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Diane Movie Review

April 5, 2019 Published by Shari K. Green

Veteran actress of such remarkable films as, ‘The Big Chill,’ and ‘Being John Malkovich,’ Mary Kay Place, plays the principle role of, Diane, a woman fighting off her demons before it’s too late, in this hyper-focused study of regret.

‘Diane’ is the sad tale of an older woman in a small Massachusetts town who’s trying everything in her power to make up for the person she was in the past. She spent most of her life, casting away those who loved her for own selfish needs and is now trying desperately to please them… if they let her and if they’ll agree to her terms. She now feels the pain of losing people she once thought disposable as those around her disappear by choice or because they’ve been snatched by the cold, hard grip of death. She is doing everything she can to make up for her mistakes but not everyone is open to her desire for absolution and not everyone forgets.

She commits a lot of her free time performing charitable work such as feeding the homeless at the shelter and offering help whenever and wherever it’s needed. She spends a considerable amount of her time visiting her cousin, Donna (O’Connell), who’s in the hospital. She has cervical cancer and, feeling guilty for having wronged her when they were young women, Diane gives her most of her a lot of attention. However, the person Diane wants to help even more is the one most impervious to her overtures of altruism and goodwill. Her son, Brian, chillingly played Jake Lacy (Miss Sloane, How to Be Single). Brian is a drug attic who gets rather nasty with his mother constantly inserting herself into his life. As you watch this relationship unfold, you realize it’s Diane who has always needed help, never received any and needs some now more than ever. She showers him with the attention she always craved yet spoiled what they could have had when she ran off with Donna’s boyfriend, leaving young Brian behind.

Produced by Martin Scorsese, written and directed by film critic and documentarian, Kent Jones (this is his first narrative feature film) ‘Diane’ was a shoo-in and ended up being a darling at the Tribeca Film Festival last year, where it won several awards. The film is a fascinating character study but not one to watch if you feel you are or are possibly on the verge of, depression. Jones purposely misleads with a timeline that’s all over the place, giving you the feeling of frustration and confusion on purpose. As those closest to her pass away, she reaches out to Brian more but then you see the real Diane on display. She draws a line in the sand when he and his new wife try to shove religion down her throat. Seems everyone has their limits. She feigns that all is well but losing him to religion is a war she knows she can’t win. Is it too late to win him back?

*In the Phoenix area, see this at Harkins Shea 14

Shazam! Movie Review

April 5, 2019 (updated April 2, 2019) Published by JMcNaughton

“Shazam!” is a magical treat from the DC Comics Universe, because it takes a totally different approach to this version of a Superhero. It goes back to echo the 1988 film “Big”. Take a young kid about fifteen years old, and transform him, but not into Tom Hanks as an adult. Instead this movie will infuse him with Superhero posers that come from Ancient Gods and Warriors. Turn him into the “Champion of Eternity” – with all these powers: the wisdom of Solomon, the strength of Hercules, the stamina of Atlas, powers from Zeus, the courage of Achilles, and the speed of Mercury. Hey, doesn’t that spell out “SHAZAM”?

An orphan in Philadelphia named Billy Batson (Asher Angel) gets into trouble with the police, again. His last chance is with a foster family who has a few other kids in their home. Billy meets his foster-brother Freddy Freeman (Jack Dylan Grazer) who has crutches and gets bullied at school. Billy defends his friend and needs to flee from the bully’s rage. Escaping onto a subway car, it turns into a magical entrance to a Hall of Champions. There is an ancient Wizard named Shazam (Djimon Hounsou). He is the last of the Champions. He had tried to find a human with a pure heart in the past, but he failed to find the right one. Billy is the best one to take control, only thing he needs to do is say the word.

Billy says the magic word, and the Ancient Wizard is gone. Billy has now become the (much older) superpowered one named Shazam (Zachary Levi). He can use the name to transform back and forth into the Billy (the Kid), or back into the Eternal Champion – Shazam. All in all, a pretty good day! Shazam makes it back and convinces Freddy that the massively super-powered person named Shazam is really still Billy on the inside. Freddy is well-versed in all Super-powers, since he reads all the DC Comics. Billy needs to become Shazam when there are people he can save, so they can both make a little money on the side.

