James Mangold‘s A Complete Unknown (Searchlight, 12.25) is obviously going to deliver…well, a certain kind of authenticity…the portentous, casual kind like a slider or a long putt, certainly by way of Timothee Chalamet‘s performance, and also like a “movie” with the right kind of pacing, the right kind of emphasis here and there…some kind of steady, pro-level thing.

I’ve just listened to the Howard Stern-Kamala Harris interview on SiriusXM, and it wasn’t the least bit challenging or invasive or confrontational…about as substantive and friendly as a high-profile interview of this sort can get. I wasn’t disappointed but I wasn’t riveted either. Harris didn’t overdo the word salad thing. She sounded cool, frank and straight as far as it went, and said “to your point” several times.

I was inwardly begging Stern to bring up the woke psychology thing…the cult of wokeism…white men are the problem (which they are to a significant extent) and all that and how the progressives have basically jettisoned young white dudes because of this exclusionary attitude. And of course he didn’t touch it.

It wasn’t especially important to note that Kamala works out every morning between 30 and 45 minutes, and that cereal-wise she likes Raisin Bran and Kellogg’s Special K. But she said this.

Harris: “I’ve literally lost sleep over this election…this is an election that’s about strength vs. weakness…[Donald Trump] admires dictators…I believe that Trump has this desire to be a dictator…he admires strong men, and he gets played by them…they are manipulating him…this is about do we want a president who will abide by the oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States, or someone who is constantly flattered by Vladimir Putin of Russia?”

“At the height of the pandemic, this guy who was President of the United States, secretly sent Covid test kits for Putin’s personal use…he doesn’t support Ukraine and the importance of sovereign integrity of a democracy…these are principles that we all agree on. It’s a sign of weakness in a leader…he is dangerous and unfit…there were a couple of moments during the debate that were surreal…viewers wanted to know where we stood on the issues, and [Trump] was talking about things that were factually untrue.”

During one of his legendary late ’70s interviews with Tom Snyder on Tomorrow, the magnificent Sterling Hayden was asked what was the benefit of staying at Silver Hill, the pricey dry-out clinic in New Caanan. Hayden lived and abstained at Silver Hill for two months.

Snyder: “What did they do for you…anything?”

Hayden: “Well, many things, of course. But I came out feeling like a young ocelot with his first erection…y’know?”

Is Hayden saying “young ocelot” or “young Lancelot”? The former, I think.

This interview excerpt is a pure contact high. Imagine what Hayden, who died in ’86, would have to say about the wokester cult. It saddens mer, of course, that there aren’t more people like Hayden around these days. There are, of course, but the vast majoirity are sitting silent, simply too scared to open their mouths.

Here’s my sixth or seventh re-posting of a Hayden appreciation that initially surfaced in 2010…one of the finest and most grounded HE essays ever:

In a brief summary posted this morning by CNN’s Jamie Gangel, Jeremy Herb and Elizabeth Stuart, it’s revealed that Bob Woodward’s “War” contains several juicy, profane quotes, many if not most of them spoken by President Biden.

One excerpt quotes Biden describing former President Trump as “that fucking asshole.”

Another stand-out excerpt is a privately conveyed judgment by Biden that former President Obama’s weak response to Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Crimea in 2014 motivated Putin’s invasion of Ukraine in early ‘22.

Mark Frenden’s GATE CRASHERS logo and title treatment is 90% satisfying. Because the red title is off-balance and a bit oddball— it doesn’t quite stand up to the big funny ape. And we don’t really need the Oscar statuette. Am I wrong?

Daniel Craig’s floppy blonde mane, the pink wristband, the black leather jacket, the ruffian black jeans, the dangling shades, the forest of short white whiskers…exquisite. And in precisely the right way, director Luca Guadagnino offers his cultured professorial outfit with just a touch of flare. (A world of difference between white sneakers and whitesides.) But Drew Starkey, whose supporting Queer performance perfectly complements the Oscar-worthy Craig, needs to re-think the aqua blue. Too much of a young man’s statement…turn it down.

Whereas fasting, sobriety and abstinence combine for a much rarer aesthetic — the precise opposite of debauch.

HE to Luca Guadagnino: Wow…what a fascinating psychedelic space-out…a dig-down dreamscape thing…the sexuality is there, obviously, but subordinate to the spiritual current, the exotic atmosphere, Daniel Craig and Drew Starkey’s truly fascinating performances, the nimble editing, the South American jungle yage ** scenes….

The trippy mystical vibe kinda sneaks up on you…it’s one of the most fascinating, out-there films about vulnerability, transformative intimacy and emotionality that I’ve ever seen…amazing!

Seriously…hats off to you and yours.  I was blown away.

Queer is a truly fascinating mood piece and space-out…a film has never taken me to a realm like this…an amazing reach, amazing combustion…and when the William Tell moment happens at the end…God!! It explores and delivers so much more than I expected.

Queer is much more transformative than Call Me By Your Name…it may be your best film ever, or it may be your most out-there or whatever…I’m not sure how to label it but Craig’s performance is staggering…purely a matter of heart and spirit and twitchy emotion…all I know is that he’s uncovered something fresh and alive…really something else.

The Venice Film Festival reviews kind of missed the boat, I think. I mean, Queer is about so much more than just “Lee” and his sexuality and the atmosphere of early ‘50s Mexico City…I truly adored the cinematography, editing, musical choices, the miniature models, the Cinecitta sound stage recreations of Mexico City.

I didn’t even recognize Leslie Manville, who’s really out-there as the jungle medicine woman. And dear effing God, what has happened to poor Jason Schwartzman?…he’s gained at least 50 or 60 pounds!!..what’s happened to Max Fischer? (Wait…I’m told he’s wearing a fat suit.)

I really didn’t see this coming. Talk about your October surprise. Queer is a wake-up thing. It delivers a feeling of inwardness, extra-ness.

** pronounced “yah-hay”

Don’t laugh —- in a 46-year-old review of The Deer Hunter the legendary Andrew Sarris used the” above term, and he wasn’t called a homophobe for doing so. All I know is that it won’t just be Daniel Craig “going homo” inside Avery Fisher Hall this afternoon — HE will be submitting as well.

I’ll also be catching Payal Kapadia’s All We Imagine As Light sometime around 6 pm.

Or at least is seemingly open to Howard Stern guiding her into a hair-down mode during their Tuesday afternoon (10.8, 1 pm) encounter.

This would represent a departure, of course, as Harris and her team have been carefully control-freaking the campaign thus far. Kamala is not Pete Buttigieg — she hasn’t the confidence for improv or thinking on her feet in a free-associative way. But the Stern interview should prove interesting.

Friendo who attended last night’s Acadeny screening of Sean Baker’s Anora:

“Unmistakably enthusiastic audience response. Particularly for lead actress Mikey Madison. And Mark Eidelstein, [who plays] the young Russian playboy.

“But the house was only about a quarter full. At an official Academy screening. Disappointing for a major Cannes winner.”

HE to friendo: “It’s fairly difficult to go broke by under-estimating the sophistication of Academy members. They’re always slow to respond to edgy, smaller-scaled films.

“I’ve seen it twice and can’t wait until my next viewing. No other 2024 film has gotten me off like Anora. I laughed like a hyena, and I’m generally an LQTM guy. I believe it to be the freshest and most confident, most brilliantly constructed powder-keg dramedy in years. 

“It takes a while to get rolling but after the 55-or 60-minute mark it pays off like a slot machine

“The word of mouth has been rhapsodic since the Cannes debut and you’re telling me the Academy theatre was only one-quarter full last night?  Are Academy members really that slow to wake up?  That slow to smell the coffee?”