The Invite

 

Did you grow up watching parents wander through each day, miserable with their lives but unwilling to change it? The Invite may or may not be for you, depending on if you care about seeing their possible perspective. This film was a slightly uncomfortable watch full of secondhand embarrassment. 

The main couple, Angela and Joe, are stuck in a loveless marriage but trying to keep it together otherwise they'll have to change. 

Angela is in short, a perfectionist. She has a degree that's gathering dust. She's a stay-at-home mom to a child that doesn't need a stay-at-home mom anymore. The only thing holding her together is the apartment. She has complete control over the whole home. She's renovated it from top to bottom, picked out the wall paint, found the perfect accent pieces. The home is her new baby. She wants it to be absolutely perfect. The whole apartment looks like it's trying to sell you something. She won't let it feel lived in because then it won't be picture perfect. 

Joe's biggest crime is that he is far too passive. It's clear he doesn't contribute to the home, even failing to form an opinion on paint when Angela truly asks for it. He just passes through the days; he lets his passion for music flitter out. Joe isn't even involved in the finances despite being the only one with a job at their one income home. He lets Angela handle it all but at least has enough sense to try and ask about expensive pieces that appear in their home simply because company is coming. He doesn't actively listen to Angela and her interests, but he doesn't bother engaging in his own interests either. 

Together they form a loveless marriage that is held together by their kid. One thing I'm grateful for is that their kid, Maggie, never makes an appearance. She is referred to by name but never shown on screen. They script is well written enough to still have her be an impactful character without physically being present. 

Pina and Hawk, the foil characters, are the polar opposite of Joe and Angela. They are deeply in love with each other and open to change. They don't care for perfectionism, instead just focusing on being happy. They pull each other into their world while still being able to have an identity outside of one another. They have an active social life and try to encourage others to have one as well. They actively listen to both each other plus Joe and Angela. They don't hide their thoughts or emotions behind a wall to try to maintain peace. They share it in order to help overcome the issues. Honesty is something they both deeply value. Hawk even makes a point to express how much he appreciates Joe for not hiding his feelings very well because he enjoys the honesty. Pina and Hawk care about having a positive impact on the people around them, but they also put in the work to do that without trying to be something they aren't.

This tiny cast makes an impactful film. Complete with incredible performances, a killer script, and wonderful music composition, this film is a must watch if you're a fan of drama. The ending leaves something to be desired, but it's impossible to change your whole life in one night so it is certainly a realistic ending that forces you to determine your own future for the characters. 

If you're stuck in a marriage with someone you don't love, my advice. Don't stay together for the kid(s). They know, and they hate it. 

-Lucy

Supergirl

 

Supergirl feels like a movie I've seen before. It's a film about a 23-year-old woman that is traumatized and alone trying to avoid finding her roots for fear that she'll lose them again. She has her dog, Krypto, and that's all she needs it doesn't matter if she still feels alone. 

The film changes Kara's backstory to better fit the story being told. I don't think the changes are terrible, I actually think they better fit the modern age than her comic origin story. The new origin also helps answer questions viewers had after Superman (2025). The new origin displays Kara as an immigrant that came to Earth in order to survive radiation poisoning. Her father was a scientist that wanted to help people, he saved part of Krypton, Argon, but was unaware of the future radiation poisoning. He saved Kara so she could help carry on Krypton's legacy with peace and hopefully help Kal-el be on the right path despite what his parents had wanted.

"We have to believe there's a future here"

Argon was a small piece of Krypton that was saved from planet's implosion by Kara's father. It's origins in the comics are a tad bit different, but all things must change to fit new mediums. We only got to explore Argon through Kara's eyes. There is much I wish we had gotten the chance to explore. How did they grow food? How did they stabilize the economy after Krypton's implosion? Where did they keep the animals prior to implosion? I mean they all went into the middle of a city when the shields went up, where were the animals hidden? How did they protect themselves from outside threats? Did anyone know that they were there? Did they have trade routes established? Likely not to that last point, otherwise Kara wouldn't be the last true Kryptonian.

After living on Argon in wealth Kara learned what it was to suffer. She watched her neighbors and family die from radiation poisoning; she got to experience what remained of Krypton and its culture until its dying breath. All that remains as a reminder of her home is Krypto and her memory. That's more than enough to traumatize anyone. She vaguely attempts to hide it behind a party girl persona, but it's not fooling anyone. 

I love how they used Ruthie as a foil character to Kara. She's suffered similar to Kara, but Kara ultimately chooses to help preserve Ruthie's 'purity.' Kara lived in her anger and suffering; she didn't want Ruthie to do that to. She wanted Ruthie to be able to continue seeing the good in the world around her because Kara can't.

