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“Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret.”
I have never been a preteen girl, but I have gone through puberty and I have had a lot of moments where I worked out exactly what I believed in and why. So, “Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret.” is definitely for me. In fact, it’s for everyone.
I didn’t read the Judy Blume book this is based on until after I saw the movie, so I wasn’t aware of what a great feat of adaptation writer-director Kelly Fremon Craig accomplished as I was watching it. But even still, this movie about a 12-year-old girl reckoning with her changing body and changing views on religion is so powerful, so profound, so accurate all on its own.
The movie gives more real estate to Margaret’s (Abby Ryder Fortson) relationship with her mother (Rachel McAdams) and uses that to show how we’re always going through changes.
This is a wonderful film made up of so many wonderful moments: McAdams’ cry/turn away/apology before continuing her monologue about her parents; McAdams’ scene with the bird before it flies away; Fortson’s look of quiet anger and anguish when she realizes her friend lied to her; the way Benny Safdie comforts McAdams after a family dinner; the way Kathy Bates proudly says “my granddaughter” at temple; the movements of Hans Zimmer’s emotional score.
I had tears welling up pretty much from the first moment Margaret asks about her mom’s parents until the end of the movie. Like “Eight Grade,” this is a film for preteens that takes them seriously and widens their scope of the world.
It’s my favorite of the year so far.
Available to buy on video on demand or physical media.
“Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3”
The “Guardians” films are my favorite of the entire MCU. I was excited for “Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3,” and was excited that it would focus on everyone’s favorite Trash Panda, Rocket Raccoon.
I wasn’t prepared for how much the story would focus on animal abuse (especially since Opal, may she rest in peace, looked a lot like Rocket, to the point where we affectionately called her Trash Panda). But in a way, that fits the theme of the entire “Guardians” trilogy, since these movies at their core are about a group of abused misfits finding a family of their own.
This trilogy-capper is a cathartic send-off to these characters, and it’s even a bit meta in regard to its villain, a clear stand-in for the Disney corporation itself. Plus, the final 15 minutes feature needle drops from Florence + The Machine, The Replacements and Bruce Springsteen. Not bad for a series that prides itself on its music selection.
Available to stream on Disney+ or buy on VOD or physical media
“Smokey and the Bandit”
How I had gone so long in my life without seeing this one is a mystery. I feel like I’ve finally experienced a redneck rite of passage. “Smokey and the Bandit” is just so much dang fun.
Everyone’s clearly having a blast; it was directed by Hal Needham, a stuntman-turned-director, so all the car chases are well-choreographed; and Sally Field and Burt Reynolds have amazing chemistry. I was grinning from ear to ear the whole time.
10-4, good buddy.
Available to stream on Roku or buy on physical media.
“The Straight Story”
Edifying. I got to see a 35mm print of this one with my friend Drew at the Texas Theatre as a part of its Lynch series this summer. It was beautiful.
I’m counting this as a first-time watch. The first time I saw “The Straight Story,” I was 8 years old and it had just been released. I only remember the opening scene where we hear (but don’t see) Alvin Straight fall in his kitchen.
Everyone calls this David Lynch’s most accessible film (which is true, it’s Disney) but that doesn’t mean it’s not extremely Lynchian. It’s about a man driving a John Deere tractor to see his dying brother, which isn’t a “weird” Lynchian concept at all, but his style is all over this thing. The wide shots and extreme close-ups, the score, the slow pace of the editing, the maximalist emotions borne out of everyday events — all are there from the get-go.
This didn’t make an impression on me as a kid, but it definitely does now. It makes its points about community and finding joy amid sorrow in a way that’s not corny or ham-fisted, despite a few scenes that seemed to be tailor-made for the Disney-ification of life.
This is such a beautiful, understated film. In anyone else’s hands, the exposition and dialogue might have been overkill. Here, we learn more about Alvin’s life as a reflection of the helpful strangers he meets along his journey, painting a portrait of midwestern America that doesn’t shy away from the real world (the pregnant teen, the conversation with the veteran at the bar) but also shows us our better angels.
It’s also so refreshing to see a movie that largely features middle-aged and elderly characters and takes them seriously. All the jokes about getting old flow organically from the characters and not from a script looking for an easy laugh.
Richard Farnsworth is so damn good here and it’s a shame Kevin Spacey beat him for Best Actor for his self-indulgent performance in “American Beauty,” a film that navel gazes but never once reaches the amount of introspection in one scene of “Straight Story.” And Harry Dean Stanton made me cry with just one look that sums up the entirety of his character and Alvin’s journey.
This is also extremely hard to find on physical media. I have a DVD copy but I don’t think there’s a Blu-Ray, and the only bonus feature on the DVD is a trailer. I know you can watch it on Disney+ but if there were ever a Lynch film that deserved a crack at the Criterion Collection or another remaster, it’s this.
Available to stream on Disney+ or buy on physical media.
Jake Harris 