Catch the Fair One is about a boxer, Kaylee (played by real-life boxer and world champion Kali Reis) who goes on a hunt for her younger sister, missing for two years. Kaylee suspects that her sister has been kidnapped and taken by a sex trafficking ring, and makes it her purpose in life to rescue her. With a (dubious, at best) tip in hand, Kaylee infiltrates the ring posing as a new worker, only to be double crossed by the people her gave her the tip. Kaylee is able to escape, but hides in one of her kidnapper’s trucks, riding along back to his house, where she can torture him and his family for clues. As she continues down the rabbit hole, it becomes quite apparent to the viewer, though not to Kaylee, that she is chasing a ghost. These people don’t care about nor remember some girl they picked up 2 years ago, so Kaylee may have to settle for revenge over redemption. Reis is strong in the lead role, surprising for a newcomer with no previous acting experience, but the film gets bogged down in its “war of attrition” as Kaylee finds more questions than answers, with each encounter inflicting a toll on her emotionally and physically. Super fans of action thrillers will find plenty to like. ★★★

Playground, a French film, follows little Nora, a child going to school for the first time, as she navigates an often-tumultuous life in the schoolyard. Like many, she doesn’t want to leave her dad on the first day, but at least has some familiarity as she shares a building with her one- or two-year older brother Abel. What she is most definitely not prepared for is school bullying. At recess on the first day, she tries to shadow Abel. He attempts to push her away, saying that the new kids are going to be bullied, but Nora doesn’t understand. What she comes to learn is her brother is one of the bullies, mostly because he is following the lead of the other, bigger boys. When Nora intervenes, she makes Abel a target, and his life at school becomes a living hell. Nora makes it worse when she tries to get parents and teachers involved, as the bullies just ramp up their ill treatment towards Abel. Her own association with him makes her a target as well, even amongst those friends she is able to make in her class. The film is hard to watch at times, and I certainly don’t remember bullying this bad when I was in school, but times have definitely changed. The whole movie is shot just over Nora’s shoulder or with the camera right in front of her, in a very Dardenne brothers kind of way (reminded me a lot of Rosetta). Nora is the sole focus of this movie, and too often child actors aren’t able to handle the scrutiny, but Maya Vanderbeque is up the challenge. She is fantastic as the naive Nora who has to learn some of the cruelties of life very quickly. ★★★★

Moving from France to The Czech Republic, Servants tells a story about the real-life time in Czechoslovakia in the late 70s/early 80s when the Communist government was clamping down on religious freedoms. The dominant Catholic religion in the country has publicly agreed to governments demands, moulding itself more in line with Communist ideology. Juraj and Michal, two theological students, are not on board, and join and underground movement to subvert the public teachings in favor of more traditional Catholic teachings. Unfortunately eyes and ears are everywhere, with some of the school’s own teachers and priests in the employ of the Communist party, whether by choice or, as is the case of one, by blackmail. Pulling the strings at this particular school is Ivan, a member of the secret police whose entire character oozes evil. And that’s really what this movie is about: good vs evil. Shot in black and white, director Ivan Ostrochovsky sets every scene up as a view of light and shadow. It’s a stark picture, with some quietly tense moments. Not much (any?) action, so many may check out before long, but I couldn’t help but get pulled into the delicately built story. ★★★

Moon Manor is a heart-wrenching film that will leave you in tears. Starring James “Jimmy” Carrozo as a fictionalized version of himself, it is about a man who has chosen to leave this world with dignity, on his own terms. Jimmy is suffering from Alzheimer’s, and has chosen to end his life. The film begins on the morning of his last day, as they prep for a “fun-eral,” which is going to be a lot more fun than a funeral. Accompanied by his longtime caregiver, a “death doula,” and a journalist charged by a newspaper to write a story about this unique day, Jimmy prepares for the party that night when many of his old friends will be there to see him off. Throughout the film, we hear stories of Jimmy’s life, and oh, what a life it was. A singer, performer, comedian, entrepreneur, and gay rights activist, Jimmy has done it all. He just wants to leave this world while he still remembers those stories and not be left as a shell of himself. The stories and video footage borrowed from the “real” Jimmy’s extraordinary life, but even as a movie on its own, it is one of the most touching films I’ve seen in awhile. Funny and poignant, and even better, memorable, this film will stick with me. ★★★★★

From the highest of highs to the lowest of lows. Man oh man, Last Survivors is a shitty movie. It’s about a man, Troy, who’s been raising his son, Jake, in a remote cabin for the last 20 years. Troy regales Jake with stories of World War III destroying society, and that the two of them need to watch out for each other, because all outsiders are dangerous. Whenever a wanderer sets off a booby trap on their land, Troy goes out to hunt the interloper down and kill him, while Jake guards the cabin. One time, a man gets a lucky shot on Troy, leaving him in need of meds to fight infection, so Jake needs to go outside their borders and find some. Jake heads out, and finds a farmhouse with a single inhabitant, a middle-aged woman named Henrietta. Jake is instantly distrustful of her, but she is kind, and, with the raging hormones of a young twenty-something, Jake finds himself returning to the farm on subsequent days. As Jake gets to know Henrietta, he begins to doubt some of the things his dad taught him. Completely predictable, awful dialogue, wooden acting: all the makings of a bad B movie. ★

• TV series currently watching: Yellowjackets (season 1)
• Book currently reading: Dragons of the Highlord Skies by Weis & Hickman

Claude Autant-Lara was a French director who had his share of controversies later in life, but he made quite a few good films earlier on. Today I’ll be looking at four of his films made during World War II, 3 of which were made during German occupation. The first, Le Mariage de Chiffon, came out in 1942. It’s a fairly straight forward love story revolving around Chiffon, a pretty 16-year-old who is rebelling against her aristocratic mother. Dear old mommy is very strict, but Chiffon finds friends with her step-dad, Philippe, and his brother Marc, Chiffon’s uncle (by marriage). Marc once had money, but has blown it all in his dream to become one of the first to achieve human flight. Chiffon has always had a girlhood crush on her uncle Marc, but it isn’t until she has attracted the attention of a new military colonel stationed to the area that she becomes aware of her feelings. The colonel, a Duke, is an old friend of Marc’s, and Chiffon has definitely caught his eye, and of course Chiffon’s mother would rather she marry the rich Duke, but Chiffon has always done what she wants. If you can look past the (very) dated story that a pushing-50 year old man can court a 16-year-old, it’s not a bad little story. Humor is perhaps a bit dated as well, but it is charming at times. ★★

