Tareau Barron

Movie Review #9: Collateral Beauty

I lost my movie stub!! ARRRGGHHH. Well let’s get to it. I went to see this movie with my homie, Kenny from work. Lmao we originally were going to see SING in 3d but it was sold out. So this was our consolation prize. Ha. I snuck in some plain Mike & Ikes  (listen go to Walgreens and go to the candy aisle. They are on sale. 4 boxes for $3) but Kenny wanted to by food from the concession stand. 😲😲😲😲 Negro whatttt. You lucky I had a coupon bruh. Hahaha
Ok Collateral movie is a drama that has more twists and turn than wall Street. Haha. Please folks do not listen to all the Hollywood bloggers who slammed this movie. I almost cried in this movie. Yes me. Seeing that I am a movie buff, I tend to get lost in the characters and try to feel their pain. Will Smith stars as Howard Inlet. Howard is a successful advertisement executive who lives by a philosophy that life is 3 things: LOVE, TIME & DEATH! 

Howard has a business partner named Whit (Edward Norton) whose divorce has just been finalized due to his infidelities. He has a 10 year old daughter named Allison (Kylie Rogers) who is furious with him at this time in life.

Simon Scott (Michael Pena) is an executive also at the company. He is a hard working, devoted husband and father, whose parents came from nothing and manage to instill hard work ethics into Simon. It is revealed that Simon went to Duke University due to his parents. It is also revealed that Simon has a rare form of cancer which is deadly.

Howard’s assistant and business manager is Claire Wilson (Kate Winslet) is a go-getter, who works so hard for the company, she has failed to acknowledge her needs in wanting a family.

Crisis hits when Howard’s daughter dies at the age of 6 due to a rare type of cancer. Howard shuts himself off from the world, only coming to work everyday, just to sit at his desk and set up a domino rally-esq game on his tables. He doesn’t have a phone, no cable, and his only source of entertainment is that he writes 3 letters once a week. The 3 letters are not to people, but to things: TIME, DEATH, LOVE. 

Meanwhile at the firm, there’s bad news afloat. Due to Howard’s mental state, the agency is losing clients. And if they lose their next client, the whole firm will lose their jobs. Howard refuses to listens to any of his colleagues advice, so Whit hires a private investigator named Sally Price (Ann Dowd, ironically the same PI that caught Whit cheating on his wife) to follow Howard around. She reports back to the group and managed to steal his letters from the mailbox, revealing that Howard writes to these letters to things. Whit has an idea that is very controversial. If they can prove to the board of their firm that Howard is delusional, they can remove Howard and divy up his shares in the company. So Whit convinces the group to hire 3 actors to play TIME (Jacob Lattimore) LOVE (Kiera Knightley) and DEATH (Helen Mirren). Madeline (Naomie Harris) plays Howard’s ex wife, who works as a grief therapist.

Now without giving away what happens, I can both stress to you that you have to go into this movie and just let the movie come to you. Clear your mind and just chill out. Do not listen to them folks in Hollywood. The movie is doing poorly now and I as a movie buff can not figure out why. Great original story, great leads, great story, great balance. Was it the timing? Due to Star Wars and other big movies? As of today, the movie has yet to clear into the black. With a $36 million dollar budget, it has only made $34.5 million.

I give this movie an A. Outstanding film that gets you thinking while making your emotions go through the motions.

What are your thoughts? Did you see the film? Please comment below.✌

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31 comments

  1. I agree. I loved this movie and I’m not sure why it’s not doing well. I described it to someone else as a regular back in the day movie, with a plot, good actors and no special effects, and I didn’t see the ending coming until almost the end! I think it was well done.

    Side note: “We” say we want more diversity and better selection when it comes to lead roles, but then when it happens, where are “we”? Okay. That’s my $.02.

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    • Happy new years Dr. Garland. So we can official harass lady g now. Hahahaha. Yes it’s part of “our” conditioning. If Beyonce was to tell people to see this movie, it would sell out. I almost cried at this movie and I even read the reviews of why it did so poorly. I know the timing but America has a “what have you done for me lately mentality.” It’s sad to me as a brotha when Madea movies kills at the box office and my friends of different races get shocked when I don’t watch those movies. “But Tareau it’s a black movie” hahahaahahahahaha right? Fences has been out a week, and I’m has just broke even on its $24million dollar budget, but I don’t hear no one talking about it too much. I sense holidays are bad times to release movies that are not holiday related. I also sense hidden figures will do well.

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      • It’s shameful. I don’t even want to get on Tyler Perry or Madea lol I decided a long time ago, his movies are for old people and children .

        Holidays, Shmolidays…you know people will go see whatever they want, depending on who is in it, and like you said, if Oprah or Beyonce told them it was great, then it’d be sold out.

        Everybody is waiting on Hidden Figures because it confirms what we already know, institutionalized racism exist. This time we get to see how it happens.

