LIKE A BOSS (2020)

Written by Sam Pitman and Adam Cole-Kelly



Directed by Miguel Arteta



Where & When: Arclight Cinemas, Hollywood, CA. January 12, 2020 5:15 PM



The most interesting thing about "Like a Boss" is that it's a comedy about platonic love between two women. We get to witness that rarely seen phenomena in cinema where we have two females who focus on their deep friendship and not about them in a desperate pursuit to find a man to complete them. And while this is a wonderfully refreshing development, unfortunately that doesn't mean "Like a Boss" is particularly good. Even with Rose Byrne, a solid performer and our current queen of comedy, Tiffany Haddish as our leads, they are left stranded to flail about with sour lewd humor and odd physical comedy situations that mostly falls flat.

Two close friends since childhood, Mia (Haddish) and Mel (Byrne) run a small beauty company together called Mel & Mia's. Mia has the confident, free-wheeling personality while Mel is the practical, business savvy one. This has worked out fine for their partnership in this business venture however, Mia has been careless about finances which has lead to the company falling in to heavy debt. Reluctant to speak to her about it for while, Mel is finally forced to confront her best friend about their dire situation.

Their savior comes in the form of Claire Luna (Salma Hayek), a major cosmetics mogul who offers to help the ladies in exchange for controlling interest in their company. Mia doesn't trust Luna but Mel talks her in to agreeing to a deal which they will maintain control as long as the two remain partners. And it should not be much of a surprise that Luna plans to drive a wedge between these friends in order to steal their company.

What I'm most surprised about is that Miguel Arteta was the filmmaker behind "Like a Boss". Arteta has brought us some fine, intriguing films like "Star Maps", "Duck Butter" and the features written by Mike White, "Chuck & Buck", "The Good Girl" and "Beatriz at Dinner" which starred Ms Hayek. And while he may just be a director-for-hire here, Arteta has added nothing to make this foul-mouthed, female buddy-comedy feel fresh, energized or distinctive.

Much like Whoopi Goldberg at the beginning of her film career, Ms Haddish has been allowed to coast along on the big screen largely on the strength of her charismatic personality. And while this isn't necessarily a bad thing, it does become tiring to see her not being challenged, particularly in movies not worthy of her gifts. With the exception of her breakout performance in "Girls Trip", she hasn't had many opportunities to showcase her talent in a decent movie role. But if you want to see Ms Haddish at her best, stick with one of her comedy specials for the time being. Ms Byrne's Mel is left with not much more to do than be reactionary to the craziness around her and offer comforting yet stale words of wisdom and advice.

Jennifer Coolidge, Natasha Rothwell (HBO's "Insecure") and the sassy MC from "Pose", Billy Porter do the best they can in their brief appearances but it is Ms Hayek who makes the most vivid impression as the power-mad beauty executive. With a helmet of auburn hair, towering platform shoes and teeth that are too large for her body, Hayek's Claire Luna (looking like the Wicked Witch of the West after a make-over) tries to compensate for her petite size by having everything on her body larger-than-life and who carries a golf club around for no other reason than to just break things.

There are certainly moments that will make you laugh out loud in "Like a Boss" yet you wish that with such great talent involved that someone would have taken firmer control to have made a comedy more worthy of their time and effort. And the novel notion of female empowerment and bonding, which is actually at the heart of this film, gets lost in the steady stream of half-baked comedic set-ups and lame raunchy jokes.

17 ANTICIPATED MOVIES AT THE 2020 SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL

The Sundance Film Festival begins today and runs through February 2nd in Park City, UT. This yearly event showcases new indie cinema from around the world. The fest kicks off with the world premiere of "Miss Americana", a Netflix documentary on one of the biggest pop stars on the planet right now, Taylor Swift with the singer performing after the screening. And while this film doesn't seem to fit perfectly in to the spirit of Sundance, there will be plenty of other interesting features and docs that will be presented which will fill that objective. Vulture has selected seventeen films that are anticipated and you will probably will be hearing more about after their screenings.

