I’d like to say that with this quarantine I’ve had more time to watch movies, but that’s not true. I still work from home, and realistically, four movies in one weekend is not unheard of for me. But we can all pretend, right? Either way, I saw some fairly middle of the road films that were fairly enjoyable.
First up, my sister and I went to our local and virtually abandoned theater to go see the controversial (at the time) Blumhose film, The Hunt. This movie was supposed to be released last September, but got shelved after the shootings in Dayton and El Paso, along with a disapproval from Donald Trump. While I get that it was maybe necessary for this film to be delayed, it certainly is no grislier than any other film that came out after it. This movie in a nutshell seems like a more comedic version of The Hunger Games, but with hillbillies and extreme political views. It’s aimed at making fun of both wings and it succeeds. What also succeeds is the use of Betty Gilpin and that fantastic southern drawl. She’s a badass and the main survivor of them film, but I won’t ruin how she manages that for you. This film was by no means a home run, but it was thoroughly entertaining, so if you don’t mind a little blood and guts, you should totally go see this.
Next up was a double feature for me in almost equally abandoned theaters. In fact, I was the sole patron for the second film I went to see. Anyways, I first went to go see The Way Back. Starring Ben Affleck, this movie seems quite similar to his own personal trials he’s been working through the past few years. It centers on former high school basketball star, Jack Cunningham, who 25 years since graduating is working construction and getting wasted every night of the week. We learn he’s divorced, and a little later that he lost a young son to cancer. He’s still angry, but getting offered a coaching gig at his old Catholic high school seems to be the Godsend he needed. He finds pride and responsibility in turning this losing team into playoff-bound talent. But that all changes when one of his friend’s son gets their own devastating cancer diagnosis. He spirals, and ends up showing up drunk to practice. With a no tolerance policy, he’s kicked off the team and spirals. At death’s door, his sister finally forces him to get the help he needs. Not everything in this film was rainbows and butterflies, which I appreciated. It’s being compared to the film, Warrior, which I saw hints of, but Warrior seems to go so much harder. Do yourself a favor though, and watch both!
Right off the heels of that was the Jane Austen adaptation, Emma. I’d probably seen the trailer for this film about a hundred times, and it honestly looked like it would be pretty funny. I know period pieces aren’t my thing, but this had a decent cast, too. Holy boring, Batman. Despite the bright colors and quick dialogue of this film, I wasn’t always totally sure what they were saying. Emma herself wasn’t a likable character either in my opinion. She just seemed like a meddling bitch, who somehow is liked by EVERYONE in this town. I think after half an hour in I was ready for this two hour film to be over. If Jane Austin is your jam, then by all means, go catch this, but otherwise, don’t bother.
Finally, I was excited to learn that Big Time Adolescence was released on Hulu a whole week early, so you bet your butt I streamed it! I’m a huge fan of SNL, so seeing Pete Davidson lead this film made me pretty excited to watch. Even though this film was fairly short (by today’s standard run time), it seemed to drag on with not much to say. Pete plays Zeke, an underachieving jobless twenty something who does drugs and drinks a lot. Somehow, he makes quite an impact on young Monroe, who hangs off of his every word like any disillusioned kid brother would. This is clearly not good for Monroe’s future, but he’s too concerned about being “cool” to care. He ends up dealing drugs, while never actually doing them, and hooks up with Zeke’s ex-girlfriend. I could tell that Zeke valued their friendship, if maybe only for using Monroe, but by the end of it, Monroe’s life was so screwed, I hoped that they’d never be friends again. This movie reminded me a lot of Mid 90s, which I sort of detested, mainly because of all the bad things this kids were doing. It’s probably because I never did anything like that growing up that I just don’t get it, but Big Time Adolescence is not a film I’ll ever be watching again.