Tag: coming of age

MY OLD ASS – Review

As we enter into the Fall movie season, it’s time for an intimate lil’ “indie” that explores a theme that several blockbusters have also explored, time travel. Now this one isn’t focusing on the travel and his gadgets and gizmos aplenty, so we don’t get those “Pym Particles” or even that super-charged DeLorean. The intriguing premise presented here is a spin on “what if”, namely the Twilight Zone dream of getting a “drop in’ from your future self. And somehow this “out there” idea meshes with a coming of age dramatics, and a “rom-com”. It’s a challenging “balancing act” that is somehow propped up by a crude and quirky cellphone contact entered in as MY OLD ASS, and we’re not talking about a donkey.

Rather than starting in a long-ago time, this story is set in the modern day, just across the Canadian border. Elliot (Maisy Stella) is your basic free-spirited eighteen-year-old woman. This means that she’s occasionally self-absorbed and a bit inconsiderate. Rather than join her family for a big pre-college departure celebration meal (with a decorated cake ‘n’ everything), she decides to take her two best GFs on an overnight camping trip on an island in the big lake near town. Ah, but this evening will be special as Ro (Kerrice Brooks) has scored some mushrooms, which they’ll brew into a potent tea. It affects Ro and Ruthie (Maddie Ziegler) quickly though it seems to be “bupkis” for Elliott. That is until she starts a batch of s’mores and is joined by a stranger who emerges from the darkness. Elliot is “freaked”, but unprepared for this lady’s proclamation that she is her future self, 39-year-old Elliot (Aubrey Plaza). But it seems legit as they share a couple of body scars. As her friends drift away. the two Elliots share her tent. Young Elliott pleads for a bit of advanced “intel’ and later Future E finally relents and tells her to avoid a “Chad”. When Y E drifts off, F E grabs her phone and puts in her number, entering it as “My Old Ass”. When dawn breaks Y Elliott is alone, and believe she had a very weird “trip”. But then, as she skinny-dips, she encounters a young man named Chad (Percy Hines White). She’s perplexed until she discovers that new phone contact and dials it. And F E picks up. The warnings about Chad continue, but Y E feels a strong connection to this sweet charmer. And then it’s “radio silence” with “MOA”. Elliott tries to focus on strengthening her bond with her mom, pop, and two younger brothers while trying and failing to avoid Chad, who is working at the family cranberry biz. Should Elliott keep her distance from the beguiling Chad? And will she speak to her feature self once more? Maybe she needs some more ‘shrooms…

And speaking of the future, in a few years we’ll look back at this film as the breakout performance of Ms. Stella, her ‘calling card”. She confidently brings a fresh spin to the often cliche “teen at a crossroads”, making Elliott full of quirks and contradictions, but also capable of great warmth and kindness. And she can really ‘sell” the jokes while also tugging at our heartstrings. Now, it’s true that there’s little resemblance to Ms. Plaza as her future self, the duo does share a comedic “kinship”. Of course, Plaza “kills” in her limited screen time, but she also gets to “tug at the tear ducts in the emotional final act. Ditto for the compelling work of White as the affable and often baffled (why the agita from Elliot) Chad who wants to continue his mellow life, but is drawn to this offbeat lady. Kudos also to the energetic supporting work from Brooks as the most understanding of “sistas”, and to the two young actors playing Elliott’s siblings, Seth Issac Johnson as the golf-obsessed montone Max and pre-teen Carter Trozzolo as the manic Saorise Ronan-obsessed Spencer.

This is the second feature from a true “triple threat” (or more of a “hat trick talent”), actress/writer/director Megan Park who has a keen “ear” for family dynamics, and strong friendships. The gentle teasing intercut with harsh truths feels natural and never forced. Plus Ms. Park has given us a compelling heroine in Elliot who goes through an engaging and unexpected ‘character arc”. It’s a delicate ‘tightrope’ walk as Elliott has a passionate ‘fling” in the opening scene with a slightly older female “crush” and decides to ‘go for it” as college is looming. She doesn’t dismiss these feelings when Chad steps up, but rather she allows herself to be open to different relationship possibilities. Park also creates a unique backdrop in the sleepy lakeside burg and the bucolic family home/farm (it feels like a cranberry-flavored slice of Heaven). More importantly, Park goes for the big emotions and connects without us feeling emotionally over-manipulated. Even with the fantasy elements of meeting your twenty-year-old version, the story and the reactions feel honest. Even though saying the title to the ticket may feel awkward, MY OLD ASS is more than worth it.

3.5 Out of 4

MY OLD ASS is now playing in select theatres

JANET PLANET – Review

Julianne Nicholson and Zoe Ziegler, in JANET PLANET. Courtesy of A24

In JANET PLANET, Julianne Nicholson plays Janet, the warming, single mother “sun” around which her daughter, 11-year-old Lacy (Zoe Ziegler) orbits like a planet. Adults are also drawn in by Janet, and circle around her, hoping to become permanent additions to her solar system. This well-acted, sly but slowly-paced dramedy benefits from a talented cast, and both strongly evokes the feeling of summer and a particular point in childhood when the parent is still the center of all but with change looming on the horizon.

Set in 1991 in western Massachusetts, there is much to admire in JANET PLANET, including its fine cast and excellent performances from Julianne Nicholson and Zoe Ziegler. There is beautiful photography, shot on 16mm film, showcasing green forest lanes and rolling hills, and naturalistic sound design captures to sounds of nighttime crickets, both of which effectively evoke the feel of summer and a sense of place in rural western Massachusetts, where the writer/director, playwright Annie Baker, grew up. The story is set in 1991, at a pivotal moment in the life of a child, when that child starts to see the parent who has been the center of their world in a new light that reveals their human flaws. There are plenty of parallels with the writer/director’s life and one can only guess how much of this is autobiographical.

