"We should cancel the event, due to mysterious deaths."
"No, police officer hero hanging out with female scientist, I, the mayor, have decided the event is too big to cancel."
"Rar, I'm some big scary monster that eats people."
"I'm a police officer, but not the hero, I am inexplicably not trigger happy for a US police officer and won't try using the gun I'm carrying."
Rewatched Eyes Wide Shut and yes, it still terrifies me. The whole world feels so fucking hostile to the protagonist, in such a specific yet passive-aggressive way, and yet at the same time seems in pain with itself... I dunno. Creeps me out.
And I just found this moderately batshit theory a about the daughter being kidnapped in the toy store, as a willing sacrifice from her parents (or at least Alice, who is the one directing the scene). I don't quite believe it but it goes on for a while:
1) The daughter's name is Helena, as in Helen of Troy, of abduction fame. Starts with a stretch.
2) She walks away from her parents and for a split second is seen walking behind two older men, and closely followed by a younger man - supposedly two guests from Ziegler's party and one of the waiters, about to abduct her. No, I don't actually recognize them from Ziegler's party or any other scene in the movie. They look and and behave like random background extras to me.
3) This is supposed to mirror the scene(s) with Milich prostituting his daughter to two men in a setting not that dissimilar from a toy store (costume shop). Eh.
4) Apparently the word "sex" is written on the painting that hangs over the daughter's bed. I guess I can kinda see it (the black squiggles in the middle). The placement is suggestive but it's also no big conspiracy that Eyes Wide Shut is about sex and disruption. For all we know this is just the movie subconsciously feeding Bill's and/or our paranoia.
5) The famously abrupt "what do we do now/fuck" exchange at the end supposedly alludes to them having to procreate because they just sacrificed their one kid. This fits the theory nicely but I never had a problem with the final exchange that I had to look for batshit theories to explain it either.
6) We're back to big stretches, but the daughter's biggest participation in the movie, other than her abduction (?) in the final scene, is her being taught simple math (by mom) by comparing the wealth between two men. So what? Well I guess that becomes a metaphor for basic levels of power at play. Bill has how much less money than the goat-head Balenciaga elites? And then she gives Bill this look:
Double feature Saturday night streaming for us this past weekend:
Nanny
An undocumented Senegalese women is a nanny for an upper-middle class Manhattan couple with a 5 yr old kid. She's doing it to raise money to bring her own son over to the states. The movie leans in to all the socio-economic-racial dynamics therein plus folklore/mysticism to do a character-focused spooky vibe. Ends rather... abruptly but overall a nice little mood piece. The director's first movie. Recommended. Like, it's not great, but it's pretty good.
The Silent Twins
Based on a true story about twin sisters who didn't talk to anyone but each other, starring the Black Panther anti-vax lady and another equally good actress.
I dunno.. I get a little uncomfortable with movies like this, is it exploitative? Like... it's well made/acted, I guess, but unless you're a real fan of true-life dramas or the specific actors I can't really find a reason to recommend it.
Well, after seeing all the hype I can't deny I left with a tinge of disappointment. The impression I'd gotten was that this would blow the first one out of the water, and I don't think it does. But a lot of it has to do with it being a decidedly different film. It's much slower, more character-focused and contemplative. One of the best things about Into the Spiderverse is its airtight, breakneck pace, and here I felt it kind of sagging with all of Miles' family stuff in the first half. But then again, that kind of lightning-fast pacing wouldn't necessarily fit the kind of movie this is aiming to be. So in some ways it's a kind of apples to oranges comparison.
But in some ways it definitely blows the first one out of the water. It looks miles (heh) better than the first one, which is already an astronomically high bar to clear. During the Gwen segment in the beginning (which I absolutely loved) I was just drooling at the visuals. The action is even more inventive, and takes every bit of advantage out of the multiverse concept it can. The animation is among the best ever in history, and the comedy hits the spot (heh) every time.
Where Peni, Spider-Ham and Spiderman Noir felt mostly like wacky sidekicks in the first, the new additions of Hobie and Pavitr feel like fully fleshed out and essential characters to the story. Miguel and Spot are both fantastic and interesting antagonists. I'd already heard Spot to be surprisingly intimidating and effective (and he was), but to me the most fascinating thing about him was the psychological element. Usually the motivation of "grr, I hate Spider-Man because of reasons" feels a little contrived (see Electro in TASM 2), but here it actually makes sense and is genuinely tragic: Spot has essentially been turned into an eldritch abomination against his will, forever detached and isolated from humanity, and lost everything in the process. If any of us were in his situation, could we go back to our day jobs? And even if we wanted, would we be able to?
