Rambling Film

Official Synopsis : A woman (Amy Adams) pauses her career to be a stay-at-home mom, but soon her domesticity takes a surreal turn. When this movie was first announce, I was expecting a camp masterpiece. Amy Adams is an actress that always goes for it and Marielle Heller is one of the most interesting directors working today. The trailer also seemed to indicate that. So is that what I got? Well...no. The "nightbitch" part of this film is actually pretty limited. What this is is more of a study on motherhood. How stay-at-home moms are viewed, and how all encompassing that job can be. Frankly, I left this film glad I chose to be a working mom. I love my kid but I know what I am and am not cut out for, and that was never going to be for me.  In the hands of Heller, these themes are fine, but the film is really at it strongest when it engages with the mother thinking she's turning into a dog. That was the most interesting part of the film, and I wish they had taken it a bit fu...

Official Synopsis:  A gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman (Lily-Rose Depp) and the terrifying vampire (Bill Skarsgard) infatuated with her, causing untold horror in its wake. Director Robert Eggers has been making a name for himself in gothic horror for almost a decade now. So much so that he managed the near impossible feat of getting people excited for a remake. Now after what seems like forever, his take on the German film Nosferatu is here.  First and foremost, I owe Lily-Rose Depp an apology. When Anya Taylor-Joy dropped out of this, and she was announced as her replacement, I saw it as a downgrade. Now after watching Lily-Rose, she was perfect for this. It's a very risky performance and she pulled it off. I feel bad for doubting her. The acting all around is fantastic. Nicholas Hoult, who plays her husband, Thomas is having a tremendous year. I was listening to a review where the critic mentioned "What do you even say about Hoult when he's ALWAYS ...

  So you failed miserably at your 2024 Blind Spots.... It's me. I'm "you." But, I'm still determined to watch classic films, so I'm going to continue on with my Blind Spot series in 2025. I'm not committing to a set timeline, because it will just stress me out when I miss it, but I am going to try my best to watch as many classic films as I can in 2025. Here is my tentative list. As always, the streaming landscape always changes, and people at my local library love to hoard discs, so these could change. I'd also love any recommendations I can add from you! Women are my main focus. So anything with a strong female performance, send it my way! 2025 Blind Spot List The Last Picture Show La Dolce Vita Valley of the Dolls The Silence Rebecca (1940) The Manchurian Candidate (1962) I'm Not There (2007) Rope Stage Door (1937) Kitty Foyle Funny Girl Flesh and the Devil (1927) Wish me luck...

Official synopsis:  When Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) is tasked with leading one of the world's most secretive and ancient events, selecting a new Pope, he finds himself at the center of a conspiracy that could shake the very foundation of the Catholic Church. I had already been kicking myself for not seeing this in theaters, but now that I've actually watched it...this movie absolutely deserved my theater money. I'll start by saying that I'm not familiar with the play this is based on. It was all new to me, every twist and turn and oh are there many. Lawrence cannot catch a break with the Catholic shenanigans going on in this movie. There's a surprise new cardinal, pettiness brought to biblical levels, no one can make up their damn minds and the douchiest cardinal has a vape. It's quite riveting to watch.  Fiennes is so good here. You can feel the weight on Lawrence's shoulders and the supporting cast matches him in strength. Sure, you can see some of ...

  Official Synopsis: After professional hitman Jef Costello (Alain Delon) is seen by witnesses, his efforts to provide himself an alibi drive him further into a corner. Oh boy did I fall off the edge of a cliff with my Blind Spots this year. I travel for work fairly frequently, but 2024 I think I was on a plane at least once every month. Because of that, I ended up watching more TV series this year and my Blind Spots took a hit because of it.  So next year, I'm going to try to get back into the monthly swing of things, but I'm not going to set a formal goal, because then I'll stress out about it. Just know that I'm still over here trying to watch old movies. Le Samouraï was a film I'm fairly sure I had as an official alternate years ago. It's one of those films that I hear a lot of current directors I love reference, so when I was on my last flight and I saw this on Delta Studios, I decided it was time for a watch. I didn't fall in love with it as many had, ...

Official Synopsis:  An investigation into abuse and missing children at an Indigenous residential school sparks a reckoning on the nearby Sugarcane Reserve. Residential schools that Native Americans were forced into have been gaining prevalence lately. Survivors are talking about their experiences, their loss of family, their native language, their homes. Unmarked graves are being discovered, like what lead filmmakers Julian Brave Noisecat and Emily Kassie to make this film, following Julian's father, a survivor of these schools among others. They are treated like a skeleton in someone's closet. Even someone like me who grew up near a reservation and saw a decent amount of Native culture integrated in my small Midwestern town never learned about them. Obviously, we know why. Because it doesn't look good for the white Christians who made this torture possible. (sorry, but these schools were faith based. We cannot ignore that) Sugarcane is a necessary watch, but a hard one. ...

