ScreenFish

where faith and film are intertwined

Jonah Hill

SF Radio 8.13 Distracted from Devastation in DON’T LOOK UP

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It’s the end of the world as we know it… and we feel fine. After all, who needs to worry about global destruction when we’ve got celebrity culture, political division and other things to distract us. This is the premise of Adam McKay’s DON’T LOOK UP which introduces us to two scientists (Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence) who discover that a massive comet is about to plummet towards the Earth… but no one seems to care. This week, the Dream Team of Jolie Featherstone (@TOFilmFiles) and ScreenFish’r Julie Levac reassembles to talk about the things that distract us, misunderstood evil and what we’d do on our last night on Earth.

You can watch the episode on YouTube and stream on podomatic, Alexa (via Stitcher), Spotify, iHeart Radio or Amazon Podcasts! Or, you can downoad the ep on Apple Podcasts!

Want to continue to conversation at home?  Click the link below to download ‘Fishing for More’ — some small group questions for you to bring to those in your area.

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7.02 Cashing in on MONEYBALL

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As the World Series continues on in the real world, we thought that it would be fun to get in the game with Moneyball, the Oscar-nominated film that tells the story of Oakland A’s GM Billy Beane and his attempt to change the sport of baseball using new statistical techniques. This week, we welcome back Paul Levac and rookie Scott Trew to talk about why we’re so romantic about baseball, the meaning of confidence and our Top 5 sports films of all time.

You can also stream the episode above on podomatic, Alexa (via Stitcher), Spotify or Soundcloud! Or, you can download the ep on Apple Podcasts or Google Play!

Want to continue to conversation at home?  Click the link below to download ‘Fishing for More’ — some small group questions for you to bring to those in your area.

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Mid90s: Choosing Your Family

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Mid90s is not your typical coming-of-age piece. Set in 1990’s LA, it is an intricate look into the skate culture of that time. Exploring deep friendship, hardship, belonging and passion, Jonah Hill’s directorial debut is his passion project that is so much more than what you would expect it to be.

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Stevie (Sunny Suljic), is a melancholy 13 year old boy who is being physically and emotionally abused by his older brother, Ian (Lucas Hedges). This isn’t just rough-housing – Ian fully beats Stevie. Stevie’s home life is clearly not ideal. His mother, Dabney (Katherine Waterston), is promiscuous and somewhat absent. There is no father figure in the picture and they don’t appear to be very well off. As a result, one could imagine that these boys would struggle in such an environment, especially at such an impressionable age.

Stevie seems like a lonely outcast. When he stumbles on a group of skateboarders, he is immediately captivated, not only with the sport, but with the people. He’s desperate for a place to belong. He trades his brother for an old skateboard, begins to practice, and inches his way into the group day by day. Finally, he has found friendship and a support system that he doesn’t get anywhere else, particularly at home. He hangs around with older boys very unlike his older brother and, instead of picking and beating on him, they welcome him and make him almost like their young protege. Seeing Stevie’s cheesy smile when he’s around his friends is so innocent, yet heart-wrenching. He doesn’t seem to have any other joy in his life. When he’s around his friends, he can finally be free of all of his family drama.

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There was a poignant scene where some of the boys were talking to a homeless man. I hate to say it, but I fully expected at least one of the boys to turn their nose up and crack a joke but they had a legitimate and heartfelt conversation with him. Despite the fact that they’re at very different places in their lives, it’s almost as if the boys could relate to the heartbreak and hardship.

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Along the same vein, after Stevie goes through a lifetime of difficulty for such a young man, he has a conversation with Ray (Na-kel Smith). We realize that Stevie isn’t the only one with problems. Ray starts spilling some of the other boys’ drama. He explains to Stevie that if we were to look in the closets of other people, we wouldn’t want to trade our drama for theirs. It can always be worse. It becomes even more apparently that all of the boys were there because they wanted to get away from their problems and be with their chosen family. They wanted to have fun and be passionate about something. Through skateboarding, they could escape for a while before going back to reality.

