Tag: comedy

Review: The Post and Oscar Nominations

Hello readers,

I recently saw The Post starring Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep so I am going to write my review and talk a bit about the context of the film and what it means in today’s climate in the USA. Also I am going to share my opinions on some of the Oscar nominations.

The Post (2017)

The Post is set in 1971 and tells the story of the Washington Post trying to print the Pentagon Papers – around 7,000 pages of government secrets about the relations between the United States and Vietnam for over 20 years. The information was kept quiet by the government to protect themselves until Dan Ellsberg, who worked for the Department of Defence, leaked the papers to the New York Times. The paper was told not to print any more of the secret documents unless they wanted to be taken to court by the US government. The Washington Post who wanted to be taken seriously as a national newspaper, found the source and decided to also print the Pentagon Papers. They all have to face decisions between obeying federal law and avoiding jail or fighting for the freedom of information and letting the public know what their government had been doing.

The Vietnam War had many casualties including over 50,000 American soldiers. 100,000 men were sent to fight by President Kennedy. Four US Presidents from Eisenhower to Nixon were involved in the Vietnam War and authorised thousands of troops being sent to fight in a war they knew they could not win.

Apart from Government secrets being kept from the people and freedom of the press, another issue addressed in The Post was sexism. Although Katharine Graham was the publisher of the Post, she still had to prove herself worthy enough of being on the board of the paper. She was the only woman on the Post’s board. For example, at an important meeting for the Post, when she was trying to get investors to back selling stocks for The Washington Post, Ms Graham had prepared her speech and another man next to her took over her speech. She did eventually manage to command the room and the decision to print the Pentagon Papers came down to her and not a man.

Overall I think the Post was a great film and very relevant to today’s US Government and the ideas of ‘fake news’ and the rigging of elections. I give the Post 5/5.

Also in other film news this week is the release of the Oscar nominations for this year’s awards. Many great films, actors, directors and other crew members were nominated.

Image result for oscars 2018

The biggest award of the night, Best Picture has many great contenders. I have only seen Call Me By Your Name (which I wrote about in November) and The Post but I hope to see a few more before the awards are handed out on March 4th. Personally, I think Call Me By Your Name was one of the best films of the year in terms of storyline, the actors, the setting, the director and the score. It has been nominated for 4 Oscars in total including Best Actor for Timothée Chalamet, Best Adapted Screenplay, James Ivory and Best Original Song – ‘Mystery of Love’ by Sufjan Stevens.

Armie Hammer and Timothée Chalamet in Call Me by Your Name (2017)

Other great films in the Best Picture category are Darkest Hour, about Winston Churchill and how he helped to win WWII; Dunkirk, about the famous battle of Dunkirk in WWII and the rescuing of over 300,000 troops from France; The Shape of Water which has a staggering 13 nominations and is about a woman connecting with an alien in the 1950s; and Get Out, a horror film about an interracial couple visiting the woman’s white parents for the weekend.

All of these films have received high praise so far, and have done well in other award shows. Darkest Hour directed by Joe Wright has a total of 6 Oscar nominations including Best Actor, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, Best Production Design and Best Make Up and Hairstyling. Gary Oldman has already won the Golden Globe and SAG Award for his role as Churchill. This year was the first time he has won any awards.

Gary Oldman, Kristin Scott Thomas, and Lily James in Darkest Hour (2017)

The war film Dunkirk directed by Christopher Nolan has 8 Oscar nominations including Best Sound Editing, Best Film Editing, Best Director, Best Sound Mixing and Best Original Score.  Starring in the film is Kenneth Branagh, Tom Hardy, James D’Arcy, Harry Styles and Mark Rylance. Christopher Nolan has also been nominated for the David Lean Award for Direction at the BAFTAs this year.

Fionn Whitehead in Dunkirk (2017)

The Shape of Water has nominations in many categories including Best Director, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Original Score and Screenplay, Best Sound Editing and Mixing and Best Cinematography. This comeback from Guillermo Del Toro, is set in the Cold War and stars women as the important characters.

Doug Jones and Sally Hawkins in The Shape of Water (2017)

Get Out has 4 Oscar nominations in total including Best Director and Best Actor for Daniel Kaluuya. Kaluuya has also been nominated for an EE Rising Star BAFTA Award for his breakthrough role.

