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Comedy

The Professor (2018) Movie Review By Peter Pluymers

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The Professor Review

Director: Wayne Roberts
Writer: Wayne Roberts
Stars: Johnny Depp, Rosemarie DeWitt, Odessa Young

Let me start in a cheeky and derogatory tone. Let’s take Jack Sparrow, promote him to be an eloquent university professor teaching literature and tell him that he’s terminally ill. If you watch the movie “The Professor” (the original movie title was “Richard says goodbye“) with a dismissive attitude, you could utter such a statement. Well. Johnny Depp may have the tendency to use the ever-drunk pirate character. But otherwise, this entertaining tragicomedy doesn’t have much in common or many similarities with the Caribbean pirate spectacle. Even if the film is steeped with dark humour, a deeply tragic subject can still be discovered. A message about acceptance and an attitude of resignation. Though, Richard’s (Johnny Depp) way of acceptance and resignation can be called very rigorous.

Instead of a tough treatment against the proliferating ailment, Richard decides to let things carry on as they are and completely change the course of his life (the subtle Sparrow-references come to mind spontaneously). That means enjoying life to the full. In short, exploiting the saying “Carpe Diem” in an extreme way. Richard gets dead drunk continuously, smokes pot on a regular basis and ventures into unabashed free sex. In fact, with both sexes and with the approval of his wife who confessed she’s having an affair with Richard’s boss. So you can say that the bad news told by his doctor, caused a groundbreaking turn in his personal life. For the bystanders, however, it seems as if he has become completely insane.

This is without a doubt one of the most successful interpretations of Depp in years. Here this energetic actor shows he can act for sure. I fully understand that he was given this part. The rebellious character of the egocentric figure Richard fits effortlessly with a figure like Johnny Depp. Perhaps his personal private situation provided the appropriate state of mind to play this indifferent intellectualist. His sarcastic view on life produces amusing scenes. The recklessness with which he plunges into adventures, causes others to frown. As a viewer, you understand this turnaround much better. As a result, Richard finds himself in some fairly bizarre situations in which his wife Veronica (Rosemarie DeWitt), daughter Olivia (Odessa Young) and best friend Peter (Danny Huston) are involved. By the way, I didn’t think the acting performance of these last actors was that bad either. Apart from the theatrical drama of Danny Huston.

“The Professor” probably won’t appeal to a younger audience. It’s not really a movie that will make you happy. I guess it applies to all films that deal with this terrible disease. Yet “The Professor” succeeded in transforming this tragic fact into something humorous. That the end would become more emotional (you could use the expression corny as well) was of course inevitable. Serious films where you are confronted with the concepts of finiteness and death clearly does something with a person. It makes you think about the meaning of life and what you have achieved. And I agree that as I grow older my thoughts sometimes drift away into that area. After seeing this film, I think I will drastically revise my opinion and also take a “Je mon fou” attitude like Richard. So I can fully enjoy everything in the time that’s left. That seems a more pleasant way to end my earthly journey.

Comedy

The Farewell (2019) Movie Review By Gianni Damaia

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The Farewell Review

Director: Lulu Wang
Writer: Lulu Wang
Stars: Shuzhen Zhao, Awkwafina, X Mayo

A stunning exploration in collective grief, The Farewell hits like a freight train. Of course I’m saying this in part because it’s true and in part because Golden Globes nominated Awkwafina in this as a comedy and that in itself is a tragedy. If you’re unfamiliar with the concept of The Farewell, I’ll briefly detail its jovial premise… The beloved matriarch, known as Nai Nai, of a slightly disjointed Chinese family is facing a diagnosis of terminal cancer. Her family collectively decides not to tell her this grave news so that they can all have her in high spirits as they spend their last moments with her. How jolly! I shouldn’t be too dismissive of the comedic elements in The Farewell. Lulu Wang’s voice shines through in nearly every scene, allowing the narrative to become grounded in such relatable urgency.