All that is wonderful but what undermines this indie film is its languid pace, filled with long pauses and lingering over small moments. This is playwright Annie Baker’s first film. On stage, she is noted for her long pauses and silences in her plays, but what works well on stage, with live actors and a live audience, does not always work as well on film.

The acting is truly excellent with young Zoe Ziegler fascinating on screen. Julianne Nicholson is also splendid, playing her role with quiet restraint but exuding a hypnotic appeal with her freckled, fresh-faced beauty. JANET PLANET takes us through this long, dreamy summer as Lacy basks in her mother’s sunshine while a series of adults are also drawn into her obit. The film introduces each of these satellites with title cards and marks the exit of each with text like “exit Wayne.” Wayne is the first of these, an unlikely lover, played well by Will Patton, a dumpy depressive who is prone to frequent migraines and a tendency for stripping off his clothes no matter who is around. Wayne has a daughter who does not live with him, and one day, he, Janet and Lacy spend a day with her, including a trip to a mall, with all its 1990s pre-teen magic. Lacy quickly bonds with the sunny girl, who is just her age, but Wayne’s exit puts an end to that.

Next up is Regina, a woman that Janet had known years before and meets again at an outdoor theatrical performance at a hippie commune, which Janet is careful not to call a cult although it seems to be. The delightful Sophie Okonedo plays Regina, and at first when she flees the commune and her controlling lover, she seems a welcome addition to Janet and Lacy’s world. Until she wears out her welcome. Next is a briefer interlude with Regina’s ex, Avi (Elias Koteas) the leader of the cult-like commune, whose charisma draws Janet to him – until she quickly loses interest.

The whole time we see a mother and daughter who are uncommonly close. Lacy is an odd and dramatic child, whose call home from the camp comes with a threat to kill herself, which her mother reactes to as if she’s heard this before. Lacy is happy hanging arond with her mother and playing with her little model theater complete with home-made clay figurines. Her mother Janet is tolerate and loving but also has a tendency to overshare with her daughter, things that are beyond her at this age. In a final scene, where Janet has brought along Lacy to a community contra dance, we start to see the cracks between them and Lacy pondering joining the adult world.

There is much to admire and plenty of depth in this thoughtful and thought-provoking dramedy, but it is for a patient audience who can relax and drift along with its lazy float down the stream of life.

JANET PLANET opens Friday, June 28, in theaters.

RATING: 3 out of 4 stars

INSIDE OUT 2- Review

Well, now we’re in “prime” Summer movie season mode as one of the big “crowd-pleasing” studios drops its 28th feature film into the multiplexes this weekend. Oh, and it is truly animated with eye-popping visuals and splendid imaginative designs. And after the animal stars dominating the cartoon landscape this year with Kung Fu Panda and Garfield, we’re focusing on a human being, Well, mostly what’s going on in this teenager’s head, so we’re revisiting a set of creatures based on emotions and meeting a bunch of new “feelings”. Of course, I’m speaking of Pixar, who have decided to produce a sequel to a much-admired Oscar-winning 2015 “dramedy/fantasy”, after several interesting original flicks like SOUL, TURNING RED, and ELEMENTAL (so don’t think they’re just exploiting their “IP”). Yes, it’s been nine years, but animation can “tweak” time, so it’s only been a couple of years since we’ve checked in with that young woman named Riley. And there’s a lot going on at her brain’s control center at the start of INSIDE OUT 2.

But there are lots of familiar faces and emotions pushing buttons at “the board”. Joy (voice of Amy Poehler) is still mainly in charge, aided by Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Anger (Lewis Black), Fear (Tony Hale), and Disgust (Liza Lapira). As for Riley( Kensington Tallman), she’s enjoying the last year of grade school playing alongside best pals Grace and Bree on the school’s championship-bound hockey team, the Foghorns. Joy believes a bit part of her success is Riley’s developing “Sense of Self”, a glowing sculpture that emits phrases like “I’m a good person”, which is proudly on display in the control room (Joy made room for it by creating a “launching device’ that hurls “bad” memories way to the back of the brain). The last Summer before high school looks to be even better when Coach Roberts (Yvette Nicole Brown) of the high school’s team the Firehawks, invites Riley and her pals to be part of a hockey camp. It’s quite a lot to dream about, but the emotions’ slumber is interrupted by a loud siren from a flashing red light on the board. Oh no, “puberty’ has “hit”! As Joy and her crew scramble, a construction team bursts through a wall. After the control board is”upgraded”, a new set of emotions arrive. There’s Envy (Ayo Edebiri), Ennui (Adele Exarchopoulos), Embarrassment (Paul Walter Hauser), and their leader, Anxiety (Maya Hawke). During the chaos, Riley learns that Bree and Grace will be going to different high schools. That bad news is offset by the fact that the star Firehawks player, the ultra-cool Valentina (Lilimar) will also be at the hockey camp. This “ramps up” the rivalry between Joy and Anxiety leading to the SOS being flung to the bad memory “dump” just before the hulking Embarrassment stuffs Joy’s team into a jar to be taken far away to a dark vault, and eventually forgotten. Can they escape, retrieve the SOS, and “take back” the control board before Anxiety guides Riley into some terrible decisions? Oh oh, it all rests on the slumped shoulders of Sadness!

