Bobi Wine: The People's President (2023)

For those of us unfamiliar with Bobi Wine, the Ugandan celebrity politician fighting the tyranny of one of the world's most corrupt governments, seeing his story brought to life is inspiring. It shows a lot of hope in the face of darkness. Democracy is under threat around the world by those who want strong men to create order. Bobi Wine: The People's Presdient is a lovely celebration of how messy and wonderful democracy is. 

This film is a loving tribute to someone who helped move the needle in freedom's favour but perhaps doesn't address well some of the ways that he himself has stood in the way of freedom including his views about queer and trans people. I understand he may have modified some of his beliefs in this area and is now more supportive of diversity but the film doesn't get into this as it is focused more on his opposition to the dictatorship that Ugandan government has leaned into. 

Still The People's President is entertaining and eye opening and perhaps a wake up call to continue to fight for democracy all over the world. 

Bobi Wine: The People's President

Starring: Bobi Wine

Directors: Christopher Sharp, Moses Bwayo 

To Kill a Tiger (2023)

Sexual assault is often, in all parts of the world, a difficult crime to protect against and for the criminal justice system to address. To Kill a Tiger focuses on this problem in the specific context of India and a father's attempt to get justice for his daughter after her horrific rape. Film maker Pahuja dissects the challenges and obstacles the family must overcome to seek justice and try to affect change in their community. It is heartbreaking to watch but the tenacity of the family is inspiring. 

Pahuja beautifully and sensitively films this journey highlighting the horrors that victims and their loved ones face in recovering after such a crime. She films numerous people who blame the victim for her situation highlighting the ignorance and misogyny they are struggling to face. There are moments in this film which will anger you extremely but other moments which will restore your hope for our future. 

The film builds to the and Pahuja films this quite effectively. I felt the first two thirds of the movie dragged a bit and felt repetitive but perhaps this was for effect, highlighting how long the legal process can take and how much adversity the victims are subjected to through the process. However when the film reaches its promising climax and Pahuja continues her observant approach to telling this story, focusing on the quiet strength of the victim's father, To Kill a Tiger becomes a hopeful experience that perhaps change can happen. 

To Kill a Tiger

Writer/Director: Nisha Pahuja

 

Origin (2023)

Origin is an incredible work, merging a powerfully touching biopic of a modern master and a compelling presentation of that master's bold and significant thesis. Another master, film maker DeVernay, balances these two themes so beautifully with a stunning film that is a work of importance and compelling cinema. 

Wilkerson's work connects the systems of oppression across continents and explains the histories of nations through their manufactured hatreds. She also brings together the survivals and endurance of peoples across the globe. DeVernay brings this very thoughtful and reasoned argument to visually spectacular life while also paying tribute to the woman behind it all through telling her very personal journey as well. 

The cast is amazing especially Ellis-Taylor at its centre, but also I want to give a shout out to Audra McDonald who has a brief but standout moment. But for me the main miracle of this film is DuVernay's adaptation. She has taken a non-fiction book and transformed it into something completely new and so much. 

Origin all comes together as one of the most powerful and thought provoking films you'll see in a very long time and I can't recommend seeing it enough.  

Origin

Starring: Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Jon Bernthal, Niecy Nash, Finn Wittrock, Vera Farmiga, Audra McDonald, Connie Nielson, Blair Underwood, Nick Offerman, Donna Mills

Writer/Director: Ava Duvernay

20 Days in Mariupol (2023)

20 Days is documentation, literally. It is made by journalists simply trying to put on film what is happening as their city and country are being devastated by war. It is often hard to truly comprehend what being caught in a war zone feels like. Films like this may be the closest (hopefully) many of us ever get. Chernov and his crew film as much as they can, capturing the real effects on the city of Mariupol and its people. 

Be warned, you will see death. 20 Days chronicles the deaths of civilians in war. This is something that we rarely see in documentaries, real people as they die in hospitals and the suffering of their loved ones. This is what war really is, not exciting gun battles or confrontations, but real people losing their lives and the people who do all they can to save them. 

20 Days is shocking to watch and important to understand. It is a reminder of how important this sort of witness is so the world can know. It is a difficult watch. You will see things you don't want to. But it is important to see, and remember. 

