Movie Review: "Wild Rose" (2019)

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Movie: "Wild Rose"

Director: Tom Harper
Year: 2019
Rating: R
Running Time: 1 hour, 41 minutes

An ex-con from Glasgow tries to resume her dream of becoming a Nashville country singer but struggles to balance her passion with her domestic responsibilities as a mother to two young children.

Movie Review: "Blinded by the Light" (2019)

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Movie: "Blinded by the Light"

Director: Gurinder Chadha
Year: 2019
Rating: PG-13
Running Time: 1 hour, 58 minutes

A British teenager of Pakistani descent with aspirations of being a writer finds himself wandering aimlessly through life in the small town of Luton, England. He starts to find direction upon discovering the music of Bruce Springsteen.

Movie Review: "Yesterday" (2019)

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Movie: "Yesterday"

Director: Danny Boyle
Year: 2019
Rating: PG-13
Running Time: 1 hour, 56 minutes

An unexplained global phenomenon wipes the band The Beatles, among other things, out of existence, leaving just one struggling musician left as the only person who remembers them or their music, which he uses to catapult himself to stardom.

Movie Review: "Rocketman" (2019)

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Movie: "Rocketman"
Director: Dexter Fletcher
Year: 2019
Rating: R
Running Time: 2 hours, 1 minute

The life story of world-renowned pianist, singer, and rock star Elton John.

Movie Review: "A Mighty Wind" (2003)

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Movie: "A Mighty Wind"

Director: Christopher Guest
Year: 2003
Rating: PG-13
Running Time: 1 hour, 31 minutes

Various groups of folk singers reunite for a memorial concert to pay homage to the man who discovered them.

Movie Review: "The Dirt" (2019)

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Movie: "The Dirt"

Director: Jeff Tremaine
Year: 2019
Rating: TV-MA
Running Time: 1 hour, 47 minutes

A look at the lives and careers of the members of Mötley Crüe.

Movie Review: "Vox Lux" (2018)

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Movie: "Vox Lux"

Director: Brady Corbet
Year: 2018
Rating: R
Running Time: 1 hour, 50 minutes

A survivor of a school shooting becomes an international singing sensation when her tribute song hits the top of the pop charts. Over time, she becomes accustomed to the destructive rockstar lifestyle.

Movie Review: "Bohemian Rhapsody" (2018)

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Movie: "Bohemian Rhapsody"

Director: Bryan Singer
Year: 2018
Rating: PG-13
Running Time: 2 hours, 14 minutes

A look at Freddie Mercury's life and his rise to fame as the frontman of legendary rock group Queen.

Movie Review: "Unlovable" (2018)

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Movie: "Unlovable"

Director: Suzi Yoonessi
Year: 2018
Rating: NR
Running Time: 1 hour, 20 minutes

A sex and relationship addict seeks help and finds real friendship with a reclusive man who has issues of his own.

Movie Review: "A Star is Born" (2018)

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Movie: "A Star is Born"

Director: Bradley Cooper
Year: 2018
Rating: R
Running Time: 2 hours, 15 minutes

A country music star suffering from substance abuse issues stops into a drag bar to get a drink after a gig one night. It is in this bar where he discovers a talented young singer, and the two quickly fall in love. He helps launch her career, but as her star begins to rise, his starts to fade as the years of drug and alcohol abuse begin to catch up with him.

Movie Review: "Juliet, Naked" (2018)

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Movie: "Juliet, Naked"

Director: Jesse Peretz
Year: 2018
Rating: R
Running Time: 1 hour, 45 minutes

A woman becomes online pen pals with her longtime boyfriend's idol, musician Tucker Crowe, after giving his demo album a bad review on her boyfriend's Tucker Crowe fan forum.

Movie Review: "Frank" (2014)

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Movie: "Frank"

Director: Lenny Abrahamson
Year: 2014
Rating: R
Running Time: 1 hour, 35 minutes

An aspiring songwriter joins a band made up of a group of eccentric players fronted by a guy named Frank, who wears a giant artificial head that he never takes off. 

