Pain Hustlers (2023)

David Yates spent a career making Harry Potter movies. His first post-Magic World movie is almost the farthest thing from it. Pain Hustlers feels like a glorified TV movie of the week featuring A-listers doing great work and telling an important story. But the rather rote approach to telling this story makes it a bit of a slog to get through. 

Yes the cast it top notch and none of them are phoning it in. But the film never gives us a reason to care about any of them. Even Blunt's rags to riches story and her sick daughter arc, her character never connects. And it's not her. Blunt does good work here along with everyone else (including a great against type performance by Catherine O'Hara) but the film just feels so by the book. 

Yes we've seen these stories of how capitalism corrupts and the film tacks on an ending which implies that the perpetrators have been brought to justice and therefore this won't happen again.... okay. The approach in Pain Hustlers just feels so over simplified and never quite compelling enough to make it worth the watch. 

Pain Hustlers

Starring: Emily Blunt, Chris Evans, Andy Garcia, Catherine O'Hara, Brian d'Arcy James, Jay Duplass, Amit Shah, Chloe Coleman

Director: David Yates

Writer: Wells Tower 

 

Golden Delicious (2023)

Golden Delicious in some ways feels like an old fashioned gay movie with its boy in a relationship with a girl when he meets another boy and struggles to figure out his feelings and find his ability to be true to himself and true to those around him. But in other ways Golden Delicious feel fresh in that the focus isn't necessarily on Jake coming to terms with being gay but more about him coming to terms with being his own man. 

Golden Delicious' main story focuses on people filling roles that were assigned to them, or that they felt they had to take on in opposition to the ones they wanted or that would help them meet their full potential. Whenever Jake is about to embrace a relationship with his crush Aleks he is confronted with his obligations to who he sees himself as  supposed to be, and second guesses himself, not due to the queerness of his feelings, but how they divert him from his set course. 

He isn't alone in this journey, each of his family members struggles with the tension between where they are and where they want to be. The film might be a little heavy handed in this message and, like many of those older gay films, they don't necessarily achieve full redemption for Jake from his actions while hiding who he was. The ending resolves things a bit to optimistically. Still, the Gen Z aspects of the film lie in how little his queerness plays into the conflict. Jake faces little homophobia (there is some) and his struggle with his feelings for Aleks have little to do with any resistance to homosexuality. His family and friends have little to no concerns about him being gay. Jake lives in a different world than the gay characters of queer cinema a generation ago. 

Cardi Wong is strong in his central role even the film doesn't resolve all his story in a completely satisfying way. I do think he brings an empathy to Jake that is necessary for the film to work. The film's story does feel a bit clunky at times but its heart helps carry through that and perhaps we're seeing here, along with other 2SLGBTQIA+ media, a turn in how queer cinema is evolving as we all evolve along with it. 

Golden Delicious 

Starring: Cardi Wong, Chris Carsen

Director: Jason Karmen

Writer: Gorman Lee 

A Thousand and One (2023)

Stories about chosen family always get me. As A Thousand and One played out its story, punctuated by amazing performances by the entire main cast, the power of the love that is on display in this film was just overwhelming. I don't tear up often at movies but when I do...

First time feature director Rockwell lays out a beautiful story of people finding each other through their pain and the ways their commitments to each other and all their imperfections bring them some triumph in the face of a city and country that does everything it can to tear them apart. For me some of the middle felt a little muddled, but by the time the film's third act comes around, A Thousand and One packs such a powerful punch that you can't help but get swept up in this all too real story.

The common expression love conquers all often feels so trite, but A Thousand and One seems to be about showing us just how remarkably true it really is. So much of this relies on the performances of Taylor, Cross and Catlett who together reach through the screen to make their characters be more real than real life. They imbue their roles with such vibrancy and honesty and this makes the film's story come all together, even if pieces of it feel disconnected at first. 

A Thousand and One is one of those quiet little movies that is easy to pass by but if you miss it its a real shame. 

