The Straight Story

  And this week's Friday night movie has been... The Straight Story!

Original image located here. Accessed 6th June 2025

Once again, I face down a movie that I have been wanting to see for a long time. I suppose the recent passing of director David Lynch is as good a time as any.
Funnily enough, I hadn't seen any David Lynch movies but I knew of his works through reputation: Surrealist imagery, eccentric characters and an interest in dreamlike states. And he also made Mulholland Drive which baffled my father so much, I heard about it for weeks afterwards.
So it is unsurprising that my first David Lynch movie would be the one that has the reputation of being his most conventional one. Furthermore, the story of Alvin Straight and his journey of travelling a 390 kilometre journey atop a ride-on lawnmower sounds like one that would make for an interesting movie. 

For someone who is unfamiliar with Lynch's work, I can still tell that this is a breed apart from his oeuvre: None of the tropes I mentioned in the previous paragraph are present here. Instead, this is an empathetic look at Alvin and the journey he takes. We see the people he meets and interacts with on the way and we gain insight into his way of thinking, built up through years of experience. And we learn his belief in family. 
It may sound dull but it is absorbing, largely due to Lynch's directing and the committed performance of the late great Richard Farnsworth. Whatever gamble this movie may have initially appeared to be, ultimately paid off. 
Sometimes the most compelling movies can be the most deceptive, you know?

Tarzan

  And this week's Friday night movie has been... Tarzan!

Original image located here. Accessed 18th April 2025

I never saw Tarzan - or Mulan for that matter - when it was originally in theatres. At that time I was in college and my interests were being directed elsewhere. Furthermore to watch a Disney animated film back then was, in my mind, dismissed as 'kid's stuff'. 
But now, I'm an adult and I see no reason to care any more - especially as I continue to lurch through middle age. In addition, I have heard some good things about Tarzan so maybe it's time to give this a look with fresh eyes. 

So does this count among the Disney Renaissance? I have spoken previously about the post-Renaissance years, which is now recognised as the Experimental years, but is there an overlap between the two? Indeed, one could make the argument that the Experimental years began post-Lion King as those have not had the widespread recognition comparable to Little Mermaid/Beauty and the Beast/Aladdin/Lion King.

All right, enough delaying: This movie was fantastic. It wasn't just the astonishing animation, but a lot of stand out moments: The soundtrack courtesy of one Phil Collins. The theme of family. The gorgeous artwork. But the real star is Jane: She was a great character in her expressive, adorkable, probably-inspired-by-Jane-Goodall glory - helped immeasurably by the voice acting of Minnie Driver. And seeing her relationship with Tarzan progress is one worth following. 

I have heard that Tarzan himself functions as an analogy for people with Autism. Certainly I can see it and yes it does seem plausible, what with him being socially awkward and how he is treated by the people around him. Having said that, maybe I should've watched this during it's original theatre run as it could've helped...

Anywho, this was great stuff and yes, I think this could easily stand amongst Disney's best.

Mystery Men

And this week's Friday night movie has been... Mystery Men!

Original image located here. Accessed 19th August 2022

It seems I have encountered something of an anomaly: It was a bomb upon initial release but in the twenty-plus years since release it seems to have finally found an audience in that people are rediscovering it and saying good things about it. And tonight I was one of those people.

It seems that the reason behind this resurrection of this movie is that given that superhero movies have become commonplace in recent years, one would think that parody would be somewhat inevitable. But that is a niche that has already been filled and Mystery Men does it admirably.
Has time been kind to this movie? One would think so.
Okay sure some of the jokes have aged poorly but there are some genuinely laugh-out moments. There are indeed some great gags that poke fun at the familiar superhero tropes. And the premise of superheroes with useless powers still works.
Plus it has Geoffrey Rush hamming it up. And I won't say no to that

The Talented Mr Ripley

And this week's Friday night movie has been... The Talented Mr Ripley!

Original image located here. Accessed 20th March 2020

Once again, this is another case of a movie I've been meaning to see for some time. But I finally come around to it for three reasons.
Firstly, I recall when this movie originally came out and left a lot of people baffled as to what to make of it - least not my parents who thought it was some sort of inspirational/life-affirming movie (and I can imagine they weren't the only ones). Yet once again, the distance of time builds a perfect platform to assess this movie on it's own merits.
>Secondly, I have seen the stage version of this with the titular role being played by a good friend of mine.
And thirdly, further interest was generated with the connection this movie has to The Room.

Perhaps it is just as well that I approaching this movie with an independent mindset because this is, ultimately, an odd movie - both for it's time and over twenty years later. As a psychological thriller it works well, assisted by some truly stunning imagery of Italy. But at it's core, this movie is a character study, one of a person who is a con-artist and commits some horrible acts but, at the end, still comes out as sympathetic. And the confusion surrounding Tom Ripley, assisted by Matt Damon's performance, makes him a compelling character to be sure. So in the end. if this movie is making me feel for a guy I have no right to, then it must've done something right.
What concerns me though is that we have a guy trying to belong but is greeted with condescension. Which makes me wonder how many 'people who shout at other people on the internet' would find such a scenario familiar....

The Blair Witch Project

And this week's Friday night movie has been....The Blair Witch Project!

Original image located here. Accessed 18th October 2019

Once again I face a movie that has a fearsome reputation attached to it. The most profitable indie movie ever made. A movie that freaked people out into never going camping. A pioneer for viral marketing. A benchmark for the found-footage genre. A shining example of how atmosphere and 'what you don't see' are effective tools for the would-be horror film director. A dull movie about three idiots who get lost in the woods.

Personally I recall back in 1999 how this was a big deal and how people were divided with some saying it was freaky while others saying it was boring. Once again, however, i took my time to come to this movie because I felt it was important to see it through my own eyes and divorce it from the hype machine that made this a big hit. And twenty years would make for a good enough distance.

If anything this movie is a triumph of independent filmmaking: It's embraces it's limitations and relies on clever editing to engage the audience. The 'what you don't see' trick works wonders here and makes for a gradual build up of the horror. Equally effective is the gradual collapse into panic the protagonists go through and harrowing climax in the house.

This movie may be cheap and grimy but personally, I like horror movies that rely on mood and a creeping dread. And to the end The Blair Witch project succeeds admirably.
Twenty years on and it still has power.

Office Space

And this week's Friday night movie has been....Office Space!

Original image located here. Accessed 13th September 2019

Some of my buds have been urging me to see this, citing it's hilarity and situations I may find familiar. Personally, i had no idea that this movie existed but I'll try anything once.

And as it so happens it was funny. I can't say some of the situations in this movie has happened during my job (thankfully) but there is indeed some relatable elements in them and there were some decent laughs to be had.
Oh and when my home printer eventually gives up the ghost i am definitely giving it a send off reminiscent of the one portrayed in this movie

The Iron Giant

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....The Iron Giant!

Original image located here. Accessed 23rd March 2018

Well it took me long enough but I finally got to see this movie. And all I had to do was find a spare eighty-odd minutes in my schedule XD
Watching this movie however I do realize, i do miss the art of the 2d hand drawn animation. Somehow it seems more expressive and more full of life than digital artwork. Still at least works like this function as time-capsule to a time that's disappearing over the horizon.

As for the movie itself, it was great! I do remember this not getting much of a run in it's original theatrical form but now, nearly two decades later, it seems to have obtained an audience and appreciation that eluded it the first time around.
It may not have had the budget of larger animated features but somehow, I found this to have more heart than a lot of other movies, animated or Live Action.