2026 Movie Discussion Thread

[Andrew POE!]

Yeah, I need to watch High Noon as well. It might be this month if I can find it on streaming. Maybe Winchester '72 too. 

Edited January 15 by Andrew POE!

[HarryArchieGus]

13 hours ago, Andrew POE! said:

DIG! XX (Criterion Channel, leaving on 1/31) - 3/5 stars

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I haven't seen the original documentary, but having watched this, there's apparently two paths to take as a band: you can either be like The Dandy Warhols and actually try to gain commercial success while almost failing at it or be like The Brian Jonestown Massacre and implode constantly due to one member named Anton Newcombe ensuring that the band doesn't succeed.

While watching the documentary, it seems to be repetitive: the Dandy Warhols fight with their labels but stay employed and together and the Brian Jonestown Massacre has Newcombe fighting with the audience and with the band members. BJM get pulled over in Georgia and have to deal with 'shit for brains' local police which sends Newcombe to jail, while Dandy Warhols are fined for drug possession in France. It shows the difference between places like Georgia and France: the French have a more relaxed view of drugs and the performing arts. Those in Georgia that are cops instantly think those smoking grass are going to distribute it but a local kid that failed the breathlyzer can drive around on Georgia highways because his dad is a county commissioner.

Anyway, most of BJM's portions are remarkably the same with Newcombe complaining and griping about how he does all the work and the rest of the band sucks. The truth is, almost all the songs of Brian Jonestown Massacre sound the same. Same jangly psychedelic rock guitar chords and vocals buried in the mix. The Dandy Warhols eventually get commercial success due to a German phone commercial having their song. Their success isn't in America, but in Europe where they play to 70,000 people.

Although there are complaints about the Dandy Warhols - their drummer indicated that Courtney Taylor didn't pay or gave credit. It's not quite cohesive, but generally the Dandy Warhols are a bit more mature about their work. The comment later that they all 'got houses, marriages, and cars' isn't necessarily what they thought would happen.

The 2024 post-script shows that nothing has changed, except the musicians are older. BJM is still a messed up group with a fight in Australia ending their tour.

1 hour ago, RazorbladeKiss87 said:

DIG! was a constant watch at my apartment in college. BJM is really good, maybe a modern day version of the Replacements (not in sound but in ability to (sometimes) wrangle greatness out of chaos.) Dandy Warhols...eh. 

Kinda still curious to see Dig XX. I saw the original version around the time it came out. I LOVED(!) the Jonestown Massacre from their shoegaze-y 1995 debut Methodrone to 1999's Country Rock/Dylan-esque Bringing it All Back Home Again. Those records are definitely within a Psych-Rock/Folk tradition, but saying they all sound the same is a bit silly. I'm guessing you're introduction to the band was this movie? You wouldn't be alone. BJM were very much under the radar pre-Dig, and they were artistically on fire! I don't know if it was the elevated fame from the doc, but their output got extremely shotty following it. Tho, I must admit my feelings on their post-Dig output probably has something to do with hearing the pretentious and insufferable rants of Newcombe in the film. At the time of release, I remember being more disappointed by the filmmakers for making what felt like a salacious hit piece. I softened on that view after an encore screening a few years ago. I think in part I just felt angry and disappointed that they'd killed the mystique of the BJM and revealled too much about Necombe to be able to separate the art from the artist. I still have very little time for post-Dig BJM, but that 95-99 never ceases to find it's way into semi-rotation. I was also a fan of the Dandies. They too came out of Dig a more popular band, but their output suffered terribly. Their work prior to the film, like 13 Tales and Come Down, was very solid. Saying Dig popularized them is probably a mistake as 13 tales was a pretty big hit. The Monkey House album that followed was an incredible decline. They too were embarrassing in the film - coming off like excruciatingly pretentious scenesters. It totally killed any minor interest I had in the band. Anyway, seeing that doc a second time, without any attachment to bands I once liked (er loved in the case of BJM), I thought it was kind of a fun er necessary document of the era. Both bands rep pretty well the pretentious nature of the pre-Internet/holier than thou/'Kool' Indie Rock scene of the time. Nonetheless, I like to forget that doc when it comes to the Jonestown Massacre. I like to remember them as they were pre-Dig at the historic El Mocambo here in Toronto. No on stage blow-ups there, just beautiful Rock n Roll. 

Edited January 15 by HarryArchieGus

[J.H.]

The Substitute - This movie, absoluty insane and I love it!

I mean, Tom Berenger as an ex-meecenary who avenges his girlfriend whi got beaten up by drug dealers who were in her class, it is so full of insane ideas that I can't hate it. The library scene alone is worth the price of admission in q996. Hell, I didn't realize this came out in 1996 because this feels like a Cann9n film!

The cast is stacked. The funny moments are funny. 5h3 dramatic moments are funny. The whole movie is like a Zuckerberg bro5hers m9vie if played straight!

There is no reason I should love this movie but God help me I do!

James

Edited January 16 by J.H.

[Andrew POE!]

Yeah, it may have been lost in my review or I didn't mention it, but I found myself not liking The Dandy Warhols after the documentary and find that they were built for top 40 radio. (Although I would have loved to have been at the shows where Zia McCabe playing keyboards topless. She's cute in an 'indie girlfriend' sort of way).

I was familiar with Brian Jonestown Massacre before the documentary and may have listened to a song of theirs or two, but was turned off by the band completely after the documentary. Anton Newcome is about like Mark E. Smith in terms of going through band members, although I don't know if Smith had the kind of problems where band members walk off in the middle of the night in Chicago. 

