Wind River (2017)

This film is upsetting, disturbing and depressing. But it nevertheless manages to pack a powerful punch.
Cory (Jeremy Renner) works for the Fish and Wildlife Committee and while he is on the job at the Native American Reservation, he finds a dead body. It is Natalie Hansen, his deceased daughter's best friend. She was raped and then ran in the frigid temperatures for six miles. It might be cold here, currently, but there it is always cold.
The FBI is called in and rookie agent Jane Banner (Elizabeth Olsen) is on the job and she is inexperienced and not dressed for the weather. At first, there are few leads and it isn't until a second body is found, the body of a white man who worked at the drilling site near-by. Turns out that guy was Natalie's much older boyfriend and things get interesting and deadly very quickly.
Turns out Natalie goes to visit her boyfriend and his roommates show up, drunk and horny. She is raped and runs away and Matt (Jon Bernthal), the boyfriend, is beaten up to the point of death to defend her. And then once the FBI and tribal police show up, a shoot up begins and in the end, everyone ends up dead, except for Jane and Cory. Cory lets the guy who raped Natalie out in the cold without shoes so he can die in the exact same way as her as he just watches. Now, while that guy is a complete creep, he should have slowly rotted in prison as I took no pleasure in watching him die either.
Now, death is close to Cory as his own daughter died a few years earlier under somewhat murky circumstances. So perhaps he takes some comfort in watching that jerk pass away.
The punch comes as the film dwindles away. There are no statistics for how many Native American women are missing. They are the only demographic where statistics do not exist. It doesn't list a reason and it doesn't matter, that needs to change and it needs to change now.
Though this was a good, chilling film, it wasn't what I expected. I believed that this is where Native Americans were being killed for the land rights and that was not the case. Instead, men are just being awful human beings, which is unacceptable. It doesn't matter how cold, lonely and drunk you are, your behavior is wrong and disrespectful.
The film is well acted and well written and gives the most underused minority in Hollywood a few good roles, namely for Graham Greene as the tribal police chief. It is a shame that this plot doesn't add up to something more life altering and more respectful for the Native American culture. Grade: B

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Season One: Recap and Reaction

This show covers a lot of ground in just eight episodes.
Miriam 'Midge' Maisel (Rachel Brosnahan) is a Jewish housewife in New York City, 1958. Her life is playdates, make up and taking notes during her husband's (Michael Zegen's) attempt at stand-up comedy after working all day as a nameless executive in a nameless business doing tasks he doesn't understand or enjoy.
Joel (the husband) isn't funny and can't turn an everyday situation into something funny plus he uses recycled jokes. And then he leaves. He thinks that he could actually make a living from comedy while Midge believes that that is ridiculous. So Midge gets drunk and returns to the club and snatches the microphone and is sensational.
Her success is a long-time coming. She bombs a few times and then regains her footing at some parties. She gets a job as a make-up girl so she can leave her parents' apartment. She gets arrested twice and then when she finally starts her return, she blackballs an established comedienne, perhaps rightly so.
All this time, Joel is suffering without her. Sure, he moved in with his mistress, but that doesn't last and is reluctant to consider divorce.
By the final episode, Joel is finally doing better with his job and he and Midge reconnect. Despite all the crap he put her through, she still has feelings for him and he certainly never stopped loving her, not even removing his wedding ring.
But that probably won't happen as his former mistress confronts Midge at work, devastated that Midge would have the audacity to sleep with her husband which Midge weaves into her act that night and it is a success. Joel just watches, knowing that she will be good and he is just a loser who gave up the chance at something wonderful with Midge.
The supporting cast is also excellent with Alex Borstein as the person is discovers and hones Midge's talent and sees her through the highs and lows. They will be forever good friends. There are also Midge's parents, Abe and Rose (Tony Shalhoub and Marin Hinkle) who each have interesting personalities. Jane Lynch shines in a guest role.
The music is great and scenery realistic and there is rarely a false note in this show, with all sorts of characters who you can see existing and the acting is excellent. This is a must-watch. Grade: A-

Logan Lucky (2017)

This was a different sort of film for me, but it was interesting nevertheless.
Here you have a bunch of characters who are smarter than society believes them to be.
Jimmy Logan (Channing Tatum) is divorced, with a bad knee who is fired from his construction job as that knee is a preexisting condition which is an insurance liability. Then there is his brother, Clyde (Adam Driver) who is a veteran (just as he is in real life apparently) who has just one real hand. Jimmy gets the idea to rob this racing event to get some quick cash so he can spend more time with his daughter, a wannabe beauty queen.
This film is about how they pull off the impossible, with the help of the criminal Joe Bang (Daniel Craig) who is incarcerated. It is an interesting film filled with interesting characters including Mellie (Riley Keough), the Logan sister who has very long nails and a knowledge for cars. Bobbie Jo (Katie Holmes), Jimmy's ex wife and her new husband Moody (David Denman), a car salesman. We also have Joe's dimwitted brothers who claim to be religious but take little persuasion to help with the the heist and Katherine Waterston's nurse Sylvia who you just know Jimmy will end up by the end of the film, which does happen. Along with the heist which is investigated by the FBI which includes Hilary Swank in another interesting, albeit small role.
The plot is intriguing and the acting good so this film passes by without any problems or major, noticeable flaws. While it won't win any Oscars or any major awards, it is nevertheless a very good film. Grade: B+

Star Wars VIII: The Last Jedi (2017)

Warning, spoilers ahead!
This was an excellent film with one flaw. Though this is the eighth Star Wars film, only in this one (to be fair, I haven't seen episodes one through three) can Jedis will themselves between planets. Here, we have Rey (the outstanding Daisy Ridley) interacting with Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) while she is on the secluded island trying to convince Luke (Mark Hamill) to teach her the ways of the jedi and he is struggling with his inner demons on a spaceship lightyears away.
That being said, this film has everything, tons of action, great acting and surprises along the way plus it has cute alien animals and humor tucked in in just the right places. And plenty of plot.
We also have a love pentagon and the death of a beloved character.
There is Rey who finally gets Luke to begin to teach her the ways of the jedi, despite the last time Luke did just that, Ben turned over to the dark side. We have Leia (the late, great Carrie Fisher) dealing with a ship running out of fuel and the Republic is after it with a vengeance. She almost dies as the ship is nearly blasted away and the reigns are given over to Officer Holdo (Laura Dern) who continues to take the ship on its course, despite the extreme lack of fuel, to Poe Dameron's (Oscar Isaac's) dismay. Then there is Finn (John Boyega) who wants to go get Rey, but is caught by Rose (Kelly Marie Tran) who is a low level maintenance worker and she is livid. They band together and along with Poe form a secretive mission to disable a tracking devise on the enemy's ship which allows that ship to track them in lightspeed which has not been previously possible.
They have a detour to a planet which is just one large, giant casino and pick up this rouge decoder (Benicio Del Toro) who has a slight lisp who doesn't have a side in the fight. Who will betray them, going where the money is.
And just when you think Laura Dern is also foolish and on the side of the Empire, you learn the reason why she did what she did. She was letting them continue so they could board the escape pods and head out to a planet which was armed and there call for reinforcements. Eventually, she ends up sacrificing herself so the others can be saved.
And just when you think Kylo Ren might have some true goodness in him and think that he's falling for Rey as he does kill Snoke (Andy Serkis), he wants her to join forces with him but she just can't do it. Which is probably a good thing because as strong as she is, she is not strong enough to completely turn Kylo around. And then Kylo stays on the dark side, firmer than ever and more evil than ever.
He has already killed his father and now kills his uncle, though not in the way he expects. Luke does die but is at peace with his decision. Finn wants to be the hero and destroy the cannon, but Rose doesn't let him. She has the best line of the film, "Saving what you love is what makes us good." Which is so true. She briefly kisses Finn before falling into a coma, and remains there at the end of the film so you don't know who is going to end up with who which only adds to the excitement.
This film might be long but it is a thrill ride from the beginning though it ends on a bleak note. I can't wait for episode nine. Grade: B+

The Middle: A Christmas Miracle

Christmas time has come and it is the season for miracles. And one did happen and I know I'm alone but I can't say that I'm thrilled.
Upset that none of her children are excited about Christmas, Frankie (Patricia Heaton) decides to have an adult Christmas, with mixed drinks and a Yankee gift swap. It will just be them and the Donohues, so good times will be had by all.
However, Axl (Charlie McDermott) has decided that he will not be going to church this year despite that beyond Sue's (Eden Sher's) comprehension. Frankie's attempts are not much better as she doesn't have any good, deep reasons why she goes to church.
And Mike (Neil Flynn) bought a blow up snowman as the sales girl at Lowe's was cute. However, he doesn't get a chance to enjoy it as the Glossners keep destroying it which infuriates Mike beyond all belief. That is not the miracle this episode offers. Despite his and Ron's (Sean O'Bryan's) attempt to persuade the teenager to be a better man, those pleas fall on deaf ears.
The miracle this episode offers is that Sue is forced to offer up her trashcan snow globe as a present because she left her real one at her apartment and just as Sean (Beau Wirick) is about to open it, he leaves. His grades are in and they are only lackluster. He is in the middle of the road, a place that he is not used to. Sue, on the other hand, thrives in the middle of the road. And her words provide him with comfort. Their hug lingers and turns into a kiss. Which is how the episode ends.
By this time, Frankie admits to Axl the real reason she goes to church is that she is grateful that someone is watching her back and is part of something bigger than herself and another miracle happens. Axl decides to go to church. In jeans, but Frankie knows that she need to pick her battles.
And Brick (Atticus Shaffer) who finally managed to meticulously wrap his present, is upset that no one picks his present and then just wants to keep his masterpiece on the shelf in his bedroom and then his cell phone rings. That's right. He wrapped his cell phone along with his present.
While I love the holidays with the Hecks, I'm not thrilled that Sue and Sean are together. I know I'm the only one, but she already dated one of Axl's friends so the show has already been there done that. And Axl is dating Sue's roommate, so this is just awkward. Besides, isn't Sue still with that delivery guy? Oh well, The Middle hasn't let me down yet so I'm sure that it will handle this coupledom with grace and ease and allow things to process naturally. And ultimately, if Sue's happy, then so am I. Grade: A-
Side Notes:
-Cindy (Casey Burke) wants Brick to be able to do a full push up by the end of the year. What a goal.
-There is a reason why Brick shouldn't use scissors. Things did indeed get interesting.
-Frankie eats a whole gingerbread kit without ever making into a house. What a shame.
-Brick believes that he will never be at prom.
-Mike's all in one tool might not be Christmasy but it is red.
-The Glossner teenager is still in diapers, which is such a shame.
-Mrs. Donohue (Jen Ray) is taking back dessert and has filled hers with gluten, sugar, dairy and nuts. -Sue is right, pretty much everything related to babies is a miracle.
-How did Sue know that Sean called her a very special snowflake?

