Movie Lists Updated through 2017

Using Google Sheets, I have now updated my movie ratings links in the sidebars through 2017, covering just under 3500 shows. The next step is to add in the 2018 shows after the end of the year. When I do that, I will amend this post to show the 2018 update is done.

I could take advantage of the Google Sheets feature of automatic updates, using Sheets as my actual data entry source and maintaining an ongoing list of all movies rated alpha and another for all movies in ratings order, but for now I prefer to just update the online lists manually at the end of each year.

12 over 3 for 2017

I am finally getting my video spreadsheets updated to add in what I watched in 2017.  Here are twelve things I watched in 2017 that I rated over 3:

Call The Midwife Christmas Special 2016	2016	3.3
Mother of Mine [re-watched in 2017]	2005	3.2
All the Way	2016	3.2
Wadjda	2012	3.2
Witness, The	2015	3.2
Home Fires (Season Two)	2016	3.2
Veep (Season Five)	2016	3.1
Little Big Lies	2017	3.1
Tower	2016	3.1
Victoria (Season One)	2016	3.1
13th	2016	3.1
Call The Midwife (Season Six)	2017	3.1

And into the Fall

And here are more.

Red Oaks (Season Two) – 2016 (2.9). The second season maintains the style and approach of the first and thankfully does not bombard us with lots of new characters as it moves through the next year in the lives of the principals. One gets married, one pair of parents divorces, a young pair are sort of on again off again, a father faces possible jail time and at season end pretty much everyone is making changes for the coming year. We shall see what season three has in store for the next year of these lives.

The Dressmaker -2015 (2.8). Sent away from her small Aussie town as a young girl, supposedly for killing a young boy, the woman returns years later as an accomplished dressmaker and quickly acquires the women of the town as customers, even as they continue to gossip about her. Revenge is likely in her cards as she learns the true back story and we are entertained enough to watch it through.

Harold and Lillian: A Hollywood LoveStory – 2015 (2.8). This documentary is surprisingly fun watching. It tells the personal and professional story of a Hollywood couple who rose to the pinnacle of their movie professions ( he a story board artist and production designer and she a research librarian)while raising their three sons (the oldest with autism)and being known to all in Hollywood as the tops in their field and two of the most fun people to spend time around. Interviews with the couple and with many of their professional and personal friends are combined with archival footage from some of the mtriad of Hollywood classics on which they have worked.

The Man in the High Castle (Season Two) -2016 (2.8). This series takes significant liberties with the book on which it is based, but since it is all made up anyway, maybe that is not very important. As the Nazis plot to eliminate the Japanese, all the plots and subplots thicken for the principal characters, but leaving the viewer with the question how long one would want to play along with this fantasy, which started way back in 1962 and has barely moved forward in time.

Nowhere to Hide – 2016 (2.8). When the US led coalition pulled out of Iraq and turned control over to the Iraqui government, a man in central Iraq was give a video camera by a filmmaker who told him to record what happens. This resulting documentary edits five years of videos with written inserts of what is happening in the country as the videos move forward. It is just home movies, but of a dangerous place in a dangerous time.

Red Oaks (Season Three) – 2017 (2.8). The third season is short by a couple episodes as the characters move on another year, some relationships ripen, some are replaced and situations morph. Still a pleasant enough watch as we are invested in the characters. Unfortunately, it has been announced this will be the last season of the series

Training Day - 2001 (2.8). Denzel Washington won the top Oscar playing an LA cop heading a small narc unit practicing its own brand of “street justice”. The movie takes place on the first day of training a new white officer transferring in as a step to becoming a detective. The recruit is shocked by the outrageous way the mentor disregards the rules, but he tries to bend and hang on even as situations quickly escalate and he begins to realize he may be getting setup as a patsy. This is another example of the Oscar going to a portrayal of a mentally unhinged person, but Denzel is such a good actor he deserved to have an addition to his supporting Oscar for Glory (which still holds up on watching anew).

Voices of the Sea -2018 (2.8). In an extremely impoverished Cuban fishing village an older respected fisherman haas married a young widow resulting in a blended family. Though dissatisfied with what the Castro revolution has delivered, the man nevertheless is content to carry on his life in the village. But the woman wants more out of life and dreams of fleeing to the USA. She is not alone in that dream and this documentary shows the lure of the dream and the reality of the difficulty of achieving it and the consequences of failing to complete the quest.

Wonder - 2017 (2.8). A home schooled boy born with major facial abnormalities starts attending a large middle school in this appealing movie. He is strong of character and has supportive parents and older sister, but the kids at the school handle relating to their new schoolmate with mixed success. There are plenty of messages in this well acted film, but it does not get too bogged down until maybe a bit at the end. The DVD special features are disappointing in not telling about the genesis of the book on which the movie was based and on not telling more about the casting, direction and makeup of Jacob Tremblay the excellent young actor who also played the boy in the movie Room.

Mr. Robot (Season One) – 2015 (2.7). This series about an Asperger's type computer hacker who gets involved in taking down an evil global corporate conglomerate started off with lots of promise but by the end of the season it was a bit disappointing as the lead character became more unbalanced and took us with him to the point where we did not quite know what was going on for real and what was just in his head. The prospect of more seasons of such disorientation is not appealing.

Still Tomorrow – 2016 (2.7). A Chinese woman about 40 years old with muscular dystrophy lives in a small village with her parents. She has a husband who works construction in big cities and comes to the village once a year where the couple end up arguing about her wanting a divorce. Though she never finished high school, she has used the Internet and been discovered as a talented poet. Once her work is published she becomes a minor celebrity particularly to young people and she travels to book signings and media interviews. Her mother is diagnosed with terminal cancer and the daughter is not much emotional support. The poet and her husband have a young son, but we never see him, possibly because PBS POV once again cut a 88 minute documentary down to fit in a time slot of less than one hour.

All the Money in the World -2017 (2.6). This is the movie that was basically completed with Kevin Spacey in the role of J. Paul Getty when Spacey's scandals came to light. The decision was made to re-shoot all the Spacey scenes with Christopher Plummer in the role. Most likely this disruption did not improve the finished product, but the real problem is the script. It jumps around so much at the start that it threatens to undermine what is certainly a compelling story about the Rome kidnapping of a grandson of the richest man in the world. Things settle down enough by the end of the film to keep viewers watching. Even though we know the boy is going to live, we stay tuned for the details.

