The Month in Theaters October 2023
By: ViajeroExtraviado
This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication
I did it, folks. I’m into triple digits!! 101 movies in theaters in total with the month of October added. This month, I saw nine movies in theaters with twenty-two movies otherwise, including one repeat, for a total of thirty reviews. Let’s jump right in, shall we?
The Exorcist: Believer
This one was just lazy. With unsatisfying twists, a really bad rug pull at one-point, horrible writing, and a story that got worse the longer it went on. The first third of the movie is essentially a missing children storyline. By far the most interesting part of the film. The second third is the two girls slowly becoming more and more possessed. And then the final third is the exorcism. Bringing back a legacy character added nothing to the movie. Trying to Halloween (2018) every legacy horror franchise will not work. Not with such terrible writing. F. But, this still made money, as Jason Blum films virtually always turn a profit, but it probably shouldn’t have. There is already a filmed sequel for this film, so we have more of this dreck to look forward to.
Strange Ways of Life
This was a short film, about a half an hour, that was a double feature at my local indie theater with the film that followed. Both directed by the same guy. Pedro Pascal and Ethan Hawke star in what is essentially a comedic version of Brokeback Mountain that just sort of ends. This easily could have been a full movie. A few more plotlines, a little more background, perhaps a handful of new characters, and Bob’s your uncle. B. It needed more oomph. The ending is just so unsatisfying.
The Human Voice
The second of two short films. Virtually the entire thing is on Tilda Swinton’s shoulders. It is about a scorned lover dealing with the aftermath of her significant other leaving her out of nowhere. B. Her character is not mentally well, demonstrated during the meat of the piece, a long phone conversation where we only hear her side. The ending is better than the previous entry, but this definitely didn’t have enough meat for feature length.
Freelance
The first of two $5 Regal Monday Mystery Movies. This is an action comedy starring John Cena and that woman from Community and Mad Men. B+. A dude is hired to be the bodyguard for a journalist interviewing a dictator when, just by happenstance, a coup breaks out shortly after they land in the country. It’s fun for what it is. It won’t be making my end of the year list, but there was little to offend me. The shooting action is exciting while it’s there. Christian Slater has a bit part that I assumed would involve a certain thing but did not.
Trigger: The Ripple Effect of Gun Violence
This documentary about gun violence, with a spotlight on Philadelphia, has one core problem. It basically doesn’t address the main reason for inner city gun violence: The gangs. They even list off some things that could make the problem less severe; virtually all of them are things that are designed to give teenage boys something to do that isn’t being in a gang or dealing drugs. Things like after school programs and more extracurricular activities and social gatherings. The heart-wrenching stories are impactful, but there is so little mentioned about the majority cause of the problem. I sincerely do not understand why they didn’t include it. The documentary is only about an hour long, so they definitely had time to add a discussion of the gangs. I will give them this, though: Banning guns is barely mentioned. Marc Lamont Hill is in this for some reason. He really hurts the movie. Such a dishonest hack. C.
Friday the 13th
I went to a free outdoor screening of the movie. While I have technically talked about this before, I will expound on my initial thoughts since I technically saw it in theaters. I gave it an A+ then, it gets an A+ now. Still amazing that Kevin Bacon did this after Animal House and had a very successful acting career. John Hughes certainly helped. One of the great slasher villain reveals, something the fifth entry in this series attempted but greatly failed at. That’s still my least favorite in the franchise, although the ninth entry is not that far behind. I wish more of the kills were on screen, but I understand the need to hide the killer was why that happened. The Kevin Bacon kill is one of the best in the history of horror filmmaking.
Killers of the Flower Moon
Marty has done it again. Movie of the month. A+. I didn’t feel the length (my bladder did not burst,) but it is very long. Over three and a half hours long. Based on a true story as well. A very messed up corner of American history. The acting from all involved is stupendous. Lily Gladstone is almost surely in the running for a Best Actress Oscar. DeNiro and Leo might get nominated, but I think Oppenheimer is taking both of the male acting categories. The movie is likely to lose money, but I doubt Apple cares. Losing tens of millions in order to win a couple Oscars is worth it to them.
