This is the thread where we discuss matters pertaining to the detrius that accompanies the "End of the Year in Cinema" -- 2022

I haven't watched it yet but all signs point to All Quiet being the very prestige TV version of the material

It's also inescapable that in 1930 the impact of those shells only had a decade-plus to reverberate.

I'd like to think there's a middle ground between the hyperactive, visually maximalist comic-book version and the earnest, dull '90s Oscar bait version of EEAAO. Thinking about the sensibilities of filmmakers like Mike Leigh or Nicole Holofcener, who obviously wouldn't be the right fit for telling the story of this particular family, but who excel at portrayals of families and relationships that are messy and humanistic and leavened by humor. IDK.

But whatever. I didn't actually hate EEAAO, I actually thought a lot of it was pretty fun. I just didn't connect with it on more than a superficial level, and so all of the awards attention makes me a bit grumpy.

I'm glad EEAAO got made, attracted this cast, and was the right sort of movie to draw people into theaters (again and again). It earned its good will. But count me among those exhausted by the 50-minute mark.

I think the problem for me is that something like the buttplug fight is also, just, dull. It might prompt an easy laugh at first, but it isn't interesting or fun to think about later on. Most of the visual gags and action bits in the movie felt like that to me.

The core idea of a family multiverse movie is not the problem, but the flipping between universes starts to feel really excessive and unconstrained at a certain point. To me it would be more satisfying if the travel between universes felt more genuinely clever and controlled (which it is for much of the first half).

This was the rest of my FB comment about that point -- obviously it won't be for everyone, but here's how I felt it:

But the seemingly exhausting overload of all the everything else is something that resonates with me in particular -- obviously I'm not saying I suddenly equate myself with these core characters on a deep personal level, I do not! Their experiences aren't mine. But the quicksilver nature of accumulated cultural imagery and flights of fancy, the what ifs and the surrealisms, how we shape and process it all internally as it all accelerates with time, these have shaped me now for maybe my whole life in a default, and I suspect that's the case for a lot of us one way or another. Watching it was like riding the best rollercoaster ever, the happiest and craziest ride, and with a hell of an emotional undertow at the heart of it all. It wasn't exhausting, it was thrilling, it was like a peek into how the mind works, and it felt like a relief to actually see that being engaged and illustrated, like we don't experience something as one story but multiple ones, and how the serious moments in life can have strange images crowd into our heads unbidden, as much as the silly ones do.

I like how chaotic it is, how this very complex plot is almost left in the background, using ridiculously high-concept fantasy ideas to explore the human condition is an underexploited trope if anything IMO.

Now yes, the buttplug fight, and the hot dog fingers universe and especially the chef with a racoon under his hat were weak parts for sure, but I can accept all as "stuff for other viewers" which is quickly moved on from - I also generally have no time for action movies, especially Marvel superhero movies, but I didn't see much of that at all - it was more like if Stephen Chow made a superhero movie (which would obviously be 1000x better than anything from the MCU) But so much of the self-discovery required this extreme perspective, and some of the fantastic conceits (like when they are rocks) are genuinely brilliant.

I would like a film about this family made by a Chinese Mike Leigh, I might even like it more than EEAAO, but it would be a fundamentally different film.

I'm surprised I haven't seen more discussion of Scott Pilgrim in re EEAAO, since it seems like an obvious precursor in using superhero/fantasy tropes to tell a story about normal people's emotional lives.

Also very well put Ned, great post(s)

But count me among those exhausted by the 50-minute mark.

Too restless by then!

yeah, I tried watching EEAAO on a plane, which was probably not the ideal setting, but I also had to tap out after about an hour. I did feel like there was something to the characters and the story but overall just found it too overwhelming and silly

i found the 2nd half particularly excruciating. it felt like the epic Marvel version of every bad improv show: "ok now suggest an item for us to fight with. BUTT plugs?! haha oh man, this audience tonight is crazy, but ok, you asked for it!!" call me a fun-hater if you must, i dont need it to be some boring Sundance drama, but 2h20m of LOL Random Epic Zombie Bacon: The Movie was... not for me

butt plugs was from the first half, also fuck off

sorry CaAL. ive done a lot of talking, now its time to do some listening and make room for healing, i hope we can all grow from this experience of me forgetting which part of the movie had the butt plugs

There's a segment of Film Twitter that's so irony-poisoned it's stifling (I know this is not exclusive to Film Twitter).

