I'd been keeping track of how many movies I'd seen in my life and, more relevant to this post, how many new movies I'd seen each year since 2011.
There've been 39 movies I saw for the first time in 2024. One of the lowest totals in the time since I started keeping track of this stuff. For theaterial trips, there'd only been 4 for me all year.
- Kung Fu Panda 4
- Deadpool and Wolverine
- Wicked [part 1]
- Sonic the Hedgehog 3
Honestly there hadn't been that many movies I'd wanted to personally go out and see. A lot of people feel this way, though, so it's not just me.
I still don't have a streaming account anywhere so it's not as if Netflix (Amazon, Disney+, etc.) is stealing my business away from movie theaters. If I'm seeing any new movies anymore, it's either on HBO, TCM or (mainly in December) some Hallmark type movie.
All four theatrical trips were enjoyable. The latest Deadpool is probably my favorite of the 4 and the new Sonic movie is my sister's (after all, it was her idea).
She and my mom also went out to see the new Beetlejuice movie with friends. I waited until it came to HBO and it was a lot of fun. The humor is probably closer to the campiness of the animated series than that of the original 1988 movie, but as far as long-awaited sequels to 80's movies, it was really well done.
Which reminds me- I need to do a post on the Top Gun sequel and Oppenheimer...
As for other movie highlights this year (some occasional spoilers are sprinkled in so be warned):
Monkey Business and Horse Feathers
-TCM was doing a marathon so I saw these two back to back. I fell asleep during the second one so I guess I didn't like it quite as much
-At some point, Duck Soup will have to come as well since that's the most famous one.
Fences
- I'd been curious about it since the whole "Hidden Fences" Oscar fiasco and it lived up to the hype for sure. I'd been a fan of Viola's since "How to get away with murder" so it was great seeing her win for this.
A Streetcar Named Desire
-I'd wanted to see this for years I'm still glad I did, but I didn't like it enough to want to see it again
-Stanley really wasn't a likeable guy, the climax between him and Blanche was unsettling (mostly because whatever happened between them, you had to guess at because it wasn't clearly spelled out). The ending where Stella finally leaves him was very fitting. .
For animated movies:
Soul was really good. It's a cool concept but also makes you think about some deep stuff. Like being brave enough to make an effort in your life since you only get one. And how sometimes we'll work towards something and it may not be everything you expected.
Raya the Last Dragon was also pretty cool, although I couldn't help but feel it was another of those recent efforts by Disney to try to shoe-horn some big socio-political lesson into a movie.
Awkafina was Raya as well as Po's new frenemy in the latest Kung Fu Panda. I read one headline shortly after that movie came out, essentially someone asking movies to stop casting Awkafina and get REAL voice actors. I didn't bother reading further because I just didn't agree with the sentiment. I hadn't seen everything she's done but she's never disappointed.
Chris Pratt, on the other hand, has put in almost as much work doing voiceovers as he'd done in his Jurassic and Marvel movies. But does he bring anything special to his roles in the Lego Movies or as Mario or (more recently) Garfield? ...not really. He fills in the roles fine but now I can't help but wonder if studios are getting lazy using him all the time.
Trolls: Band Together... I really don't want to give Justin Timberlake any slack, especially after the year he's had and stuff that'd come out about him in Britney's memoir. But this was a really fun movie. Probably my favorite of the 3 troll movies cuz I'm always a sucker for a boyband storyline. Also the two villains wanting to steal the talents of the troll boyband to up their own street cred- it's not wholly original but I liked how they incorporated the social media/internet famous angle into it.
Minions and the Rise of Gru was a lot of fun as well. Although there was one scene from the trailers they cut out... considering I saw it on an airplane, I can kinda understand why.
Some movies I didn't like quite as much:
The Producers
- I was literally lost for the first 10 minutes.I didn't know if that over-the-top acting was a play or it was reality, but it made no sense
- the only time I laughed the entire movie was Gene Wilder falling on the ground and he deadpan remarks "I fell on my keys"... don't know why that made me laugh, maybe because it came out of nowhere
The Zone of Interest
-I did a whole post on this movie where I went into all the reasons I didn't like it so I won't take too long. I'll just say that I might have gotten more out of it if it didn't go in that bizarre European art film direction. Long periods of time where the screen is all red or all white and literaly nothing happens for 5 minutes but eerie background music.
The Great Escape
- Ugh... I'm still mad about this one. The title says ESCAPE... you'd think that would translate to "they escaped and actually got away"... instead, it was "the great escape ATTEMPT". Almost everyone got recaptured, so what was even the point?