However, there is another person in the city who was once tested by the Ancient Wizard. Years ago, Thaddeus Sivana (Mark Strong) was taken but he proved himself unworthy of the honor to Eternal Champion. Sivana finds a way back to the Wizard and steals an energy ball power by the Seven Deadly Sins. He takes the ball to become a Super-powered villain. Now, Sivana finds that the Wizard has given his powers away to a young boy. He sets out to find young Billy Batson, so he can be destroyed. Perhaps along with his new foster family. Silvia has many of the same type of powers that Shazam possesses, but he will use them for evil and for destruction.

So far, the DC Universe films have been awfully sketchy in the past years. However, they had started getting back on the right track with “Wonder Woman”. They followed that up with the very popular “Aquaman”. And now, they reach for an out-of-left-field wonder by bringing us “Shazam!”. The fun and entertainment level is maxed out with this movie. It is funny and clever and it gets the tone just right. Credit a good story and script and a Director who brings out the sheer joy of being a Superhero to the screen. Plus the casting choices are also Super. Zachary Levi and Jack Dylan Grazer really stand out, and Mark Strong and Asher Angel do a superb job.

You can let the DC Extended Universe people know that movies like “Shazam!” are better than many of the other bleak and joyless movies that have come before. Vote with your pocketbook and see a great Superhero movie. Let the DCEU know with your support of “Shazam!”. Just Say The Word.

The Best of Enemies Movie Review

April 5, 2019 (updated April 4, 2019) Published by JMcNaughton

“The Best of Enemies” tells a true tale of the troubled tension in the recent South. Back in 1971 in Durham, N.C – the only way to mix Black and White was to lay down a linoleum checkerboard floor. But even after the Civil Rights laws had been passed, some Southern good-old-boys still kept with the white-hooded ways. The Ku Klux Klan was still strong in Durham. There was some movement for Black folk’s equality. But in the South, there was more pain than gain. Schools were still separate, yet not equal – not even close. Klan members and local politicians had each others backs, and that left the Black population in dire straights.

Ann Atwater (Taraji P. Henson) is a local Black organizer and activist. She gets up in peoples way, and she will not let up until she has won. She is polite most of the time, but do not cross her, or get in her way. She has absolutely no time for someone who is a local leader in the KKK. C. P. Ellis (Sam Rockwell) is such a man, a true Southern down-home poor-boy who loves being a part of the KKK. He wants the unity and purpose that the Klan gives to him, even if it means working hard to make ends meet. His wife (Anne Heche) supports Ellis, but she knows that in the nation things are changing. Atwater is a big part of that change.

When there is a fire at the ‘colored-only’ school, there is a crisis point in the town. Where will the children be sent to school? The mood in the town will not allow for a mixed race attendance. But then it goes to court, and judge comes up with a unique idea. He gets a guy from out-of-town to stage a ‘charrette’. This is a very structured legal way to getting local citizens to create a board and conduct meetings, and the end result will be voted up or down – and if passed, that will be the new normal. Bill Riddick (Babou Ceesay) has done this type of thing before, but never with a racially charged concept like school integration.

Ann Atwater is a natural choice to participate. C. P. Ellis hears about it, but at first he wants no part. But he gets friendly advice from the Durham Mayor (Bruce McGill) and a couple of council members. They want Ellis to make sure that the final vote goes the ‘right’ way. Ellis gets more advise from fellow Klan member Floyd (Wes Bentley) – get in there and keep and eye on things. Once the session begin, Ellis and Atwater find that they might have some more things in common than they first had realized.

