4v291o

Watched on Sunday May 25, 2025.

This review may contain spoilers.

Man, the tone of everything surrounding it makes the shot of William H. Macy being apprehended at the end so haunting.

Movies are awesome.

Cage is amazing, but Elizabeth Shue is miscast. She never quite sells that she’s from that world. Still wonderfully miserable though!

A visual feast I never really appreciated as a kid. A lot less laughs than I , though, and the energy of its cast needed to be cranked a bit higher to match the cartoonish-ness of everything else. That said, this thing is gorgeous and a rare stylish, big budget comedy the likes of which we’ll probably never see again.

This might as well be 5 stars for how little I enjoy this kind of storytelling. I can appreciate Lynch’s tone and how hard it is to pull off this kind of murky weirdness, but I was more confused and less entertained than I was in Blue Velvet, the only other of his I’ve seen. I dunno, probably need to see more of his work cuz on paper this should all be right up my alley.

The list of movies I’m ashamed to say I’ve never seen is a little bit shorter now. And it would take a MOUNTAIN of molested daughters to bury the genius of this one!!

Loved everything this was doing, it just took way too long to do it. I get needing an ever-growing sense of dread, but Ostlund held too long on so many shots it started to feel like a gimmick. That said, amazingly realistic writing and performances made for a great time. Now to go cringe at the American version’s trailer.

“C’mere you devil log!”

This review may contain spoilers.

So many fun, twisty ideas squandered by a miscast lead. Playing crazy is hard, and in a movie about a crazy person it can overshadow what went right. The whole thing felt like a director just besotted with his lead actress, I mean that closing shot. One of the most self-indulgent things I’ve ever seen. This woman did not earn a minute-plus death scene at the end of the film. She’s a fine actress. The beginning stuff in the car playing a “regular” person was great. Thumbs up. Even her desperation worked. But the fits of “crazed shouting” and serial killer/girlboss snark… Never believed a millisecond of it.

And I’m sorry, but you get hit with bear spray and stumble TOWARD your assailant? Or a COP so drugged on ketamine shoots you in the side of the head with a gun he can hardly grip, limply fires two more times, missing you by a mile and you… run to the next county?? Couldn’t get a quick jab in with that knife before you climbed over a fucking balcony?? Dumb. 

The opening of this thing didn’t do them any favors either. They might as well have filmed themselves telling the viewer, “Guys, we really succeeded here. Get ready to have your hair blown back.” Just so up its own ass from the jump.

I dunno, it wouldn’t be so galling if there weren’t so much that worked here. Just so uneven to the point of frustration.

This won for Production Design, right? RIGHT??

Takes its time but never dull. Amazing marriage of image and sound. Michael B Jordan was fine, but the weakest part of this and the big crescendo was a bit of a letdown, but overall it was a crazy original time at the movies. Overhyped but worth your time.

This one confuses me because it’s right up my alley. Super dark, everything sucks and we should all feel bad about being humans. A few scenes were eerie as hell and the whole experience left me feeling pretty down in the dumps in the way only certain movies can.

But pockets of this film felt, I dunno, amateurish? Bland? Maybe under-executed if that’s a thing. I can’t really put my finger on it. That said, it’s a fascinating character study that calls out the terminally online in a really satisfying way.

Edit: I figured it out. It’s the lead actress. She wasn’t weird enough. Too middle of the road. Her character being a professional model was a great opportunity to find someone with that “alien exoticism” that many models have.

Bill Murray may have been a dick about it, but he was right: Lucy Liu can’t act. And neither can anyone else in this movie. 

A couple of cool ideas are absolutely obliterated by high school drama class-level performances and pockets of some of the worst “teen” writing I’ve ever seen. “The youths say ‘fuck’ a lot amirite!!” At no point did I believe that any of these people were of the same family.

Film is the ultimate art form in large part because of its difficulty, so it’s understandable for even the heavyweights to whiff more than they don’t, but he had to know, right? There’s just no way in hell Mr. Soderbergh wasn’t standing at the monitor some days thinking, “How in god’s name did I miscast my entire ensemble?” Just baffling.

