#big bro mulligan

[soulren]

Go spend some time on male pattern baldness or male(AMAB) balding forums/subreddits and such. I did after realizing it is happening to me and the ammount of people who truly don't realize how BRUTALLY it tanks people's confidence and mental health is insane.

There's no cure to baldness by the way, and it can start at any time and there's no way to predict how fast or slow it will go. The only real working option is a daily pill that usually just halts it, but it can stop working or just slow it down or cause major side effects. To regrow you have to use a daily topical solution, or use a roller to wound your scalp. None of these are surefire by the way, and if you stop them you'll just lose your hair and whatever you regained. It's a daily involved thing that might not work and often at best just retains. The best drug, the one that occasionaly gives regrowth, also causes shedding at the start, and can have side effects from growing breasts to brain fog to EDsyfunction(sorry, censoring cause tumblr). Now, those are INCREDIBLY rare and almost never happen but it weighs heavily on the mind of those already spiraling.

But that's just background. What I'm here to talk about is the pure woe you'll see on those forums. People speak as though their lives are over, as though they've lost every chance of finding a woman(predominantly, there's a running idea in such places that women don't like bald men or like them less) or doing anything. You can read countless stories of people who describe that they no longer go outside, are now filled with anxiety and self-hate, have gone from extroverted to never showing their face. And some of these people are kids who lost their hair in high school or even before, or are holding as best they can to a very receded hairline and feel like there is nothing they can do.

And then there's something touched upon far less in those communities, but is important to bring up here; baldness and masculinity. There's the horror of knowing so much of society sees a bald guy as a very masculine guy, at seeing that the best advice for being hot and bald is "grow and beard and big muscles bro". Imagine now you're AMAB balding and nonbinary, or a trans woman who doesn't want to be on hormones.

Just genuinely take the time to look at those forums no matter who you are. Understand what these people go through, what I am currently going through. It is soul-crushing, spiraling, brutal. I have the dream of one day being like Brennan Lee Mulligan or Matt Mercer and starting to lose my hair made me feel like I could never. I felt like and still feel like I would have to be masculine, have to be a bro-y dude, have to look older than I was(I'm fuckin 22). It was the feeling that I could never dress feminine again, never present as a woman when I wanted to again, that I'd always be viewed as a bald guy before anything else.

This is an incredibly vulnerable post for me, and I hope it reaches you all as well in a kind and understanding mood. There's a tendency online for people to joke about baldness, to make fun of it, to treat it as a playfull silly thing but it fucking ruins lives, and it shouldn't. It happens to half the population's sort of bodies and very often. It should just be a neutral thing. You don't need long hair to be feminine, you don't need hair to be feminine. You don't need hair for anything. I guess I'm just saying in general that everyone should be kinder about balding, more understanding, and view it with as much import as they'd view the pixels between this sentence and the next. None at all, I mean.

And for those like me, very feminine guys who wanna keep that and don't want a beard and are terrified of balding, here's some names and I do hope others that see this will add more; Mr. Bruce (also in The Correspondents(band) Alex Ward in LA By Night Jason Carl in LA By Night Cecil Baldwin of Welcome To Night Vale Bob The Drag Queen RuPaul(in looks alone, I know about the whole fracking stuff but this post is about looks) tananasho on instagram Also your mannerisms and style of dress will convey femininity far more than your hair. Yea sure a front-on neutral shot of you may not and maybe you need makeup and stuff, and hell maybe a lot of people might reject you more but it'll just filter down to the people for you.

And to all you artists and writers and creatives; make more bald characters. Try it out. Feminine ones, masculine ones, all sorts. None of the copout nonhuman sort, just dudes and girls and mates and individuals who are all sorts of things and also bald. It might make a few of the people going through the various vortexes of pain that balding causes feel a bit better.

And to those noticing I did not adress female hair loss much here, that was intentional. I am AMAB and currently a nonbinary guy who goes by any pronouns but often likes to present as fem. I learned I was possibly losing my hair and lost two months of my life, no work or going or anything, to male hair loss forums and research and spiraling. Checking my hair twenty times a day, unable to sleep, unable to eat, unable to think. And my situation was NOT unique, but it also did not give me any experience or understanding of female hair loss and what AFAB people may go through with that, so I don't feel knowledgeable enough to speak on it. Also living with baldness WILL get easier and you will find something that works for it, by virtue of simply living with it. Things get easier with time.

[squip-appreciator]

Hamilton Meets Heathers- The Sassy Gay Musical We Never Knew We Needed

I would very much like to imagine a version of Heathers in which Jefferson is Heather C, Madison is Heather D, and Burr is Heather M. Hamilton, of course, is Veronica. Laurens is J.D. Veronica’s mother is Washington. 

“Son-“

“You don’t know what my world looks like.”

But who would Martha be? Who is Hamilton friends with…that the others don’t like…HERCULES MULLIGAN!

“Martha Dumptruck, in the fle-“

“WE IN THE SHIT NOW, SOMEBODY GOTTA SHOVEL IT”

Candy Store would be the cabinet battles, of course. But…who would Kurt and Ram be??? Who better than Peggy and Maria? 

“I know you are a man of honour…don’t make my balls so blue.” (La la la la la laaa)

The story is about Hamilton. Young scrappy and hungry at first, but then…he meets the Almighties. He’s clique-ing with their clique, and must give up his best bro, Hercules Mulligan…and then suddenly, he meets…the bad-but-sad-boy. They flirt over letter. Then Hamilton has a cabinet meeting. Gets destroyed. The Heathers- er, sorry, Jefferson- learns of his doings and threatens to release them. Figuring he has nothing to lose, Hamilton goes to Lauren’s place and they bang it out to a sick guitar solo. 

“Hey ho, colonies, tell me what’s that sound? Here come Southerners, coming to put us in the ground! Go go colonies, give a great big yell! Jefferson will knock you out and send you straight to hell!”

MEMORABLE MOMENTS FROM THIS FANTASY MUSICAL:

“No point planting roots, ‘cause you’re gone in a hurry. My troop leaves each station faster than a shot, only a matter of time ‘fore I’m caught.” 

“Are we gonna have a problem? You have a quill to squeeze? You’ve come so far, why now are you acting like a tease? I’d normally shoot your dick off, and everyone here could see- but I don’t have time, think of a rhyme, listen up jackweed! 

WAIT BETTER IDEA

KURT AND RAM ARE 

SAMUEL SEABURY AND CHARLES LEE

“How did you know it was always a fantasy of mind to duel two guys at once?”

“Hem…er…bon fortuna?”

“Well, if you want it to come true, meet me at Weehawken. At dawn.”

“Guns drawn.”

“And we don’t even have to get out of Jersey.” 

[thanksforthedinosaur]

june 2023

1. natalie evans - sleeping in 2. dsps - 二分之一的我 3. pynkie - spiral 4. daisy the great - glitter 2 5. miette hope - if a tree falls 6. jason mraz - pancakes & butter 7. this is the kit - more change 8. the japanese house - sunshine baby 9. jenny lewis - cherry baby 10. the rocket summer - m4u 11. ajj - a thought of you 12. isabel pless - jude law 13. hozier - francesca 14. maty noyes - lighter thief 15. ichiko aoba - space orphans 16. gabby's world - fabby 17. unflirt - out of time 18. sir chloe - leash 19. blü eyes - street noise 20. tegan and sara - girls talk 21. arlo parks - pegasus (ft. phoebe bridgers) 22. miya folick - cockroach 23. benee - bagels 24. izzy camina - alprazalam 25. junior varsity - share ur feelings 26. juliana hatfield - don't bring me down 27. caroline loveglow - strawberry 28. chloe moriondo - celebrity - blood bunny version 29. glen check - mind surfing 30. amazombies - 1955 31. boilermaker - alone 32. record setter - outdated wallpaper 33. glass bones - january embers (supernova) 34. waveform* - freak me out 35. hot mulligan - shouldn’t have a leg hole but i do 36. bully - change your mind 37. mint green - body language 38. hannah jadagu - dreaming 39. jess kallen - ink 40. jeff rosenstock - liked u better 41. tsosis - snake eat tail 42. a day at the fair - maxwell's two thousand seven 43. sophie meiers - high beamz 44. juliet ivy - breakfast song 45. carr - sick bro 46. sydney sprague - smiley face 47. heather sommer - wanted 48. babebee - stranded 49. madelline - i don't wanna be ur fucking friend 50. yen strange - best friends 51. bishop briggs - baggage 52. dominic fike - ant pile 53. girli - cheap love 54. ukiyo - ctrl alt delete 55. lova - popstar 56. iri - season 57. ralph - pain relief 58. post malone - mourning 59. ayelle - for me 60. thuy - i got it 61. okthxbb - sickly 62. kučka - cry cry cry 63. kesha - peace & quiet 64. misogi - pink noise (feat. dream, ivory) 65. miraa may - big mistake 66. keke palmer - waiting 67. summer walker - to summer, from cole - audio hug 68. atmosphere - still life 69. sampa the great - mask on [feat. joey bada$$] 70. beyoncé - america has a problem (feat. kendrick lamar) https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6nYW9esnOxCKtaRpcdYioI?si=4e630c7230624274

