'Good Time' A Review

Good Time is a New York set ticking-clock psuedo-heist thriller about second-rate Queens hustler Connie(Robert Pattinson) who at the start of the film robs a bank with the help of his mentally handicapped brother Nick(Ben Safdie) who is subsequently arrested. Inexplicably immediately put into general population at Rikers Island Connie fears for Nick's safety and begins an all night mad dash to come up with bail.

Pattinson puts in one of his most interesting performances to date as the slimy, morally bankrupt, ineffectual hood, who's only redeeming quality is his love for his brother. This is somewhat problematic given he is onscreen for the entire film and is purposefully obtuse and unsympathetic. Safdie gives the substantially more layered emotional, and therefore interesting portrayal however he only appears briefly at the beginning and end of the film. Jennifer Jason Leigh is underutilized in a small confusing role. A standout is Buddy Duress who plays whiny knucklehead paired up with Connie by happenstance. He's funny and unique, projecting a reality Pattinson strives for but doesn't attain. The other supporting cast are either non-actors or unknowns either way they create a rich sense of authenticity.

The production design is pulse-pumping and on point. The color palette is a sickly shadow and neon capturing the small time underworld the characters inhabit. The score is catchy and effective. The issues mainly arise from the script. The story hinges on the relationship between the two brothers, on Connie's affection for Nick, that is the most compelling thing about the film but other than a couple scenes at the beginning and end that relationship is used almost solely as motivation to send Connie on his ill-conceived and disastrous journey. Further what gives Connie the urgency for this is his brother Nick being beaten senseless by a bunch of rage-filled minority inmates at Rikers. It is relatively unbelievable a mentally handicapped person would be put into Rikers initially, doubly so that they would almost immediately be assaulted, triply so by violent prison stereotypes. Those are some huge and extremely questionable leaps to set Connie on his path.

Problematic plot and dubious motivations in an otherwise promising film.

Rent It.

'Patti Cake$' A Review

Patti Cake$ is a drama about a young aspiring rapper, Patti(Danielle Macdonald), in Bergen County, New Jersey. Tensions between Patti and her mother Barb(Bridget Everett) are strained due to the persist illness of her grandmother Nana(Cathy Moriarty) and her mother's hard living lifestyle. Patti along with her friend Jheri(Siddharth Dhananjay) attempt to record a demo but are unsuccessful until hooking up with local nihilist goth Basterd(Mamoudou Athie).

Macdonald puts in a great lead performance. She conveys a compelling vulnerability and courage, she is persistent almost dogged about her artistic dream, in the midst of a relatively pedestrian underdog story she breathes new life, perspective, and depth into the somewhat predictable beats. Everett also brings freshness to the neglectful parent dynamic the story utilizes. She struggles a bit with some of the scenes but even when her performance isn't seamless she maintains her natural and substantial magnetism. Moriarty's role isn't large but it brings humor and heart effortlessly and is a much needed foil for Macdonald. Dhananjay and Athie both do well but serve mostly to propel Patti's story.

The music, soundtrack and the songs performed, are great. Effecting in a raw and real way. The cinematography feels gritty and real with occasional playful day dream sequences that set it apart. The plot itself could be compared to 8 Mile and Hustle & Flow but that's irrelevant due to the unique lead character. The music is original, the performances are absorbing, and the story is moving. Period. Some sequences or scenes you may anticipate but that doesn't make them any less enjoyable.

A fresh and inspiring take on an underdog artist story.

Don't Miss It.

Affluence

I wear my jeans, black t-shirt,
and denim jacket like armor
amidst all the cargo shorts,
flip-flops, and tommy bahama
short-sleeved button ups
straining over large and swaying
bellies

Here in this Wisconsin resort town
I'm surrounded
by a thoughtless, bloated
American opulence
where all immensities are expensive
but have no real quality
(the food down right repulsive)

I feel like the only human
in a crowd of alien lemmings
all shoving intoxicants
and flavorless fuel
inside their maws
squawking their elitism
and entitlement

The idea that this place
is some coveted
well-to-do vacation spot
is sickening
all these bumbling, mumbling,
pleasure seekers
models for dystopian drones

I can't wait to leave and hope never to return.

4th Anniversary

Four years ago today Nicole and I had our first date at Navy Pier riding the Ferris wheel. Today we took the day off and went to the art museum and out for a great dinner at Elizabeth Restaurant. It's been a wonderful four years, it feels both like a long time and no time at all.

We've had a couple challenges this year, we got burglarized back in December and had to move unexpectedly last month, nothing too trying all things considered but we've had to deal with some unanticipated stressors. We've also had some great times, special trips and events, cooked a lot more, and generally become more comfortable in our partnership.

