The Bearded Trio

OPERATION FINALE Starring Oscar Isaac, Ben Kingsley, Mélanie Laurent, Lior Raz, Nick Kroll,  Haley Lu Richardson, Joe Alwyn, Peter Strauss, Greta Scacchi , Greg Hill Written by Matthew Orton Directed by Chris Weitz Reviewed by Patrick & Paul Gibbs    Out of Four Obersturmbannführe r   Adolf Eichmann, one of the major organizers of Holocaust,  facilitated and managed the logistics involved in the mass deportation of Jews to ghettos and extermination camps  in Nazi-occupied Eastern Europe during the second World War. he was also one of the highest ranking Nazis to escape judgement at the Nuremberg trials, where various SS officers, including Auschwitz commandant Rudolf Höss, divulged damning evidence about Eichmann. Operation Finale dramatizes the story of Peter Malkin (Oscar Isaac) and the rest of the Mossad team tasked with apprehending Eichman in Buenos Aires in 1960, and bringing him back to stand trial in Israel. ...

BLACKKKLANSMAN John David Washington, Adam Driver, Laura Harrier, Topher Grace Based on Black Klansman by Ron Stallworth Screenplay by Charlie Wachtel, David Rabinowitz, Kevin Wilmott and Spike Lee Directed by Spike Lee Reviewed by Patrick Gibbs and Paul Gibbs   Out of Four We're a little late in reviewing this one due to a brief hiatus, but we couldn't possibly let it go by without giving our strongest recommendation. In 1972, Ron Stallworth (John David Washington) is hired as the first black detective in the Colorado Springs  police department. Stallworth is initially assigned to work in the records room, where he faces mistreatment from his coworkers. Stallworth requests to transfer to go undercover, and is assigned to a local rally by national civil rights leader, Kwame Ture (Corey Hawkins of 24: Legacy and Kong: Skull Island ), who has taken the name of African leaders. John David Washington and Adam Driver. Images Courtesy Focus Features...

THE SPY WHO DUMPED ME Starring Mila Kunis, Kate McKinnon, Justin Theroux, Sam Heughan,  Ivanna Sakhno,  Hasan Minhaj, Gillian Anderson,  Paul Reiser and Jane Curtain Written by Susanna Fogel and David Iserson Directed by Susanna Fogel Reviewed by Patrick Gibbs  Out of Four Hollywood's latest attempt to answer a question that no one ever asked (in this case "What if  John Wick was more like Laverne and Shirley ?") is also the latest sad example of the film industry's total lack of any ideas as to how to utilize the immense talent of Kate McKinnon. Kate the Great reacting to the latest bad  script  she's been stuck with. (Images Courtesy Lionsgate and Imagine Entertainment) Not counting a cameo in Finding Dory , McKinnon's best film to date would have to be Ghostbusters, and despite my undying defense of the feminist cause and my disdain for the misogynistic trolls, I still feel that it played more like a mediocre anniver...

ANT-MAN AND THE WASP Starring Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Pena, Hannah John-Kamen, Laurence Fishburne, Michael Douglas and Michelle Pfieffer Directed by Peyton Reed Reviewed by Paul Gibbs   Out of Four To say Marvel has had a great year so far would be an absurd understatement. After all, in 20 years only two other films managed to out gross Titanic at the U.S. box office, and Marvel has already done it twice this year. The first of these blockbusters, Black Panther, was a masterpiece. The second, Avengers: Infinity War was an incredibly entertaining event movie that still felt more like a season ending cliffhanger with an unsatisfying ending to me (sorry, I didn't cry at the "deaths" of characters who already have their next sequels scheduled for release. And I've been known to cry at 33 year old Golden Girls reruns.) Marvel's third 2018 venture, Ant-Man and The Wasp, isn't going to come close to matching the grosses of the first two. An...

A WRINKLE IN TIME Starring Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon,  Mindy Kaling, Storm Reid, Zach Galifinakis  and Chris Pine Based on the novel by Madeline L'Engle Screenplay by Jennifer Lee Directed by Ava  DuVernay Reviewed by Patrick Gibbs   Out of Four If you saw the bit on the Academy Awards where Jimmy Kimmel and Wonder Woman talked about the theater where people were gathered to watch a special screening of  A Wrinkle in Time , you know that they were complaining that the theater smelled like marijuana. That didn't surprise me, as Madeline L'Engle's 1962 Newbury Medal winner is essentially a Pink Floyd album for kids without the music. Some have called the book unfilmable, though this is not the first time it's been tried, the most recent being a cheap television version in 2004. Storm Reid as Meg. (Image Courtesy Disney Pictures) The story centers around a young girl named Meg Murry (Storm Reid). Meg is happy girl with tw...

I, Tonya Starring Margot Robbie, Sebastian Stan, Alison Janney, Paul walter Hauser, Bobby Cannavale     Written by Steven Rogers Directed Craig Gillespie Reviewed by Paul & Patrick Gibbs The saga of Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan was perhaps the strangest, least expected sports story of the 1990s. Of all the sports to descend into that kind of violence, women's figure skating? Of course, it was actually Harding's ex-husband Jeff Gilooly and her ex-bodyguard who were responsible for the hit, but most people who remember these events tend to think of Harding as a whiny, white-trash villain. But the real story is more.complicated that than, and the real achievement of director Craig Gillespie's film is to make us empathize with Tonya and think of her as a person in a way we didn't before. Margot Robbie, who most movie goers know as the only part of "Suicide Squad" that they liked, plays Tonya Harding beautifully, in a funny an...

The new webseries Cinemonkeys. The Beareded Trio recomends Cinemonkeys , a unique new webseries from the Brothers Gibbs, our resident film critics: WATCH "CINEMONKEYS" ON YOUTUBE! Cinemonkeys is a comedy movie review series about Sprockets and Zoom, two super-intelligent apes who escaped from a top secret lab and have gone on the run as fugitive film critics, stopping every week to review the latest releases as they evade their pursuers. Imagine a mix of Mystery Science Theater 300, Siskel & Ebert, and some crazy stuff you've never seen before. Get serious reviews and goofy comedy in the same place. In the premiere episode, My Favorite Year, Sprocket and Zoom pick the Best Films of 2017.  Fans will find the actual Bearded Trio well represented. Enjoy  Cinemonkeys!   Tell your friends! Share it! "Like: the facebook page!  Embrace it. Experience what it feels like to fall in love with monkey puppets all over again. The Bearded Trio - The Si...

All The Money In The World Starring Michelle Williams, Christopher Plummer, Mark Wahlberg, Charlie Plummer, Romain Duris, Timothy Hutton and Definitely Not Kevin Spacey Screenplay by David Scarpa Based on the book by John Pearson Driected by Ridley Scott Out of Four   Reviewed by Paul & Patrick Gibbs Ridley Scott's All The Money in The World is unique in the fact that its claim to fame is all about who who isn't in it: After two-time Academy Award winner Kevin Spacey was disgraced in a sexual assault/harassment scandal, Scott raced to replace him in the already quickly made film with screen great Christopher Plummer, with only nine weeks to go until the scheduled release. That he managed to do this at all is impressive enough; that Scott and Plummer both managed to do Oscar-quality work in the process speaks to why the two 80-something artists have managed to stay near the top of their respective fields for decades. "I could play Frank Underwood, you k...

The Post Starring Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Sarah Paulson, Bob Odenkirk, Bruce Greenwood, Carrie Coon, Alison Bire, David Cross Written by Liz Hannah and Josh Singer Directed by Steven Spielberg Out of Four Reviewed by Paul Gibbs I don't write for a Spielberg related site because i don't like his films, so it's no surprise for me to give his latest award-winning drama a rave. However, even coming from my favorite director, The Post is something special. Remarkably timely and yet also timeless, this is one of the best of Spielberg's new wave of actor/character related films, and it's my choice as the best and most important film of 2017. The superb ensemble cast is justifiably getting most of the accolades, but it's a mistake to think in any way that this isn't a director's film. Spielberg's gifts for pacing and storytelling fluidity have rarely been better used. Meryl Streep as Kay Graham. (Image Courtesy 20th Century F...

GOODBYE CHRISTOPHER ROBIN Starring Domnhall Gleeson, Margot Robbie, Kelly Macdonald, Will Tilston, and Alex Lawther Written by Frank Cottrell-Boyce and Simon Vaughn Directed by Simon Curtis Reviewed by Patrick & Paul Gibbs Out of Four "Poetry and hums aren’t things which you get, they’re things which get you. And all you can do is to go where they can find you." - Winnie-The-Pooh A.A. Milne's classic stories "got" a lot of people, and continue to do so. The feeling of childlike wonder and innocence combined with a profound sense of wisdom is truly timeless and has inspired many, both in life and art (would Forrest Gump  exist   without the influence of the silly old bear? We don't think so.).  They are very personal and special to us as a stage adaptation we created was a major step in our creative careers, and our love for the characters and for Milne's words is deeply ingrained in us. Goodbye Christopher Robin is b...

THE LOST CITY OF Z Starring Charlie Hunnam, Robert Pattinson, Sienna Miller, Tom Holland, Angus McFadyen, Ian McDiarmid Screenplay by James Gray Based on the book by Directed by James Gray Reviewed by Paul Gibbs Out of Four I'm a sucker for a good epic adventure movie, and The Lost City of Z is a very good one. Not an action film, mind you. While there are a few sequences of flying arrows and narrow escapes, most of the adventure comes in the form of travel and exploration. While Percy Fawcett, the film's protagonist, is rumored to be one of the inspirations for Indiana Jones, there are no fights with Nazis or supernatural forces. But the story is harrowing nonetheless, and aside from a grand adventure it's a thoughtful treatise on what's important in life, what makes us who we are, and what a legacy is. Major Percy Fawcett (Charlie Hunham) begins the story as a man whose father, an alcoholic gambler, left him with no legacy. And in the class ...