watchingalotofmovies

[watchingalotofmovies]

Música

Música    [trailer]

Coming-of-age love story that follows an aspiring creator with synesthesia, who must come to terms with an uncertain future, while navigating the pressures of love, family, and his Brazilian culture in Newark, New Jersey.

The story is thin. Very thin. What saves it and still makes it an entertaining watch are the visual inventiveness and the rhythmic interludes. That lead actor and director Rudy Mancuso has synesthesia certainly adds a realistic level.

The question why Haley wanted to be with him, and Rudy's inability to make a decision are still a drag.

An alternative title would be: Stomp, the movie.

#Musica #Rudy Mancuso #Camila Mendes #Francesca Reale #Maria Mancuso #J.B. Smoove #Andy Grotelueschen #Camila Senna #like #recommended #Brazil #Stomp

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Yannick

Yannick    [trailer]

In the middle of a performance of the play "Le Cocu", a very bad boulevard comedy, Yannick gets up and interrupts the show to take the evening back in hand.

A lot less funny than I expected. Even with a running time of just one hour it felt very long. Especially since for most of the time you have to listen to a mostly annoying character.

And since it only had one location it was lacking the visual flair that usually goes with Dupieux's absurd little films.

#Yannick #Quentin Dupieux #Raphaël Quenard #Pio Marmaï #Blanche Gardin #Sébastien Chassagne #foreign #France

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Wicked Little Letters

Wicked Little Letters    [trailer]

When people in Littlehampton begin to receive letters full of hilarious profanities, rowdy Irish migrant Rose is charged with the crime. Suspecting that something is amiss, the town's women investigate.

The characters are not particularly subtle but they are portrayed by first-rate British actors which makes it more interesting. Who doesn't enjoy listening to Jessie Buckley and Olivia Colman having a swearing contest.

Especially Buckley is a lot of fun. Anjana Vasan as Gladys Moss also left a memorable impression.

Side note, apparently the information provided on the text insert at the end about the real Rose and Edith is factually incorrect. Which makes the insert rather pointless and leaves a bit of a bitter aftertaste.

#Wicked Little Letters #Thea Sharrock #Jessie Buckley #Olivia Colman #Timothy Spall #Gemma Jones #Malachi Kirby #Alisha Weir #Anjana Vasan #Hugh Skinner #Eileen Atkins #Joanna Scanlan #recommended

[watchingalotofmovies]

Umberto Eco: A Library of the World

Umberto Eco: A Library of the World    [trailer]

Wandering these rooms, hallways, salons is a lover, a collector and above all a reader of books: Umberto Eco in his private library.

It's a great pleasure to listen to Eco, talking about knowledge, and see his passion for (old) books and stories.

Not knowing much about him as a person beforehand, I felt at tims as if I lacked some context. That I don't speak the language and depended on reading subtitles also made it sometimes difficult to follow.

Besides Eco, the libraries that can be spotted during the doc are also an additional reason to watch.

#Umberto Eco: A Library of the World #Davide Ferrario #Umberto Eco #like #recommended #foreign #Italy #documentary

[watchingalotofmovies]

Dream Scenario

Dream Scenario    [trailer]

An ordinary family man finds his life turned upside down when strangers suddenly start seeing him in their dreams.

One of the best performances of Nicolas Cage in recent years. He's reason alone to watch.

The plot itself is pleasantly weird. Though towards the end it felt for a while as if the film didn't know how to find an ending. While that "Norio" dreamfluencer product parody spot was funny (and depressing). I still thought it wasn't a good fit and interrupted the flow.

#Dream Scenario #Kristoffer Borgli #Nicolas Cage #Julianne Nicholson #Dylan Gelula #Michael Cera #Tim Meadows #Dylan Baker #like #recommended

[watchingalotofmovies]

The Delinquents

The Delinquents    [trailer]

Bank employee Morán schemes to steal enough money to never work again, then confess and serve prison time while his colleague hides the cash.

I loved the first half, especially the reasoning behind the bank robbery. I suspect it will be very popular among bank tellers.

The second part was hard to grasp. The romantic entanglements, and with the anagrams of many characters seemingly implying that they are the same or at least in some way connected. Maybe trying to show that you can't buy the joys of life.

But for me it felt all a bit vague. And difficult to justify a running time of over three hours. Maybe if you're prepared and in the right mood for it.

