MOVIE - Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald

PG-13 (2:14)

Wide release 11/16/18

Viewed 12/18/18 with Tristan
IMBd: 6.8/10

RT Critic: 38  Audience:  60
Critic's Consensus:  Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald has glimmers of the magic familiar to Harry Potter fans, but the story's spell isn't as strong as earlier installments.

Cag:  2.5

Directed by David Yates

Warner Bros. Pictures

Written by J. K. Rowling

Johnny Depp, Eddie Redmayne, Jude Law

My comments:  Okay, I admit it, I didn't know what in hell was going on most of the time.  The funny thing was, when I discussed it with Tristan afterwards, he got most of the stuff I didn't, and I had to fill him in on the stuff I got but he didn't!  It was fun watching him love this movie.  He's becoming a huge Harry Potter fan, but loves the fantastical beasts the best.  There weren't too many of them in this movie, however.  I was actually quite bored....

RT/ IMDb Summary  At the end of the first film, the powerful Dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald (Depp) was captured by MACUSA (Magical Congress of the United States of America), with the help of Newt Scamander (Redmayne). But, making good on his threat, Grindelwald escaped custody and has set about gathering followers, most unsuspecting of his true agenda: to raise pure-blood wizards up to rule over all non-magical beings. In an effort to thwart Grindelwald's plans, Albus Dumbledore (Law) enlists his former student Newt Scamander, who agrees to help, unaware of the dangers that lie ahead. Lines are drawn as love and loyalty are tested, even among the truest friends and family, in an increasingly divided wizarding world.

MOVIE - Instant Family

PG-13 (1:57)

Wide Release11/16/18

Viewed 12/18/18 at Carlisle RC with Ella
IMBd: 7.6/10

RT Critic: 82   Audience:  80
Critic's Consensus:  nstant Family may not quite capture the complexity of real-life adoption, but fittingly for the unconditional bond it honors, this flawed yet well-intentioned dramedy is ultimately worth the investment.

Cag: 5

Directed by Sean Anders

Paramount Pictures

Mark Wahlberg, Rose Byrne, Octavia Spencer, Margo Martindale

My comments:  A delightfully-cast retelling of a true story.  Rose Byrne and Mark Wahlberg have definite onscreen chemistry.  The two social workers are fantastic - and so, so funny, and the cast of other new foster parents are just wonderful.  I laughed a lot, came close to shedding a few tears - though my softy Ella sure did, happy tears.  A super feel-good movie that I would highly recommend.

RT/ IMDb Summary  When Pete (Mark Wahlberg) and Ellie (Rose Byrne) decide to start a family, they stumble into the world of foster care adoption. They hope to take in one small child but when they meet three siblings, including a rebellious 15 year old girl (Isabela Moner), they find themselves speeding from zero to three kids overnight. Now, Pete and Ellie must hilariously try to learn the ropes of instant parenthood in the hopes of becoming a family. INSTANT FAMILY is inspired by the real events from the life of writer/director Sean Anders and also stars Octavia Spencer, Tig Notaro and Margo Martindale.

MOVIE - Mortal Engines

PG-13 (1:51)

Wide release 12/14/18

Viewed 12/14/18 in Camp Hill
IMBd: 6.4/10

RT Critic:  26  Audience:  59
Critic's Consensus:  Mortal Engines has no shortage of eye-catching special effects, but lacks enough high-octane narrative fuel to give this futuristic fantasy sufficient cinematic combustion.

Cag:  1.5

Directed by Christian Rivers

Universal Pictures

Based on the book by Philip Reeve

My comments:  Excruciatingly long and really quite boring, no surprises, over-acted.  Maybe if I had read the book?  Not impressed.

RT/ IMDb Summary:  Hundreds of years after civilization was destroyed by a cataclysmic event, a mysterious young woman, Hester Shaw (Hera Hilmar), emerges as the only one who can stop London -- now a giant, predator city on wheels -- from devouring everything in its path. Feral, and fiercely driven by the memory of her mother, Hester joins forces with Tom Natsworthy (Robert Sheehan), an outcast from London, along with Anna Fang (Jihae), a dangerous outlaw with a bounty on her head.

