What I've Seen
Night School
It's about as funny as any Kevin Hart film. That is to say there are laughs and it's not at the writing, but at his ridiculously absurd takes. But at least this film, much like "Central Intelligence" has a heart (no pun intended) and tries to get a message across about the necessity of striving to do your best, as well as the value of a teacher who doesn't write off students.
Teddy (Kevin Hart) has always had difficulties in school to the extent that he dropped out, but that hasn't stopped him from becoming a successful salesman. But when his job literally goes up in smoke, his best friend Marvin (Ben Schwartz) promises a job at his brokerage firm as long as he gets his GED.
Teddy's hope for a fast path of getting his GED is dashed when he realizes the principal is the kid who he bullied in high school, the tyrannical Stuart (Taran Killam, SNL). And Teddy's mastery of kissing up is lost on the tough but caring, teacher Carrie (Tiffany Haddish).
As hard as he tries to distance himself, Teddy finds himself bonding with his fellow night school classmates: Mackenzie (Rob Riggle, The Daily Show) who is there to motivate his son to graduate; the conspiracy minded Jaylen (Romany Malco, One Million Little Things) whose job has been automated; Luis (Al Madrigal, The Daily Show) who has a past with Teddy; Mila (Anne Winters, 13 Reasons Why) who's there to avoid rehab; housewife Theresa (Mary Lynn Rajskub, 24) who wants to enter the workforce and Bobby (Fat Joe), a prisoner who participates via Skype.
There's an entire subplot of Teddy trying to keep his educational activity a secret from his fiancée Lisa (Megalyn Echikunwoke, Arrow) that is a needless but at least Echikunwoke brings more to the role than just being the gorgeous (if she is still with Chris Rock I will slap her. Wasting all that gorgeousness on him!!).
Haddish and Hart are unsurprisingly great together and I like that Haddish gets to show a more subdued side. But to me the film's MVP was Malco as the apex Hotep Jaylen. He embodies the irritatingly contradictory nature of a Hotep: waxing poetically about their "black queens", then degrading other women in the next breath; basking in their ignorance that they try to mask using big history to act like their enlightened.
Bad Times at the El Royale
Long (too long, even) on story, short on substance but it is time well spent largely thanks to the set production.
Set in 1969, the El Royale hotel glory days is in its rear view mirror since losing its gambling license. One fateful night at the usually deserted hotel, the nebbish-y hotel manager Miles (Lewis Pullman, Strangers Prey at Night),
welcomes four strangers: the grating vacuum salesman Seymour Sullivan (Jon Hamm(and his hammaconda), priest Father Flynn (Jeff Bridges), a session singer Darlene (Cynthia Erivo) and the bad attidude possessing Emily (Dakota Johnson).
As the night wears on the secrets of the hotel occupants, and the secrets of the hotel reveals itself.
I was hoping it was more humorous and inventive like Goodard's "Cabin in the Woods", instead "Bad Times at the El Royale" where Goodard has decided to do a fanfic crossover of "Clue" and "Vantage Point" and let everything interesting about these characters are at a standstill as the film ends up being a series of flashbacks in order to get every character's point of view during the events of the night.
All in all it is a good film with some great performances especially Tony award winning Erivo who is allowed multiple musical interludes, but is also given scenes with so much depth of emotion as we get to know Darlene as a woman who is the epitome of the quote, "still waters runs deep". Most of her scenes are with Bridges, who hasn't turned in such an emotionally honest performance since "Crazy Heart".
The audience had to sign NDA's but now the embargo has been lifted and I had to laugh at the disclaimer Variety put ahead of its review:
SPOILER ALERT: Those responsible for “Bad Times at the El Royale” have gone to great lengths to hide its secrets. While this review attempts to respect the film’s key twists, it may be better read after you’ve seen the movie.
It's also a great turn for Pullman who I really enjoyed in "Strangers: Prey at Night". He's showing he's more than Bill Pullman's son.
Now I see the resemblance
Looks nothing like his big bro Jack who you may remember from when he was busted with moonshine years ago
Better now
The film also features actor/director Xavier Dolan as Buddy Sunday, the demeaning record exec who has his thumb on Darlene; Cailee Spaeny as Rose, who has a connection to one of the occupants and Chris Hemsworth as Billy Lee who is as dangerous as he is ripped.