[javisuzumiya02]

These are the adult women (at least the ones with names) you said would have sex with big bro Linc. I clarify that these (with the exception of María and Becca) do not belong to another category, like that of the women of the schools or the women of the Casagrandes. And i added Thicc Qt to this box to complete the collage.

1. Rita Loud

2. Judy Zhau

3. Maria Santiago

4. Ms. Carmichael (On second thought she is also an exception to the rule)

5. Katherine Mulligan

6. Carol Linnaeus

7. Joyce Crandall

8. Pam

9. Becca Chang (I show you this alternate image that I have sent you to detail her eye shadow)

10. Jesse Hiller (Rita's Boss)

11. Carly Miller

12. Thicc Qt (Well, with someone I had to complete the collage)

If it turns out that any of these women won't have sex with big bro Linc let me know by crossing off said female character.

I think all of them are fine.

[herculesmulligan-quotes]

Alexander : Hercules is our master horticulturist. He knows all the scientific names for everything. Right Herc ?

Hercules : Yup.

Lafayette : Like this ! What's this, Hercules ?

Hercules : Thoses are, of course, tomatoes. Or, Soulja-Boy Tell'ems.

(Hercules : Whenever the others asks me for the latin names of any of our plants, I just give them the names of rappers.)

John : And those over there ?

Hercules : Thoses are some Diddies, some Bonethugs and Harmoniums right here. Those Ludacrises are coming in great.

[my-deer-friend]

*rolls up sleeves* Well hello there, darling. How about 27. Take notes. Watch and learn. AND 74. Blankets are for quitters. And this I would like to be with Hamilgan (Alex and Hercules) 😌❤️

Thanks for pushing me out of my comfort zone, Henni! Have some sweet Alex & Herc being bros, with just a pinch of angst.

Alexander Hamilton & Hercules Mulligan

27. Take notes. Watch and learn.

74. Blankets are for quitters.

---

“That’s not a pillow fort.”

Alex crosses his arms and scowls. Hercules, who’s putting the finishing touches on the final corner of his ramshackle construction, looks up at him in alarm.

“The hell you talking about?”

“It’s not,” Alex insists.

It’s a testament to how much Alex trusts Hercules that he allows himself to talk back. Hercules is huge - easily double his size, even though they’re both fifteen - and Alex has enough of a self-preservation instinct to mind his tongue around the biggest kid in any foster home (and find subtler ways to get his own back later, if they make the mistake of picking on him).

Luckily, Hercules is just as kind and gentle as he is big, and this is one of the better homes Alex has been in. There’s pizza on Fridays, and a comfy desk for him to do his homework on, and Mrs Mulligan lets them play in the living room just as long as they put it back in order afterwards.

Hercules stretches up to his full height. “Why not?”

“Clue’s in the name. Pillow fort. Pillow. That’s a blanket.” Alex points to the roof of the fort, across which Hercules has very neatly tucked a blanket.

“So?”

Alex smirks. “Blankets are for quitters.”

Hercules lets out a roaring laugh. “You’re saying you can build a fort out of just pillows?”

“You bet. It’s far superior, since blankets end up sagging and getting tangled up.” Alex cocks an eyebrow. “Take notes. Watch and learn.”

Hercules gives him a skeptical shake of the head, but he steps back and waves an arm, inviting him to take over.

Alex dismantles the whole thing with one sharp tug and throws the offending blanket onto the couch behind him. He restacks the cushions so that the smaller ones form a wall against the side of the couch, adding more to create the height he needs. Then he balances the big couch cushions carefully on top - with a little overlap, just the way Jamie taught him when they were still living together on St Croix and things were simpler.

“See?” Alex says smugly. “I don’t need shortcuts.”

Hercules snorts, but reaches out and ruffles his hair; though it used to spook him, it’s a habit that Alex has gotten used to, and even enjoys.

Alex ducks inside. Hercules reaches over for the big bowl of popcorn and squeezes in after him. Alex holds his breath, but Hercules maneuvers carefully so he doesn’t bump the walls, and then settles with a contented sigh and gives the structure an appraising look.

“Not bad,” he says, with an impressed frown.

Alex digs his hand into the popcorn bowl. “Told you,” he teases.

He shoves the popcorn into his mouth, but it’s just a little too much, and the fine salt tickles his nose--

Oh - no!

Alex lets out a massive sneeze, knocking his elbow back against the pillow wall. It wavers for just a second, and then the whole thing starts to topple.

He cringes and braces for a thump to the head, but when it doesn’t come, he opens his eyes and sees Hercules with his arm stretched out above him, knocking the cushion aside and laughing uncontrollably.

Oh.

It must have been a completely instinctive gesture, for Hercules to reach out and shield him. Alex’s diaphragm tightens.

“Thanks,” he murmurs.

Hercules’ hand lowers and ruffles his hair again, then reaches down to squeeze his shoulder.

“That’s what you get for being cocky,” Hercules chuckles.

Alex huffs in return, then lets himself lean into Hercules’ side to hide his flushed face. He feels so good here, so comfortable, so accepted, in a way he hasn’t for a long time. He tries to remember the word for it.

Ah, yes.

Safe.

[heavencollins]

The Oscars Actually DO Matter, and Here's Why

In recent years, an underground opinion has come to the surface, voiced by many in the film industry. You see it all over social media: awards season doesn’t matter, the academy awards are a sham, etc.

But, quite frankly, the film awards shows do matter. And they matter to a very specific group of people. This year, there are more diversity in the nominations than I’ve seen before. Women of color, men of color, women writers, women directors, directors of color—just a few years ago we were saying #OscarsSoWhite.

And this year, that doesn’t stand true anymore.

In the best actor category alone, three of the five nominees are people of color, all consisting of different ethnicities. The front runner for this category, Chadwick Boseman (rest in peace), is a Black man. Riz Ahmed (The Sound of Metal) and Steven Yeun (Minari) have also gained critical acclaim for their roles. There has been almost no buzz for the two white men nominated for this category, Gary Oldman and Anthony Hopkins. Just a few years back, Oldman won for his role in The Darkest Hour, which was immediately met with criticism due to his past of domestic abuse and unsavory comments about women.

Best supporting actor has the same exact case as best actor: Lakeith Stanfield, Leslie Odom Jr., and Daniel Kaluuya are all POC that are nominated for this category, with Paul Raci and Sacha Baron Cohen also nominated. Both Stanfield and Kaluuya star in Judas and the Black Messiah, and their roles have led to many clamoring to decide which of them is leading and which is supporting. Instead, the Academy nominated them both in the same category. Unfortunately, this can lead to a split vote, causing the award to go to another actor nominated.

The unfortunate truth is that when it comes to the actress awards, the majority of the nominees being non-white does not continue. It’s a common thread through history that Black male actors are more well-loved than Black women, due to both racism and misogyny.

For best actress, Viola Davis and Andra Day are both nominated for their respective roles in biopics as women with big, beautiful voices. Vanessa Kirby scored the only nomination that Netflix’s Pieces of a Woman has seen, which could be an effect of the news that came out against Shia LaBeouf. Frances McDormand is the front runner in this category, as Nomadland is in almost every category it scored a nomination in. Carey Mulligan has placed with many people as a close second for her role in Promising Young Woman, but there have been whispers that Davis can also score the award for her role in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, which would mean that both best actor and best actress belong to the same film if those predictions pan out.

