The Lost City Of Z (2016)

The whole point of this challenge is to check out different films that we may not have explored before and today we have chosen The Lost City Of Z. I have always been a fan of films that are based off of true stories and this one definitely peaked my interest, but it didn’t last very long in my local theater. The film follows a British soldier by the name of Percy Fawcett (Charlie Hunnam) who is fighting every day to restore the family name that was put in limbo by his father. While on a mapping expedition in the Amazon, Percy makes a huge discovery that there may have been a civilization in the Amazon that predates everyone. The only problem is that the journey is not an easy one and he faces many obstacles on his journey to try and discover the lost city he calls Z. The film also stars Sienna Miller (21 Bridges) as Nina Fawcett, Tom Holland (Onward) as Jack Fawcett, Robert Pattinson (Good Time) as Henry Costin, Edward Ashley (Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome) as Arthur Manley, Angus Macfadyen (We Bought A Zoo) as James Murray, Ian McDiarmid (Star Wars: Episode VI-Return Of The Jedi) as Sir George Goldie, Clive Francis (A Clockwork Orange) as Sir John Scott Keltie, Franco Nero (Django Unchained) as Baron De Gondoriz, and the film was directed by James Gray (We Own The Night).

What was surprising about the film wasn’t necessarily the story itself or the way the presented it, but the acting in my opinion is the highlight. Robert Pattinson in particular was a highlight for me as the mysterious, drunk, but loyal Mr. Costin who had accompanied Fawcett on some of the journeys. The actors did such an amazing job of conveying the torture they had been going through on the journey with the sicknesses and the lack of provisions. They did an amazing job as portraying how difficult the Amazon itself was and how things were drastically different there then where they had been. The movie isn’t perfect in any way shape or form, but it’s kind of a cool adventure to be on for the two plus hours that you’re watching. I liked Charlie Hunnam’s performance, but I think too many people stole the show on him on too many occasions. Whether it be Pattinson or Angus Macfayden who plays someone who is not what they are expected to be. I thought the sets and costumes were amazing as it felt like you were really there in the Amazon in 1912 or so. The ending of the film definitely tries it’s best to not speculate on what exactly happened to Fawcett and his son despite all the different theories that there are out there. It’s sad to read online that his other son was never interested in the truth, but rather the revenue over the speculation of his death. Check out the film for yourself, I am going to give it an B+ for a final grade.

Good Time (2017)

Earlier in the year, we introduced you to the Safdie brothers (Benny and Josh) who directed the film Uncut Gems that starred Adam Sandler that was a surprise at the box office. That was a very unique film that they made to see if I enjoyed their style. So, I decided to go on Netflix and after seeing that they had a film on there I decided that I would check it out in 2017's Good Time. The film stars Robert Pattinson (The Lighthouse) as Connie Nikas, a guy on the wrong side of the law that decides to get his developmentally disabled brother Nick (Benny Safdie) in a bank robbery that goes terribly wrong. The only problem is that Connie manages to escape while his little brother gets caught and sent to jail. All Connie needs to do to get him out is to come up with $15,000, but he also has to avoid getting caught by the police and that is going to prove to be challenging. The film also stars Buddy Duress (Beware Of Dog) as Ray,  Taliah Webster (Hair Wolf) as Crystal, Jennifer Jason Leigh (Fast Times At Ridgemont High) as Corey Ellman, Barkhad Abdi (Captain Phillips) as security guard, Necro as Caliph, and Peter Verby as Peter The Psychiatrist.

After watching this film, I have come to the conclusion that while I may not be a huge fan of their directing style or even their writing skills, this was not a terrible film. They have this thing with just launching you into a story and you have to figure out what in the hell is going on and why are these people even important?  The style of the film is almost identical to that of Uncut Gems which means there is not a lot that is going into the main plot other than the fact that Robert Pattinson has to save his brother. In this film, we get introduced to characters and the one rule is that you better not get too attached to some of them because they are gone just as quick as they arrive like Jennifer Jason Leigh's character. One thing that I will say is that each film has amazing performances from their main star with Sandler being awesome in Gems and Robert Pattinson just killing it in this film. He just commands the screen every time he is on it and he has more than proven that he should not be judged by the fact that he was in The Twilight Series. You saw the masterful performance from him in The Lighthouse and you get just that in this one as he manages to slither his way through New York City. The cinematography and tones are very visceral and intense and can I just say that Peter the shrink just kind of weirds me out a little bit. The film is on Netflix as I said and it's worth the watch. That is why I am going to be giving the film an B for a final grade and only because of Pattinson's performance alone.