Director: Carlos López Estrada Writers: Rafael Casal, Daveed Diggs Stars: Rafael Casal, Daveed Diggs, Janina Gavankar, Jasmine Cephas Jone
Synopsis: While on probation, a black man begins to re-evaluate his relationship with his volatile best friend.
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There is that old saying that goes “Before you judge someone, imagine walking a mile in their shoes.” I believe if we did that, we would understand the concerns that face so many within our communities and start to find solutions to these issues, whether its poverty, crime, race or issues with the police. I also believe another way to learn about these issues is to see them on the big screen and listen to different voices bring those concerns to life so we can find solutions. In the new film Blindspotting, director Carlos Lopez Estrada and actors, Rafael Casal and Daveed Diggs (who also wrote the script) bring together a film that is the most focused, revolutionary film to look at social issues facing modern day America since Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing.
The film follows Collin (Diggs), a convicted felon that has three days left on his year-long parole sentence. Collin lives in Oakland and works with his lifelong best friend Miles (Casal) as movers for a moving truck company run by Collin’s ex-girlfriend Val (Janina Gavankar). While Collin is trying to say low key and wants his last three days of probation to go smoothly, it’s hard for him to do that because while Miles is his best friend, he has the potential to bring out the worst in both of them. One night after Collin drops off Miles at his house, Collin witnesses a police officer shoot an unarmed African American male literally next to the van while Collin is waiting for the light to turn green. From there on, the film tackles the impact that event can shake someone like Collin as well as the ramifications and toll it takes on the others in his life.
Blindspotting is very much a personal story for Casal and Diggs, not just because they wrote the film but because they are from the Oakland area. The city of Oakland feels just as much like a character in this film as the two leads do or like New York City does in Do the Right Thing. The reason why I mention that Spike Lee masterpiece in the same vein of this film is because they feel like two films cut from the same cloth. Both films focus on an African American male living in a world surrounded by people that he loves yet one event changes the fabric of who they are and what that community is. While Mookie’s event towards the end of the film was a singular event that brought the neighborhood to its knees and enraged, it feels that event, Radio Raheem’s death, is a precursor to what Collin sees in front of his very own eyes in this film, and what the other characters in Blindspotting talk about throughout the film. For Collin, this shooting is just one of many that have happened, becoming the new normal in his community and around the country, and all he can do is hope that it doesn’t happen to him, bringing a sense of daily fear that he carries within his daily life. There is a moment towards the end of the film, where Collin is going on his daily morning run, and his route, he passes by a cemetery, where he sees a flash of the man that he was gunned. But he doesn’t just see the man that was shoot, he sees dozens of other men and women that have killed too by police officers, standing in front of their graves, hundreds of lost souls. This makes the viewer look at those faces and think about the calamities our communities have had to face because of what could be just small things escalating to places they never should have gone to, and how it happens way to often that the numbers are rising and we haven’t done anything to stop it.
Diggs, who is known mostly for his role scene stealing role from the musical Hamilton, gets to show off that he is more than the fastest rapping actor on Broadway. Though there are elements of hip hop within the film, but I won’t get into those too much to avoid spoilers. He gets to show his real acting chops, both comedic and extremely dramatic, vast range that I never knew he had. And alongside Casal, whose performance as Miles is one of the best of the year so far and will for sure be one of the best new comers of the year for me at the end of the year, they have become my favorite on screen duo of the year so far.
While the two main leads of the film are driving force to see this film, it is also the directorial debut for Carlos Lopez Estrada, whose eye behind the camera is what brings his all together very nicely. His subtle style and detailed vision of making you feel like you are a part of this community makes you, the audience, feel like you are hanging out with a third, unseen friend of Collin and Miles. It’s a very confident directorial debut that know exactly what it wants to say and is focused on getting the audience where it needs to go without beating you over the head with its messages. In a lot of ways, Estrada’s Blindspotting is a quieter, better version of Boots Riley’s loud, bombastic film Sorry to Bother You. While Riley’s film is the one making the most noise around the internet, mostly because of its crazy third act, I would argue Blindspotting is the film Riley only wishes he could make. Blindspotting is a film that can be entertaining as well an immensely thought provoking and left me wanting to see more from Collin and Miles by the time the credits are rolling.
Overall Grade: A-
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Check out our podcast review on Extra Film, coming soon!
Director: Bo Burnham Writers: Bo Burnham Stars: Elsie Fisher, Josh Hamilton, Emily Robinson
Synopsis: An introverted teenage girl tries to survive the last week of her disastrous eighth grade year before leaving to start high school.
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By the end of his most recent (and brilliant) comedy special, 2016’s Make Happy, it is clear that Bo Burnham has grown tired of his stage persona. While the “Bo Burnham” character is boisterous, confident, and relatively worry-free, the real Bo has been overcome by anxiety and self-doubt. He questions whether what he is doing is fulfilling and enriching the lives of his audience. As the show ends, Burnham proclaims, “I hope you’re happy,” drops the microphone, and walks into the darkness. That was the last time we saw Burnham’s talents at the forefront of any project. He had a small part as a comedian in The Big Sick and directed Jarrod Carmichael’s standup special, 8, but he had basically retreated from the limelight.
Watching his debut scripted film, it is clear that Burnham’s mindset has changed drastically since his beginnings as a vulgar, post-modern musical comedian. His comedy became increasingly personal and he became very focused on disingenuousness in marketing and media. As far as he is concerned, there is basically no difference. His reaction to this? One of the most sincere, heartfelt films I have ever seen. Eighth Grade is a film that made me feel like crying for pretty much its entire 94-minute running time. That’s not because it is always sad (it can be) or because it is always touching (it often is) but because it is at once so personal and so universal. The depiction of middle school transported me back to memories I wasn’t sure I had anymore.
The character’s main character, Makayla, is one week away from graduating the eighth grade and moving on to high school. She is extremely quiet at school and doesn’t really have a reliable group of friends. The only thing that makes her feel connected to the world is social media and her YouTube channel. She posts awkward, meandering motivational videos that have no chance of garnering any attention in the saturated genre of teenagers sitting in front of their computers and talking about their lives. Sadly, it is the only way she feels her voice can be heard, even if she is actually speaking into a void.
Burnham could have easily turned the film into a bitter putdown of young people’s increasing reliance on technology and obsession with social media but his viewpoint is far too empathetic for that. Instagram is not a complete tool of evil in Makayla’s life. Without it, she may feel even more anxious and alone than she already does. If it weren’t for the catharsis of letting her soul bleed out through her YouTube videos, she might feel unbearably repressed. Technology has made relationships unlike those at any other point in history. We should absolutely pushback against the distance thats brings to many of us, but we should not dismiss the self-medication that people like Makayla are able to get from it.
Eighth Grade is a film about a young, lonely girl. As such, she spends the large majority of the film by herself. Casting a real-life eighth grader as a lead in a movie is a dangerous task. Fortunately, Burnham found the perfect actress for the role. I cannot overstate how remarkable Elsie Fisher is in the role. In Eighth Grade, Makayala is all of us. We feel her awkward, terrifying highs and the infinite joy she gets from feeling like she has just one friend in the world. I can’t imagine there are many young people as willing as Fisher to be filmed at the most awkward biological period of her life in the often unflattering way she is shot in Eighth Grade.
