My annual Christmas movie plug:

Every Xmas my grandfather would sit us down and make us watch "I Remember Mama". It is not Xmas movie. It is a movie about a Norwegian family who lives in the early 1900s in San Francisco. And it is, in my opinion the perfect movie.

Irene Dunn is perfect as "Mama".
There is Uncle Chris, the "black Norwegian".
There is Uncle Elizabeth, the cat.
There are that Aunts you won't like.
And there is my favorite part when you learn about Uncle Chris' secret.

Every year I promote this movie in memory of my grandfather. And because he was right. This is a wonderful movie.

csk

I love old movies & Irene Dunn is superb. I will have to make a point to see this one!

I too look forward to seeing it each year! An oldie but goodie.

Ok I finally watched it and I loved it! Uncle Chris was my favorite character and then at the end I loved him even more. Thanks CSK for introducing it to me!

The Golden Globes are on tonight . . .

Richard Madden has won for The Bodyguard

and

Michael Douglas has won for The Kominsky Method

With high Kitty Paw ratings, I am not surprised.

csk
(But I did not see the rise of the FUJI water girl.)

I had picked up the book years ago and gave it the 50 page attempt. If after reading at least 50 pages and I am not engaged, then I put the book down. But I kept the book, thinking one day maybe I'd try again but alas it has sat by my bed, collecting dust.

When I learned that it was going to be a movie, I decided to check it out. Tonight was that night.

But before I continue, I have to warn you there are spoilers here. I normally don't like having spoilers but . . . given how the movie ended, I feel it is justified. But to be fair, I placed asterisks by the spoiler, to give you a heads up.

The premise is as followed: Dr. Faraday is called the house of Ayers, known as Hundred Hall, to attend a lonely and scared maid. As a child he had been to the home in it's heyday and had fallen under it's spell. Now, a good twenty years and another World War later, he returns to find it decrepit and falling down. But the spell of the house still bewitches him and the good dr. maneuvers his way into the household and he begins to assert himself into their sad, little world. The doctor is so determined to be part of the family and Hundreds Hall that he even begins to force a relationship between himself and Caroline Ayres to the point of asking her in marriage. Everyone but him can see that she is not that into him but she accepts his offer, perhaps out of fear of losing the only friendship she has had in a long time.

All the while, the house and the Ayres all hint to a mysterious presences in the house that is ominous.

But is there is ghost in the house, torturing the remaining family? Well, that's the problem. This movie has dubbed it's self a ghost story and as such, yes, you expected
a ghost.

*****Here comes the spoiler: there is no ghost

Then, there's the ending. The ending left me baffled. So baffled, I actually had to google the ending to see if what I thought I happened may have happened. And the only time I was good with googling an ending to understand it was Swiss Army Man with Daniel Radcliff and Paul Dano. (This movie is pretty out there, so actually having to google the ending does make sense.)

But I digress. Before I posted my review and after I googled the ending, I read some of the reviews pertaining to this movie. I was startled to see four stars by some movie critics. Amazon Prime has 3 stars and I think that's an okay number of stars but I have to say, I feel like this movie, it's cover and it's trailer is quiet misleading.

****Again spoiler alert: the family all felt like they were being haunted by something evil before the doctor arrived and for it to suggest that the dr. projected his "poltergeist" to the family and home between the time he became bewitched by the home as a child until the time he sees again it as an adult, seems too far fetched for me. And then at the end, when Caroline is murdered and you are supposed be left wondering who killed her, the ghost or someone real, augh, come on!

But if I were to assign Kitty Paws, the following would be my Paw-sitive ratings:
One and Half Paw for Domhnall Gleeson's performance as Dr. Faraway. His haunting loneliness and maneuvering to fit in is very well done.
One Kitty Paw for Ruth Wilson's performance as Caroline Ayres.
A Half of A Kitty Paw for the ending walk around with Dr. Faraway. It gave the creepy vibe I certain the director was going for as to the true madness of Dr. Faraway.

I just think if they had not pushed the notion of a ghost story, especially one with a haunting before Dr. Faraway came to the hall, this movie and it's ending would have been better.