A Thousand and One

Starring: Teyana Taylor, Josiah Cross, Will Catlett, Aven Courtney, Aaron Kingsley Adetola

Writer/Director: A.V. Rockwell

Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person/Vampire humaniste cherche suicidaire consentant (2023)

Just when you think a genre has bled itself dry of any new ideas or fresh ways to tell stories, a new film comes along that give a whole new perspective. Humanist Vampire is a story about desperation, isolation, and the life giving force that human connection brings. This is a story of two people both feeling worthless and alone, who, in finding each other, find a reason to live. 

It is a beautiful, if simple, story that is told in a truly lovely way. Minimalist yet powerful, Humanist Vampire touches on real life themes of loneliness and otherness. Montpetit and Bénard have a great energy together, awkward and relatable. I think most of us who have felt out of place will relate, perhaps even those who have felt the worst sort of isolation may see themselves in this story.

Humanist Vampire has a lot to say about dignity and agency but it tells it all in a charming little vampire story. 

Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person

Starring:  Sara Montpetit, Félix-Antoine Bénard, Steve Laplante 

Director: Ariane Louis-Seize

Writers: Cristine Doyon, Ariane Louis-Seize

Once Upon a Studio (2023)

Sweet, if a little bit safe, this short film made in honour of Walk Disney's 100th anniversary as an animation studio is a "love letter" to the famous animated films of Disney. Featuring characters from almost every animated (and semi-animated) feature in the studio's history. It's charm comes from the love audiences have for the films, not necessarily from this particular story itself. I may have preferred their other recent short, Steamboat Silly, to this for sheer entertainment value, but for nostalgia per second, Once Upon a Studio takes the cake. 

Once Upon a Studio

Writers/Directors: Dan Abraham, Trent Correy 

Down Low (2023)

Down Low is a dark, adult comedy in the vein of The Hangover but with a queer twist. Written by co-star Gage (with co-writer Fisher), Down Low follows the course of a day where a formerly closeted gay man, now estranged from his family, is helped by a masseuse (yes that sort of masseuse) he hires into having his first same sex sexual experiences. Things go horribly wrong and the two find some connection while covering up crimes and disposing of bodies. It is as outrageous and funny as the best of this genre and suffers from some of the same problems that much of this genre suffers from. However there was something special in it that I feel a lot of reviewers are missing which made it stand out and perhaps offer something a bit more. 

Quinto and Gage have great chemistry with the former playing full internalized homophobia and Gage clearly having a lot of fun with his gregarious open to anything character. The film quickly moves into its worst case scenario plot that is equal parts hilarious and silly and "should we be laughing at this" humour. It's a hard R style comedy that plays a bit fast and loose with realism...you know, the way straight comedies have for decades.

But something about Down Low hit on something most films don't have; Queer Joy.  Down Low makes a case for how the closet is not a healthy place and how while outing someone is a harmful act in itself, coming out is liberation and brings meaning to life in ways that being closeted cannot. There are moments in Down Low that capture a joyful essence of open queerness that pushes back against heteronormativity and internalized shame in ways that much queer cinema (and mainstream cinema) misses. I was struck by the film's boldness. So even when the film wasn't completely working, it captured something that was inspiring. The film's name is a reference to this, a state of living in some of self-repression.

For me Down Low fumbled the ending. I liked what it was trying to do but it went a little too silly. But it wasn't enough to spoil was for me was a fun film that also celebrated queerness.

Down Low

Starring: Zachary Quinto, Lukas Gage, Judith Light, Simon Rex, Audra McDonald

Director: Rightor Doyle

Writers: Lukas Gage, Phoebe Fisher

She Came to Me (2023)

I love it when a movie surprises me by being not what I expected. She Came to Me ends up going in completely different directions that one would expect and in doing so tells what turns out to be (if maybe a little absurd) a charming and rather optimistic portrait of love.

She Came to Me is not your typical rom-com and has more in common with a European romance. Yes there are a lot of moments that made me question its logic, but what comes from it is the kind of story that will make you smile. 

Centred in this is Dinklage in a tour de force performance. He has the incredible ability to express so much with his face and here he holds nothing back playing a complicated and challenging character. 

