Brett Garten, Movie Extraordinare
Cinematic Sommelier
4.1
Points for originality, but not much else. The but wears out its welcome pretty quickly. There was a reason the Jack Links Jerky commercials were just that, and not a feature film. Not a whole lot happens between the beginning and end here, so not much to comment on, oddly enough.
6.2
Doing this back to back with a movie about resurrecting a movie theater was a rough choice. This one just didn’t resonate as well as the other. But I think differences in structure and characterization didn’t help it. A cool story, but clunky in its execution. In the spirit of the “Action Park” documentaries, it almost took off. Sadly, it just never hooked me in the way I had hoped it would. The lady talking to the boat was one of the more interesting points. Her passing being foreshadowing I did not have on my bingo card.
7.8
Definitely one of the dorkier things I’ve done in a long time, but loved every frame of this one. Movies and Marquette – what’s not to love?
A tale of the rise, fall, and resurgence of independent film exhibition. The spirit of “Midwest nice.” The heartwarming story of a small town coming together to make dreams come true. For a movie geek such as myself, this was like home for an hour and a half. AND, I happened to be sitting behind someone who starred in the movie. AND was able to recognize one of the actors as one of the co-stars of “Quicksand,” another Northern Michigan original screened at the Vogue in Manistee.
As shared in the post-show Q&A, look for this one to be on PBS/Streaming in October!
7.4
Through the process of obtaining my MBA, I was enlightened with terminology for so many things in the business world that I had known the intricacies of but had never had a term for… like a PDSA Cycle or Gemba Walk.
Finally! Leave it to Silent Bob to coin a term for the age old self destructed relationship that one posthumously idealizes and therefore chases with great fervor – we’re chasing Amy.
Unlike George Costanza, Ben Affleck convinces Alyssa to switch teams in the opposite direction, convincing her to join the ball and bat club… only to then stick his bat in a woodchipper on account of an all-time case of the yips. His perfect game, ruined by a wild pitch in the bottom of the ninth. At least he had some content to keep his comic book illustration career afloat as a result of his dumbassed decisions in love. Some of us blog about movies.
This was a surprisingly humorous and realistic tale of love, friendship, conflict, and the messiness of life that I really enjoyed finally catching up on! A well-done recommendation from a friend.
8.6
I haven’t had my heart ripped out like this in a LONG time… This was a “Somewhere in Time” level gut punch.
Telling the story through the eyes of a painter was such an interesting, yet perfect creative choice. Marianne’s attention to even the most subtle of details about Heloise sold the kindling of a soon to be burning love between them with each passing frame. An excellently executed twist on the “forbidden love” story, told through the lens of the Greek classical myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. The theme of long remembering the details of a former lover felt like the film was way to in my head and the heart that I admittedly tend to wear on my sleeve. The final minutes of the film are nothing but heart-wrenchingly beautiful, making and then living with the poet’s choice. The attention to detail in the performances of Adele Haenel and Noemie Merlant was awe-inspiring to witness.
Also similar to my all-time favorite “Somewhere in Time” turning me on to the works of Gustav Mahler and Sergei Rachmaninoff, this film gave me the works of Antonio Vivaldi to dive head first into and expand my musical horizons anew.
Brett Garten, Movie Extraordinare 