With movie theaters temporarily closed and so many film fans staying home during the Covid-19 Pandemic (and we thank you for STAYING home, by the way), we’re changing things up with our movie review feature, making it entirely home BASED. ‘The Aisle Seat: Home Edition’ will be posted Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, with both reviews and previews of what’s hot on Netflix, Amazon Prime, Apple TV+, Disney+, Crave and more to hopefully give you some entertainment options during self isolation.
‘The Aisle Seat: Home Edition’ will not only include films, but series as well. So if you’re enjoying a particular show and would like to let us know about it, you can do so; email jason.armstrong@jpbg.ca. Perhaps your fave will be our NEXT review!
Kicking off the home edition is a feature film that has been streaming on Netflix since November – and now we finally have a great chance to take a peek at it in ‘The Aisle Seat’ ~ Jason
‘The Irishman’ is a clinic in SO many categories; acting, writing, directing….you name it. A melancholy-yet-occasionally fierce biopic crime drama, it’s the kind of work by Martin Scorsese that doesn’t necessarily entertain as much as it manages to impress.
It certainly doesn’t hurt that Scorsese gets his favorite band back together, so to speak. DeNiro, Pesci, Keitel…and how about some Pacino for extra spice? If this is indeed the last mob epic for the veteran filmmaker, he’s gathered together some pretty brilliant performers to make it one heck of a curtain call.
In ‘The Irishman’, DeNiro plays Frank Sheeran, a real-life mobster who we first encounter at a Philadelphia-area Catholic nursing home. Bound to his wheelchair and haunted by ghosts, Sheeran is the story’s narrator, taking us through the various ‘hits’ in American history, from the Kennedy’s to the disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa (played by Pacino).
Does the movie, based on a 2004 book, ultimately solve the Hoffa mystery? Maybe, maybe not. But it is a fascinating (and cynical) ‘could-be’, unfolded at a measured….some will say slow, I will say measured…pace. If your taste buds for crime fare move at the speed of a ‘Fast & Furious’ chapter, this definitely is not for you. But if you adore great storytelling and your have 3 hours and 30 minutes to spare – and really, a LOT of us do now – this is a beauty.
