"Detours"

2016 1h 21m   I'm a huge fan of road trip movies and this is one of the best ones I've sen in quite a while. Jennifer Giraldi (Tara Westwood) is a young woman who's getting divorced from her husband who's left her for another man. She lives in New Jersey and has just taken a job in Florida. She invites her sweet widowed father to join her to drive down with her. He's reluctant at first, then decides to go--using the excuse of scattering his late wife's ashes into the Atlantic Ocean. Tara's long dreamed of becoming an actress, but realizes it might not be in the cards for her, and opts for a position as an assistant director of a successful and historic theatre company. 

Tata's mother was a best-selling author and was largely absent when she was growing up. The fact that her father raised her makes them especially close. Her father is effectively played by Carlo Fiorletta, who exudes a goofy, innocent charm, and the two of them have great chemistry on the screen. Two things make this movie so fun. One is the Siri-like virtual assistant who accompanies them on their trip. It's a beta version of some new software a friend of Tara's developed, and is not only whip-smart, but also has a wry sense of humor. The second thing I enjoyed, which is true of most effective road trip films, is the unique and quirky characters they encounter along the way. Of special note is the character Paul Servino plays. He runs a coffee bar/ice cream shop, and it turns out was a huge fan of her mother's writing. It's a relatively short but memorable encounter. 

If you're looking for an entertaining and delightful road trip movie, I can't recommend this one enough. 

41/2 out of 5 stars. 

Currently streaming for free on Hoopla, IMDB TV, Tubi and other platforms. 

"Tyrannosaur"

2011 1h 34m   Absolutely brilliant acting but a tough movie to watch. Joseph (Peter Mullan) plays an unemployed widower who spends his days getting drunk and getting into fights. He's one of the most bitter, nastiest characters I've ever seen on film. One day he meets Hannah (Olivia Coleman) who works in a Christian charity shop. At first she tries to comfort him and help him calm his inner rage. Eventually it's revealed that she's in an abusive marriage with her husband, played by Eddie Marsan. Slowly, their roles switch and she looks to Joseph for solace. Overall, it's quite a bleak story, but the quality of the acting keeps you watching, with the hope that things will work out. 

4 out of 5 stars

Currently streaming on Kanopy, Tubi, and Prime Video.

"The Tender Bar"

2021 1h 46m  As the old adage goes: timing is everything. That’s especially true when it comes to movies and the Academy Awards. Unfortunately, “The Tender Bar”, a new film produced and directed by George Clooney, was released in theatres just as the recent spike in Covid cases was under way. This resulted in shutting down movie theatres and forced the film to go almost directly to streaming. That means the film probably won’t get the buzz needed to be considered by critics for award nominations. This is unfortunate since the film really deserves more recognition than it’s getting. 

 

That said, I found “The Tender Bar” a thoroughly enjoyable and entertaining film. It’s a beautiful coming of age story about a boy named JR.  We first see the young boy (Daniel Ramieri) and his mom (Lily Rabe) as they move back to her childhood home to escape an abusive dad (Max Martini). We don’t see much of the dad until much later in the film, and all we know about him is he’s “The Voice”, a popular radio DJ with a golden voice and a drinking problem. He barely figures in the life of JR which proves to be a good thing. 

 

The young JR loves his new surroundings; it’s a lively household, just jam packed with relatives of all ages. His days are filled with great experiences and are full of surprises. He lives with two family members who will have a huge impact on his life. Christopher Lloyd plays his cranky and eccentric grandpa. You think he’s going to be a mean old man, but he turns out to be encouraging and is a softy at heart. Case in point--he even dresses up and takes JR to the Father & Son breakfast at his school! 

 

Then there’s Uncle Charlie (Ben Affleck). I’ve always thought of him as one of the most overrated actors in Hollywood. But he sure surprised me in this movie. The guy can actually act! Here he’s both a smart mentor and father figure to JR, and you wonder why he didn’t do more with his life than run the family bar.  Young JR dreams of going to Yale and becoming a writer. In one scene Uncle Charlie opens up his closet, which is completely full of books and tells JR to just read all of them for a start!

 

“The Dickens”, the family’s tavern is a second home for JR. It’s reminiscent of the bar in “Cheers” in that it’s full of lovable and quirky characters and much of the film takes place there. It sort of makes you wish there was a local pub like that around here. 

