Harry Dean Stanton's poetic send off "Lucky" is one of the most tranquil and meditative films of the year. Similar to Jim Jarmusch's Paterson in concept, yet more A Man Called Ove in execution, Lucky is a delightful little film with a whole lot to offer. Each frame of the film is perfectly crafted to give a touch of surrealist imagery and humor, and as well to set up and foreshadow several elements which will occur later on in the film. Same goes towards the production design, in which each element makes the film feel more tranquil and relaxed with every detail. Not to mention that the performances were fantastic. Harry Dean Stanton deserves a Posthumously Academy Award for this film. Each line and action from Harry, felt detailed and perfected to a tee. As Well, David Lynch had a hilarious short role in the film, in which he portrays an introverted turtle/tortoise fanatic. To quote Lynch's character in the film: There are some things in this universe, ladies and gentlemen, that are bigger than all of us, And a tortoise is one of them!” However, the film is flawed in some specific regards. First of all, there were several scenes which lacked a purpose and or meaning. These scenes which I'm referring too, usually happen in the Diner location in the film. Second, the pacing was a bit too degrading for the subject matter. Each scene in the film overstayed it's welcome, due to this problem. And Third, the sound mixing was a let down. I personally wished there was as much attention to detail in the auditory atmosphere, as there was in the visuals. In Conclusion, Lucky is a terrific send off to a great actor. It's charming, sweet, and overall a good time. After watching the film, it made me appreciate the elders around my community a bit more, and gave me a larger sense of unity. There's a lot of great messages and themes throughout this film which I commend to every viewer. Just be warned that the pacing, is a bit too slow for the average viewer.
The Little Hours is one of the rare exceptions when it comes to crude comedies. The Little Hours is a big delight. It's sense of humor is always top notch, from hilarious social satire, to random odd childish humor. The performances from all members of the cast, were all perfectly chosen for there respective parts. Aubrey Plaza plays a snarky nymphomaniac, Kate Micucci plays a shy yet jealous nun who enjoys spying on her peers, and John C Riley plays a pastor/priest who is incapable of keeping his convent afloat. Even though the script feels of bit rushed, and the dialogue doesn't resemble at all old English dialect, the overall directing and tone of the film makes it a good time, due to it's musical score, production design, costumes, and performances. Overall, this is a fun time, if your into intelligent yet raunchy comedies.
Similar to my thoughts on another recent film, Kong Skull Island, I thought Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie is one of the most self aware children's films of all time. The way how writers Nicholas Stoller and David Soren manipulates the original childish source material into a mixture of both juvenile fun and hilarious hi jinks, makes it one of the most refreshing films made by Dreamworks since How to Train Your Dragon. Several jokes and plot beats happen during the run time, but what separates those moments to several other pieces of generic crap, is how "self-aware" the plot is. It makes jokes and references to the original source material, films, censorship, and more, while still retaining a charming price. Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie is truly something surprising. I thought this was going to be something annoying and abysmal at the most. Instead, I got a hilarious route of fun, in which I smiled the whole way through.
Solaris, out of all the work I've seen from Russian director Andrei Tarkovsky, is the most accessible and re-watchable out of his work. The paranoiac sensibilities of the drama in this tale is easy to comprehend. Unlike Stalker, Solaris has a very linear plot line. It deals with several thematic materials of death, memories, and even relationships. Some problems that I had with the films, is that the first half of the film, lacked in pacing and overall presentation, while the the second half is what you expect from Tarkovsky. Brilliant directing with a touch of ambiguity. If the whole film, was like the second part, we would most likely have one of the greatest films of all time. In fact, if there were more moments between the leads Hari and Kris, I believe we would have had one of the best character dynamics in any source of media, of all time. Solaris is a good film. It's not as great as Stalker, but when you put it in contrast to several other science fiction films of the 70's, there's not much of a competition (except for Close Encounters) Overall, I highly recommend this film, for first time viewers of Tarkovsky's work.
When it comes to surrealist film making, it's difficult to determine if something is pretentious or not. A film like 2015's Heart of a Dog, made people, like myself, think about the implications of human interactions with animals, while others, deemed it as pretentious trash. My Winnipeg, is a strange case. It's a semi-autobiographical dramedy documentary, with a distinct and odd style. But the thing is, what Guy Maddin does with his own medium, is that is re-invents the way self therapy can be used. My Winnipeg, is especially an extremely non-linear look at the psyche of a Canadian who lives in Winnipeg. My entire life.I must leave it.I must leave it.I must leave it now. It may seem like a tedious way for someone to view another person's point. Although some thematic material does feel redundant in a way, Maddin expertly manages to take a diary of his dull surroundings, and turns them into a whimsy and intriguing feature. We never really know, what is real or fake (such as the horses frozen in the lake.) But, that's the point. Maddin, wanted to create a film, which could tell the test of time. Spoiler Alert. It succeeded.