She Came to Me takes quite a few shortcuts and doesn't always justify all the twists and turns it takes. You do have to forgive a certain amount. But if you do the payoff is wonderful. And as the film reaches its conclusion it is about the complexities and intricacies of finding imperfect and perhaps not permanent love. 

She Came to Me

Starring: Peter Dinklage, Marisa Tomei, Anne Hathaway

Writer/Director: Rebecca Miller

 

Fair Play (2023)

It was hard for me to identify exactly why I wasn't enjoying Chloe Domont's well crafted and well acted sexual thriller, Fair Play, but about 3/4s of the way through it dawned on me; this sort of heterosexual banality that we've seen played out a million times is... well, rather dull. Fair Play has an interesting premise underlying it which is rather bold, yet its never quite manages to deliver on its promising premise. 

It is the story of a seemingly happy couple, both professionals in the same field (hedge fund capital), whose relationship is torn apart by her promotion over him. Yes you see where this is going right way. Do we even wonder how this is going to play out? 

The film starts out quite interesting, a clandestine sexual adventure at a party by a couple who clearly love each other leads to some awkward but affirming connection when her period begins and they handle the moment quite respectfully. The movie uses this to make us think they are enlightened and equals, only to have the story tear that down and reveal how ingrained heterosexist patriarchy is even in men who we are to believe are "evolved". Ehrenreich's character ends up as petty and insecure as any cishet white man. Fair Play's drama ramps up to moments of violence between the two (even a knife fight!!) until he eventually rapes her. The connection of gendered relationship roles to the inevitability of violence is interesting and one that I wish the film managed more deftly. The movie ends with her getting a triumphant moment where she can humiliate him for revenge and I think this is where it cemented for me that the film's sexual thriller motif betrayed the film's underlying message. This "battle of the sexes" pastiche feels so worn and undermining to any kind of credible critique of gender politics in heterosexuality. 

The film ends up using each character as a stand in for their gender and the common perceptions attributed to each. She is treated with the expected misogyny at their firm that one would expect (her boss even calls her the B-word at one point) and despite his galant presentation at the beginning he is reduced to calling her all sorts of gender specific humiliating names and treating her as an object by the end. She isn't any more well rounded. She responds to the clearly unfair conditions by taking on traditionally masculine read roles, being "one of the boys" including tagging along to the strip club, and telling off colour jokes that aren't funny. She compensates by trying to people please. It all feels like the most basic summation of gender politics there can be. 

The film seems to be making a fatal critique of heterosexuality all together and the futility of working within patriarchy to upend gender norms. This bleak message could be quite interesting to contemplate but instead of making us dwell there with that stark realization, the film chooses to end with crowning a winner almost justifying participation in that "battle of the sexes". So in the end the film's indictment of patriarchy feels just too safe ending with a "tit for tat" style safety value that makes us feel like it can all be okay. 

I think there is a lot here and I think Fair Play is the kind of movie that can lead to a lot of discussions. But I also think it feels stuck in an old world way of viewing gender politics that is, honestly just not as interesting as newer ways of constructing interpersonal dynamics. 

Fair Play

Starring: Phoebe Dynevor, Alden Ehrenreich, Eddie Marsan, Rich Sommer

Writer/Director: Chloe Domont

 

Totally Killer (2023)

Mix up Back to the Future and Scream and you might get Totally Killer, a film about a present day teen who goes back in time to stop a serial killer who first struck in the 80s. Funny but not spoofy, and not too worked up about the intricacies of time travel, Totally Killer stays light and frothy giving some fun horror/comedy vibes.

Totally Killer is neither the funniest nor the scariest of movies, but Shipka's charisma and the scripts fun plot make it just entertaining enough to be watchable. By the end I wasn't sure I cared that much who the murderer was nor how things would be different when our heroine eventually makes her way back to the future, but I still had a good time watching it. 