Now I have given this movie three Kitty Paws, mostly because of it's great performances and an odd little twist at the end. But I am not certain I can recommend it solely on these factors, especially since I felt the ghost story angle is so misleading.

csk

I really want to recommend a documentary on Netflix called Happy. You'll have to search for it, as it is rarely shown on the homepage. It covers what we know so far about happiness and what the research says is often at odds with the popular misconceptions that get tossed around so much in our society. It's really excellent and gives some easy, concrete tips on how to become more happy in life and outlook. The show also asserts that research says that people who exercise in novel ways are happier than people who just go to the gym and do the same thing every time. So I am going to extrapolate and say there is now scientific proof that letterboxing makes you happier!

Thanks to my grandfather's love of movies, I was basically raised around the black and white films and am very familiar with movie stars of Hollywood's golden ages, i.e. James Steward, Maureen O'Hara, Judy Garland . . . etc.

Surprisingly enough, I never did see A Star is Born with Judy Garland but am very familiar the story of with how this film was intended to be her comeback film, and how some felt she was basically rob of her Oscar.

Which brings me to 2018's version of A Star is Born, directed by and starring Bradley Cooper.

In this version, Cooper plays Jackson Maine, a famous country singer who is also a severe alcoholic. While on a quest for more alcohol, he stumbles into a drag queen bar and chances upon Allie, played by Lady Gaga, performance of "La Vie En Rose"La Vie En Rose". He is surprised by her immense talent and he gives her the break she needs to get into the music business. Love follows as he struggles with his alcoholism and she struggles to balance her rising star and being with him and dealing with his bouts of drunkenness. Loving him the way that she does, she gives him her all, even willing to cut into her career to choose him and their life together over her career.

It also stars Sam Elliot, who has an emotional moment that just cuts you. And, surprisingly, Andrew Dice Clay, who isn't insulting women, for once.

If you have ever seen any of the three versions, especially the 1937 or Judy Garland version, you know how it ends.

Having provided the premise, on to my Kitty Paws:
One Kitty Paw for Bradley's directional debut. He does an excellent job directing this emotionally charged film.
One Kitty Paw for Bradley's performance. What I love about it is that I don't see Bradley Cooper. I see Jackson Maine on the screen. I can see why he was nominated.
One Kitty Paw for it's awesome sound track. It's a powerhouse of music.
A Kitty Paw for Lady Gaga's performance. She does a great job. But I am not 100% solid on it being Oscar worthy. It is a great performance, especially her emotional tribute at the very end.
A Kitty Paw for it's supporting cast.

But . . . . spoilers ahead . . .

I really struggled with the ending. I felt the movie focused more on their music and struggles, but not on that level. I mean, he mentioned the incident that happened when he was a kid, and how his father didn't even notice, and his struggles with his fathers . . . but nothing so detrimental that his demons would lead to the ending.

Granted people can argue that when someone makes the final decision like that, they don't tell people or hint to it. They just do it.

But for me, it just didn't really fit for this movie; like the lead up, especially with the manager just wasn't solid enough. I actually kinda felt that it cheapened Bradley's character.

Anyhooo at 5 Kitty Paws, I do highly recommend Bradley Cooper's version A Star is Born.

Thank you for your informative and interesting reviews, Captain Slick Kitty! We viewed the most recent version of "A Star Is Born" for our local, monthly movie group and loved it. We also decided to view the Barbara Streisand and Judy Garland versions. Word to the wise: DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME ON THE LATTER!! Judy and the poorly-cast James Mason were trying so hard to make comebacks, they over-acted, added far too many songs and attempted to create 'playful antics' that were cringe-worthy. The move stretched to well over 3 interminable hours! Everyone in our movie group agreed: they felt embarrassed for these two once stellar performers.

Submitted by,
DoubleSaj and Old Blue

The moment I heard about it’s one night premiere, I knew I had to be there! I have been an avid of Don Quixote for years. I even have a copy of Picasso’s painting of Don Quixote on my dining room wall. I love the 1972 musical with Peter O’Toole, Sophia Loren and James Coco. I play the sound track with Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio when I need my Don Quixote musical fix. And last year when the Sacramento Theater Company brought it, my family was second row, front and center.

