Mustache is the story of Elyas, a 13-year-old boy with a mustache that his parents won’t let him shave. If that wasn’t challenging enough, he’s just started a new school.
Written/directed by Imran J. Khan, key cast includes Rizwan Manji, Alicia Silverstone, Hasan Minhaj
Hello, humour. Hello, transportation back to the super awkward years of youth. Greetings, refreshingly different story.
This looks cute, and I’m looking forward to the giggles and talented performers doing their thing, especially the young ones.
Ema Ines, Ali Hassan, Amariah Faulkner, Meesha Shafi, Melody Cao, Ayana Manji, Chris River, Basel Daoud, Krasimira Sofia Piazza and Mojeane Sadr also star.
The acting in director Yorgos Lanthimos’s Bugonia, a comedy/sci-fi movie about the kidnapping of a high-profile CEO by conspiracy theorists, is fantastic.
I thoroughly enjoyed how Emma Stone was able to completely disappear into her character, and the unexpected turns the story took, a story I partly view as a love letter to Earth and to bees.
As is typical of Lanthimos’s films, Bugonia is a mixture of humour and darkness. Thankfully for me, the shift between the two isn’t as jarring as it was in The Lobster (2015). Still, as hilarious as it was to watch some of the conspiracy theory madness unfold, unsurprisingly, it was equally sobering. In fact, there came a point after the kidnapping when I was super eager for Stone’s character’s freedom.
It may not be fully comfortable to watch throughout, but definitely give it a chance if you’re curious. It’s a good, sometimes funny story that’s so superbly acted that you’ll almost forget about the moments when the musical score is too imposing. And you’ll almost disregard a moment that appeared to be a continuity error, where Stone’s character is supposed to be limping but isn’t.
Aidan Delbis, Jesse Plemons, and Alicia Silverstone round out a seriously talented cast.
Bugonia, that Emma Stone, Aidan Delbis, Jesse Plemons and Alicia Silverstone film directed by Yorgos Lanthimos (Poor Things (2023), has a super promising new trailer.
There’s no doubt the cast had a lot of fun playing these characters, especially Stone. I now can’t wait to see this comedy/sci-fi film about the kidnapping of a high-profile CEO by conspiracy theorists unfold.
October 31st suddenly seems so far away, doesn’t it?
Cedric Dumornay, Vanessa Eng, Yaisa, Marc T. Lewis and Roger Carvalho also star.
The Killing of a Sacred Deer (2017), Colin Farrell
Co-written and directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, The Killing of a Sacred Deer stars Nicole Kidman, Colin Farrell, Alicia Silverstone and Barry Keoghan.
At the heart of the story is a charismatic surgeon who’s forced to make an unthinkable sacrifice after his life starts to fall apart, and the behaviour of a teenage boy he has taken under his wing turns sinister.
I remember at least partly enjoying The Lobster (2015), the last Yorgos Lanthimos movie I watched. Therefore, I’m thinking and hoping that this will not disappoint.
There’s also the wonderfully full beard that Colin Farrell is sporting. I at least need to look at that a little more.
Anne Heche’s performance as a bitter, struggling artist and Amy Hill’s turn as ‘crazy aunt Charlie’ are the two main highlights of Catfight.
Starring Sandra Oh, Anne Heche, Alicia Silverstone and Amy Hill, Catfight is a dark drama/comedy about the long-standing rivalry between two former college friends. A rivalry that turns into brutal, life-altering fights.
The source of the humour in Catfight is mostly tragedy. This is probably part of the reason why I didn’t laugh a lot. In some ways I found the main characters to be too ridiculously ‘unthinking’ in some of their key choices.
With Catfight, you’re essentially watching grown-ups behaving badly towards one another in ways that don’t necessarily feel completely justified. The characters are, in the most part, not likeable – even some, the ones I found myself feeling sorry for.
Catfight (2016), Amy Hill
The general idea of this movie is a good one, but the execution could have been less awkward in parts. How far could this story have gone with Quentin Tarantino’s writing brain and his budget behind it? I also wonder whether the edit may have helped to kill this film. Right now, there’s a chance that I may enjoy Catfight more after a second viewing. I’ll certainly update this post should I go down that seemingly crazy route.
Lastly, and randomly, for anyone who’s ever wondered what the voice of a six-year-old girl sounds like on a grown adult woman, Catfight absolutelyhas the answer.
