Greetings again from the darkness. Empty nest syndrome has always fascinated me. As parents, we strive to build independence in our kids so that they can go out in the world and fend for themselves (better described as not moving back home or remaining on the family ‘payroll’). And then there are parents like Susan in this excellent and entertaining new film from co-writers and co-directors Dane Clark and Linsey Stewart (partners, spouses, and collaborators).
We first see Susan (Michaela Watkins) as she arrives home and finds her husband and a woman canoodling in the backyard swimming pool. The story then jumps ahead five years. Susan is divorced and her daughter Brooke (Sara Waisglass, TAINTED, 2020) is graduating from high school, with a plan to live at home and attend a local college. Susan is a hovering parent, seemingly involved in all aspects of Brooke’s life – even questioning what her daughter sees in goofy and free-spirited Gage (Charlie Gillespie, TOTALLY KILLER, 2023), the boyfriend who couldn’t manage to graduate on time.
Susan is exasperated … or maybe just beaten down … with her life. She works a dead-end job, is in perimenopause, has no love life of her own, can’t believe her overachieving daughter is with this ‘loser’, and seems to have lost any portion of her own self while being a mother. Things go from bad to worse for her when her ex-husband and his new wife (Sandy Jobin-Bevans, Sorika Wolf) spill the beans on big news about Brooke. It’s news that shocks Susan – mostly because she was the last to know. Now for all of this to work, the extraordinary talents of Michaela Watkins (YOU HURT MY FEELINGS, 2023; PAINT, 2023) carry these scenes. She flashes the greatest forlorn face in cinema. Is this kinda funny or is the pain too deep? Well, it’s both.
The film really takes off from there. Circumstances are such that Susan and Gage are forced to spend significant time together, and what follows is an example of how humanity and emotions and personality can blend to form surprising bonds. The on-screen chemistry between Watkins and Gillespie is a thing of beauty. It’s not romantic chemistry, but rather two lonely souls from different generations learning and evolving thanks to each other. Once we meet Gage’s dad (Aaron Ashmore), much is understood as to why Gage thrives from Susan’s caring approach.
This script is beautifully written, and the acting is superb. The cast excels in playing the scenarios as real people would. The dialogue is grounded, yet sometimes it stings, while at other times it evokes laughter. When Gage tells Susan, “We both got left by the same person”, their bond is solidified – even moreso than after the ‘cuddle party’. The cherry on top here is Gage performing Roxette’s classic hit, “It Must Have Been Love”. The film was well received at festivals last year, and I expect it will find an appreciative audience this year.
Opens in theaters on February 7, 2024
Posted by David Ferguson
Greetings again from the darkness. Accusing someone, anyone, of something or anything, is as easy as speaking the words. The challenge of justice unfolds with the (often) difficulty in finding sufficient evidence for proof. Although all of this holds true for any age and most any infraction, when the scenario plays out with six-year-olds at school, the situation can prove nearly unbearable for the parents and faculty. This is the basis for the first feature film from writer-director Halfdan Ullman Tondel (grandson of Norwegian actress Liv Ullman and legendary Swedish director Ingmar Bergman).
Greetings again from the darkness. With so many MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE movies (another one coming this year) and others of its ilk, movies labeled as ‘thrillers’ or ‘spy thrillers’ seemed to have evolved into hyper-action events requiring the leads to display near-superhuman strength, speed, or smarts. It’s exactly because of this that I found a soft spot for the latest from writer-director Neil Burger (THE MARSH KING’S DAUGHTER, 2023; DIVERGENT, 2014; THE ILLUSIONIST, 2006; THE UPSIDE, 2017) and co-writer Olen Steinhauer.
Greetings again from the darkness. This was one of the films I watched in my end of year movie frenzy, and it immediately became one of my favorite foreign language films of the year (in a solid year for the category). Writer-director Ryusuke Hamaguchi is back after his excellent and Oscar nominated DRIVE MY CAR (2021). Sharing credit on the film’s concept is Eiko Ishibashi, a rare breed: a combination composer-story writer. I should probably clear this up immediately – despite the genre-sounding title, this is not a horror film. It falls quite comfortably into the “drama” category, and as previously stated, it’s a good one.
Here is the link to my TOP 10 (actually 11) movies of 2024. In keeping with tradition, you will also find a list of the “Next best”, as well as designated categories: Documentaries, World Cinema, Animation, and a few other special notes. I hope you enjoy!
Greetings again from the darkness. In the age of sequels, here’s one we can actually give a warm welcome to. Pixar has followed up the brilliant INSIDE OUT (2015) with one that picks up Riley a couple years later as she hits those teenage years, which as all parents know, means puberty. The first film won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature, and director Kelsey Mann (in her first feature film) is hoping for a repeat. This follow-up is terrific, yet it faces some tough competition in a year that also delivered three other exceptional (and worthy) animated features.
Greetings again from the darkness. True stories are often at the heart of many movies each year. However, there are true stories and then there is the story of the Paiva family. Marcelo Rubens Paiva has written two books, which along with numerous interviews with family and friends, serve as the basis for this film from famed Brazilian director Walter Salles (THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES.2004). The screenplay comes from co-writers Murilo Hauser and Heitor Lorega.
Greetings again from the darkness. Realistically speaking, there should be more words for ‘friendship’, designating the multiple levels on which ‘being friends’ can occur. If Financial Advisors can have “A” (like Warren Buffett), B, C, and D (like me) clients, then wouldn’t it be reasonable for us to have levels of friendship for those we entrust with our kids and a house key versus those we meet periodically for happy hour, or those we acknowledge in the grocery store with a wave and a smile? OK, so while the viability of friendship by ranking is not likely, this latest from Josh Greenbaum (BARB AND STAR GO TO VISTA DEL MAR, 2021) introduces us to a friendship we can all strive for.
Greetings again from the darkness. In the year of long movies, this is one of the longer ones at two hours and forty-eight minutes. Also, in the year of only a few great movies, this is one of them. Writer-director Mohammad Rasoulof was arrested and sentenced for criticizing the Iranian government. He subsequently escaped and fled the country, only to show up for his film’s premiere at the Cannes Film Festival. This is Germany’s submission for the best Foreign Language Oscar.
Greetings again from the darkness. I don’t recall a more unusual opening seven or eight minutes for a film (even including Terrence Malick). Slightly disorienting fragments of scenes from odd angles are made more obscure through nearly indistinguishable dialogue. The surreal images form a dreamlike montage of a playground, a sale on color TV’s, Martin Luther King’s speech, and more. A few more minutes pass before we get an actual look at Elwood, whose story we are about to follow.