The Thin Man Goes Home (1945)
When famed married detectives Nick and Nora Charles (William Powell and Myrna Loy) visit his parents, they are unwillingly pulled into yet another caper in the fifth and penultimate film of the Thin Man series.
Just like every other detective series from Agatha Christie to Scooby Doo, you know Nick will solve the case. What sets these films apart are their wit, William Powell’s charm, his amazing chemistry with Myrna Loy, and the cute antics of their dog, Asta
Based on a series of novels by Dashiell Hammet, the Thin Man films are comedic versions of his Sam Spade novels. While not particularly riveting or exciting, it’s a pleasant way to spend an afternoon.
O.J.: Made in America (2016)
OJ is the ostensible focus and this seven hour documentary explores his life in detail, but the true subject is the history of American race relations in the aftermath of the Civil Rights Movement. Race has been the central paradox of American history. No country has been more succesful at racial integration, but few countries have had a more contentious racial history.
The story of Orenthal James Simpson is an effective vehicle to discuss many of our issues with race. The way some black men are coopted to demonstrate how tolerant others are. The way a significant number of black men view success and embracing one’s heritage as mutually exclusive, marrying white women to gain acceptance in white society. The way athletics has become the focal point for many African-American youths. The way celebrity and political power have intertwined in the television age. The long, tortured relationship between police and the African-American community.
The murders of Nicole and Ron were justified and glossed over by many of OJ’s defenders who argued his supposedly unfair treatment was bigger than their deaths. His defense team callously and cynically played the race card to advance their own agenda, justice and truth be damned. Over twenty years later, the trial remains a racial Rorschach test.
Grass: A Nation’s Battle for Life (1925)
I don’t particularly like the other early ethnographic documentaries I’ve seen: Nanook of the North (1922) and Chang (1927). However, this film about the Bakhtiari tribe in present day Iran was insightful.
Directed by Meriann Cooper, who would go on to direct King Kong (1933), this is a fascinating look at how an ancient tribe of people survived into the early twentieth century. It’s a little heavy-handed and there’s a paternalistic “look at the backwards natives” vibe, but considering it was produced in the mid 1920s it’s fairly progressive.
Last Day of Freedom (2015)
Years after he returned from US military service in Vietnam, Manny Babbitt killed 78 year old Leah Schneidel. He was convicted for the crime and, after a lengthy appeal process, executed in 1999.
The year before his death, he controversially received the Purple Heart.
No one denies he killed Schneidel, as his brother, Bill Babbitt, narrates the circumstances of the murder, it’s clear Manny suffered from severe Post Traumatic Stress Disorder stemming from his experiences in Vietnam.
This short film is a chilling indictment of the way we treat mental illness and the cruel ways we treat our veterans who sacrifice their lives and well-being to protect us, but return to apathy and indifference.
Alfie (1966)
Serial womanizer Alfie Elkins (Michael Caine) sleeps with numerous married women (including the wife of a friend he meets in a convalescent home). He has a child with a girlfriend, but refuses to marry her.
Later, he convinces one of his lovers to have an abortion to keep her husband from discovering their affair. This event traumatizes both of them.
Made and set during Swinging London, this film asks tough questions about identity and purpose in a value system which devalues fidelity, serving as an excellent deconstruction of the animating principles of the free love movement.
Ex Machina (2015)
Using data mined from his work as CEO of Bluebook (the world’s largest search engine), Nathan Bateman (Oscar Isaac) has built Ava (Alicia Vikander), a humanoid robot with a sophisticated AI. He invites programmer Caleb Smith (Domhnall Gleeson) to test his creation.
Isaac has, over the past half decade, established himself as one of the most electrifying, diverse actors in Hollywood. One of the most memorable scenes from any film in 2015 is his bizarre dance sequence with his maid.
2015 was a breakout year for Gleeson. The Revenant, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Brooklyn. His resume for the year rivals what many actors achieve in a career.
While the male leads are great, the star of this movie is Vikander. Most of the film, she exists as a disembodied face, but still makes us believe in her pain and suffering.
This fantastic essay on what it means to be human serves as a counterpoint to Spike Jonzes’s wonderful film Her (2013), and is destined to join the pantheon of sci-fi classics dealing with expanding notions of humanity.
