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2024 Films, Danielle Deadwyler, Drama, Emma Stone, Fred Durst, Horror, Independent, Independent Drama, Independent Horror, Jack Haven, Jane Schoenbrun, Justice Smith

I Saw the TV Glow-2024

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I Saw the TV Glow-2024

Director Jane Schoenbrun

Starring Justice Smith, Jack Haven

Scott’s Review #1,467

Reviewed February 17, 2025

Grade: A-

I Saw the TV Glow (2024) is a bizarre independent psychological drama/horror film co-produced by Emma Stone and her husband.

It was produced by their Fruit Tree production company and distributed by A24, a brilliant independent film distributor, immediately giving the film credibility and a broad audience.

Writer/director Jane Schoenbrun perfectly depicts teenage angst via a visually cerebral and creative avenue. They sprinkle pink lettering and a colorful, moody aesthetic that is impressive.

The film is more than mysterious; it is hypnotic, with a dark mood evoking the dark underbelly of life in the suburbs.

Delving deeper after my initial viewing, I realized the film is an allegory for being transgender, which I did not know. Having that knowledge makes perfect sense because the characters feel trapped in their skin and fear being buried alive.

Transgender people often feel like the “egg crack,” a term for the moment in a trans person’s life when they realize their identity does not correspond to their assigned gender.

The film depicts bleak life in the suburbs and transitions between 1996 and 2026 when the main character is a teenager and finally a middle-aged man.

Owen (Justice Smith) is trying to make it through life in the suburbs when his older classmate, Maddy (Jack Haven), introduces him to a mysterious late-night TV show, a vision of a supernatural world beneath their own.

Both are loners and immediately bond over the young adult television show The Pink Opaque, which follows teenagers Isabel and Tara as they use their psychic connection to fight supervillain Mr. Melancholy, who has the power to warp time and reality.

Enthralled, Owen’s view of reality begins to crack.

I Saw the TV Glow is an unusual experience, especially during the 2006 chapter when Maddy returns to town after years away. When she explains that she paid a man to bury her alive, mirroring the finale of The Pink Opaque, the sequence is frightening, macabre, and hard to follow.

I wondered if she was speaking literally or figuratively.

But Maddy is trapped inside her own body, in her case, the wrong gender, and yearns to break out of her coffin. She encourages Owen to do the same, though it’s not clear if he identifies as female, is gay, or is just trapped in suburbia in a dead-end job.

In 2026, we realize that Owen has remained in the small town, mainly at the same job cleaning a movie theater, with his mother and stepfather long dead.

Sadly, he is still trapped inside his own body, aching to come to the surface. He screams out that he is dying and needs help, but nobody ever seems to notice.

He mentions a family, but they are never seen. Are they imagined? Is he living the life of a gay man or a straight man? Owen is mixed race, so what other issues does he face?

I wanted more concrete answers.

Even though the story is focused on a transgender lifestyle, Schoenbrun is never blatant about it.

Growing up in the lonely suburbs, I can relate to the feeling of suffocation at being unable to get out. Many are trapped for decades with the sameness day after day. Young people face this dilemma constantly, so I Saw the TV GLow is an essential film for most.

Debatable is whether I Saw the TV Glow was not overtly marketed as a trans film or even an LGBTQ+ film purposely. At a time in United States history when the trans community is under attack, they need all the support they can get.

The myriad of awards notice and star power (Emma Stone) supporting this film is reaffirming and another reason I love A24 so much.

But I Saw the TV Glow (2024) is a film with many interpretations and meanings.

Independent Spirit Award Nominations: Best Feature, Best Director, Jane Schoenbrun, Best Screenplay, Best Lead Performance-Justice Smith, Best Supporting Performance-Jack Haven

2019 Films, Allison Janney, Amy Landecker, Ashley Greene, Biography, Brian d'Arcy James, Charlize Theron, Connie Britton, Drama, Holland Taylor, Jack Haven, Jay Roach, John Lithgow, Kate McKinnon, Malcolm McDowell, Margot Robbie, Mark Duplass, Mark Moses, Nicole Kidman, P. J. Byrne, Richard Kind, Stephen Root

Bombshell-2019

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Bombshell-2019

Director Jay Roach

Starring Charlize Theron, Margot Robbie, Nicole Kidman

Scott’s Review #972

Reviewed December 26, 2019

Grade: B+

Bombshell (2019) is the type of film that, depending on your political affiliation, you will either refuse to see or see and have a love/hate reaction to.

