2019 and the Big (and Sometimes Little) Screen

It's the end of the year and time to rank movies. I didn't see as many as I usually do, it's been a busy year for me and whenever I had time for movies it was hard to resist the siren call of the many pre-1970 movies I had yet to see. But here's my ranking of twelve, from worst to best:

12. Captain Marvel (Wikipedia entry, my review)

Although comedy worked very well to enliven Thor: Ragnarok, Captain Marvel's relentless tongue-in-cheek tone and bad cgi cat only diminished the sense of stakes. The screenplay has no instinct for comedy and any sense of weight in the action and suspense scenes is sacrificed for no good reason.

11. Let It Snow (Wikipedia entry)

A charismatic performance by Kiernan Shipka is unfortunately just one small part of an otherwise mostly lacklustre ensemble cast headed by a dull Isabela Merced and a wooden Shameik Moore. The self-consciously dopey Christmas magic plot succeeds at dopeyness more than it intends and I would expect nothing less from the film's ever smug and smarmy producer and co-writer John Green.

10. The Peanut Butter Falcon (Wikipedia entry, my review)

Shia LeBeouf reaches Vincent Gallo levels of vanity in this film centred on his heroic fisherman who takes a mentally impaired young man (Zack Gottsagen) under his wing and woos his beautiful caretaker (Dakota Johnson) in the process. Gratuitous shots of Gottsagen running around in his underwear or pretending to be a wrestler invite us to laugh at the realities of Down syndrome by presenting the fellow in unrealistic and absurd circumstances. Dakota Johnson is forced to rough it with the boys because her every thought and opinion in her college educated brain turns out to be wrong in ways only a poor handsome fisherman can show her.

9. Avengers: Endgame (Wikipedia entry)

Some really emotionally effective moments, particularly from Robert Downey Jr. and Mark Ruffalo, are sometimes sabotaged by too many awkward "action figures assemble" shots. Karen Gillen as Nebula steals the show with her internal conflict over her relationship with Thanos though the film too often falls into a by now familiar pattern of comedy beats and shock beats. The weird push to make us like Captain Marvel isn't as prominent as I thought it would be but it was still weird how often characters seemed compelled to tell us, "She's great!" "I like her!"

8. Frozen 2 (Wikipedia entry, my review)

Not as effective as its predecessor, Frozen II at least features more screen time for Elsa, wonderful visuals, and an entertaining adventure story.

7. El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie (Wikipedia entry, my review)

A quieter film than many people might have been expecting, it was a satisfying conclusion to Jesse's story with nice scenes of effective tension continuing the final season of Breaking Bad's indulgence in a Spaghetti Western vibe. The late Robert Forster is responsible for what works best about the film's dialogue scenes.

6. Alita: Battle Angel (Wikipedia entry, my review)

Effective combinations of cgi and live action breathe strange life into a story about a father and his daughter caught in a drama between Heaven and Hell with plenty of Milton references. Hopefully we'll be seeing this big-eyed heroine again one of these days.

5. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (Wikipedia entry, my review)

A plot with many logical gaps can't eclipse the wonderful chemistry on hand between the actors, a powerful performance from Adam Driver with a satisfying development for his character, and some seriously spooky business around the one and only (unless it's a clone) Emperor Palpatine.

4. The Man Who Killed Don Quixote (Wikipedia entry, my review)

Any end of the year list must include two Adam Driver movies and here he starred in Terry Gilliam's welcome (if brief) return to the big screen. Covering some thematic territory better served by Gilliam's earlier films (and Fellini's), it's still great to indulge in Gilliam's familiar cinematic voice, comedic timing, and Bruegelian aesthetic.

3. The Irishman (Wikipedia entry, my review)

Whether or not you agree with Scorsese's comments on the MCU, he certainly offered us a poignant reminder of what cinema is capable doing in terms of a subtle and rich character study. There's more communicated in a silence between De Niro and Pacino in this movie than in ten superhero films of the past decade.

2. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (Wikipedia entry, my review)

Much of the impact of this movie was lost on people with little to no knowledge of the Manson murders (many more people than will admit it) or who have no knowledge or grasp of the current underlying conflict in film industry and culture over the nature of art and human relationships. But even those who don't grasp these things might still find plenty to admire in Tarantino's astounding recreation of 60s Hollywood and the sweet chemistry between Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio.

