Tuesday, May 31, 2022

Seen in April 


The Green Knight. Image via The Movie DB.

When my only post in May is what I saw a month ago, it's a pretty clear indicator that I've been busy. If you're busy and don't know what to watch maybe this list of what I saw will help you.

CODA
Apple TV+

This award winning film is an English-language remake of a Belgian film. The language aspect of this movie is an important one. CODA stands for Child Of Deaf Adults and this is story of teenager Ruby, who is the only hearing member of her family. Her brother and father need Ruby to act as their translator between themselves and their fishing business, often negotiating prices on the pier for their catch. Yet, at school she sees her crush join the choir and decides to join up too. This is the beginning of her "journey of self-discovery" as they say. As Ruby considers her future studying music, she also has to weigh her responsibilities to her family. It's a tale as old as time but with the added complexity of Ruby's brother fighting (sometimes literally) to prove he can compete in business as a deaf man or her mother's admission of her fear of losing her daughter to the hearing world.



Beth Harmon considers her next move. Image via The Movie DB.

The Queen's Gambit
Netflix

I'm late to this popular series that follows the success and struggles of chess prodigy Beth Harmon, played by Anya Taylor-Joy. The limited series is everything fans have said. We see a child left at an orphanage after her mother's (presumed) suicide, watch her become enthralled with a janitor playing chess, see her learn that game and go on to successes and failings mostly of her own making. Her intelligence and drive to succeed are even more intriguing being set in the 1960s when little was expected of women other than finding a husband and settling down.



Dev Patel as Sir Gawain. Image via The Movie DB.

The Green Knight
Amazon Prime

A retelling of a 15th century Arthurian tale of Sir Gawain, played by Dev Patel. Gawain is a young knight without a story of his own and so commits to a quest that may have been created by his own mother (who may have been a witch). The quest takes him on an adventure that leads him through an abandoned battlefield, and deep into an unknown forest to find the chapel of the Green Knight. On the way he's protected by an enchanted belt, tempted by beauty and robbed. Unlike a contemporary super-hero movie, The Green Knight is much more evocative of the 1980's film, Excalibur, featuring wonder, magic, and beautiful cinematography that highlights the dark, lush, green dampness of medieval England.

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