WONDER PARK

Voices of:  Brianna Denski     Jennifer Garner     Matthew Broderick     Norbert Leo Butz     John Oliver

Ken Hudson Campbell     Mila Kunis     Kenan Thompson     Ken Jeong

     Wonder Park is a wonderful mixture of adventure, risk and daring-do, problem solving, optimism in the face of setbacks—even some philosophical musings (especially on the part of porcupine Steve in the voice of Oliver) and journeys into grief and depression.

     Ten year-old June (Denski) has a vivid imagination, which is encouraged by her mother (Garner) and father (Broderick).  (Seldom in kids movies are parents shown to be so reasonable and nurturing.)  She and her mother have built a glorious Wonder Park populated by animals June is close to as well as fanciful rides.  She gets a bit rambunctious at times, once laying waste in the neighborhood, for which she must suffer the consequences.  But she is not to be discouraged about rebuilding what is broken; her mother expresses supreme confidence in her ability and imagination.

     Soon after, her parents have some distressing news, which is that the mother is ill and must go away for treatment.  June is devastated and angry, and becomes overly solicitous (bossy) of her dad, and is rude to a visiting aunt and uncle.  She throws a tantrum and throws one of her presents into the fireplace.  She will discover some of the consequences of this behavior later, first in the form of a blueprint flying about by the wind in a forest.  

     Suddenly, June stumbles upon an abandoned train car, and finds herself traveling to parts unknown.  What she happens upon is a curious Wonder Park that is real, but that looks a lot like hers.   Moreover, this Wonder Park is in deep trouble.  It’s been invaded by Chimpanzombies who are in the process of destroying everything, along with a giant dark cloud that periodically appears, bringing the darkness.  She learns this after she encounters some of her old friends like Boomer (Campbell), Steve, Gus (Thompson), Cooper (Jeong), and Greta (Kunis).  But Peanut (Butz) is missing!  The animals explain to her that Peanut knew that the key to restoring the Park is the Clockwork Swings; he had gone to fix it, but never returned.  Now June knows that her job is to find Peanut and fix the Clockwork Swings.  On her way, she’ll have to deal with all the threats in Wonder Park causing problems and endangering her and her friends.

     Along with the brilliant animation and voices, the story is one of the strongest assets of Wonder Park.  In telling the entertaining, suspenseful tale, it manages to maintain a sense of adventure while dealing with grief and depression, trust, self-discovery, social concerns for community and fellow citizens, conscience and redemption, and maintaining a positive outlook on life—a tall order for a children’s movie.  Principal credit for all this goes to the story authors and screenwriters, Josh Appelbaum, Andre Nemec, and Robert Gordon, and additionally to composer Steven Price, cinematographer John Garcia Gonzalez, and all of the artistic and animation crews.  Apparently David Feiss became the director late in the production after the original director was dismissed.

This is one of the best movies for children ever to come along.

Grade:  A                                    By Donna R. Copeland

PEPPERMINT

Jennifer Garner     John Gallagher, Jr.     Juan Pablo Raba     Richard Cabral     Annie Ilonzeh

     What a birthday when you and your mom are insulted by another mom in a parking lot, no one comes to your party, and your whole family is shot after a fun night at the carnival.  Your mom, Riley (Garner) does survive, however, and now there is hell to pay. This woman is angry!

     But she will get angrier when the case comes to court, and the D.A. and the judge let the perpetrators, whom she has accurately identified, go free and send her off to the psychiatric hospital.  Yeah, “something’s rotten in Denmark.” But the powers that be haven’t the faintest idea of what Riley North is capable of.  She manages to avoid the hospital and disappears. Effectively.

     When Riley does reappear, it is not the “simple” bank teller and nurturing mom everyone thought they knew.  Suddenly, people across the city are being killed mysteriously—not the good guys, but the bad guys who betrayed the Rileys.  She becomes a heroine on social media, especially when she does in the corrupt players in the justice system and the cartel-friendly crooks on Skid Row.  She's become a vigilante (and the movie could be faulted for glorifying this dubious role.)

     If you ignore that fact, the story is exciting and holds your attention for the most part.  Jennifer Garner has appeared primarily in light fare, and seldom as the lead.  In the unfortunate Elektra as a female ninja, it got her nowhere, but she gets more of a chance to show her lead actress skills in Peppermint as an enraged woman who spends much time, attention, and careful planning to earn her super woman bona fides. The problem is, the story strains credulity when she disappears and suddenly returns as a completely different woman.  The filmmakers should have shown how she went around the world training to be the fighter she is shown to be in the last half of the movie, an expert shot, familiar with military grade weapons, and the ability to wipe out beefy goons who attack her physically.

     So while I applaud the movie for highlighting a strong woman capable not only of admirable foresight and planning, but in execution as well, I find fault in its not making it more believable by showing how she achieved these capabilities.  These things don’t emerge simply from anger; as many who have trained diligently in gyms, shooting ranges, and intelligence will tell you; it takes drive, commitment, and time to become an expert in combat and counterintelligence.

