MARCH 2021 MOVIES RECAP

As usual, I'm going to briefly go over all of the films I saw this month, and tell you a little bit about them if I have anything interesting to say. These are the films I saw during the month of March 2021. 

• Lifeforce (1985)

This is a whole lot of fun - Tobe Hooper directed 1980s schlock featuring space vampires and Patrick Stewart? C'mon, what's not to love? Also, the Tom Cruise The Mummy movie from a few years ago ripped this movie off blind, which is pretty amazing to think about. 

• Lost In Translation (2003)

I'd love to put this on at some point as a double feature with Spike Jonze's Her. It captures the same combination of loneliness and longing, and is a really moving exploration of those themes. Bill Murray is as iconic as he always is, but it's also important not to forget how young Scarlett Johansson was when she shot this movie, a real sign of a huge talent just waiting to explode. 

• American Psycho (2000)

I rewatched this classic having also recently re-read the source novel, and I've got to say that this really is one of the all-time great novel to screen adaptations. If you are familiar with the novel, you will be aware of just how much content was trimmed for the screen, and not just when it came to the absurdly gruesome and stomach-churning violence. Not just that, but the pages and pages of endless descriptions of designer suits, restaurants, rants about music and film, and business cards have been consolidated down into a tone and atmosphere of such apathy and malaise that it bleeds into the very filmmaking itself. Much like a lot of author Bret Easton Ellis' work, there is a real sense that if you simply updated all the music and pop culture references, it could have both been written and taken place just last week. 

• Creep (2014)

I saw this on a whim while scrolling through Netflix and was really surprised by how effectively uncomfortable this film was. It's not amazing, but it does a good job of making you uncomfortable, scaring you a few times, and then getting out again within 80 minutes. 

• Creep 2 (2017)

Having been pleasantly surprised by Creep, I then also saw its sequel from a few weeks later. Without spoiling Creep 2, not only is it way better than the first film but it also interacts with and comments on the first film in really subversive and surprising ways. 

• Good Time (2017)

I rewatched Good Time - you know it's good, see it if you haven't already. 

• Pieces of a Woman (2020)

The first and last 20 minutes of this film had me on the edge of my seat and on the verge of tears. If I can single out the first 20 minutes in particular, it was some of the most impressive and emotionally devastating filmmaking I've seen in a while. What a shame, then, that the middle section of the film dragged so much for me. It was competently made and the stakes and characters track coherently, but I think the film sort of shot itself in the foot a little by opening with one of the most impressive sequences in 2020. I'm almost tempted to call this film great purely on the strength of its bookending scenes, but unfortunately the momentum slowed too much for me to honestly label it as such. 

• Crawl (2019)

This was a fun watch with some great creature effects and tense moments, but I honestly don't remember much of it already. 

• Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid (1969)

Sometimes you've got to put on the greats and just sit there in awe of the sheer skill and patience it must have taken to craft such perfect films. Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid falls squarely into this category, and it was an immensely enjoyable but also inspiring and educational experience finally seeing it in full for the first time. 

• PlayTime (1967)

I love Jacques Tati, and while Playtime isn't my favourite film of his (that will always be Mon Oncle), it certainly is his most famous and highly regarded film. Physical comedy has a very high bar to reach for it to be successful, and Tati consistently raised the bar during his time making films. It's always a blessing to go back to Jacques Tati, and this time watching Playtime was no different. 

• Marriage Story (2019)

Marriage Story is one of my favourite films to come out in 2019, which is really saying something given how many great films came out that year. Every time I revisit it I am brought to tears, and every time it is a different part of the film that does it for me. I will probably keep revisiting this film at least once a year - it's a perfect script performed with real commitment and vulnerability, and directed by someone with clear emotional ties to the material. I can't wait for whatever else Noah Baumbach does next.

• Natural Born Killers (1994)

This was the first time seeing Natural Born Killer, and I've got to say that I was a little underwhelmed. It's definitely snappy and entertaining, but I actually found the constant shifting of format really distracting. I'll give it another crack some time I'm sure, but I just didn't really connect with it much. Having said that, it's pretty frightening how relevant this film still is today, and I couldn't help but think throughout how popular all of those Netflix documentaries about serial killers are. 