As a non-lover of the “news” network Fox News, I am firmly ensconced in the latter camp, so my opinion of the film is mixed.

The importance of releasing the film during a time of political turmoil in 2019 is crucial and intentional, which is why I commend the film.

Still, the subject matter of sexual harassment against women is complex to watch and a sobering reminder that this behavior continues to occur.

The performances of the principal players — Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman, Margot Robbie, Kate McKinnon, and John Lithgow — are outstanding and key to the film’s success. Theron and Lithgow receive the lion’s share of makeup and prosthetic work, making them look identical to their real-life counterparts.

Beneficial is a myriad of Fox News political figure portrayals (Sean Hannity, Jeanine Pirro, and Bill O’Reilly) with frighteningly good accuracy, creating a surreal effect.

The film centers on female Fox News personnel in Manhattan and their sexual harassment allegations against founder Roger Ailes (Lithgow).

The central figure- Megyn Kelly (Theron) is conflicted over the risks to both her career and her financial stability if she comes forward and admits her harassment by Ailes years ago, after Gretchen Carlson sues the network.

Margot Robbie plays Kayla, a young Fox employee whom Ailes also harasses.

McKinnon plays a closeted lesbian and confidante to Kayla, who works for the network despite being liberal and a massive admirer of Hillary Clinton.

The plot is fast-paced and unfolds like a quick page-turner, with some sections narrated by Kelly. Bombshell feels timely and has a distinct “ripped from the headlines” makeup.

The fact that the real-life events occurred as recently as 2016 is a striking aspect that will captivate the viewer, especially those who follow United States politics or current events.

The story is fresh and vibrant, with a sense of familiarity, rather than a tale from an event decades ago that many viewers have forgotten or were too young to remember.

I had difficulty feeling much sympathy for most of the characters, which detracts from the film’s overall impact.

The standard definition that the term “Fox News” usually conjures is one of male chauvinism and the good old boys club, with old-fashioned machismo ruling the roost.

Why would any woman choose to work for them or align themselves with the Conservative party, which is not a fan of women or women’s rights?

With this fact in mind, it was difficult for me to watch the film.

To build on this, CEO Roger Ailes is written as the clear villain with no redeeming value. During one scene, he salivates over Kayla when she visits him in his office and instructs her to lift her skirt higher and twirl for him. The scene is sickening, and we feel Kayla’s embarrassment and humiliation.

In a cheer-out-loud moment at the end of the film, she quits, unable to remain in such a corrupt corporation.

One of the only likable characters is Jess Carr (McKinnon), probably fictitious. Hardly fitting the mold of the female staff, not perky or showing leg, she goes out for drinks with Kayla and admits to being gay; the two end up having a one-night stand.

The character is unique, and McKinnon makes wise acting choices.

Worth mentioning is Ailes’s long-time secretary Faye (Holland Taylor). Surely, she knows the antics that go on in her boss’s office, but she almost serves as an accomplice. Why?

Sad to realize that, as recently as 2016, women were still having to face discrimination in the workplace. Industries with powerful men still can be toxic and poisonous to women attempting to climb the ranks.

If the women harassed at Fox News were not top anchors, there is no way the accusations would have even been heard. What about the receptionists, cleaning staff, or administrators who are harassed?

Would anyone listen to them? This message crossed my mind while watching Bombshell.

With fantastic acting and incredible makeup, time will tell if Bombshell (2019) remains a relevant film. Leaving the viewer with an unsatisfying ending rather than a hopeful one, it isn’t easy to sympathize with most of the characters, even when they are supposed to be sympathetic.

Bombshell would make a perfect companion piece to Vice (2018), a similar political, yet superior film.

