Kubo and the Two Strings

"I have a question. If I'm Beetle and you're Monkey, why isn't he called Boy?"

Kubo (Parkinson) lives a quiet life with his mother, Sariatu (Theron).  During the day, he tells elaborate stories in the village.  His stories are aided by origami figures that are brought to life through the music he plays on his shamisen.  The stories always draw a crowd, but he never finishes.  As the sun goes down he rushes home.

His mother warns him to never be out at night.  The Moon King (Fiennes), his grandfather, is trying to find him and remove his other eye.  They need to hide from his aunts, Karasu and Yukami (both are played by Mara), who will do anything to get him.  One day he ignores his mother's warning and stays out late.  His aunts find find him and his mother sacrifices herself for him.

When he wakes up, Monkey (Theron) is staying over him.  She is the product of the last of Sariatu's magic and is there to protect him as they look for his father's armor.  They are guided by an origami figure of his father, Hanzo.  They also meet Beetle (McConaughey), a samurai that was cursed to be a beetle with no memories.  Can they work together to protect Kubo and find the armor?


This is the fourth film from Laika Productions, after Coraline, ParaNorman, and The Boxtrolls.  They make stop-motion animated films with a darker twist.  They are fun and inventive films that older kids and parents can enjoy.  Since it premiered the film received considerable buzz.  It is also nominated for 2 Oscars: Best Animated Film and Best Visual Effects.

It is an interesting film.  The visuals are stunning and story grabs your attention from the beginning.  It is funny and action-packed.  I enjoyed the film and it deserves the accolades it received.

Kubo and the Two Strings (2016) 102 minutes
Director: Travis Knight
Starring: Art Parkinson as Kubo
Charlize Theron as Monkey / Sariatu
Matthew McConaughey as Beetle
Ralph Fiennes as Raiden the Moon King
Rooney Mara as Karasu and Yukami
George Takei as Hosato
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa as Hashi
Brenda Vaccaro as Kameyo

The World Is Not Enough

"I've always tried to teach you two things. First, never let them see you bleed."

"And the second?"

"Always have an escape plan."

MI-6 sends James Bond (Brosnan) to Spain to retrieve money for Sir Robert King (David Calder).  He is able to get the money, but it is booby-trapped and kills King.  M (Dench) believes the culprit is criminal Renard (Carlyle).  Renard kidnapped King's daughter Elektra (Marceau) in the past.  She escaped and then he was shot by an MI-6 agent.  The bullet did not kill him, but left him impervious to pain.

Bond is sent to protect Elektra.  She refuses his help until they are shot at while inspecting the pipeline she is building.  The pipeline was a project that her father started and it has serious opposition.  It is further complicated when Renard and his men steal plutonium from a nuclear bomb.  Bond teams up with nuclear physicist Dr. Christmas Jones (Richards) to stop the bomb.  Can they keep Renard from destroying Europe?


This is the 19th James Bond film and the third (of 4) to star Pierce Brosnan (GoldenEye, Tomorrow Never Dies, and Die Another Day).  After the action heavy GoldenEye and the gadget heavy Tomorrow Never Dies, this film feels like they finally found their groove.

This was the final Bond film for Desmond Llewelyn.  Llewelyn first appeared as Q in From Russian with Love and is the only actor to work with 5 Bonds: Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, and Brosnan.  Of the Bond staple characters: Bond, M, and Moneypenny have been portrayed by several different actors and Q was the only consistent.  Llewelyn was planning to retire after this film, so they introduced his replacement: John Cleese as R.  Cleese would continue as R in Brosnan's final turn as Bond, but he was replaced in the Daniel Craig Bond films.  Llewelyn was killed in a car accident shortly after this film premiered.

This film featured gadgets and lots of action.  It also gives a larger role to the female characters.  Judi Dench's M gets to do more and is personally invested in this case.  Sophie Marceau and Denise Richards are a large part in the action and story.  It also brings back Robbie Coltrane's Valentin Zukovsky who gets a shot a redemption.  Robert Carlyle is the main villain as Renard, a man who cannot feel anything.

