InSession Film: Recent Episodes
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Director: Guillermo Del Toro Writers: Guillermo Del Toro, Matthew Robins Starring: Mira Sorvino, Jeremy Northam, Charles S. Dutton, Josh Brolin Synopsis: Three years ago, entomologist Dr. Susan Tyler genetically created an insect to kill cockroaches carrying a virulent disease. Now, the insects are out to destroy their only predator, mankind. Oscar-winning director Guillermo Del Toro […]
The post Film at 25: “Mimic” a Rare Misfire in Guillermo Del Toro’s Remarkable Career first appeared on InSession Film.
Though often under-produced with innate poor quality, these early Alfred Hitchcock British films from the thirties are peppered with familiar Hitchockian nuggets and all the expected suspense. Murder! Screams, Beethoven overtures, and Wagner on the radio accent the hysterical finger pointing and polluted crime scene of this 1930 whodunit. Messy households high and low […]
The post Hitchcock in the 1930s first appeared on InSession Film.
George Miller is a madman. The best way to describe the Australian’s filmography is sheer insanity, as only he could follow up two animated penguin musicals with what might be the greatest action movie of the century. His films are pure imagination, filled with fantastical yet grotesque imagery, building worlds unlike any filmmaker who ever […]
The post Poll: What is your favorite George Miller film? first appeared on InSession Film.
Karel Zeman died in 1989, several months before the Velvet Revolution, which saw the communist regime in Czechoslovakia stand down and democracy return. It was sad that Zeman didn’t live to see the Iron Curtain come down because he would have been among the first to show his movies to a whole new generation. Called […]
The post Karel Zeman: An Unsung Animation Legend first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by Athletic Greens. Get a FREE one year supply of Vitamin D and 5 travel packs today! This week on the InSession Film Podcast, Ryan fills in for Brendan as we review Claire Denis’ new film Both Sides of the Blade and continue our Studio Ghibli Movie Series […]
The post Podcast: Both Sides of the Blade / Ocean Waves – Episode 497 first appeared on InSession Film.
This week on the Extra Film Podcast, Ryan and Sophia continue their Martin Scorsese Movie Series with his iconic 1976 film Taxi Driver and his underrated documentary The Last Waltz! Taxi Driver is considered by many to be one of the best films ever made, and it’s obviously been analyzed to death, however we had […]
The post Podcast: Taxi Driver / The Last Waltz – Extra Film first appeared on InSession Film.
This week on Women InSession Podcast, Kristin Battestella, Zita Short and Amy Thomasson get together to talk about the latter years of Kate Winslet’s career! It hasn’t been a seamless journey, but she’s still doing some great work. For reasons we get into during the discussion, Winslet’s career in the last decade or so has […]
The post Women InSession: Wild About Kate Winslet (Part 2) – Episode 6 first appeared on InSession Film.
Le Corbeau (1943) Henri-Georges Clouzot’s early noir piece was filmed under Nazi rule in France and was condemned right, left, and center for various reasons. After the country’s liberation, when Clouzot was banned from filmmaking for allegations of collaboration, the movie was given a second look and seen as a great film with the message […]
The post Criterion Collection Releases: September 2022 first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: George Miller Writer: George Miller, Augusta Gore Stars: Tilda Swinton, Idris Elba Synopsis: A lonely scholar, on a trip to Istanbul, discovers a Djinn who offers her three wishes in exchange for his freedom. Even though Three Thousand Years of Longing is yet another addition to George Miller’s eclectic filmography, it ends up being a disappointing affair, […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Three Thousand Years of Longing’ Conjures Minimal Magic or Sparks of Romance first appeared on InSession Film.
In the 1930s, the Production Code led by Will Hays was formed as a board to certify films that were considered safe for distribution. That meant no overt sexual content, no obscene language, and no themes that could be considered offensive to the public. While it was implemented to be self-regulating for studios to follow, […]
The post Indecent Exposure: The History Of The National Legion Of Decency first appeared on InSession Film.
Juliette Binoche is one of the greats, it’s that simple. Born in Paris, the actress has scored accolades including an Academy Award, a BAFTA, a Silver Bear, a Cannes Film Festival Award, Volpi Cup, a César Award, and even a Tony nomination. Her filmography effortlessly alternates between art-house and mainstream, as well as French and […]
The post Poll: What is Juliette Binoche’s best performance? first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by Top Gun: Maverick. Follow us on social media for your chance to win a digital copy of the film! This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we prepare further for our 2002 Retrospective by discussing Alfonso Cuarón’s Y tu mamá también and continuing our Studio Ghibli Movie […]
The post Podcast: Y tu mamá también / Porco Rosso – Episode 496 first appeared on InSession Film.
George Miller fans across the nation have been eagerly anticipating the release of Three Thousand Years of Longing ever since it first premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. Miller has experimented with the conventions of the genre in the past and even adapted John Updike’s The Witches of Eastwick into a film. In anticipation of the […]
The post Ranking: Zita Short’s Top 10 Fantasy Films first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Baltasar Kormákur Writers: Ryan Engle Stars: Idris Elba, Iyana Halley, Leah Sava Jeffries, Sharlto Copley Synopsis: A father and his two teenage daughters find themselves hunted by a massive rogue lion intent on proving that the Savanna has but one apex predator. Sometimes, you get exactly what you ask for. The person vs animal […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Beast’ is Exactly What You Think It Is first appeared on InSession Film.
Since the MPA (Motion Picture Association, formerly MPAA, the extra A being for American, dropped in 2019 to be more international) was founded in 1968, the organization has worked to provide a clear guide to people looking to go to the movies. The ratings, G, PG, PG-13 (introduced in 1984), and R are commonplace at […]
The post Op-Ed: Getting Turned on at Home: An Argument for NC-17 Streaming first appeared on InSession Film.
There have been many Movies Series on the Main Show and Extra Film but none have been as wildly fascinating as what Ryan and Jay uncovered during the James Cameron Movie Series. For context, Ryan is on the record as stating that Cameron is one of the worst directors of all time, with most of […]
The post Podcast: James Cameron Movie Series first appeared on InSession Film.
Sometimes we sadly don’t give enough credit to filmmakers until they’re gone. Earlier this week we lost the German born Wolfgang Petersen, and looking at his rather brief filmography, it’s immediately clear we haven’t been talking about him enough. Nominated for two Oscars, Petersen as an action director was one of the most consistent, particularly […]
The post Poll: What is your favorite Wolfgang Petersen film? first appeared on InSession Film.
This autumn is the FIFA World Cup, usually a summer event that would take place later in the year with the venue being in Qatar. While it is a desert nation built on sun and sand, soccer does not need to be played in a certain type of place. It is played in the cold […]
The post Football Is Life: 5 Films About The Beautiful Game first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank. Follow us on social media for your chance to win a digital copy of the film! This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we prep for our 2002 Retrospective by reviewing M. Night Shyamalan’s Signs and continue our Studio Ghibli […]
The post Podcast: Signs / Kiki’s Delivery Service – Episode 495 first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: J.J. Perry Writers: Tyler Tice and Shay Hatten Stars: Jamie Foxx, Dave Franco, Snoop Dogg Synopsis: A hard-working, blue-collar dad who just wants to provide a good life for his quick-witted 8-year-old daughter. His mundane San Fernando Valley pool cleaning job is a front for his real source of income: hunting and killing vampires. Most of Day Shift’s […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Day Shift’ is Clunky and Creaky, but with B-Movie Charms first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: John Logan Writer: John Logan Stars: Kevin Bacon, Anna Chlumsky, Theo Germaine, Carrie Preston, and Quei Tann. Synopsis: A group of teenagers at an LGBTQ+ conversion camp endures unsettling psychological techniques while being stalked by a mysterious masked killer. They/Them should be lauded for its inclusive cast and crew, predominantly comprised of gay, trans, […]
The post Movie Review: ‘They/Them’ Is a Profoundly Misguided Slasher Picture first appeared on InSession Film.
“On your mark. Get set… Go!” These are the first words heard in Spike Lee’s 1994 film, Crooklyn. Perhaps one of Lee’s finest openings ever, it sets the stage wonderfully for what is to come. As the cast and crew of the film are imposed over children running and playing through the streets of Brooklyn, […]
The post ‘Crooklyn’: More Proof That Spike Lee is One of the Greats first appeared on InSession Film.
This week on the Extra Film Podcast, Ryan and Jay conclude their James Cameron Movie Series with the two biggest movies ever made as they review the 1997 film Titanic (where they are joined by the great Nicole Ackman) and the 2009 sci-fi fantasy epic Avatar! A big thanks to Nicole for joining us this […]
The post Podcast: Titanic / Avatar – Extra Film first appeared on InSession Film.
This week on Women InSession Podcast, we get together to discuss James Cameron’s epic Best Picture winning film Titanic! For this episode, Kristin Battestella, Zita Short, Erica Richards, and Amy Thomasson make up the panel and it was a fascinating conversation. Erica was alone in her support for the film, but the conversation was open-minded […]
The post Women InSession: Titanic Retrospective – Episode 4 first appeared on InSession Film.
The king of the world indeed, for better or worse. As Jay and Ryan conclude their latest movie series on Extra Film, we wanted to look back at Hollywood’s most profitable filmography, one that shockingly consists of less than ten films. Whether you love the man or not, you can’t deny the impact James Cameron […]
The post Poll: What is your favorite James Cameron feature film? first appeared on InSession Film.
Lisa Marie Presley praised the performance of Austin Butler as her father, the great Elvis Presley, in Baz Luhrmann’s biopic on the King of Rock n’ Roll. Butler “channeled and embodied my father’s heart and soul beautifully. In my humble opinion, his performance is unprecedented and FINALLY done accurately and respectfully.” Elvis’ ex-wife, Priscilla, also […]
The post This Is Your Life: Reactions To Their Own Biopics first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: David Leitch Writer: Zak Olkewicz Starring: Brad Pitt, Joey King, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Sandra Bullock Synopsis: Five assassins aboard a fast-moving bullet train find out their missions have something in common. If there’s anything that makes me nostalgic for the action films of the 1990s, it’s Bullet Train, a slick thrill ride that has plenty […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Bullet Train’ is an Entertaining but Overstuffed Thrill Ride first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by the Athletic Greens. Get a FREE one year supply of Vitamin D and 5 travel packs today! This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we discuss the new Brad Pitt action film Bullet Train and continue our Studio Ghibli Movie Series with My Neighbor Totoro! Plus, a […]
The post Podcast: Bullet Train / My Neighbor Totoro – Episode 494 first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Ron Howard Writers: Screenplay by William Nicholson, Story by Don MacPherson and William Nicholson Stars: Viggo Mortensen, Colin Farrell, Joel Edgerton Synopsis: A Rescue mission is assembled in Thailand where a group of young boys and their soccer coach are trapped in a system of underground caves that are flooding In June 2018, the […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Thirteen Lives’ Never Lives Up to Its Material first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Dan Trachtenberg Writer: Dan Trachtenberg and Patrick Aison Stars: Amber Midthunder, Dakota Beavers, and Dane DiLiegro Synopsis: The origin story of the Predator in the world of the Comanche Nation 300 years ago. Naru, a skilled female warrior, fights to protect her tribe against one of the first highly-evolved Predators to land on Earth. Prey, the prequel to […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Prey’ Does Everything Predator did… Better first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Quinn Shephard Writer: Quinn Shephard Stars: Zoey Deutch, Dylan O’Brien, and Mia Isaac Synopsis: An ambitious young woman finds followers and fame when she poses as the survivor of a deadly attack, but she soon learns that online notoriety comes with a terrible price. Every year we get these kinds of snarky satires and each time it’s a […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Not Okay’ is Just That first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: B.J. Novak Writer: B.J. Novak Stars: B.J. Novak, Boyd Holbrook, Dove Cameron, Issa Rae, Ashton Kutcher, and J. Smith-Cameron. Synopsis: A radio host from New York City attempts to solve the murder of a girl he hooked up with and travels down south to investigate the circumstances of her death and discover what happened […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Vengeance’ Is An Enjoyable, Unfocused Comedy from B.J. Novak first appeared on InSession Film.
Peeping Jane Seymour’s new cozy detective series Harry Wild reminded me of some of her early science fiction work and entertaining swashbucklers. Here’s a sampling of fanciful romps from Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman. The Scarlet Pimpernel Anthony Andrews (Brideshead Revisited) and Ian McKellan (Lord of the Rings) join the resplendent Seymour in this spirited […]
The post A Fun Jane Seymour Trio first appeared on InSession Film.
When Pierre Étaix died on October 14, 2016, aged 87, he was a figure who only just recently had a second life in film. For years, his movies were out of distribution and left in vaults to wither away until they were rediscovered and restored in 2009. Étaix was someone Jerry Lewis described as a […]
The post The Lost And Found World Of Pierre Étaix first appeared on InSession Film.
There’s a reason Arnold Schwarzenegger is one of the biggest action movie stars, if not THE biggest. Just say his name and you may feel the urge to yell, “Get to da choppa!” or “Hasta la vista, baby!” or “It’s not a tumor!” There are two reasons to celebrate The Governator this week – not […]
The post Poll: What is your favorite film starring or co-starring Arnold Schwarzenegger? first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by the film The Lost City. Follow us on social media for your chance to win a FREE Blu-ray! This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we discuss the latest satire to hit Hulu in Not Okay and continue our Studio Ghibli Movie Series with the 1986 film […]
The post Podcast: Not Okay / Castle in the Sky – Episode 493 first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Halina Reijn Writer: Sarah DeLappe and Kristen Roupenian Stars: Amandla Stenberg, Maria Bakalova, and Rachel Sennott Synopsis: When a group of rich 20-somethings plan a hurricane party at a remote family mansion, a party game turns deadly in this fresh and funny look at backstabbing, fake friends, and one party gone very, very wrong. […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Bodies Bodies Bodies’ is a Crafty and Darkly Witty Slasher That Bathes in Social Anxieties first appeared on InSession Film.
Shudder’s collection is incredibly vast and varied. They curate classics, new releases, and cult favorites. I can always find something to watch, no matter which subgenre I’m in the mood for. Here are a few of the under-seen gems that Shudder will be resurrecting in August 2022: August 1: Season of the Witch (1972) Director: […]
The post Coming to Shudder: August 2022 — Undead Gems first appeared on InSession Film.
Hotel Du Nord (1938) Marcel Carne builds around a fallen hotel a place for social outcasts, namely two couples from the working class in different times of their lives. One is a young couple who plan to kill themselves because they are poor, yet one cannot go through with it, while another is a pimp […]
The post Criterion Releases: August 2022 first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Wolfgang Petersen Writer: Andrew W. Marlowe Stars: Harrison Ford, Gary Oldman, Glenn Close Synopsis: Communist radicals hijack Air Force One with the U.S. President and his family on board. The Vice President negotiates from Washington D.C., while the President, a veteran, fights to rescue the hostages on board. The summer of 1997 had its […]
The post Film at 25: ‘Air Force One’ is Still an Entertaining Thrill Ride first appeared on InSession Film.
Together or separate, tumultuous thespians Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton left their mark on classic film. Here’s a chronological sample of costume dramas, medieval splendor, and larger than life epics featuring the two time couple. Little Women A blonde Elizabeth Taylor joins June Allyson (The Glenn Miller Story), Janet Leigh (Touch of Evil), Margaret […]
The post Larger than Life Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton Pictures first appeared on InSession Film.
Shudder is not just a strong proponent of horror classics and “undead” gems. They are also champions of fresh voices within the genre. Every month, they add a few new feature films to the platform. Here’s what coming to Shudder in August 2022: August 1: Shudder Exclusive: Allegoria Director: Spider One Starring: Krsy Fox, […]
The post Coming to Shudder: August 2022 — New Original & Exclusive Films first appeared on InSession Film.
What would the world be without the Totoros of the world? On Episode 492 of the InSession Film podcast, we announced our latest movie series – Studio Ghibli. Their affinity for nature, fantasy, spirituality, and childlike innocence has arguably made them THE premier animation studio, and arguably the most beautiful. It seems we’ll have to […]
The post Poll: What is your favorite Studio Ghibli film? first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by Libsyn. Start your podcast today and get your first two months free when you use the code FRIEND at checkout! This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we discuss Jordan Peele’s new film Nope and begin our Studio Ghibli Movie Series with the 1984 Hayao Miyazaki film […]
The post Podcast: Nope / Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind – Episode 492 first appeared on InSession Film.
Famed for her international beauty, classic films, and then scandals as well as awards – Ingrid Bergman’s talent is well known even to the movie layman, thanks to a big name picture or two. Her career, however, is more than just tent pole pieces. Here’s a varied countdown highlighting some of Bergman’s appetizing repertoire. […]
The post An Ingrid Bergman Potluck first appeared on InSession Film.
As far as its position within the queer cinematic canon, Vincent Minelli’s Tea and Sympathy, based on the play of the same name by Robert Anderson, is a hard film to pin down. Based on what I, an amateur film historian, had heard from various sources, the film was not much more than a fear-mongering, […]
The post The Unexpected Understanding of Tea and Sympathy first appeared on InSession Film.
Well, we have come to it. This will be the final article in the long series: Criterion Crunch Time. And because of that, now I must attempt the impossible. I must find a way to wrap up two and a half years of articles in one final piece. And that oddly makes a bit of […]
The post Criterion Crunch Time: The Goodbye first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Dean Fleischer-Camp Writer: Dean Fleischer-Camp, Elisabeth Holm, and Nick Paley Stars: Jenny Slate, Dean Fleischer-Camp, and Isabella Rossellini Synopsis: Feature adaptation of the animated short film interviewing a mollusk named Marcel. Marcel the Shell with Shoes On will go down as one of, if not the, most adorable film of the year. If you’re familiar with the Jenny […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Marcel the Shell with Shoes On’ is a Shell of a Great Time first appeared on InSession Film.
On our first ever Women InSession Podcast, Kristin Battestella and Zita Short discuss why they love classic movies and offer up their Top 3 classic films! We hope that you enjoy our inaugural episode of our new Women InSession podcast on the network. We are very excited about this new venture and the voices that […]
The post Women InSession: Top 3 Classic Films – Episode 1 first appeared on InSession Film.
Into the summer, more and more screenings have come across the television with the continuing introduction of older pieces of cinema on the Criterion Channel. There are always themes every month with an incredible slate of movies part of it. Boxing films, a noir in color, and Richard Linklater’s works were one collection to be […]
The post Highlights From The Criterion Channel: Part 2 first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Jordan Peele Writer: Jordan Peele Stars: Daniel Kaluuya, Keke Palmer, Steven Yeun, and Brandon Perea Synopsis: The residents of a lonely gulch in inland California bear witness to an uncanny and chilling discovery. Jordan Peele loves harking back to history and stitching it up with contemporary standards. His X ingredient is always horror, which […]
The post Movie review: ‘Nope’ Is Jordan’s Peele’s Twisted Western first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Anthony Russo and Joe Russo Writer: Joe Russo, Christopher Markus, and Stephen McFeely Stars: Ryan Gosling, Chris Evans, and Ana de Armas Synopsis: When the CIA’s most skilled operative-whose true identity is known to none-accidentally uncovers dark agency secrets, a psychopathic former colleague puts a bounty on his head, setting off a global manhunt by international assassins. […]
The post Movie Review: ‘The Gray Man’ is The Russos Fight and Travel Bore-Fest first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Chris Williams Writer: Chris Williams and Nell Benjamin, Stars: Karl Urban, Dan Stevens, Jared Harris Synopsis: When a young girl stows away on the ship of a legendary sea monster hunter, they launch an epic journey into uncharted waters – and make history to boot. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-E-IGQCsPo[/embed]
The post Movie Review: ‘The Sea Beast’ or How To Train Your (Sea)dragon first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Sophie Hyde Writer: Katy Brand Stars: Emma Thompson and Daryl McCormack Synopsis: Nancy Stokes, a 55-year-old widow, is yearning for some adventure, human connection and some sex–some good sex. It’s a particularly British thing to be squeamish around the topics of sex and sexuality. Such things aren’t meant for polite discussion. It calls to mind the old farce […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Good Luck To You, Leo Grande’ is Funny and Fearless first appeared on InSession Film.
How would you react if you encountered a UFO? According to Jordan Peele, it would probably be some variation of, “Hell naw,” as uttered by Keke Palmer in this weekend’s extra-terrestrial(?) thriller Nope. Hollywood has depicted alien visitors and space crafts in a variety of ways (some horrific, some as religious experiences), and they’ll continue […]
The post Poll: What is the best UFO film? first appeared on InSession Film.
InSession Film · Marcel the Shell with Shoes On / Top 3 Movies About Finding Family – Episode 491 This week on Episode 491 of the InSession Film Podcast, inspired by our review of Marcel the Shell with Shoes On, we discuss our favorite movies about finding family. Okay, so this is a pretty broad […]
The post List: Top 3 Movies About Finding Family first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by Athletic Greens. Get a FREE one year supply of Vitamin D and 5 travel packs today! This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we discuss A24’s latest in Marcel the Shell with Shoes On and our Top 3 movies about finding family! Plus, we reveal our new […]
The post Podcast: Marcel the Shell with Shoes On / Top 3 Movies About Finding Family – Episode 491 first appeared on InSession Film.
Minions: The Rise of Gru marks the fifth film in the Despicable Me franchise, becoming the leading staple for NBC Universal and Illumination Entertainment. Having become a 21st-century icon, the franchise has been highly profitable on budgets less than what Pixar/Disney gives for their animated films. They are memorable characters and the movies are not […]
The post Yellow Fever: The Enduring Series Of Gru And His Minions first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Claire Denis Writers: Christine Angot and Claire Denis Stars: Vincent Lindon, Juliette Binoche, Grégoire Colin, Bulle Ogier, and Mati Diop Synopsis: A love triangle story about a woman caught between two men, her long-time partner, and his best friend, her former lover. After the success of 2018’s English-language High Life, Claire Denis returns to […]
The post Movie Review: Vincent Lindon and Juliette Binoche Save ‘Both Sides of the Blade’ first appeared on InSession Film.
InSession Film · Thor: Love and Thunder / Top 3 Movies About Lost Faith – Episode 490 This week on Episode 490 of the InSession Film Podcast, inspired by our review of Thor: Love and Thunder, we discuss our favorite movies about lost faith. One of the more fascinating aspects about Love and Thunder is […]
The post List: Top 3 Movies About Lost Faith first appeared on InSession Film.
July 24th marks the 70th anniversary of one of Western’s greatest tales, Fred Zinnemann’s High Noon starring Gary Cooper, Grace Kelly, Thomas Mitchell, and Lloyd Bridges. Set in a New Mexico town on one morning, Cooper plays Marshall Will Kane, retiring and recently married to a beautiful Quaker named Amy (Kelly) who is against all […]
The post The Politics And Morality Of High Noon: A Retrospective first appeared on InSession Film.
Inspiration for any movie has to start somewhere. It can be a novel, a television show, a graphic novel, or even an original idea. And sometimes, it can be based on another film entirely, in most cases as an expansion of a short films. Such is the case with this weekend’s Marcel the Shell with […]
The post Poll: What is the best film based on a short film? first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by Libsyn. Start your podcast today and get your first two months free when you use the code FRIEND at checkout! This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we are joined by Billy from We Watched A Thing to discuss the latest Marvel entry Thor: Love and Thunder […]
The post Podcast: Thor: Love and Thunder / Top 3 Movies About Lost Faith – Episode 490 first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Patrick Hughes Writers: Robbie Fox and Chris Bremner Starring: Kevin Hart, Woody Harrelson, Kaley Cuoco, Jasmine Matthews, and Ellen Barkin. Synopsis: The world’s deadliest assassin and New York’s biggest screw-up are mistaken for each other at an Airbnb rental. Kevin Hart has reshaped his film career as a decent actor doing entertaining enough projects […]
The post Movie Review: ‘The Man from Toronto’ Is The Worst Action Film of the Year first appeared on InSession Film.
I was born and raised in Miami, Florida, and still live there despite political grifting, never-ending road rage, and constant invasion of newbies who want to come in to avoid state income tax. It’s still expensive in Florida wherever you go, but there is sun all year round, and who doesn’t like a condo on […]
The post Welcome To Miami: The Magic City’s Hottest Shooting Locations first appeared on InSession Film.
Shudder’s collection is incredibly vast and varied. They curate classics, new releases, and cult favorites. I can always find something to watch, no matter which subgenre I’m in the mood for. Here are a few of the under-seen gems that Shudder will be resurrecting in July 2022: July 1: Lifeforce (1985) Director: Tobe […]
The post Coming to Shudder: July 2022 – Undead Gems first appeared on InSession Film.
Natalie Portman now yields Mjölnir as Mighty Thor, prompting us to look back at her mighty career. The Israeli-born actress made her acting debut in Leon: The Professional at age twelve, and has since become one of Hollywood’s most crucial voices both on and offscreen, from any one of her magnetic performances to shedding light […]
The post Poll: What is Natalie Portman’s best performance? first appeared on InSession Film.
InSession Film · Good Luck to You, Leo Grande / Top 5 Movies of 2022 (so far) – Episode 489 This week on Episode 489 of the InSession Film Podcast, as we do every year at this time, we discussed our Top 5 movies of the year so far. After the last two years, it’s […]
The post List: Top 5 Movies of 2022 (so far) first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by Athletic Greens. Get a FREE one year supply of Vitamin D and 5 travel packs today! This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we discuss Sophie Hyde’s film Good Luck to You, Leo Grande and our Top 5 movies of the year so far! Plus, a few […]
The post Podcast: Good Luck to You, Leo Grande / Top 5 Movies of 2022 (so far) – Episode 489 first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Emma Holly Jones Writer: Suzanne Allain Stars: Freida Pinto, Sope Dìrísù, Zawe Ashton Synopsis: A young woman courts a mysterious wealthy suitor in 19th century England. The modern movie theater experience seems to have little room for romance. If it’s not got a man on a mission or a tough woman, because she can’t […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Mr. Malcolm’s List’ Checks All The Boxes first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Nathalie Álvarez Mesén Writer: Nathalie Álvarez Mesén and Maria Camila Arias Stars: Wendy Chinchilla Araya, Ana Julia Porras Espinoza, and Daniel Castañeda Rincón Synopsis: In a remote village in Costa Rica, Clara, a withdrawn 40-year-old woman, experiences a sexual and mystical awakening as she begins a journey to free herself from the repressive religious and social conventions […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Clara Sola is a Carrie-like Coming-of-Age Tale with Magical Realism Attached first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Taika Waititi Writers: Taika Waititi, Jennifer Kaytin Robinson Stars: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Christian Bale Synopsis: Thor enlists the help of Valkyrie, Korg, and ex-girlfriend Jane Foster to fight Gorr the God Butcher, who intends to make the gods extinct. During the inception of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor was the one hero who […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’ Brings The Thunder From Down Under first appeared on InSession Film.
After a year of what seem to be studio directors with their own flair that get enough credibility to do whatever they want, Ryan and Jay tackle the modern master of this directorial genre, Ridley Scott, aka The Riddler. Known for making some of the best films of all time, and some of the worst […]
The post Podcast: Ridley Scott Movie Series first appeared on InSession Film.
Queerness has always been a part of motion pictures, only the ways in which it has historically been portrayed has varied from decade-to-decade over the past 130 years. Those with insight to the pre-1927 silent film era will know that queer characters, be that homosexuals or “cross-dressers” served as subjects of amusement in American cinema, […]
The post Be Gay, Do Crime: A look back at ‘Swoon’, ‘The Living End’, and ‘Bound’ first appeared on InSession Film.
This week on the Extra Film Podcast, Ryan and Jay begin their James Cameron Movie Series with his classic film The Terminator and also review Scott Derrickson’s latest horror film The Black Phone! The time has come. We’ve been looking forward to this for a long time. For anyone that knows Ryan, you’ll know that […]
The post Podcast: The Terminator (Revisited) / The Black Phone – Extra Film first appeared on InSession Film.
Summertime (1955) One of two re-releases from Criterion, the last film before David Lean went into his epic film phase was a colorful romantic comedy starring the great Katherine Hepburn as an American tourist who visits Italy and soon falls for a charming native (Rossano Brazzi). Hepburn is a single woman breaking out of her […]
The post Criterion Releases: July 2022 first appeared on InSession Film.
Shudder is not just a strong proponent of horror classics and “undead” gems. They are also champions of fresh voices within the genre. Every month, they add a few new features to the platform. Here’s what’s coming to Shudder in July 2022: July 7 Shudder Exclusive: On the 3rd Day (Al 3er día) Director: Daniel […]
The post Coming to Shudder: July 2022 — New Original & Exclusive Films first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Scott Derrickson Writer: Scott Derrickson and C. Robert Cargill Stars: Mason Thames, Madeleine McGraw, and Ethan Hawke Synopsis: After being abducted by a child killer and locked in a soundproof basement, a 13-year-old boy starts receiving calls on a disconnected phone from the killer’s previous victims. The Black Phone marks the third feature-length team-up between Writer C. Robert […]
The post Movie Review: ‘The Black Phone’ is an Ode to B-Movie Horror first appeared on InSession Film.
For those who listen to the InSession Film Podcast, you’ll know we recently concluded our Steven Spielberg Movie Series. For those who didn’t listen, for context, the series was mostly focused on the “lesser talked” movies in his filmography. However, we did end it with Jurassic Park and E.T. given the release of Jurassic World: […]
The post Ranking: Steven Spielberg first appeared on InSession Film.
Where did the time go? In the span of just six months we have seen a new Caped Crusader, a biopic on the literal King of Rock & Roll, Nicolas Cage playing Nicolas Cage, the returning of David Cronenberg, two Pixar films, at least three legacy sequels (one of which just hit crossed the billion […]
The post Poll: What is your favorite film of 2022 so far? first appeared on InSession Film.
InSession Film · Elvis / Top 3 Baz Luhrmann Scenes – Episode 488 This week on Episode 488 of the InSession Film Podcast, inspired by our review of Elvis, we discuss our favorite Baz Luhrmann scenes. Luhrmann is one of the most unique filmmakers working today. His movies may lack narrative coherency at times, but […]
The post List: Top 3 Baz Luhrmann Scenes first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Kyle Balda Writer: Matthew Fogel Stars: Steve Carell, Taraji P. Henson, Michelle Yeoh, RZA, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Julie Anderws Synopsis: The untold story of one twelve-year-old’s dream to become the world’s greatest supervillain. Since the dawn of computer animation, much value has been placed on photorealism – how much can a computer generate something […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Minions: The Rise of Gru’ Lets Cartoons Be Cartoons first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by Libsyn. Start your podcast today and get your first two months free when you use the code FRIEND at checkout! This episode is also brought to you by Sports Engine. Download the app today to share schedules, chat, RSVP to games and more. They are also giving […]
The post Podcast: Elvis / Top 3 Baz Luhrmann Scenes – Episode 488 first appeared on InSession Film.
Popular culture is a funny thing. When something joins the cultural consciousness, one can never tell what impact it will have on the art in of itself. If a movie quotation, or moment gains access to those who have not yet seen it, you cannot help but be affected. Whether it be Ezekiel 25:17 from […]
The post Criterion Crunch Time: ‘A Cry in the Dark’ first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: John Woo Writers: Mike Werb, Michael Colleary Starring: John Travolta, Nicolas Cage, Joan Allen, Gina Gershon Synopsis: To foil a terrorist plot, an FBI agent undergoes facial transplant surgery to assume the identity of the criminal mastermind who murdered his only son, but the criminal wakes up prematurely and seeks revenge. The summer of […]
The post Film at 25: ‘Face/Off’ is a Wildly Successful Action Gem That Still Works first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Baz Luhrmann Writers: Baz Luhrmann, Sam Bromell, and Craig Pearce Stars: Austin Butler, Tom Hanks, and Olivia DeJonge Synopsis: From his childhood in Tupelo, Mississippi to his rise to stardom starting in Memphis, Tennessee and his conquering of Las Vegas, Nevada, Elvis Presley becomes the first rock ‘n roll star and changes the world with his music. If […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Elvis’ Only Succeeds At Being a Flamboyant Mess first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Mohammad Rasoulof Writer: Mohammad Rasoulof Stars: Reza Akhlaghirad, Soudabeh Beizaee, Nasim Adabi Synopsis: A goldfish farmer in a small Iranian village faces financial ruin when his river-sourced water supply is cut off. First released in 2017 as part of the Un Certain Regard selection of the Cannes Film Festival, A Man of Integrity, Mohammad […]
The post Movie Review: ‘A Man of Integrity’ Presents the Asphyxiating Dilemma Between Morality and Survival first appeared on InSession Film.
Monaco. A small nation-state within France and a place where the rich come to live and avoid paying taxes. For Hollywood, Monaco is immediately associated with Princess Grace Kelly who went from winning an Oscar for The Country Girl to marrying Prince Rainer III in 1956. Even before Grace Kelly, Monaco was known as […]
The post A Day In Monaco: Films Set In The Famous Principality first appeared on InSession Film.
We’ve done a lot of Movie Series’ over the years and this is among the most daunting. Steven Spielberg is one of the GOAT’s of cinema, obviously, and he’s been studied to death for decades now. So how do we differentiate ourselves while diving into Spielberg’s filmography? Well, instead of focusing on his most popular […]
The post Podcast: Steven Spielberg Movie Series first appeared on InSession Film.
Billy Wilder was a director with an extensive color palette. Ask a number of Old Hollywood enthusiasts what his defining trait as a filmmaker is and you will get a myriad of answers. Is it his knack for farce? Is it his biting cynicism? Perhaps it is his clever, rat-a-tat dialogue? You can’t go wrong […]
The post List: Billy Wilder Ranked first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Craig Roberts Writer: Simon Farnaby Stars: Mark Rylance, Ian Porter, Sally Hawkins Synopsis: Maurice Flitcroft, a dreamer and unrelenting optimist, managed to gain entry to The British Open Golf Championship Qualifying in 1976 and subsequently shot the worst round in Open history, becoming a folk hero in the process. Sweet, inspirational, relatively low-stakes sports films will always have […]
The post Movie Review: ‘The Phantom of the Open’ Charms Despite Cliche first appeared on InSession Film.
Roll the red curtains, Baz Luhrmann has a new film coming out! It has been nearly a decade since The Great Gatsby, and this weekend Hollywood’s biggest (and arguably most fashionable) Bohemian returns with his latest film Elvis. For many movie lovers, you either love or hate his unapologetically grand and operatic style, but what […]
The post Poll: What is your favorite Baz Luhrmann film? first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by Athletic Greens. Get a FREE one year supply of Vitamin D and 5 travel packs today! This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we discuss Steven Spielberg’s E.T. for its 40th anniversary and also Pixar’s latest film in Lightyear! Plus, JD gives his thoughts on Jurassic World: […]
The post Podcast: E.T. (Revisited) / Lightyear – Episode 487 first appeared on InSession Film.
This week on the Extra Film Podcast, Ryan and Jay continue their Ridley Scott Movie Series with American Gangster, and also review the latest from Cooper Raiff with Cha Cha Real Smooth! American Gangster is such an interesting outlier in the Riddler’s filmography as it’s the only film of its type. Transitioning from sci-fi and […]
The post Podcast: American Gangster / Cha Cha Real Smooth – Extra Film first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by the film The Contractor. Follow us on social media for your chance to win! This week on the InSession Film Podcast, Ryan fills in for JD to review Steven Spielberg’s 1993 classic Jurassic Park, and we follow that with the latest in this never-ending saga Jurassic World […]
The post Podcast: Jurassic Park / Jurassic World Dominion – Episode 486 first appeared on InSession Film.
There is no middle ground when it comes to Lars Von Trier’s films. You either love them or hate them. His films have always provoked a strong reaction with many defending his radical style of storytelling and others condemning the Danish director who is perceived as openly exploitative of violence and misogynistic in tone. But […]
The post The House That Lars Built: Inside Von Trier’s Madness And Genius first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Jeremiah Zagar Writers: Taylor Materne and Will Fetters Stars: Adam Sandler, Kenny Smith, Anthony Edwards, and Juancho Hernangómez Synopsis: A basketball scout discovers a phenomenal street ball player while in Spain and sees the prospect as his opportunity to get back into the NBA. Adam Sandler is often seen as acting marmite; there is no doubting this […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Hustle’ is a Swish for Sandler first appeared on InSession Film.
Happy belated birthday Chris! We have two reasons to celebrate Hollywood’s most charming man this week; along with his birthday, we will also hear his sultry voice in Pixar’s Lightyear as the titular space ranger. We all associate Captain America as Evans’s defining role, but the man has branched out way beyond that, even working […]
The post Poll: What is your favorite Chris Evans performance that is NOT Steve Rogers? first appeared on InSession Film.
The Criterion Channel has a certain reputation. With a few exceptions, most movies in their original collection can be described as classics (if you’re being a kind cinephile) or pretentious (if you want to be a jerk about it). But the streaming service is different, or at least can be. Because of the large number […]
The post Criterion Crunch Time: ‘Saving Face’ first appeared on InSession Film.
