BIG MIRACLE

Drama

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
John Krasinski: local television news reporter Adam Carlson
Ahmaogak Sweeney: native Alaskan 11-year-old Nathan
Drew Barrymore: his ex-girlfriend, Greenpeace volunteer Rachel Kramer
Kristen Bell: L.A. television news reporter Jill Jerard
Ted Danson: oil executive J.W. McGraw, President of Alaskan Oil Corporation
Dermot Mulroney: Alaska Army National Guard Colonel Scott Boyer
Vinessa Shaw: presidential aide Kelly Meyers

REVIEW
This family nature story is based on an actual event that took place in October 1988 (although the producers have taken a few liberties as noted below in the Nitpick section) when three gray whales got trapped in the ice near Point Barrow, Alaska. With a straight forward timeline, we get to see the frantic efforts against-the-clock to rescue these animals as winter approaches.

It’s interesting to see the various agendas the participants had but in the end the feel-good message is that everybody sets aside their petty differences and comes together in a common purpose.

CLASSIFICATION

for some strong language.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY
• Nathan takes one look at a woman and states “she’s hot”. These events took place in 1988 about 20 years before that colloquial expression became part of the lexicon of descriptive terms.
• The whales were given Inuit names Putu, Siku, and Kanik and English names Bonnet, Crossbeak, and Bone not Fred, Wilma and Bam Bam.
• The two Skycrane helicopters did not tow the barge they planned on using because it was frozen solid in the ice. Instead they repeatedly dropped a 5-ton concrete pillar in an effort to break up the ice.
• If your eyelashes freeze over just put your hand over your eye until the ice melts and you can open your eye. There is no need to resort to more unconventional methods.
• The lowest recorded temperature was 30-degrees below zero, not 50.
• When Rachel dons scuba gear she puts on a pair of gloves and plunges into the hole but in the underwater shots she no longer is wearing gloves but they reappear when she surfaces.
• Winter had not yet set in so the ice was only four or five inches thick not the ten inches or so when seen on edge.
• Water pumps were used to keep the water moving to prevent the ice from forming. Underwater heaters can not raise the sea temperature even one degree and so would be useless.
• The authorities would not allow the rescuers and the international media covering the event to remain standing directly in the path of a huge icebreaker intent on breaking though to them.

P.S.
Stihl chainsaws is one of the most blatant product placement campaigns ever, lacking the subtly usually associated with this form of marketing with close-ups of their product every chance they get.

P.S.S.
Stick around for the end credits when the photos of the real people are paired with their movie counterpart.

SAFE HOUSE

Action/adventure

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Denzel Washington: ex-CIA agent Tobin Frost
Ryan Reynolds: low level CIA agent Matt Weston
Brendan Gleeson: his boss David Barlow
Liam Cunningham: MI6 operative Alec Wade
Vera Farmiga: Catherine Linkater
Sam Shepard: CIA Director Harlan Whitford
Robert Patrick: CIA interrogation squad team leader Daniel Kiefer

REVIEW
They have squandered the talents (and good looks) of an A-list cast with a clunker. What a mess, literally, because it’s shot almost entirely with a hand-held camera resulting in jerky indistinct images flitting by. The editing it seems was done trying not to have any one scene appear for more than two seconds, three at most.

Despite this meat-cleaver style of editing too much has been left in with the result it goes on for almost 2 hours. That’s far too long for a movie that has very little in the way of a script with hardly any character development relying instead on non-stop action. It simply charges ahead at breakneck speed without much regard to telling a story, one that’s been done better by others many times before. Typical of this genre, it’s purposely confusing so you wind up scratching your head wondering “what the heck was that all about?”.

One more thing: bring ear protection because everything is loud, really loud and if you have something to say to your neighbour be prepared to shout. Better still: skip the whole thing and don’t waste two hours of your time.

CLASSIFICATION

for violence and profanity.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY
Matt winds up with a scratch that looks like railway tracks near the temple on the right side of his face. Throughout the film it changes from a single scratch to a double one.