Supporting actress brings the same fate, but with only one woman of color nominated; Yuh-Jong Youn shines in her role as the grandmother in Minari. Other nominees for this category include Maria Bakalova (Borat Subsequent Movie Film), Glenn Close (Hillbilly Elegy), Olivia Colman (The Father), and Amanda Seyfried (Mank). Glenn Close is the rumored front runner for this role, but the same situation as what happened with The Wife could happen, where Close loses to another fellow nominee. Many say that she is “owed” an Oscar by this point in her career, which nobody is truly “owed” anything. If this was based on pure skill and ability, Youn or Bakalova will be going home with the statue.

Directing broke multiple barriers this year: Emerald Fennell (Promising Young Woman) and Chloe Zhao (Nomadland) have made history as the first two women nominated in the same year for the category. Chloe Zhao is the first Asian woman nominated. Lee Issac Chung is nominated for Minari as well, meaning that three of the nominees this year are not white men. The two remaining nominees are David Fincher for Mank and Thomas Vinterberg for his international film, Another Round.

Take a step back and look at the statistics. Last year, almost no people of color were nominated for acting, and certainly no women were nominated for best director. The nominations do matter because when you win something as notable as an Academy Award, it opens you up to more opportunities, money, and connections in the film industry. It allows smaller actors or directors to become household names. Many directors and writers go on to make their passion project after they finally win that golden statue.

And maybe it’s just certain groups of people saying the Oscars don’t matter, maybe it’s just white men, maybe it’s just film bros, maybe it’s just random people. But the point stands: the Oscars are still important because there are barriers that haven’t been broken for so many groups of non-white male-identifying folks. When you say the Oscars don’t matter, you’re saying that the fact that so many diverse nominees who are FINALLY getting a shot at winning and are excited about their noms don’t matter.

So why don’t we just be quiet if we have nothing productive to say.

This year we were given six wonderful men of color for best actor, as well as three stellar women for best actress. For directing, if Fennell or Zhao win, it would only be the second time a woman has won, and the first time an Asian woman has won if Zhao, the category front runner, breaks through.

I’m keeping my fingers crossed. And you should too.

[weclassybouquetfun]

Tomorrow are the Gotham Awards and the start of the Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations, with the Golden Globes voting on the 13th. 

The Gotham Awards nominations were announced in early November and it’s interesting how different the landscape is looking now that more films have come out. 

Of the Best Actress nods that Gotham announced, only Frances McDormand is still in conversation for her performance in NOMADLAND.  Of their Best Actor nominations only Chadwick Boseman for MA RAINEY’S BLACK BOTTOM is in major contention, with Riz Ahmed a lesser part of the conversation (whereas his SOUND OF METAL costar, Paul Raci, has so far won nine critics awards).

Rightfully, so. 

Considering the Oscars nominations voting isn’t until March 5th, the landscape could change once more. Currently, the awards are centered around indie fare (which isn’t unusual during awards season) and Netflix fare.  So far I’m happy with the crowd: Vanessa Kirby (PIECES OF A WOMAN), Carey Mulligan (PROMISNG YOUNG WOMAN), Viola Davis (MA RAINEY’S BLACK BOTTOM), Delroy Lindo (DA 5 BLOODS), Youn Yuh-jung (MINARI) Frances McDormand (NOMADLAND) all deserve the accolades they are receiving.  

But I would welcome some surprises like the one the San Diego Film Critics Association doled out when they nominated Peter MacDissi for Best Supporting Actor for the Amazon film UNCLE FRANK.

Which is a joy because he’s superb and the film itself is excellent 

with Paul Bettany probably giving the best performance of his career. 

Written and directed by Alan Ball (SIX FEET UNDER, TRUE BLOOD) Sophia Lillis (IT, I AM NOT OKAY WITH THIS) stars as Betty, a small-town young woman who has a close relationship with her Big City uncle Frank (Bettany). Years later, now in college she discovers that he is gay - something he has kept from the family. When a family tragedy occurs, the pair get to know each other on a road trip back to their family. 

Another long-shot nomination I’d love to see is one for Diane Lane in LET HIM GO.

She gives a powerhouse performance in a powerful film.

Although Tom Hanks is always in awards consideration, I think lately it’s been by rote, but with his work in Paul Greengrass’ NEWS OF THE WORLD, it is justified talk.

The vote for the worst awards The Razzies nominations will be announced in March, with awards announced typically the day before the Oscars, but the St. Louis Film Critics have a Worst Film category.  Their nominations for Worst Film include ARTEMIS FOWL, THE DOORMAN, DOWNHILL (which, I think is a more expectation thing because it stars Julia Louis-Dreyfuss and Will Ferrell so one will think it’s a full-on laugh riot, when in reality it’s a Scandi- existential comedy drama; a remake of the Swedish film Force Majeure.), HILLBILLY ELEGY and  WONDER WOMAN  1984, which eff off, St. Louis Film Critics Association. I loved almost every minute of WW84. 

The main complaint I would see was that it was too camp or cheesy. One critic sneered that it was Richard Lester, meaning it was SUPERMAN II. As if calling a film SUPERMAN II is an insult. Now calling it Superman 4, on the other hand....

One film/performance that won’t be getting a Razzie, seemingly, is Tom Holland’s Russo Bros. directed CHERRY.  The first screening / Q&A (moderated by Robert Downey Jr.) was held and reviews are favorable.

The trailer. 

[sleepyeule]

Proportions and stuff are weird, but I was thinking like ?? around Peggy’s second semester exams in grade eleven. They’re chillin at Herc’s apartment (horrible furniture, Laf hates it) and yeah. (Also lowkey Jeggy bc I’m trash)

[silenthillmutual]

what Classic Film(TM) you should watch based on who your fave Danganronpa 1/2 character is

disclaimer - obviously as a film dude i’m gonna say you should watch all of these. but maybe watch the one correlating to your fave first!

Makoto: 12 Angry Men (1957, dir. Sidney Lumet) - strong themes of justice, it’s about a jury trying to determine a man’s guilt. it’s basically what Makoto does for the entire game. you’ll also like it if you’re a fan of Phoenix Wright.

Sayaka: A Star is Born (1954, dir. George Cukor) - it’s all about a girl’s rise to fame and how her relationships change with that. there’s three versions of this film, most recently with Lady Gaga. 

Mukuro: Vertigo (1958, dir. Alfred Hitchcock) - themes of murder and hiding your identity, losing yourself to a cause.

Leon: Animal House (1978, dir. John Landis) - a comedy about a fraternity. it’s THE college frat movie and i think Leon would enjoy it a lot.

Chihiro: WarGames (1983, dir. John Badham) - two teenagers might have accidentally started a world war during the cold war by trying to play computer games...fitting for the series, no?

Mondo: On the Waterfront (1954, dir. Elia Kazan) - struggling to do the right thing and being sort of frustrated about your circumstances as they pertain to class and missed opportunities. being dragged into bad situations by family. also Marlon Brando is a bicon and very hot in this movie.

Taka: Rebel Without a Cause (1955, dir. Nicholas Ray) - a lot of turbulent shit happens to three teenagers over the course of 24 hours. one of - if not the first canonically gay teenager on film. i think we all know by now that James Dean was mlm, but so were the director and Sal Mineo. big bi polyam vibes; if you like chishimondo as a ship you’ll probably like this film too.

Hifumi: Akira (1988, dir. Katsuhiro Otomo) - had a hard time figuring out what to put for Hifumi, but overall i think if nothing else he’d appreciate how impressive the animation was (and honestly, still is) along with the fact that the mangaka was also the director. so although there’s a lot cut out (the manga had not finished before the film came out), it’s still roughly the same plot as the manga.

Celes: Dracula (1931, dir. Tod Browning) - probably the most iconic iteration of Bram Stoker’s novel, this is the one staring Bela Lugosi. not terribly true to the novel from what i remember, but it’s peak aesthetic and exactly the kind of thing she’d enjoy.

Sakura: Rashomon (1950, dir. Akira Kurosawa) - finally getting onto films i haven’t actually seen but that are on my list. sakura’s another person i had a hard time deciding on a film for, but the “several characters telling different accounts of the same plot” reminded me a bit of her case in the game. 