Coco (2017)

This was a delightful film with twists and turns and still managed to surprise me.
Miguel is a little boy growing up in Mexico, where his whole family makes shoes. However, his heart lies elsewhere. Despite music being banned in the family after his great-great grandfather left to pursue his musical dream, that is nevertheless what Miguel wants to do with his life, which doesn't go over well with his family.
Desperate to pursue his dreams, Miguel steals a guitar from the man whom he believes to be his great-great grandfather, Ernesto De La Cruz (Benjamin Bratt) who left the family so he can win a musical contest which leads to a trip to the afterworld where the dead go to live. It is an interesting take, where the skeletons live and can only return to the earth if a loved one has placed their picture out to remember them. And once everyone on Earth has completely forgotten you, you turn to dust.
Here Miguel strikes a deal with a bum, Hector (Gael Garcia Bernal) so he can find Ernesto and get Ernesto's blessing so he can return to the real world.
Of course, he meets his other dead relatives along the way but they don't want him to pursue music. But when he finds the superstar, things aren't what he completely expected, considering the most beloved Mexican musician Ernesto is actually a giant fraud. He murdered his partner, who turns out to be Hector, just so he could steal all of Hector's songs and become famous without him. Which is precisely what happened.
That twist managed to surprise me, which doesn't happen too often. But things manage to all work out. Miguel receives his blessing from his ancestors and returns to the actual world and wakes his great-grandmother's memories of her father (Hector) so Hector won't be forgotten and reintroduces music into the family.
The animation is fantastic, as it always is with Pixar, which good voice acting and a good story, something that hasn't been done before which is always a relief. Grade: B+

On the Waterfront (1954)

This film remains relevant more than sixty years after it was released in theaters.
Terry Malloy (the excellent Marlon Brando) is a former fighter who has always lived on the waterfront. The waterfront is ruled by the nasty Johnny Friendly (Lee J. Cobb) so of course corruption and money laundering occur along with murdering those who darn to speak their own minds.
The film begins with Terry unknowingly sending a man to his death and though he does feel guilty and upset about the whole thing, he won't testify in court because he values his own skin more than the truth.
That doesn't stop him from falling in love with the dead man's sister, Edie Doyle (Eva Marie Saint, brilliant in her debut) and eventually, through the help and influence of Edie, who is the strongest character in the film, and Father Barry (Karl Malden), and the tragic murder of his own brother, Friendly's right hand man Charley (Rod Steiger), he chances his tune and testifies in court and is brutally beaten as a result.
While Edie is a strong character, Terry becomes no slouch. He doesn't give in and after testifying, goes back to the waterfront for work, as that is his right. As Father Barry says, he does have a chance to win the war and that is all we can hope for, that right wins out in the end.
This could easily be applied to the women who finally came out and admitted that powerful men were actually sexual predators, though there are definitely parts of this film that are horribly dated, but that doesn't make it any less important.
However, despite the strong story, this film is also anchored but its solid performances and brilliant score. Both Brando and Saint won Oscars for their performances and fully deserved to. This film remains one of the best of all time and should be seen and enjoyed by all. Grade: A

The Middle: The 200th

I can't believe that there has been two hundred episodes of this awesome show. And so many of them are just great and this one is no exception.
Axl (Charlie McDermott) is really applying for jobs, but needs a little push and help, from Sue (Eden Sher) of all people. Sue picks up his phone as everyone wants him out of the house and Axl leads others to believe that Sue is his assistant. She agrees reluctantly only because Axl promises that he won't make any more freezing her head jokes until their parents die, plus it will guarantee her a sweet job in heaven. And it works. Axl gets nervous, but Sue pushes him into that interview and he gets teh job, working for a plumber in the sales department. I think the job will suit him.
Mike (Neil Flynn) has bigger fish to fry. Bill Norwood (Pat Finn) tells him that he and his wife are separated and is pretty upset about the whole thing while Mike doesn't think its a huge deal though he is surprised. Bill tells Mike that Mike is the lucky one as Frankie is great, neat and funny. She's a good one. For the first time in some time, Mike does realize how lucky he is and becomes nice and attentive to his wife and children and it catches more than just a little off guard.
As for Brick (Atticus Shaffer), he manages to get Cindy (Casey Burke). It isn't easy. He must perform three acts of bravery, which isn't easy. In the end, he just admits how foolish he was for leaving her in the first place, which is all she wanted. They get back together, kiss and then go their separate ways which is just their way.
On other hand, Frankie (Patricia Heaton) is convinced she's losing her mind as she hasn't found anything to put in the time capsule as the town will soon be getting a new cow. But there is also big news, Orson is number two hundred of the most livable cities in Indiana, which is a big deal. Mike thinks the whole thing is incredibly stupid, but he comes around and gives a great speech at the dedication ceremony. I didn't know he had it in him.
But this is Mike and you can't take what he says with a grain of salt as he is sure that he would be just as happy with another wife and living in another town. Frankie scoffs, but I know she wouldn't have it any other way. And everyone in Orson really is nice, with some noticeable exceptions. After all, you do for family.
And this family is one of the most realistic ones on television and one that I will undoubtedly miss, with great dialogue and interesting situations with performances and characters that aren't cookie cutter. Grade: A-
Side Notes:
-The Hecks were eating their dinner out of bags and jars at the beginning of the episode.
-200 desserts, I want more details.
-The frugal hoosier chicken is on the clock as Brick talks to his parents.
-Apparently there are no bank robberies in Orson, so it really is a nice place to live.
-Holding in your poop all day is just disgusting and too much information.
-Sue is just the worst. She had alcohol before turning twenty-one.
-Ron (Sean O'Bryan) is nearly run over trying to give away a gift bag of coupons, which is a horrible waste of  coupons.
-For the record, if you admit breaking up with someone is dumb and a mistake, that doesn't necessarily make you brave, you just finally realize that you're an idiot.
-Mr. Ehlert (Brian Doyle-Murray) has been elected the mayor of Orson three times, one of which was legal. I feel like that there should be an episode about that.

Poldark: Season Three Recap and Reaction

Well, it is time for season three. And I apologize for some of the language I will be using. Normally, I strive to keep my blog posts family friendly, but one character this season will not allow that to be possible so you’ve been warned.

And boy, has stuff ever happened. First, Elizabeth (Heida Reed) has the baby, Ross’s (Aidan Turner’s) baby, for the record. A healthy bouncing baby boy, Valentine, born after a difficult delivery, interrupting the wedding night of cute couple number one, Caroline and Dwight (Gabriella Wilde and Luke Norris). And Elizabeth may have been a devoting mother several years ago when Geoffrey Charles had been born eightish years ago, but she has trouble relating to this baby. Nowadays, we would call this post-partum depression, back then, she gets away with ignoring the crying baby and being given a medication to calm her nerves. Drug addiction may not be far away. And when the baby gets rickets, George (Jack Farthing), does not want anyone to know as it has the reputation for being a poor man’s disease.

George is also the worst human on Earth, but more on that later.

I guess I’ll go to Ross and Demelza now. The season starts for her with announcing that she’s with child again. At least Ross takes the news somewhat better than he did the second time around, but Julia’s death is no longer fresh in their minds and Jeremy is still a healthy little boy. But she is also fetched home by her brothers, Sam and Drake (Tom York and Harry Richardson, looking much younger here than in last year’s Doctor Thorne) as her father is dying. Her brothers, mostly Sam, have also taken preaching and she allows them to turn the storehouse into a church. And, of course, Demelza needs to deals with Ross and all of his crazy crap, like forging an illegal expedition to France to rescue Dwight from the French prison, which leads to him also nearly getting arrested.

And the rescue mission does happen, but it is dangerous, with one fatality and Drake gets shot, but lives. Thank goodness, considering he is one of the only decent men left on that show. But upon his return, Dwight suffers from severe PTSD. Caroline tries to help him, but she’s just so out of touch. Ross steps in and urges Dwight to let Caroline in and share his dreadful experiences and how difficult it is to enter back into a life of luxury after experiencing such hell, with death all around him as the guards had beats on who would die next and then would sack of deck by killing whomever they wished. Plus, he is used to sleeping on a molding pile of straw. Yet, they pull through and are the only couple I still like by the end of the season.

Then there is another new character, Morwenna (Ellise Chappel), Elizabeth’s cousin whom George brings in to be a governess for Geoffrey Charles so Elizabeth can focus on their new baby. She is nice and kind and sweet and innocent and falls in love, against her wishes with Drake. Drake learns to read just so he can worthy of her. They are such a cute couple, but George sets his sights on aligning himself with a shady family. Side Note: Ross is offered the position of magistrate but simply cannot judge his fellow men and turns it down so George is offered it and accepts. Demelza is pissed.

George lets this wealthy family’s son off with rape and tries to get Morwenna to marry a crappy widower clergyman, who is a creep, Whitworth (Christian Brassington). Even Elizabeth thinks so, and she’s married to the creepy George.  And she doesn’t stand up to him.

Then there is the harmless prank of Drake filling the Poldark pond with frogs and getting away with it. But George gets his just revenge. As George is sending Geoffrey Charles away to boarding school, Geoffrey presents Drake with his Bible to remember him so George accuses Drake of theft, and punishment for that could result in death so George strikes a deal with Morwenna, if she marries Whitworth, then Drake will be set free. This is a twist that no one seems to have figured out.

So she marries him and is instantly pregnant, forced to have sex every night as that is her main purpose in Whitworth’s mind. Whitworth treats women as sexual toys. And then, for whatever reason, Morwenna’s sister comes along to help with the children. (Whitworth is a widower with two young daughters.) Rowella (Esme Coy) is very different. She’s aware of sexuality and that Whitworth has a foot fetish. When Morwenna was asked how far along she was, she doesn’t know, while Rowella does not seem to have that problem.