It’s a Wonderful Knife
The second $5 Regal Monday Mystery Movie. This is a Christmas-themed horror movie, which I managed to see before Halloween. And before Thanksgiving, which I am very excited for. This movie, though? B. It very much rushes the ending, as if the film ran out its budget. The last few minutes of resolution try to tie up every loose end very quickly in ways that don’t quite feel deserved in some cases. There is also a romantic turn that I do not feel was deserved. Unlike the Christmas movie that inspired the title, there is no angel character. That is an interesting angle they decided not to go with. For some reason…
Five Nights at Freddy’s
A middle of the road PG-13 horror movie, again produced by Jason Blum. It did really well at the box office for its opening weekend, especially considering it was same day streaming on Peacock. Based on the Five Nights at Freddy’s video game media franchise, which I have talked about before. B. Lot of B ratings this month… There are a ton of Easter eggs for fans of the franchise littered throughout. Matthew Lillard is fun for the short screentime he’s given. Since this has already turned a profit, a sequel is inevitable. We’ll see what form that takes.
EVERYTHING ELSE
A lot of television. Virtually all of it Thursday and Friday. The Continental: From the World of John Wick finished. I would like more stories in this era of the John Wick universe. The action was really solid. Gen V has one episode left as of this writing. It is still good. The twists and turns have been interesting. I watched the first episode of The Fall of the House of Usher but did not return to it. I got into the Chucky TV series, which just so happened to start its third season in October. I managed to get fully caught up to the mid-season finale. The lore is, at times, stupid but everything in the previous movies is canon. No matter how dumb, especially Seed of Chucky. Loki returned and is adding some additional flavor. I got into the new NBC show The Irrational, which is next day streaming on Peacock. It’s a crime drama with a behavioral sciences professor as the main character. He consults with the FBI and the police to solve crimes. It stars the adopted dad from The Flash show on The CW. It is intriguing enough to keep watching. Bosch: Legacy returned. It’s really damn awesome. I also watched the entire six-episode Apple miniseries Black Bird, which was fantastic. Paul Walter Hauser was especially good. The repeat film was Five Nights at Freddy’s, as my fiancée wanted to watch it after I saw it.
This Apple streaming movie feels a lot like Sing Street, even including Jack Reynor and being set in Ireland while involving music. Flora and Son is a heartwarming tale about a single mother attempting to bond with her teenage son by learning to play the guitar. She is aided in this journey by a music teacher played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt, via Zoom classes, essentially. The original songs are good. The struggle throughout the story feels real. A- to A.
I did not enjoy this movie very much. The Rocky Horror Picture Show should have been better than this, given its reputation. Most of the songs aren’t even that catchy. And the plot is just bonkers, but not in a good way. Tim Curry does an excellent job with what he’s given but most of the rest of the cast didn’t really come to play. Meat Loaf even has a cameo out of nowhere. I feel like I have to give it an F. I just really didn’t enjoy myself.
My fiancée had never seen The Cable Guy. Wherein Jim Carrey plays a dude who really wants to be Matthew Broderick’s friend. And has the social skills of a rabid weasel. It’s very entertaining, and Jim Carrey plays creepy weird a little too well. A-.
The Exorcist III is my favorite film of this franchise that I’ve seen. I’ve seen four of them. B. George C. Scott is wonderful, but the rest of the cast, outside of the voice of Chucky, didn’t really impress me much. One especially creepy scene that may only last about five seconds. Very effective.
In order to watch the show, I finally watched the last Chucky movie. Cult of Chucky expands the lore in a way that makes the TV series work. Chucky discovers how to split his soul between multiple Chucky dolls. This is a B+ to A-.
The third Blumhouse movie this month (although I saw this second.) This time on Amazon Prime. Totally Killer is basically Back to the Future as a horror movie. The mystery surrounding the killer is a little unsatisfying, although I did guess who it was before the reveal. The daughter from Mad Men is the main character. The issue with the movie is the timeline is funky. Based on the age of the character and the age of her parents where she is sent to, her parents didn’t have her (and she’s the only child) until their mid to late thirties. It is revealed they started dating shortly after college. Why did they wait so long? If they wanted to set the movie in the ‘80s, they could have just set the initial story in like 2007 or so (since the main character’s smart phone plays a key part of the plot.) It is very fun, though. A-.