I'd say the thing I appreciated most about Totally Killer is how it doesn't romanticize the 80s. In fact it more often than not shows us just how much was wrong back then and how much better things have become. The movie doesn't go overboard on the pastels and neon colours either (a common mistake in retro movies set in the 80s) and instead has some pretty decent incite into how times have changed. 

So while Totally Killer is on the lighter side of the horror spectrum it's exploration of times past is interesting. It is a solid if not groundbreaking slasher film that's rather accessible even for the somewhat squeamish. 

Totally Killer

Starring: Kiernan Shipka, Olivia Holt, Randall Park, Julie Bowen, Lochlyn Monro, Troy Leigh-Anne Johnson, Kimberly Huie

Director: Nahnatchka Khan

Writers: David Matalon, Sasha Perl-Raver, Jen D'Angelo 

Passages (2023)

Romantic movies are about falling in love, the beginning of relationships, and as the credit roll we are given the "happily ever after" message. Because that's how we like to think about love and relationships. But life isn't often like that. Even long lasting relationships have their challenges and journeys. Passages is not that film. It is about the ends of relationships. How there isn't just a moment where love stops. Where the choices we make impact what happens next. How difficult it can be to let go even when it is for the best. 

We join Rogowski and Whishaw as their long term relationship comes to and end, and we watch the way they negotiate through that period with all the stops and starts that come along with the ending of something meaningful. We watch their fumblings through recouplings. They each connect with others, reconnect, and are pulled emotionally in different directions. Passages feels honest in its depiction of all the turmoil of love ending. It very effectively (and again honestly) uses explicit sex scenes to both advance the story and depict the relationships, the feelings between the characters, as well as the gulfs between them. 

I did struggle a bit with the film's ability to be interpreted as a condemnation of bisexuality. I don't think that's what Sachs is saying with the piece but the film doesn't give a lot of footing to dispute it. Rogowski appears to be the only sexually fluid character and he is grilled somewhat fairly by others over his commitment issues. I wish Passages had found a way to tell this story without that element being left unsaid. 

Rogowski's performance helps with this somewhat.  He manages to make his character pathetic and sympathetic at the same time. His character is the most complex in the film and the most problematic. He grounds such a difficult character by making him richly complicated and undeniably compelling. 

 

And in the end Passages may be one of the best illustrations I've seen in film of the end of love. It is filled with a sadness, a mourning for the loss of that connection, and honest depictions of all that comes with it. As it comes to a close it leaves us something to sit with about the difficulties of maintaining the loves we want and cannot handle. 

Passages

Starring: Ben Whishaw, Franz Rogowski, Adèle Exarchopoulos, Erwan Kepoa Falé

Director: Ira Sachs

Writers: Mauricio Zacharias, Ira Sachs

 

Strange Way of Life (2023)

I'm a big believer that every film should be just as long as it needs to be to tell its story, develop its characters, and hit us emotionally. Legendary director Almodóvar, whose films don't always hit for me, has made a 30 minute film that is just filled with exactly what is necessary to tell a powerful and gripping story starring Hawke and Pascal who have amazing chemistry together. 

Part western, part melodrama, Strange Way of Life feels like a love letter to classic westerns but with a queer twist. Two former lovers are reunited after 25 years for one more night together before their purposes take them in opposing directions. Almodóvar sets it up, gives the two stars a chance to shine together, and delivers an emotional payoff that is impactful. What he accomplishes in 30 minutes is remarkable. We get fully rounded characters, a rollercoaster of an emotional journey, and a truly beautiful film to watch. 

Life has incredible art direction and costumes.  Almodóvar shoots quite a gorgeous little film. Hawke and Pascal build the passion between them in a compellingly restrained way. The most erotic scene in the film is a flashback with younger actors in their roles drinking wine as it pours out of a wineskin and then off each other, which was shockingly exciting. But it is the older actors who deliver on the promise of all those feelings. As the film reaches its somewhat sudden (I mean it's only 30 minutes) and subtle conclusion, there is no doubt in the audience of the love between the characters no matter how they are being pulled apart. 

This may be my favourite Almodóvar film. I love just how much he packs into the short runtime. 

