The Alabama Solution

For some reason, Google thought that I posted this review in 1969. Here is my second, more successful attempt, to post it.

 The Alabama Solution, one of this year’s nominated Documentaries, was the other Oscar contender I saw on Saturday. I’ve been way late on this review, so let’s get into it.

It started innocently enough in 2019. Directors Andrew Jarecki and Charlotte Kaufman - the former a previous nominee for Capturing the Friedmans - were invited to film a revival at Easterling Correctional Facility in Alabama. The inmates approached them with horrific stories about their living conditions. They were tragically validated when prisoner Steven Davis was beaten to death by guards led by Roderick Gadson, allegedly when he tried to shiv them. 

A few other prisoners filmed those conditions with contraband cellphones. Their footage makes up a significant chunk of this documentary. The filmmakers also chronicle the 2022 prison strike, organized by inmate activists Robert Earl Council (aka Kinetik Justice) and Melvin Ray. Outside of prison, Davis's mother Sandy seeks justice, while Gov. Kay Ivey insists Alabama can solve their prison problem itself (which leads into the title). "When's that going to be?" you'll probably ask. The obvious answer is not soon enough.

It's an intentionally infuriating, and also captivating, profile of systemic corruption. The filmmakers first learn of Steven Davis when he's brought into the ICU; he's dead by the time they get there. They interview several inmates, including Davis’s cellmate, James Sales, as the guards breathe down their necks. It’s so tense that you’ll fear the worst happening mid-interview. What makes it worse is the revelation of the guards’ absolute authority over those who step even an inch out of line. Sales himself was murdered, with the State refusing to look into it further (Natural Causes, my foot).

The inside footage gives us an invaluable perspective into the inmates' daily lives. We actually see them getting beaten, the aftermath of an overdose or two, living with vermin, and generally living in misery. Whatever crimes they've committed, which they don't sugarcoat, aren't deserving of this punishment. Early on, we learn that Alabama's 14 prisons operate at 200% capacity with about the third of required staff. We also learn that these prisons have some of the highest murder, overdose and suicide rates in the nation. It just makes the news anchors we hear mocking the inmates during the strike all the more unsympathetic.

There has been talk - serious talk - of reform after The Alabama Solution. Alabama recently started construction on some "mega-prisons;" that's a start, but it doesn't take long to realize its likeliest problems. Once you experience this film, you'll be hoping for much more than that. Just because it is no longer Oscar season doesn't mean this documentary is irrelevant. Check it out on HBOMax, and you'll be shocked to see what its filmmakers have uncovered. It's time for a new movie year...

The Ugly Stepsister

 I saw two different Oscar nominees this past Saturday.

First up, The Ugly Stepsister, a Norwegian take on Cinderella directed by first-timer Emilie Blichfeldt. It premiered early last year, and it probably wouldn’t have registered on my radar had it not been shortlisted - then nominated - for Best Makeup and Hairstyling. Let’s finally look at it.

Once upon a time, in the Kingdom of Swedlandia, there lived a widow named Rebekka (Ane Dahl Torp), and her two daughters, Elvira (Lea Myren) and Alma (Flo Fagerli). One day, Rebekka marries Otto, a widower with his own daughter, Agnes (Thea Sofie Loch Næss). Otto immediately croaks; afterwards, Rebekka realizes that she and he were equally broke. Rebekka decides to give Elvira a makeover so that Prince Julian (Isac Calmroth) will choose her at the upcoming ball.

Agnes, whom you might have guessed is this movie’s Cinderella, has her dead mother helping her out. Elvira, meanwhile, is subjected to early beauty treatments. From getting her nose chiseled into shape to swallowing a tapeworm, Elvira hopes that her long road to beauty will be worth it. You already know how the fairytale's going to end, but Elvira still wants her happy ending. Prince Julian is a detestable cad, but Elvira doesn't seem to care ...

Its grotesque deconstruction of beauty may bring to mind The Substance. It’s not as overwhelming as that, but it’s still nastier in ways that The Brothers Grimm probably never thought to take Aschenputtel. Beauty is Pain, according to Elvira's surgeon (Adam Lundgren), and she hurts a lot. It gets even more horrific if you're already familiar with early beauty practices - like foot-binding. It gets especially absurd in the climax. Its makeup team, headed by Oscar-nominees Thomas Foldberg and Anne Cathrine Sauerberg, truly shine when they depict Elvira’s deterioration by tapeworm. Let's just say that it works too well for her.

It gets easy on the eyes and ears when it wants to, though. Elvira's rose-tinted daydreams of Prince Julian, even after we meet the real him, are pretty amusing. While the climax is brutal, it's also wonderfully edited and shot as Elvira ineffectually rushes to get to Julian first. The Royal Page accidentally taking Elvira's name as "Von Stepsister" is one of the film's best and cleanest jokes. The elaborate sets and costumes, designed by Sabine Hviid and Manon Rasmussen, would fit in with a more conventional Cinderella story. Jon Erik Kaada and Vilde Tuv's energetic synth score probably wouldn't, but it's still a fun listen.

A lot of the characters - namely Rebekka, Julian & his buddies, and even headmistress Ms. Sophie (Cecelia Forss) - have some ugly personalities. Rebekka goes without saying, Ms. Sophie provides the tapeworm (after she says it's on the inside that counts), and Julian & his buddies are repulsive. Agnes is a lot more arrogant than Cinderella usually is, but you can't blame her for being upset as Rebekka spends more on Elvira's "beauty" than a funeral for Otto. Oh, by the way, Otto spends most of the movie rotting away in his castle (it's also not pretty). Thankfully, it's not only easy to sympathize with Elvira's ordeal, but with Alma as she looks to escape this nightmare. You'll definitely be hoping for a happy ending for them.

Well, in case you're interested, The Ugly Stepsister is ready to scream on your favorite service. One of them, Shudder, is its main distributor, while Hulu is where I went to. It's not for everyone, but it's still a unique take on a long-told tale. Still, I won't blame you if you seek more conventional Cinderellas. I've said enough.

2025 Animated Oscar Shorts

And now, you get to see what I thought about this year’s Oscar-nominated Animated Shorts, with one extra.

The Three Sisters (Dir. Konstantin Bronzit) - Once upon a time, there were three sisters who lived in three houses, packed together on their own tiny island. They rent out one of their houses after they lose all their money in a fight with seagulls. Enter a gruff sailor, whom one of the sisters likes … as do the others. That’s basically it, but it’s still good fun. It’s pretty charming as we see the sisters’ lives brighten with the sailor around (he finds their money!). It’s got some great gags, often punctuated by the sailor’s “heh!” (his only “dialogue,” provided by Bronzit himself). Its sound design is unusually appealing, while its final twist is cleverly amusing. It’s one of my choices for the award.

Forevergreen (Dir. Nathan Engelhardt and Jeremy Spears) - An orphaned bear cub is adopted by a living tree. The tree raises the cub on seeds and love. The cub is led astray by potato chips and garbage and accidentally starts a forest fire. The tree makes the ultimate sacrifice. It’s got a unique wood-carving CGI style, though apparently there’s some practical animation in there (I couldn’t tell where). Its characters are likable, even when the cub goes through his potato chip phase. Some might find it a bit heavy-handed, especially with it closing on a certain Biblical quote, but it’s still a sweet story.

The Girl Who Cried Pearls (Dir. Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski) - An old man (Colm Feore) tells his granddaughter about his days as a poor orphan in Montreal. Back then, he lived next to a family consisting of an old man, his evil wife, and his daughter from his first marriage, the titular girl. He sold her tears to a crooked pawnbroker, who told him to fetch some more, even if it meant making her cry himself. 

It’s artistically exquisite, from the elaborate sets to the super-smooth stop-motion characters. Its engaging story has us question the fantastical narrative with a late twist. But the twist mostly flew past me, while others might purposefully ignore it. The narrator says he made the girl smile with a box of chocolates; the emotionless puppets in the flashbacks don’t let us see it for ourselves. That’s the only thing that took me out of the short. It’s still a minor quibble in this unforgettable short.

At this point, the program warned its audience that the following nominees weren’t family friendly.

Butterfly (Dir. Florence Miailhe) - A short biopic of French swimmer Alfred Nakache. He competed in the 1936 Berlin Olympics, ostracized as an Algerian Jew, banned from competing after the Nazis took over France, and ultimately sent to Auschwitz with his wife and daughter. He made it out - his family didn’t - and competed in the 1948 London Olympics. His memories, visualized by stunning glass paintings, literally flow by as he swims in the ocean. They tell a powerful narrative; one highlight being when his teammates walked off with him after his ban (what humanity). It’s enough to get one interested in a full-length biopic, even if it would lack this one’s artistry. This is the current critical favorite for the award, and you’ll understand why once you see it for yourself (which you can on YouTube via the Jewish Film Institute).

Retirement Plan (Dir. John Kelly) - Ray (Domhnall Gleeson), an old man, narrates about everything he wants to do when he retires. And everything he’d like to do. And everything he’d like to persuade himself that he’d like. Once he realizes what that entails. And, just for fun, what he’d like to do when he’s dead. It’s the most simplistic short in the lineup, both artistically and lengthily (seven minutes). And yet, it’s the most relatable. Ray’s monologue will have one reflecting on the state of their lives, especially if they’re anywhere close to his presumed age. Him planning to haunt an old school enemy prevents this from ending on a downer. This is my other choice for the award.

And, unlike last year, there was one runner-up in the program. This one was family friendly.

Eiru (Dir. Giovanna Ferrari) - This offering from Cartoon Saloon played in some theaters with Little Amelie (not mine, unfortunately). In it, Eiru, a young Viking girl, wants to be the biggest, baddest of them all. But her already giant kinsmen agree that she’s not there yet. When their well dries up, Eiru is small enough to go down there and investigate. She and two other kids from neighboring tribes find magic down there. It's got some splendid art direction, likable characters (even Eiru's boorish kinsmen), and some good points in its nine minutes. A few things might make the most sense if you share Cartoon Saloon's affinity for Irish mythology. As with Butterfly, it's enough to get one interested in a feature expansion. But right now, I'm interested in seeing it again. The sooner the better.

Maybe I’ll get to another nominee before Sunday. Maybe not. But that’s all for now.