Actors and actresses often get credit for doing things like not wearing makeup or “ugly-ing themselves up”. Fisher’s performance in Eighth Grade is one of the only times where a glamour-free performance actually deserves celebration. Her acne is omni-present, her makeup looks it was done by a young girl raised almost exclusively by her father (which she was), and her ability to show deeply rooted insecurity in a scene where she is in a bathing suit is enough to make your heart ache. Her “ums” and “likes” are perfectly timed and are used just enough to make you feel her difficulty communicating but also feel like she is in a world you are familiar with. Without Fisher’s spectacular performance, this film does not run at nearly the same efficiency and with the same power that it does with her at the forefront. Combine her performance with an equally charming and compelling performance from Hollywood “that guy” Josh Hamilton (whose final speech in this film rivals that of Michael Stuhlbarg in last year’s Call Me By Your Name) and the character dynamics in Eighth Grade absolutely dynamite.
The script and performances are phenomenal but the most impressive part of Eighth Grade, perhaps, is Bo Burnham’s direction. The technical aspects of this film are truly a step above nearly every freshman filmmaker you will find. Based on what I have seen in his interviews, Burnham is a self-taught student of cinema. The filmmakers he cites as influences are not ones that the average moviegoer would even recognize. Maybe that is why much of this film feels so unique. It is not just intense sincerity that sets Eighth Grade apart. The film’s score is unlike any you will find in a movie of this ilk. Composer Anne Meredith put together a score whose combination of heavy synth and drum machine makes it feel incredibly modern. A culture obsessed with technology should be surrounded by magic just as artificial as many of the relationships in Eighth Grade. But just like how Burnham treats Makayala’s relationship with a degree of understanding, the score using the electro score in a snappy way that gives great momentum to the film.
Burnham uses a large variety of shot types in the film to add to the dynamism of Eighth Grade. There are steady tracking shots that make Makayla’s anxiety and desire for acceptance come to the forefront of the film. Makayla’s happiest moment in the film is portrayed with a handheld closeup of her pacing back and forth in her bedroom that perfectly portrays the chaotic unfamiliarity with the feeling. It all sounds very serious, but Burnham’s comedic tendencies shine throughout the film. His ability to cover the gamut of human emotion without resorting to melodrama separates Eighth Grade from the pack. The imagery is striking and his world is vibrant. Bo Burnham is absolutely a young filmmaker to be reckoned with.
Eighth Grade is one of the best films of the year and it is almost certainly the best at relating to a mass audience on an intense emotional level. I was enraptured by the film. I felt like I was a part of the film because I used to be part of that world. Every child wonders what their value is and how that value comes to fruition. Heck, we all still wonder that today. It is much harder to deal with that question, though, when your face is covered in whiteheads and a guy is asking you to send him naked pictures on Snapchat. Bo Burnham somehow manages to make us all contemplate what it means to happy and how we validate ourselves through an eighth grade girl. It is an achievement and I thank him for it. I am better off because of it.
Overall Grade: A
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Check out our podcast review on Episode 285, coming soon!
This week on the InSession Film Podcast: Extra Film segment, we discuss Mission: Impossible, M:I 2, M:I III, M:I – Ghost Protocol and we slightly talk a little bit about M:I – Rogue Nation as well. That is to say, we had a ton of fun conversing about one of the better action franchises around today.
We’ll of course be discussing M:I – Fallout this weekend on Episode 284, so be on the lookout for that. As you’ll hear on the show, we are big fans of this franchise and we’re excited to see where it goes next. Out of all the retrospectives we’ve done, this is one of our favorites.
On that note, have fun listening to this week’s Extra Film segment and let us know what you think in the comment section below. Thanks for listening!
– Mission: Impossible Retrospective Movie Review (5:15)
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Good day InSession Film reader. By reading this you have accepted a mission to explore what I would call is the best ongoing franchise by any major Hollywood studio. Running through three different decades and six films later, this adaption of the once beloved TV show has turned into the franchise that has consistently been the most entertaining and consistent collection of action films to be put together. Threaded together by its star leading man Tom Cruise, Mission: Impossible has shied away from going too dark like the Bond or Bourne series, keeping theseries fresh and fun. Cruise and company always puts all the effort and passion you would want a franchise to make and leave it on the screen, making audiences want more. And with Fallout coming at the end of the month, I decided to take a look back at all the entries in the franchise and get everyone ready for the biggest entry yet in the adventure of Ethan Hunt and the IMF.
(Also spoilers for all the movies beyond this point)
Mission: Impossible:
By the year 1996, Tom Cruise was becoming another elite Hollywood leading man. With films like Top Gun, Cocktail, Rain Man, A Few Good Men, The Firm, The Color of Money, and an Oscar nomination for Born on the Fourth of July already under his belt, Cruise went to the next thing phase of his career, looking for a franchise he could call his own. Cruise had wanted to make Mission: Impossible a franchise since he fell in love with the series when he was a kid, so he called Paramount Pictures and Cruise, along with his producing partner, Paula Wagner, and got a deal done for a 70-million-dollar budget. Wagner and writer-director Sydney Pollack worked out a story and Cruise got legendary director Brian de Palma to direct the first installment. While the first film has some ties to the original television series, this franchise was without questions Cruise’s baby.
The first Mission: Impossible centers on the I.M.F, Impossible Mission Force, a covert team of
operatives that’s sole mission, if they choose to accept which they always do, is to basically stop the world from being destroyed and they are the last line of defense. The team is led by Jim Phelps (Jon Voight), the main character of the original television show, and his team are sent to retrieve the NOC, a list of names that are non-official covers for the CIA. The team realizes the that the list is fake and one by one, they start to be picked off by assassins, leaving only Ethan Hunt(Cruise) alive. Hunt then meets with the IMF director and discovers that the job was a set up to uncover a mole working within the IMF.
With Hunt being the only one left alive, he is assumed to be the mole and Ethan escapes from
their meeting, leading him on a mission to uncover who the real mole is and clear his name with
the IMF. While Ethan assembles a team of his own to go into the CIA and steal the real list to
give to the mole to then give to his buyer, very complicated but makes a lot of sense. Within this team is Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames), who becomes Ethan’s closest friend and a series regular from here on out. Ethan steals the list, which is the iconic shot of Ethan hanging from wires to get the list, a shot that will follow Cruise and this franchise around for long after they are gone. He gets the list and discovers that mole is Phelps and that he faked his own death so he could then sell the list for millions. The movie then turns into a cat and mouse game of epic portions that leads to Ethan proving that Phelps was the mole, getting Phelps’s seller arrested, and clearing his and Luther’s names for good. The film plays more like a noir thriller than a generic spy film and that’s the point Cruise wants to make with this franchise. Cruise wants directors with their own unique visions to come in and play with this franchise and that’s exactly what De Palma does. It set a high bar for itself, a bar that would be commercial successful as well as inventive within the spy genre.
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Mission: Impossible 2 (or M:I 2):
Four years later, Hunt returns, this time with director John Woo at the helm for what is a fun, forgettable, and untimely a step back for the franchise. Hunt and his team, including Luther, must stop a deadly virus from being spread by a former IMF agent Dean Ambrose (Dougray Scott, remember when he was a thing). In order to find out what Ambrose’s plans are for the virus, and for the cure that he has in his possession as well, Hunt must recruit his Ambrose’s ex-girlfriend Nyah (Thandie Newton). While in the recruiting process, Hunt and Nyah fall for each other but the new IMF director (Anthony Hopkins, who is weirdly brilliant in this small role) tells Hunt that send Nyah to Ambrose and have her spy on the inside and relay him information on Amrbose.
