Posted on by slickdungeon

Saturday Night

Saturday Night depicts the 90 minutes before the first airing of the famous television show
Saturday Night depicts the 90 minutes before the first airing of the famous television show
Saturday Night depicts the 90 minutes before the first airing of the famous television show

Live from wherever you are reading this, here’s my review of Saturday Night! Hey everyone, Slick Dungeon here. We all know Saturday Night Live is a sketch comedy institution at this point. It’s been on the air for 50 years so it’s a pretty well known show. But it wasn’t always that way. The movie, directed by Jason Reitman is a fictionalized depiction of the 90 minutes on October 11, 1975 just before the first episode of the show aired. I’ll be giving some mild spoilers in this review. One thing that is not a spoiler is the show obviously made it to air. This sucks a little bit of the drama away but it doesn’t really hurt the film.

What’s it about?

You would think with the long history of Saturday Night Live this story would have already been told. In some ways it has, through books, anecdotes and interviews, not to mention the sketches and jokes in the show itself, a lot has been made of the origins of SNL. The film takes the approach of just giving us the 90 minute window before Lorne Micheals’ career was to either rise up in glory or go down in flames.

The film is frenetic and full of constant chaos. There are problems with the sets, the lists of material is way too long to fit into a 90 minute live show. There are actors who haven’t signed contracts. NBC censors are breathing down the necks of the young comedians. And there is an old television establishment just hoping for the whole thing to fail.

While this is a huge ensemble cast, the main driver of the story is Lorne Micheals played by Gabriel LaBelle. He has to put out dozens of fires backstage, some literal, while convincing the powers that be the show is worthwhile. It’s a wild ride full of absolute chaos with Michaels just barely tying it all together.

The casting

Before I go further with the review I have to mention the casting. It’s not easy casting faces the whole world is familiar with. We’re talking about comedy and musical legends who are internationally famous. But somehow the casting is pitch perfect. It helps that the main character is the one people would least recognize on the street interacting with famous people like Chevy Chase, Dan Aykroyd, and John Belushi. And while it is impossible to look at these actors and say they look exactly like the actors did in the 1970s, the energy they bring to their parts is completely believable through the whole thing.

And while Gabriel LaBelle deserves a ton of credit here for his performance there are others that stand out too. Dylan O’Brien as Dan Aykroyd brings a non-stop fever pitch of jokes and energy. Matt Wood as John Belushi does a great job conveying the outwardly frustrated but clearly genius comedic mind of the man. Ella Hunt as Gilda Radner is also fantastic. But I think there are two performances that stand out most to me. Cory Michael Smith as Chevy Chase shows us both on and off stage personalities of the man and gives a nuanced approach to it. The other is Nicholas Braun who is tasked with double duty as both Andy Kaufman and Jim Henson. He nails both parts. Although I do have an issue with some of how the film portrays Henson. But we’ll get to that a little later.

The real conflict of Saturday night

The basic premise of the movie frames this as whether or not the show makes it to air. We all know what happened there. But the true conflict here is the establishment versus the younger generation. Everyone going around telling Lorne Michaels no is someone who has been in television for decades. But Michaels is trying to convince them they should put on this show that will be the first live show created, produced, and acted by the first generation that grew up entirely watching television.

There are two moments in the film that show how subversive this generation was. First, Lorne Michaels goes to find someone to hire to do the lighting for the episode. He goes straight to a young guy working on the Milton Berle show. He tells the guy it’s risky, the show probably won’t succeed, and there’s no guarantee there will even be a second show. The guys asks Michaels what the pay is and Michaels responds, “That’s the worst part.” The young guy immediately quits his job and works for Michaels.

There’s a similar scene involving a writer who Michaels hires at a bar. The guy is writing jokes for a comedian who has the material but keeps botching the jokes by changing them or delivering the lines poorly. Again he signs on with MIchaels.

And there are scenes with the NBC censors where the writers easily convince the older woman that some things that maybe shouldn’t be on television are fine. Because she is completely out of touch with the language of the younger generation.

And George Carlin who was the first host of the show, looked down on these young comedians to an extent, bragging that he was a “real comedian.” He doesn’t even show up in any sketches in the first episode. So even a subversive comic at the time was an establishment figure to Lorne and crew.

It’s because of scenes like that I think the movie can work for anyone watching, whether they are familiar with SNL or not. But I do have some caveats.

Who is Saturday Night for?

If you are Generation X or older, you’ll get a kick out of this movie for sure. You probably remember either being around at the time or watching the clips of the sketches (or re-runs) on television. And you’ll get most of the references. Probably all of them if you are older than Gen X.

From Millennials on down, you’ll still enjoy the movie, but there are probably things here that don’t make a lot of sense. In the 1970s stand up comedy was being deconstructed by people like Andy Kaufman and Steve Martin. So some of the jokes that played well then might land with a thud now. Those instances are a “you had to be there at the time” moment.

You don’t have to be overly familiar with the original cast of Saturday Night Live to like the movie but it helps if you know who they are. And it’s kind of a blast to watch the movie and then watch (or re-watch) the first episode of the show.

Did this all really happen?

So much happens in this movie it’s really hard to believe all of it occurred in the 90 minutes before showtime. I’m pretty sure they condensed a few things, took anecdotes from later episodes, and probably on a few occasions, outright made up some of what happens in the movie. But it gets the point across.

The one thing that bugs me about that is the attitude toward Jim Henson in the movie. Yes, it’s true the Muppets show up in early SNL days. It’s also true the rest of the cast was not so nice to Jim Henson. But a few times in the movie they make Henson look a bit more reserved and prudish than he was. We all know him now for famous children’s entertainment. But he totally thought Muppets would work in subversive late night comedy for adults. This is a guy who had used puppets to sell cigarettes after all. Henson was actually really excited to be working on a show like this.

There are a few other things I could mention that stretch the truth in the movie. But, it doesn’t really take away from the drama and comedy of the film. After all, this is not a documentary. So my takeaway here is most of this happened but not all and not all in that 90 minutes. But the entertainment value outweighs the truth here.

