Film Babble Blog Is Back With A Post Summer Report

Hey folks, I’m back from the longest break in Film Babble Blog’s 22-year history. I haven’t posted since the Oscars in March because I’ve been extremely busy with several book projects, one of which, I’m happy to announce, is going to be published by University Press of Mississippi next year: Exile on Mean Street: The Music in Goodfellas and the Films of Martin Scorsese.

The book is an examination of the director’s use of music throughout his entire filmography with the soundtrack of the 1990 mob masterpiece at its center. But when I took a break from the endless writing, re-writing, and editing I saw a number of new movies over the summer so I thought it was time to collect my thoughts on them here.

  

I’ll start with Steven Spielberg’s highly hyped alien conspiracy thriller DISCLOSURE DAY, which opened last June to good reviews and big box office. Now, my all-time favorite Spielberg flick is 1978’s CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND so I was primed to see what some were calling a spiritual sequel, but I have to say I was profoundly disappointed. The story, involving Emily Blunt as a TV meteorologist, and Josh O’Connor as a cybersecurity whistleblower racing to expose proof of extraterrestrial life, was as predictable as it was familiar feeling – we’ve been through all these X-Files-style convolutions before. I mean, the largely forgotten 2011 Simon Pegg comedy PAUL was more enlightening about aliens living among us ’n shit. On the surface, Spielberg’s latest treatise on UFOs is a lively, watchable, well acted, and well made movie, but the 79-year old’s approach to this material is more cute than cutting edge.

Much more successful in its scope and majesty is Christopher Nolan’s THE ODYSSEY, which falls in line with the director’s streak of big-ass, war-minded spectacles like OPPENHEIMER and DUNKIRK. All of the idiotic complaints about the film being “woke” or a “DEI version” of Homer’s epic poem meant nothing to me, as the cast gathered here - Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong’o, Zendaya, and Charlize Theron - were all convincing inhabitants of this mythological world. The imagery in the bombastic battle scenes and the passages involving sea monsters and sirens is incredible - expect an Oscar nom for cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema - and completely worth a high-priced IMAX ticket. But after such a towering achievement as this, I kinda want Nolan to scale way back and maybe make - I dunno - a rom com or some such.

 

Of course, the summer had plenty of sequels and franchise films, but the only ones I saw were Pixar’s TOY STORY 5, and the STAR WARS entry, THE MANDOLORIAN AND GROGU. Andrew Stanton’s newest adventure with Woody (Tom Hanks), Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen), Jessie (Joan Cusack) and all them other wacky toys has a juicy premise involving what happens when playtime meets screen time, as our heroes have to deal with an iPad-type device that threatens their connection to Bonnie and, more ominously, the very idea of kids playing with toys at all. It mostly works and has a lot of laughs—particularly from Conan O’Brien as the toilet-training device Smarty Pants—but there’s some noticeable formula fatigue, and that pesky thought that the series probably should’ve ended with the third one never quite went away. Still, it’s an enjoyable romp all the same.

As for Jon Favreau’s THE MANDALORIAN AND GROGU, it was amusing to see a STAR WARS movie get so little fanfare and come and go so quickly. I barely remember much about it, as it felt like another episode of the show, which I had stopped watching in season two. Having spent a year working on a book about Scorsese, I had to see it, as he has a small part voicing a multi-armed alien fry cook, but while that had its charms, it’s still odd that the legendary director took the role. On a basic level, like SOLO, the movie is a perfectly serviceable sci-fi action flick, but sometimes what happens a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away should stay there.

On my birthday this year (September 9), I wanted to take a break from writing and see something that was purely for fun, so I decided on going to either SPIDER-MAN: BRAND NEW DAY or COYOTE VS. ACME. I chose the latter because I was more curious about director Dave Green’s long-shelved mixture of live action and animation concerning Warner Bros. cartoon characters that the studio had infamously shelved despite the movie being essentially finished. Former SNL cast member and MACGRUBER star Will Forte is perfectly cast as the attorney who takes the Coyote’s case, and the film is enjoyably crammed with cameos and gags from start to finish. I laughed quite a bit and thought I made the right choice, but I still plan to catch up with the latest SPIDER-MAN someday.