• The Devil & Father Amorth (2018)

Avoid the hell out of this, I had such high expectations and not only were they not met, but it actually nearly had a negative effect on how I see The Exorcist, one of my all-time favourite films. Written by film critic Mark Kermode (who I love) and directed by The Exorcist director William Friedkin (who I also love), this documentary follows Friedkin as he looks into a supposed real-life case of exorcism. The main draw to this film is that it contains footage of a real exorcism, and it really is the centrepiece of the film. Much to my dismay almost immediately when the person being exorcised begins behaving erratically, there is obvious audio manipulation done to her voice, and rather then the film commenting on it, it just carries on without addressing it. The film eventually ends in not only a huge anticlimax but also a slap in the face to anyone with a shred of intelligence. Not only was I let down, but I felt like I had my intelligence insulted by a director I previously had nothing but respect for. 

• Horse Girl (2020)

I really enjoyed the confidence of this film to go to some pretty wild and creative places, but for me it just took too long to pick up any real narrative momentum. For the first two thirds of the movie it took on a kind of quirky rom-com aesthetic and tone, which was well done but lacked proper direction, which retroactively actually makes more sense given how esoteric and bizarre the gear shift in its third act is. When it gets weird, though, it really goes there, something that I really appreciated. It was great to see a film that had the confidence to really commit to a singular, bizarre vision that was rooted in deep character and trauma. I'd watch it again, but the first couple of acts do suffer.

• Nomadland (2020)

Second time seeing this in the theatre, and I enjoyed it even more than the first. You can read my full review of Nomadland here, but some of the criticisms that I gave it there, namely its pacing, I didn't have nearly as much of a problem with second time around. It's a staggeringly beautiful film, one that you should try to see in theatres while it's still playing.

• Sicario: Day of the Soldado (2018)

Taylor Sheridan's sequel script to the brilliant Sicario, a brilliant Denis Villenueve directed drug cartel thriller from 2015, comes to life here now directed by Stefano Sollima. The absence of Villeneuve is definitely felt, but it is held together just enough by Sheridan's script and performances by the returning duo of Josh Brolin and Benicio del Toro. Another absence that is also felt is that of Emily Blunt, although this is one that makes sense both thematically and in terms of her character arc in the first film, and this is one thing that, while disappointing, did actually serve to benefit the film. It's not in the same league as the original, but it's solid, exciting, and just as morally murky. 

• The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)

I revisited this for a Bible study group and really enjoyed it. It is such a rich exploration of such a complex theological idea that deconstructs while maintaining the mystery of Jesus Christ being simultaneously fully human and fully divine. 

• Dead Alive aka Braindead (1992)

Before Peter Jackson was living in Middle Earth making movies about hobbits, he made low budget gore comedies, and Dead Alive, or Braindead, depending on what territory you live in, is undisputedly the greatest. 

• eXistenZ (1999)

I'm a huge fan of David Cronenberg, but unfortunately this fell short of my usual expectations from the master of body horror and science fiction. That's not to say that this is a bad film - it's a pretty good film - but comparatively it falls very short when stood up against classics like Videodrome, The Fly and Scanners. Without knowing how long the film was, I was expecting its final moments to be the beginning of a final twist, before it cut to credits. I enjoyed it, but was mildly disappointed. 

• Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (2020)

I could never quite get over the feeling while watching this that I was watching a stage performance captured on film, as opposed to a film. Based on a stage play, it embraces that stagy-ness, but to the extent that it never quite felt like it took flight as a film. Whether or not a film needs to fully embrace its form to be worthy of full praise is an entire other discussion, but for me and my experience with the film it was a problem. Both the late Chadwick Boseman and Viola Davis turn in show-stopping performances, Boseman in particular turning a monologue into a worthy farewell for a criminally underrated and sorely missed performer. 

• Minimalism: A Documentary About the Important Things (2015)

This was a blind watch on Netflix - I'll probably forget about it within the week. 

