One Movie Punch

Hi everyone! It’s been a minute, hasn’t it? I’m back today with this special episode, covering a film that I saw just before the stay-at-home orders were issued in California for the current pandemic. It’s going to be an extended episode, with an update on things here at One Movie Punch, my review of THE REPORT entangled with an essay on how the pandemic has affected the film industry in the short term and the long term, and for those that stick around afterwards, a fun audio drama to tide you over during the extended absence. We last left you with our review of LETO back on March 14th, which feels like forever ago, and like yesterday. I had been following the news regarding the Coronavirus, and lamenting how little was being done to contain it, when things began to snowball in New York and New Jersey. Folks were already hoarding food, water, and apparently toilet paper. I remember standing in line, prior to social distancing and masks, listening to someone calmly argue with anyone willing to listen that this was all a hoax, even while dropping three months of food into their cart. I can still remember wondering if anyone around me had it, and if I was going to die, and when I got back to the house that day, I let the team know they could put their pending reviews on permanent hiatus. There was supposed to be a break anyway. I had a Patreon episode planned out that was announcing a three month break for the podcast so I could concentrate on two major projects: First, our website needs a massive update, and every episode we publish makes that task grow ever larger. We know folks can’t find much on our website right now, and we want to change that, while changing hosts. Second, as our team continues to grow, we need a better back-end system to manage our content. I needed some time to work on these projects, and couldn’t do that keeping a daily podcast going on. You’d think that with the pandemic, and the initial stay-at-home orders, that this would have been a slam dunk. Unfortunately, it was anything but that. I spent the first two weeks at home in a downward spiral, one driven by anxiety over whether I had contracted the virus standing in line, and amplified by the depression which followed each anxiety attack. The only way I could get it under control was to occupy myself, which I did by playing “The Witcher III: The Wild Hunt”. We felt reasonably safe after the first two weeks, but rationality doesn’t do much for anxiety and depression once it gets going. It wasn’t until about five weeks later (and completing “The Witcher III: The Wild Hunt”) that I came out of my spiral. Distance learning was limping along for One Movie Spouse and One Movie Spawn, and I decided to get to work with all the free time I had, spending more time reading and exercising, and more importantly to you all, spending four to six hours a day taking online training classes for SQL Server and C#, and building a custom application to help automate our process on the back end. I was making great progress, which came to a screeching halt as our plans were being developed for returning students (and teachers) to school. I was already behind schedule a little bit, and pushed back our restart date to 9/1 to accommodate the delay. Our districts were fortunate enough to adopt distance learning models, but until the final decisions were made, my anxiety and depression cycle started up again. It also meant we had to rearrange our tiny California townhome to accommodate one student and one teacher for distance learning, including rearranging rooms, assembling furniture, and doing some massive cleaning. It also came with some practical issues in continuing the podcast for the foreseeable future. The pandemic has required quite a few families to make sacrifices to accommodate work and school changes. Our family is no exception. The increased expectations for distance learning this fall now require One Movie Spouse and One Movie Spawn to be online for longer...

Hi everyone! We’re closing out the week with our final entry for this quarter in our series “Under the Kanopy”. Kanopy is a library and university funded streaming service that grants card holders six free streams a month, featuring a combination of classic, mainstream, independent, and international films. They currently have streaming deals with some of our favorite distributors, like A24 and Kino Lorber, which offer the critically acclaimed, if not commercially successful films. Today’s film I sort of chose at random when filling out the schedule for the quarter, not really realizing it was a Russian film, or a black and white film, or would have a bunch of awesome experimental editing and storytelling. Finding these surprises is part of the great fun of exploring the films on Kanopy. I’ll be up in a bit with my thoughts on LETO, or Summer in Russian, but for a few other films in this series, check out THE BATTLE OF ALGIERS (Episode #738), MARIANNE AND LEONARD: WORDS OF LOVE (Episode #731), and HAVE A NICE DAY (Episode #724). Before the review, we’ll have a promo from our good friends at the Cinema Recall podcast. Every episode, The Vern takes a look at iconic scenes in classic movies. You can find them on Twitter and Instagram @cinema_recall, and also subscribe to their podcast at anchor.fm/cinemarecall. Don’t miss a single episode! Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << CINEMA RECALL PROMO >> ///// Today’s movie is LETO (2018), the Russian biopic directed by Kirill Serebrennikov, and written for the screen in collaboration with Lily Idov, Michael Idov, and Ivan Kapitonov, based in part on the memoirs of Natalya Naumenko. It’s the summer of 1982 in Leningrad. Mike Naumenko (Roman Bilyk) is the leader of Zoopark, a Russian rock band, and a member of the Leningrad Rock Club. While visiting the countryside with his wife Natalia (Irina Starshenbaum), he is introduced to Viktor Tsoi (Teo Yoo), an aspiring musician Mike takes on as a prodigy, which ultimately leads to the formation of the band Kino. No spoilers. So, since this is the last Under the Kanopy segment for a while, I’ll let you in on a little secret on how I choose which films to watch. Every week, I keep track of all the films which were released in the theaters which receive a Certified Fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes. A lot of those films rarely make it outside the Los Angeles and New York markets, often films imported by smaller distributors like Kino Lorber, Oscilloscope, and today’s distributor, Gunpowder & Sky. Every quarter, then, when I’m planning I take a look at the films off that list which make it to Kanopy, and pick whatever eleven films are available. And it generally leads to a wonderfully diverse assortment of films. LETO was one of those films this quarter, which I just added to my Kanopy queue and watched as time permitted. I didn’t remember what the film was supposed to be about at all, and was honestly worried it was going to be a Jared Leto biopic. But like most films in this series, I went in with an open mind and an open heart, despite being nervous about watching a black and white Russian film, the last one I watched being HARD TO BE A GOD, Aleksey German’s final film, which was kind of long and boring at times. Thankfully, LETO is definitely not that. LETO is actually more akin to Aleksei German, Jr.’s most recent film DOVLATOV (Episode #307), which gave me a contemporary film that peeked behind the Iron Curtain to look at non-propagandized life in Russia from an artistic point of view, in this case, notorious writer Sergei Dovlatov. LETO takes place just over a decade later, in the early 1980s as Russia is beginning to shift more and more towards glasnost. The underground parties and black markets for American goods in DOVLATOV’s time period were slowly being integrated into the rock...

Hi everyone! It’s Friday, so it’s time for another Fantastic Fest feature from Andrew Campbell. Today’s feature had a very limited run in the theaters from podcast favorite IFC Films, picked up from the flurry of content that debuts at Fantastic Fest every year. Andrew will be up with his review of SWALLOW in just a bit, but for a few other reviews from Andrew, check out AFTER MIDNIGHT (Episode #737), JALLIKATTU (Episode #730), and BLISS (Episode #723). Before the review, we’ll have a promo from our good friends at the Book of Lies Podcast. Every week, Brandi Fleeks and Sunni Hepburn take a look at a fraud case or famous con artist, breaking down the methods, the signals, and how to spot similar scams in your life. You can find them on Twitter @Bookofliespod and on Facebook and Instagram @bookofliespodcast. Be sure to like, retweet, share, review, and subscribe! Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << BOOK OF LIES PROMO >> ///// Hello film fans! Andrew here. Just two movies left for me to cover before we close out the first quarter of 2020, so I thought I would end on a couple of high notes. This week and next I have two films about women on the brink living vastly different lives, both delivered by writer/directors making their feature film debut. These movies are unique to anything you’ve seen before - gorgeously shot by creators with clear artistic visions. You’re going to want to be the one that tells their friends about these films. Today’s movie is the psychological thriller SWALLOW (2019), the debut film from writer/director Carlo Mirabella-Davis. SWALLOW stars Haley Bennett as Hunter, a woman with grew up underprivileged who now finds herself married at a young age to Richie (Austin Stowell). Richie grew up in wealth with well-connected parents who remain hyper-involved in the lives of Richie and Hunter. The parents gifted their son a stately home as a wedding present and along with it comes a mountain of social expectations. In turn, Richie foists upon Hunter his ideas of how a subservient housewife should behave - curating a meticulous home, providing dinner on the table, and serving his every need, while living no life of her own. Feeling imprisoned by her posh lifestyle, Hunter develops a very serious and very real psychological disorder known as pica - wherein sufferers consume non-nutritive indigestible objects. First off, Haley Bennett is terrific as Hunter. There are a half-dozen or so characters that she interacts with throughout the film, but much of the gravitas of the story is conveyed during the quiet moments when Hunter struggles to find meaning in her life and begins to give in to her disorder. It starts subtly with a marble which she quickly swallows and later retrieves. It’s such a bizarre affliction, but director Mirabella-Davis handles it with grace, sometimes eliciting nervous laughter from the audience and at other times forcing viewers to turn away. If you’re concerned that the writer/director is exploiting a peculiar and somewhat arresting affliction as the basis of story of a tortured woman, rest assured that’s not the case. The director was present at the screening and very candid with the audience afterward. His grandmother has psychological issues, including some form of pica, which gave him some family history with the illness. He has also experienced personal issues with self-identity and societal expectations as depicted in the film. During his 20’s, Mirabella-Davis, who now self-identifies as male, spent a four-year period living as woman at a time well before the modern-day social concept and growing acceptance of gender fluidity. Stylistically, this film is quite striking. If the unconventional and personal story is not convincing enough to give it a watch, take a look at the trailer. The framing and set design feels as if the...

