by Julian Spivey
In December I saw something called the “12 Movies Challenge” on Facebook. The premise was that you would have 12 months to watch 12 movies recommended by 12 friends. I don’t often participate in such social media challenges but being a movie buff I felt this might be an interesting way to get out of my comfort zone a bit when it comes to watching movies.

My Facebook buds gave me some films that I’ve been meaning to watch and I pretty much front-loaded those on the list – though not explicitly stated in the challenge rules I am opting to watch one film a month.

A Best Picture winner like “Out of Africa” is an obvious choice for me to get to at some point – that point is now going to be March of this year. But there are certain movies I’m not really looking forward to all that much – I’m looking at you “The Ghost and Mr. Chicken,” my August selection. Then there’s the acclaimed stuff that isn’t really up my alley like the anime feature “Spirited Away,” which I’ve scheduled for November. That will truly be me getting out of my comfort zone.
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Here are the 12 movies recommended to me and the months I’ve assigned myself to watch them:
 
January: “Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence” (1983)
February: “Till” (2022)
March: “Out of Africa” (1985)
April: “Legally Blonde” (2001)
May: “The Devil Wears Prada” (2006)
June: “The Birdcage” (1996)
July: “Morning Glory” (2010)
August: “The Ghost and Mr. Chicken” (1966)
September: “Pan’s Labyrinth” (2006)
October: “Rocky Horror Picture Show” (1975)
November: “Spirited Away” (2001)
December: “The Last Laugh” (1924) 

 
My friend Brittany has been trying to get me to watch Guillermo del Toro’s 2006 Spanish-Mexican historical dark fantasy horror film “Pan’s Labyrinth” pretty much ever since we met.
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Despite hearing absolutely nothing but glowing things about the film I had been reluctant to do so for a number of reasons: I’m not a big international film viewer because of the subtitles (I know, bad American, bad!) and I’m not a huge horror film person, especially modern horror with gore.

But Brittany finally got me when I embarked upon this 12 Movies Challenge. And I’m so glad she finally got me to watch “Pan’s Labyrinth.” It’s certainly not immediately going up on my list of all-time favorite films, but I enjoyed it and can confirm what I’d always heard it’s a truly great film.

About some of those things I feared …

Reading subtitles for the duration of the film didn’t take away from the whole of what was taking place on screen as I feared it might – maybe this is the first step into opening up the world of international film for me. I know there’s some Akira Kurosawa (“Rashomon” is one of the few international pictures I had previously seen), Francois Truffaut and others I’ve always been meaning to get around to seeing.

“Pan’s Labyrinth” is certainly horrific, but I didn’t find it to be a horror movie. I guess if a film has monsters in it it can be classified as horror – but there’s nothing particularly scary in the film, for an adult at least.

While the Pale Man is certainly creepy and even the Faun, though a “good guy” is creepy looking, the most horrific character in “Pan’s Labyrinth” is without a doubt Captain Vidal, an officer in the fascist Francoist Spain military during the latter days of WWII. He’s ruthless, violent, egotistical and also the new stepfather of the film’s Ofelia, played by the young Ivana Baquero, a child who’s come to stay at the mill Vidal’s men have taken over in an effort to combat guerilla fighters in the area refusing to adhere to the regime with her sickly mother Carmen (Ariadna Gil) who’s pregnant with Vidal’s son and he cares more about the well-being of his family lineage than his wife.

Ofelia, who believes in fairy tales though living the furthest life from one, is tasked by a Faun with completing a list of three things – honestly, the fantastical elements of the film are the parts that interested me the least, despite playing an important, yet kind of second-tier aspect in the film. I found myself more interested in what was going on between Vidal and the guerillas, especially the spy factor of Mercedes, played by Maribel Verdu, who was helping the guerillas while being trusted as essentially head maid of the mill.

“Pan’s Labyrinth” could’ve been told as simply a tragic historical drama of Falangist Spain, but del Toro loves the fantastical and also I think you need the fantasy aspect to put a nice bow on the film with its ending, which I won’t spoil, but will say I don’t think you’d get from an American film. It’s too dark I think for a typical American audience.

