Cha Cha Real Smooth (2022)

If I didn't have this little comedy drama recommended to me by someone then I doubt I would have ever though to seek it out. After all, the fact that it was both written and directed by the young man who then cast himself in the lead role makes it seem like so many other vanity projects I have either endured or avoided over the past few decades. I'm very thankful to the person who recommended this though, because it's a proper little gem of a film.

Cooper Raiff is Andrew, a young man without any real plan for his life, other than saving up enough money to travel and reconnect with a girlfriend he suspects may already be doing quite well without him. Struggling to retain the will to live in his day job, things take an upturn when he discovers that he has a marketable knack for being a party host. He ensures that things go well, and he tries to get everyone taking their turn on the dancefloor. It's at one of these parties that he meets Domino (Dakota Johnson), mother to an autistic young girl named Lola (Vanessa Burghardt). And that's when things soon start to get a bit messy.

Although I was unfamiliar with Raiff before seeing this, I'm now keen to see whatever he's attached to. Both the writing and direction here show an admirable amount of talent, and he's also genuinely good enough to handle a lead role that allows him to be intermittently likeable and loathsome, depending on how he is reacting to a complex world that he would much rather keep carefree and simple.

It helps that Raiff assembles a fantastic supporting cast around him, and everyone feels as if they responded well to the material. Johnson shows once again how much better she does in movies that aren't part of any franchise meat-grinder, Burghardt is very good in her role, although you could argue that there are a few too many affectations in her performance (but I think they work well), and Evan Assante is very sweet as our lead's younger brother, just at the right age to continue idolising his sibling even as he starts to see the obvious flaws and mistakes. Leslie Mann is a wonderful and caring mother, Brad Garrett is her partner, and his character is the butt of many jokes until Andrew starts to realise how good the man is for his mother, and Raúl Castillo is the other main man in Domino's life, much to the chagrin of Andrew.

The 107-minute runtime may feel a little long for what could be such a slight work, but I would have happily spent more time in this world with these characters if possible. Raiff judges everything perfectly, especially during a few scenes that look set to become very uncomfortable, only for Raiff to defuse the situation with a perfect punchline or some interaction that proves to be surprisingly satisfying.

A film about a young man unable to plan the next phase of his journey through life would be okay, I guess, but Cha Cha Real Smooth works as well as it does because it's about a young man who finds a very strong connection with someone that knows he has the opportunity to make so many more connections with people he could have much more in common with. It's also a glimpse at someone who, like so many of us, finds a way to relight the spark of his personality by focusing on doing something he genuinely enjoys, instead of staying stuck in a job that offers him no fulfilment whatsoever. 

Give this one a watch when you can. Not every moment works, but the highlights are so well-crafted and beautiful that you may well become as big a fan of Raiff as I now am.

8/10

If you have enjoyed this, or any other, review on the blog then do consider the following ways to show your appreciation. A subscription/follow costs nothing. All links are HERE.
It also costs nothing to like/subscribe to the YouTube channel attached to the podcast I am part of - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCErkxBO0xds5qd_rhjFgDmA
Or you may have a couple of quid to throw at me, in Ko-fi form - https://ko-fi.com/kevinmatthews

Ani-MAY-tion: Planes (2013)

It isn’t always as straightforward as this, but the life of a cinephile is a life of finding films through various connections (directors, stars, writers, cinematographers, composers, themes, etc.). That is all part of the fun, and many connections lead you towards developing a taste for a full and varied smorgasbord of filmic delights. Which is why I ended up watching Planes, and will soon be watching the sequel next week. Planes is a spin-off from Cars, set in the same onscreen universe . . . but with the characters this time around all being, yes, planes.

Dane Cook plays a small cropdusting plane named Dusty Crophopper. He dreams of one day being a celebrated racing plane, but he may not have the ability to really compete with the champions. He also has a fear of heights, which is a bit of a problem for someone wanting to race through the skies. Finding someone willing to mentor him makes his dream edge closer to reality though, and it isn’t long until Dusty is causing quite the stir in the racing world. He’s still viewed as a novelty, but someone has to be last. And it’s the taking part that counts.