Oscar Nominations: 1 win-Best Actress-Charlize Theron, Best Supporting Actress-Margot Robbie, Best Makeup and Hairstyling (won)

2017 Films, Alexander Payne, Christoph Waltz, Drama, Hong Chau, Jack Haven, James Van Der Beek, Jason Sudeikis, Kristen Wiig, Laura Dern, Margo Martindale, Matt Damon, Neil Patrick Harris, Niecy Nash, Rolf Lassgård, Science Fiction

Downsizing-2017

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Downsizing-2017

Director Alexander Payne

Starring Matt Damon, Hong Chau

Scott’s Review #842

Reviewed December 14, 2018

Grade: B

Downsizing (2017) appeared on many critics’ top ten lists for the year, but it did not resonate well with the average viewer. Part of this discrepancy could have been the way the film was marketed.

Despite having Kristen Wiig among its cast, the film is NOT a comedy but a social commentary with some science-fiction and dramatic elements.

Downsizing has a wonderful and thought-provoking premise, but it ultimately fails to piece together all its parts in a completely satisfying way, leaving an erratic and disjointed result.

The elements are all there—a charismatic lead actor (Damon), an inventive, socially relevant premise, and a humanistic and beautiful message.

The film also contains some gorgeous cinematic treats of picturesque Norway that will make one melt if watched on the big screen.

The film has enough positives to recommend without it being truly great.

The story begins as a Norwegian scientist discovers a way to solve the world’s overpopulation state and global warming problems with a discovery that shrinks people, causing them to use few resources.

Paul and Audrey Safranek (Damon and Wiig) decide to undergo the procedure and begin a new life in a gorgeous community designed for small people. When Audrey bails at the last minute, leaving Paul alone, he must forge ahead with a lonely life, unable to be transformed from small to large.

He meets Ngoc Lan (Chau), a Vietnamese activist who, through her selflessness, changes his life forever. Paul realizes he does have a purpose after all.

The film’s positives are mostly in its individual components. It is true that the modern world suffers from overpopulation, and director Alexander Payne paints a dire picture of the eventual result. This gives the film a left-leaning environmental opinion that I relish.

I was immediately engaged in Payne’s humanistic approach and the possibilities of a new world with no suffering and riches for all. Of course, this is not sustainable or realistic, as the film shows.

The romantic dynamic is also a significant win.  The first half features Paul and Audrey as the romantic couple, a likable pair who struggle with bills and care for planet Earth.

Suddenly, this changes and Audrey is discounted from the equation in favor of Paul and Ngoc Lan. An unexpected item, their romance is a slow buildup, seemingly opposite types of people. He is laid-back and thoughtful, and she is brash and outspoken, yet they work wonderfully as a couple.

As a viewer, I became wholly invested in them by the closing credits.

Newcomer Huang Chau (Ngoc Lan) stands out and nearly upstages Damon. The young actress garnered a Golden Globe nomination for this role and deservedly so. There are far too few good roles for Asian actors, so Chau hits the jackpot with this part.

Her character is sympathetic yet tough. Once an outspoken advocate, she endured prison only to lose a leg and be reduced to a house cleaner in her new world.

Payne makes the point that a new society does not equate to joy, which is the film’s crux. At first, the community is lavish with luxurious homes and idyllic surroundings, but when Paul meets Ngoc Lan and sees her world of pain, starvation, and neglect, he is dumbfounded.

This sad reality leads him to make rash decisions about himself and his future.

Where Downsizing misses the boat is with the execution. As strong as the premise is, the story meanders. From Paul and Audrey’s mundane life in Nebraska to the new society to the slums to the introduction of the world ceasing to exist and finally, another world is created, there is too much going on.

The dots never connect, leaving the overall experience of Downsizing erratic.

Christoph Walz deserves a better role than Dusan, an aging Serbian party boy. His character is annoying and a weak attempt at portraying spoiled white men with all the advantages. He is unnecessary and does not work.

Downsizing (2017) is quite a brave effort, with an ingenious premise and a worthwhile message. I recommend the film for these reasons as Payne attempts to tell a story never told before, which is to be championed.

The elements do not add up, and the film lacks a solid structure, but as a whole, it is to be admired for what it intends to do.