Still coming down from the high of the Captain Marvel trailer debut.
Captain Marvel, I love you. Please be the best Marvel movie like I know you have the potential to be.
Captain Marvel #2 (August 2012) Script by Kelly Sue DeConnick. Art by Dexter Soy.
Suspiria
I purchased this on blu-ray as it recently was released with a 4k restoration.
Let me tell you, even though I've only watched it once, it is now moved into my top ten movies.
This movie is visually stunning. It honestly holds up so well -- I was so immersed in it that had I not known anything about it, I would have thought it was made this year. (Not joking)
Isle of Dogs
Please go see this movie.
I loved everything about this: the story, the script, the visuals. The detail. the cast.
I know, every Wes Anderson movie is *so* Wes Anderson. This one is especially. It follows the same style, the same camera tracking, the same framing.
This one has a color palette that I don't think we've seen previously in a WA movie. This one is far muddier in colors and tones. It has the typical pops of colors in every scene (this time around, like others, we get lots of pops of red) but everything is muted down more than before. It's as if there is a constant fog over everything, which works because we are on Trash Island, after all.
You won't believe this. It's simple and delicious. It sounds like a ton of black pepper but it's perfectly matched with a tofu scramble and gives enough kick to get your day going. I put this on top of salads or eat for breakfast.
Serves 2-3 people.
Ingredients:
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 large red potatoes, cubed
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp black pepper
salt to taste
water, for boiling potatoes
Equipment:
Large pot (for potatoes)
Potato masher or fork (for mashing chickpeas)
Medium bowl (for mashing chickpeas)
Large skillet (large enough for the potatoes and chickpeas)
Method:
1. Mash your chickpeas in a medium sized bowl after draining and rinsing. You can use the back of a fork or a potato masher. Set aside.
2. Parboil your cubed potatoes until they are just starting to get soft. To do this, cover your cubed potatoes in cold water, in a large pot. Bring water to a boil and then once boiling, turn off heat and cover the pot for about five minutes.
3. Remove the pot from stove, drain potatoes and set aside.
4. Take out your large skillet and add mashed chickpeas and drained potatoes to the skillet. sprinkle olive oil, black pepper, salt. Combine and stir as the skillet heats and the mash starts to cook!
5. Cook on medium-high for about 5 minutes until chickpeas start to crisp and brown and the potatoes are golden, soft.
6. Remove from heat and serve!
Note: this tastes great cold, too.
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Don't expect closure and you'll love this movie. This is about exactly what the title says and nothing more.
Acting is fantastic. I am obsessed with Frances McDormand.
Lords of Salem
Lords of Salem had been really "sold" to me as being one that I would enjoy. I mean, it has a lot of things I love: Rob Zombie, Sheri Moon Zombie. Salem, MA. Witchcraft.
This one felt like it was trying too hard and I didn't like that. I did like the plot and thought it had promise but just simply fell off.
I don't recommend this one.
Dig Two Graves
This is one of those "I see what you're trying to do but..." movies. The story is interesting but I couldn't allow myself to fully be immersed in it. The story is a slow build and predictable. The acting is very rough. Despite being a true indie, however, the cinematography is pretty great and the sound is good, too.
This is a classic tale of selling your soul to the devil and the situation kind of backfiring in your face. It's compelling but there is so much predictability that I was left feeling disappointed.
Honestly, I would not recommend this to many friends. And for horror fans, you can probably skip this.
Lady Bird
There are many things to be said about Lady Bird that already have been, but here's my hot-take:
Lady Bird is good but wasn't my favorite of the year. It had merit and deserved to be among the ranks of Academy Award winners. I am glad that we are finally seeing coming-of-age stories from the cis-female perspective. I am glad that more women are writing stories and making movies and ALSO getting credit for it.
That being said, I hope that Lady Bird is what paves the way for other amazing female writers to share their craft and gain merit.
I, Tonya
I loved I,Tonya. And I think a lot of people will be focused on this being billed as a comedy and not watch it. That disappoints me.
Tonya's story about childhood and early adulthood is actually quite tragic which isn't comedic. What is comedic are the antics and behaviors of those around her and how relatable the concept of "fitting in" to a community can be. Or how relatable Tonya's family and friends really are to someone that grew up in a similar suburban, not-so-privileged area of the US. People like LaVona are real. People like Shawn Eckhardt definitely exist.