#The Delinquents #Los delincuentes #Rodrigo Moreno #Daniel Elías #Esteban Bigliardi #Margarita Molfino #Germán De Silva #Mariana Chaud #Laura Paredes #foreign #Argentina

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The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada

The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada    [trailer]

Ranch foreman Pete Perkins looks to fulfill the promise to his recently deceased best friend by burying him in his hometown in Mexico.

There are bursts of activity. But most of the time the pacing is slow. But especially the screen presence of Tommy Lee Jones still makes it a compelling watch. He doesn't have to talk much.

Some darkly humorous moments occasionally lighten the mood. Melissa Leo has a memorable supporting role.

It's not my favourite genre. But this movie is among those that I really like.

#The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada #Tommy Lee Jones #Barry Pepper #Julio Cesar Cedillo #Dwight Yoakam #January Jones #Melissa Leo #Cecilia Suárez #Mel Rodriguez #Mexico #like #recommended

[watchingalotofmovies]

The Taste of Things

The Taste of Things    [trailer]

The story of Eugenie, an esteemed cook, and Dodin, the fine gourmet who she has been working for over the last 20 years.

I'm no foodie, but I always enjoy watching someone who's passionate about their profession. Even if in this case it's only a fictional portrait.

Though the amount of preparation that's needed for an extended meal feels insane. And a bit decadent.

I really liked the gentle, loving tone throughout the film.

Side note, amused that Omelette norvégienne in English is called Baked Alaska.

#The Taste of Things #La passion de Dodin Bouffant #Anh Hung Tran #Juliette Binoche #Benoît Magimel #Emmanuel Salinger #Galatéa Bellugi #Bonnie Chagneau-Ravoire #foreign #France #like #recommended

[watchingalotofmovies]

Drive-Away Dolls

Drive-Away Dolls    [trailer]

Jamie regrets her breakup with her girlfriend, while Marian needs to relax. In search of a fresh start, they embark on an unexpected road trip to Tallahassee.

Overall, it's funny. But I found many of the outrageous scenes for some reason not as funny as they should've been. Somehow the timing and the flow wasn't right.

I also found the accent of Margaret Qualley's Jamie too forced and distracting.

#Drive-Away Dolls #Ethan Coen #Margaret Qualley #Geraldine Viswanathan #Beanie Feldstein #Joey Slotnick #C.J. Wilson #Colman Domingo #Pedro Pascal #Bill Camp #Matt Damon #Miley Cyrus #recommended

[watchingalotofmovies]

Werner Herzog Radical Dreamer

Werner Herzog Radical Dreamer    [trailer]

Documentary about Werner Herzog.

After the interview snippets from various people during the opening I was briefly worried how this would turn out. But thankfully it then gets quickly more serious about Herzog. And often unexpectedly sentimental.

He's truly unique, one of a kind. But as can be seen in the doc, during filming of some of the iconic movies like Aguirre and Fitzcarraldo, he was also pretty unprepared and irresponsible.

It's interesting to hear from Herzog's brother. I also liked seeing Wim Wenders. The stories of their movies are vastly different. I wonder how a conversation between the two would go.

If you're familiar with Herzog's filmography, then I don't think you learn much new. But it's still an entertaining watch.

#Werner Herzog Radical Dreamer #Werner Herzog #Thomas von Steinaecker #Wim Wenders #Christian Bale #Nicole Kidman #Volker Schlöndorff #Robert Pattinson #Lucki Stipetic #foreign #Germany #like #recommended #documentary

[watchingalotofmovies]

Poor Things

Poor Things    [trailer]

The incredible tale about the fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter, a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter.

Funny, absurdist variation of the Frankenstein story. It made me wonder to what degree Emma Stone was playing a version of herself.

I'm sure there's a reason for it, but I find Lanthimos' continued infatuation with using distorting wide-angle fish-eye lenses irritating. It always draws attention to itself. I also didn't like the artificial look of most of the computer-generated outdoor settings.

It makes me smile thinking that more than a decade ago Lanthimos was making pretty weird arthouse movies in Greece. And now he's doing it on a Hollywood scale. And audiences love it.

#Poor Things #Yorgos Lanthimos #Emma Stone #Willem Dafoe #Mark Ruffalo #Ramy Youssef #Hanna Schygulla #Jerrod Carmichael #Margaret Qualley #Christopher Abbott #Vicki Pepperdine #Kathryn Hunter #like #recommended

[watchingalotofmovies]

Hello! How Are You?