The soundtrack was a character all its own. The movie opens with "This Summer" by Sleigh Bells, showing Kara off as carefree with Krypto. Each song helps complete the scene that it appears in, while giving further insight to Kara. The music is a reflection of whatever she's feeling in the moment throughout the whole movie. We hear anger and rage during her fights. We hear sorrow and pain when she worries about Krypto and remembers Argon. The movie would not be the same without the soundtrack, unfortunately I feel that it carries a huge part of the movie on its back. 

At the end of the day, the movie helps answer a simple question. How far are you willing to go to save the only thing you have left? Kara was willing to go pretty damn far, and honestly, I wouldn't have done anything different if I was in her position. 

As a viewer I have lingering questions. Why was Lobo so heavily featured in the marketing? Where was Ruthie in the marketing? Will Kara try to fit in on Earth, following Clark's rules, or will she find her home off planet? I can't wait to see what happens with her character as time goes on.

This piece could have been so much longer, but I'm really trying to avoid just summarizing the whole movie. I will leave you with this one last thought though. The apartment shown at the end of the movie didn't have a couch and I think that's weird as hell.

-Lucy

Leviticus

 

Queer cinema has always been tightly interwoven into the horror genre. It started that way as a warning from those darn Christian values, something to be feared and shamed. Thankfully, we've moved on, kind of. Now days queerness in horror can be a revolutionary act of rebellion or serve as a reminder that that there are still outside forces against the community. Leviticus is no different. It blends horror with romance to combine the two pre-existing ideas. Outside forces will threaten our existence, but love is worth the risk.

The outside forces in this film happen to be religion and people. The two main characters belong to a church that ostracizes anyone that doesn't fit into their ideal. The people in power in the church, the pastor and parents, arranges for a 'healer' to exorcise their children's queerness.

The film blends together oppression through religion, trauma bonding, and acts of love from different angles. There's one act of love in particular I would like to focus on. Naim's mother, Arlene, is almost a background character in her son's life. She uproots them and moves to a farm and factory town so she can be closer to those sharing in her beliefs. We see her perform small acts of love throughout the film, but most of them come after Naim is essentially exercised. She said that she did it for him because she loves him. She was worried someone else would hurt him, so she hurt him first by trying to fix a piece of him that wasn't broken. She could have just accepted him, she could have just continued to love him like she had the whole time previously. Instead, she tried to have someone rip that part out of him and called it love. I know in her eyes she's not the bad guy, she truly did what she thought was best. It does not change the fact that she traumatized her child because her faith told her it was an act of love.

The pastor is a character that hits close to home. He is a man that puts family and faith above everything. Having a son that doesn't fit the ideal is a shameful act to him. Changing Hunter to fit the ideal was an act of love in his eyes. It never occurred to him that he signed Hunter's death warrant, because if God is good then his family is safe from harm. I think it's also interesting to note that as soon as Hunter dies, he gives up. He can't live with the thought that it was his fault his baby boy died. His son was his pride and joy; never mind the daughter he hardly notices. The same daughter that blames Naim for it all. The daughter that blamed herself when she really should have blamed her father. 

We don't really get to explore the relationship between Ryan and his parents. In fact, they seem largely absent only appearing with him in front of their church community. To my memory his parents didn't have a single line in the film. This could help explain why Ryan lacks the shame we see in other characters. His parents were absent, so they never really taught him to be ashamed of being queer. He just exists as himself. That said, he has the common sense to not go telling people about it, but he's not ashamed. 

Let's talk about Naim! He is a perfect foil for Ryan. He reeks of shame and fear. He tries to be part of the community that hates him by ratting Ryan and Hunter out. It's clear Ryan is his first love whereas Ryan has had previous relationships. Naim isn't confident in himself as a person, but Ryan is. They are polar opposites and if the roles had been reversed Ryan would have never made the same judgement that Naim did. 

A huge chunk of understanding this film comes from understanding the setting. We see a town where you don't know everyone's name, but there's no major grocery store. There's a factory constantly bellowing smoke into the air as shifts change. Cows that hide behind fences, and a suburban town growing old from time. It's no big city; it's a town that can easily be influenced. It's a town where existing out of the norm is dangerous. 

I've hardly spoken about the curse that was placed on the boys, but the truth is that's secondary. It's a driving force in the film that makes Ryan and Naim explore their personal feelings and determine how far they would go for each other. It's not the most important piece of the film; the important piece is the relationships between the characters. 

