Tag: Frank Langella

Is “Captain Fantastic” Fantastic?

Captain Fantastic film

The film Captain Fantastic (2016) is much better than one might expect.  Although a short description of the film sounds like a family television series, the movie rises above expectations so that the sum of its parts make it one of the more enjoyable movies of the summer.

Captain Fantastic, written and directed by Matt Ross, stars Viggo Mortensen as Ben, an idealistic father trying to raise his six children away from society in the wilds of Washington state.  As the movie opens, we learn that Ben’s wife is away being treated in a hospital.

Ben is serious about the education of his children, teaching them such activities as defending themselves with knives and rock climbing.  But he equally teaches them about politics, philosophy, and literature.  For example, the anti-capitalist family celebrates Noam Chomsky‘s birthday instead of Christmas.

As the movie progresses, word about Ben’s wife leads him and the children to go on the road. Some of the more humorous moments involve the family clashing with modern society.  Ben also clashes with family members, in particular with his father-in-law Jack, played by Frank Langella.

From a description, so much of the movie seems predictable.  But the movie works for several reasons.  First, the actors are outstanding.  Mortensen, of course, dominates the film.  But the actors playing the children do an excellent job of giving personality to the roles.  Actors Samantha Isler and George MacKay, for example, show that they have promising careers ahead of them.

Another reason the movie works is that the characters are three-dimensional.  Producers of movies like this one are often tempted to make the father character perfect, but Ben is far from perfect, just as Langella’s character is not all bad.

Captain Fantastic does not give a one-sided perspective.  Variety even argues that the film is both left-wing and right-wing.

I will not say more about the movie because it is better enjoyed without knowing too much about it.  It is not a big-budget summer blockbuster, but it is an enjoyable movie that may be under the radar.  Is Captain Fantastic fantastic?  I will have to think more about the question, but the movie certainly does restore your faith in small summer movies.

Rotten Tomatoes gives Captain Fantastic a 78% critics score and an 85% audience score.

What did you think of Captain Fantastic?  Leave your two cents in the comments.

Buy from Amazon

  • Nicolas Cage Shines In Modest But Surprising “Pig” (Short Review)
  • Bryan Cranston As LBJ in “All the Way” (Short Review)
  • Runaway Train (Missed Movies)
  • Tommy Lee Jones and “The Homesman” (Missed Movies)
  • A Balance Between Culture and Fun: “In Bruges” (Missed Movies)
  • Snow Angels (Missed Movies)

    • (Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)

    Bryan Cranston As LBJ in “All the Way” (Short Review)

    LBJ Bryan Cranston HBO’s movie adaptation of Robert Schenkkan’s play about the early presidency of Lyndon Baines Johnson is worthwhile viewing for largely one reason, Bryan Cranston in the lead role. With some help from make-up designer Bill Corso, Cranston gives the viewer what it might have felt like to have been around Johnson while he struggled with the major issues of those years.

    The movie begins with Johnson’s rise to the presidency when John F. Kennedy is killed, focusing on Johnson’s advocacy for the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the escalating war in Vietnam amidst his worries about the next election. As Johnson, Cranston captures the brilliance, vulnerability, insecurities, compassion, and vulgarity of Johnson, one of the most complex people to have ever lived in the White House.

    All the Way features a number of outstanding performances, such as Frank Langella as Senator Richard Russell, Antony Mackie as Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., Stephen Root as J. Edgar Hoover, Melissa Leo as Lady Bird Johnson, and Bradley Whitford as Hubert Humphrey. One criticism, which others have noted too, is that there is too much material and too many interesting characters for one 132-minute movie. Other important people come and go in the story, but director Jay Roach remains focused on LBJ while viewers may also want more.

    Ultimately, it is not Roach’s fault that this era was rich in important events and people. As in the case of Daniel Day-Lewis’s portrayal in Lincoln (2012), Cranston’s portrayal of Johnson is so compelling that it made me wish for a much-longer mini-series that revealed more details of events and more layers to the former president.

    Yet, for a one-shot movie that tries to convey the essence of the time and LBJ’s years between Kennedy’s assassination and Johnson’s election as president in his own right, All the Way is worth your time, even if sometimes it deviates from the historical record for dramatic effect. Cranston’s portrayal of Johnson will be remembered as one of the great presidential roles, and the movie does an excellent job at making Johnson a three-dimensional character with the mix of both majestic strengths and deep flaws.

    What did you think of “All the Way”? Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • The Scene in “The Right Stuff” That Makes You Love John Glenn
  • The Civil Rights Act of 1964 and “We Shall Overcome”
  • Wonderful Redwood Tree
  • Is “Captain Fantastic” Fantastic?
  • RFK (and Aeschylus) on MLK Assassination
  • Martin Luther King Jr. on “The Merv Griffin Show”

    • (Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)

    Low Budget Sci-Fi & Much More in “Robot & Frank” (Short Review)

    robot & frank There seems to be a small trend of some independent films using science fiction elements, usually with little special effects, to explore universal themes. Films like Another Earth (2011), Melancholia (2011), and The Man from Earth (2007), dwell in a setting that looks normal but with a small twist. Each shows that science fiction may be used to explore the human condition without a big blockbuster budget. The latest to join this trend is Robot & Frank (2012), directed by Jake Schreier and starring Frank Langella.

    Robot & Frank is set in the “near future,” so that easily explains why everything looks like today, except for fancier cell phones and some occasional robots, including the “Robot” in the title who is voiced by Peter Sarsgaard. Langella plays Frank, a former burglar who is gradually losing his memory. His son worries about him, so one day he brings him a robot to look after him. Frank is resistant to the robot but he gradually warms to the new house guest, who not only cooks and cleans but who also may be useful in some local thievery.

    The film is largely a character study with some meditations on aging, changing technology, and memory. Langella is excellent as always, as is Susan Sarandon. The movie may not bowl you over, and it did not go as deep into the themes as I might have liked. But it has a little suspense and subdued humor throughout. If you are looking for a sci-fi action film, you may want to look elsewhere. But if you are just trying to find a decent entertaining movie before the big Fall movies arrive, check out Robot & Frank.

    Other Reviews Because Why Should You Believe Me? Rotten Tomatoes has a respectable 89% critics rating and 87% audience rating for Robot & Frank. Jeff Meyers at MetroTimes enjoyed the film while noting, “The final act, in particular, feels rushed and formulaic, and a subplot with Frank’s daughter (Liv Tyler) goes nowhere — but it does benefit immensely from his underlying character study, which is rich, tender and artful.” Witney Seibold at CraveOnline writes “Robot & Frank is, all at once, an astute look at the near future, a chuckle-worthy heist movie, a pure exercise in science fiction, and a sweet little drama.

    What did you think of Robot & Frank? Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • Is “Captain Fantastic” Fantastic?
  • Bryan Cranston As LBJ in “All the Way” (Short Review)
  • “Pawn Sacrifice” and the Tragedy of Bobby Fischer (Short Review)
  • Doing “The Time Warp” Since 1975

    • (Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)