harry_tk_yung Reviews

Damsel (2024)

disappointment in movie salvaged somewhat by Millie Bobby Brown

[15 March 2024]

"Damsel" fails to meet expectations, on two counts. The trailer with the protagonist wielding a sword triggers in your subconscious a trained giant-killer such as Arya in Game of Thrones. Similarly, the opening VO (which every film critic quotes) is tantamount to innuendos that the "reverse damsel" (I coined) here is a veteran combater. In this move, the "damsel" is really no different from any ordinary damsel-in-distress. She survives only because she has above-average courage, wit, and luck.

The plot is simplicity personified. The prologue shows a king charging into a gothic cave, only to have his entire platoon vanquished by the fire issued from the nostril and mouth of a hideous dragon. The king is spared; a deal is made. Some years later, in a poverty-stricken vassal state, the lord received a royal summon: the king wants his daughter to be the prince's bride. To the capital and the palace they journey, lord and lady, bride-to-be and her young sister. Elodie (Millie Bobby Brown). Is dazzled by the opulence which reveals "my limited definition of wealth". Their reception however is not exactly warm. "Your family needs money. Our family needs a bride. But we (the rich side) don't need more family", the queen states bluntly. But of course the marriage has more than meets the eyes. It involves deception, bloody sacrifice and a dragon. The plot is simplicity personified.

The main draw of this movie, to me, is Millie Bobby Brown. I can take the neurotic, suffering hero in the TV series "Stranger things" or the clever, resourceful girl-detective in the movie "Enola". I think I get a bit of both. While the movie disappoints somewhat, Millie Bobby Brown doesn't. As to the star-grade support case - Ray Winstone, Angela Bassett and Robin Wright - they don't really have much to do.

Poor Things (2023)

A major Oscar contender

[29 February 2024]

To someone who knows absolutely nothing about this movie, the narrative unfolds in s slightly confusing way, but things are explained soon enough. Most things anyway.

In sumptuous color, we see an elegantly attired woman jumping off a bridge, with desolation in her eyes. Then we see in black and while the same woman, somewhat younger-looking, banging on a piano. We soon become quite familiar, at least visually, with the awkward movement and clueless verbal exchange of this unattractive (facial beauty notwithstanding) creature Bella Baxter (Emma Stone), Dr Godwin Baxter's (Willem Dafoe) daughters, most likely adopted. The first appearance of Godwin's face may make some in the audience shudder, but only the every timid ones. And they'll get used to it. These sewn up lines on his face, together with similar atrocities in other parts of his body, are the torturous reminders of how Godwin's monster of a father had been using his own son for experiments. Bella doesn't mind God's face though. "God is lovely, like dog face" she reassures him.

It is quite obvious the mental growth of Bella hasn't quite match her physical growth. God's student Max (Ramy Youssef) tries to help coaching her. Not a lot of progress thought. "Bella nowhere girl" seems to be her only understanding. The full story is soon revealed. God collected the dead body of this woman who jumped off a bridge and replaced her brain with that of an infant's. There was one scene, at the early stage of this experiment, when Emma Stone has to portray what goes through in infant girl's mine when she discovers the joy of masturbation in the body of a grown up woman she possesses. Stone may well win and Oscar just with this scene. Bella, however, is a work-in-progress and the audience observe her "maturing" through the movie.

Enters Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo), a cad through and through, taking Bella on a grand tour of the real world which includes glamorous European cities and a luxury boat tour. En route, there are friendly characters, one of which gives Bella words of wisdom such as "Hope is smashable; reality is not". Bella also initiates "an interesting experiment to live with nothing", by giving Duncan's money away, to the last penny, to the poor and needy.

Through this interesting experience, I can spot two places referencing classic scenes in movies. One is when Duncan tries to educate Bella to speak in a fashion suitable for high society, a reminder of Eliza Doolittle at the Ascot Gavotte. The other is Duncan's cry of despair and remorse, from the street to the upper floor "Bella"! There is a familiar ring of "Estella" from Stanley Kowalski (best remembered is of course Marlon Brando).

The remainder of the movie - the visual feast, the wickedly funny dialogue, the spot on performance of the cast, the fateful little end-twist, and a lot more - I'll leave you to discover. "Poor things" gathered 11 Oscar nominations, just a little behind the forerunner "Oppenheimer". But as these two cannot be more different in genre, there wouldn't be too many head-on clashes. I expect both to bring home a nice collection of deserved trophies.

Priscilla (2023)

waiting for Godot

[21 January 2024]

It's a bit perplexing to see the movie's opening scene with Frankie Avalon's "Venue" as background music, even if "Priscilla" is not as much about Elvis as a couple of other movies. In fact, there is no Elvis music at all in the entire movie. Copyright may be an issue, granted. But Sophia Coppola may just be making a point: this movie is not about Elvis. "We've had enough of those", you could almost hear her. This movie is based on Priscilla Presley's book (1985) "Elvis and Me." "About time we make a movie from her perspective", you can almost hear her again.

In this movie, Priscilla's story is told in simple, old-style narrative, with a clear timeline. (1) The first 6 months in Germany when they quickly become very close, after they first met. (2) After he returns to The States while she remains in Germany, they suspend communication. (3) The relationship reignites easily and upon his invitation, she visits him a few times. (4) Eventually she move to Graceland to stay with him (which, unfortunately, is more like staying with his entourage), while he goes away frequently on the business of making movies.

It may be absurdly strange, but watching "Priscilla" makes me think of "Waiting for Godot". Priscilla seems to be forever waiting.

The story starts in 1959, when an innocent 14-year-old meets the world's idol singer, to 1973, when a neglected wife divorces a superstar on his road to self-destruction through substance abuse. Throughout, a burning question challenges the audience, be it bluntly or subconsciously: how much love it there, from her, and from him. To give this question some perspective, one should remember that Director S. Coppola has a penchant for depicting (even studying) loneliness, as evident by her Oscar-winning "Lost in translation" (2004, for screenplay, and nominated for best director and best picture). Priscilla's loneliness needs no elaboration. Elvis's loneliness may not be outright apparent, but is palpable even when he is always surrounded by a hoard of lackeys. Is the love driven by loneliness, in both cases?

At their first meeting in the U. S. base in Germany, Priscilla (Cailee Spaeny, at 24 and looking not one day older than 14) is lilywhite innocent. Elvis (Jacob Elordi, quite impressive in "Saltburn" made in the same year) is 10 years older, and miles ahead in sophistication. Still, his loneliness is just as evident as hers. His intention is entirely honorable. He just needs to have someone from back home to talk with. This movie depicts the couple as entirely chaste, up to the consummation of their marriage. It is Priscilla who craves sexual intimacy. But if you think about it, he has all the opportunities to satisfy his erotic drive, while she doesn't.

It is quite believable that they are drawn to each other initially by romantic love. As the story evolves, she is continuously in this "waiting" state while he drifts away. One telephone dialogue says it all. He is in Hollywood while she is at "home" in Graceland, and she wishes to do just some small things to make her dull existence less unbearable. "When I call you, I need you to be there for me" is his reply, spoken not as command or a threat, but in a casual, matter-of-course manner.

The final scene of the movie shows her walking out of his house, literally. Upon being served notice that she is leaving him, Elvis's parting words are "Maybe another time, another place". She does not say anything more, but in the background emerging with languid poignancy is Whitney Huston's immortal "I will always love you".

Air (I) (2023)

I did not expect thia movie to be that good!

[16 January 2024]

A movie based on a true story, with no violence, no sex, no thrilling action, no international political intrigue, it is quite amazing that "Air" can be so entertaining. Contributing to the success are all the parts that make up the whole. The best is the teaming up of Matt Damon and Ben Affleck again, after they served notice in 1997 with "Good Will Hunting" that two major talents had arrived in the cinematic universe, to stay. A solid supporting cast is another reason (which I'll come to later). The dialogue is simply wonderful, well written and brilliantly delivered. Under Afflecks' deft direction, the pitch-perfect pacing renders this 111-minutes movie into an absolutely delightful cinematic experience.

The story, as the movie title suggests, is about "Air Jorden", the most-coveted sports shoes of all time. The year was 1984, as one characters quips "Mr. Orwell was right about this year". Not a good year shaping up for Nike, it would appear, having a 17% market share, way behind competitors Adidas and Converse. And you don't need me to tell you the rest of the story. With one master stroke, recruiting expert Sonny Vaccaro (Damon) seizes victory from the jaws of defeat, by signing up number 3 draft pick of the Chicago Bulls Michael Jordan, thereby saving the basketball divisions and all his colleagues working there.

You don't need Ben Affleck to tell you either, but he tells it in such a wonderful way that it is a joy to follow his reenacting of the scenes, almost entirely indoor, with people just sitting or standing, and, talking! Through these scenes, the long friendship between Sonny and Nike co-founder (now CEO) Phil Knight (Affleck) becomes lovingly palpable.

And he also takes care to go into the heart of the story in detail: how Sonny recognizes the "greatness" of Jordan and how he convinces his colleagues. Sonny is shown watching two TV screens, simultaneous, in a room by himself. The regular TV shows a tennis racquet commercial, with Arthur Ash endorsing it. The "work" TV shows the tape of an important shot Jordan made, one that basketball fans would have seen over and over again in one occasion or another. Suddenly, as if hits by lightning, he jumps up and runs to enlighten his colleagues on what just dawned on him. I wouldn't pretend to be and expert. What Sonny notices (which everybody misses) is the shot by Jordan is completely planned, so that the ball would be in his hands at that very moment in that very spot. What Sonny brilliantly observes is that just three seconds before he will be making the most important shot in his life, Jorden looks entirely relaxed and confident. And that, from a skinny 18-year-old freshman, spells greatness. Just like Ash endorsing the tennis racquet, having Jorden endorse a line of specially designed shoes will guarantee success. "A shoe is just a shoe, until someone steps into it". And when that someone is Michael Jordan, the rest is history.