The three lead performances in “Pan’s Labyrinth” are all terrific. Rarely do I find myself interested in child characters and the performances of child actresses but Baquero, who was 11 when the film was made, does a fantastic job of portraying so many different feelings throughout the film. Verdu is great as Mercedes, a role that proves to be just as heroic as our child lead. But the best performance in the film is Sergi Lopez as the monstrous Captain Vidal, something made all the more fascinating by my learning after I finished the film that he was more of a comic actor prior to his performance in this film. Lopez’s performance is one of the more brutal I’ve ever seen brought to film and helps to really hit home the horrors of fascism. 

James Wan’s right-hand man, Michael Chaves (“The Curse of La Llorona”), again offers some cool visuals, effective jump scares and mountains of potential with “The Nun II,” but the script is so stilted and scattershot with the main ideas being so contradictory to the film’s mentality that ultimately … none of it works.

One star, though, for the boiling/evaporating Holy Water in the opening sequence. Another star for how distraught Taissa Farmiga's character got over not having a hotel reservation.
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“The Nun II” is currently in theaters.

“A Haunting in Venice” is the best of director/star Kenneth Branagh’s Hercule Poirot mysteries. This horror-tinged entry exercises a great sense of calm and luscious detail. The camera placement, extreme angles and multiple lens types shows an assuredness not felt in the previous two entries. It is such a relief to see the utilization of real locations here considering “Death on the Nile” looked like a PC video game from 1997. It also doesn't hurt that the core mystery not only suffices but props up some interesting if not fully fleshed out themes that (thankfully) are not only present to serve as tired concepts for Branagh to hang his ornamental aesthetic on.
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“A Haunting in Venice” is currently in theaters.

​“My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3,” written and directed by its star Nia Vardalos, is maybe the most awkwardly directed movie of the year? Despite the film featuring sitcom-level comedy and a complete lack of craftsmanship, Vardalos and crew still manage to deliver a wholesome and touching enough time that, while wholly artificial, somehow delivers genuine moments where it counts.
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“My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3” is currently in theaters.

I’m not sure what, if anything, Adam Sandler and co. are trying to say, but it feels very intentional that older sister Sandler essentially watches movies on her phone for the entirety of “You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah,” while Daddy Sandman makes it a point to go to the theater at least twice; attempting to drag his younger daughter along with him. Always a man with a keen sense of balance, this bipartisan support of multiple forms with which to consume media is not lost on me even if I don’t fully understand this type of motivation from a guy who’s made untold amounts of money via a streamer.
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“You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah” is streaming on Netflix. 

Director: Emma Seligman
Starring: Rachel Sennott, Ayo Edebiri & Havana Rose Liu 
Rated: R (crude sexual content, language & some violence)
Runtime: 1 hour & 31 minutes

​I wanted to watch this again as soon as the credits (which were intercut with bloopers, I might add) ended. For 92 minutes writer/director Emma Seligman's (“Shiva Baby”) sophomore effort maintains a level of energy and intensity that shouldn't be overlooked. It's easy for movies to come out of the gate strong, and it's admittedly difficult for movies to stick the landing, but one of the most overlooked and undervalued skills in filmmaking as a beginning-to-end process is maintaining the tone and energy you come out of the gate with through to the end and “Bottoms” comes out of the gate strong. Fortunately, Seligman and star Rachel Sennott's screenplay seemingly accomplishes everything it sets out to do, but more importantly, it excels in doing so. The way in which the dialogue feels so natural, the rate at which the jokes land and the simple creativity involved in crafting and conveying this hyper-realized version of high school where no one is subtle about or offended by which clique they belong to or where they land in the pecking order is simultaneously so impressive and so wildly funny that those aforementioned 92-minutes feel like nothing, a tease, which means all you can and want to do when the film ends is to watch it again immediately.
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“Bottoms” is a film as easy to appreciate as it is to be entertained by. It's not hard to spot all the ways in which Seligman and Sennott wanted to put their own stamp on the genre. This is still very much a high school movie in the vein of two best friends trying to get laid their senior year before leaving for college, but with the gender swap bit being only the first layer in their scheme to recontextualize this quest we've witnessed so many times before. Sennott and breakout star Ayo Edebiri are best friends PJ and Josie who are also both lesbians but are not involved with one another romantically. Josie is crushing on head cheerleader Isabel (Havana Rose Liu) who is currently dating the alpha male of the school in Josh (Nicholas Galitzine) while PJ would love to hook up with Isabel's right-hand gal Brittany (Kaia Gerber) because she may as well be Cindy Crawford ;). Sounds simple enough, right? It is. Don't fret. Thematically we're not going for much more than some simple, universal truths about how tough it can be in those coming-of-age years, but it is in the attitude and style of how it presents itself that “Bottoms” really stands on its own.

