2 Women, 1 King (CREDIT: Sony Pictures Entertainment)

The Woman King:

Starring: Thuso Mbedu, Viola Davis, Lashana Lynch, Sheila Atim, Jordan Bolger, Johyn Boyega, Hero Fiennes Tiffin

Director: Gina Prince-Bythewood

Running Time: 135 Minutes

Rating: PG-13

Release Date: September 16, 2022 (Theaters)

Make like a decision, and leave! (CREDIT: MUBI/Screenshot)

Decision to Leave:

Starring: Tang Wei, Park Hae-il, Lee Jung-hyun, Go Kyung-po, Park Yong-woo, Jung Yi-seo

Director: Park Chan-wook

Running Time: 138 Minutes

Rating: Unrated

Release Date: October 14, 2022 (Theaters)

AmsterDAM! (CREDIT: 20th Century Studios/Screenshot)

Amsterdam:

Starring: Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, John David Washington, Chris Rock, Anya Taylor-Joy, Rami Malek, Zoe Saldaña, Mike Myers, Michael Shannon, Timothy Olyphant, Andrea Riseborough, Taylor Swift, Alessandro Nivola, Matthias Schoenerts, Robert De Niro, Ed Beglery Jr., Beth Grant

Director: Daivd O. Russell

Running Time: 134 Minutes

Rating: R

Release Date: October 7, 2022 (Theaters)

Over the course of four days, I saw The Woman King, Decision to Leave, and Amsterdam, and I’m going to round them up by recounting how much I nodded off during each of them. I caught The Woman King on Friday night, and I was perfectly fine through about the first two-thirds, but then I guess the week caught up to me. But it was one of those instances where it didn’t feel like I lost much time, so I wondered, “Did I actually nod off?”

I lasted about as long the next day with Decision to Leave. And this time I know for sure that I drifted away, as the subtitles zipped away before I had a chance to even begin reading some of them. But at least in this case, it felt like an appropriate viewing experience, as this movie just gets dreamier and more hallucinogenic as it goes on.

As for Amsterdam, I stayed ramrod awake the whole time, and it’s a good thing, too, as it’s filled with a ton of dialogue and characters to keep track of. Although I suspect I would have been okay even if I had lost it for a bit, as this is the type of movie that frequently catches us up on everything that’s happened so far. It’s nice to talk it out.

Grades:
The Woman King: Stuck, But Trying to Escape
Decision to Leave: Like Quicksand
Amsterdam: Verbose, in a Good Way