Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017)

Director: Rian Johnson. Cast: Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Lupita Nyong'o, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Gwendoline, Kelly Marie Tran, Laura Dern, Benicio Del Toro, Justin Theroux, Frank Oz. 152 min. Rated PG-13. Fantasy/Adventure.

It'd been so long since we'd seen a real Star Wars story. So long since we'd seen worlds we never knew we craved, since we were untouched by the wonders of the Force ...  we were losing hope. Then The Last Jedi came along, and the impossible became possible. From showing the origins of blue milk to some of the most breathtaking light-saber fights to undiscovered uses of the Force to surprise after surprise after surprise, Rian Johnson has delivered: he has satisfied fan expectations. Recall that even Lucas came up short in that department. And I didn't spoil a thing.

Mo says:

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Stronger (2017)

Cast:  Jake Gyllenhaal, Tatiana Maslany, Miranda Richardson, Frankie Shaw. 119 min. Rated R. Biography/Drama.

It's a Boston marathon survivor true story, so you predict it'll be another "if-we-give-up-the-terrorists-will-win" kind of movie. But then you realize it's a heart-wrenching exploration into a handicapped person's life: how he/she is totally misunderstood, how close ones act out by annoyingly rambling on, how others compensate by just quietly leaving the room. You build hope that this movie is different. But then ... the last half hour, with admirable intent, devolves into another "if-we-give-up-the-terrorists-will-win" kind of movie. Of course it's an inspiring tearjerker, but if not for spellbinding performances by Gyllenhaal, Maslany and Richardson, this would've been a So-So.

Mo says:

The Disaster Artist (2017)

Director: James Franco. Cast: James Franco, Dave Franco, Seth Rogen, Ari Graynor, Alison Brie, Jacki Weaver, Zac Efron, Josh Hutcherson, Megan Mullally, Sharon Stone, Melanie Griffith, Bob Odenkirk, Kevin Smith, Keegan-Michael Key, Danny McBride, Kristen Bell, J.J. Abrams, Lizzy Caplan. 104 min. Rated R. Biography/Comedy/Drama.

Movie adaptation of how The Room became the worst movie of all time. Too much to discuss, including:

a) how James Franco translates exactly the feeling from reading the book,
b) why divide art to "good" and "bad", when you can enjoy the bad even more than the good,
c) what the meaning of loyalty in friendship is, and how far you'll take it,
d) when to cooperate with versus stand up to a friend's delusions,
e) how to deal with a friend's delusion when uncertain whether it's a real delusion, or there's secondary gain involved ...

The list goes on.


PS: Stay for a post-credits scene starring none other than the great master, Tommy Wiseau himself.

Mo says:

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Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond - Featuring a Very Special, Contractually Obligated Mention of Tony Clifton (2017)

Director: Chris Smith. 94 min. Canada/USA. Documentary.

Briefly in the 90s, Jim Carrey was a phenomenon.We laughed at his body-contorting comedy, but then ... we saw through him. He turned to dramatic roles, married Jenny McCarthy, joined the Anti-Vax movement - none of which worked. So in a final redemptive attempt, he reminisces on his role in Man on the Moon (one of the greatest of 1999), where he method acted Andy Kaufman to life. And while Carrey offers some good philosophical mesmerizing, we're never sure addressing his own "Andy" in third person is the real thing, or just another gratuitous publicity stunt. Just look at the film's title.

Mo says:

Mudbound (2017)

Director: Dee Rees. Cast: Garrett Hedlund, Carey Mulligan, Jason Clarke, Rob Morgan, Jonathan Banks, Jason Mitchell, Mary J. Blige. 134 min. Rated R. Drama.

There is a powerful vignette on display in Mudbound: two young officers, one black and one white, return from WWII Europe to their common Mississippi hometown, both to learn that in terms of the racism and hatred gnarling through America's South, the devastation of war was immensely more preferable to what they see at home. Considering now there's doubt whether that Southern mentality has improved much during the past 70 years, this is a shocking concept. If not for a few distracting subplots which unnecessarily prolong the movie, Mudbound could've been one of this year's masterpieces.

PS: Also created by and available on Netflix. For the past 10-15 years, from mail-in DVDs to online streaming to creating their own original material, the Netflix platform has truly changed (IMO, worsened) the 'movie-going experience'. Mudbound is an epic movie that should've been watched on a big screen, not on your insignificant smartphones.

Mo says:

Voyeur (2017)

Director(s): Myles Kane, Josh Koury. 96 min.

Initially reminding me of The Dog, this documentary made me wonder why waste time on a motel-owner who was spying on guests for thirty years. But the film was not about voyeurism. Rather, about humans falling prey to their vanity, their search for fame, their search for something as 'dumb' as money - and risking their entire reputation in pursuit of those goals. And by that, ... I don't only mean the voyeur of interest here. In an era when sketchy journalism, "tailoring" facts, and prioritizing "appearance" to core reality (metaphors scattered throughout the film) are magnified, Voyeur becomes an important story.

