by Nathaniel R
So as not to get ANY further behind on reviewing and such -- you wouldn't believe my calendar right now -- here are quick takes on four movies we barely said anything about, the first of which you should absolutely make time to see.
A Simple Favor (Paul Feig)
Synopsis: Mommy vlogger Stephanie's (Anna Kendrick) new best friend, chic enigmatic Emily (Blake Lively) goes missing then turns up dead... or does she?... in this twisty genre mashup.
Capsule: Half comic thriller. Half campy mystery. Half bad girl dress-up fantasy. The math doesn't add up, I'm aware, but it's all enjoyable. The leading ladies are deliciously inspired, marrying all the disparate tones with as much ease, flair, and detail as the costumes, chic soundtrack, and aspirational production design. Makes a solid case for itself as the year's most delightful surprise...
Awards Potential: Not likely which is a shame because the costumes are applause worthy and the very least awards season could do is give us a Golden Globe comedy nod or three for this gem.
Where to see: Currently in wide release A-/B+
The Children Act (Richard Eyre)
Synopsis: A judge (Emma Thompson), mostly at ease with making difficult and unpopular positions on thorny cases, must decide whether or not the hospital can force a young man (Fionn Whitehead of Dunkirk fame), not quite of legal age, to get a blood transfusion that will save his life even though his religion forbids it.
Capsule: An affecting performances from the always reliable Emma Thompson is the best reason to see this otherwise dry and a bit unwieldy adaptation of the Ian McEwan novel (by McEwan himself with Richard Eyre directing). Whitehead is compelling, too, but for such a forcefully provocative subject matter the film is relatively staid and never makes the case that this wouldn't work much better in prose form.
Awards Potential: Not eligible from out understanding given the DirectTV bow before theatrical.
Where to see: Rentable on Amazon, YouTube, and Google Play. On DVD in November B-/C+
Colette (Wash Westmoreland)
Synopsis: A biopic about the French author Colette who, as a young woman (Keira Knightley), ghostwrote a hugely successful novel for her first husband, a famous novelist (Dominic West). Their bohemian open marriage struggles to make room for her own emerging talent / identity / gender expression.
Capsule: Hmmm. Keira Knightley and Dominic West and a solid supporting cast detail the ever widening sexual and social web of this couple but perhaps the project was hobbled from the get go by the strange decision to focus on Colette's early life when she wasn't that much of a trailblazer yet. Colette had an very fascinating iconoclastic gender-norm distrupting life but what we see here is mostly only what came before she found her voice.
Awards Potential: In a weaker year or with a bigger hit (though how much of a hit it will become is still up in the air) Keira Knightley and Dominic West might have been Best Actress / Supporting Actor contenders. Strangely, given the time period and Colette as counter-culture icon, the costumes are surprisingly non-flashy.
Where to see: In theaters in select cities now and still expanding. C+/C
The Happytime Murders (Brian Henson)
Synopsis: Former LAPD partners, Detective Connie Edwards (Melissa McCarthy) and puppet P.I. Phil Philips try to solve a case os serial puppet murders.
Capsule: Think Who Framed Roger Rabbit only with puppets instead of cartoons and much much less funny and more R rated. The concept isn't bad, though a Roger Rabbit lift, but the execution is questionable. Would probably have made a rowdy and hilarious short film because some of jokes and visual gags (especially within a puppet porn shop or with an interminable sex scene within a P.I.'s office) are inspired.... at least, he quickly adds, within the very specific realm of extreme vulgarity humor. But there's not enough invention or material for 91 minutes of this and the only performance that feels particularly inspired here is Maya Rudolph who works her usual 'how-is-she-this-hilarious?' magic as Phil Phillips resourceful secretary who secretly pines for him.
Awards Potential: No.
Where to See: On DVD and BluRay in December C-