[RazorbladeKiss87]

12 minutes ago, HarryArchieGus said:

Kinda still curious to see Dig XX. I saw the original version around the time it came out. I LOVED(!) the Jonestown Massacre from their shoegaze-y 1995 debut Methodrone to 1999's Country Rock/Dylan-esque Bringing it All Back Home Again. Those records are definitely within a Psych-Rock/Folk tradition, but saying they all sound the same is a bit silly. I'm guessing you're introduction to the band was this movie? You wouldn't be alone. BJM were very much under the radar pre-Dig, and they were artistically on fire! I don't know if it was the elevated fame from the doc, but their output got extremely shotty following it. Tho, I must admit my feelings on their post-Dig output probably has something to do with hearing the pretentious and insufferable rants of Newcombe in the film. At the time of release, I remember being more disappointed by the filmmakers for making what felt like a salacious hit piece. I softened on that view after an encore screening a few years ago. I think in part I just felt angry and disappointed that they'd killed the mystique of the BJM and revealled too much about Necombe to be able to separate the art from the artist. I still have very little time for post-Dig BJM, but that 95-99 never ceases to find it's way into semi-rotation. I was also a fan of the Dandies. They too came out of Dig a more popular band, but their output suffered terribly. Their work prior to the film, like 13 Tales and Come Down, was very solid. Saying Dig popularized them is probably a mistake as 13 tales was a pretty big hit. The Monkey House album that followed was an incredible decline. They too were embarrassing in the film - coming off like excruciatingly pretentious scenesters. It totally killed any minor interest I had in the band. Anyway, seeing that doc a second time, without any attachment to bands I once liked (er loved in the case of BJM), I thought it was kind of a fun er necessary document of the era. Both bands rep pretty well the pretentious nature of the pre-Internet/holier than thou/'Kool' Indie Rock scene of the time. Nonetheless, I like to forget that doc when it comes to the Jonestown Massacre. I like to remember them as they were pre-Dig at the historic El Mocambo here in Toronto. No on stage blow-ups there, just beautiful Rock n Roll. 

BJM was a name I heard in Spin and stuff but I hadn't really listened to them at this point. Their biggest selling point to me is that their sound was never static. The Replacements comparison was more about the chaos and personalities surrounding the band rather than any musical comparison. 

Welcome to the Monkey House was where I really checked out of the Dandies. They became Von Bondies-esque also rans to me .

[odessasteps]

The public domain 1930s detective film channel recommded me to watch the Mr. Wong films, which have Boris Karloff of all people as the Asian detective. There were like 7 films in the series and in the seventh and last film, they cast Keye Luke in a prequel as young Jimmy Wong. 
 

Keye Luke’s credits are so amazing, including playing #1 son in Charlie Chan movies. 

[AxB]

4 hours ago, Andrew POE! said:

Yeah, it may have been lost in my review or I didn't mention it, but I found myself not liking The Dandy Warhols after the documentary and find that they were built for top 40 radio. (Although I would have loved to have been at the shows where Zia McCabe playing keyboards topless. She's cute in an 'indie girlfriend' sort of way).

I was familiar with Brian Jonestown Massacre before the documentary and may have listened to a song of theirs or two, but was turned off by the band completely after the documentary. Anton Newcome is about like Mark E. Smith in terms of going through band members, although I don't know if Smith had the kind of problems where band members walk off in the middle of the night in Chicago. 

Mark E Smith's band members wouldn't walk off, when they had the option of fighting him onstage instead.

For a guy who is a natural lightweight at best, he was awfully willing to fight anyone.

[HumanChessgame]

4 hours ago, J.H. said:

The Substitute - This movie absoluty insane and I love it!

I mean, Tom Berenger as an ex-meecenary who avenges his girlfriend whi got beaten up by drug dealers who were in her class, it is so full of insane ideas that I can't hate it. The library scene alone is worth the price of admission in q996. Hell, I didn't realize this came out in 1996 because this feels like a Cann9n film!

The cast is stacked. The funny moments are funny. 5h3 dramatic moments are funny. The whole movie is like a Zuckerberg bro5hers m9vie if played straight!

There is no reason I should love this movie but God help me I do!

James

There are actually three sequels to this. I don't know what it was with random 90s low budget action movies that somehow became franchises, but this, Sniper, and Best of the Best somehow spun off whole series.

[Curt McGirt]

I had clips of The Substitute 4 show up in my Youtube Reels the other day for no reason at all. It stars Treat Williams as a guy who infiltrates a military academy that has a secret neo-Nazi, Hitler Youth-type group working within it. 

[J.H.]

12 hours ago, Curt McGirt said:

I had clips of The Substitute 4 show up in my Youtube Reels the other day for no reason at all. It stars Treat Williams as a guy who infiltrates a military academy that has a secret neo-Nazi, Hitler Youth-type group working within it. 

Dude! Me too!

It was what prompted me to watch the first one!

James

Edited January 16 by J.H.

[Andrew POE!]

Selected movies today....

Martha Marcy May Marlene (HBO Max, leaving on 1/31) - 3.5/5 stars

Spoiler

"But death is pure love."

Martha Marcy May Marlene as a movie didn't really grab me, likely due to its structure and also due to the stupid choice of watching this with starts and stops (getting breakfast and doing meetings). The thing with movies like this is it requires time and interest investment for it to have more of a lasting impact. Elizabeth Olsen as Martha, Marcy May, and "Marlene Lewis" displays tremendous acting as the movie tells a splintered story about the woman escaping a cult. It reminded me a bit of what Saoirse Ronan did in The Outrun, but it's more subtle in some ways.

Things are taken for granted, like wearing swimsuits when swimming, don't cross Martha's mind. Her life is in fragments. She herself says so as she tells her sister Lucy (Sarah Paulson) "you ever wonder if you are remembering something or you're in a dream?" Martha recalls the times when she was Marcy May, a member of a nameless cult led by Patrick (John Hawkes). Based on the structure of the cult and the predominently male leadership, it could very be an offshoot of Christianity or maybe Mormonism. Marcy May is expected to perform acts like allowing herself to be raped (where another female member says is 'part of the cleansing'); when trying to adjust after escape, Martha calls herself 'a teacher and a leader' which Patrick tells her she is while shooting a gun.

Martha tries to draw upon feelings she had for Patrick with Ted (Hugh Dancy), who is Lucy's husband. Ted doesn't reciporate but Martha tries to kick Ted down the stairs when she imagines herself being sexually assaulted again. At the conclusion of the movie, Martha is taken to a hospital with the camera focused strictly on her as someone runs in front of Ted and Lucy's car.

Martha Marcy May Marlene does display a lot of its influences like 3 Women, Margot at the Wedding, Klute, and Rosemary's Baby. It reminded me somewhat of Alex Ross Perry's Queen of Earth with how the camerawork was done and the detached, almost cold shot selection.

Jackie (HBO Max, leaving on 1/31) - 4/5 stars

Spoiler

Natalie Portman as Jacqueline Kennedy is practically what the movie is built around; her portrayal is almost "Katharine Hepburn but nearly whispering" throughout the movie. The movie isn't told in sequential order, but centers around events in her life before, during, and after the assassination of John F. Kennedy.