Road House
- first off, way more sex and nudity that I expected so I wan't a fan of that
-second, the storyline was not what I'd expected. I thought the movie was about him straightening up the rowdy patrons of this bar. I didn't think it was going to be about him waging war with this inscrupulous rich guy who owns more than half the town.
-the one good thing was that the ending justified most of that second bullet point... basically the bad guy gets killed and nobody in town is willing to fess up to the authorities who was responsible... so they basically get away with murder because the jerk deserved it
The Wolf of Wall Street
-pretty much all the things I hated about this movie, see the "first off" section from Road House and add in a plethora of profanity. I assume it still holds the record for the most F-bombs per minute of any movie. With all those things, it was way too fast-paced and overstimulating. It was too much and it's a LONG movie.
-the one part I'll always remember because it was hilarious... Leo being whacked out of his mind on drugs and barely able to get into his car... and later he finds out he didn't get to his destination in one piece
yeah... Leo DiCaprio is a good looking guy and it seems like a lot of his characters get away with stuff because of that charm and his good looks. But I don't think I've liked ANY of the characters he'd played. "Catch me if you can" and "The Great Gatsby" are probably the two expections of movies I'd liked him in. And maybe "Inception," but he's secondary when compared to the other reasons I did enjoy it.
Some more highlights:
Fantastic Voyage
-really cool efforts and it was cool to see the movie that inspired episodes in some of my favorite cartoons
-the only thing missing for me: did the patient make a full recovery at the end? They showed as far as the mission being successful, but I could've used a few more minutes to see how successful it actually was
Save the Last Dance
-this movie was one of my early favorites for the year. I love these high school movies, no matter how predictable they can be at times
-probably my favorite thing was the music. I've had "Crazy" by K-Ci and Jo-Jo and "Get it on tonite" by Montell Jordan in my collection for 20 years (from NOW 6 and 4 respectively) so it was really cool seeing them brought to life on screen. And now my memories of enjoying this movie will come to mind whenever I listen to them in the future
Young Adult
-not the best movie by any means. The whole concept of a woman lusting after her ex-boyfriend (who's married AND has a new baby) is ridiculous and Charlize Theron doesn't play a particularly likeable protagonist.
-Although for me, it became one of those movies where I was glad I stuck around for the whole thing. I might not have gotten as much out of it as I did if I hadn't been invested in Tara Lipinski's podcast about her infertility journey. A lot of the things I'd learned from it and experienced with her and some of the guests that'd been a part of it came to mind watching this movie.
-Even with its flaws, this movie did give me one great little reference that'll probably live rent-free in my head for years: KenTacoHut. I'd known for years that KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut were owned by the same company but her acronym to address all of them being inside the same building in this movie: absolute genius!
Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates
-there's been so many comedies like this lately that have a lot of ridiculous over-the-top shenagians that happen. And characters that are nearly impossible to save from their own stupidity. Strangely enough, this movie did as much wrong as it did right, and I came away with it actually having fun with it. And I'd be open for seeing it again... assuming there's nothing else on that I'd rather watch
-Mike and Dave are idiots that screw up a lot of family parties in epic ways. And if it's at all possible, they manage to find two girls to be their wedding dates who are more screwed up than them. Aubrey Plaza had been getting a lot of momentum lately because The White Lotus series and here, it's easy to see why she's gotten so much hype as a comedic actress.
The Holdovers and American Fiction have two big things in common
1) They were both nominated for a bunch of Oscars this past year, but only won a couple
2) They were among my in-flight movies to Hawaii this past May
And both movies were really good. It's easy to see why they got all that award-hype. As good as Cillian Murphy was as Oppenheimer, I'd still pick Jeffrey Wright for Best Actor.
I liked "The Holdovers" so much I got it for Christmas... and will most likely do a blog post sometime in the future.
It's another of those teacher dramas I really enjoy. Except this one is almost quirky like a Wes Anderson movie with some of the jokes and camera direction. Paul Giamatti plays a teacher at a prep school who's in charge of the students left behind on Christmas break. It takes a while to get going, but some of the hilarity that ensues... omg, I thought it was a blast.
"American Fiction" was fascinating for a lot of reasons. There's been so much talk lately about there being a need for more original black storytelling in movies. The movie does that and does it really well.