Saturday Night in conclusion

If you need a good comedy/drama with an incredibly talented cast that will remind you why it’s good to go against the establishment, I can’t recommend this more. It’s a really fun ride full of way more energy than anything else on screen and it’s a shame it didn’t do better at the box office.

Before I go, I just want to make my pitch for a sequel to this. It’s really interesting to see these people we know as long established celebrities at their early stages. SNL was a subversive phenomenon at the time. But now, it’s such old hat that it feels inevitable. I’d love to see a take on 90 minutes from the start of a show now. Is it still as frantic and chaotic? Or are the routines so well established it’s like a well oiled machine? And also, wouldn’t SNL now be the establishment? So who is going up against that? Just a thought.

Comedically yours,

Slick Dungeon

P.S. Want another great film to watch? Check out my review of Carrie!

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Star Wars: Skeleton Crew

The kids and droid of Star Wars Skeleton Crew
The kids and droid of Star Wars Skeleton Crew

Star Wars: Skeleton Crew is a show unique to the Star Wars galaxy. This is a show focused on four kids who end up on a forgotten ship. They have to navigate their way through challenges ranging from pirates to personal limitations. The stars of the show are Wim played by Ravi Cabot-Conyers, Fern played by Ryan Kiera Armstrong, KB played by Kyriana Kratter, and Neel who is voiced by Robert Timothy Smith and acted by performance artist Kacie Borrowman. Rounding out the cast is  Jod Na Nawood played by Jude Law.

What is it about?

The series begins with the four kids living in a mundane suburban style environment which feels much like the ones found in America. These children go to school and take assessment tests. They ride what amounts to a bus to school. Things still look futuristic on their home planet of At Attin but this is a place not disturbed by the downfall of the Jedi nor the rise of the Empire. It’s protected inside a barrier which does not allow ships to enter or leave their planet.

One day the four children stumble upon an abandoned ship. Without intending to, they take off and leave through the barrier. For the rest of the series the kids try to overcome their differences, work together, and find a way home. There are many people looking to take advantage of these children. At Attin is nearly forgotten as legend in the galaxy and is rumored to have boundless treasure.

 Jod Na Nawood is an opportunistic pirate looking to make a big score. When he comes across the kids, he does his best to profit off of them.

Should you watch Star Wars: Skeleton Crew?

I don’t want to spoil too much about the series for anyone who has not seen it yet. But that’s the basic premise. I will say this series doesn’t exactly feel like Star Wars to me. It shares DNA with movies like The Goonies, E.T. or even the show Stranger Things. It’s a group of kids thrown together to try to overcome obstacles. The adults are either unhelpful, unaware, or actively trying to harm the children. But while watching you never get the sense the kids will be put in serious danger.

The show is clearly targeted to a younger audience so I will say I am not the intended demographic here. And I think that’s great, actually. There is only one other Star Wars story I can think of that truly focuses on a child and that is Star Wars: Episode 1 – The Phantom Menace. And that’s focused on a kid we know grows up to be one of the greatest villains in the galaxy.

While I can’t say I was thoroughly entertained here, I do think this is a good show for kids. I found it to be predictable in most instances but it has a clear sense of adventure and fun. There weren’t any “filler” episodes but there were times when the characters seemed to be shuffled from one place to another just to drive the story. But I don’t think that is something a young kid will notice.

Ultimately, if you are a Star Wars fan or you have a kid you want to introduce to Star Wars this is a good show to let them watch. I do have a caveat to that which I will get into below.

Things Skeleton Crew got right

Another thing I appreciate about the series, and wish would happen in more Star Wars shows, is an actual conclusion. If you watch the first season, you will get a full and complete story. Not that there aren’t some missing pieces or plot holes here and there but the story has a true ending. I was not frustrated as I was with ending of The Acolyte because Disney wouldn’t renew the series. I still want the end of that show. Skeleton Crew thought ahead enough to make sure we had an ending.

The kids in the series all nailed their roles here. I usually don’t like to talk to much about the performance of any child because, well, the real world sucks for kids who didn’t deliver an amazing performance in a show. But these kids were phenomenal. I fully bought into the dynamics of not just the kids characters but the way they developed their relationship over time. It is predictable how it plays out but it doesn’t make you root for these kids any less.

And one thing to call out specifically for this show is the portrayal of KB. She’s a kid in the series who had an accident and now has droid parts which help her to move and see. She’s differently abled than the rest of the kids and she has a moment where she acknowledges it. She embraces her different-ness. She doesn’t see it as a bad thing necessarily but she acknowledges both her limitations and enhancements. It was refreshing to see this in any show but especially in a Star Wars show.

Things Skeleton Crew could improve

In addition to being predictable, there were reasons the show didn’t feel like Star Wars to me. For one, this feels like a story we’ve been told before as there are so many shows and movies involving a group of kids coming together to overcome a problem. It’s pretty standard. At times it felt as if this story was meant to be told as something else but then shoved into Star Wars.

I don’t mind that but there were moments that seemed like, oh they were going for Stranger Things there or whatever. This is odd to say but it felt like I was being told a story rather than traveling to a galaxy far, far away. Since Star Wars is essentially fantasy this shouldn’t bother me but I think the mimicked suburbs just felt way too much like anywhere you can go in America.

So, to my caution for showing a kid this series first in the Star Wars cannon. I’m not sure this is a best first show for a kid. Why? Well, once they see it they are going to assume other Star Wars stories are similar. While there may be more seasons of Skeleton Crew, I doubt we’ll get another story involving kids like this one soon.

As entertaining as Jude Law was in his role, I feel like Jod Na Nawood as a character had a lot of wasted potential. He’s either a roguish pirate, or a helpful Jedi (I won’t spoil that part for you) but in the final episode he says something that makes me want to see so much more about his life. And Skeleton Crew is not the show to accomplish that. I don’t really want a spin-off show of this show but I’d read a novel about his early life.

Star Wars: Skeleton Crew in Conclusion

If you like an entertaining show that is well acted, full of fun, includes a good dose of adventure but is predictable this is a good show. If you want something complex and full of the backstory of the galaxy that touches on events we’ve seen before, this is not the show for you. It’s not what I would call essential viewing for a Star Wars fan. But I do think it’s a fun entry into the Star Wars universe. I want there to be more stories told about the galaxy, even if the vibe isn’t exactly for me. I hope Disney takes notes here and doesn’t decide they need to just make more Skeleton Crew. Rather, I hope they make more kinds of Star Wars shows both geared toward kids and adults. We’ll have to see.

