Tag: MargaretQualley

Love of Your Life

Published on by DanielaLeave a comment

Maya (Margaret Qualley) is a dedicated nurse who has never thought about much beyond her career. When she meets Charlie (Gabriel Basso), she is swept off her feet into a whirlwind romance. But then heartbreak hits and Maya’s life comes crashing down around her. She flees her home and cuts contact with her friends and family to travel the world and avoid what she left behind. She soon discovers that she can only outrun her past for so long.

The only thing I knew about this film going into it was that it was going to be sad. I had no clue just what I was getting myself into. The whole way through I was on the verge of tears. Just when I thought I knew what was going to happen, something came along and completely changed its trajectory. I’ll admit I almost switched it off at the beginning because of the big ‘reveal’, but I am glad that I stuck with it.

Undoubtedly the anchor throughout, Qualley delivered an outstanding performance as our protagonist. The way in which she was able to portray the various stages of grief through her tears, expressions and moments of silence were not only genuine, they were extremely relatable. While she made some questionable choices along the way, I could understand each and every one of them. We all deal with loss differently so the depiction was spot on.

I’ve not watched The Night Agent, but I had watched this with my husband who is a fan, and he said it was refreshing to see Basso in a completely opposite type of role. He was the perfect leading man full of charm and good looks. It truly was like he could do no wrong. Aaron Pierre starred as Felix, a fellow traveler who Maya meets while in Portugal. The two hit it off instantly. There was no way we could compare Felix to Charlie because they both had such different personalities and they both came in at different points in Maya’s life. The same could be said for Patrick Schwarzenegger who portrayed Maya’s best friend Jason. He was always in love with her, but he never overstepped that line. He was also able to stand on his own amongst the rest and for that I was appreciative. Also, I very much enjoyed Catherine Keener’s performance as Charlie’s mother Ruth. It was raw and cutthroat, yet incredibly realistic. I wish we’d had more of her on screen.

For those of us who have lost someone, the story will hit you like a ton of bricks. There’s a quote in the film that says grief is never done. I can’t tell you how much I felt that. No matter how long it’s been, or how recent, the way in which we deal with it just evolves over time. And just because someone we love might no longer be with us doesn’t mean that that love we had for them is done either.

Poignant, heartbreaking and beautiful, Love of Your Life is worth watching. I just recommend you have some tissues handy.

Rating: ♥️♥️♥️♥️

How To Make A Killing

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Loosely based on the 1949 film Kind Hearts and Coronets, How To Make A Killing follows Becket Redfellow (Glen Powell) who, at birth, was disowned by his extremely wealthy family. But an average run of the mill life isn’t good enough for Becket anymore. He takes matters into his own hands and decides he’ll do whatever it takes to reclaim what is rightfully his.

I think it’s pretty clear by now that I will watch anything that Glen Powell is in. As soon as I heard about this film, I knew I needed to see it. I love a good dark comedy after all. While it doesn’t offer anything new to the genre, it was undoubtedly still a fun time at the cinema.

Powell is great as our protagonist. He’s just got this effortless charm to him that he’s able to inject into each of his roles. This character fitted him well. Wanting pay back for those who have wronged him had the audience rooting for him from the beginning. Another stand out in the cast was Margaret Qualley who portrays Becket’s childhood friend and crush Julia. When Julia bursts back into Becket’s life, everything changes. On paper, it may seem like Julia is the complete opposite of Becket, but what they have in common more than anything else is that they refuse to give up on what they want. It’s obvious that Qualley is having a blast in this role as she is absolutely diabolical. Jessica Henwick also shined as Becket’s fiancee Ruth. She is quite possibly the only normal part of Becket’s life though I love how she was a strong and individual character in her own right.

While there are an array of other characters the audience do not really get a chance of getting to know them well. Becket needs to go through seven family members before claiming his inheritance, but we only get to know a few select players. Zach Woods starred as Noah, one of the cousins. We get to know him the most – an artist who Becket cozies up to, he also gets close to Noah’s girlfriend Ruth. There was a somewhat memorable sequence with Topher Grace’s pastor Steven as well as the inevitable showdown between Becket and his grandfather Whitelaw portrayed by Ed Harris. We barely had any time with the others and that was a pity.