The people of Durham are not ready to massive change, but they might be open to some adjustments here and there. Also, when a judge orders that the results of this ‘charrette’ must be followed, they all hope it will go all right. There is major destruction in the old school, and the Black youngsters only want a decent place to study and learn. Perhaps the White students that the school will also be able to learn, and this time it will be something outside of what is in a book. On the night of the final vote, there is a lot of worry and anxiety. There have been a few KKK members that strong-armed a couple of White people on the voting panel. They had better vote the ‘right’ way, or else something bad will happen. After all C. P. Ellis is there to make sure it all ends just right…

“The Best of Enemies” follows in line with a recent spate of very fine movies made about true events regarding racial inequality. “Green Book” and “BlacKKKlansman” and “Hidden Figures” are some other examples. This movie also has a fantastically talented cast. Sam Rockwell and Taraji P. Henson do a nicely nuanced portrayal of each historical real-life figure. The story does give the short-end to many of the Black people in the cast, with almost no back story or depth to those characters. Some of the White characters get slightly better treatment (more development), but not by much.

The whole idea of the ‘charrette’ is a unique way of proceeding with a touchy situation. But the biggest downfall is that it is difficult to turn into a compelling story-line. It is basically a bunch of people who go to a bunch of meetings to hash things out. That is the only trouble with this movie – the parts in the middle where it tends to drag along. Putting two great actors into the middle of a overly-long story cannot make it move any faster.

But there is a real true purpose to enjoy this movie – it makes you believe that people can reach inside themselves and find new ideas and better ways to deal with life.

Storm Boy Movie Review

April 2, 2019 (updated April 2, 2019) Published by JMcNaughton

“Storm Boy” is a new movie based on a 1963 book concerning a boy growing up in a wild section of Western Australia. There was a prior movie also created, so this is a reboot of that prior version. It is a coming-of-age story of a young boy who helps raise some orphaned pelicans back in the 1950’s. The shots of the ocean and the beach and the surrounding wildlife make up a large part of the allure of this movie. Also, the boy meets and befriends an older aboriginal native who is wise in the ways of nature and in the ways of the human heart. The story line moves from the present time back to flashbacks in the 50’s, where the majority of the plot unfolds.

In present day Adelaide (Australia), there is an older man named Michael Kingley (Geoffrey Rush) who is there to vote on a business deal. The deal is for his son (Erik Thomson), who has taken over Michael’s business now that he is retired. But the local folks do not what this deal to go thru, including Michaels’ grand-daughter Maddy (Morgana Davies). The sale of land to a mining company would ruin the land, they all say. The vote gets delayed, and Michael begins to tell Maddy of his childhood – which was near Coorong National Park. That is a home to a large pelican nesting ground.

The young Michael (Finn Little) lived a simple life with his fisherman father, called ‘Hideaway’ Tom (Jai Courtney). They lived in a small shack on the beach, across from the nature preserve. Tow would take his small boat to off shore a ways to fish. He would sell his fish in the ‘big’ city of Adelaide, and he would very often need to extend his credit with the local stores. But they all knew that Tom was good man, even if he did keep to himself. Tom was just not same after his wife and young daughter were killed in a freak auto accident

Michael meets an aboriginal man named Fingerbone Bill (Trevor Jamieson). Bill is very wise in the ways of the land and the ocean and the storms. When Bill meets Michael, a pelican has just been shot by hunters. That means a storm will be coming soon. And it does come, to drench the beach and the town. After that, Bill called Michael “Storm Boy”. The pelican mother that died left three orphan chicks, and Michael tries to raise all three of them. He calls them Mr Proud, Mr Ponder and Mr Percival. These little hatchlings grow until they eat most of the fish that Tom can bring home. So, when they are all grown up – they need to go.

Except that Mr Percival comes back, and he wants the easy life – not to fish for his own food. But there is a day when Tom is out on his little boat in a storm, and he becomes stranded. Michael and Fingerbone Bill find a way to get Mr Percival to fly out to Bill and drop a fishing line. The other end is connected to a stronger rope. Bill pulls the rope to himself, and then Michael and Bill haul him back onto land. The pelican has saved the day! Michael becomes a local hero, and Mr Percival is well known.

Michael grows up to build a huge empire, and now his son controls it. Michael and two of his old friends have enough control over the vote to postpone getting the deal put through. So the mining company will have to wait to tear up the land, or look elsewhere. But there is not much else to say about the plot, and the actual purpose is still unclear. Except that the photography and the visual vistas of the Western Australia are amazing to see. Even at a basic level, this movie is wonderful ad campaign for the tourist bureau in the Land Down-Under.

