{"id":12839,"date":"2023-04-09T17:06:56","date_gmt":"2023-04-09T21:06:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/?p=12839"},"modified":"2023-04-09T17:07:08","modified_gmt":"2023-04-09T21:07:08","slug":"weekly-movie-roundup-22","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/?p=12839","title":{"rendered":"Weekly Movie Roundup"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>I watched 6 movies last week:<\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt11128440\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/1-1-200x300.jpg\" alt=\"Clerks III\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-12840\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/1-1-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/1-1-683x1024.jpg 683w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/1-1-768x1152.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/1-1-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/1-1-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/1-1-scaled.jpg 1707w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0066412\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/2-1-200x300.jpg\" alt=\"The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-12841\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/2-1-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/2-1-683x1024.jpg 683w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/2-1-768x1152.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/2-1.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt9165824\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/3-1-205x300.jpg\" alt=\"The Show\" width=\"205\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-12842\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/3-1-205x300.jpg 205w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/3-1-698x1024.jpg 698w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/3-1-768x1127.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/3-1-1047x1536.jpg 1047w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/3-1-1396x2048.jpg 1396w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/3-1-scaled.jpg 1745w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 205px) 100vw, 205px\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt11128440\/\">Clerks III<\/a> never justifies its existence, and a lot of its jokes don&#8217;t entirely land. It&#8217;s even less effective as a return and farewell to the series than what I remember of the two-decades-old <em>Clerks II<\/em>. But it has its heart in the right place and offers some modest rewards if you&#8217;re at all fond of these characters.<\/li>\n<ul><\/ul>\n<li>If scientists were trying to re-create a giallo film in the lab, they could do a lot worse than <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0066412\">The Strange Case of Mrs. Wardh<\/a>. The movie ticks just about every checkbox of the genre imaginable, from lurid sex scenes to over-the-top violence, and is a victory of style over substance. There&#8217;s a lot to enjoy in that style, of course; I&#8217;m just not sure there&#8217;s much of anything else.<\/li>\n<ul><\/ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt9165824\/\">The Show<\/a> is a neon-lit Kafkaesque fever dream courtesy of Alan Moore.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt11466222\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/4-1-202x300.jpg\" alt=\"Jackass Forever\" width=\"202\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-12843\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/4-1-202x300.jpg 202w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/4-1-689x1024.jpg 689w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/4-1-768x1141.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/4-1.jpg 1010w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 202px) 100vw, 202px\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0029146\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/5-1-193x300.jpg\" alt=\"The Life of Emile Zola\" width=\"193\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-12844\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/5-1-193x300.jpg 193w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/5-1.jpg 321w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 193px) 100vw, 193px\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt10640346\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/6-1-203x300.jpg\" alt=\"Babylon\" width=\"203\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-12845\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/6-1-203x300.jpg 203w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/6-1-691x1024.jpg 691w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/6-1-768x1138.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/6-1-1037x1536.jpg 1037w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/6-1-1382x2048.jpg 1382w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/6-1-scaled.jpg 1728w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 203px) 100vw, 203px\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt11466222\/\">Jackass Forever<\/a> may be a strange place to <em>start<\/em> watching the series, but nevertheless, here I am. I don&#8217;t know that I&#8217;d necessarily call what I watched <em>funny<\/em>\u2014much less one of the funniest films of last year, as more than a few critics seem to have done\u2014but there is something to it, beyond just the outrageousness. Maybe it&#8217;s that the <em>Jackass<\/em> crew recognize how stupid these pranks and stunts are, or maybe it&#8217;s just that they&#8217;re doing all of this to themselves, so the cringe never feels meanspirited. It&#8217;s often juvenile and gross, but also self-aware and clever enough to be entertaining.<\/li>\n<ul><\/ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0029146\/\">The Life of Emile Zola<\/a> is maybe not a paragon of historical accuracy, or at least omits some key information as it speeds through decades of history. But Paul Muni is good in the title role, and it&#8217;s an effective old-Hollywood biopic.<\/li>\n<ul><\/ul>\n<li>A few years ago, when <em>First Man<\/em> came out, I realized that I was growing to dislike Damien Chazelle&#8217;s films a little less with each new one. &#8220;At this rate,&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/unrealfred\/status\/1088984428104372225\">I tweeted<\/a>, &#8220;I may just kinda enjoy Chazelle&#8217;s next movie.&#8221; And you know what? I kinda did. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt10640346\/\">Babylon<\/a> is too long, and overly pretentious about the magic of film\u2014even as it aims to take the business of film<em>making<\/em> down several pegs\u2014and it&#8217;s probably a lot less clever than it thinks it is. But it&#8217;s also audacious and ridiculous and brash, powered by dynamic performances and some fantastic set-pieces.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I also re-watched the Wachowski&#8217;s first movie, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0115736\/\">Bound<\/a>. I can&#8217;t remember if I saw this before <em>The Matrix<\/em>, or shortly thereafter, but it&#8217;s been the better part of two decades either way. It remains a really stylish and seductive neo-noir.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I watched 6 movies last week: Clerks III never justifies its existence, and a lot of its jokes don&#8217;t entirely land. It&#8217;s even less effective as a return and farewell to the series than what I remember of the two-decades-old Clerks II. But it has its heart in the right place and offers some modest &#8230; <a class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/?p=12839\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12839","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12839"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=12839"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12839\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12855,"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12839\/revisions\/12855"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=12839"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=12839"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=12839"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}