Honestly, my plan was to watch more films this weekend, but I didn’t do too bad! I ended up splitting my time with Tom Blyth and Emma Thompson.
Wasteman – What can I say, my Youtube algorithm knows me so well. I saw this trailer a couple of months ago and was definitely intrigued. To my pleasant surprise, my local indie theater got a hold of it this weekend! Let me tell you what, this movie doesn’t shy away from anything. It focuses on Taylor, who is about to make bail after the last fifteen years in prison for good behavior. All of that is put on the line when he’s given a new roommate, Dee, who’s set on running all the sales in their wing. It’s dangerous in a number of ways, and even though Taylor is just trying to keep his head low, he gets dragged into the prison’s politics and violence all the same. The end was a surprise for me!
People We Meet on Vacation – I’ve been avoiding this romance film for quite some time mainly because I know how popular the book is. Having never read it myself, I really had no good reason to avoid it for so long. What can I say, Tom Blyth’s performance in Wasteman inspired me to finally give it a go. It chronicles the nine year friendship between Poppy and Alex that is currently on the rocks. Poppy is given the chance to see him again at his brother’s wedding in Barcelona, but will his past relationship and her desire to not really have roots mean they are still too different to have a future together? Obviously not. That wouldn’t make this a very good romance film. I enjoyed watching it, but the Poppy character was not someone I could grow to like in the end.
The Sheep Detectives – My friend asked me a week or so ago if I wanted to see this unconventional murder mystery, to which I responded “surprisingly, yes.” And truly! The premise is a flock of sheep try to help solve the murder of their shepard. It follows the fairly typical beats of any good murder mystery with plenty of suspects, but this one also came with plenty of laughs and possibly more sad scenes than I would have liked. But still, this was a well rounded film with both an incredible human and voice cast!
Dead of Winter – In my listless scrolling on all of my streaming services, this dramatic thriller starring Emma Thompson caught my eye. It intrigued me further when I saw that she was a producer on the film, as well. She stars as Barb, a woman who just recently lost her husband. In an effort scatter his ashes at the lake where they had their first date, she not only endures the harsh Minnesota winter, but also a crazed woman holding a young woman hostage. Turns out she needs a new liver, so she’s planning on harvesting it from this girl. Whoa! While there were plenty of intense scenes in this movie, I did find it a little boring at times. Still, not mad I watched it!