All the actors do a very reasonable job with the roles they have been given. The story is slow and there is not much in the way of plot movement. Young Michael never has a true antagonist – a person or thing that is against his. At times you think it could be the local hunters. Then you think is might be his father is against him. Then it almost turns into a movie where Nature is against him. But none of these actually follow through with being driving force for Michael.

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Dumbo Movie Review

March 29, 2019 (updated March 29, 2019) Published by Shari K. Green

‘Dumbo’ is the latest live-action remake of the Disney films. This 1941 animated classic gets a new look and feel by the genius mind of Tim Burton. ‘Dumbo’ wasn’t known as one of Disney’s most influential films, therefore, anything Tim Burton could add to the story would improve it significantly, and he does just that. Included in this retelling is the magic that makes you feel as if you’re watching an old-style Tim Burton movie. Maybe because he realized how important a story about elephants would be. With the circus industry taking a big hit because of animal abuse, especially toward the elephant, he had to send a strong statement that he wasn’t condoning harming animals. He does this several ways. He gives you characters that both charm and please you. With his ‘bad’ characters, he gives you cruelty but only in the realm of suggestions. There’s no genuine love for the circus whatsoever. This is clear from the beginning to the end. Especially the end, which you’ll appreciate dearly. The animals are all CGI and he makes a point to let you know his story is a love letter to animals if nothing else… especially to the beloved pachyderm.

With every Tim Burton film comes a land of wonder and excitement to explore but what also appears is a note of hard reality and a ruthless villain to wake you from any trance-like state you could be in from his breathtaking visuals. ‘Dumbo’ has similar elements with an actual ‘Dreamland’ to try and seduce you. This is where it seems its most Burton like. The film is seen mostly through the lens of the children which is good and bad as it doesn’t dig very deeply into the adult characters. To extend the length of the film, the original was only one hour and four minutes, Burton spun a yarn around a veteran and his children. Their mother has passed on, he was gone, and they were being raised on the road. They need to bond once again and become a family.

In the beginning, we meet Holt Farrier (Farrell) who was once a circus star and is now a war hero. After returning from war minus a limb, the owner of the circus he worked for, Max Medici (DeVito), rehires him to take care of the elephants. Holt’s two children are more than happy to help when the female elephant gives birth to a bright, blue-eyed bundle of… big ears?!? Max bought the mama knowing that a baby would bring people to see him but when he sees what he calls a freak, he wants ‘it’ and the mother gone… and his money back! Already struggling to make ends meet, he can’t afford more loss! As he stomps around, visibly angry, the mama gets very upset and goes ‘mad.’ He sells her, keeping her and her darling baby apart. The children see Dumbo breathe in a feather and sneeze wildly. When this happens, he flaps his ears and… and he flies! Good enough! When word of this gets out, an enthusiastic businessman named Vandevere (Keaton) talks Max into going into a partnership in his park called Dreamland; where they make the impossible, possible. He explains that the future of business isn’t to have you packing up and traveling for the audience. If the audience wants to see what you’ve got to offer, they’ll have to come to you. Keaton and DeVito. Batman and the Penguin. Together again. This will not get by the fans of the Burton directed, ‘Batman Returns.’ Nor will the appearance of Dreamland compared to that of Disneyland where they’re already selling Dumbo toys in the remarkably similar theme park.

Vandevere’s aerial artist, Colette Marchant (Green) sees that she and the little flying elephant can soar through the tent together and swoon the audiences below. Max closes his circus and joins Vandevere’s Dreamland, managing to keep his entire troupe together in the process. While traveling through Dreamland, you’ll see a somewhat spooky message about the 20th Century and about automation ‘helping’ humans. Watching the scene, I couldn’t help but think how spot on he is. It has helped. But are we the better for it? Is Max better for getting into business with a snake? Time will tell.