Strange Way of Life

Starring: Ethan Hawke, Pedro Pascal 

Writer/Director: Pedro Almodóvar

The Creator (2023)

Writer/director Edwards certainly is making a name for himself in what I might call the "elevated sci fi" genre, the style of science fiction focused on big ideas and social commentary, perhaps in the vein of an Asimov. His first film, Monsters, was one of my favourite films of 2010, his Godzilla was almost too heady for mainstream audiences, and Rogue One is arguably one of the all time best Star Wars movies. 

His latest, The Creator is a big swing and it doesn't always quite succeed, but it is never boring and its themes are fascinating. He has woven a story exploring the essence of humanity into a smart adventure story that pulls at your heart strings. He is bold in so defiantly upending American audience's expectations with a sort of "reverse" Terminator where the machines are the good guys and the humans the bad. In this case specifically it's westerners and Americans who are the "bad guys" which has the chilling effect of making us see things through a lens where our common ideas are introverted and we have to reevaluate our values. He sets the film in a Vietnam like setting further encouraging the idea of a failed war set on dubious grounds. 

The film's storyline can be a bit heavy handed sometimes and the story is just a little big for this movie's runtime meaning there are plot moments that feel rushed or jump to conclusions in a way that's not always earned. But the story itself is sold and the questions it makes us ask are valid. It pushes hard on some of the morals to the story which can feel a bit preachy, but it makes a compelling case against xenophobia. And the story is gripping enough even if there are a few too many coincidences to feel truly organic. 

The cast is strong, including new comer Voyles giving the film the weight that it needs to pull it off. Edwards knows how to film a story in a way that imbues it with emotion and heft while also delivering on great action. I often advocate for shorter runtimes over longer as these stories often have so much filler. Mosts "streaming" series would be improved by shortening them to a feature length film runtime. Less often truly is more. But perhaps The Creator is a good example of a story that needed more time to flesh it out entirely. What's here is good and I recommend it for a good watch, but The Creator feels like it is busting at the seams a bit.  

The Creator

Starring: John David Washington, Madeleine Yuna Voyles, Gemma Chan, Allison Janney, Ken Watanabe, Sturgill Simpson

Director: Gareth Edwards

Writers: Chris Weitz, Gareth Edwards

Flora and Son (2023)

Film maker Carney certainly has a formula, and it appears to work for him. Flora and Son certainly feels very much like Once, Begin Again, and Sing Street, but even though his thing might be a bit repetitive, it remains very entertaining and charming and will have you once again (see what I did there) singing along. 

A big part of what makes Flora and Son work is Flora herself. Hewson is delightful and completely magnetic as the mom-who-shouldn't-have-been-but-is. And as she begins to find her own path through music, even with all her inappropriate detours, her story is both relatable (even for those whose life is nothing life Flora's) and remarkable. 

But as with all of Carney's films it is the music which truly makes it. Flora and Son leans less into the polished and focuses on characters just making their music organically, either strumming on a guitar or sampling and rapping. But the tunes are catchy and hold up with some of the famous Carney film music. 

Maybe Carney will surprise us by doing something different with his next film. Or maybe he'll stay true to what he does well. Either way I'll be there to watch it. 

Flora and Son

Starring: Eve Hewson, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Orén Kinlan, Jack Reynor

Writer/Director: John Carney

 

Rodéo (2023)

Rodéo is a film that broke my heart just a little. It is the story of a man without much, whose ex attempts to keep his child from him, so he decides to take the child secretly on a road trip to the Badlands World’s Best Truck Rodeo, which both he and his daughter are obsessed with. He makes bad decision after bad decision, but it is all in the name of being with his daughter. It is painful and lovely. 

Rodéo through its rather simple story explores the complicated issues with Serge's parenting which include, as I mentioned, horrible decisions, but also includes an undying love for his child. It also explores the class issues for working class French Canadians. It does all of this without lecturing or speaking it outright, but showing us in very real terms. The film is short but filled with incredible moments and strong performances by Le Flaguais and Roy-Lanouette.

