“Selling Sunset”
In a year (or two) where we have all been made aware of the claustrophobic reality of our barely affordable abodes, Netflix’s deliciously shallow reality show, “Selling Sunset,” felt like almost too good of a gift. You have your standard group of women constantly pitted against one another, flimsy love affairs that go from over-the-top public displays of affection to equally flamboyant—and obviously staged—dramatic quarrels and, of course, the increasingly shady confessionals to tie it all with a shiny bow. In between all the gossiping, quarreling, and crying, however, lies the royal flush of the show: endless drone imagery of the most lavishing mansions in lavishing Los Angeles. Commoners such as ourselves are not only granted rare access to the houses of the filthy rich but are also made privy of the negotiations behind these multi-million deals, the heart of an industry that fuels (and funds) the ostentatious lifestyle of heavily plasticized social media influences slash realtors. The format has proved wildly successful, with viewing figures reaching the same millions as the deals closed by the group of gorgeous agents. Netflix has even released a spin-off in the shape of “Selling Tampa,” which I have, of course, binged quicker than it took me to write this paragraph. What can I say? It works. –Rafa Sales Ross
“Godzilla Vs. Kong”
“Godzilla” and “Godzilla: King of Monsters” each present their own set of problems when bringing Godzilla to the big screen. Thankfully, “Godzilla Vs. Kong” is an incredibly competent and uncluttered monster fest that finally finds a happy medium. Following the events of both ‘King of Monsters’ and “Kong: Skull Island,” the movie picks up with King Kong in isolation and Godzilla nowhere to be seen. If there is a protagonist between the two monsters, Kong is given significantly more to do, as the humans are looking for the world of monsters, Hollow Earth and Kong is used to lead them there. Sure, we have to put up with the plight of Millie Bobby Brown and the other humans, but the promise of this movie is two of the cinema’s greatest titans will be exchanging blows and it delivers! The boat sequence exemplifies the competency of the movie with beautiful monster punches. Having visible monster battles is a low bar to cross, but director Adam Wingard gets it. He knows why people see these movies. And even though there’s a stalemate, for the first time in forever I cared about giant CGI monsters. –Max Covill
“Space Sweepers”
If the Netflix live-action adaptation of “Cowboy Bebop” left you wanting more, the streaming platform’s original film, “Space Sweepers,” from earlier this year will fill that void. A space opera set in the future on a ship with a ragtag group of ex-cons and wayward souls, the story is refreshingly earnest in the characters’ unlikely quest in protecting a humanlike robot who they mistake as a young girl. Initially keeping her onboard their Spaceship Victory to demand a ransom from the UTS Space Guards after her, they instead grow increasingly fond of her and what she brings to their lives. Directed by Jo Sung-hee and starring Song Joong-ki and Kim Tae-ri, the film is drunk on sci-fi and fantasy tropes to brilliant effect. The film has the key understanding that regardless of the dire circumstances the protagonists are up against there needs to be a sense of wonder to make a film of this genre soar. It is unabashedly silly and loose with technical rationale, but the heart it possesses is immense and perhaps the film’s greatest gift in the face of enormous emotions and deliberately bombastic set pieces is just how much the characters, like the girl they find, grow on viewers. –Allyson Johnson
“The Forever Purge”
The “Purge” series just might have jumped the dystopic shark with “The Forever Purge,” aka “The Purge Goes South of the Border.” In this Texas border-set iteration of the franchise—which started eight years ago as a home invasion thriller with political undertones before morphing into an alternate history of America’s slide into nationalist authoritarianism—the 24-hour all-crime-is-legal ultraviolence bacchanal takes the next step once some people decide not to stop at a one-day purge. In true horror-movie fashion, the protagonists are a grab-bag of unlikely allies. Undocumented Mexican workers, Adela (Ana de la Reguera, a standout) and Juan (Tenoch Huerta), band together with the initially clueless white ranch owner Dylan (the always fine, never indispensable Josh Lucas) and his family against the xenophobic militias who look as though they stopped by the gun show after bingeing Tucker Carlson rants. As ever, the action choreography is perfunctory and the commentary thumpingly obvious. But still, the clever role-reversal conclusion of “The Forever Purge” may actually be the most politically relevant moment of anything released this year. It’s possible that the “Purge” series could function as a barometer for America. We will know things have improved when the filmmakers run out of material. –Chris Barsanti
“The Many Saints of Newark”
“That’s the guy, my uncle Tony. The guy I went to hell for.” Role model syndrome and malapropisms: no show has captured these factors in moral/mortal upbringing quite like “The Sopranos.” Beginning with a voiceover from beyond the grave, it seems Christopher Moltisanti’s (Michael Imperioli) personal hell may be having to watch the mythologically warped “Godfather Part II” origin story of the mob boss who would murder him—partly for wanting to write a Hollywood screenplay on his life rather than take over the family business. Telling the tale of Chrissy’s father, the legendary Dickie Moltisanti (Alessandro Nivola), David Chase, with an airtight narrative already in the bank, adds an extra-spiritual dimension to his afterlife obsessed series. Revealing that Tony’s infatuation with certain goomar types and its Oedipal/Freudian implications stem from an idolization of the gangster lifestyle—Ray Liotta being cast in dual roles (also once considered for Ralph Cifaretto) adds another supernatural layer to a world orbiting doomed men caught in a perpetual purgatory of their own making. The New Jersey riot stuff does feel half-baked, conceptually, compared to the ‘Sopranos’ prequel story, but when Michael Gandolfini steps on screen you can truly feel the ghost of his father returning. The final scene has been incredibly divisive with fans of the series, but this writer found it to be damn near perfect—bringing the violent cycle of uncles full circle (oof, Uncle June) —as young Tony looks upon at the corpse of his father figure, promising never to let him down, though he would later let his second coming choke to death on his own blood. – Andrew Bundy
