The latest film releases include “Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret,”
“Big George Foreman,” “Sisu,” and “Polite Society.” KCRW gets reviews from Katie Walsh, film reviewer for the Tribune News Service, the Los Angeles Times, and The Wrap; and William Bibbiani, film critic and co-host of the podcast “Canceled Too Soon” and “The Critically Acclaimed Network.”
“Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret”
Based on the beloved 1970 book by Judy Blume, this stars Rachel McAdams, Kathy Bates, and Abby Ryder Fortson. It follows 11-year-old Margaret as she navigates life after her family moves from the city to the suburbs.
Walsh: “Judy Blume was actually pretty hesitant to let this movie be adapted. She hasn't granted permission for a lot of her books to be adapted to the screen. But when Kelly Fremon Craig, who directed ‘The Edge of Seventeen,’ and James L. Brooks approached her, she knew they were the right ones for the job. And they have absolutely nailed it.
… It's warm and lived in, very entertaining and funny, but it also maintains the surprisingly radical and revolutionary spirit of Blume’s work, which is that showcasing the stories of women and girls is fundamentally important, as well as talking about … women's bodies, which has become contested in this country. But it's also just a really lovely, wonderful film about a girl navigating sixth grade, but also figuring out who she is in the world and what kind of person she wants to be.”
“Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavyweight Champion of the World”
The biographical sports drama focuses on the Olympic gold medalist-turned-preacher. Facing financial problems, he returns to boxing in his 40s and becomes a heavyweight champ. It stars Khris Davis as Foreman.
Bibbiani: “It's a very familiar typical biopic, and then it transforms. Director George Tillman Jr. … lets the movie change genre as the genre of Foreman's life alters. So it becomes, halfway through, a Christian movie, and then it becomes, briefly, a comedy. And at its best, this movie does a respectful job of telling George Foreman’s story and keeping that story interesting, even when it's odd by motion picture standards. It never quite hits that big inspiring crescendo that we're used to in a lot of great sports movies. But that's not really what George Foreman did. George Foreman just led an interesting life and they made an interesting movie about it.”
Walsh: “The film is also really focused on his career as a preacher and the things that he wanted to do to uplift his community and the youth center that he started. It really does grind to a halt in the middle of the movie to focus on this born-again Christian experience that he has, and it has glossed over all of the incredible sporting achievements that he had, like the Rumble in the Jungle, which happens halfway through the movie. So it's a strange pace. I do think there are some good performances. But yeah, you do have to realize this is the kind of movie that is being presented — it's the hagiography of George Foreman that he is producing himself.”
“Sisu”
Set during the end of World War II, this follows an ex-soldier who discovers gold in the wilderness. But as he tries to bring his loot back into the city, he’s confronted by Nazi soldiers.
Walsh: “It's sort of based on real-life history about the Nazis leaving Finland at the end of the war … in a devastation in their wake. But there's an older man who is a gold prospector, but it turns out that he's actually this legendary warrior who killed hundreds of Russians a few years earlier. And when these Nazis go after him, he fights back. … It's basically a silent action film and a lot of people are comparing it to ‘John Wick.’ I don't know if it's as good as ‘John Wick.’”
Bibbiani: “It is simple. It is direct. And I don't see that as inherently a problem,unless there's something I feel like the movie should be covering that it's not. But it's fine. Actually, I think the anger in this movie is directed in the right direction. The action sequences are fun, inventive, very, very violent.
… I really hope that people don't go, ‘Oh, it's another ‘John Wick’ kind of thing.’ I hope they realize that that's just part of the genre, and you can enjoy that as much as you can enjoy multiple rom-coms or multiple slasher movies that feel similar, but each do their own thing.”
“Polite Society”
In this British action comedy, Priya Kansara stars as a stunt woman-in-training who believes she must stop her older sister’s impending wedding. This film premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival.
Walsh: “It is a pastiche of all of these other movies: martial arts movies, Quentin Tarantino movies. There's a ‘Thelma & Louise’ reference. … Halfway through, I was getting a little tired of just it being pastiche and just referencing other things. I think what this director and what this is trying to do is assert a South Asian feminine perspective in all of these movies that are traditionally masculine. And I totally respect that and think that is a great goal to have in making a directorial debut. I just wished it was telling its own story, rather than referencing a bunch of other films.”
Bibbiani: “The movie blossoms into this incredibly wonderful action, comedy coming-of-age story. It's got wonderful characters in it. It's actually having some conversations about evolving roles for women in particular cultures. And it's just filmed wonderfully. It's a great directorial debut. All the actors rather feel like they’re stars in the making. I had an absolutely wonderful time watching this movie, and I would recommend it to anybody.”