Tag Archives: Dakota Johnson

2019, Recent Reviews, Reviews

The Peanut Butter Falcon (2019): Heartwarming Adventure

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With dreams of becoming the next great professional wrestler, Zak (Zach Gottsagen), a 22-year old man with Down syndrome, escapes the retirement home he lives in to make his way to Florida and join a wrestling school. He is pursued by Eleanor (Dakota Johnson; Suspiria), his friend and caretaker from the home. Along the way he befriends Tyler (Shia LaBeouf; Transformers) who lets him tag along as he runs away from his own pursuers.

Set in the coastal areas of North Carolina, the film has some beautiful views. Directors Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz favor the yellow-greens of the wet setting when outdoors without postcard-style imagery. They make an effort to show how grimy life in that area can be. Most of the characters are poor, houses are broken down, and everyone seems to be dirty and sweaty. LaBeouf looks like he hasn’t showered for days and it makes the characters and setting believable.

With his straightforward delivery, Zak is an immediately likable protagonist. Zak is smart, resourceful, and determined. The subterfuge in his attempts to escape the retirement home are hilarious as he earns the help of his fellow patients though bartering pudding for a diversion. He brings honesty and innocence to the screen. He responses carry no pretense or ulterior motive and Gottsagen’s acting feels completely in the moment as Zak authentically reacts to the characters around him. His goal of reaching the wrestling camp, while ridiculous, is so earnest that it makes him and his pursuit sympathetic. Despite this being his first major role, Gottsagen is able to handle himself alongside experienced actors like Bruce Dern (Nebraska) as he deftly handles both dramatic and silly scenes.

Zak and Tyler grow into a sweet brotherly bond.

The friendship between Zak and Tyler is what drives the film. LaBeouf has a reputation both on an off camera, but his performance here contrasts nicely with Gottsagen. Tyler is trying to be a lone wolf as he flees his pursuers, but, after witnessing Zak’s sincerity, he becomes the perfect contrast. He encourages Zak and makes Zak’s goals his own. The same is true for Eleanor. She is more pragmatic as she wants to bring Zak back home to safety, but she also recognizes how much wrestling means to him and is willing to take risks just to make him happy. As cliché as it may seem, Tyler and Eleanor become Zak’s surrogate family and the care they show Zak is heartwarming without being saccharine.

The film focuses on themes of family and self-acceptance. When Zak and Tyler start their journey, Zak has negative opinions about his own abilities. He assumes he has to be the villain in wrestling because he has Down syndrome until Tyler explains otherwise. It’s nothing new for a film to promote self-acceptance, but the tangible changes to Zak’s perception of himself are enough to soften the familiarity. Showing, not telling, how even small bits of encouragement can drastically change someone’s beliefs is the film’s greatest accomplishment. Nilson and Schwartz have made a heartwarming adventure with an unlikely, but lovable hero.

4/5 stars.

2019, Top Lists

Most Anticipated Movies of 2019

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With 2018 coming to a close, it’s time to look at what the new year might offer. This list covers the films and filmmakers I’m personally most excited about based on the topics, casts, and track record of the creative teams involved. Some may slip into 2020, but all of them are going to be worth keeping on your radar. Here are my most anticipated films of 2019:

11. The Good Nurse (TBA)

Tobias Lindholm has made a name for himself making tense, morally complex thrillers like A Hijacking and A War and his English language debut presents tantalizing subject matter. The story follows Charlie Cullen who allegedly killed hundreds of people during his 16 year nursing career and, with a cast that reportedly includes Jessica Chastain and Eddie Redmayne as the leads, there is sure to be ample fuel for Lindholm’s drama.

10. Arctic (2/1/2019)

A survival story in the bitter cold of the Arctic is by itself an interesting premise, but adding Mads Mikkelsen (The Hunt) as the lead makes this a definite must-see. The film opened at Cannes this year to positive reviews with critics praising Mikkelsen’s performance and the film’s uncompromising vision.

