OKAY NEW MOVIE: JUROR # 2

Toni Collette and Nicholas Hoult

JUROR # 2 (2024). Director: Clint Eastwood. 

Justin Kemp (Nicholas Hoult of Dark Places) is chosen for a jury on a murder case. The defendant (Gabriel Basso), who has an unsavory past, is accused of beating his girlfriend to death one rainy evening. But then Justin remembers that he was at that same bar where the two of them were that night, and that he hit something in the road, assuming it was a deer. Could he have actually hit the dead woman? A lawyer friend (Keifer Sutherland) advises him that with his past drunk driving record -- although he claims not to have had anything to drink that night -- he will wind up being charged with vehicular manslaughter. But, hell, maybe he did hit a deer ... 

Simmons and Hoult

Juror # 2 reminds one of twisty, somewhat contrived suspense flicks of the forties and fifties where lots of things about trials were shoved under the rug. For instance, I found it incredible that when an elderly man testifies that he saw the defendant (actually Justin, one assumes) on the road checking out his car and recognized him months later even though it was the proverbial dark and stormy night and he was quite a distance away, the defense lawyer (Chris Messina) doesn't challenge him! It takes someone on the jury to point this out. The actions of a juror named Harold, a retired homicide detective (J. K. Simmons of Whiplash) are also a bit suspect. 

Hoult

Whatever the flaws of the film, it is suspenseful and entertaining and not entirely predictable. The acting is also top-notch, with the conflicted Hoult, Simmons, Toni Collette (of Fright Night) as the prosecutor, and others giving credible performances. It's also admirable that the picture presents a prosecutor who isn't perfect, but who isn't some kind of monster, either. One could argue, however, that Juror # 2 just misses being a really memorable movie. 

Verdict: Interesting plot -- and Hoult gives a charismatic lead performance. ***. 

OKAY NEW MOVIE: BEING THE RICARDOS

On the set of I Love Lucy

BEING THE RICARDOS (2021 Amazon streaming video). Written and directed by Aaron Sorkin. 

While preparing an episode of their show I Love Lucy, Lucille Ball (Nicole Kidman of To Die For) and her husband Desi Arnaz (Javier Bardem of Skyfall) learn that powerful columnist Walter Winchell is calling Lucy a communist. In addition to that upsetment, Lucille is convinced that Desi is having affairs with other women, even if a photo published in Confidential proves to be several months old. Lucy, a perfectionist, clashes with her director, writers, husband and fellow cast members as to how certain sequences should be handled, while Vivian Vance (Nina Arianda) suffers angst over how Ethel is continually seen as unattractive when she is married to her "grandfather," Fred, played by William Frawley (J. K. Simmons of Whiplash). The sole female scriptwriter doesn't want Lucy to be depicted as being stupid, but Ball counters that "Lucy" is clever and almost always gets her way -- true! 

Essentially all of this material, none of which is new to the I Love Lucy fanatic (among which I count myself) has already been covered in the 1991 telefilm Lucy and Desi: Before the Laughter. However, Being the Ricardos is still an entertaining, if unnecessary, picture, although if it has people pulling out or buying their complete sets of I love Lucy I'm all for it. Nicole Kidman is better as Lucy than I would have imagined, and while Bardem is not as handsome as Desi was, he is also effective in his portrayal. I wouldn't have necessarily chosen Simmons or Arianda to play Fred and Ethel, but they are also good, especially grumpy Simmons, and the people who play the writers and director are also well-chosen. (Linda Lavin and others play the older versions of these people in mock interviews.) Lucy's children, Lucie and Desi Jr., served as producers. 

Nicole Kidman as Lucille Ball

Just as happened with Judy, the recent film about Judy Garland, some viewers won't be satisfied with any actor portrayal of a beloved figure unless the person themselves gets up out of the grave and, impossibly, plays the part. Nicole Kidman has gotten some serious hatred, and she certainly isn't a brilliant comedienne like Lucy, but she doesn't try to be -- she is rarely shown attempting the physical comedy Ball was famous for. But nevertheless she does a very good job approximating Ball. As for the film itself, there is some attempt to flesh out the characters, although the ultimate result is a tad superficial. Apparently Aaron Sorkin is not a fan of I Love Lucy -- while not every episode was a winner, quite a few were classics that are as funny today as when they first aired. 

Verdict: Whether you like this movie or not, get out your box of I Love Lucy and enjoy Ball and the others dealing with operettas, candy factories, William Holden in the Brown Derby, Lucy stomping grapes to soak up local color, selling salad dressing, attending a country club dance, going to charm school, and dozens of other episodes that will bring a great big smile to your face. And these days we sure need one! ***. 

WHIPLASH (2014)

Miles Teller and J. K. Simmons

WHIPLASH (2014). Written and directed by Damien Chazelle. Note: This review reveals certain key plot points. 

Andrew (Miles Teller) is a young student at the Shaffer Conservatory of Music. His teacher, Fletcher (J. K. Simmons), is a monster who deliberately humiliates his students, subjecting them to both verbal and physical abuse. It's unlikely that such an instructor, who acts more like a drill sergeant at boot camp than anything else, would last very long at the conservatory, but that's only the first of the unrealistic things that happen in this contrived movie. The acting is good, and an interesting aspect to the picture is that Andrew is in his own way also an arrogant prick; therefore we have two unlikable lead characters. Whiplash not only suggests that one must ignore everything else if one is to achieve greatness -- which may well be true -- but it also suggests that the only way a teacher can bring out the best in his students is to subject them to every possible kind of emotional abuse. Fletcher would have it that this molds great artists, but he really comes off as an emotionally stunted sadist. The trouble with Whiplash is that the two main characters are more types than real people; Fletcher is especially one-dimensional, as we learn absolutely nothing about his private life. Worse is that the movie throws out all logic for what might be termed a feel-good conclusion. Blaming Andrew for getting him fired, Fletcher hires him for his band but deliberately neglects to give him the sheet music for a song that he's completely unfamiliar with. Why on earth would the egotistical Fletcher risk ruining the band's performance and making himself look bad? Fletcher may be an asshole, but he isn't that stupid, and could easily have gotten revenge in another manner. Andrew manages to deliver an outstanding drum solo in spite of everything, and the movie audience, ignoring all the problems with Whiplash, cheers both onscreen and off; now these two pricks have bonded. Simmons, who appeared on Law and Order but has mostly done voice-over work for cartoons, won a Best Supporting Oscar for Whiplash, but one could argue that Fletcher is just another cartoon character. On the plus side the movie is never boring, moves fast, and is well-edited, but the nasty instructor who debases his charges is pretty much a tired old stereotype. Because there are no dinosaurs or car chases some people overpraised the movie as a masterpiece, which it definitely isn't. I also have to say, all of this agony for a drummer -- you'd think he was Enrico Caruso!

Verdict: Disappointing study of obsessed and unpleasant people. **1/2.