all in hot pursuit as Wayne and Del gypsy-hop motorcycle their way to Florida. The show is super violent and the fun comes with Wayne's strict moral compass, his crazy dancing, and the crazy side characters, like the police chief's back story of being in a Thai prison. Let this show punch you in the face on Amazon Prime. 

Waves

This is Trey Edward Shults' third major motion picture. His first was Krisha, which came out in 2015. I loved Krisha. If you haven't seen it, please do. Riveting family dysfunctional family drama playing out over Thanksgiving. Trey's next picture was It Comes At Night - a kind of post apocalyptic virus movie (perfect timing - just before COVID). I liked it, but not as much as Krisha. He set the bar high for himself and hit it on the second jump. Waves is his third movie and Trey went sailing clear over the bar. What's it all about? Imagine if Emilio Estevez's character in The Breakfast Club were black and his dad was portrayed by Sterling K. Brown (from This Is Us fame) and we were told the back story Andrew Clark, except it's Tyler Williams and the actor is Kelvin Harrison Jr. Tyler is on the high school wrestling team and his dad is pushing him to be the best. Tyler learns from his doctor that he has a severe injury in his shoulder and shouldn't be wrestling. Things go downhill from here.

The first half of Waves has a manic energy and a wild sense of urgency - the only thing I can compare it to is Uncut Gems. It's riveting stuff. Without spoiling the film, the second half of the movie deals with the fallout of Tyler's demise, about how his younger sister Emily (played by Canadian actor Taylor Russell) deals with what happened. She meets Luke (Lucas Hedges - this kid is a talent) and we watch their relationship unfold. Waves reminded me also of American Honey and to some extent Queen & Slim. There is a gritty realism to these films and something absolutely riveting about them to watch. Catch Waves on Amazon.

The Queen's Gambit

From the opening scene, the opening shot, of the movie "Split" I was hooked. I thought it all had to do with M. Night Shyamalan direction but now I realize it's also because Anya Taylor-Joy is a truly captivating presence on the screen. She is the star of Netflix's new series, "The Queen's Gambit." What's it all about? It's about an orphaned young girl who is taught chess by the grumpy janitor in the basement of the orphanage. It turns out that Beth (Anya Taylor-Joy) is a child chess prodigy. There are so many cliché possibilities here, it's impressive the smart and fresh moves this show makes. This fictional coming of age story is astounding for so many reasons, mainly because Anya Taylor-Joy is just so darn good. Isla Johnston, who plays the younger Beth Harmon is also fantastic. At the orphanage, young Beth is given tranquillizers daily along with her vitamin pill. This leads Beth to wig-out and play chess games in her mind on the ceiling of her dormitory. This upside-down chessboard is a wonderful effect and it appears when Beth gets high on her meds. The show is set in 1960s America and the costume designs are award worthy. In fact, the way the entire show is shot, the look and feel of it, is remarkable. It deals with addiction, mental illness, fame, sexism, and self destruction. It's one of the best things I've seen in 2020. Binge it now on Netflix.   

The Morning Show

Mitch Kessler (Steve Carell) has been let go as co-anchor of New York's fictional TV show, The Morning Show, for sexual misconduct. The #MeToo fall out of this for Mitch, for his long time co-host Alex Levy (Jennifer Aniston), the network, and the woman who replaces Mitch, Bradley Jackson (Reese Witherspoon) is the subject of Apple+'s new drama series. Apple+ is trying to jump into the TV streaming game along with Netflix and Amazon. They don't have a lot of content yet but they have some big names - Carell, Aniston, and Witherspoon - and that's just for this show. I was nonetheless skeptical about watching anything on Apple+. I'm not sure why. Steve Carell continues to impress me with his dramatic role choices and he is fabulous in this as are Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon. But if there are awards to be handed out for best supporting actors, it's the brief appearance of Martin Short as a pedophile sexual predator who is absolutely jaw-dropping good. After watching him in this, I would love to see Short do more dramatic stuff. And then there is Gugu Mbatha-Raw who plays Hannah Shoenfeld, the woman who Mitch Kessler sexually takes advantage of. Her relationship with Mitch pre and post sexual encounter is a remarkable piece of acting. Catch The Morning Show on Apple+ 

Alone

I’ve seen the trailer for Unhinged, the new Russell Crowe thriller where it looks like road rage goes the way of Falling Down. Unhinged looks ridiculous but I will likely watch it because I’m a sucker for this kind of stupidity. Crawl was one of my favourite films last year even though it was a bit of a schlocky formula film; it was extremely well made and I loved it. If you haven’t heard of Alone, you’re likely not alone (ha!). It could be easily be classified as a ridiculous schlocky formula film however this little film is also extremely well made. Steven Spielberg began his directorial carrier with a film called Duel – a man chased by a crazy truck driver. Alone is something along the same lines. I don’t really want to get into the details because I don’t want to spoil any of the fun. I will say this, I sat riveted by pretty simple stuff. Director John Hyams seems to have a very good grasp on how to create suspense. The hateful-fearful chemistry between Jules Willcox(Jessica) and ‎Marc Menchaca (The Man) is something to behold. Alone is simply the best thriller I’ve seen in 2020. Catch it on streaming services.