When talking of the heightened reality in which the film takes place it is an environment where there is no telegraphing of emotion or alternative motives, there are no unconscious messages to be conveyed. Instead, every single character may also be one of those people who wear their opinions on their faces no matter the circumstances. These kids say what's on their mind, they play into the roles fate has dealt them and advertise wholly what's going on beneath the surface no matter the situation. When talking of the appreciation for the film and the thought and/or consideration Seligman and Sennott have included this means listening to the announcements going on in the background or noticing the mural in the cafeteria where the football team sits at a head table, dressed in full uniform every day, as if they're a wedding party or something. The seating arrangements and desk decorations in classrooms, not including any parents outside of the one crucial to the plot, and the straight-up ridiculousness of both the pep rally (the cheerleader performance bit is hysterical) and the final football game only heighten this reality further, but it also rounds out the expectations for the arcs of these self-admitted losers who otherwise might not have as exciting stories to tell.

Key to the tone and understanding of this world is the fact there is no real structure in place. Marshawn Lynch plays a teacher in the loosest definition of the word while the principal (Wayne Pére) is as transparent as the students - which is to say, he doesn't pull his punches. The lives of these kids are perfectly portrayed through the lens of that weird transitional time where you don't have to rely on your parents much anymore but still don't have the crushing weight of adult responsibilities looming over your conscious and your schedule. As a result of both this lack of authority and the hyperrealism of the tone what we get is this rebellious and unruly spirit that pulses throughout the actions of PJ (an anarchist if ever there was one) and Josie (a rule follower who can't help but be tempted) as they put together their fight club and subsequently fight through their emotions, complicated feelings, and harsh truths as presented via humorous situations in a setting where it's easy to be liked if you're easy on the eyes but dismissed and overlooked if you don't wear flattering clothes or dare to challenge the status quo.

The execution of these kinds of high-minded takes on low-brow comedy is what determines how successful things will be though, and it is the chemistry and camaraderie of Sennott and Edebiri that really sells the shit out of this kind of absurdist take on a standard premise. Edebiri's voice is both adorable and hilarious and the way in which she delivers her hesitant reactions against Sennott’s more direct missiles is so complimentary I couldn't get through her first little monologue about the 20-year reunion without cackling. The ensemble doesn't hurt either as newcomer Havana Rose Liu is something of a revelation and Ruby Cruz, who I've not seen or heard of before either, really feels like she’s onto something big. Galitzine and Lynch are so zeroed in on how they fit into the puzzle that one couldn't ask for more and while the finale begins to stretch thin the capabilities of the limited budget - both visually and conceptually - it needs to be acknowledged that spending some of that budget on licensing "Total Eclipse of the Heart" and an all-timer of an Avril Lavigne needle drop was totally worth it. Needless to say, “Bottoms” is one of my favorite movies I've seen this year and a movie I hope is played on repeat at countless teen sleepovers for generations to come.

Director: Antoine Fuqua
Starring: Denzel Washington, Dakota Fanning & Eugenio Mastrandrea 
Rated: R (strong bloody violence and some language)
Runtime: 1 hour & 49 minutes

​Denzel Washington is 68 years old and will be 69 this December. I can recall taking note of this fact when writing about the previous ‘Equalizer’ films as Washington was about to turn 60 shortly after the first premiered. In the last decade Washington, arguably one of our greatest and most charismatic actors, has not only made his first trilogy of films in the ‘Equalizer’ movies but has also been busy making character studies with Dan Gilroy, directing August Wilson’s “Fences,” as well as starring in Shakespeare adaptations with a Coen brother while sprinkling in a few other excursions like ‘Equalizer’ director Antoine Fuqua's “The Magnificent Seven” re-make and John Lee Hancock’s “The Little Things.”

While eight films in nine years may not seem like the actor is slowing down this most recent decade's worth of work compared to the previous mark some notable shifts in Washington's frame of mind. From 2003 to 2013 Denzel starred in a total of 13 films, nine of which were first categorized as an action movie. Not only was Washington more active in general, but he was choosing more physically demanding projects and while it’s obvious why the actor would want to slow down the older he gets this ‘Equalizer’ franchise has shown us Denzel can still pull it off when he wants. This all to say, “The Equalizer 3” is shockingly slow in its pacing and even when the action ramps up, it is limited. Whether this is to give Washington’s Robert McCall a break as well, because Fuqua wanted a steadier final act for his hero, or simply so that the (somewhat anticlimactic) payoff felt more rewarding after a long stretch of quiet, I’m not sure. Either way, this “choice” doesn’t do so much for the quality of the film as this third and final installment is again a rather by-the-numbers genre picture elevated only by having an actor of Washington’s caliber at the center to carry it.

