Where & When: TCL Chinese Theatres, Hollywood, CA. March 10, 2025 3:40 PM
For the follow-up to his Best Picture Oscar-winning film, "Parasite, the South Korean filmmaker, Bong Joon Ho has continued exploring social themes involving class and politics with "Mickey 17". But this dark comedy travels deep into the future and set in an English-language, new-fashioned world. Since this is an absurdist fantasy, although with a heavy critique on our current political landscape, Bong lets his imagination run wild, creating a bleak, chaotic and wacky environment that remains thoroughly entertaining.
When we first met the seventeenth "reprinted" version of Mickey (played by a game Robert Pattinson), he prepares to meet his end once again after falling in an ice cave and about to be devoured by alien creature. Explaining how he ended up in this predicament, Mickey had signed up to leave an increasingly uninhabitable Earth as crewmember for a spaceship traveling to colonize the planet, Niflheim. But he also had another reason to get off the planet quickly as he and his friend, Timo (Steven Yeun) made a bad business deal and owe some nefarious men a lot of money they are unable to pay back.
While Timo is brought on board as a crew pilot, Mickey, failing to read the fine print, signed on as an "expendable worker". What this entails is that Mickey is essentially used as a human Guinea pig to test how the body will react to the foreign pathogens found on this new planet which will help doctors create cures and vaccines. This will also lead to a lethal demise for Mickey. But he is continuously regenerated as a photocopy of himself yet with memories of his former lives still firmly intact.
Since his first feature, "플란다스의 개 (Barking Dogs Never Bite)", released over twenty-five years ago, Bong has always injected his wickedly perverse yet playfully offbeat sense of humor throughout his films. Based on the novel, "Mickey7" by Edward Ashton, Bong freely strays from that writer's narrative, exploring deeper into the cost of capitalism while keeping the tone of "Mickey 17" tense yet hilariously silly. There is a jumble of genres at play here and the clashing of sci-fi, horror and slapstick comedy isn't always effective. Yet Bong is a gifted visionary with a provocative style, managing to keep this discordant tale engaging much of the time.
The last time we saw Pattinson on screen, he was playing the grim, costumed crime-fighter in "The Batman. With "Mickey 17", the actor reveals his less-seen, comedic gifts as the sweet yet incredibly dim, slack-jawed lab rat, reminding us once again of Pattinson's impressive range as a performer. It turns out that the planet's creatures in the cave had no interest in bringing harm to Mickey, actually helping him out of the icy cavern. He manages to make it back to the space station but since it was assumed that he was a goner, a Mickey 18 has been created. Yet while this new Mickey might look the same, he is far more astute and aggressive than the previous version. Since the rule is that there cannot not be multiples of any "expendable" existing at the same time, "18" tries to kill "17" but the former Mickey manages to convince the new clone that they would be better off working together and sharing duties. And Mickey's girlfriend, Nasha (Naomi Ackie), who also happens to be one of the ship's security agents, is thrilled to enjoy the benefits of having two variants of the same man.
Even in a new ecosystem, there is always someone who wants to grab hold on to power, forcing their will and use it for their own self-serving needs while convincing the population that it's for their best interest. Here we have Kenneth Marshall (Mark Ruffalo), an ego-fueled, failed politician along with his Lady Macbeth, Ylfa (Toni Collette) clinging closely as a bug in his ear to guide her less sharp husband.
Their plan involves eliminating all of the native species on the planet (with Ylfa considering their tails a delicacy to be used for special sauces she's creating), calling them "creepers" and assuming they are nothing more than brainless creatures. However Mickey is aware they are far from unintelligent, with each alien being able to communicate with each other cerebrally. The two Mickeys are discovered following 18's attempt to assassinate the fascist Marshall. As punishment, they are forced out (with bombs strapped to their bodies to make sure they comply) to collect more creatures for their tails while the creatures are swarming the space station trying to rescue two held captive.
"Mickey 17" might not be considered one of Bong's masterworks, it's far too broad and unwieldy narratively speaking. But with striking camerawork by the great Darius Khondji (who also shot Bong's 2017 sci-fi fantasy, "Okja"), captivating visual effects and impressive performances, the film succeeds in taking us on weird, wild thrilling adventure.
