August 6, 2021
Pondering how to start this week’s post when it hit me that sometimes it’s not necessarily a good thing to be a numbers guy. On one hand, it can be good for doing quick calculations in your head to solve a business problem (“air math” as we used to call it in my Corporate Finance life), or if something doesn’t quite look right in reviewing a financial analysis. On the other hand, your brain can quickly process a piece of data that may or may not be completely useless. For instance, this past week I realized that it’s been twenty years since I saw my favorite band for the first time. It also hit me that this Fall would be thirty years since my wife and I met for the first time. That was a nostalgic moment. At least until she said “Wow, that’s a long time.” You see, it wasn’t what she said. It was the way she emphasized the word “looooooooong.” Maybe she meant, “Wow, it’s been so much fun, I can’t believe it went by that fast?” OK, moving right along. The last point was one of feeling really old – this past week marked forty years since MTV debuted. Now, like most people in the country, we didn’t have MTV when it premiered (hence the campaign to tell your cable company “I Want My MTV”), but we got it in the mid-1980s. I still remember being fascinated by the blending of music and television and seeing some of my favorite artists bringing their songs to life on my television screens. Ahh, the good old days. Speaking of music nostalgia, let’s start part three of my mid-year movie report with some documentaries, including a few with a music angle.
The Year So Far In Documentaries
- Woodstock 99: Peace, Love, and Rage – This is a weird one. I have to say, I don’t remember there being a 30th anniversary Woodstock festival, but being in my late 20s in 1999, I wouldn’t be the target demographic for this kind of event. This documentary does a good job of mixing together interviews with the organizers, attendees and performers from the festival, along with a ton of footage. That being said, this festival was an absolute sh*tshow – not just the logistics, but the absolutely disgusting behavior of some of the attendees, mostly the “bros” looking to destroy whatever they could and assault women. Unless you have some nostalgia for this era in music, or a morbid curiosity for some pretty bad behavior, I can’t say I’d recommend this one. Woodstock 99: Peace, Love, and Rage is now streaming on HBO Max.
- The Lost Leonardo – A mystery about a piece of art? That’s right, and it’s very good. It’s the story of a painting that is considered an early Da Vinci, and the filmmakers tell the backstory of how the painting was found, restored, verified (or not?), and exposes the dark underbelly of the art world. I’m not a fan of fine art (it’s just not for me), but I found this very interesting. The Lost Leonardo will be released in theaters on August 13th. It will likely have a limited release, so it might be easier to find on demand in the next few months.
- The Neutral Ground – There has been an abundance of documentaries released in the last few years about the challenging environment we have been living in, but this is one that I recently discovered that I thought was well done. The Neutral Ground is a story about the controversy surrounding the removal of Confederate monuments in New Orleans. The story expands to similar situations in other cities, including the fateful protest in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017. The film features director CJ Hunt (a comedian from The Daily Show) conducting interviews and giving us the facts surrounding these events. Given Hunt’s background, it does have some moments of levity, but the messages are still pretty serious. The Neutral Ground is available for streaming on PBS.org at this website.
- Lily Topples the World – OK, let’s move on from a few serious topics to something a little more light-hearted. After all, who doesn’t love dominos? This documentary is the story of Lily Hevesh, a 20-year old master of designing and toppling complicated domino set pieces. This movie is not only fun for watching the mesmerizing images of the dominos falling, but it’s a beautiful portrayal of someone who finds who she is as a person, as she connects with people with similar interests. Hevesh is impressive not only as the only woman in her field, but in demonstrating that what she is creating are truly works of art. Lily Topples the World will be released later this year.
- Tina and Like a Rolling Stone – We started this section with music and we’ll end with two music documentaries about two very different subjects. While 1993’s What’s Love Got to Do With It was based on the autobiography of Tina Turner, it was hyper-focused on her destructive relationship with her husband and manager Ike Turner. Tina, the new documentary released earlier this year, is a much more balanced story of the legendary musician, focusing more on her performing and her career. The film doesn’t ignore her relationship with Ike, but it’s not at the center of the story. She even discusses how she became tired of always talking about her relationship with him, thinking that once she told the story once, she could be done with it. This is a nice retrospective look at her whole life, not just the nasty parts. Tina is now streaming on HBO Max. Like a Rolling Stone is not about The Rolling Stones, nor is it about Bob Dylan. It’s about Ben Fong-Torres, the long-time writer and editor at Rolling Stone magazine. If you’ve seen Almost Famous, then you saw him as a featured character who hired young William to write a story about the band Stillwater. William’s real-life counterpart, filmmaker Cameron Crowe, is featured throughout the documentary. Fong-Torres interviewed EVERYBODY who was part of the 1960s and 1970s music scene. The documentary features recollections from the subject himself, but also incredible audio and video footage from interviews he conducted over the years, including McCartney, Dylan and Gaye. This is a nice trip down memory lane for those of us who love the heyday of classic rock. Like a Rolling Stone: The Life & Times of Ben Fong-Torres will be released later this year.
