THE WEEKEND WARRIOR Reviews and Repertory Round-Up November 22, 2024
Reviews of Flow and The Black Sea, plus Spellbound, Doc-NYC and more
I have a general rule that when you encounter someone in life who doesn’t know what they’re doing, I’d prefer that they just say, “I don’t know what I’m doing,” rather than trying to fake their way through whatever they’re trying to accomplish. That can range from someone working the register at a fast food joint all the way up to the President of the United States. Well, folks, when it comes to figuring out how to monetize this weekly column I’ve been writing for the better part of the past 23 years in one form or another, I really don’t know what I’m doing. I tried sending out an earlier missive with early box office analysis and predictions, and I literally have no idea what went out. If you were as confused by it as I was, then apologize. Anyway, I will continue to try to send out an early box office report every Tuesday morning for paid subscribers, at least that’s the plan and then on Thursday, I’ll include some reviews and the repertory round-up, time-permitting as always.
Before we get to the new releases, I do want to remind those in New York that DOC-NYC is in full gear at the IFC Center and Village East mostly, as well as on a virtual platform.
I have not had a chance to watch as much as I’d like due to other obligations, but one movie I did watch and absolutely loved was Steph Ching and Ellen Martinez’s Slumlord Millionaire, which takes a look at a number of people who have fought back against the city’s unfair tenant laws and the unscrupulous and greedy developers who have made it difficult for people who aren’t independently wealthy to rent and even own homes in the city. Some of the cases include a family who is being harassed by their racist landlord who allows their apartment to fall into disrepair in hopes of getting them to leave. The film also deals with a woman running for city council in hopes of supporting tenant rights only to discover that the wealthy developers are funding her competitor. The story that hit the closest to home for me was the battle fought by CAAAV to fight back against the developers that built a giant metal monstrosity on the East River near the Manhattan Bridge amidst poor communities living in the housing projects. Apparently, they were in the process of building four more such buildings before they defaulted on their loan and that stopped from happening. What isn’t covered in that film is that first building was built on a location that used to be an affordable Pathmark supermarket that many of the locals (including the impoverished people in the surrounding area and myself) regularly bought their groceries at. That Pathmark was flooded by Hurricane Sandy in 2012, but instead of going through the tough task of cleaning it out and restocking, the developer just swooped in and bought the lot and proceeded to build the giant luxury building without the community having much say in it. I was really impressed with what CAAAV has done to fight back, but this is also a great film that should really be seen by anyone in New York City who rents or hopes to own property.
I’m going to try my absolute best to watch more docs from this terrific annual fest and hopefully write more about some of them in next week’s column, which hopefully will run on Wednesday, though I’ll probably write a separate review of Moana 2, which I’ll be seeing on Monday morning.
A reminder that I’ve already written full reviews of:
And Bonhoeffer: Pastor. Spy. Assassin.
And that I’ve put all the box office stuff behind a paywall, but that’s something you can get around since you’re allowed one free read, and this week is a doozy in terms of box office! Sorry if that’s a bummer, but it ended up being a necessity after I lost my Gold Derby gig. I’ve written about box office for over 23 years, and I’m at a point where I don’t necessarily enjoy doing it for free. Feel free to comment below if this isn’t understandable.
But let’s get to some reviews of the limited releases opening this weekend, including a movie that’s not only this week’s “Chosen One,” but it could very well be my absolute favorite movie of the year!
FLOW (Sideshow/Janus Films)
Opening in New York and L.A. (and maybe more theaters?) this weekend with plans to expand further on December 6, is this fantastic and beautiful animated feature from Latvian filmmaker Gints Zilbalodis (Away), which essentially follows a cat’s journey as he encounters other animals, all of them trying to survive a raging flood.
With that simple premise, Zilbalodis has created a film that’s just gorgeous to behold on every level, as we watch the cat first being pursued by a group of dogs, and then when the flood hits, the cat ends up in a boat with a bunch of different animals – a lemur, a capybara, a strange crane-like bird, and one of the aforementioned dogs. As might be expected, the animals aren’t always able to coexist, but they also find ways to work together to get the boat where it needs to be.
The film is not only beautiful for its animation of the animals but also the backgrounds with visuals that seem to range from Southeast Asia to places like Amsterdam and Italy but always keeping it vague as to not destroy the illusion that is fantasy, first and foremost.
I was impressed that Zilbalodis didn’t just co-write and direct the movie, but he also designed it, edited it, and co-wrote the score, which is just as wonderful as the visuals. I was also impressed with the soundwork in not only the animal sounds – did I mention that this is a wordless dialogue-free film?
I was just as amazed by the fact that this could be watched by any number of different demographics from the youngest toddlers to older adults in their 80s and 90s suffering from dementia, and every single person who watching this can get something else out of it. For me, it appealed to my idea that as humans we’re much better when we’re working together, especially those that are different from us, which is the case here with very different animals attempting to coexist.