The Oscars has always been the official end of award season, mainly because the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was the very first organization to honor cinema almost one hundred years ago. The Academy is at an awkward moment in its time where it wants to preserve the long traditions of the ceremony yet still wants to be viewed as moving the show into the modern era. The Oscars just made itself available to stream live this year (on Hulu) so their pace of advancement is not exactly speedy.
The show kicked off with a montage from films set in Los Angeles, highlighting various spots throughout the city. Then we have nominee, Ariana Grande for "Wicked" performing a rendition of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" from "The Wizard of Oz" before her co-star, Cynthia Erivo does "Home" from "The Wiz". Then the two share the stage to conclude this mash-up with "Defying Gravity" from their musical based on L. Frank Baum's story. As the first time host, Conan O'Brien fit in quite nicely, bringing a good energy and kept the humor at caustic yet good-natured levels, and it's bit of a surprise he wasn't asked before. He started with a filmed take-off on "The Substance" and made some well-placed jokes on the nominated movies (""A Complete Unknown". "A Real Pain". "Nosferatu". These are some of the names I was called on the red carpet"). And O'Brien was talking about a dress code when he singled out Adam Sandler, sitting in the audience wearing his standard uniform of a hoodie and baggy gym shorts, creating a very funny moment.
The producers of this year's telecast wanted to shake up the routine but not too much. Instead of the acting categories, we had five actors come out to sing the praises of the costume designers and cinematographers. While it was a nice touch, it just wasn't as effective as when the previous acting winners honored the nominated actors. But the biggest misstep as far as I'm concerned was the decision to not have the nominated Best Original Songs performed on the show. In it's place we had O'Brien do "I Won't Waste Time" during the opening segment which was pretty funny. But a James Bond musical tribute to Honorary Oscar winning producers, Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson (which featured current pop artists, Lisa, Doja Cat and Raye doing popular Bond theme songs) and Queen Latifah honoring the late Quincy Jones (who had won an Honorary Oscar this year) with a rousing rendition of "Ease On Down The Road' from "The Wiz", while entertaining, failed to rise much above time filler. And the selection of the presenters was truly inspired with a nice mix of the legendary (Goldie Hawn, Mark Hamill, Daryl Hannah, Quentin Tarantino and an impressively spry, Mick Jagger) and contemporary (Andrew Garfield, Lily-Rose Depp, Selena Gomez, Miley Cyrus, Bowen Yang).
"Anora" had gone in with six nominations and went on to take home five Oscars including Best Picture. Mikey Madison win for Best Actress created the night's biggest upset by beating the favorite, Demi Moore for her performance in "The Substance" which oddly echoes the theme of the body horror film. Sean Baker personally received four awards this night with "Anora" for Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Film Editing and the top prize, tying with Walt Disney for the most Oscars in a single year although the wins were for four different films. With its Best Picture win, "Anora" (which won the Palme d’Or at last year’s Cannes Film Festival) followed in the footsteps of the indie distributor, Neon’s last awards success; the Palme d’Or winning, South Korean drama, "Parasite", the unexpected winner of Best Picture back in 2019.
During his third acceptance speech, Baker encouraged filmmakers to keep making movies for the big screen in order to keep theaters alive and well. My love of going to the movies came directly from my mother who took us regularly to the theater, probably at least once a week. And while this was really the only way to see a motion picture at the time, the thrill of the communal experience of watching a film surrounded with an audience was deeply instilled into me. A theater is really the only perfect setting for me to truly enjoy seeing a film.
Baker also addressed the importance of supporting independent cinema which is so vital in order to tell challenging and innovative stories that the Hollywood system is way too cautious to go anywhere near. As we quickly approach the 100th anniversary of the Oscars, now is the time to support your local theaters, especially the indie-owned screens that are particularly struggling and unfortunately closing at a rapid rate.
So come on people, get off your couches, take your kids and go to a movie theater! Otherwise, there may not be much to celebrate during the upcoming 100th Oscars ceremony.
