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Movie reviews: 'Downton Abbey: A New Era' is plucky film meant for fans

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DOWNTON ABBEY: A NEW ERA: 3 STARS

This image released by Focus Features shows Tuppence Middleton as Lucy Branson, left, and Laura Carmichael as Lady Edith in a scene from "Downton Abbey: A New Era." (Ben Blackall/Focus Features via AP)

The title, “Downton Abbey: A New Era,” promises a moving-forward of the big screen adventures of the aristocratic Crawley family. Fans want more story, but progress? That’s something else.

The popular television series and 2019 film delivered a preserved-in-amber glimpse at melodramatic “Upstairs, Downstairs” classism mixed with some laughs, a touch of sentimentality and expertly delivered barbs from Maggie Smith’s Dowager Countess. Fans embraced the illusion of high-mindedness and the fantasy of life at the mansion.

For enthusiasts, a return to Downtown is a creature comfort, like a cup of hot tea with a warm crumpet. You don’t have it often, but when you do, you want it to taste exactly the same as it always has. The presentation can be tweaked, but the essence must be untouched.

Director Simon Curtis and writer Julian Fellows seem to understand what fans expect and deliver on it. It may be predictable, but narrative complacency is part of its appeal for folks who spent six seasons on television getting to know these characters.

The story begins in 1929 as the Dowager Countess of Grantham inherits a beautiful villa on the Cotes d’Azur from a long-ago admirer. The family, Lord Grantham (Hugh Bonneville), Lady Crawley (Elizabeth McGovern), Lady Edith (Laura Carmichael), Tom (Allen Leech), Lucy (Tuppence Middleton) and the ever-dutiful Mr. Carson (Jim Carter) pack up there best and head to the South of France. “They better be warned,” says Mr. Carson, "the British are coming.”

Once there, a mysterious locket appears to hold the key to a long-withheld family secret and a decades-old “idyllic interlude.”

Meanwhile back at Downton Abbey, an expensive roof repair convinces Lord Grantham to allow a film crew to shoot in the grand old mansion in return for a large rental fee. The downstairs workers are excited, but Grantham’s enthusiasm is muted. “I think it’s a horrible idea,” he snorts. “Actresses plastered in make-up and actors just plastered.” Still, the roof is leaking and soon the house’s grand rooms are overrun by a film crew, including director Jack Barber (Hugh Danccy) and his stars, matinee idol Guy Dexter (Dominic West) and the glamorous Myrna Dalgleish (Laura Haddock). “We got through the war,” groans the Dowager Countess. “We can get through this.”

Later in the film, the Dowager Countess says that life is about “getting past the unexpected.” That may apply to life at the Abbey, but it certainly doesn’t apply to the movie because there is nothing unexpected about anything that happens in the film’s two-hour running time. A better title may have been “Downton Abbey: Fan Service” because it is a crowd-pleasing, slow simmering stew of favourite ingredients, with no extra spice or flavourings. It is what the fans expect, no more, but sometimes less.

“Downton Abbey: A New Era” is a plucky, stiff-upper-lipped movie meant for devotees who will likely excuse the filmmaking, which is as dry as a day-old scone at tea time.

CHIP ‘N DALE: RESCUE RANGERS: 4 STARS

This image released by Disney+ shows Chip, voiced by John Mulaney, center, and Dale, voiced by Andy Samberg, right, in a scene from "Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers." (Disney Enterprises via AP)

A kid’s movie about Hollywood as a boulevard of broken dreams doesn’t exactly scream Disney, but “Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers,” a new live action, cartoon hybrid starring John Mulaney and Andy Samberg in the title roles, and now streaming on Dinsey+, is exactly that.

Except it’s WAY funnier than I just made it sound.

Set in Los Angeles, this is the tale of anthropomorphic chipmunks Chip (Mulaney) and Dale (Samberg). Once tight pals and big television stars, relative to their tiny size, they are now has-beens, relegated to the delete bin of popular culture. “We were living the dream,” says Dale. “Dancing the Roger Rabbit with Roger Rabbit.”

Dale sticks it out in show biz and with some CGI surgery—i.e. plastic surgery in toon world—is now a photorealistic computer-animation version of himself chasing glory on the oldies convention circuit, while Chip gave up his Hollywood dream and makes ends meet by selling insurance.

Worst of all, they’re estranged and haven’t spoken in years. It takes a wild story from their old “Rescue Rangers” co-star Monterey Jack (Eric Bana) about missing animated characters, possibly kidnapped by Sweet Pete (Will Arnett), a middle-aged, paunchy version of Peter Pan, to bring them back together.

When Monterey disappears, Chip 'n Dale use the sleuthing lessons they learned on “Rescue Rangers” and are drawn into the seedy underworld of Uncanny Valley where the baddies come in all styles—hand drawn, computer generated, claymation, puppets—Muppet fights are a daily occurrence and bootleggers threaten the toons’ lives and careers.

“Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers” is a multiverse of toontastic fun. In a wild mix n’ match, characters from movies including “The Little Mermaid," “My Little Pony," "South Park” and “The Jungle Book” clash and collide. There’s even Ugly Sonic, the original Sonic the Hedgehog design with human teeth.

The array of characters aside, there are loads of in-jokes for animaniacs to enjoy. A computer-generated Viking (Seth Rogen) is described as having “those Polar Express eyes,” and director Akiva Schaffer crams the screen with various styles of animation that irreverently pay tribute to, and poke fun at, these beloved characters who have fallen on hard times.

