Emergency (2022)

Sometimes when I'm watching a film it hits me that what I'm watching is something special, a film that will stick with me, that I'll watch again and again. Emergency is one of those films. Flying somewhat under the radar, Emergency is one of those little films that comes at you and leaves you breathless. 

Smart and funny, Emergency catches you off guard a bit. Presented as a familiar college comedy, it starts to show us early that there is more going on here. The script is tight, natural, and insightful. The performances are remarkable from a mostly unknown troupe. The direction is spot on, clever, creative. Emergency just delivers and ends up being both sharply entertaining and bitingly relevant. 

The story is just really good. Two black college students and their Latino room mate find an unconscious white girl and realize that calling for help could lead to them being arrested or worse. They are pulled in different directions regarding their own safety and hers. I know it doesn't sound funny but it is. And it is funny without ever being irreverent or silly. The humour comes from an honest and truly organic place. I kept worrying the film was going to need to come up with less genuine excuses to keep the action going but the script is so good and just playing off the tropes of the comedy genre in ways that kept is honest. 

And as it drives to its conclusion the power of the story truly comes into focus. Even the little post-script, which again I worried was going to go a little trite, did not disappoint. The film stays true to itself right to the end.

 

Donald Elise Watkins stands out amongst a talented cast breaking out as a potential star. He is stunning, especially at the end, his performance shook me. I want to see what this writer, this director, and this star do next cause after this I'd watch them do anything. 

Emergency

Starring: Donald Elise Watkins, RJ Cyler, Sebastian Chacon, Sabrina Carpenter, Maddie Nichols, Madison Thompson, Diego Abraham

Director: Carey Williams

Writer: KD Dávila

 

Pleasure (2022)

Pleasure follows a young woman who moves to LA or pursue a career in porn. The film starts by focusing on her ambition and agency in seeking out opportunities while also finding some community. But as the film goes on it depicts just how much the system is set up not to allow her to find success but to be used up and spit out. It is powerful in how it lures us into its appeal before slowly transforming our experience into something shocking, not shocking in its graphic nature but in its frankness about the female experience of making porn.

While no experience is universal, and there is more porn made by women for women, or made by film makers who queer the industry in ways that empower the unempowered, Pleasure focuses on the more mainstream industry and the ways it presents as being sex positive while also using its participants, especially the women, and disposing of them. 

The film is graphic, showing everything from erections to semen to depictions of BDSM that we are not used to seeing outside of actual porn, yet the film never sexualizes these images. Pleasure manages to make it all feel clinical and never arousing. We understand both Cherry’s desire to be in the business and her ambition as well as her fear and regret as she makes choices she doesn’t want to or is put further and further into situations that are not her choice. 

The film focuses on a specific experience of making porn and doesn’t speak for everything in he industry however what it does it does well and Sophia Kappel’s performance is both brave and moving. Pleasure was hard to watch as the scenes moved from being more mundane to more abusive. Yet director Thyberg never lets you turn away until she finally lets her subject make her escape.

Pleasure

Starring: Sophia Kappel, Revika Anne Reustle, Chris Cock, Lance Hart, Axel Braun, Aiden Starr, Mick Blue, Steve Holmes, Mark Spiegler  

Director: Ninja Thyberg

Writers: Peter Modestij, Ninja Thyberg
 

Memoria (2022)

Tilde Swinton is so charismatic on the screen that she finds ways to make the mundane fascinating.  In Memoria, she commands the screen while doing very little, filling the silences with her character’s narrative and then once the film reaches its rather challenging conclusion, she grounds it in a way that gives it a veneer of realism.

Weerasethakul also brings to his honestly opaque story a familiarity that help it be accessible. His film starts out rather sedate, following Swinton’s character through the more day to day routines that feel real. The story’s more haunted elements start slowly creeping in including the banging that she hears. It isn’t presented in an overwhelming way, often we forget it a bit until it comes back.

Eventually they get to a crescendo where the supernatural (?) elements come to the fore and Weerasethakul’s narrative refuses to hold our hands any longer, leaving us with a series of unexplainable moments that evoke feelings more than understanding. But his set up to this, and the work of his star, have helped us get here so we can experience it. 

The narrative does remain rather elusive and sometimes the film feels like it isn’t going to offer a satisfying resolution, which is okay, but there is a sense of “so what?” At the end that makes the film feel like it was more an exercise in stimuli than in story. Again that’s fine, but the questions it is asking may not be as profound or as stimulating as it thinks it is.  

In the end we are left with feelings for sure, and questions, but the quest for answers doesn’t always feel so interesting or compelling. But despite this Memoria does remain beautiful, never boring, even when it is intentionally slowing down.

