Mother's Day

First Hit:  Schmaltzy in so many ways, and yet I was touched by the four major mother’s day stories.

The stories are:  A divorced mother Jennifer Aniston (as Sandy) dealing with her husband’s new young wife Tina (Shay Mitchell) and he children’s interaction with the new step-mom.

Britt Robertson and Julia Roberts (as Kristin and Miranda respectively) who represent an adoptive child finding and reconciling with her mother.

Jason Sudeikis (as Bradley), whose wife was killed while serving her country, raising two girls alone and how will he treat this emotive day.

Lastly Kate Hudson and Sarah Clarke (as Jesse and Gabi respectively) as sisters who have marriages (one sister marries a foreigner and the other is in a gay marriage) that their parents reject.

As with most Garry Marshall films, the film has multiple interrelated stories and they are not hard hitting. Even though they aren't amazingly dynamic or intellectually challenging, the stories touch on themes the general population knows about and has experienced in some way.

Marshall makes it easy for the audience to laugh about these situations, which really have much deeper roots and societal impact.

Aniston is really good. I loved when she was sitting in her car while in the grocery store parking yelling to herself about her situation. As the mother who is now dealing with a rival, she’s tells this story well. Mitchell is good as the new step-mom. Robertson is very good as the young mother being hesitant to marry her child’s father because of the uncertainty she has from not ever meeting her biological mom. Roberts’ smile makes her role as TV sales spokeswoman work well. When she meets her grandchild for the first time, the emotion welling up in her is perfect. Sudeikis is strong and funny as the dad learning how to be the sole support for his two smart wonderful daughters. Hudson and Clarke are great as sisters hiding their lives from their parents. The screenplay, although its grit level is softball in nature, was written by Tom Hines, Anya Kochoff Romano, and Matt Walker. Garry Marshall directed this with his usual easy listening manner, which was entertaining, included funny bits, and there were a couple of tears due to my own life experiences.

Overall:  Although it’s a light softball type film, there are deeper roots Marshall is letting the audience ponder.

Keanu

First Hit:  Oddly funny, slightly creative and occasionally violent film that kept my attention while the kitten stole the show.

There is a fair amount of violence in this film as telegraphed in one of the very early scenes when the Allentown Boys, Oil and Smoke Dresden (Jordan Peele and Keegan-Michael Key respectively), wipe out a drug cartel then take their money and Keanu (the kitten).

Keanu gets away and shows up at Rell Williams’ (Peele again) apartment. The kitten brings hope and joy to Williams who has just lost another girlfriend. His closest friend Clarence Goobril (Key again) is a very upbeat guy and is happy for Williams because of the kitten.

When Keanu is stolen by Cheddar (Method Man) the head of another drug gang, he steps up and combines forces with his friend to find and get the kitten back. This set up takes them out of their normal behavior and has them trying to be tough, street smart, and with killer reputations to infiltrate Cheddar’s drug HQ, which is in a strip club.

Pretending to be the Allentown Boys they gain access to Cheddar's gang and the task to get Keanu back becomes their focus. It is the prize that makes this film work.

Peele is funny both as the pot smoking depressed guy that finds a reason to take chances and the tough hombre willing to kill to get his cat. Key is even more interestingly funny as a very straight guy who also has some soul and smarts. Man is OK as the head of a small cartel. Tiffany Haddish is wonderful as Hi-C an undercover cop and part of Cheddar’s gang. Darrell Brit-Gibson, Jason Mitchell, and Jamar Malachi Neighbors are wonderful as Cheddars gang members who come under the spell of Goobril when listening to George Michael music. Peele and Alex Rubens wrote this odd, yet funny script. Peter Atencio did a great job of directing this odd script and the effective shots of the kitten being a kitten were fabulous.

Overall:  Although there were times I wanted the film to move to the next scene, it did provide fun entertainment.

Miles Ahead

First Hit:  Oddly entertaining and playfully interesting, this atypical biography kept me watching.

Because Don Cheadle signed on as both director and main character, he must have wanted to connect with Miles Davis the man and his music.

As the film opens it's the 1970's and we immediately delve into the quirky, singularly self-focused, and angry life of Miles Davis as he sits in his messy apartment, headphones on, listening to a reel to reel tape. He’s focused on the sounds which the audience cannot hear.

A knock on the door gets reluctantly answered and there stands Dave Brill (Ewan McGregor) who says he’s a reporter for Rolling Stone Magazine. Punching Brill in the face is the greeting Miles gives.

Together they go to Columbia Records and try to get money for what might be on the tape. However, Columbia states they already own the tape by contract. The obvious unspoken drive is that Miles needs money for drugs.

The film awkwardly goes between present day (1970’s) of the film and his past life (1945) including the love of his life, a dancer, named Francis (Emayatzy Corinealdi).

