You’ll be hard-pressed to find a more enjoyable actress than Emily Blunt (Don’t believe me? Just watch some of her interviews). She instantly brings a certain smile-inducing energy to “Wild Mountain Thyme”, the new not-so-romantic dramedy from writer and director John Patrick Shanley. The film is based on Shanley’s Broadway play “Outside Mullingar” and it packs a handsome cast. But it digs itself into a hole so deep that neither the gorgeous Irish landscapes or Mrs. Blunt herself can dig it out.

For generations the Reillys and the Muldoons have lived side-by-side, their sprawling farms separated by stone fences, a few tree lines, and two very annoying gates. Through the years the old neighbors have had their share of spats. But these days it’s mostly playful jousting between the two widowed family heads, Tony Reilly (Christopher Walken) and Aoife Muldoon (Dearbhla Molloy). Both are in their 70s and both are aware that they’ll soon be the ones handing down their family’s properties.

Image Courtesy of Bleeker Street

For Aoife it’s pretty cut-and-dried. Her more-than-capable daughter Rosemary (Blunt) will inherit and run their farm. On the Reilly side it’s a little more complicated. Tony has kept his son Anthony (Jamie Dornan) in Ireland with the promise that he’ll one day inherit their family’s land. But now the patriarch’s not so sure his shy and slightly oafish son is cut out to carry the Reilly family mantle. In addition to being a tad dense, Anthony has this unusual inability to let himself love and a general fear of happiness. It’s a quirk with Dornan’s character that grows more irritating over time.

The first half of the film plays around with the question of whether or not Anthony will get the farm. The second half is all about his incomprehensible relationship with Rosemary. Since they were children growing up on neighboring properties Rosemary has loved Anthony. And for some inexplicable reason she’s still waiting for the oblivious lunkhead to finally love her back. It puts Blunt in a tough spot. She’s shackled to a character who simply can’t move forward because her entire story arc hinges on Anthony snapping out of his fog.

Things shake up a little when Anthony’s pampered American cousin Adam (John Hamm) shows up. He’s a New York money manager who doesn’t quite understand the Irish’s ways (not that the movie represents them well) but he does set his eye on Rosemary. In reality he’s a flimsy and shallow character who’s only there to move the story to its inevitable finish. And in a weird way you may find yourself rooting for Adam. At least he gives Rosemary something to do other than miserably fawn over Anthony. Meanwhile Anthony mostly mopes around the farm and Dornan’s dry, sterile performance doesn’t do the character any favors.

Image Courtesy of Bleeker Street

Yes the film eventually tries to explain Anthony’s built-in apprehension, but it culminates in a seemingly endless final 15 minutes which is funny considering how the rest of the movie races from point to point skimming over huge chunks of story. As for the much talked about Irish accents, this south Arkansas native is no expert, but some of them do seem….off. I mean I love Christopher Walken, but his shaky come-and-go Irish-ish accent is pretty entertaining (in the unintentionally funny sense).

The real shame of it is “Wild Mountain Thyme” has moments of real heart and humor. The sweeping Golden era score and the lush rolling scenery makes for a near magical setting. It ends up being a movie you want to root for. But it speeds through so much of the story, shortchanges so many characters, and relies so heavily on a truly annoying lead (sorry Mr. Dornan). It may pass for lightweight escapism for some, but I never could shake the feeling of disappointment. “Wild Mountain Thyme” releases December 11th in theaters and on VOD.

VERDICT – 2 STARS

Set within an unnamed territory, an unnamed Magistrate oversees a remote outpost for an unnamed empire. This shrewdly calculated ambiguity has a steady presence throughout “Waiting for the Barbarians”, the new film and English-language debut from Columbian director Ciro Guerra. It’s ambiguous for a reason – to sharpen the relevance for today by not assigning or restricting what we witness to a specific time or nation. Through a broad yet clear lens Guerra indicts both the practices of the past and the mindsets of the present.