Lettres d’amour (Love Letters) came out later the same year, and, for my tastes, had a better, more intriguing plot. Taking the same lead actress (Odette Joyeux), it is about a woman who is trying to help her friend keep up an unnoticed affair. Zélie is a recent widow helping out her aristocratic friend, Hortense, carry out said affair by having the guy’s love letters delivered to her (Zélie) and then passing them along to Hortense. Zêlie has never met the lover, but does love his words. But it seems to Hortense, it was just a dalliance, and she breaks it off with the man. The man turns out to be François, who is newly sent to their town as a judge. When one of the love letters is unearthed by the townsfolk, addressed to Zélie (though thankfully written under François’s nickname, keeping his identity a secret), the people turn on her as a harlot without honor. She keeps up the charade for her friend’s protection, and, feeling sorry for her, François starts hanging out with Zélie. They grow to have feelings for each other, even as she still doesn’t know that François was once Hortense’s lover. It sounds a lot more convoluted than it is. Autant-Lara had to play within the censors allowed him to disguise some political undertones (the working class vs the aristocrats in the film), but there’s a good story here and, again, a fun love story, as well as an early film about a woman unafraid to face the herds or defend her lifestyle when, after all, it is her life to live. ★★★

Douce (Love Story) is a cute little film with a simple premise. The eponymous Douce de Bonafé (Joyeux again) is a spoiled rich girl with a crush on her family’s steward, Fabien. Fabien however has had a long, secret affair with Douce’s governess, Irène. Irene and Fabien were once poor but connived their way together into the de Bonafé family, and now Fabien wants out. He is prepared to steal a large sum of money and run away to Canada with Irène. Now that their time is here though, Irène is having second thoughts; she’s really grown to like the family for the kindness they’ve shown her. Also, the family’s patriarch and longtime widower, Monsieur de Bonafé, has professed his love for Irène and wants to marry her. When Douce does get her way with Fabien, the result obviously isn’t the dream she had envisioned. The ending was a bit heavy-handed for my tastes, extolling the consequences of going against your family, while also painting poor people in a bad light for no other reason than being poor, but the story in the middle is engaging. ★★★½

Sylvie et le fantôme (Sylvie and the Ghost) brings in Joyeux (one more time!) as Sylvie, a (once-again) 16-year-old (though the actress was in her mid-30s by now) who is in love with the idea of her grandmother’s first love, “the one who got away.” Alain was a hunter who lived and loved around the castle Sylvie and her family live in, and she talks to a large painting of him, which conceals the secret passage the living Alain would use to enter in to meet his love. Sylvie loves the old love stories about the couple and makes jokes that she feels Alain’s presence. To give her a bit of joy, Sylvie’s father hires a couple actors to dress up as ghosts at her birthday party. Except the real ghost, Alain, decides to make an appearance too! When he stepped out of the painting, I thought he looked awfully familiar; sure enough, this movie was Jacques Tati’s first acting role. He would start making his own movies just a year later, but in this first picture, he puts his mime background to good use as the silent specter. There’s some cute moments, but much of the humor is very dated and the film moved at a snail’s pace for much of its length. ★★

• TV series currently watching: Moon Knight (miniseries)
• Book currently reading: Dragons of the Highlord Skies by Weis & Hickman 

My wife will sometimes say I watch too many high-brow movies, and while I do enjoy the classics and watch a lot of foreign flicks, occasionally I do like to turn my brain off and laugh at some dick and fart jokes. There are plenty of those (literally) in Jackass Forever. All of the originals are back except Ryan Dunn (who tragically died a few years ago) and Bam Margera (some politics behind the scenes cut nearly all of his footage). Since all these guys are now pushing 50, they brought in some “fresh meat” (so to say) for the first time ever, and there are a handful of younger daredevils, including the team’s first woman. There’s nothing to write about here to let you know what this movie is about; you already know what it’s about. A bunch of idiots doing stupid stunts, which sometimes gets them hurt. But damn, if it isn’t funny. I’m not a huge Jackass fan. There are some people that can sit and watch it all day, and while it does wear on me after awhile, a 90 minute film is just about perfect for a silly (stupid?) diversion. ★★★

The Cabin in the Woods isn’t a newer film, but I’m late to the party and just stumbled upon it. Directed by Drew Goddard and written by him and Joss Whedon, who knew each other from their Buffy and Angel days, it came out in 2012. Only three recognizable faces in front of the camera: Bradley Whitford, Richard Jenkins, and a pre-breakout Chris Hemsworth (Thor had just come out, but he certainly wasn’t yet a household name). The aforementioned acting vets play Gary and Steve, who are working in some sort of underground facility getting ready to look over a group of college kids arriving at a remote cabin for a weekend of fun. The men are overseeing some kind of weird, twisted project in which the teens will call forth an ancient evil, which will then try to kill them. Apparently these experiments are going on all around the world, in a ritual that goes back for time out of mind. Once the evil comes out, in the form of zombies this time, the film pokes fun at itself and all the other tropes you find in these kinds of hack-and-slash gorefests. It obviously doesn’t take itself too seriously, so maybe the viewer shouldn’t either, but it isn’t a bad way to spend 90 minutes. It is just entertaining enough to pass the time. ★★½

7 Days is a romantic comedy for the COVID era. Ravi and Rita are set up on blind date with each other just as COVID is hitting, a date arranged by the parents in typical Indian custom. Ravi wants a traditional Indian wife badly and already has his future planned out to most minute detail, but Rita is a more modern Americanized woman. The date does not go well, but before they can go their separate ways, COVID lockdowns hit and the couple is forced to quarantine at Rita’s nearby house. Stuck on the couch for a few days until he can get a rental car and get back home, the two are forced to reconcile and take a hard look at themselves, to see if their lives are going the way they want. The film stars Karan Soni as Ravi and Geraldine Viswanathan (who’s been in several films I liked and one I didn’t, though she was still good in that one too) as Rita, and while they do their best to entertain, it’s really just an average romcom. A few chuckles here and there, but nothing that sticks to you once the credits roll. ★★

