
weekend watchlist: rethinking monsters (of the sea) and munchkins (aka kids)
Plus teenaged gymnasts, confused cops, and more. (First published July 29th, 2022, on Substack and Patreon.)
Plus teenaged gymnasts, confused cops, and more. (First published July 29th, 2022, on Substack and Patreon.)
Apocalyptically sorta-satirical, bone-deep terrifying slap in the face that humanity has properly earned. Formidable, intense… and funny, in a very dry way that is nevertheless difficult to laugh at.
Filmmaker Amy Seimetz evokes a taut, cursed mundanity, an allegorical contemplation of culture at its most basic level: when it fails and everyone is hopeless. Accidentally hits our pandemic mood.
GoodFellas, except they’re gals. A cinematic bonbon of delinquent deliciousness that easily wraps us up in charmed complicity. And the exquisite lack of a male gaze means it’s never salacious.
It’s the end of the world. Finally, a legitimate reason for a man to experience emotion. We’ve seen this all before… except not quite so ridiculous.
“I need a man, not a little boy with a teddy bear.” This is a shocking thing to hear in a piece of American pop culture in the early 21st century…
The heightened emotions and outrageous urgency of rom-coms are actually appropriate here. All the absurdities that define the genre — not accidentally but deliberately — suddenly work in its favor.
I’m gonna go out on a limb and predict that this one will be less fun than Seeking a Friend for the End of the World…
It’s the end-of-the-world disaster movie as a romantic comedy. Already it’s funnier than Melancholia…