2025 Documentary Oscar Shorts

 My local theater got the Oscar Short Packages really late this year. I already dealt with this year’s live-action lineup, so here are the documentaries:

Perfectly a Strangeness (Dir. Alison McAlpine): Three donkeys - Palermo, Roberto and Palaye - walk around La Silla Observatory in Chile. They just live their lives, while we view the desert, especially when illuminated by the night sky (filmed by Nicolas Canniccioni). Its story isn’t tangible, by human standards, but it’s still charming. The donkeys are enjoyable, while the imagery is nothing less than stunning. It’s easily the biggest crowd-pleaser of the bunch, even if by default. Everything else is heavy:

The Devil is Busy (Dir. Geeta Gandbhir and Christalyn Hampton) - A Day in the life of an Atlanta women’s health clinic, as its staff - including security chief Tracii - navigate a post-Roe v Wade world. 

Gandbhir, already nominated for The Perfect Neighbor, spotlights some of the staff, such as their receptionist, an OBGYN, and especially Tracii herself. How they deal with the State’s narrow time limit & violent protesters potentially lurking around humanize the subject. Tracii's history is especially sobering. These stories make the clinic's frequent protesters - the kind who preach fire and brimstone - all the more unsympathetic. This short might help one reflect on their own past views on the subject. Its timely story might make it an easy winner, but there's a good case for the next two.

Armed Only with A Camera: The Life and Death of Brent Renaud (Dir. Brent & Craig Renaud) - Documentarian and Photojournalist Brent Renaud was killed in Ukraine shortly into Russia’s invasion. His brother, Craig, and producer Juan Arredondo (who was injured in the fatal attack) eulogize him here. 

Brent gets a co-director credit since it presents his footage from around the world (like Haiti after the Earthquake). That’s augmented by home movies of him growing up, playing with his dog as an adult, and his survivors preparing his funeral. His life with autism makes his story especially relatable. By the time it got to the funeral, where the pastor title drops during his eulogy, I already knew my choice. All in all, it's a pretty emotional tribute to a man who meant so much to others. 

All The Empty Rooms (Dir. Joshua Seftel) - CBS’s Steve Hartman and Photographer Lou Bopp travel around the US to photograph the bedrooms of school shooting victims. The short has them visit their last three destinations (so far). During which, we're presented some compelling profiles of these rooms' occupants. They're all moving tributes to not just who they were, but who they could have been. It's equally interesting to see Hartman deal with the stress of his "side project," which often has him away from his family. It's enough to get me interested to see the actual CBS story this all led to (which is briefly spotlighted here). It's also sobering to think about how this social problem still persists to this day. 

Children No More: “Were and Are Gone” (Dir. Hilla Medalia) - We follow a group of activists, who hold weekly silent vigils in Tel Aviv to memorialize the Palestinian kids killed in the Gaza war. They press on despite the often-vocal outrage of passersby. It's a sobering subject, but it's also admirable to see them commit to their cause. Their methods seem pretty reasonable, even as their hecklers' responses are anything but that. It gets tense as they're forced to disband mid-vigil - which is quite common. Some of its most poignant anecdotes are on how the organizers find info about each victim. If there's any flaw, it's that it's not too thorough about the victims (as the last two shorts were about their subjects). But overall, I think it's just fine.

You can expect to hear about the Animated Shorts before the ceremony.

The Bride!

 Next month, Warner Bros gets a shot at reinventing The Mummy, nearly a decade after Universal’s Dark Universe debacle. This month, Warner Bros gets its shot at reinventing The Bride of Frankenstein, which is now The Bride! Here she comes, as re-imagined by Maggie Gyllenhaal…

Mary Shelley herself appears in the afterlife. She introduces us to Ida, who like her, is played by Jessie Buckley. She’s a Chicago gal during the Great Depression who parties with dangerous men, including mob boss Lupino (Zlatko Burić). But then, Mary herself possesses Ida for some weirdness, which ends when one of Ida’s acquaintances accidentally pushes her down the stairs. It should be noted that Shelley herself featured in the original The Bride of Frankenstein; needless to say, that film’s framing device was much less bonkers.

Meanwhile, Mr. Frankenstein (Christian Bale) comes to town looking for love. He gets Dr. Euphronius (Annette Benning) to dig up a corpse to reanimate, which happens to be Ida’s. Frank gaslights her into becoming his bride. Before long, they’re running around the country like an un-dead Bonnie and Clyde. Still, Frank would rather imagine himself as his favorite movie star, Ronnie Reed (Jake Gyllenhaal), than rob banks. The police are still on their trail, though. 

What else do we also have here? There's a pair of screwball comedy detectives, Jake Wiles (Peter Sarsgaard) and Myrna Mallow (Penelope Cruz), leading the investigation. There's Lupino's creepy fascination with tongues (don't ask). The Bride inspires a social movement. The Frankensteins are chased out of a movie house by an actual torches-and-pitchforks mob. At one point, they even possess a crowd for a dance number set to a Jazzy rendition of Puttin' on the Ritz (yes, really). Its wild mood swings make some of its dramatic points and important themes hard to care about. Lupino, despite being a justifiably threatening big bad, is bizarrely left on the narrative sidelines for most of it (thankfully, he gets his comeuppance in the mid-credits).

With Oscar voting having closed yesterday, this oft-kilter movie won't do anything to affect the Oscar chances of Buckley and Del Toro's Frankenstein. If nothing else, it might validate Buckley's upcoming award. Her bombastic performance as The Bride, which sees her wildly mood swing and monologue, is truly impressive. As for Frank himself, Bale's cockney thug is an interesting contrast to Elordi's nominated eloquent Creature. It's delightful watching him appeal to Euphronius's nature as a card-carrying mad scientist when they undertake the plan. The Frankensteins' relationship is hard to follow at times, but it's mostly all right. Jake's relationship with Ida, however, is a revelation that's just there.

A few key personnel from the Joker movies, Lawrence Sher and Hildur Guðnadóttir, are on the staff here. It's easy to recognize the similarities, from The Frankensteins' dynamic to their splendidly gritty world. Guðnadóttir's haunting score is exquisite, while some impressive CGI helps augment Karen Murphy's practical sets. The makeup team and Sandy Powell collaborate nicely to create The Bride's wild look. There's a slightly amusing running gag about red hair, alluding to Elsa Lanchester's actual on-set hair color in The Bride of Frankenstein. It's still neat trivia, though.

You can walk down the box-office aisle if you want. If anything, The Bride is a film that needs to be seen to be believed, though you might not believe it afterwards. It's a weird movie, for sure, but there should have been some concise method to its madness. If you like it better than me, then that's fine. I'll respect that. But I got to get to the next reviews.

2025 Live-Action Oscar Shorts

 All five of this year’s Oscar-nominated shorts are available to watch legally. Only one of them I had to pay for (it wasn’t much). Here they are:

The Singers (Dir. Sam A. Davis) - Based on Ivan Gugenev’s short story, we see a bunch of guys in a bar drinking away. One guy (Will Harrington) keeps pestering the other barflies for change. So, the bartender (Mike Young) offers him a free beer and 100 bucks if he out-sings one of his other regulars - an old man (Chris Smither). The same goes for everyone else. A few surprising challengers emerge. That’s basically it. 

Nobody here has a name, so I had to look up the cast to put names to faces. It’s still easy to like these guys even without the luxury of exposition. They not only have a way with playful insults but a way with music as well. The Bartender’s mournful rendition of Unchained Melody moves his barflies to embrace him; he might just move you too. One other contender bows out before anyone can hear him, which is kind of a bummer. The film ending on another contender joining in might just be its best joke (second best is a cameo by Billy the Bass). You’ll just have to see it for yourself.

Where to Watch: Netflix

Jane Austen’s Period Drama (Dir. Julia Aks and Sam Pinder) - At the climax of an Austen-pastiche, the dashing Mr. Dickley (Ta'imua) proposes to Ms. Essie Talbot (Aks). There’s just one thing standing in their way - it’s her time of the month. Unfamiliar with this matter, Dickley assumes the worst, and rushes her home to her family for treatment. Her sisters (Samantha Start & Nicole Alyse Nelson) encourage her to play up her injuries for sympathy. Essie tries another approach - communication. It’s super-effective!

You’d be surprised how enjoyable this seemingly one-joke film is. Its farcical plot, which includes Essie and her sisters arguing over whether to kill a chicken, is hysterical. The side characters, like their father (Hugo Armstrong), are all enjoyable. Mr. Dickley is a handsome dunce, but he’s sweet-natured and eager to learn. But it’s also quite insightful - everything clears up easily once Essie explains this truth nobody wants to universally acknowledge. It’s a good way to keep the joke from going too long, but it’s also a great way to promote proper communication between couples.

I had my eye on this short once I saw it on December’s shortlist. If, for no other reason, than a relatively recent Documentary Short Winner - 2018’s Period. End of Sentence. They were willing to award a film on this topic before, and with this one’s unique premise, I figured they might do so again. I was right they’d nominate it. Let’s see if they’ll go all the way.

Where to Watch: Aks’ Youtube

A Friend of Dorothy (Dir. Lee Knight) - One day, 87-year-old Dorothy (Miriam Margolyes) meets 17-year-old J.J. (Alistair Nwachukwu) when he kicks his football (the UK kind, so Soccer) into her garden. Realizing that he’s an aspiring actor, Dorothy lets J.J. read from her play collection. He soon becomes her good friend until the very end. When the short opens, J.J. and Dorothy’s grandson Scott (Oscar Lloyd) attend the reading of her will, where both get a few surprises.

This is a relatively simple feel-good short. Margoyles is quite the character as Dorothy, while newcomer Nwachukwu is quite likable as J.J. It’s so nice to see their inter-generational friendship play out. Them bonding over plays was especially appealing to me since I also collect published plays. I’d probably feel right at home there. That aside, it seems narratively incomplete, with it bypassing anything close to Dorothy’s last day. Still, what I saw was enough to interest me in a possible feature adaptation. I’m sure you might feel the same. Buckle up, because the next shorts aren’t that crowd-pleasing.

Where to Watch: Attitude Magazine on Youtube

Butcher’s Stain (Dir. Meyer Levinson-Blount) - Shortly into the recent Israel-Hamas war, Samir (Omar Sameer), a supermarket butcher, is summoned to the manager’s office. It seems somebody keeps knocking down the posters featuring the Israeli hostages in the break room. Everyone suspects the Arab Israeli Samir as that somebody. He decides to get to the bottom of this mystery. 

This topically relevant short might seem like the obvious winner. Then again, that mindset was why I underestimated the last two winners’ chances. Still, it’s a pretty suspenseful short as we’re left wondering if Samir will find the culprit, or if he’ll fly off the handle before he can. We’re given a few suspects, such as a smug co-worker (Levinson-Blount), but we ultimately learn there’s a tragically simple explanation. While one could wish for an easy resolution here, to do so might just be a cop-out. It probably ends a bit happier than the next short.

Where to Watch: Vimeo; rental via distributor Premium Films

Two People Exchanging Saliva (Dir. Natalie Musteata and Alexandre Singh) - In a world where kissing is a capital crime, toothpaste is a banned substance, and people barter by letting themselves be slapped, we find Malaise (Luàna Bajrami), a newbie concierge at a Parisian department store. On the cusp of turning twenty-five, she meets Angine (Zar Amir Ebrahimi), an older housewife. This business relationship soon turns personal, with a bit of romantic thrown in. They’ll have to keep things discreet to avoid being found out. 

This is basically Carol if either Wes Anderson or the Coen Brothers directed it. It’s bleakly absurd, stylistically shot in black-and-white and it even comes with narration (by Vicky Krieps). Probably the best joke here is its blunt character names - Malaise’s jealous boss being Pétulante (Aurélie Boquien), for example. It also showcases a decently compelling relationship between Malaise and Angine, which is sadly over too quickly. And it’s the longest short here at 36 minutes! Still, I could see this winning based on its presentation alone. 

Where to Watch: The New Yorker on Youtube.

You can expect reviews of the nominated Documentary and Animated Shorts very soon. I’ll check them out in the theatrical packages starting Saturday. Look forward to them.

Arco

 Arco, the feature debut of graphic novelist Ugo Bienvenu (System Preference), rounds out this year’s animated Oscar lineup. Let’s finally see how it is.

In the 30th century, people live like The Jetsons and travel in time with rainbow robes. Our hero, Arco, is too young to join his parents and sister on their travels. So, he steals his sister’s time-traveling gear and heads off to the Jurassic. But he only gets as far as 2075, where catastrophic weather is about the average, but people can wait it out in protective bubbles. That’s where he meets Iris, a girl his own age.

Arco and Iris spend the rest of the movie trying to get him back to the future. They face a few complications, such as Arco missing his time-traveling diamond, a trio of bumbling alien-hunters (Flea, Will Farrell and Andy Samberg) who have it, Iris’s robot housekeeper Mikki (Mark Ruffalo & Natalie Portman; the latter is also one of the producers), and a looming wildfire. That’s pretty much it.

As I previously said, this movie is French, rather than an anime as Amazon thinks it is. You still might see shades of Hayao Miyazaki as Arco soars through the sky, talks to birds and spends time with Iris. And much like a Miyazaki film, it's visualized with a splendid color palette and marvelous scenery. Its human designs are more realistic than Miyazaki's, as if they were traced from actual people, but they're easy to get used to. Mikki's design is transplanted from System Preference, as if one of its drawings came to life (yeah, that's basically animation, but still). It's pretty easy to guess the narrative mechanics during its 88-minutes, but they left me wanting to know more.

Arco and Iris carry the film wonderfully with their friendship. It's fun to see them learn about each other's time periods, stage his first attempts to fly home, and even evade the robo law. It's hard to feel nothing when it's finally time for Arco to go - especially after a major twist lands. Meanwhile, the three stooges are basically this film's Team Rocket, but they're not only harmless but are actually nice guys. The actual villain surprisingly enough is Mikki, even if it doesn't realize it's doing more harm than good. Then again, Arco's ahead of time existence caused it to crash earlier, so maybe it's a bit justified? Still, despite their faults, you wouldn't want harm on anyone here. Someone doesn't make it to the end, though.

Anything else? I thought there would be a deeper meaning to Mikki speaking with the voices of Iris's mostly absent parents (Portman and Ruffalo are also them). But that's not explained here. The catastrophic weather of Iris's present is the film's scariest imagery. It's only a few decades away, and considering the monster snowstorm the Northeast just had, who knows how long before the weather then will be the weather now. 

Anyway, I leave it to you to see Arco whenever and however you can. It may be short, and a bit slight for some tastes, but it's still sweet and splendid. Next up, I'll begin looking into this year's bunch of nominated shorts. But I've said enough here.

Hoppers

How can you be both early and late?

Hoppers officially comes out in less than a week, but I went to its “Early Access Screening” today. It was scheduled for 1 pm, but the projector didn’t start up for another twenty-minutes. After that, it hopped on over to Pixar’s latest - sans trailers. Let's hop to it.

Mabel Tanaka (Piper Curda) has always been passionate about animals. As a kid, she and her grandma (Karen Huie) spent time together in the glades outside of Beaverton. As a college freshman, she campaigns against Mayor Jerry Generazzo’s (Jon Hamm) campaign to replace the glades with a freeway. But nobody seems interested in helping her take a stand. One night, Mabel discovers her biology professor, Dr. Fairfax’s (Kathy Najimy), Hopper project, which lets humans transmit themselves into robot animals. She decides to take Fairfax's robot beaver for a spin, and winds up in the glades.

Mabel soon integrates into the Superlodge, a community of displaced animals led by actual beaver King George (Bobby Moynihan). A few notable highlights include Loaf (Eduardo Franco), another beaver; Ellen (Melissa Villaseñor), a bear; and Tom (Tom Law), a lizard. She helps them move back to the glades, which drives Jerry to pushback harder. She rallies the animal troops, who are all willing to go to war. It’s up to Mabel and her friends - human and animal - to save the day before both sides possibly destroy themselves. That’s basically it.

Daniel Chong, the creator of Cartoon Network’s We Bare Bears, makes his feature debut here. He and screenwriter Jesse Andrews create a pretty wacky sci-fi story that’s somewhere between Avatar and The Wild Robot. This film and the latter operate on a similar comic wavelength as Mabel integrates herself into the Superlodge and learns their “pond rules.” One of their most important is “when you gotta eat, eat,” which Mabel inadvertently breaks by saving Loaf from Ellen. It’s not too morbid, until a jaw-dropping moment at the midpoint conference of animal monarchs. You'll have to see that, and how they bring in a dreaded "apex predator" for yourself, among other things. Chances are, you'll have plenty to laugh at.

You’ll also have a lot to like about Mabel. Her passionate activism is evident in the prologue, when she tries to liberate her school’s pets. Her attempts to get signatures for a petition leads her to help around an old man’s house (wait for the punchline). She’s so giddy when she hops that it leads to a fun chase scene. She has a moving relationship with her grandma, even if it’s mostly a posthumous one. She has a particularly nice relationship with King George, in both its ups and downs. You've also got to respect her moral standards as she, despite her animosity with Mayor Jerry or the eventual final villain, doesn't want either of them "squished." But she won't give up without a fight, either. 

Who else do we have? Mayor Jerry maybe a big blowhard, but even he has a sense of morality. Dr. Fairfax and her colleagues, Nisha (Aparna Nancherla) and Conner (Sam Richardson), are pretty cool, too. Dr. Fairfax, in particular, gets some great laughs as she explains the history of her program. The Superlodge residents are all a lovable bunch, even if we barely get to know most of them. The aforementioned few we know the most are easily the best of the bunch. The animal monarchs, particularly the Insect Queen (Meryl Streep), the Bird King (the recently deceased Isiah Whitlock Jr), and the Amphibian King (Steve Purcell) - are all entertaining. The final villain - all I can say is that he's voiced by Dave Franco - is equally disturbing and goofy.

What about the technicals? For starters, both the actual and robotic animal characters are as cuddly as their personalities. Their eyes shift from animal to human, depending on the perspective, which makes for a great visual trick. It especially pays off when we're introduced to the apex predator. It turns out that Jerry's been driving off the animals with high-pitched speakers on fake trees. We don't get to experience as much of that painful noise as possible, but there's still a decent sound design here. Every bit of the final battle, which escalates to a forest fire, is both visually and emotionally outstanding. It's all accentuated by a neat score by Mark Mothersbaugh.

Any nitpicks? Early on, we see Mabel’s mom drop her off at her grandma’s, and that’s all we hear of her outside of a flashback. You might expect she’d be more prevalent, but nope. Mabel accuses Jerry of breaking the law, likely due to the fake trees, but he never serves any time. Perhaps him helping out at the end was his rehabilitation. Whatever the case, these nitpicks do nothing to hinder how much I enjoyed this movie.

Pencil Hoppers into next year's Oscar ballot. Unless Toy Story 5 is really that good, then we already have Pixar's best chance to win next year's Animated Feature Award. You need to check it out this coming month to see its abundant surprises for yourself. That's it for February. 

GOAT

A brief history of High-Concept films. 

Those are films that can easily be summed up in one sentence. For a few examples, Alien was pitched as “Jaws in Space;” Airplane was pitched as “Animal House on a Plane;” the new animated movie GOAT can be pitched as “A goat wants to be the GOAT.”

Let’s see if I can elaborate on GOAT.

Our main goat, Will Harris (Caleb McLaughlin), wants to play roarball, which is this film’s version of basketball. He’s a lot smaller than the average player, so he’s often told that “smalls can’t ball.”  One day, he bets his rent money roarballing with superstar Mane Attraction (Aaron Pierre) of Lava Coast Magma. Although Will loses the match, and his apartment, that he “broke” Mane’s “ankles” (translation: made him lose balance) is enough to get him signed to his home team, the Vineland Thorns.

He’s soon introduced to the team: phone-addicted ostrich Olivia (Nicola Coughlan), eccentric komodo dragon Modo (Nick Kroll), single dad rhino Archie (David Harbour), aspiring rapper giraffe Lenny (Stephen Curry, who’s also producing), and his favorite baller, black panther Jett Fillmore (Gabrielle Union). They're a dysfunctional bunch of misfits, but they start moving up the ranks once Will starts to play. They soon reach the playoffs for the sport's greatest trophy - The Claw. But the team's manager, Flo the boar (Jenifer Lewis), might have something up her hooves.

I'm kind of curious how this compares to its source material, Funky Dunks by Chris Tougas, but it's not available anywhere. So, instead I'll evaluate the screen story we have, which was written by Aaron Buchsbaum, Teddy Riley, Nicolas Curcio and Peter Chiarelli. It's a pretty okay story, with a likable protagonist with an understandable dream. It becomes more poignant when we realize that his mom, Louise (Jennifer Hudson), whom we saw in the prologue, died during the time-skip. Yeah, the audience's sympathy definitely in Will's court.

But I gravitated more towards the Thorns. They’re a lovable bunch of losers, who have enough quirks and insecurities to help them stand out. Amongst the bunch, I can highlight Modo and Jett as the MVPs. Modo's a delight, and he even gives us a legitimately surprising twist at the end. While Jett the player can get arrogant, it's difficult to hate her once we know her neurotic personality off the court. Not only that, but it's quite easy to empathize with her as she faces her aging body. She and Will have pretty good chemistry, especially when he shows her around the diner where he works. Although she alienates her crew midway through, they're all too happy to join her for the finals. It's kind of quick, but it makes some sense. 

