TRAINWRECK (2015)

Written by Amy Schumer


Directed by Judd Apatow


Where & When: Springdale 18 Cinema De Luxe, Cincinnati, OH. July 27, 2015



I admit I was very tardy to the Amy Schumer party but after catching the recent season of her skit comedy series, "Inside Amy Schumer", I have become a die-hard fan of the ribald comedian. After making her mark on television, Schumer is attempting to take on the big screen with "Trainwreck", a wonderfully offbeat romantic comedy that she has written. The director who is best known for his brand of sweetly lewd man-child comedies, Judd Apatow was inspired by Schumer to break out of his comfortable niche. This is the first film he has directed that he hasn't written and together they enhance each other's gifts.

Our story begins with Gordon Townsend (Colin Quinn) telling his two young daughters that he's divorcing their mother and leaves them with some fatherly advice that monogamy isn't at all realistic. Years later, while the younger sister, Kim (Brie Larson) didn't take him seriously, Amy (Schumer) took her daddy's words to heart. Kim has settled in to a comfortable relationship with a nice guy (Mike Birbiglia) and his nerdy, young son but Amy is a wild, hot mess. The only commitment she has is to evenings filled with too much alcohol and ending with anonymous sexual encounters.

Amy works as a writer for a men's magazine run by Dianna (Tilda Swinton), a brassy editor-in-chief that makes Anna Wintour seem demure and slight. Realizing Amy's aversion to sports, Dianna thinks she will be perfect to do a story on a top doctor working with basketball players. When Amy meets her subject, Aaron (Bill Hader), sweet but socially inept, they hit it off. After spending the evening enjoying each other's company, it ends with Amy's usual routine of heavy drinking and sex. But Aaron asks Amy to break her steadfast rule of never spending the night and surprisingly, she agrees. The biggest shock occurs for Amy the next day when the doctor calls actually wanting to see her again. She's kinda, sort of dating a muscle-bound lunkhead (John Cena) but Aaron begins to stir genuine emotions in her for the first time which scares her to death.

Part of Ms Schumer's comedy is to shock and titillate with her no-holds-barred observations on sexism and gender politics. She may look like the adorable girl-next-door but she's unafraid to tell a raunchy joke that might make you squirm in your seat yet also leave you with something deeper to think about. "Trainwreck" aims to shake-up the dated notion of the romantic comedy and Schumer's amusing screenplay (loosely based on her own real-life experiences)  cleverly flips long held expectations of how women should behave in the pursuit of love and companionship. The comedian enjoys locating the humor in awkward sexual situations which is clearly what appealed to Mr. Apatow. The film also explores Amy's troubled family dynamic, with the director bringing his skill of finding the heartwarming and poignant emotional moments in between all of the absurdity.

My only real complaint is the same complaint I have with most of Mr. Apatow's films which is that they go on far too long. I'm sure the director feels that every filmed bit is a precious gem that he can't bear to lose but "Trainwreck" clocks in at a little over two hours. For a comedy with a fairly simple plot, the film feels unnecessarily padded.

No one should be surprised by Ms Schumer ably delivering the funny but what is more unexpected is her deft performance in the more dramatic situations. This is Mr. Hader's first real shot as a leading man and the Saturday Night Live veteran is more than capable of handling this position. Another inspired move was having basketball great, LeBron James turn up playing an overly sensitive version of himself as the doctor's patient/buddy who's rooting for the couple as he offers thoughtful words of encouragement. In a role usually reserved for the female lead's BFF, James is quite effectively funny. Several other well-known faces pop-up to make notable cameo appearances. Some likely (current SNL players, Vanessa Bayer, Pete Davidson and Leslie Jones, a horde of stand-up comedians, and Oscar-winner, Marisa Tomei) and others more unexpected (tennis star, Chris Evert, the Miami Heat's, Amar'e Stoudemire, sportscaster, Marv Albert and "Harry Potter" actor, Daniel Radcliffe ).

With "Trainwreck", Amy Schumer proves she can be just as hilariously vulgar as the boys yet her comedy still comes from a place involving thoughtful female insight. Another thing this film proves is that Schumer is a new kind of comedy star. Her blazing wit, quirky charm and brutal honesty is just what is missing and desperately needed in cinema today.