9. The Lighthouse (TBA)

The Witch is one of the most interesting horror movies of the past few years, with meticulous period detail and escalating paranoia that few films can achieve. Robert Eggers’s follow up is sure to be in the same vein with Willem Dafoe playing an elderly lighthouse keeper in this dark horror-fantasy.

8. Everything Everywhere All At Once (TBA)

Very little is known about the newest film from the Daniels, but their involvement is enough to warrant a place on this list. The film is described as an “inter-dimensional action film” with Michelle Yeoh and Awkwafina of Crazy Rich Asians starring. I’m personally not a huge fan of Awkwafina’s style of humor, but the Daniels’ history of creating absolutely bonkers music videos and their first feature Swiss Army Man make me excited for anything they have to offer.

7. Jojo Rabbit (TBA)

WWII Germany is not where most people would think to set a comedy, but most people aren’t Taika Waititi. Hunt for the Wilderpeople was one of my favorite movies of 2016 and coming off Thor: Ragnarok, a studio film that neutered many of his best quirks, it’s nice to see him return to a smaller scale. The script is hilarious and features another precocious boy in a coming of age story with Waititi playing the child’s imaginary friend: Hitler. The film is filled with the well-meaning buffoons and dialogue misunderstandings that make his work so consistently entertaining.

6. I’m Thinking of Ending Things (TBA)

It’s been more than a decade since Charlie Kaufman (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) released a live action feature. His movies can sometimes be too reflexive for their own good, but are always thought-provoking. With some added freedom and budget from Netflix, he can hopefully put together one of his signature introspective stories.

5. Untitled Danny Boyle/Richard Curtis Musical (6/28/2019)

This is the most mainstream film on my list and I can’t deny my appreciation for Richard Curtis’s work (Notting Hill, About Time). Some may call him cheesy, but he creates sympathetic, endearingly awkward characters and stories with unabashed heart. The pairing of his writing with strong direction from Danny Boyle seems like a great fit. The film’s story follows a struggling musician who, for currently unknown reasons, is the only person able to remember the Beatles and uses their music to launch his own career. This silly, but promising setup with a talented cast starring Himesh Patel and Lily James could be one of the most crowd-pleasing movies of the year.

4. Long Day’s Journey into Night (Spring 2019)

After opening to incredible reviews at Cannes this year, Bi Gan’s sophomore feature has hit unexpected pre-sale records in China and is poised to be an arthouse breakout there. The film has received huge praise for its dreamy visuals, startling use of 3D, and a supposedly 50+ minute long take. Building off his stellar debut Kaili Blues and tackling new artistic challenges, Bi Gan is shaping up to be an original filmmaker to watch.

3. Wounds (3/29/2019)

Babak Anvari’s feature debut Under the Shadow was my favorite film of 2016 so I’m predictably excited for anything he has slated next. His new film, whose title seems to be in flux, is based on a horror-mystery novel called The Visible Filth about a man that finds a cell phone that sends his life spiraling into nightmarish territory. It features Armie Hammer and Dakota Johnson in the lead roles and seems perfectly suited to Anvari’s penchant for creating scenes of almost unbearable tension.

2. Ad Astra (5/24/2019)

This sci-fi thriller, co-written and directed by James Gray, may be the movie that delivers on what Interstellar could not. The film stars Brad Pitt as an engineer who travels through space searching for his father, played by none other than Tommy Lee Jones, who has been missing since he left for a mission to Neptune 20 years earlier. Ad Astra has Gray’s largest budget to date and with his focus on character and proven ability to tell decade spanning epics (The Lost City of Z), it could be the smart sci-fi we’ve been waiting for.