20 Days in Mariupol

Writer/Director: Mstyslav Chernov

American Symphony (2023)

Musician Jon Batiste is one of the people who just exudes infectious joy and therefore it is no surprise that a film about him, that follows him through one year of his life, through ups and downs and happiness and challenges, imbues its audience with joy as well. 

American Symphony is a lovely little film where we get to follow along as Batiste composes a symphony, celebrates his rise in stardom and award attention, supports his partner through her cancer treatment, and lives his remarkable yet rather common life. It is both charming and challenging but in the end rather joyous throughout. 

My favourite parts of the film were the musical parts including the original song It Never Went Away. Batiste's talent as a song writer and performer is undeniable and watching it filmed so well it just wonderful. But even beyond that, American Symphony is a story about living life and it is a lovely story... and a love story. 

American Symphony

Starring: Jon Batiste

Director: Matthew Heineman

Society of the Snow (2023)

I was struck while watching Society of the Snow how much better a movie it is than the American film telling this story was, 1993's Alive. In fact memories of that film kept me from watching this for a while. But Bayona has created a beautiful if difficult film that doesn't sensationalize certain elements (cannibalism) while capturing the lives of the real people, both those who died and those who survived, so well. 

Bayona has made a beautiful movie and has done so succinctly but also with quite a boldness. He doesn't shy away from the difficult parts of this story but also doesn't fetishize any of it either. His take feels honest and judicious. His cast is strong and the film is very engaging and watchable despite how harrowing a story it is. 

Society of the Snow does this story and the people who endured it real justice and is worth a watch. 

Society of the Snow

Starring: Enzo Vogrincic

Director: J.A. Bayona

Writers: Bernat Vilaplana, Jaime Marques, Nicolás Casariego,J.A. Bayona

 

Golda (2023)

It is hard not to watch Golda in early 2024 and think about the events of late 2023 and early 2024. Golda is a film about a woman leading a nation during a very specific time, dealing with a very specific conflict, but one that resonates to our current time and current conflicts. It shows just how much we are connected today to the events of the past and the decisions of the time. 

Mirren is strong as the former Prime Minister, often disappearing behind make up that doesn't often feel real. She is a tower of strength having to take the fall for many of the men around her, making decisions that lead to death and saving lives, and altering history. Golda doesn't shy away from the fact that she was a woman in a role that is often perceived as being a man's role and how this influences much of what she does and how those around her respond. 

The film perhaps tries to tie up her legacy a little too neatly and perhaps shows a rather narrow view of her actions, and the actions of her political opponents, during this specific crisis. Like many biopics that focus on one piece of a historical person's life to highlight who they are it might miss some of the complexities. Also the film wants to lionize her a bit so it stretches a bit to get there. 

I'm not sure the film's narrative was always that strong. Nattiv's direction is wonderful and he envisions the story in fascinating ways. But mostly it is Mirren that makes this film worth watching. 

Golda

Starring: Helen Mirren, Liev Schreiber

Director: Guy Nattiv

Writer: Nicholas Martin

 

Favourite Films of 2023

2023 was a standout year for films. There were so many I loved. Films like The Holdovers, John Wick 4, Skinamarink, A Thousand and One, Chevalier, Knock at the Cabin, American Fiction, and Rustin are all films that in a regular year would have been in my top ten favourite films. But there is only so much room in a list of 10 films plus the very favourite. They include 3 films directed by woman, and 5 films from directors of colour. There are two animated films, 4 queer narratives, and 2 films I myself consider messy and wonderfully imperfect. Here are the ones I loved the most in 2023... 

The Boy and the Heron

Dir. Hayao Miyazaki

After a 10 year break Miyazaki returns to cinemas triumphantly with a true tour de force rumination on coming of age while both embracing the
past while moving into the future. It has all the magic, beauty, and strangeness of his best films. The Boy and Heron is surprising and moving and absolutely gorgeous, everything we expect and adore from this legendary film maker, yet it never feels like he is simply retreading familiar ground. It is both the recognizable work of a familiar artist and something completely new. 

