Rambling Film

Official synopsis: A rebellious young woman, Helen Hopper marries a prominent Republican politician, Pete McCloskey twenty-six years older than her. Decades later, anticipating his death, she wrestles with their marriage, her sexuality, and a life spent by his side.  Not being a resident of California, I wasn't aware of McCloskey's long political history. Though reading that he called out Pat Robertson for lying about his experience during the Korean War to the point where Robertson sued him for libel, then had to abandon his lawsuit after McCloskey had receipts to back it up, and instead had to pay all his legal fees gives me great joy. I preface this because I wasn't really sure what to expect going into Helen and The Bear. I just knew I wanted to learn more.  Helen was immediately fascinating to me. She's free-spirited and on paper you wouldn't think she'd fall for someone like Pete, but they make it work. Their marriage isn't one size fits all. Helen s...

  Official synopsis: A paranoid, secretive surveillance expert (Gene Hackman) has a crisis of conscience when he suspects that the couple he is spying on will be murdered. I realized with the recent death of the legendary Gene Hackman, that despite feeling like I always knew who he was, I haven't actually seen a lot of his filmography. According to what's listed on letterboxd, prior to The Conversation, I had only seen 5% of it. So I made it a priority to check out one of his films for my next Blind Spot, and his starring role in Francis Ford Coppola's feature sounded like a good place to start. It's fun to see Coppola regulars like Robert DuVall and John Cazale pop up in this ,but the biggest treat for me was Harrison Ford as Martin, the "go between" for the man hiring Hackman's Harry to spy on the couple. He's just so effortlessly cool, even though his character is quite shady. He's on screen for all of 10 minutes yet all I could think of is how ...

Official synopsis:  In 1950s Mexico City, an American immigrant (Daniel Craig) leads a solitary life amidst a small American community. However, the arrival of a young student (Drew Starkey) stirs the man into finally establishing a meaningful connection with someone. Director Luca Guadagnino started last year on a high note with Challengers and I expected it to end on that same note with Queer . Especially after hearing all the praise for Daniel Craig's performance.  I wanted to like this so badly, but I STRUGGLED with Queer. Craig does give a wonderful performance but Starkey is drag compared to him. It's the same way I felt about Timothee Chalamet and Armie Hammer in the far better  Call Me By Your Name. The lead is doing all the heavy lifting, and the supporting man just flops. The same could be said for the film itself. It's starts off strong. It's vibrant and interesting, then when our characters leave Mexico City the entire film goes down hill. It almost f...

Official synopsis:  When intelligence agent Kathryn Woodhouse (Cate Blanchett) is suspected of betraying the nation, her husband (Michael Fassbender) - also a legendary agent - faces the ultimate test of whether to be loyal to his marriage, or his country. Steven Soderbergh's newest is a stylish spy thriller that clocks in at an easy 93 minutes. Blanchett alone would have me seated, but her with Fassbender and a strong supporting cast really elevated this film above my expectations.  This was the image that immediately came to mind when the film kicks off with what might be the most awkward dinner table scene of all time and it keeps that energy throughout. It's well paced, it kept me guessing, and it always had my interest.  Blanchett and Fassbender are perfectly cast. She's mysterious and elusive, he's almost robotic in his nature, but it's never off putting. The supporting cast around them is excellent as well. Particularly Naomie Harris and Marisa Abela.  There ...

I was talking about Severance with my friends recently, and one of them remarked on how he hopes the show doesn't "end up like Lost " and not answer all the questions it asks. Thankfully, this season answered a lot of our burning questions. As always with on going seasons, I'm splitting this review up into the good, the bad, and what I'm looking forward to. The Good * Tramell Tillman is an absolute treasure. I have big "i can fix him!" energy when it comes Mr. Milchick. I just know he's got good in him somewhere. With every episode, I feel we're getting closer to him turning. Or at least I can hope.  * We know what the MDR team is going! They could've easily dragged that out another season, but I'm glad we got our answers now. * Less Ms. Cobel. Patricia Arquette is fine, and I thought what we learned about her character this season was very interesting, but I liked that we had less of her and more of Mr. Milchick and the introduction of ...

Official synopsis:  A man, Mickey (Dante Basco) comes up with an outlandish plan to avoid alimony obligations to his fashion executive ex-wife, Avery (KC Concepcion). How far would you go to avoid alimony? If your answer was catfishing a gorgeous yet awkward dude, Lee (Paolo Montalban) on a dating website with the profile of your ex-wife, then coaching him into saying all the right things so she falls in love with him - then you and Mickey would be fast friends. I have to admit I don't watch many rom coms anymore, but the premise of Asian Persuasion was enough to pique my interest. Not to mention, it kind of makes you fall in love with this side of Queens. Director  Jhett Tolentino shot this during COVID, and while that is kind of obvious with how people are staged, it almost gives you more space to enjoy the scenery. Plus Mickey owns a coffee shop called "The Fili Beans" and that is an A+ name. Solid premise aside, the range of acting skills in this film is...vast. Some...