December updates
Fourth and final newsletter of the year!
Happy “It’s a Wonderful Life” season everybody!
Aka “the most wonderful time of year.” I think I expressed my gratitude last month, but just in case, thank you all so much for being apart of movie club. It’s been such a wild ride, I’ve gotten to meet so many wonderful people, see so many good (and some not-so-good) movies, and there’s so many amazing things still to come!
Apologies in advance for the shorter than usual/lack of DC movie events in this newsletter edition. Things have been a bit unprecedented over here and I haven’t had the capacity to do my usual research. That being said, I’m always happy to share upcoming events on Instagram, so feel free to DM/message me here/there.
Also! If you haven’t already and are craving extra content, check out warp_DMV’s interview about movie club (/me).
Hope you all have a fantastic holiday season, and as always, I’ll see you at the movies!
Upcoming Movie Club events
12/10: Y2K at Atlantic Plumbing (7:20PM)
January/February: Misc Paddington 3 premiere event
3/02: DC Movie Club Annual Academy Awards Watch Party
Letterboxd profile spotlight
“I am an artist and writer. I grew up in a movie-watching family. It has spurred a lifelong love of movies and popcorn. (Classic buttery, salty popcorn with a Coca-Cola, and sometimes, when I'm feeling bold, a box of buncha crunch on top. I am not afraid to bring my own if the theater doesn't have it.)
I am on a horror kick right now, but I love family dramas, movies with skillfully composed dialogue and dynamic storytelling -- and a good rom-com, but it seems like that heyday has long passed. Love a documentary. Also - swear to god - I love to laugh. I'm not as much of a nerdy sadsack as this might make me seem.”
Q&A — What is your…
Letterboxd handle: orangemeow
Favorite movie(s) — and why: When Harry Met Sally..., Silence of the Lambs, Women Talking, The Fall. I have a mild obsession with Nora Ephron and her approach to dialogue. Silence of the Lambs is always watchable. Women Talking is brutal and masterful. The Fall is a visual feast. Each of these picks, while on the surface totally unrelated, have strong, particular approaches to storytelling.
Controversial movie take: I think horror films, scary movies, and psychological thrillers could be doing so much more to explore how we experience trauma, process, survive, and persist. I've seen writing about why horror isn't appreciated as an art form as much as other genres, especially when measured in award nominations, but maybe it /could/ be more complex....
There are scary films that have wonderfully complicated characters, who themselves are wrestling with painful pasts that sometimes give them the tools to navigate extreme duress with grit and skill. I've been watching more and more horror films with this lens to expand my lexicon and narrative understanding.
As a writer and artist, my practice includes thinking about how to explore these ideas in ways that are surprising, creative, unveiling, humorous, and intentional. I often think about a quote from Keegan Michael Key, where he discusses the similarities between horror and comedy: "The unexpected is what’s common between the two genres." He continued, "The setup thinks you are going to go in one direction and we go in an opposite direction. And horror has a very similar anatomy." And, in my experience, so does trauma. These parallels fascinate me and I wonder if I will better understand my own experiences and other people if I further investigate those parallels, what they mean, and how we use them to connect/create.
In storytelling, that anatomy and structure, crafting the unexpected for the laugh, shock, or reveal - that moment is so potent. How can it invade, change, or affect our beliefs? Movies do this shaping through many strategies, but this is the one I happen to be focused on now.
Some movies I've enjoyed recently:
Oddity
Late Night with the Devil
Suspiria (2018)
Hellraiser
Strange Darling
(Please send more recommendations if you feel the vibe)
Most watched movie: 90s Nora Ephron movies
Everyone must see movie: Women Talking - I cried when it was nominated for Best Picture, not because I care about the opinion of the Academy, but because the nomination alone cements it in film history and permanently places it on watch lists. The film wrestles with the dynamics of trauma, how we react to it, how we continue a community through it, how we fight, and how we find each other.
Most anticipated movie of the year: I’ve seen so many this year! But upcoming I definitely want to check out the new Nosferatu. I like Robert Eggers and I do love me some Willem Dafoe, plus it looks cool.
Check out Shelby’s newsletter about DMV artists.