Memoria

Starring: Tilda Swinton

Writer/Director: Apichatpong Weerasethakul

 

Top Gun: Maverick (2022)

Okay, I know my opinion on Maverick is going to be an outlier. People love this film, and that’s good. But I was mostly bored, similarly to how I felt during the original film, and there are things that stuck in my craw that just made me not really enjoy this predictable and formulaic film. I get that for people who love Top Gun, the sense of nostalgia will overwhelm them and good on them. But for those who don’t have a love for the 1980s celebration of militarism, well, not much will feel better here.

Basically Maverick is the same film as Top Gun. For those who want the same film recycled with a younger cast you get your wish. Tom Cruise seems to be in the phase of his career where he only takes roles that point out what a legend he is. Whether its this or the Mission Impossible franchise, Cruise walks on to the set and everything in the film reminds us that he is a superhero. His “faults” are the kind of faults we all give when we do a job interview, the kind that people can’t help but love us for. Maverick isn’t a deconstruction of Pete Mitchell its a lionization of him.

Its also, like its predecessor, a lionization of American military dominance in the world. The mission is never questioned in its righteousness. The will of the Pentagon is never challenged. That’s not what these movies are about. This is about a specific kind of heroism which bugged me throughout. I knew it going in but it still rubbed me the wrong way.

 

And the homoeroticism, while still present, was toned down. This was the ONE thing the first film had going for it. I mean there are still a bunch of sweaty shirtless men banging into each other in the sunset (with one woman thrown in for good measure) but there is less of the bromance energy than the first film (which is pretty much inevitable since the first was dripping in it).

But in the end it was the lack of stakes that mostly disappointed me. The film isn’t brave enough to cost us anything. The heroes save the day as we pretty much know they will. The character arcs are all telegraphed from the opening scenes and we all know just how its going to go down. And it does exactly as we expect. 

To be fair, that’s okay. We buy out ticket and we know what we are going to get. It is like ordering at McDonald’s. The menu is the menu is the menu. It’s just not what I am craving. I get that its popular and I get that its satisfying in that easy way, it’s just not what I’m craving. 

Top Gun: Maverick

Starring: Tom Cruise, Miles Teller, Jennifer Connelly, John Hamm, Glen Powell, Lewis Pullman, Ed Harris, Val Kilmer, Monica Barbaro, Tom Skerritt

Director: Joseph Kosinski

Writers: Ehren Kruger, Eric Warren Singer, Christopher McQuarrie

Men (2022)

Garland’s film Men appears to be the depiction of a trauma response, Buckleys character resisting the messaging she received from an emotionally abusive partner only to have those messages reinforced around her, until she is literally forced to fight her way out of it. The film leans heavily into symbolism and metaphor to the point of giving up on its narrative being explained away as “real” and for many that could be a difficult pill to swallow. But for me it worked, finding the way the film played with horror tropes as gendered symbols was fascinating.

A big part of what made Men work for me were the performances of Buckley and Kinnear, one grounded and one eccentrically over the top. The balance between these poles created an interesting dynamic that was fascinating to watch. 

Despite Garland’s in your face approach his story and its implications are not entirely clear giving you a lot of ruminate on. The visuals are intensely upsetting but also intentionally obscure giving lots of room for interpretation while also delivering a spine chilling horror that is upsetting, even in its rather optimistic ending?? Maybe.

Men got me thinking, made me ask questions, and frightened me. So it did its job. 

Men

Starring: Jessie Buckley, Rory Kinnear, Paapa Eddiedu 

Writer/Director: Alex Garland

 

Three Months (2022)

Sometimes the world, or the queer world, acts like we live in a post-HIV world, and Three Months reminded me that for people living with HIV, especially queer people, the fact that HIV may no longer be a death sentence, the world still treats positive people differently. There is a moment, amongst the film's relentless sarcasm, when Sivan pauses for a moment, thinking about waiting for his test results and his future with finding someone to be with and says "what if that is harder for me now?"

Writer/director Frieder does punctuate his film with a lot of jokes. Sivan's character is rather standard in his reliance on humour as a defence mechanism. But it is in those moments when he stops joking that the film finds its true moments. Three Months is funny and Sivan has a very charismatic presence on the screen. But again it is in moments of weakness that the film really comes alive. 

Louis Gossett Jr. and Ellen Burstyn bring a sense of gravitas to the film even when it's trying to be irreverent. And the chemistry between Kalra and Sivan is just so delightfully sweet. There is something remarkable about how the film manages to embrace sex positivity while also telling such a chaste love story.  

Three Months often feels like its parts shouldn't add up to what a lovely, joyful movie it ends up being. But there are always these moments that come up in the film that just hit so good and so hard. And recognize that the world is still living with HIV and all the ramifications of that, from the stigma to the isolation to the health issues. Three Months was just lovely and powerful, and pretty funny as well. 

