6th: Irma Vep – Olivier Assayas (1996)
An extremely cool movie. Reminds me of Sofia Coppola or even someone like Jon-Luc Godard in that way. Hopefully, that isn’t dismissive of all the things Assayas pulls off in the film. Across the board, it’s a really smart, funny, well-executed film that I’m sure took an enormous amount of work. But watching this film is just a delight, and that will probably remain my main takeaway.
Grade: A-
10th: Secret Sunshine – Lee Chang-dong (2007)
This film defies your expectations of it even as you’re watching. I’ve only ever had a handful of movie experiences like that. That amount of emotional ground that Chang-dong manages to cover here is absurd. I am in awe of how seamlessly he weaves comic absurdity and emotional devastation together into one tone throughout the film. I still think Burning is his best film (and one of the best films of the decade), but Secret Sunshine is as ambitious and impressive as almost any movie I’ve seen.
Grade: B+
11th: I Am Trying to Break Your Heart: A Film About Wilco – Sam Jones (2002)
A great music documentary (and that’s coming from someone who merely just likes Wilco). The process and politics of making a record during this time are fascinating. You know the music industry is in a pretty bad place when a Wilco album is deemed too experimental to be released. But, above all else, this doc is great at capturing Jeff Tweedy as a mysterious and captivating artist. And it’s a portrayal that is not always flattering! Obviously, if you’re a Wilco fan, this film is a must-watch. Still, I’d recommend this to anyone with an interest in art, conflict, or especially music.
Grade: B+
11th: Touki Bouki – Djibril Diop Mambéty (1973)
This film is not at all what I was expecting. At times, that aspect was a bit challenging. You see two cool-looking people riding a motorcycle with a skull and horns on it, you expect a cool, vibey movie. And Touki Bouki certainly is that! But it also features gruesome, surrealist visual cuts to slaughterhouses which can be intensely jarring. Eventually, these images, like the rest of the surrealism in the film, come together and open up a whole world of ideas. For that reason, it’s a film I’d love to revisit and keep reading about.
Grade: B
11th: Repo Man – Alex Cox (1984)
Undoubtedly, one of the coolest movies I have ever seen. I love every detail Cox fills in about this world. Ideas like the generically labeled food items are just perfect. Really though, I can’t get over how great Emilio Estevez and Harry Dean Stanton are. They are so tuned in to this world and this film, it’s just amazing to watch.
Grade: B+
12th: Big Trouble in Little China – John Carpenter (1986)
First of all, I am sure there are aspects of this film that are problematic, ill-considered, or at the very least, worthy of a broader discussion. I do not mean to dismiss any of those aspects in this review and would love to be pointed to any material discussing them. But just as a film, I found Big Trouble… to be a delight. It’s the type of film that I wish anybody would make now. One in which an entire world and plot are created and resolved in 100 minutes of action and fun. There are stakes, but nothing so serious as to stop the momentum of the movie. From a storytelling perspective, I find it to be enormously impressive.
Grade: A
13th: Escape From New York – John Carpenter (1981)
Has anyone looked cooler than Kurt Russell as Snake Plissken? I know I’m way late to the party, but John Carpenter is quickly becoming one of my favorite directors. Watching Little Trouble in Big China and this back to back, I’m amazed at how economical these films are. There isn’t a wasted second in either of them, and yet, Carpenter is able to create entire worlds to support his stories. It’s the highest level of a style of filmmaking that I’m not sure really exists anymore.
Grade: B+
15th: Thief – Michael Mann (1981)
This film is maybe as fully realized a debut* as I’ve ever seen. The style, themes, dialogue, and direction that are present in something like Heat are already here. More specifically, the two best sequences in this film (the jewel heist and the ending shootout) feel particularly prescient of the rest of Mann’s career.
*I guess technically not a debut if counting Jericho Mile
Grade: A
19th: Everything Everywhere All at Once – Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert (2022)
My favorite film to come out in quite a while and the first film since Parasite that I would classify as an instant classic. It’s the type of script that’s so good it makes you want to write something (even if it couldn’t possibly approach this). I’m honestly enamored by every decision that’s made in the plot. It does a remarkable job at capturing (quite literally) everything a viewer needs to know about the story with an economy that makes the movie never feel weighty or heavy-handed. It’s a special movie and one that I’ll think about and revisit often.
Grade: A
21st: Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore – David Yates (2022)
I legitimately could have written a better prequel series than this. What are we doing? Look, I tend to laugh at the Marvel and Star Wars fans who get bent out of shape when a new movie doesn’t align with their ideas of the universe. This series has been so bad that I can understand where that reaction comes from. What’s most frustrating about the Fantastic Beasts series is that it shouldn’t be hard to make a compelling story for Harry Potter fans. The events that these films were meant to cover are established and foundational in the original novels. If one were to make a straightforward adaptation based solely on the information we already know (Dumbledore and Grindelwald’s early relationship, Ariana’s death, the original Order of the Phonix), it would almost certainly be worth watching. Instead, these films have only hinted at these moments while creating an elaborate, confusing, and totally convoluted plot around them. It’s about as disappointing as I’ve ever been with a film.
Grade: D-
22nd: Top Gun: Maverick – Joseph Kosinski (2022)
This is how you make an adaption/sequel! I love how straightforward the script is. Its structure is the best possible version of a generic “save the cat” screenplay (I truly mean this as a compliment). Seriously! Those structures, when executed smartly, work for a reason. Honestly, I wish more films would learn from what Maverick does. For instance, defining your characters with a simple but important personality trait (Rooster is too cautious, Hangman leaves his other pilots out to dry). That way, as the film approaches the resolution, you know exactly what needs to happen (Rooster has to take the risk, Hangman has to come back and save them). Pulling this off is obviously not as simple as it sounds, but it is the reason why this movie is so much better than convoluted prequels/sequels like Fantastic Beasts or Star Wars. There’s no need to complicate things when you have Tom Cruise, Miles Teller, and Glenn Powell flying around in fighter planes.
Grade: A-
23rd: The Warriors – Walter Hill (1979)
Another movie and cultural touchstone that I had missed. As someone who is not always into the cyberpunk/dystopia genre, I liked The Warriors quite a bit. I really admired how much Hill is able to do with (what I’m guessing was) a small budget. He’s able to set up the universe and the gangs with just a few characteristics.
Grade: B
30th: The Black Phone – Scott Derrickson (2022)
This is a movie that is squarely “OK,” with the exception of Madeline McGraw’s performance which is one of the best child acting performances I have ever seen.
Grade: C+
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