Movie Review: The Truffle Hunters (2020) on Hulu and Starz 👍
The Truffle Hunters is a documentary style foreign film with subtitles that explores the lifestyles of the 70- and 80-year-old men of Piedmont, Italy, who hunt the rare and expensive white Alba truffle with their close friends, family dogs. (See the movie trailer below.)
Film follows the day and night exploits of several experienced scavengers. Shows the love and frustrations of supplying the cultural and epicurean interests of this delicacy. Features an interesting assortment of colorful local and regional characters fighting the battle to protect personal property rights and hunting sites from those who invade them for community and profit. You'll see why truffles are so expensive.
Offers good insight into one of Europe's finer gourmet food delicacies and the hunt to preserve their heritage. Highly recommended view.
Julian Stockin's 25th in the Thomas Kydd series, Yankee Mission, is another in the brilliant historical fiction age-of-sail adventure series.
There's not a bad moment in this narrative, which begins with a battle in the North American seas to save the British Navy's reputation against America's increasingly successful frigate campaigns versus the far more seasoned English. Captain Sir Thomas Kydd rejoins the Tyger crew, but he's wounded in battle and must convalesce back at home. There, the Admiralty finds him work proofing untested new technology for the British Navy, and he tries to learn a new lifestyle away from life at sea to which he's become accustomed. You'd be surprised what we take for granted today that needed to be concept tested before adoption in Kydd's day.
Then the Americans come after British merchant ships along native ports and once Kydd has restored his good health, he joins another fighting British frigate to chase down the mischief makers. But the chasing takes them across the Atlantic, south to the bitter cold waters of the Antarctic, and then up into the Pacific tracking down the enemy. There he finds a former American ally as a formidable foe and crew that will test his own considerable skills. The journey and battle is great storytelling, as always.
All of Stockwin's books are well researched, adding authenticity to his exciting tales. Available as hardcover, Kindle, or audiobook.
Movie Review: The Estate (2022) on Hulu and Prime Video 👎
I find The Estate, rated R, gross humor with explicit sexual situations and rampant foul language. Definitely not for the whole family. (See movie trailer below.)
Two sisters with a failing low-end restaurant on the wrong side of the tracks (it literally sits on the dilapidated side of the railroad tracks) rush to the side of their dying aunt's side in the hope of earning the inheritance of her estate. However, they find when they get there they aren't the only ones vying for the huge prize. Everyone has something at stake and no one is about to give up as the battle to win as the aunt's favorite relative heats up. Cast of very strange characters, none in the family with socially redeeming qualities.
Not a bad cast, but it seems like a waste of their talents. Some laughs, if you can get past the awkwardness of some of the situations and the language. I'm not a prude, but this goes overboard.
Not surprising, The Estate grossed very poorly worldwide, according to IMDb.com. I'd skip it.
Are superhero sports heroes your thing? Maybe you prefer an everyday anti-hero who rises to the occasion despite his shortcomings to succeed beyond his wildest dreams. That's the story behind The Phantom of the Open. (See the movie trailer below.)
The Phantom of the Open is based on a true story. Maurice Flitcroft (Mark Rylance) is a British crane operator about to lose his job to nationalization. When teased about transitioning to his dream job, all he can think of is winning the British Open Championship, although he's never played golf in his life. Still, the alure of living the lavish lifestyle seems dreamy and it becomes his obsession.
Everyone in the family is smitten with his obsession, too. His wife Jean (Academy Award Winner Sally Hawkins) helps him send in the qualification round forms. Step son Michael (Jake Davies), who is part of the management team negotiating nationalizing the company, helps his step dad get the equipment, clothes, and sponsorships befitting his entry. And twin sons Gene (Christian Lees) and James (Jonah Lees) volunteer to be his caddies. Everything feeds his obsession and his self-overconfidence heading into the championship.
Mark Rylance often plays self-deprecating characters and Maurice Flitcroft fits this role perfectly. Although he falsely poses as a professional player it is out of ignorance, and he displays no false sense of acumen. From the first shot to the last, he gives each his best shot. It's not long before everyone around him realizes he's not a golf pro and he hasn't qualified.
But that's not the finish of Maurice's dream. Although he's been banned from the British Open Championship forever and from joining any clubs, he keeps trying, thinking surely with enough practice he will get better. Wearing disguises he re-applies each year to try once again.
Just when he's about to give up, he receives good news from an entirely unexpected place. A golf club in the United States is so inspired by his high score that first year and his perseverance, they offer to pay all expenses for his whole family to visit so they can celebrate him. (I had never heard of this before, but this was in my own backyard! It took me watching this film to find out. What a great suprise!)
The family and community had practically disowned Maurice after his disgraceful performance, but this celebration helped them see Maurice in an entirely new light. The uplifting end and humor in this story make it a great family film with a good message and good feels.
Movie Review: The Duke (2022) on Apple TV and Prime Video 👌
The Duke (2022), is a quirky yet charming British film with an interesting cast headed by veteran actors Jim Broadbent and Helen Mirren. They make this film. (See trailer below.)
Mirren is Dorothy, the forbearing wife always at odds with Broadbent. Broadbent is Kempton, the never-produced script writer who fills his time barking at street corners for personal rights, when he stumbles into possession of a government work of art. Suddenly he's focused on how to make something of his possession without getting into trouble, with Dorothy (who doesn't know he has it) and the bumbling government (who thinks professional art thieves have it).
And when things get too hot around the house, where he's hidden it just under Dorothy's nose, Kempton decides it's best to simply return the work to the government. And that's where things actually turn interesting. He gets his opportunity to bark for personal rights in court, and he gets to charm the pants off the jury with his humor and common sense, when sage and wisdom will do his self most good. Broadbent shines here.
The Duke is based on a true story. It would have been interesting to see it play out in real life.