Like most of the other Brosnan Bond films, this story is not based on any of Ian Fleming's Bond stories or related to anything from his life.  The story was written by Neal Purvis and Robert Wade, who co-wrote the screenplay with Bruce Feirstein.  The theme song, "The World Is Not Enough" was written by David Arnold and Don Black and performed by rock band Garbage.  I enjoy this song and singer Shirley Manson's voice.

The World Is Not Enough (1999) 128 minutes
Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of action violence, some sexuality and innuendo
Director: Michael Apted
Starring: Pierce Brosnan as James Bond
Sophie Marceau as Elektra King
Robert Carlyle as Renard
Denise Richards as Dr. Christmas Jones
Robbie Coltrane as Valentin Zukovsky
Judi Dench as M
Desmond Llewelyn as Q
John Cleese as R

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom

"Are you trying to develop a sense of humor or am I going deaf?"

In 1935, Indiana Jones (Ford) is hired by crime boss Lao Che (Roy Chiao) to obtain a priceless artifact.  Jones narrowly escapes from Che and his goons, with his young sidekick Short Round (Ke Quan) and nightclub singer Willie Scott (Capshaw).  Their plane crashes in Himalayas and they walk to the small village of Mayapore, India.

The villagers believe Shiva sent them to save the village.  Their sacred sivalinga stonen was stolen, which destroyed their land / crops and their children were stolen.  The Shaman (D. R. Nanayakkara) asks for their help and sends them to Pankot Palace, which has long been deserted and  is the source of powerful evil.  The palace is the home to the new teenage Maharaja Zalim Singh (Raj Singh).  They are welcomed into the palace by the Prime Minister Chattar Lal (Seth) and learn about the ancient Thuggee cult.  Can they esccape the palace with their lives and save the villagers?


This is the second film in the Indiana Jones franchise.  Even though it is the second film, it takes place the year before Raiders of the Lost Ark.  The writers wanted the film to take place earlier so that Nazis would not be used as the main villain.

Once again Steven Spielberg directed the film and George Lucas was involved in the story.  Lawrence Kasan who wrote Raiders of the Lost Ark refused to be involved in this film, so Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz took over the screenwriting duties.  Spielberg claims to hate the end result of this movie, feeling that the only redeeming quality is that he met his future wife, Kate Capshaw, while filming.  This film is much darker than it's predecessor.  It is also disgusting, especially the palace dinner and the Thugee rituals that follow.

This was the first time I watched the film from the beginning and in it's entirety in one sitting.  I have seen the film many times, but I tend to only watch parts.

Once again Harrison Ford is good as Indiana Jones.  Lucas and Spielberg wanted him to have a different romance in each film, so they did not include Marion Ravenwood.  They also wanted this love interest to be very different from Ravenwood.  Capshaw died her hair blonde for the role and is seen as damsel in distress unlike Ravenwood who was fought back.  Capshaw also screams throughout the film... it's realistic (as most people would scream and be terrified in this situation), but also annoying.  Jonathan Ke Quan (billed as Ke Huy Quan) is funny as Short Round and gets some funny one-lines.

This film is widely seen as the worst Indiana Jones film... until Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull.  I genuinely dislike this film, but it does have some interesting action and moments.

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) 118 minutes
Director: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones
Kate Capshaw as Willie Scott
Jonathan Ke Quan as Short Round
Amrish Puri as Mola Ram
Roshan Seth as Chattar Lal
Philip Stone as Captain Blumburtt

Captain Fantastic

"We're defined by our actions, not our words."

Ben Cash (Mortensen) is raising his six children off the grid.  They live in wilderness and are home-schooled.  They also learn survival skills such as hunting, self-defense, and living minimally.  Ben and his wife Leslie (MacKay) were not interested in the typical American life and dreamed of something more for their children.  When oldest son Bodevan (MacKay) was very young, they moved away from society and started anew.  Leslie is suffering from Bipolar disorder and was institutionalized away from the family, leaving Ben as the sole authority over their brood: sons Bodevan, Rellian (Hamilton), and Nai (Shotwell) and daughters Kielyr (Isler), Vespyr (Basso), and Zaja (Crooks).

