The Meg

I saw a Thursday preview of this summer's obligatory shark movie, The Meg, with a large and rowdy crowd and, surprisingly, I thought it was pretty good.  Jason Statham plays Jonas Taylor, a rescue diver who once abandoned a submarine when he saw a giant shark attacking it and is now in disgrace eking out a living in Thailand because no one believed him.  Off the coast of China five years later, a marine research station, financed by billionaire Jack Morris (Rainn Wilson), has sent a submersible below the Mariana Trench where it is attacked by a giant shark which they identify as a megalodon thought to be extinct.  The researchers convince Taylor to rescue the submersible because his ex-wife is on board which leads to a bit of vindication for Taylor (and a possible romance with one of the oceanographers played by Li Bingbing).  However, the rescue of the submersible has freed the megalodon from the Mariana Trench and it now threatens one of the most densely populated beaches in Asia.  Led by Taylor, our team of expendable researchers must try to kill it in some gravity-defying maneuvers.  The script is very derivative, some of the acting is stilted, much of the dialogue is cringe-worthy, and the CGI is messy at times but somehow this movie is still awesome!  Once it gets going, it is absolutely relentless and some of the action sequences are incredibly suspenseful.  The crowd at my screening gasped out loud during several tense moments.  If you are a fan of these action thrillers, I suspect you will like The Meg and I recommend seeing it on the biggest screen possible with as many people as possible.

Note:  Pippin steals the show!

The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society

A book club that I belonged to a number of years ago read The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows and I found it to be charming.  I've been waiting for this movie adaptation ever since I found out about it and I have to admit that I was a little bit sad to hear that it wasn't getting a theatrical release in the U.S.  However, I am glad that I got to watch it yesterday on Netflix because I really liked it.  During the German occupation of Guernsey, one of the Channel Islands, Elizabeth McKenna (Jessica Brown Findlay) hosts a dinner for her friends Isola Pribby (Katherine Parkinson), Eben Ramsey (Tom Courtenay), Amelia Maugery (Penelope Wilton), and Dawsey Adams (Michiel Huisman).  Afterwards they are caught out after curfew by the Germans and hastily concoct the Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society as the reason for their meeting.  They are then obliged to keep meeting each week and find the solace they need to survive the war in books (and sustenance from the privations of war in Eben's potato peel pie).  After the war Dawsey begins a correspondence with Juliet Ashton (Lily James), a best-selling author in London, when he finds her name and address in a used book.  She decides to visit Guernsey with the hope of writing about their society, against the wishes of her publisher (Matthew Goode) and her fiance (Glen Powell), and gets caught up in an intrigue about a missing member and a possible romance with another member.  It is the kind of British period piece that I love with a gentle tone, beautiful locations, and a stellar cast.  The action unfolds very slowly as we get to know each member of the society as the mystery unravels and I was completely drawn in (it has been so long since I read the book that I forgot many of the details).  The theme of how books can bring people together is very heartwarming and the romance is sweet and old-fashioned.  While filming did not actually take place on Guernsey, the locations are simply gorgeous, particularly the rocky coastline and the cobblestone streets.  James is absolutely engaging as Juliet while Huisman is handsome and brooding as Dawsey.  The rest of the cast (almost like a Downton Abbey reunion) is also excellent with an affecting performance by Wilton and a delightful one by Parkinson as the eccentric Isola.  This is a perfect movie for a lazy afternoon and I highly recommend it, especially to fans of the novel.

Note:  Have fun figuring out the books they discuss during the credits!