Three Months

Starring: Troye Sivan, Viveik Kalra, Brianne Tju, Javier Muñoz, Judy Greer, Louis Gossett Jr., Ellen Burstyn

Writer/Director: Jared Frieder

 

Downton Abbey: A New Era (2022)

I don't think fans of the series will mind, but watching Downton Abbey: A New Era it's hard not to feel a bit overwhelmed. There are so many characters all with so much to do, the film takes a relentless approach to get through all its plot threads. Characters walk into scenes to just state what plot point they are advancing, and then walk out, and we move on quickly to the next scene. It's all just bang, bang, bang to make sure that we wrap it all up by the end of 125 minutes. But despite that, the film manages to provide sentimental satisfaction for fans and remains a rather entertaining film if you can just keep up with the stories. 

There are two main plot threads going on; a film is being shot at Downton (how meta!) and the mystery of why the Dowager has inherited a vila in the south of France. Both offer comic and melodramatic moments which give you all the feels you want from this sort of thing but they also set up some mini side plots like Barrow finding love (sort of) and the films' rather tearjerking ending. I think the film manages the second better than the first. The film isn't even brave enough to give us a gay kiss scene let alone a love scene. But it sure delivers on the ending which I won't spoil. 

So the film is a bit of push and pull when it comes to how chaotically it runs through its plot points yet mostly delivers on giving us a rousing good time. The film avoids the sketchy politics the last film flirted with and honestly with all the stuff going on never has enough time to truly develop anything more than surface character arcs. But it still manages to feel satisfying. You get what you want out of it for sure. 

I will mention that I feel Maggie Smith does deserve some props here. I know she's always been a scene stealer in this series but here I think she does some really outstanding work. Her character is given a lot to do on multiple dimensions and I was glad to see her getting the chance to do great work at this stage in her career. 

I do think a third Downton movie would benefit from pairing down the cast and focusing on a more concentrated storyline that it can really explore instead of just giving everyone a few scenes. Maybe that's the direction the series is going in since it's now written out a number of characters. 

Downton Abbey: A New Era

Starring: Hugh Bonneville, Elizabeth McGovern, Michelle Dockery, Laura Carmichael, Maggie Smith, Hugh Dancy, Robert James-Collier, Allen Leech, Tuppence Middleton, Jim Carter, Imelda Staunton, Dominic West, Penelope Wilson, Jonathan Coy, Michael Fox, Nathalie Baye, Samantha Bond

Director: Simon Curtis

Writer: Julian Fellowes

 

Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers (2022)

There is a lot of comparisons with this film and Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, even within the film itself. This story is set in a world where cartoons live alongside live action humans (as well as Muppets) and the film has a strong meta-narrative. But RR doesn't come close to Rabbit's depth of meaning. While that film wrestled with issues of racism and gentrification, RR focuses on celebrity fascination and IP copyright? So while the pool is more shallow that doesn't mean the film isn't smart and funny. Also it's filled with fun references and cameos (Ugly Sonic) which make it a light but fun romp. 

The film has a lot of fun with different animation styles and integrates the various elements into a cohesive whole. The script it witty and sharp if a little on the cynical side. It skews fairly adult with most of the story's references being inaccessible to younger audiences. Some of the twists are telegraphed fairly obviously but in general it remains a fun little film. 

So while the Roger Rabbit comparisons are a bit off, the film does manage to be entertaining and fun. It feels very of-the-moment and I do wonder how timeless it will feel. But for now this take offers a fun time. 

Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers 

Starring: John Mulaney, Andy Samberg, Eric Bana, Will Arnet, Keegan-Michael Key, Seth Rogan, JK Simmons, Kiki Layne, Tress MacNeille, Dennis Haysbert, Chris Parnell, Flula Borg

Director: Akiva Schaffer

Writers: Dan Gregor, Doug Mand

 

Operation Mincemeat (2022)

While it has a terrible title, Operation Mincemeat is a solid war drama that leans into the personal relationships of the characters over the spy plot elements. Honestly the story is a challenging one. While it is an attempt to pull off of hoax, the British military attempting to fool the Third Reich so their military operation can be pulled off, the hoax is all sort of off camera, giving the characters we are watching less to do that in most dramas like these. No one is sneaking around about to get caught kind of thing. Still, Madden (Shakespeare in Love, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel) deals with this by investing us in his characters and their lives while fighting the good fight. 

Generally this works. Mincemeat is rather gripping. And he does play up as much as he can the spy story. There are as much moments as one can plum of the plot to fool Hitler. But really what this comes down to is broken people finding themselves in a difficult time and for that Operation Mincemeat works. 

Perhaps not overly rewatchable, the film remains solid with a strong cast, well written dialogue, and well filmed story. Even Ian Flemming makes an appearance.

