The Official Review Thread of 2021

[anonymous1980]

THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS
Cast: Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Ann Moss, Yahya Abdul-Matheen II, Jessica Henwick, Jonathan Groff, Neil Patrick Harris, Jada Pinkett Smith, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Christina Ricci.
Dir: Lana Wachowski.

The fourth installment of the Matrix franchise has Neo stuck in the Matrix as a famous game designer who made a game called...The Matrix, pining for Trinity and is called upon to save the world again. Did we need another Matrix movie? The answer is no. (I personally didn't even think we needed the previous two sequels). The film itself even knows it. But as fourth installments of franchises go, this is not bad. The film goes into interesting places and introduces some interesting ideas. I liked the meta elements (if anything, I wished it was even MORE meta). It's at least better than the sequels which, admittedly isn't a high bar to clear. Jonathan Groff and Neil Patrick Harris are actually welcome additions to the cast and made the film for me. So overall, it's a solid entertaining sci-fi action picture.

Oscar Prospects: Sound and Visual Effects.

Grade: B.

[Big Magilla]

MASS
Cast: Reed Birney, Ann Dowd, Jason Isaacs, Martha Plimpton.
Dir: Fran Kranz.

Two couples meet in a church basement to talk about the tragic event which connect them to each other. I've been hearing a lot about how great the acting in this film is. Believe the hype. These are some of the best performances I've ever seen captured on film in recent years so far. These quartet of actors: Reed Birney, Ann Dowd, Jason Isaacs and Martha Plimpton all give amazing, raw performances that I almost forget they're acting. It really, really felt I was eavesdropping on something real. But the acting isn't the only exemplary thing about this. The directing is terrific. The film felt cinematic despite it being mostly four people talking in a room and the writing is beautiful and nuanced. You don't get lectured or hit in the head with the issues or go for cheap emotion. Everything felt honest. This is one of the best films of the year.

Oscar Prospects: I wish there was an Ensemble Oscar. This film deserves it. They should give them that as a Special Achievement Oscar. But barring that, I hope it gets in Screenplay.

Agreed, but as others have said, I think Plimpton is the standout here even though it has been Dowd who has been singled out the most.

THE TENDER BAR
Cast: Ben Affleck, Tye Sheridan, Daniel Ranieri, Lily Rabe, Christopher Lloyd, Max Martini, Briana Middleton.
Dir: George Clooney.

Affleck has the kind of role Clooney himself would have played 10-15 years ago. He's at his best as the life-affirming uncle to his nephew (Ranieri as a boy, Sheridan as a young man) from a broken home. The story, based on J.R. Moehringer's memoir, is okay, but what it memorable are the performances of the three stars, the look and feel of the film set in the 1970s and 80s, and the soundtrack of hits from the era. Rabe, is good too, as the boy's single mother, as is Martini as his nasty absent father. Lloyd's role as Rabe's father is poorly defined as is Middleton's role as Sheridan's college sweetheart.

Sheridan, who was also good in last year's The Card Counter is fulfilling the early promise he showed in The Tree of Life, Mud, and Joe.

Grade B.

[anonymous1980]

C'MON C'MON
Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Gaby Hoffmann, Woody Norman, Scott McNairy.
Dir: Mike Mills.

A documentary filmmaker finds himself having to care for his precocious, sensitive nephew while his sister tries to take care of her mentally ill husband. This is from writer-director Mike Mills and is the third of an unofficial trilogy. Beginners was sort of about his father. 20th Century Women was sort of about his mother. And now, this one is sort of about his son. I'm not a parent. But I do have a nephew and a niece so I can sort of kind of relate to the themes being tackled in this film. While you don't need to be a parent to be moved and compelled by this film, I'm guessing parents will be the ones who will be most affected watching this. This is an honest film about what it means to be a parent. It doesn't idealize it, nor does it sugarcoat it but it does manage to be sweet and moving at the same time. Joaquin Phoenix gives a great performance. Woody Norman is a real discovery as his nephew and Gaby Hoffmann also makes an impression. Solid film.

Oscar Prospects: Deserving of Best Actor, Screenplay, Supporting Actor and Supporting Actress.

Grade: B+

[Sabin]

I really dislike how Sean Baker ends Red Rocket and a few minutes could be trimmed here and there (it gets a little exhausting), but overall I think it's a terrific film, a real bright spot in an otherwise unexceptional year. Simon Rex (whom I was totally unaware of during his MTV fame) plays Mikey Saber, a washed up porn star who winds up back in his shit-hole Texas town off a bus, beaten up, and in need a place to regroup. He worms his way back into his ex's house (and her mother), sells weed around town, and fixates on a 17 year old Donut Hole employee named Strawberry. The whole thing is set (a little too obviously) to the backdrop of the 2016 Republican Convention drawing unmistakable comparisons between Mikey and Trump as grifters who move into fly over country and take the rubes for all their worth. I mean, that's far preferable and potent satire compared to Don't Look Up (anything would be) but I really enjoyed this film as a delve into the mindset of a pathological grifter. One of the film's strongest choices is to not tip the hat to Mikey's true intentions with Strawberry until the second half.

Full disclosure: I have a high tolerance for that kind of thing. One's enjoyment of the film will pivot around that. It's very much a kindred spirit to Uncut Gems although it never quite took off for me in the same way. Everyone in the film is very good. I haven't seen much mention for Suzanna Son but she gives a very funny, more complex than you would think performance as Strawberry, and I also enjoyed Bree Elrod as Lexi, Mikey's ex. Simon Rex is very good. I'd be perfectly fine with him getting nominated, although I wish the film had done more to hoist him on his own petard in the final stretch. What's fascinating about him is that he's both a compulsive scam artist AND he's delusional, the gears are always spinning in his head. I wish the film had found a way to lay his gears bare for the audience and make its point about how connected and disconnected those two things are. His psychology is really the main dramatic thrust of the film. So, it ends in I believe a misguided whimper. But well worth seeing IMO.

[dws1982]

The Harder They Fall
One of those films that wears its influences very much out on its sleeve, and the main influence is the stuff Tarantino was doing in The Hateful Eight and Django Unchained, which itself was influenced heavily by Leone, Corbucci, etc. Several of the characters here are based on real people, but they never interacted this way in real life, if they ever interacted at all, they were very different ages at the time the film is set...or maybe there's more to the story. Part of the point here is that who these people were, and the place they occupied in the history of the American West (and America in general) is unclear and impossible to know due to the way white narratives have always tended to center white people and white "heroes". The very brightly-colored sets and costumes are all part of the film's choice to rewrite that history in an unrealistic fantasized version of the West. The sets and costumes are all very much in keeping with this fantasy, and I think it probably has a shot at nominations in those categories (production design the more likely of the two), although I just wish the sets and costumes were shot a little more interestingly or inventively in scenes that don't involve a shootout or heist. It's a fun movie, although on a plot level it puts too much on its plate, probably as an excuse to stage more of the shootouts and action sequences that Jeymes Samuel clearly is most excited about. It probably would've been better served by cutting the runtime by about thirty minutes and leaving some of the other plot developments to a sequel that I'm guessing Samuel is willing and eager to shoot. (The ending definitely lays the groundwork for one.) And I'll watch that sequel, especially if he assembles a cast as good as the cast in this one.

[anonymous1980]

SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME
Cast: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Benedict Cumberbatch, Jacob Batalon, Marisa Tomei, Alfred Molina, Willem Dafoe, Jamie Foxx, Jon Favreau, Benedict Wong, Tony Revolori, JK Simmons, Andrew Garfield, Tobey Maguire.
Dir: Jon Watts.

I braved a COVID spike to see this in theaters. It will most likely be my last theatrical viewing in about a few weeks or a couple months, give or take, hopefully it won't be too bad. And for all the legitimate criticisms against Marvel filmmaking and its dominance in theaters, this movie is still a good time. This one picks up where the last one left off with Peter Parker being outed as Spider-Man. In foolish desperation, he goes to Doctor Strange to cast a spell to make people for forget but things of course get crazy. The news and rumors coming out as this movie was being made, I have to admit, it sounded like it was gonna be a mess. And it should've been a mess. But surprisingly, it isn't. It works. Granted Into the Spider-Verse sort of did a similarish concept first and did it better but this one manages to be really good. Yes, it's fan service but it does something actually interesting with it. What can I say? I had fun.

Oscar Prospects: No, it's not Best Picture material. Visual Effects and Sound...that's it.

Grade: B+

[Big Magilla]

THE LAST DUEL
Cast: Matt Damon, Adam Driver, Jodie Comer, Harriet Walter, Ben Affleck, Alex Lawther, Martin Csokas, Zeljko Ivanek.
Dir: Ridley Scott.

No wonder Ridley Scott is upset with Disney for mishandling this 20th Century-Fox production.

This is a much better film than most of the tripe being promulgated for audience awareness and awards glory. Right now, it's my third favorite film of the year behind The Power of the Dog and Belfast. Based on a true story, this is Scott's best film since Thelma & Louise.

The last third of the film, written by Nicole Holofcener (Can You Ever Forgive Me?), in which Jodie Comer takes center stage, contains the year's best work from a feminist point of view. It blows The Lost Daughter and Spencer off the screen.

Set in late 14th Century France, Comer plays a noblewoman who is raped by the king's squire (Driver) while her husband (Damon) is away. No one believes her, thinking she is covering up an affair, especially since she becomes pregnant after five years of infertility with Damon following the rape. Young Charles VI (Lawther), rather than putting his squire on trial after Damon forces the issue at Comer's insistence, gets the two to agree to a duel to the death. The survivor will be vindicated in the eyes of God, the king, and the law. The loser will have his body stripped, dragged, and hung upside down in the town square. If Damon loses, Comer will be shackled and burned at the stake, and her newborn child will be become a ward of the state.

Comer, and Walter as her monster of a mother-in-law, are both superb. The only reason Comer is getting mentioned for consideration as a supporting actress is because of her lack of name recognition. The Emmy-winning actress (for Killing Eve) should be a major contender for lead actress.

Another woman worthy of singling out for this is Claire Simpson, the Oscar winning editor of Platoon and The Constant Gardener. This film is easily one of the year's best edited works.

It's well worth seeking out.

Grade A.

[Sabin]

Mister Tee wrote
I address this matter, as well as my overall reaction to the film, in the Lost Daughter thread.

Didn't realize we had one. Leaving my review up here to avoid you looking insane.

[Mister Tee]

I'd be interested in hearing a woman's perspective on this film but that's never going to happen here.

I address this matter, as well as my overall reaction to the film, in the Lost Daughter thread.

[Sabin]

By the end I found The Lost Daughter pretty impactful in how it explores very uncomfortable territory about motherhood, but as a story it slowly came into view for me. There's nothing wrong with that certainly but there were very few moments that didn't remind me "Oh, this was adapted from a book." There's a pleasing literary feeling to it but I wonder how Maggie Gyllenhaal would approach this material had this not been her first feature. How would she have adapted it in a few years or would she even be interested? It's basically a character study about a woman who we spend most of the running time wondering what the fuck is wrong with her, and then we find out (sort of). The fact that this remotely works is because Olivia Colman is the fucking GOAT. Anyway, that's where it derives its narrative tension from and it fills in the blanks through flashbacks and it uses its plot to carry along a lot of interesting notes. My only real complaint about the film is that I think it's using its running time to get around the fact that this material really isn't the best fit for film. What we have works fine and its use of flashbacks grows very confident as the film continues (they don't quite gel at the beginning). I don't love it but it's a very promising debut by Maggie Gyllenhaal. I'd like to see what she can do with, y'know, a screenplay written for the screen.

I'd be interested in hearing a woman's perspective on this film but that's never going to happen here.

[anonymous1980]

PARALLEL MOTHERS
Cast: Penelope Cruz, Milena Smit, Israel Elejalde, Aitana Sanchez-Gijon, Julieta Serrano, Rossy de Palma.
Dir: Pedro Almodovar.

Two unwed pregnant women meet in a hospital and give birth the same day. One is older and really wanted it. The other is an adolescent who's scared. The older woman is also in the process of trying to find the body of her great-grandfather who died during the Franco regime. This is the latest from Pedro Almodovar which of course sold me on the film. Much like the title, there are two parallel stories. One is a melodrama about two single mothers. The other is about addressing and uncovering the atrocities of the Franco regime. My one major issue with the film is that I'm not sure how well those two story lines go together. But one thing is for sure: Penelope Cruz is fantastic in this, giving a career-best performance. I have to say, she may be my favorite actress performance of 2021 so far. The film itself though is midtier Almodovar but that's better than 90 percent of most people's films so...yeah.

Oscar Prospects: Actress and Score would be deserving.

Grade: B+

[anonymous1980]

MASS
Cast: Reed Birney, Ann Dowd, Jason Isaacs, Martha Plimpton.
Dir: Fran Kranz.

Two couples meet in a church basement to talk about the tragic event which connect them to each other. I've been hearing a lot about how great the acting in this film is. Believe the hype. These are some of the best performances I've ever seen captured on film in recent years so far. These quartet of actors: Reed Birney, Ann Dowd, Jason Isaacs and Martha Plimpton all give amazing, raw performances that I almost forget they're acting. It really, really felt I was eavesdropping on something real. But the acting isn't the only exemplary thing about this. The directing is terrific. The film felt cinematic despite it being mostly four people talking in a room and the writing is beautiful and nuanced. You don't get lectured or hit in the head with the issues or go for cheap emotion. Everything felt honest. This is one of the best films of the year.

