Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald Movie Review

November 16, 2018 (updated November 16, 2018)

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald” is the newest “Wizarding World” magical spell created from the boundless mind of J.K. Rowling. It takes a close look at the Wizarding community in the pre-Harry Potter years. The Hogwarts school plays a much smaller part of this story, but it does make a welcome appearance. After the first movie in this sequence (“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”), this next chapter follows along with the main character of Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne). Newt will figure prominently into the new story line, along with the other people he meets.

In the first movie, Newt was the one who captured the criminal Gellert Grindelwald (Johnny Depp) while Grindelwald was hiding in New York City. Newt met many magical people in New York, and one “Non-Maj” (non-magical person, in England they are called ‘muggles’).While in New York, Newt made very close friends with Tina (Katherine Waterston) and her sister Queenie (Alison Sudol). There is also Jacob Kowalski (Dan Folger), who is a non-magical type, but shares a bond of love with Queenie. Jacob was supposed to have his memory wiped out at the end of the first film, but he still remembers everything.

Newt’s brother Theseus (Callum Turner) is a high-ranking fellow in the British Ministry of Magic, and he attempts to convince Newt that he needs to be on their side. Grindelwald has gotten his followers to break him out of the jail cell he was being held in for three years, located in New York City. Grindelwald is out on the loose, and he is hunting the person who created much destruction in New York. He is looking for Credence Barebone (Ezra Miller), since he controls something called an Obscurus. This is a powerful Dark Magic object that Grindelwald wants to use to destroy the non-magical world, so he can take over.

Newt, Tina, Queenie and Jacob wind up in France to also look for Credence, because he is the key to finding Grindelwald. Newt has also had a visit with a Professor from Hogwarts named Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law). Dumbledore has a keen interest in stopping Grindelwald, however there is a close personal bond between Grindelwald and Dumbledore. Dumbledore is prevented from moving against Grindelwald, and he implores Newt to find Credence and then Grindelwald. Creedence has been located, and he is employed at a magical Freak Show with a close friend named Nagini (Claudia Kim). Nagini has a curse that turns her into a large snake (shades of Harry Potter movies that are set in the future!). There is also Leta Lestrange (Zoë Kravitz) who is an old Hogwarts BFF to Newt, but she is now engaged to Newt’s brother Theseus. Oh, and don’t forget Yusuf Kama (William Nadylam), who is also on a separate quest to find and kill Grindelwald, for personal and family reasons…

Yikes, there are a lot of characters and plot points to try to keep straight. Rowling screenplay creates a very rich and deep Wizarding World. Yet the incredible number of overlapping plot and interwoven characters make it hard to track of all of them. There a whole mess of characters, and the main ones are very well defined. But there are a huge number of side characters that get introduced and get such limited screen time that you do not know why they are important or what their ultimate purpose might be in the series. However, director David Yates does a fantastic job to take a complex story and give it a calm and steady push to the screen.

Also, the productions, sets and physical designs are all amazing and leap out from the screen and make the story come alive. Plus, getting the right actors to inhabit these roles make a major difference. Eddie Redmayne is true genius at making an oddball character come alive. Dan Folger has also just the right amount of comic relief and sense of wonder at seeing the Wizarding World up close and personal. Johnny Depp is creepy and charismatic as Gellert Grindelwald. And Jude Law is a perfectly cast Albus Dumbledore, the future Headmaster of Hogwarts.

Even if it is long movie with a lot going on, this is still a magical experience. Thanks to J.K. Rowling and the entire team that put this together, it is a “Fantastic Beast” of a production. It assumes that you are up to speed on all the Wizarding World goings-on, so it is best to see the prior movie (“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”) before your put your effort into this one. The special effects are very seemless and help to drive the story. A couple of the sequences are exciting to watch and keep you energized for the next one.