To be honest with you guys, the plot of this movie is terrible and the movie is a slog to get to the end, which has one of the most insane endings ever just by how crazy, stupid and nonsensical the action is. It’s one of those films that you watch it and realize, yep that was made in the year 2000 and someone should have actually read that script. While you can really see John Woo’s style on full display, it never really works within the franchise and when you watch this movie alongside the other entries, M:I 2 sticks out like a sore thumb. The film does have some memorable bits, like the beginning of the film with Cruise rock climbing (to which he torn his shoulder when he jumped from one cliff to another. The gun fight in the lab towards the end of the second act and motorcycle chase in the third act, but in terms of how this films plays into the larger story of Ethan Hunt, it doesn’t and feels more like a James Bond film with the characters from Mission: Impossible. While it does feel like I’m trashing the film, this film does hold a special place in my heart as one of the first PG-13 films I got to see in the theater. And while the eight-year-old Ryan loved this movie, the older model couldn’t wait till it was over.
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Mission: Impossible III:
While M:I 2 was a huge money maker, the follow up to it took a long time to get back on the screen. After many directors dropped out of doing the third MI film, including David Fincher, Cruise looked to television again and found the writer-director-producer that would make this franchise what it is today, JJ Abrams. Before Star Trek and The Force Awakens, J.J Abrams was the biggest name in television with Lost and Alias, the latter of which got him the opportunity to director this film. Cruise binged watched the first two seasons of Alias and after he finished them, he knew who he wanted to carry on the franchise.
The third installment picks up years after the events of MI2, where we find Ethan Hunt retired from field duty and looking to settle down with his finance Julia (Michelle Monaghan). When one of his first trainees (Keri Russel) is captured by a black market dealer Owen Davian (Philip Seymour Hoffman), Hunt assembles Luther and the rest of the team again to get her back. Upon the rescue, the trainee dies but not without leaving clues for Ethan to hunt down and stop Davian from retrieving something called the “Rabbit’s Foot.” Hunt must then juggle his old life with his new and go head to head with the best villain that the franchise has had. While M:I 2 felt like a misstep, III felt like a huge step forward, with Abrams focusing more on Ethan as a human than just a persona of Cruise put on the screen. The action set pieces are good, within the mission at the Vatican being my favorite within the film, as well as the ambush on the highway, and of course, the long shots of Ethan running to save Julia at the end of the film. Adding Monaghan’s character as well as new comer Simon Pegg as the franchise’s own version of Q made for nice touches taken from Alias. And while you can feel the elements of this television shows up on a much bigger scale, Abrams took the best bits and married them together with real human elements to make something truly special and made us want more.
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Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol
This is the film where Cruise must have just thought, “Let’s do some crazy shit and see if we can get away with it.” With Abrams now as Cruise’s producing partner on the films, they brought in Brad Bird to direct what is widely discussed as the best installment of the franchise. We begin with Ethan Hunt being broken out of a Russian prison by two IMF agents (Paula Patton and Simon Pegg’s Benji from the III). Once broken out, Ethan and his team find out their mission is to infiltrate the Kremlin and steal Russian nuclear launch codes before former Russian nuclear scientist Kurt Hendricks gets his hands on them and releases chaos around the world. When their mission is compromised and the Kremlin is destroyed, the IMF secretary (Tom Wilkinson) and his aid William Brandt (Jeremy Renner) inform Ethan that the president has issued “Ghost Protocol” and once again Ethan and his team have been disavowed. But the secretary orders Ethan to go after Hendricks, and along with Brandt and his team, Ethan goes around the world in order to stop Hendricks and clear the name of the IMF.
While the plot of the film is pretty generic, it’s the action that is the main focus of this installment. The best action set piece in this franchise, and possibly of all-time, rests upon Ethan climbing the Burg Khalifa, the world tallest building in Dubai, from the outside. Knowing that Cruise did this with very little assistance and having seen it too many times to count, it is truly amazing. So amazing that you tend to forget about the great opening with the prison break set to Dean Martin’s Ain’t That a Kick in the Head, to the scenes in the Kremlin, to the chase scene in the sand store right after the Khalifa set piece, which are all fantastic scenes set shot within IMAX cameras that make the film look one of a kind. This is also the first film that directly links back to the previous installment, with Benji playing a bigger role now that he is in the film, with Renner’s character connected to Ethan and Julia’s relationship, to having Luther and Julia make cameos at the end of the film. It also sets up the next installment in the franchise, with Ethan gaining his new mission, to hunt down a new organization called the Syndicate.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hR-0po0hzDQ
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Mission: Impossible – Rouge Nation
What has become my favorite entry in the franchise picks up after the events of Ghost Protocol, and once this movie starts, it never let’s go. Ethan is tracking the Syndicate, a mythical organization that works in the shadows as an anti-IMF. While this is going on, the IMF is being questioned for Ethan’s prior judgements in missions, including the one in Ghost Protocol, leading to the IMF under the control of the CIA, and making them, you guess it, disavowed again. Ethan goes rouge to find the Syndicate and prove that they, along with their leader Solomon Lane, exist and are a real threat. Hunt gathers his team together, Benji, Luther and Brandt but a new member is part of the team in Ilsa Faust, a MI6 undercover agent working for the Syndicate to gain Lane’s trust. It’s Ethan’s most challenging mission because he has finally met his intellectual match in Lane and it is a thrilling match of wits till the very end.
Cruise takes the action up a notch, matching the Khalifa piece for the last film with an underwater scene in which he learned how to hold he breathe underwater for six minutes. The beginning of the film also finds Cruise hanging from a side of a plane, a scene in which they shot multiple times and of course, he was barely hanging on by a harness. It also has a fantastic chase scene that rivals anything in a Jason Bourne movie, and the best use of the signature masks in any of the films so far. The film is built on the back of the writing by director Christopher McQuarrie, who worked on rewrite for Ghost Protocol and also work with Cruise on Jack Reacher and Edge of Tomorrow, and has become the real helm of this franchise alongside Cruise. With his rewrites in Ghost Protocol, he set the stages high for Rough Nation and delivered in every way possible.
With McQuarrie coming back for Fallout, it looks like once again we will pick right back up from Rouge Nation, and from the looks of the trailer and word of mouth so far, Fallout looks to become the most personal and thrilling chapter in the Mission: Impossible franchise yet.
This article with self-destruct in five seconds…
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When it comes to the yearly movie calendar, few announcements excite me as much as the release of the fall film festival lineups. If you’re a fan of heavier dramas, the summer months are often a bit of a dry season. The festival announcements signify that Oscar season is about to heat up. This year, that means a bevy of big names that will be looking to jumpstart their Academy Award campaigns.
Premiering Films
Let’s start with Venice, where a few major contenders will be making their worldwide premieres. The bombshell that rocked the movie world from the festival announcement was that Venice would be playing host to the latest film from Joel and Ethan Coen – The Ballad of Buster Scruggs. Originally intended to be a Netflix series, this anthology tale will now be released as a feature film and will most surely be an Oscar frontrunner upon its premiere.
The Coens aren’t the only Academy Award-winning auteurs that Netflix will have at Venice. Alfonso Cuaron returns to Spanish-language filmmaking with Roma, and Orson Welles’ long anticipated project The Other Side of the Wind will also premiere there. Cuaron won Best Director for Gravity, and any other year you’d say his film would be right at the top of the list for Oscar contenders. But as you will see, this year’s festival lineup is jam-packed with acclaimed directors.
Damien Chazelle’s First Man starring Ryan Gosling and telling the story of Neil Armstrong’s journey to the moon will also have its world premiere at Venice. The duo will pair up once again after their incredible success with La La Land. Even though Chazelle took home the Best Director prize that year, I wonder if the Academy will want to give him the main prize that has eluded him thus far.
Warner Bros.’ remake of A Star is Born starring Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga will also release at Venice. The trailer for this film is fantastic, and Cooper has been a fairly safe bet with the Academy in recent years as an actor, but this is his directorial debut. We’ll have to wait and see if he will hold the same sway over them from the director’s chair.
