Film Review - "Where The Crawdad Sings"

I'm as surprised as you are.

Where The Crawdad Sings

Directed by Olivia Newman

Starring Daisy Edgar-Jones, Taylor John Smith, and David Strathairn

I saw the trailer for this film months ago and didn't give it much of a second-thought. You see "Based on The Best-Selling Novel" flash across the screen these days there's a 50-50 chance it's not gonna go well.

Then I happened to catch it back on National Cinema Day, and surprisingly I found Where The Crawdad Sings to be a captivating and suspenseful thriller.  

So again, based on the best-selling novel Delia Owens (Which I have not and probably will not read because I'm a slow reader and it takes me three years to finish one book), the film tells the story of Catherine "Kya" Clark (Jones) and her life growing up in the marshes of North Carolina. The townspeople of Barkley Cove look at her as an eccentric recluse, nicknaming her "Marsh Girl". In the present timeline of 1969, she stands trial for murder of her former boyfriend Chase Andrews (Harris Dickinson), and kindly attorney Tom Milton (Strathairn) defends her when no one else will.

As the trial unfolds, we learn of her life growing up in the marsh with her abusive father, and how her mother and siblings each ran from home, and abandoning her, one-by-one (Rather bizarrely I might add, like why is no one taking her with them??). Her father eventually passes away, thus leaving her to fend for herself at only seven years old. She survives selling muscles in town, and is assisted frequently by local shopkeeps James and Mabel Madison (Sterling Mace Jr. and Micheal Hyatt).

Soon a local boy named Tate Walker (Smith) takes a liking to Kya and helps her learn to read and write, while the two grow closer, and we also start to learn how Kya and Chase's relationship developed as well...

The mystery of the film is very compelling, as you truly get invested in the past, and wonder how it leads to the trial in the present. The relationship between the three leads is incredibly fleshed out. It is a love triangle, yes, but there's more at play beneath the surface. The conflict is in incredibly well-developed, tackling all four "flavors" of conflict in literature (That's man vs man, nature, society, and self). Man Vs Nature is probably the strongest in the film, as Kya's relationship with the marshes makes her an outcast and oddity to her peers.

While on the subject of nature, the film has a lot of beautiful visuals, perfectly capturing the beauty and sometimes sinister nature of the North Carolina marshlands (I don't want to know if it was partially CGI, or touched up in post. I just don't.) 

I would say the film's biggest flaw is its pacing. It wants to go back and forth between the past and present, but we spend so much in the past, we can almost forget in the present there's a trial and Kya's life hands in the balance. That and the present day scenes just aren't as interesting.

Daisy Edgar-Jones is perfectly cast as Kya, encapsulating the sweet innocence of the character but also the strength and independence. Taylor John Smith is a likable leading man as Tate Walker with a lot of heart, but there's also some naivety to the character. Not enough to make you annoyed with him, but enough to give him more depth (Side-note, this guy could play a live-action Kristoff when Disney starts getting remake eyes for Frozen). You absolutely love to hate Harris Dickinson as Chase Andrews. It's not over-the-top villainy but he makes a perfect antagonist. David Starthairn is just likable in everything he does.

I was surprised to find Where The Crawdad Sings to be an enjoyable time at the theater. It has some beautiful visuals, a compelling mystery, and a suspenseful drama with some truly harrowing scenes throughout. I never expected to find myself seeing a film like this (On National Cinema Day no less!) but I'm glad I did, and will probably rewatch this down the line.

...What's that? ...This film received poor reviews from critics?...The author of the book is problematic and may or may not be a murderer?...Where The Crawdad Sings might be rooted in realism and clue us in to what Delia Owens was doing as conservationist in Zimbabwe?...Well I still liked it.

 

Film Review - "Hocus Pocus 2"

I'm taking a big risk with this one...

Hocus Pocus 2

Directed by Anne Fletcher

Starring Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy

Let me start by sharing my thoughts on the original Hocus Pocus...It's enjoyable! It's campy but in a fun 90's way. The three leads are clearly having a ball. Like a lot of classic Disney, it treats its younger audience members with respect, as it can scare them as much as it entertains them. It's a good Halloween story that can be enjoyed year after year.

