THE PHOTOGRAPH

LaKeith Stanfield     Issa Rae     Kelvin Harrison, Jr.    Chanté Adams

Rob Morgan     Lil Rel Howery     Courtney B. Vance

     The most unusual technique in this film is that the life of the mother of one of the main protagonists is highlighted in accounting for a love story that transpires years later.  It works because the mother’s personality and her decisions (advanced for the time) are so fascinating.  Christine Eames (Adams) leaves her home (and the man she loves) in New Orleans to pursue her dream of making a name for herself in photography in New York. She leaves without saying goodbye to her love, Isaac (Morgan), assuming that he will be there when she returns.

     We learn about that couple off and on in flashbacks.  But the immediate story is about Michael Block (Stanfield), a reporter for a magazine in New York, The Republic.  He is assigned to do a story about Eames, and goes to New Orleans, to interview Isaac, who talks about Christine and shows him some of her photographs.  That leads him back to the Queens Museum in New York where Mae Morton (Rae) is the assistant curator.  

     Much of the rest of the story is about Michael and Mae in a “will they or won’t they?” kind of scenario.  The fascinating part is how writer/director Stella Meghie weaves the two generational stories together in themes of missed opportunities that seem fated and the suggestion of a larger role that fate plays in humans’ lives.

     The acting is exemplary for the most part.  Issa Rae in particular evokes mystery and beauty seemingly effortlessly. I have always loved LaKeith Stanfield, especially in Sorry to Bother You, but in this role he is not as effective, primarily because of the script, which has made his character less desirable (sort of shifty, unwilling to commit, unable to express emotion).  Writer/director Stella Meghie has created lead characters, both of them having a difficult time expressing themselves.  The characterizations of Issa’s mother and Isaac (played by Chanté Adams and Rob Morgan), as well as step-father Louis Morton (Vance) evoke our interest and make us want to know more about them.

     I think the story presented is very romantic but in a muted form.  It moves a bit slowly, and is probably not the best choice for a Valentine’s date, although it will be opening on Valentine’s Day.

A “will they or won’t they?” romantic drama that is made more interesting by weaving in the parents’ stories.

Grade:  C+                                    By Donna R. Copeland

BEN IS BACK

Julia Roberts     Lucas Hedges     Courtney B. Vance     Kathryn Newton     Alexandra Park

     As can be seen in the trailer, Ben (Hedges) pays a surprise visit to his family at Christmastime, making everyone nervous.  His mother Holly (Roberts) is thrilled to have him and assumes an air of optimism, whereas his younger sister Ivy (Newton) and stepfather Neal (Vance) are wary.  The two younger children are the only ones greeting him with glee devoid of concern.  Because for all her optimism, Holly still proceeds to stow away drugs from the medicine cabinet and jewelry items, prompting quizzical looks and comments from her daughter. Ben has been in rehab for an addiction, but reports his sponsor gave him permission to leave.  

     What follows is 24 hours packed with emotional upheaval, distress, many questions and conflicts, and a sprinkling of happiness.  I get the impression that the film offers a realistic look at what families go through when their child(ren) develop a drug addiction.  The agonizing question revolves around trust: When do you trust them and when do you not?  How do you tell when they are telling the truth and when they are lying?  How closely do you observe their every move?  

     It gets even more complicated when the addict’s intentions are noble, but he puts himself and his family at risk.  It never occurs to Ben that a simple shopping trip to get presents for his younger sibs would prompt a string of events.  (He can’t just put his name on presents his mother has already bought; that wouldn’t be honest—honesty is a primary goal in rehab.)  Nor does it occur to him at first, or to his family, that there are extended “side effects” to his addiction, i.e., people in town who want revenge for what he did in the past.  Like many addicts, he had to support his habit by dealing.

     Writer/Director Peter Hedges knows exactly how to bring the viewer along on the experience of an addict’s family visit, by keeping you guessing about the same things family members are questioning, especially when family members themselves are not always telling the truth.  I had to smile at the number of times a family member takes off on his/her own refusing offers of help from someone else.  At one point, Neal says to his wife, “We’re supposed to be a team!”  But she’s afraid he will deal with the problem in a way she disagrees with, so she acts as if everything is under control.  Yes, it gets so complicated.

The plot is engaging, one cares about the family from the start, and there are many clenched-teeth moments.  

     This is a film that may frighten you and depress you, but it is worth the strain in that it is informative about a problem that is currently plaguing our country in an epidemic.  Like the story in Boy Erased, it demonstrates that even in upper middle class prosperous families addiction can be their undoing.  It’s no longer just the poor and disadvantaged who have these battles to fight.  Watching moves like these are not only drama and thrillers, they are informative and helpful to those who may be going through the same things now, in the past, or in the future.  I appreciate that in Boy Erased, it is the father who takes the predominant role in helping his son and that it is the mother who takes that role in Ben is Back.  Both are good models, and both make clear that unconscious forces sometimes make them less than effective.

     Lucas Hedges (son of Peter Hedges) has much to boast about for his role in this film as well as recent others: Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri, Lady Bird, and Manchester by the Sea.  They all illustrate his acting range and quality of performance.  Here, he achieves a realistic mother/son connection with the acclaimed and experienced Julia Roberts, who can look beatific in gazing at her children, adopt a charming but genuine response to friends, and burst out with fury and determination in the face of dispute and conflict.  It’s a delight to watch her cast her spell on dozens of diverse roles.  

     Ben is Back is not a movie for everyone, but is for those who have social sensitivities and curiosity about the world around them.

One day in the life of a family blessed(?) with a surprise visit from one of their own.