MOVIE - The Girl in the Spider's Web

R

Wide/Limited release

Viewed Monday 11/19/18 at Carlisle in a recliner...by myself....
IMBd:  6.1/10

RT Critic: 41   Audience:  46
Critic's Consensus:  The Girl in the Spider's Web focuses on the action elements of its source material for a less complex -- and only sporadically effective -- franchise reboot.

Cag:  3/Liked it somewhat

Directed by Fede Alvarez

Columbia Pictures

Based on the book by Steig Larson/David Lagercrantz

Claire Foy

My comments:  There were so many improbabilities and unreasonable happenstances in this movie that it became more than ludicrous.  However, if you didn't think about all of them, it was and enjoyable couple of hours.....  The actress that played Lisbeth Salander did NOT do it for me.  At all.

RT/ IMDb Summary:  Young computer hacker Lisbeth Salander and journalist Mikael Blomkvist find themselves caught in a web of spies, cybercriminals and corrupt government officials.

MOVIE - The Bookshop

PG (1:53)

Limited release 8/24/18

Viewed 10/25/18 at Carlisle Downtown Theater with Gunner and Sandy

RT Critic: 54   Audience:  48
Critic's Consensus:  A rare adaptation that sticks too closely to its source material, The Bookshop's meticulously crafted world building gets lost in its meandering pace.

Cag:  1.5  Didn't like it at all

Directed by Isabel Coixet

Greenwich Entertainment

Emily Mortimer, Bill Nighy, Patricia Clarkson

RT/ IMDb Summary:  England, 1959. Free-spirited widow Florence Green (Emily Mortimer) risks everything to open a bookshop in a conservative East Anglian coastal town. While bringing about a surprising cultural awakening through works by Ray Bradbury and Vladimir Nabokov, she earns the polite but ruthless opposition of a local grand dame (Patricia Clarkson) and the support and affection of a reclusive book loving widower (Bill Nighy). As Florence's obstacles amass and bear suspicious signs of a local power struggle, she is forced to ask: is there a place for a bookshop in a town that may not want one? Based on Penelope Fitzgerald's acclaimed novel and directed by Isabel Coixet (Learning to Drive), The Bookshop is an elegant yet incisive rendering of personal resolve, tested in the battle for the soul of a community.

MOVIE - Puzzle

R (1:43)

Limited release 7/27/18

Viewed 10/16/18 at Gettysburg Majestic

RT Critic: 83   Audience:  83
Critic's Consensus:  Puzzle transcends its quirky premise with honest emotion -- and Kelly Macdonald, whose nicely understated performance proves she's too often underutilized.

Cag:  4.5

Directed by Marc Turtletaub

Sony Pictures Classic

My comments:  An interesting, thoughtful, very believable movie about good people with good intentions, but with different expectations.  One of those movies that make you think a lot.

RT/ IMDb Summary:  PUZZLE is a closely observed portrait of Agnes, who has reached her early 40s without ever venturing far from home, family or the tight-knit immigrant community in which she was raised by her widowed father. That begins to change in a quietly dramatic fashion when Agnes receives a jigsaw puzzle as a birthday gift and experiences the heady thrill of not only doing something she enjoys, but being very, very good at it.

MOVIE - Smallfoot

PG (1:49)

Wide RELEASE 9/28/18

Viewed 10/1/2018 with Tristan

RT Critic: 75   Audience:  65
Critic's Consensus:  Smallfootoffers a colorful distraction that should keep younger viewers entertained - and a story whose message might even resonate with older audiences.

Cag:  2

Directed by Karey Kirkpatrick

Warner Brothers

Channing Tatum

My comments:  Actually fell asleep, a first....

