Since it’s Halloween, I thought I would want to watch something on the ‘scary’ side. To be honest, I probably am not the best person to be writing about these films, as the genre just isn’t for me. It just doesn’t interest me, and as much as there’s a lot of things happening on screen when I watch them, I just get bored.
But I wanted to watch ‘The Witches’ because of Anne Hathaway, as I am always fascinated by her work. And she is fantastic here in this film. As The Grand High Witch, Hathaway is absolute perfection. She has crafted a real character, with a wardrobe to die for, and an accent that is post Melania Trump. She preens and coos and she is scary, but of course, as great as the character is, it’s all costumes and CGI to me. There real isn’t much humanity in there, but then why am I looking for some?
The plot is pretty standard witch fare. The first half of it worked better for me, as there was actual narrative. Th second half struggled to keep my attention, as it was more of the same – all soaring musical score and special effects. As I said, this is just not for me, and I surprised I was able to hang in that long
‘Todd Haynes has a new movie coming out,’ a friend of mine said to me about a month ago, and of course, I got excited. i do not love everything he has ever done, but more often than not, his films are interesting, and they all have very specific moods. Then I realized the film he directed was ‘Dark Waters,’ a movie whose trailer I had seen a couple of times already. My first thought was that it didn’t look like a Todd Haynes film. And after seeing the film, I surmise that it is, and it isn’t. ‘Dark Waters’ is a conventional thriller, and it had a specific thing to say, and it says it succinctly. It tells of a simple story, of how a large chemical company, int his case, Dupont, knowingly unleashed a chemical to the public – perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) – via its products, specifically teflon, which is used in cooking pans and carpeting, among other things. Even as they discover its dangerous effects on people, they concealed this information to the public, and did harm to their employees. Mark Ruffalo (who also produced this) plays Robert Billott, who single-handedly fights the corporation, seeking justice.
Amazon Prime’s new show ‘Modern Love’ seems to be this generation’s version of the 70s anthology ‘Love American Style,’ but the stories on this show are culled from The New York Times column of the same title, and these are stories about New Yorkers, and the way they live and love in these modern times. Sounds like a fantastic idea to me. I have seen the first four (out of a total of eight) episodes and there are great highs, and also some lows. The first two episodes are tops: it starts with one starrign Christine Millotti as a NewYorker who has a ‘special’ relationship with her doorman – as a father figure who guides her in her life choices. It’s nice and sweet, and sets the tone for the show. I liked that it was a little irreverent, and featured situations that are real, and obviously showcases the heart and humanity. And the second episode is my absolute favorite so far. Starring, Dev Patel and Catherine Keener, it shows a pair of parallel stories of following your heart in the midst of the turmoil of life. Keener is great here as an author who reconnects with the ‘man that got away’ who was supposed to meet her in Paris seventeen years ago. But the third episode was disappointing even as it starred the charismatic Anne Hathaway. As a bipolar young woman strugglign with life, Hathaway was game, but I felt the story went nowhere. And Tina Fey and John Slattery had chemistry for days in the fourth episode (written by Sharon Horgan) but the story abotu a couple trying to reconnect did not connect with me. Of course I am already hooked with this and will surely finish all the episodes shortly. For now, I’ll just say that the second episode is one of the best I have seen on any series so far.
I probably would not have paid any attention to ‘Serenity’ had I not read that there was a surprise ‘life-changing’ twist in the middle of the film that everyone is saying is so insane it had to be seen to be believed. And of course, since I hate surprises, I went along and searched the internet for this ‘twist.’ Well, it turns out that this twist is the only interesting thing in this movie – which is essentially just a generic thriller/potboiler that we all have seen before. I cannot believe Matthew McConnaughey, Anne Hathaway and Diane Lane all got attached tho this piece of crap. I mean, I probably will watch Hathaway read the phone book (and she will make it interesting) but here they are not able to save the flimsy plot and tepid direction, utilizing some of the stupidest cinematic cliches (mysterious woman wears a wide brimmed hat) Perhaps I should not have read up on the twist – because it made my experience more boring – there was nothing else there for me to be excited about. I am giving it two stars, one star just for the gall of the ‘twist.’
This isn’t really my kind of movie. I never saw the previous ones, and I am probably the only one in the world who hasn’t. But sure, this all-female cast is alluring, and surely anything with Cate Blanchett in it is worth my time, so, yeah I went ahead and played and saw ‘Ocean’s 8.’ And I didn’t die from watching it. Ultimately, I was underwhelmed. I expected glitz, glamour, over-the-top production. It didn’t deliver that.
This could have been much better. I think it would have benefitted from a female or gay point of view. For example, I think it would have been great if the ladies’ wardrobes reflected their characters more – I am imagining Rhianna’s Island wardrobe, for example. And the screenplay could have used some tightening. I was expecting non-stop action instead of the press and play pace we have here. All in all, it wasn’t a total disappointment, but ultimately unmemorable.
‘Colossal’ is one of those difficult movies to describe, and that almost turned me off it. It’s a comedy, a little bit of a drama, a thriller, a sci-fi. It’s a lot of things, but director Nacho Vigalondo makes sure everything is balanced. the first part of the film is kind of fun, as it sets up its whole premise, and the second half of the film gets a lot darker. Some may think the film is a bit schizophrenic that way, but that didn’t bother me as I thought the progression was warranted. To say anything else would be to spoil the movie.
After all that, I would say that I wish I loved the movie. I liked it a lot, and admire it as well, but I had no connection to it. It’s not one I would seek to see again or ever. It’s all me, for sure. And it is also a little sad that audiences aren’t discovering the film, but I bet it will find audiences at home, and will have a cult following.
I was Netflix-and-Chilling with a friend and we were trying to figure out what to watch when we chanced upon ‘Alice Through A Looking Glass’ and he suggested we see it. This wouldn’t have been my first choice – nor fifth – but sure I will go with the flow and see it. I remember seeing the first Tim Burton directed one, and it was okay, but not really my cup of tea – haha, see what I did there? I know this film was sort of a flop last year, and I know it was only produced and not directed by Tim Burton.
Luha Thoughts 