Movie Review The Mothman Prophecies

The Mothman Prophecies (2002) 

Directed by Mark Pellington 

Written by Richard Hatem 

Starring Richard Gere, Laura Linney, Will Patton, Debra Messing 

Release Date January 25th, 2002 

Published January 25th, 2002 

The words "based on a true story" have a way of stirring up controversy in Hollywood. Case in point A Beautiful Mind, where a few seemingly minor factual omissions have fueled all sorts of critical rants. Now comes The Mothman Prophecies based on the 1975 book of the same title by John Keel who investigated paranormal activity in the small town of Point Place, West Virginia in 1966.

The paranormal activities were said to be the multiple unrelated sightings of moth-like creatures including one by the author himself. Thus the "based on a true story" credit at the beginning of the film has elicited skepticism and even laughter from some reviewers, myself not included. Not that I believe in these supposed moth-like creatures, I just found the film itself to be so entertaining I don't care if it's true or not.

Richard Gere stars as Washington Times reporter John Klein who, with his wife Mary (Debra Messing), is involved in a car crash which both survive but leads to the discovery of Mary's brain tumor. The tumor is terminal and soon enough Mary passes away, but not before she draws pictures of the moth-like creatures which she claims caused the accident. Months later while driving to an assignment, Klein gets lost and winds up in Point Place, West Virginia where under very strange circumstances he is accused of stalking a local man named Gordon (Will Patton). Klein is released after meeting with the sheriff Connie Parker (Laura Linney) who explains that Gordon has been acting strange since experiencing strange visions that Klein finds are quite similar to those described by his wife. Gordon isn't the only person in town to have these visions and Klein decides to stick around to investigate.

The story is somewhat superfluous, but the first rate cast improves it greatly. Gere is especially good using his trademark stoicism to great effect as his character begins to meltdown. Laura Linney shows herself to be the heir apparent to Meryl Streep in the versatility department, and Will Patton continues to show himself to be the "go-to" character guy who can play anything and make it believable.

Let us not forget director Mark Pellington, whose supreme pacing and great eye for exciting visuals keeps the film moving at an entertaining clip that keeps the audience off balance all the way through. True story or not,The Mothman Prophecies is an entertaining story and that is what counts.

Movie Review The Last Word

The Last Word (2017) 

Directed by Mark Pellington 

Written by Stuart Ross Fink 

Starring Amanda Seyfried, Shirley MacLaine 

Release Date March 3rd, 2017

Published April 13th, 2017 

Shirley MacLaine is a national treasure. Sure, I don’t like several of her films but when she’s good, there are few better. Don’t believe me? Watch “The Apartment” and then try to tell me I am wrong. MacLaine is in the twilight of her career and with her new movie “The Last Word” she has decided to write the last chapter of her career in glorious fashion.

“The Last Word” stars Shirley MacLaine as Harriet Lauson, a lonely, bitter woman whose control freak tendencies have driven away most everyone in her life. After a failed suicide attempt, Harriet stumbles across the obituaries page of her local paper and wanting the chance to control even her death, she decides to go to the paper to start the process of writing her obituary, so she can make sure she gets the last word on what is said about her.

Ann (Amanda Seyfried) is the paper’s obituary writer, a lonely but quite talented writer who lacks the courage to strike out on her own. When Ann meets Harriet, they don’t exactly hit it off but it’s only a matter of time before Harriet’s unique life and domineering personality begin to inspire Ann. After hearing that most of the people in her life despise her, Harriet decides to change her life completely to change her story and what a story it turns out to be.

I will leave the rest of the plot for you to enjoy. Shirley MacLaine is a joy to behold as Harriet makes one oddball choice after another to give herself the obituary and indeed the life she truly wants. As I write this, the story does sound clichéd but trust me when I tell you that MacLaine is so delightful that it doesn’t matter if the story seems overly familiar.

Amanda Seyfried’s job in “The Last Word” is mostly reacting to the bizarre twists and turns of MacLaine’s Harriet but she does put a nice spin on that role. Seyfried seems at times in awe of MacLaine and it feeds well into the character who, though she may not be in awe of Harriet, she’s at least consistently surprised by her new friend’s sudden evolution from crotchety old hag to fun loving yet still domineering, hipster.

Director Mark Pellington makes the smart choice to just let MacLaine drive the train. There is nothing special about the direction of “The Last Word,” but just allowing MacLaine to take the lead fits the character and the movie quite well. MacLaine’s Harriet is the dominant force for everyone around her so it makes sense that MacLaine’s performance dominates the film.

“The Last Word” is funny and sweet, sad at times, yes but with a genuine heart and wit behind the sadness. It’s a film about age and the cruelty of time and about a woman who refused to be defined by that time. In many ways that reflects MacLaine who has approached aging in Hollywood with wit and aplomb. MacLaine’s wit is as strong as ever in “The Last Word” and I recommend you enjoy it while you can.