Category Archives: Cancer theme

Solace (2015)

From IMDB:

Psychic John Clancy (Sir Anthony Hopkins) works with the F.B.I. in order to hunt down a serial killer.

From Netflix you can stream this 1 hour 41 minute complete film.

FBI Agent Joe Merriwether (played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan) works with FBI Agent Katherine Cowels (played by Abbie Cornish) who has her doctorate in psychopathology.  At a complete loss in learning anything about the serial killer, Joe turns to his old friend and clairvoyant Dr. John Clancy (played by Sir Anthony Hopkins) who, owing to ugly past experiences,  is very reluctant to join the search.

Learning the motive for the killings is a priority.  If I reveal that motive here, I would consider that revelation a spoiler.

Where in all this is the actor Colin Farrell? He plays Charles Ambrose who just happens to be the serial killer. Charles shares a significant feature of Dr. Clancy’s personality.

After watching the film, you will understand why I say the film is a disguised ethical debate with no easy answer.

All the clairvoyance is just too convenient (should I say “contrived” or downright “hokey” ?).  In addition the quick decision action sequences might be hard to follow.   I give the film a B+.

 

 

Language Lessons (2021)

From Kanopy:

When his husband surprises him with weekly Spanish lessons, Adam (Mark Duplass, Bombshell, The Morning Show) is unsure about where or how this new element will fit into his already structured life. But after tragedy strikes, his Spanish teacher, Cariño (Natalie Morales, Dead To Me, Parks And Recreation), becomes a lifeline he didn’t know he needed. Adam develops an unexpected and complicated emotional bond with Cariño — but do you really know someone just because you’ve experienced a traumatic moment with them? Bittersweet, honest, and at times darkly funny, this award-winning debut from director Natalie Morales is a poignant, funny, and emotionally resonant (Screen Rant) exploration of platonic love.

From Kanopy you can stream this 1.5 hour film.

Adam and Cariño talk via Zoom sessions. In fact the entire film is a series of such sessions, several of which are one-sided.  Just after the first session, Adam’s husband dies. Adam goes into deep grief and depression which he escapes with the help of Cariño.  Mostly they speak in English and if they do speak in Spanish there are subtitles. Really the language lessons are besides the point. Eventually we learn quite a lot about about Adam and Cariño.

This film is so sweet and touching that if you don’t yet belong to Kanopy (which is free), then join just for the chance to see this tender film.

DO NOT MISS!

Stay Close (2021)

From Netflix:

As her wedding approaches, Megan Pierce is troubled by a visitor from her past. Det. Mike Broome finds a new disappearance reminiscent of a cold case.

From Netflix you can stream 8 episodes of this Harlan Coben mystery thriller. Each episode lasts about 50 minutes.

Harlan Coben is a very successful writer whose stories are always clever and gripping.  Sadly this particular adaptation, while still worth a binge watch, has a few flaws. For example, at the end of episode 6 Megan and her daughter are trapped in a locked room in the police station while the assassins have gained entrance to the building and killed an officer. But at the start of episode 7 Megan and her daughter are somehow perfectly safe and being interviewed by police officers.  Such “miracle resolutions” seem to occur often in streaming thrillers, possibly because the writers could not find a way out of a messy situation.

Acting is not first-rate.  Scenes between detective Michael Broome and bar owner Lorraine are often mawkish.

Among the villains there is a man and woman couple who as hired assassins, while on route to torture and kill someone, suddenly break out into a Broadway dance routine. Talk about strangely inappropriate!  However, the couple portray perfect psychopaths.

But never mind these objections. For me and for other reviewers the final conclusion is a shocking revelation.  Give this show a B+ and enjoy the gore.

Reacher (2022)

From Amazon Prime:

When retired Military Police Officer Jack Reacher is arrested for murder he did not commit, he finds himself in the middle of a deadly conspiracy full of dirty cops, shady businessmen and scheming politicians. With nothing but his wits, he must figure out what is happening in Margrave, Georgia. The first season of Reacher is based on the international bestseller, Killing Floor by Lee Child.

From Amazon Prime you can stream the 8 episodes of season 1. Each episode lasts about 50 minutes.

Lee Child’s hero Jack Reacher is supposed to be a big, powerful, imposing man that can intimidate his opponents. Alan Ritchson amply fills that bill (as opposed to Tom Cruise who is much smaller). Ritchson played the superhero Hank Hall in the TV series “Titans”.

