Tag: Apple TV+

STILLER & MEARA: NOTHING IS LOST – Review

Here’s a terrific showbiz documentary that’s been sent to streaming just months after another superb one, MY MOM JAYNE (which is still on HBO Max, if it’s still called that). Aside from both this doc’s subjects also being a big part of 20th century pop culture, they also both deal with siblings (both are directors of their docs), who are stars in their own right, discovering their parent(s) through boxes and cases of old recordings, press clippings, and notebooks. Sure, some of the legacy of Jayne Mansfield is fairly funny (such tacky fashions), this new film really explores humor, because it’s about a comedy team. That phrase usually conjures up Laurel & Hardy, the Stooges, those Marx Brothers, but this is one of the rare male/female teamings. While their early 60s contemporaries Nichols & May never settled down, this duo, like Burns & Allen decades before, married and started a family. Here’s the story of how their son Ben discovered that, with STILLER & MEARA: NOTHING IS LOST. Really, it’s all there…

The son, of course, is actor/director/writer/producer Ben Stiller. His father Jerry passed away in 2020, five years after his mom, Anne Meara. Since the world was in lockdown due to the pandemic, Ben decided to prepare their longtime Riverside apartment in NYC for an eventual sale (and take one last spin around with his camera). Before the place could be “staged” for presentation to buyers, Ben, and sister Amy, dove into the cases and cartons of material their folks had accumulated over nearly 70 years. Jerry and Anne married in 1953, and as they took on acting gigs in early TV and the theater, they decided to go out as a comedy team. And they were successful, first in nightclubs, and then becoming a favorite of Ed Sullivan (he booked them on his show 36 times). Ben and Amy relive those old days as they pour over correspondence (seeing their love letters), listening to countless audio cassettes, and watching grainy 8mm home movies. . Somehow, their folks almost return to vivid life, guiding Ben through a very difficult time (his recent separation from wife Christine Taylor). Along this nostalgic journey, Ben interviews his own family, along with dear friends of his parents, including actor Christopher Walken and playwright John Guare. In putting together this loving cinematic tribute, Ben realizes how similar his own life, personal and professional, to his recently departed mom and pop, Could this be sage parent advice and consul from the “Great Beyond”?

Talk about your “labor of love”! What a splendid, interesting and entertaining film which should help dispel that old notion that “documentaries are homework”. Certainly, Ben does make use of the doc trope of “talking heads” (mainly with his aunt), but he’s found a way to juggle and intercut the archival photos and footage in a fresh, compelling way. The segments from the Sullivan show are crisp, looking as though they aired new last Sunday night, while we also get the grainy VHS (or maybe half inch) video dupes of the duo co-hosting “The Mike Douglas Show” and bringing in little Benji and Amy for a sweet, though “ear-testing” violin duet. The notebook scribblings and the murky (sounds like a basement) audio of Anne and Jerry working out a routine for a TV appearance, gives us a rare peek at the creative process. We hear that Anne was relaxed and confident performing while Jerry was a perfection who fretted and “over-rehearsed”, which Ben recognizes in his own work discipline (yup, a chip off the “old man’s” block). There’s a big contrast in the duo’s early years. Jerry wasn’t encouraged by his folks, while Anne was the adored “princess”, perhaps because hers was a single parent household due to a horrific suicide. It’s also fascinating that when the team split, the marriage got a bit stronger since Anne could,at last, pursue dramatic roles and Jerry could finally be the solo comic he dreamed of (his lauded work on the TV sitcoms “Seinfeld” and “King of Queens” in his 70s is one heck of a rousing career third act). Plus the film does shine a light on Ben’s rise with his own 8mm films and videos (starring Jerry), while he also “takes the heat” during the one-on-one-interviews with his spouse and two kids (daughter Ella is still ticked that he cut her out of one of his features). Pressure and guilt (being away too long) are shared by both generations in the “biz”. This is a “pull-no-punches” journey, though with a touch of sweet nostalgia, that is a must for comedy fans (the “collection” is now part of the Museum of Comedy in New York state) of the current media icon and the team that spawned him. Hopefully they’ll be “rediscovered” and found via STILLER & MEARA: NOTHING IS LOST.