While getting supplies for the family, Ben learns that Leslie has committed suicide.  He and the children are devastated, especially when they learn that Leslie's parents refuse to follow her wishes for a service and burial.  Her parents, Jack (Langella) and Abigail (Dowd), hate Ben and the life he has chosen for their grandchildren.  With the threat of imprisonment, hanging over him, can Ben say good-bye to his wife and find a way to make a life for his children?


Director Matt Ross wrote this film as he questioned the choices he was making as a father.  The film looks at difficult problems that parents face.  What do they tell their children and what things do they shield them from.  They show the differences between Ben's style of telling the kids everything (they ask anything and he explains it) with Harper and Dave's style of avoiding certain details / language in front of their children.  It never portrays the homeschooling as a negative and makes the children well-rounded and far more interesting than their traditional-schooled counterparts.  If nothing else, this film shows the positives of homeschooling, while still advocating for a rounded education / more socialization.  Many of my friends homeschool their children and are part of co-opts that allow the kind of education they want and the opportunity for their children to connect with other children in their age-group.  The film also doesn't shy away from portraying intense grief and it can be hard to watch.

The children are all entertaining.  British actor George MacKay is 24 and plays the 18 year old Bo.  He has appeared in films since 2003.  Samantha Isler is 18 and is best known for her role in TV's Sean Saves the World, here she is oldest daughter / budding singer Kielyr.  Annalise Basso is also 18 and has acted in TV and movies since she was 10, and plays adventurous daughter Vespyr.  Australian actor Nicholas Hamilton is 16 and plays rebellious son Rellian.  Shree Crooks has appeared on TV shows Ray Donovan and American Horror Story, here she is precocious daughter Zaja.  And Charlie Shotwell plays youngest son Nai, he started acting in 2014.

Viggo Mortensen is nominated for an Oscar for Best Actor for his role in this film.  He is great here, but it probably won't be enough to give him the win.

Overall, it is an interesting and intense film and deserves to have a larger audience.

Captain Fantastic (2016) 118 minutes
Rating: R for language and brief graphic nudity
Director: Matt Ross
Starring: Viggo Mortensen as Ben Cash
George MacKay as Bodevan "Bo" Cash
Samantha Isler as Kielyr Cash
Annalise Basso as Vespyr Cash
Nicholas Hamilton as Rellian Cash
Shree Crooks as Zaja Cash
Charlie Shotwell as Nai Cash
Kathryn Hahn as Harper
Trin Miller as Leslie Abigail Cash
Steve Zahn as Dave
Elijah Stevenson as Justin
Teddy Van Ee as Jackson
Erin Moriarty as Claire
Missi Pyle as Ellen
Frank Langella as Jack
Ann Dowd as Abigail

Tomorrow Never Dies

"The distance between insanity and genius is measured only by success."

The British HMS Devonshire is patrolling in the South China Sea.  Their satellite says they are fine, but they come under attack by the Chinese.  In the scuffle, their boat is damaged by a third ship, which kills the entire crew of the Devonshire.  The third ship belongs to media mogul Elliot Carver (Price), who uses the knowledge to publish the story before the competition.

MI-6 believes Carver is involved in the incident and sends James Bond (Brosnan) to investigate.  Bond used to date Carver's wife, Paris (Hatcher), and they want to use that connection to get information.  Paris is still bitter about the way their relationship ended and refuses to help.  Carver is planning something big, with cyberterrorist Henry Gupta (Jay), which is being carried out by his assassin Richard Stamper (Otto).  The Chinese and Americans are also looking for answers.  China sends Colonel Wai Lin (Yeoh) to infiltrate Carver's team, while the Americans send CIA agent Jack Wade (Baker) to help Bond.  Can Bond and Lin prevent war between China and Britain?


This is the 18th James Bond film, and Pierce Brosnan's second film as Bond.  It is both a timely and dated story.  The villain owns a media empire which is the main source of news for most of the characters (and the world) in the film... and in that way, it is very true to now: most people get their news from 24-7 news channels (like CNN, which is name checked in the film).  But some of the techniques are dated, 10+ years later.  This is an original story, and was the first Bond film that does not take anything (except the names of the Bond regulars) from Ian Fleming's novels or life.  The story was written by Bruce Feirstein, he also co-wrote the screenplays for GoldenEye and The World Is Not Enough.

