TV SERIES REVIEW: 'Midnight Mass' deftly combines religion, angels, and miracles in an island backwater that God has forgotten

 After finishing 'Pose' this January, I decided on Midnight Mass as the next series for me to watch as I wanted a series that had some horror elements.   Surprisingly, although the trailer for the series shows some horror elements, it is actually a series Filipinos could relate to as it is about a priest who is reborn after traveling to the Holy Land.

I will leave it at that, as I would love that you readers will take the opportunity to watch this show.  It is something Filipinos can identify with since the main protagonist is a priest, there is an 'angel' character, there is a 'holier-than-thou' character, and many of the people in the island are seeking God in their ordinary lives which are mainly boring, dreadful, and monotonous.

The only put-off for me are several very long monologues by some of the characters.  I usually tune out during those long scenes since some of them are not really vital to the story, or I think so.  I just focus on the horror theme of the show and how misguided religiosity can lead us away from God instead of into God's path.

I love the scenes when the 'angel' appears and how its character is given some vampire characteristics lol.  I also dig how the island which is slowly falling into disrepair and irrelevance suddenly finds 'God' and is rejuvenated.

The denouement of this movie is one of the best I've seen in many TV series.  So great to see a TV series end with literally a 'big bang'.

This show is definitely qualified to take part in my 2023 FABE TV awards so I am listing down the categories where it could get nominated.  I am using this portion as a notes part since 2022 has just started.

The show has excellent Make Up and Hairstyling, Visual Effects, Cinematography, Art Direction, and should have a shot in the Best TV Series of the Year category.

In the acting department - the following characters stand out for me - 

Actor - Hamish Linklater (Father Paul)

           - Zach Gilford (Riley)

Actress - Kate Siegel (Erin)

Supporting Actor - Rahul Kohli (Sheriff)

Supporting Actress - Samantha Sloyan (Bev)

My Ranking of the Oscar Best Picture Nominees 2022

Since the Oscar voters have chosen ten films to vie for Best Picture this year, here is how I would be voting in this category, especially that it will be preferential voting, meaning any of the top 3 films in all the voters list will have a strong shot at winning.  

I have listed the nominated films from #1 to #10 with #1 as my favorite and #10 as least favorite.

I have just seen 'Dune' and 'CODA' and they caused some havoc in my list.  

I am impressed with how visually stunning 'Dune' is and it helped that my favorite actor Timothee Chalamet and favorite director Denis Villeneuve are the ones leading the movie.  I wished I could've seen it on the big screen last year.  They enter at #2.

I love the sweet story of 'CODA' and the fantastic performance of Troy Kotsur and Emilia Jones.  Emilia's audition scene in the end was truly an uplifting moment in the movie.  It enters at #4 in my current list.

'Power of the Dog' still tops my list as I will always try to vote for an LGBT-themed movie every time it gets nominated.  It is so hard to get nominated for Best Picture so every opportunity an LGBT-themed movie gets there, I will always put it at the top or near the top.

This is my final ranking of this year's nominees -

#1  The Power of the Dog

#2  Dune

#3 Don't Look Up

#4 CODA

#5 Belfast

#6 Licorice Pizza

#7 Drive My Car

#8 West Side Story

#9 Nightmare Alley *

#10 King Richard *

* I haven't seen these yet

 

TONY'S MOVIE REVIEW: 'CODA' Puts the Spotlight on Deaf Adults

              The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) of America just voted CODA (Child of Deaf Adults) as their 'Best Picture' this year, as the ensemble cast of the movie won the Best Cast in a Motion Picture award for 2022.

                The main characters in the movie are deaf and with this win, this certainly puts a lot of attention in casting deaf characters in more movies in the future - or so I hope.  Or, it could also bring more movies on the deaf experience to a more mainstream audience.

                  The cast is led by Marlee Matlin, the first deaf actor to win an Oscar Best Actress in 1986 for Children of a Lesser God.  Incidentally, her castmate, Troy Kotsur won the Male Actor in a Supporting Role award this year.  Not a surprise, as the movie's best funny lines are delivered by his character.

                   The movie has a simple story.  It actually reminds me of that little gem of a movie 'Little Miss Sunshine' years ago.  Both movies have a female protagonist who have have to fight biases against them in order to achieve their dreams.

                      Here in CODA, the lead female character, played beautifully by Emilia Jones, is on the crossroads of her life - having to make that difficult decision of staying with her family and be their 'interpreter' or go and pursue her dreams of becoming a great singer.  I will leave that unanswered as I strongly urge you to watch this movie.

                    This is actually the perfect movie for all of you who feel lost during the pandemic.  The movie was obviously shot pre-pandemic and is not set during the pandemic, but its message of hope and hanging in there could easily inspire many of its viewers to be brave - like the CODA girl - and persevere to achieve their dreams.

                     The dilemma presented to Emilia is not easy, since family is very important to her values, but as I said, she is not going to be around them forever, and it is always ok to ask for outside help - maybe an outside interpreter who can do what Emilia's character can do.

                      The solution is not rocket science.  However, the film works because of the rich representation of the deaf experience to us audiences who are not deaf.  This movie also reminds me of last year's 'The Sound of Metal', as both have lead characters who are deaf.

                           Go and catch the movie if you still can.  You can end up with tears of joy as you leave the theater.