Affeksjonsverdi (Sentimental Value)

AFFEKSJONSVERDI (SENTIMENTAL VALUE)
2025 | Dir. Joachim Trier | 133 Minutes

"It's hard to love someone who's so full of rage."

After years of estrangement, Nora and Agnes' accomplished film director father Gustav re-enters their lives in hopes of salvaging his relationship with them. While Agnes is keen on reconnecting Gustav, Nora is decidedly not despite Gustav's plan to cast her in lead part for his latest film.

Joachim Trier's Sentimental Value is an artfully understated drama that presents a grounded perspective on familial trauma and the difficult process of reconciliation. Featuring central characters gifted in artistic expression, how the film depicts the different ways Nora and Gustav seek catharsis through creative endeavors is fascinating, but the central conflict stemming from the tension between daughter and estranged father is portrayed in the form of consistent passive aggressive barbs rather than the melodramatic altercations one might expect. Instead, the feature's most cinematic moments are in its brief interludes exploring the history of the family home and all of the emotions contained within its walls over the years.

Sentimental Value also offers sharp commentary on the state of the film industry. Trier is quite frank about how difficult it is for even a renowned Norwegian movie director to get a passion project off the ground, having to rely on the clout of a major movie star, having to shoot the film in English, and most likely having to forgo theatrical exhibition to secure distribution from a certain streaming juggernaut. The challenges of the production run parallel to Gustav's struggle to connect with Nora and, perhaps more directly, process his conflicted feelings left unspoken about his late mother as the film he is making is about her as much as it about his relationship with Nora.

The greatest strength of Sentimental Value is Renate Reinsve's superb natural performance as the complex Nora. Reinsve is phenomenally nuanced in the role, fully embodying a conflicted woman in such dire need of emotional release that her continued retention of resentment against her father threatens to destroy her through figurative steady corrosion - her crippling stage fright despite her talent as an actress, her self-sabotage in the form of pursuing a relationship with a romantic partner who is clearly unavailable, and her depression almost casually revealed to be potentially suicidal late in the picture though it hardly comes as a shock. Stellan Skarsgård as also excellent as Gustav, an ostensibly charming man harboring a deep well of pain who only seems to know how to bond with his loved ones through his love of film however misguided, whether it's casting his daughters in his movies or gifting his 8-year-old grandson DVDs of erotic dramas. The cast also features an affecting performance from Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas as Nora's deeply empathetic sister Agnes and a convincingly earnest Elle Fanning as famous American actress Rachel Kemp who quickly realizes Gustav's plan to have her fill in for Nora is more demanding than she realized.

Sentimental Value is a quiet drama that takes its audience down the long road to understanding and forgiveness without much in the way of artifice. While it isn't the flashiest picture in terms of spectacle or big dramatic swings, it is nonetheless a sobering look at the damage that can be done by festering bitterness. Renate Reinsve is truly stunning in the lead role.


FRAGMENTS
- 2026 Best Picture Academy Award Nominee Hamnet also depicts the pursuit of personal catharsis specifically through theatrical artistic expression

- I can't hear that "Dies Irae" section of "Symphonie Fantastique" without immediately associating it with Stanley Kubrick's The Shining

- This film honestly did not resonate with me as much as I think it should -- I wonder if I'll grow to appreciate it more in time

- Seriously, imagine watching The Piano Teacher and Irreversible at 8 years old, hilarious


007 CONNECTIONS
- Jesper Christensen (Mr. White in Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace, and Spectre)


MCU CONNECTIONS
- Stellan Skarsgård (Erik Selvig in Thor, The Avengers, Thor: The Dark World, Avengers: Age of Ultron, and Thor: Love and Thunder)

Bugonia

BUGONIA
2025 | Dir. Yorgos Lanthimos | 118 Minutes

"I became a human being that I told myself I would never become."

A desperate man kidnaps a powerful titan of industry, convinced that she is an alien from outer space secretly plotting to destroy the human race.

Adapted from Jang Joon-hwan's 2003 dark comedy Save the Green Planet!, Yorgos Lanthimos' fourth collaboration with star Emma Stone puts conspiracy theorists under a microscope for decidedly more chilling than hilarious effect. Lanthimos' signature deadpan style lends itself all too well to this narrative positing that more terrifying than any space alien is one deeply hurt human being's unflinching vindictive focus on pinning his misfortunes on others by way of spiraling headlong into magical thinking. Jesse Plemons' Teddy chooses to believe he is on a noble mission to free the world from the control of extraterrestrials by means of kidnapping, torture, murder, and even domestic terrorism, rather than confront and process his own trauma and grief. The fear in Stone's eyes in her portrayal of the abducted CEO Michelle is palpable. The narrative's final twist does not diminish the impact of the picture's social commentary through-line. If anything, Teddy's actions leading to the extinction of humankind in order to allow the planet to heal perfectly serves as one final gut-punch.

Lanthimos frames Bugonia in a claustrophobic 3:2 aspect ratio, immediately creating a constant feeling of unease. The heated exchanges between Teddy and Michelle that make up a significant portion of the feature are all the more intense, as are the punctuating sudden bursts of violence. The high-contract color palette of the picture further heightens the extreme emotions primed to explode at any given moment.

Emma Stone makes for an excellent win-at-all-costs negotiator who never lets slip her true feelings despite dire peril. Jesse Plemons gives a heartbreakingly earnest performance as a man horrifyingly entrenched in rather baffling beliefs. Aidan Delbis also stands out as Teddy's sweet and loyal cousin Don delivering some of the funniest line readings of the picture.

There is a potent contemporary tragedy residing just under the surface of the seemingly quirky premise of Bugonia. The material is arguably a perfect match for dark comedy auteur Yorgos Lanthimos. While it is a rather adaptation of a film released two decades before its own debut, depicting acts of domestic terror committed by the unhinged disenfranchised hits harder now more than ever and, at times, more challenging to digest than ever.


FRAGMENTS
- Showing some real commitment to the role, Emma Stone actually shaved her head to play Michelle

- It almost goes without saying that Jesse Plemons is a natural when it comes to playing awkward and/or creepy white dudes

- Aidan Delbis, not a professionally trained actor, is a natural sweetheart

- The finale not only confirms that extraterrestrials from Andromeda are manipulating the human race but also that the Earth is indeed flat

Wicked

WICKED

2024 | Dir. Jon M. Chu | 162 Minutes

"Everyone deserves the chance to fly."

In the Land of Oz, by chance the outcast Elphaba Thropp finds herself enrolled in Shiz University. Following their contentious first meeting, vain popular girl Galinda Upland gains a measure of compassion and gradually befriends Elphaba. When destiny calls, Elphaba learns hard truths about her world and must decide between fulfilling the expectations of others or doing what she believes is right.

Adapted from the first act of Stephen Schwartz's celebrated Broadway production, which in turn is based on Gregory Maguire's 1995 novel reinterpreting L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, director Jon M. Chu delivers a visually dazzling showcase of song and dance with spectacular choreography and fun set pieces. Primarily serving as a revisionist origin story for a classic villain, Wicked is at its best when it focuses on its core relationship, the unlikely but genuine friendship between misunderstood Elphaba, who learns to embrace her agency, and the conceited Galinda, who learns humility and empathy. The narrative also has much to say regarding prejudice, discrimination, and disinformation, with a considerable amount of focus on the mistreatment of not just Elphaba but also the intelligent animal inhabitants of Oz. However, the pacing of the film suffers from an overabundance of exposition and lore to unpack. While the picture concludes on a triumphant high, with so many plot threads left unresolved it isn't quite satisfying as stand-alone feature when all is sung and done.

The songs by Stephen Schwartz are all-around phenomenal, many of which are immediately unforgettable, and they are performed by an immensely talented cast with superb cinematic direction for this film adaptation. The "Dancing Through Life" sequence is the perfect example of the picture's incredible scale, taking place in a massive dynamic magical library set populated with excellent dancers. On a smaller, more personal scale, the "Popular" number is a great spotlight for the picture's leading ladies, perfectly matching the clever and funny energy of the catchy song. The epic sequence capping off the film featuring the exceptionally memorable "Defying Gravity" is truly exhilarating, a fittingly moving and inspirational showstopper accentuated with impressive visual effects.