After watching the film, I kept asking myself, “How young is too young?” Stevie is hanging out with much older boys, smoking, drinking, experimenting with his sexuality, and all at 13 years old. As an aside, Sunny Suljic was only 11 years old at the time of filming. I found myself slightly uncomfortable during some scenes because he was so young. But I must admit that this discomfort was most definitely necessary in fully conveying the tone of the film.

The language in this film was quite harsh at times, not only with swearing, but also with slang and derogatory terms that aren’t as acceptable in the current day. But I have to admit, it was very 90s. Jonah Hill definitely paid close attention to the detail in the dialogue.

The film had an impressive score created by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. The music played a huge role in the overall tone and really made you feel like you were in that decade.

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I very much appreciated that Jonah Hill cast real skaters for the film. They weren’t actors who learned how to skate for the film. They were normal skate kids who just so happened to be able to act. Not only did it give the film an incredible sense of authenticity, but we didn’t have to suffer through cuts and camera tricks so they could swap out doubles. Jonah Hill has stated that he never thought skating was done justice in film and, although I have to give a deserving mention to Lords of Dog Town, I will say that Mid90s is up there when it comes to its depiction of skate culture.

Other than Sunny Suljic, the phenomenal cast of skaters included Na-kel Smith, Olan Prenatt, Gio Galacia, and Ryder McLaughlin. Their chemistry was so believable and I don’t think the film would have been the same without them.

For a first time director, Jonah Hill has solidified himself as a huge contender in the industry. I’m thrilled to see what he imagines next.

Mid90s is in theatres today.

Don’t Worry He Won’t Get Far On Foot: Hope, Healing and Higher Powers

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Directed by Gus Van Sant (Good Will Hunting, Elephant), Don’t Worry He Won’t Get Far On Foot tells the story of controversial cartoonist, John Callahan. After nearly dying in a car accident, the last thing Callahan (Joaquin Phoenix) intends to do is give up alcohol. Reinvigorated by his girlfriend and a charming sponsor, Donnie (Jonah Hill), Callahan reluctantly enters Alcoholics Anonymous and discovers that his passion for drawing. The budding artist soon finds himself with a new lease on life when his edgy and irreverent newspaper cartoons gain a national and devoted following.

In its best moments, Don’t Worry… provides Phoenix ample opportunity to showcase his incredible ability to disappear into a role. His portrait of Callahan balances both pride and brokenness in an engaging manner. However, it’s Jonah Hill who continues to surprise. As Callahan’s sponsor, Hill steals the film, depicting Donnie as a complex picture of truth and grace. Interestingly though, it’s director Van Sant’s decision to break the film’s narrative structure that creates the most conversation. By juxtaposing moments of death with moments of hope and personal breakthrough, Van Sant seems to want us to understand that each moment of our lives informs the next. In other words, by presenting the life of his subject to the viewer seemingly all at once, the film serves as a reminder that Callahan’s battles also mirror and enlighten his successes. (For instance, in one particular scene, Van Sant parallels Callahan’s tragic car accident with a moment when he falls from his wheelchair, reminding us that his past has created his present.) While jarring in some places, the technique proves effective for the majority of the film, offering context to Callahan’s journey in a unique manner.

Since much of the film chronicles Callahan’s journey with Alcoholics Anonymous, Don’t Worry…is imbued with intriguing conversations about reliance on a higher power. Callahan’s journey to sobriety takes him on a genuine wrestling match with God—although, to be fair, what God looks like here is entirely subjective and even unorthodox. (For example, Donnie’s vision of a higher power takes the form of psychotic doll Chucky, because “he’s unpredictable”.) For Callahan, his journey towards healing begins with his acknowledgement of his own weakness and his need for help from someone more powerful. In the strangest of realities, there is a healing that takes place when he understands his own human frailty and accepts the spiritual strength from Another. (As a pastor, I can relate to this truth on any number of levels.)

