Can You Ever Forgive Me (2018) ***

I had been looking forward to seeing this ever since I saw the trailer. The concept seemed delicious: A struggling writer discovers she can make money by forging colorful celebrity letters. And it's based on a true story! Turns out the movie is decent entertainment that doesn't quite live up to its concept.

Melissa McCarthy plays Lee Israel, a writer with some successful biographies under her belt. Unfortunately, when writing biographies, a successful book doesn't make you rich. Lee ekes out a living in a low-paying proof-reading job, which she loses for the same reason she has failed to break through in the publishing world: she is a misanthropic asshole. Her caustic wit is more caustic than witty, and people aren't willing to put up with that behavior from anyone who isn't rich and powerful. Desperate for cash, Lee stumbles upon a letter written by Fanny Bryce. She figures it's worth big bucks, but the bookseller she takes it to says it simply isn't interesting enough to sell for much. Lee decides she can improve on it, so she forges a pithy P.S. and the letter sells for enough to pay her rent. Lee's entrepreneurial spirit kicks in, and soon she has a collection of old typewriters, with which she forges colorful letters from a variety of dead celebs. The money flows in, but Lee gets addicted as much to the creativity as to the cash.

“Can You Ever Forgive Me” is based on Lee Israel's memoir of the same name, and to her credit, she whitewashes neither her toxic personality nor her crimes . She ultimately forged and sold over 400 letters, at least one of which found its way into a biography of the supposed author. She committed what is probably the literary crime of the century.

This is a case where a little artistic license might have been welcome. The film is funny at times and certainly fascinating, but it might have been a bit more fun to watch if they hadn't made Lee and her life so depressing. I think Melissa McCarthy does the best she can with the role, but Lee comes across as a drab person in drab clothes living in a drab apartment in, honestly, a drab version of New York City. Considering the outrageousness of the fraud Lee perpetrated, I feel like the filmmakers could have done better. Maybe they could have shared more of the apparently hilarious letters with us and focused less on Lee's cat. Still it's an interesting story and well-acted, including a terrific turn by Richard E. Grant as Lee's alcoholic, incorrigible confidant. As for the film's failings, I suppose we can forgive them.

3 stars out of 5

Barcelona (1994) **** and The Last Days of Disco (1998) ****

Like many directors, Whit Stillman likes to work repeatedly with a certain group of actors, and it's no wonder. If you find someone who is willing to recite the ridiculous lines that Stillman puts into his characters' mouths, you stick with them.

In Barcelona, Taylor Nichols (from Stillman's first film, “Metropolitan”) plays Ted, a stuffy American salesman in his company's Barcelona office. Ted's quiet life is disturbed when his free-loading cousin, Fred (Chris Eigeman, also a Stillman favorite) shows up. As part of his job, Ted gets to meet loads of pretty girls who work at a convention center, but he doesn't seem to get with any of them. Fred changes all that. Soon, the cousins are out on the town, meeting impossibly cute, sexually-liberated girls and falling in love, all to a backdrop of anti-American political sentiment.

Chris Eigeman returns for 1998's “The Last Days of Disco,” but the stars of the film are Chloe Sevigny and Kate Beckinsale. They play Alice and Charlotte respectively, a couple of college acquaintances, now junior book editors struggling on their low salaries to afford New York City rents and still enjoy the night life. Charlotte is hot, but as friends and roommates go, she's the worst. She says whatever mean thing comes into her head, oblivious to its effect on others. Here's a sample of conversation with Charlotte:

Charlotte: I'm sorry, it's just that you're so terrific, it makes me sick to think you might get in that terrible situation again where everyone hated you.

Alice: Hated me?

Charlotte: You're wonderful. Maybe in physical terms I'm a little cuter than you, but you should be much more popular than I am. It would be a shame if what happened in college should repeat itself.

These frenemies hit the club every night with a handful of friends. At the disco, they drink,do drugs, check out the freaky disco people, hook up, and talk. Especially, they talk, about subjects like “Do yuppies even exist?...I think for a group to exist, someone has to admit to be part of it.” They discuss the dark subtext of “Lady & the Tramp,” and the way “Bambi” turned an entire generation against hunting. Sex, romance, literature, they talk about everything, while in the background, the club gets raided for drug-dealing, and disco culture falls down around them. If Nero fiddled while Rome burned, this crew exchange aphorisms while disco burns.

