The Lost City / ***½ (PG-13)

Loretta/Angela: Sandra Bullock

Alan/Dash: Channing Tatum

Abigail Fairfax: Daniel Radcliffe

Beth Hatten: Da’Vine Joy Randolph

Jack Trainer: Brad Pitt

Paramount Pictures presents a film directed by Aaron Nee & Adam Nee. Written by Oran Uziel and Dana Fox and Adam Nee & Aaron Nee from a story by Seth Gordon. Running time: 112 min. Rated PG-13 (for violence and some bloody images, suggestive material, partial nudity and language).

If the new adventure comedy The Lost City tells us anything, it is that we have missed the physical comedy of Sandra Bullock. This movie is many things. It’s clearly an homage to the now classic comedy adventure Romancing the Stone, taking many of its story cues and improving upon some of that film’s more dated aspects. It’s a reminder of Channing Tatum’s talents in making fun of his own buff physical appearance. It’s a chance for Brad Pitt and Daniel Radcliffe to shed some of the iconic status of their own public perception. It’s a fun time. It’s a laugh factory. But mostly, it’s a chance for Sandra Bullock to shine again in the type of role that made her famous.

The movie opens in a tomb. Our heroes, Angela & Dash (Bullock & Tatum), are tied up on the floor, surrounded by snakes with a villain monologuing at them. After questioning the plausibility of the situation, Angela says, “Delete!” and the snakes disappear. She says, “Delete!” again and the monologuing villain disappears. She says, “Delete!” again and we find Angela sitting at a computer in an apartment looking frustrated. Turns out she is actually Loretta, a romance novelist and recluse since the death of her archaeologist husband. Her own archaeological dreams were sidetracked by her surprise success writing a romance novel series focusing more on the sexual exploits than the archaeological adventures of Angela and Dash. 

At this point–and frankly, when all is said and done–The Lost City is essentially a loose remake of the 1983 Stone. Loretta’s agent, Beth Hatten–a force of nature in the form of De’Vine Joy Randolph–begs her reclusive client for the final chapters of her new book as the book tour looms. When Beth finally gets Loretta out of her cocoon of wine and bubble baths, the first stop on the tour involves a Q & A with Loretta and her forever cover model, Alan (Tatum), who needs to be reminded he isn’t really Dash. Loretta makes it clear to Dash and all her fans that the fantasy is over just before she’s kidnapped.

Daniel Radcliffe continues his journey successfully distancing himself from his most famous role as a titular wizard with his portrayal of Abigail Fairfax. “It’s a gender neutral name!” Fairfax is the second in line to a large family fortune wishing to make his name finding a rare artifact, since he was publicly passed up to run the family business. He has kidnapped Loretta because he believes her new book holds the key to where the artifact might be located. Radcliffe does a wonderful job keeping you guessing for the first third of the film as to whether he is tooth-nashingly evil or just has no idea as to how to properly deal with people. He plays well against his good boy image.

Alan, who clearly has feelings for Loretta, is determined to be more than just a cover model and sets out to rescue the real life version of his fictional love. He enlists the help of a professional rescuer, a mercenary played by Brad Pitt. Like Radcliffe, Pitt uses his own public image to build a solid comedic performance. His hero for hire is amiable enough to let Alan tag along on the rescue and the whole adventure just takes off from there.

Like its predecessor, Stone, The Lost City masterfully merges comedy with its adventure premise, relying heavily on the personalities of its cast of characters to anchor its laughs. All five of the leads have big laugh moments, but this is clearly Bullock’s and Tatum’s party. Even on that front, the script leans more heavily toward Bullock in a far more progressive leading performance for a female than Stone’s sometimes cringe-inducing treatment of its female protagonist from its male protagonist. Although Loretta is the one being rescued, Alan is never in control of her fate. She is never dependent on him, and she is the driver of every aspect of the plot, never the tool of it. Meanwhile, Tatum is more than willing to play a muscle-bound damsel in distress.

Like last year’s Jungle Cruise, The Lost City is a welcome escape of pure fun without the modern heaviness that comes with today’s typical blockbuster fare. This one is even more hilarious, however, thanks to the deftness of Bullock’s physical comedy. There aren’t really any serious moments here, except for one that gets glossed over until it’s finally dealt with in the closing moments for an unexpected laugh. I really can’t express how wonderful the comedic performances are in this movie. If ever we need to laugh and fantasize it is now, and The Lost City is here to deliver.