 

Tye Sheridan plays the older JR, and we follow him through high school, college, and out into the real world. A lot of time and growing up are packed into a mere hour and forty-six minutes in this film. It’s quite an enjoyable ride as JR chases his dream. My favorite quote from the movie is when JR is discussing writing. His friend observes, “When you suck at writing, you become a journalist”. (Ouch!) I enjoy movies like this where almost nothing horrible happens to the main characters. What a pleasant surprise this one turned out to be.

Four out of five stars

 

Currently streaming on Prime Video.

"Morris From America"

2016  1h 31m   I was a little skeptical about watching this after I read the description. But the fact that it won several awards convinced me to take a chance. And what a pleasant surprise it was. The film is about a 13-year old black boy Morris (Markees Christmas), who's living in Germany with his dad (Craig Robinson), a professional soccer coach. Morris's dream is to become a rap star, and while I'm admittedly not the biggest fan of the genre, I didn't mind it here. 

The film shows him trying to fit in at school, and is picked on by what he refers to as "German dickheads". He has a crush on a classmate, and we witness the usual high school shenanigans, experimenting with drugs and booze, and staying out too late. Morris performs at a talent show and the results are quite funny. I really enjoyed the way his dad handled all of Morris's misadventures. He was understanding yet firm, and the two  were especially convincing as a family. Overall the movie is charming and has a few chuckles. Give this one a chance--I don't think you'll be disappointed. 

3.5 out of 5 stars

Streaming on Kanopy, Showtime, and Prime

"Say You Will"

 2017 1h 35m  There’s a soft spot in my heart for teen movies. Maybe because in many ways, I’m really still a kid. And I enjoy all types, from kegger-spins-wildly-out-of-control and parents–are-out-of-town-and-what-kind-of-trouble-can-we-get-into, to first romance and classic coming of age dramas. “Say You Will” falls into the latter category. It’s a beautiful, well-acted film that should be better known.

 The story centers on Sam (Travis Tope) as he graduates from high school and follows him through the summer before he goes off to college. He hooks up with a childhood sweetheart Ellie (Katherine Hughes) at a grad party.  Ellie is a free spirit who doesn’t have any real plans for the future. Although she has an on again, off again relationship with a boyfriend, she rekindles her friendship with Sam. She gets him a summer job at a video store and the couple hangs out a lot together.

 

Interestingly, the two of them are the real grownups in their respective homes. Sam’s father committed suicide a few years before, and his mother (Michelle Forbes) is in denial and simply refuses move on. She spends her days sitting on the sofa watching TV. The two of them barely communicate and he’s been banished to his dad’s recording studio in the garage. Ellie’s mother is marginally there for her and her siblings, and she’s the one who rises to the occasion and takes care of her three brothers. 

 

While looking through his parent’s things, Sam discovers love letters and photos of his mom and her old boyfriend Dean (Sam Trammell). It’s reveled that he was Sam’s dad’s best friend, and she left him to marry his dad. Sam contacts Dean and invites him to a surprise birthday party for his mom.  As you’d expect, that doesn’t go too well. In fact, she’s absolutely devastated to see him again. However, it’s just the jolt she needs to help her wake up and start communicating with her son and deal with life again. 

 

This isn’t your average teen drama or romance. The two lead actors have remarkable chemistry, and the film deals with some heavy-duty issues, without being overly heavy-handed. It’s a touching portrait of families coping with life and learning to move on. I rarely give a movie five stars, but this is an absolutely perfect little gem in every respect.

Streaming on several platforms including Hoopla, IMDB TV, Tubi, Epix, and Pluto TV. 

"The Lost Daughter"

 2021 2h 1min  This one is getting quite a bit of Academy Award buzz, and it's well deserved. The film stars Olivia Coleman who plays Leda, an English professor who's on a working vacation on a Greek island. While there she encounters a young mother Nina (Dakota Johnson), who's vacationing with her obnoxious New Jersey family. The two strike up a friendship and as it turns out, their lives are very similar, especially when it come to affairs of the heart. The film jumps back in time and we see a young Leda (Jessica Buckley) raising her two daughters. There are several scenes where Leda  is out walking that have an ominous undertone. I thought for sure that something horrible was going to happen to her, but rest assured, noting bad does. The film is based on a best-selling novel by Elena Ferrante and is the directorial debut for Maggie Gyllenhaal, who I'll predict will win in the best director category. 

31/2 out of 5 stars

In theaters and streaming on Netflix