Oh, and then that FINAL reveal of the secret identity and background of THAT character! And how they are related to that OTHER character! OH – WOW! How can they keep all that a secret???? What does all this mean for the future of Newt and of future movies? You will just need to see for yourself…

The Front Runner Movie Review

November 16, 2018 (updated November 16, 2018)

“The Front Runner” invites you to come and ride on the campaign bus with the leading Presidential candidate in the 1988 Democratic primary. Gary Hart (Hugh Jackman) is a US Senator from Colorado, who is smart and well-spoken. He came in second during the 1984 Democrat race, so his star is rising in the party and with people in the country at large. He is from the West, and he believes that the future will be based on leaders from the Western states. He is well-read when it comes to politics, trade policies and economics.

But when it comes to his personal space and his family, Hart is aloof and distant. He is a Democratic fresh face, attractive and ready to lead. However, he does not know that he has created a big target on his back. The press has become more aggressive and intrusive on the past four years. Hart makes personal decisions and mistakes that take his campaign from ‘Front Runner’ status to drop out, all in a matter a few weeks.

Gary Hart and his wife Lee (Vera Farmiga) have gone through the campaign wringer before, and they expect more of the same. Hart has a campaign manager named Bill Dixon (J.K. Simmons), who is ready to gather an army of young people that will handle Hart’s march on Washington. Hart plans to do things his way, and not follow the stale old advice of consultants and party bosses. He plans for a Presidential run declaration up high in the foothills of the Rockies. The press starts to grumble that Hart is not keeping with the usual traditions. There are some reporters who start to whisper of Hart having a troubled marriage. Hart continues to concentrate on policy and protocol, proclaiming the first and ignoring the latter. But there is a meeting with a large donor and fund raiser in Miami. He takes a trip on the donor’s yacht, called – of all things – the ‘Monkey Business’.

He meets a very lovely young woman named Donna Rice (Sara Paxton). She is looking for a job with Hart’s campaign, but she winds up catching Hart’s eye. They spend some time together, and he later invites her up to his townhouse in Georgetown. She flies up from Miami, but the Miami Herald catches wind of something going on. A group of reporters and a cameraman camp out outside Hart’s place near Washington. They see various people who come and go, including Hart and an unidentified young woman. The reporters start sending up red flags to the Herald editors. They must run with this story, even if they do not know all the details or the facts surrounding the young woman. They meet Gary Hart in an alleyway near his place, and he demands to know why they are trailing him. He wants his privacy and they do not have his permission to snoop. But they tell him it is a free country and the First Amendment gives them the right to write and publish the news, even if it seems to have become the trashy tabloid variety.

In the next week, the press is all over this story. They are staking out Lee Hart, out in her country home in Colorado, in a tiny, out-of-the-way place called Troublesome Gulch. It becomes an apt description, because soon the towering pines on the dirt road stand next to TV satellite dishes and large antennas. The Press, especially the TV media, have planted themselves there to report that Lee has not left the building. Other reporters chase down Donna Rice for an exclusive story about her time with Gary Hart. Hart is still on the campaign trail and stops to make a speech about economic policy.

But the only thing the press wants to know about is Hart’s relationships. Is he faithful to his wife? Is he in the middle on an adulterous affair? Can he continue to be Front Runner with all these unanswered questions surrounding him? The media and press turn into paparazzi and Hart undergoes scrutiny unlike any other candidate. Even the Washington Post gets into the examination, led by Ben Bradlee (Alfred Molina). The boxing gloves had come off and it became bare-knuckle fighting…

Jason Reitman has created, in terms of directing and co-writing, a powerful story of what can happen when the Press decides to pull out all the stops. Before anyone come up with calling the press “Fake News”, they held a powerful grip on the political system and who was able to get to the top. Hugh Jackman does a fine job playing Hart, who is caught up in his own position papers that he doesn’t realize that he put himself into a compromising position. Vera Farmiga and Sara Paxton play the two women in Hart’s life that lead him into the abyss. J. K. Simmons is also good as the campaign manager that cannot believe his campaign is falling apart around him.

“The Front Runner” gets you into a wild and crazy world of campaigning. It is a world that is made even crazier when Hart goes from being “The Front Runner” to “Front Page News”…

Toy Story 4 – Teaser Trailer!!

