November 24, 2023
It’s finally over. After six months, the most disruptive labor conflict in Hollywood has come to an end, with the settlement of the actors’ strike. This resolution, coupled with the writers coming to terms with the studios about a month earlier, sets the stage for television and movie productions to get back on track. The impact of these labor disputes will not be known for years, but it’s safe to say that both unions made progress in getting much-needed improvements to compensation structures, as well as protections from the ever-changing marketplace. Remember that these disputes were never about the A-list actors or writers. It was about setting the bar for the minimum amounts individuals would be paid for their work, creating a pathway for people to make a reasonable living while trying to advance their career.
As we have seen this period of disruption play out, I can say with certainty that I have very little sympathy for the studios. After making some pretty stupid business decisions over the last ten years, they have no legitimate reason to complain about their financial situation. The only streaming business making money is Netflix and that is primarily because they have the first-mover advantage, the largest subscriber base, no ties to a legacy television business in steep decline, they don’t care about theaters (which actually pisses me off), and their product has become ubiquitous. Much like people refer to all facial tissue as “Kleenex,” it’s fairly common for people to think of Netflix like any other cable channel, if they still have cable.
Now, I think most of what Netflix produces is garbage, unless they finance a talented filmmaker (Fincher, Scorsese, Baumbach to name a few) or acquire a foreign picture, but they have the biggest advantage. The other studios spent the last decade convinced that they just needed to build a platform, create a bunch of content, and people would sign up. But that has proven to be insanely expensive and while consumers showed up to check it out, they aren’t loyal. Most people are not willing to pay for 5—10 different streaming services because the market has become fragmented. They just want something to watch, not access to everything.
What happens next? Well, productions will ramp up as quickly as possible, but coordinating the schedules of everyone involved in making a television show or movie will be a logistical nightmare. My guess is that 2024 will not be as bountiful as 2023 in terms of television shows and movies available, but it won’t be as dire as 2021 was following the COVID production shutdowns. But that’s ok, because we have a jam-packed finish to an outstanding movie year ahead of us, leading up to an awards race that will be here before you know it. Let’s jump in with some highlights from this month, as well as a preview of some coming attractions to put on your watch list.
This Month’s Highlights
Happy Holidays – Thanksgiving
If you were sad that the scary movie season ended when the calendar flipped to November, I have some good news for you. I just saw an excellent slasher film that you will enjoy if you like this genre. First, a little background on how this project came to be. In 2007, directors Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez teamed up to make Grindhouse, a throwback movie event where each director contributed a feature film, sprinkled in with fake commercials and fake movie trailers. One of those previews was Thanksgiving, directed by Eli Roth, about a killer celebrating Turkey Day by slashing his way through a Massachusetts town. Fast forward to 2023 and Roth has expanded that concept into a feature film that is one of the best horror movies of the year.
As we join our characters in Plymouth, Massachusetts, they are settling down for a Thanksgiving dinner while the local superstore gets ready for an early Black Friday sale event. When the customers riot, there are several deaths, many more injuries, and the town is left traumatized. One year later, a mysterious serial killer decides to exact revenge on those that he felt were responsible for the death and destruction. High on his list are a group of high-school students, along with the local authorities trying to stop him. Thanksgiving has a little bit of a Scream vibe to it, along with some Halloween-type suspense. I’m not saying it’s as great as those horror classics, but I was reminded of each while enjoying the gnarly kills, subtle humor, and constant guessing of the killer’s identity. Now, I will warn you – there are some disgusting kills in Thanksgiving that some people will find over-the-top, but if you’re the type of person who can get a laugh out of those sequences (read: a sicko like me), then it’s worth your time as one last scary movie for 2023. Thanksgiving is now playing in theaters.
An Alternate Take – Priscilla
Looking for something less intense? Ok, here is another strong recommendation. Writer-director Sofia Coppola adapted the memoir of Priscilla Presley about her time with Elvis into what I think is her best film since Lost in Translation. Unlike Baz Luhrman’s excessive Elvis from 2022, Coppola’s picture is an understated look at a young woman who falls in love and is thrown into a foreign world of loneliness. Cailee Spaeny is outstanding in her portrayal of Priscilla from the ages of 14 through 25 during the time of her relationship with Elvis. Yes, she was that young when she met the 24 year-old superstar while he was stationed in Germany during his Army stint. It was a little icky to think about the age difference during the first portion of the film, but it didn’t distract me too much from the story presented by Coppola.