On the excellent support cast, first comes inimitable Jason Bateman ("Ozark") playing marketing director Rob Strasser, who initially has doubts about Sonny's intuition about Jordan, but soon becomes a believer. Chris Tucker takes on a well-casted role of player-turned-company-man Howard White, providing further support to Sonny with his rapid-fire dialogue. Scene-stealing is Chris Messina playing fiery agent David Falk who, upon learning that Sonny has gone behind his back to approach Jordan's mother, takes the four-letter word into a new height in a phone conversation. Top of the list, without the slightest doubt, is Viola Davis playing the mother. We have seen her brilliant performance in many emotion-charged scenes. Here, she demonstrates that, with absolutely cool composure (almost minimalistic) she can move us even more.

Dream Scenario (2023)

a good movie, a bit weird, but a good movie

[11 January 2024]

The several opening scenes of "Dream scenario" seem confusing but soon string together to make sense. Be warned: the very, very first sound from this movie is a huge "bang", coming from nowhere as we watch what looks a silent movie (except for the soothing color palette) where Paul (Nicholas Cage) is raking fallen leaves around a backyard swimming pool. Relaxing in a lawn chair is a teenage girl. Then comes this nerve-wrecking dint which sends the girl into a state of panic, screaming out for "dad" to help. Paul, however, carries on as if nothing is happening as his daughter Sophie (Lily Bird) floats higher and higher into the air from her lawn chair. A dream, of course.

To cut a long story short, we witness Paul popping up in more and more people's dreams, with a common denominator: he is a nonchalant bystander, strolling past with an annoyingly disinterested glance at the direction of the event taking place. No matter how desperate the dreamer, how devastating the event, Paul doesn't care. The Paul in their dreams, that is.

Other than this mysterious dream situation, Paul personifies "unremarkable". He is a professor. This profession, while respectable, does not necessarily exempt him from being unremarkable. He is an ordinary man, with an "everyday" family, a role-model wife Janet (Julianne Nicholson) and two teenage daughters, aforementioned Sophia and Hannah (Jessica Clement).

The aforementioned "several opening scenes" include meeting two women, separately, both his past acquaintances. One is scheduled, the other by chance. Sheila is in the publishing circle and Paul is very interested in having his book published, one he hasn't even really started writing. Claire, he used to date. Paul and Janet happen to run into her after a play. Claire (like a lot of other people later revealed) finds Paul in her dream recently. Her "incident" was one in which she was trying to get help for a friend seriously injured in a traffic accident as Paul walked by casually. The two meet up again, and Janet is not exactly pleased, quite expectedly. Romantic reconnection however is not something to worry about. Claire is asking for permission to mention Paul in her blog. Probably out of politeness, Paul gives his consent. That may or may not be the reason why he all of a sudden gets viral. Cause and effect are often difficult to determine. Maybe people seeing him in social media start to dream about him. But these people's mentioning him in their social media sets up a global tidal effect.

Paul is initially pleased. However, commercialism soon raises its ugly head, as a cutting-edge corporation tries to get him doing ads of Sprite. His sole interest, poor man, is to get his book published, which will hopefully bring him the recognition he deserves. But then things begin to turn ugly, when the harmless bystander Paul in people's dream transforms into a violent, terrifying character. Dream turn into nightmares. Unfortunately for Paul, his nightmares are in his real life.

Cage seems to want to take a break from the habitual big pay checks to take up this challenging role, and meets the challenge successfully. His portrayal of the innocence in Paul is pitch perfect, an ordinary person sadly in need of recognition and get something he has not bargained for - becoming a memes.

There is a good support character as well. Michael Cera shines as the disgusting advertising guru. Tim Meadows is solid as the role he portrays is, Paul's department head who is firmly grounded on common sense. Best, however, is Dylan Gelula, a young woman half Paul's age who finds Paul in her erotic dreams. The scene in which she tries to get him play out her dream with her in real life is something you won't want to miss.

Saltburn (2023)

Stylish for sure.

[7 January 2024]

"Saltburn" can be many things: psychological thriller, social satire, dark comedy, erotic trip (almost to the extent of big-screen porn), maybe more. But, at the end of the day, style trumps substance. The movie ends up looking like a super-long music video, beautifully shot. This is not to say, however, that there is no plot.

The movie moves around its central character Oliver (Barry Keoghan). More specifically, it is about the relationship between Oscar and the title object, Saltburn. Appearing half an hour into the movie, Saltburn is a plush estate in the English countryside, where Oliver has been invited by Oxford classmate Felix to stay in the summer, to hopefully alleviate agonies after his father's death. The first half hour of the movie takes place in Oxford, tracing the first encounter and the subsequent development of friendship (or maybe more) between the two young men. Felix is the born-with-silver-spoon-in-mouth type. Oliver is a common folk, often appearing as nerdy and clueless, although academically, he is a budding scholar at Oxford.

As the door of Saltburn opens to Oliver's knock, stone-faced butler Duncan appears, and immediately tells him off for arriving earlier than expected. Felix comes to the rescue, jesting "Duncan, stop being so frightening". After a guided tour, Oliver is brought to the living room to meet the other players at Saltburn. A close-up of a conversation shows two glamorous top-notch stars, Rosamund Pike playing Felix's mother Elspeth and Carey Mulligan playing a frequent guest "Poor Dear Pamela". We see also Felix's standoffish father and erotic sister. Of the other guest, the one standing out is Oxford classmate Farleigh, whose favored place with the Saltburn population seems to be threatened by the arrival of Oliver, as sort of a new toy to these elite people.

I am not going to elaborate the interaction of Oliver with the various characters during this summer escapade in Saltburn. Quite a lot of those are erotic, as I mentioned, and some even lethal. And, as I also mentioned, despite the somewhat fragmented and haphazard narrative, there is a plot.

There is no question that Saltburn is Keoghan's movie. Oliver is a bit of an enigma. It is no exaggeration to say that Keoghan's interpretation of this character drives the movie. Pike, always a delight to watch, does not have as much challenge as in many of her other iconic movies. It's sheer joy, of course, to see Mulligan (I did not even know she was in this movie). It's a pity that she has only a few scenes, less than many of the other support characters. But this is a Mulligan I have not seen before and I would not spoil it by saying anything further.

While "Saltburn" is not everybody's cup of tea, none can dispute its stylish achievement in cinematography and product design. And there are Pike and Mulligan, even though it is not anywhere near any of their important work.

Maestro (2023)

highly recommend

[28 December 2023]

"Maestro" immediately reminds me of two comparable stories, in a movie and a TV series. All three feature a loving couple, both prominent performing artists, walking a rocky path. "Prominent" is in different degrees. In "Walk the line" (2005) while Johnny Cash is a household name, June Carter is not far behind. Some of her fans, not surprisingly, would put her ahead of her husband. In "Fosse/Verdon" (2019), the couple is given equal weight in the title of the TV series. While Bob Fosse is better known, it was Michelle Williams who plays Gwen Verdon that won two esteemed awards.

The "celebrity gap" between Leonard Bernstein (Bradley Cooper) and Felicity Montealegre (Carey Muligan) is considerably wider. While Bernstein is a towering icon, Felicity (I intentionally forego is not exactly a Montealegre household name, although she is an accomplished stage actress. The movie does not overly dramatize this discrepancy. It might even be seen as two separate stories, one about Bernstein's huge success, and the other about the rocky path the couple tread through their life together.

The love story (as the rest of the movie) starts in black-and-white and ends with color, with matching aspect rations synchronizing with those used at the actual time of the story. The initial romantic "clicking" is breath-taking. She takes him to an empty theatre, with just one spot light shining directly at the movie audience. Then we see from different angles a scene of Felicity trying to have Leonardo rehearse some lines with her. Romantic dialogue, those are, at the height of which they kiss. The lights in the theatre are suddenly all switched on, followed by an apologetic stage hand saying that he is leaving and leaving them alone.

The fairy-tale romance gradually fades, but the movie does not really put the blame on her being in his shadow (in one scene, literally). Well, maybe a little, but not as much as you might expect. The real problem is that he is rather reckless with his extramarital pursuits, with both sexes, in fact. In one scene, he quips to a baby, "I had sex with both of your parents". The baby of course doesn't understand a thing and the parents don't seem to mind at all.

But in the end, when she is inflicted with terminal cancer, he stays by her side to the end. It starts with a scene in which the doctor explains to the couple their predicament in nerve-wrecking minute clinical details. She understandably is devastated while he becomes the steely shoulder carrying her along to the bitter end. This is the most difficult part of the movie to watch, not the least of which because of Mulligan's heart-wrenching performance.

The success story takes on a different rhythm. Without much ado, the opening of the movie plunges directly into a phone call inviting Bernstein to fill in at the New York Philharmonic for tonight's conductor who is down with sudden ailment. The rest is history, as marked by a review likening the successful debut to "right next to Hitler bombing Poland".

In an interview later in his career, he intimates that while he is composer, conductor, moviemaker, teacher and maybe many more, it can all be crystalized into one thing: his love of music. Whenever he is doing music, he is happy (and excels, one may add). When asked about the difference between a composer and a performer, he has some insightful views: they are just the opposite, one extrovert, the other introvert. He sometimes feels that he is schizophrenic.