Amongst the cast, we also have Dennis (Patton Oswalt), who's supposed to be the team's coach. He's mostly ignored, even pranked, but he's still a pretty good guy. The aptly-named Grizz (Jelly Roll), meanwhile, starts off the movie as a bully on the community roarball court. He gets better, mostly off screen, which is kind of confusing. Frank (Wayne Knight), Will's initial gerbil landlord, may be cranky, but he's also a good guy. Daryl & Hannah (Eduardo Franco & Sherry Cola), Will's best buds, are just as quirky as the Thorns. Finally, we have Flo, who's quite a smooth villain.

Its animated world sees 3D animals on seemingly painted backgrounds. Yes, they were actually computerized too, but the aesthetics are quite convincing. What makes these characters unique is that, at times, they'll slip into real-world animal quirks, which makes for some entertaining gags (Mane gallops like a horse; Will's pupils dilate like an actual goat's, and he even goes myotonic). Some of the best environments are the roarball arenas, which sees the players balling across lava pits, tundras and jungles. The games are exciting, even if they're a bit overwhelming, and are accentuated nicely by Kris Bowers's energetic score. 

Any other issues? Well, it's about the viral video that leads Flo to Will. Sure, he's shown breaking Mane's ankles, but he still ends up losing the exhibition match. I thought that would've come up later on, but that never becomes a thing. Am I reading into it too much? Then again, maybe the point was that everyone realized that the "champ" could be defeated. If so, that's admirable. I also thought Mane was in cahoots with Flo, especially with how particularly unsportsmanlike he and the Magma were in the last game. But that's not the case.

GOAT isn't a game changer, but it's still entertaining. Its quirky sense of humor elevates it beyond a run-of-the-mill sports movie, especially with that last twist. There were some obvious jokes that I didn't catch the first time. You'll have to see them for yourself, along with the rest of the movie. I think I said enough.

"Wuthering Heights"

Over a decade ago, I skipped Cary Fukunaga’s take on Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre. The same can’t be said for Emerald Fennell’s take on Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights. Now that I've seen it, I can tell you about it...

One day, in not-so-jolly-old England, Mr. Earnshaw (Martin Clunes) brings home a "pet" for his daughter, Cathy (Charlotte Mellington). This is an orphaned lad, Heathcliff (Owen Cooper), whom the old man conveniently found on the streets. Cathy and Heathcliff grow up together and are deeply in love by the time Margot Robbie & Jacob Elordi tag-in as their older selves. Unfortunately, they're also deeply in trouble.

By this point, the old man’s vices threaten his titular estate with ruin. To alleviate this, Cathy decides to marry her rich neighbor Edgar Linton (Shazad Latif). That’s despite her still being in love with Heathcliff, who rides off in disgrace. Years later, Heathcliff is now a rich man, and he's still madly in love with Cathy. But since he can't have her, he'll settle with Edgar's sister, Isabella (Alison Oliver). It all goes downhill for everyone, especially Heathcliff. I think that's basically it.

I should probably highlight some changes made here. For starters, it doesn't even allude to the novel's nested storytelling structure, which even the famous 1939 film somewhat utilized. Many supporting characters, like Cathy's big brother Hindley, as well as the novel's second half, are tossed out. And don't get me started on Heathcliff's origins. These few cases change the original story quite a lot. So, what can you expect if you've never experienced it before?

Well, you can expect a mad love story. The younger pair playing Cathy & Heathcliff are engaging, especially when he protects her from the old man's wrath. The older pair are mostly fine together and apart. Cathy marrying Edgar despite her still loving Heathcliff is tragically understandable. And, for most of the movie, you'll feel for Heathcliff as he's consumed by heartbreak. His descent into villainy is disturbing, especially when Isabella is brought into it. But then, we're expected to care about him when the downer ending hits. It doesn't really work. But between that, and a few other directing flourishes, I see it working as an indirect satire of the novel's most romantic interpretations.

Don't believe me? The old man's wrath is kicked off by Heathcliff shivering in his presence. Yes, it's because they got caught in the rain, but he's also scared of the old man. "How dare you be scared of me!" he basically says. "I should teach you a lesson!" Years of drinking later turns him into a full-tilt scenery connoisseur - but at least he's nicer to Heathcliff! Isabella, meanwhile, is a childish nightmare enthusiast even before Heathcliff shows up. The film opens with an execution that everyone, young Cathy included, is too much into. Still, Cathy's best friend, Nelly Dean (Hong Chau/Vy Nguyen), is a compelling voice of reason in this mad world.

If there's a reason to watch this movie, it's for the technicals. It's almost a month before the next Oscars, but already, I'm penciling in cinematographer Linus Sandgren, production designer Suzie Davies and costume designer Jacqueline Durran in my proverbial ballot for next year. And really, who can blame me once you behold their designs for yourself? Its sets are especially massive on the big screen, Edgar's estate is positively striking, and the location filming in Yorkshire Dales make them truly like another world. Victoria Boydell skillfully edits these vibrant images, which are perfectly accentuated by Anthony Willis's evocative score and Charli XCX's moody songs. 

Anyone expecting a screen accurate adaptation of Wuthering Heights here should go away. Yes, it's pretty blunt, but then again, so is this movie. Fennell has gone on record that it encapsulates how she felt reading the novel as a teenager. I can respect this interpretation, despite what I might have suggested earlier. You just need to see this movie to believe it, or not. I've said enough.

It Was Just an Accident

Jafar Panahi is one of Iran’s most controversial filmmakers. So much so that the government banned him from working for twenty-years, so he had to make his latest film, It Was Just an Accident, in secret. Thus, it represents France, where he finished the film, for this year's International Feature Oscar race. It's been available to rent-on-demand for a while, and I only now just got to it. Here we go.

Late one night, an Iranian family drives in the desert. It's so dark that we can't see the daughter, Niloufar (Delmaz Najafi), in the backseat until she lights up her tablet. It's so tightly shot by cinematographer Amin Jafari that we only see them for several minutes. Neither we nor the father (Ebrahim Azizi) can see the loose dog running around until it's too late. His wife (Afssaneh Najmabadi) assures him that "It was just an accident. God surely put it in our path for a reason."

Maybe that reason was to put him into somebody else's path.

He drives up to an auto garage, where we meet our actual protagonist, Vahid (Vahid Mobasseri). Years ago, Vahid was tortured in prison by Egbal, an intelligence agent with a prosthetic leg that squeaked with each step. It just so happens that the father also has a prosthetic leg that squeaks with each step. Vahid is now certain that this is his former tormentor. 

So, the next day, he nabs "Egbal" and prepares to bury him in the desert. But when he starts to doubt that it is Egbal, Vahid drives around to grab some friends who were also tortured by him. There's Shiva (Mariam Afshari), a wedding photographer; her clients, Goli & Ali (Hadis Pakabaten & Majid Panahi - Jafar's nephew); and the hot-blooded Hamid (Mohammad Ali Elyasmehr). Perhaps one of them can verify the man's identity - maybe without killing him first. That's basically it.

Panahi and his Oscar-nominated writing collaborators - Nader Saïvar, Shadmehr Rastin, and Mehdi Mahmoudian - manage to keep things going fairly well. Several times over, the crew either IDs "Egbal" or almost end him on the spot, only for their doubts to keep the film going. Along the way, they run into corrupt cops, car trouble, a potty emergency and even help "Egbal's" family when his wife goes into labor. This farcical plot gets interestingly philosophical as they debate the morality of killing their captive. I mean, if he is Egbal, would they be better than him if they killed him? Although he confesses, I was almost left with the impression he falsely did so out of pressure. 

Vahid and his crew are an interesting bunch. As much as Vahid wants to kill "Egbal," he's also willing to lord his moral superiority over his captor-now-captive. That he took the time to help "Egbal's" family shows that he's still pretty altruistic. You'll especially feel for him when he recounts what Egbal did to him. Overall, he's a pretty good superego to Shiva's ego and Hamid's Id. Goli & Ali are fine, even if they're mostly there, while the captor-now-captive is surprisingly likable. Sure, he relishes his depravity near the end, but he's mostly presents himself a good family man. He's downright sympathetic once he finally breaks down. 

Now, for the technicals. Ashfari alternates between shooting things way up close or shooting things way wide. Either way, we get some pretty good clandestine scenery here. The sound design for "Egbal's" leg is outstanding, transforming the last scene into a terrifying one. Without a doubt, it's the best scene of the film. There's no score, but there's a pretty good pop song in the opening. And finally, we have editor Amir Etminan, who brings everything together quite nicely.

What can I say? It Was Just an Accident is ready for you to check out on purpose. It's a farcical morality play that's worth checking out at least once, especially if you're curious. Who knows? You might find a lot that I've left out of this review. But I think I said enough.

Mr. Nobody Against Putin

Next, on my quest to see this year’s Documentary Oscar winner, I go to the next likeliest frontrunner - Mr. Nobody Against Putin. This was Denmark’s submission for International Feature, and like The Perfect Neighbor, it’s been nominated for the BAFTA and PGA Awards. Let’s see what else it is.

In early 2022, the Russian town of Karabash, Chelyabinsk Oblast, revolved around its copper smelting plant. Pavel “Pasha” Talankin was a teacher at Karabash Primary School #1, as well as the videographer and events coordinator. When Putin’s forces invaded Ukraine that February, the Russian Government mandated a new curriculum revolving around the war. Pasha was tasked to film his school following the mandate and upload his videos to a new database. 

Pasha understandably objects to the changes for multiple reasons. He tries to resign, but when he gets in touch with director David Borenstein, he decides to stay on to film his school's descent. Of course, he'll have to leave the country in order to share this footage with the world. The film, in fact, opens in-medias-res, as he does just that.

It doesn't take long for one to get to like Pasha. That comes as early as his opening narration, in which he introduces us to Karabash, internationally known for its pollution, as well as his workplace and home life. We meet his mother, who is the school librarian, along with his parrot and dachshund (are they ok?). We get to see what makes him popular, namely his blunt, yet friendly and empathetic personality. Some of the film's most poignant moments revolve around his students, past and present. One's cheery personality drains away as her brother is sent to the frontlines; another prepares to be deployed; another one dies in the war, and we get his sound-only funeral; and many of his current students dread attending. You'll feel for Pasha as the fun gradually drains away.

