Paul McGuire Grimes, creator of Paul’s Trip to the Movies, gives us his take on a few new releases.

MÚSICA (Prime Video)

There’s music all around us, and writer/director Rudy Mancuso wants us to explore all the intricate sounds life throws at us with his new film Música. It’s is an autobiographical movie based on Rudy Mancuso’s life. He wrote, directed and stars as himself looking back at a challenging period of his life. He lives in Newark, New Jersey, goes to school and performs in the subway by singing with a puppet. He has a condition known as synesthesia where he hears everyday sounds as musical beats, rhythms, and notes. His attention span is short as his mind is always somewhere else, which comes to a head with girlfriend Haley (Francesca Reale) who decides to break up with him. He soon meets Isabella (Camilla Mendes) at a fish market and it becomes a meet cute between them. She admires his quirky musical sensibilities, but their newfound budding romance is put to the test when Haley comes back into Rudy’s life wanting to rekindle their old flame.

-As the film may suggest, Rudy Mancuso is a jack of all trades as he pulls from his own life in this vulnerable love story. He writes in the beginning that this is unfortunately based on a true story.

-Mancuso puts a fresh twist on what we think of a movie musical. Yes, characters break out into dance but they’re not singing along as they dance around the diner or fish market. The music comes from the sounds of knives slashing through food, fish being flung across the air, or the loud chatter of costumers.

-Mancuso’s outlook and view of music really drives the film and make this an incredibly unique story as he asks the audience to step back and hear the sounds of nature we may miss out on in the hustle and bustle. He uses specific editing choices to play into the musicality and tempo of the film and divides it into different sections like rhythm, melody, dynamics and more.

-The story starts to suffer when Haley comes back into Rudy’s life. Maybe this happened in Mancuso’s life, but it disrupts the progression with Isabella and halts the originality Rudy had given to the rest of the film. I didn’t care about her character and the love triangle the Rudy gets stuck on.

–Música works best when it fully dives into understanding how Rudy’s mind works. Whether it’s through animated sequences, dance numbers or the quick edits on screen, we hear, feel and understand the music in the way Rudy hears it. Rudy allows us into how he allows the music and sounds of life control him versus the other way around.

RATING: 3 out of 5 TICKET STUBS

RIPLEY (Netflix)

Andrew Scott is entering the world of author Patricia Highsmith’s enigmatic character in the new Netflix series, Ripley. Oscar winning screenwriter Steven Zaillian has written and directed all eight episodes basing this on Patricia Highsmith’s Tom Ripley novels. The series opens with Andrew Scott as Ripley, and we find him carrying a dead body down an apartment stairwell as a cat watches on. We don’t know who the body belongs to, but the series jumps back six months prior to Tom living in New York City. He’s a con-artist cashing checks as he poses as a collection agency. He’s approached by a private investigator to head to Italy to find a man named Dickie Greenleaf (Johnny Flynn) and bring him back to the United States. Tom takes the job friending Dickie and his girlfriend Marge (Dakota Fanning) in their Italian home. Months pass by, and the job take an unexpected turn that finds Tom caught up in a life of lies and murder.

-8-episode limited series, all episodes streaming on Netflix

-Audiences may remember Anthony Minghella’s lush film The Talented Mr. Ripley that made Jude Law a star next to Matt Damon. Steve Zaillian gives his version a completely new look and approach at adapting Patricia Highsmith’s world.

-The series is shot in gorgeous black and white leaning into the mysterious noir feeling of the era that is also accompanied by a score of simple piano and horns.

-It feels very inspired by Alfred Hitchcock who also happened to work with Patricia Highsmith on Strangers on the Train. Much like Hitch, he allows the visuals and specific framing choices to lead the storytelling whether its leaving a prop noticeable in frame or how the camera captures any given landscape. 

-Zaillian takes his time telling this story. He never rushes a moment and lets this live out in the same time it takes Tom to plot out his next move manipulating those around him. It’s tense and suspenseful noticeably slower paced then your typical 2024 series or movie that are briskly paced to keep the audience’s attention.

-Andrew Scott fully makes Tom Ripley his own with the different masks and personas he wears. There’s a soft, quiet side to him as he remains levelheaded and collected in his game. He’s never maniacal or rage-filled despite certain actions that transpire. A lot of the series rests on Scott carrying big scenes alone, and he’s always captivating to watch.

–Ripley is a sumptuous and fascinating watch. It has that old Hollywood feel as if Turner Classic Movies decided to branch out to produce their own original series. It may not have broad appeal, but it hits all the right notes for what Steven Zaillian and Andrew Scott set out to accomplish.

RATING: 4 out of 5 TICKET STUBS

MONKEY MAN (theaters)

Dev Patel is  making his directorial debut with the big action film Monkey Man. He stars as a young, broke kid trying to find his way in life. He’s an amateur fighter who wears a monkey head mask in the ring. It’s a bloody and violent endeavor and the pay is garbage. He then takes a job working for the notorious Queen Kapoor (Ashwini Kalsekar) whose been named Business Woman of the Year despite the nefarious line of work she’s in. Patel’s character takes on the fake name of Bobby as he works as a dishwasher and is introduced to the illegal and corrupt world of power, drugs and sex that happens behind the scenes. It’s there where he comes face to face with the man who killed his mother, and Bobby sets out on a path to avenge his mother’s death.

–Monkey Man is a massive undertaking for Dev Patel for his directorial debut as he also co-wrote, produced, and takes on the title role.

-He could have made this a slick action revenge story much like John Wick, which he references in the film. Instead, it’s infused with his Indian culture and heritage from ancient myths and storytelling to the political upheaval we see take place in the background of this story as corrupt politicians and religious leaders vie for supremacy leading up to the holy day of Diwali.

-Patel and his writing team divide this into three distinct sections with an action-packed opening that finds Bobby in way over his head. The second half is Bobby’s personal reawakening in remembering the plight he’s been on and the man he wants to be. For me, this was the strongest act in storytelling and character growth, but some may find it drawn out if they’re only in it for the action. Patel goes to the extreme for his climax which becomes an empowering jolt of brutal bloody revenge.

-The overall premise isn’t anything we haven’t seen before from John Wick to subtle nods to The Lion King, yet Dev Patel makes this feel truly unique with the visuals and culture brought forth.

-Like recent action films, the camera work falls victim to being shot too close up and then frantically edited together, but the stunning set pieces are worth noting.

-Dev Patel makes for an unlikely but welcome action hero. He’s a gifted actor who elevates what we would expect out someone like Bobby. There’s more to him than meets the eye, and Patel understands that both as an actor and as a director. I look forward to seeing more of what Dev Patel wants to accomplish behind the camera.

RATING: 3.5 out of 5 TICKET STUBS