August 5, 2022 BETA

Aug 03, 2022

"Wouldst thou like
to live deliciously?"

PINNED: this newsletter started as a way to highlight movies coming to theaters (see: the name). Then, "the bullshit" happened. And I started featuring movies in theaters, VOD or streaming (see: the +). Point is, if there's a movie worth checking out, you'll probably find it here.

I've been wanting to write about subtitles (again? feel like I've written about them before) as it's become an increasingly relevant topic around movie / show watching. They were much discussed when Parasite won the Oscar for Best Picture a few years ago, one because the movie had them and yet still prevailed, and two, because of this quote from the movie's director Boon Joon Ho, "Once you overcome the 1-inch-tall barrier of subtitles, you will be introduced to so many more amazing films."

Joon Ho's right, there's obviously a ton of movies (and shows) that aren't shot in English that American audiences (the intended target for his quote) would still love. And his comments were oddly prescient, because soon after, another piece of South Korean media, Squid Game, become a worldwide phenomenon - even though it too had the "one-inch-tall-barrier." Were they the start of a trend or the beneficiaries of it? Hard to know for sure - though I'd go with the latter - but at this point it just kind of "is." There have been recent studies (some of them self-serving, but whatevs) on how people in various age groups watch their media in regards to words on screen. This BBC article details the massive gap between the 18-25 year old crowd where 80% of respondents turn on subtitles some or all of the time, compared to the 56-73 group where a mere 23% do. You'd might think this would be the exact opposite. And yet.

So while non-English media performing well is all well and good (and it is good!), there's still the case where you're watching in English and you still have the subtitles on. Why? Beyond the obvious instance where you're deaf or hard of hearing, there's likely a multitude of reason. And while you can do a lot of interviews and research, it makes sense when you imagine the people watching this way (18-25 year olds) are either doing it on their phone / laptop or with the device right alongside them.

But it's not just the fact that you can watch what you want wherever you want, regardless of the volume of the world around you, there's also apparently legitimate fun to be hand. When the fourth season of Stranger Things came out, the subtitles were so out there, that they were meme'd, written about, and the the caption writers themselves were interviewed - by Netflix itself even. Now, I like being aware of the trend, because knowing is 51% of the battle, but I'm also just curious to see where it goes. I already started wondering how this changes consumption. Do people start using terms they see on subtitles more often such that it influences spoken language? And does the trend go beyond just movies / shows such that big concerts start displaying the song lyrics, because it's kind of the same thing (maybe this already done and I'm not aware?). Anyway, as always, just some thoughts. And btw, if Hollywood knows anything, they know how to copy, so don't be surprised if you see even more inventive subtitles for the next show or movie you stream.

Note: I'm featuring "too many" movies this week. Quotes because I'm a fan of options. But I'm not a fan of you taking two hours to read this newsletter, so I'm going to try and be tighty-whitey* with my overviews (stop scoffing!).

*brief

Extra Credit Movies:

They / Them. A horror movie at a gay "conversion" camp. Reviews aren't great, but critics liked it more than the RT score seems to indicate. Just doesn't seem scary enough. Streaming on PEACOCK this Friday.

BULLET TRAIN

It's... an action-comedy starring Brad Pitt and directed by David Leitch - Pitt's one time stuntman and helmer of Deadpool 2 and (unofficially) the first John Wick - where much of the story about a bunch of assassins vying for the same briefcase takes place in, you guessed it, an oversized Uber pool. Jk, it's a bullet train.

You'll get... Brad Pitt in his "fuck it" phase - I'm extrapolating here, but it's from quotes from the man himself, see this GQ profile "'I consider myself on my last leg,' he says to me, 'this last semester or trimester. What is this section gonna be? And how do I wanna design that?'" or his thoughts on why he wore a skirt on the red carpet on the promotional tour for Bullet Train, "I don’t know! We’re all going to die, so let’s mess it up." But it's like the good kinda fuck-it-phase, where he's just trying to have fun so he's super breezy while he performs a bunch of balletic action not unlike the stuff from an old school Jackie Chan movie (an actual reference point for the filmmakers). Reviews say Pitt is super enjoyable to watch, as are the other actors, but that the story and knowing nature starts to wear a bit thing.

