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And we're back with a brand new edition of Looking Back at the Films of 2024. Let's get down to business.
Why I Didn't I See The 4:30 Movie?
It's a tale as old as time. There was no showing at my local theater, so I saved a review for later.
What is The 4:30 Movie?
The 4:30 Movie is a semi-autographical coming-of-age comedy movie, with production being done by Destro Films and SMODCO and distribution done by Saban Films. Kevin Smith both directed and wrote the story.
The story is, Brian David has worked up the courage to ask his crush Melody Barnegat out on a date to the movies along with his friends Belly and Burny. Before Melody joins them for a movie that starts at 4:30, the trio plan on hopping all day. But things might not good as plan when they have to deal with other theater goers, a egotistical manager, and many other problems.
My Thoughts
The Good: Let's start off with my favorite aspect, that being it's actually very heartfelt. Because Kevin Smith was an 80's kid, you can feel the love from that era. Hanging outside with your, sneaking into R rated movies, all of the stuff I imagine your parents would brag about, or at least mine do 😆. What I also loved was this also felt like a love letter to cinema. We do get the typical film fandom stuff like debating future blockbusters, but there was one scene that stuck with me and I really loved. When Brian's at a low point he has a conversation with the Hot Usher (that's what the actress is credited as it's not my label) and they talk about their love for films and how she plans to be a director, and says Brian has that same dream. Brian rejects that saying he just loves movies, but the Hot Usher says that's the first step to becoming a filmmaker. I'm only telling an abridged version but the actual scene is much better. The point is, this love for cinema shines bright and it's one of two of the movie's biggest strengths.
The Bad: I've got nothing.
The Okay: One mix bag is the characters. Now I didn't mind Brian. I don't think by any means he's gonna be a breakout or cult character, but I thought he was already. Even if he's not the most deepest character I think people can relate to him in that shy geeky level. As for the other characters some of them are alright. Burny does have a predictable story arc but it was handled good enough. As for everyone else, well they don't developed but at least they got decent writing. Lastly there's the humor. I do admit there are quite a few good moments. Other times the jokes are predictable or feels like Kevin Smith wants to be as edgy as he was back in his Clerks/Mallrats days, but it's either he doesn't have it in him anymore or he's playing it safe with the edgier stuff.
Final Verdict: Okay.
Why Didn't I See Wolfs?
Simply put I had other plans. For starters I was just starting work for part eight Looking Back at the Films of 2023. So first I had to starting writing stuff, getting posters for an image, watch those movies for that segment and then before I knew it Transformers One was around the corner along side Wolfs. So then I had a decision to make. Transformers One or Wolfs? I went with the Autobots & Decepticons. Because of this already busy schedule I needed to save a review for Wolfs later down the road.
What is Wolfs?
Wolfs is a action comedy movie that was produced by Apple Studios, Freshman Year, Smokehouse Pictures, and Plan B Entertainment with Apple TV+ distributing. Jon Watts directed as well as wrote the story.
The story is, two fixers, one hired by District Attorney Margaret and the other hired by the hired by the hotel owner Pam to dispose of the dead body of a young man and clean up any other messes. But things take a turn when the fixers not only find drugs in the hotel room but also discover the young man isn't actually dead. Now the two fixers must begrudgingly work together and found out how the drugs and the young man are connected.
My Thoughts
The Good: Firstly there's the humor. I had a lot of good laughs with this. The best parts come from the dialogue. One of the good lines is "My car. My guy. Fuck you." Then there's Jon Watts' directing. Where was this kind of directing with his Spider-Man films? Watts shot a gorgeous looking New York. Great looking sleek cityscapes, moody lighting, giving the film a very noir inspired style. So ask again, Disney and Marvel, why did you have Jon Watts tone it down for his Spidey flicks? Then there's the chemistry between George Clooney and Brad Pitt. Correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think we've seen these two share since Burn After Reading. But despite that long time away from each other their chemistry is fantastic. Their razor sharp banter and back and forth was fun throughout the whole movie.
The Bad: I've got nothing.
The Okay: Now I'll fully admit it, there's quite a few times when you can predict where the story is going. But I felt like I could forgive the movie for that simply because I had a really fun time with this.
Final Verdict: Good.
Why Didn't I See Saturday Night
Now I did want to see this movie because I really liked the premise, but much like The 4:30 Movie, there was no showing. Which made sense because around Sept 27th it only had a limited theatrical release. So finding a showing in Ohio was gonna be difficult to not find anything. Then when Oct 11th came around for the movie to have a wider release, I was more focused on the horror movie Mr. Crocket.
What is Saturday Night?
Saturday Night is a biographical comedy movie based the events of the very first episode of Saturday Night Live, more specifically about the behind the scenes. Production was done by Columbia Pictures and Reitman/Kenan Productions with Sony Pictures Releasing doing distribution. Jason Reitman directed and wrote the screenplay alongside Gil Kenan.
The story is, it's October 11th, 1975 and novice producer Lorne Michaels arrives at NBC Studios in New York to prepare to air the first episode of his comedy sketch show Saturday Night (now known as Saturday Night Live). But this isn't gonna be a peaceful first airing like everybody hoped it would. There's problems with the set, the sound system is messed up, the cast alternates between hostile and rebellious, and the crew is open to revolt. If Lorne doesn't solve all of these problems soon NBC will pull the plug.
My Thoughts
The Good: Firstly I'll give credit to the pacing. This is a breeze of a movie to get through. I didn't feel like a single minute was wasted. Then we have Jason Reitman's directing. He's got a good handle on controlled anarchy. With his whip pans and roving camera, you truly feel like you're in a chaotic environment. And I loved every moment. Now I want to praise Gabriel LaBelle as Lorne Michaels. He's clearly just trying to achieve his dream of making a show that nobody's seen before, and Gabriel captures that with his voice, you can hear the passion and drive. But I think his best moment came when he wasn't talking but walking away to just briefly take a break from all of the chaos. You can see in LaBelle's body language that he almost feels defeated and might be on the verge of giving up. It's a really great performance.
The Bad: I've yet again got nothing for this section.
The Okay: The only mix feelings I had was with the comedy. It a little ironic that a movie about a revolutionary comedy show has quite a bit of hit or miss jokes. I did laugh quite a bit, especially with a few bits of dialogue and heavy implications of poor Jim Henson's puppets being put in compromising positions as it was put in the movie. But you don't have moments that just didn't work. Maybe they'd be more funny if I had more knowledge of SNL back in the 70's?
Final Verdict: Good.
Okay that's a wrap. Come back on Thursday, Oct 2nd, for my review of the newest Amazon Prime movie, Play Dirty. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.
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