T-34

World War II story of some Russian tank men who where captured, and then escaped, amazingly, with a tank. The T-34 tank is state of the art Russian tank and the back story, capture, escape and chase are each independently captivating and unbelievable. All together in one film are quite fun.
4 stars (out of 5)

Ford vs Ferrari

The story of Ford's entry into the Lemans racing program. After getting played by Ferrari in a purchase/merger attempt, CEO Henry Ford II let's his ego drive him to spend whatever money is needed to enter and win. But his business/bureaucrat self doesn't allow the car guys to do their car guy thing. Matt Damon plays Shelby, the only American to have won the Lemans as a driver who is now in the business of building cars and a race program. Christian Bale plays Miles, an eccentric driver who, when on his game, is the best around. The two put together a team, have it yanked away, given back, yanked away, etc. The beauty of this story is the dramatic tension in the striving for a goal. Ferrari is actually not a main character, but is ever present as the external motivation for the entire plot. This is really good story telling.
5 stars (out of 5)

Photograph

This is a sweet relationship movie for people older than teenager. A Mumbai street photographer take a photo of a random girl that he sees occasionally and then ends up using that photo to show his mom as "proof" that he has a girlfriend. When his mom comes to town from the village, a temporary arrangement is made to fake being boyfriend/girlfriend until mom leaves. While this is a completely predictable plot line that has been told many times over, the execution here is excellent. The story pacing is perfect, leaving time to sit in the loneliness and the confusion of the relationship and family strain. Very nice.
4 stars (out of 5)

Nobody's Fool

Tiffany Haddish in a Tyler Perry film. She is a recently paroled sister to Tika Sumpter, a business and advertising powerhouse whose only fault is that she can't find a man (you realize that it is 2019 and a film based on a woman's sole ability to find meaning is through relationship is really out of its time). So with that, Haddish is street smart, realizes her sister is being catfished, and goes to work to fix the problem. Predictable and only a chuckle here and there.
2 stars (out of 5)

Violet and Daisy

Two young girls (minors so they can't be prosecuted) are part of an assassin's guild. They are ruthless and fearless and really good at their job. With the job they are currently on, we begin to find out about the girls, and cracks in the facade. The two are a team, but very different and very dependent on each other. In some ways this is an interesting tale of how personalities develop, how relationships become intermingled. In other ways, it is a bad assassin movie, more akin to Everly than Kick Ass. I like the fact that one of the characters (an assassin I remind you) is completely non-assassin-like. So moderately interesting...
3 stars (out of 5)

Ocean's Eleven

The original 1974 version with the rat pack. This is a group of 11 buddies who are veterans from the 82nd airborne division who are brought together by Danny Ocean to pull off the perfect heist in Las Vegas. Mostly I am interested in how poorly this holds up. By modern heist movie standards, not enough detail in the planning is shown, not enough clever plot manipulations to surprise, and the protagonists don't win. As a modern heist film, it sinks. As a 70's heist film, pretty good.
3 stars (out of 5)

Jack Ryan (serial)

Season 2

This prime series sends CIA analyst Jack Ryan to Venezuela with his Senator friend. Turns out, someone has something to hide right before an election, and the Senator is assassinated. Now Ryan has a bone and won't let go until he uncovers everything. This takes him into the jungle, to London, and back again. A well done series in that clues are revealed along the way and just enough suspense and action to keep you moving along. And it doesn't fall into the trap of too-many-episodes. The 8 installments are just the right about to lay out the story without too many unnecessary tangents. I wouldn't say this is an astounding action-thriller since the twists and reveals are generally predictable, but it is serviceable, and I like John Krasinski in this role.
4 stars (out of 5)

Galaxy Quest

One of the great space opera parody movies (along with Space Balls). Here the crew of TV's NSEA Protector are doing the convention circuit, trying to make a few bucks signing autographs and playing up to the fanboys. An alien race has been watching their TV show and interpreting it as a historical document from earth. So when they get in trouble, of course they come to these earth heroes for help. And the crew of actors gets drawn into a real-life space drama. While this is 100% parody, it is also tribute to the sci-fi worlds created (and the formulaic silliness therein) of TV Star Trek. Laugh out loud funny at times, and entertaining throughout.
4 stars (out of 5)

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Following the characters of the famous book, and a 1981 movie, this remake is just as cheeky as the others. Earth is destroyed, but Arthur Dent and his friend Ford hitch a ride just before destruction. Then, of course, they are embroiled in a faux kidnapping of the president of the galaxy while pursuing the ultimate question (which will provide context to the ultimate answer 42). My favorite part of the entire thing is the costuming of the Vogons, which look like giant water/gelatin filled zippered up rubber suits. Pretty good space comedy.

3 stars (out of 5)