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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 23 January 2019

If you’re considered a “senior citizen”, the Queensland Health website has a few suggestions in staying active so to maintain your strength, mobility and independence for as long as possible.  You can try walking, Tai Chi, group exercises, aqua aerobics, gardening, dancing, lawn bowls or Masters sports.  There are also plenty of local councils who run free activities specifically for seniors.

If none of that tickles your fancy and you’re looking to be more adventurous, you can look to Hollywood for inspiration and turn to a life of crime.  Going in Style (released in 2017) was a fictional comedy about three 70-something year old guys who orchestrated a bank heist to fund their retirement.  The Old Man and the Gun (released in 2018) was based on actual events and followed a polite, elderly man (Robert Redford) who was robbing multiple banks up to the age of 78.

The Mule, directed by two-time Oscar winner Clint Eastwood (Unforgiven, Million Dollar Baby) is the latest entrant in this growing, specialised genre.  The names have been changed in the film but it’s based on a true story that went viral thanks to a 2014 article from journalist Sam Dolnick in The New York Times.  An 87-year-old man from Indiana was making big money while transporting drugs across the United States for a Mexican drug cartel.  He was considered to be the oldest drug mule in the world.

These are serious crimes but it’s hard not to smile as Earl Stone (Eastwood) goes about his business.  He doesn’t even know how to use a mobile phone or send a text message!  This makes him the butt of everyone’s jokes at the start but it is fun to watch the power shift as Earl takes on bigger shipments and becomes an essential, untouchable member of the cartel.

There are several scenes where the film switches perspective and we follow a Drug Enforcement Administration agent (Cooper) who is trying to “make a big splash” and arrest a high-profile drug mule.  He gets close but the sly, smooth talking Earl is able to evade capture.  Why would anyone suspect an octogenarian, driving alone on the freeway, of carrying 200 pounds of cocaine in the back of his pickup truck?

The Mule marks the first acting gig for 88-year-old Clint Eastwood since Trouble with the Curve (2012).  He hasn’t given any formal notification of retirement but it’s likely to be one of the last times we see Eastwood on screen and in the director’s chair.  He’s had no trouble assembling a strong cast with Bradley Cooper, Laurence Fishburne, Michael Peña, Dianne Wiest and Andy Garcia all happy to take supporting roles despite some of the characters being underdeveloped and relatively insignificant (especially Fishburne and Garcia).

It’s an interesting story but the screenplay of Nick Schenk (Gran Torino, The Judge) is heavy-handed in places.  To ensure audiences like Earl’s character, the film is quick to illustrate the many “good” things he spends his ill-earned money on – his overdue mortgage payments, his granddaughter’s wedding and a social club for Vietnam veterans.  When he starts making BIG money, the film is surprisingly silent as to where it’s all going.  There’s also a strong focus on his efforts to reconcile with his ex-wife (Weist) and daughter (played by Eastwood’s real-life daughter, Alison) without delving too deeply into his chequered past.

The Mule is too simple in places but it’s still a likeable crowd pleaser that showcases a great true story.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 03 January 2019

It’s been a strong, successful run for the How to Train Your Dragon franchise.  Both the original and follow-up sequel earned Academy Award nominations for best animated feature – a feat only matched by Shrek and Kung Fu Panda since the category was created back in 2001.  Money talks too.  The two films pulled in a combined $1.1 billion USD at the world-wide box-office which all but guaranteed another sequel.

As a quick recap, the first How to Train Your Dragon, released in 2010, was the tale of a young boy who captured and then assisted a cheeky young dragon named ‘Toothless’.  He was able to prove to his father and other Viking elders that dragons were their friends as opposed to their enemies.  The 2014 sequel took a more action-packed approach as the Vikings and dragons defended their home against the exploits of a sinister dragon hunter.

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World begins with a discussion topic that has been doing the rounds, rightly or wrongly, in Australian politics – overpopulation.  The colourful city of Berk has become the “world’s first dragon-Viking utopia” but there’s a limited amount of space and questions are being asked about its long-term sustainability.  There’s an old mariner’s myth about a hidden world where dragons originated and so our illustrious hero, Hiccup (Baruchel), flips through a few maps and goes in search of its location.  The end goal is to find somewhere for the dragons to live in peace without the risk of further attacks.

A villain is required and this is where Grimmel the Grisly (Abraham) enters the picture.  His view of the world is that humans are the dominant species and all other creatures are superfluous.  He hunts dragons purely for the sport and across his lifetime, he and his henchmen have killed many winged creatures.  Hiccup is warned that Grimmel is not to be underestimated and that’s especially so given that Toothless is his latest target.

The Hidden World is a little too chaotic in places but there’s more than enough heart and sentimentality, particularly during the finale, to win over audiences.  It finds the right balance between action and story.  There are also a few good laughs highlighted by a great scene involving the chatty, over-stimulated Ruffnut in a jail cell (hilariously played by Kristen Wiig).  If there’s a weakness, it’s with the bad guy.  Grimmel is a one-dimensional, stereotypical villain who keeps gaining the upper hand and throwing it away for silly reasons. 

