When frenemies lose those two critical letters 😬

Dec 09, 2020

"Get some ice for him.
Not ice, get him a beer!"

PINNED: this newsletter is supposed to be a friendly recapping of the movies in, and coming to, theaters. But things be real weird right now. So until that changes in earnest, 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.

Did anything happen last week in Hollywood? No?

Phew. Thought I might've missed something.

WOLFWALKERS

Vibe: that "different" kid who is actually really cool...
...once you get to know them
Rotten Tomatoes: 98% (out of 101)
Details: 1 hr, 43 mins | PG
Trailer

This movie looks dissimilar to most other animated movies being released today. That may be a positive or a negative for you. If it's the latter, I encourage you to take a second look. Not literally of course, the animation hasn't changed in the last 10 seconds, but figuratively (same thing?). Because while Pixar has yet to release their extremely well reviewed Soul, there's a good chance Wolfwalkers is at least in the conversation for best animated movie of 2020 - and that's only in part due to it's multiple Game of Thrones connections (I'll get to that).

See, the hand-drawn style of the film lends itself to the setting, which is 17th century Ireland. When things were a bit messier, and humans were still afraid of the wilderness, unlike today, when it's afraid of us. But while humans' domination over the land hasn't been in question for a while, it was then. People certainly weren't intentionally propagating creatures like wolves in the way we do now, in fact much the opposite. Such is the task of Robyn and her widowed father Bill (voiced by Sean Bean <-- GoT connection #1) who've come to Ireland from England to help with the extermination of the fearsome four-legged creatures.

Although, technically, Robyn is supposed to be at home, like all good children (and women) of the time - not out hunting those gold eyed lupines. But she does (duh!) and it doesn't go like she thought (of course!). Instead she meets another young girl who can become a wolf, or rather inhabit a wolf while she sleeps (GoT connection numero dos people). Robyn also starts to inhabit a wolf and along the way learns that the wolves may not be all that bad, and it could be the humans that are more worth fearing.

Who knew a second look could be so powerful.

I'M YOUR WOMAN

Vibe: crime thriller with feministic tendencies
Rotten Tomatoes: 77% (out of 61)
Details : 2 hrs, R
Trailer

A nice young woman holding a baby with lots of browns and yellows. This has to be a period drama about a domestic disruption of sorts.

Nope.

Well, then how about a story about a poor, but spunky ingenue pushing against the rich mother or, or maybe the misogynistic boss? How bout that?

Strike two.

Fine. Then what the hells is it? It's a crime movie. A crime movie? Then you should've featured a picture of the overconfident bearded lawbreaker who inevitably gets himself into trouble.

Oh he's in the movie all right, this just isn't his story. It's hers. *nods up* The woman who inevitably gets sidelined during the events and actions involving The Man. Until now.

Rachel Brosnahan from The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel gets to show us what it's like for the other half. Which kicks off with her being paired with a child her husband adopted? kidnapped?? bought?! And continues with a late night hello from her husband's associates who whisk her off to "safety." The quotes are necessary and obvious in that you can imagine her story will be anything but safe.

Which means, of course, she'll have to learn how to provide her own protection, in whatever way she decides she has to.

LOVE AND MONSTERS

Vibe: Zombieland w/ a sprinkling of Ted Lasso
Rotten Tomatoes: 91% (out of 69)
Details: 1 hr 49 mins | PG-13
Trailer

Another movie where most of the world's population has been wiped out. *yaaaaawn* Shit, no, I didn't mean that to reflect on Love and Monsters (L & M), I just didn't get the best sleep last night. See, while L & M is indeed set in the epilogue of a massive human offing, it's not like all the rest. It doesn't have the self-seriousness of a Texas high school football coach or the incessant Inception BRWAAAHH sounds in the trailers (ok, maybe like one). Think of it as the movie version of the punchy sidekick in those more austere movies.

Instead of having a sort of chosen-one vibe, it zooms the story in on a random dude (Dylan O-Brien from Maze Runner) who's lookin to find his high school crush after 7 years of giant monster bugs ruling the world due to the after effects of the destruction of a massive asteroid (just... go with it, ok?). Does't hurt that right before all this went down there were just about to ya know 👀. And while that's not the only reason he wants to find his long lost gf, it is A reason. See, he's a sweet guy, but he's kinda the least heroic seeming fella in his bunker. But gosh darn it, he needs to find the girl, because, well, what else are you gonna do when you could be disemboweled by a giant cockroach?

In ripping, er, riffing off Zombieland a bit, he'll meet some charming characters along the way (Michael Rooker!) who help keep him alive long enough to finally get his kiss - and who knows (you do), maybe even help save the world a little.

Reviews love it for mashing a few genres successfully as well as bringing a lighter tone while not getting rid of all emotional weight.

Note: same writer as the recently featured Spontaneous.

Highlights

The Dig - Carey Mulligan and Ralph Fiennes in a very "sweeping" (so says the trailer music) British looking movie about an excavation on Mulligan's land around dubya dubya two.

Fatale - another "trashy" salacious thriller, this time with Hilary Swank and Michael Ealy (you know him). But dare I say it looks kind of like the good version of this type of movie?

Two of Us - the story of a lesbian couple who everyone thinks are just neighbors (including the children of one of the partners) and what happens when one of them has a stroke. Good early reviews.

Mayor - a doc on the mayor of a Palestinian city. It's probably different than you're thinking. Great reviews.

What's In Theaters +

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