From Marvel to Marvellous
Zoe Saldaña and Sebastian Stan are so much more than just superheroes
I’ve been desperate to bang on about this insane cartel musical since last year and now our time has arrived; Golden Globe-winning Oscar-baiting Emilia Pérez has arrived in kiwi cinemas.
But I can’t talk about Emilia, about movies, about the Hollywood awards season, without thinking and talking about Los Angeles. The Globes were just one week ago, In the days which followed we’ve all watched in horror as acre upon acre, neighbourhood upon neighbourhood of Los Angeles has been laid waste by unstoppable, wind-fuelled, horrific wildfires. Lives lost, dozens still missing, thousands not just homeless but having lost everything. The human cost, livelihoods lost, entire communities decimated, businesses burned to the ground, industries on hold. Among them, the entertainment sector - the Hollywood of it all. Film and TV productions suspended, studios shut down, and a screen sector still recovering from the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes is once again thrust into an uncertain future.
The Critics Choice Awards have been postponed to the end of the month, the Academy just announced a delay to the scheduled nominations announcement but confirming it’s still set for the March ceremony, the Grammys plan to go head early Feb.
But even as I write, more high winds forecast to fan the flames over the next few days, this is not over yet.
Helping from afar can be a click away, Go Fund Me has a wildfire relief fund for donations and you can also go directly to their centralised page to contribute to individual fundraising pages
https://www.gofundme.com/f/wildfire-relief-fund-2025
https://www.gofundme.com/c/act/wildfire-relief/california
Mutual Aid LA and Red Cross also great.
Meantime? Let’s all celebrate the magic of the movies and go see some ourselves, starting with….
NEW RELEASE
EMILIA PÉREZ
⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️
Gamora, a Guardian of the Galaxy, Uhura, from the Starship Enterprise, Neytiri of Pandora’s Na'vi, finally Zoe Saldaña has her feet firmly on planet Earth and is now an Oscar favourite, as Rita, the lawyer, from Mexico City.
Rita is working as an undervalued underpaid lawyer working big cases and seemingly going nowhere. When a mysterious call out of the blue asks her to meet with a notorious cartel leader, she knows by taking that meeting she will never go back to life as she knows it, and indeed she does not. From lawyer to fixer, she will help Juan “Manitas” Del Monte escape his own life beginning a brand new one, becoming the woman he has always wanted to be.
Oh, did I mention it’s a musical? Visceral song and neon dance, Saldaña and Selena Gomez showcasing hidden and already lauded talents and with such a bold propulsive and truly electric delivery, I was utterly transported.
Oddly, this film is set in Mexico, the language is Spanish and the filmmaker is French. And I’ve been obsessed with Jacques Audiard ever since I saw The Beat That My Heart Skipped (please watch it - you can rent on AppleTV) . His prison film A Prophet catapulted him into Oscar contention and I loved Rust and Bone. Once again he’s well and truly back in the Oscar’s race with Emilia and I could not be happier about that, this is the best kind of cinematic experience so PLEASE do not miss it on the big screen.
THE FEELS: Intense, thrilling, unexpected, I felt like I’d been taken away, dropped and drenched in a whole other world and I simply ADORE it when movies do this to me.
THE HOOK: A new identity, a new life, the real you; is redemption for your sins of the past possible in your future?
MY LUDICROUSLY CAPACIOUS BAG OF BINGE-A-BILITY
MISSING YOU - Netflix - 5 EPs
OK I binged this 5 EP Brit show in one night and while I don’t regret watching it, this show isn’t great. I was half way through when I realised how bad some of this was - too many WTF moments of unpalatable coincidence and some less than convincing performances. I was too invested by then to back away so I stuck with it, mainly due to Slow Horses actor Rosalind Eleazar in a good meaty role. Short enough to be mildly diverting if you’re super bored.
BLACK DOVES - Netflix - 6 EPs
Definitely a step up in quality and how could you go wrong with Keira Knightley, Ben Whishaw and Sarah Lancashire leading the charge. Spies, assassins, action, subterfuge dark dry British comedy moments - I’m only 3 EPs in but it’s def my fav binge of the week.
THE WEEKLY TIPS AND DIPS INTO THE KR ARCHIVE
Alongside Zoe in the Marvel to Marvellous journey we have the Winter Soldier Sebastian Stan in the awards fray for two excellent performances - one as Trump in The Apprentice and the other Golden Globe winning outing in A Different Man both of which you can rent or buy on AppleTV. Such completely different roles as you can imagine as Stan really stretches his legs and he’s just excellent in both.
I had a big deep dive into The Apprentice on the RNZ/Newsroom podcast The Detail if you’re keen to get down into the nitty gritty - it was recorded straight after host Davina and I left the cinema and just days before Trump won the US election, which already feels like a lifetime ago!
GUEST STARRING…
She’s here, she’s there, she’s every f**king where KATE RODGER!
Speaking of the fabulous folk at RNZ I had a great natter with Anna Thomas on RNZ Summer Times talking al my summer movie picks - dig in!
THE COMMENTS SECTION
Feel free Join The Projector chat - what you been watching either big screen or small and what’s on your watch-list? Do you think the awards season should go ahead as planned? The Grammys certainly seems to think so. Actress Rosanna Arquette is getting a tonne of support for her idea to turn the Oscars into a fundraising telethon - could be the move? Whaddyareckon? Simply click below to rant and rave, I’m here for you…
Farewell for now FilmFreaks and hope the back to work blues are being offset by some deliciously distracting trips to the movies! "It'll be just like in the movies. We'll pretend to be someone else." — Mulholland Drive
KRxx