Month: July 2022

Having hired actor Michael Caine to portray his Sherlock Holmes character so he can continue pursuing his career as a doctor, Ben Kingsley’s John Watson is left in a lurch when Caine quits, taking with him the year’s of perceived expertise the public believed he deserved. While the central mystery is forgettable, the role reversal is quite fun. Kingsley and Caine are fantastic working off of each other and make up for the weaknesses in the rest of the film.    

Dorothy Parker, portrayed here by Jennifer Jason Leigh, reminisces about her life and experiences as a member of the infamous Algonquin Round Table during the 1920s. Even today, Parker is well known for her supposed wit. Unfortunately little of that is exhibited here. Instead, it’s just a bunch of insufferable know-it-alls trying to one-up each other with every irritating sentence they utter. Not being helped by Leigh’s strange accent, the best thing the film has going for it is some lovely period design and an impressive cast that includes Matthew Broderick, Jennifer Beals, and Gwyneth Paltrow.

Disgusted with her inability to find certain classic titles in New York City bookstores, Anne Bancroft reaches out to Marks & Co., a London secondhand bookshop located on Charing Cross Road. Thus begins a decades long correspondence between her and shop manager Anthony Hopkins that quickly exceeds the basics of book procurement. A completely charming and cozy tale, it’s the perfect film for letter and/or book lovers which I count myself as if only on a casual level. The simple relationship that develops through their letters is one based on intelligence and respect with the slightest hints toward unrequited romance, but it’s not just about them as there’s additional chains of friendship that develop between all of the bookshop employees and their families.

Witnessing the murder of his father Ethan Hawke at the hands of his uncle Claes Bang when he was a child, Alexander Skarsgård vows revenge on those responsible. I checked this out on a whim, seeing the cast and positive reviews, despite thinking I’d be unlikely to enjoy a period piece set in 800s Scandinavia. What I got was a sweeping tale of vengeance mixed with Nordic mythology that kept me enthralled throughout. With fantastic acting, a compelling though not wholly unique story, and gorgeous scenery, it definitely deserves the praise I had read. I may not understand everything in director Robert Eggers’s films, but it does make me want to check out those I haven’t yet.

After surviving a car accident, clinical psychologist Halle Berry awakens as a patient in the mental institution where she works, accused of murdering her husband Charles S. Dutton. This certainly is not Halle’s best work nor is the story a particularly good one, but I was surprised at the direction it went and it kept me interested. I originally probably checked this out mostly for Robert Downey Jr. in a role that is tiny when compared to his position in the credits, but came away most impressed with Penélope Cruz’s supporting role as one of Berry’s troubled patients.