“Waiting for the Barbarians” is an adaptation of J. M. Coetzee’s 1980 novel which explored the ugliness of imperialism and its lasting influence on modern thought. Coetzee also wrote the screenplay (his first) which patiently unwraps the story through its ruminative rhythm and well-tuned characters. And even as its dense early table-setting gives way to the quieter yet more visualized tragedy of the second half, the sense of pertinence is ever-present. And let’s be honest, it doesn’t hurt to have Mark Rylance, Johnny Depp, and Robert Pattinson fleshing our your characters.

Rylance plays the well-meaning magistrate and if there ever was an actor who exuded gentle, unfeigned integrity it’s Rylance. His Magistrate manages the frontier settlement with an air of peaceful passivity. He’s content with his life there, quietly collecting and cataloging old area artifacts while occasionally mediating minor squabbles among locals. He carries himself admirably and is convinced that his benevolence makes him a welcomed presence. However, good intentions and feelings of self-fulfillment blind him to a glaring hypocrisy which he’s eventually forced to reckon with.

Photo Courtesy of Samuel Goldwyn Films

Everything changes with the arrival of Colonel Joll (Depp), a member of the Empire’s security force who has been sent to inspect the outpost and investigate alleged unrest on the outskirts of the frontier. We see hints of Depp’s patented eccentricity in his rigidly upright posture, stony-faced demeanor, and steampunkish sunglasses (they’re all the rage back home). But it’s Depp’s words that reveal the most about his character. Joll speaks with an icy malice, coldly absorbing the Magistrate’s initial hospitality before getting down to the business of his visit.

Joll begins rounding up and questioning local nomads with the avidity of an authoritarian, torturing those deemed to be “barbarians” by his superiors. No scene captures Joll’s dry and calloused ruthlessness better than his chilling explanation of the “patience and pressure” approach to interrogation (hint: far more emphasis is on pressure). “Pain is truth. All else is subject to doubt.” And just like that Guerra and Coetzee put a spotlight on the real barbarians. Meanwhile all the Magistrate can do is helplessly watch.

Joll and his soldiers depart almost as quickly as they arrive leaving the Magistrate to handle the mess they left behind. But it’s not as though he has clean hands. The almost messianic overtones of the early scenes fade as the Magistrate’s complicity, though subtle and seemingly benign, are brought to light. And as much as he wants to disassociate himself from Joll’s terror, he slowly begins to see that (though cut from a different cloth) he and Joll do the biddings of same master.

Photo Courtesy of Samuel Goldwyn Films

As a form of self-instituted penance the Magistrate takes in an indigenous woman ravaged by Joll’s brutality (she’s opaquely played by Gana Bayarsaikhan). He nurses her back to health, but more as a balm for his own bruised conscience rather than for her well-being. It’s only when he’s jolted out of his guilt-stricken haze that he finally does the right thing. But in doing so he sparks the ire of the Empire and finds himself under the boot of the very authority he once represented.

Coetzee’s deliberately paced script gives the actors plenty of room to leave their marks. While Depp instantly grabs your attention with his convincingly sinister presence, it’s Rylance who carries the emotional workload. With a soft-spoken and heartfelt authenticity, his performance manages to secure our sympathy and pity. He’s gives us a man on a journey, who eventually finds his conviction, and willingly pays a price for it. Pattinson gets a small but effective role as young officer who’s clearly a product of the Empire. By the time he comes around, good and evil have been clearly defined.

“Isn’t that what war is about?” a young officer brashly asks the appalled Magistrate, “compelling a choice on someone who would not otherwise make it?” The ugliness of the question highlights the deep-rooted metaphor at the core of “Waiting for the Barbarians”. Underneath cinematographer Chris Menges’ stunning sun-blasted desert landscapes and some key performances lies a stinging rebuke of the past, a mirror to the present, and a warning of the future. It’ll be too broad and figurative for some, but I loved its willingness to trust the viewer. And the near apocalyptic final shot only adds to the title’s richness. “Waiting for the Barbarians” premieres this Friday in select theaters and on VOD.

VERDICT – 4.5 STARS

“Wasp Network” was going to be a tough movie to make for any filmmaker wanting to stick reasonably close to the facts. That’s because the actual true story is a tangled web of characters, organizations, and allegiances. For that reason French writer-director Olivier Assayas deserves a ton of credit for sticking close to the true account even though it makes his movie a little difficult to keep up with.