1. Joker (Wikipedia entry, my review)

Many end of the year lists don't include this film, many critics can't offer better praise for the film than to say, "It's okay," and admit they don't understand why it caught on so well. There are few easier or better gauges of whether or not a critic lives within an ideological bubble sheltered by wealth and the very privilege they're fond of attributing to their enemies. Joker, even if you didn't like it, on an objective level represents a shift in the zeitgeist. With the Irishman, Scorsese showed why he was right about the MCU but Joker shows how superhero movies can achieve the kind of complexity of character and argument not normally seen in such movies. That Joker was wildly popular shows audiences, if not critics, thankfully do have an appetite for it. Hell, we're starving for it.

A Girl and Her Devoted Ghosts

When does love begin for a young girl? Maybe with a ghost, as in 1946's Sylie et le fantome, the story of a girl who moves into a castle and falls in love with the lost lover of her ancestor. This begins a pretty, psychologically rich fantasy about the formation of a young person's conceptions of the opposite sex.

Sylvie (Odette Joyeux) is just about to turn 16 and dreamily tells other children stories of an 18th century nobleman, Alain de Francigny, who loved her ancestor before perishing in a duel for said ancestor's hand. Little does she know the invisible ghost of this ancestor, charmed by her affection, stalks the castle played by a pre-Hulot Jacques Tati.

Obviously his skill at mime and physical comedy comes into play but he's also more effectively dashing than one tends to think of Monsieur Hulot being. He's able to do little things like prevent her from blowing out her birthday candle but he can do nothing by way of direct communication. Sylvie's father, a baron (Pierre Larquey), enlists an actor to play the ghost beneath a sheet. But he mistakes two wouldbe thieves as additional actors and decides to employ all three as the same ghost.

Sylvie, sweetly credulous as Alice, accepts each "ghost" as he introduces himself and falls in love a little bit with each of the thieves in turn. The concept here is pretty plain but no less sweet for it--which man comes closest to fitting her ideal? Except, by the time the real Alain dons the sheets, she's talking about how she's already outgrown the fantasy. But has she, or has the fantasy merely evolved?

It's intriguing the film uses two thieves, one for her to accept and the other for her to reject along with the real ghost. It's almost inevitable for a pretty girl to break many hearts, of course, but it also refines the nature and mystery of her choice.

Odette Joyeux plays Sylvie with an appropriate sharpness--she's not dumb, she's just innocent--that makes her all the prettier. The special effects are another wonder in themselves, the kind of slight of hand tricks that work so well in Cocteau's films from the period. And one forgets its a special effect when Tati tries and fails to drag a sheet through the wall.

Sylvie et le fantome is available on The Criterion Channel.

The End of a Time

To-day's Bernard Cribbins' birthday and January 1st, 2020 will mark ten years since the first Doctor Who New Year's special, 2010's "The End of Time: Part 2", in which Cribbins played the Doctor's Companion Wilfred Mott. Appropriately, it's a regeneration story, too, the last of David Tennant's run as the Tenth Doctor and the last of Russell T. Davies' run as showrunner. His finales were always exceedingly dramatic and "End of Time" is certainly that and by the end of the cumulatively two and a half hour story I can't help feeling a little tired of Ten, as much as I love him. It's just kind of exhausting while "The Eleventh Hour" has so much pluck.

It doesn't help that John Simm is my least favourite incarnation of the Master though the plot is fittingly zany for his ultra-zany performance. He turns the entire human race, save Donna (Catherine Tate) and Wilfred, into copies of his cackling, tongue lolling self.

But in the middle of this silliness, there are some nice moments between Ten and Wilfred, particularly when the two, on a space ship high above Earth, talk about the meaning of age, death, sacrifice, and killing. And both actors sell that final moment where Ten is compelled to save Wilfred.

I am glad Ten returns in the 50th anniversary three years later. While I don't hate "End of Time" exactly Tennant deserved a much better send off than complaining about having to save Wilfred. I like the idea of each incarnation of the Doctor being a distinct life that ends upon regeneration, and the emotional weight of that, but I feel like, at any other time, the Doctor wouldn't hesitate to suffer regeneration so that someone who can't regenerate might continue living.

And so this is my last Doctor Who post of the year and, depending on how you reckon it, the decade. Here's hoping the New Year will be regenerative for us all but that, whatever the case, we meet it with grace, intelligence, and courage. Maybe I should've watched Caves of Androzani.

Twitter Sonnet #1312

A bowl of salt absorbed a running tap.
Remembered late the punch arose in clouds.
A stylish grace distinguished hat from cap.
A jaunty beat distinguished veils from shrouds.
In stripey gum the future wrote a chew.
A falling drink alights upon a tongue.
A sugar built the leaves to catch the dew.
A tiny pair of trees construct the lung.
A knocking hand reminds the brain to tick.
A looping road delivers food to rocks.
A lumpy stone was shaved to make a brick.
The running feet descend to moving socks.
A frozen joint announced a moving limb.
A desert planet rules the Outer Rim.