― Chris L, Wednesday, January 25, 2023 6:31 AM (five hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

it's the worst aspect of film twitter, so much of it comes off as dead-eyed sociopath anti-discourse

very very not exclusive to film twitter obv

sorry to be clear the "fuck off" was for "Random Epic Zombie Bacon: The Movie" - the "I hate the second half of this film because (something from the first half)" was incidental.

oh cool

xxp Guessing part of the reason is that it's very hard to stand out for film opinions/analysis

Watching WOMEN TALKING, the film allegory of the feminist movement, I was struck at how in the film, as in real life, no women of color were included. The film stated it was a true story in “the female imagination”. Even in the feminist utopia, women of color aren’t considered.

— Wendell Pierce (@WendellPierce) January 24, 2023

Says a guy who not long ago was charged with assaulting a woman for talking.

https://variety.com/2023/awards/news/razzies-apologize-age-limit-ryan-kiera-armstrong-1235502000/

Sometimes, you do things without thinking, Then you are called out for it. Then you get it. It’s why the Razzies were created in the first place.

The recent valid criticism of the choice of 11 year old Armstrong as a nominee for one of our awards brought our attention to how insensitive we’ve been in this instance. As a result, we have removed Armstrong’s name from the Final Ballot that our members will cast next month. We also believe a public apology is owed Ms. Armstrong, and wish to say we regret any hurt she experienced as a result of our choices.

Having learned from this lesson, we would also like to announce that, from this point forward, we are adopting a Voting Guideline precluding any performer or film-maker under 18 years of age from being considered for our awards.

We have never intended to bury anyone’s career. It is why our Redeemer Award was created. We all make mistakes, very much us included.

Since our motto is “Own Your Bad,” we realize that we ourselves must also live up to it.

Sincerely,
John Wilson, The Razzie Awards

https://variety.com/2023/awards/awards/andrea-riseborough-to-leslie-oscars-academy-review-1235504914/

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences confirmed Friday that it is “conducting a review of campaign procedures” in the wake of Andrea Riseborough’s surprise Oscar nomination for the small indie film “To Leslie.”

The Academy released a statement Friday regarding the campaign, though it didn’t mention “To Leslie” specifically.

“It is the Academy’s goal to ensure that the Awards competition is conducted in a fair and ethical manner, and we are committed to ensuring an inclusive awards process,” the statement reads. “We are conducting a review of the campaign procedures around this year’s nominees, to ensure that no guidelines were violated, and to inform us whether changes to the guidelines may be needed in a new era of social media and digital communication. We have confidence in the integrity of our nomination and voting procedures, and support genuine grassroots campaigns for outstanding performances.”

how is a successful campaign by celebrity fans less valid than one involving a push by a studio and publicists and ads?

supposedly if people phoned up members directly and asked them to promote it/vote for it that's bad? and/or if people involved with the film explicitly mentioned other possible candidates for nomination? it all seems very baroque tbh

it's horseshit imo.
Riseborough's a good actress but this film looks slight. I should watch it.

finally saw aftersun and it is 100 percent great

yay!

The New Yorker’s YouTube channel has five of the nominated short films (2 animated, 2 docs, 1 live action).

I just finished Stranger at the Gate, one of the documentary short nominees. Not totally sure how I feel about it but it is definitely compelling - about a war vet with ptsd who comes to the brink of committing a mass shooting.

btw in case you're curious, a quick search on these platforms will find these various shorts, all ranging from about 7 to 40 minutes.

Documentary Short
THE ELEPHANT WHISPERERS - Netflix

HAULOUT - YouTube

HOW DO YOU MEASURE A YEAR? - not currently on streaming

THE MARTHA MITCHELL EFFECT - Netflix

STRANGER AT THE GATE - YouTube

Animated Short
THE BOY, THE MOLE, THE FOX AND THE HORSE - AppleTV+

THE FLYING SAILOR - YouTube

ICE MERCHANTS - YouTube

MY YEAR OF DICKS - Vimeo

AN OSTRICH TOLD ME THE WORLD IS FAKE AND I THINK I BELIEVE IT - not on streaming

Live Action Short
AN IRISH GOODBYE - not on streaming

IVALU - not on streaming

LE PUPILLE - Disney+

NIGHT RIDE - YouTube

THE RED SUITCASE - not on streaming

Haulout dropped my jaw

night ride sucks
my year of dicks and the ostrich short are both pretty good

Yeah, Night Ride was a big disappointment; Ivalu was even worse

I liked Haulout too.

