Week Ending 10/13/23
Let's go Sabres.
Hockey is back. The Sabres are the youngest team in the league again and … they looked it in the home opener. Peterka was flying. Greenway was all over the ice. Benson got his first game under his belt. And EJ hit a post. Sadly, besides that, it was all Rangers—scoring and blocking. Zero answers for it. Ah well.
Another season started too, though: FYC season. A link for BLACKBERRY arrived as the first official unsolicited offering (I liked it a lot when it released earlier in the year) and Netflix has begun their yearly in-person Buffalo screening schedule. I’ve unfortunately not been able to partake in the latter yet due to work continuing to kick my butt. Thankfully, the two that screened already have either hit the streaming service (FAIR GAME) or will soon (NYAD). Fingers crossed I have time for THE KILLER in a couple weeks. Fincher on the big screen is tough to ignore.
And while it’s nice Apple is entering the equation with an early look at Scorsese’s KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON next week, it’s opening almost every theater in Buffalo on 10/20. That’s wild for a three-and-a-half-hour film. Would be cool if it somehow reaches OPPENHEIMER box office numbers as a result.
What I Watched:
CAT PERSON
(now in limited release)
I honestly don’t know what the hoopla was surrounding Kristen Roupenian’s short story CAT PERSON back in 2017. I try to avoid situations when people get so up in arms about a meme that they’re willing to dig trenches in the name of their polarizing view of it. So, I’m coming at it from a completely untainted perspective as far as that conversation went when I say it was … fine. Good even. It presents a seemingly “normal” (albeit unorthodox) relationship scenario that becomes warped by the inherent power dynamic shifts within. How does fear and paranoia dictate actions as a result? Could honesty sometimes make things worse?
Director Susanna Fogel and screenwriter Michelle Ashford cinematic adaptation understands those questions and seeks to answer them too. They go so far as to drop a bomb any time the original short story allowed for nuance, turning a rather straightforward narrative that gets its point across via character reactions alone into a comic thriller that creates a new character with which to ensure its intentions are screamed from the top of its soapbox. And while my saying that makes it appear like I think it’s an utter failure: I don’t. As an eighty-minute transformation across artistic mediums, it’s actually quite effective.
Here’s the issue: CAT PERSON isn’t an eighty-minute film. It’s two hours long. And while the extra stuff added in to stretch Roupenian’s words to that eighty-minute mark are interesting in their ability to both question and critique the text, the third act is bonkers in its intentional decision to turn the whole into an exploitative scree that may tip so far over the line as to mock PC-culture and completely subvert the otherwise complex nature of the romance between twenty-year-old Margot (Emilia Jones) and thirty-something Robert (Nicholas Braun). To quote the later, “It’s not a vampire film.”
My assumption here—having not been involved in that conversation six years ago—is that Fogel and Ashford are injecting the fervor surrounding the viral response into the text too. While adding things like Margot’s feminist forum moderator, hermit BFF (Geraldine Viswanathan’s Taylor) or her mother’s (Hope Davis) creepy birthday celebration for her stepfather (Christopher Shyer) or her professor’s (Isabella Rossellini) ant colony work because they’re woven into the existing plot (even if they feel a bit forced), the third act is an entirely different beast consisting of the discordant philosophical demands the internet surely projected upon it.
So, maybe I’d have enjoyed that choice more if I was more aware of what actually happened to make the world take notice in 2017. As is, however, it did lose me somewhat since it more or less takes a perfect ending (the weight of Roupenian’s closing quote as both a mark of finality and open-ended debate starter where intent, emotion, and pettiness are concerned truly sold the piece for me) and drags it through the muddy waters of loud personalities on both sides of a topic that loses impact as a result of that volume. Not enough to make me sour on the whole, but enough to give me pause.
Because outside that new conclusion, CAT PERSON does what it must to be effective. It amps up the awkwardness of Margot and Robert’s courtship and refuses to shy from the mortifying sexual experiences that result. Both Jones and Braun are all-in on that perspective, bringing the duality of shared moments and hyper fixation born from desire to life in relatably funny and cringeworthy fashion. Did Fogel and Ashford have to go so hard to drive things home? Considering the rise in toxic masculinity and sexual abuse in this country, maybe they did. I simply think the short is better for not sensationalizing things so blatantly.
