THE LAST FEW THINGS I WATCHED (AND MY BRIEF THOUGHTS ON THEM, NO.3)

I see a lot of films, but I don’t fully review them all. But here’s some capsule reviews! If you see a * before the title, it’s my first viewing. **** indicates recommending it. The rest are rewatches and are generally recommended.

Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993, Henry Selick) - Part of my ongoing Tim Burton rewatch, kicked off by his triumphant return with BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE, and a perennial rewatch in our family.

*Megalopolis (2024, Francis Ford Coppola) -  My full review is here, but the more I think about it, the more I like it, and the more I believe this film could be a turning point for cinema. https://www.zachhammill.com/moviefriend/megalopolis-megareview

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007, Tim Burton) - CG is not where Tim Burton excels, but this adaptation of Stephen Sondheim’s musical is a bloody good time. Burton is most interested in the macabre elements, but the tenderness and melancholy shines through.

Mars Attacks! (1996, Tim Burton) - The Tim Burton rewatch marches on with this underappreciated, delightfully nasty sci-fi send-up. A perfectly mean-spirited live-action cartoon, performed by an unbelievable cast of huge movie stars, and hilarious alien designs, and incredible Palm-Springs-Hell production design by Spike Lee’s regular collaborator Wynn Thomas. I wanted more of the Jim Brown/Pam Grier storyline, since they are the sweet soul of the film, as is Lukas Haas as a country bumpkin with one of the funniest award acceptance speeches in movies.

The Many Adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh (1977, Wolfgang Reitherman, John Lounsbery) - This was a perfect weekend family movie rewatch. I got my kids obsessed with the idea of Heffalumps and Woozles, and now it’s almost all we talk about.

*Wolfs (2024, Jon Watts) - **** - Soft recommend. There’s a fun premise here that doesn’t quite get fully realized, and part of the problem might be the distracting level of star power given the scope of the material. It does pick up steam as it goes, and Austin Abrams, who I’ve been a fan of since 2015’s PAPER TOWNS, is outstanding.

*We Live In Time (2024, John Crowley) **** - Designed to make you cry, but when it’s done this well, those tears are earned. Those extra movie theater napkins will come in handy. My full review will be up next week prior to its release on Friday, October 18th.

*Joker: Folie A Deux (2024, Todd Phillips) - HAHAHAHAHA, just kidding, I’m not seeing this. Look: I love Joaquin Phoenix, I love Lady Gaga, and I've even enjoyed several films by director Todd Phillips, and I try to be fair and I have a wide-ranging taste in movies. But I absolutely hated JOKER, so there is no amount of desire or curiosity, morbid or otherwise, that would compel me to see JOKER: FOLIE A DEUX, so I will not being seeing or reviewing it. Life's too short. Maybe go for a nice walk instead. Also Joaquin: you walked out on the wrong Todd.**

*Disclaimer (2024 Limited Series, Alfonso Cuaron) **** - See mini-review here: https://www.zachhammill.com/moviefriend/disclaimer-mini-review

*She Came To Me (2023, Rebecca Miller) **** - What do a writer’s-blocked opera composer, and his clean freak psychiatrist wife who wants to become a nun, and his sex-and-love addict tugboat captain muse, and a teenage environmental science wiz, and his girlfriend, and her Polish born mother, and her Civil War reenacting court stenographer husband have in common? This kooky romantic comedy-drama by writer/director Rebecca Miller that packs a lot of quirk and depth into a short runtime. If you enjoyed Miller’s previous film MAGGIE’S PLAN, this may be up your alley as it was mine.

*Piece By Piece (2024, Morgan Neville) **** - See mini-review here: https://www.zachhammill.com/moviefriend/disclaimer-mini-review

*The Fly (1986, David Cronenberg) **** - First viewing of this rare instance of David Cronenberg working within the Hollywood studio system. I was encouraged to see it by a friend who mentioned this in the same breath as Coralie Fargeat’s film THE SUBSTANCE (which I still need to catch up on). It was amazing. Such a sad ending. Never have I ever been so deeply moved and so completely grossed out in equal measure.

*Barbarian (2022, Zach Cregger) **** - Spooky season is upon us, and I finally had a chance to watch this for the first time, and holy crap… the less you know going in, the better, but FOR THOSE WHO HAVE SEEN IT, the thing I admired most was the brilliant casting of the two main men: Bill Skarsgård who, given our cinematic relationship with him, immediately gets our cortisol levels speaking, only for his character arc to carry out as it does and for his unfortunate fate; and Justin Long, whose disarming “nice-guy” presence is a perfect mask for the d-bag his character really is. Also, this movie is constantly surprising us and reinventing itself every ten minutes. It’s a thrill to watch, and may become part of my spooky season rotation.

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**referring to Joaquin Phoenix quitting a film he developed with Todd Haynes (FAR FROM HEAVEN, CAROL, MAY DECEMBER) just 5 days before production, with sets built and lots of workers waiting to be paid.

Zach is a proud member of the Minnesota Film Critics Alliance (MNFCA). For more info about Zach, the organization, or to read other great reviews from other great Minnesota-based film critics, click here: https://mnfilmcriticalliance.wordpress.com/