Miguel is a perfect foil for Miles' wide-eyed idealism with his jaded, harsh realpolitik. You can perfectly see why he holds special contempt for Miles in particular, but it's also clear he's kind of toeing the edge. There's an air of deep sadness to him, someone who's just fallen to going through the motions in a position where he's holding existence itself together. Despite the insanely wacky high concept ideas going on, there's a profound sense of groundedness and humanity to all of it.
Miles and Gwen's dynamic was really interesting in this film. You really feel them being in a hedgehog's dilemma situation, and despite Pavitr blatantly lampshading it, it feels much more complex than the usual teenager "will they won't they". They're both alone and trapped in how their lives are, but can't risk rocking the boat, and can't really rely on each other for sympathy and understanding. The beginning segment with Gwen gives such a depth of understanding to her feelings, and you get the sense that she's just swapped one unpleasant situation for a slighly different, and only slightly less unpleasant situation. She's found friends and a sense of belonging and purpose, but is clearly struggling with her new responsibilities and their ethics.
is definitely its most puzzling part. It ends in a fashion reminiscent of Matrix Reloaded, and I don't know how to feel about that. It isn't so much "Oooooh shit, I can't wait to see what happens next", more of a "huh, I wonder where that's going next". Because it leaves off in a situation where you feel it could go a lot of ways. It doesn't leave a sense of immediate urgency these kinds of cliffhangers usually do. We're not really given that much info to know about the version of New York Miles ends up in, or his counterpart in that universe, to really get a sense of "oh, he's fucked". All in all it's a pretty weak ending, and one I think will be only properly assessed once the next one is out, and we have the equivalent of Dune part 1 and 2.
All in all it was still fantastic. Considering this one leaves on a cliffhanger, I really hope we don't have to wait another 5 years for the next one.
Well, after seeing all the hype I can't deny I left with a tinge of disappointment. The impression I'd gotten was that this would blow the first one out of the water, and I don't think it does. But a lot of it has to do with it being a decidedly different film. It's much slower, more character-focused and contemplative. One of the best things about Into the Spiderverse is its airtight, breakneck pace, and here I felt it kind of sagging with all of Miles' family stuff in the first half. But then again, that kind of lightning-fast pacing wouldn't necessarily fit the kind of movie this is aiming to be. So in some ways it's a kind of apples to oranges comparison.
But in some ways it definitely blows the first one out of the water. It looks miles (heh) better than the first one, which is already an astronomically high bar to exceed. During the Gwen segment in the beginning (which I absolutely loved) I was just drooling at the visuals. The action is even more inventive, and takes every bit of advantage out of the multiverse concept it can. The animation is among the best ever in history, and the comedy hits the spot (heh) every time.
Where Peni, Spider-Ham and Spiderman Noir felt mostly like wacky sidekicks in the first, the new additions of Hobie and Pavitr feel like fully fleshed out and essential characters to the story. Miguel and Spot are both fantastic and interesting antagonists. I'd already heard Spot to be surprisingly intimidating and effective (and he was), but to me the most fascinating thing about him was the psychological element. Usually the motivation of "grr, I hate Spider-Man because of reasons" feels a little contrived (see Electro in TASM 2), but here it actually makes sense and is genuinely tragic: Spot has essentially been turned into an eldritch abomination against his will, forever detached and isolated from humanity, and lost everything in the process. If any of us were in his situation, could we go back to our day jobs? And even if we wanted, would we be able to?
Miguel is a perfect foil for Miles' wide-eyed idealism with his jaded, harsh realpolitik. You can perfectly see why he holds special contempt for Miles in particular, but it's also clear he's kind of toeing the edge. There's an air of deep sadness to him, someone who's just fallen to going through the motions in a position where he's holding existence itself together. Despite the insanely wacky high concept ideas going on, there's a profound sense of groundedness and humanity to all of it.
Miles and Gwen's dynamic was really interesting in this film. You really feel them being in a hedgehog's dilemma situation, and despite Pavitr blatantly lampshading it, it feels much more complex than the usual teenager "will they won't they". They're both alone and trapped in how their lives are, but can't risk rocking the boat, and can't really rely on each other for sympathy and understanding. The beginning segment with Gwen gives such a depth of understanding to her feelings, and you get the sense that she's just swapped one unpleasant situation for a slighly different, and only slightly less unpleasant situation. She's found friends and a sense of belonging and purpose, but is clearly struggling with her new responsibilities and their ethics.
is definitely its most puzzling part. It ends in a fashion reminiscent of Matrix Reloaded, and I don't know how to feel about that. It isn't so much "Oooooh shit, I can't wait to see what happens next", more of a "huh, I wonder where that's going next". Because it leaves off in a situation where you feel it could go a lot of ways. It doesn't leave a sense of immediate urgency these kinds of cliffhangers usually do. We're not really given that much info to know about the version of New York Miles ends up in, or his counterpart in that universe, to really get a sense of "oh, he's fucked". All in all it's a pretty weak ending, and one I think will be only properly assessed once the next one is out, and we have the equivalent of Dune part 1 and 2.