• Possessor (2020)

Brandon Cronenberg’s second feature, his follow up to 2012’s Antiviral, is a film bursting with the confidence of a veteran. It follows Andrea Riseborough as Tasya Vos, who works for company that carries out assassinations by implanting the consciousness of their agents into unsuspecting civilians. You get in, perform the assassination, kill the host body, get out. Vos is tasked with possessing Colin state, played by Christopher Abbott, as part of a hit that has links to a larger conspiracy involving data mining and multi-national companies. Possessor presents violence in a way that is challenging and confronting as a way of reflecting the broken psyche of Vos. The longer she spends doing her job, the more she is consumed by it. She cannot connect with her family, she cannot be intimate with her partner, she begins losing track of who she really is, as the violence and brutality of her job takes over. This is the tragedy and the real heart of Possessor - it is a film about someone becoming so consumed by their occupation that it deteriorates the rest of her life irreversibly. The films insistent use of practical effects also lends it a real gritty, earthy sensibility, and an admirable feeing of honesty in its violence. It’s certainly not for everyone, but for me Possessor is everything that science fiction can aspire to be when it collides with elements of body-horror (previously mastered of course by Cronenberg’s father, David). It is ideas driven, cerebral, visceral, and cuts to levels of cognition that operate on a primal level. Think of it like Christopher and Jonathan Nolan writing a science fiction espionage script and handing it off to a horror director with a real grasp on stakes and pacing, as well as a love for the gory, mind-blowing body-horror films of the 1970s and 80s.

Text taken from Possessor Instagram post, March 18, 2021.

• Midsommar (2019)

I rewatched Midsommar with some friends and it was a blast. If you can watch this with a group, please do. 

• One Night In Miami (2020)

The directorial debut from Regina King, this suffered from a very similar problem to that in Ma Rainey's Black Bottom - it never quite shakes the feeling that it is a stage play and embraces the form of cinema. It's a great script, performed by great actors, but for me it didn't ever get past the feeling that it was a stage play. Again, this is as much down to personal taste as anything else.

• Minari (2020)

I saw Minari in theatres - you can read my review of the film here.

• The Apartment (1960)

Billy. Freaking. Wilder. 

• Midnight Special (2016)
  

A cool little science fiction concept made on a small budget by an interesting filmmaker - it's not perfect, but why can't we have more films like this?

• Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021)

Where to even begin when talking about a movie like this? I tried to break down my thoughts in my review of the film, which you can read here. Having let the film sit with me a little longer I do think that it has some good sections and functions at least on the level of a "good movie", but I could never really get into it, primarily because of both how little I cared about the characters and how little Zack Snyder seems to care about the human characters of the story. 

• The Nightingale (2018)

I wasn't expecting to revisit this film so soon after seeing it for the first time, but I did and was almost immediately overwhelmed by how powerful it is all over again. Set in 1825 in Tasmania during one of the worst periods of violence between Native Australians and colonialists, it follows young Irish woman Clare who sets out with a tracker named Billy on the path of revenge. Having had everything taken from her at the hands of British Colonialism, her path of vengeance is also one of reconciliation and a reconnection with her humanity. It is very clearly aware of the usual tropes that revenge films like this play with, and subverts them in ways that don't simply feel reductive but rather serve the narrative and message of the film. It is incredibly powerful, and exists as not only a piece of really visceral and uncomfortable period revenge cinema, but also as a tribute and remembrance of a civilisation and culture that was violently and savagely uprooted not nearly as long ago as people like to tell themselves. Throughout the whole thing I was increasingly aware of the fact that the violence and horror taking place on screen is a part of my heritage as a white Australian, and it really affected me in a way that films rarely do. It's not an easy film to watch, but I encourage everyone to do so because I think it's a really transformative and rich film. I eagerly await whatever Jennifer Kent has up her sleeve next. 

• The Fear of God: 25 Years of 'The Exorcist' (1998)

This documentary film about one of my all time favourites is a real treat - if you're a fan of The Exorcist I strongly recommend you seek it out (chances are you already have). I believe it's on YouTube. 

