Tag: Julianne Moore

THE ROOM NEXT DOOR (2025) – Review

This weekend sees the wider release of a film that would probably be referred to as “Oscar bait” since it stars two actresses who have that “golden guy” and it’s directed by a beloved and celebrated filmmaker. With the latter, this shares a similar distinction with another lauded “end of the year” work, EMILIA PEREZ. No, this isn’t a musical. The common thread is that PEREZ was made by a French director who is telling a story in the Spanish language, while this new release has a Spanish helmer working completely in English for the very first time after nearly half of a century in cinema. And though it’s set in today’s modern world it harkens back to the movies of Hollywood’s Golden Age”. It becomes clear to cinephiles the moment they enter (if it’s ajar…a big plot point) THE ROOM NEXT DOOR.

The opening scene takes us to a swanky book store in Manhattan where the popular author of several works of “historical fiction” signs copies of her latest. Ingrid (Julianne Moore) is surprised when an old friend steps out from the long line of fans. Stella (Sarah Demeestere) informs her that a mutual acquaintance is battling cancer in a nearby hospital. The news startles Ingrid, as she’s been out of touch with this friend for a while. A reunion is overdue, so she makes an impromptu call at the hospital room of former war correspondent Martha (Tilda Swinton). The duo quickly gets “up to speed”, with Martha confiding that she’s estranged from her adult daughter. Ingrid is surprised by her story of a teenage pregnancy sired by a first love who was emotionally scared by combat. They never married. The daughter, Michelle, was resentful of Martha’s “globe-trotting” as she wrote of various international conflicts. The hospital visits soon extended to Martha’s Central Park-view apartment, during the “off time” between medical stays. During a visit after a new promising experimental treatment, a frustrated Martha tells Ingrid that it didn’t work. She has a few months left, at best, before her mind and body begin to degenerate and finally shut down. A bit later Martha delivers another bombshell. She’s purchased a “euthanasia pill” via the “dark web”, but doesn’t wish to use it in her NYC home. Martha is hoping to rent a lush cottage in upstate New York that she’ll share with Ingrid. Martha explains that when she expires, she wants to be discovered by someone she loves who is in “the room next door”. Ingrid is filled with anxiety and sadness but also wants to be supportive of her friend. Does she have the strength to join Martha as their rekindled relationship concludes? And could she somehow be legally liable for assisting in Martha’s “good death”?

There’s such a warm easy rapport between the two lead actresses that it feels as though they’ve been teamed many times over their impressive screen careers. Because Ingrid has several encounters aside from her time with Martha, Moore would have the lead role as our “pathway” into Martha’s last journey. It’s through her expert use of body language and facial expressions (her eyes are truly that window) that Moore shows us the heartbreak and empathy of this old friend whose renewed bond will be severed. She pledges her help even though Moore’s quivering voice conveys Ingrid’s conflicted feelings. Fortunately, her main scene partner is equally compelling, though with different challenges in her character. Swinton, as Ingrid, must also express many moods, while also reflecting the physical changes her body must endure as the disease takes its toll. Martha has a calm acceptance, often at odds with her frustrations about her diminished stamina and “brain fog”. And though she rejects pity, Swinton’s joy while confiding in a friend thought to be loss shows lets us see that there’s still a yearning for human connections while exiting her life. This isn’t a two-person tale as Ingrid also shares scenes with a pair of superb supporting actors. John Turturro is quite good as Damian, a social commentator on a lecture tour, who was a past lover to both women, though with no “overlap” for a romantic “triangle”. And, an extra dramatic “punch’ is provided by Alessandro Nivola who is quite intimidating and fierce as a dogged policeman encountered by Ingrid.

That acclaimed Spanish filmmaker I alluded to earlier is, of course, the talented Pedro Almodovar, who directed his screenplay adaptation of the novel “What Are You Going Through” by Sigrid Nunez. This caps an impressive roster of films that have explored female relationships with this intimate tale of love and loss. With its smooth tranquil pacing, lingering close-ups, and serene nearly melodramatic flashbacks, Almodovar appears to be paying tribute to the classic “women’s pictures” so prolific during the early years of sound movies (“pre-code” and a bit beyond). I kept thinking that the main plot could have paired Bette Davis with Miriam Hopkins on the Warner backlot (the new score from Alberto Iglesias takes inspiration from Steiner and Herriman). But there are also elements of the glossy technicolor romances of Douglas Sirk, especially with the gorgeous rental estate in the woods, which looks to have been lifted straight from “Architectural Digest” magazine (perhaps Lazlo Toth of THE BRUTALIST designed its multi-level wonders). All the stylistic choices (the color red is prominent, from the shared car to the vibrant lipstick shades) never detract from the story’s main focus on friendship and facing (that dreaded “D” word) death. Certainly, this may re-spark debates about the “quality of life”, but most folks on both sides would agree that the last days would be most pleasant with a caring person in THE ROOM NEXT DOOR.