Directors: Mariano Cohn and Gastón Duprat Writer: Mariano Cohn, Andres Duprat, and Gastón Duprat Stars: Penélope Cruz, Antonio Banderas, and Oscar Martinez Synopsis: A wealthy businessman hires a famous filmmaker to help make a smash hit film. Official Competition is a hilarious satire that showcases actors and directors’ self-importance and arrogance through well-executed comedic set […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Official Competition’ is a Hilarious Satire About Actor’s Self-Importance first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Angus MacLane Writer: Jason Headley and Angus MacLane Stars: Chris Evans, Keke Palmer, and Josh Brolin Synopsis: While spending years attempting to return home, marooned Space Ranger Buzz Lightyear encounters an army of ruthless robots commanded by Zurg who are attempting to steal his fuel source. In 1995, with the release of the original Toy Story, we saw […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Lightyear’ Blasts Off, But Never Reaches Emotional Heights first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Colin Trevorrow Writers: Colin Trevorrow and Emily Carmichael Stars: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, and Isabella Sermon Synopsis: Four years after the destruction of Isla Nublar, dinosaurs now live–and hunt–alongside humans all over the world. This fragile balance will reshape the future and determine, once and for all, whether human beings are to remain […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Jurassic World Dominion’ Returns For a Final Long Roar first appeared on InSession Film.
More people worldwide have spent money on seeing Top Gun: Maverick in a movie theater than the combined world grosses of Moonfall, Dog, The Lost City, Ambulance, The Northman, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, and Everything Everywhere All at Once.* Even with the wonky math of not wanting to “take a chance on something,” […]
The post Op-Ed: The Inevitability of the Legacyquel first appeared on InSession Film.
Pedro Almodóvar announced he will be shooting his first full-length English language feature (The Human Voice is a short film) this year starring Cate Blanchett. It has been rumored to be with Almodóvar for a long time, becoming the next great international director to take a shot in this language. Some have been successful, others […]
The post First English Words: Five English-Language Films By Five Non-English Directors first appeared on InSession Film.
The legacy sequel is Hollywood’s new favorite child. Sometimes straddling the line between sequel and reboot, the “legacyquel” has become Hollywood’s newest way to continue popular franchises while expanding on them with new characters, themes, and a sugary dose of nostalgia. Often taking place in the same timeline but many years later, some legacy sequels […]
The post Poll: What is the best legacy sequel? first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by Athletic Greens. Get a FREE one year supply of Vitamin D and 5 travel packs today! This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we discuss David Cronenberg’s latest movie Crimes of the Future and continue our Steven Spielberg Movie Series with his 2012 film Lincoln! One of […]
The post Podcast: Crimes of the Future / Lincoln – Episode 485 first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Julia Hart Writer: Julia Hart and Jordan Horowitz Stars: Grace VanderWaal, Elijah Richardson, Judy Greer, Al Madrigal, Uma Thurman, and Judd Hirsch Synopsis: Join Stargirl Caraway as she journeys out of Mica into a bigger world of music, dreams, and possibility. Stargirl was a surprise hit for Disney+ since it was released during the […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Hollywood Stargirl’ is the 2022 Sequel No One Asked For first appeared on InSession Film.
Through the first five months, I’ve been on a tri-weekly dose of films from the Criterion Channel as it has reached three full years of business. Still finding new films to watch and getting reacquainted with many others, the continuing themes every month diversify the taste buds of how great this streamer is regarding international […]
The post Highlights From The Criterion Channel, Part 1 first appeared on InSession Film.
“Long live the new flesh.” David Cronenberg is cinema’s most delectably disgusting director. Whether he’s working in body horror, crime thriller, or a car crash of sexual awakenings, Cronenberg has always had a beguiling knack at blending the grotesque with the sophisticated. His films are transgressive, fetishistic, and gross, yet they still richly tap into […]
The post Poll: What is David Cronenberg’s best film? first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: David Cronenberg Writer: David Cronenberg Stars: Viggo Mortensen, Léa Seydoux, Kristen Stewart Synopsis: Humans adapt to a synthetic environment, with new transformations and mutations. With his partner Caprice, Saul Tenser, celebrity performance artist, publicly showcases the metamorphosis of his organs in avant-garde performances. Everybody has their favorite directors at different stages of their lives, but for me, my […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Crimes of the Future’ has David Cronenberg Blending the Old with the New in Tittilating Fashion first appeared on InSession Film.
Critiques of all types of narrative media are full of overused sayings and cliches. “There are seven kinds of stories.” “Style over substance.” “It was all a dream.” “All’s well that ends well.” The list goes on and on. But today, let’s focus on one we have all heard hundreds, if not thousands, of times. […]
The post Criterion Crunch Time: ‘Seven Beauties’ first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Joseph Kosisnski Writer: Ehren Kruger, Eric Warren Singer, and Christopher McQuarrie Stars: Tom Cruise, Jennifer Connelly, and Miles Teller Synopsis: After more than 30 years of service as one of the Navy’s top aviators, Pete Mitchell is where he belongs, pushing the envelope as a courageous test pilot and dodging the advancement in rank […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ is a Spectacle that Sets the Standard for the Summer Blockbuster first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Loren Bouchard, Bernard Derriman Writers: Loren Bouchard, Nora Smith Stars: H. Jon Benjamin, John Roberts, Kristen Schaal Synopsis: The Belchers try to save the restaurant from closing as a sinkhole forms in front of it, while the kids try to solve a mystery that could save their family’s restaurant. There are millions of us […]
The post Movie Review: ‘The Bob’s Burgers Movie’ is a Sumptuous Feast first appeared on InSession Film.
Shudder’s collection is incredibly vast and varied. They curate classics, new releases, and cult favorites. I can always find something to watch, no matter which subgenre I’m in the mood for. Here are a few of the under-seen gems that Shudder will be resurrecting in June 2022: June 1: Daughters of Darkness (1971) […]
The post Coming to Shudder: June 2022 — Undead Gems first appeared on InSession Film.
Shudder is not just a strong proponent of horror classics and hidden gems. They are also champions of fresh voices within the genre. Every month, they add a few new features to the platform. Here’s what’s coming to Shudder in June 2022: June 10 Offseason Director: Mickey Keating Starring: Jocelin Donahue, Joe Swanberg, Richard […]
The post Coming to Shudder: June 2022 – New Original & Exclusive Films first appeared on InSession Film.
Many current filmmakers aim, and miss, for the past glory of the golden age of Hollywood, whether that be adapting the life stories of history’s biggest stars into standard biopics, trying to capture the complexities of the studio system, or using distinctly outdated aesthetics as a creative gimmick. The 1950s is a decade particularly difficult […]
The post Op-Ed: Todd Hayne’s ‘Far From Heaven’ Honors Sirk’s ‘All That Heaven Allows’ In The Best Way Possible first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Akiva Schaffer Writer: Dan Gregor & Doug Mand Stars: John Mulaney, Andy Samberg, KiKi Layne, Will Arnett Synopsis: Thirty years after their popular television show ended, chipmunks Chip and Dale live very different lives. When a cast member from the original series mysteriously disappears, the pair must reunite to save their friend. I’ll get […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers’ Is Loads of Fun for Everyone first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Steven Spielberg Writer: David Koepp Starring: Jeff Goldblum, Julianne Moore, Vince Vaughn, Pete Postlethwaite Synopsis: A research team is sent to the Jurassic Park Site B island to study the dinosaurs there, while an InGen team approaches with another agenda. How was Steven Spielberg going to follow up Schindler’s List? After enjoying one of […]
The post Film at 25: ‘The Lost World: Jurassic Park’ Remains a Rare Spielberg Misfire first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by Libsyn. Start your podcast today and get your first two months free when you use the code ISF at checkout! This week on the InSession Film Podcast, Jay fills in for Brendan as we review Alex Garland’s latest in Men and continue our Steven Spielberg Movie Series […]
The post Podcast: Men / The Adventures of Tintin – Episode 483 first appeared on InSession Film.
This week on the InSession Film Podcast, Ryan and Jay continue their Ridley Scott Movie Series with his 1991 film Thelma & Louise and they review the latest on Disney+ in Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers! We may have taken a little bit of a dip last week with Legend, but we are back to […]
The post Podcast: Thelma & Louise / Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers – Extra Film first appeared on InSession Film.
InSession Film · Munich / Top 3 Revenge Movies – Episode 482 This week on Episode 482 of the InSession Film Podcast, inspired by our review of Munich, we discuss our favorite revenge movies. Revenge movies have been a staple in Hollywood for decades now, and have even defined certain genres, that it makes narrowing […]
The post List: Top 3 Revenge Movies first appeared on InSession Film.
Cannes is about glitz and glamor and cinéastes coming together from around the world. The Palme d’Or is the ultimate prize, but as much as it’s about celebrating new films, Cannes is notorious for booing the living hell of films it sees as trash. Well, there’s booing, and then there’s jeering and walking out. The […]
The post Sh!t Cannes’d: The Worst Receptions Ever Given In Festival History first appeared on InSession Film.
Since the golden age of cinema, there has been something quite comforting about the western genre, which made them perfect for a quiet Sunday afternoon in front of the T.V. They often followed a simplistic and formulaic narrative that also saw a long list of star-studded actors (John Wayne, Henry Fonda, Randolph Scott, James Stewart), […]
The post Op-ed: Evolution of the Modern Western first appeared on InSession Film.
Golden lions, tigers, and bears, oh my! But arguably the most powerful of them all is not even an animal, but the Golden Palm, also known as the Palme d’Or. Introduced in 1955, replacing the Grand Prix as the Cannes Film Festival’s highest honor, the Palme d’Or has since become the most prestigious in all […]
The post Poll: What is your favorite Palme d’Or winner? first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by Athletic Greens. Get a FREE one year supply of Vitamin D and 5 travel packs today! This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we are joined by our very own Editor-In-Chief Dave Giannini as we continue our Steven Spielberg Movie Series with Munich! We also discuss our […]
The post Podcast: Munich / Top 3 Revenge Movies – Episode 482 first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Jerrod Carmichael Writer: Ari Katcher, Ryan Welch Stars: Jerrod Carmichael, Christopher Abbott, Tiffany Haddish Synopsis: Jerrod Carmichael makes his directorial debut and stars in On the Count of Three, a darkly comic feature about two best friends, Val (Carmichael) and Kevin (Christopher Abbott), on the last day of their lives. One watches Jerrod Carmichael’s […]
The post Movie Review: ‘On the Count of Three’ Is a Shallow and Uneventful Character Drama first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Keith Thomas Writer: Scott Teems Stars: Zac Efron, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, Michael Greyeyes Synopsis: A young girl tries to understand how she mysteriously gained the power to set things on fire with her mind. Of the myriad questions we could be asking, as the movie-going public, there’s only one that matters when it comes […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Firestarter’ Never Catches On first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Eskil Vogt Writer: Eskil Vogt Stars: Rakel Lenora Fløttum, Alva Brynsmo Ramstad, Mina Yasmin Bremseth Asheim, Sam Ashraf. Synopsis: Four children become friends during the summer holidays. Out of sight from the adults, they discover they have hidden powers. While exploring their newfound abilities, their innocent play takes a dark turn and strange things […]
The post Movie Review: ‘The Innocents’ Explores the Undefinable Private Life of Children first appeared on InSession Film.
On March 5th of this year, Pier Paolo Pasolini would have been a centenarian. In the history of Italian cinema, Pasolini is in a whole category of his own with various works of critical satire of modern Italy with its consumerism and cultural alienation. He was a devout communist who was not shy of expressing […]
The post Pasolini At 100: A Career Of Shock, Awe, And Murder first appeared on InSession Film.
Ralph Fiennes is well known for big villains like Voldemort and Schindler’s List or dramatic epics like The English Patient or his recent tenure as James Bond’s boss M. However, Fiennes’ impressive body of work includes numerous small, eclectic gems. Here are a few unusual throwbacks and underrated choices. The Duchess Keira Knightley (Atonement) […]
The post Op-Ed: Unusual Ralph Fiennes Pieces first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Michelangelo Frammartino Writers: Michelangelo Frammartino and Giovanna Giuliani Stars: Claudia Candusso, Paulo Cossi, Mila Costi Synopsis: The extraordinary adventure of the young members of the Piedmont Speleological Group who, having already explored all the caves of Northern Italy, changed course in August 1961 and went South to explore other caves unknown to man. In 2010, Italian […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Il Buco’ is Near Wordless, But Atmospheric and Alluring first appeared on InSession Film.
If you thought Hollywood remakes in general were a scary thought, imagine the reputation that horror remakes carry. It’s not uncommon for Hollywood to either reinterpret or re-franchise horror films (most notably slashers) just so they can hold on to the rights, making the horrific (pun intended) reputation of horror remakes a mostly earned one. […]
The post Poll: What is the best horror remake? first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by The Lost City. Follow us on social media for your chance to win a FREE digital code! This week on the InSession Film Podcast, Brian Eggert from Deep Focus Review joins us as we continue our Steven Spielberg Movie Series with War of the Worlds and discuss the […]
The post Podcast: Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness / War of the Worlds – Episode 481 first appeared on InSession Film.
After starting the year with Steven Soderbergh, Ryan and Jay take a look back in time at a classic Hollywood director that is as versatile as they come with Howard Hawks. In a career spanning close to fifty years, the man made some of the most successful, significant movies of his era, in various genres […]
The post Podcast: Howard Hawks Movie Series first appeared on InSession Film.
This week on the InSession Film Podcast, Ryan and Jay are joined by Brian Tallerico of RobertEbert.com as they continue their Ridley Scott Movie Series with Blade Runner, and they also talk about the new indie We’re All Going to the World’s Fair! A big thanks to Brian for joining us on the show once […]
The post Podcast: Blade Runner (Revisited) / We’re All Going to the World’s Fair – Extra Film first appeared on InSession Film.
Prior to World War II, writer Jan Struther was hired to write a series of short stories for The Times in Britain that reflected stories of, “an ordinary sort of woman who leads an ordinary sort of life.” Struther created the character Kay Miniver based on her own life experiences and expressed simple moments that […]
The post Mrs. Miniver: A Truly Patriotic War Picture first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Sam Raimi Writer: Michael Waldron Stars: Benedict Cumberbatch, Elizabeth Olsen, Benedict Wong Synopsis: Dr. Stephen Strange casts a forbidden spell that opens the doorway to the multiverse, including alternate versions of himself, whose threat to humanity is too great for the combined forces of Strange, Wong, and Wanda Maximoff In 2002, when director Sam […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ Works Because of Sam Raimi’s Wild Spirit first appeared on InSession Film.
InSession Film · Catch Me If You Can / Top 3 Cat & Mouse Films – Episode 480 This week on Episode 480 of the InSession Film Podcast, inspired by our review of Catch Me If You Can, we discuss our favorite “cat and mouse” movies. These type of movies have been a staple in […]
The post List: Top 3 Cat & Mouse films first appeared on InSession Film.
“May The 4th Be With You.” ever since those words were uttered in 1979 it was bound to the Star Wars franchise till the end of time. What I love about that pun is that it wasn’t created by the fans. It happened when Margaret Thatcher became the prime minister of the UK. Not only […]
The post List: Christian Eulinberg’s Star Wars Film Ranking first appeared on InSession Film.
The multiverse is all about breaking the rules. Consider that our excuse when we, a movie site, publish a poll that’s related to television. But with the release of BOTH Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and the finale of Moon Knight this week, what else is there to ask y’all? Phase 4 of […]
The post Poll: What is your favorite Marvel series on Disney+ thus far? first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by Athletic Greens. Get a FREE one year supply of Vitamin D and 5 travel packs today! This week on the InSession Film Podcast, Jay Ledbetter fills in for JD and we are joined by Mitchell Beaupre of Letterboxd as we continue our Steven Spielberg Movie Series with […]
The post Podcast: Catch Me If You Can / Top 3 Cat & Mouse Films – Episode 480 first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Angela Washko Writer: Angela Washko Stars: Roy Haylock, Patrick Holt, Simona Ioffe Synopsis: After an unlikely casting onto a reality television show, 47-year old suburban telemarketer Ed Popil leaves his job to pursue a full-time entertainment industry career as his drag queen alter ego, 1960’s era housewife Mrs. Kasha Davis. Despite its reputation for […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Workhorse Queen’ Proves that There’s Always Time for a Comeback! first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Martin Campbell Writer: Dario Scardapane Stars: Liam Neeson, Guy Pearce, Ray Stevenson, Taj Atwal, and Monica Bellucci Synopsis: An assassin-for-hire finds that he’s become a target after he refuses to complete a job for a dangerous criminal organization. It’s ironic that a film with a title like Memory is so forgettable, and it’s even […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Memory’ Will Be Forgotten As Soon As It Ends first appeared on InSession Film.
Academy Award season has passed. Debates over who will win and why have died down. However, the talk of snubs and “this person should have won” will continue. […]
The post How Were They NOT Nominated? Best Supporting Actress Edition first appeared on InSession Film.
This week on the InSession Film Podcast, Ryan and Jay are joined by InSession Film editor in chief Dave Giannini as they kickstart their Ridley Scott movie series with his 1979 classic Alien! They also discuss the latest Nicolas Cage vehicle The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent. As much as we enjoyed Howard Hawks, it’s […]
The post Podcast: Alien (Revisited) / The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent – Extra Film first appeared on InSession Film.
The Tales Of Hoffman (1951)
The follow-up to The Red Shoes was going to be a tall order, but The Archers – Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger – took a shot at adapting the titular opera by Jacques Offenbach for the screen. It is the story of a poet who envisions three separate stories of love and heartbreak with very different women—a mechanical performing doll, a bejeweled siren, and the consumptive daughter of a famous composer. It’s an exhilarating mix of lavish production design, glorious music, and exquisite choreography.
Shaft (1971)
The 2001 John Singleton remake and the 2019 sequel to it should not have been made. To even duplicate a major genre-making film from a major studio is just blasphemy. The novel and screenplay was written by a white man, Ernest Tidyman, but the story is a major Black Power tale under Gordon Parks’ direction. Richard Roundtree plays the titular character detective who investigates a kidnapping and gets caught in a turf war between gangs. Oozing masculinity with his streetwise manner towards suspects, Shaft is a triumph of urban (description) that was added on by Isaac Hayes’ Oscar-winning score that remains a classic.
Pink Flamingos (1972)
The king of trash is back and it’s arguably the most trashiest film John Waters has ever done. The infamous satire on (description) brings in his clan of misfits, led by Divine, as two families square off to be the, “Filthiest Person Alive.” If you know the climax of it, you know where the ultimate shock lies, and this “exercise in poor taste” solidified Waters as among the great underground filmmakers in his era. Everything – and I mean everything – was depicted with no filter and no trickery, completely raw.
Rouge (1987)
As part of Hong Kong’s Second Wave, Stanley Kwan dealt with stories about women and romance, as well as being one of the few notably gay figures in Chinese cinema. In his streak of early acclaimed films, Rouge follows a couple who discover the advertisement of a woman looking for her lost lover 50 years ago and begin to look through their history, only to discover the darker side of the past. It is a journey to a time seemingly glamorous, yet everything always has a spell that can never be broken.
Farewell Amor (2020)
Ekwa Msangi made her debut with this generational story of an Angolan family reuniting in New York years after being separated. While the husband is fully integrated, he must work with his wife and daughter to reconcile differences and relearn their own past in a different world. It is also a deep study of what it’s like to be new immigrants and formally detached from their roots, dealing with the frictions and consequences. It is humanism, even confined to a small apartment, that defines the family and its radical adjustment from continent to continent.
Follow me on Twitter: @brian_cine (Cine-A-Man)
The post Criterion Collection: June 2022 first appeared on InSession Film.
Times sure have changed. This is something I think of often, mainly because I spend way too much time on social media. The immediate reaction to “problematic” movies (or whatever piece of art) is immediate and often excessive. But throughout history, whether we are talking about music, movies, or physical art, times change quickly. What […]
The post Criterion Crunch Time: ‘Rambling Rose’ first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Gaspar Noé Writer: Gaspar Noé Stars: Dario Argento, Alex Lutz Synopsis: The last days of an elderly couple stricken by dementia. When talking about Argentine filmmaker Gaspar Noé, the first word that comes to mind is “provocateur.” He is a man that has done his best to test the audience’s patience when it […]
The post Movie Review: ‘Vortex’ is Gaspar Noé’s Most Approachable, Yet Disconsolate Film first appeared on InSession Film.
Steven Spielberg never stopped being our greatest living director. Sometimes he is so good at his job, he releases two mega hits in a single year. In 1993 it was Jurassic Park and Schindler’s List, and in 2002, exactly 20 years ago, he released Minority Report and Catch Me If You Can, one over the summer and the other over the holidays. Last weekend we reviewed the former on the main show, but this weekend we will be covering the latter, a procedural cat-and-mouse thriller that helped usher in a new kind of Spielberg film. The turn of the century saw Spielberg’s output becoming more daring and divisive, some being critically reevaluated over the past years; let’s pit them against one another.
What do you think is the best Spielberg film of the 21st century?
What is the best 21st century Spielberg movie?
The post Poll: What is the best 21st century Spielberg movie? first appeared on InSession Film.
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This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we discuss Robert Eggers’ new film The Northman and continue our Steven Spielberg Movie Series with his 2002 film Minority Report!
Given the nature of this episode, we channel our inner-most machismo as we growl our way through The Northman while talking out of breath from running during Minority Report. All joking aside, both films may be full of testerone but we do our best to dissect their bravado to get at the pathos underneath.
On that note, check out this week’s show and let us know what you think in the comment section. Thanks for listening and for supporting the InSession Film Podcast!
– Movie Review: The Northman (4:51)
Director: Robert Eggers
Writers: Robert Eggers, Sjón
Stars: Alexander Skarsgård, Nicole Kidman, Claes Bang, Anya Taylor-Joy
– Notes / Discussion (57:32)
Once again, due to time constraints, we don’t have anything significant for our break segment this week. However, we do have some good conversation plugging Extra Film, a guest appearance where JD joined the We Watched A Thing podcast, and our newest sponsor.
RELATED: Listen to Episode 443 of the InSession Film Podcast where we discussed CODA!
– Steven Spielberg Movie Series: Minority Report (1:16:58)
Director: Steven Spielberg
Writers: Scott Frank, Jon Cohen
Stars: Tom Cruise, Colin Farrell, Samantha Morton, Max von Sydow Show Sponsor: First Time Watchers Podcast
– Music
Hekla – Robin Carolan, Sebastian Gainsborough
Minority Report – John Williams
The Return of the Eagle – Atli Örvarsson
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InSession Film Podcast – Episode 479
InSession Film · The Northman / Minority Report – Episode 479 Next week on the show: Steven Spielberg Movie Series: Catch Me If You Can
Top 3: Cat and Mouse Movies
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The post Podcast: The Northman / Minority Report – Episode 479 first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Tom Gormican
Writer: Tom Gormican and Keven Etten
Stars: Nicolas Cage, Pedro Pascal, Sharon Horgan, Tiffany Haddish
Synopsis: In this action-packed comedy, Nicolas Cage plays Nick Cage, channeling his iconic characters as he’s caught between a superfan and a CIA agent.
No one acts like Nicolas Cage. Not even your favorite actor can bring the kind of energy Cage unleashes to any role he plays. Whether it’s dancing to Slaughterhouse by Powermad while simultaneously karate-moshing in Wild at Heart or uttering the word testicle in such a unique way in Prisoners of the Ghostland, Cage is the king of comedic, dramatic, and action overreacting. And even when he starred in trite direct-to-DVD films, he never phoned it in and was always the most memorable part of each production. And now here he is playing himself in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent; a terrific, albeit insanely formulaic, meta-comedy that celebrates each facet of Cage’s life with vivid humor and sharp performances from its star-studded cast.
Formulaic, because it recycles the plot of the dad who was never around for his wife (Sharon Horgan) and daughter (Lily Sheen), too busy wrapping himself in stardom and achieving his career goals. Of course, part of the gist is that they’ll eventually reconcile in the end when Cage will learn about the value of family through the events that will transpire once he accepts the invitation to attend Javi Guttierez’s (Pedro Pascal) birthday party for one million dollars. What the actor doesn’t know is that Guttierez has kidnapped the daughter of a politician, with the hopes that he will drop out before the election so it will be rigged in the favor of the other candidate. He then becomes a spy for the CIA, partially by agreeing to feature in a screenplay written by Javi, which aims to revive Cage as the star he truly is.
Yeah, we know exactly where the movie is going from the scene where Cage screws up his daughter’s birthday party, but that’s a lousy framing device for an otherwise incredible time at the movies. Initially, Cage wanted no part in the film, which is understandable, because it relives most of his career through fun, but extremely subtle jokes: his greatest movies, his misfires, you name it.
If you’ve not seen most of Cage’s work, most of the jokes may go completely unnoticed, but some of the funniest bits from the film involve Cage recreating a certain vibe from a film he previously starred in, whether it’s using the two golden guns from Face/Off, or, through his alter ego Nicky Cage, delivering an insatiably coked-up performance à la Wild at Heart and Vampire’s Kiss. In any case, Cage is incredible through and through and has surprising amounts of fun playing himself. It’s surprising to see him so involved, because, once again, he wanted no involvement in the film and thought it was a terrible idea. Director Tom Gormican had to convince him by penning a letter to him, and he then saw the potential for the film to be good. It’s great that Cage sees the potential for the movie to be an incredible time, and knows he has to pull it off, not only for himself but for his die-hard fans who would adore seeing Nic Cage being the most self-referential he can be. And his reflexive posturing allows him to deliver one of the best portrayals of his late career and likely one that will be remembered as one of his best ever.
And whoever came up with the idea to team up Nic Cage with Pedro Pascal is a goddamn genius. Both of them share amazing chemistry together, building up one of the greatest bromances in any film of the 2020s, thus far. Pascal’s highly cartoonish accent adds lots of depth in his characterization of a bonafide Cage superfan with a dark background, but Gormican continuously subverts his character arc in surprising ways, which allows Pascal to take his character to new heights with Cage, through hilarious, but also melancholic scenes in which they reflect about the history of cinema. There isn’t anything more cathartic than seeing Nicolas Cage cry over Paddington 2 and being proven wrong about how any movie can have significance if we attach our personal feelings towards a particular scene or a fleeting moment from a film.
Growing up, one of my favorite movies of all time was Superman III. It isn’t a very good movie, I get it, but imagine if you’re six years old and are watching Superman soar in the sky for the first time and save people from danger. The impression it etched in my memory is permanent, and since I saw it as a child for the first time, I may have easier feelings towards it when I’ll eventually rewatch it as an adult, because the effect it had on me was different from, say, a die-hard Superman fan who thought Richard Lester ruined the character when he made Clark Kent fight drunk Superman. So when Pascal’s character speaks of Paddington 2 as a bonafide cinema classic or reflects on the time he spent with his father bonding over Guarding Tess, a lesser-known Cage film, we can relate to it, because any movie can have a profound impact on us, which is something stars don’t necessarily realize. But when that specific moment occurred in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, everything made sense, and the movie becomes more than a reflexive meta-comedy on Cage’s career, but a celebration of the art of cinema, acting, and the feeling we get once we see a damn good movie that will have an impact on our lives, one way or another.
It’s also great when you’ve got actresses like Sharon Horgan playing Nic Cage’s ex-wife and elevating clichéd material through her brilliant acting skills, and at times even upstaging Cage in sequences in which you think you know where it’s heading, only for Horgan’s character to react in a completely different way than you’ve imagined. Gormican nails the comedic timing for each actor who has a substantial role in the film, allowing them to not only showcase their passion for Cage’s work, but have a sequence in which they’ll go head-on and show that they can be just as wild as Cage is.
And that’s where The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent succeeds. It may have an insanely formulaic story, but Gormican subverts enough character arcs to make it enticing, and its acting showcase from Cage having a total blast with Pascal, to Horgan delivering yet another skillful character were enough to make the movie a must-see at a cinema, with a crowd that adores Cage’s work and knows his movies. And if you were ever a fan of his work, in any capacity, it should be seen immediately, even if you weren’t following his later outings. Sure, most of his direct-to-video stuff weren’t good, but he was amazing in them. Cage has consistently proven to be one of the most versatile actors working today. I would even be willing to call him the greatest actor of our time. Throughout his illustrious career of classics and lousy movies, he’s never turned in a bad performance. Yes, you’ll find a bad Nic Cage movie (there are plenty). But you’ll never find a bad Nic Cage role. Go ahead and try to give me the worst role of Cage’s career. That’s right, there are none.
Grade: A-
The post Movie Review: ‘The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent’ Celebrates The Greatest Actor Of Our Time first appeared on InSession Film.
As humans, we are doomed to fail. We do not like to fail, it causes us to swallow change – even if we do not want to. Regardless, it is a fact of life. As failure rears its ugly head, most people shut it out as if a Trojan Horse of falsehood invades our brains. And this phenomenon is not unique to a particular demographic of people, anyone is susceptible to detaching themselves to the reality they live in. It’s a depressing ouroboros that will be present until our eventual demise. The complexity within these ideas are grand in scope, however, David Lynch captured its very essence with his film Mulholland Drive. We all dream, but what happens when reality comes and forces us to accept our failures?
Mulholland Drive follows Naomi Watts as Betty Elms – landing in Los Angeles to fulfill her dream as an actress in Hollywood. When Betty arrives at the apartment she will stay in (courtesy of her Aunt Ruth), she finds a confused woman (played by Laura Elena Harring) who was involved in a severe car accident the night before. The car accident in question causes her to develop amnesia. Due to her amnesia, the woman examined a poster of the 1946 film Gilda, starring Rita Hayworth, and believed her name was Rita.
Betty attempts to assist Rita in discovering who she really is. After stopping at Winkie’s Diner, Rita examines the waitress’s name tag that says “Diane”. Rita starts to recall a woman named Diane Selwyn. Afterwards, Betty and Rita begin to search for Diane Selwyn.
The first half of Mulholland Drive has many events and characters that do not impact Betty and Rita’s storyline. In a way, it’s as if Lynch is slowly placing puzzle pieces in front of you where the pieces don’t fit. Meticulously and painstakingly placing these ideas into your mind with no rhythm to accompany it. What is the significance of the botched assassination attempt? Why do the elderly people in the taxi carry such expressive faces?
As the film progresses, and the puzzle continues to blur, another movie is occurring at the same time. Enter filmmaker Adam Kesher (Justin Theroux) who is at wits end with his career and his marriage. Studio executives are shoving a woman named Camilla Rhodes (Melissa George) down his throat to play the lead role in his new movie – against his will. Adam’s wife is having an extramarital affair with a man named Gene (Billy Ray Cyrus – yes, THAT Billy Ray Cyrus). Nothing seems to be going right for Kesher, however, his borderline slapstick unfortunate events are slowed in lieu of Betty and Rita’s story.
There is a significant event that foreshadows the end of the movie. In Winkie’s Diner (the same one Betty and Rita were in), a neurotic man named Dan (Patrick Fischler) recounts a nightmare he had the night before to a man named Herb (Michael Cooke). The nightmare occurs at that exact Winkie’s Diner involving Herb, where Dan states Herb will be standing at the counter – looking back at Dan. Then both Dan and Herb would go outside – walking towards a spot behind the diner. At which point a man emerges, frightening Dan endlessly.
After telling the story, Herb – rejected from the story itself – proceeds to pay for the meal him and Dan had had. Dan turns and realizes the nightmare is reality, seeing Herb at the same spot he was in in the dream. They both step outside, following the steps described by Dan. The man behind the diner, shows himself, causing Dan to fall in terror.
The man behind the diner is a representation of our unwillingness to accept our failures. It’s stowed away, deep into our subconscious, digging away at ourselves. The fear extracted out of Dan is the sense of reality coming and enveloping him.
Consistently throughout the movie a blue box and blue key are shown, and only near the end of the movie is the box opened. At which point the dream ends, and reality sets in. The movie now splits between the former illusive reality and the actual reality. Betty is actually Diane Selwyn – a depressed and failed actress who is having an affair with successful actress Camilla Rhodes (who was Rita in the illusive reality). Adam Kesher’s story remains the same except Camilla is dating Kesher and he is now detached from the prior borderline slapstick acts of misfortune.
Dreams are the summation of hopes and our own known bits of reality. With that in mind, Mulholland Drive’s illusive reality is an implosion of the bits and pieces of the actual reality. The hitman is actually being hired by Diane to conduct a hit on Camilla. The mystic phrase spoken predominantly throughout Adam Kesher’s storyline, “This is the girl”, is given a horrifying meaning. Camilla was actually hired in the real world because she slept with Kesher.
Once Diane finally accepts reality she is then faced with the elderly couple in which her illusive counterpart, Betty, once had a positive relationship with. The elderly couple embodying the fear of one’s own reality slowly reaches for Diane. Diane is unable to bear the cross she now carries and commits a horrifying act in response.
The puzzle pieces are feverishly put together in front of our very eyes. What makes Mulholland Drive so perplexing is all of this information is given to the viewer in the span of twenty minutes. You are given so much to digest in the first portion of the movie, then when it cuts to the real world you are forced to digest so much in a short span of time.
Mulholland Drive is best described as a horror film. In the typical sense, horror films put us in a box – preparing us for what is to be seen. Lynch’s approach to horror is more abstract and fills the viewer with unease in themselves. Leaving the viewer to ponder upon themselves, to digest what had been seen. When we saw the man behind the diner, we all knew he was coming. But the meaning behind the man makes it infinitely more horrifying.
The reality of our own failures is horrifying. David Lynch as a filmmaker is empathetic toward his subjects but doesn’t shy away from the reality of their own shortcomings. Diane isn’t a bad person for failing or being incapable of receiving an acting role. She held true to herself, even when Camilla would rather sleep with the director to gain a role, and paraded it in Diane’s face. Although her hiring a hit on her former lover is not representative of a good person, a moment of weakness is not the summation of one’s self worth (even weighing the gravity of her action). Diane is not wrong for dreaming, she is just an unfortunate product of pursuing one’s dream.
The post Classic Movie Review: ‘Mulholland Drive’ and the Absurdity of Dreams first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Jane Schoenbrun
Writer: Jane Schoenbrun
Stars: Anna Cobb, Holly Anne Frank, Michael J. Rogers
Synopsis: Alone in her attic bedroom, Casey becomes immersed in an online role-playing horror game, wherein she begins to document the changes that may or may not be happening to her
Back in the day, when YouTube was rising to the top of the social media food chain, the term creepypasta was all over the website. The content creators doing these types of videos told stories about death and violence of the supernatural and existential horrors “lurking” around us in the dead of night. The primary purpose was to scare viewers, mostly younger ones, and cause the stories to be shared worldwide. Throughout the years, many tales of these “demons” have been created; however, the ones that have stood out are the Smiling Man and Slender Man, which later got formed into both a videogame and film. Although the word creepypasta is not said or mentioned during Jane Schoenbrun’s festival favorite, We’re All Going to the World’s Fair, it helps to understand the world it is creating and interpret its themes in-depth. In addition, it also benefits that the film is set amidst the pandemic’s confinement and the modern generation’s social media uprising.
The film opens with Casey (Anna Cobb) doing some audio and screen tests before she starts filming her YouTube video in her attic bedroom, just to make sure everything goes right. Casey is almost quivering; there’s a tear hanging in her eye. She says that she will attempt to do the world’s fair challenge, which seems to be an internet-game trend, and that game is supposed to cause changes of some sorts to the people who play it. By this point, we don’t know anything about the challenge itself or the main protagonist. She says the phrase “I want to go to the world’s fair” three times and causes a puncture in her finger with a pin so that she can wipe the blood across her screen. This is the process that needs to be done in order to begin said challenge. It is followed by a series of strobing lights, indicating that the game has initiated. Casey needs to explore and encounter what’s left of this creepypasta-esque trend. As these changes begin to appear, she documents them via various uploads to her channel and does research by watching other videos of the diverse experiences players have gone through.
There are mentions about losing the sensation of one’s body or bodily modifications, like a slowly growing fungus in the arm (which is a quick yet great sequence of slight body horror). Casey doesn’t know if she wants to keep the act of the game going, but another player, JLB (Michael J. Rogers), tells her to continue–to go deeper into the rabbit hole of the world’s fair. Reality and fiction begin to intertwine once Casey’s videos become more worrisome because she keeps interacting with the trend. The viewers don’t know if it’s an act or if she’s actually suffering from the symptoms of this trend. Due to having limited resources, Schoenbrun had a significant obstacle to overcome in terms of delivering its spooks. On occasion, it does provide some unnerving moments that dwell within the aching isolation of being a young soul, particularly during the days of confinement, as well as some intriguing concepts about individuality – how we are perceived by others versus ourselves. Some scenes linger for the right amount of time so that they can be soaked in atmospheric dread.
Those sequences where we simply witness Casey undergoing the strange effects or when she’s having some personal conversations with the camera are the most exciting and effective because of their meditative sensation, Alex G’s transient score, and Anna Cobb’s refined performance. However, the rest of it doesn’t reach satisfying or engaging grounds for the most part, primarily because of its lack of tension, slow pacing, and unpolished screenplay. It is far more interesting and creative than some of its contemporaries like Paranormal Activity. Yet, it doesn’t come close to the low-budget success of The Blair Witch Project, even though they are two different styles. Another problem that hurts the We’re All Going to the World’s Fair experience is that it holds back too much of the mystery. So, there is much to explore and analyze, albeit when the film restrains too much without the required suspense, it gets hard to be wholly immersed in its narrative. Schoenbrun’s vision is distinctive, so I will give points where they are due, and I will be anticipating their next project. Unfortunately, the World’s Fair doesn’t amount to its potential thematically and narrative-wise.
