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October 23, 2025

BLUE MOON (2025) – Review

Filed under: Review — Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , — Jim Batts @ 11:01 pm

Can there really be two music biopics opening this weekend? Yes, though they share little in common other than popular songs. The “Boss” flick is set in the early 1980s and zeroes in on a couple of years of his career. This film is set nearly forty years before, and it mainly (other than a brief prologue) happens during one fateful night. And it’s pretty much set in one place. Oh, and rather than the world of rock and roll, this comedy/drama is in the world of musical theater on Broadway (technically musical comedy, I suppose). You may not know the name of this film’s main focus, but after eighty years, much of the world is still singing his lyrics, especially the often-recorded and revived BLUE MOON.

Yes, you read that correctly. This film isn’t about a tunesmith, but rather a writer of lyrics. In that aforementioned prologue, we see a diminutive man shuffling and stumbling through a rain-drenched alley. That man is Lorenz Hart (Ethan Hawke). The story then shifts to a few months in the past, the evening of March 31, 1943, the opening of the classic Broadway musical, “Oklahoma”. Lorenz, along with his mother, watches from an exclusive “box seat” until he can stand no more of the “corn pone”. Telling his mom that he needs a drink, Hart sprints away to Sardi’s restaurant, where the show’s after-party will be held. In the first floor bar area, he begins to kibitz with his old bartender pal Eddie (Bobby Cannavale). He’ll only serve Lorenz club soda, as he has a big booze problem, though a bottle is keep near “for appearances”. Hart is both looking forward to and dreading a reunion with his old writing partner Richard Rodgers (Andrew Scott), now teamed with Oscar Hammerstein II (Simon Delaney). But Hart is ecstatic about a tryst with young Yale art student Elizabeth Weiland (Margaret Qualley). Eddie’s a bit confused, since he though Lorenz leaned toward another gender. Hart insists that he’s fluid and, despite their 27-year age difference, believes that tonight’s the big night for them. As he bemoans the impending demise of wit on the “Great White Way”, Hart notices a man writing at a table. It’s one of his favorite authors, E.B. White (Patrick Kennedy). The two bound over their love of language until Elizabeth arrives. As she regales Hart with stories of college “hook-ups”, the “Oklahoma” entourage dashes in for cocktails and to read the early rave reviews. Hart corners Rodgers to pitch a new pairing while discussing a revival of an older work. As the new Broadway “darlings” begin to depart, Hart ponders whether he’ll ever be back on “top”, in his profession and in his personal life.

This film is truly a tour de force showcase for the acting artistry of Hawke as he tackles a truly complex artist. His work goes beyond the “gimmick” of appearing to be a spin on Jose Ferrer as Toulouse Lautrec in MOULIN ROUGE and his severe “comb-over” to give life to a man riddled with insecurity, struggling to retain his dignity, all the while obsessively trying to regain the “brass ring”, be it Broadway success or the elusive young protégé. In Hart’s meeting with Rodgers, Hawke conveys that pleading sweaty desperation while acting as if nothing as really changed between. This might be the defining performance of Hawke’s impressive career. Luckily, the engaging Cannavale proves to be a superb scene partner as Eddie, who is alternately amused and disgusted by Hart’s antics (his “BS detector” is working overtime) while making sure he steers clear of the booze that will destroy him. Qualley is a wide-eyed, bouncy blonde dream girl as the effusive, but unknowingly encouraging Elizabeth.. She thinks of Hart as a mentor, while dismissing his often clumsy advances. Then there’s Hart’s other object of desire, a re-teaming with the “man that got away”, Rodgers, given a distracted air by the compelling Scott. Yes, he’s happy to be showered with praise, but he’s not entirely indifferent to his former partner. Scott shows us that as he tries to toss Hart a life preserver (a revival of their old show) while defending pointed barbs at his latest work (there’s a place for sentiment in the war-torn world) and trying to make it clear that he’s part of a different duo. Their interplay is both amusing and sad, much like the ending of a theatrical marriage.