Dunkirk – 2017 (2.6). We have become so used to CGI footage in action movies that it is surprising to learn that Christopher Nolan made this movie about the evacuation of trapped British forces in 1940 with only a minimal amount of CGI and movie lot water tank work. A tremendous amount of logistical work went into recreating the time, place and events but the weakness of this movie is in the script. The attempt to tell the massive story from a subjective point of view of a few participants does not come across effectively, because of the lack of back story on the characters and the absence of cohesion from cutting back and forth between the various activities.

Human Flow – 2017 (2.6). The eye of the artist is evident in the beautiful cinematography of this documentary by Ai Wei Wei about the world wide refugee flows. Footage and interviews of refugees, commentaries by government and NGO officials and on screen data facts are the methodology, but there is no in depth analysis or proposals for improvements to dealing with the largest refugee traffic since WWII in spite of the fairly long running time of the movie.

Whose Streets? -2017 (2.5). The story of the police shooting of Mike Brown in Ferguson Missouri and the aftermath as the community came together in protest was extensively followed by the media at the time. This documentary was made during the events and included additional interviews in the aftermath. While we did get to meet a few of the activists up close, we did not see or learn anything we did not already know.

The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher: The Murder at Road Hill House– 2011 (2.4). Tell the true story of an 1860 murder of a young boy in a British country estate house from the wrong point of view and the result is an inferior mystery drama. This movie treated it like a whodunit that ended in failure to detect, only to quickly turn to a post scripted denouement that was disconnected from all that preceded it.

Making it through the Summer

With an old computer hooked up to the TV in the living room, Amazon Prime videos are now streaming. The last few library holds should be coming in soon and as fall arrives PBS should start some of their dramas for new seasons.

Instructions Not Included- 2013 (3.0). Eugenio Derbez plays an Acapulco man whose father scared the hell out of him trying to make him unafraid. He has an active sex life but then one day a woman shows up on his doorstep and leaves him with a baby girl he did not know he fathered. He tracks the woman to Los Angeles but then loses her trail as he gets work as a dangerous stunt man (English not required) and carves out a life as a dotingly loving father. He writes fake letters to the girl purportedly from the mother who is off on world saving adventures, which is why she cannot come see her daughter. One day when the girl is seven the mother reappears on the scene, just as the doctor has given the man terminal medical news. At this point we can pause to speculate where the script goes from here, but whn we play on we learn that we were a little bit right but not prepared for the actual ending and explanation of the message of the movie.

I, Daniel Blake – 2016 (2.9). For over fifty years Ken Loach has made British TV shows and movies, almost always with the feel of a documentary even if the story was actually a drama. The themes are invariably critical of the governmental status quo and advocating the need for progressive change. He won the Golden Palm for this story about an older widowed worker recovering from a heart attack and a struggling young single mother of two young kids. The meet at the government agency which is supposed to be helping them but which frustrates both of them by its bureaucratic incompetency and non-concern. There is a sort of father daughter relationship and the pain and frustration they feel comes across in the film.

Red Oaks (Season One) – 2014 (2.9). Humor, romance and drama are nicely blended in this series about college age kids working summers at a 1980's country club. The cast is filled out with some parents, older club workers and club members, the President of the club and his daughter and other romantic foils. The first season ends with people heading in lots of different directions and the audience wanting to watch more to see what develops.

Singing with Angry Bird– 2016 (2.9). A Korean opera singer decides to start a choir for children in a slum in India in this documentary. He is very intense in his style and the kids jokingly nickname him Angry Bird. But the kids thoroughly enjoy learning from him and singing the eclectic mix of songs he teaches them. The parents of the children are not sure what it is all about and when Angry Bird tries to explain it to them he soon realizes the best way to explain it to them is to get them involved in learning to sing and perform. The kids love the idea and it is uplifting to see the interaction of love between these parents and children who are so used to being considered of little or no value. The scene of the children in rehearsal sing to their mothers as they hold their hands is extremely moving. For some reason the version of the movie shown on PBS was cut down by about 30 minutes to fit an hour time slot.

Atlanta(Season One) – 2017 (2.8). Three charismatic young black men in Atlanta are trying to crack the local rap scene in this TV series. One gets some payola air play and creates a minor stir. One tries to be the manager while also working on his relationship with his daughter and her mother. The third just hangs around, philosophizes a bit and maintains a low profile. Some violence is expected, though it is taken more for granted than seriously. Marijuana is the norm and dealing provides a supplemental, though dangerous, income.

Ferdinand – 2017 (2.8). The classic story of the kind and loving bull comes warmly to the screen in this fun animated movie with humor and music and dancing and heart. The lack of industrial scale bombast and overly cute characters with famous celebrity voices is endearing, as is the fact that there will not be scads of rehashes and spin off merchandising.

The Insult – 2017 (2.8). In Beirut a verbal dispute between a Lebanese Christian man and a Palestinian worker leads to an aborted apology attempt, further insults and then a physical assault and ultimately a lawsuit that takes on a life of its own in this Arabic language drama. The men and their opposing attorneys (a father and daughter) represent political baggage and different viewpoints that have been smoldering for decades. On a larger scale, the movie is about “us versus them” thinking and the need for reconciliation.

Lindy Lou, Juror Number 2 – 2017 (2.8). After serving on a Mississippi jury that voted a death sentence to a young man for the stabbing murder of a woman, juror Lindy Lou struggled with issues of her own guilt for not listening to her heart and gut that were telling her not to kill him but to imprison him for life. In her struggles she visited the man in prison and became friends with him before he was executed. Over twenty years later she decided to find the other jurors and see if they shared any of her feelings. Her visits with the other jurors and her musings with her own family are the subject of this documentary which makes one wonder what it would be like to actually serve on such a jury. Though the case was in Mississippi and with an all white jury, the defendant was also white, so no issues of race were involved. Once again,for some reason the version of the movie shown on PBS was cut down by about 30 minutes to fit an hour time slot.