3.5 Out of 4

THE ROOM NEXT DOOR opens in selected theatres on Friday, January 17, 2025

MAY DECEMBER – Review

L to R: Natalie Portman as Elizabeth Berry with Julianne Moore as Gracie Atherton-Yoo, in MAY DECEMBER. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Netflix

Director Todd Haynes re-teams with Julianne Moore, star of his Douglas Sirk-style melodrama FAR FROM HEAVEN, for another soapy melodrama (complete with emotionally-overwrought score) for Haynes’ new MAY DECEMBER. The story was apparently inspired by the 1990s Mary Kay LeTourneau case, a tabloid scandal about a married, 36-year-old teacher who was convicted of raping her 12-year-old male student, a crime for which she went to jail and where she gave birth in prison. The pair had another child and eventually married when the boy reach adulthood although they divorced years later.

It is a tabloid tale that seems made for Todd Haynes. However, while the couple in the movie have a somewhat similar history, the movie’s story takes place twenty years after the infamous events, when the still-married couple are living a comfortable, quiet suburban life in a small island town near Savannah, Georgia. Gracie (Julianne Moore) and Joe (Charles Melton) are well-liked in the community which seems to have forgotten all about the scandal.

As the couple’s two younger children, boy and girl twins, are preparing for high school graduation, their quiet lives are interrupted by the arrival of a famous actress Elizabeth (Natalie Portman) who is there to research her role as Gracie in an upcoming movie about their infamous past. Hoping the film will put them in the best possible light, Gracie and Joe welcome Elizabeth into their home.

While Gracie is gracious and Elizabeth is polite, the two women have differing agendas: Gracie to keep the perfect surface her family presents to the world intact while Elizabeth gently tries to pry open any secrets hidden there. You know there must be some, which sets off a tense tango of conflicting purposes between the two women.

While some have called MAY DECEMBER a comedy, the overall tone of the film is tension and mystery, as the melodrama unfolds. As Elizabeth looks for ways to gain insights on the real Gracie and hidden details of the past, Gracie spackles over any cracks in the flawless facade they couple present to all.

There are plenty of hints of secrets and juicy tidbits but MAY DECEMBER actually promises more than it delivers on that end. What is does deliver, however, is a nice femme-centric battle of wills story. MAY DECEMBER sets up a tense pas-de-deux duel between these dual female leads, played brilliantly by Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore, in this femme-centric story.

The duel between the two women has Portman and Moore playing off each other in a cat-and-mouse dance that is the film’s chief delight, particularly for those who are less enamored by Haynes’ overblown stylistic flourishes.

Still, fans of Todd Haynes’s films will find lots to please them, with dramatic twists (although what is revealed is no surprise) and swelling music to accompany them, and plenty of gossipy details in supporting characters, like Gracie’s ex-husband and children from her previous marriage, and particularly her troubled grown son. Repeatedly we are reminded that the actress Elizabeth, who will play the young Gracie, is closer in age to Joe now, as are Gracie’s grown children, and at times, Joe seems more like one of the kids as well. Gracie is by turns steely and in control, and little-girlish, particularly with Joe. Joe is opaque at first, a rock of reliability and maturity, but as Elizabeth searches for ways around Gracie’s walls, cracks in his front show up.

Not surprisingly, the film’s best scenes are between Julianne Moore and Natalie Portman, as they maintain a polite surface relationship while jockeying for position and advantage to achieve their own goals. Scenes reveal neither woman to be as nice as they want people to believe, to be cunning players in this game, and in some ways more alike than either wants to think they are. Portman in particular shines in her role, showing a darker side as the complex Elizabeth than we usually see. Both characters are capable of a certain ruthlessness to get what they want, which gives their scenes together a special chill.

MAY DECEMBER serves up a Todd Haynes soapy treat for his fans, and a wonderful acting pas-de-deux between Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore.

MAY DECEMBER opens Friday, Nov. 17, in theaters.

RATING: 2 out of 4 stars

SHARPER – Review

With this film’s release so close to the big “hearts and flowers” holiday, you might think that it’s a modern twist on the old romantic stories of boy meets girl. And you’d be mistaken, except for the “twist” angle. Yes, it does begin with a “meet cute”, but soon the filmmakers take us down a road of deception and devious designs, full of, yes, twists and turns. Now it’s not another thriller built on that cybercrime of “catfishing” as in the very recent MISSING. This tale owes much more to the previous “con capers” like THE STING, BODY HEAT, and, naturally THE GRIFTERS. Ah, but these “players” are aiming for much larger stakes as they go after their NYC high-society “marks”. That’s why they have to aspire to be SHARPER.

