May Movie Preview

Hallelujah! The summer movie season has arrived. I'm looking at a month full of locks or near locks with so strong options as well. This'll be a very safe month of choices from the looks of it. I can't wait!

January | February | March | April

2013

March |  April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December

5/2

The Lock: The Amazing Spider-Man 2
Working for It: Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone are fantastic in their roles. Sony is doing a good job of bringing in every available actor they can find to play a villain (specifically, Jamie Foxx, Dane DeHaan, and Paul Giamatti). And, let's not be coy. It's a Marvel movie on the first weekend of May. What else would I be seeing.
Working against It: I did not like the first movie, almost at all. One thing that movie did right, however, is it allowed a lot of room to course correct. If you remember, Spider-Man 2 was the best in that trilogy as it worked the kinks out but hadn't gotten too inflated yet. I'm expecting the same here.
Odds I'll See It: 90%

Other Options:

Walk of Shame
Working for It: I like Elizabeth Banks, Jason Marsden, Gillian Jacobs, Millicent Gergich Sarah Wright, Ethan Suplee, and Bill Burr. It sounds like an Odyssey story with Banks as a news reporting trying to get across town for a big interview which has potential to be packed with small, entertaining stories.
Working against It: A week earlier and it would be a consideration. May is prime real estate with little room for pleasant movies.
Odds I'll See It: 30%

The Protector 2
Working for It: Martial Arts movies are fun.
Working against It: I didn't see the first movie. I don't know what it's about. I don't know anyone in the movie. I'm generally too lazy for subtitles. Take your pick.
Odds I'll See It: 2%

Belle
Working for It: The poster for it reminds me of The Duchess and I like Keira Knightley.
Working against It: Knightley wasn't enough to get me to see The Duchess and she's not even in this one. You know who is? I don't. This could be one of those long-stewing movies like A Royal Affair a couple years ago, but, as I've said, there's not room for taking chances in May.
Odds I'll See It: 1%

5/9

The Lock: Neighbors
Working for It: One of my favorite comedy Directors (Nick Stoller - Forgetting Sarah Marshall, The Five Year-Engagement), one of my favorite comedy actors (Seth Rogen), one of comedy's stealth gems the past few years (Robe Byrne), a "pretty-boy" actor who I keep rooting for (Zach Efron), a funny concept, and more actors I enjoy playing bit parts than you can shake a stick at. Please, tell me what is working against this.
Working against It: No, please, tell me what is working against this.
Odds I'll See It: 99%

Other Options:

Chef
Working for It: I like Jon Favreau as a director and actor. He's certainly called in a few favors from big named friends with name like Downey, Johansson, and Hoffman. Reviews I've read have been quite favorable.
Working against It: It's about a guy who opens a food truck after losing his restaurant job. Frankly, I'm tired of food truck stories.
Odds I'll See It: 25%

God's Pocket
Working for It: One of Philip Seymour Hoffman's final roles. This is one of those Massachusetts small-time crime dramas that could be interesting if done right. Also, for the Mad Men fans out there, it is John Slattery's feature directorial debut.
Working against It: This premiere in Sundance, I believe,  and reviews have not been kind. It's not the kind of story that immediately jumps out at me. I figure, if I can't l find enough to like in something like Killing Them Softly, what hope does this have.
Odds I'll See It: 18%

Moms' Night Out
Working for It: I mean, I don't hate the cast.
Working against It: It's exactly what it sounds like, the PG adventures of some moms who have a crazy night away from the husbands and kids. At some point, I assume they will all cry out "Ya-ya!".
Odds I'll See It: 5%

Legends of Oz: Dorothy's Return
Working for It: The Wizard of Oz is one of the most highly regarded movies in history.
Working against It: This isn't The Wizard of Oz. This is animated, with big name voice actors like Lea Michele and Kelsey Grammer. It doesn't even look like they are trying.
Odds I'll See It: 2%

