DON’T LOOK UP | THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS | THE SILENT SEA | C’MON C’MON
Pop Culture Weekly Round-Up 24/12/2021
Hello there and happy belated Festivus, everyone! I know most of you are ready for Christmas celebrations but here in my house, I celebrate Festivus. So yesterday was a very “festive” day. Meaning, I drank a lot of wine, aired my grievances with friends and family, and challenged my elderly mother for the Festivus feats of strength. She won. Now that the festivities are behind me I can concentrate on what a really like to do at this time of the year. Which is watching movies, eating, and sleeping. Today is Christmas eve and I normally rewatch the three best Christmas movies out there. DIE HARD, my heart goes out to my boy, Hans Gruber. You left us too soon. Then I move on to the first HOME ALONE. Which features the Emmy winner Catherine O'Hara from SCHITT'S CREEK and a cameo of the great Kieran Culkin from SUCCESSION (sorry, Macaulay but your younger brother is more famous than you now). And to finish this marathon I watch the best Christmas movie ever made, THE NIGHT BEFORE. Because there is nothing funnier than seeing Seth Rogen high on all kinds of drugs in a catholic church yelling “We Did Not Kill Jesus!”
Anyway, in this week’s newsletter, I share my thoughts on the new MATRIX movie. Don’t hold back on how much I dislike Aaron Sorkin as a director. Go on a journey to the moon with the great South Korean sci-fi show, THE SILENT SEA. Talk about one of my favorite movies of the year, C'MON, C'MON. And the star-studded DON’T LOOK UP. And as always, there is also a playlist with five songs I listened to last week.
Quick Thoughts
THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS - Lana Wachowski, the original writer, and director of the MATRIX trilogy, returns to the franchise she created with her sister Lilly Wachowski (who isn't involved at this time). The first MATRIX movie was iconic. Its action was jaw-dropping and included some groundbreaking CG, amazing action choreography, and an original sci-fi world-building that blew everyone's minds at the time. The other two movies of the trilogy RELOADED and REVOLUTIONS never reached the same level of quality as the 1999 flick but the story was told and we all thought we were done with the franchise. But surprise, surprise, THE MATRIX is back with the new installment called RESURRECTIONS. I was skeptical when I first heard about the new movie but I liked it, it was ok. Although it felt more like an upgrade/soft reboot than a sequel to me. There are some intriguing concepts and some great visual elements that build on the Matrix universe. The chemistry between Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss is off the charts, and you truly feel the depth of Neo and Trinity's relationship, which I think was handled masterfully. The new cast members were all good as well. With Neil Patrick Harris being my personal favorite. I thought he would only have a cameo but he is essential to the film and delivered an amazing performance. I really thought that THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS would be simply a money-grabbing nostalgia bait, but it really is a critique on money-grabbing nostalgia bait. It refines and updates the original film’s themes and claps back to anybody who has missed the point of the trilogy in the last two decades.
The Matrix Resurrections is out now, in theaters and on HBO Max.
BEING THE RICARDOS Explores the lives of America's beloved redhead Lucille Ball (Nicole Kidman) and her husband Desi Arnaz (Javier Bardem) in 1952 for a single difficult week. The couple deals with a series of crises while filming an episode of their hit sitcom I LOVE LUCY, including media speculation of infidelity, a government investigation into Ball's past association with the Communist Party, and a pregnancy. The supporting cast includes J.K. Simmons as the cantankerous William Frawley (who played neighbor Fred Mertz), Nina Arianda as a frustrated Vivian Vance (a.k.a. Ethel Mertz), and Alia Shawkat as writer Madelyn Pugh. There are plenty of reasons why Aaron Sorkin's BEING THE RICARDOS doesn't work’. It has a surprisingly bad screenplay and an already expected mediocre direction by Sorkin. Also, I’m not the I LOVE LUCY biggest fan but Lucille Ball was arguably one of the funniest people in the world, and we still couldn't get 1 minute of her awesomeness in this film? Sorkin was obviously trying to paint her as an American diva. Depicting Ball as an annoying person, who was very demanding and got away with it because she was a once-in-a-generation brilliant comedian. Nicole Kidman gives a solid, compelling, and filled with real charm performance that serves to ground the film. But that is not enough to save it. Aaron Sorkin is one of my favorite writers. I know a lot of people don’t like his style, and I understand why. But It's unclear what story he is trying to tell here. Overall, It was a lengthy, monotonous, and incoherent film. Sorkin's directing is boring, soulless, and devoid of any details that enhance the historical period in which all of the stories were supposed to happen.
The movie, now available to stream on Amazon Prime.