Morwenna, after being laid upon by Whitworth, says her mantra that she loves Drake Carne, which is what she must keep telling herself to keep from going crazy.

Now, Whitworth really is the world’s biggest prick. Morwenna has difficult delivery and he prays for her to die, and is noticeably upset when she survives. He won’t let her nurse and that grieves her, but the best is when he rapes her, not long after she has given birth, after he was specifically told by Dr. Ennis that he should abstain given that she just had a baby. Dr. Ennis is livid. But this is the 1790s, there is no such thing as martial rape. Whitworth is just awful.

In the end, he and Rowella start having coitus for reasons that you don’t fully understand. But she announces that she is also pregnant and will marry the librarian, if the price is right but Whitworth is reluctant to do that. Clearly, the idiot doesn’t understand how blackmail works. And Morwenna overhears, she is livid. Using the only tool she can, she banishes her husband for her bedroom and says that if he ever touches her again, she will smother the baby (which is a boy). Whitworth may not really love his children, but he knows that a son is valuable so for now, Morwenna won’t be used for sex.

Elizabeth, for what its worth, really gives it to George in the finale as he remains jealous of Ross, with good reason, as the two kiss in the one episode. Now, George is also a truly repugnant human being. When beloved Aunt Agatha (Caroline Blakiston) dies, she doesn’t get a funeral or even a proper headstone, which angers Ross. When something upsets him, he votes to raise the price of grain so more people starve. And, just to get back at Ross, he has his hunchmen destroy Drake’s blacksmith shop. He is bitter and jealous and Elizabeth rips him a new one and swears that she only had sex with two men, her first husband and weasel-face George. He finally got the telling off he’s deserved since episode one. Yet, somehow, I think their marriage is now stronger than ever.

And Demelza cheated on Ross, which I was fine with but felt guilty about it and Ross finally came to his senses and says that if the opportunity ever comes along for him to run for public office, he will take that opportunity as he fully should.

While this show is excellent, with flawless performances and is historically accurate, the time gaps are often annoying. For example, the time between Dwight returning home and their second wedding is enough time for Morwenna to get married and be visibly pregnant and I feel that that should have been tightened up just a bit more.

And, lest we forget, Ross is also basically a rapist, from what he did to Elizabeth last season, but Whitworth is far worse. It is a shame that women are treated so poorly in this series, but that is undoubtedly reflective of the times. I’m certainly glad that things have changed. And I hope that a miracle can happen and Drake and Morwenna can get back together, if Whitworth hasn’t scarred her too much. Grade: B+

Maudie (2017)

Sally Hawkins is an excellent actress and this film proves it. This film is a lot like the characters themselves: small and artsy.
Maud Dowley (Sally Hawkins) suffers from severe arthritis and no one in her family believes that she is able to care for herself.
But, she finds an opportunity to be a housekeeper for local fishmonger (Ethan Hawke). An orphan, the two do not get along well at first and neither seems to care for 1930s society as they sleep in the same bed despite the stigma that entails.
Maud only likes to paint, but the house is so small that not much works needs done. They each help each other out, though Everett (Hawke) is hard to like, in fact, he's pretty much a jerk for the most part of the film. Even his friend believes that Maud finally came to her senses when she briefly leaves him.
But that doesn't last. They each need each other. The film implies that she is the one who teaches Everett how to read and write. And she eventually does become famous for her artwork, which she sells out of his tiny house. But tragedy has also imprinted her life. When she was younger, she had a baby and was told that it died, but that was not the case. Instead, her brother sold the baby but Everett finds the grown woman and takes Maud to see her in a touching moment.
The ending is sad, with Maud dying though she does tell Everett that she was loved.
Again, the film is simple but both Hawke and Hawkins give excellent performances, which hold the film together. Because, honestly, I had some problems with that relationship, as Everett smacks Maud early in the film and often isn't supportive of her talent and even after she becomes famous, they still live like paupers and he doesn't want to marry her because it would cost money. But he does think that she can do better than him, which is the truth. Yet, for the most part, she seems happy, in her own way. Which is a relief, for her at least. But not for me. Grade: B+

Lady Bird (2017)

This was another excellent, simple film.
First of all, it was very realistic, with a house that looks like it could belong to my neighbor's.
Christine 'Lady Bird' McPherson (Saiorse Ronan) is a colorful character. She goes to a Catholic school as her brother (Jordan Rodrigues) saw someone get stabbed at the public one. She is sassy and smart-mouthed and fights constantly with her mother, Marion (the great Laurie Metcalf). Her grades are only mediocre and she doesn't really have any extracurricular activities though she does join the theater, more or less because of a boy, Danny O'Neill (Lucas Hedges). Her friend, Julie (Beanie Feldstein) also joins. She dates two boys throughout the year and neither completes her. Danny turns out to be gay, which explains why he didn't touch her boobs, as all boys want to touch breasts and don't let them fool you. Kyle (Timothee Chalamet) is a liar and anti-government. He lies to her about being a virgin, which is a total dick move and one that has been done to me. They do it to trick you to get the information they want. And when the jerk picks her up for prom, he doesn't even meet her at the door, and she deserves better. But both are interesting characters.
Lady Bird wants to go college in New York but she shops at a thrift store, something that you don't see too often. Her family is middle class, a forgotten economic class in films. This is without a doubt, a film I could watch over and over again and its funny but also painfully sad and realistic.
The acting is excellent and the scenery visceral. Greta Gerwig might be a good actress but she's a better screenwriter and director. Grade: A-

Wonder (2017)

This was a good film for the whole family.
Auggie (Jacob Tremblay) is a little boy with a big heart but an unnamed genetic disease. He's had twenty-seven surgeries in his short life and it has still left him with a facial deformity. The film revolves around his first year in actual school. Before that, his devoted mother (Julia Roberts) home-schooled him.
Needless to say, it is not the easiest transition. Sure, Auggie is smart but the other kids range from curious to shallow to insensitive. But they are children, who are only as good as they can be. The scene, toward to the end of the film with young Julian's (Bryce Gheisar) parents is a true eye opener. For the record, money isn't everything.
But the film is about more than Auggie, it's also about his somewhat neglected older sister Via (Izabela Vidovic). She's also very smart and talented, but her needs are second by a large amount to whatever Auggie needs. Still, she loves him so much but wishes that she would get more attention from her parents and who can blame her.
Yes, Auggie makes it through the school year, making both friends and enemies along the way, and grows stronger because of it. Via also branches out in different ways.
The performances are very strong especially since most of them are from children. Each child is well-developed and has a distinct personality, and the parents are also great. Roberts and Owen Wilson are believable and touching as the parents. Daveed Diggs is memorable as the main teacher who won't let Auggie out of his classroom photo. Jacob Tremblay truly is a wonder.
I like happy, memorable endings and this ends with a great quote: Be kind as you have no idea what everyone goes through each day. Being kind to all is never bad advice especially in a world as troubled as ours. Grade: A-

The Middle: Eyes Wide Open

You would think that loading a dishwasher would be common sense, but you haven't met Axl (Charlie McDermott). He is clueless when it comes to that sort of thing, and Mike (Neil Flynn) isn't much better. Frankie (Patricia Heaton) is sick of this. For every sock he leaves lying around, she's going to leave a bra.
Sick of dealing with his parents, Axl drives all the up to Chicago to visit Hutch (Alphonso McAuley) who actually has a real job and is making a good living as his apartment is nicer than mine. He also completely an adult, using coasters and vacuuming up the crumbs Axl leaves behind instantly. Axl can't stand that, but tries to lie his way through the apartment mixer saying that he is a former professional diver but didn't win any medals. However, he realizes that he is sick of lying to everyone so he reveals the truth about himself and at least Hutch gives him props, but won't admit that he's not Beyonce's cousin.
Brick (Atticus Shaffer) is too busy reading to realize that the bus has left, but on the bright side, he runs into a new girl named Lila (Brenna D'Amico) and is thrilled as she hasn't met anyone else yet. So he goes through great lengths to win her over including writing out a script, which fails because Frankie forgets her line the moment she answers the door.
But she's great and they get along fine. And when she starts school, Brick sticks to her like glue as he doesn't want her to meet anyone else, even lies to her and says that are no clubs and that is just weird. However, she does receive two notes, that are threatening. Brick isn't upset as they are from Cindy and that means Cindy still wants him. Even though Lila is wonderful and normal, she's also too much work. With Cindy, things just clicked. He realizes that he should have never let her go, which is the truth. That being said, I do think we'll see Lila again.
As for Sue (Eden Sher), she looks pretty good without sleep. Excited about having a weekend alone, she catches up on some classic films, including Silence of the Lambs, which causes her to have nightmares and Brad (J. Brock Ciarlelli) is no help, as they soon burst into a sing-a-long. It isn't until Mike drives all the way up and swaddles her like she's a baby and tells her about the monotony of his day at the quarry. But it works. And Sue will eventually be able to function by herself, I have complete faith in her.
And then Axl returns home and finally decides to be a grown up. He's cut his golden locks and finally looks cute again. He is also finally going to really start looking for a grown-up job. It's about darn time.
Side Notes:
-Sue is apparently with Aidan. I hope she's happy.
-Brad is going to Spencer's to buy wigs with his mom and Xanadu is his second favorite Olivia Newton-John movie.
-Rio is where the Olympics were held, Axl. It's not just a movie.
-Brick wants a girl to become completely dependent on him. Until he realizes that his words sound really bad.
-I wonder what it will be like when Axl can finally get his own place.
-Ants are not good pets.
-I love how when Sue tries to find ways to sleep better and the first one on the list is turn off all electronics so she turns off her phone without reading the rest.