Finally, Venice will also host the premieres of Yorgos Lanthimos’ The Favourite with Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz as well as 22 July, the newest film from Paul Greengrass.
From there, we’ll move to Toronto. Some of the films premiering in Venice will also be screening in Toronto (A Star is Born and First Man). As far as premieres go, the biggest name will be Steve McQueen, whose film Widows represents the follow up to his Best Picture winner 12 Years a Slave. For this film, McQueen is joining with Viola Davis, and that pairing alone should be enough to make this a clear contender.
Joining McQueen in Toronto is fellow former Best Picture winner Barry Jenkins. His film If Beale Street Could Talk is an adaptation of the James Baldwin novel and represents his much-anticipated follow up to Moonlight. With Jenkins and Chazelle both in the Oscar race again this year, we could have ourselves another Oscar night showdown to remember like we did back in 2017.
Toronto will also host the premieres of Claire Denis’ English-language debut High Life and Beautiful Boy, starring Timothee Chalamet and Steve Carell.
The New York Film Festival will also host screenings of Roma and The Favourite. Those films don’t seem to be frontrunners at the moment, but given the talent around them and the opportunity to gain momentum, both must be considered contenders.
Telluride has not officially announced its roster yet, but according to Variety, the festival is expected to host the premiere of David Lowery’s The Old Man & The Gun. Not only is this the director’s follow-up to A Ghost Story (which I thought was one of last year’s best films), but it also represents the retirement of legendary actor Robert Redford. Lowery is an up-and-coming talent, and you could certainly see the Academy falling for the story of Redford riding off into the sunset. I wouldn’t sleep on this film if I were you.
Oscar Implications
There are a few elements that make it difficult to gauge exactly where things stand in terms of the Oscar race at this point. First is the obvious caveat that it’s still early. All of these films and directors look good on paper, but we haven’t seen how audiences will react quite yet.
Even more than that, though, is the uncertainty surrounding the Academy’s views on Netflix. It seemed that the streaming giant knocked on the door last year with Mudbound. But they were shut out at Cannes, and it remains to be seen whether or not the Academy will fully embrace a film distributed by the streaming service (though Amazon has had some success at the Oscars in recent years). One thing is for sure, if they do not embrace Netflix this year, it won’t be due to the talent. It is clear that Netflix is going all in with their connection to films from the Coens, Cuaron, and Greengrass.
Also, keep in mind that Mary Queen of Scots has about as much Oscar firepower in the acting department as you can get right now with Saoirse Ronan and Margot Robbie in the lead roles. It will most likely premiere in Toronto, but that has not been officially announced. Still, it most certainly will be in the Best Picture hunt, despite the questions about historical inaccuracy that have already begun to spring up.
Finally, there are just so many directors with great Oscar pedigrees in the field this year. Can we really say for sure that Chazelle is the frontrunner with First Man when you also have Jenkins, McQueen, Cuaron, and the Coens in the mix?
At the end of the day, though, you didn’t come here for me to give you the reasons against making predictions at this point. In my very, VERY early picks, here’s how I see the frontrunners shaking out after the festival lineups were announced.
Director: Christopher McQuarrie Writers: Christopher McQuarrie; Bruce Geller (TV series) Stars: Tom Cruise, Rebecca Ferguson, Simon Pegg, Henry Cavill, Ving Rhames, Angela Bassett, Vanessa Kirby
Synopsis: Ethan Hunt and his IMF team, along with some familiar allies, race against time after a mission gone wrong.
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This far along the M:I track, we should, at least subconsciously, feel like Rogue Nation‘s Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg, field status remains questionable): well-aware that the declared impossibility is a ruse. Sure, Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise, enjoyment apparent and series’ hair rule broken again) can react with the “Dude…” expression and struggle come action time, but we know how things will play out. Fool once, shame you, twice me, et cetera. It’s the sixth turn now.
So why do we stay seated? Maybe it’s because, after 2, each installmentaccomplishes in being finer than the one before, like white-knuckled cheese and high-octane wine. J.J. Abrams’ gusto makes the agent’s domestic life one worth saving. Brad Bird’s realization of Pixar-tinged ingenuity brings glee into the usual doomsday plot. Christopher McQuarrie matures the whole supply with dives into intrigues and consequences. In other words, it’s the directors rather than the characters, the engineers instead of the passengers, who face the can-be-unwinnable trial of raising the bar. Fortunately, victory has never been out of stock, and Fallout turns what it nabs into a feet-off-ground, fireworks-all-around kind of actioner. Your mission, the only one, is to be onboard and avoid the bunker at all costs.
It helps that McQuarrie is again the helmer and the scribe (franchise’s first!), rendering Fallout both a challenge and a possible upgrade. Or a greater challenge as it can become an upgrade. For those believing that Rogue Nation was sluggish, slightly or wholly, Fallout hears you, and in response it moves with the fast-forward button held down. See the effect right from the start: Only single-digit minutes (four?) have passed and then Ethan is given the briefer, which prior to self-destruction outlines two items — the rising of The Apostles, aka what’s left of in-custody MI6 turncoat Solomon Lane (Sean Harris)’s Syndicate, and their need to snatch three plutonium Poké Balls for an imminent “great suffering.” The usual suspects of close-calls, country-hopping, mask-making, infiltrations and stunts abound. Downright great callbacks to every previous Mission and satisfying payoffs for every department are also in the cargo hold.
The latter is why Fallout is the same bullet-train on a different track, one where the only stopping point is at the end of the line. It’s a setting where a radioactive midnight is one minute away — why thanks, Ethan, for losing the bombs! — so such velocity is justified. We might feel like the Road Runner trying to keep up with the proceedings — an arms-dealing scioness (Vanessa Kirby, seductive through diction) knows where the WMDs are, Lane is returning, loyalty again forcing Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson, fashionably chilly) to complicate the mission, a frustrated CIA assigning its own deadly angel (Henry Cavill, engaging) for support, and nightmares with Julia (Michelle Monaghan, kindness galore) — but McQuarrie always has us oriented and, amazingly, whiplash-free. With riveting concision in the penning, he guarantees that the prerequisite, adeptly built espionage-y webs won’t entangle us; once the details are communicated it’s all about perfecting the ensuing sensation. An M:I film with an emotional thread that bears as much impact as the explosions? It’s here, and that’s a mighty-fine bonus on top of the franchise’s bread-and-butter aspects that Fallout have either elevated or sharpened.
Though everyone’s in a hurry, production designer Peter Wenham doesn’t use that as an excuse to take shortcuts; the conversion of Paris’ Grand Palais into a classy rave at the front and a jazz club in the back is a definite highlight. A new world is yet nigh, though composer Lorne Balfe’s hymnic-then-catastrophic orchestrations, editor Eddie Hamilton’s patient cutting and d.p. Rob Hardy’s steadfast framing suggest it has been the state of things after the production logos. “The impossibility is real,” the trio’s work, combined with McQuarrie’s direction, declared, and you’ll believe it, willingly, too, as Ethan HALO-jumped into Paris, burns rubber on a bike and later a car in something straight out of “Ronin 2.0,” and bends physics while piloting a heli to a cliffside boxing ring at the home stretch. Oof, the adrenaline just rises upon typing this.
Still, we shouldn’t ignore that it is in the leading man that M:I finds its existence. There will come a point where Cruise has to refuse the mission, and most of us believed it arrived last August. Intentional or not, narrative purposes or otherwise, for Ethan or his vessel Cruise, the sense of an ending is suffocating in Fallout, allowing sweat beads to mingle with the electricity from big-screen thrills. “I won’t let you down,” IMF’s poster agent uttered at one point, and afterward it’d be wise to believe that you will hear the statement echoing for as long as the team stays in commission.
