It'll remind you affectionately of all the different besties and crushes you had at different stages of your life and how easily one phase gave way to another in the whirlwind of young adulthood.Īlong the way, each interaction, each line, each nonverbal cue is exquisitely written and acted, weaving a story that we, and the critics who gave it its 94 Metascore, believe could actually happen. We see romances become friendships, friends become strangers, fathers become vulnerable, and a stranger become a daughter once again. Her interpersonal life is pretty turbulent. While the film's through line centers around Lady Bird's relationship with her mother, it tells this story through a series of relationships that Lady Bird cycles through during her senior year of high school. The conflict between the two men reveals the chilling insanity and cruelty of Barnes, and it all escalates to a fever pitch that will keep you on the edge of your seat in disbelief. This film is packed with the excitement and action of a military movie, but it also goes a bit harder than the typical war film as it depicts the tension between Sergeant Barnes and Elias through the eyes of a new-on-the-scene Army volunteer played by Charlie Sheen. Berenger represents the moral vacuum that gave way to the wartime abuses, and Dafoe embodies the ill-fated better nature of the opposing, more morally upright view. While the unpopular war is infamous for atrocities committed by troops, especially against civilians, Platoon chooses to hone in more closely on the particular sadism of an individual - and also heighten it a little bit. That's about as indie and underdog as it gets.ĭirector Oliver Stone had served in the infantry in the Vietnam War, and Platoon is his Oscar-winning, fictionalized account of the harsh realities he discovered there. For example, the last scene in Disney World was filmed on an iPhone without Disney's knowledge. Both the film itself and its protagonist are evidence of the power of imagination to make the best of the world. The film, which earned a score of 92 on Metacritic, reflects a wider perspective on America from a new and utterly absorbing vantage point, buoyed by some phenomenal performances, especially Willem Dafoe's. Though there's a pronounced difference between the weekenders spending their leisure time at an expensive theme park and Moonee and her mom struggling to make ends meet, it's all portrayed through the innocent and endearing point of view of a six-year-old. Because of its proximity to Disney World, the young girl meets all sorts of amusing characters as a result of the area's tourism (one couple accidentally books the Magic Castle motel for their honeymoon instead of the Magic Kingdom). The socioeconomic divide in America is glimpsed through the eyes of a little girl named Moonee, who lives in the Magic Castle motel. Sandler's acting prowess lures the viewer into rooting both for and against him, meaning there's never a moment we're not engaged. This double-sided coin is the rarest artifact of all. Howard's delusional bravado has made him a mildly successful smooth-talker, but it's also his constant means of self-destruction throughout this film. Even when you know he doesn't, he'll never let go of the illusion of having a plan - or not needing one. The central element that keeps this wild escapade from playing as implausibly out of control is Adam Sandler's performance as jeweler Howard Ratner. The plot gets so convoluted and thick that it would be harder to cut than a diamond, frantically propelling the action forward even as its characters fall desperately behind. Instead, Sandler's character finds himself trapped in a world of gambling, mobsters, and priceless stones. Here, Sandler once again plays the underdog, but the stakes are much higher than a getting a high school flame or winning a football game. But while many were initially skeptical of Sandler's apparent break from form, he proved his chops as an actor in 2019's crime thriller from Josh and Benny Safdie.
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