THE GREY

Action/adventure

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Liam Neeson: John Ottway, an oil refinery sharpshooter
Frank Grillo: oil rig worker John Diaz
Dermot Mulroney: a co-worker Talget
Dallas Roberts: another employees Pete Hendrick
Nonso Anozie: Burke
Jacob Blair: Cimoski

REVIEW
This “one-note” survival tale soon becomes repetitive: action then interlude, action then interlude. The entire thing is déjà-vu with its motley group of men reminiscing about better times while waiting for the inevitable.

The only thing that sets it apart from similar movies are the great shots of the Alaskan winter landscape.

CLASSIFICATION

for violence, disturbing content including bloody images and pervasive language.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY
• A drilling rig is a work-only environment; there are no amenities on site such as a bar.
• Just prior to taking off a passenger gets up and changes seats: that is not allowed on commercial airlines and he would have been told by the flight attendant to return to his assigned seat.
• John’s abrasion on his left cheek changes shape and location throughout the film.
• The Alaska Air National Guard would conduct a coordinated search to locate an overdue commercial aircraft and the 210th Rescue Squadron helicopters with two “Guardian Angels” would provide any necessary medical intervention so nobody in their right mind would leave a downed aircraft. But then we would not have a movie would we?
• Ottway explains that Burke is suffering from hypoxia: in fact hypoxia occurs in healthy people when they ascend to high altitudes (above 12,000’) but in this instance they not even above the tree line, the first visible indication of higher altitude.
• The plastic used for miniature bottles of alcoholic spirits does not shatter with jagged edges like a glass bottle would.

P.S.
I don’t know why they bury an important piece of the plot in the end credits. But they do.

MY WEEK WITH MARILYN

Biographical drama

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Eddie Redmayne: 23-year-old Colin Clark
Kenneth Branagh: stage and screen star Sir Laurence Olivier
Julia Ormond: his wife Vivien Leigh
Michelle Williams: 30-year-old Marilyn Monroe
Dougray Scott: playwright Arthur Miller, Marilyn’s third husband
Zoë Wanamaker: Marilyn's acting coach Paula Strasberg
Judi Dench: stage and screen star Dame Sybil Thorndike
Emma Watson: wardrobe girl Lucy
Dominic Cooper: Marilyn’s manager
Toby Jones: Marilyn’s press agent

REVIEW
Based on the memoirs of Colin Clark and his involvement in the making of the 1957 romantic comedy “The Prince and the Showgirl” this film encompasses more than a week. In addition to being an insider’s look at the production problems it is an insightful portrayal of the “goddess of sex” herself.

The stunning performance by Michelle Williams as Marilyn Monroe outshines the rest of the cast, none of whom are slouches in their own right.

Production values are high with great attention to detail and some lovely cinemaphotography of the English countryside.

CLASSIFICATION

for profanity, sexual content and nudity.

THE ARTIST

84th Academy Award for Best Picture, Best Actor in a Leading Role, Best Directing, Best Costume Design, Best Original score

Drama
English intertitles instead of spoken dialogue

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Jean Dujardin: silent film star George Valentin
Missi Pyle: his costar Constance
Bérénice Bejo: aspiring actress Peppy Miller
John Goodman: Kinograph Studio boss Al Zimmer
Penelope Ann Miller: George’s wife Doris
James Cromwell: George’s chauffeur Clifton
George’s dog Uggie, a Jack Russell terrier

REVIEW
This modern version of a silent film is an odd combination: apart from one short sentence there is no spoken dialogue but there is sound with music and sound effects. Shot in black and white, the story is about the declining career of one film star and the rising fame of another.

With the intertitles kept to the bare minimum you have to rely upon your lip-reading skills to “catch” some of the dialogue. At times the actors use the exaggerated mugging technique typical of silent cinema but not always so it’s a bit of a hit and miss.

The acting is superb across-the-board and there are delightful dance sequences reminiscent of the musicals of the 1940’s. Overall a very entertaining movie with a bit of a novel twist to it.