Playing opposite Spaeny is Jacob Elordi (Euphoria) as the King of Rock ‘n Roll in an equally impressive performance. There have been so many depictions of Elvis on screen that it can easily go wrong (and devolve into a caricature), but this is where the genius of Coppola comes in. Yes, Elordi uses an accent and he displays some mannerisms that we associate with Elvis, but he is subtle and it is not at all distracting. We don’t see him perform on stage and there are no showy musical sequences or scenes of him acting on the sets of his movies. Those aspects of his life are referenced, but in a way to showcase the impact it had on his relationship with his wife. This isn’t a story about a superstar. It’s about a woman who had one of the strangest experiences over a ten year period than almost anyone who has ever lived. I was surprised with how the film ended (with a “chef’s kiss” needle drop, by the way) and then it hit me over the head – this is Priscilla’s story, not Elvis’s. Priscilla is now playing in theaters.
An Inspirational Drama Courting Oscar Voters – Nyad
Usually I can smell an “Oscar-bait” movie a mile away and if you are a regular movie watcher, then you probably can too. Sometimes it causes my antenna to go up, thinking it will be a schmaltzy film that doesn’t work for me (Kenneth Branagh’s Belfast comes to mind – I just didn’t care for it.) When I read the logline for Nyad, it was pretty easy to see that this could have a whiff of Oscar-bait. After watching the film, I can confirm that it fits that mold, but you know what? This is a very good movie that I liked a lot.
Annette Bening portrays Diana Nyad, a competitive swimmer who became the first person to swim from Cuba to the Florida Keys at the age of 64 in 2013. Now, Nyad’s achievements in the competitive swimming world have come under scrutiny over the years, with more publicity in the last few months leading up to this film’s release. I didn’t get too hung up on those details, because I accept the fact that this is a dramatization, not a documentary. If the “historical accuracy” of the movie bothers you, there are plenty of articles to find online after you watch the picture.
Bening delivers a strong performance as Nyad, playing an unlikeable individual who relies on so many people to help her, but doesn’t seem to sufficiently appreciate their sacrifices. At the top of that list is her best friend and coach, played by Jodie Foster, who I think was the best part of the movie. As I covered in this piece two years ago, Foster is excellent in just about everything she does and anytime she is in a film, I’m happy to watch her perform. Speaking of which, she is headlining the fourth season of True Detective, set to premiere in January on HBO. Nyad is a nice feel-good sports movie, with big stars and great filmmaking (from directors Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, who won the Best Documentary Oscar for 2018’s Free Solo). A great choice for a Friday night at home with a big bowl of popcorn. Nyad is now streaming on Netflix.
Coming Attractions
Before I cover two fantastic movies I was fortunate to catch at the Philadelphia Film Festival, here are some other pictures I have on my radar for December.
May December – Director Todd Haynes (Carol, Dark Waters) is back with two Oscar-winners leading the cast in a drama with a unique storyline. Julianne Moore plays a woman with a scandalous past after she married a much younger man. Natalie Portman plays an actress who comes to spend time with Moore’s character in preparation for a movie about the scandal. The story is loosely based on the Mary Kay Letourneau case and is receiving very strong reviews from recent festival screenings, especially for the two lead actresses’ performances. May December premieres on Netflix on December 1st.
Anyone But You – Much has been written about the lack of solid romantic comedies in recent years, partly because it’s tough to write a funny movie for fear of offending people, and partly because our younger stars haven’t experimented much with the genre. At the Philadelphia Film Festival, I saw Foe, a new science-fiction drama with Saoirse Ronan and Paul Mescal, two of our best young actors. They were great, but the film was average at best. My reaction when it was over? Put these two in a happy movie together! Make them opposing lawyers who are in love with each other in a romantic comedy, not in a depressing story about the end of the world. That’s neither here nor there. Anyone But You takes a shot at the romantic comedy genre with Glenn Powell (Top Gun: Maverick) and Sydney Sweeney (Euphoria) playing two people who hate each other, but pretend to be a couple at a destination wedding. Both actors are very likable and the recent trailer looks funny, so fingers crossed this is a good one. Anyone But You premieres in theaters on December 22nd.