I don’t know how he kept the pants up but I hate that he did.
It was the premiere
In connection with the film, there was a live band with a female singer belting out 60s hits as well as more contemporary songs that were reminiscent of time like Amy Winehouse's "Valerie".
With the live entertainment I only left my seat once to run to the ladies before the film began and I saw Manny Jacinto from "The Good Place" (he was in the film as an associate of Billy Lee but I did not see him at all so either he was cut out or I just didn't recognize him) so I was dashing back to my seat because the lobby was clear so I knew it was getting close and he running back in as well so we crossed paths and I yelled out, "Manny, I love you in "The Good Place"!" and he yelled back, "Thank you!"
Goodard intro'd the film by announcing it was his parents 46th anniversary and that nothing says love like "Bad Times as El Royale".
He introduced the cast, except for Hemsworth who was either finishing "Avengers 4" or on the "Man in Black" set.
The core cast left pretty quickly, except for Lewis. Someone told him that he reminded him of Tom Holland and Lewis said, “I’ll take it! I’m a fan of his. I think he’s great.” I think the reason the person said it was because Goodard originally wanted Holland for the role, but he turned it down.
The film was intro'd by a Fox exec who said we were amongst the first audiences to see the completed film. If that is true, I believe they will shave some time off it because I have no clue when the movie began, but it was slated for 7:30pm and premieres never start on time so even if it began at 8pm, the film ended at 10:20 so that's 2 hours and 20 minutes and that's too long for a film of this nature.
Nomis
An ambitious Scandi-noir type thriller that is functional but is lacking of true tension and, ultimately, logic.
American law enforcement succeeds in catching a notorious online predator, but soon realizes his crimes go further than they expected.
Angst filled special agent Marshall (Henry Cavill)
whose inability to shake the violence that he has seen caused him his marriage and made him put an emotional wall up with his teenaged daughter, Faye (Emma Tremblay, Supergirl).
His fears are amplified when he meets Cooper (Sir Ben Kingsley) and his ward, Lara (Eliana Jones, Homeland) who have made a career as vigilantes targeting men who prey on girls and young women.
When Cooper and Lara stumble into finding serial rapist/killer Simon (Brendan Fletcher, iZombie), Marshall and colleague Rachel (Alexandra Daddario, Baywatch)
work to get through his psychosis in order to get information on the identities of the women he has killed. Thinking that this intel will close their case, they realize their case is just starting as the police force become targets. Is Simon orchestrating this from within jail or is there someone outside who is helping him of their own accord?
Cavill isn’t…how shall I say… a strong actor, but just like in “Missing Impossible: Fallout” it’s nice seeing him play a menacing character and on the opposite side, it’s great seeing him play a parent. I really liked the relationship between he and Tremblay (older sister of Jacob (Room, Wonder) -it’s very realistic for his character in that he’s unblinkingly frank with her about the dangers of the world. There’s a scene where she comes to his new apartment and sees crime scene photos and any other movie would have the parent scramble to hide the pictures, but he stands there and lets her take it in so that she can see for herself the horror that exists.
The film tries to be “Seven”, but is more like “The Snowman”. There are a lot of great ideas that I think gets weighed down by the illogical progression the film makes.
Kingsley has reached that point that so many once great actors get to where they are almost bad in their overzealous acting. Fletcher also goes a bit too far with his overacting making his dialogue sometimes unintelligible.
It was the final screening at the LA Film Festival and there was a Q&A afterwards with the writer/director David Raymond (Heroes and Villains) and cast (Nathan Fillion, Mpho Koaho, Alexandra Daddario, Sir Ben Kingsley, Eliana Jones and Brendan Fletcher.
Other than the introduction where Raymond explained that Cavill wasn’t in attendance because he was “killing monsters in Budapest” (he has been cast in the Netflix fantasy series “Witcher”), no one mentioned him at all during the Q&A. Which I mentioned to my friend who worked the event and is the one who invited me. She suggested maybe they were upset because Cavill was supposed to attend. She and her coworker told me of all the assurances they had received from Cavill’s team that he would be there, and how fans were calling the box office to make sure he would be there so the organizers had no idea he wouldn’t be in attendance. Which is no harm, no foul but I think for them this film has been delayed forever and has not received distribution yet so it would have been beneficial from a sales point of view to have Cavill there in order to push the film.