I don’t think most people will think the show is a waste of time but I don’t think everyone is going to love this either. But it was a worthy effort and I’d like to see more of that.

May the force be with you.

P.S. Want to see more Star Wars reviews? Check out those posts here.

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Maestro – Movie Review

Hey movie fans, it’s Slick Dungeon. I’m here to conduct (see what I did there?) another review for one of the Oscar nominated films this year. This time we are talking about the biopic film about Leonard Bernstein, Maestro. There will be spoilers in this review so if you don’t like that sort of thing, head on over to the theater, see the movie and come on back here for the review.

What’s it About?

Maestro tells the story of notable conductor and composer, Leonard Bernstein. If you don’t know much about his professional career, you probably at least know he was the conductor of the New York Philharmonic, and that he composed music for movies like On the Waterfront and musicals like West Side Story. And after watching the film, you’ll know… almost the same amount about his professional career.

You’ll get a lot of the picture of his personal life as we see him have affairs with men and women, fall in love, continue to have affairs, have fights with his wife, continue to have affairs, and then have more affairs. He also chain smokes an incredible amount in this movie, which I am sure was true in his life.

The film is certainly interesting to watch as we see Bernstein go from a young hopeful, just waiting to be called up to conduct an orchestra, to a household name. The film starts with Bernstein being interviewed in 1987 where we can see the fantastic work of the makeup artists who transformed Bradley Cooper into an old man for the character. We then flash back to black and white early days. Bernstein is an energetic composer and, apparently so afraid of being alone, he can’t stop having affairs. He meets his wife Felicia Montealegre (Carey Mulligan) at a party and they connect almost instantly. Felicia marries Bernstein knowing about and accepting his lifestyle, she just asks for him to be discreet about it.

Bernstein’s success grows and he becomes more famous while also teaching music. Soon the film changes to color but the color remains muted, giving it the feel of a film from the seventies or eighties. Again, the makeup on Bradley Cooper is really good because there was never a moment where I thought he wasn’t the age he was playing. Tensions between Bernstein and Felicia increase as his affairs continue and he becomes more and more reckless even with his children old enough to be subjected to all the rumors and gossip that comes with it. Meanwhile, Bernstein continues to be driven to create and conduct music. Felicia who has always been a notable actress is becoming somewhat frustrated not just from the affairs but also with the fact her career takes a bit of a back seat to Leonard’s.

Disaster strikes when Felicia is diagnosed with cancer. The couple are devastated and so are their children. Eventually Felicia dies but Bernstein goes on, continuing to create and conduct. We land back at the interview we started on and Bernstein talks about his attitude towards music, life and creativity.

If you are of a certain generation, I am sure there is plenty here assumed to be known about Leonard Bernstein. But, if you are younger than that, this movie will not really tell you a lot more about the man. I suppose I learned more about his marital affairs than I wanted or needed to know but the film feels a bit scattered, never quite delving as far as it can on the personal, and barely scratching the surface of the professional. I wanted to know more about how people surrounding Bernstein saw him, and not just those who were in his most immediate circle. It seems like his affairs were an open secret but we never get any sense of if this was difficult for him professionally or not.

While Bradley Cooper does an adequate job of directing, this may have been a case where the director is a bit too in love with his subject matter so leaves some vital information out that he assumes the audience knows.

There is some personal tension and conflict in several scenes but Bernstein’s personality in the film is so overpowering, it’s hard to get a clear perspective of anyone else’s feelings towards him with the exception of Felicia. And even in that case, she seems to eventually accept the inevitable of being at least somewhat in his shadow.

All in all I found this film to be too disjointed to truly come together. There has been a deluge of musical biopics lately, the latest one being One Love about Bob Marley and while I didn’t entirely love that one, I did find myself at least having more of an understanding of what Bob Marley did. Here it is overly implied for those of us who did not grow up with Bernstein as a figure in our lives.

But that doesn’t mean that the film is not an enjoyable experience. There is certainly a reason it is up for so many awards, so let’s go through them.

the Awards

Maestro was nominated for seven Academy Awards this year and it certainly didn’t hurt that huge names like Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorsese were producers on it.

Best Actor

Bradley Cooper does a fine job with the character. I believe him as Bernstein and he certainly took on the mannerisms and speech patterns of the time. This was a good performance and it’s easy to see how much effort Cooper put into it. But in all honesty I think I have seen better performances by him in other films. Add to that the competition here and I don’t see Cooper taking away the award. In this category I think it will be Cillian Murphy for Oppenheimer. Colman Domingo had a great turn as Bayard Rustin in Rustin, Paul Giamati who is no stranger to the Oscars is up for The Holdovers, and Jeffrey Wright has a strong case to make with American Fiction. I think Bradley Cooper proved he can make a film about a subject he is interested in and can still give a good performance while pulling double duty but I don’t see him winning.

Best Actress

Carey Mulligan is up for her role as Felicia Montealegre for this film. Mulligan pulls off the part well and is just as fast talking as Cooper, making the film feel like a more authentic period piece. And the role certainly must have been challenging to portray so she deserves some accolades here. But, her competition is extremely strong in this category. She is up against Annette Benning for Nyad, Lily Gladstone for Killers of the Flower Moon, Sandra Huller for Anatomy of a Fall, and Emma Stone for Poor Things. I would say Carey Mulligan is in the top three here but the competition in this category really comes down to Emma Stone and Lily Gladstone.

Cinematography

I can see why this film was nominated for cinematography. The color choice is bold and sets the tone well. The shots are usually fairly interesting and what we see in the frame can be unexpected while still conveying the information we need. But I never found it to be truly revolutionary or groundbreaking. It is good but it doesn’t reach to the level of greatness in my mind. I don’t see this having a hope of beating out Killers of the Flower Moon, let alone Oppenheimer. It’s also up against El Conde and Poor Things.

