Written by: Gillian Flynn

Directed by: David Fincher

Starring: Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike,  Carrie Coon

Reviewed by: Scott

It was going to be Nick (Ben Affleck) and Amy Dunne’s (Rosamund Pike) fifth wedding anniversary and plans were made to celebrate but instead Amy is gone, disappears.  What was supposed to be a day of celebration turns into a day of Where is Amy Dunne? Like all disappearances the husband is a prime suspect and from Nick’s demeanor he looks as guilty as they come.

Based on the novel of the same name, Gone Girl is directed by David Fincher who has been on a hiatus of his own.  Gone Girl is his first film in 3 years and this is a fitting choice to come out of the fog for.  Gone Girl is a classic Fincher project as the goal of the film is to mislead the audience and delve into darkness of humanity. This film does not disappoint in that aspect, as every character has a past and every character is guilty, of something

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Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike are flawless in the characterization of these complex and twisted people.  Nick seems worried about his wife but also seems to lack regret or empathy for the hoards of media and townsfolk, even smiling when standing next to a picture of his missing wife.  Amy is methodical and systematic in her approach and leaves no stone unturned.  The strength of these characters is that you don’t like either of them and this is portrayed well by both Pike and Affleck.

The script is well done and like many of Fincher’s projects the audience continuously tries to put the pieces of this puzzle together much like other Fincher films; Zodiac and Seven come to mind.  Although the film is well done throughout the standout performance is Pike, she was darkly sadistic and more importantly, believable. With the spot on performance by Affleck and Pike and a quality supporting cast of Neil Patrick Harris, Carrie Coon, Tyler Perry(who was really good) and Kim Dickens, Gone Girl is a film worth seeing.  I give Gone Girl 2 1/2 guys out of 3.

Written by: Sean Anders

Directed by: Bobby Farrelly,  Peter Farrelly

Starring: Jim Carrey, Jeff Daniels, and Rob Riggle

Reviewed By: Scott

It has been 20 years since the last installment in this crude yet memorable film.  Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels return to let us know what Lloyd Christmas and Harry Dunne have been up to.  The story begins in a psychiatric hospital where Lloyd has been since his heart was broken and Harry, who has visited every Wednesday since Lloyd was admitted, is discussing with his non responsive friend the upcoming surgery on one of his kidneys.  There the adventure begins.

Lloyd awakens to help his friend Harry get through this difficult time and along the way they find out that Harry has a daughter from a one night stint with a local lady, that is by her own determination, loose.  The kidney that Harry needs is from his child and Harry and Lloyd go and try to find her to get one of her kidneys, but of course along the way they find a whole lot more.

“Dumb and Dumber To” lacks the punch and originality the first film had and the story feels contrived and forced.  The funny parts are few and far between and seem to rely on poking fun at the disabled, more than I remember from the first film.  The story line is weak, the pace is dreadfully slow, and it was just not funny.  The best part of the film was Penny (Rachel Melvin), who is beautiful but also believable in her character.  Her role was small but as a viewer I looked forward to her scenes.

The first film was funny the first time you saw it and seemed to get funnier the more you watched it, this film was hardly funny and I certainly will not be watching it again.  Spend your holiday movie trips seeing something else, unless of course you like disappointment, if that is the case than go see Dumb and Dumber To.  1 Unfunny Guy from me

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Robin Williams Tribute

By Sean Daly

Robin Williams merits the highest praise one can bestow upon any artist—he was courageous.  In an industry where so many performers mail it in or conform to expectations, Williams was never content to be mediocre or even just good.  Such ambition sometimes produced spectacular results, sometimes not so much, but a lack of effort or passion never doomed a Robin Williams performance, as he always strived for greatness.  While he wasn’t a complete original in that sense, he was damn close to it.

His career was also close to completely original. Indeed, it’s challenging to compare Robin Williams to any other mainstream performer of the past 50 years.  There are some parallels, at least in a comedic sense, between the manic energy he often displayed and that of other comic actors such as Jim Carrey, Chris Farley, and his good friend John Belushi but Williams easily eclipsed them all in terms of his dramatic work.  Oddly enough, I’ve always likened the career of Robin Williams more to that of Tom Hanks than anyone else.  It makes more sense than it seems at first glance

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Both Williams and Hanks first came into the public eye about 35 years ago on iconic-but-dated ABC sitcoms (Williams with Mork and Mindy; Hanks with Bosom Buddies).  Both quickly parlayed their modest television success into starring roles in films that played a lot during the cable explosion of the mid-1980’s (Williams in Club Paradise and The Best of Times; Hanks in Bachelor Party and The Money Pit) that, in reality, weren’t very good but branded them as film stars nonetheless. Both finally found a project in 1987 worthy of their immense talents (Williams with Good Morning Vietnam;  Hanks with Big).  Both then rocketed to numerous other acclaimed performances and box office smashes—as well as enduring several flops.  Both despite being known initially for comedy generally excelled more in dramatic roles. And both, despite their wildly contrasting personas and lifestyles, oozed decency, though Williams was always able to distort his innate goodness to fit a villainous character better than Hanks ever dared to.

