February 2, 2017

Roman J. Israel Esq (2017) **

Uneven, but fascinating drama about an excentric lawyer. Very surprising, but the ending is all wrong. One of Denzel Washington's best and most unique performances.

Mudbound (2017) **

Old-fashioned melodrama about racial conflicts in the Deep South.

Marshall (2017) **

Courtroom drama about a future Supreme Court justice defending an innocent black man accused of raping a white woman.

Beauty And The Beast (2017) **

Emma Watson is wonderful as Belle, but the film is way too similar to the classic animated version from 1991, and not nearly as good.

Wonder Woman (2017) **

Gal Gadot is terrific in the title role, but there are very few good action scenes in this overlong World War One drama.

Downsizing (1917) **

Ferdinand (2017) **

A feature-length remake of Disney's Oscar-winning short animated classic from 1938.

Lady Bird (2017) **

Phantom Thread (2017) **

Last Men In Aleppo (2017) **

White Helmets are trying to save lives of hundreds of victims in the besieged city of Aleppo during the Syrian Civil War.

Abacus: Small Enough to Jail (2017) **

Following the 2008 financial crisis that nearly destroyed the world economy, none of the largest American financial institutions faced prosecutions for their shady dealings because they were considered "too big to fail". But a scapegoat had to be found. Abacus Federal Savings Bank, a small Chinese-American bank that catered to the neglected market of their community, was indicted on fraud charges and loan falsifications. As the bank disputed these accusations, many in the mainstream news media noticed that far larger competitors appeared to have committed similar misdeeds without legal consequence. This film explores the history of Abacus and its legal battle for survival against this hypocritical and racist application of the law.

Heaven Is A Traffic Jam On The 405 (2017) **

Documentary about a mentally-challenged artist. Length: 40 min.