It’s Oscar season, you guys! My favorite time of the year. Generally, I don’t watch a lot of new movies…it’s hard for me to schedule time to get to a movie theater, and all those screwball comedies from the 1930s and erotic thrillers from the 1980s aren’t gonna watch themselves. But in Oscar season? For once, I understand what people are talking about. For like a month and a half, my thoughts are relevant.
This year I watched more of the best picture nominees than I ever have, because lots of them were streaming, rentable, at the library, and also interesting. I feel very proud, although it may be weird to be proud of myself for watching movies. But I like knowing that I took some time to do something that truly benefits no one but myself, that wasn’t work, that wasn’t cleaning the house, that wasn’t “productive,” that only involved focusing on the creative output of other people. I know I said this last year, but art and entertainment and beauty shouldn’t be optional—they’re necessary to live a full life, and I only say this again now because I need the reminder sometimes, too.
I truly think this year’s crop of best pictures nominees is one of the best assortments we’ve had in years in terms of sheer watchability. I certainly didn’t love everything I watched, but I don’t think there’s a dud in the bunch. So far I haven’t watched Avatar (if I can’t make it to a theater normally, I definitely can’t make it to a theater for three hours of something I’m already not that jazzed about), Triangle of Sadness (can’t justify renting it because I really don’t think I’ll enjoy it, so I’m waiting until the Criterion edition hits the library), and Women Talking (I actually want to see this one and was hoping to get to a theater, but we’re always sick!). Hopefully Hollis and I are going to start All Quiet on the Western Front this week, but frankly I’m kind of nervous.
Here’s what I have seen:
The Banshees of Inisherin
I’ve already written a bit about this one, but this is my personal best picture pick because it’s my favorite kind of movie: beautiful scenery, quiet (both plot-wise and also literally), lonely, funny, sad. If you still haven’t seen it, I highly advise you to go in not knowing anything, like I did. The HBO summary said something like “two men stop being friends,” and I love that that was all they thought I needed to know. I mean, sure, that happened, but also…things get weird. I’ve never cared even one bit about Colin Farrell before this, but now I love him. I can’t remember where I saw this, but once someone online called him a character actor stuck in the body of a leading man and I believe that (okay, I just googled that and actually there are MANY MANY articles and tweets about it, so I’m sorry I shared a tired internet sentiment with you). I also loved Kerry Condon, not just because we share a first name but…Kerrys have to stick together.
Everything Everywhere All At Once
This movie was not for me. Please don’t start a Twitter campaign against me that will ultimately lead to one of the film’s directors telling you to calm down!
You might remember that I’m a proponent of Nothing Happens cinema, which is how I refer to movies where…well, not much happens. As you might guess by the title of this film, everything is happening. Everywhere! And all at once, too! In this economy? I’m easily confused so when you start talking about multiverses I already have one foot out the door, and when you bring in fight scenes, I’m both out the door and asleep. But I do think it’s always great when a lot of people are excited about a film that’s original and isn’t based on existing IP, and I loved the performances. If Ke Huy Quan wins best supporting actor, I certainly wouldn’t be upset about it! Most of the references were over my head, but I sure did notice that reference to the song “Story of a Girl.” Nine Days! I’ll never forget you!
I say all this but then I read a review of the film that made me cry, so clearly I enjoyed some parts of it. And everyone else seems to like it, so don’t listen to me!
TAR
Okay, here we go. It’s quiet, it’s bleak, it’s weird as hell and it’s about classical music. We’re firmly in my wheelhouse. The first half of this film was Nothing Happens cinema at its finest. Long conversations, Cate Blanchett running, cold and rainy landscapes, Berlin. A thing about me is I’m always gonna love a movie set in Berlin (by which I mean the 2018 Suspiria starring perfect angel Dakota Johnson, of course). Is any city greyer? More covered in asphalt? What’s the mental health situation like over there, because the levels of SAD have to off the charts—I’ve never seen a film set in Berlin that showed even a sliver of sunlight. Please don’t see this as a criticism if you’re a citizen of Berlin, because Columbus is, I’m not joking, the eighth gloomiest city in the United States. Maybe I love Berlin because it looks like home.
Anyway, back to TAR. The latter half of the film wasn’t at all Nothing Happens cinema, but by that point I didn’t care. I was in it! I love a film that asks questions and refuses to answer them, forcing you to sit around and think about it yourself. There were a million ways the movie could’ve provided closure and instead gave us exactly what we needed and nothing more. What I love so much about movies is that, when I watch something really good, I feel like I’m living in it for a week after, and that’s absolutely how I felt about TAR. When I listen to Classical 101 in the morning, I half-expect Christopher Purdy to bring up conductor Lydia Tar. Scrolling through NPR, I wonder why no one’s mentioning her. This movie felt so real, and it brought up so many conflicting feelings. Is she bad? Is she good? Does it matter? What’s the cost of art, what do we owe artists, what do they owe us? I couldn’t stop thinking about it after I watched it, and I still can’t. It’s haunting, in the best way.
Further reading/listening: I really enjoyed this episode of Pop Culture Happy Hour about the film.