November 14, 2018 (updated November 14, 2018)

Who’s excited?! I know I am!! The gang is back!! Yep! Woody and the rest of the toys are back for an all-new adventure in “Toy Story 4,” welcoming new friends to Bonnie’s room, including a reluctant new toy called Forky. “Like most people, I assumed that ‘Toy Story 3’ was the end of the story,” said director Josh Cooley. “And it was the end of Woody’s story with Andy. But just like in life, every ending is a new beginning. Woody now being in a new room, with new toys, and a new kid, was something we have never seen before. The questions of what that would be like became the beginning of an entertaining story worth exploring.”

‘Toy Story 4’ stars Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Joan Cusack, Don Rickles, Estelle Harris, Wallace Shawn, John Ratzenberger, Jeff Pidgeon, Blake Clark and Tony Hale.
It’s directed by Josh Cooley (“Riley’s First Date?”), produced by Jonas Rivera (“Inside Out,” “Up”) and Mark Nielsen (associate producer “Inside Out”).

About the franchise:

“Toy Story,” originally released on Nov. 22, 1995, was the first fully computer-animated feature film and the highest grossing movie of the year. It was nominated for three Oscars® and two Golden Globes®.
“Toy Story 2” is the first film ever to be entirely created, mastered and exhibited digitally. It was also the first animated sequel to gross more than its original, breaking opening weekend box office records in the U.S., UK and Japan, becoming the highest grossing animated release of 1999. It won the Golden Globe for best motion picture – comedy or musical. It won a Grammy®for best song written for a motion picture, television or other visual media (Randy Newman, “When She Loved Me”).
Released in 2010, “Toy Story 3” won Oscars® for best-animated feature film and best achievement in music written for motion pictures, original song (Randy Newman/“We Belong Together”). The film also won a Golden Globe® and BAFTA for best-animated film. It was the second Pixar film to be nominated for the best picture Oscar. It’s also Pixar’s second highest-grossing film of all time behind “Incredibles 2.”
The 2015 short “Riley’s First Date?” was helmed by director Josh Cooley and produced by Mark Nielsen.

Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PixarToyStory/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/toystory

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ToyStory/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/DisneyPixar

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In Theaters June 21, 2019

http://www.fandango.com

ROMA – Official Trailer

November 13, 2018

The most personal project to date from Academy Award®-winning director and writer Alfonso Cuarón (Gravity, Children of Men, Y Tu Mama Tambien), ROMA follows Cleo (Yalitza Aparicio), a young domestic worker for a family in the middle-class neighborhood of Roma in Mexico City. Delivering an artful love letter to the women who raised him, Cuarón draws on his own childhood to create a vivid and emotional portrait of domestic strife and social hierarchy amidst political turmoil of the 1970s. Cuarón’s first project since the groundbreaking Gravity in 2013.

ROMA will have exclusive limited theatrical engagements starting November 21 in Los Angeles, New York and Mexico. Additional engagements in U.S. cities, Toronto and London will begin November 29 with other top U.S. markets and international territories continuing to roll out beginning December 5. The film will be released globally on Netflix on December 14 with an expanded theatrical release in the U.S. and international markets. In total, the film will be theatrically released in over 30 countries globally with 70mm presentations also being planned during the film’s theatrical release.

Social Media:

Follow ROMA on INSTAGRAM:

Instagram.com/ROMACuaron

Follow ROMA on FACEBOOK:

Facebook.com/ROMACuaron

Follow ROMA on TWITTER:

Twitter.com/ROMACuaron

#Netflix #ROMACuaron

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Will be released globally on Netflix on 12/14 and expanded Theatrically

http://www.fandango.com

Project Blue Book Advance Episode Screening + Q&A with Local UFO Enthusiasts

November 10, 2018 (updated November 10, 2018)

Advance Episode Screening Summary

HISTORY’s upcoming new drama series ‘Project Blue Book’ is based on the true, top-secret investigations into Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs) and related phenomena conducted by the United States Air Force from 1952 to 1969.

