Hamnet

Today I saw a work of art that made me believe there are people born in this world that are meant to lift our consciousness to an almost mystical level of connection.  I’m talking about the bonds between couples, siblings, children and parents.  Jessie Buckley and Paul Mescal are Agnes and William Shakespeare and based on the novel of the same name, this is the story of how and why the play comes into existence from a tragedy in their life.  It’s earthy and ethereal at the same time. It melds the imagined with reality taking us all to a time where nothing was automatic, life was difficult, and creativity was a commodity.  Chloe Zhao’s interpretation is so natural you’ll believe that   this isn’t a group of actors, but a family.  Rating:  4 ⭐️s - alas poor Yorrick 💀

Wicked for Good

Previously, Elphaba had been banished from Oz, Glinda had found her spot in the Wizard’s empire and moved from Shiz to a comfy penthouse in the Emerald City, Nessarose has become the Governor of Munchkin Land, Madame Morrible is still reeking political havoc and the flying monkeys and talking animals are nowhere to be seen.  For all of you who didn’t see the play or read the book that Wicked is based on, you might need to watch the first part and familiarize yourself with the characters and their backstories instead of depending on your ‘we’re not in Kansas” 1930’s version of Frank Baum’s political story bought into brilliant technicolor upon Dorothy Gale’s touchdown.  Not going to let the cat out of the bag here, but definitely recommend you see this.  There are Easter eggs all over the place.  Ariana and Cynthia are forces to be reckoned with not only with the Wizard (Jeff Goldblum) and Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh), but anyone who wants to be recognized as the top of their craft when it comes to musicals.  They’re exceptional.  The costumes, hair and make-up, special effects, I could go on, fabulous.  Two new songs melded in seamlessly.  Jon M. Chu’s direction is spot-on.  Rating:  Follow the yellow brick road and your heart 4 ⭐️s 💚🩷💚🩷 

Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere

What’s the old saying?  There is no ‘joy’ in Joisey, but there is Asbury Park, the Stone Pony, Atlantic City and the Boss.  God bless you Jeremy Allen White—you had big shoes to fill and you did it.  For better or worse, this is the story/recollection of the making of the album titled Nebraska released September 30, 1982 (my 30th birthday)  We’re taken back to Bruce’s childhood and given a glimpse at his lifelong struggle to deal with his abusive father, the pressures of fame, relationships, and depression.  He’s in a creative bunker situation and his solution to taking off the mental handcuffs is a little bit of genius.  For those of you who didn’t experience this decade as a teenager or an adult, it may strike you as odd, but to me it makes sense.  There are a plethora of songs performed by Jeremy and Bruce plus a number of era hits that settle us comfortably into the timeframe.  It’s honestly very difficult to tell if it’s real or Memorex. Soundtrack sil vous please. So glad the Boss didn’t succumb to his demons and continues to carry the real heartbeat of America.  Rating:  a pair of Levi 501’s, a white sleeveless t-shirt, a bandana and a kick-ass mix-tape — 3.75 stars

One Battle After Another

Jumping into the fray.  Our “hero” is a former underground radical revolutionist unexpectedly taking on the responsibilities of safely raising and protecting his daughter from his past.  An ultra conservative captain hellbent on ending any association he may have or had with said hero’s equally radical girlfriend and subsequent daughter, is the focus of Bob’s wild ride.  It’s sixteen years later and time and drugs have taken their toll.  Looking at this in a slightly twisted way, this qualifies as a Christmas movie in the same way as say, Die Hard or The Long Kiss Goodnight.  There’s dark humor and seriously scary moments that this writer got the feeling that the current administration may have been privy to a preview of this film and took it to heart instead of dealing with reality.  It’s edge of your seat tension, a kick-ass soundtrack, and roller coaster ups and downs.  Kudos to Leonardo DiCaprio, Regina King, Sean Penn, Benecio Del Toro, Teyana Taylor, and newcomer Chase Infiniti.  In the words of the late, great Gil Scot Heron…the revolution will not be televised.  Rating:  3.75 stars  Thank you Sensei.

 Fantastic Four

Ben, Susan, Johnny, and Reed, aka The Fantastic Four, arrived in the Marvel Universe in 1961.  In keeping with that timeframe and what mine and my fellow space cadets in grade school thought the future would look like, I certainly wasn’t disappointed.  Teal blue to infinity and beyond.  The sets, outfits, the overall feel of the film is dead-on.  Like the Sears Dreambook come to life.  We know that the 4 are superheroes from the get-go, so how does that make this more than a Century 21 luxury car show with mutated models displaying gigantic gas guzzling vehicles of the future?  Simple, add the unknown that could save or destroy the world in the blink of an eye and make the decision between fight or surrender one that even Solomon would find difficult.  Also make everything and everyone, including the car, fly.  I’ll have to admit that it took me some time to warm up and really become engaged with the story, but once I did, it made more sense.  Remember folks, we were just coming out of the Cold War, the Korean War, we were babies going to the moon, the iron curtain was shut tight, you were better dead than red, the future was personified through a bubblelator and Space Needle, Godzilla was still tops for ending the world in technicolor, stereophonic sound and go-go boots. I look forward to the next film and a much anticipated return of a character portrayed by someone you wouldn’t have expected.  Rating: it’s clobbering time-3 stars

Warfare

Set in Iraq 2006, this film is a recreation of a unit of Navy Seals on a reconnaissance mission in an Iraqi neighborhood that goes awry.  The entire experience is one of tension.  If you’re not a fan of war, violence, graphic results of explosions, I recommend you take a hard pass and watch something uplifting, perhaps a comedy or musical.  If you’re an advocate for world domination by force, here you go.  The actors who took on these roles are to be commended for sheer guts to put themselves in the vulnerable position of recreating PTSD scenarios.  It’s only make-believe, but it’s not.  At the end of the film, I still have the question of why?  War is not good for Children and other living things.  In any case, the realism is what stands out.  Anyone who says that automatic weapons should be made available to anyone, should have their heads examined.  Rating:  3 stars ⭐️  ☮️ 

How To Train Your Dragon - 2025

 A one word description of this live action version of the 2010 animated film and book is “exhilarating”.  The relationships between the characters, especially father and son, are key to the success of this monumental undertaking to show how kindness, compassion, empathy can make life on an island in the North Sea thrive.  The attention to detail in the costumes, hair styles, the surroundings both enclosed and exterior, amazing.  Action packed, humor infused with what would scare the pants off anybody facing the challenges presented here, perfection.  I viewed this in IMax and felt as though I was part of the action, which was pretty much non-stop when a dragon was present (95%).  Spectacular views — filmed in Iceland.  Melding of CGI and reality, seamless.  Casting was pretty much spot on.  Mason Thames may not be the first person to come to mind when looking for a actor to embody Hiccup, but he will definitely be associated with this role much the same as Mark Hamil is with Luke Skywalker.  Here’s to hoping Dreamworks has the good sense to continue the series.  Rating:  4 big sloppy night fury licks