Film Review: "Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery" (2022).

From the writer and director of Knives Out comes Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery. This mystery film written and directed by Rian Johnson. It is the sequel to the 2019 film Knives Out. World-famous detective Benoit Blanc heads to Greece to peel back the layers of a mystery surrounding a tech billionaire and his eclectic crew of friends.

Before the release of Knives Out, Johnson had teased the possibility of a sequel revolving around the lead character, Detective Benoit Blanc. In early 2020, the sequel was officially greenlit by Lionsgate. In March 2021, Netflix outbid Amazon and Apple at an auction to acquire the rights to the film and another sequel to Knives Out for $469 million, with Johnson returning as director, Daniel Craig set to reprise his role as Blanc, and a budget of at least $40 million for the first installment. By late June 2021, Edward Norton, Janelle Monáe, Kathryn Hahn, Leslie Odom Jr., Kate Hudson, Dave Bautista, Jessica Henwick, Madelyn Cline, Noah Segan, and Dallas Roberts rounded out the film's ensemble cast. Additionally, the title was officially announced as Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery. Craig worked with a dialect coach to regain familiarity with Blanc's Southern accent. At the same time, principal photography commenced and wrapped in mid September. Filming took place in Spetses, Greece and Belgrade, Serbia. 

The film stars an ensemble cast that includes Craig, Norton, Monáe, Hahn, Odom Jr., Hudson, Bautista, Henwick, Cline, Segan, and Roberts. It has good performances and brushes of originality and freshness. Yet it tries so hard for the audience's approval and validation it becomes somewhat bugging. Good movie nonetheless. The all-star cast takes turns chewing the scenery. Craig again steals the film as Blanc. If film fans are wondering if there is still life after James Bond for Craig, the answer is still a resounding YES. We are absolutely going to miss Craig as Bond, but perhaps he's trying out a new franchise under the unlikely name of Blanc. I certainly don't mind.

The sequel is another very good silly-funny satirical comedy, with a super all-star cast cavorting as recognizable pulp fiction detectives gathered at the home of Norton's Miles Bron, a manipulative yet idiotic billionaire throwing an unnecessarily lavish weekend getaway for his closest "friends". It's worth seeing for some delicious character acting by major stars and, especially, for the gay sub-theme winding through it. If parody, in this occasion, reaches a superior level, it is due to the effective cast and the irony with which the story is told. So it all doesn't amount to much, and -- some knuckle-dragging 'their stupid'/'no I'm not' humor aside -- it's more Scooby Doo than Alfred Hitchcock Presents. Still, it's an amusing tea-cozy of a spoof with an enjoyable cast. A funny modern satire on the old murder-mystery detective series of the 1930s and '40s. Some jokes hit, while others really hit. The film pokes fun at every type of wealthy elite you can think of and every clich you've ever wanted to red pencil out of a script.

Simon says Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery receives:

Also, see my review for Knives Out.

Film Review: "The Volcano: Rescue from Whakaari" (2022).

From the director of Downfall: The Case Against Boeing comes The Volcano: Rescue from Whakaari. This documentary film directed by Rory Kennedy. A minute-by-minute account of tourists caught in a tragic volcanic eruption while sightseeing on an island off New Zealand in 2019, the film celebrates the survivors, as well as the everyday people who courageously came to their rescue.

Whakaari / White Island (Te Puia Whakaari, "the dramatic volcano"), also known as White Island or Whakaari, is an active andesite stratovolcano situated forty-eight km (thirty mi) from the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand, in the Bay of Plenty. The island covers an area of approximately three hundred and twenty-five ha (eight hundred acres), which is just the peak of a much larger submarine volcano. The island is New Zealand's most active cone volcano, and has been built up by continuous volcanic activity over the past one hundred and fifty thousand years. The nearest mainland towns are Whakatane and Tauranga. The island has been in a nearly continuous stage of releasing volcanic gas at least since it was sighted by James Cook in 1769. Whakaari erupted continually from December 1975 until September 2000, and also erupted in 2012, 2016, and 2019. Sulphur was mined on the island until the 1930s. Ten miners were killed in 1914 when part of the crater wall collapsed. The main activities on the island now include guided tours and scientific research. Access to the island is allowed only as a member of a tour run by a registered tour operator.