RT/ IMDb Summary  An animated adventure for all ages, with original music and an all-star cast, Smallfoot turns the Bigfoot legend upside down when a bright young Yeti finds something he thought didn't exist -- a human. News of this Smallfoot throws the simple Yeti community into an uproar over what else might be out there in the big world beyond their snowy village, in an all new story about friendship, courage and the joy of discovery.

MOVIE - A Simple Favor

R (1:56)

Wide release 9/14/18

Viewed 9/18/2018

RT Critic: 85   Audience:  77
Critic's Consensus:  Twisty, twisted, and above all simply fun, A Simple Favor casts a stylish mommy noir spell strengthened by potent performances from Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively.

Cag:  4.5
Directed by Paul Feig

Lionsgate 

Anna Kendrick, Blake Lively, Henry Golding

My comments:   This was a really cool, interesting movie that I liked a lot.  You knew right from the beginning that this was going to be bizarre, and it ended up being well acted as well as having an intriguing storyline.  I went to see it because of Anna Kendrick, but having Blake Lively and Henry Golding as the other protagonists made it just perfect.  Greatly enjoyed.

RT/ IMDb Summary  A SIMPLE FAVOR, a stylish post-modern film noir directed by Paul Feig, centers around Stephanie (Anna Kendrick), a mommy blogger who seeks to uncover the truth behind her best friend Emily's (Blake Lively) sudden disappearance from their small town. Stephanie is joined by Emily's husband Sean (Henry Golding) in this thriller filled with twists and betrayals, secrets and revelations, love and loyalty, murder and revenge.

MOVIE - BlackKklansman

R (2:15)

Wide release 8/10/18

Viewed 9/12/2018

RT Critic: 95  Audience:  82
Critic's Consensus:  BlacKkKlansman uses history to offer bitingly trenchant commentary on current events -- and brings out some of Spike Lee's hardest-hitting work in decades along the way.

Cag:  5

Directed by Spike Lee

Focus Features

John David Washington, Adam Driver, Topher Grace

My comments:  So many emotions filled me as I watched this movie - outrage, disbelief, laughter.  I was so appalled because I don't want to realize the prejudices that some people feel so incredibly strongly.  It's........sick.  The movie was quite brilliant, but I thought it would be more of a comedy, not realizing how incredibly difficult it would be to watch.  Wow.  And I do adore Adam Driver.

RT/ IMDb Summary:  From visionary filmmaker Spike Lee comes the incredible true story of an American hero. It's the early 1970s, and Ron Stallworth (John David Washington) is the first African-American detective to serve in the Colorado Springs Police Department. Determined to make a name for himself, Stallworth bravely sets out on a dangerous mission: infiltrate and expose the Ku Klux Klan. The young detective soon recruits a more seasoned colleague, Flip Zimmerman (Adam Driver), into the undercover investigation of a lifetime. Together, they team up to take down the extremist hate group as the organization aims to sanitize its violent rhetoric to appeal to the mainstream. Produced by the team behind the Academy-Award (R) winning Get Out.

MOVIE - Crazy Rich Americans

PG-13 (2:00)

Wide release 8-15-18

Viewed 9/9/18 at Carlisle 8 with Ella

RT Critic: 92   Audience:  79
Critic's Consensus:  With a terrific cast and a surfeit of visual razzle dazzle, Crazy Rich Asians takes a satisfying step forward for screen representation while deftly drawing inspiration from the classic -- and still effective -- rom-com formula.

Cag:  4.5 So much fun!

Directed by Jon M. Chu

Warner Brothers Pictures

Henry Golding, Constance Wu

My comments:  This is a fun movie that highlights the city of Singapore, making it look glitzy and decadent and over the top.  I wonder how much of this is real?  A very enjoyable movie with a lot of comic relief balancing out the decadence and snobbishness of the rich.  Ella enjoyed it a lot, and snuggled with me in the recliner throughout the movie, which was the best part of it all!

