Driving Miss Daisy (1989) Film Review

Miss Daisy (Jessica Tandy) is getting on, and when she drive her car into her neighbour’s yard, her son, Boolie Werthan (Dan Aykroyd) has to deal with it. Against her will, he hires a driver, Hoke Colburn (Morgan Freeman), and eventually, she allows him to start driving her around. Over many years, they develop a friendship.

And that’s it. I felt that there were so many opportunities to do something or say something, but it just missed. There was almost a comment on class, there was almost a comment on race, there was almost a comment on several things. Instead, it was just a nice drive through the country, avoiding any real potholes.

Driving Miss Daisy won Oscars for Best Picture, Best Actress in a Leading Role (Jessica Tandy), Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium (Alfred Uhry) and Best Makeup

Now You See Me (2013) Film Review

J. Daniel Atlas (Jesse Eisenberg), Merritt McKenney (Woody Harrelson), Henley Reeves (Isla Fisher) and Jack Wilder (Dave Franco) are four magicians (of different varieties) who are brought together by a mysterious other, they don’t know why. They appear as a big new act in Las Vegas; “The Four Horsemen” and do a performance that lead FBI Agent Dylan Rhodes (Mark Ruffalo) and Interpol Agent Alma Dray (Melanie Laurent) investigating their every move. The magicians are being bankrolled by multi-millionare Arthur Tressler (Michael Caine) and the authorities are being assisted by a magician who now makes his money revealing tricks, Thaddeus Bradley (Morgan Freeman). But who is who, and what is really going on?

I’m not a massive fan of magic. It’s not that I don’t get it; I reckon I get as wowed as most people. I just don’t really care how it’s done. I’ll go along for the ride if I must, but I’d be just as happy avoiding it. What I do like is a really clever film that has everyone one step ahead of everyone else… or, at least, you never really know who is doing what for who and why. And I really, really love that moment at the end of a heist film where everything is revealed, or the final plan takes place. Spy films, too. What is really ace about this film is that there are several times when all this happens. It is fast, constantly confusing and totally amazing.

Loved it. Lots.

Million Dollar Baby (2004) Film Review

Maggie Fitzgerald (Hilary Swank) wants to be a boxer and she wants to be trained by Frankie Dunn (Clint Eastwood). Eddie Dupris (Morgan Freeman), an ex-boxer trained by Dunn who retired after a fight that cost him his eye and works in Dunn’s gym, sees her passion and helps her out, and eventually Dunn agrees to take her on as his first female boxer.

I don’t think I like Clint Eastwood. There, I’ve said it. There seem to be many things in the world that it, for whatever reason, is sacrilege to dislike. Why? I don’t know. He’s considered to be an American icon, but I’m not American, so why should it matter if I like him or not?

For me, this film was quite tedious. Dunn wouldn’t train Fitzgerald because he didn’t trust himself after what happened to Eddie. She wears him down. He trains her. *Spoiler Alert* Something bad happens to her. He can’t forgive himself. Blah blah blah. I know I was supposed to cry and feel all kinds of emotions; perhaps that was just it. Perhaps it the attempts to manipulate my emotions were just too blatant. I just didn’t like it.

Million Dollar Baby won Oscars for Best Motion Picture of the Year, Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role (Hilary Swank), Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role (Morgan Freeman) and Best Achievement in Directing (Clint Eastwood). Million Dollar Baby was nominated for Oscars for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role (Clint Eastwood), Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay (Paul Haggis) and Best Achievement in Film Editing.