• By Mabel Pais

AMERICAN FICTION

Dir/Writ/Co-Prod: Cord Jefferson; 2023; USA; R; Comedy, Drama; 1h 57m

Based upon the novel ‘Erasure’ by Percival Everett

PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD: 2023 Toronto International Film Festival

Best Feature Film: Twin Cities Film Festival

‘AMERICAN FICTION’ is Cord Jefferson’s hilarious directorial debut, which confronts our culture’s obsession with reducing people to outrageous stereotypes. Jeffrey Wright stars as Monk, a frustrated novelist who’s fed up with the establishment profiting from “Black” entertainment that relies on tired and offensive tropes. To prove his point, Monk uses a pen name to write an outlandish “Black” book of his own, a book that propels him to the heart of hypocrisy and the madness he claims to disdain.

Watch the trailer – youtu.be/5_4RlHpqVWM

Playing: In Select Theaters in New York, Los Angeles & Austin – December 15, 2023, additional cities – December 22, everywhere – January 2024

MEMORIES FOR LIFE: REVERSING ALZHEIMER’S

Dir: Hideyuki Tokigawa; Narrator: Michael Bublé; Documentary; Not Rated; 1h 25m

‘MEMORIES FOR LIFE,’ narrated by Grammy winner Michael Bublé, follows patients using health data and a holistic approach to turn back the clock and retain their memories. For patients suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, no memories are safe — from the recollections of daily responsibilities to our most cherished moments.

‘Memories for Life’ follows 6 Alzheimer’s patients who are refusing to accept their prognosis, and are turning to a new method, spearheaded by top neurologist Dr. Dale Bredesen. Instead of treating symptoms, this approach studies the health data of each patient to find the root cause of their illness.

Dr. Bredesen, best-selling author of ‘The End of Alzheimer’s,’ faces constant skepticism from the mainstream medical community, even though many patients following the protocol show signs of reversing their cognitive decline.

Dr. Bredesen has over thirty patents to his name. Notably, he put much of his findings and research into the 2017 New York Times‘ Best-Seller, The End of Alzheimer’s. His most recent book, The First Survivors of Alzheimer’s, presents the stories of seven individuals who reversed their cognitive decline using the ReCODE Protocol. He is recipient of UCLA’s Arthur Cherkin Award for Research in Neurodegenerative Disease.

Watch the trailer – memoriesforlifefilm.com.

Screening: Available on VOD on AppleTV, Prime Video, Vudu & Google Play and memoriesforlifefilm.com.

THE BOYS IN THE BOAT

Dir/Co-Prod: George Clooney; Documentary; Biography, Drama, Sport; PG-13; 2h 4m

Based on the Book by: Daniel James Brown

‘THE BOYS IN THE BOAT’ is a sports drama based on the #1 New York Times bestselling non-fiction book written by Daniel James Brown. The film, directed by George Clooney, is about the 1936 University of Washington rowing team that competed for gold at the Summer Olympics in Berlin. This inspirational true story follows a group of underdogs at the height of the Great Depression as they are thrust into the spotlight and take on elite rivals from around the world.

Watch the trailer – youtu.be/dfEA-udzjjQ

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Releasing: In Theaters December 25

TIME BOMB Y2K

Dirs: Brian Becker & Marley DcDonald; Documentary; 1h 24m

2023 DOC NYC FILM FESTIVAL

As the clock counts down to the dawn of the 21st century, the world faces the largest potential technological disaster to ever threaten humanity. By re-appraising both the cooperative efforts and mass hysteria surrounding this millennial milestone, ‘TIME BOMB Y2K’ explores how modern life has been dramatically transformed by the digital revolution.

Having lauded the transformative power of computers and the internet, President Clinton invests billions of dollars and appoints a “Y2K Czar” in 1998 to tackle the problem. Yet, despite the government’s best efforts, hysteria still leads thousands to buy guns, stock up on supplies, cancel travel plans, and even move off the grid entirely. The looming deadline prompts a deep evaluation of our relationship to computer technologies.

With ‘Y2K’ now in the rearview mirror and with new technological threats emerging daily, ‘TIME BOMB Y2K’ raises concerns about the digital infrastructure we’ve created and takes a prophetic and comical look at our dependence on complex systems vulnerable to future glitches. ‘Y2K’ forced us to consider what would happen if computers worldwide suddenly stopped working. Even worse, what if this failure led to nuclear catastrophe? Against this backdrop, the world rose to the challenge and exhibited unprecedented cooperation to ultimately avert disaster.

Watch the trailer – youtu.be/d6Q8v7Z7TJs

Opening: December 30, 2023 on HBO and available to stream on Max. 

(Mabel Pais writes on The Arts and Entertainment, Social Issues, Spirituality, Education, Cuisine, Health & Wellness, and Business)