The French Dispatch, How To with John Wilson, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and PEN15 || Rapid Reviews

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Rapid Reviews  ||  The French Dispatch  ||  How To with John Wilson  ||  It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia  ||  Pen15

There are an overwhelming amount of movies released every year. With an average of over 700 movies released every year, the wealth of entertainment available is practically endless. This isn't even mentioning the plethora of series and shows released every single year, most of which are just as prestigious as the big, noteworthy Hollywood releases. With such a wide selection of content to dig into and only a finite amount of time to do so, what is one critic do?

It is from that question that Rapid Reviews was born. The idea is for this to be a semi-regular feature that will collect smaller reviews covering a wide range of movies and shows that might not be otherwise discussed due to time constraints. And make no mistake - some of these shows and movies need to be talked about!

The French Dispatch  ||  On Demand

Directed by: Wes Anderson
Written by: Wes Anderson, Roman Coppola, Hugo Guinness, Jason Schwartzman
Starring: Bill Murray, Benicio del Toro, Adrien Brody, Léa Seydoux, Tilda Swinton, Frances McDormand, Timothée Chalamet, Lyna Khoudri, Jeffrey Wright, Liev Schreiber, Mathieu Amalric, Stephen Park
Score by: Alexandre Desplat  ||  Cinematography by: Robert D. Yeoman

The French Dispatch might not be your favorite Wes Anderson movie. It might not even be the best Wes Anderson movie. Make no mistake though, it is easily the most Wes Anderson movie.

I'll admit that I've cooled on Wes Anderson after his most recent outings - The Grand Budapest Hotel and Isle of Dogs - both of which felt like lesser versions of Wes Anderson movies I had already seen, albeit with seriously impressive visual panache. Even worse, those recent entries left me cold and unaffected emotionally, with the focus on the visuals and form instead of the human element in the storytelling. With The French Dispatch, Anderson isn't any less concerned with technique and form, but instead finds a collection of short stories that perfectly pairs with his specific visual eccentricities.

Serving as more of an anthology piece, The French Dispatch is composed of three short stories and a couple of wrap-around segments. This simple framework proves ideal for Anderson to effectively explore his different artistic aesthetics, camera compositions, and editing styles while maintaining a better sense of thematic cohesion. Whereas The Grand Budapest Hotel merely experimented with various color schemes and contrasting aspect ratios, The French Dispatch fully masters them - turning each precision shift from black and white to color into an eye-popping accent mark that also carries subtextual meaning and purpose.

Likewise, the film's focus on art - along with themes of it's worth, it's value, and it's importance - find Anderson grappling with some compelling questions without resorting to the inclusion of ham-fisted platitudes or obvious and shallow takeaways. The combination of this thoughtful commentary along with Anderson's impeccably crafted style (aptly fitting the film's underlying themes) help The French Dispatch standout as Anderson's most mature and idea-laden film in decades. The French Dispatch is an easy recommendation for fans of Wes Anderson, movies, and art in general. The French Dispatch is a beautiful, gratifying, and undeniably moving work of art that is absolutely one of Anderson's best films and one of the best films of 2021! 
Film-FTW Rating  ||  10 Stars out of 10  "Masterpiece / Instant Favorite"

How To with John Wilson  [Season 2]  ||  HBO Max

Directed by: John Wilson
Written by: John Wilson, Michael Koman, Alice Gregory, Susan Orlean, Conner O'Malley
Cinematography by: John Wilson

No need to bury the lead here - How To with John Wilson is one of the most unique and refreshing shows currently available on any streaming platform and you absolutely need to be watching it.

Brought to you from producer Nathan Fielder (creator/star of the criminally underrated Comedy Central show Nathan For You) and videographer/creator John Wilson, How To... is essentially an anthology series of bite-sized documentaries made from the collected thousands of hours of Wilson's personal B-roll footage of New York. Filtered entirely through the singular lens of Wilson himself, How To... might initially feel more at home on YouTube rather than the prestigious HBO Max. Although that quick assessment would be wrong, it would be fair considering How To... doesn't do anything to immediately differentiate itself from typical "fail" videos in terms of its content or aesthetics. Luckily, How To... has a much deeper and unwavering focus on the often overlooked every day details of life in New York. This at once imbues the show a reverential feeling as it gives an empathetic spotlight on the varying cultures, ideologies, and the specifically unique ways individuals simply exist and get by. On the same hand, Wilson isn't afraid to point out the frustrating oversights and struggles of living in "the City that Never Sleeps". This delicate balance along with Wilson's ability to weave wildly unpredictable stories from thousands upon thousands of hours of found footage is what makes the show so incredibly special.

Season two of How To with John Wilson ends up being just as compelling as its first, never missing a beat in its tight six episode run. It begins on a high note with How To Invest in Real Estate - an episode that perfectly blends the incisive humor and underlying heart and empathy emanating from Wilson - and sustains that energy throughout the season. The other highlights are: How To Appreciate Wine - an episode that takes a dramatic left-turn in its second-half perfectly illustrating the show's uncanny storytelling - and How to Find a Spot which serves as the perfect companion piece to season one's informative and eye-opening How To Put Up Scaffolding.

