American Fiction
found myself thinking a lot about both Bamboozled and The Gang Tries Desperately To Win An Award, as I think this brings the two together in a way that I liked a bit less than either but still did quite like overall. the AI-generated blue-haired SJW scene made me nervous but thankfully it goes to more interesting places pretty much immediately, and even in the case of that character, having all the true stock characters (Aging Right-Wing Slob Who Yells About Antifa At Work, Well-Meaning But Out-Of-Touch Young Professional Who Really Wants You To Know That She Purchased An <PERSON> Book In 2020, et al.) white did feel like an intentional choice, given the textual references to coddling moviegoing sensibilities, so really if I had any issue with the movie it was the small handful of moments where the camera lingered for a bit too long on a Meaningful Motif to make sure you Really Got It. debut features often doing this
but <PERSON> really is remarkable in this, synthesizing the themes of the movie without telegraphing them quite so much as some of the other storylines, and I hope against hope that RDJ suffers every snub imaginable to give <PERSON> the recognition he deserves. 378
certainly one of my favorite characters I’ve met at the movies lately. I understand the irony in contributing to the oscar buzz, since cliff initially seems designed in a lab to win Best Supporting Actor (oscar-friendly character tropes aside, your introduction to the character is literally watching him very dramatically holding back tears) but that’s really the angle that makes the movie feel most vital, I think. makes you (the viewer, the academy voter, etc.) feel implicated! and it worked for me! The Gang Tries Desperately To Win An Award IS a good episode!
all that said: pretty funny flick too! the guffaw that the <PERSON> line got out of me is probably a lock for my biggest Please Notice Me Giving This Reference The Wise Laugh Of Understanding Moment of 2024 378