THE 355

 Jessica Chastain, Diane Kruger, Penelope Cruz     Lupita Nyong’o 

Edgar Ramirez, Sebastian Stan, Bingbing Fan

            Girl power.  It’s front and center in this spy thriller that spans agencies in the U.S., the U.K., Germany, and China, with stops in Marrakesh, Morocco and Shanghai—but it begins in Bogota, Colombia.  Someone there has come up with the ultimate in hacking—a tool that can tap into any digital system, public or private.  And, of course, hackers around the world are out to get their hands on it.

            Much is made about gender politics in the film, as well as geopolitical forces, and to back up the former we get a very cheeky crew:  Jessica Chastain as Mace, Lupita Nyong’o as Khaddijah, Diane Kruger as Maria, and Penelope Cruz—a psychologist(!)—as Graciela, a reluctant player who gets pulled into the drama after she is sent to intervene with a friend who is an agent (Rodriguez).

            All these actresses are top-notch, and convey the characters’ personalities expertly, showing intuitive skills and emotional strength along with physical prowess.  Individually as well as a group, they are a highlight in the film.  As a surprise standout—not only for her sheer presence as a character, but also as a surprise element in the plot—is Bingbing Fan.  She is a mysterious figure who appears at a critical time.

            As is the predilection of current filmmakers in the action genre, there are far too many hand-to-hand combat scenes in The 355 for my taste—scenes that are usually shot in dim light so that it’s hard to follow the moves exactly.  Although these are generally presented as the means to highlight the hero’s/heroine’s strength and caginess, too many such scenes cause the viewer to distance from the story with dialog that sounds contrived rather than real.

            The film can be praised for making a valiant effort to show women who are initially dubious toward one another becoming emotionally close, with some moving from utter lack of feeling to having some semblance of empathy, but the turns are a little too pat to come across as being realistic.  An example is Kruger’s character Maria from Germany being shown as rather cold in the beginning; then, as a presumed result of her interaction with the other female characters, she becomes more personable…almost. 

            In thinking about the audience for this movie, I imagine that males will see it as a “chick-flick” because of the brutal blows that many male characters take in the hands of female characters.  But it’s not rom-com by any means.  The relationship between the Chastain and Stan characters—however contrived it may be—is not romantic at all, even though I think it is meant to be by the writers.  This is probably because it comes across as so implausible.  

            Maybe the only audience for this movie are female fans of action movies regardless, or perhaps for females who get some satisfaction from their own “giving it to the man.”

 

Cyber crime is shown realistically as a threat of world-wide proportions that can affect most of us; but the enactment of fighting against it in this film is less impactful.

 

Grade:  C+                            By Donna R. Copeland

GOLD

Matthew McConaughey     Edgar Ramirez     Bryce Dallas Howard     Corey Stoll     Stacy Keach     Bruce Greenwood     Toby Kebbell    

         Paunchy, bald, and with a huge beer belly, McConaughey is practically unrecognizable as a prospector in Gold.  Stemming from a dream he had one night, Kenny Wells, an employee of Washoe Mining Corporation, is convinced there is gold in Indonesia.  He does some research, then flies over to contact geologist Mike Acosta (Ramirez), who has previously found gold there.  Wells is a fast-talking salesman type, and finally convinces Acosta to join him in prospecting a new location that Acosta knows about.

          After scrambling for money from investors, the two start their operation, only to run into major problems with worker dissatisfaction, malaria, and Indonesian government interference.  Ramirez has to step in more than once to rescue the operation.  At one point, investor company Brown Thomas offers a strategic alliance, but cocky Wells refuses.  He is so confident, he boasts, “The last card you turn over is the only one that matters”; he is sure he will turn over the winning card.  At times during the film, it seems like this is a prophecy; at other times, it’s also a prophecy.

          Gold does a really fine job of illustrating the old story about the ups and downs of investing in commodities.  When Washoe makes it onto the New York Stock Exchange, it looks like Wells and Ramirez have it made.  One of the themes throughout is that it’s always important to have a back-up plan, and across time, this becomes readily apparent to all the major investors, particularly Wells. 

         Ambiguity is another running theme:  Who are the good/bad guys?  Is this turn of events a good or bad thing?  Will what is found be valuable or worthless?  Can the Sukarno government connection be trusted?  Questions such as these keep the suspense going, particularly since the script calls for swings back and forth.  It’s never predictable how things are going to turn out, and even at the very end, viewers will have questions.

          McConaughey is a well known gifted actor with 50 awards and 67 nominations, and he is up to his best in Gold—as repulsive as his character often is.  I admire the “hunk’s” willingness not only to be cast as this kind of figure, but to gain 50 pounds and look bald for it as well.  Ramirez is a fine match for him, often coming across as the stronger figure, the rescuer of the McConaughey character.  Supporting actors are strong, although Howard’s character is not prominent; but Kebbell as the FBI agent questioning Wells, Keach and Stoll as canny investors, and Greenwood as a spoiler enrich the production.

