This may be the first horror movie of my lifetime that my parents saw before I did. Friends had recommended it to them, and they recommended it to me. They also thought I should expect a wait on it from Netflix, which is why I put it at the top of my queue for October, but it came on time. Truth be told, I had held off on it not just because it wasn't the right month for my horror viewing but because it sounded very iffy for my taste.
The main auteur is Jordan Peele of Key & Peele fame, so I rightly suspected a racial focus. Chris (Daniel Kaluuya) goes to meet the parents (Katherine Keener and Bradley Whitford, who looks nothing like Josh Lyman anymore) of his girlfriend, Rose (Allison Williams), who assures him they'd have nothing against her dating a Black man. Ooh, but there'd been some inadequate communication: This is the day of an annual family/friend reunion, so he'll meet far more than them. He's not exactly surprised at a lot of the awkwardness from people who try to be polite yet don't seem to know any Black people personally besides servants, but things start to seem worryingly awry, especially the Stepford-like behavior of the few other Black people around....
Showing posts with label stephen root. Show all posts
Showing posts with label stephen root. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 4, 2017
Sunday, July 10, 2016
Finding Dory (2016)
Normally, I agree with the majority of viewers on which Pixar features are among the best and which are merely OK. Finding Nemo has been the glaring exception: I found it uncreative, overly simple, immature, and unwholesomely preachy. The humor, especially surrounding Dory's anterograde amnesia, is both predictable and politically incorrect. I almost declined my parents' invitation to see Finding Dory in a theater. But maybe my tastes had changed in 13 years. Besides, one reviewer intrigued me by talking about its special positive meaning for people with mental disorders and their families. Being such a person, I had to give it a shot.
Indeed, Dory's not so happy-go-lucky as a main character, nor is her problem played nearly so much for laughs. The movie begins with a look back at her early childhood, with parents lovingly compensating for her "short-term remembery loss." (Many in the theater awwed at the adoryble, strangely rotund, bug-eyed little blue tang voiced by a 7-year-old.) At some point, she got lost, which is 10 times worse with her condition. Fortunately, a young fish is much more self-suffishent than a young human, so she reached adulthood on her own, albeit still searching for her parents -- right up to the moment she met Marlon, whose more pressing search made her forget her own problems altogether. One year later, she suddenly remembers a big clue and heads off on her adventure anew. As more flashbacks come to her, the mystery unfolds.
Indeed, Dory's not so happy-go-lucky as a main character, nor is her problem played nearly so much for laughs. The movie begins with a look back at her early childhood, with parents lovingly compensating for her "short-term remembery loss." (Many in the theater awwed at the adoryble, strangely rotund, bug-eyed little blue tang voiced by a 7-year-old.) At some point, she got lost, which is 10 times worse with her condition. Fortunately, a young fish is much more self-suffishent than a young human, so she reached adulthood on her own, albeit still searching for her parents -- right up to the moment she met Marlon, whose more pressing search made her forget her own problems altogether. One year later, she suddenly remembers a big clue and heads off on her adventure anew. As more flashbacks come to her, the mystery unfolds.
Wednesday, November 18, 2015
Selma (2014)
It's not easy to review a film with a focus on a civil rights hero. Viewers' passions are bound to run high, and some might take even a slight criticism as a sign of racism. Others might roll their eyes at me for going too easy on it, thinking I'm racist in its favor. Well, all I can offer is my earnest impression.
The story begins with MLK (David Oyelowo) preparing to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. Before long come two indicators that he still has a lot of work to do: a church bombing and a ludicrous suffrage obstacle. Since talking to the president will accomplish only so much, he organizes a protest march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama. The march itself doesn't get a lot of screen time; there's more than enough drama in just preparing for it, what with threats of arrest and physical violence from multiple parties. It doesn't help that the FBI is typewriting the activist leaders' every move, as shown right on the screen.
The story begins with MLK (David Oyelowo) preparing to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. Before long come two indicators that he still has a lot of work to do: a church bombing and a ludicrous suffrage obstacle. Since talking to the president will accomplish only so much, he organizes a protest march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama. The march itself doesn't get a lot of screen time; there's more than enough drama in just preparing for it, what with threats of arrest and physical violence from multiple parties. It doesn't help that the FBI is typewriting the activist leaders' every move, as shown right on the screen.
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