- 6/10
DARK HARVEST
(now on VOD/Digital HD)
“Does it even matter anymore?” It’s a simple line and yet it provides more context for why an unnamed Midwestern hamlet continues to force its boys, aged 16-19, into the night to hunt a monster every Halloween than Norman Partridge’s original novel does. It’s not necessarily an answer, but it is an acknowledgement. And that’s really all readers of DARK HARVEST need to accept the fact that this open-air prison is feasibly built to last. Because you can’t get to the end of the book and not shake your head in bewilderment as it concerns everyone just staying without questioning why. Fear ultimately proves as good a reason as any.
Is it fear of the dust bowl that will destroy their corn crops as created by screenwriter Michael Gilio? Or the fear of knowing no one who leaves ever lives very long afterwards—if they’re ever heard from again? It’s probably a mixture of both. So, we suspend our disbelief and let it happen. Let these people have their debauched night of violence to keep the cycle going. Let them crown a winner and send him off with permission to exit their imaginary city limits. It’s the least they can do to reward the teenager who saves them for another year. If you kill Sawtooth Jack (Dustin Ceithamer), you can do whatever you want.
What I really enjoyed from the book was its unapologetic tone. There are many issues (the biggest two being the aforementioned “why” behind the ritual and the decision to use second person point-of-view in the narration without ever revealing who the narrator is or why he can speak to us considering who we’re supposed to assume we are), but Partridge never lets up on the edgelord attitude of it all. So, it’s nice to see that director David Slade keeps it intact despite the many changes Gilio makes to the text itself (some welcome insofar as condensing characters, some not so much). The deaths on-screen are gloriously brutal.
But that’s not the only reason we’re here. There does need to be a captivating story too. And, for the most part, that fiction comes directly from the book (until the end). Jim Shephard (Britain Dalton) is last year’s champion, smashing the October Boy monstrosity in its pumpkin skull so all the other teen boys can eat the candy spilling out from its lifeless corpse (since they’ve all been starved three days to increase their aggression and need for victory). A year goes by and the time to do it all over again arrives. Instead of Pete McCormick being our protagonist, however, we’re given Jim’s younger brother Richie (Casey Likes).
The reasons for the change are sound—especially where it concerns the secret held by the so-called Harvesters Guild. Whether its facilitation of a very PURGE-like atmosphere (in large-part augmented by a 1960s-by-way-of-WEST SIDE STORY setting) was part of that decision is for the filmmakers to admit, but I’m sure it helped. For me, though, it’s about the angst. Richie misses his brother. He feels slighted that he can’t compete since the family wins money and a car, so two kids winning isn’t really fair. He has a chip on his shoulder to prove he’s both as good as Jim and that Jim was just a regular kid anyway. He’s not some folk hero.
Richie’s journey is very similar to Pete’s in the book. Even down to having a teen girl (Emyri Crutchfield’s Kelly) by his side for a good portion despite girls not being allowed to participate in the “run.” Their relationship pivots from pure survival to romance, but that neither helps nor harms the overall vibe. Making her Black to amp up racial tensions and skew closer to that PURGE white supremacy, however, is an interesting and loaded choice to make. The same with Richie’s friend Bud (Alejandro Akara) being Mexican. This is one case where it does seem the film is forcing itself into a conversation solely in hopes of that conversation helping its box office.
Jeremy Davies as Mr. Shepard is great casting if you know the trajectory of that character from the book (albeit with a couple changes of its own courtesy of Ezra Buzzington’s mysterious “Farmer”). And Likes and Crutchfield are very good as the leading duo. We want them to win and escape this place. For my money, though, the real star of the show is Luke Kirby’s Officer Ricks. Boy, oh boy. I don’t know what he’s doing, but it is a hoot. Kelly says it best when describing him as only having “one gear.” He’s supposed to be authoritative and scary, but you can’t help laughing because the performance so over-the-top—but in the best way.