Makeup and Hairstyling

If there is any category this film has a strong claim to it would be this one. Bradley Cooper must have had to sit for hours in the makeup chair to get the look right and it doesn’t look fake at all. If you saw him walking down the street in full makeup you would not recognize him as Bradley Cooper but as an elderly man. However, there are a couple of films giving strong competition here. Golda pulled off some incredible makeup transforming Helen Mirren into Golda Meir to the point where I didn’t even recognize her. But also nominated are Oppenheimer which tends to take home nearly every trophy, Poor Things which I have heard has fantastic makeup, and Society of the Snow which is able to make strong young men look like they are truly on the brink of absolute starvation. This is a tough category to call and while Maestro very well may take home the Oscar, I would not be surprised if a different movie went home with it.

Best Picture

This category is a little easier to call. Sorry but Maestro is not going to win here. I can see why it was nominated but it’s simply not as engaging as several of the other entries in the category. And I am pretty sure Oppenheimer has a lock on this one.

Sound

Obviously when you have a film about a composer and conductor, you need to have great sound. The film captures all the music and sound just as it should. But again, like the cinematography category, this film doesn’t do anything to innovate or break the mold. It has good sound but it’s not so notable that it’s going to win here. The Creator, Maestro, Mission Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, and The Zone of Interest are also nominated. The Creator has great sound, as does Mission Impossible but Oppenheimer has a particular sequence where the sound conveys so much of the storytelling that it’s clear how vital the sound actually is. While typically sci-fi and fantasy films tend to take home the award in this category, I think Oppenheimer is actually going to win here because of that sequence.

Writing (Original Screenplay)

Here’s a category where I could see Maestro winning. It’s not competing against Oppenheimer, or even Killers of the Flower Moon here. But it does still have some strong competition. It’s up against Anatomy of a Fall which is a really well written courtroom drama, The Holdovers which is moving, dramatic, and funny all at once, May December which is a bit of a melodrama but no doubt well written, and Past Lives which tells a very personal story. In this category I think the top three are Maestro, Anatomy of a Fall, and The Holdovers. As good as the writing is for Maestro, it is still more disjointed of a film than the other two. And at this point, I strongly suspect The Holdovers has the best case to make here. I won’t be shocked if Maestro wins but I would be mildly surprised.

In Conclusion

If you love biopics about musicians and you have a good idea of who Leonard Bernstein was, then this is a great film for you. If you don’t know that much about the guy, I suspect that like me, you’ll come away wondering what they really left out here. It is worth watching Bradley Cooper’s performance and it’s neat to see him directing, but it’s a bit more scattered than I would like in a biopic. It will probably take home some awards this year at the Oscars but it will probably lose out on a lot.

Awardingly yours,

Slick Dungeon

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Nyad – Movie Review

Anette Benning and Jodie Foster star in Nyad

Hey film fans! Slick Dungeon here back to review another Oscar nominated movie for you. This one tells the tale of a determined swimmer who achieved the nearly impossible, and did it far later in life than anyone would expect. The movie has two Oscar nominations, one for Annette Benning for Best Actress, and one for Jodie Foster as Best Supporting Actress. Do be warned there will be spoilers below for the film, and a sports event you could easily google. Still, if you hate that sort of thing just keep swimming away until you watch the movie and then swim on back here to read the review.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

What’s it About?

You know how everyone is feeling super hero movie fatigue right about now? Well, I’ve had film fatigue for a different genre of film for a long time. The inspirational sports drama film fatigue. I honestly can’t say I have seen anything new in this kind of movie since Rudy. Typically in these films there is an athlete or a team with the desire to win something or do something that hasn’t been done in sports. The said athlete or team faces adversity and challenges and nearly gives up. But in the end something changes and they become more determined and push on through the obstacles to win said game, medal, record etc. It can be moving and inspiring but it’s nothing unexpected. I wish I could say Nyad pulled me out of this fatigue but far from it.

This is not to say the real life Diana Nyad is anything other than an incredible inspiration with an amazing story. And this is also not to say that there weren’t stand out performances in this film. I’m just saying you aren’t going to find anything you don’t expect here.

The film tells the tale of Diana Nyad (Benning) who tried several times in her life to swim the Straits of Florida unassisted until she accomplished her goal. This swim is one of the most difficult open water swims possible and everything from severe weather to dangerous ocean life, not to mention the currents themselves, could easily derail the best swimmers in history.

When she was young and a star swimmer in her twenties, Nyad attempts the swim. She does the best she can but ultimately she can’t make it.

We then fast forward to Diana in her sixties. She’s had a successful career and is basically troubled by the lack of exceptionalism in the world. Something, to her, is missing. She spends most of her time with her friend, Bonnie Stoll (Foster). Her life is happy enough but she wants more.

Diana decides to once again hit the pool. She’s pushing herself to the limits to see if she could make another attempt at the swim she failed at decades ago. She tells Bonnie about her plan to get back out there and attempt the swim again.

A team is assembled around Diana and soon we have all the pieces for her to make another attempt. In this attempt the ocean currents push her off course far enough she has to quit.

Determined not to give up, Diana tries once again. This time she is injured by a box jellyfish which can be lethal to humans. She nearly dies.

Still determined not to give up, Diana tries again, this time after consulting with an expert on jellyfish who helps her create a protective suit. She goes out once again but this time is defeated by disastrous weather conditions.

By this point, Diana’s team are all pretty tired of making the attempts and try to convince her to give up. It goes so far that several of her key supporters quit, including Bonnie, her coach.

Finally, still determined not to give up, Diana apologizes to some of the members of her team and they all gradually, if reluctantly agree to make one more attempt. This time they face dangers and challenges but luck, weather, and the marine life are all favorable enough that Diana is close to completing the swim. She gets close to giving up, but Bonnie, Nyad’s coach and friend, hops in the water to give Diana one last inspirational speech to push her through. At long last, after four failed attempts at the most difficult swim in the world, Diana does the impossible and completes the swim.

Throughout the film we see flashbacks of Nyad’s childhood and see that her father inspired her to want to do the swim in the first place. We also see the darker side of her life as we get flashbacks of a coach who abused several young female swimmers. It’s not until after this man dies that Diana truly confronts her trauma and it’s not until after this that she completes the swim.