Cynthia Erivo is magnificent as Elphaba, a role that fully utilizes her incredible voice, but even more impressively, allows her to demonstrate her screen acting talent as she capably carries the emotional weight of Elphaba's story. Frequently hilarious and believably earnest, Ariana Grande embodies Galinda to perfection. Playing the part of Fiyero, Jonathan Bailey is suitably charming and convincingly magnetic. The supporting cast also features an Michelle Yeoh exuding an air of authority as the deceptively regal Shiz University headmistress Madame Morrible, and Jeff Goldblum more or less just being Jeff Goldblum in the role of the master con artist Oz.

A crowd-pleasing ride overall, Wicked is an entertaining and emotionally engaging movie musical featuring iconic visuals and memorable songs. Elevated by a universally appealing tale of self-discovery at its heart, the narrative also offers a timely and timeless cautionary look at the evils of scapegoating and propaganda. Unfortunately, the film falls short of perfection in no small part due to its extended runtime bloated with expository material that does not pay off in this first installment of an ambitious duology.

FRAGMENTS

- The ad campaign for the film strategically neglects to mention it is the first installment of a two-picture adaptation, though the actual title card featured in the opening reads: Wicked ~Part 1~

- Peter Dinklage playing Dr. Dillamond further demonstrates his frequent typecasting as persecuted intellectuals

- The way John Powell's score builds as Elphaba takes flight during the finale reminds me so much of Hans Zimmer's theme for Superman from Man of Steel

007 CONNECTIONS

- Michelle Yeoh (Wai Lin in Tomorrow Never Dies)

MCU CONNECTIONS

- Jeff Goldblum (Grandmaster in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 and Thor: Ragnarok)

- Michelle Yeoh (Aleta Ogord in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 and Jiang Nan in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings)

- Peter Dinklage (Eitri in Avengers: Infinity War)

The Substance

THE SUBSTANCE

2024 | Dir. Coralie Fargeat | 141 Minutes

"Remember you are one."

Unceremoniously let go by the producer of her television show, aging celebrity Elisabeth Sparkle uses a mysterious drug to create a younger version of herself to begin her career anew. However, the youthful copy callously saps away at Elisabeth at an alarming rate.

Writer/director Coralie Fargeat's The Substance is an instant horror classic. The film is a stylish, surreal, provocative, and intensely furious satire unfolding in an aggressively heightened world taking one woman's feelings of inadequacy, in large part imparted upon her by unrealistic societal beauty standards, to birth a superficially enticing self-destructive monster. When one considers the very last instruction card enclosed within the package of the titular substance printed in bold capitalized letters, a reminder to the user that they and their counterpart "are one," the most direct reading of the increasingly antagonistic push-and-pull relationship between Elisabeth and Sue is Elisabeth expressing the hate she has for herself, an internal conflict that's externalized and transmuted into a visceral interpersonal struggle. Sue stealing time away from Elisabeth is in reality Elisabeth refusing to accept the current natural state of her aging body and a life away from the spotlight. It's telling that despite her reactive desperation to put an end to Sue when her body deteriorates to an unrecognizable state, Elisabeth is ultimately unable to let go of the Sue aspect of herself.

The hilariously sharp dialogue and frantically rapid pace of The Substance, along with outlandish creature effects of its final act, take the already excellent dramatic conflict over-the-top. On a technical level, the picture is absolutely phenomenal. The masterful editing by Fargeat, Jérôme Eltabet, Valentin Feron combined with the pulsating electronic score by Raffertie create a tense and breathless audio visual experience with propulsive energy. The practical make-up effects by Pop FX are brilliantly inventive, culminating in the bloody finale with one of the most convincingly rendered fascinatingly disgusting movie monsters in cinema history.

Stars Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley are nothing short of perfect, particularly impressive as the narrative spirals into absolute chaotic and revolting weirdness. Alone without a single word of spoken dialogue in some scenes, Moore gives an exceptionally natural performance portraying a fading star refusing to give up her fame at any cost, remaining consistently engaging even as heavier and heavier prosthetics are applied to her as Elisabeth's body rapidly degenerates. Qualley also gives it her all in the physically demanding role of Sue, totally captivating whether she's mugging for the cameras or literally fighting for her borrowed life. Dennis Quaid is horrifyingly convincing as the blustering slimy television producer all-too-aptly named Harvey.

Incredibly daring and delightfully grotesque, The Substance is a cautionary tale body horror film with unforgettable inventively disgusting imagery. The picture stylishly and mercilessly confronts and subverts the absurdly high value society places on youth and surface-level beauty. Most provocatively, the most terrifying aspect of this feature is arguably its depiction of one woman's self-loathing mutating into full-blown self-destruction.

FRAGMENTS

- The brief introductory sequence elegantly showing without verbal explanation how the titular substance works on an egg is pure genius, as are the bookend sequences of Elisabeth's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame

- The moment the "Monstro Elisasue" title card appears is one of my favorite cinematic experiences of 2024

Ainda Estou Aqui (I'm Still Here)

AINDA ESTOU AQUI (I'M STILL HERE)

2024 | Dir. Walter Salles | 137 Minutes

"It's absolutely necessary to compensate the families and do the most important thing: clarify and judge all crimes committed during the dictatorship. Otherwise, they will continue to be committed with impunity."

In 1971, operatives of Brazil's military dictatorship take former congressman Rubens Paiva away from his home in Rio de Janeiro. In the aftermath, Rubens' wife Eunice does what she can to protect her children while investigating what happened to her husband.

Adapted from Marcelo Rubens Paiva's memoir of the same name, Walter Salles' I'm Still Here is a moving chronicle of one family's harrowing experiences under authoritarian oppression. The events of the film unfold naturally without obvious dramatic embellishment, presenting an unsettling narrative of a good husband and father abducted by unidentified men never to be seen in public again, a loving mother and her young daughter imprisoned and relentlessly questioned without just cause, a nurturing family doing everything in their power to somehow carry on. Salles' direction is outstanding, as is Fernanda Torres's performance as Eunice, portraying the true story as well as the hardships of a remarkable woman with care and nuance.

For its rather heavy subject matter, I'm Still Here is exceptionally well-paced. Early scenes before Rubens' disappearance convincingly convey joy, if not a sense of security, showing the idyllic day-to-day lives of the Paiva family enjoying the beach near their home and celebrating birthdays with friends set to Brazilian pop-rock. Vera's "sensory experience" letter from London with accompanying 8mm film and vinyl record is particularly fun. As Rubens is taken from his family by a squad of inconspicuously terrifying people, Torres work as Eunice make her the prefect audience surrogate as the tension and fear ramp up to a visceral level, particularly during Eunice's imprisonment while she, along with the viewer, is still kept in the dark about Rubens' fate. Torres' deftly delivers her most powerful moment of the film when Eunice openly confronts the men observing her home sitting in a car across the street, after their carelessness brings tragedy upon the family dog. The final sequences of the picture set in 1996 and 2014 serve to demonstrate that life moves on and may even flourish, but the scars left upon the victims of a fascist regime never fully heal.

As much an account of personal hardship as it is a cautionary reminder of the horrors endured by a country ruled by a military dictatorship, I'm Still Here is an uncompromising picture that authentically portrays dark times without sensationalism. It's a solid film, superbly directed and featuring excellent performances, particularly from its leading lady. The story is one of hope, of life persevering against cold and uncaring forces, of fighting for and disseminating the truth long after the transgression so that it is never forgotten, and it is one that will always be worth telling.

FRAGMENTS

- Pimpão the dog is truly adorable, and I was justifiably worried form him since the film's opening moments

- The soldier overseeing Eunice during her imprisonment letting her know he "doesn't think it's right" is just slightly endearing but infuriatingly frustrating

Emilia Pérez

EMILIA PÉREZ

2024 | Dir. Jacques Audiard | 132 Minutes

"Changing the soul changes society, changing society changes it all."