Parallel Mothers is the latest from Pedro Almodóvar, a director who I’ve quickly grown to love (and love!). It stars Penélope Cruz and Milena Smit as Janis and Ana, two single women who meet in a maternity ward while giving birth. Neither have the baby’s respective fathers in their lives, and while Janis is excited (she’s pushing 40 and this may be her last chance to be a mother), the younger Ana is feeling the pressure from her parents. They have their babies on the same day and go their separate ways. Janis reaches out to the father to see if he wants to be involved, and when he sees the baby, he proclaims it isn’t his, that he knows in his heart that he is not the father. Over a couple months, as the baby develops and begins to look less like Janis, she too begins to suspect that her and Ana’s babies were swapped at the hospital. A DNA test confirms her suspicions that she is not the mother. When Janis runs into Ana one day and learns that Ana’s (in reality, Janis’s) baby has died of SIDS, Janis decides to bring Ana into the family as an au pair. Their lives get very much twisted up by the end of the film. Cruz is fantastic as Janis; Almodóvar always seems to get the best out of her. Unfortunately the movie doesn’t have the enveloping story of Pain and Glory or Volver, the lyricism of Talk to Her, nor the emotional whirlwind of Julieta. It’s just an average film with stellar acting. Maybe I’ve grown to expect homeruns from this director every time out. ★★½

Jockey follows a, ahem…, jockey, as the end of his racing days are quickly approaching. Jackson (Clifton Collins Jr, in a knock-out performance) has been doing this his whole life. As is the story of many jockeys, it is a family business and he is following in footsteps. He hears early in the film that some numbness in one arm is due to the hard life of a jockey (3 broken backs not the least of it), and he starts to see the writing on the wall. He keeps the news to himself, especially when trainer Ruth Wilkes (Molly Parker) brings out a new, promising young thoroughbred who could win it all. Ruth and Jackson are long-time friends and he has always ridden for her. Into this environment comes Gabriel (Moisés Arias), a young wanna-be jockey who claims Jackson is his father. At first, Jackson doesn’t want to believe it, but he sees similarities in how Gabriel handles himself around the horses, and takes him under his wing. As the big race approaches, can Jackson keep it together long enough to go out in a blaze of glory? I’m an admitted horse racing fan (I’m lucky enough to live near a track and hit it a few times a year), but even so, this is a great, emotional film on its own. Yes, there are peaks inside the business that I found fascinating, but the story too is top notch. I’m really surprised Collins Jr didn’t get some award circuit love this past season, it is that good. ★★★½

• TV series currently watching: Schmigadoon! (miniseries)
• Book currently reading: Dragons of Winter Night by Weis & Hickman

After taking a couple weekends off from my movie frenzy, I’m back at it, and going today with an eclectic set of films. First up is Cyrano, a film I’ve been looking forward to, both because I’m typically a nut for historical dramas, as well as musicals. Combine them, and I’m game! This is obviously a new take on the classic play Cyrano de Bergerac, with GoT star Peter Dinklage in the title role. Cyrano is a master of sword and word, talking circles around any challenger, but able to defeat them in battle too if it comes to that. However, his diminutive size keeps him from the one thing he wants: the love of Roxanne. The lovely Roxanne only sees Cyrano as a friend, and is smitten with a man named Christian. Christian however is not a learned man and doesn’t have the wit to impress the intelligent Roxanne. Cyrano suggests writing letters to Roxanne in Christian’s stead; it will be Cyrano’s words that move her, while she believes the letters are coming from Christian. All goes well until the Duke, who also has eyes on Roxanne, sends Cyrano and Christian off to the war front. Gorgeous sets and costumes and a stellar performance by Dinklage unfortunately does not come together quite well enough. The music is sometimes sweeping, but more often forgettable, and to make matters worse, Dinklage really can’t sing. That’s a bit of a deal breaker for a musical. The movie does have its moments, but whenever I started to get swept up in it, I felt it crash back down. ★★½

Next are a couple films out of Denmark. A Taste of Hunger tries to take a dull idea and make it interesting, and while it succeeds in the beginning, it doesn’t manage to keep it going. Carsten (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, another GoT alum) is owner and head chef at a new restaurant, with dreams of landing a Michelin star and the success it would bring. Unfortunately, on the night that the reviewer comes to dine, Carsten’s understudy serves a poor dish, and Carsten thinks his dreams are dashed. His wife, Maggie (Katrine Greis-Rosenthal), refuses to give up, and goes out into the night to find the Michelin reviewer and beg for a second chance. As she chases him around town, we learn that she has been having an affair, and we see in flashbacks how she and Carsten first fell in love and raised their kids, and where their lives diverged. The setup was pretty solid, but I stopped caring long before the credits rolled, and the big “twist” in the end was too little, too late. Solid acting is wasted in this one. ★½

Wildland is a thriller about a teen girl, Ida, who’s just lost her mother to a car accident. To finish up school, Ida goes to live with her mom’s sister, Ida’s aunt Bodil, though the sisters were estranged and Ida hasn’t seen her aunt since she was a little girl. Also in Bodil’s house is one adult son, with another who comes over on a daily basis, and a third who happens to stay whenever he runs out of drug money. It is a caring house full of affection for each other, but all is not perfect. Bodil employs her sons as debt collectors, and not the kind that work at a bank. It isn’t long before Ida witnesses the brothers intimidating people who are late on payments. Will she buy into the concept of family above all, or will she break with them to go her own way while she still can? Interesting concept, and decent enough performances, but I couldn’t help but feel like I’ve seen this story before, or something very much like it, and for its source material, a lot of it felt contrived, and not very real at all. ★★½

Despite its middling reviews, I was excited to catch Last Looks, mostly because I’ve been a big Charlie Hunnam fan since his SoA days, and he usually doesn’t disappoint. This film knocked it out of the park for me. A murder-mystery with plenty of thrills, it is about an ex-cop named Charlie Waldo (Hunnam) trying to live his life off the grid, but his former life won’t leave him alone. He is visited by his ex-girlfiend Lorena (Morena Baccarin) about a job in LA. A famous British actor named Alastair Pinch (Mel Gibson, in a role showing he still has it if a good part comes his way) has been accused of killing his wife. Waldo tries to turn it down, but still, he is visited by some thugs that night, beating him up and warning him to stay off the case. The next day Waldo goes into town to make it clear to all involved that he wasn’t taking the case, but his instincts get the better of him and he starts digging. This film has more twists and turns than a mountain road, but in a good way. It is a true mystery, keeping the viewer guessing as much as our hero. And best of all, this film is FUNNY. There’s Alastair, an alcoholic with a penchant for beating up the extras on the film set (who are actually stuntmen put in place by the producers, knowing Alastair’s temper). There’s a different set of thugs (“Don Q” and his muscle, with the “strong” name of “Nini”) who think Lorena left something with Waldo, even though she didn’t, and they want it back. There’s a first grade teacher who is straight laced during the day, but wild at night. The only normal person is Waldo, and it seems the world is crazy around him. The most fun I’ve had watching a movie in awhile. ★★★★★

