Adam Driver is going to have a month of a lifetime.  First, this is released for all to see on Amazon Prime.  Soon he will be on Netflix in Marriage Story, a performance that may get him nominated for an Oscar, and then he will be in the final Star Wars movie< The Rise of Skywalker.  Most actors would kill for just one such project in a yer, let alone before the end of the month of December.

The Report is the first of his trifecta and it tells the story of the attempts by Daniel Jones (Adam Driver) and Senator Diane Feinstein (Annette Bening) to complete and release a report that investigated the CIA’s Detention and Interrogation Program and their use of “advanced interrogation techniques” aka torture in the days, weeks and years after 9/11.

Daniel Jones compiled a report of around 6,700 pages over seven years of investigation.  Seven years where he had many roadblocks tossed in his path including threats of prison and loss of his job.  Eventually, with the backing of Senator Feinstein, a condensed 500 page report was released condemning the practices used by the CIA as cruel and ineffective.

This film showed some American heroes who believed that how this country carried itself is as important as anything.  The Report is remarkably relevant in today’s world where it seems that what we do is not held to the highest regard any more.

The Report carries most of its drama through the talking of the actors so their words needed to be compelling and engaging.  For the most part, it was.  There are some moments when the film dragged a bit, but Adam Driver pulls everyone back on board as soon as that happens.  Driver is certainly the most important character on the screen.

Annette Bening’s work as Diane Feinstein is very important to Driver’s performance.  She supports him and helps him every step of the way, providing the confidence and aid that moved the report forward.  The film showed Feinstein as a senator willing to do what she believed was right even if it was not the most politically sensible choice to make.  Again, very relevant in the Senate today.

The release of this movie is very coincidental, but it could not have turned out better for it.  These type of political thrillers depend on a griping story and powerful performances and The Report has both of these.  It is currently available on Amazon Prime.

3.75 stars 

A few years ago, the late, great Jon Schnepp was on Movie Talk on Collider and the topic of this movie, at the time named ‘Nicole,’ came up, and the EYG Hall of Famer cut loose on it.

“Ugh, why’d it have to go to me first?  Um…hey, what’s up everybody?  You know what…I…sometimes when I have nothing to do just sitting, maybe, on the toilet having some ocnstipation, I think about things like, “I wonder what would happen if… uh… Santa… what if he couldn’t…what if he couldn’t get to the sleigh and his son also was afraid…what would happen…what would happen? (Fart sound) Oh (bubble sound) *Shrugs shoulders*”

It was an epic rant that just destroyed the rest of the panel (Jeremy Johns took several moments to regain his composure).  It was one of those Schnepp moments that made him who he was.  I never forgot that.

So when Noelle was on Disney +, I realized that this was the movie Schepp had roasted.  It did not inspire me to watch it.  However, eventually I put the film on one Saturday night.

And it was not that bad.  I would even go as far as to say that I liked it.

Santa Claus has died and his son Nick (Bill Hader) was supposed to take over, but he was not feeling his destiny. His sister Noelle (Anna Kendrick) tried to convince him by telling him to take a weekend to himself.  So Nick ran on and disappeared.

Because of his rejection of the Santa hat, the people in charge chose a new person to take over the mantel, but this guy (Billy Eichner) was extremely harsh on the naughty of the world, sending text messages to kids who bit their fingernails or other such minor offenses saying that they would not be receiving anything from Santa this year.  He was also looking to change the delivery system into something resembling Amazon Prime.

This sent Noelle out to the real world in an attempt to find Nick and save Christmas.

The major thing that this movie has going for it is the absolute charm of Anna Kendrick.  She is 100% the reason to watch this movie.  She is wonderful as the naive Noelle who does not understand what the real world is like, who still wears her fur outfit in the Arizona heat and who does not know what sunscreen is.  She plays Noelle as such a sweet spirit of goodness and light that you cannot help but like her.

Her relationship with Bill Hader is very strong as well and the pairing was gold in several instances.  Throw in Shirley MacLaine as Elf Polly and you have a comedy team for the holidays.

Yes the story is predictable and there is not that much that we haven’t seen before in such films as The Santa Clause, but Anna Kendrick is such a winning personality that I think this is a film that families can enjoy together during the holidays. There is a positive message and some actually clever writing with some of the dialogue.

I was absolutely ready to rip this up as Jon Schnepp did, but it had won me over with its charm and pizzazz.

3.4 stars

It has been several weeks since Midway came out and I have been unable to see it.  It was not that I did not want to see it, but it was not fitting into my schedule and facing other movies that I wanted to see more.

However, the Roland Emmerich directed film stuck around for a few weeks and I was able to see it today.

Because I knew that the score for Midway on Rotten Tomatoes was in the 40% range, I entered the theater with low expectations.

