Entertainment
Forgotten, Unseen Coen Brothers Comedy Is Their Most Polarizing Effort
By Robert Scucci
| Published
It’s never fun when brilliant filmmakers like the Coen brothers swing for the fences and miss. In the case of 2017’s Suburbicon, the fences are of the white picket variety, and George Clooney handled co-writing and directorial duties. The result of this collaboration is two completely different films jammed into one, making for an interesting experiment in social satire that never quite feels satisfying.
Suburbicon was originally penned by the Coen brothers shortly after Blood Simple made its rounds in 1985. The project was conceived as a murder mystery set in an idyllic suburb, but it took on a completely different tone once George Clooney became involved. Clooney’s contributions to the script include a storyline about a Black family moving into an all white neighborhood in the 1950s, and dealing with the kind of racial fallout you’d expect when their new neighbors don’t take too kindly to their presence.
While both stories are solid in their own right and very well could have succeeded as separate films, Suburbicon ultimately misses the mark because they never fully converge. The result feels like two separate movies limping past the finish line instead of effectively getting their points across.
A Murder Mystery And A New Family On The Block
The primary story in Suburbicon centers on the Lodge family. Gardner Lodge (Matt Damon) and his wife Rose (Julianne Moore) initially appear to be your typical American family. They project a happy marriage, and their son Nicky (Noah Jupe) is a picture-perfect child living in suburbia. Always present at the Lodge household is Rose’s identical twin sister, Margaret (Julianne Moore), who is romantically entangled with Gardner.
One night, hitmen Ira Sloan (Glenn Fleshler) and Louis (Alex Hassell) break into the Lodge residence, though their intent remains dubious at this point in the film. They chloroform the family to subdue them, but end up giving Rose, who is a paraplegic, a fatal dose, leaving Nicky without a mother. In the weeks and months that follow, Margaret begins dressing and acting like Rose, slowly infiltrating the Lodge family as if she had always been the matriarch.
The family is later brought into the police station to identify the men who destroyed their lives. Nicky is certain that the men who killed his mother are in the lineup. Gardner outright denies they are the same men, and Margaret follows suit. The entire situation doesn’t sit right with Nicky, and it is only a matter of time before the truth rears its ugly head.
Meanwhile, the Mayers family, who are Black, move into the Suburbicon subdivision and are met with immediate backlash. Nicky befriends Andy Mayers (Tony Espinosa), and the two get along just fine. Andy’s mother (Karimah Westbrook) and father (Leith Burke), however, are subjected to discrimination and cruelty from neighbors who want their community to remain all white. The racial tension ultimately boils over into a riot fueled by good old fashioned family racism, while the murder mystery at the Lodge residence continues to unfold with disastrous results.
Two Different Movies Trying To Be One
Both stories in Suburbicon work well on their own, but things get messy when they are forced together. The entire time I was watching the film, I kept waiting for both narratives to intersect in a meaningful way during the third act, and they technically do. However, that intersection feels forced through the film’s satire, resulting in a sloppy resolution. This is frustrating because the social commentary is all there, and the second and third acts could have been structured differently to tell a more cohesive story.
If the Coen brothers and George Clooney had wanted to fully commit to the satire and push Suburbicon into outright absurd territory, they could have pulled it off in the same way they did with O Brother, Where Art Thou?
A white family suffers a fatal home invasion at the same time a Black family moves into the neighborhood, even though we know the culprits behind the invasion are clearly white. The community then leans into racism by inventing a correlation and letting their imaginations spiral. We get traces of that idea in Suburbicon, but for it to land properly, the murder mystery would need to take the back seat.
By the same token, in order to fully explore the murder mystery, the racial commentary would need to be scaled back. Suburbicon suffers, and ultimately fails, because it does not know which lane to stay in, and even worse, it does not know when or how those lanes should intersect to create a sharp, effective satire that effectively explores both sides of the coin it’s tossing into the air.
