Meryl Streep plays Margaret Thatcher in "The Iron Lady" Photo Credit: Weinstein Studios

No Deficiency in Streep’s Performance

In a sea of black suits, shiny loafers and grey haired men stands one royal blue suit, a pair of black and white patent leather heels, and a matching blue hat. This is no ordinary lady. She is “The Iron Lady.”

Academy Award Winner Meryl Streep was given her 17th Oscar nod for her remarkable portrayal of Margaret Thatcher. Streep doesn’t just stand out in this film; she carries it.

Director, Phyllida Lloyd, who also directed Streep in “Mamma Mia,” teams up with writer Abi Morgan in this dramatic biopic. Unfortunately, the makers of this film should have ironed out a large kink first, the underwhelming script. For a film focusing on the defining moments of a controversial political leader, it simply takes no stance. Instead, we watch Thatcher battle dementia in present day as we decipher between flashbacks and hallucinations of the memorable highs and lows of her past. It is odd that the most controversial part of the film focuses on the subject of dementia. It seems as though the filmmakers were more intent on educating audiences about dementia, than her story. Many commentators question the morality of depicting Thatcher’s slow, disturbing decline while she is still alive.

Despite these debates, however, audiences will admire Streep’s natural talent. In her striking depiction of the serious, ruthless political leader, she matches the voice, mannerisms and pursed lips with precision. Much credit goes to the make up department for the flawless image of Thatcher, down to every last wrinkle and wave in her hair.

Margaret Thatcher, the iconic former British Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, certainly decided to strike while the iron was hot. The determined, sharp, vigilant and courageous female leader joined the male-dominated world of Parliament and never looked back. Thatcher was the first female Prime Minister and longest serving of the 20th century. Toward the end of her reign, the UK saw a decline in the prosperity of their nation including the highest unemployment rate since 1934, the biggest steel and coal production drop since 1931 and the largest collapse in industrial production since 1921. As if being the first and only female Prime Minister wasn’t enough, her conservative stance was constantly challenged, by Parliament and especially by the vocal and influential labor unions.

Daniel Radcliffe stars in THE WOMAN IN BLACK

Radcliffe Ditches the Magic, But Not the Ghosts

Transitioning from child megastar to serious, young adult actor is a precarious business, with crashing and burning happening all too often. Fortunately for audiences, Daniel Radcliffe, of “Harry Potter” fame, seems to be defying the odds, first with his success in theater and now with a gratifying turn in the ghostly horror movie, “The Woman In Black.”

In the late 1980s, Susan Hill’s 1983 novel was brought to the stage in London, resulting in a hugely popular, long-running play. Now, filmmakers take their turn with the movie version, written by Jane Goldman and directed by James Watkins. Overall, the movie, with its throwback, ghost story styling’s, is satisfying, although not without it’s problems. The film’s opening scene is quite promising as three young girls, innocently enjoying a tea party among their porcelain dolls, suddenly rise and, in a trance-like state, jump out the attic windows to their death.

Tilda Swinton and John C. Reilly star in WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN

Thrilling From Start to Finish

Motherhood is no walk in the park, unless maybe it’s an amusement park. Most mothers will tell you that, although generally rewarding and wonderful, it’s an emotional roller coaster ride, full of twists and turns. It’s the sudden drop you don’t see coming that really takes your breath away. In the psychological thriller “We Need To Talk About Kevin,” that emotional roller coaster is more akin to falling out of an airplane, without a parachute.

Based on the award-winning novel of the same name, written by Lionel Shriver, the movie is an unsettling look into the emotional turmoil of a mother whose sociopathic son makes “The Omen’s” Damien pale in comparison. Director Lynne Ramsay, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Rory Stewart, has succeeded in bringing to the big screen a riveting psychological train wreck, one that’s difficult to watch, but just as difficult to turn away from.

In her performance as Kevin’s mother Eva, Academy Award winner Tilda Swinton (“Michael Clayton” 2007) rises to the top once again and is really the main reason why the film works. She is utterly believable no matter the situation, whether fumbling as a new mother of her colicky baby, lacking patience with her obstinate toddler, fearing the actions of her teen son or hanging by a thread when all is lost. Through it all, Eva remains an instinctively protective mother, even though she won’t be winning any mother of the year awards.

