Tracker Pixel for Entry

​Majors Gripping as Unstable Bodybuilder in Bynum’s ‘Magazine Dreams’

Cinema | February 12th, 2023

By Greg Carlson

gregcarlson1@gmail.com

One of the most buzzed-about movies at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival was “Magazine Dreams,” the sophomore feature from writer-director Elijah Bynum. The film, starring Jonathan Majors as a rage-prone bodybuilder, is not a home run, but it is a significant improvement over the filmmaker’s 2017 debut “Hot Summer Nights,” a disappointing neo-noir thriller.

“Magazine Dreams” owes a heavy debt to “Taxi Driver,” but Bynum flips the paranoia and racism of the white Travis Bickle to ponder the experiences of Black Americans under threat for merely existing.

Too grim to signal the likelihood of mainstream box office success, “Magazine Dreams” will draw attention for the muscular (in all senses of the word) performance of the increasingly vital Majors.

Not unlike some of the remarkable physical transformations made by Robert De Niro in the pursuit of total character immersion, Jonathan Majors spent hours following a brutal training regimen to add a key credit to his already impressive filmography. The ominously-named Killian Maddox certainly seems like a “mad killer,” despite caring for his aging grandfather William (Harrison Page) and seeing a counselor (Harriet Sansom Harris).

Bynum foreshadows tragedy, laying out clues like a breadcrumb trail, but it is Majors who molds Maddox into a formidable monster, alternating between pathetic vulnerability and terrifying violence.

Whether consciously or not (and it is difficult to imagine not), Bynum borrows liberally from Paul Schrader’s legendary “Taxi Driver” screenplay, and a number of scenes in “Magazine Dreams” mirror Bickle’s grim descent toward homicidal action. In one, Killian finds the courage to ask grocery store coworker Jessie (Haley Bennett) out for dinner. He may not order black coffee and apple pie with a slice of melted yellow cheese, but Jessie’s realization that her date is not entirely safe comes just as quickly as Betsy’s cut-off of Travis.

Taylour Paige, as a sex worker identified in the credits as Pink Coat, doesn’t completely align with Jodie Foster’s Iris, but her big scene is one of the film’s most memorable.

Bynum also doesn’t go so far to include a smooth-talking Easy Andy, but “Magazine Dreams” is no less unsettling when Maddox puts together a small arsenal that includes the all-too-familiar type of assault-style rifle used in so many horrific mass shootings.

Instead of Bickle-style diary voiceovers, the filmmaker substitutes Killian’s Google searches – which pose queries like how to be remembered and how to get people to like you. The results in both movies are similar. The deeper we follow the protagonist’s downward spiral, the more we dread the inevitable.

“Magazine Dreams” succumbs to some repetitiveness, but I sincerely appreciated Bynum’s final-act choices, which keep viewers on high alert with more than one welcome surprise. What transpires before the tense climax poses more questions than answers, and not all of the director’s intentions are clear.

I’m still not sure what to make of the resolution to the subplot tracing Killian’s hero-worship of bodybuilding idol Brad Vanderhorn (Mike O’Hearn), which teeters on a wobbly tightrope between homoeroticism and homophobia. Other scenes, like the one in which Killian has an ugly altercation with a past tormentor at a diner, strike with the brilliance of lightning. 

Recently in:

By Alicia Underlee NelsonMore than 1,000 pro-worker events are planned for Thursday, May 1 across the country, including rallies in Fargo-Moorhead, Grand Forks, Minot and Jamestown. East Grand Forks and Bismarck will host protests…

From concerts and car shows to Japanese art and Juneteenth celebrations, there's so much going on around the region this summer. This year's High Plains Reader Summer Events Calendar is back and bigger than ever. It's packed with…

May 24-25, 1-4 p.m.Yunker Farm & Dog Park, 1201 28th Avenue N., Fargo.Who’s ready for a fun filled family friendly day of enchantment and imagination ignition? Kids of all ages file in for kite flying, a fairy parade, scavenger…

By John Strandjas@hpr1.com One description that perhaps aptly describes the mental state of many lately is that they feel they are attached to a string. Or several strings. Call it the notion that people are played like puppets,…

By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comHow many cardinals in red look at Michelangelo’s sexy ceiling?Michelangelo finished painting the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in 1512. It is examined and admired by millions every year. The…

By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com Holiday wine shopping shouldn’t have to be complicated. But unfortunately it can cause unneeded anxiety due to an overabundance of choices. Don’t fret my friends, we once again have you covered…

By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com After a very inspiring conversation with Kayla Houchin of Sonder Bakehouse a few weeks ago, I decided that it’s an appropriate time to write a column about some of the sweet people who are involved…

Mooncats and Pert Near Sandstone play Empire TheatreBy Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comThe MoonCats describe themselves as “Americonscious Campfire Folk.” They have a clear acoustic folk sound with a sense of whimsy — think…

By Greg Carlsongregcarlson1@gmail.com In a Sundance profile for feature debut “The Ugly Stepsister,” which opened the festival’s 2025 Midnight section, filmmaker Emilie Blichfeldt described growing up “in a tiny village…

By Raul Gomezraul@hpr1.com Minutes before Modern’s Celebration of Life opened its door at the Sons of Norway, I was fiddling with the bar computer, trying to pull up the playlists of Modern’s work I had set aside for the…

By John Showalterjohn.d.showalter@gmail.comHigh Plains Reader had the opportunity to interview two mysterious new game show hosts named Milt and Bradley Barker about an upcoming event they will be putting on at Brewhalla. What…

By Annie Prafckeannieprafcke@gmail.com AUSTIN, Texas – As a Chinese-American, connecting to my culture through food is essential, and no dish brings me back to my mother’s kitchen quite like hotdish. Yes, you heard me right –…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comNew Jamestown Brewery Serves up Local FlavorThere’s something delicious brewing out here on the prairie and it just so happens to be the newest brewery west of the Red River and east of the…

By Ellie Liveranieli.liverani.ra@gmail.com There appear to be differences in the incidence of mental illnesses between men and women. For example, women are more likely to be diagnosed with depression, post-traumatic stress…

By Alicia Underlee NelsonProtests against President Trump’s policies and the cuts made by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) are planned across North Dakota and western Minnesota Friday, April 4 and…

By Vern Thompsonvern.thompson.nd7@gmail.com Our trucking business has me driving almost daily from gas plants in western North Dakota's oil patch to Canada. I haul natural gas liquids (NGLs) products we used to see flared off at…