Of course, the question from the get-go with this was how credible another McCall story might be at Washington’s age, but both Fuqua and his star find an intense and intimidating way around this in the opening sequence. Interestingly, that opening sequence may be the most impressive thing the film has to offer for most as it sees McCall doing what he does best in the most badass way before winding up in the sleepy coastal (and fictional) town of Altamonte in Sicily after an encounter with an underaged gunman. For the next 50 minutes of the film, we are simply vacationing with Denzel as he recovers from a gunshot wound and immerses himself in this community he’s stumbled upon. Further, the screenplay takes this time to define the people of this small but meaningful group of people as well as naturally putting in play a threat that’s connected to a local mafia and the pressure from outside forces that threatens to disrupt the peace in Altamonte. Throw in the CIA agents McCall anonymously ropes into the situation given he knows there’s more to this mafia than what it may initially appear, but while nice to see McCall find a kind of peace among the people of Altamonte and while nice to have some gorgeously cinematic shots of this insanely inviting town, and even as nice as it is to see Washington reunited with Dakota Fanning (it’s been 19 years since “Man on Fire”!) who plays one of the aforementioned CIA agents, there is something about every decision here that feels as if it were made with the goal being to take the easiest, most efficient way out when it came to closing this franchise.

Even in the construction of the film from a practical point of view, the score does a lot of heavy lifting and Fuqua relies on the fade-out/fade-in technique so often from scene to scene that it’s almost as if there was no intent to try and mesh the story with the filmmaking. This is without mentioning the issues with the script itself which, aside from taking that hour break from action in the middle of an action movie, provides us with a stock villain who might have had potential had they given him more screen time or maybe even more of an intimidation factor in the performance, but Andrea Scarduzio simply doesn’t have enough time or the presence to emphasize what he’s going for. The same could be said for Fanning’s presence as she is more or less wasted here given that 90 percent of her scenes feature her on a phone call while 90 percent of her being good at her job is due solely to the information McCall feeds her directly.

It’s not hard to understand why the film would want to focus on McCall and his arc or that it wants to keep Washington at the center of things, this is a completely understandable decision as even more than the “Robert McCall” of it all, Denzel Washington is the star here and the reason people will venture out to see this movie. Did I see both previous ‘Equalizer’ films? Of course. Do I remember much about them or McCall’s arc as a character that brought him to where he is at the beginning of this film? Not really. To that point, there is something of an arc for McCall to travel this time around as he has to admit to himself that he is getting older, that he may need to work smarter instead of harder, as well as questioning not necessarily why he does what he does, but if his actions towards accomplishing a greater good ultimately make he himself a good or bad man. This is limited to maybe two conversations though, so don’t think we get too contemplative here despite the film being rather patient in getting to what we paid for. Does it eventually get to what we paid for and do we see Denzel dispensing fools in between checking his stopwatch? Again, of course. Does that old-age mentality of working smarter, not harder make this whole thing feel even more like it takes the easy way out? Unfortunately, most definitely.

Director: Neill Blomkamp 
Starring: Archie Madekwe, David Harbour & Orlando Bloom
Rated: PG-13 (intense action & some strong language)
Runtime: 2 hours & 14 minutes