Official synopsis:  While serving as a juror in a high-profile murder trial, Justin (Nicholas Hoult) finds himself struggling with a serious moral dilemma, one he could use to sway the jury verdict and potentially convict or free the wrong killer. It's been a minute since I've even bothered with a Clint Eastwood movie. I tend to be lukewarm on them at best (except for Changeling , which is my easy favorite) but I'm a sucker for a good courtroom drama and Juror #2 is packed with actors I love like Hoult, Toni Collette, JK Simmons Chris Messina and Adrienne C. Moore. For the majority of its runtime, Juror #2 is a solid film. Justin is a soon to be first time dad, and recovering alcoholic. He obviously had his demons, which makes him see this trial in a different way than his other juror members do initially. But every now and then, the film makes a decision that just seems a little too ridiculous. Like how no one brings up that the case they are working on could be a hit an...

Official synopsis:  Jazz and decolonization are entwined in this historical rollercoaster that rewrites the Cold War episode that led musicians Abbey Lincoln and Max Roach to crash the UN Security Council in protest against the murder of Patrice Lumumba. Do yourself a favor and read up on this time in history BEFORE watching this documentary, because boy does it move fast. I'm someone who was not well versed in these stories, I had a hard time keeping everything straight. It's a lot of information, a lot of "wtf" and a lot of great music. This video essay is made almost entirely of archived footage, but it's edited in one of the most engaging ways I've ever seen. I daresay this might become the gold standard on how you seamlessly stich archival footage together. It's very flashy, yet every transition is smooth, and of course there's the jazz music that accompanies it. You can't go wrong with that. I normally don't start my reviews with what I c...

Official Synopsis:  Maria Callas, (Angelina Jolie) the world's greatest opera singer, lives the last days of her life in 1970s Paris, as she confronts her identity and life. Another entry in Director Pablo Larraín's collection of films around tragic women, this time I came into it with little knowledge of the woman in question. I can't say I knew anything about Maria Callas before I heard that Pablo was making this film, though I'm sure I've heard her singing before. It allowed me to entry this film differently than I did Jackie or Spencer . Maybe it was the Parisian setting but I kept thinking of Cleo from 9 to 5. This is very much a "day in the life" type film, even though it spans over the course of a few days. Maria is a fully realized character, even though we meet her at the end of her career. She's addicted to her pain medication, she loves to sing but knows she won't perform. And she goes to restaurants to be adored, damn it! I liked Mar...

Official Synopsis:  A model, Kelly-Anne (Juliette Gariépy)  becomes obsessed with a high-profile murder trial. I think I have a bit of "not like other girls" syndrome when it comes to true crime. I consume a decent amount of it, whether it be documentaries or youtube. But I'm not one of THOSE, right? I don't watch creators who do their makeup while talking about someone's death. I skip episodes that talk about torture in explicit detail. I'm just drawn to mysteries, so I'm not that bad, RIGHT? Red Rooms has made me completely evaluate how (or if) I want to consume true crime in the future. Even days later, I cannot stop thinking about this film. It's easily one of the most horrifying things I've ever seen, and there's not a drop of violence in it. Thankfully, writer/director  Pascal Plante spares us from actually seeing the crimes committed in this film. During the opening scene, a prosecutor summarizes them. At one point, a video is played fo...

Official Synopsis:  A bittersweet memoir of a melancholic woman called Grace Pudel (Sarah Snook) - a hoarder of snails, romance novels, and guinea pigs. I need you to understand how caught off guard I was by this movie. When I received a screener, I saw "Sarah Snook" and "Memoir of a Snail" and was sold on that alone. Cool title, great actress, stop motion. Spectacular. I'm in. Didn't even read the synopsis.  I now feel personally attacked by director Adam Elliott. I couldn't tell you when I started crying while watching this. Definitely early on, but I did not stop until well after the credits rolled. I was not expecting this to be so relentlessly sad.  Even though the film is peppered with some truly hysterical scenes it always comes back to Grace and how alone she is now. I'm not familiar with Elliott's work, it sounds like melancholy is his thing, but at least I know to be prepared next time I watch one of his films. And I will, because tears...

Official Synopsis:  A candid documentary that delves into the life of BTS' leader RM as he navigates global stardom while working on his second solo album, offering an intimate glimpse into his creative journey across multiple cities. While I'm probably not an ARMY level BTS fan, I do enjoy their music and more specifically RM. He's always been my favorite. His solo albums get a lot of play time at my home. As my niece would say, "he's your bias!" So while I don't often watch music documentaries, I was intrigued to see one that follows him. Right People, Wrong Place felt like RM's instagram come to life. His handle is @rkive and that's exactly what this doc is. An archive of moments while finishing his album. There's so many shots of him at various photo shoots. It's visually appealing, albeit a bit repetitive. The commentary he provides during these scenes does elevate it. RM comes across as a very deep thinker. He sits with his moments an...

