Year: 2017

Ten days and 10 million dollars was all it took to make cinematic history.

Recasting parts during the production of a movie isn’t unheard of by any means, but completely starting from scratch after a picture is already locked never happens. Almost.

When sexual misconduct allegations came out against Kevin Spacey during post-production for the new film “All The Money In The World,” director Ridley Scott sprang into action. Recasting a pivotal role within 36 hours, Oscar winner Christopher Plummer stepped into the role of reclusive billionaire J. Paul Getty.

The final product – four-fifths of an original piece and 20 percent replaced with reworked material – is a testament to craftsmanship by an expert filmmaker, though it’s hard to still not imagine Spacey in the role despite him not being on screen.

“All The Money In The World” examines the kidnapping of then-16-year-old John Paul Getty III, grandson of the illustrious original Getty, and the subsequent search to bring him home safely alive led by the boy’s mother and a former CIA operative.

Despite a star-studded cast, the standout performance of “All The Money In The World” comes from young breakout Charlie Plummer. Ironically, the actor playing kidnap victim Getty III has no familial connection to the elder Plummer who stars as his grandfather.

Kidnap victims are often portrayed on television and cinema very one-dimensionally, but Plummer layers the youngest Getty with a complex, nuanced performance deeply seeded in mistrust and a moderate case of Stockholm Syndrome. Watching Plummer transform emotionally over the course of the movie is surprisingly the most interesting part of Scott’s film and may be due in part to the fact that almost none of the scenes involving the younger Getty had to be reshot.

The elder Plummer’s performance will ultimately be more heavily scrutinized because of the casting change. However, his stoic, searing turn as the seemingly soulless grandfather is just as mesmerizing on screen and nearly beyond reproach.

It’s remarkable to think that any actor could so wholly inhabit a character as quickly as Plummer does. His Getty is a man that audiences will love to hate and yet cannot get enough of.

Academy Award nominee Michelle Williams carries the film’s emotional weight in a somewhat more one-dimensional performance. Her turn as the kidnap victim’s mother is gripping, but mired in a stilted accent and muddled in sobs, there’s little room for depth of character.

As the former CIA operative tasked by Getty to find his grandson, Mark Wahlberg is his usual solid yet unspectacular self, trying to bring a calm sense of purpose to the film and drive the plot forward.

Filming, cutting and reshooting his movie on the fly, it must have been incredibly difficult for Scott to maintain a consistent tone throughout “All The Money In The World.” What finally arrives in theaters is a cold, morose movie that drags like a European spy film and could probably be shortened by around 20 minutes.

It’s incredibly vibrant visually, layered in a bluish-gray cinematic hue that evokes the early 1970s period the film is set in. Though the film is not picturesque in every scene, Scott and cinematographer Dariusz Wolski give “All The Money In The World” a richness that enhances the performances on screen.

Though few had seen the film to that point, “All The Money In The World” earned a trio of Golden Globe nominations, including best picture drama and acting nods for Plummer and Williams. The film’s Oscar hopes are bleaker, however, with only Christopher Plummer a potential contender for recognition come awards season.

There are times that “All The Money In The World” feels like a grind to get through. But patient audiences will be rewarded with an interesting, complex look at the convergence of familial strife, economic greed and international crime worth taking a chance on whether in theaters now or at home in a couple months.

It’s easy to pen “Lady Bird” into a corner, especially given the fact that the indie romantic comedy/drama currently stands as the best reviewed film in the history of Rotten Tomatoes.

But “Lady Bird” is more than just an universally beloved film. It represents something more dynamic and changing within modern filmmaking, a new pinnacle for female-led and female driven cinema that transcends genre and becomes something much more unique and revolutionary. It’s “Wonder Woman” on cinematic steroids, without all that CGI muddling the frame and has one of the year’s three best screenplays.

You’d be hard-pressed to find more vivid, authentic female characters than in “Lady Bird,” writer/director Greta Gerwig’s deeply personal drama about an outcast high school senior growing up in Sacramento, California in late 2002.

Though not based on a real story, Gerwig’s vibrant, natural tale of a young woman who insists on being called Lady Bird in order to stand out feels immensely biopic in nature in spite of how different the titular character might be from Gerwig’s own life experiences.

Irish-American actress Saoirse Ronan, best known for her Oscar-nominated work in the 2015 film “Brooklyn,” dazzles as the charismatic yet rebellious Lady Bird. Ronan brings a mesmerizing confidence to the role, charming her way through scenes where whether or not the audience should like her remains ambiguous.

It’s a daring role for the 23-year-old actress, playing against type as the girl with a constant attitude. Yet Ronan embodies a rich livelihood within the character, compelling the audience become deeply invested in her loves and losses.