​Commercials are meant to convince and are often made to be compelling in order to do so. I've been emotionally affected by plenty of life insurance ads over the years, but “Gran Turismo” takes things to another level in what is essentially a two-hour-and-15-minute endorsement of the Sony, PlayStation, Nissan and Gran Turismo brand as a whole. To dismiss this as little more than an advertisement would be a mistake though as “Gran Turismo” is arguably the way in which Hollywood should be operating and approaching tentpole films in 2023. Utilizing the brand as an excuse to hire interesting directors such as Neill Blomkamp (“District 9”) who can handle the logistics of these large productions while adding his unique stamp and essentially earmarking a genre movie around said brand is a win/win situation. In this capacity, not only do all of these companies get to slap their names all over everything in justifiable ways, but the creatives are given license to do things like take a shot at making their own sports movie that, while still adhering to the hallmarks of the genre, is not only well-executed but more importantly - both convincing and compelling.
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And “Gran Turismo” is very well-executed. The visual prowess and scale of the film not only sell the stakes and intensity of the sport in question but also on Blomkamp's skill as a director in what is easily his best film since his 2009 debut. Josha Stradowski is immediately set up as the villain and main adversary of the piece as the former employer of David Harbour's once-promising racer, Jack Salter. Orlando Bloom is a Nissan marketing guy who comes up with the scheme to pull in the best simulator racers to see if they can compete in real-world scenarios. Bloom's character hires Salter as the gamer's trainer which introduces us to Jann Mardenborough (Archie Madekwe) a dedicated ‘GT’ player who has a complicated relationship with his father (Djimon Hounsou) regarding his passions. All of these elements put in play the underdog arc, the mentor/student relationship that slowly builds to an unbreakable bond, the father/son reconciliation, and hell - they even throw in a romantic interest (Maeve Courtier-Lilley) for good measure.

Each of these could go the way of extreme cheese given they’re rather reliable tropes of the genre, but Blomkamp and co. use the singularities of the racing world as well as the uniqueness of Jann’s predicament to layer in fresh feeling folds atop the otherwise standard structure. It’s funny because the whole conflict between Jann and his father has to deal with the amount of time Jann spends in front of a screen playing video games with the triumph of the story being that it pays off which is such the exception to the standard, but just as I began to somewhat dismiss the idea of there being any credible subtext or weight to the film’s messaging as it seemed more to fulfill a fantasy than encourage a reality the film brought in a moment to also acknowledge the reality and dangers of the sport. This, fortunately, grounds the delusion that Jann achieved what he did because he was a typical gamer, but more because his interest was first in the mechanics of racing and the cars he was racing rather than only playing video games. Much credit to Harbour as well who carries so much of the emotional weight of this film that he would be justified in garnering a Supporting Actor nom for a video game movie.

Finally, if nothing else convinces you this is worth seeing on a big screen with an incredible sound system (preferably IMAX if you have the option) then know this: Ginger Spice plays the mom. You’re welcome.

Director: Angel Manuel Soto
​Starring: Xolo Maridueña, Bruna Marquezine & George Lopez
Rated: PG-13 (sequences of action/violence, language and some suggestive references)
Runtime: 2 hours & 7 minutes

​A true blue (literally) origin story that is so aware of its own expectations and limits that it actually works the “it’s the journey, not the destination” stuff into the movie itself. If what’s important is that we’re on this journey together though, “Blue Beetle” at least knows how to lather the charm on top of its otherwise paint-by-numbers story. Having the ability to separate itself from the mess that is the current DCU doesn’t hurt either, but it is how director Angel Manuel Soto separates his film stylistically - whether indicative of James Gunn’s universe or not - combined with the appeal of the core family unit that makes this well-worn tale worth investing in. 
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To this end, Xolo Maridueña makes it easy for the audience to root for him as not only does he offer the aforementioned inherent charm, but he also plays Jaime Reyes as an earnest, bumbling goof. While I know nothing of the history of the Blue Beetle in the comics, the film positions Reyes as someone who doesn’t typically get the win and even when he does, it’s not pretty. This is seemingly meant to be symptomatic of the treatment of Latinos both in the realm of comic book movies as well as culturally, but while Maridueña and his co-stars - including Belissa Escobedo, George Lopez, Adriana Barraza and Damián Alcázar - bring a fun dynamic to the proceedings with the one fresh trait of the film being that it integrates Jaime's family into the world-saving plot it does this at the expense of fleshing out its titular hero. 

Bobby Krlic's score suggests this is a coming-of-age movie, that the ragtag bunch of heroes who come into possession of a powerful weapon are suddenly responsible for keeping it out of the hands of the bad guys whilst romance simmers beneath the surface of Jaime and Jenny's (Bruna Marquezine) budding friendship. And while the score does boast an instantly recognizable theme while nailing Soto's desired tone the film falls short of etching out why the unassuming Jaime is a hero, why these powers chose him, and where this weapon truly comes from (it just fell out of the sky?). I'm sure all involved were banking on the sequel the mid-credits scene suggests that might have fleshed out some context, but what made “Iron Man” so distinct (besides RDJ's portrayal) is the conviction that anchored Tony Stark's arc, and this simply isn't present in Jaime Reyes.