5/16

The Lock: Godzilla
Working for It: 16 years is long enough to take another stab at this, and if there's any studio I trust to do it right, after last year's underrated Pacific Rim, it's Legendary Pictures. Then there's the Cranston of it all. He's still riding his Breaking Bad wave of support. Another odd little thought: Anyone curious to see how Quicksilver and Scarlett Witch will play in Avengers: Age of Ultron, guess what? Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Elizabeth Olsen are starring in this one too. Huzzah!
Working against It: It's been 16 years since the last Godzilla movie because the last attempt was a rather famous disappointment. After successes like Cloverfield and Pacific Rim since, is there any territory left for Godzilla to explore?
Odds I'll See It: 65%

Other Options:

Million Dollar Arm
Working for It: I love me some Jon Hamm. This "based on a true story" tale of a man recruiting Indian Cricket players to play baseball has serious Cool Runnings potential and Disney is the most reliable player in the inspirational sports story sub-genre.
Working against It: The Scout and Cool Runnings have done a lot of this before. The movie looks to be leaning heavily on Hamm, who is good enough to handle it, but can't do it all. Also, I'm over the "white savior" thing.
Odds I'll See It: 35%

5/23

The Lock: X-Men: Days of Future Past
Working for It: Everything! The ambition of this movie can only be compared to The Avengers. They've found a popular story from the comics that essentially allows Brian Singer to return to the movie franchise he started and hand-pick the stars he wants to bring back: Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Jennifer Lawrence, Ian McKellen, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender - Ah! - I'm excited for this.
Working against It: The danger of ambition is the likelihood of failure. Keep in mind, this is a franchise with as many blunders and successes. How good will be considered good enough for this movie?
Odds I'll See It: 97%

Other Options: 

Blended
Working for It: Drew Barrymore has been in some of the best Adam Sandler movies this side of Titanic, so this is probably the best thing that could happen for those (like me) who still have hope for Adam Sandler.
Working against It: "Forced" would be a generous way to describe the premise for this movie. At this point, I'd almost prefer that Sandler just go for PG or R with his movies because I'm yet to see a good balance of his sensibilities and family-friendly jokes.
Odds I'll See It: 18%

5/30

By far the toughest decision I'll make this month.

The Lock: Undecided

Options:

Maleficent
Working for It: Angelina Jolie doesn't do enough movies and all indicators point to her being a magnificent Maleficent. Throw in Elle Fanning who is quickly moving up my chart of favorite under 18 actors along with a classic but underused fairy tale and this could be an absolute delight.
Working against It: Oz the Great and Powerful. Alice in Wonderland. Snow White and the Huntsman. Have any of these been a resounding success? They keep trying though and maybe eventually one will fully click.
Odds I'll See It:  51%

A Million Ways to Die in the West
Working for It: Love him or hate him, Seth MacFarlane is a force in the comedy world. His style of barraging an audience with joke after joke all but guarantees a few good laughs at a minimum. He's certainly assembled a cast of people who aren't comedic actors but no doubt can be funny such as Liam Nesson, Charlize Theron, and Amanda Seyfried. Then there are the comedic actors like NPH and Sarah Silverman.
Working against It: It's no secret that I begrudged Ted's immense success. While I thought it was good, I didn't think it was $200 million good. I get the feeling the same thing will happen with this one. Hopefully, this avoids the problem Ted (and most comedy movies) have of forgetting to be funny in the third act when it remembers it needs a plot.
Odds I'll See It: 50%

DVR Purge: 4/21-4/27

More season finales and no season premieres. The season just keeps getting leaner.

 

Past Purges   

Archer "Archer Vice: Arrivals/Departures"

So ends another season. Certainly the most experimental season yet. It's funny how a show as without conscience as this one still feels to need to make our protagonists not villains by having the cocaine-selling all part of a CIA plot to balance their budget. This has been a fresh season albeit not my favorite. When we return to ISIS, which looks to be the case, next season, it will feel different than it was before.

Oh, and FX, what the hell! You couldn't list the episode as going slightly longer so the last thing I see isn't a closeup of Archer hearing white noise with no idea what happens before it goes to credits? Was that the end? Did he have one last funny thought? I don't know, because I'm not sure when the credit role happened.

