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don’t turn away from love.

i hope i see sheryl lee as the good witch when i die

just like my experience with anora, red rocket failed to provide any sort of… substance, i guess. not to say a movie can’t have a loose plot, or that it necessarily has to have some groundbreaking commentary, but i think something coming from sean baker—who seems to frame himself as a thoughtful director—should at least have some sense of purpose. i’m not really getting any from this. the only thing holding me back from rating it lower (and anora) is the fact that there is.. something, i mean i can definitely see where it’s trying to go. shitty guy is shitty, charm goes a long way even for scumbags, some vague stuff about trump? i get it. but it just barely reaches.

it’s a strange phenomenon i’ve noticed with both this and anora, my feelings are pretty much the same but i can’t seem to get it into words. the characters are acted so well and it’s a beautiful style but there’s just something missing. it’s almost like in the effort for the characters to be real, they become unreal. you get these incredible performances and realistic dialogue but you never really learn anything real about the characters. mikey’s a piece of shit and that’s all he is. there’s no arc, no change for better or for worse, just this stagnant asshole character being an asshole and seemingly getting away with it for no apparent reason (until the very end, which falls flat). he cares about nothing and has nothing to lose. you could argue that’s realistic, but what is it telling the viewer? yeah, the asshole is an asshole. revolutionary. why not give the character something he fears, something he cares about, something he could lose? even the scummiest of scumbags have those. this applies to all of the characters, really. they feel like caricatures. 

another big thing that frustrates me about it is the seemingly unnecessary multiple graphic sex scenes with the underaged character. it’s weird! you can argue that’s the point, i know. it’s supposed to make you uncomfortable. this entire movie is from the lens of a dirtbag who grooms a teenage girl, and it isn’t trying to tell you that it’s awesome, but i feel like the scenes are very very unnecessary and take away from the supposed message of the film. it seems like sean desperately wants to try to seem feminist but his efforts to do so become very counterproductive. 

the whole thing feels self-gratuitous, is what i'm saying. sean baker seems to think he’s saying something, even though he’s not—but i guess so am i, so who can i judge?

so charming and sweet and just.. ugh. love love it. audry is sooo very much like me. her obsession over the end of the world and acting a little pretentious and melodramatic all the time.. stealing her crush’s wrench just to talk to him again and sleeping with it every night.. girl i really do get you. her fascination with george washington is very silly to me. there’s something so comforting and refreshing about this film.

i’m a little hopeless without subtitles sometimes but this wasn’t too bad for me. i definitely need a rewatch very soon with subtitles though. could easily become a favorite

Watched on Sunday May 18, 2025.

feels like a massive attack song

she’s skinny, amber, not deaf!

so fun and somehow managed to make me cry??! (or maybe i’m just emotional right now) so so clever and funny. i find myself hard to please sometimes when it comes to comedy but this just felt perfect. brittany murphy’s character is my favorite. also i hadn’t seen anything from this beforehand but for some reason i was under the impression it was some sort of zombie thing? was pleasantly surprised (not that i have anything against zombies) 

i already want to rewatch this and it also reminded me i still need to watch the original hairspray movie

can definitely appreciate some of its charm (loveeee the soundtrack and outfits) but lord it was not for me. i really couldn’t stand any of the characters other than mitch. maybe hangout movies just aren’t my thing, i dunno. i wish the characters developed or showed more (esp mitch’s coming-of-age). all the focus on the hazing and generally just being assholes to eachother frustrated me

also having a dilemma because i wanted to see more of matthew mcconaughey but i also wanted to kick his character in the balls. boy your outfit is too cool to be acting like that

Watched on Thursday May 8, 2025.

fuck yo mama!

kind of super bad and the plot is held together by the thinnest thread on the planet but also has that whimsy you can’t help but love… i need an entire movie of captain spaulding please. despite what other people say about it i do love the editing here. it’s so bad but it’s good. i’m usually not as forgiving but something about this one just works. i love you rob zombie

i wanted to explode, light the sky for an instant and disappear.

writing this review a day late so i can’t everything i wanted to say.. but what a beautiful experience this film is. i knew absolutely nothing about mishima before watching this but it’s not necessary to understand the meaning (definitely need to take a look at his work now).

this is possibly one of the most unique things i’ve seen so far in of story structure and cinematography. those sets are breathtakingly gorgeous and i love how the stories are in vibrant color vs the black & white monotony of his real life. theres so much imagery packed with so much meaning and just overall wonderful to look at that really does something to the viewer (or me, at least). impossible to pick a favorite but the golden pavilion splitting open, the mirror scene, and the saint sebastian painting recreation really stuck with me.

genuinely was pretty surprised to find out this was from the 80s and not later because of how visually unique it is and how it handles its subject. the way mishima’s different struggles with things like gender, sex, life, art, beauty in general is shown in such an interesting way through his stories and is weaved together in the narrative so well. ugh good shit.