I bring up “Iron Man” as “Blue Beetle” essentially apes the MCU originator's entire third act in addition to a plot device that asks what if Tony Stark became an experiment and anti-hero rather than taking out Iron Monger in round one. Granted, Raoul Max Trujillo's head CG’d on the big metal body looks better here than Ruffalo's did in ‘Infinity War,’ but that's beside the point as Jaime never truly feels called to be a hero the way Jenny does due to her familial history, the way Nana does due to her past experiences, or even the way Lopez's Uncle Rudy does as a man who sees this as his last chance to deliver on his unfulfilled potential. And maybe that's the point, maybe that's why the family unit is so integral so that by the third act Jaime has seen examples of what it means to be a hero and why it's necessary he put up a fight, but while Maridueña is charming it never feels like we earn the supposed transformation. 

Jenny's convictions still exist as do the Reyes family's struggles regarding the impending gentrification of their community by Kord Industries AKA Jenny's evil Aunt (Susan Sarandon) who took over the family company after Jenny's father and grandfather died. I expected this idea of the big corporation pushing the little guy out of the place they've called home to be the emblematic portion of the film conveying the immigrant experience but was surprised to find Jaime largely comes off as indifferent when confronted with these possibilities. I realize I’m somewhat harping and do want to emphasize that “Blue Beetle” is a fun, neon-colored Saturday morning cartoon of a comic book movie that really hooked me with the "The Blame it on the Boogie" needle drop and utilization of physical sets and a distinct aesthetic. I appreciate all these things and am happy this film exists, but the forgettable personality at the center of the excitement makes this feel more like "Bland Beetle" than a franchise (or universe, for that matter) ringleader.

The thing you have to recognize about “Strays,” directed by Josh Greenbaum, is that despite somehow winding up in theaters at the tail end of the summer movie season it wasn't made for sober high school kids looking to sneak into a raunchy R-rated comedy on a Friday night (do kids still do that?) only to be disappointed by the lack of laughs, but rather this was made for those kids to discover five years down the road when they're stoned in college looking for something mindless to watch and come across “Strays” on streaming. At that point, this shit should be hilarious as I myself, a 36-year-old sober father of three who saw this alone on a Thursday evening, found enough here to consistently laugh at even if it only made me miss the golden age of Will Ferrell even more than I already do.

"Strays" is currently in theaters. 

I’m still not convinced Gal Gadot wasn't playing some type of A.I. cyborg who developed genuine emotion rather than an infiltrator who caught feelings (there's evidence in the dialogue and I won't throw shade at the easy target of Gadot's acting), but either way - I had more fun with this for more of the runtime than I didn't than I probably should have. Even still, “Heart of Stone,” directed by Tom Harper, is visually one step away from those Frank Grillo Redbox movies.

"Heart of Stone" is streaming on Netflix

Knowing nothing of Golda Meir or the Yom Kippur War that lasted 19 days in October of 1973, director Guy Nattiv’s film doesn’t teach so much as it does showcase some sleek yet simple direction, a neat score in the vein of “Atonement,” and, of course, a fine performance from Helen Mirren at its center. Unfortunately, it entertains about as much as it educates, which is to say little of it is intriguing.

​"Golda" is currently in theaters. 

"We are living through the sixth mass extinction. This is, in part, due to your use of a luxury yacht. This yacht serves no practical purpose. Using it poisons our water. The gas that powers it boils our oceans and destroy our atmosphere.

As a wealthy person, you may escape some of these consequences, for now. But they are here. People are dying. Communities are being wiped off the face of the planet - today. We can still prevent a climate catastrophe. But if the market will not act then we will.
If the law will not punish you, then we will.

We must disable CO-2 emitting devices today, not tomorrow. We cannot wait."

I did not leave the "s" off of destroys. That's how the flyer read in the film. Even activists need an editor. Props to the editor of “How to Blow Up a Pipeline” though, who makes this tightly-wound PSA zip by - especially when paired with Gavin Brivik's tension-filled score. The film, directed by Daniel Goldhaber, is a scrappy, well-constructed sermon even if one can detect the seams of said construction. It’s not not persuasive and I certainly appreciate the ambition and intention, but don't know if it's powerful or poignant enough to convert the skeptics.

"How to Blow Up a Pipeline" is streaming on Hulu.