14 July
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PERSUASION Director: Carrie CracknellStarring: Dakota Johnson, Cosmo Jarvis, Henry Golding, Richard E. Grant Jane Austen continues to enchant writers and moviegoers long after her books were published. The latest page to screen adaptation of one of her classics is the Dakota Johnson-led Persuasion streaming on Netflix. The novel may have been published in 1817 shortly after her death, but this new take offers up a slightly new concept for telling this story. Dakota Johnson breaks the fourth wall and addresses her audience as Ann Elliot and informs us she was almost married once to Frederick Wentworth who held her heart but was persuaded not toRead More →

15 June
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CHA CHA REAL SMOOTH Director: Cooper RaiffStarring: Cooper Raiff, Dakota Johnson, Vanessa Burghardt, Leslie Mann, Brad Garrett, Evan Assante, Raúl Castillo Last year Apple TV+ bought CODA out of the Sundance Film Festival, and it looks like they’re hoping to have another Sundance winner on their hands with Cha Cha Real Smooth from up-and-coming filmmaker Cooper Raiff. Raiff pulls triple duty here by writing, directing, and starring in the film as Andrew. He’s 22 years old living back at home with his mom (Leslie Mann) while trying to save some money. He works at a fast food joint called Meat Sticks but seems to findRead More →

20 January
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THE LOST DAUGHTER Writer/Director: Maggie GyllenhaalStarring: Olivia Colman, Dakota Johnson, Jessie Buckley, Ed Harris, Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Paul Mescal, Peter Sarsgaard Maggie Gyllenhaal has given rich performances on screen both with HBO’s The Deuce and movies like Crazy Heart and The Kindergarten Teacher. Now she’s making for feature film directorial debut with The Lost Daughter. Gyllenhaal not only directs, but she’s written the adaptation from Elena Ferrante’s novel. She’s got a terrific cast with her as Olivia Colman leads the film as Leda. She’s on holiday at a rustic little Greek resort. It’s run by Ed Harris’ character who seems to take a liking for Leda.Read More →

22 January
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OUR FRIEND Director: Gabriela CowperthwaiteStarring: Casey Affleck, Dakota Johnson, Jason Segel, Cherry Jones, Gwendoline Christie Movies involving cancer or death can either feel manipulative or provide a good cathartic release. The new film Our Friend plays all the right notes. Casey Affleck and Dakota Johnson play Matt and Nicole Teague. They’re a married couple with two beautiful girls who are facing the ultimate heartbreak when she’s been diagnosed with terminal cancer. Helping them throughout her sickness is best friend Dane, played by Jason Segel. Nicole first met Dane years back doing theater, and he’s always been there to be the rock for them in hardRead More →

28 May
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THE HIGH NOTE Director: Nisha GanatraStarring: Dakota Johnson, Tracee Ellis Ross, Ice Cube, Kelvin Harrison Jr, June Diane Raphael, Bill Pullman A feel good movie with a great cast and good music? That’s what you get with The High Note starring Dakota Johnson and Tracee Ellis Ross. It’s available OnDemand//Johnson plays Maggie, a budding music producer who spends the majority of her day as the personal assistant to Grace Davis, played by Tracee Ellis Ross. Grace is an 11-time Grammy winner but hasn’t had a new album in a decade. Her team is deciding what’s the next best step for her career. A Vegas residency,Read More →

08 February
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FIFTY SHADES FREED Director: James Foley Starring: Dakota Johnson, Jamie Dornan, Eric Johnson, Luke Grimes, Rita Ora, Brant Daugherty, Eloise Mumford, Tyler Hoechlin It’s all come down to this. The conclusion of a trilogy that has left us on the edge of our seat wondering how it will all end is finally here. This statement is legitimately true for some viewers who have devoured the book series by EL James soaking in the kinky romance between Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey. For me, I’m wondering what else could happen to give this story some life. Fifty Shades Freed opens with the wedding of the centuryRead More →

09 February
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FIFTY SHADES DARKER Director: James Foley Starring: Dakota Johnson, Jamie Dornan, Marcia Gay Harden, Kim Basinger, Eric Johnson, Bella Heathcote, Luke Grimes, Eloise Mumford, Rita Ora Fify Shades Darker? More like Fifty Shade More Boring. When we last saw Anastasia “Ana” Steele (Johnson) and Christian Grey (Dornan), they had broken up as Christian’s domineering ways were too much for Ana to handle. She’s only slightly moved on and is working for a publishing company. He desperately wants her back so he tries to win her over by buying her dozens of roses and several large photographs of her at a gallery showing. They meet forRead More →

17 September
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BLACK MASS Director: Scott Cooper Starring: Johnny Depp, Joel Edgerton, Benedict Cumberbatch, Jesse Plemons, Kevin Bacon, Peter Sarsgaard, Rory Cochrane, Dakota Johnson, Adam Scott, Corey Stoll Black Mass is the intriguing true story of James “Whitey” Bulger (Depp) who was known as one of the most violent and dangerous gangsters in South Boston. The film spans twenty years from 1975-1995 when Whitey was working as an informant to the FBI. Throughout that time he was working closely with John Connolly (Edgerton), a childhood friend turned FBI agent, in order to bring down the Angiulo family. They were an Italian family of gangsters who were rivalsRead More →

24 February
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FIFTY SHADES OF GREY Director: Sam Taylor-Johnson Starring: Dakota Johnson, Jamie Dornan, Marcia Gay Harden, Eloise Mumford, Luke Grimes, Jennifer Ehle Bite that lip, Ana! You’ll notice very early on that the biting of the lip is just one of Anastasia Steele’s (Johnson) trademark mannerisms. She is young and very innocent. She heads off to Grey Enterprises to interview entrepreneur Christian Grey (Dornan) for her roommate Kate (Mumford) who is out sick. Ana is taken by surprise by how good-looking he is and mumbles through a majority of the questions Kate had prepared. He is instantly attracted to her as well. His dashing bachelor mindsetRead More →

24 July
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In Twin Cities Live

FIFTY SHADES OF GREY Director: Sam Taylor-Johnson Starring: Jamie Dornan, Dakota Johnson, Jennifer Ehle, Marcia Gay Harden, Rita Ora, Luke Grimes, Max Martini I’m pretty sure that if you have never heard of the book Fifty Shades of Grey, you are probably living under a rock. Maybe that’s harsh, but that little book known as “mommy porn” became an international bestseller and was talked about to death. It was only time before they rushed the movie version into production. Jamie Dornan and Dakota Johnson (Don and Melanie’s daughter) were cast as Christian Grey and Anastasia Steele, respectively. The first trailer was released today on TheRead More →