Deadpool & Wolverine

Last night I went to see a Thursday preview of Deadpool & Wolverine in a packed theater and it was so much fun!  Wade Wilson (Ryan Reynolds) is living a mundane life as a used car salesman after Vanessa Carlysle (Morena Baccarin) breaks up with him and he is rejected by the Avengers.  However, when he is summoned by the Time Variance Authority and one of its agents, Mr. Paradox (Matthew Macfadyen), he suits up once again as Deadpool and recruits a reluctant Wolverine variant (Hugh Jackman) in order to save his timeline because it has been jeopardized by the death of Logan.  They soon realize that they must join with others to save the entire universe from an even bigger threat, Cassandra Nova (Emma Corrin).  The story is a bit messy but it is a funny and irreverent spoof of superhero movies in general, and multiverses specifically, that had me and the entire audience laughing out loud the whole time.  It includes the usual profanity-laden one-liners but, as always with this franchise, I especially enjoyed the meta humor (there is a throwaway line about Gossip Girl that made me laugh so hard I spit out my drink).  There are also quite a few unexpectedly emotional moments because Deadpool is desperate to prove that he matters and this variant of Wolverine is not the hero that Logan was (the reason for the return of Wolverine's original suit, while in service to the fans nostalgic, is incredibly poignant).  Reynolds and Jackman have so much chemistry as the goofy Deadpool and the intense Wolverine play off each other and all of the "gratuitous" cameos are a hoot (several of them had my crowd cheering) and feature some heartwarming and hilarious performances.  The big action set pieces are epic (my favorite of which is the opening credits sequence) but my enjoyment of them came more from the needle drops than from what was actually on the screen (I particularly loved the use of "Hells Bells" by AC/DC, 'You're the One That I Want" from Grease, and "Like A Prayer" by Madonna).  I had such a great time with this and I highly recommend seeing it with a big crowd!

Note:  Definitely stay for the end credits scene because it got some of the biggest laughs of the night!

National Anthem

Last night I went to see National Anthem at the Broadway on a whim and I absolutely loved this coming-of-age drama about self-acceptance.  Dylan (Charlie Plummer) is a 21-year-old construction worker who is supporting his younger brother Cassidy (Joey DeLeon) and his alcoholic mother Fiona (Robyn Lively) in rural New Mexico.  He is also trying to save money to buy an RV in order to pursue his dream of traveling around the country.  He takes a temporary job as a day laborer at a ranch called the House of Splendor, an LGBTQ+ community run by Pepe (Rene Rosado), and is immediately enchanted by Sky (Eve Lindley), a transgender woman who works with the horses.  He spends more and more time at the ranch with Sky and feels accepted for the first time in his life by people who feel more like family than his mother does.  He is also inspired by Carrie (Mason Alexander Park) and all of the others who are pursuing their dreams (as rodeo and drag performers) to fight for his.  What I loved most about this movie is the authentic and non-judgmental portrayal of the LGBTQ+ characters and the fact that they are shown to be thriving, and even inspiring others, rather than surviving trauma.  I also loved that the narrative challenges preconceived expectations and conventions.  One of my very favorite scenes is when Cassidy rather bluntly asks Carrie if they are a boy or girl and, when they respond that they are neither, he simply accepts it and it is so powerful!  Plummer gives an extraordinary performance as Dylan because his transformation from a world-weary acceptance of his lot in life to wide-eyed wonder at the possibility of a different one is visibly evident on his face without much dialogue.  Lindley is incredibly alluring and charismatic as Sky and you can't look away whenever she is on the screen while Park imbues Carrie with a warmth that I found very compelling.  Finally, the cinematography is incredibly beautiful with wide shots of the rugged landscape and immersive action shots at the rodeo (which subvert traditional ideas of both).  I was very moved by this and highly recommend it!

Widow Clicquot

I grew up on a farm in Southern Ontario near the vineyards located on the Niagara peninsula so I was really intrigued by the trailer for Widow Clicquot.  I decided to see it last night at the Broadway and, while I loved many aspects of this biopic, I was a bit disappointed.  Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin Clicquot (Haley Bennett) vows to continue running the vineyards bequeathed to her by her husband Francois (Tom Sturridge) after his death.  However, there are massive debts after the failure of the last harvest, her father-in-law Philippe Clicquot (Ben Miles) is pressuring her to sell to Jean-Remy Moét (Nicholas Farrell), her managers doubt her abilities and do not support her unconventional techniques, and the embargoes enforced during the Napoleonic Wars make distribution almost impossible.  Her only ally is wine merchant Louis Bohne (Sam Riley) but, when she begins a relationship with him, her status as a widow is called into question because marrying again would make it illegal for her to run her late husband's business under the Napoleonic Code.  She eventually overcomes all obstacles to become the Grande Dame of Champagne and creates innovations that are still used today.  Bennett is outstanding in the role because she convincingly embodies Barbe's all-consuming grief over her husband's death, for which she feels responsible, as well as her uncompromising determination to succeed equally well.  The cinematography, featuring shots of sun-dappled vineyards and low-lit rooms in a vast estate, is absolutely gorgeous, the production design is sumptuous, and the original score by Bryce Dessner is dreamy and atmospheric.  The story about a woman who defies all expectations to revolutionize an entire industry is an incredibly compelling one but the telling of it loses focus.  The narrative is very jumbled as it alternates between her volatile romance with Francois and her collaboration with Louis as they try to find a way to make the vineyard a success.  As much as I enjoyed Sturridge's performance, I wanted more of the latter and less of the former.  I didn't love this as much as I thought I would but I recommend it to fans of period dramas.