A Mexican cartel boss coerces struggling lawyer Rita Mora Castro for assistance to secretly arrange gender-affirming surgery and begin a new life. Years later, the former kingpin Emilia Pérez needs Rita's help again, requesting to reconnect with her family while taking on the false identity of an estranged relative. Returning to Mexico, Emilia uses the her wealth to help families victimized by gang violence, but the sins of her vicious past inevitably collide with her altruistic present.

Adapted from a portion of Boris Razon's 2018 novel Écoute, writer/director Jacques Audiard's Emilia Pérez is ostensibly a bold and daring musical about how the transformation of one person may change the world, but the evident lack of care the film has for handling its subject matter destroys any sense of emotional earnestness that's essential for this type of story to work. Centered around a transgender protagonist, the narrative leans hard into tired outdated plot tropes for queer people, the worst of which is the character's nonsensical decision to totally abandon her family as a part of her transition only for her to reconnect with them through underhanded deceptive means. The narrative seemingly takes on more poignant aspects in the second act as Emilia establishes a nonprofit organization to help bring closure to families who had fallen victim to cartel violence, but things quickly go off the rails and the film turns into a clumsy pseudo-telenovela pastiche involving romantic affairs and custody battles, offering little in the way of either amusement or catharsis. The feature comes off as cheap and disingenuous, stripping away any meaning from the marginalized peoples it chooses to focus on, rendering them mere aesthetic choices utilized in questionable taste.

Stylistically on an overall level, Emilia Pérez is more visually garish than appealing. The elaborate dance choreography is consistently hamstrung by some truly off-putting lyrics in the featured songs, making many of the musical numbers a real chore to sit through save for a handful of highlights. "La Vaginoplastia" with its lyrics listing away various gender-affirming surgical procedures kicks off amusingly enough but quickly overstays its welcome, and "El Amor" with Emilia contemplating how she is "half him, half her, half kingpin, half queen" before segueing into a poorly-written ballad about "making love with love" is confounding bad. "Para," highlighting the good work of Emilia's nonprofit through the point of view of the families and its ex-criminal volunteers seeking redemption is one of the few songs with genuinely poignant moments, while the rap-rock number "El Mal" with Rita expressing her anger over the misdeeds of the nonprofit's most prominent donors is the only sequence that somewhat convincingly strikes an engaging defiant punk rock tone.

As the titular lead, Karla Sofía Gascón delivers a serviceably compelling performance despite the shortcomings of the screenplay. Zoe Saldaña demonstrates maximum effort as Emilia's put-upon lawyer Rita, showing off impressive skills in the most physically demanding role of the film. The supporting cast includes Selena Gomez looking and sounding out-of-place as Emilia's ex-wife Jessi, Adriana Paz in a mostly thankless part of Emilia's love interest Epifanía, and Édgar Ramírez as Jessi's lover Gustavo who hardly registers as a character until the plot calls for an unimaginative car crash finale.

On paper, Emilia Pérez is a rather simplistic tale of change, love, and redemption. In execution, the film is a bafflingly misguided movie musical that fumbles its depiction of transgender people and the plight of the victims of cartel violence. The picture is a bizarre curiosity at best, a harmfully inauthentic representation of real world struggles at worst. Principal players Gascón and Saldaña show impressive commitment to their respective roles, but the dialogue and the musical numbers, ranging in quality and tone from awkwardly campy to downright awful, all but undermine their work. The topical issues the production utilizes as set dressing deserve much more thoughtful treatment than this.

FRAGMENTS

- Props to the filmmakers for casting a trans woman to play a trans woman, but not like this, not like this

- The comparisons between this and Mrs. Doubtfire are hilarious, but also sadly quite accurate

- I found the way the dialogue casually deadnames and misgenders Emilia particularly jarring

- Much has been said by others more qualified than I am regarding the mish-mash of the cast's non-Mexican accents, with particular criticism directed towards Selena Gomez's Spanish -- as a Cantonese-speaker subjected to all manner of bad Chinese in American and European cinema, I totally empathize

MCU CONNECTIONS

- Zoe Saldaña (Gamora in Guardians of the Galaxy, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3)

Maestro

MAESTRO

2023 | Dir. Bradley Cooper | 129 Minutes

"It's so fucking draining to love and accept someone who doesn't love and accept themselves, and that's the only truth I know about you."

Conductor Leonard Bernstein and actress Felicia Montealegre meet at a party and quickly fall in love. As the years pass following their marriage, Leonard and Felicia's relationship becomes increasingly strained due to Leonard's success constantly placing the family in the public eye and his habitual indulgences in extramarital affairs with men.

Bradley Cooper's second feature in the director's chair, Maestro is more the story of a complicated marriage than a standard biopic. A stylish film, the feature sincerely explores the challenges behind some of the most loving romantic relationships. The narrative is only underscored by the musical achievements and occurring throughout Bernstein's career instead of directly focusing on them, placing much more emphasis on the emotional highs and lows of his private life. Most of the picture is seen through the perspective of Bernstein's loving but frustrated wife Felicia, sidestepping the often artificially aggrandizing nature of movies about real life artists.

Maestro is an aesthetically appealing picture. Shifting from one style of filmmaking to another throughout the course of its runtime, the black and white photography gives way to Technicolor and the boxy Academy ratio eventually changes to widescreen. It is an inspired way to present the passage of decades. The film's musical score is made up of Leonard Bernstein's works, perfectly demonstrating the timeless quality of his acclaimed musical works.

Bradley Cooper is impressive as the celebrated conductor-composer, fully committed to the part, even genuinely learning how to conduct an orchestra to convincingly perform a key scene. Although as good as Cooper is in the lead role, the old age makeup is a bit distracting as the picture covers Bernstein's later years, decidedly more exaggerated than the way he mimics the way Bernstein spoke. Giving a nuanced and heartbreaking performance as Felicia, Carey Mulligan is mesmerizing. Mulligan believably embodies a woman whose patience is regularly put to the test by disagreeable actions taken by the man she loves unconditionally, sometimes communicating all of this with just a subtle look.

Maestro is a sweet film about an imperfect relationship. The picture takes a refreshing approach to telling the story of a public figure on film, providing ample emotional insight into the person behind the public image that goes well beyond the standard biographical narrative. Confident aesthetic flourishes and a pair of memorable performances delivered by its leading stars further enhance the feature.

FRAGMENTS

- Miriam Shor also appears in 2024 Best Picture Academy Award Nominee American Fiction

- Martin Scorsese was initially attached to direct Maestro but left the project to make The Irishman, while Steven Spielberg who was approached to direct the film after Scorsese's exit encouraged Bradley Cooper to helm the picture upon seeing an early screening of Cooper's A Star is Born

- It's rather controversial for Bradley Cooper, a Catholic man, to wear a prosthetic nose and play a Jewish man

- Who abandoned Snoopy in the vestibule?

MCU CONNECTIONS

- Bradley Cooper (Rocket in Guardians of the Galaxy, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame, Thor: Love and Thunder, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3)

- Miriam Shor (Recorder Vim in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3)

Killers of the Flower Moon

KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON

2023 | Dir. Martin Scorsese | 206 Minutes

"Evil surrounds my heart. Many times I cry and this evil around my heart comes out of my eyes. I close my heart and keep what is good there, but hate comes and I say I ought to kill these white men who killed my family."

Great War veteran Ernest Burkhart is taken in by his uncle William King Hale, a reserve deputy sheriff who plots to rob the oil-rich Osage Nation completely of their wealth while presenting himself as a friend to the tribe. Per Hale's bidding, Ernest courts and marries an Osage woman Mollie Kyle, and suspicious tragedy after suspicious tragedy befalls Mollie's family shortly thereafter.

