If I Had a Nickel ...
Coincidence, Theme and Trivia
Last month, we had old friends staying with us, and their daughter illuminated the coincidental commonalities of two of her favorite tv shows using the format of the Dr. Doof “if I had a nickel” meme – in that moment, I realized that, not only was she correct, but that meme is a perfect mapping of the ADD/ADHD mind’s search for pattern recognition.
I bristle when this sort of total coincidence winds up lodged forever on a movie’s imdb trivia page (yes, it’s true, many of the cast members were in comic book movies, but it’s 2025, find me the movie not cast with comic book alums - but more critically, it offers no deeper understanding of, say, Oppenheimer12), because I tend to hold higher hopes for imdb’s potential utility as a resource and record than I think a lot of its contributors (or for that matter, its stewards) have for it.
I have no qualms, however, bringing that sort of logic to Letterboxd, a home far more suitable, to my mind, for the hopelessly moviepilled; at least there, such observations stay the opinion of the individual user, rather than getting stapled to a movie’s online legacy as clutter to wade through en route to learning something of substance about the movie whose page you’re reading.
My top picks for movie of the year so far are two completely unrelated movies with two completely different intents and executions – but with a surprising amount of overlap, both in terms of superficial data points, as well as story and thematic beats.
Freaky Tales3 is a four-chapter anthology detailing a chaotic weekend in the lives of a robust ensemble in 1987 Oakland – at once a deeply vibey, pulpy love letter to a hyper-specific time and place, as well as a prêt-à-a-porter cult movie, destined to be seen by 10,000 people who will then proselytize it to the next 10,000, who will bring it to the next 10,000. I saw it twice in theaters, and it’s on streaming today, but truth be told, its true spiritual format would be a passed-around rental VHS.
Sinners4 (an instant classic despite being five weeks old) is an expansive two and a half hour magical-realist-musical-horror epic. The fifth consecutive winner from filmmaker Ryan Coogler may slip here and there, is such a reflection of Coogler’s belief in the holiness of film as medium and entertainment that its imperfections are forgivable.
On, and below, the surface, these movies couldn’t be more different, that much is clear. But then my ADD brain engages, and spits back things like:
Coogler and Tales co-director Ryan Fleck are both Bay Area natives
Coogler, and Fleck and his directing partner Anna Boden flexed strong dramatic chops (the former’s Fruitvale Station; the latters’ Half-Nelson and Mississippi Grind) before getting scooped up by the Marvel machine (the former’s Black Panther and BP: Wakanda Forever; the latters’ Captain Marvel)
Both movies focus, at least in part, on a found-family protecting a music venue - a sacred space in the context of both stories - from encroachers, emphasizing the importance of community
Both feature diegetic musical numbers that are invested with just enough cinematic craft and love for the movies to qualify as musicals
And finally, both feature cathartic sequences of white supremacists getting their shit absolutely wrecked (a continuing theme from last week’s post).
… which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird it happened twice.
Oppenheimer - W/D: Christopher Nolan, from the book American Prometheus by Kai Bird & Martin Sherwin; Prod: Emma Thomas, Charles Roven, Christopher Nolan; DP: Hoyte van Hoytema; Ed. Jennifer Lame; Music: Ludwig Göransson; Universal/Syncopy (2023).
Sigh … fine: Cillian Murphy (Dark Knight Trilogy); Robert Downey, Jr. (MCU); Florence Pugh (MCU); James D’arcy (MCU); Kenneth Branagh (Thor); Matthew Modine (The Dark Knight Rises); Matt Damon (Deadpool 2), you get it.
Freaky Tales - W/D: Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck; Prod: Poppy Hanks, Jelani Johnson, Ryan Fleck, Anna Boden; DP: Jac Fitzgerald; Ed. Robert Komatsu; Music: Raphael Saadiq; eOne/Lionsgate (2025).
Sinners - W/D: Ryan Coogler; Prod: Ryan Coogler, Zinzi Coogler, Sev Ohanian; DP: Autumn Durald Arkapaw; Ed.: Michael P. Shawver; Music: Ludwig Göransson; WB/Proximity (2025).