Happy May!! Technically we’re supposed to be entering Summer soon, but yesterday was still so cold and extremely windy! We got a taste of Summer with a couple of days in the 80s in mid-April but that’s about it! 
In any case, here’s what I watched last month:
NEW MOVIES
(films indicated with * are directed by women)
Horrible Bosses (2011)
I’ve been wanting to watch this for so long! Jason Sudeikis, Charlie Day, and Jason Bateman are a lot of fun to watch as three friends who conspire to murder their awful bosses, one of them amusingly was played by Kevin Spacey, ahah. Jennifer Aniston is quite hilarious playing against type as an oversexed dentist and who could forget that horrible combover on Colin Farrell! 😀
Luther: The Fallen Sun (2023)
I’ve never seen the original series so I watched a recap of the series before watching this movie. It helped me familiarize myself with the character and his journey thus far. Idris Elba’s always been a charismatic actor and he’s so perfect in this role of a brilliant but flawed detective. It’s interesting to see the protagonist starting out in prison at the beginning of the movie but he manages to break out of it in order to hunt down a sadistic serial killer terrorizing London, played by Andy Serkis. Great to see Cynthia Erivo as Luther’s new ally, I’d totally be up for more of Luther movies with Elba and Erivo sharing more screens together. Who needs a Bond franchise when Elba is perfectly capable as a franchise starter?
The Year of the Dog (2023)
Dancing with the Birds – doc (2023)
From ruffling their majestic feathers to nailing im-peck-able courtship routines, birds in paradise flaunt their best moves in hopes of landing a mate. The premise is absolutely fascinating and it’s highly entertaining as well as educational. I’ve never seen most of the birds featured here and was completely astonished at what they could do! The narration by Stephen Fry is a hoot, perhaps one of the funniest animal documentaries I’ve seen recently.
Chasing Coral – doc (2023)
I LOVE, love corals! I’m always in awe of their colorful, majestic beauty. It’s sad that some of the world’s corals are vanishing at an unprecedented rate. A team of divers, photographers, and scientists set out on a thrilling ocean adventure to show us the effects of warming seas that cause some corals to turn to white. Through time-lapse and stunning underwater photography, we get an eye-opening look at what’s happening to our ocean’s backbone without descending into a politicized debate about climate change.
Renfield (2023)
Polite Society* (2023)
review upcoming
Joyride* (2022)
I’ve been watching a handful of movies set in Ireland lately and I’m loving it! This one is a British-Irish coming-of-age dramedy starring Olivia Colman as Joy and newcomer Charlie Reid as Mully. Colman is eternally likable even when playing an unsympathetic character, though her character undergoes a transformation here, as do the 13-year-old Mully after they spend time together.
Kudos to director Emer Reynolds and writer Ailbhe Keogan for tackling mature and dark themes without making the film morose or depressing. On the contrary, there are plenty of moments of levity and hopefulness. Colman is always fabulous in any role but I’m so impressed with Reid who’s really good in his feature debut! The theme of embracing motherhood is heartwarming and not preachy, which is refreshing. The scenery in County Kerry is absolutely gorgeous so I highly recommend this one.
Chevalier (2023)
review upcoming – check out the trailer
Dreamin’ Wild
Before Now & Then*
Dancing Queen*
The Night Of the 12th
Hamlet Syndrome*
Flamin’ Hot*
My Sailor, My Love
Two Tickets to Greece
review upcoming
Being Mary Tyler Moore
review upcoming
Wild Life*
review upcoming
TV SERIES
I watched quite a bit of TV last month, mostly catching up with some of my favorite series. I’ll write a short review of these in a separate post.
The Mandalorian S3
Ted Lasso S3
Shadow & Bone S2
So I’m continuing the 52 Films By Women challenge I started on International Women’s Day a few years ago. Per Women In Film (WIF) organization, the basic rules are simple: watch 52 films directed by women within the course of one year and share what you watched on social media, using the hashtag #52FilmsByWomen to spread the word, and get more people talking about the women filmmakers that don’t always get attention.
Thanks to MSPIFF, I got to see seven terrific films #directedbywomen last month! Five features: Before Now & Then, Dancing Queen, Flamin’ Hot, Polite Society, Joyride, and two documentaries: The Hamlet Syndrome and Wild Life. I’ll be traveling most of May so I may not be able to get to watch many movies this month, so I figure I better make up for it ahead of time.
REWATCHES
I was in the mood for something festive with great music, so when I saw the banner appears on HULU, I just had to click play. I adore this movie and it’s wonderfully rewatchable. I have always loved Ewan McGregor here but with more rewatches, I appreciate Nicole Kidman’s dramatic as well as comedic chops. Richard Roxburgh is vastly underrated as the Duke which can be both sinister and comedic.