The Middle: Thanksgiving IX

I always love Thanksgiving episodes for the Heck family and this one was no exception.
Here, we have Frankie (Patricia Heaton) actually cooking in the oven, pulling the far too burnt quilt out of the oven to bake her double marshmallow baked sweet potatoes.
Mike calls up the credit card company over a five dollar charge which turns out to be legit as she wanted some fancy coffee.
In the meantime, Edwin (Jimmy Bellinger) is back and can't decide who to fire as all three Hecks are now working there and one of them must go. Which leads to an awkward road trip. Typical arguments ensue and Mike (Neil Flynn) decides that Brick (Atticus Shaffer) should be the one to go, even Axl (Charlie McDermott) doesn't store the sour cream properly. And Mike decides to be nice and pay the ridiculously low toll for the car behind them and that car doesn't even acknowledge that gesture.
Then they run out of gas and the card isn't working, and no one has any cash. So Sue (Eden Sher), Brick and Axl walk down to the wall and beg the Spudsys guy to spot them some money which doesn't happen. Somehow Axl gets the trivia question right of revealing the ingredients of the secret sauce and they get the some amount in the tip jar and then stole from the mall fountain. Which means that they are back on the road, moving forward. They again pass the car whose toll they paid but are flicked off.
And then they run into a traffic jam. By this time, they are pissed off at humanity and Frankie calls it. They are never going to make it to her sister's in time so she whips out the sweet potato casserole and then others join her with their offerings.
Even the mom from the other car offers cranberry sauce and Frankie learns the real reason they were rude. Turns out they thought the Hecks were shady following them around and turns out, the toll booth clerk pocketed the extra money so the other car paid their own toll. They were just like the Hecks and had given up their faith in humanity. Fortunately, it is all restored as they have a tailgate Thanksgiving.
Given how bad the highway can get backed up after an accident, this tailgate doesn't surprise me. The only time I was backed up on an interstate, people do come out of their vehicles and talk to each other, offer others what food they have in their vehicles. Frankie said it best, there is a lot wrong with society but also a lot right with it.
By the way, Brick wins the wishbone contest but lets Sue keep the job as it means to her than to him and he licks the potatoes, which is beyond disgusting.
Again, this was a solid episode, though not my favorite Thanksgiving episode, this one was still solid and drove home a great message. This show will surely be missed. Solid performances and great plot lines and twists. When Frankie got out of the car, I thought she was going to tell off the other family but instead she dives into the casserole. I love when the unexpected happens. Grade: A-
Side Notes:
-Frankie needs the warm quilt from the oven to help her neck, from sleeping on a thirty year old pillow. Mike retorts with a fifty-year-old neck and Frankie tells him to slow down as they have a long way to go.
-Edwin apparently does a great impression of the mall janitor.
-Brick would be able to see over the counter if Axl stopped moving the step stool.
-Brick has a horrible lead foot so much so that Mike sees his life flash before his eyes.
-Brick has no shame in taking thirty bucks from his dad's wallet just to pay Cindy (Casey Burke) to get back together with him.
-Axl is a child when he's with his parents and this child wants chips and a cold beer.

The Middle: The Set-Up

Pat Spence (Marsha Mason), Frankie's (Patricia Heaton's) mother didn't have a stroke but is still under the weather. So she's staying with the Hecks. And Frankie is  trying to make things alright for her. But Pat can certainly be annoying, over explaining everything. She prefers damp paper towels over washcloths. It also has to be her preferred brand. And she assures Frankie that she would never slip on the floors in the Heck house because they're too sticky. Frankie yells but nothing matters. Pat cries that she is such a burden but Frankie assures that it is a privilege, which is what Pat said back when she was taking care of baby Sue twenty years ago. They've reached full circle.
Back at college, Sue (Eden Sher) and Sean (Beau Wirick) are having pizza together as friends, and Sue blows it, incorrectly finishing his sentence, so now they are setting each other up on dates. Which goes oddly. Sue's pick is someone from her econ class who checks off all of Sean's boxes, but he just isn't feeling it. Sean decides to take a chance, (Brad would be proud) and decides that he will be Sue's date, but instead, Sue answers the door stands the food delivery guy. He (Jackson White) was supposed to bring food to Lexie (Daniela Bobadilla) so they go on a picnic and it goes pretty well, surprisingly. To me, he's nothing special (I don't care that he's in a band), but Sue's happy, confused but happy. She feels bad for Sean's friend though and hopes he isn't disappointed. Sean sighs and states that he's used to it.
Now, I'm certainly alone here, but I don't ship Sue and Sean. I was team Sue and Darrin (John Gammon) for three years and that failed badly and we haven't seen Darrin since. Sue has already dated one of Axl's (Charlie McDermott's) friends so I'm over it. She needs to find someone else. However, Sean also needs to find someone great. And he shouldn't be used to disappointment; he's in medical school and his mom is Nancy Donahue (Jen Ray). But I know that they will end up together and no, I won't be terribly upset, I'm just not particularily rooting for them to get together.
Now, Axl and Brick's (Atticus Shaffer's) plot is a toss away. They can't stand Mike's snoring (he's staying in Sue's room because of Pat) so they discuss what the heck he does all day at the quarry and oversleep in the Winnebago. And he's responsible for children.
So he drives the kids to school in his house and gets fired. Which makes sense. Hopefully he'll finally put his college degree to use.
While this wasn't a great episode, it was still completely solid and featured some great guest performances, which is always welcome. We'll see what happens with Sue and Sean. Grade: B+
Side Notes:
-Sean is polite even to cadavers.
-Pat saw Hamilton in Fort Wayne and didn't catch a single word.
-Lucy's apparently a genius now, as she made a rocket fly twenty feet.
-Brad (J. Brock Ciarlelli) loves Mamma Mia.
-Pat's generation keeps their appointments.
-Sean is so cute his patient could sit there all day, and she (Eve Brenner) has a wallet full of granddaughters.
-Frankie needs the brand name soap as she hasn't showered for four days.
-What happened to the rest of Aidan's deliveries?
-Mike is reading so many of the signs on Sue's wall. They really are seeping into him.

The Middle: Role of a Lifetime

This was another good episode. Sure, there were no guest stars but the characters and acting are so good so it doesn't matter.
Each family has their own role in the family and Sue's (Eden Sher's) had enough. She's sick of being the person everyone goes to when they need stuff done, such as Mike (Neil Flynn) needing someone to plan his and Frankie's (Patricia Heaton's) twenty-fifth anniversary sale. Her brothers are no help whatsoever. Brick (Atticus Shaffer) is on the prowl for a new woman and boy is it awkward, passing out his resume to potential dates and waiting outside the bathroom for someone to come out. Axl (Charlie McDermott) is convinced that mixing beer and wine together is a good idea but it must taste disgusting, at least the looks on his parents' face say so.
And then when Sue calls a family meeting, life for the Hecks goes haywire. With everyone deciding to stop playing their roles, arguing commences. Brick joins the orchestra, Mike unplugs everyone and Axl quits being the family entertainer.
And then, the show takes a sudden turn. Grandma (the unseen Marsha Mason) is in the hospital. The family joins together in this difficult time. Axl obtains green jello for the family and Sue sacrifices her sweater for her cold mother and Mike plugs in Frankie's cell phone to charge and calls her dad with the news. Life is more or less back to normal and we wouldn't have it any other way.
I'm glad that Sue stood up for herself because she is not given the credit she deserves in that family even if it was short-lived. Each member needs to give everyone else more credit. Too bad that will probably never happen. And I'm okay with that.
All-in-all, this was another solid episode, with their continued pitch-performances, and the family chemistry is great, with each actor playing their roles effortlessly. I will without a doubt, miss the Hecks. Grade: A-
Side Notes:
-Cindy is now apparently going around hatless.
-According to Sue, this could be one of her parents' last wedding anniversary.
-Brick thought the next family meeting would be to decide on whether to pull the plug on the parents. Mike says that he can pull it right now.
-Axl's idea of helping Sue clean her room consisted of him throwing her books out the window.
-Brick is wearing dirty laundry and has worn the same outfit for the last three weeks.
-Brick, you really shouldn't have broken up with Cindy.
-Nancy would know best how long the Hecks have been married.

The Middle: Halloween VIII: Orson Murder Mystery

Well, the Hecks are crazy. Sure, they bough a house with cracked foundation and dangerous wires, but also one where a dead body was found.
Years ago, the owner,  Claudia Tucker, age 40, was found in the bathtub, deceased. Mike (Neil Flynn) knew all along and Frankie (Patricia Heaton) is pissed. And it's in her bathtub, she's grossed out. She informs Brick (Atticus Shaffer) that he will have to share the death bathroom with Mike. And the plot thickens. Sure, her death is ruled an accident, but why was her husband out golfing in March? And why is the date of her death different in the news article from her obituary? So they head out to the cemetery and discover that her grave stone states two days after the original news article. They also discover Claudia's husband's tombstone. And he got remarried, to her sister. Yeah, that's right. So they confront the widow and fortunately, she's all too willing to gush about her deceased sister and how broken-hearted she and the husband were when she passed. Turns out, Claudia always had a weak heart and just wanted to live to see her fortieth birthday which is why her husband fudged the date in the paper, just so she could make it to forty. Frankie realizes how crazy she was though Brick doesn't pick up on it.
In the meantime, Sue (Eden Sher) is thrilled to be going to a party with Axl (Charlie McDermott) and Lexie (Daniela Bobadilla), even though she is always the third wheel. In this case, it's literal. She somehow creates a huge film reel costume to go to the party with Donnie and Marie Osmond, aka Axl and Lexie. They think they have such a cute couples costume, until Frankie and Mike point out that they are brother and sister. It does gross them out at first, though they eventually are just thrilled to be alone, making out in the death tub. Axl wants Lexie to tell Sue to leave them alone so he doesn't have to be the bad guy, because he's always the bad guy.
And then Sue has a breakdown in front of Mike. She wants to kiss someone and who can blame her? Though she likes spending time with them, it only reminds her more of how alone she is. Axl does confront her and at first, she assumes that Axl would want to spend more time with Lexie but not to worry, she likes the laundry mat fine, as it is always warm and she likes the smell of dryer sheets. But no, he means something else. They should spend more time together and she happily agrees.
Though this was a good episode, there was an inconsistency and that is not something they can get away with. The door knob was acting oddly the whole episode and breaks off and Mike shoves it aside and then, only moments later, without the door knob being fixed, Axl just flings the door open. That being said, this was still a good episode and it was funny and sweet. I like seeing nice Axl and Sue, I certainly feel your pain. Plus, the mystery part was interesting. Grade: A-
Side Notes:
-Thank goodness Axl never farts on Sue's head when he's around Lexie. That would certainly be a turn-off.
-Lexie has finally built up a tolerance to the Heck house.
-When Axl and Sue get together for lunch, they won't even need to buy it because some kids forget their lunch on the bus. After all, he does have time between his morning and afternoon routes.
-Sue, don't ever underestimate the power of the laundry mat. I was picked up twice there myself. And it wasn't when I was in college.
-Turns out that the Hecks have been underpaying their water bill for years. They've been getting away with murder, apparently.
-That microfiche machine certainly comes in handy.

