This film was actually quite difficult for me to watch as a person with a neurodevelopmental disorder, despite Bella being a completely fictional and impossible concept, because the way Bella experiences the world, thought processes, her own emotions, and the emotions of others is at times a very accurate reflection of how many people with some types of neurodevelopmental disorders experience them. It’s kinda rough to see yourself in a character like that when the character is constantly being taken advantage of in their naivety and disability.
On top of that, her (literal) childlike innocence and curiosity is very strongly sexualized which makes me uncomfortable because while she’s obviously free to explore her sexuality, she is very easy to manipulate and sexually assault without her knowing it’s even happening, which is a very common occurrence for people with a neurodevelopmental disorder. And while, once again, I do recognize this is a completely different and fictional concept, it is so incredibly reminiscent of the daily abuse mentally and/or neurologically disabled people face, that it was very hard for me to sit through.
I also realize that this is a very personal experience and if you don’t relate to Bella in that way, it’s likely a lot easier to appreciate it for its beautiful cinematography and costume design, which is why I’m still rating it high for a film that made me uncomfortable for half of it.
Well you’re right, Denis, it’s not exactly difficult to sit through 166 minutes of film when it’s like THIS. When it’s this masterful you could happily make me watch a 6 hour movie too, it just does not lose its grip on you for a second.
First of all, Denis Villeneuve and Timothée Chalamet (with the reflection of Zendaya’s portrayal of Chani) created an image of Paul the way Frank Herbert intended for him to be seen as in the first book, and I think that’s an honorable thing to do because it wasn’t the easy way out, really. It speaks volumes about his confidence as a filmmaker that he’s willing to tell this story at all, and willing to do Messiah especially.
I hope seeing this film makes people understand that part one was also done with intention, in its entire prequel-of-lore vibe glory. The contrast of innocence to corruption is so powerful.
And man is it an unfortunate release date but you can’t tell me this isn’t going to plow through the next award season anyway. This is it. This is why we love film.
Now we wait.
The most interesting thing about All of Us Strangers is actually the way it’s billed in the fantasy genre, because there’s a very obvious second interpretation that has nothing to do with the supernatural, and if I hadn’t seen the “fantasy” label then I genuinely wouldn’t have known that it’s intended to be watched as such.
That makes it a very interesting film to watch because you’re constantly confronting yourself throughout that you’re trying to watch it through a scientific lens, and maybe you shouldn’t be. At the end of the day I still can’t say for sure which way the pendulum swings, but I don’t really have a problem with that.
The story itself feels like it leans more into psychology than fantasy; All of Us Strangers visualizes a manifestation of grief and processing, and whatever the brain needs to do to get through that. For all intents and purposes, it is incredibly human.
Andrew Scott and Paul Mescal portrayed their characters beautifully and with such vulnerability, I have nothing but praise for them.
Clear by the lack of media attention and accolades this film received, it passed many others like me by in 2019. In the midst of Lady Bird, Call Me By Your Name, Beautiful Boy, and Little Women, it’s an underrated and overlooked gem on Timothée Chalamet’s fast-growing list of credits. Let me also preface this by saying that war movies are not my genre at all… but boy am I glad I gave it a chance.
This is a story of men who rule led by their emotions and pride over rationality. Hal is a beautifully portrayed character who struggles with finding the balance between morality and his inexperience but eagerness to give his country what it needs, even if he isn’t sure what that is. Timothée has had a habit of getting typecast as “frail-looking boy that everyone underestimates” but he blows those roles out of the water and it’s not something that will continue much longer as he gets older, so I’m also not gonna be upset about that when he delivers speeches like that on the battlefield that almost make me cry.
The sore spot in this film is unfortunately Robert Pattinson… who I adore, don’t get me wrong, but when he first speaks in his “French accent” it does completely take you out of the film. It’s a comical sort of thing that I'm not actually sure is intentional or not. After a few minutes you get used to it and it’s alright, but when my initial reaction is “oh no, this is bad”, that’s a problem.
Lily-Rose Depp and Joel Edgerton both play vital parts to this story that were incredibly enjoyable to watch, they both had me hanging on to their every word with some of the dialogue.
