Bull is the kind of low budget, indie art film that critics eat up. It stars newcomer Amber Havard as Kris, a 14-year-old girl in a poor neighborhood, facing the kinds of problems that many such kids do. Her mom’s in jail, so she and her sister are living with their grandma. Kris looks to be following in her mom’s footsteps; she’s getting in trouble, hanging with the rough crowd, etc. Her latest indiscretion is breaking into her neighbor’s house and throwing a big party when he’s away for the weekend. She gets lucky though, because when he returns, he decides to put her to work around the house rather than press charges. The neighbor is Abe (Rob Morgan, who’s been in plenty of things but which I recognize most recently as Turk from the Netflix Marvel shows). Abe is a former bull rider who is still working in the business, and through his work ethic and unflinching way of not letting this hard life beat him down, Kris starts to see a better way to live. I found Havard’s acting a bit wooden, which can be expected for young first-timers, but Morgan is perfect in this film. It is a quiet, contemplative film, sometimes a little too direct where a softer touch may have left a more lasting impression, but a solid picture for indie lovers. ★★★½
Fans of Guy Ritchie’s earlier crime films will find plenty to like in his latest, The Gentlemen. Featuring an all-star cast including Matthew McConaughey, Charlie Hunnam, Hugh Grant, Colin Farrell, and Henry Golding, it is about a long-time crook, Michael Pearson (McConaughey) who wants to sell his lucrative weed-growing business in the UK and retire. Of course, selling a 400 million dollar business isn’t easy even when it is legal, and thus the film plays out. Full of crass language, double-crosses, bloody and violent clashes, and just the right amount of laugh-out-loud moments, it is a crime action film that has plenty to like. The characters are over the top, and there are perhaps a few too-many “gotcha” moments in the final third, but damn if it isn’t a whole lot of fun. ★★★★
The Last Full Measure is based on a true story, and tells the tale of William Pitsenbarger. He was a Vietnam War hero who left a med evac chopper during a fierce battle to help wounded soldiers on the ground get out safely. Ultimately, he saved over 60 men before he himself died. 30+ years later, William’s family and fellow soldiers are trying to get him posthumously awarded the medal of honor. Told in flashback to that battle in 1966 as well as the current day with a politician digging into the details surrounding that fight, the film is heavy on facts but light on drama. Despite a fantastic cast (Samuel L Jackson, William Hurt, Ed Harris, Christopher Plummer, Peter Fonda, and Sebastian Stan, “the Winter Soldier” from Marvel), this film is rough to watch. It has all the great elements of a bad movie: choppy editing, dialogue that jumps around too much, and a disjointed story. Hokey writing doesn’t help. And those great actors are giving some of the worst performances I remember seeing, which I can only chalk up to bad directing. The real story of Pitsenbarger deserves better than this. ★
Sometimes Always Never is an off-beat comedy with some heart thrown in, from director Carl Hunter. The film is about Alan on a search for long-lost son Michael, who left the family years before after a quarrel during a game of Scrabble. Second son Peter joins Alan in the beginning of the film as they go to identify a body which has lately washed up on shore, hoping it isn’t Michael (it isn’t). A scrabble enthusiast, Alan knows the dictionary inside and out, and he puts his vocabulary to use throughout the film in entertaining, verbose fashion, to the delight of his grandson (Peter’s son) but to the ire of Peter, who always felt he played second fiddle to Michael, the prodigal son. While Alan’s search for Michael initially seems to be the main plot element, we realize before too long that the film is mostly about healing, with Peter trying to come to grips with how Alan raised the boys after the death of their mother, and Alan needing to open up walls that have been closed for too long. The bright vivid colors and eccentric humor will hearken to a Wes Anderson film, but while the writing isn’t as good, Bill Nighy’s spot-on performance as Alan is well worth a viewing. E-N-T-E-R-T-A-I-N-I-N-G, 13 points. ★★★½
Saint Frances is one of the best new films I’ve seen in awhile. It is about Bridget, whose life hasn’t turned out exactly the way she’d planned. The tone of the film is set when she’s at a party talking to a guy. He’s talking about the path his life is taking and she admits she’s only a server at a restaurant. He says, “Well, you’re still in your 20’s, you’ll figure it out,” and she replies, “I’m 34.” Embarrassed, he can only say, “Well, you look really good.” Bridget gets an opportunity to nanny for the summer, for a gay couple getting ready to have their second child. Bridget will be looking after their first child, Franny, a very smart, well-brought-up child who is also, like a lot of kids, very willful. At the same time, Bridget has a one night stand with a young 26 year old guy, starts a semi-regular relationship with him, and ends up pregnant. Deciding to abort because that’s the last thing she needs right now, the films deals with this and its fallout, as well as a whole bunch of other things that this crazy mixed up world throws at us. One of Franny’s moms, the birther, is dealing with postpartum depression, and of course there’s the whole being gay with a family and how others react to that. It would be easy for this film to either feel really heavy, or for the comedy to come off as glib, but neither comes true. It is funny without poking fun, it is endearing without being sappy. Outstanding writing by newcomer Kelly O’Sullivan, who also portrayed Bridget, this is a film for today. You’ll laugh and be moved, and maybe even come to learn a few things. ★★★★★
Jons Movie Takes 