Old (2021) - 3/5

This movie is a high-concept sci-fi about what it means to live a fulfilling life, wrapped in uncomfortable psychological horror vestments, executed in a rough indie stage play aesthetic. Most people are going to be turned off by at least one of these elements. It manages to cram in an expansive itinerary of tragic life events, and dwells on them more than the cerebral sci-fi aficionados and armchair philosophers will be comfortable with. I’m not sure who this movie is for, but it’s just well-executed enough that whoever that is will probably enjoy it quite a bit.

Content warning: brief female nudity, infant death

Closest comparison: It’s like Life is Beautiful by way of Split.

Setting: Vacation Adventure
Plot: Cerebral Sci-Fi
Tone: Psychological Horror

Pig (2021) - 4/5

This movie sets itself up to be a violent kidnap revenge story, but ends up being a thoughtful character drama. Nicolas Cage carries the film, and the cast of characters that the plot cycles through is solid. The subtext for most of the narrative is the West coast fine dining scene which comes to the foreground enough that the audience’s enjoyment of the film will vary by proximity to, and understanding of, that milieu. That being said, it’s equal parts admiration for and critique of the chefs of fine dining establishments, but if you’re looking for a guns-blazing revenge-fest this is not it.

Closest comparison: It’s like The Protector (2005) by way of Chef (2014).

Setting: Hipster Dramedy
Plot: Kidnapping
Tone: Retrospective Drama

Jumanji: The Next Level (2019) - 3/5

This is a solid sequel with great locations and action setpieces in the same vein as its 2017 predecessor. Because of the nature of these films there’s an aspect of the acting that amounts to the actors doing impressions of each other, hamming it up as they go, and that is much more varied in this film. The main characters are doing impressions of multiple people throughout the runtime and it’s fun and funny to watch. The action / adventure part gets predictable and unrealistic in several places, but here it’s funny instead of irritating because of the video game premise. It’s not as good as the previous installment, but still a lot of fun.

Closest comparison: It’s like The Saint (1997) by way of Indiana Jones.

Setting: Adventure
Plot: Action Adventure
Tone: Adventure Comedy