Film Appreciation

most recent watch: the holiday I like movies and unfortunately don’t post on this account very often fandom account: filmmarvel

[filmmarvel]

hey guys, i’m not really posting on here anymore, but i’m always active on letterboxd, so i’d love to be mutuals there! i’m @adelaide0

[filmperidot]

2023 Emmy Hopes and Predictions

Best Drama Series:

Prediction: Succession

Rooting For: Succession

Best Actor in a Drama Series:

Prediction: Bob Odenkirk (Given the amount of nominations and lack of awards Better Call Saul and Bob Odenkirk have received, I could see them giving him one for the final season- as a sort of overall achievement nod).

Rooting For: Kieran Culkin

Best Actress in a Drama Series:

Prediction: Sarah Snook

Rooting For: Sarah Snook

Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series:

Prediction: Matthew McFadyen

Rooting For: Matthew McFadyen or Will Sharpe (how weird is it that this entire category is entirely split between two shows! No complaints here though, I’m a massive fan of both Succession and The White Lotus).

Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series:

Prediction: Jennifer Coolidge or Elizabeth Debicki

Rooting For: Jennifer Coolidge or J. Smith Cameron (I would love to see J. get recognized and I’m also always happy to see Jennifer win, it adds spice to otherwise slightly repetitive award shows).

Best Comedy Series:

Prediction: The Bear

Rooting For: Barry or The Bear (although it’s kind of absurd that both of these are considered comedies, especially given Barry’s last two seasons- if it’s still sorted as a comedy, you might as well put Succession in the same category).

Best Actor in a Comedy Series:

Prediction: Jeremy Allen White or Jason Sudeikis (my money’s on Jeremy Allen White, but Emmys often go to Ted Lasso).

Rooting For: Bill Hader or Jeremy Allen White

Best Actress in a Comedy Series:

Prediction: Quinta Brunson

Rooting For: Natasha Lyonne (honestly, Im a little embarrassed to admit that I haven’t seen Poker Face, I just really like Natasha Lyonne, and from what I’ve seen and heard she’s been killing it in that show).

Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series:

Prediction: Ebon Moss- Bacheach or Phil Dunster, but this one’s a little more up in the air (definitely someone from the big three- Ted Lasso, The Bear, or Abbott Elementary)

Rooting For: Anthony Carrigan or Henry Winkler. I mean no disrespect, but it’s been kinda painful for me as a Barry fan to watch these two incredible talents get passed over year after year for actors who frankly aren’t even operating on the same level as them (Ie: playing caricatures, winning for a series that doesn’t require/draw on any range, nuance, or dramatic acting). That being said, if it goes to Ebon, I’ll be genuinely delighted for him.

Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series:

Prediction: Sheryl Lee Ralph or one of the Ted Lasso ladies

Rooting For: Ayo Edebiri

Best Limited or Anthology Series:

Prediction: Beef or Dahmer

Rooting For: I’m rooting for those two as well- I thought Beef was great, and while I haven’t seen Dahmer (and am not in any way commenting on the ethics of its existence) from what I’ve read, it’s extremely well made, well acted, and does a stunning job exposing the details of the case.

Best Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or TV Movie:

Prediction: Steven Yeun

Rooting For: Evan Peters or Steven Yeun. Again, as I stated before, I thought Beef was great, and it’s hard to deny how insane Evan’s performance was.

Best Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or TV Movie:

Prediction: Ali Wong

Rooting For: Ali Wong, but sadly Beef is the only one I’ve seen, and I don’t really know enough about the other shows to be able to comment on them. That being said, I really admire every single one of these actresses and would be really happy to see any of them win!

**Since I’ve hardly seen any Limited Series, I won’t be doing any comments or predictions on the smaller categories here**

Best Guest Actor in a Drama Series:

Prediction: Nick Offerman

Rooting For: This is another weird category limited to two shows- The Last of Us and Succession! Both of which I love, so I’d be super happy to see any of these wonderful actors win, but especially Nick Offerman, James Cromwell, or Keivonn Montreal Woodard!

