MRMOVIESETC
REVIEWS:
“Instant Family”
(2018)
Can we pause for a second and really absorb the fact that
“Instant Family” comes to us from the same director as 2008’s “Sex Drive”?
This isn’t to be meant as a negative connotation –
RUMSPRINGA for life! – but then have his biggest follow-up to that be 2012’s
“That’s My Boy” and, holy shit, did that car veer off into the ditch in a
hurry. The point is that these titles, and even the two “Daddy’s Home” films,
are not the type of material one would expect a filmmaker like Sean Anders to
have lead up to a dramedy that tackles the sensitive topic of child adoption.
Then again, that’s not to say a subject that can cut deep for some should be
devoid of comedy; in fact, the exact opposite is true. The entertainment
industry has been made to fear handling potent issues with anything less than
kid gloves when, truthfully, that’s not a fair representation of life.
At the very least, I commend the willingness of Anders to
not only recognize this, but strike a fully pleasing balance in what has to be
one of, if not the best, family films of 2018. Of course it is glittery as Hell
with an ending suited to be found at the end of a rainbow, but it’s a film with
a clear ambition to make the audience (god forbid) feel good about something.
Additionally, the screenplay was given plenty of chances to address the
not-so-cheerful side of the equation as well. At one point, the social cliche
of a white couple adopting three Hispanic children was made as kind of an
awkward joke that did land in its own right; more importantly, that same point
was later revisited as not at all humorous, creating one of multiple examples
of tonal balance “Instant Family” often successfully strikes.
Mark Wahlberg and Rose Byrne have some excellent
chemistry in this film, and Byrne shines especially in her role. She has the
perfect acting personality as that loving woman that will bend to a certain
degree but nothing more after a breaking point. Olivia Spencer is absolutely
hilarious in her role as the main case worker, and honestly, who better to
deliver some of the biggest comedy lines than an actress whom can deliver them
with such deadpan force? Saving the best for last, Isabela Moner as the oldest
of the three children was equally excellent. I’m not at all familiar with her
Broadway and singing ventures, but I hope she decides to continue including
acting in her repertoire, because she’s got a lot of promise.
This is the type of film that could easily end up being
the crowning achievement of Sean Anders and his particular set of sensibilities.
It’s funny in the places it needs to be, and darker and real when it needs to
be. Normally I try to not to bring up mainstream critiques very often simply
because I could hardly give a shit, but in this case, don’t believe the
negativity. This is a good one.
“Instant Family”: 9/10
“Back Roads”
(2018)
And now, Ladies and Gentlemen, a film about physical
abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, sociopathy, and crippling depression to
sober you up from any good feelings you were possibly having that day. I
suppose the first half of that statement renders the second half redundant. No
joke, though – “Back Roads” has not a single ray of metaphorical sunshine and
there’s a good chance you’re going to feel that by the time it is over.
While clearly low budget and rough around the edges,
particularly in the acting department, “Back Roads” is an effective and
ultimately devastating story about a rural family that is cracked and
dysfunctional – to put it lightly – all the way down and through its
foundation. What at first is played as a dark drama about an oldest sibling,
Harley, in his early twenties taking care of his three younger sisters after
their mother is sent to prison for murdering their father - presumably because
of his consistent violence towards his wife and children - the plot digs
significantly deeper to show the impact on all four siblings whom are all going
through different modes of trauma; most of which are thinly veiled until put on
full display in the climax that could possibly test some gag reflexes.
There are some hints early on that may give away the farm
when noticed, though Harley’s love affair (not exactly in a romantic way) with
next door neighbor, Callie (Jennifer Morrison), keeps things distracting enough
that it’s tempting to question what’s real and what is not. It can also be said
that the ending is going to make the audience feel like are some significant
loose ends that go unanswered, but that’s really the point of it all. How that
is taken is, well, up to each viewer to process.
It’s not a perfect film, but it works, and I would be
down to watch it again someday.
“Back Roads”: 8/10
“Hold the Dark”
(2018)
Go read the book instead. I
have yet to read it and I’m still going to recommend that you do that, because
it just has to be better.
After viewing “Hold the Dark”, I did some digging into
interviews that Director Jeremy Saulnier had done promoting the film in order
to get an inside look to what drove his decision-making. I can have a certain
appreciation for wanting to shroud major aspects of a dark mystery-thriller
that deals out copious amounts of murder in mystery as opposed to having a face
tell right to the screen the past/present/future of events therein, but not at
the cost of adequate character development – the film’s fatal flaw.
At first, I was completely into it. Russell Core (Jeffrey
Wright) served as a worthy, stoic lead getting tangled further and further in a
pseudo-spiritual spider web of death in rural Alaska, and even after it turned
away from the initial guise of a grieving mother whom claims to have lost her child
to wolves to the full on mystery that was the central plot, I continued to feel
decently engaged. It wasn’t until the film went into full-on grisly mode that
it begun to devolve into meandering static, as strange as that sounds. Russell
slowly fades into the background of his narrative as the justification of his
presence begins to make less and less sense, and the focus goes more towards
the antagonist whom never was that interesting from the beginning.
Again, not every “Why?” needs to be answered in a film,
but to make the central characters and their respective prerogatives as
one-dimensional as humanly possible doesn’t initiate mind-bending intrigue as
much as genuine disinterest. The scene
locations and cinematography are rich, and there’s one cool shootout worth
mentioning; although, none of those things are enough to save this
disappointment.
“Hold the Dark”: 5/10
“Ain’t Them Bodies
Saints” (2013)
For a film that’s about as simple as it gets at its
roots, “Ain’t Them Bodies Saints” has an interesting blend of themes for a
modern day drama. The southern U.S. landscape gives it a warm and almost
wholesome backdrop to match the true nature of the central characters, and the
only main antagonist, per se, is the hauntings of past poor decisions made
during times of desperation that slowly culminate into a quiet suspense
regarding the safety and livelihood of a young girl. It’s surprisingly
effective for a slow-burner, and some thanks for that should go a tight editing
job that keeps this running just over ninety minutes.
Rooney Mara, whom I’ve mostly only known up until this
point for her more intense and unhinged roles, was admirably good as the tender
yet tough Ruth Guthrie, whom wants nothing more than to see her husband (Casey
Affleck) again after his stint in prison – from which he has evacuated
illegally – but also grapples with the fear that his past carries entirely too
much baggage to keep their daughter safe. Ruth soon realizes that this dark
cloud is going to force her into some of the most difficult decisions of her
life.
Usually I’m not a big fan of the cliché side romances
that films like these tend to push because the mother surviving on her own
simply cannot resist the caring hand of another man, in this case, Ben Foster,
and while the film kind of playfully toys with that, it wisely keeps it at
arms-length so as to not invalidate the strength of Mara’s central figure. It
also doesn’t hurt that Mara and Foster have a good chemistry to keep the
audience chomping at the bit.
Overall, “Saints” is a solid little movie. It doesn’t
bring anything particularly eye-opening to the table, yet it seems perfectly
content with that approach. As it turns out, I walked away feeling on the same
wavelength.
“Ain’t Them Bodies Saints”: 8.5/10
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