Through ground breaking computer restoration technology, filmmaker Peter Jackson’s team creates a moving real-to-life depiction of the WWI, as never seen before in restored, vivid colorizing & re-timing of the film frames, in order to honor those who fought and more accurately depict this historical moment in world history. You typically don’t get many movies or documentaries about the first great war, but this film is pretty fascinating. The first 30 minutes go into great detail what the British soldiers went through as far as training, what was in their pack kits, schedules and their diet & uniforms. I found all that pretty interesting. As the film goes on, you get some detailed descriptions of action that the soldiers came across and some of it is pretty graphic. Technology wise, the film is brilliant. Reading about how they put this film together could be a documentary itself. If there is any negative to the film is that the movie could use a dose of music to help narrate the story because at times the film drags, but I guess Peter Jackson intended to leave a musical score out of it for effect or felt it didn’t need it. This is a pretty amazing film. Check it out.

Rating: (****)

This is a documentary about a city couple (John and Molly Chester) from Santa Monica who decide to pursue their dream of owning a traditional farm. With the aid of numerous and probably very wealthy investors, they buy 200 acres and with the help of an eccentric mentor, they stock their farm full of livestock, chickens & start from scratch to grow all their fruits & veggies. The motivation comes from the need to find a place to keep their beloved rescue dog from barking up a storm and disturbing all their neighbors. Farm living for the Chesters has it’s ups and downs and the film follows many of them from weather, coyotes to crop destroying pesky snails. But what was fascinating was how all these problems were eventually solved and solved in such a cause and effect natural way. The movie does drag in parts esp. as we get an abundance of close ups and slow transitions. I think that may come from the director’s background as a wildlife photographer. That experience came in handy for this type of film, but it doesn’t necessarily help the pace. It’s still a very good movie. The Chesters are a very likable couple and when they do succeed, you can’t help but smile for them.

Rating: (***)

A charming film from the director of “Bend it Like Beckham” about a Pakistani high school kid living in 1980’s England having trouble adjusting because of his race and culture. It isn’t until he’s introduced to the music of Bruce Springsteen that his life begins to change. The film is inspired by a true story and that aspect is pretty neat. The Boss’ music is all over the movie and as a monster fan of his music, I loved the soundtrack as well as the rest of the 80’s music sprinkled throughout. The film is predictable. You know exactly what is going to happen as the movie is loaded with cliche’s and formula, but there is a genuine feel goodness to the movie. The lead is very likeable and you wanna root for him. The movie takes a bit to get going, but if you stay with it, it’s pretty enjoyable and fans of the Bruce Springsteen will appreciate it even more.

Rating: (***)

We haven’t had a film like this in a while. A traditional formula romantic comedy with all the cliches and bells and whistles that we were over saturated with in the 90’s. Now for these films to work, you have to buy that these 2 protagonists should be together. Charlize Theron plays a young and beautiful Secretary of State who really wants to be president. Seth Rogen plays a fired journalist hired to be her speech writer. The two of them knew each other as kids. He, being a brash sloppy potty mouth and her being a sophisticated important person are supposed to be the polar opposites that society would never accept. The two eventually fall for each other against the better judgment of Theron’s staff. We’ve seen all this before so the question is does the execution work and for the most part, I think the film doesn’t quite get there, although it’s not terrible. Rogen is funny at times, but I’ve seen this guy before. Theron is beautiful, but I had trouble believing what she was selling, esp. as she was building her presidential platform. Trees? I like trees, but c’mon. Both leads are very likable, but whether they should be together or not, I didn’t care that much and that is a problem when watching a rom-com. Good effort, but I can’t recommend it, although fans of Rogen might enjoy it a bit more than I did.

Rating: (**)

After a long lay-off, I got to the show to check-out the latest from Q. This is sort of a love letter of sorts for late 60’s Hollywood. There isn’t much of story arc, per say as the film follows the long on-going partnership between the two leads, an actor and his stunt man played by Leo and Brad Pitt. They’re both at different places in their career, but have a mutual understanding with each other that seems to work and goes deep. I loved their relationship and that was my favorite part of the movie. You also get a parallel story with Sharon Tate (Margot Robbie). There is a terrific scene with her in a movie theater as she watches one of her own movies incognito. The attention to detail is incredible. The capturing of the late 60’s LA scene is down to perfection all the way to the Kraft Mac & Chez box. The performances are also great and this is probably the best thing Pitt has done in years. He plays a very interesting guy as a sort of a hapless person, but with real confidence. He carries around a dark secret, which may or not be true. We never know that, but one can assume. Q takes extreme liberties with his historical accuracy when it comes to the Tate murders. Of course I wasn’t there, but I’m pretty sure it didn’t go down as portrayed on film. That may turn some people off, but I liked what he did. The film meanders at times as it spends probably too much time on various sets, but that didn’t bother me that much. It’s not excessively violent either except for the very end which kind of bordered on cartoon. I actually thought it was pretty funny. I enjoyed it and probably will need to see it again to catch some of the things I may have missed.