Dr. J. Allen Hynek (Aidan Gillen), a brilliant yet under appreciated college professor, is recruited by the U.S. Air Force to spearhead a clandestine operation called Project Blue Book. Along with his partner, the debonair Air Force Captain Michael Quinn (Michael Malarkey), he is summoned to investigate UFO sightings around the country and use science to discover what really happened. However, when some encounters cannot be explained away and cases remain open, Hynek begins to suspect that he has been duped by the government into a larger conspiracy to cover up the truth. Set against the backdrop of the Cold War and rising Atomic Era, each episode will draw from the actual Project Blue Book case files, blending UFO theories with authentic historical events from one of the most mysterious eras in United States history.

https://www.history.com/shows/project-blue-book

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Phoenix, Arizona

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Movie Screening Date: Thursday November 15
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Boy Erased Movie Review

November 9, 2018 (updated November 16, 2018)

‘Boy Erased’ is director Joel Edgerton’s take on the controversial subject of gay conversion therapy. Edgerton’s adaptation of the Garrard Conley memoir is very powerful. Its subject matter is handled very delicately from the fear it ultimately comes from to the people that fear harms. The film draws from facts, real pain, real experiences, and Edgerton displays it openly for us, showing us one character after another’s experience in this hideous program but then laser focusing in on one character, Jared Eamons (Hedges), to take you deeper into their ordeals. There’s a postscript statistic displayed at the end of the film that, ‘over 700,000 Americans have been subjected to conversion therapy and over 20,000 Americans are currently affected by this abusive practice.’ After watching the film, it’s hard not to walk away stunned especially after being hit with those numbers. It’s appalling to think that in this day and age abuse and humiliating to control and manipulate is still being used.

Jared is the son of Marshall (Crowe), a southern preacher, and his wife Nancy (Kidman). Because of who his father is, Jared must hide who he is. He’s successfully hidden it from the world and even lies to himself. He does this until he’s faced with a female friend who comes on strong. He thinks fast and turns her down with the excuse of waiting until marriage. He navigates his youth and gets to college where he feels safer to relax and at least talk to other boys without scrutiny. He begins to make friends and becomes especially close to a boy his age named Henry (Alwyn) who he has a lot in common with. Henry ends up taking advantage of the naïve preacher’s kid one night and rapes him. This scene is quite horrific, but Edgerton doesn’t shy away from its brutality. He uses it to show that sexual assault and this type of abuse exists in nature and might also be suggesting the reason why some people are the way they are. Violation based on anger doesn’t discriminate based on sex. Jared avoids Henry and eventually goes back home. Henry isn’t happy about his friend leaving him and worries Jared is going to tell o he ‘Outs’ Jared to his parents.

This leads to his father consulting some church elders who decide that his mind could be altered using conversion therapy which is supported by the ministry. He can be cured of his homosexuality if he takes the steps to prove he wants to be cured. The program is similar to AA but heavily Bible-based. It’s led by Victor Sykes (Edgerton) who comes at them from an aggressive, militant angle. He’s going to make them men if he has to pound it into them himself. Jared is instantly miserable but sees that he’s not alone in the world. There are others denying who they really are to make someone else embrace and accept them. Some are worse off than Jared who has it relatively easy because his parents, as misguided as they are, do still love him. He meets Jon (Dolan) who doesn’t touch anyone because touching to him has mostly been physical abuse and Cameron (Sear) who has an extremely hard time with being forced to tell Sykes what he wants to hear. The boys, in their sterile environment, are treated as prisoners but find subtle ways to show support for one another, however, their support just might not be enough.

The gullibility and innocence coming from Hedges is fantastic which is perfectly followed by a passive-aggressive strategy from Crowe to show he loves his son but knows the world he needs to protect him from. Kidman is a perfectly quaffed Southern charmer who’ll turn into an angry mama bear at a moment’s notice and does so magnificently. This story does trail off in different directions but leads back to Jared and his parents, ending with love and forgiveness which is all that Jared and each and every other human being is asking for in the first place.

The Grinch (2018) Movie Review

November 9, 2018 (updated November 16, 2018)

The first question that may have entered your mind upon hearing there would be another Grinch movie was most likely, ‘Why?’ To that question Illumination and Universal Pictures, who are making this their eighth animated feature says, ‘Why not.’ Their skills are magical and that fact is palpable while watching this new, fresh take on the beloved Dr. Seuss’ classic. There have been others but if a new generation wants to give it a go, put their twist on things, they could hardly do better with this talented group. Academy Award® nominee, Benedict Cumberbatch, makes a great Grinch, coming off appropriately grumpy yet when needed, perfectly delivering and revealing his softer, broken heart inside. He may try to hide it but doesn’t do very well.

