Killers Of The Flower Moon

2023 Paramount Pictures

Rated: R

Length: 3 hr 26min

Action ~ Crime ~ Drama ~ Epic ~ Mystery ~ Romance ~ True Story ~ Western

Directed by: Martin Scorsese

Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Lily Gladstone, Jesse Plemons, Tantoo Cardinal, John Lithgow, Scott Shepherd and Brendan Fraser.

“With it’s great black wings of spray, arcing above the rigging, it rose before them like an angel of death.”

In 1821 the Osage Indians were removed from their homes and land they had lived on for generations alongside the Osage river. They were relocated west to the US Government designated “Indian Territories” in Oklahoma. Their former home and lands were sold to white immigrant settlers while the Osage tried to survive on the unhospitable barren Oklahoma land that was foreign to them. It was given to them because none of the white people wanted to live there, being too barren and not much good for farming. They were the poorest people in the United States.

75 years later a group of Osage Indians were walking through the fields of flower blooms in the valley during the annual Flower Moon. The Flower Moon is a name given to the full moon in May by the Osage people because of the flower blooms that take place every year. During May in the Oklahoma hills and valleys of the Indian Reservation, the fields of blooming flowers die out when taller plants crowd them out. The Osage refer to the month of May as “The time of the Flower Killing Moon”. As they were walking they came to a clearing and a patch of mud. Suddenly out of the middle came a geyser of black oil.

The Osage people were sitting on a vast underground oil reserve and almost overnight became the richest people in America. Because nobody wanted the land in the beginning, they had been given and retained all the mineral rights to the land. Almost overnight, the oil companies and oil prospectors invaded the once undesirable Oklahoma land, driven by greed and the temptation of riches beyond the imagination. The money flowed quick and in great volume. Suddenly it became fashionable for a white man to marry into an Indian family and acquire the rights by marriage, or by murder if necessary. It is against this backdrop that KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOONtakes place.

Leonardo DiCaprio stars as Ernest Burkhart who has just returned home to Oklahoma having been discharged from the army due to a health issue. He returns to his Uncle William Hale’s (Robert De Niro) farmhouse where he is reunited with his brother Byron Burkhart (Scott Shepherd). Uncle William informs him of the current climate amid the oil rush in the county. He tells Ernest that it would serve a fellow well if he were to wed into an Indian family with “Headrights”, he and his family would do very well for themselves. Ernest soon falls for an Indian woman named Mollie (Lily Gladstone), who’s mother and sisters own a very large chunk of “Headrights”. William tells Ernest that Mollie’s mother Lizzie is on her deathbed and soon Mollie would follow.

The Osage People were becoming victim to the white man’s diet and sugary confections. Diabetes was becoming very common and many died from lack of care. And Mollie had diabetes like her dying mother. They were also falling victim to the white man’s greed as Osage people were suddenly becoming victims of violent murders and poisonings referred to as “The Wasting Deaths”. Being Indian deaths there was not much concern for how they were dying, nor any inquiries into why. The foul play and deception led to a string of murders that was brought to the attention of Calvin Coolidge by Mollie. The President brought together a group of highly skilled detectives and law men to investigate. They were the unofficial beginnings of The FBI.

When the FBI arrived and started to investigate, they discovered a plot hatched by William and his family to deceive the Osage people and acquire mineral rights for his family at any cost, even if it meant poisoning and killing. This is unfortunately a True Story, based on the book by David Grann, Killers Of The Flower Moon. It is a long movie coming in at 3 hours and 28 minutes, but it is a good one. A fascinating tale of greed, betrayal and deception. I really liked Lily Gladstone in this, thought she did an excellent job. Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro were great as always. It is well shot, great cast, great director, great story…..what’s not to like? Well, maybe the length…….

Highly Recommended!

Two Thumbs Up!

Hubie Halloween

2020 Netflix

Rated: PG-13

Length: 1 hr 43min

Comedy ~ Horror ~ Mystery

Directed by: Steve Brill

Starring: Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Julie Bowen, Ray Liotta, Rob Schneider, June Squibb, Kenan Thompson, Shaquille O’Neal, Steve Buscemi, Tim Meadows, Maya Rudolph, and Ben Stiller.

