Tag Archives: Flea

2022 Films, Comedy, Dark Comedy, Drama, Epic, Flea, P. J. Byrne, Period Drama

Babylon-2022

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Babylon-2022

Director Damien Chazelle

Starring Margot Robbie, Brad Pitt

Scott’s Review #1,365

Reviewed June 4, 2023

Grade: A-

Babylon (2022) is a film that will largely divide audiences. Slightly late to the table, I viewed the film after the awards season hoopla had ended and the film came up empty-handed. Sure, a few nominations were received but much more was expected from the epic Hollywood-themed venture.

I’m a fan of director Damien Chazelle, most famous for the similarly set Los Angeles film La La Land (2016), which I adore.

His direction style reminds me a great deal of Baz Luhrmann’s with the incorporation of intense musical numbers during many scenes and a strong chaotic and frenetic nature.

I realize this style is not for everyone so I’m not surprised Babylon is somewhat revered and somewhat reviled. This isn’t always a bad thing as a good film debate can be fun.

I adore Babylon mostly for the powerful and potent silent-era Hollywood story and the terror stars of the 1920s faced with the realization that sound had entered their pictures and they were expected to keep with the times.

Sadly, many careers ended in devastating fashion sinking one-time big stars into depression and despair.

The acting is superb and major props go especially to Margot Robbie as debaucherous film star Nellie LaRoy and newcomer (to me) Diego Calva as handsome Mexican immigrant Manny Torres. Both actors elicit superb performances that should have landed them Oscar nominations.

The major overtones that Chazelle incorporates into Babylon are those of ambition and outrageous excess, but also belonging and acceptance. The rise and fall of multiple characters during an era of unbridled decadence and depravity in early Hollywood are explored.

As Hollywood makes the transition from silent films to talkies, ambitious up-and-coming actress Nellie and aging superstar Jack Conrad (Brad Pitt) each struggle to adapt to the new medium as well as a rapidly changing world.

And Manny just wants a seat at the table.

Another reason I love the film is the dedication and exposure given to pre-sound Hollywood movies which nobody remembers. I struggle to recall ever viewing a film from that era with my earliest film being the 1930 film All Quiet on the Western Front.

The hit film The Artist (2011) may have paid tribute but it’s not the same and Babylon goes for the jugular in showcasing an entire movement that is now largely forgotten.

Cinema fans will respect Babylon.

Besides the film’s characters, there is so much movie stuff to appreciate. A Hollywood movie set, repeated takes, scripts, dialogue, lighting equipment, and rehearsals, make for a feast of riches for any cinephile.

The weak point is the behemoth length of the film. At three hours and nine minutes, an epic length, the erratic structure is a challenge to get through. A piecemeal approach can sometimes affect the continuity and it did detract a bit in this case for me.

If one can sit still long enough the final thirty minutes is superb. A tidy wrap-up and truthful storytelling give several characters a proper sendoff. The film ends in 1952 so a great conclusion befits.

Before we get to this point though, a nailbiting sequence involving Manny and a fiendish Los Angeles gangster played by Toby MacGuire is second to none. Fake money, a rat-eating entertainer, and pornographic dwarfs make for an odd adventure that one can’t look away from.

A fascinating and bombastic experience, Babylon (2022) loudly delves into the silent film world and gives a proper head nod to a long-forgotten period.

The film successfully makes me appreciate Hollywood and its history more than I already do.

Oscar Nominations: Best Musical Score, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design

2018 Films, Biography, Drama, Flea, Joel Edgerton, LGBTQ+ Drama, LGBTQ+ Films

Boy Erased-2018

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Boy Erased-2018

Director-Joel Edgerton

Starring-Lucas Hedges, Nicole Kidman, Russell Crowe

Scott’s Review #834

Reviewed November 22, 2018

Grade: A

Before I ventured to the movie theater to view Boy Erased (2018) I heard from more than a few folks who decided not to see the film due to the difficult subject matter.

While parts of the film are admittedly tough to watch and the true story stifling, the overall message is poignant and hopeful, the central character one to be championed.

In other words, while a serious matter, director Joel Edgerton (who also co-stars) is careful not to make the overall experience dour or wholly downtrodden.

Based on Garrard Conley’s 2016 memoir of the same name and taking place as frighteningly recent as 2004, the setting is rural Arkansas.

Our main character is a handsome, popular young man, renamed Jared (Lucas Hedges) for the film.  Interspersed with numerous flashbacks then back to present times, we see Jared as a high school kid and blossoming as a freshman college student, interested in writing.

He is expected to follow the word of god since his father, Marshall (Russell Crowe), is a respected preacher at their local church, and his mother, Nancy (Nicole Kidman), is a housewife.

Jared’s college experiences are both good and bad. He befriends fellow runner Henry, who ultimately rapes him, and embarks on an enlightening friendship with Xavier, who challenges Jared’s belief in god.

These scenes are preceded by the point of the film, in which Jared admits his thoughts about men to his parents and is sent to a Love In Action gay conversion therapy program. His experiences there are chronicled.

Many scenes involve the treatment the school provides the students (or rather makes the students endure) and Jared’s realization that he is gay and cannot change.

He ultimately questions and challenges the school. The chief therapist, Victor Sykes (Joel Edgerton), teaches that God will not love anyone who is homosexual. In a bit of rich irony, the film later reveals that Victor finally denounced his teachings and married a man.

Fellow students’ lives are featured, one suffers a terrible fate as he cannot come to terms with his sexuality nor can he change.

