The Alex Archives

It has been a while since I saw Birdman, the first time I saw it was when my mom rented the DVD of the movie after it won Best Picture at the 87th Academy Awards. It has always been on my mind, not only because it was directed by a Mexican (Alejandro Gonzales Iñarritu) but because it was an amazing movie filled with symbolism and perhaps a caution tale for the future. This year has been interesting for film and movie theaters, especially when the top 3 movies are not comic-book or sequel-related projects and one of them is a 3-hour historical drama. While franchise movies are all struggling at the Box Office.  Perhaps it is fitting this week, in a TikTok video, Martin Scorsese chose Birdman over The Good, the Bad and the Ugly , sparking a discussion on Twitter (now 𝕏) about the movie. This made me rewatch the film, it has been almost 2 years since I last saw it and I thought it was also a great mental exercise. What I found after this 3rd or 4th rewatch is a movie that not only sh...

Story  -   A small-time gambler hired to work in a Buenos Aires casino discovers his employer's new wife is his former lover. Cast  -  Rita Hayworth, Glenn Ford, George Macready Crew  -  Charles Vidor (Director), E.A. Ellington (Writer), Jo Eisinger (Writer), Marion Parsonnet (Writer) Runtime   - 110  minutes           Gilda, Are You Decent? I have rarely seen a movie from the 40s this unapologetically horny. Gilda is an amazing character, the best thing from the movie, played by Rita Hayworth, she is a woman capable of getting what she wants by using her attractiveness. Making strong eye contact with men, making them nervous and confusing them, is so amazing. I want to compare her to Marilyn Monroe but I have only seen 2 movies with her on it. Taking place in Argentina after WW2, it depicts perhaps some oddly specific things about the country, first the Tungsten cartels from which Gilda's husband Ballin Mudson -played by ...

Story  - When her family moves from the city to the suburbs, 11-year-old Margaret navigates new friends, feelings, and the beginning of adolescence. Cast  -  Abby Ryder Fortson, Rachel McAdams, Kathy Bates Crew  -  Kell Fremon Craig (Director/Writer) Judy Blume (Writer) Runtime   - 107  minutes           We must, we must, we must increase our bust! I wish more girls could see themselves represented in the movies we make. Studios often focus on male teens and their groups (Goonies, The Oustiders, etc.) but it is so refreshing we see one that focuses on teen girls in a way that is realistic, endearing, and warm. It is no surprise I loved this movie as much as I did, after all, I love Turning Red and Only Yesterday, two movies that also focus on women, although in different ways. Still, I believe this market is underrepresented, and hopefully, we see that change soon. This movie basically winds down to a coming-of-age film, about...

Story  - After a fateful near-miss, an assassin battles his employers, and himself, on an international manhunt he insists isn't personal. Cast  -  Michael Fassbender, Tilda Swinton, Charles Parnell Crew  -  David Fincher (Director), Andrew Kevin Walker (Writer), Alexis Nolent (Writer), Luc Jacamon (Writer) Runtime   - 118  minutes          

Story  -  A small-town sheriff in the American West enlists the help of a disabled man, a drunk, and a young gunfighter in his efforts to hold in jail the brother of the local bad guy. Cast  -  John Wayne, Dean Martin, Ricky Nelson, Walter Brenan, Angie Dickinson, Claude Akins Crew  -  Howard Hawks (Director), Jules Furthman (Writer), Leigh Brackett (Writer), B. H. McCampbell (Writer) Runtime   - 141  minutes          

Story  -  Joe May's sensual drama of life in the Berlin underworld is in many ways the perfect summation of German filmmaking in the silent era: a dazzling visual style, a psychological approach to its characters, and the ability to take a simple and essentially melodramatic story and turn it into something more complex and inherently cinematic. Cast  -  Albert Steinrück, Else Heller, Gustav Fröhlich, Betty Amann Crew  -  Joe May (Director/Writer), Hans Székely (Writer), Rolf E. Vanloo (Writer) Runtime   -  94  minutes          

Story  -  Secret Service agent Frank Horrigan couldn't save Kennedy, but he's determined not to let a clever assassin take out this president. Cast  -  Clint Eastwood, John Malkovich, Rene Russo Crew  -  Wolfgang Petersen (Director) Jeff Maguire (Writer) Runtime  - 128 minutes          

Story  -  Two rock-'n-rolling teens, on the verge of failing their class, set out on a quest to make the ultimate school history report after being presented with a time machine. Cast  -  Keanu Reeves, Alex Winter, George Carlin Crew  -  Stephen Herek (Director), Chris Matheson (Writer), Ed Solomon (Writer) Runtime  - 90 minutes          

Story  -  Jo March reflects back and forth on her life, telling the beloved story of the March sisters - four young women, each determined to live life on her own terms. Cast  -  Saoirse Ronan, Florence Pugh, Rmma Watson, Eliza Scanlen, Laura Dern Crew  -  Greta Gerwig (Director/Writer) Runtime  - 135 minutes          

Story - The Eternals are a team of ancient aliens who have been living on Earth in secret for thousands of years. When an unexpected tragedy forces them out of the shadows, they are forced to reunite against mankind’s most ancient enemy, the Deviants. Cast - Gemma Chan, Richard Madden, Angelina Jolie, Kumail Nanjiani, Barry Keoghan, Salma Hayek Crew - Chloé Zhao (Director/Writer), Patrick Burleigh (Writer), Ryan Firpo (Writer), Kaz Firpo (Writer) Runtime - 156 minutes          