So, what about the New Educational Order? Another teacher, Mr. Abdulmanov, is especially eager to extol the virtues of Putin & the Motherland. All of his favorite historical figures are Soviet leaders known for carrying out assassinations and committing human rights abuses. In another class, we get some levity as another teacher trips over the words "denazification" and "demilitarization" as she recites the state's questionable propaganda. Military-style marches become part of the day; at one-point, pretend grenade-tossing becomes part of the curriculum! Perhaps the scariest, yet most ridiculous moment, comes outside of school, as a general basically tells his men "You're all going to die, but you'll be remembered forever!" It's basically a real-life variation of Lord Farquaad's speech in Shrek!

Pasha doesn't depict anyone too critical of the war, other than himself. It's one thing to fret over your loved ones in the frontlines, but actually speaking out against Russia's Propaganda Machine can lead to life in prison. If the State Police don't get him for defacing Pro-War Posters, the draft might. Both are presented as real threats. His mom is pretty much his political opposite, but her stance is mainly a resigned "Let them fight. It's their nature." His fellow teachers note how badly their students are slipping, but that's just about it. In a fictional movie, it seems like an underdeveloped plotline, but in real-life, it's an absolute necessity. 

If you need one good reason to check this movie out, it's Pasha. Watch Mr. Nobody against Putin for this engrossing tale about an unlikely hero. Just as importantly, it's a great way to highlight how teachers help their students. It's only ninety-minutes long, so it should be a somewhat easy sit. His charismatic personality helps getting through the rough patches. And whether he wins or loses, he should be proud that he created a great first motion picture.

The Secret Agent

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My latest mission, which I’ve waited seemingly forever to accept is to review The Secret Agent, Brazil’s contender for this year’s International Feature Oscar, which is also the likeliest winner. Let’s finally get into it, shall we?

“Our story is set during the Brazil of 1977, a period of great mischief,” proclaims the title card. It’s a somewhat generous description of the country’s military dictatorship, which last year’s International Feature winner, I’m Still Here, also covered. Our “secret agent,” Marcelo (Wagner Moura), drives into Recife just in time for Carnival. He takes up residence with Dona Sebastiana’s (Tania Maria) community of "refugees" (political undesirables) and reconnects with his father-in-law, Sr. Alexandre (Carlos Francisco), and son, Fernando (Enzo Nunes). But Marcelo isn’t feeling too festive right now…

It eventually transpires that Marcelo and his late wife, Fatima (Alice Carvalho), made enemies with the corrupt Dr. Ghirotti (Luciano Chirolli). Ghirotti, a board member of Eletrobas, disappeared many of Marcelo's associates, so Marcelo needs to disappear with his life. But first, he needs records of his mother, whom he barely remembers, and the State refuses to acknowledge. He gets a cover-job at the city’s ID-card office, which might have his mother’s info on hand. He’ll have to hurry, for Ghirotti has already dispatched hitmen brothers Bobbi & Augusto Borba (Gabriel Leone & Roney Villela) to do the job.

I've seen multiple reviews call this a "slow-burn," and at 161-minutes, slow is right. Director and writer Kleber Mendonça Filho spends a lot of time letting Marcelo interact with various characters and situations, including crooked police chief Euclides (Robério Diógenes), resistance leader Elza (Maria Fernanda Cândido) and Holocaust survivor Hans (the recently deceased Udo Kier). In the meantime, we get occasional glimpses of the villains, who finally close in during the last half-hour. There's also a subplot with a human leg found inside a tiger shark, which takes a truly bizarre turn well into the movie. It might disappoint anyone expecting a tightly plotted thriller, but I think it does have its advantages.

If anything, the slow narrative helps Mendonça encapsulate Brazil as it was. In the opening scene, we see old snapshots set to a neat tune before we see Marcelo drive up to a gas station. A few cops are more interested in him than the dead looter rotting in the sun - he bribes them with cigarettes. Sr. Alexandre is a projectionist, so we get to see the impact of The Omen when it was released in Brazil. Of course, we also get to see people trying to survive under an iron fist. If we take the final twist with the leg metaphorically, rather than actually, it makes creepy sense. These are highlighted by another subplot, where a pair of modern university students research Elza and her associates. Like them, I wanted to learn more about the era.

Moura is pretty compelling as Marcelo, even if you need a few viewings to grasp his intricacies. Still, on that first viewing, I understood Marcelo to be a good man trying to survive. One of his best scenes has him try to explain to Fernando what happened to Fatima - or, at least, the "official story." His most powerful scene, however, has him show up in another role in the epilogue (I won't declassify that one). Dona Sebastiana is quite the character, and amongst her fellow tenants, we have single mom Claudia (Hermilla Guedes), Angolan Civil War survivor Thereza Vitória (Isabél Zuaa), and even a two-faced cat. Hans makes the most of his one scene, while the other villains are equally charming & detestable. Once you see this dynamic ensemble in action, you'll understand why Gabriel Domingues is now one of the inaugural nominees for the Casting Oscar.

Amongst the technicals, we have cinematographer Evgenia Alexandrova and production designer Thales Junqueira, whose work is vital for Mendonça's snapshot of the era. It really looks like a gritty film of the 70s, even if it was really just done digitally. Some obvious, yet creepy, visual effects are used for the culmination of the leg subplot. And finally, we have a surprisingly energetic score by Tomaz Alves Souza & Mateus Alves, which should have gotten a bit more notice this Oscar season, even a shortlist mention. Oh well.

Anyway, The Secret Agent is ready whenever you are. It might be a slow movie, but it's still an interesting history lesson. See it for yourself now, then see what you learn later. Trust me; I think you will learn a lot.

The Perfect Neighbor

Unlike last year, I intend to keep up with this year's Oscar-nominated documentaries. At least, the ones I can actually watch - Cutting Through Rocks isn't available near me, and I'd rather not start up Apple TV just to watch Come See Me in The Good Light.

Fortunately, I've started with perhaps the likeliest frontrunner - The Perfect Neighbor. This Netflix documentary premiered in October, and has been nominated across various guilds, BAFTA, and even Best Editing at the Critics' Choice Awards. Let's look into it, shall we?

Meet Susan Lorincz. “I’m like the perfect neighbor,” she says. “You barely ever see me.” Her neighbors in Ocala, Florida, would disagree, as she always yells at the local kids for playing in "her" lot. From 2022-23, she calls the police at least six times, and each time, the officers are more neighborly than her. She's most unneighborly to the four kids of her black neighbor, Ajike "AJ" Owens. After one such incident on June 2, 2023, AJ tries to confront Lorincz, who fatally shoots her from behind her closed door. Lorincz tries to justify it through the State's Stand-Your-Ground law, but nobody buys it.

Director Geeta Gandbhir gives us the facts mostly with bodycam and security footage. We see the police responding to Lorincz's complaints, interviewing her at the station after one such call, the aftermath of the shooting, and her being ultimately convicted. We hear from her annoyed neighbors as her behavior grows more and more erratic. We see them try to mediate between Lorincz and her neighbors, even as they grow weary of responding to her every call. I got the feeling that the only reason Lorincz wasn't arrested sooner was because the cops had no reason to think it would get this far. It seems like systematic incompetence, but the cops here are shown trying to do right. 

Throughout the narrative, you might ask yourself a lot of questions. Why didn't they intervene when her neighbors first saw her gun? What was up with the airhorn incident? Why didn't they commit to arrest her for trespassing on some guy's property, smashing his gate open with her pick-up truck - an incident she never comes close to justifying? Why didn't she get enough professional help for her behavior? It's beyond obvious how mentally unwell she is, even if that doesn't excuse her. But perhaps with a better mental healthcare system, she wouldn't have felt the need to resort to violence. I might be overthinking it, but that's the impression that I got from this documentary.

It maybe 97-minutes, but it's not an easy documentary to sit through. You'll know how bad it gets as the film opens in-medias-res on the shooting. When it resets, the tension builds as the dates grow closer and closer to the big one. We get some levity as we get to know the Owens, who fit the title better than Lorincz. It’s appropriately tragic for everyone involved, even Lorincz, once the event finally happens. When Lorincz is arrested, she refuses to go along with them for so long a struggle seems inevitable. It doesn’t happen, but the tension was so there. It's still nice seeing everyone rally around the Owens. And more levity comes from Lorincz's nephew's Captain Obvious insight - "Guns are very dangerous."

There are two things I need to mention before I end this review. One is that Gandbhir has a personal connection to the case - her sister-in-law was best friends with AJ. The other is that Gandbhir is also nominated this year for her Short Documentary The Devil is Busy, which I didn't realize until now. I’ll definitely be reviewing that along with the other Documentary Shorts, and I’m more excited than ever. In the meantime, you can check out The Perfect Neighbor if you're up to it. If not, I might recommend something more pleasant next time.

Or not...

Send Help

 So bored.

Stranded in doldrums. The Secret Agent, available for digital pre-order for weeks. No sign of release date. It's actually coming to theatre near me, but it's almost three hours, and most showings start late in the afternoon. Send Help. Send Help. Send Help...

[Help arrives and it's...]

I didn't mean the new Sam Raimi movie, but I'll take it.

[Review Contents. Spoilers Inevitable]

Okay, so we have Linda Liddle (Rachel McAdams), a corporate strategist at Preston Strategic Solutions. When old man Preston, who promised to promote her to VP, kicks the bucket, his son Bradley (Dylan O'Brien) takes over. Bradley, however, promotes his frat buddy Donovan (Xavier Samuel) to VP. He's nice enough, maybe, to let her come along to Bangkok as he and the guys finalize a merger. Their private jet crashes into the Gulf of Thailand, with Linda and Bradley as the only survivors (as a Sam Raimi movie, everyone else dies messily).

The two of them wash ashore upon an island. Linda, a Survivor fan who once auditioned for the show, quickly puts her survival skills to good use. Bradley, who sprained his ankle in the crash, is anything but grateful for Linda's efforts. But Linda eventually asserts her dominance over her boss. Soon enough, the two of them come to a mutual understanding - maybe more. But eventually, we see how far she's willing to go to not lose her newfound power. Especially when civilization draws near ...

Yes, it’s thematically similar to Triangle of Sadness, and both films were in development by 2019. You can easily tell them apart, not just in style, but in length - Send Help runs a half-hour shorter than Triangle at 114-minutes. During this time, we see Linda and Bradley’s relationship evolve and devolve all over the place. Once they hit their mutual understanding, you might forget that this is supposed to be a horror film. By the end, however, their alignments reverse along with the power hierarchy. Are either of them the hero, the villain or some twisted neutral? 