On 9 December 2019, the island explosively erupted, and forty-seven people were on the island at the time. Twenty-two people died, either in the explosion or from injuries sustained, including two whose bodies were never found and were later declared dead. A further twenty-five people suffered injuries, with the majority needing intensive care for severe burns. The ongoing seismic and volcanic activity in the area as well as heavy rainfall, low visibility and toxic gases hampered recovery efforts over the week following the incident. Experts identified the event as a phreatic eruption: a release of steam and volcanic gases that caused an explosion, launching rock and ash into the air. Following the eruption, investigations resulted in WorkSafe New Zealand charging multiple tour operators, government and scientific agencies under the Health and Safety at Work Act for failing to ensure the health and safety of workers and others. The latest hearing was held in June 2021.

Kennedy's gut-wrenching film is must-see viewing to learn about a senseless chapter in the history of Whakaari / White Island. An unfortunate reminder of the destructive power of nature. Infuriating to witness this event specially when it came to the official death toll that climbed to twenty-two souls. However, Kennedy focuses the film to a fault, trapping itself in a redundant exploration of the history of the island and its previous eruptions, its lack of foresight and the event that destroyed Whakatāne's tourism image.

Simon says The Volcano: Rescue from Whakaari receives:

Also, see my review for Downfall: The Case Against Boeing.

Film Review: "Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths" ("Bardo, falsa crónica de unas cuantas verdades") (2022).

"Experience a state of mind" with Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths (Bardo, falsa crónica de unas cuantas verdades). This Mexican epic black comedy drama film directed by Alejandro G. Iñárritu and written by Iñárritu and Nicolás Giacobone. The film is an epic, visually stunning and immersive experience set against the intimate and moving journey of Silverio, a renowned Mexican journalist and documentary filmmaker living in Los Angeles, who, after being named the recipient of a prestigious international award, is compelled to return to his native country, unaware that this simple trip will push him to an existential limit. The folly of his memories and fears have decided to pierce through the present, filling his everyday life with a sense of bewilderment and wonder. With both emotion and abundant laughter, Silverio grapples with universal yet intimate questions about identity, success, mortality, the history of Mexico and the deeply emotional familial bonds he shares with his wife and children. Indeed, what it means to be human in these very peculiar times.

In late March 2020, it was reported that Iñárritu would write, direct and produce a new film, to be shot in Mexico. Iñárritu returned to shoot and produce a film entirely in Mexico for the first time since Amores perros (2000) over twenty years ago. By early March 2021, Daniel Giménez Cacho, Griselda Siciliani, Ximena Lamadrid, Jay O. Sanders, and Fabiola Guajardo were cast. At the same time, principal photography commenced and wrapped in September. Filming took place throughout Mexico City. With the confirmation that the movie is shot on 65mm film, this will mark Iñárritu's first film shot on film stock since Biutiful (2010). However, allegations were made over social media by several figures in the Mexican film industry that Iñárritu constantly breached COVID safety protocols, resulting in hazardous working conditions and even the deaths of a number of crew members, with further talk of a class action suit against Iñárritu to follow. As of the film's announced premiere at the Venice Film Festival, no announcement or follow-up has occurred. In late April 2022, Netflix announced that in addition to acquiring the distribution rights and being available on the streaming platform, the film would be its first wide theatrical release, as opposed to limited theatrical showings. It also was confirmed to be shot on 65mm film, a rarity for streaming services in general. Iñárritu continued editing the film after its premiere. The version screened at the 70th San Sebastián International Film Festival in late September 2022 runs a hundred and fifty two minutes without credits, twenty-two minutes shorter than the one screened at Venice and Telluride. The final runtime was set at a hundred and sixty minutes (including credits). Iñárritu edited the film himself for the first time since his debut feature, Amores Perros.