Here is the complete list of winners of the 2025 Oscars:
Best Picture: "Anora"
Best Director: Sean Baker, "Anora"
Best Original Screenplay: Sean Baker, "Anora"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Peter Straughan, "Conclave"
Best Actress in a Leading Role: Mikey Madison, "Anora"
Best Actor in a Leading Role: Adrien Brody, "The Brutalist"
Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Zoe Saldaña, "Emilia Pérez"
Best Actor in a Supporting Role: Kieran Culkin, "A Real Pain"
Best Cinematography: Lol Crawley, "The Brutalist"
Best Film Editing: Sean Baker, "Anora"
Best International Feature Film: "I’m Still Here" (Brazil)
Best Documentary Feature Film: "No Other Land"
Best Documentary Short Film: "The Only Girl in the Orchestra"
Best Animated Feature Film: "Flow"
Best Animated Short Film: "In the Shadow of the Cypress"
Best Live Action Short Film: "I’m Not a Robot"
Best Original Song: "El Mal" from "Emilia Pérez" Music by Clément Ducol and Camille, Lyric by Clément Ducol, Camille and Jacques Audiard
Best Original Score: Daniel Blumberg, "The Brutalist"
Best Production Design: Nathan Crowley, Production Design and Lee Sandales, Set Decoration, "Wicked"
Best Costume Design: Paul Tazewell, "Wicked"
Best Makeup and Hairstyling: Pierre-Olivier Persin, Stéphanie Guillon and Marilyne Scarselli, "The Substance"
Best Sound: Gareth John, Richard King, Ron Bartlett and Doug Hemphill, "Dune: Part Two"
Best Visual Effects: Paul Lambert, Stephen James, Rhys Salcombe and Gerd Nefzer, "Dune: Part Two"
"Dreams (Sex Love)", the third film in a trilogy by Norwegian writer/director, Dag Johan Haugerud, received the top prize of the Golden Bear at the close of this year's Berlin Film Festival. This story follows a passionate teenage girl who pours her intense feelings toward a teacher and follows the feature, "Sex" that premiered in Berlin last year and "Love" which was part of the competition at the Venice Film Festival last summer. Brazilian director Gabriel Mascaro’s "The Blue Trail" took home the Silver Bear, which is the runner-up award. This drama imagines a future world where people over seventy-five years old are rounded up and placed in a type of concentration camp but the story follows a woman who escapes before arriving to this colony. And the Jury Prize was awarded to "The Message", from Argentine director Iván Fund, about guardians of a nine year old girl who exploit for profit her ability to communicate with animals.
Here is a partial list of winners of the 2025 Berlin Film Festival:
Golden Bear for Best Film: "Drømmer (Dreams)"
Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize: "The Blue Trail"
Silver Bear Jury Prize: "The Message"
Silver Bear for Best Director: Huo Meng, "Living the Land"
Silver Bear for Best Screenplay: Radu Jude, "Kontinental ’25"
Silver Bear for Best Leading Performance: Rose Byrne, "If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You"
Silver Bear for Best Supporting Performance: Andrew Scott, "Blue Moon"
Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution: The creative ensemble of "The Ice Tower"
Best Documentary: "Holding Liat"
Here are a few of the films I saw last year that I have no intention of ever watching again:
"BORDERLANDS"
I should start off by saying that I have never been a fan of movies based on video games. The few that I have seen I really haven't enjoyed at all. The problem I find is that there really isn't enough of a story to base an entire film around and the filmmakers tend not to expand the narrative elements nearly enough to make these video game stories truly cinematic. And the studios end up coasting largely on name recognition to get folks to turn out to theaters. I got lured into seeing the sci-fi action-comedy, "Borderlands" based on the trailer that featured an impressively eclectic cast that included Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Edgar Ramirez, Jack Black and Jamie Lee Curtis. Yet once again, I was tricked. "Borderlands" is a very expensive, poorly conceived, convoluted mess with several of the creative team jumping ship during or after production and even having their names removed from this project. It begins on the planet Pandora with a mercenary soldier named Roland (Hart) kidnaps a teen called Tiny Tina (Ariana Greenblatt) who happens to be the daughter of Atlas (Ramirez), a powerful corporate bigwig. He hires the bounty hunter, Lilith (Blanchett) to rescue his child. Tracking down Roland, Lilith discovers that Atlas actually wants Tina back against her will and she teams up with him to fight against Atlas' army, the Crimson Lance. Then the story goes further into some nonsense involving the secrets of advanced technology by a lost civilization of Pandora which Atlas believes is located in a mysterious vault that only Tina can open. Eli Roth is the credited director (with Tim Miller taking on reshoots) and wrote the screenplay with Joe Crombie (writer, Craig Mazin had his name removed from the script). The end results makes the film feel completely disjointed, impaired by underdeveloped characters, a meandering plot and without a whiff of originality. "Borderlands" was a complete waste of the prestigious talent involved and the one hundred and one minutes of time I will never get back.
