Workshopping Humanity Weekly Newsletter: November 3rd
The movies, music and culture I've been consuming for the past week
Hello! I’m deciding to do something new on this page, and do a weekly update on the movies I watch, music I listen to and my thoughts on culture at large for the past week. I hope you enjoy reading and take something away from it!
Film
These are the movies I watched this week!
- Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere
This film is the newest musical biopic film about the one and only, Bruce Springsteen. Several of these films have been coming out the last few years and gained acclaimed, especially for their central performances. Last year’s A Complete Unknown, chronicling a passage of time in the life of folk hero Bob Dylan ended up to get nominated for a ton of Oscars, including Timothee Chalamet for best actor. Will Springsteen have the same luck? I doubt it. This film falls somewhere in between A Complete Unknown (a movie I really liked) and Bohemian Rhapsody (a movie I kinda hated). This movie is solid, but lacks any sort of dramatic urgency. I liked the framing around the film- this movie is not a cradle to tomb biopic like Bohemian Rhapsody or Baz Luhrman’s Elvis. This film centers around the inception of the album Nebraska and the context of why that album is as depressing as it is. It can’t help but escape some of the trappings that plague these biopics, the cliches that come along with watching the musical process happen onscreen. When the film is about Springsteen making the album, it adds little to no context than what you could find on a Wikipedia article. However, the relationship arc between him and a girl he meets and develops a relationship with is really powerful stuff and I wish the film had explored that tragic dynamic more. It’s a handsomely made film, but a little too mundane to make much of an impact this season. Jeremy Allen White does a good job portraying Bruce but I believe performances in the past in these bio pics do a little more and are given a little more than White is given here. This is a perfectly delightful Sunday afternoon watch but there’s not much more substance to it outside of that.
- Over the Garden Wall
I watch this every year and some how I feel like I’m rediscovering it every time I watch it. It’s magic- the beautiful soothing music, the creative and lustrous animation, the perfect ten minute episodes that are cohesively brilliant. Wirt and Greg being two of the most relatable characters in animation, I love it all so much. It’s a coming of age story about never loosing that childhood innocence and curiosity, but it’s also okay to be introspective, taking control of your life starts with deciding to be okay with the person you see in the mirror- even if that person is wearing a pot on their head.
- Frankenstein
Guillermo Del Toro’s Frankenstein is a triumph. The film has gotten a mixed to positive reception in the film festival circuit, but has been embraced by audiences alike. When it won second place at Tiff’s People’s Choice this year, I knew people would end up responding to this film in a big way and they have. For me, I really do enjoy it. I’m a big fan of Del Toro, and I will always prefer his original films he’s made like Pan’s Labyrinth and The Shape of Water- but as far as an adaptation of Mary Shelley, you cannot do much better than this film. I think the first half takes a bit to get going and the pacing feels slightly off, but once this film finds it’s footing it becomes electric (no pun intended). This film is about the pathos of the monster and how he is a victim of forced autonomy and I found that aspect of the film to be very poignant. Jacob Elordi gives in my opinion the best supporting performance of the year as the monster who we see grow up and adapt to his world and learn what ethics and values are on screen. It’s a beautiful tale about how we can grow and adapt and not be weighed down by what we were programmed to be. In a way, this film feels like a predecessor in some ways to Brad Bird’s masterpiece The Iron Giant. Sequences of this film reminded me of the transcendent beauty of some of David Lowery’s best films like A Ghost Story and The Green Knight. In conclusion, despite some of the odd choices made here, I think this is the best film Del Toro has made since his Oscar winning The Shape of Water, and one you have to seek out in theatres if you can.
- ParaNorman
I was pretty excited when I heard ParaNorman was coming back to theatres. I’ve loved seeing Coraline in theatres again and I think the people at Laika are wizard and will always support stop motion animation. I hadn’t seen this movie in years, but have always enjoyed it but I forgot how emotional this movie actually was. I was moved to tears by the end of it, when the climax of the film was a character having to choose forgiveness for a group of people who didn’t deserve it. I wasn’t expecting to feel spiritually moved in Paranorman, but there I was reassessing the way I saw forgiveness from some of the people in my life that had done me wrong as well. Norman is such a great protagonist, one who never feels burdened by his gifts but just has to live with being misunderstood by a town of people that are under a mob effect- believing things can only be one way. The animation in this film is stunning and the music is exceptional as well, Jon Brion is one of my favorite composers and this is one of his most underrated scores to date. Overall, this film is massively underrated and one I’m sure I’ll revisit again and again.
