Gil Mansergh’s Cinema Toast
New Releases For the Week of 6/02/17
Wonder Woman (PG-13)
Starring: Gal Godot, Chris Pine, Connie Nielsen, Robin Wright, Danny Huston, David Thewlis
Director: Patty Jenkins
An Amazon princess lives on an island inhabited only by female warriors (where, contrary to mythology, even the archers have both breasts). Rescuing a British pilot/spy from a crash landing, she discovers (no, not the obvious anatomical differences) that the “War to end all wars” is raging. To our surprise, we discover something as well—Wonder Woman’s real super powers are ensuring that morality and goodness and positivity prevail. Thank screenwriter/director Patty Jenkins and Gal Godot’s miraculous acting ability for elevating a character who was played by other actresses as camp and cliched into an intelligent, and completely capable being willing to literally “man the trenches” amidst the idiocy of “a mortal’s war”.
3 and 1/2 pieces of a welcome ray of light in the increasingly darkening DC Universe toast
Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie (PG)
Starring the voices of: Kevin Hart, Ed Helms, Thomas Middleditch, Nick Kroll, Jordan Peele, Kristen Schaal
Director: David Sorren
Crammed full of 4th graders’ obsession with bodily functions (think of jokes about passing gas), Dav Pilkey’s astoundingly popular book series features an overweight school principal hypnotized to don underpants in order to become a super hero. The captain’s nemesis is the evil science teacher/super villain, Professor Poopypants, who plans to “eliminate all laughter.” Dreamworks Animation has recruited top-notch actors to play the CG-rendered character’s voices, and spins a tale in which the goals of the comic-book creating kids who hang together in a backyard treehouse include reinstating art education and music “to make school fun again.” Who could have a problem with that?
3 pieces of manages to make an animated movie fun again toast
Churchill (R)
Starring: Brian Cox, Miranda Richardson, John Slattery, Ella Purnell, Julian Wadham
Directed by: Jonathan Teplinsky
Brian Cox channels John Lithgow’s TV version of England’s Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, by making him an historically irrelevant blowhard. Problem is, it’s the eve of D-Day, and while Eisenhower and Montgomery and King George agree that the Allied invasion is the best plan to win WWII, Churchill acts like an English Bulldog who refuses to let loose of his squeaky toy. The audience sees Churchill’s overwhelming fear that the English Channel will literally turn red with blood if the invasion proceeds, but the man himself perceives his dooomsday vision as a potential weakness which will lead to him losing power.
1 and 1/2 pieces of I believed Chrchill was heroic until I saw this film toast
Paris Can Wait (R)
Starring: Diane Lane, Alec Baldwin, Arnaud Viard, Cedric Monnet
Directed by: Eleanor Coppola
Bored with her marriage to her American movie director husband, Anne decides to take a slow car ride through France with his business associate, Jacques. Since Jacques is driving, he stops at every cafe, winery and, yes, (gasp) every fromage vendor until the nine-hour journey stretches into several days. Some critics are interpreting make this Eleanor Coppola’s payback of to her American film director husband, Francis Ford Coppola, but if it is autobiographical, I feel sorry for Eleanor’s squandered life.
1 and 1/2 pieces of nice scenery and there’s probably a tie-in cook book in the works toast
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