One Battle After Another

 Based on the Thomas Pynchon book Vineland, a pair of revolutionaries fight oppression in a racist, right-wing America. (yes, it's not very far from where we are now) After a child, retirement and 16 years passes, an old enemy resurfaces forcing DiCaprio back into the fold to rescue his daughter from his grip. Quirky, darkly funny and full of action Anderson takes us on quite the journey. The acting, the script and above all the cinematography shine here. Paul Thomas Anderson has a particular style as does Thomas Pynchon and the melding of styles works quite well and much better effort than his previous Pynchon adaptation, Inherit Vice. It won't be for all tastes, but it will hit home for some. If you like Tarantino, you are probably going to enjoy this. I imagine this will garner several Oscar Nominations but I am uncertain how many it will be in serious consideration for, it maybe too unconventional to make a big splash come award season. Either way, this film is worth seeing. Highly recommended.

Last Samurai Standing

 

In 1878 Japan, just as the age of gunpowder is being ushered in, all the old Samurai are drawn into a battle royale for a huge cash prize, but the contest is not what it appears to be. WOW was this good. This isn't just a martial arts action series although it does function as one, there is a lot of depth here and a far more intricate plot then the description indicates. The cast does a great job bringing empathy to the characters and the production values are high. Furthermore, some of these sword fighting scenes are absolutely bad ass. This is only 6 episodes and it is also incomplete. I imagine we will see another 6 episode release soon and I have a feeling where this is going and it should be quite the ending. Highly recommended.

All Her Fault

 Sarah Snook (Succession) shows up to pick up her child from a play date only to find out he has been kidnapped by the nanny of Dakota Fanning. This has a real good cast but the script left a few things to be desired,(would people really blame Dakota Fanning for a bad hire? I don't think so) however by the time this wraps up I found the many twists and turns this takes leads us back to a good place. 7.6 is too high a rating for this, but still I think most will find this worthwhile. Soft Recommendation.

Frankenstein 

 Guillermo Del Toro does not F*** around. What we have here, up to this point, is the definitive version of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Everything about this production is top-notch. Oscar Issac and Christopher Waltz both give Oscar worthy performances and the direction, script and cinematography are all absolutely stunning. I could go on for days about the virtues of this film, but why would I do that when I can just let the Academy do it for me. A must see and I would expect multiple Oscar nominations to be in this films future.

 Death by Lightning 

Short, tight and terrific recounting of the 1880 presidential election of James Garfield and his subsequent assassination by Charles Guiteau. A really tremendous cast of Michael Shannon as Garfield and Nick Offerman as Chester A Arthur really brings home this script, but the tour de force is Matt MacFadyen (Succession) as the sycophantic Guiteau that will have people talking. He plays pretty much the same bootlicker as his character on Succession but he does it so well and it fits in here like a glove. Don't Hesitate.

House of Dynamite

 The United States has an incoming ICBM heading for Chicago.....When Katheryn Bigelow gets behind the camera, you pay attention. Here we have a film that harkens back to cold war classics like Dr. Strangelove or On the Beach. HOD is a taunt, high-tension thriller that will grab and keep your attention throughout. An all star cast does a terrific job keeping this afloat and the production values are top end, unfortunately the ending of this film was and will be a huge disappointment for most people. I understand the purpose of the film is a cautionary one, but there isn't much more frustrating than an incomplete narrative. This went from an 8 to a 6 in 5 minutes....Still a solid film.

Lazarus

 After the apparent suicide of his psychiatrist father, his son starts seeing ghosts in his office which leads to an unraveling past and present. Typical Coben thriller starts off incredibly strong, but loses steam as it goes. The serpentine script makes maybe one turn too many and doesn't stand up to scrutiny. There was a great story in here somewhere, but the creators lost their way. The chase scene at the end was completely unnecessary and borderline ridiculous. Some of the performances were solid and other not so much. A real mixed bag. Still if this is the type of thing you're into, it may be worth a watch, but it's a near miss. I'd say the 6.2 IMDB ranking is right on the money.