September 29, 2022
Director: Romain Gavras
A 13 year old boy named Idir, who lived in the immigrant community of Athena in Paris, was killed by men wearing police uniforms. His eldest brother Abdel (Dali Benssalah) was a soldier, calmly working to solve the case by peaceful means. Another brother Karim (Sami Slimane) was a rebel, boldly leading an incendiary revolution of the youth against the authorities. Yet another brother Moktar (Oassini Embarek) was a selfish man who was angry at Karim's mob because it was bad for his underground businesses.
This film starts with an impressive 10 minute-long tracking shot of a press conference disrupted by a Molotov cocktail, then followed Karim and his men violently clashing with the authorities. Midway, there was another long continuous shot of a bold police operation which ended badly, then followed young officer Jerome (Anthony Bajon) in its aftermath. These complicated tracking shots of choreographed crowd chaos showcased the camera skills of director Romain Gavras and his cinematographer Matias Boucard in their fullest grandeur. 9/10
Director: Anna Forrester
Single mother Hannah Dawson (Jurnee Smollett) lived with her young daughter Vee (Ridley Bateman) on a remote island community. Their landlord and next door neighbor was the rude and cantankerous old woman Lou Adell (Allison Janney), who lived alone with her dog Jax. One night, during a strong thunderstorm, Vee was kidnapped from their home. Hannah suspected that it was her husband whom they thought was dead, special forces soldier Phillip (Logan Marshall-Green) was the culprit.
Allison Janney had long been known to be a dependable character actress, from her days in "The West Wing" (1999-2006) to her Oscar-winning turn in "I, Tonya" (2017). As Lou, Janney showed us yet another facet of her acting talent, this time as a full-on action star at age 62 (Liam Neeson was a younger 58 when he did "Taken" in 2008). There were plot holes galore on how Lou managed to do what she was still able to do everything she did with all the major-looking injuries she incurred, but that surprising little twist revealed in the second act was a nice touch. 6/10.
Director: Eddie Sternberg
Vince (Ed Skrein) was a member of the popular 2000s boyband Stereo Dream who is now desperately trying to recover his lost career. The eventual success of his band mate Austin (Eoin Macken) made him feel worse about himself. One day, while busking in the market, he was joined by Stevie (Leon Long), an autistic drummer who complemented his song with his percussive talent. However, Stevie's mom Amber (Eleanor Matsuura) could not help but be protective over her son and was hesitant to encourage Vince's plans for Stevie.
You can see the ending from the start, but there were some nifty twists and turns before you get there. Scenes of the two guys together and in the music therapy sessions were quite touching. In the end, Vince had to make a very important decision, and the director did not show us directly what it was. Realistic, maybe not, but there was really an emotional connection in that final sequence that will make tears well up. Fans who only knew Ed Skrein as the first Daario Naharis on "Game of Thrones" will be pleasantly surprised to see him singing and playing the keyboard (he did start his career in 2004 with a three-track EP). 6/10.
Nice review as usual (Danny)
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