If you’re wondering why you should see this version of ‘Dumbo,’ Tim Burton is reason enough to attend, but he also brought along the magnificent Danny Elfman to score the film. Elfman’s arrangement for the ‘Pink Elephants on Parade’ is simply sublime. It’s quite distinctive from the original and the visuals are more low-key which I think may have been done so you could simply sit back and experience what Elfman offers your ears. The film is touching, it’s sweet and magical. This is imaginative but now that they’ve opened it up, I’d like to see Disney attack the subject of what elephants are facing today with one of their Disney Nature films. The truth of it needs to be treated with utmost urgency.

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Hotel Mumbai Movie Review

March 29, 2019 (updated March 25, 2019) Published by JMcNaughton

“Hotel Mumbai” is a ‘ripped from the headlines’ look at the 2008 terror attack in Mumbai, India. The carnage was vast, and no more so than at “The Taj Mahal” luxury resort in Mumbai. The hotel staff and guests were cut down and killed, without regard to nationality or status or wealth. The tension and fear that existed in that hotel for three days is recreated for the screen. It feels very much like “You Are There”, but in this case – you don’t want to be there! The attack turned “The Taj” into “The Grand Terrorist Hotel”.

The Taj staff is very dedicated to the client’s wants and needs. It is one of finest hotels and luxury resorts in the world. The head chef Hemant Oberoi (Anupam Kher) runs a very tight crew. One staff member is Arjun (Dev Patel) who is Sikh and wears the traditional beard and turban. Somes guest arrive that day including Vasili (Jason Isaacs), a wealth Russian with a secret background. Also coming in on that day were newly married David (Armie Hammer) and his Muslim wife Zahra (Nazanin Boniadi). They have a small newborn son, and they travel with a nanny named Sally (Tilda Cobham-Hervey). There are many guests and staff, and all are shocked when a small band of terrorists enter and take over the hotel.

The attackers have come from Pakistan, but they are with an international terrorist group. They have attacked the railway station, a hospital, a Jewish center, and several cafes. They get to the Taj Mahal, and then situation worsens. They have plenty of targets, and they are indiscriminate in who they kill. There are some people in the dinning room, including David and Zahra. Also, Vasili is in the dining room loudly discussing his later plans (and supposed sexual conquests) with several female escorts. Arjun is soon aware that the hotel is under attack. He leads a group into the back-kitchen area. Chef Oberoi allows any staff to leave and be with family – if they must. Then Oberoi leads the staff, including Arjun and the group from the dining room up to a secure room called The Chambers Room. This is a place with very heavy door and secure locks. Sally and the baby are alone in a hotel room, while terrorists roam the building shooting staff and guests.

There are very tense moments when roving gunmen get into the room with Sally and the baby. Will she be able to keep the infant quiet as they search the room for more victims? David is locked away in the secure Chambers Room, but he wants to leave to find Sally and the baby. Arjun meets up with a couple of police officers who want to access the monitors in the security room. He helps them out, and he also alerts his boss Oberoi that the gunmen are right outside the door in the Chambers Room. They all run and hide, and the Chambers Room door stays closed. Zahra and Vasili leave the secured room a little later, attempting to find a safe passage out to the safety of the streets. Zarha wants out because she does not know where her husband and her baby are located.

The local police are not in any position to take on the terrorists who roam the Taj hotel. They are in stand-down mode, until the National Anti-Terror squad comes into the city. Many persons lay dead or dying. There are random attacks still going on in the hotel, and most of the other terrorists have been killed or captured. Through several nights and day, the level of tension and terror increases. Several guests are taken hostage by the gunmen, perhaps for future ransom payment. Or more likely, it will be for future death in front of the hundreds of TV cameras focused on Mumbai.

“Hotel Mumbai” is a very detailed recreation of a terrorist tragedy. There are many deaths caused by a relative few people. The story is taut and very fast-paced. Any second a new danger could be found, and a life could be ended. It is a devastating thing to watch, because the stakes are so high. The motives of the terrorist group are somewhat explained, and they look to be more brainwashed youngsters rather than demonic monsters. But the way the movie is filmed and the level of the acting is so precise and accurate that it gives you chills seeing what is occurring. Can the nanny keep the baby quiet long enough to elude the gunmen? Can Arjun help the overwhelmed police officers, and can they help any of the guests? Can families be reunited, and can the guests and staff continue to work together to avoid discovery by the terrorists?