Per the introduction, this movie has taken 25 years to make. Between deaths on the sets, lawsuits and various other stalls, Terry Gilliam finally made his movie.

It opens with a scene of Don Q and his faithful pal riding through the Spanish desert and Don seeing the Giant (windmill) and charging after it. Once the actor gets stuck in the windmill, the director of the commercial Toby, played by Adam Driver, calls the scene to a cut. You quickly learn that Adam is a bit of sullen, prime Madonna director who is annoyed with how terrible things are going for the production of the commercial. His boss, a greedy man played by Stellan Skargard, tells him he needs to find some inspiration and as luck would have it, there is a gypsy there selling dvds. The lucky part is that the gypsy has an old copy of Toby’s college pet project of Don Quixote 10 years prior. His boss then assigns Toby the task of “looking after his wife” and heads off. The wife and Toby head to a hotel room and start making out but Toby is more interested in seeing his film. Needless to say, the wife isn’t having any of it and their time together gets interrupted because the boss actually returns. Toby is forced to flee the room, but he gets his chance to watch his film and begins to reminisce in the making of it.

The following day when production for the commercial is at a stand still, he realizes the town he used as the back drop of his college film is a few miles away and hops on a motorcycle and heads on over to see how things are going. Well, he quickly learns that things haven’t gone very well for the man who played Don Quixote. He is actually held prisoner by a greedy old woman, which freaks Toby out. Then a fire erupts from Toby and Don Quixote’s escape and Toby, in a bit of a panic, heads back to the set. Once at the set, his boss explains that per his wife, there was a thief in her hotel room and he blames the gypsy, though both men know that it really wasn’t the gypsy. So he makes Toby identify the man, which Toby does, and then the police see the motorcycle and tells Toby that he has to come with them because of the fire he caused. Toby complies and the police end up taking the long way back to the station because of a festival and in the middle of the desert, they come upon the old man Don Quixote Toby freed. Don approaches the vehicle and sees his squire, Toby, captured and Don demands his release of his “Sancho” (Toby) and their “misadventures” take off from there.

Jonathon Pryce plays our devoted Don Quixote and does an excellent job. He’s got some great zingers and is very devoted to the role.

Adam Driver, also known as the pouty Kylo Ren, does an excellent job of playing the modern day Sancho who is not sure what the hell is happening.

This movie goes between modern day and fantasy and Adam, just like the audience, is not always sure if what they are experiencing is real or not.

I really, really, really, enjoyed this film…… but not the ending. Gilliam starts this situation where you see the modern day issue and then you see what it would be life in Don Quixote’s time (like the village scene, which is similar to the original story line) with a “jihad” twist. And it was great. And I really wished Gilliam kept with more “misadventures” like that.

But then he introduces us to the Russian and it kinda takes a dark turn and it’s not fun or jovial anymore. But even then, in the scene where they are trying to escape on horses, Gilliam, in my opinion, could have made a better ending with a grand escape than what unfolds next. And after all that Gilliam had put the audience through, he could have sold it well.

Sadly, not my film and hence not my ending.

Now, if you know the story of Don Quixote, you know what happens. There is no getting around it. It’s part of the understanding of how Don Quixote changed the people around him and how they would live their lives from having known him.

But then Gilliam takes the ending in a direction that I think is a bit much. Not in a “you’ve gone too far” sort of a way but more of a “Um, no. No one is going to like this idea” sort of a way.

And with the gypsy running around and appearing at odd places, you would have thought it would have ended a little better. (I don’t know why movies and shows are starting to do this, but having some random person running around and appearing at odd moments, like they in Russian Doll with Horse, the homeless guy, seems to be the “thing” these days.)

Now having said way more than enough, on to my Kitty Paws
One Kitty Paw for Johnathon Pryce. He is excellent. “Me, me, me, me, me . . .”
One and A Half Kitty Paw for Adam Driver. He really does a great job playing the guy who is not sure what’s real anymore.
One Kitty Paw for the fun stuff in the film. Gilliam does a decent job of incorporating some of the highlights of the original story.

So at 3.5 Kitty Paws, I definitely recommend this film, even though I did not like ending. But go for the fun of seeing an old man bringing chivalry back to the world again.