The Farewell features one of the best screenplays of the year in this regard by allowing the emotional vibrancy to propel each somber moment into the next with an air of mysticism. From the second we understand her diagnosis, Nai Nai becomes a near-cosmic being of triumph. Every time seeing her feels like it could be the last, and like Billi we yearn for more time with such a wonderful presence. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that this is largely in part to Shuzhen Zhao’s exceptional performance. The tenacity of such a character could easily be lost in a lesser performer, but Zhao is able to take it entirely in stride. She careens through the screen with such dominance that it takes you by surprise how much you actually care for her in the end. Like a magic trick, Zhao and Wang show you a powerful, grounded force of respectability while subtly manoeuvring their story to create an emotional tether. The trick is so masterful that by the time you reach the climax of this heartfelt journey (a shot from the rear view of a car, too rich to spoil),  you will stare bewildered at your own emotional response to a story that could’ve otherwise felt so foreign and distant from your experience.

Perhaps that is only my relationship to The Farewell, but I don’t think I stand alone in that assessment. Of course, with a performer as powerful as Zhao, it becomes hard to fixate on anyone else. And largely, the performances in The Farewell are good, but they often lack the emotional catharsis that we get from Billi and Nai Nai. Exceptions exist (the uncle comes easily to mind), but The Farewell is so transfixed on its core relationship that it occasionally seems to miss opportunities to explore complexities that are only touched upon. It’s a loose critique (I know, and you’ll likely catch me writing that a lot in these next few choices), but I can’t have you thinking I would give anything a perfect 10, right? 9.5/10

Comedy

Ready or Not (2019) Movie Review By Peter Pluymers

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Ready or Not Review

Directors: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett
Writers: Guy Busick, Ryan Murphy
Stars: Samara Weaving, Adam Brody, Mark O’Brien

I have to revise my opinion about the horror/comedy cross-over urgently after seeing “Monster Party” and “The dead don’t die” this year. “Ready or not” is yet another film that pleasantly surprised me. Really. I had a great time watching this movie. And not only because the lead actress Samara Weaving looks appetising, but also because of the entertaining content. I appreciated the morbid black humour as well. It’s not such absurd humour as in “The dead don’t die“. But the slapstick-like events that were used in it, resulted in a spontaneous chuckle sometimes. There were also quite a few bloody scenes in it. In short, it was fun watching this horror flick.

And all because of playing an innocent game of “hide and seek”. Grace (Samara Weaving) chose that on her wedding night by pulling a card out of a wooden box. Apparently, the Le Domas family, who made their fortune in the board gaming world, has a recurring family tradition at weddings. So the moment Grace got a wedding ring from Alex Le Domas (Mark O’Brien), her brand new husband, she unknowingly became part of this tradition. So instead of playing a game of hanky-panky and frolicking in the old-fashioned-looking four-poster bed, the wedding couple is requested to go to the family room to play an old-fashioned board game. What Grace doesn’t realise is that there’s one special card that can have far-reaching consequences for the rest of the evening. Guess what. Yep indeed, she draws the card in question.

It was not only the course of the story I found enormously fascinating and ingenious. Also, the setting where it all took place was beautiful to see. A huge Victorian house, full of dark corners and niches. Such a huge villa that suits a wealthy family like Le Domas perfectly. Full of wood paneling, majestic staircases, and richly decorated corridors. As a child, you could easily get lost there. And that’s where the innocent “hide and seek” takes place. At the beginning Grace enthusiastically participates. Until she realises that nobody from the Le Domas family starts the countdown and starts shouting “Ready or Not, Here I come” (hence the film title). Instead, this insane family has armed itself with old, primitive weapons and starts hunting her.

The most hilarious thing about the film is the family members themselves. All of them are cartoonish, caricatural characters. From the authoritarian somewhat empty-headed paterfamilias Tony (Henry Czerny) and his wife Becky (Andie MacDowell) to the scary-looking, shrewish aunt Helene (Nicky Guadagni). The latter is the most extreme character. She looks as if she’s a member of a satanic cult with her purple suit, black nail polish and upright Cruella de Vil hairstyle. And when you see her running through the corridors, screaming frantically and waving with a huge lumberjack’s ax, the picture is complete. Add a bunch of other family members to it, such as the alcoholic son Daniel (Adam Brody) and his cheeky wife Charity (Elyse Levesque). The coke-addicted daughter Emilie (Melanie Scrofano) and her cowardly husband Fitch (Kristian Bruun). And of course the butler should not be missing. Together they form a colourful “Adam’s Family” -like collective.

