danieljfarthing

Inspired-by-truth drama "The Penguin Lessons" has a simple light feel with a good firm underlay. Cynical, apathetic English teacher Steve Coogan (not great but delivers some lines deliciously) takes a job at Jonathan Pryce's school (with the likes of Bjorn Gustafsson & Vivian El Jabor) in Argentina in 1976... just as a miltary coup kicks in, launching the infamous wave of 30,000 'disappeared'. To this backdrop Coogan inadvertently adopts a penguin, who bonds with him and who he (and the school) gradually warms to... who wouldn't?! Jeff Pope's screenplay & Peter Cattaneo's direction are unpretentious & balanced, to deliver an enjoyable jaunt... with a message. Good movie.

In 2017's 1996-set slow-burn dramatic thriller "Super Dark Times" Owen Campbell, Charlie Tahan, Sawyer Barth, & Max Talisman are average high-schoolers doing typical teen boy stuff (like discussing girls like Elizabeth Cappuccino) around their small upstate NY town... 'til a tragic accident plunges them into 'super dark times' when guilt, paranoia, and even madness grip. Co-writers Luke Piotrowski & Ben Collins (in their second of now many collaborations) nail the screenplay by balancing age & period details with the plot's growing tension, all of which Kevin Phillips brings home perfectly (in still the only full-length film he's directed). An excellent & original movie.

In stylish but pretentiously artsy drama "The Uninvited" Hollywood agent Walton Goggins (always good) & ex-actress wife Elizabeth Reaser (outstanding) host a party for guests including actors Pedro Pascal (Reaser's first love who supposedly oozes charm - tho Pascal doesn't convey that) & Goggins' main client Rufus Sewell (with actress gf Eva Di Dominici). As domestic issues unfold (particularly between Goggins & Reaser) elderly Lois Smith pitches up with her dementia apparently convincing her she lives there. What writer / director Nadia Conners intended with it all in her second film is unclear even after the credits roll. It's quite nice to look at, but ultimately meh.