Afterwards was a reception and the only cast members to attend were Fillion (who came late to the screening but raved during the Q&A about how great the other actors were) and Mpho Koaho, and Raymond and the film’s producers were there. I was seated in front of one of them. It was either Peter Aitken or Peter Beman and afterwards he and his cronies gave the film a standing O and people were congratulating him and he got choked up thanking them. When it finally calmed down he said that this was just the beginning and now they just have to see what happens next.
So we were at the reception for a bit because we were headed to the LA Film Fest’s afterparty at the skating rink World of Wheels as I was leaving I saw Mpho who plays Cavill and Daddario’s colleague. I congratulated him on the film and he asked my name, gave me a hug, introduced me to his sweet friend. So we start talking. He said the shoot was only supposed to be 7 weeks but they had to do pickups months later because “Mission Impossible: Fallout” went over so that pushed them back. “First world problems.”, he said laughing. We talked about how dark the film got and he stopped and said, “It’s because of him. This is my brother.” Here comes Brendan Fletcher. During the Q&A Mpho had gestured and said “my brother over here” but I thought he mean Sir Ben or David. But no, Brendan is his brother from another mother.
Anyway, they hug and Mpho starts rhapsodizing about his performance. “I’m going to buy the Blu-ray!” Me: Are you going to have him sign it for you?
They’re hugging, pressing their foreheads together. Mpho introduces me to Brendan while Brendan is leaning his head on his shoulder. They go back to talking about how they just have to work together again.
Me (to Mpho’s friend) : That’s some bro-love.
Mpho’s friend: They have a bromance.
So we start talking about the film and what it says about the dangers of internet. She has a toddler so it really hit home for her.
I bid my adieus to head over to World of Wheels where I had an awesome time.
World of Wheels was the chosen venue to close out the fest because a documentary about the rink was the final documentary of the fest. It was recently reopened after being closed after its 80s and 90s halcyon days. It was just great to bask in something wholesome and easy going after the hell week that was enduring the Brett Kavanaugh hearing and the persecution of Christine Blaséy Ford.
-You snooze you lose. A few months back director Danny Boyle dropped out of directing the 25th Bond film and Daniel Craig's last foray as the spy. With his exit, the release date had to be vacated while a new director was found. That director: Hottie Cary Joji Fukunaga
The director who could be Bond himself
The announcement was a larger marker of Fukunaga's return to filmmaking after a three year absence after the film "Beasts of No Nation". Fukunaga famously ditched HBO's "True Detective" in S2 and fired from directing "It" two weeks before its shooting date. In an interview about his recent Netflix series "Maniac" (starring Jonah Hill, Emma Stone and Justin Theroux) Fukunaga talked about how his absence wasn't entirely of his making and that he got a reputation of being difficult and couldn't get hired. This reminds me of director Steve McQueen's recent interview in support of his upcoming film "Widows". He says that people tried to talk him out of hiring Michelle Rodriguez describing her as "difficult". McQueen said he didn't listen and choose to meet with her because people say the same thing about him and he raved about Rodriguez.
Now with Bond 25's release date in flux, another spy has taken its place
The name's Unwin, Eggsy Unwin
But wait a minute before you put on those winged trainers, Taron and before you pick up that weaponized umbrella, Colin, Baz Bamigboye of The Daily Mail reports that this "Kingsman" will be a prequel set during WWI starring Ralph Fiennes and Harris Dickinson (Trust, Beach Rats).
Egerton and Firth originally signed up for three picture deals so maybe this film will be Harry telling Eggsy about the origins of "Kingsman".
-Speaking of spies, the "Charlie's Angels" reboot has commenced film. Directed by Elizabeth Banks, this film stars Kristen Stewart, Naomi Scott and Ella Balinksa as the angels,
with multiple Bosleys in a now global agency played by Djimon Hounsou, Patrick Stewart and Banks.
Also in the cast is Jonathan Tucker (Kingdom, Westworld) and Luis Gerardo Mendez (Club of Crows, Cantiflas).