Without question “Wasp Network” will resonate more with those who either remember or read up on the real events that inspired it. In its own way it tells the story of the Cuban Five, a group of men sent to Miami by the Cuban government to infiltrate anti-Castro exile factions in the 1990s. Some of these groups sought simply to inspire the Cuban people to stand up against Castro’s regime. But others were terrorist outfits funded by drug money and targeting Cuba’s tourist industry. The Cuban Five were to spy on the various groups and report the findings to the Cuban government.

Photo Courtesy of Netflix

Taking from a 2011 Fernando Morais book “The Last Soldiers of the Cold War”, Assayas attempts to cover a lot of ground. His structure feels episodic, focusing big chunks of his film on individual players and then weaving the numerous narrative threads together in a tangled yet fascinating final act. Sometimes his storytelling seems more didactic than dramatic as it straightforwardly lays out the facts. Yet it has a palpable emotional center, putting as much emphasis on the personal sacrifices and consequences as the politics of his story.

A terrific Édgar Ramírez provides our entry point, reminding us of how good an actor he is when given quality material. He plays René González, a pilot in Havana who swipes a plane and defects to Miami leaving behind his wife Olga (Penélope Cruz) and their young daughter Irma (Carolina Peraza Matamoros). René begins a new life in the States, joining a covert anti-Castro group to help other defectors boating over from Cuba. Meanwhile Olga is left alone and struggling to put food on the table. This moral haze hangs over much of the film’s first half.

The next person we meet is Juan Pablo Roque (Wagner Moura), a pilot himself and high-profile Cuban celebrity. He too defects, actually swimming from Cuba to Guantanamo Bay. Once granted asylum he moves to Miami and joins the exile group. Unlike René, Juan Pablo lives a lavish lifestyle winning over and marrying a young beauty named Ana Margarita (Ana de Armas). But she (and we) soon learn that Juan Pablo is a man of many secrets.

The third key player is Gerardo Hernandez (Gael Garcia Bernal) who works directly with the Cuban government. He’s sent to Miami to oversee the Wasp Network’s infiltration of the militant groups. Of the three he’s the one we learn the least about. Bernal’s performance is solid, but his character could have used more attention. Ultimately it’s René who resonates most. His story packs the most personal stakes in large part thanks to Cruz’s Olga who ends up being our emotional anchor. De Armas doesn’t fare as well. Her performance is excellent, but its hard to tell if Assayas is most interested in her as a character or as eye candy.

Photo Courtesy of Netflix

Things ramp up when the exile group’s goals fully come into focus. We get tense scenes revealing drug smuggling from Columbia. Assayas even covers the 1997 Havana hotel bombings. Even more layers are added when the CIA gets involved and we get defectors among the defectors. It certainly makes things harder to follow and keeping a running tab on who’s who is a challenge. At the same time the craft behind the camera is evident and there are several visual choices to admire.

I can’t deny the film’s faults, especially for those with no familiarity with the true events whatsoever. So take my advice – do some quick reading on the backstory before watching. It will lessen the confusion and open up a lot of what Assayas is doing. With “Wasp Network” it’s fair to say he may have bitten off more than he can chew. But I appreciate the ambition and I’m glad he took the route he did rather than playing it safe.

VERDICT – 3.5 STARS

Benh Zeitlin blew me away with his tender, fantastical 2012 debut “Beasts of the Southern Wild”. The film was critically acclaimed and was nominated for four Oscars including Best Picture. It has taken eight years but we finally have his follow-up feature, a slightly modernized reimagining of J. M. Barrie’s century old Peter Pan. The catch is he tells the story from Wendy’s point of view.

“Wendy” sees Zeitlin once again exploring childhood in the rural south. As with “Beasts”, we spend the vast majority of the time seeing things through a young girl’s eyes. That’s the headspace Zeitlin is most interested in and it leads to some indulgences that several fellow critics had a hard time digesting. There are moments where the story seems to drift, but when the visuals and the story come together, the film exudes a magical quality that quite frankly swept me away.

