This year, in an effort to rebel against our culture’s tendency to wait until the end of the year to make lists of the stuff we dug, I have started making end-of-month recaps of the movies, books, television shows, and other stuff I enjoyed. Here are January, February, March, April and May’s lists.
And here’s all the stuff I liked in May:
MOVIES
PREY (1977)
Kator, a zip-zap-zoop Animorph-looking alien, lands on Earth and quickly gets entangled in the sexual drama of a lesbian couple hiding secrets from each other. All poor Kator wants to do is eat their parrot! I loved it! Neo-gothic sci-fi horror sleaze from Norman J. Warren whose SATAN SLAVE I also watched this June and dug.
DEEP IN THE HEART (2022)
DEEP IN THE HEART is a beautifully shot documentary about Texas wildlife. It has real “I feel compelled to take a trip to Big Ben and never come home” vibes. There’s a segment featuring a bat caught in a cactus trying to escape from a snake that is the most stressful thing I’ve watched in a while. The film really showcases my love-hate relationship with the state. There are parts of Texas that are beautiful beyond belief - stunning landscapes that seem beyond reality. And then there is the truth that we keep electing folks like Greg Abbott and Ted Cruz. I don’t get it. Anyway, see DEEP IN THE HEART on the big screen if you can. It’s a beautiful movie. Hopefully, you won’t sit next to the ladies I sat next to - two older women who, after I gave them a request to stop talking during the film, whispered that I should die. Texas, am I right?
NOTHING BAD CAN HAPPEN (2013)
Katrin Gebbe’s film is inspired by true events and follows a young Christian punk whose faith is a seemingly neverending fountain. When he befriends a dysfunctional family, he sees in them a chance to save some lost souls through his love and kindness. They see a chance to take advantage of a lamb in the woods. The film is a harrowing and powerful exploration of absolute faith. Between this and PELICAN BLOOD, Katrin Gebbe had a fan for life in me. The film is streaming on Shudder.
PRIME CUT (1972)
Michael Ritchie directs this sun-drenched crime joint about a Chicago enforcer (Lee Marvin) who heads to Kansas City to get a local gangster (Gene Hackman) in line. Rich backstory, snappy dialogue, and an amazing sunflower field shoot-out. The movie was a wonderful surprise that really shouldn’t have been - Ritchie has an amazing and carried career (FLETCH!) and Marvin and Hackman are G.O.A.T.s the both of them.
ELVIS (2022)
The second coming of Larry Peerce’s WIRED, and I mean that as a compliment. I loved this big, messy exclamation point of a biopic - a film that seeks to tell the story of a country and cultural shift through the life of a single man and his music. Austin Butler is fantastic as Elvis, full of swagger and pathos. You’ve heard of cosmic horror - there’s a scene early in the film where we see cosmic sex as a sea of women (and some men) discover a pure, impossible-to-understand rush of hormones as Butler wiggles his way on stage. I even enjoyed Tom Hank’s role as Tom Parker, a Cryptkeeper-like narrator who slithers his way through the movie aging backward and forwards as he drains his cash cow of his life force and money. ELVIS is fantastic!
WHEN YOU GET TO THE FOREST (2022)
Bonus: I had the chance to see a sneak preview of this new animated film from Eric Power and Andreas Petersen and it is so frigging good! Like a millennial version of MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO. I don’t want to say too much about the film because I’m not sure how the filmmakers plan to market it, but when you get the chance to see the movie, do s at your earliest opportunity. I loved it.
COMICS
YELLOW CAB (IDW)
This comic book is an adaptation of a diary/memoir/novel from French filmmaker Benoit Cohen. Cohen, struck by inspiration to write a story about a female immigrant who finds herself driving a cab in New York City, decides to become a cab driver himself, for research on the screenplay. The comic beautifully captures slice-of-life scenes in the city via Christophe Chabouté’s black-and-white sketches and cityscapes. A celebration of small moments illustrated to absolute perfection.
AFTERSCHOOL (Skybound)
I’ve only read the first issue of this new horror anthology, but it’s one of my favorite comics I’ve read in a long time. Written by Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead (the directors behind some truly amazing genre films) and illustrated by Greg Hinkle (whose AIRBOY and RATTLER are tremendous modern comics), “Spineless” follows a young girl whose new dog possesses a secret. The book is a wonderful mashup of H.R. Giger and W. Bruce Cameron. Seek it out!
THEATRE
NOIR
Alley Theatre hosted the world premiere performances of a new musical with songs by Duncan Sheik. As somebody who is a fan of ‘00s pop, noir movies, AND things that shouldn’t go together but are merged Brundlefly-style against the wishes of science and God, I dug it. The play follows a reclusive songwriter who spends his days mourning the one who got his way and eavesdropping on his neighbors. When new neighbors move in, the songwriter is drawn into a deadly game of manipulation - but who’s manipulating who? There are some absolute bangers on the soundtrack - even if they aren’t necessary fitting with the noir theme.
BOOKS
THE RISE AND FALL OF THE DINOSAURS by Steve Brusatte
This book offers new insights into the lives and legacy of the terrible thunder lizards. I wrote about it in more depth here.
MUSIC
I’ve been listening to a lot of music from Smog (aka Bill Callahan) lately. “Dress Sexy at My Funeral” is a gem but the one song I kept listening to on repeat this June is “Hit the Ground Running.” There’s a lot going on behind the scenes in my life right now that I’ll be able to share soon but this song is speaking to me in a profound way at the moment and I’ve discovered that if I listen to it and focus on the lyrics I can silence the anxiety and worry that has been stressing me out for the last few weeks.
“And now I don't know where I'm going
All I know to do is hit the ground running”