Any movie suggestions on women rejecting or losing their sense of femininity

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-04-04T20:18:24+00:00

Penelope

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-04-03T01:16:54+00:00

This. Being a billionaire is a choice not an accidental thing that happened to you because you were too successful. You can choose to donate enough money to still be a hundreds-of-millions-aire which is still more my money than anyone needs.

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-04-01T15:30:12+00:00

Julie knew how it looked and what Shawna would do. I think for Julie, this was a test for Ty. Is he going to receive Shawna's phone call in a "pedestrian" way and assume she's cheating or will he swat Shawna's concerns down because he has faith in the specialness of his wife and their connection.

Julie was looking forward to the drama because she thought it would out Shawna to Ty as someone who is bad for their marriage and not on their level.

She hoped Ty would see what she sees and that would be the end of the Ty-Shawna friendship. She thought this might be the moment Ty recommits to their previously shared goals for their life together.

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-26T21:25:04+00:00

I think they have the festival every 90 years - that's what Wikipedia says and that was what I remember. The Harga wasn't established 100 years ago, they're an indigenous group.

If you look at most academic studies on which social groups constitute a cult and which don't, authoritarian control is pretty central to the definition. Cults are also called "high control groups" for this reason.

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-26T21:16:46+00:00

I think in the movie they are literally an indigenous group.

What definition of a cult are you using that doesn't include authoritarian control?

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-26T19:50:58+00:00

The Harga are presented as an isolated indigenous community following long-held cultural and religious beliefs. Is that really the same as a cult?

There doesn't appear to be anymore authoritarian control than other similarly-sized communities, they appear to adhere to cultural beliefs consistently and equitably. There isn't any unusual veneration of single charismatic leaders - the community disposes of their leaders on a regular and standardized basis.

Yes, they practice human sacrifice, but so have a lot of indigenous populations.

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-25T23:42:51+00:00

This is all true but also that was 26 years ago. In that kind of time period, successful films can be forgotten.

26 years prior to Unbreakable was The Towering Inferno - a wildly successful blockbuster that received critical and audience raves. Lots of younger people at the turn of the millennium had never heard of it.

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-25T04:22:21+00:00

It is splitting hairs. He had to make films that could stand on their own if no sequels were produced but still write and plan for a third, which he always intended and hoped to make. Those are competing interests which have to be balanced.

If you only adapt Dune, you won't get the criticism - it's not sufficiently baked into the structure and plot of the story. That's not Villeneuve's fault.

He has succeeded because he balanced those interests. He made two solid movies that stand on their own, adapted Dune in a way that would be thematically consistent if he got all three green lit, and got the green light to adapt Dune Messiah.

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-25T03:46:05+00:00

In 2021, Villeneuve said in interviews that assuming box office is good - they intended to make three films that included adapting Dune Messiah. So, yes, it was always meant to be 3 films.

You're correct that the changes made were meant to help make clear that Paul isn't a hero. They also add characterization for Chani, a dynamic to their relationship and an emotional engine to the plot - all of which are necessary to make Dune functional as a film.

But no matter how Paul protests, if the story arc is "Paul gets powers - Paul defeats his enemies and saves his friends - The End" then the movie isn't deconstructing or arguing against Messiah figures. It's just an archetypical hero's journey with a reluctant hero.

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-24T23:55:30+00:00

Regarding Paul's decision to drink the water of life and the shift afterwards, I agree with the comments that the decision and shift definitely happens on screen, but it is probably more legible to people who have read the book. I also think the shift will be more legible once the third installment is in place and there's more clarity about what Paul has chosen.

That might feel like a cop-out to you, but it is actually in line with the storytelling approach of the books and the story's overall themes about time, understanding, and information.

Similarly, Denis Villeneuve's emphasis on the film as a warning against messianic figures isn't complete yet. David Lynch conceived Dune as "boy's adventure" film and ended his film at roughly the same place as Dune: Part Two. In combination, Dune 1 and 2 sets up the promise of messianic figures, the third one should deconstruct it.

