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John Wick: Chapter 2

February 10, 2017 (updated February 10, 2017) Published by Shari K. Green

If you like muscle cars, chase scenes, incredible fight sequences and beautiful sets and locations, this movie is going to sizzle your cerebral cortex. It has everything I mentioned and has them in spades. All that you liked about the first film is here so you won’t be disappointed. As you most assuredly know, John Wick was as high octane as they come… what will be your delight is, Chapter 2 is just as powerful and as potent as the first. John Wick (Reeves), the ghostly and stealthy killer you met in Chapter 1, is the same bad ass, with the same reputation of reigning terror without breaking a sweat but unlike before, he wants out He wants to retire and live out his life in peace. Well, he may want out but someone comes knocking to remind him that he’s duty bound to do something first and that is to fulfill a blood marker. A marker is a blood oath. Once it’s given to a member of the criminal conclave Wick belongs to, one with strict rules for the professional help and perks they receive, it must be honored.

He’s forced to be true to his pledge which is to assassinate Santino D’Antonio’s (Scamarcio) sister so that he could have her seat at the high table, a highly coveted place within the criminal federation. An ingenious scene of him shopping for accessories is priceless. He gears up and gets to work. When he completes his task or she does for him, rather, not only are members of her security team after for him, (especially Cassian, played by Common, whose role adds a special element of regalement to the film), but so is Santino. He decides to close loose ends. The choreographed action sequences such as rolling down steps mid fight, running on stage and through a concert’s audience while shooting at one another and all death and destruction delivered by clever cinematography more than makes up for the few times that Reeves, unfortunately, has speaking lines. I know that’s hard to swallow but it’s more than accurate.

Centrally, this is an astonishingly action packed film and with a good narrative. It’s the story of a character you can’t help root for, even though he’s a ruthless, emotionless and heartless killer. You want him to win, despite his willingness to murder, because, after all, they’re the bad guys, right? Again, luckily for us, it’s more action driven with focus on the deadly encounters rather than on dialogue. Every performance outside of Reeves was adequate, McShane and Common’s especially, but the only delivery Reeves is capable of giving is dry and detached and that’s a shame. Yes, it isn’t terrible with this sort of role but had he been able to give some passion to the lines that he did have, it would have been that much better.
I have to suggest you go see it if you’re an action fan. I’ll go on record now and say you’re going to absolutely love it. It starts with a punch and never stops going; it’s solid all around. Also, it ends with a clear set up for Chapter 3. After all hes been through and has done, he decides to break a rule anyway, for which you cannot do as long as you’re in the league. Now that he has, he is banished and… well, I’ll let you discover that on your own.

Fifty Shades Darker

February 10, 2017 (updated February 10, 2017) Published by JMcNaughton

In the beginning, there was the “Twilight” series of novels. And thus was begotten the “Twilight” movies, and verily so, there was created “Twilight” fan fiction. And thus is was that “Twilight” fan fiction hath created a series of “Fifty Shades” novels, and from that loin was born the “Fifty Shades” movie series. And some people say that fine literature and art is dead…

“Fifty Shades of Grey” brought you the plain little virgin of Anastasia Steele (Dakota Johnson) who meets high-powered and filthy rich Christian Grey (Jamie Dornan). Their relationship was a bit troubled, to say the least. Grey is into sadistic bondage and domination, and he needed Steele as a willing partner, a submissive. But there was stupid contract negotiations getting in the way of the soft-core booty calls. Steele got disgusted and left Grey, so now on to “Fifty Shades Darker”.

Steele has a job at a place called Seattle Independent Press, where she works for Jack Hyde (Eric Johnson). Grey promptly buys up the SIP, with no thought of irony in the name. In fact, Grey spends so much time pursuing and attempting to win back Steele, it is amazing that his company can run at all. Jack Hyde and Grey do not see eye-to-eye, even though they both treat Steele basically like garbage. Jack makes an aggressive pass on Steele, and he soon is looking for a job.

Steele and Grey get back together, but she thinks that it must be at a mutual, common level – out of respect and love. Grey has been weird for so long that this might be difficult for him, so he gets Steele to draw lines on his chest with lipstick. What? Oh, yeah, he still has problems. There is a prior ‘sub’ from Grey’s past named Leila (Bella Heathcote). She was once submissive to Grey, but she left. But now she is unhinged and gunning for Steele.

Grace (Marcia Gay Harden) is Grey’s adoptive mother, and she feels that Steele has made a positive change. Elena (Kim Basinger) is Grey’s very early lover and got him into the freaky stuff. But now she owns a salon and they are business partners. Damn good thing that Grey Conglomerated United Holdings, Ltd can just about run itself! Grey is the wealthiest man who never seems to do any work.

So Steele moves in, and Grey and Steele get several kinky booty calls. Grey says he has changed and asks Steele to marry him. There is the Leila stalker situation, and the Jack Hyde is planning revenge situation, and the Grey flies a corporate helicopter and maybe it goes down in the forest event. Along with the costume ball shindig, and the tool around the Seattle bay in a huge yacht affair, and the Steele gets mad and walks around by herself for hours sequence.

