A very busy month for me! I turned 30, which doesn’t necessarily entail corresponding life changes, but in fact mine did! I started a new job, which means a little less time for my other job (this newsletter). Sorry to my fans. I’ll issue your refunds posthaste.
Chicago is in full Fake Spring mode. What was a gnarly, wet, dirty snow concrete jungle situation became an adorable winter wonderland, complete with hidden black ice to humble you as you try to walk to the store. Bless. And now everything has thawed and the temperature is doing that delightful thing where it ping-pongs a span of 30 degrees by the hour. What coat should I wear today? It’s anyone’s guess!
A couple weeks ago we went downtown to see a movie (read about it below, no spoilers!) and upon leaving the theater we were greeted by a thick downpour. I love downtown Chicago, but even I, a romantic, a nostalgic, a hipster, could not find anything darling about the city lights in the rain. I’m ready for ease, a light jacket, and, you know, “perfect date” weather.
I bet you’re chomping at the bit to find out what movie we saw downtown. Well, read on:
We saw THE INQUIRING NUNS, a 1968 documentary from the Chicago darlings of Kartemquin Films. In two parts, the 16mm film follows Sisters Marie Arné and Mary Campion as they stroll through the city asking citizens, “Are you happy?” Gordon Quinn and Gerald Temaner were directly inspired by the 1960 cinéma-vérité classic (which I um, have not seen) CHRONICLE OF A SUMMER. Quinn was present at the screening and shared a charming oral history of the project: He and his partners were commissioned to make short films for Chicago’s Catholic Adult Education Center and this experiment ended up melding much of the duo’s existing fascinations and values under the parameters from the Center. The resulting film is charming, uplifting, funny, and revealing.
WATCH IF YOU LIKE: positive vibes, nun humor, Chicago history
Available to stream on Amazon with a Fandor subscription
Is it fair to say Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s DRIVE MY CAR is one of the more hyped films of the year? Maybe my circle of Chekhov acolytes (how did I find myself here?) has been especially STOKED on this movie, which is about a theatre director mounting a multilingual production of Uncle Vanya. One of my comfort movies is VANYA ON 42ND STREET (how did I find myself here?), Louis Malle’s inspired adaptation with Wallace Shawn and Julianne Moore and, well, I’ll stop listing names because the entire cast is just impeccable. I walked into the theater not knowing much outside of the source material (Uncle Vanya, yes, but more directly the Haruki Murakami story of the same name, from his collection “Men Without Women”). I left the theater three hours later to a dusky city, not really sure what I’d just seen. I felt a bit empty and sad. Rattled and moved. I guess that’s just what Chekhov does, and often Murakami, too. And now it seems Hamaguchi as well! Indeed, the film is astute, slow, and strange. Humans are examined so closely, with such fine detail, that they start to feel alien, and then come so full circle you just begin to see pieces of yourself. I’ll admit I did not leave the theater in any way rapturous or loving this movie, but in the weeks since, images and feelings from it keep coming to me like a remembered dream. Masterfully shot, elegantly paced, and somehow a piece of both comfort and disturbance.
WATCH IF YOU LIKE: Chekhov (duh), Murakami (duh), vintage Saabs (drool), grief
Still in theaters, and available to stream on HBOMax
Last dispatch I wrote about not really loving ENCANTO and requested a rebuttal. I received one! A very thoughtful, smart, and loving one, from my dear friend Abby. They wrote:
oh man i loved encanto!! i thought it was exploring super complex family themes that i had never seen explored in a YA movie before - the fact that there is ultimately no villain but instead the conflict is everyone trying to be perfect for their family - like... we see conflict in estranged families or in families where the parents want something different for the kids (i.e. "it's not my dream dad, it's yours") which this does have a little of with the pretty sister (lol don't remember her name). but ultimately everyone wants the same thing but are going about it through this, like, utilitarian lens. and the ultimate lesson being this idea that you don't need to be useful to be needed and loved. i just thought that was fucking cool and different. and the fact that the grandma is so frustrating throughout for all the pressure she puts on the family but then the twist being something we knew all along but weren't necessarily considering - she puts that pressure because she's fucking terrified of losing them but in putting that pressure, she is losing them. just felt super human and relatable. and i think (similar to Luca) that it was cool how ultimately small the world and the conflict were - the stakes are high but it really is about this one family in this one small town, as opposed to Mirabel needing to go on some epic journey.
also the character and voice actor for Luisa felt transgressive and badass. the fact that she got the sexy dancing and that her song was sooo cool and sung by a queer actor with a low, weird voice really moved me. and made me excited for the big, strong, athletic young women watching and the queer kids watching.
Thank you Abby! And to my readers: I love hearing your thoughts. Please share.
Al and I went downtown to see WILD AT HEART in glorious, pock-marked, crackling 35mm. This movie is absolutely buckwild!!!! I mean, what else can you expect from a 1990 David Lynch production. Drenched in sex, weirdos, and rock n’ roll, the film follows Sailor Ripley (Nicolas Cage!) and Lula Fortune (Laura Dern!!!) on the road trying to outrun Lula’s evil mother (played by Dern’s actual mother, Diane Ladd!!!!!!). Their efforts are hindered by nasty Bobby Peru (Willem Defoe!) and a spate of other Lynchian freaks out to kill their sexy vibes. The cast is rounded out by a wealth of other greats: Isabella Rossellini, Harry Dean Stanton, and Crispin Glover, to name a few. Cage and Dern give their all and are a blast to watch. The soundtrack rules. Sailor Ripley wears a snakeskin jacket that he reminds viewers, many times, “represents his individuality and belief in personal freedom.” Somehow Lynch is able to walk the tightrope and never lose the heart in his ironic, self-aware, fucked-up circus act. Beware: this film is far from PC and we had a cringey time hearing other theatergoers laugh at moments we thought weren’t exactly laugh lines. If anyone’s concerned, I can provide a content warning, and I’d also just say, it’s David Lynch and he is being very David Lynch.
WATCH IF YOU LIKE: B-movies, rockabillies, Twin Peaks, creeps, freaks, and carnies
Available to watch…nowhere as far as I can tell :( Good luck Lynch-heads
And finally: last year on Valentine’s Day, Al and I watched her all-time favorite movie, TITANIC. So this year it was my turn to pick! I chose SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE, one of my all-time favorite and most formative movies. For one of my elementary school birthday parties, I think the entire theme was “Come Over and We Will Watch Sleepless in Seattle.” Proud to report I am still ~*~me~*~. This movie is perfect. Nora Ephron is perfect. Tom Hanks is perfect. Meg Ryan is perfect. Rosie O’Donnell is perfect. No notes. Rewatch soon if you want to feel good.
WATCH IF YOU LIKE: happiness, holding hands, love, young Gaby Hoffmann, me
Available to rent and stream on Amazon, YouTube, Vudu, etc.
That’s all for now! Thanks for reading.