Alright, so that’s a handful of the movies I’ve seen lately, but I’ll be back to cover other, less mainstream movies, including some A24 titles. As the more interesting fall movie season is upon us, expect me to not be such a stranger, as Film Babble Blog is back in business.

More later....

2026 Oscars® Recap: Jeez, It's So Much Fun To Not Give Timothée Chalamet An Oscar!

I got my best score in ages guessing 19 out of 24 right of the Academy Awards last night. Was a fun broadcast - Conan killed, and I loved the loose vibe of the whole affair, but damn, why didn't I got with my gut that the Best Picture was going to be the actual best movie of the year: ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER?

I went with my inner rumblings last year with ANORA so I don't know why I wimped out and went with the media sway 'bout a SINNERS sweep. Sigh. For the record, I love SINNERS and am blaring the soundtrack right now, but ONE BATTLE is something other than else and PTA is one of the best filmmakers ever so I'm glad to be wrong.

Anyway, these are the five Oscar predictions I got wrong:

BEST PICTURE: My pick: ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER/What won: SINNERS

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: I guessed Benicio del Toro (maybe because I had a few small beers) for ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER, but the Oscar went to: Sean Penn

I think my biggest takeaway here is that in all the years I've been making these there predicts, I've often counted out those that have won Oscars before. I didn't predict Adrien Brody last year, I discounted Anthony Hopkins a few years ago too - I had the foul idea that these folks wouldn't get the gold multiple times. Next time, I'll rethink this.

BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM: My pick: BUTTERFLY/What won: THE GIRL WHO CRIED PEARLS

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER
BEST CASTING: My pick: SINNERS, Francine Maisler/ What won: Cassandra Kulukundis for ONE BATTLE.

I kinda had the dumb idea that this award was made to honor such ensembles as SINNERS, but damn, Ms. Kulukundis, did really nail it on ONE BATTLE so I will shut up now.

That's it - here's hoping 2026 will have a roster of movies that compares, because this last year is so far my favorite of the 2020s.

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Hey Kids! Funtime 2026 Oscar® Predictions!

Yep, it's that time of year again - the 98th Academy Awards ceremony will go down Sunday evening at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California, and here I am again with my predictions, which I've been doing since the late 2000s. So it seems a dead heat between SINNERS and ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER, and I could be wrong (and often am) but I'm sensing a SINNERS sweep, even though I prefer Paul Thomas Anderson's work there.

That's the tricky part about making these predictions - trying not to pick the ones you want to win, and I've had good scores (my best score was 22 out of 24) with that in mind, but this year seems set to have some upsets. This year was a weird but really good one for film so the only thing I actually feel sure about is that Conan O'Brien as host will be funny AF.

So here goes my predicts:

BEST PICTURE: SINNERS

 

BEST DIRECTOR: Paul Thomas Anderson, ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER 

Yeah, I think SINNERS will win Best Picture, but PTA will finally get his Director due. Like I said, I want ONE BATTLE to get the gold, but this is what I'm feeling right now.

 

BEST ACTOR: Michael B. Jordan (SINNERS)

It's just too much fun to not give Timothy Chamalet this award (I so wanted him to win for his Dylan last year, but not pulling for his this time - MARTY SUPREME was decent, but didn't really resonate with me). Jordan's confident performance (performances?) as twin brothers Smoke and Stack I'm betting will get the gold.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR 

 

Benicio del Toro, ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER  

 

BEST ACTRESS: Jessie Buckley, HAMNET

Her anti-cat comments aside, no other actress moved me more than Buckley in HAMNET. 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Amy Madigan, WEAPONS

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM: KPOP DEMON HUNTERS

BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM: BUTTERFLY

 

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER

BEST COSTUME DESIGN: FRANKENSTEIIN

BEST DOCUMENTARY: MR. NOBODY AGAINST PUTIN

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT: ALL THE EMPTY ROOMS

BEST FILM EDITING: ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER 

BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM: SENTIMENTAL VALUE, Norway

BEST CASTING: SINNERS, Francine Maisler

 

BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING: FRANKENSTEIN, Mike Hill, Jordan Samuel and Cliona Furey

 

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE: SINNERS, Ludwig Goransson

 

BEST ORIGINAL SONG: “Golden” from KPOP DEMON HUNTERS, music and lyric by EJAE, Mark Sonnenblick, Joong Gyu Kwak, Yu Han Lee, Hee Dong Nam, Jeong Hoon Seon and Teddy Park

 

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN: FRANKENSTEIN

BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT: TWO PEOPLE EXCHANGING SALIVA

 

BEST SOUND: F1

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS: AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH

 

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER, written by Paul Thomas Anderson

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: Ryan Coogler, SINNERS

Like I say every year - tune in Monday to see how many I got wrong.

