12 Questions: A Room with Ultron's View of the XXL Freakshow
Tuesday, October 6, 2015 at 2:38PM 
It's easy to get lost in future film excitement this time of year. So let's step back for a moment into the now. Here are two handfuls of key new releases on DVD. Answer nine questions about them in the comment party (it's not a party if people don't show up so do RSVP, wont'cha?)
The Avengers: Age of Ultron in which Joss Whedon juggles dozens of powereds but struggles to make the whole as good as all the parts
Q1: Would you kill me if I went deep on this in a future miniseries? Yes, I'm a crazy person who has already seen it thrice. And yes I speak out loudly about the damaging effects of superhero culture on cinema but... but... but I have this terrible soft spot for all things Captain America
Dark Places the Gillian Flynn adaptation that never seemed to open!
Q2: Are you covering your ears right now delusionally "Charlize Theron only made one movie this year and it was awesome!!!" ?
Going Clear: Scientology & The Prison of Belief in which Alex Gibney (and presumably a team of top HBO lawyers) take on the "Church" of Scientology and its famous disciples
Q3: Did you feel more or less for Tom Cruise in His Bubble after seeing this?
Q4: Do you think this has a shot at the Documentary Oscar?
Magic Mike XXL in which Channing Tatum and Company attempt to recapture lightning in a bottle without as much flesh peddling
Q5: What is your favorite scene in this movie other than "Chez Andie MacDowell" ? (obvs the best scene)
Q6: Which of the strippers do you most want a lap dance from?
Dame Besties (Smith/Dench) are pure delight in "A Room With a View"
A Room With a View (Criterion Collection) in which Merchant & Ivory found their breakthrough hit, provided the world with ridiculous amounts of joy (seriously this movie) and helped launch the careers of three-named wonders Helena Bonham Carter and Daniel Day Lewis in this picturesque influential comedy about stuffy Brits at home and abroad.
Q7: Will you join us for BEST SHOT on this one if we do it on Wednesday October 14th?
Spy in which Melissa McCarthy gets to star in her own comedy James Bond movie.
Q8: It's weird to think of McCarthy movies on DVD or BluRay right? They all feel like they are all made specifically to be on loop on cable channels for years to come until everyone can quote them verbatim.
Q9: Do you know what a sad Bulgarian clown looks like?
When Marnie Was There in which a lonely young girl is sent to live in the country and encounters a mysterious mansion
Q10: Do you think Studio Ghibli will somehow rally and start making features again?
Zipper in which Patrick Wilson has trouble keeping it in his pants
Q11: Why didn't they just use that for the tagline?
TV Seasons
The Leftovers (S1), Jane the Virgin (S1), iZombie (S1), Fresh Off the Boat (S1), Penny Dreadful (S2), Vikings (S3), Grimm (S4), AHS: Freakshow (S4), South Park (S18)
Q12: Do you watch any of those shows or did you stop reading this the second you realized that American Horror Story Freakshow is now on Netflix Instant Watch where you can watch Finn Wittrock oil himself up, bathe in blood, and suck alcholo from nippled baby bottles whenever the mood strikes you?
Reader Comments (15)
I am really interested in reading Leah Remini's new tell-all about Scientology.... That Going Clear documentary scared the hell out of me!
There have been a lot of great documentaries this year, but Going Clear is my favorite. I didn't know Leah Remini had a new tell-all about Scientology, I'll have to check it out.
I am getting Dark Places from Netflix this week.
I'm still not sure how Magic Mike XXL got this universal pass from everyone. I mean it is So. Diabolically. Unremittingly. Awful.
All that strained dude-bro posturing. Every time anyone spoke I got the bad kind of goosebumps... and like 90% of the movie was people speaking!!
But if I had to pick a favourite scene - I guess any bit of screentime given to Elizabeth Banks. I wanted to watch the movie she was acting in
Is there a movie featuring Patrick Wilson that does NOT also feature his butt? Not complaining at all, just saying.
The 7/11 scene is, in my opinion, unquestionably the best XXL scene.
Question: When will Nathanial go back to doing his weekly Q&A? :)
Room with a View, what a perfect film to curl up with during an afternoon. So nice to see both Criterion and TFE showing it some love.
Avengers: I wouldn't mind at all. Start with Scarlet Witch!
Going Clear: I hope it gets *something* because i spent that entire runtime being enthralled. I actually haven't given Tom much thought. I guess I can somewhat feel for him because it can be hard to see past all of the smoke and mirrors of Scientology and getting out of your own "prison of belief". But then again, i'm sure he had it much easier than others.
I still Nicole is going to come out with a juicy as fuck memoir in her older years and dish about her time there because i'm certain SHE KNOWS THINGS. Especially with that nasty business with her and her children with Tom. Katie Holmes learned and got out of their with her child and one of the smoothest celebrity divorces i've ever seen.
Magic Mike XXL: I think Big Dick Richie's dance at that gas station was marvellous. More of that, please. I thought the movie was a massive disappointment though. How is it possible to have LESS nudity than the first movie?! as for the other question, Bomer in a private dance will do nicely.
