Monday: Days of Heaven (1978)
Bill is a laborer who loses his job at a factory. So he travels to the country. He travels with his little sister and his girlfriend Abby. Because it is the early 1900s he calls Abby his sister. It was frowned upon to live with a woman you weren't married to. They find work on a farm run by a single man. Bill finds out the farmer is dying. The farmer also has taken a liking to Abby. So Bill comes up with a plan to have Abby marry the farmer and then they will get the money when he dies. It doesn't go as planned. I thought this movie was alright. I didn't realize it was a Terrence Malick film till I was half way through it. I normally don't like his films. But this one wasn't too bad.
Tuesday: Big City (1948)
A cantor, a reverend, and a police officer find a baby on the streets. They can't find the parents. So they decide to raise the baby girl together. A judge approves it. But the first man to get married will get full custody of the child. Years later the baby, Midge, is a young girl who is sweet and kind. Things start to change when the officer falls in love. The cantor and the reverend both fall for Midge's teacher. They all have to decide if their way of raising Midge can continue. This movie was alright.
Wednesday: Welcome to the Dollhouse (1995)
Dawn is a seventh grader struggling with school and life. She doesn't fit in at school and is picked on. Her parents pay more attention to her little sister than her. Her brother starts a band. The lead singer is a senior named Steve. Dawn falls for him and is desperate to be older. Everything comes to a head when Dawn fails to have her sister from ballet and her sister gets kidnapped. Dawn has to come to terms with what is really important. I thought this movie was ok.
Friday: Cyrano (2021)
Cyrano is a soldier and a wordsmith. He is self conscious about his looks. Cyrano is in love his friend Roxanne. She is in love with a new soldier in his regiment, Christian. She wants Cyrano to help her talk to him. Christian loves her too. Cyrano comes up with a plan for Christian to write her letters. But he isn't a good writer. So Cyrano writes the letters for him. A romance develops all the while Cyrano continues to love Roxanne. This version is a musical. I thought it was alright. If you take out all the singing parts it's a good movie. The singing is very awkward and starts all of the sudden. The choreography is bad. Peter Dinklage, Cyrano, can't really sing. It doesn't look good if the leading man can't sing. I did like that instead of Cyrano having a big nose he is a little person. I thought that was a cool twist.
Saturday: Double Feature- Book of Love (2022) and Ode to Joy (2019)
Book of Love is about an English author named Henry. He has written a romance novel that isn't doing very well. Then he finds out that it is a huge hit in Mexico. His agent sends him to Mexico to go on a book tour. There he meets Maria who translated his book. Soon he finds out that she rewrote the book to be more like a telenovela (soap opera). At first he is angry but then he realizes maybe he was going about it all wrong. He turns to Maria for help. This movie was cute.
Ode to Joy is about a librarian named Charlie. Charlie has a rare brain disorder that make him faint when he feels strong emotions. Mostly joy. So he has gone through his life trying to contain his happiness. His brother Cooper helps him. One day Charlie meet Francesca. They hit it off and go on a date. It ends with them kissing and him passing out and hitting his head. Although he likes her he convinces her they can't work and that she should date his brother. Meanwhile Charlie is set up with Francesca's boring coworker Bethany. They all try to make it work, but it doesn't. I thought this was a good movie. A little campy but still fun.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------I was on vacation.
Friday: The Tender Bar (2021)
JR moves to his grandparent's house with his single mother when he is a kid. His father is not in his life. His mom is struggling to support them. Charlie, JR's uncle, helps to raise JR. He works at a Dicken's themed bar with bookshelves behind the bar. Charlie supports JR's dream to be a writer. Later JR gets into an ivy league school. His mom wants him to study law but he studies writing. JR struggles to find his voice as a writer. He ends up writing about his uncle and the other patrons at the bar. This movie is alright. Definitely a feel good movie. It is based on a memoir.
Saturday: Drive My Car (2021)
This is a Japanese film. A stage actor, Yusuke, is sent reeling after the unexpected death of his unfaithful wife. Years later he agrees to direct a play in Hiroshima. He uses his time driving his car to learn lines and focus on the play. When the theater tells him he has to have a driver he isn't sure what to do. He gives in and gets to know his driver, Misaki. Yusuke ends up casting a famous actor he knows slept with his wife as the lead. He and Misaki are both grieving and have to come to terms with it. I thought this movie was alright. A little slow. I have now seen all the best picture nominees.
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