RT/ IMDb Summary:  "Crazy Rich Asians" follows native New Yorker Rachel Chu (Wu) as she accompanies her longtime boyfriend, Nick Young (Golding), to his best friend's wedding in Singapore. Excited about visiting Asia for the first time but nervous about meeting Nick's family, Rachel is unprepared to learn that Nick has neglected to mention a few key details about his life. It turns out that he is not only the scion of one of the country's wealthiest families but also one of its most sought-after bachelors. Being on Nick's arm puts a target on Rachel's back, with jealous socialites and, worse, Nick's own disapproving mother (Yeoh) taking aim. And it soon becomes clear that while money can't buy love, it can definitely complicate things.

MOVIE - Beautifully Broken

PG-13 (1:48)

Limited release 8/24/18

Viewed 9/2/18 at Gettysburg Outlet Mall

RT Critic: 67   Audience:  94
Critic's Consensus:  There was none for this one

Cag:  4.5

Directed by Eric Welch

ArtAffects Entertainment

Based on a true story

My comments:  A tearjerker.  The retelling of the story of three families and the genocide in Rwanda beginning in 1994.  Two of the families are very religious, and there's a strong Christian belief-in-God that makes up part of the foundation of the story.  But even for a non-believer -- this non-believer in particular -- the story was more than righteous.  We can all help.  We can all make a difference in the world.  All it takes is a little love, a little compassion, a little understanding, and a dose of hope.  With or without religion, doesn't matter.  I love the way all three stories intertwined - and if it weren't true I would definitely say there were too many coincidences!  At the end, just before the credits, it explains what happened to the people involved in the story and then ends with a wonderful message from one of the protagonists.
Legacy Mission Village, First Presbyterian Church of Nashville.

RT/ IMDb Summary:  A refugee's escape, a prisoner's promise, and a daughter's painful secret all converge, causing their lives to become intertwined in ways they could have never imagined. As three fathers fight to save their families, they are led on an unlikely journey across the globe, where they learn the healing power of forgiveness and reconciliation.

MOVIE - Three Identical Strangers

PG-13 (1:36)

Limited release 6/29/17

Viewed 8/16/18 with Sandy at Carlisle Theater
IMBd:  7.7

RT Critic: 96   Audience:  88
Critic's Consensus:  Surreal and surprising, Three Identical Strangers effectively questions the nature of reality and identity.

Cag:  3.5

Directed by Tim Wardle

NEON

My comments:  A documentary that starts out with great exuberance and gets darker and darker as the layers of these three guys' stories are peeled.  Nature versus nurture.  Three identical triplets, separated at birth ... what happens when they "meet" each other 20 years later?  A true story.  I had no idea going into this that it was a documentary or any idea about anything other than that it was about triplets, which added to the experience.  Quite fascinating, actually.

RT/ IMDb Summary  Three strangers are reunited by astonishing coincidence after being born identical triplets, separated at birth, and adopted by three different families. Their jaw-dropping, feel-good story instantly becomes a global sensation complete with fame and celebrity, however, the fairy-tale reunion sets in motion a series of events that unearth an unimaginable secret -- a secret with radical repercussions for us all.

MOVIE - The Spy Who Dumped Me

R (1:16)

Wide release 8/3/18

Viewed 8/12/18
IMBd:  6/10

RT Critic:  49   Audience:  61
Critic's Consensus:  The Spy Who Dumped Me isn't the funniest or most inventive spy comedy, but Kate McKinnon remains as compulsively watchable as ever.

Cag:  2.5 (Not a total waste of time...)

Directed by Susanna Fogel

Lionsgate

Mila Lunis, Kate McKinnon, Justin Theroux

My comments:  Really, really stupid with lots of funny parts.  I couldn't STAND Kate McKinnon - the part she played or her acting.  I can't say it was a total waste of time, but close.