The Middle: Meet the Parents

This was an unfortunately disappointing episode.
We do meet Lexie's (Daniela Bobadilla's) parents, Bennett and Tammy (Gregory Harrison and Lisa Rinna) who are very, very wealthy. And they aren't extremely showy about it; they just assume that the Hecks have money and it brings out an unpleasant side of Mike (Neil Flynn). He hates the fact that they are rich and he isn't. Bennett even asks Mike if he should choose marble or granite for the bar at their home in Colorado. When Bennett arrives back at Sue's (Eden Sher's) and Lexie's apartment, he just hands her a new computer and Mike wants to make a statement and hands Sue five dollars just because and she is beyond thrilled, making a huge deal out of it. Which means that when he goes to buy dinner at a drive thru, he doesn't have the money and Bennett, who drives in behind them, knocking off the driver's side mirror, pays, leaving Mike fuming.
In the meantime, Brick (Atticus Shaffer) is finally enjoying sophomore year and even participates in the fundraiser where he is arrested and must be bailed out by friends and the money goes to charity. But no one is around to do it. The unseen Troy is away on a field trip for future farmers of America and Cindy is a big, fat no. So he calls Sue and fortunately, she still has Mike's five dollars and is able to get him out of 'prison'. The principal (French Stewart) confuses her with the name her picture received in the senior yearbook, which was a good callback.
Brick is upset that Sue bailed him but she's jealous that he arrested himself; she just stared longingly out the window instead.
As for Mike and Frankie (Patricia Heaton), she finally tells him that she's jealous too, but is okay with them being rich as they like the Hecks and she wants to feed off their wealth and besides, she's happy with Mike and their crappy life. Not everyone would be. And I'm glad; they are great together.
While this episode did have two good endings, it wasn't funny enough or good enough for me. I mean, Axl (Charlie McDermott) and Lexie hardly had any scenes together, which is a shame and I feel that the difference in wealth between the two sets of parents could have done to better effect. And Brick's plot line just fell flat. I wish they would have had him make friends with that football player who was also stuck in the jail. But at least Gregory Harrison and Lisa Rinna were good in their small roles. Grade: B
Side Notes:
-Axl, seriously, how in the world did you not notice that your pants are on backwards?
-Does Frankie have a good bra
-Mike failed the parents' econ test.
-Axl is a perfect gentleman while visiting the lake house.
-And you can't just trade teams for one that is better. You have a team and you stick with them until you die.
-No one knows why Brick broke up with Cindy.
-Sue has often used curtains to dry her tears.
-Frankie gets food poisoning from a street corn dog on the way to visit the lake house and spends her whole weekend in a luxurious bathroom. Mike has the time of his life doing fun stuff.

The Middle: Please Don't Feed the Hecks

Axl (Charlie McDermott) has entered the world of adulthood. He has found employment and is Brick's (Atticus Shaffer's) school bus driver. His parents are rather relieved, though they wanted him to find something that would use his business degree. Brick thinks that the bus is going to be his new social scene, which it isn't.
Speaking of Brick, he needs to bring in someone for career day and Mike (Neil Flynn) won't do it. Frankie (Patricia Heaton) is banned from the premises. Axl has to literally beg Mike to show up. Brick wants the extra credit, mostly. And then Axl and Mike both end up showing up, but don't have a whole lot to say.
Frankie gives Nancy this old, crappy scraf which Nancy thinks is just gorgeous and then presents Frankie and Mike with her delicious apple pie. As a result, Frankie looks around the house to give her other stuff just so she can get food. And it works, for a bit. Until the pepper steak. Which is just okay. Frankie mentions that to Nancy and Nancy just breaks down, saying that some mornings she just doesn't feel like washing the windows. As a result, Frankie forces Mike to cook real, actual good food for Nancy, which was her plan all along. Nancy is only human after all.
As for Sue (Eden Sher), she is thrilled to go back to school because this is going to be a great year, until she finds out that Andy and Derek, whom they sublet their apartment to over the summer and they turned around and lent it to Sue's new statistics professor. Lexie (Daniela Bobadilla) is livid and hates living in her car, after all, she's a former debutante. Brad (J. Brock Ciarlelli) tries to force Sue to get stronger but she cries anyway. And then Sean (Beau Wirick) comes along to save the day. Which he does. He tricks the professor and blackmails him. Sue and Lexie get their apartment back, but she's upset that a man had to save her. Sean reminds her of the one time, years before the show started, when she saved him from a storm drain. Saving others is a people thing, not just a guy thing.
Sue finally grows up, a little, she gets the glitter off the outside of her binder.
This was a great episode, with some truly funny and touching moments, plus it is great to see Sue as such a feminism. Trust me, I understand, the worst part wasn't a guy that I liked saying he didn't want anything serious on Christmas Eve, it was that I let him ruin my Christmas. And I shouldn't have. That's all in the past now. And it's nice seeing Frankie doing something thoughtful for someone else.
If episodes of this quality keep coming, this could be the best season of this show. Too bad it's also the last. Grade: A
Side Notes:
-Brick's previous bus driver shot her other foot off.
-Nancy's apple pie causes riots.
-The freshmen are all taller than Brick.
-When Brick asks Mike to come to career day, he channels Notting Hill.
-Brad is okay with hair pulling as long as its for art.
-Brick also walks through the wrong door everyday.
-It's all about optics these days.
-It must be nice to be rescued.
-Being a woman is very hard.
-Never lose the glitter on the inside.

Battle of the Sexes (2017)

This film has finally come to my area, a week after trailers announced that it was opening everywhere.
Billie Jean King (Emma Stone) is a great tennis player, for a woman. She is at the top of her game, but she isn't being paid as much as the men and it bothers her, as it should. Her prize money is one eighth of the what the men will win but the size of the crowd is the same.
Frustrated, she creates her own league and her agent, Gladys (a great Sarah Silverman) finds them a sponsor. These women are making a statement.
In the other circle is gambler and former tennis star Bobby Riggs (Steve Carell). Though his wife is wealthy and supporting him financially, he still believes that a woman's proper place is in the kitchen. Then, his wife kicks him out when she discovers that he is gambling again and for whatever reason, desperate to get back in the spotlight, Bobby decides to have a match versus the best woman in the game.
While out on tour, Billie Jean meets and falls in love with her hairdresser, Marilyn (Andrea Riseborough). That was probably the one false note in this film, that overly long scene when Billie Jean realizes that she has feelings for a woman. Billie Jean is married to Larry King (Austin Stowell, couldn't they have also dyed his sideburns). And she knows what loving a woman means in the 1970s and so does Larry. Side Note: It's not the famous Larry King, but someone else entirely.
The first man versus woman match, thanks to her troubled life isn't Billie Jean but rather the Australian Margaret Court (Jessica McNamee), who is rather disgusted by the secrets Billie Jean has been keeping. Margaret loses badly and Billie Jean knows that she needs to play Bobby and beat him, just to get him off his high horse.
The match is a huge spectacular, ridiculously so, each player is carried in on a throne and each presents each other with a gift. Billie Jean's present to Bobby is a pig.
She wins, I figured she had to and Bobby is so defeated at the end, and probably humiliated but for whatever reason, Priscilla (Elisabeth Shue), his wife, takes him back.
Billie Jean has a good cry before returning to the court for her moment in the sun. She had changed so much with her victory. She really made a statement. And the side of right won, at least for that brief, shining moment.
The film is superb, with excellent performances, Stone might be doing the best work of her career here, and that is saying something, considering she is the reigning Oscar winner for Best Actress. Carell is also great. The film truly creates that atmosphere of 1973, which cannot be easy to do. It shows two parallel lives with great skill and attention to detail. It is a film that is a must see for all, not just sports fans. Side Note: You don't have to understand a thing about tennis to enjoy this film.
What Billie Jean was fighting for back then is something that women are still fighting for. Grade: A-

The Middle: Vive La Hecks

This is the final season of one of my favorite shows of all time. And that just makes me sad.
The show doesn't miss a beat, with Frankie (Patricia Heaton) yelling at Mike (Neil Flynn) to get off the couch and hold the sign she made for him to welcome Axl (Charlie McDermott) home. Yes, Axl is home, he literally dumps his bag and then has a little reunion with the unseen Lexie (Daniela Bobadilla) and then he returns. Still on European time, he drinks his fancy coffee at night and presents his family with gifts, thoughtful ones for Frankie, Mike and Brick (Atticus Shaffer) and something sweet but too small for Sue (Eden Sher). By the way, Axl is sporting a man bun, which Mike loathes though Frankie had no problem with it. Then again, Mike also wants Axl to find a job, right away while Frankie wants to give him time to relax.
Sue worked her butt off all summer and now has just two days left until she returns to college so she's cramming her whole summer to do list into two days, and stresses out because she can't get it all done.
Brick, on the other hand, has another task. He wants to break up with Cindy because the spark just isn't there anymore. He asks everyone in the family for advice, though it basically comes down to just getting it done. At first, he says mean stuff about her after he butt dialed her. Fortunately, she doesn't hear him and comes over to hear what he had to say. He breaks up with her and then she blames his family and he lets her. Awkward.
Frankie is also worried about the city's time capsule. She wants to find the perfect object that fits and describes there family. After all, that object represents their legacy. No one else cares and she stresses about it so much, she keels over. She doesn't have a heart attack though; she's just never eaten real cheese before. Which makes them want to take things easy for a little bit.
At the end, Sue's poor snow globe is left in the box and that is what Brick gives to Sean (Beau Wirick) to put in the time capsule. Sue will be devastated later.
As this is the final season, I suppose I should make a prediction though I just can't. I do think Axl might move to Europe permanently, he really must have blossomed over there.
This is certainly a good episode, with every detail well thought out. The writing on this show is excellent, complete with gags scattered throughout. And the acting remains top notch. This is absolutely one of the best first season episodes of the whole series. I will without a doubt miss this show. Grade: A-
Side Notes:
-Brick still loses his phone all the time.
-Brick is most thrilled with an Italian manual that has the train schedule. He will probably like that more than Planet Nowhere in French.
-Frankie gets fancy pasta gloves.
-Mike gets an authentic beer mug.
-Sue gets a grain of rice with her name engraved on it and promptly drops it on the floor. Frankie says that there is no fear of vacuuming it up.
-Mike's break-up method is awkward and slightly similar to Axl's, just letting space grow between them and letting the woman drift away. He then states that there might be some women out there who still think that they are together.
-Sue loves America so much that she has them withhold the most in taxes.
-Also, she doesn't know how to whistle.
-Axl walks around the house naked, to his family's chagrin.
-Love finally truly matters to Axl.
-Cindy let Brick see her hatless. Wow.