As a film lover, I don’t always mind if a move is heavy on style and light on substance, but it’s still gotta be good. The Novice unfortunately is not. It’s about a college freshman named Alex Dall who has serious problems with obsessive tendencies. The opening scene shows her taking a test in class, and when she finishes quickly, she goes back over all of her answers continually until class ends. Certifiable compulsions. Seemingly on a whim, she joints the novice rowing team at school (film never says why), and she throws that same kind of devotion into her training. Alex becomes obsessed with not only improving her personal records, but with making the varsity team, which is unheard of from the novice team. It is implied she doesn’t come from an athletic background, yet she sets the bar of other long-time athletes on the squad as her own goals, and pushes herself to beat them. She was already spiraling out of control by the time I gave up on the film 45 minutes in, and I can only assume it got worse from there, but the movie just wasn’t interesting enough for me to stick around and find out. I know it is only a movie, but I wanted to know where this girl’s friends and family were, and how come they didn’t see these problems before it got so bad. She didn’t just go batshit crazy in college; who let her go away to school with such issues! My ranting aside, the movie attempts to create this psychological thriller environment and I wasn’t feeling it. ½

• TV series currently watching: Dopesick (miniseries)
• Book currently reading: Dragons of Winter Night by Weis & Hickman

When I saw Cage’s previous film, Pig, I made some snarky comments about his history, especially lately, of picking questionable roles. Well, after catching his newest, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, you can see the egg on my face. Two solid films in a row definitely makes me rethink those words.

Cage plays a fictionalized version of himself. Everyone he runs into talks about his big hits of the 90s and early 00’s, but that was a long time ago, and he can’t land a good role these days. To make matters worse, his longtime devotion to his career has been to the detriment of his family, and he’s facing divorce and an alienated teen daughter. After his latest attempt to land a promising role in an upcoming exciting film doesn’t pan out, Cage decides it is finally time to retire from acting. To make a little cash, he accepts an offer from a millionaire, superfan Javi Gutierrez, to attend his (Javi’s) birthday party on a private island for a million bucks.

Cage goes to the island and meets Javi (Pedro Pascal), and the two instantly hit it off. Javi has written a screenplay in which he wants Cage to act. That screenplay is shit, but Cage agrees to write a new one with Javi. The one they work on mimics the bromance they are forming on the island. But Cage has a secret: he has been recruited by the CIA to spy on Javi, who is apparently a big time arms dealer, who has recently abducted a politician’s daughter for leverage. The CIA wants Cage to locate the girl. If this convoluted plot sounds like something out of a Nicolas Cage movie….well, it is. But don’t let the superficial-sounding plot turn you away. This film is funny, but also smart, with plenty of references to film history, and not just Cage’s own filmography, as well as a peak into plot elements and devices that get tossed around by someone who knows what he’s talking about. I had a good time, and it looks like the actors had a good time making it too. Cage is fantastic, but it is Pascal who steals most of the scenes he is in, and the movie does a good job of keeping the viewer guessing. How could this goofy millionaire playboy with money to burn, with a private museum devoted to Nicolas Cage’s movies, be an international crime lord? Very entertaining. ★★★½

Everyone associates Orson Welles with Citizen Kane. It was his first film as director and it cemented his reputation as a master of the craft at the young age of 26. But unless you are a cinephile, you probably aren’t as familiar with his followup picture, which also has a cult-like following. The Magnificent Ambersons was released just the year after Kane, in 1942. It tells the story of Amberson family and their decline from the wealthiest family in town to a footnote in history. Isabel Amberson is looking to get married, and while she is fond of a young inventor named Eugene Morgan, she rejects him when he muffs a serenade one night, and marries the staid Wilbur Minafer instead. The couple have one child, George, who is a rapscallion around town from an early age, leading the townsfolk to anticipate the day when he gets his comeuppance. He never does, at least until he is a young man. At that time, George falls for a beautiful young woman named Lucy Morgan. Yes, that Morgan. Eugene, now a widower, has returned to the city with his daughter after having made money as an early supporter and inventor of the automobile (a device that George scoffs at, thinking it beneath his station). The bristly George still hasn’t made any friends outside of his circle, but the times of “station” and “old money” are coming to an end, if only he could see the writing on the wall. Wonderful film, even in the 88 minute version that is shown today. As a person who regularly suffers from FOMO, I wish the original 131 minute version still existed, to see Welles’ original vision. That version was cut up immensely by the production company after initial previews didn’t go well, and the original footage destroyed. No one living knows what that original version was, thus leading to the mystery of the film. Even so, the version we have is right up there with the best. ★★★★★

Othello has another famous story behind its production. The film is obviously based on the Shakespeare play, and by now, you either know it or you don’t (I am not a Shakespeare buff, and did not know it, but I did like the movie). Not having read the play or seen an adaption before, I don’t know how accurate it is, but it is well done. I love the story behind the film too. Perhaps due to experiences he suffered in films like Ambersons, Welles wanted more complete control over his production. Othello was one of those that he made completely self-financed. Welles would film sections of the movie until he was tapped out, and then go act in a film or play to get paid, and come back to film some more. In this way, it took 3 years to complete Othello, and while the production levels are low on such a tight budget, Welles’ complete mastery of the camera hides this fact. There are scenes that look like they came from any big-budget Hollywood picture. This movie hasn’t changed my opinion: with few exceptions, I’m not a big Shakespeare fan, but this adaptation is very well done. ★★★

Mr Arkadin is a mystery, quasi-thriller about a mysterious millionaire, the eponymous Gregory Arkadin, who hires small-time smuggler and general ne’er-do-well Guy Van Stratten for a strange mission. Arkadin claims amnesia before 1927, with no recollection of how he showed up in Switzerland that year with $200k, money that he then used to build his fortune. Guy uses his connections and a nose for digging up dirt to get to the bottom of Arkadin’s mystery, but the trail leads to connections that Guy is completely unprepared for, and the biggest surprise is saved for the viewer. Once the movie gets going, it is really good, but Arkadin isn’t even introduced until 30+ minutes in, and it takes forever to build a plot. I understand they were laying the foundation for the first third of the film, getting the viewer to know who exactly Guy is and what makes him tick, but I was honestly bored until Guy’s investigation started ratcheting up. However, even in the beginning, there’s some incredible imagery, as you’d expect from the perfectionist Welles. The final 30 minutes is a solid 4+ star film, but I have to even it out from the slowish beginning. ★★★½

