Shattering the Celluloid Ceiling
“Premature” brims with freshness in how it ultimately places its focus on the perspective of a young black woman and her lived experiences. Ayanna’s world is tactile and meticulously observed; it is one which lets viewers, into the lives of people living in New York’s inner city and the challenges that come with it.
It’s not an easy task to adapt one of the most famous American novels of all time for the screen. Not only has Louisa May Alcott’s “Little Women” been beloved since it was first published in 1868, it has also had several well-regarded film adaptations before, starring actresses like Katharine Hepburn and Winona Ryder. And yet, if anyone was going to take on this mammoth task, Greta Gerwig seems like the perfect person. Gerwig broke onto the directing scene in 2017 with her first film, “Lady Bird,” a coming-of-age story starring Saoirse Ronan. She returns this year with one of the most iconic female coming-of-age stories of all time, “Little Women,” refreshed and updated for a modern audience without losing any of the spirit of the book -- and once again starring Saoirse Ronan.
Mr. Rogers. A figure who defined the childhoods of many individuals. He was the subject of 2018’s documentary “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” Now, with “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood” (2019), Mr. Rogers is once again teaching us the importance of having faith in each other. The film does not follow Mr. Fred Rogers (Tom Hanks) solely. It explores the world of make believe and Mr. Rogers through the eyes of journalist Lloyd Vogel (Matthew Rhys). Lloyd works for Esquire and is assigned to cover Mr. Rogers for the magazine’s issue on heroes. Lloyd is skeptical of the wonderous man with his puppets. As an audience, we learn to understand what makes Lloyd so skeptical. He is a new father and the fears he already has about being a new father are compounded by the re-emergence of his estranged father (Chris Cooper).
Harriet Tubman was an amazing woman. She escaped slavery on her own, went back dozens of times to rescue others, lead a military operation south to reach even more people, and after the war fought for women's rights. Her life has been begging for a biopic but until now she has only appeared in a cameo role in "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter"(2012), as the subject of an episode of "Drunk History" (2013-), and on various history shows for kids. "Harriet"(2019) does an excellent job finally brining an extraordinary woman to the big screen.
In Greek mythology, Cassandra was blessed with seeing true prophesies but she was cursed with never being believed. She foresaw the Greek soldiers hiding in a wooden horse but the Trojans stopped her from hacking it open. She was forced to watch the destruction, knowing it could have been avoided if only they'd have listened.
Such is the fate of teacher Harriet Wilson (Octavia Spencer) in "Luce" (2019). She sees the warning signs about one of her students, Luce, but is completely dismissed by his parents and other teachers.
Let's be completely, one hundred percent clear about one thing. The only part of Ang Lee’s "Gemini Man" that really stood out to me is the incomparable Mary Elizabeth Winstead. She is cute, capable, and compelling, and subsequently one of my current celebrity crushes (can you tell?). The rest of the film, however, left little to be desired, and here’s why:
That’s what you’ll find in Noah Hawley’s new film “Lucy in the Sky” (2019), complete with a Beatles-inspired name and a star-studded cast. The film is loosely based on the life of naval flight officer and astronaut Lisa Nowak, renamed Lucy Cola for the screen. Nowak was at the center of an attempted murder scandal in 2007. “Lucy in the Sky” tells the story of how she got to that point; starting with her mission on the Discovery space shuttle.
A piece of art’s problematic-ness is subjective to the viewer who consumes the art; there is no definite arbiter--or way of deciding--just what kinds of art are inherently, objectively problematic. Only the individual can deem something to be problematic. If certain individuals agree with others, a mass of individuals with like-minds (and nuanced values) come together, then we have a basic form of society.
Some things register as problematic because it goes against culture--or the ideas of a particular social group. To suggest that something is problematic because society or culture deems it so would be like suggesting that something is okay just because certain cultures deem it to be so, but I digress.