Martin Scorsese spends over three hours meticulously chronicling an infuriating criminal conspiracy targeting wealthy Osage Native Americans in the 1920s orchestrated by an insidious villain posing as a friend to the tribe. Plumbing the depths that some men would sink to when they are driven by greed and a false sense of racial superiority, Killers of the Flower Moon is a saga detailing the destruction of a people through murder, financial exploitation, marriage, psychological manipulation, and more murder. Adapted from David Grann's non-fiction book of the same name, Scorsese shifts the focus away from the federal investigation of the crimes, instead placing the nephew of the criminal mastermind front and center. It's a creative decision more in fitting with the auteur's preference for making crime thrillers and gangster movies but the resulting picture, while reasonably engrossing, is somewhat tonally monotonous. 

Killers of the Flower Moon is well-made and appropriately epic given its source material, but it's undeniably too lengthy and marred with pacing issues. The production as a whole is an impressive undertaking to be sure, as Scorsese's production clearly went to great lengths to ensure historical accuracy and cultural authenticity. However, much of the film plays out as a series of gradually escalating atrocities stretching on for far too long before a somewhat disjointed conclusion. The core of the drama is centered on the relationship between Ernest and Mollie, particularly Ernest's internal struggle between doing right by his wife and the Osage or remaining loyal to his uncle, and it's just more frustrating than engaging to witness Ernest inevitably making morally bankrupt decisions at nearly every single turn.

The role of Ernest Burkhart is perfectly suited to Leonardo DiCaprio's strengths as a performer, and he plays the part of a charming but morally-conflicted man nearly buckling under the weight of his conscience so very well. Lily Gladstone gives a heart-rending performance as Mollie, a woman who is both desperate for justice for her family and her people but also staunchly in denial about her husband's loyalty and motivations. Delivering some of his finest work, Robert De Niro is absolutely excellent as William Hale, the self-proclaimed King of the Osage, convincingly putting on a friendly face, even speaking the language of the people, while running a secret campaign to thoroughly pillage the wealth of the Osage Nation with cold menacing precision. The extensive supporting cast features notable performances from Jillian Dion as Mollie's alcoholic third sister Minnie, Jesse Plemons as the soft-spoken lead federal investigator Thomas Bruce White Sr., and Brendan Fraser as Hale's hilariously shouty attorney W. S. Hamilton.

Killers of the Flower Moon is a period epic by way of Martin Scorsese's penchant for focusing on unsavory criminal enterprises. While conceptually enticing, much of the picture comes off as an overindulgent slog, one that is appropriately depressing but perhaps should have spent more time in the cutting room. The whole endeavor would have simply been an immensely appealing but unfortunately flawed picture if it were not for phenomenal nuanced performances from its lead actors.

FRAGMENTS

- Lily Gladstone delivered a brilliant and memorable performance as a guest star on the excellent FX television series Reservation Dogs

- Robert De Niro paddling Leonardo DiCaprio inside a Masonic Temple is sure to be remembered as an indelible fixed point in time in cinema history

- Though it came as a surprise for some that Killers of the Flower Moon didn't receive a nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay, one could argue that it isn't a very good adaptation of David Grann's book as the narrative is centered primary on Ernest Burkhart's involvement in the conspiracy rather than the federal investigation

Anatomie d'une chute (Anatomy of a Fall)

ANATOMIE D'UNE CHUTE (ANATOMY OF A FALL)

2023 | Dir. Justine Triet | 152 Minutes

"When we've looked everywhere and still don't understand how the thing happened, I think we have to ask why it happened."

A difficult court trial unfolds after a man plummets to his death under questionable circumstances in southeastern France. Suspected of murdering her husband, a German novelist struggles to plead her case to the French court as well as her grieving son.

Justine Triet's Anatomy of a Fall is an intense courtroom drama that engages its audience by meticulously providing the facts behind the death of an unhappy husband while gradually building an emotionally challenging narrative surrounding the deterioration of a marriage. As the trial continues, it becomes clear that not only is the wife on trial but her relationship with the deceased is subject to judgment as well. The narrative conceit that the key witness for both the trial and the breakdown of a marriage is a visually-impaired child is nothing short of ingenious, as justice in this case is literally blind but with intimate knowledge of the dynamic within the troubled household. By design, Triet offers no definitive answer as to whether the husband died by murder or suicide, but instead appeals to the audience to look past the inconclusive facts and discover their own emotional truth.

Masterfully written, language plays a key part in Anatomy of a Fall, leaning heavily into the film's themes surrounding communication. The narrative draws attention to the German wife and French husband's decision to speak English as a compromise in their relationship, a compromise that has failed spectacularly as illustrated in the sequence playing back a secretly recorded contentious exchange turned violent between husband and wife. This failure to communicate is symbolic of their marriage and presents itself as a major conflict for her in the French-speaking courtroom. By its final act, the picture also heavily implies the husband's failure to communicate his festering depression, as their son is tasked to draw a heartbreaking conclusion based on a cryptic conversation they once shared.

In the complex lead role, Sandra Hüller is spectacular, absolutely sympathetic through and through despite lingering doubts regarding her character's innocence. Young actor Milo Machado Graner gives an emotionally resonant stand-out performance as the legally blind son Daniel, an incredibly tough role to play. Also standing out is the Border Collie Messi who played Daniel's guide dog Snoop, delivering perhaps one of the most affecting film performances ever from a canine actor.

Anatomy of a Fall is as much about the communication breakdown between two spouses as it is about the inherent difficulty in communication between a German murder suspect and the French justice system. Driven by a brilliant screenplay and powerful performances, the picture presents the ending of a relationship put on public display in unsettling invasive detail. It's a feature that demands audience engagement, refusing to provide easy conclusions.

FRAGMENTS

- Sandra Hüller also appears in 2024 Best Picture Academy Award Nominee The Zone of Interest

- Antoine Reinartz who plays the prosecutor bears a striking resemblance to beloved American comedian Paul Scheer

- Anatomy of a Fall won the Palme d'Or at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival, and Snoop actor Messi most deservedly won the Palm Dog Award

- It is patently ridiculous that France submitted La Passion de Dodin Bouffant (The Taste of Things) instead of this film as their entry for the 2024 Academy Award for Best International Feature Film

Tár

TÁR

2022 | Dir. Todd Field | 158 Minutes

"Don't be so eager to be offended. The narcissism of small differences leads to the most boring conformity."

At the height of her career, universally acclaimed composer/conductor Lydia Tár prepares to record the culmination of her life's work. However, past indiscretions begin to catch up with her, exacerbated by her continued thoughtless mistreatment of those within her sphere of influence. Her personal and professional accomplishments swiftly unravel.

Writer/director Todd Field's Tár is an engaging and provocative film centered on a deeply flawed protagonist. As if subverting the standard biopic narrative, the picture plays like the typical story of the triumphant rise of a fictional virtuoso, except in reverse. After efficiently introducing the much-lauded musical savant in the form of an interview at the New Yorker Festival, firmly establishing her numerous accomplishments, including EGOT status, the narrative gradually reveals the disturbing history of its subject's impropriety, namely her verbally demeaning teaching style, and her reckless womanizing and emotional manipulation of younger musicians. Though she is not entirely without redeeming qualities, such as her love for her young daughter, and there is evidence of a conscience in the form some truly creepy nightmares, her intrinsic defects as a human being undo the years of work she spent honing her talent and even carefully curating her persona as revealed by the final act of the picture. Addressing topical concerns regarding the often-abused privilege at the disposal of public figures, and the sudden onset of social and professional reckoning, Field and lead performer Cate Blanchett craft a delicate balance that illustrates the admirable tenacity of unrelentingly talented people as well as their potential for deplorable behavior.

Taking on a horror film aesthetic, Tár is at its very best when illustrating the moments of dread experienced by the conductor. Exploring the anxieties haunting the shrewd and seemingly impenetrable woman, the frequent hallucination and nightmare sequences suggest that she ultimately isn't so much a conscience as she chooses to repress it. The distorted faces and auditory anomalies during these moments are genuinely disturbing, complementing the collapse of the musical genius's life of calculated, controlled stability. The intensity of these sequences slowly bleeds into the waking world until it culminates with a truly epic meltdown after Lydia is ousted from her position and she storms the stage in a pathetic attempt to reclaim the podium from her replacement.

