Tag: Woman Director

Happiest Season: A Lot of Great Performances by Women

Mackenzie Davis and Kristen Stewart in Happiest Season

Happiest Season

Directed by Clea DuVall
Written by Clea DuVall & Mary Holland

The review:

Astute readers* will remember how I’m always going on about the lack of good roles for women and I’m here to say that Happiest Season, a story about two women who love each other, who are heading to one of their family homes for Christmas, provides an entire movie with juicy roles for women.** This film captures a couple at a time in their relationship where it’s a little hard to root for them, but that just makes it all the more fun to watch.*** Aside from being big fans of most of the people in this movie, I thought Aubrey Plaza turned out her best performance in years.

The verdict: Good

Cost: Monthly Hulu charge of $6.00 (because bundled with Disney+)
Where watched: at home

Consider also watching:

Further sentences:

*Or those just passing by.
**This inverts the usual formula. Rather than a bunch of men and one woman, we’ve got a bunch of women and one man playing a side character.
***Plus, it can give you some compassion practice. What if you hadn’t found the courage to come out to your parents yet? What if you had to juggle that with the usual going-home teenager-esque feelings? What if sibling relationships made everything more complicated? I get that Harper isn’t making good choices, but I feel for her. (Plus, Mackenzie Davis was in Tully, and I will love her forever for that.)

Questions:

  • Were you rooting for, or against?
  • Your worst acting-like-a-teenager-though-a-full-grown-adult-while-visiting-parents moment. Go!

Favorite IMDB trivia item:

In Harper’s old room there’s a poster of Josh Hartnett. The film’s director, Clea DuVall, co-starred with Hartnett in The Faculty (1998).

Other reviews of Happiest Season:

Orange background with a white frame. Text: Have you managed to get a man's permission to take ownership of an adult, human woman yet? —Happiest Season. Read the three sentence movie review. 3SMReviews.com

Queen Latifah and Mo’Nique Dazzle in Bessie

Queen Latifah as Bessie Smith in the film Bessie.

Bessie

Directed by Dee Rees
Written by Dee Rees, Christoper Cleveland, Bettina Gilois

The review:

The always remarkable Queen Latifah gives us a tutorial of blues singer Bessie Smith’s rise to fame and fortune including the usual downturn that comes with biopics of performers. First cast in this film in 1997, Latifah delivers a very physical performance* with a ton of nuance. Mo’Nique also is amazing as Ma Rainey, the singer who teaches Smith the value of performance, and alerts her to the many people who are standing by to cheat blues singers out of their money.

The verdict: Good

Cost: Free. Borrowed the DVD from the Multnomah County Library
Where watched: at home

Consider also watching:

  • Ma Rainy’s Black Bottom
  • Ray
  • Dreamgirls
  • We are the Best (because I can’t not recommend this punk rock girl film every chance I get)

Further sentences:

*Aside from knock-down-drag-out fights, there is also enough enthusiastic sex to remind you that your generation wasn’t the first to invent sex.

Questions:

  • What was your favorite performance scene in Bessie?
  • Do you prefer Mo’nique or Viola Davies as Ma Rainey?

Favorite IMDB trivia item:

Charles S. Dutton, who plays Pa Rainey, made his Broadway debut in 1984 in August Wilson’s play Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.

Other reviews of Bessie:

Orange background with a white frame. Text: I ain't playing second to nobody! —Bessie. Read the three sentence movie review. 3SMReviews.com

Add Arthur Christmas to Your Christmas Movie Collection

The cast of the film Arthur Christmas arranged in a pyramid with the elves on the bottom and Arthur at the top.

Arthur Christmas

Directed by Sarah Smith, Barry Cook
Written by Peter Baynham, Sarah Smith

The review:

Even if this movie didn’t have a scene that takes place in Idaho, it would be worth watching just for the action movie–style depiction of how presents are delivered using the S2, a googleplex of elves, and a doddering Santa, but what makes it a magical Christmas movie is how that operation is contrasted with a simpler one later in the film.* The story of Santa’s second son Arthur, this film has all of the hallmarks of a quality Christmas film: wonder, delight, sorrow, hilarity, and steadfastness. The worriers among us will love how Arthur harnesses that feeling to save Christmas and those of us who hate wrapping presents will marvel at the elf Bryony’s** skill in a time of need.***

The verdict: Recommended

Cost: $2.99 via Redbox On Demand
Where watched: at home

Consider also watching:

Further sentences:

*Look out for Bill Nighy’s voice stylings as Grandsanta.
**Ashley Jensen, with a delightful accent
***Three pieces of tape!