Also throughout the film we see Bonnie inspiring, pushing, consoling, and sometimes angering Diana all in an effort to get Diana to push through and give her all. Diana’s obsession nearly ruins the lives of several people in her orbit but ultimately, through Bonnie’s leadership they prevail.

The Performances

While this type of movie may be a formula I am tired of, I can separate out the performances here. Annette Benning gives an impressive, if stoic performance. Physically this film must have taken a lot out of her as I am sure she had to spend hundreds of hours swimming. As far as the character of Nyad goes, she doesn’t seem to have much character growth. She basically goes from determined to even more determined. And while, in life, this makes for an interesting person, on film it feels rather dull. Annete Benning does transform well into her character but other than be determined enough to win the race, and mildly change her attitude towards her past and her teammates, not much happens here.

On the other hand, Bonnie, played by Jodie Foster, goes through a roller coaster of emotions. She has to deal with an entire team of people, including an athlete that is so obsessive she nearly bankrupts her whole team. Bonnie goes from reluctant coach to cheerleader, to caring friend, to knowing just the right thing to say at the right moment. Foster’s performance here is impressive and brings much needed life to the film. When Foster is encouraging Nyad to walk the few feet of sand she has to in order to ultimately complete the swim, you can feel how emotional it is for her. To be fair, Benning’s face was covered up with lots of prosthetics in this scene so it’s harder to read to begin with. But when the camera looks at Foster, it’s easy to see she is giving her all to the character.

I don’t know if either actress will win in their categories but between the two performances, I think Foster’s is the stronger of the two.

In Conclusion

The story truly is inspirational but I’m not sure the film does it full justice. The performances by the lead and supporting actresses are impressive but may not be the best ones of the year. The directing, cinematography and all the rest of it is fine but not incredible. The reason to watch is definitely for the performances but the rest is just what you would see in any of those inspirational sports films.

If you haven’t seen this movie and you are curious about the performances of the two actresses then give it a watch. But, if you are looking for inventive film making or a different kind of sports film, this is not going to scratch that itch. The most notable part of the story is the actual accomplishments of the real Diana Nyad and I think if you were to watch a documentary or read an article about her, you’ll likely find it more inspirational than the biopic here.

Swimmingly yours,

Slick Dungeon

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All Quiet on the Western Front (2022) – Movie Review

All Quiet on the Western Front (2022)

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Hey movie fans, Slick Dungeon here! It’s Oscar week so I’m going to give my best shot at reviewing all of the best picture Oscar nominees this week. I’m not sure if I will get through all of the movies before Oscar time but I will review all of them. The first one on the list happened to be the 2022 version of All Quiet on the Western Front. Do be warned there will be some mild spoilers in this review so if that sort of thing bothers you, watch the movie first and come back to read the review. This one is available on Netflix at the moment.

All Quiet on the Western Front is a German film adaptation of the novel of the same name from 1929. It follows a group of young men thrown into the horrors of war near the end of World War I. The book, and the film, make strong statements about the futility of war, the carnage it inflicts, and shows how decisions outside of the control of anyone on the ground impacted vast numbers of those who fought.

While this is certainly an ensemble film, we mostly see the story through the eyes of Paul Bäumer. He signs up to fight on the side of the Germans before he’s actually of age to go to war. He and several of his friends are young, idealistic, and inspired by the leaders of their country. But as soon as the group make it out to the front lines it becomes clear none of them were ready for the harsh realities of war.

The film is gory, even for a war film. The movie portrays death in nearly all of the possible forms it could have taken on the front lines, from bullets to mortar shells to death by gas and anything in between, it’s shown here. For most of the movie we get small snippets of each character’s life. Some we learn a little bit about only to see them die seconds later. Others make it further along in the war but as this is war, no one is safe from harm.

We do see a bit of a relationship develop between Paul and a man named Kat who is a bit more experienced in the world than most of the other soldiers around him. This is the strongest attachment Paul forms but even this relationship feels tenuous as both men know either one of them could be gone in an instant. Throughout the movie it seems focusing for even a moment on the future can be fatal. All involved must survive this moment to get to the next and nothing more.

There is also an interesting contrast when we see some of the diplomats and generals who are not on the front lines, making decisions from their safe sanctuaries, knowing men are dying and not caring.

And while the movie is about German soldiers, who are considered the aggressors in the war, it’s absolutely clear, this war was horrible for everyone who fought in it. The viewer feels no less empathy for Paul and his companions than if they fought for the French. And since the film was made by German filmmakers, it has a realistic quality to it which might not come through from any other creators.

This film is utterly brutal and heartbreaking at every turn. I remember reading the novel in High School but it doesn’t sink in the same way as actors portraying these scenes on film can. The book, in my opinion, has a lot of dead space without much happening. There is still some of that in the film, but those moments of stillness and quiet, are jarringly interrupted when action takes over.

This film won’t be for everyone. If you don’t have a fairly strong stomach when it comes to bloody depictions, most definitely sit this one out. If you can’t stand war films, again this is not for you. But, as the book does, this movie really sinks home not only how brutal humans can be to one another but also how meaningless it can all seem.

I don’t know if this is the most Oscar worthy film on the list but it’s one I can easily recommend you should watch. There is some slow pacing which can get annoying but there is enough here to keep one interested and there are some genuinely shocking moments worth sticking around for.

Awarding-ly yours,

Slick Dungeon

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The Sandman Episode 1 Deep Dive Review

Dream is captured in episode 1 of the Netflix series The Sandman

Hello dreamers, day dreamers, and nightmare watchers! It’s Slick Dungeon here and I am back to review the first of The Sandman episodes. This one is titled Sleep of the Just. Before we get too far into this review, it’s my duty to warn you there will be heavy spoilers for the episode and some spoilers for the early issues of The Sandman comics. If you can’t stand spoilers then go watch and read and come back here for the review. I do plan on going pretty deep into the material so tread cautiously if you are not into that sort of thing.

