Three solid bets in a row tonight at the Neptune…
- Mount St. Elias
Eli Sanders demands that you see Mount St. Elias (Neptune, 7 pm):
This is a fucking fantastic documentary. Yeah, there’s Red Bull money sloshing around behind the scenes. And yeah, it uses the ubiquitous reality-show format to explore/exploit the risky business of extreme mountain climbing and skiing. But so what? If you shit your pants while watching, the movie wins, right? Well, this movie will win. A bunch of dudes set out to climb up, and then ski down, a huge mountain in remotest Alaska. As in, so remote you need a plane with skis for wheels to fly you there. People turn on each other in high-altitude emergency snow caves. People describe a particular slope as “hari-kari.” People think constantly about all the other people who have died trying to do this very thing, this longest ski descent in the world. “It’s crazy,” one says. “And still, you do it.”
The Neptune also has Cyrus at 4:15 and Air Doll at 9:30.
- The Actresses
I also kind of medium-liked The Actresses (Uptown, 7 pm)!
One extended mockumentary in-joke for wonky super-fans of Korean cinema (you know who you are!), The Actresses is snappy and charming—even though I have no idea what anyone is talking about, ever. Six Korean superstars spanning three generations (and playing heightened/comical versions of themselves) gather for a big magazine photo shoot. Egos bristle and bruise, gossip flies, and the edges of reality are stretched. Everyone in this movie is the most beautiful woman you have ever seen. Real talk.
Plus, you know, tons of other stuff. Check it out.
Air Doll – there are a number of scenes that are not fun to watch. And it’s Japanese, so it’s not your usual ending.
The part with the creator was kind of fun – and it is a good movie, but don’t let ANY kids ever see it.
The Actresses and Cyrus have some good buzz.
Also today – The Chef of South Polar at the Harvard Exit. I’ll be there.