"I SAW THE TV GLOW"
"I Saw The TV Glow", Jane Schoenbrun's follow-up to their acclaimed 2021 debut, "We're All Going to the World's Fair", received a glowing reception by many critics with several placing this psychological-horror drama high on their Best of the Year lists. However, the appeal of this film was completely lost on me as my viewing experience was torturous and feeling like it was never going to end. This '90's-set story follows Owen (Justice Smith), a lonely and isolated teen who bonds with another loner at school, Maddy (Brigette Lundy-Paine) over their love of a television show, "The Pink Opaque". The program involves two teenage girls who use their shared psychic abilities to fight a villain called Mr. Melancholy, who has the power to shift time and existence. Owen and Maddy deeply connect to this show, which in turn, helps them grow closer to each other. Family problems makes Maddy want to run away from home and asks Owen to go with her. After sincerely considering this offer, he decides to stay and Maddy disappears. "The Pink Opaque" is also cancelled around this time. Several years later, Maddy reappears with news that she's been living in their favorite show during her time away. Schoenbrun has tapped into the surrealist, experimental style of the great David Lynch yet "I Saw the TV Glow" feels more muddled and less engaging than a wonderfully puzzling Lynchian experience.
"LISA FRANKENSTEIN"
The romantic-horror comedy, "Lisa Frankenstein" might have been intended be an ode to the classic comedies of the '80's but only ends up being a tired and predictable modern comedy. Lisa (Kathryn Newton) is an odd, goth teenager still trying to cope with the loss of her mother to an axe murderer. And to make matters worse, her father (Joe Chrest) has remarried to Janet (Carla Gugino), a self-involved woman who doesn't care about Lisa, and they live together with her daughter, Taffy (Liza Soberano). Lisa spends her time at the local cemetery and speaks to the grave of a young Victorian man who was killed by lightning. Lightning winds up striking twice and this man (Cole Sprouse) is brought back from the dead as a mute zombie to become Lisa's perfect boyfriend. Zelda Williams (who happens to be the daughter of the late Robin Williams) makes her feature directorial debut with "Lisa Frankenstein" and displays no real gift behind the camera, sadly proving the argument about nepo babies. The shockingly bad screenplay was written by Oscar-winner, Diablo Cody who seemed to have scripted this in a time warp, trapped reliving worn out, comedic ideas about love and relationships. Painfully dull and uninspired, "Lisa Frankenstein" is an apparent comedy that never came to life, effectively dead on arrival.
"MADAME WEB"
Based on a little known, minor character in the Spider-Man comic book universe, the super-hero film, "Madame Web" has managed to do nothing to make us intrigued, let alone inspired, to want to see anymore of her. Dakota Johnson has once again been given a leading role as Cassandra Webb, a New York City paramedic who develops abilities of a clairvoyant following a near-death experience. This leads her to connecting to three young girls (Sydney Sweeney, Isabela Merced and Celeste O'Connor) and protect them from shady businessman, Ezekiel Sims (Tahar Rahim). Also having limited psychic abilities and enhanced strength he obtained from a Peruvian spider, Sims has visions that these girls will be the cause of his demise. And that means he wants to end their lives before that can happen, forcing Cassandra to develop the use of her powers in order to save them. The director, S.J. Clarkson, who has had an extensive career working in British television, makes her feature film directorial debut with "Madame Web" and is in way over her head trying to get a handle on the comic-book genre. The hazy and shapeless screenplay assembled by Clarkson along with the team of Matt Sazama & Burk Sharpless and Claire Parker does the film no favors. I do not pretend to understand the allure of Johnson yet the offspring of the charismatic actors, Don Johnson and Melanie Griffith continues to book jobs despite adding very little charm and appeal to her performances. With an incoherent story, underwhelming visual style and listless thrills, "Madame Web" finds success as another very expensive addition to the garbage heap of super-hero movies that failed to launch a hopeful franchise.