Film Babble Blog's Top 10 Films Of 2025

For most of the last 12 months, I thought of 2025 as a very weird year for film. There were a lot of high-profile flops including one what’s being considered a front runner for the Best Picture Oscar, ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER, but also movies like the MISSION IMPOSSIBLE and TRON sequels, and the SNOW WHITE and THE RUNNING MAN remakes, which all performed poorly while oddly flicks that looked like they might be soulless, cash-grabbing reboots like SUPERMAN, and THE NAKED GUN turned out to be decent crowd-pleasers.

But when it came to the last few months while catching up with many of the year’s releases, which were way less mainstream than those mentioned above, I started thinking of 2025 as a very good, and challenging year for film. There were great political thrillers, moving dramas whether personal or historical (or both), and three films that made my list that had characters named Agnes.

While there are still a number of films I haven’t seen (there always are; you can’t see everything), it’s time to post my personal Top 10 of the year, six of which are Best Picture nominees. So here goes the countdown:

10. NO OTHER CHOICE (Dir. Park Chan-wook)

Nominated for the Best International Film Oscar, this South Korean black comedy, which I've seen some online commentator liken to a mash-up of PARASITE and A SHOCK TO THE SYSTEM is as compelling as it is wickedly amusing from start to finish. 

9. SORRY, BABY (Dir. Eva Victor)

Eva Victor’s impressive directorial debut, which she wrote and stars in, delivers a darkly quirky take on trauma. Victor as a New England graduate student named Agnes, who is sexually assaulted by a professor, puts in a genuine, lived-in performance, and her scenes with her best friend Lydie (an also appealing Naomi Ackie) have an affecting warmth. It’s a shame Academy voters didn’t give SORRY, BABY some love.

8. IT WAS JUST AN ACCIDENT (Dir. Jafar Panahi)

Made by an filmmaker who’s been imprisoned for creating what the Iranian government considered “propaganda against the regime,” this edgy thriller about a group of former political prisoners, who are caught up in the dilemma of thinking they’ve caught their torturer, but aren’t completely certain. Secretly shot in Iran, Jafar Panahi’s weighty materiual here is definitely worthy of both its Best International Film Oscar nom, as well as for Best Screenplay.

7. SINNERS (Dir. Ryan Coogler)

Receiving a record-breaking 16 Oscar nominations, Ryan Cooglar’s supernatural thriller SINNERS made for a better, more thoughtful, though equally twisted, take on the FROM DUSK TO DAWN scenario mixed with the CROSSROADS deal with the devil to great impact. As it was a big office hit with great critical acclaim, it’s due to take home quite a bit of gold on March 15. Michael B. Jordan has some stiff competition (DiCaprio, Chalamet) in the Best Acting category, but for his killer double turn as the Smokestack Twins, he could well pull off an upset.

6. THE SECRET AGENT (Dir. Kleber Mendonça Filho)

This thoroughly engaging political thriller - yes, another political thriller - got four Academy Award noms last week, for both Best Picture, and Best International Feature Film then Best Actor for Wagner Moura, and in the new category of Best Casting. Set in 1977 during the height of Brazil’s military dictatorship, the film features Moura as a research scientist on the run from hitman as he attempts to flee the country with his son, and it grips from the get-go. 

5. HAMNET (Dir. Chloé Zhao)

The absolute antithesis of John Madden’s 1998 historical rom com SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE (which won seven Oscars!), this emotionally-driven adaptation of Maggie O’Farrell’s 2020 novel of the same name is a haunting experience, especially in its heart-wrenching last third. Paul Mescal and Jessie Buckley star as William and Agnes Shakespeare, with the film focusing on the birth of their children, and subsequent death of their son Hamnet at age 11. The channeling of this tragedy into art, as seen through Agnes’ reaction is stirringly transcendent, and I believe Buckley should be handed the Best Actress statue for her performance. HAMNET got eight Oscar noms (including Best Picture) so here's hoping that happens.