“Happy Halloween to all, and to all a good fright.”

Adam Sandler stars as Hubie Dubois, a mentally challenged guy living with his mother in Salem Massachusetts. His family has been in Salem since before the witch trials in the 1600’s and had family involved in the witch trials. He rides a bike with a radio strapped to the front and rides it around town and to his job as a deli worker in the supermarket. He has dubbed himself the Halloween monitor and spends Halloween policing the town and all the activities going on in town.

Kevin James stars as the Chief of Police. Julie Bowen plays the police Chief’s ex-wife. Kenan Thompson plays a Police Sargent. Steve Buscemi stars as the guy who moved in next door with a Halloween secret. There are a lot of stars in this movie. In the beginning it seemed like every scene had someone new. Going in to watching this I knew that it was going to be a silly, humorous Halloween movie. I was good with that, “Good, I need something lighthearted, something halloweenish but not too scary or gory. And nothing serious, a comedy would be good.”

As it started it was exactly what I thought it would be. And I was pleasantly surprised by the star power. And I love Steve Buscemi, I have a friend that looks and sounds just like him. So, I have conversations with Steve Buscemi all the time. LOL. As I watched I was like, “Look, there’s Steve Buscemi…………..and Kevin James………KEENAN THOMPSON! and Ray Liotta. Wow!” But there were two things that started to bother me right away.

The first one was Adam Sandler’s character Hubie being portrayed as having less than average intelligence, riding a bike around town with a radio strapped to the front. And everybody in town is making fun of him and abusing him. It grew on me because at first I was ok with it, it’s just a movie right? But then it became relentless as every scene depicted things thrown at him wherever he went and the abuse was relentless. I started to feel sorry for him and it reminded me of a real life Hubie from my home town.

He used to ride around town with his radio. He was a full grown man with the mindset of a child. He couldn’t work but they trusted him enough to let him wander around town. But I realized a couple of years ago in talking with my Mom how cruel everybody in town had been to him. I grew up with the phrase “Don’t be a Hubie, you pulled a Hubie, etc.” In talking with Mom about that, she didn’t realize that it was actually about the guy that used to ride around town on his bike. I changed his name to Hubie for the sake of the article but in hindsight it seems that the town secretly made fun of him because he was less than normal. Anyway, there’s that.

And Adam Sandler’s very annoying voice as Hubie. At first I tried to overlook it, as it was way over the top, but it really started to grate on me. I kept trying to ignore it because I was enjoying the movie. But the further into the movie I got, the more pronounced his voice became. SO annoying, I couldn’t get past it. It was so bad I quit watching……..yup, I quit. Couldn’t do it.

So that’s a no for me…..

Two thumbs down, way down!

Ready Or Not

2019 Fox Searchlight Pictures

Rated: R

Length: 1 hr 35min

Comedy ~ Horror ~ Mystery ~ Thriller

Directed by: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett.

Starring: Samara Weaving, Adam Brody, Mark O’Brien, Elyse Levesque, Nicky Guadagni, Henry Czerny, and Andie MacDowell.

“Who wants to play a game? It’s time for hide and seek. Run, run, run, time to run and hide. Tick tick tock, listen to the clock. Ready or not, here I come.”

Samara Weaving stars as Grace who grew up an orphan and is very excited to be joining the Le Domas family. She has gone with her fiancé Alex Le Domas to get married at his family’s sprawling estate. They exchange nuptials in the garden grounds surrounded by the Le Domas family, the family butler and their three maids. Afterwards Alex tells her there is a family tradition they must go through to finalize their union and her entrance into the family dominion. They must all congregate in the exclusive Le Domas family room to play a game dictated by an ancient wooden card game box. Tony le Domas, the patriarch of the family, explains to Grace how their Grandfather Victor made a deal with a man named “Le Bail” over a game of cards and lots of whiskey.

If his grandfather could figure out how to open the antique card box he had, he would finance any venture that Victor chose. Victor spent the night studying the box and finally believed he had the answer, and opened the box. “Le Bail” then, true to his word, helped Victor build a game playing card business. When Tony took over the business after his father Victor passed away, he expanded into board games and built it into a gaming empire. As part of the deal, any new member to the family must insert a blank card into the antique box at midnight and play the game that was written on the card after it was removed from the box.