IG-11 and His Sidekick Din

The Mandalorian concluded its first season last night on what was undeniably its highest note, director Taika Waititi demonstrating competence and experience do make a difference. He both directed the episode and starred in it as the scene stealing IG-11.

Spoilers after the screenshot

The episode is titled "Redemption" and I can only assume this is in reference to the former assassin droid voiced by Taika Waititi, now reprogrammed to be a nanny and general protector. And sure he does his job well as Waititi behind the camera insures the IG unit pulls an amusing ambush on two chatty scout troopers before having an exciting speed through town, finishing up by executing a noble sacrifice.

I've noticed one of the primary themes from George Lucas era Star Wars absent from Disney era is the wariness of technology. We don't have the evil droid army and Anakin's transformation from good to evil being symbolised by becoming "more machine now than man." R2D2's injury in the climax of A New Hope was meant to show that even the friendliest technology can't be relied on when it matters most and Luke was compelled even to turn off his targetting computer. Now, in Mandalorian and Rise of Skywalker, we have portrayals of droids being self-sacrificing heroes, IG-11 in one and C-3PO in the other. One of the arcs for the Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal) was even learning to trust and value droids after being terrorised by battle droids in the Clone Wars.

There are two possible reasons I see for this shift: 1. Disney decided droids too much resembled a servant class denoted by race. The droid subplot in Solo would certainly support that. And/or 2. Disney is partly in the business of selling technology in a world in which technology is becoming an increasingly dominant part of our lives. How dare we tell the little girl who spends two thirds of the day texting that technology may not be all it's cracked up to be? That may be a good and valuable lesson but not a profitable one. It's possible both motives play a part, that one helps to justify the other. It's kind of a shame, though, because the warning against becoming too reliant on technology would be a particularly useful message right now.

I'd say it's even kind of sinister that redemption is portrayed as the product of reprogramming.

My old fogey complaints aside, this was a great episode, mainly for the direction. I loved little bits of character like Greef (Carl Weathers) downing shots of liquor and baby Yoda doing the little hand wave. And we have official mention of the Mandalorian's name, something I didn't even know was a spoiler the first time I read about it. The spelling, Din Djarin, seemingly being another reference to the Spaghetti Western hero, Django, like Jango Fett, though the unsatisfying lack of the previously promised moral ambiguity in Djarin makes him very different from the character originated by Franco Nero.

We also see Pedro Pascal's face which I didn't really need. If Favreau had asked my advice, I'd have said; never reveal the Mandalorian's face and never give a reason as to why his face is never revealed. Maybe hint he has some kind of terrible injury but don't make it part of the Mandalorian creed. That's how you make a character truly mysterious.

On the subject of creeds, it's a little odd "Mandalorian" is called a creed here which makes me wonder what you call someone from Mandalore who isn't part of the creed. But maybe no-one's from Mandalore anymore.

Apparently the Mandalorians who rescued Djarin are part of Death Watch (something I didn't spot last night but read about this morning), the group of radical Mandalorians introduced in Clone Wars. Of course, the more obvious reference to that series is the Dark Sabre wielded by Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito).

I don't have much to say about this except to hope it's a harbinger of an eventual live action Ahsoka Tano series. I still think Rosario Dawson would be dynamite casting.

So Long, Command Carrier

Farscape's season three climactic two parter ends with the extravagant exit of two characters and the murky issues involving the Peacekeepers come to an unambiguous conclusion. More or less.

Season Three, Episode Twenty-One: Into the Lion's Den, Part II: Wolf in Sheep's Clothing.

It's been a few episodes since Talyn killed a ship of civilians. As often happens with a character who's redeemed after committing horrible deeds (as seen recently in another space opera series), Talyn must die, in this case by starbursting in the middle of the Command Carrier with Crais (Lani Tupu) inside. This is just one of the violent ways the moral ambiguities of the previous episode are concluded, the more impressive, in my opinion, being the fiery death of Henta (Marta Dusseldorp), the old comrade of Aeryn (Claudia Black).

It's hard to see this as a consequence of Henta's loyalty to the Peacekeepers since these random flames could as easily have hit Aeryn. It's worth remembering that sometimes life and death obey no code of morality or justice. Which makes decisions about such things all the more difficult and the final confrontation between Scorpius (Wayne Pygram) and Crichton (Ben Browder) the best part of the episode.

