I don't recall if we liked this story of an out-of control punk rocker, played by Elisabeth Moss, because we watched it on Netflix maybe four months ago. Moss (last blogged for The Seagull) heads up a great cast that includes Cara Delevingne (a fashion model with a few acting credits), Dan Stevens (most recently in these pages for The Man Who Invented Christmas), and Virginia Madsen (last blogged for Joy).
Director/writer Alex Ross Perry (co-wrote Nostalgia and more) apparently was inspired by Axl Rose to write Moss' character of Becky Something.
Keegan DeWitt (scored Hearts Beat Loud) composed the original music, while the cast members playing in Becky's band performed the five songs listed on imdb.
Rotten Tomatoes' critics' average is 83% and its audiences' is 48.
Tuesday, September 17, 2019
Brittany Runs a Marathon (2019)
Loved this story of a 20-something woman who chooses running to get in shape physically and goes through internal changes as well. We're not the only ones--it won the Audience Award for Dramatic Feature and was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance earlier this year. It may be a drama but there are plenty of laughs as well, even when dealing with the subtext of body image and self-loathing.
Jillian Bell (dozens of credits, no big parts; she was a Saturday Night Live writer on 22 episodes) is wonderful in the title role (and as producer). She apparently lost forty pounds during the making of this movie, just like her character. Michaela Watkins (last blogged for Brigsby Bear) is predictably good as "Moneybags Martha," Micah Stock (new to me but he has a Tony nomination) adorable as running partner Seth, Lil Rel Howery (most recently in these pages for Get Out) is comforting as Brittany's brother-in-law Demetrius, and Utkarsh Ambudkar (we liked him in the recent season of Brockmire, and ten episodes of White Famous) is attractive as the housesitter Jern. And they're all funny.
It's the directing debut for director/writer Paul Downs Colaizzo, who was inspired by his friend Brittany who got in shape and ran a marathon. I don't know if the real Brittany ran in New York, but this movie was the first non-documentary to shoot during the actual New York marathon.
There are dozens of song, listed here, and on Apple Music there's a playlist of twenty songs (total nineteen minutes) by composer Duncan Thum (nominated for couple of Emmys for scoring Chef's Table, he has quite a few other credits).
Not only have I been on a break from writing this blog (sixteen are in draft form, unwritten), but it's been three weeks since I've even seen a movie--travel, good weather, and other activities have kept me away. I chose it because I remembered liking the trailer, its high rating on Rotten Tomatoes (critics 90%, audiences 87), its theme, and the fact that its streaming and/or DVD release has not been set at all. So, if you can't get to a big screen, watch for it to be announced in the coming months.
Jillian Bell (dozens of credits, no big parts; she was a Saturday Night Live writer on 22 episodes) is wonderful in the title role (and as producer). She apparently lost forty pounds during the making of this movie, just like her character. Michaela Watkins (last blogged for Brigsby Bear) is predictably good as "Moneybags Martha," Micah Stock (new to me but he has a Tony nomination) adorable as running partner Seth, Lil Rel Howery (most recently in these pages for Get Out) is comforting as Brittany's brother-in-law Demetrius, and Utkarsh Ambudkar (we liked him in the recent season of Brockmire, and ten episodes of White Famous) is attractive as the housesitter Jern. And they're all funny.
It's the directing debut for director/writer Paul Downs Colaizzo, who was inspired by his friend Brittany who got in shape and ran a marathon. I don't know if the real Brittany ran in New York, but this movie was the first non-documentary to shoot during the actual New York marathon.
There are dozens of song, listed here, and on Apple Music there's a playlist of twenty songs (total nineteen minutes) by composer Duncan Thum (nominated for couple of Emmys for scoring Chef's Table, he has quite a few other credits).
Not only have I been on a break from writing this blog (sixteen are in draft form, unwritten), but it's been three weeks since I've even seen a movie--travel, good weather, and other activities have kept me away. I chose it because I remembered liking the trailer, its high rating on Rotten Tomatoes (critics 90%, audiences 87), its theme, and the fact that its streaming and/or DVD release has not been set at all. So, if you can't get to a big screen, watch for it to be announced in the coming months.
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