Author: Mike Smith

• ARTHUR THE KING
• Starring:  Mark Wahlberg, Nathalie Emmanuel and Simu Liu
• Directed by:  Simon Cillan Jones
• Rated: PG 13
• Running time: 1 hour 30 mins
• Lionsgate

Did you know that there is an annual race in the Dominican Republic called the Adventure Racing World Championship?  Neither did I.  And I can tell you, as someone who used to enjoy running 5K races…I want to part of it.  Five days.  Over 400 miles on land and water.  Yikes.

Mikael (Wahlberg) used to enjoy Adventure Racing.  At least until his last race ended with he and his team stuck in a dry river bed because Michael led them in the wrong direction.  Now Mikael lives with his wife and daughter in Colorado and, while he no longer competes, he trains hard because the desire is still inside him.  He decides to put a team together for one last adventure.  An adventure that continues to influence his life today.

A story of faith, both in yourself and others, “Arthur the Kind” is an inspirational story of endurance, both physical and mental, and what it takes to succeed at both.  Mikael’s team is a mashup of personalities:  a former teammate with a bad knee, the up and coming daughter of a famous rock climber and a racer who spends more time on social media then he does in the gym.  At one of the rest areas they are approached by a stray dog.  Mikael gives it a meatball and the team heads back out, traversing dense jungles at night.  Miraculously, after trekking another hundred miles they are surprised to learn the dog has followed them.  Mikael gives the dog the name Arthur, as in King Arthur.  Now a quintet, the team forges on towards the finish line.

I have never been more exhausted at the end of a movie.  Director Jones puts his camera smack dab in the middle of the action and you feel the aches and pain caused by every step…every stretch….every stroke of an oar.  Like the race itself, the film keeps a fast pace and never slows down.

If there is a message here, it is don’t judge a book by its cover, whether the book is a man or a stray dog.  The script, by Michael Brandt and Mikael Lindnord, is based on a true event.  Lindnord – on whose story the film is based –  is honest, and strays away from the usual inspirational tropes similar films have.  Whatever their goals are, Mikael and Arthur will only achieve them on their terms.

With the Easter holidays approaching, “Arthur the King” is truly a film for the whole family.

On a scale of zero to five I give “Arthur the King” ★★★★

• BOB MARLEY:  ONE LOVE
• Starring:  Kingsley Ben-Adir, Lashana Lynch, and James Norton
• Directed by:  Reinaldo Marcus Green
• Rated:  R
• Running time:  1 hr 47 mins
• Paramount

As a father I’ve tried to share my love for musicians I grew up listening to to my son.  It’s a family tradition.  My father introduced me to Buddy Holly and Elvis Presley.  I introduced my son to the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen and many others.  But there was one artist I neglected to share with my son, so it was with great pride when, at the age of 14, he asked me if I’d ever heard of Bob Marley?  Of course I had.  He was another favorite.  The pride I felt came from the fact that my son, without my input, was now listening to the music of a man who had passed away three years before he was born.

It is a tough time to live in Jamaica.  With two very opposite people trying to take power, the citizens of the Island country are caught between both factions.  Enter Bob Marley (Ben-Adir) a Rastafarian musician who, despite his sometimes political posturing in his music, only wants to bring the people of his country together.  He and his band, the Wailiers, are currently getting ready for a large concert when their rehearsal is interrupted by gunfire.  Marley and his manager are shot, as was Marley’s wife, Rita (Lynch).  But Marley will not be deterred in his quest to share his music and his message of peace with the world.

Produced with the approval and input of Marley’s son, Ziggy, “Bob Marley: One Love” takes a look not only at the man, but at the rise of a new music genre’ including the creation of, in my opinion, Marley’s greatest album, “Exodus.”  But don’t take my word for it.  “Rolling Stone” magazine’s list of the 500 greatest albums of all time lists “Exodus” at number 71.

