Happy June, everyone! May has been a bit of an odd duck weather-wise. An MPR host said the other day that if you don’t like the weather, just wait a few minutes, ha! Sure enough, it’s been alternating between windy, sunny, and rainy in just a matter of minutes in a single day! 😆
Well, because I was traveling the first month of May, I didn’t watch as many movies as in April, but it was still relatively productive as I watched 4 movies on the plane (1 was a rewatch: The Dark Knight).
Anyway, here’s what I watched last month:
NEW MOVIES
(films indicated with * are directed by women)
Beekeeper
Showing Up*
review upcoming
This Is Where I Leave You
Shawn Levy is a prolific director/producer whose work is wildly uneven, and that’s how I’d describe this movie he did in 2014. The star-studded cast is what appealed to me initially, with Jane Fonda as the matriarch to four children: Tina Fey, Jason Bateman, Corey Stoll, and Adam Driver. The four grown children are all forced to live under the same roof in their childhood home for a week after their dad’s passing. It’s a quintessential dysfunctional family filled with a plethora of drama thanks to their over-sharing mother and an assortment of spouses, exes, and might-have-beens.
The tone is lighthearted despite some serious subject matter, the humor doesn’t always work and at times comes across as silly and over-the-top. The most compelling storyline is Bateman’s whose character’s wife cheated with his own boss but finds romance with a former classmate (Rose Byrne). Wish the ‘one that got away’ story between Fey and her high school boyfriend (Timothy Olyphant) was explored in more in depth. Overall it’s pretty entertaining for an in-flight watch.
The Book of Clarence
review upcoming
The Fall Guy
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
The Dead Don’t Hurt
The Last Daughter (documentary)
My Father’s Dragon*
I’m always up for another animated feature by Cartoon Saloon, the Irish animation studio that brought some of my faves like Secret of Kells, Song of the Sea, and Wolfwalkers. This one is directed by Nora Twomey and starts out with a mother-son story who strives to rebuild their lives after they’re forced to close down their candy store. Then it switches to a more fantastical adventure story about searching for a captive dragon on an island, but the transition from a grounded narrative to fantasy feels quite jarring. By the end, I wish there was a more compelling connection between the mother-son intro.
Despite the gorgeous animation and colorful visuals, overall it lacks enchantment and that magical touch I expect from this studio. It’s only 1 hour 39 minutes but feels much longer… unfortunately, this one is the weakest film to date from Cartoon Saloon.
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
The Blue Angels (documentary)
Stuntwomen: The Untold Hollywood Story*
review upcoming
Ezra
review upcoming
Where Do We Go Now?*
review upcoming
TV SERIES
Ever since Ted Lasso S3 wrapped, I’ve wanted to watch this docuseries and finally got around to it last month. While the underdog AFC. Richmond is fictitious, Wales’ Wrexham AFC is very much the real deal. The docuseries chronicles the purchase and stewardship of one of professional football’s oldest clubs by Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.
While their bromance and bafflement about how the club works (especially Ryan) is pretty amusing, the reason to watch the show is the super-enthusiastic fans. I don’t know anything about football but the real highlight is the people of this industrial city in North Wales and their devotion to the club. Watching every match as Wrexham desperately tries to move up from the National League (5th tier) is quite an emotional roller coaster.
Not as prolific as last month’s 10 movies, but I managed to watch 4 movies #directedbywomen this month, which brings the tally of the year so far to 33, woot!! So 19 more to go and we’re not even halfway through 2024 yet. There are a bunch of female-directed movies on my watch list that I didn’t get to last month, i.e. My Father’s Violin and The Elephant Whisperers, both on Netflix. I’m anticipating Anna Kendrick’s Woman of the Hour that’s been acquired by Netflix, hope that will be available to stream soon!
Per the 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.
May 2024 MOVIE(S) OF THE MONTH
Tough to pick just one this month so we have a tie between Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes and The Dead Don’t Hurt, both are impressively directed and beautifully shot. It’s my intro to both directors: Wes Ball and Viggo Mortensen, the latter is such a phenomenal actor but now I hope he continues his venture into directing!
So what did you see in MAY and which one(s) are your favorites?
…
FLIXCHATTER FILM BLOG 
Great reviews as always. It seems like I have a long list of movies to watch now. I’m planning to see “Furiosa” followed by “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes”. “This is Where I Leave You” is another movie that sounds intriguing to me. I love movies about dysfunctional families because I can relate to them on a personal level. Moreover, I’m also a huge fan of Adam Driver. He’s a phenomenal actor that has proven that he can deliver extraordinary performances in any movie. For instance, I adored his performance as a father experiencing a broken marriage in “Marriage Story”. He showcases strong emotions in the argument scene taking place in the apartment. So, “This is Where I Leave You” is another film that I will add to my watchlist. Thanks for the recommendation.
Here’s why I adored Adam Driver’s performance in “Marriage Story”:
Hello Hassan, hope you’ve been enjoying your weekend!
Hey, I’m glad you are a big fan of Adam Driver, too! He’s my current fave actor at the moment as he’s quite versatile and he’s more about the work, no ‘movie star drama’ which I appreciate. I LOVE him in Marriage Story, but he’s also fun to watch in crazy roles like Annette. Have you seen that? I made this tribute post for his birthday in 2021 https://flixchatter.net/2021/11/20/ranking-adam-drivers-10-best-roles-in-honor-of-his-birthday/
Now, if you want to see one of his best performances, I highly recommend PATERSON which is a quiet film that’s quite engaging. Adam isn’t on screen much in This Is Where I Leave You.
Wow! May just went by so fast, it seems like I just blinked and it’s already June. Ha ha!
I didn’t see any new movies last month, which is weird since it’s the official start of summer movie season and I didn’t go see any of the ones that came out. I just watched some movies that I got on 4K disc, Dune Part 2 and The Crow. I finished the show Sugar on Apple TV+, very good thriller. Still watching The Sympathizer, it’s kind of even so far. Some episodes were good but some were kind meh. Hopefully, it will finish on a high note.
Warmer months tend to go by SO FAST, don’t they, unlike the dread long Winter, LOL!
Oh you saw SUGAR! I haven’t had a chance to write a post of it but it’s an entertaining series and so enigmatic, love it! I just have to make sure not to spoil THAT surprise, y’know.
I’m hoping to check out The Sympathizer soon but my priority in June is catching up with Tokyo Vice season 2!
The best thing I saw last month is definitely <i>Furiosa</i>. I have seen <i>This is Where I Leave You</i> and I didn’t like it. I don’t understand what is funny about seeing a kid dragging a toilet so he can poo all over the house. Shawn Levy is the embodiment of mediocrity. He takes no risks and does everything he can to be pleasing to audiences. That is why I will not watch <i>Deadpool & Wolverine</i>. Plus, I can’t fucking stand Ryan Reynolds as he’s nothing but a dufus and a schill.
Ahah, boy you have such a strong opinion about Shawn Levy and Ryan Reynolds… then it’s definitely wise to avoid Deadpool & Wolverine. I’m more curious to see Hugh Jackman back as Wolverine, but I’m not super anticipating that movie. I kind of wish he just left the character die a dignified death in LOGAN though.
The only reason Hugh Jackman is doing this is because he’s been in some flops recently and I think he’s going through a mid-life crisis. Logan gave him the perfect send-off. He doesn’t need to do this. It’s all about helping Ryan Reynolds’ brand as well and that pisses me off. He’s more of a schill than an actor these days.
I don’t think Reynolds is a schill, that’s a bit harsh… I think he’s more of a businessman than an actor, I actually think what he and Rob McElhenney do with Wrexham is admirable.
As for Jackman’s midlife crisis, there might be something to it as I believe resurrecting Wolverine again might have cost him his marriage.
No, he’s a schill. He’s always trying to sell something as there’s ads of him on YouTube all the time. He’s trying to sell some terrible liquor drink as he would do it in his films including Red Notice in which the Crock did the same thing for his lame tequila.
I am not interested in seeing movie stars trying to sell me bullshit through anything. I can understand wanting to make money for business reasons but to put in a film as if you’re forcing your audience to watch a 2-hour commercial. Then you’re a fucking schill and a fucking sell-out.
I quote Neil Young… “Ain’t singing for Pepsi, ain’t singing for Coke. I don’t wanna sing for nobody that makes me look like a joke. This note’s for you!”
I’m looking forward to your Stuntwoman review. I haven’t heard of that doc!
It’s a really good doc, my hubby found that on Freeve. I highly recommend it!