- Bugonia
What an amazing film. Bugonia is such a fun ride, a cat and mouse chase. This film is about a conspiracy theorist played by Jesse Plemons who convinces his cousin to help him kidnap a CEO played by Emma Stone that he perceives to be an alien. This film has such a great sense of setting. This rural small town asethetic feels other worldy because of the way it is framed and shot, juxtaposing that with a bombastic score that is reminiscent of some of the best Hitchcock film scores. While the film is intimate in scope, the film always lets us know that the stakes for these characters feel larger than life. This movie boasts an incredible and thoughtful screenplay that is morbid, but also really engrossing and funny. This is the type of film I would love to see more of come out and it is easily one of my favorites of the year.
- If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
If I Had Legs I’d Kick You is one of the most anxiety inducing films I’ve ever seen. This film, chronicling the life of a mother trying to make ends meet with a sick child and an absent husband, is one that made me want to tear the skin off of my face- but it’s a compliment for this film. Rose Byrne gives one of the best female performances I’ve ever seen in a film and I believe she should easily be winning The Oscar this year, even over Jessie Buckley in Hamnet who I loved. The way she is able to carry this entire film is incredibly impressive and her pathos is understood so well. This film operates like a Safdie Brothers film as far as tension goes, but I found more to emotionally respond to here unlike the Safdie films which I more admire than actually enjoy. I can’t say that I would want to watch this movie over and over again, but I can find catharsis in watching someone go through the most stressful time in their life and find relatability in some of their struggles- even if I’m not a mother of a sick child. The human experience is kinda wild in that way.
Music
- The Last Dinner Party: From the Pyre
The Last Dinner Party last year released their debut album Prelude to Ecstasy, which I found to be one of the best indie pop records of the year. The hooks in that album are infectious and I could only see the band grow from that first album, so I’ve had an eye out for their Sophomore album From the Pyre. Sadly, I don’t think this album is as memorable as their debut. It’s not because the sound is now bad, this album is very well produced and sonically a lot more dynamic than their last. However, this album feels a lot more melodic, which I would appreciate and do to a certain extent, but the songs in my opinion made less of an impact than the songs on their debut album. With that being said, this is still a gorgeous album that continues to show the strength this band has and I can see them continuing to grow and make great projects in the future.
- Tame Impala: Deadbeat
What, what happened here? Tame Impala’s new album is one of the biggest misfires of the entire year. This album feels like someone messing around with a midi keyboard for the first time, with some of the most cringe inducing lyrics I’ve heard on an album since, well the newest Taylor Swift album (not a great year for music to be entirely. honest). One song includes the line “You are a cinephile and I watch Family Guy” I kid you not. After releasing Currents, one of the most forward thinking progressive pop records of the last ten years with hit after hit on it, you have to wonder what happened here and if this musical project should just retire at this point. It is just one guy after all.
TV
- Smiling Friends Season 3
Smiling Friends Season 3 continues to be awesome. This is the best project to come out from Adult Swim since Joe Pera Talks With You. This show is a burst of imagination and features some of the most off kilter and irreverent humor you can find on television right now. It’s one of those shows that will be remembered for years to come.
- The Chair Company
The newest Tim Robinson show is an absolute riot. Four episodes in and I’m just waiting to see how this all comes down to. This show will all depend on how good the pay off is because it’s just all one big joke, but it’s sure been entertaining to watch the chaos go down in the most recent episodes. Robinson is always playing the same character but I wouldn’t want it any other way.
