Resolution (2013)

Settled guy in his late 20s decides to spend a week with his friend in order to get him clean, even though his friend’s not interested in sobriety. Things get weird fast.

Not only are a couple of meth-heads dropping by to party/threaten them, there’s also the Native Americans whose land they’re on, a friendly doomsday cult, a mental health center with frequent escapees, druggie hobos, oh -- and a presence that keeps leaving “stories” in the form of photos, slides, old books, diaries, film reels, carvings on the wall, and video that just appears on their laptop. I have no idea why neither of them were ever freaked out nor why it was somehow obvious to both of them that they weren’t supposed to leave. There seemed to be several leaps in logic which Gary and I spent way too much time trying to explain when the movie should’ve done that for us.

I started out liking it -- the vibe was unexpected -- but, despite the title, it fell apart and didn’t do a good job of resolving.

C-

Pain & Gain (2013)

Knucklehead bodybuilders decide to rip off a rich gym member and nearly get away with it because, despite surviving weeks of imprisonment and torture, the victim’s story sounded too ridiculous to be believed. This based-on-fact story is entertaining all the way but I understand completely why the cops dismissed it as “no way did that happen.”

B+

If I Were You (2013)

Wife spots her husband canoodling with someone else and winds up making a pact with the mistress (who's oblivious as to the wife's identity) in which they agree to make decisions for each other. The set up is complicated, but the movie certainly isn’t. For a story about loss and friendship, there was very little “realness” to be had. It almost felt like it was trying to be both a wacky French farce and an insightful drama & I’m here to tell you that’s an impossible combo to pull off.

I really wanted to like it, but it's a complete misfire.

C

Southern Rites (2015)

The documentarian started out by covering the segregated prom in a southern town but discovered there were a couple of other stories to tell on the subject of race: one regards the young black man shot and killed by a white man while fleeing and another of a black chief of police running to be the first black sheriff in his county. So, what's the problem? Those sound like stories worth exploring, right? Well, this film doesn't aim to explore or enlighten, really, it seems to just want to chat. It's kind of like movie is simply saying: “did you hear about that kid who got shot by that white dude? And what about that black man running for sheriff? Yeah, good luck getting justice or elected in this racist place!” We get little insight, just a basic outline.

So I think I may be done with the HBO docs. This one, Tales of the Grim Sleeper & Thought Crimes: The Case of the Cannibal Cop have all felt inadequate to me -- like rough drafts rather than anything cohesive or compelling.

C-

Thought Crimes: The Case of the Cannibal Cop (2015)

This documentary covers the case of a NY cop who was put on trial for discussing the abduction, imprisonment, torture, rape, murder and consuming of women on the internet. I think this guy’s wife did the right thing by turning him in, but I don’t think he should’ve been convicted. I also think that no one in their right mind should ever date him.

The doc is short, which is a good thing, as there’s only so much I could take of him. I don’t care why he’s like this. I don’t even care THAT he’s like this. I think he’s got a problem and definitely needs therapy. Why isn’t that part of his release program?

B-

Sadie Thompson (1928)

Good-time gal from San Francisco gets stuck in Pago Pago due to a smallpox quarantine on her connecting ship, but there’re some marines stationed there to keep her company and a hellfire missionary to keep her from having any fun.

I rarely like silent films and I wouldn’t go so far as to say that this is an exception really, but it kind of worked. Even with the the final ten minutes being mostly stills and reworked dialogue cards due to damage to the original film, there is some real power here.

B-

Cobain: Montage of Heck (2015)

I can hum along with most of the Nirvana hits, but I can’t really claim to be a fan. When Cobain died, it was just in my periphery - I remember hearing Courtney read aloud his suicide note which she peppered with expletives...but there was no pain for me. I didn’t know him. After watching this, I now feel like I do. And I think anyone who watches this brilliantly put-together documentary will feel the same.

There’s no narrator and very little of it is “talking heads.” Instead, at least 80% is letting Kurt speak for himself through home videos, tape recorded bits, live performances, interviews, and his journals - beautifully animated and containing his whole life, it seems: lyrics, poetry, schedules, doodles, complex art, phone numbers -- it feels like a peek inside his mind. I’d almost feel guilty if it wasn’t that one of the entries begs that his diary be read...his things gone through...and to be figured out. It’s stunning and intimate and well worth the watch.

A-

X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)

Pretty sure I've heard this one before: mutants are the enemy and they have to find a way to triumph/be accepted. This time there’s a time travel element to it, though! And some truly confusing components that I could probably find explained fully by fanboys somewhere on the internet if I cared!

In a word: meh.

C+

Tales of the Grim Sleeper (2014)

The director, Nick Broomfield, suffers from “Michael Moore Disease,” the biggest symptom of which is that he thinks he’s interesting enough to be in front of the camera. He’s not.

This doc covers the case of Lonnie Davis, who is accused of being the “Grim Sleeper,” an LA serial killer who killed at least 10 women -- probably closer to 100 -- over a 25-year period. The movie lets us know that the cops seemed to have deliberately held back information that could have led to an arrest earlier. Other than that, there's not much revelation here as much of the movie consists of interviews with assorted "friends" of Lonnie who proclaim that there's no way Lonnie could have done it. Those same people go on to tell stories of watching Lonnie torture prostitutes or of that time Lonnie hired one of the friends to clean blood stains in his mobile home.

It’s a mess without structure, which I found to be especially annoying with a subject so tragic and naturally fascinating.

C

The Dream Team (1989)

A quartet of psychiatric patients are taken on a field trip into the city for a baseball game, but they lose their shrink/chaperone along the way and have to navigate on their own. Can they do it? Michael Keaton doing a hybrid of Mr. Mom and Beetlejuice is one of the four, so you betcha. 

So. Very. ‘80s.

C+

The Hunt (2013)

Pretty much the only thing I knew about this movie ahead of time was that Mads Mikkelsen is in it because I’ve been staring at his image & a predicted 5 Stars in Netflix’s “Top Picks for Susan” list for more than a year.

Beautiful acting by every single character -- including young kids -- in a very difficult story believably told. Divorced Lucas works in the kindergarten of the small town in which he’s lived since he was a boy. In a matter of days, his life as he knew it is changed. It was both infuriating and understandable -- so terrifying to watch.

Netflix was right. Five stars from me.

A+