Lebowski has more laughs but this one may have bigger ones. I wish I was a Jew so I could understand this movie.

This one’s a freight train. The complex cinematography melts away under unbelievably organic blocking and performances. It just moves and moves but never feels telegraphed until you forget you’re watching performances at all. Like KIDS shot by Roger Deakins or something. Amazing.

The most perfect blood spatter in cinema history probably.

I wish I could have been in the room when they decided to give the Southern Oracle nipples.

Movie magic. 

Haven’t seen it since I was a kid and now watching it with my own. The silliness here is impressive. Some of the weirdest lines that shouldn’t work, but the kid-centric melodrama sucks you in. Captures perfectly how everything feels dire and urgent when you’re young. 

This is the most objective review I’ve ever written.

Hilarious. Goes to ridiculous places but somehow maintains a constant dryness all the while. Doesn’t quite know what to do with itself by the end, but that’s easy to forgive for how many laughs there are along the way. Strong pacing and crafty editing make this an easy recommendation.

Well shit. How do people make these things? Felt so grand and sweeping. Then the director came out and did a q&a and just seemed like a regular dude. 

Adrian Brody is turning into Nic Cage where he can do as many bargain bin movies as he wants, then come back and knock everyone’s socks off. Unreal performance. But the star of the show still might be the score. It’s that good. 

Incredible film. Holy shit it makes me wanna make movies. Love this feeling. Thanks, Brady.

Watched on Sunday November 17, 2024.

Watched on Sunday November 17, 2024.

So goddamn depressing. But in the best way. Totally earned. Mikey Madison was great, but the ensemble is what shines. A few sequences were too long, but the journey is well worth it. What a ride.

Feeling stupid for how late I am to this one. My favorite of McDonagh’s for how he holds back. Some of his other stuff is too tonally inconsistent, like he’s trying too hard for laughs, but he strikes a perfect balance here. Hilarious and sad and bizarre, but never too silly. 

Colin Farrell is a god and Barry Keogan is equal parts hilarious and pitiful. Kerry Condon holy shit. The whole cast was unreal. So beautifully shot as well. Like some fucked up, overcast fairytale. Just amazing.

Beautifully shot. Hugh Grant is fantastic but man it fell off a cliff halfway through. Just went silly and over the top. Also, the writers didn’t seem to bother with almost any authenticity when it comes to missionaries, church protocol, etc. Great ending shot though!

Too long for how little there was narratively. I dunno, maybe it’s the hype, but I was expecting the body horror to be more disturbing. Fun surrealism that started strong but got tiresome by the end. Just needed to be shorter, but still a fun time. Sound design was phenomenal!

A bit too thin plot-wise, even for its 88 minute runtime, but strong performances throughout from a myriad of smaller characters. Hyper realistic tone and a nostalgic look at a time before Uber eats and smart phones. Cool to see Sean Baker’s roots.

This review may contain spoilers.

This was a weird one. One of the most compelling narratives I've watched in a long time... that just sort of ended. There was this slow, creeping dread that really felt like it would culminate into some explosive release of pressure, but it never happened.

Amazing characters, crazy performances from everyone, but in the end I wondered what the point of it all was. Natalie Portman was too despicable for me to care at all about whatever the fuck she gleaned from her experience and how it would inform her performance. Being left with that image was deflating.

I dunno, I'm in awe of all the separate elements here. Just wish they'd stuck the landing and made it all mean something. Too subtle and reserved for its own good in the end. Still unbelievably skilled writing and performances. So real and so bizarre.

Olivia Colman is unreal.

Some moments where the depravity didn’t quite ring true, but most of this was so skillfully executed it really doesn’t matter. Also one of those movies that felt longer than its runtime for how much transpired, but was still brisk.

We have Sigourney Weaver at home. 

Weak start but got better as it went. Some genuinely startling moments and horrifying sequences, but suffered some from a few too many member berries. Unbelievable visuals, though, and one of the most mesmerizing depictions of space phenomena I’ve ever seen. 

Certainly the best of all the recent attempts.

Style over substance. Didn’t get the puzzle and didn’t care to even try to assemble the pieces on the drive home. Started strong but finished dumb. Just a giant shoulder shrug of a movie.