A Room With A View: I've never seen it so i'd be down.
TV: The Leftovers (I'm BAFFLED by people raving over the season 2 premiere because i thought it was a complete mess with unnecessary mysteries) and i'm reluctantly going to be watching AHS: Hotel. Freakshow wasn't that bad. Coven still ranks as the worst.
BD -- Nathaniel is very sick at the moment struggling through each day and missing important screenings left and sign (sigh). This comment was typed by Nathaniel's zombified self. Braaiiiiiins. actually it's more like salllllttttinnnnes and apple juiccccce.
Q1. Yes, I'd be interested. I also loved it more than most, and felt that it's main flaw (too cumbersome) was forgivable.
Q3,4. I'm contemplating an HBO NOW subscription just for this doc (and kinda for Veep). Scientology is so fascinating f'd up! I'm curious if the doc branch will go for it as well. I've read no reviews, but great word of mouth among my friends is spreading.
Q8,9. Damn, I loved that movie. Made the hubby go twice... and thanks for making me google "sad Bulgarian clown" images. Spoiler: apparently they look like Rose Byrne.
Q12. Thanks for the heads up :)
I seriously just watched Fury Road *and* Spy today on the plane back from London. (Don't shoot!) Both were totally enjoyable, and that Furiosa is a marvel. (Plus, Melissa McCarthy's guffaw in the restaurant scene with Jude Law made. MY. LIFE.)
Oh, and I also watched (part of) Aloha, and that dance scene with Bill Murray and Emma Stone is totes adorbs. (The less said about the rest of the movie, though, the better.)
So glad that you are giving Room with a View some love. I still think James Ivory is a woefully underrated director.
I love A ROOM WITH A VIEW. But I also love the bit in WEEKEND when Tom Cullen's character describes it as 'the poshies in the houses'.
Why would anyone be surprised that the Magic Mike sequel isn't good? The first one wasn't really much in the first place. Even the titillation factor was pretty tame.
Q1: Would you kill me if I went deep on this in a future miniseries? Yes, I'm a crazy person who has already seen it thrice. And yes I speak out loudly about the damaging effects of superhero culture on cinema but... but... but I have this terrible soft spot for all things Captain America.
No, I would not, for the singular reason that I have no means to kill you.
Q2: Are you covering your ears right now delusionally "Charlize Theron only made one movie this year and it was awesome!!!" ?
Hell nah, Theron could make an awful movie and it still wouldn't ruin her badass streak. Not only is Furiosa that strong enough of a performance, but her turns as Britt Ekland, Aileen Wuornos, Mavis Gary, Queen Ravenna, Meredith Vickers, and even Rita Leeds salvage her awesome.
Q3: Did you feel more or less for Tom Cruise in His Bubble after seeing this?
No, I don't. Though, truth be told, I never really had contempt for him either. I have contempt for his adherence to Scientology and scary as those guys are, it's not impossible to come out clean (ask Neil Gaiman).
Q4: Do you think this has a shot at the Documentary Oscar?
I think obviously a group as powerful as the Church of Scientology has a shot at burying it, but I still think the movie was loud and clear and well known enough to get a pass. Granted, they might just avoid a fight with the Church by using the whole "it played on TV" route that they used on The Last Seduction to avoid a nomination.
I still haven't seen Magic Mike XXL and I want to cry over that fact.
A Room With a View (Criterion Collection) in which Merchant & Ivory found their breakthrough hit, provided the world with ridiculous amounts of joy (seriously this movie) and helped launch the careers of three-named wonders Helena Bonham Carter and Daniel Day Lewis in this picturesque influential comedy about stuffy Brits at home and abroad.
Q7: Will you join us for BEST SHOT on this one if we do it on Wednesday October 14th?
Yeah, son, you know me.
Q8: It's weird to think of McCarthy movies on DVD or BluRay right? They all feel like they are all made specifically to be on loop on cable channels for years to come until everyone can quote them verbatim.
I don't think of it one way or the other, but it IS strange to think of the last name McCarthy without going Arthur Miller on folks, so I'm just gonna stick to referring to her by her full stage name. "Melissa McCarthy" at all times from me.
Q9: Do you know what a sad Bulgarian clown looks like?
In my mirror every day.
Q10: Do you think Studio Ghibli will somehow rally and start making features again?
I feel like it's an absolute certainty. Like, the whole point of Ghibli from the get-go was for Miyazaki, Suzuki, and Takahata to rally up new talent and have them take over after themselves. That is the Number One reason the studio was created. So it's shocking and silly to me that it's shutting down for now since those guys are retiring at their old age, but I feel like before they pass away, they will find an adequate successor for their work and Ghibli will keep on truckin' with their legacy.
Q11: Why didn't they just use that for the tagline?
Because Hollywood pisses me off.
This is so fun, actually, and I think I might keep up with this now as a constant habit! Hell yeah, The Film Experience!