Integral to the success of the film is Ronan’s fluid chemistry with veteran character actress Laurie Metcalf, who takes the best-written character of her career and turns it into a dominant powerhouse as Lady Bird’s loving yet guarded mother, Marion. The give-and-take between the two actresses is pitch perfect, richly balancing the love between a mother and daughter with the natural separation teenage angst causes in such a relationship.

Both performances feel vivid and authentic due in large part to the care Gerwig puts into the script as well as the effortless syncopation put out on screen between Metcalf and Ronan.

“Lady Bird” is littered with a cavalcade of outstanding supporting performances from the subtle, stoic work of Tracy Letts as Lady Bird’s father Larry to newcomer Beanie Feldstein’s conventionally- unconventional turn as best friend Julie to even more minor yet pivotal roles from Stephen McKinley Henderson and Lois Smith as instructors at the Catholic school Lady Bird attends.

But the standout secondary performances come from a pair of young male actors, one with an Oscar nomination under his belt and the other sure to earn his first Academy Award nod this spring.

“Manchester By The Sea” star Lucas Hedges does some of his finest work in a small but pivotal role as Lady Bird’s first love Danny. Up-and-coming actor Timothée Chalamet brings a quiet confidence to his James Dean-esque role in the film, which will only propel him forward as a front runner in the best actor category for his work in the drama “Call Me By Your Name.”

It may be difficult to tell at first glance, but Gerwig’s directorial debut has her unique signature stamped all over the film. While many writer-directors allow more free flowing improvisation and ad-lib, Gerwig stresses strict adherence to the written word on the page. This ironically gives actors more freedom to find the characters’ inner voice rather than its literal one and the result is deeper, more intense character study.

There’s also a deep richness to the cinematography, which feels ripped out of the late 60s or early 70s despite its 2002 setting. Cinematographer Sam Levy gives “Lady Bird” a distinct, vintage hue as if a slightly transparent paper covered the camera lens at all times, filling the screen with a lightly faded, yellow tone.

“Lady Bird” should be a virtual lock for any number of awards come this Oscar season. The film is a shoe-in for the best picture and lead actress categories with Ronan a major contender to win early next year. There’s also strong possibilities for the film’s dynamic script in the original screenplay category, Gerwig and Metcalf for best supporting actress. Missing out on a film like “Lady Bird” would be a serious gap on the screening resume of any awards-minded moviegoer.

It’s difficult to adequately describe the feeling you get while watching “Lady Bird” for the first time in theaters. There hasn’t been a film that more accurately depicts the transition out of adolescent life since Mike Nichols’ 1967 powerhouse “The Graduate.”

“Lady Bird” is that good. Be sure not to miss out on one of the decade’s ten best movies. You’ll be doing yourself a major disservice if you don’t see this transformative film at least once.

Unless you were looking for it, odds are good that you might never stumble across a film like “Mudbound,” a small, intimate drama that snuck its way onto Netflix last week.

The tale of two families – the McAllens, a moderately affluent white family transplanted to farming country, and the Jacksons, poor African-American sharecroppers seeking out land to call their own – is in many ways a solemn reminder of where America has been and perhaps where it is today.

Acquired by Netflix after its Sundance run early this year, “Mudbound” examines racial relations and familial history in rural Mississippi during the 1940s. The film pinballs back and forth between members of both families as they experience lives of quiet desperation in the Deep South.

“Mudbound” aggressively tackles a wide variety of issues from racial inequality to the role of women in society to post traumatic stress disorder with a subtle hand of candor.

Its slow roll approach to these broad issues may disenchant and bore casual viewers, though attentive audiences may become enthralled and captivated by the film’s stunning cinematography and terrific ensemble cast.

Although “Mudbound” lacks definitive star power, director Dee Rees’ movie boasts a plethora of veteran character actors who thrive as part of the collective group.

The film’s most stunning performance is delivered by up-and-comer Jason Mitchell, who broke out in the 2005 hit “Straight Outta Compton” and dazzled in Kathryn Bigelow’s noir drama “Detroit” earlier this year.

With “Mudbound,” Mitchell tackles his most dramatic role to date as the Jackson’s eldest son Ronsel, a tank sergeant under General Patton who finds a much colder reception returning home than he did traversing Europe.

Mitchell toes the line of being aggressive with his performance without becoming showy or overstated. His ability to show more anger with his eyes than his words is mesmerizing to watch on screen and proof positive of Mitchell’s star potential in the years to come.

He shares great and effortless chemistry with Garrett Hedlund, who gives a distant yet nuanced performance as younger McAllen brother Jamie. Their uneasy, unlikely bond over wartime stories and shared post traumatic stress informs most of the film’s best moments and carries “Mudbound” for much of the film’s second half.

