I Don't Feel At Home In This World Anymore

Macon Blair, 2017

IMDB

4/5

Anyone familiar with Jeremy Saulnier's films is going to recognize Macon Blair. Blair has had roles in every one of Saulnier's feature films from Murder Party to 2016's Green Room. The pairing is almost like a dark art-house variant of Scorcese and Dicaprio where Saulnier has clearly found someone he can remain confident in who shares similar sensibilities. All of Saulnier's films have dark elements to them and Blair is responsible for carrying a bulk of the weight of those very tones to the screen in Saulnier's movies. He is a very distinctive actor. More of an internal force, playing more reserved characters who have a certain level of unpredictability to them. With them having so many cinematic collaborations with each other of course one of the big questions going into this directorial debut of Blair's is going to be "does it feel like a Saulnier film in any way"? The answer is yes, but to avoid marginalizing this very good film we should just say it feels inspired by Saulnier in ways but also feels like it really has some identity on it's own.

You could describe this film as an adventure into the underbelly of society, if, say, you caught a junky stealing from you and you followed him home. But junkies don't live in modest homes. They live in condemned houses, or in the woods. So now imagine that you continued to follow this junky into the woods. Instead of getting too creeped out when you find a bum-camp in the woods you decide to get out of your car to further confront the person. Of course the depths that you could venture down with these types of people will continue to descend lower and lower. These are the types of people who lurk in the shadows. They come out at night. Ruth (Melanie Lynskey) is not this type of person. She is a 9-5er who is bound to a mundane daily routine.

Lynskey (who has a lot of indie credits under her belt now- Happy Christmas, Perks of Being a Wallflower, etc) is completely fitting and really nails the Ruth character. Ruth is a person that is having one of those totally identifiable bouts of misfortune. When you feel like the world is just shitting on you over and over again. She drowns her sorrows at home, and when she discovers the break-in the theft of her aunt's silver is the last straw. I Don't Feel at Home reveals itself to be the black comedy that it is when Elijah Wood's Tony character appears. Wood is so great in this movie and it's really refreshing to see him continuing to take on indie roles like this when he could just take a pass on everything and enjoy his Hobbit money.

A lot of elements of this film continue to stick with me days after viewing. Blair has veteran indie sense and clearly understands pacing and character development. I Don't Feel at Home is a movie I will be pushing on the people around me. I am actually eager to get another look at this one again soon. 

Infinitely Polar Bear

Maya Forbes, 2015

IMDB

3/5

While everyone is spending the year gushing over Mark Ruffalo's performance in Spotlight, they really should instead gush over his performance in Infinitely Polar Bear. And just like Spotlight, he plays a conflicted man in a dysfunctional marriage living in Boston. But while his Spotlight performance is a more subdued one, his Polar Bear performance is anything but.

Ruffalo plays Cam, a father struggling with bipolar disorder while trying to raise his two young daughters while his wife is in law school. The first moments of the film show him in the middle of a manic episode, chasing his wife down the driveway mostly naked on a bicycle while they rush to drive away in their old car to escape his chaos. Funny, but serious. Which is sort of the tone for the rest of the film. Funny at times, serious at times. Ruffalo manages to juggle the two quite remarkably. The back and forth, the ups and downs are displayed on screen like a constant battle he endures on a daily basis.

Ruffalo really steals the show, as he is capable of doing these days. There are black comedy elements, especially when approaching the whole problem of codependency that the family faces. The two daughters are clearly not brought up in a healthy household, but there is a distinctive tumultuous energy that keeps them engaged with each other. Kind of sweet but also unsettling. It's sweet how Cam stays up all night to piece together a dress for his daughter but also very unsettling how he can so quickly run out of the apartment to go drinking while they vulnerably sit at home.

That's the one of the problems with Infinitely Polar Bear. It's a little too indecisive, too disorganized. It gives you something to laugh at and something to ache for, but doesn't balance the two enough to make a lasting impression. Zoe Saldana, who plays Cam's wife Maggie, is not as composite as Cam's. Her ability to constantly (and conveniently for the story) leave the family feels unbelievable. Part of the film is Cam filming things on a handheld camera, with constant jumps to the amateur footage, but it feels kind of unneeded. But one thing it does do is approach mental illness in an endearing, non-judging way that isn't so often done, and for that it definitely deserves some praise.

