Downton Abbey: If You're a Fan of the Series You'll Love the Movie

Movie Review: Downton Abbey (2019)
Version: Library borrow

If you enjoyed the television version of Downton Abbey, how could you not love the movie version? It includes all the lovable and not-so-lovable characters but without the week-long wait for the story to continue. And with the back story already established, all you really need is to sit back and watch the action unfold -- well, action in a British soap opera unfolding with the speed of mold growing kind of way.

My wife is a big fan of Downtown Abbey. I'm not especially so. However, I found it interesting to look in and see what the Crawley family and their staff have been up to while the rest of the world has been spinning around this vaster, faster globe. And it really didn't disappoint. The main plot involved a visit by King George V (Simon Jones) and Queen Mary (Geraldine James), which of course has the whole family, the whole staff, and the whole town in a stitch of excitement. Subplots include the intrigue of competition between the abbey staff and the royal staff serving the royals and a big to-do between cousin Maud (Imelda Staunton) and the earl's mother Violet (Maggie Smith) involving the passing on of the family fortune to her maid instead of to the earl. And then there's the matter of the disquiet caused by republican voices during the royal visit, which brings unrest and a secret plot.

Avid fans of the series should feel well sated by the great cast, the bucolic scenery, and the British sensibility. If you're new to the story lines, well, be warned: It's much ado about tradition, classism, and resistance to change even facing the advancing modern times. Still, who can resist the irritable Maggie Smith always getting the best lines.

Downton Abbey will likely warm your heart on a cold winter's night or cool your heels if you're caught out on a hot spring evening. Give everything a rest and ooze into the drama with a cup of tea or a glass of wine or perhaps a sip of brandy and let the Crawley family take the worries out of your day.

The Good Liar: A Different Kind of Whodunnit

Movie Review: The Good Liar (2019)
Version: Library borrow

The Good Liar surprised me. I thought it was a story about a grifter trying to con a lovely elderly lady who would grow to love her and find romance in old age. It turned out to be quite a different kind of story -- a whodunnit with a twist -- and a good one at that.

Oh, Roy Courtnay (Ian McKellen) is a grifter, indeed. He starts right out from the beginning showing us how he interests his targets into the con, then brilliantly cheats them out of it. Vincent (Jim Carter) is his accomplice. But Betty McLeish (Helen Mirren) is something altogether different. She seems innocent enough in her unremarkable beige retirement flat, eagerly sharing her home with the occasionally gimpy Roy and falling in love, letting slip details of her savings of around 500,000 pounds, and defending him from the suspicions of her protective grandson Stephen (Russel Tovey), who is skeptical of Roy's admiration and intentions. But the story takes a strange turn when Roy invites his financial adviser Vincent who augustly suggests they share an investment account. At first Betty is reluctant to go in together, but Roy shows his trust in her and invests all his 7 million-plus pounds of funds into the account and so she equally throws in her 3 million-plus pounds in and it seems like a shared account made in heaven. Until it isn't.

It is here that the story takes on twists and turns and a dark side you won't see coming. Some of the plot is a bit hard to swallow. But if you will suspend your disbelief for just a short while longer, and trust the writer and director and actors a tiny bit more, you will enjoy the outcome, I assure you.

As a British film, The Good Liar will take its sweet time getting to the end. As with most British films it is slight on the flash and heavy on the characters. McKellen and Mirren have been charming audiences in major roles for decades. They are in their finest in these roles as two masterful foes one against the other and, finally, in a charade against the expectations of the audience here. This is a whodunit where no one gets killed and the big question is, who eventually will be had? You won't see it coming till the end. But it's worth the wait.

I wouldn't say this is a must-see film, but I would say The Good Liar is a worth-see. Good family entertainment for older teens and up who like mysteries with a bit of cheeky fun.

Troop Zero: Fun Family Scouting Romp

Movie Review: Troop Zero (2019)
Version: Amazon Prime

Rag-tag team. Group of misfits with a dream. Underdogs. You name the euphemism for a group of kids who are set up to never fit in and that describes Troop Zero. But you come to love them and root for them as they latch on to Miss Rayleen (Viola Davis) as their scout leader in pursuit of badges and jamboree honors -- so Christmas Flint (McKenna Grace) can realize her dream of having her voice on NASA's gold record to be sent out into space. That's the main plot of this uneven family comedy about kids fighting economic inequality in the deep south, poking fun at lots of cultural stereotypes at the same time.

The name Troop Zero comes from the only number left in a town full of Birdie scout troops all competing for jamboree honors. It also fits the town's attitude toward the disadvantaged individuals in the troop, all who come from the poorer side of town, led by Christmas who lives with her single dad, a hopelessly loser lawyer down on his abilities and his ambitions. Christmas gathers the minimum number of scouts for her troop from among the sordid kids she plays with or who pick on her, including downer Hell-No Price (Milan Ray). To fill out the crew, they must finally bring in Christmas's best friend, sports-unfriendly boy-suspected-of-being-a-girl Joseph (Charlie Shotwell) -- well, nothing in the rules say a boy can't be a Birdie scout! There, and a few more rangy, gangly, untalented kids, is your troop.