Official Synopsis:  After a shipwreck, an intelligent robot called Roz is stranded on an uninhabited island. To survive the harsh environment, Roz bonds with the island's animals and cares for an orphaned baby goose. After ages of pestering my son to go to this with me, and him blowing me off because "the book was meh" I finally caught up with Dream Work's newest animated creation. Visually, it's stunning. The world around Roz comes to life and it's easily some of the best animation the studio has done.  Roz would not be nearly as compelling of a character if not for Lupita Nyong'o's lovely voice. What starts as normal robot speak grows more natural as time progresses and Roz changes. Being a mother to a son, I loved that part of this film the most. Pedro Pascal makes for great comic release with his fox character and friend to Roz and her son. I don't know if it was because he was also a fox, but his entire way of speaking reminded me a lot of wha...

I am so out of the loop that I didn't even realize the Globe nominations were yesterday! At least I know I BAFTA, SAG and Oscars are all announced in January. I have a lot to say about the nominations since I missed tweeting about them on Bluesky (Yes, I made the jump from the artist formerly known as Twitter to Blue Sky Same handle. Come find me!) BEST MOTION PICTURE, DRAMA The Brutalist A Complete Unknown Conclave Dune: Part Two Nickel Boys September 5 I've only seen Dune and Nickel Boys from these nominations, but I want to see them all. Hopefully I can before the awards ceremony. BEST MOTION PICTURE, MUSICAL OR COMEDY Anora Challengers Emilia Pérez A Real Pain The Substance Wicked I guess this is Musical, Comedy, and Horror now? I love the Substance so I'm fine with it being here because I legit did get a few laughs from it, but come on now.  BEST DIRECTOR, MOTION PICTURE Jacques Audiard – Emilia Pérez Sean Baker – Anora Edward Berger – Conclave Brady Corbet – The Bruta...

Last week the Independent Spirit Award nominations were announced, but I haven't gotten a chance to talk about them yet. Below is a list of the nominations plus my thoughts. Apologies ahead of time for the weird spacing. I'm traveling this week and can't seem to fix it from my phone.  BEST FEATURE  Anora I Saw the TV Glow Nickel Boys Sing Sing The Substance I've seen all of these except Sing Sing, which I plan on going to as soon as it opens. It's a nice batch of nominees, with Anora and The Substance being my favorites.  BEST FIRST FEATURE   In the Summers Janet Planet The Piano Lesson Problemista The Piano Lesson is the only one I've seen, and that's a great candidate for First Feature. I keep seeing Janet Planet on Delta's in flight movie selection. I'm going to have to pick it when I fly again later in the week.    JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD  – Given to the best feature made for under $1,000,000.  Big Boys Ghostlight Girls Will Be Girls Jazzy The Peop...

Official Synopsis:  Based on the Pulitzer Prize winning novel by Colson Whitehead, Nickel Boys chronicles the powerful friendship between two young African American men navigating the harrowing trials of reform school together in Florida. Director RaMell Ross was already great at capturing a moment in time. We saw this with his Oscar nominated short film Hale County, This Morning, This Evening . Here, he sticks close to his documentary roots and makes the decision to film from a first person POV. The actors are either talking to the camera, or we're sitting directly behind someone's head. It's both a bold and frustrating choice. How you handle the camera work is going to make or break this for you. Having read the book, I knew what I was getting into and I found myself distracted by how I was viewing this story instead of being swept up in the gravity of it all. It dominated all aspects of the film. Yes, the actors were good. The director is talented, but when I think back ...

Official Synopsis:  The story of Claressa 'T-Rex' Shields (Ryan Destiny), a boxer from Flint, Michigan who trained to become the first woman in her country's history to win an Olympic gold medal in the sport. It's fitting that Rachel Morrison, the first woman ever to be nominated for a Cinematography Oscar is centering her directorial debut around another woman who broke barriers. We already know she has a great eye, so it's no surprise that The Fire Inside is shot very well.  Shields' environment is easily told through Morrison's lens. The film doesn't need to rely on a longer prologue into her childhood. The opening tracking shot alone tells us so much.  A good sports movie still keeps you on the edge of your seat even when you know the outcome. But The Fire Inside is about much more than Shields' historic Olympic run. Barry Jenkins' screenplay doesn't end at her first Olympics, but chooses to follow her afterwards, when the brutal realit...