This theme of self-involved young people chatting wittily while major events build in the background runs through both films. In Barcelona, Ted and Fred are busy falling in love, but this undercurrent of resentment against American imperialism keeps building, until it finally comes to an explosive climax. In “The Last Days of Disco,” the friends are self-absorbed, but totally un-self-aware. They don't see that they are helping destroy the thing they love. Disco started as something for the freaks and the gays, filled with people in elaborate costumes, and now it's being taken over by tourists in suits and ties. The sound and spirit that started in underground, French dance clubs has led to “Disco Duck.” The snake is swallowing its tail, and these yuppies' social life is about to be totally disrupted.

Whit Stillman films get some flack for being talky, but the thing is, they are hilarious! Listening to these nitwits pepper clueless aphorisms with occasional moments of self-realization is just good fun, if you can get into it. If you like Jane Austen, you'll probably like Stillman, and if you like both, then after watching these two gems, you need to check out "Love and Friendship," the unfinished Austen novel that Stillman finished and adapted into a movie.

4 stars for both.

The Favourite (2018) ****

As much as I hated Yorgos Lanthimos's film "The Lobster", that's how much I liked his latest feature, “The Favourite.” Based on historical events, it tells the story of Queen Anne, who ruled England from 1702-1714, and the two women who vied for her favor.

The tale begins with Lady Abigail, homeless and penniless after her alcoholic gambler of a father drove the family to ruin. With nowhere else to go, she flees to the royal residence, where her cousin, Lady Sarah (Rachel Weisz) is the closest friend and adviser to Queen Anne (Olivia Colman). Abigail is hired as a scullery maid, and her position in life is almost unbearable. She is completely cast out of the upper class of her birth, but the other servants won't accept her. Desperate to improve her situation, she mixes up an herbal remedy for the Queen's gouty legs. Initially punished for her impertinence, she is rewarded when the remedy works. Lady Sarah makes Abigail her personal assistant, and Abigail begins maneuvering to gain the favor of the Queen herself.

What do these two women use to gain favor and influence with the Queen? Lesbian sex. Turns out the widowed Queen embraces the love that dare not speak its name. Sarah is Anne's secret lover, but their relationship is pretty pathological. Sarah plays the role of best friend, adviser, and protector, but she actively guards the queen from outside influences in order to manipulate her power. Anne, lonely and in poor health, needs her friend, but she realizes on some level that she is being used. Olivia Colman does a brilliant job portraying this, which is why she won the Best Actress Oscar. There's one scene where Sarah and Anne attend a dance, and Sarah starts to really cut loose, dancing and flirting with the men. She's being cruel to her friend and lover, and Colman reveals Anne's hurt slowly, through subtle changes in her face. It's really impressive acting.

Once Abigail discovers Sarah's secret, she begins scheming to move up the ladder. She's a conniver, but really she has no choice. In a regimented class system, there is none so low as one who has fallen. Abigail intelligently realizes that Lady Sarah could cast her back down to the kitchens on any whim, so she does what she has to.

Once Abigail inserts herself into palace life, she finds herself in the midst of some interesting politics. The Whigs are the party of the merchant class, and eager to continue a profitable war with France. Those profits come from land taxes, so the Tories, who represent the landowners, would like to see the war end. Sarah has kept the interests of the Whigs front and center, but the disruption wrought by Abigail gives the Tories a chance to win the Queen's ear.

It's an interesting story, beautifully filmed. “The Favourite” deserved the many Oscar nominations it received, and probably should have won more. It's an artsy film, but more accessible than most. In the genre of films about gay, British monarchs, it's in the top tier.

4 stars out of 5

Cruel Intentions (1999) ***

If there was ever a story ripe for a modern re-telling, it is “Dangerous Liaisons,” Pierre Chaderlos de Laclos's 1782 novel of a couple of French aristocrats one-upping each other in a series of cruel sexual games, leaving behind broken hearts and shattered lives. The tale, told in a series of letters, made a scandal in 1782, and some have suggested that its depiction of upper-class decadence helped fuel the French Revolution of 1789. The book has been adapted to stage and screen in numerous forms and languages, including the absolutely classic 1988 version starring Glenn Close and John Malkovich. (If you haven't seen this,you need to remedy that, immediately!) There's also a terrific 1959 French version staring Jeanne Moreau.