In the end, Midway was okay.  I enjoyed it enough.

This was the story of one of the most vital battles in the Pacific that helped turn the tide of World War II to the United States over the Japanese forces after the attack on Pearl Harbor.  The film contained a group of real people who were involved in the battle, providing a level of realness to the epic tale.

However, and this is the biggest problem of the movie, Midway never takes the time to really get to know these people.  The characters are sorely underdeveloped and the audience does not necessarily even know who was who outside of one or two characters.

I saw one character as Woody Harrelson with a blonde wig because that is who played him.  Patrick Wilson got a little focus, mainly because he tried to tell the people in charge about the attack on Pearl Harbor.  The codebreakers that he was in charge of were probably the most interesting part of the film, but were really delegated to the back seat.  In truth, these people, who in their few moments were shown as quirky, were the real heroes of this story.

The pilots were great and the CGI looked pretty solid, but many of these characters were interchangeable.  Ed Skrein’s character, Dick Best, was the lead of the pilots and had the most screen time.  Almost all of the others were just people.  When they would die, I felt nothing for them because they were just cannon fodder.

The action was good, but I had trouble telling the difference between planes and some of the air fights were hard to follow.  I did like how the film would go into the Japanese soldiers for the thoughts of their leaders.  It gave a face to the other side that you usually do not get in a war movie.

I’m not a huge fan of Roland Emmerich films, but this one is one of the better ones. Midway is not a perfect film by any stretch, but it was a good example of a war film where the most important aspect is the battle.

3.4 stars

I was watching Collider Live’s Thanksgiving episode and Roxy Striar, one of the co-hosts of the YouTube show, said that she was thankful for her chance to be in a movie this year with Stan Lee.  I had no idea what that was.

So I went to IMDB so see what movie Roxy was in this year.  It told me that it was Madness in the Method.  It was directed by and starred Jason Mewes, the “Jay” in the Jay and Silent Bob pairing from Kevin Smith movies.

It was on Amazon Prime so I gave it a chance because I love Roxy and, of course, Stan Lee.

As this movie started, I hated what I saw.  I found this really dumb and idiotic. It was heading toward my worst list of the year.

And then, strangely, I started to find some of the film oddly funny.  There were a bunch of cameos and guest stars that were fun. Where the film seemed to take a bit of a twist was when Dean Cain arrived in a cameo.  He was really funny and it changed my perception of the film.

The story, based on Mewes finding a book on Method acting that causes him to change who he is, becomes very dark.  It was ridiculous but I was not hating it any more.

Mewes, playing himself, as he followed the evil Method, was becoming darker and more wicked with each second and the more darkness he showed, the film got better.   Don’t misunderstand me, it was not good, but it was no longer going to be the horrid film that it looked like the direction it was heading.

Vinnie Jones was great too, as was his eventual fate.  I enjoyed Kevin Smith too.

The movie was not great.  In fact, I can’t recommend it, but if you want a silly stupid movie, this could give you some fun.

Loved seeing Roxy.

2.1 stars

There has been a lot of hype surrounding the new Netflix film, The Irishman, over the last several months from word-of-mouth from the limited theaters that had hosted screenings to the film’s director’s battle of words with Marvel films and fans.  In the end, The Irishman was released on Thanksgiving and lived up to the hype, mostly.

Martin Scorsese assembled a group of actors who have become synonymous with him and told an epic tale of mob life and crime.  Based on the novel I Heard You Pain Houses by Charles Brandt, The Irishman follows truck driver turned hitman Frank Sheeran (Robert DeNiro) as he ingratiated himself into the world of organized crime.  Frank became very close to Russell Bufalino (Joe Pesci), head of the Northeastern Pennsylvania crime family.

Soon, Frank meets Jimmy Hoffa (Al Pacino), the head of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, and becomes close with him as well.

Hoffa, of course, is the infamous Union head who disappeared in 1975 and was never found.  There have been countless of theories over the years of what has happened to Jimmy Hoffa and this film is one of the more recent ones.

I have to say that the de-aging technology done on this movie was utterly brilliant. There was almost none of the tells that you some times see in other movies that try to de-age its actors.  The only scene that was obvious was the “hand-breaking” scene and that was because Robert DeNiro had to physically assault someone and it clearly looked like an old man moving and kicking at his victim.  That was the only time that the CGI pulled me out of the story and I wished they had used a body double for that one scene.  Otherwise, the de-aging process was flawless.

And, without saying, the cast was unbeleivable.  Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino, Joe Pesci (who came out of semi-retirement to do this role), Harvey Keitel, Ray Romano, Anna Paquin, Steven Graham, Jesse Plemons, Bobby Cannavale lead the massive ensemble.  DeNiro was exceptional in the role, leading us through the narrative, first as an old man in a nursing home and then into flashbacks to tell the story.  I enjoyed the structure of the film as well.