The music for this film was composed by David Arnold.  John Barry turned down the film after he learned that someone else would write the opening credits song.  Arnold did write the song "Surrender" which k.d. lang performs during the closing credits.  The theme song "Tomorrow Never Dies" was written and performed by Sheryl Crow.  The song is not memorable and did not chart in the U.S.

The action in this film is good, especially the motorcycle scene (pictured above).  Michelle Yeoh is great as Wai Lin and apparently she performed many of her own stunts.  Pierce Brosnan returns for his second of four turns as Bond.  He continues to do a good job as Bond.  Judi Dench returns as M, but does not have a huge role in this film.  And Joe Don Baker returns as CIA agent Jack Wade, with a similar role as in GoldenEye.  Jonathan Price is a good villain, but not as memorable as other villains in the franchise.  Apparently Teri Hatcher was pregnant while making this film, but you can't tell.

Overall, it is a decent Bond outing... but again, not my favorite (and not the best of the Brosnan Bond films).

Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) 119 minutes
Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of action violence, sexuality and innuendo
Director: Roger Spottiswoode
Starring: Pierce Brosnan as James Bond
Jonathan Price as Elliot Carver
Michelle Yeoh as Colonel Wai Lin
Teri Hatcher as Paris Carver
Joe Don Baker as Jack Wade
Ricky Jay as Henry Gupta
Gotz Otto as Richard Stamper
Desmond Llewelyn as Q
Judi Dench as M

La La Land

"People love what other people are passionate about."

Mia Dolan (Stone) is a struggling actress.  She lives with three other aspiring actresses: Alexis (Rothe), Caitlyn (Mizuno), and Tracy (Hernandez), and works in a coffee shop on the Warner Brothers Studios lot.  While walking home after a party, she hears a jazz song and enters the restaurant where she first sees Sebastian (Gosling).  Sebastian Wilder is a jazz musician with dreams of opening his own jazz club, but spends his time playing piano wherever he can.

Sebastian and Mia officially meet a few months later at a party.  They have a spark and start to spend time together, sharing their dreams for the future.  Their relationship sparks both to make big life changes.  Mia is inspired to quit her job and start writing a play.  Sebastian joins a pop-jazz group, led by his old friend Keith (Legend), to make money for his club.  Can their relationship survive success and pursuing their dreams?


I just saw this film (my first film in theaters in 2017).  Prior to seeing it, I saw a clip of Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone dancing (during the song "A Lovely Night") and I knew it was a musical.  I also knew that it won a record 7 Golden Globes and most people that it (meaning, my friends who saw it) were disappointed with the ending, but otherwise I went into the film blind.  And I am so glad I did.

I love musicals and this film does not disappoint.  The songs are written by Justin Hurwitz and are beautiful.  "City of Stars" and "Mia and Sebastian's Theme" are standouts, but all of the songs are great.  The song lyrics are by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul.  John Legend, who also appears in the film as Keith, wrote and performed the song "Start a Fire" in the film (he also learned to play the guitar).  Ryan Gosling took piano lessons and memorized the songs, so that he could play the piano in the film.  The film also features wonderful jazz performers.

All three films that director Damien Chazelle directed (Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench and Whiplash) are focused on jazz musicians.  He also wrote all three films.  Chazelle won 2 Golden Globes for this film, Best Director and Best Screenplay, and has been nominated for several other awards for this film.

The dancing is also wonderful in this film.  All of the dances were choreographed by Mandy Moore (not the actress).  Moore is best known for her choreography on the TV show So You Think You Can Dance.  The film is colorful and fun from the beginning, but it doesn't shy away from showing some depth and emotion.  It skirts the line between reality and a dream successfully.

The cast is great.  The film focuses on Emma Stone's Mia and Gosling's Sebastian, and as usual both are great here.  This is the third film collaboration between Stone and Gosling (after Crazy, Stupid Love and Gangster Squad).  They have great chemistry and are good with the singing and dancing.  Gosling was on the Mickey Mouse Club and part of a band, and Stone starred in "Cabaret" on Broadway, so both have the musical talents.  The rest of the cast pops in and out of the film as the important/influential people in their lives.  J.K. Simmons, who won the Oscar for Chazelle's Whiplash, has a brief cameo as Sebastian's jazz-hating boss.

