Every year around this time I start receiving my SAG screeners, stock up on my beloved Cado mint chip ice cream and start movie watching! This year, I moved beyond the screeners to investigate films that I thought were truly special and, while I am no critic, thought it would be fun to share with you a shortlist of my favorites:
1. The More Than Frybread Movie
I do not know how I missed the More Than Frybread movie before. I was looking for a fun, contemporary movie over the #Thanksgiving break that had a Native American dominated cast and this one came up. It is freakin' hysterical. I laughed so hard I nearly cried. The only caveat I have is that afterwards I ate, like, a loaf of bread (not to mention several pints of Cado) because the movie makes you kind of hungry. You'll understand when you watch it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pto1xNsk98o
2. Woman at War
This is an amazing film I missed when it first came out but finally saw: Woman At War. I am ashamed to say this is the first Icelandic-Ukrainian movie I've seen and now I know I should check out more. Halldóra Geirharðsdóttir, the lead actor, is AMAZING. This is another one of those fabulous films like A Call To Spy, more on that below, in which a woman leads with absolute perfection and we get the privilege of seeing the story through a lens breathtakingly different from the typical Hollywood basic vanilla. I never thought I'd see a comedy tackle such a serious issue (issues, really) in this kind of refreshing, dazzling way. A must see. https://www.womanatwarfilm.com/
3. Gunda
Gunda is my #1 favorite documentary of the year. It is gorgeously shot – a treat for the eyes – and takes us all into another’s world, which is really the point of entertainment media, right? To be able to see something we perhaps never before imagined from a perspective we may never before have imagined either. By turns, hysterically funny and devastatingly heartbreaking, this is one of those never-to-be-forgotten films. https://thevore.com/film/97041/
https://www.gunda.movie
4. A Call to Spy
I have read a lot of books about WWII and I was nervous about A Call To Spy but it did not disappoint. I absolutely loved it. Bravo Radhika Apte, Sarah Megan Thomas and all the amazing cast and crew! It was so refreshing to see a movie about women spies that was about their minds, souls and actual spy craft, not about falling in love with some man or getting saved by some man. https://youtu.be/3qpXI6n6Ea0
And from the SAG screeners:
- Minari
2. Nomadland
Nomadland, like Gunda, allowed me a glimpse of a life very different from my own. It was a breathtakingly visceral mix of grief and freedom. Chloé Zhao and Frances McDormand are a powerhouse duo. I've decided I am going to be in a film with them. They don't know that yet....but I am sure they'll be cool with it. #Inspiration
www.WatchNomadland.com
3. Promising Young Woman
Saw my SAG Screener for Promising Young Woman and, after all I’d hoped for as a huge fan of writer/director Emerald Fennell (Killing Eve), I was not disappointed. For all of – I think many – of us who have experienced or witnessed something similar to what our protagonist or her best friend did, this film will hit a very raw nerve. For all the surreal shots and candy colors, it is very, very real. The long, silent scream for help echoes so many we have been ignoring for way too long. And the end was one I’d never, ever expected. https://youtu.be/7i5kiFDunk8
If you’re looking to kick back, relax, and have some popcorn (or Cado mint chip), these films are a wonderful way to spend an evening in. If you watch, I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback on my picks!
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