Watch List Weekly Recap 11/18/23
Two of our best directors weigh in with new work this week, plus films from a beleaguered nation.
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One Good Film: "The Killer" (Fincher, 2023)
David Fincher’s “The Killer” (⭐ ⭐ ⭐) seems specifically conceived to discombobulate a viewer's brain. It appears to be a not-so-hot example of one thing (hitman thriller), when it is in fact a much more interesting example of another thing (deadpan comedy). Naturally, it’s streaming on Netflix after a cursory theatrical run, where it will draw a sizable portion of the service’s 77 million US viewers, who most likely won’t get what the movie’s trying to do.
Five (and a Half) Movies About Palestine
Regardless of whether you stand with Israel, support a free Palestine, yearn for a two-state solution, or just believe in the right of men, women, and children to not be massacred where they live, these movies — all available on VOD — put faces and feelings to a place too few Americans understand.
What to Watch: "May December"
The unsettling hall of mirrors that is “May December” (⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 1/2, in theaters now, on Netflix December 1) forces a moviegoer to reflect on notions of identity, performance, intent, morality, ego, abuse – all good, pulpy stuff. What doesn’t enter into the picture is love, despite the implied word “romance” in the film’s title, and despite the happy domes…
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