4. TIE: BLUE MOON / NOUVELLE VAGUE (Dir. Richard Linklater)

This may seem like a cheat, but I truly equally enjoyed Richard Linklater's two period piece offerings this last year, and am especially glad that Ethan Hawke got nominated for his terrific turn as famed lyricist/songwriter Lorenz Hart though I doubt he'll win. The Broadway set BLUE MOON concerns Hart on the opening night of his former writing partner Richard Rodgers’ musical Oklahoma! in 1943, while NOUVELLE VAGUE is about the making of Jean-Luc Godard’s French New Wave classic BREATHLESS in 1959. Both films are loving, and ultra charming tributes to innovative artists, and their eras, and both should not be missed.

3. SENTIMENTAL VALUE (Dir. Joachim Trier)

Joachim Trier’s touching drama about an acclaimed filmmaker portrayed by Stellan Skarsgård hoping to reconnect with his daughters, Nora (Renate Reinsve), and Agnes (Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas) via a new film project that he wants Nora to star in. Elle Fanning, who got one of the film’s nine nominations, appears as an American actress who takes on the role when Nora refuses. Like HAMNET it explores handling tragic loss through artistic expression, but in a vastly different manner. Trier's work has artsy elements but handles them unpretentiously, and with an absorbing elegance. 

2. TRAIN DREAMS (Dir. Clint Bentley)

This is absolutely the best film I’ve ever seen about grief, which, I have to admit, I really didn’t understand until losing my father last April. In Clint Bentley’s adaptation of Denis Johnson’s 2011 novella, Joel Edgerton plays Idaho logger and railroad worker Robert Grainier, who loses his wife (Felicity Jones), and child in a forest fire and has to navigate through a lonely existence. Evocatively ghosty, with unforgettable vivid imagery, TRAIN DREAMS definitely got to me, and here's hoping more folks seek it out on Netflix.

1. ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER

(Dir. Paul Thomas Anderson)

While it underperformed at the box office, Paul Thomas Anderson’s 1oth feature is one of the most acclaimed movies of 2025, and I’m among the many who have praised it as I voted for it for Best Picture in the year-end poll for the North Carolina Film Critics Association (NCFCA). Leonardo DiCaprio as a burned-out ex revolutionary heads the strong cast including Teyana Taylor, Benicio del Toro, and a crusty AF Sean Penn as the scary Col. Steven J. Lockjaw in this twisted chaotic and comic action thriller that finds Anderson at the top of his game. With 13 noms, it's second in nominations to SINNERS, but I’m pulling for it to take home the big ones. With nearly a dozen noms but no wins, it really feels with this extraordinary piece of work like it’s finally PTA’s time.

Now, I’ll leave you with this hilarious commercial parody, featuring host Teyana Taylor, from last weekend's Saturday Night Live for a line of ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER action figures new from Mattel:

More later...

The New Springsteen Biopic: Flawed, Downbeat, But Still Delivers

 Now playing at a multiplex near everybody:

SPRINGSTEEN: DELIVER ME FROM NOWHERE
(Dir. Scott Cooper, 2025)

 

Like James Mangold’s A COMPLETE UNKNOWN, Scott Cooper’s new Bruce Springsteen drama is a specific biopic, centering on a crucial period instead of a full career overview. Based on Warren Zanes’ 2023 book of the same name, the narrative concerns the making of the Boss’s classic 1982 album, Nebraska, which was a departure for the artist; a spare, haunting acoustic album that was in a different world from the radio hits, and arena anthems, which had previously dominated his discography.

 

Jeremy Allen White (Shameless, The Bear) fills Springsteen’s shoes admirably, giving an intensely troubled performance as a man who, as Bruce would say is “livin’ in his own skin, and can’t stand the company.” After coming off a huge stadium tour for his best-selling double album, The River, which yielded his first top 10 single “Hungry Heart,” the musician finds himself wanting to explore a different direction.

That involved recording some spare demos on a crude four-track cassette recorder in a rented house in Colt’s Neck, New Jersey, where he tells engineer Mike Batlan (Paul Hauser), “It doesn’t have to be perfect, I want it to feel like I’m in the room by myself.” Meanwhile, Springsteen’s stoical manager, Jon Landau (Jeremy Strong), fends off CBS Records exec Al Teller (David Krumholtz), who wants something more commercial as the singer-songwriter is on the verge of superstardom.

