Weekly Recap 19 | Nomadland, Minari, The Villainess & Doctor Who Series 6

Another belated Weekly Recap, but my cinema is open now, so I should finally be watching a film a day like I used to. I’ve finally caught up on the Best Picture nominees, so here’s a chunky episode to mark the occasion.

My first entry is none other than Billie Piper’s first film. And I really wanted to like this for this very fact; there was even a Q&A at the start to mark it as a special cinema experience. But I just hated every second of this perplexing nightmare, with its jarring editing and vulgar dialogue that reeks of being written by someone who has spent way too long stuck inside Twitter. It’s a perception of the world that is simply revolting to watch, and while it is self-aware about this fact, it’s still a very unpleasant experience. I knew going in that the style would be unusual and heavy in subtext, but all too often I was scratching my head at the nonsensical character decisions, periodic injections of avant-garde nonsense, and unskilled merging of the literal with the figurative. What’s even more surprising were the several other people in the cinema laughing really hard at all the jokes, so I suppose something in me just didn’t mesh well with the vibe this film was going for. Piper admittedly gives a good performance, but I already knew she was a good actor so I’m not at all impressed by her directing, which was what this film was supposed to showcase.

My next entry is already getting into the contrarianism I pride myself on, as I found Point Break to be extremely disappointing. I just didn’t like any of the characters, as they were awful to watch and listen to. Even Keanu Reeves is stale, which is a shame since I only watched it for him. I think I would have enjoyed this more if Keanu Reeves was just playing his Bill & Ted character, since the funniest moments were when he accidentally slipped into that role. Basically this movie only exists as an excuse to watch surfers in action and a balletic bit of sky diving, which is all beautifully panoramic, but still rather incongruous. As a whole, this film was such a bore, with ridiculous dialogue and a really dumb plot. 

Here comes the first film of the episode that was recommended to me, and I’ll be honest I would never have watched Alpha Papa if it hadn’t been. I’d never even heard of Alan Partridge until I was told to watch this, and unfortunately there may be a reason for that, as this simply isn’t my type of humour. Steve Coogan tries way too hard to amuse, so most of the time he’s just incredibly irritating. I know that’s the point of the character, but it just isn’t fun to watch. Some jokes were good, and a couple even had me gasping for breath, but when every single line in the script is flooded with lame, random, nonsense comedy that falls completely flat inside a tiring plot with an unlikable protagonist, a handful of good bits just isn’t enough.

A blockbuster now to make our brains smooth, and what a humongous blockbuster Godzilla vs Kong is. The visuals are breathtaking! Oh… wait a minute… that’s the only positive. Yeah, aside from the gorgeous fights and shockingly lavish cinematography, this film is atrocious. This is undoubtedly one of the stupidest movies I have ever sat through, because while it has great visual effects, what passes for a plot is utter nonsense that not even suspension of disbelief can salvage. I suppose it’s to be expected, but the remarkably stupid screenplay still managed to surprise me at every turn. Annoying, pointless characters fill up this dumb, soulless film, with every cliché you can think of chucked in to pad out the waiting time between catastrophes. The only good piece of writing was the “coward” in sign language gag – as that was the only non ironic chuckle the film managed to elicit from me – but everything else was painfully bad.

The first of three 2021 Oscar films now, with Judas and the Black Messiah. This is certainly a well written film, with an especially standout performance from Stanfield. But I really don’t think Kaluya was that good, and many moments in the plot just contradicted what was being shown to me – such as when one of the characters literally shoots a couple of police for no reason, then the rest of the film undeservedly places a heavy focus on making me sympathise with his death. I’d have no problems with these organisations if they really were only interested in investing into their communities, but the full scale revolution is not at all justified as it’s a complete denial of reality. There are things to like here, but the film really drags, so paired with an awful soundtrack inappropriately slapped over flat cinematography and the one dimensional portrayal of the (((villains))), I just don’t see what was so great about this film.

This next Oscar film was actually the Best Picture winner. That’s right, I’m talking about Nomadland. I’ve seen this kind of film before in the form of Varda’s Vagabond; I didn’t much like the narrative then, so I certainly don’t like it now. The meanderingness may be the entire point of the film – as McDormand’s character is meandering through life –  but even understanding what this film is trying to explore still isn’t capable of making me enjoy such a plotless film, since it constantly had me asking what the point was and when it was going to end. I really don’t understand how this won Best Picture, since the characters lack personality, the story is dry, the music is corny, and the existentialism feels superficial. The cinematography is sublime, so I definitely enjoyed looking at the gorgeous landscapes even when the film bored me, but I really do think Nomadland vastly overstays its welcome as I just don’t think there’s much substance to this film.

Let’s now begin my streak of films that I did like with the first film recommended to me by a supporter on Patreon. Kung Fu Panda 2 is not a film I thought I’d watch past childhood, but here we are I guess. I watched the first one when it came out and I think I liked it, though I can’t really remember. Even so, I never bothered continuing with the series, so I suppose something about the world just didn’t appeal to me. I haven’t actually liked a kid’s film in a while, so this was a nice watch, as the animation is phenomenal, with a heartfelt story to tug it along. The entire cast is great too, though I especially loved Gary Oldman’s deliciously evil yet insecure Lord Shen. Unfortunately, there’s some things in the screenplay inherent to children films that held this film back from being truly great, as while some jokes were legitimately clever, a fair amount of the humour got rather tiring. Even so, as far as animated films go, this is certainly among the good ones and a worthy watch.