My first review of this movie was, "The gays win emotionally but not logistically." At the end of the day, I don't think this film will win any American awards. I doubt it will even be nominated, but I do foresee it being known and treasured by a select few. I will for sure be among them. I'm grateful it was made, and I'm grateful I got to see it in cinemas. 

-Lucy

Obsession

 

Obsession will go down as a cultural phenomenon. The impact it is going to have on horror movies for the next few years will be legendary. It will go down in history as one of the most influential films of the 2020's. Which is an incredible feat considering we just got Sinners last year.

Bear is in short, an asshole. He shows his true colors in the little details throughout the film. We see pill bottles from a woman that is no longer alive haunting his home. We see holes in his bedsheets while he assaults the woman he supposedly loves. We see that he left cans of open cat food on the ground instead of throwing them away. We see his plants dead in the background. The house is covered in things that aren't his own because he never bothered making it his own. He just took it because he doesn't have any life to put into it. 

We start the film meeting Bear role playing a confession to the girl he has a crush on. During his confession several things stood out to me. Bear talks about things Nikki has done for him. She befriended him. She called when his grandmom passed. He doesn't really talk about her personality or things that are unique to her. She's just someone that's done nice things for him. He never mentions anything about who she is. 

"I realized who you are"- Bear

Let's talk about Sandy. Sandy was the cat I assume he inherited from his grandmother. At this point it's no secret Bear was a terrible pet owner. There were open cans of pet food around her. Bear left open pills out that she had access to. We also never see a litter box? If there is one, was Bear even cleaning it? Bear never cared about Sandy; he saw her as a possession he no longer has control over. Sandy's fate is a mirror to Nikki's. 

Nikki is a victim. She had her autonomy completely stripped from her all because Bear was a coward. I think even if Bear had confessed, Nikki would have ultimately rejected him. I say that because she appears disappointed in him when she realizes he likes her. Bear talks at Nikki not to her at any point. He talks with an expectation that she will fall in love with him. "What is so bad about being with me?" Bear asked real Nikki this question when she was able to overpower the being for a short period of time. He cared more about this image he had of her being his than her happiness. If he really cared about Nikki as a person, he would know she never wanted this and would honor her wishes. 

Obviously, Bear didn't think the One Wish Willow would actually work. Prior to snapping it, I'm sure he viewed it similar to someone making a wish by blowing dandelion seeds. He didn't think of the potential consequences of his wish. Even if he had truly known it would work, would he have cared? He wanted it so badly to be true and to be real. He knows Nikki would never act like this, he even said so to the being. He wanted the idea of Nikki he had created and he couldn't get that. He doesn't even love the being that inhabits Nikki purely to love him. 

The being is a fascinating subject in part because of how it learns. I think it's also fascinating because it cannot exist outside of Bear. In the mornings it gets up and prepares food for Bear, but we never see it feed itself. It pretends to read because it assumes that is what Bear would expect to walk into. It literally cannot move and exist as a person would without Bear being there because he said, "no moving weird." The being follows Bear's commands without question. Not only does Nikki herself no longer have autonomy, but the being doesn't have any either. 

The being that takes over Nikki couldn't completely control her at first. It had to let pieces of her slip out so Bear could teach it how to exist for him. It only got stronger with time, we see Nikki appear less and less. We see it learn from Bear even going as far as to take his stories and regurgitate them back to him in a new form to relate more to Nikki. The being claimed Nikki's dad had cancer, he didn't, but Bear's grandmother did. Bear spoke earlier about how Nikki was there for him when his grandmother passed, so the being is trying to get Bear to be there in return. 

Ian described Nikki as "infatuated" with Bear out of nowhere. I can't think of any better description for what it must have appeared as an outsider to the whole situation. Even as the audience, knowing what Bear did the being doesn't really love Bear. Yes, the being exists to live for him, serve him, and please him, but it can't really love. Love doesn't mean being inseparable from someone, it means co-existing and being happy with each other's presence. The being was incapable of true love, but so was Bear. 

What about Sarah? Sarah was by far the kindest character in the film, and I feel sorry she ended up as collateral for Bear's stupidity. She was the first to attempt to share the burden of Bear's loss of Sandy. She relied on Bear for emotional support but also let him lean on her to. She was authentic with him and cared about him as a person. She also never put him in a position where he felt uncomfortable with her perception of him. She truly cared about Bear as a person and wanted him to care about her to. 

