Cinephile No. 860 “The Climb”

Recommendation: 3/5 Stars, STREAM

Plot: “A look at the friendship between two guys that spans over many years.” -IMBD

Review: When you boil the plot of “The Climb” down to its simplest form, this is a movie about being friends with an asshole. The asshole in this movie is Mike (Michael Angelo Covino). The friend he keeps taking advantage of is Kyle (Kyle Marvin). For our part as the audience, we discover the depths of Mike’s selfishness pretty early on as the two friends climb a hill on their bikes. Kyle, lagging behind, is overjoyed and ready to marry his fiancé. He is proud to have Mike as his best man and excited about the future. Then, out of nowhere, Mike admits to sleeping with Kyle’s soon-to-be wife for an extended period of time. Filled with anger, Kyle begins processing what this means for himself, his future wife, and his best friend.

Without a doubt, this opening scene is the most important in the film and lays the groundwork for everything that comes next. It is a pretty brilliant way to establish who these characters are and who they will become.

Kyle and his fiancé separate. Mike marries Kyle’s ex-fiancé. She dies suddenly and who do we see standing by his friend at the cemetery? Kyle! This move further establishes who Kyle is as a person. He is loyal, supportive, and a true friend. As we have learned and will learn, later on, these are character traits Mike is more than happy to exploit.

In the wake of Mike’s loss, Kyle moves on, meets a new girl, and hopes to get married. Mike is spiraling out of control. Deeply depressed and drinking too much, he is losing his grip on reality. Thanks to his mother’s instance, Kyle is once again standing there by his friend’s side.

Like a country music song born into the real world, we discover Mike has slept with Kyle’s new fiancé too! Yet again, where many of us would have chosen to walk away from the friendship, Kyle remains and even pushes forward with the marriage.

As this occurred, I began turning on Kyle. I was finding it impossible to sympathize with a person who keeps allowing a friend to take advantage of him. As the final scenes of the movie play out and we see the ultimate decision of the two men, I found myself even more restless and frustrated.

In the end, the dark and quirky comedy is meant to do exactly that. It is meant to test the limits of friendship. It forces us to examine our own friendships. Thanks to some wonderful camera work and great musical interludes throughout this film, you will be forced to get personal with yourself.

Be good to each other,

Nathan

Cinephile No. 859 “Let Him Go”

Recommendation: 3/5 Stars, STREAM

Plot: “A retired sheriff and his wife, grieving over the death of their son, set out to find their only grandson.” -IMDB

Review: Starring Diane Lane and Kevin Costner as Margaret and George Blackledge, “Let Him Go” begins with an accidental death as the Blackledge’s son is bucked from his horse. In the wake of his death, their daughter-in-law, Lorna Blackledge (Kayli Carter), remarries and takes her son to begin her new life in town and removed far from the farm of his grandparents.

As the family settles into a new sense of normal, Margaret heads into town one day. Sitting in her car, she watches as both her grandson and former daughter-in-law are struck and verbally berated. Frozen, Margaret can only watch in horror as the scene unfolds on the sidewalk. This scene shakes her to the core. In its aftermath, she decides to rescue her grandson and his mother. With George in tow, they discover the apartment where Lorna, her son, and her new husband were staying is empty. Determined to get them back, the Blackledge’s set out across Montana and into South Dakota in a desperate search.

Brilliantly, the tension in this film begins to slowly build as they get closer to the family home of the Weboy’s. After discovering the exact whereabouts of their grandson, the Blackledge’s are invited to see him over dinner with the Weboy clan. Over dinner, the potential for danger hangs thick in the air like cigarette smoke thanks to Blanche Weboy (Lesley Manville), mother, and leader of the house.

Dinner quickly devolves as tension reaches its breaking point. Excusing themselves, the Blackledge’s devise a plan with Lorna to escape and head back to Montana. But this plan does not go unnoticed and the tension gives way to violence in a hotel when the Weboy clan confronts the Blackledge’s. In a fit of violence and threats, George loses several fingers and resides to leave and head back home without his grandson, but his wife will not allow it. Seeing the heartbreak in her eyes, George devises a half-baked and desperate plan to get them back.

