Discover Top Posts Tagged with #max eggers

A24 has released The Lighthouse screenplay book for $60. It’s the 11th installment in the studio’s series of 8x11 hardcover editions. An e-book version is also available for $20.

In addition to Robert & Max Eggers' original script, the 216-page tome includes an introduction by actor Willem Dafoe, essays by authors Lauren Groff (Fates and Furies) and Ian McGuire (The North Water), full-page stills, and excerpts from a 1881 lighthouse keeper’s guide.

#the lighthouse #robert eggers #willem dafoe #robert pattinson #a24 #horror #book #gift #max eggers #lauren groff #ian mcguire #the witch #valeriia karaman #Jarin Blaschke

BLOGTOBER 10/8/2024 PART 1: THE FRONT ROOM

October 8 was another rabbit hole day of my Blogtober program, and I have managed to refrain from slapping a snarky nickname on this little marathon of American race-centric horror movies that raise some uncomfortable questions. Can white guys make compelling movies about Black anxieties? Can Black directors get away with making white actors say things white people shouldn't get away with? The answer is...it depends on who you ask!

And if you want to know why I'm capitalizing one word and not the other, it's because I generally agree with the AP statement about the lack of meaningful cultural commonalities between white-skinned people--other than generalized privilege, of course. In my mind, it is useful to talk about whiteness in political contexts, but it is not so useful to talk about a "White" ethnic identity unless you are into white pride, which I would prefer not to validate. I understand that this is not a perfect solution, and many people feel that the lowercase "w" supports the delusion of whiteness as the universal default for humanity. I do not want to invite a big heavy debate on my silly little movie blog, but you should feel free to comment with links to worthwhile discussions on this subject, as long as you are doing it in good faith and you are not a white supremacist asshole.

Anyway. I was very curious about THE FRONT ROOM, if only because it had one of the messiest trailers I'd seen in a long time, and I saw it a LOT because of all the cool movies that hit theaters this year. It seemed like just a stream of gags and zingers, which made me think there probably wasn't much to the movie...and there is not! THE FRONT ROOM is a wacky, gross, semi-comedic, kinda-religious horror experiment that doesn't seem to have a real goal in mind. If there's a message, I guess it's that even if a person has a lot of excuses for being an asshole, you don't necessarily have to forgive them.

Brandi plays Belinda who, while on the verge of giving birth, suddenly becomes the primary caretaker for her aged mother-in-law Solange (Fuck Yeah Kathryn Hunter). Solange is a Confederate throwback, religious fanatic, and general pain in the ass; quite a lot of the movie is just drenched in shit and piss because of her mischievous refusal to deal with her incontinence. The threat she poses grows to outrageous proportions as Belinda experiences bizarre hallucinations--or are they supernatural experiences?--and Solange schemes to alienate Belinda from her husband (Andrew Burnap) and baby.

It is never really clear whether Solange has uncanny powers, as per the Ken Russell-flavored visions that assail Belinda, or if Belinda is just losing her mind. The film also feels a little anti-climactic without a real showdown or revelation of what is actually going on here. The thing that holds it all together is Kathryn Hunter's performance as the racist matriarch, which is a feat of comic contortions matched by some truly fabulous voicework. Snootier readers will recognize the Shakespearean actress from Joel Coen's THE TRAGEDY OF MACBETH in which she plays the Old Man and the Witches, and she is the best thing in that movie too. Let's take a moment to jack off to appreciate this sick picture of her as Richard III, like oh my god.

Blame for THE FRONT ROOM'S lack of vision falls to Sam and Max Eggers, the half-brothers of Roger Eggers, who you can guess are white. They said that the film was partially inspired by having to care for their aged grandfather, a "Southern gentleman...of a certain generation" who they characterize as "very progressive for how he grew up." This ambivalent description may give us some hints about why Solange's racism is handled in such a glib way, and why we're left without a clear sense of whether she is literally an evil witch, or just an old bitch, or a flawed human being who is understandably suffering. The Eggers' primary focus seems to be elder care--something that can be an extremely daunting prospect in a culture that disdains disability, and hides or ignores death and all that leads up to it. That subject doesn't get a lot of deep reflection either, but recent signs point to a coming shift from grief horror to elder care horror. Just you wait and see!

#blogtober #2024 #racism #horror #horror comedy #supernatural #psychological thriller #Black horror #religious horror #social horror #the front room #sam eggers #max eggers #brandi #kathryn hunter

‘When’s he going to do another picture of William Defoe?’ I hear you say, the answer is, right now! I feel I don’t push the darks as much as a can with the inks and enjoyed painting with the dark tonal range in this one.