Moviegoing (Pandemic) - May

The pandemic continues, as does life these days in all of its strangeness. This past month 38,000+ Americans died from Covid-19 related causes, and 65,000+ died in April. The scenes in New York, the disparate impact here in New Jersey, the vulnerability of frontline workers and Black and Latinx Americans, the poor and working-class and elderly in urban areas, all juxtaposed with the scattered government response, fills me with dread. And then there was the police murder of George Floyd, as cameras rolled, on May 23 of this month. Four cops, led by Derek Chauvin, pinned Floyd down and choked the life out of him. The disposibility of Black life, already amplified by countless other state murders and this pandemic's toll, was made clear to everyone in this country and across the globe. BLACK LIVES MATTER, a phrase as important today as it ever has been.

During the interstices of my days out of solace and engagement I did continue watching movies and here is my tally for May:

Homecoming* (season 1)

Mauvais Sang*

The Juniper Tree* (this film gave me nightmares--Björk, I hate to blame you, but....)

Wuthering Heights (the 2011 version)

Aves* (by my namesake Nietzchka Keene)

Still

Elles

Separate Tables*

You Were Never Lovelier

The Pawnbroker*

Unknown Pleasures* (Jia Zhangke, you know it's going to be a banger!)

Cane River* (a standout for me)

Bless Their Little Hearts* (Billy Woodberry's heartbreaker--so beautiful)

Bunny Lake Is Missing* (a thriller, starring Olivier and Carol Lynley)

The Fits* (a moving glimpse at Black girlhood)

I Am Not a Witch* (a Zambian entry by Rungano Nyoni--I recommend it)

Listen* (a fascinating film about a family in crisis)

Pygmalion*

Staying Vertical* (Alain Guiraudie's unusual & always queer takes merit a viewing)

So Dark the Night

Bonjour Tristesse

Border Radio*

David Holzmann's Diary (I couldn't get into this film)

That Obscene Object of Desire* (an old fave--I could watch anything by Buñuel)

Diamantino (interesting but I wasn't feeling it)

Al fin y al Cabo

The Chadwick Chronicles (series 1 & 3)

Undercover* (series)

A Quiet Place

LUV Don't Live Here

People Like Us (series)

As I Am

Chem Sex* (grim but revelatory)