I reckon it’s time for some time shenanigans now with Edge of Tomorrow. I love timeloops so much! But one with mech suits and aliens? Perfection! I find it rather ironic that this is probably the best ‘videogame’ film ever made despite it not actually being an adaptation of any game, as the structure makes it a perfect roguelike. The writing in the first act is brilliant, as Tom Cruise’s futile attempts to progress through the first level are met with many comedic deaths. The second act then sees the action ramp up as he becomes proficient in his skills, leading to many exciting scenes of visual glory. Unfortunately, the third act doesn’t quite stick the landing, as instead of a cathartic climax, it defaults to cliché while also taking loads of shortcuts in the screenplay. The romance is simply awful, and Tom Cruise loses the vulnerability that made his character so enticing at the beginning. When I saw that the film had reset back to the beginning, I was really hoping they would dare end it on a bleak revelation that his efforts had been for nothing, but alas it just had to be a happy ending. Oh well, at least the vast majority of the film was great fun.

Finally, I have been able to watch Minari! I really liked this film, though I do think the directing is a little flawed: sometimes the cinematography was pretty, but most of the time the aesthetic and tone felt a bit uninspired; some moments in the plot don’t go anywhere, and others intercept from seemingly nowhere. As such, I can understand valid criticism for the narrative structure not working as the ending feels like it ought to be the midpoint. But at its heart, Minari is a microcosm of life with all its successes and failures, hopes and disappointments, dreams and nightmares, unity and discord. I think the lack of cohesion, concrete message and satisfying pay off are very intentional and very effective, since it’s this constant struggle against harsh reality that reveals the subtle beauty of the film. Powered by an ensemble of brilliant performances for these wonderfully humorous, frustrating, complexly real characters, the modest but poignant screenplay is tender and thrilling in equal measure. 

Now then, if I felt Minari was great Korean cinema, then The Villainess is almost the pinnacle of what I love so much about this type of filmmaking. There is so much packed into this film – perhaps even too much, since I swear this film is more confusing than Primer. I’m not going to spoil any plot elements in this review, because as hard to grasp the plot might be at first, when it starts to unravel it is overwhelmingly incredible. Neo-noir is probably my favourite genre, especially the South Korean variant. In fact, it does feel a lot like a Park Chan-wook film – my favourite of such directors – with many thematic parallels with Lady Vengeance and Oldboy (as well as Kill Bill, though that’s obviously Tarantino). Park himself does a lot of interweaving of plot threads, though he doesn’t quite achieve the same temporal jumps that give The Villainess its own flair. I adore Park’s style of storytelling, as he elicits an abundance of emotion from within the carnage, so I love how Jung takes that same essence of heartfelt writing and merges it with a myriad of neon lit shots filtered by rain and seamless transitions a la Stay. It’s these pieces of beauty – in cinematography and writing – that makes Neo-noir so enticing. But who watches action films for the plot and pretty visuals? These things may be gorgeous in their own right, but that’s why I’m entranced by how Jung dials up the action to eleven by incorporating the intense fight choreography of John Wick, The Raid, and Kingsman. These films are fantastic action movies, but they are vastly overshadowed by The Villainess‘s multitude of one take fight scenes, with a soaring camera that dives in and out of POV and sublime blood splatters that paint the frames in mesmerising artistry while the bodies pile high. From the opening hallway fight fully played out in first person, to the final showdown that goes inside, outside, underneath and above a bus – which totally transforms what I believed was possible in how a bus could be exploited so creatively – I honestly don’t think any other film comes close to the magnificent action set pieces crafted by The Villainess. This film is so viscerally tragic, with beauty in every frame and spirit in every word, the performances ranging from humorous to awesome and the plot unveiling a panorama of enchanting complexity, ultimately crafting a masterful vengeance film that deserves far more praise than it has currently received.

Now to end this Weekly Recap with another season of Doctor Who. And I must say that Series 6 is a big improvement from the prior season, as while Series 5 was consistently mediocre, 6 delivers many great episodes. The entire cast is better here: Matt Smith exhibits charm and brood with greater confidence; Amy is actually likable now, so paired with Rory they make fantastic companions; and River Song gets plenty of screentime, and as she’s among my favourite characters, her mystery unravelling is fun indeed. The season arc is brilliant, with the sheer shock of beginning with the Doctor’s death, and then exploring in a very meta way the Doctor’s timeless impact on people. The finale isn’t very good, but I adore the Silence two-parter, the Flesh two-parter, The Girl Who Waited and The God Complex, with the rest being pretty solid adventures. I know it’s a pretty unpopular opinion to like this season, but I do very much enjoy all that Series 6 offers. 

However, I feel I should probably tack on the first half of Series 7 onto here, since this is where Amy and Rory actually leave for good. To be perfectly honest, I think their departure was perfect at the end of The God Complex, and the ending of The Doctor, The Widow and The Wardrobe was a sweet coda (despite that being by far the worst Christmas special). There really was no need to have them re-enter the TARDIS, especially because the episodes in Series 7A are so bad. The Weeping Angel finale is legitimately great, and the definitive death of Amy and Rory is heartbreaking, so I don’t resent the existence of this episode even if I think it doesn’t justify a whole mini season of terrible writing. Oh, and Clara makes her first appearance, but that’s a burden I shall have to bear next week.