Wonka – Could be a cult classic. Could be terrible. Honestly, this one is a coin flip. You wouldn’t know it from the trailers, but this Willy Wonka prequel story is actually a musical. Well, I’m not sure how much singing and dancing is in this film, but I’ve read that there is plenty to go around. Timothée Chalamet stars in the lead role, and I give him credit for trying something different, even if it’s a bomb. Also, Hugh Grant plays an Oompa-Loompa? C’mon, you have to see it for that reason, right? One more reason – Wonka is directed by Paul King, the man behind the very successful Paddington movies, so he has a track record with creating hits. Wonka premieres in theaters on December 15th.
The Color Purple – You may be asking yourself if we need a remake of the 1985 Steven Spielberg-directed adaptation of the successful novel. Actually, this is an adaptation of the successful Broadway musical that was also based on the novel. I recently watched Spielberg’s film (part of my mission to watch every movie ever nominated for Best Picture – true sicko behavior, I know) and it was decent, but not necessarily for me. The new iteration of the film has received some positive reviews, especially for the lead performances, and Oscar prognosticators have this one on the short list for potential Best Picture contenders. The Color Purple premieres in theaters on Christmas Day.
The Boys In the Boat – As much as I love George Clooney as an actor, his resume as a director has left something to be desired. Good Night, and Good Luck was excellent and The Ides of March was very good, but his last few efforts (The Monuments Men, Suburbicon, The Midnight Sky, and The Tender Bar), have been largely forgettable. So, I go into his next film with some trepidation. The Boys in the Boat tells the story of the United States rowing team that competed in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. I have heard great things about the book that the film is based on, but haven’t had a chance to read it yet. I don’t think this one will be on Oscar voters’ lists, but it could be a good crowd-pleasing movie for the holidays. The Boys in the Boat premieres in theaters on Christmas Day.
Leave the World Behind – I don’t know a lot about the plot of this movie and from what little I’ve read, I think that’s a good thing. Directed by Sam Esmail (creator and showrunner of Mr. Robot), the film is about a family vacationing on Long Island when a blackout occurs and indicates that something more serious might be happening. The movie is based on a best-selling novel and I am guessing that the story has some twists and turns that might be best experienced without knowing too much. In fact, I haven’t even watched the trailer. The premise, as well as a cast that includes Julia Roberts, Mahershala Ali, and Ethan Hawke was enough for me to add it to my list. Leave the World Behind premieres on Netflix on December 8th.
Poor Things – A word of warning in advance if you decide to see what will likely be an Oscar darling: from what I’ve read, this movie is really f*cking weird, and will likely turn off some viewers. Director Yorgos Lanthimos is known for his offbeat films that put characters in absurd situations to tell an allegorical story. I thought 2015’s The Lobster was very clever (despite an insane premise), 2017’s The Killing of a Sacred Deer was excellent (primarily due to a star-making performance from Barry Keoghan), and 2019’s The Favourite (best-known for delivering Olivia Colman her Best Actress Oscar) was too strange – admittedly, I plan to revisit it to see if it went over my head the first time.
Lanthimos’s newest picture, Poor Things, won the top prize at the Venice International Film Festival, and anointed Emma Stone as the favorite to win her second Best Actress Oscar. She plays a woman who was resurrected (a la Frankenstein) following her suicide, and decides to make the most of her second chance at life, especially the fun parts (like debauchery and sexual liberation). Stone’s performance has been described as bold and fearless, with the film described as outrageous and hilarious. Stone is one of my favorite actresses working today (and is excellent in the new cringy television series The Curse), so I will see everything she appears in. Mark Ruffalo and Willem Dafoe are also receiving strong reviews for their supporting performances. If you decide to venture out in the deep end to see an off-beat story (that you may love or hate), Poor Things premieres in theaters on December 8th.
The Iron Claw – A movie about professional wrestling? Hear me out. The Iron Claw is about the Von Erich family, who rose to prominence during the 1980s, when professional wrestling experienced an explosion in popularity. It was never for me, but this story sounds compelling, the trailer looks fantastic, and early reviews have been very strong. The film focuses on the Von Erich brothers, as well as their domineering father who pushed them to their limits. The deep cast is led by Zac Efron and Jeremy Allen White (currently crushing it on The Bear), and the father is played by Holt McCallany, who was outstanding on David Fincher’s Netflix series Mindhunter. This film could be a dark horse Oscar contender – maybe not for Best Picture, but maybe a supporting nod for White? Yes, Chef! If you know, you know. The Iron Claw premieres in theaters on December 22nd.
