June Movies Part 3: Thelma & The Bikeriders

Do you want to watch a movie about a bunch of young folks on motorbikes? Or a bunch of old folks on mobility scooters? Either way, I've got you covered!

Thelma: This movie was completely off my radar, until suddenly a bunch of people were talking about it, and I decided to give it a try. June Squibb stars as the titular Thelma, a 93-year-old woman who still lives independently and enjoys her life. Her grandson, Danny (Fred Hechinger), enjoys spending time with her, but he and his parents (played by Clark Gregg and Parker Posey) still worry a great deal about Thelma and if she’s getting too old to live on her own.

When Thelma receives some urgent phone calls from Danny and a lawyer, she mails $10,000 to a PO Box because she believes Danny has gotten himself in trouble. But she then discovers Danny was perfectly fine and she has been the victim of a common phone scam. What follows is a comedic caper where she teams up with her friend Ben (Richard Roundtree), who lives in a retirement home, to track down the fraudsters and get her money back. Of course, none of this is sanctioned by her family, so she eludes them as she sets off on a motorized scooter to get her vengeance.

Written and directed by Josh Margolin, this is a great film that tells a story of an oft-neglected segment of the population. But here, Squibb and Roundtree put in great performances, highlighting that yes, older folks have certain limitations, but they can get shit done nonetheless. It also showcases the dynamic between them and their well-meaning but micromanaging family members who can’t imagine how elderly relatives could possibly live independently without ensuing chaos. But it also serves as a reminder that old folks can be immensely stubborn and need to learn to ask for help when they need it. It’s a charming little movie and I particularly liked the ending because it wasn’t some treacly affair. Thelma got the last word, and that is only good and proper.

The Bikeriders: Written and directed by Jeff Nichols, who was inspired by Danny Lyon's photobook of the same name, the cast of this film is stacked with folks like Jodi Comer, Tom Hardy, and Austin Butler. Be prepared for a masterclass in accent work as we dive into a tale that spans from 1965 to 1973, about the Vandals Motorcycle Club and its various members who derive some sense of purpose from belonging to this chaotic group. Comer plays Kathy, a woman who falls in love and marries Benny (Butler), a biker whose whole identity revolves around the Club. She gets a front row seat to the rise and fall of the Vandals even though she has no real interest in being a biker chick herself. Hardy plays Johnny, the founder and leader of the Vandals, who has a strong personality and is obsessed with keeping this enterprise going.

Over the course of the years, we follow the trials and tribulations these characters face, as the club grows from a small, select group of guys, to a sprawling morass with chapters in multiple states. Kathy and Benny’s relationship is increasingly strained by his unwavering loyalty to the club, and the movie keeps you guessing to the very end as to how it all will end. This could have been an impossibly male movie that was just about drinking and fighting, but thankfully the Comer performance gives us a bit of a respite and the necessary outsider’s view of all this toxic masculinity. But if you’re squeamish about violence, this may not be the movie for you - you’re gonna see a lot of people get beat up before you get to the end.

This is a good, vibey movie, that captures the era and captures this very specific subset of America during that time. The actors are all putting in phenomenal work and the cinematography by Adam Stone truly conveys the freedom and joy of the open road that these bikers so reveled in. During the end credits, you'll get to see some of the original photographs that inspired this film, and you can see how perfectly the filmmakers have captured the essence of those photos. So get on your bike and head to the theater!

June Movies Part 2: Inside Out 2, Brats, Am I OK?

Seeking a psychological breakthrough this week? So are the protagonists of these three movies!

Inside Out 2: I mean, do I even need to say it? We all loved Inside Out, and the sequel (directed by Kelsey Mann and written by Dave Holstein and Meg LeFauve) gives us more of the same. Now, our girl Riley has turned thirteen, and is officially entering the big bad world of puberty. As such, a new set of emotions enter into her brain alongside the old stalwarts of Joy, Sadness, Disgust, Fear, and Anger. The new emotions consist of Embarrassment, Envy, Ennui... and they are led by Anxiety. You can probably see where this is going.

