I saw this on Netflix and I was intrigued.  I like Ryan Reynolds a lot.  Then I saw the director:  Michael Bay.

Now, I am not a Michael Bay hater, per se.  I mean, yes I hated the Transformers movies and there are other Bay movies that I disliked, but I also liked Pain & Gain, 13 Hours and The Rock.  So there is that.

6 Underground is THE MOST Michael Bay movie I have ever seen.  That may or may not be a good thing depending on who you are.  For me, it was definitely NOT a good thing..

What did it include?

Explosions ✔

Slow Motion ✔

Car Chases ✔

Explosions ✔

Montages with bad rock music ✔

Pop Culture references ✔

Explosions ✔

Needless shots of beautiful (usually scantily clad) women ✔

Explosions ✔

I checked out on this one very early.  I was bored.  Not even Ryan Reynolds’ charm could save this turd.

When it first came on screen, Reynolds said that he was a ghost and the ghost has one superpower, which was to haunt the living.  And I thought this was going to be the literal story.  I thought, “Hm, what a strange and intriguing idea.  Maybe RIPD with a better story or execution?”

Nope.  They meant “ghost” as a person who fakes their death to drop off the radar and then become a mercenary.  Suddenly much less interesting, but I gave it a chance.

The dialogue was terrible.  Nobody really talks like that.  None of the characters stood, with the possible exception of Corey Hawkins as Seven.  The rest are cliches and underwritten stereotypes.

I really should have watched The Mandalorian instead.  Michael Bay fans may love this.  I hope they do.

1 star

When Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle came out, I had very little interest (outside of Dwayne Johnson, whom I love).  The sequel had no business of being any good.  And yet, it crushed it, both critically and monetarily.

Could they do it again?  That was another point where I was just not sure and I was nervous about.

After seeing The Next Level, I have nothing to worry about.

Spencer (Alex Wolff) has been having problems since leaving the world of Jumanji.  It had become so bad that he decided to go back into the game for a chance to feel the power and confidence of Dr. Smolder Bravestone (Dwayne Johnson).  When his friends discovered that he had gone into Jumanji alone, they chose to follow him in to help him with his quest.

However, there were some switches of characters that were unexpected and brought a different set of challenges.  When you add Danny DeVito and Danny Glover into the mix, you amp up the comedy part of this comedy/adventure movie.

As with the previous movie, one of the best parts of The Next Level is the cast including Johnson, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, and Jack Black.  These four, especially Black and Hart, bring their A-game to this movie, providing an imitation of the actors/characters that is extremely well done.  Kevin Hart’s version of Danny Glover is spot on and never fails to be hilarious.

They also bring a plot point into the film as they near the third act that feels effective and helped to maintain the freshness of the performances, particularly Dwayne Johnson’s Danny DeVito imitation, which was threatening to run its course.  The plot point helped the movie dramatically.  It was also something that made sense in the world of video games.

There are similarities to Welcome to the Jungle, but I feel that they tweaked sections in different ways that really helped to provide the variety in the scenes.  Plus, it is just a fun and extremely funny movie with lots of adventure.

The CGI was very well done with all of the animals that the group had to face.  The herd of ostriches was especially great.

I thoroughly enjoyed the entire Jumanji: The Next Level.  The changes they made were refreshing and the adjustment through the movie made perfect sense in storytelling.  The cast is still the selling point of this movie as they are able to show their talents and knowledge of these characters, while clearly having fun making this movie.  A very worthy addition to the Jumanji franchise.

4.4 stars

I had never seen the previous versions of Black Christmas, the 1974 original, which horror aficionados consider a classic in the slasher genre, or the 2006 remake, so I was not weighed down by any previous feelings toward the film.

However, I had seen the trailer fro this new version, and I feel that, after viewing the trailer, I basically saw the film itself.  I was not sure why I needed to see this movie since they showed me so much in the trailer.  Film critic William Bibbiani tweeted that he thought so initially too, but that, after seeing it, the film held more back than he thought.  Okay, so I decided to give it a chance.

After seeing it, I do still think they gave way too much away in the trailer, but there are a few things that are left for discovery in the movie.  One of the biggest was actually one of the parts I liked the least.

I have heard a lot of negative reviews directed towards Black Christmas (2019) but I did not think it deserved as much vitriol as it has received.  It is fine.

A group of sorority sisters were being hunted by an underground cult/cabal from a misogynistic fraternity who were looking to force women in their proper place.  Riley (Imogen Poots) had a past experience with the fraternity that has informed her opinion and the opinions of the others in her sorority.

I was actually enjoying a good chunk of the opening hour or so of the film, but I thought the ending went fairly wanky and relied too much on exposition to reveal what the film needed us to know.  The last half hour or so weakened the film for me.

