3 Thoughts on First Man

1. Chazelle - This is incredible work for someone so new to the scene. It's not my favorite of his - I prefer La La Land from a technical perspective and Whiplash from a story-telling perspective. But First Man has everything one could want from a fairly straight-forward biopic about Neil Armstrong. I read a critic (or film blogger, I can't remember who it was to give proper credit) who commented that Armstrong was a boring man who did one extraordinary thing, and at first I thought that was incredibly insulting, but it's honestly pretty truthful. Now, I guess we probably should re-examine the word "boring" as an insult because, let's be honest, a lot of "boring" people get shit done. Chazelle's films are so different that it's hard to see the most glaring similarity - all 3 of them are about people overcoming obstacles to accomplish a "mission", so-to-speak. There are a few things about the story that I really appreciated - the two that come to my head right away are the use of silence once in space (it's sublime) and that they don't dramatize the tension between Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin (it's there, but not focused on at all). There are also some things I could have done without (I groaned out loud with the whole bracelet thing. I knew it was coming, but I was hoping it wouldn't end that cheesily) and I could have easily cut 30 minutes of the film (making it tighter, a little more tense, and efficient - as I think Armstrong would have wanted). Overall though, it's my favorite film of the year so far, and will likely make it to my Top 10 - which makes Chazelle 3 for 3. There's clearly influences - from Spielberg to Nolan to Greengrass, and I don't think Chazelle has his own style quite yet, but he's got plenty of time.

2. Gosling - Not Gosling's best performance (we all know what his best work is and will likely always be), but still pretty solid. He's smart in sticking to roles that best suit him (it's either quiet and reserved or charming and smug, he's brilliant at both). I admit that when this was first announced, I could not picture it. Even though the role fits to his strengths, I didn't believe that he could pull it off. I still believe that someone else might have been better suited to the role, but I can't really think of a specific actor that would have a similar appearance and be in that age range. I will be frustrated if this earns him an Oscar nomination, though.


3. Foy - The standout performance is clearly Claire Foy. Just brilliant. She took a simple, cliched "supportive housewife" role and set the bar for every actress going forward. I thought it would be hard to see her as anything other than The Queen (which she does perfectly), but she proved me wrong with Unsane. Wouldn't it be awesome if she was nominated for Actress (for Unsane) and Supporting Actress (for First Man)? And what if she won both of them? Has that ever happened before? Interesting thought. Anyway, the rest of the cast is also wonderful - whatever happened to Patrick Fugit? He was so popular after Almost Famous (an overrated movie, in my opinion) and then he just...disappeared. Also, it is practically a given that this film will get nominated for an Oscar simply because Coach Taylor is in it and he has been an Oscar Lucky Charm for a few years now (Argo, Zero Dark Thirty, Carol, Manchester by the Sea). His agent is very smart.

Thoughts on 5 Films

1. Tag - I'm not really sure what to make of this movie. It's much darker and actually really fucked up. Yet, the concept is actually really funny (and oddly based on a true story) and the cast is unexpected. I like the idea of casting non-comedic actors (like Jeremy Renner) in roles like this - he's like super "serious" and he plays to that perfectly. I don't usually like Hannibal Buress (I've never seen his stand-up, though), because his line delivery is always off, but it works really well in this. I think he's the only reason I laughed through the entire movie. It definitely could have been funnier. And also, there are certain things that just aren't funny - no matter how hard you try, so this movie hits a very sensitive topic and suddenly becomes very problematic. I feel like it should come with a trigger warning - and usually I would be against something so ridiculous, but in this case, when you are watching a COMEDY you don't really expect to be blindsided by something that could have possibly caused you recent trauma. (****soooo spoiler and also trigger warning****this movie contains multiple mean-spirited "jokes" about having a miscarriage. It's not even something that offends me personally, but I just know so many people who are dealing with this and I just kept thinking while watching this "Gosh, I hope they don't see this". ).