The Hunchback of Notre Dame at Murray Park Amphitheater

Murray Park Amphitheater is one of my favorite outdoor venues in the summer and The Hunchback of Notre Dame is one of my favorite musicals so I had a wonderful time seeing a fantastic production of this show there last night!  Quasimodo (Patrick O'Boyle) has been hidden by his master Frollo (Layne Wilden) in the bell tower of Notre Dame Cathedral all of his life because he is deformed.  The gargoyles convince him that it will be safe for him to roam the streets of Paris during the Feast of Fools and he is eventually crowned the King of Fools.  However, when the crowd turns on him, he is rescued by the gypsy Esmeralda (Mia Crutch).  She also catches the eye of the captain of the cathedral guard Phoebus de Martin (James Dixon) who falls in love with her and she bewitches Frollo who becomes obsessed with possessing her.  When Esmeralda rejects Frollo, he orders Phoebus to arrest her but he refuses and they both become fugitives who are aided by Quasimodo until the final confrontation in the bell tower.  In my opinion, the best part of this show is Crutch because she is such a great singer, dancer, and actor.  She is captivating in "Rhythm of the Tambourine," incredibly powerful in "God Help the Outcasts" (my favorite song in the show), playful in "Top of the World," and very affecting in "Someday."  I was also impressed with Wilden's passionate rendition of "Hellfire" and O'Boyle's renditions of "Heaven's Light" and "Made of Stone" (this gave me goosebumps).  Other highlights of this production are the live orchestra, under the direction of Nate Holcomb, and the choir (I loved that they are robed and located on either side of the stage in areas that mimic the chancel in a cathedral) which adds so much to "The Bells of Notre Dame" and all of its reprises.  The striking set features wooden platforms of different levels, which Quasimodo uses to ring the bells, and is dominated by a large rose window that is reflected on the floor of the stage.  The amphitheater does not have a lot of the technical wizardry that other theatres around the valley do so I really appreciate the clever staging of some of the more complicated scenes, particularly the final confrontation, and the dramatic lighting.  I wish that the gargoyles had more obvious costumes (they wear simple collars over their other costumes) because it is sometimes confusing to know when they are in a scene but I can understand why the actors wouldn't want to wear something more substantial in the heat.  Seeing a show at the Murray Park Amphitheater is a great way to spend a summer evening and I highly recommend getting a ticket (go here) to this or any of the other performances (I am excited for Peter and the Starcatcher next month).

Twisters

I have been looking forward to Twisters ever since the first trailer dropped during the Super Bowl so I was really excited to see it last night at a Thursday preview.  It is a crowd-pleasing summer blockbuster and I thoroughly enjoyed it.  Kate Cooper (Daisy Edgar-Jones) is a storm chaser trying to prove her theory about a method for taming tornadoes with her crew, including her friends Javi (Anthony Ramos), Addy (Kiernan Shipka), and Praveen (Nik Dodani) and her boyfriend Jeb (Daryl McCormack), but when she miscalculates the strength of the storm only she and Javi survive.  Five years later Kate is now working for NOAA in New York but she is still tormented by the deaths of her team members.  However, Javi now has military-grade equipment and corporate sponsors and he lures her back to Oklahoma to collect data during a particularly devastating storm season.  Javi's business partner Scott (David Corenswet) is not happy to have her on their team and things are further complicated by the appearance of Tyler Owens (Glen Powell), a reckless storm chasing YouTube personality known as the "Tornado Wrangler," his crew, including Boone (Brandon Perea), Lilly (Sasha Lane), Dexter (Tunde Adebimpe), and Dani (Katy O'Brian), as well as a British journalist (Harry Hadden-Paton) who is writing an article about him.  Kate begins to suspect Javi's motivation and eventually joins Tyler after he convinces her to resume her research.  It goes without saying that the action sequences are amazing with incredible visual effects and immersive sound design that put the audience in the middle of tornadoes as they wreak havoc on a motel, a rodeo, an oil refinery, and a movie theater as well as fields and entire towns (see this on the biggest screen possible).  Having said that, the story is actually much better than I was expecting and I was particularly moved by the emphasis on the casualties of these cataclysmic storms.  I think Edgar-Jones is really bland in the role but Powell has enough charisma to spare (even though I didn't really buy the romance shoe-horned in at the end) and the supporting cast is a lot of fun despite not having much to do.  I should mention that, other than a cameo from "Dorothy," this is a standalone sequel to the original so don't expect a lot of nostalgia. I recommend it as an entertaining movie to watch with a big tub of popcorn!