Brother

Dir. Clement Virgo

Clement Virgo's electrifying film Brother hits harder than I thought it might, by never quite going where you think it’s going to go. He employs a powerful framing sequence, jumps us back and forth in his timeline, but throughout narrates such a lovely and complicated story of two brothers, their connection, and their disconnection, as well as their interrelation with others, their community, and their family.

Carmen

Dir. Benjamin Millepied

Millepied is a dancer and choreographer and his first directoral movie is a narrative told through dance. Unlike a musical or traditional drama, Carmen is shot focused on movement, bodies, dance to tell a story that isn’t literal or logical but emotional and visceral. Visually stunning with a rich and layered score, Carmen is an experiment in how to make film differently that is somewhat raw and unsure, but even more engaging for its rough edges. This one hits me emotionally and Rossy de Palma’s presence elevates the beauty of the piece. 

How to Blow up a Pipeline

Dir. Daniel Goldhaber

This bold and unashamed film is shot like a heist movie and is as edge of your seat exciting as the best of that genre, while also having the courage to say something uncomfortable and unpopular. This is the sort of film that makes you feel both entertained and uneasy. It both inspires hope and reminds us just how close to disaster we are. No other film this year speaks to our future as urgently. 

Nimona

Dir. Nick Bruno, Troy Quane

Beautifully animated with a powerful story about “the enemy within”, Nimona subverts expectations of what mainstream animation can be. It was too bold for Disney so Annapurna had to make it and did so without holding back. Part science fiction, part fantasy, part legend, and a whole lot queer and trans, its message could not be more relevant to our world than right now. 

Of An Age

Dir. Goran Stolevski

I love when I can find a film to champion. Writer/director Goran Stolevski's second feature is tailor made for my sensibilities. From his intimate, almost claustrophobic, camera work, to the gorgeous selective colour palette in his cinematography, to the melancholy romance of the central plot, to the ambiguity in its emotional centre, Of An Age is exactly the kind of film that plays to what I love about cinema. Yet it is also the sort of beautiful and tender film that almost anyone can fall for and enjoy.

Past Lives

Dir. Celine Song

Past Lives starts out unassuming, building its story and characters bit by bit without a lot of fanfare or
frills. But by its third act it reaches a crescendo which wrecks you and delivers an emotional punch that will leave you stunned. It is one of the most mature love stories to be filmed recently, tackling the idea of relationships, love, and connection with nuance and complexity unlike most "romantic" movies. In doing so it hits harder than one is used to with very little to no drama or flamboyance. Writer/director Song has crafted something purely lovely and heart-wrenching.

Rotting in the Sun

Dir. Sebastián Silva

Silva’s almost surreal dark comedy is filled with real sex and real haunting melancholy. It is tragic and lonely in a way I wasn’t prepared for and funny in a way that is extremely uncomfortable. It haunts me with its desperate call for love and each time I watch it I am moved more. Catalina Saavedra gives one of my favourite performances of the year.

Rye Lane

Dir. Raine Allen-Miller

This film puts a big silly grin on my face and a pitter patter in my heart. This is rom-com done so well it transcends the genre and becomes something greater. Jonsson and Oparah have the most adorable and compelling chemistry and this film captures that moment of finding connection with whimsey and honesty and you won’t be able to help yourself but smile while watching it. Movies about falling in love are the most common in the medium so when one does it so well it feels like we’ve never seen it before. 

Saltburn 

Dir. Emerald Fennell

The more I watch Saltburn the more its “messiness” becomes its strength. It’s about queer resistance, it’s about class warfare, it’s about upending our expectations of “good” and “bad”, and it’s recklessly incredible. Saltburn’s boldness and audacity make it the most fascinating film of the year. Elite male directors make far more questionable choices than Fennell’s unapologetic direction and get praise for it. She has delivered something everyone is talking about and it’s endlessly watchable with and end scene that is the best thing filmed all year. 

And my favourite of 2023:

All of Us Strangers

Dir: Andrew Haigh

This is one of few films in my life that as soon as I saw it I knew I was watching a film that would stay with me forever. This haunting tale of loss and reclamation is very intense in its queer, male, genX specificity while also being accessible in it relatability and revolutionary in its execution. A gorgeous, tragic, and hopefully inspired film of great beauty and depth featuring the most remarkable performanes of the year. My favourite film of 2023. 

