Freeze Frame

If a claustrophobic thriller is what you’re looking for, the airline hijack movie “7500” fills the bill. Joseph Gordon-Levitt stars as a mild-mannered pilot fending off terrorists wielding glass knives. All of the action takes place in the  plane’s cockpit. Gordon-Levitt is solid and the filmmakers strive for realism over melodrama. While tense and well made, “7500” is unnerving and about as enjoyable as fingernails on the chalkboard.   “Miss Juneteenth” is a sweet-natured drama about a struggling mom, well played by Nicole Beharie, who enters her reluctant daughter in an annual pageant that she’d won years before. “Miss Juneteenth” is a sensitively acted salute to the tenacious, unshakable fortitude of black motherhood.   “The Short History of the Long Road” is an indie road movie about a teen girl, played by Sabrina Carpenter, who lives a nomadic life with her father in a ramshackle RV. When he suddenly dies, she seeks out her long-lost mother. Although it rambles like the endless roadways it follows, “The Short History of the Long Road” is a perceptive low-key character study.   “Feel the Beat” is a dance movie aimed squarely at young girls. Sophia Carson plays a disgraced Broadway dancer who returns…

Oscar winners Spike Lee and Kevin Willmott reunite for an intriguing and timely drama, “Da 5 Bloods.” This Netflix movie is about aging African American Vietnam vets who return to that country to retrieve the remains of a fallen brother and a fortune in gold they left behind. Delroy Lindo and Chadwick Boseman lead a solid cast and the movie provides a new perspective on the war. While it’s involving and never dull, “Da 5 Bloods” could have benefited from some judicious editing.   “Saturday Night Live” star Pete Davidson stars in “The King of Staten Island,” an Amazon Prime movie loosely based on Davidson’s life. It’s a comic take on a 24-year-old who still lives at home with his mom and suffers from arrested development. He’s perpetually stoned, aimless and lacks any ambition. There are quite a few funny moments in director Judd Apatow’s feature, but “The King of Staten Island” is rambling and bloated with unnecessary and superfluous scenes that distract from some of the touching ones.   Disney Plus is offering what they hope will be the first installment of a new movie franchise. “Artemis Fowl” is a special effects extravaganza adapted from the first two books…

As our local cinemas are still temporarily closed, this week’s Freeze Frame will concentrate on NEW movies that can be streamed at home. Elisabeth Moss, easily one of the best actresses working today, turns in yet another impressive portrayal the drama “Shirley.” This fictionalized biopic focuses on a difficult period in the life of acclaimed horror author Shirley Jackson, best-known for her stories like “The Lottery” and “The Haunting of Hill House.” In the early 1950s, Jackson is suffering from debilitating depression and writer’s block. Her manipulative college professor husband, played by Michael Stuhlbarg, invites a young couple, played by Logan Lerman and Odessa Young, to move in and help out. The resulting drama plays out like a gothic version of “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf.” While Moss is obviously terrific, Young also delivers a strong performance and Stuhlbarg is authentically oily. “Shirley” is slow-moving and erratic, but it’s an interesting and edgy experiment buoyed by a great cast. And speaking of edgy, “Judy & Punch” is a weird and wacky dark feminist comedy set in 16th Century rural England. Mia Wasikowska and Damon Herriman star in this violent tale about a self-absorbed alcoholic puppeteer and his long-suffering wife. As…

In the new Netflix romantic comedy “The High Note” Dakota Johnson portrays the hardworking assistant of a famous and demanding pop star. Tracee Ellis Ross plays the music diva in a role that might -or might not- be inspired by her famous mom, Diana Ross. Ice Cube is the hard-as-nails manager. “The High Note” is a lighthearted bit of froth that bears little resemblance to reality, but is a painless fantasy peppered with catchy pop tunes.   The sci-fi thriller “The Vast of Night” is so wildly imaginative and cleverly directed that it mostly transcends its overly wordy script. The dialogue is so dense, in fact, that it could have been a radio drama. In a small New Mexico town in the late 1950s, a couple of teens try to identify mysterious, otherworldly sounds in the phone lines. Even though it never quite delivers on its promise, “The Vast of Night” shows that imagination can prevail over a low budget and heralds the arrival of an impressive new talent, director Andrew Patterson.   “I’m No Longer Here” is a realistic and profoundly sad Mexican social drama involving Ulises, a member of a teen street gang in Monterrey that dances to…

The last time that actor Kumail Nanjiani teamed with director Michael Showalter, the result was the brilliant and moving 2017 comic drama, “The Big Sick.” Their new collaboration, “The Lovebirds,” is a Netflix romantic comedy-slash-action flick that isn’t nearly as successful. Nanjiani and Issa Rae play a couple in a tenuous relationship whose bickering takes a back seat when circumstances throw them into a murder mystery. Some of the dialogue is crisp and the leads are appealing, but their characters make choices that are so unrealistic and calculated that it all becomes pretty absurd. Still, “The Lovebirds” provides laughs for viewers who aren’t too demanding.   Kristen Scott Thomas leads the cast in the low-key comedy “Military Wives,” now available on VOD platforms. It covers a true story about the ups and downs of a group of British women who try to form a choir when their husbands are off to war in Afghanistan. The script is strictly by-the-numbers, but the genial cast and good-natured vibe make it a palatable choice to recommend to your mom.   Mary J. Blige stars in another VOD offering “Body Cam,” a grisly movie that blends a police procedural with the supernatural horror genre.…

