Two seemingly very different films open this weekend, which nonetheless share some strange commonality. They’re original, imaginative, and gorgeously crafted R-rated films not tied to any franchises or established properties. These are huge swings with unusual scripts that dance between tones and genres, going to places you’d never expect.
And they’re both going to be really, really divisive.
A Big, Bold, Beautiful Journey
“Do you want to go on a big, bold, beautiful journey?”
That’s the question posed by this film, and the responses are sharp. At the exit interviews following my screening of the film, a prominent local critic lambasted the film, calling it an insult to the audience. Immediately following him, a pair of ladies, visibly moved, beamed as they praised the experience as something wonderful.
Like many movie lovers I often take pleasure in going into a film as blindly as possible. I tend to avoid trailers or detailed synopses, and it helps to preserve the surprise and savor the experience. And I often encourage readers to do the same in my reviews, limiting my own commentary so as to preserve the experience.
A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, is not one of those scenarios where you should go in blind. The new film from the director and star of 2021’s quietly but warmly received After Yang (Kogonada and Colin Farrell, respectively), is a little too odd for that. I did go in blind, and found myself feeling continuously off balance, thanks to an initially shapeless narrative, weird tonal shifts, and a sense of not knowing where this was going – and not in a good way. For once I found myself wishing I was better equipped to try to deal with what I was watching.
The film starts out as a sort of surreal awkward comedy, kind of in the vein of Quentin Dupieux. David (Colin Farrell) rents a car from a bizarre car rental agency whose fleet apparently consists of only Saturns, to attend a distant wedding where he meets Sarah (Margot Robbie). The pair chat and casually flirt a bit, then go their own ways – another missed connection.
But that changes – and the film starts to show what it’s actually about. As it turns out, they both rented cars from the same bizarre agency, and their cars’ GPS systems intertwine their travel plans, taking them on a strange journey of discovery together.
I think it will probably help viewers immensely just to know going in that this film has elements of magical realism and fantasy, as the universe intervenes in the lives of mortal man – think along the lines of It’s a Wonderful Life, The Family Man, Big (which is directly referenced in the film) and A Christmas Carol. Each stop on their journey presents a living flashback, a reminder of the experiences that shaped their lives, relationships, and present unhappiness. But unlike the other films noted, it’s the shared experience of two kindred souls reliving these together that gives A Big, Bold, Beautiful Journey its depth, initially kind of whimsical but progressively more poignant as these memories get more raw and real.
It’s a beautifully made film with a lot of heart, but viewers who aren’t on its wavelength will easily find it treacly, confusing, or pandering. I thought it rather earnest, though my overall feelings are a bit mixed. I had a hard time finding my footing in the story, initially finding it kind of grating. But I started to pick up what it was putting down, having sort of found the shape of the thing, and by the time the last act came around, I was on board for the big emotional beats.
Him
Him is a stunning, insane, masterfully made jewel of cinema that I might never watch again. It’s genuinely an incredible film, but also deeply unpleasant, repugnant in a way that really got under my skin.
Cameron Cade (Tyriq Withers), who grew up as a football-obsessed kid idolizing the league’s greatest quarterback Isaiah White (Wayans), is now on the verge of greatness himself as the nation’s #1 prospect about to turn pro.
A freak injury hospitalizes Cameron and ruins his draft prospects, motivating him to seize an opportunity to accept an invitation to join in a training camp with Isaiah, now on the verge of retirement – a formal of passing of the torch as the veteran quarterback wants to break in the next superstar, and a chance to escape the public eye in a remote, private training facility.
Cameron soon discovers his own obsessive drive for excellence is wildly outmatched by Isaiah’s own madness. Things start to get progressively weird and off-kilter, soon ramping up in more brazenly dangerous and openly violent ways. Training sessions become mental and physical torture, and the remote facility begins to feel less like an incredible retreat and more like an isolated prison with a cultlike population. It’s here that the film starts to become an outright horror movie.
Every individual creative aspect of Him is a display of excellence. The visual elements of set design and cinematography are incredible. The acting is stellar, especially funnyman Marlon Wayans doing the best dramatic work of his career, easily weaving from charming to menacing – you’ve never seen him like this. The script, with its thoughtful approach to heavy themes like obsession, toxic masculinity, and groupthink, is pure dynamite.
Although producer Jordan Peele didn’t direct the film (which is directed by Justin Tipping), it’s definitely got a paranoid and sinister vibe similar to his horror films, as well as the kind of social commentary that Peele is known for. The isolated horror is similar to Get Out. While viewing the film I was suddenly struck by the observation that pro sports teams, especially NFL teams, are a modern institution in which predominantly white “owners” can subjugate young black men. It’s not a perfect analogy for a number of obvious reasons but as the film went on, I became more convinced that this theme wasn’t just in my head but an intentional statement. Pro athletes may be wealthy and venerated, but they also give something up when they become part of a system in which humans are bought, sold, and traded.
This one’s got a tremendously exciting and satisfying ending, but it’s definitely not going to be everyone’s disembodied monkey paw stirring a cup of tea.
– A/V Out.