What I find interesting is how the movie compartmentalize the events with three different 'setpieces' - an interview with a reporter (Billy Crudup), Jacqueline Kennedy talking to Robert Kennedy (Alexander Scarsgard) after JFK's death about the funeral procession, and Jacqueline Kennedy talking to a priest (John Hurt) in an outside area. Jacqueline Kennedy processes her grief, with the camera focusing on Portman's facial expressions to do so. The scenes on Air Force One before has her preparing her remarks in Spanish and after has her wiping blood off her face.

One set of scenes I liked were Jackie walking through the White House with a CBS reporter and it being in black and white to simulate the news footage. Portman has Jacqueline Kennedy seeming unsure of herself prior to the interview and seeming as those she said the 'wrong thing' during it. After the assassination, Jackie walks through the same rooms with "Camelot," of course drawing the historical references that have been made to the Kennedys being in the White House. (Drawback is this was used again at the end of the movie as Jackie and John Kennedy (Caspar Phillipson) dance).

Jackie has a lot of 1960s style and production design although some of the scenes and some of the acting isn't the most exciting. I did like the cinematography appearing as those it were in the 1960s and the melding of newsreel footage seamlessly with the film.

28 Years Later: The Bone Temple (saw in the theaters) - 4/5 stars

Spoiler

"I'm sorry, I don't have a ticket."

Compared to 28 Years Later, the sequel 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple is a bit of a slower affair. The movie starts with Spike (Alfie Williams) undergoing an initiation into the Jimmys. The Jimmys are part Lord of The Flies, part the Droogs from A Clockwork Orange, and part Paul and Georgie from Funny Games. Their leader the malevolent Sir Lord Jimmy Crystal (Jack O'Connell) has his group for the sole purpose of following "Old Nick," or Satan.

Running parallel to this is Dr. Ian Kelson (Ralph Fiennes) who begins to befriend "Samson" (Chi Lewis-Parry). "Samson," in his first appearance, rips a guy's head clear from his body. Dr. Kelson fires a dart which stops "Samson" and induces a state of bliss for him.

The story is no longer Spike's story as he unwillingly joins the Jimmys after passing the initiation. He strikes up a friendship with Jimmy Ink (Erin Kellyman) as the group terrorizes a group of survivors Funny Games style and it leads to the survivors being hung up rather grisly until one of them hiding kills a Jimmy with a hook before Tom sets the barn on fire. Spike is given a chance to kill Cathy (Mirren Mack) but she overwhelms and flees.

28 Years Later: The Bone Temple is more contemplative, as there's an element of intelligence in the chaos. Jimmy Crystal is revealed to the boy at the start of 28 Years Later, fleeing into the church and hiding underneath the pews as his father is killed. His character being a Satanist is due to his upbringing in the Catholic Church. Dr. Kelson recognizes this and recognizes how there's an unique difference between him and Crystal. "An atheist and a satanist," he says.

Dr. Kelson still remembers the old world and tries to get "Samson" to remember it too. He plays Duran Duran frequently (his first appearance has him singing "Girls On Film" to himself). Radiohead's "Everything In Its Right Place" pops up in a sequence (although I still prefer The Creator's usage of the song). The relationship between Dr. Kelson and "Samson" borders on Victor Frankenstein and his creation; "Samson" slowly reconnects to his humanity and remembers what he was before the Rage Virus took over. Dr. Kelson administers anti-psychotic drugs that gets "Samson" mostly back to normal. A flashback scene has him recalling being on a train and seeing the ticket taker as a zombie; the zombies see him as the enemy due to his docile nature. He of course has to fight them off and he emerges from the train looking at the moon.

The finale has the two parallel stories meeting, Dr. Kelson and the Jimmys meeting. Dr. Kelson dances to Iron Maiden's "The Number of the Beast," which evokes Fiennes dancing to another British band The Rolling Stones' "Emotional Rescue" in Guadagnino's A Bigger Splash. (In some ways, Dr. Kelson and Harry Hawkes from that movie are almost the same character - they both love their vinyl). Dr. Kelson sadly dies as the Jimmys begin to turn on each other with Spike and Jimmy Ink leaving them behind. Jimmy Crystal is crucified upside down (which is in the fashion of the Satanic cross he wears) and he sees "Samson" appearing. From his POV, "Samson" is adorned with devil horns and Crystal thinks that "Samson" is indeed Satan. "Samson" actually verbally thanks Dr. Kelson and carries him off, presumably to bury him or likely to incinerate him to join the rest of the monument. One shot that told you that it was the end for Dr. Kelson was the camera panning upwards and away from him, like a soul leaving the body.

The ending reintroduces Jim (Cillian Murphy) as he is teaching his daughter the history of the world between World War I and World War II. A line that sadly is relevant today - "fascism, populism, all have us tearing each other apart." Of course, that's not the end of the story as Jim and his daughter are to rescue Spike and Kelly being chased by zombies....

With this being my first exposure to Nia DiCosta as a director (and I still need to watch Hedda as well her Candyman, Little Woods and The Marvels), she manages to play very well to what was established with Danny Boyle's series. There isn't a lot of interesting shots although the movie did have some nice time lapse shots and drawn back angles for certain scenes. The movie isn't as visceral and scary as the earlier movie, but it's a nice effort.

28 Days Later (Netflix, leaving on 1/31) - 5/5 stars

Spoiler

Having seen Threads last year, it's amazing how 28 Days Later feels like an update in some ways to it. It's almost like a small camera crew with digital cameras survived the apocalypse and are recording Jim (Cillian Murphy) as he wanders around London after the Rage Virus infected everyone in London.

A lot of our modern cultural landmarks - the Covid-19 lockdown, 9/11, and riot/demonstration - seem to be within 28 Days Later's DNA. Jim seems to move through the story nearing death on his own - he meets Selena (Naomie Harris) and Mark (Noah Huntley) while wandering around London and then Selena and Jim meet Frank (Brendan Gleeson) and his daughter Hannah (Megan Burns) when Mark is infected and killed.

It feels throughout the movie that nowhere is safe and free from the 'infected.' Although it's interesting there's a bit of humor throughout the movie - the 'shopping' trip set to a song from Grandaddy where Frank gets liquor and a later scene where a soldier is chasing after an infected, and not to mention Hannah hitting Jim when he and Selena are together. "We were kissing!"

