by Josh Sewell
Ella McCay
(Rated PG-13 for strong language, some sexual material and drug content. Opens in theaters on December 12.)
The premise: Writer-director James L. Brooks’ first movie in 15 years is a story about the people you love and how to survive them. It centers on an idealistic young woman (Emma Mackey) who juggles her family (including Jamie Lee Curtis, Woody Harrelson and Spike Fearn) and work life (including a boss played by Albert Brooks).
The verdict: This one’s a trainwreck, folks. I feel awful trashing 85-year-old Jim Brooks, considering he’s the Hollywood legend who brought us Terms of Endearment, Broadcast News and As Good as it Gets (not to mention television credits like The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Simpsons), but his latest is easily one of the worst movies I’ve seen this decade.
That’s a shame considering the murderer’s row of talent involved in the so-called comedy. Mackey does what she can to salvage a baffling character, and there are some rare bright moments thanks to Curtis, Harrelson and Albert Brooks. (I don’t think it’s an accident that the only somewhat realistic characters have been AARP-eligible for quite a while.)
However, other actors like Fearn, Kumail Nanjiani, Ayo Edebiri, Jack Lowden and Julie Kavner (who serves as the narrator for no discernable reason other than also being the voice of Marge Simpson) are squandered in meandering, uninteresting sublots. The film treats the stakes of every story as life-or-death when most of them have no believable drama or complications whatsoever.
There were several moments in the interminable two-hour running time when my colleagues and I just whispered, “what is happening?!” to each other. If you told me an alien wrote the screenplay using ChatGPT trying to mimic human behavior, I’d believe you.
I’ll be honest, I knew we were in for a rough ride within the first few minutes. That’s when Kavner’s narrator says something along the lines of, “this story takes place in 2008, back when we all still liked each other…” That certainly sounds like the political perspective of a guy born before World War II who I picture swimming in his Simpsons cash every morning like Scrooge McDuck.
Grade: F
Hamnet
(Rated PG-13 for thematic content, some strong sexuality and partial nudity. Now playing in select theaters.)
The premise: Based on Maggie O’Farrell’s novel, this heartbreaking drama from director Chloe Zhao’s chronicles the poignant love story between free-spirited Agnes (Jessie Buckley) and an up-and-coming young writer named William Shakespeare (Paul Mescal). It also recounts the couple’s devastating loss that led to the creation of Hamlet.
The verdict: A child dying of the plague in late-1500s England, a devastating situation that ultimately inspired one of the greatest works in literature, is far from uplifting fare. But it’s still a compelling, incredibly moving story even if you’re watching most of it through tears.
Zhao, who co-wrote the screenplay with O’Farrell, keeps Hamnet from feeling like a stuffy period piece or misery porn by crafting fictional versions of real people. This isn’t a documentary, but a spiritual melodrama full of quirky characters and a tiny dash of magical realism.
The cinematography, courtesy of Lukasz Zal is stunning, while Max Richter’s beautiful score is reminiscent of his work in Arrival – one of my favorites. But what most viewers will rave about are the dynamite performances from Buckley (the current Best Actress frontrunner), Mescal (full of smoldering pathos, despite disappearing from the film’s middle third) and Jacobi Jupe (as the adorable, ill-fated titular character). There’s also some fine supporting work from Emily Watson and Joe Alwyn.
Because we care about everyone from the start, it makes the trials they endure hit with even more impact. That’s also what makes the final sequence – when Agnes finds herself in the crowd for her husband’s latest play – one of the year’s most powerful. Zhao builds the grief and tension for almost two hours, then allows the characters and viewers to experience catharsis together.
Obviously, Hamnet isn’t for everyone – especially parents – but those in search of a good tear-jerker will find just what they’re looking for in Zhao’s latest. Plus, if you’re a big English nerd, there are quite a few nods to Shakespeare’s work that will have you pointing at the screen like the Leonardo DiCaprio in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood meme.