The film stars Cacho, Siciliani, Lamadrid, Sanders, and Guajardo. Here not a single performance falters.

Despite its lack of clarity, conflicting thematic messages and indecipherable tone, the film is the rarest of oddities: accidental genius.

Simon says Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths (Bardo, falsa crónica de unas cuantas verdades) receives:

Also, see my review for The Revenant.

Series Review: "Don't Pick Up the Phone" (2022).

From the director of Dr. Death: The Undoctored Story comes Don't Pick Up the Phone. This crime documentary series directed by Sara Mast. This docuseries follows the investigation into a hoax caller who talked managers into strip-searching employees at fast food businesses across the US.

In 1994, a series of incidents, mostly occurring in rural areas of the United States, that extended over a period of at least ten years, began and was known as The Strip Search Phone Call Scam. There were numerous prior incidents in many states which followed the pattern of the fraudulent call to a McDonald's restaurant in Mount Washington, Kentucky. The majority of the calls were made to fast-food chain restaurants, but some were made to grocery stores and video rental stores. With every hoax, a male caller who identified himself as a police officer or other authority figure would contact a manager or supervisor and would solicit their help in detaining an employee or customer who was suspected of a crime, such as theft or drug possession. He would then provide a generic description of the suspect (typically a young female employee, but a few victims have been male or older) which the manager would recognize, and he would then ask the manager to search the suspected person. The tasks would initially start as strip searches before gradually becoming more invasive and sexual in nature as the "investigation" continued. Eventually, the caller would have groomed the manager to the point where they would do almost anything asked by the caller, such as spanking, kissing, inappropriate touching, oral sex, and even sexual assault and rape. Many of the incidents would last hours before either the participants of the strip search realized the call is a hoax or by the intervention of a bystander. The calls were most often placed to fast-food restaurants in small towns. More than seventy such phone calls were reported in thirty U.S. states, until a 2004 incident in Mount Washington, Kentucky led to the arrest of David Richard Stewart. Stewart was acquitted of all charges in the Mount Washington case. He was suspected of, but never charged with, having made other, similar scam calls. Police reported that the scam calls ended after Stewart's arrest. Louise Ogborn, the Mount Washington victim, underwent therapy and medication to address post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. She abandoned her plans to attend the University of Louisville, where she had anticipated becoming a pre-med student. Three years after the incident, still undergoing therapy, Louise Ogborn sued McDonald's for $200 million for failing to protect her during her ordeal. The civil trial began September 10, 2007, and ended on October 5, 2007, when a jury awarded Ogborn $5 million in punitive damages and $1.1 million in compensatory damages and expenses.

As admirable it was that Stump and Flaherty’s investigation went in innovative directions in order to even find someone to arrest in this case, the effect on the people who were victimized by the calls is likely the more interesting story.

Simon says Don't Pick Up the Phone receives:

Film Review: "Avatar: The Way of Water" (2022).

"Return to Pandora" with Avatar: The Way of Water. This science fiction epic directed by James Cameron and written by Cameron and Rick Jaffa & Amanda Silver. It is the sequel to Avatar and the second installment in the Avatar film series. Set more than a decade after the events of the first film, this installment begins to tell the story of the Sully family, the trouble that follows them, the lengths they go to keep each other safe, the battles they fight to stay alive, and the tragedies they endure.