Watched on Tuesday May 6, 2025.

Watched on Monday May 5, 2025.

Watched on Sunday May 4, 2025.

Watched on Sunday May 4, 2025.

Watched on Saturday May 3, 2025.

would’ve been five stars if it was just matthew mcconaughey and matt bomer

Watched on Wednesday April 30, 2025.

still an insane feat of filmmaking but a biiit less impactful on my third watch. i guess i’m becoming more critical.. 

kailey described it in the tags better than i could—the characters feel like moving pieces on a chess board. things happen just because they’re supposed to happen, rather than actions and reactions

This review may contain spoilers.

i heard this had a crazy plot twist so i suppose i was expecting more—obviously the trope of the protagonist being the crazy one can be done well, but here it ends up pretty predictable. i kept telling myself that maybe it’d be different and i just wasn’t getting it, considering its reputation, but ultimately was let down. it really doesn’t seem as deep as its trying to be. 

i also didn’t like the style of this very much—along with leo’s acting here doing nothing for me. i enjoyed the jumpy camera work, but that’s about it. i haven’t really connected to most of the few scorsese films i’ve seen so far. maybe i’m a fake cinephile.

you keep dancing with the devil... one day he's gonna follow you home.

soooo fun and very deserving of all the praise it’s getting. the conjuring spirits scene legitimately had me in tears. it’s one of those films that you really experience, instead of just watch—very much something to catch in theaters, if you can. every bit of this film (especially the score!!!) really sucks you in and knows exactly what it’s doing. very cool to see buddy guy at the end. i’m so grateful for this vampire media renaissance we’re getting.. thank you amc’s interview with the vampire!

this made me realize how actually bad my eyesight is. i could not see the damn theater screen properly for the first half

i’m an unspeakable of the oscar wilde sort.

oh how i love (and want more of) gay period pieces. this film made me ache so badly (particularly that scene, you know the one)

i need to dress like them. men’s fashion really peaked during the 1910s and i stand by that. 

unfortunately it did lose its momentum for me after the first half. maybe the fault of my awful attention span (see my last review) or my struggle to focus when the film is about a bunch of british people whose accents make me sleepy. definitely need a rewatch because i wanted to like it more than i did.

when a tree grows, it is soft and pliable. but when it's dry and hard, it dies.

it’s at times like these that i wish i didn’t have the attention span of a 10 year old ipad kid (who is also late to his bedtime and veeeery sleepy) because this is something you really need to sink your teeth into. i still loved it—very deserving of a rewatch when i’m able to focus better. there’s something in this that is monumental that i can’t quite yet put my finger on and i’m certain it’ll hit me and reveal itself on a random day.

somewhere on the thoroughfare 

i can’t explain it but this feels like a film i should be watching in my grandma’s living room. i have been successfully enchanted by terrence malick’s style again! sissy spacek is so beautiful and her character here makes me want to cry. maybe i should stop putting it off and actually watch carrie

microdosing the bear by watching this since i’ve been missing it but not ready for my 500th rewatch. food service workers are brave, to say the least. i can’t believe i ever thought i wanted to be a chef

that stephen graham and philip barantini combo will always get you. continuous shot films make me really love the magic of filmmaking. zero clue how they do it!

you’re only on this earth once. and i - to my opinion, as long as you're around, you should have it nice.

one of those films i really wish i could just transport myself to. the pacing is a little weird at times but it completely makes up for it with how gorgeous and peaceful everything is. even when it feels like nothing is happening, the environment is enough to keep you immersed. the fact that terrence malick was so dedicated to making sure all the scenes were taken during the perfect time of day is just excellent. definitely need to check out some of his other films after this. i also particularly loved linda’s narration. her voice is so comforting.

Watched on Saturday April 12, 2025.

yeah i don’t know. i liked it a lot in of being entertaining and looking pretty, but i feel it does very little for ani as a character, in a way that can’t be labeled as some sort of intentional subversion. a lot of people are saying the disconnect from ani is meant to highlight how we—the viewer and society—objectify women, but i feel like despite the intentions, it comes off as just poor writing. honestly, we really do have enough films where we’re meant to objectify a woman—we have almost the entirety of hollywood to thank for that. 

the film deliberately wants us to laugh at ani’s fear and suffering multiple times throughout, and despite the fact that there are incredibly heartbreaking moments (e.g. the last scene), how ani is treated by the majority of the film leaves those moments feeling flat and misplaced. the title is literally her name, but we don’t know a single thing about her, and there are plenty of little details that could’ve been better used to characterize her. i think the only thing saving her as a character is mikey madison’s talent. she brings a lot to the table that would’ve likely been missed if anyone else were cast. she definitely deserved that oscar, but i feel that another film would’ve been more deserving of the best picture win.

