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Tag Archives: Callum Turner


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My Review of THE BOYS IN THE BOAT

The Boys in the Boat, rated PG-13
*** ½

The Boys in the Boat is a well-made inspirational film based on the best-selling book by Daniel James Brown. The film was directed by two-time Oscar winner George Clooney (Argo, Syriana). The screenplay was written by Mark L. Smith (The Reverant).
The film is set in 1936 during the depression. It focuses on the University of Washington Huskies eight-man rowing team. Coach Al Ulbrickson, played by Joel Edgerton (The Stranger), needs a winning season to keep his job. The best rowing team in the country will represent the United States in the Olympics to be held in Berlin in front of Hitler.
The film revolves around Joe Rantz, played by Callum Turner (Fantastic Beasts films). Jobs are hard to find. Turner lives in poverty, sleeping in an old car and patching holes in his shoes with newspaper, and doesn’t always have money for food. He is taking classes to be an engineer at the University of Washington. He has been on his own after being abandoned at age fourteen by his father. He barely has enough money to eat and if he doesn’t find a job soon, he will no longer be able to continue his college education, having fallen behind in paying his tuition.
Sitting behind him in his engineering class is Joyce, played by Hadley Robinson (Little Women). Joyce reminds him that he had a crush on her back in the fourth grade.

*****SPOILER ALERT*****
The film shows a growing romance between the two.
Joe hears about a way to get a job by making the eight-person rowing team at the university, so he and a friend go to the tryouts, which are physically grueling. Neither had any previous rowing experience, but Joe does make the team, which gives him a room and a job.
Peter Guinness plays George Pocock, the wise and likeable mentor and maker of the boats that the team will row.
The film takes us through a few of the team’s races, beginning with the battle against the University of California Bears. The junior team outperforms the varsity team, and the coach makes the controversial decision to use the junior varsity team, instead of the varsity team, in an important race. If things go badly in the race, it could cost Coach Ulbrickson his job.
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The film has themes of sacrifice, hard work, and teamwork. The film is given a PG-13 rating for some adult language, including the abuse of God’s and Jesus’s names.
None of the actors had any rowing experience prior to making the film. They trained for five months.
The film features a solid cast, with particularly good performances by Turner, Edgerton, and Guinness. It also features some excellent historically recreated settings, and period costumes.
The Boys in the Boat is an enjoyable, though slightly predictable underdog story that the entire family can enjoy, with the understanding that the film does contain some adult language.


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My Review of Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore – rated PG-13
***

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, is the third film (out of a planned five), in the Fantastic Beasts series, a prequel to the Harry Potter series, taking place decades earlier, and based on characters created by J.K. Rowling. The film was entertaining, with creative production design, music by James Newton Howard, good special effects, some magic, and of course the beasts. However, the biggest of Dumbledore’s secrets (that he is gay) will not please some filmgoers. In addition, there were perhaps too many characters and subplots to keep track of.
The film was directed by Emmy nominee David Yates (The Girl in the Café). Yates has directed all three of the Fantastic Beasts films and also directed the last four of the Harry Potter films. The film was written by J.K. Rowling and Oscar nominee Steve Kloves (Wonder Boys). Kloves was the screenwriter for all but one of the Harry Potter films. The film cost approximately $200 million.
The film opens with magical zoologist Newt Scamander, played by Oscar winner Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything, The Danish Girl), witnessing a mother qilin (pronounced chillin), a rare deer-like animal, giving birth. The qilin are valuable for reasons we will find out later in the film. Immediately, there are those who try to steal the qilin baby.
Then we see Albus Dumbledore, played by two-time Oscar nominee Jude Law (Cold Mountain, The Talented Mr. Ripley), meeting Gellert Grinderwald played by Mads Mikkelsen in a restaurant. Mikkelsen replaces Johnny Depp as the Grinderwald character. They refer back to a romantic relationship they had years ago. Grinderwald has plans to take over the magical world and wage war on the Muggles (non-wizards), and tells Dumbledore, “With or without you, I’ll burn down their world”. Continue reading →


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My Review of FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE CRIMES OF GRINDELWALD

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, rated PG-13
*** ½

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald is the second installment of a planned five film Fantastic Beasts series. The new film is exciting, intense and darker than the first. It picks up in New York, shortly after the first film ended where the evil wizard Grindelwald, played by three-time Oscar nominee Johnny Depp (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street; Finding Neverland; Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl) has been captured and is being transferred back to the British Ministry of Magic. The film is directed by Emmy nominee David Yates (The Girl in the Café, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, and four Harry Potter films).  The film is written by J.K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter books. The film had a production budget of $200 million. The story takes place with beautiful views of New York City, London, Paris and Austria.
The film begins with an exciting and explosive scene in which Grindelwald escapes from detention while being transferred from a New York prison. In London, Newt Scamander, the “magizoologist”, played by Oscar winner Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything), is forbidden from leaving the country. His brother Theseus, played by Callum Turner tries to work things out for Newt, but Newt is not willing to do what is needed. Theseus is engaged to Leta Lestrange, played by Zoë Kravitz.
Newt is contacted by a young Dumbledore, played by two-time Oscar nominee Jude Law (Cold Mountain, The Talented Mr. Ripley), to help track down Credence Barebone, played by Ezra Miller (The Perks of Being a Wallflower). Credence is an Obscurial, a wizard who has repressed his magical abilities. Grindelwald is consolidating his power and has plans for wizards to take over the world. It is suspected that Credence will be recruited by Grindelwald to join his side. Newt is aided in the mission to find Credence by sidekicks returning from the first film, baker Jacob Kowalski, played by Dan Fogler, and magical Goldstein sisters Queenie, played by Alison Sudo, and Porpentina, known as Tina, played by Katherine Waterston. The battle for Credence takes place in Paris, and forms the main plot of the film, with several other subplots, included. Another major plot is to find out the true identity of Credence.
The film is visually stunning; the CGI, beasts, costumes, set design. The soundtrack by eight-time Oscar nominee James Newton Howard (Defiance, Michael Clayton, The Village) was outstanding.
The film introduces many new characters and revealed some of the backstory about some already known characters of the Harry Potter series. The film sets things up for the forthcoming films in the series. The movie also has a surprise ending.
The film has a strong cast, and there were several excellent acting performances, in particular Law, Depp, Kravitz and Redmayne, though the latter is not the main character as he was in the first film.
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald is an entertaining film that lovers of the Harry Potter films will enjoy, particularly scenes that take place at Hogwarts. It is intense and darker than the first film, and will be too scary for children under 10 years of age.