"Stowaway"

2021  1h 56min Starring Anna Kendrick, Toni Collette, Daniel Dae Kim, Shamier Anderson, 

I love well-done sci-fi dramas, and this certainly qualifies. As the title suggests, it's about a stowaway, albeit an accidental one, on a two-year mission to Mars. Shortly after takeoff, the three-person crew discovers a young engineering student inadvertently trapped on their ship. The mission was initially only supposed to take two astronauts, but with a great deal of paring down the weight aboard the vessel, they decide they can accommodate a third scientist. A fourth person puts them at great risk. When their oxygen-converting unit is damaged beyond repair, the crew desperately scrambles to figure out a solution. The film is well shot and you really get a sense of the confinement and claustrophobia aboard the craft. Adding to the feeling of isolation is the way their communication with mission control is depicted. All their conversations are filmed from their perspective--you don't hear the other end of their one-way conversations. As you'd imagine, it's a pretty intense drama that will keep you riveted until the final moments of the film. 

4 out of 5 stars

"Malcolm & Marie"

 2021 1h 46min Starring John David Washington and Zendaya

This film could easily have been titled "Night of the Livid Rant". A filmmaker and his girlfriend return home from the premier of his latest movie. Thus begins a whole night of alcohol-fueled  observations and diatribes. The topics cover everything from film critics and their erudite reviews, race relations, Hollywood, to selfishness and ultimately their own relationship. While Marie lets Malcolm do a majority of the venting, she's a master at responding with the perfect observations, barbs, and witticisms. It's quite a tour de force of acting on both their parts, and while it does get exhausting at times, it's ultimately a rewarding experience. I wouldn't be surprised to learn that it was originally staged as a play--it has that vibe to it. 

4 out of 5 stars

"Danny Collins"

Confession: I’m not a huge Al Pacino fan. I think he’s a decent actor, but he seems to play the same role, over and over. So when this movie came out, it wasn’t on my radar. In fact, I didn’t even know it existed until I saw it was a recommendation for me on Kanopy.com. I’m glad I took a chance. In it, Pacino plays Danny Collins, an aging rock star that just won’t give up his drinking, drugs, and womanizing ways. Think Neil Diamond. Actually, he sings one of his huge hits, which shares the melody of “Sweet Caroline.” 

 He gets a letter from John Lennon as a birthday gift. It was in response to a letter he sent Lennon when he was first starting out in the biz, but he never received it. It has a huge effect on him and he decides to change his life. And that includes connecting with a son he’s never actually met. Well, things don’t go according to plan. His grown son (Bobby Cannavale) wants absolutely nothing to do with him. His daughter-in-law, (Jennifer Garner) is a bit more receptive and tries to help them reconnect. 

 

Christopher Plummer plays his agent, and as usual, does a wonderful job. Collins helped him when he was a bottoming out as a raging alcoholic, got him into rehab, and looked after him through the years. The two became life-long pals and business partners. And Annette Benning, playing a hotel manager who is relentlessly wooed by Pacino, is her usual superb self. 

 

The movie is based on a true story. I instinctively guessed it was about Neill Diamond, since they used the music to “Sweet Caroline” to represent his huge hit but I was mistaken. It’s actually the story of Steve Tilston, who I’ve never heard of. Not exactly a household name in the world of rock. But it made for a pretty entertaining movie. 

 

As an aside, I particularly enjoyed the beginning of the movie. A rock magazine writer is interviewing Danny Collins as a young star. I kept looking at the longhaired hippy and thinking his voice sure sounded familiar. It was Nick Offerman, who plays Ron Swanson on Parks & Rec--just about the opposite of a bearded hippy! Too funny. 

4 out of 5 stars

 

"Concrete Cowboy"

When a Black teenager is expelled from school for fighting, his mother takes him to Philadelphia to spend the summer with his father. While there, the young boy, Cole, has some growing up to do. He falls in with a childhood friend who is a drug dealer. His father, who is truly an urban cowboy, wants him to work in the stable and attend to his horses. It's an interesting story, or stories I should say. I had no idea that there was a tradition of Black owned stables within the confines of a major city like Philadelphia. Of course, with urban renewal and gentrification, there's a battle brewing between the Black horse owners and the developers, itching to make a buck. Overall, I enjoyed the movie, however I thought the filmmaker couldn't make up his mimd what story he wanted to follow. I think it would have been a stronger film with one storyline instead of two. 

3 out of 5 stars