Category: Biography

Honey Boy – 2019 – R

I did not know that Shia LaBeouf was a Disney channel child star. I did not know he starred in the first three Transformers movies. I didn’t even know Shia played Tyler in Peanut Butter Falcon and I just saw it…twice! I thought wow, whoever played Tyler in PBF and James in Honey Boy sure have the same mannerisms! Duh. I had no clue Shia LaBeouf, during a court-ordered rehab alternative to jail, wrote Honey Boy, an autobiographical screen play about a tumultuous relationship with his abusive and alcoholic dad. But, now I do and so do you. And just why are fathers and sons always such a big thing? They get Fences, Field of Dreams, It’s a Beautiful Life, Dear Zachery, Lion King, Boyhood, Frequency, Dr. Sleep and Finding Nemo, etc, etc, etc. Mothers and daughters have Lady Bird and I,Tonya, not exactly a gender draw. 

“Honey Boy” is what James (Shia LeBeouf) calls his son Otis (Noah Jupe as 12-year old and Lucas Hedges as 22-year old Otis). Having LeBeouf not only write the story but then turn around and play the role of his PTSD-afflicted father added a unique theatrical and therapeutic dimension. After the film’s Sundance world premier Shia commented, “It is strange to fetishize your pain and make a product out of it and feel guilty about that. It felt very selfish. This whole thing felt very selfish. I never went into this thinking, ‘Oh, I am going to fucking help people.’ That wasn’t my goal. I was falling apart.“

The story is based at a seedy, unsavory motel in 1995 where wildly eccentric James, former rodeo clown, military veteran, registered sex offender and recovering alcoholic coaches Otis on the art of mime and slapstick. Otis learns well, adds his own comedic shtick and is on the rise as a popular child actor “hiring” James as his chaperone/agent so unemployable dad can make a living. Apparently given the flea bag hotel, surrounded by hookers and dealers, it’s not a boatload of money. When a sinister-looking water snake wriggles across the pool I seriously cringe. Mom telephones now and then, she and James shriek at each other about who’s the lamest loser parent. Otis jumps in and mediates. Otis assumes proxy parent status early on. The film jumps back and forth between young Otis and young man Otis. We witness the outrageous behavior that manic James afflicts on his adolescent son and ten years later, 2005, the ramifications on 22-year old Otis, a tortured soul, serving a court-ordered rehab stint, at first dodging, but ultimately confronting the demons of his childhood. 

The acting across the board is terrific. The relationship between James and Otis develops with depth and complexity. Dad is not a monster. We learn at an AA meeting gut wrenching disclosure that James is a product of his own father’s abuse. Victim becomes victimizer. A sad, predictable cycle.The scathing criticism heaped by James on Otis is palatable to a degree, deflected by the sublime creativity and remarkable maturity of young Otis. Shia LaBeouf’s acting interpretation of his father is raw, desperate and draws an unexpected empathetic response. Noah Jupe and Lucas Hedges own this film with their gutty, hard scrabble performances as survivors. Coming in at a sparing 93 minutes, Honey Boy is an intriguing, soulful, cathartic cinematic immersion. I foresee Academy nominations in its future if the Academy can look past LaBeouf’s real life antics and the film being an Amazon release. We can hope.

A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood- 2019 – PG

I’m at a distinct disadvantage when it comes to Mister Rogers, never once watching his television show which ran for years and years,1968 to 2001. I grew up on Captain Kangaroo and his sidekick Mr. Green Jeans. My two sons were Sesame Street kids. My first born, at about age two, snatched a small stuffed Big Bird off a Sears toy shelf and concealed it in his stroller until we made it back to the car. By then a return to Sears was too far, too late, too new-mom-tired to consider. Big Bird lived a long and happy stuffed animal life in our family. 

For me, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood falls somewhere between harmless and intriguing, and by the end of the movie’s 107 minutes my sliding opinion scale stopped at “Interesting.” Before any Mister Rogers’ devotees sling skeins of red sweater yarn at me, remember this movie represents my only exposure to Mister Rogers. Watching Tom Hanks channel his sixth cousin Fred Rogers, here are my impressions: Fred, gentle, gracious and humble, moves slowly but talks even more slowwwwwwwly, with a sing-song lilt framed by a crooked smile. He swims laps, plays the piano, prays nightly on his knees, won’t eat anything with a mother, adores his wonderful wife, Joanne (Maryann Plunkett), weathered bumpy rides with two sons, connects deeply with people and takes ‘love thy neighbor’ to a new level. 

The unique plot twist that bumps the film from ho-hum to hmmmm is the intersection of NYC journalist Lloyd Vogel (Matthew Rhys) and Fred Rogers. Lloyd is a grim young man who, through aggressive investigative reporting, expertly manages to aggravate and alienate every single one of his Esquire Magazine subjects. As a result no celebrities can be found who are willing to undergo a Lloyd hit piece except one, Mister Rogers. Accepting this “puff” assignment under protest, Lloyd fully expects to expose the “true” Mister Rogers as a fraud, triggering Lloyd’s wonderful and supportive wife, Andrea (Beth from This Is Us, Susan Kelechi Watson) to plead, “Please don’t ruin my childhood.” This film is not so much about Mister Rogers as it is about Mister Rogers, a catalyst of grace, playing the supporting role in reshaping Lloyd’s life. 

