Apollo 11
It is a bit of a surprise this film wasn’t made sooner. This stunning film about the Apollo 11 lunar landing in 1969 is spectacular all these years later. It is being released in both IMAX and conventional format. We chose the later and left completely satisfied with the visuals.
Neil Armstrong was the Commander, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins were the pilots. The film was released at Sundance in January. Later this year Apollo 11 will celebrate its 50th anniversary.
The film has been listed as a Documentary, History. It’s rated G for General audiences. The run time is 1 hour, 33 minutes. Don’t miss this film. It is well crafted and worth while, especially for younger audiences who have no real knowledge or insight about how this exceptional event changed the world.
Gloria Bell
This is an interesting remake of a Chilean film titled Gloria by the same Director Sebastian Lelio. It’s just different enough to suit the American lifestyle (and audiences) rather than the Latin version.
The cast is compact. Julianne Moore plays a 50+ Gloria. John Turturro is the ex-Marine love interest Arnold. Michael Cara plays Gloria’s son, Brad Garrett plays the ex-husband. Rita Wilson plays Gloria’s girlfriend. Sean Astin and Jeanne Tripplehorn round out the leading characters.
Gloria is at a tipping point in her life and career, young at heart, intelligent, attractive, energetic, engaging. Her life is full but complicated, missing that special something. Ultimately heartwarming, this is the story adults of a certain age can relate to.
It’s rated R for sexuality, nudity, language and some drug use. We do not recommend viewing for children. It’s listed as a Comedy, Romance with a run time of 102 minutes.
Captive State
It’s set in the not too distant future when the planet is controlled by a powerful alien culture far superior to humans. It’s set in Chicago. (Let’s think about that. I’m a superior species in every way with dominion over Earth…where do you set up your HQ…duh… Chicago?)
There are pockets of resistance but the aliens don’t seem too concerned about the humans. In fact, the aliens don’t seem too concerned about much of anything. The audience learns nothing about the interlopers, their powers or weaknesses. In general, most humans seem to accept the aliens as a given and find ways to eek out a life nonetheless.
The cast is a mixed bag. Machine Gun Kelly plays Jurgis. Madeline Brewer plays Daniel. John Goodman is the headliner human in charge. Ashton Sanders, Vera Farmiga, Kiki Layne and Jonathan Majors round out the strongest characters.
The film is rated PG-13 for sci-fi violence and action, some sexual content, brief language and drug material. We do not feel this film should be viewed by children. It’s listed as a Drama, Mystery & Suspense, Science Fiction & Fantasy with a run time of 1 hour, 50 minutes. Save your time and money and skip this one.
oh good! I was crossing my fingers that you liked Apollo 11! I never know if a movie is worth viewing until I see what you think of it. You have not steered me wrong yet!
well, ok, once…you and my husband Steve and the critics all thought La La Land was good. I didn’t like it at all. I think the dancing turned me off the most. But one out of…what? A hundred? That’s a pretty good average.