I also believe that Cary Elwes, who played Professor Gelson, was totally wasted here.  He had some early scenes that could have been creepy and mysterious had the trailer not spoiled it for me.

The message of this movie could have benefited from being more subtle than it was.  There is a clear and unmistakably apparent message that is drilled throughout the film and, while it is a very important message for today’s world, it was less effective with the preachy aspect of it.  The best horror films use symbolism to provide a message in the story, but it does not have to be as blatant as it is in Black Christmas.

The cast does a solid job of making me feel for the characters and to draw the contrast between them.  Each girl had a trait or quirk that made them individuals, something that a lot of these movies do not take the time to do.  A special shout out to Aleyse Shannon, who played Kris, who I thought was one of the most interesting actors in the ensemble.  You could see the spark while she was on screen.

I am torn about whether to recommend this film.  On one hand, I do think it is a better film than it is getting credit for, but it clearly has some major issues in storytelling and theme.  In the end, I walked out of the theater with the mindset that it was better than I expected and so, I will give it the slight recommendation.   And if you can go into Black Christmas without seeing the trailer, do it.

3 stars

This one felt strange to me.

First, I would state that the performances in Waves are top notch, especially from Taylor Russell as Emily and Kelvin Harrison Jr as Tyler.  Most of the film is shot beautifully and it does have some emotional wallop in the story.

However, it also feels as if the story itself was all over the place.  Overlong and erratic, Waves seemed to completely switch the story about two-thirds through the film where the main protagonist is changed and the focus on the film changes dramatically.  It was really a strange watch.

The film starts focusing on Tyler, a high school wrestler who seems to have everything, and we see how his life begins to unravel and how these stresses and problems take a toll on his life.  His slow descent into anger is difficult to watch as he continued to make poor decisions.  Those decisions were taking effects on the people in his life.  His overbearing and hard-nosed father Ronald (Sterling K. Brown) is pushing his son hard in every part of his life.

A shoulder injury threatened to end his wrestling.  His girlfriend Alexis (Alexa Demie) brings an unexpected problem and everything starts to weigh down Tyler.

There were amazing performances here and there were several real emotional moments.  They had some great shots and director Trey Edwards Shults does an admirable job doing things that are outside the box.

I was engaged until the strange shift in the narrative which felt so weird.  It dropped what was being a solid film into one where I still liked but found clunky.  After the switch, Taylor Russell was still exceptional (she brought a beautiful presence to the screen) and she has a bright future ahead of her.  She will be a star.  Lucas Hedges was really fantastic too.    The problem is theor parts just came out of nowhere.  The film never got its flow back after the flip.

3.3 stars

There has been lots of buzz for Marriage Story, the new film directed by Noah Baumbach and starring Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson, which tells the story of a couple heading for divorce.

I had heard some great things about Marriage Story, but honestly it did not sound like something that I was going to be interested in.  After opening in select theaters, Marriage Story would wind up streaming on Netflix so viewing it would be simple.  Still, it was not something that I was anticipating.

Then I saw it.

Wow.  What a brilliant movie.

Adam Driver plays a stage director named Charlie and Scarlett is his wife and actress Nicole.  The film starts off in a beautiful way, but then it pulls the rug out from you.  I won’t reveal how because it is a wonderful opening.

They have a son named Henry (Azhy Robertson).  They work on their play in New York and then Nicole got a pilot in Los Angeles.  This is what started the end of the marriage, though there were other factors in pay already.

Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson are utterly awesome in these roles. They bring such humor and pain to every minute and nothing is wasted. You can see from both points of view during the film with neither side being completely wrong, but not completely right either.  I can not imagine that Driver or Johansson will not be nominated for Academy Awards for these roles. If they are ignored, that would be a terrible snub.

This is a wonderful character driven story that focuses on its great leads, but there are also some amazing supporting characters in the movie.  Alan Alda and Laura Dern are potentially award deserving for their roles as divorce lawyers who are both straight forward but also two-faced.  You can tell why lawyers get a bad reputation from some of the tactics that they take, and yet they are clearly real people who have feelings and are complex.  We also have Ray Liotta, Shawn Wallace, and Julie Hagerty in supporting roles that are original and fun.

There are some scenes that simply dropped my jaw.  There is one scene between Johansson and Driver where they are fighting that was utterly tense and distressing.  This would be their Oscar submission, I think.

This movie is filled with pain, but also a joy of life that comes through clearly.  Divorce is a difficult time and it leaves scars, but it is something that you can make it through.  I was surprised how much I loved this movie.  I did not expect to love it this much, but the two lead actors are so great, and the film is so well created that you cannot help but llove it.

5 stars

This is a true story that is just shocking because you have no option but to accept the fact that the world is full of just evil people who do terrible things to people over money.  There is no denying it.  Some companies have individuals who will hide the most amoral acts because for these acts to be revealed will lose the companies money.