All in all: I had fun. Slade is going super dark, but also super corny with the period flair. Think a horror riff on GREASE with Partridge’s Bram Stoker Award-winning plot as its scaffolding. I won’t lie and say I’m surprised it’s taken so long to find release, though. You definitely have to be on its wavelength to enjoy it. Initially slated to drop September 2021, COVID postponed the production start to August 2021. Then its release date of September 2022 eventually got pulled too—presumably due to the MGM/Amazon merger. But maybe it’s all for the better. What horror film doesn’t want a Friday the 13th opening?
- 6/10
DIVINITY
(now in limited release)
How do you define immortality? Is it the continuation of your body and mind in physical form? Or is it the legacy you leave behind? Those are the questions at the back of Eddie Alcazar’s DIVINITY since the world he created presents humanity that very choice: live forever by consuming the titular drug while becoming infertile or accept your mortality and maintain the opportunity to create new life. No one should be surprised to learn that most choose option number one.
The result is a dying planet both because new generations are no longer being born and because Jaxxon Pierce (Stephen Dorff) was only able to see his late father’s (Scott Bakula’s Sterling) invention come to half fruition. While he cracked the code of Divinity ceasing all biological degradation (and, even more, augmenting the body’s capability so the population can be overrun by muscle-bound behemoths), he still can’t figure out how to do the same with the mind. So, while everyone looks to be in their prime for perpetuity, who they are inside ages just the same.
As such, someone or something must put an end to this destructive cycle or watch mankind go extinct upon a pile of perfectly preserved physiques. Rather than a flood, the universe inexplicably sends two stars (Moises Arias and Jason Genao) to Earth instead. These brothers, in awe of life as a human, look to fulfill their goal by hooking Jaxxon up to his own, undistilled product with severe looks and the deadpan delivery that doing so will “save” him. He, of course, begs to differ—imploring them to let him go before the toxicity kills him. What Jaxxon sees as death, however, the brothers call rebirth.
If that all sounds a bit out-there, it’s because it most definitely is. And I haven’t even mentioned Ziva (Bella Thorne) and her group of angel-like apparitions that represent the handful of fertile women who still live. Shot on Kodak film in black and white (with a special format Alcazar says they made for him), the gorgeous low-fi effects enhance this other-worldly sense of surreal insanity with deep shadows, blinding highlights, and a fantastic cat’s eye glow from those whose minds have been opened to the wonders of the galaxy.
Add a Christ-like (Mary?) figure in Karrueche Tran’s Nikita, a prehistoric embodiment of power over thought via Jaxxon’s brother Rip (Michael O'Hearn), and an impressively orchestrated, climactic stop-motion battle that feels right in-line with everything else due to the consistent hazy grain of the stock and DIVINITY will not be something you can soon forget. It’s not action-packed despite all that, but it’s never boring. Not if you open yourself to its themes of awakening where the star brothers, Nikita, and Ziva are concerned.
I’ve seen comparisons to David Cronenberg and David Lynch and they are definitely present considering the body horror element and esoteric vibes. But I don’t necessarily know if they are apt beyond aesthetic purposes. To me it’s more aligned with an acid trip a la AFTER BLUE (DIRTY PARADISE)—a film I admit to finding much more style than substance. DIVINITY will surely have others thinking the same about it, but I personally liked it a lot more. Perhaps because its narrative is more straightforward in its messaging while still being just as bizarre.
- 7/10
PETER & THE WOLF
(streaming on Max from 10/19)
Written in 1936, Sergei Prokofiev’s PETER AND THE WOLF uses its children’s tale to introduce a young audience to the orchestral wonders of each instrument used to create a theme around its characters. I have no recollection of ever reading, watching, or hearing the piece whatsoever and yet its ubiquity has made it so I know the main segment (“Peter”) very well. The moment it starts playing in Elliot Dear and Stephen McNally new animated short, my ears couldn’t help but perk up.
