1st: No Sudden Move – Steven Soderbergh (2021)
Man, this was one of the movies I was looking forward to most this year. It’s not bad but…you know what, it might be bad. Nothing about this movie really worked for me. Soderbergh is normally so good at the heist movie. He has this trick in which he shows the audience everything and then in the last 15 minutes reveals what really happened. It’s almost like a sleight of hand. This movie felt like a non-stop version of this. As a viewer you have no sense of what is happening until someone stops to explain it to you. On top of all of this, I don’t understand the way he shot this movie. He uses strange lenses to constantly warp what’s on screen. I guess that’s the trade-off with Soderbergh. He’s so exciting because he constantly experiments but sometimes you get something like this where it doesn’t really work. As a silver lining, I do love the cast. It’s fun to watch movies with movie stars.
Grade: C+
2nd: Zola – Janicza Bravo (2021)
My first movie back at the movies! Thank you Logan Theatre! This was so much fun. I’m kind of amazed at how Janicza Bravo balances everything in this movie. It’s a nightmare odyssey, it’s a comedy, it’s a horror movie. Adding to this difficulty is how Stefani is portrayed. She is partially the antagonist. She’s the reason that Zola finds herself in this terrible scenario. And yet, she may also be a victim. I found it interesting that at a real low point in the film, in which Stefani may be victimized, the movie cuts away to an inventive humorous recap of the events from Stefani’s perspective. Overall, it’s a really tough balance to strike and I think the movie pulls it off.
Grade: B
5th: The Pelican Brief – Alan J. Pakula (1993)
I wish blockbusters like these still existed. This movie is fun (and a little bit silly) in the best way. It’s a conspiracy / crime thriller packed with movie stars and directed by one of the best. Speaking of which, it makes me wonder if the collaboration here between Pakula and John Grisham is a spiritual pre-curser to David Fincher and Aaron Sorkin’s collaboration on The Social Network. Both movies are an odd pairing of a massively popular writer and an exacting cynical director. While I liked this movie quite a bit, it ultimately is not The Social Network. There are a few too many moments that are just impossible to believe. Still, I was thrilled for most of this movie’s 140 minute run-time. There aren’t a whole lot of movies I can say that about.
Grade: B
12th: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring – Peter Jackson (2001)
I don’t know how much I can add to my previous entries about this film except to say that it hasn’t really lost any of its power over me. 20 years later and I’m still amazed at how good this movie is. It feels like the most impressive film of my lifetime. The constraints on what Jackson needed to and did accomplish are mind-boggling. There is so much exposition in this movie and it all works. There is so much CGI in this movie and 99% of it holds up. Across every part he cast the right actors. This is likely the movie I’ve seen the most in my life and I have never tired of it.
Grade: A
18th: Yi Yi – Edward Yang (2000)
An almost incomparable film. It’s far and way the most beautiful movie I’ve ever watched. I’m still just blown away by it. On its surface, everything in this film works. Yang’s direction is masterful, the performances are breathtaking, the score fits every scene perfectly. But what remains the most impressive aspect of this movie is its scope and storytelling. This film is about so many things, and speaks to each one profoundly. There are themes of age, wisdom, humanity, love, grief, depression, and modernity that Yang details in exquisite fashion. Almost every piece of action or dialogue seems to speak to at least to two others in this film. I’ve just never seen anything so in sync. Despite the cliché, it really is a film that feels like it changes your perspective on life. I love it so, so much.
Grade: A
19th: My Winnipeg – Guy Maddin (2007)
The first time I watched this was at the end of a run of several Guy Maddin films. My opinion then, was that this was the most accessible, almost “normal” of his films. Rewatching My Winnipeg, I imagine that’s still the case. Even so, this movie is pretty far out there. Luckily, I found that I enjoyed the film this time more than my previous viewings. I would guess that I’ve become more accustomed to unusual and idiosyncratic films since then. In fact, I would say the thing I most appreciate about this film is its general strangeness.
Grade: B+
24th: 3 Women – Robert Altman (1977)
One of the strangest films I’ve seen. It feels quite different from Altman’s usual movies. It focuses on just a few characters, it centers on women instead of men, and it mostly lives in a dreamy surrealistic landscape. In other words, this isn’t Altman necessarily reflecting back what he sees in the world. To get down to it, I liked it but didn’t love it. I probably would need to see it again for that to happen. Nonetheless, Shelley Duvall and Sissy Spacek are incredible in this film. The film would be well worth seeing just for their performances.
Grade: B-
26th: A Brighter Summer Day – Edward Yang (1991)
I almost can’t believe that all of this can be a movie. It makes me want to speak in cliches:
-It’s a masterpiece
-It’s a novel on screen
-It will change your life
Those all might be true, but feel a bit too hyperbolic to give the film the credit it deserves. So instead, I’ll end this love letter with a quote from Edward Yang that I found particularly inspiring:
“There has never been a doubt in my mind that the present desperate shortage of resources, both human and material, in the film industry can be overcome by bringing in fresh blood on a large scale. During preproduction and production, I never hesitated to take on people who were inexperienced…Over 60 percent of my staff and 75 percent of the cast made their debuts in front of or behind the camera. Their untainted attitude and fearless enthusiasm make up for their lack of experience, providing the vital spirit of a fresh new cinema.”
Grade: A
28th: Pride and Prejudice – Joe Wright (2005)
I think this film is as good an adaptation as you can hope for. The action unfolds with the same force and emotion as the novel. Wright does an impeccable job at capturing the characters and setting of the book. For the most part, moments that are changed in the film are done so because of the medium. In other words, the changes make certain instances more suitable for film than they were originally rendered. But, through no fault of its own, I think the film pales in comparison to the novel. It’s just impossible to capture Elizabeth’s internal life in quite the same way. Moreover, the novel feels driven by its characters whereas the film feels driven as much by plot. Still, I liked the movie quite a bit. I think it’s just a great book, good movie situation.
Grade: B
29th: A Town Called Panic -Stéphane Aubier,Vincent Patar (2009)
The absurdity of this movie is delightful. Aubier and Patar get so much mileage just from the minor details of their scenes: Mr. Horse’s horse shoes and bedding, the town’s jail, Steven’s farm animals. The movie can lag in parts. It certainly doesn’t have the room to expand upon its 70 minutes. But, if you give yourself up to this town, it’s a treat to watch.
Grade: B
30th: Woodstock 99: Peace, Love, and Rage – Garret Price (2021)
The footage is incredibly compelling. For the most part, I buy the argument that this was a manifestation of corporate greed and economic disparity. Everything else is a mess. The other arguments put forward are contradictory and convoluted. And why is Moby the stand-in talking head against misogyny and assault?
Grade: C
Date Unknown: Bo Burnham: Inside – Bo Burnham (2021)
I originally didn’t log this because I wasn’t sure it was a movie. But, the more I think about, the more I’m convinced that it is a movie. What’s more, it’s a pretty great one too.
Grade: A-
Sam Writes Shit 
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