How to Rob a Bank, The Hit Man,The Informant, Garlic is As Good as Ten Mothers, I Am Celine

“How to Rob a Bank” (Netflix)If you are thinking of robbing a bank, you might get some good tips and avoid some pitfalls. But if you just want some entertainment you will find this a fascinating recounting of the mastermind behind fourteen Seattle bank robberies in the 1990’s. Actual footage combined with an artist’s rendering of the events kept me gripped. I would have liked some discussion of the pathology that seemed to drive the mastermind and his entourage. but maybe that’s another film.

“The Hit Man” (Netflix) Loosely based on a real person, Gary Johnson, adjunct college professor and a sting operative for the New Orleans Police Department, the movie doesn’t exactly fit in the the Richard Linklater oeuvre (Before Sunset, Boyhood, Dazed and Confused, e.g.), but it works as an amusing evening diversion. If you are obsessive in the way I am, a post-viewing Internet search reveals that except for the fact that Johnson did indeed serve as an undercover agent, none of the other plot devices is based on real life. In fact, given the film’s ambiguous moral compass, it is just as well.

“The Informant” (Prime) Yet another “light-hearted”, satirical true crime story based on a real character, this film chronicles Mark Whitacre’s role in the 1990’s Archer Daniels Midland Company world wide price fixing scandal. If at times the movie seems confusing it is intentional because we don’t really know what is real and not real in the protagonist’s telling of his story. Matt Damon does a great job in recreating Whitacre and his web of confusing and misleading intrigue. The supporting actors are equally strong. According to my sources (Wikipedia) we are getting the true story to the extent that Whitacre reveals it. No spoiler alerts here, so I heartily urge you to watch it and decide for yourself if the ending is satisfactory.

“Garlic is as Good as Ten Mothers” (Criterion) Attention all food lovers: I encourage you to watch this Les Blank 1980 classic documentary about garlic (yes, garlic) Blank’s rollicking style and sheer love of life, good food and people is infectious. And for those of us who look back on that era with great fondness and nostalgia you will not be disappointed–and really, younger viewers will enjoy it as well. (I was lucky to be able to watch it recently at the Les Blank series, Pacific film Archives along with many of the locals and friends of the locals featured.) You can kinda mimic the PFA experience by screening a Blank companion film “Werner Herzog Eats His Shoe”. If you are not a fan of Herzog, this will not endear him to you. If you do need to eat a shoe, it will give you some culinary ideas.

“I Am Celine” (Netflix) Like many others I was never a fan of Celine Dion. She seemed too emotively corny, good voice but just kinda sappy. Well, I have now joined her fan club. You will not leave the movie feeling good, just deeply sad for her continuing ordeal with a devastating and cruel illness. But I also came away with a deep respect, not just for Dion’s showmanship, but also for her bravery. She is without makeup or artifice as we are allowed to see the very worst of the effects of “Stiff Person Syndrome” a rare and weirdly named autoimmune disease. The film is deeply poignant as it is interspersed with clips of her performances and rehearsals in her time of health.