Grade: C+ The post Movie Review: ‘We’re All Going to the World’s Fair’ Holds Back on its Mystery first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: David Mirkin
Writer: Robin Schiff
Starring: Mira Sorvino, Lisa Kudrow, Janeane Garofalo, Alan Cumming
Synopsis: Two dim-witted, inseparable friends hit the road for their ten-year high school reunion and concoct an elaborate lie about their lives to impress their classmates.
Released theatrically at the end of April 1997, Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion became an immediate favorite for anyone lucky enough to discover it among all the major action films being released at the time. And the film, directed by David Mirkin and starring Mira Sorvino as Romy and Lisa Kudrow as Michele, is one of the rare 1997 comedies that has endured. In the last few weeks alone, Sorvino and Kudrow made an appearance together at the Screen Actors Guild Awards, followed soon thereafter by a sit-down on The Late Late Show with James Corden. The two are still active in the industry, still look basically the same as they did twenty-five years ago—might a sequel finally be in the cards?
Whether or not we ever get a second installment, Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion is quirky, entertaining, comedic perfection, still just as funny and witty today as it was back then, with director Mirkin allowing most of the humor to come through the lovable characters rather than specific situations in the plot. You know the story: Ten years have passed since high school, and Romy and Michele are still best friends, living together in Venice, California. When they receive word about their high school reunion, they decide to go pretending they’re a lot more successful than they actually are.
The movie works on so many levels. It’s one of the ultimate hang-out movies, spending time with Romy and Michele a pleasure from scene to scene. It’s a great road-trip movie, plenty of drama and hijinks on display as the duo head by car from southern California to Tucson, Arizona. It’s a comedy that plays with surrealism, the middle of the narrative featuring one of the weirdest and longest dream sequences ever in a studio movie. And it’s so ultra-smart, even if the protagonists might be a bit on the dumber side.
Sorvino and Kudrow both arrived at the project at high points in their careers. Sorvino signed up shortly after winning the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Woody Allen’s Mighty Aphrodite, and Kudrow had just completed her second year on Friends. Their chemistry together must not have been guaranteed, but from the first scene, their love for one another is clear, each practically finishing the other’s sentences. Sorvino and Kudrow made a tremendous screen pairing that is the number one reason why this film has endured for so long.
Another top reason this remains a giant cult classic is the amazing supporting cast Mirkin assembled for the production, the ultimate stand-out being Janeane Garofalo as Heather Mooney, a successful inventor who still hates everything to do with her high school days with Romy and Michele. The second half of the 1990s marked the era of inspired Garofalo film performances left and right, and this one’s the best, her sarcasm dark, twisted, and hilarious. Alan Cumming is also memorable as the nerd with a crush on Michele who also goes on to do great things with his life, and Julia Campbell eats up every second of her delicious screen-time as the one-time head cheerleader Christie Masters who’s always treated Romy and Michele as bugs to be squashed.
The incredible songs interspersed throughout are also a reason you can continue hugging this movie over and over again. With plenty of flashback scenes to Romy and Michele’s time in high school in the 1980s, the film provides a stellar soundtrack of ‘80s hits, like Time after Time, Venus, and Dance Hall Days. The score by Steve Bartek is a winner, too, especially in that aforementioned dream sequence that pushes the narrative in a different direction and gives the viewer a lovely sense of unease. Along with the fantastic screenplay by Robin Schiff, Mirkin’s direction, and the extraordinary cast, the music plays a huge part in my love for this film.
What stuns me to this day is how the higher-ups at the studio allowed Mirkin to make this comedy R-rated, profane not just in its language but oftentimes in its shocking crudeness. The film overall has a beautiful sweetness to it, in the friendship between Romy and Michele, in the period flashback scenes, in the iconic closing musical number, that some might have pushed Mirkin into delivering a PG-13 rating so younger kids could see it. If the film had been made just a couple years later, there might have been pressure from the studio to either tame the content way down or go more for the gross-out a la There’s Something About Mary.
Thankfully, Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion is everything it needed to be, the comedy always coming back to the central characters, never betraying them just to get a laugh from the viewer. I could watch this movie every year and never get sick of it. Sure, it didn’t get any Oscar nominations, it might not have the prestige of big 1997 releases like Contact and Titanic, but it’s one of the 1997 films we keep returning to because it’s just so goddamn perfect. I still have hope for a new sequel starring Sorvino and Kudrow that would allow us more time to spend with these characters, but if all we ever get is the original from twenty-five years ago, I still consider us very lucky.
The post Film at 25: ‘Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion’ Remains a ‘90s Comedy Classic first appeared on InSession Film.
Monica Vitti, who died on February 2nd this year at the age of 90, is to Michelangelo Antonioni as Liv Ullman was to Ingmar Bergman in being the ultimate muse to interpret the director’s feelings in their movies. Antonioni’s works were always about the visual, never about the complete plot of the story (I wrote about his career previously, Michelangelo Antonioni’s Stories Have No Ending, if you want to check it out.). He was such a unique director with his own brand of filmmaking that Antonioni needed somebody to be his symbol of existentialism in a post-war world. Somehow, through Monica Vitti, he was able to display his ambiguous feelings on the political, social, and economic standards of the time.
Going against her fellow contemporaries such as Sophia Loren, Gina Lollobrigida, and Claudia Cardinale, Vitti would emerge as one of the leading ladies of Italian cinema in the 1960s. Her career was just beginning when she met Antonioni, a newcomer in film directing, while doing stage work in Milan and then was cast in the internationally polarizing L’Avventura. Vitti plays a woman going on vacation with her lover and another couple on a yacht when suddenly a friend goes missing. As they try to find her, it is Vitti who starts to lose interest in finding her friend and instead shows interest in the missing woman’s lover. It was an international sensation for better or for worse – the crowd at Cannes jeered throughout the screening – but for the critics and filmmakers who loved it, it put Antonioni and Vitti on the map.
These feelings for their work were transferred over in L’eclisse in which Vitti plays a woman who ends her engagement with one man and begins to pursue another relationship with a stockbroker, played by Alain Delon. Vitti is the expression of discontent with materialism and money making, a reflection of Italy’s economic boom after the war. Yet, the irony is not lost on who she is pursuing as she cannot escape her desire for something different, exploring the interchangeability a person has when the feelings are just right. This time, the reaction at Cannes was more positive and, after the success of Antonioni’s previous film La Notte, avant-garde’s newest master was cinema’s most daring storyteller.
The last major collaboration with Antonioni was his first color film Red Desert, in which she co-starred with Richard Harris as the wife of an industrialist who remains emotionally disturbed following a car accident. Technology looks beautiful and is a sign of progress, but in Antonioni’s world, people still have the inability to adapt to new concepts and causes unevenness to our psychological side. Vitti is away from the city and isolated by the largeness of these factories and the surrounding landscape that are bright, maybe too bright. Thus, her neurosis is confirmed when she has no pleasure in making love to her husband and later remarks, “We are all separate.”
Vitti’s performances were based on expression and movement rather than dialogue, almost a throw back to the silent film days. She moves in sync with Antonioni’s pacing and silence, from hope to despair, place to place. Love is a commodity that is always there but she never feels content with it. Her beauty is convincing, as a man would fall for her, but instead of physical love, Antonioni, who was in a relationship with Vitti, was more interested in the psychological. His existentialism is drawn out through her, interpreting the auteur’s cold and distant films into something emotionally relatable. Post-Antonioni, Vitti would explore more roles, even in comedies, continuing to rack up acclaim and rarely stepping out of Italian productions.
Vitti once remarked, “I am three dangerous things: a woman, an actress, and not married, so I suppose I’ll work until I’m 90.” While she retired in the early 1990s, Vitti remained one of her generation’s most versatile performers in Europe, a symbol of a celebrated era in cinema. Even after she dropped out of the spotlight due to her diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, Vitti was still considered forever immortal.
Follow me on Twitter: @brian_cine (Cine-A-Man)
The post In Memoriam: Monica Vitti first appeared on InSession Film.
As Hiccup taught us, to live the life of a Viking is an “occupational hazard.” Perhaps this is why movies about Vikings, or Norsemen, are often some of the most epic and adventurous stories ever told. Whether steeped in fantasy or the histories of the Viking Age, films depicting the people of Scandinavia will always go big, and this weekend’s The Northman appears to be no exception.
With that said, what is your favorite Vikings movie?
What is your favorite Vikings movie?
The post Poll: What is your favorite Vikings movie? first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by the film The Death on the Nile. Follow us on social media for your chance to win a FREE Blu-ray!
This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we continue our Steven Spielberg Movie Series by discuss his 2001 polarizing film A.I. Artificial Intelligence and the great Brent Allen joins us to review Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore!
Big thanks to Brent for joining us on the show this week to talk Fantastic Beasts. He’s a massive Harry Patter / Wizarding World fan, so it was great to get him back on the show as we dive back into that universe. As for A.I., we’ve been anticipating this review for such a long time. We even joked on Episode 137 (seven years ago!!) that we needed to feature this movie on the show. Well, it’s finally time. It’s one of our longest reviews, but one of our most thorough and incredibly rewarding.
**Show Note: We had some technical difficulties with JD’s microphone, so please be patient with us as his audio quality isn’t what it is normally.
On that note, check out this week’s show and let us know what you think in the comment section. Thanks for listening and for supporting the InSession Film Podcast!
– Steven Spielberg Movie Series: A.I. Artificial Intelligence (6:43)
Director: Steven Spielberg
Writers: Steven Spielberg, Ian Watson (screen story by)
Stars: Haley Joel Osment, Jude Law, Frances O’Connor, William Hurt
– Notes / Discussion (1:17:24)
We don’t really have anything significant for our break segment this week. We knew that we would spend a lot of time on our two reviews, so we kept this section pretty brief. We do, however, have another Blu-ray contest coming to you this week. So follow us on social media for your chance to win!
RELATED: Listen to Episode 443 of the InSession Film Podcast where we discussed CODA!
– Movie Review: Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (1:26:25)
Director: David Yates
Writers: J. K. Rowling, Steve Kloves
Stars: Eddie Redmayne, Jude Law, Ezra Miller, Dan Fogler
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InSession Film Podcast – Episode 478
InSession Film · A.I. / Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore – Episode 478 Next week on the show: Review: The Northman
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The post Podcast: A.I. Artificial Intelligence / Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore – Episode 478 first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: David Yates
Writers: J.K. Rowling and Steve Kloves
Stars: Eddie Redmayne, Jude Law, and Ezra Miller
Synopsis: Albus Dumbledore assigns Newt and his allies with a mission related to the rising power of Grindelwald.
As we have witnessed in the past, prequel series for blockbuster franchises tend to carry a negative connotation. I have seen countless prequel series in my day, and the majority of them attempt to re-create what came before it and, generally, fail miserably. Warner Bros arguably has some of the best movie franchises under their belt. They were able to show such love and care to the original Harry Potter series. And if you ask me, there isn’t a bad film in the entire collection. Warner Bros has the means and the determination to adapt J.K. Rowling’s novels to the silver screen, and it paid off tremendously. But somewhere along the way, the studio took a woeful turn with the Fantastic Beast films. And much like the first two entries in this prequel series, the Magic of the wizarding world has vanished.
Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets Of Dumbledore is the better film out of this new prequel series, but that doesn’t hold a lot of weight as this latest entry is a dud. This film clocks in around 2 hours and 20 minutes, and the pacing is horrendously slow. The first two acts of this film feel like a pure exposition of the plot, and I quickly lost interest as the story progressed. It wasn’t until the third act that things finally started to get somewhat interesting with the foreshadowed build-up of the conflict between Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law) and Gellert Grindelwald (Mads Mikkelsen). The chemistry they had was passable; however I found it very difficult to view Grindelwald as a proper threat. I understood his objective of rising to power and changing the world for the “better” by seizing control of the wizarding world. His rise to power was done in a different way than Voldemort from the original series. I adored what director David Yates was trying to convey, but it’s a major part of the film that did not work for me.
Outside of Dumbledore Grindelwald, . the rest of the characters’ story arcs were forgettable. At the start of this franchise, Credence Barebone (Ezra Miller) was the major hazard of the series. I think his journey was properly set up in the first two films, but it seems as though he gets cast aside from the spotlight, and all of the attention shifts to Grindelwald. I understand the direction they are trying to build up to. But I wanted them to go further into the relationship of Credence’s origin being a Dumbledore. We do get some answers along the way but it’s glossed over in the third act. Dan Folger (Jacob Kowalski) serves as the comedic role (yet again), and it works for a bit, but then it starts to get stale. And yet, I enjoyed his story arc the most out of the whole cast. Another issue I had was the lack of Tina Goldstein (Katherine Waterson), who is easily the best character in this franchise and only had a few minutes of screen time. But when she does come into the fold, she steals the stage.
I think that it is fair to say that no one, not even a Potter Head such as myself cares about the Fantastic Beasts prequel films. They are a hollow attempt of giving Harry Potter fans a reason to see a new story told in the wizarding world. There are so many stories and avenues that Warner Bros. could have given us such as a new trilogy about Voldemort’s origin and rise to power during the time the original Order Of The Phoenix was established. This series first started off in the right direction by trying something new. We were given new characters in the wizarding world to connect with on a deeper level, but it has evolved into something that is different and unrecognizable. The magic of the wizarding world is fading quickly and Warner Bros. should pull the plug on this sad attempt of a prequel series while they still can.
Grade: D+ The post Movie Review: ‘Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets Of Dumbledore’ Proves That the Magic of the Wizarding World Has Vanished first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Eva Husson
Writer: Alice Birch
Stars: Odessa Young, Josh O’Connor, Colin Firth
Synopsis: A maid living in post-World War I England secretly plans to meet with the man she loves before he leaves to marry another woman
Maid Jane (Odessa Young) works for a wealthy couple (Olivia Colman and Colin Firth) who are still grieving the deaths of their sons in the First World War. She soon meets up with one of the neighbors, Paul (Josh O’Connor) and the two fall in love. But, due to their differences in class, it is an affair that must be kept a secret, even as Paul gets engaged to another woman who he isn’t completely sure he even likes. It happens per the title, the honorable Sunday when Jane has off while her employers head to church during the Easter season. It is 1920s Victorian values England where such trysts are not permitted or socially acceptable and people must keep their emotions intact.
It feels a lot like an old Merchant-Ivory production in which they embedded themselves in stories of doomed love from an era long forgotten. However, the world after the horrors of a shocking war are still felt in this era with so many young men missing; Colman’s striking scene of breaking down for a moment and then attempting to compose herself is the fracture of a nation’s fabric following the earth-shattering violence. In fulfilling those desires, Paul and Jane do not hold back from those conservative values and follow their heart, even as they know it is not going to last.
For French director Eva Husson, her third full-feature film and her first in the English language, the strong sensuality is in contrast to the strong depictions of group sex and drugs from her maiden feature, Bang Gang (A Modern Love Story). She graduates from modern teenagers engaging in debaucherous behavior to a solid period piece on willful inhibitions to go beyond their social class. Odessa Young, a relative newcomer, gets swept up and shows her vulnerability in her character, such as wandering through the halls naked looking at what could have become if she were permitted to be with Paul.
However, there is no emotional gut punch when the major twist of fate is revealed because it isn’t as if we don’t expect what’s coming. Even as the story jumps forward to Jane in her later years married to an intellectual, it becomes obvious that a tragedy is around the corner. The pacing is fair, but it doesn’t take a firm grasp of the plot moving through the second and third acts. This is likely because the film is deeply faithful to the novella by Graham Swift that it’s based on and doesn’t expound on their surroundings. The film is content at being simply two-dimensional.
Mothering Sunday is not a heavy-duty tearjerker, but a tidy, lamentable story of fleeting love amongst social constraints. It’s similar to previous films including Maurice, Lady Chatterley’s Lover, and Atonement, albeit milder, yet not a bore that could have easily befallen with this type of story.
Grade: B-The post Movie Review: ‘Mothering Sunday’ is an Affair to Remember (and Mourn) first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Pierre Perifel
Writer: Etan Cohen
Stars: Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Anthony Ramos, Craig Robinson, Awkwafina, Richard Ayoade, Zazie Beetz
Synopsis: Several reformed yet misunderstood criminal animals attempt to become good, with some disastrous results along the way.
Early on in the film Sam Rockwell’s suave and fourth-wall-breaking Mr. Wolf utters the line, “… I’m the big bad Wolf, the villain of every story,” and it couldn’t be more true if it tried. Throughout history, fairy tales and fables have used the “Big Bad Wolf” as the main villain for their stories. Whether he’s trying to fool Little Red Riding Hood or blow down the three little piggies’ houses, this cunning and predatory creature has been used as a metaphor for danger as long as stories have been told.
Like Mr. Wolf, the rest of his crew are made up of creatures who have never quite been given their fair share. Mr. Wolf’s crew of “Bad Guys” are made up of his best friend Mr. Snake (Marc Maron), the tech-whiz Ms. Tarantula (Awkwafina), the master of disguise and diversions Mr. Shark (Craig Robinson), and finally the aggressive and gassy Mr. Piranha (Anthony Ramos). After being called out by Governor Diane Foxington (Zazie Beetz), the “Bad Guys” attempt to steal the seemingly unattainable Golden Dolphin trophy that is being presented to the model humanitarian Professor Marmalade (Richard Ayoade). However, when Mr. Wolf, for the first time in his life, feels what it’s like to be seen as a “good guy,” he attempts to turn another leaf and leave the bad guy life behind.
Similar to Disney’s 2012 film Wreck-it-Ralph, The Bad Guys pegs the question: What if we don’t have to be “bad guys?” The story of this film basically follows the emotional quote spoken by Ralph at the end of that film, “I’m bad, and that’s good. I will never be good, and that’s not bad. There’s no one I’d rather be than me.” What if these bad guys can use what makes them bad to ultimately make them good? What this film tries to get across is that people are not inherently born good or bad, and you can’t judge a book by its cover because you never know who someone truly is until you know them. It’s not an idea that is too difficult to grasp, but it is one that can be applied to every aspect of life.
Everyone knows Disney is animation. They have been around the longest, and they, both Disney Animation and Pixar, have built a reputation that can only be matched by very few. DreamWorks Animation, founded in the mid-90s, attempted to give the animation behemoth a run for its money, and for a while, they were doing it. DreamWorks was becoming the studio for animation, but over the past decade or so their films couldn’t quite connect the same way as they once did. This paved the way for studios like Sony Animation – mostly projects led by Phil Lord and Chris Miller – to fill the spot left by DreamWorks to compete with Disney. Sony Animation has been able to do this by changing the definition of what an animated film can be.
For an incredibly long time, the boundaries of animation were restricted to primarily 2D animation. Over the years, the boundaries of what can be done have been pushed and changed, and that’s where The Bad Guys excel the most. This is the first film released by DreamWorks in quite some time that really attempts to be more creative with their animation. Throughout the film, The Bad Guys take various animation styles and meld them into one which let the film become one of the more visually appealing outings from the studio. There are traditional 2D and 3D animations, but there are also moments throughout which you feel like you are watching a comic book or an anime. The flashy shifts in visual style should be something that keeps the viewer, no matter the age, engaged with what is happening on the screen.
While the heists themselves may be visually appealing, similar to the themes of the film, they aren’t that thought-provoking and remain fairly restrained and straightforward throughout. This ease of access allows for kids watching the movie to not be overwhelmed by the complexities of certain heists, but as an adult, you can’t help but wish it was a little less on the nose. Although, between every fart joke in the movie there are also well-placed homages to classic heist cinema, including a pretty well pulled off George Clooney reference.
Ultimately, what The Bad Guys boils down to is a lot of fun. The heists and themes are easy enough for kids and the references should reel in the adults. It’s not a thinker, and it doesn’t have to be, but it’s an enjoyable time nonetheless. The biggest standout is the animation as this film is one of the flashier ones in DreamWorks’ filmography.
Grade: B The post Movie Review: ‘The Bad Guys’ is an Enjoyable Time at the Movies for the Whole Family first appeared on InSession Film.
Directors: Amy Bandlien Storkel, Bryan Storkel
Synopsis: Steve Glew spent the 1990s smuggling rare pez dispensers into the USA from Eastern Europe, making millions of dollars. It was all magical until his arch-nemesis, The Pezident decided to destroy him.
Comedy has mined the documentary format for so long because when people are in a room talking to a camera, they often let their guard down. They will tell the truth and it’s often unvarnished in a way that is shocking or funny. At times, The Pez Outlaw feels like it could be a part of a season of Netflix’s now canceled American Vandal, which spoofed the kind of low stakes crime that this film is about.
The details of the story are so strange and funny that they can cause you to question what the real truth of the story is. Steve Glew as a subject is a bit unreliable, as he has a high opinion about what he did and how he got away with his schemes. It’s even fascinating how he believes that the president of Pez USA had it out for him, and him alone. It would be easy to dismiss Steve’s paranoia as vanity, but in the grand scheme he was right in some ways. In other ways, he was very, very lucky.
Directors Amy Bandlien Storkel and Bryan Storkel stage dramatic reenactments of Steve’s exploits, with Steve playing himself. These fantasies are well shot and are an homage to the kinds of stories Steve himself loves. The scenes add to the larger than life persona that Steve inhabits. It adds to the possibility of some of the events being exaggerated over time. Almost always after one of Steve’s declarative statements there would be an expert to refute or clarify. Though, after one of those reenactments, Steve’s greatest feat was that he essentially was able to do what he did because of a clerical error on Pez USA’s part, which puts us firmly in Steve’s camp.
We like stories of the little guy taking on the man. We like the underdog. Much of documentary filmmaking is exposing truth or giving a slice of life that we normally wouldn’t see. With Steve’s story, we get the truth about the way the American system is unfair to the working poor and the slice of life about a collector who’s able to bring about a titanic shift in his corner of collecting. Steve is an underdog who filled a marketplace and made people happy.
Collecting, and especially collecting things marketed mostly to children, boggles the minds of some people. It’s a hobby that requires patience, money, and more patience. A documentary like The Pez Outlaw only requires that you buckle in and enjoy the roller coaster of the truly strange tale of how Steve Glew got rich and then fell back down to Earth in the early ’90s. It’s a funny and enthralling story that will likely send you to see what big brands have not done the proper paperwork that could make you quite a bit more financially comfortable.
Grade: B+
The post Movie Review (SIFF 2022): ‘The Pez Outlaw’ is a Stranger Than Fiction Documentary first appeared on InSession Film.
Ok, let’s talk about a dirty word in cinema (and generally, art circles). Melodrama. Be honest, what do you think of when you hear that word? Over the top, silly, ingenuine, not realistic? Do you want to roll your eyes? If that is your reaction, that’s totally fine and common, but you’re really missing out on some great, stylized work. And in a world where people are supposedly craving films that look different, that have a point of view, that don’t simply blend into the blockbuster background, the melodrama (of any era) might be a wonderful place to find just that. And, if you want an education in melodrama, there is absolutely no better place to start than the work of Douglas Sirk. And the Criterion Channel is giving you one last chance this month to view one of his seminal works, All That Heaven Allows.
All That Heaven Allows is a relatively simple story, characterization-wise, as most melodramas are, but it has a hook that most, if not all, viewers can latch on to. Cary Scott (Jane Wyman) is a well off widow who lives in New England. Despite being consistently (and uncomfortably) wooed by any number of suitors, she becomes interested in Ron Kirby (Rock Hudson), who she is not societally matched with for a number of reasons. He is younger, of a lower station, and basically uninterested in material wealth. But he is a good man, down to earth, and, besides his work, only focused on Cary. This makes a nice change, as her other suitors are connected to that material world, and aggressively try to convince her that they are a match without truly being interested in who she is as a person.
Sirk uses not only the beauty of his two leads but also the beauty of nature to show a better world and opportunity for them both. Any time the film moves back to the world of polite society, the visuals become darker, even hidden. When Cary and Ron are together, everything stops for them. In their first interlude, Ron pulls down a branch between their combined view and gently explains its root, sharing his passion with her and she, for her part, is enraptured. But this is not a one-way interaction. They are both interested in one another and quickly fall in love. This quick tumble into infatuation still feels genuine, even for the more cynical viewers. When Cary accepts Ron’s proposal, it feels soon, but also worthy of a swoon.
But, true to life, reality crashes the party. Cary has a life separate from Ron, which not only includes societal pressures but two adult children. Sadly enough, it still feels revolutionary to have an older woman paired with a younger man in a romantic relationship. Unsurprisingly, Cary is met with disapproval on all sides, including from her children, who are also harassed about this new relationship. Soon after, Cary sacrifices her own happiness for her grown children. Despite rooting for Cary and Ron, it is an understandable reaction. But this is where All That Heaven Allows goes from good to great.
In a lesser movie, there are a few options. Cary could simply say forget these kids and reach for that brass ring. Or, moments later, she could realize that Ron is right for her and do the same thing. But the script from Peg Fenwick goes the extra mile. In what feels like an actual betrayal, her adult kids convince her that they should probably sell their house as one will be working overseas and the other is getting married. The realization of the worthlessness of Cary’s sacrifice flashes across Wyman’s face and yet, this long passed opportunity for romance is not necessarily a foregone conclusion. Will he still love her after his own betrayal?
In the most melodramatic moment of the film, Ron, trying to get her attention when she has second thoughts (again), has the snowy ground fall out from under him, which leads to his unconsciousness. Of course, when Cary realizes this she goes to him and they finally consummate this relationship. To this viewer, the most important part isn’t even the fact that there is a “happy ending.” It is that neither of them are now willing to let the world, even including her own children, dictate how they should live their lives.
A more varied streaming service, like the Criterion Channel, allows our envelopes to be pushed. Even if it’s based in a genre that isn’t always your cup of tea, film education and entertainment allow us, as viewers, to experience new stories, new styles, and different visual aesthetics that open us to beauty, sadness, love, and detail that we may have missed.
The post Criterion Crunch Time: ‘All That Heaven Allows’ first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Cooper Raiff
Writer: Cooper Raiff
Stars: Dakota Johnson, Cooper Raiff, Evan Assante, Leslie Mann
Synopsis: A young man who works as a Bar Mitzvah party host strikes up a friendship with a mother and her autistic daughter.
After the astonishingly mature, if laughably named, S#%!house, it was unlikely that writer/director/actor Cooper Raiff could avoid a slump. Yet, with Cha Cha Real Smooth, Raiff pulls off another coup of intimate and genuine storytelling.
Where another writer may stop and conclude a scene, Raiff has the exceptional ability to extend it, to build on it to get to the heart of the matter. He’s a writer who has patience with characters and lets them breathe, live, and expand into something more than a character on the screen. This acumen with character on the page in combination with his thoughts behind the camera is where Raiff shines. He lets the scenes he creates take on a life of their own. They’re long, unpredictable, and often uncomfortable in the best ways.
Raiff and cinematographer Cristina Dunlap create some terrific scenes. One of their best is a long tracking shot in which we follow a drunk Andrew (Raiff) as he spirals after learning Domino (Dakota Johnson) won’t be attending this particular Bar Mitzvah. Many people sense that something is off about Andrew including his mother (Leslie Mann) and little brother, David (Evan Assante), before the camera shifts to David’s perspective as he takes his girlfriend aside to have their first kiss. There’s even a terrific sight gag thrown in as Andrew references the host of the party is dressed like a clown, the camera pans to a table and, indeed, Mr. Schindler is wearing a clown outfit and very unamused by Andrew’s behavior and unprofessionalism.
This is the superb balance Cooper Raiff has struck with Cha Cha Real Smooth. The film has deep, honest conversations between people, but sometimes the funniest joke can come from the most dramatic situation. Other times, the joke precedes a moment of startling drama. This film isn’t about walking a fine line, but about ignoring the line and presenting a human as they are and as flawed and myriad as they are.
There is a scene late in the film in which Andrew knows his hopes about his relationship with Domino are falling through his fingers. He heads to his car as Domino’s fiancé, Joseph (Raúl Castillo), pulls into the driveway. In another film we would hate Joseph, and would consider him the antagonist, but in Cha Cha Real Smooth, Joseph is just someone trying his best. He stops Andrew and he tells Andrew that yes, he’s a dumb kid, but he has his heart in the right place. Essentially, the antagonist of the film is the barriers people put up to keep people from accepting their whole selves.
Cha Cha Real Smooth deals with mental health in a real way. Characters exist with depression, bipolar disorder, and autism, but it doesn’t define who they are. There is nuance and acceptance, as well as honest attempts at understanding. There are no scenes in which the cast overacts the worst aspects these conditions can manifest. The conditions are treated as a part of these character’s daily lives and that’s a credit to both Raiff’s script and the actor’s performances.
Leslie Mann has ventured into the territory of dramedy before, but she is on such a different level with Cha Cha Real Smooth. She is so grounded and measured in her performance. She brings a warmth and aching to the role. While she never makes it explicit, her expressions and her body language show that her character is trying so hard to keep herself together, to anchor herself in family stability. It’s quite a beautiful turn for Mann.
There is so much to write and to gush about Cha Cha Real Smooth. It’s a film that breaks rules and makes us reflect on who we are. Cha Cha Real Smooth is a movie that reminds you life is hard, but if you’re paying attention, the good stuff will stick around in your memory. Cooper Raiff has hit on something utterly divine and it will be a pleasure watching his career from here on.
Grade: A
The post Movie Review (SIFF 2022): ‘Cha Cha Real Smooth’ is a Dazzling Dramedy first appeared on InSession Film.
The 75th Cannes Film Festival line-up has officially been revealed and with more films to be added at a later date, it is already proving to be a festival not to miss. Continue reading below to see the official line-up and which films are competing for the Palmes d’Or prize.
OPENING FILM
Z (COMME Z) – Michel HAZANAVICIUS (Out of Comp)
OFFICIAL COMPETITION
HOLY SPIDER – Ali ABBASI
LES AMANDIERS – Valeria BRUNI TEDESCHI
CRIMES OF THE FUTURE – David CRONENBERG
TORI AND LOKITA – Jean-Pierre et Luc DARDENNE
STARS AT NOON – Claire DENIS
FRÈRE ET SŒUR – Arnaud DESPLECHIN
CLOSE – Lukas DHONT
ARMAGEDDON TIME – James GREY
BROKER – KORE-EDA Hirokazu
NOSTALGIA – Mario MARTONE
RMN – Cristian MUNGIU
TRIANGLE OF SADNESS – Ruben ÖSTLUND
HAEOJIL GYEOLSIM (DECISION TO LEAVE) – PARK Chan-Wook
SHOWING UP – Kelly REICHARDT
LEILA’S BROTHERS – Saeed ROUSTAEE
BOY FROM HEAVEN – Tarik SALEH
ZHENA CHAIKOVSKOGO (Tchaïkovski’s Wife) – Kirill SEREBRENNIKOV
EO – Jerzy SKOLIMOWSKI
UN CERTAIN REGARD
LES PIRES – Lisa AKOKA, Romane GUERET (1st film)
KURAK GÜNLER (BURNING DAYS) – Emin ALPER
METRONOM – Alexandru BELC (1st film)
SICK OF MYSELF – Kristoffer BORGLI
ALL THE PEOPLE I’LL NEVER BE – Davy CHOU
DOMINGO Y LA NIEBLA (DOMINGO AND THE MIDST) – Ariel ESCALANTE MEZA
PLAN 75 – HAYAKAWA Chie (1st film)
UNTITLED PINE RIDGE PROJECT – Riley KEOUGH, Gina GAMMELL (1st film)
CORSAGE – Marie KREUTZER
BACHENNYA METELYKA (BUTTERFLY VISION) – Maksim NAKONECHNYI (1st film)
VANSKABTE LAND / VOLADA LAND (GODLAND) – Hlynur PÁLMASON
RODEO – Lola QUIVORON (1st film)
JOYLAND – Saim SADIQ (1st film)
THE SILENT TWINS (Agnieszka SMOCYNSKA)
THE STRANGER – Thomas M WRIGHT
OUT OF COMPETITION
TOP GUN: MAVERICK – Joseph KOSINSKI
ELVIS – Baz LUHRMANN
MASQUERADE – Nicolas BEDOS
NOVEMBRE – Cédric JIMENEZ
THREE THOUSAND YEARS OF LONGING – George MILLER
MIDNIGHT SCREENINGS
HUNT – LEE Jung-Jae
FUMER FAIR TOUSSER – Quentin DUPIEUX
MOONAGE DAYDREAM – Brett MORGEN
CANNES PREMIERE
DODO – Panos H. COUTRAS
ESTERNO NOTTE (NIGHTFALL) – Marco BELLOCCHIO
IRMA VEP – Olivier ASSAYAS
NOS FRANGINS – Rachid BOUCHAREB
SPECIAL SCREENINGS
JERRY LEE LEWIS: TROUBLE IN MIND – Ethan COEN
THE NATURAL HISTORY OF DESTRUCTION – Sergei LOZNITSA
ALL THAT BREATHES – Shaunak Sen
The post The Official 75th Cannes Film Festival Line-Up first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Roger Mitchell
Writers: Richard Bean, Clive Coleman
Stars: Jim Broadbent, Helen Mirren, Fionn Whitehead
Synopsis: In 1961, Kempton Bunton, a 60 year old taxi driver, steals Goya’s portrait of the Duke of Wellington from the National Gallery in London.
Heists and capers have been a subgenre of film since its inception. Audiences like to imagine throwing off the societal chains and taking all they can when they can, really sticking it to the man and the system. Modern heist movies even have that adrenaline fix. To see Point Break, Heat, or The Town is to want to then sit back in a chair at a party with your closest friends and float the idea by them, just to watch their eyes light up, just to get a taste of what that would feel like for the five of you. The Duke isn’t that kind of an adrenaline rush, but it is a kind of kindness rush.
The Duke is in a sub-sub genre of heist film. It’s a gentle heist, a Robin Hood like heist. It’s a film where the theft of the item is benign and its value is in what it can do for other people. The Duke is a heist film that makes you and those five friends want to spend a Saturday making sandwiches to hand out to people in the park or build a jungle gym for some kids who don’t have anywhere to play after school. It’s a film about wanting to help people because it’s the right thing to do.
What is remarkable about the story is that Kempton Bunton (Jim Broadbent) is so thoroughly principled. Even when Kempton is presented with the easy way out, a splitting of the cash reward for the location of the painting, he still sticks to his guns. He keeps himself on message because it really isn’t about him, his life, or his own well being, but the well being of the people he knows are being left behind.
Though, of course, what story of a man with a stubborn, principled dream could be complete without the put upon wife. Dorothy Bunton (Helen Mirren) doesn’t support her husband because of his passion. She supports him because she loves him. Unlike a lot of these types of stories, though, Dorothy is not going to roll her eyes and grin at her husband’s schemes, she instead puts her foot down. Dorothy may love Kempton and will stick by his side, but she has no interest in his schemes.
That’s the beauty of Helen Mirren as an actress. She can take on this unglamorous woman and make her into a symbol. Dorothy may clean other people’s houses, take care of other people’s children, but she does it because it must be done because if she didn’t do it, it wouldn’t get done. Mirren gives herself fully into the role and shows the decades of labor Dorothy has endured on her shoulders. She keeps the story grounded in the most wacky of circumstances.
Though, the writers, Richard Bean and Clive Coleman, often try to have it all with their female characters. After focusing on Dorothy, it seems they wanted to make small statements about the gender inequality of the time. There’s the lady of the house where Dorothy works who is only able to visit the golf course her husband plays at, not ever play there, when she’s accompanied by him. The forensic analyst who is spot on when profiling Kempton, but is dismissed by the sexist cops around her. The woman of the press who asks the correct questions at the briefing, but is scoffed at by her peers. There’s little to suggest one of Kempton’s crusades was for gender equality or women’s rights, so these scenes, while interesting, seem tacked on. Unlike when Kempton stands up for a South East Asian man who is experiencing racial discrimination at work. It’s a bit of a distraction even if it is a historically accurate one.
The Duke is charming, funny, and unpredictable. There is a lot to love about the story and the characters. There is even this nearly seamless way in which modern actors are imposed on archival footage of 1960s London. The Duke is a joyful caper that makes you think about how much more we could all be doing to impact the lives of others around us if we just stuck our noses out a little bit.
Grade: B
The post Movie Review (SIFF 2022): ‘The Duke’ Will Steal Your Heart first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Robert Eggers
Writer: Robert Eggers, Sjón
Stars: Alexander Skarsgård, Nicole Kidman, Claes Bang
Synopsis: From visionary director Robert Eggers comes The Northman, an action-filled epic that follows a young Viking prince on his quest to avenge his father’s murder.
Although he doesn’t have many films under his belt, three at this point, Robert Eggers has established himself as one of the most unique and distinctive voices of this new generation of filmmakers (along with Julia Ducournau, Ari Aster, Anna Biller, amongst others). His features use a motley mixture of symbolic imagery and stalking horror along with the faithful periodic details (including dialect, costumes, and richly layered folk-tale narratives) to create terrifying and memorable pieces. One of the reasons his films are so compelling and alluring may be his obsession with research–he peruses and scrutinizes various texts, lexicons, and dissertations of the era, along with scriptures of actual lived experiences. Eggers quotes: “If I can’t experience what I write as my own memories, it can’t be truthful.” This fixation benefits his features, as he brings the historical worldviews of a lost time to modern audiences in artistically bewitching and atmospheric ways. I even consider his debut, The Witch, to be close to being a masterpiece.