-While DC Comics/WB's extended universe is imploding after the rumored firing of Ben Affleck and Henry Cavill
Although his manager, Dany Garcia, (ex-wife of Dwayne Johnson) says slow down, low down
The studio is looking to its standalones for saving. There's -
-The Joker standalone starring Joaquin Phoenix, Zazie Beetz and Brett Cullum. The film is being directed by Todd Phillips of "The Hangover" trilogy and reportedly executive produced by Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert DeNiro, whose twilight years are being spent in bad movies. Actually, the Bobby D. involvement makes sense as the take on this Joker is the Golden Age take of him being a failed comic, lending comparisons to DeNiro's "The King of Comedy".
Jared Leto's Joker will likely return in the Harley Quinn fronted "Gotham City Sirens".
This dual Joker universe makes sense because Flashpoint New 52 Convergence Rebirth DC Universe has a storyline where Batman discovers that through his whole career he has been battling three Jokers.
However, the biggest news to come out of DC Comics was the release of DC’s Black Label line - a mature edition of comics. One issue featured Batman’s penis. His Bat-a-wang, if you will.
The issue has been pulled and will no longer be issued so now fans are worried about the other titles that are supposed to be released and if DC will censor those like it has done Batman.
On the hero front is the "Birds of Prey" film with Mary Elizabeth Winstead (10 Cloverfield Lane) as The Huntress and Jurnee Smollett-Bell (Underground) as Black Canary. The hunt is still on for a Renee Montoya. Reportedly it's down to Justina Machado from Netflix's "One Day at a Time" and Roberta Colindrez of "Vida".
For a villain, talks are reportedly down to Sharlto Copley (District 9) and Winstead's boyfriend Ewan McGregor.
With the sexiest man of the sea "Aquaman" FINALLY being released in November and "Wonder Woman 1984" shooting, that leaves The Flash as the last legacy DCEU film to be made after DC head Kevin Tushjira announced the studio would divert from a shared universe.
-While DC is having a...time. Fox comic books/video game films are having a hard time. Just two days after releasing the trailer for "Dark Phoenix" (so sure that people are over The X-Men, Fox dropped "X-Men" from the title in hopes to trick people), the studio has pushed it back from Valentine's Day to June. This is the second movie from the film which was due to be released in November of this year.
Also experiencing another delay is "Alita: Battle Angel" which takes the slot vacated by "Dark Phoenix". "Alita.." was originally slated for release in July, but pushed to Christmas.
"Alita.." move has opened up a slot for the untitled "Deadpool" film. Seeing as "Deadpool 2" hit the screens this year, and by this image that Ryan Reynolds tweeted after the news broke...
Deadpool and Fred Savage a’la “The Princess Bride”
...it seems that the rumored "Deadpool 2" recut rumors are true. It is believed that a PG-13 cut will be released in order for Fox to get the family $$$ that they missed out on with the original "R" version.
In the era of GamerGate and 4Chan and the wretched Mike Cernovich with his small dick energy siccing his Trumpanzee followers on liberal actors, it's nice when there is a benevolent troll. A troll who uses their power for good, not ill. Okay, sometimes for ill, but sometimes a good ribbing is appreciated. Who would that benevolent troll be? Why no other than Armand Douglas Hammer, the man who will troll and shade you even if you are married to him.
During TIFF, he participated in a large scale troll operation with the assist of his CMBYN costar/troll in training Timothee Chalamet.
While their fans were still reeling from Timothee emerging from hiding to attend Armie's play.
(Other Armie supporters who saw the play were Ava DuVernay, "Call Me By Your Name" author Andre Aciman, the film's director Luca Guadagnino, costar Michael Stuhlbarg, Armie's "Hotel Mumbai" costar Anupam Kher, and his "Sorry to Bother You" costar Omari Hardwick)
The shirt that Armie lifted from the play
The fans got even more of a treat when the duo were photographed hugging at the "Beautiful Boy" afterparty (Armie did the circuit: the afterparty for "Donnybrook" starring Jamie Bell and Frank Grillo, the "Hotel Mumbai" party and then "Beautiful Boy").
