Nobody

Last night I went to see the movie Nobody and, because there was a large and rowdy crowd (by Covid-19 standards), it was an absolute blast!  Hutch Mansell (Bob Odenkirk) is a mild-mannered accountant for his father-in-law's manufacturing business and lives in the suburbs with his wife (Connie Nielsen), son (Gage Munroe), and daughter (Paisley Cadorath).  Life has become monotonous but one night he and his family are the victims of an armed home invasion during which his passive behavior allows the burglars to get away subjecting him to the derision of his son, neighbor, brother-in-law, father-in-law, and the police.  This awakens a long dormant rage in Hutch so, when a group of thugs begins harassing him and the other passengers on a bus, he beats them savagely.  One of his victims is the younger brother of a Russian mob enforcer (Aleksei Serebryakov) who vows revenge.  When a group of Russian gangsters comes after him, it becomes apparent that Hutch is not who he appears to be.  This is an adrenaline rush from beginning to end with some of the best fight choreography I've seen, particularly a sequence where Hutch fights off a group of gangsters in his house using ordinary objects and an extended sequence in his booby-trapped factory.  People in my audience were clapping and cheering throughout!  Odenkirk reportedly trained for two years in order to perform all of his own stunts and he gives a kick-ass performance that is also highly amusing (I laughed out loud several times at his witty one-liners).  Christopher Lloyd steals every scene he is in as Hutch's father, who is also not who he appears to be.  The needle drops in this movie are fantastic!  I especially liked "I've Gotta Be Me," "My Way," "You'll Never Walk Alone," and "Let The Good Times Roll" because the contexts in which they are used are hilarious.  This is the most fun I've had watching a movie in a long time and I highly recommend it to fans of the genre.  See it with the biggest (socially distanced) crowd you can!

Marc Albrecht Conducts Mahler & R. Strauss

I was so happy to be back at Abravanel Hall for a Utah Symphony concert last night!  Before Covid-19, I spent most Friday nights at Abravanel Hall listening to the Utah Symphony and I really missed that during lockdown.  After finally being able to attend several concerts last fall, it was a bit of a blow when all Salt Lake County performing arts venues were closed again last December.  But now it looks like there might be a light at the end of the tunnel because these venues are open once again and several concerts were announced to finish out the Utah Symphony 2020-2021 season (I bought tickets to all of them).  Last night's concert, featuring guest conductor Marc Albrecht, was absolutely wonderful!  I was already feeling emotional just listening to the orchestra warm up so their performance of the Adagietto from Symphony No. 5 by Gustav Mahler just about did me in!  This piece is incredibly beautiful and otherworldly but it also quite mournful (it was performed at the funeral of Bobby Kennedy in 1968) so, of course, I loved it.  I especially enjoyed the theme played by the harp.  The concert concluded with the Suite from Der Burger als Edelmann (Le bourgeois gentilhomme) by Richard Strauss which is so charming.  I read the satirical play about a social climber by Moliere (in French!) when I was in high school so it was a lot of fun for me to imagine what was happening as I listened to the music.  I particularly liked "The Fencing Master" because it is very lively and energetic (with a great trumpet solo) as our protagonist tries to learn fencing from a master who takes advantage of his ignorance and "The Dinner" which is quite stately and dramatic with exaggerated pomp as our protagonist tries to impress his aristocratic guests (I loved the timpani).  I loved all of the music featured last night but I think what I enjoyed the most was the experience of being in an audience at a live performance because that, more than anything else, is a sign that things might be returning to some semblance of normalcy.  I am so ready for that!  I believe there are a limited number of tickets available (go here) for tonight's concert featuring the same program and I highly recommend getting one of them, especially if you have missed live performances as much as I have!

Note:  The 2021-2022 season was announced this week and I am so excited!  I have already subscribed to the Films in Concert Series (featuring The Return of the Jedi, Back to the Future, Home Alone, and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince) and I'm trying to decide on the concerts I want to include in my Design-A-Series subscription (Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini and Piano Concerto No. 2 are already on the list).  Go here for more information.

Zack Snyder's Justice League

It has been a really long time since I saw the theatrical release of Justice League and, while I don't remember everything about it, I do remember that I enjoyed it a lot more than other die-hard DCEU fans.  I liked the character arcs of both Batman and Wonder Woman as they grapple with their leadership roles within the group dynamic and I liked the fact that it takes all of the heroes, who mostly think of themselves as loners and misfits, working together to defeat the villain.  I wasn't one of the fans who clamored for the so-called "Snyder Cut" of this movie but, now that I have watched it, I am so glad that it exists because it is far superior to the theatrical release!  The core structure of the story remains the same.  Bruce Wayne/ Batman (Ben Affleck) joins with Diana Prince/ Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) in recruiting other metahumans, Arthur Curry/ Aquaman (Jason Momoa), Barry Allen/ The Flash (Ezra Miller), and Victor Stone/ Cyborg (Ray Fisher), to fight against the threat of Steppenwolf (Ciaran Hinds), a god who is trying to unite three Mother Boxes to enslave the world.  When one attempt to stop Steppenwolf fails, they decide to use one of the Mother Boxes to resurrect Clark Kent/ Superman (Henry Cavill) which forces an epic showdown.  Snyder's version improves the story by providing some much needed mythology and worldbuilding with the introduction of the character Darkseid (Ray Porter) and a more detailed explanation of how the Mother Boxes came to be on Earth in the possession of Humans, Amazons, and Atlanteans (in some thrilling battle sequences).  Steppenwolf's motivation for unifying the Mother Boxes is explored more fully within the context of his relationship to Darkseid.  The inclusion of Cyborg's backstory is also a huge improvement to the narrative because his character arc, particularly his journey to self-acceptance, serves as a metaphor for the entire Justice League and I loved his role in defeating the Unity.  I have always really appreciated the darker and grittier tone of the DCEU and the portrayal of Superman in Snyder's version is more in keeping with his character arc from Man of Steel and Batman v Superman (I especially liked the black suit).  The Flash, who is a little bit less goofy and is given a more prominent (and timeline changing) role in the final battle, also has a more authentic portrayal.  I liked the look and feel of the final battle in Snyder's version much more without the color saturation, stylized action sequences, and silly banter of the original and I liked the outcome much more (this ending teases a sequel with Darkseid and an epilogue further teases a "Knightmare" scenario with Deathstroke, Mera, the Flash, Cyborg, Batman, and the Joker as well as the introduction of the Martian Manhunter which may or may not happen).  This is the version of Justice League I didn't know I needed!  I loved it and I'm glad the fans were successful in lobbying for its release!