Agents of SHIELD "The Only Light in the Darkness"

I hate Ward in the best way right now. He's finally an interesting character. The distrusting viewer in me is still looking at things like the lie detector test (passing by being honest about liking Skye) as a way to try to set him up as a protagonist again by season's end. Until that happens, it's interesting watching him interact with all the regulars with the knowledge that he's the enemy. The Angel in Season 2 of Buffy comparison has been made countless times that I've read already, but it really is an excellent one to be made. I know this much, there's no coming back for him in my mind after killing Oswalt's Koeing. I don't know why I keep feeling the need to say this, but another very solid episode.

Other thought:

-Poor Fitz. While I'm against trying to couple off him and Simmons, it's still rough to see him unable to be open with her.

-Poor Coulson. He has solid reasoning for not revealing himself to his cellist. That doesn't make it any easier.

-Poor Skye. Trapped on the plan with Ward. That must be awful even before knowing he's bad.

-I'm loving the Tardis reference and within the universe, they mention Romanov, Banner, Hill, and Rogers. The show is embracing the fact that they know they are about 3 tiers below anything that's happening in the movies.

The Mindy Project "An Officer and a Gynecologist"

This had the most funny lines since "Mindy Lahari is a Racist" (I haven't gone back and counted, but I'm standing by it). It's no coincidence that it involved Mindy mingling with young people.

Some good line:

"Are you Sue Robertson?" "No, I'm Beverly something."

"Who do you think you are? Rick Santorum. Obviously not, because you're not hot."

"...That recycling makes America look poor? Thank you."

"How many hours of energy did you drink?"

"You're like a pelican in a fishing net right now."

Fargo "The Rooster Prince"

Ok, Billy Bob Thorton is the best thing on this show. I feel confident saying that two episodes in. The show as a whole has been enjoyable so far, but it doesn't get much better than him in the post office, picking up his delivery.

The Middle "The Wind Chimes"

I like whenever Frankie and Mike bond over essentially being awful people. When he started complaining about all the people he yells at for her, I thought they were showing why she is toxic for him, but they somehow managed to turn that into a sweet moment of how much he cares for her, even if he doesn't show it much.

Oh, and I love Brick "working" for the pretzel company.

Suburgatory "No, You Can't Sit with Us"

I get it. Tessa in her attempts to stop the "mean girls" tends to become one herself. I feel like this is the plot of about every third episode for her. This version didn't offer any new perspective on pagents that I haven't seen before. The only inspired writing this week went to Victor-Ha who the writers seem to enjoy more than any other character right now.

Modern Family "Australia"

Seriously? Another vacation episode! How many weeks ago was Vegas? Modern Family is falling back on a few too many of it's old tric- wait - what's that? Any excuse to put Haley and Gloria in bikinis? Objection withdrawn.

At least this was a strong episode. A lot of physical comedy for Phil. Cam and Mitchell got to be the worst people alive, but they stayed on each other's side. Manny and Luke were teenage boys. Lily continues to be awesome. Via Alex, the show mocks it's own voiceover reliance. Simply a great example of what Modern Family does well.

The Americans "Martial Eagle"

I'm pretty sure the opening sequence, in addition to fueling Phillip's great scene with the minister later, was there to really remind the audience that our protagonists get their hands very dirty. They are not good guys. There are our leads. It's easy to forget that.

Parks & Rec "Moving Up: Part 1 and 2"

Had that been the series finale, I couldn't've been more pleased. It did it all right. All of it.