Questions:

  • What’s your favorite animated Christmas film?
  • How do you imagine those presents get delivered?

Favorite IMDB trivia item:

This is the second Christmas film featuring a title song sang by Bill Nighy. He also starred in Love Actually.

Other reviews of Arthur Christmas:

Orange background with a white frame. Text: And may one hundred percent of your Christmases be white. —Arthur Christmas. Read the three sentence movie review. 3SMReviews.com

Wild Nights With Emily | Dickinson Like You’ve Never Seen

Susan Ziegler and Molly Shannon in Wild Nights With Emily

Wild Nights With Emily

Directed by Madeleine Olnek
Written by Madeleine Olnek

The review:

I’m willing to bet that everyone reading this knows about Emily Dickinson and I’m also willing to bet that if you watched this film, you would find what you know about Dickinson to be missing a rather important piece of information.* Molly Shannon takes on the Dickinson role and her portrayal is in a lot of ways the opposite of Cynthia Nixon’s portrayal in A Quiet Passion. You’ll get the flavor of Dickinson’s life and learn a truth long suppressed.

The verdict: Good

Cost: Free via Kanopy, Multnomah County Library’s streaming service
Where watched: at home

Consider also watching:

Further sentences:

*Aside from writing process while alive, the story of the publication of Emily Dickinson’s poems after her death is an interesting one. This movie gives a few insights into what went down, but if you’re interested, you might want to read This Brief Tragedy by John Evandelist Walsh.

Questions:

  • When you think of Emily Dickinson, what do you think of?
  • Once you know the truth suppressed, how do you feel?

Favorite IMDB trivia item:

No trivia, but I give you this excerpt of Q&A from a KQED article:

Although the film is set in the 19th century, you wrote the script with contemporary colloquial expressions. Did you want to avoid the trappings of a period piece?

I’ve been really moved, if that’s the right word, by Drunk History. It’s shown us that historical pieces, when they’re stripped of all the pretension that we associate with them, are really about people in situations dealing with ideas. When I was reading Dickinson’s letters, I was surprised by how contemporary so much of the language was. It shocked me: jokes and things that you would never think someone in the 1800s would say. So I didn’t want the actors’ attention on presenting the period. We’ve seen that in a million films. I was interested in everyone focusing on what each person felt in that situation, the connections with other people and what they were struggling with.

(It’s a good article. Recommended) (I’m also a fan of Drunk History for the same reasons.)

Other reviews of Wild Nights With Emily:

Loser is Uneven, Has Charming Bits

Mena Suvari and Jason Biggs in Loser

Loser

Directed by Amy Heckerling
Written by Amy Heckerling

The review:

This is an excellent chronicle* of not fitting in** and has a killer 2000-era soundtrack.*** While I found the performances of Jason Bigg and Mena Suvari subpar, I think this film does represent how awkward starting college in a new town can be. You might only watch this if you are Heckerling completeist or freshman-year curious, but there are some nice scenes.

The verdict: Skip

(unless motivated by the above categories)

Cost: $3.99 via Google Play
Where watched: at home

Consider watching instead:

Further sentences:

*It’s a lesser chronicle of nuanced characters in that the bad people are very bad and the good people are very good.
**I completely related to the not fitting in plot when I first watched this as I was in the midst of not fitting in at the time.
***”Teenage Dirtbag” starts us off, and it just keeps getting better.

Questions:

  • Would this movie have worked better if the characters had some nuance?
  • What was the most memorable scene?

Favorite IMDB trivia item:

In a February 2017 feature at The Ringer that interviewed Amy Heckerling and wrote about her entire career, Heckerling said that the main reason this film failed is that the studio insisted it be delivered as a PG-13 film even though it was intended by everyone else, from Heckerling to the since-departed studio executives who’d greenlit production, as an R-rated comedy. The studio said that R-rated comedies weren’t welcomed by enough audiences and forced the film to be watered down considerably. Heckerling said the movie failed because audiences could tell it was not doing what it was intended to do

(Yet another opportunity to observe that making good movies is hard!)