The party is one of the most important scenes of the whole film. There's an insane amount to unpack. The short story that the being recites to the group is actually insane. The only note I took during that scene was, this is a threat to Bear. She spoke of an incestuous relationship in which one held power over the other. A relationship that was doomed to fail, one that would end in death just like hers and Bears.

The ending will go down as a memorable that is for certain. One of the biggest tragedies of it is that Nikki will have to face it all alone. I know some have pointed out she could use the billion dollars Ian wished for. She actually can't though, the one wish willow set clear rules. we learned during Bear's conversation with the call line that if he dies, his wish ends. Ian died, his wish died with him. Nikki has no support whether that be financial or emotional once she regains control. Besides, she almost didn't regain control at all. Bear tried to vomit up the pills he swallowed to kill himself. He was so afraid to die, he almost didn't. Nikki was almost condemned to her fate with Bear alongside her. Thankfully his cowardice failed, even if Nikki isn't entirely thankful for it.

Nikki didn't feel love at the beginning, and Bear didn't get to feel love at the end. I think that was the best ending we could have possibly gotten out of this tragedy.

Lucy

Disclosure Day

 

Disclosure Day is going to win some awards I don't feel like it deserves. Don't get me wrong, it has a fantastic cast with some incredible performances. I'm just not sure what I'm supposed to get from the film? What theme or lesson is there to be learned? Was it faith vs. science vs. man or some other combination? I don't doubt that someone smarter than me will better unpack the contents of this film. I can't wait to see other perceptions of the film in order to better understand it. 

I was struggling to understand the conflict presented to the viewers. It should be straight forward. The world is collapsing in on itself with war and rationing. Some secret government overlord doesn't want information that they've been hiding to get out as public knowledge. I got all that, but once we realize they just don't want the public to know that aliens exist? I got lost. Who cares? 

Knowing that aliens are real and that they think empathy will save the human race doesn't help anyone. That knowledge won't suddenly end the war. It won't replace the gas people are lining up to get. It won't return any of the lives lost. It won't suddenly end people making money off of using alien tech to create weapons. Sharing the gift of empathy with 1 person won't result in the human race changing in an instant. 

Some characters began to view the aliens as Gods. Again, who cares? They couldn't hold their own against humanity, but you think they're above us? You think they will save you? Better yet, if you believe they're God, why aren't you fucking angry? I understand everyone needs something to believe in. Having faith and community can bring peace to oneself. I respect that. I don't respect you looking at a terrified young woman and calling her God. She was just a messenger; she wasn't even a messenger for a God. She's a messenger for another life form. A lifeform that is consistently dehumanized throughout the film. Dehumanized even by people that pretend to care about the message they're attempting to share. 

Not once are the other lifeforms given a name. They are literally referred to as things. We even get to meet one and he also has no name! It's like Victor Frankenstein's monster all over again! Of course, this time there are no daddy issues at play, at least not from the alien. 

Why was the secret so important? I get that the secret isn't really aliens, they're just a metaphorical placeholder for empathy. The secret to world peace is empathy. That still doesn't help make the plot make sense. We never see who benefits from the secret being kept. That is what makes the whole thing fall apart. We never see who truly benefits so why is it a conflict at all? 

I think I'm mostly bitter about this movie because I'm all grown up now. If this had come out when I was a kid, I would've been geeked. Now though? I really don't care. Did we not all learn aliens were real a few months ago? We still have to go to work; we still have to pay rent. We still have bills to pay, that doesn't change. War didn't end; genocides didn't stop. The existence of aliens didn't change anything in the real world so why should it in a fictional one?

Carolina Caroline

 

How much of yourself are you willing to lose for someone you love? Carolina Caroline is a film that forces you to ask yourself that question. It asks you to examine what you're willing to overlook and what you're willing to force yourself to experience just to be in the presence of someone you care for. In short, it's a great crime romance and it will not get the recognition it deserves. 

Carolina Caroline is clearly based off of Bonnie & Clyde, the notorious American outlaws from the 1930's. It draws inspiration more so from the 1967 film rather than the true history of the people. Which is fine, all art is inspired by other art. There is nothing 100% original in the world and that is okay, it works. Carolina Caroline gives modern day audiences a chance to experience an infamous story in a way that will more closely resonate with them. 

When we truly meet our main character, Carolina, we see her in a small-town general store. She's stocking shelves while a fly buzzes around the entirety of the scene. The fly could signify any number of things, the air being stale, Carolina rotting in her hometown. Literally there are a dozen different ways to read just a fly in the background. All signs point to Carolina being ready for change, she can't stay in Texas. If she does, she'll just get old and stale like the air the fly buzzes around in. That of course is where Oliver comes in. 