RT/ IMDb Summary  Audrey (Mila Kunis) and Morgan (Kate McKinnon), two thirty-year-old best friends in Los Angeles, are thrust unexpectedly into an international conspiracy when Audrey's ex-boyfriend shows up at their apartment with a team of deadly assassins on his trail. Surprising even themselves, the duo jump into action, on the run throughout Europe from assassins and a suspicious-but-charming British agent, as they hatch a plan to save the world.

MOVIE - Avengers: Infinity War

PG-13 (2:36)

Wide release 4/27/18

Viewed 8/5/18, the last week on the big screen, at the cheap theater in Harrisburg (Colonial Four, I think)
IMBd:  

RT Critic:  83    Audience:  91
Critic's Consensus:  Avengers: Infinity War ably juggles a dizzying array of MCU heroes in the fight against their gravest threat yet, and the result is a thrilling, emotionally resonant blockbuster that (mostly) realizes its gargantuan ambitions.

Cag:  4.5 It was really, really good

Directed by Anthony Russo, Joe Russo

Walt Disney Pictures

Robert Downey, Jr; Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson; Benedict Cumberbash, Don Cheadle; Tom Holland, Chadwick Boseman, Zoe Saldana, Chris Pratt, Josh Brolin; Paul Bettany, Peter Dinklage

My comments:    A REALLY good movie, though I'm not sure how to take the ending.  What will come next?  What CAN come next?  So much humor, and of course a lot of action.  The special effects were quite amazing, and I loved seeing so many of the Marvel characters making an appearance (it must have cost a small fortune to make).  How do you make a movie like this?  The list of credits was incredible - I wonder how many people it took to create this?  Names just roll and roll.....and so much of the audience stays because they know there'll be some sort of scene at the very end of them.  And there was.

RT/ IMDb Summary:  The mad titan Thanos (Josh Brolin) begins his hunt for the most powerful objects in the universe, the Infinity Stones, in Marvel Studios' highly anticipated Avengers: Infinity War. With the Space Stone, given by Loki (Tom Hiddleston), and the Power Stone, Thanos sends (Ebony Maw, Cull Obsidian to retrieve the Time Strone from Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), sends Proxima Midnight, and Corvus Glaive) to retrieve the Mind Stone from Vision (Paul Bettany). Meanwhile, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) meets up with Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) and sorcerers Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) and Wong (Benedict Wong). With help from Peter Parker (Tom Holland), A.K.A. Spider-Man, Stark and Strange join forces together and agree to stop Thanos. In space, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) also joins forces with the Guardians of the Galaxy, Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), Drax (Dave Bautista), Rocket (Bradley Cooper), Groot (Vin Diesel), Mantis (Pom Klementieff), and Gamora (Zoe Saldana), the daughter of Thanos who warns Thor of his power. Thor travels away to defeat Thanos with Rocket and Groot while the other Guardians join forces with Stark, Strange, and Parker. In Wakanda, Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) and his team, Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Falcon (Anthony Mackie), Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen), War Machine (Don Cheadle), and Bruce Banner to protect Vision and the Mind Stone in his forehead. With protection given from King T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman), A.K.A. Black Panther, and his Wakandan army, Thanos will come for everyone to destroy half the universe.

MOVIE - Leave No Trace

PG (1:49)

Limited release 6/29/18

Viewed July 15, 2018
IMBd: 

RT Critic:  100    Audience:   87
Critic's Consensus:  Leave No Trace takes an effectively low-key approach to a potentially sensationalistic story -- and further benefits from brilliant work by Ben Foster and Thomasin McKenzie.

Cag:  5.5 wowzer

Directed by Debra Granik

Bleecker Street

Ben Foster, Thomasin MacKenzie

My comments:  Different.  Satisfying.  Thought-provoking.  Mesmerizing.  Well acted. Loved it.

RT/ IMDb Summary:  Will (Ben Foster) and his teenage daughter, Tom (Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie), have lived off the grid for years in the forests of Portland, Oregon. When their idyllic life is shattered, both are put into social services. After clashing with their new surroundings, Will and Tom set off on a harrowing journey back to their wild homeland. The film is directed by Debra Granik from a script adapted by Granik and Anne Rosellini.