Inspired by a 2003 box set collaboration between Gavin Friday (who narrates), Maurice Seezer (who arranged the music) and Bono (who illustrates with daughters Jordan and Eve Hewson), the thirty-minute piece brings the charitable enterprise to the masses—complete with a continued relationship with the Irish Hospice Foundation. The style is much more polished than the U2 frontman’s original drawings, but his line work does play a role nonetheless … especially where it concerns the wolf.
The film’s animation is a decent hybrid between hand-drawn and computer-generated with sets and (most) objects rendered with the latter and characters moving above them via the former. There’s Peter, Bird, Duck, Cat, Grandfather, and Wolf all living in close proximity around a stone fenced home within a forested meadow. While the whole feels familiar in many regards (save the black and white monochrome augmented by splashes of red), the real intrigue lies in the superimposition of Bono’s zigzag-toothed wolf upon the figure itself as a sort of mask manifested by Peter’s fear.
With notions of love and loss firmly at the forefront, it’s not until the boy realizes what the wolf is to her own family that he understands the nuance of what it means to be a “protector” and how defense can be construed as aggressive. Just because she might kill and snarl doesn’t necessarily mean she’s bad, though. It doesn’t mean she has to die at the hands of hunters who want nothing more than to parade her corpse around town. So, with a little ingenuity, Peter might just be able to ensure they can’t.
Bookended by Bono himself painting upon vertical glass, I would have liked other “behind the curtain” looks. Maybe show the orchestra and highlight the instruments rather than simply letting their respective themes be drowned out by effects? (Although Duck provides some excellent physical comedy.) Friday’s sunglass-wearing bug of a narrator is a nice bit of flair, but the rest can almost feel too safe at times. Not that it isn’t still quite lovely. I just must wonder if it being tailor-made for an Oscar nomination on celebrity power alone doesn’t also expose a missed opportunity for more.
- 7/10
Cinematic F-Bombs:
This week saw LA BAMBA (1987), FRONTERA (2014), KILLERS (2010), PULSE (2006), and THE SKELETON KEY (2005) added to the archive. Feels nice to add a Criterion Collection title to the site courtesy of Esai Morales’ twofer in LA BAMBA. I just can’t figure out how to alphabetize it in the index. It should go under “B”. But I could totally see Americans getting confused since it’s always been known by its “full” Spanish name. No one would think to ever drop the article. cinematicfbombs.com
New Releases This Week:
(Review links where applicable)
Opening Buffalo-area theaters 10/13/23 -
MAD at Regal Elmwood
MR. JIMMY at North Park Theatre
TAYLOR SWIFT | THE ERAS TOUR at Dipson Amherst, McKinley, Flix & Capitol; AMC Maple Ridge & Market Arcade; Regal Elmwood, Transit, Galleria & Quaker
Streaming from 10/13/23 -
DAMSEL – Netflix on 10/13
THE BURIAL – Prime on 10/13
THE CONFERENCE – Netflix on 10/13
THE PUPPETMAN – Shudder on 10/13
CAMP COURAGE – Netflix on 10/15
THE INSURRECTIONIST NEXT DOOR – Max on 10/15
VINDICTA – Paramount+ on 10/16
THE DEVIL ON TRIAL – Netflix on 10/17
CRYPTO BOY – Netflix on 10/19
PETER & THE WOLF – Max on 10/19
Thoughts are above.
Now on VOD/Digital HD -
FREMONT (10/10)
IT LIVES INSIDE (10/10)
MERCY ROAD (10/10)
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE - DEAD RECKONING PART ONE (10/10)
“That doesn't mean the race to shut [The Entity] down (or control it) wasn't sufficiently exhilarating or entertaining. It simply felt like an inferior copy [to PERSON OF INTEREST].” – Full thoughts at HHYS.
THE STORY OF JEREMY THOMAS (10/10)
15 CAMERAS (10/13)
DEAR DAVID (10/13)
EXPEND4BLES (10/13)
THE LOST WEEKEND: A LOVE STORY (10/13)
THE ORIGIN OF EVIL (10/13)
“It leads to an inevitable conclusion that grows darker and murkier than expected via the blur between reality and psychosis, but its familiar and obvious choices always seem fresh.” – Full thoughts at HHYS.
From the press kit archive:
