Double Feature Review

Greetings, my beautiful readers, 

    Allow me to apologize for my extended absence. Life had gotten in the way as usual with work and a few other projects I am preparing for later in the year. Today, I would have seen and written for review for the latest Marvel film, Fantastic Four: First Steps, but instead, I sadly caught COVID less than a week ago. Fortunately, my symptoms were mild. I am fully vaccinated and taking the proper medication to reduce the chances of any possible long-term effects. This could not have come at a worse time, as I was preparing to leave town on a road trip for one of my favorite destinations, Ashland, Oregon, with some friends, which I had to abruptly cancel due to the virus. Silver lining: I get to catch up on some recent releases I missed, and I have a whole week off work for a swift and complete recovery. 

    So, let's kick things off with a good old-fashioned Double Feature Review. 

Starting with...

Rent on Apple TV and Amazon

Arriving on Disney+ August 27th

    Marvel Studios has been hitting a few rough patches in recent years. While they're still a talented studio putting out occasional hits like Shang-Chi and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, they've mostly been struggling with a plan post-Endgame. Rather than take a step back and allow the fan community to wet their appetites for the next wave, Marvel seemed to just go all in on grander and more exuberant stuff that only added to the perceived superhero fatigue. While I do still enjoy some of Marvel's content, I can't help but feel they're driving straight into a brick wall with no signs of proper course correction. It seems likely that with DC Comics/Warner Bros.' brand new and excellent Superman movie, along with James Gunn at the head of it all, they might actually start to take on the mantle for handling the next wave of incredible superhero movies for the near future. But that is pure speculation right now. 

    In the meantime, Marvel is occasionally coming out with a few creative outings for their more minor characters, and offering them a chance at the spotlight, like with the most recent outing, Thunderbolts. Starring a series of supporting characters from previous movies and TV shows, Thunderbolts is a decent package with credible, nuanced themes of personal trauma, guilt, and surrogate families. With admirable performances throughout the board, decently crafted action scenes, and enough of that classic Marvel witty banter dialogue to offer a fairly promising future for Marvel. 

    Sadly, the film can only be recommended for loyal Marvel fans, as the narrative heavily relies upon (understandably so) past events and references from previous Marvel shows and at least one film from phase one. While the movie does its best to bring first-time viewers up to speed with who these characters are and why they should care, much of the nuance and emotional resonance can get easily lost in the shuffle for those who have not been following the movies or have yet to catch up. This is not a criticism of the film itself; only an observation for those who are not as invested in the MCU as I or others may be. 

    Suppose you don't mind not knowing exactly who everyone is or what past events some of them refer to here and there. In that case, you may appreciate the clever characterizations and valiant efforts toward an emotionally driven narrative. Not to mention a reasonable effort toward offering representation of misfits and outcasts, which I will always appreciate. 

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    For those who prefer an outing that doesn't rely upon past knowledge of previous events or storylines, you might be interested in this. 

Rent on Apple TV and Amazon

    This is the latest offering from the little studio that can, A24: the studio behind many recent classics such as Ex Machina, Everything Everywhere All At Once, and Moonlight. The story follows a professional matchmaker named Lucy (Dakota Johnson), who strikes up a relationship with a wealthy, strong, and silent type named Harry (Pedro Pascal), all the while catching up with her ex, John (Chris Evans). Lucy is a calculative thinker who takes pride in her work as a matchmaker, and presently sees everything in life as a transaction of some kind. This trait is admired by her present boyfriend, Harry, as he shares a similar mentality and attitude. However, her ex, John, is the wild card, as he is more energetic and grounded than either of them. How will these relationships go in the end? 

    While this film contains a few hallmarks from most typical romantic films, it has the good sense to play with some subversions of expectations, along with some interesting insights about relationships, people, and the potential dangers of overreliance on business-type mindsets. Not to mention the wise choices to approach emotional conflicts in more mature and nuanced ways than one might have expected from such a story. It is a well-crafted film that delivers the goods in a nicely presented package with reliable performances, pretty images, and insightful writing. 

    Having said that...

    The film suffers from being too long and repetitive. Some scenes drag out for much longer than necessary, and some of the witty writing wasn't required, given the strong visuals in some instances. The film could have been at least twenty minutes shorter and maintained its intended mood and thematic weight. As it stands now, it's still a solid piece of work with all of the nuances as mentioned earlier and quality parts; I only wish it had been a bit shorter. 

    Apart from that, Materialists is a film with a good story about love, relationships, and people that is totally worth a look. 

Ladies & gentlemen, I am TheNorm; thank you all for reading.