by
Julien Faddoul
1917 *
Two young British soldiers during the First World War are given a mission to deliver a message deep in enemy territory that will stop 1600 men, and one of the soldiers' brothers, from walking straight into a deadly trap.
A silly movie; one with such a stubborn fixation on its technical prowess (simulated to seem like one single take, as we move through intricately constructed sets) that any meaningful depiction of the horrors of WWI is completely lost. The experience becomes more akin to watching someone else play an adventure game, forbidden to ever operate the controls. Were its featherweight plot completely divorced from its central gimmick, no one would’ve given the film a second thought.
d – Sam Mendes
w – Sam Mendes, Krysty Wilson-Cairns
ph – Roger Deakins
pd – Dennis Gassner
m – Thomas Newman
ed – Lee Smith
cos – David Crossman, Jacqueline Durran
p – Sam Mendes, Callum McDougall, Pippa Harris, Jayne-Ann Tenggren
Cast: George MacKay, Dean-Charles Chapman, Mark Strong, Andrew Scott, Richard Madden, Claire Duburcq, Colin Firth, Benedict Cumberbatch
A Hidden Life **
An Austrian conscientious objector refuses to fight for the Nazis in World War II.
Prototypical Malickian storm of ruminative thoughts and feelings, with decidedly more of a dramatic structure than his last few films. As usual, the accenting of the natural word – as well as its extirpation – is never far.
wd – Terrence Malick
ph – Jörg Widmer
pd – Sebastian T. Krawinkel
m – James Newton Howard
ed – Rehman Nizar Ali, Joe Gleason, Sebastian Jones
cos – Lisy Christl
p – Grant Hill, Dario Bergesio, Elisabeth Bentley, Josh Jeter
Cast: August Diehl, Valerie Pachner, Michael Nyqvist, Matthias Schoenaerts, Jürgen Prochnow, Bruno Ganz, Alexander Fehling, Ulrich Matthes, Karl Markovics
Portrait of a Lady on Fire ***
On an isolated island in Brittany at the end of the 18th century, a female painter is obliged to paint a wedding portrait of a young woman.
Quietly intelligent repressed romance on the nature of gazing and the ambiguities of love and desire. Exquisite in its reconditioning of the viewer's eye; a kind of mix between Jane Campion and Jacques Rivette.
wd – Céline Sciamma
ph – Claire Mathon
pd – Thomas Grézaud
m – Jean-Baptiste de Laubier, Arthur Simonini
ed – Julien Lacheray
cos – Dorothée Guiraud
p – Bénédicte Couvreur
Cast: Noémie Merlant, Adèle Haenel, Luàna Bajrami, Valeria Golino
Just Mercy *
Civil rights defense attorney Bryan Stevenson works to free a wrongly condemned death row prisoner.
Stale courtroom drama based on true events that completely lacks subtlety but provides the occasional opportunity for its cast to exercise.
d – Destin Daniel Cretton
w – Destin Daniel Cretton, Andrew Lanham (Based on the Book by Bryan Stevenson)
ph – Brett Pawlak
pd – Sharon Seymour
m – Joel P. West
ed – Nat Sanders
cos – Francine Jamison-Tanchuck
p – Asher Goldstein, Gil Netter
Cast: Michael B. Jordan, Jamie Foxx, Brie Larson, O'Shea Jackson Jr, Rafe Spall, Rob Morgan, Tim Blake Nelson
Mob Town
Based on the true story of the notorious 1957 ‘mob summit’ in upstate New York, spearheaded by Vito Genovese,
Amateurish and banal mob movie, which derives all of its understanding of this society from other mob movies.
d – Danny A. Abeckaser
w – Jon Carlo, Joe Gilford
ph – Hernán Toro
pd – Eric Liebrecht
m – Lionel Cohen
ed – David Leonard
cos – Karen Young
p – Danny A. Abeckaser, Robert Ivker, Vince P. Maggio
Cast: David Arquette, Danny A. Abeckaser, PJ Byrne, Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Jennifer Esposito, Gino Cafarelli, Sasha Feldman, Anthony DeSando
Monos *
On a faraway mountaintop, eight kids with guns watch over a hostage and a conscripted milk cow.