As someone who has lived in both Quebec and Alberta the film's geography and sense of place spoke to me. Road movies have a kind of energy to them that is both escapist (literally) and grounded in space. Rodéo captures this spirit eloquently. 

Rodéo is the sort of movie that will break your heart knowing that what is right can be hard and complicated and very difficult. This film looks that in the eye and runs with it, across the whole country. 

Rodéo 

Starring: Maxime Le Flaguais, Lilou Roy-Lanouette

Writer/Director: Joëlle Desjardins Paquette

The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar... and 3 more... (2023)

Film twitter darling Anderson has made 4 short films based on short stories by Roald Dahl, marking his return to adapting this author for the first time since The Fantastic Mr. Fox. The headliner in the bunch is The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar, the story about a man who leaned how to "see without his eyes" and saw the need for selflessness. But also included are the even more bizarre films The Rat Catcher, The Swan, and Poison. 

Anderson fully leans into this Anderson aesthetic which will tickle his fans but likely put off mainstream audiences. His highly constructed, fourth wall breaking, rapid talking, overly sincere approach which leans into the artificial aspects of film making are on full display like there were in his latest feature, Asteroid City. But for me here they work a bit better. Paired with Dahl's odd natured stories, the style gels more. Also the fact that the films are short helps break up the aggressive nature of the Anderson gimmick. 

Often what bothers me about Anderson films (as you can tell I'm not a fan) is that the stories leave me feeling hollow. He goes through so much artful construction that his characters and story often feel lacking for me. Dahl's stories are richer than Anderson's own and offer something more interesting for him to play with. And watching Anderson's schtick in shorter doses makes it easier to swallow as well. Like with The French Dispatch (basically a series of shorts tied together with a framing story) I didn't have to sit with any of what he was doing for that long making it easier to stomach. 

It's hard to comment on the performances of each of the actors (all quite excellent at their craft) because he (as per usual) has them all doing the exact same thing, staring into the camera reading their rote narration at breakneck speed. 

Yet it all somehow worked for me in ways that Anderson's films normally don't. Just like how Fox is my favourite Anderson film there is something about the mixing and matching of Anderson and Dahl that just fits. For me Sugar is the standout with its clever critique of the modern billionaire class and the counter cultural idea that someone with great power might actually use it to benefit humanity, but the others remain enjoyable mostly for just how absolutely bizarre they get as you watch them. 

The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar

Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Ralph Fiennes, Dev Patel, Ben Kingsley, Richard Ayoade, Rupert Friend

Writer/Director: Wes Anderson

 

L'Origine du mal (2023)

It may. be a bit reductive to describe The Origin of Evil as a gender-swapped Talented Mr. Ripley, but I mean it as a compliment. A young (and poor) queer person inserts themselves into a rich family, insinuating themselves into this new life, and as the plan spirals out of control, becomes willing to do whatever it takes to maintain the charade. There is even a bit of psychopathic behavior. While this film may not quite be the masterpiece I am comparing it to it remains a deliciously gripping tale of intrigue and class analysis where everyone is in it for their own reasons and there is no one to trust. 

Laure Calamy is just riveting as our protagonist who is both sympathetic and repulsive, relatable and indefensible. She plays it rather subtly at first and the film doesn't give up the plot too quickly. Both her performance and the script lay little breadcrumbs for us to follow making its story even more satisfying than it might be if it had been all laid out more simply in the beginning. 

The film starts to veer of course, perhaps in the absurdist way Triangle of Sadness does (a film that most people like a lot more than I do), but not to the same extent. I was able to forgive some of its grander swings because there weren't so over the top but I do wonder what the film could have been by sticking it a little closer to reality. 

But I like that L'Origine du mal had the guts to just go where it went and end the way it did. It will leave you feeling both gleefully entertained and a little but sad, and that in itself makes it a darling film to watch. 

L'Origine du mal

Starring: Laure Calmy, Jacques Weber, Suzanne Clément

Writer/Director: Sébastien Marnier