Schitt's Creek

If you had told me that a CBC half hour comedy would almost bring me to tears about two gay men sharing a first kiss in a car, I would have said your head is full of sand. But it did. I nearly wept over Dan Levey’s characters David Rose and Patrick Brewer exchanging romantic firsts in a car outside of the Rosebud Motel. A CBC comedy worth my time to blog about – not in your wildest dreams my friends. That would never happen. And then I watched Schitt’s Creek. And now we are here. Dan and Eugene Levy co-created this wonderful little show and it has brought millions of people joy, especially those just discovering it during the pandemic. It’s not roll out of your seat funny, but it put a smile on my face every episode and over time I grew to love these characters. It’s worth your time. Here is Wikipedia’s list of all the awards Schitt’s Creek has won: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_awards_and_nominations_received_by_Schitt%27s_Creek

 

With no place to travel to these days, Schitt’s Creek is a place you will want to visit. Catch it on CBC Gem or Netflix.

Palm Springs

I've always enjoyed Andy Samberg. I've delighted in his hilarious SNL musical videos and I've always appreciated his oddball goofy humour but I can't say I've loved any of Andy Samberg movies; that is until now. I flipped on Palm Springs on a whim because my wife likes romantic comedies and I thought, why not. Pandemic viewing has set the bar low. So I had no idea of the fun I was about to get into. I didn't really know the premise except there was a wedding going on in Palm Springs and Andy plays Nyles, boyfriend of the Bride's friend. Nyles ends up having a relationship with the bride's sister, Sarah, played by Cristin Milioti. That's all I knew going in. I'm reluctant to tell you more. So, spoiler alert. If you leave this review now, I will guarantee you will have more fun going in cold. But read on if you must. What's going here. It's Groundhog Day as if you walked into the middle of that movie. Nyles has been living in his time-loop day for a long long time and he knows the ins and outs of this wedding and all the players in it. It's truly a lot of fun and Samberg and Milioti have great on screen chemistry. J. K. Simmons plays the bad guy and his is wonderful as he always is.
Catch this delightful film streaming on Hulu.

Homecoming

I feel like this show was created by an A.I. that targeted everything I have ever loved in film. More specifically, the films of the 1970s and 80s and the work of Brian De Palma. Homecoming, although set in the present, feels like it was made by time travelers. Films like All the President’s Men, The Exorcist, Body Double, John Carpenter’s The Thing, Rosemary’s Baby, Don’t Look Now, all came to my mind while I watched Homecoming with utter glee. It was’t just the split screens and the amazing credit sequences but it was the music, which Homecoming liberally borrows from the films I previously mentioned, which made me love this series. The music was as enthralling as it was nostalgic and it plugged my ear into my heart. What’s it all about? Julia Roberts plays a counselor for American vets just back from a tour of duty in the Middle East. She works at a facility called Geist where something odd is going on, something not on the level; a mystery. I've always liked Julia Roberts, but in this series, I loved Julia Roberts; probably more than anything else I've seen her in. She is simply fantastic. I don't want to spoil it by saying anything more. The rest of the cast is also fabulous. From start to finish, it was perfect. They have released a second season and I'm very reluctant to watch it because it would be like watching JAWS 2. It just can't be as good as the first. Homecoming is tremendous fun. I LOVED IT. Catch it on Amazon Prime.

Little Fires Everywhere

The innate bitchiness of Reese Witherspoon - let's talk. Since I first laid eyes on her with Mathew Broderick in Election, I've loved to hate her. She has a knack for picking roles about wealthy white overachieving women who you detest; she is really good at playing them. She was great in Big Little Lies and she is great in Little Fires Everywhere, her latest A-type bitch role. What's it all about? It's based on Celeste Ng's book of the same title. It's about  Elena Richardson (Witherspoon), mother of four, who never fulfilled her dreams because she had too many kids but puts on the facade that everything in her life is perfect. In walks Mia Warren (played by Kerry Washington) and her teenage daughter, Pearl. Mia is an artist with a mysterious past. Mia gets a part time job as a waitress at a Chinese restaurant and she discovers her co-worker left her baby one desperate night at a fire station. The baby ended up in the arms of white failed-fertility couple who just happens to be good friends of the Richardsons. Mia sets out to get the baby back for her co-worker. That's all I want to tell you. There is a lot going here. The show is about motherhood, it's about race relations, white privilege, coming-of-age experiences, gay love, and even poses the question, what is art? Lots and lots of stuff for only 8 episodes of an hour each. The entire cast is marvelous and the whole show is riveting. It's one of the most thought provoking series I've watched in a while and it gets my highest recommendation. My wife loved it too. Catch it on Amazon.