When the year of 2024 began, the outlook was not particularly optimistic for the movies. The Hollywood labor strikes had created major production delays, meaning that there would be fewer wide releases available and the films that were released throughout the beginning of the year were pretty much ignored. But the summer turned things around with several blockbuster hits, followed by a string of more box-office successes into the fall and winter. Ultimately, it was another solid year for cinema with revenue down only 3% from the previous year. And despite the apparent limited supply, I found there to be many exciting and stimulating movies released over the course of the year that I thoroughly enjoyed. Here is my list of favorite films of 2024 I saw in alphabetical order:
"ANORA"
Who could have imagined that a dark, romantic screwball comedy involving a New York sex worker and the son of a Russian oligarch would be charming, witty, poignant and laugh-out-loud funny? Yet in the hands of writer/director, Sean Baker, who has made a career of creating impressive, indie works about the lives of marginalized people, has brilliantly achieved this feat with "Anora". In a breakout performance, Mickey Madison plays Anora (who prefers to go by "Ani"), a twenty-three year old stripper trying to make a living by getting men to pay for lap dances. One night, Vanya Zakharov (Mark Eydelshteyn) comes to the club and they make a connection. After later having her come to his lavish mansion in Brooklyn and paying her for sex, Vanya offers Ani $15K to spend the week with him. They pass the time by having fun, lots of sex and a trip to Las Vegas with his entourage. At the end of the week, Vanya decides he doesn't want to go back to Russia to work for his father and asks Ani to marry him in order to stay. Ani is obviously skeptical yet after Vanya tells her he's in love, she choses to believe him. The couple are quickly married and begin a domesticated life. However, when word gets back to Vanya's parents (Aleksei Serebryakov, Darya Ekamasova), they summon Toros (Karren Karagulian), a handler hired to watch after their wild child son, to bring an end to this marriage. Like he has with most of his films, Baker takes us on a wild, unpredictable ride, this time by bringing a contemporary spin to the wacky comedy style of early Hollywood. "Anora" is singularly odd, delightfully funny and absolutely one of my favorite films of last year.
"CONCLAVE"
Who would have thought that the selection of a new Catholic pope could be filled with intrigue, deception and danger? With "Conclave", the first English-language feature from the Oscar nominated German filmmaker, Edward Berger, we are taken behind the scenes into the secret meetings involving the search for a pope that manages to be genuinely thrilling and surprisingly intense. After the current pope dies from a heart attack, the process begins to elect his successor. Cardinal Thomas Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) is the Dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals, set about organizing the papal conclave in Rome. There are four main candidates, each with different political views involving which direction to take the church, ranging from more liberal, social conservative and staunch traditionalist. No candidate receives the required two-thirds majority following the first ballot, although the conservative Joshua Adeyemi of Nigeria has a slight edge while Aldo Bellini (Stanley Tucci) from the US and the British Lawrence split the liberal vote. The unexpected arrival of Vincent Benitez (Carlos Diehz) from Mexico, who had been secretly named cardinal only one year earlier, creates a bit of a stir. As they continue the voting, dark secrets are revealed involving candidates, Cardinal Joseph Tremblay (John Lithgow) and Adeyemi, causing them to gradually lose their ranking while Benitez begins to slowly yet steadily gain votes. Based on a novel by Robert Harris and with a sturdy screenplay by Peter Straughan, Berger has crafted a beautifully staged, contemplative mystery that offers a nuanced exploration into the Catholic Church's internal politics. The entire cast is exceptionally good, particularly Fiennes as a soothing voice of calm and reason during the complicated proceedings, expertly holding the film together with his compelling performance. With a twist ending that some found shocking while others dismissed as silly, "Conclave" is a thought-provoking melodrama that also manages to be a perfect escapist entertainment.
"EMILIA PÉREZ"
"Emilia Pérez" , the latest from the revered French filmmaker, Jacques Audiard, is difficult to categorize because of it's shifting tones and astonishing mix of genres. Yet because of the divergency, this Spanish-language, dramatic-comedy, musical fantasia is one of the most brilliantly audacious and deliciously twisted films of the year. Based on an opera written by Audiard (and loosely adapted from Boris Razon's 2018 novel "Écoute"), the film tells the story of a young attorney (Zoe Saldaña) who is lured into helping a cruel drug cartel leader (Karla Sofía Gascón) transition into a woman. There is no question that "Emilia Pérez" is polarizing with the film being savagely criticized due to some strongly objecting in their view to the filmmaker's cultural misrepresentation, stereotypes, poor Spanish dialogue, and song lyrics. And while I can certainly understand why some viewers might feel this way, I do not belive that was at all the intention of this film. Audiard (who does not actually speak Spanish) unapologetically dares to challenge with his artistry, boldly delving into a world of dark themes and provocative ideas that was intended to make some members of the audience uncomfortable.