Quite an impressive roster of performers has been assembled to give these emotions distinct voices. As for the returning “team”, Poehler just super-charges Joy with an infectious energy and an engaging lilt, though she gets to delve deeper into the frustration of always being the positive “guiding light”. And Black explodes as Anger, pummeling each hilarious retort, a great counterpoint to the halting sweet delivery of Smith as Sadness Oh, I’ve got to also mention the return of the wonderful Diane Lane and Kyle MacLachlan as Riley’s parents, who become more a part of the “framing plot” of the main “sports” story. Now, on to the “newbies”, which include a couple of replacements on Joy’s “squad”. Lapira is an excellent snarky Disgust, while Hale brings a Don Knotts-like jittery panic to Fear. Oh, and as the now teenage Riley, Tallman hits “all the right notes” from sweet to awkwardly desperate and even conniving. And now we get to the new crew, led by the wonderfully zany Ms. Hawke who literally bounces across the backgrounds with a frantic confidence, becoming, at times, the accidental villain of the tale. Her manic delivery is almost matched by the exuberant Edebiri as her “right hand” Envy. The big “scene stealer” might just be Exarchopoulos as the bored, detached Ennui who only awakensr from her sleepy state when her phone-like control device goes missing. And though he has only a couple of lines, aside from some sighs and groans, Hauser is quite effective as the conflicted Embarrassment. In smaller, but pivotal roles, Ron Fuches is achingly funny as the goofy 90s kids TV show icon Bloofy and June Squibb is endearing as the “we’re not really ready for you” emotion Nostalgia.

This is the feature directing debut of Kelsey Mann who truly “hits it out of the park” (maybe a hockey analogy would be more appropriate) with perhaps the best Pixar sequel since TOY STORY 2 (though 3 and 4 are also great). It’s a delicate “tightrope walk” as the familiar elements of the beloved first flick are melded with the new story and the older main character. While Riley had to deal with the big family move last time, now she must decide how to deal with her friends, both old and new. All comlicated by the “P” word in the sophisticated and very funny script by Mann, original scribe Meg LaFauve, and Dave Holstein. Unlike the recent IF, they didn’t hold back on the jokes in favor of the big “heart moments” (and there are plenty). Happily, the talented artisans at Pixar have given this story a dazzling life with vibrant colors and outstanding designs. like Anxiety’s frazzled vertical “water fountain” hair, Embarassment’s bulbous nose sticking out of his tight hoodie, and Ennui’s rubbery body (as though her spine was replaced by the classic toy “Slinky”) who’s always draped over the furniture. I still love that the emotions have no hard “outline” (color or black), but have a grainy edge with specks always moving (much like the leads in ELEMENTAL), unlike Riley and her pals in the “real world”. They’re nice subtle caricatures not too removed from us, unlike the often child-like cartoony looks of the emotions (Anxiety is almost a child’s enhanced “scribble”). And for the first time, the CGI figures are acting alongside 2D “drawn” characters (usually left for the end credits) such as Bloofy and his pal Pouchy who are joined by an “8-bit” video game icon named Lance Slashblade. This leads to some delicious satirical gags about cable kids TV and gaming (love the efforts of Lance to walk out a door). Speaking of gags, one sequence pokes fun at 90s animation “sweatshops”. Plus there are perfect puns a’ plenty, though a few are “groaners”. Yes, there are a couple of moments in the third act, when the pace begins to soften, but the “big game” (excellent action movement) finale brings all the plot threads together into a beautiful bow making us eager to see how Riley and her “brain buddies” handle the new challenges of high school after the touching, clever, witty, and inspiring INSIDE OUT 2.

3.5 Out of 4

INSIDE OUT 2 is now playing in theatres everywhere

SUNCOAST – Review

With 2024 only about six weeks old, filmgoers are getting a very interesting family comedy/drama that isn’t a “holdover” from the previous year’s limited Oscar-qualifying run. As with last weekend’s SCRAMBLED, this is the feature film directing debut of a writer/actress, though she’s not working in front of the camera. And this is almost an autobiography, with some name changes and a few names that were real people in the news. Actually, they were in the headlines, so it’s a fictionalized story with a true event as its backdrop, similar to the Jack and Rose romance of TITANIC. And it all figures into an engaging “coming of age” story that happened in the sunny, but often turbulent, vacation spot known as SUNCOAST.

And, as you might have guessed, that spot was down in Florida about twenty years ago. Teenager Doris (Nico Parker) is stressed out about beginning her junior year at a brand new school while juggling her homelife, which revolves around her disabled older brother Max. Their single mother Kristine (Laura Linney) must leave Doris in charge while she struggles to make ends meet in the food service industry. The big reason for the recent move is to get Max into the local hospice facility as his brain cancer is in its final stages. Unfortunately, that facility has a much more famous patient, Terri Schiavo, who is at the center of a passionate euthanasia debate in the US. So much so that the clinic is constantly surrounded by protesters. As Kristine is hyper-focused on Max, Doris can wander out and befriends one of the picketers, an amiable widower named Paul (Woody Harrelson), who becomes a surrogate papa to her. When Doris does get to her private Christian high school, she feels isolated until she eavesdrops on a group of popular young women who don’t have a location for their weekend party. Since mom is spending all her time with Max, Doris offers up their modest home “in the boonies”. Naturally the “kegger” gets out of control, but Doris is able to get things back in order before a parental “drop by”. Can Doris get accepted by the “in crowd” or is she being used? And what will happen if Kristine finds out? Could this betrayal and the impending passing of Max destroy their familial bond?