All in all it was still fantastic. Considering this one leaves on a cliffhanger, I really hope we don't have to wait another 5 years for the next one.
Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse: Directed by Bob Persichetti, Justin K. Thompson. With Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfeld, Brian Tyree Henry, Nicolas Cage. After leaving off from Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, the story continues.
After seeing Across the Spider-verse and having thought about it some, I need to amend my statement: the hip-hop inserts are actually a very natural part of the score, reinforcing both Miles' character and the Brooklyn setting. It's only really two scenes where they grated me and felt way too on the nose, those being the songs that play after Peter Parker's passing, and "What's up Danger". In those moments it felt like the score was signaling way too hard for the audience how to feel.
It's only really two scenes where they grated me and felt way too on the nose, those being the songs that play after Peter Parker's passing, and "What's up Danger". In those moments it felt like the score was signaling way too hard for the audience how to feel.
You're literally the only person I've seen or heard count those as negatives. Me and nearly every Spider fan disagree hard. The entire audience in my showing of Into the Spider-Verse flipped their shit with those moments! More so the "What's Up Danger" moment. True perfection! There was no "signaling too hard". It's called maximum effort.
Oh that was unexpected (and Barry Nelson is offended by this claim of "completionism").
And yeah, it's a nice film. I kinda like its music, actually (and I don't like many Michel Legrand musics). I like the odd videogame duel. And... I kinda like the actors... separately (very separately when it comes to Brandauer and Basinger's saliva bridge). They don't truly feel in the same movie there, it's odd. Something doesn't really work.
But because of that, it's not a film I easily rewatch. It feels a bit cold, a bit mechanical. I find it a but xeroxed and soul-less, more forgettable than the pre-Dalton (or pre-Brosnan) Bond films. I don't know if it's due to its direct script re-hash or its lack of Monty Norman theme. It exists. It is not bad. It's there. but it lacks personality. On its own merit, without being related to Bond, I think it would be an average, forgotten little thriller.
I can't track down a decent way to watch the 1967 Casino Royale, and I honestly don't have much interest in it. Saw it once, it's a hell of a trip, but to actually try to review that mess is not worth it, for me.
I can't track down a decent way to watch the 1967 Casino Royale, and I honestly don't have much interest in it. Saw it once, it's a hell of a trip, but to actually try to review that mess is not worth it, for me.
Something that's been bothering me ever since I saw The Flash and couldn't quite elaborate... it has maybe the most unsatisfying ending I've ever seen for a superhero movie.
1. Sets up all these superhero shots for Flash/Batman/Kara and they all fail them miserably. It's all for nothing.
2. Nothing is effectively set up as a result from rebooting the timeline, because it's rebooted a second and final time just before the credits. So again: all for nothing.
3. The movie doesn't even answer the big mystery about Barry's mom's death, who one day is found lying on the middle of her kitchen floor with a knife in her heart so randomly it's almost comical. Who's running around sunny suburbia in the middle of the day, sneaking into houses, sticking moms with knives and running away without stealing anything? The crime is so random and inexplicable the dad gets blamed and for the longest time I believed it because the movie never even offered an explanation. So who actually did it? Nobody cares by the end.
4. The lazy deepfake cameos that don't do anything other than stand and wave from their own timelines, WB's most cynical IP flex since Spaces Jam 2. Sheesh.
Something that's been bothering me ever since I saw The Flash and couldn't quite elaborate... it has maybe the most unsatisfying ending I've ever seen for a superhero movie.
1. Sets up all these superhero shots for Flash/Batman/Kara and they all fail them miserably. It's all for nothing.
2. Nothing is effectively set up as a result from rebooting the timeline, because it's rebooted a second and final time just before the credits. So again: all for nothing.
3. The movie doesn't even answer the big mystery about Barry's mom's death, who one day is found lying on the middle of her kitchen floor with a knife in her heart so randomly it's almost comical. Who's running around sunny suburbia in the middle of the day, sneaking into houses, sticking moms with knives and running away without stealing anything? The crime is so random and inexplicable the dad gets blamed and for the longest time I believed it because the movie never even offered an explanation. So who actually did it? Nobody cares by the end.
4. The lazy deepfake cameos that don't do anything other than stand and wave from their own timelines, WB's most cynical IP flex since Spaces Jam 2. Sheesh.
