Let Him Go:

Based on the novel by Larry Watson, and set in Montana and North Dakota, circa 1963, we meet George and Margaret Blackledge (Kevin Costner and Diane Lane) on their small ranch in Montana. Everything about their relationship is low-key and quiet - George is a retired sheriff, Margaret was an excellent horsewoman and trainer, but life is different now. Their son, James (Saskatchewan-born, BC - educated Ryan Bruce) lives on the ranch with them, along with his new wife Lorna and their newborn son Jimmy. Tragedy strikes when George finds his son on the property, dead of a broken neck in a fall from a horse. We move forward three years to the wedding of Lorna and Donnie Weboy as the daughter-in-law remarries. They take little Jimmy into town to live, where Margaret accidentally sees them on the street one day with Donnie hitting her little grandchild, and then hitting Lorna when she tries to step in. Clearly a family in distress, Margaret goes into town days later to see her grandson, only to find that they are gone from the rundown apartment in which they lived. Gone, she learns from a neighbour, to North Dakota, as Donnie's family came in, loaded them up, and disappeared in the night. Margaret is beside herself with grief, and it's here that the real star of this movie steps out, as Diane Lane shows a strength and stubbornness that has her character decide to find her grandson and bring him back. Reluctantly, George agrees and they set off across country. The scenery is spectacular, with Alberta locations such as Fort MacLeod and Drumheller filling in for Big Sky Country and North Dakota, and it's here that the movie takes a turn. A story drenched in human sadness, with exceptional performances at every turn, it is starkly realistic and showcases the talents of its principal actors in a quiet and sometimes sad way. Rated 14A.

Wild Mountain Thyme (2020):

Emily Blunt, Christopher Walken, and Jamie Dornan star in what is meant to be an intense and wild romantic comedy set against a beautiful backdrop consisting of the stunning Irish countryside. Written by John Patrick Shanley who has based it on his own stage play “Outside Mullingar” which ran on Broadway in 2014, it has a number of big flaws that make it less than it could have been, or as one reviewer put it, “one Leprechaun short of a full Irish jig.” Blunt is an aggressive, headstrong farmwoman named Rosemary Muldoon, who has fallen for, and is pursuing her neighbouring farmer, Anthony (Dornan). Anthony seems oblivious to her advances, completely consumed with his father’s (Walken) decision to sell the farm to his American cousin instead of making Anthony the heir. The problem with the story is that it is very wordy, and other than the spectacular Irish backgrounds, has far too much to say, and has far too little to do. In Ireland, the movie was lambasted because of the terrible Irish accents of its main players, none of which is Irish. Rated 14A.

Host (2020):

The standard horror-thriller gets a Covid-19 makeover in this ghost story written and directed by British award-winning filmmaker Rob Savage. Casting six young women at the heart of the action here, he chose to use their actual first names for the characters they play, as they get together for their weekly Zoom call on which they play quiz games routinely. Tonight it’s different … they have hired a medium who is going to do a virtual séance with them, which all sounds quite harmless … but it is not. Spirits can apparently go online too, and it doesn’t take long before each of the characters finds that something sinister has invaded their own space and their own homes as the story progresses. They learn soon enough that none of them might survive the night. Rated 14A.

Enola Holmes (2020):

Netflix acquired the distribution rights for this whodunnit after it was decided to stream the movie rather than put it in theatres.  It's a Sherlock Holmes story, but unlike any that have come before.  Enola (Millie Bobby Brown who played "Eleven" on ``Stranger Things") is a much younger sister to Sherlock and Mycroft Holmes, but she has the detective genetics that it takes to go looking for a mystery to be solved.  None of the Sir Arthur Conan Doyle books mention a younger sister, but here she is, and when her mother goes missing, Enola sets off to find her.  Helena Bonham Carter plays Mother Holmes, and Henry Cavill is Sherlock.  When it's discovered that mother is missing, and that there are a number of gifts and trinkets that she has inexplicably left behind, big brother Sherlock continues to insist that Enola leave the matter alone, and head off to boarding school.  Not her ... soon she is searching all of London, looking for clues.  A crime-adventure, rated 14A. 

Country-ish (2020)(TV series):

This Netflix original is a reality series that features country singer and internet star Coffey Anderson and his wife Criscilla.  It walks through their daily lives with the couple, and focuses on their careers - she's a hip-hop artist - their Christian faith, and their desire to provide wholesome entertainment in a world that seems to want things a lot more raunchy.  A former U.S. Marine, and an active participant in the Nashville music scene, Coffey has released nine albums so far, about half of them faith-based and the other half mainstream.  He was a contestant on season 2 of American Idol in 2003 where he made it as far as the Hollywood round.  Rated PG.

Pets United (2020):

A perfect animated film for youngsters, parents, and grandparents, but only if they watch with the kids. The central characters are all pets of one sort or another, and their common thread is that they are spoiled, they are selfish, and they live a life of luxury, because their owners have all the mechanical denizens of Robo City doing the hard work.  But what happens when the robots run amuck and the humans have to flee?  Time for the skate-boarding pug, the self-aggrandizing Siamese, a pet pig, and a smart fox to grow up and take some responsibility.  Good fun for kids of all ages - meaning, much past 13, they will probably think it's lame, but younger ones will relish it.  Rated G.