Talk about a movie that just doesn’t go anywhere. Secret in Their Eyes has an impressive trio of leads with Chiwetel Ejiofor, Nicole Kidman, and Julia Roberts. The movie is told in 2 parts, the present where Ejiofor’s character has finally located a man he has been hunting for 10+ years, and the past where we learn why, in which Roberts’ character’s daughter was killed by said man. What follows is a convoluted story and even the acting can’t hide a paper-thin plot. The big “surprise” ending isn’t much of one, and just enough to get you to shrug your shoulders and move on.
Spotlight won the best picture Oscar last year. It is well acted and has a great story, but I’m pretty sure the material is the reason it won, as there were better movies that year. It is the based-on-a-true story of the Boston Globe’s spotlight team delving into and breaking the story of the Catholic church’s coverup of child abuse by its priests. It has Mark Ruffalo, one of my favorites and seriously one of the underrated actors today, as well as the resurgent Michael Keaton. A great movie, just not the best of 2015.
I finally had a chance to catch the finale of the Hunger Games. Catniss and team finally get their chance to bring down the capital. The previous movie had a lot of buildup but seemed light on the action, this one finally delivers. It is a satisfying conclusion to the series, and there is a good little “twist” at the end (I had never read the books), but the movie didn’t quite do it for me as much as the first or second films did. A solid A-/B+ score for me, I just wanted a little more.
Daddy’s Home is good for some chuckles, just not deep belly laughs. Will Ferrell is Brad, the new step dad who’s new kids are just warming up to when their biological father (Mark Wahlberg as Dusty) shows up. As in the The Other Guys, the banter between these two is great, but I found myself smiling, but not laughing too hard. The backstory is Brad’s inability to have kids of his own. By the time this plot element plays out before the final third of the film, the laughs had pretty much dried up and except for one very funny scene, it just drags on for another 30 minutes. Die hard Ferrell fans will find plenty to like, otherwise just OK.
I’m sure Will Smith thought Concussion was going to earn him a lot of accolades when he signed on, it is the kind of movie that generally leads to awards, but this one didn’t reach the heights it set for itelf. Based on the true story of the dawning realization of the effects of repitative hits to the head and its lasting consequences to football players, Smith plays the doctor that first drew this correlation. He faces a huge struggle with the NFL, but as more and more players face alzheimer-like problems early in life, as well as others that commit suicide after fighting depression, the football league finally faces the facts that they can’t hide from it anymore. As a viewer, I felt sorry for the players, but did not get that strong connection to really move me. Smith is great as he always is in these drama-driven roles.
Jons Movie Takes 