Senior Year is More Than a Bit SPONTANEOUS

 

Jeri Jacquin

Coming from writer/director Brian Duffield and Paramount Pictures is the story of the last year of high school, friendship, love and a weirdly a bit SPONTANEOUS.

The senior year is finally hear for Mara Carlyle (Katherine Langford) and bestie Tess (Hayley Law). Classes are in full swing and lessons are getting under way when suddenly - a classmate - well, literally explodes. The, um, leftovers have covered the room and the kids are sent screaming into the halls.

Trying to understand what has happened, each of the students is questioned and then released. Mara goes home and does what any good teenager would do - get on with life. Returning back to school and party life isn't going exactly as planned either as more kids are popping.

FBI Agent Rosetti (Yvonne Orji) talks with the kids to see if they know anything and seems to take a liking to Mara. In the meantime, Dylan (Charlie Plummer) decides to finally come clean about his long-time feelings for Mara. They have the same humor and fun side but also realize that "popping" adds a whole new level to their relationship.

Ending up in quarantine, the group tries to pass the time the best way they can as their families wait outside for news of a cure for their kids. Will they find a cure? Will love endure? Will life return to normal?

Do not pop until you find out!

Langford as Mara is witty, has great comedic timing and has the last laugh in a dig at Trump (of course I laughed myself silly). Filled with smarts and movie one liners, Langford gives her character everything crazy about being a teenager that is unsure of the future but with one more unexpected twist.

Plummer is having one heck of a year with SPONTANEOUS and the film WORDS ON BATHROOM WALLS. In both films he plays a very witty, intelligent and kindhearted teen but one is afraid of popping and the other has health issues but both are in love and that makes all the difference. There is a calming in Plummer's character choices and that says something about the roles we will see in the future. I would hate (and love) to see what he can do with a character that isn't so charming.

McNulty as Tess is the perfect yin to Mara's yang because when Mara needs it most, it is Tess that says exactly what needs to be said in exactly the way Tess dishes it out. Orji as Agent Rosetti wants to help but having kids explode for no reason does not exactly leave much room for finding evidence.

Other cast include Piper Perabo as Angela, Chelah Horsdal as Denise, Rob Huebel as Charlie, Kaitlyn Bernard as Sky, Laine MacNeil as Jenna, Doralynn Mui as Cranberry, and Mellany Barros as Katelyn.

Paramount Pictures is the longest operating and remaining major studio in Hollywood that has been on the ground floor of every major development in film. From the advent of motion pictures, to the emergence of television, through the digital revolution, Paramount Pictures has been there. During our 100-year history, we have served as the production site for thousands of notable movies and television shows. For more please visit www.paramountstudios.com.

SPONTANEOUS is a dark, light, funny, guilty laughing film about the problems of being a teen with the added fear of popping. There is humor that is quick and, in some cases, a double smack of quickness that stays one step ahead of the unfortunate events.

This takes teen angst movies to the next level and I had such fun watching it. The film never lets you settle on one emotion before it jerks you into the next which can be a tad unsettling but in a really good and original way.

In the midst of the world’s craziness right now, SPONTANEOUS gives us a reason to laugh, remember and accept that in a world where you think you've seen it all - you haven't.

In the end - who knew senior year could be so…well, spontaneous!

ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD

Jeri Jacquin

Coming to theatres for Christmas from director Ridley Scott and TriStar Pictures is the true story of greed and kidnapping when you have ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD.

John Getty II (Andrew Buchan) and wife Gail (Michelle Williams) are raising their children under the shadow of being related to the richest man in the world, J. Paul Getty (Christopher Plummer). When their finances become difficult, Gail suggests that John write a letter to his father and mend their relationship.

To their surprise, Getty sends a telegram asking them to come to Rome and for John to work with him. The older Getty takes a liking to his grandson Paul (Charlie Plummer) and encourages him to be a part of the family business and spending time learning about their history.

As the years pass, John falls hard into drugs and Paul is brought back home to Gail. The relationship with the elder Getty is back to where it was before and they all have little contact with him. Paul has a wild side and he tends to come and go as he pleases and Gail doesn’t know how to deal with it.

One night, as Paul walks the streets of Rome, in an instant he is kidnapped. Gail receives a telephone call informing her of it and that she is to pay a hefty ransom. Reaching out to Getty, she does not get the response of a grandfather concerned about his grandson but instead, the response of a penny pinching old man.

Getty does one thing however, brings in Fletcher Chase (Mark Wahlberg) to work with Gail in trying to locate who might have Paul. Working with the Italian police, Chase isn’t sure he is getting the whole story about the kidnapping or the family.

Paul deals with the kidnappers, especially Cinquanta (Romain Duris) who believe that the ransom will be paid. Phone call after phone call begins to anger them as Gail tries to explain that it is not she who has the money.

This is what happens when greed meets a man with an iron will because one way or another – everyone is going to pay!

Williams as Gail is a mother who knows the dynamics of the family but isn’t about to let her son die. It would be easy to see that she might be considered a tad cold but I also understand her more than I thought I would. As each phone calls comes in and each new threat is given, Williams thought process is quite clear.

Wahlberg as Chase is a man who clearly has worked with Getty on other issues but this one is different. Trying to understand why Getty just plain refuses to participate in what is clearly a serious matter stuns Chase. Wahlberg’s character begins to invest more of himself in what is happening and doesn’t care what his employer thinks. He puts on his usual badass and makes it known that what is right is right – no matter how much money you have.

Duris as Cinquanta is a kidnapper with a weird conscience. Between a rock and a hard place, it is clear he knows the difference between right and wrong. I’m not defending the guy in the slightest but Duris gives the character his moments.

There are two winners in this film and both of them have the last name of Plummers. First, Charlie Plummer as Paul is a young man who was going through life with a strange chip on his shoulder. There is a disconnect with his parents that just has him feeling as if nothing can touch his free spirit. He is also smarter than his kidnappers give him credit for. Plummer’s performance is everything I’d expect and still pleasantly surprised.

Christopher Plummer as J. Paul Getty is absolute and stunning perfection! From the moment he is on screen, Plummer portrays the richest man in the world with such a range of non-emotion emotion. What I mean to say is when he is angry you know he is although he’s not screaming, when he doesn’t care about something it is clear that it’s not on his to-do list and when it comes to money he clearly can talk about it with such believeability that it’s jaw dropping. Plummer has always been on my list of performers to watch but in ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD he deserves an Oscar!

Other cast include: Timothy Hutton as Oswald Hinge, Marco Leonardi as Mammoliti, Giuseppe Bonifati as Giovanni Iacovoni, Nicolas Vaporidis as Il Tamia, Andrea Bodini as Corvo, and Guglielmo Favilla as Piccolino.

ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD is a journey through this family’s story in the middle of a kidnapping heard round the world. I knew about the young boy being taken but there is so much more than I didn’t know. That’s what makes this film even more interesting is that it kept my attention with one jaw drop after another.

It is an interesting look inside a family that proves money doesn’t buy happiness. The performances are brilliant but, as I said, it is the two Plummer’s that steal the entire film. Director Ridley Scott delivers with solid storytelling and gives us a thriller, drama and suspenseful look deeper inside a true story.

In the end – J. Paul Getty had a fortune and everyone else paid the price!