The Man in the High Castle (Season One) – 2015 (2.8). Based on the novel by Philip K. Dick, this series from the “what if” school of history takes place in a post WWII world where the axis powers have prevailed. The eastern US is Nazi occupied and the West is under Japanese control, with the Rocky Mountains a neutral zone. The Nazis have weapons supremacy, but Hitler is content to not try to overpower the Japanese. However, some top level Nazis want to strike Japanese forces and are willing to “remove” Hitler if need be. The Japanese are trying to hold on to the fragile detente, though some believe stealing Nazi weapon secrets is the only way to insure peaceful balance of power. The drama is told through following individual Nazis and Japanese officials as well as American members of the underground resistance. The first season was interesting enough to invite a look at the second.

Marshall– 2017 (2.8). This drama involving the great Thurgood Marshall centers on one legal case, but it is not the school desegregation victory in the US Supreme Court in the 1950s. This movie is about a case in 1941 in Connecticut in which a black chauffeur is accused of raping his white employer. Marshall is the sole attorney for the NAACP and is sent throughout the states to defend Negroes on trial. He usually needs permission from the local court to associate with a local attorney on the case. In Connecticut, he is matched with a reluctant Jewish attorney with no criminal law experience. The movie is a combination of a “did he do it” movie with an unusual mentoring of a Jewish attorney by a Negro one.

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Season One) – 2017 (2.8). Amazon Prime produced this series about a college educated 1950s NYC housewife who dotes on her husband and tries to abet his desire to be a stand-up comic in spite of his lack of talent. After their marriage breaks apart over his affair, she stumbles into doing stand-up herself, and she does have talent. The relationships between Mrs. Maisel and her husband, her lesbian manager and the parents and inlaws all provide legitimate fodder for humor tinged with pathos. Unfortunately we once again have too many f-words in the dialogue, which is not the way I remember the 1950s.

Victoria & Abdul– 2017 (2.8). Sixty two years into her reign Queen Victoria was emotionally and physically exhausted and felt there was no one including her children who could inspire her. Then along came Abdul. A tall, dark and handsome young Indian clerk, he had been selected to present the Queen a ceremonial coin from India. He was excited to go to England and see the Queen, but was instructed to merely present the gift, not make eye contact and back away. But he could not resist the majesty of the Queen and she could not resist his adoration and charm. Based on a true story of a short term but deep relationship at the end of Victoria's life, the drama benefits from the consummate regal acting of Judi Dench and the on scren chmistry with her young Indian acting partner.

Cameraperson- 2016 (2.7). After shooting documentary footage for various directors over 25 years, Kirsten Johnson decides to make her own movie as a bit of a memoir and also as an explanation of her work style. Directors were various generous in allowing her to go through all the footage she made for them, and most of what she selected for her film is actually outtakes. The resulting movie is also self-help counseling for PTSD like symptoms experienced in covering so many dangerous stories around the world. Watching the editing special feature on the DVD before watching the movie will help better understand what is being shown and how it came to be put together in the final form.

Versus: The Life and Films of KenLoach – 2016 (2.7). This documentary uses extensive interviews with the British director and those who have worked with him through the years and with his family members, combined with clips from over fifty years of his work to tell the personal and professional story of this progressive activist.

War & Peace – 2015 (2.7). At over 1,000 pages, it is no wonder few people have actually read the Tolstoy novel. This BBC adaptation mini-series has the look and feel one would expect and actually makes it possible to follow the characters on their war of attrition through the Napoleonic wars, but the bottom line is that it is hard to care what happens to these aristocrats except for the evil Helene and her brother, for both of whom one cannot help but wish the worst.

The Workers Cup – 2017 (2.7). Migrant workers from Asia and Africa are being exploited as they work on building venues for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. This documentary follows some of them while they engage in what the government and contractors hope will be a morale booster – a World Cup style tournament between teams from the various contractors. The individuals followed are interesting but there is not much depth developed,. The filmmaker also purposely avoided getting into exposing and commenting on the economic and social issues to any depth.

Roman J. Israel, Esq. - 2017 (2.6). Denzel Washington nails the role of an Asperger's attorney lost in a 1970s time warp in this drama. Sadly the script for the movie is not up to his level. It fumbles around and goes in various directions before deciding to become a bit of a thriller.

More from the Library

PBS is going into summer rerun mode but the DVD holds are continuing to roll in from the library, so here are several more.

The Handmaid's Tale (Season One) – 2017 (3.1). Imagine Trump continues to wreak his havoc on our democracy and then is followed by the sanctimonious Pence and you have the scary warning story behind the 1985 novel that became this series. The author Margaret Atwood is working with the series producers to keep things true to the novel and in planned future seasons to take it beyond. The show garnered several Emmy awards, most notably for the drama itself and for the lead actress Elizabeth Moss. Sinclair Lewis told an earlier fascist menace version of this story in his 1935 novel, “It Can't Happen Here”. [Update March 2019: I watched the first couple episodes of season two, which takes the story beyond the book, and found them slow moving, wallowing in horror, and not able to hold my interest enough to watch further].

Coco – 2017 (3.0). Colorful, well-paced and with an interesting story and characters, this movie about family and the remembering of our dead ancestors earned the Best Animated Feature Oscar. The featured song “Remember Me” also won. It is refreshing to watch an animated film without being distracted by the use of many well known actors to supply the voices and the insertion of scenes too cute for their own sake.

The Man Who Invented Christmas -2017 (3.0). This under appreciated movie about Dickens writing “A Christmas Carol” starts a little slow but then soon takes off and draws us into story of the man himself, the writing process and the way he came up with the story that gave Christmas the human empathy we celebrate. The characters truly speak to him as he is writing, especially Scrooge himself (wonderfully played by Christopher Plummer). The production values, acting and directing (Bharat Nalluri needs to do more feature films) in this Canadian and Irish movie are excellent.

Darkest Hour – 2017 (2.9). Gary Oldman inhabits Winston Churchill in this Oscar winning performance about the few weeks starting in May 1940 when Britain faced invasion by the Nazis and pressure at home to let Mussolini broker a peace with Hitler. This is another story so open to the “what if” school of history. If Churchill had not rallied the people and government to stand and fight, it is impossible to tell what would have happened.

Paterson – 2016 (2.9). Paterson lives in the same named city in NJ , which is where he was born and now drives a bus. He is married to Laura and they have an English bulldog. He leads a fairly repetitive life, up in the morning, walk to work, drive the bus, walk home, take the dog out for an evening walk and stop at the local bar for a beer. Laura spices things up a bit with her home and personal improvements, always in black and white and without an particular showing of talent. In his quiet way he does not discourage her, while she overly encourages his artistic endeavor of writing poetry. The city of Paterson has lots of celebrity connections celebrated by thebarkeep, including with the great poet William Carlos Williams. This is a Jim Jarmusch movie, so not a lot happens, but we get to watch quietly as Paterson lives his so-so life, deeply in love with Laura and always observing the people and places he will put into poetry.

