Strange Thoughts on Films. Turn Off Your Mind, Relax & Float Downstream.
Thursday, October 31, 2024
Films That I Saw: October 2024
We are days away from the upcoming U.S. elections and honestly, it is the scariest day of the year. Notably as this country is a mess where inflation has really been kicking everyone in the ass and there is a lot of uncertainty in what will happen after the election. Even though there are 2 candidates that are both unappealing. Yes, Kamala Harris is the more reasonable of the two candidates, but will she continue to do things like Joe Biden? There are things with Biden’s administration that I do not like as he is someone that lacks the balls to get anything done. I do not think Harris will make things that much better though she is the better option of the two. Still, that is not enough to go out there and vote as I do not believe in democracy. Voting is a fucking waste of time.
It is bad enough that I am getting mail from my local election board to get me to vote as I either would tear it to pieces or use it to wipe my ass. It is another thing when I must hear it from my sister telling my mother on the importance of voting as I am like “oh fuck off with that bullshit.” I had two terrible experiences with voting and why would I waste my time going somewhere knowing that my vote does not matter when it is the electoral college that ends up making the decision in the end. Then there is the aftermath of what happens when Harris might get elected leading to MAGA crowd going into a riot or create another insurrection. Do we want to go through that again and become a bigger laughing stock around the world?
I am fucking tired of all this shit and all these political ads. I do not care for politics because it is bullshit. Personally, I would love to see Dookie Tank and his new bitch JD Vance be sent to pound-me-in-the-ass prison with Poo Doody, Harvey Weinstein, and R. Kelly where they can share a cell and fuck each other to their deaths. I would also love to see many of Dookie Tank’s celebrity supporters like Cunt Hogan be deleted from existence.
In the month of October, I saw a total of 21 films in 11 first-timers and 10 re-watches with six of these first-timers being films directed/co-directed by women as part of the 52 Films by Women pledge. A slight improvement of last month as a highlight of the month has been my Blind Spot film in Rebecca. Here are the top 10 first-timers that I saw for October 2024:
James Gunn’s debut short film is a two-minute and forty-five second that serves as public service announcement on the dangers of buying a hamster. Made with associates of Gunn when he was working for Troma Entertainment at the time. It is a hilarious short that highlights a boy buying a hamster while a woman in a bikini tells him to not buy it as a lot of insane shit happens. It is a fun short as well as something fans of James Gunn should seek out as he is going to be a future Auteurs subject next year.
The Art of Filmmaking
WARNING: ANYONE THAT HAS EPILEPSY SHOULD NOT WATCH THIS FOR THE SAKE OF THEIR HEALTH.
This 15-minute short film that served as a precursor to Lux Aeterna is a film essay of sorts that has Noe creating montages of silent films by Cecil B. DeMille with King of Kings being the dominant footage used in the film. The film features odd narration by Noe as it serves as a form of hypnosis while the images would flicker with aspect ratios changing throughout the entirety of the short. It is not a film for everyone, and it fits in with what Noe was doing for Lux Aeterna. The last thing I would want to do is be responsible for someone having a fit or get someone to watch something and then die.
The Miu Miu Affair
The 28th short film as part of the Women’s Tales short film series from the Miu Miu brand from Prada is from Argentine filmmaker Laura Citarella is about a famous model who does a shoot in this small Argentine town and then suddenly disappears. A police chief, a detective, and a clairvoyant go on with the case while the clues they find turn out to be some Miu Miu clothing as it is a short that is full of fun and joy. Notably as Citarella allow these ordinary women wear some of these expensive and fashionable clothing where it gives them a new spark to their lives. Even as the film plays into elements of the absurd as it is one of the best entries in the short film series.
Reality+
The first of two short films by Coralie Fargeat that I watched as her recent film The Substance will be available exclusively on MUBI on Halloween as I hope to watch that before the year ends. Before I watch that film before the year ends and her first film Revenge, there is a short that she did in 2014 that is currently being shown on MUBI as it relates to a man who gets a microchip installed in the back of neck where he gets to become a much more attractive man, but it only lasts for 12 hours. This 22-minute short is full of wit as well as elements of body horror as it plays into the fallacies of fantasy. Even as this man would meet a beautiful woman unaware of what she really looks like though the film’s ending can be described as sweet.
The Telegram
The second short film of Fargeat that I saw that is available on Vimeo is from 2003 as it is a simpler short than her follow-up. This 12-minute short by Fargeat is about two women in a small French town during World War II awaiting a telegram about the fate of their sons. A postman would arrive with a limp right foot as the air of suspense is key to what is happening in whether he would stop at one of their houses or someone else as it works in its ending.
Monster
This short film by Jennifer Kent that served as a prototype for the film that she would make in The Babadook is this 10-minute short film as it plays into a mother dealing with her young son who claims that his doll has become a monster. It is a 10-minute short film that is shot in black-and-white as it has some style as well as this element of suspense and horror.
How the ‘Dook Stole Christmas
This little animated short by Kent is just this hilarious one-minute clip of the Babadook destroying Christmas. It is a short film worth watching for anyone that loves The Babadook.
Agatha All Along (episodes 4-7)
The show so far has been excellent as I love the different styles each episode has brought in while the sixth episode that explores the identity of the teen is so far the best one. Notably as it does reveal what was obvious as it relates to the character of Wiccan/Billy Maximoff and his motivations for going into the Witches Road. The most recent episode gave Pattie LuPone not just one of the best performances of her career, but also a performance that deserves accolades. Still, there are two more episodes left in the series as far as there is a lot of intrigue as well as more about what Agatha is after and what does Rio want.
Blackhat (Director’s Cut)
I did add a few paragraphs in my original review of the film so for anyone that has not seen what I added. It is in the link below as part of the top 10 re-watches as I will say that the director’s cut that Michael Mann released in 2016 is a vast improvement over its theatrical version. Notably as it shifted some sequences from the theatrical cut as well as add a key scene that has bits of humor while also adding more weight to what is at stake. The pacing is much better than the theatrical version as it is the version to see as I am glad that I purchased the Blu-Ray from Arrow which is a must-have for fans of Mann.
Well, that is all for October. Next month, I will focus on films that came out this year as well as related films from certain filmmakers as I do hope to see Anora in the theaters as I do not really have much interest in what else is coming out. Instead, I will focus on films that are available on the streaming services I have including The Substance as well as David Lean’s Summertime as I have just started work on the Auteurs essay on him. As for my Blind Spots, it is likely I will watch Berlin Alexanderplatz on and off for the rest of the year with Senso also being watched for this month or next month. After one of those films is finished, I will make a proper announcement for the films that I will watch for next year’s edition of the Blind Spot Series.
Before I bid adieu and go watch some horror, I want to express my condolences to the following who passed away this month. Among them are Teri Garr, Paul Morrissey, Liam Payne of One Direction, Lily Li, David Harris, Phil Lesh of the Grateful Dead, DJ Clark Kent, TV writer Jeri Taylor, Gary Indiana, Jack Jones, Christine Boisson, cinematographer Dick Pope, Michael Newman from the show Baywatch, baseball player Rudy May, Mitzi Gaynor, Ollie Olsen, Cissy Houston, Nicholas Pryor, and El Toro himself Fernando Valenzuela. The Los Angeles Dodgers won the World Series for him. For Fernando! Until then, this thevoid99 signing off and L.A. This is for you from a Braves fan…
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