There were a bunch of press interviews Timothée did before the film came out where he spoke very passionately about how in a movie like this, if an actor doesn’t give it their all, holds back, or is afraid to look silly, you’ll be able to see that on the screen and that’s what actually makes you look silly. That completely makes sense as a concept and I was hanging onto his every word, but I didn’t realize how much I was going to be able to see in the actual movie that he was SOOOO fully committed to it and that’s what makes him so brilliant in it. This man is not afraid to be a silly little guy.
Timothée played this role with the confidence of an actor with 30 years experience on the big screen. And if that is real confidence then good for him, he has every right to be, if it’s fake confidence then also good for him because then he’s just that good of an actor. Tldr; he killed it.
I appreciate that the music was tailored to his voice (anyone else raise an eyebrow at that huge pitch adjustment on the higher notes in Pure Imagination?) because while he's obviously not unfamiliar with musical theater, and I’m sure he’s had vocal training, he’s not a singer, and it did make me nervous at times because I wanted it to be good so badly. I think they did what was possible.
If there’s anyone who deserves awards for this film besides Timothée, it’s the choreographers. Such a huge part of the Wonka character is his vibe that I don’t know how to describe other than “silly grace”, and the choreography just leaned into that so well. He asked to be drilled and it certainly paid off.
It was a very heartwarming story, and really it’s impressive in itself for an origin story to a film(/book) that is so big and widely known to deliver like this. It’s such a sacred classic that anyone would be afraid to touch, and I’m so glad they had the balls to do so.
Wow. Holy fucking shit. This film is absolutely insane and absolutely nothing that I expected. I really went into this still with the same knowledge we had when we first heard about it and said, “Oh, it’s like modern Brideshead Revisited”. Boy, were we wrong.
Elordi has very much impressed me with his portrayal of Felix. I didn’t feel so strongly about him in Priscilla so I guess my expectations also weren’t too high (though he’s great in Euphoria) but he blew me away and I’m so pleased. I wouldn’t say his roles aren’t versatile in their character development but they’re always rooted in “charismatic popular guy” and I’d like to see what else he can do now.
I didn’t really know much about Barry Keoghan before this and I severely underestimated him, he ate this role up, he single-handedly turned this movie into a psychological thriller. I don’t know what to say about him without giving too much away because I want people to watch this and I want them to know nothing and experience it the way I did. But, this is Oscar material, I really hope he gets that Golden Globe (and more). He is a beast.
The dialogue in this film is so strong, it is so well-written and performed. It has a very off-beat sense of humor and it was right up my alley. I’m really, really difficult with comedy but the humor in Saltburn is so intelligent, it’s not funny because it’s a funny joke, it’s funny because these moments are so carefully placed into spaces where they fit, delivered in just the right way, by just the right people.
Both the sound design and cinematography also have such stand-out moments, I just don’t really think I have any criticism, this film has reduced me to “THAT WAS THE COOLEST SHIT EVER”. I’m so happy. It was so good. How any film lover can not see the genius in this is beyond me. End of coherent thoughts.
It’s easy for me to forget sometimes that movies are more than just a hunt for the biggest dopamine hit, sometimes film is just art, and it doesn’t need to be anything else. I’m not necessarily raving about Maestro the way the media seems to be, but was it good? Yes, absolutely. It is very simple in how profoundly human it is, and that's lovely.
My favorite thing about Maestro was how well Carey and Bradley portrayed the playfulness between Felicia and Leonard. Can't say I know if that is an accurate portrayal but it was certainly enjoyable to watch. It gave the relationship a sense of emotional equality that you don't necessarily expect between a man and a woman in the 40s/50s. They clearly worked well together.
Claiming trans people feeling unsafe in public bathrooms is a fake issue because you don’t know anyone who has witnessed some loud altercation in a bathroom is absolutely hilarious in the saddest way. A minority slamming and invalidating another group of minorities for the sake of "funny" is actually one of the lowest forms of humanity. But that is a choice I don’t have to live with.
Cailee Spaeny has truly put herself on everyone’s radar with this one. She’s probably gonna be in physical therapy for a while from carrying her supporting cast on her back. The other stars of this movie are actually the hair/make-up artists and costume designers. Priscilla’s falsies deserve their own credit. I actually paused halfway through the movie to google if they had received any award nominations for the hair/make-up/costumes yet. Will be well-deserved if they win any of those.
