fantasy – Page 4 – PopCult Reviews

Movie Review – Happy as Lazzaro

Happy as Lazzaro (2018)
Written and directed by Alice Rohrwacher

Since I saw Season Two, Episode Five, “The Betrayal,” of the Italian drama My Brilliant Friend, filmmaker Alice Rohrwacher has shot to the top of my must-watch list. That is hands down one of my favorite single episodes of television ever made. It so beautifully captured the transition of the show’s main character from a childlike perspective on the world to a more adult & fraught viewpoint. How Rohrwacher shot this character’s epiphany was one of the most realistic portrayals I’ve seen for that coming-of-age moment. I fell in love with her most recent film, La Chimera, which led me to put this film on the watch list for December.

Movie Review – Celine and Julie Go Boating

Celine and Julie Go Boating (1974)
Written by Jacques Rivette, Dominique Labourier, Juliet Berto, Eduardo de Gregorio, Bulle Ogier, and Marie-France Pisier
Directed by Jacques Rivette

I’ve noticed certain films rising in popularity, likely due to a recent restoration release. After decades of only existing in poor copies, we now have cleaned-up versions, so the films can be appreciated how their creators intended. Celine and Julie Go Boating is one of those films I see coming across MovieTok or being discussed online. I added it to this list because I was curious about what drew people to the picture. Jacques Rivette is a filmmaker whose work I am fairly unfamiliar with, but he came up with the New Wave filmmakers as a writer/critic at La Cahiers du Cinéma. I knew very little about this film other than it was very improvisational.

Patron Pick – Quigley

This special reward is available to Patreon patrons who pledge at the $10 or $20 monthly levels. Each month, those patrons will pick a film for me to review. If they choose, they also get to include some of their thoughts about the movie. This Pick comes from Matt Harris.

Quigley (2003)
Written and directed by William Byron Hillman

When you see a film like Quigley, many questions flow through your mind. “Are we meant to believe 50-year-old Curtis Armstrong is actually 35?” “Was this just a money laundering scheme by the mob?” “Are we laughing with Gary Busey or at him?” If Quigley were to come out today, it would, like the work of Neil Breen, be caught up in the meme machine. Yet, this picture was released in the early 2000s, shot on video, and released straight to the VHS format. At every turn, I was confused by this picture, wondering how aware the people on set were that this was utter garbage. A paycheck is a paycheck, I suppose.

PopCult Podcast – Beetlejuice/Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children

With Tim Burton’s latest opening in theaters, we decided to take a look back. The first is a classic, his second feature which introduced us to the ghost with the most. The second is YA novel adaptation from 2016 that is heavy on the CG and exposition.

Solo Tabletop RPG Actual Play – Against the Wind Part Three

You can purchase Against the Wind here

Read about our previous session here.

This is my final actual play of Against the Wind for now, but I have to say this is one of the best solo systems I’ve played thus far. I love the tools of Ironsworn/Starforged, but I do feel it misses procedures that help create settings and situations sometimes. Against the Wind has such clearly written steps for building the world, creating NPCs, exploring the wilderness & settlements, and in this session dungeon delving. The tables are evocative enough without locking you into one path. I can definitely see myself returning to this one in the future.

Movie Review – Daisies

Daisies (1966)
Written by Ester Krumbachová, Pavel Juráček, and Věra Chytilová
Directed by Věra Chytilová

There’s a vibrating chaos at the heart of Daisies, considered the most significant achievement in Czech cinema. It’s a study of patriarchy through the eyes of two cartoon-like women whose behaviors and antics are intentionally exaggerated. There’s no real plot to speak of, rather vignettes in which two girls, both named Marie, interact with people or engage in frantic behavior, giggling and gorging down food. The film conflicts with the conservatism present in Czechoslovakia’s communist government at the time. It is, in my opinion, a needed continued push to the Left that all communist governments are constantly in need of. We humans tend to settle into familiar routines and ruts, but we must also allow our perspectives to be challenged, especially when it comes to increasing our embrace of others outside of systemic power. Daisies is an attempt at that.

Patron Pick – Enter the Void

Enter the Void (2009)
Written by Gaspar Noé and Lucile Hadzihalilovic
Directed by Gaspar Noé

No one knows what happens when we die. There has undoubtedly been a lot of time devoted to thinking about death. Some people claim they know through various intense near-death experiences, but we don’t really. One of the biggest questions that surrounds death is what happens to the conscious mind. In sleep, we dream. But where does that mind go when there is no body to return to? The easiest answer would be, “Remember what it was like before you were born.” That’s what death is like. Nothing.

TV Review – Fantasmas

Fantasmas (2024)
Written and directed by Julio Torres

The post-Internet era of media is very much here, and one aspect of that is this DIY/hyperreal style of filmmakers like Julio Torres. The work is very much queer both in its presentation of diverse genders and sexualities but also in the strangeness of its presentation. It’s clearly modeled on our real world but often exaggerated in ways inspired by the cartoons of the 1990s and early 2000s these artists grew up watching. They address the current reality of capitalism’s buckling by finding humor in the mundane but nevertheless infuriating odyssey of trying to get adequate health care or resolving a bank charge. And it’s all done in a manner that feels fresh and exciting.

Solo Tabletop RPG Review & Actual Play – Against the Wind Part One

You can purchase Against the Wind here

I recently used Cezar Capacle’s excellent zine of tables Random Realities as part of my solo world-building for another series. I love the versatility and depth of those tools, so I thought I would try out this game system he’s put out, Against the Wind. This solo/co-op fantasy game is set in a wintery world ravaged by strong winds and brutal cold. The artwork leans heavily into classic fairy tale design, and the game complements that vibe. What I found in playing Against the Wind is a robust procedural system for solo play that feels like what an official version of solo Dungeon World might be like.

Movie Review – The Adventures of Baron Munchausen

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988)
Written by Charles McKeown and Terry Gilliam
Directed by Terry Gilliam

I was obsessed with Terry Gilliam’s Brazil as a college undergrad. It was the first time I saw it, and right away, I found the imagery to be spellbinding. I’ve cooled immensely since that time on Gilliam’s work. I find most of it to be incredibly inventive yet frustratingly messy. Some comments he’s made have also caused me to see him as a filmmaker I’m not too keen on following. The first film of his I saw was Time Bandits when I was a kid, and it left an indelible mark on me. I remember seeing commercials for The Adventures of Baron Munchausen and desperately wanting to see it. However, it was never an option when renting movies at the video rental store. Finally seeing the film, reminded me that, like all of Gilliam’s work, there is tremendous artistry here, but it is hindered by a lack of consistency.