DVK1234 Reviews

The Idea of You (2024)

Pleasantly Surprised

[8/10 · 10 May 2024]

I was pleasantly surprised by this movie. The acting was pretty good, definite chemistry between the two main characters. In spite of the male character being a star in a "has-been" boy band, there was an air of believability to the two main characters developing feelings for each other and trying to make it work in spite of the age difference, then coming to the realization that the relationship may have a negative impact on Solene's daughter Izzy.

I don't want to give any more of the plot away. Loved the acting, the chemistry between the main characters, the plot, and I enjoyed the ending. This is a comfort movie, something to watch when you want confirmation that love can conquer all.

I recommend this film.

The Cider House Rules (1999)

Never Watched Before Due to Title

[9/10 · 24 April 2024]

I remember this film came out in 1999 and I had absolutely no interest in it because of the title. I didn't realize that the film was about a boy who grows up in an orphanage, and one day leaves to find his own way. So many great actors in it: Michael Caine, Tobey Maguire, Charlize Theron, Paul Rudd, Kieran Cullen, Kate Nelligan, Jane Alexander to name just a few.

It was nominated for best film but did not win. I think 1999 was a great year for movies.

I'm sorry I didn't see this film sooner and I'm glad I finally watched it. It reminded me of The Green Mile in its filming style and the time period.

Do watch it. Thank you to Netflix for airing it.

The Holdovers (2023)

Need More Films Like This

[9/10 · 13 April 2024]

As soon as I saw the trailer I had to see this movie. I loved the storyline and I never felt bored watching this, although nothing much happened throughout the movie. The story is about a boys' private school and how one teacher is assigned to stay and watch them, the holdovers, during the Christmas break. These boys don't have any plans with their families over Christmas, so they have to stay at boarding school.

Mr. Hunham is the not-so-well-liked teacher that gets to stay at Barton over the Christmas break. His life seems lacking something. He is lonely. Mary, the head cook, stays to make the meals. She is also sad because her only son was killed in Vietnam. And the only holdover left for Christmas, Angus Tully, also shares in the sadness as we discover that his stepfather and mother actually would like to spend Christmas without him at St Kitts.

As much as I enjoyed the acting from all the main characters, particularly Paul Giamatti, I don't believe that the character of Mary deserves an Oscar for her role. Her role, that of a grieving mom, was not stand out, albeit good. But just good.

What Jennifer Did (2024)

Pressure from Parents

[7/10 · 10 April 2024]

The pressure from Jennifer Pan's parents for Jennifer to succeed and to choose a man for herself that did not have a criminal record ultimately resulted in Jennifer Pan doing the unthinkable: to put a hit out on her own parents. I understand that the pressure must have been difficult. According to her friend, she was not a straight A student. The Pans expected her to be a pharmacist, but it seems like she did not get accepted into pharmacy, and then her conditional offer from Ryerson was rescinded when she failed Grade 13 calculus. I absolutely feel sorry that the pressure was obviously too much for this girl, but her actions are still pure evil. She wanted what she wanted: the loser drug dealer boyfriend, her parents' cash. Only a wicked, wicked person could stand in the same room with her parents' murderers and chat with them as if nothing untoward or evil was going on. It makes me wonder what came first, her wickedness, or her being influenced by Daniel Wong into a criminal life for from which she could never turn back?

The end of the film says that she and her co-accused have been allowed a retrial. None of these reprobates she ever see the light of day. Ever again.

May December (2023)

Art vs Life

[8/10 · 31 December 2023]

They took an interview from Mary Kay Latourneau and Vili Fualaau where she kept asking him, telling him, rather, "Who was the boss", when at that time the "boss" was 12 years old and she was a married teacher with children.

I liked how Natalie Portman's character Elizabeth wanted to know everything about Gracie, but I thought it was disgusting when she decided to sleep with Joe. I guess she really was trying to be Gracie. She exploited him.

