Thumbnails Dec 18

by Tony Medley

Instant Family (9/10): Runtime 115 minutes. PG-13. Based on writer/director Sean Anders touching and often humorous personal experience as a foster parent, both Mark Wahlberg and Rose Byrne are at the top of their games, using their comedic licks without going over the line into slapstick or parody. Both should qualify for Oscar® nominations, as well as Anders and co-writer John Morris for a dazzling script. But nominations for comedy are as rare as hen’s teeth.

A Private War (8/10): Runtime 110 minutes. R. This basically true story of the late war correspondent Marie Colvin (Rosamund Pike) shows a lot of action and some of the scenes are disturbing. But it seems as if it is a pretty faithful story of a woman who was not normal. In this film she seems drawn to danger like a magnet and used extremely questionable judgment in making decisions. The movie shows her exhibiting the symptoms of suffering from PTSD, which is not unheard of in war correspondents. That’s really the only explanation for why she kept going back. This is no glamor role for the beautiful Pike, as she plays the hard-drinking, hard-smoking, hard-living Colvin to the hilt. In fact, it’s painful to watch what she goes through in this role.

Widows (8/10) Runtime 126 minutes. R. Loaded with violence, mostly emotional, but physical, too, this is a vivid indictment of Chicago and its ongoing corruption. Four multi-racial women (director Steve McQueen is making a statement) try to do a heist of $5 million to repay money their deceased husbands stole from a Chicago gang. The leader of the gang is also running for Alderman against the corrupt son of the corrupt long time Alderman for the Ward. With outstanding acting, there’s a lot to this film.

The Nutcracker and the Four Realms (9/10 for children; 5/10 for adults): Runtime 99 minutes. PG. I’m not a fantasy fan, but what make this film worth watching for adults like me in addition to the music are the production values, especially the Production Design and the Visual Effects. The film is a colorful treat to the eye. Similarly, the costumes are stunning and required enormous work. I’m not going to be a spoiler, but don’t attend expecting to see the same old story. As Monty Python might say, this is something completely different. Stay for the credits to hear more music and view a special performance by ballet greats Misty Copeland and Sergei Polunin.

Outlaw King (5/10) Runtime 121 minutes. R.: This a Hollywood telling of Robert the Bruce, who fought the English for Scottish Independence in the 14^th Century, taking up where William Wallace left off. But accurate it probably is not. It’s unlikely that Robert was the mild-mannered, sensitive man implied here and many of the facts are wrong, like his romantic relationship with a gorgeous second wife. Still it’s beautifully photographed entirely in Scotland, and the production values are excellent. That said, it’s too long and filled with gruesome battles scenes that could have been shortened or cut.

The Girl in the Spider’s Web (4/10): Runtime 117 minutes. R. The plot of the book has been completely changed, only the characters remain and any relationship between them and the novel is purely coincidental. What’s left is incoherent nonsense. Two things about the movie that are very good are the music by Roque Baños and the performance of lead actress Claire Foy, but they are not nearly enough to justify two hours of your life. Next time, guys, trust the material and make the book into the movie.

Robin Hood (2/10): Runtime 116 minutes. PG-13 Every time they remake the brilliant “Adventures of Robin Hood” (1938) the film is worse than the one before, and this one is no exception. With no Sherwood Forest, it completely changes the story, changes the prime mover bad guy from Prince John to the Church, changes all the characters, is filled with absurd fights, and CGI-created locations and carriage chases as well as making the 12^th Century small town of Nottingham that was comprised entirely of wooden buildings look like ancient Rome with huge concrete buildings and streets, and, most annoying of all, inserts Hollywood’s politics. Enough!