The story’s focus and its beating conflicted heart is Doris played with remarkable skill and savvy by the gifted Ms. Parker, perhaps best known for her work in the Tim Burton remake of DUMBO. Sure we’ve seen plenty of awkward lonely teens in the world of “indie” cinema, but Parker conveys the huge weight (not quite the world, but close) on Doris’ young shoulders. Yes, she’s worried about the impending loss of her big bro, but she feels guilty for yearning to experience the joys of teenage life during this dark time. Parker wisely doesn’t make her a victim, as we see her make some selfish, dangerous decisions while not destroying our empathy for Doris, even as she lashes out at those in our corner. The main supporter there is Paul played with low-key energy and strength by Harrelson. Sure, he gets on his soapbox or pulpit, but we get to see the man inside the “card-holder behind the police barricades. He’s not so strident and singled-focused that he can’t reach out to this young woman so desperate for a parental “lifeline”. And she does need one, as her only parent is almost smothered by the fear of future grief and tragedy. Kristine is truly the most compelling and most divisive character of the story and the superb Linney tackles the challenge with full gusto, giving a bravado performance. I’d describe her as Aurora Greenway of TERMS OF ENDEARMENT in the big hospital screed (“Give her a shot!!!”) turned up to eleven, but that would dismiss the nuance Linney brings. Even after Kristine uses guilt to prod Doris, there’s the feeling that she herself could drown in the wave of darkness washing over her. And she gives us a hint that Kristine knows that both of her kids may disappear from her life. This is a career highlight for the exceptional Linney.

The aforementioned writer/director is actress Laura Chinn, who makes this very personal “slice of life” a very compelling and expertly crafted “calling card” for her future film work. As I just stated she has guided the main acting trio to utilize their gifts in new ways, but she’s also turned several “teen movie” cliches on their heads. We’re programmed to view the popular cliques as sneering harpies (ala “The Plastiques”) who delight in delivering “burns” and verbal abuse. And certainly, these kids are taking advantage of Doris at first. Then we see how they connect and bring the wounded woman into their circle, even trying to “up” her dating skills, while urging one of the team to “move on” from a “player”. That’s just one of the ways that Chinn constantly surprises us. It’s easy to take satiric ‘swipes” at the uptight moralists of the school and the picket line, but we’re shown that they’re more than comic “targets”. “Dying with dignity” is discussed and debated, but Chinn never pushes one view over to the forefront, letting us ponder the choices. Best of all is the unique mother/daughter dynamic that is the driving force of the plot. Perhaps that’s what shines the brightest in the somehow life-affirming SUNCOAST.

3.5 Out of 4

SUNCOAST is now playing in select theatres and streams exclusively on Hulu beginning on Friday, February 9. 2024

ARE YOU THERE GOD? IT’S ME, MARGARET – Review

Rachel McAdams as Barbara Dimon and Abby Ryder Fortson as Margaret Simon in Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. Photo Credit: Dana Hawley. Courtesy of Lionsgate

Judy Blume’s beloved 1970 classic young adult novel finally makes it to the big screen in a sweet film of the same name, ARE YOU THERE GOD? IT’S ME, MARGARET. The biggest question with this charming film version is what took it so long? Maybe it was waiting for writer/director Kelly Fremon Craig, who has crafted a marvelous film adaptation, that balances the novel’s honesty with a lightness and entertaining touch appropriate for the character’s age. An excellent cast, and perfect music from the era, complete the picture.

The film offers plenty of moments pre-teen girls will recognize, but this film is for everyone regardless of age or gender. It also has nostalgic treats for parents who read the book when they were young, but one does not have to have read Judy Blume’s classic novel to enjoy this delightful film.

Set in 1970, the film opens as 11-year-old Margaret Simon (Abby Ryder Fortson) is just returning from summer camp. She is glad to be back home in New York City, but her parents Barbara and Herb (Rachel McAdams and Benny Safdie) have big news: they are moving. To the suburbs in New Jersey, no less. It is a big change and Margaret is upset, particularly because her beloved paternal grandma Sylvia (a wonderful Kathy Bates) will no longer be so close by.

But they do move to the land of lawns and lawnmowers, because her dad got a promotion that gives them more money. Her mom Barbara, an art teacher, is actually looking forward to being just a housewife, and having more time with her daughter and to participate in school activities like the PTA. Plus they will have a bigger house and a yard. As soon as they move in, a girl from next door, Nancy (Elle Graham), knocks on their door and invites Margaret to her house to run through the sprinkler, a new experience for city girl Margaret. Plus Nancy has a cute brother. Maybe it’s not all bad.

While Margaret copes with all the changes the move brings, she also faces all the typical worries and concerns of a girl who is 11 going on 12. Margaret worries about her changing body, if she should buy a bra, if she is “normal,” about fitting in, as she navigates new friendships. She witnesses bullying, has questions about religion, and has budding romantic feelings, all as she starts to explore who she is. The film, like the book, deals with these real-world questions in an honest way but with an age-appropriate touch.

The actual Judy Blume makes a brief appearance near the film’s start, shortly after the family moves to the suburbs. Judy Blume’s classic children’s novel deals with a number of real-world problems pre-teens and teens face, as does this fine film adaption. When the book was published in 1970 (the same year in which this film is set), “Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret” was ground-breaking, a big departure for children’s literature, by dealing with honesty with the real-life concerns of a girl of her age but written in an age-appropriate and entertaining style. The novel became a huge bestseller and also created a new literary genre: the young adult novel. Over the years, “Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret” has remained popular but also often the target of book banning. Judy Blume fans might also like to know there is a new documentary about the author coming out, JUDY BLUME FOREVER, to go along with this film release.

The film’s visual style perfectly captures the 1970s era where it is set, and that is perfectly paired with excellent music choices drawn from the era. songs that often punctuate moment with just the right feeling. The film has bright lighting and candy-color period sets and costumes, complemented by that marvelous period-appropriate score. The score delights again and again, underlining things Margaret is coping with, often adding a touch of humor with its spot-on choices.