Blanchett is phenomenal, giving one of her best performances ever, skillfully presenting the mindset of the central character with a certain delicate balance that elicits empathy but never sympathy. In a stand-out supporting performance as Lydia's suffering assistant Francesca, Noémie Merlant exudes a quiet dignity worthy of admiration. The supporting cast also features Nina Hoss as Lydia's concertmaster wife Sharon, Sophie Kauer as cellist and Lydia's prospective love interest Olga Metkina, Julian Glover as Lydia's mentor Andris Davis, and Mark Strong as the manager of Lydia's fellowship program.

A mesmerizing character study of an unrepentant narcissist, Tár presents a thought-provoking portrait of a problematic artist, depicting the downfall of an exceptional but controversial person with foreboding inevitability, challenging the audience to weigh her selfish and abusive actions against her undeniable talent. Topical though the themes may be, the film impressively avoids heavy-handed preaching. By presenting the entire narrative from the perspective and disturbed psyche of its troubled and troubling subject, the picture leaves judgment solely at the discretion of the viewer.

FRAGMENTS

- Uncommon for modern films, the picture begins with the credits for the technical staff

- The late-film reveal of Lydia's humble Staten Island origins, along with her birth name of Linda Tarr, is amazing, making her poor judgment and downfall all the more unfortunate, if not outright tragic

- The final scene depicting Lydia conducting a Monster Hunter video game concert for cosplaying fans as the absolute career nadir for a working conductor is somewhat amusing

- Hildur Guðnadóttir composed the scores for this film and another 2023 Best Picture Oscar Nominee Women Talking

MCU CONNECTIONS

- Cate Blanchett (Hela in Thor: Ragnarok)

The Fabelmans

THE FABELMANS

2022 | Dir. Steven Spielberg | 151 Minutes

"Family. Art. It'll tear you in two."

After viewing his first film at a young age, Sammy Fabelman aspires to become a filmmaker. Weathering family strife, gross anti-Semitic discrimination, and other challenges, Sammy's dedication to his chosen medium of artistic expression is continually tested.

Steven Spielberg's semi-autobiographical picture ruminating on family, the nature of art, and the power of filmmaking is a respectable crowd-pleaser in line with much of the celebrated director's body of work. It is an affecting film that is elevated by the respective performances of its talented cast but suffers a bit from the narrative's lack of subtlety, delivering engaging text without a shred of subtext. The story of Spielberg stand-in Sammy as presented feels oddly by-the-numbers, offering few surprises, tracking his coming-of-age from his first theatrical experience as a child watching Cecil B. DeMille's The Greatest Show on Earth with his parents to his burgeoning talent as a filmmaker making movies as a boy scout in Arizona to his disillusionment and eventual rekindling with the craft as a bullied high school student. Through it all is a subplot surrounding the dissolution of Sammy's parents' marriage that informs Sammy's relationship with film on a somewhat simplistic Freudian level.

By far, the weakest aspect of The Fabelmans is the screenplay by Tony Kushner, lacking in subtlety, painting the narrative in broad strokes. This is most noticeable during the second half of the film that features a cartoonishly flighty devout Christian high school girlfriend and over-the-top bullies that behave more like caricatures than believable characters. However, the technical expertise exhibited by Spielberg greatly elevates the material. Showcasing Spielberg's seasoned talent as a filmmaker, the feature is at its best when it demonstrates Sammy's natural talent as a director and editor. Spielberg's expert technique is best exemplified in quiet moments with big emotional payoffs such as Sammy amusingly giving a young boy scout just the right motivation to unintentionally transform him into a full-fledged method actor and the discovery of his mother's affair with his father's best friend while reviewing footage from a family camping trip, though presentation of the high school beach movie that tops off the picture's finale that leads to a confrontation with, and redemption of, one of Sammy's tormentors plays out a bit too neatly.

Gabriel LaBelle makes for an captivating analog for a teenage Spielberg, giving a measured, controlled performance that could have easily gone off the rails considering the big, emotional outbursts required in countless scenes. As Sammy's radiant but troubled mother, Michelle Williams dazzles, delivering her best performance to date that almost makes up for what the role lacks in nuance as it is written. Paul Dano turns in fine work as Sammy's soft-spoken no-nonsense tech whiz father, most convincing in moments of quiet suffering. Knocking out of the park his most understated and, arguably, best dramatic role yet, Seth Rogen is both charismatic and slightly detestable as the jovial family friend revealed to be a crucial factor in the destabilization of Sammy's family. The broadest piece of acting in the film belongs to Judd Hirsch in a brief incredibly though affecting appearance as Sammy's granduncle Boris imparting the gruffest grunkle life advice.

Funny, heartbreaking, and consistently entertaining throughout, The Fabelmans falls just short of excellent due in part to its distractingly broad screenplay. Despite the melodrama of some of its writing, the feature is a competently-made, highly accessible biopic about the power of filmmaking and the sometimes high cost of pursuing one's dreams. While the film is inspired by the childhood of Steven Spielberg, it doesn't offer too much insight into the acclaimed director's life, but its story is definitely made better by moments that are clearly sourced specifically from his upbringing.

FRAGMENTS

- Seeing Paul Dano play a stern dad makes me feel my age

- David Lynch's cameo as legendary director John Ford during the epilogue is one of my favorite movie moments of 2022

- The final shot with the camera correcting its horizon line is the perfect punctuation to the John Ford epilogue

Promising Young Woman

PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN

2020 | Dir. Emerald Fennell | 113 Minutes

"I'm not the only one who does this. And some of the other girls, they really are crazy."

Forever scarred by the devastating sexual assault that destroyed her best friend Nina, med school drop-out Cassie spends her nights prowling bars, exposing and psychologically punishing men who prey on drunk women. When she learns Nina's rapist is thriving professionally and getting married, Cassie methodically plots revenge against him and his enablers.

Writer/director Emerald Fennell's feature debut is a superbly-executed revenge film featuring an inspired premise and a razor-sharp script with a grim sense of humor. Following a brisk opening act that entertainingly introduces the cunning anti-heroine protagonist and her MO, the picture is neatly divided into five sections, one for each step of Cassie's meticulous plan. As Cassie teaches unforgettable lessons to each of her targets, she does so at the expense of her own happiness, losing a bit of her soul each time, straining her relationship with her parents and her budding romance with a former classmate. The plot is thoroughly engaging with a wealth of unpredictable turns, from a tortured surprisingly repentant lawyer that casts doubt on Cassie's mission to a late film twist that irrevocably reinforces it.

Considering its difficult subject matter, Promising Young Woman is remarkably appealing in its overall presentation. The bright color palette of the film is striking and through thoughtful framing, most of the shots serve to highlight Cassie's isolation from others. To drive home the point that vengeance is a solitary path, unless she is on the hunt, Cassie seldom shares screen space with others. When she does there is noticeable distance separating her from the supporting characters who care about her with a few notable exceptions: her scenes with love interest Ryan, her boss at her coffee shop day job Gail, and Nina's mother. Thematically, Ryan represents Cassie's option to abandon her crusade and reconnect with the world, and to a certain extent her only friend Gail symbolizes this as well as she constantly encourages Cassie to build a career beyond the coffee shop, while her friendly but uncomfortable relationship with Nina's mother embodies her refusal to move on from her grief over Nina. The tense musical score by Anthony Willis sounds appropriate for a thriller, notably featuring a killer string rendition of Britney Spears' "Toxic" that opens the final act of the picture. Willis' score juxtaposes nicely against upbeat needle-drops such as Paris Hilton's "Stars Are Blind" and Juice Newton's "Angel of the Morning."