Click below to read the article:

17 Films We Are Most Excited To See at Sundance

MY LEAST FAVORITE FILMS OF 2019

They say you win some and you lose some. And that was certainly the case with some of the films I saw in 2019. Here is a list of a few films that did not manage to feel like winners to me:

"THE KITCHEN"

"The Kitchen" looked like it could have been an intriguing crime thriller due to the focus on the wives of an Irish-American mob. But this adaption of a graphic novel mini-series, with the film written and directed by Andrea Berloff, fails to generate a compelling or convincing narrative. After their husbands are arrested and sent to prison by the FBI, Kathy (Melissa McCarthy), Ruby (Tiffany Haddish) and Claire (Elizabeth Moss) are left to fend for themselves despite promises from the family they would be helped out. With few options, the women decide to create their own path in the family business. These talented actresses give it their all (including a standout performance by Margo Martindale as Ruby's racist mother-in-law) but they are unable to make this disjointed story work. This was definitely one of the big disappointments for me of 2019.

"DARK PHOENIX"

"Dark Phoenix" is an adaption of the "Dark Phoenix saga" from the X-Men comic book which became one of the popular story lines in the series from 1980. Simon Kinberg makes his directorial debut with this "conclusion" to the film series. And while he's had an extensive background with the cinematic versions of the mutant heroes, having written and produced "X-Men: Days of Future Past" and "X-Men: Apocalypse", you are left wondering what happened? In Mr. Kinberg's hands, "Dark Phoenix" is surprisingly listless and uninspired. During a mission by the X-Men to save astronauts stranded on a space shuttle damaged by a powerful solar blast, Jean Grey/Phoenix (a blank Sophie Turner) absorbs the full force of this energy in order to save her team's aircraft from destruction. But Jean survives with her psychic powers incredibly enhanced yet also becoming increasingly uncontrollable. Most of the cast returns from 2016's "Apocalypse" (including James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Nicholas Hoult and Jennifer Lawrence) along with the addition of Jessica Chastain as a shape-shifting alien who manipulates the troubled Phoenix. Yet none of them appear to be fully invested in this misguided endeavour. And despite a major re-shoot of the third act due to poor test screenings, "Dark Phoenix" remains a painfully average super-hero flick.

"THE DEAD DON'T DIE"

I am usually a big fan of the cinematic work by Jim Jarmusch with "Only Lovers Left Alive" and "Paterson" as recent faves. But the innovative writer/director's latest, "The Dead Don't Die" is an odd mixed-bag of horror and comedy that isn't particularly scary or funny. A small town becomes overrun by zombies and the small police force (recent Oscar-nominee, Adam Driver, in the least successful of the four films he appeared in last year, Bill Murray and Chloë Sevigny) must try to save the town before it's too late. Deadpan and leisurely paced, "The Dead Don't Die" never builds to anything remotely interesting or memorable with it's impressive eclectic cast (Danny Glover, Steve Buscemi, Selena Gomez, Iggy Pop, Tom Waits and Tilda Swinton) seeming to do nothing more than to pop up briefly to chat before moving on to another project.

"SERENITY"

"Serenity", a soggy mess of a noir thriller, was aiming to be sexy and mysterious yet only ends up being limp and confusing. A handsome fishing boat captain (Matthew McConaughey) is struggling to keep his business afloat. Enter his former wife (played by a lost Anne Hathaway), a cartoon femme fatale he hasn't seen in many years, arriving with an offer to bring an end to his financial woes. And it would only involve simply killing her wealthy, violent ogre of a husband (Jason Clarke) in exchange for a lot of cash. Sound perfectly reasonable, right? But then this standard-issue mystery drama makes a sharp left turn in to sci-fi territory. I must admit I have no idea what is going on in "Serenity" but I'm also certain that the film's writer/director, Steven Knight doesn't either.