Hina: West Side Story (1961, dir. Robert Wise & Jerome Robbins) - admittedly i had a different film in mind for her to start with, but Maria’s final monologue fits with Hina’s motivations during Sakura’s case.

Toko: Gone With the Wind (1939, dir. Victor Fleming) - another one i haven’t actually watched yet, but it’s based on a famous novel, described as “epic historical romance.” i think that vibes with Toko pretty well.

Byakuya: Citizen Kane (1941, dir. Orson Welles) - if you’re really interested in film, you’re gonna be made to watch this sooner or later. famous for being the “best film ever made”, it’s more or less about newspaper moguls like William Randolph Hearst - who is also the main reason why this film is famous at all. it’s not exactly a flattering depiction of those kinds of people and boy, did that ever piss Hearst off. if he hadn’t made such a big deal trying to keep Citizen Kane from seeing the light of day, something much better might have made it to the top spot. 

Hiro: The Music Man (1962, dir. Morton DaCosta) - based on the Broadway musical of the same name, a “travelling salesman” (read: con artist) starts to work his latest con on a gullible small town, but actually starts liking the people in it.

Kyoko: The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956, dir. Alfred Hitchcock) - not to be confused with the other Hitchcock film from the 30s also titled The Man Who Knew Too Much. this is the one with James Stewart and Doris Day. it’s a highly suspenseful film that gave us the song “Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)”.

Junko: Gaslight (1944, dir. George Cukor) - ever heard the term “gaslighting”? this is where it comes from! based on a play in which a woman’s husband psychologically tortures her into believing she is going insane.

Monokuma: Duck Soup (1933, dir. Leo McCarey) - all Marx Brothers films are as utterly silly (and sometimes as incomprehensible) as one of Monokuma’s MonoTheatres. i watched about half of Duck Soup and had to stop because it was finals week and i was supposed to be doing something other than losing my shit.

Hajime: It’s a Wonderful Life (1946, dir. Frank Capra) - you probably already know this film. if you’re Christian you know it as That Film Your Parents Watch Every Year On Dec 24th Around Midnight. if you have seasonal depression, don’t watch it then; warning for suicidal ideation. it’s supposed to be uplifting. your mileage may vary on that one. 

Impostor: To Kill a Mockingbird (1962, dir. Robert Mulligan) - i don’t have a good reason to pair these two up other than gut feeling. as far as film adaptations of books go, it’s pretty damn good, and Atticus Finch is the original DILF. themes of childhood innocence and racism. 

Teruteru: Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961, dir. Blake Edwards) - apparently much different from the novella on which it is based, but i think Teruteru would really dig the aesthetic and romantic vibes of the film. Holly Golightly is probably the original Manic Pixie Dream Girl.

Mahiru: Rear Window (1954, dir. Alfred Hitchcock) - like It’s a Wonderful Life, chances are good you know this film - or at least, you’ve seen its plot recycled a hell of a lot. a professional photographer recovering from a broken leg thinks he witnesses a murder take place and is determined to get to the truth.

Peko: Seven Samurai (1954, dir. Akira Kurosawa) - another one on my to-watch list, but it’s oft referenced and remade in film. a village hires seven ronin to protect them from bandits who will return to steal their crops. 

Hiyoko: East of Eden (1955, dir. Elia Kazan) - i’ll be honest here, i didn’t really know what to put for Hiyoko because i’m not sure i understand much about her, but i seem to remember her family playing a pretty big role in her being Like That and for “shitty family” the first two things to come to mind were this and Giant. and unless you like 3-hour long movies about the state of Texas, i’m not about to recommend you watch Giant.

Ibuki: A Night at the Opera (1935, dir. Sam Wood) - another Marx Bros film in which they help a girl both to be with her lover and to achieve her dreams of stardom as an opera singer. the kind of silly, manic thing i think Ibuki would like.

Mikan: The Shining (1980, dir. Stanley Kubrick) - i hate hate hate putting this on here, but since this is for film and not books i couldn’t exactly state to read the book. the book is about the cycle of abuse. the movie is more about... a trapped man going crazy in a spooky hotel. 

Nekomaru: It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963, dir. Stanley Kramer) - comedy about five groups of people racing to get to a large sum of money buried by a recently escaped convict they stopped to help out after his car crash. it’s a comedy, and just kinda seemed like Nekomaru’s thing.

Gundham: The Seventh Seal (1957, dir. Ingmar Bergman) - i watched this in like 10th grade and all i really remember is a man playing chess with Death and if that doesn’t say Gundham Tanaka to you, i don’t know what does.

Nagito: North by Northwest (1959, dir. Alfred Hitchcock) - i don’t really have a reason for this one either but it’s a spy film and i think komaeda could get behind that kind of intrigue. 

Chiaki: Metropolis (1927, dir. Fritz Lang) - not to be confused with the anime, this is a 1927 German expressionist film that seems to be about socialism and unionization. it’s also famous for its (purposeful) use of the Male Gaze and being one of the first sci-fi films ever made. be warned: it is a silent film.

Sonia: Strangers on a Train (1951, dir. Alfred Hitchcock) - another one of those films you’ll get told to watch if you’re interested in the queer history of film, i was gonna put something else but honestly the character of Barbara kinda reminded me of Sonia. a famous tennis player meets a man on a train who attempts to plan a double-murder with him.

Akane: My Fair Lady (1964, dir. George Cukor) - i was trying so hard not to double up on the post about musicals, but Akane really does have Eliza Doolittle vibes. they’re both feral and nothing would be able to really domesticate them. for whatever it’s worth, this film and the musical on which it is based is itself based on the play Pygmalion, in which your typical rich cishet white dude bets he can turn any street urchin into a real lady because he’s just that good. you might know the plot better as Pretty Woman.

Kazuichi: A Streetcar Named Desire (1951, dir. Elia Kazan) - i don’t really have a good excuse for this one, either; i haven’t even watched it yet (although i have read the play on which it is based). all i’m gonna say is i want Souda to have his gay awakening via Marlon Brando, as we all do.

Fuyuhiko: Casablanca (1942, dir. Michael Curtiz) - despite his love and adoration for Ingrid Bergman, Humphrey Bogart decides fighting Nazis is more important. i think Fuyuhiko would like the aesthetic, and the film. don’t let him know but i think he’d probably cry watching it.

Usami: To Sir, With Love (1967, dir. James Clavell) - issues of race and class intersecting in a film about a teacher working with inner city students. i was going to put Singin’ in the Rain here, because it’s what Usami would want people to watch...but i think this better fits the effect she wants to have as a being. 

[screenandcinema]

The Nominations are In!

This morning the nominations for the 93rd Academy Awards were announced. Below you will find the official nominees for the major categories that I incorrectly predicted yesterday. As well as a couple of notes about what I got right, what I got wrong, and any surprises along the way. Without further ado, the nominations:

Best Picture

The Father

Judas and the Black Messiah

Mank

Minari

Nomadland

Promising Young Woman

Sound of Metal

The Trial of the Chicago 7

All eight of the eventual nominees were on my predicted list of ten, which I call a win in my book. I was surprised mostly by the omission of One Night in Miami, which I fully expected on the final list. Which film will take home the statuette next month? I have no idea. Feels like a fairly wide-open race at this point. I could probably make the case for five or six of those nominees to win.

Best Director

Lee Isaac Chug, Minari

Emerald Fennell, Promising Young Woman

David Fincher, Mank

Thomas Vinterberg, Another Round

Chloe Zhao, Nomadland

Whenever trying to predicting the nominations there are bets you have to make across categories. For me, the big bet I made with this group of films was that Mank would ultimately underperform, hence why I omitted David Fincher for Best Director, Gary Oldman as Best Actor, and Amanda Seyfried as Best Supporting Actress. And what happened? Well, Mank ended up with ten nominations, the most of the year, and all three of those were nominated. I bet big and lost big. Best Director was one of the two categories this year where I missed two nominees, Supporting Actress being the other.

