Movies

Melt Face Molly Drop said:
The middling audience is due to the average movie watcher needing to be stimulated every 5 minutes (thanks Marvel). No one appreciates a slow burn anymore.

I personally enjoyed it because it was a slow burn and a methodical analysis of how men (still) refuse to deal with their emotions.

I think the disdain for it is because it doesn’t exactly bare itself entirely on the surface like a Brokeback Mountain or There Will Be Blood. It built up as if there could be a multi-character violent conflict resolve, only to be shown an emotional resolve instead. Audiences just don’t tend to be willingly moved by that anymore.
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Exactly. The restraint at the core of the relationships that are depicted is what makes it so haunting.
 
Melt Face Molly Drop said:
The middling audience is due to the average movie watcher needing to be stimulated every 5 minutes (thanks Marvel). No one appreciates a slow burn anymore.

I personally enjoyed it because it was a slow burn and a methodical analysis of how men (still) refuse to deal with their emotions.

I think the disdain for it is because it doesn’t exactly bare itself entirely on the surface like a Brokeback Mountain or There Will Be Blood. It built up as if there could be a multi-character violent conflict resolve, only to be shown an emotional resolve instead. Audiences just don’t tend to be willingly moved by that anymore.
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Also, the most terrifying scene in Power of the Dog is when
Kirsten Dunst's character is essentially coerced to play piano in front of the dinner party, having no real skill or lessons to pull from. I feel like I have this dream once a quarter, where I'm in a band even though I've never played guitar or any instrument, yet I'm on stage and have to play these songs. I fumble horribly but have to somehow finish the show every time. Terrifying.
 
ayayrawn said:
I disagree, I do think we have one foot in the oscar shoo ins of the last 20-30 years but the other is in actually GOOD and surprising stuff. Whether that be in streaming or elsewhere. The Academy is very different now than it was even 5 years ago, and is skewing younger.

Don't count out Licorice Pizza just yet either, the Academy loooooves PTA (he got his 9th, 10th, and 11th nominations today) and I think there's still a very real possibility he wins screenplay.
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Eleven noms, but zero wins so far.

I agree with you, there is good and surprising stuff all across the nominations. But I may be jaded in thinking the Academy has always made overtures towards nominating good and surprising movies, while never committing to actually awarding them. It's weird because it probably sounds like I'm poo-pooing the sort of toney prestige period drama Power of the Dog comes across as, but it's a great movie and a worthy winner.

It's a water glass; some people see a Drive My Car year*, some see a Don't Look Up year**.

* truly I stan Licorice Pizza, but DMC was probably the best film of the year
** never underestimate the Academy's penchant for movies that signal film/art is significant and a force for change (Argo, The Artist, Bridman, to name just a few from the last decade) and a heavyhanded, star-studded climate-change satire is catnip for that impulse
 
Bull Shannon said:
Eleven noms, but zero wins so far.

I agree with you, there is good and surprising stuff all across the nominations. But I may be jaded in thinking the Academy has always made overtures towards nominating good and surprising movies, while never committing to actually awarding them. It's weird because it probably sounds like I'm poo-pooing the sort of toney prestige period drama Power of the Dog comes across as, but it's a great movie and a worthy winner.

It's a water glass; some people see a Drive My Car year*, some see a Don't Look Up year**.

* truly I stan Licorice Pizza, but DMC was probably the best film of the year
** never underestimate the Academy's penchant for movies that signal film/art is significant and a force for change (Argo, The Artist, Bridman, to name just a few from the last decade) and a heavyhanded, star-studded climate-change satire is catnip for that impulse
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The Academy has definitely had some highs and lows. Same institution gave Green Book best picture, and then Parasite a year later. Half the fun of following is wondering which way they'll sway in any given year.
 
Of the Best Picture nominees, I've only seen Don't Look Up, Dune and Nightmare Alley, and I've got to be honest, of those three, I'm going Nightmare Alley 🤷‍♀️ I would really like to see Licorice Pizza tho.
 
Indymisanthrope said:
I'm not staying current on movies like I used to but today is the first time I've heard of CODA or The Lost Daughter at all.
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Lost Daughter is Maggie G's directorial debut and, from what I hear, deserves all the love it's getting. I've been so wrapped up in my move that I have yet to see it.

Also...

An all-encompassing, wonderful conversation about the Oscar noms including the impact of Oscar So White on Spiderman's failure to be nominated, the fact that this is the most aligned with critics the Academy has been since the late 1970's and the fact that the Academy seems determined to nominate the best of craft over mass appeal.

Also, Denus Villeneuve's failure to be nominated for Dune is one of the biggest snubs of my lifetime. The rare instance of grand scope, high art and blockbuster entertainment colliding should have been recognized.