Went into this completely blind. It looked weird, obviously, but so am I so no problem. Saw Sam Esmail wrote the screenplay, directed, and co-produced it, so I was like ok gonna be REAL weird then, cool. Saw the Obamas helped executive produce it, at this point I’m just confused but let’s fuckin’ go I guess.
Icky things:
- Before the title even pops up Julia Roberts turns to the camera and breaks the fourth wall, not something I appreciate in movies in the way they did it here; it served no purpose.
- Making the dilemma of not trusting a bunch of strangers (from both sides) a moral returning concept throughout this whole movie is kinda weird, because absolutely no one is blaming a person for not wanting to stay in a house with strangers when your kids are sleeping upstairs, even if those people turn out to be very trustworthy. You do not take that risk even when you think the world is ending. (Was she actually just being racist? Is that what she admitted to? I don’t get this character)
- The whole “People suck” narrative is a little on the nose in this one, and if anyone should enjoy it it’s me. It’s just that there are a lot of good movies that make me FEEL how evil humans are, they don’t have to say it out loud 20 times. It takes away any emotional impact on the subject because it’s not an existential dilemma I’m having, it’s just their story.
- I’m all about a good open ending that makes you THINK, connect the dots, and tap into your good ol’ philosophy side of the brain. This film does not trigger any of that, it simply stops and you’re left thinking about how fake the CGI flamingos and deer were.
Good things:
+ The sound design in this movie doesn’t let you forget how off-kilter it is, it’s constantly there to remind you that you shouldn’t be relaxing, stay on edge. That is clearly very much intended and lends itself to the weird ominous vibe and they 100% succeeded.
+ Mahershala Ali is the stand-out performer in this movie. He’s a great storyteller and whenever his character was revealing some new information, he had me on the edge of my seat.
+ At the end of the day, I don't need a movie to be "good" to enjoy it. You can have lots of criticisms and still feel like you were entertained by something. At no point during this piece was I bored or checking out, I always wanted to learn more about what was happening.
Yes thank you I absolutely WILL enjoy another random Netflix YA adaptation because I am a little sucker.
Fellow Travelers is a piece that will not be recognized for its genius even in 2023. God knows that a hetero story of this caliber would have been a different case. I will riot if they don’t get those golden globes, because this is some of the best television I have ever seen.
The innocence Bailey brings to young Tim is an absolute joy to watch. This character fit him like a glove, it was a fantastic jump from his role in Bridgerton to witness, and I’m sure this performance will do his career a lot of good. The juxtaposition Matt adds to the relationship between Tim and Hawk of a deeply tortured, cynical soul is fascinating to watch unfold, and I still believe this might be Matt Bomer’s best work.
This story is beautiful and heart-wrenching, it doesn’t let you get sucked into a little gay fantasy, as much as you want to be, Marcus Hooks will make sure of that. Tim and Hawk will give you moments to breathe, until they don’t.
Not having been particularly obsessed with the Hunger Games franchise in the past, I was very surprised at how excited the promotion actually got me for the movie... which sometimes is to the detriment of a production when people go in with too high expectations. This also should just not have been that great of a movie, considering it’s a prequel to a 4-part (movie) franchise from a decade ago; and most of these resurrections just don’t tend to hit the spot. They’re simply cash cows. Excuse the pun, but the odds were not in its favor.
And despite all of that, my ass was sitting in that theater watching them land in that zoo cage together and watching the contrast between Lucy’s quickly growing trust in Snow and the other tributes with their mentors, and they had me gagged just like that.
I genuinely think Tom Blyth and Rachel Zegler’s friendship played an essential part in this movie. That is not to say they aren’t also simply super talented; there are just so many movies with household name actors that just don’t make you feel anything because the actors have zero chemistry. And these two just clearly worked really well together.
I look forward to seeing a lot more from Tom Blyth.
Strange Way of Life is proof that even clearly incredibly talented and accomplished actors can be set up for failure under the right (wrong) circumstances. There was more feeling in the single 1 minute of the youngster versions of Jake and Silva together than Hawke and Pascal managed for the rest of it, and I just can’t help but feel like that isn’t their fault. You can’t force chemistry.
This short film felt like an afterthought, as if no love and care went into making it at all, which sucks because the concept itself has so much potential.
This will be fun to watch in a "don't expect it to be good, just let yourself be entertained" kind of way. Bebe Wood is is actually great casting for Gretchen, I can very clearly see her do Gretchen's mannerisms in my head, and I'm excited to see Christopher Briney in a bit less of a broody/traumatized role.
