With so many ‘best of’ lists in the pipeline, I figured I’d put some space between them and the first full movie review I do for the year. So that means you get two weekend’s worth of recommendations!
Adulthood – This popped on my radar when I was doing my weekly scroll through Google Play rental options. A comedy drama with the unlikely duo of Josh Gad and Kaya Scodelario as siblings coming back home when there mother falls into a catatonic state after a stoke? Color me intrigued. Only, going back to their childhood home for a longer stint unearths some secrets from the walls that only make everything they do next that much more desparate. Desparate to keep everything the same, and also a desapration to forget. Anthony Carrigan is my favorite co-star here who plays their weird cousin, Bode.
Resurrection – About halfway through this almost three hour saga, I realized that this is the first Chinese film I have ever seen. Nothing like starting with a bang! In this sci-fi drama we are introduced to a woman whose job is to capture and subdue the ramining humans who are still able to dream. She captures one of these Dilirients, but instead of a swift death, she decides to let him live a little bit longer and experience a few more dreams before he can no longer. We are then ushered through a series of dreams all linked to the one of the six senses of Buddhist thought. The first dream where he is trying to escape a man in a creepy, abandoned train station was by far my favorite. While it was a bit too long, it was still very unique to see!
Good Fortune – Since I was too busy to make time for this star power comedy, I finally waited long enough to rent it for a reasonable price at home. Keanu Reeves plays guardian angel of texting and driving, Gabriel, who feels he’s ready to save a lost soul like some of his fellow angels. As he keeps seeing more and more of the dispare in Arj’s life, he decides to give him a taste of the life of the wealthy in the form of Arj’s former, temporary boss, Jeff. Gabriel runs into a real snag when Arj decides he doesn’t want to switch back – and I don’t blame him! While you could have just read this film as a slap in the face to the oblivious rich people in this world, there was a lot to learn in both Arj and Jeff’s lives. Seeing an angel work as a dishwasher and smoking ciggies on his break was both sad but insanely funny. A solid film for Aziz Ansari’s directorial debut.
A Balloon’s Landing – The yearning in 10DANCE has left me wanting to find something else to match it’s intensity, so I was thankful to the social media algorithms for bringing me to a post recommending this movie I’ve had saved in my watch list on Netflix for quite some time. The film follows Tian Yu, an up and coming writer facing plagarism claims. After almost taking his own life, he thinks back on a series of letters he received from a young boy talking about the “Bay of Vanishing Whales” in Taipei, and decides to seek it out. Quickly into his journey he meets A Xiang, a gang member with the energy of a golden retriever. He clings to Tian Yu, but promises to help him get to the bay. Along the journey their bond grows closer only to meet a semi-tragic end. Actually, I think it ended quite happily, but I won’t spoil any more of the films secrets. Highly recommend!
Is This Thing On? – Finally Bradley Cooper is done trying to give us the most Oscar-bait-y film out there to bring us some chucks and gigs. After more than twenty years together, Alex and Tess decide they are separating. While a divorce seems all but inevitable, Alex finds unexpected solice performing stand-up at an open mic night. He finds audiences respond well to his personal stories that involve his parents, sometimes his kids, and his soon to be ex-wife, Tess. I think this film was a neat way of showing how someone decides to deal with grief and a whole lot of change in his life. Learning that this film was inspired by someone’s real life, the fact that the split wasn’t as neat and tidy as you’d expect, made more sense. For me at least, it ended on a pretty hopeful note. Well done.
Father Mother Sister Brother – I only just learned this weekend that the great Jim Jarmusch hails from Cuyahoga Falls! That’s so freaking cool! And he makes a very small nod to it’s nearest major city towards the end of this film. Considering this is a film exploring the relationship between family members, it kind of makes sense that he’d reference the place where he grew up. The film is broken down into three parts. The first is an older sister and brother visiting their isolated and ailing father, the second is two extremely different daughters visiting their stiff mother, and the final is of brother-sister twins visiting their parent’s apartment for the last time after their unexpected death. The first two stories have some extremely awkward interactions, but the first is downright comical – it might have been my favorite of the three stories, though I love how different each of them were. A+ plus cast to boot!
The Long Walk – I waffled back and forth on seeing this in theaters, and then by the time I finally decided I wanted to there were no convenient showtimes available. No one to blame but myself. Anyway, in this Stephen King adaptation, in a dystopian future, young men “volunteer” to compete in the annual Long Walk competition. The rules are fairly simple: everyone walks with no real finish line in sight, but you are eliminated once you reach three warnings. You get those if your speed dips below three miles per hours, or if you step off the path, but when they’re topping out around 300 miles walked, things start to look pretty rough. Getting us through it are newly formed best friends, Ray and Pete, who are both participating for very different reasons, though both are hoping a win can enact some change. Despite how the high level concept of this film sounds, it was really good!