Films That I Saw: November 2025

 

The year is one month away to ending and this has been a bad year for everyone. The government shut down did end but the costs are great as Americans are living in a dictatorship. This month was not as bad as the previous but considering the rising costs and all the shit that is happening. 2025 is not going to end well despite the election results turning towards left though will it really mean anything? New York City just elected a socialist mayor in Zohran Mamdani who plans to change things that will upset the wealthy which will be a good thing. Still, I am uncertain if these changes will do any good as there is just so much chaos around as I am just over it.

It is not just things in America that is bad as the rest of the world is also going through problems as Ukraine is now likely to lose their conflict with Russia and it is a reminder that the bad guys have won again. There was a massive fire at a Hong Kong building and all sorts of things. Here at home, things are OK despite there being a minor car accident earlier this month though my mother, my niece, and I did not have any injuries though my van only had exterior damage. I am more worried about how much the ticket I will have to pay in January. The newest problem we have at home is that our big smart TV in the TV room has died as this is upsetting for a lot of reasons as I watch things on that TV as it is connected to the Blu-Ray player I bought a few years ago. My mother is really upset as she likes to watch YouTube and all sorts of things on that TV as well as play music loud. Fortunately, we will get a new one next month as both a birthday and Xmas present for her. Other than that, everything is just OK despite how bad things are now.

In the month of November 2025, I saw a total of 9 films in 7 first-timers and 2 re-watches with 2 first-timers being films directed or co-directed by women as part of the 52 Films by Women pledge. An improvement from the previous month as the highlight of the month is my Blind Spot film in Notorious. The other highlight of the month has been Die My Love as I will not post a best first-timers nor a re-watch list due to the small amount of films I saw this month.

Monthly Mini-Reviews/What Else I Am Watching

Heroic Doses



The things I do for Jena Malone, as this short film that she and Rachel Leigh Cook appear in as dinner guests at a dinner party, is among the stupidest things I have ever seen. Directed, co-written, and starring Dugan Gundelfinger, it is a short film about a dinner party where Gundelfinger talks about some things where he is tripping on things as it goes into some weird things. At first, it was interesting due to style of filmmaking that include puppetry and such but then it gets really dumb. Especially the climax as it involves everyone in the film doing something you do not want to do at a dinner table. If I was asked to piss myself in front of everyone. I would be walking out as I refuse to embarrass myself with shit.

Everything in This Dream



A six-minute short film consisting of deleted footage from Inherent Vice by Paul Thomas Anderson. The material that did not make it into the final film is still fascinating as it features some amazing montages with Joanna Newsom’s narration appearing throughout. The short also reveal some great work from Katharine Waterston and Josh Brolin that highlighted how great they were in the film as it is upsetting that Brolin did not get an Oscar nomination for his performance in the film. This is something fans of PTA should go seek out.

Lush: A Far from Home Movie



Among one of the key bands of the shoegaze genre of the early 90s, Lush were unique for their dream yet noisy sound that also carried a melodic sensibility and the gorgeous vocal harmonies of vocalists/guitarists Miki Berenyi and Emma Anderson. This short film from the band’s bassist Phil King features footage from the band touring around the world in the 1990s as it was shot on a Sankyo Super 8 camera. The footage displays the band getting lots of attention in Europe and Japan along with some success in America though their attempt to break into that market in 1996 would prove to be futile as having a band like that tour with the Goo Goo Dolls is just stupid. The songs in the film are from the band’s 1994 sophomore album Split with the last song When I Die being its most appropriate closer as it also serves as a tribute to the band’s late drummer Chris Acland who died via suicide in October of 1996. This is a short that fans of Lush should see.

Oasis



I had this in my YouTube watch later playlist as I thought it was the short film by Gints Zilalobis of Flow fame. Well, it turned out to be something else though the animation is good. It is a short film about an alien who lands in a desert where he finds a seed and meets a giant sand creature who would take the alien to this oasis. It is a good short worth watching.

Fragments for Venus



The 30th short film that is part of Miu Miu’s Women’s Tale short film series from Alice Diop is among the best short films from that series. It is a short film that is about the idea of Venus and what it means to be black. It is shown in two different segments with the first being a woman at a museum looking at paintings where the idea of Venus is white where there are blacks in the background. Then the film moves to Brooklyn where there are many examples of Black women walking around where Venus is alive in well as Black women. It is a great short film by Diop who reminds everyone that Black is Beautiful.

The Beatles Anthology (episodes 1-4)

Now, I am rewatching this series that I saw back in 1995 though this is an expanded version from the 1996 home video releases with some new edits in this remastered edition. I will have a full review of the series though there have been a few things I have noticed based on memory of what they did cut out. Yet, it is just minor cuts as I am glad to revisit this as I grew up on the Beatles while I have yet to hear some of the material in the new fourth disc of the release though I am not a fan of the new mix of Real Love as I think John Lennon’s vocals sound like shit in the new mix among other small bits in the mix that does not work. I am glad though the original 1995/1996 mix is still around.

Well, that is all for November. The first thing I will post in December will be the official announcement of the 2026 Blind Spot Series as the rest of the month will be devoted to some new releases that are available along with stuff related to a few new releases including films I have rented such as Caught Stealing and my final Blind Spot for the year in A Star is Born by George Cukor. As far as theatrical viewings, the only film I want to watch is Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair as I want to watch it in the way Quentin Tarantino intended to as I do not have any interest in anything new that is coming out. I could not keep up with what is coming out as I would rather stay home and wait for the new smart TV that will be a Xmas/birthday present for my mother who wants it more than I do. Once I finish my Blind Spots for the year, I will make an official announcement for plans for 2026 that will include plans on the Auteurs series as I prefer to focus on updating a few past entries in relation to some films I had seen in recent months.



Before I bid adieu, this month has seen many notable figures pass away this month but for me. No one is bigger than Gary “Mani” Mounfield of the Stone Roses and Primal Scream where if you were to ask me some of the all-time best bass guitar players of all-time. Mani would be in my top 5 as the bass lines he provided in the songs by the Roses were just melodic and added that extra element of swagger that made the Roses so beloved. When the band broke up in 1996, Mani would join the Scottish indie band Primal Scream where he would play with them for 15 years as he saved the band from nearly breaking up as he helped raise their game. His passing leaves a major hole in popular music as he was a true original when it came to the bass as he will be missed. The tributes posted all over the world, including members from both bands he played in show how beloved he is. Thank you, Mani. We will miss you.



Other notable figures who have passed away this month include writer Tom Stoppard, Jimmy Cliff, Italian footballer Lorenzo Buffon, Bollywood legend Dharmendra, Jellybean Johnson of the Time, Italian singer Ornella Vanoni, video game designer/programmer Rebecca Heineman, TV writer Dan McGrath from The Simpsons, Todd Snider, journalist Jim Avila, Cleto Escobedo III from Jimmy Kimmel’s TV show, Sally Kirkland, basketball legend Michael Ray Richardson, Lenny Wilkens, the legendary Tatsuya Nakadai, filmmaker Lee Tamahori, molecular biologist James Watson, Pauline Collins, Donna Jean Godchaux of the Grateful Dead, and Diane Ladd. We will miss you all. This is thevoid99 signing off…



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