FRANCES HA

 Dramatic comedy

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS

Greta Gerwig: 27-year-old aspiring dancer Frances Handley

Mickey Sumner: Sophie, her best friend and roomie

Patrick Heusinger: Sophie’s Wall St. boyfriend Patch

Adam Driver: Sophie’s friend Lev

Michael Zegen: Lev’s roommate Benji

REVIEW

Two things set this low-budget film apart from the usual run-of-the-mill: there’s hardly any story and it’s shot in black-and-white. Snippets of Frances’ life play out in quick-cut fashion as she bumbles from one situation to another. Amusing a lot of the time even though there is a ring of truth about it which is probably not hilarious at all.

The acting is nothing exceptional except for Frances who steals every scene she’s in.

CLASSIFICATION

 for sexual references and language.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY

One of her friends tells Frances their flight from Paris to New York City took six and half hours. The fastest non-stop commercial flight actually takes more than an hour longer than that.

THE BEST EXOTIC MARIGOLD HOTEL

 Drama, comedy

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS

Judi Dench: recently-widowed Evelyn Greenslade

Tom Wilkinson: Graham Dashwood, a retired high court judge

Penelope Wilton: housewife Jean Ainslie

Bill Nighy: Douglas, her husband of 39 years

Maggie Smith: retired housekeeper Muriel Donnelly

Ronald Pickup: randy ol’ Norman Cousins

Celia Imrie: wealthy Madge Hardcastle

Dev Patel: the hotel manager Sonny

Tena Desae: Sonny’s girlfriend Sunaina

Lillete Dubey: Mrs. Kapoor, Sonny’s mother

Diana Hardcastle: Carol, a guest at a local hotel

REVIEW

The seven newly retired Brits who decide to spend their retirement years in a distant hotel get more than they expected. But we, the viewers, do not: it plays out like an episode of the long-running television soap opera As the World Turns with its focus on the relationships and difficulties of the group.

The talented cast do an impressive job with little material as there is nothing of real substance here, just a montage of personal experiences. And with a running time in excess of two hours it is too long overstaying its welcome by at least half an hour.

It’s mildly amusing provoking the occasional smile and although there are some comments that could be deemed offensive they are not said in a manner that would make anyone terribly upset.

One more thing: not wanting to give anything away, all I’ll say is that the transformation of one of the group has that contrived “good-feel” about it. You’ll know who I mean when you see it for yourself.

CLASSIFICATION

 for sexual content and profanity.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY

• Among the items Evelyn has in her carry-on bag is a big jar of pickles that the security agent allows her to take on board despite the fact it far exceeds the 100ml maximum capacity for any liquids.
• It is statistically impossible that seven strangers all happen to sit on the same row of chairs in the airport and all seven just happen to be going to the same hotel far away.

THE DESCENDANTS

84th Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay

Dramatic comedy

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
George Clooney: Matt King, a real-estate lawyer
Patricia Hastie: his wife Elizabeth
Amara Miller: their 10-year-old daughter Scottie
Shailene Woodley: Scottie’s 17-year-old year sister Alexandra
Mary Birdsong: Matt’s neighbour Kai Mitchell
Rob Huebel: her husband Mark
Nick Krause: Alex’s stoner friend Sid
Robert Forster: Matt's father-in-law Scott
Beau Bridges: Matt's cousin Hugh
Judy Greer: Julie Speer
Matthwe Lillard: her real estate husband Brian

REVIEW
Carefully balancing comedy with family drama provides for a very enjoyable film experience that mirrors real life. And so we buy into it. With a well developed story line, the complexities of the situation never get muddled nor confusing.

It’s nice to see Clooney actually do some real acting for a change rather than just being himself in some mindless caper with his buddies. The man can do it. However the supporting cast are no slouches either, especially Miller and Woodley. Hopefully we’ll see more of them in the future.

As an added bonus we get to see the real Hawaii, not just the stunning locations such as the iconic Waikiki Beach with Diamond Head in the background but also the more mundane downtown Honolulu, surburbia and the undeveloped rural areas. You can see why it’s called “paradise”.

CLASSIFICATION

for language including some sexual references.