Best Actor

Riz Ahmed, Sound of Metal

Chadwick Boseman, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

Anthony Hopkins, The Father

Gary Oldman, Mank

Steven Yeun, Minari

While I was betting that Mank would underperform, I similarly expected that The Mauritanian would overperform, hence why I incorrectly slotted Tahar Rahim over Gary Oldman. This decision is the story of most of my wrong predictions this go around.

Best Actress

Viola Davis, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

Andra Day, The United States vs. Billie Holiday

Vanessa Kirby, Pieces of a Woman

Frances McDormand, Nomadland

Carey Mulligan, Promising Young Woman

The only category I got completely right this year, marking the third time in four years that I correctly predicted the Best Actress category. That is likely because there were no options for Mank or The Mauritanian in this category.

Best Supporting Actor

Sacha Baron Cohan, The Trial of the Chicago 7

Daniel Kaluuya, Judas and the Black Messiah

Leslie Odom, Jr., One Night in Miami

Paul Raci, Sound of Metal

LaKeith Stanfield, Judas and the Black Messiah

LaKeith Stanfield is fantastic in Judas the Black Messiah, however, Warner Bros. had been campaigning for him in the Best Actor category, not Supporting Actor. But apparently, Academy members disagreed with that assessment and chose him for this category. Hopefully, he does split the vote with co-star Daniel Kaluuya who probably has already picked a spot out on the mantle for his forthcoming statuette. 

Best Supporting Actress

Maria Bakalova, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm

Glenn Close, Hillbilly Elegy

Oliva Coleman, The Father

Amanda Seyfried, Mank

Youn Yuh-jung, Minari

I missed two in this category which was the first announced of the bunch. I had chosen Jodie Foster of The Mauritanian over Amanda Seyfried of Mank (see the trend) and for the final slot I ignored Glenn Close of Hillbilly Elegy and thus forgotten a treasured and unwritten Oscar rule - you can be nominated for being great in a bad movie.

In the end, I correctly predicted 27 of the eventual 33 nominations, which in the uncertainty of predicting these nominations from 2020 is good enough for me.

Tune in to the 93rd Academy Awards on April 25th on ABC.

-MB 

[javisuzumiya02]

De estas 12 mujeres, con una x roja sobre las mujeres que no van a tener sexo con big bro Linc?

Lista de nombres por orden

Superintendente Chen

Katie Crest (Esta mujer del capitulo Band Together)

Michelle (Esta mujer del episodio Really Loud Music)

Amy (Esta chica del club de teatro de Luan)

Nurse Patti (La enfermera de la escuela primaria)

Margarita (Este no es su aspecto regular, pero me gusta más como se ve asi)

Principal Rivers (Directora de la escuela preparatoria)

Katherine Mulligan

Ms Carmichael (Jefa de Leni en Reininger's)

Agnes Johnson

Thicc Qt

Miss Allegra (Maestra de la escuela primaria)

Me gusta el diseño de todas asi que esta vez todas entran a la fiesta.

[weekendwarriorblog]

The Weekend Warrior Christmas - New Year’s Edition – WONDER WOMAN 1984, NEWS OF THE WORLD, PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN, ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI..., PIECES OF A WOMAN, HERSELF, SYLVIE’S LOVE and More!

Welcome to the VERY LAST Weekend Warrior of the WORST YEAR EVER!!! But hopefully not the last column forever, even though I already plan on taking much of January off from writing 8 to 10 reviews each week. It just got to be too much for a while there.

Because it’s the last week of the year, there are a lot of really good movies, some in theaters but also quite a few on streaming services. In fact, there are a good number of movies that appeared in my Top 10 for the yearover at Below the Line, as well as my extended Top 25 that I’ll share on this blog sometime next week. I was half-hoping to maybe write something about the box office prospects of some of the new movies, but after the last couple weeks, it’s obvious that box office is not something that will be something worth writing about until sometime next spring or summer.

(This column is brought to you by Paul McCartney’s new album “McCartney III” which I’m listening to as I finish this up… and then other solo Beatles ditties picked for me randomly by Tidal.)

First up is easily one of the most anticipated movies of the year, or at least one that actually didn’t move to 2021, and that’s WONDER WOMAN 1984 (Warner Bros.), Patty Jenkins’ sequel to the 2017 hit, once again starring Gal Gadot as Diana Prince. I reviewed it here, but basically the sequel introduces Wonder Woman arch-nemeses Barbara Minerva aka Cheetah, as played by Kristen Wiig, and Pedro Pascal’s Max Lord and how an ancient artifact gives them both their powers, as well as helps to bring Diana’s true love Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) back despite him having disappeared presumed dead in WWI. As you can see by reading my review, I thought it was just fine, not great and certainly not something I’d make an attempt to see a second time in a 25% capacity movie theater. Fortunately, besides debuting in around 2,100 movie theaters across the nation, it will also be on HBO Max day and date, which has caused quite a stir. Being Christmas weekend with no work/school on Monday, I can see it still making somewhere between $10 and 12 million, but I can’t imagine it doing nearly what it might have done with most theaters only 25-30% full at the maximum and that theater count being roughly half the number it might have gotten during the “normal times.”

Paul Greengrass’ Western NEWS OF THE WORLD (Universal) reteams him with his Captain Phillips star Tom Hanks, this time playing Captain Jefferson Kidd, a Civil War soldier who travels from town to town in the Old West reading from newspapers to anyone who has a dime and time to listen. After one such reading, he discovers a young girl (Helena Zengel) on her own, having spent the last few years with a family of Native Americans who were killed by soldiers. Together, they travel across America as Kidd hopes to bring the girl to her last surviving family members.

I already reviewed Greengrass’ movie for Below the Line, and I also  spoke to Mr. Greengrass, an interview you can read that right here (once it goes live), but I make no bones that this was one of my favorite movies I’ve seen this year, and it’s not just due to the fine work by Greengrass and his team. No, it’s just as much about the emotion inherent in the story, and the relationship between the characters played by Hanks and Zengel.  

I’ve watched the movie three times now, and I’m still blown away by every frame and moment, the tension that’s created on this difficult journey but also where it leaves the viewers at the end that promises that there can be hope and joy even in the most difficult and turbulent times. It’s a wonderful message that’s truly needed right now.

Listen, I’m not gonna recommend going to a movie theater if you don’t feel it’s safe – I’ve already spoken my peace on this at a time when COVID numbers were much lower – but this is a movie that I personally can’t wait to see in a movie theater. I honestly can’t see the movie making more than $3 or 4 million in the open theaters considering how few people are willing to go to movie theaters. Obviously, this isn’t as big a draw as Wonder Woman, but it is a fantastic big screen movie regardless.

Also opening in theaters this Friday is Emerald Fennell’s directorial debut PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN (Focus Features), starring the wonderful Oscar-nominated Carey Mulligan as Cassie Thomas, a woman who has revenge on her mind. Cassie spends her nights picking up guys in bars by pretending she’s so drunk she can barely walk, then humiliating them and presumably worse. When she encounters an acquaintance from med school in the form of Bo Burnham’s Ryan, the two begin dating, though he ends up awakening a darker side to Cassie that seeks revenge for something that happened back during their school days. (Honestly, if you’re already sold, just skip to the next movie. That’s all I want you to know before watching it.)

I was ready to love Fennell’s movie when it opened with a disgusting shot of gross stock market bros in loose-fitting suits gyrating in slow motion before one of them tries to pick up a totally soused Cassie at the club. It’s a scene that really plays itself out quite well, and then leads into Mulligan’s character allowing another clear scumbag (played by Christopher Mintz-Plasse, maybe as a slight-older McLovin?) before turning the tables on him as well.

There’s going to be a lot of talk about this movie after people see it, since it’s one of those great films that begins a lot of conversations. I imagine most women of a certain age will love it, but some men might see themselves in some of the characters (even Burnham’s) and wonder whether Cassie just won’t take crap from any man or if she’s a full-on misandrist. One thing we do know a lot is that she does this sort of thing a lot, and there’s something from her past that has driven her involving something that happened to her female friend in med school. I’m going to stop talking about the plot here, because I definitely don’t want to spoil anything who hasn’t seen the movie, but the second half of the movie is as deeply satisfying as Tarantino’s Kill Bill in terms of the surprises.

