In the spirit of Welcome Week, Festifall and all things post-Labor-Day, The Daily Film section has written a collection of blurbs celebrating our favorite “Openings” to movies.
Stephen Satarino
Daily Film Editor
Film
In a cramped theater, at the emotional climax of Lulu Wang’s (“Posthumous”) “The Farewell,” an entire row bursts into laughter. Those on the aisle and a family sitting below the main speaker join in, too.
“The Farewell” reminds us that familial love, like love in all its forms, is messy. Though there are times that it pulls at our heart strings, there are others where it makes us belly laugh.
The lions in this new film do not emote. If there were actors physically embodying the parts, they would be rightly criticized for being wooden and awful.
Since “Tenenbaums” in 2001, no working director has cultivated a more distinct visual style than Anderson, and you could count on the fingers of your right hand the ones who’ve come close. I’ve always been struck by his ability to bring all his many stylistic features together in such a cohesive, breathless fashion.
In an interview with Slate, Aster remarks, “Life is suffering. I agree with that, and I think it’s therapeutic to give expression to that … there’s also this high-minded part of me that wants to do it in the most elegant way possible. That’s where this (Midsommar) comes from.”
In summer 2017, Tom Holland’s (“The Lost City of Z”) Peter Parker swung back into our lives with “Spider-Man: Homecoming.” The Spider-Man franchise has an impressive cinematic history with Tobey Maguire (“The Great Gatsby”) and Andrew Garfield (“Hacksaw Ridge”) donning the iconic suit
“Yesterday” does very little harm, but also little notable good, taking few risks, aside from building a movie around a world where the Beatles didn’t record their own songs. You’re probably better off queuing up Abbey Road and asking yourself what your life would be like without those songs, than seeing this film’s minimally inventive take on that question.
We do not see Ida struggle, or grow or discover long-buried passion. Instead, sex and sin are treated as an object of curiosity.
It’s kind of sad, really — all Antonio wants to do is have a good time with his family, and yet he finds himself being wooed by fake love interests and his daughter married off to someone who’s only in it for his money.