Kingsman: The Golden Circled (2017)

Kingsman was a pleasant surprise the first time. But it's much less fun the second go around. It's kind of tired. There's a handful of Oscar winners somehow. It was a miracle they got Colin Firth the first time, but now they've added Julianne Moore, Halle Berry, Jeff Bridges and Sir Elton John. Elton John is just wacky enough to make it work (he might be the strangest and best part of the movie) and Julianne Moore too, but Berry and Bridges are wasted. And I guess that's part of the farce. This movie is quite long. It's unnecessarily more vulgar without a payoff. The action scenes are very exciting. And the Americans are stereotyped maybe a little too on the nose for comfort.

Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017)

It's good to see an Asian in a leading role! And she's a cool character. Admittedly, Rose and Finn's (two minorities owning the screen!) plot on the casino planet of Canto Bight is kind of irrelevant to the grand scheme of the plot. It's a beautifully designed planet and the chase scene on the streets of Dubrovnik is incredible. There is an anti-war, anti-weapons (slash class warfare) message that is a little on the nose, but I think it's a necessary and welcome addition to the Star Wars galaxy.

They really talk a lot about the Force in this one. It's a good refresher on what the Force actually is. And this one really stretches the limits of the Force. We see new the Force do new things we've never seen before. I can see why the fans might be complaining about this. But I don't think these new powers are too out there.

The movie is quite long. There were a few times I thought the movie was going to end. That has to do with the many subplots having to be contrived together. But they do come together and then culminate in a battle--it is war after all. The final hour of the movie is very exciting. Laura Dern's character gets a brilliant plot that terminates in the most stunning shot of the film, a silent and still frame.

The direction is a clear departure from the previous films, it's artsier. The solid colors stand out: Laura Dern's hair and garb, and the deep red of Snoke's lair, and the red soil against the white dust. Though the movie is clearly a call back to The Empire Strikes Back. It's a little darker, more pessimistic for the Resistance. I won't spoil it all, but what was supposed to be fan service, catering to the fans by recalling the greatest Star Wars movie and then they didn't like it... You know it's a strange world when the critics praise Star Wars and the super fans are the critical ones. I, for one, enjoyed it. 

Gomorrah (2008)

Neapolitan sounds really weird to me. It is not standard Italian, and nothing like the northern dialect I was used to hearing. And the tones of their speech doesn't sound quite as melodic. The film follows five different characters in the Camorra, which apparently has a more clan-like structure than other mafia groups. There is an ongoing feud between clans that manifests itself violently. Pasquale has the most interesting story line, in my opinion--a haute couture tailor who secretly teaches the Chinese factory workers on the side. He is skeptical at first of the Chinese. He returns from his first lesson tired and excited about his good students, their hospitality and their delicious food. It's a moment of cultural understanding that is quite uplifting. The film does acknowledge that there are many minority ethnic groups that live in Italy and compete with the mafia in legitimate and illegitimate businesses. I think that's really part of one of the big takeaways from the film. The mafia is so entangled in society that their illegitimate business is so insidious. Franco proclaims that it is because of his illegal dumping that Italy is in the EU, which ironically and sadly probably has some partial truth to it. The mafia is an integral part of Italian society. And we get to see that here. Where the film slowed down for me was that I didn't find Toto or Marco and Ciro's stories all that interesting.

Jerry Before Seinfeld (2017)

If you like Seinfeld, Seinfeld's style of comedy hasn't changed. He tells jokes from his days just starting out as a comedian, and they're in the exact same vein as his more recent stuff. It's clever, and I appreciate clever but I wasn't really laughing out loud. 

Detroit (2017)

Kathryn Bigelow's last couplef ilms have been about war, the war over there. This film is only slightly different; it's about the war right here, at home in the USA, whether in 1967 or today. "It looks like 'Nam," he says of Detroit, he being a young white police officer who has never been to Vietnam. For him, the Detroit riot is like war (he who abuses and disbelieves a black Vietnam veteran--and it is not lost that the original incident that sets off the riot is a welcome back party for black veterans). But for the African Americans who call this country home, every day is a war, a losing battle, every encounter with the police can result in an illogical death, and in a brazen disregard for civil rights. They are second class citizens, gunned down in the street without reason. It is infuriating listening to the excuses of the white police officers. And what really bothered me was of course, the complicity, of John Boyega's character thinking he's doing the right thing and of the State Police and the National Guard, etc. They choose to save themselves and turn away. A riot is no excuse for ignoring civil rights. The message from Bigelow is clear, that these problems persist in our society today. This movie is a visceral experience, necessary in our current political climate.

