Happy Halloween! Here are a couple more recommendations from editor Serena Sweeney:
1) I’m Thinking of Ending Things (2020)
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A film you should try to watch this fall if you have not already is I’m Thinking of Ending Things (2020), a psychological thriller directed by Charlie Kaufman, and is based on a book by Ian Reid. It is one of the weirdest movies I have ever seen in my life, and is filled with horror, humor, misdirection and mystery. It is set during the bitter winter of modern-day Oklahoma. Lucy is headed with her boyfriend Jake to meet his parents at their isolated farm. Once she arrives there, things start to get weird. Initially the viewer is simply confused about X, but before long it becomes difficult to discern the order of events, how old the characters are, what time period it is, what is real versus a figment of imagination, or whether or not Lucy intends to end her romantic relationship or her life when she notes internally that “I’m thinking of ending things.” It is even unclear at times who is narrating the film, Jake or Lucy, even though we mostly follow Lucy, and we even hear her inner dialogue throughout the film. This film will not fail to confuse you, creep you out, and even make you laugh a little at the most unexpected times.
2) A Quiet Place (2018)
Hipwee.
One final film to try to watch before the fall ends is John Krasinski’s science-fiction thriller A Quiet Place (2018). This film centers on a post-apocalyptic small town where every person must make as little sound as possible in order to survive each day, due to the newfound presence of blind aliens with strong hearing abilities that attack and devour any sound they hear. When the film opens, we are following a mother, a father, and three young kids. The parents quickly realize that they cannot be negligent in any way or make a wrong step in their new reality dominated by aliens and they do everything they can to protect their children. We see what happens when a family’s strength and love for each other is put to this test by bloodthirsty aliens. This familial bond, along with the film’s sartorial aesthetic of cozy woolen sweaters and hats as they do their best to survive on their beautiful, expansive farm makes the film oddly warm and comforting, at least while it lasts. It is intriguing to have this sense of comfort to hold onto before the horrific series of events unfold.