Roger Kumble's 1999 telling, “Cruel Intentions,” brings the story into the privileged world of wealthy, modern-day, Manhattan teens. Sarah Michelle Gellar and Ryan Phillippe play Merteuil and Valmont, a couple of bored, beautiful step-siblings, whose parents seem to be completely absent. Living in a beautiful mansion, the two play out their attraction to each other by sharing tales of their sexual conquests. Valmont is widely known as a bad-boy, but Merteuil hides behind a screen of virtue, a trusted student-body president who serves as a mentor for younger girls. Merteuil is angry at a boy who has broken up with her, and unwilling to be seen publicly seeking revenge, she seeks to enlist Valmont to seduce and despoil the boy's new, freshman girlfriend, Cecile (Selma Blair). Valmont, however, is more interested in the challenge of seducing an incoming transfer student, the daughter of the school's new headmaster. Annette (Reese Witherspoon) is deeply Christian and an outspoken proponent of purity. Annette is the perfect challenge for the notorious ladies' man, and he has no time to waste on the horny airhead Cecile. Cecile's mother, however, sabotages Valmont by warning Annette about his reputation. Valmont decides to avenge himself by seducing the saboteur’s daughter, and Merteuil sweetens the deal by promising to sleep with Valmont if he successfully seduces both girls. Thus the stage is set for a classic tale of sexual terrorism.

“Cruel Intentions” very closely follows the 1988 “Dangerous Liaisons” film, and I enjoyed picking up on the modern versions of scenes from that movie. As a fan of the older film, I may have enjoyed “Cruel Intentions” more than I would have otherwise. Viewed strictly on its own merits, the newer film suffers in the acting department. Sarah Michelle Gellar does a fine job as the icy Merteuil, but Ryan Phillippe is his usual, wooden self. As good as Selma Blair and Reese Witherspoon have been in other movies, they are pretty weak here. Despite all that, I found the movie quite fun. The source material gives it a rich, layered plot, and Kumble mostly manages to sell the idea that these teens' sex lives are deadly serious. This film has somehow gotten a reputation as being full of sex, but I'm honestly not sure how it got its R rating. As opposed to the 1988 film, there's no nudity here, and most of the sexual activity is only alluded to. It's trashy fun, but it's no “Wild Things.”

3 stars out of 5

A Quiet Place (2018) ****

Jon Krasinski (Jim, from “The Office”-U.S.) directs and stars in this post-apocalyptic tale of a family surviving an alien invasion. Cleverly, the story skips all the explosions, military battles, President speeches and other Michael Bay-style end-of-the-world stuff (ironic, as Michael Bay is one of the producers). Instead, the film starts on day 89 of the End Times, in a world of necessary silence, where monstrous, blind aliens hunt by sound alone. The Abbott family has managed to survive, partly because their daughter, Regan (Millicent Simmonds), is deaf, so the whole family speaks sign language. They may be uniquely situated to adapt to this reality, but it's still a tenuous existence, even more so when we skip ahead a year to find Evelyn (Emily Blunt) pregnant. It's hard enough to keep older kids quiet; how will they keep a new baby from crying?

“A Quiet Place” works on many levels. First, it's a good monster movie. We slowly get introduced to the aliens, which are truly terrifying. They are massive, fast, and bulletproof. With no known manner of self-defense, humans live in fear of them the way rabbits fear coyotes. But the Abbotts don't merely cower in the shadows. In defiance of the day-to-day terror of making a single noise, they have pressed on with life, maintaining soft, dirt paths, making cloth gamepieces for their board games, and, of course, choosing to have another child. (Evelyn displays enough medical knowledge that we assume she could have induced an abortion if she chose.)

Krasinski does a really good job directing here, including choosing to go without a score for the first 30 minutes of the film, so we can truly appreciate the near-silence of the Abbotts' world. The small cast, including the child actors, is excellent. The story is compelling, and the ending is perfect. (Krasinski does borrow some cues from the “Aliens” movies and from Spielberg's “Jurassic Park,” but he does it well, and I'm not gonna count it against him.) “A Quiet Place” is a solid flick that will keep you on the edge of your seat, hand cupped to your ear.

4 stars out of 5

A Star Is Born (2018) **

They've been making and re-making this movie for over 85 years. It started with a 1932 film called “What Price Hollywood,” about an alcoholic movie star who takes an interest in a pretty waitress, giving her a shot in the movies. Her career rises while he continues to spiral downward. Then came 1937's “A Star is Born,” ripping off the exact same story. This title was re-made in 1954 with Judy Garland. They did it again in 1976 with Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson, this time making them musicians instead of actors.

This time around, Bradley Cooper directs and plays the central character, an alcoholic rock star named Jackson Maine. Jack has so much talent that even when he can barely stand, he can play a killer set for a packed house. Still, the liquor and pills are clearly taking a toll, as is his chronic tinnitus (ringing in the ears from long-term noise exposure.) Then he meets Ally (Lady Gaga), a waitress with a songwriting talent and a killer voice. Jack falls for Ally and gives her the exposure that makes her a star, but even her love can't keep him away from the pills and the bottle. His downward spiral coincides with her rise.

