Killing of a Scared Deer. Lanthimos has never made and probably will never make anything approaching a normal film. After the jet black comedy of The Lobster, with was all the better for its absolute deadpan throughout, I was half-laughing at this from the start thanks to the signature line delivery that is always up to be interpreted as stilted/formal/mocking/amusing, but here thereâs really nothing funny. A slightly strange family find theyâre cursed, and increasingly desperate efforts are made to escape it. It does have points where I laughed and then immediately wondered what was wrong with me; certain scenes are presented so unwaveringly that the choice is to simply feel uncomfortable or to laugh.
Unlike anything else I have seen in 2017.
Just watched I Dont Feel At Home in This World Anymore. Liked it quite a bit. Donât want to spoil anything, but Iâd really like to chat with someone about the ending. Seemed way too much of a happy turn for what had been a relatively dark (but funny) movie.
I really liked that one. Very funny throughout in a hapless realistic way (cf. pulling shuriken out of the wall). I thought the tone change was abrupt, but earned. Unlike a great many other films I think her equanimity was actually attained and while it may not have been any better than your standard plot resolution it felt more honest to me. This may be down to me being a gullible sucker.
the lighting and way it was filmed was a bit surreal making me wonder if it was real or if Tony didnât survive and she was dreaming? I donât know, it just threw me. I didnât dislike it, just wondering if maybe I was missing something.
I think the whole shift was to communicate how much better she was feeling. IIRC Toby was interacting with others in that scene, so it wasnât just in her head.
For those who remain unconvinced of Predatorâs genius as film art, I submit that it makes a damn fine opera, too.
This is by the people who did Conan the musical, right? That remains one of my favorite internet things of all time. Itâs so catchy.
Bright. Elves and orcs are alive and well in LA, and Will Smith is the cop only x ys from retirement partnered with an orc. The really funny thing about this film is it thinks Will Smith is the interesting one in this partnership. The interesting (or perhaps cowardly) thing is it eschews any kind of human racism in favour of purely fantasy racism; Iâm not sure if this is a bit of deep thought arising from the history of the racesâ conflict or just a pure bottle job in not wanting to face it. Either the budget or the choreography was not up to making the most of some good action scenes. Truly awful plot event near the end made me retch in disgust at Will Smith.
The Shape of Water. In some respects, itâs really good. In other respects, not very much actually happens and I wonder why itâs a full-length film. Itâs a fairy tale, which is a strength in that itâs simple, but it honestly could have been done in less than an hour. Itâs not boring, but once youâve seen Michael Shannon act like a fruit loop in one scene, you know what heâs going to be doing for the rest of the film. Itâs lovely to look at, it doesnât ignore the real racism of the times, and itâs well-acted throughout even if the roles are rather two-dimensional. Hawkins is the centre of the film and it wouldnât work if she wasnât excellent.
I, Tonya. A cheerfully slapdash mockumentary about the rise and fall of an ice skater, complete with a cast of absolute fools and cretins. The film intersperses interviews with scenes, complete with the characterâs narration, and regularly breaks the fourth wall, and revels in telling different sides of the same story. A very funny tragedy.
I had my first date night in a long time last week as my now-college-student babysitter is on break. We were going to see Greatest Showman then go to a good steak house. It wouldnât have been my first choice anyways, but I let my wife pick something a little more up her alley. When we got to the theater, the movie was sold out and I had to see the only movie showing at the time that worked with our schedule - Pitch Perfect 3. Iâll just leave my review of the movie at thatâŠ
Finally got around to seeing Adaptation. Folks, if you havenât seen this one, and you appreciate: 1.) Meta-art, or b.) Nicolas Cage at allâŠplease see it. Cage does a turn as both real screenwriter Charlie Kaufman trying to adapt plotless nonfiction book The Orchid Thief for the screen and his twin brother Donald, whose personality and own attempts to write a screenplay could not be more different. Delightful.
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. Frances McDormand just punches a rather humdrum role into orbit. Thereâs a scene or two she doesnât manage to elevate, and Sam Rockwellâs grotesque police officer takes some stomaching, but overall the film is excellent. An everyday tale of a grim crime with a fitting, fantastic ending.
A great recommendation. I saw this years ago when it was released, and thought it was one of the best films of the year. Cage has certainly had more than a few stinkers in his career, but Adaptation is probably his finest work. Iâd say itâs a must-see.
Brian Cox as Robert McKee is not to be missed, either.
The Hot Spot. Directed by Dennis Hopper, weâve got Don Johnson at his radiantly tanned best, Jennifer Connelly as a beautiful ingĂ©nue, and Virginia Madsen as a manipulative, provocative temptress. Johnson, probably on the run from Miami Vice, rolls into town and in best noir fashion, gets up to his elbows in crime and women in very short order. Sex, drinking, violence, murder, robbery, blackmail, all in Texas heat and sweat.
You had me at Jennifer Connelly. 
I donât really know how I feel about this, but every time I see a trailer for it my first impression is that itâs a middlebrow version of The Interview.