"HARD TRUTHS"
The British filmmaker, Mike Leigh has reteamed with Marianne Jean-Baptiste, the star of his 1996 drama, "Secret & Lies" twenty-eight years later in "Hard Truths", a masterful work about an extremely anxious woman and the complications this creates in the relationships with her family. Depressed and mad at the world, Patsy (Jean-Baptiste) seems to go out of her way to make sure that everyone she encounters ends up as unhappy and miserable as herself. But those who are forced to continuously endure her wraith are Patsy's mild-mannered husband, Curtley (David Webber) and their unmotivated adult son, Moses (Tuwaine Barrett) who both tend to just shut down in her hostile presence. The only one who can remotely reach through to Patsy is her good-natured sister, Chantelle (Michele Austin) by trying to remain patient and understanding during her suffering sibling's irrational rants. The eighty-one year old Leigh has made his impressive career by using lengthy rehearsals and improvisation techniques with his actors to help build characters and the narrative for each of his films. With "Hard Truths" (which could possibly be Leigh's final feature), the director has crafted another vivid character study with monumental performances that manages to be reflective, deeply moving and surprisingly hilarious.
"HIS THREE DAUGHTERS"
Azazel Jacobs' "His Three Daughters" is an arduous yet profoundly affecting drama involving three sisters trying to cope with the impending loss of their dying father which in turn forces to the surface their own buried, prickly relationship with each other. As their father, Vincent (Jay O. Sanders) is in hospice care at home nearing the end of his battle with cancer, his daughters, Katie (Carrie Coon) and Christina (Elizabeth Olsen) arrive from their homes out of state to his small apartment in New York. They have come to offer support during his final days to their step-sister, Rachel (Natasha Lyonne) who has been living with him for years. It begins with the eldest and controlling, Katie complaining about Rachel smoking weed in the house, insisting she smoke outside, and the lack of food in the house. Then she becomes concerned with Rachel taking over the ownership of the family's longtime rent-controlled apartment once their father is gone. The more earthy, passive-aggressive Christina just wants to maintain peace and calm between each other during this difficult time while Rachel prefers to simply retreat to her room and remain stoned most of the day. Lead by extraordinary performances by the three actresses, Jacobs brilliantly captures the complications of family dynamics, particularly during a time of crisis and grieving, in a way that's heartfelt and emotionally compelling.
"HIT MAN"
The actor Glen Powell had been paying his dues by doing the work, slowly rising up the ranks over the years by making an impression with various supporting roles in television and film. His first breakout moment came playing astronaut, John Glenn in "Hidden Figures" back in 2016. Then he had an even bigger moment seven years later with a significant part in the mega-hit sequel, "Top Gun: Maverick". Powell would go to star in the sleeper hit romantic-comedy, "Anyone But You" and in another successful sequel, "Twisters". But it was the charismatic actor connecting with fellow Texan, filmmaker Richard Linklater when he was cast as part of an ensemble cast in his 2016 comedy, "Everybody Wants Some" that led to the fantastic romantic-thriller, "Hit Man" which Powell not only stars but co-wrote the screenplay with Linklater. Based on a magazine article by Skip Hollandsworth, Powell plays Gary Johnson, an unassuming professor of psychology. Aiding the police department with their sting operations, Gary unexpectedly gets pulled into duty to play a fake hitman to prevent a murder-for-hire plot after the undercover cop assigned gets suspended. He does well and given the job, using his skills to research suspects in advance in order to create the perfect hitman persona for each case. This leads to Gary becoming more confident in his personal life. But he runs into a big conflict-of-interest when he meets Madison (Adria Arjona), a wife looking for someone to kill her abusive husband. Unwisely, Gary begins an affair with the beautiful woman without revealing who he really is, leading to a messy and further complicated situation. Darkly comedic and thoroughly entertaining, "Hit Man" is a perfect showcase for Powell, revealing that he has the beguiling charm and solid acting chops to become the next major movie star.