          The experience of screenwriters Patrick Massett and John Zinman has primarily been in television, and this factor may underlie my sense that it comes across as a bit contrived, despite the high level of suspense maintained throughout.  Stephen Gaghan’s excellent direction mostly overcomes this drawback, but still implausibilities or at least questions of “How can that work?” remain.  Especially in the last scenes of the film.

Will this dreamer survive the prospecting ups and downs?

Grade:  B                                       By Donna R. Copeland

THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN

Emily Blunt     Haley Bennett     Justin Theroux     Rebecca Ferguson    

Luke Evans     Allison Janney     Edgar Ramirez     Lisa Kudrow

          We meet Rachel (Blunt) on the train, see her scribbling and drawing on a pad, and listen to what is going on in her head.  She is clearly upset and depressed as she sips on a gin drink and weaves stories about the people she sees through the windows of houses.  Some are mixed in with her own memories, for she used to live in that neighborhood with her ex-husband Tom (Theroux).  Tom is married to Anna (Ferguson) now, and they have a child.  But a couple she sees in another house captures her imagination and her wish for a perfect marriage.  She has decided they are very happy together, an ideal couple—until she sees the woman in the arms of another man on the porch one morning.  She is furious with the woman, who reminds Rachel that her own husband left her for another woman.

       We learn that Megan (Bennett) and Scott (Evans) are their names, which Rachel discovers when she reads in the newspaper that the woman is missing.  Imaginative Rachel weaves a story around what she has seen, and without distinguishing between her fantasies and reality, she inserts herself into the case by going to visit Scott and telling him that she saw Megan with another man one morning.  Furthermore, she claims that she knew Megan personally.

      The film is good in this aspect of illustrating how memory is constructive, not photographic, and that many times, humans are prone to over-interpret what they see when they don’t have all the facts.  It’s of value as well to see how misleading and destructive it can be for someone with the best of intentions to muddy the waters when they assert themselves into situations where they don’t belong.

          The Girl on the Train is a mystery and a thriller based on the popular Paula Hawkins novel.  It’s easy to see how it would attract filmmakers like Tate Taylor, the director, (and a hungry public as well) with its intrigue, mystery, scandal, and chameleon-like characters.  The problem, is to some extent, a function of its success, in that the characters and plot stretch credulity.  The book (which I’ve read) and the film would benefit from toning down a bit.  For instance, brutal scenes that take place in a populated area near a tunnel with a fair amount of pedestrian traffic are apparently not observed by anyone else.

          On the positive side, the cast is very good, especially the star Emily Blunt in her ability to capture the complex Rachel, an imaginative alcoholic who appears spacey and impulsive much of the time, but can be smart and show genuine love and caring.  Haley Bennett as the mercurial Megan lives up to her recent reputation for playing sexy, strong, beautiful women.  Cameo roles by Allison Janney and Lisa Kudrow attest to their strengths in pungent character roles.  Men are not regarded too kindly in this movie, but Justin Theroux, Edgar Ramirez, and Luke Evans do justice to their roles and show strength behind their weak characters. 

         I have to complain once again about psychiatrists and other professional counselors being portrayed by Hollywood unrealistically in touching and hugging their patients and seeing them in their homes.  Mental Health professionals are all trained in how to deal with romantic pulls and patients appearing at our doors without an appointment—something not dealt with realistically in this film.

         This is a film that will appeal to those who enjoy being pulled into a web of intrigue and excitement and don’t mind a bit of implausibility or being “played” by the novelist/filmmakers.

What is seen from a train may be enhanced by a vivid imagination.

Grade:  C                                    By Donna R. Copeland

HANDS OF STONE

Robert De Niro     Edgar Ramirez     Ana de Armas     Ellen Baskin     John Turturro     

Ruben Blades     Usher     Oscar Jaenada     Reg E. Cathey

          Roberto Duran (Ramirez) grew up in Panama, a street kid, who learned early on how to hustle, coached by a neighborhood “Pied Piper” who gathered up the kids and taught them how to survive by hook or by crook.  Duran’s father had long left his mother, and this man, Chaflan (Jaenada), served as his first father figure.  The second was Carlos (Blades), whom Duran at an early age kept bugging to train him to be a fighter, and when Carlos actually saw his drive and determinism in an underground fight, he agreed.  The third—who served as devoted mentor as well—was Ray Arcel (De Niro), who was approached by Carlos to pick up Duran’s training because he recognized that the famed trainer would make Duran a champion prizefighter.  Both Carlos and Ray sustained their involvement in Duran’s career for years despite major setbacks.  This could be the underlying substance of this biopic—the search for a missing father and how that served to fuel a man’s aggression and then channel it into something useful.

     Another influence was Panamanian politics, that country’s efforts to regain their sovereignty after the U.S. “bought them” with a canal.  Duran was a perceptive child when the protests first began, and when he witnessed the killing of a Panamanian trying to raise Panama’s flag at the Panama Canal and the Panamanians’ perception that the U.S. had reneged on a deal, the U.S. was identified as the father who abandoned him in infancy.