Oh, as I mentioned this story takes place in Manhattan and opens on a quaint dusty used book store in one of the quiet upscale neighborhoods. And the literary theme is used with the film being divided into four chapters, each title after a character in this quadrangle. The first is the owner/manager of the shop, a quiet twenty-something named Tom (Justice Smith). His dull afternoon next to the register is ended by the arrival of a lovely college student named Sandra (Briana Middleton). Their conversation leads to his clumsy invitation to dinner and leads to a whirlwind romance that ends in tragedy and heartbreak. In the next chapter named for her, we look into Sandra’s past and her life-changing encounter with the enigmatic “groomer” named Max (Sebastian Stan). This leads to his chapter that gives us an insight into his complex relationship with his social-climbing mother Madeline (Julianne Moore), who has become the fiancee of a Fifth Avenue financial tycoon named Richard Hobbes (John Lithgow). With her chapter, the dots are “connected”, the story comes “full circle”, and the quartet wrestles for control and makes a grab for the “big brass ring”.


With this type of film, it’s tough to get into the actor’s performances without revealing too much of their characters’ secrets (the whole plot peels back the layers). However, I can attest that the talented, always interesting Ms. Moore adds another complex role to her impressive screen resume. Madeline is more than the tortured matriarch as she tries to correct her past while forging ahead toward a lush future. That past, embodied by Stan’s Max, is dark and full of potential danger as Stan projects an air of edgy laid-back cool aloofness punctuated by a snarling intensity. At the opposite end is Smith as the quiet, reflective Tom who’s been beaten down by life but sees this new love as a chance to start over on the road to happiness. As his shining beacon, Middleton dazzles as Sandra whose own dark past threatens to doom this new love as she tries to bury those demons. In a smaller supporting role, Lithgow projects the proper gravitas as the man of “old money” who knows that some “class -climbers’ see a golden target on his back.

The tale’s many curves and turns are expertly guided by director Benjamin Caron in his feature film directing debut. He confidently keeps the drastic time shifts on track in the taut screenplay from Brian Gatewood and Alessandro Tanaka, which keeps us guessing and baffled till the final fade out (and at just under two hours). The Big Apple locations are superb, from the plush million-dollar-plus “cribs” to the cluttered Queen apartments and the neighborhood “dive bars”. And they’re lit with the story’s emotional shifts in mind. This is the cinematic equivalent to a good “page-turner”, something to devour on a rainy afternoon. As far as most dramatic thrillers go, I’d say that this is much, much SHARPER.

3.5 Out of 4

SHARPER opens at the Alamo Drafthouse in St. Louis and streams exclusively on AppleTV+ beginning on Friday, February 17, 2023

WHEN YOU FINISH SAVING THE WORLD – Review

So, I’m thinking that there may be a bit of a hidden strategy concerning a couple of this week’s big movie releases. Nothing nefarious mind you, perhaps more of a coincidence. Basically, we’ve got two tales of conflict between a parent and a son. Yes, the other film is the somber, emotional drama THE SON. This other work, on the “flip side” also has lots of verbal clashes, but it’s peppered with lots of humor, often at the expense of the divisive duo. Plus it takes a few well-deserved shots, more like “burns’ at our social media-obsessed society. This is a touch ironic since it’s written and directed by the actor who was Oscar-nominated for his performance in an epic docudrama set on the fringes of the worldwide web. Now we’ve given a heads-up to the script’s snarky tone by the title. Can’t you almost hear a parent or a teen screaming with a sarcastic sneer WHEN YOU FINISH SAVING THE WORLD, followed by a door slam?


At least once a week, high-schooler Ziggy Katz (Finn Wolfhard) must not be disturbed in his room. Is he studying or preparing for a school play? No, he’s in his makeshift podcast studio, serenading his worldwide web audience with his original folk/pop tunes (and hoping for some money online transfers with their applause). This baffles his stodgy parents. His dad Roger (Jay O. Sanders) is a befuddled academic who wanders the different rooms. The most irritated is Evelyn (Julianne Moore), who pressures Ziggy to devote time to more serious pursuits, mainly college. Ziggy insists that he’ll be a famous music superstar any minute now. In the mornings she often drives him to high school, with his guitar case strapped to his backpack, on the way to her job at an abused women’s shelter. It’s there that Ev becomes very interested in one of the new residents. Kyle (Billy Bryk) has helped his mom get away from his violent father. Ev seems to envy their close bond and decides that her big new project will be getting Kyle into college and away from his dad’s garage (he’s a mechanic there). Meanwhile, Zig becomes smitten with one of his classmates, Lila (Alisha Boe). He finally joins her and her pals at their lunch table. Unfortunately, they don’t care about his tunes, as they discuss “political stuff” like climate change and nationalism leaving Zig in the dark. But he’s determined and joins her at a “current events coffeehouse”, where the enlightened teens scoff at his silly songs. And then he hears Lila recite her own poem about the Marshall Islands. A bulb lights above his head. He can turn it into a rousing musical anthem! Will this be the way to her heart? And will this cause a rift with mom Ev now that she seems to have a “surrogate son” in Kyle?