Suburbicon boasts all the Coen brothers flair we have come to know and love over the decades, but it plays more like a proof of concept than a fully realized film. It never feels completely fleshed out. Instead, it comes across like their script was thrown into a blender with George Clooney’s, splattered onto a storyboard, and then rushed into production once Clooney said “action.”
As of this writing, Suburbicon is streaming for free on Pluto TV.
Entertainment
Get an exclusive (and nostalgic) look at how NBC is celebrating 100 years of 'must see moments'
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Two new TV spots reveal the NBC100 logo and “A Century Together” campaign, featuring hits like “Friends,” “The Office,” “Star Trek,” and more.
Entertainment
“The View”'s Sunny Hostin calls out Kid Rock lyrics about liking underage girls amid his Bad Bunny criticism
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“Kid Rock is a very average artist who’s gone past his prime,” Alyssa Farah Griffin later added.
The longest-running primetime medical drama Grey’s Anatomy has been airing for 22 seasons now. Fans who were there during the first years claim the show went downhill after Cristina’s (Sandra Oh) exit or Derek’s (Patrick Dempsey) death. Even with the new batch of interns taking the spotlight, newer fans see the latest seasons as underwhelming at best. Arguments can be made with respect to the show’s quality over time, but the truth is newer seasons have featured notable highlights.
Ever since Krista Vernoff returned to join Shonda Rhimes as co-showrunner in Season 14, Grey’s Anatomy went through a reinvention that produced thoroughly engaging storylines. But there’s a specific point in which the show produced one of the best seasons of its modern era. In Season 17, Grey Sloan Memorial had to face head-on the COVID-19 pandemic. Though at the time, it might have hit too close to home, it gave Grey’s Anatomy a new meaning and purpose in the ever-changing landscape of medical TV dramas.
‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Felt Relevant Once Again in Season 17
The COVID-19 pandemic turned the world upside down. Shutting everything down to prevent the spread of this new and deadly disease, humanity had to adapt to face this new reality. In entertainment, this meant shutting down productions of movies and TV shows – thus paralyzing the industry for the foreseeable future. When Grey’s Anatomy was able to resume production, the big questions of what the doctors of Grey Sloan should do and how they should proceed were answered swiftly – tackle the pandemic head-on.
By covering this delicate topic, Season 17 of Grey’s Anatomy made the show feel relevant once again. Whereas there was a long-standing tradition of showcasing catastrophe episodes every year, the entirety of Season 17 covered a real and global crisis that the doctors seemed powerless to face. The stakes felt real once again, as the hospital had to adapt to new sanitary measures, while trying to keep its patients and staff safe. Still, when the topic was gloomy, the later episodes of the season managed to end on a high note, flashing forward to the introduction of the vaccines and finally being able to recover the sense of normalcy we live with today.
Meredith’s Beach Featured the Return of Several ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Fan-Favorites
Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) will never be exempt from catastrophes in her life. Whether personal or professional, she has always been on the brink of figurative or literal death. In Season 17, she was one of the early cases of COVID-19 the hospital had to treat. This brought the controversial beach into the show’s narrative. Love it or hate it, this metaphysical space was an escape from the dark reality both the audience and the hospital were facing at the time. This became our safe space – a maskless and bright place where happy reunions simply happened.
Thus, Season 17 featured fan-favorite and long-awaited returns in one of the few ways that made sense in the show’s narrative. This was the precise moment to bring back Chyler Leigh’s Lexie for one final heartfelt chat with her sister. Lexie’s comeback also brought Eric Dane’s Mark, as a sign that they had found a happy ending after all. T.R. Knight’s George strolled by to talk about how his death affected Meredith’s life. Last, but not least, Meredith saw Derek once again at this fateful moment. Seeing the power couple reunited was a tender callback to their better times. All of them encourage Meredith to keep fighting and return to her family. And though they were constructs of her own comatose mind, their appearances felt like a hug in the direst of times.
‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Season 17 Features the Last Impactful Deaths the Show Has Seen
Grey’s Anatomy’s tradition of featuring impactful deaths practically stopped with Season 17. It makes sense, considering it’d be hard to top their emotional punch. The first was Elena Bailey (Bianca F. Taylor), Miranda’s (Chandra Wilson) mother. After becoming infected with COVID-19 at her nursing home, Elena’s chances of survival were minimal, because the elderly were at higher risk. Grey’s Anatomy faithfully depicted the frustrating protocols that this catastrophe brought forth. The people who represented our support system were fated to die in isolation during this harrowing time. By showing this through Miranda’s resignation and Elena’s final moments, the series honored the victims of the pandemic.
The 15 Most Hated ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Characters, Ranked
While these doctors saved lives, they also made some poor decisions.
The second victim that this season claimed was Giacomo Gianniotti’s Andrew DeLuca. He died a hero, because he was responsible for the apprehension of a human trafficker, and his goodbye was one of the most heartfelt and heartbreaking moments in the modern era of Grey’s Anatomy. Meeting Meredith at her beach, he thanked her for the time they shared and for pushing him to get to know himself. The ambivalence of having to “choose” between life and death is elevated by DeLuca’s reunion with his mother. His bittersweet farewell represents an ideal welcome to the afterlife – and not everyone has gotten this courtesy in Grey’s Anatomy.
In retrospect, Season 17 of Grey’s Anatomy has quietly become one of the best of its modern era. More recent outings have struggled to recapture the emotional impact that this season had. With Pompeo’s departure as a regular in Season 19, this could also be considered the last time Meredith was front-and-center as the main focus of the show. Since the series is nowhere near its end, hopefully it will recapture this gut-wrenching feeling once again.
- Release Date
-
March 27, 2005
- Directors
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Rob Corn, Kevin McKidd, Debbie Allen, Chandra Wilson, Allison Liddi-Brown, Jeannot Szwarc, Tony Phelan
- Writers
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Shonda Rhimes, Julie Wong, Jen Klein, Tameson Duffy, Meg Marinis
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Chandra Wilson
Dr. Miranda Bailey
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The actor, best known for playing Smitty the bartender in the NBC sitcom, died on Jan. 19
Entertainment
White House tries to defend Trump's racist mockery of Barack and Michelle Obama as “The Lion King” parody
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A video posted and deleted on Trump’s Truth Social account depicted the former president and first lady as apes, set to the Tokens’ “The Lion Sleeps Tonight.”
Seahawks Vs. Patriots
Big Game WAGs
Published
More than a decade in the making, the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots will meet again in the Super Bowl … and the wives and girlfriends are ready to see who comes out on top!!
Of course, Cardi B is expected to be Stefon Diggs‘ most passionate cheerleader at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara — even though her Little Miss Drama tour starts 48 hours after the Gig Game.
Instagram/@iamcardib
Drake Maye‘s wife, Ann Michael Maye, has been his biggest fan since middle school … and she certainly won’t miss his first Super Bowl appearance as a Patriot.
Jayda Hawkins — who married Patriots safety Jaylinn Hawkins in March 2025 — and fullback Jack Westover‘s pregnant wife, Sean, will also be present and ready to rep NE on the west coast.
The Seahawks WAGs will show up in full force, too — led by Cooper Kupp‘s wife, Anna Marie, who was super supportive after the Rams dropped him last year. Now, he’s headed to his second Super Bowl.
Same for Josh Jobe — who went to Super Bowl LVII with the Eagles — and his pregnant bride-to-be, Nayomie Suarez.
It’ll be a first for Sam Darnold‘s fiancée, Kate, and DeMarcus Lawrence‘s wife, Sasha — who are all getting their first taste of the Super Bowl stage.
Thanks to these lovely ladies … this matchup is already one to remember.
Entertainment
Mariah Carey opens 2026 Olympics with Eurovision hit song you might also know from “Lizzie McGuire” “Movie”
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The singer performed “Volare” plus one of her own hits at the Milano Cortina Games.