Allison Janney OWNED the role of LaVona and I am so glad that she won for Supporting Actress.
Honeymoon
First of all, I have loved watching Rose Leslie from the time I first saw her on Downton Abbey through her time on Game of Thrones. I find her enchanting and relatable. I am hoping that because she is early in her career, we see her more often and in a continued range of roles and characters.
I love that this film starts with a "wedding video" which is a diary/love note to each other about how they are feeling about one another that they will show everyone that is a guest. This caters to the current culture we live: the need to overshare with friends and family, to document everything in our lives rather than to live personal moments and not have to share with other people. At the start, the wedding video feels inconsequential.
Honeymoon, at first glance, is very similar in high-level narrative to The Strangers. (Couple in a cabin, alone in the woods, strange events) What separates this one from others in the genre is the genuine love of the couple towards each other and the moments of affection. This felt like I was really looking at a vacation of a couple -- both because of the opening sequence of the wedding video and the electricity between the actors. As a couple, they feel natural. There are moments where they start to have hard conversations that many newlyweds do ("do we want kids?" "I didn't realize your dad was...") but are prompted all at once due to being in seclusion in a family home. The topics come up naturally and do not feel pressed to create tension.
Rose Leslie's Bea goes from silly and fun to strange and unpredictable in her behavior. You begin to wonder whether her erratic behavior has always been nestled underneath the surface or was triggered by something new. I relate to her in many ways (post for another time) and as the story unfolds, you begin to feel more than sympathetic for her. At first, you are led to start thinking that Bea has been unfaithful to Paul. I had hoped that the explanation for her behavior was sci-fi rather than the haunting potential of something lewd or infidel that the plot tries to lead your mind. As the story becomes sci-fi, I am for it. And it shifts that way quickly.
Had I not known what genre this was prior to starting it, I would not have expected the horror/thriller elements that come later in the movie. Because I was consciously aware that this was a thriller, I spent quite the time waiting for something to happen. But this does not mean that it is poorly paced or predictable: this movie takes its time and it pays off in the end.
Poltergeist
This is one of my favorite movies and I am reserving a separate post just about why I love it. But I went and saw this in 70mm at Alamo Drafthouse this week and am so glad that I did!
The cut that we watched had coloring issues (it was legit... magenta) but I loved seeing it on screen with an audience. The laughs are more laughable and the few jumps are jumpier. And I love when the audience claps at exciting moments.
Frances Ha
Yes, I am behind. It has taken until now for me to watch this and I am sad about that. Although this movie is very much a slice-of-life and coming-of-age from the female perspective, I found it a bit dry and lack-luster. This is not a favorite of mine but it does merit viewing if you have not seen it.
However, the dialogue of Frances Ha is believable and sometimes painfully so. There are moments where Frances is faced with being in a room full of friends and seems to be wanting more from the conversations and experiences she is having. Almost creating a new narrative for herself in hopes that it will materialize into her life. I love the indecisiveness of Frances as she attempts to navigate feeling unfulfilled in her career and post-college life: she is still immature but wants to prove her worth. At times it is unclear whether Frances would like to push forward and have independence or whether she would like to continue to rely on others, much like a child expects their parents to provide. There's an insecurity of having to compare herself to others but then find the reality that you may not actually want to change your current position in life.
The Witch
This is one of my favorite movies. I have a post upcoming in a few weeks talking more in-depth about this one. Stay tuned.
Don't Kill It
This is a silly one, honestly. From the moment you turn this on until the end, you are in for unrelenting violence and corny practical effects. There's lots of blood and only camera-focused trauma. I found this to be a fun watch and a tight plot. The plot is pretty simple: kill a demon then become a demon. Normally paranormal (ghosts and demonic) don't get me going nor really do I find interest in them, but this is a fun one.
I also liked our main: a comical caricature of rogue gunslinger. Plus, he's played by Dolph Lundgren, which begs quite a bit of expectation about the action in this movie.
Do I recommend? Really, only if you are ready for lots of blood and demon slaying.
Heartthrob
The dialogue in this is so infuriating and unreal. The acting isn't that great, either.
In short, this movie is Romeo and Juliet if Romeo had been a murderous lover and even more obsessive than Shakespeare had written it originally. And Juliet, Juliet doesn't die this time around but she's just as gullible, overly sensitive.
Ok, Romeo and Juliet isn't that bad but I really did not like this one.