Daniel Kaluuya in Get Out (2017)

The other Best Picture nominations are Lady Bird, Phantom Thread and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.

I hope that Timothée Chalamet wins Best Actor, but I predict that Gary Oldman will win as he has already won a Golden Globe and SAG Award for his outstanding portrayal of Winston Churchill.

I would like Margot Robbie or Meryl Streep to win Best Actress for their roles in I, Tonya and The Post. I think any of the nominees, also including Sally Hawkins, Saoirse Ronan and Frances McDormand could win.

For Best Director, I would like to see Greta Gerwig win as she is the only female nominee and her work is outstanding or Jordan Peele, for Get Out, his amazing debut. I feel like Christopher Nolan for Dunkirk or Guillermo Del Toro for The Shape of Water may win the Oscar.

The other awards are still important but I have picked a select few to comment on. If you feel inclined, please leave a comment below with who you want to win at this year’s Oscars.

Happy Watching,

Robyn 🙂

My Top Netflix Picks

Hello readers,

I have recently got a Netflix account so this post will be listing what I have been watching on the popular streaming service. I know I haven’t posted in a while but I was busy as I’m sure you all were over the Christmas/New Year Period. Hope you all had a great festive/ holiday season.

Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (2015)

I am currently on Season 2 out of 3 of this show and so far I am really enjoying it. Each episode is only 25 – 30 minutes so it is easy to binge watch which I have been doing.

The premise of the show is that Kimmy Schmidt and three other women were trapped in a bunker for 15 years from 2000 to present day. They are set free to live the lives they were robbed of by their cult leader, the evil Reverend. Kimmy is 29 and decides to live in New York City and create her new adult life there away from Dunsville, Indiana where she was held captive. She meets Lillian, a crazy lady who hates what hipsters are doing to the neighbourhood and Titus Andromedon, someone who also moved to New York City to pursue a dream: to be in the Broadway show, The Lion King. They all help Kimmy readjust to the modern world of mobile phones, the Internet and dating. She also gets a job working for Mrs Jacqueline Voorhees, a rich woman who can’t seem to do anything for herself.

This sitcom is definitely funny in its own unique way. The characters always seem to have a crisis but that’s life! Ellie Kemper (The Office, Bridesmaids) stars as Kimmy; Titus Burgess (30 Rock) as Titus Andromedon, Kimmy’s fabulous roommate; Carol Kane (Hester Street, Taxi, The Princess Bride) as Lillian, their wacky landlord and Jane Krakowski (30 Rock, Ally McBeal) as Jacqueline Voorhees, Kimmy’s self-centred boss.

This show is great if you are looking for something different and fun to binge watch as there are currently 3 seasons on Netflix. Also nominated for 16 Primetime Emmys and 4 SAG awards. The show is written by Tina Fey (30 Rock) and Robert Carlock (30 Rock, Friends).

Stranger Things (2016)

I know many people have seen this show, but I couldn’t not write about it. It is set in 1983 in the fictional mid-west small American town, Hawkins, Indiana. Four friends in middle school, Mike, Dustin, Lucas and Will gather in Mike’s basement to play Dungeons and Dragons. On the way home, Mike disappears. In his place appears a strange girl, Eleven who can move things with her mind. Mike’s sister, Nancy also investigates her friend, Barb who goes missing just like Will. Chief Jim Hopper is on the case, he thinks Hawkins Lab has something to do with the disappearances.

The acting and aesthetic of this show is really outstanding. You really believe it is set in 1983. The creators, the Duffer Brothers took inspiration from many 80s films like the Goonies, ET,Ghostbusters and many more. Each episode is 40 – 55 minutes and there are currently two seasons out but this show is also very binge-worthy. I am re-watching it for the second time because it is that good.

The ensemble cast are: Winona Ryder (Little Women, The Age of Innocence) as Will’s mum, Joyce Byers; David Harbour (Revolutionary Road, Suicide Squad) as Chief Jim Hopper; Finn Wolfhard (IT) as Mike Wheeler, the leader of the party; Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin Henderson, the goofy, knowledgeable one; Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas Sinclair, the practical one who brings the gadgets; Millie Bobby Brown as the mysterious Eleven; Natalia Dyer as Will’s sister, Nancy Wheeler; Charlie Heaton as Jonathan Byers, Will’s older brother; Joe Keery as Nancy’s boyfriend, Steve Harrington; Cara Buono as Mike’s mum, Karen Wheeler and Noah Schnapp as Will Byers.