"We were hiding in the forest like secret squirrels, and now we're likable!" (Image Source)

"Frank" is a wonderfully weird movie directed by Lenny Abrahamson, who is best known as the director of the best picture-nominated film "Room." It is written by Jon Ronson and Peter Straughan and is based on a newspaper article written by Ronson. The film centers on an aspiring songwriter and keyboard player named Jon Burroughs (Domhnall Gleeson). Jon is struggling to write his music, but one day by chance, he happens upon a man having a mental breakdown at the beach. This man happens to be a keyboardist in the band The Soronprfbs. While gawking at the whole scene, Jon mentions to another bystander that he is a keyboard player. It turns out, this bystander is another member of  The Soronprfbs, who asks Jon to join the band for a gig. Their gig doesn't go well at all, but the band's leader Frank (Michael Fassbender), who wears a giant fake head that he never takes off, asks Jon to join the group anyway. Jon joins the group for what he believes is a weekend gig, but he is actually wanted for a months-long recording session where he will be trapped in a relatively isolated cabin with a moderately unstable group of people. Jon decides to document the entire ordeal on social media, which gains the group a new fanbase and may lead to bigger things if they can mentally hold it together.

"Despite all the hardships here, something inside me is beginning to stir." (Image Source)

What if you really wanted to be a songwriter but didn't have the talent to achieve your goal? That's the situation for the film's protagonist Jon. His desire to make it in the world of music leads him to shack up with an eccentric group of people that he doesn't exactly mesh well with despite a mutual love of all things rhythm and melody. The situations that occur at their remote cabin in the woods create a lot of funny, sometimes tension-filled moments. The type of humor in this movie is very offbeat and can be quite dark. It won't be for everyone, but since we are a little twisted, it worked really well for us. We love Michael Fassbender's portrayal of the mysterious titular Frank. Since Frank wears a giant fake head, we can't see his face. To make Jon more comfortable, Frank begins to describe his facial expressions out loud. It is a simple thing, but it made us roar with laughter each time he casually dropped a phrase like "welcoming smile" or "big, non-threatening grin" in the middle of a sentence.

At its core, "Frank" is a slice-of-life film about Jon's strange journey with The Soronprfbs. There's a lot of conflict that stems from the direction the band is going to take. Jon's overwhelming desire to become a rockstar consumes his every thought as he thinks Frank is his ticket to stardom. On the other hand, Maggie Gyllenhaal's Clara believes Frank and the band are pure, authentic artists who just need to express themselves regardless of whether or not they have an audience. This struggle is an intense, interesting one that kept us engaged and always guessing what would happen next, especially considering the fact that Jon is secretly documenting his experiences with the band online.

"Frank finds inspiration in everything." (Image Source)

"Frank" is a film that is completely unique is so many ways. Watching it made for an entertaining experience, and we relished in every damn minute of this quirky music dramedy. It is not an experience everyone will enjoy, but if you are predisposed to appreciate slightly off-kilter dark comedies with catchy tunes and bigger themes at play, you'll probably get a lot out of watching "Frank." The un-curious need not apply.

My Rating: 9/10
BigJ's Rating: 8.5/10
IMDB's Rating: 7.0/10
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 92%
Do we recommend this movie: ABSOLUTELY YES!!!

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Movie Review: "Whitney" (2018)

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Movie: "Whitney"

Director: Kevin Macdonald
Year: 2018
Rating: R
Running Time: 2 hours, 0 minutes

The life story of singing sensation Whitney Houston.

Movie Review: "Hearts Beat Loud" (2018)

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Movie: "Hearts Beat Loud"

Director: Brett Haley
Year: 2018
Rating: PG-13
Running Time: 1 hour, 37 minutes

As a young woman prepares to leave New York for medical school in Los Angeles, her father dreams of stardom when a song they wrote together gains traction on Spotify.

