Update on the Field (6/18/20)
Three months into this project and we just keep churning along. I think this cycle was a bit more of a mixed bag, but I'm pretty sure we agree that only one of the movies was bad. So, so bad. This time, we kicked off the cycle with four Oscar nominees (no winners), threw a documentary in there as well as a couple of movies based on true events. Also, starting in this one, I'm linking to the movie trailers so you can see if you might like the movie. Or maybe you just like watching trailers! Hooray! Here are our thoughts:
6/8/20: 127 Hours (2010)
Tom: I'll just start by saying this movie was nothing like I thought it would be. Directed by Danny Boyle (Trainspotting, Slumdog Millionaire among others), it had a lot of Trainspotting-style elements including stop-motion cinematography and a largely industrial score. That didn't seem to mesh with the subject matter and the story being told, but I have to admit, the main event was the arm scene and it absolutely delivered.
Erin: When I started watching this, the tone was wayyyy different than I had anticipated. It felt like another trip into Trainspotting. I wasn’t convinced until (SPOILER!) James Franco starts cutting his arm off. I swear to you, I almost threw up, almost passed out, and screamed for like five minutes straight. From that point on, I was fully in.
6/9/20: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (2011)
Tom: Make no mistake about it – this is hands down the worst movie we've watched for this project. A very special shout-out to The Tree of Life, but this one takes the cake. I can't even begin to discuss my problems with it in a little blurb here, but it was absolutely atrocious. Even discounting the poor acting and writing, on top of it all, it was extremely disrespectful and exploitative of 9/11. And it was nominated for Best Picture.
Erin: Sometimes I forget what is actually offensive, since we have been dealing with unhinged tweets and way worse throughout the past four years. But I gotta say--this movie was actually offensive. Like, wow. Who thought it would be good to make a 9/11 themed movie from the eyes of a young boy played by a non-acting winner of Kid’s Jeopardy who literally does not stop shaking a tambourine throughout its entire run-time. I cannot say enough about how bad this movie was. Like, unreal level of suck.
6/10/20: Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012)
Tom: Quvenzhane Wallis was amazing in this. She was six years old! Her performance really highlights how to make a movie that heavily relies on the acting prowess of a child, unlike the film-that-shall-not-be-named discussed above. It was a really nice movie about community and a father-daughter relationship in spite of extreme poverty. I recommend it.
Erin: I thought that this movie was about a young girl who played make believe when she took baths. That is not at all what this movie was about, but I still really liked it! Quvenzhane Wallis was amazing. How can a six-year-old act that well?! Really unique and interesting watch.
6/11/20: Nebraska (2013)
Tom: This is one of the most charming movies I've ever watched. I honestly forgot that it was in black and white because it's such a vibrant film. I spoke with Erin about it afterward, and I'm not sure if she's going to include this in her writing, but she had the perfect description of it: it's the rare movie where the characters don't change but the film effectively portrays how their appreciation of one another changes. All of the performances were great, and the movie was sweet, quiet, charming, and very funny. I highly recommend this to anyone who hasn't seen it and enjoys character-driven films.
Erin: I loved this movie when I saw it a few years ago, and I still love it today. It’s about an old man who travels to Nebraska with his son after thinking he won a million dollars. What I really liked about this movie is that Bruce Dern’s character does not change at all, but our view is what shifts. It was a really cool way to do a character study and shows that characters don’t need to be dynamic to be complex. Plus, June Squibb’s scene in the cemetery was ICONIC.
6/12/20: Chef (2014)
Tom: This one is similar to Nebraska in that it's largely about a man slowing down and reconnecting with what matters, his family. Jon Favreau directed, wrote, and starred in this, and I can't believe it took me this long to watch it. The supporting cast, particularly Emjay Anthony, Sofia Vergara, and John Leguizamo, help add some much-needed heart and accentuate Favreau's character's personal growth. Definitely watch it – although I would have had a different ending!
Erin: I have loved this movie for years too!! UGH IT IS SO GOOD. It’s just lots of food and music and family. I found that I really enjoy movies that focus on the importance of family. And this movie has some of the best looking food on film I have ever seen.
6/13/20: Concussion (2015)
Tom: Concussion, and its focus on CTE, is a wildly important film when it comes to how we view contact sports. Also, while I think Will Smith sometimes struggles while playing roles that aren't just "Will Smith as XYZ character," he did a great job disappearing into the role here. That being said, I think the movie, and particularly the circumstances surrounding the former players, played a bit like those dramatized re-enactments you see on TruTV, and the movie was too melodramatic in that regard. But it was important for something like this to get a wide release.
Erin: This one was okay. I think it’s a really important story and a true problem in the United States. Nothing really else to say here!
6/14/20: 13th (2016)
Tom: A highly informative documentary, on Netflix, on the long-term effects of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution that "ended" slavery. Most of the movie discusses mass incarceration and how policies going back fifty or so years have created a new form of slavery in the prison system. The final third of the movie examines police brutality and certain cases that had recently occurred, such as the killings of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, and Eric Garner. This is a wide-ranging but extremely important documentary for issues that have not meaningfully changed in the last four years.
Erin: This was an incredible documentary. It covers the 13th Amendment and the shift from slavery to mass incarceration. Ava DuVernay is amazing, and this doc could have been made yesterday. I think it is a must watch for all Americans.
6/15/20: Logan Lucky (2017)
Tom: As seems to be the case with Steven Soderbergh's recent movies (see Magic Mike), this one takes a bunch of individuals who could have been caricatures but Soderbergh effectively infused the movie with enough heart that you want to see these robbers succeed. It was fun, and as we know, I'm a fan of Channing Tatum. This is also the first movie I've thought Adam Driver was great in. And Daniel Craig is just ridiculous. Watch it!
Erin: From now on, any time I am watching a movie trailer, and I hear Daniel Craig speaking in a southern drawl, I am spending all my money. He is just too charismatic. This was a really fun movie! I like Steven Soderbergh. He always chooses different projects, and I appreciate the variety.
6/16/20: A Private War (2018)
Tom: Rosamund Pike stars in this biopic of a journalist who visits war-torn areas such as Sri Lanka and Syria. It's gritty and violent and serious. But it's also a movie that, like Concussion, needed to be made. I think it's important to show that war has greater impacts than those we fathom. Pike was great and gave a nuanced performance, and there's some excellent cinematography in here too.
Erin: This one was not a barrel of laughs at all! Rosamund Pike plays a real-life journalist named Marie Colvin, who I had never heard of before. Again, I totally did not know what the movie was actually about, because I could have sworn there were petticoats and the Wild West in this one, but that was not the case. This isn’t a fun watch but is really sobering and fascinating.
6/17/20: Honey Boy (2019)
Tom: So, this one was written by Shia LaBeouf while he was in rehab and it was semi-autobiographical and about his relationship with his father. Spoiler alert: the relationship wasn't great. He made a really affecting movie about it though. Director Alma Har'el punched the largely raw and unpolished script up a bit and gave the movie a professional sheen which I appreciated. Shia killed it playing his(/"Otis's") dad though, and Lucas Hedges was amazing as the present-day Otis even down to his use of many of LaBeouf's real-life mannerisms. If you need to cast a millennial tortured soul who's been abused or deals with trauma in some way, cast Hedges. He's amazing (Boy Erased, Lady Bird, Manchester by the Sea).
Erin: This was also a unique watch. Shia LaBeouf wrote this as a form of therapy while in rehab, and it truly feels like a cathartic piece of art for him. I really like that this story is very specific to his life but is also broad enough that many could see their own stories reflected in it. Again, it was a heavy hour and a half, but well worth your time.