PS: Available on Netflix.

Mo says:

Wonder (2017)

Director: Stephen Chbosky. Cast: Jacob Tremblay, Julia Roberts, Owen Wilson, Mandy Patinkin. 113 min. Rated PG. USA/Hong Kong. Drama/Family.

We already know: a film about a facially disfigured boy, how he is bullied at school, creates a network through hardship, and builds some courage to react. But that's just the surface. The core is, we're living in dark times, and rarely do you see a movie exude such innocence, reminiscent of Spielberg's 80s concept of 'family'. Which is what makes the honesty in Roberts' and Wilson's performance so appropriate and powerful (noticed how they've never played villains?). We need more movies like this ... to calm us down. Bring some napkins along.

PS: Thank you for recommendation, Peter J. Almost brushed it off.

Mo says:

Brad's Status (2017)

Director: Mike White. Cast: Ben Stiller, Austin Abrams, Jenna Fischer, Michael Sheen, Luke Wilson. 102 min. Rated R. Drama.

Before taking his teenager on an East Coast college tour, academic father has a mid-life crisis that is triggered by ... Facebook pics of former classmates boasting how financially successful they are. In other words, the setting is somewhat pathetic. While the dialogue is engaging (and funny), and even though during the course of the film he is told how petty his first-world scruples are, I was still never able to empathize with this character. Similar to The Meyerowitz Stories, Ben Stiller falls into crying spells, which makes you think: maybe some of his own personal issues are playing out here.

Mo says:

Brigsby Bear (2017)

Director: Dave McCary. Cast: Kyle Mooney, Mark Hamill, Greg Kinnear, Claire Danes, Andy Samberg. 97 min. Rated PG-13. Comedy/Drama.

I bet SNL star and writer Kyle Mooney watched Yorgos Lanthimos' Dogtooth, the story of kids held captive in their house by parents who've brought them up in an imaginary world, then asked himself: What if one of those teenagers escaped, and impossibly tried to adjust to the new, real world? Because that's where the tough questions start. Brigsby Bear shows different possibilities, one of which includes shouting and yelling in hope of ramming your logic into your opponent's brain. And that is why this movie is important for our times. Or any time.

Mo says:

Tulip Fever (2017)

Director: Justin Chadwick. Cast: Alicia Vikander, Dane DeHaan, Jack O'Connell, Zach Galifianakis, Judi Dench, Christoph Waltz, Cara Delevingne. 105 min. Rated R. UK/USA. Drama/Romance.

Seventeenth century Amsterdam, two parallel story-lines: one the period's tulip business craze, the other some trickery between two women (one pregnant, none feverish). The hilarious part is, except for one common character, the two stories almost never meet! Even worse, there's some parallel editing between two! So if one was planned as a metaphor for the other (tulip for pregnancy, or pregnancy for tulip), that metaphor was lost on me. We're dealt a movie with a nonsensical structure, and popular actors in throwaway roles - who probably just signed up to pay the bills (Vikander did 5 obscure movies in 2017).

Mo says:

Detroit (2017)

Director: Kathryn Bigelow. Cast: John Boyega, Anthony Mackie, Algee Smith, Hannah Murray, John Krasinski. 143 min. Rated R. History/Crime.

When projecting the feeling of the 1967 Detroit riots, Kathryn Bigelow takes a page out of Ava DuVernay's Selma notebook by interposing actual footage, and expanding that technique throughout the opening moments; filming documentary-style, without claiming to be a documentary. But the major blow comes from Bigelow reminding us of a feeble-minded official's recent "very fine people on both sides" quote: that if a narrative is told or interpreted by a low intellect mindset, even KKK members could be considered 'fine'. This is a long movie, but it made me think ... maybe Trump is honestly unable to analyze any better.

Mo says:

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017)

Director: Martin McDonagh. Cast: Frances McDormand, Woody Harrelson, Sam Rockwell, Caleb Landry Jones, Abbie Cornish, Lucas Hedges, Peter Dinklage, John Hawkes, Clarke Peters. 115 min. Rated R. UK/USA. Drama/Comedy.

Martin McDonagh's third feature (In Brudges, Seven Psychopaths) is a film that juggles too many subjects, and almost resolves none. And by that, I don't mean the seemingly incomplete ending, which is actually perfect. You're not sure what the director's main concern here is, but my guess: the universal racism embedded in all of us. This in itself could be an opportune message for our times, but then you have subplots that almost take over the main plot, and a pivotal while impossibly coincidental moment towards the end. As a result, you have superb acting wasted on unforgivable mistakes.

Mo says: