See it at the Movies

Posted 3/23/22

NETFLIX

RESCUED BY RUBY* * * ½(Tale of Warwick Rescue Dog)

Based on a true story, a local …

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See it at the Movies

Posted

NETFLIX

 

 

RESCUED BY RUBY
* * * ½
(Tale of Warwick Rescue Dog)

Based on a true story, a local state trooper rescues a Warwick shelter dog that (after some agonizing attempts to train her) becomes a hero; the movie plays out like an old-fashioned Lassie movie.

Although the events happened in Rhode Island, the movie was filmed in Vancouver and premiered recently at the East Greenwich Odeum.

Grant Gustin plays Daniel, a young Type A state trooper who dreams of joining the K9 unit.

There are no openings and dogs cost more than what is in the budget, so Daniel takes Ruby from the local shelter.

Ruby turns out to be an uncontrollable, untrainable problem dog who had been brought back to the shelter eight times and was about to be put down when Daniel came to the rescue.

Ruby and Daniel slowly bond, as the owner’s wife encourages Daniel to have patience in training Ruby. The dog goes on become a hero in true Lassie fashion.

The movie has a great lesson about believing in yourself and overcoming disabilities (Daniel has dyslexia).

 

ANIMALS — BIG CATS
* * * *

Netflix’s Animal series contains some of the best up-close nature photography we have ever seen.

The first of the latest four-part series features the big cats, ranging from the lions of Africa to the snow leopards of the Himalayas.

We witness the exciting and violent hunts of the majestic animals from the time their mothers train them to the killing of their prey.

We learn about the different physical attributes necessary to succeed in different environments.

We are reminded that it is the mother who trains her cubs to kill while the father’s role is to protect them.

Hunting alone has given way to hunting in prides, as the environment is changing, and human hunters have interfered with the laws of survival.

The documentary is more violent than “The Godfather” as we watch the kill and the subsequent feast. Close-ups of the big cats with blood dripping down their faces may be a bit too much for the squeamish, but hey, the wild creatures must eat to survive.

 

BAD VEGAN
* *
(Documentary)

The story of “New York’s Hottest Vegan,” Sarma Melngailis, is reenacted in vignettes that are filled with that famous four-letter word to the point of absurdity.

Sarma opened a fashionable vegan restaurant that became trendy for the in-crowd. She made lots of money.

Sarma fell in love with Shane, who had a shady background and many aliases. She laundered money to cover Shane’s gambling debts and, after doing many dumb things at his beck and call, went into hiding with him and left creditors without the millions they lent her.

Was she conned or was she part of a con job herself.

By the end of the series, I just wanted her to go away permanently.

Three more hour-long docs include Dogs, Marsupials, and Octopus.

AMAZON

 

BEING THE RICARDOS
* * * *

Javier Bardem stars as Desi Arnaz and Nicole Kidman plays Lucille Ball, both nominated for Best Actor and Best Actress in this year’s Academy Awards.

The movie, unlike Amy Poehler’s documentary, focuses on the rehearsal and production of one episode of “I Love Lucy” and the relationship between the Cuban band leader and his actress wife.

It is a time when the House on Unamerican Activities labels Lucy a communist by and, when Lucy is pregnant, CBS won’t mention the word or follow her pregnancy as part of the popular show.

The acting is great, especially as they replicate the live weekly shows.

You will learn a few things about the couple and their road to divorce.

Amazon follows the movie with some classic “I Love Lucy” TV shows.

ACADEMY AWARDS

While we are not fans of award shows, we still watch them every year.

We will never agree that there is one Best Actor or one Best Picture.

This year, there are ten nominees for Best Picture, and we will never understand how “Dune” and “Licorice Pizza” made the list.

”West Side Story” seems to be a shoo-in, but there are a few others that we enjoyed in this slim year for Oscar-quality films.

If you haven’t seen the following, put them on your list:

“Nightmare Alley” with Rhode Island’s Richard Jenkins in a key supporting role.

“Coda,” the story of a girl raised in a deaf family.

“Power of the Dog,” a modern Western.

We haven’t seen “Macbeth,” but any performance by Denzel Washington has to be a contender.

We thought that Benedict Cumberbatch was great in “Power of the Dog.”

We liked every performance by the nominated actresses and could not pick anyone who rose above the rest.

As of this writing, we have only seen the nominations for Best Animated Short Film and the only one that was enjoyable and understandable was the British entry “Robin Robin.”

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