Ellie and Sandie from Last Night in Soho – Fiction’s Fearless Females

By Kalie Zamierowski of Just Dread-full

Every year a group of bloggers and I write about fearless fictional women to celebrate International Women’s Day. Each of these bloggers will be featured on my blog this year. The blog-a-thon started with Michael of My Comic Relief and, after my post, will go on to feature Nancy and Kathleen of Graphic Novelty² and Jeff of The Imperial Talker. Here’s my contribution to the Blog-a-thon this year!

Edgar Wright’s Last Night in Soho opens in the warm home of a quaint British town, a home where main character Eloise basks in her vintage-inspired bedroom listening to music from the 60s. The opening scene is so reminiscent of life sixty years ago, in fact, that we may suspect that we are in 1961, not 2021, and because of Wright’s ability to establish a scene we may also feel like we’re temporarily inhabiting a much more idyllic time period than our own. Certainly, that is what Eloise/Ellie (Thomasin McKenzie) imagines, the main character who we meet in the film’s beginning. Ellie has just been accepted to fashion school, and we get the impression, based on her excitement, that a glittering life in Great Britain’s fashion hub looks just as perfect, just as idyllic, as the 1960s do in her eyes. But sometimes attractive surface appearances mask a more insidious lurking reality—a fact which may be true of Soho in general, and is definitely true of Soho in the 60s, a reality that Ellie will soon find out.

The Matrix: Resurrections – A Trailer and some Familiar Philosophical Feelings

Ok, so first, AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.  AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!  Second, so there’s a trailer for the new Matrix movie.  I’ll be honest, I got a little nostalgic and a whole helluva lot excited when I watched it.  After Jeff messaged me about it, I may’ve spent my entire lunch break watching it about fifteen times.  Who can say for sure?  But was my lunch break even real in the first place??  That seems like the bigger question we should focus on before we judge how I used the time.  ANYWAY, as I like to do when a trailer drops which a) I’m particularly excited about, b) generates some serious feels – good, bad, or indifferent – in me, or c) both, I figured I’d write about it.  Should I do the obligatory line about taking the red or blue pill as you decide if you want to read this?  I don’t know…it feels lazy.  It’s classic, yes, but also maybe too easy?  Hmm.  Ok, let’s skip the low hanging fruit and just dive in!

Well, I’ll Say It…Venom Was A Pleasant Surprise

I wasn’t planning on writing tonight.  But I saw Venom and, after being pretty open about how awkward I thought the movie would be in presenting a Spider-Man-less Venom, I felt I had to write something.  Why?  Because I was wrong.  I thought this film was going to be a rushed, convoluted mess and it wasn’t.  Now, it didn’t redefine the genre like Wonder Woman nor did it fully embrace the idea of the antihero in the way Deadpool did.  But it was an enjoyable night at the movies and with it currently sitting at a 29% freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes, I wanted to take a few moments to write a short, spoiler-free reflection on why Venom was better than I thought it’d be.

A Mouthful Of Wade Wilson: Lots To Say About Deadpool 2!

With the arrival of Ryan Reynolds second outing as the Merc with a Mouth in theatres this weekend, everyone obviously has Deadpool on the brain (and what a weird, wild, wonderful experience that is).  As I’m no exception, I figured it’s time to talk about Deadpool 2!  I mean, why not, right?  What really makes Deadpool 2 so exceptional is how it gives us everything we love about Wade Wilson while taking the story in a brand-new direction.  It also adds all sorts of new characters, characters who will surely have a lasting impact on Mr. Pool’s future.  While I’ll discuss character outlines and sketch out the plot in general below, NO MAJOR SPOILERS WILL FOLLOW.  Coolio?  Coolio.