I Really Wanted to Like This More – In the Heights
Don’t get me wrong, this is a very good movie. I just had higher expectations and thought it would be better. Based on the Broadway hit from Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda, the musical is the story of residents in the Dominican neighborhood of Washington Heights in New York City. The story is centered on Usnavi (played by Hamilton’s Anthony Ramos) and his long-time crush Vanessa (Melissa Barrera). Interspersed throughout the story, we meet their friends and family, as they are all going through different life experiences as they dream of a better life. There was a lot to like in this movie, particularly the lead performances and some of the songs – the production of 96,000 was amazing, but the film itself felt a little bloated. I think they could have scaled back a few of the supporting characters and some of the numbers to cut back on the 2½ hour runtime. I’m guessing director John Chu (Crazy Rich Asians) wanted to stay faithful to the story in the stage musical. I also watched this one on HBO Max, so that may have taken away from the theatrical experience of a big musical. The box office for In the Heights was deemed disappointing, even by pandemic standards, bringing up the age-old debate if musicals still garner interest from moviegoers. It could have been the HBO Max impact, or the lack of a big name in a starring role (which hit musicals La La Land and The Greatest Showman had), or the marketing approach. One thing I know is that there is one studio thinking through this very carefully – that would be Disney, the studio that has the West Side Story remake (directed by Steven Spielberg) coming to theaters in December. Stay tuned. In the Heights is available to rent on demand through Amazon or iTunes and will be returning to HBO Max later this year.
I Really Wanted to Like This More Part II – Cruella
I had no intention of watching this movie when I first heard about it, thinking it wouldn’t be for me. But it looked so cool, and being a fan of Emma Stone, I decided to check it out. There’s a lot to like about Cruella (putting aside that our “heroine” is a deranged woman who’s known for killing puppies to turn their fur into coats), but this is another film that needed a tighter edit in post-production. Coming in at 2½ hours, this one did not fly by upon viewing – there are parts where it definitely dragged. But let’s talk about the positives. Stone is excellent as the lead character, as is Emma Thompson as her fashion designer boss and foil throughout the movie. The production design of the sets and the costumes are outstanding, emphasizing some of the dark plot points. This is an origin story about Cruella’s time in London in the 1960s and it definitely feels like you’ve been transported to that time. The soundtrack features some excellent needle drops that complemented the storyline, although there were a few too many right on top of each other that left me wanting to catch my breath in between songs. As is the case with most Disney products, there is already talk of a sequel in the works. A recent article I read suggested that Stone and Thompson would love to do a Godfather Part II-style prequel / sequel for the next one, and somehow involve Glenn Close, who starred as Cruella in earlier Disney adaptations. Checking my notes…..The Godfather Part II came in at….200 minutes. Um, Emma and Emma? Please don’t make a 200-minute sequel to Cruella. Thanks a bunch. Cruella is available to stream on Disney+.
Fun Action Movies – Wrath of Man and Nobody
If musicals or Disney flicks aren’t your thing and action is more of your preferred genre, you could do a lot worse than these two films which came out earlier this year. Wrath of Man is from director Guy Ritchie, known for his action and gangster movies, and stars Jason Statham. He plays a mysterious man who takes a job at an armored truck company, and quickly thwarts a robbery. As his co-workers get to know him and start asking more questions about his past, we slowly get to see what he is really about, and understand his true motivations. Ritchie does a nice job of using some flashback / flashforward storytelling devices to make this one more than just a generic action movie. Nobody features Bob Odenkirk (of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul fame) as an everyman who is thrust into a war with Russian gangsters when his family is attacked at home. The action sequences in Nobody are incredible – they have been compared to the John Wick films (I can’t opine – I’ve never seen those) – and I read that Odenkirk did a ton of training to prepare for filming. There are a few good twists in this one that make it come together nicely, and the movie also features a great cameo from Doc Brown himself, the great Christopher Lloyd. Wrath of Man and Nobody are both available to rent on demand through Amazon or iTunes.