I saw this movie twice, both times on relatively small screens, but I could see this really being amazing on a much larger screen, even IMAX, though sadly, they tend to be hogged up by the bigger studios movies.
Flow is this year’s absolutely must-see animated film, just a stunning piece of art with top-notch storytelling that even exceeds the big studio animated films like The Wild Robot and Inside Out 2. I’m not sure it can get into the International Feature for Latvia, but it absolutely must be considered one of the top Animated Features at the Oscars next year.
Rating: 10/10
I should have an interview with Gints Zilbadolis over at Cinema Daily US later this week.
THE BLACK SEA (Metrograph Pictures)
Premiering at the Metrograph this weekend is this comedic collaboration between filmmaker Crystal Moselle (The Wolfpack) and Derrick P. Harden, who co-directs and stars in this tale of a black man from Brooklyn named Khalid who travels to Bulgaria as part of a “Sugar Momma” type situation and ends up stranded there when he loses his passport. He then spends his time trying to find a job to earn the money needed to get back to Brooklyn.
I first became aware of this from the trailer playing at the Metrograph in front of other movies, and it looked cute enough, although I’m more familiar with Moselle for her documentary work, and I didn’t know this Derrick Harden guy at all. Like I said, it looked like a cute premise, and I wasn’t sure how it would work as a movie, although the lack of a screenwriting credit makes me wonder about how this straddles fiction and reality, especially with her documentary background. The fact that it’s co-directed by Harden also was quite intriguing to me, since I never had heard of this guy before, and definitely was interested in learning more about their collaboration.
Harden’s character Khalid arrives in Bulgaria fairly early on in the movie, as we watch him interacting with others while trying to find his footing. He meets a younger woman named Ina (Irmena Chichikova) and they end up setting up a makeshift café together. The whole time there’s still this “will they or won’t they” aspect to their friendship, especially since she’s been in a relationship with Georgi (Stoyo Mirkov), who clearly does not like Khalid at all.
Despite Khalid being the only black person around, the film never really openly deals with any racism he might experience there, and in fact, most of the locals he meets are very friendly and welcoming, but especially once he opens the café and gets a regular clientele.
The Black Sea is a charming human story that’s well worth seeking out, not just for the humanistic tale being told but also due to the undeniable charm and charisma of Harden as an actor/character. I really hope to see more of him in the future.
Rating: 7.5/10
SPELLBOUND (Netflix)
Completely undaunted by the Latvian independent animated film, Netflix and Skydance Animation release their latest animated collaboration on streaming and a few select theaters on Friday, this one following the adventures of Princess Ellian (voiced by Rachel Zegler), who goes on a quest to save her family and kingdom after her parents (the King and Queen of Lumbria, voiced by Javier Bardem and Nicole Kidman) are turned into monsters. This movie has been hanging around for years before finally ending up on Netflix. I couldn’t find the time to watch it this week, but if I have a chance this weekend, I’ll review next week.
A TRAVELLER’S NEEDS (Cinema Guild)
Hong Sang Soo’s latest, starring no less than Isabelle Huppert, opens at the Film Forum and Film at Lincoln Center on Friday. I missed this at the New York Film Festival, and I would like to try to see it more for Huppert than Director Hong. I haven’t had a chance to watch it yet, but apparently, this is their third collaboration, and I guess I haven’t seen any of them. In this one, she plays a French woman named Irish who gets involved with a group of disconnected people in a Seoul suburb, giving French lessons for money. Apparently, it won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2024 Berlinale, which is nothing to take lightly.
There are no less than FOUR new documentaries opening at the IFC Center this week (on top of the aforementioned DOC-NYC), none of which I’ve seen, because basically, I suck.
These include Brendan Bellomo and Slava Leontyev’s PORCELAIN WAR (Picturehouse) which revolves around the Russian invasion of the Ukraine and three artists – one of them being co-director Leontyev– trying to find beauty as they defend their culture and take arms themselves, depicted using tiny porcelain figures. (This film received a number of Critics Choice Documentary Award nominations very recently.)
Sandi DuBowski’s SABBATH QUEEN (Roco Films) is a documentary about Rabbi Amichai Lau-Lavie about an Orthodox rabbi who is torn between embracing his heritage and becoming a drag-queen rebel.
Lucy Lawless (yes that one) directed NEVER LOOK AWAY (Greenwich Entertainment) about CNN camerawoman Margaret Moth, the trailblazing photojournalist who captures footage in war zones and becomes injured from her efforts.