The pinnacle of "Maestro" is the re-creation the finale 7 minutes of Bernstein's conducting the London Symphony Orchestra's performance of Mahler's "Resurrection" Symphony No. 2, at Ely Cathedral in 1973. For a brief moment I was tempted to describe the scene here, but wisely decided against it. What I would like to describe is this. Only after the electrifying movement of the baton finally come to an end, the penning camera moves to bring Felicity into view, her face radiant with joy. He approaches her briskly and kisses her passionately, and she murmurs in his ears "There is no hate. There is no hate in your heart." Cooper took years of extensive conducting coaching for this project and re-created an amazing Bernstein on screen. Elaborate prosthetics also helps. Mulligan is a natural, in whatever she portrays. In this movie, she convincingly radiates charm in her youth, as well as heart-breaking vulnerability in her final year, in equal measures.

While there is a good-size supporting cast, I'll only mention Maya Hawke who plays the couple's daughter, a relatively minor role. She may not be that well-known, except to fans of "Stranger Things", delighting them with her brilliantly constructed comic persona. More worth noting, of course, is her parentage, Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman. I did not notice it watching "Stranger Things" but in "Maestro" her resemblance to her mother is very noticeable.

May December (2023)

a clever exercise in style, sustained by three top-notch performances

[23 December 2023]

Let me start with a brief outline of the plot which is "loosely" based on actual events. To avoid confusion, I'll make no reference to the actual events. The "facts" in my outline reflects what is presented in the movie.

Some 20 years ago, 36-year-old married woman Gracie (Julianne Moore) had sex with a 13-year-old boy Joe (Charles Melton), got convicted for child rape and, in prison, gave birth to a girl fathered by Joe. After serving her term, she married Joe, and they had a pair of twins. The family of five carries on, at present, as a perfectly normal, happy middle-class family, living in a large waterfront house in Savannah.

While the incident, needless to say, was met with considerable public indignation, it was after all two decades ago. To Gracie, it is as if it had never happened. The only thing slightly out of the ordinary about her marriage, to Gracie, is the age and ethnic differences (Joe is half-Korean, in fact both the character and the actor), neither of which should cause even a raise in eyebrows.

The story really starts when someone decides to make a movie out of Gracie's story. Elizabeth (Natalie Portman) who has been cast to portray Gracie, visits them in the aforementioned idyllic Savannah neighborhood.

While nothing seems to be out of the ordinary, there are a couple of suggestive hints in the opening scenes. The house is bubbling with activities, barbecuing and swimming outside (with screaming kids) and kitchen preparations inside. Gracie goes to the fridge, opens it. For a split second, the expression on her face brings flashes of a scene in Stephen King's "It", when somebody opens the fridge and sees Stanley Uris's severed head inside. What Gracie mumbles, however, is not quite as exciting "There aren't enough hot dogs". But why such exaggeration? I think that is to serve notice that while "May December" is billed as comedy (indeed included in that category in the Golden Globe best picture nomination), don't expect an easy ride.

After Elizabeth's arrival and getting acquainted with the family, there is nothing unusual about an actor's effort in understanding the protagonist she is going to portray. Yet, consider this first exchange at the door of the house where the two women first meet. Elizabeth says "oh, I though you would be taller". Nothing unusual in that. Gracie replies "We are basically the same size". Nothing unusual. Without missing a beat comes Elizabeth's rejoinder "We are basically the same". Suggestive.

As characters interact, morsels of their personality and experiences, when revealed, serve to mystify, rather than clarify. When the two women chat casually while working on some floral arrangements, Gracie intimates that she does not dwell on the past. Elizabeth acknowledges that she is exactly the opposite.

There is no convoluted plot. Not even a plot in the conventional sense, you may say. Part of the movie runs like Elizabeth's investigation procedurals, setting up meetings and talking to various people, starting with Gracie's ex-husband, followed by an assortment of individuals who might be able to help her understand the woman she will be portraying. Another part of the movie dwells on the relationship between Gracie and Joe which, after 20 years, might have hit a tricky point when the empty-nester scenario is just around the corner.

The persistently presence of piano background music, often intense, sometimes dramatic, but never soothing, is sufficient to convey the director's message to the audience. Is everything the way it seems, or are there intriguing layers if you dig below the surface? There are innuendos aplenty, but no definite answers.

Gracie's history would obviously invite suspicions of whether she is the uncomplicated, simple, contented woman now, approaching her sixties. In one scene, Joe finds her breaking down in tears. The reason turns out to be just that a much-valued order for her catering service is cancelled. Towards the end, when husband and wife are having their domestic discussions, Gracie challenges Joe on who really started "the incident". She went to jail because he was a minor (only 13). But "who was in charge?" Gracie challenged. In no uncertain terms is her conviction (no pun intended) that he seduced her. Does the movie give an answer? Sorry, no.

What about Elizabeth? One may see her only as surrogate for the audience, trying to find "something true, something honest" about this scandal that happened 20 years ago. But it is quite logical, and simpler, to see her as a perfectionist of an actor, trying to understand her subject as best she can before she goes before the camera. She wants to "become Gracie", but what's wrong with that? I am not sure if this can be called "method acting" but it will be something of the sort, anyway. The one time we get tantalizingly close to seeing a "revelation" of Elizabeth is when she is invited to speak to local drama students. The first salvo from a smart-Alex student is "have you played sex scenes?" But, interesting as the talk is, it does not show anything about Elizabeth you don't expect from a profession screen (and occasionally stage) actor.

Joe, consistently minimalistic throughout the movie, is unfortunately not really an enigma either. This is a typical kidult who still hasn't grown up, not under the thumb of parents as in normal cases, but of a wife 23 years older. The poignancy brought out by Melton's superb acting is a highlight in this movie. Watch for the scene with Joe smoking pot with his son on roof top. When he breaks down in tears, it is more than obvious that despite age and appearance, who is really the adult and who is the kid.

"May December" is a clever exercise in style, sustained by three top-notch performances.

The Holdovers (2023)

True Christmas spirit

[19 December 2023]

Generously sprinkled with familiar carols (opening with a beautifully harmonized TTBB ensemble of Oh Little Town of Bethlehem), "The Holdovers" is funny, sometimes poignant, and ultimately warm, a fitting Christmas offer. Watching the first half-hour, I thought this is an updated "Breakfast Club". But then the movie heads in a different direction. Let me back up a little.

The "stage" for this endearing little drama for play out is introduced through the beautiful photography of a winter wonderland, a boys' boarding school called Barton, somewhere in New England in 1970. The movie title denotes five "poor little Christmas orphans" who for one reason or another have nowhere to go when the boarding school closes for Christmas. As they watch their fellow students depart for merry holiday season, the decorated Christmas tree in the school is also removed, a win-win situation, I suppose. School saving on the budget and vendor making a little extra. Not exactly a joyous spirits.

Adding to the unhappiness is the teacher who has been charged with the noble responsibility of babysitting these kids, a last minute fill-in for a colleague who gets sick. Paul Hunham (Paul Giamatti) is an icon of an old-school educator. "Latitude is the last thing these boys need" is one of his mottos. The principle, his boss as well as a long-time colleague, used to be like him but see things differently after being promoted to the lofty position, which right away put funding at top priority. That translates into different treatment for different students - those whose parents have made generous donation get preferential treatment. Seeing that Hunham absolutely refuses to compromise on his firm standards even during the holdover period, his boss can only ask him to at least "pretend to be a human being".

I'll be very brief with the 5 holdover students because, as mentioned, "The Holdovers" is not "Breakfast Club" although at one point it would appear so. Only one I'll name, Angus Tully (Dominic Sessa), scores B+ in Hunham's Ancient History. Unfortunately, that seems to be the only good thing one can say about him. In slow-boil fashion, Tully's story unfold gradually as the movie progresses. Of the other four, one is a "privileged" student born with a silver spoon in his mouth. One is not just underdeveloped, but outright un-developed. The only thing we know about him is that the parents do not want him back for Christmas unless he cuts his hair short. One is from Korea, obviously terribly homesick. The last one who is comparable with the Korean in their minute stature is from a Mormon family. At one point, the 5 boys seem to start a reasonable amount of rapport, getting to know one another, a bonding that will forge a solidarity, foundation of a life-long friendship. But, just one quarter into the movie, the four other boys' fortune stars shine, and they go home. Switch gear, into a different movie.

It would, at this point, be quite obvious to movie veterans that the trajectory will be one of father-and-son story, in spirit if not actual. There is a third character, Mary, played by Da'Vine Joy Randolph who has already swept an impressive collection of Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role even before the Oscar nomination list is announced. Mary, the invaluable in-house cook, is not surrogate of a mother figure. She has her own heartbreaking story.

All told, while not everything is outright predictable, there is little surprise as the story of Tully unfolds, as we see the relationship between him and Hunham goes from acute animosity to heart-warming affection. The friendship between Hunham and Mary transcends gender and skin color, just two lonely human souls with deep compassion connecting. As aforementioned, Randolph is a strong contender for Oscar. Sessa has already been recognized by awards as a breakout talent. Giamatti is, as always, his solid reliable self. The comforting Christmas carols background aside, the performance of these three superb actors bring true Christmas spirit to "The holdovers".

Killers of the Flower Moon (2023)

top Oscar contender this year

[8 December 2023]

Oklahoma, where the wind comes sweeping down the plain! (remember?). But the Oklahoma here is depicted first and foremost as oil-rich country, with an opening scene of oil gushing ferociously from the ground, delighting the gathered local people into a state of frenzy.