Could this movie be any more boring and inconsequential? Doubt it. Are there any redeeming factors? Yes, the scenery is beautiful and locations look amazing and the production values are top notch. But there is no actual story to tell and no character development. It is more like 15 or 20 minutes of insipid dialog and waiting around for the next “make sexy times”. It is not possible to fault the actors for failing in the roles and having no chemistry. The story gives them nothing to work with.

However, there is no doubt that middle-aged women who loved the “Twilight” series are also gonna eat this up. It will make a yacht-load of money, but not like the previous movie. The rest of the people seeing this might think they are in for an exotic, romantic and erotic adventure. But more than likely they will feel as if they are the ones getting screwed…

Rings

February 3, 2017 Published by JMcNaughton

What started as a Japanese horror movie has become a franchise in the United States. First as “Ringu”, then the American remake, “The Ring”, with a sequel called “Ring 2”. They all feature he storyline of a person who watches a bizarre short movie clip, and then gets a phone call where they get the message ‘seven days’. For a week, that person who has seen the movie is haunted by creepy images until the last day, when the ghoul named Samara comes to get them…UNLESS you can get somebody else to watch a copy of your video, and the Ring cycle continues.

In this muddy story line, Julia (Matilda Lutz) sees her boyfriend Holt (Alex Roe) go off to college. There he takes a class with Professor Gabriel Brown (Johnny Galecki). Gabriel has an ongoing secret of seeing the Ring movie years ago. He has spent several years developing a little campus club of people who see the movie and then need to find someone else to take their place. Holt is talked into the cycle, and Julia visits the campus to find out what is going on. She meets Skye (Aimee Teegarden) but Skye needs somebody new to watch the video, because Samara is coming for her today.

It all goes wrong for Skye, but Julia thinks she can help Holt by watching his copy, thus taking the curse off of him. Holt and Gabriel find out that the video copy that Julia has seen is different. It has video embedded in the shorter video. So, is that “Ring-ception”? Anyway they chase down clues about where the body of Samara might be kept. It leads them to a small rural town call Sanctuary City.

They hunt all around and find out about mysterious things that happen 30 years ago. A young girl disappeared, there was a huge flood, and the priest in the main church gave up the building and now it is very rundown. There are strange visions that Julia has, and she meets an old caretaker for the graveyard. Burke (Vincent D’Onofrio) is now blind, but he has a very deep knowledge of what happened many years ago. Maybe he knows a little too much…

This franchise is starting to run on fumes at this point. The story is a head-scratcher, the dialog is laughable, and the character’s actions become idiotic. No Julia! You don’t have to open that locked door at the end of the hallway! No Julia! You don’t have to crawl into the tiny crypt at the graveyard! No Julia! You don’t have to watch that video that everyone has told you not to watch!

It was hard to get excited for any portrayal or role in this movie. All the actors seemed to the best they could with the odd dialog and the unbelievable plot actions. But I’m sure that Vincent D’Onofrio cried all the way to the bank to cash his check from being in this movie. Unfortunately, the ending screamed out loud: “Hey, we really want to do more sequels like this one!”

But in this case, perhaps it is best that the “Ring” is finally broken…

The Space Between Us

February 3, 2017 Published by JMcNaughton

The movie “The Space Between Us” seems to be on odd mash-up. It is about a boy who grew up on Mars, and gets a chance to visit Earth and fall in love. It takes parts from a science fiction movie, a young-adult romance, a story of person with a severe medical condition who wants to hit his bucket list, a cross-country journey film genre and puts it all together. Kind of a cross between “The Martian” and “The Fault in out Stars”, maybe call it: “The Fault in our Mars”…

Nathaniel Shepherd (Gary Oldman) is a billionaire who personally sponsors the NASA space program to live on Mars. The flight crew gets there, and on the way Astronaut Elliot discovers she is pregnant. She gives birth on Mars and promptly dies. Gardner Elliot (Asa Butterfield) is her son whose very existence is kept a total secret. But when he is 16, he finds a way to contact a high-school age girl named Tulsa (Britt Robertson). She has been in a series of unhappy foster homes, but she is resourceful and finds a way to have chat sessions with Gardner.

Kendra Wyndham (Carla Gugino) is a fellow Astronaut on Mars, Gardner ‘s mehtor and mother figure. But she knows that Gardner needs to get away. NASA Director Tom Chen (B. D. Wong) decides to bring Gardner and Kendra back to Earth. Gardner must undergo some physical training and special medical treatment to reinforce his undersized bones. Living with Mars gravity is tough, when you leave and go to Earth. He explains to Tulsa that he will go on a trip and vows to here that they will meet up soon.

Once on Earth, Gardner finds a way to conveniently escape the NASA medical facility and work his way to meet Tulsa. She is upset that he did not communicate for the past few months, but he says he was on a long trip. Nathaniel, Tom Chen and Kendra go after Gardner, with the help of the authorities. Tulsa sees that Gardner could be in trouble. She uses her near-criminal skills to keep ahead of the group chasing them. Gardner really wants to find his father, and he has a couple of clues.