Longtime Hawke collaborator Richard Linklater directs from a very literate script from Robert Kaplow that deftly balances comedy and tragedy in the tale of longing and regret. Hart had once had everything until he squandered it all due to his addictions and an ego bigger than his slight frame. Yes, it does often resemble a stage play after the brief alley prologue and the scene that follows during the finale of “Oklahoma”, but the character dynamics and bouncy retorts expand the confines of the bar (though we do explore the “water closet” briefly). The period costumes are quite stunning, especially Qualley’s gown, and the soundtrack filled with period tunes (from Hart and others) is very effective. Plus, this story is pure “catnip” for musical comedy buffs , especially when we get a brief moment with Oscar’s precocious young guest (stage fans will get it). It’s not a sprawling epic, but fans of the era, and the excellent cast, will be enchanted. Why, they might just be over the BLUE MOON about it.

3 Out of 4

BLUE MOON is now playing in select theatres

February 21, 2024

DRIVE-AWAY DOLLS – Review

Filed under: Review — Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , — Jim Batts @ 10:35 pm

Although many parts of the country are still in the “deep freeze”, many folks are looking ahead to the big thaw and traveling during Spring Break. And it’s only natural that the multiplex will have a new roadtrip romp to get everyone “in the mood”. Oh, but this film differs from those we’ve seen in previous years. First, it’s set in that far-off land of 1999 (yikes, a quarter century already). And rather than a couple of teenage male buddies (or even a group as in LOSIN’ IT), it’s focused on two twenty-something young women. Perhaps, it’s a riff on WHERE THE BOYS ARE, and you would be very wrong as they don’t care about such a location (ahem). Plus it should be of interest to Cinephiles as this is the first solo directing effort for one half of a much-lauded filmmaking team. He’s actually behind the steering wheel along with these DRIVE-AWAY DOLLS.


It all begins just before Y2K when a quirky guy known as “The Collector” (Pedro Pascal) is relieved of a mysterious silver-metallic carrying case in the dark “mean streets” of Philadelphia. Meanwhile, in another part of town, we meet the two “dolls”. Prim uptight Marian (Geraldine Viswanathan) is meeting up with her best pal Jamie (Margaret Qualley) at their favorite “ladies only” bar. Marian’s planning a road trip to Tallahassee, Florida, and Jamie is in the mood to leave town after a very nasty breakup with girlfriend/policewoman Sukie (Beanie Feldstein). Jamie suggests they go to an auto broker to sign up for a “drive-away”, a “one-way” vehicle to be handed over to the owner at the desired destination. The owner of the shop, Curlie (Bill Camp), is delighted to hear of their trip south and hands over the keys. But then he’s shocked when “the Chief” (Coleman Domingo) and his surly “goons’, Flint (C.J. Wilson) and Arliss (Joey Slotnick) show up for a Tallahassee car a bit later. It seems that Curlie had gotten a “tip off” call before the women came in, and surely nobody else was going to that Florida locale! While Chief runs off to do some “damage control”, the two thugs try to catch up with the car. But why do they want It? Could it involve that stolen case? And how does it connect to the ambitious ultra-right-wing Senator Gary Channel (Matt Damon)? Can the lusty wild Jamie and the shy nervous Marian stay out of trouble and two steps (and many miles) ahead of those violent vicious “leg-breakers”?