3.5 out of 4

STILLER & MEARA : NOTHING IS LOST is now streaming exclusively on Apple TV+ and is playing in select theaters

Watch The Trailer For Spike Lee’s HIGHEST 2 LOWEST Starring Denzel Washington And Jeffrey Wright

When a titan music mogul (Denzel Washington), widely known as having the “best ears in the business”, is targeted with a ransom plot, he is jammed up in a life-or-death moral dilemma. Brothers Denzel Washington and Spike Lee reunite for the 5th in their long working relationship for a reinterpretation of the great filmmaker Akira Kurosawa’s crime thriller High and Low, now played out on the mean streets of modern day New York City.

In his Cannes Film Festival review, RogerEbert‘s Robert Daniels says, “Lee isn’t setting out to copy what was great before. He is using the past as a starting point to launch into what may be the final phase of his career. He is wielding a plethora of inspirations—musical, cinematic, and historical—to reunite with an old friend. He is making a Spike Lee joint. And it’s exceptional.”

Starring Denzel Washington, Jeffrey Wright, Ilfenesh Hadera, and A$AP Rocky, here’s a look at the brand new trailer.

Spike Lee recently was on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon and said of working with Washington and A$AP, “I always thought that A$AP looked like he could be Denzel’s son. They had a big resemblance. And so when you see it on the screen, it adds an element of father and son, you know? Don’t sleep in A$AP. I mean, he –Because I’m done five films with Denzel, and a lot of times, when he’s in a scene with somebody, they just get overwhelmed. This is one of the world’s greatest actors, living actors today. But A$AP wasn’t having that. I mean, they were going at it.”

Lee went onto say, “It’s a reinterpretation, not a remake, of the great Japanese film “High and Low,” by the great Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa. And my fifth film with Denzel. Went to five. “Mo’ Better Blues,” “Malcolm X,” “He Got Game,” “Inside Man.” And Denzel and I did not know there was an 18-year gap between “Inside Man” and this film. We didn’t even know it.”

HIGHEST 2 LOWEST opens in theaters August 15, Streaming on Apple TV+ September 5.

BLITZ (2024) – Review

With a big holiday mere days away. this week’s new film reflects on families that can’t be together, certainly not for the “big feast”. And not by choice as it focuses on a dark time when the whole world was indeed at war. World War II is the setting for this drama. inspired by so many true events of the time. At the heart of this tale is a decision so difficult it may be tough for a modern audience to comprehend. But it was done. But there’s also the fervent desire to reunite, to return to the family unit, no matter how fractured or how dangerous. That’s because death was literally in the air and all around during the time of the BLITZ.

As the film begins we watch as bombs drop from a German bomber flying over London in 1940 (a year or so before the US joined the fight). Rita (Saoirse Ronan) is a single mother living with her widowed dad Gerald (Paul Weller) and trying to raise her mixed-race son George (Elliott Heffernan). As they return from an air raid shelter, she must prepare for a heartbreaking journey. For George, alone. In order to escape the near-nightly bombing of the city, the government sent children via train to live with families in the countryside until the city was back to normal (nobody knew when). George is furious and refuses to say goodbye to his Mum as he boards the train. The other kids in his train car mock him over his darker skin and thick curly hair. But George has a plan. While his seatmate sleeps he grabs his seatcase. opens the door to the outside connecter, and leaps off the speeding locomotive. He’s bruised but still determined and begins walking the rail to hop onto a train heading in the opposite direction AKA home. Meanwhile, Rita sadly goes back to work with her girlfriends at the munitions plant. At least she’ll get to sing on the radio when the BBC drops in. George does have some luck in jumping into an open boxcar of a passing train where he’s befriended by a group of other young “returnees”. The danger really begins as they try to elude the “bulls” in the London train yard. George makes it back to London, but it’s still a long long way from Mum. During his journey, he is helped by a friendly African immigrant air raid warden named Ife (Benjamin Clemente) and is later “recruited” into a gang of looters led by the unhinged Albert (Stephen Graham). Back at the factory, Rita learns from the relocation agents that George didn’t make it to the country. She then leaves the plant to look for him and enlists the help of a young fireman who is smitten with her, named Jack (Harris Dickinson). But even with their combined efforts, can they find George before he becomes another casualty in the war-ravaged heart of Britain?