Other reviews of Loser:

The links are all dead. Here are some takeaways:

  • Amy Taubin, Village Voice: The most progressive, good-hearted studio film of the summer.
  • Maitlan McDonagh, TV Guide: A sweet-natured and refreshingly uncartoonlike look at the trials of an unworldly Midwestern college boy negotiating his freshman year at NYU
  • Kim Morgan, The Oregonian: The script is atypically bland for Heckerling.
I love self-loathing complaint rock you can dance to. —Loser. Read the three sentence movie review. 3SMReviews.com

Songs My Brothers Taught Me Shows Lives on the Rez

Picture of Taysha Fuller, Irene Bedard and John Reddy in the motion picture Songs My Brothers Taught Me.

Songs My Brothers Taught Me

Directed by Chloé Zhao
Written by Chloé Zhao

The review:

Depictions of Rez Life are rare in film, and it’s saying something that a Chinese director, not an American, was the person who made this film about Johnny and Jashaun Winter and their life on the Pine Ridge Reservation.* This is a Wandering Through sort of film and there’s much to observe, though there is a bit of plot holding everything together.** This film showed depressing and hopeful aspects of a community that seems to exist in America without much notice by the general public.

The verdict: Good

Cost: Free via Kanopy, the library’s free streaming service.
Where watched: at home

Consider also watching:

  • The Rider
  • Smoke Signals
  • I don’t have much knowledge in this area.
  • Here is a list from Indian Country Today

Further sentences:

*I was first introduced to Zhao with the 2018’s excellent The Rider, which also takes place on Pine Ridge.
**As with The Rider, the plot is not super important. Zhao is great at holding your attention.

Questions:

  • What would life on the Rez look like if a billion promises hadn’t been broken?
  • What do you think it would take to have a regular pipeline of Indian-produced films?

Favorite IMDB trivia item:

On a DVD extra, director Chloé Zhao said of the tight budget, light plotting, and neo-realist style casting, “We’re capturing truth—because truth is the only thing we can afford.” The production used mostly local residents as actors, and, according to Zhao, 80% of the story depicted is true to the actual life of the young man playing Johnny Winters (John Reddy). The house that Winters lives in is the house that Reddy lived in, and Reddy, also one of twenty-five children to one father, has many of his real family members playing members of his family. In fact, the man shown delivering the eulogy for Winters’ father is Reddy’s actual father.

Other reviews of Songs My Brothers Taught Me:

Orange background with a white frame. Text: Thing about breaking a horse is, don't run 'em all the time. 'Cause if you're gonna just keep running a horse, you're gonna break its spirit. Anything that runs wild got something bad in 'em. You want to leave some of that in there. 'Cause they need it to survive out here. —Songs My Brothers Taught Me. Read the three sentence movie review. 3SMReviews.com

Coming of Age with Northern Soul

A picture of Elliot James Langridge in the film Northern Soul

Northern Soul

Directed by Elaine Constantine
Written by Elaine Constantine

The review:

Northern Soul is a fine niche* coming-of-age movie from the usual male point of view. I loved the setting and all of the grimy details, especially the intersection of drug use and the dance scene.** While it follows the usual coming of age/drug use trajectories, the enthusiasm for Northern Soul music makes this a fun watch.

The verdict: Good

Cost: free via Hoopla, one of Multnomah County Library’s streaming services.
Where watched: at home

Consider also watching:

Further sentences:

*The niche in question is Northern Soul music which Wikipedia tells me is “a music and dance movement that emerged in Northern England and the English Midlands in the late 1960’s from the British mod scene, based on a particular style of black American soul music…with a heavy beat and fast tempo.” You can read more here, including the information about how the lesser or unknown tracks were the most popular Northern Soul music. A plot point hinges around this.
**At times, it seemed that the big pops of color were the uppers the characters were taking.

Questions:

  • What music was your coming of age music?
  • Would you have been into Northern Soul in the early 1970s? (Or were you?)

Favorite IMDB trivia item:

Was originally only meant to be playing in five screens across the UK but due to high demand it got a blanket release of over 160 screens

Other reviews of Northern Soul:

Orange background with a white frame. Text: Listen, you! This is Northern Soul, not Northern Arsehole! —Northern Soul. Read the three sentence movie review. 3SMReviews.com

Saving Face is a Great Debut

Lynn Chenn looking at Michelle Krusiec in the film Saving Face

Saving Face

Directed by Alice Wu
Written by Alice Wu

The review:

While this movie starts as the classic mom-sets-up-daughter-with-eligible-men story it introduces two wrinkles, one with the daughter and one with the mother. Both Michelle Krusiec (as Will, the daughter) and Joan Chen (as Hwei-Lan Gao, the mother) are fun to watch as they navigate their changing relationships.* Overall, an enjoyable film with a few fun surprises.**

The verdict: Good

Cost: $3.99 via Google Play, but free because I had a credit.
Where watched: at home

Consider also watching:

Further sentences:

*I sometimes check to see if actors in indie films from 10+ years ago are still acting, and all of the cast members I checked up on are still working regularly.
**I also enjoyed seeing one aspect of New York City’s Chinese community circa 2005.