Avengers: Infinity War – Expectations vs. Reality

I wasn’t planning on writing about Avengers: Infinity War for a while.  My post on Black Panther has only begun to form in my mind – there’s so much to explore; I wasn’t certain what I’d say.  However, there’s not as much in Avengers: Infinity War (or rather, there’s a lot of stuff in Avengers: Infinity War but not as much depth) as there is in Black Panther.  For whatever reason, an idea began to form after my first viewing.  Now, two showings in, I’m (surprisingly) ready to talk about it.  HOWEVER – AND THIS IS IMPORTANT – THIS PIECE WILL HAVE ALL SORTS OF SPOILERS SO PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE DO NOT READ THIS UNTIL YOU HAVE SEEN THE FILM YOURSELF.  TRUST ME, AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR DESERVES IT.  OKAY?  OKAY.  THANK YOU.  I HATE spoilers but I didn’t want to write a vague, superficial piece.  I think the film deserves more than that too.  So, when the idea came, I decided to run with it.  With that being said, let’s begin.

Best Picture 2018 – MY Nominees

In honor of Oscar weekend, a few days ago I posted a piece about the nine films nominated for Best Picture 2018.  I’ve seen them all this year (woo!) and offered my thoughts on each film, leading to my prediction of the winner as well as my favorite film and the one I want to win Best Picture.  Today I’m looking back at the movies I personally saw at the theatres last year – presented in the order I saw them (with multiple viewing dates when appropriate) – and offering up my Best Picture nominees.  If I was in charge of the Academy Awards, who would get the Best Picture trophy?  And how does my list match up to Oscar’s?  Well, let’s take a look and find out!

Best Picture 2018 – The Oscar Nominees

Well, this was a year I did it.  I managed to see all nine films nominated for “Best Picture” at this year’s Academy Awards!  I thought it might be fun, as it’s Oscar Week and all, to do a little post with my thoughts on each of the nine Best Picture nominees.  Below you’ll find a little paragraph about each film, written in the order I saw them, all leading up to the film I think should win the Oscar for Best Picture this year.  What’s my choice??  Let’s get to it!

The Last Jedi and Star Wars’ Movement from Mythology to Folk Tale

When I came out of my first showing of The Last Jedi, I was ready to say I liked it.  By the time I exited my third showing of The Last Jedi, I was ready to say I really liked it.  I was still struggling to figure out where to place this film in my larger emotional and intellectual experience of the Star Wars Saga but I was able to say, as a film, The Last Jedi was well done.  I was not ready for the heatedly divisive storm that followed.  As someone who needed a year and a half to be able to like The Force Awakens, I certainly appreciate the pain many feel over this film.  I’m just a bit surprised, given reactions to The Force Awakens, this film caused such an uproar.  Anyway, I’m finally ready to delve into my thoughts and feelings on The Last Jedi.  Be warned MASSIVE SPOILERS WILL FOLLOW.  So if you haven’t seen it, I suggest you come back and read this once you have.

The Hyperspace PodBlast Coast-to-Coast Last Jedi Extravaganza!

No spoilers here my friends, don’t worry – not yet.  This isn’t even about The Last Jedi‘s plot.  Rather, this is all about our hopes and dreams going into the film.  Hyperspace PodBlast’s Bryan and Shelby spent opening day talking to people in line at Maya Cinemas in Bakersfield, CA while Hannah and I interviewed people at Tinseltown in Erie, PA.  You heard that right folks – I’m a STAR WARS REPORTER now!!!  Yay for team work!!  It was incredible and we had sooooo much fun doing these interviews.  So we owe a big THANK YOU to Hyperspace PodBlast for having us be your Senior East Coast Correspondents and a big THANK YOU to everyone who chatted with us all day too.

Avengers: Infinity War – A Trailer, A Comic

Well, The Last Jedi FINALLY comes out today.  So let’s discuss what’s on everyone’s mind…the Avengers: Infinity War trailer!  Woo!  A few weeks ago we got our very first look at the massive MCU crossover that’s been (depending on how you look at it) ten years (going from Iron Man) or six years in the making (going from The Avengers).  The Avengers!  The Guardians of the Galaxy!  The nation of Wakanda!  Everyone’s ready to go to war with the mad titan Thanos as he seeks the transcendental power of God.  YIKES.  With the trailer in mind, I sat down to re-read Jim Starlin and Ron Lim’s original Infinity War series from 1992 the other night, wondering what light it could shed on the impending cinematic epic.