In order for me to go as in-depth into this series as I want to, we need to take a little trip back in time to 1988 when the first issue of The Sandman comic book began. Back then, Neil Gaiman, the author and co-creator of the series was trying to revive a series about a character called The Sandman which was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby. Neil pitched the idea to his editor Karen Berger but she had one change to it. She wanted the series to be about a brand new character. This decision proved pivotal, allowing Gaiman to take a ton of creative license with how he handled his series.

It’s important to remember that this series, at the beginning especially, was tied to DC comics. While it was printed under a line meant for mature readers called Vertigo, DC characters do walk in these pages. I mention this because in the show, there are some things that absolutely had to be changed from the comics due to licensing issues and copyright problems.

While I may point out adaptive changes in the series, I don’t necessarily think one version is superior to the other. They were made in different times and much like the character Morpheus himself, the world has changed since the comics came out. Each telling of the story is what it needs to be. There are definitely things that would be changed in the comic if it were made now (there truly was not enough diverse representation in the comics) and if the show was made at the time of the comics it would be much different than what we have (and probably not a very good adaptation as Neil Gaiman himself would likely tell you). I’m absolutely not going to dwell on casting choices that certain portions of the internet have raged about. Gender swapping or casting actors who are a different race than what they were in the comics makes absolutely no difference in how well the story is told. And both the comics and the show tell a great story.

Okay, stepping off my soapbox now. After all that setup, let’s talk about the episode itself.

Much like the comic, this first episode is what you might consider the closest to conventional horror. It deals with old men in creepy old houses doing magic to gain power for themselves. If that was all this series was, I could recommend any number of shows exactly like it. It will take some time but both the show and the comic transcend the horror theme eventually.

The episode starts off with a bit of exposition from Morpheus, who declares himself, “the king of dreams” and we see a raven fly over a car and into the world of the dreaming. This is where Morpheus lives and it’s as fantastic as the real world is mundane. This immediately sets up Morpheus as other than ourselves and he seems to know something we don’t as he dismisses our notion as mortals that dreams make no difference in the choices we make.

We really only get the briefest of glimpses into this world of the dreaming but we are introduced to some key characters and the villain of the season is immediately established. The librarian of the dreaming, Lucienne, has a conversation with Dream, while Dream is looking at a stained glass representation of a nightmare of his own creation. This is a character called The Corinthian. In the comics we don’t even get a hint of him for quite a long time. I do think this change was smart because it shows Morpheus will have an adversary. Lucienne also tells Morpheus she has a feeling Morpheus won’t be coming back because in the real world, dreams don’t survive long, but nightmares seem to thrive.

I’d say that’s a rather pessimistic worldview but of course, it might not be wrong either. The story gets going with a group of people who seem to run a cult of some sort and their goal is to trap the angel of death. The time period is 1916 and the location is Wychcross England. In other words, war is breaking out and the world does indeed look bleak at this time. At this point in the show the timeline matches what we see in the comics but it won’t stay that way for long.

In the comic series we don’t find out much about this cult. But in the show we get a little window into what is going on. There’s a man who calls himself the Magus (meaning sorcerer) who will go to any length to bring his eldest son back from the dead. We also see his second born son, Alex, who seems to have a kinder heart than his father.

As Dream is about to confront the Corinthian and bring him back to the dreaming, a spell is performed by the cult. Instead of trapping Death like the Magus hoped, he has Morpheus, also known as Dream. But the Magus really has no idea what it is he’s captured.

There is another interesting change here. In the comics we essentially see the Magus flail about trying to figure out who he has. But in the show, the Corinthian shows up almost immediately to tell the Magus what he has and how to keep Dream from escaping. This gives the Corinthian a whole lot more power and reason to be there than the comic does.

One consequence of Morpheus being locked up is a “sleepy sickness” breaks out. There are a bunch of people who can’t sleep, always sleepwalk, or simply will no longer wake up. One of the most interesting things about this is this incident actually reflects a real illness that did break out at the time. If you ever wonder if Neil Gaiman did his homework for this story, that’s all you need to know.

We are also very briefly introduced to a character suffering from this sleepy sickness named, Unity. She’s an incredibly important character but we won’t know more about her until future episodes.

While the Magus may not have captured who he wanted, he does take what are called Morpheus’ vestments. A ruby, a bag of sand, and what amounts to a gas mask but is referred to as a “helm.” These items are exceedingly powerful so you know there will be trouble with them down the line.

One bit of kudos to the show runners here is the way they make Tom Sturridge look as Morpheus while he is trapped. He’s thin and weakened but also looks otherworldly. I’m guessing there was a good amount of CGI and a lot of messing around with lighting to get the look just right but they nailed it.

Dream is more than a god. He’s one of “The Endless” so Morpheus is able to play the long game against his captors. This allows us to move the story past the Magus and a simple revenge plot. While there are hints of Alex being kind and even potentially letting Morpheus out, he never does, either from fear of his father, or fear of what Dream might do.

Before the Magus dies, a woman named Ethel Cripps who is pregnant with his child absconds with Dream’s vestments and a small fortune in cash. This event is probably the most significant event in this first season. It leaves Morpheus with no knowledge of where his tools are. Ethel does escape the Magus and has the baby. This baby will also be a huge part of the series in episodes to come.

There’s also a moment where it almost seems Dream will escape with the help of his raven but the bird is shot by Alex. This gives Morpheus a strong reason to distrust Alex once the Magus is dead. And Morpheus still has all the time in the world to wait. All he needs is for someone to fall asleep near him.

Things were probably not easy for Alex as an out gay man in the 1920’s but that’s no excuse for keeping someone locked up in your basement. Ultimately, once Alex is old and no longer mobile, it’s his partner Paul who allows for Morpheus to escape. He pushes Alex’s wheelchair across the magic circle which traps Dream. This is all the opportunity one of the Endless needs to escape.

Morpheus is soon able to walk through the guards dreams and right out of his magic cage. Dream confronts Alex and as punishment grants him the gift of, “eternal sleep.” Presumably he’s given Alex the Sleepy Sickness.

If there was a single thing I could change from this episode it would be this adaptive change. In the comics Morpheus also gives Ales a gift. But this gift is the gift of eternal waking. Have you ever had a nightmare and when the worst thing you can imagine is about to strike you wake up and then you feel relief but then another nightmare comes and you realize you haven’t actually woken up? Take that feeling and imagine having it forever. Always a brief moment of relief before being once more terrified in an endless loop. That’s severe punishment.

