Tag: Steve Carell

‘Irresistible’ successfully explores big, twisted political practices in Small Town, USA

Jeff Mitchell

“Irresistible” – “He’s a church-going Bernie Sanders with bone density.” – Gary Zimmer (Steve Carell) Mr. Zimmer, a Democratic strategist, describes Jack Hastings (Chris Cooper) of Deerlaken, Wisc. with the enthusiasm of an obsessed teenager yearning for a dance with the prom queen.  Jack, however, is no demure beauty.  He’s a farmer, a retired U.S. Marine Colonel, and a widower.  In other words, Gary sees this man as a perfect candidate, one who the Dems could use after Donald Trump’s 2016 famous – or infamous, depending upon your perspective –…

Gladly saying Goodbye to ‘Welcome to Marwen’

Jeff Mitchell

“Welcome to Marwen” – It’s difficult to remember a film that featured as many toy army action figure sequences as “Welcome to Marwen”.  The little green army men from the “Toy Story” series come to mind, but the plastic troops, led by the voice of R. Lee Ermey, were just supporting players.  In co-writer/director Robert Zemeckis’ new movie, a small group of 12-inch fabrications occupy, perhaps, fifty percent of a very, very long 1-hour 56-minute runtime. The picture begins with an engaging animated World War II aerial scenario over Belgium,…

Too many storylines, not enough Minions in ‘Despicable Me 3’

Jeff Mitchell

“Despicable Me 3” – When thinking about the “Despicable Me” series, what is the first image that pops into your mind?   Minions, right? Those pintsized, yellow, pill-shaped, lovable devils have caused hilarious havoc in three previous animated adventures, including their own film, “Minions” (2015).   As entertaining as this collection of miscreants can be, Minions are best served in small, steady and frequent doses.  The best film in the series is the second one (2013), in which they were wholly integral to the main narrative but did not dominate the story. …