Watched on Tuesday April 8, 2025.

the sinner’s errand

maybe a bold statement having only seen this film twice now but this might just be my favorite of all time. the care that was put into this gives so many little details to dissect and i am certain that every watch will leave me with something new to learn. just from a visual perspective, the way framing, lighting and the b&w film is played with here is genius. the claustrophobic atmosphere sucks you right into then and there, leaving nothing to be doubted (other than the truth of the men’s words). robert pattinson and willem dafoe are incredible actors, able to blend perfectly into their roles, and were given a script that (though i am no historian) feels accurate to the times. 

then, you get to the story, which is not only enjoyable as just an old sailor’s tale, but so filled to the brim with symbolism that no detail is without meaning. a retelling of prometheus, conflict between generations (a literal young and old), the working man’s struggle, repressed desires and shame—what have you—there are so many layers to the narrative.

just phenomenal on every . god bless robert eggers (and mermussy).

Watched on Saturday April 5, 2025.

Watched on Saturday April 5, 2025.

white man eats the body of christ every sunday.

somehow i think watching this while sick made the experience more immersive

been recently fascinated by cannibalism in media, as well as period pieces—more specifically 1800s—so this was expectedly a great watch! the use of cannibalism as symbolism for colonialism and queerness is so fascinating, and i love how thick with vampirism and homoeroticism it all is. that bear trap scene is so fucking incredible and strangely romantic. love love love how campy it is at times. will likely become a favorite

jeremy davies is so cute here as always

Watched on Thursday April 3, 2025.

Watched on Wednesday April 2, 2025.

Watched on Tuesday April 1, 2025.

Watched on Tuesday April 1, 2025.

Watched on Monday March 31, 2025.

Watched on Monday March 31, 2025.

Watched on Sunday March 30, 2025.

i like to things my own way.

this is my least favorite lynch so far which is not saying much at all because all of his works are masterpieces. just couldn’t get as into it or connect to the characters as much as the other lynch films i’ve seen. maybe need to give it another chance sometime.

patricia arquette is SO fucking gorgeous.. i kept thinking “gee she looks really familiar” and then realized she’s harmony cobel. love you girl.

also NEED to get this soundtrack on CD

and the angels wouldn’t help you, because they’ve all gone away.

this film is not that far from reality and that’s what makes it so harrowing. i’ve known a few lauras in my time, and though i may never know their pain, seeing it depicted in this film does something i can’t describe. i cry for the girls that go through this.

lynch was incredible. his art is filled with so much love and empathy for his subjects. we’ve lost such an amazing artist and i wish i would’ve gotten into his work sooner.

i still need to watch s2 of twin peaks (im sorry) but this works perfectly as a standalone, if you aren’t bothered by spoilers.

i really watch the craziest stuff with my family. lord

this is the girl.

david lynch creates his worlds in such a unique way. you may not understand any of it immediately but you don’t need to scrutinize every little detail to feel something. it doesn’t have to “make sense”. they’re just as seductive and haunting wether or not you get it at first, or at all.

but it still sticks with you. it makes you think, and you really take it with you and digest it. it forces you to learn something new, wether that be about the director, filmmaking, or yourself. 

identity and relationships are always a complicated and confusing topic, especially for those wrapped in the hollywood world. you lose yourself in the character and other people. where do you begin, and i end? when are we acting, or dreaming? what is truth?

Watched on Thursday March 27, 2025.

Watched on Tuesday March 25, 2025.

Watched on Tuesday March 25, 2025.

Watched on Monday March 24, 2025.

Watched on Monday March 24, 2025.

Watched on Sunday March 23, 2025.

Watched on Sunday March 23, 2025.

Watched on Friday March 21, 2025.

mini watchlist, updated (and neglected) often

1. Memories of Murder
2. Days of Being Wild
3. Anatomy of a Fall
4. The Age of Innocence
5. Nowhere
6. The Deer Hunter
7. Before Midnight
8. Natural Born Killers
9. The Double Life of Véronique
10. Thelma & Louise

...plus 19 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

my dvd collection. criterions

• American Psycho
• Before Sunrise
• The Boondock Saints
• Brokeback Mountain
• Challengers
• Coraline
• The Darjeeling Limited
• Fantastic Mr. Fox
• Fight Club
• GoodFellas

...plus 31 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

original list. progress: 16 of 52

1. Barry Lyndon
2. Little Miss Sunshine
3. 3 Women
4. Mulholland Drive
5. Inside Llewyn Davis
6. Wild Strawberries
7. The ion of Joan of Arc
8. Punch-Drunk Love
9. M
10. The Red Shoes

...plus 42 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

my criterion collection. all dvds

• Y Tu Mamá También
• La Haine
• The Princess Bride
• The Seventh Seal
• No Country for Old Men
• Inside Llewyn Davis
• The Darjeeling Limited
• Fantastic Mr. Fox