Moore effectively buries her usual sunny screen persona as the often deadpan, fairly humorless mama Evelyn. With her body language seemingly forever braced to endure the frustration of the world, especially her only son, Moore’s Ev appears to yearn for just a smidgeon of joy. When she encounters Kyle we can see that light flicker on, brightest when she even plays a silly prank on the earnest lad. It flickers out when Ev realizes that she’s overstepped and Moore conveys her falling spiral back into place. Wolfhard gives the complex Ziggy a really complex characterization. He’s casually vicious to his folks while putting on an adorable, ingratiating front to his fans and online patrons. And then he’s sweetly “gobsmacked” by Lila, though his confidence is chipped away when she and her “smart friends” mock his vapid shallowness. Wolfhard shows us that beneath his musical arrogance, he’s still hoping to fit in. Boe’s Lila is that “object of desire” who’s trying to be nice to the overeager Zig, but doesn’t want to “lead him on” since she’s into changing the planet through actions, not silly melodies. As for Ev’s focus, Bryk gives kyle a simple sunny dignity as he remains devoted to his mom as he’s puzzled by Ev’s push into higher learning. Floating above most of the chaos is the funny Sanders whose Roger just wants a nice quiet dinner and to be acknowledged for his own career (he has a fit when neither Ev nor Zig attends his honors banquet).


Oh, that actor/director is none other than the pseudo-Zuckerberg Jesse Eisenberg, who also penned the screenplay adaptation based on his 2020 Audible Original work. Mmm, maybe this is also pretty close to another release from this weekend, MISSING, since a good chunk deals with online connections, and the opening sequence is a monitor screen that’s filled with tabs of Zig’s smitten fanbase. Other than that Eisenberg eschews any fancy storytelling techniques to highlight the two main characters and the terrific acting duo. He commits to the awkward home encounters that can unexpectedly explode in verbal “throw-downs” as neither side really understands the other’s way of thinking. Still, it’s hard to believe that Zig’s “enlightened” parents would permit his many “FU’ tirades (maybe it’s a dig at the whole”don’t stifle the child’s spirit” mentality). Those fraught encounters take a backseat after the first act to concentrate on the twin “manias” with Zev wanting a girlfriend and Ev trying to retrieve a paternal bond. This all culminates in a fairly hopeful final denouncement that doesn’t feel drawn out. And that may be the best part of the whole thing. After a recent spate of bloated three-plus hours of self-indulgent cinema, Eisenberg embraces brevity with a blessed 88-minute runtime which feels…just right. Maybe not for a sweeping historical epic, but almost perfect for a mother/son dramedy. And that’s a real ‘saving grace” for WHEN YOU FINISH SAVING THE WORLD.


3 Out of 4

WHEN YOU FINISH SAVING THE WORLD is now playing in select theatres

DEAR EVAN HANSEN – Review


(from left) Connor Murphy (Colton Ryan) and Evan Hansen (Ben Platt) in Dear Evan Hansen, directed by Stephen Chbosky.

And a week later we’re back in the messy, stress-filled, anxiety-inducing halls of high school in this new film. Oh, this has songs too, since it’s also based on a musical produced for the stage. But that may be where the similarities end (well, Daddy’s not running the house). EVERYBODY’S TALKING ABOUT JAIMIE is set in the UK, Sheffield specifically, with a lead character who’s fairly happy, though he yearns to follow his drag diva dreams. Across the pond, in the US in an unnamed sunny suburb (probably in the West, with mostly Atlanta, again, based-locations), this title character (he gets his full name, though) doesn’t really have such long-term goals. He’s just trying to “push on” while remaining essentially invisible to his classmates. Oh, and this tale tackles life and death issues, really. Plus it was a big Tony winner back in 2015. And all the songs and drama stem from a letter that opens with DEAR EVAN HANSEN.