You’ll realize while watching what a treat you’re in for when you first watch Mulligan’s amazing transformation from pretending to be drunk to being completely cognizant and just all the emotions we see her go through after that. Of course, we never really know what she’s actually doing to the guys she lets pick her up -- she keeps a notebook with guy’s names and a quizzical counting system, so we can only imagine.

Fennell’s screenplay is fantastic but her work as a first-time director in maintaining the the tone and pacing of the movie is really what will keep you captivated, whether it’s the amazing musical choices or how Cassie dresses up to lure men. There’s also a great cast around Mulligan whether it’s comic Burnham in a relatively more serious role, but one that also allows him a musical number. (No joke.) Fennel’s amazing casting doesn’t just stop there from, Jennifer Coolidge as Cassie’s mother to Laverne Cox as Gail, her workmate/boss at the coffee shop – both of them add to the film’s subtle humor elements. Alfred Molina shows up to give a show-stopping performance, and Alison Brie also plays a more dramatic role as another one of Cassie’s classmates. I can totally understand why the Golden Globes might have deemed the movie a “comedy/musical” (for about two days before going back) , but putting so many funny people in dramatic roles helps give Promising Young Woman its own darkly humorous feel. All that darkness is contrasted by this sweet romance between Cassie and Ryan that’s always in danger of imploding due to Cassie’s troubled nature.

The biggest shocking surprise is saved for the third act, and boy, it’s going to be one that people will be talking about for a VERY long time, because it’s just one gut punch after another. I loved this movie, as it’s just absolutely brilliant – go back and see where it landed in my Top 10. As one of the best thrillers from the past decade, people will be talking about this for a very long time 

Promising Young Woman hits theaters on Christmas Day, and presumably, it will be available on VOD sometime in January, but this is not one you want to wait on. If you do go see it in theaters, just be safe, please. No making out with random men or women, please.

Regina King’s narrative feature debut, ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI... (Amazon Studios), will ALSO be in theaters on Christmas Day, and though I’ve reviewed it over at Below the Line, but I’ll talk a little more about it here just for my loyal Weekend Warrior readers.

Yet another movie that made my Top 10, this one stars a brilliant quartet of actors --  Kingsley Ben-Adir, Leslie Odom Jr., Aldis Hodge and Eli Goree—as four legendary black icons: Malcolm X, Sam Cooke, Jim Brown and Cassius Clay, on the night after the last of them wins the World Boxing Championship against Sonny Liston in February 1964. The four men meet in Malcolm X’s hotel room to discuss what’s happening in their lives and the world in general, as well as Clay’s decision to join the Nation of Islam, just as Malcolm X is getting ready to leave the brotherhood due to philosophical differences with the group. In fact, all four men have philosophical differences that are discussed both in good humor and in deep conflict as they disagree on their place in a white-dominated world in a year before the Civil Rights Act would be signed.

First of all, there’s no way to talk about this movie without discussing the Kemp Powers play on which it’s based, and we can’t mention that without mentioning that Powers also co-wrote and co-directed Pixar’s Soul, which will be available on Disney+ this Friday. It’s a fantastic script and King put together a fantastic cast of actors who really give their all to every scene. In the case of Leslie Odom, Jr., you really can believe him as Cooke, especially in a number of fantastic performances pieces. Likewise, Goree looks a lot like Clay both in the ring and out, carrying all of the swagger for which he would become more famous as Ali.

I’ve seen the movie twice already and if you’ve looked at my Top 10, then you already know this is another one that made my cut, so I don’t think I need to give it a much harder sell. I’m sure you’ll be hearing a lot about this one on its journey to Oscar night when hopefully, King becomes the first woman of color to be nominated in the directing category. Or rather, she’ll probably tie for that honor with Nomadland director Chloé Zhao.

If you don’t feel like going to theaters for this one, you’ll be able to catch it on Amazon Prime Video on January 15, too… you’ll just have to wait a little longer.

Also, the new Pixar animation movie, SOUL, directed by Pete Docter (Up, Inside Out) and co-directed by Kemp Powers (remember him?), will hit Disney+ on Christmas Day, and I reviewed it here, so I probably don’t have  lot more to say about it, but it’s great, and if you have Disney+, I’m sure you’ll be watching it.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t get a screener for Matteo Garrone’s PINNOCHIO (Roadside Attractions), which also opens in about 700 theaters on Christmas Day. This adaptation stars Robert Benigni as Geppeto, who famously starred as Pinocchio in his own version of the classic fairy tale from 2002. That other movie was “Weinsteined” at a time when that just meant that a movie was ruined by Harvey Weinstein’s meddling, rather than anything involving sexual assault.

Another great movie hitting streaming this week is Eugene Ashe’s SYLVIE’S LOVE, which streams on Amazon Prime Video today. It stars Tessa Thompson as Sylvie and Nnamdi Asomugha (also a producer on the film) as Robert, who meet one summer in the late 50s while working at Sylvie’s father’s record store. He is a jazz musician who is on the rise, but their romance is cut short when he gets a gig in Paris but she refuses to go with him. Also, she’s pregnant with his child. Years later, they reconnect with her now being married with a young daughter (clearly Robert’s) and they realize that the love between them is still very real and true.

This is the first of three movies I watched this week where I went in with very little knowledge and absolute zero expectations. Like everyone else on earth, I am an avid fan of Ms. Thompson’s work both in movies like Thor: Ragnarok and smaller indies. She’s just a fantastic presence that lights up a screen. While I wasn’t as familiar with Asomugha’s acting work – he’s produced some great films and acted in a few I liked, included Crown Heights – there’s no denying the chemistry between the two.

What’s kind of interesting about the movie is that it combines a few elements from other great movies released this week, including Soul and A Night in Miami, but in my opinion, handles the music business aspect to the story better than the much-lauded Netflix movie, Ma Raimey’s Black Bottom. Frankly, I also think the performances by the two leads are as good as those by Boseman and Davis in that movie, but unfortunately, Amazon is submitting this to the Emmys as as “TV movie” rather than to the Oscars, so that’s kind of a shame.

This is a movie that’s a little hard to discuss why I enjoyed it so much without talking about certain scenes or moments, or just go through the entire story, but I think part of the joy of appreciating what Ashe has done in his second original feature film is to tell the story of these two characters over the course of a decade or so in a way that hasn’t been done before. That alone is quite an achievement, because we’ve seen many of those types of movies over the years (When Harry Met Sally, for instance).

What I really liked about Sylvie’s Love over some of the other “black movies” this year is that it literally creates its own world and just deals with the characters within it, rather than trying to make a big statement about the world at the time. Maybe you can say the same about Soul in that sense, but you would be absolutely amazed by how much bigger an audience you can get by telling a grounded story in a relatable world, and then throw in a bit of music, as both those movies do.

So that’s all I’ll say except that this will is now on Amazon Prime Video , so you have no excuse not to check it out while you wait for Regina King’s equally great One Night in Miami to join it in mid-January.

Hitting Netflix on Christmas day is Robert Rodriguez’s WE CAN BE HEROES, his sequel to his 2005 family film The Adventures of Shark Boy and Lava Girl – not his best moment -- which follows the kids of the Heroics, a Justice League-like super group. They’re all in a special school for kids with powers but they have to step up when the Heroics are captured by aliens. Want to know what will happen? Well, you’ll just have to wait for Christmas Day for when my review drops to find out whether I liked it more or less than Rodriguez’s earlier film which SPOILER!! I hated.)

The first thing you need to get past is that Shark Boy and Lava Girl are now man and wife, and just that fact might be tough for anyone who only discovered the movie sometime more recently. There are other familiar faces in the Heroics like Pedro Pascal, Sung Kang, Christian Slater, Priyanka Chopra Jonas and more, so clearly, Rodriguez is still able to pull together a cast.

The movie actually focuses on YaYa Goselin’s Missy Moreno, daughter of the Heroic’s leader (Pascal) who has also retired. Just as aliens are invading the earth, Missy is put into a school of kids with superpowers, all kids of various Heroic members. Sure, it’s derived directly from The X-Men and/or Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, so yeah… basically also the X-Men. We meet all of the kids in a great scene where we see them using their powers and learn their personalities, and honestly, they really are the best part of the movie.Probably the most adorable is Guppy, the very young daughter of Shark Boy and Lava Girl, played by Viven Blair. Oddly, Missy doesn’t have any powers so she feels a bit fish-out-of-water in the group even though, like her father, she proves to be a good leader.