In 2006, Cameron stated that if Avatar was successful, he hoped to make two sequels to the film. In 2010, he said the film's widespread success confirmed that he would do so. The sequels were originally scheduled for a December 2014 and 2015 release dates. Cameron planned to shoot the sequels back-to-back and to begin work "once the novel is nailed down". In 2011, Cameron stated that he was just starting to design the ocean ecosystem of Pandora and the other worlds to be included in the story. In December 2009, the sequels were confirmed as continuing to follow the characters of Jake and Neytiri. Cameron implied that the humans would return as the antagonists of the story. In 2011, Cameron stated his intention to film the sequels at a higher frame rate than the industry standard 24 frames per second, in order to add a heightened sense of reality. However, he later opted out of this route, stating that as groundbreaking as the format is for cinema, moviegoers have always been used to a specific way to view films and altering that in any way would simply take the audience out of that experience. Instead, only certain scenes will utilize HFR technology. In 2012, Cameron mentioned a possible third sequel for the first time; and was officially confirmed in 2013. Cameron was then looking to release the sequel in December 2015, but later that year, production was rescheduled for 2014, with the film to be released in December 2016, and to be followed by the two other sequels in 2017 and 2018. Additionally, Cameron stated that the sequels were being written as "separate stories that have an overall arc inclusive of the first film", with the second having a clear conclusion instead of a cliffhanger to the next film. Jaffa & Silver, Josh Friedman, and Shane Salerno were hired to write the sequels as they were such a massive undertaking that Cameron divided the four scripts. In 2013, Cameron announced that the sequels would be filmed in New Zealand, with performance capture to take place in 2014. In April 2014, Cameron expected to finish the (then) three scripts within six weeks, stating that all three sequels would be in production simultaneously and were still slated for December 2016 to 2018 releases. He stated that although Friedman, Jaffa & Silver, and Salerno are each co-writing one sequel with him, they at first worked together on all three scripts. The writing took longer than expected, forcing Cameron to delay the release of the films further in 2015. By 2015, the scheduled release dates for the sequels were each delayed by another year, with the first sequel expected to be released in December 2017; this was due to the writing process, which Cameron called "a complex job". In November, Landau stated that the sequel would have a number of major technological improvements since the first movie. A lot more of the lighting work on the virtual production stage could be done during production instead of post-production, and like Alita: Battle Angel (2019), the crew can use two lightweight HD head cams to record the actors' facial performance. In addition they also used two digital puppets instead of just one; one that is an accurate copy of the real actor, and another that is the actor's character, allowing the team to re-target one onto the other to make it as accurate as possible. In January 2016, Fox announced a further release delay. In February, production of the sequels was scheduled to begin in April 2016 in New Zealand. In April 2016, Cameron announced at CinemaCon that there will be four sequels, all of which will be filmed simultaneously. The four sequels share a $1 billion budget ($250 million each film). Additionally, Cameron announced the four sequels which would be released in December 2018, 2020, 2022 and 2023. In early February 2017, Cameron announced that the writing of all four sequels was complete. 

In March, he stated that this film would not be released in 2018, due to extensive production and the visual effects process. In April, a new December 18, 2020 release date was announced, with all the other sequels having December 17, 2021, December 20, 2024, and December 19, 2025 release dates, respectively. In late July, Wētā FX had commenced work on the sequels. The film will heavily feature underwater scenes, actually filmed underwater with the cast in performance capture. Blending underwater filming and performance capture being a feature never accomplished before, it took the team a year and a half to develop a new motion capture system. By late September, Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Stephen Lang, Joel David Moore, CCH Pounder, Giovanni Ribisi, Dileep Rao, and Matt Gerald were confirmed to reprise their roles. Sigourney Weaver was confirmed to return in a different role. Kate Winslet, Cliff Curtis, Edie Falco, Jemaine Clement, and Brendan Cowell rounded out the film's cast as newcomers. At the same time, principal photography commenced and wrapped in September 2020. Filming took place in Manhattan Beach, California and Wellington, New Zealand. The film was shot on the new Sony Venice Camera (built by Sony at Cameron's request) with the digital 3-D Fusion Camera System, developed by Cameron and Vince Pace. In late March 2020, filming of the Avatar sequel films in New Zealand had been postponed indefinitely in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, in mid June, filming resumed. In May 2019, the sequels were delayed another two years, with this film being scheduled for a December 17, 2021 release date. James Horner was originally reported to score music for the franchise, before his death in a plane crash in June 2015. In December 2019, Simon Franglen, who had previously worked with Horner as a record producer and arranger since Titanic (1997) and completing Horner's score for The Magnificent Seven (2016) after his passing, was hired to replace Horner. In August 2021, Landau confirmed his involvement, while also associating with the forthcoming sequels. Horner's score will be reused in the film, in addition to the original themes produced by Franglen. In August 2020, the release date was again deferred due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and a new December 16, 2022 release date was announced. In late July, the scoring for the film officially began. In late November 2022, the film was completed.