Making his screen (big or small) debut is Heffernan, who is really the focus of this historical fable, despite the film vet that gets top billing in the marketing. He’s completely captivating as George, who can be sweet, soulful, fearful, and frustrating (verging on bratty) often within the same scene. He projects a real vulnerability as he’s taunted by the local kids, and transfers a bit of that cruelty as his mother makes a terrible decision that is for the best, though it doesn’t ease her heartache. We root for George when he triumphs and hold our breath as he tries to survive. Also running the gamut of emotions is vet Ronan as Rita, a working-class woman trying to shield her child from the horrors of war, while dealing with the heartache of losing her partner to the prejudices of the time (George’s papa is sent back to his faraway island birthplace). After Rita sends her son to safety, she’s near-catatonic until her chance at radio fame revives her a bit. When she gets the news of George’s train jumps, she goes into “mama grizzly” mode as we see the determination in Ronan’s eyes. Kudos to the strong supporting players, especially Clemente as the caring and gentle Ife who connects with George and to Graham as Albert who only wishes to exploit and deceive the lad (think of him as a psychotic Fagin).

This WW II family odyssey comes from writer/director Steve McQueen who expertly recreates the period’s look and emotions of fear and dread as sunset doesn’t bring rest and relief, but the threat of sudden decimation. We can almost smell the wounded and dying as the camera takes us through piles of rubble that were home just moments ago. It’s a story that has been recalled in films set in that era (HOPE AND GLORY) and other lands (LION), with great parallels to another wartime family reunion, EMPIRE OF THE SUN with a touch of the NARNIA series. Still, McQueen provides a fresh take thanks to the strong cast and several haunting set pieces. The sudden slaughter at the train yard is real nightmare fuel. that’s especially true as we go inside a swanky nightclub that operates as though all is normal outside its door. And then we hear the sirens and the whizzing sounds (cutting to the great shots of the bombs coming at us through the clouds). After a flash cut, we’re next to Albert and his crew of ghouls as they pry away jewelry as the rescue teams look away. As the story concludes, we’re running through those crumbling streets as this story of family love proves to be stronger than any damage inflicted by the BLITZ.

3 Out of 4

Blitz is playing in select theatres and streams exclusively on Apple TV+ beginning on Friday, November 22, 2024

THE INSTIGATORS – Review

It’s funny how an old TV catchphrase will just magically pop into your brain. While watching this new comedy action caper I recalled George Peppard as Hannibal Smith, leader of the NBC 80s ratings juggernaut, “The A-Team”. With a big cigar clenched between his pearly whites, he’d grin and exclaim, “I love it when a plan comes together” as the bad guys’ vehicles would flip over (though there had to be a shot of them climbing out of the windows unscathed for the censors). Well, the two main characters of this film might say, “I hate it when a plan falls apart”. And it does spectacularly for these luckless schmoes, actually played by members of the “Ocean’s Crew” (the 2000s reboot). And though they spend most of the story’s runtime trying to escape and survive, the title ironically labels them THE INSTIGATORS.


In the film’s opening minutes we meet one half of the duo, the stoic Rory (Matt Damon). He’s attending one of his mandatory therapy sessions at a Boston area VA hospital. He says very little, but a few comments concern the staff psychologist Dr. Rivera (Hong Chau). He talks of making a set amount of money (down to the decimal) and then “cashing in his ticket”. Meanwhile, a “low-rent” petty criminal named Cobby (Casey Affleck) gets a grade-schooler to activate the breathalyzer activator on his motorcycle. The two men cross paths at Mr. Kelly’s neighborhood bar. where a hustler named Scalvo (Jack Harlow) enlists them in a heist. The real mastermind behind it is restaurant owner/crime-boss Mr. Besegai (Michael Stuhlbarg) and his partner, bakery chef Richie (Alfred Molina). The big score ties in with tomorrow’s mayoral election. They think the challenger is no match for long-time crooked incumbent Miccelli (Ron Perlman). The big victory party will be held at a fancy riverport ballroom facility where lots of local business owners will show up to “kiss the ring” as they pass along huge amounts of cash. Before the armored car arrives to pick up the payola, the trio plans to sneak in via motorboat and lift the moola. But the next day, the unthinkable happens…a major political upset. However, Scalvo and his bosses decide to proceed. Everything that can go wrong does, and Rory and Cobby are on the run from Besegai’s “retriever” Booch (Paul Walter Hauser) and Michelli’s ex-police enforcer Toomey (Ving Rhames) along with the entire Boston police force. Can these two bunglers “blow Beantown” and cross the border to chilly Canada? And how does Dr, Rivera fit into the big getaway?