‘The Grinch’ is the story of a cave-dwelling misanthrope who, after being denied Christmas as a child, aims to do the same to everyone in Whoville. He’s getting back at those who hurt him by taking it out on everyone else. He needs therapy.

So, he recruits his faithful dog, Max, to help. While on the hunt for reindeer to sell his charade, he finds one oddball, kind of kooky deer named Fred. With his trinkets and gadgets, sleigh and deer, he as Santa, can easily swoop in and swipe everyone’s presents, tree’s, lights and cookies. Note to parents: Fred brings several giggles from the youngest in the crowd as he’s warm and cuddly. I’m sure toys of this guy will be everywhere. They’ll most certainly be wanted.

Flowing in and out of Pharrell Williams’ narration and the poetry of the original story plus adding the novelty managed in this rendition, this is a movie the kids can’t miss. We do meet new characters along the way but there’s always little, adorable, sweet Cindy-Lou Who to thwart the plans of this Grinch. What he doesn’t see coming is that she’s made plans of her own and that was to make sure she spoke to him. She has set a trap. She does catch him in the act and, trusting he’s the real deal, explains she wants only for her mother to be happy. Cindy-Lou is a genuine and giving soul who the Grinch couldn’t possibly see any fault with. This puts him in a bind. Maybe there’s good in this world after all? If so, can he go through with his assault on it?

If you liked the other movies, and the story as a whole, you’re going to like this, as well. Sure, it’s the same story but his coloring is bright and more agreeable, his shoes are as fuzzy as he is and it’s very relatable. They’ve added moments such as his ‘emotional eating’ and playing the song ‘All By Myself’ on the organ. There’s also a flashback where you see him as a child. Alone. No Christmas. If done well, there’s nothing wrong with taking an animated classic and improving or upgrading it. Having Illumination involved with this was a blessing. You’ll be entertained and so will the kids.

WEBSITE: http://www.grinchmovie.com/

Overlord Movie Review

November 9, 2018 (updated November 8, 2018)

“Overlord” contains a World War II D-Day setting for a strange bunch of German Nazis. Just before the Allied forces are set to land on the Normandy beaches, the movie swerves into “Saving Private Zombie”. Yes, the nasty Nazis are conducting experiments to change German youth, and French citizens, into undead zombie super-warriors. And the re is anAmerican paratrooper squad sent in to take out a German radio tower get a first hand view of the horror of war. But also the horror of zombies. Did I mention this movie also features Nazi zombies? Yes, as if the actual horrors of war are not enough, let’s throw into the mix some zombies…

Just before the D-Day landing is to occur, an Allied plane is sent over into France to send American paratroopers behind enemy lines. They have a mission to find a German radio tower in a church building in a small French town. They must destroy that jamming signal from the tower to help the Allied forces start the invasion. On the plane are some new soldiers, plus some long-timers. Pvt. Boyce (Jovan Adepo) was a civilian just a few months ago. Tibbet (John Magaro), Rosenfeld (Dominic Applewhite) and Chase (Iain De Caestecker) are also low-level grunts waiting for the drop zone. They will be joined by Cpl. Ford (Wyatt Russell), who is an explosive expert. But they are led by Sgt. Eldson (Bokeem Woodbine) and he is a hard-nosed sergeant.

But when the plane comes under attack, many are killed before the jump. Boyce gets out, and he meets up with Ford, Chase, Tibbit. But where is Rosenfeld? Sgt. Eldson makes it to the ground, but he is taken by the Nazis and is killed. The rest of them head to the small French village. On the way, they meet Chloe (Mathilde Ollivier). Chloe and her young brother and her aunt live in the village, very close to the church that holds the radio tower. The village streets are patrolled by Nazi soldiers, but they make it into Chloe’s house. They make a plan to attack and take out the tower, so that the Allied troops will have a safe landing. But the group is surprised when Chloe is visited by a cruel Nazi SS commander, named Wafner (Pilou Asbaek). The take him prisoner, and things get stranger from there.