"How did you get to be such a music snob?" (Image Source)

There is a time in every parent's life where their child reaches an age where they prepare to go off on their own and brave the wilds of the world without them. Some parents struggle with this more than others. "Hearts Beat Loud" is directed by Brett Haley, who has directed movies like "The Hero" and "I'll See You In My Dreams." Haley also wrote the film along with his regular collaborator Marc Basch, who helped pen the above screenplays. The story is about an immature father and dreamer named Frank (Nick Offerman) and his much more realistic daughter Sam (Kiersey Clemons), who acts like the adult in the relationship. Frank runs a record store in Red Hook, and his daughter is spending her last summer at home before going into pre-med at UCLA. The two have always bonded over music, and Frank often rips Sam away from her studies for a weekly jam session. Frank hears a song Sam has been writing and demands they record it. After it is recorded, he submits the song to Spotify without telling her. The tune gains traction on the indie rock mix next to iconic bands like Spoon and Iron & Wine. This reignites Frank's dreams of rock stardom. He just has to convince his daughter that it is a worthwhile pursuit despite her hesitation to join a band with her dad.

"We're on a playlist with Iron & Wine and Spoon. BOOM!" (Image Source)

There are a lot of movies about people giving up their much more practical approach to life to chase their dream. This movie is sort of the opposite of that. It's about being rational and not giving up the bird in the hand that's worth more than two in the bush. It is also about a relationship between a father and daughter and shows a different type of coming-of-age story centered around their dynamic. It is not about this crazy life-changing moment for Sam as she's on her way to college, it's about the life-changing moment Frank is about to have when Sam leaves New York and moves to LA for school. Frank does a lot to attempt to hang onto the past. He clings to his failing record store, holds onto his dreams of stardom, and doesn't want to let go of his daughter as he fears what the future will bring.

"When jam sesh time arrives, we have to put aside childish things like homework and med school." (Image Source)

This is a simple, very understated slice-of-life story with a lot to like about it. The acting is excellent. Nick Offerman and Kiersey Clemons are wonderful together as father and daughter, and the two of them have fantastic chemistry. There are a few humorous moments that made us chuckle, mostly due to Offerman's dry wit and delivery. This is a movie that revolves entirely around music. I loved the songs in this film, particularly the ballad Sam writes for her girlfriend Rose (Sasha Lane) called "Blink (One Million Miles)." BigJ disagrees. He didn't like the songs all that much. They weren't his style. Either way, it is impressive that Offerman and Clemons played their own instruments and sang their own songs, which makes the film that much more believable. We will admit, for all the good there is here, the story is a bit lacking. It doesn't have a tremendous emotional punch, apart from one or two instances. The story is familiar and is one we've seen before. Still, not many coming-of-age films focus on a single dad and his daughter, and we appreciate seeing a potential "empty nest syndrome" from a father's point of view.

"We're made of more than just one thing." (Image Source)

In the end, "Hearts Beat Loud" is a solid indie drama that is worth watching for the performances and the music. Just be aware, it isn't super memorable.

My Rating: 7/10
BigJ's Rating: 6/10
IMDB's Rating: ~6.8/10
RT Rating: ~88%
Do we recommend this movie: Sure, why not?

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Movie Review: "Forever My Girl" (2018)

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Movie: "Forever My Girl"

Director: Bethany Ashton Wolf
Year: 2018
Rating: PG
Running Time: 1 hour, 48 minutes

A country music superstar returns to his hometown for the first time in eight years to attend his former best friend's funeral. Once there, he runs into the woman he left at the altar eight years earlier and learns he has a seven-year-old daughter. Now, he wants to do what he can to make things right.

Oh, look, a January romantic drama. There's no way this could be bad, right!? "Forever My Girl" is written and directed by Bethany Ashton Wolf and is based on a book of the same name by Heidi McLaughlin. It stars Alex Roe as Liam Page who, after leaving his longtime girlfriend Josie, played by Jessica Rothe, at the altar on their wedding day, rockets to country music stardom. Liam has spent the last eight years making albums, touring day in and day out, having fun with a different groupie every night, drinking, and earning a boatload of cash. When he learns his best friend from high school has been killed in a car accident, he returns to his hometown of St. Augustine, Louisiana for the first time since he made it big and now must face his past mistakes. Once he gets home, he runs into his ex and learns he has a seven-year-old daughter named Billy, played by Abby Ryder Fortson. Now, Liam wants to do what he can to atone for his mistakes.