"JOHN WICK 3"

When Keanu Reeves first appeared as John Wick, a former assassin forced to return to a life of organized murder after a trio of Russian gangsters steal his car and kill his puppy given to him by his late wife, this 2014 neo-noir revenge thriller was greeted with universal acclaim due to it's bold visual style, solid performances and breath-taking action sequences. I actually enjoyed "John Wick", finding it to be a well-paced and entertaining crime drama. This lead to "John Wick: Chapter 2", a more conventional follow-up which continued the story with Wick on the run after breaking a "blood oath" with an Italian crime boss who had allowed him to retire from the life as a hit-man. Now we have the third installment in the series, "John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum". And while this action-thriller has become the highest grossing film in the series and received plenty of positive praise, I found the latest film to have grown ridiculously excessive and relentlessly monotonous. "Parabellum" begins less than an hour after "Chapter 2" ended with Wick now a marked man and once again on the run after the unsanctioned killing of the Italian crime lord. The High Table crime syndicate declares Wick "excommunicado" and a fourteen million dollar bounty is placed on his head, leading to endless assassins coming after him trying to collect. Despite the intriguing addition to this brutal caper of Oscar-winners, Halle Berry as another former assassin who reluctantly comes to the aid of Wick and Anjelica Huston as the leader of a Russian crime family that Wick was once a member along with Asia Kate Dillon as "the Adjudicator" for the High Table, "John Wick 3" is an artless affair bogged down by a highly labored script that has the fingerprints of four different writers.

2020 OSCAR NOMINATIONS ANNOUNCED

In the wee early morning of January 13th in Los Angeles, Issa Rae and John Cho announced the nominations for the 92nd Annual Academy Awards. "Joker" leads with the most nominations at eleven including one of nine films selected this year for Best Picture. There are three films that tie with an impressive ten noms; "The Irishman", "1917" and "Once Upon a Time. . . In Hollywood". And "Jojo Rabbit", "Little Women", "Marriage Story" and "Parasite" each received six nominations.

With such a small number of films dominating most of the nominations and many veteran performers (and previous Oscar nominees and winners) filling in the acting categories, many of the intriguing indie and indie-influenced films that came out last year were shut out. Some of the more notable omissions include Awkwafina and writer/director Lulu Wang with the wonderful film, "The Farewell"; Eddie Murphy and those fabulous costumes by Ruth Carter in "Dolemite Is My Name"; the incredible flashy stage outfits in the Elton John musical biopic, "Rocketman"; the transcendent French period drama, "Portrait of a Lady On Fire"; Adam Sandler's stunning performance in "Uncut Gems" and the big shocker; Jennifer Lopez's earthshaking work in "Hustlers".

Also not much of a surprise but still a disappointment, women were once again not included in the Best Director category despite several female filmmakers receiving critical acclaim for their work including Ms Wang and Greta Gerwig for "Little Women". And with the exception of Cynthia Erivo for her amazing performance in "Harriet", actors of color were pretty much left out in the acting nominations.

On a less critical note, there were a fascinating number of double nominees this year. Some of them include first-time nominee, Scarlett Johansson receiving in her breakout year Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress; Ms Erivo was also nominated for co-writing the original song, "Stand Up" she sang during the closing credits of "Harriet"; "Honeyland" from North Macedonia won a surprising double nomination for Best Documentary and the newly renamed Best International Feature categories and Randy Newman got two for writing a song for "Toy Story 4" and the musical score for "Marriage Story" (and on an interesting side note, Newman will be competing against his cousin, Thomas Newman in Best Original Score for his work in "1917").

The 92nd Annual Academy Awards will be broadcast on February 9, 2020 from the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. As like the previous year, there will be no host for this year's program.

Here is the complete list of the 2020 Oscar nominations:

Best Picture:

"Ford v Ferrari"
"The Irishman"
"Jojo Rabbit"
"Joker"
"Little Women"
"Marriage Story"
"1917"
"Once Upon a Time. . . in Hollywood"
"Parasite"

Best Director:

Martin Scorsese, "The Irishman"
Todd Phillips, "Joker"
Sam Mendes, "1917"
Quentin Tarantino, "Once Upon a Time. . . in Hollywood"
Bong Joon Ho, "Parasite"

Best Original Screenplay:

Sam Mendes and Krysty Wilson-Cairns, "1917"
Rian Johnson. "Knives Out"
Noah Baumbach, "Marriage Story"
Quentin Tarantino, "Once Upon a Time. . . In Hollywood"
Bong Joon Ho and Han Jin-won, "Parasite"

Best Adapted Screenplay:

Steven Zaillian, "The Irishman"
Taika Waititi, "Jojo Rabbit"
Todd Phillips and Scott Silver, "Joker"
Greta Gerwig, "Little Women"
Anthony McCarten, "The Two Popes"

