The Lost Bus

Yesterday my nephew and I went to a matinee of The Lost Bus.  I didn't know anything about this movie until I saw a trailer last week (it seems like it is not being promoted at all) and I could only find one theater showing it (which was a bit out of the way) but I am glad I made the effort because both my nephew and I really liked it.  Kevin McKay (Matthew McConaughey) is a down on his luck school bus driver who has recently moved back to the city of Paradise in northern California to care for his disabled mother Sherry (Kay McCabe McConaughey) and to reconnect with his estranged son Shaun (Levi McConaughey).  When a devastating fire erupts after a downed power line ignites dry brush, the Cal Fire battalion chief Ray Martinez (Yul Vazquez) eventually orders a full evacuation of Paradise and the bus dispatcher Ruby (Ashlie Atkinson) requests a volunteer to collect 22 children who have not yet been picked up by their parents from a nearby school.  McKay volunteers because, even though he is worried about his mother and son, he has a contentious working relationship with Ruby and is hoping to redeem himself.  He gets the children and their teacher Mary Ludwig (America Ferrera) on board but, because the fire has spread rapidly and so many people are trying to evacuate at once, they become trapped and he must go to extraordinary lengths to get them to safety.  Director Paul Greengrass is known for frenetic hand-held camerawork that puts the audience in the middle of the action and I was practically holding my breath the whole time (my nephew said his heart was racing) because it is so intense!  The sound design is incredibly immersive because you can hear the fire crackling all around you and the visuals are fantastic (they are eerily realistic).  McConaughey does a great job portraying McKay's quiet heroism and his interactions with Ferrera and the children add emotional weight to the spectacle.  This will begin streaming on Apple TV+ October 3 but I think it is definitely a movie that should be seen on the big screen!

Satisfied

I began the month of September by seeing the proshot of Hamilton on the big screen so it is only fitting that I ended it by seeing Satisfied, a documentary about the actress who originated the role of Angelica Schuyler, last night.  Renee Elise Goldsberry always dreamed of being a mother and a Broadway star but pursuing one dream always made the other one more difficult.  This intimate portrait includes personal iPhone vlogs, interviews with colleagues and family members, and behind the scenes footage of the making of Hamilton from its beginnings as a workshop to its unprecedented success on Broadway as she chronicles her fight for both of her dreams.  She has early success on Broadway as Nala in The Lion King, Mimi in Rent, and the original Nettie in The Color Purple but struggles to get pregnant and suffers several miscarriages.  She is on a break from performing after finally giving birth to her son Benjamin and adopting her daughter Brielle when she is asked to audition for Angelica Schuyler in the workshop for Hamilton.  She turns it down multiple times but changes her mind after hearing a rough version of "Satisfied" and memorizes it in one day for the audition.  She makes the decision to sacrifice time with her family because she is incredibly passionate about the character and knows the show will become something special but it is demanding and her determination to be there for her children in the morning while performing every night takes a tremendous toll on her.  In one particularly poignant scene she is crying in her dressing room before a show because she is so tired but tells herself that she needs to get it together because people in the audience have paid so much money to see her.  In another she has her son come to her dressing room before a show so that she can spend more time with him but feels guilty after seeing him cry when the nanny comes to take him home.  However, there are also lots of joyous moments and I loved seeing footage of when the cast performed at the White House and the camaraderie of the "Ham4Ham" performances for the crowds outside the Richard Rodgers Theatre.  I was really impressed by her vulnerability and by the encouragement of her husband Alexis Johnson, especially when he says that he decided to do everything he could to support her after he heard her sing "Shadowlands" because that showed him that she has a talent that must be nurtured at all costs (it is my favorite song from The Lion King and hearing her sing it with the Utah Symphony brought me to tears so I understand his perspective).  The documentary concludes with a full-circle moment at the Tonys when she thanks God in an emotional speech for allowing her to have her children and the Tony Award.  Fans of Hamilton will love all of the never-before-seen footage from the show but this is also an inspiring story of resilience and perseverance that I highly recommend.  There are two more opportunities to see it in theaters (go here for tickets and information).

Dead of Winter

My nephew spontaneously joined me to see the action thriller Dead of Winter last night and we both really liked it (I liked it even more than I thought I would).  Barb Lindquist (Emma Thompson) is a recently widowed woman who runs a bait and tackle shop in northern Minnesota.  She embarks on a solo ice fishing trip to Lake Hilda, where she had her first date with her husband Karl, but gets lost in a blizzard and must ask for directions from a man (Marc Menchaca) at an isolated and dilapidated cabin.  She suspects that something is amiss at the cabin but continues on to the lake and reminisces about past fishing trips with her husband (Thompson's daughter Gaia Wise plays a young Barb and Cuan Hosty-Blaney plays a young Karl in flashbacks).  Her reverie is interrupted when she sees the man from the cabin restraining a young girl (Laurel Marsden) at gunpoint.  She follows them back to the cabin and, when she learns that the man and his wife (Judy Greer) plan to kill the girl (for reasons), she realizes that she is her only hope for rescue.  It was interesting to see Thompson in a role unlike anything she has done before (and initially a bit jarring to hear her speak with a Minnesota accent even though she pulls it off) and I was very impressed with her physical performance, especially during the final confrontation with Greer (also playing against type) on the frozen lake, as well as with the emotional depth she imbues the character without a lot of dialogue.  The action sequences are very compelling because Barb, as an older woman, is forced to use her ingenuity and both the stark winter landscape and the atmospheric score add to the tension.  I am a fan of movies featuring an ordinary person in extraordinary circumstances and this is a really good one.  It is a bit under the radar (we only found one theater showing it in our area) but it is worth seeking out.