A truly talented and very “game” ensemble really makes this zany farce soar. Naturally, we should begin with the “doll duo” themselves. Qualley, so memorable as the “Manson groupie” hitchhiker in ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD, brings a manic playful energy to the untamed Jamie, sort of a human Tazmanian Devil driven by a hunger for pleasure rather than food. And mimicking her mum’s (Andie MacDowell) Southern twang is just a big fun bonus. Fortunately, Qualley shows her softer side, mainly in the story’s final act as her devotion and affection for Marian come to the forefront. As that (somewhat) “straight lady, Viswanathan (who many of us saw as the “randy” promgoer in BLOCKERS) gives a real dignity to what could’ve been a cliche “Debbie Downer” sidekick, becoming the voice of sanity and logic to the impulsive Jamie. She really shines in an early flashback scene as she awkwardly deflects a male co-worker’s advances, which strengthens her eventual “loosening up” before the final fadeout. Popping up just in time to give the film a shot of comic adrenaline is the scene stealer, Ms. Feldstein. As Sukie, she projects complete fearlessness, demanding to be treated with respect, pushing back when shoved (and bringing the “pain”). Current Oscar nominee Domingo is truly a “smooth criminal” even as his patience is stretched to the “limit”. As for his “flunkies”, Slotnick is the more reasonable, thinking he can use his armchair psychology as a way to squeeze out info, while Wilson will have none of that chatty “stuff” and is always the “bull in the china shop”. The always dependable and delightful Mr. Camp is an endearing “sourpuss” as the curmudgeon Curlie. And though his role is a slightly expanded cameo, mainly for the last big “showdown”, Damon is terrific as a guy who’s just not comfortable doing the necessary “dirty work”.

And just who was I referring to as one-half of a celebrated directing duo? Well, it’s none other than Ethan Coen in his first feature film directing gig, after a couple of dozen films working with his brother Joel (who went solo three years ago with THE TRAGEDY OF MACBETH). Oh, he also co-wrote the loopy script with long-time collaborator (and spouse) Tricia Cooke. Mr. Coen brings a manic almost cartoony energy to the story making it truly zip and zing throughout its tight and taut 84-minute runtime. While many will make comparisons to “The Dude”, it feels like a gleefully politically incorrect riff on BLOOD SIMPLE (with the main duo unaware of the sinister forces circling them) and RAISING ARIZONA (an LGBT flip on Ed and HI perhaps) along with odyssey themes of O BROTHER, WHERE ART THOU?. Yes, the bizarre thugs have become an indie staple, but they feel invigorated, perhaps due to the late 90s themes and their interplay. Strange, since those Coen classics are from the 80s (and not dated a bit) and the 60s play a pivotal part of the plot with some eye-popping psychedelic “flashback foreshadowing”. Yes, the laughs are plentiful (for those not easily shocked or offended), but the big surprise is the unique and changing relationship of Jamie and Marian, who start off as a traditional bickering “odd couple” until their bond deepens with unexpected tenderness. It’s a road trip that ends with something much more than a change of venue, though things do get much brighter for them in the “sunshine state”. Filmgoers will be glad to go on a goofy and often glorious getaway with this pair of DRIVE-AWAY DOLLS.

3.5 Out of 4

DRIVE-AWAY DOLLS opens in theatres everywhere on Friday, February 23, 2024

November 17, 2017

NOVITIATE – Review

Filed under: Review — Tags: , , , , , , , — Cate Marquis @ 8:23 am

Margaret Qualley as Sister Cathleen, in NOVITIATE. Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics (c)

NOVITIATE focuses on a young woman preparing to become a nun in the early 1960s, just as the Catholic church is poised on the brink of the sweeping changes of Vatican II.

Maggie Betts wrote and directed this drama about a 17-year-old named Cathleen and her fellow novices as they move towards taking their first vows as nuns. It is certainly not the first film to give viewers a peek inside a convent as young women prepare for religious life, and, in fact, the film mentions the 1959 Audrey Hepburn film “A Nun’s Story. What makes this film different is that it takes place at a pivotal moment for the Catholic Church, just as the changes of Vatican II were being put in place. Catholics know what a radical shift Vatican II was. In its attempt to modernize the church, it made sweeping changes to long-standing traditions and practices, and even non-Catholics are familiar with some changes, such as dropping the Latin mass in favor of one the local language. The changes were controversial and also instituted quickly, which divided many Catholic communities, and remain an issue with some traditionalists still. The changes impacted the lives of nuns as well as all Catholics, altering old traditions and practices nearly overnight. In some ways, the film is as much an exploration of the reaction to Vatican II as a young woman’s experience in a convent.