The Meddler (2015)

This film wasn't bad; it just wasn't all that good.
Marnie (Susan Sarandon) is a recent, wealthy widow who moves to Los Angeles to be closer to her only child, Lori (Rose Bryne) who is a depressed screenwriter, having recently broken up with her movie star boyfriend, Jacob (Jason Ritter). Apparently, he was pretty mean to Lori but she's still hung up on him nevertheless. I wish we knew why. Also, Jacob had such little screen time, there was nothing spectacular about him whatsoever.
Marnie slowly stops hanging on her daughter's every word, volunteering at the hospital, driving one of the Apple geniuses to his night classes, falling for someone new throughout the course of the film.
This film belongs to Susan Sarandon and she is great. However, there are some problems. The supporting cast is great but they have so little screen time and that's such a shame. She's grieving her husband, struggling to find a purpose in life, but she is doing good and helping others. She might not have her own grandchildren (only granddogs) but she semi-adopts one of her daughter's friend's daughter and is kindly known as Grandma Marnie. And she finally opens herself up to the possibility of a new relationship with the always delightful J.K. Simmons.
That being said, this film broke no new ground and dropped a character abruptly out of the plot, but Marnie realized that he didn't need her anymore and she didn't need him as much as she thought she did. Grade: B

Baywatch (2017)

Though this film is bad, it was at least mostly good fun until the end, when the ending kind of fizzled out.
Mitch Buchannon (Dwayne Johnson) is the big man on campus. He has saved many lives and is loved by all and he doesn't appreciate being forced to hire Matt Brody (Zac Efron) who is cocky beyond reason and a total jerk. Despite Brody being a good swimmer, and winning two medals in the Olympics, he only thinks of himself.
Then, Mitch discovers drugs on the beach and links them back to businesswoman Victoria Leeds (Priyanka Chopra) and starts to investigate her, breaking laws and doing gross stuff to get answers.
Which they do. Matt grows up, finally. He sticks up for Mitch, gets the team to find answers and they work together because teams are the best, each needing each other to get the best results. But the cameos of David Hasselhoff and Pamela Anderson were pretty stupid and unnecessary, distracting from the main plot.
All-in-all, I won't watch this film again, but at least it was fun the first time around, and it did go quickly. The acting was only average and some jokes and gags were just wrong, such as having Matt touch  the balls of a dead guy and having dead fat drip on him, that was just nasty. The romantic plot lines were thin and predictable but I'm glad the couples ended up together nevertheless. At least the film looked good, with excellent editing and camera angles. Despite everything, this was not a bad way to spend the evening. Grade: C+

The Natural (1984)

This film was not good.
Roy Hobbs (Robert Redford) is a small-town kid with an amazing talent in baseball. He has a magic arm and just when you think he's going to be a big star, he meets the first of two femme fatales: Harriet Byrd (Barbara Hershey). Though she's supposed to be an older, wiser, more worldly woman, it's hard to tell because Redford is too old for the role. Despite having a fiance back home on the home in some unnamed mid-western state, he nevertheless goes to her hotel room for whatever reason, as no desire burns in his eyes. In a scene that I didn't think about, assuming that she was going to seduce him, something unexpected happens, she shoots him for whatever reason. He doesn't die, but he's in the hospital for a huge amount of time and doesn't get back to the majors for sixteen years.
The coach of the New York Knights, Pop Fisher (Wilford Brimley) isn't happy that he has a middle-aged rookie on the team and only allows him to warm the bench while the assistant coach, Red (Richard Farnsworth) thinks that Roy has potential. Roy finally gets his chance after the current right fielder dies after crashing through the wall to catch a ball. I found that pretty ridiculous, though probably not impossible. At first, Ray is brilliant, in his first at bat, he literally crushes the cover off the ball. Roy is an instant sensation, until he meets Pop's niece, Memo (Kim Basinger). Side Note: What the hell kind of name is Memo? She is femme fatale number two, in with the manager of the Knights, who wants to kick Pop out of the game once and for all, and gain money in the process. So Roy's bad streak begins though it ends when his first love, Iris (Glenn Close), whose name isn't mentioned in the film returns to see one of his games. It is also revealed that she has a son. Call me crazy, it would have been a bigger twist if Roy hadn't have been the father.
Then, just as the Knights are almost in the playoffs, Gus (the unbilled Darrin McGarvin, aka The Old Man from A Christmas Story) and the owner's right-hand man uses Memo to drug Roy which means his old injury flares up and he's taken to a maternity hospital because it's the 'closest'. He is bribed not to play another game, and the doctor would agree because the silver bullet is slowly tearing away the lining in his stomach. But he doesn't listen and against doctor's orders, plays, and hits the winning home run as he starts to bleed out. And Iris tells him about their son, finally which leads me to Side Note #2: There is this lovely little invention called a condom. I've heard that they are very effective.
Though the ending is happy, I knew it had to happen, the bad guys, especially stereotypical bad guys, can't win.
I felt like I was watching a film on the outside, the characters didn't invite me in and the acting was lackluster with not much change in facial expressions and actions that seemed to come out of nowhere, at times. I found the plot unbelievable and though Redford did have a good scene every now and then, he was far too old for the role, even after the character aged sixteen years. And though I have against Glenn Close, I can't believe that she was nominated for an Oscar for this role. Basinger was better, despite for the money Roy would get to not play in the game so she could escape from underneath the owner's thumb. Also, Roy when someone's uncle says that she is not to be trusted, you really should listen to him. Grade: C+

Colossal (2017)

This was a bizarre film with a message that gets slightly muddled.
Gloria (Anne Hathaway) returns home after getting kicked out by her boyfriend (Dan Stevens). At home, she finds her old childhood friend, Oscar (Jason Sedeikis) who takes pity on this former party girl and offers her a job at his bar and provides her with some furniture for her parents' empty house.
At first, you root for them, even though Gloria has her eyes set on the underdeveloped Joel (Austin Stowell), a friend of Oscar's.
Oscar's bar is getting more customers than ever because of this incident of a monster in Seoul, South Korea. What's even weirder, Gloria is the monster, thanks to a bizarre lighting strike as a child. Who knows why the monster shows up in Seoul. She feels guilty having no control over its actions, which is why she stops drinking. And then Oscar also walks through the park to keep Gloria from tripping and discovers that he's a robot, also appearing in Seoul.
I thought nothing of that until Gloria picks Joel to sleep with over Oscar, which makes him angry and downright abusive and controlling to Gloria. He destroys his bar when Tim (Stevens) shows up, wanting Gloria back. He becomes a complete asshole, basically overnight, though in the flashback, you learn that he wasn't nice to Gloria, destroying her model house. And he threatens to kill people, by going into the park and stomping his feet, if Gloria doesn't listen to him.
The finale is decent. Gloria somehow scrapes the money together and flies to Seoul, which means that the monster appears in her hometown, wherever that is. The monster picks up Oscar and he gets scared and then the monster just tosses him away. Gloria walks away, unscathed. Gloria overpowered the jerk.
Now, she had already figured out that Oscar was upset with how inconsequential his life was, how he never left his small town. He feels small, it's that simple. At least that's what Gloria believes, I feel that it is because she picked Joel over him, sexually. Oscar was nice before that, but when he sees Gloria arrive with Joel, his demeanor instantly changes.
But Tim is also a jerk, albeit in a different way. Instead of being happy that Gloria finally has a job he believes that being a waitress is beneath her. I'm just grateful that Gloria ended up alone. No man is better than a bad man.
While this film does have a good ending, with the controlling evil being taken out, I feel like someone should have seen Gloria and Oscar beating up each other in the park before and intervened. Not even Joel or Garth (Tim Blake Nelson), Oscar's other friend, did anything to stop the nasty actions from occurring.
I just feel like this film should have gone differently and been better because I felt that the talent was largely wasted. Grade: B-

As Good as It Gets (1997)

Despite the amount of Oscar nominations, this film received, it really isn't anything spectacular or extraordinary and Jack Nicholson (whom I like as an actor) is grossly miscast.
Nicholson is Melvin Udall, a curmudgeon with OCD but you feel no sympathy for him as he callowsly tosses his neighbor's dog down the trash shoot. He brings his own plastic silverware to his favorite diner  and he's basically an all-around jerk.
It isn't until his neighbor's agent, Frank (Cuba Gooding, Jr.) rips him a new one and forces him to care for the dog he abused that Melvin starts to change, slowly and he still does stupid crap throughout the film. And then the dog starts copying Melvin's traits of not walking on the cracks on the sidewalks that Melvin truly does start to warm up. He is even nicer to his favorite waitress, Carol Connelly (Helen Hunt) whose life is troubled by her chronically ill son. But when Carol misses work, Melvin does use his greater financial means to hire a private doctor just so Carol can come back to work.
He also agrees, albeit incredibly reluctantly, to take his injured neighbor (Greg Kinnear) to visit his parents because Simon (the neighbor) needs money. He nearly blackmails Carol into coming with them and she agrees. Though Simon is gay, he and Carol hit it off, having an odd sort of brother-sister relationship. Melvin finally gives Carol a compliment, saying that because of her, he takes his medication, he wants to be a better man because of her and then he ruins it by saying that maybe if she had sex with Simon, things would start looking up for him. She walks out, as he deserves.
Only, then, she becomes Simon's muse. Simon has been pretty depressed since his apartment was robbed and he was attacked, not wanting to sketch anymore, but Carol inspires him. And she poses for him, which creates an awkward morning as they act like they had sex in front of Melvin.
Simon won't need his parent's financial assistance as he has some artwork again, but he also has no place to live. So Melvin lets him move in and Simon urges him to mend the fences with Carol which is what he does. So it ends happily, which I like, and yet, this film didn't do much for me.
Nicholson and Hunt do not have great chemistry, something this film desperately needed and Nicholson should have been closer to Hunt's age. And someone with OCD should be portrayed differently, with sympathy instead of coldness. The TV show Monk is a far better example. Still, the three leads are very good though I would have liked to have more scenes with Hunt and Kinnear as those two are truly enchanting. Grade: B

