It is V-E night, May 8, 1945. Princess Elizabeth (19) and Princess Margaret (14) are eager to celebrate with the rest of London. But they are the heirs to the British crown. How can they simply go out on the town like common girls? It doesn’t matter how they got out, but in truth, the two girls did leave the palace and spend some time with the revelers in London. That part is true. A Royal Night Out is a story about the two princesses’ night of celebrating. While the fact that they really were able to spend the celebration with the “common” people, this film looks at one scenario that could have happened.

Director Julian Jarrold says, “It’s a true story by which everybody is intrigued. But we don’t know exactly what happened. [The movie is] a little fantasy inspired by that true story. It’s also a romantic comedy adventure about an odd couple, Jack is a working–class guy and Elizabeth is a princess. They are thrown together by chance and have to make their way through London on this crazy, unbelievable night.”

Margaret is young and naïve. She is also a fun-loving girl who has no idea what lurks on the other side of the palace walls. All she wants to do is go dancing and celebrate. Elizabeth, on the other hand, is eager to go out but also knows her role and how to behave, something completely foreign to her sister.

The Queen has seen to it that the girls have military chaperones, however it’s not long before the men “misplace” the princesses who are by now well on their way to experiencing this wild night full of merriment and patriotism.

Margaret goes on a wild tour of London and gets involved with some not-so-savory types. Elizabeth follows after her, trying to find her sister. Along the way she meets an airman who helps her. Jack has no idea “Lizzy” is the princess. Together they have an amazing time as they traipse around London looking for Margaret who has gotten herself involved with, of all people, some ladies of the night.

While Jack is accompanying Lizzy, she learns a lot about this man. They form an alliance that lasts the entire night and well into the next day. Once the princesses return to Buckingham Palace, Jack enjoys breakfast with the royal family. And Lizzy, aka Princess Elizabeth, takes on one last duty to the military. She escorts Jack back to his squadron. Their fabulous night together will ever remain a secret.

With Queen Elizabeth as she is today, it might be difficult for people to imagine – or remember – her as a teenager. Originally she was not destined to be the queen. Her uncle was the King. Well, we know the story of that debacle. So, Elizabeth’s father inherited the throne and therefore Elizabeth became the next in line. Once entrenched in Buckingham Palace, Elizabeth and her sister Margaret had their fates sealed. But on this one night they managed to experience the jubilance of the end of the war with their countrymen and countrywomen. That was a treat for the girls.

This movie is a fun bit of fantasy involving two women of history. The night World War II ended in Europe, the entire country and world celebrated. Things were about to change. Their lives would get back to normal. No more bombings or blitzes. This night, however, was still a reminder of what they had all experienced together.

Elizabeth and Jack (Sarah Gadon and Jack Reynor) are fun to watch. Margaret (Bel Powley) shows her exuberance for life and excitement. The queen and king (Emily Watson and Rupert Everett) are steadfastly aware of their duties but also that their daughters are young and excited. The casting is well done and the story is whimsical. While no one knows what really happened that night, this is one way to think about the excursions of the two princesses.

For more information, please visit the official A Royal Night Out website.

A Royal Night Out is rated PG-13 for some sexual content and brief drug elements. It opens December 4, 2015

About the Author

Francine Brokaw has been covering all aspects of the entertainment industry for 20 years. She also writes about products and travel. She has been published in national and international newspapers and magazines as well as Internet websites. She has written her own book, Beyond the Red Carpet The World of Entertainment Journalists, from Sourced Media Books.

Follow her on Twitter

Not since Dino and Bam Bam have a dinosaur and a cave boy been so endearing. The Good Dinosaur is a whirlwind of emotions with two adorable characters at the center.

First of all, everything in this story is backward from what we think of as “normal.” Yes, even for an animated feature. The dinosaurs have evolved to be the dominant life forms and the humans are “critters.” The dinosaurs talk but the humans don’t.