As broad brush background, a few black-and-while stills follow with captions such as "The Osage Nation", "chosen people", "richest people per capita on earth". Without wasting time, this macro backdrop is complemented with micro details: a conversation. WWI veteran Ernest (Leonardo DiCaprio) comes to work with cattle rancher Uncle William (Robert De Niro), otherwise known as "King". The lofty title reflects not blunt force but rather superb interpersonal skills that wins him the friendship and trust of both Whites and Natives in Osage country. More precisely, this philanthropic outsider is more like a kingmaker in the Osage region. Essential details emerge from this cordial uncle-nephew chat. "The Osage people are kindly people, big-hearted people, but sickly (a very important detail)". "I was a cook in the infantry". "You fed the soldiers, they won the war". "Money flows freely here. You like woman?" "You like Red?"

Under the disarming, congenial persona of the uncle, the plot thickens. Ernest is immediately marked as a useful pawn in scheming for the fortune of the oil-rich tribe, or oil-royalty-rich, more precisely. An ugly, bloody chapter in history is presented by auteur Scorsese in this 206-minute epic: the Osage murders in the 1920s.

The first hour of this 3.5 hour epic takes us through a courtship, a wedding, to a landmark point of a key murder. Uncle's sinister motivation notwithstanding, the romance between nephew and wealthy Osage woman Mollie (Lily Gladstone) blossoms with genuine mutual affection, with him starting as her chauffer-for-hire an ending up winning her heart, making her laugh with his easy, earthy style. The murder victim is Minnie, one of Mollie's invalid sisters whose share of the rich oil estate goes to their mother Lizzie Q (Tantoo Cardinal).

The next hour meanders through an assortment of minor characters and a series of murders, with victims blown up, shot or die in suspicious-looking ailments. It is at once convoluted and simple, convoluted in details of the matrix of succession of the wealth, and simple in the ultimate intentions of white coveting the oil wealth of native play, playing "the long game", for Ernest to eventually gain the headrights of Mollie's family, after they are eliminated one-by-one.

The final hour moves into FBI procedure and courtroom battle territory. Three pedigree actors appear. Playing FBI investigator is Jesse Plemons (The Power of the Dog, Game Night, Fargo - season 2). Facing off are two lawyers portrayed by John Lithgow (magna-veteran with 132 entries in IMDb but probably best remembered recently as Churchill in TV series The Crown) and Brendan Fraser (gain popularity from crowd-pleasing "Mummy" franchise; earned respect with Oscar-winning "The Whale").

One quote in this movie from a book provides best insight to "Killers of the Flower Moon" - "Do you see the wolves in this picture?" The question is almost rhetorical as the wolves are operating in plain sight, and the worst kind that would stop at nothing, however evil, for greed.

While the aforementioned supports are excellent, this movie pivots on the tripod of leads. Scorsese's two favourite were in a movie together only once before, 3 decades ago, "This Boy's Life" (not directed by him). Gladstone matches these two heavyweights scene for scene, and I won't be surprised that all three get nomination to lead acting awards in the upcoming Oscar.

The Killer (2023)

In the David Fincher tradition, this one may be less appealing to the general audience

[22 November 2023]

David Fincher's latest work "The killer" opens with "Chapter 1. Paris. The Target". Action junkies be warned (but they should know what to expect from auteur Fincher). The titled assassin (Michael Fassbender), after attempting to grab your attention with the words "Consider yourself lucky if our paths never cross", launches into a 20-minute monologue that alternates between a bland lecture in philosophy and a dull reciting of an assassin's handbook (the contents of the latter repeated over and over in the rest of the movie). All these are in The Killer's voiceovers with himself engaging in an assortment of idle pursuits while waiting for the target to appear in the building across the street. Our paths do cross, unlucky audience, and you will be bored to death! Finally, the target appears. Turning on music ("music is a focus tool"), our "anti-bond", with the audience completely sold on his persona of a cold-blood perfectionist, takes aim. Things then turn a bit farcical: he miss. "Farcical" because of the laugh-out-loud circumstances causing the miss. "This is new", comes his beautifully understated voiceover, completing your mirth.

The rest of the movie, 5 more chapters plus probably and the shortest epilogue ever, shows how he tries to clean up the mess. The places, the order of which I have scrambled to minimize spoilers, are New Orleans, Chicago, Dominican Republic, Florida and New York. The characters denoted in the chapter titles (similarly scrambled) are the client, the lawyer, the brute, the perfectionists and the hideout (this last one does not specifically name a character).

The Killer has been characterized by some critics as an "anti-Bond", a point well made. One is licensed to kill; the other is not, just paid. One is fascinatingly interesting; the other is anything but. The 5 encounters with the 5 other characters wind up mostly in a killing, some of which in the bloody tradition of "Se7en" and "Zodiac". With the absence of any plot to speak of (let alone one as convoluted as in "Se7en"), "The Killer" is best enjoyed as a showcase of Fincher's style, well complemented with cinematography and background music.

The only other name in the cast that claims the same height of acting caliber as Fassbender is Tilda Swinton. Expectedly, their encounter is the best among all. The "action" is all in the dialogue, and the dialogue is mostly Swinton, delightfully mesmerizing. Fassdender does contribute to the dialogue, after his own fashion: silence. Not the deadpan type, but chill-your-blood variation. Most watchable, tension-filled, like two deadly samurai wielding their swords, or the Alan Ladd and Jack Palance face off, poised to draw, in "Shane".

"The Killer" should appeal to loyal followers of Fincher, but less so to the mass audience.

Oppenheimer (I) (2023)

try not to miss it

[12 November 2023]

Before I had an opportunity to watch this movie, if you asked me to comment with as many words as I want when you mention a name, and you say "Oppenheimer", I would have exhausted my quota of words with two: atomic bomb. Thanks to Christopher Nolan, I now have a lot more to say.

Nolan gets into the first 45 minutes of his 3-hour-plus film so much that I have a feeling that I'll never finish. The primary trajectory is an inquiry hearing, but with flash backs and flash forwards, toggling between colour and black-and-white (both beautifully photographed by Hoyte van Hoytema), Nolan informs, entertains and enlightens, among other things.

The opening note show an Oppenheimer (Callian Murphy) "troubled by the versions of universes". Quantum physics is compared to music sheets: "can you hear"? A very important character then appears (I sensed Best Support Actor), one that a critic brilliantly characterise as "to Oppenheimer as Salieri is to Mozart." Need one say more? Lewis Strauss (an almost unrecognizable Robert Downey Jr, not the slightest trace of "I am....... Iron Man) appears in the inquiry to explain his relationship with Oppenheimer. We then see Oppenheimer's Berkeley teaching days. The FBI and Communism are briskly brought into the picture. Then Jean (Florence Pugh, Black Widow's sister if you follow the Iron Man thought association), the first girl that means something to him (but unlikely his first girl, as we find out gradually how much a "womanizer" he was). As if the narrative is not busy enough, we see some beautiful cowboy country and heavenly horses, and hear "combine physics with New Mexico, my life would be complete". Back to science. When hit by the historic news "they split the atom", Oppenheimer's first thought is "bomb". The woman of his life then emerges, Kitty (Emily Blunt) who soon becomes his wife and bears him a child. Then, a colleague tells him "it's not you are self-important; you are actually important".

That was just the first 45 minutes of this movie.

With the appearance of inimitable Matt Damon as Leslie Groves the military man in charge, we're finally in business. After a crisp exchange "why didn't you have a Nobel Prize" and "why aren't you a general" Oppenheimer and Groves come to a quick and decisive understanding: the one hope they have is in Hitler's despise of Jewish scientists. It's a race (no pun intended) where they are presently ahead of the Nazis, but not for long if they do not act decisively. "I can't run a hamburger joint, but I can run the Manhattan Project", Oppenheimer asserts and Groves agrees. Despite the name, the Project is actually in a place in the middle of nowhere, Los Alamos, New Mexico. "Build him a town, fast" Groves issues a crisp order to his subordinates. What follows is not unlike early scenes of The Magnificent Seven. But putting together a team for the Project is more difficult, convincing a lot of fellow scientists who, among other things, do not trust Americans. Once the project is underway, we are treated to scientific discussions galore, which fascinate me (a total illiterate despite efforts to educate myself with the great Isaac Asimov's books on the quantum theory, black holes etc. Written for the layman) but puts a friend to sleep. Mixed in the pot are things like Russian espionage stuff and erotic escapades with Jean.

Now we are at the midpoint of the movie.

I am going be brief from here on. "Hitler is dead but Japan fights on" leads to extensive discussions, involving why two bombs. The reply: the first to show the power and the second to show we can continue using it. Simple logic! What about human lives? What human lives? The movie does not show any visuals of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Only brief discussions about them.

The sequence on testing of the bomb is, in this movie, most akin to what you would expect from a block-buster thriller. The countdown to ignition is punctuated with an exchange between Oppenheimer and Groves, huddled in the shelter, in which the latter expressed his curiosity on what he heard one of the scientist alluding to earlier, atmosphere ignition. Oppenheimer nonchalantly explains that based on the scientific calculations, there is a small chance that the chain reaction becomes uncontrollable and sets the atmosphere on fire, thereby wiping out the human race. The probability is near to zero, reassures our top scientist, which draw out the understatement of the year from Groves "Zero would be nice".

The final third of the movie picks up the fragmented inquiry scene hitherto, becoming a Salieri/Mozart (aforementioned) type of confrontation between Strauss and Oppenheimer, very watchable thanks to the two supreme actors. Talking about which, this movie boasts of a star-studded cast, some cameos, some a bit more. This list of who' who includes Jason Clarke, Kenneth Branagh, Dane DeHaan, Rami Malek, Gary Oldman, Casey Affleck.

