Amanda's Picks
December 1, 2022 at 12:12 p.m.
Amanda's Picks
By Amanda [email protected]
Let’s be honest, it’s tough to tell one Liam Neeson rogue hero action flick from another. Our hero has suffered loss so he’s overly protective of the family he has left. He doesn’t play by the rules. He has “a unique set of skills” and the younger bad guys always make the big mistake of thinking he’s an old guy who’s not much of a threat.
Blacklight (PG-13)
Since they’ve run out of all the good titles, now I’m pretty sure they’re just picking words out of a hat. The most recent is Blacklight which is available on Epix. This time Neeson is Travis Block (of course he is), a special agent involved in shadowy shenanigans. After a bunch of ludicrosities (actual word) Travis comes to the realization that his boss and friend (Aidan Quinn) isn’t a great guy and MUST BE STOPPED. Meanwhile, the intrepid reporters we come to count on in these movies, are on the case. Blacklight (seriously where did they get that title?) delivers on all Liam levels; car chases, guns, sweet family moments, bad-guy comeuppance. “If it ain’t broke…”
2.5 out of 5 stars.
Since they’ve run out of all the good titles, now I’m pretty sure they’re just picking words out of a hat. The most recent is Blacklight which is available on Epix. This time Neeson is Travis Block (of course he is), a special agent involved in shadowy shenanigans. After a bunch of ludicrosities (actual word) Travis comes to the realization that his boss and friend (Aidan Quinn) isn’t a great guy and MUST BE STOPPED. Meanwhile, the intrepid reporters we come to count on in these movies, are on the case. Blacklight (seriously where did they get that title?) delivers on all Liam levels; car chases, guns, sweet family moments, bad-guy comeuppance. “If it ain’t broke…”
2.5 out of 5 stars.
Don’t Worry Darling (R)
By the time the stylized psychological thriller Don’t Worry Darling hit movie theaters and now HBO, it was already a social media sensation due to Director/star Olivia Wilde’s messy split from Jason “Ted Lasso” Sudekis and subsequent relationship with co-star Harry Styles.
The film is absolutely gorgeous in a Mad Men on steroids way. I found the first 10 minutes of Don’t Worry Darling more visually appealing than any three-hour Marvel movie. With her second film, Wilde delivers a stunning vision, backed by a creative team of next-level cinematography and production design, and a soundtrack of expertly curated 50s pop songs. By the time the stylized psychological thriller Don’t Worry Darling hit movie theaters and now HBO, it was already a social media sensation due to Director/star Olivia Wilde’s messy split from Jason “Ted Lasso” Sudekis and subsequent relationship with co-star Harry Styles.
Florence Pugh is Alice, a housewife in 1950s Victory, CA, a company town where the men work on a secret project and the women stay home and make dinner, under orders to never venture to “headquarters.” After witnessing a small plane crash, Alice wanders off and stumbles upon headquarters, and after that things go a bit wonky. Alice experiences hallucinations, attempts suicide and figures out something is very wrong about Victory.
Don’t Worry Darling draws on The Stepford Wives, Rosemary’s Baby and The Truman Show. As with many visually arresting films, the attention to look takes away from emotional connection to the characters. It is Pugh’s magnetic, powerful performance that draws us in. She carries the movie from the color-splashed beginning to the twisty end. Styles, as her husband Jack, is fine but can’t keep up. Wilde has one powerful scene toward the end, and Chris Pine as Victory’s boss, is excellent as the enigmatic and cultish leader of Victory. I had no problem with the controversial ending and while the screenplay is a bit convoluted, its underlying theme of female submission and empowerment is compelling.
3.5 out of 5 stars.
Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, on the Roku Channel
It is fitting that Yankovic who became famous for his music parodies including “Like A Surgeon,” “Eat It” and “Amish Paradise,” would turn his life story into a parody of the movie biopic.
Weird takes the basics of Yankovic’s story, a young boy gets an accordion, writes songs, gets his big break from radio host Dr. Demento, and goes on to sell millions of albums, and goes to town. Yankovic (Daniel Radcliffe) takes on every biopic cliche there is, caring mother and abusive father, a lucky break that leads to instant fame and living large, alcohol abuse, and eventual redemption etc. Yankovic and co-writer/director Eric Appel, throw in an extended affair with Madonna (who Yankovic only met once), involvement with a drug cartel and a biopic-worthy finale. It is fitting that Yankovic who became famous for his music parodies including “Like A Surgeon,” “Eat It” and “Amish Paradise,” would turn his life story into a parody of the movie biopic.
Even if you’re not a fan of Yankovic, Weird is worth it for Radcliffe’s all-in, engaging performance and the many, many cameos, from Lin Manuel Miranda as a doctor to Conan O’Brien as Andy Warhol. There are also the songs, performed by Weird Al and a dead-on turn by Evan Rachel Wood as Madonna. Weird is definitely weird, but it is also, like its subject, very entertaining.
3.5 out of 5 stars.
Everything Everywhere All At Once (R-Showtime)
And speaking of titles that fit the movies, I really wanted to like Everything Everywhere All At Once. It had high scores from critics and audiences. There’s awards buzz around star Michelle Yeoh and the movie promised to be like nothing we’ve ever seen before. Spoiler Alert: That isn’t always a good thing.
I should have realized I was in trouble when I read the Rotten Tomatoes critics’ consensus describing the movie as “an expertly calibrated assault on the senses.” Reading on, the most common words used to describe the film were “overwhelming” and “exhausting.”
That is exactly how I felt after I abandoned the movie at 42 minutes. I enjoyed the opening scene of Evelyn Wang (Yeoh) and her family at home and work. Then the action moved to an IRS office with Jamie Lee Curtis as a violent auditor, and the movie started living up to its title. Quick cuts, fighting, morphing, more fighting, there was SO MUCH going on. Sorry, Everything, Everywhere All at Once, my life is “overwhelming and exhausting” enough.
No Star Rating as I abandoned the movie.