While the music is important, it is the man we learn about.  As portrayed by Ben-Adir, Bob Marley is a man like every other man.  He has his faults, and the film does not try to hide them from the audience.  He knows what he has to do to get his music heard – mostly traveling constantly – yet sometimes questions the methods of how his popularity is being achieved.  When Rita reminds him, “if you’re going to swim in pollution, you’re going to get polluted,” he realizes that, try as he might, he can’t control everything.

The performances are outstanding, with Mr. Ben-Adir seemingly channeling the spirit of Bob Marley.  From the way he moved to the way he spoke and sang, it is an amazing performance.  Ms. Lynch gives Rita Marley her own voice, playing her as both a loving and supportive wife as well as a no-nonsense woman who is not afraid to speak her mind.  The music, of course, is pure bliss.  Most people can tell you that Bob Marley sang “I Shot the Sherrif,” “Jamming,” and “No Woman No Cry” and the film highlights those songs but you also get a taste of some of Marley’s lesser known songs, all of them enjoyable.

Thanks to the hard work of Ziggy Marley, “Bob Marley: One Love” is a loving and inspiring tribute to a man who left this world much too soon.  But his music, and his message, lives on.

On a scale of zero to five, I give “Bob Marley: One voice” ★★★★

• MAESTRO
• Starring:  Bradley Cooper, Carey Mulligan and Matt Bomer
• Directed by:  Bradley Cooper
• Rated:  R
• Running time: 2 hrs 9 mins
• Netflix

Composer Leonard Bernstein provided the music for some great shows, including the magnificent “West Side Story,” so when I heard that Bradley Cooper was going to follow up his Oscar winning “A Star is Born” with a film about Bernstein I was really excited to see it.  However, for some reason Cooper has chosen to nearly ignore the musical passions of the man to focus on the passions of the heart.  That, in a nutshell, is “Maestro.”

A phone rings, waking Leonard Bernstein (Cooper) out of a sound sleep. The voice on the other end tells him the news he’s been waiting to hear.  With lead conductor Artur Rodziński away, and the guest conductor falling ill, he is to conduct that afternoon’s performance of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra.  With no rehearsal.  Confident, Bernstein takes up the baton.  And a legend is born.

Oddly paced, but brilliantly acted, “Maestro” is a film that may take a second viewing to fully understand the story director Cooper wanted to tell.  The film follows the decades-long relationship between Bernstein and his actress wife Felicia (Mulligan).  Along the way there are plenty of bumps in the road, the main one being Bernstein’s infidelity with members of both sexes.

Along the way we do get brief glimpses of Bernstein’s musical genius – working on “On the Town,” mentoring young musicians, but what made him famous almost seems like an afterthought to Cooper and co-screenwriter Josh Singer.  And for some reason Cooper often uses long, static shots throughout entire scenes when some film editing may have made the scenes more interesting.

On a positive note, the performances are excellent.  Cooper channels Bernstein down to his voice patterns.  Mulligan carries most of the emotional baggage of the film and never delivers a false note.  Hopefully both actors will be remembered when Academy Award nominations are announced.

My first date with my now-wife was the film “Wedding Crashers” with a young Bradley Cooper.  He has since become a favorite of my wife and when we first saw the trailer for “Maestro” I jokingly asked if Leonard Bernstein ever took his shirt off.  Apparently he did.  But I have also grown to respect Cooper as both an actor and a filmmaker.  It borders on criminal that he did not receive an Oscar nod for his direction of “A Star is Born.”  I’m not sure if he’ll get in this category this time around but I truly admire the work and research he puts into his films.

On a scale of zero to five I giver “Maestro” ★★★½

• MIGRATION
• Starring the voices of:  Kumail Nanjiani, Elizabeth Banks and Danny DeVito
• Directed by:  Benjamin Renner and Guylo Homsy
• Rated:  PG
• Running time:  1 hr 32 mins
• Universal

When the animation company ILLUMINATION puts out a movie, you expect a well told story with beautifully rendered animation.  With “Migration,” those expectations are not only met, but they are also exceeded.

