Drama

“Maestro,” “Rye Lane,” “Blackberry,” “Anyone But You,” “American Fiction,” “The Taste of Things,” “Perfect Days,” and “Poor Things” Reviews

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Happy Post-Oscars week! I know I generally have my top 10 films of the year out right before the Oscars, but Final Fantasy VII Rebirth has been keeping me thoroughly distracted. I am hoping to get that out by the start of next week. Congratulations to all of the winners at the Academy Awards, especially for my boy Christopher Nolan FINALLY getting the recognition he deserves. Time to give my final 2023 movie reviews.

Maestro

I did not vibe with this movie AT ALL. I think Bradley Cooper is a talented actor and a somewhat talented director, but he needs to take a break from the Oscar-bait films. This movie was supposed to be a biopic about Leonard Bernstein, but after two hours I still felt like I knew nothing about him. It was an interesting choice to highlight Bernstein’s marriage as opposed to the rise in his musical iconography, which I was hoping to see more of. A lot of the dialogue felt cringeworthy and a bit too artificial, trying too hard to be set in the 1950s.

The cinematography is quite good and you can tell that Cooper has a good eye behind the camera, but this makes me wonder if he might be better being the director of a film that he doesn’t star in. For a film that desperately tries to sell you on its importance and emotional resonance, it unfortunately lands quite flat.

Grade: C-/60

Rye Lane

Kind of watched this on a whim with a friend and had no idea what it was about. It’s hard to truly love a rom-com when you don’t believe the chemistry between the two leads. Unfortunately that’s how I felt about Rye Lane, even though tonally it was great, and the movie really popped with its bright visuals. The premise of the film was great too, paying homage to similar films like the Before Trilogy, where a relationship begins to bud after one long hangout. It’s also quite funny at times too, but again, hard to truly get invested when you can’t buy into the two leads’ relationship.

Also, can I just say, I HATE the fisheye lens cinematography. I find it so distracting and 99% of the time it is such an eye sore. Unfortunately, this movie has so much of it, and I found it really annoying.

Grade: B-/73

Blackberry

Blackberry tries its hardest to emulate the magic of The Social Network, and mostly pulls it off. The story about the rise of the Blackberry phone is mostly interesting, with Glenn Howerton providing some truly dazzling Dennis from It’s Always Sunny energy.

Films like this one are always fascinating because everyone loves a good underdog story. Most of the dialogue is pretty snappy similar to Aaron Sorkin’s work, but every now and then it veers a bit too much into the fantastical where people start to become more like caricatures rather than real life people. Overall, it’s a pretty fascinating look into an often forgotten piece of hardware that was once at the top of the world for a brief moment in time.

Grade: B/79

Anyone But You

Sydney Sweeney’s rise to stardom has been quick and widespread, and I have been a willing participant. I first heard of her through the HBO show Euphoria, which I refuse to watch because I don’t want to see adults playing teenagers struggling with sex and drug addiction. I used to think that Sweeney was just a very marketable actress with limited range, until I saw her in Reality, which left me quite impressed with her. Naturally, a rom-com featuring her and Glen Powell seems to be a match made in heaven. Two hot people being hot and doing hot things? What’s not to love?

Well, I think the film is pretty good! The premise is perfect for the genre, and it scratches that itch that people will want to see in a rom-com. I gotta say though…while Glen Powell is great, Sweeney is…not as great. A lot of her line delivery seemed quite lifeless to me, which is a complaint that I’ve heard about her in the past.

Regardless of her acting, it’s hard to deny the chemistry between the two. It’s a fun movie that passes the time quickly. Anyone But You has also made quite a lot of money as well, so it’s nice to see that people are going to theaters to check it out, especially for a genre that hasn’t been entirely profitable for a while especially because it’s more likely to go straight to streaming nowadays. I know that there are rumblings for a sequel and I don’t know how that would happen based on the premise, but I’ll most likely be tuning in.

Grade: B/76

American Fiction

Jeffrey Wright leads a clever satire about black people “selling out” in American Fiction, and is one of the funniest films of the year. It’s got a lot of interesting social commentary about “blackness” and themes of identity.

While I don’t think the ending is quite as satisfying as I hoped and at times it gets a bit too overambitious in its messaging, this is definitely a film worth watching. I think there are a lot of films out there made by black filmmakers that try to capture the nuance in social commentary that American Fiction largely achieves, but come short. This is a refreshing story bolstered by some solid performances, especially from Wright who absolutely earns that Oscar nomination.

Grade: B+/81

The Taste of Things

If you decide to see this film, be warned: you must not watch it on an empty stomach. If the opening of Saving Private Ryan is an all-out assault on the senses when it comes to the hellishness of war, The Taste of Things‘ opening scene is an all-out assault on the senses with food for a legit 20 minutes.

Watching this film reminded me that there are few things more erotic than food. I mean, this is the food-porniest of all food-porn movies. The sights, the sounds, the smells. I know you can’t smell a movie, but you can pretty much smell this movie. It’s one of the most beautiful films of 2023, a celebration of French cuisine and the French expression of love. I’ve never seen a movie directed by Tran Anh Hung before, but I’ve certainly developed an appetite for his work and I definitely want to see more. Finding a good romance movie seems very few and far between nowadays, but 2023 gifted us with Fallen Leaves and The Taste of Things, so I am quite content with how things have been going this past year for a genre I’m not as well-versed in. I can’t wait to watch this movie again sometime at home, in front of a huge assortment of dishes ready to eat.

Grade: A-/86

Perfect Days

Ah yes, toilet cleaning ASMR: the movie. Perfect Days is a quiet and slow paced slice of life film that is heavy on the vibes and light on the story. I’ll admit that the first half of the film felt a tad repetitive and slightly boring to me, but things really turned around in the second half. Not necessarily because a lot of exciting things happen in the latter half, but more because of the character finally clicking for me, leading to more meaningful character interactions. Kōji Yakusho is wonderful as Hirayama, a man of very few words but with a simplistic and optimistic outlook on life. It’s always fascinating to see films through the eyes of an everyman, and it certainly helps that it takes place in the beautiful backdrop of Tokyo. It’s nice to see a movie where loneliness isn’t portrayed as a bad thing, because there are a lot of people out there in the world who enjoy time to themselves and living a quiet lifestyle. However, I do wonder how happy-go-lucky Hirayama would be if he had to clean American public toilets instead of Japanese ones. He might be really depressed then.

Grade: B+/81

Poor Things

Yorgos Lanthimos’s newest Emma Stone collaboration is stunning in its artistry and beautifully filmed. Remember how I said earlier that 99% of movies with the fisheye lens aesthetic are an eye sore? This is the 1%. I’m now convinced that Lanthimos is the only director who can pull off fisheye lens. The production design is immaculate in Poor Things and the title cards for each chapter are perfection; I wish I could have them framed in my house.

With all that being said, I did not enjoy this movie, and found it quite frustrating. Without giving too many plot points away, the film is essentially about a character named Bella Baxter (played by Emma Stone) who experiences her sexual awakening and spiritual enlightenment in her journey across Europe. As she becomes more exposed to the world and the philosophies that shape those around her, all those influences slowly begin to form her worldview as she becomes more independent in thought. I found the world of Poor Things to be very fascinating, and Emma Stone’s performance is certainly a very bold one worthy of the accolades she’s received. However, whenever Bella would become curious about the world, it would always revert back to that of a sexual nature, something that the film is overly indulgent in. I felt like half of the movie was of Bella having sex, which got really repetitive and uncomfortable for me. The movie could have benefitted a lot more from having different types of intellectual stimulation with situations that broadened Bella’s mind, but too often the director confined the viewer to the bedroom instead.