Even after Crichton has clearly betrayed him, Scorpius is actually still making his case, still telling Crichton about the threat posed by the Scarrans. This is after Crais has gotten his final revenge on Scorpius but I wonder if it's partly a reflection on Crichton's experience with Crais, the process of reconciliation between two bitter enemies, that compels him to stop a moment and cooperate with Scorpius to remove the bracelets. The fact that the two had been sharing each other's physical pain, and that Scorpius has been willing to hurt Crichton (and himself in the process), works as a good symbol of understanding, too. This is the beginning of not a beautiful friendship but certainly another of Farscape's famous weird relationships.

. . .

Farscape is available now on Amazon Prime.

This entry is part of a series I'm writing on Farscape for the show's 20th anniversary. My previous reviews can be found here (episodes are in the order intended by the show's creators rather than the broadcast order):

Season One:

Episode 1: Pilot
Episode 2: I, E.T.
Episode 3: Exodus from Genesis
Episode 4: Throne for a Loss
Episode 5: Back and Back and Back to the Future
Episode 6: Thank God It's Friday Again
Episode 7: PK Tech Girl
Episode 8: That Old Black Magic
Episode 9: DNA Mad Scientist
Episode 10: They've Got a Secret
Episode 11: Till the Blood Runs Clear
Episode 12: Rhapsody in Blue
Episode 13: The Flax
Episode 14: Jeremiah Crichton
Episode 15: Durka Returns
Episode 16: A Human Reaction
Episode 17: Through the Looking Glass
Episode 18: A Bug's Life
Episode 19: Nerve
Episode 20: The Hidden Memory
Episode 21: Bone to be Wild
Episode 22: Family Ties

Season Two:

Episode 1: Mind the Baby
Episode 2: Vitas Mortis
Episode 3: Taking the Stone
Episode 4: Crackers Don't Matter
Episode 5: Picture If You Will
Episode 6: The Way We Weren't
Episode 7: Home on the Remains
Episode 8: Dream a Little Dream
Episode 9: Out of Their Minds
Episode 10: My Three Crichtons
Episode 11: Look at the Princess, Part I: A Kiss is But a Kiss
Episode 12: Look at the Princess, Part II: I Do, I Think
Episode 13: Look at the Princess, Part III: The Maltese Crichton
Episode 14: Beware of Dog
Episode 15: Won't Get Fooled Again
Episode 16: The Locket
Episode 17: The Ugly Truth
Episode 18: A Clockwork Nebari
Episode 19: Liars, Guns, and Money, Part I: A Not So Simple Plan
Episode 20: Liars, Guns, and Money, Part II: With Friends Like These . . .
Episode 21: Liars, Guns, and Money, Part III: Plan B
Episode 22: Die Me, Dichotomy

Season Three:

Episode 1: Season of Death
Episode 2: Suns and Lovers
Episode 3: Self-Inflicted Wounds, Part I: Would'a, Could'a, Should'a
Episode 4: Self-Inflicted Wounds, Part II: Wait for the Wheel
Episode 5: . . . Different Destinations
Episode 6: Eat Me
Episode 7: Thanks for Sharing
Episode 8: Green Eyed Monster
Episode 9: Losing Time
Episode 10: Relativity
Episode 11: Incubator
Episode 12: Meltdown
Episode 13: Scratch 'n Sniff
Episode 14: Infinite Possibilities, Part I: Daedalus Demands
Episode 15: Infinite Possibilities, Part II: Icarus Abides
Episode 16: Revenging Angel
Episode 17: The Choice
Episode 18: Fractures
Episode 19: I-Yensch, You-Yensch
Episode 20: Into the Lion's Den, Part I: Lambs to the Slaughter

Community Reactions to a Teen's Impromptu Coitus

A girl has sex before marriage in a strict, traditional Catholic community. The how and why and the aftermath turns out to be pretty complicated--but pretty normal--in 1964's Seduced and Abandoned (Sedotta e abbandonata), an Italian New Wave comedy. The location shots, the big performances, and the ridiculous (but all too credible) attitudes of the characters contribute to making this the kind of Bruegelian human chaos so many Italian films of the period excelled at portraying.

16 year old Stefania Sandrelli stars as the beautiful 16 year old Agnese Ascalone who's "seduced" by her sister's fiance, Peppino (Aldo Puglisi), on one drowsy summer afternoon. Really, she has sex with him after his aggressive, sweaty pleading and caressing, her consent implied by the fact that when a family member in another part of the house asks what's going on, she says nothing, and follows Peppino outside. But the Criterion edition of the film centres her father on the cover, Don Vincenzo Ascalone (Saro Urzi), for good reason.

