THE GREEN KNIGHT

Dev Patel     Alicia Vikander     Joel Edgerton     Ralph Ineson

Sarita Choudhury     Sean Harris     Kate Dickie

 

            Based on a poem written in the 14^th Century by an unknown author, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight has been an intriguing story ever since.  Writer/director David Lowery in the third retelling of it in film enhances its mysteriousness by making the screen very dark, by accompanying it with choral music rendered in Middle Ages verse (with accents of dissonant modern music) composed by frequent Lowery collaborator Daniel Hart; and by a heavy dose of symbolism.

            It helps in understanding this film if one has read the poem and is familiar with the story.  I had not, so was mystified during many scenes until afterwards, when a colleague referred me to the myth.

            We meet Sir Gawain as a modest, committed knight so unassuming that he has to be ordered by King Arthur to sit by him and the queen.  When King Arthur requests that he tell a tale about himself so the King will know him, Gawain forthrightly demures, saying that he has no tale.  Soon after, the King is visited by a mysterious figure (who looks like a tree dressed up as a man) who presents his challenge to any of King Arthur’s knights.  The knight, the Green Knight (Ineson) dares any of those present to strike the Green Knight with his own axe, with the agreement that one year and one day later, the knight must find the Green Knight and allow him to strike the same blow as he had dealt to the Green Knight the year before.  No one answers but Sir Gawain who takes up the challenge, with plans to revisit the Green Knight on Christmas Day the following year.

            Close to the appointed day, Gawain sets off on the journey to honor his pledge.  Of course, along the way, he will encounter many travails and tests of his strength and commitment.  Among them are bandits who steal his horse, his sword, and a sash his mother gave him to keep him safe, then they tied him up and left him to rot.  He encounters a woman who literally lost her head, which is at the bottom of a spring.  (This is only part of the magic sprinkled in throughout the story; that is, she is talking to him with her head attached, but still wants to retrieve her head).  He also meets a Lord (Edgerton) and his Lady (Vikander plays two roles, this one and the woman he is in love with at home).  The Lord proposes a bargain (a theme in the tale) wherein he will bring Gawain all the spoils of his daily hunts, and Gawain is to give to the Lord what he gained during the day.

            After much of what Gawain lost during his travails is restored, often magically, he finally arrives at the Green Knight’s home, ready to honor his pledge.

            Although well done in many respects, The Green Knight will appeal primarily to those interested in fantasy and in literature of days gone by.  I found the dark screen and often unintelligible dialog and choral words tedious, despite my interest in the story.  A confusing aspect added by Lowery is that Gawain’s mother gives him a sash for protection before he leaves on his journey, and his local love Esse gives him a ring.  On his journey when he meets the Lord’s lady (also played by Vikander) she as well gives him these two items.

Dev Patel, Alicia Vikander, Joel Edgerton, and Ralph Ineson are superb in their roles, always a joy to watch.

 

Better read some background on this story so as to derive full benefit of its entertainment value.

 

Grade:   B                                                  By Donna R. Copeland

THE KING

Timothee Chalamet     Joel Edgerton     Robert Pattinson     Ben Mendelsohn     Thomasin McKenzie    Lily-Rose Depp

     The King presents an interesting picture of King Henry V of England I in the early part of the 15^thCentury.  The script, co-written by Joel Edgerton and director David Michod, draws some from history, more from Shakespeare’s plays, Henry IV and Henry V, and then elaborates on all sources.  The viewer should regard it as primarily a dramatization only loosely drawn from history and Shakespeare.

     As it turns out, the filmmakers have rewritten their sources to create a story about a “reluctant prince” who has major conflicts with his father, King Henry IV (Mendelsohn) about the constant wars the father has waged.  Henry V (Chalamet) is presented first as a playboy who has no desire to be a king, and doesn’t even want to attend to his ailing father. 

     It’s a bit of a stretch that such a person could suddenly turn into an admirable figure as he does in the film, but that’s the drama of it.  After the sudden change, Henry is shown to be a skilled and ferocious opponent in swordplay, a man who is astute and listens carefully to arguments presented to him, and makes shrewd decisions based upon his deductions.  He is not susceptible to indignations purposed upon him by others; he can take decisive, even ruthless, action when he suspects someone is lying or outright betraying him; and he keeps a cool head in negotiations with opponents.  Of course, he is also very handsome and appealing.

     The way Henry V becomes king is his take-charge stance after his father has chosen second son Thomas as his successor, someone who seems not to be a match for his brother, either intellectually or physically.  Henry tries to save him and avoid another war, but Thomas is recalcitrant, and after a series of events and time, the reluctant Henry becomes king.