The two main actors prove to be a fairly potent comedy pairing. Damon would be the “straight man” of the two, and he more than fulfills that function as Rory is rigid, maybe “uptight”, and somewhat obsessive over the details, frustrating partners as he wants to write everything down, or needing tidbits repeated. Affleck’s Cobby is the wildcard as he scoffs at Rory’s concerns and fears, while making sure his needs are met, insisting he drive with a painful shoulder wound for fear that he’ll be dumped out on the road. The duo becomes a trio with Chau as the clinical Rivera who upholds her ethics and throws out bits of “self-help jargon” as they dodge bullets and evade endless police cruisers. Harlow is quite funny as the team leader who really doesn’t inspire fear or respect as he tries to mimic pop culture tough guys. Much more intimidating is Stuhlbarg as the perpetually annoyed crime boss, who can’t believe he can’t get smarter “goons”. Molina is much more “laid back” as his “right hand” who’d rather just “make the donuts”. Perelman dominates every scene as the blustery, greedy politico who can’t give up his power, or the graft. And he’s hooked on heaping abuse on his assistant, played as a jittery “toady” by the marvelous Toby Jones. Hauser is dripping with sarcasm and snark as Besegai’s “clean-up man”, while Rhames is at his scary surly best as the SWAT tank-driving “muscle” for the Mayor.

So, how do you celebrate 30 years of feature film directing? If you’re Doug Liman you release two big action comedies…to streaming. Earlier this year he was in a big “kerfuffle” with Amazon Prime over his remake of ROAD HOUSE, and now the main outlet for his newest flick is Apple TV+, though it got the briefest, very limited theatrical run. It’s a shame since both movies would have great appeal for fans of big stunt sequences. While the earlier film focused on the fisticuffs, this one has the most auto-destruction perhaps since the original BLUES BROTHERS (both leave piles of “cop cars”) thanks to that SWAT tank, an armored car, and a fire truck! It’s just a shame that the terrific tech crew (stunts and pyrotechnics) weren’t in service of a stronger script. All we are told of Rory is that he’s a vet who wants to do right to the son taken from him, and we know even less about Cobby, other than his boozy behavior and a wonky flirtation with Rivera (talk about rooting for a couple not to “hook up”). Earlier I noted Damon and Affleck’s part in the Oceans franchise, which helps hammer home that this is the opposite of those slick caper stories, as these bunglers are closer to the early 70s cult fave THAT GANG THAT COULDN’T SHOOT STRAIGHT. If only some of the earlier movie’s grimy charm was upgraded. The impressive supporting cast is really putting in an effort, but some of the twists and turns stretch reality and logic too much. The Boston locales are great (unlike this week’s IT ENDS WITH US this town looks frigid and very “lived in”). Unfortunately all that talent never truly ignites or invigorates THE INSTIGATORS.

2 out of 4

THE INSTIGATORS is now streaming exclusively on Apple TV+

FANCY DANCE – Review

The parade of smaller independent features continues to bump up against the blockbusters as the Summer continues to sizzle. Here’s a quirky drama that has similar themes to the modestly budgeted period piece from last weekend THE BIKERIDERS. In that film, a group of motley outsiders in the early 60s forged a family via a motorcycle club. Family is at the forefront of this film, though it’s set in the modern day, and rather than Windy City bikers, we’re given a look inside Native American culture. Oh, and as in the former flick, the principals are often living on the “wrong side” of the law, having to dodge the authorities, giving an added meaning to its title, FANCY DANCE.


