The Exuberance of THE GREATEST SHOWMAN

Lots of enthusiasm and energy highlight this fanciful imagining of legendary showman P.T. Barnum in this excellent musical featuring Hugh Jackman in a well-rounded performance.

P. T. Barnum (Jackman) is a dreamer who envisions big things and a better life with childhood sweetheart, Charity (Michelle Williams).  Unemployed, he improvises a new kind of entertainment drawing from unusual, shunned individuals with physical oddities, which grows into a circus of performing artists who are shown to have feelings and form a bond amongst themselves. Barnum then partners with playwright Phillip Carlyle (Zac Efron) who is smitten by a black, female trapeze artist, Anne (Zendaya).  As news and popularity of the unique performers spreads, trouble comes from locals who dislike the ‘freaks’ as well as art critics who resent the fake show. When tragedy strikes the circus, Barnum and Carlyle are at a crossroads.

Jackman is marvelous as the triple threat performer singing, dancing, and acting with gusto and bravado. His Barnum is more idealized showman than a con artist.  He is well supported by Williams (Mudbound, All the Money in the World in one year!), while Efron and Zendaya shine as would be lovers.

The film hums along at an excellent pace with beautiful, fluid camerawork, rapid edits (and seamless transitions), and sharp choreography.  There are a number of standout musical numbers featuring tuneful songs amid colorful sets and costumes.  The songs are melded seamlessly in a natural expansion of plot and mood, no easy feat.

Directed with zeal by Michael Gracey and written by Jenny Bicks and Bill Condon (Dreamgirls, Beauty and the Beast), the film deals with various themes including class disparity, racism, and discrimination. It’s an old fashioned musical that incorporates contemporary themes for an MTV audience.  Well executed. 

***1/2 of ****stars

I, TONYA as We Know It

Told from multiple points of view and based on interviews (screenplay by Steven Rogers) of its principals, I Tonya is a fascinating study of one of the most infamous athletes of the twentieth century, skater Tonya Harding.

Raised in a broken home, Harding (Margot Robbie) is thrust into the world of figure skating by her abusive, foul mouthed mom (Allison Janney nails it). When she begins dating older Jeff Gillooly (Sebastian Stan), she trades one abusive relationship for another. In the 1980s, her ability to achieve the Holy Grail of skating, the triple axel, thrusts her to the world championship, and she becomes, for one moment, arguably the best skater in the world.  As she prepares for The Olympics, Jeff’s plans to scare her primary rival, Nancy Kerrigan, go off track with Kerrigan attacked by an accomplice.  Harding is dragged into the investigation and media circus even as a chance at greatness is within her reach.

Robbie, marvelous as Harding, is portrayed as the underdog, competing against more polished, refined skaters.  How much did she know about the plot to injure Kerrigan?  The film’s conceit is that it lets the audience draw its own conclusions although it seems to sympathize with its title character especially when it shows her caught up in events beyond her control.

Visual effects enhance the credible skating sequences which are imaginatively shot and boldly edited. The film is self- assured (directed by Craig Gillespie) and occasionally breaks the ‘fourth wall’.

This is a kind of American tragedy with Harding’s pursuit of the American dream.  Always engaging with its perspectives, this film, while quite entertaining, should be taken with a grain of salt.  Robbie, though, as co-producer and star, is proving herself to be a versatile actress (Suicide Squad) and a force to watch in the future.

***1/2 of **** stars

Fashion Sense and Sensibility in PHANTOM THREAD

A fascinating character study set in the fashion world, Phantom Thread focuses on a volatile relationship that pivots around a self-centered, temperamental designer and his insulated world.  It features a strong performance by Daniel Day-Lewis.

Fashion designer, Reynolds Woodcock (Day-Lewis), is a demanding man whose lifestyle is a ritual that serves his creativity as he churns out unique dresses for royalty and VIPs.  When he stops by an inn to clear his head, his attention is drawn to a waitress, Alma (Vicky Krieps).  For a time, Alma becomes a part of his world, serving as one of his seamstresses and assistants, but in time, her needs emerge and conflict with Reynolds’ stifling world.  Desperate to salvage their relationship, she devises a highly unorthodox plan to bring them together. 

Reynolds is somewhat of an enigma in that we don’t very much about him other than his talent. He has a headstrong, protective sister, Cyril (Lesley Manville), and is haunted by and obsessed with his deceased mother.  Everything in his world follows a methodology, and he is almost always preoccupied with his work, expressing himself through his dresses with meticulous precision.  He has no patience when Alma disturbs his routine and tradition; this is the essence of the film’s main conflict.  

Director Paul Thomas Anderson’s (There Will Be Blood, Magnolia) finely tuned screenplay catches the subtleties and nuances of these characters. The cinematography beautifully highlights the sumptuous costumes and set design.

It’s essentially a psychological examination into the evolution of an unhealthy relationship and obsessive behavior that starts with hope and optimism then devolves into reality and dysfunction, all done under Anderson’s detailed eye.

