Blithe Spirit

 Blithe Spirit came out early this year and is now about to apparate stateside on physical media. If that title sounds familiar, then it's because it's the latest screen version of Noel Coward's 1941 play, which was previously filmed in 1945. How does this version fare?

London, 1937. Charles Condomine (Dan Stevens) is a rich idiot novelist about to make his screenwriting debut. He's married to Ruth (Isla Fisher), whose father owns the studio filming the screenplay. But he's got writer's block and said screenplay is based on his novel. He decides he needs some supernatural help. So he hires the quack psychic Madame Arcati (Judi Dench) to conduct a séance. All's well and good, except Arcati might not be a quack...

Charlie's first wife, Elvira (Leslie Mann), apparates shortly afterwards. She's not a happy ghost and lets him know it. The poltergeist act frustrates Charlie, especially since only he can see and hear her, but sparks fly between them again. She even gets him out of his writer's block. But she still wants to take him to her plane of existence. If only Madame Arcati were here to exorcise Elvira...

Maybe...

Noted theatre director Edward Hall visualizes a screenplay by Meg Leonard, Piers Ashworth and Nick Moorcroft for his first feature. The only lines recognizable from Coward are in the séance. That's not a problem by itself; wanna know what is? Charlie is an unlikable twit all the way. His unhappily wedded life to either of his wives can get tiresome. Ruth is just OK, while Elvira's best moments are when she turns vicious. "Til death do us part" means nothing to her. That's a scary thought. Madame Arcati is the best character of the piece by being the most likable. I would have done without the final twist about Charlie's writing career. Where did that come from? 

Production Designer John Kelly modified the Joldwynds House into the Condomine home. It's a visually interesting house both inside and out; Kelly's recreation of 30's London is also stunning. The costumes designed by Charlotte Walter give Elvira a new outfit in every scene. And they're all appealing. There were also some good ghostly effects, with the best being Elvira's creepy apparating. The ending (not the writing twist) has a great feat of editing. 

I suspect the biggest problem with Blithe Spirit is that it tries too hard to be funny. A few bits of overacting got a chuckle. But not the whole piece. It was free on-demand for me and with its physical release on Tuesday, it'll be cheaper on streaming for most. See it if you're curious. It's only 99 minutes so you won't have to spend too long with these people.

Respect

Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, didn't get to see her biopic, Respect. But she approved Jennifer Hudson to play her in it. The end result sees theatre director Liesl Tommy in her film debut realizing a script by Tracey Scott Wilson and Callie Khouri. Let's see how it is.

Aretha (Skye Dakota Turner as a kid) starts out as the daughter of Minister C.L. Franklin (Forrest Whitaker), who shows off her singing talents to Black music royalty. Her childhood isn't easy; a few incidents include her mother, Barbara's (Audra McDonald) sudden death, her parents' quarrelling and an encounter that leaves her pregnant far too early. Eventually, she's singing to her father's parishioners. She meets and falls for producer Ted White (Marlon Wayans), a man her dad distrusts. She eventually gets a recording contract with Columbia Records.

Her career goes pretty much nowhere. She eventually switches to Muscle Shoals under producer Jerry Wexler (Marc Maron). A late night jam session with her sisters leads to R.E.S.P.E.C.T. with her first smash hit. Her superstar life isn't easy; Ted proves to be an abusive control freak, while she turns to the bottle. She needs help to confront her "demons." She has to stand up for herself to get the Respect she needs. It all leads to the filming of her Amazing Grace live album, which was finally released in 2018.

Aretha Franklin's faith in Hudson is well-rewarded. Hudson's performance as Aretha is a compelling one. She's optimistic but she's not afraid to assert herself. Her performance of Respect and her leaving Ted are audibly crowd-pleasing scenes. In fact, the musical performances are outstanding all around. The alcoholism leads to a stage mishap and a climactic conversation with her dead mother. Overall, she'll get your attention even if it's distracted by the 145 minute runtime.

