9 January 2026
This is a week of some pleasant American movies – each with its own version of a life, a couple in the case of “Song Sung Blue”, or families in the Jarmusch film. No masterpieces, but interesting tales of human foibles.
And happy New Year to all of you! May there be peace and justice.
FATHER MOTHER SISTER BROTHER ***
Jim Jarmusch is back! He, the indie director of quirky, unforgettable films such as “Night on Earth”, “Coffee and Cigarettes”, “Paterson”, and “Ghost Dog”. Always a regular at Cannes, he’s a director of moods and characters, somewhat in the style of Woody Allen. Definitely with more content and dialogue than action.
His latest is a triptych of family vignettes, starting with the tale of a father (a mystifying Tom Waits) somewhere in rural U.S. who is waiting for his two grownup offsprings’ visit. Though they are polite with one another, there is a strange unfamiliarity between them and some unspoken doubts about each other…it’s both naughty and intriguing.
The next tale, about a mother (played by Charlotte Rampling), takes place in Dublin.
She is awaiting the arrival of her two daughters for their staid once-a-year afternoon tea. They are played by an uptight Cate Blanchett and a bohemian Vicky Krieps, in this uncomfortable yearly meeting of the trio. With light touches of decor, clothing and dialogue, we feel the disparate underlying traits of their characters.
The third is a mix of a twin sister and brother visiting their recently deceased parents’ apartment in Paris. This tale has a more harmonious feel to it, with the siblings trying to discover who their parents were through their belongings and their own light conversation.
Here’s a film to relish and muse upon.
ROOFMAN ***
This is the true story of a really nice fellow who cared for people yet who was also a serial thief who ended up in prison. Simple as that, yet not so simple for he ingeniously managed to hide out at a Toys “R” Us store for months after his escape from jail while the police were hunting for him.
The duo, of a charming Channing Tatum as the Roofman (you’ll see why the name when you see the movie) and Kirstin Dunst as his unsuspecting girlfriend, make a sweet couple while he is actually living at the toy store. And the manager of the store, played by Peter Dinklage, adds to the verve of the story.
This is a tender, gratifying film where you’ll be rooting for the criminal.
SONG SUNG BLUE (Sur un air de blues) ***
If you’re a Neil Diamond fan, here’s your film. It’s actually about the trials and tribulations of a real life singing couple who in the 1990s fell in love and decided to make a career on the songs of their idol, Neil Diamond.
An excellent Kate Hudson and a somewhat overacting Hugh Jackman play the couple who went through huge, sometimes unbelievable crises to stay together and keep up their tribute act to the famous Diamond. Both actors do their own singing throughout. It’s touching, it’s a sing-along and it’s the raw struggle of simple show people trying to pull through, with gusto.
ELLA MCCAY *
Despite some admirable films, James L. Brooks tends to make soppy movies and this may be the soppiest (and sloppiest) of them all. This Ella person is blown way out of proportion in her story as a thirtyish lawyer who inadvertently becomes the governor of the state she was born in. She has a Dad problem (an excitable Woody Harrelson), a bullishly caring aunt (a too exuberant Jamie Lee Curtis), a troubled brother, an uncertain husband and a narrator who idolises Ella as a pushy do-gooder.
Though it feels like a true story, it is not. Is it a drama, a political statement or a botched romance? It doesn’t matter, for it’s trite, spread all over the place and without a point. And director Brooks, never humble, has cast himself as the wisdom-spouting, previous governor.
Superb **** Very Good *** Good ** Mediocre * Miserable – no stars
By Neptune
Neptune Ravar Ingwersen reviews film extensively for publications in Switzerland. She views 4 to 8 films a week and her aim is to sort the wheat from the chaff for readers.
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