Actually, those are the first words we see, on a computer monitor. Nervous, always anxious Evan (Ben Platt) is completing the daily assignment given to him (along with a prescription for lots of meds) by his therapist. It’s a letter to himself, a sort of written “pep talk’, pushing him to assert himself and strive for positivity. He’s interrupted by a phone call from mother Heidi (Julianne Moore) who has to work later at the hospital (she’s gotta pick up shifts since her hubby went AWOL years ago). Soon Evan arrives for the first day of his senior year of high school. He dashes to the gym where he helps run the audio system for the big “welcome assembly” alongside old “family friend”, the snarky Jared (Nik Dodani). As usual, Evan pines for the band’s cute guitarist, Zoe (Kaitlyn Dever). Unfortunately, Evan runs afoul of her sullen brother Conner (Colton Ryan) in the computer room. After writing his name in huuuge letters on Evan’s arm cast, Connor snatches up Evan’s daily letter from the single printer. Incensed at the mention of his sister in it, Connor storms off with the letter. Days later, Evan is called into the principal’s office where he meets Connor’s distraught parents, Cynthia (Amy Adams) and Larry (Danny Pino). It seems their son took his own life and the only note found was Evan’s stolen letter. Cynthia believes it was written by Connor and that he and Evan were “secret” BFFs. In an effort to give them some comfort, a flustered Evan lies. This lie leads to others as he and Jared compose more “fake” emails for a “fake” secret online account. Soon Evan is coming over to Cynthia’s home, mostly to be closer to Zoe. But things get more complicated when the very popular Alana (Amandla Sternberg) approaches Evan about raising funds for a suicide prevention program dubbed “The Connor Project”. When his speech goes viral, Evan finds himself drowning in a sea of deception. Can he stay adrift or will he be dragged down in the depths of (well-intentioned) deceit?

Reprising his Tony-winning role, Platt easily works past the media speculations about his “aging-out” of the seventeen-year-old (hey look at most teen TV dramas from a few decades ago) and is achingly believable as the awkward, twitchy Evan. His social awkwardness is expertly conveyed by Platt’s body language as he walks stiffly with shoulders haunched and arms never veeringly far from the torso. This also heightens his musical numbers as his confident singing makes up for his character’s stunted verbal skills. As his fib grows we see him start to blossom (thanks to Zoe, perhaps), occasionally lashing out (poor mum), but that “skittish mouse” is always there, especially when the “social walls” begin to close in. As Zoe, Dever projects a lot of the rebellious, but still accessible “cool kid” vibe as she delves into her complex family issues (at the dinner table she’s the unfiltered “voice of truth”). As for the main adults, Adams as Cynthia is vulnerable and somewhat fragile as she uses the “letter’ as a lifeline that will soften her grief, holding on to a fantasy of her son with her last bit of strength. Pino as Larry tries to be the “solid anchor’ for the floundering family, but he’s trying to push down his own feelings of anger at rage (over Connor, but mainly directed at himself). Though she’s absent (dashing through the hospital) for most of the tale’s midsection, Moore is strong but somewhat oblivious as the frazzled, but proud Heidi, who truly thinks her son has defeated his past demons (and Moore does well with her solo song). Sternberg is quite compelling as the high school “joiner” and organizer whose bright smile is her shield against her own insecurities as she and Evan bond over their mood-altering meds. Ryan, in a pivotal role with little screen time, ably handles the different “versions” of the volatile Connor, truly scary in hisreal encounter with Evan, and endearing as Cynthia’s “fantasy” of a sweet devoted pal. And luckily, Dodani generates some much-needed levity as the cynical Jared, taking the “p#*%s” out of his “bro” at nearly every turn.

The direction from Stephen Chobsky (best known for helming the movie of his YA novel THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER) is very creative, exposing little of the material’s “stage roots’, while “opening up” the story and making it a bit more intimate, as the camera can focus in on the main characters. He eases the action into the musical numbers with few bombastic bits of flourish. Plus he makes great use of montages in order to bring us into the “viral world”, which is as important a setting as the school or Zoe’s opulent home (or Heidi’s modest two-bedroom tract house). Unlike the aforementioned JAIMIE, there’s not an abundance of flashy dance numbers (“Sincerely, Me”, a fantasy duet with Evan and Connor comes close), which aid in showcasing the clever songs by Justin Paul and Dan Romer (LA LA LAND). The screenplay from Steven Levenson (another Tony winner)aptly explores the social hierarchy of high school while also touching on economic class clashes (Evan likes the “swanky digs” at Zoe’s), though the third act (like many stage shows) feels a bit lacking in its denouncement, especially as Evan “faces the music” while trying to achieve a somewhat hopeful finale’.I kept harkening back to a much darker, though similar in subject teen comedy/drama from 2009, Bobcat Goldthwait’s WORLD’S GREATEST DAD, which is an underrated gem with a messier, but more compelling conclusion. The final moments aside, this is one of the better stage adaptations with soulful songs and a stellar cast giving the flick a real emotional punch. DEAR EVAN HANSEN delivers its heartfelt message both dramatically and musically, one that should resonate with all ages (and hopefully lead to some needed family discussions).

