Endings

At an end

we are forced to reflect

asses

the value

the meaning

sometimes we will mourn

the passing

sometimes we will rage at

the absence

sometimes we will trivialize

sometimes we will be relieved

and yet

the cessation itself

does not effect

the impact

of the past

'Jay Kelly' A Review

Jay Kelly is a drama about a sad and lonely rich boomer movie star the titular Jay Kelly(George Clooney). The movie opens on the wrapping of his latest movie after which he attempts to connect with his daughters who, after years of neglect, justly don't want much to do with him. He wanders around Europe and fails again and again to really learn anything or come to terms with his actions, life, or career in any meaningful or insightful way.

Clooney is decent, he seems a bit on auto-pilot which makes sense for the role but isn't particularly compelling. The supporting cast is a cavalcade of names but the only real standout is Adam Sandler as Ron Jay's manager, he's the only one who really seems like an actual, relatable human being with recognizable emotions, it would have been a more interesting story following his character.

The cinematography is bold and rich and compelling as is the score. The big issue is just the whole premise. Who cares about this rich, aging narcissist who's motivation in trying to connect with his friends and family seems to only be a self-centered loneliness and who displays a complete inability to take responsibility for his actions or understand, in any way, his failings. The whole central conundrum is very specific to a certain type of aging white male(presumably a lot of the themes are very close to co-writer/director Baumbach) and as such doesn't really have broad appeal. 

An incredibly made film that elicits no compassion or interest in its narrative or characters(aside from Sandman).

Currently streaming on Netflix.

Don't See It.

'Zodiac Killer Project' A Review

Zodiac Killer Project is a meta-documentary about the failed adaptation of The Zodiac Killer Cover-Up: The Silenced Badge by director Charlie Shackleton. Shackleton narrates over b-roll footage, describing the film he intended to make until it fell through and ruminates on the True Crime genre, occasionally cutting to popular features or series to elucidate certain troupes.

Visually the film is simple and meditative, the California b-roll, which may be location scouting footage, is mostly static, the only movement being slow pans and zooms, it's effective to a point but certainly strains attention at feature length. The big issue isn't that the film is experimental in form and content but just that that content, the point of it all, isn't particularly complex. Shackleton criticizes True Crime filmmaking troupes and practices and in the same breath how he couldn't wait to deploy them. He talks about the explosion of True Crime's popularity with a certain amount of distain but is clearly an avid watcher. He expresses frustration about not getting to make his project simply because it would have been watched by a lot of people.

Ultimately the film, Shackleton, has no real insight to offer- he tried to make a film, couldn't, and made this as a substitute- that's it. He feints at broader analysis of True Crime both as a product and the culture's fascination with it but never follows through. However, the way he breaks down imagery and discusses the lexicon of film in conveying information is engaging, the film he describes sounds like the kind of HBO or Netflix project that people would watch, there's a certain appeal to the simplicity and cleanness of the images, but taken together it's all a bit underbaked.

Interesting as an experiment but ultimately incomplete, feels like what it is- the scraps from a bigger, fuller idea.

Currently in theaters.

Stream It.

'Five Nights At Freddy's 2' A Review

Five Nights At Freddy's 2 is a horror sequel to 2023's Five Nights At Freddy's based on the video game series. The movie opens on a flashback to 1982 on a different Freddy's location from the original where an isolated girl Charlotte sees owner and serial killer William(Matthew Lillard) kidnapping a little boy, in attempting to rescue him she is killed and her ghost is trapped. Twenty years later Mike(Josh Hutcherson), his sister Abby(Piper Rubio), and their friend Vanessa(Elizabeth Lail) struggle to adjust in the wake of the events of the first movie when Charlotte's malevolent spirit reaches out to interfere.

Hutcherson, Rubio, and Lail are all great and committed and serve as the grounding point for all the absurdity and violence and give those things emotional stakes making it fun, entertaining, and if not believable exactly than at least plausible. Lillard isn't in it as much as the previous movie but he's got one great, terrifying dream sequence. The supporting cast is all solid and there's one piece of really inspired casting with Skeet Ulrich as Charlotte's dad, a cool bit of resonance with Lillard calling back their Scream villains.

Visually the movie sticks to its roots, focuses mostly on practical effects and coherent tactile action, there's minimal CG and what there is is integrated smoothly and effectively. With a bigger budget they're able to use more locations and the flagship Freddy's location is expanded allowing more animatronics, more elaborate kills, and more visual flare. The soundtrack is catchy and fun, if there's a flaw it's that the plot is a bit convoluted and it ends on a cliffhanger(presumably setting up a third in the series). Still, it's fun, funny, well paced, and above all entertains.

A solid B-movie horror sequel, great counter programing to the season's Oscar hopeful glut.

Currently in theaters, coming soon to Peacock.

Rent It.

Life on life's terms

I don't understand
the fear of death

I don't wish it

or welcome it

I relish each day's

pleasures

I'm grateful

for each day's

challenges

I accept

my responsibilities

with an open

and eager heart

most days

I am filled

with love

but

when it's time to go

whether tomorrow

or in 50 years

I will be ready to depart

'Train Dreams' A Review

Train Dreams is a period drama based on the 2011 novella. An understated birth-to-death portrait of Idaho logger Robert(Joel Edgerton) from the turn of the century onward.

Edgerton is a bit lost, a bit listless in the role. It requires more stillness and abstraction than he's really able to provide, you can see him acting even when he's clearly struggling to do less. Edgerton is a fine actor but he's not a movie star and the kind of odd impressionistic tone requires that. He's not bad he's just not altogether successful. Nor is the film for that matter. Felicity Jones as Gladys Robert's wife is more in-line with the tone but she's in the movie only briefly. The supporting cast is full of talent, Kerry Condon, William H. Macy, Will Patton as the narrator, but there's just not a tone of substance overall to the story so they don't particularly matter.

Visually the film is beautiful, like a series of paintings, but whatever modern equipment was used there's an odd kind-of digital jittering anytime there's movement. It's a bizarre and ineffective choice given the period setting. The crystalline images are incongruous with the actors costuming(which is effective). The score is moody and transportive. For what it is, it's good not great, the real issue is that it's a mood piece but it's constrained by conventional editing, linear plotting, and ultimately seems to have no real message or if it does it's something as pedestrian and indisputable as "you only get one life" or "life sure is wild huh?"

Where the film really suffers is by comparison, which may be unfair, and yet the influence of Tree Of Life and Terrence Malick generally is kind of impossible not to see as far as style and by that metric Train Dreams is unambitious and thin. Nine Days investigates life and death in a much more emotional and inspiring way. The Assassination of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford utilizes voice over and the period setting with more depth and intention. First Cow uses the truncated aspect ratio more effectively and the image coloring in service of the period setting. I could go on. This is all to say it feels reductive.

Pretty, mildly diverting, but unoriginal. A pastiche of better films in search of vision.

Currently streaming on Netflix.

Stream It.

The First Snowfall

I'll never tire of it
its sparking beauty

its inevitability

the shoveling and salting

the bundling and slogging

it necessitates

the focus and labor

it demands

bringing all of us

into the present

Glorious