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Marry Me: First comes Marriage, then comes Love

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Hey kids, gather around and let me tell you a tale.

Once upon a time, there was a film called ‘the mid-budgeted, adult-targeting romcom’ that roamed the Earth. These films featured notable, likeable (and usually bankable) stars in the lead and they would find themselves in an implausible romantic situation that could never happen in real life. After all, they’re too different.

But maybe, just maybe, it’ll work out for those crazy kids.

Obviously I’m joking but, in all seriousness, these sorts of romantic comedies do feel like dinosaurs in a cinema filled with brooding superheroes and gritty dramas. But it’s also possible that this is the genre that we didn’t know we needed as we come out of the bleakness of the pandemic. With Channing Tatum and Sandra Bullock’s The Lost City and Jennifer Lopez and Owen Wilson’s Marry Me becoming moderate box office successes, it’s possible that the genre is beginning to pick up steam once again. (Heck, even romcom icons Julia Roberts and George Clooney are back together later this year!)

But let’s get back to Marry Me, which is available on Blu-ray and DVD today.

Directed by Kat Coiro, Marry Me follows pop superstar Kat Valdez (Jennifer Lopez) as she prepares to marry her boyfriend live onstage before her millions of fans. However, right before the nuptials take place, Kat discovers that he’s been cheating on her and melts down publicly. As an act of defiance (and insanity), she decides to marry a complete stranger instead. Locking eyes with Charlie (Owen Wilson), a single divorced father who teaches math, Kat invites him onstage and the wedding takes place. But, after the dust settles, the two must decide whether or not this marriage of convenience may actually have something worth fighting for.

Fueled by a non-sensical premise and numerous ‘meet-cute’ style interactions, Marry Me simply sounds ridiculous. (A pop superstar marries a stranger onstage out of spite?) But, much like their characters’ relationship, Lopez and Wilson make it work.

Onscreen, Lopez and Wilson seem like an odd pairing with she, an icon of glamour in style, and he known for his puppy dog eyes and innocence. However, that’s exactly what gives the film its charm. Once a bankable romcom star at the box office herself, Lopez looks incredibly comfortable in the role of superstar Kat Valdez. Often portrayed as larger than life herself, Lopez still brings a humility to the character that make her instantly likeable. The unlikely pairing with Wilson provide both actors with a space to let their charm come to the forefront, without ever losing Lopez’s star power. Together, they have genuine chemistry and are an absolute delight to watch.

It’s also worth noting that Marry Me is refreshing in its use of romcom stereotypes. From examples such as Pretty Woman, Crazy Rich Asians to Lopez’s own Maid in Manhatten, the romcom genre often tells stories of a ‘wealthy man and the carefree woman who comes into his life and changes everything’. Instead, however, Marry Me takes the opposite approach. With Kat confidently at the wheel, the film manages to empower her while still showing the give-and-take necessary to make their relationship work. At a press conference after their ‘wedding’, Kat speaks to the women of the audience when she says, “Why don’t we switch things up? We’ll pick the man, propose and choose to see if they’re worthy.” (In fact, Marry Me even reverses one of the most age-old romcoe tropes in the film’s climax.)

With an eye on the magic of romance, Marry Me dreams that love is worth the risks, even if it doesn’t always make sense. Although Kat believes in love, Charlie is not so sure. After all, he’s been burned badly before and struggles to move beyond his hurt. To him, love is a risk and it’s far easier to live a life of anonymity in a bubble with his daughter, co-worker friend and aging dog. On the other hand, Kat’s global notoriety never taints her faith in others… or in love. To her, the world is not a scary place because she remains firmly grounded in what’s most important. Her love of others helps her to keep an open mind about the possibility with Charlie… and an open heart. (After all, no matter how much fame and popularity that she may have, JLo… er… Kat is still ‘Jenny from the Block’.) As she embraces romance, so too does she help Charlie to embrace life and, potentially, new love as well.

So, yes. Marry Me may be goofy and non-sensical at times. But I have to admit that it also couldn’t help but soften this jaded heart along the way. Delightful from start to finish, Marry Me warms the heart, makes you laugh and is definitely a comedy worth saying yes to.

Marry Me is now available on Blu-ray, DVD and VOD on Tuesday, May 10, 2022.

Dual: Cold-Hearted or Caregiver?

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Directed by Riley Stearns, Dual is a more thoughtful piece that one might expect. On paper, this satirical sci-fi seems like another opportunity for rising star Karen Gillan to showcase her immense talent as a physical performer, especially in the film’s climactic battle to the death. But, in actuality, Stearns uses the film as an opportunity to look at what makes us human and, more importantly, why life is worth living.