A riff on “The Happytime Murders,” which brought the Muppets into a crime-ridden, R-rated world, and the Toontown antics of “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?”, “Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers” is ripe with sight gags and deep laughs that will likely be appreciated more by parents than kids. Once again, my semi-annual reminder that simply because a movie is on Disney+, doesn’t mean it is for the entire family. There are good messages for kids about the importance of friendship, but they are tempered by some adult humour and mild language.

THE VALET: 3 STARS

A scene from "The Valet." (Photo courtesy of Dan McFadden/Hulu)

“The Valet” is a remake of the French film “La Doublure,” but has been thoroughly Americanized. The romantic comedy aspect of the story has survived, but the remake emphasizes -- for better and for worse -- the heartwarming aspects of what quickly becomes an increasingly scattershot story of friendship, family values and immigrant life in America.

“Ready or Not’s” Samara Weaving plays Olivia, a spoiled movie star who has a tendency to date married men, including richie-rich guy Vincent Royce (Max Greenfield). When the paparazzi catch a photo of the two having a lover’s spat on the steps of the Tony Hotel, Olivia fears the negative publicity will tank the box office for her upcoming film.

Luckily for Olivia, someone else also appears in the picture. Just as the camera snapped the damning photo, hard-working valet Antonio (Eugenio Derbez) crashed his bicycle into a parked car and was caught on film. “I never thought I’d get hit by a parked car,” he says.

With her career and reputation as a role model hanging in the balance, Olivia agrees when an assistant suggests, “What if we find the other guy in the photo and you pretend to be a couple?”

Antonio is incredulous when approached with the scheme, but agrees to the deal and a large pay cheque. Soon he is on the arm of one of the most famous women in the world, photographed at hot spots and appearing on TV. “What’s wrong with him?” asks his mother. “Why is he making that dumb face?”

But what begins as a sham for publicity deepens as Olivia learns about Antonio and his family. “He’s decent and kind,” she says. “That is surprisingly hard to find.”

When “The Valet” isn’t trying to pluck at your heartstrings, the fun cast, featuring “CODA’s” Derbez and Weaving, find the funny in the one-joke, culture-shock premise.

Derbez, whose work in “Instructions Not Included” honed his blend of heartfelt and humorous, knows how to get a laugh, but also deepens Antonio’s working-class immigrant story. “You can’t imagine how hard it is when people hand me their keys,” says Antonio, "and don’t look me in the eye.” His character takes a man who felt invisible and puts the spotlight on him; a vulnerable, hardworking guy who has often been overlooked.

Weaving plays up the over-the-top Hollywood stereotype of an actor who is not as wholesome as her squeaky-clean image would suggest. In the beginning, she’s willing to exploit Antonio for her own purposes, but as the story progresses, Weaving does a good job at making Olivia’s inevitable character arc from morally-challenged movie star to an accepting and understanding real person believable.

By the time the end credits roll, ”The Valet” reveals itself to be not so much a romantic comedy as a morality tale of a sort about family values, being a good person and treating others with respect. Add in a few laughs and you have a farce that, while predictable, succeeds because of the talented cast.

MEN: 3 STARS

This image released by A24 shows Jessie Buckley, left, and Rory Kinnear in a scene from "Men." (Kevin Baker/A24 via AP)

You can’t spell “menacing” without the word “men.”

The new Jessie Buckley psychological thriller, now playing in theatres, takes a look at toxic relationships and gender politics through the lens of British folk horror and surreal body terror.

Buckley is Harper, a young widow smarting from the death of her husband James (Pappa Essiedu) by suicide. To heal her soul, she rents a 500-year-old house in the English countryside. Kiloemtres from anywhere -- “The pub is 10 minutes down the road,” says her socially awkward landlord Geoffrey (Rory Kinnear), “30 minutes on the way back.” -- the tranquil surroundings should be a balm, but she is haunted by visions of the last moments she spent with her controlling, abusive husband.

On the verge of a divorce he didn’t want, they argued. “I’ll kill myself and you’ll have to live with my death," he says. "That’s not a threat, it’s a warning.”

Minutes later, he plunges to his death, changing Harper’s life forever.

At the rental house Harper has a close call with a scarred, bloodied and naked man she thinks is stalking her. The local police assure her she is not in danger, and yet unsettling things continue to happen, including a run-in with a rude boy in a Marilyn Monroe mask, microaggressions, stand-offish men in town and the world’s most unhelpful vicar, whose advice is not exactly welcome.

The trip to the country culminates in a hallucinogenic sequence that combines body horror (the kind that might make David Cronenberg envious), British folk horror, pagan imagery and even some stunt driving.

“Men” feels like two movies. The first half is a domestic drama, a divorce turned ugly, played out in flashbacks. The idyll of the country retreat, featuring long dialogue-free sequences, is briefly interrupted by memories and some rather creepy men. It is uncomfortable, but earthbound.

The second part, which makes up the film’s last third, is a grotesque, surreal psychological thriller with images best seen after you’ve finished your popcorn and Twizzlers. Director and writer Alex Garland gruesomely and memorably (perhaps a little too memorably) illustrates a never-ending cycle of male rebirth into crisis and toxicity. It’s never clear where the metaphor starts or ends and the head trip begins, but the message of menacing toxic masculinity is made bloody clear (literally).

Both sides of the story have interesting moments, most courtesy of Buckley, the rare effortless performer whose face contains multitudes, but despite some memorable flourishes, they don’t feel like a whole. It's like there is a puzzle piece missing in the storytelling. As a result, "Men" is interesting, but isn’t exactly an effective genre film or study of trauma.

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