This movie is not for the faint-of-heart. It will not lead you a new and deeper understanding of world issues. But it shows you that many different people can stick together, and make sacrifices for others, when faced with a horrible situation. It is display of an real-life event, and it may feel a little too real to some people.

The Hummingbird Project (2018) Movie Review

March 22, 2019 (updated March 22, 2019) Published by Shari K. Green

‘The Hummingbird Project’ just has to based on a true story. It must have really happened. The setup, the punch, the end result. It has a name attached and everything! It’s real! That’s my story and I’m sticking– what?! It isn’t real?! Impossible. This felt so much like true events that I searched for information on its characters, hoping I’d find out more about them. But I was fooled. From what’s going on in the world today, plus such vivid details in the film, it felt like every bit of this happened in a story already forgotten amongst all the rest of how to get more money for ourselves and how to get it faster than anyone else. Oh, and of course, without regard to anyone or anything. Sure, the telling of two men managing to make digital information move faster, between the Kansas Electronic Exchange and New York Stock Exchange, than anyone else can seem exciting, but I assure you, it’s quite banal. The characters are not, however, which is why I can’t say this is one to skip.

Director Kim Nguyen uncovers for his audience how cutthroat a business the digital world has become. Vincent (Eisenberg) and Anton (Skarsgård) are cousins working in New York. They have a shared dream of building a line of fiber-optic cable from Kansas to New Jersey that would beat out the competition and give everyone using it a leg up on everyone else as far as digital information is concerned. Every millisecond counts, after all. If this procedure goes well, they will make millions. They’re the perfect team to get this done… on paper. They can talk a good game and do have the smarts but are impractical, even farcical when it comes to executing their own proposal. Vincent is a fast talker who’s, well, very much like Jesse Eisenberg but Anton is quite different. That difference is the story and, comparatively, quite appealing.

Vincent talks people out of their money to help the pair advance in their business. That’s what he does best. With the other side of his mouth, he can communicate to another person he’s taking advantage of, that if they help him, it’ll benefit them. It’s for the best if they give Vincent a piece of their property to dig under. Sure he may have to part with a few bucks, but in the end, Vincent comes out on top.

He too good at getting them everything they want that you know it’s too good to be true. Yep. He suddenly falls ill… leaving Anton. Anton is a special nerd who isn’t good on his own. He’s not the hustler Vincent is and when pressured tends to break down. They’re an unreliable team but if it wasn’t for their old boss, Eva Torres (Hayek), trying to stop them at every turn, they’d have gotten a lot further.

Eva is the powerful and manipulative trader at the top who lost Vincent and Anton as employees but will not lose her speed to them. What it comes down to is, they’re in way over their heads. Once they found out Eva was tipped off to what they were doing, maybe they should have gotten out of the pool.

Skarsgård was fantastic in this. He was comedic yet, simply… strange. This character is unlike anything he’s done before which is always a plus for any actor and certainly his audience. Eisenberg was incredible. I’ve yet to see him in anything I didn’t love him in. Here his performance is stirring and powerful. He nails the role every single time. And Hayek was strong in the devious, scheming administrative role that usually goes to a man. The film these actors were in together wasn’t quite as good as they were in their roles, but it was thought-provoking at times and an insanely deep ride to be on. Though it isn’t all that exciting, it does move at a pace that will keep you involved in the story to see it all play out. As I’ve stated though, it’s the list of well-chosen actors that will make you have to stay and see what would keep a man with stomach cancer from giving up his optic dreams. His idea is absurd. The logic behind it makes no sense. What’s a millisecond right? Thing is, apparently, to the stock market, it’s everything.

This film will be opening at Harkins Shea 14 this Friday, March 22nd.