Lots of films I have left to see but so far my favs of the year would be--

1) Dune
2) Licorice Pizza
3) Judas and the Black Messiah
4) Cmon Cmon
5) Don't Look Up
----
6) Belfast
7) Malcom and Marie
8) Red Rocket
9) St. Maud
10) Pig
11) Together Together

Fewer films I absolutely adored than usual, but I look forward to seeing Drive My Car, The Worst Person in the World, King Richard, The Card Counter, The Lost Daughter, The Power of the Dog, Last Night in SoHo and the new Spiderman (among others).
 
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DownIsTheNewUp said:
Lost Daughter is Maggie G's directorial debut and, from what I hear, deserves all the love it's getting. I've been so wrapped up in my move that I have yet to see it.

Also...

An all-encompassing, wonderful conversation about the Oscar noms including the impact of Oscar So White on Spiderman's failure to be nominated, the fact that this is the most aligned with critics the Academy has been since the late 1970's and the fact that the Academy seems determined to nominate the best of craft over mass appeal.

Also, Denus Villeneuve's failure to be nominated for Dune is one of the biggest snubs of my lifetime. The rare instance of grand scope, high art and blockbuster entertainment colliding should have been recognized.

Lots of films I have left to see but so far my favs of the year would be--

1) Dune
2) Licorice Pizza
3) Judas and the Black Messiah
4) Cmon Cmon
5) Don't Look Up
----
6) Belfast
7) Malcom and Marie
8) Red Rocket
9) St. Maud
10) Pig
11) Together Together

Fewer films I absolutely adored than usual, but I look forward to seeing Drive My Car, The Worst Person in the World, King Richard, The Card Counter, The Lost Daughter, The Power of the Dog, Last Night in SoHo and the new Spiderman (among others).
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Great pod. Sean is a movie watching manic. And anytime CR comes in it’s an insta-listen
 
gouis said:
Great pod. Sean is a movie watching manic. And anytime CR comes in it’s an insta-listen
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Yeah, I think he said he watched 200 new movies last year on top of the movies from past years he watches/rewatches.

CR is the best though. Love me a movie draft when he just goes with his heart and picks the weird, good shit
 
gaporter said:
Hail, Caesar! is underappreciated, I think. It's not the Coens' best but it's a must-see if you have a fondness for classic Hollywood.
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I watched this recently and felt it would have stood better as a 6-8 episode mini-series. Very disjointed and there were essentially zero stakes, plus the minimal amount of humor fell flat IMO. The Coens' signature aloofness was not everpresent like in some of their other films. All of which would have benefited from airing it out a bit.
 
I've only watched half of the best picture nominees and out of those, I guess I'd pick King Richard, but I don't want to. Here's hoping I haven't seen my winner yet.

To watch: Belfast, CODA, Drive My Car, Licorice Pizza, West Side Story
 
Melt Face Molly Drop said:
I watched this recently and felt it would have stood better as a 6-8 episode mini-series. Very disjointed and there were essentially zero stakes, plus the minimal amount of humor fell flat IMO. The Coens' signature aloofness was not everpresent like in some of their other films. All of which would have benefited from airing it out a bit.
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I get this, and I think this is how I felt the first time I saw it. That said, the Coens have made several movies where the plot itself is basically the joke. They keep adding more details and characters into the mix and making everything seem like a big deal and then at the end you realize absolutely nothing mattered. In the context of HC, I think the anticlimax works because it ties into the portrayal of old Hollywood as this well-oiled machine that just keeps running and running despite all the behind-the-scenes drama.
 
gaporter said:
I get this, and I think this is how I felt the first time I saw it. That said, the Coens have made several movies where the plot itself is basically the joke. They keep adding more details and characters into the mix and making everything seem like a big deal and then at the end you realize absolutely nothing mattered. In the context of HC, I think the anticlimax works because it ties into the portrayal of old Hollywood as this well-oiled machine that just keeps running and running despite all the behind-the-scenes drama.
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Makes sense, and I love a good "nothing matters" Coen adventure. Burn After Reading is probably in my top 3, and that one is the ultimate "F it, let's move on" plot (JK Simmons, what a legend). I did also read somewhere that this is the Coen's love letter to Hollywood so to speak, and your enjoyment of the film depends on how much you care about Hollywood history.
 
gaporter said:
I get this, and I think this is how I felt the first time I saw it. That said, the Coens have made several movies where the plot itself is basically the joke. They keep adding more details and characters into the mix and making everything seem like a big deal and then at the end you realize absolutely nothing mattered. In the context of HC, I think the anticlimax works because it ties into the portrayal of old Hollywood as this well-oiled machine that just keeps running and running despite all the behind-the-scenes drama.
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Watching Josh Brolin slap the shit out of a very game George Clooney is worth the price of admission.
 
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