Muscle Beach

Zachary Lee4.0

“You pick the character then you develop the character.”It’s not just one battle after another but multiple battles happening simultaneously all the time. A perfect encapsulation of how because of personal conflicts, we’ll start wars or try to upend the scaffolding of communities due to our scorn; sometimes we’ll burn it all down to catch the attention of the friend we’re estranged from. Loved the generosity of the camera, the way Jacob and DP Doug Frerichs dedicate so much screen time not just to the real, vibrant residents of this beach but the gulls, lizards, and of course the seals. What a beautiful encapsulating vision of community that stands in defiant contrast against the forces that seek to sanitize a space and Ike’s smile is just radiant. When he’s cheesing, you can’t help but feel seen.

randy2themax

Sean Baker-core neo-realist tale of a bodybuilder searching for an old friend on the grimy, kitsch-filled shores of Venice Beach, unravelling a mystery of spiked fitness supplements in the process. Great sense of place and character, great use of non-actors. Ike Catcher, the real-life bodybuilder in the lead role, is an incredible find. He brings a sweet, aw-shucks sensitivity to the role that belies his bulging muscles and massive frame. Couldn't help but wonder if RFK Jr. bumped into Ike when he was working out at Muscle Beach during a campaign stop a few years ago.

mitch f. anderson5.0

earns the "movie named after a place" signifier and then some, the team's love of the titular area and community shining through in literally every frame, more than carried on the (truly insane) shoulders of Ike Catcher who gives the story palpable heart while allowing the ensemble around him to flow (some of Lindsey's best work in this; she has a turn here that genuinely made me jump). instantly difficult to shake, using archive and abstraction to break into its flow in surprising and affecting ways (there's a gorgeous shot that I genuinely couldn't figure out what I was looking at, almost unfairly coming on the heels of a thematically incredible shot of a video game avatar standing still). all this while having the bones of a great noir beneath its uhh muscle, complete with an ending shot that's one of the smarter homages I've seen in a long time. excellent work all around.