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The Highwaymen Movie Review

March 22, 2019 (updated July 8, 2019) Published by Shari K. Green

Clever cinematography pulls you in but it’s the script that grabs and holds you. Very well written, ‘The Highwaymen’ resuscitates and retells us the story of Bonnie and Clyde from a different angle. Read more The Highwaymen Movie Review

The Aftermath Movie Review

March 22, 2019 (updated March 19, 2019) Published by JMcNaughton

“The Aftermath” proves that “War is Hell” – but also that “Love Ain’t Just a Stroll in the Park, Either”. Based on a novel of the same name, the movie explores the aftermath (duh!) of the Allied victory in Germany during World War II. But it has a laser focus on a couple who are having problems in their marriage, but the reasons and the solutions to these issues are magnified by the war setting. Hamburg has suffered from a huge bombing effort by the Allied forces. But when the British troops move into town, they displace the few people who still have housing that stands upright. This makes for a lot of animosity and hatred by the locals. There are searches and inquiries to find any Nazi sympathizers. There are Germans who just wanted the War to end – but now they have gotten their wish – and it is not all that it seems. The couple in the story must deal with past tragedy, and current temptations.

Rachael Morgan (Keira Knightley) is sent to Hamburg several months after the War has ended. She has missed her husband Lewis (Jason Clarke), who is still very active in the British Forces to handle the reconstruction of a devastated city. They have been apart for years, including the time when their young son died during The German Blitz on London. Rachael was heartbroken, and Lewis could not (or would not) even take leave from duty to attend the funeral. She expects that the two of them will be able to settle down together in this new place, so they can work out any differences. But that will not be the case for Rachael and Lewis. Rachael wants time to be with Lewis, so both of them can heal from their difficult past.

The British have taken over a large mansion outside of town. It is owned by German architect named Stefan Lubert (Alexander Skarsgård) and he lives there with his daughter. His wife was killed in the bombings, so he is distressed and forlorn. But he speaks perfect English, so that is why is can communicate with Rachael so well. Lewis allows Stefan and his daughter Freda (Flora Thiemann) to remain in the house, using the upper servant’s quarters. But Stefan has not been cleared by the British, so he has limited permissions to travel. Rachael is surprised that she and Lewis will be in this stranger’s house. But Lewis is called out on duty so often that he is seldom around. That leaves Rachael to ponder the past, and gaze upon the present – in the form of Stefan. There is an attraction that begins as a low-energy spark, but it soon engulfs both Rachael and Stefan in passionate flames.

Rachael and Stefan are playing a dangerous game, hiding a secret love affair from everyone around them. Freda, his daughter, is also toying with a crush of her own, but it is with a young underground Nazi sympathizer. Lewis is spending so much working in the Forces, so he can avoid the emotional pain of his son’s death. There is so much suppressed anger and rage. There is so much suppressed grief and sadness. There is so much suppressed logic, that in the last portion of the movie – many characters make choices that seem very different than what the story has led to, up to this point. Can a German widower run away and find happiness with a British woman who has lost her only child? Can the actions of a British officer make any difference to improve the impoverished lives of the German population? Can a movie that slowly unravels the three-way love triangle be any more glacial to reveal any more details? Can the ending be any more out-of-whack with all the things that happen before it?

Keira Knightley does a beautiful job portraying Rachael. It is unfortunate that the story jumbles up her actions right at the end. Alexander Skarsgård is also very good as Stefan Lubert – the lone German in Hamburg who can speak perfect English. Who would have known, right? Jason Clarke does fine, as his role does not ask him to do that much. However, the locations and set pieces are fabulous. The scenes of burnt-out buildings, and the sight of the Lubert mansion is very breath-taking. The post-WWII cars and fashions are right on the money. It is the attitudes and morals of the characters that seem out of step with the surroundings.

