February 3, 2022
jmunney
Cinema, Movie Reviews
Chris Pontius, Compston Darkshark Wilson, Danger Ehren, Dave England, Eric Manaka, jackass, Jackass Forever, Jasper Dolphin, Jeff Tremaine, Johnny Knoxville, Preston Lacy, Rachel Wolfson, Sean Poopies McInerney, Steve-O, Wee Man, Zach Holmes
jackass forever (CREDIT: Paramount Pictures and MTV Entertainment Studios)
Starring: Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, Wee Man, Chris Pontius, Dave England, Danger Ehren, Preston Lacy, Sean “Poopies” McInerney, Jasper Dolphin, Zach Holmes, Rachel Wolfson, Eric Manaka, Compston “Darkshark” Wilson
Director: Jeff Tremaine
Running Time: 96 Minutes
Rating: R for Ill-Advised Stunts That Frequently Involve Bodily Fluids and Result in All Sorts of Injuries
Release Date: February 4, 2022 (Theaters)
I’m tempted to say that the Jackass movies are like a descent into hell, but that actually couldn’t be further from the truth, paradoxically enough. Despite being filled with sadistic and masochistic mayhem, they’re joyous documents about best buds who are so grateful that they’re still able to spend this much time together doing what they love. A better description is to call these flicks endurance tests. Not so much for the performers, who presumably have rest and recovery periods built into their schedules, but for the audience, who must experience this gauntlet in a compressed hour-and-a-half go-round. I never watched the original MTV series, but that’s okay, because I believe that feature-length is actually the ideal format. There may be minimal narrative connective tissue, but it’s truly transportative to spend that much uninterrupted time in a space where all the rules of good taste and common sense have been annihilated.
The other great appeal of a new Jackass outing in 2022 is the opportunity to check in on everybody. It’s been more than two decades since the show premiered, and more than ten years since the last movie (unless you count the more story-driven Bad Grandpa). Most of the dialogue in Jackass Forever consists of Johnny Knoxville and his cohorts expressing wonderment and disbelief that they’re still alive and still doing “the same stupid shit.” (That is, when they’re not screaming in wit-and-expletive-filled agony.) At this point, this is perhaps the longest-running experiment to see how much physical and psychological torture human beings can endure. And the conclusion should be: a whole hell of a lot, but it helps a great deal if there’s an understanding that everybody is on the same team and same page as each other. It’s not for nothing that one intense moment includes a sudden shouting of consent-granting.
Jackass Forever is also an opportunity for the fanbase to take stock of how they themselves have grown and matured (or not) over the years. For me personally, I remain generally pretty good about convincing my brain and body that they can handle the most extreme action, though I can become easily overwhelmed by the most scatological discursion. However, I did discover one striking difference in my fortitude. 2006’s Jackass Number Two was my first exposure to the franchise, back when I was an 18-year-old college freshman. A notorious scene in that entry involving horse semen had me gagging, but a very similar episode in Forever was perfectly bearable. I guess that says something about what I’ve been exposed to during my adult years. I hope and imagine that most viewers of Jackass Forever will also learn something new about themselves.
jackass forever is Recommended If You Like: The X Games, Un Chien Andalou, The bonhomie of the Fast and Furious franchise
Grade: 4 out of 5 Bruises
February 2, 2022
jmunney
Cinema, Movie Reviews
Anders Danielsen Lie, Hans Olav Brenner, Helene Bjøreby, Herbert Nordrum, Joachim Trier, Renate Reinsve, The Worst Person in the World, Vidar Sandem
The Worst Person in the World (CREDIT: Oslo Pictures/NEON)
Starring: Renate Reinsve, Anders Danielsen Lie, Herbert Nordrum, Hans Olav Brenner, Helene Bjøreby, Vidar Sandem
Director: Joachim Trier
Running Time: 121 Minutes
Rating: R for Some Sex and a Wild Drug Trip
Release Date: February 4, 2022 (New York & LA)/February 11, 2022 (Additional Cities)
While watching a movie called The Worst Person in the World, I can’t help but wonder: would I like to be The Worst Person in the World? Or maybe I could just settle for The Worst Person in the Neighborhood. But also, let’s backtrack, because who exactly is this titular Worst Person? Presumably it’s the main character, medical student-turned-psychology student-turned-photographer Julie (Renate Reinsve). But she seems perfectly fine to me! Maybe this is “worst” in the sense of Eric Andre declaring “Bird Up!” “the worst show on television” or a certain psychedelic rock band naming their best-of album The Worst of Jefferson Airplane. Whatever the explanation, this isn’t a mystery that actually needs to be solved. Whether worst, best, or somewhere in between, Julie’s story is plenty compelling.