Speaking of Fun Movies – See For Me
OK, maybe not fun in a comedic way, but more in a “Holy sh*t, this movie has me on the edge of my seat” fun. There have been countless films about people trapped in a house when people break in to steal something. Sometimes they have to figure out how to escape, or save a child, or stop the perpetrators. What’s different about See For Me is the profile of our heroine, Sophie, an ex-skier house sitting at a remote location. You see, Sophie is blind, and when a team of thieves breaks into the house to steal some valuables, Sophie has to rely on Kelly, an Army veteran who works for a company called See For Me, whose app assists blind people. So, when Sophie needs help navigating around a house when she locks herself out, she utilizes the app (and Kelly) to get back inside. When she needs to defend herself from gun-toting bad guys? Yup, the Army veteran can help there too. I watched this one as part of a recent virtual film festival, knowing nothing about it except the brief synopsis, and I’m glad I did. See For Me is a fun, well-paced thriller that brings some originality to a premise that we’ve seen many times before. See For Me will be released later this year.
For the Horror Fan – Werewolves Within and Fear Street trilogy
If you want to move beyond suspense and go straight to horror, there are plenty of options available. Werewolves Within is a classic “small-town terrorized by a mysterious monster” story, featuring a lot of actors you probably don’t know, but the two leads are very good. Sam Richardson (who you might recognize from Veep) plays a dimwitted forest ranger and Milana Vayntrub (who you will definitely recognize from the AT&T commercials) plays a local postal worker trying to help keep the town’s citizens calm when people start mysteriously dying. It’s part scarefest, part comedy and is pretty effective at keeping you guessing while delivering some quality jump-scares. Werewolves Within is available to rent on demand through Amazon or iTunes. If you really want to relive the glory days of 1980s and 1990s slasher films, then Netflix has offered up three (that’s right, three) movies under the Fear Street banner. They each take place during a different year and are interconnected through the urban legend of an unlucky town that has seen serial killers spring up over the course of several hundred years. The first edition takes place in 1994 and has a Scream vibe to it, as we are introduced to our main characters, survivors of a serial killer’s attacks, desperate to solve the mystery of how to eradicate the town’s cursed history. Part two travels back to 1978 and has an excellent Friday the 13th vibe to it, as we see what happened at a doomed summer camp. The concluding part starts in 1666 where we learn the origins of the original curse, then circles back to 1994 for the concluding act. I found the 1666 portion a little slow, but the rest of the series is very good, especially the excellent music choices that the director made. I have to say that making three movies at once during a pandemic is an amazing achievement for everyone involved in this project. A word of warning – parts of this series are very gory, so if slasher flicks gross you out, you may want to skip these. Fear Street 1994, Fear Street 1978 and Fear Street 1666 are now streaming on Netflix.
A Different Kind of Horror: The Uncomfortable Party – Shiva Baby
Is it possible to want to cover your eyes while watching a comedy-drama? Shiva Baby is here to answer that question in the affirmative. Every once in a while, you stumble upon a completely original film that just hits in all the right spots. Palm Springs was that movie for me last year. No, Shiva Baby is nothing like that film, but it is a very creative comedy-drama about a cringeworthy day that our main character faces, reminding us that sometimes it would have been better off to just spend the day in bed. Danielle (Rachel Sennott, in a star-making performance) is a college student who also has a “ahem” relationship with an older man, that one might refer to as a “sugar daddy.” The relationship works for her, and she is managing to muddle her way through life, dealing with overbearing parents and relatives, constantly asking what she is doing with her life. When Danielle shows up at a shiva at her aunt’s house, she is horrified to discover her ex-girlfriend there. And her sugar daddy. And his wife and baby daughter. What follows is a brilliant turn of anxiety-inducing drama with a score that resembles a horror movie, perfectly capturing the mood of what Danielle is experiencing. It’s still early in the year, and there are a lot of great-looking films on the horizon, but I’d be surprised if this one doesn’t land a place in my top ten movies of the year when it’s all said and done. Shiva Baby is now streaming on HBO Max.