It creates a thick atmosphere of dread and conveys the themes of blind religious convictions, unlike any picture I have seen in the past decades. I’m not the biggest fan of his follow-up, The Lighthouse; however, I admire most of its cinematic minutiae, artistic corpus, and concepts. Now, for his third project, he partners up with Icelandic author and screenwriter Sjón (who also, fun fact, has performed with Björk and The Sugarcubes as Johnny Triumph) to deliver an interpretation of the legend of Amleth, who’s a preeminent figure in medieval Scandinavian mythology. The Northman centers around the prominent figure (Alexander Skarsgård), the direct inspiration of the character Prince Hamlet, who was once set to govern the kingdom his father, King Aurvandill War-Raven (Ethan Hawke), oversaw and reigned over. After a fierce battle, the King and his kin embrace and celebrate throughout the evening. Once the nighttime arrives, the two go to a forest close by to perform a rite, with the help of the fool Heimir (Willem Dafoe), that will bond the father-son relationship into something worth more, an affinity between kings.
There is only one primordial condition to this ritual between the fire: if the worst tends to happen and the King perishes amidst battle, Amleth must avenge his death. And the worst indeed occurs when his father is pitilessly murdered by his uncle, Fjölnir (Claes Bang). And his mother, Queen Gudrún (Nicole Kidman), was kidnapped by the same people who performed the ruthless act. From that point on, he escapes on a rowboat out to sea and swears: “I will avenge you, Father. I will save you, Mother. I will kill you, Fjölnir.” Two decades later, Amleth–now a Viking who raids several Slavic villages–receives a vision from a seeress (Björk, with a brief yet fascinating scene). She reminds him of his oath to the gods about exacting retribution for his royal progenitors. Because an act of violence and callousness reminds him of what happened to him, he conceals himself as a slave in a ship headed towards his false-hearted uncle’s new estate; Fjölnir’s perfidious act led to complete dismissal and exile.
As they make their way to the new domain, Amleth meets and romantically bonds with Olga (Anya Taylor-Joy), a young sorceress who is willing to help him pursue retribution. In the estate, Amleth builds trust with Fjölnir and his loyal companions so that, when the time is right, he can strike his mighty sword against him and get vindication for his family name. Beautifully and carefully crafted by Eggers and company, The Northman takes the Norse myth that inspired Hamlet and makes it into a mesmerizingly ambitious and brutal revenge tale. Although there is a large kill count and garners its plentiful buckets of crimson red splattered around the muddy terrains, the film is about the tolls savagery takes on a person’s life choices and vitality–a nihilistic account of the everlasting succession of barbarity and brutality. There are several scenes in which Amleth rethinks his actions due to the visceral carnage caused by his influence (as he ransacks villages) or by others (the killings of his own people).
This then juxtaposes with the moralities and principles of the different types of people we see throughout the film: Vikings, kings, queens, sorceresses, ordinary folk, and the enslaved. This is a theme that comes back from Eggers’ previous features; however, in this case, it isn’t about religious convictions or the edges of sanity, but the cycle of violence. There’s also the dissimilitude between the male and female characters. Regarding the male characters, Eggers is fascinated by portraying the human body in all its ugliness (even though Skarsgård delivers a muscular berserker performance, harnessing the spirit of an apex predator while showcasing his washboard abs). There’s burping and farting (like Pattinson and Dafoe’s drunken ramblings in The Lighthouse) as the signs of manhood and bonding between the men. Yet, at the same time, we see their bodies abused and defiled as if humanity is meant to suffer for eternity. This helps to make The Northman not only a compelling watch but a challenging and hurting one as well (in a good way, of course). You can sense the physicality of the sword swings or the punches thrown during the fights.
On the other side of things, the women (and womanhood) are treated esoterically or mystical-esque–almost sacred. However, the movie doesn’t expand upon these characteristics as much as one would like to. However, thanks to Kidman and Taylor-Joy’s acting chops, this flaw is overcome mostly, but not completely. The other minor issues that the film contains have to do with its final emotional pull and its cold demeanor. Like most Shakespearian play adaptations or other similar works, there will be many who already know the grand scheme of things (not the brilliant final battle but its conclusion). That wasn’t the problem; the problem was that its ending overall isn’t as emotionally enthralling as one might expect, nor does it reach the thematic richness of The Witch’s finale. When compared, it feels a bit smaller. Nonetheless, you are in awe of Eggers’ directorial abilities, most specifically because this is a grander scope, with a budget of 75 million dollars (thanks to Focus Features for giving such an innovative auteur a big bag of cash to realize his visions).
Most of The Northman’s elements are exquisitely detailed (the costume design by Linda Muir and Louise Cassettari, Craig Lathrop’s production design, and the entire sound team) to take you back to the bestial 10th century. In addition, the work of cinematographer Jarin Blaschke is pretty darn good. The way he shoots the film’s action set pieces is outstanding. He lets them breathe and develop slowly with tracking shots so the viewer can be way more immersed in the story. Blaschke also isn’t afraid to let the camera linger in front of the actor’s faces so we can sense every emotion the characters are going through. There is a lot to admire in Eggers’ latest, and it’s possible that, with a rewatch, you could appreciate the details more and analyze the themes in-depth. The reflections of the cycles of violence passed down from generation to generation is a fascinating concept, and Eggers finds a way to balance feral entertainment with simplistic scenes of dramatic heft. The studio interference comments that appeared a few days ago don’t seem like much happened; it doesn’t appear to have narrowed his vision, as it has his stamp all over the 137-minute runtime. By the time the end credits hit, you will be waiting for it to begin anew, and that is one of the highest compliments you could give a movie of this size and breadth.
Grade: A- The post Movie Review: ‘The Northman’ is a Tale About the Everlasting Succession of Barbarity first appeared on InSession Film.
In 1930, the Nazi Party established a film department in preparation to create their large propaganda for the people courtesy of Hitler’s Minister of Propaganda, Joseph Goebbels. Early on, they were aware of what movies could do to the public and effectively used it. In Fascist Italy, cinema was kept primarily as entertainment with narrative features, preferring realist dramas or “telephoni bianchi” comedies that would transfer itself into the sound age. This period would prove to be a feeder for young writers and directors whose names would gain international recognition from the end of World War II and beyond. A major catalyst in Italy’s film industry that is felt even today would come the son of Il Duce: Vittorio Mussolini.
Vittorio Mussolini was the eldest son of dictator Benito Mussolini, who had taken over the country in 1923 and turned into a one-party state. His sons were both interested in the arts and served in the Armed Forces later on. Vittorio flew planes to Spain to aid the victorious Nationalists in their civil war, as well as in the Second World War. In his free time, Mussolini used his clout as Mussolini’s son to spend energy in building a more robust film industry to challenge the rest of Europe. Vittorio established the Alleanza Cinematografica Italiana to produce various movies with a nationalist twist. His first film was the historical Scipio Africanus: The Defeat of Hannibal released in 1937. The film was a success in Italy as it served to be propaganda for his father and his growing ambitions to take over North Africa.
That same year, the Italian film studio Cincetta was opened under the banner, “Cinema is the most powerful weapon.” Scipio Africanus was among the first films to use the studio and Cincetta is still in wide use today for film productions around the world. While Vittorio was supporting his father’s regime, he did not take a strict route when it came to others’ political views. He became friends with writers who had left-wing sympathies and those of Jewish descent, allowing them to write in the national film magazine and take part in various productions.
Among those who took advantage included Michelangelo Antonioni and Roberto Rosselini. Vittorio permitted noted German film critic Rudolk Arnheim, who was Jewish, to live in Rome and shielded him from race laws his father would implement in 1938, which Vittorio was against. One of the most successful Italian films of the 1930s was Luciano Serra, Pilot, which Vittorio wrote a treatment for and Rossellini co-wrote. The two of them, plus Antonioni, helped on Rossellini’s first directorial effort, A Pilot Returns (1942). He even attempted to make a deal with American comic producer Hal Roach prior to America’s involvement in World War II, but Roach backed out after MGM threatened to terminate their contract with him. Had the deal gone through, the venture would’ve been called “R.A.M” – Roach and Mussolini.
Another major future director who worked with Vittorio was Federico Fellini, when he was in his early twenties. Apolitical and wanting to avoid the draft, Fellini helped on several projects, including Knights Of The Desert. It is believed Fellini co-directed it after the hired director was injured, but the movie did not get released due to Italy’s series of defeats in North Africa. In 1943, prior to his father being overthrown, Vittorio saw the debut feature of another future legend, Luchino Visconti’s Ossessione. He was angered by what he felt was an anti-Italy film instead of being the murder mystery he was promised and banned the film when Vittorio fled to his father’s puppet state in the north of Italy. Fortunately for Visconti, he kept a duplicate negative the fascists could not destroy and Ossessione would be released to the rest of the population.
In 1945, Vittorio’s father was executed and hung upside down in Milan, spat on and despised by the people he once ruled. Vittorio fled Italy for a time, never to reenter the film industry, and Rossellini released his Italian neorealism groundbreaker, Rome Open City, which is a strongly anti-fascist picture. The neorealist era would plant Italy’s flag on a global stage to make it one of the most well-renowned centers of cinema, but only after Vittorio planted the seeds to make it grow. Because he was the son of a dictator, Vittorio was relegated as revisionist of his father’s actions. However, he was key to the revitalization of the industry after the Great Depression wiped it out. Without his passion and non-discrimination against would-be political enemies, these major directors wouldn’t have gotten off the ground. So, grazie mille, Vittorio? Even though your dad was a dictator?
Follow me on Twitter: @brian_cine (Cine-A-Man)
The post Vittorio Mussolini: Italian Cinema’s Unlikely Hero first appeared on InSession Film.
Whether he’s playing a Bond villain, ranting against method actors, or concluding a film with one of the greatest dance numbers of all time, it’s hard not to get excited when Mads Mikkelsen pops on screen. The Danish actor originally trained as a gymnast and dancer, which would explain his athleticism and intimidating physique. But the man has made a name for himself as one of our most reliable and versatile actors working today, able to intimidate as easily as he can make you laugh or cry. As we gear up for his turn as Grindelwald in Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, let’s celebrate his most impressive filmography.
What do you think is Mads Mikkelsen’s best performance? We should clarify that we are only including feature films, and therefore should apologize to those who desperately wanted to vote for Hannibal.
What is Mads Mikkelsen’s best performance
The post Poll: What is Mads Mikkelsen’s best performance? first appeared on InSession Film.
This week’s episode is brought to you by the film Scream (2022). Follow us on social media for your chance to win a FREE Blu-ray!
This week on the InSession Film Podcast, Brad Hargis from The Cinema Guys Podcast joins us to discuss Michael Bay’s new film Ambulance and we continue our Steven Spielberg Movie Series with Amistad!
Big thanks to Brad for joining us this week on the podcast. He’s always a great guest, but it’s even better when you have someone whose more than willing to see and discuss Michael Bay. We had a great conversation on Ambulance, and if we’re going to let our ego get the best of us, it was probably more than the film deserved. But either way it was fun! And then there’s Amistad, a film that quintessentially defines our approach to our Spielberg series.
On that note, check out this week’s show and let us know what you think in the comment section. Thanks for listening and for supporting the InSession Film Podcast!
– Movie Review: Ambulance (6:59)
Director: Michael Bay
Writers: Chris Fedak
Stars: Jake Gyllenhaal, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Eiza González
– Notes / Only Angels Have Wings / Will Smith Banned (49:31)
This week for our break segment, after the Oscars fiasco with Will Smith, we finally learned of his punishment this last week. So, of course, we talk about that for a few minutes and whether his 10-year ban is overly harsh or not. JD also gives his thoughts on the Howard Hawks movie Only Angels Have Wings after the Extra Film boys reviewed it a few weeks ago.
RELATED: Listen to Episode 443 of the InSession Film Podcast where we discussed CODA!
– Steven Spielberg Movie Series: Amistad (1:29:45)
Director: Steven Spielberg
Writers: David Franzoni
Stars: Djimon Hounsou, Matthew McConaughey, Morgan Freeman, Anthony Hopkins
Show Sponsor: First Time Watchers Podcast
– Music
California Dreamin’ – The Mamas and The Papas
Dry Your Tears, Afrika – John Williams
The Return of the Eagle – Atli Örvarsson
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InSession Film Podcast – Episode 477
InSession Film · Ambulance / Amistad – Episode 477 Next week on the show: Review: Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore
Steven Spielberg Movie Series: A.I. Artificial Intelligence
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The post Podcast: Ambulance / Amistad – Episode 477 first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Teemu Nikki
Writer: Teemu Nikki
Stars: Petri Poikolainen, Marjaana Maijala, Samuli Jaskio
Synopsis: Jaakko is a blind man who is confined to a wheelchair. He is in love with Sirpa, with whom he has had a long-distance relationship but only by telephone. The two have never met in person. One day Jaakko decides to travel to meet Sirpa, relying on strangers’ help to make the journey.
The Blind Man Who Did Not Want to See Titanic is a film that catches you off guard at first. It takes a few scenes to really understand what writer/director Teemu Nikki is aiming for with his visual style. The shot is always in close up and outside of the small circle, there is a blur, an edge to our perception of what is happening around Jaakko (Petri Poikolainen). Nikki and cinematographer Sari Aaltonen create a visual aesthetic that interprets Jaakko’s blindness in a way that the audience can still pick up on visual clues, but impairs us to give a small taste of what our hero experiences.
The sound design takes on the heavy lifting in the film and draws our attention to what we need to know from what we can’t see. Sound designer Sami Kiiski and sound editor Pietu Korhonen layer in sound beautifully to complete our sensory experience. There is a great scene as Jaakko sits and waits in the train station and as the camera maintains its tight focus on Jaakko’s face, we suddenly hear the woman walking behind him, then the man in the electric wheelchair just after her, and the camera slightly pans to reveal their blurs. This soundscape adds so many layers to the narrative. It helps us through the transition from the romantic dramedy to the thriller the film becomes.
The shift is subtle and it starts out with something that looks like it may be a throwaway scene, but evolves and heightens with danger. The visuals help to create this sense of unease and tension because we can see that there is something wrong, but not yet what could happen. Our fear for Jaakko is suddenly beyond just how he will get around or if there will be people to help him. It’s now thrown into the chaos of people attempting to take advantage of him and exploit his condition. Jaakko’s resilience in these scenes keeps us upbeat even as his chances diminish rapidly. He’s smart and angry, which keeps him alive.
The Blind Man Who Did Not Want to See Titanic would not be as engaging as it is without the immense talent of Petri Poikolainen. An actor who himself suffers from the effects of multiple sclerosis and blindness as Jaakko does, Poikolainen brings that pain, fear, joy, and yearning to his every expression. There is a gorgeous scene in the film in which Jaakko, saying goodnight to his long distance romantic partner, Sirpa (Marjaana Maijala), plays a song that the two of them sing to together. He asks Sirpa to describe what she would do if the two were together. As she does, the anguish that comes across Jaakko’s face is heart-rending. Poikolainen lets the feelings wash over him and he makes us feel every moment, yearning along with him.
This film will make you smile with Jaakko’s love of John Carpenter films and his disdain for the later work of James Cameron. It will make you clutch your hand to your chest as Jaakko is wheeled toward an uncertain fate by the man we only know as Mr. Scorpions (Samuli Jaskio). Then it will bring you back from the edge with its truly beautiful ending. The Blind Man Who Did Not Want to See Titanic is certainly off the beaten path, but well worth the journey.
Grade: B+
The post Movie Review (SIFF 2022): ‘The Blind Man Who Did Not Want to See Titanic’ is a Unique Visual Experience first appeared on InSession Film.
These outside the box contemporary Shakespeare adaptations bend time, place, and drama for unique, ever relevant looks at the same old Bard.
- Macbeth (2015)
Director Justin Kurzel (Snowtown) helms Michael Fassbender (Shame) and Marion Cotillard (La Vie en Rose) in this counter-intuitive blend of modern meets Scottish castles. Showing usually off screen killings and using symbolic rain for the washing of blood keeps the confrontations and fatal discoveries tense as snips of the done deeds accent a very suspicious coronation. The contemporary grief is best when the innate court intrigue brews, but the supporting cast is unfortunately wasted amid frustrating mumbling and a surprising lack of dialogue for, you know, Shakespeare. Picturesque blue nighttime schemes contrast orange battlefield heat; but candlelit interiors are tough to see, forcing viewers to adjust with every unnecessarily arty scene transition. Surreal phantoms and supernatural mirages jar with the gritty realism, detracting from the cerebral introspection and traumatizing soliloquies. We don’t see enough of the bearded, strained, and stressed Fassbender embodying the festering cowardice– which may be intentional isolation as only the camera comes close while his wife must handle the weapons. Cotillard’s cruel Lady Macbeth vicariously aids her husband’s rise to glory, however giving this ruthless villainess childless sympathy dampens the poisonous scheming. Although the camera rightfully remains on our emasculating Mrs. in a tearful mea culpa church soliloquy, narrating the final battle with no beheading is an unfair, unsatisfactory end. At times, this production doesn’t seem to even like Shakespeare, ramping up beautiful designs but dropping most of the text – resulting in an artistic unevenness that keeps the meta trauma at arms length.
- All is True
An almost unrecognizable Kenneth Branagh directs and stars as William Shakespeare in this 2018 biopic recounting The Bard’s final years after the 1613 burning of the Globe Theatre. Shakespeare returns to the countryside with autumn leaves, sun kissed silhouettes, and fine attention to Tudor detail. Conversations move at a reflective, mature pace as awkward dinner scenes, tense will stipulations, and gardening struggles mirror the family disconnects. Wife Judi Dench (Victoria & Abdul) puts Bill in the best bed for the guests, reminding him that he spent so much time putting words into people’s mouths that he forgot what’s unsaid matters. She’s angry over his love poetry, too. Did he ever consider her reputation while wallowing over visions of their late son Hamnet? Ian McKellan’s Earl of Southampton also waxes on the read between the lines love, forever young words, and family legacy in a lengthy twofer scene. Shakespeare provided wealth and comfort for his family, paying for a fake coat of arms and, embarrassed about his own upbringing, he can’t understand their bitterness until he realizes they too have unheard stories to tell. Unfortunately, the time spent on his daughters and their creep husbands is uneven as the ideal Hamnet supposition drags on, detracting from the internal analysis alongside tutting Puritan townsfolk and superfluous scandals. The contrived liberties may irritate purists and usually we forgive Branagh his Shakespeare indulgences, however an outside eye not so beloved of The Bard would have smoothed the unnecessary here. Despite excess intrusions, this is a perfectly period swansong.
- The Tempest (2010)
Sorcery and supernatural storms invoke an in limbo fantasy as Helen Mirren (The Queen) leads writer and director Julie Taymor’s (Titus) role reversal alongside Djimon Hounsou (Gladiator), Ben Whishaw (Skyfall), and Felicity Jones (The Theory of Everything). Brief Milan flashbacks are otherworldly and dreamy to match the old speaketh fanciful, moody Hawaii beaches, and steampunk island lair. Silent film styled German Expressionism photography captures the isolated, airy forests as ships in peril, crashing waves, and seaside winds accent the surreal. Granted, some Ariel special effects montages are cheesy – a post production spectacle in this otherwise outdoor presentation. With a strong cast, self-aware confrontations, and innate Shakespeare parallels, there’s no need to stray with out of place slapstick silly and drunken jester moments obnoxiously sidetracking the first hour. Subtle reflections and nymph music better set off the wild turnabouts as small people live large in orchestrating flawed plans. The appealing youthful romance waxes on if the players are dreaming or awake in their play within a play purgatory. Although we don’t see sympathetic sorceress with a bad wrap Mirren as much, the Prospera switch adds mother/daughter intrigue. Our Dame commands the masculine ruthless and fiery action as one and all plot to entertain themselves; yet find guilt, pity, or comeuppance in a fine finale trading power for compassion. One may not always agree with Taymor’s visionary storytelling, but in this era where most films look the same, this is perfect for viewers seeking something different.
- Othello (1995)
Moor of Venice Laurence Fishburne (The Matrix) has secretly married Irene Jacob’s (Three Colors: Red) Desdemona and jealous ensign Kenneth Branagh plots to destroy them in writer and director Oliver Parker’s (An Ideal Husband) charming, detailed, and risque adaptation brimming with enchanting costumes and medieval swords. The Italian locations are uncluttered and stage-like for the ensemble to plot and spread rumors as lowly, backstabbing Iago sets our tragedy in motion all while contending he is not the envious villain and that his malicious intentions are justified. Branagah’s on screen asides and soliloquies break the fourth wall, drawing the audience into his long-gestating, ruinous schemes. After seeing the titular Fishburne, it’s tough to imagine anyone else as this wronged husband manipulated into his own downfall. The talketh rolls off his tongue, and Fishburne carries the onscreen presence needed for Othello’s extreme nature – making us care, fear his increasingly maniacal asides, and kick him for falling into Iago’s plot. French actress Irene Jacob is a delight, if minimal Desdemona, for we see more of the imaginary vixen sowing doubt in naughty visions of the assumed deceit rather than her true adoring wife. The intricate envy, rage, and betrayal are beautifully written, and Shakespeare’s four hundred year old commentary on race, culture, and religion remains a transcending examination of what power, love, and deception can do.
- Richard III (1995)
Annette Bening (American Beauty), Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man), Maggie Smith (Harry Potter), and more join Ian McKellan for this fascist re-imagining from director Richard Loncraine (Wimbledon) alongside typewriters, telegraphs, tanks, and gas masks. Richard uses a microphone for his expected soliloquy as zooms on his mouth indicate double talk and duplicitous plots. Our disfigured Duke of Gloucester preens in the mirror before addressing the camera directly with his plans. He’s suave in his decorated uniform and villainous mustache yet off kilter, unkempt, and clearly insane. Though recognizably thirties with swanky cars, jazz, Art Deco glamour and careful period detail; there’s an anachronistic surreal to the fedoras and noir silhouettes – as if the Imperial and aristocratic ways of footmen and tiaras continued into the jet set unchecked toward their inevitable Nazi parallels. Richard’s sowing seeds at Tower of London bunkers and board room committees are unable to stop his armored train. The old speaketh remains stage-like one on one tension as each scene lays a piece of the brother against brother plot. Hired killers provide gangster style executions with bloody bathtubs, drugs, and bedroom impalement. Richard talks to us while he’s watching his coronation film reels, gleefully letting the viewer in on the dictator vanity once his ruse succeeds. This interpretation may be confusing for newcomers, but the visual symbolism and layered subtext demand several viewings – a period piece pressure cooker proving how provocative Shakespeare is when outfitted with machine guns, power stations, and airplanes.
The post Op-Ed: Modern Shakespearean Looks first appeared on InSession Film.
Directors: Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert
Writers: Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert
Stars: Michelle Yeoh, Stephanie Hsu, Ke Huy Quan
Synopsis: An aging Chinese immigrant is swept up in an insane adventure, where she alone can save the world by exploring other universes connecting with the lives she could have led.
In many ways, I don’t know how to even describe this film. It’s both incredibly large scale, through its usage of a multiverse and parallel realities, and incredibly small, due to its focus on the life of Evelyn Wang (Michelle Yeoh) and her family. It’s a film with both martial arts fights and IRS meetings. It’s a film that revels in surrealism and absurdity, and it throws traditional plot structure out the window. It’s unlike anything else you have ever seen. And I highly recommend going into the film blind, because every twist, every turn, every emotional beat, is an experience. If this movie sounds up your alley, close this review and go watch it.
Everything Everywhere All At Once isn’t just a fantastic movie. It’s a filmmaking achievement that will go down in history. This is the type of film that requires multiple viewings to soak up everything that is happening. Every scene, every moment, is packed with subtext, subtle performances, and eloquent visuals that may go unnoticed due to everything that is happening around it. And while that chaotic energy could drag down a more serious drama, it’s the bread and butter of Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheiner’s (The Daniels) latest film. Like the title says, this film is about everything, everywhere, all at once, and you feel that through the editing, performances, cinematography and writing. Every aspect of this film feels hand-crafted, due to the intentionality behind it all. Every element combines with the others to make something that is more than the sum of its parts.
Part One: A Film about Everything
Everything Everywhere All At Once is the tale of Evelyn Wang, a middle-aged woman whose life hasn’t amounted to anything. She’s constantly doing too much, unable to slow down due to the pressures of running a business, caring for a lesbian daughter and holding the weight of the world on her shoulders. When individuals from the Alpha-verse make contact with Evelyn, she is entrusted with the quest to save the world by defeating Jobu Tupaki (Stephanie Hsu), the daughter of Alpha-Evelyn who got pushed too far and seeks to destroy the entire multiverse. Along the way, Evelyn has to learn how to let go and appreciate the things in life that truly matter.
Everything, Everywhere, All At Once may just be the quintessential millennial film. For those unfamiliar with the term, a “Millenial film” is a story that reflects the fears and worries typically associated with the Millennial Generation. These often include fears of financial security, personal growth and success, and the growing gaps between different generations. In an ever-expanding world, where unlimited expanses of information are at our fingertips, those worries have become more and more prominent. To deal with all those worries, The Daniels have created this film. It’s a film about coming to terms with those worries and choosing to focus on the connections that unify humanity together. In a post-pandemic world, it’s more relevant than ever.
Part Two: A Film With Everything
Describing The Daniels latest project feels impossible because there is so much packed into the 140-minute runtime. There are talking raccoons, fanny pack whips, visual effects that would fit in the summer’s greatest blockbusters, hand-drawn cartoons, and even rocks with googly eyes. That adherence to complete absurdity is the core of Everything Everywhere All At Once. Much like Spider-man:Into the Spider-verse or Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, the combinations of visual gags and witty jokes glue this insane story together. Enhancing every component of the film is Son Lux’s score, which manages to be otherworldly and pressure-inducing. It captures the many tones of this film perfectly and is fundamental to this story.
This is supported by great performances from the entire cast. Michelle Yeoh’s work as Evelyn is second to none, with her immense talent in action sequences being matched only by her subtle emoting during the many great dialogue sequences in the film. Similarly, Stephanie Hsu holds her own as Joy Wang/Jobu Tupaki, and deserves much praise for her tortured performance. But no one compares to the eccentric work of Ke Huy Quan, who plays the many versions of Waymond Wang. The contrast in these characters is gorgeous on the script level, but Quan truly brings Waymond to life through every element of his performance. Whether it’s his vocal inflection or his movement, Waymond never feels the same between universes. Considering that Everything Everywhere All At Once was Ke Huy Quan’s return to acting after quitting in 2002, it’s one of the best performances of all time.
Part Three: A Film that Happens All At Once
What’s magic about Everything, Everywhere, All At Once is that it sits with you. The raw creativity and passion comes through every scene, and creates emotional apexes not seen anywhere else. Even the weird universes have a heart to them. The way that The Daniels have made me care for a conversation between two rocks on a lifeless Earth is unlike anything I have ever felt before. And that storytelling achievement starts at the writing level, which chooses to use the medium of film in ways nothing else has. And no, I am not just talking about how it utilizes and displays the multiverse. For as ecstatic and bombastic its costumes and makeup make the multiverse, it’s the way the film is constructed that makes it special.
The editing techniques of cross-cutting and montage have been around for years, but no other film has used them like Everything Everywhere All At Once. Editor Paul Rogers extends single scenes through universe jumping, combining multiple conversations into a single dialogue that recontextualizes every moment that came before. Each universe is weirder than the last, and yet, infinitely more human than the present. Even the multiverse with hot-dog fingers is strangely beautiful.
The way that The Daniels have used the Multiverse, and setting changes, to add meaning and depth to the story is truly unique and mind blowing. And it’s not just seen through the immaculate production design by Jason Kisvarday, which gives each location life and rich history. Rather, the way the camera moves between scenes feels like something from Alfonso Cuaron, as it flows through each location and creates one larger setting. Cinematographer Larkin Seiple manages to capture each scene beautifully and uses different genre styles to create distinct worlds. When a conversation occurs between Evelyn and Waymond in a world where they never married, the scene is lit as though it were a Wong Kar Wai film. That is the magic behind Everything Everywhere All At Once; where the craft enhances the story being told, and where techniques change between scenes because each scene requires that specific visual style to tell this story effectively.
In conclusion, Everything Everywhere All At Once is a marvelous achievement in filmmaking. The Daniels have created one of the best films of the year, and it is sure to inspire the next generation of filmmakers.
Grade: A
The post Movie Review: ‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’ is a Bombastic Tale of Nothing and Everything first appeared on InSession Film.
Sometimes, Hollywood’s history of, and practice of, continued misogyny really makes me wonder how different things could be on a film level with that removed. This is, of course, a complex issue and not one that can be simply removed. But I find myself thinking of actor director combinations that stuck throughout director’s careers. Male directors tend to find their muses and build fabulous combined careers together. Scorsese and De Niro (or DiCaprio), Tarantino and Tim Roth (or DiCaprio, again), and Paul Thomas Anderson and Phillip Seymour Hoffman immediately spring to mind. It gets harder when trying to think of female directors. Possibilities include Greta Gerwig and Saoirse Ronan or Sofia Coppola and Kirsten Dunst. Today, I want to look at a combination that I wish had created more movies together, Allison Anders and Fairuza Balk. To accomplish this, the Criterion Channel has supplied us with a movie leaving its service, Gas Food Lodging.
Allison Anders, for a time, was a bit of an indie film darling. Possibly the high point of this (in terms of public knowledge) was her being involved with Four Rooms, alongside Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez, and Alexandre Rockwell. Fairuza Balk, on the other hand, is highly thought of in certain circles for horror and horror adjacent work, such as Return To Oz and The Craft. Because of these roles, her performance in Gas Food Lodging is a revelation. Whatever you may be expecting from her, I can almost guarantee you that you will not see it here.
Gas Food Lodging, in brief, is a coming of age story about two daughters being raised by a hard working single mother in a trailer in New Mexico. Of note, Anders was a production assistant on Wim Wenders’ Paris, Texas, and you can absolutely see her beginnings shine through. The focus on small town vistas would remind you of Wenders’ work, even without that knowledge. The two daughters could not be any different stylistically. The older sibling, Trudi (Ione Skye) is willful, sexually active, and volatile in every sense. However, Shade (Balk) keeps to herself, spends time alone in movie theaters, and focuses on her mother’s love life more than her own. Speaking of her mother, Nora (Brooke Adams) provides a much needed different type of single mother on film. She is neither a perfect paragon of hard work, nor a complete mess. Nora is a mix of both and one cannot help but relate to her, even when she is screaming at Trudi.
Gas Food Lodging also has some interesting things to say about relationships in general, and men in specific. It feels like, for most of the runtime, the only good men are on the silver screen, and not in real life. The film basically opens (after some voiceover from Balk) with a horrific interchange for Trudi featuring implied oral sex, lies, and finally, rejection. And things are no better for Nora, who seems doomed to only get attention from her ex-husband and a married man with whom she has a sexual past. And Shade? Her options seem limited to an obviously gay (to everyone but her) best friend, Darius (Donovan Leitch) and an employee at the local theater, Javier (Jacob Vargas) who is full of animosity after being called a slur by Trudi. The only possible reprieve is in Trudi’s new boyfriend, Dank (Robert Knepper), but his trustworthiness is varied throughout the runtime.
But truly, this movie sinks or swims based purely on Fairuza Balk’s performance. Depending on the scene, she is bright, dark, cold, excited, loving, and angry. It is truly a masterful performance that keeps you on the edge of your seat. And yet, there is not a single acting note out of place. She is able to, both through her wonderful performance and her absolute mastery of Allison Anders’ screenplay (based on the book, “Don’t Look and It Won’t Hurt” written by Richard Peck), make us understand her exact place and emotion, regardless of whether or not we have ever actually experienced the moment. In particular, her attempted seduction of Darius is both hilarious and painful. The awkwardness of Balk’s gait in unfamiliar heels (dressed as Olivia Newton-John) tells us everything we need to know about how this moment will progress. But it alters as she breaks down into tears and leaves in a mild rage. In a beautifully written and performed transition, she is surprised by Javier and quickly made aware that he cares for her, without the hiding behind a wig and uncomfortable shoes. It is a truly lovely moment that does not need a continued relationship to make it worthy.
Watching movies from the past can be enlightening and depressing in the same moment. Both Anders and Balk have had limited careers in film, and I cannot, for the life of me, see a good reason why they could not have been a lasting pair. Thankfully, services like The Criterion channel offer a view into what could have been. You should absolutely watch Gas Food Lodging and especially the performance of Fairuza Balk before it leaves the service.
The post Criterion Crunch Time: ‘Gas Food Lodging’ first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Phil Connell
Writer: Phi Connell
Stars: Cloris Leachman, Thomas Duplessie, Andrew Bushell, Sheldon McIntosh
Synopsis: A rookie drag queen, reeling from a break-up, escapes to the country, where he finds his grandmother in steep decline yet desperate to avoid the local nursing home.
Cloris Leachman was a legend—a powerhouse performer with a range and résumé that most actors can only dream of. When she died last year at the age of 94, Hollywood was left with a wound that will never fully heal. From her Oscar-winning turn as the devastating Ruth Popper in Peter Bogdanovich’s The Last Picture Show to her equal-parts sinister and absurd Nurse Diesel in Mel Brooks’ High Anxiety to her chuckle-inducing voice work in Beavis and Butthead Do America (in which she plays the accidentally provocative Old Woman on Plane and Bus who loves “doing slots” in Vegas), Leachman was an unmatchable presence in American cinema. And then there’s her record-setting history with the Emmys, thanks to her prolific and varied television career! So, if anything, Phil Connell’s Jump, Darling is worth watching simply to put a punctuation mark on the life of an icon.
In Connell’s debut feature, Leachman plays Margaret, the caustic grandmother of the protagonist. The film opens on Margaret, and we recognize immediately that she is a woman in decline. She survives a kitchen accident that very well could have killed her had she not been so lucky, yet she is determined to live on her own and absolutely refuses to be placed in a home. Thankfully, her struggling-actor-turned-struggling-drag-queen grandson (Thomas Duplessie) is having a quarter-life crisis and flees Toronto to return to his small Canadian hometown in rural Prince Edward County, Ontario. Russell is at a point in his early adulthood where he doesn’t really know what he wants anymore. The acting thing hasn’t been working out, and he has not thus far blossomed into a great drag queen either. Down on himself and lacking direction, Russell’s instincts take him home.
Duplessie is fine as Russell. Playing an aimless character is not easy, especially when the direction of the film itself seems to adopt the mindset of that character. Jump, Darling wants to be “about” a lot of serious stuff: the hereditary nature of mental illness, suicidal behavior, alcoholism, family trauma, etc., but it only dabbles in each without ever fully committing to a single one; similar to Russell’s own absence of commitment or ambition. So, conceptually… sure. But it doesn’t always make for very interesting storytelling, or for an engaging performance. Naturally, Duplessie is most compelling when he’s Fishy Falters, Russell’s drag alter ego. (First of all, it’s kind of bold of Russell to choose the name Fishy when she’s not fishy. The Falters surname, however, makes sense, considering the way he’s finding his footing.) It’s when in character as Fishy that Duplessie/Russell really comes to life and the movie wakes up.
The film’s most dynamic sequence is of Fishy, at a low point, expressing herself in the best way she knows how. Finding herself all alone in the technically-not-a-gay-bar-but-ostensibly-a-gay-bar where she’s been performing and DJ-ing since arriving back in town, Fishy allows herself to mentally go to another place and the film follows: the setting’s periphery goes dark, the lighting becomes très dramatique, and the camera moves with Fishy as she’s owning every inch of the space to the tune of Robyn’s “Indestructible.” Musical theatre characters sing and dance when they’re so overcome with emotion that they have no other way of articulating what they’re feeling, and this sequence is Fishy’s fierce version of that. Her pussy is on fire as she is living her full video vixen fantasy, due in large part to cinematographer Viktor Cahoj’s lighting prowess.
Fishy reveals Russell’s strength. She’s not so much his armor as she is his conduit. It’s via Fishy that he channels his insecurities. Without the veneer she provides, Russell moves through life somewhat halfheartedly. So, of course, Duplessie’s best scenes are the ones opposite Cloris Leachman. The most dedicated thespians not only bring it to you every ball, but also elevate their scene partner. And that was one of Leachman’s greatest gifts. Thomas Duplessie is certainly a good actor, but I have a feeling he grew tenfold simply by having acted with Leachman. As a bon voyage role, Margaret is suitable. Like the actress playing her, Margaret is intuitive and tenacious, with an acidic wit. She’s also a woman carrying a lot of baggage, the weight of which has undoubtedly been contributing to her worsening state. It’s a role that requires vulnerability, and Leachman demonstrates a willingness to do what needs to be done to give Margaret the dignity she so deserves. There will never be another Cloris.
Grade: B- The post Movie Review: ‘Jump, Darling’ Is a Scrappy Swan Song for Cloris Leachman first appeared on InSession Film.
How would you feel encountering your older or younger self? Better question, would you even want to have that experience? When time travel is involved, this encounter usually leads to catastrophic consequences, such as timeline adjustments or a “nexus event” (thanks, Loki). Shawn Levy’s latest collaboration with Ryan Reynolds (The Adam Project) sees Reynolds encountering his younger self, as if one Reynolds wasn’t enough, and this got us thinking about all the times movie characters interacted in some way with themselves from a different time.