Wyrmwood: Road of the Dead

Kiah Roache-Turner, 2015

IMDB

3/5

Any fan of zombie cinema probably has some degree of fatigue at this point. Oh, another movie about a zombie outbreak where everyone has to fight them off to survive. And it's turned into an inescapable theme. They are everywhere. Zombies have crept out of the cult-category and are now ubiquitous. They aren't underground, they are in the mainstream. The Walking Dead is the highest rated series on cable. World War Z brought Max Brooks zombie novel out of the literary world and into big budget Hollywood. So this means there are books, television series, small budget films, big budget films. Half of the Halloween outfits you see this year will probably be zombie related.

So at this point, for the most part, we aren't likely to see anything revolutionary or groundbreaking in the genre. With an over-saturation present, filmmakers should be more focused on aiming to create something that has some stylistic integrity, something individually artistic.

Wyrmwood, the most pirated Australian film in recent history, does just this. It's a self-aware zombie film with a rather simple premise. A rapidly spreading virus has hit the Outback infecting basically everyone that comes into contact with it unless they have a specific blood-type. Nothing new, right? But it's the execution of this basic premise that makes Wyrmwood a rather engaging zombie film. 

Equipped with a terrific makeup and special effects team, Wyrmwood is able to create a 90 minute zombie picture that doesn't get slowed down with unnecessary character development. It's intention is not to create depth but more sudden shifts and frantic pacing. The disease itself is relentless and unforgiving, spreading to friends and family with unhampered force. Unlikely friendships are forged quickly because the only choice you have is to team up with any living soul in close proximity to you. Not really much time to build trust by feeling someone out. It's another zombie film where life has become cheap very quickly, and the key to survival is not hesitating and being as resourceful as you can in whatever situation you find yourself in. 

The Skeleton Twins

Craig Johnson, 2014

IMDB

3/5

Any fan of the Wiig/Hader era of Saturday Night Live probably has an open mind when it comes to cinematic projects that they collaborate in. Some would argue it was the best SNL cast ever. A controversial opinion, one that I actually agree with. They have boldly left the comfort-zone of SNL in search of success in the movie world. It's worked out really well particularly for Wiig who has had commercial success with Bridesmaids but to her credit has taken risks with independent roles that clearly test her range in films like Girl Most Likely and 2013's Hateship Loveship. They are both undoubted balls of talent, and when working together one assumes that they have a level of comfort with each other that will show on the screen. That's certainly the case here, as the duo plays brother and sister who reconnect under not-so-great circumstances after spending many years not having contact with each other.

The most surprising element of the film which comes quite immediately is the dark tone of the story. It's not something that you would expect the two to be involved in, a story of suicide, loneliness, adultery. You realize very quickly that it's a black comedy in it's purest form. The laughs are there, but they are layered. But the film is rooted in good performances by the two and good writing. In a sense Skeleton is the the portrait of the modern American life. A disconnect between two siblings because of all of that life stuff, the baggage and avoidance. Depression, the self-consuming mother, marital distractions, homosexual frustrations, hypocrisy. It's all there, and although it's not an easy swallow, it's still an interesting film.

Dogtooth

Yorgos Lanthimos, 2009

IMDB

4/5

How refreshing it is to see a film made by a filmmaker who clearly has a unusual vision, seems to execute it the way that he wants without censoring himself or showing any restraint. Dogtooth is a film that appears to not be under any scrutiny by focus groups. It's completely bizarre, troubling at times, but completely intriguing. It even manages to inject some black comedy here and there. That particular technique seems to be more common with European cinema, where there is less of an emphasis on how a film is marketed.

