Two lies and a truth.

Aug 05, 2020

"Old enough...
Old enough for what?
...to party."

PINNED: this newsletter is supposed to be a friendly recapping of the movies in, and coming to, theaters. But those movies don't exist right now. Until that changes, I'll either be suggesting old favorites to revisit, pointing out recent flicks you may have missed or calling out notable new VOD / streaming options.

Another big deal occurrence for theatrical movie going this week. Disney shifted the release of the live action Mulan remake from an "at some point" theatrical release to a premium home rental (aka PVOD) via their Disney + streaming service. I'll explain more about how it'll work more in a tic.

For studios, the idea of a premium home rentals has always been the pot on the horizon filled with... gold? nothing? snakes?? Studios have been reticent to go take a look in part because they didn't know what was inside - that and because they had a partner who'd threaten them if they decided to stray. That all changed when "the bullshit" came upon us. Universal took what was an imminent theatrical release, Trolls: World Tour, and made it PVOD (with theaters getting no take). This was understandable, especially when much of their marketing money had been spent. And by all indications, it worked. But Universal, as well as all other major studios have been pushing back their biggest movies, waiting until theaters re-open. Until now.

Disney deciding to make Mulan, a $200 million movie, an expensive home rental (albeit, still cheaper than the cost of two tickets at a theater in LA) feels different. One, it's Disney, and they have the biggest movies. And while their CEO says it's a one off that is only based on circumstances, which is fair, but if it's super successful...? This one off, may turn into a more off.

As for the specifics, some things are still unclear, but the gist is that you'll have to pay $30 to watch the movie on September 4th. But you'll also have to be signed up Disney +. We think. It's possible Disney lets non +ers watch it via normal VOD outlets (e.g. iTunes), but as of now, it seems to be only through Disney +. The big question here is whether people who already pay (the admittedly low price) of $6 a month for Disney + balk at paying extra for content. They already got Hamilton for free, and early.

If you have a strong opinion either way, I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Btw, I didn't mention it last week, but Beyonce released either the longest music video ever or the musiciest narrative movie ever. And as you might expect from the leader of the bee hive, it's apparently really good.

Cutoff? Go here, click "most recent edition."

This week's theme is fairly loose, but can roughly be described as new movies with female leads / directors / writers that get at interesting topics in acutely short runtimes (for real. none of these movies are over 90 mins). 🤷‍♂️

Btw, I'm still here, still waiting for your emails. So feel free to email me your take(s)!

YES, GOD, YES
(2020)

Sex is everywhere, it's desired (by most) everyone, it's just plain necessary for humans' survival and yet its particulars are often left undiscussed in "polite culture." And there's nowhere more polite than Catholic high school or faith retreats - the settings of Yes, God, Yes.

The particulars at *ahem* hand here are masturbation. Namely the urge to masturbate by Alice, the film's lead - played by Natalie Dyer (Nancy from Stranger Things). The urges, brought on by AOL chat rooms turned naughty, steamy Titanic scenes and vibrating Nokia cell phones (yes, you guessed it, the movie takes place in the early aughts) is what pushes her to the faith retreat. All because the one in the clouds says masturbation is a sin. Well, really Alice's teachers who tell her their Catholic god says masturbation is a sin. Seems she'll have to figure out if she should trust her very (common) human feelings, or her teachers who happen to be human themselves.

And sure, we can all imagine roughly how this one ends up, but that may be in the movies favor, as it looks to do a good job of hitting the "oh boy, been there!" for adults and the "oh, so I'm not alone!?" for those still discovering.

Note: the director also co-wrote Obvious Child, (which if you haven't seen, I strongly endorse )was a really sweet dramedy centering on an abortion.

Details: 93% on RT (89 reviews)
R, 1 hr18 mins, Vertical

SHE DIES TOMORROW
(2020)

"Amy thinks she's dying tomorrow...and it's contagious."

Hell of a pitch for a movie. Now it very easily could be just that, a cool pitch. But based on the reviews I'm reading, it seems to have gone well beyond that and turned itself into an existential terrifying new movie that'll force you to consider your own inevitable demise while making you super creeped out (thanks to writer / director Amy Seimetz who also co-created The Girlfriend Experience TV show). Um....yay?

Yes, yay! Because while death is a certainty, movies turning out to be good, is most definitely not. Now, maybe this isn't the perfect time for a movie about anxiety induced mania since many are already living that and don't need a movie to throw it back in their friggen faces. Or maybe this is the perfect time for this movie. Cuz who knows, maybe watching it happen outside oneself and in a theoretical manner helps one process it all? Dunno.

In practice this almost feels akin to It Follows, an excellent horror move (I reference often) that is also built on a simple idea that expands into something much more. She Dies apparently starts with one character believing her meat-sack will meet the butcher tomorrow (she's so certain she starts googling urns she likes). She passes this anxiety on to a friend, who initially tries to calm her and downplay it, until she becomes disconcerted herself. And then those who try and comfort her also become anxious they will die "tomorrow."

It sounds like the most fucked up game of whisper ever played if you ask me. And one I want to watch people play.

Details: 83% on RT (54 reviews)
R, 1 hr 24 mins, NEON

I USED TO GO HERE
(2020)

That idiom "you can never go home again" is so stupid. Of coooourse you can. And I Used to Go Here is an entire movie proving that silly cliche wrong! See, Gillian Jacobs (Community) is a mid-thirties writer going through a break up with her fiancé; she goes back to her college, invited by her former professor (Jermaine Clements - Flight of the Concords) for a talk about her new book and literally visits her collegiate home. See! Home <> again. But when she's there, she gets involved in the lives of the kids living at the house now, almost reliving her college years until the realities of her life presumably come crashing back to the fore.

Ohp. Yup. Just getting it. The phrase is metaphorical. DuuuuUUUuuh.

........

Oh. You already knew that? Well, you'll fit right in with his movie. Which if it looks a little bit contrite (it probably is, just like that cliché), there's a decent chance it'll make you all warm and fuzzy inside, just like when you go...

Details: 90% on RT (29 reviews)
NR, 1 hr 20 mins, Gravitas

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