In the lead role, Carey Mulligan is a force to be reckoned with, delivering an emotionally complex performance that seamlessly switches between extremely cool and affectingly vulnerable. As love interest Ryan, the charismatic Bo Burnham is delightfully charming, dialing up a likably awkward persona which makes his part in the twist all the more upsetting. The all-around excellent supporting cast features Clancy Brown and Jennifer Coolidge amusingly playing Cassie's clueless parents, Laverne Cox impeccably cast as the supportive Gail, Max Greenfield going full douchebag bro, and Molly Shannon delivering brief but notable dramatic performance as Nina's mother. Playing Cassie's targets, Alison Brie is believably vapid as Cassie's schoolmate Madison, Connie Britton plays the insufferably impersonal dean at Cassie's medical school with perfect poise until it is shattered, the reliably great Alfred Molina stands out as a tormented lawyer, and Chris Lowell is at his most convincingly spineless portraying Nina's rapist. Brilliantly cast against type, nice guy actors Adam Brody, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, and Samuel Richardson appear as predators who fall prey to Cassie's nightly hunt.

With a spectacular script and stellar direction, Emerald Fennell's Promising Young Woman is intense, darkly funny, and aesthetically pleasing from start to finish. It is an ingenious revenge story, one that illustrates the self-destructive all-consuming nature of seeking vengeance but also one that demands society at large to be held accountable for intolerable casual misogyny on any level.

FRAGMENTS

- Emerald Fennell makes a cameo appearance as the host of an online "blow job lips" makeup tutorial video

- Alison Brie and Chris Lowell starred in the excellent Netflix Original Series GLOW

- The film never explicitly defines the meaning of the different colored markings in Cassie's notebook

MCU CONNECTIONS

- Alfred Molina (Otto Octavius in Spider-Man: No Way Home)

Marriage Story

MARRIAGE STORY
2019 | Dir. Noah Baumbach | 136 Minutes

"Criminal lawyers see bad people at their best, divorce lawyers see good people at their worst."

As the marriage between an actress and a director ends, they struggle to remain civil while clashing over legal custody of their son.

Written and directed by Noah Baumbach, Marriage Story is a sobering film about the difficult work that goes into processing a broken relationship. Both of its lead characters are presented as likable, relatable, flawed individuals and the narrative is masterfully written to avoid demonizing either one of them. The film methodically demonstrates how both are making their way through varying stages of grief, both are better off separated from each other, and both are at fault for their failed marriage. The picture also does a fair job of presenting the differing legal challenges men and women face during a divorce, providing adequate screen time to both leads to better shed light on financial and social gender-based disparities. Things swiftly become downright brutal and even alarming as soon as lawyers enter the picture, giving voice to grievances that perhaps should never be said out loud between two people who still care about each other despite their irreconcilable differences.

Scarlett Johansson plays Nicole with a striking blend of vulnerability and incredible strength, best demonstrated in Nicole's deeply moving monologue when she first meets her lawyer. As Charlie, Adam Driver perfectly personifies all of the pain and frustration a man goes through during a catastrophic breakup, keeping his sorrow and anger under wraps as his composure steadily erodes, most amusing during the sequence in which Charlie hosts a humorless evaluator tasked to monitor his home life with his son. Both of their performances culminate in an explosive verbal confrontation in Charlie's apartment, an intense, agonizing, and harrowing scene that is sure to leave an indelible mark on the audience.

Azhy Robertson delivers a natural performance as Nicole and Charlie's son Henry, who realistically is allowed to be a bit of an asshole, both a major motivation for the two leads and an antagonist of sorts. Laura Dern is flashy and fun as Nicole's lawyer Nora, so good playing sweet and caring as well as unpredictably cunning and vicious. Ray Liotta and Alan Alda respectively play Charlie's over-aggressive first lawyer Jay and his mild-mannered and understanding second lawyer Bert, both excellent representing two vastly different approaches to resolving an ostensibly unwinnable conflict. Julie Hagerty is pretty great in the role of Nicole's naive and overbearing mother Sandra, as is Merritt Wever playing Nicole's jittery sister Cassie. Wallace Shawn makes a brief but fun appearance as one of the actors in Charlie's theater group.

Driven by truly excellent performances from its two leads and a sharp and painfully honest script, Marriage Story is an emotionally challenging film that takes a hard look at the soul-crushing ordeals and institutionalized double standards of divorce. It's a rough, heartbreaking, and profoundly cathartic experience.


FRAGMENTS
- The narrative is loosely based on Noah Baumbach's personal experience of divorcing Jennifer Jason Leigh

- This film is Adam Driver's fourth collaboration with Noah Baumbach following Frances Ha, While We're Young, and The Meyerowitz Stories

- Scarlett Johansson and Laura Dern appeared in The Horse Whisperer

- Adam Driver and Laura Dern appeared in Star Wars: The Last Jedi

- Scarlett Johansson also appears in 2020 Best Picture Nominee Jojo Rabbit, nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in that film

- Laura Dern also appears in 2020 Best Picture Nominee Little Women

- Noah Baumbach and Adam Driver are fans of Stephen Sondheim's 1970 Broadway musical Company; the film features Nicole singing "You Could Drive a Person Crazy" and Charlie singing "Being Alive" which Adam Driver performed in one uninterrupted take

- Mark O'Brien who appears briefly as Nicole's boyfriend in the epilogue has an extensive history of playing troubled men most notably in Arrival, Ready or Not, and on the acclaimed television series Halt and Catch Fire


MCU CONNECTIONS
- Scarlett Johansson (Natasha Romanoff in Iron Man 2, The Avengers, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War, Captain Marvel, Avengers: Endgame, and Black Widow)

Little Women

LITTLE WOMEN

2019 | Dir. Greta Gerwig | 135 Minutes

"Life is too short to be angry at one's sisters."

In mid-nineteenth Massachusetts, the March sisters learn to love and grow together and on their own as the years bring unique opportunities and challenges to each of them.

Greta Gerwig's adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's literary classic is a beautifully crafted work of art. The film is an aesthetic treat, featuring beautiful production design, gorgeous costumes, and appealing sets shot on location in Massachusetts. Utilizing a non-linear story structure, the film accentuates the story's emotional beats in an engaging and remarkably creative way while subtly accentuating the novel's timeliness themes. It's an extraordinarily pleasant picture and yet it's never dull thanks to Gerwig's talent for presenting characters with genuine quirks, powerful motivations, and engaging interpersonal dynamics. Despite each harboring different artistic passions, the March sisters lead vastly different lives, and the film authentically and organically presents their respective struggles as they either shrink from, conform to, or rebel against the expectations of society.

Struggling writer Jo and aspiring painter Amy share the spotlight equally, fully illustrating the varying challenges faced by the two sisters. Clever Jo, with her unyielding determination and her vocal frustration with the limitations society imposes upon women, is a natural protagonist to follow. Her platonic friendship with Laurie and her reluctance to accept Friedrich Bhaer as a romantic prospect is presented ambiguously enough in this adaptation for contemporary audiences to plausibly view Jo as a strong queer character. More impressively, the picture does a brilliant job of making Amy a completely sympathetic character, exploring the motivations behind her occasional petulance, emphasizing the difficulty of being the youngest child. The picture also depicts Meg's courtship and marriage to John Brooke with a light touch, illustrating her low-key frustration with poverty as she learns to value love over luxury. However, perhaps fittingly, poor Beth's tragic story is relatively brief in this adaptation.

The ensemble cast of Little Women is wonderful through and through. The perfect chemistry shared among the principal cast truly warms the heart. Saoirse Ronan was born to play the headstrong wildly intelligent Jo while Florence Pugh brings a wealth of depth to the sensitive Amy. Ronan and Pugh's respective passionate performances really make this adaptation special, particularly Pugh's Amy. Emma Watson is a natural fit for eldest sister Meg, displaying a tangible weary maturity in comparison to her co-stars. Though her role is brief, Eliza Scanlen is simply heartbreaking as shy pianist Beth. Timothée Chalamet is brilliant as always in the role of the lovelorn Laurie, Laura Dern is enchanting as the even-tempered Marmee, Meryl Streep is absolutely entertaining as cynical Aunt March, Chris Cooper is charming as the kindly Mr. Laurence, Louis Garrel is a convincing heartthrob as Friedrich Bhaer, and Tracy Letts is appropriately insufferable as the shrewd editor Mr. Dashwood.