I want to see it now! https://youtu.be/VGAxXwndB90

Never having seen anything about Don Quixote, you had me lost when you started talking about a commercial. I'm really confused.

My apologies for the confusion. Don Quixote was written in 1605 by Don Miguel De Cervantes, a Spanish writer. It is also known as Man of La Mancha. The following is a simple summary of the story.

Don Quixote is the story of a old man who decides he is going to bring back chivalry to the world. He believes himself to be a knight-errant and he hooks up with a guy he calls Sancho. Sancho's real name is Alonso Quijano. But Sancho super likes the Don, so he decides to go along and on adventures with Don Quixote.

Don is so delusional, which is why when the come across a windmill, in his delusion, he thinks its a giant.

And with his delusions, he is inclined to this "medieval Camelot", "age of Knights of the Round table" theme of thinking. He believes there is a certain order in the world, which is why he calls Sancho his squire. And he believes that all ladies, even the strumpets, should be revered.

So, he sally forths, with Sancho and comes to a village and sees a woman that he immediately falls in love with. Her real name is Aldonza but he calls her Dulcinea, and though she is a bitter bar maid and "lady of the night" to those willing to pay, he does not see her as this. He sees her a fair maiden and treats her as such. This of course causes problems for her because the locals tease her for his delusions.

But he changes her being treated like a lady and his "missive".

Unfortunately for the Don, his family wants him to stop being publicly delusional, and to stop bringing embarrassment to the family. So they sent the "Enchanter" who breaks Don Quixote's delusions and sends him to his death bed.

But Dulcinea and Sancho go to visit him and perk up his spirits. And in his excitement of remembering his impossible dream of being a knight errant, he dies. It's sad. Very sad. But Sancho and Aldonza, who now takes the name of Dulcinea, have changed for the good, having known Don Quixote.

The movie The Man Who Killed Don Quixote is set in current time, Spain.

Adam Driver is playing man who directs commercials. The commercial he is trying to shoot is set in Spain, and is using the characters of Don Quixote and Sancho.

But the commercial Adam is trying to make with these characters is not going very well and as luck would have it, his boss gives him a dvd of Don Quixote to "inspire" him. Adam looks at the dvd and realizes that the dvd is the very movie he (Adam) made while in college 10 years prior. Adam then goes to the village where he shot the movie and basically gets warped into this insane world of misadventures being Sancho of very man Adam hired to be his Don Quixote in the film.

So basically the movie has all the characters of Don Quixote written in 1605 with a modern day application.

If you love musicals, I highly, highly recommend this one. If you like old movies and musicals, I love the Peter O'Tool and Sophia Loren version. And you love musical sound tracks, I love, love, love Man of La Mancha's sound track.

csk

"Too much sanity may be madness — and maddest of all: to see life as it is, and not as it should be!”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiiRZJUTT2k

Thanks. I'm familiar with the music and love it but never could get into the musical enough to watch it. It seemed weird. It's one of the few old musicals I never saw. I was thinking the movie you were describing was Man of LaMancha in movie form instead of musical and didn't understand the 'commercial'.

We put it on our list! Thanks, Kitty :-)

Having seen this nominated as Best Picture, I decided to check it out.

The premise is as followed: Queen Anne of England has a favorite bestie, Lady Marlborough played by Rachel Weise. Rachel is quick witted and takes no crap from anyone, which is interesting because England's Parliament is all male. But she's the favorite of the Queen, among many other things.

As for the Queen, Anne is played by Olivia Colman who I first saw as a dirty/flirty police woman in Simon Peg's fun Hot Fuzz. She has come a long way from playing a English tease to a detective in Broadchurch to Queen Anne. And whereas Lady Marlborough is tough and driven, Anne is broken and weak.

Along comes Lady Marlborough's cousin Abigail, played by Emma Stone. Abigail is dutiful but watchful and she tries her best to navigate the wolves surrounding the Queen. But the moment Lady Marlborough gets jealous of Abigail's attention from the Queen, the two women maneuver about, vying for the Queen's favourite.

And with such strong female actors, I have to say I expected much more, especially for movie that was nominated as Best Picture.