Hi everyone! Happy Thursday! We’re welcoming back Christina Eldridge to the podcast with a review of the latest offering from GKIDS, a remastered cut of 2003’s critically acclaimed TOKYO GODFATHERS. We’re lucky to have Christina’s long-term love of anime on board here. For a few other recent reviews, check out RIDE YOUR WAVE (Episode #722), KLAUS (Episode #708), and her debut review for WEATHERING WITH YOU (Episode #687). Before the review, we’ll have a promo from our friends at the Pop Pour Review podcast! Every week, the PPR crew review a film, then craft a cocktail based on the movie. I don’t drink myself, but I know a few people that do, and every recipe fits in surprising ways. You can find them on Twitter and Instagram @poppourreview, or by searching for Pop! Pour! Review Podcast on Facebook. Thanks for all your support last year! Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << POP POUR REVIEW PROMO >> ///// Hello, everyone! This is Christina Eldridge with Durara Reviews (a part of One Movie Punch). Since my last review of RIDE YOUR WAVE (2019), I’ve been house hunting so wish me luck! If you’re not already following me @Durarareview, or @OneMoviePunch, go do it! I promise to continue to bring you the latest and greatest of anime movies! Today’s movie review is for TOKYO GODFATHERS (2003). This is one of my personal favorite Christmas movies. Satoshi Kon directed this classic comedy/drama. It was produced by one of the mainstays of anime, Madhouse, and is currently distributed to the United States by GKIDS. TOKYO GODFATHERS is about three homeless people who find an abandoned baby on Christmas Eve and decide to find the mother rather than take her to the cops as to avoid the foster system. This review is spoiler free. Gin (Toru Emori) is a middle-aged homeless man who loves to drink. He survives with Hana (Yoshiaki Umegaki), a former drag queen club star who now lives as a trans woman, and Miyuki (Aya Okamoto), a high school aged runaway. The three attend a Christmas Eve play and a soup kitchen together, then decide to look for books in the garbage. While digging, they hear the crying of a baby and discover an infant girl with a note asking to take care of her. They also find a bag containing photos, business cards, and a locker key. The only person in the threesome who is excited about this discovery is Hana, as she would never be able to have children on her own. Gin tries to talk her into giving the child to the police, but Hana refuses, as she was a product of the foster system herself. She elects to find the baby’s mother from the clues in the bag instead. The three set out on a journey that takes them not only on an adventure, but on a discovery of themselves and why they really are on the street, rather than the false images they have given each other, no matter how horrifying or shameful these reasons really are. Satoshi Kon is one of anime’s most celebrated directors. He is responsible for such masterpieces as PERFECT BLUE (1997), which is one of my all-time favorites, PAPRIKA (2006), MILLENIUM ACTRESS (2001), and the series PARANOIA AGENT (2004). Kon-san’s favorite theme of blurred reality combined with fantasy is present in most of his works, even TOKYO GODFATHERS (2003), although it is not as apparent. Kon-san’s artistic directing style has been copied by other directors, most notably, Darren Aronofsky. In REQUIEM FOR A DREAM (2000), Aronofsky acknowledged the shot-for-shot bathtub scene from PERFECT BLUE (1997) but denies that BLACK SWAN (2010) is in any way adapted from it. Christopher Nolan’s INCEPTION (2010) was also accused of being an off-shoot of PAPRIKA (2006), that includes plot similarities, specific scenes and characters, to which he denied. To public knowledge, Kon-san never took legal action on either of the directors, assuming the ‘imitation is the...

Hi everyone! For those of you outside the United States, or perhaps living under a rock within the United States, we’re currently going through a presidential primary campaign. It’s been a bumpy ride so far, with a lot of noise and very little substance. But it has also been driven, at least in part, by the lesson of the previous election cycle, which involved the use of Big Data to collect information on US voters. Up to 5,000 data points per voter. You all know how biased I am when it comes to US politics, so that’s why we’ve brought in Shane Hyde today to review THE GREAT HACK, as part of his Horror Stories series. Because some horror stories are real. For a few other reviews from Shane, check out THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL (Episode #728), WOUNDS (Episode #694), and RUST CREEK (Episode #654) Before the review, we’ll have a quick promo from our good friend Kolby Told Me, one of our biggest supporters of the podcast last year, as demonstrated by his near domination of the Follow Friday boards. You can find him on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram @kolbytoldme. And if you take up one of his recommendations, let everyone know that Kolby Told Me! Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << KOLBY TOLD ME PROMO >> ///// Hi, I'm Shane Hyde, and while the world burns down around us I'm going to keep reviewing for One Movie Punch. And that's a fact! Today’s movie is THE GREAT HACK (2019), directed by Karim Amer and Jehane Noujaim. This is one of those films that will pit Twitter user against Twitter user, Subreddit against Subreddit, Facebook grannies against 'woke' anti-Facebook pilgrims, Russian bots against other Russian bots. But no matter your political leaning, whatever label you choose for yourself, there's a story here and they're trying to tell it. The story focuses in on Brittany Kaiser, and through interviews and supporting characters and archive footage, it puts a framework that seems like it's asking you to feel sorry for Cambridge Analytica, their exposure, their role in the 2016 US Presidential Elections, the Brexit vote. They were hired to do a job, given data from Facebook and information about their targeted audiences, and they say in THIS FILM that they exploited psyops that should be regulated by the UK Government. But, you know, they exploited it anyway, and exposed the most vulnerable in the world's populations to seek a particular outcome. This is a film that aligned itself kinda with my left-leaning worldview, but then asked me to have sympathy for those involved at a personal level, and then asked me to consider the ramifications of these psychological operations at an international level. And I think it does these things well. Do I have sympathy? Well, no. Am I considering the impact psyops at an international level? Yes. But I fear I'm ill-equipped to deal with it. But we know there will be no satisfactory ending here although THE GREAT HACK attempts to wrap it up. There is no neat bow to go on top. We know now that Cambridge Analytica didn't survive the scandal (although they're still behaving in the same garbage way as another business). We know that Brittany Kaiser dramatically left England but didn't need to. And we know that there's been no real justice here, because there's been no real crime - despite military grade psyops being utilised against a civilian audience. This is a movie that should have us all outraged. It tells the story of our own data used against us to target us for our baser instincts. And the (attempted) undermining of democracy pursuant to a pound or two from the Brexit campaign. Instead I came away... well, tired. A bit over it all really. THE GREAT HACK feels like it underscores the fact that honesty and integrity are dead and this is the post-script. Last time I reviewed a documentary that was FYRE: THE GREATEST PARTY THAT NEVER...

