The fall movie season kicks off with the 2016 Venice Film Festival and offers the first opportunity to see some of the buzzed about films soon to be released. This Italian fest is the oldest celebration of international cinema in the world with the 73rd edition beginning on August 31st and running through September 10th.
"La La Land", the latest from "Whiplash" director, Damien Chazelle, will make it's world premiere as the Opening Night film. Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone star in this romantic musical set in Los Angeles about a jazz musician and an aspiring actress who meet and fall in love. But as they find success in their creative paths, it creates tension in their love affair. R&B singer, John Legend and J.K. Simmons, who won an Oscar for his amazing performance in "Whiplash", also star.
In addition to "La La Land", there are nineteen other films in competition for prizes and includes the latest work from some of cinema's most interesting and acclaimed film makers like Ana Lily Amirpour ("The Bad Batch"), Derek Cianfrance ("The Light Between Oceans"), Denis Villeneuve ("Arrival"), Tom Ford ("Nocturnal Animals"), François Ozon ("Frantz"), Pablo Larrain ("Jackie"), Wim Wenders ("Les Beaux Jours D’Aranjuez"), and Terrence Malick ("Voyage of Time").
The Closing Night film selection is the remake of the 1960 western, "The Magnificent Seven". Denzel Washington heads a multi-cultural cast that features Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke, Lee Byung-hun, Matt Bomer and Peter Sarsgaard. With direction by Antoine Fuqua ("Training Day", "Southpaw"), it tells the story of a town held hostage by a ruthless businessman and the townspeople have to count on seven shady outlaws to help liberate them.
Films that will be screened out of competition include Mel Gibson's latest film as a director, "Hacksaw Ridge", a World War II drama starring Andrew Garfield. "The Bleeder", a film based on the true story of boxer, Chuck Wepner (Liev Schreiber) and his 1975 fight with the heavyweight champion, Muhammad Ali (played by Schreiber's "Ray Donovan" co-star, Pooch Hall). Elisabeth Moss, Jim Gaffigan and Naomi Watts also star.
Paolo Sorrentino ("Youth") premieres his television mini-series, "The Young Pope" starring Jude Law and Diane Keaton (and will be shown on HBO in America). There will also be tributes to two recently deceased directors: Michael Cimino ("The Deer Hunter") and Abbas Kiarostami ("Taste of Cherry") and Lifetime Achievement Golden Lions will be presented to actor, Jean-Paul Belmondo and director, Jerzy Skolimowski.
Where & When: Arclight Cinemas, Hollywood, CA. August 9, 2016 5:45PM
What would happen if we lost one super-powered crime-fighter and became concerned that if another one came around, we might not be able to control them?
According to "Suicide Squad", the wildly hyper-active yet logically dim comic-book action caper, the answer would be to round up some of the world's most dangerous and amoral super-villains, attempt to control their actions and force them to do good. Based on the popular DC comic, the film wants to shake up the routine of what we have come to expect from our super-hero movies. And while writer and director David Ayer has an interesting concept to work with, he's not found a way to make the motivation behind this theory dramatically plausible or coherent. Because of this fatal flaw, "Suicide Squad" ultimately winds up falling in to the predictable formula that we've come to expect from these action thrillers but without nearly enough fun.
Our story begins where we left off at the end of "Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice" after the apparent demise of Superman. Locked inside a super-maximum security prison, run by a bone-headed security officer (Ike Barinholtz), are a sorted collection of super-baddies. We have Will Smith, in a rare turn as part of ensemble, as Deadshot, a never-miss-his-target assassin who is secretly trying to be a loving and devoted father to his young daughter. There is also George "Digger" Harkness (Jai Courtney) otherwise known as "Captain Boomerang", a foul-mannered Aussie who uses the device to cause harm. Due to a genetic condition, Waylon Jones (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) has a reptilian appearance and a deadly appetite which is why he's known as "Killer Croc". Chato Santana (Jay Hernandez) is a L.A. gang-banger that has the destructive power to control fire. Finally, we have the former psychiatrist, Harleen Quinzel who has turned in to the psychotic, Harley Quinn. Played with deranged gusto by Margot Robbie, this lethal beauty struts around in skimpy attire, multi-colored hair and armed with a baseball bat, ready to use it for anything other than sports.
