Thoughts on 5 Films

1. My Policeman - I don't think Harry Styles is as bad as a lot of critics claimed in Don't Worry Darling, I think he was just up against an acting force (Florence Pugh), so it felt worse than it actually was. But, I'm assuming that the 3000+ 5 star ratings for this movie on Letterboxd are Harry Styles fans, and that is super annoying (I mean, I'm obsessed with Taron Egerton but I wouldn't rate Robin Hood (2018) 5 stars. Heck, I didn't even rate Rocketman 5 stars and that's one of my favorite movies of the last decade!). I didn't really like this movie, there's nothing really necessarily wrong with it, but I just found it terribly boring. It reminded me of The Notebook combined a little with The Talented Mr. Ripley. Except that both of those movies had my attention instantly and this almost made me feel sleepy in the first 10 minutes. And whether you like Styles acting or not, he's by far the more interesting actor in this. I was interested to see Emma Corrin in something else because I absolutely hated their performance as Princess Diana (I seem to be the only one, which stuns me). They are terrible in this too - it's like a robot trying to show emotions by fake smiling in the most awkward way possible (and this is what they did in The Crown too - I think people gave them way too much credit with the coy smile acting, but I found it grating). The other guy acts too weaselly for me to root for his happiness and I don't think that's the intent. It's a good story, but I would have preferred some repercussions for Corrin's character's disgusting actions. It's awful that she seemingly gets to walk away and live a more fulfilling life. Otherwise, I will admit that I love a passionate sex scene, and this one really does it well. That's about the only good part of the movie.

2. Weird: The Al Yankovic Story - I can't say that I'm the biggest Weird Al fan; I actually find most of his song parodies obnoxious. But, I do respect the hustle - and he is uniquely and unapologetically himself. There are a few things that are really brilliantly done with this biopic - first, casting Daniel Radcliffe is perfect. I was not a fan of the Harry Potter movies, but since then Radcliffe has really chosen some unexpected roles and he's excelled in them all. Honestly, I instantly became a fan of his when he rapped "Alphabet Aerobics" on The Tonight Show - it was so unexpected. But I think, because of watching that and being wowed by it, I knew that he would shine as Weird Al. Second, I really dig the way it perfectly encompasses everything that Weird Al does - just relentlessly parodies everything. Nothing in this movie can be taken with any grain of truth or seriousness - it's all just one big parody of biopics and it hits every point that every biopic does (and usually why I don't rate the genre very highly at all - Rocketman is an exception, of course). The poster is pretty conclusive as to its intentions and it is genius (literally a knock-off of the Bohemian Rhapsody poster). Third, the entire Madonna bit is hilarious from start to finish - the fact that Evan Rachel Wood's costume is like a Halloween version of Madonna will never not be funny to me (especially because as a child of the 80s, I dressed like Madonna for Halloween pretty much every year from 1988 until 1997, and then again at a college party in the 00s - and this is literally the outfit I wore). But also just the entire plot around her character just made me laugh hysterically - and then the end "Madonna Ciccone still at large". I cried with laughter. Otherwise, the rest of the movie is entertaining, but it goes quite batshit off the rails towards the end and not really in a good way. It just kind of loses its steam. On a side note, I can't believe that Julianne Nicholson plays mom to Weird Al and Marilyn Monroe in the same year! 

3. Causeway - I've seen Jennifer Lawrence give some great performances, but it's just so rare (I liked her in The Hunger Games and mother!, everything else I feel like she sleepwalks through- she's miserable in the X-Men films and she's miscast in most O. Russell movies - oh wait I think I liked her in Joy too? Maybe? I don't really remember it though, so that says a lot). This seemed to be advertised as her going back to her roots and focusing on "acting", which is kind of funny if you think about the fact that she's, like, 30 years old. But I also don't think quieter performances necessarily mean better performances, and I don't think her acting is anything special here. I kind of feel like she has a hard time being a "normal" person. That sounds mean, but even her walk is weird. I think she may have been pregnant while filming some of this, but she walks as if she has a huge belly sticking out (and she doesn't), but I also question if it's supposed to be part of her "traumatic brain injury" that was caused by an explosion even though she has absolutely no physical injuries or scars at all. AGAIN, a traumatic brain injury from AN EXPLOSION and she still looks like that. Anyway, she is outshined by Brian Tyree Henry (he should have like 5 Emmys for Atlanta), but overall, the film is lacking substance. It's a sweet movie, but just very mediocre and forgettable. Also, I would totally rather clean pools than work in an office to be fair. But do pool cleaners really swim in people's pools?? Because that's so creepy. And *spoiler* why on Earth would she encourage a man missing a limb to swim in a pool in the dark when it's just the two of them? She physically would not be able to save him if things went south. That's just dumb. 

4. Goodnight Mommy - I liked this movie. Probably because it was better than I was expecting based on the reviews. Apparently it's a remake of an Australian movie that I haven't seen, but I may seek out now based on this. The premise is super fucking creepy, and Naomi Watts is spectacular (but probably deserves better films than this? What's going on with her career? I don't feel like she's been given worthy parts in at least 5 years. I haven't watched that new show Watcher yet but fun fact I live 2.5 miles away from "The Watcher" house! EEEEEK!). I also think the kids did a really good job - I recognize the one kid from The Boys. I think it's made really well, in that you don't really know who to believe, but also I think it's pretty obvious that ****major spoiler ahead**** Lucas doesn't exist (I figured he was either dead or an imaginary friend). But even if you figured that out, it's still unclear if this woman is actually their mother or not. I wasn't really expecting how dark it got, though. And the ending is super dark, which I loved. It does rely on dream sequences a little too much, but the first dream sequence with her taking off her skin is so well-done. Overall, I think it's weird that this received such bad reviews - it's super creepy, well-acted, beautifully filmed. A solid 3 star movie (which by my standards means good!).

5. Catherine Called Birdy - It's been a long time since a movie completely drained me of any and all energy. I actually started to fall asleep so I stopped it, took a nap, then forced myself to watch the rest. There is just nothing fresh about it. I can't stand Lena Dunham, but it seems like a lot of other people who hate her still concede that this is a good movie, but they are all wrong (I mean, not actually "wrong" because opinions of film can't be wrong, but sometimes they can be...ya know?). And I've heard the name Bella Ramsey before, but I've never connected who it was - and ugh...finding out she's the little girl from Game of Thrones is not a good thing in my book (the acting on that show was the worst part about it). I'm not a fan, mostly because she talks in this really accentuated unnatural way that makes my ears hurt and she kind of reminds me of Lena, which is obviously not a good thing but I'm going to stop now because criticizing a child feels wrong (even though she'll need to get used to it if she wants to continue acting). I wish Billie Piper was in this more because I LOVE her (she's in one of my favorite series of all-time, Secret Diary of a Call Girl). I'm a little confused, though, by the casting of her brother because he looks like he's of Asian descent (maybe Indian?), but definitely not like either parent - so I thought maybe the mom had an affair or something but it's never mentioned? I'm all for diverse casting - but it still needs to make sense....biologically? Anyway, here are some good things about the movie: The soundtrack is very cute ("My Boyfriend's Back", etc.), Joe Alwyn has charisma galore, there is one really, really funny moment when she sees the hot monks and starts stroking the Jesus on the cross statue. I literally laughed for like a 10 minutes (but then I went to sleep LOL).