 

Interspersed throughout the movie are black and white flashbacks depicting Springsteen’s father Douglas (Stephen Graham), abusing him, and his mother, Adele (Gaby Hoffmann), which inform our protagonist’s writing as does a book of Flannery O’Conner’s work, and, more importantly, his coming across Terrence Mallick’s 1973 crime classic BADLANDS on TV. This inspired Nebraska’s title track, told in the voice of serial killer, Charles Starkweather, while the record’s other songs illustrated the desperate musings of a cast of guilt-ridden outsiders fighting interpersonal demons.

 

The biggest liberty that Cooper’s screenplay takes with Springsteen’s story is the addition of a fictitious girlfriend, Faye Romano, played by Odessa Young. As a Jersey Girl, who is a single mother working as a waitress in a diner named Frankie’s, Faye seems like should could’ve been a subject of one the Boss’s ‘70s songs, and Young puts in an affecting turn as the fan turned love interest on the side, but I’m not sure it was a necessary element in this scenario. Yet the couple’s scenes did get to me a bit emotionally (yeah, I teared up a few times) so I’m not complaining. Word is that the character is a composite based on a few women that the real Boss admits now that he ghosted at the time.

 

As a musical biopic largely dealing with depression over daddy issues, this lowkey, downbeat treatise is more like Bill Pohlad’s 2014 Brian Wilson biopic, LOVE AND MERCY, than it is like A COMPLETE UNKNOWN. Despite a few loud concert scenes, it’s mostly a downbeat, introspective affair, much like the album it centers on, with some of its best moments being about Springsteen’s friendship with Landau.

White’s immersion into the character isn’t as invested, and surprising as Timothy Chamalet’s turn as Dylan last year (or as Oscar-worthy), but he’s pretty damn convincing nevertheless as he consistently nails the nuances of the legendary musician, and his vocals on a bunch of the Boss’s very well known (and very well worn) iconic tunes.

 

While the soundtrack is mostly made of White’s vocals, Springsteen’s can be heard a number of times throughout the film, but, even as a big fan, there were times I wasn’t sure who I was hearing at times, which means for me, they really pulled off the conceit.

I bet other, more hardcore fans may be less impressed, but, while it has some over simplistic dialogue, a few predictable story beats, and some cringy clichés (though of the sort that are unavoidable in biopic formulas); DELIVER ME FROM NOWHERE is overall a stirringly poignant portrait of an incredible (and incredibly sensitive) artist at the crossroads of fame, and finding oneself.

More later... 

SPINAL TAP II: Fairly Funny But No Instant Comedy Classic

SPINAL TAP II: THE END CONTINUES
(Dir. Rob Reiner, 2025)

Okay, let’s get this out of the way. I haven’t even looked at other reviews yet, but I know many of them are going to address whether or not this movie goes to 11. Of course, this refers to the famous scene in the 1984 comedy masterpiece, THIS IS SPINAL TAP, in which lead guitarist, Nigel Tufnel (Christopher Guest) explains that his amplifier’s volume knob goes one louder than most amps. So, I’ll say upfront that, no, the new sequel, SPINAL TAP II: THE END CONTINUES, doesn’t go to 11, but it’s a solid seven. 

 

Reprising his role as filmmaker Marty Di Bergi, Rob Reiner brings us up to date on the career of Spinal Tap in the 40 years since the original as Britain’s loudest band is lured out of retirement for one last concert, a contractual obligation to their deceased manager Ian Faith (played in the first film by Tony Hendra, who passed in 2021). While the band had performed some high-profile gigs – Wembley Stadium, Royal Albert Hall, and Glastonbury (these were real concerts) in the following decades, they had a falling out, and haven’t spoken in 15 years.

 

In the meantime, David St. Hubbins (Michael McKean) composed instrumentals for podcasts and for telephone hold music; Nigel Tufnel runs a cheese and guitar shop with his girlfriend Moira (Nina Conti), and Derek Smalls (Harry Shearer) curates a glue museum. There’s friction when the three re-unite for their show at New Orleans’ Lakefront Arena, which continues into their rehearsals that make up the bulk of the film.