Aquarius – 2016 (2.8). Sonia Braga plays 65 year old Brazilian widow Clara still living a block from the beach in the Recife condo unit where she and her husband raised their three children. Developers have bought all the other units and want to tear the old building down and build a new one, but Clara adamantly refuses to sell. The filmmaker is a native of Recife and loves to make movies there. The film is watchable as a bit long study of the current life of Clara with some flashbacks about her past, but it is also intended as an allegory on the social, political and economic change forces in Brazil.

How to Be a Latin Lover – 2017 (2.8). Eugenio Derbez is a very popular actor in Mexico and the humor he brings to this comedy shows why. His character learns early in life in Mexico that working for a living is not the way to go. He scores his ideal lifestyle by marrying a much older American woman of wealth, but after 25 years is supplanted by a younger man. In desperation he seeks out his estranged sister to house him. She has an 8 year old son who the Lothario uses to try to snare his next rich meal ticket. Lots of laugh out loud slapstick and self deprecating humor are blended with just enough heart to not be kitschy, in spite of the low ratings at IMDB. Time to try his earlier hit, “Instructions Not Included”.

My Life as a Zucchini – 2016 (2.8). Animated puppetry is labor intensive as shown in the special feature on the DVD of this French movie about a small group of orphans living at a rural orphanage. Our hero is 10 years old with a no-show Dad and an alcoholic mother he may have accidentally killed. The kids all have similar hard life stories and quite different personalities and coping styles, but they all are ultimately bonded by their common plight and hope that their futures might not be so bleak,

Served Like a Girl – 2017 (2.8). In this documentary several women who served in various branches of the US military are followed as they struggle with the transition back to civilian life. Though their personal stories have differences, there are also commonalities in their struggles. Another common thread in the movies is that they all participate in a competition to be crowned “Ms. Veteran America”, which is intended, like this film, to call attention to the needs of our women veterans.

Carol – 2015 (2.7). In 1952, a wealthy unhappily married New Yorker with a young daughter is instantly drawn to an attractive young woman who works in a department store and has ambitions to be a photographer. While a child custody hearing is pending in the older couple's divorce, the divorcing New Yorker decides to take a break and go on a road trip west, inviting the young girl along. As can be expected, about halfway through the trip they have sex. Despite the age, wealth and class differences, both people are struggling with their sexual identity even as they are clearly drawn to each other. But the greatest difficulty with the relationship is that they are both women. Based on a novel written at the time, the movie goes to great effort to get everything right in the feeling for the time and place and the internal feelings of the women. The story is told on a very personal and non-societal level, which seems to limit the impact it can make on an audience today.

The Disaster Artist – 2017 (2.7). In 2003 a mysteriously eccentric no talent man who believed he was a great actor and cinematic master was befriended by a newbie classmate in an acting class in San Francisco. They moved together to LA and the mystery man self-funded an indie film [The Room] he wrote and directed and in which he played the lead and his friend the second role. Though the movie reportedly cost around $6 million, it was a total box office dud. However, it was so bad that it became a midnight movie cult laugh fest and eventually earned enough to break even. The current movie tells the ludicrous story of making that dud, but never answers any questions about the mysteries of the man. If you want to make a film about the making of a truly lousy film, this may be about as good as you can do.

Faces Places – 2017 (2.7). Agnes Varda, octogenarian movie director, teams up with a young male photographer muralist for a road trip to villages in France, where they park his van and attract locals to pose for photos which he then prints out on large sheets and works with his crew and Agnes to install them on local buildings. The documentary has the charm of an inter-generational road trip and the warmth of interactions between the two artists with each other and with the locals. There is commentary on the philosophy of art and life, but not enough of a message to make the film especially memorable.

The Greatest Showman – 2017 (2.7). Lots of work went into creating this lavish musical about the making of P.T. Barnum. We have a classic rags to riches story with a fall and recovery, lots of vigorous dancing and varied songs, elaborate production values and costumes, and the incredible cast of natural (more or less) oddities. But somehow all the gusto and the songs and music and story do not quite come together enough to fully take hold and remain memorable.

The Revenant – 2015 (2.7). DiCaprio wins an Oscar (on his sixth nomination) for doing survivalist revenge as an 1823 fur trapper (an actual historical person) in the Rockies (at first filmed in Canada and then moved to Argentina as the Canadian weather warmed) who is left behind in the hands of three men after being mauled by a bear. Unfortunately one is a scoundrel who must be hunted down in the next two and a half hours of screen time, for which the director Alejandro G. Iñárritu also won an Oscar (his second in a row). The beautiful all natural light cinematography of winter in the Rockies (and Argentina) by Emmanuel Lubezki also won (for three in a row).

Things to Come– 2016 (2.7). A pair of French philosophy professors are settled into their lives and emptying their nest when the man unexpectedly announces he is leaving his wife for another woman. We follow her as she is at first disrupted and then seeks to identify and explore her new found freedom, including visits to a mountain retreat commune where a young former student is exploring his own emerging activism. There is not much that actually happens in this French movie, though it passes easily enough.

Inside Out – 2015 (2.2). Pixar again used celebrities to voice odd looking animated characters in this psycho babble story about an 11 year old girl unhappy over her move to Frisco from Minnesota. Supposedly we are able to see the girl from the outside and also her emotions from the inside. The interior world is drawn in excruciatingly extensive detail.

Phantom Thread - 2017 (2.2). Put a top notch actor in the role of a temperamental fashion genius in 1950s Britain, mix in his very uptight sister who is his fashion partner, then add a young foreigner waitress who is drawn to him in a sickish way, clothe in ridiculously expensive silly gowns and serenade first with jazzy music and then with classical pieces, make sure it is slow moving, boring and overlong and you have this dud.

Anomalisa – 2015 (1.7). This stop motion animated movie about a bored middle age man having an evening with an ingenue who enchants him is supposed to be a life changing inspiration, at least for him. Rather good animation techniques are marred by three gimmicks, in no particular order of annoyance: faces with visible modular joints, male voices for all characters except the ingenue who speaks with a beguilingly cute voice, and oral sex performed by the old bugger on the young woman.

