romance

‘Blame’ searches for the nature of underlying truths

‟Blame“ (2017 production, 2018 release). Cast: Quinn Shephard, Nadia Alexander, Chris Messina, Tate Donovan, Tessa Albertson, Marcia DeBonis, Luke Slattery, Owen Campbell, Geneva Carr, Sarah Mezzanotte, Larry Mitchell, Lily Houghton, Elizabeth Ann Howell, Carlyle Owens, Trieste Kelly Dunn. Director: Quinn Shephard. Screenplay: Quinn Shephard. Story: Laurie Shephard and Quinn Shephard. Web site. Trailer. Getting to the root of unethical or illegal behavior sometimes takes some doing. It may require considerable digging and ruling out what is initially looked upon as seemingly obvious. It might even involve traversing some highly unexpected paths to expose the culprits and their well-concealed misdeeds. There’s even the possibility that there may be more going on than meets the eye. So it is with life at [...]

Brent Marchant2019-03-28T23:33:34-05:00March 5th, 2019|Conscious Creation, Drama, Movie Reviews|

‘Isn’t It Romantic’ muses about the true nature of love

“Isn’t It Romantic” (2019). Cast: Rebel Wilson, Liam Hemsworth, Adam Devine, Priyanka Chopra, Brandon Scott Jones, Betty Gilpin, Jennifer Saunders, Alexandra Kis, Ray Anthony Lewis, Zach Cherry, Sandy Honig, Dean Neistat. Director: Todd Strauss-Schulson. Screenplay: Erin Cardillo, Dana Fox and Katie Silberman. Story: Erin Cardillo. Web site. Trailer. What does it take to love someone? The answer may surprise you, as its origins actually stem from a source that might not be recognized at first glance. But making that realization is crucial if we ever hope to find that true love, an insight pursued in earnest in the delightful new romantic comedy parody, “Isn’t It Romantic.” When pudgy 12-year-old Aussie Natalie (Alexandra Kis) gawks at a screening of the 1990 [...]

Brent Marchant2019-03-18T10:21:45-05:00February 26th, 2019|Comedy, Conscious Creation, Movie Reviews, Romance|

‘Stan & Ollie’ celebrates persistence, reinvention

‟Stan & Ollie“ (2018). Cast: John C. Reilly, Steve Coogan, Shirley Henderson, Nina Arianda, Danny Huston, Rufus Jones, Susy Kane, Richard Cant. Director: Jon S. Baird. Screenplay: Jeff Pope. Book: A.J. Marriot, Laurel and Hardy: The British Tours. Web site. Trailer. It’s hard to keep a good man – or a good team – down. Those who are determined to carry forward with their plans, no matter what they may be, are usually difficult to contain. And, when you add the power of a collaborative effort to the mix, the ability to hold them back may be nearly impossible. So it was for a comedy duo seeking to revive their career in their waning days as seen in the entertaining [...]

Brent Marchant2019-02-26T23:58:37-05:00February 4th, 2019|Comedy, Conscious Creation, Drama, Movie Reviews|

‘The Favourite’ tackles how to get (or not get) one’s way

“The Favourite” (2018). Cast: Olivia Colman, Emma Stone, Rachel Weisz, Nicholas Hoult, James Smith, Joe Alwyn, Mark Gatiss. Director: Yorgos Lanthimos. Screenplay: Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara. Web site. Trailer. We all love to get our way. It’s fulfilling when we see our wishes come to fruition, often leaving us with a warm, satisfied glow inside. But how we get there can be challenging, especially if we find ourselves pushing too hard to see the desired result realized. So it is with a beleaguered monarch and her two closest but contentious advisors in the new period piece dark comedy, “The Favourite.” In 18th Century England, Queen Anne (Olivia Colman) rules – or attempts to rule – her empire in the [...]

Brent Marchant2019-01-14T10:12:23-05:00December 13th, 2018|Comedy, Conscious Creation, Movie Reviews|

‘The Wife’ compels the scrutiny of our motivations

“The Wife” (2017 production, 2018 release). Cast: Glenn Close, Jonathan Pryce, Christian Slater, Max Irons, Elizabeth McGovern, Harry Lloyd, Annie Starke, Alix Wilton Regan, Karin Franz Körlof, Nick Fletcher. Director: Björn Runge. Screenplay: Jane Anderson. Book: Meg Wolitzer, The Wife. Web site. Trailer. When we wonder why our reality turns out as it does, if we want an honest answer to that question, we have to ask ourselves what motivates us. All too often we drift through life not taking stock of our intentions, letting life unfold seemingly on its own, as if we’re oblivious to the part we play in its manifestation. But, even if we believe we have no hand in the process or are afraid to see [...]

