Strange Thoughts on Films. Turn Off Your Mind, Relax & Float Downstream.
Friday, January 31, 2025
Films That I Saw: January 2025
Wildfires are raging in California. Eggs are becoming scarce due to chickens getting bird flu with the price of eggs rising. A plane crashed into a Black Hawk helicopter in Washington D.C. Another school shooting here in America. Winter came here in the South and our shit-infested, tiny-dick, Oompa-Loompa-looking motherfucker is back in the White House. January is almost finished with who fucking knows how long this will last. Yes, we are off to a great start to 2025, and it is starting to get really depressing. The fact that people who are Hispanic are getting raided, taken to vans, and be deported in less than a week after Dookie Tank came back is not much of a surprise but the severity of it is. My mother is freaking out, even though she is a resident that had applied for citizenship months ago, over the news as I just read whatever is credible and just try to move on with what I need to do day by day.
I have become burned out by all this political news and everything that happened last year as I chose to stop. I only read what I feel is important and anything else that interests me. Given that I am Hispanic and hearing the news about what has happened, yet I must remember that a majority of Hispanic/Latino voters voted for Dookie Tank to win last year’s election. Now that people like them are being questioned, deported, and exploited by Dr. Phil by all people. All I can say is that they deserve this. They were stupid enough to buy into Dookie Tank’s bullshit and be manipulated by him and Univision. They have no one to blame but themselves and it is not just them. It is everyone who bought into his bullshit as Americans are fickle. They do not want to remember what happened the first time he was our dictator and how bad things are as everyone who voted for him or has supported him or has even celebrated at his stupid inauguration events deserve to get fucked.
I am not surprised that he pardoned those at the January 6th insurrection back in 2021 as it means anyone who is willing to disrupt anything in his favor and threaten those trying to uphold the law can do anything. Those in the government and in the justice department that was trying to hold him accountable for all his criminal actions got fired. Then there is something Joe Biden said in his final speech that has stuck with me despite my own disdain for him as it relates to oligarchy. The fact that Dookie Tank has surrounded himself with three ultra-rich tech figures in Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, and Mark Zuckerberg who all have considerable influences is scary. They can do what they want, and the scary part is that it has already happened, and we just did not see it. They are coming in and taking over for their own bullshit. This is no longer the land of the free and the home of the brave. Lee Greenwood can sing his stupid song all he wants but he is part of the problem because he is a fucking imbecile. Now we are the land of the dumb fucks, and we deserve it.
In the month of January 2025, I saw a total of 23 films in 12 first-timers and 11 re-watches with 4 first-timers being films directed/co-directed by women as part of the 52 Films by Women pledge. A good start to the new year as the biggest highlight of the month for me is my Blind Spot pick in Princess Mononoke. Here are the top 10 first-timers that I saw for January 2025:
Having purchased the Disney+/Hulu/MAX bundle before last year ended because of circumstances that prevented my niece and nephew from watching Disney+ because of password sharing from my sister’s account. One of the first things I saw in this new bundle is this great documentary on yacht rock. A film that explores the music of Southern California that mixed in elements of soul, folk, rock, pop, and mellow it out as acts such as Steely Dan, Toto, Christopher Cross, Kenny Loggins, and the Doobie Brothers would create this kind of music that is just cool. The film also explores the cult that would give the genre its name thanks in part to an old web series based on fiction. Even as the genre would also provide a foundation for hip-hop in the late 80s and early 1990s, that helped give these acts some newfound longevity and street credibility. Still, the documentary does baffle me as it relates to Toto guitarist Steve Lukather who asked why he does not have a yacht? My question is this… WHY THE FUCK DOES HE NOT HAVE A FUCKING YACHT! HE PLAYED ON FUCKING THRILLER OF ALL FUCKING ALBUMS! MOTHERFUCKER SHOULD HAVE A FUCKING ARMADA OF YACHTS! ALL THESE YACHT ROCK ARTISTS SHOULD HAVE FUCKING ARMADAS OF YACHTS!
The Substance: Behind the Scenes
Having achieved five Oscar nominations including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay to Coralie Fargeat, Best Actress to Demi Moore, and Best Makeup and Hairstyling. It is good that The Substance is getting some love in the awards season as it is the film for which I am rooting. From MUBI that they posted on their YouTube channel is this making-of documentary by Fargeat that explores the making of the film. It is an incredible short documentary that highlights the work that Fargeat and her crew did as well as the amount of work that Moore and Margaret Qualley do. It is a truly must-watch film that fans of The Substance need to watch and more reasons why it should win all the Oscars.
Hey Sweet Pea
A short I saw on MUBI as part of their short films section is this avant-garde short by Alee Peoples as it involves a bunch of things such as a man-in-black lip-syncing to phone messages while a couple of women recite lines from The Neverending Story. It has some fascinating visuals but a lot of it is just very pretentious as it never really does anything.
Michelangelo Eye to Eye
Well, it took more than 20 years for me to find and watch this short and it was worth it. I hate the idea that certain artists who would end their career on a down note like Michelangelo Antonioni’s contribution to the 2004 anthology film Eros in The Dangerous Thread of Things was the last thing many saw, and it was terrible. Fortunately for those who bought the film on DVD was able to see another short he did that ended up being the last thing he did as it is finally available on YouTube. It is Antonioni at a church looking at the sculptures created by Michelangelo as it has these unique close-ups of Antonioni getting a close look at these sculptures. It is silent short since Antonioni could barely speak because of the stroke he had in 1985. The film feels like a true finale to one of the cinema’s great artists.
