I can’t help it, guys, I keep ruining Star Wars.
It was bad enough when I liked aspects of The Phantom Menace and enjoyed the other two prequels with what they introduced and expanded upon. But then I went and like The Force Awakens and then found myself loving The Last Jedi. And when you add in that I really loved Rogue One and had a great time with Solo? I know, I know, I’m the cause of the franchise I’ve been watching since it first appeared to be ruined.
I didn’t have a lot of time for movies this past week but I snuck in a few things here and there. One of them was a re-watch of Solo that left me smiling. I know its flaws and it had plenty of behind the scenes drama that it’s surprising that a movie was made at all. And I’m still not convinced the lead was the right actor. But damn if I didn’t have fun with it and the lighter ride along with all of its expansions.
Beyond that, I’m still riding well from my previous viewing of A Simple Favor and had it on again in the background to enjoy. I did some older movie background time as well which was enjoyable since Clueless still weirdly holds up and I took a path down a difficult film with the 1996 Crash film from David Cronenberg. Which are always difficult films on some level.
I did end up hitting two shorter movies that I hadn’t seen before that I picked up on the cheap. The first was What We Do In Shadows as I prepare for the new FX TV series. It’s been on my t0-see list forever but I knew I had to be in a particular mood. I definitely enjoyed it but I suspect that this is something that’ll work even better with a TV format in how it structures things and is able to map out a bigger picture.
I also took in the 2016 film Girl Asleep that’s been in my to-watch pile forever. The little Australian film came from directed Rosemary Myers and the trailer for it looked like a perfectly weird and surreal piece of Australian filmmaking. I’ve been a fan of the offbeat from there since I saw Muriel’s Wedding and this one definitely plays to its own tune and made me laugh and wonder at some of the cultural aspects that likely went by me.
There was, sadly, no time in-theater this past week but I know I’ll be getting out there next weekend for The LEGO Movie 2 as I really want to see that. But I’m also excited for What Men Want as it looks like a blast and I’m keeping an eye on Cold Pursuit as it just looks darkly hilarious.