It's pretty clear-cut at the start. You can easily sympathize with Linda when she's passed up for her promotion. She may be socially awkward, but she's quite capable, and Bradley just makes excuses. Her Survivor audition video, which "entertains" the guys just before the crash, is kind of lackluster, but you can't hold it against her. After the crash, Bradley still tries to boss her around, but realizes he needs her help. All that genuine chemistry, however, doesn't stop him from feeding her poison berries and leaving her to die (it doesn't work). When Linda encounters Bradley's fiancée Zuri (Edyll Ismail) on the island, what happens next will easily shift sympathies to him - especially since Zuri is actually pretty nice. And then, we get to a major plot twist.

Let's talk about that Sam Raimi style, shall we? It's very much evident at the start, when we get some uncomfortable close-ups centered around Linda's tuna-salad sandwich. Cinematographer Bill Pope also gives us more appealing shots of the main island, even when things get messy. Oh yes, the violence is extremely messy, whether it's in the plane crash or Linda hunting an extremely durable boar. It's especially messy when Bradley and Linda have their final fight, which leaves her practically looking like a Deadite from The Evil Dead. Even with the obvious CGI, the violence still feels just as grotesque. There's also an impressive sound design, with one jump scare being a particular highlight, and an energetic score by Danny Elfman. 

Without going too much into spoilers, Linda's moral realignment sends her to near supervillain levels by the climax. It's a pretty drastic change, but it's also a minor quibble. Still, the moral & power shifts make Send Help a pretty interesting horror movie. Anyone looking for something twisted, messy and silly will get their money's worth and then some. I think I said enough ...

Now, when do I see The Secret Agent?

Little Amélie or the Character of Rain

Everything seems Golden for KPop Demon Hunters at the upcoming Academy Awards, as it’s guaranteed to win both of its Oscars. It does have viable challengers, particularly at Best Animated Feature, where we find two French films, Arco and Little Amélie or the Character of Rain. I have no idea if and when I'll see Arco, but I just saw Little Amélie on the big screen just a month after it debuted on demand. Let's get to it.

Our narrator, Little Amélie (Loïse Charpentier), is born to a Belgian family in Japan. She spends her first two years in a vegetative state, which she compares to being a God. And much like a God, she’s worshipped by her parents - diplomat Patrick (Marc Anaud) and pianist Danièle (Laetitia Coryn). On her second birthday in August 1969, an earthquake happens, and she suddenly gains consciousness. But she’s practically feral until her grandma, Claude (Cathy Cerdà), gives her a taste of white chocolate; after which she’s an eager learner and a good speaker (Emmylou Homs voices her on-screen dialogue).

Grandma Claude arrives with Nishio-san (Victoria Grosbois), a housekeeper hired by the family’s landlady, Kashima-san (Yumi Fujimori). While Grandma Claude eventually leaves, Nishio stays around and eventually bonds with Little Amélie. Through Nishio, Little Amélie learns quite a bit about Japanese culture, especially the kanji for “rain,” which is pronounced “Ame” like her nickname. But Kashima, who lost so much during World War II, detests them bonding. Amélie learns a lot about the world by the time she turns three.

In French, the source novel by Amélie Nothomb actually translates to The Metaphysics of Tubes rather than The Character of Rain. This comes from a longwinded metaphor at the start of Little Amélie’s narration. There’s nothing longwinded, however, with this film, as despite its dense thematic material, it’s just 78-minutes long. During which, you'll grow attached to Amélie, her family, her childhood sense of wonder, and especially her friendship with Nishio. It's hard to hate anyone in her orbit, even if they're her bratty big brother André (Isaac Schoumsky) or Kashima herself. In fact, Kashima's emotional wounds make her pretty sympathetic.

Its watercolor art style, visualized by directors Liane-Cho Han and Maïlys Vallade, matches Amélie’s sense of wonder. She’s amazed by a vacuum cleaner, enough that it becomes her first word, and how it visualizes its suction power helps you understand the appeal. Through this art style, you'll start to wonder if she can really cause earthquakes or part the sea, or if it's just her imagination. Either way, these cosmic phenomena are great to look at. Some surprisingly effective and haunting food metaphors visualize Nishio describing her surviving the air raids during the war. The Japanese scenery is stunning, especially when it's lit by candles during Obon. It's all accentuated by a marvelous score by Mari Fukuhara.

Little Amélie is a short but sweet film. She goes through so much that you’ll be surprised once the credits hit. A few things, like Kashima’s ultimate compassion, could have been developed better, but they’re just minor flaws. You'll just have to see this film anywhere and however you can. Still see it. I think I said enough.

Hamnet

Umm, excuse me! Don't you mean Hamlet?

Why, right out of the starting gate, and someone's asking me this question.

No, Baxter. I mean Hamnet. You'll understand why once I explain the same-named movie, newly nominated for multiple Oscars, including the first ever Oscar for Casting. This has Chloe Zhao and Maggie O'Farrell adapt the latter's novel into screenplay form. Zhao, of course, also directed it.

Okay ...

So, there's this young Latin tutor (Paul Mescal) in the sixteenth century. We don't get his full name, until the end, but we realize right away that this is William Shakespeare himself. One day, he sees Agnes Hathaway (Jessie Buckley), a falconer and herbalist, walking by his students' house. They quickly fall for each other. They marry over the objections of their families; Will's, in particular, is aghast that he'd marry the daughter of a "forest witch." In due time, Will's writing career takes off, while he & Agnes have three kids - Susanna (Bodhi Rae Breathnach) and twins Hamnet (Jacobi Jupe) & Judith (Olivia Lynes). 

(Oh, so that's why it's called Hamnet.)

But this isn't a happy family movie. Will is often away at London writing for the Lord Chamberlain's Men. Judith gets the Black Plague and lies on her deathbed. Hamnet asks God to let him take her place and He obliges - Judith recovers and Hamnet dies. Will copes by writing Hamlet, a name we learn at the start was considered interchangeable with Hamnet, something Agnes picks up on. And she's not happy. Maybe she just needs to see what it's all about. Yeah, that's pretty much it.

You can probably tell that this will be a tough sit. I’ve heard for months how it left critics and audiences emotionally wrecked. It would disservice the subject matter if Hamnet’s death wasn’t the least bit devastating. That scene didn't disappoint, though it didn't leave me a sobbing mess. Sure, Hamnet & Judith had particularly nice chemistry, but they're fully introduced about an hour in, and it doesn't take long before the tragedy hits. It could have hit more if they were around longer, but I digress. I was more moved when Hamlet (Noah Jupe, Jacobi's big bro) gives his dying speech, which moves the entire Globe audience - Agnes included - to comfort him. It's quite a sight.

It's not all doom and gloom, though. In fact, Agnes and Will shine together from the moment they meet - even as she tries to shoo him off. Their subsequent romance and their family time is quite endearing. It’s quite funny to see Will humor the twins when they pull a twin-switch on him. It’s especially nice to see Mary (Emily Watson), Will’s mother, warm up to Agnes. They cope with Hamnet’s loss differently, though neither are wrong in their paths. Still, Agnes gets the biggest focus as we see her rebuild herself after the tragedy. As I said, it's quite rewarding when Agnes sees Hamlet.

Amongst the supporting cast, a few highlights include Joe Alwyn as Agnes's supportive brother Bartholomew, David Wilmot as Will's mean father John, and Justine Mitchell as Agnes's stepmom Joan. Breathnach, as Susanna, does her best with her limited narrative focus. Still, I thought the older Jupe was excellent as "Hamlet" (who, in real-life, was originated by Richard Burbage). You'll especially feel his frustrations when Will runs him ragged as they rehearse the play's "Get thee to a Nunnery" scene. They have a much friendlier, and moving, moment on-stage when Will plays the Ghost of King Hamlet. His final speech is a triumphant moment.

Max Richter's melancholic score was nominated today, but Lukasz Zal's ethereal cinematography wasn't. It's a pity, because paired together, they give us an exquisite experience. Its most emotional moments leave the camera running so everything can develop naturally. The makeup work used for the twins' sicknesses is appropriately disturbing, even if the overnight reversal is a bit questionable. It rightfully earned its last few nominations for its production and costume designs. Everything from the Globe Theatre to its patrons looks convincingly lived in; the stage Hamnet's spirit exits into is perfectly haunting.

Yes, Hamnet is emotional, but it might be more so if you know nothing about Shakespeare the man. That way, you can experience his every gut punch as hard as he does. It's still a pretty good film, and I can see why it's currently a top contender for Best Picture. I cordially invite you to see why for yourself. I think I've said enough. 

All You Need Is Kill

You know, I have the feeling I've been here before ...

What am I saying? Of course I have!

A long time ago, I reviewed Edge of Tomorrow, a Tom Cruise movie based on Hiroshi Sakurazaka's novel All You Need Is Kill. This year, I get to look at an anime movie which keeps the novel's title, but not its exact storyline. So, how does it do a second time around?

In the distant future, a giant space weed called Darol takes over Japan. It’s not doing much, except taking up space, so humanity mostly ignores it. Those who don’t are employed by the UDF (United Defense Force) on the world's largest landscaping job - with mech suits and robots! 

One year later, Darol basically blooms, unleashing monsters on the mechanized gardeners. These things don't have names, but I'll henceforth call them "Mimics," per the novel and first film. When Rita, a UDF loner, kills a certain Mimic, she's bathed in its blood just as it kills her too. And then, she wakes up hours earlier, gets to work, gets killed again, wakes up hours earlier, gets killed again, wakes up, tries to runaway but ...

Yup, she's stuck in a time loop. After a while, she decides to train herself to fight the Mimics. She soon gets pretty good at it, even if she still keeps dying over and over. But nothing really changes until she meets Keiji, a guy who also got doused in the same Mimic's blood. She not only finds a friend, but she finds a valuable partner in her war against the Mimics. Unfortunately, due to some stuff, all these loops are actually part of Darol's master plan. It's up to Rita and Keiji to destroy Darol in one final loop; otherwise, it's game over.

When you compare notes, Edge of Tomorrow actually sticks to the broadest strokes of the novel. This time, director Kenichiro Akimoto and writer Yuichiro Kido remix the novel’s concepts somewhat significantly. Darol is their invention; the protagonists are different; and even the ending takes after the first movie. It’s easy to surmise some bits of their worldbuilding, but you’ll have to piece together a few more details yourself. I was kind of lost when Dr. Shasta, the UDF kid genius, explained what made the loops possible. It was some kind of spores, but I couldn't discern what name she gave them. I might just need a repeat viewing.

Also, unlike Edge of Tomorrow, none of Rita’s deaths are played for laughs. They’re all sudden, all brutal, and often as she makes good headway against the Mimics. Her repeated losses drive her to despair, even suicide during one loop. It’s an 82-minute movie, and the endless cycle of death starts pretty early. It gets pretty tedious after a while, but the mood literally brightens when Keiji shows up. We're relieved with Rita once she realizes she's no longer alone in the universe. They're both traumatized, as we learn in flashbacks, and it's quite rewarding to see them help each other. You'll definitely feel something during a dark turn in the final battle. But it ends all right.