Crazy Rich Asians

Romantic comedies are a hard sell for me.  I think most of them are cheesy and incredibly predictable but the trailers for Crazy Rich Asians made me laugh out loud so I put it on my list.  I had the chance to see a sneak peek last night and I actually really liked it.  Granted, it is rather predictable, but I enjoyed this humorous take on the Cinderella story.  Rachel Chu (Constance Wu) is an economics professor at N.Y.U.  She has been dating Nick Young (Henry Golding) for almost a year when he suggests that she accompany him to Singapore to attend his best friend's wedding and meet his family.  She suddenly realizes that Nick is more than he appears to be when they end up in first class on the plane.  She meets his wealthy and traditional mother Eleanor (Michelle Yeoh), who thinks she is an outsider, and his jealous ex-girlfriend (Jing Lusi), who thinks she is just a gold-digger.  She does have a few allies, including Nick's cousin Oliver (Nico Santos), and Peik Lin (Awkwafina), a college roommate who lives in Singapore, but will her love for Nick overcome his family's disapproval?  When all is said and done it is a traditional romantic comedy with a plot that does not deviate from the usual tropes.  However, Wu and Golding are extremely charismatic as the main couple and they have a lot of chemistry together.  It is really easy to root for them to be together.  Yeoh imbues Eleanor with a bit of vulnerability so the character has some depth and you understand her perspective.  Awkwafina and Santos provide plenty of comic relief (everyone in this screening laughed out loud multiple times, as did I), especially lunch with Peik Lin's family and the make-over montage.  I also really liked the message about being true to yourself (although a subplot involving Nick's cousin and her husband seemed superfluous to me).  Finally, all of the over-the-top and glamorous parties are so much fun and provide for some great escapist entertainment, particularly the wedding and bachelor party.  I recommend this movie because it is so much fun!

Christopher Robin

Monday afternoon I went to see Christopher Robin and I can't think of a more heart-warming way to spend an afternoon!  I absolutely loved it.  Christopher Robin (Ewan McGregor) has left the Hundred Acre Wood for boarding school, World War II, and then a job at a luggage company in London.  He has lost his way and spends more time at work than with his wife Evelyn (Hayley Atwell) and his daughter Madeline (Bronte Carmichael).  His old friend Winnie-the-Pooh (voiced by Jim Cummings) comes to London to save him and they eventually end up back in the Hundred Acre Wood where Eyeore (voiced by Brad Garrett), Tigger (also voiced by Jim Cummings), Piglet (voiced by Nick Mohammed), Rabbit (voiced by Peter Capaldi), Kanga (voiced by Sophie Okonedo), Roo (voiced by Sara Sheen) and Owl (voiced by Toby Jones) help him realize the important things in life.  The action is very slow and gentle as Christopher Robin rediscovers his imagination and plays with his friends again.  The scene where he defeats the Heffalump is so endearing!  Ewan McGregor is absolutely charming in the role and Bronte Carmichael is adorable as Madeline, who also needs a bit of rescuing by her father's friends.  The animation is incredible and it looks as if actual stuffed animals have come to life.  I loved Winnie-the-Pooh and every time there was a close-up of his sweet little face my heart would just melt.  I wanted to hug him!  In my opinion, this is a sweet and old-fashioned film with a nice message about remembering what is important.  I highly recommend it! 

The Darkest Minds

I saw The Darkest Minds, an action thriller based on the first book in the best-selling series by Alexandra Bracken, with my sister and nephew at the drive-in last Saturday.  In a dystopian future the majority of the children have been killed by a mysterious illness.  The few remaining children have mutated and now have special powers.  The government, fearing their powers, has rounded them up and put them in internment camps where they are color-coded and segregated according to their powers:  green for enhanced intelligence, yellow for manipulating electricity, blue for manipulating matter, orange for mind control, and red for fire breathing.  Those who are orange are deemed too dangerous and are immediately terminated.  Ruby (Amandla Stenberg), who is classified as orange, passes for green for several years.  When her true powers are discovered, a sympathetic doctor (Mandy Moore), helps her escape from the camp but Ruby isn't sure she can trust her.  She eventually teams up with other escaped children, Liam (Harris Dickinson), Charles or "Chubs" (Skylan Brooks), and Suzume of "Zu" (Miya Cech), and they go on a journey to find a place where they can live in safety.  I like Y/A dystopian literature because my students like it and I am a fan of anything that gets them reading.  I also generally like the movie adaptations of these books but this one is mediocre at best in my opinion.  I think it has a lot of plot holes and it is a bit derivative and boring.  However, my thirteen-year-old nephew, a member of the target demographic for this movie, absolutely loved it!  He really liked how the characters face challenges and overcome the odds to survive in a hostile world.  I think this theme is why so many teens like dystopian novels and movies.  While I didn't especially like this movie, I definitely recommend it for teens who, I suspect, will love it as much as my nephew!