Above are the main cast for Season 1, there are some added cast members in Season 2 but I don’t want to give anything away.

This show is a drama/mystery/horror and once you start watching you will be hooked. It has also been nominated for 4 Golden Globes (including one win by David Harbour), 18 Primetime Emmys (including 5 wins), 4 Sag awards (1 win by the ensemble cast) and 1 BAFTA nomination.

The Good Place (2016)

This sitcom style show has a different vibe to most TV programmes you see these days. Yes it is funny, with a certain amount of drama with some well developed characters but everyone in it is dead. It takes place in somewhere called The Good Place, somewhere everyone who was really kind and generous on Earth go after death to live out eternity, like paradise. Only those who have dedicated their lives to others go there. Everyone else goes to the Bad Place to be tortured.

Eleanor Shellstrop goes to the Good Place, at first she thinks she earned it but when she finds out the architect of the neighbourhood, Michael thinks she is someone else, she knows she is in the Good Place by mistake. When the neighbour experiences problems and Eleanor realises she is causing them, she decides to try and earn a spot in the Good Place through her ‘soulmate’ teaching her ethics. Chidi is meant to be Eleanor’s soulmate but due to an error, they realise they are only destined to be friends. She also befriends her neighbours, Tahani and Jianyu, who are soulmates or are they?

The show stars Kristen Bell (Frozen, Veronica Mars) as Eleanor; Ted Danson (Cheers, Becker) as Michael; William Jackson Harper (Paterson, High Maintenance) as Chidi; Jameela Jamil (The Republic of Telly and The Great Comic Relief Bake Off – herself) as Tahani, someone who Eleanor finds condescending and is the only one with an accent; D’Arcy Carden (Broad City, Other People) as Janet, a computer program who looks like a person, Janet contains all the knowledge in the universe and Manny Jacinto (The Romeo Section, Once Upon a Time) as Jianyu, a Buddhist monk who took a vow of silence aged 8.

This comedy is something different and I would recommend to ages 12 and up. I have seen season 1 as that is all there is on Netflix but there is also a season 2. Very easy to watch as each episode is about 23 minutes. It also won a Critics Choice award for Most Exciting New Series.

Jack Whitehall: Travels with My Father (2017)

This documentary starring Jack Whitehall (Bad Education, Fresh Meat) an actor and comedian and his uptight and middle class father, Michael. In this 6 part series, father and son go on the gap year Jack never had around South East Asia. They visit Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and go to many spots that only the locals know about. Jack takes his father along for some well needed bonding time as the two are like chalk and cheese. I find Jack Whitehall entertaining and the funny dynamic with his father makes this travel show different from the rest. Good to watch if you enjoy Jack’s humour from his TV series’ or stand up. The filming of the scenery is very good and you see this part of the world from a bird’s eye view and more.

Easy to watch as each episode is only half an hour. I binged this series in a couple of days. It is funny but also informative particularly of the history of Cambodia and the suffering the people have endured in the past, something which I was unaware of previous to watching the show. I would say it is suitable for 15 years and up due to the complex and often rude language used.

The Crown (2016)

This show tells the story of Queen Elizabeth II and her husband, Prince Philip, the monarchy of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth. It starts in 1947 when Elizabeth and Philip got married. It then depicts the history of the Crown from King George VI to it being passed down to his daughter. The show also features other members of the royal family from the 1950s, the Queen Mother, Queen Mary, Duke of Windsor, Princess Margaret and Prince Charles and Princess Anne as children. The show depicts the hardship and joys Elizabeth faced as a new queen whilst still trying to be a good wife and mother.

The audience is shown the emotions of the people behind the stories in the newspapers and how they dealt with each crisis. Many people view the Royal Family as having it easy, but there was a lot they weren’t allowed to do and they had virtually no privacy then.