The story takes us inside the world of thirty-something Jax (Lily Gladstone) and her teenage niece Roki (Isabel DeRoy-Olson) who share a home on the Seneca-Cayuga Nation Reservation in Oklahoma. Life has been hard since Jax’s sister, and Roki’s mother Tawi disappeared two weeks ago. The duo resort to lower-class crimes in order to survive, from a version of “three-card Monte” (“Find the corn”) to stealing cars. A big chunk of the cash is set aside for the upcoming tribal powwow in Tulsa. Roki believes that Tawi will return in order to join her there at the big mother/daughter dance AKA the “fancy dance”. Jax is not so optimistic since the tribal police led by blood relation JJ (Ryan Begay) can’t expand the search and the feds seem to be indifferent. Things become more complicated after a visit to Jax’s estranged father Frank (Shea Whigham), who’s not part of the tribe, and his new wife Nancy (Audrey Wasilewski). Soon after the two return home, Child Protective Services arrive to hand Roki over to her grandfather due to Jax’s criminal record (mostly selling weed to the oil rig workers), But the bond between the aunt and niece is so strong that Jax gets Roki away from Frank’s place in order to make the long trek to Tulsa, and follow a few leads on Tawi along the way. Can they get there in time, now that the two are trying to evade the statewide manhunt that has put their faces on nearly every screen? And could there be a mother-and-daughter reunion?

Proving that her bravado turn in last year’s epic KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON was no fluke, Ms. Gladstone ably carries the lead role as the flawed but brave Jax. Though she’s the eldest daughter in the film, it seems as though the odds are always against her, which perhaps leads to her shady past and dubious current crimes. Gladstone conveys that anger and frustration, especially at the lack of official concern for her missing sister. And though she is indeed a “bad influence” Jax truly nurtures her niece, even shielding her from the world’s cruelties. As Roki, DeRoy-Olson is the story’s warm sunshine, a teen full of joy and wonder, thinking that her mother will join her in her dance rehearsals very soon. She’s even open to her emotionally distant grandfather Frank, who is given a surly demeanor by the always compelling Whigham. He gives us the impression that the culture of his late wife never really mattered much to him, though he now feels obligated by his new wife, which Wasilewski plays as an awkward, but sweet, caring lady who yearns for an extended family with Roki. Kudos also to Crystle Lightening as Tawi’s co-worker at a strip club, who has a tenuous romance with the sullen Jax.

The terrific cast is expertly guided by director Erica Tremblay in her narrative feature debut which she co-scripted with Miciana Alise. It’s tightly paced, deftly flowing from heartbreaking family drama to suspenseful “on the run” road picture, with frequent dives into the tribal customs, from the powwows to the tense interaction with the feds. And even as Jax and Roki are racking up crimes, Tremblay makes us care for them and even root for them to stay ‘on the lam”. We never quite know where the journey will take these two plucky fugitives, or what danger is lurking behind any door or around the corner. The undercurrent of anger between Jax and Frank is nothing compared to her following a lead on Tawi by meeting with a hair-trigger pot “queenpin” or an officious ICE agent outside a mall. Perhaps the most nerve-wracking sequence is when Jax enters a cramped trailer to try and squeeze some info from a group of oilmen who only want to party after buying some weed, reminding me of a similar hair-raising scene from 2017’s WIND RIVER which also dealt with the epidemic of missing Native American women. And, there are also familiar themes from KILLER MOON as the authorities put these cases way, way on the back burner. All these elements mesh effectively into a very engaging “call to action” and a rough-edged portrait of a family clingingly to each other despite the odds. This FANCY DANCE is never flashy, but it’s one of the year’s most compelling films.

3.5 Out of 4

FANCY DANCE is now playing in select theatres and it streams exclusively on Apple TV+ beginning on Friday, June 21, 2024

Apple TV+ Debuts Trailer For “The Big Cigar” Starring André Holland – First 2 Episodes Directed By Don Cheadle

Today, Apple TV+ revealed the trailer for “The Big Cigar,” the upcoming limited series led by André Holland, who stars alongside Alessandro Nivola, Tiffany Boone, P. J. Byrne, Marc Menchaca, Moses Ingram, Rebecca Dalton, Olli Haaskivi, Jordane Christie and Glynn Turman. “The Big Cigar” makes its global debut on May 17 with the first two episodes, followed by new episodes every Friday through June 14.

Based on the magazine article of the same name by Joshuah Bearman (“Argo”), who also serves as executive producer, “The Big Cigar” tells the incredible true story of Hollywood revolution meeting social revolution. It’s a wild caper about Black Panther founder Huey P. Newton escaping from the FBI to Cuba with the assistance of famed producer Bert Schneider in an impossibly elaborate plan — involving a fake movie production — that goes wrong every way it possibly can.