3 Out of 4

DEAR EVAN HANSEN opens in select theatres on Friday, September 24, 2021

SPIRIT UNTAMED – Review

With the kiddos finally out of school (unless they were still “splitting the time” online and in-person), the studios are actually releasing some “child-friendly” fare right into the gradually re-opening multiplexes. Not a big superhero blockbuster, but an animated adventure arrives this post-holiday weekend. Is it something new from the “mouse house”, or its sister company, the recent Oscar-winner Pixar? Well, this is from one of their biggest rivals, the “studio that SHREK built”, Dreamworks Animation. And it’s not exactly new, but more of an “inspired by” than a sequel or franchise entry. It all goes back to a “2D’ (or “classic cell/drawn”) feature from nearly twenty years ago. That feature spawned a “3D’, or “CGI/computer”, streaming series on Netflix. But things have come full circle (much like a corral) as the property returns to theatres, though still “computer-rendered”, with (cue the whinny) SPIRIT UNTAMED. Giddyup!


Now, jes’ you hold yer’ hosses’! This tale starts with a flashback, sometime in the late 1800s. In the frontier town of Miradero, everyone gathers for the big annual rodeo celebration. The highlight is a performance by the amazing rider/acrobat Milagro Novarro-Prescott. Her biggest fans in the adoring audience are her husband Jim and their toddler daughter that everyone calls “Lucky”.Oh, but luck is not with her that fateful day, as a stunt while perched atop a beautiful showhorse goes horribly wrong. Fortunately Lucky is too little to understand the tragedy, while her papa is consumed with sadness. So sad, that Lucky is sent off to live with his older sister Cora (Julianne Moore) in the Eastern US mansion of her grandpa’. But as Lucky grows into a pre-teen, her mother’s rebellious nature comes to the fore (she wrecks a big political banquet). It’s then decided that Lucky should reunite with her Daddy, so Aunt Cora accompanies her on a west-bound train. It’s there that Lucky first sees the beautiful Spirit, leading a group of wild horses running alongside the locomotive. Unfortunately, the leader of a group of no-good varmits’, the brutal Hendricks (Walton Goggins), also sees the stallion and hatches a plan to capture the herd and sell them to finance their next big “job”.. The father and child reunion is strained when Lucky tells Jim (Jake Gyllenhaal) that she wants to find Spirit. Fearing that she will suffer the same fate as her mama, he forbids it. But when Hendricks snares Spirit and holds him at a local stable, Lucky, with her new pals Pru (Marsai Martin) and Abigal (McKenna Grace), tries to free him and eventually protect all the wild horses from the evil outlaws.


This simple story is elevated by the vocal casting of several screen (big and small) veterans. And there’s even an Oscar winner, though Ms. Moore’s Cora is mainly there for comic relief, an uptight starched shirt that will take a tumble into the water trough (among many indignities). But Moore gives it her best, though she deserves something more interesting than slapstick peacemaker in the household. Gyllenhaal voices the head of the household and brings haunted compassion to the morose man in need of some fun. And that comes in the form of Lucky, played by relative newcomer Isabella Merced who projects a bouncy can-do attitude, adding to her character’s empathy and fearlessness, a young lady who’s much more than a “damsel in distress”. The cause of much of that drama and disaster is the sinister Goggins, who makes Hendricks an often charming rattlesnake (you never turn your back on him) who oozes civility when cozying up to Cora, but shows her true colors to his cronies. Another great vet, though sadly underused here is Andre Braugher as the stable owner, and Pru’s dad, who offers a friendly shoulder, and good advice, to Jim.