Violence is the dominant theme. Part of that violence involves gruesome scenes of torture such as nailing a naked man to a wall followed by much worse. Children should NOT watch this series.

Sad to say, violence in the form of watching Reacher beating and killing villains was for me a satisfying vicarious pleasure.  Making the criminals truly repellent is an effective way to rationalize enjoying such a slaughter.

Reacher never misses a shot, wins every hand-to-hand combat, is always the smartest person in the room, and is a multi-decorated war hero. Have I missed anything? Oh, yes – Reacher speaks Farsi.

In to make this epic a bona fide adolescent entertainment,  Reacher must fall in love with Roscoe the female cop but, of course,  is ever the loner who must eventually move on (so that the series can have another season). Expect many maudlin scenes.

Against my better instincts, WATCHING WAS A LOT OF FUN!

Nocturnal Animals (2016)

From Netflix:

Reading her ex-husband’s violent novel manuscript destabilizes gallery owner Susan’s life, upending her present while digging up their past.

From Netflix you can stream this 1 hour 56 minute complete film.

WARNING:  Almost certainly you will find this extremely violent film upsetting.  In addition the  opening videos of an especially obese naked woman are  quite revolting.

However, as usual, Jake Gyllenhaal delivers his usual impassioned performance.  Just don’t try and sleep afterwards.

Basically the entire film is a downer:

  • Amy Adams as Susan Morrow has reached the pinnacle of an unhappy life.  Her failing faux-modern art gallery features worthless but expensive junk.   She rejected the real love of her life, Tony Hastings. Her second marriage to Hutton Marrow is a lonely empty shell.
  • Armie Hammer as Hutton Morrow is the handsome, suave, and habitually unfaithful second husband.
  • Laura Linney as Susan’s mother Anne Sutton plays the completely materialistic, domineering Texan society matron.
  • Michael Shannon is the tough, chain-smoking lawman who is dying of metastasized cancer.
  • Jake Gyllenhaal is Susan’s first husband, a writer whom Susan loved but discarded as impractical.
  • Robert Aramayo as Turk.  His portrayal of a violent, psychopathic alpha thug is pitch perfect.

What!!! You still want to see this movie?

 

Le Fils de Jean [A Kid] (2016)

From IMDB:

Mathieu has never known his father. His mother has always told him he was the fruit of a one-night-stand. One morning, in his Parisian flat, he receives a call from Quebec telling him his father just died. Mathieu decides to go to the funeral and meet the two Canadian brothers he just found out he had. In Montreal, nobody is aware of his existence, and Mathieu realizes he is in a hostile territory.

From Kanopy you can stream this quiet, understated, moving French film which lasts 1 hour and 38 minutes.

Let me again remind you that Kanopy is offered free by your local public library. Just google for “Kanopy”.  If you like older films, you will find them in Kanopy.

Hopefully you have streamed “Wonderland” from MHz Choice.  In that marvelous series Jérémy was played by the French actor Pierre Deladonchamps.  Confusingly enough, if you want to find Wonderland  in IMDB, you have to look for a film named “Romance” because looking for “Wonderland” will get you nowhere.

Deladonchamps plays Mathieu in “Le Fils de Jean”.   He and his supporting actors produce a sad and effective portrait of family confusion.  With very little violence (some minor scuffles) the story slowly moves toward probably the only conclusion it could reach.

Perhaps Deladonchamps is an actor to watch. Good film!

Alaska Is A Drag (2017)

From Netflix:

Tormented by bullies, an aspiring drag star working at an Alaskan cannery becomes a skilled fighter and is tapped for competition by a boxing coach.

From Netflix you can stream this really offbeat complete film that lasts 1 hour 23 minutes.

From IMDB:

Tough, but diva fabulous, Leo, an aspiring drag superstar, is stuck working in a fish cannery in Alaska. He and his twin sister are trapped in the monotony of fist fights and fish guts. Out of necessity, Leo learned to fight back, which catches the attention of the local boxing coach. When a new boy moves to town and wants to be his sparring partner, Leo has to face the real reason he’s stuck in Alaska.

