44/44
Story
A woman puts her career on hold to become a housewife, but her home soon takes a surreal turn
It was originally scheduled to stream live on Hulu, but due to strong reception from test screenings, Searchlight Pictures gave it a wide theatrical release.
Link to Saturday Night Live: Jean Smart/Jelly Roll (2024)
Carousel Ride” Starring Alexander McCabe Written by Alexander McCabe.
Rating – 52: Overall, a pretty poor movie that feels like it was made by Booktok; Amy Adams can’t do much, given how silly the story is, despite its strong messages about the struggles of motherhood
Direction – Pretty Bad: The direction is very simple and nice on a macro scale, and it feels like this movie was made specifically for "Booktok"; The direction on the micro scale is very bland, forced, and simple; The narration is incredibly simple and bland, as it reads like Mommy read me this story.
Script – Pretty Bad – The dialogue is simple, bland, and written as it was intended for a “Booktok” show
Story – The Bad: The idea is actually very stupid and it’s obvious this movie was made at Booktok; because the book is 'Booktok' a book; not only is the concept dumb, but they do a poor job of introducing it and showing its importance, as it seems like a minor detail throughout the movie; The plot structure is very straightforward and straightforward; The character writing It’s pretty good, albeit very open-ended, with the main character being a symbol for the struggles of motherhood and how it’s okay to not be a perfect mother.
; The dialogue is so bad that there’s literally a scene in the first 20 minutes of the movie where the main character says “I’m a night bitch” ; The humor is good but very forced; The symbolism is deep because the entire movie is about the struggles of motherhood and the recognition that no one is a model mother or person – the foreshadowing is just because the movie is so formulaic
Acting – Pretty Good – Amy Adams – Good (her acting is only good because she’s Amy Adams – she has nothing to work with) Scoot McNairy – Pretty Good (Jos Adams have good chemistry and they show off their skills perfectly in one-sided dynamics) Rest of Cast – Decent (A lot of the background actors who are great are mostly just supporting Adams) Cinematography – Decent – Simple Editing – Adequate – Basic VFX – Pretty Bad – Pretty Vulgar Pacing – The pacing is a bit slow as the narrative moves the story along Climax – The climax is pretty forced Tone – The tone feels a lot like this movie was made for “The Books” End Notes – Saw the premiere at the Austin Film Festival – Obviously who this movie is for – I’m clearly not the target demographic – This should have been the movie that saved Amy Adams, not destroyed her.