Foxcatcher

"Foxcatcher" stars Steve Carell, Channing Tatum and Mark Ruffalo in this true story of the relationship between Olympic wrestling champions and brothers, Dave and Mark Schultz and a troubled and eccentric  member of the one of the wealthiest families in America, John DuPont. The film was written by E. Max Frye and Dan Futterman and was directed by Bennett Miller ("Moneyball") with Mr. Carell playing the part of John DuPont. Although Mr. DuPont’s picture is not familiar to most of us, he obviously had a prominent nose which accounts for the significant and almost cartoon-like makeup which Mr. Carell wears throughout the film. Unfortunately, in the producers attempt to achieve reality, they brought about the opposite result as far as this viewer is concerned. No matter how much you want to lose yourself into the film and the character Mr. Carell attempts to portray, you (or I at least) are constantly reminded that it is Mr. Carell wearing lots of makeup. That being said, the film offers a study into the degrees of control those having the power to exert it will go in order to attain their goals. The film, though slow moving at times (2 hours and 14 minutes) manages to hold the viewer’s interest as these two brothers cope with the idiosyncrasies and desires of their wealthy "mentor". I give the film 3 stars but can’t help wondering if a lesser known actor other than Mr. Carell could have been more convincing in the part he played.

Theory of Everything

"Theory of Everything" is, as most people know, the story of Stephen Hawking and his adult life-long battle with a motor deficiency disease (ALS). It is also the story of self-sacrifice and dedication as told through the eyes of his wife of 25 years, Jane, who, together with Anthony McClaren, co authored the screenplay based on her book "My Life With Stephen". The film was directed by James Marsh and stars Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones. One must approach this film as both a factual summary of the trials and efforts of a genius confined to the prison of his voiceless and motionless body and, also, as an entertainment vehicle. For the former the film serves its purpose well and is made even more believable by Mr. Redmayne’s remarkable likeness to Mr. Hawkng  and the performances given by both he and Ms. Jones.  As to the latter, the film is certainly not "entertaining" in the true sense of the word but represents one of those "should see" see films because of its biographical data and the efforts of its two stars. This is indeed a difficult film to rate for much depends on the needs and desires of the viewer and whether he or she considers watching Mr. Redmayne’s character struggle with a catastrophic disabiliity for over 2 hours worth the effort. My experience of the film may well have been affected by the fact that I saw a PBS documentary with the real life Hawkings a few days earlier. That being said, I give the film 2 and ½ stars because it basically is locked to the actual story of the subjects with little or no poetic license or interest creating insertions.. Remember, though, as with  "My Left Foot", also a fairly difficult film to watch, it did earn Danel Day Lewis an Oscar and I wouldn’t be surprised if the same fate awaited Mr. Redmayne.

Nightcrawler

"Nightcrawler" stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Rene Russo and Bill Paxton in a film written and directed by Dan Gilroy. Although opening on or about Halloween eve, and with a suggestive title lending itself to that ritual, the film is actually the story of those vulture-like papparazzi who, instead of following celebs in innocent daily real life situations, seek to capture the tragedies and "breaking news" stories that besiege our evening news each night. In the mid 20th Century, these photo journalists would freelance and sell their wares to the highest newspaper bidder. Now, in the era of television and video and digital photography, the suppliers become video camera operators and the bidders are the news directors of local tv stations.
As so ably portrayed by Mr. Gyllenhaal, the film tells the story of one such video cameraman and the lengths and extremes he will go to "get the shot" or "capture the video". It also depicts his enablers in the newsrooms of Los Angeles who empower and enable these "nightcrawlers" to reap the economic benefits of their endeavors. The film is well paced and will hold your interest and involvement and makes its point in an artistic although not too subtle a manner. I give the film 3 stars, primarily because of Mr. Gyllenhaal’s fine work but, also, because of the ability of Mr. Gilroy to both write and direct without sacrificing one role for the other..