Chimes at Midnight is another take on Shakespeare, with Welles taking the role of John Falstaff, a character who Welles always said was his favorite. Culling material from a few Shakespearean works (mostly Henry IV Parts 1 and 2, and a bit from Henry V and Richard II), the movie follows Falstaff’s influence over and his shenanigans with King Henry IV’s son, Prince Hal. The comedic Falstaff loves to drink and womanize, which the young Hal of course is drawn to as well. While the king is dealing with an uprising from Henry Percy over the line of succession, Hal and Falstaff are off carousing. This leads to the king’s lamentation that he wished Percy and Hal could switch places, even though Percy at the moment is his enemy. It isn’t until the rebellion is put down and Hal pledges to his dying father that he will take the thrown and treat it with the respect it is due that Henry IV is able to find comfort. Unfortunately for Falstaff, the newly crowned Henry V keeps that vow and no longer has time to dilly dally with his old bud, brusquely telling him he is not welcome at court. This movie gets tons of attention and, as you can expect from Welles at this point, it is detailed and gorgeous to watch. But again, Shakespeare’s not my thing. I was unfortunately bored though stretches of the movie, but did stick around to see the heartfelt ending. ★★½

The Immortal Story is a tidy (just shy of 1 hour) film, and this one was more my jam. Based on a story by Karen Blixen and released in 1968, it was Welles’ first color film, as well as his final fictional film released in his lifetime. He plays Mr Clay, an old rich man living in a mansion in Macao. His only companion is his bookkeeper, Levinsky, who reads to Mr Clay at night. For something new, one night Mr Clay begins a story he once heard about an aging rich man who paid a young stud to impregnate his wife. Levinsky interrupts Mr Clay and finishes the story for him, giving him the news that the story is old and oft-told amongst sailors; it probably never happened. Mr Clay, who only believes in facts and figures, wants to make this story happen, and tasks Levinsky with finding a woman to “play” his wife, as well as a sailor to do the deed with the girl. Levinsky knows poor sailors are a dime a dozen, but finding a willing woman will be harder (and expensive). He has one in mind: Virginie, who is a poor clerk’s mistress on the island. As luck (good or ill?) would have it, Virginie is poor because her father was once Mr Clay’s partner, and was swindled by Clay out of his fortune. In fact, Mr Clay now lives in the mansion that Virginie grew up in. When they find their sailor, does the event play out as Mr Clay hoped? Fantastic, tidy little story, with the incomparable Jeanne Moreau portraying Virginie. The final act is a bit more ethereal than you might expect, but I loved it all. ★★★★

• TV series currently watching: Cobra Kai (season 4)
• Book currently reading: The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan

Today I’ll be reviewing five films from French director René Clair, whose career spanned the silent to sound era. Up first is Sous les toits de Paris (Under the Roofs of Paris), from 1930. An early sound film, it features a lot of music over most of the film, interspersed with scenes of dialogue here and there; an experienced director getting his feet wet in a new medium. The film follows Albert, a street singer whose only income is selling sheet music to accompany him for ten cents a sheet. Albert has a good heart, and stops a thief from plying his trade on Albert’s unsuspecting customers. One of the would-be targets is the attractive young Pola, who, unfortunately for Albert, already has a boyfriend, Fred. Fred though is a womanizer and a brute, and Pola soon leaves him. She won’t let Albert get fresh though, making him sleep on the floor as she takes his bed while hiding from her ex. The aforementioned thief isn’t done with Albert either though, and sets him up to get arrested, all a ploy by Fred to get Pola back. It’s a cute enough film, though a bit dated obviously in its views about women (Pola is expected to swoon over any man who gives her an eye). ★★½

À nous la liberté (Freedom For Us) followed in 1931, and is more of a straight-forward comedy. While it still has a lot of music, it is also more of a “normal” talkie, more dialogue-driven than just accompanying sound. And it’s very funny, from the opening scene, when we see a toy production assembly and are led to believe it is a toy worker’s shop, until the camera zooms out on the workers and we see they are prisoners. Émile and Louis are friends in jail but have a plot to get out. On the night of their escape, Émile sacrifices his chance to get out to make sure Louis gets free. Louis makes the most of it, scamming his way into a company and working his way up to president, becoming wealthy in the process. A few years later, Émile is free and begins working at the phonograph factory Louis owns (in a much-the-same assembly line that hearkens back to his prison time; I couldn’t help but see comparisons between these industrialized shots to Chaplin’s Modern Times, which was still a couple years into the future). The two old buddies run into each other and instantly connect again, but it all may come to an end when other former criminals recognize Louis and threaten to unmask him to the police. Lots of sight gags, so if that’s your type of humor, you’ll have plenty to enjoy. ★★★

The above films had plenty of music, but Le Million (1931) is what I would consider a “true” musical, with tunes sung by the actors (not just background) which advance or enhance the story. In the film Michel is an artist buried in debt; he owes everyone from merchants to neighbors. He wants to marry his neighbor Beatrice, but has no money to do so. Just as things are at their bleakest, Michel sees in the paper that a local resident has won the Dutch lottery for millions of francs. Michel is obviously elated to see his life changed, but first he has to get that lottery ticket back. You see, he put it in an old jacket pocket, which Beatrice had. But she gave the jacket to an old man dodging the police, who sold it to an opera singer looking for just such a prop for his latest role as a Bohemian, and so it goes. Aiding Michel in his hunt for the jacket is his best friend Prosper, but the two “friends” will do anything to get that ticket and keep from having to share it with the other. Everyone is involved, from homeless to criminals to cops. Lots of laughs, some decent tunes (though nothing really catchy enough to sing later), and overall a fun little film. Definitely feels more modern than the prior two pieces, which had more of an old-timey feel to their production/presentation. ★★★½

After awhile Clair found himself in America, where he made a handful of pictures, including 1942’s I Married a Witch. The film starts off in 17th century Salem, where Jennifer and her father Daniel have just been burned at the stake as witches, with their spirits confined to an oak tree planted on the spot. As a spirit, Jennifer curses the man who put her there, Jonathan Wooley. The curse states that he and all of his descendants will be unhappy in love, and we see through a quick montage that the curse has held up, all the way to present day. Wallace Wooley is on the cusp of becoming governor, but like his fathers, cannot find love. He is to be married to a beautiful but shrewish woman whose father has been one of Wallace’s political backers. On the eve of the wedding, a lightning strike hits the oak, freeing Jennifer and Daniel. Jennifer hatches a diabolical plan to further wreak havoc on the Wooley family: if unloving marriages aren’t bad enough, what if Wallace was enticed to marry herself, a witch, for the ultimate revenge? Unfortunately for Jennifer, she is the one who mistakenly partakes of the love potion, putting a kink into her plans. There’s some good chuckles here and there, but ultimately this isn’t the kind of movie you are going to remember for long once the credits roll. It’s very typical of the films of this era, which means decent, but nothing really stands out about it. ★★

