This week on “Tim & Bob’s Excellent Movie Adventures,” Tim Lammers and Bob Sansevere talk about the controversy surrounding theaters inserting their own intermissions during the 3 hour, 26 minute “Killers of the Flower Moon.” Also, Tim pulls from his interview vault a 2007 conversation with Rob Reiner about the Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freedom comedy drama “The Bucket List.”
Tim reviews movies weekly for the “Adam and Jordana” with Adam Carter and Jordana Green on WCCO Radio, “It Matters with Kelly Cordes” on WJON-AM, KLZZ-FM, “The Tom Barnard Podcast” and “The BS Show” with Bob Sansevere, and reviews streaming programming on WCCO Radio’s “Adam and Jordana” as well. On TV, Tim has made hundreds of guest appearances on NBC affiliate KARE on the news program “KARE 11 News at 11,.” On radio, Tim made hundreds of appearances on “The KQ Morning Show” with Tom Barnard on KQRS-FM.
The haunting visions of Stephen King’s “The Shining” have been frightfully reawakened with “Doctor Sleep,” a creepy, intense and too-disturbing-for-its own good at times sequel to the director Stanley Kubrick’s 1980 horror film classic.
Based on King’s 2013 novel of the same name, writer, director and editor Mike Flanagan’s 2-hour, 30-minute opus doesn’t come close to “The Shining,” but it is still impressive, nonetheless. It’s clear that Flanagan (“The Haunting of Hill House”) was intent on making the sprawling tale of Danny Torrance his own while honoring the Kubrick film; yet it somehow manages to capture the same tone of “The Shining” even though “Doctor Sleep” is set largely away from the Overlook Hotel.
AUDIO: Hear Tim’s review of “Doctor Sleep” with Tom Barnard on “The KQ Morning Show” on KQRS-FM. The segment is brought to you by Michael Bryant and Bradshaw & Bryant.
“Doctor Sleep” begins in flashback, where Flanagan casts lookalike actors to step in for the young Shelley Duvall and Danny Lloyd to pick up the lives of Wendy and Danny Torrance not long after the murderous events at the end of “The Shining.” Naturally, Danny has been left deeply traumatized by the actions of his father, Jack, and coupled with his gift (or curse) of “the shine” — which gives psychic abilities to see horrific visions of the past and communicate with others who have similar abilities –- he’s barely able to function. The trauma is so debilitating that it drags on into Danny’s (the always great Ewan McGregor) life as an adult, where, like his father, Jack, he has taken refuge in a bottle.
Danny’s life takes a turn, however, when he meets a fellow alcoholic, Billy Freeman (Cliff Curtis), and begins to communicate with Abra Stone (Kyliegh Curran in an impressive big screen debut), who has a more powerful version of the shine. Unbeknownst to both Danny and Abra, however, is a growing, deadly threat: There’s a small group of quasi-immortal people known as The True Knot, led by the malevolent Rose the Hat (a brilliant Rebecca Ferguson), who hunt down and kill children with the shine, consuming a steam that they expel while they are dying, the essence of which fuels their immortality.
While he doesn’t quite have the presence that Jack Nicholson did in “The Shining,” there’s no question McGregor commands your attention in “Doctor Sleep” as a deeply troubled individual trying to lock away his past in metaphorical boxes, only to be faced with confronting those demons once again as Danny is forced to return to the Overlook Hotel for a cataclysmic showdown in the last 20 minutes of the film’s third act.
It’s there where we get to experience Abra’s true powers and Rose the Hat’s ultimate wickedness, and not surprisingly, the return of Jack Torrance. But instead of using the benefits of CGI or clips from the original “Shining” to bring Jack back, Flanagan opts instead to recast the role, presenting Henry Thomas (“ET the Extraterrestrial”) as Jack Torrance/Nicholson in 1980, along with the recasting of all the other specters that haunted the young Danny from the original film.
It’s hard to say why, exactly, Flanagan took that route, other than to guess he did so to fend off any accusations that he was ripping off Kubrick to benefit his own film. No matter the case, the recasting works enough to grab viewers for the film’s frightening conclusion.
Rebecca Ferguson and Kyliegh Curran in “Doctor Sleep.”
Not having read the original source material, it’s hard to say how faithful “Doctor Sleep” is to the original King novel. My guess is that it’s very faithful, given that it takes some time (exemplifying King’s meandering ways) for the plot to come together. No matter the case, one thing is certain: King has an unhealthy obsession with the way children are brutalized, either psychologically or physically (or both) in his novels.
From the doomed teenage character in “Carrie” to the Loser’s Club in the “It” films to the unfortunate child victims in “Pet Sematary,” there’s no doubt King forces adults to confront their worst fears; but in the case of “Doctor Sleep,” there’s a disturbing scene with a pre-teen (Jacob Tremblay) that crosses the line as Rose the Hat and her frightening band of immortals carry out a ritual to feed upon the fear and pain of their young victim. It is downright amazing Warner Bros. didn’t take a harder look at the scene and ask Flanagan to tone things down. It’s an unnecessarily disturbing scene that stains an otherwise stellar horror film.
