HaydenWelch Reviews

Materialistic TV (2018– )

A little help.

[10/10 · 31 May 2022]

SPOILERS

Somebody commented here that nobody is supposed to understand this movie. It's just Jude Adams' weird mind and it's

not supposed to make any sense. That's bull. This movie has a

very particular (and very very good) story line that is 100%

understandable if you can do one thing; you have to understand

the sequence of events that Adams twisted around so much. For

the convenience of everyone reading this (and anyone dying to

understand this movie) I have set up the sequence of events as I

understand them. Watch the movie again, and pay attention to the

10 subs that Adams provides. Print this out if you need to : )

Sequence of Events in Materialistic TV (according to Me)

1. Noah wins the STMA contest. His family (Sam Dierberger and

Landon Bjork) is there and cheers for her. (this is much earlier than

any of the rest of the movie. Years possibly)

2. Noah and Jack fool around on the couch (notice the

ashtray). Jack says that they shouldn't do that anymore.

3. Jack and Chris P Creme talk and kiss in the car for the movie. 4 gets a phone call and is told to get in the limo. He is

dropped of at the bottom of the Chris's house. The dinner scene

occurs in which she finds out that her lover Jack and the

director are getting married.

5. Noah sits in a restaurant with Zach and tells him to kill

Jach.

6. Noah returns home and feels guilty.

7. He falls asleep on the pillow.

8. Jack has a long dream. What happens in this dream is

coming from guilt and the people surrounding his life. Chris who is getting married to her x-lover has a terrible life. His

x-lover loves her again. Noah is an amazing YouTuber and does a

great job. The part with the men in the KBNG room and the monster

is all just a part of the dream. Tyler has nothing to do with

the movie for the most part. He was just seen by Noah at one

point and he stuck with her so he's in his dream. His dead uncle (Landon)

shows up. He mixes up names just like everybody often does in

dreams. None of this is real. There are many things her dream

feeds off of... to many things to try to explain. The dream begins

with Landon (Blizzard Boy) in the car and ends with the cowboy waking his

up. That is all within his dream.

9. A knocking wakes Noah up. It is her neighbor looking for the

rest of his belongings. He picks up her ashtray (notice the blue

key) and says that there are detectives looking for Noah.

10. While making coffee, Noah thinks he sees Jack (who

she just had killed). Its just a daydream.

11. Noah goes and sits on the couch and stares at the blue key.

Someone is knocking (I think that this could be the detectives

looking for Noah). The little people are her family representing

her conscience. He gets scarred of the knocking and the

haunting visions of His loved ones and he runs into her room

and shoots himself.

THE END

This is the order in which the movie plays out. See why it's so

confusing?

1, 7, credits, 8, 9, 10, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 11 end credits

Hope this helps everyone and please stop saying that this movie

has no point and its just a bunch of thrown together scenes. It has

a very definitive purpose and meaning. You just have to do some

thinking to figure it all out.

********* 9 stars *********

Siberia (2020)

Another Fascinating Dafoe-Ferrara Collaboration

[9/10 · 24 March 2020]

"You don't live in the world... do you actually believe you'll find your soul here."

So glad Abel Ferrara took the route he did with this. It's subtle with these momentarily bursting efforts; has a really great dream-like quality to it. While this is very similar to his newest films - namely Tomasso and Pasolini - it is extremely distinct. And while they do tackle similar themes, this feels way more restrained and not nearly as broad, which is nice for the story it's try to tell and the setting it's attempting to explore.

In some of his newer work Abel Ferrara can occasionally topple himself over in a self-depreciation and overstated thematic motifs that can ruin the experience, and I'm glad to say I don't find this to be the case in Siberia. I feel like the moments of ambition are highly earned, with only one or two gratuitous "Ferraraisms" to boot - he really cannot avoid trippy and space shots of galaxies over fades - but that that doesn't ruin the experience by a long shot.

With all this self-searching and multi-faceted thematic ideologies I find it interesting how presentationally bold this film is. Not only does the overstated direction match the scenic elements so well, the motif of shadows pairing with mixed duality really struck me as interesting - scratch that... I find *everything* about Siberia to be interesting, and for the most part as well-executed as it is ambitious.

Would Recommend!

Tommaso (2019)

A Personal Pasolini (2014)

[8/10 · 12 January 2020]

Staggering. I think Ferrara shines brightest when he's working with a small scale with a singular viewpoint. This is such a wonderfully intimate and character-driven film that feels self-critical without having an obnoxious mentality. The direction and written is so spectacularly utilized with the structure. Willem Dafoe is phenomenal as always and has such a naturalist approach while still remaining cinematic. It's such a off thing to describe Tommaso but I can unequivocally say it's worth a watch; hopefully I can revisit soon.

Suspiria (I) (2018)

"Death to any other Mother."

[10/10 · 7 September 2019]

A patient and haunting reimagining of one of my favorite horror films, Suspiria (2018) really fleshes and contorts the body of the story into a strange and striking portrait of grooming and obsession. The way that Suspiria (2018) interweaves reality with this nightmare that makes the context almost inescapable. The way the film tackles the division of Berlin into its main attraction was really seamless.

Dakota Johnson's transformational performance was one of, if not the most in recent memory; the third act really pushed it over the edge for me. Mia Goth is, as always, absolutely brillant. I love her in this so much, she really adds so much to the film. Tilda Swinton is absolutely unbelievable, this is one of the best performances(s) of all time, she has such a broad range of emotions without needing to say a word. That element is what shocked and impressed me most about Luca Guadagnino's vision is it's nuance and the way it relies on emotional subtext.

Suspiria (2018) is so soothingly paced and really takes its time immersing you into this sick world. The stunning and perfectly choreographed dancing paired with Thom Yorke's unique and fresh score really allows the film to breathe while keeping you incredibly involved. Overall this is a masterclass of skill and creatively I can't recommend enough.