While I understand why they made the change, I still think the original idea from the comic would have been better. They changed it because as the viewer we do get to know Alex a little bit and understand he has some kindness to him. He really does sympathize with Morpheus, even though he doesn’t allow Morpheus to escape.

My problem with the change is it humanizes Morpheus too much. Morpheus is Endless and in the comic series he certainly does have a character arc but his change is slow. Centuries spanning slow. To have Morpheus show any bit of kindness to his captors shows him identifying with humans too much at this point in the series.

Here is also where the timeline diverges between the comics and the show. In the show we advance all the way to our time. The comic advanced to its present time of 1989. I think there are a lot of reasons for this change, not the least of which would be having to film a period piece with only stuff from the 1980’s and 1990’s would bring the cost up on the whole production and it’s already an expensive show.

The episode ends with a very murder-y Corinthian realizing Morpheus is out of his cage. Morpheus goes back to the Dreaming where Lucienne finds him. But the realm of the king of dreams has changed. It’s a mere shadow of what it had been at the beginning of the episode and it’s clear Morpheus is going to need his stuff back in order to fix anything. Apparently, this disarray and decay is what happens when Morpheus is away for too long. There’s also a very small hint of something having happened to another one of the Endless in the past. If we find out what all that is about, it won’t be until later seasons.

Oddly, the end of the episode is a preview for what’s going to happen this season on The Sandman. It really feels out of place and I’m not exactly sure why they put it there but you can skip it if you’re watching the show because, well, you’re already watching the show.

All in all, this episode is probably the weakest of the series but it’s essential to have it so we can really get into the story. I think it was well told, superbly acted, and brought us into a world full of a lot of complex things going on rather seemlessly.

My biggest regret for the episode is this is the only episode we get to see Charles Dance who plays Roger Buress, aka, the Magus. You’ll likely recognize him as Tywin Lannister from Game of Thrones. And just like in that show, every minute he is on screen, he is fascinating to watch. But we’ll have lots of other star power and phenomenal performances in future episodes so I can’t complain too much.

Well, that’s my take on the first episode. I’ll have plenty more to say about future episodes (and hopefully future seasons). Until then, did you watch this show or read the comics? If so, let me know what you thought about it in the comments below. If you could change anything about the adaptation what would it be? Or do you think it is perfect as is?

Dreamily yours,

Slick Dungeon

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The Sandman (Netflix) Flash Review

The Sandman. (L to R) Tom Sturridge as Dream, Kirby Howell-Baptiste as Death in episode 106 of The Sandman. Cr. Courtesy of Netflix © 2022

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Hello internet, it’s Slick Dungeon here. I’m going to give my initial impressions of the screen adaptation of the comic book series The Sandman. This review will be for what I think of the series overall but in future posts I will do an in-depth review of each individual episode and talk about how the show relates to the comic book series.

I have to be honest to start here. This was a review I dreaded doing. A lot of people who are into comic books had the experience I did with Sandman. When I was a kid I absolutely loved comic books, especially super heroes. But when I went to high school these books dropped off my radar for the most part. Until I started to hear about a series called The Sandman by Neil Gaiman. It had a horror feel to it with some amazing art, a bit of a connection to the DC heroes, but still stood all on its own as a story. And, upon reading the series, it felt like this was one of the series that would help the medium of comics to grow up and be taken seriously. In a phrase, I loved The Sandman and I probably wouldn’t still be reading comic books now without it.

In my mind, the only thing worse than having no adaptation of the series would be to have a bad adaptation of it. It’s the one series I’ve always wanted to see but been much too afraid it would get screwed up. If that happened, I knew people would come to dislike the comic series and we’d never get another good Neil Gaiman story adapted. So, with all that in mind, I was very hesitant to watch this series. I would not be able to take it if it was done poorly.

I’m beyond happy to report this series turned out to be utterly phenomenal. That’s not to say there are no things I would change if I could, but there are so few that this is a nearly perfect series. And there is one episode which I think is maybe the best episode of television I have ever seen.

What’s more, this series is not only grand for those of us who love the comics, but also works exceedingly well for those not at all versed in the lore of The Sandman comics. I think the show will makes comics readers out of a good portion of the audience.

For this review, I really don’t want to get into spoilers in case anyone is wanting to watch but has not. The basic premise is that Dream, played by Tom Sturridge, is captured by mortal man and, let’s just say he is not happy about it. To say much more in this review would either be confusing or lead to spoilers.

The series is by turns dramatic, horrifying, fantastical, and brilliant. The acting performances here are knocked completely out of the park by everyone involved and I just felt like I was living in the world of Dream and his siblings the whole time I was watching it. Some episodes are more terrifying than others and some are slower paced than others but never did I feel bored while watching. There’s too much story here for there to be down time and I guarantee this is a series which will live in your mind long after you have finished watching.

What I want you to take away here is that the series is extremely watchable and a much better adaptation of a brilliant work than I could have hoped for. If you have not yet watched this show, put it at the top of your queue because it’s going to be better than anything else out there.

Next time I will get into the first episode with a deeper review, full of spoilers, but for now, if you watch the show, enjoy the ride because you are in for a fantastic time.

Dreamily yours,

Slick Dungeon

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Nobody Sleeps in the Woods Tonight – Movie Review

Nobody Sleeps in the Woods Tonight 2020 Film

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Hello horror fans, it’s me, Slick Dungeon! If you’ve ever seen a slasher horror film you know the title of the film I am about to review is good advice. Nobody Sleeps in the Woods Tonight is a camper/slasher from Poland in the storied traditions of movies like Halloween and Friday the 13th. Be warned there will be some spoilers in this review so be warned before you read.

After a small intro scene from the past, the movie starts like most slashers. We have a group of campers out in the woods and the audience is pretty sure not all of these people are going to make it through the night. The people camping are here due to some problem or other they’ve had with technology. This is a sleep away camp where cell phones and other electronic devices are not allowed. The point is for them to get away from technology.