Coffee with Barbie
One of two short films by David Lynch that I saw on YouTube is this weird but fun 4-minute short in which an offscreen Lynch talks to a Barbie doll about his new coffee brand. It is just a funny short Lynch made in his website back in the early to mid-2000s as it is not trying to be anything profound. It is just a fun coffee ad with Lynch wanting us to drink his new coffee even though I do not drink coffee.
Pam & Tommy
Having full access to Hulu as I can watch some things on my laptop in my room, I decided to watch this given the buzz that Pamela Anderson had been receiving for The Last Showgirl even though she didn’t get an Oscar nomination, but she did get a nomination from the Screen Actors Guild which is a validation of who she is as an actress. This limited series that is about Anderson’s marriage to Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee and their infamous sex tape that got stolen does give some valid reasons into why Anderson refused to watch the series, but the show does showcase Anderson in a sympathetic light thanks in part to Lily James’ performance as Anderson. It is a show that is really about misogyny and the male gaze where Sebastian Stan is great as Lee with Seth Rogen in an incredible performance as the man who stole the tape all because he got stiffed of money that Lee owed him. With episodes directed by Craig Gillespie, Lake Bell, Hannah Fidell, and Gwyneth Horder-Payton, the show is a look into a moment in time when the Internet was still new and what they can get away with at that time. It is a show worth watching while it gives people more reason to root for Anderson in her comeback while Lee has become a joke.
Laura Palmer
The second short film by Lynch that I saw on YouTube is another 4-minute short that was from Lynch’s website back in 2002 as it a shot of Laura Palmer from Twin Peaks as she is sitting as the image gets closer as it goes on. With the music of Angelo Badalamenti in the background, the short is a reflection on the loss of that character who would drive the series, yet it is a short that would unknowingly create a bridge for the show’s return in 2018. A show that I need to re-watch and finish as I started it a decade ago as it is now time to return to it and finish it.
The Myth of Orpheus & Eurydice
From Gia Coppola is a short she made for Gucci as it is a take on the legend set in a modern world as it was originally broken into 4 parts with actors and models wearing Gucci clothing. It is a faithful take on the myth with a soundtrack by Devonte Hynes that adds a lot of style to the short. It is worth seeking out anyone that enjoy Coppola’s work.
Beauty is Not a Sin
From Nicolas Winding Refn as it is one of two shorts from him that is shown on MUBI is an 8-minute advertisement for the Italian motorcycle company MV Agusta. It revolves around a woman who walks into a church where she confesses her sins to a priest as there is no dialogue present with only music and the sound of the motorcycle present. With the priest listening, she talks about her fascination for this motorcycle as the ending is the real shocker but for all the right reasons. With Refn planning to return to feature films soon, this is a suitable stopgap release from him.
Skeleton Crew (season 1, episodes 6-8)
The last 3 episodes of the first season are among the best in terms of not just the writing but also in what is at stake and the development of our main characters. Notably the sixth episode that was directed by Bryce Dallas Howard that I think is the episode of the series as well as bearing all the elements into why Star Wars is so awesome. There is a lot of drama but also this sense of adventure with a great climax as the performances of Ravi Cabot-Conyers, Ryan Keira Armstrong, Kyriana Kratter, and Robert Timothy Smith are tremendous. Even as they overcome the reality of what they were dealing with upon their return home while also dealing with Jude Law’s Jod character who is truly a complex individual that is an antagonist, but he is also not a traditional one. The mysterious supervisor at At Attin was not much of a surprise given all the disappointing reveals and twists as this was the franchise playing with all these high expectations but knowing when to play with its audience. The series overall is incredible and bring on the second season!
Well, that is all for January. Next month I will focus on films that are nominated for the Oscars including Emilia Perez, Anora, and whatever films I can have access to as I hope The Brutalist returns to my multiplex. Aside from films nominated for the Oscars and other 2024 releases to catch up on. I will post my Auteurs piece on David Lean which is more than half-finished as there is only a short film from the late 70s that he did that I need to watch. My next Blind Spot film will be Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song to celebrate Black History Month.
Before I bid adieu, this month has been sad considering those who died in both the wildfires in California and the plane crash in Washington D.C. Yet, it is particularly sad for anyone that loves film as the passing of David Lynch has been heavy since he is an immense figure we will miss. Still, there has been many others who passed away this month including some phenomenal figures such as Marianne Faithfull, Garth Hudson of the Band, Joan Plowright, Mr. Baseball Bob Uecker, musician Susan Alcorn, Bruce Howe of the Australian band Fraternity, German actor Horst Janson, Filipina actress Gloria Romero, film producer Jim Tauber, songwriter Buddy Brock, author Joseph A. Amato, DJ Unk, screenwriter Barry Michael Cooper, Malicorne vocalist Gabriel Yacoub, voice actor John Erwin, Jules Feiffer, actress Jan Shepard, Tony Slattery, Leslie Charleson, costume designer Phyllis Dalton, Peter Yarrow, Dale Wilson, Emilio Echevarria, Jeff Baena, Wayne Osmond, and the great John Sykes of Tygers of Pan Tang, Thin Lizzy, Whitesnake, and Blue Murder. We will miss you all. This is thevoid99 signing off…
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