Whilst the show portrays real life people and events that actually happened, we have no way of knowing if what the characters said to each other in private is correct or not. Nevertheless, I think that the show is excellent. The acting and set design make you believe that the actors actually are the people they are pretending to be.

Starring in the Crown created by Peter Morgan is Claire Foy (Breathe, Wolf Hall) as Queen Elizabeth II; Matt Smith (Doctor Who, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies) as Prince Philip; Vanessa Kirby (About Time, Everest) as Princess Margaret; Victoria Hamilton (Doctor Foster, Scoop) as the Queen Mother; Pip Torrens (Pride and Prejudice, Star Wars: Episode VII) as Tommy Lascelles, Private Secretary to King George and Queen Elizabeth and John Lithgow (Cliffhanger, Interstellar) as Sir Winston Churchill.

The show has won 2 Golden Globes (1 for Claire Foy), been nominated for another 3 (1 for Claire Foy and 1 for John Lithgow), won 3 Primetime Emmys (1 for John Lithgow), nominated for another 9 (1 for Claire Foy), won 2 BAFTAs, nominated for another 10 (1 for Claire Foy, Jared Harris (The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Lincoln) who played King George VI briefly in Series 1; John Lithgow and Vanessa Kirby).

The Crown has also won 2 SAG awards (1 for Claire Foy and 1 for John Lithgow), been nominated for another 3 (1 for Claire Foy), won a Critics Choice TV award for Best Supporting Actor – John Lithgow and been nominated for 2 more (1 for Jared Harris).

Clearly, the show is a success for Netflix and one of their most popular shows. There are currently 2 series out, I am half way through series 2 and I really love it. I didn’t know half of what happened in the Royal Family at the time and the acting, costumes and set really transport you there. Each episode is about 1 hour long but it is definitely worth watching.

Grace & Frankie (2015)

The premise of the show is quite simple, Grace and Frankie are told by their husbands, Sol and Robert that they both want a divorce because they want to marry each other. Turns out both Grace and Frankie’s 40 year long marriage was only real for half that time. Robert and Sol, who are partners in a law firm have been secretly gay and in a relationship for the last 20 years and want to get married as it is now legal.

Grace and Frankie have known each other for those 40 years but they are far from friends. Grace ran her own beauty business and believes appearance is everything. Grace teaches art to former convicts and is also a hippy who likes to take drugs and live wild and free. After their husbands leave them, they share their co-owned beach house and gradually begin to get along. Both have two children, Grace has feisty Brianna who now runs her business and Mallory who has 2 kids and a husband of her own who is more conventional and generous. Frankie has 2 boys, both adopted, Bud who is practical and a lawyer like his dad and Coyote who is a recovering drug addict searching for his purpose in life.

Together both families navigate their new and unexpected dynamic with hilarity and drama along the way. Starring in the show are Jane Fonda (Barbarella, 9 to 5) as Grace, Lily Tomlin (9 to 5, Grandma) as Frankie, Sam Waterston (Law and Order, The Great Gatsby, 1974) as Sol, Martin Sheen (The West Wing, Apocalypse Now) as Robert, Brooklyn Decker (Just Go With It, What to Expect When You’re Expecting) as Mallory, June Diane Raphael (The Disaster Artist, Forgetting Sarah Marshall) as Brianna, Ethan Embry (Sweet Home Alabama, That Thing You Do!) as Coyote and Baron Vaughn (Cloverfield, Black Dynamite) as Nwabudike ‘Bud’.

This comedy has been nominated for 1 Golden Globe for Lily Tomlin, 7 Primetime Emmys (2 for Lily Tomlin, 1 for Jane Fonda) and 4 SAG awards (2 for Lily Tomlin, 2 for Jane Fonda).

Each episode is around 25-30 minutes and there are currently 3 series with a fourth coming on Netflix very soon. I have just finished series 1 and I will definitely be continuing to watch it.

Recommendations I have received from friends are Gilmore Girls, Brooklyn 99, 13 Reasons Why, Black Mirror, How to Get Away with Murder and Orphan Black.

Hope any Netflix users find my review useful.

Happy Watching,

Robyn 🙂

My Weekly Recommendations 27th November

Hello readers,

I know it is Monday but I went home from university this weekend so I was extra busy with my parents so apologies for the late post. I will be doing some different posts soon but for now here is another rendition of what I have been watching this (last) week.