The Lost City is currently playing in theaters and streaming exclusively on Paramount +.

Little Women / **** (PG)

Columbia Pictures

Jo March: Saoirse Ronan

Meg March: Emma Watson

Amy March: Florence Pugh

Beth March: Eliza Scanlen

Marmee March: Laura Dern

Theodore ‘Laurie’ Laurence: Timothée Chalamet

Aunt March: Meryl Streep

Mr. Laurence: Chris Cooper

Mr. Dashwood: Tracy Letts

Columbia Pictures presents a film written and directed by Greta Gerwig. Based on the novel by Louisa May Alcott. Running time: 135 min. Rated PG (for thematic elements and brief smoking).

When I saw Ladybird, Greta Gerwig’s directorial debut, there was no question in my mind that this was the ascendance of an incredible new filmmaking talent. Along with writing the Best Picture Oscar-nominated movie, director Gerwig showed a gift for imbuing a film with a sense of place, as its setting of Sacramento was a character itself. Her direction was original and took risks. It was worthy of every accolade that was lauded upon it. Never in my wildest imagination could I foresee even more of a leap in vision, skill and artistry in her sophomore effort because of how good her first effort was, but my, oh my. She is something. Little Women is nothing short of a masterpiece comparable to the works of the greatest directors in cinema.

I’ve never read the book by Louisa May Alcott, nor have I seen the 1933, 1949, or 1994 film adaptations–although I always meant to see the 90s version, I’m a big fan of Winona Ryder’s work. I don’t know how true to the novel this version is. I don’t know what changes Gerwig made, although it’s pretty obvious she made some significant changes. Some of the dialogue is given a modern take. Not so much as to take you out of the amazing immersion in the time period she pulls off, but enough to freshen it up for modern audiences and give a better sense of the emotions behind certain actions and exchanges. I suspect much of the order of events is changed with the way she jumps between the women they become and the events that made them so. She also conflates some of Alcott’s story about publishing her book with her main character Jo’s experience as a female writer in a time when women’s opportunities for gainful employment were limited.

Leonard Nimoy (1931-2015)

When I was about six-years-old our family adopted a new dog named Blue. Blue’s previous owner seemed a strange man. He claimed blue was the dog’s favorite color and that “Star Trek” was his favorite show. I don’t believe I’d ever heard of a dog having a favorite television show before. In fact, dogs hardly seem to even notice the TV in my experience. But hey! We were open-minded people. On his first night with us, Blue was a nervous wreck, so at 7 p.m., when syndicated shows began in our area, we turned the TV to “Star Trek” to see if the dog responded. The dog didn’t even notice the television was on, but “Star Trek” somehow became one of the shows that ended up playing in our house on a regular basis. And no, that dog never sat down and watched with us.

We were never what would be described as Trekkies, or Trekkers, as it were. We just kind of watched it if we happened to stumble upon it while flipping through the channels. I remember when it switched from early evening syndication to late afternoon. The release of the first movie was kind of a big deal for my brother and I. We were disappointed with its slow pace like so many others—although later in life, I would come to appreciate what Robert Wise was striving to achieve.

Penny Thoughts ‘15—Louie, season 3 (2012) ****

TV-MA, 13 21-min. episodes

Creator: Louis C.K.

Directors: Louis C.K., Liz Plonka

Writers: Louis C.K., Pamela Adlon

Starring: Louis C.K.

Guest starring: Gaby Hoffman, Susan Kalechi Watson, Gary Wilmes, Melissa Leo, Allan Havey, Hadley Delaney, Ursula Parker, Larisa Polonsky, Miguel Gomez, Parker Posey, Maria Bamford, Casey Seimaszko, Robin Williams, Sarah Silverman, Marc Maron, Maria Dizzia, Michael C. Creighton, F. Murray Abraham, Rick Crom, Nick Di Paolo, Jim Norton, William Stephenson, Chloë Sevigny, Roderick Hill, Yul Vazquez, Jay Leno, Garry Marshall, Edward Gelbinovich, David Lynch, Chris Rock, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Jerry Seinfeld, Todd Barry, Paul Rudd, Amy Poehler

I know, I know, I know. I’m way behind here. The amazing thing is that I love this series and I started it just about two weeks after the first episode of the first season premiered, so I’ve been going through it very slowly.  This is, however, one of the best shows on television. Here’s why:

Penny Thoughts ‘14—The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) ****

