GAME NIGHT
Well then, that was quite a pleasant surprise. Game Night is easily one of the most original, clever and downright hilarious comedies I’ve seen in years. Within the first ten minutes, it has more inspired filmmaking chops that most other comedies of the past 15 years. The cast is great (Rachel McAdams and Jesse Plemons are the standouts), it never outstays it’s welcome, the jokes are mostly bulls-eyes and Cliff Martinez delivers a pulse-pounding score that juxtaposes tension on top of sheer lunacy. So, yeah, you bet I had a blast with this! I can’t wait to see what the guys behind this do with that Flash movie.
[RATING: 4 Corvette Stingrays out of 5]
CALL ME BY YOUR NAME
You ever have one of those movies that you think is good yet it just isn’t for you? That’s basically my experience with Luca Guadagnino’s Call Me By Your Name. It’s a handsome looking production with good performances, interesting writing, excellent music and lush cinematography that creates a laid-back atmosphere that’s both welcoming and kind of maddening in how meandering it can be. It’s definitely not the most overrated Best Picture nominee this year, I’ll give it that. Well, one of the Sufjan Stevens songs is quite nice (the other one’s just....ehhhhhhhhh) and Michael Stuhlbarg’s speech at the end is quite thought provoking. Again, this movie really isn’t for me; but, I completely understand why others are enraptured by it.
[RATING: 3 Awkward Armie Hammer Dance Moves out of 5]
WHIPLASH
Egos clash like the cymbals on the protagonist’s drum set. Simmons deserved the Oscar he got for this and Teller shows that he may one day earn one himself. The way pursuing greatness completely and utterly takes hold of consumes both men is as maddening as it is compelling. Damian Chazelle pulls it off like a magic trick and, for lack of a better word, makes the whole production sing like crazy. After watching this and La La Land, I’m tempted to say he’ll end up having a place alongside gentlemen like Alan Parker when all is said and done. Whiplash is a breathless accomplishment whose sound is as bold as its vision.
[RATING: 4.5 Blood-covered Drumsticks out of 5]
MUTE
Did I watch something completely different from the flick people are currently trashing? Because, quite frankly, this is not a bad movie. At least, it’s nowhere near the unwatchable disaster that I’ve been hearing it is. Mute is pretty well directed, Clint Mansell does a nice job on the music, it has a fairly distinct visual style for the cyberpunk genre, and the acting’s rather solid (Paul Rudd and his amazing mustache are the MVPs). Granted, it does feel a bit overlong and, at times, there are moments where it feels there are two different movies at play here. Regardless, I thoroughly enjoyed this picture and I’d love to see Duncan Jones make a truly great film again.
[RATING: 3.5 Creepy Mustached Paul Rudds out of 5]
LOST RIVER
Lost River feels like a cryptic experiment more than a fully fleshed out narrative (albeit an interesting one). For someone with pretty much no experience behind the camera, Ryan Gosling assures himself as quite a decent director (even if his influences are a bit too obvious at times). Nic Refn, Andrei Tarkovsky, Terence Malick and David Lynch are the first ones that come to mind; yet, there are plenty of others I’m sure. Some of the acting choices don’t really gel, which is weird seeing how much talent he scored for this little picture. Admittingly, it does end up feeling a bit too ponderous and hollow in spots; but, it’s striking cinematography, production value and music (that Love Theme is a wonderfully abstract and hypnotic composition that almost justifies this film’s existence in my book). Not exactly a great or
possibly even good film; but, it’s an interesting journey nevertheless.
[RATING: 3 Booming Synthwave Soundtracks out of 5]
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