It’s hard for me to give Poor Things a bad grade, because objectively speaking it’s quite fantastic on all fronts. It’s a shame that the narrative doesn’t hold up as well because I really would have liked to love this one. Lanthimos continues to be a very divisive director for me, and after giving a number of his films a shot, I’m not sure I want to keep sticking around, no matter how many awards his movies get.

Grade: C+/66

“Society of the Snow,” “Napoleon,” The Zone of Interest,” “Wonka,” “20 Days in Mariupol,” “Beyond Utopia,” and “The Teachers’ Lounge” Reviews

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My 2023 watchlist is wrapping up quite soon, only have a few more movies to watch until I can finalize my top 10. Here we go!

Society of the Snow

This one was definitely a tough watch. What these passengers abord a Uruguayan flight had to endure was nothing short of horrifying. I remember watching this a few days before having to fly myself, and it definitely gave me some anxiety. I appreciated JA Bayona’s approach to the dark and traumatic bits, because an American director definitely would have sensationalized it. This is easily one of, if not the best man vs. nature films I’ve seen. My main issues were with the pacing and figuring out who each of the characters were. There were so many of them, and it was a little difficult to keep track of who was who. I wonder if this would have benefitted from being a miniseries, maybe 3-4 episodes or something. Regardless, it was gripping and pretty much solidifies the fact that nature never loses.

Grade: B/79

Napoleon

I had high expectations for this film since Ridley Scott gave us The Last Duel back in 2021. Boy, was this one disappointing. Don’t get me wrong, Scott delivers on the goods when it comes to the production, costume design, and epic action sequences. It’s the spaces inbetween where we learn about Napoleon and his wife Josephine, played by Vanessa Kirby that were quite a letdown. A lot has been said about how historically inaccurate this film is, and while I’m sure it would have benefitted from being a bit more accurate, I don’t think it would’ve been a make or break factor. The pacing was a bit all over the place, as it jumped from milestone to milestone in Napoleon’s storied career. I think it would have been better if the film was similar in structure to Danny Boyle’s Steve Jobs, focusing on three pivotal points in his career.

While I very much love Joaquin Phoenix, I think his performance was kind of sleepy here. The writing also didn’t help. Ridley Scott’s decision to frame Napoleon as a petulant child was certainly a decision, and I donno how well it worked. While it’s not a bad movie, it’s ultimately a shame because there was so much potential for this to be an excellent film. I know there’s rumblings of a 4-hour directors cut, but I don’t know if even that could save this movie from being a weirdly written, paced, and acted film. The battle on the ice was freakin’ money though.

Grade: B-/74

The Zone of Interest

One of the most horrifying films of the year. While I was not a fan at all of Jonathan Glazer’s Under the Skin, I think his directorial style greatly benefitted The Zone of Interest, one of the most harrowing films made about the Holocaust. I’m glad this film got nominated for Best Sound because I cannot stress how much the sound in this film completely changes everything. So much of the film is not about what you see, but what you hear that leaves you terrified. The last 15 minutes of this film are seared into my brain forever and some of the most brilliant filmmaking I’ve ever seen.

Grade: A-/86

Wonka

While I do love me some Timothee Chalamet, I couldn’t care less about Willy Wonka. I saw the original film many times as a kid, and thought it was fine, but I really had no affinity for it. The only reason I was interesting in this film was because it was directed by the guy who did the Paddington movies, and Chalamet. While I wouldn’t say it’s on the same level as Paddington, it’s a wonderful and charming film. Unfortunately, I found most of the songs to be kind of mediocre (except for the opening song, Hatful of Dreams). Chalamet however, has a surprisingly fantastic voice and he does his best to elevate the songs.

The film absolutely has the signature Paul King charm, but so much so that it’s hard to believe that this film is a prequel to the original film. Chalamet’s Wonka is pretty much a human Paddington Bear, but Gene Wilder’s Wonka is borderline psychotic that enjoys torturing naughty kids. You don’t get any hint of that in Wonka. It’s better to view this film as a standalone entry as opposed to a prequel in my opinion. I probably would have loved this film if the songs were a bit better, but seeing as how I didn’t really have too high of expectations, I’ll take what I can get.

Grade: B/80

20 Days in Mariupol

This was probably the most depressing documentary I’ve ever seen. War is horrifying and no one truly comes out a winner. When earth-shifting decisions are made by the few, we see the ugliness of humanity in documentaries such as this. It’s sad that the war in Ukraine doesn’t seem to have an end in sight, but I’m glad that this documentary was released for the world to see. While the documentary might not have as much “production value” as others, that’s not the point at all. It’s a tough watch that should be seen by everyone so that we can learn not to make the same mistakes.

Grade: B+/81

Beyond Utopia

Another really depressing documentary. North Koreans living under such an oppressive regime is truly heartbreaking. This documentary tells the story of a few families trying to escape North Korea, with a help of a South Korean Pastor. It’s honestly baffling that countries like North Korea exist in our world, as their people are truly living in a dystopian society. Watching this really made me reflect on how thankful I should be for the life I have.

Grade: B+/81

The Teachers’ Lounge

I had no idea that this film existed until the Oscar nominations were announced, and this film was nominated over a few more popular entries (Looking at you, The Taste of Things). I watched this film with no expectations and holy moly, this was one of the most stressful films of the year. As someone who has a brother that’s a middle school teacher, watching this gave me secondhand PTSD. Leonie Benesch gives a wonderful performance as a living saint of a teacher who takes matters into her own hands when the school fails her. This film was Uncut Gems levels of stress, except unlike that film, everything is paced in a much more cohesive and believable manner. Few thrillers in 2023 have lived up to the tension and suspense that The Teachers’ Lounge delivered. Future teachers, be warned if you watch this film, you may consider a career change.

Grade: B+/82

“The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar,” “Fallen Leaves,” “The Boy and the Heron,” “Monster,” “The Delinquents,” “Flora and Son,” “Ferrari,” and “Dream Scenario” Reviews

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Happy New Year! There have been a lot of wonderful films in 2023, and still more great ones to come. Happy to share some thoughts with the following:

The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar

While I was really not a fan of Wes Anderson’s Asteroid City, this more than made up for it. Running at a brisk 39 minutes, there is plenty of charm and classic Wes Anderson joy to be found in this short film. Naturally quirky and entertaining performances from newcomers like Benedict Cumberbatch and Dev Patel have you quickly wondering why Anderson didn’t cast them in previous movies. While the other three short films that were released on Netflix weren’t nearly as good, I’m glad that we got to have a gem like this one to enjoy.

Grade: B+/81

Fallen Leaves

This film was such a delight to see. Described by some as a working class romance, I love how unapologetic this film was in depicting the depressing and monotonous lifestyle of lower-middle class Finnish people. The film actually kind of reminded me of Napoleon Dynamite with its dry sense of humor and deadpan delivery from the lead actors, but never once did it feel disingenuous or phony. I really enjoyed peeking into a life that I’m not overly familiar with, and the grounded humanity of the film made the romance feel all the more alive. I really hope that this film inspires more romantic comedies at this kind of speed, a little bit more low-key and less glamorous.

Grade: B+/82

The Boy and the Heron

Oh Boy, oh Boy. There is so much to say about The Boy and the Heron. Thinking about it still makes my head hurt. Hayao Miyazaki is one of the greatest living filmmakers and his dedication to transporting us to wildly imaginative worlds is still a constant in his latest entry. While this film could be seen as a metaphor for his career, his relationship with Studio Ghibli, his relationship with his son, or the inner turmoil he has reckoning with his own ideas and legacy, no one can deny that this film has so much depth and so much of Miyazaki himself injected into the film. I can totally understand some being turned off by how confusing the film often gets, as I had many questions once the film ended. It wasn’t until I thought about it and read some other peoples thoughts online where I was able to get a better understanding of what Miyazaki was trying to say with this film. Even though I grew up watching his movies, I never truly got to appreciate Miyazaki’s work until the pandemic, when all of the films appeared on HBO Max. In fact, I even wrote a post on this blog ranking them and detailing my love for all his films. The Wind Rises was my least favorite Miyazaki film, and I was a bit sad that that was supposedly his last one before announcing his “retirement.” However, I’m happy with this one being his last, if it really is his last. This was also the first film of his that I got to see on the big screen, and in IMAX too. It was truly a treat to be whisked away into one of his worlds again.