"MARIA"
With the third film of Pablo Larraín's trilogy of important 20th-century women, "Maria" examines Maria Callas, considered by many to be the world's greatest opera singer, during the final week of her life while she was living in Paris. A spectacular Angelina Jolie plays Callas who at this point has been in declining health, abusing sedatives and has lost much of her tremendous singing voice. She spends her days isolated in her apartment with devoted employees, Ferruccio (Pierfrancesco Favino), the butler and housemaid, Bruna (Alba Rohrwacher) who both struggle to get her to take care of herself and see a doctor. Callas announces to them that she has a reporter (Kodi Smit-McPhee) coming to the house to interview her yet it's unclear if it's factual or she's only hallucinating due to the medication. But she is secretly meeting with a conductor (Stephen Ashfield) for private lessons to know if she can ever perform again. Thanks to Jolie's fully committed, regal performance and Edward Lachman's immaculate camerawork, I think "Maria" is the best of Larrain's films of three incredibly fascinating women. And despite the tragedy of the impending end of a great talent, the director manages to keep you fully engaged with a subdued yet thrilling drama that will haunt you long after seeing the film.
"NICKEL BOYS"
The filmmaker RaMell Ross has taken Colson Whitehead's harrowing, Pulitzer prize-winning novel, "Nickel Boys" and expectedly made a somber, deeply moving drama. Yet Ross has elevated this story by unexpectedly crafting an experimental film with a highly inventive visual style. Told with a nonlinear narrative and shot primarily from a first person perspective (with remarkable camerawork by Jomo Fray), the story follows Elwood (Ethan Herisse), a bright young man with a promising future, who ends up at a notorious Florida reform school after being falsely accused of a crime. Since this is the Jim Crow-era of the 1960's, the Nickel Academy is segregated with the White students are treated well and have clean accommodations while the Black students live in harsh conditions and are regularly abused. And instead of educating these boys, the school makes money off of them by sending them out as forced labor. While at the Academy, Elwood befriends Turner (Brandon Wilson), a fellow student who is well aware that this school is extremely dangerous, questioning if they will make it out alive. With an outstanding cast (particularly Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor playing Elwood's grandmother), what "Nickel Boys" does quite effectively is to have the audience feel like they are living through someone else's experiences.
"PROBLEMISTA"
Julio Torres began his professional career being hired to write for "Saturday Night Live" back in 2016, working with the team for four years. That led to the Salvadoran born comedian developing a Spanish-language comedy series for HBO, "Los Espookys" along with former "SNL" cast member, Fred Armisen which lasted two seasons. And last year Torres released his feature film directorial debut, "Problemista", a wonderfully weird comedy he also wrote that cleverly takes on the struggles of an immigrant trying to achieve the American dream. Torres plays Alejandro, a young man from El Salvador who has come to New York City in pursuit of becoming a toy designer. Failing to get a desired internship, Alejandro must find a sponsor before his work visa expires. Enter Elizabeth (a hilariously scary, Tilda Swinton), an art critic who meets him during a brief time that he worked under-the-table at a cryogenic freezing lab where her artist husband (the rapper, RZA) is being stored. She dangles over Alejandro the possibility of sponsoring him if he will work (unpaid) to assist her putting together a show of her husband's art. However, Elizabeth is a complete nightmare: demanding, unreasonable and most certainly, a bit insane. In between the whimsically, surreal imagery and strange, offbeat characters, Torres has something meaningful to say about the confounding bureaucracy and economic hardships that immigrants face trying to succeed in this country. The inspired blending of timely, social commentary and playful, absurdist humor makes "Problemista" one of my favorite recent comedies.