Directors Elaine Bogan and Ennio Torresan give this childhood wild west fantasy a nice glossy, candy-colored sheen, ready-made for the retail toy shelves. I can see the rows of Spirits, his caramel coat perfectly balanced with patches of white. And nearby the kid characters with slightly oversized noggins illuminated by wide eyes (the three young girls and annoying, wanna-be comic relief kid brother Snips with tiny donkey). But unlike rival Disney/Pixar, and even the other Dreamworks franchises, there’s just not enough emotional depth or conflict to engage audiences apart from the “pre-K’ set (guessing this may be the first theatre experience for many wee ones). Sure, there are disagreements, but nearly everyone is “nice”, which helps us appreciate the Hendricks gang, their character design filled with sharp angles and beady eyes, a contrast to the smooth, soft Prescotts and company. This is really a “mild” rather than wild west with the town of Miradero more of a pristine theme park (exit through that gift shop, natch’). The story hits all the correct “girl power” buttons, but there’s little for that coveted “all-ages crowd”. At least Spirit doesn’t quickly submit to Lucky, forsaking his “wild side” to hasten the plot. My mind drifted often, thinking about Lisa Simpson sitting in the front row of the Springfield Aztec for multiple showings. Now if she made the trio a quartet, well, then you’d have something. I’m certainly not the target audience, but beginning filmgoers deserve something more engaging than the cotton-candy fluff of SPIRIT UNTAMED. Whoa, dismount!

1.5 Out of 4

SPIRIT UNTAMED is now playing in select theatres everywhere

GIVEAWAY – Win Tickets To See To SPIRIT UNTAMED – In Theaters June 4

THIS SUMMER, TAKE THE RIDE OF A LIFETIME! FROM THE STUDIO THAT BROUGHT YOU HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON: THE HIDDEN WORLD, DREAMWORKS ANIMATION PRESENTS SPIRIT UNTAMED. RATED PG. ADVENTURE AWAITS IN THEATERS JUNE 4TH!

An epic adventure about a headstrong girl longing for a place to belong who discovers a kindred spirit when her life intersects with a wild horse, Spirit Untamed is the next chapter in the beloved story from DreamWorks Animation.

Lucky Prescott (Isabela Merced, Dora and the Lost City of Gold) never really knew her late mother, Milagro Navarro (Eiza González, Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw), a fearless horse-riding stunt performer from Miradero, a small town on the edge of the wide-open frontier.

Like her mother, Lucky isn’t exactly a fan of rules and restrictions, which has caused her Aunt Cora (Academy Award® winner Julianne Moore) no small amount of worry. Lucky has grown up in an East Coast city under Cora’s watchful eye, but when Lucky presses her own luck with one too many risky escapades, Cora picks up stakes and moves them both back with Lucky’s father, Jim (Oscar® nominee Jake Gyllenhaal), in Miradero.

Lucky is decidedly unimpressed with the sleepy little town. She has a change of heart when she meets Spirit, a wild Mustang who shares her independent streak, and befriends two local horseback riders, Abigail Stone (Mckenna Grace, Captain Marvel) and Pru Granger (Marsai Martin, Little). Pru’s father, stable owner Al Granger (Emmy winner Andre Braugher, Fox’s Brooklyn Nine-Nine), is the best friend of Lucky’s father.

(from left) Abigail Stone (Mckenna Grace) riding Boomerang, Lucky Prescott (Isabela Merced) riding Spirit and Pru Granger (Marsai Martin) riding Chica Linda in DreamWorks Animation’s Spirit Untamed, directed by Elaine Bogan.

When a heartless horse wrangler (Emmy nominee Walton Goggins, FX’s Justified) and his team plan to capture Spirit and his herd and auction them off to a life of captivity and hard labor, Lucky enlists her new friends and bravely embarks on the adventure of a lifetime to rescue the horse who has given her freedom and a sense of purpose, and has helped Lucky discover a connection to her mother’s legacy and to her Mexican heritage that she never expected.

Spirit Untamed is the next chapter in DreamWorks Animation’s beloved franchise that began with the 2002 Oscar-nominated film Spirit: Stallion of Cimarron and includes an Emmy-winning TV series. The film is directed by Elaine Bogan (Netflix and DreamWorks Animation Television’s Trollhunters: Tales of Arcadia) and is produced by Karen Foster (co-producer, How to Train Your Dragon). The film’s co-director is Ennio Torresan (head of story, The Boss Baby), and the film’s score is by composer Amie Doherty (Amazon’s Undone, DreamWorks Animation’s Marooned).

https://www.dreamworks.com/movies/spirit-untamed

FOR YOUR CHANCE TO RECEIVE A FANDANGO CODE GOOD FOR 2 TO SEE SPIRIT UNTAMED IN THEATERS STARTING JUNE 4TH, ENTER IN OUR COMMENTS SECTION:

  • Your name
  • Your email address

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY.

Apple TV+ Unveils Trailer For Series “Lisey’s Story,” Based On Best-Selling Novel By Author Stephen King

Apple TV+ today unveiled the trailer for the highly anticipated limited series “Lisey’s Story,” based on the best-selling novel, and adapted and written by author Stephen King. Starring Academy Award-winner Julianne Moore and Academy Award-nominee Clive Owen, the eight-episode Apple Original series will premiere globally on Friday, June 4, 2021, with the first two episodes, followed by new episodes every Friday.