I truly enjoyed this film.  The music and dancing are great, and reminiscent of classic musicals (think Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire films).  And I hope it does well at the 2017 Academy Awards.

La La Land (2016) 128 minutes
Rating: PG-13 for some language
Director: Damien Chazelle
Starring: Ryan Gosling as Sebastian Wilder
Emma Stone as Mia Dolan
John Legend as Keith
Rosemarie DeWitt as Laura
Jessica Rothe as Alexis
Sonoya Mizuno as Caitlyn
Callie Hernandez as Tracy

Walt & El Grupo

In 1941, as tensions between the United States and Germany heated up, the government asked Walt Disney to do a good will tour of some countries in South America.  Disney doesn't want to just go, he wants to take a team from his studio and make films about South America that will be financed by the government.  He is dealing with an animators strike and needs a break.  He hand selects a team from the studio, including one animator (Frank Thomas) and a musician (Charles Wolcott), and they set out on a three month trip.

The trip begins in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil where they fall in love with the song "Aquarela do Brasil" by Ary Barroso.  Then they went to Buenos Aires, Argentina where they bond with the Djibantes (Argentinian cartoonists).  Then they took short trips to Montevideo in Uruguay to attend the premiere of Fantasia, Peru to see the Incan civilizations, and finally a few days in Santiago, Chile.  Will their trip garner the U.S. new allies, or will South America side with the Axis Powers during WWII?  And can the Disney studio survive the animator strike?


My grandparents had an extensive collection of Disney films (animated and live-action).  One of the those in the collection was Three Caballeros, which focuses on Mexico.  It has some beautiful artwood and is a fun film.  Disney made 2 anthology films about the cultures of South America: Saludos Amigos and Three Caballeros.  Both film feature Donald Duck interacting with his feathered friends in South America.  This documentary tells the story behind those films and why they were made.

This film is clearly a labor of love.  The writer and director of this film, Theodore Thomas, is the son of animator Frank Thomas.  This is his second documentary about Frank Thomas, he also directed the 1995 documentary Ollie and Frank about the last two members of Disney's "Nine Old Men:" Thomas and Ollie Johnston.  The film includes interviews with the family members of the El Grupo (the team that went on the trip).  They share memories, parts of letters, and photographs.  There are home movies and an interview with Walt Disney.

The camera also travels back to the locations the El Grupo visited.  And they interview the family members of the influential people they met: Ary Barroso's children, the folk dancers from Argentina, their collaborator in Chile, etc.  These perspectives and memories add to the film.

It is an interesting film and definitely makes me want to watch Saludos Amigos and re-watch Three Caballeros.

Walt & El Grupo (2008) 106 minutes

Director: Theodore Thomas

Starring: Walt Disney
Lee Blair
Mary Blair
Jim Bodrero
Jack Cutting
Lillian Disney
Norm Ferguson
Larry Lansburgh
Janet Martin Lansburgh
Jack Parr Miller
Herb Ryman

Ted Sears
Webb Smith

Frank Thomas
Charles Wolcott

Raiders of the Lost Ark

"Oh, my friends!  I'm so please you're not dead!"

Indiana Jones (Ford) is a respected archaeologist at Marshall College.  He also acquires artifacts for museums.  After his latest find is taken by rival archaeologist Dr. Rene Belloq (Freeman), he is approached by two military intelligence agents.  They are looking for his former mentor, Abner Ravenwood.  They intercepted communication that the Nazis were looking for Ravenwood and his expertise about the Ark of the Covenant.  Indy and old friend/museum curator Dr. Marcus Brody (Elliott) are excited by the prospect of finding the Ark, so Indy heads to Nepal.