We start with the trip to San Francisco (location episode: +1 point). Michelle Obama shows up for a guest spot (stunt casting: +2. Amy Poehler's amazing reaction: +5). Leslie took the job she'd have to be insane not to (Smart characters acting smart: +4). Cones on Dunshire return and Ben is "the architect" (Callback: +2. Ben being a nerd: +1). "We're in Endor" (Ben being a geek: +1). Andy asks to bring back Power Rangers (Nostalgia: +1). Jerry ruins the menus for Tom's Bistro (Dammit Jerry!: +1). Ron Destroys a chair because it is too perfect and looks factory made (Ron Effing Swanson: +1). April is a competent but awful waitress simultaneously (April being a misanthrope: +2). Craig and Donna being a surprisingly perfect team (Donna makes everyone better: +3). Oh, and there's a whole second episode to get to (Double the fun: +4). The unity concert got all sorts of guest singers, half of who I'd didn't know (Musicians I knew: +3. Musicians I didn't know: +2. Bobby Knight reference: +5). Donna's cousin finally shows up (Call back and guest star: +3). Ron defeats Tammy 2 (Ron shows growth: +3) but still eats a lot of meat (Ron Swanson, carnivore: +1). Tom's Bistro is a success (Tom actually succeeding: +2) despite the Fonz's best efforts (Ayyyyyyy: +3). Jean-Ralphio and his sister return (Three cheers for Ben Schwartz and Jenny Slate: +3). Everyone is instantly ecstatic to hear about Leslie's new job (Characters who like each other: +6). Lil' Sebastian hologram (Miniature horse call-back: +3). Ben rolling his eyes at the hologram (Ben not being from Pawnee: +1). Johnny Karate concert (Andy is a solo-superstar: +1). Mouse Rat reunion (The rock gods shine upon us: +3). Duke Silver is revealed to all (Duke Effin' Silver: +5). Leslie doesn't have to leave Pawnee by instead moving her office to the refurbished 3rd floor (Side story payoff: +2). There's a three year time jump (Unexpected twist: +3). The triplets look adorable (Leslie and Ben make good babies: +2). Andy's arm is in a sling (Some things never change: +2). Dammit Terry (Name changes: +1). Jon Hamm shows up (Inheriting guest stars from 30 Rock: +3).

I don't know if you're counting, but Parks and Rec. just set the new record for points scored in an episode.

The Big Bang Theory "The Anything Can Happen Recurrence"

Amy Farrah Fowler dressed as a Catholic school girl. That is all.

Hannibal "Shizakana"

They are moving back into "killer of the week" stories, which I like. It was escalating too quickly before the last couple weeks and this show is too methodical to sustain that for long.

Mad Men "Field Trip"

Don's back! Sort of. Boy was that awkward. It's interesting to see everyone's responses. Peggy's is certainly the most layered. In fact, I'm not sure what to make of it still. I have to say, I was surprised to see how quickly Don accepted the stipulations of his return (that sound like they are designed to get him fired). Don can't possibly be earning his redemption, can he? There's no way that's where this story is going. I mean, Don not drinking? C'mon.

And Betty is just annoying.

Delayed Reaction: Starlet

The Pitch:A dissatisfied pornstar finds $10,000 in something she buys at a yard sale and feels guilty.

What Took Me So Long: I don't think this ever made it near me in theaters (not that I'd've seen it there). If not from a drunken stupor, I probably wouldn't've watched this for several more months.

Why I Saw It: This is a depressing little movie. I din't end up with an affection for any of the characters, really, which I believe was a lot of the intent. Dree Hemmingway is good in this. I don't recall seeing her in anything before this but she carries the movie effectively. I've probably seen Besedka Johnson before but I don't recall when. She's good too.

Why I Wish I Hadn't: I don't get the point of the movie. It's one of those "life sucks" indie movies that I have no desire to be around. It was well made and I'm sure it has a keen point of view and themes, motifs. All that stuff. I just wasn't at all interested in what it had to say.

Verdict (?): Weakly Don't Recommend

Delayed Reaction: Charlotte's Web

The Pitch: No pitch. I think the movie/tv special industry is required to remake this at least once every ten years so it had to be made.

What Took Me So Long: It's not the the story changes significantly with any remake.

Why I Saw It: (Club 50) What can I say? I like talking animals. I like to think of this as Nickelodeon's makeup call for Barnyard since that movie was astoundingly awful. If you are old than 5, you probably already know the story and the movie stays true to it. The voice acting is all well chosen, especially Julia Roberts as Charlotte who sounds like everything she is saying is a bedtime story. Wilbur is energetic and lovable pretty immediately and it broaches the topic of him being killed for dinner without there being too much peril for kids.

Why I Wish I Hadn't: I know the story and since it's not interpretation-heavy, this didn't do much for me. It works as a retelling for another generation though. Also, I'm going to attack the story itself a bit. What makes Wilbur so special? I get that he's the protagonist and all, but what makes him "some pig". Now Babe, I get. That pig could wrangle sheep. Wilbur is likable, but I didn't see a single marketable skill. That's a cynical eye to a children's story though, so I'll end it there.

Verdict (?): Weakly Don't Recommend

Delayed Reaction: The Awakening

The Pitch: Rebecca Hall plays a supernatural investigator who, get this, tracks down a ghost at a school. How has no one every thought of doing this before?

What Took Me So Long: I thought it was a movie adaptation of The Awakening, the book, which sounded a bit dour for most of my moods.

Why I Saw It: Has Rebecca Hall ever not been great in something? She's certainly one of those actresses I didn't notice until about the tenth good movie I saw her in. I wouldn't call horror her best genre although this story didn't give her a lot. There are a couple good scary moments: one in particular involving a dollhouse. None that lingered long after though. I'll also say I didn't see the twist at the end coming.

Why I Wish I Hadn't: ...partly because I didn't care that much. This is very much a "horror by the numbers" movie. It's filled with horror movie regulars like creepy kids, it's always overcast, people start to think the heroine is crazy (even though they asked for her to investigate ghosts). The twist about her being the ghost boy's sister wasn't especially clever. I'd kind of like a darker ending too, but that's a matter of taste.

Verdict (?): Weakly Don't Recommend

DVR Purge: 4/14-4/20

Yep. Getting pretty far behind. And here I thought the season was slowing down.

 
Past Purges

Archer "Archer Vice: Fillibuster"
If you need any more proof that I haven't been giving Archer its due this season, here you go: I didn't even realize Cyril ran a coup last week (In my defense, it was late when I watched it and I was distraught by developments in basketball that night). A lot of stories are coming full circle at this point. It looks like most of the Isis team is now working with the government (specifically, the CIA, featuring Slater). Lana is finally having her baby. Pam is realizing that she may have a problem with cocaine. I doubt Cheryl will ever realize how wrong she is about Outlaw Country. The only unexpected character development is that this is the most human Krieger's been in a while. All it took was many of him to realize it.

New Girl "Big News"
I'm very pleased they didn't drop Winston wanting to be a cop. They took a roundabout path to it, completely forgetting it for a while even, but at least they got there. It was a fun episode for him even though him being the last one to know about Nick and Jess still symbolizes his place in the show too well. While I appreciate that the show didn't try to drag out Nick and Jess' relationship longer than they felt the story needed, I am a little bummed that they couldn't've saved that for the season finale, because I'm not enjoying them breaking up. I don't mind them not dating, but I'm not in the mood for this breakup stuff. I don't think it's a particularly entertaining thing for either Deschanel or Johnson to play. Not sure how much of my opinion is based on The Mindy Project doing the same thing right now.

The Mindy Project "Think Like a Peter"
If I haven't said this before, I really should. This show has the deepest guest star roster of any show I can think of. It's becoming the Law & Order of sitcoms. This week, Max Greenfield pops up for the second half of the hour as well and plays the opposite of Schmidt: a douche-bag who acts like a nice guy. It all struck me as a little similar to what happened with Josh, although without Ellie Kemper which makes this one inferior. On the plus side, the Mindy/Peter pairing is quickly becoming one of my favorites on the show, especially if they keep it completely platonic (this is a must: she can't sleep with every partner in the office).

Agents of SHIELD "Providence"
I'm torn by this Ward situation. I really like him as our stealth villain. "Real Ward" is kind of a smarmy asshole and, given that they never made him that likable or interesting in the first place, it is really easy to switch to disliking him. What makes me torn is that I am all but certain that by the season's end, he'll be with the protagonists again, which would be rather boring. If he's simply a legit bad guy and Triplett is going to fill his role, great. Initially, I assumed he was a triple agent. Now, after the death toll has stacked up with him, I'm figuring it's going to be more like Tommy when he was the Green Ranger, and Ward is going to have a change of the heart in the finale or something.
-I'm sure there's few roles that Patton Oswalt has geeked out to do than this one. Knowing what I do about him, it's just fun to see him in the Marvel Universe.
-Did I pick up on some possible Fitz/Simmons 'shipping? I hope not.

The Americans "New Car"
That was about as effective as it gets. That was a sobering episode all-around. Phillip gets a much-needed reminder of what he's doing all this going from joy about his new American toy to deep frustration that American trickery on him has led to the death of dozens on comrades. Elizabeth's hand is forced as Lucia goes against orders and Elizabeth has to watch her die. Stan isn't getting any relief from all the closed doors he's running into for what we know is a solid lead. I will say, I had a little bit of trouble with Henry's crying scene and I feel bad, because we are dealing with a child actor, and he isn't going to be as refined as the rest of the case. That said, he's not the best cryer.

Community "Basic Sandwich"
"Go ahead. Cancel us. I dare you." -Dan Harmon [subtext]
As potential series finales go, this was strange. I'm not sure how I feel about the boldness of taking cancellation head on and I don't think I will until I'm given the context of this definitely being the final episode or having a sixth season. I love that Subway is game for anything and between its involvement with Community and Chuck, it really is a brand that couldn't be any higher-esteemed in my mind. The episode gave a little bit of everyone. Glad to see Duncan one more time (in fact, I've enjoyed how much he was part of the season). They didn't overdo it with Chang (small doses work best). Chris Elliot, no surprise, brought a weird energy to the whole thing. I'd really love final "swan song" season of the show so we can get a solid ending, but if this is the last we see of the study group and all the crazy characters at Greendale, I'll be more than pleased with what I got over the past five seasons.

Parks & Recreation "One in 8000"
It's a good thing I love the characters so much. It's hard to call any P&R bad because it is working at a much higher level than just about any show and here is a great example of what I mean by that. Super familiar stories all around this week, ones that would make me groan on, say, Modern Family. Instead, there's a lot to enjoy just by seeing the actors play them. Andy trying to keep a secret is exactly the kind of thing Chris Pratt does well and I'm glad that April was ok with him keeping it at the end. No unneeded extra conflict there. Adam Scott is a joy to watch when he plays super-Tense Ben. So, even though we've seen it before and getting stressed about the cost of having kids is taught in Sitcom Episodes 101, I still got some laughs out of it. Same goes for Leslie playing against type and being super calm. I am getting a little tired of every week having someone point out to Ron that he's changed since we first met him. I don't have an issue with the change, but I wish they'd let the audience figure it out themselves a little more. The rarely used Ron/Donna pairing is one of my favs though.
-Wait, was there any Tom this week? I can't remember him at all in the episode.
-I fully believe this show can make Craig work, but so far he is just too much for me for how big of a part he has. Tone him down or down his time.

The Crazy Ones "The Monster/The Lighthouse"
-The show is more invested in getting Sydney and Andrew together than I am.
-I love Zach and Sydney's gay boyfriend getting along. Had it just been a series of misunderstanding until the reveal, I would've been tepid about it, but finding out at the end that they are still hanging out and Zach is trying to turn him...into a friend was a nice touch.
-I am always for a good Frankenstein homage and I enjoy no one except Andrew knowing what the literary connection was.
-Seeing both of Sydney's parents now, I wonder how she ended up as close to normal as she did.
-I like the kids heckling Simon about using all the voices to read the book. The show might as well embrace that that is the majority of Robin Williams' character on the show.

