I can’t believe it, I’m losing to a rug
- Robin Williams: Come Inside My Mind (2018): I just don’t trust people who feel nothing when watching Robin Williams. The man put everything in his performances, he was so committed that it hurt to think about what was going on inside, especially knowing the drug use of his younger days. This HBO docu is a joyous elegy to the man, and although it doesn’t tread far into the unknown, it still manages to paint a comprehensive portrait the funny man. His death, now four years away, still feels raw – as raw as any movie stars dying can feel. The documentary comes to emphasize the age-old-adage: that the truest tragedy lies within comedy. 8/10
Should you choose to accept it
- Mission Impossible: Fallout (2018): Every time I see Tom Cruise and it dawns upon me that he’s only a couple of years younger than my dad, a shiver goes down my spine. Somehow, Cruise went beyond his scientology blemishes and still manages to rock some of the most hardcore action characters Hollywood has to offer. His ‘all-in’ mentality translates well on film, and the broken ankle he suffered while filming MI:F is a testament to the guy’s dedication. The movie itself is ‘adrenaline fueled’ as the kids like to say nowadays, about as good as a pure action flick can get. The set-pieces are incredible, with director McQuarrie capturing it all with flair. Strong co-stars bring appeal and levity to the leg banging. 8/10
Hey! I quoted this in my book.
- On Chesil Beach (2017): When you finally read one of the many books you aimed to read come new-year, and you then find out they’re making a movie based on it, watching it becomes a must. Even if you didn’t quite enjoy the book to begin with. On Chesil Beach is the tragic love-story of two unfortunate and inexperienced newly weds, who are as foreign to love and love-making as can be. But that’s how we it used to be done back in those days – settle for the first man/woman that you’re socially compatible with. Unfortunately, the whole affair is slow and fails to capture the raw disgust that Florence felt when faced with sexual intimacy. That’s a big thing, because it was the most redeeming aspect of the book. You’re left with some greater social construct considerations to contemplate, but it’s at the end of an anguishing movie. At least I came out of it knowing how to pronounce Saoirse Ronan’s name, so that’s something. 5/10
Oh, perfect father-daughter relationship starring Kristen Bell, where hast thou gone?
- Like Father (2018): This less pretentious Netflix movie starring Kristen Bell and Kelsey Grammer banks on the appeal of its leads and cashes in. Somewhat. Bell plays a workaholic who ruins her own wedding and then reconnects with her estranged father on what should have been the honeymoon of anyone’s dreams. It’s not an ambitious feature, yet it plays well enough to be enjoyable in its major parts. Don’t expect any surprises, just a mild morality tale about the life you never had. 6/10
A harrowing ‘tradition’
- Tower (2016): To be fair, I did make some acclaimed choices this week. Tower is a partly animated documentary that retells the tragic hours that marked the university of Texas in 1966, when a sniper killed sixteen people who were just minding their own business. I’m not sure if this was the first of the many mass shootings that occurred in the US, but it sure shaped the public frame of mind. The movie patches together and reenacts recollections of the day from survivors (mostly), and although it starts out slowly, by the end you’re going to feel that emotional punch. The whole situation is everything the US and Texas is about, as vigilante gunman encircled the tower to take down the shooter – Charles Whitman, a former UoT student. Interestingly, a tumor was found inside Whitman’s brain at the autopsy (spoiler alert – he dies), and it has been suggested this might have been a contributing factor to his violent impulses. Maybe a movie for another day, as this one made no concessions at all for the state of the shooter, focusing rather on the manner in which the bystanders reacted to this unimaginable situation. 8/10
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