John Lewis: Good Trouble (CREDIT: Magnolia Pictures)
Starring: Congressman John Lewis
Director: Dawn Porter
Running Time: 96 Minutes
Rating: PG for Reminders of Real-Life Prejudice
Release Date: July 3, 2020 (Theaters and On Demand)
If you want to demonstrate how the American civil rights movement that reached its apotheosis in the 1960s continues to this day, you could do much worse than making a documentary about John Lewis. This man marched alongside Dr. Martin Luther King, and he’s gone on to represent Georgia in Congress for over 30 years. Over the course of his life, he’s been present for important change that has already happened, and he continues to fight for important change that still needs to happen. Just showing footage of where he’s been and where he’s headed ought to be galvanizing, especially in a time of a great national reckoning with race. But John Lewis: Good Trouble never fully captures the fighting spirit of its subject.
The trouble with Good Trouble, particularly for any viewers who are generally tuned into the trends of cinema and current events, is that the topics it touches upon are covered more thoroughly in other recent documentaries. If you want a historical outline of what has led to so much of America’s racial prejudice, check out Ava DuVernary’s 13th. Or if you want to be on top of voter suppression, Slay the Dragon is essential viewing. Good Trouble, on the other hand, works mostly as a reminder that these problems exist. It’s nice to know that Lewis is still around in these battles, kicking up the sort of stir that the title refers to, but the inspiration can go only so far if you already knew that about him.
There is one interesting episode that covers the 1986 Congressional election. In the Democratic primary, Lewis squared off against Julian Bond, a close friend and fellow African-American activist. It was a bitterly fought contest in which Lewis implied that Bond used cocaine and emerged victorious thanks to his strong performance among white voters. The strain among these two clear allies must have been significant and surely dramatic enough to devote more than the few minutes that Good Trouble allows it. The fact that the film so quickly switches back to focusing on Lewis’ accomplishments doesn’t necessarily feel like it’s meant to cover up any faults so much as it comes off as cinematic carelessness. Even the most righteous among us have complicated stories; Good Trouble struggles to make that clear.
John Lewis: Good Trouble is Recommended If You Like: Biographical inspiration, but don’t mind some repetition
EUROVISION SONG CONTEST: The Story of Fire Saga (CREDIT: John Wilson/Netflix)
Starring: Will Ferrell, Rachel McAdams, Pierce Brosnan, Dan Stevens, Melissanthi Mahut, Demi Lovato, Graham Norton
Director: David Dobkin
Running Time: 203 Minutes
Rating: PG-13 for “Full Nude Sculptures”
Release Date: June 26, 2020 (Netflix)
I have decided to judge the success (or lack thereof) of Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga by whether or not it made me want to watch the actual Eurovision competition.
So, did Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga make me want to watch the actual Eurovision competition?
Yes! Very much so!
And that’s significant because previously my interest was in the “Hmm, maybe” vicinity. So that’s got to be an increase of about 50 percent.
I get the sense that a lot of the real-life Eurovision entrants are like Will Ferrell characters, particularly the sincere variety that includes the Icelandic dreamer Lars Erickssong. Or at least I hope that’s the case! Every time I’ve ever heard people talk about Eurovision, they make it sound like the singers are genuine heart-fueled dreamers. So while watching The Story of Fire Saga, I realized, “Oh right, of course, the appeal is obvious.”
Contests like Eurovision can also be counted upon to reveal up-and-coming talented individuals who make you go, “Why am I only now just hearing about you?” That happened for me in Eurovision the movie in the form of Melissanthi Mahut, who plays Greek hopeful Mita. I predict and pray for big things for her in the coming years.
I give Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga 3 Knives out of 4 Elves.
Eric Andre: Legalize Everything (CREDIT: Brian Roedel/Netflix)
When you go to an Eric Andre show, you know what you’re getting yourself into. (Or at least you’d better.) But that sense of familiarity can also lead to a bit of a problem, or perhaps a challenge. Eric is always ready to regale us with stories of his drug-fueled and sex-filled escapades, and we know that, so there’s not much shock value to him delivering the most graphic details, whether they’re fully real or a tad embellished. Compare that to The Eric Andre Show on Adult Swim, which derives its wonderment from him interjecting his shenanigans into the unsuspecting public.
Ergo, the most satisfying moments of Andre’s Netflix special Legalize Everything arrive when he ropes in some folks who have no idea they’re about to become comedic cannon fodder. Like the boyfriend of an ex-fling of Eric’s who’s basically a jerkwad 80s movie villain, whom we get to know via a revealingly aggressive text exchange. Then there’s the (very cool) mom of an audience member who finds herself pranked into a surprise FaceTime session. Where others might lean back in the name of safety and propriety, Eric Andre always charges ahead like the most adorable butt-sniffing pit bull. He’s the wokest hedonist there ever could be. You know what he believes in? “Live, laugh, love.” We should all be filled with such ranch.
More than a few people have called me spacey, so I thus feel a spiritual connection to the extraterrestrial creatures from the Alien and Predator franchises. I daresay we’re kindred spirits in many ways (except for the parts about killing lots of human beings). Therefore, it has always been part of my destiny to rank every film in these series and share my rankings with all of you, my lovely readers. I’ve split the rankings up into sections for the two franchises proper as well as the “Versus” films, and then there’s a combined list at the end. Please enjoy all the camouflaged, chest-bursting fun!
“Karaoke Korner” strikes again! This time the lineup comes courtesy of Wesley Woods (Jeff’s cousin, Aunt Beth’s son), and it goes a little something like this: Long Island Troubadour Billy Joel, Funk Queen Chaka Khan, and Jamaica’s Own Toots and the Maytals.
EUROVISION SONG CONTEST: The Story of Fire Saga (CREDIT: John Wilson/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 –Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga (Streaming on Netflix) – Starring Will Ferrell and Rachel McAdams as an Icelandic pop duo, just as the Fates predicted.
My Best of the 2010s list-making journey has finally come to a close! (Or has it? … For now, it has at least. The future will come as it may, and it may just surprise you, and me.) All this week, I’ve been posting my rankings of a few categories that I was inspired to put together after submitting them to a Best of the 2010s polls that I’m participating in with some of my fellow cultural aficionados. To wrap it all up, I guide you along to the realm of music and lyrics, as I present the Best Musical Artists of the 2010s.
My criteria was similar to that of my choices for Best Film Directors. I considered a combination of how much I enjoyed their musical output as well as how much – and how well – they influenced the industry at large.
I’ve got another extra-innings Best of the 2010s for ya. This time, the focus is on Film Directors, those folks who hang out behind the camera and let everyone know how they would like the movie to go.
Based on the eligibility rules of the poll that I submitted my list to, each director had to have at least two films come out between 2010 and 2019 to be considered. I made my selections based on a combination of how much I enjoyed their output and how much they influenced the medium and the culture at large.
My choices, along with their 2010s filmography, are listed below.
The extra-special-bonus Best of the 2010s lists keep arriving all this week! Yesterday, it was the Best Film Performances, now we’re moving to the small screen with the top TV Performances. And while the screens were smaller, the roles were arguably bigger, at least in terms of running time.
Regarding eligibility: all Lead and Supporting (but not Guest) performances from any show that aired at least one full season between 2010 and 2019 was eligible. Actors who played multiple characters in the same show were considered one performance. Actors who played the same character across multiple shows were also considered one performance.
Back in April, I revealed my lists of the best podcasts, TV shows, TV episodes, albums, songs, and movies of the 2010s. I declared that that was it for my Best of the Decade curating for this particular ten-year cycle. But now I’m back with a few more, baby! I’ve been participating in a series of Best of the 2010s polls with some of my online friends, and I wanted to share my selections with you. We’re including film performances, TV performances, directors, and musical artists, so get ready for all that.
First up is Film Performances. Any individual performance from any movie released between January 1, 2010 and December 31, 2019 was eligible, whether it was live-action, voice-only, or whatever other forms on-screen acting take nowadays. For actors who played the same character in multiple movies, each movie was considered separately.
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