With the release of The Whale and Knock at the Cabin in the cinema, it was a great time to meet up with friends and go see it together. The three of us hadn't seen each other in person for a while, so it was lovely to catch up and go to the cinema, one of our favourite pastimes together.
We started the day with a bite to eat. We went for Chinese food at one of our old haunts. It was a little more expensive than the last time we were there but we were just happy to do this again. It's one of the many things that went up in price due to the cost of living and inflation crises, which affect how often we meet. We're all going through changes in our life and don't quite know what the next step will bring.
I had my usual from here, prawn crackers, spare ribs and chips. They were lovely. I missed this place. We didn't have an awful lot of time before the start of the first film, The Whale, so we wolfed it down before setting off for the movies.
We stopped for snacks but I didn't get anything yet. Also, I got a free medium popcorn and drink when I bought my ticket for The Whale. I love our cinema's loyalty scheme.
We got good seats for The Whale. I didn't feel much like eating the popcorn, but it had nothing to do with the main character's bad health and comically grotesque eating habits. There's always too much popcorn compared to the Coca-Cola I got, which I finished fairly quickly. I was still just after the meal and my sinuses were putting me off too. I had to use my decongestant spray and I was okay after.
The Whale takes place in the main character's apartment for almost the entire film. It's really dark in there and I have no idea how he was able to read or do his other tasks as an English teacher when he was offline. It made the cinema pitch black as well and people had a bit of trouble finding their way round when they had to take toilet breaks. There was a couple behind us and off to the side all wrapped up and having fun, but they weren't disruptive. I'm actually having trouble remembering where they there during this film or the next one we saw?
Brendan Fraser was everything. He may replace Gwenyth Paltrow's character in Shallow Hal's picture on that clickbait image about offensive movie characters in the near future but we wanted to see his acting comeback. I was nearly humming the George of the Jungle theme on the way in to the cinema. It really was great to see his acting. I think we all see him as a delicate yet optimistic figure who's been through a lot, so we really wanted to see his performance after not seeing him for such a long time.
There are some not so great things about this film and the most significant one for me is the music. When the main character whimpers and clutches at his chest it plays this dramatic, doom-filled music, like he's a ship that's about to sink. It's pretty over the top. He's not a video game boss. He's not from Shadow of the Colossus like.
The plot devices and characters come and go just like in a stage play. He has supportive visitors like his faithful helper and the missionary, even the pizza guy to some extent, but also characters he has to confront like his estranged daughter and wife. They all have their own plotlines and they play out well enough to keep the movie interesting.
His job is teaching some kind of online English literature essay writing. In an interesting contrast to most Zoom classes I've taken, the students are all on cam whereas he keeps his switched off.
Darren Aronofsky directed this. I've seen Noah, which was over the top dramatic and kind of fun to watch for this reason. There is stuff that's really over the top and dramatic in this film as well, which may inspire bad reality TV shows about obesity in the future.
There's a part where he's standing on his feet and gets lifted up into a bright white light and it has that same dramatic comical humour that Noah has. It was pretty darn funny. When the film ended, someone a few seats ahead of us turned around and said that was going to stay with them for a while. Brendan Fraser's acting and the overall tone of the film makes an impact.
When the film was over I had barely a quarter of my popcorn eaten. We talked about it at length on the couches in the cinema lobby and we loved Brendan Fraser's acting. It really was good to see him again after such a long time.
There was a small bit of time before the next film started. We bought our tickets for it. I popped outside to the nearest discount shop to buy a bottle of Coca-Cola. I still had the big box of popcorn in my hand and I had a growing appetite for its salty moreish-ness. I'm glad I held on to it.
We went in to see Knock at the Cabin when the time came. It was exciting and spectacular. We had memories of seeing director M. Night Shyamalan's Old together and I had fresh memories of this movie's trailer, which was amazing.
The movie wastes no time in being as suspenseful and exciting as the trailer. Little girl in the forest at play where she gets approached by a huge dude with tattoos and a soft-spoken voice. They have a civilised but very unsettling chat that keeps you on the edge. Then his cohorts appear and it all seems very frightening to her and her two dads.
Dave Bautista's sheer size and tattoos, complemented by his soft-spoken voice, glasses and gentle interpersonal manner; his very presence tells us there is a lot going on with this character; there's some explaining to do, there's a deep saga in there somewhere; he's the one who "knocks at the cabin" door. The first words he says tease and unease and it's perfect for a trailer. Compared to The Whale, these movies feature a big dude each and if there was an award category titled "Best Use of a Big Dude" I would give it to Dave Bautista.
The little girl has two dads and they're staying in the cabin. The big dude and his cohorts are carrying these weird looking tools as they stand outside their door. The immediate fear you get is that this may be a cult who is out to destroy their family, but given the reputation of the guy who gave us The Sixth Sense, there's a part of you that expects a bait-and-switch, another thing that keeps you in anticipation to see the movie and find out.
This fear is used as a narrative tool for a very long time and keeps us engaged until we learn the specifics of what this invading group is about. They're trying to stop the end of the world and this can only happen if someone in the family sacrifices the life of another member. If they don't, the members of the cult sacrifices one of their own and all this apocalyptic stuff happens when they turn on the news. The big dude explains they can only follow these rules and they didn't even know the parents were a same sex couple. We still get flashbacks of the dads' life experiences, but ultimately it becomes about the family trying to escape the group.
Things are kept suspenseful with characters trying to break out of their ropes tying them to chairs and trying to escape with injuries like a limp. The deaths come rolling along.
The M. Night Shyamalan cameo on the first TV show is fun and amusing. Talking about a chicken recipe or whatever. I was happy enough with my popcorn, which I finished this time. This movie was spectacular and suspenseful. I was rooting for characters' escape and the mystery reveal.
Later on, the characters who remain walk into a comfy roadside diner where the people are silent and transfixed by the news on TV. I love how big and spacious these diners are and the booth seating looks roomy and comfy. These remaining characters are silent too while they wordlessly decide whether or not to listen to the song in the car. I found myself encouraging them to. I love that scene.
The credits that rolled were accompanied by apocalyptic weather effects. One of my friends was hoping there would be an after credits scene with some kind of twist, so I waited with them. The only thing that was at the end was the display of the title along with the sound of knocks and that was it.
It was dusky when we got out. We discussed the movies as we walked along the street, popping in to the discount shop again where I bought more Coca-Cola. We were just in time as the place was closing.
On the way home we we went to Abrakebabra. I got a Taco Fries with hot chilli sauce instead of the pink stuff it normally comes with. I bought some waffle fries for sharing too. Coca-Cola is more expensive here so I was ready. We talked about the movies we saw, the movies we want to see, and more stuff about what's going on in our lives. Not sure what's going on next, but I'm hoping to write more at least.
After grabbing a bite, we walked and chatted all the way to the bus station before saying goodbye until next time.
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