A lot of fun. Came out with a lot of respect for Glen Powell despite the truckload of disbelief his hotness challenged me to suspend. Couldn’t quite get there, especially at the end, but I loved the ride regardless.

We are a civilization in decline.

This oscillates between bad and brilliant a bit too much to say I loved it. Some really corny writing and bad performances, but this writer/director/actor fellow is brave to tackle such heavy subject matter. Could have been a real achievement in more deft hands, but the fact it’s made such an impression anyway really speaks to the ingenuity of the overall story being told. 

That final moment is fantastic, just wish the show as a whole did it justice.

Fun but too long and over-complicated. Also some really strange moments where what should have felt much bigger/significant just sort of happened or was explained through exposition. But Gosling’s charm is bottomless and there was plenty of chemistry between the leads. 

Also holy shit the Oscars are a joke. No best stunt category by now just feels spiteful.

Pleasantly surprised by this one. Some forgettable songs and Chalamet was miscast, but the story and tone more than made up for it. Briskly paced with great vfx, some actual laughs and unexpectedly emotional moments.

If I could somehow rate just the parts of the film rather than their sum I’d give them five stars. Performances and cinematography were fantastic. Breezy edit I was never bored during and the dialogue was this wonderful mix of conversational and performative. I’m left wondering what it all amounts to, though. I’m all for unconventional narratives and there were certainly standout moments that had me in awe, but it didn’t really culminate. I guess I’m just not a Bernstein head. 

Holy shit his makeup, though. Unreal.

“Sweaty.”

BWUUUMMMMWHUMMMMM!!!

Maybe the most unsettled I’ve been by a movie ever.

Driver is great but Penelope Cruz steals this one. Very interesting life story I’m glad I knew nothing about going in. Some dodgy vfx and overindulgence in both performance and violence, but overall a great ride. Mann is a legend and it was surreal to hear David O Russell talk over him nonstop during the q&a afterward.

I’m starting to realize just how much Haneke has mastered the “show don’t tell” mantra. Big events just kind of go down with no real telegraphing, allowing for a handful of genuinely jaw-dropping moments. Brilliant performances all around, particularly Arno Frisch. It’s all so fucked up but so measured and simple. It doesn’t quite justify its runtime, but I’ll take extra Haneke over most directors.

I thought they were actually moving to Australia for way too long.

Eh… I love me some Cronenberg—father or son—but this was just boring. Great premise, but it all amounts to very little. And I genuinely don’t get the Mia Goth craze. I just don’t buy her crazy.

Some of the most matter-of-fact violence I’ve seen, but never do you feel the director saying, “look how matter-of-fact this is”. It all just sort of plays out. High concept with an insanely grounded execution. Just great.

Pretty to look at but very boring. Shallow themes, horrible script with a lot of on the nose exposition. John David Washington struggles here. At least the little girl picked up some of the slack.

Holy shit.

First time a doc has come close to inducing rage like “Dear Zachary”. Wish I never watched it. The system is scary.

This review may contain spoilers.

Some great episodes but it does repeat itself. Beautifully shot and some really great performances. Some not so great ones as well, which felt odd. The sixth episode in particular was really confusing tonally. Terrible acting across the board to the point I wondered whether it was meant to be a reenactment of a doc or an actual doc. Very strange. The finale was great, but they didn’t stick the nebulous ending. It moved between real and imagined in a clumsy way that left me feeling sort of abandoned as a viewer. That said there were some great, disturbing moments and a lot to ire throughout.

Watched on Saturday April 29, 2023.

This was a pleasant surprise at the Phoenix Film Festival. Briskly paced and very funny with an ending that pulled no punches but didn’t preach either. Reminded me of 90’s comedies when writers wrote jokes and actors and editors executed them. This is a fantastic film that deserves a wide release. Highly recommended.

• Fauve
• World of Tomorrow
• Rejected
• The Strange Thing About the Johnsons
• Munchausen
• Scavengers
• The Fall

• Working with Jigsaw
• Living with Jigsaw
• Fishers of Men