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Happy Mission: Impossible – Fallout week everyone! In the Marvel, DC, superhero world we live in nowadays, it’s sometimes easy to forget that the Mission: Impossible franchise is arguably the most consistent action franchise in terms of consistent quality. Each film in this series, outside of maybe M:I 2, is very good and worthy of being picked as the best.
So, with that said, what is your favorite Mission: Impossible film? Vote now!
Jean Renoir was the son of famous painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir. With his fortune, Jean was sent to the best schools, but he was never a fan and ran away often. To him, it was just being another figure in the status quo, the bourgeoisie that was born in. Wounded in the First World War, he discovered the moving camera and decided to take his talents into the fledgling industry. The 1930s was a success for Renoir with La Chienne, Boudu Saved From Drowning, The Crime of Monsieur Lange, and La Grande Illusion, which became the first foreign film to be nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards. In comedy and drama, Renoir always made social classes a theme in his movies.
To finish the decade off with a bang – especially with the Second World War looming – Renoir decided to make a direct attack on the class he grew up in and detested. Arguably his best film, The Rules Of The Game satirized Haute bourgeois with a blitzkrieg of faux manners and attacked what he saw as their own degenerate, self-loathing customs that made France be aloof to what was going on around them. Even though they were 20 years free from war, it was obvious that the peace would be formally broken, and Renoir decided to make, “A precise description of the bourgeois of our age.”
An Ensemble Of Elite Imbeciles
At a chateau, one weekend, a wealthy woman, Christine, wants to be happy but is confronted by her ex-lover aviator, Andre, whose last accomplishment failed to bring back in love with him. Octave, a friend of Christine, will help her get to a find someone she can love as her husband, Robert, is having an affair, only to find himself in love with her. Other guests at the chateau feature more friends – husbands and their wives featuring secret lovers – all making a getaway to their usual country estate visit. In a Gosford Park setting, in which they hunt and have fancy dinners, there will be comical consequences and farce, as well as a tragedy that awaits. This is what the wealthy did and loved to do, even with the greyness of war right next door. For Jean Renoir, they refused to deviate from their little strict norms and, while the love is genuine, the fact that people would “dance on a volcano,” as he described, was egregious and was willing to take the risk of producing the story himself to get his point across.
Those Rules
The most notable quote from the film is also reflective of what Renoir was talking about in his previous films and was perfect for Renoir to say it himself in the film: “The awful thing about life is this: everyone has their reasons.”
What reasons could they possibly mean? The opening scene shows Andre returning from another aviation attempt that is successful, only done to attract Christine. When she isn’t there, Andre denounces her for not even being present, although she is listening on the radio. Men will do anything to attract the woman they love, married or not. “She’s a society woman, and society has strict rules,” Octave tells Andre. Outside of the main figures, the assistants, such as the gatekeepers and waiters, all know their place and just nod along referring to their aristocratic bosses as, “your lordship.” When a poacher is caught trying to steal the rabbits, he is hired as an assistant and he ends up flirting with Christine’s maid. Liaisons are rampant and the idea of discretion is disregarded. The sequence in which there is a fight within a fight and a hilarious chase sequence between jealous rivals symbolizes the abusrdity of the whole situation in Renoir’s scenario.
Besides the themes, the physical use of the camera was noticeable with deep focus shooting that Orson Welles, an admirer of the film, would borrow for Citizen Kane. This was needed in the large rooms and long corridors of the chateau to allow the camera to move anywhere, as well as keep the focus on the actors wherever they went. The rooms are expansive and the whole mise en scene from what they wear to what is in the room has to be captured to reflect the physical possessions these people are into. The same goes for when they are outside the chateau and on the fields. The rabbit shoot sequence is the only part that features any quick cuts; my apologies to animal lovers when I say that dozens of rabbits were let loose and actually shot on site. Many of the scenes are long takes with continuous dialogue and action that fills up the screen, allowing many to be in one single shot, talking over each other.
Released And Saved
Like all masterpieces, the film was to be ridiculed, but in a manner that was quite shocking. Critics and audiences hated it so much that they viciously heckled at the screen and a member of the right-wing press, furious at Renoir’s left-wing views, tried to set the theatre on fire. Yes, instead of trying to buy the negative and destroying it, someone thought of burning down the house. Clearly, the picked up on Renoir’s intention, mocking the more affluent, which was seen as unpatriotic and unbecoming for a Frenchman of his status. The film was cut multiple times by Renoir to his disgust and the film was banned after the outbreak of war because it was seen as depressing and could lower morale. Saddened by the stunning failure and butchering of his film, Renoir thought of quitting films but then moved to the United States when the Germans threatened and continued his career from there. He would return to France after the war to make his gorgeous Technicolor pieces The River, The French Cancan, and Elena And Her Men.
It’s revival and restoration as a masterpiece came in 1959. Thought to be destroyed by bombs, the negative survived and sound prints were found to let it be painfully reconstructed to the current 106-minute version that can be owned. Renoir sobbed when seeing his film reborn and the legacy of The Rules of The Game was cemented. Peter Bogdanovich, Noah Baumbach, Mike Leigh, and Robert Altman (“The Rules of the Game taught me the rules of the game.”) praised the film as a massive influence in their careers. Before the restoration, one of the shortened versions was available and has been on Sight & Sound’s Top 10 list of greatest films of all time since its establishment in 1952. Come 2022, it may as well be on the Top 10 again.
This week on Episode 283 of the InSession Film Podcast, inspired by Boots Riley’s wild Leave No Trace, we decided to talk about our favorite father-daughter movies. 2018 has been a very rich year for these kinds of films, including Leave No Trace, Hearts Beat Loud and Eighth Grade. Of course, though, this relationship we’ve seen on screen many times before, and man-o-man have there been some great depictions of this over the years. So this was a lot of fun, especially when Ryan brought up a certain film from 2014. On that note, what movies would make your list? Here are the one’s that made ours:
(Note: Please keep in mind that we each had different criteria for our selections)
JD:
1) Father of the Bride (1950)
2) Stories We Tell
3) Logan
Brendan:
1) To Kill a Mockingbird
2) Toni Erdmann
3) Father of the Bride (1991)
Ryan:
1) Interstellar
2) The Descendants
3) Lady Bird
Honorable Mentions (Combined) Kick-Ass, Juno, My Girl, Little Miss Sunshine, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Mulan, Beauty and the Beast, Casper the Friendly Ghost, Saving Mr. Banks, Hanna, Steven Jobs, Armageddon, The Parent Trap I Am Sam, Gifted, Definitely Maybe, Winters Bone, Eighth Grade, Hearts Beat Loud, Leave No Trace
Hopefully you guys enjoyed our lists and if you agree or disagree with us, let us know in the comment section below. As noted above, there are countless options for this list depending on the criteria you set for yourself, and maybe your list looks very different than ours. That being said, what would be your Top 3? Leave a comment in the comment section or email us at [email protected].
This week on the InSession Film Podcast, our own Ryan McQuade joins us to discuss Debra Granik’s new film Leave No Trace and our Top 3 father-daughter movies! JD also gives a few brief thoughts on Disobedience and Three Identical Strangers, where Brendan gives us his review of Sweet Country as well.
It was great to finally get Ryan on the Main Show after having an Extra Film appearance, and he did not disappoint at all. He was really great. Related note – forgive the length of the show, the conversation was just that much fun! You may have also noticed that our poll this was not so much inspired by Leave No Trace, but rather Eighth Grade, which was supposed to be our featured review this week. Well, it didn’t work out, but we will get to Eighth Grade ASAP.