I saw it for the first time in 2015. I didn't grow up with it or hold it in the same regard as many people my age do. That said I never saw a need for a sequel. We got one though, and it was released on Disney Plus last month. I watched it and found Hocus Pocus 2 to be a surprisingly worthy sequel, but while in some areas it surpasses it, in others it can't compete. Let me explain.

The film opens with a flashback to 1653 in Salem (which might not add up if you remember the prologue to Hocus Pocus took place in 1963, when they were already old hags), where the young Sanderson Sisters are banished by the Reverend Traske (Tony Hale) after Winifred refuses to marry a John Pritchette. It is in their exile in the forbidden forest, where they meet Mother Witch (Hannah Waddingham), who gifts Winifred a spell book for her sixteenth birthday. This sets the three sisters on their path to become the infamous witches Salem will forever...fear? Idolize? It's a grey area.

Fast-forward to the present 2022, where best friends Becca (Whitney Peak) and Izzie (Belissa Escobedo) are preparing to celebrate Halloween and Becca's sixteenth birthday. How you ask? Why by going into the same forbidden forest The Sanderson Sisters found themselves in when Winifred was turning sixteen, of course. They light a candle for a special birthday ritual, which turns out to be another Black Flame Candle. Since it was lit under a full moon by a virgin (I along with many who've pointed this out before, am not comfortable with the whole virgin aspect of the spell in both films, considering teenagers are lighting these candles, and it's Disney, but at least Hocus Pocus 2 points out the absurdity of it) The Sanderson Sisters are resurrected once again: Winifred (Midler), Sarah (Parker), and Mary (Najimy).

This time, Winifred makes it their mission to cast a spell that will make her all powerful, and give them the ability to take revenge on Traske (His descendant is now the Mayor of Salem, also played by Tony Hale) and the whole town. Also thrown into the mix is The Mayor's daughter Cassie (Lillia Buckingham), who is also Becca and Izzie's estranged best friend, Gilbert (Sam Richardson) who runs the Old Salem Magic Shoppe currently located in the Sanderson's old home, and Billy Butcherson (Doug Jones), Winifred's former lover and back from the grave once again.

Hocus Pocus 2 is a film that falls into a category many have dubbed as legacy sequels, meaning it's a sequel that comes out decades after the original, very much like Mary Poppins Returns, Top Gun: Maverick, or Ghostbusters: Afterlife. Hocus is much more in line with Mary Poppins or Ghostbusters, where it's following the roadmap of the original (with *some* tweaks), but it's doing so with a lot of love and effort from the filmmaking team. Yes a virgin lights the candle that resurrects the witches, there's a "fish out of water" element where these women from the 1600s don't know how to handle modern times (Yet somehow they know what to do when a teenager holds up a smartphone to take a selfie...), and the heroes have one night to stop them before it's too late. But in this film...there's TWO musical numbers!! Quite catchy ones, I must say. As I said, there's a lot of love and effort on screen here. This was made for Hocus Pocus fans.

Unfortunately, I feel as though "fish out of water" humor was left behind by cinema in the 90's and early 2000's, so a fair bit of it falls flat. Actually, if you watch both films back-to-back you can get a real education on how filmmaking has changed over time. The evolution of special effects is clearly on screen. But as far as the comedy, there are some funny bits and a lot of clever callbacks to the first film. 

The supporting characters for this film sadly can't hold a candle (Heh) to those of the original. I can remember Sam, Max and Dani from Hocus Pocus easily, but I had to look up Becca, Izzy, and Cassie's names while writing this. That's not to say they're bad characters, or the performances are bad. I actually thought the actresses did a very good job, and I look forward to seeing more work from them in the future. They're just sadly not the focus of this film, and you know who is. You came for the witches. I can see and appreciate the parallel they were setting up between The Sanderson Sisters, and Becca, Izzie, and Cassie, but it's just not given enough attention in the script. That, and the conflict between the young three throughout the film is quite weak (Well, maybe from the perspective of a thirty-one year-old, but maybe not too younger viewers...).

Kudos to this film for giving more depth to The Sanderson Sisters. Not something I ever expected or thought we needed. They're not just scary, comical boogeyman for the heroes to defeat this time around. We actually get a better sense of the sisters' relationship with one another, specifically Winifred's. Also the three young girls playing the Sandersons in the opening flashback were perfect and, wever casting director found them deserves a raise.