The film primarily focuses on 17-year-old Cathleen Norris (Margaret Qualley). Cathleen attended a Catholic school on scholarship, despite being raised by a single mother who is an atheist. Her mother Nora (Julianne Nicholson) seems to have been raised Catholic but long ago lost interest in going to church and developed a cynical attitude towards religion, possibly around the time Cathleen’s unreliable, drunken father (Chris Zylka) left for good. It is just Mom and Cathleen, and so Mom could not be more shocked when her daughter decides to become a nun.

The secondary focus of the film is the convent’s head, the Reverend Mother, played brilliantly by Melissa Leo. Reverend Mother (she has no other name) rules the convent with an iron fist and a fervent faith. There is a bit of drill sergeant in Reverend Mother but one senses she is so demanding because she wants only the best ones to serve her beloved God. The church and convent life define her and also form her comforting home – until Vatican II appears. She is someone who treasures the solid, predictable world in which she lives, and she does not like change, something her world is about to undergoing in abundance.

The story follows these two characters on parallel tracks. The drama does explore issues of faith, mostly from Kathleen’s individual point of view, but does not shy away from challenging it either. We get to know the whole group of postulates, as the young novices are called in the first months before they take their first vow and become novitiates. It is a weeding out process as well as a chance for the young women to taste life as a nun and decide if it is really for them.

As the postulates, and the some of the nuns who work with them, work through their issues, the Reverend Mother undergoes a crisis, It is more a crisis of identity than of faith, brought on by her reaction to Vatican II. At first, she does not even want to share the new rules with the cloistered nuns in the convent, or even acknowledge their existence. Her outbursts of temper become more frequent and her behavior increasingly unbalanced. We are unsure if Reverend Mother is simply going mad, as an elderly nun does at one point, or if it is the pressure of the changes wrought by Vatican II, until a visit by a priest makes matters clearer.

 

One of the things that is unexpectedly striking about NOVITIATE is cinematographer Kat Westergaard’s beautiful photography. Everything looks lovely, from the rural Tennessee countryside where Cathleen grows up, to the stately convent grounds, to the attractive nuns and pretty young women trying out the life religious. The consistently lush, perfectly-framed photography sometimes seems a bit at odds with disturbing events unfolding on screen.

NOVITIATE features some fine performances, particularly Melissa Leo. At first, the Reverend Mother seems a one-dimensional villain, or perhaps someone descending into madness. But Melissa Leo gives us a more layered character, and deeper insight into her pain, originating in a lesser-known aspect of Vatican II changes regarding nuns. A chilling scene between her and a priest, who has arrived to see that Vatican II is enforced speaks volumes about power within the church.

Margaret Qualley turns in a strong performance as Cathleen, who copes with issues of faith as well as separating from her non-religious mother, who neither understands or really accepts her daughter’s decision to become a nun. NOVITIATE is most interesting when it takes us inside Cathleen’s individual exploration of faith.

As a peek inside the experience of becoming a nun, NOVITIATE does not really improve on the Audrey Hepburn movie. Although it updates how the story is told for modern audiences and incorporates some topics, such as lesbian feelings, that could not be part of the earlier film, it feels less authentic in other ways, despite its very attractive cast. Why this young woman, who was clearly inspired by a nun she had as a teacher, would choose to join a strict, cloistered order instead of a teaching one is never explained. The very strictness of this order is something the film seems to mine for melodramatic effect.

NOVITIATE is an uneven film, that succeeds best when it focuses on the spiritual journey of its young protagonist. But what might make it most interesting to watch is Melissa Leo’s fiery performance as the brittle Reverend Mother.

RATING: 3 out of 5 stars

 

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