So let’s get weird, what do you think is the best film where characters encounter their older or younger selves?
What is the best movie where characters encounter their older/younger selves?
The post Poll: What is the best movie where characters encounter their older/younger selves? first appeared on InSession Film.
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This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we discuss Pixar’s latest in Turning Red and we continue our Steven Spielberg Movie Series with his 1985 film The Color Purple! Plus, a few thoughts on this year’s crop of Critics Choice winners.
It’s always a great time whenever we get to talk about the latest Pixar. The hallow controversy surrounding it on social media is unfortunate, however there’s plenty of nuance to discuss and we had a great time diving into its central metaphor and why it works. Our conversation on The Color Purple was also interesting as it was JD’s first time seeing the film, and Brendan’s first watch in about 20 years. It was a colorful episode this week and we wouldn’t have had it any other way.
On that note, check out this week’s show and let us know what you think in the comment section. Thanks for listening and for supporting the InSession Film Podcast!
– Movie Review: Turning Red (6:29)
Director: Domee Shi
Writers: Julia Cho, Domee Shi
Stars: Rosalie Chiang, Sandra Oh, Orion Lee, Wai Ching Ho
– Notes / The Critics Choice Awards (46:11)
This week for our break segment, instead of discussing any movies we’ve seen recently, we talk about the winners of the 2022 Critics Choice Awards. Say what you will about the CCA, but this year’s crop of winners aren’t that bad all things considered. And they may line up pretty well with the Oscars if the pundits are to be believed. We’ll see, but we had a few thoughts on how pleasantly surprised we were by the outcome.
RELATED: Listen to Episode 456 of the InSession Film Podcast where we discussed Belfast!
– Steven Spielberg Movie Series: The Color Purple (1:10:40)
Director: Steven Spielberg
Writers: Menno Meyjes
Stars: Danny Glover, Oprah Winfrey, Whoopi Goldberg
Show Sponsor: First Time Watchers Podcast
– Music
Nobody Like U – 4-Town
The Color Purple – Quincy Jones
The Return of the Eagle – Atli Örvarsson
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InSession Film Podcast – Episode 473
InSession Film · Turning Red / The Color Purple – Episode 473 Next week on the show: Review: The Adam Project
Steven Spielberg Movie Series: Empire of the Sun
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The post Podcast: Turning Red / The Color Purple – Episode 473 first appeared on InSession Film.
We are now approaching two weeks since Matt Reeves’ The Batman debuted in theaters, and people have been scrambling to update their Batman movie lists. It’s always exciting to revisit the caped crusader’s countless adventures, whether you rewatch them on a regular or yearly basis. I have always found it important to re-explore films to gain a new perspective that you might have missed.
There is never a bad time to talk about the world’s greatest detective, and I’m excited that I get to share my list with my fellow comic book nerds. Batman is one of my favorite heroes of all time, and it has been a joy to rewatch these films in a celebratory fashion. I might be a little late to this party bus, but I am here to list the best live-action Batman films from best to worst. Please be aware that this article will only contain listings of the live-action Batman films I have seen.
Batman & Robin (1997)
Growing up, this was a movie that I used to watch repeatedly. It is a film that is a product of its time, and to this day is not held in high regard. I always enjoyed how cheesy and goofy the dialogue can be. The film is supposed to give off a more heroic side of Batman as he takes down Mr. Freeze (Arnold Schwarzenegger) and Poison Ivy (Uma Thurman). But unfortunately, that’s not who Batman is. On my current rewatch, it felt as if the script was written for a Superman movie. However, if you can look past the film’s obvious flaws, Batman & Robin is still a fun time and it knows exactly what it wants to be: a kooky, nutty story made for kids.
Batman (1989)
I might be in the minority on this, but Batman ’89 has never worked for me as a film. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy Michael Keaton’s portrayal of Bruce/Batman, and I cannot discredit Jack Nicholson’s interpretation of the Joker. Both actors had amazing chemistry and it reflects well on screen, and Tim Burton’s direction and vision of Gotham is top-notch. But I think the film’s biggest flaw is its story. Outside of Batman, The Joker, and Vicki Vale (Kim Basinger), the rest of the cast is pretty forgettable. This was supposed to be the start of Tim Burton’s grand Batman universe and knowing how it ends is disappointing.
The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
This movie showed all the potential in the world. I adore how this story goes full circle with Bruce’s relationship with Ra’s al Ghul (Liam Neeson) and adding Bane (Tom Hardy) and Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway) into the mix was a nice touch but it could have been done better. It’s difficult to follow up on the level of excitement when it comes to the closing of this trilogy, and adding Talia al Ghul (Marion Cotillard) felt forced and unneeded. I felt like this film would have done better if they focused on building a better relationship between Batman and Bane. With that being said, It’s the weakest out of the Dark Knight Trilogy.
Batman Forever (1995)
Much like Batman & Robin, this film is geared more towards a younger audience. After the backlash that Batman Returns received for being too dark of a story for children, Batman Forever was born. I must admit this is a tried and true Batman film. Val Kilmer was a killer Bruce Wayne, and his Batman was a welcome element as well. The story is a perfect blend of what being Batman is all about, with adding a few laughs along the way. You could tell that The Riddler (Jim Carrey) and Two-Face (Tommy Lee Jones) were having the time of their lives playing these iconic villains. Even though the casting of Robin (Chris O’Donnell) was a bit questionable due to the age of Robin in the film, it’s the perfect popcorn Batman movie we deserved and then some.
Batman Returns (1992)
Tim Burton’s sequel is perhaps the best 90s Batman movie we received during the decade. On my rewatch of this film, I can understand how children were turned off by the idea of a grittier Batman. As I mentioned before, Tim Burton did a phenomenal job with the aesthetic of Gotham and, in this film, it shines. I also forgot how much adult humor was baked into this script. I found myself in awe of the dialogue between The Penguin (Danny Devito) and Catwoman (Michelle Pfeiffer). What makes a good superhero story is a villain, and they both played their parts so well. You can empathize with both characters on so many levels and at times you almost forget that they are the antagonists of the film because of the performances they deliver. It’s a shame that we never got another film with Michael Keaton, but it looks like that might be changing shortly.
The Dark Knight (2008)
For the longest time, I’ve viewed this film as the Godfather of live-action Batman films. At the time, it set a new standard for what comic book movies could be. We have seen multiple films in this genre reach higher heights than we, as movie fans, ever thought possible. Heath Ledger’s performance as the Joker is engraved into the minds of fans, alongside Two-Face (Aaron Eckhart) and Commissioner Gordon (Gary Oldman). Even though I adore this film, it has always felt more of a Joker story than it does a Batman movie. Yes, Batman is in the film, but the villains and side characters of the movie overshadow the fact that this is supposed to be the climax of Bruce’s journey as the Dark Knight. This movie will always be remembered by Batman fans as one of the greats.
Batman Begins (2005)
“Why do we fall, Bruce? So we can learn to pick ourselves up.” These are the wise words of Bruce’s father, Thomas Wayne. This line is delivered simply, but leaves a lasting effect on anyone that may hear it. It serves as a motto for this film, and the result of the message reflected in the man that Bruce Wayne eventually becomes. This entry is the only film in the dark knight trilogy that doesn’t feel like a Christopher Nolan movie, and I adore it for that reason. We get to witness a 30-year-old Bruce Wayne wrestle with the demons of his soul as he tries to gain clarity in how to honor his late parents by becoming the one symbol that struck fear into his heart. Comic book origin stories have evolved into a more introductory format in recent years, and I consider Batman Begins to be a heavy influencer on superhero origins.
The Batman (2022)
This might come as a shock, but I assure you I’ve had a generous amount of time to mull this film over as I have seen it on multiple occasions. The Batman isn’t just another entry in a trilogy or a multi-directed Batman starring three Bruce Wayne’s. It’s a love letter to fans who have waited decades for a faithful adaptation of Batman. This film leans in on the investigative side of Batman. After all, he is the world’s greatest detective and director Matt Reeves did an excellent job of bringing the film noir side of the Dark Knight to life. His use of Nirvana’s song “Something in the Way” is a perfect metaphor for Batman’s psyche and the city of Gotham feels like a character in the story. This truly is the best ensemble cast for a Batman film I have ever seen. I could ramble over Robert Pattinson, Zoe Kravitz, Jeffery Wright, and Paul Dano’s performances for hours, and I have high expectations that we’ll receive a sequel to this new variant of the caped crusader.
The post List: Christian Eulinberg’s Live Action Batman Ranking first appeared on InSession Film.
We are currently in the midst of Academy Award season, my favorite time of year. Nominations are out, and everyone I know and love on Film Twitter is posting daily lists of who they think will win. One topic that is always hotly contested is the list of films and artists that are “snubbed” each year. It’s a time I like to look back and see how there are some great artists that have never won an Oscar. Cary Grant? Alfred Hitchcock? How is this possible? Even more so, the amount of talented artists who not only have never WON an Oscar, but never even been nominated. So many of our most beloved performers have never received a nomination, even though they have given performances more than worthy of a nomination. Today, I am focusing on the Best Supporting Actor race.
1. Stephen Boyd as Masala in Ben-Hur (1959). Stephen Boyd was the antagonist in Ben-Hur, and gave a riveting performance. What’s even more insulting about his complete snub by the Academy is the fact that Hugh Griffiths took home the award, for playing a character in brownface for the same film. Boyd gave a richly layered performance, as a Roman who grew up with Judah Ben-Hur, was his childhood best friend, and, according to the documentary The Celluloid Closet, was supposed to be in love with Ben-Hur. We see him happy, hurt, betrayed. He’s the most interesting character in this epic film, and it’s a crime that he was ignored by the Academy.
2. Joe E Brown as Osgood in Some Like it Hot (1959) 1959 also gave us the overlooked comedic performance by Joe E Brown in the Billy Wilder comedy Some Like it Hot. Brown plays the rich, old, lecherous Osgood, who falls madly in love with Jack Lemmon’s “Daphne.” While Lemmon received an Oscar nomination for arguably one of the greatest comedic performances of all time, Brown, his partner in his best scenes, was totally ignored. Brown convinces us that he is simply dazzled by Lemmon, always giving flirty winks, little “zowies!” and smiling every time he sees his beloved Daphne. He is playing it straight, and it totally works. Lemmon isn’t the most convincing female, hence the humor of the film, but when Brown looks at her, you’d think Daphne is as beautiful as Marilyn Monroe’s “Sugar.” I give him bonus points for delivering one of the all time greatest last lines of a film. If you haven’t seen the film, I’m not spoiling it for you. Just do yourself a favor and go watch it.
3. Fred MacMurray as Mr. Sheldrake in The Apartment (1960). When people discuss great actors, Fred MacMurray never seems to come up in conversation. People think of him as the lovable guy from My Three Sons and a bunch of Disney films. They seem to forget he has been in two of the greatest films of all time, both directed by the master himself, Mr. Billy Wilder. How was MacMurray NEVER nominated for an Oscar? The Apartment is a masterpiece of cinema, and rightly won Best Picture of 1960. MacMurray plays the deceptively simplistic Mr. Sheldrake. Sheldrake is a villain of the best kind- he SEEMS like a great guy, but below that charismatic smile, he is just a dirtbag who cheats on his wife, has inappropriate relationships with his female employees, and manipulates his male employees. The real reason why this character works is because it’s played by Fred MacMurray. He’s a tall, handsome man with a huge smile. As much as we, the audience, detest the way he treats people, we do understand why both Miss Kubelick (the adorably tragic Shirley MacClaine) and C.C. Baxter (the always perfect every-man Jack Lemmon) are charmed by him, and allow themselves to be manipulated by him.
4. John Turturro as Herb Stemple in Quiz Show (1994) In a particularly excellent year for films, Quiz Show is not revered as much as the other films nominated for Best Picture, which include modern classics like Pulp Fiction, Forrest Gump, and The Shawshank Redemption. Nominated for Best Supporting Actor for Quiz Show was the great actor, Paul Scofield, who portrayed the Waspy Mark Van Doren, a brilliant writer and college professor father to Ralph Fiennes. Scofield, as always, was wonderful. However, the actor who truly stands out and dazzles in every scene he is in, is the phenomenal character actor, John Turturro. When this film came out, I was a freshman in high school, and had not seen his work in the classic Do the Right Thing, and his brilliant work in the Coen brothers’ films was yet to come. Turturro plays, to perfection, a Jewish man who accuses the game show 21 of being rigged. Is it because he is a noble man? Not at all. He himself had been cheating, when the producers realize that the ratings have recently gone down and they pressure him to “take a dive” on a question he knows the answer to- that Marty won the Best Picture at the 1955 Academy Awards. Turturro plays a classic nerd: an ill-fitting suit, teeth he wants to get capped, thick glasses. When the handsome and intellectual Charlie Van Doren reaches fame that Stemple never achieved, Stemple brings the fraud to light.
5. Steve Buscemi as Carl Showalter in Fargo (1996) Fargo is one of the greatest films of the 1990s. Funny, clever, well written, directed, and acted, it is now a classic. At the Academy Awards, it won Best Actress for Frances McDormand and Best Screenplay for The Coen Brothers. This film was not nominated appropriately. For some reason, McDormand was put in Lead, while William H. Macy was put in Supporting, for what would be a co-lead role. If the Academy had nominated the film appropriately, Macy would have been in Lead, leaving the greatBuscemi open for a Supporting nomination and win for his role as a “funny looking fella” who helps kidnap the wife of a man hoping to come into some money. Buscemi delivers an extremely humorous and brilliant performance in this film. Showalter is angry, not exceptionally bright, and bitter about his current situation. He’s annoyed at the start of the film when he berates Macy’s character for showing up late to a meeting, then gets increasingly irritated with his partner in crime (Peter Stormare) for his extended silences during their car ride. And, of course, his character comes to an iconic end. Buscemi is one of the best actors to portray unusual characters that never quite fit in anywhere. I believe that is one reason why he shines so brightly in this film. Buscemi definitely deserved a nomination for his wonderful performance in this film.
The post Chasing the Gold: How Did THEY Not Get Nominated: Best Supporting Actor first appeared on InSession Film.
When Oscar winners get their trophy, they sign that contract which says they will not sell their Oscar to anyone except back to the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences with the offer of $1. Understandably, the Academy does not want their fancy trophy being found on eBay or auctioned off to random buyers. They want it kept in the hands of their owners and estates. But the contract does not say winners can’t donate their trophy to a museum when they die. Numerous museums around the world have in their possession, one of these Oscars courtesy of the winner’s own donation to that location and the public can get close to touching the gold, but still can’t have a hand on it.
Emil Jannings – 1927/28 Best Actor
The inaugural Oscar win went to the German-born Jannings for his performances in The Last Command and The Way Of All Flesh. Jannings returned to Germany and showed his Oscar to Allied forces after World War II as proof of his time in America, but his career ended because of his Nazi associations. When the Museum of Film and Television in Berlin opened in 2000, Jannings’ Oscar was and remains part of the museum’s main displays. The museum features an extensive history of German film dating back to the beginning, as well as from other actors who went to Hollywood in the 1920s, the career of Marlene Dietrich from her own donated collection, and even from the Nazi era which Jannings was part of.
Katharine Hepburn – All Four Best Actress Oscars (‘33, ‘67, ‘68, ‘81)
Hepburn never attended the Oscars because of her dislike of major awards, but did accept them. Due to her performances in Morning Glory, Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner, The Lion In Winter, and On Golden Pond, she holds the record for most wins by an individual actor in any category. In 2009, Hepburn’s estate donated all four trophies to the National Portrait Gallery in Washington D.C. The gallery features images of many famous Americans from all areas of society and Hepburn and her Oscars are part of the 20th century collection.
Vivien Leigh – 1951 Best Actress
Leigh won two Oscars, the first being for her performance in Gone With The Wind. But it is her second Oscar for her performance in A Streetcar Named Desire that is on display at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. It’s one of two Oscars they have; the other being Paul Scofield’s Oscar for Best Actor which he rightfully won for A Man Of All Seasons. With 2.2 million objects on display, the Victoria & Albert Museum is the largest in the world featuring applied and decorative arts with features from all over the world from the past 5000 years.
Shelley Winters – 1959 Best Supporting Actress
Winters won for her performance in The Diary Of Anne Frank and stated she would donate her award to the Anne Frank House and Museum. She would fulfill that promise in 1975 and the trophy sits in the lobby after going through the hidden annex in a bulletproof glass. I’ve actually seen it, putting my eyes within inches of the trophy, recognizing that it will be as close as I will ever get to holding an Oscar. It’s quite a cool sight after going through the real-life setting of Anne Frank’s hiding place within the center of Amsterdam.
Rex Harrison – 1964 Best Actor
Harrison won for his role in My Fair Lady, one of eight Oscars the film won, including Best Picture. Today, his Oscar, as well as Gene Kelly’s honorary Oscar, are on display at the Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center in the Mugar Memorial Library in Boston. The center features collections of personal papers and original writings of many artists, actors, and writers; including Angela Lansbury, Bette Davis, Isaac Asimov, Adele Astaire (sister of Fred), and more. It also has thousands of rare books deep into American history, politics, journalism, and international affairs.
Follow me on Twitter: @brian_cine (Cine-A-Man)
The post Winner On Display: Public Places To Find Real Oscars first appeared on InSession Film.
Directors: Dan Kwan and Daniel Scheinert
Writers: Dan Kwan and Daniel Scheinert
Stars: Michelle Yeoh, Jamie Lee Curtis, Stephanie Hsu
Synopsis: An aging Chinese immigrant is swept up in an insane adventure, where she alone can save the world by exploring other universes connecting with the lives she could have led.
The Daniels (aka Daniels and Daniels, aka Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert) made their name with the absurd comedy Swiss Army Man back in 2016, a film about a man stranded on an island with a flatulent corpse that he can manipulate as a swiss army knife. In the same way that it is ludicrous and egregiously silly, it is way more original than many movies made today. Who would have ever thought to write a script like that? Even though I’m not the biggest fan of it (nor Scheinert’s The Death of Dick Long), I admire them for the originality in their writing and direction. It is destined to be a cult classic for this generation–a match made in heaven for the ones seeking a film that is at the same time somewhat idiotic, dynamic, and innovative. So, when it was announced that the directing duo with the same last name was releasing a new feature this year, venturing once again with indie darling production company A24, I was pretty excited, especially since the trailer showed a gallimaufry of comedy, action, romance, sci-fi, and other genres while alluding to a multiverse of sorts. And if things couldn’t get even more interesting, the lead is Michelle Yeoh, who has deserved a leading role like this since forever.
The title of The Daniels latest feature is Everything Everywhere All At Once, and after watching the film, you could say that it is the only title worthy of its narrative. Over a thousand things are being thrown at you minute after minute, sequence after sequence– and you have no idea of what may come next. The film follows Evelyn Wang (Yeoh), a neurotic laundromat owner whose world is crumbling quickly. From getting audited by the IRS (the agent handling her case is Deirdre Beaubeirdra, Jaimee Lee Curtis) to her loveless and stressful marriage with Waymond (Ke Huy Quan) to the broken relationship with her daughter, Eleanor (Stephanie Hsu), things aren’t going as she planned thirty years ago. There is a sheer and severe disconnection between Evelyn and her loved ones. She doesn’t seem to realize the condition of her denial towards the life she lives and how it affects others. However, a switch of sorts happens when her husband’s consciousness is entangled with one from another universe (the Alpha universe). He warns of chaos coming from the ripples of each universe, especially his since he’s seeing the devastation firsthand. That version of Waymond is on a mission to find the “one” version of Evelyn that could help him stop the “multiverse of madness”–reasons are unclear, and she is startled by the approach.
Nevertheless, she decides to take on the responsibility of defeating the villain, setting up a multiversal Sci-Fi adventure comedy family drama-romp (yes, all those things at once). Again, I reiterate, it lives up to its title; the world that the Daniels build is an astonishingly creative and rich one, with lots of cinematic treats from different decades as it references classics like The Matrix, Fist of Fury, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Kill Bill, In the Mood for Love, and even Pixar’s Ratatouille (there has to be more, but those are the ones I recollected). Although its initial premise may seem a bit silly, Everything Everywhere All At Once has some mature emotional panderings in its narrative that I honestly didn’t expect from its story. Picking apart the multiple layers of the various genres it tackles, it is, at its heart, a family drama. The aspect of traveling through time and space is used to give these characters a chance to build their relationship back again–value their camaraderie and reignite the love they have for each other, even though it doesn’t look like it at the moment. Evelyn, played brilliantly by Michelle Yeoh, is the only one that could keep the family together, the only one who could hold the connectedness of this slowly fracturing family as she travels through the numerous versions of her life.
The problem is she doesn’t seem to get it right through her travels. Her iron-fisted and lukewarm nature causes the family to stick further away from each other. Albeit in each short or long segment in each place, it gives her the proper dose of motivation, sentiment, and reverence to try and become a more refined and better person. As the film progresses, the previously mentioned emotional panderings hit harder, thanks to the charismatic and devoted performances by the cast, mainly its central trio (Yeoh, Hsu, and Quan). At a time where multiverses are coming in hot like it was nothing, this stands out to a ridiculous degree for several reasons. It manages to be bona fide imaginative and quick-witted (as well as touching), unlike the means of the derivative box office hit Spiderman: No Way Home. This feels as if the directors poured their cinematic dreams (and nightmares), their love for cinema, and the genres that shaped their childhood onto the screen and put them in a blender. Kwan and Scheinert deliver a gonzo firecracker of multiverse delights, which has a balance of being vastly entertaining, comedic, and stirring by the end of it. Everything Everywhere All At Once would have been a total mess in the hands of another director, but trust the Daniels to make the bizarre, fanciful, and daring engaging, palpable, and amusing.
Grade – A- The post Movie Review (SXSW): ‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’ Is A Gonzo Carnival Ride of Multiverse Delights first appeared on InSession Film.
This week on Extra Film, Ryan and Jay finally conclude their Steven Soderbergh Movie Series with Behind the Candelabra, and they also review the new horror film on Hulu No Exit!
Behind the Candelabra is the point where Soderbergh moved, almost exclusively, to the non-theater market. OF course, he “retired” after making this movie, but like Tom Brady he was back in 72 hours and has mostly been on HBO Max or Netflix since then. But it all started with Candelabra and HBO in 2013. The guys get into all of that, the great performances in the film and so much more.
In the back half of the episode, they get into the Damien Power horror film No Exit. The film will likely come and go without much discussion, but we hope to offer a little perspective into those who are interested in checking it out.
Thanks for listening!
– Movie Review: Behind the Candelabra (5:39)
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Screenplay: Richard LaGravenese
Stars: Michael Douglas, Matt Damon, Dan Aykroyd
– Movie Review: No Exit (56:47)
Director: Damien Power
Screenplay: Andrew Barrer, Gabriel Ferrari
Stars: Havana Rose Liu, Danny Ramirez, David Rysdahl, Dale Dickey
– Music
Behind the Candelabra – Marvin Hamlisch
A Tale of Two Nails – Marco Beltrami
The Return of the Eagle – Atli Örvarsson
We try to make this the best movie podcast we possibly can and we hope you enjoy them. Subscribe today on iTunes, Spotify, or Stitcher, and please leave us a review on iTunes. You can also find us on Soundcloud, PlayerFM, and TuneIn Radio as well. We really appreciate all your support of the InSession Film Podcast.
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The Informant! / Uncharted – Extra Film
InSession Film · Behind the Candelabra / No Exit – Extra Film To hear this Extra Film episode and everything else we do, download our apps on the Amazon Market for Android and the Podcast Source app on IOS devices. The mobile app covers all of our main shows, bonus podcasts and everything else relating to the InSession Film Podcast. Thanks for your wonderful support and for listening to our show. It means the world to us.
The post Podcast: Behind the Candelabra / No Exit – Extra Film first appeared on InSession Film.
The 27th Critics’ Choice Awards is this Sunday and once again I’m honored to be a part of it in a small way as a voting memeber. The group may not have the best reputation, but at the very least I’ve done my due diligence to see all the films and consider every nomination. Obviously, not all of my picks will win, however I’m hoping for a few surprises.
At any rate, below are my predictions for the 2022 Critics Choice Awards!
BEST PICTURE
*Belfast
CODA
Don’t Look Up
Dune
King Richard
Licorice Pizza
Nightmare Alley
The Power of the Dog
tick, tick…Boom!
West Side Story*
Prediction: It’s The Power of the Dog. Until I see evidence of the contrary, it’s hard to go against the power behind The Power of the Dog. I genuinely think it’s the best film of 2021 and it’s the movie I want to see win here.
BEST ACTOR
Nicolas Cage – Pig
Benedict Cumberbatch – The Power of the Dog
Peter Dinklage – Cyrano
Andrew Garfield – tick, tick…Boom!
Will Smith – King Richard
Denzel Washington – The Tragedy of Macbeth
Prediction: I really want Nicolas Cage to win this. He gave the best male performance of 2021, however this is Will Smith’s award to lose. And I can’t be mad at that, honestly. Smith has had a fascinating career and he’s quite great in King Richard , so it feels like something that’s been on the way for some time. When he wins I’ll be more than happy for him.
BEST ACTRESS
Jessica Chastain – The Eyes of Tammy Faye
Olivia Colman – The Lost Daughter
Lady Gaga – House of Gucci
Alana Haim – Licorice Pizza
Nicole Kidman – Being the Ricardos
Kristen Stewart – Spencer
Prediction: Kristen Stewart. Kristen Stewart. Kristen Stewart. She gave the best performance of the year and she’s my winner for this category. Can’t wait to see her acceptance speech.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Jamie Dornan – Belfast
Ciarán Hinds – Belfast
Troy Kotsur – CODA
Jared Leto – House of Gucci
J.K. Simmons – Being the Ricardos
Kodi Smit-McPhee – The Power of the Dog
Prediction: Troy Kotsur has been on a roll and is more than deserving of this award. He’s so funny in CODA, but he’s also involved in the film’s most emotionally blistering scenes as well. There’s a lot of discusison about that final audition scene, but his work in the concert scene, and the “truck scene” that takes place right after, is truly special.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Caitríona Balfe – Belfast
Ariana DeBose – West Side Story
Ann Dowd – Mass
Kirsten Dunst – The Power of the Dog
Aunjanue Ellis – King Richard
Rita Moreno – West Side Story
Prediction: I’m somewhat torn on this category. My heart lies with Caitríona Balfe and her work in Belfast, which is the heart and soul of that movie in many ways. However, at the same time, I do very much get the love for Ariana DeBose and why she’s going to win here. So, as much as I love Balfe and would love to see her take this award, it’s going to DeBose.
BEST YOUNG ACTOR/ACTRESS
Jude Hill – Belfast
Cooper Hoffman – Licorice Pizza
Emilia Jones – CODA
Woody Norman – C’mon C’mon
Saniyya Sidney – King Richard
Rachel Zegler – West Side Story
Prediction: Holy good God this category. Personally speaking, I’m not even sure where to begin. Every single one of these nominees deserves to win. All of them. My gut instinct is that Rachel Zegler will win given the broad love for West Side Story, however I’m hoping for an upset with Cooper Hoffman or Emilia Jones. Imagine the moment if Hoffman wins and he goes up on stage and starts talking about his late-great father. There won’t be a dry in the place. I would personally turn into a waterfall. Jones is equally as deserving though and gives a remarkable performance in CODA. In the end I will predict Hoffman, but I can see it going to any of them. On a side note, my true vote is Woody Norman, but there’s been no love for C’mon C’mon sadly (which is heartbreaking to me).
BEST ACTING ENSEMBLE
*Belfast
Don’t Look Up
The Harder They Fall
Licorice Pizza
The Power of the Dog
West Side Story*
Prediction: This category is also tricky as there’s at least three really good contenders here between The Power of the Dog, West Side Story and Belfast. With Haim and Hoffman also nominated, maybe Licorice Pizza has a small chance as well, but not sure I see that film winning here. My gut is that Belfast ends up winning here as this may be the only category to award the film.
BEST DIRECTOR
Paul Thomas Anderson – Licorice Pizza
Kenneth Branagh – Belfast
Jane Campion – The Power of the Dog
Guillermo del Toro – Nightmare Alley
Steven Spielberg – West Side Story
Denis Villeneuve – Dune
Prediction: Jane Campion is a legend and I can’t wait to see her walk up on stage.
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Paul Thomas Anderson – Licorice Pizza
Zach Baylin – King Richard
Kenneth Branagh – Belfast
Adam McKay, David Sirota – Don’t Look Up
Aaron Sorkin – Being the Ricardos
Prediction: This could be the other category where Belfast gets a win, and if the rest of the group loves it as I do, maybe that’ll be the case, however I’m going with PTA to win this category. Anderson been somewhat in the hot seat lately, and maybe that will influence some of the voters, but this is where Licorice Pizza gets its love if there’s any to go around (unless I’m right about Hoffman also winning).
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Jane Campion – The Power of the Dog
Maggie Gyllenhaal – The Lost Daughter
Siân Heder – CODA
Tony Kushner – West Side Story
Jon Spaihts, Denis Villeneuve, Eric Roth – Dune
Prediction: Ms Campion, please come accept another award. You just won for screenplay as well.
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Bruno Delbonnel – The Tragedy of Macbeth
Greg Fraser – Dune
Janusz Kaminski – West Side Story
Dan Laustsen – Nightmare Alley
Ari Wegner – The Power of the Dog
Haris Zambarloukos – Belfast
Prediction: Another stacked category. Can it be a six-way tie? Is that possible? If not, I hope Greg Fraser is ready to accept this award. And who knows, maybe he’ll be back again in a year for The Batman. All joking aside though, Dune‘s cinematography is out of this world (pun intended) and he’s more than deserving to win here.
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Jim Clay, Claire Nia Richards – Belfast
Tamara Deverell, Shane Vieau – Nightmare Alley
Adam Stockhausen, Rena DeAngelo – The French Dispatch
Adam Stockhausen, Rena DeAngelo – West Side Story
Patrice Vermette, Zsuzsanna Sipos – Dune
Prediction: I don’t love Nightmare Alley as many others do, but you can’t deny the production value of that film. It’s stunning to look at the much of that is due to the production design of that film.
BEST EDITING
Sarah Broshar and Michael Kahn – West Side Story
Úna Ní Dhonghaíle – Belfast
Andy Jurgensen – Licorice Pizza
Peter Sciberras – The Power of the Dog
Joe Walker – Dune
Prediction: As many of you know, I’m not an awards expert by any means, even if I do follow along and pay attention to what happens each season. Context that’s important here because many of our friends who I’d consider to be experts on the matter have Dune winning this category. Which very well may be true. However, given the amount of love I’m expecting for The Power of the Dog, I’m going with Peter Sciberras to win here. That could be myopic of me, but that’s my bet and I’m sticking with it.
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Jenny Beavan – Cruella
Luis Sequeira – Nightmare Alley
Paul Tazewell – West Side Story
Jacqueline West, Robert Morgan – Dune
Janty Yates – House of Gucci
Prediction: Really want to go with Dune here, but not sure if it will be Cruella, a film that’s literally about costume design. So, Cruella it is for me.
BEST HAIR AND MAKEUP
*Cruella
Dune
The Eyes of Tammy Faye
House of Gucci
Nightmare Alley*
Prediction:If Cruella doesn’t win here, it seems as if The Eyes of Tammy Faye as this one.
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
*Dune
The Matrix Resurrections
Nightmare Alley
No Time to Die
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings*
Prediction: Now this one has Dune written all over it. I can’t fathom it losing here.
BEST COMEDY
*Barb & Star Go to Vista Del Mar
Don’t Look Up
Free Guy
The French Dispatch
Licorice Pizza*
Prediction: With Licorice Pizza being nominated for Best Picture, it would seem really silly for it to lose here, but I don’t care, I’m going with Barb & Star Go to Vista Del Mar. I don’t care how illogical that is, what a hilarious movie and I want to win.
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
*Encanto
Flee
Luca
The Mitchells vs the Machines
Raya and the Last Dragon*
Prediction: Encanto will win, and it is good, but I do think it should go to Flee. It’s one of the very best films of 2021, period, regardless of how you want to categorize it.
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
*A Hero
Drive My Car
Flee
The Hand of God
The Worst Person in the World*
Prediction: As we talked about at the 2021 InSession Film Awards, it was a phenomenal year for foreign language films, with two of these nominees in my personal Top 10 of the year. However, this is Drive My Car‘s award to lose and it will take home the prize here.
BEST SONG
Be Alive – King Richard
Dos Oruguitas – Encanto
Guns Go Bang – The Harder They Fall
Just Look Up – Don’t Look Up
No Time to Die – No Time to Die
Prediction: “No Time to Die” is a fine song, but in the Bond canon, it’s not nearly as memorable or impactful. I’m hoping that “Dos Oruguitas” steals this one.
BEST SCORE
Nicholas Britell – Don’t Look Up
Jonny Greenwood – The Power of the Dog
Jonny Greenwood – Spencer
Nathan Johnson – Nightmare Alley
Hans Zimmer – Dune
Prediction: Hans Zimmer should have won the Oscar in 2014 when Interstellar came out. He arguably (and I know many will push back on this) should have won in 2010 for Inception. It’s hard to believe that he only has one Oscar up until this point, and that it came almost 30 years ago, but it does seem as if that’s going to change in a few weeks when we do get to the Oscars. And I think his win here is another stepping stone in that process.
The post Chasing The Gold: Critics Choice Predictions first appeared on InSession Film.
Directors: Cathryne Czubek, Hugo Perez
Writers: Cathryne Czubek, Amanda Hughes
Stars: Asiimwe Apollo, Bukenya Charles, Bisaso Dauda
Synopsis: A brick maker in Uganda becomes an Internet sensation when he tries his hand at making action movies
If you’re reading this, the chances are you’re a movie buff. Maybe your tastes are quite varied – low budget indies, high concept thrillers, romance, drama, classics, anything – or maybe you have very specific tastes – 90s rom-coms, detective noirs, gangster movies -, the one thing you will all have in common is that you enjoy movies to the extent you’re willing to search out reviews like this one online. No matter which camp you fall in, any movie lover will likely find some joy in Cathryne Czubek and Hugo Perez’s Once Upon a Time in Uganda: a lively, infectious documentary about two men, their passion for movies, and the lengths they were willing to go to make their dreams a reality.
The first of these two men we meet on a mountain in Kazakhstan. A majestic swooping camera centers around this mysterious robed figure as a voice-over tells us that he never expected to be here. But how did he get here? His name is Alan Hofmanis, an American actor and filmmaker from New York who, out of work and recovering from a breakup with a long-term girlfriend, finds himself scouring YouTube videos to pass the time…until he discovers the movies of Wakaliwood.
Wakaliwood. The name brings to mind various portmanteaus designed to establish a cinematic industry in different cultures: think Bollywood, or its Bengali counterpart Tollywood; think the Nigerian equivalent Nollywood. In this case, Wakaliwood is the moniker for a small slum in Uganda called Wakaliga. It is the home of Ramon Productions, a film company run entirely by Isaac Nabwana, a Wakaliga native who grew up on 80s actioners such as Rambo, Robocop, and Commando. Determined to emulate his big screen heroes, and partly fueled by the fact that movies in Uganda are sparse because electricity is not a given, meaning any screening of any movie past or present is considered a big event, Nabwana used the money he earned from brickmaking to buy bargain basement camera and sound equipment and set to work.
Type in Nabwana IGG on YouTube and you’ll find a whole host of Wakaliwood movies (“Home of Da Best of Da Best Movies”) available to watch, including the popular hits Bad Black (featuring Swaaz, the Ugandan Schwarzenegger), Who Killed Captain Alex, Operation Kakongoliro: The Ugandan Expendables, and Busta Keaton’s Da General. All of these movies are shot almost entirely in the slums of Wakaliga – with a few scenes filmed on location to cities such as Kampala – and feature hilariously bad CGI, acting, and martial arts. They also feature something completely unique to Wakaliwood: a VJ.
At the beginning of Once Upon a Time in Uganda, after we leave the mountains of Kazakhstan, there is another voice over introducing Uganda in all its glory. This is VJ Emmie and he is as much a part of Wakaliwood as Isaac Nabwana himself. A VJ is a Video Joker, whose job is to provide a constant stream-of-consciousness commentary throughout the movie: ranging between jokes, narration, exposition, and cheerleading; the VJ is an immediately jarring presence for the uninitiated, and it takes a moment to get used to as the opening titles for Once Upon a Time in Uganda commence.
Back in New York, Hofmanis is immediately struck by the works of Nabwana – he’ll later earnestly propose the idea that Nabwana is a master storyteller and genius, somehow keeping a straight face the entire time – and decides to pack up his life and move to Uganda to work for Nabwana’s company. Together, Hofmanis, a former film festival booker with some small connections in the movie world, and Nabwana make a formidable team which begins to raise the awareness of Wakaliwood to the extent of a screening of Bad Black at the Toronto International Film Festival and even a TV deal with the biggest media conglomerate in Uganda.
