Thief's Monthly Movie Loot - 2022 Edition

Your recommendations are usually spot on, and this one seems to be on the spotlight right now, so I'll consider it.

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For Your LGBTQ movie I recommend Wrangler, the story of Jack Wrangler. It is a documentary of a gay porn icon. Very entertaining look at gay life in the seventies.

I think there are a lot of great choices---just depends on what kind of mood you're in.

Also, Kwaidan is a great film, so I'll third that recommendation.

EDIT: I think you've already watched another of my underseen (IMO) faves, 4th Man Out. It's currently on Hulu, Tubi, and a few other services.

I'd also like to shout out

Comedy
I Love You Phillip Morris
Shortbus (this one is graphic though)
Straight Up

Drama
A Single Man
God's Own Country
BPM
My Beautiful Laundrette
Funeral Parade of Roses
Parting Glances
Tiger Orange
Tropical Malady

Documentary
Paris is Burning
Portrait of Jason
Check It
Seed Money
Scream, Queen!

Thriller
Stranger by the Lake
Burnt Money

Horror
Hellbent

It is, best if you've seen In The Mood For Love prior to it though (I think I remember you've seen that one?)

Sadly, I only got to two May films--Bong Joon-ho's Mother for the "Mother" category, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness for a fantasy film. Unsurprisingly, Mother was very good. Doctor Strange ... well, you can see entropy having its effect on the MCU, let's just say.

Oh yeah, seen it. Cheery little film that one

Mother is great. Probably tied with Parasite for my favorite Bong film (still need to see Okja)

Set in an alternate reality, The Heart of the World follows Anna (Leslie Lais), a scientist studying the Earth's core (or "heart"). As she is being courted by two brothers: Nikolai (Shaun Balbar) and Osip (Caelum Vatnsdal), a theater actor, she discovers that the "heart" of the world is in danger and she must warn the population to avoid a catastrophe.

This is a very interesting short film, not only for its odd plot but mostly for the way it is constructed. Writer and director Guy Maddin set out to make a film that was as frenetic as possible, at roughly two shots per second, but also constructed in a style that is reminiscent of very early German and Russian silent films, like Metropolis.

The plot doesn't make a lot of sense; there is a fairly evident subtext of science vs. religion vs. capitalism, the latter represented by an industralist that seduces Anna, but everything is presented in such a frantic pace that it doesn't quite let you absorb it. Still, at the end of the day, it all takes a backseat to the interesting execution which is the driving force of this short film.

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Written and directed by Forugh Farrokhzad, The House Is Black is a documentary that follows life at a leper colony in rural Iran. It features footage of various residents going on about their daily routines while contrasting it with frequent narration of quotes from the Bible or the Qur'an by Farrokhzad herself; quotes that often, like the one above, clash with the visuals of the film.

The visuals are tough, especially when seeing the toll that leprosy has taken on the children. However, Farrokhzad makes a point of showing us the casualness of life in the colony, men playing board games or talking, the happiness of children while playing ball, or women putting on makeup and brushing their hair.

When I watched this a couple of weeks ago, I had no idea what it was about; didn't even know it was a documentary, so it caught me by surprise. But then again, I suppose that's the intention. Per the opening quote, it's obvious that Farrokhzad's intention was to open our eyes to this "ugliness", and let us know that there are ways to remedy it, but moreover, that there is still beauty in it.

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For anyone interested, this week I was a guest at the Best Film Ever podcast, talking about Blade Runner for its 40th Anniversary. We had a lot of fun diving into the plot and talking about its interpretations and themes.

Best Film Ever - Episode 128 - Blade Runner

Check it out on that link, or on any podcasting platform. Enjoy!

I don't know why I'm stumbling across this thread*, but I'll just mention that while calling Funeral Parade of Roses a drama is not inaccurate, it does undersell the fun aspect of it. Calling it, "art-house genre film from the end of 1960's Japan," is the best qualifier I could give for it if someone is trying to guess tone.

*: I guess I don't know what I'm recommending a movie for, but I guess I'm recommending that.

Yes, that's fair. It is super fun and creative.

But as I was putting the films into broad swaths, "drama" seemed like the best fit.

Yeah, like I said, it's not inaccurate. It's one of those movies I've been recommending to people over the past decade, and it crossed my mind, given the title, it's from the 60's and is black & white, people might see "drama" and think it's very somber. And you know, it concludes with such a feel good ending.

LOL.

It is, I think, kind of hard to classify. But I would also highly recommend it and it's a ton of fun.

Finally dropped the latest episode of The Movie Loot. Episode 63 features my first returning guest, multitalented artist Keram Malicki-Sanchez comes back to the show to talk about Suburban Magical Realism. So if you like films about weird and strange occurrences in the neighborhood, then check it out!

The Movie Loot 63: The Suburban Magical Realism Loot (with Keram Malicki-Sanchez)

So put on your walkman or turn up your boombox and check it out on the above link, or on any of these podcasting platforms: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or any other. Thanks for the support!

Set in a small rural town, Near Dark follows Caleb Colton (Adrian Pasdar), a young man that meets Mae (Jenny Wright), a young drifter, without knowing she's a vampire. Eventually, he finds himself on the run with her vicious "family", led by Jesse Hooker (Lance Henriksen) and the psychotic Severen (Bill Paxton).

