LAND

Robin Wright     Demian Bichir     Sarah Dawn Pledge     Kim Dickens

     Unexpectedly, a beautiful story of love lost and found—but not in the usual sense. Robin Wright has long been one of my favorite actresses, and now she proves her talents in additional ways.     Congratulations to her for directing her first feature film, which reflects her sensibility in choosing this particular one.

     The first scene is remarkable for setting up the story.  Edee (Wright) is in a therapist’s office without much hope of it helping her.  She has come as a favor to her sister Emma (Dickens) after a trauma she can’t seem to work through.  She soon comes up with her own solution, which wouldn’t make sense to most of us, but is psychologically sound, given what we learn about her later.

     Edee chooses to buy property in the mountain wilderness of Wyoming sight unseen. After she is guided there by the realtor on her first visit, following her chucking her phone, she sends him away, saying in response to his concern, “I’ll be fine.”  Her first upset occurs when the city girl cannot find a can opener at dinnertime.

     How on earth, you wonder, is she going to survive?  The story of that and of the myriad dangers she encounters is the heart of the film.

     To counteract the spikes in apprehension and bouts of misery, Bobby Bukowski’s cinematic, probing photography and the lyrically soothing music of Ben Sollee and Time for Three, buffers our experience of a deeply human story that could be depressing. 

     But part of that story is seeing Edee learning how to do for herself in isolation: fishing, hunting, repairing her cabin—making do.  But “no man [or woman] is an island”, and everyone needs others at some point. That is where Miguel (Bichir) enters the picture.  Bichir is the perfect actor for the role with his Hispanic/American Indian appearance, his unassuming manner, and purveyor of genuineness.  At one point, when she asks him why he was helping her, his reply is, “You were in my path.”  The two work out the definitive boundaries about what notto ask each other.  And although he honors this to a T and is willing to share a bit, she remains adamant:  No news of the outside world.

       The movie Land has many truths, with a well-written script by Jesse Chatham and Erin Dignam, who provide points of view from both male and female perspectives.  (Another appeal, I’m sure, to Robin Wright.)  This could easily have been a “chick-lit” film, but avoids that by making both sexes heroic.   

This is a film for everyone, really, and might make an interesting conversation piece for those choosing it for their date night flick.

 

Grade:  A                                    By Donna R. Copeland

BLADE RUNNER 2049

Ryan Gosling     Harrison Ford     Robin Wright     Ana de Armas     Jared Leto     Sylvia Hoeks     Mackenzie Davis

   The cinematography (Roger Deakins), special effects and other-world atmosphere (production design by Dennis Gassner) give this film’s story the mystery and spookiness it deserves.  The 1982 Blade Runner film, based on Philip K. Dick’s graphic novel, has been updated by screenwriters Hampton Fancher (who also worked on the earlier film) and Michael Green under the excellent direction of Denis Villeneuve.  It’s fast-moving and suspenseful, leading the viewer down garden paths that make it seem predictable, but ultimately is not.

     ‘K’ (Gosling) is a blade runner charged by his supervisor Lt. Joshi (Wright) to track down out-moded replicants made by the Tyrell Corporation and retire them.  The new ones, manufactured by Niander Wallace (Leto), who bought the Tyrell Corporation, are considered to be so human-like a special test has been devised to distinguish between replicant and human.  ‘K’ must be tested each time he returns to base to be sure that he has not been tampered with.

     Something comes up in one of his investigations that arouses his curiosity, and he begins to pursue it, against the orders of Joshi.  This search constitutes the main part of the story with all its complexity, assortment of figures, and dangerous encounters.  He does eventually find Deckard (Ford), the original Blade Runner, who has become a recluse, and who is not very happy to see him, but K has burning questions Deckard can answer—or so he thinks.

     The picture of the future that Blade Runner 2049 constructs is alarming as well as fascinating.  Identities merge and transform with ease, paranoia about who is who is rampant, sophisticated space ships for rapid travel seem to appear out of nowhere any time, and most of the buildings look like tool shops inside.  Digitized figures (many especially in the form of sexy women) tower over the city, which is teeming with multitudes.  At one point, a character says, “We’re all just looking out for something real”, which is like the viewer’s experience throughout the story.

     2049 continues with the existential questions of the first Blade Runner, having a lot to do with issues about what it means to be human.  Yet, although it is enlightening to be familiar with the previous film, 2049 stands on its own; it’s not necessary to have seen the first film to grasp the import of the current rendition.

With robotics in our near future, it behooves us to consider what it is to be human.

Grade:  A                                    By Donna R. Copeland

WONDER WOMAN

Gal Gadot     Chris Pine     Connie Nielsen     Robin Wright     Danny Huston     Elena Anaya

Etta Candy     David Thewlis     Ewen Bremner     Eugene Braverock     Said Taghmaoui

   Wonder Woman is a delightful mix of female power with wisdom and compassion, intelligent action, thrills and intrigue of war, and amusing humor.  I especially like that Diana/Wonder Woman (Gadot) possesses these characteristics just within herself.  But beyond that, all the main characters illustrate these features at one time or another.  Steve Trevor (Pine) is certainly a hero with smarts, and his interactions with Wonder Woman are so funny at times, especially when mixing up his modern day sensibilities with her mythological spirit and sentiments. 

    Among the Amazons, Queen Hippolyta (Nielsen) and General Antiope (Wright) are strong figures who cherish and counsel the young Diana.   Other characters represent the value of doing one’s job, as Trevor’s secretary who goes where he says or does anything he tells her to, and Trevor’s three undercover agents (Bremner, Brave Rock, Taghmaoui) exercising their specialties with dedication and humor (i.e., the “Sharpshooter” Charlie (Bremner) also sings for entertainment). 

     Then there are the forces of evil:  Sir Patrick (a.k.a. the god Ares) (Thewlis), Maru, “Dr. Poison” (Anaya), and Nazi General Ludenoff (Huston).  They represent the kind of threat to the world that the Amazons have heard about and train for.  And they are truly evil in their intentions to sabotage peace in the world at all costs.  Currently, it will be in the form of a gas invented by Maru, against which, gas masks are futile. 

  Will Wonder Woman, Steve Trevor, and their allies be effective in forestalling the decimation of mankind?

   In addition to being a thriller, Wonder Woman has substance in commentary about humankind, mythological references, the nature of war, and, perhaps, men (although the latter is disputable, in that women have not necessarily proven themselves yet in leadership with compassion).

     Praise is due for Patty Jenkins in moving the genre of superheroes into more substantive material that goes beyond special effects.  Likewise, William Moulton Marston, the creator of the Wonder Woman character, should be praised for recognizing that girls need a heroine to overcome sexism in the genre.  He is the one who envisioned that magic and super strength needed to be accompanied by wisdom and compassion. 

     Gal Gadot appears to be a perfect choice for playing Wonder Woman, with her ravishing good looks (All men seem to fall at her feet, but the best line is “I’m both frightened and aroused” when she performs her heroic feats.) and athletic prowess combined with naïveté and single-minded purpose.  Chris Pine as well is able to combine an American boyishness with smarts and heroism.  Supporting cast as both the “good guys” and “bad guys” help make this film a winner. 

Take your daughters to see this film.

Grade:  A                               By Donna R. Copeland