     The rest of the story is about Henry’s being drawn into war, despite all his efforts against it, his need to identify those around him he can trust, and resorting to finding his old friend and caretaker John Falstaff (Edgerton) to be his primary advisor and strategist (especially in war) and supporter.

     The French don’t come across very well in this story; both the dauphin (Pattinson) and his father, King Charles VI, are disdainful and insolent toward Henry, refusing to go along with the ways he presents to avoid war.  Although they are partially redeemed by their eloquent--rather audacious—princess Catherine (Depp) who stands up to Henry in a very entertaining contretemps.  

     The craft of The King is admirable in Michod’s direction, the music (Nicholas Britell) and the cinematography (Adam Arkapaw), and the actors capture their roles well for the most part, especially Chalamet, Edgerton, McKenzie, and Depp.  Editing (Peter Sciberras) can be faulted for extending the battle scene far too long in a movie that is already over two hours in length. The scenes are effective in showing the bloodiness, muck, and brutality, but become tiring halfway through.

     I liked the Michod and Edgerton’s elaboration on historical events to present a character who is admirable in so many ways, trying to achieve peaceful resolutions, but mindful of counteracting forces.  This Henry V is someone we can admire, but viewers should not go with the expectation of seeing a production up to the level of a play by Shakespeare.

Henry V is an entertaining take-off of Shakespeare’s version, this one having a message of peace and the value of unity.

Grade:  C+                                                By Donna R Copeland

BOY ERASED

Lucas Hedges     Nicole Kidman     Russell Crowe     Joel Edgerton

     Joel Edgerton is someone in the film world to pay attention to.  The Australian is well known to Americans for his acting in Loving, The Great Gatsby, and Black Mass, and as well for his writing/directing/producing talent in The Gift.  Now, he comes out with an award-worthy production informing us about conversion therapy, based on a memoir by Garrard Conley about his real-life experience.  Edgerton impresses us with his talent for telling a story with elements of experience and perspective from multiple points of view.  By the end of this movie, we have a real sense of the individual, family, religious community, and programmatic aims and aspirations of the participants.

     Lucas Hedges as Jared Eamons lives up to his promise as an actor who can play complex characters with subtlety and poignancy.  Here, he is a budding college student who is curious about the world, is compassionate and sincere, loves his parents, and wants to please them.  You see him naively trying to follow the script written for him in love, marriage, and career, primarily by his father, a pastor, and secondarily by his mother who goes along with her husband most of the time.  The beauty of the film is in its focus on Jared’s discoveries and transitions he must make on his own journey.  

     Boy Erased does just as well in depicting what a program in conversion therapy involves, which, to me, is essentially a brainwashing process.  Participants are coerced into revealing their innermost secrets and actions, which are labeled as sins, and then they are shamed and manipulated to behave in ways their “trainers” envision is “right.”  

     Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe as Jared’s parents exquisitely capture the essence of shock and anguish so many sincere, loving families undergo when they’re not prepared for the news and have been taught that homosexuality is vile and a sin.  These parents, like so many others, are not prepared for the paradox they must face: the child they know and love does not sync with their fundamental beliefs of what is good and honorable.

     Of course, Edgerton nails Victor Sykes, the head of the conversion program—part suave salesman, part corporate chief, and part pseudo-therapist—primarily interested in his investment.  He gives out clues about himself that are born out over time, another example of Edgerton’s skill.

     Music by the team Danny Bansi and Saunder Jurriaans plays a significant role in enhancing the dramatic ups and downs of this important film that is difficult to watch at times.  But sticking with it pays off.

A look at conversion therapy and a family’s experience of it.

Grade:  A                                              By Donna R. Copeland

GRINGO

Joel Edgerton     Charlize Theron     David Oyelowo     Thandie Newton     Amanda Seyfried     Sharlto Copley

     Ugly Americans and Mexican cartels go head to head in this crime story that also wants to be a comedy.  Richard Rusk (Edgerton) and Elaine Markinson (Theron) co-lead a company that is not averse to doing extra-curricular deals.  They have a product being sold in Mexico for them, but when it looks like U.S. states are going to legalize marijuana, they want to market Cannabax (ha-ha--Get it?) in the U.S. and hugely increase their profits.  That will leave no product for the Mexican trade.  Their middle manager Harold (Oyelowo) has been working with the Mexicans for a long time, establishing confidence and gaining their trust, but suddenly Richard and Elaine want to accompany him on the trip to explain to the Mexicans why they are going to stop selling to them.  Harold is left out of all these plans—and many others as the plot proceeds, all while Richard keeps calling him his best friend and making promises of untold wealth.  Call him a dupe.  Go ahead.