It was incredibly long but I did not feel it as much as I might had I been sitting in a theater.  I paused it several times as I watched it on Netflix for lunch or restroom breaks etc.  The film was a definite slow burn as it moved the story along at a snail pace, but the moments were filled with great story telling or character development.

I suppose the one major issue I had with The Irishman was that it lacked an emotional pay off.  I was not deeply connected emotionally to the characters so when I discovered what the film said their fates were, it was like, yeah, okay, what is next.  I think the storytelling, production and performances were masterful, it is just lacking that wallop of an emotional beat.

It does give a very clear message to how deadly the mob was.  Every time we came across a minor character, we would learn at what point he would die and in what manner, whether it is shot in the head or whatever.  That was very effective.

This is one of my favorite Martin Scorsese movies.  It is one of the most Martin Scorsese movie in a long time.  It was a really great film.

4.5 stars

I have heard this movie being referred to as a “black Bonnie & Clyde.”  That reference is even made in the film itself, but that does not feel very accurate.

Bonnie & Clyde were criminals and made their decision to do so.  In the film Queen & Slim, Slim (Daniel Kaluuya) and Queen (Jodie Turner-Smith) wind up in trouble because of fate and they really had little to no choice.

On a first date, Slim and Queen wind up pulled over by a cop who clearly had racially inspired intentions and, in a struggle with him, kill the police officer.  They go on the run, sparking a nation-wide manhunt and inspiring African-Americans with their plight.

Slim and Queen had a case of self-defense with the cop, and it feels as if the cop’s camera would have supported the argument, but it was obvious that neither of them believed that they would get a fair shake.  Queen was even a lawyer, but she was the first of them to insist that they run.

These thoughts are thoughts that I cannot relate to because I have never had someone look at me and pre-judge me as black people are.  A police officer approaching my car is an entire different situation than it would be for an African-American, and it is a situation that I will never be in, thankfully.

So their decisions are understandable, even though I cannot necessarily relate to them.

The rest of the film is a road trip movie as the two characters attempt to flee from the authorities.

The performances of the two lead actors are great.  Daniel Kaluuya is exceptional as Slim, and newcomer Jodie Turner-Smith shows that she has a bright future.  How this relationship develops across the movie is fascinating considering that they went from first date via Tinder to crossing the country as fugitives.  The strains on the couple show early and, as they continue to grow closer, the romantic aspect of being on the run seem to draw them closer.

I am not sure this would be a relationship that would last forever because being thrust together in such a violent and sudden manner may not create the deepest connection.

One of the more controversial aspects of the film is how the killing of the cop by Slim resonates with the black community of the country, so much so that there are black people along Slim & Queen’s path that go out of their way to aid them and prevent their capture, despite there being a heavy bounty on their heads.  The film is showing how that powder keg of racial instability is still alive in the US and how it does not take much to ignite it once again.

The film did feel a little long, but it is beautifully shot and the length allows the audience to get to know our two characters deeper.  I think that you could shave off maybe ten minutes and the film would be tighter, but it is a minor critique.

By the way, the character of Uncle Earl (Bokeem Woodbine) stole every scene he was in and was one of the most fascinating characters on the docket.  I would have loved to have seen more with him.

Queen & Slim was a provocative movie that had a message about racial divisiveness and life for black people.  It does not simply portray anyone in one manner, as both sides are seen as problematic.  It is a strong film, directed well by Melina Matsoukas.  You’ll come out thinking.

3.9 stars

Netflix continues to provide a manner of movies on their streaming service and there are some big name ones coming very soon (The Irishman, Marriage Story etc).  Before these come out though, I wanted to finish up one I started this past weekend.

The Knight Before Christmas is a silly Christmas story that has some charm and is actually fairly easy to watch.  I expected it to be really bad, and if surely is not a great movie, but for what it is, The Knight Before Christmas is a decent holiday film.

A knight from the 14th century named Sir Cole (John Whitehouse) is magically transported into the future where he meets a woman Brooke (Vanessa Hudgens) in an effort to find his true Knight’s quest.

The “fish out of water” theme is in full display in this movie as Cole attempts to find his quest among the modern day conveniences of the 21st century.  He handles the changes remarkably well… even the magic box (TV) and “Lady Alexa Play” (Alexa).

Both John Whitehouse and Vanessa Hudgens are likable enough for the roles that they are playing here.  This is absolutely just a feel good Christmas movie, but there are times for films like that.

If you are looking for a nice little rom com about a knight around Christmas time, The Knight Before Christmas is a harmless way to spend an hour and a half.

3 stars