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Film reviews

You Hurt My Feelings Review

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The beginning of You Hurt My Feelings starts with a counseling session. The topics addressed focus on feelings. The film displays how human emotions can have a big impact on how people take criticism. You Hurt My Feelings is an experience exploring how others think of each other, and how their careers and success come into play.

The start of the film begins with adults having frustrations with their careers. The focus is on a married couple, Beth, and Don. Beth is played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Don is played by Tobias Menzies. Beth is a novelist and Don is a therapist. They have a son named Eliot played by Owen Teague. Beth is more determined to find success. She questions, however, if Don truly has faith in her dreams of exploring new ideas in her writing. Beth goes on a stroll with her sister Sarah (played by Michaela Watkins), and they find Don in a store talking to Sarah’s husband Mark (played by Arian Moayed). As they come closer to their husbands, Sarah freezes as she overhears Don say some snarky remarks about the novel Beth currently has in the works. This, of course, hurts Beth’s feelings as one might guess from the movie’s title. 

The film is filled with a plethora of turmoil among all the characters from this point forward. Not only does Beth feel annoyed and put down after overhearing Don, but Sarah also struggles to support her husband, Mark. Mark is a struggling actor who is not getting the roles that speak to him. Primarily, the focus is on Beth and Don, but the other character’s troubles play into the film’s theme of finding success. Beth has a hard time having faith in her husband, while Sarah has a hard time supporting her husband’s acting career. Don even finds himself in distress when working with his patients in his job as a counselor. Everyone in the film at times falls into a pattern of feeling thrown under the bus, or feeling like they are throwing someone else under the bus. The writing in You Hurt My Feelings is brilliant in the way it presents a calm and heartfelt sense with natural human emotions.

The appreciation demonstrated throughout the film is reestablished in various scenes and particular moments. Despite Beth’s frustration with Don’s critical words, she puts more effort into trying to help her son Eliot. Beth attempts to help her son follow his dreams through his writing. Eliot continues to struggle to get his act together. The inspirational factor in You Hurt My Feelings is its approach in showcasing how feeling rejected yourself can cause you to want to encourage others.

There are moments of joy and laughter even during the harsher scenarios in You Hurt My Feelings. There are also several scenes which reinforce the experience of realizing the need for change. Despite the aggravations between the characters, it all works out in the end. Three and a half stars for You Hurt My Feelings.

Film reviews

The Little Mermaid Review

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The Little Mermaid has some amazing visual sensations at the beginning, involving repeated transitions from below the water to above the surface. That is where the technological features of the film are the most enchanting. After that, Ariel’s voice provides much of the magic.

This newest version of The Little Mermaid is not animated like the original 1989 version, it’s a remake of the Disney classic with actual people and a lot of CGI. There are many characters who provide moments of exhilaration in the film. Ariel is played by Halle Bailey, Prince Eric is played by Jonah Hauer-King, Ursula is played by Melissa McCarthy, King Triton is played by Javier Bardem, Daveed Diggs is the voice of Sebastian, Jacob Tremblay is the voice of Flounder, and Awkwafina is the voice of Scuttle.

Those who love the original
version of The Little Mermaid will recall that Ariel is a mermaid living below the sea. She has a fascination with humans and a burning desire to know of what it is like to live on land with humans. Ariel’s father, King Triton, is protective of her and prohibits her from leaving her home in the sea. Her crab friend Sebastian tries to be an advocate for her, but Ariel feels that the world around her is a disappointment and she is full of despair. But when Ursula comes around all that changes.

Ursula is a sea monster and she makes a deal with Ariel to trade her voice for human legs so Ariel can see what life is like out of the sea. Once Ariel is on shore she believes she has found her love, Prince Eric. But she is torn with a range of questions. Can she continue to be dishonest about not being a human? Can she trust Ursula? Is her world below the sea in danger? Are her sea creature friends Sebastian and Flounder safe? Fans of the earlier version will know the answers.

