Heed The Warning..."Get Out"

Get Out (2017)

Rated R

Starring Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Catherine Keener, Bradley Whitford, Caleb Landry Jones, Marcus Henderson, Betty Gabriel, LilRel Howery,

Written and Directed by Jordan Peele

The Story:

Rose (Williams) is taking her boyfriend Chris (Kaluuya) on a weekend getaway to meet her parents (Keener & Whitford). There are a few odd things around the house that cause Chris concern, but even he is unprepared for the horrible fate that awaits him unless he can...

Get. Out.

Okay, I'm sorry, but this was not a horror film.

A thriller? Maybe suspense film?

Absolutely.

But when I think horror, this is not at all what I think of in a film.

There's a few parts that make you jump, but no, I'm going to have to say I was sold a bill of goods for one movie, and presented another.

That's fine.

It's like being told a movie is a comedy, and then not laughing.

As long as the film is a good one, I can adjust, no harm, no foul.

Just bad advertising.

That's where I'll put Get Out.

It's a movie I'm deliberately talking around, because I hate to spoil films for anyone that may not have seen it yet, even though I'm usually the last guy watching something.

:)

Otherwise, really good movie. Jordan Peele does a great job as first-time (I believe) writer-director for a movie that isn't a comedy.

Though yes, there is some humor to be found in the movie.

Kaluuya is phenomenal carrying the movie as pretty much 95% of the entire movie centers directly or indirectly around him.

Oh yeah, and not to scare anyone away, but the movie does tackle some weighty issues such as racism and classism, but not in nearly the "we have to hit you over the head with it" way that many films try and portray things.

Which makes this film the best kind of 'ism' film, escapism.

Final Grade: B-

And Now For Your Movie Of The Week... "Saving Mr. Banks"

Saving Mr. Banks (2013)

Rated PG-13 for thematic reasons...

Starring: Emma Thompson, Tom Hanks, Annie Rose Buckley, Colin Farrell, Ruth Wilson, Paul Giamatti, Bradley Whitford, B.J. Novak, Jason Schwartzman

Directed by John Lee Hancock

The Story:

Author P.L. Travers (Thompson) has fought off the advances of Walt Disney (Hanks) for over 20 years.  He wants her book, Mary Poppins, to be brought to life onscreen to fulfill a promise to his daughters.  Travers is not interested in seeing her very personal story brought to life in an animated movie, but agrees to meet with Disney to see what will happen.  She is very insistent on everything, including recording her sessions with Disney's representatives Don DaGradi (Whitford) and the Sherman Brothers (Novak and Schwartzman).  However, it is flashbacks to the story behind the Mary Poppins story that reveal why this tale is so important to Travers and why she is so insistent on not giving it to Disney.

We all know that she relents eventually, but the journey is one worth taking to see how she gets there.

I was expecting a good movie.

I don't know that I was expecting it to be *this* good though.

The story opens with flashbacks to Travers as a girl named Ginty (Buckley) who absolutely adores her father (Farrell).  When they move to the end of the line in Australia to take on a new bank job, their mother (Wilson) is nearing the end of her rope.  Mr. Goff is an alcoholic and this is the latest in a series of jobs that have taken a toll on the family.

Yet the father is so sweet, fun and loving, it's impossible not to feel why Ginty loves her dad.

The movie moves back and forth between flashbacks of life in Australia and Travers' meetings at the Disney studios.

While Hanks does an admirable job as Walt Disney, it should be noted that the majority of Travers meetings are with screenwriter DaGradi and Richard and Robert Sherman.  In fact, Disney himself probably has the least amount of screen time in the whole movie of all of the characters. 

And that's not a bad thing.

This is the heart and soul of most of the conflict within the movie, as everything they pitch to her, she rebuffs.

Robert Sherman is the first to openly even question "does it even matter?" to many of her objections, much to the horror of his partners.

Travers remains insistent that the film not be animated and not be a musical.

So you can tell, it's a long, uphill battle for Disney's team to win her over.

However, it's when they realize how personal the story is to Travers, and how they can remedy the tale by providing a happy ending to Mr. Banks that her father never had, that Travers finally relents.

Naturally, being based on a true story, much of the tale is open to interpretation and change.

That said, I like the way the movie played out, and have a better appreciation for Mary Poppins than I did previously.

Plus, this adds yet another layer of appreciation for what the Sherman Brothers brought to Disney studios.  These two are geniuses that deserve much more notoriety and accolades than they have received.  Their songs alone provide much of the heart of the films they provided songwriting duties for.

Including this one.

Well worth a viewing.

Final Grade: A-/B+ range

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: I'm sure I'm the only one in the house, but much like Mary Poppins, I liked it and wouldn't mind owning it and/or watching it again someday.