After Life

What's it all about? It's about Tony (Ricky Gervais) who has lost the love of his life to cancer and is in a very dark place. Tony is an atheist who doesn't believe in an afterlife and now that his wife is gone, doesn't really have any good reason to carry on. As a result, Tony says and does pretty much whatever he wants. He is a bit of an asshole, but a very charming one. Tony works at a very small community paper run by his brother-in-law who lets Tony get away with his outlandish behaviour because Tony is grieving hard for his deceased sister. The tiny paper is filled with oddball characters. They cover goofy and silly stories of people who just want their picture in the local paper for ten minutes of fame. Tony's life is jammed packed with characters - which is the charm of the show. He has a dad with dementia whom he visits on a daily basis and talks with the pretty nurse who works there; he has hilarious sessions with his toxic male therapist; a quirky relationship with a sex worker; and a funny hostel relationship with the postman. I've always liked Ricky Gervais  - partly because I'm also an atheist and I tend to like my humour dark - but in this role, as Tony, you can see Gervais stretching as an actor, diving deeper into more personal stuff. It's good, he's good. I was impressed. Catch it on Netflix.

I See You

The horror/thriller genre is hard to do well. My favourites in recent memory include Don't Breathe, Lights Out, The Babadook, and Mandy. I haven't seen a good one in a while. I See You is a good one. I loved it. What's it all about? Without giving too much away, we have a mystery of kids going missing. The lead detective on the case, his marriage is going through a rough time and then strange things begin to happen in his home. Helen Hunt plays his wife - nice to see her again. I can't tell you a lot more or I'm going to spoil all the great twists and turns of this thrill ride. It's clever and well put together. At a certain point I was glued to it. If you want a thriller, this should be on your list. I See You is something you should see. Catch it on streaming services (it's not like you are going out to the movie theatre). 

Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness

If you haven't heard of Netflix's Tiger King yet, I would be surprised. In fact most of you have likely already binged this. On the off chance you haven't, book off a six hour time slot and get busy. What else do you have to do these days anyway, right? Watching Tiger King is like drinking a couple of ice cold beers on an empty stomach and suddenly somebody put a bowl of greasy potato chips in front of you. You will devour it like a tiger would devour expired Walmart chicken. What is it all about? It's about people running big cat zoos in the Southern US. The main focus of the show is the feud between the gay, redneck, polygamist, county-singing (voice of an angel), Joe Exotic and a woman (who people believe killed her husband) named Carole Baskin. Both run big cat zoos. Baskin claims to be running a sanctuary but that seems dubious. There are also a ton of other characters running around that are right out of a Carl Hiaasen novel; people missing legs, an arm, teeth, tattoos everywhere, and everyone seems to be carrying a gun. It makes Hunter S. Thompson look boring. It's that bananas. Enough writing, enough reading. Go watch this on Netflix now. 

The Invisible Man

My first thought when I heard this movie was coming out was why? Then adjectives like ridiculous, dumb, and needless floated around inside my noggin. But then I noticed that Elisabeth Moss was attached to it and I thought, well maybe I shouldn't be all so judgmental. But a spring release of a horror movie is never good. Then I noticed it's directed and written by Leigh Whannell - he is not a household name. This is James Wan's (Saw, The Conjuring) buddy who he started out in Hollywood with. Leigh Whannell directed and wrote a highly underrated sci-fi film entitled, Upgrade in 2018 (if you haven't seen it, check it out, it's a lot of fun).Leigh is a good writer, maybe even a great genre writer for this type of material. He elevates the horror genre the same way that Hitchcock did. The Invisible Man is a film Hitchcock would have been proud to have made. Yeah, I really enjoyed myself. What's it all about? Elisabeth Moss plays Cecilia, who is in a horrible abusive relationship with a brilliant, rich, sociopath who happens to be a leader in the field of optical technology. Cecilia splits and guess who shows up, invisible douche bag. The whole thing is rather transparent (I couldn't help myself). However Whannell really does a fine job keeping us on the edge of our seats. Elisabeth Moss is great in this. I had so much fun with this movie. It's quite clear to me, (snicker) you shouldn't miss seeing (snicker) this one. Catch it on streaming services.