Let us know what you think in the comment section and thanks for listening to the InSession Film Podcast!
– Movie Review: Leave No Trace (6:32) Director: Debra Granik Writer: Debra Granik Stars: Thomasin McKenzie, Ben Foster
– Notes / Disobedience / Three Identical Strangers / Sweet Country (53:01)
After missing out on the review earlier this year, JD finally caught up with Disobedience and gave his thoughts on the film and why Rachel McAdams is having a great year. He also gave his thoughts on the fascinating documentary Three Identical Strangers. Brendan also caught up with the Australian film Sweet Country and offered up a few thoughts as well.
– Top 3 Father-Daughter Movies (1:19:35)
2018 has been a very rich year for father-daughter movies, including Leave No Trace and Eighth Grade. Of course, though, this relationship we’ve seen on screen many times before, and man-o-man have there been some great depictions of this over the years. So this was a lot of fun, especially when Ryan brought up a certain film from 2014. That said, what would be your Top 3?
If you want to help support us, there are several ways you can help us and we’d absolutely appreciate it. Every penny goes directly back into supporting the show and we are truly honored and grateful. Thanks for your support and for listening to the InSession Film Podcast!
Antoine Fuqua and Denzel Washington team up for a fourth time to bring us The Equalizer 2, a sequel that I am not sure many were really asking for. Nonetheless the follow-up hit theaters this weekend to sell out crowds, I myself had to bounce around between two different theaters and multiple showtimes to find one with available seating. If I am being honest I wasn’t expecting much out of this film, the original was entertaining but had its flaws and historically sequels rarely tend to match up to their predecessors. But I read a few reviews beforehand and most seemed to give it positive praise so when the lights dimmed and the reel started to roll I told myself to keep my mind open.
What The Equalizer 2 does well is simply be a sequel. Fuqua kept the same recipe and tone that made the original an entertaining ride and through most of the film he doesn’t deviate far from the path. Washington’s career has racked up some mileage and it shows but he carries it well and is convincing even when pulling off some slick John Wick style fight choreography. Robert McCall, via Washington’s brilliant performance comes off as very adept, calculated and deliberate which allows much of his actions that require technical knowledge and meticulous planning to be believable. Fuqua can tend to overdo it with slow motion sequences and unnecessary flair but I was capable of looking past this and somewhat expected it considering we experienced plenty of the same in the original. But again this consistency is what makes 2 a good movie going experience, if you are familiar with the first film Fuqua delivers much of the same in the second. There are some new characters and twists but the overall tone of the original is intact. If anything Fuqua utilizes the two hours run time more methodically and gives the characters some room to breath and develop, something I thought was lacking in the first film (the original could have been cut by 20+ minutes). However much like the original the second has overt flaws that leaves the overall experience wanting.
The first half of the film I was along for the ride. There are periods that may seem to drag a bit, and I could understand why this might frustrate some viewers who came to watch an action flick, but this is done carefully and with intention and I found myself enjoying it quite more than the original. Fuqua does a much better job of establishing character connections, even though some may feel incredibly cliché, and developing plot this time around and it requires some patience on the part of the audience to let him tell the story. But when it comes to character connections most of the films problems lie in the relationship between McCall and Dave York (Pedro Pascal), a name from McCall’s past. Fuqua does his best to establish a back story for these two but onscreen there is a disconnect. Pascal’s York never feels like a flushed out character but more like an add-on to a story that was struggling to have a main arc, and this is by no means due to Pascal’s performance. There are a few heavier scenes filled with dialogue and sentiment that feel well written and polished but scenes with McCall and York feel flat and seem to exist simply to push the story along. In contrast Washington and Melissa Leo, who returns as Susan Plummer, have amazing on-screen chemistry and the bond between their characters is apparent and strong. My criticism may also be due to the predictability of McCall and York’s relationship. There is some foreshadowing early on but even without it wasn’t difficult to piece together. And although the reveal is meant to be a powerful one and we are given some pieces to their history their connection still comes off superficial.
In addition to some rather predictable revelations the final act of the film is where it really loses its steam. The original Equalizer’s strength was in the showdown, the scenes were brutal and the overall setup and execution showcased McCall’s talent not just in melee but in combat tactics. It was brilliant fun and had some great “Whoa!” moments. The Equalizer 2 is the absolute opposite. Most of the strength of 2 lies in the side stories and the action sequences in the first half of the film. The final battle feels very rushed and not well thought out. Even the events leading up to it and the location itself feel a bit farfetched. The film attempts to display McCall’s ingenuity but it never matches the cunning and versatility we get to witness in the first film. The way the sequences play out make it hard to accept how the villains actually lose the fight whereas in the original I had no problems accepting McCall prevailing even considering the uneven odds. He keeps the opposition off-balance and even MacGyver’s his way through a bit of the fight but there is one overall factor, which was apparent to me, that looms above others that makes much of the final 15 minutes strain credulity. There are other issues with the finale that fall under the usual action film tropes: The villains have an ace-in-the-hole but for whatever reason decide not use it early on; Although being highly trained they don’t seem to work as a unit and make errors in judgment that even a group of middle schoolers playing Call of Duty would have the foresight to evaluate and so on. Some may find the ending acceptable but unfortunately it hurt the film considerably for me.
Even with these gripes The Equalizer 2 is by no means a bad film. I enjoyed it probably just as much as the first, maybe just a bit more. It progresses on the original story and keeps the audience engaged as well as entertained throughout. With the exception of the finale most of the set pieces are executed very well and its the parts that don’t directly involve the main story arc that carry the film. If you enjoyed the first than the second is definitely worth a watch, if not just to see McCall play Superman and have random adventures and save lives than to at least get more back story on him as a character and learn some of the events leading to his current life. Just be prepared for a final showdown not nearly on par with the original.
Director: Ol Parker Writers: Ol Parker, Richard Curtis, Catherine Johnson Stars: Lily James, Amanda Seyfried, Dominic Cooper,
Synopsis: Five years after the events of Mamma Mia! (2008), Sophie learns about her mother’s past while pregnant herself.
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Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again is the Slanket of movies. Nobody asked for it. Nobody needed it. Everybody made fun of it. Then Bruce Willis wore one on The David Letterman Show and suddenly it’s a Christmas bestseller and everybody realizes how warm, cozy, and amazing the Slanket actually is. (To be clear, in this analogy, Cher is Bruce Willis, showing the world that it actually does need this movie.)
Before I delve into the warm, cozy, amazingness of this movie, I feel I should disclose the cost of said warm fuzzies: if you’re looking for a movie with a sensical narrative, humor that lands, and characters with some subtlety, this movie is not for you. This is a movie where characters say things like, “Be still my beating vagina.” This is a movie that treats unexpected pregnancies and the resulting children like cure-all life Band-Aids. This is a movie in which 1979 was 25 years before 2018 and Cher is somehow Meryl Streep’s mother. This is a movie that strings along a loose narrative with the promise of the songs of ABBA, which barely relate to said loose narrative. Even with the double-layered half-sequel/half-prequel plot structure, we don’t learn anything new about any of these characters that we didn’t learn in the first movie and the expected mirror narrative that the trailers promised would carry the story along is barely present. This movie could have existed exclusively as a series of music videos of celebrities covering
ABBA songs and it would have made about as much narrative sense.
But, the loss of narrative and character development are just the price tag for this Slanket of a movie: it’s what you have to be willing to give up if you want to see the magic of an island-wide “Dancing Queen” dance party, a college graduation ceremony unsurreptitiously interrupted by a rendition of “When I Kissed the Teacher”, or Cher singing “Fernando”. Aside from one awfully choreographed number that sticks out like the awkward winking in the “Take a Chance on Me” music video (seriously, watch that music video), the choreography is amazingly ABBA in a somewhat stiff yet charming and incredibly fun way (though the singing, as in the first movie, leaves a bit to be desired).