PG-13, 251 min. (special extended edition)

Director: Peter Jackson

Writers: Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson, J.R.R. Tolkien (novel)

Starring: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Andy Serkis, Miranda Otto, David Wenham, Bernard Hill, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Orlando Bloom, John Rhys-Davies, John Noble, Hugo Weaving, Ian Holm, Liv Tyler, Karl Urban, Alan Howard (voice), Sala Baker, Marton Csokas, Bruce Hopkins, Sean Bean, Brad Dourif, Christopher Lee, Bruce Spence

When you ask children to sit through a four-hour movie, it had better have a lot of action within it to keep them checked in. If anything, “The Lord of the Ring: The Return of the King” accomplishes that task in spades. What’s really impressive is that it isn’t merely action. Jackson juggles several different storylines all filled with their own catharsis and depth and masterfully edited together in such a way that the action keeps things moving but never runs over the depth and sentiment.

Penny Thoughts ‘14—The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) ****

PG-13, 223 min. (special extended edition)

Director: Peter Jackson

Writers: Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson, J.R.R. Tolkien (novel)

Starring: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Andy Serkis, Orlando Bloom, John Rhys-Davies, Dominic Monaghan, Billy Boyd, Bernard Hill, Miranda Otto, David Wenham, Christopher Lee, Brad Dourif, Liv Tyler, Cate Blanchett, Hugo Weaving, Karl Urban, Bruce Hopkins, Sala Baker, Sean Bean, John Noble

OK. A little warning here. This ain’t gonna be much of a review. The Penny Thoughts format is supposed to be flexible in that way. Hopefully at some point I’ll get around to posting my original review of this movie to make up for it; but for now, I’m just going to tell a funny story. And frankly, I’m sure this story will be funnier to me than anyone else.

Penny Thoughts ‘14—The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) ****

PG-13, 208 min. (special extended edition)

Director: Peter Jackson

Writers: Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson, J.R.R. Tolkien (novel)

Starring: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Sean Bean, Orlando Bloom, John Rhys-Davies, Dominic Monaghan, Billy Boyd, Ian Holm, Liv Tyler, Cate Blanchett, Christopher Lee, Hugo Weaving, Marton Csokas, Andy Serkis, Alan Howard (voice)

So, Peter Jackson claims the end to his time in Middle Earth has come with “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies”, due in theaters December 17. As such, I felt it was time for my sons’ time in Middle Earth to begin, and so it did over the Thanksgiving weekend in what might become a new family tradition. The tradition won’t be to watch “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy every Thanksgiving weekend, which is what we did this year, but maybe we’ll do some film series every year. It seems to me “Star Wars” would be an appropriate choice next Thanksgiving, And we could watch all six movies in about the time it took us to watch the three extended editions of LOTR.

Penny Thoughts ‘14—The Longest Yard (1974) ***

R, 121 min.

Director: Robert Aldrich

Writers: Tracy Keenan Wynn, Albert S. Ruddy

Starring: Burt Reynolds, Eddie Albert, Ed Lauter, Michael Conrad, Jim Hampton, Harry Caesar, John Steadman, Charles Tyner, Mike Henry, Jim Nicholson, Bernadette Peters, Pervis Atkins, Tony Cacciotti, Anitra Ford, Michael Fox, Joe Kapp, Richard Kiel

Long before 7’2” tall actor Richard Kiel portrayed one of the most famous James Bond henchmen in “The Spy Who Loved Me”, he appeared in a smaller role in the Burt Reynolds prison football comedy “The Longest Yard”. You wouldn’t have noticed from his performance as Jaws in the two Bond films in which he appeared, but Kiel had a very clear speaking voice. Seeing him speak in “The Longest Yard” is somewhat shocking, because you’re really expecting him to sound a little more like he has marbles in his mouth.

Penny Thoughts ‘14—Leviathan (2013) ***½

NR, 87 min.

Directors: Lucien Castaing-Taylor, Verena Paravel

Featuring: Captain Brian Jannelle

I have no idea how they filmed “Leviathan”. It is a documentary about a fishing vessel. There is no dialogue, no commentary, no explanations. That’s not to say there is no narrative. There are long passages of film when it is impossible to tell just what you’re looking at, including the opening sequence.