Oscar Prospects: I wish there was an Ensemble Oscar. This film deserves it. They should give them that as a Special Achievement Oscar. But barring that, I hope it gets in Screenplay.

Grade: A.

THE LOST DAUGHTER
Cast: Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley, Dakota Johnson, Ed Harris, Paul Mescal, Peter Sarsgaard, Dagmara Domińczyk, Jack Farthing, Oliver Jackson-Cohen.
Dir: Maggie Gyllenhaal.

A woman on summer holiday becomes fixated on another woman and her young daughter while reminiscing about her own experiences being a mother. Adapting it from an Elena Ferrante, actress Maggie Gyllenhaal has made a pretty solid feature directing debut with this film. She infuses her film with a voice and a style reminiscent of European films from the 1960's and 1970's. Although her tendency to direct this film almost like a thriller sometimes muddles the main thematic thrust of the narrative. But thankfully, the actors all keep it together. Olivia Colman gives yet another great performance in this film. And she is actually matched beautifully by Jessie Buckley who plays her younger self in flashbacks. This may not be one of the best films of the year but it's still a very good one.

Oscar Prospects: Actress and Adapted Screenplay but Jessie Buckley would make a great Supporting Actress nominee.

Grade: B+

[Mister Tee]

The easy highlight of my over-Christmas movie viewing at home was Summer of Soul. I can't remember the last time so much of a movie made me so euphoric. Some of this no doubt springs from its being boomer comfort food: these were the performers on which my teen years were focused -- many of the festival attendees they interviewed were literally the age I was that summer -- and I was on just about every song the way I just can't be with even my favorite more contemporary stuff. But I also think the film is really impressively layered: it captures the time and place, but it also shows the forces (personal and political) that led up to that moment, and offers looking-back commentary (from both performers and audience) that gives much added dimension. The film also does a wonderful job of showing how many different musical styles were on display over those days, and how each of them came from someplace specific, affected the audience in particular ways, and led somewhere that younger audiences might better recognize. That the film does all this while maintaining spectacular energy -- both the performances and the interviews had me often beaming -- is a tribute to the filmmakers, and especially the editors: the LA prize to the editing team was right on the money.

And, for the record, though I was just out of high school that summer, and have very detailed memories of both the moon landing and Woodstock, the filmmakers are right: this event got almost no attention. Making this film an even greater gift.

[Sabin]

https://variety.com/2021/film/columns/h ... 235143299/

I haven't seen the new Matrix film. I plan on doing so at some point soon. But I wanted to share this review with you all. I don't know how savvy you all are to the film's lasting toxic influence online, to what "red pilling" is, but this review by Owen Gleiberman is a good catch up. I'm convinced that the three most toxic pieces of media of my life are Fight Club, The Matrix, and South Park -- love all of them and they all hit a particular zeitgeist in 1999.

Yet with two decades’ hindsight, the most telling dimension of the Matrix is that it exists, fundamentally, as a conspiracy: a virtual reality designed to hallucinate us into being good drones. The enduring legacy of “The Matrix” as a movie may be the perception that we’re living a lie — until we take the red pill and wake up, just like Neo. “Red-pilling” became a phrase in the culture, one driven by the shadow world of information on the Internet. The idea was: the deeper the web dive, the greater one’s embrace of the truth. Red-pilling meant unplugging from the Matrix of false images and fake media. And, of course, every person who took that dive would now be his or her own Neo, a rage-against-the-machine rebel in their own mind.

[anonymous1980]

SWAN SONG
Cast: Udo Kier, Jennifer Coolidge, Linda Evans, Michael Urie, Ira Hawkins, Stephanie McVay.
Dir: Todd Stephens.

Not to be confused by the independent science fiction drama film that is also a 2021 release and also has the same title, this film is a drama about a retired hairdresser who escapes from his old-age home to walk back into his old hometown to give a rich regular client of his her last makeover for her funeral. So this is basically a gay Wild Strawberries or a gay Straight Story...a Gay Story (*badabumpching*). This independent drama is anchored by a superb performance by Udo Kier who is playing the lead in a film, for once. The film is quite lovely and moving and even funny at parts. It's warm and sweet without being overly cloying. It's not quite one of the best of the year but it's a lovely film which shouldn't get lost in the shuffle.

Oscar Prospects: None but Udo Kier definitely deserves an Oscar nomination.

Grade: B+