Set in a world where cloning is not only reality but common practice, Dual suggests that the best use of this technology is to help continue on one’s life for their loved ones in the case of terminal illness. After all, why bother enduring the suffering of losing a loved one when you can simply make a new one? Once the original person passes away, the clone simply steps into their life and takes it on as their own. This is certainly the case for Sarah (Karen Gillan), a young married woman who discovers that she is suffering from a terminal illness. After the cloning process is complete, Sarah awaits her own death by training her clone (called ‘Sarah’s Double’, temporarily) about her life, explaining her interests and allowing her husband to accept her copy in her place.

However, problems arise when Sarah discovers that her illness has miraculously disappeared. In these cases, the government mandates a fight to the death between original and copy in order to determine who will take on the person’s life as their own.  (In this way, the title becomes significant as it references both Sarah’s two copies and their final ‘duel’.) With the battle approaching, Sarah seeks out the help of Trent (Aaron Paul), a personal trainer who she enlists to coach her on the fine art of taking the life of another.

In many ways, this is a fascinating use of an old science-fiction trope. Many times before, we have seen the complications when one clones themselves. From Multiplicity to Nolan’s The Prestige, we can’t seem to stop thinking about improving our lives by replicating ourselves. In the case of Dual, however, Stearns uses the cloning trope to wrestle with what gives us life in the midst of our mundane existence. With an intriguing concept and sharp script, Stearns acknowledges the fact that the incredible value of human life, even as we allow ourselves to forget what it is.

Amazingly, despite their upcoming fight to live, neither Sarah nor her double seem particularly passionate about the very life that they’re fighting for. Marital expectations, phone calls with mother and the drudgery of everyday life seem to have sucked all of the enjoyment out of the experience for both women. As such, there seems to be a general sense that the banality of life has emptied it of any sense of joy. With each passing day, their relationships that have been left on the cold hard floor of practicality are increasingly revealed to lack passion and, most of all, love. 

What’s more, as the original Sarah trains feverishly, so too does she have a part of her soul stripped away. Through field trips to the morgue and Clockwork Orange-level desensitivity training, her time with Trent is specifically designed to numb her to any sort of connection to humanity. To Trent, people have no soul worth valuing. Only matter to be disposed of. For him, the key to survival lies in viewing humanity is little more than bags of meat.

Charles Darwin would be proud.

Although, as moments of compassion and care for her clone begin to arise, the value of the other seems to revive Sarah’s inner spark. Suddenly, Sarah begins remember that there’s something amazing and mystical about creating life, even in the midst of its daily drudgery. Although the driest aspects of life can be draining, the ability to care for one another make it worthwhile. 

While the film could benefit by allowing some of Gillan’s natural charm to break through into her character, Dual’s conversations about life and purpose nevertheless manage to intrigue. Although the tone is surprisingly quiet (especially one building up to a final confrontation), Stearns clearly wants his viewer to engage the film’s ideas as opposed to any grand action set pieces. But that unique tone and vision is what makes Dual worth fighting for.

Dual is now available in theatres.

HotDocs ’22: The Smell of Money

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Alas, somethings rotten in the state of North Carolina. And it’s not just the pig waste.

Directed by Shawn Bannon, The Smell of Money takes the viewer into the depths of the American pork industry. Processing tens of thousands of pigs per day, Smithfield Foods remains the lead powerhouse in the North American pork industry. However, through their willingness to ignore the waste created by their own farmers, they have also become a toxic influence on the local communities. From the unbearable smell to health risks such as pfiesteria, Smithfield’s negligence has resulted in massive environmental damage that threatens the viability of its community and reveals their willingness to sacrifice the living conditions of the average person for their own gain. 

Powerful and moving, The Smell of Money is a shocking look at the neglect of big business and the lengths that they will take to secure their investment. (Not to mention the fact that Bannon’s journey into the world of the pork industry is far more harrowing than one might expect.) Through brutal corporate tactics, Smithfield Foods continues to show a total disregard for the health and well-being of those around them. While they’re more than willing to hire those to create their product, the pig waste they produce is not their problem. With an eye on their financial returns, Smithfield Foods does everything they can to maintain business-as-usual while absolving themselves of responsibility for those in the local community.

In other words, profit outweighs people. 

