Southpaw

Posted on July 23, 2015 at 5:58 pm

Lowest Recommended Age:	Mature High Schooler
MPAA Rating:	Rated R for language throughout, and some violence
Profanity:	Constant very strong language
Alcohol/ Drugs:	Drinking, drugs
Violence/ Scariness:	Intense boxing scenes with disturbing images, gun violence, murder, suicidal behavior, child removed from her family
Diversity Issues:	Diverse characters
Date Released to Theaters:	July 25, 2105
Date Released to DVD:	October 26, 2015
Amazon.com ASIN:	B012BPM536

Didactic and unabashedly manipulative, “Southpaw” borrows from almost every boxing movie ever made. It telegraphs every development and then, in case we missed it, tells us what just happened. The dialogue is purplish and melodramatic. The filmmaking is self-consciously arty, with shadows and reflections — or smoke and mirrors. The storyline is so soapy it almost slides off the screen. As Thelma Ritter says in “All About Eve,” “Everything but the bloodhounds snappin’ at her rear end.” Scriptwriter Kurt Sutter (“Sons of Anarchy”) has to learn to trust his audience.

Heartfelt performances by Jake Gyllenhaal, Rachel McAdams, and Forest Whitaker give the story more weight than it deserves, and director Antoine Fuqua knows how to film the boxing scenes so that each is a drama of its own.

A movie hero generally has to start with nothing and get something or start with everything, lose it all, and then get it back. Gyllenhaal plays Billy Hope (this film really does hit every point home with a sledgehammer), who had nothing and now, as the movie begins, has it all, so we know he has to lose it. Hope grew up in what we used to call orphanages. All he had was a girl named Maureen who believed in him and guided him and an anger so powerful that he could use it in the ring the way Popeye uses spinach.

We see him before a title fight, his hands getting wrapped in pristine gauze under the supervision of the referees, who literally sign off on them before the gloves go on. Billy has a moment alone with Maureen (Rachel McAdams, in a richly observed performance). And then there is the fight. He gets hit until he gets furious enough to battle back with everything he has, and then he wins. He and Maureen return to their mansion, kiss their adorable daughter Leila (Oona Laurence), and go to bed. And then it is all gone, and he has to literally fight his way back, mopping floors at a dingy, inner-city gym and being trained by a crusty old pro (Burgess Meredith, no, I mean Forest Whitaker). He has to learn boxing all over again.

Gyllenhaal’s physical transformation, so soon after his skeletal appearance in “Nightcrawler,” could be stunt-ish — or just a chance for him to get back in shape. But he makes us feel the almost feral elements of Billy’s understanding of the world around him, and he shows us the way his growing understanding of himself as he has to take responsibility for his choices is reflected in the ring. His scenes with McAdams are deeply felt, tender, and sexy. The movie gets a split decision, but Gyllenhaal and McAdams are a knockout.

Parents should know that this film has constant very strong language, sexual references and a non-explicit situation, brutal and bloody boxing matches, gun violence, drinking and drugs, sad deaths of a parent and a young teen, references to domestic abuse and prostitution, child removed from family, suicidal behavior and assault.

Family discussion: Why did Tick make Billy clean the gym? Was the judge right to take Leila away? Why did Billy need to change his style of fighting?

If you like this, try: “Rocky,” “Warriors,” and “Body and Soul”

Self/Less

Posted on July 9, 2015 at 5:08 pm

Lowest Recommended Age:	High School
MPAA Rating:	Rated PG-13 for sequences of violence, some sexuality, and language
Profanity:	Some strong language
Alcohol/ Drugs:	Drinking
Violence/ Scariness:	Perils and violence, intense themes of encouraging people to die so that wealth people can live longer
Diversity Issues:	Diverse characters
Date Released to Theaters:	July 10, 2015

The longing for eternal life has inspired many stories, maybe most of them. What is creating a story itself if not a kind of search for immortality? Anne Rice created her series of books about vampires because the death of her young child made her imagine characters who would not die. The story of Orpheus and Eurydice, with a man entering Hades to bring back woman he loves, has been told in many forms, last year in the animated film “The Book of Life.” This year alone, films like “Ex Machina,” “Terminator Genisys,” “The Age of Adaline,” “The Moon and the Sun,” and this film, “Self/Less” are just some of the films that explore the idea of a consciousness that can survive a human lifespan.