Rating (****)

This is pretty much what you’d expect. If you’re looking for dumb popcorn fun, than this fits the bill. I love the F&F films. A rare franchise that seems to only get better as they go as they approach the 9th movie, but this time we get a spin-off with 2 of the heavy hitters who happen to hate each other played by Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham. What makes this movie work is the chemistry of the 2 leads and their co-star Vanessa Kirby. I enjoyed all 3 of them. The back and forth and contrast in personalities works really well. Sometimes they go a bit too far, but it worked. Now the story is as dumb as can be and I got tired of all the cutesy cameos, but I liked the film enough because it gave out what I paid for. Just a little note to the Rock. It might be time to take a little break because he’s teetering on over-exposure. If you like action than this is for you. 

Rating: (**1/2)

I was only 3 months old and from what my mom told me I was being nursed at the time when this all went down as the world was watching this great event. CNN Films does a terrific job at capturing all the action of the Lunar landing as it happens and giving viewers the experience of watching history unfold. What I liked about this documentary is the detail of the event. The movie starts out with the launch and ends with the landing. It’s very deliberate at showing you everything. There isn’t any background or backstory as the film is very focused and I think that enhances the experience and makes the film better. It does drag at times, but overall, this is a very exciting documentary and for those who weren’t around, too young to remember or just want to relive, this will do the trick.

Rating: (****)

Julianne Moore is Gloria. A fifty-something divorcee drifting along at middle age without much purpose. She has a good job, 2 grown children and friends yet much is missing in her life as she spends her evenings dancing at night clubs. She meets Arnold (John Tuturro), a sad sack immersed in much of the same situation. The 2 hit it off and start a relationship that never seems to get going and be very interesting. Probably because he isn’t very interesting. Their relationship in the story, I never really bought. Tuturro is probably a miscast, but he played the role the way it was written. Moore, on the other hand is terrific. She’s always good and she’s really the only reason to invest 100 minutes of your time. The film is very slow and somewhat repetitive. There are numerous scenes where Gloria can’t figure out what she wants and ends back in bed with Arnold, sings in her car, sits and smokes and periods where she doesn’t do much of anything. The film is at its best when she is actually living her daily life and dealing with the kids and helping her friends. Showing things that a women in her situation goes through, opposed to a forced relationship. I wanted to like this film. It’s a grown-up film for sure dealing with grown up topics. It’s just too slow and felt disjointed.

Rating: (**)

A mildly effective thriller about a lonely widow (Isabella Hubbert) who lures young women into her lives with a deadly secret and a very twisted agenda. One young lady, Frances (Chloe Grace Moretz) falls into her trap and she just can’t escape it, even after she’s onto her and does whatever she can to allude her. The persistence of Greta becomes too much and she ultimately gets captured. As far as thrillers go, this isn’t too bad. There are some very chilling moments such as the the cat and mouse play with the use of a cellphone when Greta is following Frances’ best friend. That was a really good scene and there were a couple others, but for the most part you’ve seen all this before and much of the last reel is pretty predictable and transparent. I kind of like Hubbert’s over the top performance and Moretz has grown into a very good young actress who likes to take risks. The film in parts is worth seeing, but you can skip this one.

Rating: (**)

If you’re keeping track, this is the 23rd entry in the MCU and it’s solid, despite a familiar and somewhat tired core plot line. This time out for Peter Parker, who just got back from fighting off Thanos, is tired and wants to go on vacation via a class trip in Europe and finally tell MJ (Zendaya) his true feelings. He doesn’t want anything to do with crime fighting, at least not for the time being. He’s forced into action reluctantly and battles whether he really wants to be the hero everyone expects of him. We’ve seen all this before in other hero and other Spider-Man films, so in that respect, it was a little trying. But what makes this movie work is the execution and the other plot lines involving his buddies, his goofy chaperones, Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal) and the trouble dealing with the idea of Happy dating Aunt May. There are some terrific action sequences and the European locales were a refreshing touch. It’s also very funny. Tom Holland whose played Spidey 5x now has the character down and his innocence, nerdiness and charm just makes you smile. Nick Fury and Maria Hill are along to support the film and they add another branch that works too. Like all MCU films, don’t leave until the very end of the credits. There are 2 extra scenes and one of them sets up the next Spider-Man film.

Rating (***)