Czubek, alongside co-director Hugo Perez, presents Once Upon a Time in Uganda as a completely impartial inside look into the world of Wakaliwood. Never once casting judgement on the quality of works or, perhaps frustratingly, challenging Hofmanis on the decisions he has made in his life which brought him from semi-affluence in New York to living in a Ugandan slum without any form of indoor plumbing. During his stay it’s clear that Hofmanis struggles with the day to day vagaries of life in Uganda and although this is touched upon from time to time, you might find yourself wishing the directors had taken a little less of a fly-on-the-wall approach and perhaps delved a little deeper.
Outside of Hofmanis’ dedication is the life of Nabwana – a man described in various different publications as the Ugandan Spielberg, the Ugandan Tarantino, and the Ugandan Michael Bay -, who is entirely self-taught as a filmmaker but finds ingenious ways to deliver his action set pieces on less budget than Roland Emmerich would spend on a background extra. Practically everything you see in his movies is either self-made or made with the help of locals: guns, vehicles, an actual helicopter; everything is DIY, hardscrabble filmmaking. He enlists the help of Dauda, one of the most eccentric characters in the movie, whose sheer joy at being propmaster for Ramon Productions is completely infectious, alongside various villagers as volunteers. Even his wife becomes involved, contributing to marketing and fundraising.
What makes the movies of Wakaliwood so unique – apart from that VJ – is the sheer love that pours out from every scene. These are people living in poverty in a war torn part of the world, making silly movies where they run around shooting guns and attempting spin-kicks. They are unapologetically bad in an objective sense, but it is deliriously fun to simply watch people living out their dreams, free from the horrors of everyday life. Hofmanis points out that the average life expectancy in Uganda is somewhere around the mid 50s, an age which Nabwana himself is fast approaching, so there is an underlying sense throughout the whole movie of time being too precious to waste on things that don’t bring joy. For that reason, Once Upon a Time in Uganda manages to become one of the best feel good documentaries you’re likely to see this year.
There are moments, particularly a falling out between Hofmanis and Nabwana which leads the former to return home to New York for a time, that are not satisfactorily explored. There is also the fact the directors show only small clips of Nabwana’s movies, depriving the audience of a proper context for the popularity of these movies, and there is much more about Nabwana himself you wish had been explored.
Finally, the issue of these movies being objectively bad filmmaking in and of themselves is unaddressed, which may or may not be a bad thing in your book. Perhaps all of that is a different movie though: what Czubek and Perez seem to have been aiming for, and what they largely achieved, is to showcase how the sheer passion for movies can unite an entire community and light up everyone’s life, even in the harsh circumstances of a Ugandan slum, and that is a message worth listening to.
Grade – B+
The post Movie Review (Glasgow Film Festival): ‘Once Upon a Time in Uganda’: Welcome To Wakaliwood first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Gregory Nava
Writer: Gregory Nava
Starring: Jennifer Lopez, Edward James Olmos, Jon Seda
Synopsis: The true story of Selena, a Texas-born Tejano singer who rose from cult status to performing at the Astrodome, as well as having chart topping albums on the Latin music charts.
When Jennifer Lopez missed out on a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination for her performance in Hustlers, I read a lot of pieces talking about how this had been her first genuine shot at the Academy trophy. Sure, she had been terrific before in films like Out of Sight and The Cell, but her daring and commanding turn in Hustlers was apparently the first we were all supposed to take seriously. Nothing could be further from the truth. I stand by the belief that Lopez’s Oscar nomination omission for Lorene Scafaria’s 2019 drama was an egregious one, but let’s not forget she delivered another astonishing dramatic performance early in her career, one that also had a chance of getting recognition from the Academy if the film hadn’t been released so early in the year—1997’s excellent biopic Selena, written and directed by Gregory Nava.
Jennifer Lopez had appeared in a few prior movies, notably 1995’s Money Train opposite Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes, but Selena, released twenty-five years ago this month, was her true breakthrough. Lopez is dazzling from beginning to end as the real-life Selena Quintanilla, a Texas-born singer whose star was on the rise, leading to performances at sold-out arenas and a Grammy Award win, until her life was tragically cut short when her manager shot her to death. The film gives us a sweeping and specific look at the most pivotal moments of Selena’s life, showing the passionate relationship she had with her fiancée Chris Perez (Jon Seda) and the at-times adversarial relationship she had with her father Abraham (an excellent Edward James Olmos).
It’s a riveting rags-to-riches story, a young woman with a dream who will stop at nothing to become a singer. It tells an engrossing family story where compromises have to be made and sometimes ego gets in the way of the right decision being reached, Abraham refusing to let Selena lead a normal life while she wants to have fame and marriage and everything in between. It’s a great behind-the-scenes tell-all about the music industry, especially as we watch her star status rise. And it’s also, in the simplest terms, a fantastic musical, scene after scene showcasing Selena’s powerful vocal instrument (Lopez lip-synched all but one song in the film) and her emotionally resonant songs, particularly “I Could Fall In Love” and the film’s haunting closing number, “Dreaming of You,” in which Lopez steps away and footage of the real Selena plays for a few minutes before the end credits roll.
What I always find remarkable about the film is how fast it was made following the singer’s sudden death, released to theaters less than two years after the tragic shooting. In some ways it seems as if a few more years needed to pass to tell the most honest life story of this incredible person, yet at no point does the viewer feel the story has been rushed or created in a haphazard fashion. Gregory Nava’s screenplay takes its time, shows in all its detail and glory Selena’s extraordinary ascension to fame, and the pacing of his film is also just right, the focus always on character rather than a formulaic musical plot.
And then there’s Jennifer Lopez, who is still a revelation in the film. She inhabits Selena to such a degree I always forget I’m watching Lopez, the quirks found in some of her later roles not on display here. If Selena had opened at the end of 1997 and had gotten a big awards push, Lopez absolutely could have snuck into that Best Actress race, especially considering she managed a Golden Globe nomination for her performance nearly a year after the film’s initial release. Not a lot of films from the early part of 1997 have had much staying power. Liar, Liar, Jim Carrey’s box office smash released the same weekend as Selena, hasn’t aged well, and in some ways it’s the quieter films from that time like this and the beautiful love story Love Jones, starring Larenz Tate and Nia Long, that have lasted the best.
Selena Quintanilla is an ageless star, and Selena the film is ageless, too. It is one that will continue to have tremendous rewatchability for the next twenty-five years and beyond. It’s one of the best examples of Lopez’s charismatic power on screen, evidence she absolutely has an Oscar nomination in her future—it’s just a matter of when.
The post Film at 25: ‘Selena’ Still an Enchanting and Powerful Biopic first appeared on InSession Film.
In many ways, Pixar shorts are among the studio’s most challenging and creative films. They represent the soul of Pixar, the early stage of brilliant ideas from brilliant minds, before blossoming into something meaningful in only a span of minutes. They’ve also helped blossom the careers of some of the studio’s newest filmmakers, such as Enrico Casarosa (Luca) and Domee Shi, whose feature debut Turning Red releases this weekend on Disney+. There’s a charm to watching a Pixar short, especially preceding one of their feature films in a theater; at least Pixar is keeping the first part of that charm alive.
With that said, what do you think is the best Pixar short? For this list, we are only focusing on non-feature related films, so major apologies to Mater, Dug, and BURN·E.
What is the best Pixar short?
The post Poll: What is the best Pixar short? first appeared on InSession Film.
This week on Extra Film, Ryan and Jay are joined by Nicole Ackman as they continue their Steven Soderbergh Movie Series with The Informant!, and then they discuss the latest action blockbuster, Uncharted!
We now reach the level in Soderbergh’s career where he is mostly focused on making his own style of movies that aren’t going to wow at the box office but will still be great and unique in their own right. Case in point, The Informant! tackles corrupt greed told through an absolute lair, played by Matt Damon. The guys and Nicole get into the film, as well as Nicole’s tricky relationship with the famous lead actor.
In the back half of the episode, the boys dive deep into Uncharted. While the Extra Film guys are normally not the target audience for these movies, given their untrustworthy relationship with modern blockbusters, Uncharted is a surprisingly entertaining little flick. Not one of their favorite films of all time, but not the worst thing they have seen, thus they have favorable things to say about it.
Thanks for listening!
– Movie Review: The Informant! (3:47)
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Screenplay: Scott Z. Burns
Stars: Matt Damon, Scott Bakula, Joel McHale, Melanie Lynskey
– Movie Review: Uncharted (1:12:01)
Director: Ruben Fleischer
Screenplay: Rafe Lee Judkins, Art Marcum, Matt Holloway
Stars: Tom Holland, Mark Wahlberg, Sophia Ali, Tati Gabrielle, Antonio Banderas
– Music
Meet Mark – Marvin Hamlisch
Main Theme Uncharted – Ramin Djawadi
The Return of the Eagle – Atli Örvarsson
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The Informant! / Uncharted – Extra Film
InSession Film · The Informant! / Uncharted – Extra Film To hear this Extra Film episode and everything else we do, download our apps on the Amazon Market for Android and the Podcast Source app on IOS devices. The mobile app covers all of our main shows, bonus podcasts and everything else relating to the InSession Film Podcast. Thanks for your wonderful support and for listening to our show. It means the world to us.
The post Podcast: The Informant! / Uncharted – Extra Film first appeared on InSession Film.
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This week on the InSession Film Podcast, Duane Miller from the Cinemania World Podcast joins us review Matt Reeves’ The Batman and we also talk Koganada’s new film After Yang!
Huge thanks to Duane for joining us on the show this week. It was his first time being on the podcast and he was an absolutely wonderful guest. The Batman will no doubt be one of the bigger movies of 2022 and we had a great time getting into all of its nuances and distinctions. After Yang may not have a populist quality, but it is arguably the best movie of the year so far. So we equally spent a good amount of time on it and discussing its rich themes and stellar performances.
On that note, check out this week’s show and let us know what you think in the comment section. Thanks for listening and for supporting the InSession Film Podcast!
– Movie Review: The Batman (4:44)
Director: Matt Reeves
Writers: Matt Reeves, Peter Craig
Stars: Robert Pattinson, Zoë Kravitz, Paul Dano, Jeffrey Wright, John Turturro, Peter Sarsgaard, Andy Serkis, Colin Farrell
– Notes / Discussion (1:10:52)
This week for our break segment, we briefly offer up a potential new game show we may start up with Ryan and Jay, and we want to know your thoughts on the matter. Also, if you’re a Scream (2022) fan, please stay on the lookout for your chance to win a free copy of the film.
RELATED: Listen to Episode 456 of the InSession Film Podcast where we discussed Belfast!
– Movie Review: After Yang (1:10:52)
Director: Kogonada
Writers: Kogonada
Stars: Colin Farrell, Jodie Turner-Smith, Justin H. Min, Malea Emma Tjandrawidjaja, Haley Lu Richardson
Show Sponsor: First Time Watchers Podcast
– Music
Mizuiro – Aska Matsumiya
The Batman – Michael Giacchino
The Return of the Eagle – Atli Örvarsson
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InSession Film Podcast – Episode 472
InSession Film · The Batman / After Yang – Episode 472 Next week on the show: Review: Turning Red
Steven Spielberg Movie Series: The Color Purple
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The post Podcast: The Batman / After Yang – Episode 472 first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Charline Bourgeois-Tacquet
Writer: Charline Bourgeois-Tacquet
Stars: Anaïs Demoustier, Denis Podalydès
Synopsis: Follows Anaïs, a 30-year old woman that is broke and has a lover she doesn’t think she loves anymore. She meets Daniel, who immediately falls for her. But Daniel lives with Emilie – whom Anaïs also falls for.
Ever since the mid to late 2000s, more films about the intimate lives of young characters have been made. These films are abundant in the back-and-forth discussions about love, life, and the future (which they don’t have sight of and prefer to live in the present). You could say the only reason the characters in this type of narrative live “one day at a time” without thinking about the next is because they haven’t found their respective paths. Another aspect that these characters have is that they rarely say what they mean, and a lot of the time, they don’t even know what they mean precisely. Films such as Daddy Longlegs and In Search of a Midnight’s Kiss are great examples. Still, the one that stands out the most (and people adore it to a great extent) is Noah Baumbach’s Frances Ha–described by many as the most relatable movie ever for people who seek beauty in the little details and gestures. Frances Ha was the game-changer for the features categorized into this sub-subgenre. Last year, we got the astonishing marvel by Joachim Trier, The Worst Person in the World. In 2022, Charline Bourgeois-Tacquet’s feature directorial debut and Cannes 2021 “Semaine de la critique” selection, Anaïs in Love, is finally getting its release, which is a flick many will love.
The film centers around its title character, Anaïs (Anaïs Demoustier), a thirty-year-old Ph.D. student (who hasn’t finished her thesis on 17th-century depictions of passion) enamored with literature and is currently close to being broke. Anaïs has a lover, but she’s starting to feel that she doesn’t love him anymore. The longing feeling of leaving him has been in her mind for a while (being quite tentative with her love life even though she questions later in the movie: “You think I don’t know how to love?”), albeit she’s sure of it now. Anaïs’ approach to life is “living in the moment and forgetting about the rest”, while her brain works at 100 miles per hour. Redundant to her fast-paced demeanor, she is always late to dates, meetings, or appointments–preferring to stroll around on her bike in the streets of Paris thinking “the world is waiting for her”. Putting those “imperfections” that her lover remarks on aside, Anaïs is a gleaming ray of sunshine with a whirlwind of emotions running through her mind. She is constantly questioning her status in life and what she wants in the end; nevertheless, things come when she least expects it.
Anaïs meets Daniel (Denis Podalydès) in an apartment elevator, and he immediately falls in love with the charismatic gal. However, Daniel lives with Emilie (Valeria Bruni Tedeschi)–for whom she also falls for. As restless as it sounds, a love triangle of sorts is formed; amidst that, she encounters the desire for whom to love and the yearning to find her path in life finally. In sheer delight, Bourgeois-Tacquet’s first feature is a charmer, just like its title character–filled with bliss and as bubbly as a glass of champagne. It is easy to start comparing Anaïs in Love with its previously mentioned (and other) predecessors. In some ways, it is fair (since it is neither groundbreaking, nor particularly original), but something about this movie shines as much as the others. One of the reasons is its humanistic and well-thought screenplay. Tacquet uses the filmographies of legendary French directors like Rohmer and Mouret, as well as Jeunet’s Amelie, as inspiration. The former delivers a more human-centered approach, and the latter showers the screen in warmth and palpability (yet, without the fantasy-esque elements).
But, of course, not everything in this story will be peaches and cream, thanks to the indecisiveness and mischievousness of Anaïs. She’s living in the moment, with little to no consequences following her every decision (good or bad). As the narrative develops and the love triangle starts fracturing, she begins to confront what will become of her in the next couple of years and her deepest desires. The screenplay spontaneously captures the slow realization of this confrontation while showing us that she is indeed brilliant (and funny), yet blinded by the doubts of her own capabilities. John Cassavetes’ film, Opening Night, makes a brief appearance during a scene at the theaters, which adds to the themes of succumbing to one’s uncertainty and the search for passion. Some of Anaïs’ “troubles” may have come from the shock of her mother’s cancer, disrupting her life plans as a chain reaction; this ultimately led to her prioritization of absolute happiness instead of resentment and broken promises. Although humanly flawed and some decisions aren’t meant to be applauded (yet understandable), Demoustier makes the character charming, tangible, and alluring.
In addition, the chemistry between her and Valeria Bruni-Tedeschi is the highlight of the entire picture. Not only are their conversations grounded, but they seem like actual people slowly falling in love–the light glinting in their eyes as they carefully listen to every word one is saying. As they talk about literature and Anaïs’ love for her childhood teacher, the two ladies know they are quite the opposite, yet are fascinated to learn more about each other. Regarding the actress duet, director-writer Charline Bourgeois-Tacquet said: “They are so different, they don’t have the same energy, nor the same sensuality.” Anaïs in Love is a conversational story–heavily lifted by the romantic entanglements of a surging love triangle–an effervescent and breezy tale of sincerity, devotion, and freedom. It doesn’t feel like Bourgeois-Tacquet’s feat
ure-length directorial debut. Instead, the film showcases her ripe and stylistic wide range of talent as a screenwriter and director, with a simplistic and delicate approach to a coming-of-age narrative.
Grade – B+ The post Movie Review: ‘Anais in Love’ is a Delightful Directorial Debut first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Ari Folman
Writers: Anne Frank (based on the diary)
Stars: Michael Maloney, Ruby Stokes, Emily Carey
Synopsis: The film follows the journey of Kitty, the imaginary friend to whom Anne Frank dedicated her diary. A fiery teenager, Kitty wakes up in the near future in Anne Frank’s house in Amsterdam and embarks on a journey to find Anne, who she believes is still alive, in today’s Europe. While the young girl is shocked by the modern world, she also comes across Anne’s legacy.
It’s hard to assess the impact of Anne Frank on western discourse in 2022. For some, she is a shining beacon of hope and humanity amidst the brutality of the Holocaust. For others, she is the often maligned homework assignment you really don’t want to do. A generation knows her in terms of what she represents and what lessons we need to learn from her, but seldom do you hear about the girl herself. For she was just that: a young girl writing to an imaginary friend about the things young girls write about. For all that her tragic circumstance may have forced her to grow up much earlier than she should have, Frank’s innocence and playfulness are rarely explored.
It’s perhaps this that Ari Folman is addressing in his latest, Where Is Anne Frank, a strangely childish – and sometimes startlingly naive – fantasy set predominantly in the present day as it looks at the impact Frank has had in her native Amsterdam. The animation is, at times, incredible and engaging. For instance, the scene in which Frank and her boyfriend Peter travel inside the radio their fathers are listening intently to for news of the war effort. However, even in this moment the sound quality is sadly lacking both in terms of its matching with the mouth movements of the characters, as well as the poor quality of acting. It’s a baffling decision given the quality of the animation and the pedigree of Folman himself, whose animation in Waltz With Bashir was an incredible and incendiary look at the Lebanese invasion of the early 80s.
It is Amsterdam in the near future. In the Anne Frank house, now a museum, a lightning strike occurs, causing the glass case around Frank’s famous diary to shatter. From the pages now exposed to the air erupts a colorful spiral, which becomes that of Frank’s imaginary friend Kitty, whom she addressed in her diary. Kitty is lost, scared, and confused. She heads out into the city to find her friend. As she wanders through Amsterdam, she discovers a city much changed from the one she remembers, a city which bears Frank’s name on many of its institutions: Anne Frank Library, Anne Frank School, and so on. With Frank’s diary in hand, Kitty suddenly becomes a target for the police and finds shelter with refugees, whilst also falling in love with a young street kid, also named Peter.
Much of Folman’s narrative here falls to cliché: juxtaposing the Holocaust with the current refugee crisis feels a little too on-the-nose, an imaginary girl with powers that no one seems to find very strange stretches credulity, and the dialogue itself is cringe-inducing at times. There is some strange dissonance that a director of Folman’s talent could produce such a Saturday morning infomercial of a movie.
Our protagonist here is Kitty, and perhaps the first thing about Kitty should be that she is memorable. Alas, Kitty is nothing more than a narrative cipher, meant to drag us from place to place so that we might witness the troubles of European politics firsthand and ask ourselves why nothing has changed since Frank’s day. It feels condescending at best, and completely ignorant at worst. To contrast the glorified Frank of modern day with her actual flesh-and-blood counterpart, Kitty reads through the diary in order to revisit her memories of Frank. This leads to the movie’s best moments, few of them though there are. We get to see the teenage girl Frank was and experience a little of what she must have went through: a birthday party is cut short as demonic Nazis in expressionless white masks march through the streets; Frank must share her room with a strange man – a dentist – who is also hiding from persecution; Frank’s father Otto trying his best to keep up his family’s spirits during an emotionally devastating upheaval. These moments make you wish we were treated to a straightforward adaptation of Anne Frank’s life instead of this bizarre tale wrapped around it.
In the present day, Kitty’s relationship with Peter feels forced, a way to serve the plot rather than an organic love story. Peter’s dialogue is among the worst – a moment where he tells Kitty to use her powers of invisibility to avoid detection by the police in particular comes off as phoney and almost unintentionally comedic – and the actor voicing him is, unfortunately, not up to the task of conveying the many complex emotions Peter must deal with.
Perhaps Folman’s worst crime here comes in the third act, where Kitty essentially becomes a white savior to the many African refugees who hide her from the police. As Folman comes perilously close to suggesting the current migrant crisis is analogous to that of the Holocaust – which does a disservice to both situations and ignores the many complex grey areas between the two – Kitty essentially robs these refugees of any agency. This is made more uncomfortable by the fact that Frank herself coded Kitty as a red-haired white girl, who was specifically non-Jewish. She did this, one imagines, to keep Kitty safe from what she knew then to be the persecution of Jewish peoples. However, there is a certain discomfort from watching a white girl with red hair save the day, thus marginalizing the group she is trying to save.
There are things to like about Where Is Anne Frank. The animation is beautiful, Tristan Oliver’s cinematography is utterly sublime in his use of dynamic camerawork, and the color palette is exquisite, especially in the flashback scenes. The message, too, is admirable. Given the rise of white nationalism, the closing of borders, and anti-refugee sentiment, Where Is Anne Frank is a timely, and necessary story. It’s just a shame Folman chose to tell that story in this way.
Grade – D The post Movie Review (Glasgow Film Festival): ‘Where is Anne Frank’ Is A Naïve and Tonally Inconsistent Misfire first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Domee Shi
Writers: Julia Cho and Domee Shi
Stars: Rosalie Chang, Sandra Oh, Ava Morse
Synopsis: A 13-year-old girl named Mei Lee turns into a giant red panda whenever she gets too excited.
Turning Red is an unusual departure for the Pixar brand. Pixar is a studio that is known for perfecting high comedy and poignant storytelling. It can be downright goofy- which isn’t a Disney Pun. It’s a wildly unconventional film that’s a giant metaphor for the trials and tribulations of a young girl going through puberty. But also, one who happens to be Chinese-Canadian from first generation immigrants.
Set in Canada’s largest city, Toronto, which happens to have a large and vibrant Asian population that started in the 1870s, Turning Red focuses on a 13-year-old precocious student named Meilin (Rosalie Chiang) or “Mei” for short. A driven, stellar student who also loves the boy band 4Town. Though, love may be an understatement. Think of how your kids or even you acted during the prime days of NSYNC, The Jonas Brothers, One Direction, and now, BTS.* Along with her friends, the tomboy Miriam (Ava Morse), the quiet Priya (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan), and the intensely friendly Abby (Hyein Park).Her parents, Ming (Sandra Oh) and Jin (Orion Lee) run the oldest Buddhist temple in the city.
A beautiful one, covered in rich red and blue colors equipped with a large grotto. You can tell Mei has inherited many of her mother’s traits (or has them instilled in her). Strong-willed, determined, and driven to succeed, Mei can achieve anything she puts her mind to. Well, that’s until she starts to become distracted by boys. One, in particular behind a counter, and all five of the 4Town* members (yes, there are five of them). As her emotions become more robust, they consume her thoughts, and how does the young girl handle it? Well, she turns into a giant red panda bear.
You read that right. And it’s a delightful device to move and tell an adorable story of not only blossoming maturity, but as a teenager with a unique cultural perspective. This is the first Pixar film set in Canada, believe it or not. Also, the first is where the lead character is of Asian descent. Not to mention the first film with an Asian character since Up. While this view is much lighter than I am making it here, it’s a refreshing change of pace. Even each character is voiced, when appropriate, by someone of East Asian descent.
What Turning Red does so well, besides when Mei begins to feel her emotions and the fire fox comes out, is the overall feel when Mei is with her family or her social support system. Oh’s Ming is a helicopter mother who doesn’t understand her daughter’s likes—representing a conflict between immigrants and their children’s possible pluralistic view with parental socialization. Yet, there is a wonderful sense of love and preparation when they sit down at the dinner table. You watch as her father prepares baozi with her favorite filling—the deference for respecting your elders and community inside the temple and out.
When Mei is with her friends, she has a different side. The film isn’t afraid to shy away from modern social constructs. Such as all four young women, most from different backgrounds, coming together because of music. This all results in a support system even outside of her family that fulfills a different need. These are all products of growing up and a new reset of social behavior.
That’s where Bao director Domee Shi’s animated film comes together. Co-written with playwright Julia Cho (Fringe, Big Love), they use both sides to view Mei’s quick and random emotions, strong and intense, while going through puberty, delicately. And it would have to since I would not have imagined a Pixar animated movie tackling this subject matter. (It may be the first Disney animated film that shows menstrual products). Yet, even if the metaphor is obvious, it’s handled with such clever and adorable care. The two lenses to view the stage in a young person’s life give added context and depth to go along with your usual well-placed heart and comedy (Park’s Abby had me in stitches).
While Turning Red is more refreshing than most Pixar films (you have to love the use of one of Toronto’s most important buildings in its final act), I will say the movie lacks an emotional punch that the studio is known for. Otherwise, the film flirted with other comparable studio films, like Illumination, that became sterile. Though, Shi and Cho never let it get there.
Still, the result is a Pixar film with an energized spirit, along with a gentle and patient heart.
Grade – B The post Movie Review: ‘Turning Red’ is Full of Energy and Heart first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Khadar Ayderus Ahmed
Writers: Khadar Ayderus Ahmed
Stars: Omar Abdi, Yasmin Warsame
Synopsis: In times of misfortune, Guled and his family have to push themselves to the limits in order to reunite with their family.
Although set in the far distant, heat-baked lands of Djibouti in the Horn of Africa, the tale of The Gravedigger’s Wife may well resonate with any average American. Finnish-Somali director Khadar Ayderus Ahmed has crafted a heartfelt and tender examination of the social injustice surrounding healthcare and the lengths we will go to for the ones we love.
Thought it is co-produced by a range of European countries, including Ahmed’s native Finland, The Gravedigger’s Wife feels intrinsically and powerfully authentic as it represents the impoverished on the outskirts of Djibouti City, a world in which death is never far away and survival is the only thing that matters much. The skein of struggle running through the movie is always shown in a grounded, naturalistic way which never exoticizes the country. Instead, we see the genuine brutality of everyday life and how it affects the citizens who live there.
Guled (Omar Abdi), is a gravedigger who makes his living chasing down jobs from people whose loved ones have just died. It is gruelling work and fairly sparse. There is also a grim irony in the fact he makes his living depending on the deaths of others – in one scene he and his fellow gravediggers chase an ambulance all the way to the hospital in the hopes of a body to bury. There’s a darkly humorous undercurrent to this situation which Ahmed maintains throughout. Guled does what he does for his wife Nasra (Yasmin Warsame) and son Mahad (Khadar Abdoul-Aziz Ibrahim). It is clear his life revolves around them, and he works hard to make them happy.
Things aren’t going so well though. Mahad is constantly skipping school, and is completely uninterested in receiving an education, countering that his father doesn’t have one either. Worse still, Nasra is ill: a kidney infection means she needs constant antibiotics and $5,000 surgery if she is to survive. This news sends the family into a spiral as Guled desperately tries to cobble enough money together to keep his wife alive. A broken Guled finally decides to walk to the rural village where he grew up – facing the conservative politics which drove him away in the first place – in a last ditch attempt to earn enough money for his wife’s surgery, while Mahad takes to the streets, completing various tasks for the locals for cash.
The storytelling in The Gravedigger’s Wife is neatly done. Ahmed frames beautiful early scenes showing the couple in benignly intimate moments, such as when Guled bathes his ailing wife. There’s a tenderness to these scenes but also something of a weariness, as though the couple have gone past the hormonal excitement of their early courtship and are now comfortable and content with one another. These scenes are juxtaposed with their interactions with Mahad, whom they struggle to control. A slowly building dread begins to creep in for Guled: he can no more save his son than he can his wife. It all stacks up excellently to a more thrilling third act, as the tone changes somewhat and Guled goes for broke.
Abdi is great as the beleaguered Guled. Though blessed with a big smile and a genuine, affable nature, Abdi imbues Guled with a slow burning exhaustion. A telling moment comes around halfway through when he counsels a friend of his who is lovelorn and hopeless; Guled gently chides his friend for wasting time worrying, when there are bigger problems to deal with, before matchmaking his friend and the object of his desire in one fell swoop. It’s a moment that sums up Guled well, and Adbi is so natural you almost forget this is a scene playing out.
The cinematography plays an important part in establishing the world of Djibouti. Arttu Peltomaa juggles the urban jungle with all of its color and business with parched, dry landscapes, completely barren and devoid of life. Yellows and browns abound here, mixed together in a muddy texture, with the occasional greenery appearing throughout – almost as though representing a kind of hope.
Amid all of the exquisite visual design, is the basic premise of a man fighting against a hopelessly cruel, indifferent system which cares nothing about whether he lives or dies. As he struggles in vain to make some small semblance of a difference to those he loves, Ahmed is asking us the question: are we really okay with this?
Grade – B
The post Movie Review (Glasgow Film Festival): ‘The Gravedigger’s Wife’ Is A Critical Look at the Healthcare System first appeared on InSession Film.
January 21st of this year would have been the centenary birth of a legend among Shakespearean actors who shied away from the limelight. His filmography is not as large as many others because of his devotion to the stage, but when his screen performance is viewed, you are watching a man who pours everything into his character unlike many others. The results from his performances includes the Triple Crown of acting, which was won in a period of just seven years. That man is Paul Scofield, who died in 2008, aged 86.
Scofield was adored by his contemporaries for his powerful personality on and off-stage, engaging himself perfectly in any role for the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) and in his screen presence. Unlike other celebrities, though, Scofield did not seek press coverage and avoided extra-curricular events outside from acting. It was strictly a job, and when he finished his performance for the night, Scofield hopped on the first train back home. Scofield lived with his family in Balcombe, a village outside London and only wanted roles closest to the train station so he could catch the last train back.
By his admission, Scofield was not successful in school and it was when he found Shakespeare that his calling was heard. Medically discharged from serving in World War II, he was permitted to pursue acting full-time. In his early performances, Scofield was recognized as a rising star, even being compared to Shakespearean master of the time, LaurenceOlivier. When Olivier was making Hamlet as a movie in 1948, it was Scofield playing the titular role on stage. He later tackled Richard III, Macbeth, and Much Ado About Nothing, all directed by John Gielgud. It was only in 1954 that Scofield made his screen debut opposite Olivia de Havilland in That Lady in which he played Phillip II of Spain.
It was in the 1960s that Scofield became a worldwide name in entertainment, namely for one singular role that defined his legacy. In Robert Bolt’s A Man For All Seasons, he played Sir Thomas More, the close associate of King Henry VIII who rejected his break from the Catholic Church and was persecuted for it. The movie version saw Scofield opposite Orson Welles and newcomer John Hurt, who said Scofield’s stage performance finally confirmed his belief that acting was for him. Scofield would win both the Tony and the Academy Award for both versions of A Man For All Seasons (the latter directed by Fred Zinneman in 1966, which would also win Best Picture), one of several to win both awards for the same role. In 1969, Scofield would win an Emmy for his performance in Male of the Species. Scofield did not attend any awards ceremony to pick up any of his prizes.
Also in the 1960s was Scofield’s much publicized trip to Moscow with the RSC to perform King Lear, which he performed in 1962 to critical acclaim. The performance in front of the Russian audience was adored and in 2004, a poll taken within the RSC named Scofield’s Lear as the greatest Shakespearean performance. Another major stage role was Peter Schaffer’s Amadeus as Salieri, the jealous rival of Mozart that would later be adapted for the screen successfully; this time, Scofield wasn’t cast and his role was played by F. Murray Abraham, who ended up winning an Oscar. His last screen performance was the 1996 adaptation of Arthur Miller’s The Crucible in which he plays Judge Danforth investigating witchcraft, playing the persecutor in a stark contrast to Sir Thomas More who was persecuted.
Three times, Paul Scofield was offered a knighthood, and three times he turned it down. He had a similar reaction to Hollywood, as he rejected the temptation of moving stateside and getting caught up in the glitz and glamor. Scofield rarely gave interviews and slowed down in his eighties, not pursuing fame onward until his passing. “As you get older, the more you know, the more nervous you become. The risks are much bigger,” Scofield remarked upon taking his last major stage performance aged 75, a revival of the Norwegian play John Gabriel Borkman. Pure acting without any methods, sincerity in every role he filled regardless of medium, a distinctive voice to not be forgotten, and a legacy of natural talent to be admired. This is what Paul Scofield left behind to those who have watched one of his performances.
Follow me on Twitter: @brian_cine (Cine-A-Man)
The post The Quiet Actor: An Appreciation Of Paul Scofield first appeared on InSession Film.
Well, this can be a hell week for film critics. The one week of the year dedicated to contrived, unrealistic, and far-fetched storylines sugar-coated into a piece of eye candy finished with a beautiful shine. Throw in a couple of attractive leads, some wise-cracking best friends, and follow a playbook step-by-step that has tributed to the likes of Julia Roberts, Meg Ryan, and Sandra Bullock. Here’s the point- they are supposed to be guilty pleasures. Jennifer Lopez’s latest, Marry Me, forgets some key components. Like the fact that this is nothing more than a promotion for J.Lo and Maluma’s attached album.
There is nothing original about Marry Me. A poorly written film with scenes built only to enhance the album’s songs. Harper Dill (The Mindy Project) and John Rogers (Catwoman) adapted the song list. This is strange since this is based on a graphic novel by Bobby Crosby. But is so loosely based it’s practically non-existent. As far as you can tell, they only kept the premise of a pop star named Kat Valdez (Jennifer Lopez). She suddenly becomes so frustrated with her love life that she marries the first man she sees who is holding a sign that says, you guessed it,” Marry Me.”
That frustration is Bastian (played by Maluma), a man she was supposed to marry at a live New York City concert, and found out he was sleeping with her assistant. That man is Owen Wilson, who plays Charlie Gilbert. A good man and single father; humble, sweet, and raising a daughter on a math teacher’s salary. He, of course, says yes. I mean, why not? She is beautiful, talented, rich, and has nothing to do this weekend, right?
Directed by Kat Coiro, Marry Me is shockingly dull and, frankly, dumb for all its glitz and glamour. Practically any scene with Wilson, who is miscast here in the romantic lead, and Lopez trying to integrate herself into any situation outside a concert or performance is misguided. That is where Charlie comes in. We do not learn anything of substance about him. Charlie is supposed to be used as a mirror character to bring out or enhance Kat’s traits. Not as a performer, mind you, but as a human being.
The issue here is that they resort to some musical interlude when the writers cannot flesh out that scenario. There are two different scenes where Lopez’s Kat, without any prompting, turns a math club meeting and high school dance into her private concert. Would it not be interesting to see how Kat operates in the real world? And by comparison to her posh and privileged lifestyle? Or get a sense of who the person is behind her persona?
A similar film, like Notting Hill, succeeded, where Marry Me does not. When you combine that the leads lack any natural chemistry (and a suddenly charmless Wilson doesn’t help matters), Kat Coiro’s film’s sole purpose is to promote J.Lo and Maluma’s album. This isn’t so much a film as it is an utterly charmless infomercial.
Grade D+ The post Movie Review: ‘Marry Me’ Is A Charmless Infomercial first appeared on InSession Film.
It’s #OscarNoms week, a time for film critics to scream and shout, and not always for joy. Questions like, “How did THAT get nominated?” and “How is (insert actor here) missing?” are always asked, but there’s one thing everyone seems to first jump at – rank the nominees for Best Picture. These rankings are all over #FilmTwitter, so we thought we’d officially settle this debate once and for all.
What is your favorite 2022 Best Picture nominee?
What is your favorite 2022 nominee for Best Picture?
The post Poll: What is your favorite 2022 Best Picture nominee? first appeared on InSession Film.
The 2022 Academy Award nominations were revealed yesterday and with time to digest everything that happened, there was plenty to be shocked about.The nominations revealed a lot about how the Academy felt about the films offered this year, and now it is time to delve deep into those shocking nominations, the snubs that hurt, and which film is now the clear frontrunner to take home the Best Picture award.
The Shocks
As predicted, there were eight safe bets in the Best Picture race and two slots which were open to a wide variety of contenders. Many people took the bet on Drive My Car making it into the top ten, which it did, and yet it was Nightmare Alley that shocked with the final slot in the line-up this year. Having exceeded expectations by scoring in Production Design, Cinematography, Costume Design and Best Picture, it was a great day for that film and it now shows great strength to at least pick up the Production Design win.
The acting categories ended up having numerous surprises thrown in, particularly in the Best Actress race. After missing SAG and BAFTA, it was great to see Kristen Stewart’s name read out for Spencer, the lone nominee for that film at the Oscars. Additionally, Penélope Cruz missed every major precursor including a longlist slot at the BAFTAs and managed to get in for Parallel Mothers at the Oscars. Considering these are my two favorite performances of the entire year, I will not hide my excitement for these two ladies surpassing expectations and breaking in.
Best Adapted Screenplay went as expected, with a lovely nomination for Drive My Car in the mix there, but it was Original Screenplay where another International Film contender broke into the five. Joachim Trier’s The Worst Person in the World scored two nominations making it into the Original Screenplay category and despite Drive My Car’s success in making it into four categories including Best Picture, it does have a threat in the International Film category with The Worst Person in the World also scoring numerous nominations and having NEON behind the film’s campaign.
