By: Henry J. Fromage –
This week is another complete grab-bag of films and series. Have you seen The Queen’s Gambit yet? So damn good!
349. Willy’s Wonderland
The attraction here is a complete taciturn (seriously, not a single word) Nic Cage beating the holy, oily hell out of a bunch of second rate Chuck E. Cheese mascots possessed by the souls of child murderers and terrorizing a small town to the point it sacrifices passers-by to them. Basically everything else besides Cage cleaning, drinking another soda, seductively playing pinball, and ripping out mechanical spines is extraneous and pointless, but this movie does have that. Four Beers.
350. Lucky Chan-sil
I watched this Korean indie as a part of the Young Yuh-jung retrospective Film at Lincoln Center is running, but the Oscar nominee for Minari actually doesn’t factor in more than in the type of eccentric older lady supporting role she usually gets these days. The core of the story is about film producer Chan-sil (Kang Mal-geum, excellent), who finds herself rudderless after the film director she always works with (a clear Hong Sang-soo type) dies suddenly. Kim Cho-hee’s movie has a lot to say about the plight of older single women and artists in Korean society, with magical realist flourishes like a young Leslie Cheung who Chan-sil increasingly interacts with. Two Beers.
351. White Noise
This documentary from Daniel Lombroso is focused on three prominent alt-right figures- Mike Cernovich, Richard Spencer, and Lauren Southern. Lombroso gets incredible access to them, and let’s them say their piece… and proceed to hoist themselves by their own petard. Each is pathetic in their own way, which, sure, humanizes them, but they are human… deeply misguided, blindly hypocritical (if you count the Milo cameo, 3 of 4 of them at the end of the film found themselves with partners of color) humans. Ridiculous, irresponsible, attention-thirsty, insincere humans. Two Beers.
352. The Trials of Henry Kissinger
This short documentary based on Christopher Hitchens’ much less embarrassing crusade (taking its title from one of its books) postulates that Henry Kissinger (who amazingly is still alive at 97) should go on trial for war crimes much as Pinochet (whose many crimes he was complicit in supporting) did in the late 90s. Documentary heavyweights Eugene Jarecki and Alex Gibney underline Hitchens’ and others’ claims with a damning history lesson of Kissinger’s direct influence on the most shameful American foreign policy ventures of the last century, all of which led to death and destruction. Hard to argue against. Two Beers.
353. A Taxing Woman
Juzo Itami, who didn’t start directing until age 50 and whose star shined brightly across 8 films in 12 years before his untimely, allegedly yet likely Yakuza-aided death, created one of the most unlikely franchises ever with this film and its sequel. Nobuko Miyamoto stars as a tough, resourceful tax collector with a nose for sniffing out financial misdemeanors of any size. She finds a fitting foe in a love motel owner played by Tsutomo Yamazaki who may be a secret millionaire. Here Itami crafts a perversely interesting Noirish mystery focused on two sharp cookies’ understanding of the ins and outs of the Japanese tax code. Two Beers.
354. A Taxing Woman’s Return
Itami and Miyamoto return for a sequel that thumbs its nose even more resolutely at Hollywood and sequel convention, remaining focused on that very particular set of skills of Miyamoto’s tax collector, now on the trail of a suspiciously wealth Buddhist superchurch that may or may not be legally tax exempt and also involved with corrupt property developers, the Yakuza, and dirty politicians. This is basically an extremely well-executed action film full of all of the trappings of an early 90s practical effects-heavy blockbuster, but starring a petite middle-aged Japanese woman with a nose for financial chicanery. All at once satirical and straight-faced, this is a small marvel of filmmaking- utterly unique. A Toast.
355. F/X 2
The 80s action franchise I had no idea existed until Oberst put me on it, this technically 1991 film (the early 90s were still embarrassingly the late 80s- a real pop culture desert) sees Aussie Bryan Brown’s special effects wizard and the always welcome Brian Dennehy drawn into another conspiracy they need to special effects and Brian Dennehy their way out of. The music is all just the absolute worst slow sax-driven jazz and the animatronic clown will haunt your nightmares, but it’s all entertaining enough when the wheels start turning on the mystery. Sure feels like an idea Hollywood’s kept under the couch long enough- why don’t the remake patrol turn up something like this? Could be a lot of fun with the right special effects team involved. Three Beers.
356. The Queen’s Gambit
Scott Frank has quietly been building a Netflix empire, with the superb Godless and now the even better this on his showrunner resume, with more to come. This story of an orphan and chess prodigy is told with impeccably stylish 1960s élan by Frank and his crew, and acted spectacularly by Anya Taylor-Joy, who continues to hit every role she’s given out of the park. There’s nothing necessarily groundbreaking here, but the way that Frank & co. play the hits in this story of overcoming adversity on the way to becoming legendary is unmatched. Couldn’t stop watching until the end. A Toast.
357. City of Lies
The world needs another Biggie/Tupac murder documentary like I need a hole in the head, and the central team of director Brad Furman, Forrest Whitaker, and obviously Johnny Depp have all seen better days. Still, this film does as good a job as any clearly stating the case that the LAPD and its connections with Suge Knight’s Death Row Records in the 90s were jointly behind Biggie’s death, and Furman keeps the story moving along well enough. Just a solid drama about a still frustratingly and suspiciously unsolved murder. Three Beers.