NAACP Image Award winner Janine Sherman Barrois (“Claws,” “Self Made”) is the showrunner of “The Big Cigar.” Executive producer Jim Hecht (“Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty”) penned the show’s first episode. The series hails from Warner Bros. Television, where Sherman Barrois and her Folding Chair Productions are under an overall deal. Sherman Barrois and Hecht are executive producing alongside Bearman, Joshua Davis and Arthur Spector (“Little America”) through their production company Epic.

“STEVE! (martin) a documentary in 2 pieces” Interview With Steve Martin and Director Morgan Neville – Streaming Now On Apple TV+

Streaming now on APPLE TV+, and by the way one of the best services you can rent each month as they have the fantastic MASTERS OF THE AIR, FOR ALL MANKIND, MONARCH: LEGACY OF MONSTERS, the Emmy Award-winning comedy “Ted Lasso” and historic Oscar Best Picture winner CODA, is “STEVE! (martin) a documentary in 2 pieces” 

Steve Martin is one of the most beloved and enigmatic figures in entertainment and the doc dives into his extraordinary story from two distinct points of view, with companion documentaries that feature never-before-seen footage and raw insights into Steve’s personal and professional trials and triumphs. “Then” chronicles Steve Martin’s early struggles and meteoric rise to revolutionize standup before walking away at 35. “Now” focuses on the present day, with Steve Martin in the golden years of his career, retracing the transformation that led to happiness in his art and personal life.

STEVE! (martin) a documentary in 2 pieces is streaming now HERE.

Martin has starred in such films as The Jerk (1979), Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid (1982), The Man with Two Brains (1983), All of Me (1984), Three Amigos (1986), Roxanne (1987), Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987), Parenthood (1989), Father of the Bride (1991), Cheaper by the Dozen (2003), and The Pink Panther (2006). Martin has also hosted Saturday Night Live 16 times.

Check out the interview between Steve Martin and Director Morgan Neville.

Watch as Steve Martin and Martin Short roast each other.

Hailing from A24 and Tremolo Productions, the two-part documentary is directed and produced by Academy Award® winner Morgan Neville (“20 Feet from Stardom,” “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?”). 

Apple Original Films Unveils Trailer For Documentary GIRLS STATE – Premieres on Apple TV+ April 5

Today, Apple Original Films unveiled the trailer for its critically acclaimed documentary feature “Girls State,” directed and produced by award-winning filmmakers Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine (“Boys State,” “The Mission”), and Academy Award winner Davis Guggenheim’s Concordia Studio. A 2024 Sundance Film Festival selection, “Girls State” will premiere globally on Apple TV+ April 5, 2024.

After the widely celebrated, Emmy Award-winning documentary “Boys State,” also produced by Moss, McBaine and Concordia, made its buzzy premiere at Sundance in 2020, the inevitable question arose: What about Girls State? “Girls State” follows 500 teenage girls from across Missouri as they gather for a week-long immersion in an elaborate laboratory of democracy, where they build a government from the ground up, campaign for office and form a Supreme Court to weigh the most divisive issues of the day. In “Girls State,” the country is now deeper into democratic crisis, with civil discourse and electoral politics increasingly fragile under ever more extreme political polarization. As questions of race and gender equality in a representational democracy reach a fever pitch, these young women confront the complicated paths women must navigate to build political power. Following a distinctly female perspective and filled with teenage insecurity, biting humor and a yearning for true friendship, the young leaders of “Girls State” win hearts and minds — not just elections.

An Apple Original Film hailing from Guggenheims’s Concordia Studio and Mile End Films, “Girls State” is directed and produced by Moss and McBaine. The film is executive produced by Nicole Stott, Jonathan Silberberg, Davis Guggenheim and Laurene Powell Jobs.

Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg, Callum Turner, Barry Keoghan And Austin Butler Premiere Photos From Apple TV+’s “Masters of the Air”

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 10: Cast attends the premiere of the Apple TV+ Masters of the Air at the Regency Village Theatre on January 10, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Masters of the Air will make its global debut on Apple TV+ on Friday, January 26, 2024. (Photo by Eric Charbonneau/Getty Images for Apple TV+)

Last night at the Regency Village Theatre in Los Angeles, Apple TV+ hosted the red carpet premiere of “Masters of the Air,” the highly anticipated World War II drama that will premiere globally with two episodes of the nine-episode series on Friday, January 26.

