Happy April, everyone! I’m getting a bit of Spring Fever even though we just got a bunch of snow a week ago. Temps are steadily increasing here in my neck of the woods, in the southeast suburbs of Minneapolis. Well, one thing I’m super excited about this month is MSPIFF which arrives on April 11 until 25, my press pass just arrived today, woo hoo! I’ve blogged about the exciting 2024 lineup and all the international movies I’m hoping to see.
Anyway, here’s what I watched last month:
NEW MOVIES
(films indicated with * are directed by women)
Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound* (2019)
Suncoast* (2024)
This film is inspired by first-time writer/director Laura Chinn‘s life whose dying brother shared the same hospice as Terri Schiavo in early 2000. That landmark case serves as the backdrop here as Nico Parker‘s Doris takes care of her brother who’s in a vegetative state while dealing with her overbearing mom (Laura Linney). It’s a testament to Linney’s talent that somehow she still infuses some humanity into her unlikable character. Woody Harrelson has a small supporting role as one of the protesters who strikes a friendship with Doris.
A coming-of-age story mixed with a right-to-die theme which feels a bit unbalanced at times, but the film manages to be quite engaging despite the uneven tone. The mother/daughter story feels underbaked while the high-school scenes of Doris trying to fit in are quite endearing thanks to Parker’s charms. She‘s the spitting image of her mom Thandiwe Newton and proved to be as talented. It’s far from perfect but well worth a watch for Parker’s performance and her character’s compelling emotional journey.
An American in Austen* + Sense & Sensibility (2024)
These are the last two of Hallmark’s Jane Austen adaptations for its Loveuary program. I meant to do a ranking of all four but didn’t get a chance last month, so stay tuned for that later this month.
Something’s Gotta Give* (2003)
I kept seeing this title recommended on Netflix but never got around to it. Glad I finally watched this as it’s a lot of fun. Seeing Jack Nicholson in a rom-com is reason enough to watch it and he’s perfectly cast as an elderly swinger who always dates women barely half his age. When his current girlfriend (Amanda Peet) brings him to her family’s beach house, he ends up falling for her mother (Diane Keaton), a woman closer to his age. Apparently writer/director Nancy Meyers wrote the roles of Erica (a playwright) and Harry (a music exec) specifically for the two actors and there’s such an amusing chemistry between them.
Bonus: Keanu Reeves plays a hot young doctor who’s smitten with Keaton, makes me wish he does more romantic movies!
The movie can be silly and corny at times, but Nicholson is so hilarious and the writing so snappy it’s just so darn entertaining. I’m a big fan of The Holiday, but somehow I’ve missed some of Meyers’s movies, I gotta watch It’s Complicated soon.
One Life (2024)
Cabrini (2024)
Ghostbusters Frozen Empire (2024)
Wicked Little Letters* (2024)
review upcoming
The Greatest Hits (2024)
review upcoming
Blackberry (2023)
Anyone who’s ever used a BlackBerry would find this extra fascinating though this is mostly inspired by than actually based on a true story. Directed by Matt Johnson (who has a key role in the movie), it’s a fictionalized account of the development of the BlackBerry phone line. Crazy that it was the world’s first smartphone (before the Apple iPhone wiped it off the map) and its meteoric rise is just as epic as its catastrophic demise.
Jay Baruchel plays Research in Motion’s founder Mike Lazaridis but for some reason, I kept picturing Hiccup from How to Train Your Dragon every time he speaks. Glenn Howerton killed it as the company’s brash co-CEO Jim Balsillie (his ballsy-ness lives up to his name!). It’s one heck of a story that makes for a wildly entertaining watch.
The Listener (2024)
review upcoming
The Beautiful Game* (2024)
review upcoming
REWATCHES
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (2016)
I’m a big fan of this underrated horror comedy that reimagines the most famous Austen characters from Pride & Prejudice if they exist during a zombie apocalypse. The core of the love story is intact and somehow the zombies create such a sense of urgency for the romance to happen, ahah.