Major Henry West (Christopher Eccleston) presents a sense of stability to Jim, Selena, and Hannah, but it's short lived and a false hope. Danny Boyle and Alex Garland seem to be saying that if you leave military men to their own devices and the toxic masculinity on their own, they will fail you every time (look at the current situation in Minnesota with ICE gunning down a civilian in a car). West and his men abuse the situation and force Hannah and Selena to dress up. What's interesting is the fact that Jim almost appears and acts like one of the 'infected' to cause chaos. Basically, allowing himself to channel his anger and essentially fight back against the 'toxic culture' that's ruling over his life.

After the car wreck (where Jim and Selena lurch forward on freeze frame), the camera changes for the ending. The visuals are clearer and brighter because the future is clearer and brighter. Hannah, Jim and Selena laying out "Hello" as blankets on the ground makes it naturally wondered if the outbreak and what happened to them were a dream. Did those events really happen? Jim at one point has a nightmare that he was left alone and Frank, Hannah and Selena left him.

So, with the ending, it's not known what happens after that to Jim, Hannah, and Selena (well at least until the third movie in 28 Years Later trilogy).

 

[Curt McGirt]

I still remember that song from Godspeed You Black Emperor! swelling on the soundtrack as Cillian Murphy examines the remembrances tacked to the big thing in the square while watching in the theater. It hit me like a hammer. 

[Andrew POE!]

Selected movies today....

R.M.N. (Hulu, leaving this month) - 4.5/5 stars

Spoiler

It's sad (and maybe interesting) how Donald Trump and his followers haven't cornered the market on xenophobia, racism, and fear of foreigners. R.M.N. is about a village in Transylvania gripped with these things as three men from Sri Lanka work for a local bakery. It's a statement of the times how the priest goes from hearing people's complaints in his parish to "I'm just relaying their concerns" to speaking the same things the parish is saying without even wanting to speak to the men.

I guess Cristian Mungiu's point is the church and priests and pastors aren't immune from falling into the same habits of racism, xenophobia, and fear of the outsider. They reflect who goes to their church.

Coupled with this is a domestic drama with Matthias (Marin Grigore) and his ex Csilla (Judith State) and his young son Rudi (Mark Blenyesi). At the start of the movie, Matthias quits a job after headbutting a boss and hitching a ride back to the village. His son isn't speaking at all and it's unknown as to why. Matthias tries to get back with Csilla, who is dealing with the financial problems at the bakery.

The center piece of the movie is the lengthy one shot scene with the camera focused on Csilla and Matthias as the town mayor hears from residents about the three men from Sri Lanka that work at the bakery. The town doesn't want the men there despite the men not breaking any laws and their papers being in order. They are accused of being Muslims despite one of them being a Catholic. The townspeople complain about how 'they don't wipe their butts' and 'we don't want bread if they are working there.' The manager of the bakery gets attacked for driving a Mercedes (on lease), while the priest is driving one owned by his mother. The hypocrisy knows no bounds.

During the meeting, Matthias has to leave because Papa Otto (Andrei Finti) was found hanging in the forest. The camera cuts as Matthias is leaving the meeting and he (and the townspeople) are shown walking to where Papa Otto is. Rudi hugs Matthias' leg as Otto is carried out and says he loves Matthias.

The last 10 minutes have Matthias going to the police station then going to Ana (Macrina Bârlădeanu)'s house to look for Rudi. He drives over to Csilla's house while carrying a shotgun. The ending is a bit ambiguous - did Matthias shoot someone else in a bear costume or did he shoot Csilla? He turns around back towards Csilla's house with bears swarming around him. I came away wondering if it's an element of 'magical realism' in the ending.

The themes of bears and sheep appear a few times in the movie. Matthias works at a slaughterhouse for sheep at the start of the movie. The Christmas play has children in sheep costumes. Later during a parade, men are dressed in bear costumes to 'ward off bad omens' as part of the New Year's Eve celebration. There's an element of men believing themselves to be protectors of sheep, i.e. female, which appears in their anti-immigrant speech. Yet many Romanians in the movie have to go to another country to seek work.

R.M.N. will not present an easy solution if a solution at all. But it does present what happens in a community overcome by rhetoric. This rhetoric doesn't exist in a vacuum.

Joyeux Noel (Netflix, leaving on 1/31) - 4/5 stars

Spoiler

Although Joyeux Noel (Merry Christmas) is a bit Hallmark / Lifetime-y in its acting (when that happens, blame the director), it's a nice sentimental war time piece about a ceasefire that took place during World War I at Christmas 1914.

The cast involved are pretty much the 'who's who' of French/German/foreign cinema. Most of the story centers around Private Nikolaus Sprink (Benno Furmann) who is a tenor that sings with his wife Anna Sorensen (Diane Kruger). They go to the frontlines of the German front on Christmas Eve and meet Leutnant Horstmayer (Daniel Bruhl) to entertain the troops. Lt Audebert (Guillaume Canet) of the French side and Lt Gordon (Alex Ferns) of the British/Scottish side that supports the French along with the troops of the English and French hear the singing; soon, everyone joins in, exchange addresses, and commiserate at Christmas. Father Palmer (Gary Lewis) leads the men at midnight for a service.

Even though it dramatizes the ceasefire, there's something that's still relevant even today: wars continue because those far removed from the trenches say it should continue. The soldiers bury their dead on Christmas and the ceasefire continue, even as Pvt. Ponchel (Dany Boon) is shot and killed while in disguise. Horstmayer learns that he has a son named Henri from Ponchel.

For 'punishment' for not continuing the war, the men involved are shipped off to different places. The ending has the German troops involved being sent away in a train car, humming the Scottish song they learned.

For the most part, I liked how Christian Canon and DP Walther Vanden Ende shot this film. Production design and lighting for this looks incredible, even for a subject matter like war. Even normally war is a bleak subject, it looks somewhat cheerful and hopeful because for one day it was.

The Choral (saw in the theaters) - 3/5 stars

Spoiler

While not even close to being similar, The Choral could be said to have some traits with Sister Act 2: Back In the Habit. It's about an experienced musician trying to whip a rag-tag group into shape for a performance. In this case, it's about Dr. Henry Guthrie (Ralph Fiennes) serving as a choral director in Ramsden during World War I. Instead of a talent show to save a parish, it's simply to perform a choral piece - initially, Matthew's Passion. The previous choral director was selected to serve England during the Great War and so a new choral director is to be chosen.