We first meet Wendy (played by delightful newcomer Devin France) as a young child, her head draped in brown curls, watching the world through her inquisitive blue eyes. Her single mom (Shay Walker) waits tables at a train station diner to support Wendy and her rambunctious twin brothers James (Gavin Naquin) and Douglas (Gage Naquin). It’s hard work but she’s a mom doing what she can for her kids.

Photo Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures

Bop ahead a few years where 10-year-old Wendy worries about a depressing future stripped of joy and adventure. She sees the melancholy in every adult face that comes through the diner. She listens to her mother talk about forsaking her own childhood dream of being a rodeo queen. It’s too much for Wendy who swears off getting old and sets out with her two brothers to escape the bittersweet reality of growing up.

Late one night the three hop out of their bedroom windows and onto a passing train where they meet a mysterious boy named Peter (Yashua Mack). He whisks them away to a remote volcanic island where he leads the Lost Boys, a band of children who run free and never grow old. The one prerequisite is that they believe in Peter and his close connection to the island’s mystical spirit which he calls Mother.

But they aren’t the only ones on the island. On the far side of Neverland live those who have lost faith in Mother. And much like the patrons at the train station diner, they’re old, worn down, and without hope. Their presence sets up the inevitable clash with the Lost Boys, with Wendy and her brothers as key players.

Photo Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures

Written by Zeitlin and his sister Eliza, “Wendy” tells a story where reality and fantasy co-exist. Their movie is a fascinating puzzle filled with metaphors and symbolism, where images are the Zeitlins’ greatest method of storytelling. They lean heavily on Sturla Brandth Grøvlen’s stunning cinematography which wrings feeling out every closeup and captures childlike wonder in every sweeping pan of the island (shot mostly in Montserrat).

It’s the harmonious gelling of image and music that stands out the most. Dan Romer’s breathtaking score is crucial, never manipulative, and pulsating with heart and adventure. It and the camera do as much as the dialogue to explore the film’s many themes. Motherhood, rural poverty, fear of growing old, yearning for lost youth – just some of the things Zeitlin has on his mind.

“Wendy” won’t please purists who are intent on comparing it with other Peter Pan adaptations. It’s built around Barrie’s general framework but it puts its own contemporary spin on things. Sometimes Zeitlin is too literal, sometimes he’s too vague. The occasional salty dialogue from the kids feels forced and not all of the non-professional performances click. But those things never rob the movie of its imagination, emotion, and grit. Sure, you could pick it apart. Or you could put your guard down, fall under its spell, and let it sweep you away. I chose the latter and I’m so glad I did.

VERDICT – 4 STARS

I still remember the good ol’ days of David Spade. I liked his run on Saturday Night Live and his movies with the late Chris Farley. I remember laughing at his dry, sardonic wit and razor-sharp sarcasm. He was good as the dweeby straight-man foil to Farley’s unbridled, hyperactive goofball. Those days seem so long ago and Spade’s latest movie “The Wrong Missy” does nothing to indicate they’re coming back any time soon.

These days Spade is content with making appearances in a bunch of low-brow flicks with his buddies (Adam Sandler, Rob Schneider, etc.) and occasionally starring in Sandler-produced Netflix features. “The Wrong Missy” is an amalgamation of everything I dislike about their brand of comedy. They basically recycle the same garbage over and over again – story elements, character types, gags. If you’re looking for something fresh and original, you won’t find it here. And if you want something funny, you should look somewhere else.

Photo Courtesy of Netflix

“The Wrong Missy” is built on an absurd misunderstanding that defies any hint of logic. Then to make sure it holds up for 90 minutes, the writers (Kevin Barnett and Chris Pappas) reinforce it with even dopier plot details. The idea is that Tim (Spade) inadvertently invites the wrong woman to a luxurious work retreat in Hawaii. He meant to invite the gorgeous supermodel Melissa he met at the airport (Molly Sims) but he accidentally invites the loud, obnoxiously vulgar madwoman Melissa (Lauren Lapkus) from his past. How you may wonder? Trust me, it’s best not to ask.

Of course once they arrive at the posh island resort mind-numbing hijinks ensue. Tim, who is a finalist for a big promotion, wants to impress his boss (Geoff Pierson) and his co-workers by showing off his stunner new girlfriend. Instead he shows up with an insufferable, dim-witted ball of chaos. Director Tyler Spindel spends at least 95% of the movie laughing at the ‘wrong’ Melissa and emphasizing her maniacal (borderline psychotic) behavior. Only a few lines of dialogue near the end even try to humanize her. It’s a vain attempt.