  *** of ****stars (add ½* for Day-Lewis fans)

The Long Career of Nanette Fabray

Actress Nanette Fabray passed away at the age of 97, and I never knew much about her career except for a few memorable appearances on TV and movies, but I will say she always brought a bubbly, smiling cheer to each role. You liked her immediately. Her great triumph in her limited film career was in The Bandwagon showing her dance and singing skills. She was Mary Tyler Moore's mom on TV and was a guest on Carol Burnett's show. What I did not know was....She was a Tony Award winner and picked up a couple of Emmy Awards in the golden age of TV. She was the aunt of Shelley Fabares. A long career indeed.

BLACK PANTHER: A Game Changer

The Marvel cinematic universe just got more interesting with Black Panther, a thoroughly entertaining, well written (and directed by Ryan Coogler) adventure and origin story featuring strong performances by Chadwick Boseman and a very impressive, female cast. 

Following the death of his father, T’Challa (Boseman) must assume the rite of passage as the new king and Black Panther of Wakanda, a hidden kingdom in Africa that is technologically advanced with the rare, indestructible metal, Vibranium.  He is supported by former girlfriend and agent Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o), lethal top general Okoye (Danai Gurira), whiz kid sister Shuri (Letitia Wright), and his mother Ramonda (Angela Bassett).  But past events haunt the family, and secrets are revealed as a threat, Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordon), challenges the throne and threatens Wakanda and the world.  As good meets evil, a country is torn apart, and loyalties are tested. 

This is the first Marvel film to have a self-contained storyline without much connective tissue to the Marvel universe.  Any good story like this should have a good villain, and Killmonger is a fascinating, complex character with a past.  The film has some funny lines which lighten up a serious storyline (with James Bond overtones) that spans London, Oakland, and South Korea, and deals with themes of family loyalty, past transgressions, and the question of moral responsibility within the world.  The production is top notch, but the set designs and costumes are stunning.

Much as Wonder Woman broke ground for its female director and female heroes last year, Black Panther is history making with its black director and predominantly black cast featuring four strong, black female characters that deliver in spectacular fashion.   It’s much more than a really good Marvel film; it’s a very good film that points to even greater things in the future.  (There are two post credit scenes.)

***1/2 of **** stars (add ½* for the female cast)

A Man of Conviction in DARKEST HOUR

At a time when hope and courage were needed the most, Darkest Hour shows the behind the scenes angst of Dunkirk which immortalized Winston Churchill, personified by Gary Oldman in a grand performance. 

In the dark days of May, 1940, Germany has invaded neighboring countries including France while England represents one of the last European countries standing and in retreat from Hitler’s heavily fortified German forces. An ineffective Neville Chamberlain is replaced as Prime Minister by Parliament with Winston Churchill (Oldman) who faces a formidable task: with the bulk of British troops trapped at Dunkirk leaving England virtually defenseless against invasion and no military way to rescue them, Churchill feels political pressure to initiate peace talks with a tyrant.  Inspired to make a stand, he puts out a call for civilian boats to form a lifeline at Dunkirk, resolute in this defining moment of history.

The film depicts the fascinating political maneuvering and the enormous responsibility of leadership during war.  Churchill is portrayed as an intelligent man of conviction who speaks his mind and is not afraid to make hard decisions. Crude and impatient, yet compassionate, he is not immune from self-doubt while supported by his wife (Kristin Scott Thomas is quite good.)  

Oldman’s acting is so convincing (enhanced by remarkable makeup) effectively conveying the weight of the country on his shoulders (not unlike Daniel Day-Lewis’ portrayal of Lincoln).  Director Joe Wright has had a fascination with Dunkirk featured in his Atonement, and this film makes a perfect companion piece to Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk.  But this is Oldman’s show, and he delivers in a memorable role that should finally secure him an Oscar. 

***1/2 of ****stars (add ½* for Oldman fans)

The Paranoia of GET OUT

Get Out is an audacious piece of filmmaking, deceptively simple, timely in theme, and stunning in execution. It signals the rise of newbie writer/director Jordan Peele (of Kay and Peele) as a talented filmmaker. 

On a weekend trip, Rose (Allison Williams) introduces her black boyfriend, Chris (Daniel Kaluuya) to her parents, Dean (Bradley Whitford), a neurosurgeon father, and Missy (Catherine Keener), a psychiatrist who also treats addictions through hypnosis.  They welcome Chris to their household including Rose’s menacing brother, a black, female house servant, and a black, male groundskeeper. As it happens to be an annual reunion of friends and family, Chris meets new faces among the offbeat guests. When he notices unsettling events and strange, ominous behavior, he must make a choice to save himself, but is it already too late?

The film has a Hitchcock feel with Chris and Rose seemingly the only normal people among quirky characters. Told through Chris’ point of view, the film builds an uneasy mood by planting seeds as it examines the issues of trust and traumatic memories which payoff later in a harrowing climax.  Other genres come into play (beyond its obvious subtext on race relations); is it satire or horror or both?  There is a big Stepford Wives vibe with a nod to Rosemary’s Baby (two of Peele’s influences).  In addition to the disturbing imagery and musical cues, there is effective use of eerie sound effects.  

Well directed and brilliantly shot, it’s a remarkable film that scares and surprises with its diabolical plot.  By taking expectations and flipping them in unexpected ways, it heralds the skills and promise of a first time director with greater things to come.   

**** of **** stars