Greta Gerwig's Little Women is a lovely, soulful, and genuinely heartwarming picture, delivering the novel's timeless themes of family, romance, and pursuing one's dreams with earnestness, humor, and grace. While it's debatable whether or not this latest adaptation is the definitive film version of Louisa May Alcott's beloved novel, it's indisputably a bonafide cinematic masterpiece.

FRAGMENTS

- Laura Dern also appears in 2020 Best Picture Nominee Marriage Story

- Tracey Letts also appears in 2020 Best Picture Nominee Ford v Ferrari

- It was a genuine wonderful surprise for me to see Bob Odenkirk as Father March

MCU CONNECTIONS

- Florence Pugh (Yelena Belova in Black Widow, Thunderbolts*, and Spider-Man: Brand New Day)

A Star is Born

A STAR IS BORN
2018 | Dir. Bradley Cooper | 135 Minutes

"Music is essentially twelve notes between any octave. Twelve notes and the octave repeats. It's the same story told over and over. All the artist can offer the world is how they see those twelve notes."

By chance, talented amateur singer Ally leaves a lasting impression on country music superstar Jackson Maine when he sees Ally perform a drag bar. After convincing Ally to join him on stage to perform an original song that she had written, Ally becomes an overnight success. The pair fall deeply in love but their relationship is under constant pressure from Jack's objection to Ally's career choices and his personal struggles with depression and addiction.

Marking Hollywood's fourth take on A Star is Born, Bradley Cooper's directorial debut is clearly Cooper's passion project considering the amount of heart evident on screen in every frame. The love story that drives the picture is genuinely moving as is the inevitable tragedy inherent in every version of the story. Musical sequences are executed with impressive technical mastery, ranging in scale from small and intimate to massive and exhilarating. The songs, many of which were written by Lady Gaga and Cooper, are bona fide earworms. The moment Ally joins Jack on stage to perform her star-making song is pure cinematic magic, an instantly iconic sequence for the ages.

Unfortunately, the rest of the picture following that moment is spent coming down from that high, never to reach it again. Though surely by design, what remains is a fairly standard critique of stardom and celebrity ego, with Ally following the path of a generic albeit wildly successful pop singer and Jack overtaken by his deep-seated trauma and alcoholism. The wisdom Jack ultimately imparts on Ally is to use her voice to say something meaningful while she has the attention of the world, but his message never cuts any deeper than that.

The fantastic chemistry the two leads share is nothing short of remarkable. Lady Gaga is extraordinary as Ally, perfectly showcasing her authenticity, her vulnerability, and her raw musical talent. Gaga's innate charisma makes it remarkably easy to fall in love with Ally, providing a unique natural energy to her performance. Taking on the role of a self-destructive FM-country star on his way out, Cooper turns in a reliable but relatively standard performance with just enough quietly tormented inner life to stay engaging. The most impressive aspect of Cooper's performance is his commitment to look and sound the part of a country rock artist, without a doubt the product of dedicated research and training. The supporting cast features Andrew Dice Clay as Ally's lovable working class father, Sam Elliott as Jack's long suffering brother and manager, and Dave Chappelle in what amounts to an extended cameo appearance as Jack's supportive best friend.

Though not an entirely fresh retelling of a familiar story, A Star is Born is a well-crafted and emotionally resonant picture with an exceptional soundtrack. Its simple but moving love story is the feature's greatest strength. The film's biggest flaw is that it does not fully illustrate its most interesting idea: the responsibility of pop artists to deliver meaningful art considering the powerful but fleeting nature of their influence on the world.


FRAGMENTS
- The amusing dialogue in the drag bar scenes were mostly improvised

- Some of the musical performances were filmed at the 2017 Coachella Festival

- Jack and Ally's dog in the film is played by Bradley Cooper's dog Charlie


SUPPLEMENTAL STUFF
- Video: Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper "Shallow"

- Video: Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper "Shallow" (Live in Las Vegas on January 26, 2019)

- Video: Lady Gaga "Always Remember Us This Way"

- Video: Lady Gaga "Look What I Found"

- Video: Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper "I'll Never Love Again"


MCU CONNECTIONS
- Bradley Cooper (Rocket in Guardians of the Galaxy, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame, Thor: Love and Thunder, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3)

Roma

ROMA
2018 | Dir. Alfonso Cuarón | 135 Minutes

"We love you so much, Cleo."

The modest life of a live-in housekeeper for a middle-class household in 1970 Colonia Roma is disrupted by an unexpected pregnancy. As her employer's marriage falls apart, political turmoil on the streets boil over, and her own situation worsens, Cleo carries on with genuine love and support from the family she serves.

Roma is a meditative examination of a life that would typically be overlooked or dismissed outright for a narrative feature. Beautifully shot in striking black and white, writer/director Alfonso Cuarón accentuates major events of Cleo's story by setting them against the politically volatile times of early 1970s Mexico. Mounting tensions within Cleo's life and her household symbolically manifest into spontaneous forest fires and violence in the streets. Through all of her highs and lows, the profound affection that Cleo shares with the family that employs her figuratively and literally saves her life as well as theirs.

Dedicated to his childhood nanny and loosely based on her life, Caurón captures the minutiae of Cleo's day-to-day activities in tender loving detail. Through these moments and her interactions with the family, particularly with the children she tends to and cares for, Cleo is authentically presented as a fully defined human being with a dignified inner life, never framed as a doting servant but as a valued member of the household. Visually, the scope of the film gracefully expands in several key sequences featuring Cuarón's signature long extended takes that seamlessly build dramatic tension.

Without any formal acting experience, Yalitza Aparicio is warm, charming, and remarkably natural as Cleo, essentially the polar opposite of a big flashy lead performance in the best way possible. Aparicio is especially heartbreaking during the final stretch of the story that requires her to express great loss and greater bravery. Playing the mother of the family, Marina de Tavira effectively portrays a highly-educated headstrong woman on the cusp of a painful divorce, a person who could not be any more different from Cleo in terms of social status and temperament. Some of the film's best moments are shared between Aparicio and de Tavira, as Cuarón focuses on the struggles that the two women have in common.

Visually breathtaking, crafted with love and precision, Roma is a comprehensive showcase of Alfonso Cuarón's skills as storyteller and filmmaker. The picture takes a deeply personal and compassionate look at the life of a humble servant and presents it on a scale that gracefully shifts between intimate and epic. The deliberate pacing the film may be a detractor for some viewers, but the human story of perseverance and unconditional love at its core is profoundly moving and absolutely worthy of an audience.


FRAGMENTS
- Like the character she portrays, Yalitza Aparicio cannot swim and was terrified about the climatic sequence on the beach

- The family goes to the cinema to see the 1969 space adventure film Marooned starring Gregory Peck, a direct inspiration for Alfonso Cuarón's 2013 film Gravity for which he won an Oscar for Best Director

The Shape of Water

THE SHAPE OF WATER
2017 | Dir. Guillermo del Toro | 123 Minutes

"When he looks at me, the way he looks at me, he does not know what I lack or how I am incomplete. He sees me, for what I am, as I am. He's happy to see me every time, every day."

In Cold War era Baltimore, Maryland, a mute woman named Elisa works as a janitor at a secret government facility. Elisa falls in love with an aquatic humanoid creature held captive in the lab, but as their romance blossoms she catches the attention of the sadistic colonel who captured the creature. With the creature's life on the line, Elisa helps the creature escape with the help of her friends.

The Shape of Water is a creature feature with a romantic heart beating at its core. Writer/Director Guillermo del Toro's fondness for monsters and old Hollywood colors every frame of the film. The audience is quickly introduced to Alisa who lives alone in a creaky apartment above an old movie theater through her day-to-day routine down to the most honest and intimate detail. As Alisa's relationship with the creature develops, rather than shy away from depicting the physical act of love, del Toro fully embraces the moment as one of romantic beauty and triumph. The supporting characters populating the relatively simple narrative are also nuanced and human to a fault, from Alisa's awkward neighbor who has a shy crush on the server at the local cafe to the villainous colonel who suffers from intense feelings of inadequacy.