Senator Mark Kelly
No One Can Hear You Fart in Space!!!
Published
TMZ.com
Senator Mark Kelly says astronauts aren’t in a space jam when they let one rip … telling us passing gas in a full space suit isn’t at all like you might imagine.
We caught up with the Democratic Senator from Arizona Thursday in D.C. … and, he gave us the 4-1-1 on cutting the lunar cheese.
Watch the video … Kelly — who’s completed four out-of-this-world missions up to the International Space Station — explains why astronauts on the ISS should feel secure letting a little methane out of their A-S-S.
We also asked the senator if he’d ever consider flying up on Jeff Bezos‘ Blue Origin like Katy Perry, Lauren Sanchez, Gayle King and others did in April of last year … a flight that was mercilessly mocked online … check out what he had to say!
Suede Brooks’
Sexiest Snaps
To Celebrate Her 25th Birthday!
Published
Temperatures are dropping, and we know you could use some extra heat this weekend … it’s Suede Brooks‘ 25th birthday — so it’s time for some hot shots!
Check out a selection of the influencer’s sexiest photos … the fashion and beauty icon specializes in fiery ‘fits, so dive in and warm up!
Happy Birthday Suede!
After hugely positive first responses arrived earlier this week, Chris Hemsworth fans look set for a huge treat when his new heist thriller Crime 101 debuts next week. Starring Hemsworth and his MCU mate Mark Ruffalo, Crime 101 is now one of the most anticipated movies of the month, with one critic calling it “the kind of classy heist thriller we don’t see much of these days,” and another saying it’s “slickly crafted, tightly written, and filled to the brim with compelling characters and a moody, immersive LA atmosphere.”
As fans wait for Hemsworth’s latest big hit, many are heading back into his catalog and checking out one of his most divisive movies: Blackhat. Directed by Michael Mann — whose magnum opus Heat is proving a popular point of comparison with the aforementioned Crime 101 — Blackhat stars Hemsworth alongside Oscar-winner Viola Davis, Tang Wei, and Mindhunter‘s Holt McCallany. Written by Morgan Davis Foehl, the film stars Hemsworth as convicted hacker Nick Hathaway, who is offered clemency to help hunt down a dangerous cybercriminal.
At the time of writing, Blackhat is one of the 10 most-streamed movies on HBO Max worldwide. The action thriller joins two of the Best Picture favorites at the upcoming Academy Awards in the current top ten, with Paul Thomas Anderson‘s masterpiece, One Battle After Another, in third and director Ryan Coogler‘s beloved vampire flick, Sinners, at the top of the charts. A synopsis for Blackhat reads:
“After a Hong Kong nuclear plant and the Mercantile Trade Exchange in Chicago are hacked by unknown perpetrators, a federal agent proposes that the FBI work with China to find the cyber-criminals. The leader of the Chinese team, Chen Dawai, insists that convicted hacker Nick Hathaway be released from prison to help with the investigation. As Nick and his comrades chase their quarry, it becomes evident that the hackers have a sinister motive for their actions.”
‘Blackhat’ Was a Huge Box Office Bomb
Against a reported production budget of $70 million, Blackhat‘s 2015 theatrical run was an enormous disaster as it bowed out with just $19.6 million worldwide. Split between a domestic haul of $8 million and a further $11.6 million from overseas markets, Blackhat hugely disappointed, no doubt thanks to consistently terrible critical reception. On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the movie earned just 33% from critics, with the consensus reading, “Thematically timely but dramatically inert, Blackhat strands Chris Hemsworth in a muddled misfire from director Michael Mann.”
Stay tuned to Collider for the latest streaming stories.
- Release Date
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January 16, 2015
- Runtime
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133 minutes
- Director
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Michael Mann
- Writers
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Morgan Davis Foehl
- Producers
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Jon Jashni
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AMD Just Made Another Radeon Mistake
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