The Long Walk. So they adapted my favourite book of King’s, before he got bloviated, and they’ve done an okay job, but some of the changes are totally unnecessary. No, man, totalitarian dictatorships are not bad because the dictator will literally come to your house and shoot your dad. That is not it. At all. I won’t go in to how the film seems to openly encourage not resisting in the face of violent suppression either, because I’m sure that looked like a different bargain in the 60s. The meat of the story is still there, and is still really grim and compelling, but many of the changes are vacuous, and some are downright counter-productive.
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I was very surprised when I read the synopsis to the long walk novel as to how much theyd changed in the film. My least favourite part was how the ending of the film was very predictable, and thats what took me out of the film for the majority of its run. I couldnt invest in the plight of these supporting actors, because I knew they were all part skull pile that was the finale. From what I read, the book ended differently.
The two leads had excellent chemistry, the cinematography was quite good, but I couldnt care less for the kids walking until it was time for their heads to pop. Maybe the film being released 46 years after the book numbs the Vietnam allegory into irrelevance
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Looking forward to “one battle after another” I quite like Leonardo DiCaprio, and the film is previewing well.
Kangaroo. A kids family film inspired by a real life kangaroo sanctuary, would be surprised if it makes any impact in the northern hemisphere. Quite the treat in its use of aboriginal Australian actors, artwork, costume and culture. A slow first third before it finds its legs. Oddly low on humour and action for a kids film, instead subbing in themes of loss and belonging, backed by stunning landscape shots and a conservation message
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One battle after another. Action thriller, and the best film Ive seen in a while. I was a little concerned the film would be a vehicle to showcase Leo as an action hero, but thankfully thats not what transpired. A variety of strong characters excellently acted. Pulling her weight as the teenage daughter of Leos character is Chase Infiniti in her debut, quite the feat considering the caliber of her co-stars
Very topical with themes of illegal immigration and detention camps. Runs long but rarely dragged for me.
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One Battle After Another. It was good to see DiCaprio playing a useless idiot, and he was outshone on all sides by Sean Penn, Teyana Taylor, Chase Infiniti, and Benicio Del Toro. A lot of very funny moments, combined with one or two scenes of true pathos. Anderson has got form for this sort of thing with Inherent Vice, and while the plot definitely suffers from its transplant from the 60s, he’s literally one of the best to ever do it. I particularly love Penn’s grotesque martinet, but that whole side of the plot is rightly filled with ghouls. Two hours and 42 minutes, but worth the time.
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TLDR: go watch “one battle after another” in the cinema if you want to have a good time
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Its weird because every promo shot is Leo with a gun. I dont even think this is Leos story when it comes down to it. Its not quite a Siccario level rug pull, its just theres a lot of compelling threads being pulled at once
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Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie. Do not make a drinking game out of every cat pun, you will die. I hope whoever at Dreamworks was responsible for such excellent animation is satisfied with making films for pre teens, because other animators wont stand a chance if they decide to go mainstream. Just incredible fidelity during action sequences, and a consistent style throughout
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Toxic Avenger. This film is just a massive amount of fun. It’s conventional, but otherwise just has a lot of gags that rarely stop.
Totally agree! I loved the pass phrase bit.
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I’m looking for some recommendations. My kids are 10 and 12 and are challenging me to show them scarier and scarier movies. The thing is, I do still censor what the watch, to an extent. Sex/nudity/etc. are a hard no, and if there are any f-bombs, I’ll still skip the scene or mute the tv. I am not quite as concerned with violence as long as it’s not overly-gratuitous. We’ve watched Signs, The Village, and A Quiet Place. I grabbed World War Z from the library but we haven’t watched it yet. Any other recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks!
I mean, if you want to fuck them up: Watership Down.
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Gremlins, maybe? My eldest found The Secret of Kells super creepy, but then, my youngest found the Pixar short Lava super creepy, so maybe I traumatized my kids in some unexpected ways.
Comment made my night.
The Others maybe? I don’t remember how much cursing there is in that movie, but it’s a level of scary that might work for that age. Sleepy Hollow is probably too tame for them at this point, but it’s a go-to for Halloween viewing for me. The Oldman Dracula perhaps. Though that has sex, now that I’m thinking of it. The original Nosferatu is scary as anything, IMO. Labyrinth, the Bowie movie, will certainly seem weird to them. There’s always Stranger Things, the series, though I think that has a lot of cursing in it as well.
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The Others maybe? I don’t remember how much cursing there is in that movie, but it’s a level of scary that might work for that age.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0230600/parentalguide/?ref_=tt_stry_pg
IMDB is a great resource when you want to prescreen content in movies for your kids.
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A Quiet Place
Cloverfield
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Yes. And if anyone else screens for their kids, Common Sense Media can be helpful as well. In this instance, it’s more a matter of brainstorming a movie for this specific situation.
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Also the Parents’ Guides on IMDb.
Sister Midnight. This is easily 2025’s Film that Startled the Most Laughs Out of Me, by some way. A woman trapped in an unhappy marriage finds herself radically changing, and Radhika Apte carries the film with aplomb. Still not quite sure what it is, but a conventional film it is not. Very funny, very dark.
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