The film was a bit more on the predictable side. There were a couple of twists here and there, but for the most part it was pretty much what you see is what you get. I feel like had they gone just that extra step further it would have elevated to a whole new level. Giving more of a voice to the side characters, ramping up the kills and really leaning into the camp that I know is there would have helped tremendously.

Overall How To Make A Killing is a solid popcorn flick. It’s got a fabulous cast, an intriguing storyline and it’s old school vibes. There have been plenty of eat the rich films in recent years and while this one depicts that to a tee, it left me yearning for something more.

Rating: ♥️♥️♥️

Kinds of Kindness

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In Kinds of Kindness, three different stories are played out on screen. The first features a man who tries to make his own choices after having his whole life mapped out for him, the second follows a cop who can’t help but wonder if that is really his wife who has returned after being lost at sea and the third is about a woman who is in search of someone with a special ability.

Yorgos Lanthimos is known for his strange and unusual movies. After watching and loving Poor Things earlier this year, I was looking forward to seeing what he was going to do next. Unfortunately his newest venture didn’t quite hit the same marks that his predecessor did. One day later I’m still scratching my head over what it was that I watched.

What I did like was seeing some familiar faces in the film. Emma Stone, Jesse Plemmons, Willem Dafoe, Margaret Qualley, Hong Chau, Hunter Schafer, Mamoudou Athie and Joe Alwyn are the key players here. They each take on a different character throughout the three stories. I thought the performances were well done which is unsurprising with a cast of this calibre. That didn’t mean that any of them were particularly likeable, nor did I want to see any of them succeed.

That’s about where the enjoyment ended for me. As time ticked by (and it did so slowly), I became more confused. There was no correlation between the fables that I could detect and I couldn’t help but wonder what the point was. I think I would have appreciated it more otherwise. Also, it was as if each story just got more strange and convoluted. I like to think I’m open minded, but some of the scenes that unfolded before me have been etched into my mind and not in a good way! It’s like Lanthimos just did it for shock value and not because it added anything to the plot.

Overall, Kinds of Kindness is one of those films that will certainly divide audiences. I wanted to like it so much, but I think it just went way over my head. At least the cast were great and the cinematography worked so there were some silver linings.

Rating: ♥️♥️.5

My Salinger Year

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I’m actually not sure how well known My Salinger Year is. I hadn’t even heard of it until very recently and that was only because the movie was featured on an entertainment TV talk show. It certainly seemed interesting and I loved the fact that it was about an aspiring author and the famous J.D. Salinger. I knew I had to add it to my list and I have to say that I am really glad I decided to check it out.

The year is 1995 and aspiring writer and poet Joanna (Margaret Qualley) has left her comfortable life in Berkeley, California for the exciting New York City. Sure that she will be more successful in her dreams there, she finds herself a job at one of the city’s oldest literary agencies. What she doesn’t realize straight away is that the company takes care of J.D. Salinger, as well as other well known authors. Though Joanna has not read any of his books, she is appointed the task of replying to the endless amount of fan mail the author receives. Though she is told precisely how to answer each and every one, Joanna believes there are some fans who deserve more than an automated response. And as Joanna settles further into her role, all while becoming more acquainted with Salinger himself, she becomes so wrapped up in his legacy that she begins to forget her own dreams in the process.

Aside from the story which held my interest throughout, I have to say that I was also attracted to the film because of Margaret Qualley. When I first saw her in Once Upon A Time in Hollywood, I knew that her talent would take her places in the years to come. Her portrayal of Joanna was relatable, realistic and I felt she really carried the movie well. This only made me more excited to see her in many more projects in the future. Sigourney Weaver, who has a role as Joanna’s boss Margaret is a household name. She is amazing in everything she does and the two had great on screen chemistry. I liked how their relationship grew into a mutual respect as time went on.

I’ll admit that like Joanna, I also have not read any of Salinger’s novels. So I saw myself in this character, though not only for this reason, but for the fact that I am an aspiring writer too. It also reminded me that it’s important to stay true to yourself and to always follow your dreams. The rest will follow after.

My Salinger Year is the perfect film for fans of the author, writing or anything in between. I hope it is released in many other places because it deserves more love and appreciation.

Rating: ♥♥♥.5