Movie Review: Malcolm & Marie (R – 106 minutes)

 

Continuing safe pandemic movie-viewing, I watched Malcolm & Marie on Netflix.

Malcolm & Marie is unique because it was made entirely in the pandemic, with minimal crew, and only two actors doing their own hair and makeup while shooting entirely in the “Caterpillar House” in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California.

The movie covers an argument between movie director Malcolm and actress Marie after they arrive home after the premiere of his movie. We learn he forgot to thank her during his speech.  She is upset, not just because he did not thank her, but because she feels the movie is based on her life. He claims it is not. Things get heated and cool down, then get excruciating from there. They manage to seem to both truly hate each other and passionately love each other. 

The movie feels like it is a play, and perhaps writer-director Sam Levinson would have made it a play, but with no possible audiences or theaters during a pandemic, shifted it to a movie instead.  After shooting on HBO’s Euphoria shut down, he conferred with Zendaya for another project to tackle, and developed this story. Shooting it in black and white removes all distractions from the background and allows the focus to be the two actors as they proceed to act their assess off.  They both do a fantastic job, and the movie has a fascinating quality.  As with many other Oscar-y movies – I can tell you that the craftmanship is excellent, but that I did not care for it at all.

Both Washington and Zendaya are incredibly charismatic and watchable, but personally I do not want to watch a two-hour argument between two characters I cannot stand. Honestly, I thought the movie was two and a half hours long – I am shocked to learn it is just over an hour and a half.  It feels like it goes on forever, and while it raises some interesting questions (should Malcolm’s movies be considered political because he is a black director, even if that wasn’t his intent?), I found myself tuning out as they got more and more at each other’s throats. They both do an incredible job of bringing depth and soul to the viewpoints of each character.

I am incredibly curious if it was direction by Levinson or a choice by JDW to eat the mac-and-cheese the way he did. When they return home, he does laps around the living room ranting about the responses to the movie while Marie makes mac-and-cheese. After round one in their fight, he sits and eats the mac-and-cheese in the loudest, angriest way I have ever seen anyone eat. And while that is in no way key to the story (I don’t think? It is a metaphor? Representational?), it was so incredibly off-putting that I had a hard time moving past it! And then, of course, I wanted a bowl of mac-and-cheese.

3 out of 10 – again, grading on my taste, not the quality. It is very well made, and if you love character-study plays, you will probably love this. It is beautifully shot and expertly acted, but not at all my cup of tea.

Movie Review: Finding ‘Ohana (PG - 123 minutes)

 

Enjoying the year of Netflix weekly new releases, I found Finding ‘Ohana. 

If you do not remember from Lilo and Stitch, ‘Ohana means family.  In this fun family adventure flick, Pili and her older brother Ioane are siblings raised in Brooklyn.  Pili spends most of her time in geocaching competitions, something she really loves. She has just won a competition and is about to have the best summer of her life at a geocaching camp (which I did not know was a thing) when her mother, Leilani, learns that her grandfather Kimo has had a heart attack.  Leilani takes the family to Oahu for the summer where they get to connect with their Hawaiian heritage even if they were not planning to.

Pili finds a journal in her grandfather’s things that may or may not lead to buried treasure.  She connects with a neighbor kid, Casper, and together they head out to find the treasure.  Ioane and his new crush Hana go after them, and together, the four explore, bond, and search throughout some gorgeous landscapes and sets. Meanwhile, Leilani reconnects with Kimo and everyone gains a greater appreciation for their family.

This is the directorial debut of Jude Weng and the movie looks amazing. Now, filming in Oahu may be cheating, because there is not really a bad shot available, but besides the outdoor scenes, the bits inside caves and homes are also well put-together. The movie is predictable – you know Pili is going to learn to appreciate her family by the end – but that is never an issue with a family film.  The kids do a fine job through an adventure that feels very Goonies (on purpose), so much so that Ke Huy Quan cameos.

All four of the lead kid actors are perfectly find for kid actors – this is the debut of Kea Peahu as Pili and she goes from irritating to lead adventurer. Alex Aiono is apparently a huge singing sensation on the YouTube, and both Owen Vaccaro as Casper and Lindsay Watson as Hana help the siblings appreciate Hawaii. 

Kelly Hu is always fantastic and brings a grounding realism to Leilani as she struggles to get her father to understand how close he is to losing his home.

Seeing Branscombe Richmond as Kimo was a treat for me – I used to love the TV show Renegade. He pays the stereotypical grandfather here but fits the role perfectly as he eventually realizes his contribution to his strained relationship with his daughter.

Overall, the movie is plenty of fun and certainly a great option for a family Netflix evening.  I particularly enjoyed the intercut re-enactments of the pirates who found and hid the treasure as Pili reads the journal with some pure silliness by Chris Parnell and Marc Evan Jackson. Also – cast fun over the closing credits will always leave a smile on my face!

6 out of 10 – perfectly pleasant.

Also – the fact that this movie includes a trip to the ‘film tour’ area of Oahu where you can see where they filmed Lost and Jurassic Park has now moved a trip to that park to my bucket list. They make fun of it in the movie, but hey – I would enjoy that!