"A REAL PAIN"
Besides his acclaimed work as an actor, Jesse Eisenberg has had other creative outlets. He has written several plays, a couple of podcasts and made his feature film directorial debut two years ago. The indie drama, "When You Finish Saving the World" was met with modest reviews with critics appreciating his abilities as a storyteller yet finding some of the characters too broad and overbearing. With his latest work behind the camera, the offbeat yet endearing "A Real Pain", Eisenberg has found a winning balance between his idiosyncratic tendencies and a wider commercial appeal. Eisenberg (who also wrote the screenplay) stars as David Kaplan who plans a visit to Poland with a heritage tour group. While there, he'll visit the childhood home of his late grandmother, hoping to experience a deeper connection with his Jewish ancestry. David invites his cousin, Benji (Kieran Culkin) along on the trip. They were very close as children yet recently there has been some distance and estrangement between them with David hoping this excursion will provide a road to reconnection. But they are two very different types of people with David more neurotic and reserved while Benji is free-spirited and outspoken. This story may be filled with pain and trauma yet Eisenberg expertly crafted an ingenious way to make "A Real Pain" poignant and hilariously funny.
Honorable Mention: "As We Imagine As Light", "Blitz", "The Brutalist", "Civil War" , "A Complete Unknown" , "Femme", "I'm Still Here", "Kinds of Kindness", "Love Lies Bleeding", "Nightbitch", "The Order", "The Piano Lesson", "September 5", "The Wild Robot"
This year will mark the seventy-fifth edition of the Berlin Film Festival which has been the first to give us a preview of films that will begin seeing throughout the rest of 2025 and beyond. This edition of Berlinale will see a new artistic director, Tricia Tuttle who begins her tenure at the festival which runs from February 13th to February 23rd.
Todd Haynes will be the Jury President who will lead his panel to select which films will take home prizes. The American filmmaker will be joined by Chinese actress, Fan Bingbing; German actress and filmmaker, Maria Schrader; German costume designer, Bina Daigeler; Argentinian filmmaker, Rodrigo Moreno; Moroccan filmmaker, Nabil Ayouch and American film critic, Amy Nicholson.
Some of the films in the Main Competition includes new films by Richard Linklater ("Blue Moon"), Hong Sang-soo ("What Does That Nature Say to You"), Radu Jude ("Kontinental '25"), Lucile Hadžihalilović ("La Tour de Glace"), Michel Franco ("Dreams"), Rebecca Lenkiewicz ("Hot Milk") and Vivian Qu ("Girls on Wire").
Films selected for the Berlinale Special screenings are the latest from German filmmaker, Tom Tykwer, "Das Licht (The Light)" which will kick off the fest. The director who broke through with his 1998 action-drama, "Run Lola Run" has returned with his first feature film in ten years in a story about a fractured middle-class family living in a world that has become unstable. The follow-up to the Korean director, Bong Joon-ho Best Picture Oscar-winning film, "Parasite" is an English-language sci-fi comedy, "Mickey 17". Robert Pattinson stars as a man who wants to get off Earth and becomes a disposable worker who is continuously cloned on a long journey through space to start a human colony on a new planet. And "A Complete Unknown" , the musical biopic on Bob Dylan from director, James Mangold that earned eight Academy Award nominations will make it's German premiere at the fest.
And the British actress Tilda Swinton will be awarded this year's Honorary Golden Bear. There will be screening of a 4K remastering of one of her early screen roles in Peter Wollen's 1987 sci-fi drama, "Friendship's Death". Swinton appears as a female extraterrestrial on a mission to Earth in the name of peace yet inadvertently lands in Amman, Jordan during the events of Black September in 1970.
With "Emilia Pérez" collecting thirteen Academy Award nominations, producers, Pascal Caucheteux and Grégoire Sorlat continue with their winning streak of supporting provocative and innovative indie cinema through their company, Why Not Productions over the last thirty years. Their critically acclaimed films have had an undeniable global impact on the art of cinema.
To celebrate these producers and their works, "Why Not Cinema?!" is a retrospective that will feature films by a collection of international auteurs including Gregg Araki ("The Doom Generation"), Claire Denis ("White Material"), Ken Loach ("I, Daniel Blake"), Lynne Ramsay ("You Were Never Really Here"), Christian Mungiu ("Beyond the Hills"), Armaud Desplechin ("My Sex Life… or How I Got Into an Argument", "Kings and Queen"), Alexandre Rockwell ("In The Soup"), Andrey Zvyagintsev ("Loveless") and Jacques Audiard's "Emilia Pérez".
This series will run in New York at Netflix's Paris Theater from February 1st through February 12th and in their Los Angeles location at the Egyptian Theater February 6th to 10th.
For screening dates and to purchase tickets, please click below:
