2021 Movie Log: August

1st: Summer of Soul (…or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)-Questlove (2021)
Talk about a 180. If you read my July movie log, you’ll have seen that I recently watched Woodstock 99. That was a documentary full of compelling footage that couldn’t figure out what it wanted to say. Summer of Soul knows exactly what it wants to say. Questlove does a masterful job letting the performances, festival attendees, and musicians tell this story. Unlike Woodstock 99, it doesn’t need to spend time trying to force a hypothesis at the viewer. In just witnessing this festival, it is clear what the film is saying. I can’t praise it enough. It’s easily one of the best music docs I’ve seen.
Grade: B+

1st: A Story of Floating Weeds – Yasujirō Ozu (1934)
Meant to watch the other one, whoops! Still good though. I wonder if Fellini’s Variety Lights was inspired by this at all. A lot of similarities.
Grade: B

2nd: The Green Knight – David Lowery (2021)
I liked this movie quite a bit. I don’t even know if it totally works. The film is far too opaque to answer that question after one viewing. But I think it’s an instance in which an interesting movie can be more enjoyable than a technically perfect one. The weirdness is really what works best. I can’t wait to see it again.
Grade: B+

6th: A Confucian Confusion – Edward Yang (1994)
I’ll preface this by saying that I watched this on a shitty youtube rip. That being said, this strikes me as a situation in which a filmmaker who is really good (maybe the best) at making one type of movie, makes a different type of movie. It’s not bad, but I couldn’t really sink into it either.
Grade: B-

8th: Solaris – Andrei Tarkovsky (1972)
Tarkovsky is something else. Watching his movies feels like serving a higher purpose. Getting through them makes me feel like a better person. I wish I could live in the stillness of his compositions. I should note that this is only the second film of his that I’ve watched. But I had an almost identical experience to when I watched Stalker. I was fully absorbed for about 85% of the film but in the last 15%, my attention gave way. Not through any fault of Tarkovsky’s. Instead, it feels like I need to work harder to meet Tarkovsky at his level. There are almost no other films I’ve seen that are so demanding, and in turn, so rewarding. 
Grade: A-

12th: Untold: Malice at the Palace – Floyd Russ (2021)
This documentary is interesting and important. I just wish the outlet were different. This should have been a 2-hour film. Instead, it’s a 70 minute installment as part of a Netflix series. Alas, that’s the world we live in.
Grade: B-

14th: The Secret of NIMH – Don Bluth (1982)
One of my favorites as a kid. Rewatching this film was almost surreal. I can’t believe how compact everything is. There appears to be a whole mythos behind this story, and yet it’s just touched on. I almost can’t believe how fast it moves. It feels like 3 hours worth of material packed into 75 minutes.
Grade: B

17th: Paddington – Paul King (2014)
Truly the best. I wish there were 100 Paddington movies. I can’t think of anything more comforting.
Grade: A

17th: Paddington 2 – Paul King (2017)
Even better than Paddington 1. Proves that good children’s movies are universal.
Grade: A

18th: It’s Such a Beautiful Day – Don Hertzfeldt (2012)
This was a trip. I had heard so much about this movie, particularly it’s sadness and beauty. What surprises me most is how profoundly strange it is. I did find the film moving, but I’m not sure I could really say why. It’s far too idiosyncratic for that.
Grade: B+

22nd: Fantastic Planet – René Laloux (1973)
This movie is crazy. It’s strange and intoxicating all at once. I particularly loved the futuristic jazz score. I did feel myself struggling through some of it. It requires attention and patience. Probably more than I had when I watched it. 
Grade:B-

22nd: Fellini’s Roma – Federico Fellini (1972)
This low-key might be my favorite Fellini film yet. He’s made at least 4 or 5 films that are clearly better, but I just love the vibe and feel of this one. It’s a tour of 20th century Rome made in the form of outrageous vignettes. I’d put it up there with Wings of Desire, My Winnipeg, and the other great city portraits captured on film. 
Grade: A-

25th: Sex, Lies, and Videotape – Steven Soderbergh (1989)
Easily one of the best debut films I’ve seen. I love that even though this is pretty far removed from the rest of Soderbergh’s career, you can still see plenty of his signature moves. The best example is in the third act in which we flash back to see what really went down. While this movie was fun and surprising on a first viewing, I’m really excited to dive back in. You can tell that it is overflowing with themes and ideas. 
Grade: B+

26th: Y tu mamá también – Alfonso Cuarón (2001)
Speaking of debuts! This is my favorite movie I’ve seen in a while. I’m not even sure it’s a five-star movie (although it’s pretty close!). The beginning is a little slow. I think I actively dislike the ending. I’d rather the movie not end on such a knowing and final tone. But everything in between is outstanding. It’s one of the best films about adolescence, sex, and friendship I’ve seen. To address the elephant in the room, this is like the horniest movie of all time. I love that about it. Sex is a major part of life. I feel like Cuarón really captures that here. In fact, I think one could argue that sex is one of the things that movies capture least accurately. Anyways, what a film. I can see how this guy went on to win an Oscar. 
Grade: A-

27th: The Third Man – Carol Reed (1949)
I watched this at the Music Box with Wills. The first time seeing this, I was admittedly blown away by the mastery of the filmmaking and particularly the ending. Seeing it with an audience made me realize just how funny this movie is. There are gags and punchlines galore. It’s the type of thing I need to better attune myself to in old movies. I think sometimes admiring the classics can make them feel stilted or artificially perfect. 
Grade: A-

28th: Ratatouille – Brad Bird (2007)
Is this my favorite Pixar film? It’d have to be pretty close. They do a remarkable job of making Remy so likable. It’s just a great story executed to near-perfection. Also, Patton Oswalt has to go down as giving one of the best Pixar performances.
Grade: A-

29th: The Incredibles – Brad Bird (2004)
I know this has come up as a Pixar favorite. I wanted to see if I could understand the hype. I think, for the most part, I do. Like the best Pixar films, this movie is almost perfectly told while being entertaining as hell. I think the character of Violet really helps carry the movie. Alas though, even here I just can’t care about superheroes as much as I’d like to. There must be some sort of block in my brain. Clearly this is one of the better Pixar films. I enjoyed it a lot. I just don’t think it’s in my top 5. 
Grade: B

29th: The Incredibles 2 – Brad Bird (2018)
A really fun sequel. It still falls into that trap of not being as good as the original. It also reuses a lot of material from the first movie. Still, this has maybe the funniest scene across both installments. I speak, of course, of the scene in which Violet spews water out her nose after seeing that her crush is waiting her family’s table. Classic comedy. 
Grade: B-

31st: Monsters, Inc. – Pete Docter (2001)
Boy, when will I get back to reviewing “real” movies? Just kidding! I think Pixar is great. Especially if you’re interested in writing and storytelling. They pretty much have that on lock. I have to say, Monsters, Inc. may go down as one of my favorites. It’s so sweet. The cast is particularly great. John Goodman, Billy Crystal, and Steve Buscemi are perfect for their parts. I also think this may be the funniest Pixar film I’ve seen. There are great bits of physical (digital?) comedy throughout. 
Grade: B+