Best Guest Actress in a Drama Series:

Prediction: Melanie Lynskey

Rooting For: Hiam Abbass. This category is also totally split between The Last of Us and Succession, so same as the other weird ones, I’d be really happy for any of these actresses.

Best Guest Actor in a Comedy Series:

Prediction: Pedro Pascal perhaps?

Rooting For: Jon Bernthal (but I love Pedro Pascal as much as the next person, I’d be absolutely delighted to see him win)

Best Guest Actress in a Comedy Series:

Prediction: This ones sorta up in the air as well, so I’ll just go to my defaults, either Taraji P. Henson or one of the Ted Lasso ladies!

Rooting For: Becky Ann Baker

What do you guys think? As always, thanks for reading it you made it this far lol.

[filmmarvel]

Barry and Succession: The Nature of Change

Fyi I’m sure many people have pointed this out before. Also this post is sort of piggybacking off of @childhoodtheme’s post of Jeremy Strong’s Vanity Fair interview.

Watching Succession right after Barry is just heartwrenching. They both deal with such intense themes about change. Each show deals with it differently. With Succession, it goes unsaid. You’re meant to watch the show and see for yourself. With Barry, it’s a very present question throughout the show. There are even moments where the characters put that question directly into words. But they end very similarly.

Starting with Succession- one of the general themes is that life is cyclical. Roman doesn’t recover. He doesn’t go to therapy, he doesn’t become a better person. He doesn’t change, he just accepts who he’s always been. In one of his culminating scenes, he simply says ‘We’re bullshit…we’re nothing.’ He, unlike his siblings, has come to terms with the reality of their situation instead of trying to change it. Shiv and Kendall’s arcs are cyclical in a different way. They do not change, and fail to recognize their situation, so they face the consequences instead. Instead of giving up, and getting out in the hopes of a freer life, Shiv does what she’s always done. She schemes, she manipulates, she ruins peoples lives and her own while she’s at it. She’s still striving for what she’s always wanted, but she’s dead inside. And Kendall? Just like Shiv, he ends up where he’s found himself so many times before. He’s alone. He’s failed AGAIN. After scheming and backstabbing and failing to learn and grow once more. His story ends the way we’ve all known it’s had to end, but the way he could never accept. After this long journey, they’re all right where they’ve started. Alone, bitter, and falling back into the same habits they’ve never been able to let go. And it’s devastating.

As stated before, Barry ends in a similar way. Like Roman, Fuches and Sally’s stories end in being honest with themselves and the people around them. Have they really changed? Not entirely. Are they happy? Not entirely. But they’re free- or as free as they can be. They’ll always be tortured by their situation, and by their character, but they’re out. They’re alive. In the same fashion, Barry and Noho Hank’s stories end in a way that reflects Shiv and Kendall’s. They’ve doomed themselves, by not only failing to change, but failing to accept the reality of their lives and what they’ve done.

So I’m losing my mind a little bit. These themes are incredibly interesting to me, and I’d like to explore these ideas more, but I’m going to stop myself before I fall into a pit of depression :) To conclude, these shows are both absolutely fantastic pieces of art. The writing and acting is phenomenal from both shows, and they’re both among the best shows I’ve ever seen, certainly the best shows on television right now. Hats off to both casts and crews. It’s been a wild couple of months.

[filmperidot]

My Favorite Coming of Age Movies

10 Things I Hate About You (1999)- One of the only rom-coms out there that I don’t feel guilty about loving. Its also one of the only rom-coms that I find laugh out loud funny, and where I genuinely really like both the protagonist and the love interest (I feel like at least one of them typically annoys me).

Booksmart (2019)- Great characters, and a fun new version of a pretty classic plot. It’s extremely funny, and highly enjoyable.