The Outsider

Since the Syfy channel cancelled Channel Zero, my favourite horror series ever, I've been in mourning. Maybe there is a monster running around out there feeding off my grief? I've tried other shows, American Horror Story, the new Twilight Zone, and I even managed to watch almost all of Castle Rock - I gave up two episodes before the end because, well, I didn't care. And Castle Rock had lots of things going for it, and lots against - both of them being Stephen King. Stephen King, for me, can be hit or miss. Some of my favourite horror movies are Stephen King adaptations. However, there are more bad ones than good ones. I'm very happy to report that The Outsider ranks among the very best of Stephen King's translations to screen. This HBO miniseries is outstanding. The musical score by Daniel Bensi & Saunder Jurriaans is brilliant and haunting - it's half the reason you should watch. It might not be everyone's cup of tea, after all, it's still horror. It made me forget about Channel Zero, at least for a little while. So, what's it all about? I don't really want to spoil it. There is a child murder and we follow the investigation. Things get weird fast and not everything is as it seems. That's all I want to tell you. The big names attached to this thing are Jason Bateman (Ozark) and Ben Mendelsohn (Bloodline), but everyone in this is fantastic - big props to Cynthia Erivo as Holly Gibney (one of the most memorable characters to grace the screen in a while). If you are looking for something to take your mind off of COVID-19, try this. Catch it on HBO.

Fleabag

If you haven't watched this British Amazon award winning show already, well it's time to get to it. What's it all about? It's about Fleabag (staring the uber-talented Phoebe Waller-Bridge, who is not only the star of this series, but who's the writer and creator of the show) who is a thirty-something, highly sexually-active girl who runs a guinea-pig themed café in London. Fleabag, at least in the first season, isn't the nicest of characters. In fact, Fleabag is rather a pain in the ass; a drunk who makes most things about herself. As a result she has made some very poor choices, ones which she has horrible regrets about. Fleabag is charming though, smart, and self deprecating enough we can warm to her profane irreverent observations on what's going on around her. It also helps that she is always breaking the fourth wall (talking to the viewing audience just like Ferris Bueller). It's like we are her secret confidant. It's hard not to like her. Fleabag has an uptight successful sister who is married to an American alcoholic asshole (played wonderfully by Brett Gelman). Fleabag also has a dead mother, a distant father, and a godmother who is truly a piece-of-work (played by the fabulous Olivia Colman). Each episode only runs about 24 minutes and there are only 12 episodes total (6 per season). It's all highly binge worthy material. The second season is about Fleabag's complex relationship with a priest (Andrew Scott) and redemption. It's a dramady. The characters are all filled out in 3D and it's far more moving than you think it should be. Fleabag gets a very high recommendation from me. Catch it on Amazon.

Mickey and the Bear

There have been films like it, Leave No Trace and Jellyfish come to mind. These are films where the child has become the parent; children thrust into adulthood far too soon. In this film, it's Mickey (played by the talented Camila Morrone) who has just turned 18 and who is looking after her PTSD war veteran, Oxycontin-addicted father, Hank (wonderfully played by James Badge Dale). This is a coming of age tale in rural small town America. Mickey has a boyfriend who dreams of nothing more than getting married and getting a dirt bike. Bush parties on the edge of town with beer, bonfires, and blowjobs is your typical youth filled Friday night in Mickey's town. And Hank, well he's always about to erupt. Mickey at one point explains to her doctor why she needs more Oxy for her dad - Nobody wants to see Hank off his meds. No we don't. Happily, Mickey meets a new boy at school from the UK. He is a musician and plays classical music and suddenly Mickey realizes that maybe she doesn't have to stay in her shitty life after all. Some of this sounds a bit cliché, and maybe it is, but the whole thing felt authentic enough to overlook what I consider to be minor faults. The trailer Mickey and Hank live in, the details of what's on the walls, what's on the dresser; they way people speak; the restaurants they go to; the people of the town; the cars they drive - portraits painted like this is why I go to the movies. Catch this one on streaming services or a rep cinema if possible. 

Undone

In the last years of my father's life, he was terribly sick. He was bipolar. He told me, on more than one occasion, he was going to go back in time and save Princess Diana before her accident; a noble endeavour. When I stumbled across Undone, the Amazon animated series starting Rosa Salazar as Alma, and Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul) as her father, I was fascinated. The animation style is done in rotoscope -  they film it with real actors and then paint over it all. It reminded me of Richard Linklater's Waking Life  in both its look, pacing, and its existential angst. Alma is a 28 year old philosophical young lady who is bored with life's repetitions, who acts impulsively at times, makes poor choices, and tends to make the show all about her, but her self reflection on everything endears us to her. Alma, through an act of reckless driving, almost dies in a car crash. This is when everything goes astray. Undone gets trippy. Time gets messed up for Alma. She ends up having long conversations with her long dead father. Together they hatch a plot for Alma to go back in time and save him (her father) from a car crash; a noble endeavour. A first we aren't sure if this is just her injured brain or maybe it's something more. In the end, it's a portrait of somebody with schizophrenia. It's somewhat sad, it's also quite a high to be manic and going through all this exciting time-travelling, reality-bending stuff. This is what crazy looks like. To me it felt authentic and I believe it warrants your time and attention. Catch this one on Amazon.