Grade:  B+                                    By Donna R. Copeland

THE MUMMY

Tom Cruise   Russell Crowe   Annabelle Wallis   Sofia Boutella   Jake Johnson   Courtney B. Vance

     The Mummy is another showcase for Tom Cruise to dominate the action by performing impossible feats, bare his physique, and rescue a beautiful woman, usually blonde.  Here, the story in the beginning casts him as Nick Morton, a soldier supposedly on a reconnaissance mission getting distracted from his duties in the interest of stealing antiquities and selling them on the black market.  Far from being an admirable fellow, he is a thief, having stolen, in addition to artifacts, an archeological map to reach a Mesopotamian (now Iraqi) site that holds antiquities he can sell.  When he ends up having to be rescued by his commanding officer, Col. Greenway (Vance), he lies without blinking an eye. 

     Accompanying Greenway is archeologist Jenny Halsey (Wallis), who is keenly interested in the site (guess where Nick got the map), and insists on exploring it after a bomb made a huge pit exposing valuable artifacts from Egypt (most unusual) in a tomb far from Egypt’s borders.  Greenway sends Nick and his sidekick Vail (Johnson) down into the pit with her—presumably for protection—and gives them only a limited amount of time.  Nick and Chris are like two boys in a candy story trying to nick (pun intended) every bauble they can grab.  Appropriately, Jenny scolds them, but a far more threatening force has been unleashed by the violation of the tomb.  They have unearthed (thanks to Nick’s careless use of his gun) a sculpture of a god that was not meant to be disturbed.

     As background, we are told about an ancient Egyptian ruler named Ahmanet, who made a deal with the god of death, Set, when her father bore a son who would eventually usurp Ahmanet’s reign.  She is punished and mummified for killing her father and his son, but by disturbing the site in the way he did, Nick is now cursed.  The mummy of Ahmanet has risen and has decided that he is her “chosen one”, Set, so she tries to persuade him to join her in death to be a god.  He is not very tempted, but she is able to “get into his head” in a way that propels him to go in directions he does not intend.  It is only through sheer will that he is able to thwart her.

     It turns out that Jenny the archeologist works with a Dr. Jekyll (Crowe) in London, who has grandiose plans of his own.  Nick ends up there when Jenny realizes that he has been cursed, and she wants him to see a doctor.  Here, Nick learns that Dr. Jekyll has actually captured Ahmanet as part of his plan and she is in chains.

     Interspersed in all this are mummies turning into zombies, endless struggles by Nick and Jenny to break free (he’s now become, magically, a more honorable figure) of the curse, with Ahmanet pursuing them relentlessly, seeming to have superhuman powers.  The film ends with a clear-cut set-up for sequels.

     The best part of this film is watching Ahmanet, who is fascinating to look at, eerie and forceful in her actions, and relishing her evilness.  She is abhorrent and beautiful in a surrealistic way, and about the only creative force in the film.  Cruise plays his usual role; Annabelle Wallis is competent in rendering what she is given by the script, and Jake Johnson plays as well as he can his completely irritating character Vail, who is transformed into a zombie.  Russell Crowe can certainly play conniving baddies, but the script he is given here makes his character neither convincing nor understandable because his “plan” is not well articulated. 

     Although there was a low-key applause at the screening I attended, it is doubtful this film will catch the fire that the studio and filmmakers hope for.  It’s no longer interesting to see unending fights, despite the hope for CG effects to elevate them. 

This is an uninspired attempt to revive The Mummy franchise.

Grade:  D+                                    By Donna R. Copeland

OFFICE CHRISTMAS PARTY

Jason Bateman   Olivia Munn   T. J. Miller   Jennifer Anniston   Kate McKinnon   Courtney B. Vance   Rob Corddry

          This is a movie for people who like silliness and absurdity, who think heavy drinking, drugs and major destruction are funny—and there were certainly those present at the screening I attended.  The more outrageous the comment or behavior, the more they laughed.  So if this is your cup of tea, the way you relax during a stressful time of the year, then Office Christmas Party is for you.

         The father of Carol (Anniston) and Clay (Miller) left them his successful IT company, and Carol, Miss Goody-Two-Shoes in the family, runs it with an iron fist (no velvet glove).  Her biggest irritant is her brother Clay who was always favored by their father, despite his messing up and his sister being the much high achiever.  The situation right before Christmas is that Carol intends to lay off 40% of the employees in Clay’s branch because although they earned a profit, it wasn’t high enough for Carol.  And above all there would be no Christmas party and no end-of-year bonuses.

         Leave it to Hollywood to solve the problem with the biggest party blowout ever, one that will host a major athlete, as well as a potential billionaire partner.  Of course, it won’t go smoothly, and most of the story chronicles the mayhem and havoc that will ensue, ending up with the, nowadays required, car chase.  You will guess ahead of time how it will all turn out.

        The movie is so formulaic, not only will the viewer be able to figure out the conclusion, but from moment to moment, he/she will be able to anticipate what will happen next, given a stereotypical set-up.  The major flaw in the film is the script from six(!) writers drawn from who knows how many previous movies.  The direction (Josh Gordon and Will Speck), music (Theodore Shapiro), cinematography (Jeff Cutter), and acting are of reasonable quality; it’s just that with a story this lame and without any creativity whatsoever the whole show is doomed.

        If there is any weight to this picture at all, it is in its depiction of sibling rivalry and how parents might script out their children’s lives unfairly.  Unfortunately, the siblings are shown to be so one-dimensional, they become caricatures, and while change takes place, it’s not plausible from what came before.

This is a Christmas party you probably won’t want to go to.

Grade:  F                                    By Donna R. Copeland