If nothing else, Vice deserves praise for having one of the best trailers in recent memory. Beginning with a low-key exchange between an instantly recognizable Bush (Sam Rockwell) and Cheney (Christian Bale) set to the opening strains of The Killers’ swagger anthem “The Man,” the song and trailer quickly build to an expertly synchronized crescendo. The combination of audio and visuals whet the appetite the way all good trailers do, showing just enough to get the audience excited but never revealing too much. It’s a masterclass in hype-building, and whichever anonymous editor stitched it together should be proud. Continue reading
black comedy
Thoroughbreds
Lily (Anya Taylor-Joy) is in a bad place. She’s in trouble with her posh boarding school, and stuck at home between semesters with her well-meaning but uninvolved mother and douchebag-extraordinaire stepfather, Mark (Paul Sparks). He and Lily live together in hostile tension, both affecting a façade of chilly politeness that barely conceals their mutual hatred for one another. Meanwhile, the mother of Lily’s middle school classmate Amanda pays her to tutor her daughter, itself a transparent excuse to provide Amanda with some social contact. Amanda has become an outcast after brutally killing her family’s crippled horse, which in her mind was an act of mercy. Continue reading