The film stars Worthington, Saldaña, Lang, Moore, Pounder, Ribisi, Rao, and Gerald (reprising their roles), Weaver (returning in a different role), Winslet, Curtis, Falco, Clement, and Cowell as newcomers. The returning cast gets so little due respect over the years for how much of the previous film's characterisations rides on them. The returning cast turn in another terrific round of performances as the fiercely committed characters who put a necessary human face on Cameron's high-decibel action and environmentally-centric bravura. Worthington is more comfortable and assured here than the first time around, reprising a role so perfectly suited to the voice and physique that have established him as a simple yet relatable archetype. Lang is pretty much at his best here, combining badass villain with some human depths that are meticulously added in the right places. Winsley and Curtis are merely terrific when they gather their weapons at hand to do battle with the human antagonists, they kind of make Jake and Neytiri look like a pipsqueaks at times.

Ladies and Gentlemen, never bet against James Cameron! Amazing things happen in Avatar: The Way of Water, things you've never seen in movies -- things you didn't know the movies could do. While bigger isn't always better, writer/director James Cameron's follow-up is genuinely bigger and better in nearly every way. An extremely ambitious sequel that took a pretty sacred first film and built upon it in the most satisfying way. It’s a fantastic sci-fi movie. It’s a fantastic action movie. It’s a fantastic James Cameron movie. It is a far more traditional exercise in immersing the moviegoer; essentially, it re-constitutes the family epic, and in so soing marries alien Godfather to Star Wars. Cameron’s epic return to Pandora can enthral and thrill the audience with breathtaking set pieces, bring them to tears with moving moments, and amaze people willing to explore a fantasy land like no other. Thirteen years after the release of its predecessor, this installment, like its predecessor, proves to be an exceptional blockbuster that makes the most of a simple and predictable story, to further develop a visually awesome and emotional experience that must be had in the cinema.

Simon says Avatar: The Way of Water receives:

Series Review: "Crime Scene: The Texas Killing Fields" (2022).

From the director of Without and The Pearl comes Crime Scene: The Texas Killing Fields. This crime documentary series directed by Jessica Dimmock. An overgrown field and a stretch of highway connect a series of grisly murders spanning several decades as grieving families search for answers.

Situated a mile from Interstate Highway 45 and approximately twenty-six miles southeast of Houston, the Texas Killing Fields is a twenty-five-acre patch of land in League City, Texas. Since the early 1970s, thirty-three bodies of murder victims have been found along the I-45 area. They were mainly the bodies of girls or young women. Furthermore, many additional young girls have disappeared from this area; these girls' bodies are still missing. It is believed that many of the murders are the work of multiple serial killers. Most of the victims were aged twelve–twenty-five years. Some shared similar physical features, such as similar hairstyles. However, efforts by the League City, Texas police, along with the assistance of the FBI, very few of these murders have been solved, and those that have been solved were predicated on confessions given by prisoners, or confessions given under duress from the police. The fields have been described as "a perfect place [for] killing somebody and getting away with it". Also, despite the fact that many popular true crime podcasts have grouped the murders of Dean and Tina Clouse with these victims, Dean and Tina Clouse were actually found in Houston off Interstate 10 in the thirteen-thousand block of Wallisville Road, not League City (the location of the Texas Killing Fields).