Bette Midler is the star of the show here, displaying all her theatrics on screen. Kathy Najimy is so clearly happy to be here and loving every second of it. She is definitely the funniest of the three leads. Oddly, Sarah Jessica Parker does not stand out as much as her two co-leads. This time around her performance as Sarah is much more reserved. That said, these three cast a large shadow over the supporting cast. Tony Hale is quirky but fun as Reverend/Mayor Traske. Sam Richardson has some fun moments as Gilbert, especially when he's sharing scenes with Doug Jones as Billy, who gets more to do than lumber around as a zombie this time. Finally, Hannah Waddingham is criminally underused as Mother Witch and someone needs to pay for their crimes.

How much you love the first Hocus Pocus will factor into how much you enjoy the sequel. It's a fitting tribute to its successor, but not without its flaws. I truly feel that if the script had done a bit more heavy lifting in the character development department, this film could have surpassed the original. As it stands though it's a fun watch with a lot of heart, that may just become part of your annual Halloween watchlist.

Seriously though how did they know how to take a selfie?

Film Review - "Don't Worry Darling"

This is going to be quick, and harsh, but frankly deserved.

Don't Worry Darling

Directed by Olivia Wilde,

Starring Florence Pugh, Harry Styles, and Chris Pine

Don't Worry Darling is the second directorial feature from Olivia Wilde (I have not seen Booksmart). The film focuses on happily married couple Alice (Pugh) and Jack (Styles) Chambers, living in a company town of Victory, overseen by its founder Frank (Pine. I don't remember if the character had a last name. It doesn't matter anyway). Victory is a perfect suburban utopia, where the husbands go to work, and the wives stay home and do domestic duties. But one day, Alice notices things aren't as perfect as they seem in Victory, and begins to search for answers, despite warnings from her husband and peers.

So yes, this sounds like a lot of other films that have come before, such as The Stepford Wives, Pleasantville, The Truman Show, and Get Out to name a few. Nothing new here, right? Well as I've learned in all my years of studying and watching films, it's not the tool it's how use it and-no, no Don't Worry Darling brings nothing new to the table...

It's very easy for viewers to get a grasp on the "big twist" of where the film is going. Instead of trying to craft a compelling narrative, Wilde and Screenwriter Katie Silberman seem determined to push the big reveal off for as long as possible in its 123 minute runtime (The film feels more like four hours long than two and change). There are lot of surreal and bizarre moments throughout, that in the end mean nothing to the plot, and are just all sizzle and no steak. At one point Florence Pugh's character is making breakfast. She cracks an egg open and finds nothing inside. Just a hollow shell. A perfect metaphor for this film.

Speaking of Florence Pugh, she deserves an Honorary Academy Award and chiropractor for carrying this film on her back. The passion and effort she puts into her performance is meant for a much better film. Chris Pine also deserves credit for his portrayal as Frank. Pine perfectly capture the charming yet sinister nature needed for this role. There's a confrontation scene between Pugh and Pine in the film, and it's frankly (Heh. Frank) the best part of the film because you've got your two strongest players showing the rest how it's done.

Alright, I'll talk about Harry Styles...I have nothing against this guy trying to have a side-gig as an actor. But...he needs more practice. For the majority of the film I truly think his performance is fine. It's when he has to raise his voice, or get angry, is when the cracks start to show. You've all seen the face from that one scene. It's a meme at this point. I will admit I had to stifle laughter when I saw it.

Let's see. What else...Olivia Wilde's performance is fine. Gemma Chan and Nick Kroll have some fleeting shining moments in their supporting roles. The cinematography and set-design is very pretty. Um...yeah that's it.

It's sad when the behind-the-scenes drama of a film is more entertaining than the film itself, but Don't Worry Darling is an incredibly frustrating narrative that raises more questions than answers, as it tries to avoid the cliche' story foundation its built upon. I describe it as jingling shiny keys in front of a baby to entertain or distract them, and we are not babies, and it's insulting (Wait, you're an actual infant watching Don't Worry Darling? My God where are your parents?!?). I think "sophomore slump" is the best way to describe this second film from Olivia Wilde. I cannot even say it's like The Room, where you need to see for yourself how bad it is, or "its so bad its good". No, don't worry darling (Ha...) there's nothing to see here...