Tom Hardy’s gonzo performance is the main draw for “Capone,” now available on Amazon Prime. This experimental movie concentrates on the last hellish year of the infamous mobster’s life when he was suffering from dementia and his body was wracked with syphilis. Did he actually hide millions in cash? That’s what his family, associates and the FBI wanted to know. So did he. The storyline meanders and the filmmakers don’t make much of an attempt to let us know if the action we see was real or if it was all going on in Capone’s head. None of this matters much if you don’t buy into Hardy’s over-the-top portrayal. It’s brave and gutsy but is more of a spectacle than a full-blooded portrait. “Capone” may have been a cathartic experience for director Josh Trank, but it’s simply a curiosity for the rest of us. Celebrated English filmmaker Ken Loach has been making sober kitchen sink dramas about the trials and tribulations of the working class since the 1960s. His latest effort “Sorry We Missed You” is no exception. A realistic take down of the new gig economy, “Sorry We Missed You” concentrates on the difficulties faced by a man who…

“Becoming” is a new Netflix documentary featuring former First Lady Michelle Obama. It’s a behind-the-scenes look at her 2018 34-city book tour promoting her memoir, “Becoming.” The film consists of snippets from her appearances at sold-out arenas, mixed with interview clips, scenes from her meetings with community organizations, book signings and occasional personal asides.   While the film doesn’t provide the intimate, in-depth portrait her millions of fans might have hoped for, “Becoming” is still an interesting glimpse at America’s most admired woman.   Beanie Feldstein stars in the British comedy, “How to Build a Girl,” now available through video on demand platforms. It’s a fictional tale inspired by the life of its author, renowned journalist, Caitlin Moran. Feldstein plays Johanna, a talented but awkward 16-year-old from a working-class family who rises to fame as an obnoxiously cruel music critic. Feldstein is appealing and the movie has wit, even though the coming-of-age elements are a bit too familiar.   “The Half of It” is yet another coming-of-age comedy for teens now available on Netflix. Leah Lewis plays Ellie, a brilliant Chinese American girl who, in true Cyrano de Bergerac fashion, is recruited by a dumb jock to write love letters…

As our local cinemas are still temporarily closed, this week’s Freeze Frame will concentrate on NEW movies that can be streamed at home.   Hugh Jackman and Allison Janney give terrific performances in the strange but true HBO film, “Bad Education.” Jackman plays a popular Long Island school superintendent who was in charge when millions in district dollars went missing. “Bad Education” is a darkly funny exposé of human greed.   “All Day and a Night” is a Netflix drama about a wannabe rapper, played by Ashton Sanders who contemplates his life in flashback when he winds up in the same prison housing his estranged father, portrayed by Jeffrey Wright. It’s a realist but profoundly sad look at the cycle of violence that is all too difficult to break.   Apple TV+ is offering the documentary, “Beastie Boys Story.” Original band members Adam Horowitz and Mike D tell their own story in an involving live theatrical presentation directed by Spike Jonze. While you don’t need to be a fan of the iconoclastic rappers to enjoy it, it helps.   Oscar winning actor Jean Dujardin gives a daring performance in the très bizarre French black comedy, “Deerskin,” now available on the…

Chris Hemsworth is a conflicted action hero in the excessively violent Netflix thriller, “Extraction.” Hemsworth plays a super skillful mercenary who is hired to rescue the kidnapped son of an Indian gangster who has been spirited off to Bangladesh. Heralded stuntman Sam Hargrave makes his directorial debut and brings some jaw-dropping stunt sequences to vivid life, placing them in exotic, unfamiliar locales. Problem is, the relentless commotion becomes repetitive and mind-numbing and the ethics of this story, written by “The Avengers” Joe Russo, are highly questionable. But if you want ceaseless, well-staged bloody action, “Extraction” is the movie for you.   In spite of its title, “True History of the Kelly Gang” is a fictional account of the life of famed Australian outlaw, Ned Kelly, based on Peter Carey’s popular novel. George MacKay, best-known for “1917,” plays Kelly, a bushwacker whose Robin Hood-like exploits took place in the 1870s. Essie Davis, Russell Crowe, Nicholas Hoult and Charlie Hunnam have colorful supporting roles. The filmmakers’ approach is extremely violent here, too. It’s like a punk rock version of history, punctuated with profane language and ambiguous morals. MacKay is fine, but the story progresses in fits and starts.   “The Willoughbys” is…

The Netflix original drama “Tigertail” is a low-key family drama about a strained father-daughter relationship. Chinese-American actor Tzi Ma, who may be best known for his recent role in “The Farewell,” plays Grover, an immigrant from Taiwan who can’t seem to make an emotional connection with his adult daughter Angela, played by Kristine Ko. In a series of flashbacks, we learn of the difficult decisions that Grover had to make before leaving Taiwan and of the lost love that left him emotionally stunted.   Partly in English and partly in Mandarin with subtitles, “Tigertail” is a very slow moving but subtly touching character study. Like the character of Grover, “Tigertail” can sometimes seem a bit distant, but it may appeal to patient viewers interested in its slow-burn depiction of an emotional culture clash.   A strong cast helps to prop up the oddly off-base thriller, “The Quarry,” now available on video on demand platforms. Veteran character actor Shea Whigham gets a rare lead role, portraying a mysterious criminal who murders a preacher and then takes on the man’s identity in a small south Texas border town. Michael Shannon is the local bigoted lawman who is rightly suspicious of the newcomer.…