What can we really expect from a January romance movie other than a schmaltzy story loaded with every cliche in cinematic existence? This is a story about a man seeking redemption for the wrongs he's done. He abandoned his fiance. He abandoned his father. He didn't contact anybody from his hometown in eight years. Still, he has a young daughter, and the filmmaker and writer want us to root for his redemption story. We want him to get back together with Josie and to be a good daddy to his little Billy. It's a tale as old as time.

We imagine this is what it would look like if a rich lady's Pinterest board came to life. It's very apparent that to achieve a certain aesthetic for "Forever My Girl," the people responsible for making this movie scoured every possible Pinterest pin they could to make it a country lover's wet dream: the Southern sunsets, the dirt roads, the laid-back lifestyle, the twinkle lights outside people's houses, the two hundred varieties of flowers dripping in sunlight, and the mason jars...Jesus almighty, the mason jars...they are seriously everywhere, from flower holders to soap dispensers to drinking glasses.

The characters themselves are paper thin. Liam is the stereotypical jock who has a hidden talent as a country music singer. When he leaves town, he becomes the stereotypical musician complete with groupies, substance abuse, writer's block, and a penchant for ducking out on his management knowing he has no new material for them. Josie has hardly anything to do and has almost zero character arc. It seems like she has only ever been a mother for eight years and has had zero other romantic interests in her life hoping that someday, one day, maybe, Liam might return to their little town of "Saint" and sweep her off her feet. We don't have any feelings one way or the other about the acting, though it does seem like Jessica Rothe loses her southern accent from times to time. We do see potential in her as an actress and hope she gets more roles in the future.

The movie is as predictable as can be. It offers nothing new to the romance genre, just more unrealistic romantic fantasies full of sap and cheese. It never tries to tackle larger issues at play, it merely treats them as minor inconveniences. Liam has a clear history of substance abuse and is definitely an alcoholic, but that whole aspect of his character is glossed over just as fast as it's introduced. It is only briefly mentioned by his father, yet he never really struggles to give it up. Also, the entire idea of Liam's grand romantic gesture hinges on him keeping this old beat-up, out of date, no internet flip phone because he doesn't want to lose a voicemail. Anyone who has even the smallest knowledge of phones can tell you voicemails are not stored on the phone, but rather on the network server. This may be a big nitpick, but it certainly bugged the hell out of us considering BigJ's work history in the cell phone industry. In fact, Liam's complete ineptness around all things technological really bugged us. It's like he was some weird creature kept in a cage and was only let out to record albums and perform concerts and drink heavily like his life didn't exist beyond music. Seriously...he couldn't even order a piece of jewelry online and had never used his credit cards on his own. How the hell does that even happen in the 2010's?

If you are a huge fan of formulaic Nicholas Sparks-style romance films, you may enjoy "Forever My Girl," a generic romance full of generic characters, a generic premise, and generic songs. Otherwise, steer clear of this Pinterest board come to life.

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My Rating: 2.5/10
BigJ's Rating: 2.5/10
IMDB's Rating: ~6.1/10
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: ~20%
Do we recommend this movie: AVOID LIKE THE PLAGUE!!!

Movie Review: "Pitch Perfect 3" (2017)

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Movie: "Pitch Perfect 3"

Director: Trish Sie
Year: 2017
Rating: PG-13
Running Time: 1 hour, 33 minutes

The Bellas reunite and go on a USO tour. It turns out, one of the bands competing on tour will be chosen to open for DJ Khaled for a big televised event that could skyrocket their career.

It is a little hard to imagine what is left for the Bellas. They have already won the collegiate acapella championships and the world acapella championships, so what else is there? Apparently, that's what we are here to find out. "Pitch Perfect 3" is directed by Trish Sie, who has taken over the directorial duties from Elizabeth Banks, who decided to step aside for this installment. Sie has directed "Step Up: All In" and a bunch of music videos, which we guess is a good background for a movie that is basically a bunch of music videos slapped together with a flimsy plot. The main cast returns to reprise their roles as the Bellas including Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, Brittany Snow, Hailee Steinfeld, Ester Dean, Anna Camp, Chrissie Fit, and Hana Mae Lee. Also returning are Elizabeth Banks and John Michael Higgins as Gail and John, the Bellas own personal commentators and hecklers who are now making a documentary about their rise and fall, emphasis on the fall. Noticeably missing are Fat Amy's former love interest Bumper, played by Adam Devine, and Beca's former love interest Jesse, starring Skylar Astin, who get written off with one quick line early on in the film. Since graduating from college, most of the Bellas have gone on to lead rather unfulfilling careers and lives. Looking for a final hoorah, Aubrey, played by Anna Camp, gets the Bellas a spot on an upcoming USO tour for a reunion. Once they on tour, the women find out one of the groups playing on the tour will get to open for DJ Khaled, turning what was a simple music trip into yet another contest where the Bellas are the underdogs. There is also a subplot about Fat Amy and her fallout with her estranged father, played by John Lithgow with a terrible Australian accent, who may or may not have sinister intentions.

So, aca-fans, what do we get from this third (and wholly unnecessary) installment in the "Pitch Perfect" series? Pretty much the exact same thing we got from the two previous films. We get to hear a lot of cover songs sung by various groups, only this time, the bands in the competition have actual musical instruments. The Bellas also go through some sort of strife with each other until they eventually make up and all is well and right with the group because they aren't just singers, they are ~*a family.~* John Michael Higgins makes a bunch of awful but satirical misogynistic remarks, which can be good for a laugh here but are mostly tired at this point in the series. Elizabeth Bank's Gail gets to go on and on and on about how the Bellas are in way over their heads... until they aren't.

The story as a whole is very basic and is mostly about the Bellas trying to move on with their lives and finding things to do other than singing. It's clear that most of the people in this series are tired of it. They are clearly in it for the paycheck at this point. Anna Kendrick checked out midway through the second installment, so someone else needs to get more time to shine. If you thought there was a big focus on Fat Amy in the second installment, Rebel Wilson gets even more spotlight in this third installment. While we love seeing the representation of larger women on screen, Fat Amy is only funny in small doses. She gets more and more obnoxious as the movie progresses, especially considering there is a subplot about her relationship with her estranged father. There is also another subplot that has one of the girls doing over the top martial arts fighting against an army of armed thugs because why? The only reason these subplots exist is to keep the series feeling new and exciting. It doesn't work, but that's beside the point. It speaks to the nature of the messy story which is clearly just slapped together around a bunch of pop songs.

The best thing about the "Pitch Perfect" series has always been the music and the mashups. The songs are performed well enough that you may be able to enjoy the musical aspects even if the rest of it is a total trash fire. That being said, and we hate to keep picking on her, but Rebel Wilson has gotten more and more off-key over the course of these three movies, and considering the substantial part she plays here, be prepared for a lot of screeching.

In the end, there are a couple of moments here that made us laugh, but a lot of humor falls desperately flat. The story itself is flimsy and contrived, but the music and various over the top adventures may be enough for fans of the "Pitch Perfect" franchise to still have a good time. For us, "Pitch Perfect 3" it winds up being a borderline middle of the road film with some good music, a lot of dumb plot points, and a semi-redeemable ending.

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My Rating: 4.5/10
BigJ's Rating: 5/10
IMDB's Rating: ~6.2/10
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 31%
Do we recommend this movie: Meh.

Movie Review: "The Star Wars Holiday Special" (1978)

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Movie: "The Star Wars Holiday Special"

Director: Steve Binder
Year: 1978
Rating: NR
Running Time: 1 hour, 37 minutes

Han Solo tries to get Chewbacca home to Kashyyyk so he can spend 'Life Day' with his family.

We are huge "Star Wars" fans. If you've ever wondered if there's a "Star Wars" movie that the fans of the series should avoid at all costs, look no further than "The Star Wars Holiday Special," a made-for-TV movie that aired around Christmastime in 1978. The main cast appears in the film including Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Peter Mayhew, Anthony Daniels, and the voice of James Earl Jones, who all reprise their roles from "Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope." This movie is directed by Steve Binder, who directed many television specials prior to this one. What this movie is supposed to be about is Chewbacca trying to return to his home planet of Kashyyyk to spend "Life Day" with his family. Life Day is what we assume to be the Wookie version of Christmas. What this movie actually winds up being about is Chewbacca's family sitting at home waiting for him to get back while they watch various things on various screens as a few famous-at-the-time stars who weren't too busy doing anything else perform skits that have nothing to do with "Star Wars." A few of the other big names that appear in this special are Art Carney, Harvey Corman, Bea Arthur, Diahann Carroll, and Jefferson Starship because you know, STAR Wars, spaceSHIP... that's seriously the closest thing we could come up with to connect any these people to a galaxy far, far away.

We had heard that this movie was bad. We figured, how bad could it really be? We have watched countless bad movies like "Manos: Hands of Fate," "Heaven's Gate," and "Catwoman" all in the name of cinematic masochism. Hell, we just saw "Santa Claus Conquers the Martians" for our Christmas marathon! But, nothing could have adequately prepared us for what we were about to witness. We hoped this would be a "so bad, it's good" type of experience like what happened when we viewed "Troll 2" or "Samurai Cop," and at first, this was almost the case. The feature starts out with Han Solo trying to get Chewbacca home before cutting to Chewie's family hanging out waiting in their tree house. They are 'talking' to each other, and as fans of "Star Wars" know, Wookies often sound like wounded animals struggling to survive. So here, we have a room full of Wookies screaming at each other. At first, it was a little funny, until we realized at some point about 20 minutes into the film that this was going to be continuing the whole movie. Sometimes Chewie's father Itchy, his mother Malla, and his son Lumpy watch some form of entertainment. For example, Chewbacca's son watches some weird precursor to Cirque du Soleil, and Chewbacca's father uses what seems to be a VR porn fantasy machine where Diahann Carroll sings a song about his inner fantasies. And speaking of songs, there are a lot of them, performed by Carroll, Jefferson Starship, Bea Arthur, and even Carrie Fisher. These tunes are interwoven with little interludes of Chewbacca's wife having a video call with Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, and Art Carney. The charm wears off really quickly and it's clear nobody was happy to be participating in this thing. Harrison Ford had no intent on hiding his disdain. The only thing that sticks with us about this movie is that Chewbacca was a terrible father who abandoned his family to smuggle illegal goods, to fight in the Rebellion, and to fight for the Resistance without ever mentioning them ever again. It's easy to understand why people HATE this movie, and it's easy to see why Chewie never mentioned his family ever again. "The Star Wars Holiday Special" is atrocious.

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My Rating: 1.5/10
BigJ's Rating: 1.5/10
IMDB's Rating: 2.3/10
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 43%
Do we recommend this movie: AVOID LIKE THE PLAGUE!!!

Movie Review: "Band Aid" (2017)

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Movie: "Band Aid"

Director: Zoe Lister-Jones
Year: 2017
Rating: R
Running Time: 1 hour, 31 minutes

In an effort to save their marriage, Anna and Ben form a band and use their arguments to write songs.

Turning a bad relationship into inspiration for music has worked for Taylor Swift, Sam Smith, and Adele, so why can't it work for this couple? Zoe Lister-Jones is the writer, director, producer, and star of "Band Aid," a quirky indie comedy with dramatic undertones... as if there is any other kind of indie comedy. Lister-Jones plays Anna, who is married to Ben, played Adam Pally. Anna and Ben are constantly at odds with one another and bicker over the most trivial things. While at the birthday party of Anna's godson, she and Ben start messing around with a couple of toy instruments. This gives them the idea to start writing songs together. About what, you may ask? They intend to use their songwriting and music as a form of therapy in their marriage. Actually... when we think about it, it was never really the music that made them stop fighting. It was the potential for having success  while doing something creative that really stopped their fighting. It was when Anna thought their band could turn into something more than farting around in their garage that she was happy enough to stop fighting. Or maybe she was happy because her husband finally got up off the couch, pried himself away from his video games and his marijuanas, and decided to do the damn dishes. Who really knows, it all happened around the same time they formed their group.

Viewers should be warned, a good 50-60% of this film contains nothing more than Anna and Ben yelling at each other over and over, and their fights get progressively worse. "Band Aid" begins with a cold start and everything that happens before the title screen is a bit rough. There is the occasional witticism thrown in here and there, but it's mostly just two people arguing about all of their problems big and small. Luckily, shortly after the title, Fred Armisen shows up and offers some very funny moments to sustain the audience through the contention. For us, the best moments are when Armisen's character Dave, Anna and Ben's weird, quirky neighbor, eventually joins their band as the drummer. Unfortunately, he has a relatively small role. Can we get a Dave spin-off story??

Since this is a movie about the power of music, we hoped it would have some good tunes to go along with the epic arguments. When we've watched other music-centric movies like John Carney's "Once," "Begin Again," or "Sing Street," we've left those films with songs stuck in our heads wanting to hear them again and again. At the end of "Band Aid," we struggled to remember a single tune or lyric and didn't really care to seek out its soundtrack.

There are a few laughs throughout the film in between all of the yelling and screaming, some minor chuckles and some big belly laughs. The screenplay does a good job showing a realistic look at a rocky marriage, though it does wind up with a message that basically says couples fight because men and women are biologically different and handle emotions in different ways. It also says fights are a part of a relationship and people just need to accept it. "Band Aid" has some good and some not so good. Luckily, Lister-Jones and Pally have great chemistry (even while they are yelling at each other) and Fred Armisen is hilarious, so you most likely won't be bored. If you're newly married, however, you may want to wait a few years until you watch this movie.

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My Rating: 6/10
BigJ's Rating: 6/10
IMDB's Rating: 6.7/10
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 85%
Do we recommend this movie: Sure, why not?

Movie Review: "Chavela" (2017)

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Movie: "Chavela"

Director:  Catherine Gund & Daresha Kyi
Year: 2017
Rating: UR
Running Time: 1 hour, 33 minutes

The story of Chavela Vargas, the Costa Rican born Mexican singer.

Pieced together from videotaped interviews old and new, stock videos, and home movies, Catherine Gund and Daresha Kyi have created a documentary chronicling the life and career of Isabel Vargas Lizano, better known as Chavela. She was a Costa Rican born Mexican singer best known for singing Mexican ranchera music. She was a singer unlike any other, breaking societal norms by wearing no make-up and dressing in pants and a poncho, much to the chagrin of her family and her community. Chavela was a lesbian, though she remained somewhat in the closet, at least publically and officially, for most of her life despite having relationships with numerous women, including world-famous artist Frida Kahlo. Times dictated that whatever happened on stage was acceptable up there at the moment, but the second an artist stepped foot off of it, it was time to hide who you really were. Chavela did officially announce what most already knew and officially came out in the early 90's when she was well into her 70's. From then on, she became a pioneer and icon for lesbians in Mexico. As one woman said, "there isn't a lesbian in Mexico who doesn't know who Chavela Vargas is."

Like most documentaries, this film consists mostly of interviews with friends and family members of Vargas to go along with archival footage of Chavela herself. It also contains numerous clips of her soulful music and impassioned performances. We really didn't know anything about her prior to watching this documentary and call it ignorance, but we really didn't even know she existed. Isn't that sad? Now, we know quite a bit about her and the fascinating person she was. The documentary doesn't shy away from Chavela's short-comings like her battles with alcoholism and her violent streak. She made quite the impact during her time here on earth. She was an not only an extremely interesting person who led an extremely interesting life, but she was a pioneer for women in music and women in Mexico.

As far as documentaries go, "Chavela" is pretty straightforward. It doesn't bring a whole lot of newness or cleverness to the table when it comes to exploring its subject, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. It works as a vehicle for delivering information and telling anecdotes, and if you know nothing about Chavela, chances are, you will be enraptured by her compelling, iconic, trailblazing story. Unfortunately, because the vessel is so expected, this means the documentary is only interesting because its subject is. Luckily, Chavela was a captivating, daring, intense, fierce person, and hearing about her life straight from her mouth and those closest to her will make for an enjoyable viewing experience for those open to it. That being said, this style of documentary filmmaking can be a bit slow paced. It is a little tedious at times because a lot of people ate introduced and it can be hard to keep up with who is who, but it is worth it to hear the pain-stricken, languished, emotional verses in the songs Chavela sang throughout her life.

In the end, "Chavela" is worth checking out if you are a fan of music, if you're interested in true life LGBTQIA stories, and/or documentaries about people you know nothing about.

"Chavela" is playing locally in San Diego at the Arclight La Jolla and the Landmark Hillcrest starting October 13th, 2017.

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My Rating: 7.5/10
BigJ's Rating: 7/10
IMDB's Rating: ~8.0/10
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 87%
Do we recommend this movie: Sure, why not?

Movie Review: "Patti Cake$" (2017)

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Movie: "Patti Cake$"

Director: Geremy Jasper
Year: 2017
Rating: R
Running Time: 1 hour, 49 minutes

A woman from New Jersey pursues her dream of becoming a rapper. She must also deal with an unsupportive, alcoholic mother and battle financial troubles due to her grandmother's ever increasing medical bills. 

The tale of the struggling artist is a common story in both big studio films and smaller independent features. Just about everyone who has tried to break into music or film without a friend or relative already in the industry has seemingly had the same experience. "Patti Cake$" stars Danielle MacDonald, who plays the titular role of Patti Cake$, aka Patricia, aka Killa P, a poor white girl from New Jersey who dreams of becoming a famous rapper. Unfortunately, her family is having financial troubles due to her grandma's mounting medical bills, so she has to work her ass off as a bartender to make ends meet. Patti has a strained relationship with her mom Barb, played Bridget Everett, who once had rock star dreams of her own but is now an alcoholic hairstylist by day, alcoholic barfly by night. Patti's hip-hop group, PBNJ, consists of herself, her gravel-voiced Nana, played by Cathy Moriarty, her best friend Jheri, played by Siddharth Dhananjay, and an African-American anarchist and death metal artist that calls himself Bastard, played by Mamoudou Athie.

This is the first feature film from writer/director Geremy Jasper, who up until now has only done music videos and short films. What a great way to kick off his career as a film maker! Jasper has created a story with wonderful and relatable characters who feel like real life people and not over-exaggerated caricatures. Danielle MacDonald does an outstanding job in her leading role. She is passionate, charismatic, extremely likable, and to top it all off, she can really flow when it comes to spitting rhymes. Though Patti is rough around the edges, it's understandable because she's clearly had the crap end of the stick thrown at her more than once in her young life. MacDonald is from Australia and had to learn to rap with a New Jersey accent, and we think she does so convincingly and with great success. This is her breakout role and we cannot wait to see more from her in the future. The rest of the cast is excellent as well. We love the rag-tag group which makes up PBNJ. MacDonald, Dhananjay, and Athie have tremendous chemistry with one another. Bridget Everett is wonderful portraying an adult who lives a life of dwelling on her unfulfilled dreams. She resents her daughter, who she at least partially blames for the loss of her singing career.

"Patti Cake$" is full of people looking for stardom while living in the shadow of New York City, a mecca of the recording industry. The Big Apple is just across the river from where Patti lives, but might as well be 10,000 miles away to these Jersey hip hop hopefuls. The soundtrack is fantastic, full of original songs composed by Geremy Jasper himself. The music can be tough to listen to and are full of profanity-laced depressing lyrics, but PBNJ is telling their stories as they have lived them truthfully and honestly. The story is a bit formulaic at times and follows a narrative style we have seen many times before, but it is still powerful nonetheless. It has a lot of heart and is full of really great characters the audience gets fully invest in along the way. As we have said many times before on this here site "if a film has great characters, chances are, you'll have a good movie," and "Patti Cake$" is most certainly a good movie to be sure.

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My Rating: 8.5/10
BigJ's Rating: 8/10
IMDB's Rating: 6.6/10
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 83%
Do we recommend this movie: Yes!