When Gracie and Elizabeth were applying makeup and Gracie started using that ridiculous childish lisp, you finally got confirmation that Gracie was a master manipulator and she knew exactly what she was doing when she sexually assaulted a child, who then became her husband and the father of her three children.

Art imitating life, as Mary Kay seems just as unhinged (in the interview you can find on the internet) when she asked Vili, "Who was the boss", when everyone, including Mary Kay, knew that the boss was her. Only Vili didn't know. So sad.

I recommend this film. Good acting from all three main characters.

The Boys in the Boat (2023)

Good

[8/10 · 31 December 2023]

I was pleasantly surprised. Loved that the movie is based on the true story of the underdog depression-era rowing team from University of Washington moving up the ranks to compete in the 1936 Berlin Olympics.

Great story line. Beautifully cast and directed. I was really rooting for the coach and for the lead character, Joe Rantz. Now in college, Joe was on his own from the age of 15. His mother died when he was young, his father remarried and relocated with his new wife and two children, to try to find work. Joe Rantz is depicted as living in an abandoned vehicle, living hand to mouth. This part of the film gives us an idea of what living through the Great Depression was like.

I really enjoyed the role of the skip, played by Luke Slattery also. And the older gentleman who was tasked with creating a new shell for the team.

I recommend this film. I hope it gets some Oscars. No agenda, no gratuitous sex or violence. A feel-good film.

Hell Camp: Teen Nightmare (2023)

So Much

[7/10 · 30 December 2023]

At beginning of doc, I think "this is a great idea! Kids need some discipline. They are unbearable to live with, using drugs, getting in trouble at school and with the law." Let them have some consequences by being out in the wilderness. I felt for the parents. I have raised teenagers and at times, I really felt helpless and completely disrespected. A prisoner in my own home and treated like a criminal by my own children.

But then, a poor girl dies...of course from the extreme weather conditions she endured in this camp. Not close to any medical help. And Steve Cartisano says he is not responsible. His wife says he is not responsible. How could he be? He wasn't there? At this point I'm screaming at the television. How obtuse? How stupid? How entitled?

Somehow, with a high profile attorney, he beats the charges of negligence causing death. Instead of sailing off into the sunset, he opens another camp "on the water." He doesn't have permission to dock on the islands that he sails to, and again, he should not be held accountable because "he is never there". It starts to look like " Lord of the Flies". His wife is very sad because there is no more money coming in. His children are also sad because the authorities shut the camp down.

But then this Steve Cartisano tries his hand one last time, opening a camp in Samoa, and sends his drug addicted son there. There are reports of sexual abuse. And physical abuse. A video tape is proof. The camp is shut down. The US embassy rescues the remaining kids. Steve Cartisano faces no charges.

At the end of the movie, one of the kids in the Utah camp, I believe, accuses Steve Cartisano of fondling her breasts. She was only a teenager. Her mother does not pursue legal action against Cartisano, thinking it will stop him from helping kids. So sick.

I couldn't help but think that karma came for Cartisano. He died very young of colon cancer, his son who was a drug addict is currently in jail, and his clueless daughter ( she couldn't understand why the authorities were coming after her dad....) also had a rough time on drugs. What goes around comes around.

Bank of Dave (2023)

It was a feel good movie

[7/10 · 30 December 2023]

At first the movie kept my interest. Very good premise: open a bank in England, a near impossible feat and has not been done in last 150 years. Also, it's not the usual political left-wing fodder that is typically aired on Netflix. But then it really felt like it was dragging on. I had to turn off and back on again because it really felt too long.

Having said that, the story is a good one. The acting is good. Good music too. I read on this site that it is based on a true story. I read that it is very loosely based on a true story, and a lot of reviewers didn't like that, as a lot of it was embellished and untrue. I can't comment on this part, as I didn't realize a new bank came into existence in England and that it still exists today.

In spite of the above, I recommend this film. I do think it could have been shaved down by about 30 minutes or so.

Destined at Christmas (2022 TV Movie)

Okay

[6/10 · 26 December 2023]

When Kim and Theo lost each other at the sporting goods store because the power went out, why didn't they just wait at the front door to meet back up again?

Very obvious ending that they would finally meet up again and start a relationship. Reminded me of a bad Serendipity, where the viewers get frustrated because the main characters keep missing each other and everyone in their circle meet the person that they just keep missing.

Particularly bad acting by the child playing Theo's daughter. Absolute train wreck. Nice scenery. Shot in Utah. I didn't recognize any of the actors in this movie, including the main characters.

I don't recommend this film.

Escaping Twin Flames (2023)

A Cult run by Uncharismatic Dum Dums

[7/10 · 17 November 2023]

I'm interested in cults and religious groups that control their followers. Twin Flames Universe is a cult, no question. What's interesting is that the two leaders, Shaleia and Jeff, could not be more uninteresting or sophomoric. I wondered, as I watched this expose, how people felt led to continue in their nonsense. I truly feel sorry for all of their victims, because that's what they are: victims. The parents of the victims especially made me feel awful, because here is this snot-nosed leader, suing one of the parent's of a victim, for defamation.

I guess it's hard to shut down these criminals because it's hard to prove that they are dispensing psychological advice, but they are. They are also promoting unverified high carb diets. The worst thing is how they control their followers into pursuing their twin flame, at all cost. Now, because they have more female followers than male followers, they force them into same sex relationships.

I agree with another post: why did they have to include a stat on transsexuals at the end of the doc? Who cares? That's Netflix for you, and it's annoying. There's always an agenda.

Flipping for Christmas (2023 TV Movie)

Typical W Movie Christmas Fare

[6/10 · 4 November 2023]

The characters were holding hot dogs at one point, then all of a sudden they had their hot dog-holding hands down by their sides and they stopped eating the hot dogs. In the next scene the couple are at the tree farm and the male lead is carrying an open wood tool box, but it looks like nothing is inside. When they reach the tree that is holding the ornaments, suddenly there are small discs of wood in the box and the character is pouring them out of the box into another receptacle. You really notice how little W cares about the plot, cast and continuity when you pay closer attention. My husband and I had a lot of fun looking for all the inaccuracies. It made up for the film having no plot. Which is what we expected: no plot. Merry Flipping Christmas!

Mr. Dressup: The Magic of Make-Believe (2023)

Brought Back Memories

[9/10 · 22 October 2023]

I remember watching Mr Dress Up as a kid. Interesting, I didn't know Ernie Coombs was American and that he knew Fred Rogers, and they were good friends. I must admit, I always liked Ernie Coombs; his kindness was apparent even through the television. I didn't particularly love the show Mr Dress Up, although I remember being impressed by his ability to draw. I found the show boring, and preferred the likes of Sesame Street and Electric Company, even Friendly Giant over this show.

Having said that, this documentary confirms what a kind, decent man Ernie Coombs was. I cried through the last part of the film. How tragic was his wife's death. They seemed so in love. And in spite of this, he did not cancel his scheduled appearance on Fred Penner's show two week's after her death, an episode that features Fred Penner and Ernie Coombs singing a very beautiful and moving song together.

It was also so heartbreaking to discover how Ernie Coombs died. It happened right around 9/11, and his son found his way back to Canada from the UK by securing a coveted flight because he told the airline that he was the son of Mr Dress Up, who was in hospital and his dad was probably not going to make it. At that point I was bawling my eyes out.

A beautiful documentary film about a Canadian icon. I am so glad I stumbled upon this movie and I recommend!!!

Grandma (2015)

It's Alright

[7/10 · 22 October 2023]

Elle (Lily Tomlin) is grandmother to Sage (Julia Garner). Sage finds out she is pregnant and needs $630 for an abortion. The movie is essentially about the two women driving around to different people that Elle knows, who she believes may have the money for the abortion.