Eleanor the Great

Last night my nephew and I returned to the Broadway (I have been there a lot this week) to see Eleanor the Great, Scarlett Johansson's directorial debut, and we both enjoyed it.  Eleanor Morgenstein (June Squibb) moves from Florida back to New York to live with her daughter Lisa (Jessica Hecht) after her longtime best friend Bessie (Rita Zohar) dies unexpectedly.  Her busy and distracted daughter signs her up for a class at the JCC but she accidentally ends up in a Holocaust survivor's support group.  When it is her turn to share with the group, she wants to explain the mistake but, because she feels so welcomed by the members, she tells Bessie's survival story as her own and this gets the attention of Nina (Erin Kellyman), a young journalism student grappling with the recent death of her mother who wants to profile Eleanor for an assignment.  They begin an unlikely friendship which helps Eleanor with her loneliness and Nina with her grief but it is tested when Eleanor's story takes on a life of its own and spirals out of control.  I think Eleanor's actions might be problematic for some, especially since it involves a very sensitive subject, and the resolution is a bit too convenient without much examination but Squibb is undeniably charismatic and delivers such a charming performance (one of her very best) that it compensates for many of the movie's flaws.  I also really enjoyed Kellyman's sensitive performance because it is a very authentic portrayal of grief (a scene where she smells the sweater that belonged to her mother is very moving and brought a tear to my eye) and a monologue by Zohar in the third act is incredibly powerful (I really liked that Bessie is the one talking about her experiences in flashbacks whenever Eleanor tells the story).  Much of this is very conventional, including the cinematography, editing, production design, and score, but I was charmed by the performances and think it is worth seeing for them.

Note:  My nephew was the youngest person in the theater and I was the second youngest!

Peter and the Starcatcher at the Empress Theatre

I think Peter and the Starcatcher is the perfect production for a small community theatre like the Empress because the show uses imagination to tell the backstory of Peter Pan so the set is usually very minimal and the actors pantomime much of the action and use ordinary objects as props like children do while playing make-believe. I saw the Empress Theatre's version last night and I absolutely love what they did with it because it is, well, very imaginative! Lord Aster (Brad A. Goodman), a "starcatcher," travels with a trunk of "starstuff" on a fast ship called The Wasp in order to destroy it before the pirate Back Stache (Alexander Richardson) and his first mate Smee (Gwen Jonsson) can steal it. His daughter Molly (Camille Bassett), an apprentice "starcatcher," is placed on a slower ship, The Neverland, with another trunk as a decoy and meets three orphan boys, including an unnamed boy (Koda Smith), while on board. When Molly discovers that the trunks have been switched, she convinces the orphans to help her complete her father's task. However, Black Stache also discovers the switch and attacks The Neverland which leads to a confrontation on an island, populated by hostile natives and enchanted by the "starstuff," during which Black Stache is transformed into the villain Captain Hook and the boy is transformed into the hero Peter Pan. I was impressed with some really clever staging and choreography, especially when cast members locate their costumes on stage and become their characters in front of the audience, when Black Stache attacks The Neverland with the Jolly Roger flag and uses it in a duel with the Union Jack, and when the crocodile appears from the balcony (with two red lights as eyes and strings of white bunting as teeth). I also loved all of the ingenious props (the model ships in bottles representing The Wasp and The Neverland and the hairbrush used as a microphone are so fun) and costumes (I laughed out loud at the iridescent fans used as mermaid tails and the woven placements worn by the natives). Everyone in the cast, many of whom play multiple roles, brings a childlike sense of wonder to their characters, especially Smith because he is incredibly vulnerable as Peter, Jonsson because she is so hilariously befuddled as Smee, and Zack Anderson because he (this role is always played by a man to great comedic effect) is very silly as Molly's nanny Mrs. Bumbrake. My favorite character in this show is Black Stache and Richardson definitely did not disappoint with his petulant facial expressions and over the top physicality, particularly in the scene when he loses his hand. I love this show (I think it is because, like Peter Pan, I never grew up) and I love this production because, more than any other version I've seen, it really does feel like a group of people who are using their imaginations to tell a story! I definitely recommend getting a ticket (go here) during its run through October 11.