Grade: B+/82

Monster

This was another fantastic film from family drama master filmmaker Hirokazu Kore-eda. As it is with most films I see, I go into them not really knowing what they’re about, and I am SO GLAD I had no idea what this film was about. I almost don’t even want to say anything about this film because talking about any of the major points would give away its unique storytelling structure. Yes, it has been done before, most famously by another Japanese film, but this one manages to make it its own and tell a heartwrenching story propelled by some really fantastic performances. This film kept me guessing until the very end and made putting the pieces together feel so rewarding. Between this, The Boy and the Heron, and Godzilla Minus One (which I still need to see), Japan’s had one heck of a year at the movies in 2023.

Grade: B+/81

The Delinquents

This film was advertised to me as a “slow burn heist.” That got me really interested and eager to see this film. Boy, they could not have been more wrong. This film was a painful slog to get through. The “heist” happens within the first ten minutes, and after that, it’s just 3 hours of meandering dialogue and “character development.” Everything just felt so self-important, but I could not get attached to any of the characters at all even with its grueling length. It’s a beautiful film, and the performances are fine, and even the premise itself is pretty fascinating. It was all the more disappointing that the film could not capitalize on its story, especially with its incredibly anticlimactic ending.

Grade: C/65

Flora and Son

John Carney carves out a pretty niche market for himself with music-based romance/dramas, and I’m all for it. I enjoyed Sing Street and thought Begin Again was even better. With Flora and Son, I think it’s his one of his weaker entries, particularly because I didn’t really enjoy any of the songs. It’s hard to truly love a music-based film if you can’t vibe with any of the songs. However, the perfomances are pretty decent and it gets all the familiar story beats that get you feeling warm and inspired. Also, how are people having perfectly lag-free conference calls in 1080p in the park? Does Dublin have incredible wifi or what??

Grade: B/76

Ferrari

I had some reasonably high expectations for this one since it’s Michael Mann, but unfortunately I don’t think this film was very good. The story is somewhat interesting and could have potentially been great if I bought into Adam Driver’s performance as Enzo Ferrari, but I’m not entirely sure he turns in a good performance here. Shailene Woodley was HORRIBLY miscast as well, who could not hold an Italian accent to save her life. The film shows signs of expert direction from Mann, which made this all the more of a frustrating watch. Perhaps the most frustrating aspect of this film was the absolutely atrocious CGI. The special effects used during some of the film’s most poignant scenes were absolutely laughable, which really took me out of the film. The racing scenes in the film were easily the best, but they were few and far inbetween. I wish we could’ve given my man a bit more of a budget, because I can’t remember the last time there was this big of a CGI blunder.

Grade: B-/71

Dream Scenario

This film being produced by Ari Aster made a lot of sense. This film was very similar in terms of tone to Beau is Afraid, if Beau was running at about 10% power. This film was much more tame and did not make the most of its interesting premise. Nicolas Cage has a bit more of a subdued performance all things considered, and really just left me longing for a proper Cage/Aster collaboration. Director Kristoffer Borgli gives a pretty decent try here, starting out strong until the third act kind of falls apart. The ending isn’t very satisfying, and there’s just nothing memorable apart from its overpromising story.

Grade: B-/72

“Killers of the Flower Moon,” “A Thousand and One,” “Anatomy of a Fall,” “The Killer,” and “The Holdovers” Reviews

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Well, well, well. Out of all the years I’ve been blogging, this may be my best string of movies yet. I can’t remember the last time I saw this many movies I loved in a row. Let’s begin.

Killers of the Flower Moon

It’s kind of crazy that Scorsese is 81 years old now, and he’s capable of making films as great as KOTFM. Like, am I even going to be alive at the age of 81? Based on my eating habits, probably not. Still, Scorsese hasn’t missed a step and his follow-up to the masterful The Irishman is almost as good. It’s very easy at this point in their careers to take the cinematic trio of titans in DiCaprio, De Niro, and Scorsese for granted, but these are some of their career finest. I know DiCaprio sometimes gets flak for playing the same kind of character in all his movies, but this certainly one of his most vulnerable roles. It’s refreshing for him to play a sort of oafish character, which is a great contrast to the magnetic, gentle spirit in Lily Gladstone. I’m sure as awards season ramps up, she will be one of the central figures in all of the best actress conversations. She is the real deal here.

I think sometimes it’s easy for me to forget that “good acting” does not always translate to dramatic emoting. There is power in the quiet, and Gladstone’s performance as Mollie Burkhart is one of the greatest examples of that. She conveys more emotion with just her eyes than some actors do with everything they’ve got, and it’s a big testament to her talent. I thought this was her first movie since I’ve never heard of her prior to this, but seeing as how she’s been in a lot of stuff, hopefully this film puts her on the map and gets her bigger roles, because she deserves it. Also, quick shoutout to Jesse Plemons! This is definitely my favorite performance of his so far.

Much has been said about KOTFM’s 3.5 hour runtime and yes, it can be difficult to sit through a film that long. I have a pretty small bladder so when I watch films like this, I need to stop drinking any fluids 3-4 hours beforehand to ensure I don’t miss a thing. Could this have been condensed into a shorter movie without compromising its story and message? Perhaps. On the other hand, I don’t think any part of KOTFM felt unnecessary. Seeing the character development over the long runtime was both rewarding and intriguing. I wouldn’t fault anyone who had a hard time going through it all in one sitting, though. I’m generally a fan of long epics, but I’m guessing the majority of moviegoers wouldn’t feel the same way, for good reason.

Killers of the Flower Moon tells a powerful story about an abused and exploited group of people that is important for everyone, but especially Americans to know about. Unfortunately, much of our country’s “success” was built on top of the skeletons of its dark deeds from the past, and even now the Osage people are still being marginalized. I know films with buzzworthy political messages have been in for the past decade, but when a story is told with as much care as Scorsese has treated KOTFM, it’s worth paying attention to. Definitely one of the best films of the year, and proof that Marty is one of the best directors out there.

Grade: A-/89

A Thousand and One

Probably the most surprising film of the year for me. I hadn’t heard much about this film other than it winning the top prize at Sundance, but none of my friends had seen it so I figured why not check it out. I loved this. There was so much room for this film to tell the same old story that we’ve seen time and time again, but writer/director A.V. Rockwell’s work is utterly refreshing and kept me guessing throughout. Teyana Taylor’s performance also completely elevates the film and is sublime in the role of Inez, a woman who just wants to care for her son, even if the rest of the world tries their best not to let her do so.

There were so many times I thought this movie was going to go down a certain path because of how familiar it felt, but I just kept getting surprised each time. Life is unpredictable, and I think A Thousand and One captures that brilliantly. I’m not sure if this film will have enough traction to make any noise come awards season, but it deserves to be up there as one of the finest dramas to come out in 2023.

Grade: B+/83

Anatomy of a Fall

The more I think about this movie, the more I love it. Courtroom dramas are getting considerably harder for me to truly love, because it’s hard to break ground in a genre that’s had so many similar stories come before it. Anatomy of a Fall makes all the right choices in not only giving us fascinating look into the French legal system (unfamiliar to an ignorant American such as I), but also making the heart of the film a story about how a death that shocks the nation can disrupt the family dynamics of those affected.