A REALLY Different Kind of Horror – Old
What do you do when you achieve an insane level of recognition and popularity as a filmmaker, delivering an enormous hit movie that receives six Oscar nominations, all before the age of 30? How do you move forward, thinking that you may never achieve anything in your career as great as writing and directing The Sixth Sense? Well, when you’re M. Night Shyamalan, you keep going. You keep writing and directing, continuing to challenge yourself. Yes, you may never have the same level of success again, and maybe that’s ok. But you can still make some very good movies, like Unbreakable and Split, two films that I liked a lot. But you can also make some clunkers, like The Lady in the Water. One disadvantage Shyamalan has had throughout his career is being beholden to the “twist ending.” After the fantastic ending of The Sixth Sense that no one saw coming (thank God we had no social media in 1999), he had similar twists in Unbreakable, Signs, and The Village. So, naturally, every movie thereafter was set with high expectations for the big twist ending. And of course, some work better than others. The ending of Split, which set up his next picture, Glass? Outstanding. The ending of The Happening, starring (wannabe) actor Mark Wahlberg? Pretty bad.
Which brings us to his new movie, Old. The trailer didn’t try to hide what this story, based on a graphic novel called Sandcastle, was about. A family is on a beach and they start to age very rapidly. What? Excuse me? Come again? That’s right – this is one batsh*t crazy plot. I’m not going to go into the “why” of the narrative – but rest assured, it is explained in some detail, even if I didn’t totally get it. Just know that it impacts everybody, even the kids who start growing very quickly from pre-teen to middle age over the course of one day. Shyamalan does a nice job of letting you experience how the characters are aging, particularly the effects of dementia, and deteriorating vision and hearing. He didn’t just have a character say, “I’m losing my vision” – we get to see it happen. I found this a pretty fun experience, even if some of the acting was a little wooden and the dialogue a little silly. I went into this one with the expectations of a horror movie – give me some good jump scares and a few WTF moments, and I don’t care if I’m getting Oscar-caliber performances. So, expectation management is key with respect to deciding to watch Old. You may be wondering if there is a typical “twist” ending. Well, let’s just say I thought the ending was well-executed. Old is now playing in theaters.
Let’s Just Focus on the Movie – Stillwater
Hoo-boy, Matt Damon had himself a week, didn’t he? I’m not going to dive deep into this controversy, but if you missed it – as part of his media tour promoting Stillwater, he told a story about an interaction with his daughter that led to a revelation about his use of some hateful language, eventually leading to a back-tracking apology. As an old high-school friend noted on Facebook, “If you find yourself in a hole, stop digging.” I wonder how the marketing team for his next movie, The Last Duel, will handle the media tour for that one. Oh well, if you want to know more about that story, I’m sure you can find plenty of information about it online. Let’s talk about the film itself.
There’s a lot that I liked about Stillwater, particularly Damon’s performance as a character that is a real departure for him. This is not the Matt Damon of the Bourne series or Ocean’s films. He plays an Oklahoma oil rig worker, who is dealing with his daughter’s imprisonment in France for the murder of her girlfriend. He is fully committed to the role, embodying the look, accent, and mannerisms of someone from the Midwest. He said in recent interviews that he did a lot of research and physical training to get ready for the role, wanting it to be authentic, and it definitely shows. The marketing of Stillwater makes it seem like a father on a hunt to free his daughter (read: Liam Neeson Taken-type movie), but it is nothing like that. This is a “fish out of water” story of a man transplanted from Oklahoma to France, facing the reckoning of his life’s decisions and mistakes, all while trying to do whatever he can to get his daughter out of jail. While he is there, he develops a relationship with a local woman and her daughter, while they help him with his cause. Those parts of the movie were the most effective for me, but the third act takes a pretty wacky turn that I don’t think worked very well, but it didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the movie. So, don’t be fooled by the commercials for this one. This is not an action flick – it’s a character study drama with messages of hope, love, anger, and the importance of family. Some of the messaging (particularly at the end) is a little too “on the nose” about how the country has changed the last few years, but I thought Stillwater was a very effective movie overall. Stillwater is now playing in theaters.
That’s all for this week. I hope you enjoyed this three-part series on the year so far in movies. I’ll be off for the next few weeks, with plans to be back in September. Until then, enjoy the rest of the Summer and thanks for reading. If you’d like to be notified of future posts, you can subscribe here.