Movies That Matter

Stacy and Nicole discuss Once Upon a Time in Hollywood , the more meditative style of the movie, the overbearing sound design, feet-- all the shots of feet, our differing views on Cliff as a killer, and the misogyny surrounding the movie. Ultimately, we rule that this wasn't so much a case of misogyny given his previous work, but still an issue with unconscious bias in how the women in the movie a...

Christopher and Nicole with special guest, Dan, discuss The Farewell and the issues that come along with generational conflicts that cross international boundaries as well. We disagree about the actual quality of the filmmaking particularly the bizarre score, Dan discusses the dissonance between what was considered funny by Asian vs non-Asian audiences, and the tension between the families who emi...

Garret S and Nicole discuss Midsommar , the superior craft of the film in terms of cinematography, art direction, and acting, but the overall letdown of the story, the very realistic portrayal of grief, and what does a garden level bad boyfriend really deserve? As a current and a former grad student, we're here to tell you that there was absolutely nothing correct in the movie about being a grad s...

Adam and Nicole discuss Yesterday , how determined we were not to be charmed by it and how utterly we failed, how we felt the film struck the right balance between high concept and fairy tale, and the central message of the movie: is it better to achieve greatness and die young or live a long life of mediocrity. We don't entirely agree with this article that the Beatles aren't timeless or that the...

Lexy and Nicole discuss Late Night , the genius of Emma Thompson, the particular care the movie showed to costuming, differing roles of women in the workplace, and being the diversity hire. The movie doesn't pull its punches on diversity hiring in contrast to undeserved success by nepotism. The movie is is a funny comedy with real heart. Lexy recommends YouTuber (and forthcoming female late night...

Garret S and Nicole discuss Rocketman , how happy we were to see an old-fashioned musical, the deft camerawork and choreography, and the journey to recovery. Read about Egerton’s transformation into Elton John. Also, learn more about how the overdose to concert scene was created. Garret recommends Me and The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson . Nicole recommends A Very English Scandal . Check out...

Stacy and Nicole discuss Poms , how the performances elevated a poor script, female companionship and the value of intergenerational friendships, and the tired of message of female empowerment through other women. We wonder who the movie was meant for and why any woman needs to be reminded that she needs women in her life. Check out the amazing senior dancers of the NBA, the Wizdom . Stacy recomme...

Garret S and Nicole discuss Ugly Dolls , the quirky and fun animation, how Janelle Monae stole the movie, the state of the animated musical, and how the movie’s message about what it means to be considered defective makes a good analogy for how deaf people have created their own flourishing culture. We cover a little bit of the history and richness of Deaf culture, American Sign Language, and Garr...

Garret S and Nicole discuss High Life , how wrong the critics were to praise the art of the film and ignore all its plot and thematic flaws, how little we can say about the movie because it made no sense, and the movie’s discomforting portrayal of sex including rape and masturbation. We discuss some trigger warnings but prefer you not see the movie at all. Garret recommends the book Dead Man Walki...

Garrett and Nicole discuss The Best of Enemies , the decidedly ho hum film-making, the ways that white people can be race baited against their economic interests, and whether racism is so baked into American it can never be eradicated. We veer into a discussion about casting actors with disabilities and whether it “diminishes acting.” We celebrate Claudette Colvin , who predated Rosa Parks and was...

Adam and Nicole discuss Captive State , how much they enjoyed the movie contrary to most critics , the pleasures of a plot driven movie, our desire for authoritarian rule, and our unwillingness to confront our own worst tendencies. The movie explores people’s inability to put the greater good over their own emotions because of the tendency to complacency. Adam draws out this subtler thread in the...

Lexy and Nicole discuss Captain Marvel , disagree on Brie Larson’s performance, the movie’s place in the Marvel MCU, compare it to 2017’s Wonder Woman , and discuss how Disney tackles feminism. We talk about how ultimately the movie fails to create a fully developed female character and that drags down any message it’s sending. Naturally the trolls came out of the woodwork on this one; read how co...

Christopher and Nicole discuss Isn’t It Romantic , how the musical numbers were the highlight of the film, what makes a good romantic comedy, and the dangerous myths perpetuated by Hollywood about love. We talk about how the movie often undercuts the very points it’s trying to make and fails to tackle the actual problematic messages in romantic comedies. See if you agree or disagree with the CW’s...

Jen and Nicole discuss What Men Want , how they actually enjoyed the movie, the surprising comic genius of Erykah Badu, and the difficulties of trying to survive being a woman in a boy’s club, and how it’s workplace comedy a la Jerry Maguire rather than a rom-com a la What Women Want . They disagree with critics who say the movie had no message and think the movie is being judged too harshly . And...

Garret S and Nicole discuss Serenity, how thoroughly we disliked the movie, the lack of anything to recommend it as a film (really, nothing), the false portrayal of domestic violence, and whether it’s ok to kill an abuser. Garret recommends Ex Machina and Westworld . Nicole recommends Moon . Check out our website where you can sign up for our newsletter and visit our store , talk to us on Twitter...

Garret S and Nicole discuss Escape Room , the cinematic failings of the movie in creating tension, the problem of survivor’s guilt, and trauma and post traumatic-stress disorder. We commend the set design and light touch with CGI. We also think about how the movie plays into gender stereotypes of the different ways men and women approach problem solving (and decides women are better). Garret recom...

Nicole and Garrett discuss Vice , differing opinions on the quality of the movie, the incredible transformation by Christian Bale and the rest of the cast’s ability to capture real figures, and our experiences of the Bush administration. Follow our wide-ranging discussion on politics and how Bush and 9/11 got us to where we are today. Read Garrett’s review of the movie on Cinema Babel and follow u...

Nicole and Jen discuss Widows , the stellar performances by the entire cast (especially the sweet-faced Olivia), our interpretations of critical moments in the film like the ending, differing opinions on the son subplot, and break down the movie’s criticism of corruption inherent in Chicago’s institutions. Jen recommends Twelve Years a Slave. Check out our website where you can sign up for our new...

Nicole and Garret discuss Boy Erased , the need for a trigger warning for the very graphic rape scene, Nicole Kidman in one of her best roles, the toll of taking on heavy emotional content, and how we’d rewrite the ending. We tackle how we deal with parents who won’t accept us and how damaging it is to be disowned. We also discuss gay conversion therapy and how useless and harmful it is. Read Josh...

Nicole and Garret discuss A Star is Born , the skill of the direction, the stellar vocal and acting performances, and how talent relates to fame. Check out this article from Vox defining a four quadrant movie. Garret recommends Lady Gaga’s acoustic performances and checking out the career progression of Bradley Cooper. Nicole recommends the biopic loosely based on Carole King called Grace of My He...

For our special extended Black Panther episode Nicole and Stacy switch off hosting the discussion with Sarí and Christopher. We discuss the merits of Chadwick Boseman, the power of Disney and representation, the badassery of the women in the movie, tradition and family, growing up black in America, and the historical Black Panthers. Check out the Rita Moreno interview that talks about the importan...

Nicole and Garret discuss White Boy Rick , the movie’s failure to tell a good story, and outgrowth of the war on drugs from the 1980s crack epidemic. Read the Atavist article for an overview of the true story of Rick Wershe Jr. Garret recommends Actual Innocence: When Justice Goes Wrong and How to Make it Right and The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas. Nicole recommends seeing Hamilton . C...

Nicole and Christopher discuss Operation Finale , antisemitism, and the “banality of evil”. The Columbia Journalism Review covers the public outrage over the New York Times story on a neo-Nazi. Hear Jason Kessler profess that he’s like totally not a Nazi on a terrible NPR interview. Christopher misspoke— Letter to a Christian Nation is by Sam Harris. Read Martin Niemoller’s famous words about the...

Nicole and Garrett discuss Crazy Rich Asians , the movie's charm as a rom-com that still has depth, the dismantling of Asian American stereotypes, and old money vs. the nouvea riche . For more from Garrett, read his review on Cinema Babel. For differing perspectives on watching Singapore on film, read Stephanie Foo's Vox article along with Kirsten Han's article in The Entertainer. Garrett recommen...

Nicole and Garret discuss Christopher Robin , disagree on the charm of the movie, and talk about the realities of work. Check out Vox for the overuse of lens flare . Fact check -- most people only work about three hours a day. Also in this episode, Garret describes how the 100 Acre Wood characters are used to illustrate various mood and personality disorders in psychology. Garret recommends Off Ba...