Playing with themes of control and isolation, Lanthimos is able to construct this white-backed setting that to any casual observer would look like a rather pleasant place to grow up. But that would be to someone who grew up in regular society, with friends, normal parents who knew that there would be some questionable elements that your children would face. You wonder at times, why is the father so dead-set on keeping his children separated from the rest of the world. Obviously he doesn't want to expose them to the negative elements that are out there. Paranoid projections, past trauma causing unrealistic assumptions. Dogtooth is a philosophical film in a sense. Clearly what the mother and father are doing is completely wrong, certainly deserving of legal punishment. But what about when the children are well-fed, well taken care of? It brings up a lot of moral issues. But the lack of socialization, free-will, freedom of choice is undoubtedly damaging. That's probably the bottom line. That it's not up to your parents to create your world. You reach an age where it's your mortal right to flee the coop, to see whats out there. In a biological sense. And the children don't get any of these freedoms. Instead, they think that fish can appear in swimming pools and that cats are evil blood-thirsty creatures. Because of this, the parents are not much different than the real-life figures that we see on the news from time to time after a dungeon is uncovered after the imprisoned escape or someone discovers the whole thing. The mother and father are creating people who have inner cores of benevolence but are completely unprepared for the outside world. Lanthimos is able to skillfully create this little world that has you completely entranced, as disturbing as it is at times you can't look away. There's so much invention and artistic originality with Dogtooth. There's no other films like it. Even though you don't spend a lot of time in this fortified property, it's going to be in your brain forever after 90 minutes of being there.

Force Majeure

Ruben Ostlund, 2014

GoWatchit

4/5

Tomas (Johannes Kuhnke) and Ebba (Lisa Loven Kongsli) are on holiday in the French Alps with their two children. While eating lunch on an outdoor deck, they hear an explosion and a sudden avalanche starts to fall quickly from the mountain. At first Tomas reassures the family that it's controlled and there is nothing to worry about. But when it gets so close to the deck that other patrons begin to flee, Tomas panics and runs away leaving his family behind. It turns out to be a controlled avalanche as originally suspected, and when it clears Tomas returns to the table of his shocked and shaken family.

Critics of this movie could say that it takes a premise and beats it to death. They could say things like "okay, we get it. The guy screwed up, let's get over it and move on. Who knows how someone would have reacted in that situation. Either way, is it worth dedicating a whole film to analyzing it?". But the response to that would be a simple yes. It's a premise that's analyzed meticulously, and should be. It's an event that is so quick, but so powerful. It NEEDS to be examined thoroughly. Husband and wife, boy and girl, we play certain roles in the relationship. There are functioning dynamics at work. They are different in every relationship, sure. Especially in our modern feminist society. But most women would say that they want to be with a man that will protect them in the face of trouble. Furthermore, they WITHOUT A DOUBT want to be with someone that will put their life on the line for their family. That's almost a given. And as we are shown with this particular film, those moments come on quickly. You don't have time to prepare yourselves for them. Your reaction needs to be automatic. Unfortunately for Tomas, his automatic reaction was to get up and flee his family. Call him selfish, self absorbed, cowardly. He's certainly those things. Within a matter of minutes, their life went from a happy lunch on the deck to the faults of their marriage being exposed and vulnerable. And not only is Tomas' selfishness exposed, his complete stubbornness to the aftermath of the situation is exposed. Ebba tries to brush it off and move on and not ruin their holiday, but she realizes soon that it's impossible. We have all been in those situations, where some conflict arises in the middle of a vacation or dinner out or something, and you attempt to let it go and move on. Often you can, but not in this particular situation. Tomas and Ebba's marriage clearly has a certain facade quality to it. To an outsider it probably looks like the perfect nuclear family. But as the layers are exposed you soon see that there is a coldness, a lack of intimacy between the two. A lot of it probably has to do with the daily grind of raising children while juggling a career. But when we see Ebba's interest peak when she discovers her friends open relationship, that there is also a certain curiosity of people outside the marriage. What transpires is a delicately balanced black comedy with tones of insecurity, an examination on marriage dynamics and the roles we play, and the role of whats supposed to be a dominant masculine father. It is so interesting to think of one singular event occurring and completely disassembling a good marriage. It's quite possible that nobody could handle that particular concept better than Ruben Ostlund. 

Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)

Alejandro G. Iñárritu, 2014

GoWatchIt

3/5

Riggan Thomas is attempting to mount a career comeback with a Broadway adaptation of a Raymond Carver short story, years after entertaining movie audiences as superhero "Birdman".