Nominees, Winners and PBS

So the award nominees and winners are starting to become available on DVD at the library and most are only marginal or worse. The few better ones rise to the level of the several PBS shows also at the top of the list presented below.

Call the Midwife (Season Seven) -2017 (3.2). The series continues to maintain its quality as it progresses chronologically further into the 1960s, with character progression, succession and suppression. Color is added by a midwife from Jamaica.

Loving Vincent – 2017 (3.0). One hundred or so artists painted thousands of oil paintings over the course of two years, in a style like Van Gogh, and these were brought to life through animation to make this evocative movie. The story line is that the postmaster who was friends with Vincent was given a letter Vincent had written to his brother Theo but not mailed before Vincent died, The postmaster deputizes his aimless son to deliver the letter, but the young man quickly finds Theo is also dead. He then embarks on an inquiry of the locals, trying to determine whether Vincent had in fact shot himself or been shot by someone else, perhaps by accident. The frames of the film pulse with the motion evoked by the paintings of Van Gogh, and the faces of the historical people are rendered as there similar looking actors. As the young man discovers the real Vincent, we are motivated to reacquaint ourselves with him also.

The Breadwinner -2017 (2.9). Adapted from a novel, this animated drama tells the story of a young girl in Afghanistan who poses as a boy in order to work and earn money for her family after her father is sent to prison by the Taliban. The movie alternates between the somewhat bleak story of the family struggles and a more colorful storytelling of an ancient fable about a young boy facing monsters in order to save his village.

Little Women -2018 (2.9). The Alcott classic makes yet another appearance, this time on PBS as a two part presentation. The appeal of the story and quality of production and acting beg for a more in depth treatment spread over many episodes. Though there are items from the life of the author in this story, it is not an autobiography. The American Masters film on Alcott gives the true story of her life and makes a good double billing with the new movie.

Unforgotten (Season Two) -2017 (2.9). The series improves ever so slightly as we know the detectives and the investigative techniques better and become better detectives ourselves. Still the ending to the second season is a new twist product of cleverly believable writing.

The Big Sick -2017 (2.8). Based on a true story and starring the real Pakistani American comedian, this romantic comedy starts of fun decently paced but then begins to bog down a bit and seem a little draggy. The chemistry is good between the leads and the supporting cast is adequate, but the script spends too much time on the comedy club supporting characters and too little time on the Pakistani family conflicts over the cultural traditions. Nevertheless it is basically a fun movie to watch, knowing the big sickness is not going to be the end.

The Florida Project – 2017 (2.8). Independent filmmaker Sean Baker wanted to entertain and inform with this movie about a six year old girl and her single mother living a “nearly homeless” life in a rundown motel near Disney World in Florida. The girl and her playmates are intended to be entertainingly reminiscent of Spanky and Our Gang, while the plight of the mother trying to come up with motel rent informs us of this other world under our noses. The mother is not a particularly sympathetic character, indeed she is an easy target for justified criticism. Willem Dafoe, the only professional in the cast, playing the beleaguered resident motel manager serves as a brusquely sympathetic link between the precarious life of the girl and her mother and the rest of the world that is considered more normal. The DVD special features are helpful in understanding how Baker works and in meeting the cast.

I, Tonya – 2017 (2.8). In a variation on Rashomon, the story of ice skater Tonya Harding is told through enacted interviews with the skater and others in her life, interwoven with enactments of the events in her life as they are being told by the various participants. We may already know the story, the movie says, or do we only have an amalgamation of viewpoints with varying truth. The film moves along, the skating special effects are seamless and while you may not particularly like her, you have to begrudge a degree of sympathy. Supporting Actress Oscar winner Allison Janney as the mom is a real life Cruella.

Lady Bird – 2017 (2.8). A promising writing and directing debut for actress Greta Gerwig, this dramedy brings some freshness to the story of a high school student wanting to break out of her shell and go to a college away from home. There is a lot going on in her life and it would be fun to follow her experiences in more depth as was done in a very good TV series with similar themes almost 25 years ago – My So-Called Life.

The Post – 2017 (2.8). The decision whether to publish the Pentagon Papers revealing the decades of deceit behind America's involvement in Vietnam was a monumental one for Katherine Graham, the owner of the Washington Post. She had taken over the helm after the unexpected death of her husband and was in the process of taking a huge segment of the company public. The New York Times was under a temporary court injunction not to publish, so legal exposure for the Post could be enough to scare off investors and potentially be the beginning of the end for the paper. In the short period of time portrayed in the movie, Graham with the support of her editor Ben Bradlee decides to do it and the Supreme Court ultimately comes down in favor of the newspapers. Steven Spielberg puts his familiar touch on the direction, at times unable to resist a tendency to be hokey, but Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks do good jobs as the principals.

Unforgotten (Season One) -2015 (2.8). In this Brit mystery miniseries a body is discovered after being buried for who knows how many years. Identifying the deceased, determining if there was foul play and trying to track down witnesses and suspects after decades falls to a special task force dedicated to seeking justice for the unforgotten. The format of the script alternates between the crime lab and detectives diligently pursuing every lead, while we also get glimpses into the current lives of several people who soon become persons of interest. They all seem to be hiding something, but is it material to determining responsibility for the death and will the police be able to figure it out by season end?

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri – 2017 (2.7). This movie had a lot of promise, with an unsolved heinous crime in a small town, a dying policeman taken to task by the mother of the victim and supporting characters who interestingly filled out the cast. Unfortunately about midway through the script took a turn for the worse deteriorating into a succession of criminal acts of vengeance that nobody seemed interested in stopping or punishing and that did nothing to actually solve the crime.

Molly's Game – 2017 (2.6). This overlong drama about a very bright Olympic skier who became the organizer of a poker game for high rollers contains lots of fast and witty dialogue but the movie drags and fails to create any empathy or much drama. We know from the start that she will eventually run afoul of the law, but we are not sure until the end what will be her punishment. Apparently we are supposed to be uplifted by her ultimate decision on a plea bargain and the effect that has on her sentencing, though the main effect on the audience may be relief that the movie is finally over.