Its cel-shaded characters animated by Studio 4°C are quite strange. While the Mimics are fascinatingly eerie spider-flowers, not one human has the same body shape. The humans are all angular, and they look particularly gangly when they don their mechanized Jackets. If anything, the humans visually stand out, since only Rita, Keiji and Dr. Shasta narratively stand out. It's pretty colorful, but when Keiji reveals he's also a looper, the color palette actually brightens significantly. It's a heavy-handed, yet appropriate, design choice. We also get some great sound effects, particularly for Darol's roars, and a delightfully eerie soundtrack by Yasuhiro Maeda.

As I looked back on Edge of Tomorrow, I remembered how excellent its terrifying opening montage was, how fun Tom Cruise was playing against type, and its spectacular effects. Maybe I might give that a repeated viewing, too. All You Need Is Kill is so short that I almost considered doubling it up with Charlie the Wonder Dog. Obviously, I didn't, but that's okay, since this film was already a fine matinee on its own. I think it's fine to check out both this film and Edge ot Tomorrow together, though.  I think I said enough.

Blue Moon

 I’ve just covered a Song Sung Blue, now let’s hear about a Blue Moon. 

Unlike a few other films, Blue Moon never rose to a theatre near me. It’s been on-demand for at least a month now, but I’d rather not pay $19.99 if I could help it. Well, it got discounted this week, so I bought it digitally. Let’s see what folks have seen since October.

It’s March 31st, 1943, and Oklahoma! has just debuted on Broadway. Rodgers and Hammerstein’s breakout hit would, of course, codify American musical theatre for decades to come. But tonight, Lorenz Hart (Ethan Hawke), Richard Rodgers’ (Andrew Scott) former collaborator, seriously doesn’t see what the fuss is about. He finds it a cornpone mess, but he knows that it will be playing long after he’s dead. Since we first see him collapse on the street and die off-screen that November, we know it won’t be that long for him.

Hart walks out on Oklahoma!’s title song to drink his sorrows at Sardi’s. The rest of the film has him hang around Sardi’s, talking to bartender Eddie (Bobby Cannavale), a fictional pianist named Morty Rifkin (Jonah Lees), and even a few actual famous people. Most significantly, he tries to patch things up with Rodgers and maybe go steady with the significantly younger Elizabeth Weiland (Margaret Qualley). He’ll try to make the most of it, even if everything doesn’t go his way.

Robert Kaplow’s screenplay, which Richard Linklater directed, says it’s inspired by Hart and Elizabeth’s letters to each other. Obviously, I don't have the source material on hand, but maybe it's not necessary, considering that this whole movie is a "what-if" scenario. Who knows if Hart actually met all those future famous people at Sardi's? Who knows if Elizabeth actually existed or is a composite? But Oklahoma!'s reviews, which we hear quoted during the afterparty, are actually factual. They were really wowed by its ability to blend songs, dances together with a story.

It's interesting that the radio reporter announcing Hart's death calls him and Rodgers "America's Gilbert and Sullivan." W.S. Gilbert, in case you're interested, was rather cantankerous and irascible, which perfectly describes Hart in this film. He showcases his entertaining ego as he and Eddie quote Casablanca, dismisses Oklahoma!'s exclamation mark, and even its source material - the now-obscure play Green Grow the Lilacs. Until the afterparty arrives, it's just him, Eddie, and Morty, with Hawke never wasting a word as Hart. When he's silent, you can tell that he realizes he's at the end of his rope. He can't even fathom why Rodgers would rather do more serious works - as Sullivan did - than their satirical ones.

Obviously, Rodgers and Hammerstein (Simon Delaney) figure into the plot, but who else do have? Hart helps inspire E.B. White (Patrick Kennedy) to write Stuart Little. He also annoys a young Stephen Sondheim (Cillian Sullivan) with a joke that "Stevie" will use decades later in A Funny Thing Happened on The Way to The Forum. Elizabeth brings her classmate, George Roy Hill (David Rawle), for a quick cameo. Morty, while fictional, is still a pretty cool guy. Let's not forget Elizabeth, whose personality, emotional maturity and chemistry with Hart are simply radiant. He doesn't get the girl, but it surely was fun while it lasted. I wonder if I'm reading into this optimistically.

Let’s, ahem, sing some praises for the technical works. First, to the makeup and hairstyling crew, for rendering Hawke unrecognizable as Hart. You might not even know that this short, balding man shares an actor with the Grabber until you hear him talk. I still have a little trouble connecting them together. Yes, I also said he was short, as the real-life Hart was a foot shorter than Hawke. A few seamless camera tricks, plus some inherent quirks in Susie Cullen's production design, help pull off this illusion. This is practically a filmed stage play, considering the scope, and thankfully, the Sardi's set is never boring or claustrophobic. It helps that there's a pleasant score by Graham Reynolds, which mostly adapts old favorites, to accentuate the mood.

It may be a film about a man's final months, but Blue Moon is surprisingly entertaining. Hawke’s performance may be getting all the awards buzz, but it also has a fun supporting cast and stellar script. Really, everyone involved should take a bow or two. You'll have to see it for yourself, however and whenever you can. It might get you in the mood for Oklahoma!, or may be Rodgers and Hart's whole catalog. If I'm in the mood, I might review Linklater's other film of the season, Nouvelle Vague. But that's it for today.

If I Had Legs, I'd Kick You

 This movie, with this peculiar title, came out in October near me, but I passed up my chance to watch it then. With Rose Byrne getting Oscar buzz, I realized I had to see it some time. That time came a few days ago, as I rented it through Amazon and pressed play. Let’s see what I’ve missed.

Linda (Byrne) has a lot on her mind. Her Ship Captain husband, Charles (Christian Slater), is on a two-week worktrip, leaving her to take care of their daughter (Delaney Quinn). Their daughter, who isn’t even named and whose face is mostly kept off-screen, requires a feeding tube to treat an unspecified condition. They can’t keep up with Dr. Spring’s (director and writer Mary Bronstein) strict wellness program. And then, her ceiling collapses, which requires the two of them to move to a motel.

It just so happens that Linda is a therapist, who regularly receives counseling from a colleague (Conan O’Brien). One of her regular patients is Caroline (Danielle Macdonald), a new mother with severe postpartum depression. One day, Caroline up and leaves Linda with her baby, and her husband (Bronstein’s husband Ronald) can’t be bothered to immediately relieve her. Although she gets the police to help, Linda can’t get any for the ceiling, which gets worse by the day. All of this causes her mental health to deteriorate further and further. Is there a light at the end of her tunnel?

When we first see Linda, we see only her, and occasional glimpses of her daughter. Between Christopher Messina’s extreme close-ups, and Linda’s weariness, we can already tell that she’s dealing with a lot. Indeed, some of her problems, like the collapsing ceiling, are rather farcical. As the film goes on, her problems get surreal, occasionally violent, and pretty maddening. It even gets depressing, as Linda wonders if she’ll end up like Yoselyn Ortega or Andrea Yates. Thanks to Byrne’s performance, Linda never loses her audience’s support, even as she partakes in something drastic - and disturbing - in the climax. Still, to answer my question, the film leaves her with a sliver of hope for the future.

There’s a pretty good supporting cast in Linda’s orbit, even if their characters aren’t at all likable. O’Brien, as the colleague, is so restrained and serious that he's practically unrecognizable. But with Charles absent, Dr. Spring too condescending, and Caroline's husband callously unhelpful, he's still a welcome sympathetic ear. It's also pretty funny when he and Linda squabble after Caroline vanishes. She also has James (ASAP Rocky), her motel's superintendent, and Diana (Ivy Woulk), the front desk clerk, to help her out. Still, Linda's difficult personality stretches their limits, and you won't blame them when they hit theirs. Linda's arch-nemesis, a parking attendant (Mark Stolzenberg), clearly hit that limit ages ago, but he's just annoying compared to some of her other problems. 

Let's give a few shout outs to its technical aspects. There's no composer credited, but we still get something like a score here. It's mostly an unsettling soundmix filled with ambience and the occasional muzak, which does wonders in putting us in Linda's headspace. Her hallucinations, and the occasional real-life violence (particularly a shocking incident with a hamster), are visualized with pretty spectacular effects. There's some pretty great production design, by Carmen Navis, for Linda's apartment in every bit of its disrepair. And finally, everything is held together nicely by editor Lucian Johnston.

Overall, If I Had Legs, I'd Kick You can be an extremely uncomfortable comedy to watch. Yes, despite the nightmare fuel, and the mental crises, it's still a dark comedy. But as I said, the slim, yet hopeful ending for its protagonist, makes this cinematic ordeal worth watching at least once. It's disturbing, yes, but it's also strangely rewarding. If it doesn't sound appealing, don't worry, for I've got something a bit more palatable next time. 

Song Sung Blue

I’ve held off on watching Song Sung Blue ever since it came out on Christmas. I don't really have a good reason why. But after Kate Hudson was nominated for the SAG Award on Wednesday, I immediately went off to watch it. So, let's see what everyone else has been singing blue about.

Craig Brewer converted Greg Kohs's 2008 documentary into narrative form. It immediately starts with Mike Sardina (Hugh Jackman) seemingly being interviewed for another documentary. Shot tightly close by Amy Vincent, the now Oscar-shortlisted cinematographer, he tells us about his life, his passion for music, and even his alcoholism. It's at this point we learn he's at an AA meeting, celebrating his 20th "sober birthday" with a performance of Neil Diamond's titular song.

Mike, a Milwaukee mechanic, is also a cover artist named "Lightning." One night, at the Wisconsin State Fair, Mike is supposed to cover Don Ho, but he'd rather be himself. So, he quits, but not before he meets single mom Claire Stengl (Hudson), who's covering Patsy Cline. Once they get acquainted, they decide to form a Diamond tribute band, Lightning and Thunder. Their careers take off when they open for Pearl Jam, and they eventually marry.

What else happens? Claire gets into a horrendous accident, which leaves her physically and mentally scarred. She and Mike argue a lot as he struggles to find work outside of their act. Her daughter, Rachel (Ella Robinson), gets pregnant, though she's got an adoptive couple on standby. Mike also has a bad heart, and the family's insurance isn't that good. I think that's it.