What's interesting with this is how none of the characters jump out and say what they have issues with Dr. Guthrie about - it's reduced to his being able to speak German and living in Germany. If you read between the lines, Dr. Guthrie is gay and reading the newspapers to find out what happened to his partner in Germany. One scene where one of the guys in town springs in to announce the sinking of a German ship and leads to "God Save The King" sung by everyone, Dr. Guthrie's heart sinks in that moment. His partner is dead and now gone.

While the focus isn't on Dr. Guthrie and his life, it's more about his preparing the choral for The Dream of Gerontius, a piece from Sir Edward Elgar. Dr. Guthrie throughout the movie wants his rendition of the piece to meet Sir Edward (Simon Russell Beale)'s approval. The phrase 'don't meet your heroes' is applicable as Bernard Duxbury (Roger Allam) reveals that there were revisions to the piece. Elgar storms out and is angry at the idea of the performance, even after Dr. Guthrie tells Elgar that his works were built on the backs of other people's works.

Some of my favorite scenes in the movie were the ones where the choral were singing while walking around, bicycling, or sitting by a lake. The story arcs for the women in the movie including Mary (Amara Okereke) and Bella (Emily Fairn) were interesting, although at times it felt like 'kilometer markers' for the story rather than an invested arc. Still, Mary seeing one of the soldiers naked and Bella doing a handjob on Clyde (Jacob Dudman) were wild scenes with what wasn't shown than with what was shown.

Like the previous work I've seen of his The Crucible, Nicholas Hytner's strength is in how scenes are framed and camera choices made. I really liked how conversations with multiple actors were constructed where multiple people were in the shot yet the person speaking could be seen clearly. Ralph Fiennes did great with understated anguish and grief and he showed his emotions after the death of his partner with lashing out at Duxbury during rehearsal.

For the most part, The Choral is a good World War I period English comedy/drama with great performances throughout it.

The American President (1995) (HBO Max, leaving on 1/31) - 3.5/5 stars

Spoiler

Watching The American President, it's both sad and amazing that this movie was over 30 years ago. President Andrew Shepherd (Michael Douglas) is a widower who is working on his campaign for re-election. He is trying to get a 'crime bill' passed through Congress, but finding both Democrats and Republicans are against it. He gets set up for a date with a lobbyist Sydney Ellen Wade (Annette Bening).

With watching this in 2026, the thought is "who cares about the President's personal life?" Around the time the movie came out, Bill Clinton began his relationship with Monica Lewinsky; Republicans would latch onto this while the loudest voice of them all Newt Gingrich leaves his wife on her death bed. Seemingly (and perhaps true to life), President Andrew Shepherd is called out by Republicans about his character, while the balance of his personal life and his political life is undertaken. The perception is that Wade is using him to pass an environmental bill, while he really wants her to see him as "Andy" and not as "Mr. President." (Although sadly today, our current President Donald Trump would want to arrest and sentence to prison people that burn the United States flag, even though Shepherd rightfully points out that's part of their free speech. AND what Shepherd talked about is exactly what Donald Trump is doing now).

The movie at times has great monologues; it's no wonder that it's compared to the show The West Wing with Martin Sheen, who appeared as Chief of Staff AJ MacInerney in this, is President Bartlett on The West Wing. And it's wild to watch Michael J. Fox as Lewis Rothschild cuss out people on the phone passionately. Douglas' speech from the Press Room in its entirety is completely memorable.

Despite the material aging a bit poorly, the highlights for me were Douglas and Bening's performances. It's somewhat refreshing to have a love story about two middle aged characters; both acknowledge how their romance is on its face appears old fashioned. (The movie even name-drops Frank Capra, which shows what The American President is aiming to be). I do wish that the movie had Bening's character be a bit better written instead of seemingly fall in love with Shepherd (despite his not really giving her a reason to do so beyond he's a pretty person and they have chemistry together). For the most part, The American President doesn't do anything new, although it's usage of montages were good at times and maybe a bit overused.

The score just screamed "Please nominate this for an Oscar!" and was really annoying. It's actually the low point of the movie and makes it more saccharine than the material would suggest.

Still, The American President is a nice 1990s romantic comedy/drama. Now maybe Dave and Wag The Dog will show up on streaming soon.

 

[zendragon]

I remember feeling Jackie would have been better without the interview as a framing device but overall liked it

[zendragon]

Saw No Other Choice tonight really handed the tonal shift from tragedy to clack comedy well, just kinda wish it wasn't so long like a lot of movies.

Reminded of something I heard on a podcast talking about AI taking jobs. "The Luddites said what right does this machine have to take my job"

Gonna try see Choral tomorrow (a lot of the limited screening are selling out) and Bone Temple next week.

[Andrew POE!]

Selected movies today....

Frankenstein (2025) (Netflix) - 4/5 stars

Spoiler

Upon finishing Frankenstein (2025), I feel a bit empty. The visuals for the movie are splendid; production and set design are entirely what the director Guillermo Del Toro has built up to for his career. In a way, this is his most perfect movie, as flawed as it may be.

But I can't help feeling like I just saw "Part I" of a story.

The story structure is almost a Rashomon - a Prelude, then from Baron Victor Frankenstein (Oscar Isaac)'s perspective, and then from The Creature (Jacob Elordi)'s perspective. A true Rashomon would have another perspective, possibly William's wife telling her side of the story. With the Prelude, it's established that the Creature is searching for Victor in the North Pole. Once the Creature is kept at bay with sinking under the ice, Victor recounts his story.

Within Victor's story, it seems as though he is as monstrous and misunderstood as his own creation. The scene where he watches his father and his brother from behind a tree signifies this. He meets a benefactor named Harlander (Christoph Waltz) that gives him the resources and money in order to fund what he wishes to do: recreate life. The impetus of this is Victor's strained relationship with his father Baron Leopold Frankenstein (Charles Dance) and Baroness Claire Frankenstein (Mia Goth). During the course of creation, Victor's brother William (Felix Kammerer) introduces Victor to his fiancee Elizabeth (also Mia Goth), who is (almost conveniently) the niece of Harlander.