Jeffrey Wright plays a writer in pursuit of success. The only problem is that the general public isn't interested in the kind of black fiction he wants to write. Stuff that doesn't revolve around absentee fathers, drugs and gang violence. Then as a joke, he anonymously pens a book about all of these things. It's meant to be a satire and it actually becomes a success story. And he's left with the struggle of what to do next. There's some funny moments sprinkled amongst all the drama.
My one little gripe is the ending... or should I say endings. Because the book is adapted into a movie and the director (played by Seth Cohen from The O.C.) keeps rejecting his ideas for the ending. And it looks like the one that gets chosen is the most ridiculous, over-the-top and insensitive... but like the book itself, it's what "the people" want so that's ultimately what the end result is.
In Memorium
This wasn't a huge year in terms of losses, but some of the losses felt bigger than ours.
Easily the most notable was James Earl Jones. In a similar fashion to Angela Lansbury the previous year, he was one of those people who'd played notable roles that hold a special place for different generations. And if you're lucky, you'll have known them for multiple things because your family or friends introduced you to them.
For my mom's generation, he was Darth Vadar. Star Wars is also one of her favorite movies and that's why I'm also a fan.
Then for my generation, he was in Coming to America, The Sand Lot, but even more notable, Mufasa in The Lion King. Easily one of those voices that are so synonymous with a character that they'll never be replicated.
He also had a really funny cameo on The Big Bang Theory where he hung out with Sheldon for a day. Aside from the Carrie Fisher scene, the funniest part is when they're hanging out at the top of the Ferris Wheel.
Sheldon shouts to all of Pasadena how he's up there with him "and he's nicer than you think."
And James shouts back "I am!" with the biggest smile on his face.
Bob Newhart, who'd had a long storied career anyway, I didn't get to know until seeing him as Professor Proton on Big Bang. Now I guess I'll have to add his show to my list of TVLand old-time TV shows I still need to see. A list that includes Gilligan's Island, The Munsters and The Addams Family (saw some movies, but never saw the original).
For me and the rest of us who grew up with Pokémon, the loss of Rachael Lillis (after a rough fight with breast cancer) still feels fresh.
Cat Glover was a dancer that worked with Prince frequently in the later part of the 80's. She'd had her share of health issues in recent years so it's good that she'd finally found her peace. It couldn't have been easy. I don't know her as well as some of his other associates over the years, but the little I do know, she was a fierce friend.
Two losses from movies I frequently watch that I didn't even know had passed away until I was compiling this list: John Ashton (Sgt. Taggart from the Beverly Hills Cop films) and Ken Page (who did the voice of Oogie Boogie from The Nightmare Before Christmas)
Maggie Smith is another Harry Potter alum who'd recently joined Hogwarts in the great beyond. A couple of the actors made cameos on the Wizards of Baking competition on Food Network last month and before they all came back for the finale, I half expected someone else to show up and it kinda hit me how many we'd since lost. Both Dumbledores, Snape, Hagrid... and the list is only going to grow as the years go by.
Also, another more recent role that left a notable impact was her role on Downton Abbey. Or as SNL put it, "the chicken lady." (There was a really funny sketch where they made fun of the show, but those who are better versed with it than I am would probably say "yeah, that's accurate").
Teri Garr- the annoucement of her loss was shocking because of the timing more than anything else. We were watching Young Frankenstein, as we often do in October, and were thinking about the fact most of the cast had since passed away. Except her... a few weeks later, that changed. Now that's pretty much all of the main cast.
Chita Rivera- years ago we saw a farce at the local theater where they made fun of all the Broadway musicals. One of them was two girls doing "America" but their lines were "my name is Rita and not Chita" (and vice versa when the other girl sang). She and Rita Moreno (who :knock wood: is still with us) made this role famous in the Broadway show and the movie adaptation and therefore equally worthy of recognition.
Carl Weathers- best known for being Apollo Creed in the Rocky movies. Also Predator, which we watch every year or so.
Liam Payne- I'm not really a big One Direction fan, but it's hard not to be sad about his tragic death. Especially since last I heard, the circumstances surrounding it have gotten more nefarious. Not to the extent of Matthew Perry (I'm still wrapping my head around this one...), but it's not under the circumstances.
Martin Mull- saw him a few times on Hollywood Squares, but I remember him years ago being a major character on Sabrina the Teenage Witch.
Donald Sutherland- to olders generation, he was many things. Including the one cool teacher in "Animal House". For mine, he was President Snow in the Hunger Games series. A person you loved to hate, but he played him well extremely.
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