For one, I don't know if people actually spoke as "abruptly" as they did in the movie or if the director did this for shock value. But I felt even if they were shooting for "authenticity", it was vulgar. These are strong women, playing layered roles. Their skill will deliver.

Also, with the possible "authentic" lingo, there are some adult related scenes and nudity in the movie. I felt like some of these shots were not necessary.

I also don't know this director. But as I Googled the movie, I thought it was curious that so many reviews spoke to the evolution of the director and how this was the director's best piece ever. Well, I am not of the opinion that a ''good evolution" is a valid reason to nominate the movie to as Best Picture.

I also did not care for some of the camera shots and angles. They were annoying and unnecessary.

Having provided the premise and my disappointment, on to my Kitty Paws because I can give credit where credit is due:

One Kitty Paw for Olivia Colman's performance. I am not going to say it was a "breakout" role and I was blown away. But I will say, she did a good job.

One Kitty Paw for the supportive roles of Rachel Wiese and Emma Stone. Loved Ms. Stone in The Help and Ms. Wiese in The Mummy. Again, for me, no real "wow" factors but good jobs.

One Kitty Paw for the costumes and background scenes.

So, at three Kitty Paws, for a Best Picture nominated, I am disappointed. But do I recommend this movie? Is it a must see? Shaking my head in disappointment here, folks. #NOTSORRY.

The Favourite was not my favorite.

Charade

That's right….. good ole 1963 Charade.

Last night after being left disappointed by The Favourite, I was poking around Amazon Prime and spotted this little gem waiting for me.

The first time I watched Charade, the streaming was so terrible that it annoyed the crap out of me. This time, it was perfect!

Charade stars hottie Cary Grant and beauty Audrey Hepburn. I had read somewhere Grant's hesitation regarding the storyline as Grant was much older than Ms. Hepburn, and he felt was too old to be chasing Hepburn around. They understood his concerns and made a few changes. I think the changes made the movie.

The premise is as followed:

The movie opens in the French Alps, as Regina Lampert, Miss Hepburn, is confiding into a friend that she is going to pursue a divorce because her husband keeps secrets from her and she does not love him anymore.

Enter the dashing Cary Grant as Peter Joshua*, victim of the water gun Regina's nephew plays with. Great banter is exchanged and Regina is a little hooked. But alas, she is still a married woman, or at least she thinks so. Unbeknownst to our heroine, her husband for all of his secrets has been murdered. Regina returns home to an empty home and a moody French detective.

The Detective explains that her husband has been murder and explains to her that they had Intel that her husband had $250,000 American dollars on him and he was headed for South America. All of this comes to complete shock to our girl Hepburn.

Then, whilst at his unconventional and empty funeral, she receives a letter from an Agent with the CIA, played well by Walter Matthau. He reveals the truth about her husband. As soldier in WWII, he and four other Americans were entrusted to give the French Resistance $250,000. Only they stole it and hid it. Regina's husband then turned on the four and stole it from them. Now, as Walter explains, not only does the US government want their money back, the remaining four thieves want their lion's share too.

So the game is on! Regina has no clue where the money is and as the thieves hunt her, someone is hunting the thieves! It's a hot game of cat and mouse. No one is to be trusted!*

For a fun, rom-com, with a good level of suspense that will keep you guessing who the killer is, I highly, highly recommend Charades. It is a movie the whole family can enjoy!

*In her personal life, CSK has two main rules as a social worker. One, the cleanest house hides the dirtiest secrets. And two, never trust anyone with two first names. As these rules have kept me alive for the last 15 years, the kitty will continue to abide.

This 1948 movie is on Turner Classic Movies tonight at 8. I'll be watching it again.

Thanks for bringing this to my attention. I always enjoyed this movie as a young person. I have it set to DVR record and look forward to seeing it soon, again.

Currently blowing up Netflix is Wine Country.

And after a terrible week at work, I decided to crack open my own bottle of wine and settle in.

Starring some serious comedic divas, this Netflix movie premise is as followed: 6 long life friends get together to celebrate one of their own's 50th birthday, especially considering the birthday girl's husband is a man-child and wouldn't think to do something special for her big day. They, being in various parts of the country, agree to meet in Napa, Ca., aka Wine Country. But alas they all come with baggage.... baggage of their current lives, and baggage with their current arrangement of this "friendship".