And then, legendary doc filmmaker Raoul Peck (I Am Not Your Negro) is back with ERNEST COLE: LOST AND FOUND (Magnolia), with narration by Oscar nominee LaKeith Stanfield, which looks at another photographer, South African Ernest Cole, who covered the horrors of Apartheid, releasing the 1967 book “House of Bondage” at the age of 27, which got him exiled for the rest of his life.
And those four docs are on top of the aforementioned Doc-NYC, which also has lots of screenings at the IFC Center over the next few weeks, including the doc DEVO, which I’ll be watching on Thursday night!
BREAD AND ROSES (Apple)
Hitting Apple TV+ on Friday as well as playing in New York (at the Village East by Angelika) and L.A. is this doc produced by Jennifer Lawrence and activist Malala and directed by filmmaker Sahra Mani, which looks at how Afghan women’s lives have been affected by the fall of the Taliban in 2022, told in the words of some of these women.
THE PIANO LESSON (Netflix)
Also streaming on Netflix this Friday is Malcolm Washington’s adaptation of August Wilson’s play about the squabble between a brother and sister (played by John David Washington and Danielle Deadwyler) over a family heirloom piano with the cast rounded out by Samuel L. Jackson, Ray Fisher, Corey Hawkins, Stephan James, and even Erikah Badu. I reviewed this a few weeks back, but I’m looking forward to watching it again now that it’s on Netflix.
Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to catch…
WHITE OUT (Saban Films)
REPERTORY
It continues to be a banner month at Metrograph with “Mira Nair’s Take on Modern Indian Cinema” screening Anand Patwardhan’s 2023 film The World is Family as well as Karan Tejpal’s Stolen (2023), both introduced by Ms. Nair. (She’ll be back at Metrograph on Dec. 1 for two more movies, both only screening once.)
Coinciding with the release of Crystal Moselle and Derrick B. Harden’s The Black Sea, the Metrograph is showing Moselle’s 2018 doc, Skate Kitchen, preceded by the short Window Feel, made by Mukunda Angu, one of the subjects of Mosselle’s earlier doc, The Wolfpack. Co-director Harden has programmed Melvin Van Peeble’s groundbreaking 1971 film, Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song to screen on Saturday, Sunday and Tuesday.
“The World is a Stage” probably has the most stuff this weekend including Qiu Jiongjiong’s 2021 film, A New Old Play; Truffaut’s The Last Metro (1980); and Theo Angelopoulos’ The Travelling Players. There will also be one more screening of Leos Carax’s musical Annette, featuring the music of Sparks.
“Nicolas Uncaged” will mostly be focused on more screenings of David Lynch’s Wild at Heart (1990), while “Crush the Strong, Help the Weak” is just showing Edward Yang’s A Brighter Summer Day (1991) on Friday and Tuesday.
Playing as part of “Insomnia” are screenings of Martin Scorsese’s 1976 film Taxi Driver, starring Robert De Niro, on Thursday night and next Wednesday. Also screening are Ingmar Bergman’s Hour of the Wolf (1968) and Brad Anderson’s The Machinist (2004), starring Christian Bale.
This weekend’s “My Crazy Uncle (or Aunt)” screenings include Morton DaCosta’s Auntie Mame (1958) and John Hughes’ Uncle Buck (1989), starring the late John Candy. (I’ll be at both on Sunday!)
“Do It Again” will have a few final screenings of Michael Mann’s Heat (1995) on Thursday evening and next Wednesday, and Olivier Assayas’ Irma Vep (1996) next Tuesday, in case you missed either one in the 500 times they’ve played.. And I make that joke despite loving both movies. :)
The “Once More with Ealing” series continues through the weekend, focusing on some of the great films that came out of the British studio over the decades with Sunday’s screening of Alexander Mackendrick’s 1961 film The Man in the White Suit introduced by author Paul Cronin, who wrote a book on the filmmaker. This Sunday’s “Film Forum Jr.” is Buster Keaton’s 1926 classic The General with live piano accompaniment. Monday’s Clara Bow offering is Wings from 1927, also with live piano accompaniment. Antonioni’s Il Grido and Tarkovsky’s Sacrifice both wrap up their runs on Thursday (i.e. today).
With DOC-NYC going on and two new docs (see above), there isn’t a ton of room left for rep stuff, but “Waverly Midnights” will screen Mick Jackson’s 1984 film, Threads, on Friday and Saturday night late. “Late Night Favorites” will show Francis Ford Coppola’s Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992) also late night Friday and Saturday, plus Takashi Miike’s Ichi the Killer will also screen. “Cruising the Movies” will screen Gordon Willis’ 1980 film, starring Talia Shire, on Monday night. Tarsem Singh’s The Fall will also continue to screen through the weekend but also only on Friday and Saturday night. If you have insomnia either night, the IFC Center is the place to be.
There are still a few tickets for Monday’s Elf Movie Party at Lower Manhattan.