Grace takes the box from Tony and draws the card. She smiles as she turns it around for the family to see and asks, “Are we really going to play Hide and Seek?” Noticing the strange expressions on everyone’s face Grace asks, “Is everything ok?” Alex, looking white as a ghost says, “Sure….Hide and seek, right Dad?” “That’s right Alex, Hide and Seek…..tradition is tradition.” He then explains to Grace that they are going to count and that she must hide until dawn. The Butler puts on a very creepy “Hide and Seek” music record complete with countdown and Grace goes deep into the creepy Victorian Mansion to hide. The family then arm themselves with all types of antique weapons and prepare for the countdown to end.

Alex wants no part of what is coming as his mother tries to console Alex that it is a necessary evil for them to kill Grace so that the family can appease “Le Bail”s Ghost, and continue to live and enjoy their fortune. As the countdown ends the heavily armed family heads out of the gaming room to hunt down Grace. Grace is trying to find a suitable hiding spot giggling how silly this is, not realizing that unless she can make it to dawn, she will be killed by the family. Offered up as a sacrifice to Le Bail in exchange for building their family and fortune. What follows is a wild, comical, horrifying, very bloody game of survival for Grace as she evades the family and tries to escape.

Samara Weaving is fantastic in this movie. She reminds me of Margot Robbie and Jamie Pressly. Like Margot, Samara is Australian and grew up in an acting family. Samara is hilarious at times as she realizes her dilemma. In one scene she is cussing at a passing car that refuses to stop to help her in a diatribe that would make Chevy Chase proud(reminds me of the speech at the end of Christmas Vacation). In another she is in the car she commandeered from the butler and turns on the Onboard Vehicle Assistance Feature and tries to explain to “Justin” that she needs his help as her life is in danger. “F*ck you Justin!” It is a hilarious exchange between the two.

I have to mention Andie MacDowell in her role as the Matriarch Becky. Definitely a different role than we are used to seeing her play. And Adam Brody as the brother in law that would rather get drunk and help Grace than help his family kill her. Nice job! It is campy, dark, bloody and well worth the watch. I came across it again a couple of nights ago, having completely forgotten about it. I had watched it when it first came out and remembered liking it.

There is a READY OR NOT 2 in the works with Samara reprising her role as Grace. The film making trio RADIO SILENCE responsible for READY OR NOT are quoted as saying, “There is a sequel in the works with an absolutely f*cking banger of a script.” I can’t wait. I am a fan of this movie and Samara Weaving and look forward to seeing Grace in action again.

Highly Recommended!

Two Thumbs Up!

Walden

2023 Uncork’d Entertainment

Rated: Unrated

Length: 1 hr 42min

Horror ~ Mystery ~ Thriller

Directed by: Mick Davis

Starring: Emile Hirsch, Shane West and Kelli Garner.

“I’m the ghost of the courtroom…….recording every truth, every lie, every murder.”

This is the movie synopsis from the Official Walden Movie Website:

People collect sweaters, Walden Dean collects the testaments of justice, he is a stenographer and being the ghost of the courtroom, his mind is agonizingly crammed witnessing the torrent of injustice, until now. Discovering he has a terminal illness sends him into a rage that has been simmering deep within him for years and now he is about to take justice into his own hands, in the most gruesome ways imaginable. But there is a more gruesome piece of business Walden will need to deal with, a pedophile serial killer right on his small town’s own doorstep.

Emile Hirsch stars as Walden Dean, the mild mannered, very polite, very straight laced, very geeky, bow tie wearing fourth generation stenographer in a small southern town. He is practically married to his job and his stenography machine. He cleans it religiously and takes it with him wherever he goes. In the beginning he is a teetotaling Church man who prays religiously. During the course of the movie he transforms into a ruthless, crafty and clever drunken vigilante murderer with no remorse for those who have spread their evil while destroying innocent lives. He literally starts drinking whiskey by the bottle while he pops pain pills and gets worked up about his next vigilante execution.