The acting was good, although I did find myself distracted by whatever Lily Tomlin did to her face (Botox maybe?). I didn't really enjoy that Lily Tomlin's ex was a lot younger than her. It seemed very unrealistic and the scenes between them were uncomfortable for me.

I thought the acting was good and I liked how Lily Tomlin's character was developed and the viewer gets a good understanding of why she would want to help her granddaughter for more than just the obvious reason that she is her family.

I liked the movie. Didn't love it. I don't usually watch movies about abortions, and would not have chosen to watch it had I known what it was about. Still, it held my interest, so for that, and because I think Julia Garner is an amazing actress, I recommend this film.

Inside the World's Toughest Prisons (2016–2023)

Love this Series

[8/10 · 22 October 2023]

I have never been in prison but I have a family member who is currently serving time for weapons offences. He has been in and out of prison from the time he was a teenager. I find prison life fascinating and I have often thought about what the purpose of prison is: to punish or to rehabilitate?

Raphael Rowe spent 12 years in prison for a crime he didn't commit. He has good insight into what makes a prison system "good" or "bad". I remember how shocked he was when he visited Sergey Tkach, the Ukrainian serial killer who was locked up and living in his own quarters, and he had married a woman and was allowed conjugal visits with her. Raphael Rose's reactions to the set up were real, and I felt just as disgusted as he did that this prisoner was allowed to have these privileges.

I have watched all the seasons and I am looking forward to more!

Maudie (2016)

Maud Lewis

[8/10 · 21 October 2023]

I didn't know that she was from around Yarmouth which is interesting to me as my husband's mom grew up in Yarmouth in the 1930s and no one in my mother-in-law's circle ever mentioned Maud Lewis. I really enjoyed the movie. I thought Ethan Hawke played the role of Everett very well. It makes me sad to think that Maud was mistreated by him. She seems to have had a sad life; she got pregnant by the love of her life and the child was given away. I heard that what happened was that her daughter did come to find Maud but Maud told her she never had a daughter, she told the girl she gave birth to a son. People say she did this because she was concerned for her daughter's safety should she be alone with Everett.

Maud Lewis made beautiful art. Whenever I see her paintings, I smile.

I recommend this film.

The Whale (2022)

Brendan Fraser Deserved The Oscar He Got

[7/10 · 26 September 2023]

I could tell that the movie was an adaptation of a play. In spite of it being filmed entirely in an apartment, it never gets boring. I enjoyed the film and I recommend it. The actors, with the exception of the daughter and the ex-wife, played their roles very well. I thought the actress who played Ellie was a little too much. Perhaps if her character wasn't played out as dramatically as it was, she may have endeared herself more to the audience. Instead, I didn't really feel sorry for her circumstances, and I should have, as she was abandoned by her dad for his male lover. I thought the ex-wife was also overly dramatic.

I also found at times that the background music, and the continued references back to Ellie's essay on Moby Dick were really over the top. It could have been toned down a lot.

So the whole time I was watching the movie I couldn't help but think that the writer of The Whale must have been hurt by the church. There was such a dichotomy presented of what was good, what was evil, and how that was different to what SHOULD be good, and what SHOULD be evil by society's standards. The missionary was concerned for Charlie's salvation. Good, right? No. Not good. The church he claims to belong to is indirectly responsible for Charlie's lover's suicide. Ellie was disturbed based on her social media posts. Evil, right? No. Not evil. "She's awesome," says her dad. He so wants to believe that her motivation for ratting Thomas out to his parents is beneficent. Church is good, right? Absolutely not! The church would not accept homosexuality, and so it is bad. Very, very bad. Sorry, but I think it's a little more complicated than this portrayal. Come to find out that Samuel D. Hunter, the writer of the play, is gay and he was outed by his Christian classmates at his private Christian school. The administration believes that he is in need of help, which results in his parents taking him out of the school. So yes, this movie is adapted from the play written by a gay man who was wounded by the church. It's hardly subtle.