Top Gun: Maverick
You know how I just said TAR was a great movie because I felt like I was still living in it after I watched it? Well, every detail of Top Gun: Maverick left my head the second those credits rolled (except for, unfortunately, the Lady Gaga song which will stay in my head for eternity…hold my HAND hold my hand hold my HAND hold MYYY HAAND). And that’s okay. We had a great time watching this movie. You know I don’t like action, but I guess the secret is to dumb down action so much that a literal baby could understand it. “We’ve gotta blow something up. It’s from the ENEMY (don’t worry about who the enemy is, not important, they’re bad though). First the plane’s gotta go UP. Then, down. Then two planes have to…drop a bomb, or shoot something? Either way, if they don’t hit the target we’re toast! And THEN the plane has to go UP again, but MORE up this time, and you might pass out. Mach 10.” Yep, that’s all I need to know! I was on the edge of my seat, mostly because I don’t really understand how planes work or why anyone would want to be a fighter pilot. At the very beginning Tom Cruise basically flies into space and his plane explodes and I truly thought he died but then it turned out you can just…eject yourself from the plane and walk into a diner and be fine, just a little dirty. I love that!
Oh, and it doesn’t matter AT ALL if you haven’t seen Top Gun. I haven’t, but it was fine because this movie handily summarizes everything that happened, including showing footage from the first one and frequently lingering on significant photographs. People say “Talk to me, Goose” A LOT.
Hollis kept predicting Tom Cruise’s dialogue. I bet you could speak it all along with him even if you’ve never seen the movie! At the end, Hollis’s main takeaway was, “Wait, his name was Bradley Bradshaw?”
I still don’t know what Mach 10 means and I hope I never find out.
The Fabelmans
This was the movie I was most excited about and the one I thought would hit the hardest. But afterwards I felt like…it was fine? Not to say I didn’t enjoy it. I loved the stuff about his family, which was poignant and heartbreaking and awful. I love a movie about a woman who loses it because she’s creatively stifled. The other day I was stressed out and I was like, “am I gonna drive straight into a tornado like Michelle Williams” (I didn’t). Paul Dano is an amazing actor, and the best thing is he’s only going to get better as he gets older. What a gift to us. Michelle Williams is, obviously, a star, and I’m not at all surprised she’s nominated for this role. It’s funny to me that Judd Hirsch is nominated because he’s in this movie for, like, three minutes. But I really lost interest when we got to the latter half of the movie, which was largely about mean high school kids in the 1950s. Even though it made a lot of sense why we spent so much time there in terms of Steven/Sammy’s story, it wasn’t half as interesting as the stuff about his family. In the end, I enjoyed thinking about it almost more than I enjoyed watching it. There’s a lot in here for parents (don’t creatively stifle your kid OR your wife! Encourage your child’s interests, even if you don’t understand them!) and also for any kind of artist. Overall, I’m so glad I watched it. SPOILER ALERT don’t read past this point if you don’t want to spoil a plot point of The Fabelmans! I was so amused that this movie is like a reverse Take This Waltz…instead of Michelle Williams leaving Seth Rogen for another man, in this one she leaves her husband FOR SETH ROGEN! Wow. A full circle moment in cinema. But only one of these movies involves a sex scene with two threesomes. Take a wild guess which one!
Elvis
I’m not a Baz Luhrmann hater, but neither am I a fan. Other than a sentimental attachment to Romeo + Juliet, I don’t have any intense feelings for him—it’s just not my preferred style. The man’s doing Everything Happens cinema, and honestly my brain needs something calmer. So I spent a lot of this film thinking, “Hmm, I respect this, but it’s not for me.”
But guess what? At the end, when Real Elvis showed up, visibly unhealthy, dripping sweat, singing Unchained Melody? I sobbed. Sorry I doubted you, Baz.
Pretty much everything you’d heard about this film is true. Austin Butler is giving one hell of a performance—who can blame him for keeping the accent? Also, this movie reminded me that biopics are never really enjoyable for me. It feels vaguely cheesy to see the scenes we all instinctively know play out. I’m always reminded of when I watched a movie about the Temptations as a kid on VH1 and there was a scene where they were all tossing a football around while debating what to name themselves. But I already know what you’re named! The Temptations!!! It feels embarrassing, somehow, that we’re all supposed to be in on some joke that the characters themselves don’t know about.
Anyway, at one point Elvis said, “Dr. King…he always spoke the truth” and I groaned. But also, like I said, this movie made me cry so I don’t know how I felt. Overall, a good time!
Further reading: I really enjoyed this RogerEbert.com review from Robert Daniels.
I’m hoping to watch a few films in the documentary, short films, and international feature categories over the next week, but we’ll see. Our house has been plagued with Adenovirus 2.0, which so far hasn’t put anyone in the hospital (fingers crossed we can stay out of there!) but has kept at least one of us sick for the past two weeks. Currently we’re all sick and let me tell you, I’m extremely tired of the sound of coughs and the smell of Vicks. But everyone I know with small kids is currently in a similar situation, so we’re hardly alone.
Next time we talk, we’ll be living in a post-Oscars world and we’ll know who won best picture. My predication is Everything Everywhere, or possibly Banshees. I would love it if TAR won but I don’t think that will happen.
I’ll be back next Monday or Tuesday, maybe with that nun post I promised last week! THANK YOU to everyone who upgraded to a paid subscription, and to everyone who subscribes at the free level! I appreciate it more than I can tell you, and I’m very excited for us to talk about movies and TV and books all year long. The first paid post is coming up as soon as I can write it. See you then, and I hope you watch a lot of great movies this week.
I hope you get to see The Quiet Girl in the theater!