'Sorry To Bother You' A Review

Sorry To Bother You is a distopian dark comedy set in an alternative-realty Oakland which follows Cash(Lakeith Stanfield) as he gets a job as a telemarketer and climbs the ranks by using his "white voice". As he ascends the corporate ladder his eyes are opened to the twisted lengths some will go for profit.

Stanfield's natural and easy magnetism is underutilized as he is mostly a passive force within a significant amount of narrative craziness. His character has little to no dimension or emotional arc so there isn't much for him to do. Tessa Thompson as Cash's girlfriend Detriot is more convoluted, it seems as if the character is written as a critique of a certain type of cause-conscious woman but Thompson plays against the script to attempt to give the character some kind of relatability and is only mildly successful. Arnie Hammer's mogul Steve Lift is the only really successful performance because it is a full-blow caricature. The cast is stacked with talent but the characters are only place holders, plot pawns rather than people.

The film is full of intriguing concepts, thick satire, and an in-your-face socio-political rage that are all stimulating, there are enough surprises and biting commentary to provoke thought and inspire, but ultimately the film has little actual emotion. It spends so much time on metaphors and ideas there is no real space left for an actual human story. And, unfortunately, without that it lacks the intense impact it attempts. A base hit rather than a homerun.

Ambitious and stylish, more cerebral than resonant.

Rent It.

'Don't Worry He Won't Get Far On Foot' A Review

Don't Worry He Won't Get Far On Foot is a biopic about Portland based cartoonist John Callahan(Joaquin Phoenix) and his struggles with alcoholism. The narrative has a non-linear structure using the convention of John's support group lead as a focal point which is flashbacked from. The film jumps from his drunken accident which left him wheelchair bound, his physical rehabilitation, and his process in recovery.

Phoenix is always assured and committed but this performance is more breezy, tender, and at times petulant than is his norm. There is little of his usually frenetic wincing and he conveys the emotional journey of an addict in recovery with an honesty "sober stories" rarely accurately depict. Jonah Hill as Donnie does his best and is passable but the affectation he takes on doesn't quite work. Jack Black in a supporting role that is almost an two-part cameo gives one of the most electric turns in the film with the second of his two appearances, an amends scene with Phoenix, easily being the film's best and a best of the year contender because of it's absolutely magnetic rawness and authenticity. Mara as John's love interest Annu is given little to do with even less character dimension.

The one thing the film gets extremely right is recovery but the other elements are relatively bland. It's a quiet film but at times it is so quiet it becomes inaudible. Visually the film has no style, the colors are washed out, there is no sense of urgency or momentum in the edit, and the non-linear format actually serve to disperse any narrative tension rather than build it.

An Amazon Studios film that is presumably the format for which it was intended to be viewed.

Stream It.

'Eighth Grade' A Review

Eighth Grade is a coming of age dramedy that follows Kayla(Elsie Fisher) on her last week of eighth grade. The film opens on Kayla recording a self-help style installment on her vlog, we then see her attending school and the image she attempts to convey in her videos and the subjects she discusses are in contrast to her life at school. She is awkward, reserved, and anxious and the videos, which also double seamlessly as Kayla’s internal monologue, are her attempt at becoming. The days we follow Kayla may seem, for the most part, inconsequential but they are imbued with the life-and-death importance that she gives which we in turn share with the same high-stakes, heartbreak, and exhilaration that she feels.

Fisher easily gives one of the best performances of the year, she channels openness, vulnerability, and courage that is universal for that almost always tortuous time in development. It is significant also that she is age appropriate for the character(as is the entire cast) something Hollywood has typically shunned in favor of prettier more assured performances(i.e. inauthentic). The rawness, complexity, and honesty she conveys is both shattering and ecstatic. Fisher is able to translate an emotional truth that extends beyond the typical feel-good coming-of-age cliché to something deeply resonant. Josh Hamilton as Kayla's father Mark also puts in an amazing turn, a career best, with a realistic awkwardness and care he portrays a real dad who cares for his daughter with natural clueless and ineptitude outside the wise/cool dad troupes these types of films usually rely on. The supporting cast are all incredibly spot-on, there is humor paired with a magnetic authenticity that ground and elevate the story beyond convention.