Hi everyone! One of our goals before we close out the quarter is to review every film nominated for either a Golden Globe or an Oscar this year. Sometimes this can be tough, especially for international films that get very limited showings in the United States and even fewer streaming opportunities. Sometimes it can be tough when an underseen film gets the nomination, like today’s review for MOTHERLESS BROOKLYN. We’re lucky to have Jon-David back to help us out with today’s review. For a few other reviews from Jon-David, check out MALEFICENT: MISTRESS OF EVIL (Episode #713), THE CAVE (Episode #706), and RICHARD JEWELL (Episode #692). As you can see, he’s been very helpful in getting these award nominees reviewed this year! Before the review, we’ll have a promo for Jon-David’s serial comedy crime podcast, the Mafia Hairdresser Chronicles. This campy serial podcast is based on Jon-David’s time cutting hair for a cocaine-trafficking couple in the 1980s. All the voicework is done by Jon-David, with the help of a few filters and editors. Don’t miss a single episode! Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << MAFIA HAIRDDRESSER PROMO >> ///// Hello, this Jon-David aka Mafia Hairdresser, the writer and performer of the podcast The Mafia Hairdresser Chronicles, a campy crime comedy based on my time as a celebrity hairdresser in Hollywood in the 80s. Today’s movie is MOTHERLESS BROOKLYN (2019), a crime drama mystery rated-R film written, directed, and starred in by Edward Norton. Released in 2019, MOTHERLESS BROOKLYNalso stars Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Bruce Willis, Willem Defoe, Bobby Cannavale, and Ethan Suplee. No Spoilers. This is the film I was really looking forward to watching, but it did not do great at the box office. I saw the trailers and the movie starred Edward Norton. The trailers looked good. And I love Edward Norton as an actor. But I had my first negative foreboding moment about this film when I saw that this film was written for screen by Edward Norton and directed by Edward Norton in the opening credits. Sometimes studios throw money at their talent because of the films the actor has agreed to be in. The studio then rewards the actors by letting them make a movie. That could be good or bad. The story of MOTHERLESS BROOKLYN focuses on Norton’s character, Lionnel Essrog, called Freakshow because of his Tourette’s Syndrome, and he comes to the rescue of his shady detective agency boss, Frank Minna (Bruce Willis), who may or may not have been “detectivizing” on a case for the love of money or the love of justice. Freakshow and his detective co-workers, played by Bobby Cannavale and Ethan Suplee, end up having to take over the detective agency and they try to get to the bottom of the case Willis was working on, and which cost him everything. The time is the 50s. Brooklyn. Men wear hats. Proper women wear gloves. And Edward Norton’s character is a man with troubles. The reason Freakshow pursues the case, which lead him and his friends into the world of corrupt politicians’ illegal use of eminent domain and profiteering by gentrification, is his love for his boss, as well as falling for the housing rights activists caught up in the middle, played by Gugu Mbatha-Raw. Norton’s character Lionel, Freakshow, may have tics and seemingly random burst of words that actually tell each character he is in the scene with what he thinks of them, shows us how hard he has to work to get the information that he wants to solve the crimes of the politicians. But Freakshow also has a superpower, and that is that he is brilliant finding clues and leads, and he is tenacious and in love. What really didn’t work for me in this film was that each character that Freakshow has a scene with, whether it be Alec Balwin who plays Moses Randolph, the evil city planner architect whom all the murder and crime...

Hi everyone! Welcome back for another Matinee Monday. Some weekends it’s easier to pick a film than other weekends. And generally, whenever Pixar releases a new film, we’re first in line to check it out. Stay tuned for my review of ONWARD in a minute, but for a couple other Pixar films we’ve reviewed, check out INCREDIBLES 2 (Episode #169) and TOY STORY 4 (Episode #531). Before the review, we’ll have a brand-new promo from our good friends at The VHS Strikes Back podcast. Every week, Dave and Chris blow the dust off an actual VHS cassette, then watch and discuss the film. You can find out more on Twitter @vhsstrikesback or on Facebook and Instagram by searching for The VHS Strikes Back podcast. Don’t miss their two guest episodes during last year’s Reign of Terror 2019, with reviews for ALIEN VS PREDATOR (Episode #605) and 30 DAYS OF NIGHT (Episode #626). And don’t miss their recent guest review as Comics in Motion for BIRDS OF PREY (Episode #720)! Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << VHS STRIKES BACK PROMO >> ///// Today’s movie is ONWARD (2020), the Pixar animated film directed by Dan Scanlon and written for the screen in collaboration with Jason Headley and Keith Bunin. ONWARD takes us to a world of magic, populated by fairy tale and mythical creatures, but after science has replaced magic in their everyday lives. Ian Lightfoot (Tom Holland) is an elf living at home with his mother Laurel (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and his older brother Barley (Chris Pratt). On his sixteenth birthday, Ian and Barley are given a staff from their long-dead father, which contains a spell to bring him back for one day. But when the spell fails halfway, the brothers embark on a quest to find a gem to finish the spell and see their father one last time. If you’re not crying right now, I don’t know what’s wrong with you. No spoilers. In addition to being a movie nerd growing up, I was also a role-playing nerd. I absolutely loved to play Dungeons & Dragons, but like most folks, I had trouble finding a group that could meet regularly. My love for fantasy transferred into reading multiple franchise novels and playing the many RPG video games making their way to consoles. Before nerd culture was accepted, I was teased for all of that. After the explosion in nerd culture, I’m just one of the many unshowered masses at conventions and theaters. All those intellectual properties and characters I loved growing up are now heading to the big screen, at least seven of which we previewed before ONWARD. I’m really happy about all of that, but sometimes seeing those adaptations comes to life and having everything at your fingertips takes away... well, the magic of it all. And that’s the key theme being explored in ONWARD. ONWARD is definitely a coming of age story disguised as a family road trip film, built within an amalgamated, modernized fantasy world. You can catch all that from the trailer. But as happens with most Pixar films, there are always more than one larger subtexts to explore. ONWARD, in many ways, builds off the same themes of fantasy and reality, and coming of age, as seen in the TOY STORY franchise. But ONWARD also looks at what our world becomes when we lose the magic in our lives, even when magic is all around us. The fantasy creatures and the idea of magic in ONWARD are easily substitutes for ourselves and the miracles of the technology around us. We’re often told to let go of that magic in our lives, and ONWARD meditates on what happens when we wildly give into that magic, even when it seems hopeless. Worldbuilding is always important to Pixar franchises, created with a sense of embedded meaning, and operating by a specific set of rules crucial to the overall story. ONWARD not only opens with a brief history for the technological evolution of the world, but also walks us through a day in...

Hi everyone! Welcome back for our last two weeks of One Movie Punch for first quarter. We’re wrapping up the quarter with a bunch of great films from your favorite critics. Today, I’ll be reviewing THE ART OF SELF-DEFENSE and talking about toxic dojos. And tomorrow, I’ll be reviewing ONWARD, the latest Pixar offering. On Tuesday, Jon-David returns with 2020 Golden Globe nominee MOTHERLESS BROOKLYN. On Wednesday, Shane Hyde returns with his review of THE GREAT HACK, a real-life horror story happening right now. On Thursday, Christina Eldridge returns with a review of TOKYO GODFATHERS, recently remastered and released back in theaters by GKIDS. On Friday, Andrew reviews SWALLOW, another Fantastic Fest indie pickup in theaters. And on Saturday, I’ll return with a review of LETO, a Russian film about the band Kino, as part of our Under the Kanopy series. Over on our Patreon page, at patreon.com/onemoviepunch we just posted our full interview with Swedish filmmaker Jimmy Olsson, where we talk about his latest short film ALIVE, his upcoming feature film SECOND CLASS, and about ableism and representation in cinema. It’s a short interview, but we were glad he could make the time. You can check out our review for ALIVE in Episode #735 from last week. While you’re at our Patreon page, be sure to sign up at any level to help fund future content. Your contributions go to help paying our expenses and to help us grow with our audience. You’ll also become eligible for Sponsor Sundays, where you get to force me to review a film of your choice, as long as we haven’t reviewed it yet, with just a few exceptions. A promo will run before the review. Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << SPONSOR SUNDAYS PROMO >> ///// Today’s movie is THE ART OF SELF-DEFENSE (2019), the dark comedy written and directed by Riley Stearns. Casey (Jesse Eisenberg) is an introverted accountant, who struggles to connect with other people, and lives alone with his lap dog. But when his worst fears come true one evening, leaving him beaten nearly to death, he enrolls at the local karate dojo to learn the art of self-defense. And ends up learning a whole lot more. No spoilers. Content warnings for abusive relationships. When folks think about martial arts, they generally see it through one of two lenses. First, the rise in mixed martial arts and other fighting competitions, where two individuals square off following a strict set of rules. Second, the immense library of well-choreographed martial arts films, often more effective at entertaining audiences than in actual combat. Both lenses give parts of the truth about the martial arts, and often serve as a draw for potential students, but fantasy and reality are often two very different things. Films like the IP MAN franchise have helped to show the more realistic origins of modern martial arts schools, and have also lead to confronting the more shameful and abusive practices within some historical and modern martial arts schools. Of course, the lens through which I learned about martial arts was THE KARATE KID (Episode #278), probably the most famous film about toxic dojos, and a clear influence on today’s film. THE ART OF SELF-DEFENSE takes a closer, darker look at martial arts, specifically at the dojo or gym level, with a dojo that is like Cobra Kai on steroids. Male-dominated, highly hierarchical, and lead by a very toxic Sensei (Alessandro Nivola). Casey’s quest to learn how to defend himself becomes our journey into just about every toxic aspect of modern dojos. THE ART OF SELF-DEFENSE isn’t just about toxic dojos, but the kind of students that are attracted to these locations. Casey is the timid beta male looking to not just defend himself, but to gain confidence in his everyday life, a claim often made by martial arts schools. And it’s true, most martial...

Hi everyone! We’re closing out the week with another entry in our series, Under the Kanopy. Kanopy is a library and university funded streaming service that grants card holders six free streams a month, featuring a combination of classic, mainstream, independent, and international films. They currently have streaming deals with some of our favorite distributors, like A24 and Kino Lorber, which offer the critically acclaimed, if not commercially successful films. Today’s film was one recommended early last week, when I was suffering from a migraine and looking for distraction while the medicine worked. While not getting any recommendations on Twitter, I got an avalanche of films on my Facebook page. A good friend had been recommending this film for quite some time, and after catching it on Kanopy, I can see why he was so excited. I’ll have my thoughts on THE BATTLE OF ALGIERS (1966) in a moment. For a few other films in this same series, check out MARIANNE AND LEONARD: WORDS OF LOVE (Episode #731), HAVE A NICE DAY (Episode #724), and TO DUST (Episode #717). Before the review, we’ll have a promo from our good friend Rory Mitchell, from the Mitchell Report Unleashed podcast. He was gracious enough to have yours truly on as a guest recently, which you can check out in Mitchell Report Unleashed Episode #173. You can follow Rory on Twitter @officallyrory, on Facebook @mitchellreportunleashed, and on Instagram @re3684. You can also subscribe to the podcast at anchor.fm/rory-mitchell8. Don’t miss a single episode of his insightful interview-driven show. Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << MITCHELL REPORT UNLEASHED PROMO >> ///// Today’s movie is THE BATTLE OF ALGIERS (1966), directed by Gillo Pontecorvo, and written for the screen by Franco Solinas, based on a story developed by both. In 1954 French-occupied Algeria, Ali La Pointe (Brahim Hadjdadj) is recruited into the FLN (National Liberation Front) by Djafar (Yacef Saadi). Over the next three years, the FLN recruits and organizes the people into a revolution against the French, which escalates into a full-out counter-insurgency operation lead by Colonel Mathieu (Jean Martin). No spoilers. Growing up in the 1980s and 1990s, I knew a lot of people who served for some period of time in Vietnam. Up until our occupation of Afghanistan, Vietnam was the longest war the United States was ever involved in, spanning roughly twenty years from 1955 through 1975. An entire generation of soldiers committed to occupying a foreign country. It’s a strange position for the United States to find themselves within, having kicked off the decolonization era with the American Revolution, but the United States also wanted to get in on the colonization action wherever it could after World War II, especially if France was withdrawing. It would take us twenty years to learn what the French did before withdrawing: occupying another country without the consent of the people is generally impossible without the application of brutal, draconian policies. Of course, the French didn’t actually learn the lesson after withdrawing from Southeast Asia. France simply couldn’t support a long-term war halfway around the world and rebuild at home, so after relinquishing their claim in 1954, they consolidated around their other colonial territories, including Algeria in North Africa. The French had already segregated Algiers into European and non-European quarters, along with segregating the economy along those same lines. Revolution was in the air, especially after the French were kicked out of Asia, and rather than accept that colonialism was being dismantled, the French doubled down in Algeria, leading to the first major phase of the Algerian War for Independence, documented in today’s film. THE BATTLE OF ALGIERS has two key strengths. First, and foremost, is...

Hi everyone! It’s Friday, so we’re back with another Fantastic Fest review from Andrew Campbell. After trying to guess the plot for the last few movies, I have decided to stop doing that. I think this film was entitled AFTER MIDNIGHT, but it was actually SOMETHING ELSE. That was the original title, actually. SOMETHING ELSE. Andrew’s gonna let it all hang out in a minute, but for a few other recent reviews from Andrew, check out JALLIKATTU (Episode #730), THE CALL OF THE WILD (Episode #726), and BLISS (Episode #723). Before the review, we’ll have a promo from the Ocho Duro Parlay Hour. Every episode, the ODPH Crew covers a wide variety of topics from sports and popular culture, with a little something for everyone. A huge shout out to Ken at ODPH for becoming a sponsor of One Movie Punch. We can’t thank you all enough for your constant support! You can find them on Twitter and Instagram @odparlayhour and on Facebook @ochoduroparlayhour. Get the avalanche of content you deserve! Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << OCHO DURO PARLAY HOUR PROMO >> ///// Hello film fans! Andrew here. Back with your weekly dose of Fantastic Fest goodness. Today’s movie is the first film from last year’s Fantastic Fest that I got that chance to watch - not at the festival itself, but at home the week beforehand. I got a screener link to this one and my excitement for checking out really any film from the upcoming festival was ratcheted up to the max. I’ll be up front and say that this one did not live up to my overly lofty expectations, but in hindsight this is a film that has stuck with me more than most. Today’s movie is AFTER MIDNIGHT (2019), written by Jeremy Gardner and co-directed by Gardner and Christian Stella. Gardner directs himself in the lead role of Hank, a bar owner in a rural southern town. Hank and his girlfriend of ten years, Abby (Brea Grant), reside together in an old ancestral home surrounded by overgrowth and with no neighbors in sight. Discontent with their simple life waiting for marriage that may never happen, one day Abby disappears, leaving nothing but a note behind. Beleaguered Hank begins to lose his grip, spending his days with his buddies at the bar and his evenings protecting his house from what he insists is a monster that visits each night and left its mark on his front door. This is a low-budget independent film so it’s kind of an easy target to nitpick. The film uses a series of flashbacks to set up the early days of Hank and Abby after they first move into the house. These scenes drag on longer than needed and feature both forced acting and sugary prose. The film’s atmospheric score feels misplaced here and (at least with the cut I saw) is loud enough to wash out parts of the dialogue. From a character perspective, every scene centers on Hank. We eventually get a good sense of who Hank is, though his likability may vary by viewer. Abby receives short shrift in the establishing shots - she’s cute and affable, yet fairly one-dimensional. But do not despair. If this were a relationship drama, I might have checked out early on. However, this is a Fantastic Fest selection, so you know the story is going to go somewhere unexpected. What initially drew me to this film was two of the producers, Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead. Together, Benson and Moorhead co-directed two Certified Fresh films beloved to genre film fans. 2014’s SPRING unleashed the body horror and 2017’s THE ENDLESS told the story of a UFO death cult. Well, that duo returned to Fantastic Fest in 2019 with their producer credit on AFTER MIDNIGHT, as well as the US premiere of their co-written and co-directed film SYNCHRONIC starring Jamie Dornan & Anthony Mackie which, six months after the festival, I have still yet to see. Back to the movie at hand. You can see some of the same touches that...

