Janet Planet

7/1/2024

There’s a difference between minimalist and vacuous, and writer-director Annie Baker doesn’t seem to know the difference. The playwright’s debut feature, to put it simply, is boring, pretentious, meandering, unfocused and a big, fat waste of time. It’s so dull, in fact, that the film makes the works of Kelly Reichardt appear utterly fascinating. Set in 1991 in the hippie-dominated arts community of rural western Massachusetts, the film follows the story (if one could even call it that) of middle-aged acupuncturist Janet (Julianne Nicholson) as she struggles to sort out what appears to have been a wayward, meandering life. And, as this tale plays out, it faithfully sticks to that course, too, an influence that’s clearly wearing off on Janet’s equally clueless, incessantly brooding, 8-year-o

8/4/2024

A story about a mom and daughter in an awkwardly semi-erotic relationship. The mom starts a relationship with a mentally ill and mentally disabled white man with a speech impediment. We never get to know why or how she hooked up with him. We know she peddles woo for a living, so she hasn't met him in some kind of caretaker/patient relationship. Perhaps it's a fetish. Perhaps it was all she could get. Well, they mow their lawn and sit around trying to say as little as possible, helped by the guy's aforementioned speech impediment. Sometimes the girl plays her Casio. They meet up with the guy's daughter from another unexplained relationship after first standing a minute by their car, then two minutes staring in silence about thirty feet away from the daughter. The two girls play.

4/4/2025

Writer / director Annie Baker‘s slow burn indie film “Janet Planet” is one that takes its time, and whether that works for you really depends on your mood. This super quiet, artsy, coming-of-age movie tells the story of 11-year-old Lacy (Zoe Ziegler) and her free-spirited mom, Janet (Julianne Nicholson), who live in rural Massachusetts in the early ‘90s. The movie is about their highly relatable, complex relationship as Lacy grows up and starts pulling away from her mom. This is an experiential type of film that’s more about the vibe and the little moments than a straightforward plot. What I really liked about this movie is how it feels like you’re just sitting with the characters in their quiet little world. Sounds of nature make up the majority of the soundtrack, which makes you focus