Oliver in short, is a con artist. He travels the South to Midwest and cons working class people out of their hard-earned cash. Carolina finds the man absolutely fascinating. I however, saw him as a million and one walking red flags. Red flags you say? red flags I say. Now I love to gab so allow me to read the man to filth. 

Oliver scams small-town working-class folks multiple times in the film. I could forgive him if he was conning the upper class. The man clearly has parental issues he has not worked on. No goal for his future other than to keep it pushing as is because it works for him. He obviously is a terrible influence because he got Carolina into conning as well. He taught her everything he knew and let her put herself into dangerous situations for cash. He could've just gotten a job. They still could have traveled and not risked the jail time. Truly he had no plan, there was no end goal other than do this forever. He was so goddamn cocky he believed they would never be caught. What's worse is if Carolina hadn't joined him, he might not have gotten caught. He likely could've continued doing those small cons forever, but instead he fell in love and decided to risk it all for her. 

I won't lie; I had made some presumptions about Oliver as a character throughout the film. I had assumed he would push Carolina to escalate the cons. I assumed he would leave her behind the second there was any real risk. I assumed they would show him with anger issues and insinuate he abuses her. I was incorrect and I'm not ashamed to admit that. There is still evidence throughout the film that Oliver could be abusing Carolina but it's not 100% confirmed solely because those marks could also have been obtained through consensual sex. 

Carolina is the one that pushes to escalate the cons. She wanted to prove she was as good as Oliver, she also thought it would please him. She goes out of her way for this man in so many ways. She lets him in on her dream, she comes up with a new dream just for them to share, she learns to beat him at his own game. She dared to dream of a future with him. She is absolutely smitten with him and he with her. Which is what changes her. She went from small town to big crimes facing repercussions she hadn't considered. It leaves her with a moral dilemma all her own, forcing her to make peace with the scars she will leave behind. 

It's not a happy ending, but we always knew it wouldn't be.

-Lucy

Scary Movie 6

 

Parody movies have existed as long as there has been film. They can range from high-budget productions designed for a laugh, to cheap budget films by cinema lovers just wanting to put something out into the world. There are of course the more popular ones from the 2000's. A time where parody existed to mock media with deep themes that folks weren't willing to connect to their reality. 

Personally, I find it difficult to enjoy parody films. I've seen a few across varying genres just to try them, but I always found them lacking soul. They felt like they were just aiming for a cheap laugh with their mindless sex jokes and deep lack of understanding of the media from which they were inspired. In short, I rarely enjoy parody movies. That doesn't mean there aren't people that love them. Movies are made to be enjoyed. Just because I don't like them doesn't mean someone else won't. 

One of the downsides of Scary Movie lies within how broad of a parody film it is. Instead of sticking to a select few movies within a specific genre to parody, they try to stick a joke or moment from as many cultural impactful movies within the past decade as possible. This leads to an incoherent plot and joke after joke that just fails to land a laugh. You think I jest? I saw moments from; K-Pop Demon Hunters, Get Out, Scream 6, Wednesday, Sinners, Ballerina, Terrifier, Squid Games, and more that I forgot to write down while I watched it in theaters.  I do remember very vividly a shopping bag from "Gacy's" a reference of course to John Wayne Gacy, the American serial killer. The team shoehorns as many references as they possibly can and it is just a mess. That being said, I don't believe the film was all bad. 

One thing I think a lot of people will end up remembering/discussing from this movie is how they treat their younger generation. We see teen activists that don't take the plot seriously but still feel the need to chime in with their 2-cents. They try to act like it's their burden alone to bear without the adults, but ultimately it's the adults that handle it. Teenagers should never have to bear the weight of the world on their shoulders, and yet we see them do exactly that in media all of the time. It was refreshing seeing a difference in Scary Movie. I know they were just trying to make fun of franchises that introduce new characters in order to keep beating a dead horse, but I think it's a multifaceted point.  

Scary Movie as a franchise is something I never felt drawn to. I've seen some of the films they decided to parody and I enjoyed them. Attempting to turn them into jokes though didn't work for me. That being said, it's clear the film was made with some heart. The writers understood most of the media they were parodying and tried to use it their advantage. It's a movie about legacies in film not needing a new generation to take over in order for them to continue being enjoyed. Which is an important truth Hollywood needs to face. At the end of the day, Scary Movie will be a divisive movie, some people will hate and some will love it. Love it or hate it, at least it will have gotten people to theaters.

-Lucy