Attendees at the “Masters of the Air” premiere included executive producers Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman, alongside stars Austin Butler, Callum Turner, Nate Mann, Anthony Boyle, Barry Keoghan, Raff Law, Sawyer Spielberg, Jonas Moore, Elliot Warren, Matt Gavan, Edward Ashley, David Shields, Ben Radcliffe, Jordan Coulson, Branden Cook, Josiah Cross, Francis Lovehall, Phillip Lewitski, Jerry MacKinnon, Ella Rubin, Josh Bolt and Kai Alexander.

Co-executive producer and writer John Orloff; co-executive producers Graham Yost, Justin Falvey, Darryl Frank and David Coatsworth; directors Ryan Fleck and Dee Rees; author of the book, Donald L. Miller; and, World War II veterans, John “Lucky” Luckadoo, James Rasmussen, Henry Cervantes and Robert Wolff also attended the red carpet premiere event.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 10: (L-R) Callum Turner, Barry Keoghan and Austin Butler attend the premiere of the Apple TV+ “Masters of the Air” at the Regency Village Theatre on January 10, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. “Masters of the Air” will make its global debut on Apple TV+ on Friday, January 26, 2024. (Photo by Eric Charbonneau/Getty Images for Apple TV+)

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 10: (L-R) Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg and Gary Goetzman attend the premiere of the Apple TV+ “Masters of the Air” at the Regency Village Theatre on January 10, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. “Masters of the Air” will make its global debut on Apple TV+ on Friday, January 26, 2024. (Photo by Eric Charbonneau/Getty Images for Apple TV+)

Based on Miller’s book of the same name, and scripted by John Orloff, “Masters of the Air” follows the men of the 100th Bomb Group (the “Bloody Hundredth”) as they conduct perilous bombing raids over Nazi Germany and grapple with the frigid conditions, lack of oxygen and sheer terror of combat conducted at 25,000 feet in the air. Portraying the psychological and emotional price paid by these young men as they helped destroy the horror of Hitler’s Third Reich, is at the heart of “Masters of the Air.” Some were shot down and captured; some were wounded or killed. And some were lucky enough to make it home. Regardless of individual fate, a toll was exacted on them all.

Ranging in location from the bucolic fields and villages of southeast England, to the harsh deprivations of a German prisoner-of-war camp, and depicting a unique and crucial time in world history, “Masters of the Air” is enormous in both scale and scope, and a genuine cinematic achievement.

From Apple Studios, “Masters of the Air” is executive produced by Spielberg through Amblin Television, and Hanks and Goetzman for Playtone. Amblin Television’s Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey co-executive produce alongside Playtone’s Steven Shareshian. In addition to writing, Orloff co-executive produces. Graham Yost is also a co-executive producer. Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck, Cary Joji Fukunaga, Dee Rees and Tim Van Patten serve as directors.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 10: Callum Turner (L) and Austin Butler attend the premiere of the Apple TV+ “Masters of the Air” at the Regency Village Theatre on January 10, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. “Masters of the Air” will make its global debut on Apple TV+ on Friday, January 26, 2024. (Photo by Eric Charbonneau/Getty Images for Apple TV+)

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 10: Austin Butler attends the premiere of the Apple TV+ “Masters of the Air” at the Regency Village Theatre on January 10, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. “Masters of the Air” will make its global debut on Apple TV+ on Friday, January 26, 2024. (Photo by Eric Charbonneau/Getty Images for Apple TV+)

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 10: Callum Turner attends the premiere of the Apple TV+ “Masters of the Air” at the Regency Village Theatre on January 10, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. “Masters of the Air” will make its global debut on Apple TV+ on Friday, January 26, 2024. (Photo by Eric Charbonneau/Getty Images for Apple TV+)

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 10: (L-R) Henry Cervantes, John Iuckadoo, Robert Wolff and James Rasmussen attend the premiere of the Apple TV+ “Masters of the Air” at the Regency Village Theatre on January 10, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. “Masters of the Air” will make its global debut on Apple TV+ on Friday, January 26, 2024. (Photo by Eric Charbonneau/Getty Images for Apple TV+)

NAPOLEON (2023) – Review

The end-of-the-year awards contenders naturally include several biographical films, usually, they’re intimate tales of triumph and tragedy, such as NYAD and the upcoming MAESTRO. This holiday offering has that crossed with another genre, namely that it’s also a big sweeping historical epic. Fitting, since its subject made a huge impact on the entire world two centuries ago. In the director’s chair is a filmmaker known for such big, broad sagas, though he’s done several smaller dramas. And he’s comfortable setting his films in the far distant past and the far distant future. Here he’s flexing his considerable skills as he reunites with a former acting collaborator to tell the spectacular story of NAPOLEON.