On Thursday night, you can see the Norm McDonald comedy Dirty Work (1998) and Artie Lange’s Beer League (2006), and then on Friday, fans of Adrian Lyne’s thrillers can see Fatal Attraction (1987) in 35mm and two screenings of the excellent horror film Jacob’s Ladder (1990) with Lyne himself doing a QnA and intro. On Saturday, they’re showing Foxes (1980) and Lolita (1997) as part of that same series, both in 35mm, with Lolita getting repeat showings on Sunday and Monday. Tuesday is another screening of Fatal Attraction as well as a screening of 1983’s Flashdance, all good stuff, all in 35mm.
Something is wrong with the theater’s website, though I know they’re showing some of Jem Cohen’s films, and he’ll be on hand for intros and QnAs, but without the site, I don’t have much more info. (The site’s URL automatically gets forwarded to a ticketing site with no further info.)
This Monday’s “Musical Mondays” is no less than Singin’ in the Rain, two showings, presumably in 35mm, but I’m not sure.
As part of “Malcolm Washington Presents,” you can see Bong Joon-ho’s Memories of Murder on Saturday and Barry Jenkins’ Oscar-winning Moonlight on Sunday, just as Washington’s The Piano Lesson moves to streaming.
NITEHAWK CINEMA PROSPECT PARK & WILLIAMSBURG
I’m still annoyed by my treatment by two servers at the Nitehawk at the last “Sundays on Fire” I attended, but I’m putting this back in here, because I do like the programming. For instance, the “American Movies: ‘90s Docs” series continues with Nick Broomfield’s Aileen Wuornos: The Selling of a Serial Killer (1992) playing on Saturday in Propect Park with a QnA with Broomfield and Steve James’ Hoop Dreams playing on Sunday. As part of the “Beware the Children” series, you can see Lew Lehman’s 1981 horror film The Pit on Monday night. On Tuesday, the “Best Actress, 1974” series kicks off in Propect Park with 1974’s Lenny about Lenny Bruce, preceded by a stand-up comedy set.
Over in Williamsburg, Chris Hegedus and D.A. Pennebaker’s 1993 doc, The War Room, will play Saturday and Sunday at brunch time, and on Monday night, you can see David Markey’s 1992 film, 1991: The Year Punk Broke, which covers Sonic Youth and Nirvana on tour with plenty of other bands. On Friday and Saturday late, you can see Lucio Fulci’s 1982 film, The New York Ripper, as part of the “80s Fulci” series.
BAM (BROOKLYN ACADEMY OF MUSIC)
This Brooklyn arthouse has really been stepping up its repertory game with screenings this weekend of Martin Scorsese’s The Last Tempation of Christ on Thursday afternoon, wrapping up its “OUTRAGE” series. It then starts a new series on Friday with “The Extraordinary Shelley Duvall,” screening Robert Altman’s McCabe & Mrs. Miller from 1971 on Friday and Monday, Altman’s 1975 film Nashville on Friday and Sunday, as well as Roxanne on Sunday and Monday, Kubrick’s The Shining on Monday and Tuesday, and many more films starring the late Ms. Duvall.
Documentary filmmaker Lana Wilson gets a retrospective at Astoria’s MoMI with After Tiller playing on Friday night, the two-part Pretty Baby doc about Brooke Shields on Saturday, and Miss Americana, the Taylor Swift doc on Saturday with Wilson in person. On Friday, they’re showing Jonah Hill’s mid90s (2018) as part of “Skate Video Essentials.” “The Magic of Oz” series continues with screenings of Oz’s Death at a Funeral and The Stepford Wives remakes on Saturday afternoon, and a Sunday afternoon screening of The Empire Strikes Back (Special Edition), which introduced Oz’s beloved character Yoda.
The big series for the next few weeks is “The Complete Robert Frank,” a retrospective of films and videos of a filmmaker who I’m not familiar with. Sorry.
This weekend, you can see Bryan Singer’s The Usual Suspects on Friday night and The Last Starfighter on Saturday night and Sunday afternoon, and Adam Nimoy will be on hand to show his doc about his father Leonard Nimoy, For the Love of Spock, on Sunday afternoon. The 1940 Katharine Hepburn-Cary Grant film, The Philadelphia Story, screens on Monday night, and then one of my favorite musicals, Cabaret (1972), screens on Tuesday.
Yasujiro Ozu’s 1962 film, An Autumn Afternoon, will screen in a special 35mm presentation on Friday night as part of “John and Miyoko Davies Classics,” presented in conjunction with the John and Miyoko Davey Endowment Fund for Classic Film.
That’s it for this week. Next week, the big release is Disney’s animated Moana 2, and I hope to have some more reviews of the limited releases and some streaming movies. The early edition with box office will hit for paid subscribers on Tuesday morning and then the rest will hopefully publish on Wednesday (or Friday latest).