General William Tecumseh Sherman made the phrase “War is Hell” come alive in our culture. But this movie also shows you that Love is not that much easier…

In Phoenix area – playing exclusively at the Harkins Camelview

Five Feet Apart Movie Review

March 15, 2019 (updated March 13, 2019) Published by JMcNaughton

“Five Feet Apart” is a story of medically-crossed lovers. Like star-crossed lovers, they meet and fall in love, but something keeps them apart. In this movie, that something is cystic fibrosis, a degenerative lung condition that causes a person to slowly drown in their own excess fluids. It is not a laughing matter. Yet, there is enough hope in the young teenage girl and the slightly older teenage guy to think that this relationship might last. Because they both suffer from CF, those chances are not that good. They need to keep separated by at least six feet at all times. Or maybe five feet apart will do…

Stella Grant (Haley Lu Richardson) is a girl with CF who spends her days in the hospital. She is driven and focused, and her OCD issues keep her life in meticulous order. She must stay in the pediatric ward, even though she is nearly 18 years old. She has a loving mother and father, but illness puts a terrible strain on them. She had a loving older sister, who has passed away about a year ago. Stella makes it a point to visit the neo-natal unit often, because the premature babies give her hope and strength to keep on going. She has a friend in the ward named Poe (Moises Arias) who also has CF. He is just slightly younger than Stella, and they spend a lot time together, always at a safe distance apart.

One day a new CF patient comes in, and he is in a new drug trial case study. Will Newman (Cole Sprouse) has a severe case of CF, with a bacteria strain that is very hard to manage. He is there to test out a new drug, and to become a hot new thing in Stella’s life. Of course, she is ordered and measured – and he is older and more of a rebel. Whatever the doctors want from him, he is in no mood to comply. But he is smitten with Stella, and he has a desire to draw her. He sketches and does charcoal drawings and wants to draw the beauty of Stella. Stella, of course, will have none of that. Not unless Will changes and starts to fully get into his medical testing regimen.

Stella and Will can have no physical contact, yet the both of them have fallen deeply in love with the other. They do things with Poe, and always at a safe distance. The head nurse in the ward, named Barb (Kimberly Hebert Gregory) loves these kids – but she must be strict. She remembers other cases where CF patients found love in the hospital corridors, but then they took it too far. The other CF kids caught that bad bug from the other and both died. Barb states that it will not happen again “Not on my watch”. That is why Poe and Will and Stella still try to have fun without getting caught. Stella picks up a pool cue from the pool table. She decides that for her and Will – it is a good comprise. They will keep the distance of the cue stick – five feet apart.

But these are young adults with major medical issues. Sometimes, people die. There is sometimes hope for a lung transplant. But most times that will never come. Will’s disease is so bad that it is not even an option. So, they can live, and they can love, but they do not dare to touch or hug or kiss. It is a very difficult relationship at best. Will is about to turn eighteen, and when that happens – he can no longer be in the pediatric ward area. There are big changes in the air, and not all of them will make it. They will feel a great loss and want to ditch everything behind and try new paths. But that might not be the best way to go, when there is a potential for new lungs around the corner.

“Five Feet Apart” is a movie respectful of the pain and suffering of cystic fibrosis patients. It shows all the various difficulties that they endure, because of a bad gene that make their own body a slow death trap. The idea behind a hospital or sick bed romance is fine, but it is not new. See “The Fault in Our Stars” or “The Space Between Us” or “The Big Sick”, among others. The story and writing in this movie is fine, but tapers off a lot right at the ending. There are just too many things that happen that are against the character of Stella that we have seen so far. There is a sudden death, and midnight stroll and some close encounters with a frozen pond. It seems to throw out most everything that has guided Stella’s motives up to this point.

That being said, Haley Lu Richardson does a very splendid job in the role as Stella. She is weary from all her CF trials and tribulations, but she is not down hearted. She is still a positive and forward-looking girl. Cole Sprouse is also good. His role as Will gives him free range to pout and sneer a lot more. His character is much more fatalistic than Stella. He wants to think something good will come from it all, but he is not that hopeful. Moises Arias is very funny as Poe, who can turn being the ‘third wheel’ into a best adventure of a lifetime. He is great for that role and he makes for a great mutual friend for both Stella and Will..

The movie “Five Feet Apart” just might have a better tag line: “Better stay ‘Five Feet Apart’ if you don’t want to end up ‘Six Feet Under’…“

Category: Reviews