Sandra Hüller is sooo good here. Her performance on its own is already one of the best of the year, but the fact that she did it in three languages (French, German, English) makes it so much more impressive. As someone who is barely bilingual with a very elementary level of Mandarin, I’ve never felt so seen in Hüller’s performance when she finds difficulty speaking about complex ideas in a language outside of her native tongue. The language barrier in the story adds a whole other level of complexity to the already-riveting legal drama, something that is probably not as commonplace compared to if this was an American film.

One thing I never thought I’d mention in a review is that this film contains what is possibly the best dog performance of all time. There’s a particular scene in the third act that left me in awe. I seriously have no idea how they got the dog to do what it did. If that doesn’t pique your interest, then nothing else will.

Even though France submitted The Taste of Things (a film I’m very excited to see) as their entry for the best French feature over Anatomy of a Fall, I really hope that people will see this movie. It’s truly riveting from start to finish. Easily some of the best performances of the year bolstered by a unique premise that will have people discussing the ending for a long time.

Grade: A-/87

The Killer

David Fincher has been a part of two of the most heartbreaking cancellations of all time for me: the commercial flop of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and the abrupt end of Mindhunter. Those are two of the best things that Fincher’s worked on, and both were cruelly axed before we could see a proper ending for either stories.

While I enjoyed Mank for what it was, it was completely inaccessible for most moviegoers and definitely one of Fincher’s most Oscar-baity films, probably just behind The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Because Mindhunter essentially died so that he could make Mank, I was kind of down on Fincher for a few years. However, The Killer is a fine return to form, and also a welcome return for Michael Fassbender, who graciously took a break from his racing career to grace us with his handsome face again after all these years.

I loved how simple The Killer was. In a year with numerous sprawling three-hour epics, it was nice to unwind with a film like this where you can just take in the beautiful visuals and vibes from an auteur director such as Fincher. Fassbender hasn’t lost a step either, as his portrayal of the killer is fantastic. This film is very reminiscent of Jean-Pierre Melville’s Le Samouraï, a film that I deeply love. While I still think Le Samouraï is better, there’s an unmistakable swagger and flair to The Killer that just cannot be ignored. Also, this film has surprisingly one of the best fight scenes of the year. It got me thinking how often Fincher has done fight proper choreographed fight scenes, so not including a bunch of amateur brawl scenes like in Fight Club. The one in this movie reminded me of the bathroom fight scenes in Mission Impossible: Fallout and The Raid 2. Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross’s soundtrack is also great here, adding yet another entry to the beautiful collaboration between them and Fincher. It’s a shame that Netflix doesn’t emulate the other streaming platforms and give their feature films an extended theatrical run, because this would have been so much better to see in theaters than on my TV at home. Regardless, it’s a win for both Fincher and Fassbender fans. Welcome back.

Grade: B+/83

The Holdovers

Alexander Payne is the king of dysfunctional family dramedies. From The Descendants to Nebraska, this guy is able to make a bunch of misfits so charming and likable. The Holdovers is no exception here. It’s akin to a fuzzy, warm hug that echoes some of John Hughes’s best works. I’ve always liked Paul Giamatti but was never a massive fan, but this is definitely his best performance and one of my favorites of the year. Also, what a freakin’ debut from first-timer Dominic Sessa! I can’t believe this is his first movie. He was fantastic, and I’m so excited to see his career blossom after this.

While The Holdovers may not be as unique or groundbreaking in its genre like some of the other films I’ve listed above, it’s done so well that it really does not need to be. The performances, the writing, and the beautiful, grainy, 70s aesthetic make this one of the most heartwarming and comforting films of the year. It came at a perfect time during the holiday season, and I imagine it will be a future Christmas classic for many households. Definitely try to catch this in theaters while it’s still out there.

Grade: B+/82

“Asteroid City,” “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem,” “Talk to Me,” “Beau is Afraid,” and “Theater Camp” Reviews

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Asteroid City

It’s been a while since I’ve disliked a Wes Anderson film. As usual, this film boasted a fantastically stacked cast and had all the promise of being another delightful entry into Anderson’s eclectic portfolio. For some reason, this one did not resonate for me at all. It felt really lifeless, and none of the characters were particularly charming compared to Anderson’s previous films. I also found the setting to be uninteresting. The desert location was a big step down, which is disappointing since Anderson’s film sets generally have very unique production quality. Really not sure what happened with this one, but it was just not for me.

Grade: C/62

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem

I’m really happy that animated films are starting to be more diversified in their animation styles. Granted this looks very similar to the Spider-Verse films, it’s still an unconventional style that deserves to be used more and more. I really liked the grimy aesthetic that was fitting for the turtles and NYC, which was easily its greatest strength. The writing and the characters on the other hand, not so much.

Each of the turtles are distinct in their appearances, but their personalities were surprisingly bland. Each of the turtles felt exactly the same, and if I had my eyes closed, I probably couldn’t tell who was who. In this era of films where everyone has to be funny, witty, and dish out quips every other sentence, I feel like a bit of the soul of the turtles has been lost in it all. Growing up being a Ninja Turtles fan through the video games and especially The Secret of the Ooze, I’ve always loved Leonardo and Raphael. In Mutant Mayhem, I actually found Donatello to be the most interesting, and that was mostly because of the voice acting done by Micah Abbey. Don’t get me wrong, all the voice acting in the movie is great, but his was easily the most distinct.

I found the dialogue to be really insufferable and nauseating at times. Maybe it’s because I’m so out of touch with how kids speak nowadays, but every other sentence felt like a pop culture reference. Do kids really talk like that? I felt like it was the studios way of saying “hey look at how in tune with pop culture the turtles are, they’re just like us!” There’s a particular scene where they reference the K-Pop group BTS that almost made me want to get up and leave the theater. Thankfully, the animation style is still great, and I actually really enjoyed the final act. Overall, this is a great step forward for animation and I’m glad that it did well commercially, but I really hope that the next entry is less cringey.

Grade: B/76

Talk to Me

I’ve been very surprised at the commercial success of this film, as it recently overtook Hereditary as the highest grossing A24 horror film of all time. It’s a very impressive directorial debut from the Philippou brothers, formerly of YouTube fame. I’m always thankful that A24 and other studios are starting to give a chance on budding young directors, and more often than not their gambles pay off. As competently made as this film was, I have a really hard time with the trope that’s prevalent in many horror films, of dumb kids doing dumb things, which is essentially what a lot of Talk to Me is about. I will say, that this film writes in one of the best justifications for doing the dumb things that they do, but at the end of the day, it’s still a plot device that I have a hard time buying into. All of the performances are great and I’m very appreciative that the film does not rely on jump scares to deliver its thrills, as it has a heavier emphasis on atmospheric horror.

The ending is intriguing and certainly leaves room open for a sequel, which I’m sure is in the works at this point. The concept of this film definitely has the space to become something more interesting than its initial concept, but I hope that future installment(s) will make the characters a bit more likable and make less stupid decisions.

Grade: B/76

Beau is Afraid

I put this film off for a while because I heard about how divisive it was. I didn’t think I’d like it even though I thought Hereditary was one of the best horror films of all time. Midsommar was a big drop off for me, but once again, I’m very appreciative of A24 letting a director as unhinged as Ari Aster do literally whatever he wants in his third project. Beau is Afraid is insane. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen anything like it. It’s a mix of Federico Fellini’s 8 1/2, Take Shelter, Coraline, and anything from David Lynch and Charlie Kaufman. When Aster described the film as a horror comedy, it was hard for me to know exactly what to expect, especially because of how terrifying his previous two films were. I gotta say though, going into Beau with those expectations…I actually kind of really liked it?