This is especially bad when there is a killer on the loose. While no one at the camp seems to know this is the case, there are some rumors of bad things that happened way back around World War II. We get to know the campers a little, most of them are not really surprising stereotypes. There’s a jock, a kid who is an online gamer, one who’s addicted to social media for the fame and influencers on there etc.

It’s not too far into the film we get the first real hint of something bad out in the woods. And soon students go missing. The audience knows what happened because we get to see the death before the other characters find the body. The film progresses like most of these where one by one people get picked off.

But, there is enough originality here to make this one stand out. While the film leans into the horror tropes, it does a decent job of twisting them just enough at the right moments to make it fairly disturbing. While not everyone is going to be impressed with the makeup and the look of the killer you can’t deny it’s an original take, even if it is a bit mashed up with other types of horror.

There are enough characters we come to care about for this to be worth watching if you want a pretty enjoyable horror film that’s never quite breaking entirely new ground. I may be a little biased because my favorite type of horror is films like these but I found it pretty entertaining overall and it’s nice to see a horror film that’s not American give it a go.

If you like stuff like Friday the 13th, the Fear Street films or any movie about campers who are in danger from lethal killers, this will be right up your alley.

Slashingly yours,

Slick Dungeon

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Choose or Die – Movie Review

Choose or Die

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Hey horror fans, it’s me Slick Dungeon! I’m back to review another creepy film. This time I watched Choose or Die and I’m here to give you my hot take on it. Do be warned there will be mild spoilers so if that kind of thing kills your ’80’s nostalgia, go watch the movie first and come back here to read the review.

Alright, for those of you who are still with me, let’s get into it. Choose or Die is about a cursed video game. Think Ring but instead of a video tape it’s an old copy of a text based game you might have found for computers in the 1980’s. While I think Ring is a fair comparison there are some major differences so even if you’ve seen Ring it doesn’t mean you can predict what will happen in Choose or Die.

The premise is pretty simple. A man finds an old copy of a game called CURS>R. It seems to be a game where there was the potential for prize money that is still unclaimed to this day. Beat the game and you might win $100K dollars. Whether or not the company which produced the game will pay up is anyone’s guess.

About three minutes into the movie things get pretty weird and bloody. While playing this game, the man who bought it at a clearance sale is asked to choose between a face and a tongue. See, his wife and son are loudly arguing upstairs. While the choice is a little weird the guy chooses “his tongue” and seconds later, the wife is cutting her own son’s tongue out, seemingly unable to stop herself. It’s a pretty disturbing scene and there are a few scenes like this so if you don’t like a bit of gore in your horror this is probably not for you. However, this is by far not the most bloody movie I’ve ever scene.

Next we see Kayla, who seems unconnected with the events of the game in any way, going about her day. She’s a wannabe computer programer who is played by Iola Evans. Her best friend, Isaac, played by Asa Butterfield is also an aspiring programmer but happens to be in love with Kayla. Kayla’s home life is pretty rough. She lives in a sketchy neighborhood, her mother is essentially checked out of life, and her little brother died at a tragically young age.

Isaac finds a copy of CURS>R and pops it into his computer where he hears the voice of Robert Englund start talking about the game. That’s right, good ol’ Freddy Krueger himself is in this. Well, his voice is anyway.

Kayla takes the copy of the game and starts playing it late that night in a cafe. Very quickly she realizes the game itself is affecting reality, and not in a good way. As you can imagine, the terror increases and Kayla and Isaac have to figure out a way to beat the game without doing major damage to themselves or others.

I don’t want to give too much away so we’ll just say it’s like a lot of movies where there is haunted technology. But, the end does come with a bit of an interesting twist making it worth staying for the end.

Some of the effects are not stellar here and it relies a bit too much on jump scares and silly tricks at times but it’s still a fun watch. While there are better horror movies on Netflix this one isn’t bad and it kills a bit of time if you just need a good fun horror movie. Just don’t look for anything super original here.

Horrifically yours,

Slick Dungeon

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Movie Review – Don’t Look Up

Don’t Look Up

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Hey all, this is a re-post of an Oscar movie review. When I posted it this was before it was nominated but I still stand by what I said here. Enjoy the review!

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Hello out there internet people, it’s me Slick Dungeon. I’m back to review another movie for you. I watched Don’t Look UP on Netflix. Fair warning that there will be spoilers below so if you haven’t seen it and want to, have a look first and then come back here.

Stop me if this sounds familiar. There is an impending global crisis, almost certain to wipe out all life on the planet. There is solid, irrefutable scientific proof of this event. However, due to political considerations, a distracted public, and enormous financial interests on the part of the wealthy, the clear reversal of this problem is completely ignored. The wealthy get to come up with alternative solutions more friendly to them at the cost of everyone else. Don’t Look Up is a disaster comedy that hits way, way, too close to reality.

The whole film is an obvious allegory for climate change but really it could apply to any number of impending global crises we have going on now. The film is chock full of big name stars, including Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, Meryl Streep and Jonah Hill.

While the subject matter of the film would make anyone who believes in science uncomfortable, there are laugh out loud moments that are impossible to ignore. As usual Leonardo DiCaprio puts in a fantastic performance but the lines that keep sticking in my mind in this movie come from Jonah Hill and Jennifer Lawrence. There’s also a really funny sequence involving a four star general and some snacks that cracked me up.

It’s also a very American film. The basic premise is straight forward. There is an impending comet heading toward Earth, large enough to be an extinction level event that will wipe out not only humans but a good chunk of the planet itself. The science is solid and the group of scientists who discover the comet have to go convince the president to do something about it. But, political times being what they are, the president is more focused on her poll numbers than committing to a real solution. Because of this inaction there is a wide swath of the population that simply doesn’t believe a comet exists at all. Soon people are on both sides of the issue, the media doesn’t want to cover it because there are stories that get better ratings, and the scientists are trying to get people to understand doom is actually impending.

All in all it is a brilliant film, if a bit on the nose. If you watch it, I promise there are laughs to be had but don’t go in expecting this to be a feel good movie. It’s just so close to the surface of reality it’s genuinely frightening.

Disastrously yours,

Slick Dungeon