One of the best female-centric comedies of all time, Mean Girls is an easy A+. The musical based on this movie is being made into a movie releasing this coming January. It is apparent Tina Fey is reprising her role in the film. Which is fair; she wrote the movie.
A very weird movie here. El Conde is a black and white Netflix somewhat horror movie. Speculating a “what if” scenario wherein the Chilean dictator Pinochet is a 250 or so year old vampire who faked his death. The twist of who his mother is just so strange. This is B- to B. It drags on for way too long in the middle. And the resolution isn’t the best. They kind of rush it there.
The second best 2023 movie I saw this month is The Burial, another Amazon Prime film. This one stars Jamie Foxx, Tommy Lee Jones, and Bill Camp. It is a legal comedy based on a true story. I don’t want to spoil any of the plot, but I had such a grin on my face watching this. A+.
Freaky Friday, another Lindsey Lohan film with the same director as Mean Girls, is fun. I remember seeing this movie for the first time while traveling with family. A rainy day meant no outdoor activities, so we saw a movie. A-. Jamie Lee Curtis is fantastic, as she usually is.
Another 2023 movie, Reptile is a Netflix thriller starring Justin Timberlake and Benicio Del Toro. It wasn’t as good as I expected it to be. B-. The mystery at the heart of the story is not as good as I thought it would be.
A 2022 legacy sequel (a year filled with them) that was good fun. Confess, Fletch stars Jon Hamm as Fletch. This is an A-. I still need to see the second film in the series, but I enjoyed this one.
I finally watched The Thing from Another World, which has a much different alien than The Thing. It’s like ten-foot-tall plant man. No copying people or anything. Even though that was in the story this movie was adapted from. And I understand that to a degree. The special effects technology of the era would not have quite allowed that. C. I was mostly just bored by the film.
The Life of David Gale attempts to be an anti-death penalty movie with a ridiculous roundabout way to accomplish that. Just very stupid. The main character is a reporter who turns out to be completely inconsequential to the plot. Her presence in it does not change the plot of the film at all. C- to C. Only passing because the acting in the film was excellent.
The Champ was just boring. It ends up going exactly where you think it will. The main character, played by Jon Voight, is a moron supreme, just like in Midnight Cowboy. But he has a son in this one. He’s an alcoholic gambling addict and retired professional boxer who now works at a horse racetrack. I was bored throughout. F.
This movie was awesome. The Town is an easy A+. A good cast of actors, with Ben Affleck playing the lead and directing. Jon Hamm and Jeremy Renner also shine. It follows bank robbers in Boston. And is a good crime thriller.
A movie I have seen before, Nocturnal Animals is an excellent thriller. Jake Gyllenhaal was wonderful, although Kick-Ass and Michael Shannon are also amazing. A+. Just avoid the opening credits. It’s so eye bleach worthy.
I finally saw Collateral. Tom Cruise and Jamie Foxx are the leads in this action thriller. Very well-done film. Jason Statham has a very small cameo at the beginning. Thought he would return later and didn’t. A to A+.
I completed Quentin Tarantino’s filmography by seeing Death Proof. Very abrupt ending. And doesn’t really feel it has enough plot for its runtime. The car chases are fun, though. B to B+.
Unfaithful is a strange movie. The lead is a horrible person who cheats on her husband with a random stranger for no apparent reason. Things go mammaries skyward about halfway through the movie, and the rest of the film devolves from there. I would have preferred they not do what they did, but whatever. C.
Rounding out the month, I watched the newest South Park Paramount+ special. South Park: Joining the Panderverse manages to make fun of wokeness in Hollywood, Kathleen Kennedy, and lazy multiverse plots. This is an A- to A.
And that’s everything. Hopefully, in these last two months, I can break my overall movie theater record of 120. Just need to see an average of ten movies a month in November and December. Shouldn’t be too hard. By the first Monday of the month, I will be at four movies in theaters. And a lot is coming out around Thanksgiving.