I would be very interested to see how many Oscar nominations this movie will receive in January.

A Haunting in Venice (2023)

Not so much a Gothic horror as a standard Poirot mystery

[3 November 2023]

This Kenneth Branagh's third Hurcule Poirot movie has been hailed by some critics as the best so far. Maybe this is because it departs somewhat from the mass-entertainment focus to lean towards a more artistic-philosophical flavour.

For one thing, do not expect much by way of picturesque waterways in "A haunting in Venice". The accent is on the first word of the title. Virtually, the entire movie happens in the confined space of an infamous haunted house, a setting not unlike the island in Agatha Christies well-known "And then there were none". But instead of all the characters ending up dead, there are only two deaths in the haunted house. I better not give away anything more.

The background of the haunted house involves children ended up dead there (for detail circumstances, see the movie). The ghost story however is just a plot device, and takes on more metaphorical meaning than literal. This is essentially just another Poirot movie, complete with all the elements you would expect to find in one. The mission, however (initially, at least), is not to investigate a murder but to expel superstition.

When old friend and writer (who has profited from writing about him) Adriadne Oliver (Tina Fey) calls on Poirot (Kenneth Branagh), he is in retirement. "I am much satisfied", he murmurs. "Put some life back into your life" the spirited Adriadne demands. She wants him to expose a séance as a fraud, "to pop a balloon", so to speak. Her motive is not entirely altruistic. This will give her more, and refreshingly different, material to write about.

The main plotline, the reason for the séance, is the death of the invalid daughter Alicia of retired soprano Rowena Drake (Kelly Reilly), the cause of which could be accident, suicide or murder. She fell from a high and got drowned in a pool. Rowena wants to ask her what happened, face-to-face, sort of. Seeing the famous detective arriving at her séance, the popular medium (Michelle Yeoh) losses no time in throwing down the gauntlet "Am I your next case?" Poirot obviously is not one who backs away from a challenge. With pure deductive logic, he argues his belief "there is no god, therefore no ghosts, and therefore no medium (in any meaningful sense)". The game's afoot, if I can borrow those iconic words. Before it all ends, there is a subplot with Poirot in the centre of the vortex, and a post-revelation, clever twist.

The only other comments I'll make are on the characters and cast, not in that order, but simultaneously. Anybody even vaguely familiar with Poirot would be aware that in his cases nobody is beyond suspicion. Here, it includes the three important women aforementioned: author, mother and medium. Making up the rest of the list are as follows. Playing housekeeper Olga Seminoff is French actress Camille Cottin whom I remember best from "House of Gucci". Father and son Leslie and Leopold Ferrier are played, respectively, by Jamie Dornan and Jude Hill, both from "Belfast" and, not surprisingly, playing father and son in that film too. Father, an army surgeon called to the scene by good friend Rowena, suffers from PTSD. The son is best described by the words of the detective himself "12 going on 40". The others are Alicia's former boyfriend, the medium's half-siblings (brother and sister) assistants, and a retired cop who happened to be on the scene just before retirement.

It may not be entirely meaningful to compare "Venice" with "Murder on the Orient Express" and "Death on the Nile", Branagh's two previous takes on Poirot mysteries, both of which stay close to the novel and aim for mainstream entertainment. "Hallowe'en Party", from which "Venice" is adapted, is far less known than the other two. That being the reason or not, the movie does not follow the novel as closely. The "haunting" however is not exactly genre-altering. It merely works as an interesting backdrop. If you want an example, Doyle's "The Hound of Baskerville" is a lot closer to a Gothic horror. The ghosts here are allegory, adding a pinch of philosophical flavour. Perhaps that is why some critics like this movie. In any event, for pure entertainment value, it is well worth recommending too.

Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One (2023)

Tom Cruise did it again!

[3 October 2023]

After last year's amazing reboot of Top Gun, Tom Cruise continues his creation of Hollywood legends with the 7th instalment of Mission Impossible. While the former is a 3-decade-gap one-off reboot, the latter has never been far away from us. While Top Gun introduced successfully a new co-star Jennifer Connelly, Mission Impossible continues with the parade of IMF heroines. Thandiwe Newton is the one I remember most. This time, we have Hayley Atwell, as well as a bevy of other beauties. Rebecca Ferguson, after two instalments, takes a back seat. Vanessa Kirby is back as the exquisite White Widow. The brightest spot, however, belongs to Pom Klementieff who, even without her antennas (Guardians of the Galaxy), is cute as ever, as a villain!

Just like "Fast X", this one is only half a movie. It is therefore not essential, indeed maybe not even be possible, to understand the plot. In any event, there appears to be a consensus that if a single word is to be used to denote this movie, it would be: fun.

The opening scene of a Russian submarine destroyed by a phantom enemy underscores the lethal nature of I. T, and more. Our hero then appears in a scene set in a shady warehouse in Amsterdam. Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) receives a "food delivery", the familiar tape containing details of his next mission, if he chooses to accept, of course. Hunt's tip to the deliverer, a new recruit, is "we live and die in shadow". The current mission is to recover two halves of a cross-shaped key which reveals the secret of an enemy which is "everywhere and nowhere", called "The Entity". If things get out of hand, the fate of the entire human race is in jeopardy. The Entity cannot be killed. But various stakeholders do not want to kill it. They want to control it and, through it, the entire world.

Let the fun begin. Hunt gets his two buddies together, Luther (Ving Rhames) and Benji (Simon Pegg), briefs them, and makes a plan. We get a busy set piece at the airport when the lead lady appears, Grace (Atwell) a professional thief hired by a mysterious employer to get the keys. Hunt shows up ahead of the buyer to try to convince Grace to be a "put pocket" instead of a pickpocket. At the same time, Benji is racing feverishly against a ticking clock to disarm a nuke device at the luggage depot, one that loves playing riddles. Lots of running and chasing, needless to say.

It serves no purpose for me to get into too much details. There is an all-out car chase in Rome, Hunt and Grace, handcuffed together, changing vehicles, downgrading eventually to a tiny yellow Fiat. On their tail are Gabriel (Esai Morales), the servant of The Entity and Paris (Klementieff) his right-hand goon. Coming to their rescue are Luther and Benji, plus Ilsa (Ferguson) who is working from the MI6 angle, but unofficially and to be disowned by the government if things go astray, just like the IMF.

The next, lavishly staged set piece is in Venice. Enters The White Widow (Kirby) who is the host of a classy party as well as Grace's secret employer (not even known to Grace), with the lofty proclamation "The world is changing. Truth is vanishing. War is coming". Everybody, heroes and villains both, are there. Lot of running, chasing and melees abundant.

The climactic concluding set piece is on a train in the Alps. The defining cliff-hanger you would have seen endless times before, but never as outrageously outlandish as in here. At the end of this two-and-a-half-hour half-movie, there are still expectedly a lot of unanswered questions. One thing that would unquestionably come to mind while you were watching is the Terminators franchise, artificial intelligence taking over. During the Terminators era, the concept was already not that groundbreaking. Today, it simply cannot be more relevant. Just pray, wherever your faith lies, that by the time we watch Part 2 of this movie, the world is not already under the control of IA.

A Million Miles Away (2023)

cannot get more retro than this, but lovingly done

[25 September 2023]

This movie looks like it was made a few decades ago, and that is a compliment. It demonstrates that without the sound and fury that signify nothing, a movie made lovingly and simply can be a joy to watch. If you have seen "Hidden figures", "A million miles away" may well be a Mexican-American variation of its theme, a feel-good story about achievements of minorities at NASA.

This biopic, based on José Hernández's (Michael Pena) memoir, "Reaching for the Stars: The Inspiring Story of a Migrant Farmworker Turned Astronaut", starts with his childhood days when his father took the family through various places in the US southwest, seeking the best job available for an immigrant laborer. Not exactly nomadic; but close enough. While not particularly strong on education, his father taught Jose worldly wisdom, "five ingredients" to success. Number 5 is "when you think you are already there, that is when you have to work harder". These ingredients appear as chapter titles marking the progress of the simple but effective narrative, in tracing Jose's journey to becoming an astronaut.

Early school days already see Jose particularly gifted in mathematics. This is noticed by one person who arguably is the most important person in his life, other than his family. Ms. Young (Michelle Krusiec) goes the length of meeting with his family pleading earnestly with the father (with Jose as translator) to give up this nomadic life so that his children can settle down to receive a proper education. Towards the end of the movie, there is an unexpected, heartwarming closure on this.

The straightforward narrative covers obstacles and positive aspects in equal measures. While the backdrop is obviously the period atmosphere of prejudice towards minorities, Jose has his own fair share of personal weaknesses such as underwater surviving capabilities and occasional misses in navigation judgement. These he overcomes with gritty perseverance.

On the credit side of the ledger, he is surrounded by love and support. By sheer luck, when he purchasing a car, he meets endearing Adela (Rosa Salazar) who, in addition to giving him inexhaustible patience and support, also 5 lovely children. Cousin and bestie Beto (Bobby Soto) tells him "I just think it's great that I get to be so freaking proud and have no idea what you're talking about, cousin." When he stumbles during training in NASA, trainer Kalpana Chawla (Sarayu Blue), a double-minority herself, lends a helping hand: "Tenacity is a superpower". It is particularly poignant as both these wonderful people do not last the duration of the period covered in the movie.

The earth-shattering occasion of his receiving a "green light" letter from NASA, after 11 unsuccessful attempts, is beautifully understated. Adela, upon hearing the wonderful news, shows mixed feelings "The dishwasher is not coming" she is close to tears. Cut to next scene when we see the NASA new acolyte washing dishes!