358. małni – towards the ocean, towards the shore
This is another arthouse film principally interesting because of its subject matter- in this case I’ll let Sundance’s description tell you: “A poetic experimental documentary circling the origin of the death myth from the Chinookan people in the Pacific Northwest”. So, you basically know if you’re in or out already- I was about halfway there. Sky Hopinka shoots some of the most incredibly gorgeous handheld cinematography you’re liable to see, but has a bit more trouble knowing when to cut an interview. You can see the discomfort of one woman in particular he may have a crush on and keeps returning to interviewing (although it’s much more sweet than creepy- just… noticeable). Three Beers.
359. Lost Course
Raise your hand if you want to watch a 3 hour film about Chinese small town politics! Now that I’ve weeded out 99.9% of you, I can assure those of you still with us that this is an excellent documentary, like Frederick Wiseman but with a whole bunch more going on. Jill Li has a knack for knowing where to point her cameras, and the story she captures is classic rise and fall tale of the common man banding up against corrupt politicians, then eventually becoming the next corrupt politicians (but with a better understanding of the complexities and pitfalls of holding office). It’s a ride that you’ll scarcely feel the duration of. Two Beers.
360. The Arbors
I should have figured that an indie horror that runs almost two hours would be a slow burn, and this story of a small town man who finds something unholy in a deer carcass one night that grows into something even worse is that. Despite the horror elements being well-constructed and deployed, arguably this isn’t a horror film at all, but rather a melancholic story of not being able to move on from childhood and how that can twist a person. Three Beers.
361. Devil in a Blue Dress
The vast majority of modern attempts at recreating the particular style and feel of Film Noir have been abject failures, but back in 1995 Carl Franklin absolutely nailed it, with the considerable help of Denzel, a never more menacing Don Cheadle, and a cast of committed supporting characters. The sordid and twisty Los Angeles-set mystery that embroils recently unemployed veteran Denzel in corruption that goes all the way up to the Mayor’s office also compares favorably to Chinatown. L.A. Confidential may have gotten its deserved accolades, but this film should be mentioned in the same breath, if not a notch or two higher. Two Beers.
362. Imperial Blue
The setup of this film is really quite interesting – shot on location in India, the UK, and particularly beautifully in Uganda and focused on an American expat searching for a dangerous new drug hailing from the latter country that purportedly lets you see the future. Director Dan Moss shoots the film excellently, but makes two key mistakes- apparently he lost the audio track or forgot to bring a boom mic, because the film is atrociously dubbed, worst of all its lead performance, which doubles as the least interesting, developed, or redeemable of the characters. There’s filmmaking talent and bright ideas on display here, but the execution is of these two load-bearing elements is too botched to recommend it. Five Beers.
363. Night in Paradise
Netflix has been investing some solid money into Korean originals, this time landing the writer of I Saw the Devil and director of the unwieldy-titled yet awesome The Witch: Part 1. The Subversion Park Hoon-jung. So this story of a gangster betrayed by his own and fighting to survive after getting his revenge looks spectacular, and the action is top-notch. Unfortunately, that’s literally all there is to the film, or at least all there is besides a deep, deep nihilism that certainly shows that crime doesn’t pay, but also pretty much posits that neither does life, in general. Dark shit. Three Beers.
364. Skyfire
This Chinese disaster film is basically Jurassic Park but the T-Rex and/or Velociraptors are one clearly going to erupt volcano. It’s 100% derivative, international audience-chasing popcorn fare (see: a prominent role for Jason Isaacs and the director being Con-Air‘s Simon West), but the special effects and action scenes are pretty damn good, and the writers and actors actually do a pretty decent job sketching out characters you don’t want to see crushed by fiery debris with a minimum of brushstrokes. A film that knows what it is and executes that vision pretty damn solidly. Three Beers.
365. The Fever
This is another slow-burn film, of the arthouse variety, but it’s worth a watch for its interesting setting and story. It concerns an indigenous security guard at a port in Manaus, deep in the Brazilian Amazon, who comes down with a mysterious fever that seems to be more related to separation anxiety from his former lifestyle and its connection with nature than anything medical. The predominantly indigenous cast and themes of the film definitely set it apart. Three Beers.
366. Honey Bee
This Canadian drama is a harrowing one, about an underage truck stop prostitute named Honey Bee who is presented with the chance at a new life when a police sting catches her up and she’s sent to a tough love foster family. Julia Sarah Stone is excellent as a young woman who life has hardened yet is still very much a teenage girl. Rama Rau’s drama isn’t groundbreaking, but is well-executed. Three Beers.
367. The Assassination of Gianni Versace
This didn’t make quite the same cultural impact as the first edition of American Crime Story– The People v. O.J. Simpson, but for my money it’s a huge step up. Where that series was well-executed but likely better remembered for the inspired yet goofy casting of David Schwimmer as Robert Kardashian and John Travolta as Robert Shapiro, this one makes less flashy but utterly perfect choices like Edgar Ramirez as Versace and a darkly fascinating Darren Criss as his killer (and technically serial killer) Andrew Cunnanan. The series’ aggressively jumbled time structure is beautifully deployed to not only tell the story and grow our understanding of the characters, but also the male homosexual experience at a time where AIDS was ceasing to be a death sentence (but in very recent memory was) yet society was still using homosexuality as a culture war bugbear. A vitally told story. Two Beers.
