WOMEN TALKING
I like a movie that's true to its title.
"Women Talking" features ... women talking! But it's much more than that.
Writer and Director Sarah Polley based her screenplay on the Miriam Toews novel ... set about a decade ago. We learn Mennonite women are being raped by men of the community. (Of course, it's their 'imaginations.')
So, a group of them gathers in the loft of a barn to decide their course of action or inaction. Will they do nothing ... stay and fight ... or leave?
The actual abuse by their attackers is never shown, but you see it in their injuries and, in some cases, their defiance. This is ensemble acting at its finest, with standouts like Rooney Mara, Claire Danes and Jessie Buckley.
A shout out, too, to the one man featured, played by Ben Whishaw. His character takes the minutes of the women's meeting, since none of them knows how to write. He's also in love with Mara's character, though he knows he'll never have her. Yes, the format takes some getting used to, almost feeling like a dramatic play at first. But once you get to know these ladies and what they've gone through, you're completely drawn in. It's unique storytelling and one of the year's best.
The ensemble cast was just nominated for a Screen Actors Guild award.
(United Artists. Rated PG-13. Running Time 1 hr. 44 mins. In Theaters Only.)
LIVING
British actor Bill Nighy also scored a SAG nomination for his lead role in "Living." His character has led a boring life pushing papers as a civil servant.
When he gets grim news from his doctor, he decides it's time to live a little. So, he heads to the British coast and enlists a young man who he overhears to be a "good time" guy, and they hit the nightlife.
Playing hooky from work, he also spends platonic time with a young female co-worker who's just left for another job. He loves her spirit. Nighy is great in this role, and his character's legacy is touching. But overall, the movie is slow-moving and even more melancholy than I thought it would be.
It's a nice film, though, and who doesn't like some Nighy in your night.
(Sony Pictures Classics. Rated PG-13. Running Time 1 hr.42 mins. In Theaters Only.)
PLANE
More literal titling. "Plane," you guessed it, starts out aboard plane flight!
Our pilot is Gerard Butler, always a welcome sight. The widower is headed from Asia to Hawaii to visit his daughter when the plane is downed by a vicious storm. He miraculously is able to land on an island. He soon finds out it's been overtaken by dangerous rebels.
Can he figure a way out before he and his passengers are killed? He teams up with an extradited killer to go after 'em!
Butler has made some decent movies and some clunkers. This one is not bad. Yes, some of the scenarios are absolutely ridiculous, but it's entertaining. A few cheers actually went up from the audience a couple of times.
(Lionsgate. Rated R. Running Time 1 hr. 47 mins. In Theaters Only.)
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