Ally, meanwhile, starts out as a soulful songwriter, but her new record company turns her into a dancing pop princess without a last name. Jack is bothered by the transformation, and we assume that, on some level, Ally must be as well. She doesn't say much about it, however, and what should be a major story line never gets resolved.

When a movie has been made five times you figure the story must be pretty timeless and compelling. Unfortunately, I found the latest iteration to be boring and half-baked, despite its significant star power. The first act is pretty good, with Jack and Ally getting to know each other and their music. We get treated to a taste of the songwriting process, or at least a movie version of it, and that's fun. Like Jack's health, however, the movie just gets worse as we go. For one thing, it's called “A Star is Born,” but it should have been called “A Star Burns Out.” The main focus is almost always on Jack, and Ally as a character just gets pushed more and more into the background. The songs in this one are apparently much better than in the 1976 version, but I still didn't find the music very compelling. I did like Jack's blues-folk song “Maybe It's Time,” but the feature song, “Shallow,” the one with the Oscar nomination, didn't do it for me. It has a nice melody, but the lyrics are stupid (are they “in the shallow” or “far from the shallow”?) and the repetition of syllables (sha-a-sha-a-llow) is lame.

With a better-written narrative and this cast (including Sam Elliott as Jack's brother and Andrew Dice Clay as Ally's dad) this could have been a great movie. As it is, running 2 hours 16 minutes, the movie manages to be long and boring, while still leaving out key parts of Ally's story. If it were shorter, a LOT shorter, I'd say watch it when you have nothing better to do, but at this length, I can't even recommend that.

2 stars out of 5

Grosse Pointe Blank (1997) ***

This 90's dark comedy has aged remarkably well. John Cusack play Martin Blank, a hit man thinking of getting out of the business. His intended last job happens to be in his hometown, the week of his high school reunion. Martin has some unfinished business with a high school flame (Minnie Driver), so he figures he'll mix business with pleasure. Back in Grosse Pointe, Martin pursues Debi (Driver) while being pursued by a rival hit-man and a couple of rogue government agents.

“Gross Pointe Blank” is a noir comedy that gets the mix of noir and comedy right, and it can be enjoyed as such, but the movie does try to dig a little into deeper issues on the question of redemption. Martin didn't exactly set out to be a hired killer (the government selected and trained him), but he is obviously morally capable of it. After years of that life, the big question he now faces is, “Can he change?”

It's a fairly straightforward story, but well-told and perfectly paced. Cusack and Driver are excellent, with a great supporting cast including Jeremy Piven and Joan Cusack (John's sister). The only miscasting is Dan Akroyd, who never becomes convincing as the rival assassin.

My one complaint besides Akroyd is the soundtrack, not that it's bad, but that there's some revisionist history going on here. This is one of those movies that makes it look like we were all listening to nothing but cool-ass alternative and punk music in the '80s, stuff like “Echo and the Bunnymen,” “The Pixies,” and “The Cure.” I wish. My recollection of the decade is that most people were listening to either hair-metal or Paula Abdul. Still, I wouldn't want to watch a movie that featured the music that was actually on the radio back then, so I'll give them a pass.

“Grosse Pointe Blank” holds up great to a repeat viewing, and if the movie slipped by you the first time around, you might want to dip back into the '90s and check it out.

3 stars out of 5

Bad Times at the El Royale (2018) ****1/2

Let's face it. It's been a while since Tarantino was Tarantino. Sure, “The Hateful Eight” wasn't bad, but it felt like it dragged on a bit long, and I honestly haven't felt any drive to re-watch it the way I have re-watched, multiple times, his early films like “Reservoir Dogs” and “Pulp Fiction.” The good news is, there's a new guy in town who can write and direct genre fiction with the kind of fresh, original energy that made Quentin Tarantino famous. Writer/director Drew Goddard is known for creating “The Cabin in the Woods,” and he also wrote the excellent found-footage monster movie "Cloverfield" and adapted the screenplay for  "The Martian."  These projects have given him the kind of Hollywood cred necessary to assemble a stellar cast for “Bad Times at the El Royale.”

This noir potboiler features a singer (Cynthia Erivo), a priest (Jeff Bridges), a vacuum salesman (Jon Hamm), and a hippie (Dakota Johnson) who converge at a faded California/Nevada border hotel one stormy, fateful night. They all have secrets, of course, as does the desk clerk (Lewis Pullman). It turns out the hotel has a secret corridor behind all the rooms that gives access to one-way mirrors and hidden microphones. From the corridor, the clerk films people's various private activities, and on this night, there is plenty of private stuff going on. As each pursues his own agenda, the storm builds, and so does the pressure.

Some have complained about the run-time of this film, and at 2 hours 21 minutes it does run a bit long. It's still shorter than “Pulp Fiction,” though, and like that movie, there is plenty to keep you on the edge of your seat. Even with some scenes going on for quite a while, the performances are so compelling and the story so good that I never got bored. Any one of these actors could carry a film on their own, and together they are dynamite. Cynthia Erivo, in particular, is a revelation, particularly when she coolly puts a murderous cult leader (Chris Hemsworth) in his place.

When you stay at the El Royale, you have to choose whether to stay on the California side or the Nevada side, but if you love a good, Hitchcockian, neo-noir potboiler, your choice is easy. Rent it, or catch it on HBOGo, but definitely check out “Bad Times at the El Royale.”

4.5 stars out of 5

63 Up (2019) *****

Has it really been seven years since the last "Up Series" documentary, “53 Up”? As Tony, one of the real people followed by the series puts it, “The time has just flown by.” For those not familiar with the series, the BBC made the first film in 1964 by interviewing a diverse group of 7-year-old children in England. They included children from wealthy, poor, and middle-class backgrounds. Seven years later, Michael Apted, a member of the original “Seven Up” team, followed up with the kids to see what they were like at 14, then again at 21, and so on, every 7 years. He interviews them to find out what is going on with them in terms of jobs, marriage, kids, and so on, and about how they feel about their lives, current events, and politics.

The project has bloomed into one of the most monumental TV series ever, really a sociological and artistic achievement. I will try to avoid gushing too much over it, but it has meant a great deal over the years to a great many people simply to look non-judgmentally at these subjects as they move through the seasons of their lives.

“63 Up” finds us, for the first time, missing one of the subjects because they have died. Apted interviews their family to honor them. Another subject is seriously ill. Many of the subjects are grandparents, and we get some glimpses of the next generation. I don't want to say any more and spoil any of the surprises.

I have mentioned in a previous review how getting into the “Up Series” makes you a part of the project. Once you are caught up on the series, you will have to wait 7 years for the next installment. The next time you meet these characters,you will be 7 years older yourself, and your view of them and their lives may be totally different. Watching “63 Up,” I considered for the first time how much a part of the experiment Michael Apted is. He asks one of the characters a question about aging, and they respond, “Well, you tell me, Michael.” It reminded me that if these people are 63, Apted must be at least in his late 70s or his 80s. Will there be a “70 Up,” and if so, will Apted be around to make it? If he isn't, how many of these characters would feel comfortable trusting their story to someone else? That's the power of this series. The decades-long format makes you care about the lives and mortality of people you have never met, on a much deeper level than a traditional program, fiction or nonfiction, ever could.

5 stars out of 5

Cold War (2018) ****

The opening scene of “Cold War” will test your resolve to watch it. You are immediately struck by two things: 1) The movie is in Black & White and 2) The guys on the screen are making some truly dreadful, Polish folk music. Fortunately, it's all uphill from there. The B&W cinematography ends up being really beautiful, and the music gets a lot better as well.

Tomasz Kot plays Wiktor, a Polish musician and conductor. With his lover, Irena, he is traveling the country, recording Polish folk tunes sung by rural musicians, a la “Songcatcher.” Once they have completed that project, Wiktor and Irena recruit a bunch of young singers and dancers to create a troupe. One of these singers, Zula (Joanna Kulig), catches Wiktor's eye, and the two fall in love. Wiktor hatches a plan for them to escape to the west during a performance in Berlin.

Unfortunately, freedom never quite works out for them. Wiktor makes a good career for himself in Paris, playing jazz clubs and making film scores, but Zula cannot be happy outside of Poland, where life is becoming more and more controlled by the Communist Party. And so it goes for Wiktor and Zula over the years, always drawn together and torn apart, bouncing back and forth between East and West.

We've seen a version of this before, of course, in "Doctor Zhivago."  Being in English and less of an Art-film, “Doctor Zhivago” was easier for someone like me to watch, and arguably probably a better movie. “Cold War” stands up reasonably well to the comparison, however. Unless you speak Polish, you have to be up for reading subtitles, but the cinematography is beautiful and the 2 leads are talented and easy to look at. The story is compelling and heartbreaking. It makes you wonder why people would, in the name of an ideology, turn a world where two people could have been happy together into one where they can only be miserable together.

4 stars out of 5