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Flash Movie Review: Living
MY NEWEST CATCHPHRASE IS, “IT IS better to meet here (or almost anyplace such as a restaurant, park, theater, ballpark or store) than at the cemetery.” What I mean by this catchphrase is it is better to get together for a happy/good occasion instead of a sad one at a funeral. When talking to a friend or family member, where they are not sure they want to travel to visit their friends or family, I ask them if they would go if the person, they were thinking of visiting was dying. They almost always reply in the affirmative; they would not hesitate for a moment. That is when I then ask wouldn’t they rather visit and do stuff with their friend/family member instead of mourning them. This may sound harsh to some of you, but I am just being honest and unfiltered. Also, I practice what I preach. I was recently talking to a friend about attending a wedding. They were questioning the time they would have to be away from their pets and the cost of traveling out of state to attend the wedding. I asked what they would do if it was their friend’s funeral. There was no pause, they said they would plan to get to the funeral. I told them they now have their answer on what they should do about the wedding. They could not help but agree with me. BACK WHEN I WAS YOUNGER, I never thought about people dying or getting gravely ill. Maybe I had that mindset that many people in their youth have: being invincible. My actions back then were not decided with life and death being in the equation. Interestingly, I wished I had a little of that awareness about getting the most one can out of the day; in other words, live life to the fullest. To get enjoyment, satisfaction and pleasure out of each moment. There were times when I felt I was only existing instead of living. Going to work, getting home, making dinner, cleaning up, sleeping, then waking up to an alarm the next morning to start it all over again was my basic pattern of existing. I was too tired to do anything during the weekday; so, the weekend consisted of catching up on stuff and maybe I would meet up with a friend or relative for a dinner. I am not sure what triggered a mental reset, maybe maturity or the death of a close one; but I started to appreciate the things around me and make a point of staying in touch with friends and family. It comes down to this, one never knows what tomorrow will bring; so, it is better to get as much as you can out of today. I loved how this dramatic film presented this idea. IT WAS NOT UNTIL THE GOVERNMENT worker received the diagnosis from his recent tests, that he learned how to live again. With Bill Nighy (About Time, Emma) as Williams, Aimee Lou Wood (The Electrical Life of Louis Wan, Uncle Vanya) as Margaret Harris, Alex Sharp (The Trial of the Chicago 7, The Hustle) as Peter Wakeling, Adrian Rawlins (Harry Potter franchise, Breaking the Waves) as Middleton and Oliver Chris (Miss Marx, Motherland-TV) as Hart; this Oscar nominated film was an absolute joy to watch. Bill Nighy, who is nominated for best actor, was utterly fantastic; it was an honor to watch him display his skills. Set in 1950s London, the film production was perfect. From the way the story was filmed to the sets and costumes; everything fell into place to make this a complete picture. The story took a little time to fully grab me; but once it did, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. And the message I took from the story confirmed one of my beliefs. I am glad I took the time to seek out and view this Oscar worthy movie.
3 ½ stars
Flash Movie Review: The Hustle
SITTING CLOSE ENOUGH TO ME TO BE heard was a mother and her young son. I could not help but to hear their conversation. The little boy was whining he did not want to go visit his aunt and uncle. For every negative comment the boy made, his mother would answer with an upbeat or positive answer. If you ask me I think their conversation went on way too long. So, I will spare you most of it and only give you some highlights. When the mother asked her son why he did not want to go visit his aunt and uncle, the boy said there was nothing there to do. The mother told him he could play in their backyard. To that the boy said there was nothing in the backyard except flowers and bushes. At another point in the conversation the boy said he did not like sitting by his uncle because he smelled funny. By the way this child was, I am guessing, around 4 or 5 years old. Another thing he did not like was the aunt’s chocolate chip cookies; they were always burnt. To sum up the entire conversation the boy was always bored and uncomfortable sitting at his relatives’ house. MANY OF US MIGHT BE ABLE to relate to that conversation; where we must do something, we might not like doing. For me there was a relative that was an awful cook. Eating at their house was a chore because not only were many of the food dishes unrecognizable, they were also horrible tasting. I would always want to stop at a fast food restaurant before going to their house for dinner. Now there are other circumstances where one doesn’t want to do something they have to do. I don’t like having to go get my driver’s license renewed. The wait is always long and slow; the fear is always there that if I must take the driver’s test I will get an administrator who is in a bad mood; and the worst part, I will have to press my face into the viewer screen for the eye test portion. I can only imagine how many germs and stuff have been left on that viewer screen from all the applicants. Don’t all of us have to do things we do not want to do? It is part of life. The reason I have mentioned this is because I honestly was not looking forward to seeing this comedy. From the trailers, I had a feeling this movie would have a hard time keeping my attention. ONE SCAM ARTIST WAS SOPHISTICATED AND chic, the other raw and uncouth; when they descend on the same place it would turn into a battle for each to outdo the other. With Anne Hathaway (Ocean’s Eight, Rachael Getting Married) as Josephine Chesterfield, Rebel Wilson (Pitch Perfect franchise, Isn’t it Romantic) as Penny, Nicholas Woodeson (Skyfall, Disobedience) as Albert, Alex Sharp (How to Talk to Girls at Parties, UFO) as Thomas Westerburg and Dean Norris (Fist Fight, Breaking Bad-TV) as Howard Bacon; this film suffered under a variety of poor choices. First, let me talk about Rebel. She needs to stop doing the same thing over and over. This character was no different from many of her past ones. I especially dislike how the writers use her weight to create so called comedy. As for the script, it was so basic that there was nothing noteworthy about it; it was ridiculous and boring. Whenever there was the opportunity to go with the lowest common denominator, this story went with it. I told you I was not looking forward to seeing this film and now I know why. The only positive thing I can say about this movie is that I went to the morning, bargain priced showing.
1 ½ stars
moviejoltz 