Boyce finds his way into the church/bunker. But there he sees every manner of disturbing things. He also locates Rosenfeld who has been captured. Boyce frees Rosenfeld to take him back. But he also takes a syringe of some strange serum that a Nazi doctor was using for his terrible experiments. Wafner, the evil Nazi soldier, escapes and kills Chase, but Boyce tries out the Nazi serum on Chase. There are many unusual things that this serum can do, especially to a dead body.

Now it is Allied troops against the Nazi troops, when there is an assault on the church. Ford and Boyce rig up the explosives ready to make the tower fall. But there are unspeakable horrors on the loose in the Nazi camp. Could it be? Could it possibly be… Zombies? Why, yes. Yes, there are zombies. What tipped you off about the zombies?

“Overlord” is a unique mix of B-movie war time action taken to a new level of creepy monster scares. It is sometimes bloody and gross, yet parts of the movie seem stuck in the 1950’s mentality. The Nazis are more than evil, and the American soldiers can always come through with a gung-ho attitude. Of course, even when they are France and it is occupied by Germans; everyone has enough common sense to speak English. Except for the zombies. They just growl…

The Girl in the Spider’s Web Movie Review

November 9, 2018 (updated November 8, 2018)

“The Girl in the Spider’s Web” is a movie adaptation of the novel of the same name. The main characters are from the “Dragon Tattoo” franchise. This relates to the book series, and then turned into movies, written by Stieg Larsson. Since he passed away, his creation has continued to grow. The main ‘girl’ is Lisbeth Salander, and now she is played by a different actress and tells a different story. But she still keeps her cool and curt attitude, and her special computer hacking skills. This story goes into the past, and it plays with the current time in Sweden.

Lisbeth Salander (Claire Foy) is a stealth protector of women in need, and the champion of small children in distress. Her methods of vengeance are swift and very costly, if you are a man who abuses a woman. She helps a wife of a famous businessman who has just been released from a trial after roughing up some prostitutes. He takes out his anger on his wife’s face. But Salander is an avenging angel to give this bad dude some rough treatment of his own. There is a new person who asks Salander for help. It is Frans Balder (Stephen Merchant), a computer scientist from America, who has created a special program that can take over any military nuclear computer system. He hires Salander to hack into the NSA, and move the program her own laptop.

Edwin Neeham (LaKeith Stanfield) who is an NSA employee discovers the program is missing, and it was transferred to Sweden. He goes to Sweden to track it down, and he learns of Salander. Salander has also been targeted by a shadowy group, called the Spiders, has also targeted Salander. They steal her laptop and destroy her apartment, and she barely survives. But between Needham and the Spider thugs, Salander is being chased from all sides. Plus the National Swedish Security group is after her. Balder, the computer scientist is killed, and Salander gets his young son to take care of him. Salander will need some help, so she contacts an old friend Mikael Blomkvist (Sverrir Gudnason), the journalist who had helped her in previous adventures.

Salander’s past catches up with her – because her difficulties with the Spiders takes a weird turn. The group is led by someone that she thought was long dead. Camilla Salander (Sylvia Hoeks) is Lisbeth’s sister, but Lizbeth had fled the family home when she was just a young girl. Camilla was trapped with her pervert father, and she grew up with his sick demands. But she learned his devious ways to take over his criminal syndicate and then called it the ‘Spiders’. Needham and Blomkvist team up with Salander to fight against her sister, and her sinister group. They now hold the special program on Salander’s laptop, and they have taken Balder’s son, who is the key to gaining access to the Military hacking program.

This movie has a quick pace and some tense moments of intense action. However, there are sequences that show how far ahead Salander has planned out every potential activity – that it begins to be absurd. Salander has become an indestructible computer genius that can program and hack her way into and out of every situation. She is an emotionless automated fighting and thinking machine, sort of a “Salander Bourne”. Claire Foy does a very precise job making Salander an enigma wrapped in a MMA fighter. LaKeith Stanfield does a very entertaining job as the NSA agent ready to take out anyone in his way. Sverrir Gudnason does not have as much to hold to for his role.