1. Climax (3/1/2019)

Gaspar Noé is one of my favorite filmmakers. He may be a provocateur and indulge himself in some unnecessary scenes, but he also creates visceral experiences like no other. Climax premiered at Cannes this year to the most positive reviews of Noé’s career, so much so that he was disappointed he didn’t hit his normal walk-out rate. His film follows a dance troupe whose celebration changes when they find out their drinks have been laced with LSD. Noé has played with hallucinatory imagery before but devoting an entire film to this setup, powered by his and his regular cinematographer Benoît Debie’s technical skill, is going to be an unrivaled example of pure audiovisual experience.

2018, Recent Reviews, Reviews

Suspiria (2018): Promising but Flawed Remake

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Remaking a cult classic is never an easy task, but having Luca Guadagnino (Call Me By Your Name) behind the camera made it an interesting proposition. Like the original, the film follows Suzy Bannion (Dakota Johnson; Fifty Shades of Grey), an American, who comes to Germany to enroll in a famous dance school. On the day of her arrival, she hears whispers of another student who abruptly left the school for unknown reasons, leaving room for Suzy to join. She auditions in front of the demanding teacher Madame Blanc (Tilda Swinton; We Need to Talk About Kevin) who, along with the rest of the staff, takes an immediate interest in her and assigns her the lead role in their next performance. As the film progresses, Suzy’s friend Sara (Mia Goth; A Cure for Wellness) learns that the missing student had suspected their teachers of being witches and using students for an unknown nefarious purpose.

While the original Suspiria was almost a giallo film, the Italian thriller subgenre popularized by director Dario Argento, Guadagnino has moved the title firmly into body horror territory. There are still elements of suspense surround the details of the missing student, but where the first film kept the nature of the school as its main source of intrigue, this iteration never lets the audience think the school is normal. Instead, the question becomes a matter of what Blanc and company are doing and why, not whether it is occult. In early scenes, Guadagnino establishes the teachers as witches through a display of horrific pain. He shows a body contorting against its will in a grisly fashion that would make David Cronenberg proud and continues these effects throughout the duration.

Guadagnino takes the film’s visuals in the opposite direction of the original. While it is beautifully shot with skillful use of shadow, it lacks the color of the original. Argento’s Suspiria was known for its vibrant, contrasting hues and patterned production design. Guadagnino instead creates the aesthetic of Cold War Germany. The buildings are oppressive with dull, muted colors that point to a city in disrepair. The effect of this aesthetic change is that it not only distinguishes the film, but also places greater emphasis on the actual dancing. The energetic dance moves come to the foreground when surrounded by drab settings. It’s a smart decision that gives the remake its own visual identity.

The main performance is a brilliantly lit and choreographed scene.

Until the end, Guadagnino’s Suspiria is a compelling watch. He makes decisions that separate his film in interesting ways and is able to communicate the hypnotic effect of dance that lures Suzy to the school. The film becomes a sensory experience led by Johnson’s striking dancing. Her movements resemble sudden convulsions more than graceful ballet and her twisting, in concert with the film’s lighting, show a temporary euphoria that extends to the audience. It’s unclear how much of the choreography was completed by Johnson rather than a dance double, but her performance and the editing make it impossible to tell as she throws herself into every motion.

It’s the film’s climax that becomes its undoing. Guadagnino and screenwriter David Kajganich (A Bigger Splash) deserve credit for taking the story in a new direction, but the blood-soaked finale will leave most viewers confused rather than awestruck. The ending relies on a plot point that, while not convoluted, unexpectedly changes the film’s focus to something that was barely mentioned earlier. This isn’t a shift that recontextualizes prior events in new and interesting ways, it baffles by implying that the filmmakers were actually focused on what seemed like an inconsequential detail. There are also other background elements that end up superfluous. The repeated nods to WWII and actions that may have been committed under Nazi rule are never developed or addressed by the film’s conclusion. What started as a fresh and enveloping take on a classic film, stumbles and falls in its final stretch leaving Guadagnino’s remake a flawed work that never reaches its potential, despite having many great moments.

3/5 stars.