Culture
I don’t know about you, but watching the news feels like a satirical hell scape these days- it feels like we are living in a mix of Paul Verhoeven film and a running gag on The Simpsons that won’t end. If anything- things keep getting worse in our country, especially for the poor and immigrants in our nation. ICE raids are an ugly and disgusting abuse of power- seeing fascism happen on a large scale in real time and the victims are poor innocent migrant families. Now, with the Government shut downs struggling families are loosing their Snap benefits, which could leave to some families starving this winter- it is a dark time for our Country and I pray for the victims that our horrible Government is failing. I hope vile political commentators like Dave Rubin from The Rubin Report, who from his million dollar mansion where he has interns do most of his research proclaim “no one is starving that wasn’t already” are remembered at this time for their complete lack of empathy and understanding on how our Government works. I would love if some of these right wing pundits were visited by the ghost of Christmas past, present and future but we’ve almost had ten years of the MAGA movement and it hasn’t happened yet, so I digress I have little faith.
Let’s shout out some cool people currently speaking out against power. Popular musical artist Billie Eilish accepted an Innovator Award at the Washington Street Journal this last week. In her speech, she declared that billionaires should be held accountable for their actions- stating that “the world is really bad right now and what are you doing about it?” Billie Eilish is not a billionaire and actually donated 11.5 million dollars of her tour earnings to charities around the world. With Billie Eilish advocating for better wealth distribution and Olivia Rodrigo, another famous pop star paying for her tour mates to get the proper mental health care they need while on tour- it’s nice to see the millennial becoming famous advocating for the rights of the American working class and mental health. Seeing popular figures advocate for empathy in a Government controlled by ones who have none is a way we can win back the culture and start to heal it. Apparently at the speech, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg look visually pissed off in the audience. Isn’t it nice to see tech bro billionaire bullies be put in their place in real time? For everyone complaining that Billie Eilish is still charging over a hundred dollars for a concert ticket after scolding the rich, please know that these artists normally don’t have much control on how much a concert ticket is priced. The venue has to get paid and so do all of the people like the pyrotechnics, sound operators and tour managers- it’s not just Billie collecting your cash. I’m sorry if that doesn’t feed into your narrative better though!
Also going to give a shout out to Miss Rachel, who continues to fight for better treatment for the children of Gaza and advocate for snap benefits to be reinstated. She consistently brings up how her relationship to Jesus Christ guides her decisions to me radical and bold about defending the marginalized and as someone who is also religious, it is nice to see a self proclaimed Christian not bought out by the alt right who is sticking up for what she believes in, even if she gets backlash from it from a mob or senseless right wing crusaders. We love you Miss Rachel, you truly are our modern day Mr. Rogers!
Next week, New York will have their next mayoral election and it is looking like the favorite to win is Zohran Mamdani. Even despite governor Andrew Cuomo’s cringe inducing AI ads attacking Mamdani, it seems like it will stand no match for the hot new ticket in town. Zohran has been the victims of attacks on the right for being anti semantic for simply wanting peace in Palestine and for being a communist when he wants better wealth distribution in New York. In my opinion, Zohran is the type of candidate that can come in and challenge the MAGA movement in a powerful way. He is charismatic, he feels like a guy you could hang out with unlike several Democratic Politicians who feel like they are your high school principal. He even was friendly and got the Andrew Schulz podcast laughing and agreeing with him, a podcast that endorsed and voted for Trump in the last election. I do believe the ultra wealthy (both on the right and left) are deathly afraid of Zohran’s plans for democratic socialism in New York. This is because if it works, will the people prefer it and how much less power will they have overall? For me- this era of politics is dwindling from the right and the left and is now good vs evil. The elite class vs the working class, and Mamdani, love or hate some of his views and opinions is advocating for the working class. New York is in a terrible state at the moment, hardly anyone is able to survive there due to outrageous rent prices and the price of goods and services increasing at an alarming rate. Mamdani’s plans for city owned grocery stores and wealth distribution could help the middle to lower class actually be able to cultivate and live a life in the city and peruse their dreams again- instead of feeling like they are in a capitalistic hell scape that has been created against them. I don’t agree with everything Mamdani has said, but most of it I align with and I think his election will be a good shot in the arm for New York, especially against a serial abuser like Andrew Cuomo who has only been about cooperate interests.
That’s all I got this week, tune in for the weekly newsletter next Monday! Thanks for reading!