Yet while the legend of Hanks results in pedestrian fare like Captain Phillips garnering mass critical acclaim and hundreds of millions in worldwide box office gross, Williams’ film career sagged to the point of being demoted back to Sitcom-land with 2013’s The Crazy Ones, a show canceled after just one season.  The career gap between the two actors became depressing, particularly since Williams was arguably the superior talent, but, with superior talent often comes insurmountable personal obstacles, as constantly striving for greatness will take its toll on anyone.  But I’ll stop with dime store psychology and skip any discourse on addiction, depression, or suicide. I’d rather just pay tribute to a singular actor by listing what I feel are his best five film roles.

Honorable Mention: Insomnia (2002); The Birdcage (1996); Mrs. Doubtfire (1997); The Fisher King (1991); The World According to Garp (1982)

5.)           Awakenings (1990)

Williams played Dr. Malcom Sayer, a socially awkward neurologist at a Bronx psychiatric hospital whose experimental use of a drug leads to one of his patients, Leonard (played by Robert DeNiro), emerging from years of catatonia. Similar to his role in The Birdcage, Williams is essentially the straight man here, reacting to DeNiro’s flashier performance in a way that grounds the viewer and makes them invest in the story.  While Dr. Sayer’s noble professional efforts ultimately prove to fail with Leonard, the confidence he gains from nearly succeeding brings him out of the shell that mirrors the awakening of his patients.  DeNiro predictably received more critical raves coming out of Awakenings but without Williams to anchor the film, it wouldn’t have worked nearly as well as it did.

4.)           One Hour Photo (2002)

Here’s the one entry on the list you maybe haven’t seen but go out of your way to do so.  Williams plays Sy Parrish, an unstable photo processor who takes his job more than a little too seriously, especially when it comes to a young married couple with a son who are frequent
customers.  Sy places the family on such a pedestal that he deludes himself into thinking he’s part of it, only for everything to crash down when he sees a provocative picture of the husband with another woman.  Similar to his role in Insomnia, Williams brings no humor or
charm whatsoever to his performance, making it all the more chilling when he snaps.  It’s a spot-on portrayal of a desperately lonely, ultimately psychotic man who we probably see every day and think nothing of…but may, in turn, be thinking a lot about us.  Does that
creep you out? See this movie—and Williams’ brave performance—and you’ll really be creeped out.

3.)           Good Morning Vietnam (1987)

Good Morning Vietnam represented the breakthrough for Williams in that all of his mania was finally harnessed for the good of a film. The movie is based on the true of story of Adrian Cronauer, an ad-libbing, motor mouth disc jockey who gains great popularity broadcasting to the troops in Vietnam.  A lot of Williams’ improvised comedy bits in the movie don’t necessarily hold up outside of a movie theater filled with laughter but he crushes the role despite this, slowing down long enough to also provide the humanity needed to give the viewer a full picture of the hell of war.  Give credit to director Barry Levinson for being the first filmmaker to help Williams shine.

2.) Dead Poet’s Society (1989)

One of the three Williams films to be considered classic in the minds of most (along with Mrs. Doubtfire and the still to-be-announced number one entry), Peter Weir’s Dead Poet’s Society reels in its star way more than Good Morning Vietnam did but gives Williams enough room to also charm his students with improvised humor.  With his outward energy pulled back a touch, Williams effectively internalizes his passion to display more magnetism in Dead Poet’s Society than in any of his other roles.  He actually appears in well under half of the movie’s scenes but his work was strong enough to be what you take away and keep in your memory above all else, even 25 years after the film was released.

1.)    Good Will Hunting (1997)

Williams plays Sean Maguire, a from-the-projects psychologist made good who counsels Will Hunting, “a boy genius from Southie” in Maguire’s words.  Williams, whose Julliard background occasionally left him prone to sounding like he’s reading Shakespeare lines, is
perfectly convincing here, able to outwit his gifted, street smart patient in a way that felt legit.  Scenes between shrink and patient are more often than not melodramatic in film but Williams and Matt Damon manage to make them standouts.  Part of this was due to the sharp dialogue in the script, something the notoriously improvisational Williams was wise enough to leave alone.  The result was the most
enduring performance in a career that will endure long after his tragic demise.  May you find the peace in the next life you weren’t able to find in this one, Robin Williams.