Monthly Recap: May 2019

As you may know — if you bothered reading my returning videotapes post — I’ve finally found a job and, unfortunately, as much as I love movies and talking about them, I got to a point where posting daily was no longer an option for me and my mental health.

As promised, I’ve been trying to post as often as I can, which so far as meant only a review a week and the usual Thursday Movie Picks post, not because I don’t have time to write, but because I decided to spend my free time watching TV series, specifically What We Do in the Shadows — by the way, it’s a brilliant show and you should definitely check it out, especially if you loved the film —, rather than watching movies.

With that being said, let’s delve into my first Monthly Recap post, the series where I list the movies I watched during the month, with short reviews for those who don’t deserve a full one.

50/50 (2011) — Review

Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile (2019) — Review

Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond (2017) — Review

Fighting with My Family (2019) — Review

Short Term 12 (2013) — Review

I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997) — Review

The Woman in Red (1984) — Review

Despite Everything (2019)

Plot: Four sisters reunite for their mother's funeral only to learn that the man who raised them is not their father. To earn their inheritance, they are forced to go on a "treasure hunt" and discover who their biological fathers are. 

It's very silly and very predictable, the characters are nothing but archetypes — the uptight woman in career who doesn't have time for love, the easy girl who is sick of being considered such, the artsy one with a lip piercing and commitment issues, and the neurotic who drowns her sorrows in alcohol — and it's filled with clichés — the uptight character being initiated to weed with a huge joint, and the running to the station to stop the person you love — but despite everything — forgive my pun — the Spanish Netflix original was quite enjoyable as the story is engaging, there are so funny moments here and there and the actresses are very likeable. 

  

Ruby Sparks (2012) — Review coming soon

Detective Pikachu (2019) — Review

Snatch (2000) — Review

Tallulah (2016) — Review

  

The Neon Demon (2016)

Plot: An ingénue 16-year-old (Elle Fanning) moves to Los Angeles to become a model. Her naiveté and awkwardness immediately captures the attention from the modelling industry while becoming envied by fellow models.

The thin plot itself didn’t bother me — it’s a Refn film, after all — but the fact that it’s stretch to fit a running time of nearly two hours did. The characters are shallow which is a good thing considering this is about the fashion and modelling industry, but the lead is so obnoxious and unlikeable. Visually it’s stunning though, the score is very hypnotic and there are some very strong performances, especially Jena Malone’s.

Charade (1963)

Plot: An American woman (Audrey Hepburn) living in Paris is about to divorce her husband when he’s murdered. Turns out he stole a lot of money and the woman becomes the target of several bad guys who want the treasure and believe she knows what and where it is.

A silly and predictable plot, the characters are underdeveloped, the romance between Hepburn and Grant’s characters isn't particularly believable as not only Grant is almost twice her age and not so attractive but he keeps being dishonest with her and yet she keeps going back to him, and the cast is also a disaster. Also, it is set and shot in Paris so why on earth shot the entire thing inside hotel rooms and offices?

My Own Private Idaho (1991)

Plot: A male prostitute with narcolepsy, Mike (River Phoenix), befriends another male prostitute (Keanu Reeves), the rebellious son of a rich man, an together they embark on a journey to find Mike’s estranged mother.

I know people love this film but I didn’t give a damn about it. The story was so confusing and boring, the characters bland and uninteresting, the acting, well, Phoenix is a delight to watch as he portrays the confused and abandoned young man striving for acceptance and love, but Reeves is unwatchable as he gives that same idiotic performance he gives in the Bill & Ted movies.

Solaris (2002)

Plot: Psychologist Chris Kelvin (George Clooney) is dispatched to a space station orbiting the Solaris planet to find out what went wrong on a previous mission. When he arrives, most of the crew is dead and he starts seeing his dead wife (Natascha McElhone).

I know, I know, I should have watched the original film instead of this one but this is the one Netflix had (they removed it today). Anyways, don’t bother with this trash. No matter how hard I try, I can’t come up with a positive aspect of this film. Okay, maybe I have it. It’s Viola Davis. She’s always the light at the end of the tunnel.

John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum (2019) — Review

The Lake House (2006) | Rewatch

Plot: A young doctor (Sandra Bullock) moves to a lake house and soon starts exchanging letters with a young architect (Keanu Reeves), the previous owner of the house. The catch? She lives in 2006, he lives in 2004.

I rewatched it because of Margaret and this was not as good as I remembered. It’s never explained how to time travelling mailbox works, there are lot of nonsense going on, like Sandra Bullock’s mother having a Russian accent for no reason whatsoever — maybe Bullock was supposed to be Russian, maybe the writers or the director just didn’t know what they were doing. But I still almost cried when they finally meet at the end.  

Booksmart (2019) — Review