Hi everyone! Today we’re welcoming back Keith Lyons for another review. We’re batting cleanup this month with a few Oscar and Golden Globe nominations. PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE was recently re-released in US theaters, and we’re lucky to have Keith on the case. Of course, we’ll just have to forget about that whole finding Keith an English-language film thing from last time. For a few other recent reviews from Keith, check out HONEYLAND (Episode #715), LES MISERABLES (Episode #680), and ATLANTICS (Episode #669). Before the review, we’ll have a promo from our good friends Aicila and Erik at Bicurean. Every episode, they explore a different topic, looking for the underlying issues, and finding common ground whenever possible. You can find them on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram @bicurean, or check them out at bicurean.com. Be sure to like, follow, rate, and subscribe! And don’t forget to check out their recent guest review for FROZEN II (Episode #685). They’ve been huge supporters of One Movie Punch over the past year, and we cannot recommend them enough! A promo will run before the review. Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << BICUREAN PROMO >> ///// Hi, Philly Film Fan here with another review for One Movie Punch. You can follow me on Twitter @PhillyFilmFan. Today’s movie is PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE(2019), the 18th century French drama written and directed by Céline Sciamma. I wasn’t able to catch PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE when it played the Philadelphia Film Festival but I’m delighted to be catching up with it now. No spoilers. Since its debut at Cannes, where it won Best Screenplay and a Queer Palm, PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE has continued to rack up awards, nominations, and accolades, including Best Foreign Language nominations at the Golden Globes and BAFTAS. It was also nominated for 10 Césars (France’s equivalent to an Oscar) but only managed one win for cinematography. The top prize went to LES MISÉRABLES (Episode #680) and if you’d like to hear my review of that film, check out episode 680 of One Movie Punch. But the big headline from this year’s César Awards was definitely the announcement of Roman Polanski’s win for best director, immediately followed by Adèle Haenel leading the entire PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE team as they walked out of the theater in protest. Haenel has been an outspoken critic of the French film industry’s tepid response to the #MeToo movement and Roman Polanski drugged and raped a 13-year-old child. You might be wondering: What is wrong with the people in charge of the César Awards? And while we don’t have time to get into that now, I can tell you that the entire board of directors resigned a month ago. PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE begins on a rowboat, with Marianne (Noémie Merlant) making a journey to a small island off the coast of Brittany in France. Marianne is an artist and she has been commissioned to paint a portrait of Héloïse, played by the aforementioned Adèle Haenel. But when Marianne arrives she discovers that Héloïse refuses to sit for a portrait, and that Marianne must pretend to be Héloïse’s companion, in order to observe her, then retire to her room to paint Héloïse’s face by memory. This is all necessary to marry Héloïse off to a Milanese nobleman, a scheme concocted by Héloïse’s mother, La Comtesse (Valeria Golino)... you know, from HOT SHOTS! ...and BIG TOP PEE-WEE! ...and HOT SHOTS PART DEUX! The relationship between Marianne and Héloïse is central to PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE. Héloïse is a member of the nobility, but her privilege comes at a price. She is treated by her mother like a helpless child, and is not even permitted to go for a walk unsupervised. Héloïse’s entire life has been mapped out for her, and she must marry a man she has never even met because it is her duty to strengthen her family’s position....

Hi everyone! Welcome back for another Indie Wednesday. Every Wednesday we like to feature a microbudget or independent production, and sometimes we’re lucky enough to chat with the filmmakers themselves. Today, I’ll be reviewing ALIVE, the latest short by Swedish filmmaker Jimmy Olsson, which takes a fun look at sex and ableism. We’ll hear a few snippets from our interview with Jimmy during this review, but for a few other similar episodes, check out our reviews for TURBINES (Episode #721), CLOSURE (Episode #707), and SANDOW (Episode #693). We’ll have a bit of format switch today. Before the review, I’ll run the audio for the full teaser trailer for ALIVE. Check the show notes for a link to the video, along with English subtitles for those who need them. Throughout the review, I’ll be splicing in segments from our short interview. You can listen to the full interview on our Patreon page this coming Sunday. I was very thankful for the opportunity to speak with Jimmy Olsson. Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << ALIVE TEASER PROMO >> ///// Today’s movie is ALIVE(2020), the dramatic short written and directed by Jimmy Olsson. Victoria (Eva Johansson) was a combat athlete until she suffered a brain hemorrhage, leaving her partially paralyzed and with a case of aphasia. She’s cared for by Ida (Madeleine Martin), who helps her with regular tasks and transportation, and spends time with her boyfriend Anton (Philip Oros). When Victoria asks Ida if anyone would want to be intimate with her, they create Victoria a Tinder page, which leads to a tense moment. No spoilers. Growing up in rural Illinois during the 1980s and 1990s, I didn’t have much interaction with the disabled community. Most of my exposure was with individuals who were once able-bodied, but lost a limb, or had acquired a degenerative illness. It was also the vast majority of the noble depictions of the disabled community on the big and small screen, and it gave me the mistaken impression that being disabled was a matter of bad luck or old age. It didn’t help that our district’s approach to specialized education at the time was grouping and isolating them, and the big and small screen gleefully mocked those individuals. It wasn’t until college when I met someone with cerebral palsy that I had my own notions challenged. It forced me to greatly expand my notion of what disabled meant and how it affected people differently. It also made me want to see more realistic depictions of the community in film and television. The last twenty years have seen a great expansion for representation, beginning with mostly token roles and expanding into multiple shows and feature films. Which made me wonder where Jimmy got the idea. JIMMY: “I listened to a podcast last summer and I heard a similar story about a carer and the disabled person. It was a similar story about a disabled person who wanted to have an, I think it was an escort, or something. There was a moment the carer wasn’t allowed in the disabled person’s home when the escort was arriving. I saw a drama there, if the carer doesn’t know who’s showing up, and what could happen, and what will happen, and who’s fault is it if something goes wrong? That inspired me to write this story.” One of those topics, previously thought to be taboo about the disabled community, is sex. We speak so much about the social integration of the disabled community that we forget that each person is more than their disability, including very real, very powerful sexual feelings. Film and television abound with able love stories, but ALIVE allows us to consider the possibilities of love and sex for the disabled community in the modern age. JIMMY: “I think many, many people... many able people have a certain view of disabled people, how they look, and they judge people if they look a certain way or...

Hi everyone! It’s Tuesday, and today we’re welcoming back One Movie Spouse to the podcast, with a review of a film she’s been wanting to see for a very long time. In many ways, the film reminds me of how she and I first met, and how unlikely we seemed to so many people. Of course, I wasn’t able to watch it with her, so I’ll just have to assume that everything works out fine. For a few other recent reviews from One Movie Spouse, check out MISS AMERICANA (Episode #725), BOMBSHELL (Episode #701), and LITTLE WOMEN (Episode #673). Before the review, we’ll have a promo from our good friends at the How I Met Your Friends podcast. Every episode, Julie and Kathleen examine one episode of each hit sitcom, exploring the hidden connections and easter eggs within each episode. Don’t miss their recent guest review for CATS (Episode #699), along with the reason they got stuck with the review. You can find them on Twitter @himyfriendspod, and on Facebook and Instagram @howimetyourfriendspod. Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << HOW I MET YOUR FRIENDS THROW PROMO >> ///// Hello! It’s me Amy, AKA One Movie Spouse, back for another review. MWAH! A week-long break from school has me catching up on films I've been dying to see! Today’s film features two of my favorite actors, Seth Rogen and Charlize Theron. Listen to my review, then catch me on Twitter @OneMovieSpouse to keep the conversation going. Here we go! Today’s movie is LONG SHOT (2019), directed by Jonathan Levine and written for the screen by Dan Sterling and Liz Hannah, based on a story by Dan Sterling. The film follows the unlikely relationship between two old neighbors: a shlubby journalist named Fred Flarsky (Seth Rogen) and a high-powered diplomat Charlotte Field (Charlize Theron). This comedy is about politics, social status, compromise, and above all else, trusting your heart *and* your gut. No spoilers! LONG SHOT is both a political comedy and a romantic comedy rolled into one. The film opens to Fred as a passionate and unapologetic journalist, reporting on issues that matter to the world, when his newspaper is bought out by a large media conglomerate. Highly relevant to real-life today! Fred sees himself as a voice for the voiceless. We turn then, like most romcoms, to introducing the highly influential Charlotte, who never stops working. They couldn’t be any more different, and are living in two different social spheres, when an unexpected event brings them together. I enjoy both of these actors very much and was pleased from the very beginning of the film. They make their somewhat cliché opposites attract story seem believable and enjoyable! In addition to a fun love story, LONG SHOT also tackles some highly relevant issues today. Fred, as a journalist, is highly passionate about the environment, which Charlotte also shares, but while Fred is an idealist, Charlotte is a realist. Throughout the film, compromise is a key theme. Compromise (right or wrong) happens all the time as deals are negotiated and evolve. Compromises are also often disappointing and highly frustrating. Charlotte is under immense pressure as a diplomat to negotiate a compromise, which challenges Fred’s idealism. Charlotte and Fred’s relationship becomes a small mirror examining international relationships and our own decisions and compromises. This film also had an excellent supporting cast adding to the richness of their story. Lance (O’Shea Jackson, Jr.) is Fred’s best friend, who wants nothing more than to see his bro succeed and be happy in life! His presence throughout the film is reassuring, and made you feel like you were one of their friends. Maggie Millikin (June Diane Raphael) does an excellent job in her role as a personal assistant to Charlotte, giving just the right amount of tension and skepticism toward Fred as he re-enters...

