Film 2429 - Marty Supreme

Intro: I had really high expectations for this one, considering the stellar reviews, crazy marketing campaign, Oscar buzz and yeah, its protagonist.

Film 2429: "Marty Supreme" (2025), Josh Safdie
Watched: At the movies
Language: English
Watched with: Niamh
Thoughts: I didn’t realize this movie shares its director with “Uncut Gems,” one of the most stressful movies I’ve ever watched. And “Marty Supreme” isn’t a walk in the park either.
I can’t really say that I loved it, to be honest, but I liked it enough for a number of reasons. It’s not my kind of movie: it’s so loud and fast-paced, and at times so intense and stressful, that I couldn’t fully enjoy it. This experience wasn’t as extreme as the “Uncut Gems” one, but it still affected (or tainted) my overall perception of the movie. That said, I did appreciate Timothée Chalamet’s performance — which I think could win him his first Oscar — and I love that Fran Drescher is finally back to acting. Overall, though, the standout performance for me was Odessa A’zion’s: she’s extremely talented, and her time in this movie proves it. I also appreciated the set pieces; I think the overall vibe and atmosphere were well built and convincingly recreated. Some really interesting music choices are included as well and, although not historically accurate, they really work.
Overall, I didn’t like it as much as I would have loved to, but I don’t regret committing to this two-and-a-half-hour movie.
P.S. The conceiving scene at the beginning reminded me of the movie “Look Who’s Talking”.
Cast: Timothée Chalamet, Gwyneth Paltrow, Odessa A'zion, Kevin O'Leary, Tyler Okonma, Abel Ferrara, Sandra Bernhard, Fred Hechinger, Fran Drescher.
Box Office: $79.5 million (so far)
Worth a watch?: If you’re a fan of Timothée, Josh Safdie’s filmmaking style, or the yearly award-season race in general, this movie is hard to miss. I was hoping for a more traditional biopic-style execution and less narrative craziness, but it’s as entertaining as it is stressful at times. It’s also a bit odd to see Timothée and Gwyneth Paltrow in sex scenes — but it is what it is.
Awards: Nominated for 3 Golden Globes for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy and Best Screenplay, it won Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy (Timothée Chalamet). 3 nominations at the upcoming 2026 Actor Awards: Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture, Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role (Chalamet), Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role (Odessa A'zion).
Key word: Table tennis.
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Film 2392 - F1

Intro: Honestly curious to see this movie, as the reviews were good and the trailer looked fine. Also, an Irish actress in the leading performance? Couldn't miss it.

Film 2392: "F1" (2025), Joseph Kosinski
Watched: At the movies
Language: English
Watched with: Niamh
Thoughts: Funny enough, I like sports movies about car racing, yet I don't like the sport per se. I don't watch it and the few times I did, I found it extremely boring. But I did enjoy all the movies I watched in the past that portray this sport, like "Ford v Ferrari", "Rush" or "Gran Turismo" and now, this one as well.
I'm not surprised I liked "F1", to be honest: I usually enjoy Brad Pitt as an actor, I liked Joseph Kosinski's previous outing "Top Gun: Maverick" and, as I said, somehow I'm a sucker for sports films. This one is particularly well shot, I'm sure it has a very realistic shot at a bunch of technical Oscars (like sound and editing) and, most importantly, it's quite entertaining.
There's all you need in a blockbuster movie: handsome lead, underdog story, compelling visuals, exceptionally crafted shots, a protagonist to root for. I mean, it was a big gamble for Apple to produce it, as it cost $200–300 million to make, but it surely paid off.
Is it the best movie of the year? No, but I'd say it has a shot at making it into the Best Picture category at the Oscars, just like "Top Gun: Maverick" did, eventually winning Best Sound. It's not a given, but it definitely wouldn't be unheard of.
Ps. Many artists realead songs for the movie soundtrack, including Tate McRae ("Just Keep Watching"), Don Toliver and Doja Cat ("Lose My Mind"), Rosé ("Messy"), and Ed Sheeran ("Drive").
Cast: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Tobias Menzies, Kim Bodnia, Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc, Javier Bardem.
Box Office: $629 million
Worth a watch?: Definitely worth giving it a shot. Better on a big, big screen, possibly paired with Dolby Surround sound. Pitt is charismatic, Kerry Condon proves to be a great female lead after her Supporting Actress nomination at the 2022 Academy Awards and Joseph Kosinski once again proves that he's great at directing films that require a great level of spectacle and technical capabilities. "F1" is a good movie even for those who are not into the Formula 1.
Awards: /
Key word: Plan C.
Trailer
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Film 2379 - Rocky

Intro: An iconic movie... that I had never seen before! And because I'm such a big fan of the "Creed" movies, I finally decided to give this movie - the OG of the franchise - a go.

