What to Watch: Dead Pigs, Finding You, The Man in the Hat, Killing of Two Lovers, Those Who Wish Me Dead, Mauritanian, Oxygen, Undergods

For A Masterful, Dramatic Satire: Dead Pigs (Virtual Cinema)
Dead Pigs is a brilliant, satirical look at wealth, business practices, and social perception versus reality in a changing China, fueled by a biting humor and wonderful style.  For more information, check out the review!

For An Irish Coming of Age Rom Com: Finding You (Theaters)

Finding You is as fun as an Irish jig with an entertaining dynamic between the leads, an enjoyable story, and some beautiful shots of the Irish countryside.  For more information, check out the review!

For A Quirky Change of Pace: The Man in the Hat (Digital)

The Man in the Hat is a quirky, bright, and beautiful celebration of life and love that proves that often the journey is more enjoyable than the destination.   For more information, check out the review! 

For A Simmering Family Drama: The Killing of Two Lovers (In Theaters)

The Killing of Two Lovers is a powder keg of emotion that follows a stressful family situation with great dialogue, cinematography, acting, and a compact story.  For more information, check out our review!

For A Dystopian Deep Dive: Undergods (Digital)

Undergods's dire setting and storytelling format make for a fascinating, varied, and horrifying deep dive into this dystopian world.  For more information, check out the review!

For A Star Studed Legal Drama: The Mauritanian (Redbox)
The Mauritarian tells an impressive and important story of justice delayed with an all star cast and plenty of legal and political drama!  For more information, check out the review!

For A Throwback Action Thriller: Those Who Wish Me Dead (Theaters and HBO Max)

Those Who Wish Me Dead is a 90s style action thriller with an all star cast and great direction.  It is streaming on HBO Max for 30 days so make sure to check it out!

For Those Afraid of Being Cooped Up: Oxygen (Netflix)

A claustrophobic scifi thriller, Oxygen makes the most of its limited setting and will have you holding your breath as you watch the protagonist try to conserve her own.

What to Watch This Weekend: The Mauritanian, Barb and Star, Lapsis, Sator, Judas and the Black Messiah, Minari, Land, Freaky

For A Star Studed Legal Drama: The Mauritanian (Theaters)
The Mauritarian tells an impressive and important story of justice delayed with an all star cast and plenty of legal and political drama!  For more information, check out the review!

For A Colorful Middle Aged Trip: Barb and Star Go To Vista Del Mar (Digital)
Barb and Star Go To Vista Del Mar is the type of laugh-out-loud ridiculousness we need right now, with fantastic characters and a bright style to help jump start your 2021.   For more information, check out the review!

For A Satirical Look At Our Techno Future: Lapsis (Virtual Cinema)

Lapsis has a strong, satirical style, a smart setting, and great characters to tell a near future story dealing with some very modern, timely societal issues.   For more information, check out the review!

For An Atmospheric Horror Experience: Sator (Digital)

Sator is a wonderfully done indie horror movie with great atmosphere, effects, and creepiness telling a unique story that pushes the genre while staying so true to what makes it great.      For more information, check out the review!

For A Powerful Film About Racial Injustice: Judas and the Black Messiah (Theaters and HBO Max)

Judas and the Black Messiah is an amazing, powerful film that chronicles the short life of a charismatic leader, and highlights ideals and injustices that are still relevant today.  For more information, check out the review!

For A Beautiful Immigrant Experience: MInari (Theaters)

Minari is a slow but exquisite film, one that tells the immigrant story with beautiful cinematography, sharp dialog, and a slow burning, bittersweet story of hard work, dedication, and loss.   For more information, check out the review!

For Those That Want To Get Away: Land (Theaters)

Land will take you back to nature with its stunning wilderness cinematography, fantastic soundtrack, and harsh realities of life and survival.  For more information, check out our review!

For A Humorous And Satisfying Horror Film: Freaky (Digital and Redbox)

Freaky is a mash up of slasher, humor, and teen drama, with enjoyable performances from Vaughn and Newton in this stylish, entertaining horror take on the body swap film.   For more information, check out our review!