Easy A (2010)- Honestly one of my all time favorite comedies. Emma Stone is an absolute icon, and Stanley Tucci and Patricia Clarkson play the best parents known to cinema.

Eighth Grade (2018)- My god is this movie painful to watch. Prepare to cringe the whole way through, but it’s also quite sweet, and easily the most accurate depiction of middle school I’ve ever seen.

Lady Bird (2017)- The hype is real for this one. Saorise Ronan is amazing. It makes you laugh, tugs at your heartstrings, and does an incredible job depicting the high school experience.

Moonrise Kingdom (2012)- I love Wes Anderson’s style. If you generally aren’t a fan of his work, you won’t be a fan of this one either. But if you’re a fan of his cinematography, campiness, and awkward humor, this one’s for you. It’s a great summer movie.

Stand By Me (1986)- What a classic. It’s nostalgic, poignant, and funny. For me, this is a movie that defines the genre.

The Edge of Seventeen (2016)- Hailee Steinfeld and Woody Harrelson made a hilarious duo. Similar to the other movies on this list, it’s funny, relatable, and slightly heartbreaking in just the right way.

The Kings of Summer (2013)- This ones an underrated gem. It’s a bit of an acquired taste, but overall it’s a great experience. The atmosphere is amazing, and it’ll bring you back to your childhood summers.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)- God I love this movie. It’s incredibly heartbreaking, and the acting is great (especially from Logan Lerman)! Yes I cry every single time, no not at the part you’d think.

[filmperidot]

High School TV Show Top Picks

Shows set in high school can be delightfully funny and bittersweet, or horribly embarrassing failures. Nowadays (it seems more often than not) your classically fun ‘teen show’ is a rare find. In a sea of shitty, and bizarre shows (looking at you Riverdale), there are still some good ones out there. As someone currently in highschool, I’d like to share a little guide to some of my top picks.

Before we get started, I also want to note that I think there’s a pretty big difference between shows that happen to be set in highschool/feature teens, and shows where their highschool experience is a large part of the plot. Coming of age is really a blanket term that can take a lot of different forms! For this post, I’m going to give my top picks for coming of age shows that are actually dedicated to the high school experience. While I love coming of age shows such as Stranger Things, and intense dramas like Euphoria, the main focus of those shows isn’t actually the fact that they’re in highschool. So this list is going to largely feature slightly more grounded comedies and dramas.

Derry Girls (2018-2022, 3 Seasons, TV-MA)- Derry Girls follows a teenage friend group in Ireland during The Troubles. It’s honestly one of the funniest teen shows I’ve ever seen. Each of the characters are nothing short of delightful, and their families are just as fun. To this day, it’s shocking to me that the cast are in their 20s and 30s- they truly nailed what it is to be a teenager. At only 19, 25-minute long episodes, it’s a pretty quick watch for a TV Show, but an endless source of serotonin. It’s extremely enjoyable for any age.

Sex Education (2019-, 3 Seasons, TV-MA)- Sex Education follows Otis, an awkward teenager who’s mother is a sex therapist, and his friends he attends school with. This show is a similar delight. It’s laugh out loud humor is well balanced with true poignancy, and it’s actually quite educational. Give this a watch if you feel like your high school health classes failed you!

Heartstopper (2022-, 1 Season, TV-14)- Heartstopper is a romance between two teenage boys set in England. This one was mostly included because of its overall sweetness. Its incredibly heartwarming, and quite refreshing to see such authentically kind and honest characters in a teen show centered around romance. This show is perfect for you if you enjoy teen romances, but are tired of seeing them portrayed as overly edgy, dramatic, or heavily sexualized.

Freaks and Geeks (1999, 1 Season, TV-14)- Freaks and Geeks tells the story of two groups of friends in the late nineties. Sadly, this show was cancelled before it could get a second season, which I consider a true tragedy. It’s funny, authentic, the characters are great, and the storylines are still as relatable and relevant today as they were when this show first aired.