Once I realized the story was built on the opioid epidemic they had me hooked. The Usher family is brutal and a little evil, but sometimes in a way that you have no choice but to love them for it because it's self-preservation. Some of the monologues are pieces of art; Kate Siegel, Willa Fitzgerald, and Bruce Greenwood blew me away. So powerful. Displacement and sublimation speech? Like, talk dirty to me. I'll never look at a lemon the same way again.
Episode 1 got me curious, 2/3/4/5 owned me, but 6/7/8 lost me a bit. It seemed the more of the mystery the series lost, the less invested I was. Overall very enjoyable, but it didn't have its hooks in me the whole way through.
(Shout out to Rahul in the YNWA hoodie)
Translating an anime/manga to live-action isn't an easy thing to do; anime schticks just don't hit the same on a real person the way they do in anime series. Clearly the makers of this show were trying to find a good balance between staying loyal to the original, to a certain extent, while also adapting it enough that it was accessible as a live-action, I can see that. But, all in all, getting through the first episode is difficult. It is cringey seeing real people act like they're animated figures - the finishing move almost took ME out as well. Occasionally some of the supporting cast's acting drags you straight out of the story because it's not all great, but Iñaki/Mackenyu/Emily generally do a good job.
If you do manage to get past the initial cringe, it's entertaining, and at times actually incredibly wholesome. Luffy's can-do attitude and endless optimism (if at times slightly over the top) carries you through. It's worth watching if you realize what you're in for, keep an open mind, and most of all, don't take it too seriously.
Went into this with no expectations tbh just hoping to see some cute dogs and because I'll always watch any work Grant does (og gleeks don't flake), but it was actually good and really funny and not a bad job at all at portraying social anxiety.
Really pleasantly surprised, very enjoyable romcom.
This movie would not have been received the same way if the guy was the 32 year old and the girl was the 19 year old. Sometimes you have to flip these things around to realize how many consent issues there were in the first half of this film. The way this character tried to force herself on a 19 year old kid and straight up manipulate him into having sex with her made me extremely uncomfortable. Imagine if she was a guy; we would have burned the creators alive.
I just wasn't able to get past that and enjoy the rest of the movie. I'm just glad they didn't end up together romantically.
Even without having read the book it's pretty obvious that it was difficult to condense the book into a 2 hour movie and still have the same kind of tension and detail that I assume the book holds. That does not take away from the fact that this is an incredibly sweet and entertaining romcom on a mainstream level that we simply have not seen before with 2 men in the lead. Not like this. Not this kind of vibe And definitely not one where 2 gay men are allowed to have a sex scene the exact same way straight characters have sex scenes, on a massive platform like Amazon.
And call me dramatic, but all of that means something, that does make history. It's bigger than itself.
Props to Amazon for having some actual guts and taking this project on, and shout out to Taylor and Nicholas for treating these characters with so much respect.
WARNING FOR ANIMAL LOVERS: this movie perpetuates and encourages the use of shock collars on dogs. The dog is then brutally murdered. That was apparently necessary and the best they could come up with.
Although it is in no way representative of what it's like to own and train a dog, especially a puppy, a shelter dog who's already had 7 homes, and a high-energy herding mix on top of that... this is a really lovely, heart-warming story. At least it's realistic in the sense that as a dog owner, you do meet a lot of people who give off huge dominance theory vibes and you just wanna strangle them. Alas, a movie doesn't have to be realistic to be very entertaining and make me cry.
Always happy to see Grant Gustin thrive.
And for those who want to know, "Does the dog die?": The dog does NOT die. :D
Don't expect a masterpiece because it's not. You know the plot before you start watching, and that's okay, because this is the kind of movie you watch when you're scrolling through Netflix at night after a long day, looking for something simple and lighthearted to watch before you fall asleep. And we need those movies too.
Amy Adams is great and this movie has a lot of twists that keep you interested, but as someone who suffered from agoraphobia and hallucinations, it's just very difficult to appreciate when mental health is made into a spectacle like this, because the last story I need to hear is people thinking that the mentally ill person is crazy and you can't trust a word they say. And then "9 months later" she is magically cured of her agoraphobia and looking like she's ready to take on the world? Please kill this narrative, mental health is not a fantasy.
