THE OLD MAN & THE GUN

Robert Redford     Casey Affleck     Sissy Spacek     Danny Glover

Tom Waits     Keith Carradine     Tika Sumpter     Elizabeth Moss

     Charming, but incorrigible, Forrest Tucker’s sociopathic personality comes through when he meets a woman in a diner, and quickly wins her trust.  The woman is Jewel (Spacek), a lover of the simple life, horses, and the rolling fields surrounding her property.  He is evasive when she asks his name and what he does for a living, and he gives her his real name, which, at this point, is not broadcast in the stories about him, and finally lets her know that instead of “makin’ a livin’”, he believes in “livin’”.  It’s obvious that he has an admirable way of blending together truth and fiction into a believable story.  And like many who encounter Forrest, many suspect he is lying, but it doesn’t seem to bother them…because he’s so nice!

     The truth is that Forrest is a bank robber who has been imprisoned and escaped 16 times, beginning when he was just a kid.  It’s noteworthy that all the tellers who get robbed describe him as “such a gentleman”, “very polite”, a “nice-enough fellow”, and “happy.” He’s always well dressed and charming, encouraging them, and thanking them for accommodating him.  He and his pals, Teddy (Glover) and Waller (Waits), manage to get away with thousands of dollars.  They’re in the news, and even the police shake their heads, finding it preposterous that these old men are so capable.  

     Detective John Hunt (Affleck) is the beleaguered policeman charged with apprehending Tucker.  Although he seems to be as obsessed with being a good policeman as Tucker is about being a good robber, he is different in his self-doubts and struggles with his occupation.  His wife and superiors give him room to quit the force, but he determinedly stays on.  Even when the FBI intrudes itself into the case and he has a chance to step back, he doesn’t. Then he gets a tip that tells him exactly who Forrest Tucker is.

     Robert Redford pulls off this role in his usual expert fashion; probably no one else would be up to his personal aptness and level of skill.  It’s rewarding to see Sissy Spacek again in a role that suits her to a T as well.  Finally, Casey Affleck likewise performs as the kind of brooding character he has done so well in other films.  Danny Glover and Tom Waits make great sidekicks for the Redford character.  I was a bit disappointed there is not one of Tom Waits’ songs in the music.  Elizabeth Moss has a wonderful cameo at the end.  In a way, this film reminded me of David Mackenzie and Taylor Sheridan’s Hell or High Water in the nobility of the robber, but it kept up a level of excitement and humor a little more than is the case for this film.

     The script for The Old Man & the Gunis based on a true story, which was written up for The New Yorker Magazine by David Grann, who subsequently penned the script for this film.  Grann has a way of capturing his audience’s interest and maintaining suspense in his writing, just as he did for The Lost City of Z, The Devil and Sherlock Holmes, and Killers of the Flower Moon:  The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI.  In Director David Lowery’s capable hands, the movie becomes worthy of Robert Redford’s distinguished reputation in filmmaking, and a fitting tribute if it is indeed his last acting role.  Daniel Hart’s lyrical, moving score puts finishing touches on this fine production.

Charm is the name of the game in this engaging, suspenseful story.

Grade:  B+                                              By Donna R. Copeland

PETE'S DRAGON

Bryce Dallas Howard     Robert Redford     Oakes Fegley     Oona Laurence     Wes Bentley     Karl Urban

               Ah…magic is still alive and all’s right with the world!  When five year-old Pete has to fend for himself in the forest after a car accident, a dragon who had been spotted occasionally in that forest through the years suddenly appears.  Without speaking, of course, he lets the child know that he is a friendly dragon, and Pete knows from his book about a dragon to name him Elliot.  They spend the next six years playing together, building a tree house, finding shelter in a cave, and foraging for food. 

        When civilization starts to encroach upon the forest in the form of housing development, the idyllic lives of the two friends are about to change.  Pete has a gradual introduction when he is spotted by a girl about his age named Natalie (Laurence) who is the daughter of the man responsible for clearing the forest.  She is a curious child and immediately wants to make friends and chases after him.  He runs up a tree, with her right behind him, but she is not as experienced as he is and falls.  This brings her parents, who must figure out who Pete is and where he came from.

               Pete has vague memories of his mother, and he is reminded of her when Natalie’s mother Grace (Howard) gently talks to him, so he warms up to her.  Grace has grown up in the region and knows the forest very well and some of the lore about it told to her by her father (Redford).  She will work on finding out about Pete’s origins and see that he is well taken care of.

            However, she doesn’t anticipate that greed and mass hysteria among people in town are going to hamper her efforts.  When Elliott is spotted looking for Pete, trigger-happy Gavin (Urban) whips up the townspeople to get out their guns and give chase.  They are afraid, but it’s also evident that they love the sport of hunting just for the fun of it.  This is one of the good messages in the film for children—that they don’t have to run and get their guns anytime they see something strange or try to exploit it for profit.

            In the course of dealing with this issue and trying to help Pete find his friend, Director David Lowery gives us excitement aplenty, mixed with tender moments after close calls and significant discoveries.  I think this Disney production does a fine job in balancing the scariness and tension with the joys of discovery in the natural world, as well as showing the warmth of a loving family.  I especially appreciated seeing that Natalie was better than the adults in understanding Pete and introducing him to things he has never seen or has forgotten.  Once again, it’s good for children to see that model of behavior with a stranger, as opposed to rejecting him because he is different.

          Robert Redford is a powerful figure onscreen, and when the movie opens and he is telling a group of children about a dragon, he captures our interest right away.  Bryce Dallas Howard plays her role as daughter, wife, and mother in a natural, loving way, giving assurance that Pete is in good hands.  Both child actors, Fegley and Laurence, merge into their roles with ease and are delightful to watch.  Daniel Hart’s music choices are just right in using well-known American songs that give a sense of place and time.

