Directed by: Peter Farrelly
Written by: Brian Hayes Currie, Peter Farrelly, Pete Jones
Starring: Zac Efron, Russell Crowe, Jake Picking, Will Ropp, Archie Renaux, Kyle Allen
Rated: R
Run Time: 2h 6m
Genres: Drama, War
Produced by: David Ellison, Dana Goldberg, Don Granger, Andrew J. Muscato, Jake Myers
Elvis the Pelvis (Sorry! Had to go there since I didn’t in my review) was an impressive talent. The film, though dressing up his life a bit more than it probably was, does a good job of showing you just how monumental of a talent he was. It also shows us how terrible someone who was supposed to care for him and his career, Colonel Tom Parker (Hanks), could be. He put all of his trust in Parker but was treated so terribly that you’re shocked Elvis did as well as he did. In this biopic, you see that Elvis (Butler), for the most part, did as he was told. When other people finally came into his life, he matured and started to make his own path.
Luhrmann doesn’t hold anything back, focusing on what others never really have. He shines a light on the racism of the day and hones in on the fact that African Americans taught Elvis everything did. Growing up in the ghetto, he learned everything about singing and dancing from studying the black members of the local church. He then cultivated a style that would later move people to tears. A lot of folks believe that Elvis didn’t give them enough credit and should have. From watching the film, this could have been a decision made by Parker but not having that knowledge, I couldn’t say for sure. Parker was a compulsive gambler and a jerk to anyone who questioned him, so I can see that being the case.
Regardless, there is a lot to see in “Elvis” and a lot to discover, fan or not. I believe that if you’re a millennial or younger and or not a fan, after watching this, you’ll be digging into your parents’ and grandparents’ music collections and hearing what you’ve missed. Also, Butler’s performance is uncommonly good, which matches his beautiful face that’s irregularly close to the man he’s depicting for you. Academy Awards for all!
Created by: Tony Gilroy
Starring: Diego Luna, Genevieve O’Reilly, Stellan Skarsgård, Adria Arjona, Denise Gough, Kyle Soller and Fiona Shaw
Rated: TV-14
Genres: Action, Drama, Adventure
Starring: Kevin Hart, Mark Wahlberg, Regina Hall, Luis Gerardo MĂ©ndez, Jimmy O. Yang
Additional Cast: John Amos, Anna Maria Horsford, Andrew Santino, Deborah S. Craig, Naomi Ekperigin, Drew Droege, Ilia Isorelýs Paulino, Tahj Mowry, Carlo Rota, Che Tafari, Amentii Sledge
Rated: R
Genre: Comedy
Written and Directed by: John Patton Ford
Starring: Aubrey Plaza, Theo Rossi, Megalyn Echikunwoke, and Gina Gershon
Rated: R
Run Time: 1h 33m
Genres: Crime, Thriller, Drama
Directed by: Agnieszka Smoczynska
Written by: Andrea Seigel (screenplay), Marjorie Wallace (book)
Starring: Letitia Wright, Tamara Lawrance
Rated: R
Run Time: 1h 53m
Genre: Drama
Distributor: Focus Features
Original Language: English
Directed by:Â Julius Avery
Written by:Â Bragi F. Schut
Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Javon “Wanna” Walton, Pilou Asbæk, Dascha Polanco, Moises Arias
Genres: Action, Thriller
Rated: PG-13 for strong violence and strong language
Producers:Â Sylvester Stallone, p.g.a., Braden Aftergood, p.g.a.
Executive Producers:Â Bragi F. Schut, David Kern, Adam Rosenberg, Guy Riedel
Starring: All-star voice cast with Ewan McGregor as Cricket, David Bradley as Geppetto, and introducing Gregory Mann as Pinocchio. Other cast includes Finn Wolfhard, Academy Award® winner Cate Blanchett, John Turturro, Ron Perlman, Tim Blake Nelson, Burn Gorman, with Academy Award® winner Christoph Waltz and Academy Award® winner Tilda Swinton.Â
Producers: Guillermo del Toro, Lisa Henson (Jim Henson Company), Gary Ungar, Alex Bulkley, and Corey Campodonico (Shadow Machine)