     The plot by writers Anthony Tambakis and Matthew Stone gets heavily convoluted by incorporating multiple betrayals, Mexican cartels, an amateur American trying to smuggle dope into the US from Mexico (no connection to the other operation), and the DEA into the story.  Oh, yes, and at one point, Richard’s brother Mitch (Copley), is called upon to abandon his altruistic activities in Haiti to help his brother reclaim the kidnapped Harold.  (This is not the only kidnapping that will take place.)

     The movie, directed by Nash Edgerton (Joel’s brother), attempts to be slick, funny, and entertaining.  And I think it does achieve the latter, but I was not impressed with the intricacies of plans and subterfuges; and the “funny” is successful in drawing chuckles at times, but it borders on stereotypical portrayal of blacks.  This is Oyelowo really trying to show his comedic chops, and he is funny until you stop and think…

     The acting is top-notch by Edgerton, Theron, and Oyelowo, with Edgerton being the profligate with a swagger, Theron with a cold, hard perspective using her sexuality and attractiveness to get what she wants, and Oyelowo with high ideals passed down from his father trying to be noble.  The supporting cast is noteworthy, particularly Amanda Seyfried (Les Miserables) and Sharlto Copley (Chappie), who are two of the only genuine figures in this production. 

     It’s puzzling why the amateurish drama of a reluctant, naïve drug carrier (Harry Treadaway) and his girlfriend (Seyfried) were included in the mix.  Their paths cross with Harold’s in a sometimes touching way, but they don’t really fit into this story.

For a lightly entertaining romp, Gringo might be your movie choice—just don’t plan to take it too seriously.

Grade:  C                                    By Donna R. Copeland

RED SPARROW

Jennifer Lawrence     Joel Edgerton     Matthias Schoenaerts     Charlotte Rampling

Mary-Louise Parker     Jeremy Irons

      A spy story can be a perfect thriller, especially when double-dealing is a part of it.  Red Sparrow refers to a Russian intelligence operation that trained young recruits how to extract information from targets by engaging them, giving them what they want, and gradually building trust. 

     The problem here is that young Dominika (Lawrence) a Bolshoi ballet dancer, has her career abruptly curtailed when her leg is injured permanently.  Dominika is desperate now, because the Boishoi pays for her rent and her mother’s medical care.  Forthwith, her Uncle Vanya (Schoenaerts) offers her a role in the Russian state security, where he has a high position.  “There are no accidents”, he declares ominously, making you wonder how Dominika’s leg injury came about.  He is frank about the kind of commitment it will take on her part, and reminds her that she doesn’t really have other prospects for taking care of herself and her mother.

     Vanya initially gives her a cryptic assignment, where she does very well; however, there is another agenda of which she is unaware.  She is very successful until…  Now, she has witnessed something that makes her dangerous, which gives Vanya additional leverage, which he uses by having her enroll in a special training program on the psychological manipulation of others.  Here, she is advised on principles such as to “forget sentimental morality”, given instruction about guns and shooting, and picking locks.  “Innure yourself to what you find repellant.”  “Learn to love on command.” Basically, the ends justify whatever means they need to use. 

     This is a time when the Cold War between the U.S. and Russia is still continuing.  On the American side, one of its CIA agents makes an error in judgment, and is sent home from Moscow.  Nash (Edgerton) is a dedicated operative who has spent years cultivating a source.  His burning desire to get back in the field is to hold onto this source, who won’t talk to anyone else. 

     One of the delightful intrigues in this film is to see how each side has more than an inkling as to what the other side is doing.  This means, of course, that Dominika and Nash will cross paths.  But I won’t give any spoilers as to how and how many times this comes about, but it is one of the most entertaining aspects of the film.

     Francis Lawrence has directed the Red Sparrow in an optimal way for this type of film, in which the viewer is challenged to figure out what is going on at every step, even to the ending of the story.  I think the standout actor is Schoenaerts, who has an uncanny resemblance to Vladimir Putin, which is enhanced by the actor’s skill in portraying Putin’s mannerisms and persuasive ways of reasoning.  He can be truly intimidating and terrifying.  Jennifer Lawrence and Joel Edgerton are skilled actors who always bring their characters to life, but in this instance, charisma between the two was slightly amiss.  Of course, Charlotte Rampling as the “Matron” is intimidating and precise in her dispassionate “teach by the book” approach to training in unorthodox(?) techniques.  Additional supporting actors who enhance the quality of the film include Jeremy Irons and Ciarán Hinds as Russian security agents, Joely Richardson as Dominika’s mother, and Mary-Louise Parker as an informer.