Lammometer: 8 (out of 10)
Tim Lammers reviews movies weekly for “The KQ92 Morning Show” on KQRS-FM, “Paul and Jordana” on WCCO Radio, “It Matters with Kelly Cordes on WJON-AM, KLZZ-FM, “The Tom Barnard Podcast” and “The BS Show” with Bob Sansevere, and reviews streaming programming on WCCO Radio’s “Paul and Jordana” as well. On TV, Tim has made hundreds of guest appearances on “KARE 11 News at 11” (NBC).
Joaquin Phoenix gives a masterful performance in an otherwise flawed but still riveting movie in “Joker,” writer-director Todd Phillips’ heady examination of origins of the Clown Prince of Crime in what appears to be – at least at this point – a standalone movie in the DC Comics movie universe. Of course, the iconic Batman arch-nemesis originated in a comic book, but there’s no question Phillips wanted to take the character in the direction of the gritty, 1970s and ‘80s crime films by director Martin Scorsese, specifically “Taxi Driver” and “The King of Comedy.”
Phoenix mentally and physically transforms himself into Arthur Fleck, an extreme outcast and loner who works as a party clown and has grand aspirations of becoming a stand-up comedian. Living a meager existence with his damaged mother (Frances Conroy), Arthur is a man living on the edge of a mental breakdown, and after a couple brutal beatdowns by bullies, snaps with repercussions that he’ll never be able to recover from.
AUDIO: Hear Tim’s review of “Joker” with Tom Barnard on “The KQ Morning Show” on KQRS-FM. Segment is brought to you by Michael Bryant and Bradshaw & Bryant.
Forging a new identity as a murderer who masquerades in clown makeup, Arthur’s murderous ways inspires the malcontents of Gotham City to rise up against the rich, where suddenly powerful citizens like Thomas Wayne (Brett Cullen) become the target of hatred. Making matters worse, Arthur’s idol, talk show host Murray Franklin (Robert De Niro), crushes the fragile comedian wannabe when he mocks his stand-up talents on the air. Because the segment was so popular, though, Murray invites Arthur to appear on the show, marking Arthur’s complete transformation into Joker.
“Joker” without question takes a deeper dive into the character than we’ve ever seen on film, and it’s a blessing Phillips got somebody as enigmatic and talented as Phoenix to take on the ambitious role. With the edge taken off the challenge of being the first person to assume the role after legendary performance of Heath Ledger (Jared Leto was the unfortunate soul to do that with “Suicide Squad”), Phoenix clearly isn’t trying to outdo Ledger in Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight” (or for that matter, the brilliant Jack Nicholson in Tim Burton’s classic 1989 “Batman” film), but make the role his own. His uncontrollable laughter (passed off as a medical condition) in “Joker” is chilling (and yes, somewhat grating), but his subtle behavior and the way he contorts his body are the attributes that make the ultra-intense performance complete.
While Phillips clearly creates a new back story for the main character (including a major plot twist that will have purists buzzing), “Joker” could still be considered a part of the DC canon. Not only does the action take place in Gotham pre-Batman, the inclusion of Thomas Wayne in the plot, as well as a young Bruce Wayne (Dante Pereira-Olson), eventually takes the story down the path readers associate with the character of Joker. If the story were to continue, it could easily turn into the classic confrontation of Batman vs. Joker; something Phillips has insisted will not happen, despite director Matt Reeves’ new version of the Caped Crusader called “The Batman” (starring Robert Pattinson).
AUDIO: Hear Tim’s review of “Joker” with Paul Douglas and guest host Mike Max on “Paul and Jordana” on WCCO-AM. Segment is brought to you by Michael Bryant and Bradshaw & Bryant.
While “Joker” populates the Gotham-centric story with Phoenix’s brilliance and solid performances from the likes of De Niro and Zazie Beetz (as Arthur’s neighbor and object of his desire), it’s far from a perfect film. The set-up lumbers along until the point where Arthurs is provided the tool that will lead to his self-destruction, and in-between, a huge plot device meant to be a twist screams predictability. Still, there’s no denying the overwhelming power of the third act, which despite the fact that you can see what’s coming, is a shocking piece of cinema, nonetheless. It’s here that fear in the news media about the film’s excessive violence finally presents itself, and it leaves you with a gut-sickening feeling long after you leave the theater. For all the different ways the character has been presented to audiences before, there’s no doubt that this “Joker” is no laughing matter.
Lammometer: 7.5 (out of 10)
Tim Lammers reviews movies weekly for “The KQ92 Morning Show,” WCCO Radio, WJON-AM, KLZZ-FM, “The Tom Barnard Podcast” and “The BS Show” with Bob Sansevere. On TV, Tim has made hundreds of guest appearances on “KARE 11 News at 11” (NBC).
