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Late Night-sp

The premise here is that there was no Johnny Carson but rather the star of late-night television has been Katherine Newbury (Emma Thompson). She is the first female host of a major late-night television show which she has hosted for 10 years. Her ratings however are now falling and the network is planning to replace her with a male comedian. Ms. Newbury has an all-white male writing staff, some of whom she has never met in person. She gets it into her head that she needs another point of view and hires Molly (Mindy Kaling) who works in a chemical planat, is a stand-up comedian and a self-proclaimed writer. She also happens to be an Indian woman of color. Although not having much experience, she speaks her mind and is able to confront, not only her new boss, but her nine male white co-writers, many of whom are played by very familiar faces and include Hugh Dancy, Reed Scott, Denis O’Hare, Max Casella, and Paul Hauser.

In this fast-moving comedic drama, many issues are confronted such as gender discrimination, ageism, and of course elitism. The co-star and screenwriter, Mindy Kaling may be drawing upon her own observations and experiences as she had been an actor in the hit tv show, “The Office” for many years, as well as producing and starring in her own show, “The Mindy Project.”

It is easy to get caught up with the story line. You are rooting for all to end well. The jokes are clever and the acting is excellent and we should add that Ms. Newbury’s husband is played a well-known actor who brings sensitivity to all his roles and that is John Lithgow.

We judged this film to be a clever, timely, funny, very well acted and directed . It was done on a low budget with only 25 days of shooting. Obviously, the movie was made for the love of the story and not for love of money but it is well worth seeing. (2019)

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The Jane Austen Book Club – nf – The filmmakers obviously did not feel that you had to be Jane Austen fans or at least familiar with her books to appreciate this movie. However one of us who did not read her books, felt that a great deal was missed in understanding the discussion about her various novels and how they were woven into the story. The other one of us while not recalling the stories didn’t feel left out at all. The plot revolves around five women at different places in their lives who decide to form a book club devoted entirely to Jane Austen novels. A chance meeting by one of the characters ends up including one male in the club. Each of the women is having relationship problems. Sylvia (Amy Brenneman) has just been told by her husband (Jimmy Smitts) that he is leaving her for another women. Prudie (Emily Blunt), a French high school teacher, is disappointed in her husband and finds herself attracted to a student. Sylvia’s daughter (Maggie Grace) who is a lesbian is having trouble with relationships. Jocelyn (Maria Bello) is a single dog breeder who hopes that the lone man in the group Grigg (Hugh Dancy) will be good for her friend Sylvia who is down in the dumps about being abandoned by her husband leaving but finds herself attracted to Grigg who is somewhat younger than she. Then there was Bernadette (Kathy Baker) who is the slightly older woman who has been through five marriages and is still thinking about someday making it six. The warmth and caring among the members of the club is very appealing. As they discuss the various Austen novels and their characters, it appears that their own lives are going through parallel struggles. The cast is a well chosen ensemble. The story is based on a book by Karen Joy Fowler. The screenwriter and director is Robin Swicord who has also written, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Memoirs of a Geisha. The setting is Los Angeles and includes a scene in the Marmalade Café that is one of our favorite restaurants, which added to our enjoyment of the film. 2007