For the first hour or so, it’s all fun and games as Lightning and Thunder meet, fall in love, and make beautiful music together. It gets buoyant whenever they sing Diamond, from the obvious Sweet Caroline to obscure songs like Play Me, Soolaimon and Holly Holy. The songs are delightful, and Hudson and Jackman are clearly having fun playing together. It's 132- minutes long, and the scenes off-stage may make you feel every second of it.

After the accident, it rushes through all the problems I mentioned above. Claire’s accident - a random car smashes into her while she’s gardening - is legitimately shocking, but Mike having a heart attack at the hospital is a little too much. Granted, this actually happened in real life, but this is the first time we learn of his “jacked up heart.” It only acts up again in another shocking accident. It’s a bit hard to follow, though never tedious, as the dramatics pile up. It doesn’t help that the film, as a whole, condenses the real-life timeline to a few years at most.

So, what about Lightning and Thunder? Well, Jackman is pretty charming as Mike, but that's a given. He lights up on stage, discusses music, or even expresses annoyance over Sweet Caroline. He's got an ego, but he's still humble enough to acknowledge his Thunder, especially near the end. Hudson is pretty enjoyable as Claire, and you'll really feel for her when she's put through the ringer. I already mentioned their electric chemistry, but one of their best scenes off stage is the awkward manner he proposes to her. You'll smile with them and even laugh uneasily when Claire misses another runaway car by seconds.

Let’s meet the supporting cast. Fisher Stevens is fine as Dr. Dave Watson, Mike’s manager and dentist who helped craft his Lightning persona. It dawned on me that Tom D’Amato, Mike’s agent, had a very familiar voice, though only later did I realize it was Jim Belushi. He’s good too, as is Michael Imperioli as fellow impersonator Mark Shurilla. “Sex Machine” (Mustafa Shakir), the James Brown impersonator, is quite fun, but Angelina (King Princess), Mike’s daughter from his first marriage, is just there. She and Rachel become besties, but Rachel’s brother Dayna (Hudson Henley) has far more plot relevance.

That Oscar-shortlisted cinematography is dazzling, but it’s even better with Billy Fox’s editing. There’s the crash, which cuts to black just before impact, but that’s enough to jolt anyone awake. The other accident is quick and brutal, even if the aftermath may befuddle you (it embellishes some details, but it's consistent with the true story). If any one scene earned Stewart her spot, it's a very creepy nightmare where Claire performs Sweet Dreams on stage. And finally, let's give some praise to the visual effects team; you'll know why when you see Claire post-accident.

Song Sung Blue is fine, but it could've been better if it developed its timeline better. Still, if all you want is a Neil Diamond experience, then Jackman and Hudson's performances will give it to you in spades. They're just as good as the real, real deal himself, who unfortunately never shows up here. But let's not hold that, or The Jazz Singer, against him. I think I said enough.

Marty Supreme

Ladies and Gentlemen!

I promised you months ago a matchup between two - two! - sports films by the individual Safdie Brothers. We’ve already seen Benny’s The Smashing Machine, so let’s give a hand to Josh’s Marty Supreme! Let’s get ready to review!

….

Seriously, who is that?

….

Anyway, we’re introduced to Marty Mauser (Timothee Chalamet), an underground ping-pong champion in 1952 New York. He works at his uncle Murray’s (Larry “Ratso” Sloman) to help fund a trip to London for his first championship. When Murray refuses to give him an extra $700, Marty steals it himself and flies on over to his first humiliation. That comes when he loses to Koto Endo (actual Japanese ping-pong player Koto Kawaguchi) and promptly loses his cool.

At home, Marty is confronted with an escalating series of problems. Murray wants to press charges; Marty accidentally crushes one Ezra Mishkin’s (Abel Ferrera) arm with a hotel bathtub (don’t ask); he and his best friend Wally (Tyler the Creator) lose Ezra’s dog, Moses; his childhood friend Rachel (Odessa A’zion) is pregnant with his child; and he’s been banned from professional ping-pong. Fortunately, he met aging starlet Kay Stone (Gwyneth Paltrow) in London. Her husband, Milton Rockwell (Kevin O’Leary), is a powerful pen magnate, so he might help get him out of trouble. But that will cost him.

Jennifer Venditti, the Safdies’ mutual casting director, is among those shortlisted for the first ever Casting Oscar. It’s easy to see why once you see this film’s surprising choices. There’s O’Reily, whom you might recognize from Shark Tank, who’s really menacing as the unforgiving Rockwell. You might also recognize Fran Drescher as Marty’s mom Rebecca, a woman of little nonsense. But you might not recognize Penn Jillette - that’s right, Penn of Penn & Teller - as the trigger-happy farmer Hoff, until you see the credits. You won’t be laughing at any of his screen time, that’s for sure.

Let’s see who we have further up the cast list. We’ve got Paltrow, whose world-weary Kay still craves affection. When she stages her comeback play, whose director is none other than David Mamet, it proves to be a catastrophe. Her gutted reaction is all we need to understand the reception. Meanwhile, A’zion’s Rachel is married to the brutish Ira Mizler (Emory Cohen), but she’s a good match for Marty. She’s just as impulsive as him, to the point of manipulative, but she’s still pretty sympathetic. And then there’s Ferrera, whose Mishkin gradually goes from nice to frighteningly violent.

And finally, let’s dedicate a paragraph to Marty. For much of the movie, I was honestly annoyed by Marty’s towering ego and immense stupidity. He’ll make anything worse for himself, even if it’s not exactly his fault - see the bathtub incident. But he’s not irredeemable. In fact, he proves himself capable of goodness when he agrees to drive Moses to the Vet. He tries his best to find the dog, even if it’s just for the reward, which is where he meets Hoff (and wishes he hadn’t). A catastrophic incident helps him realize the error of his ways; he still puts his ego to good use in the climax. Everything makes sense once you realize it’s about him learning humility through humiliation.

Let’s talk about its technicians, some of whom have been also shortlisted for Oscars. There’s cinematographer Darius Khondji, who, with production designer Jack Fisk, renders the 1950s with alluring grittiness. It’s not a rose-tinted world, but it still looks nice to live in. Daniel Lopatin energetic score is sometimes complimented, not supplanted, by some purposefully anachronistic needle drops. Safdie, and his writing/editing collaborator Ronald Bronstein, make the ping-pong matches as compelling as the violence. Finally, an excellent makeup team sketches Marty’s unglamorous, yet dashing, looks, as well as bruises both “real” and “fake.”

Yes, Marty Supreme requires a lot of patience, both for its protagonist and its two-and-a-half-hour runtime. Give them time, and you might find yourself impressed with its unusual story. I admit that I was rather impatient, but I came away appreciative that it didn't turn out to be hopelessly bleak. It got me interested in reading up on Marty's real-life inspiration, Marty Reisman, and it was surprising to see the overlaps. It's not my favorite film of the year, but I still respect it a lot; I'm willing to give it another shot once it premieres on HBOMax.

I think I said enough for this year.

Now, who was that announcer?

Sentimental Value

 It’s a good year for Neon.

The film distributor, that is.

This past March, Anora got them their second Oscar for Best Picture. Next March, they might also get their second Oscar for Best International Feature. Not only that, but they might have the whole category to themselves. Yes, of the fifteen films shortlisted, five of them are distributed by Neon.

Let’s start with Norway’s Sentimental Value, Joachim Trier’s follow-up to his also Oscar-nominated The Worst Person in the World. Let’s see what he and his usual co-writer, Erisk Vogt, have this time.

Gustav Borg (Stellan Skarsgård) is one of Norway’s most renowned directors, even if he’s well past his prime. He drops by his ex-wife’s funeral to reconnect with their daughters - Nora (Renate Reinsve), an actress, and Agnes (Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas), a historian. It’s a matter of literal family business, for Gustav has written a role for Nora in his next movie. It’s based on her grandmother, who hanged herself when Gustav was seven, and it will be filmed at their house - where she actually died. Nora flatly says no.

Gustav meets Hollywood starlet Rachel Kemp (Elle Fanning) at a film festival, and casts her in the role. This gets Netflix interested, but it also does little for his familial relationships. Agnes is particularly incensed when her son, Erik (Øyvind Hesjedal Loven), is cast as his grandpa. Nora, meanwhile, suffers from crippling anxiety. This film might give everyone a chance to mend their relationships. 

And for 133-minutes, you’ll be invested in their cinematic therapy. Nora and Rachel have every right to rebuff Gustav, given their personal history. And yet, Skarsgård’s performance makes it impossible to hate him. He’s a doting, yet unconventional grandfather; an absent father; a brilliant filmmaker; and a cantankerous old man. Above all else, he’s still a pretty good man, even if he has trouble showing it. I especially find it appealing how happy he is in teaching his craft to the next generation. Again, who can hate him?

Now, let’s talk about those daughters. Nora’s first scene has her paralyzed with stage fright during her latest play. One can relate to her jitters - I do - as her bout lasts for seemingly forever. The wait is worth it once she gets on stage. Off-stage, her affair with co-star Jakob (Anders Danielsen Lie) gives her little comfort. Agnes, who once starred in one of Gustav’s films, gets her best scene when she calls out Gustav for his flaws. She also resolves her family’s fractured relationships when she studies her grandma and her problems. Yeah, quite convenient, but you’ll have to see it in context.

It's especially impossible to hate Rachel. She pretty much enjoys filmmaking and is eager to learn more from an old pro like Gustav. In fact, she seeks him out after she watches Agnes's old movie at a festival. She’s spectacular when she acts out her movie-within-a-movie’s climactic monologue, but she’s even better when she realizes she’s not right for the part. You will believe every bit of effort she puts into her part; it’s not for lack of trying. Overall, Fanning’s performance is invaluable for this ensemble.

Speaking of invaluable, let's bring in cinematographer Kasper Tuxen, who was just shortlisted for the Oscar. Modern family dramas aren't usually considered here, but it makes sense once you tour the Borgs’ home. We’re greeted with a huge crack in the wall early on, then watch it get renovated in the finale (can you say, metaphor?). Nora’s minimalist theatre company gives us an interesting bait-and-switch moment midway through. If there was a Production Design shortlist, Jørgen Stangebye Larsen would be on it. A little later, as Gustav teaches Erik cinematography, Gustav “spears” himself with a toy shovel in a dazzling moment of visual trickery. You’ll wonder how they did that. 

Yes, while I expect Neon to dominate the International Feature Category, I have my eye on a few other candidates (Japan's Kokuho, for example). I'll gradually get to as much of them as I can in the coming weeks. For now, I leave Sentimental Value with a confident recommendation. It's readily available to stream just about anywhere but Netflix - I picked Amazon, as usual. So, check it out, and prepare to immerse yourself in a family drama with an almost nonexistent language barrier. I think I said enough.