Vibe: feels like the style of John Wick + the over the top wink and nod of Smoking Aces

Out Friday
Watch In Theaters
The Trailer | 2 hrs 6 mins | R | 🍅: 59%

THIRTEEN LIVES

It's... the inevitable Hollywood take on the traumatic and dramatic cave rescue of the Thai boys soccer team and their coach.

You'll get... a straight forward Ron Howard movie with subdued performances from vets like Colin Farrell and Vigo Mortensen as they do solid service to a story that was already filled with enough tension (and may have been better told by the documentary The Rescue).

Vibe: feels like a movie of the week except it was made by Oscar winners

Out Now / Friday
Watch In Theaters / Amazon Prime
The Trailer | 2 hrs 22 mins | PG-13 | 🍅: 88%

BODIES BODIES BODIES

It's... a whodunit slasher that's more "of the moment" a la the original Scream than the classic feeling Knives Out where a group of friends, but more like frenemies, decide to ride out a hurricane at one of their rich parent's mansions.

You'll get... a hyper stylized satire and critique of people who bandy about terms like "ally" and "woke," via what reviews say are a bunch of really great performances from actors like Amandla Stenberg, Pete Davidson, Rachel Sennott and Maria Bakalova (from the Borat sequel).

Vibe: feels like if you made Mean Girls into a slasher movie

Out Friday
Watch Theaters
The Trailer | 1 hr 47 mins | R | 🍅: 97%

PREY

It's... a prequel to the original Predator, set amongst the Comanche nation in the early 1700's where a young woman (played by Amber Midthunder) wants to be a warrior, but isn't taken seriously by those around her, not even the murderous alien. Big mistake. Directed by Dan Trachtenberg, who made the very excellent 10 Cloverfield Lane.

You'll get... a really well made Predator movie (something we haven't had since uh, the original?) where the action is interesting and the story is interested in showing a new angle on a familiar story - so says the near universally positive reviews. You'll also get a nearly all Native cast and the option to watch it in English version or a Comanche (w/ English subtitles). How cool. And nice call back to the discussion in the intro!

Oh! And a dog, you'll also get a dog.

Vibe: killer claustrophobic action w/ modern themes

Out Friday
Watch Hulu
The Trailer | 1 hr 39 mins | R | 🍅: 95%

LUCK

It's... the first movie made under the auspices of John Lasseter at his new work home (Skydance) after he was fired from overseeing Disney animation (which included Pixar, the studio he helped build and where he directed the first two Toy Story movies) after he was accused of "sexual misconduct."

You'll get... some decent if not genre shifting animation and solid voice work in what sounds like a fairly clunky story (if decent enough diversion for the youngins) about luck, good and bad, but ultimately a movie that seems far removed from the heights reached by the productions Lasseter oversaw at Pixar.

Vibe: Jesus crimminy, I can't take another minute of explaining why ants don't have iphones to my five year old, let me just turn on the TV and, oh shit, what's this? Hm. Seems good enough...*hits play*

Out Friday
Watch Apple TV +
The Trailer | 1 hr 44 mins | G | 🍅: 48%

EASTER SUNDAY

It's... a broad comedy about family starring popular stand up comedian Jo Koy in his first film role (after a bunch of successful specials), but maybe more importantly, the first wide theatrical release to feature a mostly Filipino cast (as we're oft reminded, representation matters, especially to those being represented).

You'll get... a movie made about and for Filipino-Americans, but in that kind of way that's supposed to feel like we all ultimately want the same things, we deal with the same problems and we're all crazy, it's just that, this is our kinda crazy.

Vibe: feels like a multi-cam sitcom in movie form

Out Friday
Watch Theaters
The Trailer | 1 hr 36 mins | PG-13 | 🍅: TBD

(called out from top, left to right)

Ana De Armis as Norma Jean Baker in Blonde.

Jonathan Majors and Glen Powell as fighter pilots in "the forgotten war" in Devotion.

Thandiwe Newton as a bereaved woman dealing with an unwelcoming community in God's Country.

Sylvester Stallone as a retired superhero who becomes discovered by Javon Walton (Ashtray from Euphoria) in Samaritan.

What's In Theaters +

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