Ferrari – Director Michael Mann is back with his first movie in eight years, and I’m hoping for a return to form, as I wasn’t a big fan of most of his recent films. His newest picture is led by Adam Driver as Enzo Ferrari, the man who founded the auto company that bears his name. Ferrari focuses on both the lead character’s personal and professional life, and features Penelope Cruz as his wife. The film received positive reviews following its recent festival run, especially for Cruz’s performance and the action-packed driving sequences, so I suspect it will be a great one to catch on the big screen. Ferrari premieres in theaters on Christmas Day.
A Fantastic Satire – American Fiction
Last month, I shared a few thoughts on my experience at the Philadelphia Film Festival. If you missed that post, you can read it here. PSA: One of those highlights was the new Nicolas Cage movie, Dream Scenario, which is now in theaters. The opening night of the festival showcased a wonderful new film from writer-director Cord Jefferson, who was a big contributor to the television series The Good Place. After the screening, he participated in a Q&A session and it’s clear he has a bright future as a writer and director ahead of him. American Fiction is Jefferson’s first feature film and is a wonderful satire of why people achieve notoriety and success in our current social-media dominated world that is more preoccupied with appearances and clout, than substance and meaning.
Jeffrey Wright plays a college professor, struggling to write his next novel. When he sees another author achieve success with an absurd story that relies on cliches of Black people, he decides to come up with his own ridiculous story, under a pseudonym with a stereotypical criminal background. His story resonates with publishers and critics who laud him for telling the plight of the Black criminal, all while playing into their “white guilt.” As you can probably tell, this is a story that is rife with racial commentary and Jefferson’s script and Wright’s performance are 100% perfect for the story being told.
It is almost impossible to do satire well (look up my review of Don’t Look Up if you don’t believe me) and American Fiction is a very funny (sometimes cringeworthy) addition to the satire genre. The film also features storylines with Wright’s character struggling with his mother’s deteriorating health, his complicated relationship with his brother (Sterling K. Brown, in an excellent against-type performance), and a romantic interest he develops with a neighbor. American Fiction won the People’s Choice Award at the Toronto International Film Festival, usually the pathway to a Best Picture Oscar nomination. I highly recommend this one if you like smart comedies with a touch of heart. American Fiction premieres in theaters on December 15th.
Simply Brilliant – Maestro
As much as I bitch about Netflix, I’m glad that they stepped up to finance Bradley Cooper’s magnificent portrait of conductor Leonard Bernstein. You may be wondering why this film sounds familiar and that’s probably because you saw a ridiculous article a few months ago criticizing Cooper for wearing a prosthetic nose in the movie after a photo from the film appeared online. If that gets more people interested to see this movie, I guess the saying “There’s no such thing as bad publicity” is true. I just want Cooper to be recognized for his talents, because he is now two for two as a director and star, following his 2018 directorial debut, A Star is Born. I still can’t believe he lost the Best Actor Oscar to Rami Freaking Malek. Oh well.
In Maestro, we see Bernstein’s rise to success beginning with his ascension to conductor of the New York Philharmonic at the age of 25, his success on Broadway, and even his later years as a teacher. Normally I am not a big fan of biopics as I find them too formulaic, with the typical paint-by-numbers approach to storytelling. But Maestro is more than a biopic of Bernstein – it is actually the story of his marriage to actress Felicia Montealegre, portrayed by Carey Mulligan. And it’s worth noting that they had a complicated, and sometimes tumultuous, marriage, primarily due to Bernstein’s affairs with other women and men. It’s safe to say that he lived a complicated life, and his wife bore the brunt of his bad behavior.
While I wouldn’t consider this a “happy” movie, Maestro is a brilliant one. Mulligan and Cooper are amazing in their portraits of the couple, and will likely receive Oscar nominations for their performances. Cooper may also receive a nod for directing the film and one for producing if Maestro is nominated for Best Picture, which is likely. His performance in front of the camera demonstrated that he was able to immerse himself into the role in a way that you sometimes forget you are watching an actor. As impressive as his acting was, the way he directed the film was just as extraordinary, complementing the tender sequences of the couple, with scenes of Bernstein showcasing his mastery of conducting an orchestra. One scene in particular will make you feel like your hair’s on fire. My best advice if you fire this one up at home – play it loud. Maestro will have a limited theatrical run beginning December 8th and will premiere on Netflix on December 20th.
That’s all for this month’s report. I’ll be back next month with a two part look at one of film history’s most iconic movie directors – the great Martin Scorsese. Thanks for reading and if you’d like to be notified of future posts, you can subscribe below.