Crime Comedies I: Game Night 🎲

What I (re)watched this weekend: Us

Oct 21, 2019

👋 Happy Monday! Hope you had a fantastic weekend. And if you’re new here, welcome!

We’re kicking off a new theme this week and since Martin Scorsese’s surprisingly funny new gangster film The Irishman is out this Friday — stay tuned — I’m going to be talking about crime comedies 🔫.

Okay, here’s day 1️⃣.

Today’s movie: Game Night

STREAMING ON PRIME VIDEO

What it’s about: Married couple Max (Jason Bateman) and Annie (Rachel McAdams) and their group of friends think they’re a part of a highly realistic kidnapping mystery game night when Max’s brother (Kyle Chandler) is taken by dangerous gangsters. Little do they know it’s all real and they’re at the center of a criminal conspiracy.

Why it’s great: Game Night perfects what I call stupidly smart comedy. The actual jokes and gags are so silly and broad that anyone will find joy in them. However, they’re also brilliantly constructed setups and punchlines — some of which take the entire movie to pay off. There are countless iconic one-liners that you’ll find yourself quoting all the time — Rachel McAdams’ delivery of “oh no, he died!” is a favorite of mine. Even better, the actual plot is interesting. Still, you’re there for the comedy and there isn’t a minute where you won’t be laughing your head off.

Details: 🎬 John Francis Daley & Jonathan Goldstein // ⏳ 100 minutes // 🗓 2018 // 📺 Trailer
Fun fact: Some scenes are inspired by classic games like Jenga, Guess Who, Hot Potato, and Operation. Keep an eye out for them 👀
Also available on: Prime Video | iTunes | YouTube

What I (re)watched this weekend: Us ✂️

I’m going to try out periodically giving my informal thoughts on movies I’ve been watching/rewatching lately. Let me know what you think!

This weekend, I watched Jordan Peele’s Us for the third time. Partly because my sister hadn’t watched it yet and partly because I feel I should like this movie more than I did. Well, this watch was a mixed bag.

What it’s about: A family (Lupita Nyong’o, Winston Duke, Shahadi Wright Joseph, Evan Alex) vacationing at their beach home is targeting and terrorized by their red jumpsuit wearing, golden scissor carrying doppelgängers. Watch yourself.

Some thoughts:

The first half is brilliant. It’s a perfectly paced slow burn home invasion thriller with tons of Hitchcockian tension.
On the other hand, the second half was a struggle for me. It almost feels Peele knew where he wanted the story to go, but wasn’t sure how to get there.
It’s infinitely scarier than Get Out, but that means its moments of levity stand out a bit more — and not in a good way.
The social commentary is there and lands, especially around class. The plot just doesn’t support it as much as it did in Get Out.
Two words: Lupita. Freaking. Nyong’o. Wait, that’s three. Her first scene as her doppelganger is absolutely *terrifying* and cements her performance as one of the best in a horror movie… well, ever. For both characters she plays, every move, vocal inflection, and facial expression feel so purposeful.

Worth the rewatch? Yes and no. The first hour or so is excellent enough to warrant more than one viewing. Where it leads is a bit more disappointing.

Details: 🎬 Jordan Peele // ⏳ 116 minutes // 🗓 2019 // 📺 Trailer
Fun fact: Peele made the cast watch ten horror movies before filming: The Birds (1963), The Shining (1980), Dead Again (1991), Funny Games (1997), The Sixth Sense (1999), A Tale of Two Sisters (2003), Martyrs (2008), Let the Right One In (2008), The Babadook (2014), and It Follows (2014).
Available on: Prime Video | iTunes | YouTube