Tag Archives: Amy Landecker

2019 Films, Allison Janney, Amy Landecker, Ashley Greene, Biography, Brian d'Arcy James, Charlize Theron, Connie Britton, Drama, Holland Taylor, Jack Haven, Jay Roach, John Lithgow, Kate McKinnon, Malcolm McDowell, Margot Robbie, Mark Duplass, Mark Moses, Nicole Kidman, P. J. Byrne, Richard Kind, Stephen Root

Bombshell-2019

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Bombshell-2019

Director Jay Roach

Starring Charlize Theron, Margot Robbie, Nicole Kidman

Scott’s Review #972

Reviewed December 26, 2019

Grade: B+

Bombshell (2019) is the type of film that, depending on your political affiliation, you will either refuse to see or see and have a love/hate reaction to.

As a non-lover of the “news” network Fox News, I am firmly ensconced in the latter camp, so my opinion of the film is mixed.

The importance of releasing the film during a time of political turmoil in 2019 is crucial and intentional, which is why I commend the film.

Still, the subject matter of sexual harassment against women is complex to watch and a sobering reminder that this behavior continues to occur.

The performances of the principal players — Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman, Margot Robbie, Kate McKinnon, and John Lithgow — are outstanding and key to the film’s success. Theron and Lithgow receive the lion’s share of makeup and prosthetic work, making them look identical to their real-life counterparts.

Beneficial is a myriad of Fox News political figure portrayals (Sean Hannity, Jeanine Pirro, and Bill O’Reilly) with frighteningly good accuracy, creating a surreal effect.

The film centers on female Fox News personnel in Manhattan and their sexual harassment allegations against founder Roger Ailes (Lithgow).

The central figure- Megyn Kelly (Theron) is conflicted over the risks to both her career and her financial stability if she comes forward and admits her harassment by Ailes years ago, after Gretchen Carlson sues the network.

Margot Robbie plays Kayla, a young Fox employee whom Ailes also harasses.

McKinnon plays a closeted lesbian and confidante to Kayla, who works for the network despite being liberal and a massive admirer of Hillary Clinton.

The plot is fast-paced and unfolds like a quick page-turner, with some sections narrated by Kelly. Bombshell feels timely and has a distinct “ripped from the headlines” makeup.

The fact that the real-life events occurred as recently as 2016 is a striking aspect that will captivate the viewer, especially those who follow United States politics or current events.

The story is fresh and vibrant, with a sense of familiarity, rather than a tale from an event decades ago that many viewers have forgotten or were too young to remember.

I had difficulty feeling much sympathy for most of the characters, which detracts from the film’s overall impact.

The standard definition that the term “Fox News” usually conjures is one of male chauvinism and the good old boys club, with old-fashioned machismo ruling the roost.

Why would any woman choose to work for them or align themselves with the Conservative party, which is not a fan of women or women’s rights?

With this fact in mind, it was difficult for me to watch the film.

To build on this, CEO Roger Ailes is written as the clear villain with no redeeming value. During one scene, he salivates over Kayla when she visits him in his office and instructs her to lift her skirt higher and twirl for him. The scene is sickening, and we feel Kayla’s embarrassment and humiliation.

In a cheer-out-loud moment at the end of the film, she quits, unable to remain in such a corrupt corporation.

One of the only likable characters is Jess Carr (McKinnon), probably fictitious. Hardly fitting the mold of the female staff, not perky or showing leg, she goes out for drinks with Kayla and admits to being gay; the two end up having a one-night stand.

The character is unique, and McKinnon makes wise acting choices.

Worth mentioning is Ailes’s long-time secretary Faye (Holland Taylor). Surely, she knows the antics that go on in her boss’s office, but she almost serves as an accomplice. Why?

Sad to realize that, as recently as 2016, women were still having to face discrimination in the workplace. Industries with powerful men still can be toxic and poisonous to women attempting to climb the ranks.

If the women harassed at Fox News were not top anchors, there is no way the accusations would have even been heard. What about the receptionists, cleaning staff, or administrators who are harassed?

Would anyone listen to them? This message crossed my mind while watching Bombshell.

With fantastic acting and incredible makeup, time will tell if Bombshell (2019) remains a relevant film. Leaving the viewer with an unsatisfying ending rather than a hopeful one, it isn’t easy to sympathize with most of the characters, even when they are supposed to be sympathetic.

Bombshell would make a perfect companion piece to Vice (2018), a similar political, yet superior film.

Oscar Nominations: 1 win-Best Actress-Charlize Theron, Best Supporting Actress-Margot Robbie, Best Makeup and Hairstyling (won)

2017 Films, Amy Landecker, Chloë Sevigny, Comedy, Connie Britton, Dark Comedy, David Warshofsky, Drama, Independent, Independent Comedy, Independent Drama, Jay Duplass, John Lithgow, Miguel Arteta, Salma Hayek

Beatriz at Dinner-2017

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Beatriz at Dinner-2017

Director Miguel Arteta

Starring Salma Hayek, John Lithgow, Connie Britton

Scott’s Review #844

Reviewed December 18, 2018

Grade: B+

Thanks to a well-written screenplay and a thought-provoking idea, Beatriz at Dinner (2017) spins an interesting concept about politics and class systems discussed over dinner.

Salma Hayek and John Lithgow give tremendous performances as characters with opposing viewpoints, helping the film succeed, though a flawed ending and cookie-cutter supporting characters detract from the overall enjoyment.

Set in southern California, presumably around Los Angeles, Beatriz (Hayek) is a holistic health practitioner. Moonlighting as a massage therapist, she becomes stranded at the wealthy home of one of her clients, Kathy (Connie Britton), whom she views as a friend.

Kathy invites Beatriz to stay for dinner, where she encounters real-estate mogul Doug Strutt (Lithgow). The two gradually develop a feud based on their differing politics and viewpoints.

The setup and flow of Beatriz at Dinner are commendable and pace the film nicely. The film is sort of a day in Beatriz’s life. It begins as the character awakens to her pet dogs and goat noisily beginning their day and culminates late at night when the dinner party concludes, and the last glass of wine is consumed.

This way, the film has a nice packaged feel that keeps the story confined and structured.

Being an independent film, the budget is small, and most scenes are shot in a spacious modern house overlooking the Pacific Ocean, which works well. Gorgeous and vast, many rooms are used as conversations among the characters occur, many overlapping each other.

Beatriz at Dinner could have been a play, which helps with the good flow.

Hayek and Lithgow are the main draws as their initial guarded pleasantries progress to venom and violence, albeit primarily imagined.

Initially thinking that Beatriz is the household help, Doug is inquisitive about her entry into the United States and makes numerous insulting gestures, mispronouncing her Mexican hometown and mocking her profession.

Beatriz calmly endures his racism and begins discussions about how his business harms animals and people as emotions escalate. The actors play off each other wonderfully and share chemistry.

With each glass of wine, Beatriz becomes brazen and shares how people in her village lost their land to real estate development. She shares a humanistic viewpoint, while Doug sees life as to be lived while you can.

Despite their dislike for each other’s lifestyles, the film shows Beatriz and Doug at least listening to each other and attempting to understand the other’s opinions, which is more than can be said for the supporting players’ motivations or lack thereof.

Besides Kathy, while sympathetic to Beatriz’s calm demeanor and life-rich philosophies, she also realizes that Doug is her family’s meal ticket.

The other party attendees are written as polite yet uninteresting twits with nothing to talk about except a reality star’s nude photos, dinner, or a handful of other nothing topics.

Chloë Sevigny, Jay Duplass, Amy Landecker, and David Warshofsky have little to do other than stand around and react to the meatier written material that Hayek and Lithgow get to play.

Beatriz at Dinner had me in its corner until the film took a jarring turn during the final act. As Beatriz leaves the party and sets about on her way home, she hastily decides to grab a letter opener and bludgeon Doug to death as the dinner guests hysterically realize what is happening.

Instead of leaving things be, the film chooses to make this only Beatriz’s fantasy and then have her go to the ocean and walk into the waves. Does this mean she commits suicide, or is this another fantasy? This final sequence is unclear and unsatisfying.

I am not sure why Beatriz at Dinner is considered a comedy. Perhaps a mild dark comedy, I argue that the film is a straight-ahead drama and lacks the witty humor that made dinner party-themed films such as Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966) and The Boys in the Band (1970) masterpieces.

Beatriz at Dinner (2017) is a valiant attempt at offering social commentary at a time when discussions like these are needed in films, and the project largely succeeds.

Hayek’s impassioned yet subdued performance deservedly earned her a Female Lead Independent Film nomination. The film’s rich writing garnered a Best Screenplay nomination, too, but a big whiff at the end lowers the overall experience a notch.

Independent Spirit Award Nominations: Best Female Lead-Salma Hayek, Best Screenplay

2009 Films, Adam Arkin, Amy Landecker, Coen Brothers, Comedy, Dark Comedy, Independent, Independent Comedy, Michael Stuhlbarg, Richard Kind, Simon Helberg

A Serious Man-2009

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A Serious Man-2009

Director Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

Starring Michael Stuhlbarg

Scott’s Review #582

Reviewed January 4, 2017

Grade: B

A Serious Man (2009) is a quirky, odd film that is a character study.

Directed by the Coen brothers who typically have an offbeat style to their films (No Country For Old Men-2007, and Fargo-1996 spring to mind), A Serious Man is no different, offering wonderful, richly written supporting characters.

The film, however, lacks the violence of other Coen Brothers films, instead, adding more humorous situations and an overall comical premise.

It tells the story of a Jewish Professor, Larry Gopnik (Michael Stuhlbarg), living in the 1960s, and has a string of bad luck. People close to Larry begin to drop dead all around him and he seems cursed with a string of bad luck.

The film centers around how he deals with crisis after crisis.

The first half of the film admittedly drags a bit, but the second part picks up nicely. The plot suddenly comes to a head rather quickly.

To stress, A Serious Man is a witty, dark comedy, so much of the dialogue is either tongue-in-cheek or dry.

The rabbis that Larry meets, combined with his son Danny and wife Judith are very funny and well-carved-out characters, many certain “types”.

The character of Larry also contained elements of the Larry David character on TV’s Curb Your Enthusiasm.

Also, for those cinema lovers who pay close attention to or have an appreciation for good set design, the film captures the 1960’s style (dress, furniture, cars), perfectly.

Oscar Nominations: Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay

Independent Spirit Award Nominations: 2 wins-Best Director-Joel and Ethan Coen, Best Cinematography (won), Robert Altman Award (won)

2013 Films, Amy Landecker, Ben Falcone, Catherine Keener, Comedy, Independent, Independent Comedy, James Gandolfini, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Nicole Holofcener, Toby Huss, Toni Collette

Enough Said-2013

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Enough Said-2013

Director Nicole Holofcener

Starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus, James Gandolfini

Scott’s Review #71

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Reviewed June 25, 2014

Grade: B+

Enough Said (2013) is a surprisingly well-written, small indie romantic comedy and, sadly, James Gandolfini’s (TV’s The Sopranos) final film performance.

The film stars Julia Louis-Dreyfus, who portrays a down-to-earth massage therapist who meets her odd match (Gandolfini) at a party.

They slowly begin dating and some interesting misunderstandings ensue.

The seemingly odd couple fall in love and form a special bond over time. They are both struggling to overcome past relationships and trust someone again so are vulnerable and interesting characters.

They strive to be happy but are not quite there yet.

I found the dialogue very sharp and witty and Dreyfus is perfectly cast in this film. She and Gandolfini have enormous chemistry and the film is not contrived in the least as many romantic comedies are.

The film feels like a West Coast Woody Allen film from a female perspective with many neurotic, flawed characters.

I enjoyed it immensely.

Independent Spirit Award Nominations: Best Supporting Male-James Gandolfini, Best Screenplay