Taylor Swift: Miss Americana

The first film of 2020 going on the blog is, Taylor Swift: Miss Americana. Yes, I'm as surprised as you are. There lots of musical biopics (Walk the Line, Coal Miner's Daughter), rock documentaries (Woodstock, A Band Called Death), rock mockumentaries (This Is Spinal Tap, FUBAR), fictional musical stories (Hard Core Logo, Vox Lux) and even movie music musicals (Moulin Rouge!) - So do we really need to see one more bloody musical documentary on Taylor Swift?? Yes we do! Let me start by saying I've never been a huge Taylor Swift fan. I've enjoyed some of her later musical offerings. I have seen her perform some moving and beautiful songs that I didn't know she was capable of. She surprised me. What was the most eye-opening thing about the documentary was everyone's bias, including my own. Not in my wildest dreams did I think Swift wrote her own songs. She does. Why did I think she didn't? Because she is blonde, thin, and pretty? Can someone be blonde, thin, pretty, and talented? Apparently so - I should know better. Swift started out with talent, drive, and the greatest of desires, to be loved by strangers. She wanted nothing more than to be a star. Then came along Kanye West. Remember when he got up and stole the mic from Taylor Swift at the 2009 MTV award show? That single act had a profound effect on Ms Swift, more than anyone knows. As much as it was wrong, and it was wrong, it may have been the best thing to have happened to her. It threw her into a dark place, a place of deep introspection. It may have been awful for her, but we, her adoring public, are getting deeper, better music as a result. We got this documentary and I'm applauding, Taylor. I'm standing and applauding, so take a bow. Listen to this one on Netflix.

Dark Waters

Those hairy Teflon pans you might be using, you might want to throw those out. Then again, they will end up in a landfill and that will eventually end up in our water supply. Maybe. What is this movie all about? It's the true story of Rob Bilott (Mark Ruffalo) who, as our story begins, is a cooperate lawyer working for, who else, a large chemical company. Rob's grandma, well she is friends with this farmer fellow. This farmer fellow, well his cows got real sick and died on him; 190 dead cows. The farmer knew it was the water but he couldn't seem to get any help with the issue. "Go see my grandson, maybe he can help you," suggested Rob's grandma. And so that's how Rob began to investigate the company DuPont. DuPont makes, among other things, Teflon. Teflon was designed to waterproof tanks. Then somebody got the good sense to coat our frying pans with the stuff. C8 - Rob Bilott in the movie is told what that is, and thus so is the movie audience -Perfluorooctanoic acid. Basically 8 carbon molecules strung together and the shit is unbreakable. Don't eat it or you might get cancer and die. 99% of people on the planet have this stuff floating around in their bloodstream. Thanks DuPont. But my eggs don't stick, right? Catch this one on streaming services.

My top 10 films of 2019

So with the Oscars on tonight, I thought I would give you my top ten movies of 2019. I haven't seen everything (obviously) but I have watched a lot. Here we go:
1) Dragged Across Concrete
2) Uncut Gems
3) Parasite
4) Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
5) The Grizzlies
6) Crawl
7) Midsommar
8) Ford V Ferrari
9) The Peanut Butter Falcon
10) Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Honorable mentions go to: Touch Me Not, Just Mercy, Dark Waters, The Report, Between Two Ferns, Brittany Runs a Marathon, Pattleton, Doctor Sleep, Us, Dolemite is My Name, The Art of Self-Defense, Skin, and The Dead Don't Die

Worst films of 2019:
1917 - technically brilliant and the first 30 minutes are riveting, after that, it's all downhill with no character development. Not why I go to the movies.

The Irishman - the biggest disappointment of the year. An hour too long and the backwards aging looks strange to say the least. If you want to see aging backwards, go watch Terminator: Dark Fate.

Murder Mystery - Adam Sandler is in one of the best films of the year (Uncut Gems), he is also in one of the worst. Go watch Knives Out if you want a murder mystery.

Her Smell - I turned it off after the 30 minutes. Go watch Vox Lux instead

Rainy Day in New York - Woody Allen is completely out of touch with how young people speak and think. I gave up after 30 minutes.

High Life - Robert Pattinson stars in this arty space turd. Terrible.

Guilty Pleasures I'm admitting to:
Rambo: Last Blood - There is no reason for this movie to exist however I found it far more entertaining than The Irishman.

Terminator: Dark Fate - I've enjoyed almost all of the Terminator films and this in no exception. I had fun and I admit it.

Color Out of Space - Nic Cage drinking lama milk and acting off his nut in this completely zany John Carpenter's The Thing ripoff. Completely bananas but gosh darn it, I enjoyed myself.