Hi everyone! Welcome back for another Matinee Monday. You know, trailers usually go one of two directions for me. I generally try to avoid them to enjoy that pure initial viewing experience. Some trailers I get really sick of, really quick. But the trailer for THE INVISIBLE MAN has been nothing short of exciting, especially after being blown away by 2018’s UPGRADE (Episode #155). If you’re turned off because of the SAW and INSIDIOUS franchises, I assure you that today’s film is not that. It’s something much, much more. Before the review, we’ll have a promo from the Honey, You Should Watch This podcast. One Movie Spouse and I had the pleasure of guesting on their show recently to discuss ONE CUT OF THE DEAD, which Andrew Campbell reviewed in Episode #625, and which has become one of my favorite films of all time. You can find them on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram @HoneyWatchThis, or check out all their episodes, including ours, at honeyyoushouldwatchthis.podbean.com. Don’t miss a single episode! Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << HONEY, YOU SHOULD WATCH THIS PROMO >> ///// Today’s movie is THE INVISIBLE MAN (2020), the Dark Universe franchise film written and directed by Leigh Whannell, based on the classic novel by H.G. Wells. Cecilia Kass (Elisabeth Moss) narrowly escapes from an abusive relationship to a multi-millionaire optics engineer named Adrian Griffin (Oliver Jackson-Cohen). After Adrian commits suicide, Cecilia receives some unexpected benefits, which come with some unseen drawbacks. See what I did there? Or rather, didn’t? No spoilers. However, definitely content warnings for abusive relationships and sexual assault. At the top of the episode, I gushed a lot about Whannell’s last film, UPGRADE, which took folks by surprise in 2018. I’m not a huge fan of the SAW franchise, nor did I care for INSIDIOUS, but that particular week there wasn’t much else playing, and I was glad I took the time. In particular, Whannell used a great fixed-point camera trick that made the fights within the film have a realism and focus necessary to use an otherwise played out, high-tech version of body possession. That new take on an old idea was what made his helming of THE INVISIBLE MAN so exciting to me. My excitement only increased when Moss was announced for the lead, after her incredible work on “Mad Men” and “The Handmaid’s Tale”, along with her underseen role last year in HER SMELL (Episode #650). All of that experience clearly fed into THE INVISIBLE MAN, which focuses on gaslighting in abusive relationships, instead of the other serial-killer and/or misunderstood monster plot lines from before. We were going to get something new, with the right skill set at the helm and in the lead role, and let me tell you, it is excellent! The trailer gives you all the setup you need to know the basic opening of this film. The film opens with Cecilia’s daring escape, much more difficult than you might expect when someone is an obsessive controlling force. Adrian commits suicide, leaves her money, and then someone begins terrorizing Cecilia at the house she was staying at after her escape, and wherever she seems to go. The terrorism begins like patterns familiar to anyone who has been in an abusive relationship. Little gaslighting events that make Cecilia question her reality, and others to question her sanity. It’s a slow build up, but once it takes off, it really takes off, with two gasp-inducing events sure to shock anyone out of their listlessness. Once Cecilia knows she’s fighting against an invisible foe, we get to see the real power of Whannell’s direction and camerawork, utilizing a lot of practical and greensuit effects to create gorgeous long-take fight scenes. You get a taste of the hallway fight in the trailer, but there are three other scenes that expertly execute and...

Hi everyone! Welcome to March! Things have been super busy around here at One Movie Punch as we begin to wrap up first quarter. This week we’re coming in with a slate of five Certified Fresh films, including tomorrow’s review for THE INVISIBLE MAN, Tuesday’s review of LONG SHOT from One Movie Spouse, Thursday’s review of PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE from Keith Lyons, Saturday’s review of THE BATTLE OF ALGIERS from your truly, along with today’s review of THE ASSISTANT. Andrew will be back on Friday with his review of recent VOD release AFTER MIDNIGHT as part of his Fantastic Fest coverage. And on Wednesday, I’ll be reviewing ALIVE, a short film from Swedish filmmaker Jimmy Olsson, with interview clips. We’re so busy, in fact, that we actually won’t have a Patreon episode today. But don’t let that stop you from heading on over to patreon.com/onemoviepunch to check out our exclusive content, including interviews with filmmakers, update episodes, and series like “One Movie Punch Presents: Zero Percent”, where I review films which have achieved the lowest possible score at Rotten Tomatoes. And if you sign up to become a patron, you will become eligible for Sponsor Sundays, where I’ll review a film of your choice, with just a few exceptions. A promo explaining things will run before the review. Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << SPONSOR SUNDAYS PROMO >> ///// Today’s movie is THE ASSISTANT (2019), the slice of life drama written and directed by Kitty Green. The film follows a day in the life of Jane (Julia Garner), an assistant to a high-power media executive, as she navigates the mundane and the horrific aspects of her entry-level position. No spoilers. However, a content warning for sexual harassment, abusive work relationships, and toxic work environments. Toxic work environments abound in our society. It doesn’t matter whether it’s private or public, for-profit or non-profit. It can be a minimum wage job, or in the case of THE ASSISTANT, a high-power corporate environment managing a great deal of money. Wherever you have an organization with a hierarchical structure, some percentage of those who are promoted into managerial positions will let that power go to their head, and will begin to cultivate toxic environments. Because unless you have a strong union contract, chances are you are employed at will, and no matter how much your boss wants to be your friend, they will always choose to fire you if it becomes necessary. At-will workplaces tend to have the most toxic environments and we get to see it on full display in today’s film. Whereas BOMBSHELL (Episode #701) was clearly focused on the three leading actors, and covers the highlights and major events of the Fox News scandal, THE ASSISTANT takes a more mundane and grounded approach with its slice of life framing. Jane’s story unfolds before our eyes, from catching a ride to work to open the office, all the way through closing up for the night, at her employer’s insistence. Jane has been an assistant for two months, so she still has to deal with the scut work, not just making copies or picking up lunches, but even washing dishes and taking out trash and whatever someone else doesn’t want to do, including her fellow assistants with more experience. This perspective alone provides incredible insight into toxic work environments, but THE ASSISTANT also explores the effects of sexual harassment and abusive bosses, which is where it really takes off. It’s pretty obvious the target of THE ASSISTANT is Harvey Weinstein, or any number of highly paid media moguls who hold unspeakable power over their companies, if not their industries. We actually never get to see Jane’s boss, which allows us to insert whatever toxic boss we may have had in our past. But we do get to hear his voice, an effective technique as Jane gets dressed...