Honourable Mention:

Origin

Dir. Ava DuVernay

This incredible adaptation of Isabel Wilkerson's book was released too late for my list but is stunning in how it presents both a biopic of this woman and her bold thesis. Visionary and important, Origin is one of the best films of 2023. 

All of Us Strangers (2023)

Every so often a film will knock the wind out of me in a way that I know I am watching something truly wonderful and unlike anything I have seen before. Few films touch me and move me as much as a film like All of Us Strangers, a film about intense loss and loneliness that gives us a dose of peace and optimism in the midst of all the aching. 

All of Us Strangers spoke to me in ways I did not expect. There something very specifically queer, gen X, and male about this film. Haigh and Scott centre this story in this very precise human experience and its specificity allows it to resonate so perfectly for those of us in that cohort as well as others who can share some of our experience. There is an intergenerational narrative here (in two directions) that is fascinating and hauntingly real. There is an incredible amount of pain and healing that is happening. 

Essentially All of Us Strangers is about saying all the unsaid things and this, this very remarkable task, is so gloriously beautiful and tragic at the same time. Haigh through his direction and words finds all of the complicated and powerful emotions in such a daunting task while keeping it all lovingly simple and honest. Yes All of Us Strangers ask a lot of us to process, the understand, to suspend disbelief, but it pays us back a thousand fold with an incredible beauty, a story that is just so overwhelming and magical, sad and happy, haunting and so fucking alive. 

Everyone in this cast is top notch. This is Scott's show but he is supported by incredible performances by Foy, Bell, and the outstanding Mescal.  But it is Scott who delivers a career defining performance in a career of outstanding incredible performances. Strangers is just masterful work by a cast at the top of their game. 

I will sit with all of the feelings Strangers has generated for me for a long time and I know I will revisit the film like a comforting slap across the face time and time again. There are a number of films that I knew, the first time I saw them, that they would stay with me for my lifetime and All of Us Strangers is one of those films. 

All of Us Strangers

Starring: Andrew Scott, Paul Mescal, Jamie Bell, Claire Foy

Writer/Director: Andrew Haigh

 

The Kitchen (2024)

Set in a near future world where the division between poor and rich has become more stark, The Kitchen is the portrait of two people who come together after too long apart and must navigate all the emotions that come with that. I don't want to say too much about who they are or what their situation is because the tale of that is part of the film's strength. The Kitchen is smart while wearing its heart on its sleeve. The Kitchen lays bare the emotions of separation while also focusing on the very real world lived evils of class segregation. 

Robinson and Bannerman make a great combo and play off each other well. The film relies on their performances to truly reach its potential and they rise to the occasions. I was not familiar with either until now and I will be watching to see what they do next. 

The Kitchen doesn't overplay its slightly sci-fi gimmick and instead uses it to tell a story that feels very now. It is touching to see the story play out and gripping from start to end even if the story doesn't carry many surprises along the way. There is a lot of promise in this film for future work by all involved. 

The Kitchen

Starring: Kane Robinson, Jedaiah Bannerman

Directors: Kibwe Tavares, Daniel Kaluuya

Writers: Rob Hayes, Joe Murtagh, Daniel Kaluuya

The Zone of Interest (2023)

The Zone of Interest is about the banality of evil. We follow the story of real Nazi Rudolf Höss and his family as they go about their day to day lives living next to Auschwitz which he is charged with running. The film emphasizes how normal they treat their lives despite the cries or terror, the almost constant gunfire, and the burning bodies happening just over the wall from their home. This film manages to be quite powerful in how it showcases just how much of a blind eye can be turned towards horror. 

If there is any critique of the movie it isn't from how well crafted it is, nor are there any problems with the performances. Friedel and Hüller are both strong in their roles. The film will hit us with moments of horror sharply contrasted with the mundane of the story. And this is the point. The problem lies with making a movie that is about the mundane, it becomes at times, a slog to watch. There are jarring moments, that are filled with quite beautiful terror and power, but these are seeded throughout day to day routine that becomes almost tedious. Fortunately the film's runtime isn't excessive making this easier. 