     This is a spy story that will not disappoint.  I have an objection to the level of violence and torture portrayed (from which everyone seems to recover miraculously), and wish that filmmakers would see that it is not really necessary.

A spy’s creed:  “Everyone is a puzzle of need.  Give him what he wants, and he will be yours.”

Grade:  B+                                    By Donna R. Copeland

LOVING

Ruth Negga     Joel Edgerton     Nick Kroll     Michael Shannon     Margaret Blackwood

          Another Jeff Nichols (Mud, Take Shelter, Midnight Special) film that quietly pulls at your heart and reason and captures your attention.  It’s aptly entitled because the last name of the interracial couple having to buck Virginia’s outdated law against their union is Loving.  When their case, championed by the ACLU, goes to the Supreme Court, and the attorney asks Richard (Edgerton) what he wants to say to the Court, Richard’s answer is simply “I love my wife.”  Nichols wrote the screenplay based on an actual case, but he dramatized it, using as much information as he could glean about the actual case.  In the Q&A after the screening in Austin, Texas, he said all the legal information he gathered would have made a very boring movie, so he chose to write a drama, keeping the focus on the couple.

         Loving is about an interracial couple in the ‘50s-‘60s who defied Virginia law against miscegenation by going to Washington D.C. to get married, and upon returning home living together as husband and wife.  They lead a normal life in a family atmosphere, unaware of a “snitch” who informs the local police.

     The Lovings are an interesting twosome—she is only 19 when they marry (in Washington D.C.)—and he takes his responsibility for caring for her seriously.  So when they are roused from a deep sleep by policemen invading their bedroom one night and hauling them into jail, we see the beginnings of his disillusionment (“It’s just not right”) and mystification, although he continues to accommodate to the sentencing they receive (which is lighter than it otherwise would have been, thanks to a sympathetic local lawyer who is a friend of the judge), which uproots them from their home and her family to the city of Washington D.C.  He is a good honest worker-type who diligently drives back to their hometown every day for work.

     As time goes on (marked by seasons changing and children being born), Mildred (Negga) develops more confidence and assertiveness, so when her relative giving them accommodations in Washington says to her during the Civil Rights marches in the ‘60s, “Write to Robert Kennedy; you need to get you some civil rights”, Mildred does just that, which gets the ACLU involved.  It’s at this point that we see Mildred’s gradual transformation into a sharp woman who comprehends what the lawyers and press are telling her and becomes aware of the social significance and implications of their pressing forward.

        Another thing I love about Nichols’ writing is that he makes this transformation positive and non-threatening to Richard, partly because of her loving nature, but partly because his inner strength makes him thoughtful and, once again, accommodating, always from a strong position.  (The movie could be an inspiration for couples in achieving equality in their relationship, along with its message about equality for all citizens.)

      The casting of these two characters could not have been better.  Ruth Negga epitomizes a woman we can admire in any age—tender, sharp, decisive in a quiet way, sympathetic, and empathetic.  [For fun, you can contrast this with Richard’s mother (Sharon Blackwood), a midwife, who is scary looking when we first meet her, devoid of emotion and issuing out instructions, yet still supportive of her patients.  It’s unnerving later to see her as a doting grandmother, but that is Nichols again capturing human nature in all its variances.] 

     Joel Edgerton should be highly praised for portraying this character who is eloquent in nonverbal language but terse or reticent verbally.  His facial expressions, eyes, body language, and cryptic comments give you a full picture of who he is, what he values, and what he is about.  Both Edgerton and Negga embody Nichols’ subtlety and accuracy in honing in on the human psyche with all its complexities.

     With all the low-key drama, we also get to chuckle, as for instance, when Richard is evaluating the value of ACLU lawyers—for which there is no charge—he says wryly and cynically, “You get what you pay for.”  For all his crustiness and terse observations, Richard is the most comedic character.

Jeff Nichols, an artist with cinematic social sensitivity who’s still entertaining and insightful.

Grade:  A                                    By Donna R. Copeland

BLACK MASS

Johnny Depp   Joel Edgerton   Benedict Cumberbatch   Kevin Bacon   Peter Sarsgaard   Adam Scott   Corey Stoll

          Black Mass:  an excellent film with a stunning cast that mesmerizes as the viewer witnesses one blatant crime after another.  It’s instructive in showing how a particular attachment formed in childhood renders the adult myopic in relation to someone who was his “savior” at a critical time.  I learned (from Wikipedia) that the title “Black Mass” is a metaphor for an unholy alliance, which I presume refers here to the FBI’s (particularly agent Connolly’s) alliance with a major criminal as an “informant.”