Jason Clarke and Carey Mulligan also shine as the elder McAllen brother Henry and his wife Laura. Much of the film’s first third ironically relies on an intended lack of chemistry between Henry and his new bride and the couple’s awkward pairing comes through on screen in spades.

It sometimes feels harder for two actors to authentically capture a relationship that doesn’t work like two puzzle pieces forced together. Clarke and Mulligan make the couple’s unspoken tension feel real in a special yet tense way.

“Mudbound” rounds out its cast with outstanding supporting turns from Jonathan Banks as the McAllens’ stubbornly racist father Pappy, Rob Morgan as sharecropper/pastor Hap Jackson and an nearly unrecognizable Mary J. Blige as Hap’s wife Florence.

Rees and cinematographer Rachel Morrison do a wonderful job of giving “Mudbound” a deeply rich, vivid picturesque look that feels ripped straight out of the pages all the history book. Thankfully, the cinematography is shot in a way that accents and enhances the performances rather than impeding them.

If there is a flaw in the filmmaking, “Mudbound” consistently drags a touch from beginning to end and often relies too heavily on narration to give viewers insight into the characters.

Seemingly a strong contender come award season, “Mudbound” may fall prey to the same Netflix curse that befell 2015’s stellar yet underappreciated African warlord drama “Beasts of No Nation.” Major studio backing would probably have secured the film a best picture nomination as well as potential nods for Mitchell and Hedlund. Those certainly worthy, it’s far too early two pencil “Mudbound” in as a serious contender come Oscar season.

Regardless, this character-driven, historical drama has far too much going for it not to merit the attention of patient, smart movie lovers seeking a quality film to fall in love with on a quiet Tuesday evening.

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When war ends, new battles begin for soldiers returning home from combat.

Quite often the things they’ve seen, the experiences they’ve had fundamentally change who they are as a person and their ability to relate to those loved ones who never served.

These struggles strike at the core of writer/director Jason Hall’s “Thank You For Your Service,” a military drama based on real events that focuses on post-traumatic stress disorder among a small unit of soldiers serving in Iraq during the late 2000s.

The film follows three men (Miles Teller, Beulah Koale and Joe Cole) as they arrive back in the U.S. after events at the tail end of another tour of duty change everything.

With “Thank You For Your Service,” Teller proves why he’s one of Hollywood’s more underrated actors with a steady, nuanced performance as Adam.

He provides the quiet heartbreak of a man struggling with depression, but refusing to cave in and show his emotions to others.

In his eyes, it’s easy to see the desperation of a soldier unable to come to grips with the fallout of his time at war and incapable of relating to family members back at home.

Without ever really showing it, the inner dialogue of Teller’s Adam feels like it’s constantly imploring him to remain strong, do right and set an example for his brothers in arms when all he wants to do is break down. There’s a confidence and subtlety to the performance that

Teller genuinely relates to, making his work one of the year’s most powerful.
Newcomer Beulah Koale shines in a breakout role as Adam’s best friend, an American Samoan nicknamed “Solo.”

It’s always refreshing to see fresh faces go toe to toe while acting in scenes opposite more famous counterparts.

Koale rises to the occasion in every scene with Teller, providing a perfect counter-balance to Adam’s somber submission with a heart-wrenching spiral into depression.

Teller also has terrific on-screen chemistry with Haley Bennett, who plays military spouse better than most actresses have in similar films. Her Saskia feels compassion for her returning husband, but can’t understand why he won’t let her in.

There’s a lot of power to Bennett’s performance that elevates Hall’s surprisingly mediocre screenplay.

If there’s a true flaw within “Thank You For Your Service,” Amy Schumer feels largely out of place as a bereaved widow of one of Adam’s fellow soldiers. While she ably tries to bring levity to the material, it’s difficult to believe her performance thanks to her crude comedic career.

Though other comedians have successfully traversed the path from humor to drama, Schumer’s small work feels more like stunt casting for box office appeal rather than the right person for the role.

First time director Hall plays things largely safe with “Thank You For Your Service” and scenes often have that “Hollywood” shine to them that can pull audiences out of the authentic moment.

It’s difficult to determine whether that’s a result of a script not as polished as his “American Sniper” screenplay or the follies of a first-time leader at the helm of the film.

“Thank You For Your Service” comes at a perfect time with overhauling of the Department of Veterans Affairs expected under the Trump administration.

While the realism of the situation portrayed in the film is often rewarded with award season accolades, “Thank You For Your Service” isn’t a strong enough contender to garner much Oscar consideration this winter.

That being said, the film is a highly emotional, largely effective drama that’s going far too underseen.

Whether you catch it on the big screen or wait until it hits streaming services months from now, “Thank You For Your Service” touches on too important of a topic to miss out on.