When Riley and her best friends head to an overnight hockey training camp, Anxiety takes over the console and starts driving her actions, overthinking and catastrophizing every interaction she has. In the meantime, Joy & co. embark on a journey through Riley’s brain to find and restore her Sense of Self. Along the way we get some beautiful metaphors about core beliefs, as well as some hilarity involving sar-chasms and the stream of consciousness.

Much like the original, this movie is marvelously inventive and poignant, finding ways to talk about the difficult emotions that overtake us in adolescence and often persist into adulthood. It is particularly meaningful how Anxiety overtakes Joy - much of adulthood feels like a desperate bid to reclaim the Joy we felt during childhood after all. The movie arrives at a wonderful conclusion, but we can all only hope to have such emotional balance as Riley eventually achieves. So watch this film and then call up your therapist - there’s a lot of work left to be done!

Am I OK? Max has weirdly classified this film as a romantic comedy, and I’m not quite sure why, apart from that label providing a reassurance that the ending won’t be terribly devastating. But otherwise, this is a gentle and lovely movie about a 32-year-old woman, Lucy (Dakota Johnson), who has only just realized that she is gay. As if that weren’t enough to be dealing with, her best friend, Jane (Sonoya Mizuno) has gotten a promotion at work and will be moving to London. So, Lucy's life is somewhat imploding, and we get to watch how she navigates it all.

Written by Lauren Pomerantz and directed by Tig Notaro and Stephanie Allynne, you can let this movie gently wash over you. It’s a funny and moving coming out story. It also serves as a reminder that no matter what your gender or sexuality, dating strangers is always a horrifyingly stressful proposition; and in this case, the hurdles feel especially difficult. But this is less a story about Lucy's love life, and more about her loving friendship with Jane. The two women are such wonderful friends, supportive and usually aware of each other’s every thought. This movie serves as a perfect chronicle of the highs and lows of female friendship and how two besties can navigate a rough patch, only to come out with an even stronger bond. So, watch this film and then give your BFF a call. Or better yet, watch this movie with your BFF and revel in the most romantic relationship of all: friendship.

Brats: Directed by Andrew McCarthy, this is a documentary about the origin of the term Brat Pack and the subsequent impact it had on the 80s actors who were considered to be a member of the Pack, including McCarthy himself. I was expecting this movie to consist of McCarthy thoughtfully interviewing fellow members of the Brat Pack, but not really participating in the movie himself - after all, wouldn’t it be meta to just have the documentarian be a Brat Packer who is showcasing that this is the direction in which he took his career? But alas, ‘twas not to be.

Instead, we get what feels like a 90-minute therapy session where McCarthy hogs the majority of the screen time. He does interview other folks, but no one seems as obsessed as him with unravelling what this term did to their career. They’ve all moved on, but McCarthy seems determined to hold on to a grudge. He does eventually have an interesting tete a tete with David Blum, the journalist who wrote the infamous article that coined the term in 1985, but at that point, their conversation just feels like a re-hash of all the other conversations he has had with Emilio Estevez, Ally Sheedy, Demi Moore, Rob Lowe, etc.

If you are an ardent fan of the Brat Pack, maybe this movie will move the needle for you. But overall, it feels like a bit of fluff with very little substance. Judd Nelson and Molly Ringwald declined to take part in the film, and all that does is make me wish I was watching a documentary about them instead. Spare yourself the trouble and just watch The Breakfast Club for the true Brat Pack experience.

June Movies Part 1: Laapataa Ladies, Hit Man, Origin

I’ve already watched three great movies and we’re only midway through June! Dive in for some cinematic wonder.

Laapataa Ladies: It had been a while since I watched a Bollywood movie, but I knew director Kiran Rao could be trusted to deliver the goods, while working from a script crafted by Biplap Goswami, Sneha Desai, and Divyanidhi Sharma. What follows is a rousing tale about rural women in India, their hopes and dreams, the different paths their lives can take, and the stumbling blocks in their way.