Brent Marchant2018-10-27T19:51:42-05:00September 9th, 2018|Conscious Creation, Drama, Movie Reviews|

‘BlacKkKlansman’ explores creative justice

“BlacKkKlansman” (2018). Cast: John David Washington, Adam Driver, Laura Harrier, Topher Grace, Ryan Eggold, Alec Baldwin, Harry Belafonte, Michael Joseph Buscemi, Robert John Burke, Ken Garito, Jasper Pääkkönen, Paul Walter Hauser, Ashlie Atkinson, Frederick Weller, Corey Hawkins, Nicholas Turturro. Director: Spike Lee. Screenplay: Charlie Wachtell, David Rabinowitz, Kevin Willmott and Spike Lee. Book: Ron Stallworth, Black Klansman. Web site. Trailer. Bringing hateful practices to light takes guts. Sometimes it also takes creativity, especially when those vile matters are carefully hidden or carried out by those who operate in the shadows. But, when courage and innovation successfully join forces, the ugly truth can be exposed for all to see, drawing attention to the detestable nature of these concerns, a notion explored [...]

Brent Marchant2018-10-26T08:59:27-05:00August 20th, 2018|Drama, Movie Reviews|

‘First Reformed’ assesses our choices and their results

“First Reformed” (2018). Cast: Ethan Hawke, Amanda Seyfried, Cedric Kyles, Victoria Hill, Philip Ettinger, Michael Gaston, Bill Hoag, Frank Rodriguez. Director: Paul Schrader. Screenplay: Paul Schrader. Web site. Trailer. The weight of the world is quite a load for anyone to carry, even those who believe they’re best equipped to do so. Holding up under such circumstances can easily be more than one can bear, but some take up the challenge anyway. Why? That’s a key question for a beleaguered protagonist in the gripping new drama, “First Reformed.” Pastor Ernst Toller (Ethan Hawke) is, somewhat ironically, a troubled soul. As a former military academy chaplain who has suffered a number of personal tragedies and a crisis of conscience, he’s been [...]

Brent Marchant2018-06-21T19:23:52-05:00June 7th, 2018|Conscious Creation, Drama, Movie Reviews|

‘Disobedience’ dares to challenge taboos

“Disobedience” (2018). Cast: Rachel Weisz, Rachel McAdams, Alessandro Nivola, Anton Lesser, Bernice Stegers, Allan Corduner, Nicholas Woodeson, Liza Sadovy. Director: Sebastián Lelio. Screenplay: Sebastián Lelio and Rebecca Lenkiewicz. Book: Naomi Alderman, Disobedience. Web site. Trailer. Getting what we want from life, especially in an area as critical as romance, may push us to our limits. We may find ourselves saddled with constraints that push back against us, thwarting our efforts and keeping us from fulfilling our objectives. But these conditions are often wholly arbitrary, capable of being overcome with the right degrees of determination and self-reliance, themes explored in the new romantic drama, “Disobedience.” When a much-beloved but aging and frail rav (Anton Lesser) passes on, the faithful of his [...]

Brent Marchant2018-06-14T10:20:25-05:00May 27th, 2018|Conscious Creation, Drama, Movie Reviews, Romance|

‘Keep the Change’ looks at love in its own unique way

“Keep the Change” (2017 production, 2018 release). Cast: Brandon Polansky, Samantha Elisofon, Jessica Walter, Tibor Feldman, Will Deaver, Nicky Gottlieb, Gabe Rhodes, Dylan Rothbein, Dorsey Massey, Johnathan Tchaikovsky, Christina Brucato, Anna Suzuki, Sondra James. Director: Rachel Israel. Screenplay: Rachel Israel. Source material: “Keep the Change,” short film (2013). Web site. Trailer. It’s been said that love knows no bounds. But how widely are most of us willing to apply that notion? Does that include only the limited sorts of romantic circumstances with which we’re most familiar? Or are we capable of envisioning it on a broader scale, applying it to scenarios that aren’t neatly compartmentalized into tidy little boxes? For those who have special needs or who represent constituencies outside [...]

Brent Marchant2018-05-20T02:38:59-05:00March 31st, 2018|Comedy, Conscious Creation, Movie Reviews|

‘A Fantastic Woman’ sets powerful examples of courage, compassion

“A Fantastic Woman” (“Una mujer fantástica”) (2017). Cast: Daniela Vega, Francisco Reyes, Luis Gnecco, Aline Küppenheim, Nicolás Saavedra, Amparo Noguera, Trinidad Gonzáez, Néstor Cantillana, Sergio Hernández. Director: Sebastián Lelio. Screenplay: Sebastián Lelio and Gonzalo Maza. Web site. Trailer. Saying goodbye is never easy. The pain and sorrow can be a lot to bear, even under the “best” of circumstances. But, when the situation becomes burdened by considerations that have no business intruding upon such a difficult process, the result can be unendurable. Such are the conditions addressed in the compelling new Chilean drama, “A Fantastic Woman” (“Una mujer fantástica”). Businessman Orlando Onetto (Francisco Reyes) leads what appears to be a fairly comfortable life in Santiago. The 57-year-old runs a successful [...]

Brent Marchant2018-03-09T10:37:03-05:00February 25th, 2018|Conscious Creation, Drama, Movie Reviews, Romance|