The big, apoplectic eyes and little moustache on his fat face are sort of entrancing. He's always looking for a reason to be furious, it seems, and as circumstances threaten to rob him of control of the situation at every turn his common man madness gets more frantic and engrossing. Some may recognise him as Apollonia's father from The Godfather and doubtless Francis Ford Coppola was wise to cast this communicative face as a difficult potential father-in-law to pacify.

The story builds on layers and layers of ridiculous pettiness the boys can stoop to as Don Vincenzo's machinations involve spreading counter-intelligence at the local pub about his daughter's reputation and Peppino's and roping a new fiance for the other sister--who ends up being a Baron in the middle of putting a rope around his neck when Don Vincenzo comes to call. Meanwhile, poor Agnese is confined to her room--her father threatens even not allowing her to use the bathroom. She nurtures a passion for Peppino that turns to hatred when it turns out he doesn't want to marry her because she's not a virgin. Because he took her virginity.

Everyone works frantically to manoeuvre the situation into a semblence of an honourable courtship and marriage and, perhaps, in the end, all ends as well as can be expected. Seduced and Abandoned is available on The Criterion Channel.

Twitter Sonnet #1311

The tested stone emerged as mountains fell.
Impartial skies determine donkey birth.
A ringing ear dismissed the thoughtless bell.
A hundred suns could not replace the Earth.
The tinsel binds a needle fast to limb.
A waving tree laments the passing ax.
The snow in sunny semblance never dims.
The frost to water pays a freezing tax.
The restless thought creates a hunted man.
Between a team of ghosts the ring was took.
A glass of blood completes a plate of tan.
A crowd of pawns can choke the panicked rook.
A crop of knights decide the courtly farm.
A fleet of corks preserve the wine from harm.

The Path of Scrooge

Merry Christmas, everyone. I've been watching some of the usual suspects; Fanny and Alexander, "The Snowmen" Doctor Who Christmas Special, and yesterday I watched Mickey's Christmas Carol. I do love my Disney+. It's hard to believe Mickey's Christmas Carol is only 25 minutes, I feel like it was at least an hour. But the first time I watched it I was a kid and an hour basically feels like a day to a kid.

As poverty becomes an increasingly visible problem, less easily dispensed with by the usual urban legends about secret billionaires begging for loose change, versions of A Christmas Carol always feel bold and Mickey's Christmas Carol is no exception. It's strange how such a seemingly simple idea touches a nerve. There's a inborn guilt to any accumulation of wealth that suggests Puritanism but, on the other hand, I've never seen a homeless person who I thought deserved to be cold and hungry on any day of the year. DuckTales or the Uncle Scrooge comics give some idea of how hard Scrooge worked for his wealth, maybe it's natural he'd be afraid of letting go of that single minded purpose. Though I guess Mickey's Christmas Carol is set in an alternate universe. Or perhaps Daisy Duck is a time traveller and she was the love of both Scrooge's and Donald's life. There's an idea with weird possibilities.

Anyway, Happy Christmas to all.

There's No Christmas Present Like a Wormhole Weapon

While boarding Scorpius' Command Carrier may seem like a hard job for our heroes on Farscape, at least the goals are easy to keep sight of. Right?

Season Three, Episode Twenty: Into the Lion's Den, Part I: Lambs to the Slaughter

The deal, hammered out in the previous episode between Rygel (Jonathan Hardy) and Scorpius (Wayne Pygram), is for Crichton (Ben Browder) to come aboard and help Scorpius develop the wormhole weapon so that the Scarrans don't have a chance to take over the galaxy. But secretly, Crichton plans to sabotage the whole project. But season three's effort to make the Peacekeepers more morally complicated comes to a culmination here as Crichton starts to wonder if it's not such a bad idea helping Scorpius after all.

He gets caught up on Scorpius' backstory so he knows just how vicious the Scarrans can be. He sees the infighting between Peacekeepers--the lower level officers chaff under Scorpius' orders to play nice with Moya's crew, none of them apparently seeing the big picture. Aeryn (Claudia Black) and Crais (Lani Tupu) run into old comrades who remind them this used to be home and that it was certainly never all bad. Finally, we're introduced to Scorpius' rival, Grayza (Rebecca Riggs), who wants to try to negotiate peace with the Scarrans.

Cool, calculating, with the amount of cleavage that somehow communicates an impression of ruthlessness, the mysteriously purple eyed lady is another thing making Crichton's moral quandary more difficult.

This is the beginning of the political plot that will shape most of the fourth season and it's a nice transition, turning the personal experiences of Moya's crew into something that fits into a grand scale.

. . .

Farscape is available now on Amazon Prime.