Les Grandes Manœuvres (The Grand Maneuver) came a few years later, in 1955, and was Clair’s first color picture. This is a delightful film about a French officer who makes a bet he can’t win. Armand is your typical Don Juan character, wooing ladies and strutting around town with quite the scandalous reputation. Thinking he can’t lose, he takes a bet with a group of men that he can “obtain the favors” of any woman chosen at random, and within the next 30 days before military training maneuvers take him out of town. The random woman ends up being Marie-Louise, a Parisian new to the area who is already whispered behind her back, A) for being divorced, and B) for possibly being a “kept woman” to the respectable Victor Duverger. The rumors are false; Victor does want to marry her, but there is no hanky panky going on. What Armand doesn’t account for is his actually falling in love with Marie-Louise. Unfortunately for him, anytime she starts to reciprocate those feelings, she hears a new rumor of the sordid past of her admirer, and all the while, Victor is waiting in the wings to take her away. It’s not a very original story, but it is a very fun (and funny) movie, with some cute subplots (like Armand’s friend trying to use Armand’s tried-and-true techniques on a woman of his own), and absolutely gorgeous sets and costumes. Highly recommended. ★★★★½

• TV series currently watching: Star Wars Rebels (season 4)
• Book currently reading: The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan

How about some classic 80’s films, featuring some heavy star power? Today I’ve got three from director Alex Cox and a couple from Brian de Palma, with an Albert Brooks comedy thrown in too. Starting off with Cox’s debut, Repo Man, starring the late great Harry Dean Stanton and Emilio Estevez. Parts of this film looked familiar, so I’ve either seen it long ago or caught bits and pieces over the years. Still “new enough” to me to be fresh. Or, to borrow from a popular website, maybe I should say “rotten.” I don’t get the praise this film gets, or maybe it’s just made for a different generation. It’s a haphazard mess about various groups including some repo men, government agencies, UFO thrill-seekers, and a local gang, all looking for a stolen Chevy Malibu, because apparently, there are the bodies of alien terrestrials in the trunk. Estevez plays Otto, a young punk going aimlessly through life when he is recruited by Bud (Stanton) to join his repo team. Their adventures include lots of crazy repos and interactions with the other seedy night-time inhabitants of Los Angeles. People talk about how funny this film is, but I only laughed exactly once: a great exchange between Bud and Otto where Otto comments there aren’t any bills in Russia because everything is free. Bud shoots back that nothing’s free in communism and that Otto better not be a communist. “Or a fuckin Christian neither.” That was funny. Other than that, this film’s a hot mess, and reminds me of all the things I generally used to not like about 80s low budget movies. ★

Thankfully I gave Alex Cox another try with Sid and Nancy, and, it’s funny, because for all the reasons I didn’t like Repo Man, I really enjoyed this one. The chaotic, fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants film style didn’t hold well for a narrative film like the above, but it works perfectly in the rock and roll scene. Sid and Nancy tells of the last year or so in the life of the Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious and his turbulent relationship with Nancy Spungen. The movie follows Sid’s rapid descent: leaving the band, further dependency on drugs, and eventually Nancy’s murder in a hotel room in New York. Their relationship is always front and center, how they fed off each other through manipulation, codependency, and the destruction it wreaked on their lives and those around them. Chloe Webb and a young Gary Oldman are absolutely fantastic as the star crossed lovers. I have no idea how accurate the film is (there’s lots to research online if you so care), but as a work of entertainment, it is tops. ★★★★

And, opposite to my reaction to Repo Man’s positive reviews, I mostly enjoyed Walker, despite its negative reception at the time of its release in 1987. It’s a fairly loose depiction of a man named William Walker, who, with a wealthy backer in the 1850s, led a group of Americans to Nicaragua to aid in a civil war against the president. Walker’s support comes from millionaire Cornelius Vanderbilt, who wants friendly control of the area to use as a land bridge for moving goods (in the days before the Panama Canal). Like a lot of Americans in those days, Walker is a huge believer in the might and right of the United States, and he sees no problem in going to another country to exert its influence. His group hits the shores of Nicaragua and immediately finds success, assimilating the rebels that are there fighting into his group, and they continue on towards Granada. The film plays out with a lot of purposefully placed ridiculousness (but no more ridiculous than the material it is based on, where the real Walker did indeed find himself as president of Nicaragua for a couple years before being deposed), poking satire at the ego of the American viewpoint of , but is also stark in its brutality on both sides. As it goes along, it takes on undertones (and some not so under-) of the current situation (in the 80s) of America’s backing of the Contras in Nicaragua. Seems that we just have to keep sticking our noses in places. Anyway, the movie is out there, but I laughed more and enjoyed it more than Repo Man, and again, a strong cast doesn’t hurt (led by Ed Harris in the lead, who is donning that black hat decades before Westworld). ★★★

Lost in America is a delightful old-school comedy from Albert Brooks, starring himself and Julie Hagerty as a married couple with a midlife crisis. David and Linda have what most people would consider a successful life, making good money in Los Angeles. David has been eyeing a promotion at his ad agency, but when he is passed over and instead offered a (good, but not wanted) job in New York, he decides to leave it all behind. He convinces Linda to sell their house, liquidate all their assets, and hit the road in a Winnebago; completely drop out of society, “You know, like in Easy Rider.” Unfortunately they don’t get very far out of LA before things go south. In Las Vegas, Linda’s unknown gambling addiction loses all of the couples’ money. With just a couple hundred bucks to their name, their idea of an easy life on the road is dashed before it even begins. Brooks’ humor isn’t for everyone, but I ate it up. When he goes in to ask the casino manager for their money back, I laughed till I cried. When driving on their last tank of gas and pull into a mobile home park at night and he quips, “My legs are tired, guess this looks like a good place to live.” I laughed harder. It’s not visual gags, it is your old school humor with some intelligence. I imagine kids these days would scoff, but I wish they still made comedies like this. ★★★★

I’ve seen quite a few Brian De Palma films (Carrie, The Bonfire of the Vanities, Mission Impossible, Casualties of War, to name a few), but in his long career, there’s always more to unearth. Dressed to Kill dates to 1980, and begins with a sexually frustrated wife, Kate (Angie Dickinson). She complains to her therapist, Robert (Michael Caine) about her inept husband, and even makes advances to Robert, which he declines. One day, Kate hooks up with a stranger she runs into at the city museum, and when leaving his apartment that evening, she is attacked and murdered in the elevator. The only witness is a high-class call girl, Liz (Nancy Allen), and she becomes the police’s number one suspect. But Liz knows she is innocent, and she is aided in her personal investigation by Kate’s son Peter, a whizkid who wants to find his mom’s killer. The suspense in this film borders on 80s schlock, but there are highlights, and the killer’s identity isn’t (completely) heralded. Though the thrills are a bit old-timey, there’s still enough to enjoy for the modern viewer. ★★½

