Cherry
"Cherry" is the Russo Brothers' first film post "Avengers Endgame", which is currently the highest grossing film of all time, and it's a strange choice to be completely honest. Tom Holland stars as a young, troubled man who becomes a drug addict after a traumatic experience serving as a medic in the army. The weirdest thing about this movie is trying to figure out why THIS was such an important story to tell...The vibe of the film is very familiar with exposition being given directly to the camera from Holland. It's gloomy feel while fitting for the story always keeps the audience at arm's length with little to hold on to for this nearly 2 1/2 hour film. Given that the Russo Brothers directed this, a little less than halfway one gets the feeling of being in an alternate universe where you're watching a scenario where Martin Scoresese directed "Jarhead".
To say this movie is uneven would be an understatement. The thinly written characters are given a valiant effort by Holland and Ciara Bravo who plays his wife and partner in crime when they start abusing drugs. There are weird peripheral characters that come and go usually with violent results that are more jarring than captivating. If Michael Gandolfini's performance as Cousin Joe is an indication of his acting skills, then we might be in a bit of trouble with "The Many Saints of Newark".
I've definitely spent over two hours in better ways. While I've been a fan of Holland since seeing him in "The Impossible", he is miscast here. He's still got his Peter Parker accent but struggles to earn the hard edge that is required for his character. Not sure why this was a story based on Nico Walker's memoir was worth telling more than any other real life stories about the lengths addicts will go to get their fix. When Holland begins robbing banks, it feels like you're suddenly watching a Lifetime movie. At the end of the day, I can't justify encouraging others to spend time navigating Apple TV+ to watch this. To follow up one of the best films I've ever enjoyed in the theater (in my opinion) with this is incredibly disappointing. I'm hoping some of that Russo magic returns in whatever they choose for their next project.
Dogshit
-Brandon Collins
Promising Young Woman
Promising Young Woman is something I had absolutely no expectations for. I had seen a trailer for it a few months ago in passing and thought, "Hmm...that looks interesting" but didn't give it a second thought until I was provided with a press screener. What I got was an exhilarating, incredibly uncomfortable film that somehow pulls off what some may view as a divisive third act.
Carey Mulligan plays Cassie, a 30 year old woman who is still dealing with a traumatic incident from her time in medical school involving her childhood best friend. Her way of dealing with this trauma is by pretending to be drunk and then confronting the "nice guys" who take her home from whatever bar or club they failed to woo a potential partner in. The first victim we meet is played by OC alum Adam Brody (who has been killing it lately with this and "The Kid Detective") but it is later revealed through her notebook of secrets that Cassie has been doing this for quite some time.
Cassie's life is in limbo with her working a dead end job at a charming cafe owned by Laverne Cox's character. Things start getting real interesting with the appearance of an old med school classmate named Ryan (Bo Burnham). While Ryan gives Cassie's cause a real target - she finds out the guy who sexually assaulted her friend is getting married, he also gives her glimmers of promise (no pun intended). Is Ryan really a nice guy or is he full of slimy actions just like all of the other men Cassie encounters?
I have never seen "Killing Eve" but that will need to change ASAP after watching Emerald Fennell's feature film debut. The writing, pacing, performances (particularly Mulligan and Allison Brie) are captivating and keep you on your toes the entire time. Everyone brought their A game to this. While it is tough to watch in some moments, you want Cassie to still be ok in the end. Whether or not things pan out well is left for you to see when you watch this phenomenal movie that is likely to rack up several nominations and awards over the next few months.
XL
-Brandon Collins