The Distant Future is Here
But I am still catching up on 2024
Hello. Somehow it is the year 2025, which is the year that I have always thought of as The Distant Future. Now we’re living it. As I write this, fires blaze in L.A., home to so many filmmakers, writers, and actors. My heart goes out to my California-based readers. I hope you are safe and that these devastating fires soon come to an end.
I spent my break catching up on 2024 movies. Some of my favorites are not yet available for streaming, so I will refrain from recommending them until you can see them at home. I’m working on a bonus post about my favorite books of the year, which I’ll share later this month. Thanks, as always, for reading and supporting this newsletter.
One of the Best Movies of the Year
Green Border (2024)
Directed by Agnieszka Holland
Written by Maciej Pisuk, Gabriela Lazarkiewicz, and Agnieszka Holland
2 hours 32 minutes; Streaming on Kino, VOD $3.99
I don’t know if I’m going to end up putting together a “best of 2024 list”—I have until the Oscars, right?—but if I did, this refugee drama would be at the top of my list. Polish filmmaker Agnieszka Holland, now in her seventies, brings decades of directorial experience to this project and it shows. The “green border” refers to the swampy, forested exclusion zone between Belarus and Poland where refugees, typically from the Middle East and Africa, get stuck as they try to enter Europe. Holland comes at the crisis from many angles, focusing on a refugee family, a border guard and his family, and a woman who becomes involved in an activist group that attempts to provide legal aid to refugees in crisis. It’s a fictionalized story that is heavily reported and researched, with a realistic look at the tragic results of cruel immigration policies and political propaganda. I came to this movie worried it was going to be a heavy watch—and it was—but it’s also action-packed and allows for moments of levity, love, and human decency. The two-and-a-half-hour running time flew by. IMDB* REVIEW * TRAILER
R.I.P. Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter: Rock n’ Roll President (2020)
Directed by Mary Wharton
Written by Bill Flanagan
1 hour 35 minutes; Streaming on Max
I watched this with my 12-year-old son a few days after President Carter passed away. It was eye opening for both of us—for my son, who had only a vague sense of who Carter was, and for me, who knew Carter more as a post-presidential figure. (I was born during the Carter administration.) The documentary focuses on Carter’s love of music, especially rock and roll, and how he used music in his campaign to convey a message of peace, love, and tolerance. It also shows how, during his presidency, he used the “soft power” of music to aid him in diplomacy, introducing foreign leaders to American music and treating them to concerts with jazz legends. I was impressed and moved by Carter’s knowledge of music and his devotion to musicians. He truly saw the value of artistic expression, an attitude that is increasingly rare in American culture. IMDB * REVIEW * TRAILER
Sensitive Indie Drama
Ghost Light (2024)
Directed by Kelly O’Sullivan and Alex Thompson
Written by Kelly O’Sullivan
1 hour 55 minutes; Streaming AMC+/VOD $3.99
I have mixed feelings about this one, but it has stayed with me, and I generally root for indie dramas. I want more of them in the world. This one tells the story of a grieving construction worker who turns to a community theater to channel his complex emotions. The community theater, a rag-tag bunch of misfit adults, is struggling to put on a performance of Romeo and Juliet. They barely have enough people to fill out the cast, so they are eager to take on anyone, even a gruff guy who has just been put on leave for anger management issues. I almost gave up on this movie at first; the beginning is creaky, and I didn’t like that much of the suspense in the first half is created by withholding information about the past. But there is a lot of good stuff in here: the depiction of therapy is excellent, with brief scenes that are well-placed in the narrative. Same goes for the depiction of the legal system. And I loved the community theater, which I think truly is a healing space for a lot of people. In general, the portrayal of family dynamics and the emotional journey of each character seemed honest. By the end of the movie, I was totally invested. IMDB * REVIEW * TRAILER
Must-See Documentary
Sugarcane (2024)
Directed by Julian NoiseCat and Emily Kassie
107 minutes; Streaming on Hulu/Disney+
This is an incredibly powerful documentary about child abuse in Canada’s residential schools for Indian children, told by the men and women who survived it. The schools were sponsored by the Canadian government and run by the Roman Catholic Church, separating indigenous children from their families and their native language. For decades, students reported sexual abuse and unexplained deaths, but their complaints were ignored. Finally, in 2021 and 2022, new forensic techniques revealed unmarked graves around the school and the truth was finally acknowledged. Sugarcane focuses on the stories of some of the survivors of St. Joseph’s Mission in British Columbia, including co-director Julian NoiseCat’s father. The psychic pain that both father and son carry because of the abuse is apparent, as is their immense strength in facing it. This isn’t an easy viewing experience, but it’s a very personal and inviting documentary that gives its subjects—and its viewers—space to grieve, suggesting that this is a weight we all need to carry together. IMDB * REVIEW * TRAILER
Short Attention Span Cinema
Op-Doc: How Becoming an Influencer Became a New American Dream
Directed by Faye Tkakas
13 minutes; Streaming on New York Times
I’m not sure what the label “op-doc” means. To me it suggests talking heads spouting opinions but that’s not what you get in this short film about two preteen sisters who work as influencers, touting products online. Director Faye Tkasas is mostly curious about this strange sales culture that is apparently the new American dream, with one-third of teenage girls saying they aspire to influencing as a career. I found this video chilling as the sisters are clearly molding themselves to fit an advertiser’s ideal, but the girls’ parents see it as something that builds confidence. They also seem to enjoy helping their daughters to create advertisements; it’s a collaborative project that brings in a lot of free stuff. The girls are based in rural Alabama and Tkasas’ camera captures the gorgeous landscape that is often a backdrop for their promotional activities, ignored in favor of forgettable make-up products. The juxtaposition feels deliberate. * NYTIMES GIFT LINK*
❤️ Link Love ❤️
I haven’t seen Babygirl yet, but I enjoyed this review/roundup of Nicole Kidman’s recent performances
A great profile of director Marielle Heller, director of Nightbitch (which I also haven’t seen yet!)
Dirty Dancing has been added to The National Film Registry.
A sublime conversation between Wesley Morrison and Sasha Weiss about Joni Mitchell’s recent performances.
Over at the Slate movie club, Bilge Ebiri makes the case for Green Border as the one 2024 movie that everyone should see.
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