If we must think of Julie as The Worst, then perhaps we can call out her insistent refusal to conform to everyone’s expectations of her. In particular, her boyfriend Aksel’s (Anders Danielsen Lie) demands can be quite constricting. He’s a comic book writer-artist whose popular anthropomorphic character Bobcat likes to get unbound and frisky. I guess he’s the Scandinavian Fritz the Cat. (In case the cast names hadn’t clued you in, this is a Norwegian film.) Aksel insists that Bobcat is fun and transgressive, while his critics hold him up as the epitome of misogyny. Julie’s not much of a fan either, but the bigger conflict in their relationship is that Aksel just doesn’t really listen to her or see her for who she really is. Eventually, she leaves him for another guy named Eivind, and there is definitely a spark there. Everything just feels more natural with him. But eventually, that fizzles out as well, and this time it’s a little more inexplicable.
So in conclusion, I don’t think I would ever want to be The Worst Person in the World, at least not the version that Julie exemplifies. It looks way too existentially fraught. But I’d be happy to be her friend!. Although maybe we all have our own Worst Person within each of us, and it’s up to us to tease out the Best Version of our Worst Selves.
Also of note: I’ve only seen one of director Joachim Trier’s other films, but I’ve heard that he has a reputation for crafting endings that make you realize that you were watching a completely different movie this whole time. That trend holds up here to a degree, though I would add that The Worst Person in the World both is and isn’t what it appears to be. It’s all about perspective.
The Worst Person in the World is Recommended If You Like: Discussions about misogyny and mansplaining, Random flights of fancy within an otherwise not-fanciful film, Harry Nilsson and Christopher Cross on the soundtrack
Grade: 3.5 out of 5 Relationships
February 1, 2022
jmunney
Cinema, Movie Reviews
Achouackh Abakar Souleyman, Briya Gomdigue, Lingui, Lingui The Sacred Bonds, Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, Rihane Khalil Alio, Saleh Sambo, Youssouf Djaoro
Lingui, The Sacred Bonds (CREDIT: MUBI/Screenshot)
Starring: Achouackh Abakar Souleyman, Rihane Khalil Alio, Youssouf Djaoro, Briya Gomdigue, Saleh Sambo
Director: Mahamat-Saleh Haroun
Running Time: 87 Minutes
Rating: Unrated (It Would Probably Be PG-13 If It Were Rated)
Release Date: February 4, 2022 (Limited Theaters)
Lingui, The Sacred Bonds is north-central African country Chad’s official 94th Academy Awards entry for Best International Feature Film. Set in a village near the capital of N’Djamena, it focuses on singler mother Amina (Achouackh Abakar Souleyman), who discovers that her 15-year-old daughter Maria (Rihane Khalil Alio) has been kicked out of school. The reason: she’s pregnant. Maria wants an abortion, but that’s going to be a little difficult in a country where it’s illegal and in a Muslim community where it’s strictly forbidden. Furthermore, they don’t have anywhere near enough money they would need to work around those obstacles. So what we’ve got here is yet the latest example that female bodily autonomy is a frequently salient cinematic topic around the world.
I don’t know very much about Chad, so a movie like Lingui is one of the most accessible opportunities for someone like me to be exposed to that part of the world. As far as I can tell, this is a fairly accurate portrayal of this scenario. I’m sure there are embellishments, and temporal contractions, just as there are in any movie from any country. But writer-director Mahamat-Saleh Haroun is a Chadian native, so I feel safe in assuming that he’s providing a unique perspective to me and anyone else who’s never spent any time in his homeland.
If you’re wondering if you would enjoy Lingui beyond its ability to expose you to life in Chad, here’s how I would pitch it: it’s a heist film, and the target is the patriarchy. Instead of a crew of career criminals ripping off casinos, it’s a sisterhood sneakily achieving independence as they ignore the dictates from the controlling men in their lives who are ultimately none the wiser that they’ve been had. The oppressive system remains in place, but those in power look like doofuses for just a little bit. There’s a great moment towards the end when Maria calls a local imam annoying after he keeps asking Amina why she hasn’t been attending prayers lately, and then he basically just wanders off, kind of stunned by the futility of his demands. That’s Lingui in microcosm: laughing at The Man as much as you can so that he doesn’t break you completely.
Lingui, The Sacred Bonds is Recommended If You Like: International cinema, slice-of-life dramas, Dusty village roads
Grade: 4 out of 5 Secret Operations
January 30, 2022
jmunney
Saturday Night Live, SNL Weekly Recaps, Television
Katy Perry, Saturday Night Live, Saturday Night Live Season 47, SNL, SNL Season 47, Willem Dafoe
SNL: Katy Perry, Willem Dafoe, Chris Redd (CREDIT: NBC/Screenshot)
Oh hello there, you’re reading my review of the TWELFTH episode of the FORTY-SEVENTH season of Saturday Night Live. Who’s the host? That’s an important piece of information, and the reality is that it is American actor Willem Dafoe. Also noteworthy: the musical guest is Katy Perry, who’s known for performing songs.