Operation Minemeat

Starring: Colin Firth, Kelly Macdonald, Matthew Macfadyen, Penelope Wilton, Jason Isaacs, Simone Russel Beale, Johnny Flynn

Director: John Madden

Writer: Michelle Ashford    

 

Peace By Chocolate (2022)

I will admit I was worried a film like this would be a sugar coated (no pun intended) simplification of the refugee experience. I was pleased to discover that it delved far deeper into the complications of such a story, while still focusing on what is, in this very specific story, a happy ending.

Canadians know this story, but there is a lot that has been glossed over in the media coverage. But it's a great story for the rest of the world too. It is the sort of story that any audience could appreciate from anywhere to almost any age. While I was happy to see them explore tension as well as the positives of this story I recognize they leave somethings out by focusing primarily on the father-son relationship. 

In his final role, actor Hatem Ali gives quite a charming and lovely performance. While he didn't live to see the film's release he does the movie proud as do the rest of the strong cast. He plays especially well with co-stars Ayham Abou Ammar and Mark Camacho. Honestly together they will make you cry. 

So yes Peace By Chocolate is delicious and I recommend seeing it. You won't regret it. 

Peace By Chocolate

Starring: Ayham Abou Ammar, Hatem Ali, Mark Camacho, Yara Sabri, Najlaa Al Khamri, Laurent Pitrie

Director: Jonathan Keijser

Writers: Abdul Malik, Jonathan Keijser 

 

Old Henry (2022)

Some of the best work in this film age seems to be coming from the western genre. Old Henry is another example of that. But westerns have fallen out of favour and often they aren't the mega hits they were in the mid 20th century so like many of the amazing westerns that have come out in the past few years, Old Henry had to settle for a platform release that barely anyone saw. But in the age of streaming it's ready to find a new audience. 

Old Henry is a masterful film. It is gripping and powerful all the way through. It's got a tight little story that grabs. you and won't let go. With a lovely little twist that makes it all just feel so satisfying. 

At the centre of this is Tim Blake Nelson, a talented character actor, who breaks through here as a leading man giving a career defining performance.  

Old Henry is available to stream and you should make sure you get to it soon. You will be grateful you did. 

Old Henry

Starring: Tim Blake Nelson, Gavin Lewis, Scott Haze, Trace Adkins, Stephen Dorff

Writer/Director: Potsy Ponciroli

 

The Contractor (2022)

The Contractor starts off with an interesting, uncomfortable scene focusing on a prayer in a church for "those who wield the sword to protect us". It's purposefully misjointed, seeking solace and peace for acts of war. From there the film shows us its characters, former military, not treated well by their institutions, setting up a private contracting agency to commit military actions for private customers. The entire thing feels off. I can see why audiences struggled with this as we don't want to see our set up this way. It's off-putting.  Soldiers are supposed to be heroes. God is supposed to be love. The military is supposed to act for the greater good (how else do we justify the horrors) and not for money. The Contractor shoves all this in our faces. 

There is even a small moment where Pine is remembering his childhood, just a glimpse or him being indoctrinated in a militaristic culture. None of it feels good. I can see why this would turn off general audiences. 

Then as we follow their mission it is often uncomfortable. We aren't sure they are acting as the good-guys. No surprise it turns out they aren't on the right side. And the film then becomes a can-they-get-revenge-on-the-guys-who-used-them story.  This unfortunately is less interesting but it remains standard Hollywood action story entertainment. 

For me the whole deconstruction of the private military system story was more engaging. While I ended up enjoying it enough throughout, and the cast is good, it ends up feeling a bit more standard than it could have been. There was potential here that wasn't acted on. Still, for what it is it manages to be watchable. 

The Contractor

Starring: Chris Pine, Ben Foster, Gillian Jacobs, Eddie Marsan, JD Pardo, Kiefer Sutherland

Director: Tarik Saleh

Writer: JP Davis

 

Hit the Road (2022)

Just go in to Hit the Road without knowing much. A family is travelling together. That's all you need to know. You're in a for a great ride that will be an emotional rollercoaster. You'll laugh (a lot). You'll cry. Hit the Road is a beautiful movie. 

First there is young Rayan Sarlak who just steals the whole film. As the outspoken and strong willed "little brother" he is a force of nature. He is hilarious. He is adorable. He is both annoying as hell and irresistible as anything. 

Then there is Pantea Panahiha who gives a tour de force performance as "mom". She is powerful, commanding the screen with her emotional performance that resonates so powerfully. 

Director Panah Panahi has crafted a gorgeous, entertaining, and moving film. It is both a crowd pleaser and important film. Just see it. You will be glad you did. 

Just see it. 

Hit the Road

Starring: Pantea Panahiha, Rayan Sarlak, Hasan Mujani, Amin Simiar

Writer/Director: Panah Panahi