The fans were happy with that. They were sated. That was enough for them. But no, Armie and Timotay escalated it with two Instastories of each other. Instastories of such poor quality that you would think I shot them.
Armie's Instastory of Timothee enshrouded in hearts
Timothee's Instastory tracking Armie as he approaches him as Timotay’s fave track from the CMBYN soundtrack plays
TIFF served as a melange of people in Armie and Timothee's circle. Think a fanfic that has all of the WB/CW actors -- it was that kind of thing.
Rabid Armie and Timothee fanboy Xavier Dolan was there to screen and promote his delayed film "The Life and Death of John Donovan" which stars Kit Harington (Game of Thrones), Jacob Tremblay (Wonder) and Natalie Portman.
The film was due to bow at Cannes in 2016 but Dolan pulled it before it was officially announced in order to make changes. Those changes included cutting Jessica Chastain out of it completely (the two will appear in the "It" sequel : "It: Chapter Two". Dolan plays Adrian Mellon. He also features in Joel Edgerton's "Boy Erased" which played TIFF).
Timothee attended the screening of the film that has been panned as a misfire and that some has said will sure to divide critics.
One or two people have unimaginatively compared Dolan's "The Life and Death of John Donovan" to "Call Me By Your Name" as the film is the recollections of a man (Ben Schnetzer, Pride) recalling his youthful pen pal friendship with a closeted actor (Kit Harington, Game of Thrones) - the two, unbeknownst to each other - struggling with their sexualities.
Timothee was also joined by friend Stephane Bak who was there as part of TIFF's Rising Stars nominees; he was also able to reconnect with his awards circuit buddy Daniel Kaluuya (Get Out). Being as that they were the younger nominees Chalamet and Kaluuya were often paired together on panels, and interviewed each other for The Hollywood Reporter's Actors One on One.
People went peaches bananas over Armie and Timothee reuniting but I spy Kaluuya right there with Dev Patel, his "Skins" costar. See, it's a twofer!!
“Call Me By Your Name" supporter director Barry Jenkins was there for his "Moonlight" follow-up, "If Beale Street Could Talk". He also took in Chalamet's "Beautiful Boy"
**I respect Jenkins' take but I think he's overselling Chalamet's performance. As a native of San Francisco I know of the Tenderloin. It is the area you are always warned to not venture into. Think the zombies from the "Thriller" video. That was the Tenderloin back in the day -- everyone just smacked out on drugs.
I worked not far from there and there was(is?) an Italian restaurant on a side street near the Tenderloin and it was like an invisible line that if you went a few steps past the restaurant's door you realized that you were not in Kansas anymore. You get to talking to someone walk past the door and look up and realize you're in some depiction of an 1920s opium den. So I don't think Chalamet's Nik, is depicted as being that out of it. Already fans who have seen test screenings reported back that the film omitted how he fell into prostitution, which is recounted in the book. But if the film goes there --- to really show how someone is strung out and not some polished version where it's just someone lolling about and acting loop, then I'm all for it.
Chalamet bumped into his "Interstellar" dad Matthew McConaughey.
-Interviewers were thrilled about the reunion so they took time to ask Armie and Timothee about each other instead of focusing on their current projects.
Armie really wants this sequel to happen
Three out of his five responses mentioned Armie
**The fourth? “I was thinking, “Oh, I love those two so much. We all have such a weird relationship.”
-Timothee's "Lady Bird" costar Lucas Hedges was there. Last year Chalamet had three films at TIFF, Hedges has two this year: "Boy Erased" and "Ben is Back', which was written and directed by his father.
I cynically said that Hedges would use the promo tour for "Boy Erased" to come out. I was slightly right. In a profile in The New Yorker Hedges, while still figuring out his sexuality, said that it is on a spectrum "Not totally straight, but also not gay and not necessarily bisexual.”
Perhaps knowing that this will cause people to question further, he shared that he was still in flux himself. "Hedges envies people who can speak about such things with more certainty. “People expect you as an actor to have a voice that’s set in some way, and that’s really not what I am,” he says. “I’m very much within the conflict and confusion of my own life, still, and I definitely feel a pressure to step up in a way. I prefer to step up in my art, and I don’t entirely know how to in my life.”
~I'm still pushing for these two crazy kids!