For a bit of thrilling magic, go see Pete’s Dragon.

Grade:  A                        By Donna R. Copeland

TRUTH

Cate Blanchett   Robert Redford   Topher Grace   Dennis Quaid   Elizabeth Moss   Bruce Greenwood   Stacy Keach

          This Truth does need to be told to remind us of the importance of solid investigative journalism at a time when so much news has become infotainment.  The film is based on a book written by its lead character Mary Mapes (Blanchett) entitled Truth and Duty:  The Press, the President, and the Privilege of Power.  It gives Mapes’ account of a story she researched and produced on television’s “60 Minutes”, which questions President Bush’s service in the Air National Guard.  The first half of the film shows the painstaking efforts made by the CBS team to fact check their data to assure its veracity.  They sincerely think they are doing the best job they can as journalists.  Little do they realize the power of those who have competing interests in squashing such a newscast.  

          The coincidence of the story being aired during a Presidential election turns out to be meaningful.  Needless to say, it creates a firestorm of controversy.  Dan Rather (Redford), CBS’ news anchor reporting the story, is criticized, but nothing like the vitriolic attacks on Mapes, his producer.  Was it at least partly because she was a woman?  She had a reputation for aggressively going after stories, but initially CBS patted her on the back for this.  The film does a good job in showing that some of the things she is criticized for actually make her a good reporter. 

       But when CBS’ parent company, Viacom, enters the picture and begins to exert a strong arm over CBS—because of a competing interest—the writing is on the wall.  Rather sees it.  He bends to the forces and goes out gracefully.  Rather and Mapes are the best of friends/colleagues, but with very different personalities and backgrounds.  Having been abused by her father and well supported by her husband, she cannot resist a final major defense of the story (against her lawyer’s advice to mollify a committee stacked against her), which is not in her own self-interest.  But that’s a hero for you.

        Blanchett is clearly a star in this production—as she is in so many—by capturing the essence of the Mapes figure and empathically rendering it.  Her co-star Redford—while he does not physically resemble the newscaster—easily conveys the essence of Rather.  The actors’ chemistry onscreen is a valid reproduction of the deep connection between Rather and Mapes. 

        This is a film that will not receive its due primarily for political reasons, I think.  But it is well told even-handedly by writer/director James Vanderbilt (The Amazing Spiderman, 2012, 2014; Zodiac) and the actors. 

I am glad this account of Dan Rather’s undoing is being told, although it is a sad story.

Grade:  B                                    By Donna R. Copeland

A WALK IN THE WOODS

Robert Redford   Nick Nolte   Emma Thompson   Mary Steenburgen   Nick Offerman   Kristen Schaal

           A Walk in the Woods is literally like a walk in the woods with entertaining companions and sometimes annoying, sometimes helpful, meet-ups on the trail.  Based on a memoir by Bill Bryson, the film shows Bill (Redford) as a little bored with his easy life and hatches the idea of hiking the Appalachian Trail, which his wife (Thompson) begs him not to do, but if he insists, to take someone with him.  After calling numerous friends, he is not able to find anyone until his old, currently estranged, friend Stephen (Nolte), hearing about the invitations via the grapevine, calls him up and invites himself along in such a way Bill cannot gracefully refuse.  And since he is a kind, thoughtful, well-educated soul—and a little desperate—he agrees Stephen should come.  (The film is remarkable in its portrayal of Bill as ambivalent; he’s not able to forsake his good breeding and principles, even though he is often repelled by the crudeness of Stephen.  But the ending shows a resolution of this ambivalence in a warmly human way.)

           We get our first introduction to Stephen when he arrives in a small plane, can barely fit through the door but gets through, dropping hat and bag, huffing and puffing, and stumbling out.  When he walks, he has a noticeable limp.  Again, Bill is the epitome of politeness and patience, and you shiver to think how these two are going to hike—not just walk—such a challenging route.

           Of course, they will have many adventures and misadventures both on the trail and in towns along the way, many of which are laugh-out-loud humorous and some actually life-threatening.  Stephen is the perfect foil for the refined Bill, by observing and talking crudely about things in the past and present that may appear to be obvious, but would ordinarily be brushed away by Bill.  Therein lies some of the value of this story—that Bill seems to be learning, as he has done all his life, from new experiences; yet tolerates Stephen, seldom losing patience with him.  Even when Stephen pokes fun at Bill’s intellectual sharpness and knowledge, Bill recognizes the good in Stephen and appreciates it.

           Part of the reward of this film is watching gifted experienced actors like Redford and Nolte doing what they do best.  They know the characters they’re portraying, and fit with them hand-in-glove.  The director, Ken Kwapis (Big Miracle, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants) and writers Rick Kerb and Bill Holderman do fine work in interspersing comedic moments into the action when it gets strenuous or alarming, and bringing in novel elements to keep us watching.  For instance, one of my favorite character artists is Kristen Schaal, who appears on the trail as Mary Ellen, the “expert” in hiking who has no sense of tact or personal engagement.  She does it so well, we—like Bill and Stephen—want to get away from her as fast as we can.

           I think this film did what it set out to do, and the music by Nathan Larson and cinematography by John Bailey nicely complement the story.  I understand Hollywood is attempting to increase appeal to older audiences which comprise a growing percentage of the theater going public (e.g., I’ll See you in my Dreams), and A Walk in the Woods fits nicely in that genre.

A walk in the woods to remember.

Grade:  C                        By Donna R. Copeland