One of the most charming parts of this sweet coming-of-age film is Kathy Bates as Margaret’s loving grandma Sylvia. Bates is funny and cute as the typically New York Jewish bubbe, a role she plays extremely well. Actually, she steals the show at several points, standing up for her granddaughter, providing love and support, and a refuge from all the changes Margaret is facing.

The film is sweet and appealing, with a fine cast led by young Abby Ryder Fortson as Margaret. Audiences may recognize Fortson from her previously role as Paul Rudd’s daughter in the Ant-Man movies. Here, Fortson gives a nice, likable performance, capturing nuances of Margaret’s inner struggles on her expressive face. Rachel McAdams is very good as Margaret’s mom, who faces her own crises in this story, and is well supported by Benny Safdie as her husband. But often it is Kathy Bates as grandma Sylvia who steals the scenes, and acts as Margaret’s anchor in the storm. The young cast members who play Margaret’s friends, Elle Graham as Nancy, Amari Alexis Price as Janie, Katherine Mallen Kupferer as Gretchen, and other characters, played by Isol Young, Landon S. Baxter and Aidan Wojtak-Hissong, all give well-crafted performances.

This is a sweet, charming adaptation of a beloved children’s classic that both younger audiences and parents can enjoy, even if they haven’t read the Judy Blume book.

ARE YOU THERE GOD? IT’S ME, MARGARET opens Friday, Apr. 28, in theaters.

RATING: 3.5 out of 4 stars

BALLOON ANIMAL – Review

A scene from BALLOON ANIMAL. Courtesy of First Bloom Films

This review of the movie, BALLOON ANIMAL is starting off slowly, which serves a couple of purposes. It takes more patience than usual to read, as does the film to enjoy. The decision begins with writer/director Em Johnson, who has earned quite a few awards and nominations on the festival circuit (including the St. Louis International one) for a handful of shorts before this feature.

An old cliché (guess that’s redundant, since all cliches must be old to qualify) that has been the basis for many books and movies is a protagonist who tires of the humdrum of an average childhood or adult life and runs off to join a circus. This one gives us a young woman named Poppy Valentine (Katherine Waddell) who is been raised in her father’s (Ilia Volok) traveling circus and feels like running away to live in the mainstream. Spending her life as a magician’s assistant who also whips up the eponymous latex creatures for the kiddies between shows has lost whatever romance it once had, or that outsiders might assume exists.

Poppy struggles with how to handle her gnawing discontent, including how it will affect her dad. He is already bitter and depressed by her mother’s departure and the dwindling audiences threatening the demise of their entire industry. We see her world as being so sequestered that forays into the culture of their customers are as alien to her as the rumspringa year might be for Amish teens. Even worse, they usually take that step away from their comfort zone at 16 years of age, and with the full support of their community. She is 24, and knows it would devastate her father and alienate the few friends she has from growing up with them under the big top.

Poppy’s process is a slow and quiet one, with considerable suspense about what she will do and whether any of several dangled unpleasant possibilities will materialize. Waddell, who has worked with Johnson a couple of times before, was a good choice for the lead. We can see her internal struggles even between lines of dialog and the interactions with the others who will be affected by her decisions. Dad mostly seems like such a jackass that one may wonder why it has taken her so long. In other moments, he is a more sympathetic character, clinging desperately to the only existence he has known or wanted as societal changes whittle away at its financial viability.

Johnson gets solid performances from all of her players. The film’s limited budget works to her advantage, making the circus small and rundown; the audiences small; the town of this current stay is nothing special. These aren’t the times for those romanticized circus spectacles of yore, when a Burt Lancaster or Charlton Heston dazzled packed bleachers with pizzazz aplenty. I’m not even close to the target demographic for this sensitive depiction of a woman’s inner conflicts and struggles, but the film kept me in suspense and invested in her outcome. And that’s a good thing.

BALLOON ANIMAL is available via video-on-demand on most platforms as of Friday, April 7.

RATING: 2 out of 4 stars

WILDFLOWER (2023) – Review

This Friday sees the release of a “coming of age” story with a couple of very interesting twists. Yes, it’s about a young woman yearning to break free of her childhood home as she approaches the end of high school. Of course, there’s all the college prep, changing friendships, and even a new budding romance. Now, here’s the big detour: she’s conflicted as she believes her folks can’t really fend for themselves. In fact, many might think that she’s really “raising” them. So there’s the conflict between exploration and guilt. And it is “inspired by real events”, in fact, it’s a dramatized take on a documentary from a couple of years ago. Plus it touches on many similar themes as a film from earlier in the month. So, with this young woman’s blossoming new life, could she be the title’s WILDFLOWER?


The opening of the story has us following Las Vegas high school senior Bea Johnson (Kiernan Shipka) through her nearby suburban street, far from the “strip”.A quick cut and she’s sleeping in a hospital bed. Actually, she’s in a coma, As her family flits in and out of the room, Bea narrates a long flashback, in hopes of recalling how she got here. The locale shifts to a nearby California suburb as hunky Derek (Dash Mihok) mows the lawn of the home of Peg (Jean Smart) and Earl (Brad Garrett) as their smitten daughter Sharon (Samantha Hyde) watches. The folks allow her to bring him a lemonade, believing nothing will come of it. Sharon is developmentally challenged from birth, while Derek endured a brain injury when he was seven, leaving her mental capacity at that age. Of course, soon the young couple elopes, prompting a “sit down” with Peg, Earl, and Derek’s parents from Vegas, Loretta (Jackie Weaver) and ‘Papa J’ (Chris Mulkey). The decision to not get the marriage annulled leads to talk of Sharon getting sterilized. A horrified Peg takes it “off the table”, since they surely won’t start a family. Naturally, Sharon soon gives birth to Bambi (later she would insist on going by Bea). The new family puts down roots in Vegas, and all seems to go well until “the truck incident”, which prompts Sharon’s sister Joy (Alexandra Daddario) to swoop in with hubby Ben (Reid Scott) in order to eventually take custody of her. But Bea’s free-spirited nature makes for a poor “match” and soon she’s back with her folks. Bea shines academically, takes over housekeeping duties, and even has an afterschool job. As she begins her final high school year, a helpful guidance counselor nudges her to apply for scholarships, while Bea acts on an attraction to a new student, the rich, hunky Ethan (Charlie Plummer). But could he handle the unconventional Johnson family structure? And can Bea even think of leaving the increasingly dependent Sharon and Derek? Could all that pressure have led up to the coma?

