You are here: Home / Archives for Movie Review

Being Flynn examines family and self-discovery

March 9, 2012 By No Comments

By Ruth Ferguson

NDG Editor

Sometimes you see a movie and when you walk out of the theater the mood and issues of the film go with you. Being Flynn is that type of movie. There are moments of levity which coming from writer and director Paul Weitz can be expected. However, the movie addresses serious issues so it is not a laugh a minute flick. Weitz’s (best known for American Pie and About A Boy) screenplay is based on Nick Flynn’s 2004 book Another Bulls**t Night in Suck City: A Memoir.

Primarily the film reminds you of how hard self-discovery can be when you feel you don’t have all the pieces of the puzzle. Are we the products of our environment or controller of our destiny? How much is our life shaped by our parents – even in their absence?

The son, Nick Flynn portrayed by Paul Dano (There Will Be Blood), who manages to hold his own fairly well opposite Oscar winner Robert De Niro who plays his racist, alcoholic, suddenly on the scene father, Jonathan.  Also delivering a solid performance is Julianne Moore (Crazy, Stupid, Love.) as Jody, Nick’s dead mother.

Imagine getting a phone call from a man who says he is your father. Not only is the call out of the clear blue sky from a man you never met, but also it comes with a request for help. After ticking off his music playing neighbors, Jonathan calls Nick asking him to rush over quickly. Upon arrival, the nude Jonathan immediately puts Nick and friends to work on moving his possessions out of his one room apartment as he has been evicted. Without even a real thank you, poof “Dad” is gone again, but not before telling Nick – several times – what a great writer he is and that as his son, Nick should be a talented writer as well.

Nick actually is trying his hand at writing. He journals and creatively completes his daily-required log reports during the staff meeting at the homeless shelter where he works. It is through the homeless shelter that father and son meet again, when Nick looks up to help the next person in line and finds himself face to face with Jonathan. After his eviction from the apartment, Jonathan’s life has spiraled out of control and he is seeking solace from the winter cold nights.

From there the viewer receives an unvarnished, unromanticized, but not crusading view of life for those who work at shelters and those who need their help. It is through the simplicity of the storytelling, that the movie finds its power.

Perhaps feels like he has returned to the home of his Taxi Driver glory, De Niro’s performance takes you into the mind of his crazed character. With his self-centered racist ways, you hardly feel overwhelmed with sympathy but you come to care. Thus is the struggle of his son Nick as well.

The journey to the answers for Jonathan and Nick Flynn are uneven, but in the end a journey moviegoers will enjoy. Being Flynn is rated R for language and subject matter at a lean 102 minutes the film is showing at the Angelika Dallas.

Filed Under: Entertainment, Lead Story Tagged With:

Michael Jackson’s This is It – Captivating

November 5, 2009 By 2 Comments

By Dwight Brown
NNPA Film Critic

(NNPA) – By the time he died, the media and his antics had obscured the most obvious. Michael Jackson was the greatest singer/entertainer/performing artist of his generation. Many could argue that point. But as you watch this work-in-progress documentary, with footage that was never necessarily meant to become a theatrical feature-length film, you have to ponder, ‘What pop artist was or is better?’

Elvis could sing, act and gyrate, but he couldn’t dance. And his talent didn’t extend into creating theater or video. Madonna takes elaborate shows around the world, but she has a voice only a mother could love. The Beatles have a catalogue of music that is unmatchable to this day, but on stage they just stood there — and could John Lennon moonwalk?

Michael Jackson's "This Is It"It’s like Michael stepped out of his grave to say, “You will not tarnish my legacy, and I’m going to give you the show of a lifetime!”

As ‘This Is It’ starts, dancers convene for what was to be Michael Jackson’s final rehearsals for a 50-night performance schedule in London. Some reveal how important it was for them to dance with him. In-between piqued emotion that’s leading to tears, one hoofer proclaims, “ I was searching for something to give me meaning. This is it.”

Skeptics would point out that Jackson is no Dalai Lama, L. Ron Hubbard or Dr. Phil who warrants or don’t warrant legions of followers. But to put that quote in perspective, for a young pop dancer, performing on stage with the person who changed dance movement for the MTV generation, he in fact is talking about a pop music guru.

Footage, of the rehearsals, depicts a fit MJ; lean — not emaciated, energetic — not lethargic, lively — not near death’s door. He jumps, twists, turns and hops with the same gusto and precision as his back-up dancers. Only they are in their 20s and MJ is 50! That’s right 50!

He often is not singing in full voice, as he tries to preserve his vocal chords for the up-coming concerts, and though some may say his vocals have been enhanced, he sings a whole lot better than some of today’s top artists, like Justin Timberlake. When he goes full out, he’s pitch perfect, his voice is flexible and emotional.

What was in the works was a very ambitious musical theater piece that included movie clips, elaborate sets (production designer Bernt Amadeus Capra, set director Donald Elmblad), provocative costumes and magical lighting. The most astonishing feat is MJ’s insinuation into the movie Gilda, starring Rita Hayworth and Humphrey Bogart, for the song Smooth Criminal. A machinegun-wielding Bogart chases Michael, and in black and white footage—courtesy of a blue screen—you can see how the concert magic is being created. There is another song in which dancers cavort on frames like a construction site on the back of the set that is bathed in a warm moss green metallic light that is simply mesmerizing.

Jackson is heavily involved in the creative process of this mammoth, ambitious show. Credit director Kenny Ortega for the visual splendor and day-to-day coordination, but as the footage attests, MJ is the captain of the ship. Both the choreographer and vocal supervisor Dorian Holley defer to him.

The Earth Song sequence is a patience-testing misstep. On film, in a setting that must represent the Amazon, a young child runs through a forest that is being demolished by bulldozers.

The moment is so sentimental and politically correct that it grates on the nerves and adds seven minutes to a 112-minute film that could have been a tad shorter. Edited down from hundreds of hours of footage, each second is crucial; this unfinished attempt at an eco friendly message should have been left on the editing floor.

Human Nature, Billie Jean, Thriller… the gloved one puts on a backstage show that is thoroughly entertaining—and in fact more compelling than if the production team had simply filmed the concert. Watching him create each song/performance on a sound stage is as captivating as him singing and dancing in front of a live audience.

There are some who will claim this documentary is ghoulish. I think haunting is a better word, as you fathom what the music world would have been like had he lived. This enlightening, behind-the-scenes documentary gives MJ a way of setting the record straight. If any performer is more talented than he, or has left more of a legacy on this generation, they should step up or shut up.

Visit NNPA Film Critic Dwight Brown at www.DwightBrownInk.com.

Filed Under: Entertainment Tagged With: , ,

Law Abiding Citizen Delivers Justice – By Any Means Necessary

October 17, 2009 By No Comments

By Ruth Ferguson
NDG Editor

When a home invasion victim powerlessly witnesses the rape of his wife, then watches the deviant pick up his little girl and go into another room before he loses consciousness – is it too much to expect justice from the system? It can be if young a hot shot prosecutor is more concerned with protecting his nearly perfect conviction rate. But once justice is denied, how far is too far in seeking justice?

Clyde Shelton’s (Gerard Butler) world is destroyed when his wife and daughter are murdered, and he is stunned when Nick Rice (Jamie Foxx) cut a deal with one defendant to add a death penalty conviction to his resume.

Academy Award winner Jamie Foxx is all about swagger making him a good fit for the role. Even coupled with hints of humor in this dark film, he makes it work. He is so cocky and seemingly invincible; you almost look forward to his come-uppance. By the end of the film, Rice is humbled and the audience is emotionally spent – but satisfied.

Women who enjoyed the animated Gerard Butler wearing leather underpants in 300, will be happy to hear, he inexplicably strips and greets the police SWAT team bursting through glass doors. And he does not look too bad shirtless in jeans when escorted to the car, either. Although, it is odd Shelton does not have a single cut on his chest despite being thrown to a floor covered in glass while nude.

The film is not without its flaws, but it hits the mark in so many ways, the audience will be forgiving. Slip ups such as why Foxx practically quoted Denzel Washington’s Alonzo from Training Day, almost take the viewer out of the moment. Also, one wonders if they ran out of special effects funding for the final scene.

This film combines the best features of director F. Gary Gary’s earlier popular movies. Italian Job (2003) boasted an intricate plot with twists and turns, and A Man Apart (2003) focused on violent revenge.

Law Abiding Citizen is definitely entertaining, not only for its visceral satisfying acts of revenge, but also for the smart cat and mouse game it plays with morality. Throw in swagger, violence, a little nudity and a lot of hi-tech toys that go bang, and the film will satisfy a broad audience.

Filed Under: Entertainment Tagged With: , ,