AMY (2015)

Directed by Asif Kapadia



Where & When: Arclight Cinemas, Hollywood, CA. July 5, 2015 3:15PM



"Amy", a fascinating documentary by award-winning film maker, Asif Kapadia, examines the tragically short life of pop star, Amy Winehouse. It begins around 1998 with a fresh-faced and healthy-looking British teenager who loves jazz, knows she's got a great singing voice and looks to have a bright future ahead. By the time we reach the end of the film, thirteen years later, Winehouse has become a Grammy-winning, world famous vocalist but also deteriorated into a dead-eyed, gaunt and drug-addled figure before her untimely death due to alcohol poisoning at the age of twenty-seven. The director uses the extensive news footage that covers the singer's meteoric rise and just as rapid decline to shape this film but there are also words from Winehouse herself through previously unheard interviews. She was tough yet charming, witty, loved to have a laugh and wanted to have a singing career with integrity. But once fame entered the picture, Winehouse comes across far too vulnerable and unprepared for the unyielding pressures of the music business and the relentless media assault. It's understandable that she would want to find escape but her family support seemed blinded by her new-found success and the record company's motivation was simply keeping their product in motion. This left Winehouse with few options to help relieve herself of the constant stress.

Born in Southgate, North London, Winehouse was a working class girl and proud of it. With a mature, husky voice and a gift for songwriting, she performed with several jazz outfits before getting signed with 19 Management at nineteen. Her first album, "Frank" in 2003, a collection of jazz-pop tunes mostly co-written by Winehouse, brought her some attention and a small taste of fame in Britain. With the arrival of her follow-up, "Back To Black" four years later, Winehouse would reach international acclaim. This is also when signs of serious trouble first began to surface.

Around the time of "Back To Black", Winehouse began appearing with the look most associated with the singer, which was actually a nod to one of her idols, Ronnie Spector of the Ronettes. Cleopatra-style, black-lined eyes, a messy, collapsed beehive and rail-thin arms covered in prison tattoos to complete her bad-girl image. It was also during this time she fell hard for Blake Fielder-Civil, a true bad boy. Their relationship was on and off (and he's credited with introducing her to hard drugs) but they married in 2007 and spent their brief union in a sometime violent, drug and alcohol-fueled haze. Winehouse soon reached the point where she couldn't perform at all, completely lost in substance abuse. There were several rehab interventions but none having a lasting impact.

Mr. Kapadia's decision to rely on archival footage and not show the faces of the people being interviewed does make the film feel static but what brings it to life is how the director uses the singer's music. When the songs are played, the heartfelt lyrics by Winehouse are displayed, clearly reflecting what she was feeling during some of the happy or more turbulent times in her life. Many of the important people in Winehouse's life including close childhood friends, parents, Mitch and Janis, record producers, Salaam Remi and Mark Ronson and the love of her life, Fielder-Civil all express their deep love for the singer but also their feeling of uncertainty and helplessness as they watched her unravel.

It could appear that Amy Winehouse might be just another rock & roll cliché, joining the list of talented but troubled artists whose lives came to an end at the exact same age. But we see that she was never interested in becoming rich or a household name, it was always about the music.

After seeing "Amy", I can understand why the family is now hostilely opposed to this documentary they once fully supported. For the director's vision brings in to sharp focus how they played a small yet striking role in the demise of this gifted, young artist. It would be unfair to let Winehouse off the hook for her own destructive behavior but as this troubled and unstable girl was continuously being shoved in to the spotlight, she was much too sensitive to handle the constant glare of stardom.

2015 SUMMER MOVIE PREVIEW

Once it's time to put away all those heavy coats, gloves and sweaters, you know that summer is just around the corner. This movie season is certainly filled with plenty of the usual caped crime-stoppers, sequels and remakes but having learned lessons from the previous years, there are also other interesting options offered. You will see more female-driven comedies (Reese Witherspoon & Sofia Vergara in "Hot Pursuit" and Melissa McCarthy in "Spy" to name just two) and challenging indies (Michael Fassbender in the western, "Slow West", Jack Black and James Marsden getting very close in the wild bromance, "The D Train") to deliver some warm-weather cinematic alternatives.

Here is my small list of some of the upcoming summer flicks that I'm really looking forward to seeing.

All dates are subject to change:

"AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON"

Release date: May 1, 2015

The mother of all super-hero movies, "The Avengers" smashed box-office records by globally raking in over a billion dollars back in 2012. The inevitable sequel is here and "Avengers: Age of Ultron" has our band of heroes trying to once again save the world from complete destruction. Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.) creates an artificial intelligence device that is self-aware called Ultron (James Spader). It's purpose was for maintaining peace on the planet, however Ultron decides that Earth would be safer without humans. The Avengers (that includes Samuel L. Jackson, Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Evans and Jeremy Renner returning in their respective roles) not only have to stop this machine but also have to deal with Ultron's allies, Quicksilver (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), The Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) and the Vision (Paul Bettany).