Nitanshi Goel and Pratibha Ranta star as Phool Kumari and Pushpa Rani (or is that really her name...), two women who both get married in their respective villages on the same day. Following the wedding, they must now travel to their husbands’ villages, and they both end up on the same train. Dressed alike in their bridal saris, and conservatively veiled (because heaven forfend a woman show her face to anyone except her family), it’s impossible to tell the two women apart. Which means that in the middle of the night, when Phool's husband reaches their stop, he quickly grabs her and hurries off the train. Except he didn’t grab Phool, he got Pushpa instead.

What follows is a delicious comedy with plenty of social commentary. There’s a reason Pushpa got off the train with the wrong husband, but the movie patiently and carefully takes its time to reveal her past and what exactly she is planning to do now. In the meantime, Phool gets off at the wrong station and realizes she is completely lost. She doesn’t know what village she was headed to, and her own village has a common name that could be any of a dozen rural villages across the country. A ragtag group of folk who work around the railway station take her in, giving her shelter and food, but it’s unclear how she will ever find her way back to her husband.

I won’t spoil anything, but I will reassure you that this is a comedy, so don’t expect anything tragic to happen. Instead, this is a gentle movie with some great actors, all beautifully capturing the joys and heartbreaks these women will experience during this adventure. Ravi Kishan also stars as a police inspector who is the typical corrupt villain of the piece…until he isn’t. This is a film that is all about subverting expectations while still reminding us of the importance of women’s choices and giving them a chance to get ahead in the world. It’s a story that never gets old.

Hit Man: Directed by Richard Linklater, who co-wrote the screenplay with Glen Powell (who also stars), this is a wild and twisty movie about Gary Johnson (Powell), a college professor in New Orleans who also works part-time for the police as a fake hit man. He’s the guy they send in to talk to people who want to murder someone - he walks in, gets them to tell him the whole plan, hand over some cash, and then walks out while the cops show up to arrest the would-be murderers.

Of course, things go haywire when a beautiful woman, Madison (Adria Arjona), hires him to murder her abusive husband. Gary takes pity on her and gives her some advice, ensuring she doesn’t incriminate herself while the police listen in. And then things get increasingly murky as the two of them embark on a secret affair.

This movie is hilarious, dark, and twisty. And weirdest of all, it is (kind of) based on a true story, though the filmmakers have certainly taken a considerable amount of artistic license. I had no idea what was going to happen from one point to the next and every scene was yet another delightful surprise as I watched things spiral and escalate completely out of control. You won’t be able to predict a minute of this madcap mayhem so just settle back and enjoy the ride.

Origin: I loved Isabel Wilkerson’s book, Caste: The Origins of our Discontents, which re-framed America’s original sin of slavery as evidence of casteism, rather than racism. She laid out her argument by making comparisons to Nazi Germany and their treatment of Jews, and the Indian caste system with their treatment of Dalits, aka the “untouchable” caste. Well, in this movie, writer-director Ava DuVernay has audaciously decided to take the story of the real-life author and chart her personal journey while she was writing this book. What follows is a unique tale where we both get insights into Wilkerson’s personal tragedies that spurred her on to throw herself into researching this book, as well as a cinematic representation of the book itself, with all its central arguments about caste systems in various countries and their unifying pillars.

Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor offers up a tour-de-force performance as she plays Wilkerson, who endures tremendous personal loss and goes through a great deal of soul-searching while researching incredibly difficult and often incendiary subject matter. The supporting cast is filled with stalwarts like Jon Bernthal, Niecy Nash, Vera Farmiga, Audra McDonald, etc. who all do great work. But overall, the tone of this film is a little hit-or-miss. Does it want to be personal, or does it want to be didactic? Is it offering up an impersonal history lesson or searing political commentary? Like the book, its scope is vast and ambitious, but unlike the book, it struggles to cohere into a fully incisive whole. 

DuVernay is a tremendous filmmaker, but I would have much preferred if she had adapted Caste in the style of her documentary, 13TH, that did such a terrific job of diving deep into the racist history of America’s prison system. This subject matter is meaty and complex and deserves many hours of cinematic justice, not just a two-hour movie that is trying to tug at your heartstrings about this one woman’s story while also educating you about entire swathes of history in three different cultures. The movie does call out all of the parts of the book that astonished me, and shows the eye-opening connections that led Wilkerson to develop the thesis for her book. But somehow, telling the narrative through her eyes instead of giving us the information in a more straightforward manner made the whole enterprise feel a bit too Hollywood. It’s still a good and unusual movie, but unfortunately, I was expecting something great.