Best Actress:

Cynthia Erivo, "Harriet"
Scarlett Johansson, "Marriage Story"
Saoirse Ronan, "Little Women"
Charlize Theron, "Bombshell"
Renée Zellweger, "Judy"

Best Actor:

Antonio Banderas, "Pain and Glory"
Leonardo DiCaprio, "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood"
Adam Driver, "Marriage Story"
Joaquin Phoenix, "Joker"
Jonathan Pryce, "The Two Popes"

Best Supporting Actress:

Kathy Bates, "Richard Jewell"
Laura Dern, "Marriage Story"
Scarlett Johansson, "Jojo Rabbit"
Florence Pugh, "Little Women"
Margot Robbie, "Bombshell"

Best Supporting Actor:

Tom Hanks, "A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood"
Anthony Hopkins, "The Two Popes"
Al Pacino, "The Irishman"
Joe Pesci, "The Irishman"
Brad Pitt, "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood"

Best Cinematography:

Roger Deakins, "1917"
Rodrigo Prieto, "The Irishman"
Lawrence Sher, "Joker"
Jarin Blaschke, "The Lighthouse"
Robert Richardson, "Once Upon a Time. . .In Hollywood"

Best Film Editing:

Andrew Buckland and Michael McCusker, "Ford v Ferrari"
Thelma Schoonmaker, "The Irishman"
Tom Eagles, "Jojo Rabbit"
Jeff Groth, "Joker"
Yang Jin-mo, "Parasite"

Best International Feature:

"Corpus Christi" (Poland)
"Honeyland" (North Macedonia)
"Les Misérables" (France)
"Pain and Glory" (Spain)
"Parasite" (South Korea)

Best Documentary Feature:

"American Factory"
"The Cave"
"The Edge of Democracy"
"For Sama"
Honeyland"

Best Documentary Short:

"In the Absence"
"Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl)"
"Life Overtakes Me"
"St. Louis Superman"
"Walk, Run, Cha-Cha"

Best Live Action Short:

"Brotherhood"
"Nefta Football Club"
"The Neighbors’ Window"
"Saria"
"A Sister"

Best Animated Feature:

"How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World"
"I Lost My Body"
"Klaus"
"Missing Link"
"Toy Story 4"

Best Animated Short:

"Dcera (Daughter)"
"Hair Love"
"Kitbull"
"Memorable"
"Sister"

Best Costume Design:

Sandy Powell and Christopher Peterson, "The Irishman"
Mayes C. Rubeo, "Jojo Rabbit"
Mark Bridges, "Joker"
Jacqueline Durran, "Little Women"
Arianne Phillips, "Once Upon a Time. . . In Hollywood"

Best Production Design:

Bob Shaw (production design); Regina Graves (set decoration), "The Irishman"
Ra Vincent (production design); Nora Sopková (set decoration), "Jojo Rabbit"
Dennis Gassner (production design); Lee Sandales (set decoration), "1917"
Barbara Ling (production design); Nancy Haigh (set decoration), "Once Upon a Time. . .In Hollywood"
Lee Ha-jun (production design); Cho Won-woo (set decoration), "Parasite"

Best Makeup and Hairstyling:

Kazu Hiro, Anne Morgan and Vivian Baker, "Bombshell"
Nicki Ledermann and Kay Georgiou, "Joker"
Jeremy Woodhead, "Judy"
Paul Gooch, Arjen Tuiten and David White, "Maleficent: Mistress of Evil"
Naomi Donne, Tristan Versluis and Rebecca Cole, "1917"

Best Original Score:

Hildur Gudnadóttir, "Joker"
Alexandre Desplat, "Little Women"
Randy Newman, "Marriage Story"
Thomas Newman, "1917"
John Williams, "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker"

Best Original Song:

"I Can't Let You Throw Yourself Away" from "Toy Story 4"; music and lyrics by Randy Newman
"(I'm Gonna) Love Me Again" from "Rocketman"; music by Elton John; lyrics by Bernie Taupin
"I'm Standing With You" from "Breakthrough"; music and lyrics by Diane Warren
"Into the Unknown" from "Frozen II"; music and lyrics by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez
"Stand Up" from "Harriet"; music and lyrics by Joshuah Brian Campbell and Cynthia Erivo