This plan turns the tide of the entire movie and, in my opinion, makes a great movie, average. While I will not spoil the ending, I will say that I had to remind myself that what I was witnessing was purposefully frustrating. The violence before me was meant as a display of the struggle of getting something back which cannot be easily freed. Despite my silent reminders, I could not get over what I was witnessing and found myself longing for a different outcome. As the credits began to roll, I understood I was not going to get what I wanted. With that said, I still think this is a movie worth your time and recommend it for a night spent on the couch.

Be good to each other,

Nathan 

Cinephile No. 858 “Yellow Rose”

Recommendation: 3/5 Stars, STREAM

Plot: “A Filipina teen from a small Texas town fights to pursue her dreams as a country music performer while having to decide between staying with her family or leaving the only home she has known.” -IMDB

Review: On the other side of xenophobia, racism, and cultural misunderstanding, are human beings pursuing the American dream in their own way. They may be found in meatpacking plants, in the back of your favorite restaurant, or cleaning your hotel room. “Yellow Rose” focuses on a Filipina teen named Rose Garcia (Eva Noblezada) in a small Texas town who has a deep love for country music and dreams of one day performing her own original songs. She and her mother are also here illegally. When Rose decides to rebel against her mother’s wishes by sneaking off to Austin with a boy for a concert, she narrowly misses Immigration and Custom Enforcement agents taking her mother into custody. This life-altering act launches a search for Rose’s voice and a nearly impossible search for a home.

The only negative thing I can say about this film is that, at times, the acting can be uneven. Beyond that, it is powerful. As we watch Rose find a safe space to live in the back of the concert hall where she found herself on the night her mother was taken, we see a young woman beginning to wrestle with the push and pull between her family and the only home she has ever known. When she is once again confronted with an ICE raid, things get even more complicated for her.

Realizing the concert hall is not safe, Rose finds sanctuary at the home of a local country music legend. Here, she is encouraged to put her story to song and work out her challenges in verse. As she crafts powerful lyrics and music, she once again faces homelessness.

Finding work at a hotel, continuing school, and digging deeper into her passion, Rose answers the question before her and discovers a true sense of home.

While it may not be the intention of this movie to make a political statement, it does by using human examples. Watching this film, it is hard not to empathize with those who have come here seeking a better life for themselves and their family. “Yellow Rose” gave me a lot to consider and I am confident it will do the same for you.

Be good to each other,

Nathan 

Cinephile No. 857 “Synchronic”

Recommendation: 3/5 Stars, STREAM

Plot: “Two New Orleans paramedics' lives are ripped apart after they encounter a series of horrific deaths linked to a designer drug with bizarre, otherworldly effects.” -IMDB

Review: At first impression, “Synchronic” is introduced with layers of intrigue mirroring films such as “The Fountain” or “The Tree of Life.” While it does not ultimately deliver in the same manner, there is still enough here to keep most audiences interested.

Starring Anthony Mackie as Steve and Jamie Dornan as Dennis, this movie begins in earnest as the two paramedics respond to a call about a suspected overdose. At the scene, they encounter a violent subject and another who has overdosed. As they fight to save one and keep the other controlled, they see the impact of Synchronic for the first time.

Over the next couple of calls, they respond to scenes where Synchronic is squarely at the center. As they work to gather more information about the drug, Steve is diagnosed with a form of brain cancer. Without much time left, he begins to assess his life. What he sees is a man who sleeps around, drinks too much, and does not have a family to call his own. Perhaps in an effort to make things right, he becomes determined to get Synchronic off of the streets.

After tracking down the last few pills in New Orleans, he has a chance encounter with the drugmaker. Thanks to this meeting, he learns Synchronic is a time-spanning drug that allows its users to go back in time to a particular event that occurred at the exact point where they find themselves standing. Thanks to a series of foolhardy experiments, he confirms this to be true. His decision to try the drug is not selfish though.

Dennis’s older daughter is missing and Steve thinks Synchronic is to blame. Unable to understand the full power of the drug, she does not make it back from her time-traveling trip. With just a few pills left, the third part of this film becomes a search for Brianna.

Whether they find her or not, I would not dare spoil for you. Instead, I will say this was an incredibly original film, which I found refreshing. There are also some things here that annoyed and distracted me. First, I have never seen paramedics move so slowly. Secondly, the acting and dialogue could have used a few more takes and a few more rewrites. Finally, the journeys back in time can feel a little low-budget. All in all, I still found this a movie worthy of an evening spent indoors streaming with another curious cinephile.

Be good to each other,

Nathan

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