White people. They screw up everything. That’s pretty much the theme of “The Mission” (1986), except the white people are actually conniving Spanish and Portuguese colonialists and some other white people (Jesuit priests Jeremy Irons and Liam Neeson) are trying to peacefully bring Jesus to the same indigenous South Americans. Then there’s Robert De Niro, who alternates between slave trader and Jesuit, always on the wrong side at the wrong time. Trust me, it’s not as confusing as it seems. Lush scenery, simple but effective storytelling and a healthy dose of Catholic guilt, if you’re into that sort of thing.
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I’m so glad “Red Sparrow” (2018) didn’t suck. Because somebody told me it sucked. I shouldn’t have believed them. Maybe it was a double cross. Maybe they actually liked it but they wanted me to not like it so that I would be surprised it didn’t suck because they wanted me to trust them but then not trust them. Oooooh, so crafty. The movie’s like that, too. Jennifer Lawrence is performing at another level right now. It’s her, Jessica Chastain, and, um, right. Also, best three-way knife fight in movie history. And definitely the Oscar frontrunner for best one-piece swimsuit.
I feel sorry for the 16-year-old girls who chose to see “The Words” that weekend back in 2012 when “House at the End of the Street” was sold out. (“Let’s just see that thing with Bradley Cooper. OMG! He’s so gorgeous!”) Figuring out this film is a lot harder than any of the politically correct cryptofiction they’re force fed in their high school American lit classes. Hard, but good. It’s a story about a storyteller telling a story about a story. At the end, the movie gives you the finger and sends you off to figure it out for yourself.
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