The Snubs
There ended up being a lot more snubs than shocks this year, as many films were forgotten about with bubble contenders taking their slot. The biggest snub of the day came in the Best Director category, in which it was easy to predict that the DGA five would not line-up at Oscars and Hamaguchi would slide in. However, it seemed like nobody was willing to predict that Denis Villeneuve for Dune would be the one to miss. The film, having scored ten nominations and making every single craft nomination it was going for, had a great day and yet this omission stings. However, this is all the more reason to not only nominate Villeneuve when Dune Part Two releases, but to give him the win.
With Cruz and Stewart making it in, the Best Actress race was already chaos. However, what makes the category even more insane is that the one person that made every single precursor, Lady Gaga in House of Gucci, ended up missing here. In fact, the only nomination House of Gucci received was for Makeup & Hairstyling. A film that is about fashion ended up missing the Costume Design category. Jared Leto, who was one of the solid choices for Supporting Actor, missed too. That film did not perform nearly as well as expected, and yet the Gaga miss throws a wrench into who could possibly win for Actress. Precursors may not even be able to help much as none of the nominees are listed at BAFTA and there is no clear frontrunner for the Critics Choice to lean to.
Many films that were pining for numerous nominations ended up being completely shut out. While it is not surprising that the likes of C’mon C’mon, Mass, and Pig all failed to receive a nomination, it was surprising that the Oscars failed to even recognize Wes Anderson’s The French Dispatch. A film that should have easily scored nominations in Score and Production Design at a minimum, it is clear the campaign for this film has faltered since the start and that Wes Anderson is not just a name check for the Academy.
The Clear Frontrunner
Over the past few months, the Best Picture race has essentially come down to four films: Belfast, Licorice Pizza, The Power of the Dog, and West Side Story. Sure, Licorice Pizza and West Side Story were three and four in that race for most of the time, but there was arguments to be made for all of them to be contending for the coveted top prize. So, how did they all perform on nomination morning?
Licorice Pizza failed to make a splash as the film only made it in for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay. With a lack of acting nominations, failing to recognize any of the crafts and missing a vital Editing spot that it has managed to garner elsewhere, the Academy only seems to want to recognize Paul Thomas Anderson’s achievements within this film. He can still win Original Screenplay for sure, but the Best Picture chances are done.
West Side Story ended up doing not too bad considering the precursor run scoring seven nominations including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actress (Ariana DeBose), Best Production Design, Best Sound, Best Costume Design, and Best Cinematography. While it is out front to win at a minimum Best Supporting Actress, the film failed to score in two of the biggest categories needed to win Best Picture: Editing and Adapted Screenplay.
Belfast had an interesting morning, and one that looks good on paper with seven nominations as well. Making it in Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor (Ciaran Hinds), Best Original Screenplay, Best Sound, Best Song (“Down to Joy”), and a surprising Best Supporting Actress nomination for Judi Dench. However, it is when you see what the film missed that makes Belfast’s Best Picture frontrunner position look shaky. Firstly, Caitriona Balfe missed out on the Supporting Actress position despite scoring everywhere, perhaps due to some voters placing her in the Lead Actress slot. Additionally, the film missed in Editing and Cinematography, two places it performed well in the precursors. To miss those are major warning signs of how certain branches of the Academy feel about the film and it may not be as strong as expected.
All the analysis I just did above would matter if it was a close race, but the film I am about to talk about now has clearly positioned itself as an unstoppable force for the Best Picture race. Jane Campion’s The Power of the Dog somehow managed to overperform on nomination morning and tallied up the most nominations of any film this year, beating even the technical achievement of the year that was Dune. When a film can secure four acting nominations including two in Supporting Actor, every major category needed to make a case for Best Picture – Director, Screenplay (Adapted), Editing and Cinematography – and even make it into Best Sound and Best Production Design, it is clear that this is the frontrunner. This is not only in terms of total nomination, as the film is in the top position to take home Director, Adapted Screenplay, Supporting Actor and could potentially make a case for Score, Cinematography, and Actor. It has been a while since a Best Picture has won five or more Oscars, but The Power of the Dog has everything it needs to be Netflix’s first major success story.
The post Chasing the Gold: 2022 Oscar Nominations – The Shocks, Snubs, and the Clear Frontrunner first appeared on InSession Film.
InSession Film · Moonfall / Top 3 Disaster Movies (Revisited) – Episode 468 This week on Episode 468 of the InSession Film Podcast, inspired by our review of Moonfall, we discuss our favorite disaster movies. We first discussed disaster movies back on Episode 119 when San Andreas came to theaters, but since it’s been a long time, we thought it would be fun to revisit this topic. Say what you will about these types of films, but many of them are good popcorn fun. And then there’s a few that are more thoughtful and dramatically riveting. Either way, there’s many disaster movies worthy of making these lists. That said, here are our lists:
(Note: Please keep in mind that we each had different criteria for our selections)
JD
1) Contagion
2) Gravity
3) The Day After Tomorrow
Brendan
1) Children of Men
2) The Seventh Seal
3) Melancholia
Honorable Mentions (Combined)
Twister, Independence Day, The Martian, Dante’s Peak, Volcano, Only the Brave, The Perfect Storm, The Towering Inferno, The Poseidon Adventure, Deep Impact, Armageddon, Backdraft, This is the End, The Birds, Knowing, The Wave, Take Shelter
Hopefully you guys enjoyed our lists and if you agree or disagree with us, let us know in the comment section below. There are certainly many more disaster movies that could eligible for your lists. That being said, what would be your Top 3? Leave a comment in the comment section or email us at insessionfilm@gmail.com.
For the entire podcast, click here or listen below.
For more lists done by the InSession Film crew and other guests, be sure see our Top 3 Movie Lists page.
The post List: Top 3 Disaster Movies (Revisited) first appeared on InSession Film.
The American film industry is just starting to open up to Latin American and Latinx voices, but there’s a long (very long) way to go in terms of representation. As undenying proof of how little the industry cares about our voices, we have the 2022 Oscar nominations.
Despite the existence of a rich field of Latin American and Latinx narratives this past year, we find ourselves yet again underrepresented in the “big” American award ceremony. This year, the only Latin American stories, performances, and crafts vying for an Academy Award are Ariana DeBose for West Side Story (a film that fails to depict Latinx culture in the progressive light it thinks it does), Guillermo del Toro for Nightmare Alley, Carlos López Estrada por Raya and the Last Dragon, Lin-Manuel Miranda for Encanto’s “Dos Oruguitas”, Germaine Franco for Encanto’s Original Score, Hugo Covarrubias for Bestia, and KD Dávila for Please Hold. Most of them are American productions.
To make matters worse, the Academy decided to nominate a Spanish actor playing the role of legendary Cuban-American performer Desi Arnaz; they nominated a performance that uses brown face in 2021. Absolutely embarrassing. This is how little the industry cares about Latin voices.
To show how much quality Latin America filmmaking has to offer, I’ve created a “Oscar nominations” list with only Latin American films in contention, as well as films directed by US Latinx filmmakers or centered around Latinx narratives. Many of these films were official submissions or shortlisted as International Feature selections, and others opened in their respective countries (or, in the case of Netflix releases, worldwide) in 2021. This is just a sample out of films I managed to watch and I’m sure there’s more quality waiting to be discovered.
I don’t know for certain if all of these would have complied with the Academy’s rules to quality, but that’s not the point. I’m doing this little exercise to shine a light on the outstanding work of Latin American cinema and the invaluable stories they are sharing to the world. I hope you can use this article as a guide of high quality films to watch in the near future.
Best Picture 7 Prisoners / 7 Prisioneiros (Brazil)
Azor (Argentina)
The Dog Who Wouldn’t Be Quiet / El perro que no calla (Argentina)
Ghosting Gloria / Muerto con Gloria (Uruguay)
Identifying Features / Sin señas particulares (México)
Memoria (Colombia)
My Brothers Dream Awake / Mis hermanos sueñan despiertos (Chile)
Nothing but the Sun / Apenas el sol (Paraguay)
Prayers for the Stolen / Noche de fuego (México)
Private Desert / Deserto Particular (Brazil)
Best Documentary A Cop Movie / Una película de policías
The Last Forest / A Última Floresta
Nothing But the Sun / Apenas el sol
Stateless / Apátrida
Things We Dare Not Do / Cosas que no hacemos
Best Direction Alexandre Moratto – 7 Prisoners / 7 Prisioneiros
Aly Muritiba – Private Desert / Deserto Particular
Ana Katz – The Dog Who Wouldn’t Be Quiet / El perro que no calla
Fernanda Valadez – Identifying Features / Sin señas particulares
Tatiana Huezo – Prayers for the Stolen / Noche de fuego
Best Actor Alfonso Herrera – Dance of the 41 / El baile de los 41
Antônio Pitanga – Memory House / Casa de Antiguidades
Antonio Saboia – Private Desert / Deserto Particular
Christian Malheiros – 7 Prisoners / 7 Prisioneiros
Mauricio Di Yorio – The Perfect David / El perfecto David
Best Actress Érica Rivas – The Intruder / El prófugo
Ilse Salas – Plaza Catedral
Mercedes Hernández – Identifying Features / Sin señas particulares
Stefania Tortorella – Ghosting Gloria / Muerto con Gloria
Wendy Chinchilla Araya – Clara Sola
Best Supporting Actor Colman Domingo – Zola
Fabián Corres – Summer White / Blanco de verano
Lázaro Gabino Rodríguez – Fauna
Nahuel Pérez Biscayart – The Intruder / El prófugo
Rodrigo Santoro – 7 Prisoners
Best Supporting Actress Mayra Batalla – Prayers for the Stolen / Noche de fuego
Nenan Pelenur – Ghosting Gloria / Muerto con Gloria
Olga Merediz – In the Heights
Paulina García – My Brothers Dream Awake / Mis hermanos sueñan despiertos
Umbra Colombo – The Perfect David / El perfecto David
Best Original Screenplay King Car – Sergio Oliveira, Renata Pinheiro, Leo Pyrata
Fauna – Nicolás Pereda
Language Lessons – Natalie Morales, Mark Duplass
Private Desert – Aly Muritiba, Henrique Dos Santos
The Dog Who Wouldn’t Be Quiet – Ana Katz, Gonzalo Delgado
Best Adapted Screenplay On The Third Day – Alberto Fasce, Gonzalo Ventura
Fever Dream – Claudia Llosa, Samanta Schweblin
In the Heights – Quiara Alegría Hudes
Prayers for the Stolen – Tatiana Huezo
Best Animated Feature Ainbo: Spirit of the Amazon
Encanto
Tundama
Vivo
Best Cinematography The Dog Who Wouldn’t Be Quiet / El perro que no calla
Identifying Features / Sin señas particulares
Memory House / Casa de Antiguidades
Private Desert / Deserto Particular
White on White / Blanco en blanco
Best Original Score Dance of the 41 – Carlo Ayhillón, Andrea Balency-Béarn
The Dog Who Would Be Quiet – Javier Abinet
Ghosting Gloria – Carlos Villavicencio
Nine Days – Antônio Pinto
The Perfect David – Ezequiel Flehner
Best Original Song Detras del Miedo – Muerto con Gloria
Hablo de… – Language Lessons
Home All Summer – In the Heights
Inside Your Heart – Vivo
Colombia, Mi Encanto – Encanto
Best Editing 7 Prisoners / 7 Prisioneiros
A Cop Movie / Una película de policías
Azor
Identifying Features / Sin señas particulares
The Pink Cloud / A Nuvem Rosa
Best Production Design 7 Prisoners / 7 Prisioneiros
King Car / Carro Rei
Dance of the 41 / El baile de los 41
Memory House / Casa de Antiguidades
White on White / Blanco en blanco
Best Costume Design Dance of the 41 / El baile de los 41
In the Heights
Memory House / Casa de Antiguidades
Tragic Jungle / Selva trágica
White on White / Blanco en blanco
Best Sound On The Third Day / Al tercer día
King Car / Carro Rei
Memoria
Noche de fuego / Prayers for the Stolen
Blanco en blanco / White on White
Best Visual Effects In the Heights
Ghosting Gloria / Muerto con Gloria
King Car / Carro Rei
Memoria
Prayers for the Stolen / Noche de fuego
Best Makeup and Hairstyling Al tercer día / On The Third Day
Dance of the 41 / El baile de los 41
Private Desert / Deserto Particular
Prayers for the Stolen / Noche de fuego
White on White / Blanco en blanco
Best Live Action Short A Terra Em que Pisar
Bisho
El sueño más largo que recuerdo
Please Hold
Seiva Bruta
Best Documentary Short Águilas
Elena
Lupita
The Facility
Zunzuncito
Best Animated Short Bestia
La Bestia
Los Huesos
The Boy & the Mountain
Nuevo Rico
The post Chasing the Gold: The 2022 Oscar Nominations Using Only Latin American and Latinx Talent first appeared on InSession Film.
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This week on the InSession Film Podcast, Tim Costa from First Time Watchers joins us to review Roland Emmerich’s new film Moonfall and we discuss (again) our Top 3 disaster movies! Plus, the announcement of a new Movie Series.
It’s always interesting when Emmerich is out with a new film. You know it’s going to be big and absurd, but one can hope that it’s a lot of fun. As for Moonfall, that’s certainly up for debate, and it made for a fun conversation. It was also great to revisit disaster movies and talk about a few more films that stand out to us in that realm. And big thanks to Tim for joining us and inspiring us to go back down the disaster movie rabbit hole.
On that note, check out this week’s show and let us know what you think in the comment section. Thanks for listening and for supporting the InSession Film Podcast!
– Movie Review: Moonfall (5:26)
Director: Roland Emmerich
Writers: Roland Emmerich, Harald Kloser, Spenser Cohen
Stars: Halle Berry, Patrick Wilson, John Bradley, Michael Peña, Charlie Plummer
– Notes / Movie Series Announcement (53:02)
This week for our break segment, we reveal the name of our latest Movie Series that we’ll be doing on the Main Show. We’ll be diving into the movies of the great…Steven Spielberg. However, there is a caveat. We will not be discussing his “popular” films that we all know and love, instead we’ll be diving into his lesser talked about movies, such as Duel, Empire of the Sun, Amistad and many more. It’s going to be a long series, but it should be a ton of fun.
RELATED: Listen to Episode 456 of the InSession Film Podcast where we discussed Belfast!
– Top 3 Disaster Movies (Revisited) (1:10:55)
We first discussed disaster movies back on Episode 113 when San Andreas came to theaters, but since it’s been a long time, we thought it would be fun to revisit this topic. Say what you will about these types of films, but many of them are good popcorn fun. And then there’s a few that are more thoughtful and dramatically riveting. Either way, there’s many disaster movies worthy of making these lists. That said, what would be your top 5?
Show Sponsor: First Time Watchers Podcast
– Music
Moonfall End Theme – Thomas Wander, Harald Kloser
Gravity – Steven Price
The Return of the Eagle – Atli Örvarsson
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InSession Film Podcast – Episode 468
InSession Film · Moonfall / Top 3 Disaster Movies (Revisited) – Episode 468 Next week on the show: Review: The Sky is Everywhere
Steven Spielberg Movie Series: Duel
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The post Podcast: Moonfall / Top 3 Disaster Movies (Revisited) – Episode 468 first appeared on InSession Film.
When we watch a new movie and see something we rarely see, it feels revolutionary. This could be about representation, sexuality, even nonlinear timelines. But when we watch an older film, it is a bit of a different experience. There are usually only two reactions. One is one of quaintness, as in, “Wow, can you believe this used to be shocking!” For reference, any film in which “the bad guy” wins, which used to be outlawed by The Hays Code. The other reaction is much less fun. Sometimes, we see things made decades ago, and they still feel amazing. This is mostly negative because it feels like we should have gotten past all of this puritanical nonsense. And yet, here we are. Still. As a prime example, a film leaving The Criterion Channel this month, is 1994’s Go Fish, a seminal queer, but specifically lesbian, film that gives us exactly this reaction.
Go Fish, directed by Rose Troche, is very clearly a first film. I do not say this as purely an insult, one can see the talent, even with financial and performance limitations. In that way, and in the black and white filming, it is reminiscent of Spike Lee’s She’s Gotta Have It. But Go Fish has essentially a simple plot. We follow Max (Guinevere Turner), who has gone nearly a year without having sex. The film, among other small plots, focuses on Max’s quest for a girlfriend. Go Fish does a wonderful job of normalizing lesbian sexuality and somehow making it still feel radical.
The radical part of the movie is also startlingly simple. Troche (who would also go on to be a repeat director of a similarly seminal queer television show in The L Word), fills the screen with lesbian women of all shapes, sizes, backgrounds, and styles. Think about how little we see this in mainstream (or even independent) film. Even in movies like Bound, the women are usually culturally acceptable versions of pretty. Here, we are not only given differences in presentation but there is not a single woman who is uniformly attractive to all of the other women. These radical moments absolutely stand out even nearly 30 years later. Sad? Definitely.
But the normalizing of lesbian love is arguably more important. The film opens with Max opining about how she will meet her dream girl, her soulmate. If one were to substitute genders and the way she describes this mystery person, it is not different than your standard heterosexual desire. Alongside this, the numerous side characters are actively rooting for this, all while carrying on full lives and relationships. They are never merely people in support of our leads. Kia (T. Wendy McMillan) is Max’s roommate, but also in a relationship with Evy (Migdalia Melendez). Their interactions are passionate, funny, and genuine; even without their connection to Max. Their gentle ribbing of the romantically hopeless Max also feels true to their lived characters and never mean-spirited.
In between beautifully framed shots of four women’s heads, discussing Max and Ely’s (V.S. Brodie) burgeoning relationship, which functions much like a Greek chorus, the screenplay (written by Troche and Turner) guides gently towards a dinner party that will hopefully force the two together. All of this works nearly seamlessly and builds perfectly in a romantic sense. There is nearly no actual filmed sex up until the final moments of Go Fish. It is heavily hinted at by supporting characters and constantly desired by Max, but Troche makes us wait along with her lead character. But when Troche is ready, she shows a distinct lack of fear or concern about showing the female form or lesbian sex.
Sadly, these scenes, even in 2022, feel startling. They are, of course, completely focused on female pleasure. They also never feel unnecessary or gratuitous. If a movie is going to be about a woman wanting sex (even in monogamous form), it feels appropriate to actually show it! The black and white cinematography (from director of photography Ann T. Rossetti) shines in these sequences. In earlier scenes, shot in bedrooms and cafes, it feels pretty standard for 1990s independent film. Even this lack of movement is not necessarily a negative as it is indicative of both Max and Ely’s stunted movement towards a relationship and inherent shyness. But when these two finally give in and are together, both they and the camera movement nearly explode in kinetic energy.
This is really the kind of movie I was looking forward to discussing on Criterion Crunch Time. A female filmmaker, combined with subject matter that challenges and even sometimes shocks the audience. If there was any justice, Rose Troche would have a lengthy filmography filled with features. Unfortunately, it seems the mainstream cinema world is not as accepting of this material as premium television is and has been. Hopefully, in another 30 years, this won’t be an issue, but in the meantime, there are still opportunities to watch important work like this, at least until the end of the month!
The post Criterion Crunch Time: Go Fish first appeared on InSession Film.
In January of this year, the Criterion Channel did film lovers around the world a huge favor by adding Les Vampires, a title that had long sat near the top of my own watchlist for years, to their streaming service. At over seven hours, a screening of this Louis Feuillade directed thriller is a daunting task even for the most dedicated and patient of cinephiles. While full length versions of varying quality can be found on YouTube and across the internet, Criterion made the smart, and historically accurate, move of adding the film in ten distinct chapters.
Of course, even back in 1915 when our attention spans had significantly more endurance, Les Vampires was never exhibited as one continuous 417 minute film, but, like a television program, was released into French cinemas one “episode” at a time, starting on November 13th, 1915 and concluding on June 30th, 1916. Consumed by large groups of people at a time, one could compare its exhibition to modern screenings of “must-see-TV”, such as the finale episodes of Game of Thrones, which saw hordes of fans gather into pubs, theaters, and other public spaces to create a unique, communal viewing experience.
Despite its age, the synopsis of Les Vampires should be easy to follow for modern viewers. To summarize: Reporter Philippe Guérande becomes determined to unearth the operations of the underground society/crime ring “Les Vampires” that deals primarily with cash and jewelry theft. Les Vampires will go to any length, even through use of kidnapping and murder, to achieve their nefarious desires. Along the way, as Guérande becomes increasingly obsessed with bringing the organization to its knees, he encounters a slew of classic movie-thriller obstacles which are now staples of the genre: decapitation, trap-doors, disguises, poisoned jewelry, false-beards, knock-out gasses, secret hideouts, cryptograms, and seedy nightclubs.
Guérande is accompanied on many of his crime-solving exploits by his colleague Mazamette, played by Marcel Lévesque, whose antics make up most of the film’s comic relief. The target of the pair’s sleuthing is known as Le Grand Vampire, an elusive man whose identity, through the use of fake facial hair, disguises, and aliases, changes with practically every episode. Even casual silent film fans will likely recognize the name Irma Vep, whose presence, while unseen for the first two episodes, hangs over the film like the sword of Damocles. When she does appear, portrayed by actress, dancer, and director Musidora (born Jeanne Roques) the film’s fun truly begins, becoming a classic game of cat-and-mouse.
Musidora and her on-screen characters perfectly encapsulated the archetype of the “Vamp”. In America, her equivalent would have been the equally seductive Theda Bara, who played her fair share of exotic characters throughout the 1910s. Irma Vep has remained a cult-like figure of film history whose statuesque figure, kohl-lined eyes, and dominant demeanor has served as inspiration for both musicians and directors for decades to follow. In 1996, Hong Kong actress Maggie Cheung starred as a semi-fictionalized version of herself cast by a French director (played by Jean Pierre Léaud) to star as Irma Vep in a remake of Les Vampires. The film, aptly titled Irma Vep and directed by Oliver Assayas, further cements Musidora and Les Vampires as pillars of early cinema.
From a distance, and based on its promoted images, one might expect this series to in fact revolve around a group of blood-sucking, immortal children of the night. In fact, there are no actual vampires to be found in the series. And yet, the film’s atmosphere is so mysterious and chilling in its presentation that this world, this particular glimpse at 1915 Paris, feels like a landscape of never-ending horror and suspense. With its ornate, gothic style, dramatic and dark makeup, and tense storyline, it chills the modern viewer like a shock of cold water.
While a popular success, contemporary critics let their morals get the best of them when reviewing Feuillade’s directorial effort, with one reviewer referring to the very concept of the crime film as a “unhealthy genre”, while others compared it unfavorably to another epic of 1915, D.W. Griffith’s The Birth of a Nation. In response to such accusations, Feuillade firmly declared his stance, proclaiming: “A film is not a sermon nor a conference…but a means to entertain the eyes and the spirit”. Modern critics have come around to Les Vampires, praising its dedication to production, sensuality, fun spirit, and undercurrent of criticism towards the teetering upper classes. Whether a silent film expert or looking for somewhere to get started, this is a film that should be in every film lover’s vocabulary.
The post Children of the Night: The Lasting Legacy of ‘Les Vampires’ first appeared on InSession Film.
The neverending desert and the heat melting the screen. The long halls of Britain’s headquarters in Cairo. The scores of fighters charging the terrain on camels. A soundtrack that captures Arabia’s exoticity. And a real-life figure who led the revolt for his love of the region, even at his personal expense.
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the legendary epic Lawrence Of Arabia starring Peter O’Toole in his debut role as the titular character. With the great David Lean commanding the action from behind the camera, it remains one of the greatest films ever produced. A sweeping biopic filled with adventure, bravado, and star-making performances, it contains the power of what a movie should be in long form, a remarkable 227 minutes that never leaves your attention and seduces the viewers into this period of history from one man’s view.
I saw the movie for the first-time when I was thirteen-years-old. Saturday night on Turner Classic Movies introduced by the late Robert Osbourne. Curious Brian had started digging into movies and into the past, referring to the American Film Institute’s Top 100 Films (before the revised list in 2007) to see what I could watch. Titanic was over three hours long, so I could make it through this. Entr’acte and Intermission was still a thing in the 1960s, something I hadn’t seen at the time, but would learn it was quite common up to the early 1980s for epic films.
What I witnessed, and certainly everyone did when they first saw Lawrence of Arabia, was a transportation back to World War I that, for once, wasn’t on the Western Front. The prologue is T.E. Lawrence’s death in a motorcycle accident in 1935, followed by the memorial where those who knew him remark on how extraordinary he was. Going back to 1917, Lawrence was a bit of an outcast who was given the job of seeing what the British could do to help Prince Faisal in the revolt against the Ottoman Empire, an ally of Germany. There begins his passion in helping the Arab people as he works through blood feuds and politics for their independence.
With the help of Anne V. Coates’ jump cut of a match being blown out to the sunrise over the horizon and Freddie Young’s perfect use of Super Panavision 70 to capture the widened, long stretches of desert for every sequence, David Lean captured everything a masterpiece must have. Yes, I used that word and it has been overused. But, when we talk about the history of film, Lawrence of Arabia deserves that word. It was seen as such immediately upon release. This was an event that was never going to be duplicated and a project that would never get off the ground as it is today.
It also introduced us to Omar Sharif, who played Sherif Ali as he kills Lawrence’s guide, a Bedouin, for drinking out of Ali’s well. Ali’s strides in on his camel and is calm when he approaches Lawrence, almost casually like there’s nothing to it that he killed a man. This is Lawrence’s rude awakening to this part of the world and our first taste of the running blood feud that carries over throughout the film. Lawrence will have to make a decision to keep the peace when the feud comes to blows. It is also a blood feud that carries on to this day, unfortunately, and Lawrence gets a first-hand look at it as shown by the melancholy ending – and his own personal foreshadowing.
There is a ton of power this movie carries by itself. Peter O’Toole, as a relative newcomer (who replaced Albert Finney), held the burden of playing Lawrence like a professional who has worked for decades. It certainly isn’t easy playing a historical figure who is also debated on regarding his actions, as well as his personal life. Being surrounded by a strong, veteran cast including Anthony Quinn, Alec Guinness, Jack Hawkins, and Claude Rains boosted O’Toole’s performance, as he had to be on par with his established co-stars. O’Toole’s blonde hair and jeweled eyes puts a face to the man with every shot of shock and joy as Lawrence marches through all the way to Damascus.
What we have is a romance of a singular man along with history of his own doing. A charismatic figure who finds his calling and sees the Arab people as human and equal after thinking of them as “barbarous and cruel.” Watching the film always gives me this feeling that I am about to embark on a journey, even though I know the story and the historical background. David Lean didn’t blow it; he piloted moviegoers for the long ride, longer than his previous epic, The Bridge On The River Kwai, with no unnecessary turbulence. This film is his everlasting legacy and the influence it had on many future filmmakers is a testament to its endurance.
The post ‘Lawrence Of Arabia’: An Appreciation first appeared on InSession Film.
This week on Extra Film, Ryan and Jay are joined by Letterboxd Senior Editor Mitchell Beaupre to continue their Steven Soderbergh Movie Series with Ocean’s Eleven, and then they discuss the Oscar-winning musical Chicago!
After an amazing year in 2000, Soderbergh followed it up with one of the biggest gambles that paid off, recreating a classic film and making it better than the original. Inserting a sexy, all star cast, and bringing so many cool elements together, Ryan, Jay, and Mitchell review what they call “a perfect movie,” and thus the discussion is brimming with positivity.
In the back half of the episode, the boys and their guest take a look at Chicago, the Best Picture winning musical that is turning 20 years old this year. Known for being one of the most popular musicals of the modern era, and setting the path for many musicals and careers to come, this conversation wasn’t as glowing as the previous, but it’s just as fun.
Thanks for listening!
– Movie Review: Ocean’s Eleven (7:15)
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Screenplay: Ted Griffin
Stars: George Clooney, Matt Damon, Andy García, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts
– Movie Review: Chicago (1:06:11)
Director: Rob Marshall
Screenplay: Bill Condon
Stars: Renée Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Richard Gere, Queen Latifah, John C. Reilly
– Music
Reuben’s in (Ocean’s Eleven OST)
Chicago – Overture/All That Jazz
Cabaret – Cabaret
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Eleven / Chicago – Extra Film
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The post Podcast: Ocean’s Eleven / Chicago – Extra Film first appeared on InSession Film.
Here we are, the final predictions for this year’s Oscar race. This year has been a weird one, with certain categories already feeling like locks and others more unpredictable than when we started off. It has also been a year filled with potential, but with a line-up that may just be one of the most critically divisive in years. However, I am here to provide a little bit of glimmer of hope with some of my predictions and to put my foot forward on some of the most uncertain candidates.
Here are my final predictions for the 2022 Academy Award nominations.
BEST PICTURE
- Being the Ricardos
- Belfast
- CODA
- Don’t Look Up
- Drive My Car
- Dune
- King Richard
- Licorice Pizza
- The Power of the Dog
- West Side Story
BEST DIRECTOR
- Paul Thomas Anderson (Licorice Pizza)
- Kenneth Branagh (Belfast)
- Jane Campion (The Power of the Dog)
- Ryusuke Hamaguchi (Drive My Car)
- Denis Villeneuve (Dune)
BEST ACTRESS
- Olivia Colman (The Lost Daughter)
- Alana Haim (Licorice Pizza)
- Lady Gaga (House of Gucci)
- Nicole Kidman (Being the Ricardos)
- Kristen Stewart (Spencer)
BEST ACTOR
- Benedict Cumberbatch (The Power of the Dog)
- Leonardo DiCaprio (Don’t Look Up)
- Andrew Garfield (Tick, Tick… Boom!)
- Will Smith (King Richard)
- Denzel Washington (The Tragedy of Macbeth)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
- Caitriona Balfe (Belfast)
- Ariana DeBose (West Side Story)
- Kirsten Dunst (The Power of the Dog)
- Aunjanue Ellis (King Richard)
- Ruth Negga (Passing)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
- Mike Faist (West Side Story)
- Ciaran Hinds (Belfast)
- Troy Kotsur (CODA)
- Jared Leto (House of Gucci)
- Kodi Smit-McPhee (The Power of the Dog)
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
- CODA
- Drive My Car
- Dune
- The Lost Daughter
- The Power of the Dog
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
- Being the Ricardos
- Belfast
- Don’t Look Up
- Licorice Pizza
- King Richard
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
- Belfast
- Dune
- The Power of the Dog
- The Tragedy of Macbeth
- West Side Story
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
- Cruella
- Cyrano
- Dune
- House of Gucci
- West Side Story
BEST FILM EDITING
- Belfast
- Don’t Look Up
- Dune
- Licorice Pizza
- The Power of the Dog
BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
- Cruella
- Dune
- The Eyes of Tammy Faye
- House of Gucci
- The Suicide Squad
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
- Dune
- The French Dispatch
- Nightmare Alley
- The Tragedy of Macbeth
- West Side Story
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
- Don’t Look Up
- Dune
- Encanto
- The French Dispatch
- The Power of the Dog
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
- Be Alive (King Richard)
- Beyond the Shore (CODA)
- Just Look Up (Don’t Look Up)
- Dos Oruguitas (Encanto)
- No Time to Die (No Time to Die)
BEST SOUND
- A Quiet Place: Part II
- Belfast
- Dune
- No Time to Die
- West Side Story
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
- Dune
- Ghostbusters: Afterlife
- The Matrix Resurrections
- No Time to Die
- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
- Encanto
- Flee
- Luca
- The Mitchells vs the Machines
- Raya and the Last Dragon
BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE
- A Hero
- Drive My Car
- Flee
- The Hand of God
- The Worst Person in the World
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
- The First Wave
- Flee
- Procession
- The Rescue
- Summer of Soul
BEST ANIMATED SHORT
- Affairs of the Art
- Bestia
- Namoo
- Robin Robin
- Us Again
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT
- Águilas
- Day of Rage
- The Queen of Basketball
- Terror Contagion
- Three Songs for Benazir
BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT
- Censor of Dreams
- The Criminals
- Les Grandes Claques
- The Long Goodbye
- Tala’vision
The post Chasing the Gold: Amy Smith’s Final 2022 Oscar Predictions first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Jeff Tremaine
Writers: The Jackass crew
Stars: Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, Chris Pontius, Ehren McGhehey
Synopsis: 12 years after the release of the third film, the Jackass crew reunites for a final collection of outrageous stunts.
“When was the last time you got together with your old friends to laugh your asses off?” This is the quote that kicks off the theatrical trailer for Jackass Forever, the latest (and apparently final) outing from the crew that began participating in shocking stunts back in 2000. Rather than just a humorous way to try to bring people back to the theater to watch a bunch of grown individuals act like children, that line is the essence of the movie itself. While the film is simply a compilation of such painful and unsanitary acts, it’s also a reflection on the wild journey the team has taken over the years.
Even as one who is more familiar with Jackass as a concept than as an actual viewer, I’m able to have a strange appreciation for how far the franchise has come. Perhaps the only thing wilder than the stunts themselves is that an MTV series that only lasted 25 episodes has resulted in a quadrilogy of theatrical features that essentially function as an avenue to display what they couldn’t on television. That’s certainly the case here, as the film features bare penises, explosions, human-on-human collisions, and men being covered in bodily fluids…all within the first five minutes.
As expected, the film’s stunts seek to be bigger than ever. In fact, as it becomes clear in the ending credits, some of them are simply more intense versions of acts the crew has taken on before. Highlights from this venture include “Silence of the Lambs,” a hilarious act in which unsuspecting members are locked in a room with the lights out, under the false impression that a rattlesnake is trapped in the room with them. While that alone is an uproarious concept, they take it a step further by inflicting pain and fear on those involved, using everything from mouse traps to trash can lids. An exploit like this serves as the best of the film, largely because it combines meticulous planning from the masterminds with the genuine surprise of the victims.
As with any Jackass film, this does bring up the question of how one interacts as a viewer. Let’s not shy away from the fact that it feels a little sadistic to find so much humor through the pain these guys go through. And I will say, I laughed consistently, and often quite audibly, throughout the course of the movie. What helps most in this case is that the participants seem like they are actually having fun, as deranged as that may sound. These are essentially the immature escapades of Johnny Knoxville and his Merry Fellows. And those fellows actually come off as quite merry, even just after they’ve endured what must be unreal pain. In fact, what’s even better than the stunts is what comes after – usually in the form of infectious laughter from all involved.
While sitting back and cackling at the chaos or cringing at the gross-out stunts is all good fun, what really stands out here is the sense of finality and partnership. The film mixes the old with the new quite well. Johnny Knoxville serves as a charismatic ringleader, and Jackass traditionals like Steve-O and Ehren McGhehey participate in stunts as if they’re still in their 20s. However, newcomers like Zach Holmes and Rachel Wolfson hold their own while symbolizing the oddly enduring nature of these ridiculous ventures. The only time these people aren’t laughing is when they seem genuinely concerned about a partner who may be seriously injured. It may be difficult at times to tell whether the joy is simply a performance (especially with recent news about Bam Margera’s conflicts and frustrations with the crew), but the adoration for each other is still pretty evident.
There are so many sequences here that it’s difficult to reflect on all of them while identifying the standouts. In a way, that represents the main fault of the film. There’s so much packed in that it does get to feel a bit tiresome in the middle, and some of the more minor or traditional stunts get lost in the fold. Still, moments of the best kind of hilarity remain, such as when part of the group is showered in paintballs just after getting off a makeshift tilt-a-whirl, which they took on after chugging a half-gallon of milk. There are certainly moments where actual danger can be felt too, such as a scene in which McGhehey must sit still while a full-grown bear eats up salmon laid across his groin.
With Jackass Forever, you mostly get what you expect. If you’re not a fan of this type of comedy, there’s likely not much here that will sway you, even if the camaraderie is heightened for the participants who have participated for over 20 years. If you do enjoy this sort of thing, there are enough laughs to leave with satisfaction. It also helps that the technical elements are bigger along with the stunts. We no longer have to watch this happen through amateurish home video quality, as the newer entries come with a more experienced film crew who are able to capture the chaos from all angles and speeds. The movie is best enjoyed without thinking too much, and taking in a group of wild individuals as they act like complete idiots. I’m not going to pretend there is some thought-provoking, underlying message that wasn’t there before, but I certainly did enjoy laughing my ass off with these friends.
Grade: B- The post Movie Review: ‘Jackass Forever’ Reminds Us That It’s Okay To Simply Laugh…and Cringe first appeared on InSession Film.
It’s all come to this. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will announce tomorrow their nominations for the 2022 Oscars. This year’s nominees look to feature tons of familiar faces to the Academy, as many of the films that were suppose to come out last year were delayed due to COVID-19. But there is still the possibility for some surprises, as 2021 was a rather strong year for cinema on the whole, where we discovered new and emerging artists who moved us. And while the discourse surrounding many of these titles has been hostile online, we have to remember that the Academy has final say and they are ultimately picking the films that just worked the best for them.
Going into the final stretch of the nomination phase of the season, we’ve seen Belfast, Dune, The Power of the Dog, West Side Story show up with a lot of love throughout the season with critics groups and guild nominations, thus showcasing a good balance of inside and outside industry support. I expect these films to still have strong mornings tomorrow, though each film could have either a addition or miss that will shock people, questioning where they are at in the race. For proof of that, look at the BAFTA nominations, as they provided that right amount of doubt and chaos needed for this season, thus providing so much anxiety to many Oscar pundits with their final predictions. And with tight races in Best Actress, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography and more, these nominations could be the jolt of energy in what has been a long, similar Oscar season, given the fact that the same films have shown up everywhere. There is nothing wrong with a little variety, and makes these predictions a lot harder and so much more fun. With that, here is how I think it will go down.
