‘Arts’ Archives
Lady Bird
“Lady Bird” (2017) Studio A24 ***** “Lady Bird” is the most refreshing film on adolescence in a long time. Thanks to Greta Gerwig, her directional debut is fantastic, everything is in place, keen, realistic, charming and humorous (and serious, too) all in the right spots. Yes, adolescence is a turbulent, experimental, and growing time in life that seem often to work against him or her. Then the adolescent has to be under the roof of parents, oh, those people we call parents, the ones hopefully to guide into adulthood. Values, good ones --well, pray those ones be the frontrunner. “Lady Bird”' is the title character played by Saoirse Ronan (“Brooklyn” [2015), in large part has a turbulent relationship with her mother, Marion McPherson (Laurie Metcalf). Her mother tells her and her father Larry (Tracy Letts) cannot afford to send her to Columbia, Yale or Penn and barely can afford to send her to a college in California (where they [...]
The Killing of a Sacred Deer
“The Killing of a Sacred Deer”(2017) Drama/Thriller/Mystery Studio A24 **** out of five stars Heart-wrenching is what «The Killing of a Sacred Deer» is with irony of a doctor performing open-heart surgery in the opening scenes. Doctor Steven Murphy (Colin Farrell) is seen in a beautiful hospital standing outside his office talking to a teenage boy named Martin (Barry Keogham) who has made an unscheduled visit to see the doctor. Apparently, Steven is the one who operated on his father; who, sadly, has deceased. Steven takes an interest in Martin, a kid seemingly with few friends, a classic loner, someone in need for another person to talk to since his father is gone. Steven invites the lad over to his house to meet his ophthalmologist wife Anna (Nicole Kidman), and children,12-year old Bob (Sunny Suljic) and 14-year-old Kim (Raffey Cassidy). Martin takes up the invitation at the Murphys”' house with “normal” interactions. There is one scene in [...]
“American Made”
“American Made” (2017) Action/ Biography/ Crime / Thriller/Comedy by Universal Pictures *** and 1/2 out of 5 stars The key to the action/biography film “American Made” is no other than Tom Cruise, the same actor this director Doug Liman also uses in “Edge of Tomorrow” (2014). Cruise of course is the face of Mission Impossible films from 1996 to 2015, “The Mummy”(2017), “Jack Reacher: Never Go Back” (2016) and the late Stanley Kubrick”'s dreamy-eyed, mystery “Eyes Wide Shut” (1999); furthermore, Cruise”'s best work (may be behind him?) “Top Gun” (1986), “The Color of Money” (1986), “Risky Business”(1983),”Taps”(1981),”Born on the Fourth of July”(1989), “A Few Good Men”(1992) and “The Firm”(1993). In “American Made» Mr. Cruise, plays Barry Seal, a real- life TWA pilot who is “bored” with his [...]