As expected, the movie closes with photos of the real couple, who have interesting resemblance to Pena and Salazar. Sorry, should be the other way round. It is further enriched with historical footage of immigrant life and space launching.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023)

Worths watching

[3 September 2023]

Indiana Jones movies are all about "chase" (no hidden advertisement). Bad guys are chasing good guys, good guys are chasing bad guys, and both are chasing mysterious treasures. This fifth instalment is no different. What it has added is an element of time travel. Jumping on the bandwagon, one may say. Everybody does that these days.

First and foremost, the audience watch Indy movies for the action sequences, super-fast-paced, cliff-hanging and over-the-top (some may deem). There are five such sequences in "Dial of Destiny".

The first is a prologue set in 1944 (with the hero and the villain digitally de-aged), when Indy and colleague Basil (Toby Jones) fight the Nazis (mainly in a moving train) for the title treasure Archimedes' Dial (the Antikythera). One of the enemies is Voller (Mads Mikkelsen), a scholar employed by the Nazis at the time, but in fact more than meets the eye. Mad chases.

Next comes "the present" 1969 when Indy in his post-retirement humble abode sees a surprise visit from goddaughter Helena (Phoebe Waller-Bridge) who was 12 the last time he saw her. She is Basil's daughter. The Pandora's Box she opens gets into full swing upon the arrival of Voller. More mad chases.

The most exciting action arguably occurs in Tangier, chases on a three-wheeler. Apparently Helena wants to auction off the half of the dial they possess to the highest bidder. Indy is not exactly jubilant to be stuck with "two thieves", the second one being Teddy (Ethann Isidore), a very young local thief who had formed an "it-takes-a thief-to-know-a thief" bond with Helena (older sister surrogate).

The fourth is not exactly fast-pace but exciting nevertheless, deep-sea diving in the Aegean Sea, for certain artifact that provide clues to lead them to the other half of the dial. A criminally wasted Antonio Banderas shows up here as Indy's old friend who possesses a boat.

Between the 4th and the 5th action sequences is a rather long sequence in which the protagonists and the villain progress, separately then converge, in searching and finding the second half of the Dial.

Finally, there is a chase in two WW2 fighter planes, flying not into space but into time. A little over-the-top, the kid Teddy who is not old enough to drive, let alone drink, is flying the plane, chasing Voller.

Stringing up these actions scenes is a plot, silly at times, but serviceable. Warning: spoilers galore here.

Archimedes' Dial is not a supernatural treasure but a mathematical miracle. Among other things, it is a time- travel device. When Voller, the ultimate Nazis, sets the destination as 1939, Indy wonders aloud whether this villain is trying to change the course of history by killing Churchill, Eisenhower, or both. Voller's reply, expectedly, is a twist. But then, this become quite meaningless when the Dial lands them some 2000 years back in history, right in the middle of a violent Roman seas battle.

To cut a long story short, Indy sees Archimedes, someone he has worshipped all his life. It is also a time in history that he has devoted his entire life to study. He wants to stay. This is the movie's truly engaging emotional moment. Indy, at this final stage of his life, has lost all his charisma, becoming an old man who is brooding most of the time, from loss of his son in the Vietnam War and separation with Marion. Now, the fire of passion buried deep inside him flares again. He pleads with Helena to return to the present with Teddy and let him stay. "I have to do this", Ford has delivered an Indy we have never seen before, but immediately root for, touched by his endearing earnestness. "I have to do this too, sorry" comes Helena's cryptic reply, as she knocks him unconscious with a swift blow, right in front of Archimedes!

The final bonus is something that softens Indy's disappointment. Marion (Karen Allen) appears, lovely and loving, both, as she was 4 decades ago.

Past Lives (2023)

A rare gem

[28 August 2023]

I suppose "Past lives" could arguably be characterized as "minimalism", but it is more than that. While there is not one signal moment of emotional flare, the characters' emotions are warmly palpable. And you will be hard-pressed to find another film in which the scenes flow so effortlessly, seamlessly one into another. The subject matter is, well, ordinary. In fact one character describes himself as completely "ordinary". What is so extraordinary about this movie is the beautiful writing and the even more beautiful interpretation of the writing.

"Past lives" start with a sort of prologue, very ordinary scene of three people sitting at a bar, and cryptic VO dialogue of other patrons whom we never see, just plot devices. They wonder about the relationship of the trio, two Koreans, man and woman, and a white guy (who later in the movie is known to be Jewish). Are the Koreans a couple, or are they siblings? How is the white guys connected with them. Maybe they are just three colleagues releasing pressure after burning midnight oil.

After this prologue, the movie is divided into 3 distinct time frames marked with clear on-screen text "24 years before", "12 years past" and another "12 years past".

Flashback 24 years show two 12-year old classmates Na Young and Hei Sung, with what we assume to be puppy love crushes for each other. They went as far as lacing fingers in the back seat of one of the parent's cars. When Na Young immigrated to the US with her parents, the parting was not one of wailing heartbreaking, but rather resignation to a whiff of sadness, with composure to be admired in these two pre-teen kids.

When the on-screen text announcs "12 years pass", Na Young is no longer Na Young (except to her mother) but Nora, a young writer working hard in Manhattan, hoping for her break. Hei Sung carries on with his "ordinary" life in South Korea, pursuing a career in engineering. Then, they find each on Facebook. Occasional face-to-face real time chats soon become addictive. This connection finally sees what you might call a natural demise. Possibility to travel to see each other is not within a two year horizon. This hurts him more than her. His relationship with his girlfriend is unstable. She meets, in an idyllic resort for writer, a young Jewish fellow-writer. Arthur (John Magaro, excellent and not given enough credit by critic) is kind, gentle and level-headed. While Hei Sung sinks deeper into the melancholy of unfulfilled childhood love, Nora moves forward into the next chapter of hers. She marries Arthur and the couple moves to New York, renting a tiny apartment, to follow their dream of one day becoming a successful writer.

Another "12 years pass". Nora and Arthur are healthily in love, totally committed to each other, although there are sporadic doubts about the progress in their careers. Hei Sung, on the other hand, is drifting in his ordinariness. He does have a girlfriend but their relationship is a rocky road. Then, he decides to make a trip to New York. Whatever the pretext, he wants to see Nora. She knows. Even Arthur knows.

It is more than obvious that the movie works towards these final scenes. Nora and Hei Sung meet up as she shows him around Manhattan. This is where Lee and Yoo showcase their subtle brilliance with nuances, facial expressions and body language. Oh, they deliver the dialogue beautifully too. There is love, friendship. Regret is diluted with the belief that this is perhaps their destiny, influence by their past lives.

At the end of this brief trip, Hei Sung visits the couple at their tiny apartment to meet Arthur. The trio then goes out for pasta (his response to Arthur's "what would you like to eat"?) and then a drink. The scenes circle back to the opening "prologue". Each of the three is as natural as you would expect. Arthur fully appreciates the situation, allowing space for the two childhood sweethearts to converse in Korean. The bonus to the audience is the scene between the two men (when Nora goes to the powder room), ever so gently touching. The parting scene when she accompanies him in waiting for his Uber, while predictable, is bitter-sweet poignancy that you would love. To top it off is the final scene that warms your heart.

Lola (2022)

clever but taken mayve a tad too far

[18 August 2023]

Even not overly convoluted, this temporal-scramble sci-fic is a bit confusing at the beginning. I am therefore giving an outline of the story in a straightforward third-person linear narrative. The movie actually plays out as footage of a hand-held camera, presented as a home-made documentary from one of the two protagonists.

The story starts at the late 1930s with two young women, sisters and orphaned since early childhood, discovering an immense secret - how to capture radio-video wave from the future. They call their machine LOLA, after their mother. Initially treating this as a fun project that allows them to discover ahead of time pop idols such as Bob Dylan, Thomasina ("Thoms") and Martha ("Mars") realize at the onslaught of WWII that they can know ahead the exact time and target of Nazi bomb attacks. They put this foreknowledge to use, broadcasting messages in the name of "Portobello Angels", warning people in the danger zone to stay away. While these broadcast do not change the course of history, as the bombing still takes place, they save many lives.

But then, things escalate as two young soldier track the girls down and succeed in persuading them to take bolder steps. The course of history starts to change, even if not in a large macro scale. For instance, the broadcast headline for tomorrow may originally be "such-a-place is bombarded savagely, causing many casualties". But, with the foursome's intervention, when tomorrow comes, they become "German scheme to bombard such-a-place has been foiled, with most of the German planes shot down". So far so good.

But one day, they find that David Bowie, the future pop idol that the girls have picked up, disappears from the time and place where he is supposed to be. Ditto other future cultural figures that they have become familiar with. Then, all hell break loose as the course of history changes in an alarming way, such as the UK breaking the alliance with the US, and the Germany army landing on British soil. Some in the audience may find the plot twists outlandish. But those who have watched the amazing TV series of "the Man in the High Castle" are unlikely to.

As mentioned, the film packaged as a hand-held camera documentation, assembled from films going back to the time when the protagonists were little girls. The grainy black-and-while filming oozes retro beauty.

Emma Appleton playing Thom and Stefanie Martini as Mars both did splendidly with their respective character, markedly different in persona but sharing the same sibling love, richly fostered as small orphans together.