Best Sound Mixing:

Gary Rydstrom, Tom Johnson and Mark Ulanobr, "Ad Astra"
Paul Massey, David Giammarco and Steven A. Morrow, "Ford v Ferrari"
Tom Ozanich, Dean Zupancic and Tod Maitland, "Joker"
Mark Taylor and Stuart Wilson, "1917"
Michael Minkler, Christian P. Minkler and Mark Ulano, "Once Upon a Time. . .In Hollywood"

Best Sound Editing:

Donald Sylvester, "Ford v Ferrari"
Alan Robert Murray, "Joker"
Oliver Tarney and Rachael Tate, "1917"
Wylie Stateman, "Once Upon a Time. . . In Hollywood"
Matthew Wood and David Acord, "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker"

Best Visual Effects:

Dan DeLeeuw, Russell Earl, Matt Aitken and Dan Sudick, "Avengers: Endgame"
Pablo Helman, Leandro Estebecorena, Nelson Sepulveda-Fauser and Stephane Grabli, "The Irishman"
Robert Legato, Adam Valdez, Andrew R. Jones and Elliot Newman, "The Lion King"
Guillaume Rocheron, Greg Butler and Dominic Tuohy, "1917"
Roger Guyett, Neal Scanlan, Patrick Tubach and Dominic Tuohy, "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker"

MY FAVORITE FILMS OF 2019

With Netflix and other streaming services gaining more influence and Disney not only swallowing up one of the last of the original movie studios, 20th Century Fox but they have just set an industry record by reaching an incredible 13 billion dollars at the global box-office, the movie business is definitely in flux. Nobody knows what in store for the future of the movie-going experience or what type of films will actually reach theaters as more streaming services are emerging with Apple and Disney recently getting in on the action. While remaining slightly optimistic, I am still very concerned that we will reach a point when all that will play in theaters are big-budget, visual effect-heavy spectacles with modest stories involving the human experience will be regulated to the small screen. But for now, there were still great adult fare to be found playing in theaters last year although Netflix was behind some of them, giving them brief theatrical runs before moving them on their network.

Here is my list of favorite films from 2019 in no particular order:

"MARRIAGE STORY"

I think Noah Baumbach is, without a doubt, one of the most important filmmakers working today. And with "Marriage Story", an emotionally blistering yet darkly comedic account of the end of a marriage, the writer/director has made what can easily be called the best work of his career. The couple, Charlie and Nicole, are played by Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson who both deliver incredible nuanced performances. He is a successful New York theater director and she is an actress who had fame in Hollywood as a teen. They plan to separate amicably (and without lawyers) for the sake of Henry (Azhy Robertson), their eight year old son. But after Nicole goes to L.A. for work, she is advised to get legal council and hires a zealous family attorney (a blazing Laura Dern). This leaves Charlie scrambling to find a lawyer; first meeting with a brash attorney (Ray Liotta) but is too expensive before settling on a retired lawyer (Alan Alda) to help his case. Once in court, the case turns ugly and contentious, weaponizing innocuous comments and mistakes from their past. Baumbach has used his own experiences with divorce involving his parents (which was the basis for his 2005 breakout feature film, "The Squid and the Whale") and himself (he was married to actress, Jennifer Jason Leigh) for inspiration in his work. "Marriage Story" is a sharply written, emotionally complex drama that expertly displays all of the passionate joy and intense pain that can come from a loving relationship.

"LITTLE WOMEN"

What actress-turned-exceptional filmmaker, Greta Gerwig has done with the seventh feature film version of "Little Women" is absolutely astonishing. While faithfully adapting Louisa May Alcott's cherished story, Gerwig has deftly restructured the plot timeline and brought a fresh perspective to the characters while maintaining the spirit of this inspirational book. We still have the March sisters; the eldest, Meg (Emma Watson) the headstrong, Jo (Saoirse Ronan) the shy, Beth (Eliza Scanlen) and the youngest, Amy (Florence Pugh) as we look at their childhood with their mother, Marmee (Laura Dern) lovingly instilling in her girls the importance of altruism. But the film begins with the sisters as young adults trying to make their way in a world that proves challenging for women. With a fantastic cast (including Timothée Chalamet, Tracy Letts, Louis Garrel, Bob Odenkirk, Chris Cooper and Meryl Streep as Aunt March) and beautifully photographed by Yorick Le Saux, Ms Gerwig has made this "Little Women" a modern classic and has proven with only her second film (her debut, "Lady Bird" made it on this list in 2017) as a writer/director that she is a considerable talent to watch.



"THE LAST BLACK MAN IN SAN FRANCISCO"

"The Last Black Man In San Francisco", the debut feature film from co-writer and director, Joe Talbot, is a haunting and soulful look at a young man trying to regain his sense of home (literally and figuratively) in a city that is shifting and leaving a large part of the population displaced in it's wake. This winner at last year's Sundance Film Festival for Best Director and a Special Jury Award for Creator Collaboration tells the story of Jimmie Fails (played by Jimmie Fails who co-created the story with Talbot and is loosely based on his life) who is obssessed with a Victorian home in the Bay Area his family once owned that his grandfather had built. A white family is currently living in the home but after it is abruptly vacated and put on the market, Jimmie finds this the perfect opportunity to take back ownership. Currently crashing with his best friend, Montgomery (Jonathan Majors, in a breakout role) at the home of his blind grandfather (Danny Glover), the two simply break in and begin living in the house. This beautifully rendered, surrealistic film touches on the history of African-Americans in San Francisco and the growing threat of gentrification while we watch these two outsiders struggling to find their place in to a society that they don't neatly fit in.

"JOJO RABBIT"

With "Jojo Rabbit" , Taika Waititi has managed to make a warm, touching and hilarious movie involving the unlikely subjects of Hitler, Nazis and WWII. Jojo Betzler (an amazing Roman Griffin Davis) is an earnest Nazi youth-in-training yet has some doubts despite encouragement from his wacky, imaginary friend, Adolf Hitler (Waititi). After discovering that his mother (Scarlett Johansson) has been hiding a Jewish girl (Thomasin McKenzie) in their home, Jojo's indoctrinated beliefs become further challenged. While "Jojo Rabbit" may subtly point out the similarities to our current turbulent political climate, the gifted filmmaker has stated that the film is actually a love letter to mothers, particularly single mothers.

"1917"

"1917" is a stunning visual achievement from director, Sam Mendes and cinematographer, Roger Deakins that takes us on a harrowing journey with two young soldiers on a life-or-death mission during WW I. Two British men, Schofield (George MacKay) and Blake (Dean-Charles Chapman) are assigned to hand deliver a message across no-man's land to the Devonshire Regiment, telling them to call off their planned attack on the German forces. The Germans have not actually retreated from the front and are planning to ambush the battalion of over one thousand men with Blake's brother among them. This terrifying ordeal, which is based on stories that Mr. Mendes heard from his grandfather who served during this war, is heightened with the film appearing to have been made in one continuous shot, making the audience feel like they are part of this traumatic undertaking. Some may find the single camera move too much of a distracting gimmick but "1917" remains an effective and moving drama that pays tribute to the fearless, dedicated soldiers who sacrificed their lives and a somber reminder of the senseless tragedy of war.



"HUSTLERS"

Based on a New York magazine article, "Hustlers", Lorene Scafaria's razor-sharp and deviously entertaining drama, is about a group of strippers who create an inventive yet highly corrupt way to earn some extra money. Constance Wu plays "Destiny", a new girl at the New York strip club, Scores, who struggles to get noticed. Enter Ramona (played by Jennifer Lopez in a career-redefining performance), a magnetic showstopper whose stage routine climaxes with her showered in cash. Mesmerized by her seemingly effortless talent, Destiny approaches Ramona and she decides to take the novice under her wing. Destiny learns some valuable tricks-of-the-trade and finds success with the two becoming close friends. But the 2008 financial collapse forces the ladies to get very creative on trying to make a living. The women (with some help by fellow strippers played by Keke Palmer and Lili Reinhart) begin to spike the drinks of their wealthy clients so they can max-out their credit cards. "Hustlers" may be a twisted crime caper but it's also a sexy, funny and emotional story involving vulnerable women trying to regain control of their lives with a strong emphasis on female bonding and empowerment.

"BOOKSMART"

"Booksmart", the impressive feature film directorial debut by actress, Olivia Wilde, is a raunchy, coming-of-age comedy yet told from a decidedly female perspective. Beanie Feldstein and Kaitlyn Dever play childhood best friends, Molly and Amy who are now high-school seniors. The two have devoted all their time to studying hard so they can get into a good college. But they discover that many of the other kids who partied hard throughout the year also were accepted in to good schools. Frustrated that they wasted their prime school years with their noses buried in books, Molly and Amy decide to go to a big graduation party in order to make up for the time lost. Unfortunately, neither of them know the actual address and spend the evening trying to find the location. This leads to the girls encountering strange, drugged-out people and getting involved in some very odd situations. While we are familiar with the standard teen comedy, Ms Wilde brilliantly shakes up the routine with a colorful, inclusive look at friendships and self-acceptance. "Booksmart" is further enhanced by the spirited chemistry between Ms Feldstein and Ms Dever.

"FORD V. FERRARI"

I am not particularly a fan of fast cars and auto racing but I am an enthusiastic admirer of "Ford v. Ferrari", a masterful fact-based drama from James Mangold which is anchored by two pitch-perfect performances by Christian Bale and Matt Damon. After a business deal to buy Ferrari goes sour with the American company and CEO insulted in the process, Ford Motor Company's Henry Ford II (Tracy Letts) is furious and determined to build a car to defeat the Italian luxury car manufacturer at the 24 hour Le Mans Grand Prix. Ford VP, Lee Iacocca (Jon Bernthal) hires Carroll Shelby (Damon), a former racing driver who had to retire due to health issues and now a auto engineer, to create a car to compete in the 1966 race. Shelby brings on British driver and mechanic, Ken Miles (Bale) to help with this project. But he's difficult and hot-headed which makes him problematic with the higher-ups at Ford, particularly with Leo Beebe (Josh Lucas), a senior VP who has made it his mission to get Miles off the team. The racing sequences are absolutely electrifying (shot by Oscar-nominated cinematographer, Phedon Papamichael) but it's the compelling emotional dynamic between the characters that truly makes this film standout.

"UNCUT GEMS"

Adam Sandler, the king of the low-brow comedies, has miraculously become a serious thespian with his outstanding performance in the Safdie brothers' latest, "Uncut Gems", a raw and brutal dramatic thriller. He plays Howard Ratner, a New York jeweler with a serious gambling problem. He's gotten his hands on a rare black opal and had it smuggled in from Africa with plans to sell the jewel for big money at auction. But in the meantime, he has to deal with his estranged wife (a superb Idina Menzel) and their kids, a much younger girlfriend (Julia Fox, who is one-to-watch) and his loan shark brother-in-law (Eric Bogosian) that he owes a lot of money. When Howard's associate, Demany (Lakeith Stanfield) brings NBA player, Kevin Garnett (playing a version of himself) in to the store, he wants to impress by showing him the opal. However, Garnett becomes obsessed with this gem and wants to hold on to it for good luck before his game. Reluctantly, Howard agrees in exchange for Garnett's championship ring as collateral. But Howard pawns the ring in order to place a huge bet and plans to buy it back from the winnings. It should be no surprise that nothing goes according to Howard's outrageous scheme. Much like the Coen Brothers at the beginning of their career, Josh and Benny Safdie have their own offbeat cinematic style that will take some time before becoming viewed as mainstream and their accomplished sixth feature, "Uncut Gems" displays that these brothers are certainly on their way.