I will say, the biggest flaw of this film is that it really is too long. I think a big chunk of the second act could be taken out, particularly the forest section. The film starts out really strong, and I think if you go in with the expectation that you really aren’t going to understand what’s going on and just go with it, you will enjoy it a lot. I was in disbelief for most of the film and I just did not bother with trying to interpret what was going on. I just decided to take in the visuals and the fantastic performance from Joaquin Phoenix. Talk about a multi-dimensional actor. Phoenix really is perfect for Ari Aster’s genre of deranged surrealistic horror.

If this film was about an hour shorter, I think I would have genuinely loved this film. It’s too long to keep up its momentum of being incredibly absurd, and loses steam before sweeping you back up in the final act. I still have no idea what the film is about but I have to admit that I liked this way more than I expected to.

Grade: B/80

Theater Camp

You know what’s scarier than surrealistic horror? Theater kids. Are theater kids even real? Sometimes I think to myself that they are as fictional and mythical as a leprechaun or fairy. While I generally don’t care much for films that are centered around theater kids, I have to admit that this film was quite funny. I had a good time with it, even though the pacing was kind of all over the place and honestly didn’t feel like a movie for most of it. I’m sure the fragmented storytelling was a creative choice, but I don’t think it worked particularly well. Maybe it’s to encapsulate the chaos of running a theater camp and the creative writing process in general, but it was difficult to feel invested in any of the characters because you’re introduced to so many of them at a time and they kind of just pop in and out of the story. I pretty much only watched this film because I had to support the actors from The Bear, Molly Gordon and Ayo Edibiri. For those of you who don’t watch The Bear, you definitely should. It’s a really awesome show. Gordon plays a totally different kind of character in this film though, and Edibiri is barely in it, unfortunately. This would have been a far worse film had it not been for the ending, because the ending completely saves it. Long live theater kids! Bleh.

Grade: B/77

“Barbenheimer” Review

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Hi! So sorry for the late review. Things have been crazy around here and I haven’t found the time to review this monumental event in film until now. Since the world hasn’t seen a double feature like this in quite some time, I thought it’d be fitting to review both films in one post.

To start, I didn’t intend on watching Barbenheimer. What I mean is, I didn’t intend on watching both films on the same day. I had secured my opening night tickets to Oppenheimer months in advance, since I am fortunate to live close to one of the 30 theaters in the world that can project in 70mm IMAX. I was going to watch Barbie the following week to space them out, but fate had bound me to the double feature. You can imagine how disappointed I was when, on opening night for Oppenheimer—me and my friends all ecstatic to see Nolan’s newest feature—are notified by the manager of the theater that the film projector had broken, and that they were unable to play the film in 70mm. One guy in the crowd shouted, “I flew from Tennessee to see this!” How incredibly sad for that guy. Unfortunately, that’s just how it goes for movies using an actual film projector nowadays. It’s so antiquated and so rarely utilized that most people don’t know how to operate it anymore, which is truly a shame. So, because we were shafted on opening night, I had to reschedule my showing of Oppenheimer 6 days later, while enduring the suffering of having not seen it and hearing all my friends talk about it.

As it turns out, I had a friend coming from out of town the following week, and she was free that same to watch Barbie on the same day I was going to see Oppenheimer. And so it was spoken into being. Barbie at 8pm, Oppenheimer at 11pm. A double feature of the most epic proportions. I had no doubts that I’d stay awake for both, even though I’d leave Oppenheimer at around 2:30AM. Barbie is up first. Let’s go, baby.

I love Greta Gerwig. She’s one of my favorite directors working today, and the idea of a movie about Barbie seemed simply ridiculous to me. If anyone was going to make it work though, it’d be Gerwig. Well, I think I enjoyed it for the most part. What were the best parts about the film? Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, easily. Both were perfectly cast, but if I had to pick one, it’d definitely be Gosling. He steals the show completely, and it’s probably his funniest performances to date. Ever since The Nice Guys I’ve wanted Gosling to start in more comedies, and he really kills it here. Both actors have a lot of chemistry even if their characters don’t, and it’s just funny to see them interact throughout.

I didn’t mind the absurdity of the story and thought that it was quite impressive how they put everything together all things considered, since it’s a movie about toys entering the real world. My biggest criticism were with the overall tone of the film. It’s the funniest movie of the year for sure, but it also tries to tell a poignant message on the patriarchy and feminism. I think it’s fine to tell a message about that, but the film often fights with itself on the messaging because it wants you to take it seriously, while also wanting to make you laugh. I think the film would have benefitted more if it was just more comedic in nature and didn’t outwardly preach at you at some points in the film. There were moments in the film that I think were intended to feel very empowering, but it kind of fell flat for me because the characters weren’t very developed. To be honest, I kinda just wanted to see more Ryan Gosling and Margot Robbie throughout, but the whole third act has a lot going on that’s not necessarily related to them.

Despite the muddled tone, this film has some pretty incredible production value. I can see why the entire world suffered a pink shortage because of this movie. A lot of the sets looked beautiful and it was kind of surreal seeing all of it put together like the real Barbie dollhouses. Even though I’ve never played with Barbies and was not able to appreciate the attention to detail that they put into making sure all the models and sets looked just like the toys, it was still fantastic to see it on a big screen. I had no idea there were so many different types of Barbies, and that just made the overall film a fun and refreshing watch. I was also a big fan of many of the musical numbers, especially the big party at Barbie’s house near the beginning. Just really, really good stuff. I just wish that the overall film was a bit more consistent in how it wanted to present itself. Overall it’s easily my least favorite Greta Gerwig film, but I’m immensely happy for the success that it’s gotten. I cannot believe that it’s Warner Brothers’s highest grossing film of all time, that’s just absolutely baffling to me. However, I hope it teaches studios to give female directors more opportunities to direct big budget films, because they’re clearly capable of doing them just as well as men.

Barbie Grade: B/77

After waiting for six miserable days from the opening premiere, I finally got to see Oppenheimer in all its 70mm IMAX glory. And boy, did it live up to the hype. For anyone who doesn’t know, Nolan is my favorite director so please feel free to take whatever I say with a big ol’ grain of salt. However, I don’t think anyone does spectacle like Christopher Nolan these days. His obsession with filming on IMAX cameras and advocating to see films on the biggest screen possible have done nothing but enhance my moviegoing experience for each one of his films. I’m so surprised that at the moment of writing this review, Oppenheimer has surpassed Inception and Interstellar in box office gross, and is nearing the 1 billion dollar mark. For a movie that is 3 hours in length and primarily features people in rooms talking, that is immensely impressive.

Similar to many of Nolan’s other films, this one requires a rewatch. I had a hard time taking in all of the dialogue in this film, but thankfully it was because there was so much of it, not because I couldn’t hear half of it due to the abysmal sound-mixing like in Tenet. People are spewing out technical and scientific terms real fast in this film, and it’s hard to be fully engaged with what everyone’s saying while also admiring the beautiful visuals. It also didn’t help that I was not very familiar with a lot of the scientists and key figures in the film, so when I went to watch Oppenheimer a second time, I did some research on who everyone was and I also managed to find a theater with subtitles (they do exist!). As great as it was to understand all of the dialogue the second time around, it almost felt like a different movie since the showing was on a standard non-IMAX screen. If you could only watch the film once and maybe only retain about 85% of the dialogue, it’s worth seeing it on the biggest screen possible. The visuals, the music, the cinematography, the writing, everything was just firing on all cylinders here. Ludwig Göransson’s score is his finest yet. I know much has been said about Nolan writing this screenplay in first person which is sort of unheard of, but it’s probably his most powerful script in his storied career. There’s a lot to love about this film, but I’ll also understand if it’s not for everyone either. For people who really cannot stand films where people just talk, then yeah, perhaps this isn’t for you. However, I felt that way before the film came out, and now it’s grossed over 900 billion dollars. I don’t understand how it’s been such a huge draw, it’s truly unfathomable. Regardless, I’m happy for Nolan’s success and I’m even happier for lead Cillian Murphy, who finally steps out of the supporting role and into his most memorable role since Tommy Shelby in Peaky Blinders.