Call Me By Your Name – 2017 (2.5). The 17 year old precocious son of a professor spends the summer at their Villa in northern Italy and is enraptured with a confident man who comes to stay a while and work under the professor. This happens at a time when the boy is confronting his sexual identity, a task with which the visitor helps him, while the parents seem to remain a bit disengaged. This movie is for those drawn to the subject matter, otherwise it plods.

The Shape of Water – 2017 (2.5). Guillermo del Toro likes his creatures and odd stories and this movie is another one. A fish man from the Amazon is of interest to cold war scientists. He is in an American facility being tortured by the evil security head while a mute cleaning lady becomes romantically interested in him. Lonely oddball people meet fish man, so therefore give it the Oscar.

The Square – 2017 (2.4). This movie had something to say, but good luck figuring out what it was, in spite of two and a half hours of trying. The fact that it is a Swedish film is not the problem. The script is a muddle with scenes supposedly connected but with the links not actually interesting enough to click on; yet nevertheless they just keep playing themselves. Beggars and people needing help, immigrant prejudice, pretentious art and a hodgepodge of other garbage, like a predator ape man at a fund raising gala for a museum and quite literally an overhead shot of the museum director looking through a dumpster of trash bags. Oh and do not forget about the after sex scene where the participants have a tug of war over the used condom.

Long Again

Here is another list of some length, some from the library and PBS and some from cable Watchathon week. Scouring the awards nominees from the last couple months of awards lists has produced a couple dozen prospects for the library hold list and those should be coming available in the next few months. This Is Us made it to the top again.

This Is Us (Season Two) – 2017 (3.2). It can be hard for a new series to improve in the second season, especially when the first year was very impressive, so a drop off for this series was probably expected. The originality of the story line and the time shifting techniques held attention throughout the first year but did lose a bit of novelty in the second. Nevertheless, viewers were able to learn more about the background and depth of the central characters and their relationships even as some new characters were introduced. Some questions from the first season were answered in the second but new questions also came into play. Near the end of the season, some episodes seemed to lag at times or have less consequence. The last episode offered a couple teases for next season.

The Crown (Season One) – 2016 (3.0). Nice production values and acting with decent writing make for an enjoyable experience reliving the years of the reign of Queen Elizabeth II. The first season takes us up to the retirement of Churchill (played well after the initial casting jolt by John Lithgow). Claire Foy as the Queen captures the noblesse oblige and the basic humanity of this monarch most of whose family come off as pretty insufferable. Historians may quibble with various details and political characterizations, but the gist of what it is like to be the one wearing The Crown and upholding its symbolism and meaning is what the series is about and that is well presented.

Victoria (Season Two) – 2017 (3.0). The second season of this series did not show improvement in writing and in fact flattened and fell slightly. The problem is lack of historical information on the bigger picture of what was going on in the empire Victoria ruled and in the world at large. The series takes more of a romance novel approach to the Queen and her relationship with Albert and her extended family, which is not that bad in itself, but then too much time is spent on the romantic novel aspects of the lives of minor characters. There is much production quality to hold faithful viewers, but covering more significant historical matters and spending less time on the love lives of peripheral people would take the series up a few notches.

Brooklyn – 2015 (2.9). Saoirse Ronan does a star turn of acting in this story of a young woman from a small Irish village who comes to Brooklyn in 1952 to start a new life of opportunity. Under the guidance of an old Irish priest she lives in a boarding house and gets a department store job and goes to night school at Brooklyn College to gain bookkeeping certification. Along the way she falls for a son of Italian immigrants. Meanwhile back in the old country her older sister cares for the widowed mother and lives vicariously through the younger girl. On a trip back to Ireland the immigrant sees her old home through new eyes and likes some of what she sees, but also remembers there is much not to like. The movie and work of Ronan capture some of the inner turmoil, but the novel on which it is based had more opportunity for depth, capturing the inner thoughts of the young woman which are hard to fully transmit on the screen. The movie script also took some liberties with the novel, not only leaving out parts but also changing some of the aspects of the story.

Crown, The (Season Two) – 2017 (2.9). The series moves along chronologically and we continue only briefly to touch on major world events but go into rather a lot of detail on the personal lives of the members of the royal family. This is apparently what the series will continue to be as it runs up to date. It is rather like a docudrama with a bit more drama than doc.

Game of Thrones (Season Seven) – 2017 (2.9). The penultimate season has the protagonists narrowing down to the dragon queen, the evil Cersei and the dreaded white walkers. Political machinations continue and relationships develop as we anticipate the final year of the series and speculate on the ultimate denouement.

Icarus – 2017 (2.9). Illegal doping in sports is common but especially practiced by the Russian State and Putin. This documentary involves one American bicyclist working with a Russian whistle-blower doctor. As we follow the Russian we are first enchanted by him and then become fearful for his safety.

Mudbound – 2017 (2.9). In rural Mississippi after WWII a white bomber pilot and a black tank driver are depressed by what they have come back to and they bond over their common experiences in the war in Europe. This does not sit well with those, black and white, who remained home during the war. Racial tensions are great and are inevitably going to come to a head creating drama in wondering what the outcome will be. Some may see the ending of the movie as a bit of a compromise.

Their Finest – 2016 (2.9). England in 1940 during the blitz and after Dunkirk needed morale boosters and propaganda to encourage the US to enter the war. A movie about the heroism of the English people in rescuing their trapped troops from Dunkirk so that they could fight on was just what was needed. Desperate for writing talent, they recruited a young secretary to work on the script. She was talented and attractive and came with her own life story as she encountered her new work mates on the film. The resulting movie within a movie is effective in evoking the danger of the blitz, the heroism of ordinary people, the serendipity of life and death in wartime on the home front and the connections that people need and find in times of strife.

Winnie – 2017 (2.9). Behind every great man, they say, there is a great woman. This documentary does an effective job of persuading viewers that Winnie Mandela was that woman behind her husband Nelson. During all his years of imprisonment she was the defiantly activist face of the African National Congress movement to end apartheid and allow black South Africans the right of self-determination. The white government fought her all the way both openly and by clandestine operations such as infiltration and planting of false news. Under the pretext of Winnie being unfaithful to their marriage during his imprisonment, Nelson chose to ditch Winnie in order to become the first black leader of South Africa. She still serves in the SA Parliament and was a key interviewee in this film along with one of her daughters, black advocates and white SA officials who discuss their tactics to undermine her. Winnie is disappointed that SA did not become a more socialist country.

