Friday, November 29th
Knives Out, aka Rian's Revenge. Take all the juice derived from your Star Wars experience, both good and bad; throw in some franchise principals (Captain America, Zod, Laurie Strode, James Bond); and tackle a trope-heavy genre: the murder mystery. Oh, and hit it out of the park. Did I mention this is not a franchise? Don't get me wrong, I have been thoroughly enjoying the era of the superhero mega-franchise after growing up with Superman featuring Richard Pryor, Dolph Punisher, "Rubber Ears" Captain America vs. The Italian Red Skull and let's not forget the Fantastic Four movie that was never released in theaters but defined the era of bootleg DVD vendors dominating comic cons. However, my answer to all those who bemoan the absence of non-franchise films that are not "cinema" (I'm looking at you, Scorsese), I think the only answer is to make a good one, with a great cast, and stick the landing. Oh, and release it in a theater (Still looking at you, Scorsese).
Saturday, November 30th
It was very challenging, jarring even, when I realized the filmmakers were going to use miniatures to take us OUT of Mr. Roger's neighborhood and into this macabre circus of a world. Fortunately, it worked, but not right away. It still left my inner child confused as to why we left Mr. Roger's Neighborhood in the first place. This device is saved by the performance of Matthew Rhys, who plays Lloyd Vogel, a pseudonym for the actual magazine writer whose world was changed by Fred Rogers. One might argue that having one's world changed by Mr. Rogers is pretty relatable. I'm with you. Kudos to the filmmakers for going as dark as possible in order to make us see the light Rogers brought to the aforementioned macabre circus. Would I rather have stayed in the Neighborhood? Absolutely. Will I be revisiting that documentary on Netflix? I kind of have to, in order to restore balance. Can I really return to Mr. Roger's Neighborhood? I'd like to think so. Maybe, one day.
Sunday, December 1st
The girl from Game of Thrones and the dude from Crazy Rich Asians in a romantic comedy/Christmas movie inspired by the music of George Michael. It was my girlfriend's birthday wish, OK? She had every right to discover the disappointment on her own and I was perfectly happy to share it with her. She called the ending early on, while I was fighting drowsiness. Was it cute? No, but Emilia Clarke is. They should make a movie about her eyebrows. Let me be clear. There is only one Christmas movie for me:
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