July in Film and TV

Anthony Starr as Homelander in The Boys Season 4 (Source: IMDb)

July's highlight was certainly The Boys Season 4, as we followed the Boys still trying to assassinate the supes, in conjunction with the Trump attempted assassination that may well have helped him win the presidency. The show is optimistic in one sense: that there are people out there who despise his level of right-wing malice. As for the films, let me know what you agree with in the comments!

2nd July- The Nice Guys (Shane Black, 2016)

This was a fun film with some great comedic chemistry between Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe, but it was essentially just that. I wasn't motivated by the plot and found myself starting to watch it passively, which I think is at fault for the film not having a character I like or care for. Still, it was fun. 6/10.

Pearl (Ti West, 2022)

I watched this in preparation for West's new film MaXXXine (2024), which I still haven't seen. I enjoyed this, probably more than the first film of the trilogy X (2022) as Mia Goth's performance in Pearl has become its own piece of female rage lore. As a horror film, I think it had just the right amount of gore without going Tarantino-style overboard, but still leaving you on the edge of your seat, synchronised with Tim Williams' and Tyler Bates' satirical score. 9/10.

3rd July- Back to the Future (Robert Zemeckis, 1985)

It has probably been about eight years since I last saw this, and I was quite shocked watching it by the scale of cheese it has succumbed. It has probably always been there, but preadolescent me seriously couldn't have fathomed anything more romantic than Marty McFly kissing Jennifer on the town square bench. Back to the Future Part II (1989) is still superior in my opinion, but this is still a classic and forever one of Christopher Lloyd's best moments on screen as Doc. 7/10.

4th July- Force Majeure (Ruben Östlund, 2014)

Force Majeure follows a family on holiday in the French Alps, who find themselves caught up in an avalanche. Tomas the father runs instead of attempting to save his family, and after the realisation that everyone is safe and the avalanche is controlled, Vera his wife is left with the feeling of utter betrayal and shock. This film is such an interesting analysis of long-term relationships and amongst tension and pressure of keeping the marriage sturdy, fabrications of the mind and hypocrisies occur. Both parties can often make mistakes that the other might not forgive, but in actuality, you are often just as bad as each other. 8/10.

Kinds of Kindness (Yorgos Lanthimos, 2024)

I have written about this lengthy film already, but in summary, it has all of the ingredients for a stunning satirical drama, the thing holding it back is its complicated and subsequently mundane plot that after much analysis and pondering I still don't understand. 5/10.

https://www.tallulahdenyer.com/post/copy-of-kinds-of-kindness-review

5th July- There Will Be Blood (Paul Thomas Anderson, 2007)

PTA will never fault me; he is one of the best directors for storytelling from our time. There Will Be Blood is no exception, and he takes a story about a wicked oil prospector that was duller than I remember upon a second watch and manages to still make it feel so fresh, I cannot believe this film was made in 2007. Daniel Day-Lewis and Paul Dano are auteurs in their own right in this film, their performances being the glue that sticks the film together. 8/10.

18th July- Quadrophenia (Franc Roddam, 1979)

I had been meaning to watch this for a while having lived in Brighton for two years now. It was fun to watch the scenery whilst my friends and I pointed at the TV shouting street names and bars, but this was also a victim of poor writing. I began passively watching this when I realised that I disliked all of the characters. The protagonist: Jimmy, who we follow growing up is obnoxious; I didn't care what would happen to him. Perhaps this is a film esoteric to mod culture, but in that case, I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who isn't familiar with that. 4/10.

The Boys Season 4 (2024) Amazon Prime Video, 18 July.

A lot has been said about this season of The Boys, it's hard to come up with anything original. This season has evidently been about setting up season 5, as we follow the Boys on a failing mission to take down the superheroes of the seven in Manhattan, New York. That being said, this season is incredibly creative with the use of superpowers. The sheer scale of the wicked gore left me with my jaw on the floor every episode, and there were some really interesting romantic developments too. In the current climate of the USA, I couldn't recommend this pessimistic show enough right now. 8/10.

20th July- Red Eye (Wes Craven, 2005)

I started watching this at home and finished it on a plane and it was exactly what I needed. I wanted a film I had never seen before to entertain me with melodramatic music, a gripping story, and some notable actors (Rachel McAdams and Cillian Murphy). Red Eye delivered on every cheese factor and is how Hollywood movies should be made in my opinion. Sometimes stuff like this is just the comfort you need. 8/10.

28th July- Deadpool & Wolverine (Shawn Levy, 2024)

I'm taking this film with a pinch of salt (that pinch being it's the first Deadpool movie I've seen) but from everything I've heard about this franchise, I felt a little let down by this. It was just references to (mostly) the Marvel Universe, some niche, some not (I loved when Ryan Reynolds referenced Gossip Girl), and once again, I didn't care for the plot. 6/10.

29th July- Downfall: The Case Against Boeing (Rory Kennedy, 2022)

As it goes with many of the Netflix documentaries, they are all stylistically the same; talking heads, voiceovers, bolding key words in documents; but they are always informative. Kennedy's documentary about Boeing is no exception, it exposes some horrific truths about the aviation company, and I'd recommend it to practically anyone, unless you're about to fly off on holiday, definitely don't watch this. 8/10.