A comparison to the popular film Love, Simon (2018) is fun to draw.

Both were released during the same year and both feature a young, popular coming-of-age character who struggles with the repercussions of revealing their sexual preference.

Boy Erased is the heavier of the two as Love, Simon has many comic elements, but worth noting is that both are mainstream films garnering large audiences- a win for the LGBT community.

The acting in Boy Erased is flawless and perfectly cast all around.

With Hedges, Kidman, and Crowe in the mix, we know the performances will be outstanding, and all three characters possess their share of empathy.

Jared is the most to be concerned with and Marshall and Nancy are support players, but the film does not portray either as bad people, which is interesting. They are nurturing towards Jared and want him to be happy.

While Nancy is more instrumental in rescuing Jared, Marshall does also come around in the end as his son’s sexuality is tougher for him to accept.

The main song used in the film is appropriately named “Revelation” by Troye Sivan. The singer also appears in the film as Gary, a student made to be “cleansed” of his sexuality.  The tune is sentimental, smoky, and acoustic, perfect for the southern setting.

Heartfelt and fraught with meaning, it encompasses Jared’s struggles and strong will to question the school’s motivations, powering through the toxic approach the school has.

As with many recent biographical films telling stories of real-life people, Boy Erased features a young Jared in homemade video clips as the film begins. This immediately triggers a rooting value for the character as we see the child, cute, happy, and full of life, without a care in the world.

Additionally, the conclusion shows the real adult Jared, Marshall, and Nancy.

Boy Erased (2018) is an important film firmly nestled in a time-period crucial for the LGBT community. As LGBT awareness is now commonplace in cinema, this film does not necessarily go the route of sharing a gay character’s “coming out” story but rather depicts a brilliant story of how perilous and repressive being gay can still be for some people.

Jared is the main character who will undoubtedly be a hero to many young people wrestling with their identity.

2015 Films, Amy Poehler, Animated, Best Animated Feature Oscar Winners, Bill Hader, Bobby Moynihan, Children, Diane Lane, Disney, Flea, John Ratzenberger, Kyle MacLachlan, Lewis Black, Mindy Kaling, Paula Poundstone, Pete Docter, Phyllis Smith, Rashida Jones, Richard Kind

Inside Out-2015

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Inside Out-2015

Director Pete Docter

Starring Amy Poehler, Diane Lane

Scott’s Review #272

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Reviewed September 8, 2015

Grade: B+

Frequently, when I view a modern animated feature, (and by contemporary, I mean 1990 and beyond), I am either bored or left with a “meh” feeling, or both. It seems the trend is “Let’s create a manufactured film that will appeal to kids who will drag their parents to it”.

It is almost as if mediocrity is accepted in the animated film, but Inside Out (2015) challenges this trend with a thoughtful, interesting slab of story.

With this latest Pixar offering, we find a refreshing, intelligent film that makes the viewer think, containing a genuine cute factor, with lots of colors and interesting animation interspersed throughout.

Our story finds eleven-year-old Riley Anderson, and her five different personalities, working within her brain in unison. The emotions are five distinct little people representing (and named) Joy, Sadness, Disgust, Fear, and Anger. They overlap, conflict, and humorously strive to take control of Riley’s mind and thought processes.

Joy is central, and the happiest of emotions. They all live in Riley’s conscious mind, named Headquarters.

One day, Riley and her family pack up and move from Minnesota to the unknown and overwhelming city of San Francisco to capitalize on a job opportunity offered to Riley’s father.

The city is bustling and the family is thrown for a loop. Riley in particular has difficulty adjusting to this vastly different world and finds herself friendless and acting out of character.

Sadness accidentally begins touching other emotions within Riley’s mind, which sets off strange emotions causing her to behave erratically and become irritable.

Joy and Sadness struggle to return to Headquarters and fix the issues.

Inside Out is a complex animated film and will go way above the heads of many youngsters who will undoubtedly see it.

I find this rather refreshing.

It is a coming-of-age tale for adults and mature kids that challenges its audience rather than spitting out a retread or formulaic family story that we have seen countless times.

Riley and her parents are arguably supporting players in the story, taking a back seat to the small, interesting creatures in Riley’s mind. Her mind is a carnival of riches and cool characters emerge. I smiled as more characters were introduced. Riley’s imaginary friend from years ago, Bing Bong, was pulled to the forefront of her emotions, as he was sadly forgotten in her mind.

Who cannot relate to this? A childhood ritual of creating a friend.

I adored the trip through Riley’s mind and marveled at the revelation of the inner workings of her mind, with creative colors and bright interesting lights.

What a super-cool adventure for a young film lover to experience! Inside Out is quite sophisticated.

The main concern is the level of patience that this film requires. It is not a force-fed story but encourages one to experience and feel.

Touching scenes prevail, but the message I receive from Inside Out is important. A multitude of emotions in every human being is normal and the way the film shows them overlap and work together is ingenious. Nobody is one emotion, nor should they be as the movie promotes successfully.

Human beings are meant to feel.

The film also contains humor. I laughed out loud when one character saw a button labeled “puberty” and assumed it was unimportant. This inside joke is also alluded to after the film- a sequel perhaps? Since Riley is only eleven, puberty will be a natural progression.

Inside Out challenges the norm in animated films and entices audiences to think. It feels genuine, which is impressive in itself. It is sentimental without feeling contrived or corny.

The film succeeds on many levels.

Oscar Nominations: 1 win-Best Original Screenplay, Best Animated Feature Film (won)