What to watch: ‘M3GAN’ wants to be more than another creepy doll story
Better writing would have helped 'M3GAN'; 'Living,' 'Man Called Otto' are terrific, poignant dramas
While it’s been a little quiet on the movie scene of late in the Bay Area, a flurry of new arrivals will appeal to a variety of tastes — from a toy that slays to a Tom Hanks tearjerker. Here’s our roundup.
“M3GAN”: The premise holds such ghoulish promise — an A.I. toy that looks like a creepy doll/child flips out. But this rather perfunctory Jason Blum and James Wan production doesn’t go far enough with the humor or the scares. Where director Gerard Johnstone’s sucker punch to bad parenting, the greedy toy industry and workaholism blows its gasket is in its play-it-traditional script. That’s a crime given there are definitely some worthwhile moments that Johnstone (“Housebound”) ekes out from Akela Cooper’s screenplay. Allison Williams stars as ambitious toy developer Gemma, an obsessive who tinkers with her latest creation till it evolves into freaky M3GAN, then tests it out as a companion for her grief-stricken niece Cady (Violet McGraw) who has survived a freak accident that killed her parents. “M3GAN” stocks up on jump scares and keeps the violence PG-13, but fails to make us care about any of the humans in the path of M3GAN. Each character is a rote as an assembly-line toy. Still, there are moments — a scene at a camp in the woods almost earns “M3GAN” another half-star. Details: 2 stars out of 4; in theaters Jan. 6.
“A Man Called Otto”: Some might well advise you to read the novel upon which this is based, “A Man Called Ove,” or the first film adaptation, which came out in 2015. Sound advice, but it doesn’t mean director Marc Foster’s take on the story about a cantankerous widower (played here with a Walter Matthau-like grumpy endearment by Concord native Tom Hanks) doesn’t stand on its own. The “action” so to speak transfers from Sweden to the cookie-cutter sameness of the American suburbs (Philadelphia subbing in for that), which is where the very particular Otto Anderson finds himself about being shoved out the employment door at the age of 60. It’s a moment of reckoning in Otto’s organized world of rules and order and all but launches a nascent decision to end his life. Otto’s suicidal plan fuses well with the grey domestic surroundings and dour look created here. But don’t let that fool you. “Otto” refuses to be a downer, nudging and reminding us to experience life robustly while embracing the messiness within ourselves as well as in others. It’s a redemptive tale told well with a wonderful supporting cast that includes Mariana Treviño, Rachel Keller, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo and Cameron Britton. It leaves an earned lump in the throat. Details: 3 stars; opens Jan. 6 in Bay Area theaters.
“Living”: Tender, humane and featuring an impeccable performance from Bill Nighy, this remake from director Oliver Hermanus (“Moffie”) is as elegantly, precisely crafted as a Swiss timepiece. Based on Akira Kurosawa’s stirring “Ikiru,” its follows a British paper-pushing manager (Nighy) who discovers how to live upon receiving a fatal prognosis from his doctor. Imbued with realistic hope and filled with rich period details, it reminds us all to live in the present before it’s too late. Details: 3½ stars; opens Jan. 6 in Bay Area theaters.
“The Pale Blue Eye”: If you want to experience chilly scenes of winter and and plunge into an inventive Gothic mystery in the process, director/screenwriter Scott Copper delivers with this deliciously sinister mystery. Christian Bale — something of a Cooper regular — is superb as 1830’s sleuth August Landor. Wearing his grief like a boulder on his shoulders, he investigates a string of gory slayings at a secretive West Point where, it just so happens, a quirky cadet named Edgar Allan Poe (Harry Melling, ideally cast) emerges as one of a number of suspects. Strategically paced and gorgeously filmed, “The Pale Blue Eye” is adapted from Louis Bayard’s novel of the same name, and subtly says something meaty about the military mindset, family lineage and the hazards of prolonged grief. An outstanding supporting cast — Gillian Anderson, Toby Jones, Timothy Spall and more, further class it up. Details: 3 stars; debuts Jan. 6 on Netflix.
“Roald Dahl’s Matilda the Musical”: With little hoopla, Netflix threw into its end-of-the-year gift bag this gem from Tony Award-winning director Matthew Warchus, a spirited adaptation of the book and stage musical. It deserves better treatment from the streaming platform since it retains the edginess of Dahl’s story and refuses to sugarcoat it. Alisha Weir makes a captivating Matilda Wormwood, a bookworm ignored by her narcissistic, buffoonish parents (Stephen Graham and Andrea Riseborough). Sloughed off to a boarding school run by a combat-boots-clad tyrant (Emma Thompson, chewing every bit of scenery that surrounds her), Matilda defies the fascist ways of the school and discovers that one’s family can come from other sources, in this case Miss Honey (Lashana Lynch). The musical numbers are catchy while the production values are top-notch. If you loved “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” or “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang,” this one might well be your golden family ticket. Details: 3 star; available on Netflix.
“Women Talking”: Sarah Polley achieves a cinematic miracle of sorts with her exquisite and wise adaptation of Miriam Toews’ celebrated novel, which was loosely based on actual events — the drugging and rape of women within a Bolivian Mennonite community. Anchored by an incredible cast that includes Rooney Mara, Claire Foy, Jessie Buckley, Judith Ivey, Ben Whishaw and Frances McDormand — one of the film’s producers — “Talking” finds a group of survivors of relentless abuse inflicted by the men and boys around them collaborating in a hayloft about what their next steps should be — staying or going. While that might sound like a bitter pill to spend 100 minutes with, Polley’s life-affirming film — shot exceptionally well by Luc Montpellier and featuring an outstanding score from Hildur Guonadóttir — “Women Talking” moves you in profound ways and is sometimes funny and hopeful. From the acting to the directing and on to one of the best screenplays of the year, it is a tour-de-force in every sense. Details: 4 stars; opens Jan. 6 in Bay Area theaters.
“Broker”: If you’ve never seen a Hirokazu Koreeda film, “Broker” makes for a perfect entry point. Bearing the themes Koreeda has sounded upon throughout his career, “Broker” finds humanity and compassion in what would seem to be the most unlikely of scenarios. This time, his universal message on how a family can be created out of the most unorthodox circumstances, two baby brokers — “Parasite’s” Song Kang-ho, who should be in the Oscar conversation, and Gang Dong-won — join forces with a mom (Lee Ji-eun) to sell her child to the best parents possible. What could have been a train wreck if it were an American comedy/drama turns into a funny, sad, brittle, beautiful and absolutely strange odyssey wherein the image of family gets distorted and reimagined in the most touching way imaginable. After seeing it, rent Koreeda’s “Shoplifters” immediately. Details: 3½ stars; opens Jan. 6 in select Bay Area theaters.
Contact Randy Myers at soitsrandy@gmail.com.