Who else do we see? Whitaker as C.L. Franklin is a flawed, yet sympathetic stern father figure. He threatens to disown Aretha for seeing Ted, yet he finds it to forgive her later on. Wayans is utterly recognizable as Ted, an abusive jerk with a charming front. Their relationship puts the audience on the fence as to who to root for. But we figure it out at the end. Aretha's sisters, Erma (Saycon Senbloh) and Carolyn (Hailey Kilgore), are great support for her. Mary J. Blige as Dinah Washington doesn't take kindly to one of Aretha's performances, but she gives good advice to her shortly after. 

It's a slow but steady movie. Jennifer Hudson as Aretha Franklin's quest for Respect makes the long haul worth it. See it in theatres if you can. You'll have a larger crowd to hear cheering with her if you do. Like mine.

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

 … And a complicated tale of Public Domain.

Shang-Chi, Master of Kung Fu was created by Jim Starlin and Steve Englehart as the heroic son of Sax Rohmer's infamous supervillain Fu Manchu, who, in addition to being a racially insensitive character, is also not completely in the public domain. What would happen if he had a movie?

Simple. Retool Fu Manchu into The Mandarin, Iron Man's archenemy, a character impersonated in Iron Man 3 by Ben Kingsley's washed-up character actor Trevor Slattery. The end result, written by director Destin Daniel Cretton with Dave Callaham and Andrew Lanham is Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.

Who is Shang-Chi? He (Simu Liu) is the son of the long-lived warlord Xu Wenwu (Tony Leung), aka The Mandarin. Wenwu leads the ominous Ten Rings Organization, named for his magical arm rings. Wenwu tried to be a family man until his enemies killed his wife (Fala Chen). So he trained Shang-Chi and his sister, Xialing (Meng'er Zhang), to be killers. Shang-Chi escaped to San Francisco as "Shaun," and is now a hotel valet with his pal, Katy (Awkwafina).

Shang-Chi reveals his martial artistry when the Ten Rings come calling. They take him, Xialing and Katy back to their compound. Wenwu wants to find Ta Lo, his wife's mystical home village, where he thinks she's being held. He needs his kids' pendants to help find it. And if Ta Lo won't let him free her, he'll kill everything. Shang-Chi won't stand for it and he and the others make it to Ta Lo first. It's a good thing; turns out Wenwu's being tricked into releasing the ominous Dweller in Darkness.

Its supporting cast is good. Katy is a great sidekick, equally funny and battle ready. She gets even better when she helps defeat the Dweller. Xialing and Shang-Chi's aunt, Ying Nan (Michelle Yeoh), is a warm presence. The aforementioned Trevor Slattery returns for some more comic relief; he's even better now than he was then. Special mention goes to Morris the Hundun, a faceless winged six-legged fuzzy creature. He's surprisingly cuddly. 

Now for the main family relationship. Shang-Chi is a decent hero made compelling by his strained family relationship. Xialing vents a lot of frustration when she reunites with Shang-Chi in the ring of her fight club. The flashbacks to their brutal training spells it out clearly. We see Wenwu be a great family man until his wife's murder. It's brutal to see him and Shang-Chi blame each other for her death. Their climactic fight lets them vent their own frustration perfectly. 

Let's talk about the technical style. Ta Lo and Xialing's fight club are excellent creations of production designer Sue Chan. Ta Lo, in particular, is populated by splendid mythological creatures from Guardian Lions to Nine-Tail Foxes. The Dweller-in-Darkness, and its good counterpart, The Great Protector, are formidable CGI dragons. And here's hoping the Academy take notice of costume designer Kym Barrett and her opulent wardrobe for Ta Lo's residents. The action is great, even if it felt like some parts were edited too fast. Still, the bus fight with the Ten Rings is an exciting showcase for martial arts and San Francisco scenery. Joel P. West's majestic score suits the film perfectly.

A few story beats sound cliched. But Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings perked my interest in one of Marvel's least well-known characters. Its end credits promise "The Ten Rings will Return;" how will they factor in the MCU? Its mid-credits scene promises the Ten Ring artifacts will play an important role somehow. These scenes leave us with a few interesting thoughts. Stay safe if you see it in theaters now. It'll be available on Disney Plus sometime later. Whichever the format, see it on the largest screen you can.