Blow Out is a fantastic mystery thriller starring John Travolta and Nancy Allen. Jack is a low-budget film sound effects editor, good at his job but with skills far above his current line of work. He’s out one night in the park with tape recorder in hand, getting new sounds to use in film, when he witnesses a car go off the road and into a creek. Jack jumps in and saves Sally, but the man in the car does not survive. At the hospital, Jack learns the dead driver was Governor McRyan, who was on track to become the next president of the USA. Sally was not McRyan’s wife; she was a call girl, so the powers at be are quick to do a coverup. When Jack reviews his audio recording, he becomes convinced that it was no accident, as he is sure he hears a gunshot before the tire blows out. The police don’t believe him, but Jack is relentless in getting to the bottom of who may have wanted the governor dead. That rabbit hole goes a lot deeper than anyone would have guessed, and it seems everyone is involved. Travolta is on his game here, and this is easily one of the best I’ve seen him in. Lots of twists, but nothing gimmicky, and some real suspense, with John Lithgow glowing as the sinister bad guy. ★★★★★

• TV series currently watching: Snowpiercer (season 1)
• Book currently reading: The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan

Here Before is, mostly, a very good low-key psychological thriller, that keeps the viewer guessing on what exactly is going on for a good portion of its running time (which is short at 83 minutes). The central character is Laura (Andrea Riseborough, who’s been in a few things, but whom I most remember as Tom Cruise’s companion in Oblivion). She and her husband and son are living in a semi-detached house when they get new neighbors. Laura is immediately drawn to the new family’s daughter, Megan. Megan seems to reciprocate those feelings, and a strange attachment develops between the two. Laura’s husband makes allusions to a daughter the couple lost a few years ago, and the viewer thinks maybe Laura sees something in Megan that reminds her of her dead daughter. But then Megan starts claiming memories of the daughter’s life, and Laura starts to think Megan is her lost daughter reincarnated. The end has a weird twist that knocks this film down a notch for me, and the burn is awfully slow anyway, so that may turn others off. But for most of the journey, I was digging it. ★★★

Red Rocket got a lot of attention in the indie film circuit, and while I’ve yet to see a film of director Sean Baker’s that I really loved, I wanted to give it a chance. The central figure is Mikey Davies, who returns to the rural town of Texas City after a decade-plus career in LA as a porn actor (going by the name of Mikey Saber, in reference to his huge… um… you get it). Broke and with no prospects, he finds himself on the couch of his wife (still married, though long separated). Lexi made the trip to LA with Mikey long ago, but her career flopped where his took off, and she’s been back in town for a long time now. Mikey is bumming around town when he falls for the girl working at the local donut shop. Unfortunately the girl, Raylee, is only 17 years old, but as Mikey and the filmmakers agree, that’s legal age. The two start a relationship, even as Mikey has been sleeping with his wife again, so she won’t kick him out. Mikey sees a potential porn star in Raylee, and starts grooming her to accompany him back to LA, to jumpstart his career again. Simon Rex is deserved of all the accolades he got as Mikey, he really is fantastic, but the movie is awfully off-putting for my tastes, and not the least of which is the predatory behavior of Mikey on Raylee. The ending is also very strange and silly, just sort of comes out of left field. Movie lovers will enjoy Rex’s performance, but in my book that’s really the only reason to watch. Not sure what all the hype was about as far as the film itself goes. ★★½

Second time in a couple weeks where I watched a movie with glowing reviews that was a big old dud in my book. Did we watch the same movie? C’mon C’mon stars Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny, a journalist working on a report about how kids feel about the future. It’s a busy job that takes him across the country, but into his chaotic life comes his nephew Jesse. Johnny’s sister is trying to help her estranged husband, who is having a mental breakdown, and she’s asked Johnny to watch Jesse for a bit. Johnny takes Jesse off to New York to “help” him in his job. I guess from there, the two are supposed to form a bond, Johnny (I’m sure) will learn how to stop and smell the flowers, but I’ll never know, because I gave up on this slog after about 40 minutes. I’m always a leery of films shown in black and white; sometimes it works, but it can equally as often just come off as pretentious, and this film very much felt like the latter. And the way the film is told, with tons of voiceover, where characters will continue conversations even as the scene changes, grated on me to no end. It was like watching one long commercial that never went anywhere. ½

Death on the Nile is a quasi-sequel to 2017’s Murder on the Orient Express, in that they are both based on Agatha Christie novels focused on super sleuth Hercule Poirot. This film carries over the same actor as Poirot (Kenneth Branagh), as well as the same writer, directer, and production team. As in the first film, the rest of the cast is filled out with all-stars, including Gal Gadot, Annette Bening, and Armie Hammer. In this escapade, a wealthy heiress named Linnet has just married Simon, after a short whirlwind affair. Simon’s ex-girlfriend, Jackie, Linnet’s former friend, is not over him, and Linnet’s former boy-toy, Windlesham, hasn’t moved on from her either. Both exes find themselves on a river cruise with the new happy couple, along with a host of others who all carry varying degrees of grudges against Linnet. So of course, she ends up dead. But Poirot is also on board, and he can sniff out the murderer. I have much the same feelings towards this film as I did Orient Express: there are highlights for sure, but for the most part, strong acting covers up a lot of holes in the writing. Some of the old-timey shtick is cute, but there’s also some eye-roll moments. All in all, a hair above average. ★★★

I just finished up watching the first season of Netflix’s The Witcher, so thought I’d jump into the animated prequel film The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf. This one follows the life of Witcher Vesemir, who apparently (since I haven’t seen it yet) plays a bit part in the second season of the show, as main character Geralt’s mentor. This film shows Vesemir as a kid who, with dreams of riches and glory, leaves his past life behind to initiate into training to become a Witcher. If you’ve not seen the show (or played the video games), Witchers are human mutants given special powers, and are tasked with destroying the very real monsters in the magical land. Told in two time periods, when Vesemir is a child trying to survive his training, and later as an adult when he is tasked to save a kingdom from a beast killing children in the area. I never used to watch any adult animated films or series, but have recently dipped my toes into a few, and movies like this make me glad for it. I really enjoyed the backstory of a Witcher’s life, what they go through, and more details about their powers, as well as more history of the wars between humans and elves. The world of the Witchers has lots of depth which, if played right, can yield stories for years to come in various shows and film. Me, being a fantasy world reader/watcher, really enjoyed it all. ★★★½

• TV series currently watching: The Witcher (season 1)
• Book currently reading: The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan

Who’s in for some German films today?! I’m diving in for director Volker Schlöndorff. Influenced by the late 50’s/early 60’s French New Wave movement, Schlöndorff’s early films were tied to the New German Cinema movement. He started in Germany but would later make films in several countries, including the USA (where he would make the first film version of Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale). I’ll be focusing on five of his German pieces today, starting with his debut, Young Törless, in 1966.