Ray Arcel was reluctant to take on Duran—he had been punished by the boxing powers that be at the time—but partly because he saw the potential and partly because he just wasn’t ready to retire, he began a relationship with Duran that affected both of them emotionally and changed their lives.  Duran soon became the boxer with manos de piedras (hands of stone).

         After Duran does become a sensation, he makes some mistakes that almost cost him his titles and reputation.  The film chronicles these with good pace and timing (the director is Jonathan Jakubowicz), allowing us to see the evolving relationships not only between the fighter and his trainers, but also his wife (de Armas) and Sugar Ray Leonard (Usher).  The film touches on the corruption in boxing that uses fighters as commodities (Turturro’s cameo appearances are appropriately subtle and commanding) and how international events can encroach upon people’s lives.

      Cinematography by Miguel Ioann Littin Menz is remarkable, particularly during the boxing matches.  Like a ballet dancer, the camera soars, pauses, and has explosions of color and action, capturing the viewer’s attention with its sheer beauty.

         De Niro remains a force in the movie business, and Hands of Stone is his film in a way, although Ramirez more than holds his own in portraying a deeply conflicted man who had to evolve from a scrappy street kid to head of a prosperous household, all while managing the temptations and seduction of fame.  Ramirez capably shows the multi-facets of this personality.  Ana de Armas captures our interest as well in her excellent portrayal of a wife needing to adapt to as well as influence her tempestuous husband.  A delightful addition to this cast is Usher, who plays the patient, charming, and ultimately very insightful Sugar Ray Leonard, a gentleman in the best sense of the word.

Under the guidance of father figures, a tempestuous boxer acquires hands of stone.

Grade:  B+                        By Donna R. Copeland

JOY

Jennifer Lawrence   Bradley Cooper   Robert De Niro   Virginia Madsen   Isabella Rossellini   Diane Ladd   Edgar Ramirez   Elisabeth Rohm

            David O. Russell knows families, and in Joy he portrays them once again in all their glory—and shortcomings.  He wrote the script based partly on a true story by Annie Mumolo about a young housewife who was creative and resourceful from childhood.  Her grandmother predicted she would soar to great heights someday, although the journey would be challenging.  In young adulthood with a divorced husband still at home, two kids, a grandmother, and resident parents who are divorced, Joy (Lawrence) is the mainstay for all of them.  When it is clear she will need to support everyone financially as well as emotionally, she invents a handy “Miracle Mop” that doesn’t have to be wrung out by hand and can be thrown into the washer to clean it for the next room.  In addition to showing what happens across time in the family, the film shows the development of this remarkable woman from a simple housewife to an astute but compassionate businesswoman.

            Russell goes a bit over the top in depicting this motley group, with a helpless mother (Madsen) who stays in bed and watches TV, a father (De Niro) who lacks the sharpness to run his own auto shop business and needs a woman to support him, and an ex-husband (Rodriguez), a club singer who can’t seem to get a place of his own, and a competitive half-sister (Rohm) who is rather a dim bulb.  They are all dependent on Joy and continually interrupt her for something they need.  She does have support from her grandmother (Ladd) and her kids, whose expressions always indicate that they are clearly understanding their mother and what is going on around them.  I always appreciate Russell’s respect for children’s perceptiveness and wisdom.

            Family members contribute to the comedy in Joy (and there are dozens of funny moments), but the serious, more in-depth and fascinating aspect of the drama is Joy’s transformation across time, giving credence to her grandmother’s predictions and encouragement and her early creativity and intelligence (valedictorian of her graduating class).  Without anyone to show her the way, Joy has to try to sell her own product on television’s QVC, out-maneuver contractors who try to cheat her, and somehow secure the patent she needs for her own invention.  Bradley Cooper, a staple in any Russell-Lawrence film has the role of a supportive executive at QVC who gives her a second chance when the first attempt fails.

            Danny Elfman’s music meshes artistically with the 1980’s culture and the mood of each scene, helping to carry it along its lyrical way.  Similarly, Linus Sandgren’s cinematography is ordered and sharp in the chaos of the story, helping to convey mood and spirit.  Or starkness, as when we see Joy in a bare, austere hotel room confronting a man she has never seen before to negotiate a settlement. 

            Jennifer Lawrence and David O. Russell seem to have a special synchronicity in their work together (and Bradley Cooper fits in seamlessly here, although he has a small role), and it shows in the quality of the films they make.  The supporting cast couldn’t be better, especially Robert De Niro, Virginia Madsen, and Edgar Ramirez.  But the topper is Isabella Rossellini, the wealthy widow who stands to lose everything she has by investing in this crazy family.  Rossellini brings such authenticity to the role you could swear she must have lived some aspect of it.

Joy—a joy to see—except when it’s sad and exasperating, and even then it’s entertaining.

Grade:  A-                                    By Donna R. Copeland