Happy Saturday From No. 500

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Happy Saturday of this long holiday weekend. Hope you’ve emerged successfully from your tryptophan haze. Have you lost track of time the way I have? The only reason I know it’s Saturday is because it says so right there at the top of my newsletter. Friday felt like Thursday. Every day has felt like Tuesday for Nic because he’s been home from school all week. And tomorrow it will be December. Truly mind-boggling.

Nevertheless, the movies — and movie reviews — go on, with no sign of slowing. I know this because we just hit recorded the 500th episode of our Breakfast All Day Podcast this past week. Honestly, I didn’t have this milestone in mind when we sat down at my dining room table in August 2018 and hit record for the first time. Our old YouTube channel, What the Flick?!, had just been canceled the previous Monday after eight-plus years. Alonso, Matt, Ben and I knew we enjoyed working together and wanted to keep it going in some form. So that’s what we did on that Thursday with the shiny, new equipment Chris had gotten for me in case, you know, I might want to start a podcast someday.

Over six years later, we’ve expanded into our own YouTube channel as well as a Patreon, and it’s been so gratifying to see so many folks stick around as we’ve grown. So if you’ve been with us since the beginning, or you’ve just found us recently, we’re so grateful that you’ve chosen to share some of your time with us. We hope we’ve steered you in the right direction, or at least inspired you to think about movies a little differently. Let’s keep it going!

As for this week’s movies on the podcast and our YouTube channel, it’s a mixture of holiday-friendly crowd-pleasers and serious arthouse films with awards aspirations:

• MARIA. Chilean director Pablo Larraín once again explores the interior life of an iconic cultural figure following “Jackie” and “Spencer,” Angelina Jolie is ravishing here as the legendary opera singer Maria Callas. It’ll be streaming on Netflix starting Dec. 11, but you should see it in a theater if it’s playing near you now for Ed Lachman’s lush and varied cinematography, the thunderous music and the exquisite costume design. I jokingly said in our review that a lot of this movie is just Angelina Jolie wearing clothes, but oh what clothes!

• QUEER. A second Luca Guadagnino movie in 2024? How lucky did we get? “Challengers” was supposed to come out last year but was delayed because of the strikes, so now we get a two-fer from one of the most daring and sensuous filmmakers working today. Daniel Craig is tremendous in this William S. Burroughs adaptation, starring as a gay man looking for love, freedom and his next drug hit in 1950s Mexico City. Its languid pacing won’t be for everyone, but its mood will linger with you afterward. In theaters.

• MOANA 2. Why they didn’t call this “Mo’Ana,” I’ll never understand. But the sequel to the 2016 Disney animation hit is just as gorgeous and colorful as the original. Auli’i Cravalho and Dwayne Johnson are back for more high-seas adventures, but the songs aren’t nearly as good as they were in the original without Lin-Manuel Miranda behind them. In theaters.

• NUTCRACKERS. David Gordon Green returns to his indie filmmaking roots with this family-friendly Christmas comedy after working in the horror franchise world the past several years. The results are mixed, though. Ben Stiller stars as a big-city executive who travels to small-town Ohio to care for his orphaned nephews, who are played by four real-life brothers. Madcap hilarity and life lessons ensue. Streaming on Hulu.

• A COMPLETE UNKNOWN REACTION. OK so real quick, I saw “A Complete Unknown” last night, the Bob Dylan biopic starring Timothée Chalamet. Reviews are embargoed until Dec. 10, but “social reactions are encouraged,” as they say, so I shared a few thoughts right out of the theater. My dear friend Brian Aubert — who loves movies and happens to also be the lead singer and guitarist for Silversun Pickups — came with me, and I was eager to hear what he thought about how Timmy did singing and playing the guitar. Full review coming in a couple of weeks, and the movie comes out on Christmas Day.

Over at our Patreon, we honored the late Teri Garr with our Off the Menu review of “After Hours.” Neither of us had seen Martin Scorsese’s 1985 dark comedy in several years, so it was a treat to revisit it with an eye to Garr’s performance. She plays a cocktail waitress named Julie, one of the many women who serve as obstacles to Griffin Dunne’s character throughout his endless night in Manhattan’s SoHo neighborhood. Julie hates her job but she loves The Monkees, and when Dunne’s Paul Hackett shows her the slightest kindness, you can feel her letting out a sigh of relief. Garr finds that signature sweet spot here, with a combination of daffy comedy and heartbreaking vulnerability. “After Hours” is available for rental in lots of places if you’re up all night, too, and looking for entertainment.

Last weekend, I had the pleasure of moderating a Q&A after a screening of “The Last Showgirl,” Gia Coppola’s indie drama about a veteran Las Vegas dancer fighting to stay relevant in a changing industry. Pamela Anderson gives a raw and open performance as Shelly, who’s been performing in Le Razzle Dazzle revue for so long that she now serves as a mother figure to the younger dancers. But when the old-fashioned show gets canceled to make way for something new and edgy, Shelly struggles to find her purpose. Anderson was flying back from London at the time and couldn’t make it that night, but I loved getting the chance to chat with screenwriter Kate Gersten and co-stars Brenda Song and Kiernan Shipka. They talked about the tone Anderson established on set and what it was like to maneuver through tight stairwells and narrow hallways in those massive headdresses and sparkly costumes. “The Last Showgirl” has a one-week awards qualifying run starting Dec. 13 and will open nationwide on Jan. 10.

Finally, a few Black Friday deals to share with you from the brands we’re proud to work with:

• BEEHIIV. If you’re thinking of starting your own newsletter, or just fine-tuning the one you already have, I heartily recommend beehiiv. It’s been super easy and fun to navigate, and hopefully you’re finding it easy and fun to consume. From now until Monday Dec. 2nd at 11:59PM EST, take 20% off all annual plans with code BFCM24.

• COFFEE BROS. The Holiday Blend is here, but it won’t be here forever, so jump on it while you can. Take 25% off orders of $100 and up, 20% off orders up to $100, and 15% off orders up to $50. You don’t need a code — the discount applies automatically at checkout. Stock up on gift boxes for the coffee lovers in your life!

• LODGE CAST IRON. I am not exaggerating when I say we use our Lodge Cast Iron skillets every single day, whether it’s for scrambles or stir-frying or sautéing vegetables. From now through Dec. 2, they have a huge sale going on: Use code OHWHATFUN24 and save up to $75 with discounts sitewide: $25 off $100, $50 off $175, and $75 off $250.

(Some links are affiliate links, which means if you purchase something, we may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Thank you so much for being here, this weekend and every weekend. I started my Saturday Matinee newsletter exactly a year ago in hopes of achieving a more meaningful connection with viewers and readers, as well as sharing what I do with neighbors and friends, and it’s been such a pleasure to see it grow. If you’ve found value here, I’d be honored if you’d pass this along. Have a great week, and I’ll see you back here next Saturday.

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