Blue Jean (2022)

A heart-wrenching performance

[30 July 2023]

Some movies play around with the narrative, hide-and-seek style, as if they don't want to tell the audience what the movie is about. Not "Blue Jean". It starts with the simple daily routine of the protagonist Jean (Rosy McEwen), a PE schoolteacher. Beginning a class of netball, she asks a bunch of students if they know what "fight or flight" means. "Instincts", she explains to the bewildered students. In a way, this movie is about instincts, to hide and survive. It's about lesbians in the era when Margaret Thatcher was promoting hostile legislation against homosexuals. The focal point of "Blue Jean" can be crystalized in a frustrated exclamation uttered by Jean "am I to parade my sexuality around like a badge of honour"? Her lover Viv (Kerrie Hayes), with a revealing tattooed, head-shaved punk look, has absolutely no reservations. Unfortunately for Jean, there is the attractive school-teaching job to worry about. Sadly, while there is no question that these too deeply love each other, this ultimate difference in attitude becomes a formidable wall between them.

At the domestic front, while she seems to get along with her elder sister's family (couple and one small son), there are undercurrents. It is rather sad that from her own sister, she does not get the genuine support her needs so much.

Through a series of simply narrated events, Jean's inner blue world is attentively sculptured like a piece of fine art: her hopes and fears and, above all, her agonies.

The catalyst is a new 15-years-old student, Lois (Lucy Halliday). It would be unusual if a newcomer is not treated as an outsider, at least initially. But then, Lois is also lesbian, which does not take long for her classmates to sense. Even easier for Jean. But then Jean does not even need to sense it because she runs into Lois in a gay bar. They ignore each other, to the extent they can. Later, an incident in school involving Lois and another student triggers a critical point where Jean has to face the difficult challenge of how to handle her own sexuality.

Throughout the movie, the sadness we feel for Jean deepens. And yet, we are also inspired by her unyielding tenacity to be true to her profession, her students, her lover, her family and, ultimately, to herself. Her only fault is in being born to an unforgivingly closed-minded era.

Rosy McEwen's performance is superb.

Asteroid City (2023)

Star-studded Wes Anderson treat

[28 July 2023]

For those unfamiliar with this auteur director's work, it is difficult to explain Wes Anderson. I am not up to it. The only thing I have to say is that among his work, "Moonrise Kingdom" might have been the most mainstream, Anderson eccentricities notwithstanding. I really enjoyed that one and highly recommend it.

"Asteroid City" does have a plot, although it is executed in a deceptively haphazard fashion. Among the dazzling star-studded cast, there are quite a few that are only short cameos. The plot is in two layers, the behind-the-scene story of the birth of a stage play (shot in black and white) and the play itself (shot in mesmerizing color). Let me reverse the order and tackle the play first.

Set in 1955, Asteroid City is a fictional town (yes, not quite a city) in the American Southwest, deriving its name from an astronomic event - a meteor leaving a crater that became a tourist spot. At the time of the story, this town is getting busy with astronomic conventions and space camps. The hustle-bustle is interrupted (or enhanced, if you like), by the arrival of two real aliens, whose appearance could be loosely characterized as "matchstick man". They steal the asteroid, but later return it. That is about all that is happening.

Anchored on this macro backdrop, the intriguing thing is the micro stories of various people who come to town. At the core is the Steenbeck family, a war photographer Augie (Jason Schwartzman), teenage son Woodrow (Jake Ryan) who comes to join the Asteroid Day competition, and three very young daughters who are, however, mature enough to be characterized as "the three witches". While "Asteroid City" has been labelled a comedy, the Steenback story camouflages a tragedy at heart. Upon arrival at Asteroid City, Augie tells his kids that their mother (Margot Robbie) had died three weeks ago. As grieving becomes embedded in the Anderson style comedy. Later, his father-in-law (Tom Hanks) arrives and confronts "the three witches" who are trying to conjure up their deceased beloved mother, using the cremated ashes of his daughter that Augie brought along. The poignancy is sealed in a flashback scene with Schwartzman and Robbie talking across the street from balconies, apparently at the budding of the romance between their respective characters.

The current romance, however, is with Midge Campbell (Scarlett Johansson, a Hollywood star coming to town with her daughter who has also entered the same competition as Woodrow. While the young ones connect, essentially in science but not without a trace of teenage romance, their parents find themselves in a more intriguing situation. Their interaction is mostly from their facing rental cabins, which makes most of their scenes framed by the respective windows. Sometimes flirtish, sometime deadpan, sometimes poignant, sometimes philosophical, the two share a lot of themselves with each other, becoming kind of a soulmate.

Of the assortment of other characters coming to town, some are more notable while others mere cameos. Jeffrey Wright (playing a five-star general) and Tilda Swinton (playing a scientist) team up to represent the government in a more or less PR mission, which is then twisted into a control center in the aliens crisis. Maya Hawke is a teacher bringing a platoon of children on a field trip. Rupert Friend is a singing cowboys who happens to be around. These two choice TV actors, from "Stranger Things" and "Homeland" respectively, team up to do some song and dance. There are plenty others, too many to list.

Now to the other part of the movie, shot in retro black-and-white, the behind-the-scene story of the aforementioned play. Throughout the movie Anderson cuts back and forth between this two plotlines.

The movie in fact opens with a television host (Bryan Cranston) introducing the play. But once he starts describing Asteroid City, the déjà vu of Thornton Wilder's "Our town" emerges effortlessly with Cranston as the "stage manager" in that play. Appearing in this story are a couple of heavyweights, Edward Norton as the playwright and Adrien Brody as the director, each with his own back-story.

Various critics try to explain "Asteroid City". I think it is best left for the audience to independently experience, process and discover.

The Flash (I) (2023)

Interesting doudle-barrel, sorry, double-Barry take

[22 July 2023]

For those of us who have watched the entire 9 season of The Flash (Arrow only got 8, and Supergirl just 6), there wouldn't be anything in terms of plot and story in this new movie that is entirely surprising. Still, this movie has its appeal. And of course, even the movie itself is not new. For the six Justice League characters, Superman and Batman each has his own history. Wonder Woman and Aquaman have claimed their separate franchise. The Flash finally gets his own movie. Cyborg is still to be recognized.

The prologue-type action scene is, sorry, flashy. Batman (Ben Affleck) and Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) are cameos, particularly the latter. And, after all the crazy action, the defining remark from Barry Allen (Ezra Miller) is "I know sex exists but have never experienced it". Obviously! He just met Iris West, a young reporter, as we are shown. There is also flashback of a childhood domestic bliss scene, but then darkened by mother's death, with father holding the murder weapon.

The confusing, bemusing scenes of Barry running into the void, so to speak, finally bears fruit - meeting "Past Barry" (also Ezra Miller) in a parallel universe (parallel but "past", don't ask me to explain). The Batman there ("Older Bruce") is played by Michael Keaton, who seems to be everything our familiar billionaire Batman Bruce Wayne is not. From him, we are enlightened to "the theory of the spaghetti multiverse".

Off they go to Russia (in that universe) to rescue Clark Kent but instead find Kara Zor-El aka Supergirl (Sasha Calle). They team up to stop Zod (Michael Shannon) from obliterating billions (Supergirl's word) of human. The two Flash (red and blue), "older" Batman and Supergirl form a sort of 4-person mini Justice League. A variety of fatalistic temporal confusion scenes kick in but as aforementioned, if you have watched the 9 Seasons of the Flash, there wouldn't be anything that you have not seen. That closure-perfect ending is not bad at all. As well, you are entertained with another cameo, one of the other Batman on screen. Guess who.

The double-Barry trick, with one coming-of-age and another essentially a clueless nerd, works thanks to Ezra Miller's acting chop. Michael Keaton as a graybeard (initially) is an eye-opener. Sasha brings welcomed alternate visual image and varied persona from the traditional all-American blond Supergirl ("I am not human", she stresses at one point). Michael Shannon's villain feels just a tad obligatory.

Fast X (2023)

Will keep die-hard F&F fans interested

[13 June 2023]

As a refresher, I'll start with a cryptic run down of the characters that came and went in 1 to 9 of this franchise.

The top heavy-weight added along the way was Gisele (Gal Gadot), but then she died and reincarnated as Wonder Woman. Not exactly to replace her but joining the team was another reincarnation, from Game of Thrones, Nathalie Emmanuel as Ramsey as the wiz kid. While this is an ensemble surrounding Dom, there is arguably a female co-lead, Letty (Michelle Rodriguez) who also died but came back to life, in this very franchise. When she was presumed dead, Elena (Elsa Pataky) became the temporary consolation but died herself when Letty came back to life.

For frenemy, there was Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson). For a classy villain (at least initially) there was Shaw (Jason Statham). These two became so popular that they spin off with "Hobbs and Shaw". Then, we had three Oscar winners. Playing two mothers were Helen Mirren and Rita Moreno. Charlize Theron played Cipher the ultimate villain. Oh yes, not to miss the fun was Kurt Russell as Mr. Nobody, who headed The Agency that was friendly to Dom's family. Characters and people come and go, but the saddest is the untimely death of Paul Walker, the actor, who had the only true pivotal role holding the concept of "family" together.

This is a revenge story going back to "Fast 5". Flashback scenes (original and newly created) set up the back-story that fuels devilishly delirious Dante's (Jason Momoa) revenge for his father who was taken down by Dom and family. Back to present, the audience bath in the warmth of a family backyard gathering including everybody (those still alive anyway), followed by a little reminiscence here and there, with Han (Sung Kang), then Letty. Bad news comes from unexpected quarters, not a family member kidnapped or killed. Cipher shows up in blood, explaining "The enemy of my enemy is you". Dante had just raided her place for her gadgets and told her "You want to control the world. I want to punish it".

The first big set piece takes place in Rome, giving the audience what they expect. After the mayhem, everybody in Team Toretto stayed alive but Letty is captured by The Agency and held captive at a black site. Different characters, old and new, go into different trajectories.

