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jaynekranc
Reviews
Harry & Meghan (2022)
That's wasted hours of my life I won't get back
Here we have two of the most boring, self centered, self entitled people on earth whining for hours about how hard their lives are. If they want privacy, as they said they did, then stay off the air. Apparently the cameras are great when they need attention but they want to shut them off when they don't It doesn't work that way.
And Harry comparing Meghan to his mother is sickening. Diana respected the Queen and always gave her every bit of courtesy she deserved. The King needs to take away their titles and home in Britain if they don't want to do their expected royal duties. This is a totally repulsive program.
If Netflix wants to do a documentary about blacks in Britain, instead of giving air time to these two they should do one on Victoria's African goddaughter. After her parents were murdered and she was sold into slavery by the Dahomey she was given to Victoria as a gift. Named Sarah, she was educated and protected by Victoria. When she married another former slave, Victoria continued to take an interest in the family and made sure they were allowed in British society. There are so many more interesting British stories to be told than this claptrap by two selfish brats.
Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018)
Don't listen to the haters.
Just saw it again and realized I never reviewed this. Don't listen to the haters. It's not the greatest movie ever made, nor the most original, but it's not as bad as people say. The actor playing Han had big shoes to fill but he does all right. It's action packed and fun. Lando and Chewie are great.
Ford v Ferrari (2019)
Wonderful acting
Since I had just visited the Henry Ford Museum I decided to check this out even though I knew very little about racing. It was phenomenal. Everyone in the cast is just perfect and the soundtrack will get your heart pumping. I'd love to see it as an Oscar contender.
Downton Abbey (2019)
Loved it.
Such a delight to see Highclere on the big screen. I hope to see it in person someday. The performances were amazing and the set decorations and costumes play beautifully on the big screen. Maggie Smith has been a favorite of mine sine First Wives Club and Geraldine is wonderful as one of my favorite queens.
The Farewell (2019)
Family Problems are Universal
Family problems are universal and this film reminds us of that. I thought parts of it were very funny and parts of it hit the right notes of sadness. I would have like a few scenes with Billi and her bridegroom cousin about how his non-Chinese speaking girlfriend was handling things and why she even agreed to go through with the wedding. (I am not calling that a spoiler because it's the whole premise of the film and anyone who doesn't know it has been living under the proverbial rock.) Less empathetic women would have shot out the door. All of the AMC theaters by me made it almost impossible to see, showing it on one screen twice a day and that was more irritating to me than any cloying moments in the film. It's not the best movie I ever saw but it's definitely not the worst.
The Best of Enemies (2019)
Worth your time
I actually had friends puzzled that I wanted to see this, because they told me it was a movie just for black people. It's worth seeing just to understand exactly how dumb that kind of comment is. The performances are outstanding. I love "based on true events" films anyway, and understand their limitations, so maybe I"m biased, but I think this is an important film..The sets captured that small town feel in the past south perfectly. Is it heavy handed at times? Sure, but it really shows how both characters changed their minds. I"m sorry it's not doing better. I missed seeing it last weekend and this weekend there were only two showings of it at my theater and expect it to be gone next week.
Goodbye Christopher Robin (2017)
Sorry I didn't see it sooner,..
I saw this film on a plane coming back from a trip to London, where oddly enough, I had been taken to see the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace by a tour guide named Alice. NOT a kid's film and I'm sure there was some misconception about that, but it's a wonderful film. Moves slowly in spots, but well acted and has a beautiful look to it. The mother was atrocious, and the dad misguided, and I don't know how realistic that was, but the film worked.
The Lone Ranger (2013)
Don't listen to the critics
I think this film is getting a bad rap. Yes, it is a bit too long and yes, it deserves the PG-13 rating and I would not take little kids to see it, but it was much better than I expected. I don't know why the critics are being so hard on it. It's an entertaining summer movie and should be viewed as such. I know a lot of fans of the Moore/Silverheels version are bad mouthing it, but honestly, they weren't given a lock on the roles for eternity and people forget it was a radio show before they even started filming their version. Go see this version with an open mind, enjoy it for what it is, and enjoy yourself. When I saw it in the theaters, members of the audience actually applauded it, and everyone in my party of five thought it was great.
Les Misérables (2012)
Better as a play
Helena and Sacha steal the show, but the story gained nothing in it's translation to film for me. I really liked the play better. At least then I wasn't surrounded by people whispering, "I didn't know Russell Crowe could sing!" I have to give everyone credit though for singing live. That was a bold move.
I don't think much of Amanda Seyfried as Cosette. Neither her acting nor her singing grabbed me. I liked Isabelle Allen as young Cosette, though. She was absolutely perfect looking and didn't have to do that much acting.
I agree with everyone who said it had pacing issues. It didn't flow well for me at all. I wish the loaf of bread theft had gotten more than one quick mention at the beginning. That needed to be dealt with at the start and I wish they could have managed one scene about that part of Valjean's story.
Argo (2012)
Best film of it's type since "Missing"
This is a great movie with wonderful performances that is not getting nearly the buzz it deserves. Every actor is perfectly cast. I know there's been a lot of complaints about Affleck playing a Latino, but Tony's mother was Italian. I think people are just looking for something to nitpick.
The most important part of the film is the introduction, and having the narrator juxtapose the later Iranian woman denouncing the US was a nice touch. That back story was needed, desperately and it was well done.
John Goodman and Victor Garber are both delights. These actors never get credit for the range they have. Garber gives the Canadian ambassador the dignity he deserves and I thought it showed quite well the strain that he and his wife were under and the risks they took. Arkin is also wonderful and the play between him and John Goodman give the movie a few necessary lighter moments. The theater I was in cracked up when he said, "Groucho said that?" and it had been as tense as a tightly wound 70's style watch at that point.
Anyone who lived through this turbulent time will recognize what's going on. The costumes, the hair cuts, the big glasses, all are perfect for the time period. Yes, it's not exactly the way it was, but when someone says "based on a true story" they are not saying, "This is a documentary!" The movie "Missing" had the same complaints and it was amazing.
I do think the escape went a little over the top, with the police cars chasing the plane and all that, but the movie is worthwhile and more people should go see it. I understand why it got the rating it did based on the number of f-bombs, but I would take any teenager who has heard the word before and tell them this story is something they need to know.
The Conspirator (2010)
Review...may contain spoilers!
The film IS a typical Hollywood version of history, (or in this case her story) but the performances were so good, and it did draw attention to a little known side note to the assassination, so I would still recommend it. The casting was good. The cinematography was good. The uniforms were a bit messed up at times, but I've seen worse. I agree with everyone who has commented on the ball and chain being quite inappropriate. For the most part it had the right look, though, especially the hanging. I've done Civil War reenacting and I know how few people ever delve past the shooting of Lincoln.
I personally found it more disturbing to show Stanton throwing Mary Lincoln out immediately after arriving at the boarding house. He didn't do that until the next morning. He was no pussycat, though, and no one should argue that he was.
They did point out that if Mary Surratt didn't know, she should have known, so they are not exactly putting her out as a total innocent as some people have said. Yes, she was probably guilty, but was her guilt sufficient to justify her hanging? She was after all the first woman to ever be hanged, and they were hypocritical enough to tie her dress down when they did it. It's okay to hang a guilty woman, but God forbid anyone see her ankles? If you want more accurate history, go pull out your Ken Burns or some other documentary. If you want people to be entertained and at the same time think a little bit about that time period, yes, tell them to go see something like this, and then maybe they'll develop the interest to look into it on their own.