Dark Comedy Binges: Mr. & Mrs. Smith and Bodkin

Yes, I watched even more TV last month, so if you're already done with my last slew of recommendations, I'm back with two more twisty and funny shows for you to binge. Ready, set, find your remote!

Mr. & Mrs. Smith: What an absolute delight. This show is inspired by the fairly insipid action spy comedy from 2005, so I figured it would be a diverting bit of fluff. But given that it stars Donald Glover, who co-created the show with Francesca Sloane (a former writer on the weird and wonderful Atlanta, who serves as the showrunner here), I should have known better. 

Glover and Maya Erskine star as the titular couple. They both separately interviewed with a shadowy organization to be secret agents, and were then told they would be living undercover with each other as a married couple, with the aliases of John and Jane Smith. They move into an insanely impressive brownstone in New York City (they even have a plunge pool - what largesse!) and start getting instructions from their mysterious overlords. Each of the eight episodes feature different missions that could be as simple as intercepting a package, or going to Italy to protect an asset from violent gunmen hellbent on killing them all. The action sequences are always thrilling and inspired, and the locales get increasingly more elaborate and beautiful. But what is more exciting than each mission of the week, is the overarching story of this couple as they navigate their intense relationship.

At the beginning, John and Jane want to keep it strictly professional. Well, that doesn't last very long - in their line of work, it's a bit hard to maintain boundaries. What follows is a deliriously funny but also very astutely observed relationship as the two get to know each other and develop a delicious rapport. Erskine and Glover are such incredible actors, and this show takes full advantage of their acting range and prowess. The scripts also feel so true to life, with the two of them having meandering conversations, making each other laugh, and falling in love over such seemingly simple nonsense. Of course, they also have major problems, and one of the show's highlights is Episode 6, when John and Jane go to couples counselling and have very convoluted conversations with a therapist where they can't reveal what they do for a living.

This show is effortlessly engaging and I desperately hope there will be a second season. But if there isn't, it's an absolutely perfect single season that you must devour immediately. It contains a multitude of genres and human emotions and will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end. It also features a brilliant supporting cast, with famous names popping in to just do one episode before they are either helped or killed by the Smiths. So are you not intrigued? Start bingeing!

Bodkin: Created by Jez Scharf, this is a dark and funny mystery about a cold case in a beautiful Irish town named Bodkin that turns out to maybe not be so cold. Will Forte stars as Gilbert Power, an American podcaster who desperately needs a new hit and has decided that this trip to Bodkin and investigating the mysterious disappearance of three people during the Samhain festival. As far as he is concerned, he is less interested in solving this case than delving into the local characters and collecting some kitschy ambiance for his listeners. 

Gilbert is assisted by Emma Sizergh (Robyn Cara), a young British journalist who is eager to learn more and further her own career. Unfortunately, he is also accompanied by Dubheasa "Dove" Maloney (Siobhan Cullen), an Irish investigative journalist who is not thrilled about helping this clueless man but has reasons she needs to leave London for a bit. She is supremely uninterested in making a fluffy podcast, and instead, starts to dig up dirt on the inhabitants of Bodkin. This means things quickly start to take a dark and murderous turn.

If you're a fan of true crime podcasts and British comedy, this show offers up a neat little satire with an actual mystery to boot. I will confess, the plot was entirely too convoluted for me, featuring a whole mess of characters and tangled motives and alibis that I'm not sure I fully reconciled by the end. There are also a lot of nuns, which may or may not be a selling point. But this show is only a seven-episode commitment and features stunning Irish scenery with many fun accents. Sometimes, all you want is to lie back with a show where a bunch of sweary and grumpy townspeople are ganging up on the American, and this show delivers that in spades. And for some reason, the Obamas are executive producers on this show, so you might as well give it a shot!