Best Picture * Belfast * CODA * Don’t Look Up * Drive My Car * Dune * House of Gucci * Licorice Pizza * King Richard * The Power of the Dog * West Side Story
Best Director * Jane Campion, The Power of the Dog * Paul Thomas Anderson, Licorice Pizza * Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Drive My Car * Steven Spielberg, West Side Story * Denis Villeneuve, Dune
Best Actor * Benedict Cumberbatch, The Power of the Dog * Leonardo DiCaprio, Don’t Look Up * Andrew Garfield, tick…tick…BOOM * Will Smith, King Richard * Denzel Washington, The Tragedy of Macbeth
Best Actress * Penelope Cruz, Parallel Mothers * Lady Gaga, House of Gucci * Alana Haim, Licorice Pizza * Nicole Kidman, Being the Ricardos * Olivia Colman, The Lost Daughter
Best Supporting Actor * Bradley Cooper, Licorice Pizza * Troy Kotsur, CODA * Jared Leto, House of Gucci * Kodi Smit-McPhee, The Power of the Dog * Jesse Plemons, The Power of the Dog
Best Supporting Actress * Caitriona Balfe, Belfest * Ariana DeBose, West Side Story * Kristen Dunst, The Power of the Dog * Aunjanue Ellis, King Richard * Ruth Negga, Passing
Best Original Screenplay * Being the Ricardos * Belfast * Don’t Look Up * The French Dispatch * Licorice Pizza
Best Adapted Screenplay * Coda * Drive My Car * Dune * The Lost Daughter * The Power of the Dog
Best Animated Film * Belle * Encanto * Flee * Luca * Sing 2
Best Documentary * Ascension * Faya Dayi * Procession * The Rescue * Summer of Soul
Best International Feature * Drive My Car * The Hand of God * A Hero * Prayers For The Stolen * The Worst Person in the World
Best Cinematography * Dune * Nightmare Alley * The Power of the Dog * The Tragedy of Macbeth * West Side Story
Best Film Editing * Belfast * Don’t Look Up * Dune * Licorice Pizza * The Power of the Dog
Best Production Design * Dune * The French Dispatch * Nightmare Alley * The Tragedy of Macbeth * West Side Story
Best Costume Design * Cruella * Cyrano * Dune * House of Gucci * Licorice Pizza
Best Makeup & Hairstyling * Dune * Coming 2 America * Cruella * The Eyes of Tammy Faye * House of Gucci
Best Sound * Belfast * Dune * No Time to Die * The Power of the Dog * West Side Story
Best Visual Effects * Dune * Godzilla vs Kong * The Matrix Resurrections * No Time to Die * Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
Best Original Score * Dune * Don’t Look Up * The French Dispatch * The Green Knight * The Power of the Dog
Best Original Song * “Be Alive” – King Richard * “Beyond the Shore” – CODA * “Dos Oruguitas” – Encanto * ”No Time to Die” – No Time to Die * “Somehow You Do” – Four Good Days
Check back in a couple of a days where we will have a new episode of Chasing the Gold to go over nominations for the 2022 Academy Awards.
The post Chasing the Gold: Ryan McQuade’s 2022 Oscar Nomination Predictions first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Roland Emmerich
Writers: Roland Emmerich, Harald Kloser, and Spenser Cohen
Stars: Halle Berry, Patrick Wilson, John Bradley
Synopsis: The moon has fallen out of orbit and it is up to a band of astronauts to correct its course and battle the mysterious entity controlling it.
There was an internet joke that came about last year as the theaters across the world opened back up. People ironically and unironically stated, “cinema is back,” with every big release. Everything coming out widely at the time was an anticipated intellectual property and there were few unknowns that made it onto more than 1000 screens. Cinema is only truly back when the audience is treated to a risky original idea plopped into a thirsty late winter doldrum between Christmas and spring. The period where anything can appear and potentially thrive before the cacophony of IP drowns out all original thought again for ten more months. With the premiere of Moonfall, we can safely say cinema is truly back.
It takes a singular mind like Roland Emmerich’s to create a scenario, yet again, in which to destroy the Earth, or at least, large parts of it. He’s made it an art form, in and of itself. There must be entire classes in CGI design dedicated to scenes from his films. Yet, he’s always seemed to have an agenda behind his Earth shattering. Many of his previous disasters focused on teaching lessons like protecting endangered species (Godzilla), climate science (The Day After Tomorrow), and that we should all learn to get along better (Independence Day). Moonfall has no deeper truth to it. Emmerich just wants to blow stuff up this time and it’s a little refreshing.
Emmerich isn’t someone who worries about unique shots, about the flashier techniques of his peers. He’s there to tell the actors to be scared, to be wowed, or to be angry at the CGI mayhem around them. That isn’t to say his team shouldn’t be praised for their (excuse the pun) stellar work. Production designer Kirk M. Petrucelli created sets that ranged from a dilapidated L.A. motel to a military strategy room to a futuristic alien spaceship hallway. Petrucelli and the art department created something real amongst the unreal. The visual effects team has also balanced the mayhem, chaos, and carnage of the moon dropping pieces of itself to Earth with the beauty and awe of what it could look like inside a mega structure that surrounds a white dwarf star. They also didn’t create something new with their nebulous swarm of a villain, but it is effective in the way it moves, kills, and adapts.
There is a lot of unreal in Moonfall. It was already a bonkers concept, but when the layers of detail about what is actually going on are revealed, it’s best to just lean into it. That’s what Emmerich’s films, especially his films of the late ’90s and early 2000s failed to do, which was to delve completely into the insanity of the concepts. These previous films still clung to some kind of reality. In Moonfall, Emmerich and co writers Harald Kloser and Spenser Cohen just up the ante, go the distance, and every other cliché about completely investing in a concept. Emmerich balances his patented earthbound drama with his strange sci-fi caper all at once in a cosmic dance that’s engrossing and engaging, while it is also baffling.
Does Moonfall fail to be ultimately intellectually stimulating? Yes. Does Moonfall have every cheesy line of dialogue in the book? Yes. Does a car chase morph into a car commercial? One hundred percent. Yet, Moonfall is exactly what it’s meant to be. It’s a big, bold disaster film that pulls us out of the disaster film that has become our lives over the last few years. It’s an escape and one that while not entirely “good”, still itches that yearn inside of all of us that wants to be the hero in a terrible situation and pulls at our heartstrings when we see people we care about, however fleetingly, slip into mortal peril. Moonfall is the best kind of disaster, it distracts the brain just long enough to remind us it could be a lot worse.
Grade: C
The post Movie Review: ‘Moonfall’ is the Best Kind of Distraction first appeared on InSession Film.
SAG Ballot #3
I have two SAG members joining me this week, one of whom is a local broadcaster here in Cleveland, and the other is not only a SAG member, but an Academy member, as well, in the acting branch. The former will be known as SAG voter 4, while the latter will be known as SAG voter 5, let’s dive in.
Joey Gentile: Welcome, and thank you for doing this today.
SAG Voter 4: Thank you for having me.
SAG Voter 5: I’m honored to do this, thank you.
JG: So, let’s start with Best Supporting Actor. Break down to me your thoughts of the nominees and who you will be voting for.
SV4: Supporting Actor-
Bradley Cooper, Licorice Pizza: Bradley is so much fun here and you can tell he’s having a blast. His role is the shortest of the bunch here but that doesn’t mean he’s not giving his all. He’s really enjoyable.
Ben Affleck, The Tender Bar: I also really enjoyed Ben in this film.I really have liked his work over the years, most notably in Argo and this is no exception for me. I think what he’s bringing to the table is the type of acting that is not only fitted to him like the perfect suit but one that all in all feels just right. I fell for him in all the best ways and he makes you look forward to him in his next scene.
Kodi Smit-McPhee, The Power of the Dog: This is the type of nomination that is head scratching to me. Kodi is not bad at all in the film but there’s not a whole lot of material for him to work with here, and that disappointed me. He’s mainly lurking in shadows or in the back most of the time and walks in some lanky pants.
Jared Leto, House of Gucci: This feels like the type of role Al Pacino would’ve played had this movie been made in the 70s. I remember discovering Jared Leto for myself back in the 90s in the film Urban Legend and of course he’s won before and was nominated again last year but I don’t know if this is any good? I’m genuinely on the fence because it feels like Leto is in his own movie and ignoring the assignment. I remember being at the theater seeing this in November and the woman behind me saying out loud “Mario needs to lay off the salt”, and that’s stuck with me ever since.
Troy Kotsur, CODA: I really enjoyed this movie, and this performance is the complete standout. Troy is able to take his character from the “dad role” and really layer it with drama, comedy, and humanity. It’s so nice to see a new discovery this year with this type of nomination in the same way we were able to discover Paul Raci last year during awards season.
I’m voting for BEN AFFLECK in The Tender Bar. I just love his performance there and it would be fun to see him get his due.
SV 5: Supporting Actor-
Troy Kotsur, CODA: There isn’t enough love to go around for me with Troy Kotsur, and I haven’t talked to one person who doesn’t love this nomination. What sold me on this performance was the clinic scene where he’s explaining and reacting to the diagnosis of his jock itch, absolutely hysterical.
Kodi Smit-McPhee, The Power of the Dog: What a powerhouse of a performance that stayed with me for days, post watch. I haven’t been able to see this a second time, mainly because I know for a fact that the film will not have the same effect on me as a first watch, but boy am I loving this nomination.
Jared Leto, House of Gucci: I adore this one as well, Jared is so good here and I really enjoyed the film. I was at the Academy premiere of this movie and the crowd went nuts for it. Jared is having a blast and it really comes off screen as such.
Ben Affleck, The Tender Bar: This is good, but for me is the obvious “something doesn’t add up to the others” in this category. I never felt once that Ben was challenged with this role and that’s unfortunate. He’s much better in The Last Duel from the same year.
Bradley Cooper, Licorice Pizza: I am not a size queen, meaning if you gave an amazing 13 second performance and earned yourself a nomination and I loved it so much, you’d have my vote. This is the reason this category is in existence because of roles like thi,s so I find it interesting that I’ve seen articles complaining about the size of this role. With that said, he’s hysterically funny in this role and does better work here than let’s say something like American Sniper.
TROY KOTSUR gets my vote, and I am so proud to cast that one.
JG: Love these, how about Supporting Actress?
SV 4: Supporting Actress-
Ruth Negga, Passing: I am floored with her work here, not only is it haunting but it’s extremely sad and yet I can understand why her character is doing what she has to do to survive. Negga is really able to capture the moment in time and bring it to life here and I tip my hat to her.
Ariana DeBose, West Side Story: I wasn’t sure that someone could ever top Rita Moreno as Anita and yet here we are. Not only does she steal the film but she is truly a marvel in every sense. I wish I liked the film better as a whole but she is the obvious standout for all the best reasons.
Caitriona Balfe, Belfast: I loved Belfast for its runtime and Balfe and Dench and that’s really it. Balfe is really tugging at the heart strings and, as a child of a single mother, I really saw what a lot of my mom went through on Balfe’s face. (Obviously she’s not a single mother in the film but she really is)
Cate Blanchett, Nightmare Alley: Woof. That’s the only thing I can say about this trainwreck of a movie.
Kirsten Dunst, The Power of the Dog: As someone who grew up on Drop Dead Gorgeous, I am ecstatic to see Dunst get some love here and I am loving that it’s for her sublime performance in this film. Like Negga, Dunst is haunting and the character I really wanted more from when she left the screen during this movie, unlike McPhee who doesn’t really have a lot to do, Dunst really shines with so much to do here from level headed woman to absolute mess.
CAITRIONA BALFE is getting my vote here, this was the hardest vote for me to give as it really should be a tie between Balfe and Dunst but Balfe just pulled ahead as it felt personal to me.
SV 5: Supporting Actress-
Ariana DeBose, West Side Story: She is a delight and I like her in this. I am more keen on Rita Moreno in the movie as yet again she shines brightest in West Side Story but I am not against this nomination. I will say that Moreno made my nomination ballot over DeBose though, so I have my fingers crossed.
Cate Blanchett, Nightmare Alley: I really like her work here and I think Cate would have made an amazing actress in the Double Indemnity era of filmmaking but I do think she’s a lot better in Don’t Look Up than she is here.
Ruth Negga, Passing: I voted for Ruth Negga in 2016 for Loving at the Academy, I am so floored that she didn’t win that to this day as she is just magnificent and nothing changes here. I continue to be wowed by her work as the years go on, I just wish we got MORE of her in things.
Kirsten Dunst, The Power of the Dog: Yet again another great performance by Dunst in a film as I mentioned above that I cannot bring myself to watch again just yet. I wanna truly let this experience soak in for me and Dunst is a big part of that. Pity and hopeful is what she’s displaying throughout this performance and I’m here to buy the ticket to the show.
Caitriona Balfe, Belfast: What a joy this performance is, there isn’t one beat she’s missing and she really makes you feel warm on the inside. Not to mention that the scene where she sees her son has stolen the detergent is really funny for the few moments it plays as a comedy.
RUTH NEGGA is getting my vote here though. She must pull through this time.
JG: Alright, and moving onto Actor-
SV 4: Actor-
Denzel Washington, The Tragedy of MacBeth: I love Denzel Washington but this ain’t it for me. There’s nothing else to bring to this story that someone hasn’t already done, and this includes Denzel.
Javier Bardem, Being the Ricardos: He’s good here but that’s all I got.
Will Smith, King Richard: Will is doing solid work here, and I do like the film as a whole, but as a whole when I think of this film I think of Aunjanue Ellis, who plays his wife. She has the better performance, in my humble opinion, and outshines Will at every moment. I will say the scene that stuck with me the most with Will is the scene where he wants to shoot at his attackers and then is “saved by the bell”.
Andrew Garfield, tick…tick…BOOM!: As a lifelong fan of RENT, I was so excited for this movie and it truly didn’t disappoint. This is one of those nominations that just feels correct, like you look at the film and the performance and you get it. Andrew is working his butt off here and it shows, never a dull moment with his performance.
Benedict Cumberbatch, The Power of the Dog: This film is really carried by Dunst and Cumberbatch and it shows because WOW, what a revelation he is. The brooding, internalized homophobia, the cruelty, and yet you are left to pity the man. Benedict is marvelous here and is so damn good.
BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH is getting my vote.
SV5: Actor-
Benedict Cumberbatch, The Power of the Dog: He is very good here, and I like him in this film just as much as I did in The Imitation Game. I can’t help feeling that he is overshadowed by his co-stars and that’s just because it feels like Jane Campion really focused the film more on their trauma than Phil’s story.
Will Smith, King Richard: I really enjoyed this performance and take it for what it is. I don’t feel like this is a stretch of a role at all for someone like Will Smith and in fact I find this to be lesser than his last nomination for The Pursuit of Happyness but better work than Ali, so it falls right in the middle for me.
Javier Bardem, Being the Ricardos: I don’t know why I like this performance as much as I do, it’s funny I like him and Nina Arianda who plays Vivian the most in the film out of everyone. While not Bardem’s strongest work, I’m not necessarily against this nomination.
Andrew Garfield, tick…tick…BOOM!: I’m sorry but this one is a big yikes from me. Everything feels so forced and it just doesn’t work. No thank you.
Denzel Washington, The Tragedy of MacBeth: Denzel is a master of his craft and that cannot be disputed. But if anyone is going to be nominated for this film in acting it needs to be Kathryn Hunter.
JAVIER BARDEM gets my vote. There’s something just too charming about his work here in the film.
JG: Moving on to Best Actress.
SV4: Best Actress it is-
Nicole Kidman, Being the Ricardos: Nicole has done so much better work, I actually cringed during most of her time on screen. That awful makeup work is so, so bad.
Lady Gaga, House of Gucci: She just doesn’t click for me as an actress, she wasn’t good in A Star is Born and she isn’t good here, she really should just stick with music.
Jessica Chastain, The Eyes of Tammy Faye: Okay, this joins the ranks of the bad Kidman makeup this year, but what Chastain does that Kidman doesn’t is give a really good performance. There is not one moment where you see Chastain, she’s always Tammy Faye and honestly, Kidman could take a few pointers here because Jessica is doing it right.
Olivia Colman, The Lost Daughter: As a fan of Colman’s since Hot Fuzz, I have absolutely adored the rise of success over the last few years of Olivia Colman. She’s really good here but it’s just too subtle for my liking coming from such a powerhouse like her.
Jennifer Hudson, Respect: This movie is a mess, Hudson is really good though so you have a weird balance power dynamic. While she is much better here than she was in Dreamgirls, she is easily in the top two of this category for me, her Aretha Franklin is so on point.
JESSICA CHASTAIN gets my vote barely over Jennifer Hudson..
SV 5: Best Actress
Jessica Chastain, The Eyes of Tammy Faye: I continue to be astonished by the consistent work Jessica Chastain does, and this is just as good as her work in something like Zero Dark Thirty. She truly became Tammy Faye Bakker here and her passion for the project shows.
Nicole Kidman, Being the Ricardos: As I said earlier, I really liked Bardem and Arianda’s work in the film. Kidman is fine, but she’s not super memorable nor is this her best work she’s ever done.
Jennifer Hudson, Respect: I really liked this movie and her performance, it’s nice to know she’s back on the circuit and wasn’t a one and done from her first time. She’s really strong here and I like her a lot.
Olvia Colman, The Lost Daughter: I didn’t like this one at all, the movie is very dull and truly we have seen so much better from Colman. This one is a hard pass from me.
Lady Gaga, House of Gucci: Gaga is giving us a full show, not only in the film but on this campaign trail, and you cannot fault her at all. She’s really enjoyable here in the film and, like her costars, you can tell she’s having a good time.
JENNIFER HUDSON gets my vote here, while I do like her here, Lady Gaga or Jessica Chastain is going to win this and so I’m throwing my vote to Hudson because someone has to.
JG: How about Ensemble?
SV 4: Ensemble-
I’m giving the vote to Don’t Look Up, that cast is sublime and on a whole different level than the others.
SV 5: Ensemble-
House of Gucci is getting my vote, it’s easily the best film in the list and it’s a way to reward them all. Adam Driver, Lady Gaga, Jared Leto, and Salma Hayek all made my (Oscar) nomination ballot and I want to reward them all at once here too.
JG: How about the TV categories?
SV 4: TV-
Stunts: Dune
Drama: Squid Game
Drama Actor: Lee jung-Jae
Drama Actress: HoJeon Jung
Comedy: The Kominsky Method
Comedy Actor: Michael Douglas
Comedy Actress: Sandra Oh
Actor TV/Limited: Michael Keaton
Actress TV/Limited: Jean Smart
Stunt TV: Squid Game
SV 5:
Stunts: Dune
Drama: The Morning Show
Drama Actor: Billy Crudup
Drama Actress: Elisabeth Moss
Comedy: The Great
Comedy Actor: Steve Martin
Comedy Actress: Elle Fanning
Actor TV/Limited: Ewan McGregor
Actress TV/Limited: Jean Smart
Stunt TV: Cobra Kai
JG: Thank you both! Much appreciated.
The post Chasing the Gold: SAG Anonymous Ballot #4 and 5 From Academy Queens first appeared on InSession Film.
It’s being said a lot – 2021 was an incredible year for movies. But is it really that simple? If you thought 2020 tested us to our highest limits, imagine how us critics felt in 2021 when many delayed movies finally got their official releases; at times we just couldn’t keep up. The 2020 cinematic year certainly felt incomplete, making 2021 the biggest course-correction in all of Hollywood, and if the law of supply tells us anything, that means 2021 was always going to be a great year for movies, simply because we saw more of them. The questions remain, would it have been as strong a year if not for the pandemic, and how would that have changed 2020? Can the overabundance of movies be too much of a good thing?
But I bring these questions up to arrive at an even more important one – what does it even matter, and what do we have to complain about? If 2021 had a theme, it was refamiliarizing ourselves with the magic of the moviegoing experience, something that was on the verge of becoming dangerously forgotten. Getting to see juggernauts like Dune and No Time to Die the way they were meant to serves as both a reminder and a warning, but if 2021 provided us with anything, it’s the hope that that warning may still be a ways away.
Let’s keep that hope alive by celebrating the great films 2021 had to offer. We do encourage you to listen to Episode 465 for a much (and I mean MUCH) lengthier discussion on the year as a whole, but for the less patient-minded individual, below are my Top 10 Movies of 2021.
RELATED: Brendan’s Top 10 Movies of 2020
10. The Night House
David Bruckner’s The Night House is a grief-horror film with a slightly different perspective. Aside from being scary as hell (Bruckner’s use of jump scares should be studied in horror classes), it’s a film that questions whether grief is about simply missing a loved one, or if it’s just as linked to not knowing where that loved one ended up. We’ve seen movies explore each notion individually, but The Night House correlates grief with the fear of what comes after death, a refreshing turn for a now popular horror subgenre. Rebecca Hall’s performance also joins the pantheon of horrifying screen presences, from Sissy Spacek in Carrie to Essie Davis in The Babadook.
9. Summer of Soul (…or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)
Perhaps I’m a little biased here, but Summer of Soul is a documentary tailormade for me, given my love of classic funk and soul music from the Motown era. Questlove’s account of the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival has an unmatched musical vibrancy, with live footage so pristinely restored they may as well have been ripped straight from Bonnaroo (I dare you not to get up and shake your rears when Sly and the Family Stone takes the stage). The experience feels inviting and willing to listen in its celebration of togetherness, a rarity for most message movies, and that sense of joy matches the music of its era, despite being fueled by harsh realities. Click here to listen to our full review.
8. Drive My Car
What 3-hour runtime? Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s Drive My Car ranks as one of the most human experiences of the year, about people struggling to open up to their loved ones, recognizing how a lack of transparency can be a relationship’s most mortal enemy. This is especially true for artists, whose only way to reopen old wounds is to channel it through their art, and in the case of Drive My Car, the line between real life and dress rehearsal remains incredibly blurred. Look out, Criterion. Click here to listen to our full review.
7. The Power of the Dog
No film for twelve years? No problem. With The Power of the Dog, it’s as if Jane Campion never went anywhere (despite being hard at work on the series Top of the Lake), and she crafts the most quietly haunting film of the year, blending the lushness of a period drama with the experimentation of a mood piece. It’s never quite clear what Campion’s adaption of Thomas Savage’s novel is really about, and what it hints at regarding male ego, repression, sensitivity, and sexuality are left as just that – hints. Carried by a killer ensemble (Benedict Cumberbatch has rarely been better), it is also one of the most beautifully cinematic films of the year, thanks to cinematographer Ari Wagner and composer Jonny Greenwood. Click here to listen to our full review.
6. Licorice Pizza
What discourse? I can sympathize with those turned off by Paul Thomas Anderson’s latest, but it’s a complicated and provocative scenario that Anderson wants us to think about. It’s not whether the film’s central relationship is “okay”, but what (if anything) can make it okay. In the case of Gary and Alana, one’s need to reclaim their innocence feeds off the other’s adult-like façade, and it’s made even more ironic when the 15-year-old child is the one carrying that manly disguise. If anything, Licorice Pizza is more of a coming-of-de-aging film, a regression from adulthood for a brief reconnection with childhood. Growing up too quickly is not always a good thing, because sometimes, adulthood just sucks. Click here to listen to our full review.
5. Luca
Luca is a film that separates the Pixar “formulites” from those wishing the studio would take more daring narrative risks. This sits firmly in the latter, and is the closest Pixar has come to breaking away from their usual formula. Luca features no overly clever world-building or complicated themes, and instead feels like an animated hangout movie, more akin to Studio Ghibli and even the films of Richard Linklater. Its smallness makes it all the more daring, and what director Enrico Casarosa suggests about embracing open male love and friendship is something we must all learn to be comfortable with. Who would’ve thought Pixar would be the ones to make a great companion piece to I Love You, Man. Click here to listen to our full review.
4. Pig
Michael Sarnoski’s Pig is all about deconstruction, whether it be deconstructing the tropes of the revenge-thriller genre or the walls holding you back from following your true passions. Just when you think the film is about go to full-on John Wick, it takes multiple steps back in favor of something more subdued and internalized, whether it be about grief, the culinary arts in Portland, OR, or simply what it means to follow your dreams (I dare you not to get up and quit your day job after watching the restaurant scene). It takes a great film to move you like this, and an even greater actor to make you do something about (Nicolas Cage, you brave and wonderful man). Click here to listen to our full review.
3. Red Rocket
Sean Baker’s Red Rocket ranks as my favorite film of the year that I would recommend to virtually no one; it is gross, intensely provocative, and…incredibly awesome. The film features an all-star comeback by Simon Rex, who you may remember from Scary Movie 3 (yes, that guy!), and he somehow brings so much nuance to an abrasively disgusting character, and even sympathy for a man who arguably doesn’t even deserve it. But what makes Red Rocket a crucial film for its time is its backdrop against the 2016 election in rural Texas, dissecting the narcissism as a result of our current sociopolitical divide. There are no sides in Red Rocket, just selfishness, and it frighteningly affects us all. Click here to listen to our full review.
2. The Worst Person in the World
If 2021 was a theme, it would be how turning 30 sucks. Joachim Trier’s The Worst Person in the World, one of the year’s most “alive” films, capitalizes on that notion best; it has the energy of a musical, with at least one sequence that would give Hunter S. Thompson a run for his money, and a script that includes dialogue like, “One of the most iconic buttholes ever.” It’s a film that finds a common ground between maturity and immaturity, innocence and responsibility, and stresses how straddling that line doesn’t necessarily make you the “world’s worst person”. It’s a tricky balancing act in tone and morality, made all the more successful thanks to Renate Reinsve and Anders Danielsen Lie, one of the year’s best movie pairings. Click here to listen to our full review.
1. Petite Maman
Experiencing Petite Maman was like discovering a wonderful secret I needed to share with the world. That secret is how some movies can feel like genuine time machines, and in the case of Celine Sciamma’s latest, it did something not many coming-of-age films have been able to do to me – it made me feel like a kid again. The film presents a potentially high concept scenario (what would happen if you befriended one of your parents as a child) that never once gets bogged down by fantasy or rules, and instead focuses on how mother and daughter learn to relate to one another (the casting of twin sisters Josephine and Gabrielle Sanz is a stroke of genius). It takes an especially talented filmmaker to communicate so much depth while exercising in restraint and simplicity (along with a mere 72-minute runtime), and in doing so Sciamma crafts one of the most nostalgic-feeling films of the 21st century. Click here to listen to our full review.
To round out my Top 20, here is the rest of my list:
11) Annette
12) West Side Story
13) The Green Knight
14) The Sparks Brothers
15) C’mon C’mon
16) The Novice
17) The Tragedy of Macbeth
18) A Hero
19) Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy
20) The Matrix Resurrections
Let us know what you think. Do you agree or disagree? We’d like to know why. Leave a comment in the comment section below or tweet us @InSessionFilm.
To hear us discuss our InSession Film Awards and our Top 10 Best Movies of 2021, subscribe to us on iTunes, Stitcher, Soundcloud or you can listen below.
Part 1
Part 2
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InSession Film Podcast – Episode 465 (Part 1)
InSession Film Podcast – Episode 465 (Part 2)
The post List: Brendan Cassidy’s Top 10 Movies of 2021 first appeared on InSession Film.
InSession Film · Zero Dark Thirty / 2012 Retrospective – Episode 467 This week on Episode 367 of the InSession Film Podcast, we revisited 2012 to discuss how our Top 20 lists have changed over the course of the last ten years. If we remove our nostalgic blinders, as 2012 was the year InSession Film was incepted, it may not have been the deepest year. However, it was still a very good year for movies all around. It had some wonderful mainstream films such as Skyfall, The Avengers and depending on who you ask The Dark Knight Rises (although we aren’t big fans of that one in particular). However, it was the fall season that dominated the year with films like Zero Dark Thirty, The Master, Life of Pi, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Moonrise Kingdom, and so many more. Of course, the point of this exercise specifically was to consider how these films have shifted for us over the years. Perhaps others have resonated and our Top 10 lists look differently now than they did in 2012. Time always offers up a new perspective, and we thought this would make for a fun time capsule episode by considering how our lists have evolved. That said, what would be your Top 10?
NOTE: Some of JD’s picks have shifted since the recording of this episode thanks to Brendan’s bad influence.
JD
1) The Master
2) Life of Pi
3) Beasts of the Southern Wild
4) Zero Dark Thirty
5) Moonrise Kingdom
6) Holy Motors
7) Lincoln
8) Once Upon a Time in Anatolia
9) Amour
10) Skyfall
11) The Avengers
12) Wreck-It Ralph
13) Magic Mike
14) Looper
15) End of Watch
16) Silver Linings Playbook
17) Argo
18) Les Miserables
19) The Perks of Being a Wallflower
20) Compliance
Brendan
1) The Master
2) Amour
3) Zero Dark Thirty
4) Beasts of the Southern Wild
5) Skyfall
6) Killing Them Softly
7) Magic Mike
8) Lincoln
9) IT’s Such a Beautiful Day
10) The Kid with a Bike
11) 21 Jump Street
12) The Grey
13) Looper
14) Holy Motors
15) Life of Pi
16) Moonrise Kingdom
17) Cabin in the Woods
18) Dredd
19) American Reunion
20) Argo
Hopefully you guys enjoyed our lists and if you agree or disagree with us, let us know in the comment section below. Clearly there are a lot of other contenders from 2012 that just missed the cut for us, and perhaps some of those are on your list. That being said, what would be your Top 10? Leave a comment in the comment section or email us at insessionfilm@gmail.com.
For comparison, see our original Top 20 lists (as they were in 2012) here.
For the entire podcast, click here or listen below.
For more lists done by the InSession Film crew and other guests, be sure see our Top 3 Movie Lists page.
The post List: Top 10 Movies of 2012 (Updated) first appeared on InSession Film.
Director: Kore-eda Hirokazu
Writer: Kore-eda Hirokazu, based on the original graphic novel “Gouda’s Philosophical Discourse, The Pneumatic Figure of a Girl” by GOUDA Yoshiie
Stars: Bae Doona, ARATA, Itsuji Itao
Synopsis: A life-size blow-up doll develops a soul and falls in love with a video store clerk.
Kore-eda Hirokazu has an admirable understanding of human nature. In Like Father, Like Son (2013), for example, he explored the stubbornness of clinging to blood ties and the real meaning of family bonds. In Shoplifters (2018), he reflected on the meaning of emotional connections and human emotion, proving that family is not necessarily limited to the one in which you are born. Now, for the first time, his feature film Air Doll (2009) is being released in the United States, 13 years after its original premiere. In this film, Kore-eda plays with the clean slate of a just-born soul to theorize on what makes us human. This fish out of water story allows him to observe different ways of living and bask in the little things that make life equally magical as tragic.
In Air Doll, Kore-eda mixes sensuality, mundanity, and discomfort by presenting Nozomi (Bae Doona), a sex doll that inhabits an apartment in an old neighborhood of Tokyo, Japan. The doll solely exists to fulfill the physical and emotional needs of her owner Hideo (Itsuji Itao), who converses with and has sex with her. In his loneliness, this lifeless object is his beloved and his home.
One day, this doll comes to life, acquiring a soul. She goes through a period of discovery, as if she were a baby, admiring herself and everything and everyone around her. With her as a vessel, Kore-eda inspires us to focus and revel on the small things. The director allows himself to follow Nozomi as she focuses on the morning dew, a girl running around the block, or the daily routine of those around her. The film is both curious and slow, endearing and patient with its protagonist. Through Nosomi’s eyes everything is unforgettable and awe-inspiring, forcing us to focus our attention on the things, details, and idiosyncrasies that we take for granted and have internalized as unremarkable.
When Nozomi wakes up, her curiosity drives her outside the apartment and into the streets of Tokyo. Soon enough she arrives at a video store and instantly falls in love with its clerk, Junichi (ARATA). While Hideo is away working, Nozomi builds a life for herself: she wakes up, goes to work to the video store, and explores the city; sometimes alone and sometimes in company of Junichi – who displays an astounding patience and empathy for this clueless woman–, and goes back home to act as lifeless as she was before for a Hideo that is too immersed in his needs to notice her consciousness.
Kore-eda is interested in offering contrasts, as if wanting us to value the things and experiences that us humans have at our reach and don’t enjoy enough. Through Nozomi’s existence, he unravels the beauty of our mortality and humanity. Given that she can’t eat or age, the director offers peripheral stories that show characters suffering because they are aging or trying to fill a void within themselves through food. While the interconnectedness isn’t organic, the contrasts are unmissable. The things that we shy away from, Nozomi is desperate to experience and understand. There is something endearing and lovable about her human discoveries, only strengthened by Bae Doona’s performance, who is inquisitive, innocent, and captivating.
Accompanied by a curious and gentle score by World’s End Girlfriend, Nozomi walks around the city learning about life and the complicated bonds that humans share. Her curiosity allows her to enjoy and fear everything in equal measure, contrasting clearly with the boring and disappointing reality of everyone else around her. Just as she starts understanding life, she encounters the best and worst of humanity. In this regard, Kore-eda is willing to be cruel with his main character, surrounding her with vicious men that take advantage of her lack of understanding of social norms and traps. While the men of the story are shaped by malice and abuse, the women are threatened by cruelty and suffering. It seems as if Kore-eda is interested in showing all the facets of life: the ecstatic enjoyment of nature, infatuation and discovery, and the fearful threats of abuse, self-centeredness, and cruelty.
While the film is a mostly gentle and sometimes uncomfortable exploration of humanity, its ending goes through an unexpected change that turns it into a darker and gloomier story than previously anticipated. Kore-eda offers an unstable level of naiveté in Nozomi, sometimes being too innocent and ignorant, and others understandable and insightful. At the end, the film offers a not too optimistic message, which in hindsight, offers a gloomy and realistic conclusion about human existence: curious, expectant and haunting.
Grade: B-
The post Movie Review: ‘Air Doll’ is a Flawed But Meditative Exploration of Human Nature first appeared on InSession Film.
Roland Emmerich has made mostly disasters. Of course we mean that literally, as Emmerich has threatened to end the world with global warming, the Mayan calendar, aliens, a remake of a giant Japanese reptile, and this weekend it’ll be the moon itself. Unsurprisingly, Roland Emmerich still remains one of the top 20 highest-grossing directors of all time; is that because his films are the dictionary definition of ‘so bad it’s good’, or do people just love to watch the world burn? Welcome to Earth, indeed.
With that said, what is your favorite Roland Emmerich film?
What is your favorite Roland Emmerich film?
The post Poll: What is your favorite Roland Emmerich film? first appeared on InSession Film.
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This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we go back ten years as we review Zero Dark Thirty and look at the year 2012, our Top 10 lists then and how our thoughts on the year have changed over the last decade!
It’s hard to believe that the movies of 2012 will be celebrating their 10-year anniversaries this year. While InSession Film wasn’t birthed until January of 2013, the inception of the idea came in the fall season of 2012. So this is a year that holds a special place in our hearts. Zero Dark Thirty in particular is a film that, as other podcasts reviewed it, helped push us over the edge to start the InSession Film Podcast just a month later as the year turned over. There’s no doubt this was a nostalgic exercise for us, but it’s always interesting to look back at how things have evolved for us over the years.
That said, check out this week’s show and let us know what you think in the comment section. Thanks for listening and for supporting the InSession Film Podcast!
– Movie Review: Zero Dark Thirty (8:35)
Director: Kathryn Bigelow
Writers: Mark Boal
Stars: Jessica Chastain, Jason Clarke, Jennifer Ehle, Kyle Chandler
– Notes / Scream 3 / Scream 4 (56:23)
For our break segment this week, JD finally offers up his thoughts on Scream 3 and Scream 4 after not being able to see them for last week’s show. It may not seem like a big deal to most people, but for those who know JD and his history with the horror genre, seeing all five Scream movies is a feat. His excitement for them is a whole other thing as well.
RELATED: Listen to Episode 465 of the InSession Film Podcast where we discussed our Top 10 Movies of 2021!
– Top 10 Movies of 2012 (Updated) (46:24)
If we remove our nostalgic blinders, 2012 may not have been the deepest year, but it was still a very good year for movies all around. It had some wonderful mainstream films such as Skyfall, The Avengers and depending on who you ask The Dark Knight Rises (although we aren’t big fans of that one in particular). However, it was the fall season that dominated the year with films like Zero Dark Thirty, The Master, Life of Pi, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Moonrise Kingdom, and so many more. Of course, the point of this exercise specifically was to consider how these films have shifted for us over the years. Perhaps others have resonated and our Top 10 lists look differently now than they did in 2012. Time always offers up a new perspective, and we thought this would make for a fun time capsule episode by considering how our lists have evolved. That said, what would be your Top 10?
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– Music
Flight to Compound – Alexandre Desplat
The Bathtub – Ben Zeitlin, Dan Romer
The Return of the Eagle – Atli Örvarsson
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InSession Film · Zero Dark Thirty / 2012 Retrospective – Episode 467 Next week on the show: Main Review: Moonfall
Top 3: TBD
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The post Podcast: Zero Dark Thirty / 2012 Retrospective – Episode 467 first appeared on InSession Film.