The film ends on a powerful note that jumps ahead in time to the present and ties the apathy of the past to the current world. It is striking in its power but also quite simply mundane as well. The Zone of Interest suffers most from not being that watchable. But when it does shine it truly does. 

The Zone of Interest

Starring: Sandra Hüller, Christian Friedel

Writer/Director: Jonathan Glazer

 

Killers of the Flower Moon (2023)

Killers of the Flower Moon is an important movie in many ways. It tells an important chapter in American History that has been mostly forgotten and it speaks to inherent white supremacy in the making the the nation. The story of Mollie Kyle and her family as well as how the wealth of the Osage people was taken from them speaks to profoundly to the making of the United States of America in its youth and this is something all Americans should be studying. Unfortunately the film, despite its compelling narrative and the skillful direction of a master film maker feels sluggish and often passionless. I understand this is an unpopular opinion as film buffs like to gush over everything Scorsese does, but the film often feels like work to endure and a story like this shouldn't. 

And I do appreciate much of what Scorsese does with this piece. There are visually beautiful moments and clever ways of advancing the narrative including the quite brilliant "radio play" ending presenting the film's denouement. But despite all of this Scorsese didn't manage to make the film that watchable. It's not just the excessive length (a lot of long films are far more engaging than this) and it's not the story, which he frames in his very Scorsese way as a mob/crime drama. It is a lack of energy in the narrative that makes watching it feel like it drags. 

I think Scorsese's choice to make this about the white people is an important one. It is about what the white people did and how they exploited their power and dominance to steal the wealth of the Osage (like their ancestors did to Indigenous North American people across the continent for centuries) so it makes sense this is about them and their abuse of power. It also touches, although not quite as thoroughly, on how despite bringing some specific perpetrators to "justice," justice was never really done. The trajectory of the Osage people was not reversed after the crimes were done and certain people were jailed. It was all swept under the rug. 

The down side to this approach however is that the Osage people don't get to be fully realized characters in this film. With the sole exception of Lily Gladstone's character (and she is quite rightly being celebrated for her amazing performance) the Osage are barely fleshed out as real people and remain somewhat othered throughout. Their trauma is often sidelined. Even Gladstone's role is somewhat in service to the story of the criminals. One wonders if a story told from her point of view (a film that would have required a different film maker than Scorsese) would have been more gripping and satisfying. 

But the main fault of the film is how it fails to completely engage us. This is not only an important story; it is also a meaty and compelling one, that often feels like a struggle to stay engaged with. I often felt Scorsese fails to energize his audience and whip up the passion we should be feeling over what we are witnessing. I am not saying the film is entirely boring and it's certainly not bad. There is a high level of skill that went in to making this. I would argue his last film, The Irishman, suffered from this as well. But this story feels even more important and relevant to today yet still lacks the important kind of spark. I know a lot of people will benefit from watching it on streaming where they can break it into parts to watch as it is unlikely the sort of film many will want to sit through in one viewing. 

Killers of the Flower Moon

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Lily Gladstone, Jesse Plemons, Tantoo Cardinal, John Lithgow, Brendan Fraser, Cara Jade Myers, Jason Isbell, Tatanka Means, Sturgill Simpson, Jack White, Martin Scorsese

Director: Martin Scorsese

Writers: Eric Roth, Martin Scorsese 

 

The Book of Clarence (2024)

Imagine the story of Jesus but it's about a man who is not the son of God and is a con artist instead. Many may argue that's the story already... but leaving that aside, now lets find within that story the grace and redemption and resistance to empire even without the divine nature of the central figure. This is what The Book of Clarence feels like, a film that is not only imbuing one of the world's most famous stories with a culturally specific relevance, but also exploring the implications of how the story can speak to issues without inserting a need to believe in anything divine. 