Smart thematic ideas are presented here with oddly unimaginative direction, focusing instead of the soap-opera elements of the script. The plot ultimately becomes a melding of Lord of the Flies and Heart of Darkness, but with nothing of interest to say.
d – Alejandro Landes
w – Alejandro Landes, Alexis Dos Santos
ph – Jasper Wolf
pd – Daniela Schneider
m – Mica Levi
ed – Ted Guard, Yorgos Mavropsaridis, Santiago Otheguy
cos – Johanna Buendia, Daniela Schneider
p – Alejandro Landes, Fernando Epstein, Santiago A. Zapata, Cristina Landes
Cast: Moisés Arias, Julianne Nicholson, Sofia Buenaventura, Karen Quintero, Julian Giraldo, Laura Castrillón, Deibi Rueda, Paul Cubides, Sneider Castro, Wilson Salazar, Jorge Román
American Factory **
In post-industrial Ohio, a Chinese billionaire opens a factory in an abandoned General Motors plant, hiring two thousand Americans. Early days of hope and optimism give way to setbacks as high-tech China clashes with working-class America.
Blunt but not particularly bold fly-on-the-wall documentary that tries to cram too much thesis out of its subject, although there are intermittent moments of poignancy throughout. It also suffers from over-length.
d – Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert
ph – Steven Bognar, Aubrey Keith, Jeff Reichert, Julia Reichert, Erick Stoll
m – Chad Cannon
ed – Lindsay Utz
p – Steven Bognar, Julie Parker Benello, Jeff Reichert, Julia Reichert
Cast: N/A
Dolittle
A 19th century physician can talk to animals.
An embarrassing remake, heavy on CG and light on continuity, coherence and sanity, aimed at an underage demographic that no longer exists. Highly recommended to fans of the following: elaborate male eyeliner and moustaches, an all-star voice cast with zero distinctive personalities and an array of both humans and critters whom all speak with a perfect understanding of internet-style verbiage despite living under the reign of Queen Victoria.
d – Stephen Gaghan
w – Stephen Gaghan, Chris McKay, Thomas Shepherd (Based on the Character Created by Hugh Lofting)
ph – Guillermo Navarro
pd – Dominic Watkins
m – Danny Elfman
ed – Craig Alpert
cos – Jenny Beaven
p – Joe Roth, Jeff Kirschenbaum, Susan Downey, Jon Mone, Mark Layton
Cast: Robert Downey Jr, Antonio Banderas, Michael Sheen, Jessie Buckley, Jim Broadbent, Harry Collett, Emma Thompson, Rami Malek, John Cena, Kumail Nanjiani, Octavia Spencer, Tom Holland, Craig Robinson, Ralph Fiennes, Selena Gomez, Marion Cotillard, Carmen Ejogo, Frances de la Tour, Ralph Ineson
Underwater
A crew of aquatic researchers work to get to safety after an earthquake devastates their subterranean laboratory.
Another in the line of lean, dopey scarefests that take place in claustrophobic spaces with very low lighting, and no first act. A troubled post-production process caused by the acquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney delayed its release by 3 years.
d – William Eubank
w – Brian Duffield, Adam Cozad
ph – Bojan Bazelli
pd – Naaman Marshall
m – Marco Beltrami, Brandon Roberts
ed – Brian Berdan, William Hoy, Todd E. Miller
cos – Dorotka Sapinska
p – Peter Chernin, Tonia Davis, Jenno Topping
Cast: Kristen Stewart, Vincent Cassel, Mamoudou Athie, TJ Miller, John Gallagher Jr, Jessica Henwick, Gunner Wright, Fiona Rene, Amanda Troop
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