Film Diary - June 2025

Every film I saw in June!

So I just finished my last year of university as a film student and in a little panic I have realised I haven’t got much to show for it other than, of course, having a degree. So in the graduate limbo of still working part time and remembering all the reasons I decided to go to university in the first place. I’ve decided to give my best go at writing consistently. Whilst consistent has never been a word I would use to describe myself, one must push a boundary or two every now and then. 

Watching films for the most part is something I do consistently. The quantity and quality is always up for debate but my Letterboxd does get opened at least a few times a month and I figure that is consistent enough to make regular writings on. I pledge simply to write about why I watched the film and what it made me think about. I hope, mainly just for myself, that I can do this a few more times than once. 

Without further adieu, June Diary!

The Matchmaker (1958)

I sought this one out because of a clip I saw on Twitter of my beloved Shirley MacLaine, one of my favourite actors and one I think is often left out of great comedy performer conversations. My introduction to Shirley was in February 2024 when I watched Being There (1979), her performance in that was enough for me to seek out about 7 more of her films and she just makes me smile every time I see her. I was also unaware that this film has the same plot as Hello, Dolly!, which I was introduced to via Barbra Streisand. That version of this story features in Wall-E which I loved as a kid. I did enjoy this version but certainly not as much as Hello, Dolly!, it is hard to compete with Barbra for me. 

Grand Theft Hamlet (2024)

Grand Theft Hamlet has been on my radar for a while. I play GTA a lot but never online, I mostly just enjoy driving around in story mode  trying to follow traffic rules and practice my reverse bay parking. Grand Theft Hamlet is a wonderful statement saying very loudly  that art is everywhere, art can be pulled out of nowhere. It’s also a wonderful reminder of how taxing art can be on yourself, your collaborators and your loved ones. Early this year I filmed my graduate film that I wrote and produced and as far as work goes, nothing has been harder. The entire filming week I was convinced I was going crazy, myself and my cinematographer exchanged stories of hallucinating as we tried to sleep and experiencing stress induced acid reflux midway through the week and by the end of it falling asleep instantly after trying to relax with an episode of Gilmore Girls. This film was a beautiful ode to the difficulty of making art that can only exist with the investment of other people. Plays, films, books the like, none of it can work without asking people to believe in you, to make sacrifices for your project to come to life, to ask favours you cannot possibly repay. If you make art in a collaborative setting, Grand Theft Hamlet is essential watching. 

Monte Carlo (2011) REWATCH

Monte Carlo, whilst a bit of a left field pick when it comes to cheesy girly films, is one of my favourites and a film I have seen too many times to count. I find it to be surprisingly earnest and is a very compelling three-hander all things considered. Whilst yes, all three of these supposedly independent and no shit taking women end up in relationships with men by the end, it’s hard to deny them of their happiness. This was the first DVD I put on whilst back in my childhood home after living away for my last year of uni. My uni living situation ended on a pretty sour note; I seem to have a few wounds yet to heal. The copy of Monte Carlo I have is a part of a 2 disc Selena Gomez set and is accompanied by Ramona and Beezus. The DVD was a gift for my sister many years ago and we shared it and watched both films extensively. I am surprised it is not scratched to the point of being unplayable and very glad it’s not. Monte Carlo is a pretty little film with low stakes and happy endings. The perfect escapism for such a time as I find myself wondering if taking risks will ever be worth it. Nostalgia at a time of hurting may not always be the answer but when I put this DVD on and forgot about everything else, it certainly was. 

Sinners (2025) REWATCH

Trying to convince my mum to watch a good film is like trying to draw blood from a stone but managed to get her to watch Sinners which she enjoyed. She did however ask me about 20 minutes before the film ended “so they’re vampires?” which makes me wonder if saying she enjoyed the film was based in truth or her just trying to tell me what I want to hear. Regardless, Sinners is excellent stuff in a world of remakes, sequels and prequels and I very much hope to see Wunmi Mosaku as employed as any actor could ever be, she was electric!