Writer Jeffrey M. Howard has a difficult job here. It’s an obvious template being used, and keeping things nice and simple can help keep younger viewers engaged, but it doesn’t ever feel as if it has been given enough care and polish. Things feel a bit rushed in the opening act, none of the characters feel developed enough, and there’s also the problem of Cook not really being a great fit for the lead role (although I have enjoyed him enough in live-action films over the years).

Director Klay Hall ensures that the basics are all delivered competently enough (there’s nothing to complain about when it comes to the visuals, but also nothing to really praise) and at least serves up something that aims to be just the right mix of fun and drama for the target demographic. A couple of the set-pieces work quite well, and older viewers will enjoy a couple of cameo voice roles for people who famously portrayed pilots of the kind of planes they portray here, but it generally lacks some extra ingredient to make it all feel worthwhile. Maybe that is down to the casting.

I have already criticized Cook, who doesn’t work in the lead role, and there aren’t too many cast members I want to rush to praise. Stacy Keach is pretty good as the gruff mentor, Brad Garrett is fun (although I thought he was Elliott Gould until I checked the credits), and Carlos Alazraqui provides a number of laughs. John Cleese works because he is recognizably John Cleese, but none of the female cast members get to make an impact, which is a real shame when you have Teri Hatcher, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Priyanka Chopra in your cast. As for Roger Craig Smith in the role of Ripslinger, the champ who you just know will play dirty to win, he’s sadly nondescript and non-menacing.

It looks fine and didn’t cause me to feel as if my time was wasted, but I won’t ever consider giving this a rewatch. And I am now more apprehensive about the sequel than I was last week.

5/10

It also costs nothing to like/subscribe to the YouTube channel attached to the podcast I am part of - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCErkxBO0xds5qd_rhjFgDmA
Or you may have a couple of quid to throw at me, in Ko-fi form - https://ko-fi.com/kevinmatthews
Or Amazon is nice at this time of year - https://www.amazon.co.uk/hz/wishlist/ls/Y1ZUCB13HLJD?ref_=wl_share

Mubi Monday: Gloria Bell (2018)

Based on the original movie by director Sebastián Lelio, who also co-wrote it with Gonzalo Mazo, this remake has Lelio helming once again, the screenplay adapted by Alice Johnson Boher, and a cast that includes Julianne Moore, John Turturro, and many more. Having not seen the original, I cannot speak about how this compares to it. I can simply comment on the movie itself, and my comments aren't really overflowing with praise.

Moore plays Gloria, an older woman who enjoys spending some time in clubs and perhaps finding a new lover. She ends up meeting Arnold (Turturro), a man in a similar situation to herself. He is also a divorcee, and has two grown-up children (Gloria has a son and a daughter, Arnold has two daughters), and he claims to be in love with Gloria. Unfortunately, strain develops between the two when it becomes clear that Arnold is often too preoccupied with his daughters, either answering phone calls or disappearing to help them.

The above paragraph is a very basic summary of Gloria Bell, and there's a bit more to this character study than just what I have written there, of course, but not really that much more. In fact, take away the lead performances and this film becomes so lightweight that it's almost ethereal (and not in a good way).

Lelio directs competently enough, and the screenplay takes time to simply show a woman getting to grips with a certain period of her life, but it never really does a good enough job of making the interesting points it could make. Hmmmm, a central character may end up realising that loving oneself and/or life is a better route to happiness than trying to fall in love with someone else? There's something staggeringly original and daring. I really shouldn't lower myself to just delivering sarcastic comments, it's just difficult when a film like this comes along and seems to be viewed as saying something worthwhile. It's not. There's a small twist on the material with the age and situation of the lead character, yes, but when you see how she goes about her day you soon realise that not enough is done to make her anything more than a tool for the final obvious point that Lelio wants to hammer home. Gloria has a problematic neighbour, who is also the son of the landlady. Anyone could be in that situation. She has an ex who now has a new partner. Anyone could be in that situation. She has two children, which is where you think the material starts to feel more relevant to this specific character, but there's very little done with them that couldn't have been done if these central characters were siblings, for example, or close friends. And I understand that I could probably make this argument with many movies. It just stands out here because of the way everything seems underdeveloped. This is a film built around a couple of fun sequences, both set to enjoyable music choices, but without anything in between those moments to reward the patience of viewers.

