January 19, 2024

WIFF’S WEEKEND WATCH LIST — 1/19

Check out our recommendations of what to watch this weekend.

if you loved the new mean girls update

mean girls

Vincent Georgie: An enormous hit at last weekend’s box office, the new 2024 stage musical adaptation to film of Mean Girls impressed critics and had audiences lined up around the block. All the more reason to revisit the surprise pop culture hit of 2004 written by Tina Fey and starring Lindsay Lohan and Rachel McAdams. 20 years later, it is still beloved by its fans. Very funny and entertaining.

Synopsis: Teenage Cady Heron (Lindsay Lohan) was educated in Africa by her scientist parents. When her family moves to the suburbs of Illinois, Cady finally gets to experience public school and gets a quick primer on the cruel, tacit laws of popularity that divide her fellow students into tightly-knit cliques. She unwittingly finds herself in the good graces of an elite group of cool students dubbed “the Plastics,” but Cady soon realizes how her shallow group of new friends earned this nickname.

Available on iTunes, YouTube and Amazon Prime.

if you loved the big short

dumb money

Vincent Georgie: After its World Premiere at TIFF last Fall, this clever and energetic film somehow got lost in the shuffle. Catch up with the eclectic cast (Paul Dano! America Ferrera! Pete Davidson!) of this entertaining entrepreneurship-gone-wild true story.

Synopsis: Every day people flip the script on Wall Street and get rich by turning GameStop into one of the world’s hottest companies. In the middle of everything is Keith Gill, a regular guy who starts it all by sinking his life savings into the stock. When his social media posts start blowing up, so does his life and the lives of everyone following him. As a stock tip becomes a movement, everyone gets wealthy — until the billionaires fight back and both sides find their worlds turned upside down.

Available on iTunes, Amazon Prime and YouTube.

if you want a surprising thriller

huda’s salon

Vincent Georgie: I’ve recommended this film before, and it bears repeating: filmmaker Hany Abu-Assad has crafted a suspenseful, surprising and politically engaging story. It’s a fantastic piece of filmmaking. An under-the-radar hit from WIFF 2022 that our audience really enjoyed.

Synopsis: A young mother who is married to a jealous man goes to Huda’s salon in Bethlehem. However, this ordinary visit turns sour when Huda blackmails the mother to have her work for the secret service of the occupiers, thus betraying her people.

Available on iTunes, YouTube and Amazon Prime.

DOUBLE FEATURE

he’s more than just ken

Ryan Gosling will surely land his 3^rd Oscar nomination when nominees are announced next week, for his performance as Barbie’s companion Ken. And he will deserve it. He has made a career of playing unusual men, despite his leading man looks. Take a look at his bizarrely interesting mystery man opposite Kirsten Dunst in the true story All Good Things, and then catch him opposite his inflatable doll girlfriend in the surprisingly touching Lars and the Real Girl.

all good things

Heir to a real-estate dynasty, David Marks (Ryan Gosling) lives in the shadow of his father, Sanford (Frank Langella). He takes a chance at true love when he meets Katie (Kirsten Dunst), a woman of modest origins who sees David’s real worth as a person, not just his family’s wealth. David and Katie marry and plan to build a life together, but their once-loving relationship deteriorates after David gives in to his father’s demand that he work in the family business.

Available on iTunes, YouTube and Amazon Prime.

lars and the real girl

Extremely shy Lars (Ryan Gosling) finds it impossible to make friends or socialize. His brother (Paul Schneider) and sister-in-law (Emily Mortimer) worry about him, so when he announces that he has a girlfriend he met on the Internet, they are overjoyed. But Lars’ new lady is a life-size plastic woman. On the advice of a doctor (Patricia Clarkson), his family and the rest of the community go along with his delusion.