Having Mia Goth playing two parts is on purpose: as another review points out, this is a story worthy of Freud. Victor Frankenstein is fixated on his mother and feels that she never taught him what life would be like without her. Elizabeth resembling his mother makes Victor feel drawn to her on a maternal level.

It's hard not to watch it and be blown away with the vastness of sets and the lighting. The scenes where the Creature is brought to life is wide ranging and impressive; it's a mixture of CGI and practical set design. The Creature is finally alive and Victor feels a tinge of regret. Harlander is killed prior to the creation and William and Elizabeth arrive to meet Victor.

Like in other Guillermo del Toro movies, kindness towards what is considered a monstrosity occurs. This happened in The Shape of Water and the movie prior to this Pinocchio (possibly, it could keep going to Hellboy 1 & 2, Blade II, Cronos, The Devil's Backbone, Crimson Peak, and so forth). Elizabeth teaches the Creature an appreciation of the world around him. I loved the scene where the Creature is letting a leaf float downstream and presents Elizabeth with a leaf too.

Eventually, this is to come to an end as Victor sets a fire to the lab with the intention of destroying the Creature once William and Elizabeth have left. He tries to turn back around to stop himself, but Victor loses his leg in the accident, believing that the Creature is now killed.

The Creature's Tale recounts what happens after the accident. He manages to escape and goes into the woods. I loved the scene where the Creature encounters a deer and feeds it, before the deer is shot. Man's inhumanity is revealed to something created by man. The Creature watches over a family and a blind man (David Bradley) as a 'spirit of the forest.' Like Elizabeth, the blind man teaches the Creature an appreciation of the world around him and the Creature learns to read. He reaches from "Ode on a Grecian Urn" from the husband of the published work Frankenstein, Percy Bysshe Shelley.

What's interesting is how the Creature notes the difference between wolves and man. Men and wolves do not hate each other; it's just that they do what they must to protect themselves. The hunters returning from hunting wolves think that the Creature killed the blind man and shoot him. Yet, the Creature lives and he goes to find Victor after learning his address.

The climatic scenes has Victor and the Creature encountering each other with Victor shooting Elizabeth accidentally. The Creature carries Elizabeth out of the estate in a very nice over the shoulder shot as the crowds are shown within the shot. The Creature lays down Elizabeth with her facing the sunlight as she dies. Victor chases after the Creature, which brings us back to the location in the Prelude.

The conclusion of the movie is what left me with mixed emotions. The Creature caused harm and chaos, yet the Creature is allowed to escape. Victor dies on the ship as the Creature tells Victor "I forgive you." I felt like in probably five years' time, we'll see Guillermo del Toro making Frankenstein, Part II as the Creature journeys out of the Arctic Circle and back to civilization. The movie feels like a 'launching point' rather a typical story structure - beginning, middle, and end. We've seen the beginning and the middle, but this isn't the end.

Be that as it may, Frankenstein is visually great and it's nice to see a big budget movie like this even on streaming services and even playing in theaters. (I do wish it were in 2.85:1 aspect ratio and widescreen format, but that's just me). The ending scene as the Creature stares at the sun and sheds a tear is a great scene.

Following (saw in the theaters) - 3.5/5 stars

Spoiler

It’s interesting how already “preformed” a lot of what Christopher Nolan does in his career informs Following. While watching it, I couldn’t help but to be surprised at the premise having an influence from Strangers on a Train. Cobb and the Protagonist have the same dynamics as the two main characters in Hitchcock’s movie; coupled that with how Nolan captures scenes, it’s a very watchable albeit dry movie.

The story to this feels like it was perfected with Memento which was perfected in Inception and so forth to Oppenheimer. Christopher Nolan essentially writes the same story about the same damaged man, but with how he does it, there isn’t any other way to do it.

Dead Man's Wire (saw in the theaters) - 4.5/5 stars

Spoiler

If you've seen Dog Day Afternoon, you'll have gotten the story beats for Dead Man's Wire although it's a bit different with this.

Dead Man's Wire unfolds almost similarly to Dog Day Afternoon: Tony Kiritsis (Bill Skarsgard) walks into a mortgage company and takes Richard All (Dacre Montgomery) hostage. Richard's father M.L. Hall (Al Pacino) and radio host Fred Temple (Colman Domingo) try to keep Tony grounded to earth and Richard alive, although M.L. Hall doesn't feel that his company did anything wrong (and doesn't offer an apology). Skarsgard plays Tony Kiritsis with a similar energy to what Al Pacino did in Dog Day Afternoon: Tony is desperate, a live wire, and seemingly burning at both ends. Unlike Pacino's character in Dog Day Afternoon, there's not a transgendered partner waiting for Tony. He has no one; as he puts it, "my businesses are my children."

Gus Van Sant as a director is drawn to queer characters and queer character stories; Milk was about Harvey Milk, Carol was about a female couple, and My Own Private Idaho was about a gay relationship. It can be thought that Tony Kiritsis is within the ilk of queer characters since sex is not something he's interested in and 'there's plenty of fish in the sea but I've missed them.'

A lot of the movie's style is done with news footage, black and white still photography, and 1970s style production design. I did like the appearance of "Cannock Chase" as Richard is driving to Tony's apartment building (although Sentimental Value's usage of the song was a lot better and more impactful). The drawback with the movie is it felt like there were 2 'false endings' before the ending happened; the Dog Day Afternoon-like scene where Richard is freed and Tony is put into a police car, then the scene where there's a 'freeze frame' on Tony in the back of a police car set to Yes "I've Seen All Good People" before it goes to Fred Temple on the radio recounting how Tony and Richard saw each other in a bakery. The movie closes out to Gil Scott Heron's "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" (where Temple references Heron earlier in the movie).

Despite the ending sequences, Dead Man's Wire is a great throwback to 1970s style cinema.

The Perfect Storm (Peacock, leaving on 1/31) - 3/5 stars

Spoiler

The Perfect Storm seems a bit like a 1970s disaster movie but for the 2000s/late 1990s. The disaster is bigger than the acting and the script and some performances are memorable for the wrong reasons (I'm sorry but I have a hard time believing a foxy dame like Diane Lane would find a dude like Mark Wahlberg attractive and that's even with it being 'Hey that's just Hollywood').