Cinema:

Call Me By Your Name (2017)

This film charts a story of two men meeting in 1980s Italy, they initially dislike one another but then they migrate to lovers. Sounds simple, which the plot is, yet it is 100% effective. The beautiful scenery of a hot Italian summer, the French language combined with Italian and English, the sensual soundtrack and costumes all come together to create a romantic love story that also explores being gay in the 80s and lusting after someone older then having to lose them. The main character Elio (Timothée Chalamet), a 17 year old who is a gifted musician at first dislikes the loud all American student that comes to stay for the summer, played by Armie Hammer. He gradually realises his feelings for Oliver(Hammer) are not hate but love. Chalamet’s performance is stand out, his emotions are always written all over his body unless he is trying to hide them. He looks French, his parents holiday in Italy but is American. His accent and piano playing are also spot on. Hammer is also great in his role, knowing when to be forward and play hard to get. Also starring are Michael Stuhlbarg (A Serious Man) as Elio’s father, a professor of archaeology who invites Oliver to be his student; Amira Casar (Versailles) as Elio’s mother; Esther Garrel (17 Girls) as Marzia, Elio’s girlfriend who he gradually drifts away from as he becomes closer to Oliver and Victoire Du Bois (From the Land of the Moon) as Chiara, a girl who dances with Oliver and proceeds to lust after him.

A gorgeous film that made me smile and empathise with Elio even though I am not a boy in 1980s Italy. Chalamet made you feel Elio’s jealousy, fear, excitement, sadness, happiness and boredom. He truly brought Elio alive. Overall I give Call Me By Your Name 5/5.

DVD

Two Weeks Notice (2002)

This charming little rom com set in New York City starring Hugh Grant (Four Weddings and a Funeral) and Sandra Bullock (Miss Congeniality) is definitely a feel good movie if you need to be reminded what it is like to love and not be loved back. Sandra Bullock plays Lucy, a lawyer who uses her Harvard education to fight against social injustice. She is offered at random a position as lawyer by George Wade (Grant) who is the face of Wade Corporation, a development company trying to knock down every old building in the Big Apple for their own gain. Lucy, who regularly protests against George’s company accepts the job deciding she can do some good from the inside. She excels at her job and becomes the one George turns to for everything, what outfits to wear to his divorce settlement. Lucy decides he is too demanding and quits for her own health. During her two weeks notice, whilst seeing her replacement, June cosy up to George, Lucy starts to feel one emotion for George she never thought she would: love. She continues to be professional and not let her rare feelings get in the way of quitting. A classic Hugh Grant film in which his character has some shocking similarities to Donald Trump pre 2016 who incidentally turns up for a surprise cameo during a benefit. I liked this film, definitely one to watch if you love Hugh Grant in Love Actually or Sandra Bullock in The Proposal. Also starring are Alicia Witt (88 Minutes) as June Carver, Lucy’s replacement; Dana Ivey (The Adams Family) as Lucy’s tough talking mother; Robert Klein (How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days) as Lucy’s dad; Heather Burns (You’ve Got Mail) as Meryl, Lucy’s friend and David Haig (My Boy Jack) as Howard, George’s business partner and brother. Overall I give this film 4/5.

Amazon Prime

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (2015)

C.I.A agent Napoleon Solo (Henry Cavill, Superman) and Illya Kuryakin (Armie Hammer, The Lone Ranger) a KGB operative are forced to work together to reach a common goal in the 1960s when the tension between Russia and the US is at a high point. Both agents have no choice but to work for the mysterious organisation. The film starts with an epic car chase through the streets of Berlin, where Solo and Kuryakin fight each other but are then forced to be a team. They meet Gaby (Alicia Vikander) a car mechanic who’s uncle has connections to the Vinciguerra family. Victoria Vinciguerra (Elizabeth Debicki) is building a nuclear bomb and Solo, Kuryakin and Gaby must work together to stop their common enemy from destroying the world as they know it. This film is cheesy and a parody to movies of the time, adapted from a television series of the same name but ultimately a good watch. The blossoming romance between Vikander and Hammer who pose as a couple to be wed gives the film a softer edge. There is also violence but it is more comic and entertaining than gruesome. Hugh Grant also appears as a British agent bringing in reinforcements for the final mission. The dynamic between Cavill and Hammer also gives some classic masculinity that Guy Richie, the director is famous for. Also starring are Luca Calvani (When in Rome) as Alexander Vinciguerra, Victoria’s husband and Sylvester Groth (Inglorious Basterds) as Gaby’s Uncle Rudi. Overall I give The Man From U.N.C.L.E. 4/5.