Before flying off to Pittsburgh for the interview, Lloyd, Susan and newborn Gavin attend the wedding of Lloyd’s sister, Lorraine (Tammy Blanchard). To Lloyd’s bitter dismay, Dad Jerry Vogel (Chris Cooper) walks Lorraine down the aisle. A little later, post-toasts, Dad and Lloyd wind up throwing haymakers at each other over the punch bowl. Seems drinking and carousing and cheating Jerry abandoned the family when his wife, mother of Lloyd and Lorraine, took ill, leaving the kids alone to deal with her gruesome death. Forgiveness is not an option. 

As cynical Lloyd meets Mister Roger’s Peaceable Kingdom Neighborhood of insightful puppets, simple melodies, cathartic harmonies, deep listening and straightforward speaking, their professional engagement quickly evolves to personal. When it begins to dawn on Lloyd that Mister Roger’s professional, fictional world is in fact identical to Fred’s personal, real life world, a bewildered Lloyd’s transformation begins. We witness the tempering and resolving of Lloyd’s deep seated, seething resentment and hostility, the healing of underlying negativity that has chipped away at his self-confidence and eroded his hopes of being the father he never had. We watch gratefully as Lloyd’s emotional load is lightened.

The film ends on a paradoxical note. Lloyd’s bittersweet family reconciliation and victorious journalistic cover story is paired with a scene of Fred at home exorcising anger by banging on the family piano. What do we take away from this? Life is a balance of ups and downs? Finding peace in a cemetery or rage at home are simply natural to the human condition so deal with it? The word mystifying sums up the puzzling ending along with one prolonged scene where Lloyd hallucinates and faints, only to wake up snug and safe in bed at the home of piano playing duet, talented Mister and Mrs. Rogers. Was that real or imaginary? I’ve heard Tom Hanks mentioned for an Oscar and to that I start looking for a piano to bang. I’m sticking with “Interesting” as my overall impression of this film. It’s worth seeing, especially if you enjoy reliving a nostalgic romp with Mister Rogers. We need more nice, warm-fuzzy, character-building movies in this day and age of stress and division so I wish you and yours a beautiful day in the neighborhood. 

Judy – 2019

     

I expanded my vocabulary by one word with this film. “Biopic” is a biographical drama that zooms in on a key period in the historical person’s life. Biopic roles, I learned, are considered the most demanding in acting. In this film Renée Zellweger portrayed Judy Garland in the final months of Garland’s excruciating march to death. Indeed Zellweger owned the stage for this movie, commanded the screen, definitely and deservedly Best Actress material when the award season arrives. But I just couldn’t give in to her portrayal of Garland, as Oscar touting as Zellweger’s performance most assuredly was. I kept fidgeting in my heated theater lounge recliner, fiddling with my up and down controls, moving my drink from one cup holder to the other, debating with myself, “Is this film more about Renée Zellweger playing Judy Garland or more about Judy Garland being played by Zellweger?” Heck, I didn’t have any such mental misgivings with Rami Malek as Bohemian Rhapsody’s Freddie Mercury.  He was great. Loved him and the movie. No lounge squirming whatsoever. So what’s up with poor Renée as Judy’s Judy?  This. I’m protective of Judy Garland. She is forever Dorothy. She is forever tuned in once a year in the 50’s and 60’s to televisions across America as we families gathered to watch the annual telecast of the Wizard of Oz, considered by many as the most iconic and influential film of all time. So if Hollywood is going to yank Dorothy and Toto out of my memory arms or wrench the wickedly witty, talented, forever young Judy Garland from my heart, it best be for something worthier than setting the stage for Renée Zellweger to land an Oscar. It better be for something more insightful than showing Judy sprawled drugged and drunk on a London stage to a sold out audience chucking debris at her. That may indeed be biopic but to me it was myopic. Judy is a parochial drama that revealed nothing new, no redemptive disclosures, no remedy to pain. We all know the ending of any film, excuse me, biopic about Judy Garland. We all know about her harsh Vaudeville actress mother who Garland called “the real Wicked Witch of the West.” We are familiar with the agonizing rising star story of how, signed at age 13, Louie B. Mayer’s MGM launched Garland on a tempestuous career of industry barbiturate and amphetamine and dieting abuse. We all know her sad, predictable, stumbling, self-destructive overdose destiny. In 1969 at age 47 Judy Garland ended her life, whether accidentally or willfully it really doesn’t matter. She died in England. I actually didn’t know that factoid. Is it true that English audiences turned on her, pelting her with bread rolls? Yes, it is. And I hate them. So, cheers to Renée Zellweger. Her talent indisputable. Her performance impeccable. This film is definitely worth seeing….for Zellweger, just not for Judy. 

Bohemian Rhapsody – 2018

 I must admit I knew nothing of Queen, not my music era. I did visit Mercury’s Restaurant while roaming about Zanzibar. I can hum along with We Are the Champions and stomp along with We Will Rock You but I couldn’t have told you before this movie who they were by. Ergo, I watched Bohemian Rhapsody as a complete outlier. I was probably camping with my two young sons during 1985’s Live Aid Concert, missing Queen’s twenty-one minute performance, voted the greatest live performance in the history of rock, an embarrassing omission of my pop culture heritage. Mea culpa. Now, with these mildly humiliating disclosures out in public, let me enthusiastically add my vote and say I loved this movie! Everything about it entertained and held my interest: the music revolution, the band evolution, the intertwined relationships, and the rise, fall & redemption of Freddie the superstar, the musician, man, son & friend. The 135 minute film duration was engaging, intriguing and provided full throttle fascination from start through the credit roll. While I doubt the Academy Awards will align with the Golden Globes, there are better 2018 films for an Oscar nod (A Star Is Born is NOT one of them), Bohemian Rhapsody well earns the price of admission and Rami Malek’s sensational & mesmerizing performance as Freddie Mercury without question deserves nomination for Best Actor. 👍