Shipka delivers on the promise of her excellent TV work as Sally Draper on the iconic “Mad Men”. As with that role, she conveys a sharp wit, delivering the proper amount of snark with every “burn”, but her Bea is more than a “Daria” clone (another cable TV reference). With her confident line delivery and gestures, we see the affection and frustration she feels for her folks, tempered with her close bond with her school BFF (played with great charm by Kannon) and her hesitant romance. Kudos also to Ryan Liera Armstrong who is spot on as a pre-teen Bea. As dad Derek, Mihok is an endearing “man-child” with no filter as he peppers strangers with religious queries while never losing his dignity. He’s matched by the entertaining Hyde whose defiant pout speaks volumes. Plummer’s also effective as Bea’s dream guy, Ethan, who truly sees her soaring spirit. The addition of Smart as Peg super-charges the few scenes she has, even as she’s often regulated to being “the voice of reason” and the exasperated “straight woman” to the hi-jinks of the unique crew, especially Weaver as the boisterous flamboyant Loretta. Garret is again the sweet, often clueless lumbering “sad sack”, perhaps a cousin of his CHA CHA REAL SMOOTH step-pop. Daddario and Scott make a good comic team as the well-intentioned up-tight “helicopter parents”. Also effective is Erika Alexander as a sympathetic social worker who pops in and out of Bea’s life.

The whole production is a kind-hearted “indie” slice of life which will probably be unfairly compared to last year’s big Oscar-winner CODA and that flick from a couple of weeks ago CHAMPIONS. It compares well with the latter, but the treatment of the parents in this fall short of the scrappy crab-haulers of the former. Too often Bea’s folks are there as a roadblock or a challenge to her goals. Fortunately, there’s plenty of warmth in their encounters in between the chaos, as they contend with “the system”. Much the same can be said of Bea as she “acts out” in the convoluted third act (the “MEAN GIRLS/HEATHERS” subplot feels forced). Plus the cartoonish schtick of a major supporting player feels lifted from a farce. The Vegas settings are great, but other local touches feel dated (slot racing emporiums…today). Director Matt Smukler never stoops to exploitation of the mentally challenged and makes a good plea for compassion (he expands his 2020 doc short), but despite the terrific ensemble cast, led by the compelling Shipka, WILDFLOWER doesn’t quite reach for the sun.

2.5 Out of 4

WILDFLOWER opens in select theatres on Friday, March 17, 2023

CODA – Review

Emilia Jones as Ruby in “CODA,” premiering globally on Apple TV+ on August 13, 2021. Photo courtesy of Apple TV+

CODA is writer/director Sian Heder’s charming coming of age comedy/drama about the daughter of a family of scrappy, independent fishermen, who all happen to be deaf except her. CODA means “child of deaf adults” but it also has a musical meaning, making it the perfect title for a film about a teen with a passion for singing, something her family neither hears nor comprehends.

With deaf actors in the roles of the girl’s brother and parents, including Oscar-winner Marlee Matlin as her feisty mother, and wonderful performances all around, writer/director Sian Heder’s often-funny, warm tale of a family, different from the ordinary and yet not, is sure to bring smiles and delight audiences.

CODA has been praised by deaf communities both for casting deaf actors in the roles and for its realistic depiction of a deaf family. The film won the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance, along with other awards, and is a true crowd-pleaser that also impresses with its authenticity. Shot on location in Gloucester, Massachusetts, it is an American remake of the 2014 French film LA FAMILLE BÉLIER with a strong, and surprisingly international, cast.

CODA certainly does feel authentic, but the film’s appeal goes beyond that, with its focus on believable family dynamics and distinctive personalities, where the parents’ deafness is just a part of the picture. CODA is, at its heart, a coming-of-age story more than anything, with a delightful performance by English actress Emilia Jones as a girl who loves her quirky family but has ambitions that are just different from family tradition.

Ruby Rossi (Emilia Jones) is a 17-year-old living in the coastal Massachusetts town of Gloucester, where she is the only hearing member of her fishing family. Every morning before school, Ruby joins her father Frank (Troy Kotsur) and older brother Leo (Daniel Durant) on their fishing boat. Having Ruby on the boat allows them to monitor the radio for alerts and communicate with hearing fisherman and those who buy the catch on the dock when they return. At home, her mother (Marlee Matlin) does the bookkeeping for the family business. At school, Ruby faces some bullying but having best friend Gertie (Canadian actress Amy Forsyth) to count on helps.

As the film works through the family dynamics, it also explores Ruby’s budding interest in singing when she impulsively signs up for choir. The choir teacher Bernardo Villalobos (Mexican actor/comedian Eugenio Derbez), also know as Mr. V, is a quirky character but despite Ruby’s shyness, he recognizes her talent. Mr. V suggests she apply to a music college in Boston, even offering to coach her for the audition. Suiting the interests of his students in this fishing village, he picks a classic pop ballad to prepare for Ruby’s audition. For the upcoming school concert, the teacher also pairs her with Miles (Irish actor/musician Ferdia Walsh-Peelo), a boy Ruby is interested in.