 

That’s what there is of the plot, but is it funny? Well, yes, though I mildly chuckled more than laughed out loud. Most of the proceedings left me with a smirk as Reiner, who co-wrote with Guest, McKean, and Shearer reassemble many of the beats from the original, and catch us up with what happened to a number of their supporting players, including Fran Drescher as Bobbie Flekman, Paul Shaffer as Artie Fufkin, and June Chadwick as St. Hubbins’ ex-wife, Jeanine Pettibone.

As I’ve been a huge fan since seeing THIS IS SPINAL TAP on opening night at the Varsity Theater in Chapel Hill in 1984, I had fun seeing these people again, and had a warm, fuzzy feeling when lines landed, but also felt some cringe when things were more awkward than amusing.

One thread that didn’t exactly kill was the new character of concert promoter Simon Howler (Chris Addison), who is clinically unable to appreciate music. This premise doesn’t pay off, and the conclusion to the character’s screen-time is far from satisfying. Spinal Tap’s young new drummer, Didi Crockett (Valerie Franco) is affably spunky but also doesn’t fare as very funny, but they didn’t give her much to do except when it comes to the climatic concert sequence. 

Faring better are cameos, as a scene featuring Sir Paul McCartney joining Spinal Tap in the studio for a rendition of their faux ‘60s song, “Cups and Cakes.” St. Hubbins’ reaction afterward is hilarious as he feels the famous former Beatle has a “toxic personality.”  Elton John’s appearance isn’t as funny, but he brings it onstage for the big “Stonehenge” finale where they finally have the right size dimensions for the stage prop.

As a fairly funny film, SPINAL TAP II: THE END CONTINUES does continue the vibe of its predecessor, but it’s a little too loose and lazy to come anywhere close to the original’s comedy classic status. Mileage will vary on how big a fan of the fake band one is, as so much of the sequel relies on how well one knows what went down the first time.

I liked, but didn’t love what Reiner, Guest, McKean, and Shearer did here, but it’s still better than I expected. It’s great that this and the NAKED GUN reboot (which honestly is much funnier), are showing that comedy can make a comeback to the movies, so here’s hoping that’s what will really continue.

More later...

STEALING PULP FICTION: What The Hell Is This Movie?

STEALING PULP FICTION
(Dir. Danny Turkiewicz, 2024)

So I haven’t been babbling ‘bout movies in a while because I’m finishing work on a book project, but I’ve been wanting to get back into it so I decided that I’d view, and review a new film that’s opening today in select theaters, and debuting on digital platforms. It’s a heist comedy about a couple of quirky, dorky guys who plot to steal Quentin Tarantino’s personal 35mm print of his 1994 classic PULP FICTION.

The leads are somewhat familiar faces as Jon Rudnitsky was a featured player on Saturday Night Live a decade ago, and Karan Soni plays the Indian taxi driver in the DEADPOOL movies. We are introduced to them in a prologue that is identified with white on black titles as “Pun-Themed Businesses.” This is a Seinfeld-ian exchange over drinks at the 321 Club in Los Angeles, where the duo propose ideas about an oyster bar called “Ah, Shucks,” and a royal-themed oxygen bar called “Air to the Throne.”

Yeah, this opening bit sets the tone – for better or for worse – and we go from there to accompany them to a midnight showing of PULP FICTION at a Tarantino-owned theater, and over burgers after the screening, they hatch the idea for the theft of the film reels, which they plan to sell (“It’s as valuable as gold,” Rudnitsky says).

The constantly quipping duo decide they need a third so they rope in their eye-rolling friend, Elizabeth (Cazzie David), despite the fact that she hates Tarantino (“He is misogynistic, foot-fetished freak, who doesn’t let the women in his films speak”). Then there’s the surprising addition to the caper of Jason Alexander, the only real name in this movie, as the guys’ therapist, who is going through marital problems, and it’s odd to seem him try to match Rudnitsky and Soni’s weird energy in the most un-George Constanza manner he can render.

Now this way this whole deal plays out is really dumb, and feels on-the-fly, improvised, and oddly self-satisfied, and just when I thought it couldn’t get any stupider, boy does it.

This largely happens when an actor (Seager Tennis) playing “Quentin Fuckin’ Tarantino” (that’s how he’s credited) shows up, who is made to look like him with a prosthetic chin, and is portrayed as angrily obnoxious, which reduces who is supposed to be celebrated here into a grotesque caricature.