Their main opponent is Miss Massey (Allison Janney), a miss-goody-two-shoes whose own daughter is in the forever-winning troop. Miss Massey fights the entry of Troop Zero but eventually gives in, sure the misfits will never fit in and never amount to much (said with a too-sweet southern drawl). But just to show them she's right, she "helps" them get started. And so, the battle between Miss Massey and Christmas Flint ensues.

The Troop Zero kids' families take interest and support builds as the kids begin earning badges and the kids form friendships and a sense of team. Even Hell-No. By the end of the movie, even Miss Massey feels a sense of admiration. You will, too. You'll even enjoy a lot of laughs, often at the expense of Miss Massey and her too-perfect kids.

Viola Davis shines as the reluctant and exasperated scout leader, Allison Janney is delicious as the scheming protective scout master. But the one who makes the movie is McKenna Grace, who is cute and energetic and winsome in every way as the eager child with stars in her eyes. Milan Ray is a lot of fun as the street bully turned team player.

Troop Zero reminds me a lot of Because of Winn-Dixie (2005) and McKenna Grace reminds me a lot of AnnaSophia Robb, who played Opal in it. In some ways, she also reminds me of a very young Dakota Fanning. Let's hope we see a lot more of her in future films.

This is mostly a kid's film, but it makes for a great family movie. It's rated PG for thematic elements, language, and smoking throughout. Everyone camp out together over a fun scouting romp.

Last Flag Flying: Angry...Sad...Hilarious, Yet Moving -- Well Done!

Movie Review: Last Flag Flying (2017)
Version: Amazon Prime

An at times angry, at times sad, often hilarious yet moving script, with superb acting, and a compelling story make Last Flag Flying a must-see evening watch. Watch out for the adult language, however.

This is the story of a Vietnam veteran asking his distant war buddies to accompany him to receive the return of his son's dead body from service in the Iraq War. Along the way they recount their life journeys since parting after their own war struggles and come to terms with the realities of war today as they discover the son's demise in Iraq isn't what they were first told.

I can't imagine a finer ensemble cast for this film. Steve Carell plays Larry "Doc" Shepherd, the distraught father. Bryan Cranston plays Sal Nealon, the off-his-rocker and say-it-straight foul-mouthed bar owner with too many demons to live a constrained life. And Laurence Fishburne plays Reverend Richard Mueller, the saved-by-Christ hellbender who keeps everything real. Rounding out the cast are J. Quinton Johnson as Washington, the son's best friend who accompanies the body home, and Yul Vazquez as Colonel Willits, who serves as the foil for everyone's anger. Together, they explore every possible emotion dredged up from both the Vietnam and Iraq wars, the injustices of war, the idiocies of chance, and the sorrows of life.

This film took us through the complete range of emotional experiences. It starts out slow and somber and quiet, but throughout it escalates through periods of piqued anger and raucous humor and teary-eyed sadness, even irritation and desperation. But having gone through these peaks and valleys, you will have enjoyed the experience because it will have been a journey taken with these characters, experienced with them, through their eyes, the more real because the actors brought them to life. Watch for an exceptionally poignant scene, a turning point, with actress Cicely Tyson, that makes you catch your breath it is so well played out. Won't spoil it here.

I didn't care for the lighting or the cinematography. It looked cheaply done. But this is totally a character-driven film. They spent their budget on the script and the acting. And it shows. Well done.

The Only Living Boy in New York: A Sophisticated and Complex Film

Movie Review: The Only Living Boy in New York (2017)
Version: Amazon Prime

A fine cast, a sophisticated and complex plot, and a superb plot twist at the end make The Only Living Boy in New York a great evening view any time. Its artistic, indie-film feel added weight to its story-telling depth. It has elements of mystery, although it definitely isn't a mystery. It has elements of suspense, although it definitely isn't a suspense or thriller story. Instead, The Only Living Boy in New York fits somewhere in between in its own genre and is entertaining in its own right.

Thomas Webb (Callum Turner) is an unrequited author who can't find his bearings as a writer in New York City and instead makes a living tutoring Spanish students. His father Ethan (Pierce Brosnan) runs a publishing house and can't seem to run through enough road blocks to guide his son in the right direction, although there is a definite conflict of personality between them. In between is wife and mother Judith (Cynthia Nixon), who suffers from acute bipolar depression and can't be upset at the least interruption in life without going off the deep end. And then there is Ethan's colleague and side love interest Johanna (Kate Beckinsale), who is a rock of stability for Ethan and a focus of obsession for Thomas. In steps newcomer W.F. (Jeff Bridges), a prolific but unsteady author who adopts Thomas as a friend and life mentor and, frankly, observer. It seems no one in this story is who he or she seems as the story unfolds, and by the story's end I promise you all your assumptions will lie as shards of broken glass on the floor. But that's OK because the journey and picking up the pieces at the end will have been worth it.