The Courier

I saw The Courier at the Sundance Film Festival last year (although when I saw it the name was Ironbark in reference to the code name used by the Soviet agent) and I really enjoyed this taut and suspenseful spy thriller so I decided to see it again last night.  Tensions are escalating between the United States and the Soviet Union over the build up of nuclear weapons.  Oleg Penkovsky (Merab Ninidze), a high-ranking science officer in the Soviet government, believes that Khrushchev is erratic and looking for any excuse to go to war with the U.S. so he goes to great lengths to contact the West about providing secret intelligence.  Because Penkovsky is so prominent, Emily Donovan (Rachel Brosnahan) of the CIA and Dickie Franks (Angus Wright) of MI-6 don't want to compromise him by using known agents.  They recruit Greville Wynne (Benedict Cumberbatch), an unassuming middle-aged businessman with accounts in Eastern Europe, to make contact with him.  After meeting with Wynne, Penkovsky is impressed with his grace under pressure and insists that the CIA continue to use him as a courier even though he is an amateur.  Wynne is initially reluctant because it will be dangerous and, more importantly, his behavior will make his wife Sheila (Jessie Buckley) suspicious because of a previous infidelity but, after a crash course in spy craft, he eventually smuggles in thousands of pieces of intel and develops a close friendship with Penkovsky.  The stakes are raised significantly when Khrushchev places missiles in Cuba and when Penkovsky comes under suspicion.  I really love spy movies and this is a good one because it focuses on the humanity of both characters and their desire to make the world a better place by their actions.  It is moody and atmospheric with lots of Cold War intrigue that had me on the edge of my seat (even upon a second viewing).  Cumberbatch gives a riveting performance (one of his best) that is sometimes amusing, especially when he attempts to get in shape, and sometimes quite affecting, especially in a late scene with Ninidze.  The fact that this is based on a true story makes it even more compelling and I highly recommend it, especially to fans of the genre.

Sound of Metal

Because I watched Sound of Metal last night, I have now seen all of the Academy Award nominees for Best Picture (click on the titles for my commentaries on The Father, Judas and the Black Messiah, Mank, Minari, Nomadland, Promising Young Woman, and The Trial of the Chicago 7).  I'm not sure why I waited so long to see Sound of Metal but I found it to be incredibly moving.  Ruben (Riz Ahmed) is a drummer for a heavy metal duo with his girlfriend Lou (Olivia Cooke).  One night during a performance, he realizes that he is having trouble hearing and this is soon confirmed by a specialist who tells him that it is likely to get worse if he doesn't limit his exposure to loud noise.  Ruben is in denial about the diagnosis, thinking that expensive cochlear implants will fix the problem, and continues to play until it becomes impossible.  Lou is worried that this setback will cause Ruben to relapse so she seeks out a program for recovering addicts who are deaf run by a man named Joe (Paul Raci) who lost his hearing in Vietnam.  Lou realizes that Ruben won't commit to the program as long as she is in his life so she decides to leave him.  Joe is able to help him but Ruben continues to struggle because he sees his deafness as something he needs to fix rather than something he needs to adapt to and eventually sells everything he owns, including his drums, to get the implants.  While the implants allow Ruben to hear they also cause a strange distortion which might derail his plans to resume the life he once had.  What really resonated with me about this powerful character study is Ruben's attempt to downplay the seriousness of his situation and his refusal to accept a reality that conflicts with the identity he has created for himself because I think that is a very human reaction to adversity. Ahmed gives a captivating performance that is also understated and restrained.  There is nothing showy about it but you know everything that Ruben is feeling simply by the look in his eyes.  The closeup on his face when he realizes that he can never go back to the life he once had with Lou is absolutely devastating.  Raci is also incredibly affecting as someone who tries to help Ruben envision another life for himself.  The innovative sound design is brilliant because the harsh feedback and muffled sounds really allow the audience to experience everything that Ruben is hearing (I especially enjoyed how the sound of vibration is portrayed because that is such a turning point for Ruben) and the use of silence is also very powerful, particularly in the final scene.  I usually get really distracted when I watch movies at home (it is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video) but this held my attention from beginning to end and I highly recommend it!

Note:  Now that I have seen all of the nominees, my pick for Best Picture is Minari!  Have you seen any of the nominees?  Do you have a favorite to win?