The awkward transitions do not belie the important information gained, but it makes the film difficult to enjoy. Although I understand the importance of the tape (his future), the focus on its theft and capture didn’t help the film’s story. However, in the end as we learn what is on the tape and what has happened, we see the importance of the next person who understands Davis’ approach to music.

One scene that stayed with me was when Miles discussed how he broke music down to core components to see and learn how to “free it up”. As you might expect, the music in this film was superb.

Cheadle was really strong as Davis. He brought the kind of independent intensity that made Miles’ the innovator he was. McGregor was good as the reporter and supporter of Davis’ quest to own and control his music. Corinealdi was very good as Davis’ wife who struggled under Miles’ increasingly drug fueled paranoid nature took hold over their marriage. Steven Baigelman and Cheadle co-wrote this screenplay that seemed to suffer by the storyline used to document/film part of Davis’ life. Cheadle did direct some wonderful scenes as well as scenes that weren’t as strong. The segues were not well done.

Overall:  It was interesting to get a glimpse of the genius residing in this musician.

A Hologram for the King

First Hit:  Although, it is a typical fish out of water story, the acting is wonderful which elevates this film to very good.

The opening sequence is amusing and pointed. To the background music of The Talking Heads song “Once in a Lifetime”; Alan (Tom Hanks) is walking through a set with his shack, house, car and wife all blowing up in sequence with the song - ending with him looking up at the camera saying “How did I get here?” Then we find Alan sitting on a plane full of Muslims, a prayer session begins with a cleric leading them using the flight attendant’s microphone.

This opening gives the audience the sense that we are going for a ride. Alan is going through a divorce, he’s made a couple business mistakes, needs money to keep his daughter Kit (Tracey Fairaway) in college; he feels like a failure. So he’s off to sell the King of Saudi Arabia on a holographic meeting system.

He’s full of anxiety, his boss keeps the pressure on with daily phone calls and he has a lump on his back that worries him. Each day he gets up and has missed the shuttle bus to the technology center, an hour or so outside the city where he and his team is staying. However, I kept wondering why his team didn't collect him in the morning for the shuttle?

Anyway, this plot device gives him the opportunity to call a driver/guide. Yousef (Alexander Black) likes to talk when he drives while listening to 1970's hits on his tape system. They get along great and it is in the car we begin to see the stress Alan is going through.

Watching Alan slide downhill like this is hard, and Hanks pulls this off with aplomb. But when he needs to be on, he’s ready with a strong sales pitch backed by a smile and an easy way to befriend people. Every day he’s told his contact will meet him the next day, but the day arrives and he’s told "this will not be possible."

His fluctuation between patience and impatience is perfect and when he does get the meetings done, he and his team are ready. But this is only part of the story, through a set of circumstances, he ends up meeting a Zahara (Sarita Choudhury) a doctor who both helps him with his building anxiety as well as diagnosing the lump. This story is about taking a chance on a new beginning.

Hanks is typically strong in this role as a lost man. He’s able to make his circumstance and steps he takes believable. Tracey Fairaway is wonderful as the daughter who looks up to her dad as well as seeing the pain and stress of what he’s going through. Choudhury is very strong as the woman Muslim doctor. Her dance between the rules of her culture and her feelings was marvelous. Black is comically perfect as the driver who also dances between both worlds; his Saudi roots and his western exposure. Tom Tykwer wrote and directed this film. The dialogue was strong as were many of the scenes, especially with Hanks in the hotel room.

Overall:  This was a solid feel good film.

Hardcore Henry

First Hit:  Gave me the sense of either being in a video game or playing a video game.

Being my age, I was around when the first widely available user games (Pong and Space Invaders) were created.

I’ve watched others, including my grandson, play games for short periods of time and I can see why people get engaged. It’s a fast responsive experience and there are many levels to each game. The player has to remember where they are and where they are going, what weapons they have available and what will kill them.

From my uneducated and inexperienced view, most of today’s games are mostly involve killing an enemy regardless if they are human, alien, or monsters of some sort. Additionally, they have a full array of weapons. However, what is missing when I watch the players and their avatars, are consequences, consequences for their actions.

In the non-reality of a video game, consequences, such as death are not felt or experienced by the players. Just game over only to begin again. It is not real. This film, shot in the first person, we are the players avatar. From the get go the audience goes for a wild ride.

As first person, we get to do surgery on our self to change power-packs, kill nearly a hundred people, and leap tall buildings in a single bound. Along the way, we get to grab new weapons, have brief exchanges with others but move on with our task.

This character, Henry, was full of action, kill mindlessly, and do all sorts of engaging superhuman things; all without a concrete purpose that can be felt.

Although there are actors, it was difficult for me to identify individual performances because each segment or scene with the actors is too brief and very chaotic. Ilya Naishuller and Will Stewart wrote this intense, all action, script. Naishuller also directed his script and, in the end, I’m not sure it was something I’d want to experience again.

Overall:  This film was intense and full throttle “in your face” action with no real point.