As I watched this Friday night and it is now Memorial Monday, I have to say I was greatly disappointed in this movie. I really felt it was the arch-typical friends put on fake faces that all is well with themselves and each other until things start to fall apart and there's hurt feelings and then things get resolved. Amy Poehler, who loved in Parks and Rec, basically plays an older, fired, version of Leslie Nope. Tina Fey plays some I got my "$hit" handled nature hiking looking chic who says weird and out of place things. Maya Rudolph plays an over baked mom who is dealing with or rather not dealing with a medical issue. One of their other "friends" doesn't really want to be there. Another is too busy "to be there" and acts like it's everyone else who doesn't want her there.

So, again, disappointed. I truly expected a more humorous approach to aging and dealing with life long friends than this. In fact, Friends from College did a much better version of "Wine Country" in a 25 minute episode than this group of serious comedians.

With that said, no Kitty Paws on this one.

csk

If you weren’t one of 30 million viewers checking out Adam Sandler and Jennifer Anniston’s Murder Mystery, this review is for you.

The movie’s premise is as followed: Sgt. Nick Spitz (Adam Sandler) promised his wife on their wedding day that he would one day take her on a trip to Europe. 15 years later, on their anniversary, he, while fighting with his disappointed with life and marriage-wife (Jennifer Anniston) announces that her anniversary gift is the long awaited trip “over the pond”. Anniston, who plays Audrey Spitz, can barely contain her excitement.

While on their flight over, Audrey, who can’t sleep, sneaks into first class and meets the dashing Viscount Cavendish, played by Luke Evens. In their friendly exchange, the Viscount extends an invitation to Audrey to have her and her husband join him and his family on his Uncle’s yacht.

Initially Nick shoots down the idea as he is clearly jealous of the Viscount but as they see their not so pleasant tour bus that they planned to use, they change their mind and go with the Viscount.

Once on the yacht, they meet all of the family and friends of the Viscount, who all awaiting for Uncle Malcolm’s arrival. Then at dinner, he arrives, stomping all the way to the banquet room. When he appears, he immediately dismisses the ship’s crew and begins insulting all of the family and friends present and announces that he has changed his 70 Billion dollar will, disinheriting everyone and giving his entire fortune to his young bride.

As he is about to sign the new will, out goes the lights, there is a shot in the dark and when the lights come back on, there lies Uncle Malcolm, dead with the Quince Chinese dagger plunged into his chest.

Dum-Dum-Dum!!!

Suddenly everyone is suspect. Especially our American married couple.
As I actually watched this weeks ago, I have been hawing and hemming about my review.

The Pros:
It is set in several beautiful backgrounds.
It does have a few funny moments.
Adam Sandler does have a few funny moments/zingers.

The Cons:
It’s a murder mystery but it’s not very “suspenseful” or “thrilling”.
Anniston and Sandler are no Nick and Nora Charles, as they fight off and on and it’s kinda annoying at times.

And mostly, Sandler makes one too many cracks about the Colonel’s male genitalia and he does come off as a immature @$$ for the most part. Soooooo….. again Nick Charles, Sandler is definitely NOT.

And having stated the pros and cons, the essential question is: do I recommend this movie?

I think honestly the best answer is maybe on a “raining Sunday afternoon or too hot to leave the house Saturday and nothing else is on.”

csk

I was so hoping that this would be good, but I was disappointed.... I do not like Adam Sandler at all....his style of comedy never sits well with me. And I did not like him in this movie either. I wanted to like it....the scenery is gorgeous and I did appreciate that. But I would not recommend it... unless you are an Adam Sandler fan or you just have nothing else to watch on a rainy or too hot day.

-Amanda from Seattle

For those of you who have been following the Conjuring series, the opening scene of Annabelle Comes Home will not be a surprise. Ed and Lorraine Warren, demonologists and paranormal investigators, meet with 3 twenty-some nurses and explain that Annabelle the doll has been possessed with a demon trying to get inside one of them. The Warrens then take Annabelle home to a room designated in their house to hold possessed/haunted objects.