• Saint Maud (2021)

I saw Saint Maud in theatres, you can read my review of the film here.

• They Live (1988)

Having spent some time listening to one of my favourite podcasts do a month on John Carpenter movies, I decided to catch up on some of them that I haven't seen. Up until watching They Live I had seen Halloween, The Thing and In the Mouth of Madness, so I really felt like I had some catching up to do. I started with They Live, and having only really heard bits and pieces about it I was really shocked to find that I recognised a lot of iconic moments and references purely from the impact this movie has had on popular culture. The movie itself was a lot of fun, in that very particular 80's action adventure way, and lead actors, former WWE wrestler Roddy Piper and Keith David, absolutely own the movie. 

• Prince of Darkness (1987)

I continued my little John Carpenter run with Prince of Darkness - this is way more up my alley. 

• The Hurt Locker (2009)

I rewatched The Hurt Locker because I picked up a Blu-ray for cheap the other week and I don't think I'd seen it since around when it came out. It's a fantastic movie with real tension that almost never lets up, but I did have some concerns about how it portrays some of it's characters. In particular, during some of the bomb disposal scenes there are lots of cutaway shots of civilians watching, usually followed by an ominous musical sting. I understand the purpose of these shots - the bomb squad are rightly suspicious of everyone, always on the lookout for a phone or a detonator or a video camera - but the effect of this on the film itself is that it is also asking you to be suspicious about everyone. This grated against me a little bit, given that 90% of civilians were just trying to stay out of the way. But other than that minor thing, I still think this is a great movie and I'm glad I revisited it again after probably about ten years.

• The Blob (1988)

This was a huge surprise for me. For whatever reason, I was expecting a trashy B-movie in the so bad it's good category, but The Blob is a genuinely great film. That might sound strange given the connotations the title conjures and its association with 1950s monster movies through it's original, but trust me when I say that Chuck Russell and Frank Darabont's script is as structurally and dramatically perfect as anything else you'll see. If there are any negatives to be found in this masterpiece (I'm not kidding), it's in some of the effects. There are some opticals that look a bit dated, and one miniature in particular that looks a bit ridiculous, but the vast majority of the creature effects in this film are practical and they hold up incredibly well. A lot of the time they actually reminded me of some of the stuff done by Tom Savini in the 1980s, or even the creature effects in John Carpenter's The Thing. There are incredibly well orchestrated and executed effects sequences that are terrifyingly squishy and gross looking even today. But like I said, this isn't just a monster movie with great effects that hold up, although that is also true. The script is seriously well crafted with countless character set ups that are paid off later in the film, countless little foreshadowing moments that eventually pay off, a brilliant Psycho-esque bait and switch at around the half hour mark, and satisfying conclusions to character arcs all around. This is seriously one of my favourite first time viewings this month, and I'm not ashamed to say it!

• Over Your Dead Body (2014)

Takashi Miike, for the uninitiated, is an unbelievably prolific Japanese filmmaker who has been working in cinema since the 90s, sometimes releasing five or six films a year. He has released films across such a dizzyingly wide array of genres that to categorise him would be absurd - some of my favourites of his are Audition, a film that turns from an off-beat romantic comedy into a shrieky horror film, Ichi the Killer, a gory revenge thriller based on an anime, and Dead or Alive, a gangster flick bookended by two of the most absurd sequences you'll see in all of cinema. Over Your Dead Body is by far the most restrained film I have seen of Miike's, a strange thriller that blurs the lines between fiction and non-fiction within the world of the film and really starts to mess with your head. When compared to some of his other more iconic work it certainly doesn't hold a candle to those films, but it is a really solid, very creepy and disturbing psychological thriller that goes off into some esoteric but strangely rewarding territory. 

• Apostle (2018)

This had been on my watchlist for a long time before I finally saw this, and I've got to say that I was a little disappointed. 