Lucy / **½ (R)

Lucy: Scarlett Johansson

Professor Norman: Morgan Freeman

Mr. Jang: Choi Min-Sik

Pierre Del Rio: Amr Waked

Universal Pictures presents a film written and directed by Luc Besson. Running time: 90 min. Rated R (for strong violence, disturbing images and sexuality).

Luc Besson’s new sci-fi thriller “Lucy” is one of the more interesting action movies to come along recently. It’s one of the more interesting screenplays by Besson since his early films, like “La Femme Nikita”, “The Professional”, and “The Fifth Element”. But then again, the word “interesting” isn’t necessarily the highest compliment you can pay to a film. It’s a tough one to figure, because in some ways it is a great movie. However, in the end it leaves you feeling cheated out one of the two movies to which it couldn’t fully commit.

Penny Thoughts ‘14—The Lego Movie (2014) ***½

PG, 100 min.

Directors: Phil Lord, Christopher Miller

Writers: Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, Dan Hageman, Kevin Hageman

Voices: Chris Pratt, Elizabeth Banks, Will Ferrell, Will Arnett, Liam Neeson, Morgan Freeman, Alison Brie, Nick Offerman, Charlie Day, Channing Tatum, Jonah Hill, Cobie Smulders, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, Keith Ferguson, Orville Forte, Dave Franco, Jake Johnson, Keegan-Michael Kee, Shaquille O’Neal, Melissa Strum, Jorma Taccone

“The Lego Movie” is easily one of my favorite films of the year so far. I’m not saying anything new with that, however, as it seems to be a phrase that finds its way off the lips of just about anyone who sees it. It’s good enough, I’d place it in the top three so far.

Life Itself / **** (R)

A documentary featuring: Roger Ebert, Chaz Ebert, Marlene Iglitzen, A.O. Scott, Richard Corliss, Gene Siskel, Ramin Bahrani, Errol Morris, Werner Herzog, Martin Scorsese, Avy DuVernay

The voice of Roger Ebert: Stephen Stanton

Magnolia Pictures and CNN Films present a film by Steve James. Based on the memoir “Life Itself” by Roger Ebert. Running time: 115 min. Rated R (for brief sexual images/nudity and language).

I didn’t know I was a writer. I went to school to be an actor. I’d watched “Siskel & Ebert & the Movies” on Saturday mornings as a kid. To me Roger Ebert was just a guy on TV who talked about movies, which I thought was pretty cool, but that was the end of it. Then when I was in college, an acting friend of mine turned me on to Roger’s written word. Suddenly I realized that not only was there more to movies than I’d ever imagined, but there was more to criticism.

Ebert Thoughts ‘14—Life Itself (2014)

NR, 114 min.

Director: Steve James

Featuring: Roger Ebert, Martin Scorsese, Werner Herzog, Errol Morris, Ramin Bahrani, Chaz Ebert, Ava Duvernay, Stephen Stanton (voice), A.O. Scott, Marlene Iglitzen

When I wrote my review for the 15^th Annual Roger Ebert Film Festival, the first without the man for whom it is named, a documentary filmmaker contacted me on my blogsite. Her name is Karen Gehres and had been invited to the film festival in 2009 to screen her incredible documentary “Begging Naked”. She just wanted to express to me how much she wished to experience another Ebertfest. We challenged each other to make it to this year’s festival. I hope she was more successful in her plans than I was.

Penny Thoughts ‘14—The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life (2013) ***½

NR, 38 min.

Director: Malcolm Clarke

Writers: Malcolm Clarke, Carl Freed

Featuring: Aliza Sommer-Herz

The Best Documentary Short Oscar-winner for 2014 saved me from going 0-3 in the short categories of the Oscar pool this year. That movie was “The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life”. I don’t really know why I picked it. Perhaps I connected with its subtitle. Perhaps I just thought the Oscar voters couldn’t resist giving an award to a movie about a sweet elderly woman. I didn’t even know if she was sweet. I just assumed because—like all the films of the shorts categories—I hadn’t seen it; nor had most people who didn’t meet the strict voting criterion of the Academy rules on such films.

Penny Thoughts ‘14—Lilo & Stitch (2002) ***

PG, 85 min.

Directors: Dean DuBlois, Chris Sanders

Writers: Chris Sanders, Dean DuBlois

Voices: Daveigh Chase, Tia Carrere, David Ogden Stiers, Kevin McDonald, Ving Rhames, Chris Sanders, Zoe Caldwell, Jason Scott Lee, Kevin Michael Richardson

It’s been a while since I’ve seen this one. Out of the blue, my twelve-year-old requested this movie for our weekly family movie night. He watched it endlessly when he was little. He’s our only kid who had the patience for movies in those formative years. I guess he was feeling nostalgic.