MOVIE - Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom

PG-13 (2:09)

Wide release 6/22/18

Viewed July 5, 2018

RT Critic:  48  Audience:  51
Critic's Consensus:  Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom adds another set piece-packed entry to the blockbuster franchise, although genuinely thrilling moments are in increasingly short supply.

Cag:  3 liked it okay...

Directed by J. A. Bayona

Universal Pictures

Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard

My comments:  EArly afternoon showing to get out of the heat - I haven't seen any of the other Jurassic Parks leading up to this, which is just fine with me.  I like Chris Pratt and it was a pretty interesting storyline for an action/adventure.  The good guys versus the bad guys, and of course they are VERY bad guys.  It was a bit slow and draggy in places.  Midling entertainment, nothing spectacular.

RT/ IMDb Summary:  It's been three years since theme park and luxury resort Jurassic World was destroyed by dinosaurs out of containment. Isla Nublar now sits abandoned by humans while the surviving dinosaurs fend for themselves in the jungles. When the island's dormant volcano begins roaring to life, Owen (Chris Pratt) and Claire (Bryce Dallas Howard) mount a campaign to rescue the remaining dinosaurs from this extinction-level event. Owen is driven to find Blue, his lead raptor who's still missing in the wild, and Claire has grown a respect for these creatures she now makes her mission. Arriving on the unstable island as lava begins raining down, their expedition uncovers a conspiracy that could return our entire planet to a perilous order not seen since prehistoric times.

MOVIE - First Reformed

R (1:48)

Limited release May 18, 2018

Viewed Thursday evening, June 21, 2018 with Sandy at Carlisle Theater
IMBd:  7.7/10

RT Critic: 96   Audience:  70
Critic's Consensus:  Brought to life by delicate work from writer-director Paul Schrader and elevated by a standout performance by Ethan Hawke, First Reformed takes a sensitive and suspenseful look at weighty themes.

Cag:  How do you rate a movie like this?  Yes, I liked it....

Directed by  Paul Schrader

Studio A24

Ethan Hawke, Amanda Seyfried, 

My comments:  Holy shit, what did I just watch  What happens when you combine loneliness, despair, environmental issues, alcohol and religion? (and barbed wire, Drano, magical mystery tours, and holy roller, born again music...)  Well, watch this movie and you'll find out!  AND, what an ending!

RT/ IMDb Summary:  Reverend Ernst Toller (Ethan Hawke) is a solitary, middle-aged parish pastor at a small Dutch Reform church in upstate New York on the cusp of celebrating its 250th anniversary. Once a stop on the Underground Railroad, the church is now a tourist attraction catering to a dwindling congregation, eclipsed by its nearby parent church, Abundant Life, with its state-of-the-art facilities and 5,000-strong flock. When a pregnant parishioner (Amanda Seyfried) asks Reverend Toller to counsel her husband, a radical environmentalist, the clergyman finds himself plunged into his own tormented past, and equally despairing future, until he finds redemption in an act of grandiose violence. From writer-director Paul Schrader (Taxi Driver; American Gigolo; Affliction) comes a gripping thriller about a crisis of faith that is at once personal, political, and planetary.

MOVIE - Disobedience

R (1:54)

Limited release 4/27/2018

Viewed Thursday, June 21, 2018 at Majestic in Gettysburg
IMBd:  6.8/10

T Critic:  84  Audience: 80
Critic's Consensus:  Disobedience explores a variety of thought-provoking themes, bolstered by gripping work from leads Rachel Weisz, Rachel McAdams, and Alessandro Nivola.