The Agency, with Mr Nobody nowhere to be seen, is now hostile, out to get everyone in Team Toretto, especially the loved ones. With the help of Uncle Jakob (John Cena), Mai (Jordana Brewster) and kid Toretto, make a narrow escape. Jakob becomes babysitter while Mai goes to join the team in action.

After a brief meeting with Queenie (Helen Mirren) in the wakes of the Rome mayhem, Dom sets of to Rio to finally face off with Dante, in a car race in Rio where he discovers Elena's sister Isabel (Daniel Melchoir), that is, his son's aunt!

While Mr Nobody is out of the picture, it turns out that he has a daughter Tess (Brie Larson), who seeks out Dom and is persuaded by him to rescue Letty. Off she goes to the black site and the two girls do their thing. When they finally get separated, Tess comes to Dom's assistance, gets shot but not fatally, and is rushed off to hospital by Isabel. Letty gets help from Cipher. As the duo emerge somewhere in Antarctica, in a sea of white ice, they see a sub breaking ice, literally. The hatch opens, someone emerges, drawing from you a "Are you're kidding me"!? In delight. That, by the way, is the final minute of this movie.

A quartet of Ramsey, Han, Roman (Tyrese Gibson) and Tej (Ludacris) find themselves in London with their own adventure. When in London, who do they run into? Shaw, obviously, who killed Han somewhere along the line in the past. Somehow, after the mandatory melee when he tries to kill him again, they become frenemies, as you might expect.

The final set piece is a rescue action sequence with Dom rescues his kid who had fallen temporarily into the hands of Dante. You would expect that Dante is to meet his end. Not the case. You see, watching the end of this movie is like watching Frodo and Sam going into Mordor. There are two more to come in this trilogy which is planned to end this long-lived franchise at Fast XII. In the meantime, with all the loose-ends, have fun contemplating the whereabouts of this profusion of characters.

John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023)

well worth the wait, Wick fans

[25 May 2023]

This movie has been characterized by critics as "worth two years' wait" (delay in release date). That is obviously in the context of Wick's fans, who know what to expect. A simple illustration. In one scene, one character has his hand nailed to a table by a sharp knife that goes right through the plump flesh joining the thumb and the index finger. Asked to choose between pulling the knife away and pulling the hand away, he chooses the hand! That is, without moving the knife, he drags his hand away clear of the blade. John Wick stuff. Just hope it is your cup of tea.

This movie is an action symphony of three movements. Plot is almost non-existent, a plus. The movie is all about killing John Wick (Keanu Reeves), or killing "the idea" of John Wick, if you want a little philosophical spicing. Along the way, Wick entertains an assortment of opponents, all deadly, needless to say. The opponents however do not necessarily target only John. They fight each other, or at least each other's goons, as they all want the prize, Wick, for themselves.

The omnipotent "Table", now headed by the vain French Marquis (Bill Skarsgard), is gung-ho on taking Wick out. Marquis recruits an old friend of Wick, a blind assassin called Caine (Donny Yan), making him now a frenemy of John. A bounty hunter with "an emotion support dog" (or is he emotionally supporting the dog? I'm confused), offers his service to the Marquis for 35 million dollars, later raised to 40. When this Tracker (no other name) yells "nuts", you know where the dog goes straight for, in the anatomy of a target victim.

The scene of the first movement is a plush hotel in Osaka, where old friend (apparently Wick has many) Shimazu (the inimitable Hiroyuki Sanada from "Twilight Samurai"), with is badass daughter Arika (Rina Sawayama), harbours Wick. All hell break loose when the Table's goons descend en mass. Apologies for repeating what is said about a John Wick movie: if you are toying with the idea of doing a body count, forget it, or seek help from an AI. It also pitches frenemies Wick and Caine against each other, with both coming out unscathed. Other combatants show up too, including Tracker and dog. This entire lengthy movement is a joy to watch from beginning to end, shot brilliantly with abundant varieties in camera angle, colour scheme, light-and-shade, movements choreographed and solid, and of course the iconic gun-fu melee style to which Wick movies can rightfully claim patent. Great, matching funky music too.

The middle movement starts in to Russian where Wick, seeking help from a kingpin that he does not know has died, is now at the daughter Katie's mercy. The set piece is at the lair of massive Killa (Scott Adkins), the man who killed Katie's father. It's difficult to surpass the first movement, but the second one holds its own, with axes as the main theme. Caine and Tracker, needless to say, wouldn't miss the party. Towards the end of the endless struggle, Killa, in frustration, flashing his teeth that reminds you of Jaws in the James Bond movie, yells at Wick "Why don't you just die!" The victory regains Wick's place in the Russia brotherhood, with a family crest that puts him into a position to be able to challenge the Marquis to a single, one-on-one combat.

The final movement is set in the City of Light, but ironically reaches its climax when light yields to the rising sun. I wouldn't disclose the exciting journey through a night in Paris that Wick goes through to make it to the combat venue just before sunrise, to be allowed to take part in the duel. I have already said too much and wouldn't dream of spoiling your enjoyment of this superb finale of the nearly three-hour movie. Just absolutely top-notch, a worthy conclusion of this fourth John Wick movie.

On the cast, in addition of those already mentioned, there are Ian McShane as Winston, sort of advisor to Wick, and Laurence Fishburne as Bowery King who to Wick is as "Q" is to Bond. Must be mentioned however is Yan, who is close to being a co-lead here. In addition to being assigned what he does best, he also gets a couple of profound philosophical lines such as "The dead are gone. Only the living matters" or "see you in the next life, brother". Caine and Wick reflect off each other, and hence bot shine brightly.

To Catch a Killer (2023)

Police procedural, mostly

[19 May 2023]

"To catch a killer" works like a police procedural until three-quarters through. I'll come back to that.

It opens with a code "G25" crisis, whatever that means. Then it's total mayhem, an explosion in a high rise. This introduces us to Eleanor (Shailene Woodley), police officer, who valiantly stays at the scene to help, only to be discovered by the rescue team "fainted, or something to that effect". When the dust settled, literally, 29 victims have been shot, by a deadly (even more literally) sniper. Introduced next is FBI lead investigator, no-nonsense Lammark (Ben Mendelsohn), who lectures the investigation team on the key concept that the killer they are trying to catch is not "a type" (a Nazis, for example). "Someone loved him, someone taught him, someone sold him a gun". "There is an Olympic class marksman running around" he concludes.

It doesn't take long for Eleanor to impress Lammark with her analytical abilities, despite her dubious records. Her file describes her as "aggressive, addictive, antisocial", "the sort of people we arrest, not hire" he observes. When she mistakes him for making an advance, he explains "I am married" and invites her to come to dinner and discuss the case. It turns out that he is gay, and his husband is a witty, entertaining, talkative dinner companion, to such an extent that Lammark threatens to arrest him for "interfering with the work of two law-enforcement officers". The rest of the movie, up to the three-quarter point, follows two predictable parallel trajectories of investigative details and development of mutual respect and friendship between Eleanor and Lammark.

Then, about three-quarter through, there are some abrupt turns and twists that become challenging. The villain, when finally appearing, does not impress enough to match the build-up in the first three quarters of the movie. Lammark, as it turns out, is there only to enhance the story of Eleanor which, you then realize, is the soul and anchor of this movie. The focus, therefore, is on the performance of Shailene Woodley, whose face is probably best known for her appearance in the TV series "Little big lies". In "To catch a killer", she has a fair bit of heavy-lifting to do. She is neither brilliant nor inadequate. Delivers.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)

passing grade

[1 May 2023]

Categorized under "comedy", this third instalment of the Ant-man franchise bookends the movie with two comments from his fans. The one in the opening greets him with a most sincere "Thank you, Spider-man". As a perfect closure, the one at the closing scenes quips "oh, you are the other bug". An improvement, you must agree.

If a single word is to be used to describe this movie, I'd say "visual". After a brief "prologue" of a cozy family dinner oozing domesticity, the story is plunged (literally) into title "Quantumania" universe, where the remaining 90% takes place. While there are still earthly structures, the overwhelming visual you are entertained with is surreal and abstract, in such a profusion of multi-color that dwarfs Joseph's Amazing Dreamcoat.

Let me dwell not on the customary confrontation of good against evil, nor the overtaxed pseudo-scientific gibberish. Rather, just a few words on the cast and I'm done.

Those who have watched "Ant-man and the Wasp" will remember that two family stories were anchored on the love relationship between the leads "Ant-man" Scott (Paul Rudd) and "Wasp" Hope (Evangeline Lilly). For Scott, it was his relationship with daughter Cassie (Kathryn Newton, in this 3rd instalment; in "Ant-man and the Wasp" and "Avenger: end game", this character was played by two other different actors) that he co-parents with divorced but still friendly wife. For Hope, in was her effort with father Hank (Michael Douglas) to rescue mother Janet (Michelle Pfeiffer) who had been trapped in the Quantum realm for three decades.

The above 5 main characters essentially carried on from where they left off in the second instalment "Ant-man and the Wasp". Particularly standing out thought is Pfeiffer's Janet, for the obvious reason that the arena for this movie is where she had been trapped for 3 decades, and is now coming back (though not voluntarily) to settle some old score with prime villain Kang (Jonathan Majors). Two other characters worth mentioning are slightly more than cameos. Bill Murray plays Lord Krylar, a friendly force in the Quantum realm. Corey Stoll plays "Yellowjacket" Darren, nemesis to Ant-man in the original movie, supposedly dead but revived to be a "weapon" in this third instalment.