Didn't have any interest in watching this, at least not until later in the year when I'll hopefully have more expendable free time, but two of my favorite podcasts released episodes centered around it this week—The Flop House & How Did This Get Made (the latter featuring the guys from Blank Check no less!)—so I figured it'd be best to go in with some frame of reference.

It could be that it greatly benefits from comparison to the atrocious theatrical cut,…

I could easily begin my assessment of The World to Come with the same thought I wrote in my review for Fastvold's previous film, The Sleepwalker: "Familiar premise and character types, but greatly elevated by the acting and the cold, clean formalism..." Though the cast here is even stronger, I'm even more impressed with Fastvold's direction. The film avoids obvious comparisons to recent period lesbian dramas by focusing on the mundanity of life in the 1800s, especially for women. Leaning…

Starts off strong, effectively creating tension through fantastic cinematography and notably sharp editing/pacing, but once the table has been properly set, it's a gradual nosedive to the perplexing finale. The acting is undeniably committed and the child actors are pitch-perfect, but the exaggerated, go-for-broke lead performances teeter into overkill and would have been more effective if reigned in a bit. Also, the frequent attempts at humor, though sometimes successful, completely undercut the unnerving tone. It felt like Peele wasn't confident…

It’s impossible to go into a film without preconceptions. You can avoid trailers and reviews, mute words on twitter, and try to go in with an open mind, but as the lights dim, you’ve got a general idea of what you’re about to watch and some level of hope or expectation of how you’ll feel about it. Joker even more so, since it’s based on a massively popular character that’s already had numerous depictions in the past decade alone. Beyond…