A Monster Calls

Review by Bob Ignizio

If you've seen the trailer for A MONSTER CALLS, it looks like your typical awe and wonder magical realism dreck about a boy and his giant tree creature friend. Don't get me wrong. The film, directed by J.A. Bayona from a script by Patrick Ness (adapted from his award winning book), does center on a young English boy, Conor (Lewis MacDougall). And Conor does in fact associate with a giant tree monster (the voice of Liam Neeson). But there are no humorous capers or uplifting lessons about being true to oneself or whatever harmless pablum that passes for a message in most modern kid's films.

Instead, the tree monster shows up to share 3 stories with Conor, in return for which Conor must share a 4th story, that of his recurring nightmare. The stories the tree monster tells are complex and morally ambiguous, seeking to teach the young boy how to understand the often contradictory aspects of the human condition. These stories, depicted in an animation style that resembles watercolors come to life, all have some connection to Conor's current situation in the real world.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

By George M. Thomas

Felicity Jones and Diego Luna in ROGUE ONE: A STAR

WARS STORY.

Whether a standalone flick free of the Skywalker Chronicles could satisfy the hunger of rabid STAR WARS fans has been a question of debate since the first trilogy wrapped way back when.

It’s been answered with ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY.

If you combine reasonably compelling characters, rip-roaring action, and spectacular special effects, the STAR WARS crowd will flock.  

Witness the second trilogy, after all.

There was never any doubt that there would be other films in the Star Wars Universe after Disney shelled out a reported $4 billion for George Lucas’ little baby that grew from that first set of films – just as there will be more Indiana Jones films. 

Inferno

By George M. Thomas

Tom Hanks and Felicity Jones in INFERNO.

The character of Robert Langdon and his adventures should be so much more on film.  Dan Brown’s literary creation (THE DA VINCI CODE, ANGELS & DEMONS) is the Indiana Jones for the intellectual set.

Keep in mind, acting everyman Tom Hanks portrays Langdon on the screen.  It doesn’t get much better than that.  The two-time Oscar winner is always the best aspect of any film that he’s in.

However, until now with INFERNO, the material has never been as intriguing as the character. Despite the gargantuan book sales from THE DA VINCI CODE, a sense of disappointment is accompanied when watching it. 

Keep in mind and in the interest of full disclosure, when there’s nothing much on television and I’m scanning through channels and either one of the prior Langdon films are on, I stop and watch.

INFERNO will become that as well because there are few high-minded notions with respect to this film.  Ron Howard, who directs from a script by David Koepp, keeps things relatively straight forward in Langdon’s latest adventure.

The Theory of Everything

Review by Pamela Zoslov

At the Toronto International Film Festival screening of THE THEORY OF EVERYTHING, about the relationship between the famous physicist Stephen Hawking and his first wife, Jane, Hawking's nurse could be seen wiping a tear from Hawking's cheek. That is an eloquent endorsement of this rich and moving film, directed by James Marsh from an excellent screenplay by Anthony McCarten. It is a very traditional film, very well made, and quite worthy of its subject.

Other actors have portrayed Hawking, including Benedict Cumberbatch in a well-regarded BBC film, but Eddie Redmayne captures something of Hawking's mischievous character; even when largely paralyzed, confined to a wheelchair and unable to communicate except through his now-famous voice simulator, Redmayne's Hawking has a glint in his eye and a child's sense of play. Redmayne brilliantly captures the ambitious young genius in his school days, and also realistically inhabits Hawking's physical deterioration — no small feat — after the scientist's diagnosis, at age 21, of motor neurone disease during his last year at Oxford. At the time, Hawking was given two years to live. He is now 72, his survival due in no small part to Jane's support..