This entry is part of a series I'm writing on Farscape for the show's 20th anniversary. My previous reviews can be found here (episodes are in the order intended by the show's creators rather than the broadcast order):

Season One:

Episode 1: Pilot
Episode 2: I, E.T.
Episode 3: Exodus from Genesis
Episode 4: Throne for a Loss
Episode 5: Back and Back and Back to the Future
Episode 6: Thank God It's Friday Again
Episode 7: PK Tech Girl
Episode 8: That Old Black Magic
Episode 9: DNA Mad Scientist
Episode 10: They've Got a Secret
Episode 11: Till the Blood Runs Clear
Episode 12: Rhapsody in Blue
Episode 13: The Flax
Episode 14: Jeremiah Crichton
Episode 15: Durka Returns
Episode 16: A Human Reaction
Episode 17: Through the Looking Glass
Episode 18: A Bug's Life
Episode 19: Nerve
Episode 20: The Hidden Memory
Episode 21: Bone to be Wild
Episode 22: Family Ties

Season Two:

Episode 1: Mind the Baby
Episode 2: Vitas Mortis
Episode 3: Taking the Stone
Episode 4: Crackers Don't Matter
Episode 5: Picture If You Will
Episode 6: The Way We Weren't
Episode 7: Home on the Remains
Episode 8: Dream a Little Dream
Episode 9: Out of Their Minds
Episode 10: My Three Crichtons
Episode 11: Look at the Princess, Part I: A Kiss is But a Kiss
Episode 12: Look at the Princess, Part II: I Do, I Think
Episode 13: Look at the Princess, Part III: The Maltese Crichton
Episode 14: Beware of Dog
Episode 15: Won't Get Fooled Again
Episode 16: The Locket
Episode 17: The Ugly Truth
Episode 18: A Clockwork Nebari
Episode 19: Liars, Guns, and Money, Part I: A Not So Simple Plan
Episode 20: Liars, Guns, and Money, Part II: With Friends Like These . . .
Episode 21: Liars, Guns, and Money, Part III: Plan B
Episode 22: Die Me, Dichotomy

Season Three:

Episode 1: Season of Death
Episode 2: Suns and Lovers
Episode 3: Self-Inflicted Wounds, Part I: Would'a, Could'a, Should'a
Episode 4: Self-Inflicted Wounds, Part II: Wait for the Wheel
Episode 5: . . . Different Destinations
Episode 6: Eat Me
Episode 7: Thanks for Sharing
Episode 8: Green Eyed Monster
Episode 9: Losing Time
Episode 10: Relativity
Episode 11: Incubator
Episode 12: Meltdown
Episode 13: Scratch 'n Sniff
Episode 14: Infinite Possibilities, Part I: Daedalus Demands
Episode 15: Infinite Possibilities, Part II: Icarus Abides
Episode 16: Revenging Angel
Episode 17: The Choice
Episode 18: Fractures
Episode 19: I-Yensch, You-Yensch

A Skywalker by Any Other Name

So I'm the one who liked Rise of Skywalker. I know, not everyone hates it, the abysmal Rotten Tomatoes score just makes it seem that way. But while I have some clear problems with the film, I really got caught up in the momentum, the chemistry between the characters, and the story about family and the repetitive cycle of revenge. I love some of the locations and visuals. I loved how Rey's parentage unfolded. And Emperor Palpatine was terrific. My main complaint, in fact, is that there needed to be more.

Spoilers after the screenshot

People talk about a rivalry between this film and Last Jedi but the relationship between J.J. Abrams and Rian Johnson seems friendlier than that to me. Johnson took down a few things that came across unintentionally silly in Force Awakens and Rise of Skywalker picks up on good bits from Last Jedi--particularly the relationship between Rey (Daisy Ridley) and Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), and minimises some of the less effective aspects, like Rose Tico (Kelly Marie Tran). Hux (Domhnall Gleeson) was supposed to be a scary Nazi in Force Awakens but he came off more like a Spaceball so Johnson turned him into more of an intentional joke whom his subordinates laugh at behind his back. Abrams took the lesson and continued portraying Hux in this vein, leading to one of the funnier, almost meta-moments in the film when Hux is revealed as a the spy and Poe (Oscar Isaac) immediately tries to claim he knew it all along. Abrams' strength is with the good guys, he's lousy with bad guys. Kylo Ren worked in Force Awakens because of Adam Driver's performance so Abrams relies on veterans Ian McDiarmid and Richard E. Grant here, the latter essentially playing the Great Intelligence from Doctor Who but functioning a little like Admiral Piett from Empire Strikes Back. Though while Piett was the intriguingly credible and understated professional, Grant's character is more like a tired elder statesman, worn down by decades of bitter resentment.

