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A Dog’s Purpose

January 27, 2017 (updated February 24, 2017)

We’ll leave controversy out of this review and talk only about the film. If you’ve ever wondered what the purpose of life is and you love dogs, A Dog’s Purpose is the film for you. It entwines the two in a curious story that’s filled with sweet and adorable. Director Lasse Hallström (What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, Chocolat, The 100-Foot Journey), takes on the issue of reincarnation and attempts to explain the afterlife through the life of Bailey, as he’s born, passes and is reborn again… and again. His incarnations are Ellie, Tino and Waffles and every time he returns he can never shake the feeling that there’s something he’s missing, that he must have a purpose other than being best friend to his new owner… something but what?

The movie opens on Bailey having just been born. The kids will smile with glee as the screen fills with puppies to fall in love with. We’re in 1961. Bailey is rescued by a youngster named Ethan. His parents let him keep the dog so he takes him home and Ethan becomes Bailey’s boy. The pooch goes onto a wonderful life of playing catch and being loved. Through the years we have point of view camera angles from both Bailey and Ethan which are clever and fun to observe, especially the shot from inside of the sniffing dogs’ nostrils. As boy’s do, Ethan grows up and gets a girlfriend but Bailey is still a very important part of his life. Bailey never goes without and is as happy as a dog can be. How we know this is because he tells us so. He tells us through the voice of Josh Gad. Often cast in comedic roles, Gad was frisky animating the voice of this perplexed pup as he was as Olaf in Frozen. He’s also a good choice because not only is he capable with humor but he can easily adjust if a dramatic moment is needed.

The script is written to entertain adults yet efforts were made to not go over the heads of youngsters who will be drawn to the film. The filmmakers handle the dogs passing away in a very sensitive manner. The young children shouldn’t be hurt or too deeply concerned since the dog always returns. Taking the kids to this might be a good way to approach the subject of death with them, without the real heartbreak you get from films such as Where the Red Fern Grows or Old Yeller which were heavy on the heart. Instead of tears for days, see this, open up a question and answer session and just like that, it’s out of the way. It’s made clear that death brings Bailey happiness as he returns and screams with joy that he’s back. The new puppy we see each time is a happy visual that will blanket any feeling of shock if young viewers were feel any.

As you assumed there would be there’s a nice happy ending to the movie that I won’t share. I assure you there’s a positive message for all. Again, this is a good movie for families to watch and enjoy together but the twenty-something’s would most likely yawn their way through which is why I didn’t rate it higher. There are a few silly moments that were a bit too contrived but the film is one to take the kids to see this weekend. They’ll have a blast watching Bailey fulfill his purpose which is to lick the ones he loves and to be here now.

Gold

January 27, 2017 (updated February 4, 2017)

The pursuit of that bright shiny metal can drive a prospector to extremes. In “Gold”, the apparent major find in the Indonesian jungle sets off a frenzy in the lives of the people involved. That includes Kenny Wells (Matthew McConaughey) who owns a tiny mining company started by his grandfather in Reno. The company has hit upon hard times, and now the salesmen try to sell shares of dead mines that have no future. They all work out of a bar in Reno, since the office has been closed for a long time. Kenny has a girlfriend in a waitress named Kay (Bryce Dallas Howard). But Kenny still has big dreams about gold…

His dream leads him to Indonesia, where he meets Michael Acosta (Édgar Ramírez). Acosta is a geologist who once discovered the largest deposit of copper. Kenny thinks that Acosta can do the same thing for him and discover the world’s largest gold reserve. Acosta has also had a string of bad luck, but Kenny has so much enthusiasm that he convinces Acosta to try again.

After a few false starts, Acosta settles on a remote jungle location. Kenny has limited funds to support the exploration, but he presses on. The jungle takes a toll on Kenny, and he catches malaria and nearly dies. But when he is better, Acosta tells Kenny the good news. He has been successful in finding a large gold deposit.

The story moves back and forth between Indonesia and Reno, where Kenny has become a big shot in the mining industry. He reopens his company, and the investments are flowing in non-stop. There is a major New York hedge fund that is ready to find major investors. Barry Wolff (Corey Stoll) has Kenny and Kay come to New York where they live it up. Acosta stays at the mine delivering more good news all the time. The world’s largest mining company is ready to buy out Kenny and Acosta, but Kenny turns them down at the last minute. The gold bug has bitten him really bad…

The mining company was snubbed and wants to get even, so they convince Indonesian government to shut down the operation. That almost stops Kenny, until he finds a special partner who will get all back on track. So the operation keeps running, the bankers have been rejected. Kenny finds out that Kay was not impressed with Kenny’s new attitude. She leaves him, and he shrugs it off.

Kenny has an interview with an FBI visitor (Toby Kebbell) who explains that everything about the mining operation is not what it seems. Kenny and his company are brought down in a crashing failure. Acosta is nowhere to be found, and the authorities want answers. Kenny is left in the lurch…

Matthew McConaughey really transforms himself in the role of Kenny Wells. The ‘Sexiest Man Alive’ changes to become a middle-aged, balding, pot-bellied, chain-smoking drunkard with bad teeth. He owns the role, and makes Kenny’s personality shine like a super-nova. When Kenny meets up with Michael Acosta, he persuades the geologist with his pluck and luck. Édgar Ramírez also does a fine job as Acosta, the geologist who might have lead Kenny down the Golden Path. Bryce Dallas Howard also does what she can with her role, but the focus is really on Kenny and his obsession with gold.

Is “Gold” as good as the real thing? The story is very interesting, and it is told with a great deal of style and flair. The acting is fun to watch, especially McConaughey getting into the slovenly Kenny character. But the center is not focused in any one direction, and it does tend to wander. So it never reaches pure 24 Karat quality, but is sure is shiny.

Fox Searchlight acquires “Patti Cake$”

January 25, 2017 (updated January 25, 2017)

FOX SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES ACQUIRES

DIRECTOR GEREMY JASPER’S PATTI CAKE$

Starring Danielle Macdonald, Bridget Everett, Cathy Moriarty, Siddharth Dhananjay,

Mamoudou Athie, McCaul Lombardi, Sahr Ngaujah, Wass Stevens, and MC Lyte

Specialty Arm Acquires Worldwide Rights

PARK CITY, UT January 25, 2017 – Fox Searchlight Pictures Presidents Stephen Gilula and Nancy Utley announced today that the company has acquired worldwide distribution rights to first-time writer / director Geremy Jasper’s infectious hip hop debut film PATTI CAKE$, starring Danielle Macdonald, Bridget Everett, Cathy Moriarty, Siddharth Dhananjay, Mamoudou Athie, McCaul Lombardi, Sahr Ngaujah, Wass Stevens, and MC Lyte. The film is an RT Features, Stay Gold Features, Maiden Voyage Pictures presentation of a Department of Motion Pictures production. It is the new company’s first feature film. PATTI CAKE$ is produced by Michael Gottwald, Noah Stahl, Rodrigo Teixeira, Dan Janvey, Daniela Taplin Lundberg and Chris Columbus, with Lourenço Sant’Anna, Sophie Mas, Eleanor Columbus, Josh Penn, Jonathan Bronfman, Lon Molnar, Fernando Fraiha, and Bill Benenson serving as executive producers. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and will be released in 2017.

“Geremy Jasper has created a personal and specific story which resonates universally and is very entertaining. Patti Cake$, brought to life by Danielle Macdonald, is a singular, lovable, and highly talented character for whom we root hard. We are proud to bring this beautiful film to the world,” said Utley and Gilula.

“Patti Cake$ is a true labor of love made by a team of people with so much creativity, care, and passion. Sundance finally got to meet Patti AKA Killa P AKA Danielle MacDonald and now Fox Searchlight will make sure the world does too. We could not be in better hands,” said director Geremy Jasper.

“We knew from our experience with ‘Beasts of the Southern Wild’ that Fox Searchlight was the perfect place to introduce the world to an incredible heroine like Patti, and a fiercely talented filmmaker like Geremy,” said producer Michael Gottwald.