"KNIVES OUT"

The only thing "Knives Out" has in common with those Agatha Christie whodunit mysteries is that there's a dead body and nobody knows (or admits) how it ended up that way. Writer/director, Rian Johnson has taken the murder mystery and refreshed the genre with a cleverly plotted, unexpectedly funny and thoroughly entertaining film. And a top-notch, all-star cast is the perfect cherry on top. Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer), a wealthy mystery novelist, invites his family to celebrate his 85th birthday. There's his real estate mogul daughter (Jamie Lee Curtis) and her husband (Don Johnson); the youngest son (Michael Shannon) who helps run his father's business, the lifestyle guru (Toni Collette) who is the widow of Harlan's deceased son and a couple of grandchildren (Katherine Langford and Jaeden Martell). But Harlan ends up dead the next day and it appear to be murder. Police detectives (Lakeith Stanfield and Noah Segan) and Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig), a world-class private detective, are called upon to investigate the crime with everyone as a potential suspect. Marta Cabrera (Ana de Armas, in a star-making turn), Harlan's nurse and caretaker, wants to help the investigators but also knows more than she's willing to reveal. But Hugh Ransom Drysdale (Chris Evans), Harlan's much despised, estranged grandson, discovers Marta's secret and tries to use it to his advantage.

"AVENGERS: ENDGAME"

After twenty-one previous films in the series and one of the most expensive ever made (with a staggering $356 million dollar budget), "Avengers: Endgame" delivers a thrilling, charming and surprisingly heartfelt "conclusion" to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While we know for certain that Disney is not going to stop making these movies yet we have come to the end with many of the actors in these roles as well as some of the characters. For now, the future of MCU is still a big question mark. "Endgame" continues where we left off with "Avengers: Infinity War" after Thanos (Josh Brolin) succeeded in getting all of the Infinity stones to use with the gauntlet to disintegrate half of life in the universe. The surviving Avengers (which includes Bruce Banner/Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Captain America (Chris Evans), Black Widow (the very busy, Scarlett Johansson) and Chris Hemsworth as Thor) locate Thanos to reverse his act but he has already destroyed the stones. Five years later, Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) has escaped from the Quantum realm and learns what has happened. He devises a plan to use the realm to go back in time in order to get the stones in order to prevent Thanos's plan in the future. And the highlight of this incredibly entertaining film is the breathtaking epic battle near the end that features virtually all of the heroes in the MCU.



Honorable mention: "The Art of Self-Defense", "Climax" , "The Farewell" , "Gloria Bell", "Good Boys", "Her Smell", "Honey Boy", "Parasite", "Portrait of a Lady On Fire", "Shazam!", "Slut In A Good Way", "The Souvenir", "Queen & Slim" , "Under The Silver Lake"

68 MOVIES TO SEE IN 2020

And now after providing a run-down of movies to see that you might have missed in 2019, it is time to look at some interesting movies coming soon to theaters in 2020. Alison Willmore and Bilge Ebiri, film critics of New York magazine, have selected sixty-eight movies that will be released throughout the coming year that are highly anticipated.

Some on this list that caught my eye are "The Last Thing He Wanted", an adaption of a Joan Didion novel directed by Dee Rees and starring Anne Hathaway as a journalist entangled in an arms-running scheme in Central America; Christopher Nolan’s latest visually stimulating, mind-twister, "Tenet" which stars John David Washington and Robert Pattinson; "Annette", the eccentric French filmmaker, Leos Carax’s English-language debut (and a musical) and his first film since the fantastic "Holy Motors" in 2012; Another eccentric filmmaker, Miranda July has her first movie in nine years with "Kajillionaire" and features Evan Rachel Wood, Richard Jenkins, and Debra Winger(!!); Even though I was not a big fan of David Lynch's 1984 version of "Dune" based on Frank Herbert’s legendary sci-fi novel, I am intrigued by this latest attempt which is directed by Denis Villeneuve ("Arrival" and "Blade Runner 2049") and stars Timothée Chalamet and Oscar Isaac; And yes, I am actually curious about what Steven Speilberg is gonna do with his update on the classic musical, "West Side Story".

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The Sixty-Eight Anticipated Movies of 2020

40 UNDER THE RADAR MOVIES FROM 2019

Although 2019 has just come to an end, let's not be so quick to put the year completely behind us. There were plenty of films that were released that didn't get all the attention that may have deserved last year, usually due to a very brief time in theaters or lack of proper promotion.

The Los Angeles Times had eight of their film critics pick five intriguing films from 2019 they considered to fall "under the radar" and would highly recommend to be seen as well as trends in cinema they would like to see more and less of in 2020.

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40 Under-The-Radar Movies of 2019