For me, as the years go by I learn more and more what a relationship is and what it can be. And it boils down to communication and compromise. When things aren't going well it's because I'm keeping my thoughts, feelings, and needs to myself. Closing myself off out of fear or my own habit of isolation. Being inflexible about certain things I expect or anticipate or am willing to do. The importance of things need to be given voice and consideration. You can't hope for it to simply be intuited. The reality is that its a balancing, attention given to the individual and the couple as an entity in and of itself. Both need to be given weight. Things done separately, things done together. And the resulting relationship can be(is for me at least) incredibly fun and inspiring, a source of strength and comfort, something I lean on but not something I'm dependent on. Nicole and I take vacations separately and together, we go out with friends separately and together, we have varied interests. Parts of our lives are intertwined, other parts aren't. It keeps the partnership fresh and evolving. And our partnership has helped me figure out who I am, clarified and refined it, and who I want to be. I don't know what the future holds for us but I'm eager to find out.

A Ghost Story

I think there is a ghost in my apartment.

She lives
in hinges,
scuffed parquet
and the absence
of paint
on the window frames

I don't think she's malevolent
just exhausted
as I imagine all ghosts
to be
so I put on shows
I think she'd like
baking ones mostly
mindless and quiet
to help aid
in eternity

When I hear
the creak or crack
of something shifting
the brush and rustle
of nameless drifting
I leave a glass of water
clear and cool
on the table
for though I know little
of the hereafter
I do know
the dead
are thirsty.

'The Dark Tower' A Review

The Dark Tower is a fantasy/action movie a loose adaptation and amalgamation of the Stephen King series of the same name. The movie opens on the prescient otherworldly nightmares of Jake Chambers(Tom Taylor). He's a moody and disgruntled preteen we get little information about and barely know. His defining character trait is an irritating step dad. Enter the Man In Black(Matthew McConaughey) our personification of evil who harvests the psychic energy of children to bring down the titular Dark Tower and end existence. Jake, marginally aware of these cosmic events almost effortlessly finds a portal to Mid-World where all the action is taking place. He quickly hooks up with the last Gunslinger, a cowboy/knight, Roland(Idris Elba) and the two set off to thwart the Man In Black.

Taylor does a decent job with the borderline incoherent script he's given but his ability is not really clear as the character, as written, is barely a caricature. McConaughey defaults to his pre-Mud days and puts in a syrupy hand-wringing mustache-twirling lazy performance completely devoid of menace or energy. Certainly the script hinders but given the talent and range he has shown over the last five years he should be able to be, at the very least, engaging. Elba is the only one who is well cast and also the only one who puts in a credible performance although he is prevented from delivering on the potential depth the character has by the truncated running time and Frankenstein narrative.

As a huge fan of the books I admit some bias, so I will not provide a laundry list in the ways the adaptation aspect falls short suffice it to say it does, horrifically. So for direct and applicable criticisms- as a standalone story it moves too fast cutting back and forth between worlds and scenes speeding along in a seemingly protracted info dump-to the detriment of character development, hell basic character information, essential world building, and any kind of stakes- in order to get to a culminating gun-fight set piece that is cool but has no narrative or emotional resonance because of the chaotic and illogical way it was set up.

As an adaptation of the source material it is an abject failure, as a summer blockbuster it is a disjointed mess.

Don't See It.

'Brigsby Bear' A Review

Brigsby Bear is a dramedy about a young man who lives in an underground bunker with his parents, the only real outside engagement is an educational children's show Brigsby Bear. The first part of the film establishes James(Kyle Mooney) as an isolated, odd, Brigsby superfan under the impression that there has been some kind of nuclear/pandemic that has forced people underground. While stealing a couple minutes up on the surface in the middle of the night James is confronted by a SWAT team and taken into custody. James has difficulty adjusting to life in the real world and as a way of processing his experiences begins making a Brigsby Bear movie.

Mooney is very good, simple and grounded, empathetic and sincere. Taken in a broader context it is somewhat less impressive given the character is essentially derivative of the numerous nostalgia/AV obsessed characters he's played on SNL. Ryan Simpkins and Jorge Lendeborg Jr. as James's sister and friend respectively are very good, seemingly unaffected by his oddness they portray the blossoming of real friendship with authenticity. The cast sports some great names- Mark Hamill, Greg Kinnear, Clarie Danes, Michaela Watkins- who all do well but the film is about, justly, James and his journey so the cast is mostly there to tell his story, which they do well.

The performances are secondary to the story and the story basically boils down to one of imagination and creativity. And because of that a lot of time and attention is taken with the Brigsby Bear show within the film and the recreation of it by James. The production sports retro-nostalgia not in a pandering or ironic way but as an actual aesthetic. VHS and practical effects abound and they look great. The film is more meditative and straightforward than funny but it succeeds, it tells the story of a damaged young man who uses his favorite TV show to deal with the immensity of life.

An inspiring story, innovative throwback production design, if a somewhat predictable(but still effective) emotional arc.

See It.