I definitely didn’t get in as many movies this weekend as I would have liked to, but I can promise this was a unique trio.
Wolf – Jacob is new at a treatment facility that focuses on helping individuals who identify as animals. As the title of the film would suggest, Jacob thinks he’s a wolf, so we see snippets of him butt-naked walking around on all fours, rolling around in the dirt, and howling…a lot. It was an interesting concept for a film, about trying to get this individuals recalibrated back to human life, but you can tell it’s never going to actually stick for any of them. Especially with the unconventional and sometimes violent methods used. I probably also could have taken this a little more seriously, but when one of the first other animal people to introduce themselves says, “Hi, I’m Rufus. I’m a boy. I used to think I was a German Shepard.” how the hell am I not supposed to crack up at that?! Another person there was convinced they were a squirrel. To people that actually suffer from this kind of dysphoria, I feel for you.
Here Before – Andrea Riseborough has a look that just draws you in no matter what. In this quiet horror film, she plays Laura, a mother who is after several years still grieving the loss of her young daughter, Josie, when new neighbors move in. Megan is the daughter who is about the same age as when Josie died, so Laura feels like she wants to create some sort of bond with her. It doesn’t take long for Laure to think that maybe Josie has been reincarnated in Megan. She knows so many details. The truth is a little more practical, but almost equally as disturbing. The eeriness of the film is helped along by the score and withering, damp shots of Northern Ireland. I couldn’t help but feel both fearful and bad for Laura. Pretty interesting film if you’re up for something slightly unconventional (but I promise, not nearly as much as Wolf).
The Adam Project – I’ve only just wised up to the fact that Ryan Reynolds might have a movie deal with Netflix? Unconfirmed, but as this sci-fi action drama meandered along, I at first was worried this was going to be as forgettable as Red Notice (I had to search in my back brain for that title), but it took unexpected turns that left me happy in the end. Reynolds and newcomer, Walker Scobell, both play Adam at different times in his life. There’s not much time wasted in introducing the time travel element to this film, which I thought was a wise decision. This gives older Adam time to make things right with his mother, and it also gives him and younger Adam the chance to see their dad again. He’s the creator of time travel, but his investor twists the science into something rotten that they want to go back in time to destroy. Even if that means totally rewriting their future. Plenty of strong supporting performances in this film, but nothing made me more giddy than seeing Jennifer Garner and Mark Ruffalo (aka Jenna & Matty) play husbands and wife again. If you don’t get that 2004 13 Going on 30 reference, then shame on you.