This is a film I've heard mentioned very often, but for some reason, I hadn't gotten around to it. After seeing it, I have to say I wasn't as enamoured with it as some people are. I think the main character is mostly bland, and his romance with Mae is poorly written, and the way the plot unfolds is a bit of a mess at times.

But what the film does very well is to create a certain vibe or atmosphere around the characters that carries all the way through. That, and a kickass performance by Paxton, who steals every scene he's in. Henriksen is solid as well, if not too subdued. I just wish there was more thought put into the logistics of the story.

As it is, the film ends up for me kinda like Caleb, in a weird middle spot between night and day, good and bad, its strengths and flaws. I just wish that, much like him, we could just transfuse the bad out of it.

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A Gun for George follows Terry Finch (Holness), a struggling writer dealing with the aftermath of the murder of his brother George at the hands of local thugs. Finch channels his anger through a series of cheap crime novels about a viligante called "The Reprisalizer", who is determined to take on the thugs of Thanet in Kent.

The thing is that Finch's apparently not very good, if we believe the editor in the opening scene, who lashes at his "erratic plotting", "sledgehammer prose", and "disquieting ball fixation". But more importantly, his constant anger at everyone and everything seems to be driving him more into the shoes of his violent character, and therefore into insanity.

Set in the 1970s, A Gun for George does a great job balancing the real tragedy of its character and plot, with a cleverly handled dark humor and a more introspective character study. The way the tone is handled is masterful. It also manages to create a very real feeling of the time and place it's set in. From the locations and production to the way the film is shot, including some clever fantasy moments where Finch imagines himself as "The Reprisalizer", you really believe the film is from the 1970s.

Holness, who served as writer, director, and main actor, does a great job with all those roles. His performance is full of little moments that go beyond the comical and into the tragic. The awkward uneasiness of Finch and his bubbling anger at everybody, paired with the bits where we see him pondering about his life and the future while becoming more and more unhinged, it all makes for a worthy watch.

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Brats follows Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy as two parents trying to relax and enjoy a night of checkers and pool while their two bratty children constantly interrupt them, with hilarious results. Something that I'm sure every parent in the world can understand and identify with (maybe not the "hilarious results").

The short is fairly simple, but notable for various reasons. First, it is one of those early insances where actors play two characters in the same film, and the result here is pretty seamless. Add to that the big/small special effects, and it makes for a really impressive short.

But other than that, I found it to be fairly amusing. As someone that's not that familiar with the comedy of Laurel & Hardy, I found their comedic timing to be great. Not something that blew my mind, but still made me chuckle.

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Generally speaking, the idea of "summer school" has several connotations: first, nobody wants to be there; second, that it is made easier for "dumb kids" to catch up in order to keep enrollment numbers; and three, that it is a waste of time to spend the summer studying instead of having fun. All of those collide in this lighthearted teen comedy from the late 80s.

Summer School follows Freddy Shoop (Mark Harmon), a PE teacher slacking his way at a California high school. When he reluctantly gets stuck teaching Remedial English during summer school, it's clear that neither he nor the students wants to be there. Shoop then has to find creative ways to reach the students and help them pass, while also helping them with their numerous personal issues.

The "dumb kids" that he has to teach all have different situations, most of which are revealed as the film progresses, but that range from parental and academic expectations, unknown learning difficulties, pregnancy, and economic issues. In order to win them over, Shoop bargains with them in exchange of favors, like driving and football lessons, lending his house for a party, or even accompanying a pregnant student to her Lamaze classes.

I remember seeing this a couple of times when I was a teen and, even though I don't think it has any specific memorable quality, it did stuck with me. When I found myself with this challenge for the month, and being in need of a "light" watch, I thought it was a perfect option. Although the film does have a ton of flaws, I think it holds up fairly well, if you approach it with the right expectations.

I spent a good chunk of my career (15 years) teaching, so the way that Shoop's reckless teaching methods are sometimes portrayed as "cool" made me roll my eyes a couple of times; like the aforementioned bargaining. There's also little to no effort given to follow up on most of the students' arcs, or even Shoop's. Most of their issues are resolved miraculously, or are just brushed over.

Still, there is a certain earnestness to how this group of students bond that I found endearing. Most of the characters are likable, and the film doesn't resort to some of the usual stereotypes of bullies, nerds, and jocks. All these kids, from the nerd to the "weirdos" to the jock, like each other and I found that refreshing. I also appreciated that the film didn't really give us a miraculous ending, instead going for a somewhat realistic resolution.

There are other issues I had with the way the romantic relationship with fellow teacher Robin (Kirstie Alley) unfolds, and how unnecessary the "love triangle" approach with the Vice-Principal was. There is also an impressive, but awkwardly unnecessary sequence with gory special effects (by an uncredited Rick Baker), but I still had fun with it; certainly more fun than some kids have at actual summer school.

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The above is an excerpt of a review from Anton Bitel on this, David Lynch's first film, and should give you an idea of what to expect. With a 4 minute runtime, Six Men Getting Sick features no plot, but only an animated painting of six figures vomiting and spitting, over and over (six times, actually).

The short film was developed by Lynch while he was studying at Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, on a $200 budget. It was well received while also giving us a glimpse of the kind of things we should expect from Lynch in the future, in terms of abstraction.

There really is not much to say about it. With its brief runtime, it is an interesting curiosity to watch, even though its repetitive nature and in-your-face sound can be tiring to some people. Then again, that's Lynch for some of you.

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