         Director Scott Cooper and the whole team deserve applause for just about every aspect of filmmaking:  The script (Mark Mallouk and Jez Butterworth, screenplay; Dick Lehr and Gerard O’Neill, book); the acting, particularly Depp, Edgerton, Cumberbatch, Bacon, Sarsgaard; makeup so well done I hardly recognized Depp; and cinematography (Masanobu Takayanagi) in artistic use of the camera.  The pacing made the film move in the best of storytelling technique.  Being unaware of the wealth of data about Jimmy “Whitey” Bulger’ criminal career, I expected much to be made of his years of escape, but the filmmakers made a wise choice in restricting most of the film to his criminal behavior and the FBI’s unwitting cooperation.  It was more than enough to fill a two-hour time slot.

            Black Mass serves as a study of personality and character; how people coming out of South Boston have developed a keen sense of loyalty, how one person goes in a criminal direction, another to political office, and still another to law enforcement.  Their background binds them together in a fascinating way.  Bulger is especially well fleshed out, so that we get a comprehensive picture of the complexities of his makeup (e.g., strict religious values in some areas, no conscience in others, and the knowledge and ability to use politeness and the concept of loyalty in evil intentions).

          The social commentary raises the question of how much one can change after coming from a humble background, at least one that makes moral compromise a part of everyday life, for which, I think, South Boston has a reputation.  This is seen in the Cumberbatch figure—Whitey Bulger’s brother—who apparently acquired a veneer of uprightness which brought him a political office and later a university presidency.  But when he had to make a compromise by communicating with his brother on the FBI’s most wanted list, he had to give up the presidency.

          I went reluctantly to the screening of Black Mass (I had seen the television documentary of Bulger’s capture), but was gratifyingly surprised by the substance of the film in terms of criminal behavior and the informed, comprehensive view of humans at their best and worst.

Go to Black Mass for its perceptive insight and understanding of human behavior.

Grade:  A                                    By Donna R. Copeland

THE GIFT

--> Joel Edgerton     Jason Bateman     Rebecca Hall
 

          I do love a good psychological thriller, and The Gift has all the essential ingredients—suspense, terror, fright, a social message, and above all psychological validity.  Joel Edgerton, who co-wrote Animal Kingdom and The Rover (similar themes) with David Michod, took the writing for this onto himself, and directed and acted in it as well.  He’s truly a talented individual.  Right from the beginning of this film—with the first shot being of an empty room as well photographed as if it were a painting and foreshadowing background music by Danny Bensi and Saunder Jurriaans—it grabs your attention and you sit up straight.  Edgerton is a master at foretelling what is going to happen later, although you may not catch its significance at the time.  Gifts obviously play a key role in the drama, all of them seeming odd at first, and later you realize the glass cleaner was prophetic.

           It turns out the empty room is in a house a California realtor is showing to a couple from Chicago.  It’s upscale, and Greg (Bateman) is on his way up the ladder in a flourishing company.  His wife Robyn (Hall) is a designer who we learn has undergone some traumatic experiences but is on the mend.  They have taken the house and are shopping for furnishings when a man in the department store approaches them.  Gordo (Edgerton) was a high school classmate of Bateman, and seems to want to reestablish old ties.  Greg appears to be a bit mystified, but gamely goes along with plans to call Gordo and get together.

           That’s when the gifts with notes start arriving—a bottle of wine, some fish food and then koi for their pond.  Robyn is touched, particularly when Gordy shows up at the house during the day with additional gifts and offers to be helpful, including getting the television and DVD player hooked up.  Yes, he does seem a bit socially awkward—which appeals to Robyn’s social tolerance—but Greg is irritated. 

           Edgerton takes us down the garden path, demonstrating how susceptible we are to sociopathic characters who are ever so clever in planting “ideas that take hold.”  He does this by keeping us guessing as to who the villain is and testing our limits of tolerance for other people who seem odd to us. 

           Bateman and Hall portray the couple very much in love and tender with one another until suspicion and doubt begin to creep up.  Bateman is good at playing the young executive trying to make all the right moves in a big company so he will be promoted.  Hall is convincing as a designer who personally has basic values of tolerance and justice, and along with that, has a questioning mind.  Edgerton knows creepy, and the thing I like most about his written and evocative portrayal of the character of Gordo is its realistic accuracy as well as its ultimate ambiguity.  That is, we’re unsure of where the boundary is between “sick” and simply odd.

A consummate thriller about gifts from one’s past.

Grade:  A                        By Donna R. Copeland