If you haven't already given How To with John Wilson a chance, let me beg you to change that as soon as possible. I can not give a more enthusiastic and wholehearted recommendation to this show. How To... is a brilliant, relatively hidden gem - one that deserves (and actually warrants) your attention.
Film-FTW Rating  ||  9 Stars out of 10  "Amazing / Exceptional"

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia  [Season 15]  ||  FXX on Hulu

Directed by: Todd Biermann, Pete Chatmo, Richie Keen, Megan Ganz
Written by: Rob McElhenney, Charlie Day, Glenn Howerton, Keyonna Taylor, Katie McElhenney, Rob Rosell, David Hornsby, Nina Pedrad, Megan Ganz
Starring: Charlie Day, Glenn Howerton, Rob McElhenney, Kaitlin Olson, Danny DeVito

If there was a title needed for FXX's It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia's 15th season, a fitting one would be The Gang Makes Many Missteps.

In it's record-breaking 15th season (replacing The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet for the longest-running live-action, American comedy series), Always Sunny returns with a shortened, 8 episode season filled with a regrettable focus on exploring roots. More than half of the season focuses on this theme - with one episode centering around the origins of Paddy's Pub and four episodes featuring the gang's misadventures in Ireland, an ancestral land for at least two of the main characters. The result is a very uneven season - a season that is arguably the most thematically cohesive in the show's history, but one that begins to feel more and more scattershot with its negligent handling of tone and character with each ensuing episode.

After opening with two strong episodes commenting on current hot button issues in subversive and unexpected ways, the rest of the season struggles in its attempt to force the Always Sunny formula and template onto the Irish culture - and this is a huge issue as half of it is dedicated to this Ireland storyline. Initially, Ireland makes for a fresh, beautiful new setting rife with all sorts of new storytelling opportunities. That's sadly not the case though, as the writers awkwardly stretch the believability of the characters in order to come up with cartoonishly over-the-top situations - even for a show that has often prided itself on its inherent absurdity. We're talking plotlines from a Scooby Doo cartoon, with one of the main players becoming possessed by a haunted castle.

Where Always Sunny really fails this season, is in trying to have its cake and eat it too by awkwardly balancing an overwhelming amount of farcical moments with manipulative and sappy emotional character beats. There's no better example of this than in season 15's finale - an underwhelming and undeserved emotional payoff for one of the main characters that shamelessly tries to mirror Mac's undeniably powerful and unexpectedly earnest coming out from season 13...only without any of the confidence, careful setup, or subtle direction. This moment from season 15's closer is the antithesis to Mac's coming out, feeling forced, predictable, and overly saccharine.

Overall, though there are a couple of standout episodes in the openers 2020: A Year in Review and The Gang Makes Lethal Weapon 7, along with some comedic highs strewn about, season 15 misses the mark about as frequently. It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia's fifteenth season is undeniably its weakest season yet - one that hopefully isn't a sign of the creative team running out of ideas.
Film-FTW Rating  ||  5 Stars out of 10  "Mediocre / Mixed Feelings"

PEN15  [Season 2 - Parts 1 & 2]  ||  Hulu

Directed by: Sam Zvibleman, Dan Longino, Maya Erskine, Anna Konkle, Andy DeYoung
Written by: Maya Erskine, Anna Konkle, Sam Zvibleman, Josh Levine, Alyssa DiMari, Rachele Lynn, Vera Santamaria
Starring: Maya Erskine, Anna Konkle, Mutsuko Erskine, Richard Karn, Taj Cross, Dallas Liu
Score by: Leo Birenberg  ||  Cinematography by: Andy Rydzweski
PEN15 is unprecedented, genre-defying, and unapologetically reflective and it might just be one of the best shows offered by Hulu.

PEN15 is a cringe coming-of-age dramedy series from Maya Erskine and Anna Konkle that settles on a prolonged and unflinching look at the highs and lows of puberty. There are moments of character growth and moments that could be considered "wins", but by and large, PEN15 feels like a show the "win" is that the two main characters are surviving at all. The two thirty-something creators are tasked with double-duty also playing the teenage leads (also named Maya and Anna) amidst a cast of actual middle-schoolers - a comical juxtaposition in and of itself. Both actresses do a considerable job of blending in with and playing off the younger supporting cast, but Erskine's performance in particular is truly momentous. Additionally, the show has a distinctly female perspective - one that my partner found authentic to her teenage experiences, but were also cleverly written so that anyone could relate to these characters and moments without any difficulty whatsoever.

Season two, split-up into two parts, serves as the final season for PEN15, concluding Maya and Anna's story in a beautiful and meditative way, commenting on the strength of friendship, regardless of if it's a lasting friendship or not. It feels as if the creators knew of the show's approaching end and because of this used several standalone episodes and mini-arcs to explore side characters and stories not typically talked covered in half-hour sitcoms. While some of these explorations end up working better than others (highlight episodes are Play, Yuki, and Home), PEN15's attempts are noteworthy - even if this second season feels overstuffed and less focused as a result. Regardless, PEN15 remains bold, challenging, hilarious, and horrifying in the best possible ways and if you can gel with its intentionally awkward tone - there's no better time to jump in now that it's all available!
Film-FTW Rating  ||  8 Stars out of 10  "Great / Memorable"

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