OK, about point 4...I agree for the most part, but Nicolas Cage Superman being canon made it all worth it. There is an explanation for #3 in the CW show, but I don't know if that carries over to the movie.
As for the movie itself, I actually enjoyed it a fair bit. A few of the effects were too dodgy for me to accept (that baby shower scene, oof), and AU Barry was on the verge of being annoying a few times, and the marketing really made Batman and Kara a much bigger deal than they ended up being, but I still didn't dislike the movie, and had a pleasant time watching it. Ezra Miller actually did a pretty good job at playing both versions of themself, and a lot of the emotional moments did hit for me, especially one toward the very end of the movie.
OK, about point 4...I agree for the most part, but Nicolas Cage Superman being canon made it all worth it. There is an explanation for #3 in the CW show, but I don't know if that carries over to the movie.
As for the movie itself, I actually enjoyed it a fair bit. A few of the effects were too dodgy for me to accept (that baby shower scene, oof), and AU Barry was on the verge of being annoying a few times, and the marketing really made Batman and Kara a much bigger deal than they ended up being, but I still didn't dislike the movie, and had a pleasant time watching it. Ezra Miller actually did a pretty good job at playing both versions of themself, and a lot of the emotional moments did hit for me, especially one toward the very end of the movie.
Watched Into the Spider-verse again, before I watch Across again as well.
Still great. Although it struck me even more again how tragic and kinda ignominious how Peter's death is. Dude gets murdered and his body is just... dumped somewhere. I get that the point was to be jarring, but a Spider-man dying at all is pretty jarring. I would have preferred if his death had more purpose.
Also forgot how fun Aunt May is here. Although Miles doesn't spend so much time in his own universe in Across, I think keeping her around would have been a nice way to keep Peter still relevant. The man was SPIDER-MAN. And not just any Spider-man, but an almost perfect one. Seems a shame that there's not much of him left after he passes on.
Based very, VERY loosely on the real-world bank of the same name and its founding. Basically has a guy named Dave who wants to set up a local bank in the north of England, in the aftermath of the GFC. However, the big banks don't want this local upstart to muscle in on their monopoly, so Dave hires a lawyer, who's disdainful at first, but eventually opens up to the charms of simple country life and has a thing with Dave's daughter and yeah, you see where this is going. It goes through all the cliches you'd expect, and 90% of the events in the film are fictional, and IMO, the film spends too much time on personal drama and not enough on the legalese stuff. Which is odd to say, but maybe I'm just getting older.
US Army Sergeant John Kinley finds himself deep in enemy territory in Afghanistan with only his interpreter, Ahmed Abdullah (who has been promised visas to move himself and his family to the US,) after an attack by the Taliban. Kinley is rescued and returned home while Abdullah is left in Afghanistan, hiding himself and his family from the Taliban's retribution. Unable to settle the guilt, Kinley exhausts all resources to return to Afghanistan and make good on the US' promise to get Abdullah stateside.
Solid movie. Hits all the right notes given it's about as on-rails as you might expect given the premise. Kudos to Dar Salim (Abdullah) for an extremely convincing performance. Gyllenhaal looked about as natural as a sergeant as those in a two-person horse costume, but he's passable.
Something that's been bothering me ever since I saw The Flash and couldn't quite elaborate... it has maybe the most unsatisfying ending I've ever seen for a superhero movie.
1. Sets up all these superhero shots for Flash/Batman/Kara and they all fail them miserably. It's all for nothing.
2. Nothing is effectively set up as a result from rebooting the timeline, because it's rebooted a second and final time just before the credits. So again: all for nothing.
3. The movie doesn't even answer the big mystery about Barry's mom's death, who one day is found lying on the middle of her kitchen floor with a knife in her heart so randomly it's almost comical. Who's running around sunny suburbia in the middle of the day, sneaking into houses, sticking moms with knives and running away without stealing anything? The crime is so random and inexplicable the dad gets blamed and for the longest time I believed it because the movie never even offered an explanation. So who actually did it? Nobody cares by the end.
4. The lazy deepfake cameos that don't do anything other than stand and wave from their own timelines, WB's most cynical IP flex since Spaces Jam 2. Sheesh.
Infinity Pool (Apples?)
Wait is this just a metaphor for insincere celebrity public apologies or something? Either way, a mesmerising curiosity, this nepo baby is respectably putting the work in. And if I'd not watched Pearl in the last couple of days, Mia Goth would've taken quite a while longer to recognise here. Also mad respect for making a consensual sex scene that's unsettling, visually interesting that's not resorting to cheap titillation, and with an alright soundtrack to amplify aforementioned creepiness. Hannibal season 3 managed this too. Many mad respects.
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