In this case, there is a very rich man, still, near death, relishing the chance to demolish a young, ambitious competitor in as public and humiliating a fashion as he can devise. His name is Damian (Sir Ben Kingsley), and he lives in a Manhattan apartment of an opulence so gaudy it would make Marie Antoinette blush. Everything is covered in gold or marble except for the bubbling indoor fountain and the window with a view of Central Park. Damian has money and power. He also has a community activist daughter (“Downton Abbey’s” Michelle Dockery), presumably trying to prevent everything he is building, who is not speaking to him. He has a furious will to live, but his body is dying.

And then he gets a card with a phone number and a message that this could help. The impeccably elegant Dr. Albright (Matthew Goode of “The Good Wife” with his authentic British accent) offers a very pricy special service. For a quarter of a billion dollars, he will transfer a dying person’s consciousness to a fresh, new body. And for that amount, you can bet it will be top quality. Damian is going to come out of this process looking like Ryan Reynolds.

That’s pretty much like getting the keys to a Lamborghini. So, of course first of all, Damian wants to take it out for a wild test drive, in the greatest city in America for living it up, New Orleans. We have almost as much fun as Damian does because director Tarsem Singh has a flair for striking, kinetic visuals and dynamic edits that make this part of the movie so vibrant we can feel the testosterone and adrenaline — and whatever other drug Dr. Albright is giving him — pounding through his system.

But Damien starts getting flashes of images and people he does not recognize. Are they hallucinations? Or are the memories of that handsome body breaking through? And if the memories can seep through into Damian’s consciousness, can the personality, the spirit, the feelings, the skills be there, too?

Singh is big on visuals but not much on storylines (“The Cell,” “The Fall,” “Mirror Mirror”). So, while this has more story than his previous films, it is still less than we are entitled to expect. You would have to be as impaired as Damian not to figure out what is happening, or to believe everything Dr. Albright says. But there are some nice twists, and some good fight scenes (Damian’s new body has mad skillz). And somewhere in there are some provocative concepts about life, death, memory, identity, and, well, karma.

Parents should know that this film has some violence, including shoot-outs, with characters injured and killed, and some disturbing themes about re-animating corpses and wiping memories. There are sexual references and situations, drinking, drugs, and some strong words.

Family discussion: Why does what Damian learns about the body make him think differently about what he has done? Who should decide how scientific discoveries like these are applied?

If you like this, try: some other films on this theme including “Seconds” with Rock Hudson, “Never Let Me Go” with Keira Knightley, and “All of Me” with Steve Martin and Lily Tomlin, and a very funny brief segment in the Woody Allen film, “Stardust Memories”

Max

Posted on June 25, 2015 at 5:51 pm

“Max” is a good, old-fashioned story of a boy and a dog who mend each other’s broken hearts. It is heartwarming without getting treacly, and frank without getting too disturbing. And it has adventure, romance, loss, and something to say about what we should ask of ourselves and each other. It is one of the best live action family films of the year.

Justin Wincott (a terrific Josh Wiggins) is an unhappy teenager who lives in Texas with his parents (Thomas Haden Church as Ray and Lauren Graham as Pamela). His older brother Kyle (Robbie Amell of “The DUFF”) is a Marine in Afghanistan, working with a dog named Max, who protects the troops and sniffs out danger, locating hidden bombs and caches of weapons. Justin won’t even stop playing a video game when Kyle is Skyping with his parents. Kyle gently teases him for not coming to the computer screen to say hello. “I’m just over here dealing with a minor insurgency. He’s trying to save the whole universe.”