Hope you enjoy my 3 picks this week, other honourable mentions include Sleeping with Other People (2015) and What to Expect When You’re Expecting (2012).

Happy Watching,

Robyn

My Weekly Recommendations

Hello readers,

Even though this is only the second post on this blog, I feel like I am getting more into writing this. I had a small break from the blog before it really even got started due to starting university but now I am back.

So let’s get to the point: the films I have watched this week.

Cinema:

I now volunteer at the independent cinema where I now live so I get to watch new films every week and this week was Blade Runner 2049. I actually saw this last month for my birthday and I was not too impressed. This time around I actually consciously chose to have a nap in the middle of the film and I find it extremely hard to fall asleep watching any movie let alone a noisy one like this but somehow I did. The film is not bad but it is not the type of film I would watch again (like I did). I felt the marketing by Sony was too hyped up. I went in expecting an action packed Ryan Gosling/ Harrison Ford duo movie with sci-fi and amazing special effects. I was disappointed.

From a film student, point of view (which is also me) the film was visually stunning, the scenery of the desert and post-apocalyptic world was really amazing and the colours and lighting in every shot was clearly well thought out but I felt the script and lack of action was what let Blade Runner 2049 down. Granted I had not seen the original Blade Runner (1982) so I wasn’t as invested in the characters as some people but I felt this reboot was not the film for me. A lot of others did enjoy it like The Guardian gave it 5 stars, but I do not. It’s okay for me to have my own opinion and I still bought a ticket and contributed to their box office gross. Overall I rate this film 3/5.

DVD:

I bought the film Eat Pray Love (2010) on DVD from a charity shop and this week I decided to watch it. It is based on a book by Elizabeth Gilbert that was a New York Times bestseller that I read last year and absolutely loved. The book is about  woman who divorces her husband and then goes on a year long trip to Italy, India and Indonesia. The book is also about God as she starts praying and in India she goes to an ashram – a place of prayer that was set up by her guru. The book really spoke to me so I went in with high expectations and I was not disappointed. This film may sell itself as a rom-com but to me is about finding out who you want to be in life and what your goals should be. The author Liz is played by Julia Roberts who does an excellent job at portraying all of Liz’s emotions and feelings with using few words and her face. Other cast members include James Franco, looking very young playing her lover David, Billy Crudup, her husband and Viola Davis, Liz’s friend in New York where she lives. The story was adapted in the film but Liz Gilbert worked closely with the producers and oversaw all changes made. Some things were added that actually happened but were not mentioned in the book. The film is long over 2 hours but it is worth it to get the full story. The only negative is I felt the film did not go into enough did about Liz’s time in Indonesia. Overall I rate this film 4/5.

Amazon Prime:

I watched Office Christmas Party on Amazon Prime. I know it’s a bit too early for Christmas but this film features some of my favourite comedy actors and actresses like Jason Bateman, Jennifer Aniston, Kate McKinnon and Rob Corddry. The film is about a technology company run by a relaxed boss who has taken over from his dad. The office branch is about to be closed by his workaholic sister (Aniston) so the office throws an epic Christmas party to close a client. Chaos ensues. I liked the fun nature of this film and the great one lines from some of the funniest comedic actors in Hollywood. The cast gelled well and set for the party was massive and very detailed. It also has drama and romance and an epic car chase at the end. For a funny Christmas movie, it actually had a plot that made sense. I also watched it because I saw the trailer when it was being marketed last Christmas and thought it looked like a good film to watch. Definitely one to watch if you love comedy and Christmas and don’t mind occasional American cheesiness. Overall I rate this film 5/5.

So these are my 3 recommendations for this week. Some weeks I may watch more films than this but this week I had some big assignments due so I watched more TV instead.

Happy watching,

Robyn