Rambling Film

Official synopsis:  A gay novelist, Owen (Fionn O'Shea) and his psychiatric nurse (Erin Kellyman) bond over a series of "dates" prescribed to "cure" his homosexuality. He tells her how his previous relationship degenerated when his partner, Philip (Robert Aramayo) tried a risky procedure to become heterosexual. Robert Aramayo has been absolutely killing it on Amazon's The Rings of Power , a show that apparently only myself and my husband watch. Through him, this little film came on my radar as it slowly made its way around the festival circuit.  Lilies Not For Me is not a light viewing, and I didn't expect it to be. Any film about gay folks in the 1920's can't possibly be without pain. Though this did take it a few steps further than I expected. While not overly graphic, the things that happen are horrible and it makes you just want to wrap the men in this story in a warm blanket and tell them everything is going to be okay. It's quite horri...

Official synopsis:  Frida Kahlo is a little girl who is different. Sparkling and vibrant, everything interests her. And when life's trials and tribulations come her way, she faces them with her overflowing imagination. I suppose most people outside of Mexico discover Frida Kahlo as a teenager or young adult. Her vibrant paintings are iconic, and we've seen plenty of film adaptations from her. But the filmmakers behind Hola Frida , and by extension the original mini series - Frida c'est moi this was adapted from want you to learn about her as a child.  For a children's film, I loved this. The animation style is fun and works well with the fantastical elements of Frida's imagination. The film mostly sticks with Frida as a child and how she overcame polio and the bullying that followed after her right leg never truly heals. It's a good story for kids. It has strong themes of friendship, standing up against bullies while also hearing them and the things they may b...

Official Synopsis : Forced to balance their roles as heroes with the strength of their family bond, the Fantastic Four (Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Joseph Quinn) must defend Earth from a ravenous space god called Galactus (Ralph Ineson) and his enigmatic Herald, Silver Surfer. (Julia Garner) My dad's favorite comic book character has been Silver Surfer as long as I can remember, so that was always my primary interest in anything Fantastic Four related. I've always preferred the X-Men or Avengers over "Marvel's First Family" but that doesn't mean I haven't given every FF movie a chance. So how does this stack up to the misfires of the past? The only thing all three versions of The Fantastic Four have in common is casting Sue Storms that don't pull off blonde. This version, with Wandavison director Matt Shakman's very capable hands gives us a retro 60's vibe with a big focus on family.  This film easily has the best Marvel...

Official Synopsis:  In a climate change-ravaged world, a utopian society optimizes life, including parenthood assessments. A successful couple, Mia (Elizabeth Olsen) and Arayan (Himesh Patel) faces scrutiny by an evaluator, Virginia (Alicia Vikander) over seven days to determine their fitness for childbearing. When I first heard about this film coming off its festival run, I thought it sounded a lot like The Pod Generation , a 2023 film also about couples and pregnancy in the future, but the two films couldn't be more different. Where The Pod Generation was light hearted, The Assessment is uncomfortable. Mia and Arayan probably would be good parents, but Virginia puts them through the ringer in a way that will make you squirm in your seat. I love an Uncomfortable Dinner Scene ™ and boy does the Assessment have one.  All of the actors are putting in some of their best work here. Alicia Vikander is here to remind you that she is an Oscar winner and her range is on full display ...

Official synopsis:  To celebrate Lukas'  ( Paulius Markevicius)  victory at the martial arts tournament and Tomas' ( Giedrius Kiela)  birthday party, their wives, sisters Juste ( Agne Kaktaite)  and Ernesta ( Gelmine Glemzaite) organize a weekend at the country house with their families. Then the two families must navigate a near tragedy that occurs.  Lithuania's entry for Best International Film at the Oscars earlier this year now finally sees its U.S release. I'm not familiar with director/cinematographer  Laurynas Bareisa prior work. Here, he takes us through stages of grief. Not always linear, not always cohesive, but real all the same. The film jumps back and forth between time making you question what really happened and how the family was driven apart. This is a film for patient people. You might think that's an odd thing to say about a film with a runtime of 88 minutes, but Bareisa streeeeeeeeeeeeeetches some scenes to the maximum. I actually w...

Official synopsis: I n May of 2020, a standoff between a small-town sheriff, Joe (Joaquin Phoenix) and mayor Ted (Pedro Pascal) sparks a powder keg as neighbor is pitted against neighbor in Eddington, New Mexico. Ari Aster is one of the most talked about directors of the last few years. He started off with a bat-shit crazy short, then made two great features, and his last go at the theater - Beau is Afraid - was a self indulgent mess. But still, Aster has promise. And despite not like Beau Is Afraid and not wanting to sit through a COVID movie, I gave him the benefit of the doubt.  Three people walked out of my showing of Eddington at various points, and they were the lucky ones. I didn't think it was possible to be worse than Beau Is Afraid, but Eddington manages to be completely insufferable and ultimately has nothing of substance to say. And granted, the lead character of Eddington is SUPPOSED to be insufferable. He's an anti-masker and general doofus, but I kept waiting...