They various locations and setting around Sweden are used to great advantage. They are beautiful to see, and they are used to portray the coldness of the country. The story line gets a bit stretched out, so that people are doing things that would be close to impossible. Salander becomes a martial-art trained fighter, and Needham becomes a high-powered sniper, and so on. However, if you get past that, the story is delivered in a quickly paced manner that gets your pulse racing in some spots.

The Outlaw King (Netflix) Movie Review

November 9, 2018 (updated November 8, 2018)

“The Outlaw King” is an historical look at what happened in Scotland after the end of the movie “Braveheart”. After William Wallace failed to lead the people of Scotland in a rebellion to gain freedom from England, another person took over. That person was from the family of Bruce, who once had an actual claim to the royal leadership of the Scots. When England took over and held the land for generations, finally a true rebellion grew from the mistreatment. English kings held Scotland like golden goose, always taking the golden eggs. They are leaving only the shells for the Scottish people.

When the failed Rebellion put William Wallace on the run, the Scottish nobles were forced to declare loyalty to King Edward I (Stephen Dillane) The King’s son was Edward, Prince of Wales (Billy Howle). He was put in charge of keeping the Scots in line and paying taxes. One Scotsman was ready to break against the brutal leadership of England. That was Robert the Bruce (Chris Pine). His father was the one to give up the fight and swear the oath to the King. But Robert was not willing. Robert had agreed to be a marriage to an English nobleman’s daughter named Elizabeth de Burgh (Florence Pugh). Robert still had a daughter from his first marriage, but his wife had passed away.

But when William Wallace is found and killed by the English crown, Robert says that the King went back on his word. There is not way to serve a King who is not worthy of trust. So Robert gathers his brothers and talks about a new Scottich rebellion. But his one will be led by a Scottish King. That King would be him, of course. Robert the Bruce meets with his main rival, John Comyn (Callan Mulvey). But he does not get Comyn’s agreement to make Robert the new King of Scotland. So, he kills him. But there are enough clans of Scotland who believe in the royal line of Bruce, that Robert is crowed King of Scotland.

The King of England and Prince of Wales begin a military campaign to destroy Robert the Bruce and all of his followers. They will fight without civility or chivalry, so that any action is acceptable. Just before the first battle, the English troops attack the nighttime camp of the Scottish army. Robert’s troops are unprepared, and many are slaughtered. They are declared ‘Outlaws’ by the English crow, and anyone helping them will be arrested or killed. Robert is on the run, an ‘Outlaw King’. His wife Elizabeth and his daughter are taken by the English and held prisoner. Robert the Bruce has few loyal warriors who are still with him.

Some of his fellow freedom fighters are Angus Macdonald (Tony Curran) and James Douglas (Aaron Taylor-Johnson). Robert, along with his brother Neil (Lorne MacFadyen), run into other clans which are against him. There are clashes between the clans. Robert loses many more warriors, but he comes up with ways to fight the English intruders. The English are staying in Scottish castles and Robert needs to fight dirty. They all attack with surprise and take back, then burn, each castle.

When the new King of Scotland cannot be captured by the English, he become more famous and he attracts more fighters. Then will be a final battle of the rag-tag Scottish forces, against the fully equipped and much larger English army. With English soldiers on horseback and with ‘modern’ weapons – the Price of Wales plans to crush the Scots. But The Scots have a few deadly tricks up their kilts, er, I mean sleeves…

“The Outlaw King” is very beautifully photographed look at the period after William Wallace. This movie would make a great double-feature with “Braveheart”. There is a good many brutal battle scenes that are tough to watch. The ‘Mud and Blood’ view of the fighting is close-up and is raw and wild. The acting is good from all the main characters, and the Scottish accents are fairly on target. Chris Pine is stoic and sullen, as the flawed leader of the Scots. The sense of “Ye Olde” England and Scottish countryside is very convincing. The movie drags a slight bit in the middle section, but the final battle between the two armies is a stirring, yet very disturbing, masterfully-filmed sequence.

“The Outlaw King” will have a limited release in the theaters. Then on November 9, it will be released for streaming on Netflix.

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