Paul McGuire Grimes, creator of Paul’s Trip to the Movies, sat down with the stars of two recent movies, plus gives us his review of them.

Plus, The Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Fest runs April 2-13 at the Main Cinema. They will be celebrating the 20th anniversary of BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN on Sunday, April 6th. Oscar winning director Ang Lee will be in town for the occasion as Minnesota’s own Bill Pohlad was a producer on the film.

On Sunday, April 6th, Ang Lee will be doing a moderated conversation at De LaSalle High School at 4:00 and then will do an introduction at the screening at 7:30 at The Main Cinema.  Paul is introducing Ang Lee at the 7:30 screening.  For tickets, click here.

THE FRIEND (in theaters)

Sigrid Nunez’s novel The Friend was beloved by readers and now it’s getting a page to screen adaptation with Naomi Watts and Bill Murray. The Friend takes on multiple meanings for Naomi Watt’s character, Iris. She’s an author living in a rent-controlled apartment in New York City and seems to have a wonderful, but uneven life. She’s learned that her dear friend and mentor, Walter, recently took his life. Bill Murray plays Walter who was a professor, writer, and great storyteller to many. He had a few marriages throughout his life, but now Iris finds herself the sole caretaker of Walter’s dog, Apollo, after it was bequeathed to her. It’s a large Great Dane, but Iris is not allowed pets in her apartment. She is blindsided by this request questioning what to do with Apollo as she doesn’t want to lose her home and isn’t accustomed to caring for a dog.

-Starring: Naomi Watts, Bill Murray, Carla Cugino, Noma Dumezweni, and Constance Wu.

-David Siegel and Scott McGehee are the writing and directing team behind The Friend. They have the daunting task of trying to adapt Nunez’s unique writing style into a screenplay. It pays off as they explore the grieving process and the time it takes to heal.

-They’ve given the film a somber tone as it sits in that confusing aftermath of suicide, especially when it seems to come out of the blue.

-We watch Iris reading through Walter’s old papers, watching old videos of him, listening to the voicemails left on her phone. It’s that relatable hope we all have that maybe we can bring them back just for one moment.

-Naomi Watts is sublime at navigating that middle space of emotional uncertainty. She has a broken heart and wants to do what’s best for his dog Apollo even if she is unsure of what that is. So much of the film rests on Naomi

-Bill Murray is ideal casting bringing levity and an enigmatic quality to someone we only truly learn about in the grieving process. T

-The story shines on a light on the importance of music and animals in our lives to conjure memories, affect our mindset and shape who we are as people.

-David Siegel and Scott McGehee give this film a gentle pace allowing for that mourning period. It never races through just to be a happy cute dog movie. The Friend may sit with you longer than you expected.

RATING: 3.5 out of 5 TICKET STUBS

HELL OF A SUMMER (in theaters)

Finn Wolfhard is making a name for himself in the horror genre after starring in Stranger Things and IT. Now he’s writing, directing and starring in the new film, Hell of a Summer. The film acts as an homage to all the slasher flicks set at a summer camp. Fred Hechinger plays, Jason, a 24-year-old who loves being a camp counselor. He returns for another summer at Camp Pineway despite his age, the lousy pay and doing a big send off the year prior. Camp counselor Bobby doesn’t even remember his name. It’s the week before kids arrive as the counselors are setting up their cabins and partying it up before the summer officially begins. It’s Jason who finds the dead body of one of the counselors and soon the rest of the counselors find themselves trapped at camp trying to survive a masked killer who’s on the loose.

-Billy Bryk co-wrote and co-directed the film with Finn Wolfhard who also stars as one of the counselors. The group ensemble is front and center both on-screen and off with Bryk, Wolfhard and Fred Hechinger pulling multiple duties for the film.

-It’s a small ensemble with somewhat of a scrappy directorial debut. That’s not a bad that as it’s quite impressive for young filmmakers to get a film like this made and distributed. They’re not breaking any new ground in the horror genre but going back to the vintage age of 80s slasher as their inspiration.

-You’ll see clever homage like naming the main character Jason after Jason Vorhees or even including classic tropes like “Make out point” or using a Oija board despite it being set in present day as characters also discuss veggie burgers and cell phone service.

– Directors Finn Wolfhard and Billy Bryk keep this a character and dialogue driven slasher over relying on brutal kills to drive the action. The actors are all having a great time as their characters hurl snappy retorts at each other and question if Jason is the real killer.

-Like most modern-day slashers, there’s a twist with the reveal but it not too outlandish either. The film clocks in under 90 minutes, so you’re not stuck at camp with endless kills for too long.

RATING: 3 out of 5 TICKET STUBS