I have found over the past decade that Pierce Brosnan's characters were over reaches -- not so in this film. He's well suited to portray Ethan Webb, conflicted father. Too, I've tired of Jeff Bridges' characters who are pretty much the same stereotypes of the western sheriff or down-and-out but wise western hand turned hero -- always the same guy, different outfit. Not so in this film. He's well suited to portray W.F. Gerald, author in search of the unique story and finding a surprise. Now, he's always playing the laid-back, drinking, stogie-smoking old guy you want to pull up a chair to share a beer with, and that's him here, too. But now he tosses the ten-gallon hat, western attire, and beard and even gets a hair cut. Actually, I enjoyed both actors' performances in The Only Living Boy in New York.

This film has the smart sophistication of a Woody Allen art film but without the comedic touches. It also has the suspense of a good spy film or thriller but without the flashy chase scenes and gadgets. It's a film for the mind and the soul. And for all that, it's a good film that teases the intellect. Our whole family enjoyed it. I think your family might enjoy it, too, as a breath of fresh cinematic air.

Cold Pursuit: Go Along for the Joy Ride, Not the Sizzle

Movie Review: Cold Pursuit (2019)
Version: HBO subscription

"A grieving snowplow driver seeks out revenge against the drug dealers who killed his son." - IMDb

That's putting it mildly. Think John Wick with a snowplow. Slower paced but with the same menace. And with way more tongue in cheek, making this film a wild ride with a sense of humor. Watch it now, before the snow really builds up this winter, because you're gonna hate snow by the end of this movie (the red of blood does provide some relief).

Liam Neeson and Laura Dern (briefly) head the cast, most of which don't last long enough to get your notice. And this film is pretty standard fare for Neeson, just the jokes are different and are worth watching out for. They actually punctuate the film like chapter breaks in a novel. Watch out you don't stub your toe tripping over some of them, although they are funny.

Just so you know the story line, Nels Coxman is a snowplow driver who clears the roads in the Colorado high country. His son is killed by drug dealers, innocently caught up in a misdeed by a co-worker who is running from the dealers whom he owes money. Nels gets the name of one of the dealers and finds him, then so begins his journey of revenge against a slew of slimy underworld characters ascending the crime organization in Denver to its top, while still keeping his work hours. Now, Coxman is no professional hitman, but this crime organization is big on ego and short on smarts, allowing Coxman to almost always get the best of them, and when he doesn't he still manages to beat them.

Cold Pursuit has the look and feel of a quality independent film with soul and solid storytelling, even if it doesn't feature dozens of big stars and big effects. Go along for the joy ride, not for the sizzle.

Highly recommend. Four !!!!s out of five. Saw Cold Pursuit on a Saturday night, perfect weekend evening movie after a full day of football.

Tolkien: Exceptional Storytelling

Movie Review: Tolkien (2019)
Version: Library Blu-Ray

Much was written about the early life of fantasy author J.R.R. Tolkien, but not much has been told in film. The 2019 film Tolkien brings to life his struggles and triumphs as an orphan and prodigy of language and the arts in early 20th century England and the imagination that brought him to write two of the world's most beloved stories in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.

As a young boy, John Ronald Reuel (J.R.R.) Tolkien and his younger brother Hilary would lose both their father and mother and be sent to live with relatives and then a boarding house to grow up. Their legal guardian was a kindly Catholic priest named Father Francis, who shepherded their upbringing and quality education. Tolkien takes us through those cold, difficult days, and the part camaraderie played in building Tolkien's imagination and the appreciation of friendship and fellowship that would become key themes in his books. He struggled to pass his exams to earn scholarships and just as he was about to attach himself to an esteemed professor of language, The War to End All Wars (World War I) erupted and Tolkien found himself on the front lines in Europe, where his experiences fueled many of his visions for the horrors of battle for his stories. Of course, he returned after the war to become a professor of philology and write his books. Many of his friends did not make it through the war, providing grist for his tales as well. 

Tolkien is a rugged, ambitious telling of Tolkien's early life and a celebration of language and storytelling. The action is vivid, its settings are breathtaking, and the characters are heartwarming, making for brilliant film making and the story memorable. So, too, the imagery is evocative. The film does Tolkien himself proud. Harry Gilby is excellent as young J.R.R. and Nicholas Hoult is devout as his adult self. Colm Meany was wonderful as Father Francis. They lead a great cast. As a steadfast Tolkien fan, I found the film Tolkien exceptional.