In Nepal he learns that Ravenwood has died, and the artifact he had is now in the possession of his daughter, Marion Ravenwood (Allen) who runs a tavern.  Marion and Indy have a history and she refuses to help him.  The Nazis, led by Colonel Dietrich (Kahler) and interrogator Major Arnold Toht (Lacey), find Marion and force her cooperation.  They burn down the tavern and take the artifact, while Indy rescues Marion and they start their own search for the Ark.  The Nazi dig is led by Belloq, so Indy turns to his friend Sallah (Rhys-Davies) to start their dig in Cairo.


In 1973, George Lucas and Steven Spielberg came up with the idea for this film.  Lucas wrote the story with Philip Kaufman and Lawrence Kasdan wrote the screenplay.  They planned to make a trilogy, with Lucas writing and Spielberg directing.  They made 3 more Indiana Jones films: Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.  This is the film that launched the franchise and many people consider it to be the best of the bunch.

Harrison Ford is the perfect actor to portray Indiana Jones.  It is hard to picture anyone else in the role.  They tried to revamp the series in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull to make Shia LaBeouf the new lead, but fans were unwilling to see the role / franchise go to anyone else.  Ford is gritty and athletic, with just the right amount of humor/sarcasm.  Denhold Elliott is great as Brody (even better in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade) as is John Rhys-Davies as Sallah.

It is a great adventure film and franchise.  The villains are just evil enough.  The action is good, the mystery is good.  It's hard to fault this film, it's become iconic and a part of popular culture.

Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) 115 minutes
Director: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones
Paul Freeman as Dr. Rene Belloq
Karen Allen as Marion Ravenwood
John Rhys-Davies as Sallah
Ronald Lacey as Major Arnold Toht
Denholm Elliott as Dr. Marcus Brody
Wolf Kahler as Colonel Dietrich

Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit

"Father forgive us, we know EXACTLY what we do"

Deloris Van Cartier (Goldberg) has successfully transformed her experiences with the nuns into a Las Vegas show.  She is surprised when the Mother Superior (Smith) asks for her help.  She, Sister Mary Patrick (Najimy), Sister Mary Lazarus (Wickes), and Sister Mary Robert (Makkena) are now teachers at St. Francis Academy in San Francisco.  The school is struggling and needs lots of help.  They ask Deloris to once again put on the habit and be Sister Mary Clarence to teach the music class.  She reluctantly agrees, even though it means living the facade both in and out of the classroom to fool the monks that they teach with: Father Maurice (Hughes) the principal, friendly math teacher Father Ignatius (Jeter), grouchy Latin teacher Father Thomas (Sullivan), and cook Father Wolfgang (Gottschalk).

The music class is a disaster.  The students think it is an easy course: show up, do whatever you want, and you'll pass.  They have no respect for Deloris or the course.  She forces some order and discovers that they can sing, so she turns them into a choir.  The school administrator, Mr. Crisp (Coburn), tells the faculty that the school will close at the end of the term, so Deloris rallies them to try to save the school.  Meanwhile, she has to wrangle the egos and fears of the class, including diva Rita Watson (Hill).  Can the come together to save the school?


This is the sequel to 1992's Sister Act.  After that film was a success, Disney wanted to make a sequel and talked Whoopi Goldberg into returning to the role.  All of the nuns return to perform "Ball of Confusion (That's What the World is Today)".  The main nuns from the previous film also return: Maggie Smith as Mother Superior, Kathy Najimy as Sister Mary Patrick, Mary Wickes as Sister Mary Lazarus, and Wendy Makkena as Sister Mary Robert.

The returning women are joined by an eccentric group of men.  Veteran actor James Coburn is imposing as Mr. Crisp.  The monks are interesting but don't take away from the women you already love.  Thomas Gottschalk was the host of the German show Wetten, dass...?.  He won his role after he won a bet with Goldberg.  He is funny here and adds to the crazy of the monks.  They are also joined by some talented teens.  Many of them had backgrounds in television or music.  Lauryn Hill, who plays Rita, is an accomplished singer as both a singer and a member of a group.  Jennifer Love Hewitt plays Margaret and went on to be a TV and movie star.  And Goldberg's daughter Alex Martin plays one of the students.

It is an entertaining film.  Again, it is a clean family film with some great music.  I prefer the original, but this is still fun.  The fashions and slang are very 1990s and dated, but that doesn't take away from the film.

Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit (1993) 107 minutes
Director: Bill Duke
Starring: Whoopi Goldberg as Deloris Van Cartier / Sister Mary Clarence
Kathy Najimy as Sister Mary Patrick
Barnard Hughes as Father Maurice
Mary Wickes as Sister Mary Lazarus
James Coburn as Mr. Crisp
Michael Jeter as Father Ignatius
Wendy Makkena as Sister Mary Robert
Sheryl Lee Ralph as Florence Watson
Robert Pastorelli as Joey
Thomas Gottschalk as Father Wolfgang
Maggie Smith as Mother Superior
Lauryn Hill as Rita Watson
Brad Sullivan as Father Thomas
Alanna Ubach as Maria
Ryan Toby as Ahmal
Jennifer Love Hewitt as Margaret
Devin Kamin as Frankie
Christian McVeigh as Tyler Chase
Tanya Blount as Tanya

Sister Act

"You took a vow of hospitality for all in need."

"I lied."

Deloris (Goldberg) is a lounge singer in Reno.  She headlines at the Moonlight Lounge, while dating the married owner Vince LaRocca (Keitel).  Things are going well, but he refuses to divorce his wife.  When she goes to confront him and end their relationship, she witnesses his bodyguards Joey (Miranda) and Willy (Portnow) kill the chauffeur.  She runs directly to the police station and agrees to testify against Vince, if Lieutenant Eddie Souther (Nunn) can keep her alive.

Souther sends her to St. Katherine's Parish in San Francisco.  She is expected to live as a nun in the convent for a few months until it is safe to come back and testify.  She is renamed Sister Mary Clarence and immediately clashes with the Mother Superior (Smith), who reluctantly agrees to the arrangement when the police agree to donate money to their struggling church.  As Sister Mary Clarence, her job is to help their choir.  The choir is under the direction of the strict Sister Mary Lazarus (Wickes) and is terrible.  They don't sing at the same pace or key.  Can Deloris transform the choir and survive long enough to testify?


I grew up watching and enjoying this film.  It's a fun, comedy-musical.  I hesitate to call it a musical, since the characters only sing as part of the choir or on a stage/performance setting; no one randomly breaks into song.  The songs featured were originally performed by popular girl groups or are traditional religious songs, but presented as an upbeat all female choir.  The songs are fun and are stuck in your head after the film ends.

The cast is great.  Whoopi Goldberg shines as Deloris.  She is perfectly cast as the sarcastic and lovable Deloris / Sister Mary Clarence.  Maggie Smith is always wonderful and here she is Goldberg's foil as the Reverend Mother (some sites call her Reverend Mother while others call her Mother Superior).  Kathy Najimy is hilarious as the bubbly Sister Mary Patrick.  And Mary Wickes is equally entertaining as Sister Mary Lazarus.  Wendy Makkena is the shy but talented Sister Mary Robert, with a powerful voice (apparently her singing was done by Andrea Robinson).  The rest of the female cast are endearing in their roles.

The film was popular enough to get a sequel Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit, with Goldberg, Smith, Najimy, Makkena, and Wickes returning.  It was also turned into a successful musical (story by Glenn Slater and music by Alan Menken).  The show opened on the West End in 2009 with Patina Miller in the lead role.  In 2011 the show went to Broadway, with Miller in the lead and Goldberg as a producer.  Both iterations of the show were nominated for awards (Laurence Olivier Awards, Tony Awards, and Drama Desk Awards), but did not win any.

Sister Act (1992) 100 minutes
Director: Emile Ardolino
Starring: Whoopi Goldberg as Deloris Van Cartier / Sister Mary Clarence
Maggie Smith as Mother Superior
Kathy Najimy as Sister Mary Patrick
Wendy Makkena as Sister Mary Robert
Mary Wickes as Sister Mary Lazarus
Bill Nunn as Lieutenant Eddie Souther
Harvey Keitel as Vince LaRocca
Robert Miranda as Joey
Richard Portnow as Willy
Rose Parenti as Sister Alma
Joseph Maher as Monsignor O'Hara

Spies Like Us

"We need a plan."