I did the film was too long. I understand the point. That the entire system is designed to disadvantage African Americans, from the very beginnings (the interesting animated opening scene) through to the riot, the policing, and the trial. I don't think the trial was really necessary though. The drama was in the Algiers Motel. The trial was just beating us over the head with it. It could have been done more subtly in text. The movie could've ended there, in my opinion.

Faces Places (Visages Villages) (2017)

What a charming, wonderful, whimsical, film about, at it's core, humanity. Agnes Varda is the French New Wave master, the lone female in a club of old men. She has many interesting things still left to say, even at the age of 88. She remains nimble if a little slow, clever, creative, and she still has an auteur's eye, even if her own eyesight is failing her. She embarks on this new journey with JR. Together they have this irresistible chemistry, reminiscent of Snoop Dogg and Martha Stewart. It shouldn't work, but it does. It's so charming that you can't help but smile. The two of them are so quirky together with JR's signature hat and sunglasses and Agnes Varda's bi-colored hair. The movie is about the march of time. It's about preserving moments and faces, old and new, as best we can despite the inevitability of their disappearance, best displayed by Guy in Normandy. The film is so full of joy capturing rural life and humanity at its rawest. But it is equally enjoyable when we just watch Varda and JR's backs, seated next to each other musing about life and Jean-Luc Godard.  

Mudbound (2017)

Wow, what a heartbreaking movie. It's really well done. The time jumps in the story line are really cleverly executed. It's not always immediately obvious until it cuts back to where we had left off. The cinematography is stunning. Downtrodden rural Mississippi is pretty devastating for everyone, black and white, but you know the African Americans have it way worse. The juxtaposition of life in the Jim Crow South with war-torn Europe is night and day for the African American soldiers. This tale of coming home from war is poignant and devastating and exactly what we need. Discrimination in this country still remains abysmal. Dee Rees does an excellent job assisted by strong performances by Carey Mulligan, Jason Mitchell and Mary J. Blige. 

Coco (2017)

Coco is the latest Pixar film, its first non-sequel since Inside Out. Pixar is excellent as usual when running with original ideas. This one has gotten comparisons with The Book of Life (similar theme of Day of the Dead) and Spirited Away (similar plot points). I haven't seen The Book of Life, but Coco is something special. First of all, it's beautiful. The world of the dead is stunningly complex and vibrant and colorful. The animation is just amazing to look at. The first scene with the paper cuts is brilliant. It's beautiful on another level too. Pixar is historically white on the diversity front. They've only featured two three characters of color before: Frozone in The Incredibles, Russell in Up, and Mindy Kaling's Disgust in Inside Out. All of the characters in Coco are Mexican, and the Mexican traditions and culture are conveyed with the utmost respect--they clearly did their research.  The characters' commitment to keeping these traditions and preserving their heritage is beautiful.  Why is this necessary? Because minorities contend with more than just feelings, and family, and parenthood, and obesity...heritage is crucial to our lives and it's important that kids be able to see themselves on screen in our popular culture.

We know Pixar is full of masterful storytellers, but the little things are really clever too.  The interpretation of the process of how the dead return to the world of the living is really brilliantly imaginative, and in line with tradition. Names are really important.The movie is named for the great grandmother Coco. Ask why that is. Ask why the Xoloitzcuintli is named Dante. Yeah, like Dante's Divine Comedy in which Dante tours the afterlife.

My biggest gripe is the Disney-fication of Pixar. There was no Pixar short preceding the film. Instead, we got a 20 minute Frozen "short" that was completely unnecessary. It was very clearly made for TV. And it had no business preceding this Pixar work of art.