PATTI CAKE$ introduces Australian native Danielle Macdonald in a breakout role, as aspiring rapper Patricia Dombrowski, a.k.a. Killa P, a.k.a. Patti Cake$. Fighting an unlikely quest for glory in her downtrodden hometown in Jersey where her life is falling apart, Patti tries to reach the big time in the hip hop scene with original and affecting music. Cheered on by her grandmother (Cathy Moriarty) and only friends, Jheri (Siddharth Dhananjay) and Basterd (Mamoudou Athie), Patti also shoulders her mother’s (Bridget Everett) heartaches and misfortunes.

The deal was brokered by Fox Searchlight’s Executive Vice President of Business Affairs Megan O’Brien and Senior Vice President of Acquisitions & Co-Productions Ray Strache, with CAA and WME Global on behalf of the filmmakers.

Fox Searchlight Pictures is a specialty film company that both finances and acquires motion pictures. It has its own marketing and distribution operations, and its films are distributed internationally by Twentieth Century Fox. Fox Searchlight Pictures is a unit of 21st Century Fox.

Wilson RED BAND Trailer

January 25, 2017

Harrelson stars as Wilson, a lonely, neurotic and hilariously honest middle-aged misanthrope who reunites with his estranged wife (Laura Dern) and gets a shot at happiness when he learns he has a teenage daughter (Isabella Amara) he has never met. In his uniquely outrageous and slightly twisted way, he sets out to connect with her.

Cast: Woody Harrelson, Laura Dern, Judy Greer, Cheryl Hines and Isabella Amara
Directed by: Craig Johnson

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In Theaters March 24

http://www.fandango.com

The Phoenix Film Festival preps for another year!!

January 25, 2017 (updated January 25, 2017)

PHOENIX FILM FESTIVAL PREPS FOR 17TH YEAR!

PHOENIX (January 25, 2017) – It’s that time of year again! The 17^th Annual Phoenix Film Festival, occurring this year from its opening night on April 6^thto its conclusion on April 13^th, is rapidly approaching. Continually breaking attendance records since its inception, last years’ festival saw over 25,000 attendees and there are hopes to pull in even more film enthusiasts this year. The week long Festival will be held once again at Harkins Scottsdale 101 Theaters located at 7000 E. Mayo Blvd. Phoenix, AZ 85054.

If you are a movie lover, this is an event that is not to be missed. Tickets and passes go on sale February 23^rd and will be available through the Phoenix Film Festival website www.phoenixfilmfestival.com. Tickets may also be purchased in person at the Phoenix Film Festival Ticket Center next to the Harkins Scottsdale 101 Theater. Tickets range in price from $13 for a single screening to $300 for a platinum pass. For more information call 480-513-3195 or go to www.phoenixfilmfestival.com.

###

7000 E Mayo Blvd, Suite 1059 – Phoenix, AZ 85054

www.phxfilm.com Email: OFFICE@PHXFILM.com

The Phoenix Film Festival is a program of the

501c3 non-profit Phoenix Film Foundation

FOX Searchlight acquires Sundance sensation “STEP”

January 25, 2017

FOX SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES ACQUIRES

DIRECTOR AMANDA LIPITZ’S SUNDANCE SENSATION “STEP”

Specialty Arm Acquires Worldwide

Distribution and Remake Rights

PARK CITY, UT January 24, 2017 – Fox Searchlight Pictures Presidents Nancy Utley and Stephen Gilula announced today that the company has acquired worldwide distribution and remake rights to director and producer Amanda Lipitz’s inspiring documentary STEP, featuring Blessin Giraldo, Cori Grainger, Tayla Solomon, Gari McIntyre and Paula Dofat. The film is a Stick Figure, Impact Partners, Vulcan and Scott Rudin production and produced by Lipitz and Steven Cantor with Dan Cogan, Geralyn Dreyfous, Jenny Raskin, Scott Rudin, Paul G. Allen, Carole Tomko, Micheal Flaherty, Valerie McGowan, Barbara Dobkin, Regina K. Scully, Debra McLeod, Jay Sears, Ann Tisch and Andrew Tisch serving as executive producers. STEP will be released in 2017.

“STEP immerses us into the world of a group of young women whom we come to love and admire. Amanda Lipitz shows us their humor, heart, tenacity and joie de vivre through our own laughter and tears. We are excited to share this inspiring experience around the world,” said Gilula and Utley.