As much as I really detested Rodriguez’s Shark Boy and Lava Girl movie, I feel like he does a lot better by having a variety of kids in this one, basically something for everyone, but also not a bad group of child actors. (There’s also a fun role for Adriana Barraza​.) There are definitely aspects that are silly, but Rodriguez never loses sight of his audience, and wisely, Netflix is offering this as a Christmas Day release which should be fun for families with younger kids who might see this as their first superhero movie.

More discerning viewers may not be particularly crazy about visual FX, all done as usual in Rodriguez’s own studio but some of them look particularly hoaky and cheap compared to others. (I mean, that’s probably the appeal for hiring Rodriguez because he’s able to do so much in-house. In this case, he got all four of his own kids involved in various capacities of making the film.)

We Can Be Heroes is clearly a movie made for kids, so anyone expecting anything on part with Amazon’s The Boys will be quite disappointed. It’s probably Rodriguez getting slightly closer to Spy Kids than he has with any of his other family-friendly movies, but one shouldn’t go in with the expectations that come with any of the much bigger blockbusters released these days. Personally, I enjoyed that fact, and I totally would watch another movie with this superteam.

Michel Stasko’s BOYS VS. GIRLS (Gravitas Ventures) is a fun retro-comedy that follows a war between the male and female counselors at Camp Kindlewood, which has just gone co-ed. At the center of it all is Dale (Eric Osborne) and Amber (Rachel Dagenais) as two teens who are in the middle of a meet-cute romance in the middle of a inter-gender competition called “Lumberman vs. Voyagers,” which I have no idea whether it’s a real thing or not.

I probably should have known I’d like this one from the catchy New Order-ish song in the opening credits, but listen, Wet Hot American Summer is one of my all-time favorite movies, and that was basically made to satirize ‘80s movies like Meatballs. This one falls more towards to the latter in terms of humor, but it also feels authentic to the ‘80s summer camp experience.

It helps that the grown-ups at the camp are played by the likes of Kevin McDonald from New Kids on the Block, Colin Mochrie from Whose Line is It Anyway and others, but it’s really about the younger cast playing teen boys and girls in the throes of puberty, something we all can in some way relate to. The young cast play a series of stereotypical young but there are a lot of funny tropes within them, as each of the cast is given a chance to deliver some of the funnier gags. This isn’t necessarily high-brow humor, mind you, but I love the fact that you can still make a movie about a time where you could still make fun of girl’s periods in school. (I’m kidding. I just put that in there cause I feel like I need to throw things like that into this column just to see if anyone is ACTUALLY reading it.)

The presumably Canadian Stasko is another great example of an independently-spirited filmmaker who has an idea for a fun movie and then just goes about making it, regardless of having big stars or anything to sell it besides many funny moments that can be featured a trailer, so that those who like this kind of movie will find it. Listen, Wet Hot American Summer wasn’t a huge hit when it was released. I still remember it having trouble getting a single screening at the multiplex in Times Square when it was released but over the years since it became sort of a cult hit (kind of due to Netflix having it to rent on DVD, I think).

Besides a fun script and cast, Stasko also find a way to include tunes that sound so much like real ‘80s songs we would have heard on the radio but aren’t quite the big hits that would have cost him thousands of dollars, but I really just enjoyed the heck out of the tone and overall fun attitude that went into making this movie.

Also on VOD now is Ian Cheney and Martha Shane’s fascinating and funny doc, THE EMOJI STORY (Utopia), which I saw at the Tribeca Film Festival when it was called “Picture Character.” (That’s what “emoji” in Japanese means, just FYI.) As you can guess it’s about the origins and rise of the emoji as a form of communication from its humble beginning in Japan to becoming one of the biggest trending crazes on the globe. I’m not that big an Emoji guy myself – I tend to use the thumbs up just for ease, but I do marvel at those who can put together full thoughts using a string of these symbols, and if you want to know more about them, this is the movie you should watch.

Now let’s cut ahead to some of the movies that will be opening and streaming NEXT week…

Hitting select theaters on Wednesday, December 30 and what really is my “FEATURED FLICK” for this column is Hungarian filmmaker Kornél (White God) Mundruczó’s PIECES OF A WOMAN (Netflix) before its streaming premiere on Netflix January 7.

Written by Kata Wéber, who also wrote Mundruczó’s earlier film, it stars Vanessa Kirby (The Crown) and Shia Labeouf as Martha and Sean Weiss, a Boston couple who lose their baby during a particularly difficult home birth and follows the next year in their lives and how that tragic loss affects their relationship with each other and those around them.

As you can imagine, Pieces of a Woman is a pretty heavy drama, one that reminded me of the films of Todd Field (Little Children, In the Bedroom) in terms of the intensity of the drama and the emotions on screen from the brilliant cast Mundruczó put together for his English language debut. I’m not sure I could use the general plot to sell anyone on seeing this because it is very likely the worst possible date movie of the year after Netflix’s 2019 release, Marriage Story, but it’s just as good in terms of the writing and performances.

At the center of it is Kirby – and yeah, I still haven’t watched The Crown, so shut up! I’ll get to it!!! – who most of us fell in love with for her role in Mission: Impossible - Fallout, but what we see her go through as an actress here really shows the degree of her abilities. But it also shows what Mundruczó can do with material that (like many movies) started out as a play. For instance, one of the first big jaw-dropping moments is the home birth scene that goes on for a long time, seemingly all in one shot, and Kirby is so believable in terms of a woman going through a difficult birth, you’d believe she has had children herself. (She hasn’t.)  I also don’t want to throw Shia Labeouf under the bus right now just because that seems like the trendy thing to do. (Without getting it, I believe FKA Twigs… but that doesn’t deny the fact that Labeouf is just the latest great actor that everyone wants to cancel.)

Anyway, to change the subject, we have to talk about Ellen Burstyn, who plays Martha’s meddling mother, who is quite clingy and overbearing, so when the couple lose their baby, she steps in to take to task the midwife she deems responsible (played by the highly-underrated Molly Parker). Or rather, she hires a family lawyer (Sarah Snook) to take her to court to get compensation for the loss of her daughter’s baby. The film’s last act culminates as their case goes to court.

Again, the film covers roughly a year after the tragedy and deals not only with how Martha and Sean’s relationship is affected and how it emotionally affects Martha in particular, but also how others around them start behaving towards them. It feels so authentic and real that you wonder where the screenwriter was drawing from, but Mundruczó has more than prove himself as as filmmaker by creating something that is visually compelling and even artsy while still doing everything to help promote the story and performances over his own abilities as a director. Doesn’t hurt that he has composer Howard Shore scoring the film in a way that’s subtle but effective.

Listen, if you’re looking for a comedy riot that will entertain you with funny one-liners and pratfalls than Pieces of a Woman is not for you. This is a devastating movie that really throws the viewer down a deep spiral along with its characters. The first time I watched it, I was left quite broken, and maybe even more so on second viewing.  (As we get closer to Oscar season… in four months … I hope this film will be recognized and not just thrown under the table due to Labeouf’s involvement. That would be as big a tragedy and misjustice as much of what happens in the movie.)

So yeah, in case you wondered why this also made it into my prestigious Top 10 for the year, that is why. :)

Also in theaters on Wednesday, December 30 is another terrific drama, the Phyllida Lloyd-directed HERSELF (Amazon Studios), co-written and starring Clare Dunne, as Sandra, a mother of two young girls, trying to get out of an abusive marriage, while making ends meet and providing shelter for her kids. One day, she learns about a way that she can build her own home, and one of the women she cares for offers a plot of land

Another movie that I really didn’t know much about going into, other than Phyllida Lloyd being a talented filmmaker whose movie The Iron Maiden, which won Meryl Streep her 500th Oscar, I enjoyed much more than the popular blockbuster hit musical, Mamma Mia! This is a far more personal story that reminded me of Ken Loach’s I, Daniel Blake, a smaller and more intimate character piece that shines a light on British actor Clare Dunne, who as with some of the best and most personal movie projects, co-wrote this screenplay for herself to act in.