Hello! How Are You?    [trailer]

Gabriel and Gabriela have been happily married for 20 years but their sexual desire for each other no longer exists. Is this all life has to offer? After having spent a couple of nights chatting with a stranger on the Internet, they both fall in love.

An amusing story, told in a charming way with two very likable leads.

The pacing is a bit leisurely, I think the film is aimed at a more mature audience.

The ending was unexpected.

#Hello! How Are You? #Buna! Ce faci? #Alexandru Maftei #Dana Voicu #Ionel Mihailescu #Paul Octavian Diaconescu #Ana Popescu #Sabrina Iaschevici #foreign #Romania #recommended

[watchingalotofmovies]

Argylle

Argylle    [trailer]

A reclusive author who writes espionage novels about a secret agent and a global spy syndicate realizes the plot of the new book she's writing starts to mirror real-world events, in real time.

The energy of Sam Rockwell holds it together for a while. But once things slow down it gets difficult to ignore how silly and increasingly outlandish the story is, with dialogue trying to explain what is going on right 'til the end.

I guess you can try to see it as parody. But for that it has to be funnier. Much funnier. Though I have to admit Bryce Dallas Howard's oil skating scene towards the end is so over-the-top ludicrous that it's almost funny again.

#Argylle #Matthew Vaughn #Bryce Dallas Howard #Henry Cavill #Sam Rockwell #Catherine O'Hara #Bryan Cranston #Richard E. Grant #John Cena #Samuel L. Jackson #Sofia Boutella #Dua Lipa #Ariana DeBose #Jing Lusi

[watchingalotofmovies]

Perfect Days

Laggies    [trailer]

Hirayama cleans public toilets in Tokyo, lives his life in simplicity and daily tranquility. Some encounters also lead him to reflect on himself.

I can relate to the notion that you don't need much to enjoy life, especially not a lot of material things. Every job is important and can be done with dedication. Consciously observing nature and your surroundings can be rewarding. And Wenders makes his point well.

As a movie it's still a bit of a challenge. The performance of Koji Yakusho makes it easier to continue watching.

That Hirayama listens to nothing but rock and soul classics feels a bit much like channeling Wenders' personal interest.

Side note, things are on average probably different in Tokyo compared with other global metropolises. But even before cleaning this must be the cleanest public toilets ever. Though architecturally they're worth a guided tour.

#Perfect Days #Wim Wenders #Koji Yakusho #Tokio Emoto #Aoi Yamada #Sayuri Ishikawa #Arisa Nakano #foreign #Japan #like #recommended

[watchingalotofmovies]

American Fiction

American Fiction    [trailer]

A novelist who's fed up with the establishment profiting from Black entertainment uses a pen name to write a book that propels him into the heart of the hypocrisy and madness he claims to disdain.

Makes its point not very subtly, but still well and in a very entertaining way.

What I didn't expect was that it would include so many "normal" family problems. Like, difficult father, ailing mother, new relationship, estranged gay brother, etc. Taken together it distracts a bit from the main story.

#American Fiction #Cord Jefferson #Jeffrey Wright #John Ortiz #Erika Alexander #Tracee Ellis Ross #Sterling K. Brown #Leslie Uggams #Issa Rae #Myra Lucretia Taylor #Adam Brody #Miriam Shor #like #recommended

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Next Goal Wins

Next Goal Wins    [trailer]

The story of the infamously terrible American Samoa soccer team, known for a brutal 2001 FIFA match they lost 31-0.

Faithfully follows the traditional underdog sports movie template. Funny at times, but not very memorable.

#Next Goal Wins #Taika Waititi #Michael Fassbender #Oscar Kightley #Kaimana #David Fane #Rachel House #Beulah Koale

[watchingalotofmovies]

The Zone of Interest

The Zone of Interest    [trailer]

Auschwitz commandant Rudolf Höss and his wife Hedwig strive to build a dream life for their family in a house and garden beside the camp.

The realisation that the killing of millions of Jews had to be planned and organised is not new. But it's still horrifying to watch people executing the Holocaust in a business-like manner. Watching it feels surreal. But it's a very important reminder that this happened so people don't forget.

It's a different scale, but one also shouldn't forget that for example the systemic mass torture and killings in Syria had to be planned. And gassing your own people also doesn't happen on its own. Pure evil continues to exist.

#The Zone of Interest #Jonathan Glazer #Christian Friedel #Sandra Hüller #Germany #like #recommended