I Am Not Okay With This (2020, 1 Season, TV-MA)- This show is about a character named Sydney, who’s dealing with highschool, family drama, romance, and superpowers on top of that. I Am Not Okay With This is really the outlier of this group of shows, since it does have a supernatural element. But I decided to include it here anyways because (as I stated previously) the actual highschool experience is still relevant and very relatable. Sadly, this is another show that was canceled after only one season. Now, I’m typically doubtful of most shows that have gotten canceled by Netflix. I watched a few of the ones that have received outrage for being canceled, and let’s just say I wasn’t impressed, which has made me a bit of a skeptic. But I can say, wholeheartedly, that the outrage was deserved for this one. The humor is fantastic, the actors perfectly embody their characters, and much like the rest of this list, the comedy is well balanced with deeper themes.

Please give these shows a try if you haven’t seen them! I’ll probably be making a post for my favorite broader coming of age shows, or maybe one for coming of age movies?

[filmperidot]

2023 Oscars Thoughts

This Oscars was (in my opinion) the best in a while.

The jokes weren’t that bad! You can never expect everything to land at award shows, but oftentimes the entire show is downright painful (shoutout to Amy Schumer). Overall, Jimmy Kimmel did a good job!!

The lovely birthday tribute to James Martin of An Irish Goodbye was one of my absolute favorite moments, how sweet was that.

I can’t remember if they’ve done this in past years, but regardless, the individual shoutouts to each Best Picture nomination was really nice to see.

This goes without saying, but all of the nominees and winners this year were absolutely wonderful and totally deserving. It made me really happy to see all of them recognized (despite a few snubs).

The reduced play off music! I was really happy to see they dialed it back compared to some of the other shows. Don’t get me wrong it’s always a little awkward and disappointing to see, but when award shows are playing off their biggest winners it’s downright embarrassing. At least the Oscars aren’t doing that too.

JENNYY!!! Her death absolutely DEVASTATED me so seeing her on stage was very healing<3

The performances were great! Naatu Naatu from RRR was really fun, Hold My Hand from Top Gun: Maverick was heartfelt, This Is A Life from Everything Everywhere All At Once had great visuals, and Lift Me Up from Black Panther was beautiful.

The speeches were heartfelt! They often are, but these really struck a chord.

The fashion was gorgeous too! Some favorites were Cara Delevingne, Jessica Chastain, and Lady Gaga.

All of my predictions were correct except one (director)! And they were who I was rooting for anyways so that was awesome.

Finally, this has been said many times before, but it’s been beyond delightful to see underappreciated older actors who’ve been in the industry for a long time finally having their well deserved moments. I don’t think I’ve ever been quite so happy to see anyone win an award before. I’m over the moon for Ke Huy Quan, Jamie Lee Curtis, Brendan Fraser, and Michelle Yeoh.

Edit: Just wanted to add this because I think it’s kinda funny but I was fully prepared to watch this muted and just turn the volume on for the speeches and people I like. I had the remote on hand and everything.

[filmperidot]

2023 Oscar Predictions, Hopes, and Snubs

Best Picture:

Prediction: The Fabelmans or Everything Everywhere All At Once

Rooting For: Everything Everywhere All At Once, Banshees of Inisherin

Best Director:

Prediction: Steven Spielberg

Rooting for: The Daniels

Best Actor in a Leading Role:

Prediction: Brendan Fraser

Rooting For: Colin Farrell or Brendan Fraser

Best Actress in a Leading Role:

Prediction: Michelle Yeoh

Rooting For: Michelle Yeoh or Cate Blanchett

Best Actor in a Supporting Role:

Prediction: Ke Huy Quan

Rooting For: Ke Huy Quan or Barry Keoghan

Best Actress in a Supporting Role:

Prediction: Angela Basset or Jamie Lee Curtis

Rooting For: Stephanie Hsu

Biggest Snubs:

Decision to Leave: Best Cinematography and International Film

The Batman: Best Soundtrack

[filmperidot]

My Favorite New Films of 2022

I know I’m a month or so late, but here it is. (Note: I sadly haven’t seen as many new movies this year as I would’ve liked so don’t lose your shit when Top Gun isn’t on my list)

1. Everything Everywhere All At Once (dir. The Daniels)

2. The Banshees of Inisherin (dir. Martin McDonagh)

3. Decision to Leave (dir. Park Chan-wook)

4. The Batman (dir. Matt Reeves)

5. Nope (dir. Jordan Peele)

[filmperidot]

Some of My Favorite Period Piece Posters

Which poster or movie is your favorite?

[filmperidot]

The Visuals of Atonement (2007)

This movie is absolutely beautiful and heartbreaking. James McAvoy has stated that it’s the best script he’d ever read. Feel free to comment with the amount of time you cried after watching this.

[filmperidot]

Jurassic Park (1993)

This is just a random appreciation post for one of my favorite movies of all time. I just rewatched it the other day, and it still holds all of the joy and magic that it did when I watched it for the first time. Jurassic Park has many sequels, but none of them have quite managed to achieve the magic of the original.

My question for you all is which sequel was your favorite? And again, I know none of them really compare to the original, I’m just curious.

Personally, I’ve always enjoyed The Lost World, and Jurassic World. I consider Jurassic World to be (by far) the best of the recent sequels, although I’ll admit that I haven’t seen the most recent one (and have no intention to, judging by the critic and audience reaction). While I find Jurassic World to be rather ridiculous at times-certainly melodramatic, I honestly enjoyed it a lot. Namely, I’ve always found it a lot of fun to see the way the park was reimagined for a modern world. It’s also really cool to see dinosaurs in great CGI, and I thought the younger characters were fun to watch.

[filmmarvel]

The Visuals of Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)

I have mixed feelings on this movie overall, but the visuals are just ridiculously gorgeous. It’s absolutely insane how realistic and detailed it was, I feel extremely lucky to have been able to see it in 3D.

[filmperidot]

The Batman (2022) Posters

I love all of these designs so much! I’ve gotta say I especially love 1, 3, and 4! What about you?

[filmperidot]

Nope (2022)

dir. Jordan Peele

Nope is a pretty controversial film, with many claiming it’s Peele’s worst work, while others say it’s his best. Personally, I loved Nope. It’s a film that, like Peele’s other films, is absolutely fascinating to dive into. It’s a movie that requires further thought to fully understand, with lots of references, and interesting themes. The cinematography is absolutely gorgeous, and the acting is fantastic, with Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer’s characters boldly leading the film, while Brandon Perea, Steven Yeun, and Michael Wincott provide compelling support and captivating stories of their own. The characters are very likeable, and the humor is much more prevalent than in Peele’s other films. Much of the criticism is a result of just how much further thought is required. Not all of Peele’s references and thematic connections are plain and obvious within the movie, as I stated earlier, Nope requires lots of dissection post-watch, otherwise some will certainly find themselves confused. If you are among the demographic that didn’t enjoy Nope (because of the aforementioned confusion), my recommendation is to read other’s ideas about it, and maybe even watch it a second time. I promise it’s worth it.

[filmperidot]

Baby Driver (2017) Posters

1 & 4 are my favorites! What about you?

[filmperidot]

Baby Driver (2017)

dir. Edgar Wright

“Sometimes all I want is to head West on 20 in a car I can’t afford, with a plan I don’t have, just me, my music, and the road.”

“Song is over Baby. But I’m afraid you still have to face the music.”

[filmperidot]

The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (2022)

dir. Tom Gormican

aka 1 hour and 47 minutes of pure joy & simping over Pedro Pascal and his beautiful beautiful hair. Seriously though, this movie is hilarious and wonderfully entertaining, go see it.