Also, Cher! She’s glorious, but do I really need to tell you that? Amongst the returning cast, Amanda Seyfried again steals the show, though her role is rather minimized. All the returning cast bring the same energy and talent as in the first Mamma Mia!, so if you liked them then, you’ll like them now. The prequel cast was fairly well chosen, especially Lily James, who captures the carefree energy of Donna/Meryl Streep in such a way that makes her relatable and likeable despite the nonsensical nature of the events around her. I also particularly liked the energy of Jessica Keenan Wynn and Alexa Davies as Young Tanya and Young Rosie, respectively, though I couldn't stop asking myself, “Why on earth did neither of them change their hair or makeup since 1979?!”
When all is said and done, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again exceeded my expectation and was thoroughly enjoyable. I recognize that it is by no means a masterpiece, and it’s not as good as it’s Broadway-inspired predecessor, but it’s still fun, it’s still ABBA, and they got Cher, so it’s worth seeing if for no other reason than to put a smile on your face. There were times when I couldn’t tell if I was smiling because what was happening was so ridiculous or because I just wanted to get out of my seat and sing and dance, and in the end, does it really matter? If you liked the first Mamma Mia! you should definitely see this movie. If you need a little sunshine in your life, you should see this movie. If you love old-school Hollywood musicals, you should see this movie. If you think ABBA is just the funnest, you should see this movie. If you…I think you get the idea. You should see this movie. Your soul will thank you for bundling it up in this warm Slanket, even if your logical brain might not.
Synopsis: Two corporate executive assistants hatch a plan to match-make their two bosses.
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Set It Up is one of those movies you’ve probably glanced over on Netflix, made a mental note about Lucy Liu or Taye Diggs being in it, and then scrolled on by to binge watch a TV series with five or six seasons. Next time Set It Up appears in your “Watch This Next” queue, I suggest taking the time to do so. It’s an adorable romantic comedy (more emphasis on the comedy) that had me laughing out loud almost the entire movie. I am not a fan of chick flicks or the standard rom-coms but this seemed different. It doesn’t follow that “boy meets girl, they fall in love, they have a falling out, they make up and live happily ever after” format, so it’s refreshing in that sense.
Zoey Deutch is hilarious, I love her character and am excited to see what else she has coming out in the future. She plays Harper, an executive assistant to a big shot sports reporter Kirsten (Lucy Liu). I forgot how funny Lucy Liu is, the way she delivers some of her lines with a straight face is perfect.
Glen Powell is Harper’s counterpart. He plays Charlie, a long-time assistant to crazy executive Rick (Taye Diggs), located in the same building as Kirsten and Harper. Another positive addition to the movie is Pete Davidson. He is Duncan, Charlie’s best friend and roommate. Everything he says / does is funny, my only complaint is there wasn’t enough of him in this movie.
The basic plot is: Charlie and Harper are unhappy because their bosses are workaholics and because assistants have to do absolutely everything for them at any time, they work all hours and have no time for themselves. Harper and Charlie conspire to play matchmaker with their bosses so they will have more nights and weekends off. They plan to introduce them by convincing the maintenance man, Creepy Tim (played by the wonderful Tituss Burgess), to trap Kirsten and Rick in an elevator. Creepy Tim is easily bribed with succulents and loves to people watch using the security cameras. After the elevator stunt doesn’t go entirely to plan, the assistants trick their bosses into going to a Yankees game then bribe the Kiss Cam guy to put them on the jumbotron over and over until they finally kiss. This leads to the bosses casually dating and giving the assistants a sense of accomplishment and more free time. Mission accomplished. Now all they have to do is keep them together.
During the plotting and “setting up” Harper and Charlie become friends, but no weird romantic overtones or awkwardness. I was rooting for them to get together (I got sucked in) but they really didn’t introduce that possibility until the end. Charlie has a model girlfriend, Suze (hated by his roommate Duncan), and Harper has discovered Tinder and is trying to figure out dating. My only complaints about the movie are Taye Diggs character isn’t particularly likeable, there was definitely not enough Tituss Burgess, and the plot is kind of predictable, but I didn’t mind because it ended the way I wanted it to.
Set It Up is filled with crazy challenges for the assistants to overcome to keep their bosses happy and together, all while navigating their own personal problems. It’s a fun movie that’s easy to watch, so I recommend anyone with Netflix give it a try.
Director: Debra Granik Writers: Debra Granik, Anne Rosellini, Peter Rock (based on the novel “My Abandonment” by) Stars: Thomasin McKenzie, Ben Foster
Synopsis: A father and his thirteen year-old daughter are living in an ideal existence in a vast urban park in Portland, Oregon, when a small mistake derails their lives forever.
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There is a line within Debra Granik’s new film Leave No Trace, where Will (Ben Foster) tells his daughter Tom (Thomasin McKenzie) that there is nothing to worry about within their new living situation because they “can still think our own thoughts.” But what happens when our thoughts are put into question, how will we adapt or respond to such radical changes within our lives? Will we use our past as a guide for how we handle the future or will we mold into something else? Will we let that change rattle us or can we find a way to control that emotion for the sake of others?
The film follows Will and Tom, a father and daughter that live in the woods in a park just outside of Portland, Oregon. Their life, for the most part, is constructive and meaningful, with just a hint of danger of being caught for living on government owned land. Their life is blown up when a hiker spots Tom in the woods, leading to the police finding them and arresting them. They are pulled from their home and forced to conform within the average world, a world they only visit to get groceries or for Will to go to the VA to get pain pills to sell for money.
Will hates the idea of having to conform to the rest of the world’s idea of a normal life but it is the only way for him to keep Tom without losing her to Child Services. They are placed at a farm, where Tom makes friends and starts to try to make the most of her new life while Will is working for the owner of the farm, helping him and his company get Christmas trees ready for his business. As we see the trees being cut down and manipulated for our holiday enjoyment, we can feel Will’s rage and frustration kick in, hating that his life has become nothing more than killing nature, a part of what was a representation of his old home, in order to keep his daughter. This fury inside him leads to them to leaving and be on the run for the rest of the film. Tom asks “did you even try” and the easy answer is no because sometimes people are just incapable of giving up that sense of control for the sake of some compromise. This rage leads Will down a path of uncertainty but it leads Tom down the path of enlightenment.
While Will is struggling within his own life, Tom, as well as McKenzie herself, molds in front of our very eyes. From a confused, dependent child at the beginning of the film, Tom transforms into the voice of reason within this film, the true adult, and finds that what she wants is different than what Will wants. She wants human connection, she thrives in social situations even though she has just been with her father for the most part. Tom is someone that can adapt to her surroundings and become the best version of a human being possible, regardless of her childhood upbringing. And by the end of the film, the roles have somewhat reversed, with Will becoming more of the child and Tom being more of the adult amongst the two of them.
Both performances are superbly acted by Foster and McKenzie, with McKenzie being the shining star. This is expected in Granik’s films now after she discovered Vera Farmiga for Down to the Bone and Jennifer Lawrence for Winter’s Bone. Granik’s eye for talent is impeccable, as you can tell that McKenzie was the only one that could truly play this part and one could hope that this leads to more work for McKenzie down the road. It is also nice to see Granik back behind the camera since it took her eight years between this film and Winter’s Bone, a film I was not as high on when it came out. But what both films end up doing is showing the audience other parts of this country and people we would not normally see on the big screen. There is so much love and empathy for this subject matter that you can really see the passion that Granik gives them from behind the camera. Hopefully with this stellar film, it won’t take eight years for us to get another film from Granik and another look into this unique perspective of the country we live in.
