RHODY LIFE

At the Movies with Joyce & Don

Posted 2/25/21

NOMADLAND **** We have been waiting months for this Golden Globe nominee starring Frances McDormand, which has been a big hit at dozens of film festivals. "e;Nomadland"e; is one of those films that is hard to categorize - part fiction and very much a

This item is available in full to subscribers.

Please log in to continue

E-mail
Password
Log in
RHODY LIFE

At the Movies with Joyce & Don

Posted

NOMADLAND

****

We have been waiting months for this Golden Globe nominee starring Frances McDormand, which has been a big hit at dozens of film festivals.

“Nomadland” is one of those films that is hard to categorize – part fiction and very much a docudrama, with many of the interesting characters playing themselves.

McDormand plays Fern, a widow who has lost her job back in 2011 when the small town Nevada factory closed.

She put most of her possessions in storage, sold the house, bought a small RV, and hit the road.

She stops for a while to work at an Amazon distribution warehouse, moves on to open land in South Dakota where dozens of “nomads” have settled before moving westward to national parklands and open spaces.

Fern adopts a fascinating lifestyle in which people trust and share with their temporary neighbors, listening to their life stories, holding swap meets, sharing meals and having outdoor religious services.

Fern makes a couple of close friends, a woman on her deathbed and a man who would like her to move in with his family in California.

The scenery is beautiful and although most of us would not choose this lifestyle, we can understand why some would.

The telling part comes when Fern is invited to sleep in a real bed in a real house and chooses her small RV instead.

No one says “goodbye” when they move on, but rather, “see you down the road.”

We will probably never see a movie quite like this again. It’s at the Warwick Showcase, while daughter Robin watched it on Hulu.

DR. FOSTER

***½

This BBC drama series is being aired on Netflix.

It is a tale of broken relationships among ego-centered people who lie, cheat, and suffer the consequences.

Dr. Foster has a successful practice in a small English town where she lives with her property manager/developer husband, Simon, and 10-year-old son, Tom.

Simon cheats with his friend’s daughter, who is half his age. She gets pregnant. The vindictive Dr. Foster finds out and she sets out to make life miserable for him.

The woman scorned is not about to forgive or forget as the situation turns into all out war, leading to some mean-spirited conflicts.

I CARE A LOT

***½

This Netflix drama, also set in England and a Golden Globe nominee, stars Rosamund Pike as a scam artist who preys on little old ladies, bilking them out of their fortunes by becoming their court-appointed guardian, selling their houses and putting them un unscrupulous nursing homes.

The first part of the two-hour movie plays out like a documentary, but turns quickly into a thriller when it is discovered that one of her victims is not who we think she is.

Her son, played menacingly by Peter Dinklage, seeks to free his mother and gain revenge, setting up a terrifying cat-and-mouse game between two very bad people.

There are two incredible attempted murder scenes that will have you on the edge of your seat and an ending that is nothing short of poetic justice.

MINARI

**** (Joyce)           ***½ (Don)

This lovely little film about a struggling Korean American family will touch your heart for its caring and simplicity.

While I found the two hours to drag in places, Joyce was with it every minute of their journey to find their place in America.

It is the 1980s. Jacob and Monica have moved from California with their two children, where Jacob’s dream is to buy and work a farm, growing Korean vegetables for a growing market.

Monica has trouble in adjusting to the remote Kansas area, living in a trailer with no neighbors or modern conveniences. Digging a well is a challenge.

A bigger challenge is the arrival of Monica’s mother from Korea. While the parents work at their trade of sexing chickens, Grandmother takes care of the children. Young David and his older sister have trouble adjusting to her and her odd ways, claiming she doesn’t act like a grandmother.

“She doesn’t bake cookies and she smells funny,” young David tells his parents.

Monica and Jacob fight over money, as their expenses outweigh their income and a sudden disaster nearly ruins them.

Minari is all about a family struggling to survive, adjusting to a different culture and searching for the American dream. Minari is a Korean plant that turns out to be a symbol of hope.

Rated PG-13, with minor profanity. It’s at the Avon.

movies, cinema

Comments

No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here