Okay, I’m tired of writing about the plot. I was pretty baffled, and stupefied by this flick, which has a really short running time of only 78 minutes, even though it’s padded with things like unnecessary tennis, and on overly long dance scene finale. That last part is actually one of the funnier things in the film as the laconic Elizabeth character just stands there unengaged, with her arms folded while everybody around her makes a fool of themselves on the dance floor to Tina Charles’ “I Love to Love.”

You know, actually the film’s soundtrack, which of course riffs on Tarantino’s love of ‘70s soul, is pretty good with its use of Keith Mansfield’s 1969 instrumental “Funky Fanfare,” you know, the snazzy music that was used for the “Our Feature Presentation” title cards with the psychedelic background back in the day.

Thing is, the thought I kept having while watching STEALING PULP FICTION is what the hell is this movie? It’s such a goofy, half-assed endeavor dominated by the smug-ass Rudnitsky, who seems high on his own vibe, and it doesn’t really have anything to say about Tarantino’s masterwork that it can’t even dream of holding a candle too. But it is breezy, and watchable if you are looking for an hour and a half of idiocy, which is the only way I’d ever recommend it.

These guys – writer, director Turkiewicz; Rudnitsky, and Soni – do have some spunk in this junk, and I didn’t walk away disliking them, but damn, whatta really stupidly strange experience this is. I mean, nice try I guess, but how about making a real movie next time?

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Tears In The Rain: A Tribute To My Father's Favorite Film

This post is dedicated to my father, Charles Sidney Johnson (March 7, 1936-April 28, 2025)

Okay, lemme backtrack a bit. My dad was a chemistry professor at UNC in the ‘70s. He had two kids, with the second one being particularly unbearable because he was a pop culture-addict, and would die if he wasn’t taken to whatever was the big new movie that was coming out on opening weekend, who would throw a fit if he wasn’t allowed to stay up to watch SNL, and who he had to fork over a considerable amount of his paycheck to buy STAR WARS toys for. 

You see, my father was a lover of science fiction – real science fiction like Stanislaw Lem, Arthur C. Clarke, Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asimov, and Philip K. Dick. To him, STAR WARS was a pop bubblegum version of sci-fi so he relentlessly (and righteously) made fun of it a lot. Then, it hurt my prepubescent feelings, but now I find it hilarious. I remember when THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK came out in 1980, he said, “Oh great, they added a Muppet.” But BLADE RUNNER was different.

 

Ridley Scott’s 1982 adaptation of Phillip K. Dick’s 1968 novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? is now considered a classic, but it took a while. When BLADE RUNNER first came out it was buried at the box office during a summer crowded by the likes of E.T., STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN, THE THING, ROCKY III, and POLTERGEIST, with even f-in’ TRON making more money than it did. 

 

At first, my parents didn’t want to take me to see BLADE RUNNER because it was R-Rated, but they relented and I went to see it with my friend Jimmy, and his parents at one of the worst theaters in history, the now long-gone Ram Triple Theatres in downtown Chapel Hill, North Carolina. As a 12-year old, I found the film a bit draggy, and while the city imagery was cool looking there were some bad effects like wires clearly being seen in one shot with the flying cop car.

 

I watched it with my dad for the first time when it came on HBO in 1983, and appreciated it a little more, but my dad absolutely loved it. Over the years, the movie gained stature via runs on cable and videocassette rentals and developed quite a following, particularly in nerd-centric communities. BLADE RUNNER’s reputation intensified when the 1992 Director’s Cut, which did a number of things to clarify plot points (and they fixed that flying car shot) was released theatrically, and that’s when my dad declared the movie to be his all-time favorite film.

 

I remember it distinctly. It was at a dinner at my parent’s house with my mother, her mother (my grandmother, Lilian) and my then girlfriend, where, upon talking about the then recently released Director’s Cut, that my dad declared that BLADE RUNNER was in his opinion, the greatest movie ever, and then he quoted the speech that one of the film’s characters gave at the end:

 

“I’ve seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off (the) shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain. Time to die.”

 

Now, I’ve never known my dad to ever quote movie dialogue – like, I don’t remember him ever saying “may the force be with you” – but his recitation of what has come to be known as the “tears in the rain” speech, I’ll never forget. And, I didn’t know this until now, the speech has its own f-in’ Wikipedia page. It’s that iconic.

