Nerdy Squirrel Reviews by Pasckie Pascua

“Saturday Night” (2024, Netflix) biographical comedy-drama film directed by Jason Reitman , about the night of the 1975 premiere of NBC 's “Saturday Night,” later known as “ Saturday Night Live .”         The movie: 109 minutes of matching mostly relatively unknown actors and actresses with real SNL alumni that they were portraying. Oh that is Chevy Chase, John Belushi, Gilda Radner, Dan Aykroyd, Garrett Morris, Laraine Newman, Jane Curtin, Al Franken, Billy Crystal, Dick Ebersol, Milton Berle etc etcetera. There's Billy Preston and Janis Ian, too!         Of course Lorne Michaels is Gabriel LaBelle , although this young dude is also “unknown” somehow. The movie's center is Lorne so you don't miss him. Mr LaBelle earned a Golden Globe nomination for this but, I reckon, a young Billy Crystal would have done better.        At first, I didn't notice. But Matthew Rhys accounte...

“Arcadian” (2024, Hulu) post-apocalyptic action horror . Stars Nicolas Cage as the father of two teenage boys, all trying to survive in a post-apocalyptic world. The film opens with Mr Cage’s Paul scavenging for supplies in a storehouse and then fleeing through deserted back alleys, with the pandemonium of an apocalyptic event in the background, sirens blaring, sounds of distant explosions, and people screaming. He seeks refuge in a secluded spot, cradling his two infant boys and reassuring them that everything will be okay.        Directed with a focused camera and contained mayhem by Benjamin Brewer, this little movie from current indie marvel A24 Films is big. A briefie on Mr Brewer: He was the lead visual effects artist for huge Oscar winner and A24 breakthrough “Everything Everywhere All At Once” (2022). I didn’t like that movie though. Of late, Benjamin was the writer of “Reptile,” a Netflix crime thriller almost two years ago.   ...

“Roadkill” (Amazon Prime) British four-part drama thriller, starring Hugh Laurie as the Justice Minister whose private life is under fire from his enemies.         Would you sympathize with Peter Laurence? As Conservative politician? As a gallivanting husband? But Peter is not a cliché as you are prone to pre-judge such a man. Anyhow, Hugh's Peter is cool and breezy as mojitos and Cuban tobacco. That may cloud your reading. Chill a bit. This is a short series. The answer is in the final episode.         Meanwhile, everybody else around Mr Laurence, including Helen McCrory as the Prime Minister Dawn Ellison are jittery, nervous or anxious (though Dawn tries to look restrained).         “Roadkill” was written and created by playwright David Hare , whose best cinema work (according to me) was his smart and witty screenplay of 2002's “The Hours.” That's enough reason to w...

“A Different Man” (2024, Max) psychological dark comedy film, follows Edward, an actor with neurofibromatosis who undergoes an experimental procedure to change his face, only for his new life to make past insecurities and new issues apparent. In a supporting role as Oswald is Adam Pearson , who has neurofibromatosis for real. The genetic disorder causes tumors to grow on nerves, in the skin, and in other parts of the body. It's a progressive condition that affects the nervous system and can cause developmental abnormalities and learning disabilities.        The movie, Aaron Schimberg ’s third indie feature, reminds me of David Lynch’s “The Elephant Man” (1980), loosely based on Joseph Merrick , a severely deformed man who lived in London in the late 19th century . John Hurt portrayed Mr Merrick. Also 1985’s “Mask,” directed by Peter Bogdanovich . Eric Stoltz was Roy L. "Rocky" Dennis , a boy who had craniodiaphyseal dysplasia , an extremely rare g...

“Trigger Point” (Amazon Prime) British crime thriller starring Vicky McClure as a police bomb disposal expert in London . Kickass edge-of-seat thriller, indeed.         Ms McClure's Lana Washington is an ex- military bomb disposal operative (known as an “Expo”) and Afghan War veteran who heads a Metropolitan Police bomb squad, using her skills to counter terrorist threats involving explosives.        Coming from the remarkable “Line of Duty” series, Vicky sustains the deep-stare and steely grip in “Trigger Point.” You could almost feel the time-bomb tension in your veins then Lana brings you home  to the warm vulnerability and fragile borders of her private life.        A third series or season is upcoming. Yeah! 🎥👍📽  “Deceit” (Amazon Prime) British police drama miniseries , based on the true story of a controversial undercover operation carried out by Gre...

“Midsommar” (2019, Max) surrealist folk horror film written and directed by Ari Aster and stars Florence Pugh and Jack Reynor as an American couple who are drawn into a weird and violent cult in rural Sweden. So that is called “surrealist folk horror,” uh huh. Surreal, indeed!      This is an Ari Aster work. Aesthetic whackedness is expected. Weeks before, I saw his “Beau Is Weird,” and although Joaquin Phoenix's grip of his messed-up persona was incredible, that perfumed murk had no structure at all, if you ask me, though the overlying mental crisis theme was strong enough. “Midsommar” has more thought-flow or sane continuity. Yet still weird. Mr Aster doesn't have the fun fluidity and storytelling savvy of another albeit much better weird director, Wes Anderson. But Ari is better than Nicolas Winding Refn or John Waters, though the latter could be categorized in a weird sub-genre.       This movie's bizarreness isn't really a ...

“Woman of the Hour” (2023, Netflix) crime thriller directed by and stars Anna Kendrick , based on the true story of serial killer Rodney Alcala and his 1978 appearance on the television show “ The Dating Game ” in the midst of his murder spree.         A lot could have been done to make this movie more dramatically engaging but it simply fell into stereotypical lumbering recitation. No flesh, no fire.          Anna Kendrick as game show contestant Cheryl Bradshaw lacks the eager tension and fierce cool that the character could have projected. Daniel Zovatto as the serial killer woefully tried to look cute but lost (or confused) a hint of evil that lurked in the Rodney persona. Tony Hale as the game show host is both bored and boring. 🎥💻📽 “The Royal Hotel” (2023, Hulu) Australian psychological thriller , inspired by the 2016 documentary “Hotel Coolgardie” by Pete Gleeson. My easy click was due to Juli...

“3 Body Problem” (Netflix) science fiction adapted from the Chinese novel series “ Remembrance of Earth's Past ” by Liu Cixin . “ The Three-Body Problem ” of the novel series refers to a classical physics problem dealing with Isaac Newton's laws of motion and gravitation . Kinda deep, isn't it?           The series follows a diverse cast of scientists who all come into contact with an extraterrestrial civilization, leading to various threats and humanity-wide changes. The show started strong with a scene in a Chinese square, revolutionaries exhorting a mammoth crowd. And most of the way, proceedings pose compelling intrigues and alluring mysteries until things get a bit sentimental, even mawkish, midway. I don't dig the overwrought drama though. Maybe your will? I'd rather stick with the ET sci-fi premise.        I am not impressed as well with the young actors. I don't believe them; I'd rather see them i...