Don't F**k with Cats: Hunting an Internet Killer

Well this is about a dark as it gets. Warning!, before reading on, this might be one of the most disturbing documentaries I've ever watched. It's also one of the most fascinating things I have ever seen. What is it all about? It's about Canadian murderer Luka Magnotta. Remember this asshole? He killed Jun Lin, a Chinese student. Magnotta then dismembered Lin's body and mailed pieces of him all over Canada. This is gruesome stuff. This three part Netflix documentary is about the online hunting Luka Magnotta. His disturbing quest for fame led him to post his torture and killing of kittens online. Posting videos of killing kittens, well that pissed a lot of people off. It pissed off Deanna Thompson and John Green to the extreme, where they made it their life's work to go and catch this guy.Hence the title, "Don't F**k with Cats." These two are the main focus of the documentary.Deanna Thompson is one smart lady and John Green is one smart guy. They devoted almost all of their spare time to dissecting Magnotta's videos, frame by sick and twisted frame, in order to catch him. What makes this documentary so fascinating is how they go about their research and their passion for doing it. It's disheartening to know people like Magnotta exist, but it's highly comforting to know that there are people like Deanna and John out there too. If you are into true crime, it doesn't get more interesting than this. Catch it on Netflix.

Just Mercy

If you don't know Michael B. Jordan, you should. He is that young man who plays young Adonis Creed in Creed. I first saw him in Parenthood and thought he was marvelous. Well here he is again, playing real life lawyer, Bryan Stevenson. Bryan Stevenson graduated from Harvard and decided to do something important with his law degree, namely go help some folks sitting on death row.
We have seen variations on this movie before, The Hurricane, Rectify (one of my favourite TV shows of all time), Dead Man Walking, The Green Mile, etc. So why do we need another wrongly accused/jail house story? Because they keep putting innocent people to death, that's why! Jamie Foxx plays Walter McMillian, the man falsely convicted of killing a young white girl. Foxx and Jordan play their parts well, but it's the supporting role of jailhouse snitch, played by actor Tim Blake Nelson, that made this movie truly special. He is great in this role and you can't take your eyes off of him when he's on the screen. At the end of the film, there is a message that for every nine people put to death, one person has been exonerated. That's a staggering statistic. This movie is about racism, injustice, and the spirit to keep fighting a system which at its core is morally bankrupt and in deep need of change. The US needs this film more than ever. Catch it in theatres now or on streaming services shortly.

Cheer

When someone says "cheerleader" most people still think of those girls on the sidelines of football games with pompoms, short skirts, kicking their legs high in the air. Fair enough, that's how this whole business started. However cheerleading has grown into it's own competitive sport. If you combined the best of gymnastics tumbling, Cirque du Soleil stunting, Broadway dance, and dressed all the girls like they were in a JonBenét Ramsey beauty pageant and dressed all the boys like they were figure skaters, you have contemporary cheerleading. My daughter has been doing competitive cheerleading for seven years now. I know this world well; she has been a flyer, a tumbler, a back spot, and a front spot. I'm well aware of the stinky sneaker smell of the gym, the relentless practices, the conditioning, the tumbling, the fake eyelashes, the hairspray, the concussions, the broken toes, the broken fingers, and the sprained ankles. We have done our time at C.H.E.O. She does what is known as club or all star cheer and this year her team is going to Worlds. It's one of the highest ranking competitive cheerleading competitions in, well, the world. The equivalent level for college cheerleading is the NCA & NDA Collegiate National Championship, which happens every year in Daytona Beach, Florida. This is cheerleading at the college level. The best cheerleading college in the US is Navarro College in Corsicana, Texas. It is the focus of Netflix's documentary, Cheer. The documentary focuses on Navarro's team leading up to the big competition in Daytona. It's six part series, each about an hour and the lens stays tightly focused on about eight kids and their coach, Monica Aldama. The woman is a machine. This series brought me to tears a few times as some on the kids' stories are heartbreaking. This series is about cheerleading, but what makes it great is the focus it puts on Monica and these group of kids. Catch it on Netflix.

Doctor Sleep

A sequel to the The Shining? Are you kidding me? It came out in 1980. Doctor Sleep was released in 2019. Quick math, that's 39 years later. I will say it again, are you kidding me?
I don't remember when I saw The Shining exactly, but I was a teenager and it scared the shit out of me. Between it and 2001: A Space Odyssey, I became a huge Stanley Kubrick fan. Stephen King apparently was not a fan. I never understood King's beef with Kubrick, because it was the greatest film based on his work until Misery came along and then The Shawshank Redemption. Anyway, if you are a fan of King's work or a fan of Kubrick's, Doctor Sleep might surprise you. It certainly did for me. What's it all about? Remember the little kid in The Shining, Dan Torrance, little Danny? Well he grew up and PTSDed into an alcoholic - his father tried to murder him and his mother with an axe, so it's understandable. Dan (Ewan McGregor) also has the gift of telepathy, although he calls it shining. There are a bunch of others out there like Dan where their powers merge into telekinesis. There is a bad bunch of them who go around like vampires and suck the shine out of others of their kind. They do this so they can live an extra long time. Does it sound ridiculous? Yes it does and it is. But here is the thing, it's really well crafted and it sucked me in. This film looks great and there are little homage bits to Kubrick all over the place, including some of the haunting musical score from the original. There are just so many wonderful visuals in this film. Anyway, back to the story. These vampire shiners, they sense a presence out there of a super powerful shiner, a young girl named Abra (Kyliegh Curran) and they want to eat her, consume her shine. Well Abra and Dan are friends as they have been communicating telepathically through Dan's chalkboard wall. I know, it's ridiculous, but I'm telling you, I got sucked in. Dan won't let them eat Abra and well I don't think I will tell you anymore. Doctor Sleep shines. Catch it on Streaming Services.