Hi everyone! We’re closing out the week with another entry in our series, Under the Kanopy. Kanopy is a library and university funded streaming service that grants card holders six free streams a month, featuring a combination of classic, mainstream, independent, and international films. They currently have streaming deals with some of our favorite distributors, like A24 and Kino Lorber, which offer the critically acclaimed, if not commercially successful films. Today’s film covers one of my favorite artists, both while growing up, and in retrospect as I have time to learn about him. Leonard Cohen was a Canadian writer, probably best known for his musical work, and especially a track called “Hallelujah”, which was used in almost hilarious fashion in Zach Snyder’s WATCHMEN. Today’s documentary looks at his time with early muse Marianne Ilhen, and the development of his music during their time on the isle of Hydra in the 1960s, long before heartache, depression, and disease crept in throughout his life. I’ll have my thoughts on MARIANNE AND LEONARD: WORDS OF LOVE in a moment. For a few other films in this same series, check out HAVE A NICE DAY (Episode #724), TO DUST (Episode #717), and TRANSFORMER (Episode #710). Before the review, we’ll have a promo from the Top 5 from Fighting podcast. Every episode, Greg and Mike discuss a wide range of topics, and when they disagree, you know they’re gonna fight about it! Always fun, but always contentious, you don’t want to miss a single episode. You can find them on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram @Top5forFighting. They have been some of our biggest supporters from last year. Shout out to their Marketing Angel. You know who you are! Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << TOP 5 FOR FIGHTING PROMO >> ///// Today’s movie is MARIANNE AND LEONARD: WORDS OF LOVE (2019), the documentary film from long-time documentarian Nick Broomfield. The film follows the troubled relationship between writer/singer/songwriter Leonard Cohen and his muse, Marianne Ihlen, from their meeting on the isle of Hydra to their ultimate breakup over Cohen’s obsession with his musical career. No spoilers. We have a tradition in our household of giving books to each other for Christmas. I try to find a book or two for One Movie Spouse and One Movie Spawn, and they try to do the same for me and each other. I have a list of books I’m always looking for, which I send along ahead of time. But Amy always tries to find a book that I might enjoy, but didn’t ask for, and this year that was Leonard Cohen’s “The Flame”, a collection of his old writings, song lyrics, and last works, compiled after his death in 2016. I have been a fan of Leonard Cohen’s music, having been turned on to him after picking up a Greatest Hits CD at the library a while back, and realizing I knew a lot more of his songs than I thought. But I didn’t know much more than the music, and even less about the man himself. So, I thought it was a fun treat to get to do just that. And ironically, after I finished reading a book by Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh, I dove right into “The Flame” for an education. Subconsciously, I think what appealed to me about Leonard Cohen is how similar his spiritual outlook was to that of Jack Kerouac. I got a taste of that while reading “The Flame”, but the parallels really hit home while watching MARIANNE AND LEONARD. Both had roots in Canada, came from middle-class homes with strong religious influences, both fancied themselves as writers, and spent their lives travelling to find inspiration for their writing. In fact, if there’s any major difference, it’s the choice of drugs and location. Kerouac traveled around the United States, looking for his inspiration, fueled mostly by alcohol, marijuana, and speed. But Cohen eventually found a home on the isle of Hydra, where he took...

Hi everyone! It’s Friday, so it’s time for another Fantastic Fest feature from Andrew Campbell. This week will feature absolutely no BS. No wait, I’m sorry, this film will be full of BS, and I mean actual bullshit. Not a bunch of lies and stories for which the term bullshit is used, but actual bullshit, along with actual bulls, who have an actual prize tied to their horns called... JALLIKATTU! Don’t miss Andrew’s other recent reviews for THE CALL OF THE WILD (Episode #726), BLISS (Episode #723), and SCHOOL’S OUT (Episode #716). Before the review, we’ll have a promo from our good friends at the Moviedrone podcast. Every week, Steve & Marc focus on one feature film, assign each other homework, interact with the audience, and of course, the incredible stylings of Marc’s Movie Impressions. You can find them on Twitter and Instagram @movie_drone and on Facebook @Moviedronepod. Be sure to like, retweet, share, follow, and most importantly, subscribe! Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << MOVIEDRONE PROMO >> ///// Hello film fans! Andrew here, back today with wild film out of India. When discussing the Indian and American film markets, people generally compare Bollywood versus Hollywood. When you get into the weeds on these terms, Bollywood refers specifically to films produced in Mumbai (which was known as Bombay when the term “Bollywood” was originally coined). Now, the term has taken on more of a colloquial meaning to describe the sum total of all films produced in the country, which includes smaller studio markets such as Tollywood and Kollywood among others. Likewise, “Hollywood films” once referred to movies made in the L.A. suburb that housed most of the major film studios, but now typically refers to American films made anywhere in the country but within the larger studio system, which excludes independent films. Hey Joseph, you’re gonna fact check all this, right? JOSEPH: “Seems legit.” In any case, there were roughly one thousand films released in the United States last year and roughly double that figure in India. Let’s see if we can figure out why this one broke out of the herd and got picked up by Fantastic Fest. Today’s movie is JALLIKATTU (2019), written by R. Jayakumar & Hareesh S., and directed by Lijo Jose Pellissery. The film stars Antony Varghese as Varkey, the lone butcher in a remote Indian village. Varkey is preparing a buffalo for slaughter when the massive animal breaks free and runs rampage through the town and surrounding jungle. With the buffalo wreaking havoc, the women and children take shelter while the men attempt to recapture the beast. Mobs begin to form and the petty squabbles that have existed between the men of the village for years get in the way of the task at hand. The film opens with a little bit of character work, giving us a soft introduction to a number of the villagers. However, once the buffalo breaks loose, the film quickly descends into chaos. Maybe it’s cultural differences, or the way the story spends the next hour shunting between one chaotic scene to the next, or the exponential growth of extras as more and more men show up, but I lost track of all the main characters and their collective personal dramas. This left me fairly bored and all but disengaged for the bulk of the film’s runtime. Nearly every moment of the film is filled with men talking over each other, men shouting at one another, or men abusing their spouses. The film stampedes the viewer with constant cacophony… but maybe that’s the point. Stepping back and looking at the movie from a distance, it’s clear that the film was not made with the western audience in mind and the creators were probably pleasantly surprised to see it picked up by TIFF (the Toronto International Film Festival), Fantastic Fest, and likely others. With that in mind, it’s probably more fair...

Hi everyone! We’re back with another review from Jon-David, aka the Mafia Hairdresser, who is absolutely determined to pick up all our missing award nominees and winners from last year, including today’s underhyped film, PAIN AND GLORY, featuring a commanding performance from Antonio Banderas. We’re excited to get Jon-David’s take on the film. Don’t miss his recent reviews for MALEFICENT: MISTRESS OF EVIL (Episode #713), THE CAVE (Episode #706), and RICHARD JEWELL (Episode #692). His promo will run before the review. Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << MAFIA HAIRDRESSER PROMO >> ///// Hello, this Jon-David aka Mafia Hairdresser, the writer and performer of the podcast The Mafia Hairdresser Chronicles, a campy crime comedy based on my time working for a Hollywood cocaine trafficking couple in the 1980s. Today’s movie is PAIN AND GLORY (2019), written and directed by internationally-acclaimed Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar, and stars Antonio Banderas, Penélope Cruz, Leonardo Sbaraglia, and Asier Etxeandia. No spoilers. PAIN AND GLORY stars Antonio Banderas as writer/director Salvador Mallo. The film opens to Mallo’s memories of childhood, growing up poor with his mother, Jacinta (Penélope Cruz). As the story moves along, we see Salvador Mallo’s physical pain as an adult, which makes you think he might be nearing the end of his career of writer/director. Between the storylines of Antonio Banderas, as Mallo, rejecting the call to write and direct again (which is, figuratively, the breath of his life), and his romanticized flashbacks of Penélope Cruz raising him and molding him into the artist that he has become, you’ll begin to notice how the real director of the film, Almodóvar, uses music, light, color, and even his actors to tell his story. You see, in the films of Pedro Almodóvar, the story is not only enjoyable and straightforward or complex, he is also commenting on the subject of his stories. In this film, PAIN AND GLORY, he is commenting on the PAIN his main character has to endure when he feels his GLORY days as a film director are over. PAIN AND GLORY is rumored to be highly autobiographical and includes straight up tellings of Almodóvar’s religious education and his family expectations that he would become a priest. Antonio Banderas, as the film director, has to address his own ego and the way he has gone through life soaking up lovers, friends, colors, and experiences, but not fully experiencing them. Only writing them and filming them. I hope that when you see PAIN AND GLORY, you’re with a group of friends who likes to view film and talk about them afterwards. This film is actually not just autobiographical, a story, or a portrait. It is a statement from Pedro Almodóvar. He is showing you the brushes, his tools in which he paints his stories with. Although the main character is a film director who suffers for his art, you will see his tortured contemplation of his past films, brilliantly played by Banderas, who tries to maintain relationships, at arm’s length, to protect his own drug use. Almodóvar, the openly gay director, loves to tell the public what he thinks. He loves to show you his opinions in his films, and PAIN AND GLORYis his conversation directly with his film fans. He is telling us that, as close to the truth about his life and demons that he can show you, it will never be enough or real enough. But that the pursuit of showing you is the best anyone can do. Filmmaking, to him, and his main character, is like “chasing the dragon”, a term used by heroin users, also depicted in this film by Banderas, who suffers and strives to tell stories by making movies which only achieves him finite glory once his films are completed. Both the use of Antonio Banderas and Penélope Cruz in this film, along with his use of color, is another example of how...