To say that the cast of this film is stacked is an understatement. There is so much star power in this film, and some of them only appear for one scene. It almost felt like a Wes Anderson film with the sheer number of A-list actors appearing for just a quick cameo. Every scene felt economical though, and every actor puts in their best effort in the short amount of screen time they’re given, with the one exception of Florence Pugh. I love Pugh and I think she does get shafted a bit in her screen time. Nothing against her acting, but I do feel like Nolan kind of gave her the short end of the stick here. In context it kind of makes sense that she’s pushed to the side because at the end of the day, it’s a story about Oppenheimer’s life. I do hope that if Nolan ever gets around to making his first film with a female lead, then he could consider Pugh as a way of making it up to her though. That’d be sweet.

There are very few directors working today whose films I would consider to be cinematic events every time they come out. Nolan, Spielberg, Cameron, Scorsese, Villeneuve, Tarantino, Fincher, PT Anderson, Cuaron, Malick, and now hopefully Gerwig, to name a few. Out of all of these, I don’t think any director controls the cultural zeitgeist quite like Nolan at the moment. I’m so glad that Nolan does not box himself into a certain genre or franchise and is able to make whatever he wants to make. Oppenheimer is not a film I would have anticipated him to make based on what he was doing a few years ago, but he continues to surprise, 12 feature films into his career. I don’t think Oppenheimer hits the emotional highs as some of his previous films do, but it’s still nothing short of a technical marvel and just a really damn good film.

Oppenheimer Grade: A/92

I know both films are over a month into their runtime, but they are still very accessible to see in theaters right now as they are still occupying many of the premier showtimes. If you haven’t taken yourself to see at least one of these films, I highly suggest that you do. The phenomenon known as Barbenheimer is quite a rare cinematic sight due to its good timing and organic marketing. Bring back the age of double features! If I had to grade the double feature as a whole, it was an incredible experience and I hope I can feel this way again. This was a moviegoing moment that I won’t soon forget.

Barbenheimer Grade: A+/100

“Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” “Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret,” “Past Lives,” and “Evil Dead Rise” Reviews

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Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

I’m gonna get straight to the point here: Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse was hands-down the best Spider-Man movie I’ve ever seen, until the end. For those of you who may not have seen it yet, there’s only one thing you need to know. This is a PART ONE. I actually had no idea that the sequel was slated to come out next year, but since the writers’ strike is going on right now, that may not be possible. This is a brilliant work of art featuring some of the most jaw-dropping animation I’ve ever seen, but I expected some closure in the end and definitely did not receive it.

This kind of film makes you re-think the whole comic book movie genre. How awesome would it have been if there was a Batman, Superman, Ironman, Black Panther, or X-Men movie in this style? They would be incredible. Hats off to all of the animators who made this film happen, because it’s such an incredible mashup of all these creative ideas coming together to make a truly memorable film.

From the opening scene, I was completely enthralled. It wasn’t until around the last 30 minutes when I realized that they continued to add plot point after plot point and it just did not seem like anything was going to be resolved that I got worried. Ever since Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, the movie industry has been more confident to tell their stories in segmented structures in hopes that they could gather more and more attention to their IPs. So far, it’s been quite a hit-or-miss experiment. While this is certainly one of the best, if not the best Part One ever, the ending just left me so deflated that it makes me not want to think about it until the sequel releases. I do love me some Spider-Man though, and this was one of the finest entries yet.

Grade: B+/85

Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret

From the director of Edge of Seventeen, Kelly Fremon Craig returns with another coming-of-age gem. Based on the book by the same name, we follow the life of young Margaret as she navigates her curiosity in religion and whether or she should believe in one denomination or the other.

Lead actress Abby Ryder Fortson plays Margaret wonderfully. She and all her friends create some genuine laughs and it made me realize that coming-of-age stories really are timeless. No matter what era, people wrestle with the same issues and there is a wonderful communal experience in the universal anxieties we share.

My biggest gripe with the film came from some heavily underdeveloped plotlines. There’s one with Margaret’s grandparents that I thought was going to have some sort of resolution, but it really doesn’t go anywhere. This film did such a great job of getting me invested in the characters in such a short time that I wanted to see more, but unfortunately it was left largely unresolved. Aside from that, I’m really a sucker for these kinds of films and it’s hard for me to not love them. This one is no exception.

Grade: B+/81

Past Lives

Past Lives has been hyped up since Sundance and has come out as an early contender for Best Picture. Obviously, at this point, almost anything A24 touches is gold so I had to watch it.

From an objective perspective, it’s hard to believe that this is Celine Song’s first movie. It’s so competently directed that you’d think this was her tenth film. New York City hasn’t looked this romantic in years. Song has a deep understanding in conveying love and pain through the unspoken, even though this film does have quite a bit of dialogue.

My biggest problems with the film come from the fact that we don’t get a lot of time with developing the main characters, so it was much harder for me to be invested in their relationship. This film also tends to rely on some Korean Drama melodrama tendencies, which I am not a fan of. There’s a lot of looking at each other and looking away, which at this point in each characters’ lives, it seems all a bit childish.

A majority of the film consists of conversations that is hard to make interesting, but I feel like greater movies such as the Before trilogy have been able to do more with less.

Without revealing too much, I think the film would have greatly benefitted from a different change in the time that the opening section takes place. There would have been greater reason to be invested in the romance between the two characters and it would have made the ending pay off that much more.

That ending though. It’s certainly the best part of the film. It’s a killer, and one that will be talked about all this year. Song has really come out of the gates swinging, and I’m excited to see where she goes from here. Even though this was a spectacularly crafted film, it just did not tug at my heartstrings the way I wanted it to. Underdeveloped characters, and some conventional Kdrama elements kept me from truly loving it. I cannot deny how well made it is though, and objectively it’s just a fine piece of film. Perhaps a rewatch will increase my love for the movie.

Grade: B/80

Evil Dead Rise

I’m not entirely sure what I expected out of this film. Maybe I thought it’d be scarier? I’m not too familiar with the Evil Dead franchise, having only seen the 2013 film. I know there’s a fair bit of camp in the original films, and the newer ones are a bit more serious but still retaining some silliness. Honestly, there’s not much to say about this one. Typical dumb horror characters make typical dumb horror movie decisions, and as a result there is some gruesome mayhem. It’s a fun film to watch with friends, but there’s nothing that we haven’t seen before here.

Grade: B-/73

“The Artifice Girl,” “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves,” “Sisu,” and “Reality” Reviews

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The Artifice Girl

The Artifice Girl is a fascinating indie sci-fi film along the same vein as Ex Machina and Coherence. The entire film takes place across three acts, entirely dialogue based. While there may not be any flashy special effects, the subject matter of the film is more than enough to tell a gripping story for its entire runtime. Director and writer Franklin Ritch crafts something special, and real timely here. His performance as Gareth was great too. I think the film loses a lot of steam in the third act, when it becomes a bit too exposition-heavy and could have benefitted from showing more instead of telling. However, that doeesn’t take away from the fact that the first 2/3rds are some of the best sci-fi filmmaking out there.The less you know about this film, the better.