“This film was made as a tribute to the bravery and conviction of the young women in the film and to the courage they demonstrated in their willingness to share their story. We are thrilled to partner with Fox Searchlight on the release of the film throughout the world and are very grateful for their enthusiasm and passion. We hope that the heroes of STEP will inspire girls everywhere to do what they have done, which is to prove that nothing is impossible when you surround yourself with a group of powerful women,” said director and producer Amanda Lipitz.

STEP documents the senior year of a girls’ high-school step dance team against the background of inner-city Baltimore. As each one tries to become the first in their families to attend college, the girls strive to make their dancing a success against the backdrop of social unrest in the troubled city.

The production also received generous support from Bloomberg Philanthropies and the Baltimore Ravens. The film world premiered at the Sundance Film Festival to sold out screenings with show-stopping performances by the team, who were greatly supported by the local Park City community.

Very funny! Horror RINGS Hidden Camera Prank!

January 24, 2017

This is hsterical!

You know the rules: first you watch it, then you die.

Watch as hidden cameras capture the reactions of unsuspecting customers when Samara comes for them.

RINGS is in theaters February 3

Directed by: F. Javier Gutierrez

Starring: Matilda Lutz, Alex Roe, Johnny Galecki, Aimee Teegarden, Bonnie Morgan and Vincent D’Onofrio

A new chapter in the beloved RING horror franchise. A young woman becomes worried about her boyfriend when he explores a dark subculture surrounding a mysterious videotape said to kill the watcher seven days after he has viewed it. She sacrifices herself to save her boyfriend and in doing so makes a horrifying discovery: there is a “movie within the movie” that no one has ever seen before…

Rings Official Channels

Hashtag: #Rings

Facebook: /RingsMovie

Twitter: @RingsMovie

Instagram: @RingsMovie

Snapchat: ringsmovie

The Founder

January 20, 2017 (updated January 20, 2017)

Fast Food. Dietitians hate it, society tolerates it, but most people just love to consume it. So when you get a movie about the origins of the most popular fast food restaurant in the world, you know people will eat it up. “The Founder” will be like a satisfying meal, and will fill you up more than two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, and pickles on a sesame seed bun.

“The Founder” is the tale of Ray Kroc (Michael Keaton) and how a milk-shake machine salesman turned into a fast food titan. Ray is downtrodden and getting along with minimal sales, until learns of two brothers who run a new-fangeled restaurant that carries their last name. The McDonald brothers Mac (John Carroll Lynch) and Dick (Nick Offerman) have started something new and different. Ray wants in on the ground floor.

The brothers very reluctantly agree to Ray setting up franchise McDonald’s restaurants around the country. They have a very tight contract with Ray, and make sure that the emphasis is on quality and speed of service. Ray does great, but he does not let his wife Ethel (Laura Dern) know that he mortgaged the house to get it done. The expanding number of restaurants is not paying Ray enough, due to the tight contract details. Ray meets Harry Sonneborn (B. J. Novak), who explains that Ray should own the land and then lease it to the franchise owner.

Soon Ray has created a new company to buy land and create franchise owners. The original McDonald brothers are furious that Ray has taken liberties with their concept and product. Ray meets the wife of a new franchise owner named Joan Smith (Linda Cardellini). Before too long, Ray Kroc has bought out the McDonald brothers, divorced Ethel, and married Joan. He had become an unequaled giant in the fast food business.

Michael Keaton does a stupendous job playing Ray Kroc. Here is a story of a man who created a monster-sized business, yet he sometimes was brash, rude and uncaring. He saw what he wanted and took it, regardless if that was a burger chain or someone else’s wife. Yet he thought deep down that everything he did was to make himself, and the country, better.

As the two McDonald brothers, Nick Offerman & John Carroll Lynch also are terrific. They seems to convey and deep sense of pride in what they have accomplished, and each of them always is looking out for the other. They are also stubborn and small-minded. So when the business began to really grow, they rebelled against Ray Kroc instead of working with him.

If there are any problems at all with the movie, it is the ‘side dishes’. Other than the three main characters, the other roles are ‘undercooked’. Laura Dern has not much to do, and Linda Cardellini comes into the picture way too late. B. J. Novak blends into the other minor characters, also, so it is hard to tell him apart.

