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NO BEARS
*** Currently imprisoned for practicing his art, Jafar Panahi risked everything to make No Bears—as the celebrated director has whenever picking up a camera since the Iranian government banned him from making films in 2010. In No Bears, as with This Is Not a Film and Taxi before it, Panahi autobiographically prods the very meaning of cinematic intervention and political filmmaking. In dual plots, we catch glimpses of a fictional movie Panahi is directing about two lovers attempting to flee to Europe, and then Panahi himself visiting a remote village where his photography stirs controversy among locals. Particularly in its rural setting, No Bears focuses on the excessive pleasantries and age-old traditions that constitute community equilibrium in the shadow of unseen revolution and violent crackdown. That obliqueness can be frustrating to sit with, as we observe characters talk circles around life-altering decisions, basic individuality and fear of government reprisal. No morality police appear in the film—no bears either, though they’re rumored to prowl the village outskirts—but the title speaks volumes. These are the hovering threats that keep humanity fearful and hopeless. To judge or valorize anyone for staying, leaving or making peace in their country is not Panahi’s place. Far be it for the viewer either. NR. CHANCE SOLEM-PFEIFER. Living Room.
INFINITY POOL
*** Brandon Cronenberg hardly runs from his father David’s towering horror legacy; junior’s latest is a turbo-charged entry in what’s become a family label. Infinity Pool sees a vacationing couple (Alexander Skarsgård and Cleopatra Coleman) accidentally commit a crime. Per their fictional host country’s laws, they face a choice: to be executed or pay handsomely to have a clone made for said execution. That sounds comically high concept, but Cronenberg doesn’t wallow in the how or why. Instead, Infinity Pool grows funnier as it evokes the depravity of Brandon’s previous films, Possessor and Antiviral. Skarsgård (the Swedish Adonis last seen barbarically flexing in The Northman) is debased, becoming a dead-eyed, melting sculpture—with assistance from newly anointed horror icon Mia Goth (X, Pearl), who shrieks here like a cockney Olive Oyl and tries to top her personal-best freakout mugs. Sure, Infinity Pool isn’t fully convincing on an intellectual level. (Would imposter syndrome transform into liberating mania if you watched yourself die? Ooooooo.) But the larger spasmodic experience outweighs any half-baked philosophy with its bass-drum score, orgiastic interludes, and body horror apparently hereditary to the Cronenbergs. Infinity Pool may not blow minds, but it reliably explodes heads. R. CHANCE SOLEM-PFEIFER. Cedar Hills, Cinema 21, City Center, Clackamas, Eastport, Evergreen Parkway, Laurelhurst, Lloyd Center, Mill Plain, Oak Grove, Pioneer Place, Progress Ridge, St. Johns Twin, Tigard.
LIVING
*** From Star Wars to The Magnificent Seven, Hollywood borrowing from Akira Kurosawa is a foundational practice. Thus, director Oliver Hermanus, acclaimed writer Kazuo Ishiguro, and actor Billy Nighy are late to the party in remaking Ikiru. But as that 1952 classic teaches us, there’s still time. Mr. Williams (Nighy) is a public works official in ‘50s London who receives a terminal cancer diagnosis and must learn to “live a little” in his final months. As a showcase for Nighy, the film is all a veteran character actor could wish for. He plays Williams as hushed and upstanding, with sadness carved into his frown lines decades ago, but the Love Actually standout beautifully sheds Williams’ middle-class English manners just in time to connect with co-workers and strangers (played by Aimee Lou Wood and Tom Burke). Still, taken as an adaptation of Ikiru, Living is a losing battle. Hermanus and Ishiguro replace the original’s voice-over with a forgettable young clerk (played by Alex Sharp) who serves as our guide to Williams’ redemption. That simplifies and shortens the film, but leaves the remains feeling overmanaged, even if the changes deepen our impression that Williams is holding the audience with him as he yearns for a deep breath and clear conscience. PG-13. CHANCE SOLEM-PFEIFER. Cascade City Center, Fox Tower, Movies on TV.
80 FOR BRADY
** In Kyle Marvin’s 80 for Brady, one resounding idea rings true: There is no expiration date on talent. Tom Brady, however, offers a performance with the likability of curdled milk. Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, Sally Field and Rita Moreno unite like golden years avengers to remind audiences that their best performances are not behind them: Tomlin’s absurdist humor, Fonda’s inescapable typecasting as “the hot one,” Fields’ soccer mom sensibility, and Moreno’s theatrical antics combine to showcase a master class in classic Saturday Night Live-style comedy with a modern Bridesmaids twist. Brady, on the other hand, stands out like a sore thumb in the star-studded cast. There are two-by-fours with more personality (even Rob Gronkowski’s 30-second cameo is more compelling). There’s a particular scene where Tomlin gives Brady an inspirational speech from the coordinator’s booth, and as he attempts to muster nonverbal expressions of hope, he instead inspires feelings of gastrointestinal trouble. In short, the central cast makes 80 for Brady well worth the watch, but the Razzie-worthy Brady implodes the film every chance he’s given. PG-13. ALEX BARR. Bridgeport, Cascade, Cedar Hills, City Center, Clackamas, Division, Eastport, Evergreen Parkway, Lloyd Center, Mill Plain, Progress Ridge, Tigard, Vancouver Mall, Vancouver Plaza.