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The Nightingale
The second feature film from Jennifer Kent, we follow the journey of a widowed mother seeking revenge for her husband and baby, by the British Army she served. After The Babadook, Jennifer Kent became one of those directors I became eager to see what would do next; however, I had a difficult time watching it, due to the rape scenes in the beginning. While it isn’t handled done as disgustingly as I Spit on Your Grave, it’s still beyond uncomfortable to sit through and kind of ruins the rest of the movie for me. I felt like had this movie started where it landed at thirty minutes, then I think it would have been an easier sit through. I say this, because the rest of the film is handled exceptionally well, through the cinematography (that’s 4x3 instead of 16x9), the brilliant acting, and the story as you watch these characters on this journey. I do get the appreciation this film gets, but I don’t think it’s something I’ll be watching again. There are some things that just don’t need to be seen on film, especially in the beginning.
Rating: (skip the first thirty minutes) B+
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The Lighthouse
Following up with his previous film, The VVitch, Robert Eggers returns with his newest cinematic work that truly pays tribute to classic horror; and much like with Kent and The Nightingale, it’s filmed in a 4x3 ratio as opposed to the modern 16x9, and in black in white too. A timberman convict goes to work at a lighthouse, where he is working like a dog and abused by his manager, Tom. However, something about the light within the said lighthouse has some kind of hypnotic aura that this timberman, Winslow, can’t resist. Much like with his last film, Eggers has a true knack for period pieces and atmospheric horror; the pacing is heart pounding, as I never could figure out if all of this was real or some drunk hallucinations that Winslow and Tom were having. Robert Pattinson and Willum Dafoe have such great back and forth, and boy does it get crazy. Also, this film manages to tap into some greek mythology, not just with the mermaids, but also some of the imagery you see, like the last shot of the film, which I won’t spoil. It is a film that does cause a bit of anxiety, if you had one of those parents or bosses that made you work, so be warned going in.
Rating: A
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Joker
In Todd Phillips’s Joker, Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix) is a struggling amateur comedian with mental condition that causes him to laugh uncontrollably when he’s nervous. As the world around him becomes more and more apathetic, he slowly embraces his deepest darkest instincts.
When this film was originally announced after Suicide Squad, I immediately turned my nose up to it, especially after going through films like Catwoman and Venom; I just didn’t see the point of making a solo villain movie, without turning him/her into an anti-hero who has to be good for once. It also didn’t help that Phillips said he was going for an original Joker origin story, which brought me back to Josh Trank’s talks about Fant4stic. However, after hearing it was keeping itself low-budget and being handled as a horror film, my interest spiked high and I’m glad I didn’t miss out on this one. Taking place in the 1980’s (where Gotham is like New York), there is garbage everywhere and everyone is on their own, even family. While it doesn’t specifically adapt any of the comic book origins the Joker has had, you can definitely get a vibe of The Killing Joke, particularly from the ‘failed comedian’ concept. With how empathetic and relatable he makes Arthur Fleck, it truly makes it one of the scariest things about the film: thinking that one day, this could be me if not careful. The longer the film goes on, you begin to realize along with him, just how much you’ve been lied to about your past and what you can or can’t do in society, even after everyone says they believe in you, you can’t help but feel bad for someone you SHOULDN’T be feeling bad for. Joaquin Phoenix gives easily the best performance of his career, and it looks like this might be his year, finally. That last scene of him hauntingly singing Sinatra sends chills down my spine. And being the first billion dollar horror film, I’ll be looking forward to seeing what Todd Phillips has next, if he does come back for a sequel.
Rating: A+
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