Arlo is the runt of the litter. He has a loving mother and father, and a sister and brother. Arlo is the smallest and the most fearful. They all work on the family farm. One of Arlo’s responsibilities is feeding the chickens, however this fellow is afraid of them. He is afraid of everything. Arlo strives to be like his siblings, yet he is just too fearful. His father has faith that he will get through his fears.

After his father dies, this little guy tries even harder to live up to his dad’s hopes. When he is inadvertently swept away by the river he ends up a long way away from the farm. This is where he joins with a little orphan cave boy named Spot.

Actually, Arlo and Spot have met before and Arlo blames the little boy for his father’s death. But Spot adores his new friend and wants to help Arlo get back home. The two begin the long trek back to Arlo’s farm and his family.

Along the way fearless Spot and fearful Arlo encounter some other characters, both good and bad. But their devotion to each other is what saves them and pulls them through all the hardships.

During their adventure, Arlo learns to get through his fears and does what his father told him to do – something bigger that himself; something for another being. The relationship between Arlo and Spot is what entertains audiences. Young and old will delight in the love these two share for each other. Spot’s expressions are priceless. He’s simply adorable and will steal the hearts of everyone in the theaters.

There are many scenes of peril in the movie, which might be upsetting to some youngsters. And there are some scenes which might not be completely understood by the very young. But all in all, this is a sweet film of love, devotion, and mostly of family and finding one’s place in the world.

The animation in the movie is amazing. Not only are the characters enticing, but the scenery is also top notch. Producer Denise Ream explains, “It’s an interesting balance between having the slight stylization, but also capturing the realism of nature. The details they’ve incorporated are stunning. And we’ve approached it differently—you can see for miles and miles.”

“It’s the biggest effects film we’ve done in Pixar history, by far,” says effects supervisor Jon Reisch. “Typically, about 30 percent of a film’s shots are effects shots. For The Good Dinosaur, it’s more than twice that—60 percent of the film, over 900 shots out of about 1500, featured the work of the effects department.” There is nonstop action from beginning to end.

“The Good Dinosaur is one of the most emotional movies we’ve ever made,” says executive producer John Lasseter. “It’s really funny and clever, and as the story unfolds, this deep emotion emerges. You fall in love with Spot right along with Arlo. Their bond is so interesting and unique—so different from anything we’ve ever done. It’s a very special movie.”

Before the movie the animated short, Sanjay’s Super Team. Sanjay is a little boy who loves his super heroes. When his father makes him meditate in front of the Hindu gods, the little boy dreams of them as super heroes. This is a colorful little short.

Disney has several products to accompany this new adventure. There is an adorable plush Spot and several plush Arlos as well as other items.

The bottom line is The Good Dinosaur is a special treat for young and old. It is filled with emotions. The Good Dinosaur is rated PG for peril, action, and thematic elements.

About the Author

Francine Brokaw has been covering all aspects of the entertainment industry for 20 years. She also writes about products and travel. She has been published in national and international newspapers and magazines as well as Internet websites. She has written her own book, Beyond the Red Carpet The World of Entertainment Journalists, from Sourced Media Books.

Follow her on Twitter

It’s not an illusion, actor Anthony Mackie has taken over neighborhood cineplax screens. Currently seen as a campaign strategist and Sandra Bullock’s sidekick in Our Brand is Crises, he returns this Friday in two distinctly different takes on life in New York City.

For starters, Jonathan Levine’s The Night Before ushers in the holiday season with a nontraditional tale of three dudes – Ethan (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), a musician, whose career has failed to launch; Isaac (Seth Rogan),who is suffering from a case of pending fatherhood jitters, rounded out by Chris (Mackie), a pro football player, whose gridiron fame might be attributed to the use of steroids.

Every year the guys gather to commemorate the tragic, sudden deaths of Ethan’s parents a decade earlier, but it looks like this tradition may quickly be coming to an end. Upping the ante one last time, the buddies nail three tickets to the Nutcrackar Ball, the Big Apple’s legendary and most elusive party. There’s just one small hitch, the invitations don’t include an address.

