Some drive-by comments about movies I've recently seen:
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
There was this SNL sketch a couple weeks back where a Netflix executive would literally throw piles of cash at any content creator with an idea, no matter how crazy or stupid. This was what I was reminded of while watching this film -- the movie is a collection of shorts within a genre unloved by modern audiences and some of the shorts are extremely cruel and dark, and the biggest stars in the film had the least amount of lines to boot. I was giddy that the Coens was able to find someone to fund a project like this. This is one of my faves of the year. The first two stories seem to be the ones that have received the most attention as they're the ones that will elicit some belly laughs but it's the 3rd, 4th and 5th stories that have stuck with me many days after seeing the movie.
Bohemian Rhapsody
I had heard alot about the apocryphal material prior to seeing the movie plus I generally dislike the preordained narrative structure of biopics so I was surprised that I found myself entertained by this movie. It was well-paced, direction was punchy (pretty much shot like a music video), and I was impressed by the seamless visual effects. I admit there were some head-shaking moments for me, especially after the fourth or fifth montage within the first 45 minutes of the movie, but I understood this movie was not made for serious Queen fans or cinephiles like myself. After the movie, I witnessed my wife pulling out my Queen CDs and reading the liner notes and she never shows any interest in my music collection. So the movie accomplished its goal.
Creed II
Pretty much suffers from the same problem as every other Rocky sequel -- it's much more interesting to watch a ne'er do well persevere to make something of himself in the boxing ring than it is to see someone at the top knocked off his perch. Also, the way these sequels/remakes depict big championship, big money fights do not ring nearly as true as the way small-time bouts are depicted. My guess is that, for whatever reason, the topics of money, purse bids, and promoters are never represented realistically in boxing movies about big championship bouts.
Leave No Trace
I was pretty much devastated by the end of this movie, mostly because I have a daughter and the thought of failing her as a parent made me a wreck. There have been comparisons made between Leave No Trace and Captain Fantastic but this is the much better movie. Captain Fantastic made living off the grid look like some kind of fantasy existence but this movie shows how hard life would be, especially if you're a teenage girl in the throes of puberty. I thought Ben Foster was exceptional as the father and former Afghanistan/Iraq war vet with untreated PTSD who is too psychically injured to give his daughter what she needs even though it's clear he loves her dearly. I hope he gets a nomination. Granik should also get a nom for screenplay and direction.
Widows
I found Widows to be kind of like a Frankenmovie with lots of disparate parts welded together -- specifically, it reminded me of one of John Sayles' sprawling, socially and politically-aware films (like City of Hope or Sunshine State) with a heist thriller bolted onto it. The narrative is overstuffed but it still worked for me. I think part of it was because my wife and I saw it in a nearly full movie theatre and there were audible gasps when the big twist was revealed -- plus the dude behind me exclaimed "what the f***!". It's always more fun watching a movie when the audience is fully committed to the ride.
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