Moore is as wonderful as ever in the main role, and she deserves better material to work with (although I can see why she would be drawn to this, considering the highlights and the fact that it allows her to be in almost every scene, which doesn't happen enough for such a great actress). Turturro is also as good as he usually is, portraying a different riff on the kind of character we have seen him play quite often throughout his career. The supporting cast includes Caren Pistorius, Michael Cera, Brad Garrett, Holland Taylor, and, the person I was most pleasantly surprised to see, Jeanne Tripplehorn (who deserves more roles in things I may see, cannot recall the last time I saw her in a major release). Everyone does good work, even if they are underserved by a script that is rightly more concerned with things as they are viewed and experienced by Gloria.

Although not a terrible film, I cannot think of many people who will come away from Gloria Bell thinking that their day was better for having watched it. Moore fans will get enjoyment from it, but I am hoping that whatever her next lead role is will also give her a better movie to match her considerable talent. Because this was a disappointment.

4/10

The movie can be bought here.
Americans can buy it here.

Ani-MAY-tion Month: Tangled (2010)

For their 50th animated feature, Disney decided to turn to the classic tale of Rapunzel, shaking it up a bit to create a beautiful, funny adventure that ranks up there with some of their best work.

Rapunzel (voiced by Mandy Moore) is resigned to her life in the tower. Whenever she pleads to go out and see the big, wide world her "mother" (Donna Murphy) manages to convince her that it's no good. But opportunity comes her way when a charming rogue named Flynn (Zachary Levi) seeks temporary safety in the tower. Flynn is forced into agreeing to take Rapunzel out into the world, letting her see the lights that fly in the sky, every year on her birthday. Little does she know that the floating lanterns, for that is what they are, get released every year by her real mother and father, who are royalty, as well as the subjects that they rule over.

Perfectly mixing the traditional with the modern, in terms of both animation and also the characters, Tangled is yet another in a recent run of near-perfect Disney hits. All of the expected elements are in place - the anthropomorphic animal (a scene-stealing horse named Maximus, in this instance, but there's also a very cute chameleon raising smiles), the beautiful princess, the wicked crone, the moral lessons - but they somehow manage to avoid feeling stale. I think that's due, in some small part, to the way in which everything is portrayed in a fairytale age gone by, while also being injected with some modern sensibilities. Disney isn't reinventing the wheel here, but in recent years they've managed to embrace a sense of fun again, a real exuberance that has been elevating their work.

Directors Nathan Greno and Byron Howard have a great script, by Dan Fogelman, to work from, and they keep a nice balance between the sweet, more Disney-esque, moments and the sequences that embrace an enjoyable irreverence. The musical moments, by Alan Menken, also help a lot in this regard, with "Mother Knows Best" and "I've Got A Dream" being the two highlights.

While the vocal cast isn't exactly full of people who are immediately identifiable from their speech, everyone does well in their respective role. Moore, Murphy and Levi are all a pretty perfect match for their characters, while Ron Perlman, M. C. Gainey, Jeffrey Tambor, Brad Garrett and Richard "Jaws" Kiel also lend their talents to the mix.

It's maybe not quite as good as absolute classic Disney fare (although keep an eye out for both Pinocchio and Pumbaa in sneaky, fleeting cameos), but it's pretty great nonetheless. Let your hair down and give it a go. Yes, I just ended with that pun.

8/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Tangled-Blu-ray-DVD-Mandy-Moore/dp/B004E10JD4/ref=sr_1_4?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1397497711&sr=1-4&keywords=tangled