Ad Art "One For the Money" Photo Credit:Lionsgate

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Save Your Money and Skip This One

Fans of Janet Evanovich’s beloved mystery book series featuring ‘Stephanie Plum’ as the main character will be disappointed in the film adaption, as the lead in the film is terribly miscast. The role calls for an Italian, blue-collar ‘Jersey Girl’ of sorts, and Katherine Heigl doesn’t fit the bill. Her familiar blonde curly locks are dyed dark brown in an attempt to look the part, however, her East coast-Italian accent was off-key. At least in “27 Dresses” she was believable. To be fair, the script doesn’t help her situation, as her lines are mundane and shallow.

Director Julie Anne Robinson (“The Last Song”) is at the helm with a script penned by Stacy Sherman, Karen Ray and Liz Brixius. The majority of the film centers on Plum’s novice attempt to bring in bail jumper, Joe Morelli (Jason O’Mara), a vice cop who’s accused of shooting an unarmed man. Plum, an ex-lingerie sales gal at Macy’s in Newark, New Jersey, is clueless on how to accomplish this task. I’m assuming that’s the attraction of the series, Plum’s submersion into the foreign world of guns, stakeouts, informants and trap setting.

The plot sounds charming. Her mother, father, grandmother, cousin and bond office workers can’t believe she’s serious about her ‘new’ job. In the film, they mostly humor her but don’t help her too much, usually they stand by while rolling their eyes in disbelief. One person does come forward − her wacky grandmother, played by the scene-stealing Debbie Reynolds. When we meet Plum, she’s down on her luck and is having trouble paying rent and car payments. When her car is repossessed, Grandma offers the keys to her own car, a humongous town car of sorts that’s great for transportation but not so hot for her job. There’s no way the car could ever be well hidden on a stakeout job.

Weinstein Studios Photo Credit

1920s Film has Similar Themes as Today: Love, Vanity, Pride and Fame

Shot in black and white with no dialogue, ‘cleverness’ is this 1920s nostalgic film’s strength. So many people have been asking me questions about its unique style, as “The Artist” is getting lots of award buzz. Here’s the repetitive burning question, “Is there really no talking?” The answer is yes, there’s basically no dialogue (except for a few lines near the end), however: the musical score, sound effects and written story details all compensate for the omission of human voices. The premise is simple storytelling at its best, with two talented stars whose personas appear eerily made-to-order for the 20s era. Add a scene stealing Jack Russell Terrier − and you’ve got a sure fire winner.

Visually, the film is stunning with spot-on direction by Michel Hazanavicius, who’s also the screenplay writer. He’s a Frenchman who would be considered a newcomer by Hollywood standards, as he has limited film-directing credits. Perhaps one clue to the film’s success (besides its unique nature) may be the cohesiveness between the director and his two stars, Jean Dujardin and Berenice Bejo. All have worked together on prior projects with Hazanavicius stating that in 2005 he’d approached the two actors with the idea. The script was written with the duo in mind.

Taking place in Hollywood, 1927, silent film megastar George Valentin (Dujardin) is having a tough time ‘getting on board’ with the idea of talking in film. He basically thumbs his nose at the studio and refuses to comply. While on the set of his last major silent film he meets a young, enthusiastic extra named Peppy Miller (don’t you love the name!), and both are smitten from the get go. Valentin is in a failing marriage and soon his wife does leave.

Thomas Horn plays Oskar Schell

Tambourine Clad Boy Searches for Answers After 9/11

That dreadful day (Sept. 11th), a precocious 11-yr. old boy, a deceased father, a grieving mother, a caring grandmother, a mysterious key, a silent renter and the residents of New York are all woven together into the movie version of author Jonathan Safran Foer’s book of the same name. A stellar cast, anchored by Tom Hanks, with Sandra Bullock and Viola Davis, all shine in scenes with young newcomer Thomas Horn. The downside − too many loose ends and inadequate explanations − leaves too many unanswered questions in this very sad story.

Director Stephen Daldry and screenwriter Eric Roth have crafted a film that is told through the inner voice of 11-year-old Oskar Schell (Thomas Horn) while he searches New York City for a lock that will fit a key, hoping to solve a secret concerning his deceased father.