But Kyle is killed, and Max is severely traumatized. The Wincotts are devastated, though proud of Kyle’s service for his country. Ray, himself a wounded veteran, is stoic and firm in his beliefs about patriotism and manhood. Justin is angry, bitter, and hurt. He is not interested in helping a damaged dog. He does not know yet that the best way for him to heal his spirit is to find a way to help someone else. He and Max share a great loss and need to learn how to process what they have experienced.

Kyle’s best friend, who served with him, was released early and goes to work for Ray. And Justin has a best friend, Chuy (Dejon LaQuake), who has a spirited, brave cousin who loves dogs named Carmen (Mia Xitlali). With Carmen’s help, Justin helps Max feel at home. But as a Marine tells him, “These dogs were born to work. Take away that sense of purpose and they’re lost.”

Justin needed a sense of purpose, too. He finds it when it turns out their town has some bad guys with guns and rottweilers. Justin and his friends find out that Max’s sense of purpose means he will do anything to keep them safe. Yakin keeps a lot of moving parts moving smoothly. Justin’s relationship with his dad, with Max, with Carmen, and with the bad guys all come together as a part of his growing understanding of his own sense of purpose.

Parents should know that this film includes wartime violence, a sad death, dog fights, adults and children in peril, weapons dealers, brief strong language, and a teen kiss.

Family discussion: Why was it hard for Justin and his father to get along? Why did Justin’s father wait to tell him the story of his wound?

If you like this, try: the “Lassie” movies and “Remember the Titans”

Inside Out

Posted on June 18, 2015 at 5:53 pm

A-

Lowest Recommended Age:	Kindergarten - 3rd Grade
MPAA Rating:	Rated PG for mild thematic elements and some action
Profanity:	Some schoolyard language
Alcohol/ Drugs:	None
Violence/ Scariness:	Some peril and anxiety, sad death
Diversity Issues:	None
Date Released to Theaters:	June 19, 2015
Date Released to DVD:	November 3, 2015
Amazon.com ASIN:	B00YCY46VO

Roger Ebert liked to refer to movies as an “empathy machine.” He said that the great gift of movies, more than any other art form, is the way they can put us inside the world, experiences, culture, and perspective of someone completely outside our own experience. But the best movies do that in a way that helps us understand ourselves as well. “Inside Out” is a rare film that takes us inside the mind of one very particular 11-year-old girl in a way that illuminates the vast breadth of human experience, with deep insights about our own particular quirks, struggles, and emotions. It is exciting, hilarious (two of the funniest jokes you will see on screen this year), and deeply profound, making the most complex concepts accessible in so that children and adults will learn more about who they are and how they got that way.

Riley (Kaitlyn Dias) is in the midst of internal and external turmoil. She was very happy in Minnesota, playing on a hockey team, with lots of friends, and feeling, well, at home. But her parents have just moved to San Francisco, so that her father can take a new job with a start-up. Everything is new and different and scary. Everything she liked about her life, everything she took for granted, is up for grabs. And all of this is happening just as that developmental leap that comes around age 11 is causing her to change from the bright-spirited, optimistic, happy little girl who was confident in herself and in her family. She is getting old enough to see and feel more of what is going on inside and out. Her parents try to be reassuring, but she knows that her father’s new job is risky. She does not know anyone at school and they do not know her. The old friends from the place she still thinks of as home do not have as much time for someone who is far away.

Of course we have seen this before. There are a lot of movies about people of all ages who are forced to adjust to changed circumstances, or to find a way to make a strange new place feel like home. What is different about “Inside Out” is that Riley is not the character we follow through this story. She has her own adventure, but the story takes place in her mind and it is her emotions who take center stage. They operate the helm of the — yes — Headquarters.

