After a very lean stretch of assessing/re-assessing movies from the final Wednesday of last month to a week ago tomorrow, the recent results of finding Project-pending movies slightly improved, as three former castoffs (Shaft ’00, Fled, Kings Of South Beach), the movie reserved for spot 2,501 (Dream Scenario) and a movie awaiting hard copy confirmation (The Duel) all passed their assessments/re-assessments. And had I been in the right state of mind during this current six-day stretch, then two more movies could have joined those five in the win column. Let’s begin.
First up, sticking with the topic of those two other movies, well they are the tandem of “Frida” and “Miss Arizona”, and they have put themselves in the position of being bubble movies that could very well get overall guaranteed Flickuum spots in the current/ongoing format of 162 assessments/re-assessments, which began during the wee hours of this most recent August 31. And as to why they have put themselves in that position, well 1] The ending of the former of the two could be interpreted as a dream sequence for Salma Hayek’s character, 2] The female empowerment message that the latter of the two was/is trying to convey made/makes it better as it went/goes on, 3] Otmara Marrero isn’t completely silent in the latter of the two movies and 4] Both movies work perfectly in tandem together. However, in order for both movies to get overall guaranteed Flickuum spots, 25 more assessments/re-assessments have to be completed, along with two other movies needing to fail their assessments/re-assessments, as the latter stipulation doesn’t encroach upon the space available (71) for additional assessments/re-assessments. Stay tuned.
Staying on the topic of Otmara Marrero, “Miss Arizona” will most likely give her a Flickuum movie, but not an expansive role like the pending failure of “Vandal” gave her. So, with that being said, two movies in which she has bigger roles have been added to the assessment/re-assessment roster, with them being “Clementine” and “Across The Rails” and they have been added to buttress the former of those four movies. However, the former of the two additions could be a chronological letdown, as it was released after the latter in 2019. Stay tuned.
Two has become three, as a third bubble movie is in the same exact boat as both “Frida” and “Miss Arizona”. But unlike those two movies, this one was assessed in late-November 2023. And as to what that movie is, well it’s “Hunt To Kill”. And as to why this movie joined those other two, well 1] The final fate of Banks (Gil Bellows) wasn’t as annoyingly prolonged as it was during the assessment, 2] It has the potential to be neck-and-neck with “Recoil” and 3] It will give Marie Avgeropoulos at least one more live-action evaluation. Paging the funniest scene of “Spaceballs”.
I keep reneging my vow of no more pardons from the Movie-Ocrity/Dishonorable Mention page and almost did as such with the movie “Breakdown”, only for the stupidity of that plot to convince me to forever keep that Kurt Russell-led movie on that page. However, something else has been granted a pardon, with it being “Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie”. And as to why it has been granted a pardon, well its animation style is similar to the upcoming 2025 movie “Dog Man”, which I added to the assessment/re-assessment roster about a week ago. And if the latter of those two computer-animated movies can get an assessment, then the 2017 movie should get a second re-assessment. But after this, no more pardons ever again.
It’s rare that I almost completely forget a movie that I planned to assess theatrically, with that movie being “I.S.S.”, especially since I was deciding between that one and “Miller’s Girl” during late-January of this year. But after seeing the trailer of “Mickey 17” almost a month ago, almost completely forgotten turned into remembering again, as the thought of gritty movies in outer space planted a seed in my head about the Ariana DeBose-led movie. Now’s let see if me choosing the aforementioned “Miller’s Girl” instead of this movie to assess theatrically was a stupid decision or not.
The attempt at adding to the total of Flickuum movies that have Humberly Gonzalez was a lost cause, as both “A Hundred Lies” and “Stay The Night” both lacked the punch that “Tarot” provided during its assessment in late-May 2024. But maybe a movie of hers that isn’t expected to succeed is the way to go, as I saw at least two IMDB reviews being somewhat harsh with her movie “Witches In The Woods”. And of course, with that being said, that could be a blessing in disguise, as the aforementioned “Tarot” was relentlessly panned and look how that turned out for The Project. Time to use that same approach with the 2019 movie.
And finally, I saw a trailer for the A24 movie “The Legend Of Ochi” two days ago and came away in awe of it, simply because it had the vibe of being a heartwarming version of “Gremlins”. So, given that, it will be added to my 2025 theatrical tour and it could become a serious challenger to “Uncut Gems”, “A Most Violent Year”, “The Iron Claw” and “Civil War” as that production company’s best movie when The Project is all said and done.
Well, some more progress has been made in meeting the New Year’s Day 2026 deadline yet there is still a ways to go, in terms of both time and utilizing the available Project space. But once I re-establish the rhythm that I had before yesterday evening, I’ll get more answers about how many more movies will foreseeably get overall guaranteed Flickuum spots, as this is a year-plus process.
Until the next time.