Story  -  An honest New York cop named Frank Serpico blows the whistle on rampant corruption in the force only to have his comrades turn against him. Cast  -  Al Pacino, John Randolph, Jack Kehoe, Biff McGuire, Barbara Eda-Young Crew  -  Sidney Lumet (Director), Waldo Salt (Writer), Normal Wexler (Writer) Runtime  -  130 minutes          

  Story - Based on a famous Mexican legend, a group of kids must stop the ghost of a woman whose guilt over the drowning of her own children leads her to abduct youngsters who wander the woods at night in this subtitled, Spanish-language animated adventure. Cast - Yair Prado, Mónica del Carmen, Rafael Inclán, Andrés Couturier Crew - Alberto Rodríguez (Director/Writer), Ricardo Arnais (Writer), Omar Mustre (Writer), Jesús Gumán (Writer) Runtime - 81 minutes          

Story  -  A scientist in a surrealist society kidnaps children to steal their dreams, hoping that they slow his aging process. Cast  -  Ron Perlman, Dominique Pinon, Judith Vittet, Daniel Emilfork Crew  -  Jean-Pierre Jeunet (Director/Writer), Marc Caro (Director/Writer), Gilles Adrien (Writer) Runtime  -  108 minutes          

Story  -  Miles Morales catapults across the Multiverse, where he encounters a team of Spider-People charged with protecting its very existence. When the heroes clash on how to handle a new threat, Miles must redefine what it means to be a hero. Cast  -  Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfeld, Jason Schwartzman, Oscar Isaac Crew  -  Joaquim Dos Santos (Director), Justin K. Thompson (Director), Kemp Powers (Director) Runtime  - 140 minutes          

Story - Max goes to college, but to his embarrassment, his father loses his job and goes to his son's campus. Cast -  Bill Farmer, Jason Marsden, Jeff Bennett, Jim Cummings Crew -  Douglas McCarthy  (Director), Scott S. Gorden  (Writer), Hillary Carlip  (Writer) Runtime - 79 minutes          

Story - Former World War II flying ace Matt Brennan takes a position as a test pilot for a commercial aircraft corporation and bumps into his old girlfriend, Jo Holloway, who now works as a receptionist for the company. Cast - Humphrey Bogart, Eleanor Parker, Raymond Massey, Richard Whorf Crew - Stuart Heisler (Director), Liam O'Brien (Writer), Lester Cole (Writer), Vincent B. Evans (Writer) Runtime - 94 minutes          

Story - An alien lifeform consumes everything in its path as it grows and grows. Cast - Steve McQueen, Aneta Corsaut, Earl Rowe, John Benson Crew - Irvin S. Yeaworth Jr. (Director), Theodore Simonson (Writer), Kate Phillips (Writer) Runtime - 86 minutes          

The Story - A frustrated writer struggles to keep his family alive when a series of global catastrophes threatens to annihilate mankind. Cast - John Cusack, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Amanda Peet, Oliver Platt, Thandiwe Newton Crew - Roland Emmerich (Director/Writer) Runtime - 158 minutes          

The Story - Legendary martial arts hero Wong Fei-Hung fights against foreign forces' plundering of China. When Aunt Yee arrives back from America, Wong Fei-Hung assumes the role of her protector. Cast - Jet Li, Yuen Biao, Jacky Cheung, Rosamund Kwan Crew - Tsui Hark (Director/Writer) Runtime - 134 minutes          

In October, this month I decided to watch as many Halloween-related movies and to make a list about them, after doing an LGBT list on Twitter (now 𝕏) in June I thought it was a good idea to make one for the Spooky season. The movies that I counted for this month had to be watched between October 1st and 31st (with one exception) and to belong to these genres: Horror Thriller Halloween-related (Nightmare Before Christmas) Halloween 2023 List The Exorcist —William Friedkin— 1973 Even though I watched this movie on September 31st it was the start of this list, I’ve seen The Exorcist 4 times since I first watched it last year. This movie haunts me, especially because I’ve also been dueling with my beliefs, faith, and whether the world is worth saving or is already filled with evil people. Watching Experience. I had the privilege to watch it in a theater, it is the 50th anniversary of the movie and it got a brand new 4K restoration and remaster. I will say the picture quality is good, the...

Physical Media is a distant memory to many but an important archival effort for others. Streaming Services have been gaining so much ground in the Home Entertainment market thas is making retailers leave. The absence of physical media creates a place where these services are the ones to choose what can be shown on their platforms, they have the ability to censor or “update for modern sensibilities” depending on if it would give them more money and fewer problems on Social Media. Mexico’s film history is admired outside the country and fondly remembered with the Golden Era of Mexican movies sadly there are few physical releases of catalog content, particularly pre-2000s movies. During the heyday of DVDs many companies like Zima dedicated part of their catalog to releasing Mexican movies on DVD, of course, in bad quality and sometimes unrestored. Nowadays, it seems nobody in the country actually cares about these movies. If they are newly restored they go to American companies to put on ...