February 09, 2024

WIFF’S WEEKEND WATCH LIST — 2/9

Check out our recommendations of what to watch this weekend.

if you love fast cars

Ferrari

Vincent Georgie: Michael Mann is a polished and disciplined filmmaker operating at a high technical level here with Ferrari. The film has incredible period race scenes and the whole automotive universe of the film is worth salivating over. Adam Driver acquits himself well in the lead, and Penelope Cruz is a jolt of energy in a key supporting role.

Synopsis: During the summer of 1957, bankruptcy looms over the company that Enzo Ferrari and his wife had built 10 years earlier. He decides to roll the dice and wager it all on the iconic Mille Miglia, a treacherous 1000-mile race across Italy.

Available on iTunes and YouTube.

if you want SOME joyful noise

the color purple

Vincent Georgie: There are only a few songs that stand out in this melodramatic but soulful musical adaptation of the popular novel. However, it is the performances of a perfectly cast and achingly sincere Fantasia Barino, and a star-turn by recent Oscar-nominee Danielle Brooks that make the film worth the watch.

Synopsis: Torn apart from her sister and her children, Celie faces many hardships in life, including an abusive husband. With support from a sultry singer named Shug Avery, as well as her stand-her-ground stepdaughter, Celie ultimately finds extraordinary strength in the unbreakable bonds of a new kind of sisterhood.

Available on iTunes, Amazon Prime and YouTube.

if you want a doc to get you talking

take care of maya

Vincent Georgie: What the film doesn’t have in cinematic production values, it most certainly makes up for in an all-consuming story. Highly watchable, always interesting and certainly tackles some nuanced questions.

Synopsis: A nightmare unfolds for Jack and Beata Kowalski after they bring their 10-year-old daughter to the ER with unusual symptoms.

Available on Netflix.

DOUBLE FEATURE

love on-screen

Two romantic, appealing and entertaining love stories that pair beautifully for a pre-Valentine’s Day movie night for new and not-so-new couples alike.

an affair to remember

A man and a woman have a romance while on a cruise from Europe to New York. Despite being engaged to other people, both agree to reunite at the top of the Empire State Building in six months. However, an unfortunate accident keeps her from the reunion, and he fears that she has married or does not love him anymore.

Available on iTunes, YouTube, Disney+ and Amazon Prime.

four weddings and a funeral

Lovable Englishman Charles (Hugh Grant) and his group of friends seem to be unlucky in love. When Charles meets a beautiful American named Carrie (Andie MacDowell) at a wedding, he thinks his luck may have changed. But, after one magical night, Carrie returns to the States, ending what might have been. As Charles and Carrie’s paths continue to cross — over a handful of nuptials and one funeral — he comes to believe they are meant to be together, even if their timing always seems to be off.