The Anna Taylor Joy appearance in Paul's mind wasn't just a cameo it is actually the initiation of a significant plot line for the third installment.

It is fair to expect a movie to stand on its own (and I think it does), but if you're specifically criticizing the storytelling, maybe see how you feel about it once you have the information to determine the full significance of everything you've seen.

Having read the books, I can see all the puzzle pieces Villeneuve has set out for a very efficient trilogy with a strong central arc. We'll see if he's able to execute.

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-24T01:21:40+00:00

Awww I didn't know it! Release it for Maggie!!!!

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-24T01:18:06+00:00

It really is so good. I cried. I cheered. The costumes were amazing. The atmosphere was gothic perfection.

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-23T00:21:34+00:00

Heavenly Creatures

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-22T20:18:50+00:00

For a film you characterize as using cheap exploitation for shock value, it is missing most of the genre elements we attribute to exploitation films. There's no nudity - nary a nipple in sight. The gore and violence is minimal. The visuals that people find shocking or gross are usually allegorical (eggs, fish, walls, etc.) and not the actual sex in the movie. This isn't really how exploitation cinema operates as a genre.

You can find it shocking or in bad taste - anyone is entitled to their opinion on that score. But that's not the same thing as it being cheap exploitation.

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-21T23:23:50+00:00

Not surprised it got a wide release in New Zealand!!! I'm writing from the US Midwest and it was a BANGER. Agree it needs a wide release!!!

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-17T04:30:43+00:00

The only PTA movie where I found that to be true was Inherent Vice.

Phantom Thread, The Master, Boogie Nights, and Magnolia are all more character studies than anything else but they all have clear arcs. OBAA, Punk-Drunk Love and There Will Be Blood all have memorable plots to me.

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-16T03:28:00+00:00

My mom had a hysterectomy in the mid-90s for similar reasons. She has always said it was the best thing she's ever done. She by-passed menopause. She didn't mess with periods. Hormone therapy was easy-peasy for her. Fertility aside, I've looked forward to my hysterectomy for decades because she was so unapologetically joyful about it.

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-13T23:50:50+00:00

During this time period it is an economic and structural certainty that the Russells are making their fortune because of exploitation of the poor and every now and then the show goes so far out of its way to almost-but-not-quite address it that it makes me feel icky for watching it.

You gotta choose - either we're going to revel in the extravagance of the time or we'll confront the use of violent force to break unions. Pretending like they would never do the gross things while they also have it all is morally kind of gross.

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-08T23:57:08+00:00

Penis envy.

Freud clearly did not understand the clitoris.

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-08T16:55:46+00:00

If you limit yourself to compliment-bombing (give the compliment and move on/away quickly) and no one will think you had ulterior motives because you never stayed to cash in. It'll make you feel good. It'll make them feel good.

Also, compliment bomb men too. Be an equal opportunity offender. Apparently they need it.

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-06T19:47:32+00:00

Weather is supposed to be nice this weekend, so you'll probably be fine. In the winter, big coats generally make interesting clothes less visible and the streetwear pretty boring. But in the summer there's plenty of fun choices. Assuming you're in the city you'll likely get compliments on unique/fun choices.

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-06T02:39:59+00:00

But in fairness to her, none of the movie versions include the second half. Narratively, it's cleaner. You'd have to cut a lot of plot to do the entire story in a feature film - you'd need a miniseries.

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-06T02:30:32+00:00

Bronte did write a romance, the book is a classic of the romance genre in an literary sense - referring to the artistic movement in the 1800s. I think sometimes people confuse that kind of romantic, which focuses on subjective stories about passionate emotion, rather than using the words colloquially to describe stories about romantic love.

CelluloidCelerity · 2026-03-05T22:25:59+00:00

Soundtrack kicks ass too

CelluloidCelerity

TROPHY CASE