Finally something about the horror part. Even though the overall atmosphere is rather lighthearted and caricatural, the hardcore horror fanatic will enjoy certain moments. This gothic horror is filled with a few gory and bloody scenes while maintaining an exciting pace. I found the part in the barn particularly successful and at the same time extremely funny. You see the nail. You see the hole in a hand. And you immediately know how these two facts will be linked. Sublime. And even though you know where it’s going, I was surprised by the denouement. A denouement that would make Quentin Tarantino jealous. And I suppose they wanted to show how huge the gap is between rich and poor. In the end, this was just a minor side issue. “Ready or not” is perhaps the cruel version of the Cinderella fairy tale. But ultimate entertainment was the main goal here. And they certainly have succeeded in that for me.

Comedy, Uncategorized

Let it Snow (2019) Movie Review By Peter Pluymers

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Let it Snow Review

Director: Luke Snellin
Writers: Laura Solon (screenplay by), Victoria Strouse (screenplay by)
Stars: Isabela Merced, Shameik Moore, Odeya Rush

Christmas. The period everyone is jolly again. Family reunions. A brown-baked turkey with a tasty filling that was squeezed through its smallest hole. Christmas trees full of sparkling baubles, angel hair and soft-yellow LED lights. Every few moments a Christmas song is being heard on the radio. Christmas presents are piling up. And everyone hopes that on this Christian holiday the sky will be filled with pregnant snow clouds that’ll cover the surface of the earth with a soft, downy snow carpet. Sigh, I’m getting lyrical. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case everywhere. If you have a moderate maritime climate, such as in Belgium, it’ll be drizzly and autumnal. And an additional phenomenon during these holidays is the broadcasting of well-known Christmas movies. And yes, on Twitter the annually recurring question “What’s the ultimate Christmas film?“, appears again. Unfortunately, “Let it snow” won’t be mentioned often, I guess.

If, like me, you dislike “Love actually“, I would definitely advise you to avoid this youthly version. “Love actually” is a typical film that is shown on different television channels during the Christmas season. Perhaps the film adds that extra magic for some of us, during these winter holidays. For me, it causes an extreme form of explosive diarrhea every time I see the grin of Hugh Grant on the screen. And “Let it snow” uses the same concept as “Love actually“. An entanglement of different storylines that come together in an ecstatic crescendo. Only now, the protagonists are all teenagers.

Each with their own love-life-related-issues. Understandable because the film is based on the eponymous popular winter book, in which three authors bring a short story.
Unfortunately, after a few minutes, I realized that I’m not really part of the target audience. Not that I was bored to death. The stories eventually follow the pattern of a trillion other rom-com stories. They all walk the famous proverbial path of love, full of pitfalls, stumbling blocks, and obstacles. And at the finish, everything is peaches and cream. And peace and light. The feeling of love rises by a few degrees Celsius. In short, it’s as predictable as a story from Vicky the Viking. An ultimate feel-good film so teenage girls will sigh and moan empathetically while they watch at the screen with big cow eyes and see those romantic couples hugging each other. Well, my teenage period is far behind me. Hence the “Not being part of the target audience” feeling.

The most positive in this film are the participating actors. I didn’t know them all, because I’m not a fan of the Netflix series. Only Julie (Isabela Merced) I recognized immediately (Yes, I recently watched “Dora and the Lost City of Gold” with my two kids). She happens to have the most beautiful and convincing role. The way in which she presents responsible Julie is admirable. It’s the most endearing and sad part of the entire film. I even appreciated the pop idol Stuart (Shameik Moore). He fits wonderfully with the lovely, cuddly Julie. He’s a lonely, fame-ridden singer who spends Christmas all alone in a hotel room. Ultra sad. Even though he will wallow in all the luxury that he can afford. I also thought the role of Tobin (For me, the unknown Mitchell Hope) was successful. But only because of his humour and timid attitude that fitted perfectly in this syrupy film. And here too, they found the perfect companion in the form of The Duke (Kiernan “The Silence” Shipka). The funniest character was that of Jacob “Spider-man: Homecoming & Far from home” Batalon as the hyperkinetic Keon.