The franchise is starting to show signs of repetition and perhaps that’s part of the reason why The Hidden World has been marketed as the final instalment.  Kids will enjoy another chance to see these fun characters and it provides a nice culmination to the series but for me, the original How to Train Your Dragon remains the best.

You can read by interview with star Jay Baruchel by clicking here.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 20 January 2019

62-year-old director Peter Farrelly has made some wonderful comedies over the past three decades including Dumb and Dumber, Kingpin, There’s Something About Mary and Shallow Hal.  It’s hard to believe that it’s taken more than 25 years for Farrelly to make his first drama.  It wasn’t for lack of trying!

Studios showed no early interest in his script for Green Book, which he co-wrote with Nick Vallelonga and Brian Hayes Currie, but that changed when he was able to convince Viggo Mortensen (Captain Fantastic) and Mahershala Ali (Moonlight) to come on board.  The end result speaks for itself.  The film won the lucrative Audience Award at the 2018 Toronto Film Festival and is tipped to feature prominently when the Academy Award nominations are announced.

It’s easy to see why comparisons are being made with another Oscar winner, Driving Miss Daisy.  Released back in 1989, it was the tale of an old lady (Jessica Tandy) who has her eyes opened to racism in the United States thanks to her loyal African American driver (Morgan Freeman).  They were as different as chalk and cheese but the film culminated with Tandy grabbing Freeman’s hand and saying the now famous line – “you’re my best friend”.

Set in 1962, Green Book reverses the races in that scenario.  Don Shirley (Ali), referred to as “Doc”, is a renowned black pianist based at Carnegie Hall.  In doing his small part for the civil rights movement, he has agreed to perform at a number of venues across America to showcase his talents in front of white audiences.  It’s an 8-week tour that begins in Pennsylvania and culminates in more “conservative” states such as Mississippi and Alabama.

Doc realises that his presence in the Deep South is likely to attract attention from white supremacists and so he has employed Tony Vallelonga (Mortensen), an expert in night club “public relations”, to be both his driver and security guard.  They’re both from New York City but that’s where the similarities end.  Tony isn’t particularly enamoured with the job and the idea of working for a “coloured” but he’s in a tough spot financially and needs the cash to help support his wife (Cardellini) and two children.

There are a few small surprises but for the most part, Green Book plays out as you might expect.  There’s early tension between the characters but a bond quickly develops between them.  So, did this feel-good story actually take place?  You’ll get a different answer depending on who you ask.  Tony’s son co-wrote the screenplay and based it on stories and audio tapes provided by his late father.  On the flip side, Doc’s 82-year-old brother has called it “a symphony of lies” and was disappointed that he and his family were not consulted during the filmmaking process.

I can’t attest to its factual accuracy but Green Book is still a warm-hearted crowd pleaser that achieves its mission thanks to the two stellar performances from Mahershala Ali and Viggo Mortensen.  The interaction between the pair is the clear highlight.  Power games are afoot in the first half of the movie as each asserts their authority.  The calm, articulate Doc lays down clear ground rules (no smoking the car, hands on the wheel at all times) but the chatty, food-loving, chain-smoking Tony is quick to test those boundaries to see how far they can be pushed.

The film becomes more dramatic and poignant in the second half as they come face-to-face with the inherent “it’s just the way we do things down here” racism that existed, and still exists, in parts of America.  The situations become increasingly troublesome and as details emerge about Doc’s past, he becomes a more interesting, empathetic character.  The narrative is a little too skewed towards Tony’s good deeds (and I know some have been critical of this) but I’d argue that we still get to see Doc make his mark on the world and break down barriers (which was always his intention).

Nothing in Green Book is particularly new or revealing but it’s still a well told story.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 01 January 2019

Mary Poppins was a stunning success both critically and financially.  It was the third highest grossing film of 1964 in the United States (behind My Fair Lady and Goldfinger) and it won 5 Academy Awards including best actress for star Julie Andrews.  It’s taken more than 54 years but we finally have a second instalment for those wanting more from this famed character.  In terms of a live action movie, that’s the longest ever gap between an original and sequel (excluding direct-to-DVD stuff) in the history of cinema.

The reasons for the delay have been well documented.  The author of the books, P.L. Travers, was one of the rare few who detested the original Mary Poppins.  This was humorously explored in the 2013 comedy Saving Mr. Banks which starred Emma Thompson as Travers and Tom Hanks as Walt Disney.  Travers had been approached many times about a sequel but she refused to give up the rights unless she had full creative control over the story, settings and characters – a concession that Walt Disney Studios wasn’t prepared to give.

Travers passed away in 1999 and the copyright of Mary Poppins was vested in her estate.  Its trustees were a little more receptive to the idea of a sequel and Oscar-nominated director Rob Marshall (Chicago, Into the Woods) was able to make a successful pitch.  His idea was to tap into the storylines of other Mary Poppins books that Travers had written (there were 8 in total between 1934 and 1988) and come up with a script that retains the essence of her writing and the soul of her characters.

Mary Poppins Returns is set roughly 25 years after the original and the two Banks children have grown up.  Michael (Whishaw) is a widowed father of three who is struggling to make ends meet and his sister, Jane (Mortimer), is doing her best to help.  When a greedy, sinister bank manager (Firth) demands their house be repossessed to pay an outstanding debt, the family have less than a week to locate a missing bank share certificate which they can use as collateral.

The time has come for Mary Poppins (Blunt) to make an appearance and just as she did in the earlier movie, she gracefully floats down with the help of a talking umbrella.  She takes Michael’s three kids on a few magical adventures while he has time to search for the share certificate.  Tony Award winners Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, who wrote the music and lyrics for the Broadway musical Hairspray, provide the light, easy-to-follow soundtrack.

I can see why some have been critical of this follow-up but I was lured in by the songs and its nostalgic feel.  Mary Poppins was one of my favourite movies growing up and it’s nice to see a family-oriented musical in cinemas once again.  They don’t come along very often these days.  From the creativity of “The Royal Doulton Music Hall” sequence to the craziness of the “Turning Turtle” cameo with Meryl Streep, there are a lot of memorable moments.  My mouth was sore from smiling so much.

There’s not a lot of nuance to the character but Emily Blunt (The Devil Wears Prada) is still wonderfully good in the title role.  Mary Poppins is 100% in control of every situation and it’s so much fun to watch her confuse the children with riddles and lure adults under her spell.  Lin-Manuel Miranda, the creative vision behind the successful musical Hamilton, also charms as a young lamplighter with his thick cockney accent.  There’s no sign of Julie Andrews (she didn’t want to detract from Blunt) but Dick Van Dyke makes a well-timed appearance by reprising a character he created back in 1964.

Making the most of 21^st century technology when it comes to special effects and cinematography, Rob Marshall hasn’t improved on the original but he’s created something worthy to sit alongside.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 10 January 2019

The idea of female leadership and empowerment will be seen, by some at least, as a movement that has taken shape over the past few decades.  Margaret Thatcher became the first British Prime Minister in 1979.  Julia Gillard achieved the same honour here in Australia in 2010.  In the United States, Sandra Day O’Connor became the first woman appointed to the Supreme Court in 1981 and Madeleine Albright became the first female Secretary of State in 1997.  There are many more examples I could list.

Mary Queen of Scots takes us back to an oft forgotten time in the 16^th Century when two women were arguably the most powerful people in the United Kingdom (as it is known today).  At the age of just 25, Queen Elizabeth I (Robbie) ascended to the thrones of England and Ireland in 1558 following the death of her half-sister.  Three years later, 18-year-old Mary I (Ronan) returned from France to take up her rightful pace as Queen of Scotland.  The pair were actually first cousins once removed.

Josie Rourke’s film tries to balance up the respective storylines of these two famed characters but as the title suggests, it’s skewed towards the narrative of Mary.  That makes it the opposite of Elizabeth: The Golden Age, the 2007 release from director Shekhar Kapur which starred Cate Blanchett as Elizabeth and Samantha Morton as Mary.  Kapur’s film is superior if you’re looking to know more about this fascinating piece of British history.

Mary Queen of Scots feels like two hours of pointless power games.  Mary has her eyes on the English crown but Elizabeth is quick to rouse her supporters and prevent an uprising.  The film’s problem is that we don’t know what either side is about, aside from differing religious views, and so it’s hard to work out who to cheer for.  They both come across as power-hungry zealots (particularly Mary) who care very little about the people around them and the broader population.  It’s villain versus villain and therefore, I was struggled to invest in their fate.

A tricky part to the real-life story is the fact that while Elizabeth and Mary exchanged numerous letters, they never met face-to-face.  Borrowing from the technique used effectively by Michael Mann in Heat, screenwriter Beau Willimon (House of Cards) tries to builds early tension and then brings the two lead characters together for a pivotal, albeit fictional, scene.  It doesn’t work.  It’s an anti-climactic moment that becomes borderline laughable as the stumble around using the protection of see-through curtains.

It’s not all bad news.  The film does a commendable job exploring the challenges of being a female monarch in a male-dominated era.  Both Elizabeth and Mary have qualms about their not-so-loyal advisers and it’s apparent that many want to use the queens as their puppets as opposed to their leaders.  Saoirse Ronan (Lady Bird, Brooklyn) also deserves praise for her performance as the strong-willed yet flawed Mary.  It’s hard to be too enamoured with Margot Robbie’s (I, Tonya) performance given her character goes missing after the opening act.

If you’re looking to see a great period piece about power games and British royalty… The Favourite is still in Australian cinemas.