It’s a crazy time we are all living in now, right? Normally, I would start these off with some sort of story or little joke but this month, it just doesn’t seem appropriate. So instead, here’s a quick thought from one mammal to another.
Your strange human world can turn on a dime at any given moment. If you take anything from those of us who walk on four feet instead of two, let it be this. Embrace every moment. Get out of your head. Stop worrying about what has happened to you in the past or what might happen to you in the future and focus on what you have right now. Because you may not have it tomorrow.
Live full. Love hard. And be considerate of each other.
The Lovebirds (2020) [R]
In The Lovebirds, Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani play a couple who have been together for a few years but whose relationship is starting to reach a turning point. They poke at each other and fight. They have just decided to end their relationship when they witness the death of a cyclist which unfortunately, involves their own car. The couple decide that the only way they will be able to clear their names is to play amateur detective and uncover why the cyclist was killed and by whom.
The direction and dialogue here are fine but what makes the movie is clearly the performances of Rae and Nanjiani. Director Michael Showalter does a good job of setting his lead actors up in a situation and then letting them take it where they want it to go. Sure there are a few supporting performances that help the plot along but the film belongs to our couple. And they do great things with what they are given.
Is The Lovebirds just a simple romantic comedy? Sure. But on a Saturday night, when you are stuck at home with that special someone, this is a perfect at-home date night movie. It is funny. It has some action. And it has a romance that you really believe in. I think it is just down-right enjoyable and you shouldn’t hesitate to give it a shot if your significant other suggests snuggling on the couch and watching it.
7.5 paws out of 10
Guns Akimbo (2020) [R]
Guns Akimbo stars Daniel Radcliffe as Miles, a socially awkward computer programmer who spends his evenings at home trolling folks on the internet. But Miles gets into it with the wrong people and winds up an unwitting participant in an underground online death match with Nix, played by Samara Weaving.
I’m not going to lie, there’s not a lot of substance here. It feels like Director Jason Lei Howden was attempting to insert some social commentary into the film but it really doesn’t work. What does work is Radcliffe. He is frankly a pleasure to watch in what is essentially a rip off of action films from the late 80s and early 90s. Throw in a little bit of Hardcore Henry style camera work inspired by first-person shooter games and you’ve got the recipe.
I should mention here that I watched Guns Akimbo back at the end of April before things really started to get serious. Maybe this isn’t the time to review a movie that is chock-full of hyper-stylized violence. Let me be clear, though. Guns Akimbo is not important cinema. It is, in the end, an hour and a half of Harry Potter running around while things blow up. It is a funny, forgettable diversion. And maybe that is something you could use right now. Maybe not.
6.5 paws out of 10
As always, if you have a movie you think I should check out or you want to talk further about one of these reviews, drop me a line on Facebook.