Hi everyone! All right, we’re hitting the pause button on Indie Wednesdays for another contractually-obligated review from Shane Hyde, due to the peace accords signed after last year’s Reign of Terror 2019. Shane and I had a minor month-long disagreement you can check out beginning with One Movie Spouse’s review for CAN YOU EVER FORGIVE ME? (Episode #594), and heading through the entire month of October. Today we’ll have another installment of his beat we like to call Horror Stories, and today’s a gem from 2009 entitled THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL. Don’t miss his recent reviews for WOUNDS (Episode #694), RUST CREEK (Episode #654), and NIGHTMARE CINEMA (Episode #647). Before the review, we’ll have a promo from our good friends at the Cinema Recall podcast. Every episode, The Vern takes a look at iconic scenes in classic movies. You can find them on Twitter and Instagram @cinema_recall, and also subscribe to their podcast at anchor.fm/cinemarecall. Don’t miss a single episode! Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << CINEMA RECALL PROMO >> ///// Kia ora! I’m Shane Hyde, back to review another movie for you all. I’m a Kiwi living in Australia. Everything down under is currently on fire or underwater so I’m staying inside and reviewing movies. Let’s go! Today’s movie is THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL (2009), written and directed for the screen by Ti West, and starring Joselin Donahue and Tom Noonan. This film is written and directed by Ti West. Not a huge name but he works almost exclusively in horror and will later go on to direct THE INNKEEPERS (2011), which was pretty fabulous. In THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL, his work is readily evident in the direction. Sometimes almost too evident in these long, lingering shots. They went on. And on. 2009's HOUSE OF THE DEVIL takes a rather interesting approach to the movie's tone. The whole setup is in homage to the horror films of the 1970s and early 1980s. Everything from the type of film used, to the title card of the film, is something of a throwback. This deliberate design choice lends itself to a kind of 'rediscovered treasure' feeling of the film. And for the whole, it's really effective. And this tonality, the camera work, colour grading all fits together with the script. It's a slow burner, almost innocent for the most part. This HOUSE OF THE DEVIL lacks devils, but makes up for it with a small, odd assortment of characters. Samantha (Jocelin Donahue), and our proxy in this film, is a young woman motivated to take on a babysitting job due to a shortness of cash. I love her role in this film; she has agency and drives the story along. Even towards the climax of the film, she keeps on fighting. Our main antagonist, Mister Ullman, played with not-too-creepy desperation by Tom Noonan, looms over each scene he's in. His on-screen wife Mrs. Ullman (Mary Woronov) almost too macabre, but not quite Addams Family camp. Both are glorious and luscious additions to the film. In the end, I keep trying to convince myself that this is a good film. Aside from a few notable and minor scenes, there's nothing to hint that this house is indeed THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL. In fact, once she's situated as the babysitter, there's nothing much about the house that makes your skin crawl, or even Samantha’s skin crawl. But isn't that what the 80s Satanic Panic was all about? Your neighbors might have been worshippers, appeared normal, had neighborhood bbqs like anyone else? And then presto-change-o! They're painting pentagrams in blood and playing Dungeons and Dragons. This isn't a bad movie, it’s just not a great movie. The pacing doesn't match with our modern sensibilities. The artistic choices and camera work definitely play into its favour, but at its core it’s all sizzle, no bacon... and in the end, the truth is that there's something truly wrong with all of the pizza in...

Hi everyone! Welcome back for another Takeover Tuesday, and this one is going to be a real treat. I’m not going to lie. Kolby’s been straight teasing me about being on this podcast for about 18 months. Yeah, sure, he’s got his own podcast entitled Kolby Told Me, which you’ll hear about before the review. Yeah, sure, he’s co-host for the Minorites Report Podcast, that drops weekly doses of perspective on popular culture. But, it wasn’t until I sent him the Puss In Boots meme with the saucer-eyes and welling up tears that he finally broke and said he would do it. That’s because we get our guests here at One Movie Punch the old-fashioned way. By guilt-tripping. Kolby will be up in a moment with his review, along with his personal promo beforehand. Thanks for making the time, Kolby! Speaking of Takeover Tuesday, do you think you have what it takes to guest on One Movie Punch? Head over to onemoviepunch.com/takeover-tuesday and learn more about how you can guest here at One Movie Punch. We still have three (3) slots available this quarter for aspiring and established film critics to take the reins for an episode. We’ll run your promo before the review and will place it in regular rotation for the quarter. If it sounds like something interesting to you, reach out to us over social media. Subscribe to stay current with the latest releases. Contribute at Patreon for exclusive content. Connect with us over social media to continue the conversation. Here we go! ///// << KOLBY TOLD ME PROMO >> ///// THE PHOTOGRAPH (2020) centers on Michael Block (LaKeith Stanfield), a journalist touring a distressed town in Louisiana, set to interview one of its residents, Isaac (Rob Morgan). Isaac details his life, his struggles, his accomplishments and regrets. Michael comes across a photograph of a striking young woman who he’s told is Christina Eames (Chanté Adams), a famed photographer from New York who was his greatest love that got away. Michael’s focus shifts and so does his story which leads him to Christina’s daughter, Mae (Issa Rae). She’s been grappling with the complex emotions of Christina’s recent and unexpected passing and it’s not made any easier because of their estranged relationship. She finds several letters and a photograph tucked away in a safe-deposit box. She begins delving deep into her mother’s early life and this photograph serendipitously unites her and Michael in an unexpected romance that changes the way they both view life and love. Writer/Director Stella Meghie crafts a simple and tender love story between two couples across different periods in time. The narrative construction of the screenplay is very much poetic and almost lyrical in its design. Her direction is sleek and displays an intentional highlight of the characters in this story and how they move in the world she’s built. There’s a subdued, yet melodic and jazzed grit to the outer New Orleans 1980s love story between Isaac and Christina, juxtaposed to the smooth and refined Neo-Soul infused eroticism of Michael and Mae’s New York romance. Both distinct, but both tracing similar journeys of intense passion and unmet expectations. The dueling stories progress the plot delicately to both Michael and Mae, that takes twists neither of them could’ve expected yet are fulfilled authentically in the end. I was skeptical of what LaKeith and Issa could bring to the screen in their 1st big shot at leading roles, and I’m glad to say they blew me away. Their chemistry was evident, and their sexuality was steamy. The entire ensemble worked well balancing the other injections of comedy and drama throughout the film, particularly, Lil’ Rel Howery’s Kyle, older brother to Michael. He was an always welcomed sage, offering these anecdotes of wisdom with his comedic flair. What makes this story unique, is not the grandiose love affair we’ve become inundated with, but how this film revels in its simplicity. Which may also serve to what could limit this films appeal to...