Grade: A
(Rated PG-13 for strong language, some sexual material and drug content. Opens in theaters on December 12.)
The premise: Writer-director James L. Brooks’ first movie in 15 years is a story about the people you love and how to survive them. It centers on an idealistic young woman (Emma Mackey) who juggles her family (including Jamie Lee Curtis, Woody Harrelson and Spike Fearn) and work life (including a boss played by Albert Brooks).
The verdict: This one’s a trainwreck, folks. I feel awful trashing 85-year-old Jim Brooks, considering he’s the Hollywood legend who brought us Terms of Endearment, Broadcast News and As Good as it Gets (not to mention television credits like The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Simpsons), but his latest is easily one of the worst movies I’ve seen this decade.
That’s a shame considering the murderer’s row of talent involved in the so-called comedy. Mackey does what she can to salvage a baffling character, and there are some rare bright moments thanks to Curtis, Harrelson and Albert Brooks. (I don’t think it’s an accident that the only somewhat realistic characters have been AARP-eligible for quite a while.)
However, other actors like Fearn, Kumail Nanjiani, Ayo Edebiri, Jack Lowden and Julie Kavner (who serves as the narrator for no discernable reason other than also being the voice of Marge Simpson) are squandered in meandering, uninteresting sublots. The film treats the stakes of every story as life-or-death when most of them have no believable drama or complications whatsoever.
There were several moments in the interminable two-hour running time when my colleagues and I just whispered, “what is happening?!” to each other. If you told me an alien wrote the screenplay using ChatGPT trying to mimic human behavior, I’d believe you.
I’ll be honest, I knew we were in for a rough ride within the first few minutes. That’s when Kavner’s narrator says something along the lines of, “this story takes place in 2008, back when we all still liked each other…” That certainly sounds like the political perspective of a guy born before World War II who I picture swimming in his Simpsons cash every morning like Scrooge McDuck.
Grade: F
(Rated PG-13 for thematic content, some strong sexuality and partial nudity. Now playing in select theaters.)
The premise: Based on Maggie O’Farrell’s novel, this heartbreaking drama from director Chloe Zhao’s chronicles the poignant love story between free-spirited Agnes (Jessie Buckley) and an up-and-coming young writer named William Shakespeare (Paul Mescal). It also recounts the couple’s devastating loss that led to the creation of Hamlet.
The verdict: A child dying of the plague in late-1500s England, a devastating situation that ultimately inspired one of the greatest works in literature, is far from uplifting fare. But it’s still a compelling, incredibly moving story even if you’re watching most of it through tears.
Zhao, who co-wrote the screenplay with O’Farrell, keeps Hamnet from feeling like a stuffy period piece or misery porn by crafting fictional versions of real people. This isn’t a documentary, but a spiritual melodrama full of quirky characters and a tiny dash of magical realism.
The cinematography, courtesy of Lukasz Zal is stunning, while Max Richter’s beautiful score is reminiscent of his work in Arrival – one of my favorites. But what most viewers will rave about are the dynamite performances from Buckley (the current Best Actress frontrunner), Mescal (full of smoldering pathos, despite disappearing from the film’s middle third) and Jacobi Jupe (as the adorable, ill-fated titular character). There’s also some fine supporting work from Emily Watson and Joe Alwyn.
Because we care about everyone from the start, it makes the trials they endure hit with even more impact. That’s also what makes the final sequence – when Agnes finds herself in the crowd for her husband’s latest play – one of the year’s most powerful. Zhao builds the grief and tension for almost two hours, then allows the characters and viewers to experience catharsis together.
Obviously, Hamnet isn’t for everyone – especially parents – but those in search of a good tear-jerker will find just what they’re looking for in Zhao’s latest. Plus, if you’re a big English nerd, there are quite a few nods to Shakespeare’s work that will have you pointing at the screen like the Leonardo DiCaprio in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood meme.
Grade: A
Reach out to Josh Sewell at joshsewell81@gmail.com or on BlueSky @joshsewell.bsky.social
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