We run on vibes here 🤙
Yeah dude.
THE QUOTE 🎬 💬
“The cliffs of insanity!”
hint: inconceivably didn’t recognize this quote when someone shared with me, so in my shame, I shall feature
THINK THOUGHTS 💭
Can you hear that? That faint buzzing sound?
Unless you’re also in Los Angeles, you probably can’t. But it’s almost like a group of middle school kids are trying to pass secrets to each other in class without the teacher noticing.
Which can only mean it’s the beginning of awards movie season in Hollywood. And instead of teenagers trying to see who like likes them, that noise I’m hearing is movie studios’ publicity departments starting their whisper campaigns to influence voters.
Which explains why we suddenly have a deluge of very well reviewed adult (not that kind) movies hitting theaters.
It’s actually somewhat of a bummer, because I’m not able to give each of these releases a full-on feature, but they all have their own reason to pay attention. Strongly encourage a watch of the trailers.
Instead I’m going to highlight the movie’s vibe, something of note about it and what Academy Award(s) it’d be nominated for if it were to get nominated. Though none of these are massive contenders, even if they’re well reviewed.
I feel like the real contenders are still, “coming soon.”
NEWSY BITS 👾
Ex-MoviePass CEO Mitch Lowe Pleads Guilty to Securities Fraud Conspiracy After Taking Plea Deal - because he admitted to lying about the MoviePass’ ability to make money selling their product - a pass where you could see a theatrical movie ticket a day, for $10 a month. When a single movie ticket costs $10. I mean, he’s a dummy, but probably not a big enough dummy to be surprised he’s going to jail. - The Hollywood Reporter
Netflix Boss Ted Sarandos Says the Streamer Can’t Have Too Much Content: ‘People Have Such Eclectic Taste … You Have to Love It All’ - and based on Netflix’s position in the market, he’s right. - Variety
EXTRA CREDIT MOVIE(S) 📝
¡Casa Bonota Mi Amor! - this actually came out a couple weeks ago, but there’s no timeline for the madness Trey Parker and Matt Stone bring in their renovation of their favorite (insane) restaurant from childhood. The reviews say it’s a delight to watch them sink tons of cash into a money pit, not out of schadenfreude, but because it’s funny and you can see the love for the place and the connection between the two South Park creators. Playing in Limited Theaters NOW
NOTABLE NEW RELEASE(S) 🎟 & 📺
Transformers One
Vibes: a shameless piece of “IP” that smartly recruited good talent
Things to note: director (Josh Cooley) wrote Inside Out and directed Toy Story 4
Academy Award possibilities: best animated feature, odds of getting nominated = fairly high
Out: Friday
Where: Theaters
Details: 1 hr 44 mins | PG | 🍅: 89%
The Substance
Vibes: modern feministic body horror with intensely blunt commentary
Things to note: Demi Moore getting some of the best reviews of her career
Academy Award possibilities: best lead actress (Demi Moore), odds = medium-long
Out: Friday
Where: Limited theaters
Details: 2 hrs 20 mins | R | 🍅: 90%
Never Let Go
Vibes: post-apocalyptic psychological cabin horror
Things to note: Halle Berry said to elevate beyond it’s genre trappings
Academy Award possibilities: non-existent best horror category (that should exist)
Out: Friday
Where: Theaters
Details: 1 hr 41 mins | R | 🍅: 70%
A Different Man
Vibes: Charlie Kaufman-esque self-analyzing darkly comedic absurdism
Things to note: the actor with the facial disfigurement on the right of the photo is Adam Pearson, who’s confidence in spite of his disability inspired the movie
Academy Award possibilities: best lead actor (Sebastian Stan), odds = long | best supporting actor (Adam Pearson), odds= long | best original screenplay, odds = long with a hint of medium
Out: Friday
Where: Limited theaters
Details: 1 hr 52 mins | R | 🍅: 85%
His Three Daughters
Vibes: (very good) acting heavy, almost play-like very relatable human drama
Things to note: Netflix continues to make movies like this (“small,” character focused) that most other major studio’s rarely touch
Academy Award possibilities: best lead actress (Natasha Lyonne), odds = pretty good | best supporting actress (Elizabeth Olsen), odds = long with a hint of medium
Out: Friday
Where: Netflix
Details: 1 hr 41 mins | R | 🍅: 99%
THE WEEKLY TRAILER PLAYLIST ⏯
Mickey 17 - next movie from Bong Joon-Ho, director of Parasite, where Robert Pattinson plays a copy upon copy upon copy of a man who signed his life away for a job. Literally.
Woman of the Hour - Anna Kendrick’s directorial debut about a woman who ends up on a date with a serial killer after they were on The Dating Game together. Based on a true story (solid trailer imho as it lets a tense scene playout).
Venom: The Last Dance - the somewhat unexpected hit franchise get it’s last(?) movie. But maybe not the characters’ last appearances (eh Marvel?).
Saturday Night - literally what in the actual fuck is this? It almost looks like Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig’s “fake, but real” Lifetime movie. Except I don’t think this was intended as a joke. But to be clear, I’d still watch.