

Reviews for July 15th, 2016



Documentary Round-Up











Hillary's America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party is a searing, powerful and persuasive exposé on the Democratic Party and Hillary Clinton. Just like in America: Imagine the World Without Her, director Dinesh D'Souza re-examines American history and highlights the facts that should make you horrified and alarmed if you're a critically-thinking individual. Yes, you might find yourself in denial at first, but denial is a crucial and natural step in the process of coming to terms with a harsh truth. D'Souza includes some re-enactments and archival footage which help to enliven the film so that it's not just a bunch of talking heads. The fact that D'Souza remains calm and collected, unlike Michael Moore, throughout the film, is a testament to his strengths as a documentarian and investigator. Did you know that it was actually the Democratic Party was racist the Civil War? Or that the "hood" or "ghettos" are essentially the modern versions of plantations? In other words, the Democratic Party is still just as racist now as it was back in the Civil War, but Democrats, will, of course, deny their racism. Did you know that the KKK originated from the Democratic Party and its members were Democrats themselves? Or how about that Planned Parenthood is mostly found in areas where minorities can be found is a form of eugenics started by Margaret Sanger, the founder of Planned Parenthood? Hillary Clinton just so happens to consider Margaret Sanger to be a role model. D'Souza explains something that you ought to know about Hillary: her mentor was writer Saul Alinksy who began scamming people early on in his college days by ripping off his school's cafeteria while convincing others to take part in the scams as well. That scam serves as a microcosm of what Hillary Clinton plans to do in our country. Alinksy clearly had no empathy, and neither does Hillary Clinton for many reasons including that she, along with Bill Clinton, took money that other countries, such as Haiti, and put it into the charity known as the Clinton Foundation. However, she didn't commit to her promise of making the necessary improvements in Haiti using that money other than building a factory there. She forgave her husband for his sexual affairs, i.e. with Monica Lewinsky, because she wanted to manipulate, control or use him as a stepping stone to pave the way to become President herself. Hopefully, that won't happen. Her lack of accountability during the recent Email Scandal shows you just how unreliable, immature and narcissistic she is as a human being----to be fair, though, Narcissistic Personality Disorder and corruption run rampant in American politics, so she's a small part of a widespread problem that will probably never go away. She will become a big problem for America if she were to become President, but the same can be said about Donald Trump whom this doc ignores. You don't have to vote for Hillary or Trump come election time. Just because they have a lot of money for their political campaign and are good "actors", that doesn't mean they'll be a good President. I've mentioned this before in my review of Vaxxed, but I'll mention it again: there should be mandatory mental health assessments for every single politician. They receive a physical assessment, so why not a mental one as well? Pilots and soldiers need to be mentally fit for their jobs, so don't politicians need to be mentally fit as well? What's undeniable is that Hillary Clinton would surely fail that test. You'll never look at Hillary Clinton the same way again after watching this eye-opening doc. Consider it your patriotic duty to see Hillary's America, a must-see for everyone who cares about the future of America. It would make for an interesting double feature with Free State of Jones. Quality Flix opens it in Houston, Dallas and Phoenix. Expands wider on July 22nd.



Cafe Society

Directed by Woody Allen











Number of times I checked my watch: 1 Released by Lionsgate Films and Amazon Studios. Opens at Angelika Film Center, Lincoln Plaza Cinemas and City Cinemas 1 2 3.



Ghostbusters

Directed by Paul Feig











Number of times I checked my watch: 1 Released by Lionsgate Films and Amazon Studios. Opens nationwide.



How He Fell in Love

Directed by Marc Meyers











Number of times I checked my watch: 2 Released by STX Entertainment. Opens Village East Cinema. When Larry Met Mary

Directed by Wen Zhang







Larry (Bao Bei’er) and Mary (Song Jia) have been friends since childhood, and reunite in during their college years. He loves her more than just a friend, but hasn't found the courage to turning their friendship into a serious romance yet. They remain friends while seeing other people at the same time.



The basic formula for romantic dramedies have been followed over and over since the Golden Age of Cinema. It's more important how When Larry Met Mary follows that formula rather than the fact that if follows it without any big surprises along the way. Unfortunately, the screenplay is as dull, clunky and stilted as a Nicholas Sparks film (with the exception being The Notebook). Larry and Mary lack chemistry to begin with, and Larry is too goofy of a character to take seriously, so that dissipates the emotionally engrossing aspect of the film. Larry seems cartoonishly silly to the extent of being irritating. The Billy Crystal role in the far superior When Harry Met Sally... was a little goofy, but in a much more grounded and believable way.



Moreover, the attempts at generating humor fall flat, and there's not a single memorable scene that stands out in retrospect like that classic fake orgasm scene in When Harry Met Sally.... It's not a big deal that you can see the ending from a mile a way, but it is a big deal that you won't care whether or not Larry and Mary end up together. When Larry Met Mary is ultimately a reminder of why When Harry Met Sally... is such a beloved romantic dramedy classic that has yet to be trumped or even equaled in terms of heart, laughs, wisdom and other of its many forms of humanism that elevate it tremendously.



Number of times I checked my watch: 3 Released by Magnum Film. Opens at AMC Empire 25.



