Friday Five: Films on a Plane

More from the intermittent series of Films on a Plane, from when I travel to places and desperately try to get through the journey somehow - the last month consisted of two forty-plus-hour 'days' of flying and waiting at airports.

Seven Films Watched on Planes:

1. The Duke - Feel-good vibes abound from helping others, fighting injustice and standing up to the establishment. Totally unrealistic but rather sweet and charming film to watch with a cup of tea and a ginger biscuit.
2. The Electrical Life of Louis Wain - The bizarre tale of Louis Wain is played out by Benedict Cumberbatch and narrated by Olivia Colman. He is awkward and intense with a remarkable talent for drawing and a tendency towards mental illness, having to look after his family (mother and five sisters) when his father dies. He falls for the unconventional governess, Emily (Clare Foy), to much gossip and condemnations: she is the wrong class, bohemian in outlook and ten years his senior. There's a star-studded class including Andrea Riseborough, Toby Jones, Aimee Lou Wood, Taika Waiti and Nick Cave, lots of sickness, death and disappointment, and some very odd, whimsical moments. But Wain's drawings "change people' perceptions of cats, making them acceptable as house pets", and for that we are truly thankful.
3. Encanto - Disney film with songs about a magical family who all have a special talent apart from the one who doesn't, but of course she does after all because she restores the magic and proves your value is not in your gift but in who you are. The sentient house is fun but the story is schmaltzy and goes on too long. 



4. The Eyes of Tammy Faye - Jessica Chastain is excellent in a complicated role of compassion, manipulation and self-delusion. Andrew Garfield seems weak in comparison. it features multiple levels of hypocrisy and superficiality from the make-up and minks to the partner pledges and religious condemnation of vulnerable minorities. The design is fantastic, capturing the tacky opulence with a hollow centre.
5. House of Gucci - Adam Driver Lady Gaga, Al Pacino and Jeremy Irons tell an intriguing tale of a privileged family cursed by secrets, cheating and greed. Jared Leto is in an entirely different film from the rest of the cast.
6. King Richard - Will Smith plays father to the Williams sisters (there are five of them), insisting that they do other things besides play tennis (schooling; languages; musical instruments etc.) and doesn't push them too hard through tournaments and competitions. It's an unconventional approach and looks like they lived the dream, although they very probably didn't. The young women who play Venus (Saniyya Sidney) and Serena (Demi Singleton) are very good (and the two sisters are both executive producers) but, as the title suggests, it's all about him.
7. The Lost City - Clever author (Sandra Bullock) has to write trashy romances because that's what sells. Channing Tatum, Daniel Radcliffe, Da'Vine Joy Randolph and (briefly) Brad Pitt are all just fine in this action/ adventure/ treasure-seekers romp with exotic locations. It's ludicrous, but it passes the time on a plane after 20+ hours of travel.