We meet the Mallard family as they leisurely relax in a beautiful, New England Pond.  Father Mack (Nanjiani) and mom Pam (Banks) spend their days watching their youngsters – Dax (Caspar Jennings) and Gwen (Trasi Gazal) – swim contently across the water.   When they are visited by a flock of ducks heading to Jamaica for the winter, they are encouraged to head south with the flock.  Mack is over-protective and prefers the safety and familiarity of the pond.  Yet Pam would like a little adventure in their lives and, with the help of the kids, convinces Mack to take flight.  Accompanied by Uncle Dan (DeVito), they head off to the adventure of a lifetime.

Ever since “Despicable Me,” ILLUMINATION has released a string of outstanding films that are funny, family friendly and, most of all, beautiful to watch.  I’m not sure what their secret is, but whatever it is, I hope they don’t change it.  Even mighty PIXAR has had a few duds in their past, making ILLUMINATION, in my opinion, THE leader in film animation.  “Migration” takes the Mallard family on a journey that takes them from big cities to rural countryside, with each location beautifully presented.  Often, it’s like looking at a photograph, so detailed is the animation.

The cast features both familiar names (besides Nanjiani, Banks and DeVito, the vocal talent includes Carol Kane, Keegan Michael Key and Awkwafina) and fresh, bright voices who bring the characters to life.  The script, by Benjamin Renner and Mike White – yes, “School of Rock” and “White Lotus” Mike White – is full of both fun and emotional moments.  Like other ILLUMINATION films, these are characters you want to spend time with and, most importantly, want to succeed.

As an added bonus, there is also a short film called “Mooned” which answers the pressing question from “Despicable Me” – What happened to Vector?

On a scale of zero to five, I give “Migration” ★★★★★

• DICKS: THE MUSICAL
• Starring:  Josh Sharp, Aaron Jackson, Megan Mullally and Nathan Lane
• Directed by:  Larry Charles
• Rated:  R
• Running time:  1 hr 26 mins
• A24

Imagine being young, handsome and, um, well equipped.  You’d sing about it, wouldn’t you?  I know I would!  You’d think you had the world on a string.  Now imagine you just discovered you have a twin.  It could happen.

Craig (Sharp) and Trevor (Jackson) are both living the good life, excelling both professionally and personally.  The one thing neither has, and desires, is a family.  Though they live a few doors apart, they are each unaware of the other until a department merger at their mutual employer pits them against each other to see who the best salesman in the company is.  Noticing that there is a very strong resemblance with each other, the two eventually share enough personal details to discover they are twins, separated by their parents.  One went to live with Dad (Lane) and the other with Mom (Mullally).  Each parent has their own baggage that the lads must work through as they plot to get their folks back together.

Written by stars Sharp and Jackson, the film is directed by long time “Seinfeld” producer Larry Charles, whose directing credits include films like ”Borat” and “The Dictator” as well as multiple episodes of television shows “The Comedians” and “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”  He knows his way around a punch line and he never allows the film’s humor to hit you over the head.  It’s funny without screaming at you, ”Hey, laugh at this!”

The cast is top shelf, and you can never go wrong when you have Nathan Lane and Megan Mullally in a musical.  I’ve seen them both on stage and that talent transfers easily to the big screen.  Sharp and Jackson are fun to watch.  They have a great chemistry with each other, and both are fine song and dance men. Supporting work by Megan Thee Stallion as the boy’s boss and Bowen Yang as God (yes, God) keep the fun going.  And then, of course, there’s the Sewer Boys!  The songs are well written and the musical numbers are well paced.

A fun, hilarious comedy, “Dicks: The Musical” is best described as “a fun and raucous Parent Trap.”  And that’s a good thing.

On a scale of zero to five I give “Dicks: The Musical” ★★★★