If these criminals cooperate with helping to save the world, they will have some time taken off their sentences. However, as a safeguard, each one is implanted with a device that will cause their heads to explode if they get any ideas of trying to escape. The architect behind this deranged plan is Amanda Waller, an ambitious and ruthlessly driven U.S. government official, played by Viola Davis. The presence of this respected actress brings some much needed gravitas to somehow make this crazy scheme seem practical. She almost makes it work.
One of the first under Waller's control was the Enchantress (British model, Cara Delevingne). A once-worshiped evil entity imprisoned in a shrine for thousands of years until an archaeologist, Dr. June Moone discovers her tomb, releasing this powerful sorceress who takes possession of the doctor's body. While Waller was able to bring out The Enchantress when needed, she manages to outsmart the government agent, escaping from under her command and takes over Dr. Moone completely.
Angered by her treatment, the Enchantress plans to destroy all of humanity. After setting her brother, Incubus (Alain Chanoine) free and summoning a horde of monsters to fight, her idea is to spend a great deal of time creating a device that will wipe out the planet. Huh?? I guess we're supposed to ignore the fact that we've already seen that this evil enchantress could easily have done this deed with a simple wave of her hand. Now, I'm well aware you must suspend a certain amount of belief when watching a film involving super-powered beings but it's difficult to do when underdeveloped characters and weak storytelling feels beneath working my brain so hard. Besides if it all came to an end so easily and quickly, we wouldn't have gotten the experience of watching this assembled squad of bad guys routinely crack wise and fight together to fight a terrible force worse than themselves. Or would that really have been such a bad thing?
In addition, with a film already overstuffed with mayhem and badness, we have the iconic, green-haired villain, The Joker. Desperate to be reunited with his lady love, Harley Quinn, he causes his own mix of destruction in order to set her free. Jared Leto plays The Joker here in a performance that feels surprisingly muted considering the opportunity to go as large and extreme as possible with this homicidal character. Following in the impressive footsteps of Cesar Romero, Jack Nicholson and Heath Ledger in this role, Leto doesn't offer much to make his appearance special or memorable.
Much Like "Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice", "Suicide Squad" is all about the high-powered, visual spectacle. Story, character and performance trails far behind in regards of importance here. That makes this film engaging for about a good thirty minutes with the rest of the running time spent waiting for the credits to roll. And with Ben Affleck's Batman showing up along with The Flash and Aquaman popping-up for brief cameos, this also serves as cheap promotion for the inevitable upcoming films. I will sum up "Suicide Squad" quite simply. It's not exciting. It's not much fun. And it's not very good.
With the recent release of "Florence Foster Jenkins", New York magazine has decided to go back and rank all of the feature film work of one of the screen's greatest performers, Meryl Streep. While some may feel she is highly overrated and over-praised, there is no denying that when this talented actress is in the right role and paired with the right director, the results are a breathtaking and magical cinematic experience.
It's hard to say that Ms Streep has ever given a truly bad performance as she remains fully committed and always fascinating to watch no matter how difficult the film might be to sit through. But not all are of her acting performances are created equal with some clearly better than others.
Take a look at this run-through of all of her appearances to date and remember it's ranking is based strictly upon her work, not the film as a whole. As I went over this list, I'm amazed that I've seen forty-one of these forty-three films (and it will be forty-two once I get out to see "Florence"). Some of these movies I had forgotten about (most for a good reason) and I probably would have rearranged the order of a few of these but overall, this is a fascinating examination of the film career of this gifted acting chameleon.
