The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: Two Very Different Sports Movies and 'M3GAN 2.0'

On the podcast, we review F1 and M3GAN 2.0. (We disagree about one of them.) Then, in our Reboot segment, we look back at 1978's Heaven Can Wait. You can check out the episode down below. (And next episode, Will and I will reveal our best films from the first half of this year.)

'Jurassic World Rebirth' Review

The latest Jurassic picture has Scarlett Johansson and Mahershala Ali in it. And it's still bad bad bad. My review of Rebirth is up at Screen International. 

'Press Play With Madeleine Brand': Raving About 'Sorry, Baby' and 'Familiar Touch'

Christy Lemire and I were on KCRW this week to talk about new movies. We reviewed F1 and M3GAN 2.0, but the more interesting conversations regard the Sundance hit Sorry, Baby and the touching drama Familiar Touch. You can hear our segment down below.

'Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore' Review

 

Celebrity documentaries can be fawning puff pieces. But that's not the case with the affectionate, probing Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore, which is candid about her struggles with addiction and sexual abuse. Of course, the film also talks about her deafness, and how she became a trailblazer for a community that still struggles for visibility. My review is up at the Los Angeles Times.

HAIM - "Relationships"

This song has been out for months, but it sounds so much better now that it's summer.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: '28 Years Later' and 'The Life of Chuck'

Because we unexpectedly weren't able to do an episode last week, this episode is super-sized, featuring reviews of four new movies. Going into the show, I wondered how many of the films we'd disagree on, and it turns out we saw two of them very differently. You can check out our thoughts on 28 Years Later, Materialists, Elio and The Life of Chuck down below.

What Is Danny Boyle's Best Film?

For the fine folks at Vulture, Will and I put together our ranking of all of Danny Boyle's films, including 28 Years Later. You can check them out here. 

'Caught by the Tides' Review

I'm not claiming it's any kind of blockbuster, but the fact that Jia Zhangke’s Caught by the Tides is still playing in and around Los Angeles more than a month after it opened is damn heartening. For the Los Angeles Times, I extol its virtues, and explain why it's actually a decent primer for someone just getting into Jia. Hope you enjoy. 

The Clash - "I'm So Bored With the U.S.A."

I hadn't heard this in a while. Brought a smile to my face.

My Interview With Rowan Haber and Julia Sweeney for 'We Are Pat'

Perhaps you remember "It's Pat," a series of popular Saturday Night Live sketches Julia Sweeney did back in the early 1990s, in which she played the androgynous, awkward Pat, who constantly provoked confusion: Was Pat a he or a she?  

We Are Pat is a new documentary that examines the character's legacy, and how Pat has impacted the LGBTQ+ community. For Cracked, I had a long conversation with We Are Pat director Rowan Haber (as well as Sweeney) as we discussed "problematic" comedy, trans humor, and Sweeney's SNL memories. We got into a lot of topics: Hope you enjoy.

'The Damned' Review

Roberto Minervini's The Other Side remains one of the great pre-MAGA artifacts of our time. But with The Damned, the nonfiction filmmaker tries his hand at narrative. Sorta. I reviewed this muted, mysterious antiwar movie for the Los Angeles Times. 

My Interview With Jonathan Gould, Author of 'Burning Down the House'

Burning Down the House: Talking Heads and the New York Scene That Transformed Rock is an exhaustive biography of the seminal band and the city that shaped them. For Paste, I talked to author Jonathan Gould (himself a musician) to discuss many things: David Byrne's autism, Stop Making Sense's greatness, and why the band is never ever getting back together. You can read my Q&A here.