I sure loved Palpatine in this. Garth Franklin at Dark Horizons complained about how we get no explanation for the Emperor's return but I didn't really mind because he's so spooky in this. I loved his zombie makeup, the weird, impossible huge building he dwells in on a stormy world, and the eerie fleet of perfectly arrayed Star Destroyers rising from the soil. It's like the resurrection of a damned pirate fleet. A little more explanation might have been nice but I love the mystery which is effectively supported by the almost Indiana Jones-ish plot of our heroes seeking artefacts. I loved the moment when Rey (Daisy Ridley) raises the dagger and it perfectly aligns with a jagged, wrecked edge on the Death Star. What are the odds she'd be standing in that exact spot, that the Death Star would break apart in exactly that way? The accumulation of coincidence puts it on that satisfying border between a rational puzzle and pure madness. That's what a holy, or unholy, quest should be like.

The reason Kylo Ren has been more interesting than Rey up to this point is the conflict between dark and light so it makes sense Rey should acquire that same conflict. It worked great for me from the moment she accidentally blew up that transport and was a great way of making her peculiarly easy grasp of the Force make sense. Ultimately, I feel the film takes it in the wrong direction but I loved the build up. When she healed Kylo, I thought, "Oh, that's so great--because she's a Palpatine, she has the same unholy power over life and death as her grandfather." She would have to face the same hard test Anakin failed in Revenge of the Sith but the film doesn't go that way. Though I do like the idea that Kylo Ren dies like Gandalf the Grey to be reborn as a different persona. It was intriguing that he uses the same line about not knowing if he has the strength--this time when contemplating accepting himself as Ben Solo instead of contemplating killing his father. Both moments took courage and were acts of self-realisation so could the argument be that the experience of being Kylo was an essential part of being a better Ben Solo? Han Solo's ghost (Harrison Ford) significantly says Kylo Ren is Ben's memory.

When Palpatine wanted Rey to kill him it seemed a moment that retroactively made Return of the Jedi better, better explaining why he wanted Luke to strike him down. But the solution shouldn't have been for Rey to kill Palpatine. I realise the explanation as to why she could was that he needed the ritual to transfer his soul into her body, but from a thematic sense, in which killing Palpatine represents perpetuating the cycle of revenge, there's just no good way for Rey to kill Palpatine. The solution should either have been redeeming Palpatine or subduing him. Neither one may suit the satisfying blockbuster format, though.

I watched Force Awakens again a few days ago and found I'd forgotten how charming the dialogue was between the leads, particularly between Rey and Finn (John Boyega), a kind of dialogue Rian Johnson just has no ear for and is satisfyingly returned in Rise of Skywalker. Poe, who infamously came off badly in Last Jedi, gets a whole lot of mojo back in Rise of Skywalker and his chemistry with a too briefly appearing Keri Russell is captivating. I love how her visor raises just once in the movie and it's only to show him her pretty eyes.

I also liked C-3PO's (Anthony Daniels) subplot though I was kind of hoping R2 would restore his prequel era memories, too, and that 3PO's maker being Anakin would have some significance. Oh, well. This movie was a sweet ride, in any case.

Twitter Sonnet #1310

A cookie waits in apple cider mug.
The rusty bark enhances rolls and toast.
A stable shell invites the wayward slug.
A letter pool contains a metal post.
In velvet coats the trees progressed in state.
A timer glanced in glasses clear and real.
Behind the working clock we left the bait.
An orange reminds the pulp of naked peel.
The questions pile food and drink at need.
The timely watch confirmed a heavy chain.
A heedless wheel endorsed increasing speed.
The dial bled to build increasing gain.
Does yellow mean the end of red and blue?
Is green a sword just goblin things can do?

The Santa of Your Dreams

There'll be no Christmas for Doctor Who under the harsh rule of Chris Chibnall this year but we can always go back and watch the old Christmas specials. Last night I watched the fascinating balancing act that is "Last Christmas" again, the 2014 Christmas special (can it really have been five years?). In addition to being a Santa Claus story to appeal to children, it also has elements reminiscent of Alien and Nightmare on Elm Street 3. It's ambitious. Does writer Steven Moffat pull it off? Your mileage may vary but I find the episode has improved with age for me.

21st century audiences used to be kind of fussy; they would want fantasy but they never, ever wanted to feel like rubes. The younger generous seems more credulous, which has its pros and cons, but maybe the constant irony of Nick Frost's Santa Claus in this episode was already wearing thin. Still, at its heart "Last Christmas" is a story about the value of fantasy and how it can save you from deception, which is a very good idea. It's why I'm always disappointed when someone tells me they prefer non-fiction. Documentaries and biographies always have a point of view, however benign--the process of editing for time alone involves picking and choosing what matters.