Occupied (2021) 

Funny to watch a documentary about the lived experience of Palestinians on MUBI, who seem to now be profiting off Israeli investment. Great reminder of the state of the world right now. That being said Occupied is a beautiful capsule of Palestinian joy, community and history and tells the stories of a population so often dehumanised and villainized. The stories told by the contributors are consistently tainted by Israel’s occupation and I was wholly surprised by what seems to be steadfast and unwavering hope that it will end someday. I see a lot of suffering and pain on my phone, I scroll through any social media and am met with videos of limbs being pulled from rubble, dead bodies, fires and starvation. None of that can be ignored and we must acknowledge the genocide with harsh, certain lanaguage. Occupied illustrates the lives being lost to this genocide. Certainly worth a watch, though it may not be easy. Maybe try and find it somewhere other than MUBI though! Free Palestine.

Twin Peaks (1990) season 1

Quite ashamedly, David Lynch is not a director I seem to connect with so even starting Twin Peaks seems like an exercise in self harm. Knowing how much he is loved by film fans and filmmakers working today I am determined to at least understand what it is that entices people so much and whilst I still don’t really connect with it, I am beginning to get it. Lynch is quite steadfast in his vision, not matter how non-sensical or strange it might be. Throughout Twin Peaks all i could keep thinking was how much trust must have gone into working with him as an actor because a lot of the performances, outside of Lynch, would not translate but here, they do. There is this weird Lynchian language that is so recognisable and not so easily replicated or even defined. Twin Peaks is by far  my favourite Lynch project but it’s certainly not something I find myself to have enjoyed? A strange paradox seems to exist between me and David Lynch’s work and I am sure it will lead me somewhere interesting at the very least. 

28 Years Later (2025)

I am a big Jodie Comer fan, I have been following her since the first season of Killing Eve and it has made me so critical of leading performances because few actors working today can do what Jodie Comer can. 28 Years Later is not really my thing, Danny Boyle never has been a big winner for me. I get why people enjoy it but I don’t necessarily think his films are something I need to appreciate as a film fan. I like zombie stuff, I like Jodie Comer, I like Alex Garland but I guess the three didn’t mix as well as I’d hoped. MaybeI should rewatch as I believe my viewing experience may have been squandered by a group of grown men who found every moment of vulnerability or humanity to be quite funny. I’m all for immaturity, I won’t pretend I don’t have a dirty sense of humour but what I don’t like is the blatant inability to be sincere, that faced with honesty you can do little more than laugh. I will watch again soon, hopefully with a bunch of quiet old people at the screening with me instead of a load of men. Will report back on my thoughts. 

Dog Day Afternoon (1975) 

Every so often I get a bit insecure about the long list of very well liked films that I have yet to see. So I watched Dog Day Afternoon to ease that insecurity a little. Usually when I watch one of these films I find a film that does a trope also featured in a much newer film that I definitely saw first and get upset that I didn’t see an older film that did it first and better before the newer one. I’m a big fan of films set in one location so I very much enjoyed Dog Day Afternoon though I am unsure if I will watch it again. 

Hot Milk (2025)

This was a watch I’ve been anticipating since the project was announced which must have been 2023. I read the book and I find it to be one that lingers with me but I don't think I necessarily enjoyed it. Writing about the film about a week after seeing it, I can probably say the same is true for its adaptation. It sort of works to get under your skin a bit and is memorable in a way akin to the memory of a dream. I think I certainly understand Emma Mackey’s character of Sofia much more now that I did when I read the book. The only person that can fix you is you, no one else can pick up all your pieces and make you better. Sofia's anger and frustration drives the film and I think that can either really connect with audiences or alienate them. I can’t really say which lane I fall into. Whilst my perception of the film may be skewed by recent undoings in my own life, I think it’s a film that may be up for interpretation based on the viewer's own story. 

Notes:

Halfway through July and I’m only just posting my June diary so things are off to a kicking start!