"WELCOME TO ME"

Release date: May 1, 2015

The very gifted Kristen Wiig is given the opportunity to combine her comedic skills and dramatic abilities in the quirky comedy "Welcome To Me". It tells the story of a woman (Wiig) with borderline personality disorder who is off her meds. After winning millions in the lottery, she decides she wants to become famous like Oprah and starts her own talk show. The actress surrounds herself with an impressive cast that includes James Marsden, Wes Bentley, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Joan Cusack and Tim Robbins.



"MAD MAX: FURY ROAD"

Release date: May 15, 2015

I will be the first to admit I'm truly suffering from remake/reboot fatigue. Now having said that, there are a few coming out this summer that have me slightly intrigued. One of them is "Mad Max: Fury Road". Thirty years after the first film, director and co-writer George Miller takes us back to the post-apocalyptic world of Max. Instead of Mel Gibson (thank goodness), we now have Tom Hardy in the role. This time, Max is being imprisoned by Immortan Joe (Hugh Keays-Byrne). He will earn his freedom by the hardened, Furiosa (Charlize Theron) in exchange for helping her escape across the desert with five women held captive by Joe.



"MADAME BOVARY"

Release date: June 12. 2015

After delivering a mesmerizing performance in 2011's "Jane Eyre", Aussie actress, Mia Wasikowska is tackling another literary classic. This time it's "Madame Bovary", the French novel about a young woman who marries a kind but uninteresting doctor (Henry Lloyd-Hughes). Bored and unhappy, she begins searching for fulfillment through extramarital affairs. Ezra Miller, Rhys Ifans and Paul Giamatti also star.



"JURASSIC WORLD"

Release date: June 12, 2015

"Jurassic World", the third sequel to "Jurassic Park", is set over twenty years later with a finally realized theme-park with live dinosaurs roaming the island. What could possibly go wrong? Bryce Dallas Howard is the profit-seeking operations manager and Chris Pratt (who brightened last summer with "Guardians of The Galaxy") is a lead member of the staff that studies these creatures. No surprise that these two don't see eye to eye.



"WHAT HAPPENED, MISS SIMONE?"

Release date: June 24, 2015

"AMY"

Release date: July TBA

These two documentaries focuses on two of the most extraordinary voices in pop music. In "What Happened, Miss Simone?", director Liz Garbus uses interviews and extensive concert footage to explore the life of "The High Priestess of Soul", Nina Simone. Eccentric, demanding and complicated (although this is at least partially due to her being later diagnosed as bipolar), Simone was a masterful musician and unique vocalist who struggled to control her demons.



Another great talent that struggled to fight her demons throughout her short life is British pop singer, Amy Winehouse. Award-winning director, Asif Kapadia shaped "Amy" around having the late artist reveal herself in her own words though previously unseen interviews and performances. "Amy" has just been selected to be screened at this year's Cannes Film Festival.



"TRAINWRECK"

Release date: July 17, 2015

The busy Judd Apatow ("The 40 Year-Old Virgin", "Bridesmaids", HBO's "Girls") is back with his fifth film as a director and "Trainwreck" looks very promising. He has tapped hot comedian, Amy Schumer to star and write the script for this comedy loosely based on experiences in her own life. She plays a men's magazine writer who is seriously commitmentphobic until she meets a charming sports doctor (Bill Hader) that makes her reconsider her strong aversion to romance. The eclectic cast ranges from comedians (SNL's Vanessa Bayer, Collin Quinn), Oscar winners (the fabulous Tilda Swinton, Marisa Tomei), a pro wrestler (John Cena), rapper (Method Man) and basketball player (LeBron James).



"SOUTHPAW"

Release date: July 24, 2015

"Southpaw" is a gritty drama that stars an almost unrecognizable Jake Gyllenhaal as a hulking boxing champ with a beautiful wife (Rachel McAdams) and child. After his wife is tragically murdered, the boxer's career unravels with his erratic behaviour causes him to lose his daughter to child protection services. The only solution is for him to get back in the ring with the help of a new trainer (Forest Whitaker). Antoine Fuqua ("Training Day", "The Equalizer") directs.



"RICKI AND THE FLASH"

Release date : August 7, 2015

It wouldn't feel like summer without Meryl Streep and she's here in "Ricki and The Flash". Oscar-winner Jonathan Demme ("The Silence of The Lambs") directs this dramedy (written by fellow Oscar-winner, Diablo Cody) about a wife and mother (Streep) who abandons her family to pursue her dream of a rock & roll career. Now, years later, she wants to reconnect with her adult children (Sebastian Stan and Streep's real-life daughter, Mamie Gummer) during their time of crisis but that will not be easy. Kevin Kline, six-time Tony winner, Audra McDonald and '80's rocker, Rick Springfield also star.