Often films are sold in their promotional materials as something that is quite different than what you end up watching and The Book of Clarence is a good example of that. Advertised as a silly comedy about a contemporary of Jesus copying him for profit, The Book of Clarence ends up being very little of that and a whole lot of other things. Yes it's funny. And yes it is satire. But it ends up being something else as well, something that asks us some interesting questions and doesn't spoon-feed us easy answers. This is neither an Atheist spoof nor a Christian allegory. Samuel is playing with some bold themes here and taking big swings and it's fascinating to think about. 

The cast is amazing to watch with Stanfield especially doing incredible work. He has always been incredibly charismatic on screen and he has the presence to pull this role off. He balances the humour along with a great deal of quite effective pathos. Without this it would be hard to see Samuel pulling this off entirely. You need to get onboard with Clarence and Stanfield makes that very persuasive.

The film is tonally a bit mixed in ways that don't always work smoothly and there are moments that are less successful than others. But overall The Book of Clarence is quite effective and entertaining. But even more than that it offers a lot to contemplate, which makes it far more interesting in my book. 

The Book of Clarence

Starring: LaKeith Stanfield, Omar Sy, Anna Diop, RJ Cyler, David, Oyelowo, Michael Ward, Alfie Woodard, Teyana Taylor, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, James McAvoy, Benedict Cumberbatch, Nicholas Pinnock

Writer/Director: Jaymes Samuel

American Fiction (2023)

American Fiction sells itself on one idea, the gimmick of a writer selling a book he doesn't respect to an obliviously ignorant audience, but that's just the hook. Fiction is really more about the dynamics of Wright and his family navigating their complex relationships and connections. And while the movie's gimmick is both funny and thought provoking, it is the story of these richly drawn characters which is what makes American Fiction so compelling. 

American Fiction is also laugh out loud funny. I found myself beginning to laugh only to get further layers of complexity to the jokes often making them even funnier. The humour comes from the dynamics of the characters and their relationships making the humour quite endearing and very pointed. 

The cast is remarkable. The film is very much an ensemble piece with Wright (in one of my favourite of his performances) at the centre. His chemistry with Ross, Alexander, and Brown especially is just outstanding. You just want to be a part of their world and their family. The whole cast comes together just so perfectly. 

American Fiction doesn't skimp anywhere. From its biting cultural criticisms to its beautifully drawn family drama, the film is joyous and smart and embraces loss and self-depreciation. It never takes the easy way out on any of these things, with Wright's character being human enough to be right and wrong, frustrated and frustrating, and learning along the way. The film ends in a way that honours what we saw throughout the film and doesn't give us anything too pat, even as it teases us for wanting that. For a feature film debuts, Fiction is as good as they get. I can't wait to see what Jefferson will do next. 

American Fiction

Starring: Jeffrey Wright, Tracee Ellis Ross, Lisa Rae, Sterling K. Brown, John Ortiz, Erika Alexander, Leslie Uggams, Adam Brody, Keith David

Writer/Director: Cord Jefferson

 

Good Grief (2024)

Dan Levy makes quite an impressive and charming leap from TV to film with his directoral debut Good Grief. The film is on the lighter side but his rich screenplay (he also wrote the film) and a cast overbrewing with chemistry make it one laugh/cry watch that hits all the right feels. Easy to slip into and compelling along the way, Good Grief is simply lovely if a little thin over all. 

Levy explores loss and moving through grief in the aptly titled film. perhaps the insights are rather surface but he has crafted a relatable and loveable group of characters to follow. Embodied by this cast, especially Negga who is, as always, just magnetic onscreen, this group feels like the sort you would want to be tagging along with. He lets them be sad and mad and makes jokes and smile through the pain in ways that don't overdo anything. There is a refreshing lack of drama generally, making Good Grief feel realistic and honest. 

I also appreciated how the journeys of the characters felt naturalistic and not formulaic. The characters feel familiar in a way that skirts feeling (cliched but not quite) yet they don't fall into the sorts of rote traps one might expect. Instead we just sit with them on a this rather ordinary journey and it is pleasantly real. By the end there isn't anything overly profound and the characters end up where they expect to be but for me this made it feel more truthful even it if might end up a bit more forgettable. 

Levy manages to show us another side to himself that is different from David Rose and that is welcome. His story is still optimistic and only slightly messy, but it is as charming and heartfelt as anything we've seen from him before. 