However, Callahan’s story is not merely one of healing through group therapy either. In fact, his journey also shows the power of finding your voice. Known for his political cartoons, Callahan found his true calling by speaking on behalf of a generation that was struggling to find itself. Though frequently controversial in his content, Callahan committed himself to expressing himself in ways that challenged the cultural norm. In doing so, his voice also gave him sense of hope and purpose that had eluded him throughout much of his life.

In the end, Don’t Worry He Won’t Get Far On Foot is a poignant character piece about one man’s fight for self-discovery. Anchored by Phoenix but buoyed by Hill, the film is often engaging in ways that are both challenge and entertain. Though not his best work, Van Sant can still create well-rounded characters that don’t shy away from their frailties but still highlight their hopefulness as well.

War Dogs: War is Money

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This isn’t about being pro-war. The war is happening. This is about being pro-money.–Efraim

In his latest film, The Hangover trilogy director Todd Philips dramatizes the unlikely rise of Efraim Diveroli (Jonah Hill) and David Packouz (Miles Teller), who found loopholes in the military’s use of privately-owned weapons to build a gun-running empire. As international arms dealers, the two high school friends are highly successful financially, but the ethical (or unethical) decisions they make, and the secrets they keep, threaten to undo them.

Packouz longs to be successful after failing at his various career attempts, and feels pressure when his girlfriend, Iz (Ana de Armas), ends up pregnant. When his slick friend rolls back into town, he ends up being sucked into the casual violence Diveroli inhabits regularly. They deceive Iz, who is specifically anti-war, and make deals with the U.S. government that make them richer, Still, their plans are complicated when a deal is jammed up by new legislature. Flying to the Middle East, the two end up delivering the guns on their own, leading them deeper and deeper into the arms race. When they end up teaming with legendary dealer Henry Girard (Bradley Cooper), their company’s downward spiral begins.

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When does telling the truth ever help anybody? — Efraim

In this Warner Bros.’ release, the ‘based-on-a-true-story’ film gets a few special features on the home media Blu-ray/DVD, with Phillips’ “General Phillips: Boots on the Ground”, “War Dogs: Access Granted,” and “Pentagon Pie.” Fans of the film may find these helpful in seeing how the film came together, and may consider doing a bit of research on their own in breaking down how the strange story came to be – and how Hollywood made it even wilder.

Whether you approve of the Hollywood ‘take’ on the film or not, it’s clear that dishonesty catches up with our two antiheroes. It’s also abundantly clear that Diveroli’s influence leads Packouz down a dark and dangerous path (he does cameo in the elderly home concert scene). While the cover might make one think of Scarface, it may be more appropriate to consider this The Devil’s Advocate. Where we focus our time and attention tends to lead us – even when we say our heartfelt conviction believes otherwise.

Hail Caesar!: Hello, Hollywood

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We are all looking for something until we find it. With their typical humor and wit, the Coen Brothers have delivered a film about the quest for that thing (whatever it may be) for a cast of characters ripped out of 1951 Hollywood, with its Communists, Cold War, and economics. And, as can’t be ignored, it sports a long line of A-list and B-list actors to poke fun at itself all while romping around California.

Michael Gambon narrates, but Josh Brolin’s fixer Eddie Mannix is the story’s glue. He’s supposed to solve studio problems when stars get into trouble, whether it’s taking inappropriate pictures in studio costume, drinking too much and skipping shots, or, in the case of Baird Whitlock, getting kidnapped by Communists. But while Mannix is our viewpoint, he’s not really in control, because, well, no one is.

hailcaesar4Hobbie Doyle (Aiden Ehrenreich, who is about to be Han Solo the younger) is a singing cowboy who wants to be taken seriously. Laurence Laurentz (Ralph Fiennes) is a big time director who can’t get the actors he wants, but settles for training those he has. DeeAnna Moran (Scarlett Johansson) is the bombshell who is pregnant but who can’t give up the baby and won’t get married at Mannix’s assistance. Burt Gurney (Channing Tatum) is… more than meets the eye.