Where & When: Arclight Cinemas, Hollywood, CA. July 16, 2016 3:15 PM
"Café Society", the latest feature by Woody Allen, takes a wistful look back at romantic longing, deceptive behavior and missed opportunities in a story set in the glamorous world of 1930's Hollywood. It's no secret that the eighty year old director has a great affection for the past as he has covered the era of his adolescence numerous times throughout the years. Even when he takes on a contemporary setting, the tone still feels deeply rooted in days gone by. With this film, Allen knows how to expertly tell a story, filled with dramatic tension and bleak comedy yet he's unable to craft it in a way that seems unfamiliar or atypical.
Another one of Allen's favorite themes is New York versus Los Angeles and that occurs again here with Bobby Dorfman (Jesse Eisenberg), a young man leaving behind his secure employment with the family jewelry business to take a chance on a new life in the city of continuous sunshine. His concerned mother, Rose (Jeannie Berlin) calls her brother, Phil (Steve Carell), who is a top Hollywood talent agent, to help her son out with a job.
Without anything to offer at the moment, Phil has his secretary, Vonnie (Kristen Stewart) keep him company and show Bobby around the city in the meantime. The two spend a lot of time together with Bobby becoming completely smitten with the lovely girl, admiring her lack of pretense and earnest ambition. And while she's attracted to him too, she's already in a committed relationship with a roving journalist who travels across the globe for work. When Vonnie's relationship suddenly comes to an unexpected end, a pleased Bobby offers his shoulder for the devastated young woman to cry on.
Even though his relationship with Phil has grown close, attending family functions and parties filled with Hollywood types, Bobby is still surprised when his uncle confides that he's been having a long-time affair and ready to leave his wife for this other woman. This bit of shocking news will create an unforeseen problem for Bobby, ultimately leaving him crushed and disappointed.
Bobby soon heads back to the east coast, with nothing more than unpleasant memories of his time in Los Angeles. He decides to join a new family business; running a nightclub with his brother, Ben (Corey Stoll), a mobster whose solution to any problem, big or small, is to bury it six feet under. The club becomes a popular destination for the rich and powerful which in turn makes Bobby one of them. One night, he meets Veronica (Blake Lively), a gorgeous divorcee, eventually marrying her and starting a family. Just when his life seemed to be going in a comfortable direction, the complicated past comes rushing back and takes a seat in his nightclub.
It's been said that writers write about what they know and that has paid off handsomely for Mr. Allen. He's managed to spin comedy gold, creating some cinematic gems throughout the years, fictionalizing his life experiences including his explorations in to less traveled themes like May/December romance, existential crisis and psychoanalysis. However, after all this time, it's gotten pretty stale and predictable. Allen's movies seem too stuck in the past, literally and figuratively, continuously filled with his beloved jazz and hardly any surprises. That's not to say "Café Society" isn't occasionally engaging, funny or charming but fresh is not a word that would be used to describe this or any recent Woody Allen film. One notable change from our movie-making Luddite is that this was the first time Allen shot digitally with Vittorio Storaro, the Oscar-winning cinematographer for "Apocalypse Now" and "Reds" and "The Last Emperor", handling the duties.
While our two leads have worked together before, allowing for a believable connection, neither Mr. Eisenberg or Ms Stewart seem fully comfortable in their roles. They fare better in their early youthful, puppy love stage than later when they reconnect slightly older and disenchanted. Playing insecure and neurotic guys are right in Eisenberg's comfort zone yet he has more difficulty convincing us that he has evolved in to this suave businessman. Same goes for the glum Stewart who would be no one's idea of a carefree, sophisticated lady. The natural charisma of Mr. Carell has been drained here, leaving us with a very dour performance which is a waste of his talent.
There are a couple of bright spots to be found in far too brief appearances. Anna Camp hilariously plays a hooker on the first day on the job and Parker Posey, who was a highlight in Allen's last film, "Irrational Man", brings her effervescent spirit as a bleach-blond Hollywood socialite.
With a ending that merely fizzles out instead of delivering some more expected sizzle, "Café Society" is hardly Woody Allen at his finest. Yet if you do admire his clever wit and comedic gifts, then you will certainly find moments that are heartfelt, moving and amusing.