 

In 2007, yet another version of BLADE RUNNER was released, THE FINAL CUT. I went with my father to see it at the Carolina Theatre in downtown Durham, and the experience was wonderful. It was very special for a number of reasons as the screening was of one of only four 35MM prints in an extremely limited run, it was the first time I’d seen the movie on the big screen since 1982, and, yes, mainly because I was seeing the film with my dad, who had not wavered in considering it a masterpiece.

 

I remember when it started, right as the vivid imagery hit the screen, he said, “wow, it’s like a time machine.” 

 

BLADE RUNNER will always be a crucial, touchstone film for me largely because of my father. It served as the connective tissue between my STAR WARS loving kid self and the more thoughtful film lover I like to see myself as now.

My dad scoffed at the silly space fantasy of George Lucas’s creation, but I know he acknowledged that, without it, such a cerebral sci fi film as BLADE RUNNER wouldn’t have been made. I mean, it got financing from having one of the stars of STAR WARS as its lead!

 

As I am heavily dealing with the death of my dad, I thought I’d share on my film blog my recollections of his favorite film, which I’m about to go watch again. I’m not sure which version as there are five: the Theatrical Cut, the International Cut, the Unrated cut, the Director’s Cut, and the Final Cut. I really don’t think it matters, because as the George Harrison song goes, “any road will take you there.”

More later...

Full Frame 2025: Day Four

Full Frame 2025 wraps up at the Carolina Theatre in Durham, North Carolina, last Sunday night.

This is my third and final post about the 27th annual Full Frame Documentary Film Festival which took place last weekend. I only have a few more films to babble about, from day four, and these are quicker takes than before as I’m pretty exhausted, and overstuffed with  all the non-fiction infotainment I devoured, as well as the multiple trips to downtown Durham.

My Sunday morning began with Alix Blair’s HELEN AND THE BEAR, which concerns the marriage between Helen Hooper (nicknamed “Helen”) and Pete McCloskey (nicknamed “The Bear”). McCloskey, who passed away last year at age 96, was a Republican politician that ran for President against Richard Nixon in 1972; Hooper, who is 26 years younger, was a free-spirited hippy during that era (and still is today), but their shared love of nature, the environment, and conservation brought them together. 

Hooper’s diary entries, old photos, and home movies give us fleeting bits of back story, but Blair’s doc largely focuses on the 70-year old dealing with her partner’s imminent death after suffering a stroke. Helen’s reflections on the couple’s ups and downs, including her affair with a woman, whose face is blurred in pictures from decades ago, are touchingly free from sentiment, and emphasize how full of contradictions, and complicated this lady is. A lovely, and lovingly shot portrait of love that’s gone through the wringer.

Next up, I took in a doc short: Alison McAlpine’s PERFECTLY A STRANGENESS, which was presented with the Full Frame Jury Award for Best Short at the Awards Barbeque at the Durham Armory around noon today. 

The 15-minute film features wide shot cinematography that beautifully captures three donkeys walking around an abandoned astronomical observatory (Chile’s La Silla). A visually poetic experience in which nothing much happens, but it's immersive nonetheless.

The last film that I saw at Full Frame was Jennifer Tiexiera, and Guy Mossman’s SPEAK., which received the Kathleen Bryan Edwards Award for Human Rights earlier that day. The film, which was screened on Saturday and given a Sunday evening encore after its win, follows five teenagers (Esther, Mfaz, Sam, Noah, and Noor) as they prepare to compete for the National Speech & Debate Association (NSDA).

It’s fun to watch these kids try to perfect their public speaking skills on such subjects as the stigma of being handicapped, LGBTQ rights, and suicide, with Esther, a child of Nigerian immigrants and the two-time national champion, stealing the doc at every turn. Though it doesn’t go very deep, it was nice to end the fest with such an uplifting, funny, and overall good feeling doc about determination.

So that’s Full Frame 2025! There are many other docs from the fest I didn’t get to like THE WHITE HOUSE EFFECT, SEEDS. THE PERFECT NEIGHBOR, COEXISTENCE, MY ASS, COME SEE ME IN THE GOOD LIGHT, and many others that I look forward to seeing in the days to come.

More later...