Good Grief

Starring: Dan Levy, Ruth Negga, Himesh Patel, Luke Evans, Celia Imrie, Arnaud Valois, David Bradley, Emma Corrin 

Writer/Director: Dan Levy

 

Night Swim (2024)

Night Swim falls into the subgenre of horror films that are less about being "scary" than telling an unnerving story. These stories tend to tap into some popular fear of something genuinely mundane but pervasive across our culture. In this case the slight unease many of us have about swimming pools. The story is a solid little cautionary tale mixed with some themes of being careful what you wish for. 

The main fault of Night Swim is that it doesn't quite commit to what it should be. Trying to tap into the wave of horror popularity it leans into jump scares and fake outs. Also the story is tight and therefore gets stretched out a bit father than it can really support to reach an average 98 minutes runtime. There is really only an hour of story here so sometimes the film drags. And the film isn't "scary" per se. With the exception of a main set piece which is featured in the trailer, the story really lends itself more to creating discomfort than fear. 

The film could have been much stronger if it embraced its Black Mirror like quality and didn't try so hard to fit into the kind of films Blumhouse and Atomic Monster try to make. I enjoyed the story and liked where it was going but found it was reaching too much too often. There is likely a great haunted pool film out there but this one won't become the classic it might have been.  

Night Swim

Starring: Wyatt Russell, Kerry Condon

Writer/Director: Bryce McGuire

 

Our Son (2023)

Watching previous films I often felt Luke Evans was holding something back in his performances so it's nice to see him in a role where he can truly shine and show us just what a great actor he is. This is very apparent in Our Son, a sometimes rather rote divorce film that is elevated by the performances of the two leads. The relationship and the emotions here feel very real and that's due mostly to the Evans and Porter, the latter playing against type in an understated yet powerful performance.  

Sure the film feels like it's going through some divorce cliches but some of this is abated by the fact that we are watching the divorce of two men so the gendered roles that normally dominate these stories are gone and instead the narrative focuses on the roles of the characters instead of their genders. This helps the story feel more refreshing. 

Our Son's story focuses its attention in a good place, on the journey of Evans' character specifically in being able to let go and live into a new phase of his life. He isn't the one that chooses the divorce and his resistance is palpable. The release eventually comes in how he finds he can still be the father he wants to be without having to control everything. He can find respite in connection again and allow his son and his ex to also find connection. This is perhaps something that is the most essential in these sorts of transitions and I liked the way Our Son handled this.

The real strength here is in the two leads doing a very good job embodying their roles and being vulnerable in a way that felt honest.  

Our Son

Starring: Billy Porter, Luck Evans, Christopher Woodley, Andrew Rannells, Phylicia Rashad

Director: Bill Oliver

Writers: Peter Nickowitz, Bill Oliver

Dicks: the Musical (2023)

Larry Charles' film adaptation of the off-Broadway show Fucking Identical Twins is as absurd and no holds barred as one might expect. From monstrous "sewer boys" creatures, to twin incest, the a flamboyantly gay God, Dicks: the Musical is bizarre and irreverent and silly. I laughed a lot but the end result just feels rather thin and kinda empty. 

One of the highlights is Megan Thee Stallion's number Out Alpha the Alpha, a filthy feminist that is right out of her oeuvre. While much of the rest of the music is rather forgettable even with its obscene humour, the cast (featuring the wonderful Mullally and Lane) delivers it so well it remains enjoyable in the moment. 

But by the end one just shakes their head why. The laughs were good but perhaps not quite enough to justify the film's rather slim runtime. And in the end does the film really say anything? It's "all love is love" message gets lost a little in the silliness. If the cast wasn't just so damn good and giving it their all, it would be easy to just dismiss this as adolescent ramblings. While I'll likely never want to see it again I did find myself smiling through a lot of it and I can at least say that I've seen it!

Dicks: the Musical

Starring: Josh Sharp, Aaron Jackson, Megan Mullally, Nathan Lane, Megan Thee Stallion, Bowan Yang, Nick Offerman
Director: Larry Charles

Writers: Aaron Jackson, Josh Sharp