Review process: two scores assigned: (I don’t believe in Rotten Tomatoes. I just believe in me)
(***all-purpose SPOILER ALERT*** there may be some in this review)
(1) Shark Wrighter (SW) Score: Based on a sum of 5 sub-scores (acting, directing, writing/story, cinematography &/or animation &/or effects, editing) with 1 being terrible and 10 being terrific.
(2) Octopuses (0-5 🐙, with 5 being fantastic and 0 being feces)
(3) Octopuses are my unquantifiable feeling…not that SW score is scientific…but this one is even less so
The mini-review:
Moscow on the Hudson
acting 7
directing 7
writing 6
effects 6
editing 6
SW score: 32
2.7 out of 5 octopi
++ As a child of the ’80s, I grew up watching a lot of cold war-themed flicks. You probably don’t need to guess but they were all a patriotic confirmation of the USA’s superiority to the evil communist empire. Of course, shit is more complicated than that but as a kid, the broad strokes of black and white morality really resonated with me. Moscow on the Hudson is no exception though it at least tries to address the issue of culture shock when these poor communist refugees reach the land of the free. And Williams plays a man who has just given up his home to be free with sweet sublety and palpable wonder and anxiety.