"Let's play dead."

The U.S. government needs a diversion to allow their top operatives to complete a dangerous mission.  Agents Ruby (Davidson) and Keyes (Prince) are tasked with finding 2 GLG-20 agents to play the patsies.  They use the upcoming GLG-20 foreign operatives exam to make their selection and find Austin Millbarge (Aykroyd) and Emmett Fitz-Hume (Chase).  Millbarge is a skilled code-breaker who learns about the test hours before he is supposed to take it.  Fitz-Hume comes from a long line of foreign operatives and has failed the exam many times.  Their antics during the test, which include Fitz-Hume openly cheating, secure their role in the mission.

They are rushed through basic training and sent on a secret mission in Afghanistan.  They don't have any details about the mission, no weapons and no back-up.  They stumble onto a team of British doctors, led by Jerry Hadley (McKeown) and Karen Boyer (Dixon).  Fitz-Hume is instantly smitten with Boyer and their cover is quickly blown and they are back on the run.  Can they figure out the mission and save the day?


The film is inspired by the Bing Crosby and Bob Hope "Road to" movies (Road to Singapore, Road to Zanzibar, Road to Morocco, Road to Utopia, Road to Rio, Road to Bali, and The Road to Hong Kong).  To honor that, Bob Hope has a brief cameo in the film (which is also a call back to the 1980 Chevy Chase film Caddyshack).

The story was written by star Dan Aykroyd, Lowell Ganz, and Babaloo Mandel.  It was initially planned as a Aykroyd and John Belushi film, but was re-written for Chase after Belushi's death.  Chase and Aykroyd previously worked together on the first season of Saturday Night Live, and Aykroyd is married to co-star Donna Dixon (who plays Chase's love interest).

The film is funny, but dated.  At the time, it starred two of the biggest names in comedy and was a timely story.  The comedy is still fine, but otherwise it isn't as relevant now.  It has ardent fans and fun I didn't love it

Spies Like Us (1985) 102 minutes
Director: John Landis
Starring: Chevy Chase as Emmett Fitz-Hume
Dan Aykroyd as Austin Millbarge
Donna Dixon as Karen Boyer
Bruce Davidson as Ruby
William Prince as Keyes
Steve Forrest as General Sine
Tom Hatten as General Miegs
Bernie Casey as Colonel Rhumbus
Charles McKeown as Jerry Hadley

Who Gets the Dog?

Clay Lonnergan (Kwanten) and Olive Greene (Silverstone) are getting divorced.  Olive, a doctor, is keeping the house and plans to keep their dog Wesley.  Clay is a semi-professional hockey player and also plans to keep Wesley.  He plans to live in a trailer in the woods.  They aren't willing to share, so they try to get the dog to choose.  When that doesn't work, they go to court.

The judge awards temporary custody to Olive, with visitation rights for Clay.  They also have to see Dr. Wendy (Carle), a dog doctor, who will do home visits to evaluate them.  They also have to take Wesley to obedience school, which is run by Glenn (Batinkoff), who is interested in Olive.  Their best friends Libby (Cerda) and Rhett (Ryan) try to help the situation and act as sounding boards.  Rhett and Clay also coach a children's hockey, where Clay bonds with Rhett's nephew Koji (Bethea).  Can they find a way to share Wesley?


I love Ryan Kwanten films.  I discovered this romantic comedy on Netflix and decided to give it a shot.  It is a cute and unoffending film.

Kwanten and Alicia Silverstone have good chemistry.  They are both good leads and the dog is cute.  However, it is easy to see where the film is going.  It isn't great and parts are slow, but it also isn't terrible.  There is potential here... with a stronger script and better direction, this film could be great.  The leads are likeable, the story just doesn't give them enough to work with.

Who Gets the Dog? (2016) 95 minutes
Director: Huck Botko
Starring: Ryan Kwanten as Clay Lonnergan
Alicia Silverstone as Olive Greene
Randall Batinkoff as Glenn Hannon
Matty Ryan as Rhett
Rachel Cerda as Libby
Devin Bethea as Koji
Amy J. Carle as Dr. Wendy