Spring Drought
Movie of the Week
Dear Friends,
Our fourteen-year-old went to see Project Hail Mary on his own and loved it. His friends weren’t free, and I’m glad he just went on his own. I like going to the cinema alone. Although I haven’t seen it, Project Hail Mary seems to be one of the better movie options out there at the moment. In May, when he wants to go to the new Star Wars: Mandalorian and Grogu, I’ll probably join him. It’s hard to resist: we gen-xers return to Star Wars again and again as we all were imprinted by the original release in the summer of 1977. The force is strong.
There is a new woman-directed film in wide release called You, Me & Tuscany, directed by Kat Coiro, who to her credit has a full career directing both television and features. It’s the kind of general audience mid-budget film that in an ideal world would go to women directors at least half the time. Hollywood needs ten times more Kat Coiros. That said, I saw the trailer and am personally not interested in seeing it this week. If you’re in the mood for a warm and sunny romantic comedy, check it out.
Besides that, the dearth of new women-directed films continues as in NYC the Film Forum, IFC Center, Angelika, and Alamo Drafthouse all have none on offer. The local standout is Quad Cinema which has not one but two playing: a documentary by Sophie Fiennes called Acting, and a feature debut by writer-director-actor Katarina Zhu called Bunnylovr.
Although both seem well worth checking out, I’m opting for Zhu’s Bunnylovr because she is attending a Q&A after the screening. It’s always fun to meet the director and listen to her discuss her work. We’ll attend the Tuesday (Apr 14) screening at 7:20pm – but note Zhu is showing up for Q&As on Wednesday and Thursday as well.
By the way, we watched last week’s pick, Jimmy and the Demons, at the Quad, and I highly recommend that film if you get the chance to see it. Most documentaries succeed on the appeal of their main characters, and director Cindy Meehl’s choice of subjects knocks it out the park. Thoughtful and heartwarming, it’s worth every minute to spend time with artist Jimmy Grashow and his wife of over fifty years, Guzzy. It’s great to leave the theater inspired.
To the pleasure of films and the discussions they spark,
Josh