Jessica Dimmock's methodical approach means the film is sometimes plodding; then again, they deserve credit for honing in on each police failing even when they become repetitive. What's smart and sensitive about the film, directed by Dimmock, is that its focus isn't on . With an evocative mix of archival material and testimony from many who were involved in aspects of the case, the narrative reveals both monstrous crimes and an ineffective response. The whole "true crime documentary" genre is a minefield of the very good, mixed in with the tasteless, the exploitive and the crass. The series of killings featured in The Ripper may have been fascinating at the time, but the series lacks a point-of-view that makes them feel relevant today. The film could stand to have a tighter sense of chronology, with some temporal deviations that don't do it any favors. It becomes as challenging for the viewer to distinguish between the victims as it did for investigators. But the series nimbly shows how economic despair caused by a rapid rise of neglected American women into the streets. The film is persistently captivating as a crime-story, riveting in its investigative mode, and stimulating in its commentary mode. It is everything true-crime fans ask for. Fascinating to us because it will examine the underlying factors that slowed down the investigation, instead of talking about the killer himself.

Simon says Crime Scene: The Texas Killing Fields receives:

Also, see my review for Captive Audience.

Film Review: "Bones and All" (2022).

From the director of Suspiria (2018) comes Bones and All. This coming-of-age romantic cannibal road film directed by Luca Guadagnino, adapted by David Kajganich, and based on the 2015 novel of the same name by Camille DeAngelis. A story of first love between Maren, a young woman learning how to survive on the margins of society, and Lee, an intense and disenfranchised drifter, as they meet and join together for a thousand-mile odyssey which takes them through the back roads, hidden passages and trap doors of Ronald Reagan's America. But despite their best efforts, all roads lead back to their terrifying pasts and to a final stand that will determine whether their love can survive their otherness.

In early April 2019, it was announced that Kajganich would adapt DeAngelis's 2015 novel for the screen, and that the film would be directed by Antonio Campos. In late January 2021, it was announced that Timothée Chalamet and Taylor Russell were attached to star in the film now to be directed by Guadagnino. By late May, Mark Rylance, Michael Stuhlbarg, André Holland, Chloë Sevigny, David Gordon Green, and Jessica Harper rounded out the film's cast. At the same time, principal photography commenced and wrapped in late July. Filming took place in Aberdeen, Chillicothe, Cincinnati, Columbus, and Lebanon, Ohio, as well as Maysville, Kentucky.

The film stars an ensemble cast that includes Russell, Chalamet, Rylance, Stuhlbarg, Holland, Sevigny, Green, and Harper. The superb performances from Russell and Chalamet are as memorable as Guadagnino's vision of something akin to hell. Russell works an abundance of meaning into a very small space, so we at least recognize this doomed, erstwhile teenager as all too human, and appropriately dangerous.

It’s a well written tale of two lost souls dancing between idyllic naiveté and sociopathic violence. I couldn’t take my eyes off of it. Guadagnino's love and respect for the natural world as it frames and moves characters is palpable and on full display, the film heightened by superb performances and Guadagnino's incredible direction. If a portion of American cinema is going to remain devoted to violence, it could learn a lot by revisiting Guadagnino's thoughtfulness. The movie is just as free, experimental, and unsure of itself as its main characters are, and thus fits like a glove. One of Guadagnino's most resonant notions in the film is that everyone confronts mortality in his or her own way. Incredibly beautiful, of course (you may have heard that Guadagnino movies are famous for their landscapes), but it's not "just" beautiful. Guadagnino's film, full of striking cutaways to the burning-sun horizon and the harsh landscape's solitary creatures, comes to operate at an overpoweringly chilling remove. Achingly evocative of a time when American independent cinema had the courage to continue investing in complex and morally ambiguous films and an indisputable masterpiece of American independent cinema. The film is an arena for apathy, both in regard to the characters' depictions and their subjective emotions.

Simon says Bones and All receives:

Also, see my reviews for Suspiria (2018) and I Am Love (Io sono l'amore).