Believing all is safe, they then leave their young daughter Judy with a babysitter, Mary Ellen, overnight.

All should have been just fine…. But that would not a make a scary movie.

Enter Daniela.

Daniela is a friend of Mary Ellen’s and knows that Mary Ellen is babysitting at the Warren’s House. Daniela, also knowing who the Warrens are and what they do, manipulates her way into the house and eventually into the room of the possessed/haunted objects. Once inside you learn what drove her to this idea: the death of her father, which she blames herself for. Then, trying to reconnect with him, she asks the spirits to speak to her—again in the room filled with possessed and haunted objects. Not getting any immediate response, she then—against the warning—unlocks the glass case that Annabelle is contained in and thus begins the night of terror that befalls all them.

Overall, I felt that this movie was decent. But I felt like with the three main characters being young teenagers, it was more geared towards teenagers than adults. And while it does have a few decent jumps, I also felt like it missed some great scary opportunities too…. Thinking of the TV screen scene with Daniela. But it was only produced by James Wan, not directed. I think Wan would have probably done a better job.

Anyhoo, if you are a parent worried about your teenager seeing this, I don’t think you have much to worry about. There are no adult related scenes, and if there’s swearing, there is hardly any of that.

But the essential question is: do I recommend it?

If you kept in mind that I think it’s geared more towards teenagers than adults and you walk in with that mentality, you will be just fine.

csk

My mind went immediately to the idea that the wife, Audrey has set up the whole thing as an anniversary gift to her husband Nick.
He arranges the trip, she secretly arranges a murder mystery to entertain him.

Think I could get a job writing for Hollywood?

Thanks for the review, I'm sure something else will be on, on another channel.

WAIT???!!! What happened to the kitty paws??? I LOVE the kitty paws!

I think that would have been great!

csk

I do!

https://www.atlasquest.com/showinfo.php?trackerId=10291

You are now officially my best friend. I will always check your back seat!

Errr...LB boards and Zombieland humor don't necessarily combine well!

Having someone to check the back seat is invaluable!

So, I really haven’t been impressed with the summer movie line up, as you can tell by my lack of recent movie reviews. But this movie caught my attention. And it doesn’t help that today is September 1st! Ready or not Summer is over.... please excuse the kitty pun.

Anyhooooo.... starring Sarama Weaving, (who I think could be Margot Robbie’s twin) is our bride to be in the black comedy Ready Or Not. Having been an orphan and raised by foster families, Grace (Weaving) is excited to join her soon to be husband family .... And believe it or not, they are excited too.

But weddings bring out old family traditions, and the Le Domas family is no different ..... except maybe in their “one family tradition.”

Since the end of the Civil War days, the Le Domas has had to greet each newly wedded family member with a card game. Having made their family fortune on games, cards and otherwise, the card the newly joined member receives determines the game. With the exception of one card, it literally is “all fun and games”. And if they don’t follow this tradition and play the game or play it correctly, the Le Domas believe that something terrible would befall the ENTIRE family.

But an innocent game doesn’t make a movie.

So, of course, our beautiful, happy bride is the unfortunate soul who pulls the “one card” that her beloved husband fears the most: Hide and Seek.

Not really been told the complete truth about how the game is suppose to end, our blushing bride, eager to please her new family, plays along until she witnesses first hand that this is not a game at all and realizes that she must do anything to survive the night.

Parents be advise, there is swearing as would anyone swear if they are being hunted (lol) and some gory deaths. But I personally would not have a problem with my 15/16 year old seeing it. (But I can have a dark, gory, comedy sense of humor, though.)

Having provided the premise, before I give my Kitty Paws, I would like to say, I kinda felt the premise is a bit hookie . . . But . . .

Two Kitty Paws for Gracie’s tenacity. I liked her and I really was pulling for her.
One Kitty Paw for even toned black comedy. It stayed in this flow the entire movie and didn’t get sappy.
And a Half of a Kitty paw for its gorgeous and ornate setting.

So, if you are in the mood for old family traditions and don’t mind a twisted, deadly game of Hide and Seek, then at 3.5 Kitty Paws, consider this your next movie.

Spoiler*******

While I did enjoy the movie, I would liked it better had the “good guy” survived.