Pig

Stage 3 of Ontario's reopening plan is now here and the first thing I did was go to the Mayfair Theatre to see "Pig" starring Nicolas Cage. I missed the Mayfair so much during the pandemic. It's one of my favourtie places on the planet. Anyway, back to Pig. For the last two decades, Cage has been churning out films like the machine at the exhibition churns out mini-doughnuts; sometimes yummy, mostly garbage. There have been rumours of financial problems, hence the overzealous output to pay off debts. Cage is actor know for his crazy, manic performances. Some of these B films he has made in recent years have been rather spectacular: Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, Color Out of Space, and my favourite of his most bananas roles, Mandy. The best thing I saw from Cage was Joe - this is  an excellent film and you should take the time find it and watch it. Most have been garbage films, mini doughnuts, fun to eat, not a meal to remember. And along came Pig. Pig is about Robin, living off the grid, deep in the woods, with his foraging truffle pig. I really don't want to tell you more because I don't want to spoil it for you. I suspect Cage will be nominated for a Golden Globe and an Oscar for this one. It's a beautifully shot film, gorgeous in subtle palate colours. Pig is a meal you will remember for a long time. Catch it in Theatres, and if you live in Ottawa, catch it this week at the Mayfair.

Army of the Dead

Full disclosure: I'm a sucker for Zombie films. I also dig a good heist film. Here we have have both. It's Ocean's Eleven meets Dawn of the Dead with a little Escape from New York thrown in. What's it all about? An army experiment/asset (a fast moving zombie) escapes during transport in the Nevada desert. The zombie beelines it for Las Vegas and quickly the whole city turns into Zombie Town. The entire city is walled off by box cars. The government's solution is to nuke the city of Vegas. So with 96 hours before the scheduled bombing, a rich Japanese billionaire (Hiroyuki Sanada) asks Scott Ward (decorated former mercenary) who is down on his luck and could use the money, to hand pick a team and go into Zombie Town and steal millions from a Vegas casino before the city is annihilated. Dave Bautista plays Scott. I like Dave Bautista, however this role could have been played by any of Hollywood's current A-list action stars (The Rock, Vin Diesel, etc.). I wish I had watched this in the theatre, post pandemic. It would have been the best move to see in the theatre because it's just so ridiculous. This is a big splashy zombie action film (lots of Zack Snyder slow-mo gun fire) with a runtime of 2.5 hours! Bananas! I loved it. It's by no means high art. It is the equivalent to spending a day a the fair grounds: candy floss, the haunted house ride, the rollercoaster, and the long line to the porta-potty (it's not all good). If you are looking for some dumb fun, bet it all on Zombie Elvis. Brains, baby, brains. Catch it on Netflix. 

Hacks

 If you finished Mare of Easttown and are having Jean Smart withdrawal, I got you covered: Hacks; also on HBOMAX. Jean plays Deborah Vance, an aging Las Vegas comedian. The character of Vance borrows heavily from real life comic Joan Rivers. Rivers wrote her own material, was a workaholic, had expensive and rather gaudy taste, would do infomercials, had every day packed with work, had a love for plastic surgery, and put her carrer above all else. Rivers was a groundbreaker for female comics. Personally I think that Rivers was a genius - if you haven't watched the documentary, Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work, you should. What I just said about Rivers sums up the character of Vance and Jean Smart is brilliant in her portrayal - my prediction is she will be nominated for a Golden Globe for best supporting in the Mare of Easttown and she will be nominated for a lead in Hacks - she might just win both. Hacks is not just about Deborah Vance, it's also about Ava (played by Hannah Einbinder - she is also wonderful) a 25 year old millennial comedian/writer who is bitter and out of work. Her agent sets her up with Deborah to help her write some new material. A love-hate relationship (mostly hate) forms between the two as Ava tries to get Deborah to explore her past as part of her new material. The writing in this show is whip smart and the characters are well formed. Double down of the poignant and funny dramedy, it's simply aces. 

Mare of Easttown

 

If you haven't already watched Mare of Easttown, well I guess I have given you something to do. It's probably the best thing since "The Killing" or "True Detective." What's is all about? Kate Winslet plays a middle-aged grizzled detective (Mare) investigating missing girls and a homicide in a small Pennsylvania town. Mare has a lot going on in her life and well, so does everyone else in town, including her ex-husband who lives in the house behind hers. There are a ton of characters and most of them are well formed, for the most part. In fact there is so much going on, it borders on bananas ("Tell Me Your Secrets" like bananas). But I loved it. This is another well put together show. Every single actor in this is great. Particularly wonderful is Jean Smart who plays Mare's mother. Every time she is on the screen, she holds me mesmerized. Fabulous. What makes it special is each of these characters feels real, the way they speak, the way they eat their food, the way act when they get home from a hard day at work. The show also throws a bunch of refreshing plot twists surprises at you; keeps you on your toes. Go investigate this one on HBOMax. 

