EUyeshima

There's a genuine unforced chemistry between Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield in director John Crowley's 2024 romantic drama. Somehow through the deliberate time jumping approach of the screenplay by Nick Payne, the vibrant actors manage to tread thoughtfully through moments both poignant and contrived. The tragedy-filled premise is familiar from any number of doomed romance soap operas ever since "Love Story". At the center of the sudsy story is a young couple, Tobias (Garfield) and Almut (Pugh), who are forced to deal with the return of Almut's ovarian cancer. After meeting through a driving mishap, then getting married, and raising a young daughter, they debate over how aggressive they should be in seeking medical treatment when Almut has a passion to leave her mark as a world class chef through a renowned European culinary competition. Piecing together the chronology of the predictable plot elements was the most challenging aspect of viewing the film, yet the charismatic leads help us get to the finish line with conviction.

The passing of Gene Hackman motivated me to revisit Francis Ford Coppola's classic character-driven 1974 thriller on the Criterion Channel. It was reportedly the actor's favorite among his vast filmography. His coiled, introspective portrayal of Harry Caul illuminates a film that would've been otherwise murky and methodical. Revealing as little as possible about himself or his successful bugging techniques, Harry is a wiretapping expert riddled with guilt and ensnared in an increasing state of paranoia as he monitors a pair of illicit lovers linked to a mysterious figure referred to as the Director. There's quite a supporting cast of both veteran and then-unknown players including John Cazale as a resentful associate, Robert Duvall as the Director, Harrison Ford as his smarmy assistant, Cindy Williams and Frederic Forrest as the accused lovers, Teri Garr as an innocent girlfriend, and Elizabeth MacRae ("Gomer Pyle USMC") in a surprising turn as a not-so-innocent good-time gal. Walter Murch's sound design and David Shire's piano-tinkling score are impressively effective elements. Location filming in San Francisco remains highly evocative - the opening shots in Union Square as well as scenes at Embarcadero Center, Alta Plaza Park, and the Golden Gateway Center. All the locations exist today almost intact. Compared to the ridiculous scale of "Megalopolis" a half-century later, Coppola's approach as director and screenwriter is surprisingly economical and exponentially more effective. This is a masterful turn by both Hackman and Coppola well worth watching.

It's a shame A24 botched the distribution and marketing strategy for this exceptional 2024 drama because it was nearly impossible for anyone to see it until quite recently when it finally landed on Amazon Prime. The always dependable Colman Domingo still managed to earn a well deserved Best Actor Oscar nomination playing the real-life character of John "Divine G" Whitfield, an unjustly charged inmate at the long-established Sing Sing Correctional Facility and a founding member of the impressive Rehabilitation Through the Arts (RTA) program. RTA allows inmates to be engaged in professionally run theatre and writing workshops to pave a most unexpected avenue for restorative justice. Focused on the RTA's mission, the film is quite unlike any other prison drama I've ever seen as director Greg Kwedar doesn't formulaically concentrate on violent riots or death-defying escapes. Instead he focuses on the growing friendship between Whitfield and fellow program participant Clarence "Divine Eye" Maclin, an initially aggressive and resentful inmate who is almost Whitfield's polar opposite. The twist is that Maclin is playing a younger version of himself and gives a startlingly combustible, combative performance as he grows to love and appreciate acting. In reverse character arcs, Maclin lands the coveted role of Hamlet in a wild time-traveling musical comedy, while Whitfield faces an encroaching wave of dread about his chances for parole. Except for Paul Raci's shopworn volunteer director and Sean San Jose's touching role as Mike Mike, the cast is made up of real-life RTA alumni who bring bracing humanity to their roles. This film is well worth seeking out.