There are aspects to the film that reminds me of many other quaint Britcoms in terms of creating a story where one person’s challenge is taken up by others who are willing to help, and in this case, it’s Sandra’s desire to build a house for her two quite adorable daughters while also trying to keep it secret from her abusive ex.

Dunne’s performance isn’t as showy as some of the other dramatic performances mentioned in this very column, but she and Lloyd do a fine job creating an authenticity that really makes you believe and push for her character, Sandra, surrounding her with characters who can help keep the movie on the lighter side despite very serious nature of spousal abuse (which also rears its ugly head in Pieces of a Woman). Oh, and don’t get too comfortable, because this, too, leads to an absolutely shocking and devastating climax you won’t see coming. (Well, now you will… but you’ll still be shocked. Trust me.)

Still, it’s a really nice movie with the house being built clearly a metaphor.  I know there’s a lot of truly fantastic movies discussed in this week’s column but don’t let this wonderful British drama pass you by, because you can tell it’s a labor of love for everyone who made it.

Herself will be in theaters for roughly a week starting December 30 before streaming on Prime Video on January 8.

In select theaters and on VOD on New Year’s Day is Roseanne Liang’s WWII thriller SHADOW IN THE CLOUD (Vertical/Redbox Entertainment), starring Chloë Grace Moretz as Flight Officer Maude Garrett, who is assigned to deliver a top-secret package on the B-17 bomber “The Fool’s Errand” with an all-male crew that throws her into a turret “for her own safety.” She ends up getting trapped down there as the plane is attacked by a creature that no one believes is out there, as they fight back against the unseen enemy, many secrets are revealed.

This is yet another movie I didn’t know that much about other than it has Moretz on an airplane, but there’s so much about the movie that both had me scratching my head but also has me quite deliriously amused that filmmakers could get away with some of the craziness that we witness. Maybe it’s not a surprise that the movie was co-written by Max Landis -- not exactly the most beloved screenwriter in Hollywood these days, and certainly not a critical favorite.

Again I really didn’t know what to expect so after Moretz’s character gets on the plane and is trapped in the turret under the plane, I thought that maybe I was seeing something similar to the one-location thriller 7500, starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, which I wasn’t too big a fan of even though the actor was good. Moretz continues to be quite a phenomenal actor, but the mix of Mahuia Bridgman-Cooper’s music, which borrows as much from Soulwax (look ‘em up on Spotify) as John Carpenter, and the sexist attitude by the male crew towards Garrett made me unsure of what the movie was meant to say.

Much of the movie just has Moretz on her own with the men’s voices over the comms, which is not something that could possibly sustain a whole movie. Part of it is borrowed from a very well-known episode of “The Twilight Zone,” in fact.

but fortunately, it breaks from out of that deceit but then just starts getting crazier and crazier. I’m not even gonna tell you about what happens or what’s in the box Garrett is carrying or where things go, because honestly, I don’t think you would believe me.

I haven’t seen any of Ms. Liang’s previous films but when you realize how much crazy stuff she’s able to get way with, I’ll be really interested what she does next. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen any movie that’s quite as crazy as Shadow in the Cloud or one that makes me want to watch it again for that very reason.

Oscar-winning Icarus director Bryan Fogel’s doc THE DISSIDENT (Briarcliff), which opens in theaters Friday then will be On Demand January 8, follows the horrific assassination of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey in September 2018, thought to be the work of the Saudi kingdom and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman aka MBS.

I’m really fascinated by movies like this one and Ryan White’s recent Assassins – both which could be in the Best Documentary race at the Oscars in April, by the detective and investigative work done by both filmmakers to get to the bottom of murders that shouldn’t be possible and find those that are responsible. I’ll admit that I didn’t really pay much attention to this story when it was happening a few years back, so I don’t know how much of the details are new and exclusive to Fogel’s doc. He does get access to Kashouggi’s fiancé Hatice who had gone with Jamal to the Saudi embassy in Turkey to get proof that he was single and could marry when he vanished for days and then turne up dead.

Fogel also meets with another Saudi dissident now living in Quebec who goes through the events that led up to Kashouggi’s murder that involved a social media campaign against the journalist within a country where 80% of the population is on Twitter (!).

This is another fascinating doc by Fogel that I’m sure some will be more interested in due to its subject, but when it comes to investigative pieces that really take a deep dive into news from the headlines, Fogel has created another unforgettable doc.  (Also, it was absolutely little surprise to me that Fogel’s film is co-written by Mark Monroe, who has been involved with some of the best docs I’ve seen over the past 15 years or so…  just look up his IMDB credits!)

Opening at the Film Forum Virtual Cinema in New York for a one-week qualifying run is Russia’s movie for Oscar consideration, Andrei Kochalovsky’s DEAR COMRADES! (NEON), a black and white dark dramedy set in 1960s Kruschchev-era Russia. It involves a strike by locomotive workers when the government raises food prices, leading to chaos and a massacre that leaves a Communist party loyalist,  Lyuda (played by Julia Vysotskaya) who the film then follows. Unfortunately, I had a choice of either writing this column or watching this two-hour movie. I opted for the former (obviously) but I do hope to get to this later in the week and should be adding more on this movie once I do.

Also streaming in Film Forum’s Virtual Cinema starting next Wednesday, December 30, is Mario Monicelli’s 1960 film, The Passionate Thief.

Unfortunately, I also wasn’t able to get to Two Ways Home (Gravitas Ventures), In Corpore or Fire Will Come, which will open in Metrograph’s digital ticketing system.

Metrograph will also continue showing Tsia Ming-Liang’s Goodbye, Dragon Inn, Fruit Chan’s Made in Hong Kong, and lots of great programming over the holidays. It would be a great time to get yourself or a loved one a digital membership for just $50! (James Gray is also programming some of his own films like Little Odesssa and other favorites, like Richard Quine’s Strangers When We Meet, over the holidays.)

By the way, if you read this week’s column and have bothered to read this far down, feel free to drop me some thoughts at Edward dot Douglas at Gmail dot Com or drop me a note or tweet on Twitter. I love hearing from readers … honest! 

[billiejs]

Hi, it’s Sean! I realized it’s been a hot minute since I’ve bombarded you with my rambling, so... Hey, hi! I need a readers perspective on this RJ idea I’ve been toying with for the last few weeks- The cast needs a showstopper to convince the school board to keep the drama department. One more show should do it, but it needs to be well received. So they’re gonna try to pull off a production of Hamilton. (1/3? Sorry for talking your ear off lmao)

And I’ve been flirting with a few dynamics with how Ricky and EJ are cast. I’m leaning toward Ricky as Alex (scrappy, passionate, determined) and EJ as Burr (Phlegmatic, composed, ambitious, sharp). Plus, Gina as Laurens and Ricky’s best bro? *chef kiss* I was thinking of EJ as Eliza too, which would certainly make the romance more obvious and require them to spend more time rehearsing scenes together, but I feel like it doesn’t really fit EJ’s character, and it would generate the problem (2/3)

Not entirely sure how I ended off my last ask, I have an abysmal memory, but I was gonna say that casting EJ as Eliza would raise the issue of which pronouns would be appropriate to use and would make everything a little messy. There is, though, the possibility of Ricky and EJ not being leads at all. I had a really early take on it where they played Lafayette/Jefferson and Mulligan/Madison and so, since they didn’t have the pressure of being leads, got to develop their relationship more. (3/3)

Hi Sean, I've missed you!

And thank you for this ask because it gives me an excuse to talk about this. Some time ago my friend @itsalliepressman and I have come up with a possible casting of the characters of HSMTMTS if they were to do Hamilton and I can't think of them as anyone else now!

EJ as Hamilton

Nini as Eliza

Seb as Burr

Gina as Angelica

Ricky as Laurens/Philip Hamilton

Kourtney as Lafayette/Jefferson

ASHLYN AS GEORGE WASHINGTON OMG SHE WOULD BE AMAZING

Carlos as King George

Big Red as Seabury/Lee

Natalie Bagley as Peggy/Maria Reynolds

I am especially in love with Ashlyn as Washington because CAN YOU IMAGINE THE AWESOMENESS

[herculesmulligan-quotes]

Alexander : Come on ! You're not our babysitter !

Hercules : No I'm not. At least babysitters are paid for the shit they go through.