Kelli Garner stars as Emily Duperon, the sixth generation southern woman who just moved back to her hometown to get away from the big city. She meets Walden at a stenography contest and takes an interest in the quiet “sevant” stenographer. After her repeated flirtatious advances they become romantically and physically involved. Briefly before Walden turns into the drunken vigilante. I liked Kelli in this and thought that Walden and Emily’s relationship was something the movie should have explored more. Writing this I thought, geez, they were meant for each other. Look at their names, Walden and Emily…..the lovely stenography couple.

Shane West and Tania Raymonde star as the two detectives that start investigating the murders that start to happen around town. David Keith as the “Bad, very bad man Judge Boyle. Luke Davis plays the mentally disabled grown man with the IQ of a ten year old General George. There are quite a few stories going on here and is sometimes a little hard to follow.

There is the mystery of the missing Mexican boys, all approximately the same age. Brought to light by the disappearance and eventual discovery of the murdered body of Cal Pepper. General George becomes a suspect because he is friends with all the neighborhood children, having the IQ of a ten year old.

There is the relationship between Walden and Emily, the estranged relationship with his widowed Father, the troubled relationship Walden had with his promiscuous Mother, the strange and intimate relationship with the Judge, and his close friendship with General George.

In the end you see that a lot of these things are intertwined and make sense as it comes to a conclusion. There are some questions if you start looking too deep. Like why are there so many crimes in such a sleepy looking little southern town. Why is it that a court stenographer geek suddenly flips and becomes his drunken, murderous alter ego yet still prays for his victims. Why is it that he seems to leave no evidence and the Police never get any clues from the crime scenes. It’s like everything is a mystery, and even that is a mystery.

It is quirky, a little dark, a little bizarre but yet, homey and pleasant in a small southern town sort of way. Would you like some ice tea with that? Yes I would. I’ve watched it twice and I like it. It is different but sometimes different is good. I think the ending lands itself to a sequel although I haven’t seen any news of one.

Worth a watch.

Two Thumbs Up!

Emily The Criminal

2022 Roadside Attractions

Rated: R

Length: 1hr 37 min

Crime ~ Drama ~ Mystery ~ Thriller

Directed by: John Patton Ford

Starring: Aubrey Plaza, Theo Rossi, Megalyn Echikunwoke, and Gina Gershon.

“Motherf**kers will just keep taking from you and taking from you until you make the God damn rules yourself. That’s what this is about.”

Aubrey Plaza stars as Emily Benetto, an independent contractor living in Los Angeles delivering for a catering company. She is renting a room in a couple’s house and struggling financially with tens of thousands in student debt. She is trying to lift herself up and find a better job, but is encumbered with an assault conviction and a criminal record thanks to an abusive ex-boyfriend, and is having no luck. Her co-worker Javier turns her on to a side gig where she can make $200 an hour.

Desperate she calls the number and the next day goes to the address they gave her. She meets Youcef (Theo Rossi), who explains that it’s a credit card fraud ring who uses people to perpetrate the fraud purchase in exchange for a hefty fee. Emily hesitates but then, being desperate for some hope of financially getting out of the hole she’s in, agrees and goes to a big box store where she purchases a $2,000 Big Screen Tv with the fake credit card. She then exchanges the tv with the fraud group and gets an envelope with $200 cash inside.

Seems easy enough and Emily digs in deeper for more. Going after bigger and more profitable fraud purchases. Eventually Youcef takes a liking to her, and her eagerness to learn, and sets her up so she can operate on her own. He makes her promise not to visit any one store more than once a week, and if she makes more than $5,000 he gets a cut. She starts having success on her own and gets braver as the money rolls in. But it also exposes her to the unsavory characters in the criminal world and her life gets more dangerous.

Emily’s downward spiral into the criminal world, or her success at achieving financial independence depending on how you look at it, happens at a rapid pace. Emily gets more brazen and ruthless the more dangerous the journey becomes until she is forced to be the victim or the aggressor. After liking Aubrey Plaza last night in Operation Fortune: Ruse De Guerre , I wanted to see more of her and saw she was in this. I am glad I watched it, thought she did an excellent job of portraying Emily and she is now one of my new favorites.

There is an Emily The Criminal TV series in the works being executive produced by Aubrey but she will not star in it.

I thought it was good and definitely recommend it.

Two Thumbs Up!