Number 9 Films, Film4, Killer Films,

Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara, Sarah Paulson, Jake Lacy, Kyle Chandler

Based on the novel “The Price of Salt” by Patricia Highsmith, this story takes place in 1950, a time that where women were not treated with much respect and were expected to marry and raise a family. Carol (Cate Blanchett) is very unhappily married in an unjustified sexless relationship with a small child Rindy. While shopping, Carol spies a shop girl in a department store and is instantly attracted to her. They two strike up a friendship that soon turns romantic. In a time where same sex relationships were not tolerated, things get bad for Carol as her whole world starts crashing down around her.

This film deservedly got a lot of attention over the awards season, probably most due to Cate Blanchett’s moving performance as Carol. She shows all the sides of this character, and we get to see a lot of emotions, from disgust and anger, to embarrassment, to love and tenderness. It truly is a mind blowing performance, and she certainly deserves all the praise she rightly received. But Rooney Mara as Therese, the shop girl, should also be praised for her role. She had a lot to do with the stunning performances here, and she is a wonderful actress. Her wide-eyed “Audrey Hepburn” look innocence at the beginning, growing into a strong and powerful woman by the end, gives us a chance to see all of her skills as a performer which are many. The story is a bit slow, and it replicates the 1950’s pretty well. It is also stark and very realistic which may chase away some people. This is not everyone’s cup of tea, as it’s is really a woman’s movie, heavy on the romantic relationship, and yet the fierce independence of strong women characters that will please the ladies. I can see why this movie got all the praise that it did, and I can also see a lot of people who will be unimpressed. So if you like romantic period pieces done like the romantic novels of old, this is certainly worth watching. If you like explosions and car chases, this is not the movie for you.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

 

 

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Regency Enterprises, River Road Entertainment, Plan B Entertainment,

Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Dano, Paul Giamatti, Lupita Nyong’o, Sarah Paulson, Brad Pitt, Alfre Woodard, Garret Dillahunt, Scoot McNairy, Adepero Oduye, Michael K. Williams, Chris Chalk, Taran Killam, Bill Camp

The true story of Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor) who was a free black man living in New York State. Solomon was an accomplished musician and was tricked into a job where he was captured and sold as a slave. He was subjected to both incredible kindness and extreme cruelty as were those around him before he meets a Canadian abolitionist, Bass (Brad Pitt) who changes his life forever.

The movie is based on the memoirs of Solomon Northup himself and is set in the pre-Civil War days. Events like that happened from time to time, and certainly no one can tolerate the depiction of the brutality of slavery. Not to make light of it, but since the slaves were valuable property, the extreme damage they did in this movie would surely depreciate the value of their property. I doubt that most slave owners would treat their “tools” like this. IF they did, they were really stupid. But at the same time, the times were horrible and treating human beings as property is disgusting. Still, I feel the filmmakers went out of their way to lay a guilt trip on us, and that is the most uncomfortable thing about watching this film. It’s hard not to feel pretty bad about yourself while watching this. It’s a mind numbing story, and there’s now way to come out of this unscathed. Regardless of whether or not it’s historically accurate in this case, It’s still a powerful message. I felt somewhat torn, all in all, and so I don’t really know how to rate this one. It’s really well done, and yet, I was torn as to whether I really was impressed that much. I chose 4 stars for the really good acting and for the screen play. It is a real depiction of life in the South pre-Civil War. But I was not completely blown away with the story. I can’t really put my finger on it. It just left me unsettled, which is what I guess it was supposed to do.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

 

 

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Hallmark Hall of Fame Productions

Sam Elliott, John Corbett, Sarah Paulson, Karen Allen, Elizabeth McLaughlin, Tegan Moss, Emily Alyn Lind, Max Charles

Jess Sanford is a gruff farmer who’s lost his young son a while ago. A new resident, Tom Marks (John Corbett), shows up at the farm in August asking if Jess Has any pumpkins for sale, in August!! Jess thinks and thinks about the question, but when he returns asking if there are any Christmas Trees for sale, Jess puts two and two together and figures out what is going on. Tom is moving all the holidays up because his daughter Vanessa is very ill and may never make it until Halloween or Christmas. But the point of the story is about Jess, and his withdrawal from humanity until he learned to overcome his sorrow by helping other people.

November Christmas is a wonderful Hallmark “Christmas” story even though the holiday is celebrated in November. The characters are charming, and the story is very touching. It gets a bit weepy and overly sappy in the end, but most holiday stories do that. This one is a great touching story that will make you realize the blessings you have, and the importance of those you love in your life. This movie premiered on Hallmark last year, and though not available on DVD yet, probably will be in the near future. But if you get a chance to see it on TV this season, go out of your way to watch it. It’s a wonderful film.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

 

 

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