In spite of the above, I recommend this movie.

The Morning Show (I) (2019– )

Apple TV is Knocking it Out of the Park

[10/10 · 13 August 2023]

Every series I watch is great!!! Way to go, Apple TV.

Love this show! The characters are so complex, and so much substance to them. Great acting by Billy Crudup. He is so captivating and stand out in this series. When he tells Bradley how he feels about her, such raw talent. I was mesmerized. Cudos to Steve Carell, Reese Witherspoon, Mark Duplass., Valeria Golino.

When the show's timeline reached Jan 2020, it felt surreal reliving what the world went through. I really appreciate how the show's story was intertwined with that part of history during the pandemic.

I am looking forward to the next season. The only downside is that I don't enjoy Jennifer Aniston's acting or character. But I am still enjoying the series and I recommend it!

Ted Lasso (2020–2023)

Liked the Whole Thing

[10/10 · 13 August 2023]

I can't say enough about this show that caught be by surprise. A show about soccer...I don't watch soccer, or any sports. But I loved this show about soccer, about the characters, their lives and struggles, how they developed. I ended up rooting for them all! It was such a feel good series. I was so sad to watch the last episode that I delayed watching it for a few weeks.

Great cast, great story, wonderful acting, made me laugh lots of times and cry too. Jason Sudeikis really shows his range as an actor in this. Loved all the other characters as well, especially Rebecca, Leslie, Roy Kent, Jamie Tart. One of my favourite scenes is when Jamie Tart visits his mother, lol. I played it back a few times.

Please watch this!!!!

Platonic (2023– )

Great

[9/10 · 13 August 2023]

Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne are so great together in this show about life long friendships and acceptance. There were so many times I laughed out loud. I wish I had a friend like they were to each other, they accepted the other no matter what, had each other's backs. One of my favourite scenes was when Rose Byrne's character goes back to work at the law office and damages a painting of a partner at the law firm. Seth Rogen trying to fix the damage with her nail polish and some white out, lol!!! Then the finished product - something other than a nose on the face. I loved this show and it was refreshing to see imperfect albeit likeable characters that you really want to succeed! I recommend.

Bad Sisters (2022– )

Had me on my seat

[9/10 · 19 July 2023]

I can't say enough about this limited series. The likability factor was present for all of the characters with the exception of the antagonist, of course. I couldn't stop watching because I wanted to find out what happens to JP, does he actually die and by whom? The subplots with Becky and Matt, Beck's and Minna, Ursula and Ben, Eva and Gabriel, Gracie and Roger all held my interest. I rooted for them all and I cursed at JP. I haven't hated a character on TV with that kind of intensity in a long time.

If you like whodunnits, I recommend this series for you!

Apple TV has really been on point. Their shows are not filled with vulgarity and over the top unecessary smut, like Netflix. So far, all the series' I've watched in Apple have been great.

Arnold (2023)

Be Useful

[8/10 · 22 June 2023]

Stay busy. Be useful. What simple yet important statements that define the life of Arnold Shwarzenegger. I am not a fan, I am not interested in action movies although I have seen him in some comedic roles. But there is no denying that he succeeded in every professional undertaking he set out to accomplish. First, bodybuilding. Then acting and finally, politics. His beginnings were probably not that different from many other post-war babies. Men like his father, who survived the war, saw too much, didn't know they had PTSD. Arnold says the abuse they endured probably led to the drinking problem his brother had, which ultimately led to his death. Arnold continued on, never wavering in his goal to be a top body builder. I really envy that kind of drive.

I think what was so unique about him and allowed him so much success was probably also the cause of the marriage breaking down. He can't sit still, he gets bored, on to the next challenge. He probably got bored with his marriage. I'm glad he said he failed, but that his son from the affair was not unwelcome in the world.

I saw the more human side of Arnold in this docuseries. He explains that he is not a self-made man. He had a lot of help and breaks along the way. I liked that humility.

