Coming at you a few days removed from the weekend, but still relevant, here is a brief recap of the somewhat mediocre films I watched this weekend.
Suburban Gothic – I have recently stumbled upon the totally free, but commercial-laden, Tubi, which has an interesting array of films that generally seem pretty bad, but there are a handful of surprises I’ve managed to find. One find, was this gem of an oddball film, starring Matthew Gray Gubler and Kat Dennings. Leading with an artistic jukebox gothic dance-off, this film took some pretty kitschy turns, but it was a fun ride.
The King of Staten Island – Finally! A release that was meant for the theater, but is instead released VOD that seemed worth my $20! I wouldn’t say it was totally worth it, but I was infinitely more satisfied than I was watching The Lovebirds. This quirky film is the semi-autobiographical telling of star Pete Davidson’s life. Fire houses and lazy moochers make this dramedy both funny and sad.
We Summon the Darkness – Look, I know Johnny Knoxville is on the poster. I still rented it anyways. I like Alexandra Daddario enough to ignore it. I was also surprised by the appearance of Logan Miller. But none of that could detract from the almost painfully awkward dialogue. I like crazy cults and murder (in film) as much as the next horror buff, but this movie is totally skippable.
The Guest – What a strange little thriller this was. New to Netflix, but certainly not to the world, this movie centers on a recently returned military vet, who visits and deposits himself into his deceased friend’s family’s life. At points, I very much thought he was a robot, but the somewhat understated but pointed twists and turns this movie took really surprised me. Very enjoyable!
Peacock – Hard to believe this slow burn psychological thriller came out around the same time as Inception, and features two of its starts, Cillian Murphy and Ellen Page. Murphy’s character is struggling with gender/dissociative identity disorder following the death of his mother and the result of a traumatic childhood. The whole movie is him trying to juggle these two lives which have just been thrust into the spotlight after a train car derails itself in his backyard. The whole film is very enthralling.