I didn’t get any extra days off besides the holiday, but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t able to squeeze in a ton of movies! I didn’t get to the theater as much as I would have preferred, but there was still some solid gold in there.
Saltburn – You know I had to go see this deranged masterpiece again! Thankfully, my sister wanted to see it and really she was the perfect person to do it with. When she’s uncomfortable, she let’s you know with her face, but there are also some just straight up uncomfortable noises that go along with it. And she reacted perfectly in the moments I expected her to. Though the MVP of reactions goes to the girl who dry-heaved during a scene involving a bath tub. It was such a delayed reaction that I wasn’t expecting it and almost choked on my drink it was so funny. This will definitely be a title I own as soon as I can.
Thanksgiving – After the severe disappointment of It’s A Wonderful Knife, I went into this with a little more reluctance. Sure, Eli Roth was behind the wheel and he knows horror, but still. But gosh was this movie fun! It’s like Scream took its antics to Thanksgiving, and I picture this being a movie I revisit for years to come. After a deadly mob at a Black Friday sale taking place on, you guessed it, Thanksgiving, one person took it upon themselves to seek vengeance the following year. I couldn’t guess the culprit until basically right before they were revealed, but I also feel like this movie is perfectly set up for a sequel – and I sincerely hope we get one! Also, I learned that this was based off a fake trailer that showed up in the Quentin Tarantino film, Grindhouse – I love that!
Please Don’t Destroy: The Treasure of Foggy Mountain – Well, I really wanted to like this as much as I like Please Don’t Destroy skits on SNL, but this just didn’t land for me. These guys have a friendship and onscreen chemistry that is both awkward and hilarious, but it just wasn’t a great story. The plot is essentially they want some money to actually do something with their lives and strengthen their friendship, but they get sidetracked along the way. A Lonely Island quality film this was not.
Anatomy of a Fall – After this movie walked away from Cannes with an insane amount of buzz, I couldn’t wait to see it. While the premise is simple, the drama and mystery that unfolds is actually quite complicated and tense. Sandra is the only one who was home when her husband fell to his death from the third story of their middle of nowhere, frosty home in the hills of France somewhere. Naturally, she is the prime suspect. While there is a compelling counter-argument for how Sandra couldn’t have done it, a lot of her past actions and chilly personality make it seem more and more like it was her. If you’re looking for a clear cut answer, this film will not give it to you, but it is thoroughly thought-provoking.
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe – I was kind of surprised this adapted young adult film never made it to a theater near me, and after much waiting, it was finally available for me to rent. In the meantime, I was planning to read the novel of the same name it’s based on, but I decided to follow my golden rule and wait to watch it first. So with that in mind, this was a terrific watch! Aristotle is a lonely teen boy with a lot of rage and an awkward family dynamic when he meets his polar opposite, Dante, at the local pool one summer day. The two kick it off, and Dante constantly tests and pushes at Aristotle’s boundaries. It’s clear these two have a special connection, but it was interesting to see how it progressed with distance and revelations in the late 80s. I can’t wait to read the book!
EXmas – I really wanted to love this movie. Robbie Amell might be my favorite rom-com actor (thank you, The DUFF), and Leighton Meester has been making some pleasantly unexpected acting choices in recent years, but this movie just couldn’t quite level up for me. The pair respectively play Grant and Ali who just ended their engagement six months prior to the upcoming Christmas festivities. Given that Grant said he’d be working, the rest of his family, still very close to Ali, invite her in his stead. Neither are happy to see each other and set out to best each other by the time the big day arrives. Obviously there is still love there and things work out as they should, but I just couldn’t quite buy the connections. I look forward to re-watching some of my favorite rom-coms as December rolls along, so look out for those again!