It’s all a bit much. But the Coen Brothers delivered Raising Arizona, Fargo, The Big Lebowski, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, and Burn After Reading, so it’s not just the over-the-top violence they know how to wrangle. This is period-piece work, and clever, but it’s the kind of funny that doesn’t generate many laugh out loud moments, just shakes of the head. (One of the many ironies is seeing the way that Hollywood is being critiqued by some of its biggest stars who play its biggest games…)

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In one early scene, Mannix tries to run the script of a film by a rabbi, a Protestant minister, and a Catholic priest. He wants to know if the portrayal of Jesus is offensive, but the men are more inclined to tell him that they think the chariot chase is ridiculous. Mannix wants to know that the film will not be offensive to “any American regardless of creed,” which in itself is ironic and ridiculous: Jesus was and still is offensive to people because of what he taught, but to Hollywood, there’s an expectation that Jesus can be watered down until everyone who accept that version of Jesus. Unfortunately, many churches do that, too, right?

Special features on the Blu-ray include a look at the Coens’ intentions in “Directing Hollywood,” the cast’s response in “The Stars Align,” and the setup to the glamour and glitz in “An Era of Glamour” and “Magic of a Bygone Era,” with cast, crew, costumes, and set.

True Story: What Is Truth?

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true storyIn FOX’s True Story, Jonah Hill and James Franco go sifting through the truth and lies of stolen identity, but this isn’t a light-hearted look at someone messing with your credit scores. No, this is a film based on the real-life biopic of Michael Finkel (Hill), who finds that Christian Longo (Franco), an accused serial killer, has stolen his identity. When the two men meet, a relationship develops, and suddenly, the truth of the matter is a very nebulous thing indeed.

While the plot of the film progresses slowly, there’s a certain amount of captivating tension that one can appreciate when picking through the pile of information surrounding a true life whodunit. Did Longo kill his wife and children? Is he innocent? Can Finkel actually figure it out?

The film is helped along by the fact that the principal actors are joined by Felicity Jones, Gretchen Mol, and others, who all provide significant heft to their roles. The dialogue is reasonably engaging, and the case itself led to some significant possibilities in the plot lines. But ultimately,  it boils down to Franco’s Longo and Hill’s Finkel wrestling verbally, over truth, identity, memory, and relational power.

What complicates the actual case playing out in court is the case Finkel finds himself in over an article he wrote for the New York Times, where he created a “composite” of various people he met while researching a story. He didn’t necessarily change the truth of the situations but he combined the stories in a way that his bosses found to be disingenuous, his journalistic integrity compromised. So, while Longo is working to convey his perspective, and his truth, to Finkel, Finkel is himself wrestling with how he hears, digests, and conveys the truth himself.

Not too long ago, I had a parishioner ask me if I thought a specific news station was ‘biased’. While I personally struggle with a significant amount of what this particular station conveys, but I told him that I thought that every news station conveys what it wants to, whether it’s ideologically or based on who owns or sponsors the station. Everyone has a perspective, right? Whether they are intentionally manipulating what they see or simply viewing it only from their perspective, truth can sometimes be … different.

Whether it’s in our daily lives or in the midst of an ongoing murder investigation, we need to be aware that we’re often confused, deceived, or more; we need to be able to discern the truth. While some would point toward the Bible as the truth on which they’ll rest, we must consider (prayerfully) how we read the Bible and ‘digest’ it, as it is a translation, handed down through the generations. Too often, what we accept as true or even Biblical is the result of “whisper down the lane” (try playing that with some elementary school kids!) when we should ask God to guide us and help us be who we’re supposed to be, and what to believe.

In the end, True Story attempts to show us the fragile line of what’s true, and the cost we pay when we lose sight of where that line is.