Dolores -2017 (2.8). Dolores Huerta was a cofounder of the farmworkers union movement with Cesar Chavez, but she is much less well known, something this earnest documentary is intended to change. Using much archival footage and current interviews with still living activists of the time, with some of her eleven children and with Dolores herself, the movie chronicles the movement and touches on her personal life, though not always in a linear trajectory.

Get Out – 2017 (2.8). An Oscar nominated horror movie by a first time black director is worth a look, even for someone not a fan of the scary genre. The movie holds interest as we realize the white New England gentry hosting the black boyfriend of their daughter are a little creepy and they and their friends more than a bit awkward in the way they readily accept the black man. Even weirder are the black maid and gardener who seem related to the Stepford Wives. The original story was written about the time of the first Obama election, but the ending was changed as the Obama Presidency continued and the idea of what type of conversation on race the movie might prompt also changed.

Stronger – 2017 (2.8). Based on a true story of a man who lost both legs while a spectator in the Boston Marathon bombing, this drama starts out strong as he and his off again on again girlfriend and his alcoholic mother and various relatives and friends cope with the aftermath. He becomes a poster boy for the Boston Strong movement, which while well intended adds to his burdens. But the movie loses some steam as the character of the man who saved his life at the scene enters the picture and the transformation in attitude of the victim seems a little abrupt.

When God Sleeps – 2017 (2.8). This documentary follows an Iranian rap/rock musician in exile in Germany. His writing and music has resulted in an Iranian fatwa with a bounty on his head that increases as he continues to put his music on the internet. Living in constant fear for his life, his band members quit but some Germans take their place. His girlfriend and mother worry about him as he vows not to be intimidated from performing. In the course of the movie we learn a little more about his early life and how he became an opponent of religion in general and the state religion in particular, and ultimately whether he is an atheist, agnostic or maybe someone who just thinks God is asleep.

The Red Turtle – 2016 (2.7). Studio Ghibli reached out to a European animator to create the first animated movie Ghibili would produce that was not made by a Japanese artist. Without dialogue and with noninvasive music and simple but highly detailed drawings, the story of a man stranded on a bamboo forested island is a timeless tale of fighting nature evolving into integrating with nature. However, the film does not have the same allure and spirit as the traditional Ghibli offerings as its subtle message plays out over eighty minutes.

Baby Driver – 2017 (2.6). A mysterious young man who is always listening to music on his i-pod as he drives getaway cars for a rotating band of bank robbers is the central character of this offbeat movie. At the start of the film the music choreographed with the movements of the man and the cars he drives is engaging, but then the film devolves into a more standard actioner with a young girl love interest and conflict with the gang boss. Never mind all the innocent victims along the way.

The Boss Baby -2017 (2.6). Animation from DreamWorks checks off all the blocks for what is supposed to be worth producing, but the story line is a curious mix of corporate management ills and young sibling rivalry. Fortunately it moves along fast enough that the audience does not have to be concerned about esoteric corporate aspects.

Do Not Resist – 2016 (2.6). The maker of this documentary is the son of a police officer with significant SWAT team experience. Concern for undue militarization of police forces and SWAT teams was the impetus for the movie. For a couple years such police teams were followed and filmed in action. There is also much footage of police involvement with community protestors and of teams executing search warrants. There is some showing of politicians in public forums considering the acquisition of military equipment for police forces. There are no interviews with opinionated experts and there is no narration, just occasional screen text with information and data. We are left feeling like a case was made against excessive militarization of police but without clarity of the details of the case.

The Child in Time – 2017 (2.4). This novel turned into a movie is about a man whose four year old daughter disappeared while he was checking out at the supermarket. Over time he and his wife from whom he becomes estranged try to cope with the loss of their only child. We see a little bit of his parents and too much of his publisher (he writes children's books). We get many flashbacks and false sightings but no real news about the investigation or search for the child. We know the stories of all the characters are supposed to tell us something about lost childhood as well as a lost child – but it comes across as a tedious effort for naught.

A Longer List

This list is larger than usual, extending an extra month. Normally the movies through year end would be added to my ratings lists and then the new lists published here. Unfortunately, the host server for my lists has been down for an extended period and may not return. I have tried to post the lists as blogger pages, but they are in long Excel spreadsheets and do not convert well in Blogger. I need to find a new server or a better way to convert them to Blogger.

This Is Us (Season One) – 2016 (3.7). NBC came up with a winner when they approved this series about a couple delivering a multiple birth in 1980. That starting point takes us to multiple intertwining story lines both forward and back and even a bit sideways as we get to know the characters in ever increasing depth. It is almost like the arc was written out on index cards which were then cleverly rearranged out of sequence to take us back and forth relevant to what we are learning at a given time about the characters and about life cycles in general. The experience would be familiar to a genealogist who develops the family history from expanding research that is never completely linear. Individual characters ebb and flow in our likability index as we learn more about them and how, in the words of a favorite cliche, they play the hand they were dealt. Often a development in the show makes the viewer realize that is something they never thought about in their own life; for example, who was present and waiting at the time of your birth.

Wadjda – 2012 (3.2). Saudi Arabia does not even have any movie theaters, but a Saudi woman director managed to film this movie in that country, the first feature length movie ever made there. The story is about a free spirited girl who wants a bicycle and joins the religion club at her school in order to enter a Koran knowledge contest to win the money to buy the bike. With help from Germans and other Europeans, the script was perfected and the movie shot under restrictive circumstances, including the director not being allowed to be present in public for the filming (she had to direct some scenes by walkie-talkie from a nearby van. The heroine is perfectly cast for the role and the movie offers a knowledgeable peek inside everyday Saudi Arabia. The DVD special features about making the film and an interview with the director are very good.

Little Big Lies – 2017 (3.1). The story from an Australian novel is transported to Monterrey California and made into a miniseries giving several actresses a chance to showcase their talent. A tale of female rivalries and friendships interwoven with issues of stress and violence in family and personal relationships, the plot also involves some whodunit aspects, with a few different twists. Smoothly directed and well-acted by the women and also the children, with good support from the men, the series was well enough received that it is being extended into a second season, where it will face the challenge of extending original material without deterioration.