Cag: 5 It was really wonderful

Directed by Sebastian Lelio

Bleecker Street

Rachel Weisz, Rachel McAdams, Alessandro Nivola

My comments:  Another powerful movie with exceptional performances.  Whoa, being gay in an Orthodox Jewish community!  Totally impossible, "Disobedience" showed a depth of humanity and love in the Orthodox Jewish community which, as much as I'd love to believe might happen, truly can't imagine that it would.  For most of the movie you get "typical" reactions from people.  Yes, my heart broke for a young woman of faith who was definitely not heterosexual, choosing to follow the beliefs she was raised with and marry a man she did care about but was not attracted to.  My heart broke even more for her husband, who ended up being an incredibly honest, loving, spiritual man.  The kind of spiritual leader that I could definitely believe in myself, and would help to heal our world.  Oh yes, I shed some tears, and I walked out of the theater thinking, "what could possible be the next step in a story like this one?"  Well done, well done.

RT/ IMDb Summary:  From Sebastián Lelio, the director of the Academy Award-winning A Fantastic Woman, the film follows a woman as she returns to the community that shunned her decades earlier for an attraction to a childhood friend. Once back, their passions reignite as they explore the boundaries of faith and sexuality. Written by Lelio and Rebecca Lenkiewicz and based on Naomi Alderman's book, the film stars Rachel Weisz, Rachel McAdams and Alessandro Nivola.

MOVIE - The Rider

R (1:44)

4/13/18 Limited release

Viewed Tuesday, 6/19/18 at The Majestic in Gettysburg
IMBd: 7.7/10

RT Critic:  97  Audience: 81
Critic's Consensus:   The Rider's hard-hitting drama is only made more effective through writer-director Chloé Zhao's use of untrained actors to tell the movie's fact-based tale.

Cag:  6/Awesome  

Directed by Chloe Zhao

Sony Pictures Classics

Brady Jandreau, Lilly Jandreau, 

My comments:  The Rider was an amazing movie, and I didn't fully realize the extent of the meaningfulness of it until the credits rolled.  The actors were all the real people that apparently lived the story playing themselves.  Like a documentary told completely as a story. Incredibly depressing, heartfelt, and even upliftiing in its sadness.  The South Dakota plains.  Thelvies of young people that are raised around horses, raised to ride.  The harshness and reality of spial cord injuries and brain injuries.  The rodeo.  Horses.  I don't even like horses!  But I sure did like this movie.  Here is Roger Ebert's (actually Godfrey Cheshire's)vright-on, excellent review:  https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-rider-2018

RT/ IMDb Summary:  Based on his a true story, THE RIDER stars breakout Brady Jandreau as a once rising star of the rodeo circuit warned that his competition days are over after a tragic riding accident. Back home, Brady finds himself wondering what he has to live for when he can no longer do what gives him a sense of purpose: to ride and compete. In an attempt to regain control of his fate, Brady undertakes a search for new identity and tries to redefine his idea of what it means to be a man in the heartland of America.

MOVIE - Tag

R (1:40)

Wide release 6/15/18

Viewed 6/16/18
IMBd:  7/10

RT Critic:  56  Audience:  64
Critic's Consensus:  For audiences seeking a dose of high-concept yet undemanding action comedy, Tag might be close enough to it.

Cag:  3.5  Easy and fun entertainment

Directed by  Jeff Tomsic

Warner Brothers

Based on a true story

Jeremy Renner, Ed Helms, Jon Hamm

My comments:  This summer doesn't seem to have any good movies.  This one had fun actors and was actually based on a true story, but it was sort of slow moving and boring, believe it or not.  I was looking forward to the end.  Funny in places.  I'm glad I didn't have to pay to see it.  Loved seeing and hearing Jeremy Renner singing during the credits, that was the highlight of the movie!

RT/ IMDb Summary:  For one month every year, five highly competitive friends hit the ground running in a no-holds-barred game of tag they've been playing since the first grade--risking their necks, their jobs and their relationships to take each other down with the battle cry "You're It!" This year, the game coincides with the wedding of their only undefeated player, which should finally make him an easy target. But he knows they're coming... and he's ready. Based on a true story, "Tag" shows how far some guys will go to be the last man standing.