2. Murder on the Orient Express - I've not read the book, nor have I seen the film version from the 70s (although I had no idea it was Sidney Lumet - might have to move it up the list now). Honestly, I wasn't a fan of this movie. It was very beautiful (more on that later), and has a dream cast, but I felt like it took itself too seriously for such a ridiculous plot and even more ridiculous accents. I wish it was more like Once Upon a Crime....(OMG remember that movie?! It was so great. I was a huge fan of John Candy, as was everyone at that time. I watched Once Upon a Time and Uncle Buck so many times that I could recite every line). This movie was just so hard to pay attention to; I actually had to look up the plot on Wikipedia because I had no idea what was going on (and it wasn't because it was complicated, just boring). However, those tracking shots...aaahhhhh...those gorgeous tracking shots. I could watch those on a loop for hours on end. That's probably the only nice thing I have to say about it. The cinematography alone makes it a 3 star movie. And to comment on the Johnny Depp thing (because I've avoided commenting on it), I 100% believe Amber Heard (I also adore her!), but I also 100% think Johnny is an addict and he needs help. Like right now. I will never make excuses for abuse, but completely labeling someone as a horrible person isn't exactly the right move. I've grown up watching Johnny since 21 Jump Street, and it's heartbreaking to see what he's turned into. I hope someone in his life can make a positive impact.

3. Molly's Game - First, how perfect is Jessica Chastain? Second, how was she overlooked for an Oscar nomination for this role? Is it because she made it seem so easy? Because that's what makes it so good. She's just stunning. The movie, however, is just ok. I think the memoir by Molly Bloom is probably really interesting (adding to the list!), but for some reason the movie just doesn't stand out. Maybe it's because everyone else is so dull? Like Idris Elba? I love him in most things, but every once in a while he's in a terrible role and he just can't overcome it (ahem...Pacific Rim). And what is Michael Cera doing in this movie? He will never be taken seriously as an adult, or a "serious" dramatic actor. Just never going to happen. I think I was also waiting for a twist? Or something? It just felt very linear and dull, but as if it was building to something really great that never happened. It did make me feel even more anger than I already do at the fucking male entitlement showcased. Also, Poker is still totally a male dominated game, and that sucks because I love it but I never feel comfortable playing because men always assume that I don't know what I'm doing.

4. Chappaquiddick - I think it's always interesting to make a movie about a true story in which the truth was never discovered. It's also hard to make a movie about one of the most powerful families in America - balancing out the "truth" while also avoiding any kind of possibility of defamation lawsuits is probably the hardest task with this story (which is why this is so tricky - it's like making a movie about Natalie Wood's death from the perspective of Robert Wagner without accusing him of murder. And let's be honest, he did it...). This story follows Ted Kennedy on the day of the infamous death of Mary Jo Kopechne. It mostly sticks to Kennedy's testimony and other facts about the case. However, because it never strays into the "what ifs", it does a bit of a disservice to the victim. I just don't believe that anyone would wait 10 hours to report an accident in which someone died - and that 2 other got people involved but also did not report it. There was OBVIOUSLY a reason that they waited, and it was to get their "facts" straight. And because they OBVIOUSLY lied about these "facts", the actual facts remain extremely muddled. I do have a problem with them advertising the movie as "the untold true story", because everything the movie presents are all known "facts" (i.e Kennedy's account of what happened). I also have a problem with Kate Mara's career taking such a step backwards (she should be starring in movies! Get it together people). There are some great moments in this movie, though, specifically the speech at the end, Jason Clarke's uncanny portrayal of Ted Kennedy, and the background news of the moon landing. It's interesting to see how the media can really control the focus, and how essential they are in our knowledge of events - especially when we look at today's constant rotation of news stories (it's incredibly exhausting to keep up). I would be interested to see a different version to this story with multiple perspectives, but I highly doubt that will ever happen.

5. Solo: A Star Wars Story - Honestly, any time I see people online talking about Star Wars, I immediately skip the conversation. People take this shit waaaaay to seriously. You didn't like The Last Jedi? Booo-fuckin'-hoo. Get over it. To actively destroy a franchise that you once loved, harass the actors, and bully people who did like it is downright ridiculous. If you "boycotted" this movie (which ultimately had nothing to do with The Last Jedi), then you missed out on something really fun. I was actually surprised at how much I enjoyed it. I was really excited by the casting of Alden Ehrenreich and Donald Glover (not so much for Emilia Clarke. She's terrible. Beautiful, but terrible). But then the previews & trailers just seemed so cheesy and dull and...safe. For the most part, it was pretty safe - it hit all the notes that you expect as a a prequel, but there was just something so satisfying about it - watching it all come together. I think Alden did an amazing job as a young Han Solo, and let's be honest, that's probably one of the most stressful roles a young actor can be offered. The pressure placed on him must have been so mentally heavy, I can't even imagine (although if you pay me a few million dollars I'm sure I can perfect a young Han Solo too. It's not that hard. Just pretend to be a cocky asshole. Done.).