Oskar is no ordinary middle school child. He’s highly intelligent, has many fears, is rude to adults, talks in continuous monologue, is socially awkward, perseverates on a topic and has no friends his own age. In my past teaching of gifted 9-11 year olds, these characteristics were recognizable signs of Asperger’s syndrome. In the film, Oskar states that he was tested for this disorder, but then the topic is dropped and we are left to draw our own conclusions.

Viewing a grieving child on-screen as well as adding these unique characteristics could be a deal breaker as to whether you’ll decide to see the film, as Oskar is at the core of the movie. I can tell you that Horn had no previous acting experience and was a big winner on the TV show, “Kid’s Jeopardy.” I can also explicitly tell you, that he handled an extremely verbose script with spot-on pacing and flawless emotion. This was a tough role, even for an experienced child actor. Horn was perfect as Oskar. You can’t help but root for him; he draws you into his world, longing to be noticed, craving love, attention and sympathy.

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Move over Angelina, there’s a new girl in town. With a stellar cast consisting of Channing Tatum, Ewan McGregor, Michael Fassbender, Antonio Banderas, Bill Paxton and Michael Douglas, audiences may be convinced to run to the theater without even seeing the trailer. What audiences don’t know is that a woman with much less experience in the acting world impressively leads the cast. Mixed martial arts superstar, Gina Carano (American Gladiators) makes her film debut as female co-op specialist, Mallory Kane, and boy does Carano bring it! As soon as Mallory discovers she’s been double crossed, revenge is her answer to everything. Carano performs her own high adrenaline stunts in this action-thriller loaded with betrayal, espionage, action, suspense and secrecy.

Academy Award winning director Steven Soderbergh (Contagion) cranked out his 25th film, “Haywire,” and wasn’t afraid to go full throttle in the fighting department. Soderbergh set the bar high with his 2001 Oscar winning drug film, “Traffic” and the popular “Ocean’s” series. “Haywire” doesn’t quite stack up to those memorable films, however. Even though audiences are supposed to be almost as much in the dark as the victim, the storyline relies too heavily on the fighting itself and could have used a little more character development. With a title like “Haywire” expectations are high. Despite these criticisms, however, it’s still incredibly entertaining with its jaw dropping fight scenes, brilliant cast and gorgeous scenery throughout European cities and countrysides.

G.G. (Dolly Parton) and Vi Rose (Queen Latifah) get into an all out girl fight in "Joyful Noise" Photo Credit: WarnerBros

"Joyful Noise" Doesn’t Quite Hit the High Note
When times aren’t exactly peachy in the peach state, the small town of Pacashau, Georgia looks to the two leading ladies of the Divinity Church Choir to bring home a trophy to revive the lost hope in the community. Winning the National Joyful Noise Competition seems to be the only thing that could lift the spirits of this economically depressed town.

This goody-goody “Glee” and “Disney”-esque film, directed by Todd Graff (“Bandslam”), centers on faith, love, music and restoration. While many of the musical numbers are hits in this musically driven comedy they are unfortunately accompanied by a lackluster, unorganized script.

Queen Latifah (“Chicago,”) and Dolly Parton (“Transamerica”), both past Academy Award nominees, are polar opposite power women who don’t quite sing to the same tune in this spiritually based film. Casting two very strong, contrasting women seems like the perfect idea for a movie, especially if looking to expand the target audience. Although this may work in theory, in the case of “Joyful Noise,” there is so much contrast between the characters that it falls short of genuine.

While both stars bring their overtly distinctive attitudes to the screen, Parton’s character, G.G. Sparrow, was overdone. As a viewer, I felt like I was watching a children’s program during most of Parton’s face time, with her unique high-pitched voice and overall ‘dolled’ up look that we’ve come to expect. She spoke to her troubled teenage grandson, Randy (Jeremy Jordan) as if he was 6 years old. Parton, playing her first lead role in nearly 20 years, wrote original songs for the film, including "Not Enough.” The scenes featuring her songs were entertaining for about 30 seconds. Audiences were especially restless during the scene where she sings, “From Here to the Moon and Back,” while fantasizing about her husband still being alive. I don’t blame them. Although die-hard Dolly fans may feel differently, her songs seemed to fall flat.