Happy June!! I came back from my Bali vacation on Memorial weekend but have just been dealing with a massive jet lag so it’s taking me longer to post this monthly recap. Well in case you’re wondering, our 2-week trip to the tropical paradise was absolutely wonderful, Bali is truly magical… definitely should be on everyone’s bucket list. We were blessed with sunshine every single day, though it had been raining a lot even a week before we got there. Here are a few pics from our holiday…

(click for larger versions with captions)

In any case, here’s what I managed to watch last month:

Most of the movies I saw last month were on the plane given our flight to Bali was a whopping 30 hours (yes that includes the layovers), in fact, I only saw four movies total before and after my trip.

NEW MOVIES

(films indicated with * are directed by women)

Everybody Wants To Be Loved* (Alle wollen geliebt werden)

Bless MSPIFF for the free virtual screening of some of its foreign submissions. Set during a blisteringly hot summer day in a German city, it centers on psychotherapist Ina who seem to worry about everyone else but herself. Like most working moms, there’s barely time for oneself when you’ve got a rebellious teenage daughter, a demanding boyfriend, and a self-absorbed mother who’s a bit of a prima donna. This is an intriguing slice-of-life family drama that’s relatable and thought-provoking, thanks to Anne Ratte-Polle’s engaging performance.

I was fascinated and amused by Ina’s seemingly routine life and how she tries her best to cope with it. As a woman, I definitely appreciate the message about prioritizing and reclaiming oneself when there’s so much expected of you. I like the naturalistic style of the dialog and the way writer/director Katharina Woll presents the narrative in her debut feature.

CARMEN

review upcoming

Faraway*

review upcoming

Kangaroo Valley* (doc)

I absolutely love kangaroos and since I just had a brief layover at a Sydney airport for a few hours, so this documentary about a pack of kangaroo joeys immediately appeals to me. I love the narration by Aussie Sarah Snook, her voice is calm and soothing, and sometimes she gets emotional during certain moments. The chase scenes between joeys and a pack of dingos make for some genuinely suspenseful and heart-wrenching moments, captured brilliantly on camera.

This isn’t just a nature doc about kangaroos, it’s a coming-of-age tale about a young joey named Mala who’s learning to survive past her first year. Apparently, only 1 in 5 joeys make it to their first birthdays and you’ll see why. Between being hunted by a pack of dingos (an ancient lineage of dogs found in Australia) and the harsh Winter, it’s quite a feat to see them make it to adulthood. There are also scenes featuring a few adorable Wombats. The production quality is amazing, with breathtaking day and night photography and sweeping aerial shots of the valley. The valley is simply majestic, highly recommend this for any animal/nature fans.

✈️  PLANE WATCHES ✈️

80 For Brady

review upcoming

Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody*

review upcoming

Operation Fortune

I was thrilled that this movie was available on our flight as I had been wanting to see it. Well, this is a case where the trailer is definitely much better than the actual movie. It’s got everything one expects from Guy Ritchie, including a fun cast with Guy regulars Jason Statham and Hugh Grant, plus Audrey Plaza being her quirky self and Josh Hartnett playing a goofy movie star. The setup promises a rollicking ruse but the script is seriously lacking wit, it seems lazily put together. Few thrills, even fewer laughs, and a whole bunch of nonsense. In short, it’s rather disappointing but at least it was serviceable to pass the time on a long flight when you can’t sleep.

The Intern*

I love Nancy Meyers‘ movies, from Father of the Bride, What Women Want, The Holiday, etc. but for some odd reason I missed this one when it came out in 2015. It stars Robert De Niro as a 70-year-old widower Ben who decides to come out of retirement and gets back in the professional world as a senior intern at an online fashion site started by Jules (Anne Hathaway). It takes some time for the movie to find its rhythm and the Brooklyn-based office setting seems too glossy and Hollywoodized that it doesn’t ring true.

That said, the two leads have a good chemistry that makes it delightful to watch. I always love stories about inter-generational relationships and there are certainly some life lessons to be mined here despite the rather predictable narrative. I do have an issue about how Ben is written as a bit too ‘Mr. Perfect’ here who always saves the day, but at the same time, I don’t feel the story is disrespectful to women. 

What’s Love Got To Do With It

review upcoming

Return To Seoul

review upcoming

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REWATCHES

This is what happened when you’re flippin’ tired and extremely bored but couldn’t sleep on the plane with 5+ hours to go on the flight 😆 I wasn’t planning on seeing the whole thing so I fast-fwd-ed a bunch of scenes.

Batman V Superman

Leap Year

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TV SERIES

I started watching some episodes of Mary Tyler Moore (right from the first season!) after seeing her documentary. I also managed to finish the entire season of Citadel, I’ll write a post about it later.

Mary Tyler Moore

Ted Lasso S3

Citadel S1

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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.

Despite being away for most of May, I did get to see five movies #directedbywomen last month! Three features: Everybody Wants To Be Loved, I Wanna Dance With Somebody, The Intern and Faraway; and one documentary: Kangaroo Valley.

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MAY 2023 MOVIE OF THE MONTH

 Return To Seoul

I missed seeing this as part of Indie Spirit Awards but thankfully it was available on my Delta flight from MSP en route to Denpasar, Bali. It’s easily the best thing I saw in the entire month, full review coming soon!

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So what did you see in MAY and which one(s) are your favorites?

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