The acting is saccharine at times and overacted too, but it's just cool to watch. It seems like the better acting performances are from the women - Lane as Christina Cotter with a sorta terrible Boston accent and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio as Linda Greenlaw - while the men are just complete hams. Wahlberg, John C. Reilly as divorced dad/not Atlanta Braves pitcher Dale Murphy, and George Clooney as Captain Billy Tyne are the main culprits. It's hard not to get excited for the lads as they are excited to fish while listening to "Tush."

The movie's greatest flaw is the fact that it focuses some much on other characters, like the crew of a sailboat and the crew of a rescue helicopter, that the story feels overstuffed. Not to mention the score from James Horner overdoes it at the start with "triumph of the human spirit" pseudo-Olympic Games themes while a bunch of dudes are preparing their boat to go fishing.

Also, the sound mixing was really bad - I had to turn on subtitles just to hear a lot of the dialogue, even without the storm, wind, rain, and Horner's film score blasting.

But visually, there is a reason why this ended up as one of the top grossing movies in 2000. It's a big theatrical movie and worth watching on a big screen. I did like the cinematography a lot and the practical sets on the boat (although the CGI was take it or leave it for me).

The Perfect Storm isn't perfect, but it'll do.

Watched Deerskin on Mubi. It's a Quentin Dupleux movie. 

[Curt McGirt]

Well, so much for that being the definitive, book-faithful Frankenstein I guess.

[zendragon]

The Following a good film but sure does take its time to get going.

Saw the Choral... it's interesting that this is essentially a teen sex comedy set against the backdrop of world war one. Lot of laughs in the theatre (and I was the youngest by a couple of decades) Only thing is the one actor sounded like Wallace from the Wrong Trousers

[Mike Campbell]

I just finished Predator: Badlands from last year. I can see why some people didn't care for it, since it's a big departure from what we've come to expect from Predator films, but I really liked it. It's cool to see things from a Yautja point of view for a change, and I liked the way they weaved in the Alien lore with Weyland-Yutani, mu/th/ur and an updated version of the power loader.

[Zimbra]

On 1/15/2026 at 3:42 PM, HumanChessgame said:

There are actually three sequels to this. I don't know what it was with random 90s low budget action movies that somehow became franchises, but this, Sniper, and Best of the Best somehow spun off whole series.

Jesus, I just looked and they are still making Sniper movies.  There are 11 of them!  Tom Berenger and Billy Zane are in a lot more of them than I would have thought.

The first time I watched Sniper I was delirious with a fever and that was a really good way to watch it.

[Andrew POE!]

Selected movies today....

God's Own Country (Mubi, leaving on 1/31) - 4.5/5 stars

Spoiler

While it's easy to assume that God's Own Country has something in common with Brokeback Mountain, that's where the similarities end. Like Brokeback Mountain, this is about a gay romance in a rugged, rural culture. But the wider culture of the area's issues with Johnny Saxby (Josh O'Connor) is not due to his being gay or being in a gay relationship, it's his being a fuck up and drunk to the point that a taxi driver has to push him out of his cab at his house.

The relationship in God's Own Country is due to Johnny screwing up his own life at every turn. He starts the movie having casual sex with a guy he met and having to deal with his father Martin (Ian Hart) and Martin's disability. Martin's mother Deirdre (Gemma Jones) is at a complete loss as to what to do with Martin and Johnny having to help run the farm. So hired help arrives with Gheorghe (Alec Secareanu).

Johnny and Gheorghe get off to a rough start. Gheorghe is made to sleep in a camper and gets called a "Gypsy" on account of his being from Romania. Their relationship is less than friendly terms; Gheorghe confronts Johnny after being called a 'gypo.' Yet somehow, there is an attraction. Their first sexual encounter have them making love in a field.

Eventually, Johnny begins to treat Gheorghe as human as Johnny's father collapses near the house and goes to a hospital. The two guys visit Martin in the hospital. What I liked about the scenes for that is Gheorghe's hand touches one of Johnny's fingers in a cafeteria; the next secene has Johnny's hand touching one of Martin's fingers while Martin lies in bed.

Johnny, being the fuck up that he is, has an encounter with one of the university guys in a bathroom stall. Gheorghe sees this after getting kicked out of the bar and leaves. Johnny comes out and sees that Gheorghe is gone. Johnny realizes that he fucked up and goes home to call Gheorghe and eventually looks for him. He journeys to Scotland and begs Gheorghe to come back and have a more serious relationship with him.

The movie ends as the two return, the camper driven away, and the two going inside.

What Francis Lee does is a bit rare; it's a gay love story that actually has a happy ending. No one dies. No one has a severed relationship forever. Johnny's grandmother accepts her grandson for who he is and gives him the address for where Gheorghe is. How Francis Lee shoots the movie is a bit different as well; it's more visceral and bleak as a lot of long shots are used with closeups of actions like pulling lambs out of pregnant sheep and pulling the fur off of a dead lamb. The first scene with an actor has the actor throwing up into a toilet. This isn't a movie to watch while eating food, that's for sure.

I really noticed how Ian Hart acted after his character's hospital stay and stroke; Hart really did seem like he went through a stroke with how his speech and movements were done.

It can be argued that the slow, deliberate pace works against it, which is true. But God's Own Country is a movie that once you are absorbed into the details and into the pace, it comes into its own.

The Voice of Hind Rajab (saw in the theaters) - 4.5/5 stars

Spoiler

It's almost appropriate having watched Charlie Victor Romeo prior to watching this. Not on the level of any commonalities, but on the fact that both movies are dramatizations of real life events. Charlie Victor Romeo is about human errors and mechanical issues leading to planes falling out of the sky. The Voice of Hind Rajab is about humanity inhumanity to itself leading those caught in the middle being unable to escape.

Within every country there is an emergency service, a 911, an EMT, a police department, a fire department. The basic semblance of civilization is that people take care of other people, selflessly and willingly. The Voice of Hind Rajab is constructed almost as a play since a lot of the movie takes place in a single location. Anyone who worked in offices are familiar with the location - comfortable chairs, computers, phones, glass walls where people write things. The movie uses the real life emergency calls from a girl named Hind Rajab that's trapped in a car in Gaza after relatives of hers are killed. Omar (Motaz Malhees) takes the call and hears a voice being killed in gunfire; it traumatizes him. He, to be honest, oversteps his boundaries. He, to be honest, couldn't do anymore than his boss Rana (Saja Kilani) and the coordinator Mahdi (Amer Hishel) could do. Yelling at Mahdi wouldn't solve anything, much less grossly saying that "you're the reason we're occupied."