Parenthood "The Pontiac"
My God, Haddie does still exist. I'm going to pretend the lack of her all season was a decision by the writers to give her the room to go through this change and since she, unlike Drew, is in her own isolated world, it wasn't worth keeping track of her as much. It's really funny that they do this story now, because maybe an hour before the episode, a friend of mine who just started watching the show asked if anyone on the show was gay. When I realized that they've largely avoided that, I was about to question this whole in the show. Then, of course, we get Haddie's girlfriend and that worry is undone.
-I so glad Sarah and Hank are together. Especially with the lack of payoff elsewhere, I needed that win. And, it means we are probably getting more Hank next year (yay!).
-After dragging out this Drew story for months, now they jump ahead to an "I love you" story. Ugh, I'm so done with him.
-Amber and Ryan get a proper farewell. That's cool. I hope Amber gets a more chill story next year. She's been through a lot.
-Camille and Zeek are finally out of the house. That's a good arc to have end at the finale.
-Kristina and Adam got to take the week off largely just being there to say "You're gay? Totes cool with me" and I'm fine with that. No mention of the charter school is a good thing.
-Joel and Julia...I won't lie. I thought the season would end with them back together. I'm still not sure how comfortable I am with how them being apart works with the DNA of the show, but if they want to end it like this for now, I'll trust them. They aren't divorced and they have the kids pushing them together so there's still hope.
-Oh yeah, Crosby and Jasmine. They didn't have much to do all year, did they? Maybe next year.

Hannibal "Su-zakana"
The Will/Hannibal chess game is one I never get tired of watching. This week moves back to a more self-contained story, which I'm find with because they still do these so well. That was some weird horse murder though. Jeremy Davies is always a welcome face. I'm just sad it's not likely to be one we'll see again.

Mad Men "A Day's Work"
I was absolutely not a fan of Peggy's flower misunderstanding. Beyond being hard to watch for Peggy, it felt like a gimmick that Mad Men doesn't do for a reason. Everything else was very good though. The glimpse of Dawn and Shirley was a nice counter-perspective in the office. Joan leaving personnel behind is a long-stewing victory. Pete being as good at his job and pig-headed as ever is welcome. The power dynamics in the SCP office are definitely building to something. Most of the episode hinges on Sally and Don. To no one's surprise, they nailed it. It's fascinating watching those two now that Don is without a trace of the moral high ground. Sally's old enough now that he CAN be honest with her and that's all that she needs. No matter how much she hates her dad sometime, he's still her dad. As for Don, I can't wait to see when he finally does have a plan to get back in.

Movie Reaction: Under the Skin

Formula: (Let Me In * Invasion of the Body Snatchers) ^ despair

Why I Saw It: Because there was no way I was seeing Transcendence, Draft Day, or Rio 2.

Cast: Scarlett Johansson and some guys. Mostly though, Johansson. This is a quiet move and the dialogue is at a minimum. Given that, she does excellent work. She plays some sort of alien who is pretending to be human and trying to get used to it, so there's a real discomfort to her performance in the beginning as well as a curiosity.

Plot: There's very little hand-holding in this. We follow Scarlett as she seduces men and then, well, not sure, but we tend to not see them again. There's possibly another alien that is either working with or against her. I'm not sure...It's a mood piece. The plot doesn't matter too much. It's best to let it sort of wash over you.

Elephant in the Room: This is the one where Scarlett Johansson gets naked, right? Ok, yes, it is. I won't say that played no part in getting me into the theater. Be warned, this is not Havoc or Killing Me Softly. There's more going on here and some of it is unsettling, most of it confusing.

Movie Theater LVP (Least Valuable Patron) Award: I just want to give a shout out to the rotund middle-aged man who sort of hovered over me for 2-3 minutes standing in the aisle before finally sitting down in the row behind me, occasionally leaning forward to watch the movie so that his head was awkwardly next to mine. Thanks, sir, for making seeing a movie like this by myself even more awkward.

To Sum Things Up:
Another assessment I heard of this is one of my favorite distinctions: I liked it as a film but not as a movie. My understanding of Jonathan Glazer (the director) films is that his an auteur and not focused on making something commercial or easy. Based on this movie, I'd have to agree. This is a good looking movie (perhaps it would be better to say the cinematography is intentional). You can see the invisible hand of the director all over this. The soundtrack is very effective. Johansson's performance is one of her best. Perhaps with more time to reflect on it, my opinion may change but for now, it's in the category of "I'm glad I saw it, but I don't intend to see it again".

Verdict (?): Weakly Recommend