TV SERIES
I’ve started watching The 3 Body Problem on Netflix, made by the creators of Game of Thrones. It came highly recommended by a friend of mine who has read the book by Cixin Liu. It’s definitely an intoxicating watch but I can only watch one episode at a time as it’s really a lot for my little brain 🤯
I’m still enjoying Shōgun, which I’ve reviewed here, which just gets better and better. These two are some of the best TV shows to invest your time in.
Per Women In Film (WIF) organization, the basic rules of 52 Films By Women are simple: watch 52 films directed by women within 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.
I managed to watch six movies #directedbywomen this month, woot!
- Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound
- Suncoast
- An American in Austen
- Something’s Gotta Give
- Wicked Little Letters
- The Beautiful Game
March 2024 MOVIE OF THE MONTH
As a cinephile, it’s such a huge treat to watch this insightful and entertaining cinematic sound documentary and now I gotta complete the ‘trilogy’ of documentaries highlighting the unsung heroes of cinema: Visions of Light (camera crews) and The Cutting Edge (editors).
So what did you see in March and which one(s) are your favorites?
…
FLIXCHATTER FILM BLOG 
Great post as always Ruth. I like all the movies you listed but want to single out “BlackBerry”. One of the most underrated films of 2023 that didn’t get the recognition it deserved. I’ve never had interest in technology let alone smartphones so I went into this movie apprehensive about whether I would enjoy it. That being said, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I loved it. Having grown up in the town of Waterloo where the smartphone was conceived, I found its true story easy to relate to. Here is why I loved the movie: https://huilahimovie.reviews/2023/06/03/blackberry-2023-movie-review/
Oh you grew up in Waterloo? Wow then this movie would’ve definitely resonated with you. Yeah it was a wild ride, truly crazy story though most of it is fictionalized. I ended up reading about the real story which is just as fascinating. Have you seen TETRIS btw? That’s another fun movie about the famous puzzle video game, I highly recommend it!
My favorite film last month is That Most Important Thing: Love by Andrezj Zulawski as that was a film I’ve been wanting to see for nearly 20 years because of the Z Channel documentary. I saw 9 films by women with a lot of them being these animated short films by Suzan Pitt as there’s a retrospective of her work on MUBI.
I read your review of That Most Important Thing: Love, sounds intriguing! Great job on the 9 films by women!
I can’t believe it’s already April, March went by so fast!
My favorite movie from last month was Dune 2 since I saw it twice. Also, watched a couple of new movies. Road House remake and The Beekeeper, two cheesy action films that started out well but fizzled in the second half.
I’m still watching Shogun and the new season of Tokyo Vice, which so far is much better than season 1. I did finish 3 Body Problem over the weekend. I really enjoyed it but the last two episodes were quite frustrating and a letdown. I don’t get why the story was shift to a character that was useless throughout most of the season and that person is still useless by the end of season 1. I’ve never read the books but I assume this person will become something important in the later part of the trilogy books. But I was very upset that the show shifted the focus to this character and ended on a whimper.
Oh yeah, I forgot. I did enjoy another movie from last month, Netflix’s Spaceman starring Adam Sandler.
Hi Ted! I’m curious about The Beekeeper as I like Statham, so I’ll watch it once it’s free on streaming.
Ohh I do love Tokyo Vice but have been watching so many shows lately that S2 would have to wait until Summer. Glad to hear it’s better than S1! I LOVE Shogun and wish there are more episodes, but oh well, there are only 3 more eps left.
Bummer about 3 Body Problem, now you got me curious as to which character you speak of, but no spoiler please! 😀
The Beekeeper was silly, it started out like a typical Statham’s action flick but then it fizzled in the second half. I’m sure it will be on Netflix or Prime soon.
You’ll know who I’m talking about when you get to those episodes in 3 Body Problem. It’s so frustrating because the episodes before the last two were very good. Then it shifted to this character and it fizzled out. This isn’t surprising though since the two creators of Games of Throne did similar thing with the last season of that show. Suddenly, a useless character became a focus and there were no indication at all that this person was so important. It’s just frustrating when the writers decided pivot a story like that.
Okay, rant over. Lol!
Glenn Howerton was great in Blackberry! I wish he would’ve gotten more awards love for that performance.
Yes, Howerton was terrific, he ran away with that movie IMHO. He deserved at least several awards for that performance!