It remains the best Baz Luhrmann movie IMHO, brimming with feverish energy, bohemian spirit, romantic passion, and of course, phenomenal songs!
APRIL 2023 MOVIE(S) OF THE MONTH
The Night of the 12th and Chevalier
It’s another month where I can’t pick just one favorite. I’ve waxed lyrical on the French procedural whodunnit The Night Of The 12th which I caught at #MSPIFF42, and I watched Chevalier yesterday before it left my local theaters. Check out the trailer which highlights a forgotten French-Caribbean music virtuoso whose history has been unjustly erased because of the color of his skin. Stay tuned for my full review!
So what did you see in APRIL and which one(s) are your favorites?
…
FLIXCHATTER FILM BLOG 
The first Horrible Bosses was cool except in having to hear that “How You Like Me Now” song so many times as it irritates me as it’s even worse in the 2nd film which I really didn’t like at all except for Chris Pratt and Kevin Spacey. My favorite film this month is John Wick: Chapter 4 while I am so enjoying this season of
Ted Lasso as I really loved the episode set in Amsterdam. Total Football is going to work. It is very important to understand sport dynasties and why they were successful. The Dutch in the 1970s were phenomenal despite not winning the World Cup but making it to the finals twice during that time is impressive. The AFC Ajax in Amsterdam were dominant in Europe during that time as both that club and the national team had the late Johan Cruyff who was instrumental in the Total Football tactic as he helped change the game. If you remember in that episode in Amsterdam where Lasso is hallucinating about triangle. They mention the Triangle Offense that Tex Warner created as the assistant coach for the Chicago Bulls in the 1990s. Head coach Phil Jackson gave Warner a lot of credit and had him aboard in the 2000s when he coached the Lakers when they had Shaq and Kobe.
I don’t consider myself a sports nut but it gave me a great understanding of sport dynasties as it also bittersweet as my dad would’ve gone nuts over this show and those tactics.
You mean Chris Pine right? I don’t think Pratt is in any of the HB movies.
Glad you like JW Chapter 4 which was sensational! As for Ted Lasso, I’m enjoying the season so far though I’m not crazy about the Jack/Keely storyline, mainly as I don’t like the Jack character esp when she’s love-bombing Keely. I love the ep in Amsterdam a lot, that scene involving Rebecca is very sweet, as is the Roy/Jamie bonding scenario.
I’m not a sports fan either but I think the show transcends the sports theme, and that’s why it resonates w/ so many people.
You’re right. That was such a brain-fart. Pine was in the 2nd film. He was funny.
I just saw the new episode and…. I don’t like Jack anymore. I think she’s more about protecting her own rep than Keeley. Rupert is EVIL and I hate Dr. Jake Jacobson… ugh… I don’t think Henry likes him either.
Hey Flixy, very much looking forward to your review of Being Mary Tyler Moore. She was the role model for every professional woman coming up in the 70s, including me!
A network series on ABC (yes, really, watch on Hulu also), The Company You Keep, is the best I’ve seen in a long, long time, including ALL streaming networks. It’s sophisticated and witty. The characters and story are clever and unusual. And the lead woman character is Asian (Catherine Haena Kim) and her relationship(s) with Charlie (Milo Ventimiglia) keep the intrigue coming.
I really think you’d like it, even think Ivan would, you should watch together (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt18412092/) and let me know what you think.
Hey Becky, sorry I missed your comment somehow!
I love the BMTM doc so I’ve started watching the MTM show on Hulu, enjoying it so far and I can see why it’s so popular. I didn’t even realize she was in the Dick Van Dyke show, this is all before I came to the US so I’m not familiar w/ her.
I haven’t heard of The Company You Keep but nice to see an Asian American lead for a change. I’ll check it out later this Summer!
Since I bought a house back in late March, April was pretty hectic for me. I didn’t see a lot of new movies at all, just Luther: The Fallen Sun and I thought it’s forgettable. I’ve always wanted to watch the TV series but never got around to it. The only other new show I watched was The White Lotus, caught up with both seasons. Such a weird and crazy show and I loved it. Lol!
I still need to watch White Lotus, maybe later this Summer as I’m still hoping to see SILO on AppleTV+ as well.
Btw, did you get around to seeing The Covenant yet?
Has The Covenant open yet in theaters? I haven’t seen any ads for it at all, so I totally forgot about it.
Yeah it’s been playing in theaters https://www.fandango.com/guy-ritchies-the-covenant-2023-230595/movie-overview They must not spent a lot of money for marketing.