The characters are Joy (Amy Poehler), a pixie-ish blue-haired sprite who is resolutely energetic and upbeat, Anger (Lewis Black), a stocky red fellow who is fiery-tempered and easily outraged, Disgust (Mindy Kaling), green, with a round head, long eyelashes, and a sensitive spirit quick to resist anything new or icky, Fear (Bill Hader), a lean blue creature who usually assumes the worst, and Sadness (Phyllis Smith), who feels everything very, very, very, very deeply. Each of these characters is introduced with what they help Riley do. Anger helps her see unfairness. Disgust helps her to avoid poisonous foods. Fear helps keep her safe. Joy helps her see the world as a place filled with imagination, adventure, and opportunity. And Sadness — we will learn more about what Sadness does later, but for now we will say that it helps her feel empathy. Joy is the leader of the group. She is the most focused and direct and the best able to negotiate with the others. But her goal is to keep all of Riley’s memories happy, and that might not be possible.

As Riley tries to use her mind, her memories, and her emotions to navigate her new community, Joy and Sadness are accidentally transported to where Riley’s memories are stored, and they must make it through an Oz or Wonderland-style land where we learn about everything from abstract thinking to why you CAN’T GET THAT DARN JINGLE FROM THAT STUPID COMMERCIAL OUT OF YOUR HEAD. A surprising — in every sense of the term — new character shows up to provide support and insight, and to embody the sweet sorrow of growing up. Co-writer/director Pete Docter told Terry Gross that it was when Mindy Kaling came to talk to him about the film that he understood what it was really about: you have to grow up, and it’s okay to be sad about it. That applies whether you are the one growing up or just watching it as a parent or friend. This movie speaks to all of us, whether we have children, are children, were children, or still keep the child we were near our hearts. A lot of good movies are smart. But this one is wise.

Parents should know that this movie includes some mild peril, family tension, running away, and a sad death.

Family discussion: Can you think of a time that Joy was steering your mind? How about the other emotions? When can you feel them working together? Did you have a Bing Bong? Why did he make that choice?

If you like this, try: “Everybody Rides the Carousel,” “Up,” and “Monsters Inc.”

The Farewell Party

Posted on June 11, 2015 at 5:36 pm

Israeli filmmaker Sharon Mayman says that the idea for “The Farewell Party” came from the time that his boyfriend’s grandmother, age 92, was dying, and paramedics prolonged her suffering by “fighting for her life like she was 16 years old.” Her son, in frustration, said to the paramedics, “If you bring her back, you’re taking her with you.” In Israel, as everywhere else, new conversations, long overdue, are beginning about the end of life. This bittersweet story of love, friendship, and loss takes place in an assisted living facility where those who are still healthy spend a lot of time visiting those who are not. We first see Yeheskel (Ze’ev Revach) literally playing God. He is on the phone with a frail friend, pretending to be God, telling her to stay strong. And then he and his wife Levana (Levana Finkelstein) go to visit their closest friend, who is suffering terribly and dying slowly. His wife, frantic and furious, tells Yeshekel he must use his skill as an inventor to help them. And so Yeshekel does, working with a new arrival who has some experience in gentle and peaceful death — a veterinarian — and his friend, a cop.

The machine works, and they think they are done. But word has gotten out and the loved ones of people who are in great pain keep coming to Yeheskel to ask for his help, sometimes so desperate they will threaten blackmail. Levana gets increasingly uncomfortable with what they are doing until her own health issue makes her see things differently. As she struggles with dementia, her friends respond with grace and one of the most simultaneously funny and heartwarming moments in any movie this year. Growing old is not for sissies. But this movie shows us that we do not be afraid to be honest about it, and to smile through our tears.

Parents should know that this movie deals with end of life issues and assisted suicide and includes some nudity and sexual situations.

Family discussion: What can we do to make end of life issues easier for people who are dying and their families? Do you agree with the characters in this film?

If you like this, try: “A Matter of Size”

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