Close-Up – 1990 (2.9). This Iranian movie is considered a classic because of its uniqueness. In real life Iran, a sad and weak man with maybe some talent but certainly some delusions that he could do impressive artistic work falls into an opportunity to pose as a famous young movie director. The upper middle class family he targets figures the ruse out quite soon and goes to the authorities. The man is charged with fraud and the story makes the papers where it intrigues an older movie director. This all really happened. The older director then decides to make a movie reenactment of the story, using the actual people. The DVD includes a follow up interview with the faker and some people who know him and a couple interviews with the older director.

Gifted – 2017 (2.9). This is a story of a first grade girl who is a super math whiz. She is being raised by her uncle in Florida who wants her to live a more normal life instead of the prodigy life that was forced on the similarly gifted mother of the girl. But Grandpa has a different plan. Shot entirely on location (actually in Georgia) with a small cast, the movie is emotionally effective, primarily because of the winning performance by the young actress Mckenna Grace.

After the Storm – 2016 (2.8). A flash in the pan novelist working as a detective to make ends meet is also a barely-show Dad. The man finally spends some time with his son and pines for his ex-wife who now has a financially successful suitor. Widowed grandma would like to see the whole family reunited. The sister of the flaky dad is rightfully concerned about him taking advantage of grandma. Not a lot of story is presented here, but the characters and interactions hold interest.

Call the Midwife Christmas Special 2017 – 2017 (2.8). Set during the deep freeze during which 1962 changed to 1963, the various stories covered seem to lack any connection other than the weather. An older grouchy police sergeant pops up in the neighborhood and could become a foil for the oldest midwife.

I Am Another You -2017 (2.8). A young female Chinese filmmaker studying in New York travels to Florida and meets an interesting young American from Utah who is joyously living the free life of a homeless person, so she decides to follow and film him. All starts well enough, but then problems develop and she aborts the project. Sometime later she decides to track him down and see how he is doing. What she finds is a more complete story on the man and his family and the mental health issues with which he and so many other homeless people contend. The technique is mostly interviews and filmed interactions. There are no experts or analysts.

Land of Mine -2015 (2.8). During WWII the Germans heavily mined Danish beaches to thwart any Allied invasion. After the war, German prisoners were forced by the Danish to remove these mines. This gripping Danish drama centers on an abusive Danish sergeant in charge of a detail of young Germans given this very dangerous task. This movie is yet another reminder that wars do not actually end when we think they are over.

The Salesman – 2016 (2.8). In this Iranian drama, a husband and wife both are appearing in a stage production of Death of a Salesman when she is assaulted by an intruder in their apartment. The incident causes strain in their relationship and the husband embarks on a mission to find and punish the perpetrator, without having a clear idea of what the punishment should be. Tying in with the stage play, humiliation is a theme in the movie.

Unrest – 2017 (2.8). A newlywed Harvard doctoral candidate became ill with a mysterious disease and she and her husband struggled to get it diagnosed. When they finally learned it was chronic fatigue syndrome, she decided to make a documentary about her efforts to cope with it. What could have been a depressing movie for the audience is avoided by the realistically upbeat attitude of the couple and by her finding other people around the world with the same problem and incorporating their stories into the film. This effort should help raise awareness of this very misunderstood disease which afflicts twice as many people as MS.

The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin – 2017 (2.8). The San Francisco writer and his friends and colleagues are interviewed and shown in archival footage to deliver an enjoyable documentary about his life and his stories celebrating the humanity of the individual without prejudgment based on race, gender or sexual preference.

Winter Sleep – 2014 (2.8). An actor and his divorced sister have inherited a historic hotel in a secluded Middle Eastern village in this Turkish drama. The actor has a young wife who is trying to be a community school activist. The actor has a long time foreman and a long time tenant family seriously in arrears. Since it is winter, only a few international guests pass through the hotel. Many conversations take place between the various characters, revealing underlying tensions without any apparent progress being made.

Shadow World- 2016 (2.7). Archival footage and interviews with various people familiar with how arms dealers and defense contractors peddle their wares to governments are the components of this documentary intended to shine a light on the shadowy arms trading. But the movie jumps around to different parts of the story in different places and times and never gives any hopeful possibilities for reigning in this dangerous beast.

Sully – 2016 (2.7). The Story of the "Miracle on the Hudson" emergency landing of a commercial jetliner on the river is told through the vehicle of following the inquiry into the accident and interleaving it with flashbacks of the lead up to and actual time of the crash, all focused on the celebrated pilot. At first, his decision to ditch on the river rather than head back to the airport is questioned by computer simulations, but the pilot challenges the accuracy of the sims. This is a formulaic but entertaining celebration of the value of sill, temperament and experience.

I Am Not Your Negro – 2016 (2.6). At the time of his death James Baldwin left the beginnings of a novel he was writing about the deaths of Medgar Evers, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King. This documentary attempts to envision the completed book, but it never seems to come together. Lots of archival footage is shown of Baldwin and the three men who were killed, tied together with footage from old movies intended to make some points which at times are obvious for the stereotyping of black characters and at other times are just not clear as to why they were included. There is a fair amount of Baldwin giving talks and dialoguing and debating on interview shows at an intellectual level that can be hard to digest. The final talk by Baldwin makes the point that white America created "the Negro" so it is really the problem of white America to figure out how that creation has failed and to correct it.

Steve Jobs – 2015 (2.6). Eschewing the cradle to grave biopic approach, this script uses the backstage before three Apple product reveals for dialogue intensive reveals of back story and relationship frictions. Jobs is so unlikable and two of the three Apple products featured were flops. This movie comes close to being a match to the person and those products. 

Where Do We Go Now? – 2011 (2.6). Lebanon barely has a film industry, so this movie by a female Lebanese director is a rarity. Her goal was to make a statement about the stupidity of wars between people who foolishly allow themselves to be divided into rival groups. Set in a small village in a generic Middle Eastern country, the villagers are composed of Christians and Muslims who all get along fine – until trouble between the groups in other part of the country breaks out into fighting. Soon, the village is caught up in the same nonsense and the women decide they must do something to stop it. The concept is good, the amateur acting is authentic enough and the locations are excellent, but the script is problematic. The characters are not adequately developed or nuanced, musical numbers are inserted at odd times, occasional attempts at humor are inconsistent and there is little if any dramatic arc.

Movie Ratings Lists Being Revised

January 2018

My lists of movies rated Alphabetically and from high to low are in the process of being revised. New lists will be posted here when the revision is completed.