Interestingly, however, what sets Money apart is the way that it moves beyond mere corporate neglect to explore its undercurrents of race and abject poverty. With a neighbourhood consisting mostly of people from the Black community, Smithfield’s recklessness shows little care for the people of the area as most of them too poor to stand up against them. (In fact, one judge even suggests that, ‘if these conditions affected areas of affluence, they would’ve been dealt with much more quickly than they have been.’)

Remarkably though, the community bands together to fight back. With every legal battle and victory, residents such as Elsie Herring and her fellow activists send a message that their lives matter. Despite the terrifying pressure that Smithfield applies, this community refuses to submit to their corporate bullying. Powerful and empowering, Money serves as an encouragement to the oppressed and challenges them to fight for their rights, even if the odds remain stacked against them.

The Smell of Money is now playing at HotDocs ’22. For screening information, click here.

Petite Maman – Childhood magic

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The innocence of childhood may present an opportunity for magic to happen. The openness of a child can allow for things that we might think impossible. If we allow ourselves to be carried along in that openness and innocence, we may find ourselves enchanted by Petite Maman, from Céline Sciamma.

[Note: It is impossible to talk about the film without a key plot point, that could be considered a spoiler. So, if you want to experience that discovery unhindered, you should come back to this review after watching the film.]

We first meet eight year old Nelly as she goes around the nursing home saying a final goodbye to the friends she’s made there. Nelly’s grandmother has died, so Nelly won’t be coming back. She and her parents now must go to her mother’s country home to clean it out. A short way in, the task is too much for her mother’s grief and she leaves during the night, leaving Nelly and her father with the task.

Nelly remembers her mother telling about a hut she built in the woods when she was Nelly’s age. Nelly goes into the woods and discovers another little girl, Monica, the same age as she, building a hut. When Monica invites her to her house, they end up at Nelly’s grandmother’s house, where Nelly finds her grandmother, thirty years younger. Nelly (and we) quickly realizes that in some way she has met her mother as a child. The two girls share their days and have sleep overs at each other’s homes (the same house with different decors).

Monica’s ninth birthday is coming up, but she is scheduled to have surgery to prevent a condition that her mother (Nelly’s grandmother) suffers from. The night before the surgery, Nelly spends the night at Monica’s house, where she confides what she knows about her mother’s life.

The film is not so much about time travel as it is a magical bending of time to allow the two little girls to find a special, mystical bond—a bond that is more like sisters than mother and daughter. We delight in the ways they share their lives in the way that only children can do. They live in neither past nor future, but in the very present moment.

Nelly knew that her mother often seemed melancholy. She feared that her mother was like that because of her. In this setting, Nelly gets to see a very different picture of her mother, and begins to know that the two are bonded by a love that has no real parallel.

Sciamma (Tomboy, Water Lilies) is not new to coming-of-age stories. She enters into the children’s lives to find the innocence and wonder we often lose as adults. The girls find joy in building a hut, going on the lake, making pancakes—the carefree life of childhood. The parents in the story have other things on their minds. Nelly’s mother is grieving and has to deal with the overwhelming work of cleaning out a house. Monica’s mother worries about her daughter’s health as she faces an operation.

Sciamma keeps the story focused through the eyes of the girl. As she shares her days with her “little mama”, she begins to understand a bit more about the mother she has known. And she learns that they are connected in an amazing way.

Of course, I watch the film as an adult—filled with worries about many things. But in the brief (72 minute) time of entering Nelly’s life, I get to remember a little of the magic of that time. And perhaps the adult Monica will get that chance to remember as well.

Based on my viewing of this film at AFI Fest, I included it in my Darrel’s Dozen for last year.

Petite Maman is showing in select theaters.

Photos courtesy of Neon.

SF Radio 8.23: Bearing THE UNBEARABLE WEIGHT OF MASSIVE TALENT

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In THE UNBEARABLE WEIGHT OF MASSIVE TALENT, Nicolas Cage takes on his greatest enemy… Nicolas Cage. After his mounting debt forces him to take on an appearance a birthday party offering a $1M paycheque, Cage somehow becomes embroiled in a CIA investigation, political kidnapping and, most challenging of all, reconciling with his family. This week, Dave Voigt (InTheSeats.ca) and newcomer Adam Kline drop by the podcast to talk about the legacy of Nic Cage, our obsession with celebrities and what makes a ‘good’ film.

You can stream on podomatic, Alexa (via Stitcher), Spotify, iHeart Radio or Amazon Podcasts! Or, you can downoad the ep on Apple Podcasts!

Want to continue to conversation at home?  Click the link below to download ‘Fishing for More’ — some small group questions for you to bring to those in your area.

8.23-The-Unbearable-Weight-of-Massive-TalentDownload