THE SILENT SEA This is a South Korean sci-fi Directed by Choi Hang-Yong. It has an amazing cast that includes Bae Doona, Gong Yoo, Joon Lee, and Heo Sung-Tae. The Netflix Original Series is set in the year 2075 when a water crisis that results in severe rationing has wrecked Earth. And it tells the story of an elite crew sent on a special mission to an abandoned moon research station. THE SILENT SEA features a bold concept and intriguing storyline that becomes even better as it progresses. The fact that the destiny of the earth hangs in the balance really increases the stakes. Bae Doona's character pushes most of the show's storyline along, slowly and unexpectedly revealing multiple layers to Song Ji-an and her real intentions. And I liked how Space travel is used as a metaphor for her emotional journey in the series. By playing with the boundlessness of the unknown, the series creates a suspenseful and dramatic setting. THE SILENT SEA's biggest and best advantage is its ability to gracefully exploit this common fear of a very real future, making it all more frightening. Thought-provoking ideas and metaphors, first-class production and set design, as well as a concept that has been refined over years, all contribute to the show's success. Audiences that like heartfelt genre entertainment, are likely to be delighted with it.
THE SILENT SEA is arriving on Netflix today, December 24.
C’MON C’MON - Writer-director Mike Mills' latest film is a soft and contemplative one. It follows Johnny (Joaquin Phoenix) and his young nephew (Woody Norman) while they forge a tenuous but transformative relationship when they are unexpectedly thrown together. C'MON, C'MON really is the most family movie of the year. It is a delicate and deeply moving story about the connections between adults and children, the past and the future. The film is shot in black-and-white, and Robbie Ryan's cinematography makes you feel like you're a fly on the wall. Phoenix and Norman have a natural, amazing chemistry that shines through in their scenes together. The whole cast was fantastic, but Joaquin Phoenix and Gaby Hoffmann delivered two of the year's greatest performances. Mike Mills presents a wonderful story about growing up, fatherhood, and how it's acceptable to admit you're not okay sometimes. C'MON C'MON is likely the most underrated film of the year and is genuinely a pleasure to watch. Always engaging, captivating, and amusing. A Dramedy that moves quickly and skilfully between the comical and the heartbreaking. The world needs more films like this one.
C'MON C'MON is available on VOD now.
DON’T LOOK UP
An astronomy graduate student, Kate Dibiasky (Jennifer Lawrence), and her professor, Dr. Randall Mindy (Leonardo DiCaprio), make an incredible discovery of a comet circling within the solar system. The issue is that it is on a collision trajectory with Earth. What about the other issue? Nobody seems to give a damn. Warning humanity about a planet-killer the size of Mount Everest turns out to be a difficult truth to sell. Kate and Randall embark on a media tour with the help of Dr. Oglethorpe (Rob Morgan), which takes them from the office of an indifferent President Orlean (Meryl Streep) and her sycophantic son and Chief of Staff, Jason (Jonah Hill), to the airwaves of The Daily Rip, an upbeat morning show hosted by Brie (Cate Blanchett) and Jack (Tyler Perry). With only six months until the comet hits, they navigate the 24-hour news cycle, capturing the attention of the social media-obsessed population.
Adam McKay, the writer-director of the film, isn't in the mood for nihilism. Earth is far too valuable, and its destiny is far too frightening. But mankind seems unconcerned about saving the planet, much alone itself. We're numb, dumb, and too busy creating memes. As a result, McKay has written DON’T LOOK UP, a fierce, deeply anguished comic freak out about how we're fumbling our way to oblivion.
This movie has a lot to like, but it isn't for everyone. This is a sharp satire on today's America and Americans. So it goes without saying that at least half of Americans will strongly dislike it. So expect a very bad Rotten Tomatoes score because of that. Although the ensemble cast is huge, the film does a good job of focusing on the turbulent experience of Dr. Randall Mindy and Ph.D. student Kate Dibiasky, who are constantly surprised by indifferent reactions to what may be the most significant news in human history. I enjoyed all of the performances but, Jonah Hill outshines the rest of the group in my opinion. The cinematography is fine and the editing really good. And the score by Nicholas Britell and the song by Ariana Grande and Kid Cudi are both great.
Overall, DON’T LOOK UP is a mixed bag movie. It has a message formed by genuine disgust with the reality we live in today that I also identified with. But I can't say I was completely won over. The screenplay is inconsistent and Adam McKay’s aggressive approach and lack of nuance make it tough to connect with it at times. But somehow, he makes everything come together beautifully in the end.
DON’T LOOK UP is available now on Netflix.
Top 5 Songs
These were the 5 songs on heavy rotation in my house last week. You can listen to them on Spotify and YouTube.