The Lego Movie / ***½ (PG)

Featuring the voices of:

Emmet Brickowski: Chris Pratt

President Business: Will Farrell

Wyldstyle: Elizabeth Banks

Batman: Will Arnett

Metal Beard: Nick Offerman

Unikitty: Alison Brie

Benny: Charlie Day

Bad Cop/Good Cop: Liam Neeson

Vitruvius: Morgan Freeman

Warner Bros. Pictures presents a film directed by Phil Lord & Christopher Miller. Written by Lord & Miller and Dan Hageman & Kevin Hageman. Running time: 100 min. Rated PG (for mild action and rude humor).

I’m a collector. I have been since my very first Lego set. It was one of their moon landing sets. There was a space station, three astronaut figures, and a moon buggy. I was a stickler for the instructions, but I would also make some of the other designs that were pictured on the box but not included in the instructions. I was pretty good. I could make pretty much anything from a picture, but I never built purely from my imagination. I just didn’t have a knack for envisioning something new.

Penny Thoughts ‘14—Lovelace (2013) **½

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Penny Thoughts ‘14—Lee Daniels’ The Butler (2013) ***

PG-13, 132 min.

Director: Lee Daniels

Writer: Danny Strong

Starring: Forest Whitaker, Oprah Winfrey, David Oyelowo, Cuba Gooding Jr., Lenny Kravitz, Terrence Howard, Mariah Carey, Alex Pettyfer, Vanessa Redgrave, Clarence Williams III, Ami Ameen, Jim Gleason, Colman Domingo, Adriane Lennox, Pernell Walker, Robin Williams, John Cusack, Yaya Alfia, Jesse Williams, James Marsden, Minka Kelly, Chloe Barach, Elijah Kelley, Liev Schreiber, Nelsan Ellis, Colin Walker, Alex Manette, Alan Rickman, Jane Fonda

“Important” films like “Lee Daniels’ The Butler” are often hard to judge. Many times people will confuse the importance of the message or historical poignancy with the success of the film. It also becomes more muddled when you have well-known stars playing historical figures in cameo. When a big name star takes on a real life figure in a leading or supporting role, they are often praised just for doing the role. When the role is only a cameo however, people often find the big name stars a distraction if only because they can recognize the actor.

Lone Survivor / ***½ (R)

Marcus Luttrell: Mark Wahlberg

Michael Murphy: Taylor Kitsch

Danny Dietz: Emile Hirsch

Matt ‘Axe’ Axelson: Ben Foster

Shah: Yousuf Azami

Gulab: Ali Suliman

Erik Kristensen: Eric Bana

Shane Patton: Alexander Ludwig

Universal Pictures presents a film written and directed by Peter Berg. Based on the book “Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of Seal Team 10” by Marcus Luttrell and Patrick Robinson. Running time: 121 min. Rated R (for strong bloody war violence and pervasive language).

As I walked into the theater to see “Lone Survivor”, the true story of what happened to Seal Team 10 on an Afghanistan mission that went wrong, the theater’s owner told me I needed to be thankful for what the men depicted in the film have sacrificed for our country. I am. This resonated again with me yesterday evening as I watched The Golden Globe Awards, one of a half a dozen awards shows you see throughout the year where the stars of Hollywood come out and praise each other for the great work they’ve done. Two things struck me about the relation of this film and these Hollywood award events. One is that, although during a show like the Golden Globes it may appear as if the people involved with filmmaking do it for the glory, they really aren’t in it for any more glory than the soldiers who give their lives in the name of freedom. Two is that without this Hollywood glitz and glamour—this PR machine that is designed more to sell the movies involved than to truly honor the work of making them—we’d never know much about the fate of Seal Team 10.

Penny Thoughts ‘13—Little Duck (2013) ****

NR, 16 min.

Director: James Murphy

Starring: Nobuaki Kaneko, Katsuya

I’m not a follower of LCD Soundsystem, the band for which electronic musician James Murphy is most well known, but after seeing his debut short film I might give them a little more attention. If he’s as good a musician as he indicates he is a film director with this 16 minutes of film, it’ll be worth it. To the untrained eye, the movie “Little Duck” might seem incomplete, but it is accomplished in its style and its execution.