Their Finest (2017)

It is ironic that this is the more or less the first film I've seen since the excellent Dunkirk as this film ties in well to Dunkirk.
It is London, 1940. Catrin Cole (Gemma Arterton) needs a job, considering her disabled husband, Ellis (Jack Huston) isn't making any money off his paintings and keeps threatening to send her back to their former home in Wales because they can't afford the rent. Fortunately, she finds one, writing for the Ministry of Information, bringing the war to the people. She first starts out by writing short, informative films getting the British citizens more involved with the war effort. And then they stumble upon the story of two British twins who stole their father's boat and sailed to the French coast of Dunkirk to rescue the soldiers stranded there. Now, the story is lie, they never made it because of engine failure but because Catrin needs a better paycheck she lies to the Ministry. And then they fictionalize the story anyway. They make the twins, younger, more attractive and with actual personalities. They add a love interest and then, to drum up American interest, an American journalist which gives the love triangle its third point.
The actual characters are also interesting. There is the stick in the mud but talented writer Tom Buckley (Sam Claflin) and the aging actor who still wants to be young, Ambrose Hilliard (the always great Bill Nighy) along with his Polish agent Sammy (Eddie Marsan) who always brings his loyal dog with him. Unfortunately, Sammy dies replaced by his equally interesting sister Sophie (Helen McCrory) who finally calls Ambrose out, stating that he is too old to play the hero and she won't keep out of work actors on her pay role. There is also Phyl Moore (Rachel Stirling) who hints at being a lesbian and the lone American soldier Carl Lundbeck (Jake Lacy) who might be a great soldier and a pretty face but can't act.
The story is also very meta, with a love triangle with the actual characters along with the film characters. Tom clearly likes Catrin, but she's married, or so we're led to believe. When she returns for his own big break, she finds him literally mid-sex with someone else. She leaves him on the spot, but at least he lets her keep the apartment. And, they're actually not married. Just shacking up together. She had to buy her fake wedding ring herself.
My main problem with the film is that just after she and Tom finally share their first kiss, he gets killed by a large camera light falling down, literally crushing him to death. That kiss was a long time coming, with Tom struggling to write the proper ending to the film after he and Catrin (really Catherine) had an argument so she ended up writing the ending, and fixing things between her and Tom. And then he dies. He died far too soon after their first kiss, such a betrayal and in front of her very eyes. That was my sole problem with the film. Such a shame.
She also suffers from writer's block but Ambrose encourages her to get back in the field, as she has been given an opportunity that she cannot waste. So she goes back to work.
While the real life characters don't stray into stereotypes, the fake film isn't that lucky. They try to have the male hero fix the broken boat propeller though, in the end, one of the twins does it. The audience loves the film and Catrin will continue writing. She's lucky, I wish I could catch a break like that. However, I would not want my country to be at war with bombs falling all around me and people that I loved dying every day. As one of the characters said, life really is too short to waste it.
Seeing this film is not a waste. Grade: B+

Dunkirk (2017)

Is this the best film of 2017? So far, I'd have to agree with all the critics.
There are three separate plot lines in this film which takes place on the ocean in between Dunkirk, in Germany and the homeland of England.
One is on the land, involving a few of the hundreds of thousands of men stuck on the beach of Dunkirk, where they are literally sitting ducks. One is by the sea, where the British navy has commandeered all the privately owned boats so they can go and rescue the sitting duck army and the third is by the air where the British air force is busy shooting down the German planes bombing the men.
Though this story doesn't end in a mass murder or a mass surrender; the men must retreat, which is a dangerous undertaking and yes, plenty of men do die, boats are sunk and destroyed.
But the film is excellent, a great war film told on a large spectacle but they also make it intimate, without many names. For example, the main young soldier (Fionn Whitehead) is never named until the credits. He joins forces with another man who doesn't talk to save a soldier's life by getting him on a ship back home, only to have the ship destroyed by German bombs. It turns out that the other guy with Whitehead is actually French, not German, though Harry Styles (another young British soldier) believes that this man is a German spy.
On the boat you have Mark Rylance (brilliant) who insists on going to help save the men himself, instead of letting the navy do it for him. He is there with his son and his son's friend, George (Barry Keoghan), who man the ship. The first man they save is the shell-shocked British naval man (Cillian Murphy) who doesn't want to go back; he just wants to go home. Eventually, he inadvertently kills young George when he finds out that they are indeed returning to Dunkirk. They then save a British pilot just in the nick of time and then, when the stories converge, they save many oil-soaked men before the German plane crashes causing the ocean to burst into flames.
The film ends with many of the men returning to the mainland, ashamed, but they survived, and that was enough. They will live to fight another day.
Brilliant in every aspect, this film takes place on both an epic and intimate scale with excellent camera angles, Christopher Nolan captures the gritty realism of that experience without making it Hollywood in any way, which would have included that sappy love story. Sure, it would have been nice if women have had a larger role, but that was how things were back then. Women  appeared in this film solely as nurses. But the performances are excellent, without an action out of place. Despite the numerous roles, including Tom Hardy and Kenneth Branagh, everyone is pitch perfect in this almost documentary style film. Though this film seemed long, it took place over only three exhausting days. And this is easily one of Nolan's shortest films and also without a doubt his best. It is old-fashioned in some regards and that is lovely to see sometimes, without the over-the-top special effects. Everything is top-notch and in place with no false notes. Even if war films are not your cup of tea (they are usually not my favorite), this one will satisfy you without its super happy or super sad ending. Grade: A

The Lost City of Z (2017)

This turned out to be a delightful film that covered a great deal of ground.
Covering a span of two decades in the life of Percy Fawcett (Charlie Hunnan) a man who wants to create a legacy that his children can be proud of. Clouded by his father's bad decisions, he struggles to climb rank in the British army when he is offered something extraordinary, surveying the contested border between Bolivia and Brazil as rubber is big business in the early 1900s. He journeys there, despite his wife (Sienna Miller) telling him that she is pregnant again. Though this adventure is successful, it inspires him to return to explore to discover past cultures. The archaeological objects truly fascinate him. For the most part, he has a good crew behind him, namely Henry Costin (Robert Pattinson). But the second time around, he is joined by another explorer, James Murray (Angus MacFadyen) who, despite having spent time in Antarctica, is actually weak and foolish. He thinks that the native people are beneath him and eats too many of his rations, which destroys the whole journey. They never reach the lost ancient city of Z (pronounced Zed) and then it is World War I in Europe and he survives that too, despite having a falling out with his eldest son, Jack (Tom Holland). Jack is always upset that his father is always leaving, but things change. After the war is over and Percy has regained his sight, Jack is insistent that they finish what he started.
Unfortunately, they once again run into natives, ones that are not as nice and interesting as the ones before. Who knows exactly what happens, but somehow his trusty compass does come back to England and Nina (his wife) never believes that her husband and son perished in the wilderness of Amazonia.
Though the film is lengthy, and covers a great deal of time, and many of the characters are underdeveloped, it is nevertheless a good film with excellent lines and a true message scattered in. The performances are also very good and it is realistic and gritty. The score is mesmerizing and the ending makes you wonder and think. That happens so often in a film. When it does, you should grab it and never let go. Grade: B+

The Big Sick (2017)

This was a film that I couldn't wait to see. In an odd way, I related to it, as the only guy I dated for more than two dates was from Pakistan. He was a jerk, far more so than Kumail (Kumail Nanjiani), but that's a whole other story.
To the film, here we have Kumail, from Pakistan, who doesn't fit into his parents' mold of being a perfect son. He works for Uber and also works as a stand up comedian and constantly have to deal with his mother's attempts at matchmaking. Then, at one of his shows, he meets grad student Emily (Zoe Kazan). They hit it off so well, having sex on the first date. But there is a genuine attraction between the two of them.  Despite Emily declaring several times that she is not dating anyone at the moment, they nevertheless start dating.
And then, just like that, they aren't dating anymore. Emily is furious when she discovers Kumail's little black box, filled of pictures of women his mother has attempted to set him up with. He hasn't told his parents about her because of the whole arranged marriage thing and how he doesn't want to lose his family just because he's dating a white girl. Of course she doesn't take it that well and there relationship is over.
Kumail is literally in bed with another woman (rebound much) when Emily's friend calls him to tell him that Emily's in the ER with a bad case of the flu. She doesn't want him there but he stays anyway which is good because Emily's condition continues to deteriorate. In fact, one doctor basically forces Kumail to admit that he's Emily husband so they can better treat her severe lung infection by putting her into a medically induced coma. They can't wait until Emily's parents arrive from North Carolina.
Emily's parents each have colorful personalities and are pretty awesome people who have a fairly realistic view on things. Terry (Ray Romano) and Beth (Holly Hunter) aren't exactly thrilled to see Kumail there and in fact, especially at first, Beth is downright rude to him. Kumail admits that he made a mistake with Emily and Beth merely smirks and agrees. She doesn't understand why he's around now, considering he wasn't when she was still awake and alert so why should he be around now. But he just can't stay away though it cannot be easy watching someone hooked up to plenty of machines breathing for her and having no idea how much she understands. He eventually wins over her parents and in one of the funnier scenes Beth nearly beats up a guy who cruelly and ignorantly heckles Kumail as he attempts to perform stand up.
Emily's surgery goes well to remove the infection but it continues to spread throughout her body and then Terry and Beth argue, believing that they should move her to a better hospital. Terry wants her to stay (as does Kumail, who doesn't really get a vote but he actually talked to the nurse, what a radical idea) while Beth wants to move her to a better ranked hospital. It is then that Terry admits to Kumail that he cheated on Beth, just once and felt like complete crap about it, as he should. Terry also states that you don't understand how much you love another person until you cheat on them, what kind of oxymoron statement is that? Then he gives in and allows Beth to move her, though that is thwarted as the infection moves to Emily's heart.
Her actual diagnosis is soon learned all from an almost toss away line from Kumail, saying that she twisted her ankle a few days before she became dangerously ill. And it never healed so they are finally able to discover that Emily suffered from the rare but treatable adult-onset Still's disease. She starts her recovery almost immediately, beginning with waking up, and she isn't thrilled to see him there.
She recovers quickly and though he apologizes, truly and finally confronts his parents with the truth, she doesn't take him back. She does thank him for everything and sort of wants to get back together but it's too soon and she doesn't want to come between him and his family. So Kumail moves to New York with two of his good comedian friends (they are both good friends and comedians as opposed to his roommate who isn't that funny). It isn't until Emily goes to visit him at one of his shows that you know the relationship can finally begin again.
This was an excellent film with some brilliant performances and dialogue and though the subject is difficult and painful, the film manages to be truly funny. The scene I appreciated the most is one between Kumail and one of the girls his mother tries to set him up with. He ends things before they  can even begin and tells her that she deserves better. She says that she will decide what she deserves (how true) and that he needs to stop apologizing.
The problem I have is that they sleep together on the first date. I'm sure this does happen, but it shouldn't. Sex is not something that can be taken lightly as it is in the vast majority of Hollywood films and TV shows (a notable exception is the superb Jane the Virgin). Sex should not be expected on the first date. And Hollywood needs to stop glorifying it and making it socially acceptable. That is a rant I should have gone on a long time ago, considering it happens rather frequently (consider Moonstruck).
Okay, end of rant, back to the film. Basically, go see this movie. It will not disappoint. Though it deals with the typical, tried and true plot of families not liking their child to date anyone different from their culture, this has a refreshing and tragic turn, anchored by the seamless casting. This film should catapult Kazan and Nanjiani to full-fledged stardom. Goodness knows they deserve it already. Grade: A-

