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Happy Death Day (2017)
What if Dazed and Confused had a mediocre script? And also a game cast and a few really charming moments? And the most aggressively late-90s alt-rock soundtrack in every nook and cranny? Lots of cheese and peak Jennifer Love-Hewitt eye candy? Alright, I’m 100% in.
Some delightful animation and segments… but why did it have to be so shouty and incoherent?
Invented a new genre, and also perfected it. A brilliant concept and exploration of humanity’s boundaries. Groundhog Day is a conceptual and screenwriting masterpiece that entertains and inspires (even if I’m not crazy about Andie MacDowell or some of the creepy romcom undercurrents)
An super-indie, ensemble, intertwining college romance in 3 (or more) parts. Not much of the way in payoff, but it has a strong script, and the cast chemistry works, plus there’s a bittersweet magnetism to the affair.
A nearly-good, super-lofi, Linklater-ish, hangout movie. Script is meh but cast is fine, and it’s genuinely nice to look at (especially the pizza-making montage). Wanted more from the romance and the ending.
I would be lying if I said there was no appeal in adora-creepy beaver puppets chasing around trashy college kids and turning them into human-beaver-zombie hybrids, and a script built around corny one-liners.
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Palm Springs (2020)
Delectable when it’s mean in the first half (especially Sarah Michelle Gellar), but loses steam with inert twists and stabs at pathos, plus the tonally bizarre finale
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A Bucket of Blood (1959)
Pretty thoughtful B-movie with a compelling premise and solid lead performance. Honestly I might be underselling it.