And the lead reminds me of my little brother so maybe there's some personal issues in there, haha.
Either way, I do not recommend this one.
Hush
This is awesome. From start to finish I was on edge and sucked in at the same time. I really don't even want to talk about why I love this movie so much until I watch it again.
Screengrab from The ReZort
The ReZort
Skip this one. It's like... World War Z meets Jurassic Park. I thought I'd be on board for this but wasn't. Expect for maybe eye candy, Dougray Scott (love him, ok?)
Trash Fire
Trash Fire isn’t exactly trash fire but it’s not that great. I'd say that this is one you can definitely skip.
Despite having Adrian Grenier as the lead, this is definitely a pretty indie-feeling movie. Not to get too far into it, but this movie felt like a recent film grad took every director possible as inspiration. The lighting and camera angles felt like Kubrick. There was a monologue whose imagery looked like knock-off Wes Anderson. The whole movie just felt very immature. It also felt like it wasn't sure whether it was supposed to be a horror, a comedy, or a drama -- it was really inconsistent in its scripting and pace.
Finally, I found Adrian Grenier's Owen to be unrelatable and childish. I am sure that is what he was supposed to make you feel, but no other characters redeemed him or gave explanation to his behaviors. So, I guess, “Go fuck yourself, Florence.”
Starry Eyes
“I AM NOT A MILLION OTHER GIRLS.”
The introduction of this one feels old school: opening sequence introducing you to the character with the title cards rolling over it. The synthy intro music=perf. The pacing is very unnerving as its initial moments of horror aren’t clear: is this all really happening? Starry Eyes is a pretty original story and creates a mood that I will likely reference in the future. This is a new example of how to do horror right.
The gore is heavy with this one, friends. And worth it. And good.
Lead actor = BAE. LOVE her.
The dialogue in every scene with the lead's friends is well-written and equally well-paced. The acting feels comfortable and more akin to being in a room of friends than watching a movie. I know people that are exactly like the lead’s drunk friends: disguising criticism as jokes.
Also, side note: obsessed with the name “Big Taters” for a Hooters-esque restaurant. Love.
Once the horror actually hits in Starry Eyes (it takes awhile, not in a bad way though) it is well worth the wait.
Tucker and Dale vs. Evil
This movie is hysterical. It's the classic roadtrip-cabin in the woods-slasher meets buddy movie.
Katrina Bowden (you'll know her as Cerie from 30 Rock) was awesome: she played the role perfectly and was absolutely charming. I'm hoping that she continues with comedy because she plays the role of "unpredictably smart dumb blonde" extremely well.
(spoiler ahead)
I enjoyed this original take on the traditional cabin-in-the-woods style movie as it did not have a direct, threatening slasher or supernatural killer. Instead, you have many misunderstandings and slapstick accidents alongside traditional horror tropes ("virgin never dies" etc.)
His Girl Friday
As I've heard, this is heavily inspired by The Front Page from 1931 (which I plan to watch next week) with Cary Grant as the lead.
This one holds up -- I love the acting, the quick wit and even the plot. This is a good one to break up the seriousness of the world. I'd recommend this one to most anyone.
Blade Runner 2049
This is a re-watch and I am so glad that I took the time this week to sit down and indulge in this one. I have to admit that on first viewing in the theaters, the story did not resonate with me. I am an incredibly big Blade Runner fan so when I heard there was a "sequel" I was pretty excited about it. If you don't want things spoiled, don't read further.
Aesthetically, this movie fits right in with the original. From the colors and atmosphere to the the music, Blade Runner 2049 definitely does not feel out of place. If anything, Villeneuve does a fantastic job of bringing the world of Blade Runner into a reality that hits a bit closer to home. 2049 doesn't feel too far off from what could actually take place in the future. With technology rapidly advancing year over year, Replicants feel like a possibility to me. A major blackout wiping data stores? That feels right, too.
The story this time around got me. There were so many moments of subtlety that I did not pick up the first time around. Decker's daughter is "ill" from a "genetic disorder" which the first time I did not pick up on the possibility of this making more than perfect sense: this is what would actually happen with the first Replicant-Human born into the world. Mariette slipping the tracker into K's pocket.
And then there's the fashion. The transparent raincoats that nod at the original's Pris. Joi's ever changing and adapting outfits. So good.
eally, I just want to watch this again soon.