Ultimately, a crisis in the family business arises and Ruby is faced with a choice between her own ambitions and her family.

Writer/director Sian Heder hails from Massachusetts, although not from Gloucester, so she understands the strong family fishing tradition in this part of New England. The Rossi family has done this for generations, as dad Frank tells us, and they are counting on Ruby to help continue the family business, and even more so as the only hearing one in the family. That the rest of her family can’t hear the singing Ruby loves doing, just makes it all the more difficult for them to understand her passion.

In many ways, it is just like any family business, where a child develops an interest far outside its expectations and traditions. But Ruby’s ability to hear is a particularly useful skill for her deaf family, enabling them to keep more of their aloofness from the hearing community around them than they might otherwise. Her parents’ dependence on Ruby to do these things puts pressure on her and frustrates their son Leo, who reads lips, and wants to do more to help them deal with the hearing community the surrounds them.

While some elements of the story are familiar, the script handles them very well. But the real appeal of the film is its characters and the performances. All the actors are terrific, especially Emilia Jones as Ruby, who is a complete charmer, and completely believable, beaming with energy and high spirits, and bouncing back from set-backs with determination, despite her shyness and normal teen self-doubts. She is perfect in the ensemble scenes with the family, and both cute and self-possessed in the ones with love-interest Ferdia Walsh-Peelo as Miles.

The scenes with the family are delightful, as they joke and tease. The use of sign language and Ruby’s combination of signing and speaking is handled so well that we never are confused about what is going on, and the snappy banter and warm quirky family scenes move smoothly at a brisk but clear pace.

By casting deaf actors, the film goes a long way towards getting things right from the start. As her parents, Marlee Matlin and Troy Kotsur are perfectly cast as a couple, and completely delightful, funny and loving and with a nice together-we-can -do-anything feeling. As Ruby’s older brother, Daniel Durant is excellent as well, presenting his struggle to assert himself as an asset to the family and his own independence, while engaging in playful sibling teasing with his sister.

Some of the funniest, most appealing scenes are with this lively family. Humor dominates the family scenes, along with a sassy, thumbing-their-noses-at-the-world independence. The family scenes are the film’s highlights, and the ensemble acting is wonderful. Marlee Matlin, unsurprisingly, shines as the still-sexy mom and Troy is appealing as Ruby’s rebellious but loving dad. The sibling squabbling between Ruby and Leo is spot on as well.

Unlike some deaf families, the Rossis do not live in a community of deaf people but of hearing ones, and see their deaf friends infrequently. The family lives apart from the rest of the community, in an appealing kind of close-knit, defiant independence. Dad comes from a long line of New England fishermen, mom was a model in her youth, and despite years of marriage, they can’t keep their hands off each other. Although their older child Leo, played well by Daniel Durant, is also deaf, he reads lips and feels much more comfortable interacting with the hearing community than his parents do. He would like to have a more active role in helping them but they continually turn to their hearing daughter for that role, much to Leo’s frustration.

As the film works through the family dynamics, it also explores Ruby’s growing ambitions and passion for singing, and her budding romantic interest in Miles.

Ruby’s quirky music teacher Mr. V, provides a big dose of humor. Mr. V is a bit of a character as well as an immigrant, in a town that seems to have few of them, and Eugenio Derbez creates one of the film’s funniest, most memorable characters who as much as outsider as Ruby feels she is in her small town. His outsider status and his skill as a teacher help her see beyond the fishing boat and her life with her loving but inward-looking family.

There are a lot of parallels to the immigrant experience to Ruby’s “outsider” family in CODA. One can see echos of stories of second-generation children, who have a foot in both worlds, the “new” and the “old” with Ruby, among them that she says that when she started school, kids teased her for her “deaf accent,” referring to the distinctive speech style of deaf people who are taught to speak, a nice detail which reveals that her loving parents did their best for their hearing daughter by speaking to her.

Subtle insights like that are woven smoothly into Heder’s well-written script. Heder’s script is well-crafted, effective, warm and entertaining, the direction is seamless and skillful, and the characters are memorable, particularly Ruby and her charmingly quirky family.

CODA’s characters are so appealing in their feisty quirkiness and family warmth, that it is the kind of film you will want to revisit. The story is both universal and unique to these characters, and that is a combination that is hard to beat.

CODA, the winner of the 2022 Oscars for Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay and with Troy Kotsur winning for Best Supporting Actor, re-opens Friday, April 1, at Landmark’s Plaza Frontenac Cinema and is streaming on Apple TV+.

RATING: 4 out of 4 stars

KING OF STATEN ISLAND- Review

(from left) Scott Carlin (Pete Davidson) and Papa (Steve Buscemi) in The King of Staten Island, directed by Judd Apatow. Courtesy of Universal

At 24, Scott (Pete Davidson) is stuck in perpetual adolescence, living with his mother Margie (Marisa Tomei) in the Staten Island home where he grew up. Traumatized when his firefighter father was killed trying to rescue someone when Scott was seven, he has never recovered despite years of therapy and in fact, has built his persona around the trauma. His well-meaning, kind-hearted mother, an overworked ER nurse, has built her life around her son’s care, treating him as if he were a fragile patient. If fact, everyone seems to tip-toe around Scott as if he might break from his childhood trauma.

Scott himself embraces this view, dodging jobs and hanging out with high school pals Oscar (Ricky Velez), Igor (Moises Arias) and Richie (Lou Wilson), playing video games and smoking pot. Scott’s mom sent him to art college but he dropped out and now dreams of being a tattoo artist. When he encounters someone who calls his dad a hero or praises his bravery, Scott reacts with anger, as he blames firefighting for his father’s death.

