A Quick Recap: 2024 In Review

This is going to be fast and loose, and yes I’m going to try to post more often so stay tuned.

I STILL have not finalized my 2024 list. You can track it on Letterboxd in my 2024 Watched Films list. Currently, my top 10 of last year are:

• Didi - Directed by Sean Wang and based in large part on his own childhood growing up as a Taiwanese-American, the film is an impeccable take on adolescence in the age of social media; think Eighth Grade, but a with a dose of more uplifting material. The ending recreates one of the shining moments of millennial cinema, and a personal favorite that left me bawling and nodding my head in understanding. If you instantly recognize it, props, and I’ll have a tissue waiting.

• Dune Part 2 - I wrote about this one in my 2024 halfway review here

• Sing Sing - Heart-wrenchingly acted by its ensemble cast. What seems like a concept ripe for syrupy sentimentality instead marks a path towards steadfast poignancy, clarity, and honesty by unshackling norms. Clarence Maclin was phenomenal.

• The Bikeriders - Wrote about this one here

• Challengers - Halfway review here

• Riddle of Fire - The company who released this, Vinegar Syndrome, is a boutique movie label focused on ensuring obscure films live on. Here, however, they highlight a new film filled to the brim with nostalgia. I couldn’t help but root for the kids as they hunted down that damn pie. If you like the normal parts of Stranger Things or the dozens of Stand By Me clones and Amblin adolescent films it apes from then this one is up your alley.

• The Seed of a Sacred Fig - I saw this in the theater with one other person. It’s a nearly three hour film, and I was not bored for a second. Shot in secret in Iran the film mixes in real footage and takes aim at a tumultuous political turmoil, which spirals into a more intimate descent into madness and patriarchal oppression. The best thriller of 2024. Essential.

• Furiosa - Another halfway review here

• Flow - I love that cat so much. The whole movie I just wanted to reach out and cuddle him. Beautifully animated with only music to drive the narrative, it’s a solemn, contemplative, yet adorable piece of cinema. I dread to think how prescient this film might be.

• This last choice is always hard. I have a lot of 3.5 star films on the list and if you looked through it, then you may already know what I’m going to choose, but let’s break it down. Hundreds of Beavers is one of the funniest films of the last decade that overstays the concept by about 20 minutes. Twilight of the Warriors: Walled Incame up as a recommended film on a thread somewhere, and a quick look at the cast had me signed up for what is a long, but still very good Hong Kong action flick. Last Stop in Yuma Country would get the notch if the ending didn’t trail off from one of the best “a bunch of disparate folks show up in the same spot and treachery is afoot” setups in recent memory. Transformers One was a wonderful origin story for Optimus and Megatron and the promising start to a new series that is tarnished as it will probably never see a sequel. Anora is the obvious choice as the super fun and hilarious Oscar winner that it is, but I found portions dragged a bit in the middle as pieces were woven into place. A Real Pain has Rory Culkin casually out-acting the rest of Hollywood, but the emotional moments didn’t hit when needed. Monkey Man takes the John Wick formula and a political narrative in India for Dev Patel’s exceptional debut with a script that simply juggled too many themes. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 had no right to be as good as it was, and I was gleeful during that final battle and slapstick icon Jim Carrey was born for the role of Robotnik, but still felt something missing as it failed to integrate meaningful moments for some of the cast. The Wild Robot starts teary eyed as we see our mechanical character grow alongside a fox voiced by Pedro Pascal, but the third act is a rushed mess. Thelma played by June Squibb -god bless her- is great, but the movie is largely forgettable outside some key jokes and set pieces. Conclaveproves yet again that Ralph Fiennes is an actor who works beyond the material, which sadly wandered a bit in what should have been a tightly wound, tight quarters film.  Love Lies Bleeding is a showcase for Kristen Stewart and much of this Southern-gotchic lesbian thriller really works, including some surreal reaches into dark themes and visuals, but the overall story and character work lacked the required validity to wholly materialize it. In the end, I’m going with the film that has stayed with me the most. To say much will spoil the plot, but Hugh Grant is engrossingly sinister in Heretic; a sublime horror with subtle nudges, engrossing setups, and wacky sardonic dialogue. It’s so much fun I smile just thinking of it. And that’s worthy of the list.

  
  

  I still have plenty more from 2024 to watch, but hey, that’s the fun of it.

  As always enjoy,

  
  

  - The Catalyst

  Movies: Letterboxd

  Music: Bandcamp

Film Review: The Incredibles 2

Directed by: Brad Bird
Starring: Holly Hunter, Craig T. Nelson, Sarah Vowell, Huck Milner, Elie Fucile, Bob Odenkirk, Catherine Keener, Samuel L. Jackson, Jonathan Banks, Sophia Bush, Michael Bird
Rating: P/G
Genre: Animation, Action, Adventure, Super-hero, Family
Runtime: 1 hr. 58 min.

Pixar is a powerhouse animation studio known for unleashing original, highly intelligent, and heartwarming films. However, while they still release solid original films like Inside Out and Coco the team has found it fit to drop unnecessary sequels in between; Toy Story 2 and 3 notwithstanding. Monsters University, Finding Dory, and -most notably- the Cars sequels have all run aground featuring razor thin plots bent on selling merchandise instead of instilling passion and heart in the viewer. Brad Bird's (Ratatouille, The Iron Giant) The Incredibles 2 is yet another Luxo Ball dropped.

As with my Finding Dory review, I tend to rate new Pixar films based on previous Pixar films; or at least the "Golden Age" of Pixar. Therefore, I tend to be harder on Pixar films as they have a high bar to reach. With that out of the way let's delve into the review.

The film starts off pretty much exactly where the original left off, sort of; opening with Violet's love interest from the first film, Tony Rydinger (Michael Bird), being interrogated by agent Rick Dicker (Jonathan Banks) after witnessing the Parr family in super (this universe's name for superheroes) costume without their masks. The intro is quick, and the sudden appearance of the title screen hits at an awkward moment before leading into the action. Following this we get a look at the family as they go off to fight the Underminer from the first film. Violet (Sarah Vowell) and Dash (Huck Milner) are forced to look after Jack-Jack (Eli Fucile), while Bob (Craig T. Nelson) and Helen (Holly Hunter) go into the fray. This of course causes tension as the kids want to fight alongside their parents, so they continue to hand off Jack-Jack back and forth. It's played for a gag, but the theme of "growing up and taking responsibility" will continue be brought up throughout the film, and -without spoiling- while it does have a conclusion, like so much of the rest of the film's themes, it doesn't feel earned.

Following the destructive fight, supers continue to be shown by the media as the illegal purveyors of chaos -see the first film- but hope arises in the form of Evelyn and Winston Deavor (Catherine Keener and Bob Odenkirk) who endeavor to bring supers back to the public eye in positive fashion by televising their heroism. Helen is chosen as the television star due to her "less-destructive" heroism, which forces Bob to take up the daily duties of father to the kids. It's quick, lazy plotting. This family hasn't been together all that much since the first film (it's only been a few days at most), and having Helen leave Bob alone along with her judgment in his incapability as a good father just doesn't mesh well. Either way, Helen eventually happens upon a supervillain named Screenslaver who uses video monitors to hypnotize the denizens of the city and the central plot is set in motion.

As you might guess so far, there are in fact a plethora of plots that are brought up in this film, but their conclusions are quick and easy. Bob has issues raising the kids, but gets over it after some minor character development. Violet has issues with her love interest that seem to just as easily get resolved. Dash has no plot. The main character of the film is Helen, but her mission is so mundane and easily deciphered for even the least attentive viewer that any revelations she comes across have already been considered. The viewer is dragged -or in case of the finale- shipped to the ending before we have had a moment to come to grips with everything that is occurring.

Generally, the film feels rushed and unfinished with too much going on and not enough actual character development nor those Pixar-approved emotional moments. As noted we have plenty of references to the first film, but that released almost 15 years ago. The decision to start the film right after the events of the original is actually a fine idea, but the execution is hamfisted with barely any time for the viewers to see The Incredible Parrs as a family before the next plot takes hold. I am even leaving out entire plot threads with a half dozen new throwaway heroes who work with Helen -only Voyd (Sophia Bush) has any real screentime or personality- and a lengthy subplot involving Jack-Jack, which was handled better in a short from the first film's DVD release. If you were hoping to see the family grow together like the first film you will be disappointed. The plots are too disconnected to come together for the extended third act, and the whole endeavor works against itself to squeeze out a possible future third entry.

VERDICT
The Incredibles 2 feels like a film that could have released two years after the original as a quick cash-in, and while it might make you laugh or smile, there is little heart to be had in this family film. 3/5

- The Catalyst

Film Review: Set It Up

Directed by: Claire Scanlon
Starring: Zoey Deutch, Glen Powell, Lucy Liu, Taye Diggs, Pete Davidson, Joan Smalls, Meredith Hagner, Tituss Burgess
Rating: N/A
Genre: Romantic Comedy
Runtime: 1 hr. 45 min.

Netflix has been cranking out films left and right. With over 80 set to release this year alone (and almost 30 out so far), it's possible that the quality across the board will take a hit. Set It Up is no exception.

The plot centers around Harper (Zoey Deutch) and Charlie (Glen Powell), New York assistants tired of living lives in their boss' revolving door. Together they hatch a plan to couple their employers (played by Lucy Liu and Taye Diggs), so they can finally attend to personal matters. Charlie wants time to date his vapid girlfriend, Suze (Joan Smalls), while Harper hopes to finally finish the article that will bring her into the big leagues. As with most romantic comedies the result is heavy-handed and ridden with clichés.

The first hour though, has some legitimately funny banter and situational comedy. Charlie's roommate Duncan (Pete Davidson) offers some great deadpan retorts, and an incident in an elevator leads to fairly funny interplay from Creepy Tim (Tituss Burgess). Lucy Liu and Taye Diggs are probably the stars people are here for and they do a great job with solid comedic timing and general acting chops. The leads, however, falter.

Glen Powell's Charlie is a try-hard Brad Pitt-type, while Zoey Deutch does her best to channel Ellen Page in each ditzy moment. For the first hour this dichotomy works, but once the film decides to follow the clichéd emotional downturn they just don't have what it takes to make it believable.

In fact the latter half of the film understands it's leading into cliché territory, so it continues to try to rattle it with more awkward comedy, and hurried plot points. A fight in a jewelery store is eyerolling, and -as you might have guessed- there's definitely a scene where someone preaches a confession to someone standing on a balcony above them. Instead of letting the ending breathe the audience is leapt quickly through forced plot points so we can arrive at the predictable conclusion.

VERDICT
Set It Up is a serviceable romantic comedy. Bingeable material, but offers little to make it worth seeking out. Don't waste a date night on this one. 2/5

- The Catalyst

Film Review: Okja

Image courtesy of Netflix

Directed by: Joon-ho Bong
Starring: Seo-Hyun Ahn, Tilda Swinton, Jake Gyllenhaal, Paul Dano, Giancarlo Esposito, Shirley Henderson, Steven Yeun, Daniel Henshall, Lily Collins, Devon Bostick, Je-mun Yun, Woo-sik Choi, Hee-Bong Byun
Rating: TV-MA
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama
Runtime: 1 hr. 58 min.

Joon-ho Bong is known to many in the west as the writer/director of the well-received, "Snowpiercer"; a look at class structure and overpopulation through the use of a post-apocalyptic train society. Others may also know his work on "The Host (Gwoemul)" -a modern day "Jaws"- and "Mother (Madeo)", which happens to be my personal favorite work of his (read: I should note that I have yet to see "Barking Dogs Never Bite (Flandersui gae)" or "Memories of a Murder (Salinui chueok)"). Joon-ho continues his record of releasing ornate, obscure cinema with "Okja"; currently streaming on Netflix. As with Joon-ho's previous work, the film focuses on real societal concerns and offers up an offbeat story to tackle them. Similar to "Snowpiercer", the film takes at look at issues with overpopulation, namely the food industry. As usual, minor spoilers ahead.

The film starts with us following Lucy Morando (Swinton), CEO of the Morando Corporation, through a dingy, rusted warehouse towards a press release. Here we learn of a mystical "super pig" that was "discovered" in Chile, which even as a baby is larger in size than a full-grown pig. Through "genetic-engineering" the calf was duplicated, and her family sent around the world as part of a PR plan to see which farmer could develop the "super pig" to its full potential. It's a bit of a jarring intro with a lot of information thrown at the viewer, but Swinton's eccentric performance sells it.

A decade later, we are now in the mountains outside of Seoul, South Korea as Mija (Seo-Hyun) and her truck size adult "super pig" pal "Okja" traipse through the forest in search of fruit and fish. The sequence is beautiful and intimate as we see the two play games and work together. Things get a little out of hand, however, as Mija and Okja fall asleep and keep her grandfather (Hee-Bong) waiting. In order to get home quickly, Mija takes Okja through a perilous shortcut. Of course, things go wrong and Okja ends up in a dangerous situation trying to protect her friend. After the scenario, Okja is more than a little perturbed, so Mija whispers something in her ear. The "super pig" sits up and the two hug. It's incredibly touching and sets the tone for their relationship.

Eventually, the usual Morando researcher, Mundo Park (Je-mun), and animal television star, Johnny Wilcox (Gyllenhaal), greet Mija, Okja, and grandpa at the house. To say Gyllenhaal's character is obtuse is being easy. He's a bit all over the place, and while it's hilarious, it's also a bit overwhelming after the touching adventure we just went through. Grandpa takes Mija away so the crew can work on filming Okja. Needless to say, it's a basic ruse so the crew can take Okja away to New York for the Morando "super pig" competition and the plot is set in motion.

The following chase sequences in the film are handled with aplomb as Joon-ho directs the hell out of each sequence. From break-ins to car chases through the city it's all handled exceptionally. The CGI is also handled very well with Okja blending into the environment perfectly, and the chase sequences having real weight. Sadly, a large part of the film's second act loses focus on Mija or Okja, and instead puts the lense on the Animal Liberation Front (ALF). It makes sense to have such a group in this film given the theme at hand, but too much of the film's runtime is padded with their agenda. Most noteworthy of this bunch is the subdued, but sensational Jay, played by Paul Dano, who -yet again- turns what could have been a bit character into a human being with true motives in only a short meeting with Mija; the man is severely underrated. The rest of the group is fairly one note, with Steven Yeun, Daniel Henshall, Lily Collins, and Devon Bostick not given much screen time to really matter.

The second act also cuts away to the folks over at Morando as they deal with the fallout of the chases and continue to question Lucy's place as CEO. Even if it's part of his character's motives, Giancarlo Esposito seems downright bored being there and his existence in the film is more plot device than anything. There are just so many moments in this middle third that could have been utilized to far better extent if they focused around Mija or Okja. To be fair though there is one sequence in the middle that I won't spoil, since it is truly one of the best sequences in the film. I'll just say this is the part where Gyllenhaal's character gets to shine.

The third act is fairly trite affair that does what's expected and gets our characters to where they need to be. The ending, however, is easily one of the most moving I have seen in quite some time. Letting the serenity of the moment take over the viewer in waves.

Before I sign off on the verdict, it would not do Seo-Hyun's performance service if I didn't mention how incredible it is. The 13-year-old actress does so as if she's a veteran. Working with a CGI creature to create an emotional bond is hard for even the most talented actor, but she nails it, and I hope we see more from her soon.

VERDICT
Okja suffers from an overworked second act, but the emotional journey of Mija and Okja under Joon-ho's deft direction ultimately sticks the landing and offers a fun -if frightening- look at the food industry. 3.5/5

- The Catalyst