Susan Granger At The Movies

Sweet Tooth

If you’re looking for a Netflix series to stream, I highly recommend “Sweet Tooth.” As you might guess from the improbable title, it’s an unusual, post-apocalyptic tale, one that tugs at your heart.

As the narrator (James Brolin) explains, in the decade after the ‘Great Crumble,’ when much of humanity succumbed to the deadly H5G9 virus, human mothers began to give birth to half-animal infants.

In Episode #1, Pubba (Will Forte) trudges off into the wilderness with adorable baby Gus, who has the twitchy, furry ears of a deer and budding antlers. Settling into a cabin, Pubba teaches Gus how to survive within their idyllic compound, cautioning him to never, ever venture beyond the fence that separates them from the perils of the outside world.

Years pass and Gus (Christian Convery) is left alone. Then he encounters Tommy Jepperd (Nonso Anozie), a formidable ex-football player/nomad whom he calls ‘Big Man.’ Initially reluctant to befriend Gus, Big Man can’t help feeling protective of the kind-hearted, naively curious, ever-optimistic boy.

Desperate to find his mother, Gus is determined to travel to a bleak place in Colorado where she was last seen. But along the way, he and often-exasperated Big Man must evade the menacing ‘Last Man’ vigilantes who hunt hybrid children, blaming them for the pandemic.

Subplots abound. There’s the orphaned cult leader Bear (Stefania LaVie Owen), along with reclusive Aimee (Dania Ramiriez), who lives in an abandoned zoo. Plus Dr. Singh (Adeel Akhtar), working on a cure for the virus, and despotic General Abbott (Neil Sandilands) of the Last Men militia.

Filmed in New Zealand, combining sci-fi with fantasy, it’s adapted by director Jim Mickle from Jeff Lemire’s DC/Vertigo comics, concluding with a compelling cliffhanger involving Gus’s origin.

As for its prophetic timing, Lemire notes, “I wrote the book over a decade ago, so obviously that has no connection with what’s been happening with COVID-19.”

On the Granger Gauge of 1 to 10, “Sweet Tooth” is an intriguing 8. All eight episodes are streaming on Netflix, and a second season seems inevitable.

Land

Building on the experience of helming several episodes of “House of Cards” in which she also starred, Robin Wright drops all vestiges of glamor to direct and star in the wilderness saga “Land.”

Following a devastating, unfathomable loss, Edee Holzer (Wright) wants to leave Chicago and civilization far behind her. Buying an old cabin high in Wyoming’s Rocky Mountains abutting the Shoshone National Forest, she discards her cellphone, returns her rental car and tries to live off the land: “I’m here in this place because I don’t want to be around people.”

But she was raised in a city, and all she knows is what she’s read in books. While she stocked the larder for the long winter, she’s seriously misjudged her survivalist skills. Soon, Edee is, literally, freezing and starving.

Fortunately, a hunter, Miguel Borras (Demian Bichir) passes by and returns with a nurse, Alawa (Sarah Dawn Pledge), who revives Edee. Then, showing both respect and compassion, Miguel patiently nurses Edee back to health.

When Edee asks why he’s helping her, Miguel says: “You were in my path.”

Seasons change, as Miguel shows Edee how to garden, fish, trap and shoot deer. They converse very little, yet their friendship slowly grows as they learn to respect and understand each other.

But then Miguel no longer visits, and Edee’s curiosity overcomes her reluctance to leave her solitary mountain retreat.

Scripted by Jesse Chatham and Erin Digman, it’s confidently directed by Robin Wright, working closely with cinematographer Bobby Bukowski to establish a resonant, meditative narrative of kindness and human connection.

Wright notes: “We are all aware of so much tragedy in our world … and, for a long time, I have felt a pained awareness of those left behind in the aftermath. What happened to them? How did they find their way? This is a story of one woman’s journey to find her lost self after the life she knew changed in seconds.”

On the Granger Gauge, “Land” is a stark, survivalist 7, a chronicle of spiritual renewal, available on Prime Video, Vudu and Fandango Now.

Peter Rabbit 2

In 2018 when the Sony released the first ‘hip’ hybrid live-action/digital-animation adventure, I was less than enchanted by mischievous Peter (voiced by James Corden). Nevertheless, on a $50 million budget, it earned $351.13 million worldwide. Hence, this sequel: “Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway.”

Things in the English countryside have changed now that the late Farmer McGregor’s nephew Thomas (Domhnall Gleason) has married benevolent Bea (Rose Byrne). She has turned the rabbits’ adventures into a story that attracts the notice of arrogant London publisher Nigel Basil-Jones (David Oyelowo), who envisions an edgy 23-book series, featuring 109 different characters.

While that means more about Flopsy (voiced by Margot Robbie), Mopsy (voiced by Elizabeth Debicki) and Cottontail (Aimee Horne), hapless Peter is cast as a ‘bad bunny.’

But Bea has serious reservations. “My book is very personal to me, and I don’t want it compromised,” she says. “I’d be spinning in my grave if it was ever adapted into some sassy hip-fest — purely for commercial gain, probably by an American.”

Meanwhile, disillusioned Peter decides to trek to the big city, where he becomes involved with a Dickensian gang of street-wise grifters, led by Fagin-like Barnabas (Lennie James), who plan to steal fruit from a Farmers Market … until he realizes who he really is and the kind of rabbit he wants to be.

Inspired by Beatrix Potter’s beloved children’s book series, it’s scripted by Patrick Burleigh and director Will Gluck and better than its mean-spirited predecessor — but not by much — regaling audiences with generic slapstick and derivative one-liners.

What’s most commendable are Animal Logic’s captivating animation and breathtaking visual effects which are seamlessly integrated into the live-action sequences. Founded in 1991, Animal Logic is based at Sydney’s Fox Studios, Rideback Ranch in Los Angeles and Yaletown in Vancouver.

On the Granger Gauge, “Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway” scampers in with a snarky 6 as family-friendly fare.

Susan Granger is a product of Hollywood. Her natural father, S. Sylvan Simon, was a director and producer at M.G.M. and Columbia Pictures. Her adoptive father, Armand Deutsch, produced movies at M.G.M.

As a child, Susan appeared in movies with Abbott & Costello, Red Skelton, Lucille Ball, Margaret O’Brien, and Lassie. She attended Mills College in California, studying journalism with Pierre Salinger, and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with highest honors in journalism.

During her adult life, Susan has been on radio and television as an anchorwoman and movie and drama critic, syndicating her reviews and articles around the world, including Video Librarian. She has appeared on American Movie Classics and Turner Classic Movies. In 2017, her book 150 Timeless Movies was published by Hannacroix Creek Books.

Her website is www.susangranger.com. Follow her on Twitter @susangranger.

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