When Scott’s long-widowed mother starts to date a guy named Ray (Bill Burr), a firefighter no less, big changes are in store for Scott.

Director Judd Apatow works his comedy magic once again in a story about another guy facing long-overdue change. Scott’s mother’s new life forces changes that he has avoided all his adult life, and Pete Davidson does an excellent job of mining this man-child character for comedy, while sensitively exploring the dramatic side of Scott’s his childhood pain, his dreams and his tentative steps towards adulthood.

The story, co-written by Apatow, Davidson, and Dave Sirus, has some semi-autobiographical elements for Pete Davidson. Davidson grew up on Staten Island, and the childhood loss of his firefighter father Scott Davidson, who was killed in 9/11, had a profound effect on his life.

Pete Davidson’s Scott is on the crazy-impractical side, a fellow with a dream of opening a combination tattoo parlor and restaurant, a concept only he thinks is a good idea. But he also has a certain loopy charm, and a good heart, which eventually shines. Forced into a job walking his mom’s boyfriend’s two kids to and from school, Scott finds a grown-up role that fits him. Hanging out with the kids, where Scott’s childlike view helps him bond with them, also forces him into the unfamiliar role of caring adult. Another twist brings Scott to the firehouse, where he discovers things about his dad and himself he never expected.

Davidson is aided by a supporting cast that includes Steve Buscemi as a veteran fireman called Papa, who sort of takes Scott under his wing. But the real supporting cast standouts here are the women, Marisa Tomei as Scott’s solicitous mother Margie, who has to work through her own long-delayed issues, and Bel Powley is a scene-stealer as Scott’s funny would-be girlfriend Kelsey. While Kelsey is part of the gang of Scott’s childhood friends, unlike the guys, she has plans for her life that she is putting in place. Her mix of down-to-earth practicality, bluntness, and acceptance of Scott for who he is, makes her a memorable character, one who lights up every scene she’s in. Tomei, as always, brings her charm and energy to the role, making her both a sweet, supporting person and a funny, fun-loving one. Maude Apatow plays Scott’s younger sister Claire, a version of Davidson’s real-life sister, who is one of the few who does not coddle him, while still being a supportive, teasing sister.

THE KING OF STATEN ISLAND is classic Apatow and an excellent showcase for Pete Davidson’s comic talents, as well as an appealingly warm portrait of working-class Staten Island. It is available to stream on demand on Amazon Prime on June 12, 2020.

RATING: 3 out of 4 stars

EIGHTH GRADE – Review

Elsie Fisher as Kayla in EIGHTH GRADE. Photo by Linda Kallerus, courtesy of A24

Writer/director Bo Burnham’s EIGHTH GRADE is a remarkably true and honest portrait of a 13-year-old girl’s journey through the last year of middle school, a refreshingly accurate snapshot of early teen years that avoids all the teen movie stereotypes and presents life, zits and all, as it really is. But the film is further boosted by an appealing performance by Elsie Fisher as Kayla trying to negotiate this territory along with her single parent dad Mark (Josh Hamilton). Well-meaning Dad is desperate to connect with his only child, and Kayla is just as desperately ignoring her poor, adoring dad.

There is plenty that is laugh-out-loud funny in this film and just as many moments that are poignant, even heartbreaking. Some people make the kind of transition that Kayla is struggling to make in high school or even college but the experience is universally familiar, although Burnham steeps it in the contemporary culture of constant smart phone use, Snap Chat, and online videos. There is even an scene, featured in the trailer, where the high school students Kayla meets while shadowing one as part of her transition to that next educational level, have their own culture shock moment, aghast at the thought that Snap Chat became a thing when Kayla was in fifth grade.

Kayla makes little self help instructional videos that are really lessons for herself. Interestingly, Bo Burnham was best known as an amateur comedian on YouTube. Burnham makes a strong feature film debut with this touching comedy, which might be a star-making vehicle for lead Elsie Fisher.

Elsie Fisher is enormously charming as shy but determined Kayla. Fisher and Burnham are not afraid to show the real awkwardness of adolescence, and to frankly tackle issues. Unlike most teen movies, Kayla has problems with her complexion, she is slightly chubby, a bit shy and socially awkward. At school, we see her encounter mean girls at lunch and we watch her participate in “active shooters” training drills. Kayla copes with some of her social awkwardness by making YouTube videos in which she gives advice one how to deal with socially difficult situations, exactly the issues she is dealing with. In her videos, she is self-assured and relaxed, but anything but that in real social situations. She rolls her eyes at her well-meaning but clueless dad, barely interrupting posting “likes” on her phone to knowledge his presence at dinner. She seems to ignore his advice, but the videos reveal she is actually listening.

We see Kayla cope with snobby popular girl Olivia (Emily Robinson), whose mother pushes her to invite Kayla to her pool party birthday party, and Kayla’s crush on a cute boy at school, Aiden (Luke Prael). The pool party sequence is both very funny and painfully touching, sure to bring back memories of awkward teen-aged moments for viewers. Despite her shyness, Kayla does some bold things and considers other things that will make parents cringe.

All in all, EIGHTH GRADE is just an excellent film, well-acted, well-shot, well-written and perfectly paced. Parents, and those of us who were once teen-aged girls, will recognize the situations and issues dealt with so well in this excellent drama. This is the kind of true-to-life approach one wishes all coming of age films would take. EIGHTH GRADE is worth seeing, for its honest approach to a difficult time in life well experience, and also for its wonderful lead performance by Elsie Fisher.

EIGHTH GRADE opens in St. Louis on Friday, July 27, at the Tivoli and Plaza Frontenac theaters.t. Louis on Friday, July 27, at the Tivoli and Plaza Frontenac theaters.

RATING: 4 1/2 out of 5 stars