CLASSIFICATION

for a disturbing image (must have missed it!) and a crude gesture (a quick one-finger salute).

THE IRON LADY

84th Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role, Best Makeup

Drama

F.Y.I.
Margaret Hilda Thatcher (née Roberts) born 13 October 1925 served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990.

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Meryl Streep: Margaret Thatcher
Olivia Colman: her daughter Carol
Jim Broadbent: her husband Denis
Alexandra Roac: young Margaret in her ‘20’s
Harry Llyod: young Denis Thatcher
Anthony Head: Deputy Prime Minister Geoffrey Howe

REVIEW
The film takes place over a 24 hour period while former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher is clearing out her husband's belongings. Her life unfolds through a series of flashbacks sometimes with actual period television footage. It’s a huge undertaking as it covers almost her entire life chronologically from when she was a teenager at the outbreak of WWII up to the year 2005. That’s a huge undertaking but the producers have wisely chosen not to dwell too long on any of the key events that took place during her career. To have done so would have resulted in a film three or four times longer than it is and who wants that?

Another good choice is to have Meryl Streep portray the Prime Minister. Streep's performance is nothing short of remarkable. She really nailed it this time, not only in the voice (and accent) but with the mannerisms and facial expressions. Streep holds the record for the most Academy Award nominations of any actor with sixteen. There is no doubt in my mind she will up that count by one.

Production values are top notch including costume design, set decoration, makeup (the best I’ve seen in years) and cinemaphotography all contributing to its elegant look.

CLASSIFICATION

for some violent images and brief nudity (nudity = one scene in which a topless lady is on screen for perhaps 1 second, maybe 2).

P.S.
She was nicknamed the Iron Lady in 1976 by Soviet media for her staunch opposition to communism.

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO

84th Academy Award for Best Film Editing

Murder mystery


PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Rooney Mara: Lisbeth Salander, computer hacker & researcher for Milton Security
Steven Berkoff: Henrik Vanger's lawyer Dirch Frode
Ulf Friberg: wealthy industrialist Hans-Erik Wennerström
Daniel Craig: Mikael Blomkvist, co-owner and writer for Millennium magazine
Robin Wright: Blomkvist's co-worker and lover Erika Berger
Christopher Plummer: Henrik Vanger, retired CEO of Vanger Industries
Yorick van Wageningen: Lisbeth’s state-appointed guardian, lawyer Nils Bjurman
Geraldine James: Harriet's cousin Cecila Vanger
Joely Richardson: Harriet’s sister Anita Vanger
Donald Sumpter: retired policeman Gustav Morell
Stellan Skarsgård: Martin Vanger, current CEO of Vanger Industries

REVIEW
Despite being a disgraced journalist (found guilty of libelling an industrialist), Mikael Blomkvist is called upon to investigate the disappearance of a wealthy patriarch's niece from 40 years ago. As with any good murder mystery there are red herrings (the phone call before the opening credits being one?) and lots of clues. But some of them come unexpectedly and with the background noise somewhat difficult to discern.

At the risk of giving away anything please note there are two key moments and without the luxury of being able to go back and reread sections in the novel from which the movie was adapted, you have to pay attention to be sure not to miss what is being said:
• When Blomkvist is talking to Anita on the bench in London
• When Blomkvist and Martin are in the basement of his house

Chockablock with A-List actors the one who outshines them all is Rooney Mara: her performance is worth the price of admission alone.

However at 2 hours and 38 minutes it is too long and the pace would have benefitted from some careful editing of the middle section.

CLASSIFICATION

for brutal violent content including rape and torture, strong sexuality, graphic nudity and language.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY
Blomkvist buys a pack of cigarettes along with a coffee. The sale of tobacco products in Sweden is not permitted in cafés.

Lisbeth would have known better than to take photos using flash of the panel behind a glass door as the result would be pictures with big white hotspots lacking any detail and therefore useless.