        Lady G is ready Tareau! She Tweeted me the other day. I have a post ready for Jasmyne coming out next Friday 😉

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      • Preaccccchhhhh. Way to start the New years. People fear what they can change. They do. We can change these stereotypes but its “too inconvenient” to do so. I see why a lot of people do not take black culture serious. We don’t support each other, bottom line. We have to beg our own people for support when it’s a given in other communities. Institutionalized racism will always exist because WE allow it to be the dark cloud. That’s why even with mediocre, bad, so/So, black films, we still must support it.

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      • You know what I think it is? People like to feel uplifted during the holidays, not cry. Shoot…especially if your holidays suck already (like mine lol). I heard AMAZING things about this movie but each person told me it made them feel shitty. Word travels and I think people chose not to see it for that reason. Even I tabled it until after the holidays when I could handle a deep, thought-provoking tear jerker. Fences was great but definitely not for the youth or simple-minded. I overheard the kids discussing it in the seat next to me and they were so lost. One even said “we should have brought an adult with us” lmfao. I died.

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      • Hahahahaha. Yes I agree that it should of been released earlier but I’m happy it did well and won accolades. And to the latter part of your comment, yea that goes and proves that people don’t want to be mentally challenged anymore and have their own thought process

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      • YES it was hilarious. I can’t get this comment out of my mind “like some sort of slut magic, you would just appear!” HA! This was a good one. I can’t believe that the movie took place in one main setting really, and I never got bored. Now I need another recommendation that I can find on Netflix. Let’s see what ya got!

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  2. Thanks for this review, brother! I think you may be right in that the timing of the release could have been better. Show up/ release during a ‘Rogue One’ run through the theatres and movie-goers might not even know you exist! I’m putting this on my list of must see movies based on your review s you just keep them coming!

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  3. Brotha Tareau – I, admittedly, I have not seen this film yet. I came by just to see your grade. Since it has an A, I am going to see it this weekend. The directors, theaters, etc need to start putting you on commission and cutting you a check for every review you do! Lol, I mean … you are THE deciding factor more often than not for me and other folks – so they could at LEAST hook you up with some free gummy bears at the concession stands and a good seat in the theater!! This is an outrage! lol

    Will Smith is usually in good films … but since that “After Earth” film he was in, he is on probation with me lol.

    I’ll be sure to read your review again and leave my thoughts in the comments afterwards!

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    • Suicide Squad was cool. But yea After Earth I felt was a favor to his son. I can’t be mad at that but it did suck. Hell yea movies need to at least give me some Tropical Starburst or something right? Yea collateral beauty It hit home for me. So I could easily get lost in Will Smiths character. I’m reading that alot of critics didn’t like it because they are not used to seeing Will Smith in a vulnerable position. For me it shows an actors range. Like with any artistry, the more diverse you are the more I feel you, even if I don’t relate to the subject.

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      • That’s interesting! I agree about the full range of an actor. A person should never be limited to one dimension. I imagine that gets boring to them, anyway. At the end of the day, they are people who are looking for challenges and novelty like everyone else

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    • Lmfao @ probation hahahahahahahahahaha. Man there’s so many actors who air wrote referrals or sent them to the principals office or even suspended them.

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      • Lol … After Earth HAD to be a favor to his son. You are right. His daughter, Willow, had that crap ass song “I wave my hair back and forth” (it was a weave lmao) and Jaden was like “but what about me dad?” so Will was like … “fine, lets do this movie right quick” lol

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      • Lmfao riiiggghhhhht. But now that I’m older I kind of understand it. Hell white folks let they kids do all kinds of dumb stuff and pay it forward🙋 hahahahaha. Man that song was annoying. Arrrrrrgggghhh dam Darryl now it’s in my head

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      • Straight up, I ain’t mad at him for it lol. And yo man, my niece had that song on REPEAT feeling all empowered and shit lol. I’m like: sit yo ass downn before you get dizzy with all that head waving. It’s super catchy

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  4. You did your thing brah! I might go check it out. But to be honest, I’m still processing your “Fences” review! It was fire!
    I need to go see both of these and “Figures.”
    A sista slippin’

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    • Thank you Lady G for the love and support. Fences was excellent and i wish it wins every award possible. I hope you are doing great. Oh and when you wanna buy a tshirt and what size?

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  5. […] I do have to add that of course this movie is going to do well but it is also going to reinforce what myself and Dr. Garland has been saying: movies like this will reinforce institutionalized racism. People of all colors will watch it and feel good about black people and then forget about everything. It will be the proverbial “I’m not a racist I have a black friend” mantra. And to know what we are talking about, you can view it here on my last movie review about Collateral Beauty. Here’s the link https://thecouchsports.com/2017/01/01/movie-review-9-collateral-beauty/#comments […]

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  6. I enjoyed your review thank you. And congratulations for standing against the tide of movie critics who have misread this film. Apart from its complicated narrative structure and the surreptitious use of magical realism, this is a great film that held my attention to the very end. As I have said in my review: “If this film was re-imagined with the cast in 17th Century costumes and Howard as the innkeeper of the best establishment in the land, with the three actors, Death, Time, and Love played as ephemerals that materialised and then disappeared, it would be described as a universal tale of Shakespearean proportions.”

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