As the mute heroine Elisa, Sally Hawkins is simply lovely and undeniably magnetic, carrying the film with genuine strength and grace. Doug Jones, the Boris Karloff of our time (and director Guillermo del Toro's regular ace in the hole), delivers yet another brilliant and affecting performance as the meticulously-realized fishman - here's hoping the Academy honors him with a statue some day if they're ever less stuffy about recognizing genre films. Character actor Michael Shannon at his most volatile raises the dramatic stakes considerably as the colonel, and leads a fantastic supporting cast featuring Octavia Spencer as Elisa's unhappily wed friend from work, Richard Jenkins as her kindly gay neighbor, and Michael Stuhlbarg as a conscientious soviet spy.

An artful and truly unique blend of pure romance and monster movie, The Shape of Water is a heartfelt tribute to those who feel unloved, and the fulfillment one may find in unexpected places. The film ranks among Guillermo del Toro's finest works, and it's without a doubt one of the best motion pictures of the year.


FRAGMENTS
- Writer/Director Guillermo del Toro reportedly asked for assistance from female members of his family and female friends to design the shape of the creature's butt to ensure that it was pleasing to the eye

- Doug Jones previously appeared in Writer/Director Guillermo del Toro's Hellboy and Hellboy II: The Golden Army based on Mike Mignola's comic book series as Abe Sapien, a similar amphibious humanoid creature

- Michael Stuhlbarg appears in three Best Picture Oscar Nominees that were released in 2017: this film, Call Me By Your Name, and The Post


MCU CONNECTIONS
- Michael Stuhlbarg (Nicodemus West in Doctor Strange and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness)

The Post

THE POST
2017 | Dir. Steven Spielberg | 116 Minutes

"We can't hold them accountable if we don't have a newspaper."

In the mid 1960s, an embittered military analyst leaks classified reports documenting the extensive secret history of the ongoing Vietnam War that was hidden from the American public to various news outlets. It is a race against the clock for the reporters of the financially fragile Washington Post to obtain the documents to beat other publications to press time, but when the Nixon Administration bars the New York Times from publishing the classified information, Katharine Graham, the reluctant owner of the Washington Post, must choose between protecting the integrity of her politician friends and the stability of her business, or serving the American people by exposing the truth.

Steven Spielberg's latest film is a relatively standard, competently-constructed drama elevated by its magnificent cast. The picture's captivating narrative surrounding the Washington Post's decision to publish the Pentagon Papers unfolds in a deliberate fashion that is at times frustrating and at times exhilarating. The focus of the feature shifts between the drama surrounding Graham (and the men who both support and subvert her leadership) and the revelation of the shocking truths behind the Vietnam War. The very best sequence of the film involves the leadership of the Washington Post on multiple telephones sharing one phone line, arguing over whether or not their Pentagon Papers story should be published with press time just hours away.

While Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks are at the top of their respective games, they do not deliver their very best work. Streep is perfectly regal and relatable as Katharine Graham, but while Graham faces a significant personal dilemma, the role ultimately does not require much range. The same can be said of Hanks' part as Ben Bradlee, with Hanks once again doing a fine job taking on his bread and butter role of the standard everyman, this time in the form of the impassioned newspaper editor-in-chief with little to no respect for authority. The supporting cast is packed with a variety of talent featuring Bruce Greenwood, Tracy Letts, Bradley Whitford, Matthew Rhys, Alison Brie, Sarah Paulson, Bob Odenkirk, David Cross, Carrie Coon, Jesse Plemons, Zach Woods, and Michael Stuhlbarg all in key roles.

The true story of the Washington Post's decision to report on the Pentagon Papers, and subsequently provoke the wrath of the Nixon administration, already a story worth telling and retelling, is all the more relevant now considering the current presidential administration's disdain for the press. However, Spielberg's narrative unfolds in an almost painfully procedural way. The Post is without a doubt an important film, but its greatest flaw is that it is just a good movie but not a great one.


FRAGMENTS
- Bradley Whitford appears in two Best Picture Oscar Nominees that were released in 2017: this film and Get Out

- Tracy Letts appears in two Best Picture Oscar Nominees that were released in 2017: this film and Lady Bird

- Michael Stuhlbarg appears in three Best Picture Oscar Nominees that were released in 2017: this film, Call Me By Your Name, and The Shape of Water

- Bob Odenkirk, Jesse Plemons, Carrie Coon, and Michael Stuhlbarg were all featured in the acclaimed Fargo television series

- It's incredibly gratifying to Bob Odenkrik and his comedy partner David Cross, the creators/stars of Mr. Show, featured so prominently together on screen in a Steven Spielberg film


MCU CONNECTIONS
- Michael Stuhlbarg (Nicodemus West in Doctor Strange and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness)

- Carrie Coon (Proxima Midnight in Avengers: Infinity War)

Lady Bird

LADY BIRD
2017 | Dir. Greta Gerwig | 93 Minutes

"The only thing exciting about 2002 is that it's a palindrome."

Catholic high school senior Christine "Lady Bird" McPherson and her mother Marion are at odds about Lady Bird's desire to attend college away from her hometown. Leading up to graduation, Lady Bird openly defies authority, falls for boys who are not good for her, and briefly abandons her best friend to socialize with the popular kids. Meanwhile, Lady Bird's middle class family struggles through tough financial challenges.

Greta Gerwig's directorial debut is a funny true-to-life coming-of-age story with a screenplay by Gerwig that accurately portrays the life of a high school senior without sugarcoating or over-dramatizing the very real emotions experienced by youth on the cusp of adulthood. From Lady Bird's sometimes clever, sometimes clumsy mannerisms to the questionable social decisions she makes throughout the picture, there is a captivating inevitability in the way Gerwig's narrative unfolds. The early 2000's setting is authentically captured from the haircuts to the music to the truly dumb and naive things teenagers said and believed at the time. The denouement fizzles out slightly, but I guess that's realistic, too.

Saoirse Ronan is fantastic as the titular rebellious teenager, perfectly capturing the spirit and the awkwardness without turning the role into a caricature. Laurie Metcalf matches Ronan's energy as Lady Bird's mother, playing to perfection the headstrong woman who hides her own vulnerability behind a barrier of strict, no-room-for-argument parenting. Conversely, Tracy Letts is lovable as Lady Bird's seemingly perpetually laidback father who is revealed to be struggling with depression unbeknownst to his daughter. Playing the boys Lady Bird fall for, Lucas Hedges excels in a relatively small but rich role as a closeted gay Catholic, while Timothée Chalamet is hilariously believable as the detached teen in a band who believes in wild conspiracy theories and can’t be bothered. Scene-stealer Beanie Feldstein is absolutely adorable as Lady Bird's best friend Julie, quietly playing out a heartbreaking subplot in which Julie has an inadvisable crush on her math teacher.

With nuanced natural dialogue, carried by brilliant performances from its cast, Greta Gerwig crafted an instant-classic in Lady Bird. The attention to detail paid to establish the characters and the setting is remarkable. Most importantly, the themes and ideas at the very heart of the film ring true.


FRAGMENTS
- Tracy Letts appears in two Best Picture Oscar Nominees that were released in 2017: this film and The Post

- Lucas Hedges appears in two Best Picture Oscar Nominees that were released in 2017: this film and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

- Timothée Chalamet appears in two Best Picture Oscar Nominees that were released in 2017: this film and Call Me By Your Name

- Kathryn Newton appears in two Best Picture Oscar Nominees that were released in 2017: this film and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

- To this day, I adamantly loathe the Dave Matthews Band song "Crash Into Me" but the director Greta Gerwig utilizes the song in a surprisingly funny and emotionally touching way

MCU CONNECTIONS

- Kathryn Newton (Cassie Lang in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania)