Movies Worth Watching #8
So many great movies and so little time to see them all. Admittedly, I haven’t been watching as many movies lately–I recently got a PS5 and have been dedicating most of my free time to Elden Ring. I’m a year late to the game, but man, is it a blast.
There are also a bunch of releases coming out over the coming months that I’m excited about. I can’t wait to see Paul Giamatti team up with Alexander Payne again in The Holdovers (the last film they did together, Sideways, is one of my favorite films, and I highly recommend it).
Also looking forward to Yorgos Lanthimos’s Poor Things and a few others, such as Past Lives and Passages. Regardless, I hope your week has been a splendid one, and if you’re looking for a few movies worth watching, you’re in the right place or email subscription–whatever you want to call it.
1. California Split (1974)
Genre - Comedy/Drama
Director - Robert Altman
Writer - Joseph Walsh
Starring - George Segal, Elliott Gould, Ann Prentiss
About - When a casual gambler (George Segal as Bill) befriends a professional one (Elliott Gould as Charlie), he begins to mirror his life, sending both deeper into the sleazy gambling world where the stakes keep getting bigger.
Why You Should Watch
I’m a huge Robert Altman fan and had some time hanging out with my parent’s puppy, so I threw on California Split after browsing Criterion for longer than I care to admit. I’m not big on the gambling world—meaning I’m pretty oblivious to that whole culture—but that isn’t a requirement to get or feel some relatability to the characters in California Split.
Robert Altman is a master at crafting stories on ordinary characters and their dilemmas. In this case, we follow Bill, a casual gambler without much going on—think of him like an everyday person who’s alone, has a tedious job, and only excitement comes from playing cards or placing bets from time to time—and Charlie, a degenerate who’s always looking for the next ample gambling opportunity.
Bill feels a sense of excitement for the first time in what seems like years, and Charlie is happy to have a friend with him to cruise along the gambling world. These characters feel authentic and don’t have that unnecessary movie quality that makes some extraordinary or unrealistic. I loved it, and this is one of the best if you’re a fan of slice-of-life films.
2. The King Of Comedy (1982)
Genre - Comedy/Drama
Director - Martin Scorsese
Writer - Paul D. Zimmerman
Starring - Robert De Niro, Jerry Lewis, Diahnne Abbott
About - Rupert Pupkin is a passionate yet unsuccessful comic who craves nothing more than to be in the spotlight, and to achieve this, he stalks and kidnaps his idol to take the spotlight for himself.
Why You Should Watch
I’ve been on a big Robert De Niro kick lately, and one of his most notable films I didn’t get a chance to see for whatever reason is The King Of Comedy. I finally sat down a week or so ago and gave it a viewing, and it didn’t disappoint.
The movie is effortlessly funny, following this oblivious and strange man in Rupert Pupkin whose passion for comedy is undeniable, but how he goes about achieving stardom—as he infers it—makes no sense. Some deranged stuff.
The movie is sometimes uncomfortable, and you’ll see plenty of parallels from 2019’s Joker (though it’s done much better, I’d say). De Niro is brilliant, Scorsese is, of course, great with his direction, and I have no idea how this movie flopped at the box office–it’s one of the best from the iconic pair.
3. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)
Genre - Animation/Adventure
Directors - Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, Justin K. Thompson
Writers - Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, Dave Callaham
Starring - Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfeld, Brian Tyree Henry
About - Miles Morales catapults across the Multiverse, where he encounters a team of Spider-People charged with protecting its very existence. When the heroes clash on how to handle a new threat, Miles must redefine what it means to be a hero.
Why You Should Watch
I haven’t given as much love as I would like to animated films, and these Spider-Verse movies are some of the best-animated films I’ve seen in years. The latest installment, Across the Spider-Verse, takes everything great from the first film, Into the Spider-Verse, and dials it up to 11.
I can’t remember the last I was THIS blown away by the animation. Every shot feels handcrafted to the point where you can’t take your eyes off every moment, more so than usual. It’s beautiful, stunning, and mind-blowing throughout its entire 140-minute runtime, which is an achievement in and of itself.
That’s not to take anything away from the story. What makes Across the Spider-Verse so special is it isn’t just about the technical achievement and awe of the animation. The story is impactful, funny, emotional, unpredictable, and sets up the third and final installment, Beyond the Spider-Verse, very well.