Another Round

One thing about me, I love to drink. smoking never really did it for me because I just have no interest in being chill, coke is just too much work, but a good bev? that’s my jam. especially in college, I was drinking a lot, and I have a high tolerance it, so I could get away going pretty far without a lot of negative side effects. I’ve only had to be babysat once ever, no blackouts, less than 5 hangovers to this day. Even though I really enjoy it, and how I feel on it, I never feel controlled by it. I’ve gone months without a sip multiple times and never felt like I just “had” to have it. I say all this because the central conflict of Another Round is the idea that one can “tame” alcohol. Some sort of very precise technique, amount or circumstance, even repeated daily, can net you no consequences. certainly it sounds reasonable. hell, who hasn’t thought they could have “just one more” and be perfectly fine? I’ve made a lot of claims about my drinking ability, half-jokingly, because I’ve never really had any serious issues with the stuff. But I’ve had moments where I say or do something weird or uncouth and had to stop and reevaluate myself. I’ve had moments where the alcohol supercharged negative feelings about myself, which only made me want another one to skip that feeling. Sure, you can probably be ok at a beer a day…but ultimately you’ll lose. It should seem obvious, hell the theory that drives the narrative sounds like a pseudoscience that would make flat earthers blush. But hubris is stronger than fact. Watching this slow motion car crash go from funny, to strangely uplifting, to tragic is a hell of a journey.  man this was a long time coming. I’ve wanted to watch Another Round for YEARS, and I’ve finally checked it off the list. What a fucking movie. Absolutely riveting from start to finish. Another round mixes a variety of tones effortlessly, I was laughing one second and choked up the next. Performances are great, cinematography is wonderful, I just absolutely vibed with this. It’s rare you know exactly where a film is going from the revelation of its main story, and still find yourself completely engrossed in every aspect of it. Great watch.