Late again, very little watched again - I'd say 2025 is shaping up to be a rough year (and it is) but that doesn't necessarily convey where I've been at creatively. I've been reading a ton and writing a bit - I just haven't quite gotten back into the gear of watching new-to-me movies. I did still manage to make it out to the theater several times and I'll write more about that down below. My wife and I wrapped up a watch of the first two seasons of Twin Peaks and that was great. I don't know that I've ever watched them all with the Lynch/Coulson Log Lady intros before each episode. Knowing that it was more or less just the two of them and that they were done some time after the show's finale adds a measure of fascinating context. We'll watch the remainder of the show material throughout the year but I'm on a brief pause for now.
I know this is highly uncharacteristic for me and this space, but I had the opportunity to preview Daredevil: Born Again so I went for it. I know I almost never talk about television (I don't watch much, either) in the blog and if I was, you'd figure that I would turn my attention to some random genre obscurity from the 70s and not the new streaming series from Marvel. The thing of it is - I was a huge comic book fan as a kid and very specifically a Daredevil fan and even more granularly a massive fan of the Born Again storyline from Frank Miller and Dave Mazzucchelli. I remember so clearly receiving a copy of issue #228 as a birthday gift and found the full cover image of Matt Murdock's shattered visage totally enthralling. I loved masked heroes, but that's not what that slim volume had to offer. Instead it was a lightning strike of a crime story. It was brutal introduction to the kinds of stories I would grow to recognize as noir or hardboiled and I found it intoxicating. It took me a while to collect the complete storyline but I devoured it again and again once I had. In fact, I had to pull it off the shelf again last week and I'm happy to report that it mostly holds up.
So it was with some disappointment that I discovered that Daredevil: Born Again the series actually has very little to do with the beloved story arc from my youth. One thing that the series does borrow from its namesake is that it keeps the masked vigilante business more towards the back burner. At times, it's nearly a straightlaced (if a bit pulpy) NYC crime saga about a underworld heavy (The Kingpin) attempting to hold the reins of conventional urban power. I found it fairly entertaining though I think I may have preferred an entirely super-free version of its promising premise. Vincent D'Onofrio absolutely chews it up onscreen, but he clearly relishes playing the part. I've seen a bit of Michael Gandolfini before and I find him a refreshing screen presence and a solid performer. I hope to see him more in the future. So nothing revolutionary, but maybe it will start the breadcrumb trail for newer Daredevil fans to crack those Miller/Mazzucchelli books.
Enough of the small screen, let's talk movies.
Theatrical Screenings!
Paddington in Peru (2024) - I'm somewhat picky when it comes to preview screenings I attend but if I can bring someone I get much less discerning. So that's how my wife and I joined a crowd of ecstatic children to see the latest adventures of everyone's favorite marmalade enthusiast. It was cute, the kids seemed to dig it (it when on a bit long and the kids were getting restless towards the end), and it contained more Herzog film references than I expected.
Captain America: Brave New World (2025) - All the above caveats though this was a press and guests only screening. They tend to be a more relaxed atmosphere and critics are (generally) better behaved than toddlers. I'm not a big MCU person but I thought this was an exceptionally lifeless entry into the series. I like the idea of smaller scale Marvel films that explore different themes and genres, but they need to be at least a mid-tier exercise in those genres. You wouldn't have to look too hard to find a better military/political thriller starring Harrison Ford. I'll always kind of love Captain America: The First Avenger and this sorely needed more of that fun and adventure.
The Oscar Nominated Animated Shorts Program - My wife and I have attended this theatrically (to the best of our ability) for many, many years now. I briefly studied animation a long time ago and have an earnest affection for the kind of odd, artistically rigorous animated shorts that used to populate the corners of public television or Nickelodeon (not to mention the wilder channels of Liquid Television or Spike and Mike's). The Academy tends to nominate fairly tame stuff but the shorts program usually contains a "highly commended" segment which is where I find the real gems. This year contained only the five nominees and I have to say it was one of the best programs I've seen in a while (especially compared to last year's mostly awful one). The shorts program has always been a showcase for international studios but this year distinguished itself by only featuring non-US shorts and offered nothing from either Disney or Pixar. I was especially taken with Wander to Wonder which is far stranger than what normally winds up as a nominee. I've seen plenty of shorts that go dark, but they tend to be tied to a specific political message. Wonder is dark and humorous and bizarre without slamming specific messaging in your face. I'd say it's worth seeking out even if animation isn't your go-to.
The Time that it Takes (2024) - This was the opening film for the Italian Film Festival at The Main Theater - I didn't know much about the film but they also host a party with good wine and food on the opening night so we were in attendance. Time is an autobiographical film about director Francesca Comencini's life with her famous director father - Luigi Comencini. It starts strong - taking us behind the scenes of some of the elder Comencini's films and painting a portrait of a largely sympathetic paternal figure. It's hard for me not to be charmed by films about the magic of filmmaking and the Italians especially seem to have a facility for this. Unfortunately, things devolve quickly once we hit troubled years for both Francesca and Italy. There's very little interesting this film has to say about counterculture, family troubles, or the Years of Lead. It comes off frequently as cliche and sometimes even as reactionary. There are still some nice moments and lovely location footage and I do appreciate how much affection this film has for other films. The montage of silent film sequences behind the end credits and footnotes about the film archives in Milan was a nice touch.
Luckily, we also attended one of the IFF repertory screenings and I absolutely loved it. I'll write more about that for the March roundup.
Enjoyed this post? Never miss out on future posts by following me
