Before COVID, Micha and I used to hit the movies quite often. They were nice opportunities to get out of the house, and many of them were decent. Many weren’t too. The over-enfranchisement going on over the past decade has ruined a lot of what passes for entertainment these days. Pretty much drivel.
Still, you get the occasional good stuff. Logan comes to mind. A franchise that’s brave enough to tell an actual story — where the heroes are vulnerable and maybe even die. I really liked that movie. I can’t give you too many other examples though. Disney used to do a few decent films every so often. I’ve already mentioned my love for both Coco and Encanto. Creative, colorful, magical — all good stuff out of Disney. It’s probably no mistake that both movies feature the Latin culture that I love so much (I really have to learn Spanish).
Anyway, this past week I saw two movies, and liked them both very much. The first was a Korean ghost story (they called it a “horror” movie, but I think ghost story works better for me) called 파묘 (P’a-myo), which I’ve seen translated as “Exhuma.” I loved how they drew so deeply from Korean culture and history to make the story work. It was heavy on Shamanism and the vibe was decent spooky. If it comes out on Netflix I’ll be sure to watch it again.
The second movie we saw was the second part of Dune. It’s been a while since the first, and I had to rewatch the first a couple of weeks ago to get ready. Part Two brought it all to a head (as it had to) and was quite satisfying visually and sonically (I’m sure it will follow up Part One’s Oscars for cinematography and sound (sound for sure)). Of course, those of us who suffered through the cheese and chintz of 80’s “superhero” and sci-fi movies can’t help but feel a little giddy that they’ve taken all they’ve learned through the lean years of Marvel and “new” Star Wars drivel and actually applied it to a piece that deserved it. Dune is a whole new animal — the next step beyond Lord of the Rings — where they’ve taken a beloved story and given it its due credit. It’s not some pop romance with a touch of humor (ironically though, each of the trailers I saw played up the “romance” between two main characters). It’s definitely more real. Fans should generally love it just for its own sake as a film, even if it didn’t get every detail right (I have no idea what they changed — I haven’t read the Dune series in about 40 years (although I might give it a shot again soon enough)).
So if you have the time, I recommend both 파묘 and Dune. It’s about time something theater-worthy to watch came along…