Month: June 2025

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4 1/2 Stars

F1 (2025)

Since my review of Ford v Ferrari,my views and knowledge of motor racing as a sport have been so unchanged I almost started this review the same way as I did that film. Not sure what that says, but oh well.

Either way, there are not many films out there about the sport of motor racing (and while I’ve only seen two of the films in The Fast and the Furious franchise, I’m confident in saying those don’t count). Regardless, two years after he brought sensational effects with Top Gun: Maverick, director Joseph Kosinski brings that same bravado and care with F1.

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Mark's 21st Century Movie Milestones

Number 17…

I can’t recall why I was asked to go to a certain YMCA week long camp back in 2003 (probably so my little brother was not alone, even though I hardly saw him the whole week), but the last night was indeed eventful. 

We had a canoe ride that was to be followed by a dance, in which a girl I developed a summer crush on said she would dance with me. The canoe ride when over by an hour or so (we got lost in the rain), but I got that last bit of time to dance with her (to Elvis Presley’s “Can’t help falling in love”, for that matter).

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4 1/2 Stars Movies

28 Years Later (2025)

Whether it was at the age of 10 when I discovered the idea of zombies through the OG Resident Evil games (and later, the atrocious movies), my brief obsession with The Walking Dead (I stopped watching not long after Carl was killed off), or only recently catching up with the 28 days films, I have come to one solid conclusion: I would not last long in a zombie apocalypse. 

There are too many factors to consider, but the main reason is that without the meds I normally take, I’m a goner. Nevertheless, the idea of a zombie apocalypse has been lodged in our society’s psyche since the days of George A. Romero. Now, director Danny Boyle (along with Alex Garland as a script writer) have come back to the universe they created in 2002, with 28 Years Later, the third in the series (both were absent for 28 Weeks Later).

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Mark's 21st Century Movie Milestones Movies

Number 18…

In my mind, a foreign language film can go one or two ways.

Either the film can be so ingrained into a country’s culture that it would not work anywhere else, or the film can be so universal that it could be told virtually in any language or country. I personally try for the middle ground, where a movie shows characters that are relatable to any nationality or race, and no other live action foreign language film has impacted me in that way this century more so than 2011’s Iranian film, A Separation.

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3 1/2 Stars

Materialists (2025)

I won’t lie and pretend I know the history of online dating apps, but I am pretty sure that the last 15-20 years or so are when they began to explode in popularity (two of my brothers met their wives that way).

The thing is, I can not think of every coming across anyone in my life who used an in person match making service like the one shown in Materialists. Still, that is focus taken by writer/director Celine Song (who, I have learned, was once a match maker herself for a few months before becoming a film maker).

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Mark's 21st Century Movie Milestones Movies

Number 19…

As I grow older, I realize I have a need for afternoon naps.

Sadly, I would find this out during my times at the theater, making me miss out on key parts of certain films that are, for the most part, great movies (some examples include Mad Max: Fury Road, The Boy and the Heron, and, recently, Ballerina). So naturally, when I went to see Todd Fields’ TÁR, I was worried I would clock out for twenty minutes or so. That did not happen at all.

The film centers on Lydia Tár (Cate Blanchett), a world renown EGOT winning composer who was given more talent and drive as a person than any form of empathy or kindness (shout out to whoever originally thought she may be a relative of sorts to Terrence Fletcher from Whiplash). The story revolves around her rise in the music community with her eventual fall. 

I revisited this movie a little over a month ago for the first time since it’s release, and I still feel as though I am scratching the surface: the film contains a manifold of meanings. Director Todd Fields gives a look into a subject rather prevalent to our society the last few years (cancel culture) with a character you can still feel for despite how horrendous her actions are (remember the scene where she stands up to her daughter’s bully? You will never feel worse for a bully in a film.)

I’m not sure when it occurred to me, but I am rather confident in saying that Cate Blancett is probably my favorite living actress. While I have not seen all of her films, I have still yet to see her give a bad performance (thankfully, I missed out on Borderlands). I can’t think of any actress who can portray “steely resolve” better than she can. She even manages to have fun with roles ranging from Indiana Jones to the MCU. She never phones anything in. You truly can’t start talking about the best of all time without bringing her up.

I’m not entirely sure why the character is named TÁR (it is an anagram for “Art” as well as “Rat” spelled background), but I do have my own theory. Weeks ago, I was driving to work and sadly got a lot of tar sprayed on my car. Removing Tar from the surface of the car is not easy, just like watching TÁR is not easy to forget.

(As of this writing, TÁR is available on VOD).