Musical

Sinners Sins So Well

/ / Movie Reviews
  • Title: Sinners
  • IMDb: link

Featuring Michael B. Jordan in dual roles as dangerous twins who return home to the Mississippi Delta with ill-gotten gains to set up their own juke joint, writer/director Ryan Coogler‘s Sinners is one part period drama which examine the lives of the tightknit community and one part supernatural thriller as something evil is drawn in by the music of the twins’ cousin Sammie (Miles Caton) all taking place during a single day and night.

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The Ballad of Wallis Island

/ / Movie Reviews
  • Title: The Ballad of Wallis Island
  • IMDb: link

Tom Basden (who wrote the songs used in the film and co-wrote the screenplay with Tim Key) stars as famous, if floundering, musician Herb McGwyer who arrives on a remote island for a private concert to a pair of surprises. First, the reclusive millionaire Charles (Tom Key) who has hired Herb is the only audience member for the concert on the near-deserted island. And, second, he has also invited Herb’s former partner Nell Mortimer (Carey Mulligan) who he hasn’t spoken to in almost a decade.

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A Complete Unknown

/ / Movie Reviews
  • Title: A Complete Unknown
  • IMDb: link

“You’re kind of an asshole, Bob.”

There’s a scene between Bob Dylan (Timothée Chalamet) and Joan Baez (Monica Barbaro) after their first night together that sums up the themes of the movie succinctly. Returning to music over her, while also offering an offhand dismissal of her work, Bob still brings her back to his bed through his songwriting. In a nutshell, just as Ms. Baez so eloquently puts it, Bob is indeed an asshole. However, he’s one hell of a talented asshole.

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Emilia Pérez

/ / Home Video
  • Title: Emilia Pérez
  • IMDb: link

Not all of Emilia Pérez works. The film is a home run hitter swinging for the fences at every at bat. Sometimes it knocks a scene out of the park. Sometimes it strikes out on three pitches, all well outside of the strike zone. It’s a musical featuring mostly conversational songs which occasionally are unexpectedly bolstered by a full choir. It’s a story about transition and change but is highlighted by characters falling back into bad habits which question how much people actually change. And it’s a tale of characters struggling with real emotional turmoil in a plot that is more interested in melodrama.

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Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas

/ / Home Video
  • Title: Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas
  • IMDb: link

Released in 1977, Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas introduced us to the struggling family of Emmet (Jerry Nelson) and his mother Alice (Marilyn Sokol) who have been scraping by since the death of Emmet’s father. As Christmas rolls around both struggle to get the other a gift. Each separately latches on to the idea of earning money by winning the local talent contest. However, to meet the needs of the show, each must trade the other’s prized possession with Alice hocking Emmet’s toolbox and Emmet putting a hole in his mother’s washtub.

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