The long days of summer are setting in, so here are two films that you can enjoy in the air conditioning—one at home and one in the theater. First, I want to mention something about the reviews I do every month. A friend recently asked me why I only give positive reviews. I answered this in a long-ago column, but my friend’s question reminded me that I should I explain my process again. It is quite simple: I only publish positive reviews because I don’t wish to waste your time with films I can’t recommend. Since Front Porch only publishes once per month and two or three films per column therein, I want to give you only the films I recommend. I screen dozens of movies per month, and I thoughtfully choose what to publish. I also try to review films about which you may not have heard or those to which you may not have easy access. This month’s films may/will receive more coverage than most, but still, I provide you easy access. I hope you enjoy them.

Godzilla Minus One (2023)

If you are a fan of the Godzilla franchise, you will really like this one. If you are not a fan—or perhaps indifferent—you will love this one. This recent iteration from Toho Studios in Japan takes us back to the beginning and complements the original Godzilla from 1955. Some context is needed if you haven’t seen that film or even if you haven’t seen it in a long time. That original film was brilliant: it was creative, it was fun, and it was very timely. It addresses several contemporaneous issues in Japan and multiple topics that remain pertinent since. That film starts with an incident off the coast of Japan when a Japanese fishing boat gets caught next to an atomic bomb test. Those fishermen died of radiation poisoning. Of course, the effects of radiation in Japan, on its people, and on its environment were a very real concern for the Japanese in the mid-1950s. The Americans carried out atomic testing off the coast for many years after Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Godzilla Minus One

The monster who came to be known as Godzilla comes to life from this radiated sea. It became a symbol of many things: environmental devastation, an irradiated natural world, and the human toll that comes with all of it. The original was not afraid to wade into politics, however, and this latest iteration does the same. And more. Godzilla Minus One is wildly entertaining, thematically rich, and wonderfully human. The story here follows a WWII Kamikaze pilot who ditches his mission, maroons on a small island with a cadre of airplane mechanics, and there encounters Godzilla for the first time. He is one of the few survivors of the island, and he carries a heavy dose of guilt thereafter. He returns home, begrudgingly forms a family, and eventually finds a shot at redemption.

The film won an 2024 Oscar for Best Visual Effects, and it is quite deserved—the effects are sutured so seamlessly into the live action that we rarely see the seams. It is a remarkable achievement in cinema, and it invigorates a franchise that has been beloved by so many for so long. All of the action and visual effects do not belie the humanity, however, and that may be the biggest win here. Who are the real monsters? Who deserves our sympathy? What are the real lessons to take away? Screen and discuss all summer.

Available on Netflix or streaming rental.

Kinds of Kindness (2024)

This ride is a choice—one that begins with understanding you are about to see a Yorgos Lanthimos film and all that encompasses. You may not know the name of one of the most interesting and innovative directors working today, but you probably know some of his films. Most recently, Poor Things (2023) brought Emma Stone an Oscar for Best Acting. A few years ago, Lanthimos helmed The Favourite (2018), a wonderful film—also starring Stone—that received critical acclaim and an Oscar nomination. The Greek director’s first English-language film, The Lobster (2015), remains this critic’s favorite of his oeuvre, and that is where we begin our discussion of his latest film, Kinds of Kindness. The two films are connected in style and theme, or rather, the opaque nature of both in each film. If you’ve seen The Lobster, you know what you are getting with this latest film.

Kinds of Kindness

Kinds of Kindness is a tryptic fable (or fairly tale?): three interrelated stories with the same ensemble in each of the three “sections.” Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, Willem Dafoe, Margaret Qualley, Hong Chau, and Mamadou Athie star in all three but assume different roles in what we initially believe to be different stories. But are they? It is only in retrospect—and waiting through the end credits—that we look at it all differently. The subjects of work, family, and religion instigate the action, but the associated themes are many. While we get the requisite Lanthimos sex, violence, and out-there-oddity, the entire film paints a bleak yet insightful picture of American life. Anything more about the story ruins the experience. You have to live it yourself.

I can report that the acting is brilliant all around, the cinematography eschews the fantasy of Poor Things for more realism and honesty, the editing is dazzling when we look back on it, and the music can be intrusive but is always purposeful. In sum, this is a director at the height of his powers working with a cast and crew who are on the same level. The run time and pacing may be too much for some—at two hours and 45 minutes, it meanders along—but if you are a fan of Lanthimos, and/or wacky cinema (David Lynch, John Waters), this will be candy for you. It can be challenging, but that is part of the equation: Lanthimos assumes an intelligent audience. The payoff is wonderful, with weeks of discussion beyond the theater. Screen it and discuss it, and if you see me around, let’s talk about it. I welcome those discussions, and to me, that is the one of many beauties of cinema.

Now playing at local theaters, including Harkins Northfield, AMC 9+ CO10, The Mayan, and Alamo Sloan’s Lake. See it in the theater!

Vincent Piturro, PhD, is a Professor of Film and Media Studies at MSU Denver. Contact him directly at vpiturro@msudenver.com or follow him on Twitter. For more reviews, search The Indie Prof at FrontPorchNE.com.