Overall Grade: A
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Hear our podcast review on Extra Film, coming soon.
This week for our Episode 282 InSession Film Podcast: Bonus Content, Mark Hurne is back for another edition of Settling the Score,this time talking about the best scores of 2018 so far! There has been some great music in film so far this year and we wanted to take a look at the scores that moved us the most at the mid-way point. Check it out!
We offer our bonus content for free, but we do encourage and appreciate a small donation of $0.99 as a way to help support the show. Click on the PayPal button below to donate and thanks so much for your support. You can also hear all of our Bonus Content via our mobile apps. See the information at the bottom of the post for more details.
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Mobile Apps!
Listen to all of our bonus content on our apps for just a one-time fee! Whether you have an iPhone, Android or Windows phone, our apps are available in many different ways that is convenient for you. With our mobile app, not only can you listen to all of our bonus content, but our main shows and our Extra Film podcasts as well. Click here for more info!
If you don’t want to purchase our bonus content, but still want to support us, there are other you can help us out. Click here for more info.
For our poll this week, inspired by Bo Burnham’s new film Eighth Grade, we are talking about directorial debut films from comedians. There have been many great films by great comedians over the years, but what about their directorial debut’s? Well we want to find out which one is the best, or at the very least, the films that stand out to you.
That said, what is your favorite directorial debut film by a comedian? Vote now!
In 1999, the British Film Institute named The Third Man the greatest British film of all time. A story of moral corruption, we are thrown into the streets of an occupied Vienna four years after the war where it is every person for themselves, yet the protagonist discovers this the hard way upon arrival. As a masterpiece, it establishes the core of noir – an innocent man who finds himself caught up in a serious crime – creates a city that is a character in itself, and brings out perfected performances in everyone through the maze of uncertainty.
American author Holly Martins (Joseph Cotten) has been invited by his friend, Harry Lime (Orson Welles), to Vienna for a job opportunity, only to discover upon arrival that Lime was killed by a truck as he crossed the street. At his funeral, he crosses paths with Lime’s lover (Alida Valli) and a British Army police officer (Trevor Howard), who informs Holly his friend was under investigation for a major crime, but Holly doesn’t believe it. Staying in Vienna to seek the truth of his friend’s death, Holly uncovers a web of lies and deceit that puts him in the crosshairs of both the police and shady men who want it all quiet.
Visually, it was thought of as distracting when released. The film consistently presents itself in a Dutch angle many times, from a mild tilt to a half-tilt, conveying the uncertainty and twists the story gives us consistently. Director William Wyler sent a level to director Carol Reed with a note: “Carol, next time you make a picture, just put it on top of the camera, will you?” But the story throws us into the mill within the first few minutes, when we learn of Lime’s death and Holly questions the nature of it and if there was anything sinister about his friend. Robert Krasker’s Oscar-winning cinematography exposes the bleakness of Vienna and takes inside the mind of our characters during the action and provides the city’s bleak atmosphere a scent of despair.
Graham Greene was already a noted mystery author when he began shifting his energy to screenplays, adapting his own works to the screen and making hits with Brighton Rock and The Fallen Idol. With The Third Man, he had already started to write the novella when he agreed to adapt his unfinished story for producers Alexander Korda and David O. Selznick. Having visited occupied Vienna for inspiration, Greene utilized stories of the black market, concern of Soviet influence, and the ruins of the city as a brilliant backdrop. The famous climax at the end is quite notable because of Vienna’s sewers being that wide and such a labyrinth that Reed wanted to shoot inside, but Welles refused to get in.
Speaking of Welles, this was a major marker in his extraordinary career, especially coming after the RKO fiasco making Citizen Kane (American Film Institute’s #1 movie) and The Extraordinary Ambersons. His first appearance in the film, exposed by a bedroom light across the street, features a very noticeable shot of his grin towards a stunned Holly before fleeing the scene. It’s a supporting role, yet it is he who drives the story, especially when he meets Holly again at the Ferris wheel, the Wiener Riesenrad, and says hello in the bemused, condescending charm that only Welles could have pulled off. It is all wrapped up as they leave in which Lime presents his explanation that while Italy was submerged in war, they produced legendary artists, but in peaceful, democratic Switzerland, it only produced the cuckoo clock. To him, it is better to profit from one’s misery compared to having harmony where there is nothing to be gained.
It is a traditional film noir set in a city where everyone from everywhere meets. People go high on and low on the mouse hunt for who is the third man and why is he a mystery. But under the guise of Carol Reed (who would win an Oscar for directing Oliver!) and author Graham Greene, it unfolds as something bigger and something more raw with its actors plus an unforgettable zither score by Anton Karas, who was found playing in a beer hall. A masterpiece that has aged to the high regard it holds today, The Third Man turns 70 next year, but why wait till then to celebrate its greatness now?
This week on Episode 282 of the InSession Film Podcast, inspired by Boots Riley’s wild Sorry to Bother You, we decided to talk about our favorite movies about corporate America. There are countless films to tackle this subject, and depending on which areas you want to focus on, it could go in several different directions. That is to say, there weren’t a shortage of films to choose for our lists and hopefully we came up with some interesting films to talk about. On that note, what movies would make your list? Here are the one’s that made ours:
(Note: Please keep in mind that we each had different criteria for our selections)
JD:
1) Network
2) Social Network
3) The Big Short
Brendan:
1) The Apartment
2) Up in the Air
3) Glengarry Glen Ross
Alicja:
1) Burn After Reading
2) Office Space
3) The Wolf of Wall Street
Honorable Mentions (Combined) They Live, Wallstreet, Citizen Kane, Metropolis, His Girl Friday, Boiler Room, Michael Clayton, Trading Places, The Insider, Thank You for Smoking, Killing Them Softly, American Psycho, Steve Jobs, Working Girl, Saving Mr. Banks, Moneyball, Moon, Inside Job, Margin Call, Robocop, Tommy Boy
Hopefully you guys enjoyed our lists and if you agree or disagree with us, let us know in the comment section below. As noted above, this list could go in several directions depending on your criteria, and we’re sure we accidentally overlooked many other films. That being said, what would be your Top 3? Leave a comment in the comment section or email us at [email protected].
This week on the InSession Film Podcast, Alicja Johnson from ReelRedReviews.Net joins us to discuss Boots Riley’s directorial debut in Sorry to Bother You and our Top 3 movies about corporate America. We also briefly talk about our favorite performances of 2018 so far.
Special thanks to Alicja for joining us on the show this week. We are fans of her work and we’ve been itching to get her on the show for some time, and she did not disappoint at all. We had a great time talking about how wild Sorry to Bother You is and why it’s unlike anything else we’ll see this year.
Let us know what you think in the comment section and thanks for listening to the InSession Film Podcast!
– Movie Review: Sorry to Bother You (3:39) Director: Boots Riley Writer: Boots Riley Stars: Lakeith Stanfield, Tessa Thompson, Jermaine Fowler, Armie Hammer
– Favorite Performances of 2018 so far (40:40) A few weeks ago on Episode 280 we discussed our Top 5 films of 2018 so far, and keeping with that spirit, we thought we would offer up some of the best performances we’ve seen this year at the mid-way point.
– Top 3 Movies About Corporate America (56:15)
There are countless films to tackle the subject of corporate America, and depending on which areas you want to focus on, it could go in several different directions. That is to say, there weren’t a shortage of films to choose for our lists and hopefully we came up with some interesting films to talk about. That said, what would be your Top 3?
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