They ‘borrow’ a biplane, a BMW and a truck to get far away. They travel to New Mexico, the Grand Canyon (lovely), Sedona (beautiful), and they finally end up at a beach house on the California coast. Gardner is expecting to find his dad, but he finds out something different. Tulsa has a solidly cynical view of the world, yet she starts to believe that there is something unusual about Gardner. The time that they spend together makes both of them happy. Yet, the past is not far behind, and the group finally discovers where Gardner and Tulsa are located.

So to break this movie down, I think it came about by somebody listing to the lyrics of Elton John’s song “Rocket Man”:

Mars ain’t the kind of place

To raise your kids

In fact, it’s cold as hell

And there’s no one there to raise them

If you did

And from that, this movie was born. Perhaps not on Mars, but the lyrics might explain it a bit more. So this movie was right for the intended audience: teenage girls. The acting was just OK, but Britt Robertson does a more convincing role. Asa Butterfield is very tall and lean and lanky, so he might have been born on Mars. The script was ham-fisted at times, and made some very clunky character transitions.

So if you want real sci-fi adventure, look elsewhere. If you want an honest young adult style romance, look elsewhere. If you want a somewhat jammed together version of both, “The Space Between Us” is your launching pad…

The Comedian

February 3, 2017 (updated February 3, 2017) Published by Shari K. Green

The idea of an aging comedian going on a nostalgia tour is painful for the comedian; throwing in a May-December relationship between the two stars is painful for the audience. Robert DeNiro plays Jackie Burke, a former television sitcom star whose show “Eddie’s Home” was a huge success. His star burned so brightly that everyone he passes knows him by the character name they shout back to him his famous catchphrase… which gets on your nerves about halfway through the film. Though still beloved, Jackie is miserable facing the fact that he’s no longer a draw and his agent, Miller (Falco), is doing her best to get him work.

She gets him a stand-up gig at a club an while doing his routine a member of the audience starts recording as he also heckles him to illicit a response. As the heckler intended, he angers Jackie to fisticuffs, or hitting with microphone in this case, and Jackie gets into trouble. He’s arrested and ends up with community service where he meets Harmony (Mann) a woman with daddy and anger issues of her own. You won’t feel the connection but they seem to like one another and agree to be one another’s wing-man at two upcoming family functions. Harmony has to meet her father, Mac (Keitel), whom she’s estranged, for his birthday. She more or less takes Jackie, one of Mac’s favorites, for her dads gift… which doesn’t go over so well as instantly the alpha males spar. Jackie’s brother, played by DeVito, has a daughter getting married and would like for Jackie to attend the wedding with him. They are disrespectful by showing up late which doesn’t isn’t missed by the family… and things get worse from there.

After they’ve carry out the duties the friendship is based on and as Jackie’s video hits skyrockets, he develops an interest in Harmony. He seems somewhat happy that he might be on the rise again, as well as his ego which is, throughout the film, both inflated and torn down. Out of nowhere and just when all seems well and after one special night, Harmony is checking out. What keeps you from doing the same is the tone the score sets, Hackford’s style and his casting choices, (though oddly placed) and a lot of the comedians who pop in and out.

However, there are clear and present issues with the script. Several screenwriters had a hand in writing this which is always a bad sign. You can see several times in the storyline where they start one direction and completely go in another which doesn’t help build a strong cohesive arc. The story was written by Art Linson, known more for his producing of films such as Fast Times as Ridgemont High, This Boy’s Life, Heat, Fight Club and The Runaways. He was joined by a writing team of considerable talent. They are Jeffrey Ross, Lewis Friedman (whose works are mostly on television) and Richard LaGravenese who wrote many celebrated films including The Fisher King, The Ref, The Mirror Has Two Faces and The Bridges of Madison County so what could go wrong?

To be honest, I liked it overall, Mann’s performance especially. She has already proven she knows funny but her unbalanced and unhinged Harmony is an interesting character study. Another thing I appreciated was the honesty of it and how it captured raw human emotion. People hate. People love. People stay. People leave. They aren’t successful, are successful and they’re jealous when others are, too. Taylor Hackford did a brilliant job of showing us this.

Jackie performs a nasty routine at a retirement community and I saw it as being a truthful and humorous look at what they’re facing. Making fun of people for everything that goes on in their life isn’t just enjoyed by the young. It’s okay to give elderly people the laughs they want and most likely need, rather than treat and talk to them like they’re fragile children. With all of that said, I didn’t love it. The writers came up with some good material to watch but the story doesn’t have the structure it needs to work as one great piece. It changes its mind too often so, is it worth watching at the theatre?

If you like the setting, jazz, the players and all the comics who are playing in this film, giving them your support wouldn’t hurt but this is better to save for the smaller screen where the bad moments don’t seem quite so large.

A Dog’s Purpose

January 27, 2017 (updated February 24, 2017) Published by Shari K. Green

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) Published by JMcNaughton

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.

The Founder

January 20, 2017 (updated January 20, 2017) Published by JMcNaughton

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) Published by JMcNaughton

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) Published by Shari K. Green

“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.

Category: Reviews