movie Archives - Jim Doran

I deleted my Twitter account. I downloaded my data, and snapped my little branch off the Twitter tree for good. It’s been over a month at this point, and I think/hope they deleted my data.

I still think it’s shame. As noted in the New York Times and Google’s news feed, what’s happening to Twitter and its staff is most likely criminal. Twitter’s journalistic and cultural importance distinguished itself from the other social platforms, and I don’t think it can be overstated. I had read that there is an attempt to make Twitter and actual protocol that cannot be owned by shareholders or a single entity. I hope that happens. But, Twitter is new “a hellscape” and that’s life on the web, right? Why am I mentioning this? Because it’s encouraged me to lean into blogging a bit more. Which brings me to this quick review.

We watched Licorice Pizza last night. It was delightful. The sets, lighting and the nostalgic approach to this coming of age story landed just right for me. There are parallels to Quentin Tarantino’s Once upon a time in Hollywood, only it’s much more relatable for kids of the 1970’s and lived life experiences. When I saw Steven Spielberg’s ET, I saw myself in the D&D playing latchkey kids who had to deal with very human parents, ADHD school problems, and lives which were not reflected in the proceeding Disney blockbusters of my youth (Strongest Man in the World, Escape to Witch Mountain, Freaky Friday, etc.). Netflix’s Stranger Things obviously capitalizes on those notes too.

Licorice Pizza is a sweet character study that doesn’t distract itself with supernatural/science fiction plot twists, jump scares and severe threats to its characters. In a cellphone/internet free world, Gary Valentine is able to accomplish a great deal using a telephone, handmade fliers, and his quick footed brothers. I enjoyed Alana Kane’s quick temper. Her fascination with Gary’s bravado and confidence kicks off a story that moves quickly and that drew me in. It’s fun to watch their relationship evolve. While I didn’t grow in in L.A., I knew hustler kids that made things happen for themselves and their friends, and so much of this film is relatable to my own childhood experience. It was a pleasure to watch.

The scenes with Sean Penn and Tom Waits are sublime and hilarious.

I ventured out to the grocery store this morning to acquire the ingredients for a nice dinner at home on this foggy, soggy new years eve. I love spending NYE at home. Licorice Pizza was running in the background of my mind as I ran my errands and reflected on where we are at the end of 2022. I hope you enjoy it.

We went to see Tár this weekend. I really, really enjoyed this – and I’m going to say a few things about the film, and hope I don’t spoil anything.

A post pandemic #MeToo tale with several twists, Cate Blanchett holds us captive as the composer/conductor Lydia Tár. I won’t discuss the plot, which you can find on wikipedia, but I want to say I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the cis old white guy world of classical music (performance, recording and, to an extent, publishing) through her eyes. It’s a rich film. Some things that come to mind: the way the camera follows Tár as she harangues a student at Juilliard, or the dialog of a public New Yorker interview, the hundreds of small details that director Todd Field slips onto screen, and the the decor of the various homes and office was wonderful.

I’ve been spending the past year thinking about and experimenting with improvisation, which is the complete opposite of this world, and there are dozens of examples on display. It brought me back to days pursuing undergraduate degree, music history and even my time working along side the classical music buyers at An Die Musik in Baltimore.

We talked about the movie after we left the theater, while we were laying in bed, and over coffee this morning. There’s a lot to unpack in here. There are a few things that don’t add much (the metronome and nighttime fridge scenes) and don’t lead to any obvious conclusion. The point is, there’s a lot to think about, and it’s easy to return to this story after leaving the theater. I look forward to watching it again, but encourage you to find a good theater with the comfy seats to experience this film. The sound and music production is fantastic.