I recommend this docuseries.

The Meyerowitz Stories (2017)

A Modern Family

[7/10 · 16 June 2023]

I fell asleep half way through the movie and decided to rewatch that half later in the day because it was not a bad film. Danny moves in temporarily with his father Harold, a respected artist and professor who is now retired. Harold is self-absorbed in what he perceives to be a less than illustrious career. It appears that all of Harold's children, Danny, Jean, and half-brother Matt, all have a complex relationship with their dad and amongst themselves. It appears to have caused them to either try very hard to succeed, or to live very cautiously and try nothing at all. At one point, Harold's latest wife tells Matt that Harold is disappointed in Danny and Jean's lack of success. Matt defends them, "They were abandoned, they had no one". It is no secret that Harold prefers Matt, a successful financial advisor. In spite of this, Matt too is resentful of his dad, because Harold cares only about himself.

I really like how the story developed. It didn't end neatly, which is more true to life. Families are hard. In spite of the love that is usually found in a family, it takes work to accept each other's flaws and failings. This was captured in the movie well.

I recommend this film. No bells and sirens, a good character study in complicated parent/child relationships.

Take This Waltz (2011)

I should have known

[4/10 · 13 June 2023]

Because Sara Polley was involved in making this film, it had no choice but be a dud.

Margot meets a handsome artist, Daniel, while in Louisburg. She encounters him again on the plane home to Toronto, then discovers he is her neighbour. Margot is married to Lou, who is a cookbook writer. Margot and Lou's marriage is weird. They joke around and play pranks on each other like they are both deranged. Margot talks in baby talk while they are intimate. It's actually disturbing.

Margot is curious about Daniel, and it appears that she is not entirely happy in her marriage, even though she and Lou behave psychotically around each other, and this is how Sara Polley wants to portray their marriage.

Margot eventually leaves Lou for Daniel. I'm not sure why; she clearly doesn't know him. She is bored of being married and she doesn't know what she wants. Toward the end of the movie you see her doing mundane, every day things with Daniel, like brushing their teeth in the same room. The novelty has worn off.

I think in the hands of someone other than Sara Polley, and with some major changes in the script, and casting some one other than Seth Rogan as Lou, and someone other than Michelle Williams as Margot (I really dislike Michelle Williams since her stupid Oscar speech about how thankful she was that she was able to get an abortion, otherwise how could she ever have become this amazing actress!!), maybe this film could have been ok.

I did not like the frontal nudity of the women at the YMCA, or the explicit sex scenes between Margot and Daniel. You don't need to throw that into a movie to make it feel edgy.

Sara Silverman was pretty good in the role of alcoholic sister in law and mom; Luke Kirby was nice to look at.

Liked the scenes from Toronto, and the Fortress of Louisburg.

I don't recommend this film.

Kodachrome (2017)

It Doesn't Work

[5/10 · 11 June 2023]

The story line has legs; son feels spurned by his aged father, and so they have been estranged for years. Father is dying and so son is asked to meet with him and take him in a journey, related to father's photography work.

Something doesn't work: the writing? The cast doesn't gel? I'm not sure what the problem was. The movie is not good. It's boring. I don't care about the main characters. The romance between the son and the father's nurse, I don't care either.

I wish I could tell you what was lacking in this film.

I don't recommend it.

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A Beautiful Life (I) (2023)

Good

[8/10 · 11 June 2023]

Don't listen to the negative reviews. Very nice story about a troubled fisherman with musical talent who gets discovered instead of his friend.

In there is a deeper story of why he is troubled, the relationship he has with his record producer, the baggage they each carry. His friend is a big opportunistic jerk, but for some reason, probably because of all of the hurt and bad stuff Elliott has endured, he has a real connection with Oliver and wants to stick by him.

Acting is good, music is amazing. I find the foreign films always do it better. Reminds me of A Star is Born but the 2.0 version.

I recommend it!