Movies

The King

Timothee Chalamet stars as Henry V in this adaptation of Shakespeare’s Henriad.  It’s not a bad film, I certainly enjoyed myself.  Joel Edgerton is always likable, and he does a nice job as Falstaff here.  The Battle of Agincourt is pretty well done.  Sean Harris is completely distracting through no fault of his own, but I can only see Solomon Lane with him.

But it doesn’t elevate in any way, and my brain’s pretty much discarded it already.

Regret watching? No

Would watch again? Yes

Would buy on DVD? No

Rating: Nice

Ford Versus Ferrari

I’ve heard so many good things about this movie, and I’d already seen the documentary The 24 Hour War, which covers the same story.  I came away disappointed, in that it wasn’t amazing.  But it’s not bad by any stretch, with the obviously top notch cast led by Matt Damon and Christian Bale.  I’m literally played the documentary again as I’m writing this, because I want the full story, not just from the dramatized POV of our two stars.  

Regret watching? No

Would watch again? Yes

Would buy on DVD? No

Rating: Nice

Glass Onion

I’ve been wanting to watch this ever since it came out, only getting to it just now.  The first act is absolutely delightful as Rian Johnson gathers all the players, sets the scene, and masterfully guides the audience to the beginning of the flashbacks.  

Things aren’t quite as exciting for the second act; All of the reveals are more “Ahhh, I see,” as opposed to “OMG, I can’t believe that’s what was going on!!!”  But this is also where Janelle Monae really shines.  I love her in Hidden Figures (where she performs one of my all time favorite monologues ever), and she doesn’t disappoint here, showcases amazing range that appears completely effortless.

The final act, where everything comes together, is kind of a mess, to be honest.  It’s not as cathartic as Johnson was probably shooting for, but it’s not a complete letdown.

Castwise, I was surprisingly underwhelmed; Kathryn Hahn, Dave Bautista, Lamar Odom Jr, Ed Norton, Kate Hudson, Jessica Henwick…It’s a stellar lineup, but no one really stood out.  Daniel Craig is the exception, he’s as beautifully hammy here as in the first movie, and I’m all for it.

I’m a little sad that the movie doesn’t live up to the levels of the first third, but I’ll happily watch as many of these as Johnson wants to crank out.

Regret watching? No

Would watch again? Yes

Would buy on DVD? No

Rating: Pretty good