Work (1915)
The Tramp (Charlie Chaplin) helps paint a room even though he’s clearly ill-suited for the job.
The highlight is a sequence where our hero (Sisyphus-like) pushes a wheelbarrow up a long hill while gravity conspires against him.
As Chaplin perfects his famous character, there’s a harder edge to the film, less bemusement and more frustration.
Chi-Raq (2015)
In an inspired creative decision, Spike Lee updated a Classical Greek comedy (Aristophanes’s Lysistrata) to the current climate of Chicago.
In Aristophanes’s original play, the women of of Greece withheld sex as punishment for fighting in the Peloponnesian War. In Lee’s update, Lysistrata pledges to refrain from sex with her boyfriend until there’s a peaceful resolution between rival gangs.
With this film, Lee reminds us of the pliability of art. A play first performed over 2400 years ago, still contains enough truth to speak to present day situations. This is humbling, comparable to people finding inspiration in Blade Runner in 4500 AD.
Despite its explosive subject matter, the movie largely avoids racial politics which makes the film more poignant and accessible.
The cast, featuring Samuel L. Jackson, Nick Cannon, Wesley Snipes, Jennifer Hudson, Angela Bassett, Dave Chapelle, Isiah Whitlock Jr., and John Cusack is uniformly excellent, making Lee’s first musical one of his best films in years.
Hunger (1966)
Destitute writer Pontus suffers physical and mental detioration related to his hunger. He tries to find work and food, but his pride won’t allow him to accept the generosity of others.
This is a great examination of an all too common struggle, and a poignant reminder how often we refuse help for the silliest of reasons.
Unbelievable (2019)
After Marie Adler (Kaitlyn Dever) is raped by a masked assailant, the police detective assigned to her case coerce her into confessing she made it up.
Her trauma is compounded when the needlessly vindictive detectives charge her with filing a false report.
A couple of years later, detectives Grace Rassmussen (Toni Collette) and Karen Duvall (Meritt Wever) realize their sexual assaults cases are connected. Pooling their resources to find the assailant, they discover he also assaulted Marie.
Based on an investigate pierce by T. Christian Miller and Ken Armstrong, this is a powerful, timely story about the difficulties encountered by women who report sexual assault.
The performances are stellar. Everyone knows Collette is great, but Merritt Wever has been turning in consistently great work for years, and newcomer Kaitlyn Devers establishes herself as one to watch.
Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty (2022)
It proved controversial (especially to Jerry West’s friends), but I loved this fictionalized account of the beginning of the 1980s Lakers dominance.
I thought John C. Reilly did some of his best work as complicated owner Dr. Jim Buss. He plays him as a wildly ambitious con man, which I suspect is close to the truth for a lot of successful people.
Sally Field is fantastic as Buss’s mother, who’s domineering presence impacted his ability to have a functioning relationship with a woman not mired in sexual fantasy.
I thought Jason Clarke was great as West and saw no issues with the portrayal. He was a perfectionist who couldn’t let go. The show portrays his decision to step down as coach as a reasonable and brave move towards more balance in his life.
Tracy Letts was revelatory as Jack McKinney, the demanding coach whose unfortunate bicycle accident kept him from experiencing the fruit of his labor. Jason Segel was pitch perfect as Paul Westhead, the overwhelmed assistant who benefitted from McKinney’s accident and was reluctant to give the reins back.
I loved Adrien Brody’s performance as Pat Riley. Knowing where Riley would wind up created a lot of the show’s tension.
The depiction of the disruption caused by the arrival of hotshot rookie Magic Johnson (Quincy Isaiah) is top notch, especially the fallout with Kareem (Solomon Hughes) and Norm Nixon (DeVaughn Nixon).
You can tell Adam McKay was invested. Instead of going for the cheap laugh, he lets the story develop without forcing it into a comedy. He wanted to tell this story his way and was willing to sacrifice to get there, including damaging his long time partnership with friend Will Ferrell, when he opted to cast their mutual close friend Reilly instead of giving Will a shot at the role.
This is one of the best sports related miniseries, accurately portraying the enormous egos often involved in athletic endeavors. Everyone wants credit for the success of the team, and no one wants to be cast aside.