For this episode, since we’re in the middle of winter, I’m ordering sketches from least cold to coldest. It’s a subjective rubric, sure, but hopefully you can see what I’m going for.
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January 28, 2022
jmunney
Cinema, Entertainment To-Do List, Music
Celebrating Betty White: America's Golden Girl, Charli XCX: Alone Together, Jethro Tull, Murderville, New Girl, Pam & Tommy, Podcasts, South Park, The Afterparty, The Woman in the House Across the Street From the Girl in the Window, The Zealot Gene, Welcome to Our Show
Murderville (CREDIT: Netflix)
Every week, I list all the upcoming (or recently released) movies, TV shows, albums, podcasts, etc. that I believe are worth checking out.
Movies
–Charli XCX: Alone Together (Theaters and Digital)
TV
–The Afterparty Series Premiere (January 28 on Apple TV+) – Murder! Mystery! Comedy!
–The Woman in the House Across the Street From the Girl in the Window Season 1 (January 28 on Netflix) – Kristen Bell in a spoof show.
-Celebrating Betty White: America’s Golden Girl (January 30 on NBC)
–Pam & Tommy Miniseries Premiere (February 2 on Hulu)
–South Park Season 25 Premiere (February 2 on Comedy Central)
–Murderville Season 1 (February 4 on Netflix) – Detective Will Arnett pairs up with people playing themselves.
Music
-Jethro Tull, The Zealot Gene
Podcasts
–Welcome to Our Show – Zooey, Hannah, and Lamorne revisit New Girl.
January 27, 2022
jmunney
Best of 2021, Best of TV 2021, Television
American Dad!, Best of 2021, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Evil, How to with John Wilson, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Nickelodeon football, Only Murders in the Building, PEN15, Pose, Resident Alien, Rick and Morty, RIverdale, Saturday Morning All Star Hits!, Search Party, Solar Opposites, Succession, The Good Fight, The Other Two, The Sex Lives of College Girls, WandaVision, What We Do in the Shadows
CREDIT: HBO
I probably watched somewhere between 1000 and 2000 episodes of TV in the past year. I don’t keep track of this information too specifically, so it’s hard to say for sure, but going by an estimate of at least 3 episodes per day, it must be somewhere within that range (if not higher). Anyway, these are the episodes out of that bunch that made enough of an impression on me to make me go, “Yeah, they nailed it.”
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January 26, 2022
jmunney
Best of 2021, Best of TV 2021, Television
A Black Lady Sketch Show, A.P. Bio, American Crime Story, American Dad!, American Housewife, Animaniacs, Atypical, Best of 2021, Big Mouth, Big Shot, Bob's Burgers, Chad, Chucky, College Bowl, Conan, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Dickinson, Earth to Ned, Evil, Fantasy Island, Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, Ghosts, History of Swear Words, Holey Moley, Home Economics, How to with John Wilson, I Think You Should Leave With Tim Robinson, Impeachment: American Crime Story, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Jeopardy!, Joe Pera Talks with You, Last Week Tonight, MacGruber, March Madness, Miracle Workers, Never Have I Ever, Only Murders in the Building, PEN15, Physical, Pose, reservation dogs, Resident Alien, Rick and Morty, RIverdale, Rugrats, RuPaul's Drag Race, Saturday Morning All Star Hits!, Saved by the Bell, Search Party, Sex Education, Solar Opposites, Succession, Superman & Lois, The Baby-Sitters Club, The Beatles: Get Back, The Chase, The Conners, The Good Fight, The Handmaid's Tale, The Kids Tonight Show, The Masked Singer, The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers, The Other Two, The Problem with Jon Stewart, The Sex Lives of College Girls, The Shrink Next Door, The Wonder Years, To Tell the Truth, Tuca & Bertie, Ultra City Smiths, WandaVision, Wellington Paranormal, What We Do in the Shadows, Whose Line is it Anyway?, Y: The Last Man, Young Sheldon, Ziwe, Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist
CREDIT (Clockwise from Top Left): Screenshot, Netflix, Screenshot, Screenshot
For the Year of Our Screens 2021, my list includes all the shows that I would recommend to my fellow viewers as “worth watching.” So that’s 77 shows! There’s a lot of TV nowadays, and a lot of it’s also pretty good.
I utilized a self-imposed rule in which I had to watch at least 50% of a show’s 2021 output for it to be eligible. However, there were some noteworthy shows that I watched less than 50% of, so I’ve spotlighted those in an honorable mention section:
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January 25, 2022
jmunney
Cinema, Movie Reviews
Andrew Kishino, Barbara Goodson, Belle, Ben Lepley, Brandon Engman, Chace Crawford, David Chen, Ellyn Stern, Hunter Schafer, Jessica DiCicco, Jessica Gee George, Julie Nathanson, Kiff VandenHeuvel, Kylie McNeill, Mamoru Hosoda, Manny Jacinto, Martha Harms, Noelle McGrath, Paul Castro Jr., Wendee Lee
Belle (©2021 STUDIO CHIZU)
Starring (English Dubbed Version): Kylie McNeill, Paul Castro Jr., Ben Lepley, Jessica DiCicco, Manny Jacinto, Brandon Engman, Hunter Schafer, Chace Crawford, Ellyn Stern, Andrew Kishino, Noelle McGrath, David Chen, Jessica Gee George, Barbara Goodson, Martha Harms, Wendee Lee, Julie Nathanson, Kiff VandenHeuvel
Director: Mamoru Hosoda
Running Time: 124 Minutes
Rating: PG
Release Date: January 14, 2022 (Theaters)
The Mamoru Hosoda-directed Belle is the Anime Teenage Bullying version of Beauty and the Beast, and it has me wondering: would I like to be a Belle? Let’s explore this particular Belle’s story to find out.
Her real name is Suzu, and she’s a shy Japanese teenager with a dead mom, but then her titular pop star alter ego becomes a sensation in the virtual reality world known as “U.” Everybody loves Belle, just as much as they hate “The Dragon,” a scar-covered loner pariah. But Suzu/Belle sees in him a kindred spirit. Meanwhile, everybody is trying to sniff out his true identity: is he that tortured artist, or that rich reclusive housewife, or that world-famous baseball player? Chances are that this Dragon Beast will be best off if Suzu can track him down before anybody else does.
So, to answer my question: I think it’d be pretty cool to have a Belle persona if it means that everybody would get to hear my singing online. It gets a little overwhelming for Suzu, but I’d make sure to log off regularly as needed. As for the Beast portion of the story, there’s a climactic scene in which Suzu takes a train by herself to see him IRL, and that certainly fulfills the journey, but I would change it just a bit by making sure to bring a crew along with me.
Grade: 100 High Notes
January 25, 2022
jmunney
Cinema, Movie Reviews
Bashir Salahuddin, Ben Mendelsohn, Cyrano, Cyrano de Bergerac, Haley Bennett, Joe Wright, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Peter Dinklage
Cyrano (CREDIT: Peter Mountain/Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures)
Starring: Peter Dinklage, Haley Bennett, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Ben Mendelsohn, Bashir Salahuddin
Director: Joe Wright
Running Time: 124 Minutes
Rating: PG-13 for Some War Violence and Mild Suggestiveness
Release Date: January 28, 2022 (Limited Theaters)/February 11, 2022 (Wide Expansion)
If you’re a fan of classic romances, you’re probably familiar with the story of Cyrano de Bergerac. He’s in love with a woman named Roxanne, but because of his insecurity related to his distractingly large and pointy nose, he struggles to admit his true feelings. Meanwhile, Roxanne falls in love with another man named Christian, and that infatuation is profoundly deepened by Christian wooing her with the words provided to him by Cyrano, who knows Roxanne better than anyone. But in this version, it’s what Cyrano lacks on his body that’s causing the problem, as he’s portrayed by Peter Dinklage, and he fundamentally doesn’t believe that Roxanne (here played by Haley Bennett) could ever truly love someone who’s only four and a half feet tall.
Also unique about this version of Cyrano is that it’s – wait for it – a musical. Much of the vocal duties fall to the title lover, and Dinklage is certainly up for the assignment. He has a rich, soulful baritone that’s perfect for the constant (but incomplete) soul-searching that Cyrano is always up to. You can count on him for talking to himself, which can be good, but not so much when it prevents him from fully and honestly talking to other people.
Dinklage’s singing reminds me of Russell Crowe’s in Les Misérables, and I mean that’s a compliment. Crowe was my favorite singer in that movie! It would be distracting if Dinklage’s Cyrano were more inclined to difficult vocal acrobatics; instead, he’s singing because he just can’t help it, just as he can’t help but miss out on the fullness of himself. As for the rest of the main cast’s crooning abilities, Bennett and Kelvin Harris Jr. as Christian also both acquit themselves admirably.
Overall, if you’re looking for a love story that lives on the knife’s edge of tragedy and consummation, then Cyrano ought to do the trick. Everyone is passionate and ready to go, and if you don’t recognize at least some of their emotions in yourself, I’m not sure you have a fully functioning heart.
Cyrano is Recommended If You Like: Flowy dresses, Stubble, Singing by yourself while standing outside a wall
Grade: 3.5 out of 5 Letters
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