“The Founder” can also be compared in a way to ‘The Social Network”. Both feature a strong leader who finds a unique concept, and then battles two brothers for the ability to take something brand new worldwide. McDonald’s, like Facebook, is an international brand that took a visionary leader to get it there.

xXx: Return of Xander Cage

January 20, 2017 (updated January 20, 2017)

Xander Cage? What, he was gone? Oh, in case you missed it, the first “xXx” movie was with Vin Diesel. But then a second was made, and his character was ‘declared dead’. The extreme athlete in the second was played by Ice Cube. But the ‘Triple X Project’ has lasted into three movies, so that is why Xander Cage is back.

The leader of the ‘Triple X Project’ is NSA Agent Gibbons (Samuel L. Jackson). His plan is to continue to recruit extreme athletes into the Project, until a satellite falls from the sky and kills him. CIA bigwig Jane Marke (Toni Collette) is then after Xander Cage to make sure he wasn’t prematurely dead so he could help the government catch the bad guys. Xander will not work with the CIA/military crew and instead he has his own crew.

The bad guy group has a device called ‘Pandora’s Box’. You might think that device would deliver a steady stream of music fit to your unique tastes. But, no, it is merely a complicated McGuffin thing to chase around the globe. Xiang (Donnie Yen) and his crew stole the device, but it was only a prototype McGuffin. Xiang turns out to be a former Triple X recruit, so now he is a good guy. Many different things happen in many different locations, to show that this is movie that has many places that Xander can go.

There are a few other people in the cast, but it would not make a difference if I named them all. The main draw is Vin Diesel and his gruff voice and gigantic ‘guns’. Is there a story slapped in here somewhere? Sort of, but I could not really tell. Where there action sequences? Well, there were quite a quick edits on the screen and a lot of blurry motion. So I guess that could be taken as an action sequence. Was the dialog stiff and clunky? That is a resounding yes.

The people who will go see this movie will like anything that Vin Diesel does. Regardless of how fast or furious he is, or if Vin is full of ‘Groot’, that would not matter in the least. They want lots of fast cars, loud guns and dumb action as its highest level.

Perhaps Shakespeare said it best, being the famous movie critic that he is: “It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”

Paterson

January 20, 2017 (updated February 24, 2017)

“Paterson” is an absolute pleasure to witness. One feels honored to be on this… ride. I say this because it is about a bus driver whose story is delicate, even delectable. It’s fascinating. Jim Jarmusch turns a seemingly banal and simple life into a complex, contemplative introspective. Paterson (Driver) drives a bus for the city of Paterson, N.J. but he’s also a poet. His hero is William Carlos Williams and deep within he holds a dream to be as good as Williams yet never calls himself a poet, therefore stopping any disappointment that may come from negative criticism.

Paterson sees poetry in all things and one of the factors that has you treasure experiencing this life that Jarmusch has displayed for you is how you absorb Paterson’s poetry. It’s not only spoken by him, whether in his thoughts as he cruises through traffic, or as he walks his dog Marvin (played charmingly by Nellie), but we also see it scrolling across the screen as he speaks in a composed and knowing tone. It becomes visually embedded in our minds and we crave more.

His poems are perceptive, analytical at times, logical and illogical. They’re both abstract and they’re ordinary but they’re sublime. He writes these poems in a notebook, one he keeps to himself, careful they can never be seen.

We are with Paterson for a week of his life. He has a girlfriend, has a dog and is methodized, unlike girlfriend Laura (Farahani), who is all over the place. A painter obsessed with the color black one minute, a baker the next; him a structured poet, her a musician… this week, anyway. The relationship is sound as they balance each other, or so it would seem… perhaps not? Do they love each other or are they just putting up with one another for convenience sake? Upon reflection, you realize there’s much more going on than you first thought. It can be slow in moments but the movie consumes you, more or less. It is, simply put, poetic. Once you’ve seen “Paterson” it will stick with you for quite some time. The alpha male battle he has with Marvin, also the conflict within himself over what or who he is, is gripping to observe. Driver does such a remarkable job of bringing levels to this character without nearly uttering a word that he seduces you. I highly recommend you see this film. You’ll never see Driver as Kylo Ren again.