Film 2379: "Rocky" (1976), John G. Avildsen
Watched on: From my computer
Language: English
Watched with: No one
Thoughts: I've never been a big fan of the 60s and 70s, so I'm not necessarily a big fan of movies from that era. That said, I thought it was ridiculous that I had never seen "Rocky" before.
With this in mind, I have to say that a) I understand why this film is considered so iconinc and b) yeah, it isn't necessairily my vibe, still I enjoyed the watch enough. My biggest struggle was understanding the accent and the delivery of the lines, which left me quite puzzled at times.
Overall it's a good sport movie. A bit outdated when it comes to gender and handling of the female character, but you can't watch a movie from 50 years ago with the eyes of today. Anyway... ADRIAAAAAAAAN!
Ps. Fun fact: Sylvester Stallone became the third person to be nominated for both acting and writing in the same year at the Oscars, following Charles Chaplin for "The Great Dictator" (1940) and Orson Welles for "Citizen Kane" (1941).
Cast: Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burt Young, Carl Weathers, Burgess Meredith.
Box Office: $225 million
Worth a watch?: Definitely worth watching it if you've never seen it before. It's a cult classic and made Stallone a major movie star.
Awards: 10 Oscar nominations (including Best Actor for Stallone, Actress for Shire, Supporting Actor for both Young and Meredith and Screenplay for Stallone), it won 3 for Best Picture, Director and Film Editing. 5 noms at the BAFTAs (including Best Picture, Dirctor, Actor for Stallone and Screenplay). 6 Golden Globe nominations (including Best Actor and Actress, Director and Score) and 1 win for Best Motion Picture – Drama.
Key word: Match.
Trailer
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Film 2005 - Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal

Intro: Di nuovo una richiesta cinematografica di Ferdia, anche se questa volta devo ammettere che avrei recuperato il film su Netflix in ogni caso.

Film 2005: "Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal" (2021) di Chris Smith

Visto: dall'iMac
Lingua: inglese
Compagnia: nessuno
In sintesi: non sono un grande fan dei documentari che mixano spezzoni con immagini di repertorio ad altri recitati da attori - specialmente perché di solito si tratta di attori non particolarmente conosciuti, il che di solito si traduce in una recitazione non esattamente da Oscar - per cui sono rimasto un po' deluso quando ho capito che questo "Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal" (mamma mia che titolo tremendo) si basava principalmente sulla messa in scena degli eventi originali da parte di un cast capitanato da Matthew Modine nei panni di Rick Singer.
Va detto che il risultato finale non è male ed è sicuramente di intrattenimento e riesco a capire il motivo per cui la scelta di ricreare gli accadimenti sia stata qui quasi necessaria, considerato che lo scandalo delle ammissioni ai college americani tramite mazzette pagate da genitori abbienti si è verificato appena due anni fa, per cui le immagini di repertorio a disposizione devono essere piuttosto limitate.
Detto ciò, non riesco a capire il senso di un documentario ibrido, specialmente perché la possibilità di ricreare la storia attraverso un'opera di fiction era un'opzione tutt'altro che impensabile e non credo che l'oggettività dei fatti ne avrebbe risentito.
In general, comunque, penso che "Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal" sia un titolo sufficientemente intrigante, non tanto per il documentario in sé - che non è niente di straordinario - quanto per la storia che racconta e i giochi di potere che mette in luce. Come al solito sono i ricchi a farla da padrone e anche se non c'era davvero bisogno di ribadirlo perché ci credessimo, è sicuramente cosa buona e giusta ricordarcelo tramite fatti, dati e cifre.
Cast: Matthew Modine, Roger Rignack, Jillian Peterson, Josh Stamberg, Courtney Rackley, Wallace Langham; Robert Fisher, Lori Loughlin, Mossimo Giannulli, Olivia Giannulli, Jane Buckingham, Felicity Huffman.
Box Office: /
Vale o non vale: Interessante per la storia che tratta, anche se il film di per sé sa meno di documentario e più di opera di fiction.
Premi: /
Parola chiave: Side door.
Trailer
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