Add a lesbian girl with love troubles and her girlfriend who doesn’t have her best day, and you have all the cliché types that a movie like “Let it snow” needs. After that, let everyone wrestle the whole movie with his or her emotions and finally knit a happy ending to it. It’s not my taste, but who am I to complain about that. After all, it’s a Christmas movie. And shouldn’t a Christmas film be about happiness and love? Even though the corniness drips from it and it is so sugar-sweet that a spontaneous stomach cramp comes up. I want romantic souls to have it. So couples of this earth, unite and go and watch this film en masse. Oh well, next Movie!

Comedy

The Boonies (2019) Movie Review By Peter Pluymers

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The Boonies Review

Stars: Cody Ko, Kyle Jones, Lauren Elizabeth, Andi Matichak, Amymarie Gaertner

“The Boonies“. You would think it’s a parody of “The Goonies“. Partially it is. Here it’s also about a hidden treasure (a briefcase with $ 1,164,000) which Doug (Calum Worthy) has hidden somewhere at “Boone High School”. A kind of quest devised by him after he died in a terrible way. Killed by bullying fellow students? Or was it someone of his childhood friends? Primary school friends who dropped him like a rock because they became more popular, while Doug was given the status of “nerd”. In any case, this smart, acne-plagued adolescent has come up with a clever plan. An assignment that is sent en masse to all students of “Boone High School”. And of course to “The Boonies” who for once need to put aside their prejudices and disputes and jointly carry out tasks to get hold of the money.

To be honest, the treasure hunt is a side issue. “The Boonies” is about lost friendships and how the school community changes you as an individual. As 10-year-olds Doug, Teddy (Cody Ko), Chuck (Kyle Jones), Holly (Andi Matichak), Stephanie (Lauren Elizabeth) and Elektra (Amymarie Gaertner) were the best buddies. Inseparable friends who founded a club with the original sounding name (sarcastic intonation) “The Boonies“. Now, after many years, they have grown apart and there is an atmosphere of resentment and envy hanging between them. Doug’s wet dream is to bring “The Boonies” together once more and to revive the lost friendship.

The five friends are classic examples of the archetypes that are used over and over again when it’s a High-School movie. Stephanie is the “bitch” of the gang who has a big mouth and wears tight, white hotpants with matching cowboy boots. Such a high-class bimbo who hates everything and everyone. Holly is the brainiac whose cup size probably equals her IQ and whose dramatic outbursts seriously got on my nerves. Teddy is a popular, cool guy. Chuck is the stupid jock who walks around with a giant Stetson all the time. To my surprise, I noticed also that he has a beer belly. Of course, there’s a Goth chick among them as well. And as I mentioned earlier, Doug is the nerd. A dead nerd.

I can be brief and concise about the acting. It felt amateurish and terribly forced at certain moments. But all in all, it was quite funny sometimes. Of course, these well-known American school types are portrayed in a terribly exaggerated way. And they were simply annoying at times. Especially Stephanie’s constant bickering started to bore after a while. And Holly managed to demand the most attention, every time her bobbling boobs came into view. I have to admit I can’t remember much of her dialogues. The gigantic crack of her cleavage, however, is burned into my retinas. So just expect a lot of flat and sexually charged humour. But in some bizarre way, I started to like Chuck’s figure a lot. His immense stupidity and grotesque way of proving his masculinity did work on my laughing muscles. So for me, this Texan dumbnut was the most successful character.

“The Boonies” is not a high-quality movie. It was as if I was looking at an assignment made by final year students from the Faculty of Art. Or that I was watching a play performed by students at the annual school party. Especially when several actors were grouping together, it seemed rather artificial and everyone was looking a little awkward. Humour also fails in certain areas and appears to be terribly outdated. So if you enjoy watching an old-fashioned “food fight”, you definitely should try this movie. And God, that school food looked disgusting. All in all, it’s a movie I certainly wouldn’t recommend to others. It has its charms and good moments. But the fact that 2017 is the release year on IMDb, already raises questions. Did they put this project on hold for years? Or was there some doubt about releasing this film? I have no idea.