In pursuit of that location, their drug-fueled night of debauchery and revelry takes detours to the Rockefeller Center tree, a karaoke bar where they take a stab at Run-DMC’s “Christmas in Hollis,” and Tompkins Square Park, complete with a stray reindeer running amok. Nothing is off limits, not even midnight mass.

Don’t be mislead, The Night Before promises and delivers a marathon of laughs, but discreetly tucked between the layers is an unmistakable sweetness and vulnerability. By the time the final credits role, three great friends have morphed into three wise men.

Mackie was so sold on the project he did something he hadn’t done in 10 years – he auditioned for the role. “It was a little weird having to memorize the lines for the audition. And usually, actors tend to stay away from the star. Instead I messed with Seth. I was going to blow it out and make it my own. They’d (the director and casting crew) keep laughing and I’d be thinking, ‘Yo, shut up. The cameras are still rolling and I’m still in the middle of my audition.’ I didn’t know if it went well or not until I got the part,” noted the highly animated 37 year old actor, who in real life is a devote football fan, pledging allegiance to his hometown team – the New Orleans Saints.

His second feature film sharing the same release date is writer/director Paul Bettany’s Shelter. A piercing indictment on society’s ineffective handling of homelessness, the storyline is propelled forward by two unlikely lovers – Tahir (Mackie), a Nigerian immigrant racked with guilt over the atrocities he committed as a member of the Islamic militant group Boko Haram, and Hannah (played by Bettany’s wife Jennifer Connelly), a heroin addict, who’s been reduced to trading sexual favors for refuge in a small boiler room during a blizzard. Despite the dire circumstances, a romance blossoms, secrets are shared, and in the act of forgiveness they each find their redemption.

Totally different in both size and scope from such recent blockbusters like Captain America: The Winter Soldier, where he appeared as Sam Wilson/Falcon, and subsequent follow-up Avengers: Age of Ultron, Mackie seemed predestined to play Tahir

The graduate of Juillard’s School of Drama recalled, “A few years back, I was feed up and frustrated with the business. I went to Los Angeles to visit a friend. It was the first time I saw LA’s Skid Row and my reaction was, ‘My God, what is this?’ I saw so many veterans living there. I read up on it and called my reps to say I wanted to do something, maybe a short character study. A few months later the script for Shelter comes across, like it was fate. I just thought it was ironic and funny and made me want to create something.”

Having done so many big budget, special effects, and blue screen movies in the past, Mackie welcomed the challenge of creating an intimate, basically two-character study. He laughingly conceded, “Let’s put it this way there were no craft services to keep me happy when I wanted some cookies. This is like doing theater, you just have to hit the road running. I did a few movies like this, successful movies like my first 20-25 day shoot.”

Specifically, he was referring to Brother to Brother where he played a homeless shelter employee struggling with his cultural and sexual identity. Along with his Independent Spirit Award nomination, the film copped the 2004 Special Dramatic Jury Prize at Sundance Film Festival.

Musically inclined, his first big break came while portraying ill-fated rapper Tupac Shakur in the off-Broadway staging of Up Against the Wind. He’d eventually move uptown to the Great White Way in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom headed by Whoopi Goldberg.

Numbered among his movie credits are We Are Marshalls, The Hurt Locker, and Million Dollar Baby, coupled with biopics on Olympian Jesse Owens, Antebellum slave revolt leader Nat Turner, and jazz musician Buddy Bolden. Augmenting that roster is the upcoming HBO movie All the Way, casting Mackie as Martin Luther King Jr. to Bryan Cranston’s turn as Lyndon B. Johnson, which focuses on the passage of the Civil Rights Act.

Already shaping up as another busy year, 2016 will mark the release of Triple 9, about a gang of criminals and corrupt cops, who mastermind the killing of a police officer in order to pull off a major heist. And there’s another foray as Falcon in Captain America: Civil War.

Recently becoming a father for the third time Mackie warns, “It’s going to take something important to take me away from my family.”

 

About the Author

Winnie Bonelli is a former entertainment editor for a daily metropolitan New York City area newspaper. She is passionate about movies and television and loves to take readers behind the scenes.