Some of the joy I found in this film came from a number of spectacular and exhilarating tunes written by Alan Menken, Howard Ashman, and Jacques Oftenbach, including Under the Sea and Part of Your World. But my enjoyment was even more from reliving the original film, only with with actual people instead of animated characters.

Ariel wanting to feel loved gives The Little Mermaid much of its vibrant energy. The film also shines in the connecting of friendships in a magical world. The sea is full of wonders, and The Little Mermaid gives viewers many reminders of the joys we’ve all experienced with Disney films.

The Little Mermaid is a classic for kids and families, and it’s one that will give many Disney fans an enjoyable movie experience. It is also one where adults (including myself) can be reminded of the Disney wonder from our younger days. Because it’s not animated like the original, there’s not necessarily a lot of nostalgia, but it is a positive experience. Three stars for The Little Mermaid.

Chicago Critics Film Festival 2023, Film reviews

Master Gardener Review

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The opening credits of Master Gardener include segments of different plants growing with disturbing music playing in the background. The environment in the film’s tense and eerie introduction displays the brilliance of writer and director Paul Schrader. After this setup, the film transitions to the main character elaborating on plant types and the history surrounding them. The mind of someone who has a fascination with plants is just the beginning of the unexpected in Master Gardener.

The movie’s main character is Narvel played by Joel Edgerton. Narvel is an expert of horticulture and gardening. His boss is Norma played by Sigourney Weaver. Norma asks Narvel to mentor her niece, Maya, who is played by Quintessa Swindell. The garden is called Gracewood Gardens. Narvel is the king and the guide to the operations of this beautiful environment. Narvel even narrates about plants and their background during sporadic moments in Master Gardener.

The enthusiasm of Narvel and is work at Gracewood Gardens is calculated and extremely accurate, but the gardening and plantations are not the sole focus of the story. The story is about Maya, the one doing the apprenticeship with Narvel. Gracewood Gardens is Narvel’s sanctuary, and it offers a landscape of potential knowledge and necessary patience for Maya.

There are tensions to consider as Master Gardener goes deeper into its character studies. Schrader always finds a way to stir the pot in his projects. Maya and Norma are related and there is a past conflict between them. Narvel has a bad track record as well and with his involvement, there is more depth to the film’s eerie continuity. As conflict arises, Narvel’s narration regarding gardening continues and begins to get more personal. Then Maya begins to grow more comfortable with Narvel. Is it appropriate, however, for them to have a close bond?

Narvel’s past is unsettling, haunting, and unexpected. Master Gardener is poetic in its approach to Narvel advocating for Maya due to problems in her life with individuals she can’t dismiss. This creates boundary problems as Narvel and Maya grow closer which in turn lead to problems with Norma causing hatred and disgust to linger.

Narvel’s knowledge of gardening begins to serve a deadly purpose. There is a moment where he mentions to some shady people that his sheers can do more damage than pruning. Schrader finds the right time to have the evilness rise in Narvel. As Maya is Narvel’s new responsibility, he must consider how both their lives could be impacted. There may be a point where neither can go back to a life where the darkness was once put behind them.

Schrader is a true auteur as a writer and director.  I felt the brilliance of his invigorating concepts throughout Master Gardener. What came to my mind as I watched this movie were previous films Schrader has written ranging from Taxi Driver (1976) to Raging Bull (1980) to The Last Temptation of Christ (1988).  All these films are masterpieces directed by Martin Scorsese. I have come to realize that the personalities of Schrader’s characters make his projects so amazing. No one can go wrong with the mind of Schrader.

Beneath all the troubles, the love of Narvel’s gardening has surreal moments. The pasts of both Narvel and Maya are painful. Narvel’s love for gardening symbolizes a craft which allows one to leave the past behind. This proves to be a daunting challenge due to the circumstances in Master Gardener. The writing and directing of Schrader, as always, allows the audience to develop a better understanding of the unexpected tensions and their eventual outcomes. Three and a half stars for Master Gardener.