Cinebuds

In the 40+ years of box-office tracking, the numbers for North America are pretty easy to summarize: up. Almost without exception, the total gross and the number of releases that found their way into theaters rose steadily every year, hitting their peak in 2018 with 993 releases grossing nearly $11.9 billion. The next year saw a slight dip to 910 releases and nearly $11.4 billion — and we know what happened after that. The movie industry, like many others, hasn’t returned to pre-pandemic levels and may never get there. In 2024, 675 releases hit screens across North America and tallied just shy of $8.6 billion. While those totals are well behind the previous pace, that doesn’t necessarily mean the cinema is worse off — perhaps just different. One of the people navigating the new environment is director Danny Villanueva Jr., a Chicago native whose move northward greatly influenced his second feature-length film, What Happened to Dorothy Bell? [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt23784934/?ref_=nm_knf_c_2] Since premiering in 2024, the horror movie has been met with positive reviews from audiences, including the ones at this year’s Milwaukee Film Festival, where it made its Wisconsin debut. Technically a found-footage paranormal film, What Happened to Dorothy Bell? is also described by its director [https://www.milwaukeemag.com/qa-behind-kenosha-horror-filmmakers-what-happened-to-dorothy-bell/] as “a story about generational trauma and self-discovery.” On top of that, it’s a story about Kenosha — or at least starring Kenosha. The city’s 125-year-old Gilbert M. Simmons Library, and the ghost tours found therein, stoked Villanueva Jr.’s creative fires and ultimately became the filming location. On this episode of Cinebuds, he joins us to talk about how he gravitated to the horror genre, his path to becoming a “micro-budget” filmmaker and the part our state — and events like the Milwaukee Film Festival — has to play in the wider world of moviemaking.

For a podcast called Cinebuds, reviewing a film called Friendship sounds like a match made in celluloidic heaven. As you’ll hear, that depends on your vision of the afterlife. Just to get this out of the way, your beloved hosts Dori and Kpolly have a wonderful bond that would make a … let’s say questionably entertaining movie. Fortunately, the duo in Friendship — Tim Robinson and Paul Rudd — are less focused on a seamless relationship and more focused on making a film people actually want to watch. On that last point, how into the movie you are depends greatly on how much you get down with cringey humor that occasionally jumps over the line into downright dark. Also, how you feel about drug-trip fantasies involving a certain nationwide sandwich shop. Check out the full episode to hear everything Dori and Kpolly had to say about Friendship, as well as their top three movies about male friendship (spoiler: one of them features Pee-Wee Herman).

Because everyone loves a double meaning, Milwaukee Film took one look at the month of June, contemplated it being the start of summer as well as Pride Month, and came up with a movie series titled “Summer CAMP! [https://mkefilm.org/summer-camp]” that covers the latter with just a sprinkling of the former. The 10 films selected for the monthlong run primarily reflect the Merriam-Webster definition of camp as “something so outrageously artificial, affected, inappropriate, or out-of-date as to be considered amusing.” You’ll also find a couple movies that head to camp as in cabins and mosquitos and — in one case — slasher horror. Here’s the full lineup, all of which unspool at the Oriental Theatre: * Death Becomes Her [https://mkefilm.org/Oriental-Theatre/Events/Death-Becomes-Her-Summer-CAMP] — June 4 at 6:30 p.m. * Polyester (in Odorama!) [https://mkefilm.org/Oriental-Theatre/Events/Polyester-in-Odorama-Summer-CAMP] — June 6 at 7:30 p.m. * Xanadu [https://mkefilm.org/Oriental-Theatre/Events/Xanadu-Summer-CAMP] — June 7-8 at 3 p.m. * Grease 2 [https://mkefilm.org/oriental-theatre/events/grease-2-summer-camp] — June 12-13 at 9:30 p.m. * Showgirls [https://mkefilm.org/Oriental-Theatre/Events/Showgirls-Summer-CAMP] — June 19-21 at 9 p.m. * Brokeback Mountain [https://mkefilm.org/oriental-theatre/events/brokeback-mountain-summer-camp] (4K restoration) — June 22 at noon and 6 p.m.; June 24 and 26 at 6 p.m. * Moonrise Kingdom [https://mkefilm.org/Oriental-Theatre/Events/Moonrise-Kingdom-Summer-CAMP] — June 21-22 at 3 p.m. * D.E.B.S. [https://mkefilm.org/Oriental-Theatre/Events/D-E-B-S-Summer-CAMP] — June 26-27 at 9 p.m. * What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? [https://mkefilm.org/Oriental-Theatre/Events/What-Ever-Happened-to-Baby-Jane-Summer-CAMP] — June 28-29 at 3:45 p.m. * Sleepaway Camp [https://mkefilm.org/Oriental-Theatre/Events/Sleepaway-Camp-Summer-CAMP] — June 28 at 9:45 p.m.

We’re switching things up for this episode of Cinebuds and talking about … the theater! OK, sure, Dori and Kpolly talk about theaters all the time in the context of movies. For this installment, they’re talking about live theater being brought to movie theaters to give audiences the chance to experience live theater while sitting in a movie theater. Milwaukee Film has done this in the past and recently resuscitated the practice via National Theatre Live, which for 15+ years has delivered the best of British theatre to movie houses around the world. We’re talking instantly recognizable names and faces like Benedict Cumberbatch, Michael Sheen, Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Andrew Scott treading the boards in productions of Hamlet, Frankenstein and Vanya. The brilliant Scott gets the spotlight treatment in this episode of Cinebuds, as our movie-loving duo applies some of that adoration to Scott’s astounding performance in Vanya. The stage play sees him take on every character in a way few actors can while utilizing subtle shifts in tone, expression and body language, with a little help from creative propwork. You can hear all about Vanya and Scott’s sizable undertaking in the full episode of Cinebuds, and find more information on National Theatre Live at the Oriental via the Milwaukee Film website [https://mkefilm.org/national-theatre-live%F0%9F%8E%AD]. Cinebuds is sponsored by Joe Wilde Co. [https://www.joewilde.com]

Reunited, and it feels so good ... After taking a breather during the Milwaukee Film Festival (more on that in a moment), Dori and Kpolly got back behind the microphone to talk about the latest Marvel movie, Thunderbolts*. Due in part to the break in recording, this might be the first time in Cinebuds history that a film changed its title between its release and getting discussed on the podcast — nice to know the Marvel Cinematic Universe can still keep us on our toes 36 movies in. You’ll hear our hosts talk about the focus on mental health that hovers over Thunderbolts*, the ideas about found family (or teammates), David Harbour’s welcome heaping helping of comic relief amid many other brooding characters and Florence Pugh’s commitment to her role that saw her leap off a 2,000-foot skyscraper. Of course, we couldn’t close the episode with getting a quick Milwaukee Film Festival report from Kpolly, who happily notes the event’s 47% increase in attendance per theater.