Questions:

  • What was the most surprising moment in the film for you?
  • Did you think that the family’s expectations were reasonable?

Favorite IMDB trivia item:

The picture of Vivian as a child in Dr. Shing’s office is actually a photograph of Joan Chen’s daughter.

Other reviews of Saving Face:

Orange background with a white frame. Text: Younger people. Today they love you. Tomorrow, who knows?--Saving Face. Read the three sentence movie review. 3SMReviews.com

The Lovefest that is 21 Years: Richard Linklater

A depiction of a reel of film with the faces of Matthew McConaughey, Jack Black, Keanu Reeves, Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke and Billy Bob Thornton

21 Years: Richard Linklater

Directed by Michael Dunaway and Tara Wood

The review:

A lovefest about the first segment of Richard Linklater’s career which takes us through the Before movies, but cuts off before Boyhood .* It’s mostly men talking** but a lot of good stories are told and many of them are animated in an amusing style.*** Aside from hearing new things about movies that I love, I felt by the end that I had a greater appreciation of the variety of films Linklater makes.

The verdict: Good

Assuming 1) You are familiar with most of Linklater’s films, and 2) You like them.

Cost: free via Kanopy
Where watched: at home

Consider also watching:

  • If you like Tarantino there’s a 21 Years retrospective of his work by Tara Wood, one of the directors: QT8: The First Eight

Further sentences:

*Which they were still calling the twelve-year project.
**This makes sense given that most of his films focus on the male experience, but I could have used more from Julie Delpy (probably quoted the most) Parker Posey, and Joey Lauren Adams. Or, how about instead of the Duplass brothers, Kevin Smith, and Jason Reiteman (as much as I enjoyed them) interview some female directors to hear how Linklater’s films influenced them.
**Ethan Hawk knows how to tell a story as do Jack Black, Matthew McConaughey, and Billy Bob Thornton.

Questions:

  • What’s your favorite Linklater film?
  • What do you think is his most offbeat offering?

Other reviews of 21 Years: Richard Linklater

Peeples Is a Fine Meet the Parents

Picture of David Alan Grier and Craig Robinson in the film Peeples

Peeples

Directed by Tina Gordon
Written by Tina Gordon

The review:

Meet-the-parents-style films are not my favorite,* but this entry provides ample opportunity to show off Craig Robinson’s many talents.** It’s fun to watch a film with a Black cast where the big problem has to do with “fit” with family rather than standard topics we usually get. And you get to see some fun stuff from David Alan Grier and S. Epatha Merkerson, not to mention appearances by Melvin Van Peebles and Diahann Carroll.

The verdict: Good

Cost: free from the Multnomah County Library
Where watched: at home

Consider also watching:

  • The Wood
  • Aaaaannnd, that’s all I’ve got.
  • This is an area I need to do some viewing
  • According to the previews, every Tyler Perry movie, ever.

Further sentences:

*I always spend the run-time of the movie thinking, “Mr. Rogers thinks you are good enough just the way that you are, so don’t engage.” Or “This person is not worth it. Run away! Run far away!” This film fell into the “run away” category, thus making it hard to root for the ending I knew I was going to get.
**IMDB tells me he gets steady work, for which I’m glad, but I think if we were in an era where the musical theater nature of actors was better able to display, plus if we valued our talented Black performers, he’d have a much bigger career.

Questions:

  • Do you think this happens in real life? I feel like 90% of people aren’t that overt in their dislike. And even their passive/aggressive game is weak.
  • Were you rooting for the couple, or not?

Favorite IMDB trivia item:

The filmmakers found an existing house in Connecticut that they transformed into the Peeples home complete with details of the family’s ancestry including a painting of Ignatius Toussaint Peeples who lived between 1766 and 1844 that can be seen hanging in the front hall of the home.

Also this:
The cast was constantly singing and dancing on set in between takes, so much so that the producers had to lock the piano during filming.

Other reviews of Peeples: