January 30th

The Eyes of Tammy Faye

Dear Rider (digital download)

Meet the Ricardos (streaming on Amazon Prime)

I've made a new year resolution to be a bit more ruthless in my scoring. (We'll see how long that lasts!) Despite not being in my famous 4/5 department, these three films all come well recommended and I enjoyed them all immensely. So don't be deterred.  

The Eyes of Tammy Faye

Dir: Michael Showalter

Length: 126 mins

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMMLRnXPPJk

© Searchlight - behind the scenes of 
two supposedly God-fearing folk

In 1960 18-year-old Tammy Faye, daughter of Pentecostal preachers, met Jim Bakker at Bible college. They soon married and embarked upon a career of spreading the word - Jim preaching and Tammy singing. They then founded a tele-evangelist news program called The PTL Club (Praise the Lord), and from then their fame and wealth burgeoned. But it was not to last, and allegations of fraud and worse brought their carefully built house of opulence and over-indulgence crashing down. The film tells the story in a very chronological and conventional way, but everything is made more interesting firstly by Jessica Chastain's extraordinary performance (much nominated and awarded) as Tammy Faye. Her make-up/hair department have also done an incredible job! Andrew Garfield as Jim neatly channels the smarminess of such preachers, always hustling for money, under the guise of religious do-gooding and soul-saving. This is particularly disturbing and resonant stuff, given the current rise of the religious right and their churches, which seem to bleed worshippers of their money, and to harbour far-right propaganda. Though the film feels a little in the realms of caricature at the start, it becomes stronger as it goes along, and one can only sit open mouthed in horror at such reprehensible hood-winking of people desperate to save their souls. Fortunately there is some redemption for Tammy Faye.

3.5 - well recommended

Dear Rider: The Jake Burton Story

Dir: Fernando Villena

Length: 91 mins

Available for digital download

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5Mpj73OVDE

© Universal - a life lived to the full

Jake Burton was a pioneer of the sport of snowboarding. Fuelled by a passion for adventure and a dare-devil attitude, he was determined a person could "surf" on snow, and created his first snowboard. Soon his company was producing boards galore, slugging it out with rival companies, and Jake was successfully getting the sport accepted into the mainstream. (In 1998, the sport debuted at the Nagano Olympics). With truckloads of archival footage of the early days of the sport, through to footage of death-defying tricks performed by today's aficionados and professional athletes, this doco could well be any snowboarder's wet dream. All is suitably augmented by commentary from fans, friends and fellow riders. But at heart it is the story of a man with more drive and zest for life than imagined possible, and the very large challenges that came to beset him in his later years. It is also the story of that close-knit community of boarders, often seen as larrikins by those on the outer, but possessing a drive, fearlessness and talent that can can only be marvelled at.

3.5 - well recommended - (for boarders, probably unmissable!)

Being the Ricardos

Dir: Aaron Sorkin

Length: 131 mins

Streaming on Amazon Prime

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WvrjCdtB0zM

© Amazon Prime - what a vibrant couple!

I Love Lucy was a perennial TV favorite for so many people in the 1950s. So when the McCarthy era witch-hunts emerged, and Lucille Ball (Nicole Kidman) found herself in the naughty corner for supposedly being a Communist, it was a major threat to her career. This entertaining biopic covers not only that era of the famed comedienne's life, but also the backstory of her rise to fame, meeting husband Desi Arnaz (Javier Bardem), and how she became the visionary for so much of the Lucy show. Kidman has just snaffled the Golden Globe for best dramatic performance, and justifiably so. She inhabits her character, as does Bardem, whose Desi is a great showman, musician and actor, but whose wandering ways are death to their high-profile marriage. The recreation of an era is magnificently done, from the Latino nightclubs where Desi played, through to the fab fifties sets and clothing. The film is also an informative insight into how a weekly comedy show was put together, through the creative process, rehearsals and up to the filming in front of a live audience. With excellent support performances from JK Simmons, Alia Shawkat and Nina Arianda as the writing team this is a terrific entertainment, even if we didn't really need the mockumentary insertions of characters in the modern era reminiscing.

3.5 - well recommended