Based on the best-selling novel by Stephen King, and adapted by the author himself, “Lisey’s Story” is a deeply personal thriller that follows Lisey Landon (Academy Award winner Julianne Moore) two years after the death of her husband, famous novelist Scott Landon (Academy Award nominee Clive Owen). A series of unsettling events causes Lisey to face memories of her marriage to Scott that she has deliberately blocked out of her mind.

One of Owen’s best films is CHILDREN OF MEN, also starring Julianne Moore.

An Apple Original limited series, “Lisey’s Story” is directed by Pablo Larraín, and hails from J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot Productions and Warner Bros. Television. King, Moore and Larraín executive produce alongside Abrams, Ben Stephenson and Juan de Dios Larraín.

Every episode of the series was personally written by King.

Joan Allen, Jennifer Jason Leigh, and Dane DeHaan star alongside Moore and Owen.

Julianne Moore, Alicia Vikander, Bette Midler, Janelle Monáe In THE GLORIAS Based on Gloria Steinem Autobiography

Watch Julianne Moore and Alicia Vikander as Gloria Steinem in the brand new trailer for THE GLORIAS.

The film will be On Digital and Streaming Exclusively on Prime Video September 30.

Journalist, fighter, and feminist Gloria Steinem is an indelible icon known for her world-shaping activism, guidance of the revolutionary women’s movement, and writing that has impacted generations. In this nontraditional biopic, Julie Taymor crafts a complex tapestry of one of the most inspirational and legendary figures of modern history, based on Steinem’s own biographical book ‘My Life on the Road.’

THE GLORIAS (Julianne Moore, Alicia Vikander, Lulu Wilson, Ryan Keira Armstrong) traces Steinem’s influential journey to prominence—from her time in India as a young woman, to the founding of Ms. magazine in New York, to her role in the rise of the women’s rights movement in the 1960s, to the historic 1977 National Women’s Conference and beyond.

THE GLORIAS includes a number of iconic women who made profound contributions to the women’s movement, including Dorothy Pitman Hughes (Janelle Monáe), Flo Kennedy (Lorraine Toussaint), Bella Abzug (Bette Midler), Dolores Huerta (Monica Sanchez) and Wilma Mankiller (Kimberly Guerrero).

Alicia Vikander (as Gloria Steinem) and Janelle Monáe (as Dorothy Pitman Hughes) in THE GLORIAS
Courtesy of LD Entertainment and Roadside Attractions
Download

Taymor gives us her singular take on that rare genre- the Female Road Picture, one in which the female leads do not die in the end, and where the “narrative” is not driven by romance or a bad marriage, or unrequited love or, for that matter, men. Gloria’s road story is about her “Meetings With Remarkable Women”. And that is a love story in itself.

When Steinem was asked how she feels about the movie:

I hope this story will inspire viewers to tell their own stories. After all, our brains are not organized by facts and statistics, but by narrative. As the famous quote by Muriel Rokeyser goes, “The universe is made up of stories, not atoms.” We have been sitting around campfires for all of human history, learning from each other in this way, and movies are a current campfire.

https://www.thegloriasmovie.com/

Julianne Moore (as Gloria Steinem) and Bette Midler (as Bella Abzug) in THE GLORIAS
Courtesy of LD Entertainment and Roadside Attractions
Download

First Look Preview of THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW Stars Amy Adams, Gary Oldman And Julianne Moore

Starring Amy Adams, Gary Oldman, Anthony Mackie, Wyatt Russell, Brian Tyree Henry, Jennifer Jason Leigh and Julianne Moore, here’s a first look at the brand new trailer for THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW.

Directed by Joe Wright (DARKEST HOUR), an agoraphobic child psychologist befriends a neighbor across the street from her New York City brownstone, only to see her own life turned upside down when the woman disappears and she suspects foul play. A stellar ensemble cast brings Tracy Letts’ screenplay based on the gripping, best-selling novel to life, where shocking secrets are revealed, and no one-and nothing-is what it seems.

THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW seems like an updated adaptation of the classic 1954 REAR WINDOW from Alfred Hitchcock. The stellar cast should bring in moviegoers looking for something after BLACK WIDOW opens at the beginning of May.

Twentieth Century Fox’s upcoming psychological suspense thriller opens in cinemas on May 15, 2020.

Amy Adams in “The Woman In The Window.”

Twitter: @DoctorIsIn

Facebook: @WomanInTheWindowMovie

Instagram: @WomanInTheWindow

Hashtag: #WomanInTheWindow