Mahdi has as a task an almost Kafka-esque dilemma; trying to coordinate with the Red Cross and other agencies to dispatch ambulances. As he describes it in the movie, there's several different groups that are contacted before the army in the region is contacted just to obtain a 'green light' to send an ambulance. If the 'green light' isn't obtained, the ambulance will be shot at and those driving it are killed. Mahdi points out to Omar the names and pictures of those sent that were killed. "I would quit my job if I send someone and I have to add another picture here," he says.

The movie is a literal race against time, with Omar drawing on the glass wall the amount of time it takes to get there and how much time is being spent delaying dispatch. Coupled that with the conversations with Hind Rajab and trying to gain information about her condition, her location, and her state of being. Hind Rajab is obviously in shock as to what happened; Rana is the frequent voice she talks to when Omar is besides himself in anger to respond correctly. Even Rana, after being beyond her shift, is affected by this; she notes her headset has a problem, but Hind Rajab is too far away from the phone. Nisreen (Clara Khoury), who is the HR professional at the Red Crescent, leads Hind through a guided mediation as she tries to call her down. During the scenes of that, the ocean can almost be seen.

What's interesting is oftentimes in call centers, women are usually picked for supervisory roles; their voices can deescalate situations with irate customers in Hoboken, NJ about their cable not working right now so they can catch the Giants game. I also couldn't help but to think about Roberto Benigni's Life Is Beautiful as Rana and Nasreen try to soften the blow of what's going on to Hind Rajab - they describe the Red Crescent as a 'family' and the gunned down relatives as 'sleeping.'

Towards the end of the movie after everything that was thought to have been in the clear, the 'green light' is obtained. An ambulance is dispatched. Hind Rajab can be rescued from her car. The ambulance encounters some stoppage, but are clear on their direction once they get going. Hind Rajab can see their flashlights shining. All is good.

Until a shot rings out over the phone to one of the EMTs. The ambulance has disappeared. No one can reach the ambulance. No one can talk to Hind Rajab either. The moment left my jaw on the floor.

The movie ends as the real life mother of Hind Rajab talks about what happened and footage is shown of the ambulance and the car shot at 355 times.

The movie is soul stirring, as the camera does a lot of split diopter shots among the actors. The voice touches those watching it, until the photo of the child is shown; anyone with younger siblings or relatives or children can empathize with this. As someone at the showing reminded me of a quote from Roger Ebert, "movies are where we encounter empathy."

I can say that some of the acting was a bit 'television-drama'-y, but there's not an easy way to tell this story given the budget and the conditions.

I had a chance after the movie to attend a Q&A with one of the producers for the movie Stephanie Nadi Olson and Georgia gubernatorial candidate Ruwa Romman. Both relay their stories regarding their families having to leave Palestine and their connections to this movie. For Stephanie, she decided to support this film because direct support to Palestine unfortunately wasn't leading to the conflict being resolved soon. She stressed that we don't speak about this 'in whispers,' but speak up. She told us about how this movie being shown in the West Bank to college students had the army firing tear gas and live ammo at the students due to the controversy around it.

The sad thing, as was mentioned in the Q&A, is that theater chains like AMC & Regal aren't willing to show movies like this. Art that's good is challenging and challenge us. It's not supposed to be easy to watch.

But from this challenge, we can grow and change.

Red Hook Summer (Mubi, leaving on 1/31) - 2.5/5 stars

Spoiler

Quite honestly, if this were from any other director, it would be decried as being amateurish and barely a film. For Spike Lee, it is that and terribly uneven. The child actors aren't that good to be honest. The story for Red Hook Summer being Flik Royale (Jules Brown) or Silas being made to spend the summer in Brooklyn with his grandfather Enoch Rouse (Clarke Peters) has something interesting but that's just it. It could work with being about an older generation learning about the newer generation and be an older restatement of the themes from Do The Right Thing. Instead, it mostly squanders its time and its story.

That is until the truth is revealed about Enoch Rouse being a child molestor and the previous church gave the boy's family hush money. Blessing Rowe (Colman Domingo) confronts Rouse about what he did in a great "Spike Lee shot" as a double dolly zoom occurs. As Rowe pulls forward, the camera pulls forward on Rouse too. Rouse is then beaten up by Box (Nate Parker), who was also raised in church too.

Red Hook Summer after this revelation becomes a different movie; the church is notorious for allowing people like Bishop Rouse to flourish and hiding them whenever they do actions like this. The Southern Baptists have people like this everywhere; it's no wonder pastors change quickly. Bishop Rouse probably told the congregation that "God told me I needed to go to Brooklyn" when the truth was more harsh.

It's a shame that Red Hook Summer didn't focus on this aspect from start to finish; Silas' relationship to his grandfather would have changed. The movie almost as soon it was revealed and Rouse revealed it to Silas while 'claiming to have been made well by God' (in all honesty, he's still a sick man) does the movie end. Except for a cameo from Isiah Whitlock Jr as Detective Flood saying his now-iconic line from The Wire, the movie ends with a montage, presumably from what Flick recorded on his iPad.

Even then, Spike Lee has done better movies, but this one could have been better.

Saw Charlie Victor Romeo on Mubi. 

[HarryArchieGus]

Saw and loved 'Father Mother Sister Brother' this past weekend. I found it to be a wonderful little place to escape to. Jim Jarmusch at the peak of his powers. A subtle beauty to be sure, but completely satisfying. Tom Waits (as always) was one of many highlights.

[Andrew POE!]

18 minutes ago, HarryArchieGus said:

Saw and loved 'Father Mother Sister Brother' this past weekend. I found it to be a wonderful little place to escape to. Jim Jarmusch at the peak of his powers. A subtle beauty to be sure, but completely satisfying. Tom Waits (as always) was one of many highlights.

I hopefully will get to see this, but since it's on Mubi, I'll likely to catch it there. 

[Curt McGirt]

Speaking of Jarmusch, Coffee and Cigarettes was on one of the Shout streamers the other night, so I got to see Bill "motherfuckin' Groundhog Day, Ghostbustin' ass" Murray talking to the RZA and the GZA again 

[Zimbra]

The Bill Murray/RZA/GZA segment used to be my favorite but now I really gravitate towards the Alfred Molina/Steve Coogan one.