The Hero (2017)

Well, I didn't like this film so much. It's probably because I'm not the target audience. My parents largely enjoyed it.
Lee Hayden (Sam Elliott) just received bad news. He has cancer, and not one of those types that can be easily cured. But he's receiving a lifetime achievement for his career in films and TV shows, mostly of the western varieties. His life is pretty much a vastness of emptiness. He does voice overs for lame products and is separated from his grown daughter, Lucy (Krysten Ritter). He gets high a lot. And his only friend is his drug dealer and former co-worker (Nick Offerman). Things start looking up when he meets a far younger woman, Charlotte (Laura Prepon) who also gets her drugs from Jeremy. She actually likes him and is the one who accompanies him to get his award. Lee doesn't feel that he deserves the award and presents it to a random person in the audience and the speech goes viral. For the first time in some time, he's getting quality offers for acting roles. He's even got a film offer but he needs to audition for it, something he hasn't done in years. That is probably his greatest scene, reminiscent to real life, a man reconciling with his long-lost daughter. And though he nearly makes Jeremy cry, he flubs the audition and is pissed off.
In the end, he manages to start to mend the fences with his daughter and gets the risky surgery so he can have some more time. He and Charlotte are somehow still together, despite her bashing old men as part of her comedy routine. He is just glad to be living.
Now, while Elliott is wonderful and it is a good role for him, I just can't get behind the romance between him and Charlotte. She's far too young for him. It grossed me out whenever they were together. I found that whole thing unbelievable and ridiculous. I suppose it did need to happen, Lee needed to find romance in his life again but I wish it could have been with someone closer to his own age.
It blended reality and Lee's fantasy and dream life well together and the cinematography was innovative, with plenty of close-ups. But this film had no impact on me and I do not want to ever see it again and it's a shame as Elliott was brilliant. Grade: B

Ordinary People (1980)

This is another simple but excellent film.
Here, Conrad Jarrett (Timothy Hutton) is just trying to get through the day. He should be a senior in high school but instead he has to repeat his junior year. His older brother died nearly a year ago in a tragic boating accident and then he tried to commit suicide so he's just out from spending four months in a mental hospital where the poor young man received shock treatment.
He is going through the motions, studying and swimming, but he is still haunted and finally decides to see a therapist, Dr. Berger (Judd Hirsch). He wants to be more in control.
His parents are on opposite ends of the spectrum. Calvin (Donald Sutherland) is kind, caring and concerned while his mother, Beth (Mary Tyler Moore) is still and unfeeling and every time she tries to talk to her son she takes the conversation in the wrong direction.
The film slowly unfolds over the next few months, over the holidays. Conrad quits the swim team while Beth just wants to go away for the holidays like they always do. Oh boy, is she livid when she finds out from her friend that Conrad quit the swim team and she didn't know anything about it.
Conrad always cautiously starts a relationship with Jeannine (a pre-Downton Abbey Elizabeth McGovern), who actually has a personality. He also meets with his old friend Karen (Dinah Manoff) from the hospital who seems to be doing well, busy with the drama club, something that she tells him twice.
Everything comes to a head when Beth and Calvin are in Houston for the new year and Conrad remains in Chicago with his grandparents and he hears that Karen succeeded in committing suicide. He starts screaming and gets Dr. Berger out of bed in the middle of the night and finally the truth comes out. We learn the truth about the accident on the boat. In fact, it's a downright miracle that Conrad didn't die as well. The weather was dreadful and a part of the boat got jammed so the tiny boat overturned. Buck (Scott Doebler) couldn't hang on so he drowned. Instead of going to look for him, Conrad clung to the boat. But he must live with the consequences. His mother doesn't relate to him; she's scared of her own emotions and of caring ever again. She is also cruel enough to say that Buck would have never been in the hospital. She couldn't stand the mess from Conrad's attempt to die. They had to replace the grout in the bathroom. He ruined her towels. And she can't stand how concerned Calvin always is and how he now tries to wrap his life around his last remaining child.
Her best scene comes when she starts to pack her bags and doesn't want to cry but the tears can't help but leak out anyway.
She leaves for awhile which is probably for the best. Conrad and Calvin truly do love each other and they will be okay.
Hutton absolutely deserved an Oscar for this role and Tyler Moore is also brilliant. Sutherland should have at least received a nomination. This film shows that going to a therapist is nothing to be ashamed of, as much as Beth feels that it is a private thing. Talking does help and shutting others out ultimately doesn't do much good. You should be in control of your own life but also be aware of others around you and their feelings. Watching this film makes me glad that I have empathy for others. Grade: A

The Handmaid's Tale: Season One Recap and Reaction

This show is incredibly disturbing. Taking place in a dystopian society in the near-future, birthrates are low and morale is lower. Lower class women are forced to be concubines for the wealthy so there will be children to repopulate the Earth. Now, though that is dreadful and beyond cruel, women aren't allowed to read, write or work outside the house.
The main character is Offred (Elisabeth Moss), stripped of her own identity, taking the name of her master, in this case, Fred Waterford (Joseph Fiennes, still alive after Shakespeare in Love), who has a high command in the government but that doesn't stop him from breaking the law by allowing Offred to play Scrabble with him as a way to bond. His name is nasty. Serena Joy (Yvonne Strahovski), who used to have a career and actually wrote some of the laws now in place. Women's focus should be on the home and children.
There are also flashbacks to Offred's life before she became a handmaid. She was married to Luke (O-T Fagebenle) and was happy with him and their young daughter. Lest we forget, when they got together, he was a married man but he divorced his wife to be with June, Offred's real name. Like that happens in real life. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I broke up a marriage.
Perhaps the most disturbing part is when one of the Handmaid's Janine, now known as Ofwarren (Madeline Brewer) gives birth. First of all, you would think in a society where the chance of having a healthy child is a mere twenty percent, she would give birth in a hospital but instead she gives birth surrounded by the aunts (including Ann Dowd's Aunt Lydia), her fellow handmaids and toward the end, the wives. Her appointed mistress, Naomi Putnam (Ever Carradine) goes through all the fake motions of labor with her. It's just well, disturbing. There isn't really any other word for it. And Janine nurses the baby, but isn't allowed any other interaction with her miraculously healthy baby Angela. Once the baby is weaned, she is stationed somewhere else, but runs away and kidnaps her own child and nearly jumps off a bridge with the baby though June talks her off. The baby is safe and then everyone acts all surprised when Janine jumps and nearly dies. Her punishment changes the course of how the world is.
There is plenty to talk about in this show, that's for sure. In this new society, it is a crime to be homosexual and Alexis Bledel's Emily (or Ofglen) is sorely punished for it but is allowed to live because she has two good ovaries. She, quite literally, goes out with a bang, killing a soldier before dying herself.
June has a pregnancy scare early on but it turns out that she isn't pregnant so she is banished to her room for half the month and then Mrs. Waterford says that she should have sex with Nick (Max Minghella), the Waterfords driver so she won't get in trouble. And they basically fall in love, actually having sex with passion.
The finale episode has ups and downs for June. She is smacked by Mrs. Waterford as she discovered that her husband was completely cheating on her with June. She forces June to pee on a pregnancy test, which are illegal. And she's pregnant with Nick believing that he is the father. She witnesses Mrs. Waterford visit her daughter, while she is stuck in the car. She also opens for secret package which is letters of other women taken against their wills and raped and stripped and separated from their children. Janine is also to be punished but all the handmaids refuse to stone her, standing together. As June says in a voice over, if they didn't want us to be an army, they shouldn't have given us uniforms. She will be severely punished but has accepted her fate. The season ends with her being taken away, but Nick told her to just go with them. Who knows what her fate will be.
Her friend, Moira (Samira Wiley) has a whole different fate, finally escaping hell and being welcomed with open arms and a welcome kit in Canada. She is reunited with Luke there. I just hope that June will also get a happy ending.
This show is well-done, with great acting and excellent cinematography and art direction and haunting music that make you feel like you are in that repressive society. I also though that all the voice overs were totally unnecessary and kept you from being confused.
The only problem I had was the subplot of using the handmaids as a trade bargain with Mexico (where women can still have real careers). It is a main plot in one episode and then never mentioned again. I also don't understand how June is only thirty-one with an eight-year-old but was already out of college for some time before meeting and marrying Luke. Those are my only two problems with the show. I can't wait to see what happens to June, you must keep fighting or else they will win and they can't win. Grade: A-