Comedy

Little Monsters (2019) Movie Review By Peter Pluymers

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Little Monsters Review

Director: Abe Forsythe
Writer: Abe Forsythe
Stars: Lupita Nyong’o, Josh Gad, Alexander England

“Can we play the shooty game, Uncle David?
 I don’t want us to get in trouble, Felix.
We’ll have to play it with the sound off.”

Well, there’s always the award “Disappointment of the year”. I’m afraid this year the film “Little Monsters” will take the credits for this. I had regained confidence in the combination of horror and comedy after watching “Monster Party” and “The dead don’t die“. I’ve always had a problem with it when moviemakers mix these two genres. But these last two films managed to rekindle my enthusiasm. Well, “Little Monsters” has nipped that enthusiasm in the bud. There were some highlights in this zombie movie. But overall, I was plagued by a yawning attack and I was constantly annoyed about certain situations.

I do understand that all kinds of new perspectives have to be devised nowadays to make the zombie genre even more interesting. In “The dead don’t die” they largely succeeded in that. But that’s personal taste. Coincidentally this film used the type of humour that I like the most. In “Little Monsters” the humour was generally absent. The absurdist tone of “The dead don’t die” was traded for flat and childish humour. Believe me, the amount of irritation exceeded the allowable level several times. After 2 minutes I was already annoyed by the opening scene where Dave (Alexander England) and his girlfriend constantly yelled at each other. Just like their friends, I felt ashamed on their behalf. And that wasn’t the only time while watching this film.

First, let me list the most positive aspects. Without a doubt, there’s first and foremost the presence of Lupita Nyong’o. This Oscar winner moved me in “12 Years a slave“. And played a hair-raising role in the movie “Us“. In this movie, she’s such a ray of sunlight with that dazzling yellow dress. Probably strategically chosen so it contrasts sharply with the splattered blood. And with her ukulele and catchy version of Taylor Swift’s “Shake it Off“, it seemed like I was looking at a modern Maria from “The Sound of Music“. Certainly when the entire classroom joins her with the song like a real Von Trapp family. But apart from the fact that she’s very musical and fashion-conscious in this film, you also have to admit that Lupita is simply a beautiful woman. Even if she opens her mouth in a panic and produces an uncontrolled scream with her eyes wide open, she’s still adorable. And she’s actually the funniest one in the film.

To a lesser extent, I also thought Alexander England was pretty good. This irresponsible, sometimes imbecile klutz, is quite annoying at times. But nonetheless, due to his clumsy attitude and behaviour (mainly in terms of social skills), he still manages to arouse some sympathy. I found his encounter with Miss Caroline quite endearing. That suddenly emerging urge to seduce this teacher. But then, in the next scene, you see him giving a demonstration of solo sex on the toilet while drooling over a class photo (with school teacher Carolina in it of course) of his nephew Felix (Diesel La Torraca). Would I be a teenager, I would chuckle about this. Now a raised eyebrow was the only result.

This would-be-creepy zom-com also had its charms. The clumsy way in which Dave tries to impress Miss Caroline is quite funny to see. And of course, eventually, she gives in, even though she hates Dave from the start because of his brutal and stupid remarks. And finally, there are a few very funny moments such as the Darth Vader scene and the horde of singing zombies. I got the most spontaneous smile on my face when I saw a bewildered zombie attempting to clap to the rhythm and he found out that both his arms were missing. And here and there there was a pretty good joke or one-liner.

But still. Unfortunately, the number of irritating things was overwhelming. I was relieved when this zom-com ended. First of all, I thought the zombies were extremely ridiculous. It was like a school project in which the creatures were played by fellow students. A Wednesday afternoon activity that involves a lot of fun. You can’t call it a horror, in my opinion, because of the lack of tension. The most bloody scenes always take place off-screen. This is probably due to the budget. Perhaps the much-used photo with Lupita covered in blood and those anxious-looking children in the background, raised wrong expectations for me. And as I mentioned before, the humor was missing. But mainly I was annoyed by the figure of Teddy McGiggle (Josh Gad). Such an annoying character. If I could, I would have personally fed him to those bloodthirsty undead. I know it’s an Australian indie. But to be honest, it looked really cheap (literally as figuratively). The only question I had was: “What’s a famous, talented Hollywood star like Lupita doing in this movie?“.