The electronic score weaves harmonically with the action, more assertive than typical it underlines, elevates, even directs some of the emotions of its lead to startling effect. The cinematography is almost claustrophobic in that the film is constantly revolving around Kayla's POV but never straying further. All elements come together to put us solidly in Kayla's head, seeing the world the way she does and feeling the way she feels.

The film has so much nuance and emotional resonance and reliability the title may be Eighth Grade but it is really about the glorious, messy, heartbreaking human condition.

Don't Miss It.

Temples Of Industry

Human architecture
has yet to surpass
the Creator's natural splendor
yet we strive for wonder
in our construction
not in worship
or in service
to our governance
but lauded
Capital
despite the, perhaps,
perverse intention
the vaulted high-rises
that surround me
on my commute-
the mirror sheen
and stolid, austere
grace of these
monuments to labor
produce an awe
and peace
not equal
to the harmony of nature
but sometimes
close
reminding me
of my small part
in the churning beauty
of humanity's ambition.

'Whitney' A Review

Whitney is a documentary about the life of singer and actor Whitney Houston. Through first person interviews, archival footage, home movies, and narration from Houston herself from past interviews the film follows her from childhood, to early fame, to superstardom, then eventually to her tragic death.

The most compelling aspect of the film is Houston's own words in the narration as well as her performances which showcase her one-of-a-kind talent. The why and how of her family life isn't particularly interesting and there is no real comment, observation, or conclusion being made by the filmmaker. For example there is the implication that the family were all supported by Houston's income but no actual reflection or insight about what this meant or the toll it took. The film implies Houston had a relationship with her friend and assistant Robyn Crawford but Crawford herself isn't in the film and the only commentary we have is from one of Houston's brother's who simply says "wicked". It's startlingly obtuse and in fact lazy.

Whitney Houston is one of the greatest icon's of the 20th century, a competently edited pastiche of archival footage would be interesting and this has many individuals from Houston's life participating however it ultimately fails to scratch the surface of who the star was and get's the nature of addiction very wrong.

Stream It.

Goodbye Job

Everything about you
was bad for me
your chaotic
all-hour demands
passive aggression
and guilt trips
were claustrophobic,
tyrannical.

The token gift cards
in lieu of legitimate
employment benefits
you handed out
so magnanimously
baffled and insulted
your constant cursing
and latent sexism, icing on the cake.

I learned a lot
not from being taught
but forced
to blindly stumble
day-to-day
and cover for the string
of resignations and firings
you neglected to prepare for.

You paid well I guess
but I figured out
over three protracted
painful years
peace of mind is greater
than bank balance.
I'll miss nothing
least of all your ineptitude with Adobe.

'Leave No Trace' A Review

Leave No Trace is a drama about a father Will(Ben Foster) and his daughter Tom(Thomasin McKenzie) who live off-the-grid in Forest Park outside Portland, OR. They are discovered, reported, and turned over to social services. The film follows their journey as they attempted to assimilate back into society.

Foster, known for his emotive powers but also his intensity, gives one of the most understated, reserved, but assured performances of his impressive career. He conveys a complex range of emotion and implies a mountain of backstory and baggage with the fleeting exposition the script provides. He projects an unflinching(and appropriate) love for his daughter as well as a distant but incurable damage. McKenzie, the true lead, is remarkable. With a compelling innocence that never dips into ignorance or gullibility. The performance has such openness and honesty that it is both heartbreaking and glorious. The two have the best onscreen chemistry of the year, clearly conveying this incredibly intimate and nuanced father-daughter relationship with few words and mostly their bodies and faces.

There isn't much plot to speak of and the script has to be less than half the length of any normal feature but because of that it has a beautiful, simple, almost meditative quality. We are shown this relationship and taken with as it evolves with such care and consideration not only to the central pair but to the landscape they inhabit with such harmony. The third character in the film is nature, specifically the forests of the Pacific Northwest and as they envelope the two leads a rare and quiet intimacy emerges. As the film progresses it reveals itself to be, essentially, a coming-of-age story for it's teenage lead but it transcends that tired descriptor with an astounding silent wonder and compassion.

Don't Miss It.