Mark Ruffalo is tremendous as always playing a real life hero Robert “Rob” Bilott, a corporate lawyer who gets involved with a farmer from his hometown whose cows are dying at an alarming rate.  Turns out that the corporation DuPont has been dumping poisonous chemicals into West Virginia landfills that comes from the creation of Teflon.

Watching what this case does to Mark Ruffalo’s character is one of the biggest takeaways from this movie.  The affect of this case on his health, his marriage, his career is just shocking, making this real life man all the more heroic in that he continued to fight through all of the years.

And watching DuPont pull their dirty, underhanded tricks was just as powerful.  Victor Gerber played DuPont CEO Phil Donnelly and there are times when even he shows the anguish of what he is doing to hide this secret.  Gerber does a great job providing this monster of a man with some humanity after all.

Rob’s wife Sarah (Anne Hathaway) is as affected by the case as her husband is and you see how she deals with the stress and, at times, the danger that she has been brought into unwillingly.  Anne Hathaway gives a top notch and human performance.

The investigation of the case is fascinating and very interesting to me.  I am amazed at some of the things that happen and admire the individuals involved for their perseverance.

The movie did get a tad long at times, but it actually does an admirable job following this case along for what turned out to be years.  It was the third movie I saw today and that may have contributed to the feeling of length for me.

This movie poster says that “from Participant, who brought you Spotlight and The Post.”  Participant is a production company that has apparently done a bunch of really great movies.  Spotlight and The Post both share some DNA with Dark Waters.  They have the same feel and the same tone to them.  Hopefully they continue to find these true stories that deserve more focus because I had no idea about this until I saw the promotion of this movie.  And this is something that we all should know.

4.1 stars 

I do not think that I am going to have much to say about this one.

It was terrible.

It was a poor man’s Lego Movie and it did not work anywhere near that.

We started with live action as Anya Taylor-Joy as Marla and Gabriel Bateman as Charlie, a brother and sister whose parents died in a car crash years ago and that moment shifted their relationship.  They wind up getting caught in a mysterious world where they are PLAYMOBIL® characters with their locked out legs and pincher fingers.  They get separated (Charlie, who is in a body of a viking with super strength) and Marla has to try to find her brother before it is too late.

The story was dumb.  The voice acting was adequate.  The animation was fine, but it was clearly wanting to be more like The Lego Movie and it fails at that.

Instead of trying to be the Lego Movie, it should have been its own thing and find the strength of PLAYMOBIL®.  There did not seem to be any.  It was dull and predictable and the secondary characters all made me think of other, more iconic characters.  There was a character that made me think of James Bond.  One that made me think of Boba Fett.  One that made me think of Zach Galifianakis.  Pirate guy too.  The villain was basically Nero from Rome.  Just imitations of better toys or characters.

This is already more than I intended to talk about this movie.  The music was pretty lacking as well.  Save yourself some time and just re-watch The Lego Movie.  It is much better .

1.6 stars 

Shia LaBeouf based this film on his own personal experiences.  This makes me want to reconsider my thoughts on Shia as an actor because he clearly had demons that he had to get through.

Honey Boy stars Shia LaBeouf as James Lort, the father and personal assistant of a young child star named Otis (Noah Jupe).   We also see Otis as a young adult (Lucas Hedges) facing the darkness of his past while he is in rehab.  Honey Boy plays out in both time lines with powerhouse performances as the relationship between father and son takes center stage.

Noah Jupe is downright spectacular.  The brilliance of this performance, as he has to face off with Shia LaBeouf in a high percentage of scenes, is unbeleivable.  This young actor goes through so many emotions and feelings during this film and he does so believably and passionately.  It is one of the best child performances of the year, if not the decade.  So much rides on this young boy to carry the weight of these scenes in the face of Shia LaBeouf, who is giving one of the best performances of his own career.  Noah Jupe makes this film.

I was less impressed with Lucas Hedges in the older Otis role because I feel as if I had seen this before.  Still, I don’t want to criticize him too badly because there is some solid work by Hedges, but the film really pops when Shia LaBeouf and Noah Jupe are on the screen.

Every moment that Shia LaBeouf and Noah Jupe share you feel the sensation that at any second all hell could break loose.  It is a noticeable anxiety faced by the audience between these two characters.  You can see how much young Otis just wants to have his father be a father to him, but you are always wondering if James is capable of doing that.  No matter how cruel or obnoxious James is, Otis wants a real relationship.

You can tell that James loves his son, but it seems as if he does not trust himself to be worthy of Otis, especially with Otis in a more prominent position as money provider.

There are some dark and heartbreaking scenes in this movie that stick with you long after you leave the theater.  It is truly an intimate story from the world of fame and the personal struggles that go along with it.

4.3 stars

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