Birdman is erratic, intense, manic. You spend 120 minutes in the presence of the true theater culture, with all of the moving parts. All of the dramatic impulses, the insecurity, etc. Riggan is the centerpiece of the story but one of many egos shuffling through the narrow halls of the St. James Theatre. Birdman could be called a character unraveling picture because Riggan is basically falling apart for the duration of the film. But his inner conflicts (you could call an overconfident voice in your head part of an inner conflict) and professional conflicts are completely compelling. There are constant elements of ego, self-doubt, regret. Digging your heels into a project that everyone around you seems to not have a whole lot of faith in. As time pushes on you only get deeper and deeper. The stage show is hanging on by a thread during the preview period, but then again all of the people orbiting Riggan are hanging on by a thread for the most part. It's a bold role for Keaton. Birdman is clearly a satirical look at his Batman days, where we didn't see much of him after he put away the Bat-suit despite the fact that the general public remained seemingly receptive. Nice to see him have a sense of humor about some of it. There's quite a bit of humor in the film, basically placing Birdman in a black comedy / dramedy category. It's actually a difficult movie to fully process in short time. There's a sense of satisfaction at the end credits, but it may need to marinate in your brain for a little while. Maybe because it's so flowing and bustling that there's a need for the mind to catch up afterward.

World's Greatest Dad

Bobcat Goldthwait, 2009

Can I Stream it?

4/5

High School Teacher Lance (Robin Williams) is surprised at the reaction of the school after his son's suicide.

World's Greatest is a uniquely dark piece of work bordering on ridiculousness at various points. Goldthwait manages to channel some energy that is challenging enough to resemble Todd Solondz while also making it absurd enough to resemble John Waters. But he still manages to mold it into something with some real charm. Goldthwait is comfortable making films about some controversial subject matter, and doesn't seem to care if you can't handle it. The subjects of suicide, hardcore pornography or auto-erotic asphyxiation don't sit well with everybody. Bobcat doesn't hesitate to explore this realm here. The film is filled with great performances, anchored with a really familiar warm performance from Robin Williams. His teacher character is much different from past teacher roles like his legendary performance in Good Will Hunting. While he had a sense of callused confidence there, here is more of a sweet doormat just looking to have a positive accord with the people in his life. Lance sips from his World's Greatest Dad coffee cup that he quietly cherishes because of it's ironic value. Probably the only nice thing that Kyle has ever done for Lance. Most of his exchanges with Kyle (Daryl Sabara) are one-sided - where Kyle says something dismissive to him and he simply walks away with his head down. Williams' Lance character draws the sympathy early when you see how horribly Kyle treats him. After a few exchanges you are begging for Kyle to get his comeuppance. The surprising reaction from everyone mourning Kyle's death is a familiar feeling. Quite often we see despicable people pass on only to draw a surprising amount of grief from many. They forget about the horrible things the person had done over the years. The person becomes a saintly figure. World's Greatest Dad is a look at death through an uninhibited lens. Sudden luck, a dramatic shift in life after a traumatic event. It's a really singular picture by Goldthwait that impressively balances the tragedy and comedy elements. 

The Wolf of Wall Street

Martin Scorcese, 2013

Can I Stream it?

4/5

The true story of Jordan Belfort, a young stock-broker that gets rich from scamming his investors.

Wolf doesnt feel like a movie made to be taken seriously. It doesnt feel like a film intended to drum up so mich controversy. The rags to riches to rags story is Scorcese going out of his out of comfort zone (along with screenwriter Winter), almost doing his version of a Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. His Hunter S is Jordan Belfort, eager to indulge in his excesses. It ultimately comes off as a Fear and Loathing / Wall Street / Scarface black comedy hybrid that even has notes of Raging Bull (a broken man that attempts to reestablish himself in the world). And like Gordon Gecko, his luxuries never feel cemented. When you are living such a lifestyle, combined with the fact that you are admittedly dependent on a particular prescription to maintain such mindset- it eventually reaches a tipping point. Add the fact that you are taking advantage of loose financial regulations in a realm of rapidly increasing regulations and of course its momentary. You get a clear sense that you will witness the rise and fall of a rather despicable figure, and the humor creates such levity that you don't need it to be a sophisticated character study of an anti-hero like PT Anderson's There will be Blood. There are brilliant, lewd LUDE moments. Scorcese's comedic experiment pays off and the result is provocative, overindulgent and hilarious.