"Dreams. They're funny," says the Doctor (Peter Capaldi). "They're disjointed. They're silly. They're full of gaps. But you don't notice because the dream protects itself, stops you asking the right questions." When the Doctor talks about how the "dream crabs" are networking their brains, it's not hard to think of the shared reality of internet discourse. And this is an idea Moffat played with a lot in his tenure, maybe most directly with "The Bells of Saint John."

In this sense, Santa Claus is a brilliant antidote because when he shows up in context he's an immediate signal, the brain's defence mechanism to show the falseness of the crab's "anaesthetic" illusory world. Yet the episode also has to have children in mind so we have things like the sleigh ride and Clara (Jenna Coleman) emotionally pledging her belief in Santa, at one point even implying that the Doctor is her Santa. Which is an interesting evolution from the Doctor as Christ figure in the Russell T. Davies era.

These contrasting elements--the importance of fantasy and the danger of compelling illusion, exist side by side and the conflict is wonderfully provoking. Fantasy, because we know what it is from the start, allows you to evaluate its ideas and aesthetics on your own terms, the power is implicitly in the reader or viewer. Illusion or propaganda reserves power for the creator of the material, it's meant to disorient and subdue the viewer. It's a good thing we have the Doctor.

There's Some Life in that Beskar Armour After All

Once again, Deborah Chow delivers a superior episode of The Mandalorian. Last night's new episode, "The Reckoning", stands with "The Sin", the season's third episode, also directed by Chow, as one of the two best episodes of the series so far. Easily. No contest.

Favreau's writing isn't much better but it's decent enough, pulling the various threads together. The best moment is given to Werner Herzog as the sadly departing mysterious Imperial client. He asks Carl Weathers if he really thinks things have improved since the Empire was overthrown, effectively making the point that, generally speaking, things seem to be worse. I mean, we really haven't seen enough of the galaxy at this point to know if it's true but it would make sense for there to be chaos in the wake of the collapse of an Empire. The Roman Empire was followed by the Dark Ages, after all.

Wouldn't it be great if someone in the Star Wars planning team said, "Hey, let's make this the Dark Ages of the Star Wars universe." But then of course the Disney minders would say, "But with cute babies and simplistic morality." Oh, well.

Above all it's pacing that elevates "The Reckoning". Chow effectively builds tension as the Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal) desperately comms Nick Nolte, racing on a big lizard against speeders. There's a sense of real, precarious danger you don't get from the other directors on this show.

Herzog's departure is an effective surprise (though I never thought Herzog would stick around for another season) and then in strolls Deborah Chow's friend from Better Call Saul, Gus Fring himself, Giancarlo Esposito as an Imperial Moff whose stormtroopers still have nice clean armour. I genuinely want to know what happens next and hopefully we're in good hands next week with Taika Waititi.

Diamonds in the Radio

Don't let your kids grow up to be Skip Tracers. 1940's Hold That Woman! sure doesn't make it seem easy. Essentially repo men, they're constantly butting heads with cops who seem to have no problem seeing them as thieves. One particularly dopey Skip Tracer winds up in a surprisingly clever and genuinely funny adventure in this B movie.

Jimmy (James Dunn) is in hot water for failing to bring back goods people bought on bad credit. Despite this, he decides to take his date, Mary (Frances Gifford), along on his next job, leaving her in the car with a mink coat his company's holding for another client. He affably strolls up to the appointed apartment, bluffs his way in, and tries to make off with a radio. And he's incredulous when the cops throw he and Mary in the clink.

The dumb lug isn't too popular with Mary's cop dad, either. But a juicier plot's afoot--turns out the radio he tried to nab was holding a bag of diamonds stolen from a movie star (Anna-Lisa). The guy behind the heist is a big operator and Skip Tracers Inc. is eager to track down the goods to collect the big reward.

It's a simple hearted film, a good blend of crime suspense and comedy and never once feels lazy or formulaic. Hold That Woman! is available on Amazon Prime.

Twitter Sonnet #1309

A dial dropped behind the graph for looks.
A number time enumerates the count.
A rising dough dismayed the baking cooks.
A horsey thought reminds the mental mount.
A baking race recurred in burning pots.
A rapid garland grew from moistened throats.
Venusian rain collapsed the sun in spots.
As domes replace the heavy roofs and moats.
Collected pictures start computing glass.
A bowing lens embossed in silver streams.
A heavy horse destroyed the mountain pass.
And bigger mounts returned in shiny dreams.
A blinking star reveals the dust and space.
A planet held a heavy sinking place.