The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It

 We have come a long way from The Exorcist. The Exorcist is a slow burn with a big roller coaster barf finale. The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It is a contemporary roller coaster and we are blasted out of the gate like The Hulk ride at Universal Studio's. Warner Bros. Pictures made this, and it's a wild fast ride of horror. Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga are back in this third installment of the series, as real life paranormal ghost hunters, Ed and Lorraine Warren. These two have such great on screen chemistry, they are a big part of why I love these films. This is based on a "true story" of demon possession - if you believe in this sort of thing. I don't but that didn't stop me from having a whole lot of fun. If you are a fan of the first two films - I think The Conjuring (the first one) is a modern horror masterpiece and I loved it. The second one was good but not as good as the third, in my opinion. The third is stripped down and there is little time to catch your breath. What's it all about? Satanists are at work and people are getting possessed by the devil - there is black magic and black candles and the powers of darkness are at work. It's up to Ed and Lorraine to sort the possessions out, save Arne (Ruairi O'Connor) from spending a life in prison for stabbing a man 22 times to death - the devil made him do it!

Go get possessed with this horror thrill ride, now on streaming services. 

Ted Lasso

 Jason Sudeikis. I knew him from SNL. Goofy, funny. I liked him. Didn't' really have any strong feelings about him. Then I watched "Kodachrome" - something I had wanted to watch for a long time because I'm a huge Ed Harris fan but just hadn't gotten around to it. Sudeikis is great in this dramatic role. (catch it on Netflix). I was really impressed. So I thought, let me give Ted Lasso a try.

Jason Sudeikis as Ted Lasso; goofy, funny. I loved him. What's it all about? Imagine if Ned Flanders (Homer Simpson's nerdy neighbout) wasn't religious and instead coached American Football. The religious aspect replaced with the power of positive thinking (a taped sign that says "Believe" on the locker room wall), Same dorky moustache and nerdy coaching track suit and same "Okilly Dokilly" can-do attitude, and you there you have Ted Lasso. Then imagine if this American Football coach with the positive attitude were hired by a British Soccer Club owner to intentionally have her soccer club fail as revenge against her louse of cheating ex-husband. Except Ted doesn't know the club is supposed to fail. Ted is here to turn it around, not drive it into the ground. Nobody believes in Ted. But Ted (and maybe his co-coach) believes in himself. Believe. 

Ted Lasso is a fish out of water story and you can't help but be charmed by this Bad News Bears story, even if we have see it a dozen times
before. It's damn charming. Funny too. Jason Sudeikis, goofy, funny, and I loved Ted Lasso. The second season is coming soon. Score a goal and catch this highly likeable show streaming on Apple +. Believe. 

Dispatches From Elsewhere

This show is Jason Segel's existential crisis brought straight to the screen. It's part David Fincher's "The Game," tossed in the Dharma Initiative of TV's "LOST" and the breaking-the-fourth-wall of "The Holy Mountain" (but the fun of Ferris Bueller). What's it all about? There are four main characters played by Jason Segel (Peter), Sally Field (Janice), Eve Lindley (Simone), and André 3000 (Fredwynn). They each get wrapped up in a game that brings strangers together in a kind of surreal Amazing Race treasure hunt where the goal isn't known but it's all about the adventure, the journey. As a viewer, you get caught up in the fun and the magic of these characters and their escapades. The show is full art both actually and metaphorically. The whole thing gives you a feeling like you walked into a museum of the absurd, a circus show of freaks. It's also a show that embraces difference. The most important being Eve Lindley's Simone. Eve Lindley is a real Trans woman and she play a trans woman, Simone, in the show. Peter has a relationship with Simone and it's complex. Quite frankly I found it brave of Jason Segel to put this on screen. Brave and important. It shows Simone struggle as a Trans person but it also make strides for humanizing Trans people and not have them be the butt of transphobic jokes. For nothing else, Dispatches From Elsewhere should be hailed as important for Eve Lindley's portal - she really does a great job.

But Simone's story is just one piece (albeit large one) of a complex story with many moving parts. Hats off to Jason Segel to keep it all moving. Some people may be disappointed in the show's ending - you are shown the wizard behind the curtain. I loved it all. Go have an adventure and catch this amazing and important series on Amazon Prime.