Photo Courtesy of Netflix

Meanwhile Spade goes about his business rehashing the same old act. He’s mainly a walking conduit for the slew of juvenile ‘humor’, off-putting raunch, and lazy punchlines all of which land with a thud. The real victim is Lapkus who I’m guessing can be pretty funny, but here is weighted down by truly awful material. Her character is shallow, unlikable, and as annoying as the persistent sounds of nails on a chalkboard.

About the only good thing I can say about “The Wrong Missy” is that it clocks in at a lean 90 minutes. That’s a blessing because enduring much more would truly be testing my limits. It’s that bad. I guess these movies have a following and Netflix is somehow finding them profitable. I find many of them to be appallingly bad and “The Wrong Missy” is no exception. It’s a low-rung comedy with nothing to say and that doesn’t even try to do anything fresh or new. Manual labor, oral surgery, or even an insurance lecture would be a more entertaining way to spend your time.

VERDICT – 1 STAR

In “The Wretched” teenager Ben (John-Paul Howard) is still adjusting to his parents’ recent divorce. It hasn’t gone well. After getting into some legal trouble while living with his mother (resulting in a broken arm), Ben is sent to spend the summer with his father who lives in a lakeside tourist town. While there he will work for his dad (played by Jamison Jones) at the local marina and hopefully get a fresh start.

But this is a supernatural horror movie so there are no easy paths to happiness and contentment. Aside from the evil terror brewing in a nearby forest, things get off to a rough start for Ben. For starters, his father already has a new girlfriend,  Sara (Azie Tesfai). And it doesn’t help that all of the local teens are rich, obnoxious brats. The lone exception is his co-worker Mallory (Piper Curda), a free-wheeling breath of fresh air who instantly takes a liking to Ben.

Photo Courtesy IFC Films

Now about that malevolent presence in the woods. Ben begins to suspect something sinister is going on in the two-story rent house next door. After a hipster couple and their two children move in, Ben notices some bizarre behavior. The wife (Zarah Mahler) disappears into the forest with her infant baby. The husband suddenly denies they even have children. The couple makes constant trips into their padlocked basement. In this angle plucked straight out of 1985’s “Fright Night”, Ben spies on his neighbors, pokes around their house at night, even calls the police but to no avail. Of course Ben is right. A wicked entity has been let lose, preying on children and using their parents as hosts.

The film is written and directed by Brett and Drew T. Pierce who employ several well-worn horror movie tropes. But their movie doesn’t rely on them, instead working more in suspense than abject terror. And they aren’t afraid to let their influences show. There are little hints of everything from “Jaws” to “Close Encounters” and the Pierce Brothers’ keen mixture of score and cinematography would make Spielberg smile.

The creature/demon/witch thing is pretty frightening with its pale veiny skin, jagged claws, and wicked body contortions. It’s not terrible original, but it gets the job done. The brothers smartly embrace the idea that less is more, only giving us a few glimpses of the full being. Instead we mostly see it through the person it is possessing along with the sometimes grotesque effects it has on them. Overall the entity manages to be effectively chilling even though keeping up with its host-hopping became a chore especially in the final act.

Photo Courtesy of IFC Films

From the very start “The Wretched” commits a surprising amount of time to its characters. They come across as authentic and fleshed-out even though their stories are nothing especially new. Yet their stories are important especially once the movie positions itself as a metaphor for forgotten children in the wake of divorce. And generally speaking the performances are okay, shaky at times, but serviceable. You won’t find a big name anywhere in the cast, but for the most part the fresh faces manage (some better than others).

What ends up standing out most is the movie’s crisp pacing and tone management. The Pierce brothers keep things moving at just the right speed, deftly balancing character and tension-building while working within a familiar genre space. Yet “The Wretched” is a movie that can’t fully hide its limitations despite its ability to rise above them. It’s still very much worth a watch, and if you’re looking for a horror movie you could do a lot worse.

VERDICT – 3 STARS