Young Törless is about a boy, Thomas Törless, who is new to boarding school. He is quiet but very intelligent, observing everything going on around in a detached way. Two of the more powerful boys at school, Beineberg and Reiting, begin tormenting another boy, Basini, after it is discovered that Basini had stolen money from one of them. The two bullies threaten Basini with disclosing the theft to the teachers, which would most likely get him expelled, so Basini agrees to be their servant, doing anything they ask. Unfortunately this turns into cruel and demeaning torture. Though it is strongly hinted but never explicitly stated (maybe due to censors?), it seems the boys are making Basini engage in homosexual acts. Thomas is disgusted with the cruelty, but refuses to help Basini if Basini won’t help himself. It’s a very good story, lots of undertones of societal norms and acceptances, but I found the acting to be terrible. Maybe Schlöndorff went with non-professional actors (I didn’t research), but sometimes they are downright bad. Took away from what should have been a very moving film. ★★½

A television film released in 1970, Baal stars Rainer Werner Fassbinder (who had directed just a couple feature films to this point, and was yet to explode on the international scene), as well as several of Fassbinder’s usual troupe of actors. Baal (Fassbinder) is a gifted poet, and in the beginning of the movie, he is attending a snooty bourgeois dinner. Baal obviously holds a lot of disdain for the other guests, and he makes his feelings known. He gets booted out, but not before wooing the host’s wife, and later bedding her. Back amongst the common people, we see that Baal’s contempt isn’t relegated to just the rich: he treats everyone with derision. Honestly, he’s a huge asshole, even sleeping with his best (and only) friend’s girlfriends. The women know that Baal is a huge jerk, but they can’t seem to help themselves around his bad boy sexy attitude. Don’t worry, because by the end of the film, Baal gets what’s coming to him. Normally, this is not a movie I’d like very much. There’s little plot, and it can be a bit heavy handed at times, but damn, if I wasn’t enthralled throughout. I hung on every one of Baal’s moves, just like the ladies. I was all in from the opening song to Baal’s comeuppance. ★★★½

In The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum, Schlöndorff attacks the runaway tabloid journalism that was rampant in West Germany at the time. In the film, a man escapes police surveillance, steals a car, and ends up at a night club. There, the man, Ludwig, meets Katharina, and she is instantly smitten. Normally quiet and reserved (her friends call her “the nun,”), Katharina takes Ludwig home at the end of the night. The next morning, police storm her apartment, but Ludwig is nowhere to be found. So starts the smear campaign. The cops are all over Katharina, looking for information as to Ludwig’s whereabouts, and if she was in league with him all along. Within a couple days, they build a solid case against her, but it’s all circumstantial evidence. To turn the screws, the police leak some details to the tabloids. One journalist in particular isn’t satisfied stopping there, and he goes after Katharina’s employers, mother, etc. Anything for a splashy front page story. By the end, the viewer has no illusions to the writer’s morality, but at the same time, the movie forgives Katharina an awful lot for her aiding and abetting, and I couldn’t look past that so easily. Engaging film though. ★★★

Coup de Grâce is the one film out of today’s series to hit it out of the park. Set in Latvia in 1919 at the tail end of the Bolshevik Revolution, German soldiers Konrad and Erich have returned home, trying to push back Bolshevik soldiers looking to expand Russian territory. Konrad and his unit are stationed out of his childhood mansion, and he is reunited with his sister Sophie. Erich was a childhood friend of the family, but now as adults, Sophie starts falling in love with him. He does not seem interested, insisting that she would not be satisfied with him. Whatever it is that is keeping him from getting with Sophie, Erich’s rebuff greatly upsets her, and Sophie begins sleeping with random soldiers in their company as a way to make Erich jealous. She also has a secret of her own: whenever she goes into town on errands, she meets up with friends that are supportive of the socialist/communist movement. Despite her political ideologies, she can’t help herself but continue to love Erich. The reason for Erich’s hesitation is a big surprise to the viewer, so I don’t want to give it away, but let’s just say that the film was way ahead of it’s time. When Sophie learns the “why,” she gives up her charade and joins the militant guerrillas against the German soldiers. It will not end will for her. Explosive movie full of intrigue and emotion. ★★★★

Ending today with The Tin Drum, which won all kinds of awards upon its release in 1979 (Palme d’Or, Oscar for Best Foreign Language film, among others). The main character is Oskar, a boy who is born fully intelligent and cognizant (watching his birth from his point of view is a sight to see!). Oskar’s mother, Agnes, is in a rough marriage with pro-Nazi Alfred, but she’s had a longtime affair with anti-Nazi Polish citizen Jan, and Jan may even be Oskar’s father. Two things happen when Oskar is 3 years old: he is gifted a toy drum, which becomes his favorite toy, never putting it down; and he witnesses his parents engaged in drunken tomfoolery. Disgusted with their behavior, Oskar decides he will never grown up. He doesn’t, staying the same size and not aging a day afterwards. A medical oddity, his parents accept it and life goes on. Throughout the next few years, Oskar witnesses a lot of things that a normal 3 year should not see (sex between Agnes and Jan is one example), and he also witnesses the death of all of those close to him. First Agnes, who, after getting in a huge argument with her husband about eating eels, goes on to eat fish at a breakneck speed until she dies. Jan is killed by the Nazi’s when they raid the Polish post office where he works. Now raising a 16-year-old Oskar in a 3-year-old body, Alfred starts paying the teenager from the apartment upstairs to help watch him. Oskar has his first love with this girl, but walks into a room one day to see her having sex with Alfred too. This finally motivates Oskar to move on, and he goes out into the world to have adventures of his own. The film has moments of dark comedy, later-Fellini-esque magical realism, and while some moments can get a little silly, the emotional punch of Oskar’s often turbulent ride has more highs than lows. ★★★½

• TV series currently watching: Lost in Space (season 3)
• Book currently reading: Relentless by RA Salvatore