It doesn’t begin with the title subject’s childhood, instead taking us right into France’s “Reign of Terror”, just in time for a royal appointment with “the blade”. Soon after, Lucien Bonaparte (Matthew Needham) encourages brother Napoleon (Joaquin Phoenix) to take command of the military forces and protect those now in power from the gathering angry mobs of citizens. From Paris, Napoleon, now artillery commander, is sent far away to end the British blockade of the ports at Toulon. After that violent battle, he returns to France where the son of a naval officer killed in the Revolution pleads for the return of the family sword. Breaking protocol, Napoleon personally returned the weapon to the lad’s home where he becomes enamored of the widowed mother Josephine (Vanessa Kirby), Napoleon courts and weds her while gaining more political and military power as he leads the forces of France in victories across the globe, even triumphing in Egypt. Eventually, he takes over the reins of royalty in his homeland, crowning himself Emporer of France with Josephine as his queen. Their marriage proves to be quite turbulent as she cannot bear him a male heir. This leads to a divorce, a remarriage to a much younger foreign royal, and a disastrous campaign in wintery Russia. Soon Napoleon is banished to the island of Elba, but homesickness prompts a return home and an effort to resume his conquests after earning the loyalty of his army. But this all may be dashed by the plans of the Duke of Wellington (Rupert Everett) as he makes a final stand at Waterloo.

Bringing his off-beat acting stylings to the title role, Phoenix makes several unexpected performance choices. This makes for an odd juxtaposition with the grand spectacles of the historical recreations. Perhaps this is an effort to make the story more contemporary for multiplex audiences, but it serves to distance us from the iconic military mastermind. With his hesitant line reading and guttural grumblings, Phoenix feels more suited to recent roles like JOKER and BEAU IS AFRAID than this leader who somehow inspires troops to rejoin him after exile. Perhaps his performance is meant to comment on the recent resurgence of arrogant thugs in positions of power, but we never get inside his head. Unfortunately, one of the screen’s most interesting actresses is given little to do, other than react to his cruelty. Ms. Kirby has given us superb performances in both “indies” and blockbusters, but here she was left to be “lady in waiting” and relegated to “broken breeder”, usually with a dead-eyed grimace as “her king” goes about his “business”. One of the film’s unexpected pleasures is the return of Everett as the haughty but determined Duke who barks out commands with a sneer as though having to “put down” the French “mongell” were a distasteful chore.

Oh, the previously mentioned filmmaker is none other than the esteemed Ridley Scott, who seems to be almost “returning to his roots” with this story’s setting harkening back to his first feature from 1977 THE DUELLISTS. Perhaps that’s why the sweeping battle scenes have so much energy, plunging us dangerously close to the warriors as they dodge bullets and cannonballs (the early equine carnage may haunt you). Those bloody battlefields are effectively grim and grimy, as the cavalry attempts to dodge the cadavers that litter the countryside. And there’s an effective use of extreme locations, from the sands of Egypt to Russia’s frozen tundra (an ill-timed December surge). But then there are the long stretches between campaigns as we must bear witness to the convoluted political chaos (there are some needed ID titles for the principals) and the bickering Bonapartes which devolves into one of the most ridiculous sequences at a fancy state banquet. Napoleon’s loud public complaints over Josephine’s infertility dengerates into a clumsy “food fight”.There’s never a sense of passion between them aside from his jealousy over his “possession”. It’s not helped when major historical incidents are glossed over and even discarded. Josephine’s matchmaker son vanishes, and we never hear the fate of Napoleon’s son by his second marriage. Perhaps they’ll be seen in Scott’s proposed four-hour-plus “cut” for AppleTV+. After slogging through this 158 minute mishmash of a film that’s so uneven, it’s tough to be interested in a chance of more clunky palace verbal sparring. It seems that the biggest battle is between Scott and the “all over the place” script that proves to be the true Waterloo for NAPOLEON.

1.5 Out 4

NAPOLEON is now playing in theatres everywhere