Grade: B/79

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves

I’ve never really had interest in D&D, but I watched this because a friend really wanted to see it. It was fine! It doesn’t take itself very seriously, although at times I felt like that was a bit to the detriment of the film. A lot of seemingly daunting tasks get solved with a simple “just have this item” plot device, but the whimsical and fun tone of the film carry you from scene to scene without making it too big of a deal. I’m generally not a fan of the “quippy” humor that movies from the MCU love to overdo, but I gotta say, some of the quips in this film got me. Overall, this is a pretty inoffensive film and just a fun 2 hour adventure to catch.

Grade: B/76

Sisu

The latest entry in the “From someone who was loosely involved with one of the John Wick movies” Cinematic Universe, Sisu may just be the worst out of them all. All of the Wick movies have an element of absurdity, but it’s usually the perfect amount where you’re able to not only stomach it, but enjoy it. Sisu is ridiculously over the top. It is the Fast and Furious version of John Wick. Some people may find that more appealing, but it was pretty off-putting for me. Some of the action sequences are wonderfully choreographed and shot, but there are times that you have to suspend your disbelief to incredible lengths. In comparison to the other Wick universe films, they’re all grounded in reality and most of the crazy moments have a little bit of reasoning behind them. Sisu is borderline fantasy and I think it absolutely could have benefitted from scaling back a bit. I still had a fun time watching it, but this film could have been so much better if they had just adjusted the tone and some of the action.

Grade: B-/71

Reality

Similar to The Artifice Girl, this film takes place entirely in one room and is completely dialogue driven. Based on the true interrogation recordings of American Intelligence officer Reality Winner (yes, that is her real name), almost if not all of the dialogue is a 1:1 transcription of what actually happened. Winner, played by Sydney Sweeney, is impressive! I’ve never seen any of her work, although I see pictures of her everywhere since Hollywood is crowning her as the new it girl. I was thoroughly surprised by her performance, and I’m glad that she is a solid actor instead of just another thirst trap. The movie does take a little bit of time to pick up steam, but once the interrogation really starts, it becomes a white-knuckled thiller. Films like this and The Artifice Girl truly are proof that dialogue is essential to a good film. Please Hollywood producers…do the right thing and pay your freakin writers!!!

Grade: B/80

“John Wick: Chapter 4,” “Cocaine Bear,” “Air,” and “Suzume” Reviews

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John Wick: Chapter 4

When Keanu Reeves started to show a bit of his age in Chapter 3, I was honestly quite worried about how this film would turn out. Because I expected this film to possibly be the worst in the franchise, naturally it became my favorite after finally seeing it.

John Wick: Chapter 4 plays to Keanu’s strengths. It’s probably got the fewest lines of dialogue spoken by him in all four movies, which is great because while he’s fantastic at what he does, his acting range isn’t something I’d say runs deep. This isn’t really a knock on his acting chops though because at this point in his career, he knows what he’s good at, and that’s being a fantastic action star. The action itself is also a lot more gun-focused, which I think is better than some of the physical fight choreography he had to do in Chapter 3. The fight scenes in this one make him seem more youthful and largely benefits from it.

A lot of people talk about the last hour being a masterclass in action directing and choreography, and yeah, it’s definitely up there. The homage to a certain video game was my favorite sequence in the film, and the movie really doesn’t let up until its climactic finish.

I’ve seen complaints about how the story doesn’t really expand the world much and I think that’s a valid criticism. This film is probably the lightest on story even though it’s a very long film, mostly because of how many action scenes there are. However, the characters that they introduce flesh out the world a bit and I think Donnie Yen is the easy standout here. His character, along with Hiroyuki Sanada’s, definitely make the world of John Wick a more fascinating one and creates potential for movies outside of Wick himself, giving me more confidence in the Ana De Armas Ballerina movie coming out next year.

My biggest complaint with the film was the use of Bill Skarsgård. I’ve never seen a movie where I didn’t like him, until now. For the menacing and threatening character that he’s supposed to portray, I got literally none of that from his performance. It was very strange, and I felt like he was horribly miscast.

Even though this film doesn’t push the story to where I would have wanted it to go, it’s so hard to place this on the same ranking as the previous three because of how objectively well the action scenes are made from a technical perspective. There’s so much of it, and it’s all so intricately designed and perfectly executed. In an era where it’s easy to be complacent with action because CGI and green screens can create almost equal thrills, it’s so refreshing to have one of Hollywood’s most reliable action stars remind us why he’s one of the best.

Grade: B+/82

Cocaine Bear

I honestly had no intention to watch this, but because a friend insisted on seeing it, I ended up watching it. And you know what? It was fine. It’s a harmless, semi-funny and easy watch. I should mention that both my friend and I who saw this are big fans of FX’s The Americans, me especially since it’s my favorite show of all time. Seeing Keri Russell, Matthew Rhys, and Margo Martindale in the same movie admittedly made me squeal like a little schoolboy.

I mean, there really isn’t much to say about this. I think the film honestly plays it a little safe, and the marketing for this film probably hyped up how crazy it would be when the end result was honestly kind of mild. It certainly wasn’t offensive to the senses in any certain way, it’s just kind of an okay film that was way more enjoyable for reasons outside of the movie itself. Someone please give Keri and Matthew better movie roles!

Grade: B-/72

Air

I love Ben Affleck the director and wish that he’d direct more movies instead of star in them. It’s been a while since he’s been on the directing chair, and I welcome the return. Even though this movie is no Moneyball, it was filled with enough great performances from Matt Damon, Viola Davis, Chris Tucker, and…*checks notes*…wait, Ben Affleck is pretty good in this too! With his performance in this and The Last Duel, maybe I should start saying that I dislike Ben Affleck in the leading man role, and I like him much more in the supporting role.

Even though this was a sports story I honestly wasn’t too familiar with (though basketball is my favorite sport to watch), everyone knows that Nike is one of, if not the biggest brand in basketball today. Making this seem like an underdog story was a hard sell, and watching it kind of deflates that experience when you know that Michael Jordan ends up becoming one of the best players of all time and consequently elevating the Nike brand. It’s kind of hard to feel sympathetic for a brand that dominates a lot of the market share at the moment, and seeing the way the movie plays out definitely did not change things for me.

Without spoiling anything, I think the omission of a key character in this story really made the movie worse. I’m not entirely sure why they thought this was a good idea, but having this character would have added another dramatic element to the film that could have been way more meaningful. With that being said, overall the film is sharply written and features some wonderful performances, so I can’t complain. I really hope that the Damon/Affleck duo continue to work with each other because they really bring out the best in each other.

Grade: B/77

Suzume

I really enjoyed Makoto Shinkai’s Your Name, but unfortunately I did not see that film in theaters. Watching this in the theater and experiencing the breathtakingly beautiful visuals on the big screen overrode most of my issues with the film. While Shinkai has a clear comfort zone in telling stories about teenagers trying to save the world from some sort of metaphysical disaster, he still does enough to make it a compelling and interesting watch. Suzume is nowhere near the same quality as Your Name, but I think animation on this caliber of quality should be celebrated regardless.

The film is a bit overly ambitious in its scope and is unexpectedly a lot of things put together. It’s a road trip film, a sci-fi fantasy, a romance, and a coming of age story. You can feel the length of the film at times, but the story is interesting enough where I was invested the whole time. One of the biggest turning points in the film is actually much more impactful if you know the historical context behind it, to which I unfortunately did not. It wasn’t until the person I watched it with provided me the context afterwards where I finally understood, and might have appreciated the film more overall if I had known it. I think the ending kind of loses it for me a bit because of how quickly things wrap up, but overall I still thought it was a fantastic watch and definitely worthwhile in theaters. There were a lot of showtimes in my local theaters for this film, so I’m glad that Japanese animated films are getting more exposure. Even though I don’t really watch anime, I can appreciate the things that it does well, and it was refreshing to step back into this medium.

Grade: B/80

“Infinity Pool,” Alice, Darling,” “EO,” “Women Talking,” “Close,” and “Creed III” Reviews

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Back so soon with another batch of reviews! The Oscars are rolling around and as always, I want to watch everything I wanted to see from the previous year before then so I can release my Top 10 Movies of 2022. With this list of films, I’ve crossed off everything I wanted to see so you can expect that post to come out sometime this week. Let’s get into it.

Infinity Pool

Brandon Cronenberg’s Possessor was my favorite film of 2020. It was deeply disturbing and I might not ever watch it again, but the concept behind the film along with the fantastic direction made it one of the most surprising watches that year, especially since I’ve never really been into any films from the Cronenberg family. Cut to two years later, and I have a morbid curiosity for Infinity Pool. Well, similar to Florian Zeller’s garbage fire of a sophomore effort in The Son, this film was also a big dud for me.

Possessor had a fantastic concept with an intriguing narrative to bolster that concept. Infinity Pool starts out with a somewhat interesting premise, and then it quickly devolves into fetishistic indulgence for the next 90 minutes. There’s very little to take away from this film, and it just felt like Brandon Cronenberg’s outlet to get some weird stuff out from his mind and onto film. I know that Mia Goth is having quite a bit of a renaissance year now, especially with X and Pearl, but I think I’ve seen enough movies of hers to know that the stuff she usually signs up for is not my cup of tea. This is no exception. I think she serves her part in this film fine, and Alexander Skarsgard is good too, but I’m really just not up for films that have a 6 minute orgy scene along with some other debaucherous and cruel stuff. Overall it’s a pretty well directed film, and Cronenberg shows definitive proof that he is capable of producing some cult classics just like his father, but this one just felt aimless and not for me.

Grade: D+/55

Alice, Darling

I’ve been a fan of Anna Kendrick since seeing Up in the Air and I’ll happily admit that Pitch Perfect is a guilty pleasure for me, but she has not been in anything good for many years now. I was excited to see that she’s been signing up for more dramatic roles, because I think she’s more than capable of turning in a strong dramatic performance. Alice, Darling doesn’t quite reach the heights that it aims to be at, but it was a step in the right direction.

Films about abuse are always hard, because it’s a difficult subject and yet it has to be engaging which almost makes it contradictory to sell that message in a film. I felt like director Mary Nighy’s portrayal of abuse through the eyes of Alice was more reductive than it was eye-opening, due to the repetitive scenes and uneven pacing. Even for a film that’s just 90 minutes, it felt long and dragged throughout. The parts that shine the most are when Alice’s friends, played by Wunmi Mosaku and Kaniehtiio Horn, do their best to break through to Alice. It reinforces the importance of having a community and a support group when you go through tough times, and those parts felt very real. However, there isn’t enough of it and the film spends more time on Alice cycling through the same stages of denial and grief. Its understandable that the repetitive nature of this film was intentional to highlight the cyclical pain of abuse, but it just did not make for a compelling watch. I do hope that Kendrick continues to take on more challenging roles, because she’s certainly more than just a comedic actor with a good voice.

Grade: B-/71

EO

This was quite a perplexing film. I’m a bit surprised as to how this got a nomination for Best International Film at the Oscars. It’s not terrible by any means, but it’s just…odd? I think your mileage may vary depending on how much you really love animals. EO is sort of like Homeward Bound, except Eo the donkey doesn’t talk, and there’s some grim stuff in here. The cinematography is stunning and really reminiscent of Terrence Malick’s work, which was completely unexpected. But, similar to Alice, Darling, even this 90-minute movie felt waaay too long. I think the message that EO tries to tell could have been accomplished in about half the runtime. I was quite impressed with the overall filmmaking though, and I kept thinking that the blocking in this movie must’ve been a nightmare. Eo is a very adorable donkey, but this was certainly a strange one.

Grade: B-/71

Women Talking

On paper, I really liked the concept and structure of this film. 12 Angry Men is in my top 10 movies of all time, so when I heard that Women Talking was literally about a bunch of women sitting in a room discussing difficult subjects that will determine the fate of their lives, it got my attention.

For some background, this film is about an isolated religious colony living in the year 2010. The women have suffered sexual abuse from the men and the men have used religious practices as their reasoning behind the rapes and tragedies the women have had to endure. Due to a tragic event with one of the main characters, the women decide whether they should forgive their enemies or leave once and for all.

I think this film tackles religion quite tactfully and much better than other hit pieces on sects of Christianity. As a Christian myself, it’s always painful to see something you believe in misrepresented in film. However, it is important to see different viewpoints on how people perceive Christianity, whether that be the people within the film or the people producing the film. In this regard, I think Women Talking is quite admirable because it’s not so quick to point the finger at Christianity for all the evils in the world, rather the evil that can originate from power structures that can grow from Christianity.

For a group of women who supposedly cannot read and have lived in an isolated religious colony their whole life, a lot of the dialogue certainly does not sound that way. Now, I do not mean that they should sound uneducated or stupid, because plenty of people with their background are capable of being wise. But I was really hung up on the majority of the dialogue because it took me out of the film. The discourse sounded like Twitter from 2020, with a lot of buzz words and talking points that we would use in a modernized society. There was very little use of scripture or faith-based reasoning in their arguments, and I think that would have been a much more compelling watch if they used the very words from the Bible to challenge the Biblical justifications that their abusers used in hurting them. Instead, you get dialogue that could have come from someone who didn’t live in an isolated religious colony for all of the characters involved. All the performances were great here, and I especially enjoyed Rooney Mara and Ben Whishaw, but the overall execution just didn’t meet my expectations.

Grade: B-/72

Close

Close is a film that is difficult to review. A lot of its impact hinges on whether or not you can buy into the turning point around halfway through the film, but to me it felt slightly manipulative and unearned. The child performances from both Eden Dambrine and Gustave De Waele are fantastic (boy, there have been a lot of really great child performances this year), but the strong first half of the film leads to a repetitive and meandering second half that prevents it from being a truly excellent film. There’s a lot of subtext to dissect in this film because a lot of it is spoken through its silence, which I thought was great. However, it tackles difficult subjects like guilt and separation, and some of it I think could have been better with dialogue. Close also has a moving soundtrack, and I think the music does too much heavy lifting to really get you to feel the way the film wants you to feel. For the story that Close is telling, I don’t think that’s a good thing. The movie was quietly affecting and powerful in some ways, but I think it could have been so much better if they had reworked the second half and spent it more on developing some other characters instead of the main character the whole time.

Grade: B/78

Creed III

Jonathan Majors is a very muscular and beautiful man. He’s also a wonderful actor and I’ve been rooting for him ever since he delievered a show-stealing performance in The Last Black Man in San Francisco. This film was a fun watch, and a competently directed debut for Michael B. Jordan. I love that he loves anime, and that you can see small homages to the medium in Creed III. However, similar to the previous film, Creed III struggles to meet the same standard of the first film and rushes a interesting plotline resulting in a very predictable film.

I don’t think any of these movies are really ever going to be unpredictable going forward, so it’s really up to the characters and their relationships to elevate the films. Jonathan Majors is obviously great here, and his character is a focal point in Adonis Creed’s life. It starts out pretty interesting, but quickly devolves into a very tropey narrative where character motivations rapidly change for no good reason. I wanted a bit more character development from Majors’s character, especially with how he fits into the overall journey that Creed goes on, but in the end he feels more of a vehicle that services the plot to get from point A to point B. Obviously the montages are great though, and the boxing scenes are electric as always. In the end, this film was very entertaining, and overall I think the Creed Trilogy is something that I never thought could be as good as it is, but I’m glad that we have it.

Grade: B/79