The more I think about Stranger at the Gate, the more I wish it were a much longer doc. At ~25 minutes it really simplifies what was likely an extremely layered and complex reality.

In the animated category, The Ice Merchants and The Flying Sailor both had nice animation styles but the narratives were kinda nothing, just excuses to draw something. I didn't really care for My Year of Dicks. It was just OK. The Boy, The Mole etc is the only one in the category that actually seemed made for kids and maybe that's why I found it so touching. There were things in it that, maybe coincidentally, felt like things I needed to hear. I didn't see the Ostrich film.

hahaha @ that wendell pierce tweet

jesus he just doubles, triples, and quadruples down on that dumb statement the further down the thread you go. I haven't even seen this film and I knew what it was about.

Riseborough's a good actress but this film looks slight. I should watch it.

― POLIZISTEN VERSINKEN IM SCHLAMM (forksclovetofu), Saturday, January 28, 2023 12:25 AM (two days ago) bookmarkflaglink

Please report back--I'm skeptical when a non-American actress gets raves for playing a gritty role with an American accent. (Do American actresses simply never get a chance at these roles, or do the critics not pay attention when they do?)

British/Irish actors get raves for playing Americans all the time. And they are really good at it. I will watch this film. The hype for it seems kind of manufactured to me though

it does, yet, everyone I know who watched it loved it (this is three people) so maybe the hype is justified. dunno guess I'll watch it later this week.

mescal’s scottish accent is actually half decent

Watched the Navalny doc in HBO today—worth watching for the middle section when they figure out who attempted his assassination and how they did it. Really a mind blowing scene.

Mike D'Angelo's started up his annual unveiling of the Skandies with the 20th place finishers:

Picture: Benediction (36/5)
Director: James Vaughan, Friends and Strangers (36/3)
Actress: Anna Cobb, We're All Going to the World's Fair (30/3)
Actor: RJ Cyler, Emergency (40/4)
S. Actor: Dave Bautista, Glass Onion (40/3)
S. Actress: Anne Hathaway, Armageddon Time (35/4)
Screenplay: Emmanuel Mouret, The Things We Say, the Things We Do (31/3)
Scene: [Arrgh!] (30/3)

Because a lot of voters lazily allotted 10 points across the board in Scene this year, there's actually a fucking six-way tie for #20, as that's how many films wound up with 30 points from three votes. Here they are, with a link to the scene in question (or part of it) if I could quickly find it on YouTube:

• Bonfire, Bones and All
• Eve's kitchen, Confess, Fletch
• Benoit Blanc vs. Gillian Flynn, Glass Onion
• "KIMI, play 'Sabotage,'" KIMI
• Lydia's new gig (final scene), TÁR
• "New Body Rhumba," White Noise

Benediction just barely making the top 20 is a flat out crime

it’s hard to see most of these films winning the Academy Award for Best Picture honestly. Top Gun is way too up its ass in being macho and it is pedestrian and not of the moment, Everything Everywhere All At Once is a mess and is super chaotic and hard to watch, The Banshees of Inisherin is as my sister says a completely pointless film albeit with good acting, The Triangle of Sadness has some elements of interest but it should have had an hour of it cut out easily, Elvis was a few electrifying performance scenes in a very long and flaccid movie, Women Talking is not going to win let’s be real, All Quiet On the Western Front was so tedious, and Avatar, come on.

That leaves The Fabelmans and Tár. One of those two has to win Best Picture imo

Those are the only two I particularly like and neither has a shot

I did a double feature of All Quiet and Top Gun, which just made TG all the more laughable.

Started watching All Quiet... tonight; I'm about an hour in and it's pretty good so far. The only thing I don't like is the stupid three-note score. This movie shouldn't have any music at all.

Everything Everywhere is still considered the favorite, right? It certainly has its enthusiasts, though it also seems like a movie that you're either on board with or you're not. With ranked-choice voting, I could see Everything Everywhere getting a plurality (but not a majority) of 1st-place votes -- but then Banshees overtaking it with more 2nd- and 3rd-place votes.