For a different take on typical crime movies, you may find this a novel and exciting diversion.

Grade:  C+                                    By Donna R. Copeland

LOVE, SIMON

Nick Robinson     Josh Duhamel     Jennifer Garner     Talitha Bateman

Katherine Langford     Alexandra Shipp     Logan Miller     Kelynan Lonsdale     Jorge Lendeborg, Jr.

    Unlike many films about teens, Love, Simon is mostly a realistic portrayal, with occasional gems of wisdom about how people in general think, act, and feel.  Simon (Robinson) is an appealing teenager with good friends, a wholesome family life, and enough talent to stand out in a crowd.  He has been brought up well, and only occasionally displays the sulk American adolescents are known for.  But, he is coming to the realization that he is attracted to boys and doesn’t quite know what to do about it.

   Enter a clueless wannabe Martin (Miller), who gains access to Simon’s personal information and proceeds to blackmail Simon, manipulating him to get a girl for Martin.  This will be matchmaking hell for Simon, but he is naïve and thinks he can pull it off—just to keep his secret, secret.

     Added to this scenario, are pictures of high school in general—hallway encounters, the cafeteria, the school play, and parties.  Based on a book by Becky Albertalli, a clinical psychologist whose experience includes a specialty in children and teens and work in a high school, it comes across as plausible and a perceptive understanding of life in that realm.  Screenwriters Elizabeth Berger and Isaac Aptaker seem to have preserved many of the basic ideas, although I have a hunch that some scenes/characters were add-ons, such as the goofus vice principal (parody of a fool) and the sweet reveal and tie-up-with-a-bow ending.

     The director, Greg Berlanti, and screenwriters have a background in producing and writing for television, and in some ways, Love, Simon resembles a television program or series more than a feature film.  That is a way of saying that the story is delightfully entertaining, although it has “bite” as well in its observations about teens and high school life and the profound experience of facing/establishing one’s identity.  A special treat is seeing Simon trying to identify his anonymous correspondent on social media.  He makes the same mistakes that many of us have in trying to decide whether an acquaintance or friend is gay.

     Nick Robinson is well cast as Simon, with just the right balance of naïveté, trust, skepticism, and doubt in a coming-of-age teenager.  With his success in The Kings of Summer, he should have a bright future.  Other standouts among the teens are Katherine Langford as Leah, Simon’s life-long friend; Alexandra Shipp, the precocious sex symbol; and Logan Miller as the cringe-worthy budding sociopath.  Jennifer Garner and Josh Duhamel handle the not particularly challenging roles of mother and father to Simon.

     This is a film that will appeal to those interested in expanding their tolerance and understanding of alternative identities that go beyond simply male and female. 

A budding romance a little outside the norm.

Grade:  B+                        By Donna R. Copeland

DALLAS BUYERS CLUB

Matthew McConaughey     Jennifer Garner     Jared Leto     Steve Zahn

      I had two reactions to Dallas Buyers Club.  One is admiration for the real Ron Woodruff on whom the story is based.  He started out as a self-centered, angry, playboy who didn’t mind scamming his friends, but then shored up after he became ill with HIV, and began to help others (albeit to his own advantage).  Since he was equipped to recognize scams coming from others, he took on the establishment by outing the FDA for unprofessional practices.  Ever the hustler, he forms a club requiring $400/month, and in return the member receives all the drugs available at the club for free.  (How he acquires these medications is part of the story.)  Matthew McConaughey gives a stellar performance as this figure, looking and playing the part of an emaciated loser-turned advocate for medical patients.

     My other reaction is to what I regard as the “Hollywood treatment” of serious issues, namely medical research and the FDA.  Granted, I do not know the true story of Woodruff, but I did work in a cancer center for over 20 years, so have a great deal of respect for medical practice and research.  Although the film does not explicitly advocate running to Mexico for treatments, it provides a model for those who are apprehensive about standard treatment in the U.S.  In fact, many, many people have done that to their regret, including some film stars.  Although I would not defend the FDA entirely, for the most part it has protected Americans from horrific drugs such as thalidomide.  Still, I think it timely that Dallas Buyers Club highlights an example of how pharmaceutical companies and medicine allowed their partnership to undermine their objectivity in testing the effects of AZT on HIV.  Another bother for me about the film is the example of Ron making a few trips to the library, which equips him to provide drugs to seriously ill patients and chart their progress as a means of testing the treatment’s effectiveness.  There is a reason why placebo controlled, double blind, randomized trials have become the standard in medical research.

     On the other hand, as a drama, Dallas Buyers Club is entertaining, suspenseful, and interesting.  Along with McConaughey, Jared Leto as Woodruff’s transsexual business partner is fascinating.  He becomes so by sheer force of his charm and astute bargaining with the homophobic Woodruff.  Eventually, they create a workable association, and it is nice to see Woodruff relent and develop caring feelings toward him. 

Matthew McConaughey gives a stellar performance as a playboy who changes to become an advocate for medical patients.

Grade:  B                                    By Donna R. Copeland