• Seaspiracy (2021)

This was a blind watch on Netflix, and I'm glad I took a chance with this because I thought it was really powerful. It's a documentary about a young man who embarks on a mission to learn more about whaling, but ends up going down the rabbit hole of the fishing industry as a whole, discovering more than he could have imagined. I was fascinated by this doco, learnt a lot, and have even considered changing my eating habits as a result of watching it.

• The Trials of Gabriel Fernandez (2020)

This is another documentary on Netflix, but this is in the form of a six-part miniseries. It tells the story of Gabriel Fernandez, and his brutal torture and murder, through the lens of the subsequent trials of his mother, his mother's boyfriend, and the social workers involved with Gabriel. It's a tough watch, but it is structured in a way that keeps you invested and focussed on the trials, something that a lot of documentaries that follow this structure have failed to do with me in the past. 

• Sleeping Beauty (2011)

I knew just about nothing about this film before I watched it, and was incredibly bored for pretty much all of it. It follows a young woman, played by Emily Browning, who decides to start working as a sex worker to fund her university education and her rent. She ends up working for a company that requires her to willingly drug herself so she is completely non-responsive and asleep when the male clients spend time with her. I was curious, once the film had laid out its cards, as to whether or not the film was going to say something interesting about its subject matter or interrogate it a little, or if it was simply going to be a voyeuristic, probably misogynist experience of exploitation. Not only did I feel like it was the latter, but more than anything I was incredibly bored. I almost resent this film even more for this fact - I don't mind when a film is aggressively bad, because at least that is something interesting to talk about and consider, but when a film is this boring it just leaves you with nothing. It's a rare thing for me to see a movie and then wish that I could take my time back and put it towards something different. 

• Boogie Nights (1997)

I really needed this after Sleeping Beauty. I finally sat down and watched Boogie Nights in its entirety, and it was an absolute joy from start to finish. I do think that it is a little overlong, and there are probably about 10 or 15 minutes you could cut out to tighten in up a little bit, but that critique falls short when you actually stop and look at the film asking the question of what you could cut out, because everything in it feels essential. Unquestionably one of Mark Wahlberg's greatest roles in his career, Boogie Nights just oozes naive confidence and effortless charm that only can come from a filmmaker aged 25 with nothing to lose making the film he wants to make without any restrictions. Paul Thomas Anderson has obviously gone on to make some of the great films of the end of the 1990s and into the new century, but Boogie Nights stands tall amongst those films as one of his best. 

• Palm Springs (2020)

This is one of the few films to come out in 2020 that lots of people were talking about at the time and seemed to have a general consensus of positive reception. It's nothing of any lasting substance or weight, but it is a consistently funny comedy that uses a well-worn time loop trope competently and without treading on too many cliches (at least without making fun of it in the process). I am a fan of Andy Samberg, so that definitely put me in a place to enjoy the film from the get-go, although I do know a lot of people who just don't find him funny. If that is the case my guess is that you probably won't get along with this film as well as I did, because it really does feel like the Samberg show and if you're not a fan of him as a comedic performer then my guess is that he will become very annoying very quickly. Having said that, he does turn his hand to some more dramatic moments of performance - sometimes to mixed results - which stops his performance and the film from becoming too one-note. J. K. Simmons shows up, too, which is always a good thing in my book. 

FAVOURITE FIRST WATCH: I saw a whole bunch of new films this month, but I think the one that really left its mark on me in the biggest way possible is Possessor. I will always say without any shame that horror and science fiction are my two deepest loves, and Possessor brings those two genres together in a way that I don't think I have seen done as effectively or with as much love since director Brandon Cronenberg's father, David, was making films like Videodrome. 

FAVOURITE REWATCH: I think it has to be The Nightingale. 

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT: If it wasn't made clear already it is definitely The Devil & Father Amorth. I haven't been that let down - borderline insulted, actually - by a film in a while. 

FILM YOU SHOULD DEFINITELY WATCH WITH YOUR PARENTS: Just for the sheer fuckedness of it, Over Your Dead Body. It gets pretty wild.  

There we have it! I'd love to hear your thoughts on any of the films I saw this month, so feel free to either drop a comment below or come talk to me on Instagram - @bluerose.filmreview. 

See you next time, legends!