Brittany Runs a Marathon

So I think it would be reasonable to put Brittany Runs a Marathon into the category of a Rom-Com. However I'm not really sure that's were it belongs. What's it all about? It's about Brittany (Jillian Bell) who lives in New York and she is 27. She is a bit of a party animal. She is also out of shape, badly. She has always been the chubby girl and she doesn't like herself because of it. Brittany has a lot of body image issues and the film tackles these with a honesty that is refreshing. Amy Schumer did something similar in Trainwreck, but Brittany Runs a Marathon seems a lot less Hollywood. Anyway, after Brittany is told by her doctor that she needs to lose weight, she tries to join a gym but realizes she can't afford it; instead she dons a pair of Converse and takes up the frugal sport of jogging. Brittany and her skinny bitch roommate always make fun of Shannon, a woman who lives in their building who they believe has the perfect life. Turns out Shannon is going through more than a rough patch and invites Brittany to join her running club. A new friendship is forged and the goal of running the New York City marathon soon becomes their final quest. The romance aspect of the film comes from her fellow dog-house sitter; they share the job and end up squatting in this rich couple's apartment. It's all very amusing. This came out last summer and I finally got around to watching it. I'm so glad I did. Catch it on Amazon.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

My relationship with Star Wars, like many people of my Gen-X generation, is a rather profound one. It may have shaped my moral compass. For sure it was one of the first films where I fell in love with all the characters. It was magical. And the toys! I collected all the cards, action fictions, posters, and books. It was schoolyard conversation. Star Wars was a huge chunk of my childhood. Return of the Jedi was released in 1983; I was thirteen years old. Then I grew up.

When The Phantom Menace was released in 1999, I was twenty nine. I had watched Pulp Fiction, Silence of the Lambs, Terminator 2, Seven, Jurassic Park, and Good Will Hunting. I was an adult (well my wife might disagree) watching adult movies. Star Wars was happy memory for me. So when I watched The Phantom Menace, not only was it boring, but it was designed for children. It wasn't how I wanted it or I remembered it. The fun seemed to be sucked out of it. And let me tell you, I wanted to love it. I wanted to love it so much and I didn't. I waited like everyone else for the next two films; saw them on opening day. They weren't much better. Fast forward to 2015 and I'm now forty five years old with two kids who I inflicted my love of the original films on. The Force Awakens was the film I had been waiting for since I was thirteen. I thought it was really good. Not great, but good. There was hope. Then The Last Jedi came out. It crushed my love of Star Wars all over again. I hated it. I was done with Star Wars for good. Thought about selling all my toys and moving on with my life.

I read the reviews on Rotten Tomatoes for The Rise of Skywalker and they were pretty awful. Many people told me, oh, if you didn't like the last one, you won't like this one. I put off going. I had always gone on opening day. I waited weeks before going to see it. I guess I was dreading putting the final nail into my Star Wars coffin. I took my son, who is now thirteen (the same age I was when I watched Return of the Jedi). We were two of four people in the theatre. The words came across the the screen, "A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away. . . " It pulled at my heart strings. I waited to be crushed. 

I'm very, very happy to report, The Rise of Skywalker is my favourite Star Wars film since Return of the Jedi. It has everything you want. It has the childhood fun I remember. It's nostalgic, it's fresh, it has magic. And it's got a new droid, Cone Head, or as I call him, Squeaky Wheel. This is the Star Wars film I've been waiting for, for thirty six years. My son loved it too. Go see it in theatres now. 