The Mauritarian Review: An Important and Impressive All Star Legal Drama

Release date: February 12, 2021
Running time: 90 minutes
Starring: Jodie Foster, Tahar Rahim, Zachary Levi, Saamer Usmani with Shailene Woodley and Benedict Cumberbatch
Directed By: Kevin Macdonald

Based on the NY Times best-selling memoir “Guantánamo Diary” by Mohamedou Ould Slahi, this is inspiring the true story of Slahi’s fight for freedom after being detained and imprisoned without charge by the U.S. Government for years. Alone and afraid, Slahi (Tahar Rahim) finds allies in defense attorney Nancy Hollander (Jodie Foster) and her associate Teri Duncan (Shailene Woodley) who battle the U.S. government in a fight for justice that tests their commitment to the law and their client at every turn. Their controversial advocacy, along with evidence uncovered by a formidable military prosecutor, Lt. Colonel Stuart Couch (Benedict Cumberbatch), uncovers shocking truths and ultimately proves that the human spirit cannot be locked up.

The Mauritanian has a powerhouse cast to tell this powerful story, headlined by Jodie Foster and Shailene Woodley.  But the main character of Mohamedou is portrayed by Tahar Rahim, who does a fantastic job as the complicated character.  He portrays the man as personable but also mistrusting, which is understandable given his predicament.  Foster portrays Mohamedou's lawyer perfectly as well, as a strong willed individual that will do what it takes to get the right result.  And Woolery is likewise wonderful as you would expect, another strong lawyer in this complicated fight for justice.  And Cumberbatch, although playing a more muted role than I am used to seeing for him, is amazing as Lt. Colonel Couch, a conflicted key character in this story.

Your love of drama and stomach for legal proceedings will determine whether you like this film.  I absolutely loved it but this is right up my wheelhouse.  I thought that the legal wranglings and difficulty of getting justice were portrayed well, as was the complicated personal and political situation of Guantanemo.  And I very much appreciated the movie's slow pace as it made it easier to enjoy the fantastic cast.  And what a cast!  This film really pulls together a who's who of A-list actors to tell this story.  The writing is sharp and understated, like much of this film.  It is not going to blow you away, but rather tell an important story about justice delayed and the overreach that can happen in times of fear. 

And the overall story is what is important about this film.  The injustices that happened to Mohamedou are not unique and are important to tell the general public.  But the film also does a great job with the little details, such as some of Mohamedou's hesitancy to trust his lawyers and the very human difficulty he had during his testimony.  These little details make this world feel real and help greatly to make this man feel like a person rather than a Hollywood character.  And these touches are crucial when telling a true story, one that is both impressive, infuriating, and important.

The Mauritarian tells an impressive and important story of justice delayed with an all star cast and plenty of legal and political drama!

Watch it.

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The Mauritanian is available in theaters on Friday, February 12, 2021.  

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Screening: The Mauritanian starring Jodie Foster, Tahar Rahim, Shailene Woodley, and Benedict Cumberbatch!

Check out a screening of the new legal drama from STX Films, the Mauritanian!  This insightful and wonderfully executed film has an all star cast and plenty of intrigue.  Check out a free screening before it is released!  Enter today and we will be announcing winners on Sunday, 2/7!

Synopsis:

Captured by the U.S. Government, Mohamedou Ould Slahi (Tahar Rahim) languishes in prison for years without charge or trial. Losing all hope, Slahi finds allies in defense attorney Nancy Hollander (Jodie Foster) and her associate Teri Duncan (Shailene Woodley). Together they face countless obstacles in a desperate pursuit for justice. Their controversial advocacy, along with evidence uncovered by formidable military prosecutor, Lt. Colonel Stuart Couch (Benedict Cumberbatch), eventually reveals a shocking and far reaching conspiracy. Based on the New York Times best-selling memoir, this is the explosive true story of a fight for survival against all odds.  Check out the trailer here.

Starring: Jodie Foster, Tahar Rahim, Zachary Levi, Saamer Usmani with Shailene Woodley and Benedict Cumberbatch
Directed By: Kevin Macdonald

SCREENING INFO

The Mauritanian
Wednesday, February 10
7:00pm
Virtual!

Check out the Trailer!

Screening Link!