Black brother and sister Leo and Tristen are in real life also brother and sister.  Tristen is battling cancer. White Declan, the newcomer, is straight where as Leo is clearly gay. Ignore, if you will, the drag theme.  More to the point is a friendship forged by loneliness.  Most of the violence stems from the fact that  Leo’s previous boyfriend Kyle, although married to a pregnant wife, is intensely jealous of Declan.

Offbeat is putting it mildly: a talented boxer and drag queen ?!? But actually it is a well-done heartfelt drama.

 

The Affair (2014)

From IMDB:

A struggling novelist and a young waitress strike up an extramarital relationship that promises to forever change the course of their lives.

From Amazon Prime you can stream the 10 episodes of this steamy romance and crime series. Each episode is just under 1 hour.

UPDATE:  Now from Amazon Prime you can stream 5 seasons of the soap opera that never ends. Season 2 has 12 episodes. Season 5 has 11 episodes. Seasons 1,3, and 4 have 10 episodes. Each episode is still about one hour.  That gives us a total of 53 hours of soap opera escape.

Nothing is perfect. Some portions are downright corny.  There is a strange interruption in plot when Noah seems to be having a series of psychotic episodes.  Did the writers forget to finish that part of the story?   Sometimes present events plus flashbacks from the past might seem somewhat confusing.

Toward the end I watched slowly because I did not want the story to end.  If a LOOOONG soap opera with a fair number of sometimes explicit sex scenes is your thing, DO NOT MISS!

Original review:

Noah Solloway is played by Dominic West,  the British actor with a long acting resumé. At the time of filming he was 45 years old.

Alison Bailey is played by Ruth Wilson, the British actress whose own resumé is just as long even though she was only 32 years old at the time of filming.  Her role as the sociopath “Alice Morgan” in the TV series “Luther” was chillingly unforgettable.

Alison’s marriage is failing while she and her husband morn the death of their young son.  Noah is having trouble writing his second novel and is trying desperately to be faithful to his wife even though he is immediately attracted to Alison.

Along the way there is a death that is being investigated  by Detective Jeffries.

As soap operas go, this one is not too bad.

Euphoria (2018)

From IMDB:

A difficult situation gives two distant brothers the opportunity to get to know each other deeply.

From Netflix:

An entrepreneur prone to partying and his estranged brother, a teacher resigned to a humdrum life, begin to bond under fragile circumstances.

From Netflix you can stream this 1.5 hour complete Italian film with English subtitles.

Matteo is the successful playboy and his brother Ettore is a quiet and very ordinary man.  Ettore has a fatal, malignant brain tumor but supposedly (or so Matteo believes) does not know what his illness is. Matteo goes to great lengths to keep the truth from Ettore.

Because of their great differences, the once close brothers have drifted apart. In the background Matteo is busy partying and chasing male gay conquests. Ettore has fallen out of love with his wife and is now in love with a new woman.  Both brothers are part of a large, noisy Roman family complete with zany mother. As the plot progresses, the somewhat dissolute Matteo works hard to keep Ettore on track with his hospital treatments.  Despite arguments and physical fighting, eventually the brothers realize their love for each other.

For some reason this film, which is certainly not for everyone, kept me watching. Probably it was the real humanity portrayed that was most appealing.

Young Wallender (2020)

From Netflix:

Rookie cop Kurt Wallander stumbles into a hate crime in his own neighborhood. As he hunts the killer, the incident fuels anti-immigration anger.

From Netflix you can stream the 6 episodes of this drama involving crime, gangs, romance, and white supremacists. Each episode lasts about 50 minutes.

Henning Mankell’s “Wallender” novels have been dramatized several times. Swedish and English versions can be streamed from many different sources. His novels take place in the Sweden of the 1970s. “Young Wallender” attempts to portray Kurt Wallender in his first job as a policeman. Instead of the 1970s, the setting is present-day (2020) Sweden. English is the original soundtrack although you can choose from many languages for sound and subtitles, none strangely enough in Swedish.

Appropriate to our era is the fact that the predominant theme of this series is the crusade of white supremacists against immigration. Throw in illegal weapons smuggling, sibling rivalry, disadvantaged blacks forming gangs, and a convincing romance to produce an exciting 6 episodes.

If you Google for “Young Wallander” you will find not only reviews but also debates over the conclusion. Beware of “spoilers.”

Even though the story seems to drag at times, I do not hesitate to strongly recommend this series.