Unbelievable

This is a Netflix miniseries. It stars Kaitlyn Dever, Merritt Wever, and Toni Collette. It's based on a true story of a serial rapist and a young girl, Marie (Kaitlyn Dever), who has been through the American foster care system and has been badly let down. We begin with Marie's rape and her eventual recanting of her ordeal to the police. In parallel, we have Detective Karen Duvall (Merritt Wever) and Detective Grace Rasmussen (Toni Collette) who are on the lookout for a rapist at large. Soon enough these two women release they are looking for the same man and begin working the case together. This is riveting stuff. It reminded me of Mindhunter, another Netflix show I love. The main differences being, this is an investigation driven by women, about the abuse of women, within the context of a male centric police world; this alone makes it fascinating to watch. But what might be the most compelling thing about Unbelievable is Kaitlyn Dever's performance as Marie, her PTSD post rape and they way she conveys her repressed and highly complex emotional state. When the police question her and she recants her story, it's a remarkable piece of acting. Even the cop pressing her (Eric Lange) does a fabulous job.
This is not easy material to wade through but it's important and incredibly well told. Catch it on Netflix.  

Uncut Gems

My favourite film of 2017 was Good Time. Uncut Gems is the second feature film by the same dynamic duo, the Safdie brothers. Uncut Gems stars Adam Sandler. Hold on, don't stop reading. I like Adam Sandler, I by no means love Adam Sandler. He has made lots of bad films (Jack and Jill, Murder Mystery), a few funny ones (The Wedding Singer, 50 First Dates), and some good ones (The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected), Funny People, and Spanglish) but Sandler has never been in a great film; until now. Uncut Gems ranks as Sandler's best work. I loved this movie. What's it about? Sandler plays a jeweler who is looking for the big payoff. He is up to ears in debt, has a gambling problem, a mistress on the side, and his life is falling apart. He has a chance to turn it all around with one magical rock full of uncut gems. He has to get it sold before the mobsters close in and beat the living shit out of him. It's riveting.  
Let me take a moment and talk about John Cassavetes. If you only watch two Cassavetes films, make sure to watch A Woman Under the Influence and The Killing of a Chinese Bookie. Cassavetes was an independent film maker and his influence can be felt in so many films. Watch the scene in A Woman Under the Influence where Peter Falk brings his work crew home and they sit around the dinner room eating spaghetti and then watch the scene in Ridley Scott's Alien where the crew are all sitting around eating after they have come out of hypersleep - Scott is a fan of Cassavetes. Or watch the chase scene at the end of Blade Runner and then compare it to the The Killing of a Chinese Bookie.
So why have I digressed into this Cassavetes rambling, you might ask? Because Uncut Gems is almost the modern version of The Killing of a Chinese Bookie. There is so much I loved about Uncut Gems, the retro 70s and 80s zeitgeist of independent film, the music, the lighting, the overlapping dialogue - it's like it was made in a different time. And yet it's completely contemporary; it even has a cameo by the Canadian group, The Weekend.
It's playing this week in Ottawa at the Mayfair. Go watch it. 

The Report

To my surprise, a few people have told me they don't like Adam Driver. I suppose there are a few actors that rub people the wrong way. Or maybe they are just miscast in Star Wars films like Hayden Christensen. I personally love Adam Driver as an actor and he is everywhere these days: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Marriage Story, and The Report. If you only see one of these films, see The Report. What's it all about? This is a whistle-blower story that really isn't a whistle-blower, but somebody who is really persistent in doing his job. This is the true story of Daniel Jones, a US Senate staffer in charge of reviewing 6 million pages of CIA material relating to the destruction of the 2005 CIA interrogation videotapes of supposed Al-Qaeda suspects. Remember all those photos that came out? If it doesn't ring a bell, then you really should be watching this movie. I don't think The Report is breaking a lot of new ground cinematically; there are lots of films like it, Spotlight, The Insider, to name a few. A bunch of people sitting around a room with dramatic music playing while they ask questions about who knew what when. This is an important movie and it's a story that paints the CIA in a very bad light. The USA has done some awful stuff. Catch this on Amazon Prime. 

Ford V Ferrari

If you are looking for something fun to watch, get your motor running (so to speak), Ford V Ferrari is your picture. I took my thirteen year old son to see this one and we both enjoyed ourselves immensely. What's it all about? This is the true story of how Ford beat Ferrari at one of the world's greatest car racing events, Le Mans. This is a 24 hour race with multiple drivers. It's an endurance test of both man and machine and in 1965, Ferrari was King and Ford, well Ford made a lot of automobiles, but they didn't make anything as good as Ferrari. Ford attempts to buy Ferrari, but this takeover goes skidding into the ditch and ends with Ferrari insulting Ford on a personal level. This is a story of revenge. Ford, with deep, deep pockets hires Carroll Shelby (Matt Damon) to get the job done. Whatever it takes. Shelby builds a car to win, but they need a renegade to drive it, to push the car to maximum potential. In comes the Englishman and madman, Ken Miles (Christian Bale). Miles isn't the image Ford wants, but only Miles can drive the car to the limit. Christian Bale is great, speaking to the car as he drives like the car was alive - it reminded me of Steve McQueen talking to the engine in The Sand Pebbles. This isn't a Samson and Goliath tale, this is a Goliath vs Goliath tale at top speed. Take a wild ride with this one and catch it at a cinema near you.