2023 Movie Log: September

1st: The Time to Live and the Time to Die – Hou Hsiao-Hsien (1985)
There’s actual magic here that I struggle to define. Like how to make a movie both so personal and yet so universal? From just writing out ideas, it’s one of the hardest storytelling challenges there is. That Hou Hsiao-Hsien pulls it off so consistently and with such feeing is to me, his greatest talent. There’s something utterly universal and humanizing in the specificity of his vision that just makes him one of the greats
Grade: A-

11th: Western Stars – Bruce Springsteen, Thom Zimny (2019)
Just when IcelandAir had me out, they pull me back in with the in-flight entertainment.
Grade: B+

11th: The Iron Giant – Brad Bird (1999)
Almost positive this is the best Maine-set movie of all time (apologies to Shawshank Redemption). In all seriousness, they should teach this in any screenwriting course. One of the best and most efficient scripts I’ve ever seen.
Grade: A-

13th: The Cat o’ Nine Tails – Dario Argento (1971)
Okay, okay, okay, maybe this is my favorite Argento? I can’t get over all the ways he uses and moves the camera? POV shot of murderer smoking a cig…are you kidding me? Also some of the kills in this were just deliciously gnarly. We love it.
Grade: B+

20th: Theater Camp – Molly Gordon, Nick Lieberman (2023)
Legitimately hilarious, worthy of any Christopher Guest comparisons. It does something that’s pretty difficult for any comedy in that its last act is also its funniest. Delighted that Jimmy Tatro got to reprise some of his Dylan Maxwell American Vandal vibes for his role.
Grade: B+

25th: Casino – Martin Scorsese (1995)
Hard to assess without the shadow of Goodfellas hanging over it and yet is certainly good enough (maybe even great enough) to stand on its own. Sharon Stone’s role and performance belongs amongst the best portrayals in Scorsese’s filmography.
Grade: B+

26th: Petite Maman – Céline Sciamma (2021)
Céline Sciamma may very well be the best filmmaker working right now and I think Petite Maman is her best feature (though I will always hear arguments for any of her other works). But she does a couple things here that just feel miraculous. The first is the level of emotional intelligence she is able to tap into and share through this story without it ever feeling forced or engineered. The second, is somehow taking this beautiful story and transforming it into a film that works across all aspects of the form. I don’t know how else to describe it besides being utterly authentic and true as a film. And for any work of art, I think that’s the highest form you can achieve.
Grade: A

28th: Hugo – Martin Scorsese (2011)
Guess I have 200 Méliès films to watch now! Is there a more generous filmmaker than Scorsese?
Grade: B+

29th: The Last Temptation of Christ – Martin Scorsese (1988)
This film was already a bit too strung out and pasted together for it to be one of Scorsese’s best (note the montage of Jesus gathering followers). But! Up until its final 30 minutes at least, this film is enormously ambitious and truly and meaningfully provocative. And then, for different reasons than my catholic ancestors, I think the end is unfortunately pretty bad and undoes a lot of what is so bold about the project in the first place.
Grade: B+

30th: Bottoms – Emma Seligman (2023)
My mind is kind of all over the place lately, but I think there’s something way deeper and far more subversive going on with this film than what’s on the surface (which is still mostly excellent and funny). But specifically in how the final act plays out, there’s something to dig into with fulfilling an audience’s appetite for violent wish-fulfillment. This will honestly probably get me on some worst of letterbox’d meme page, but I feel like this Hold Steady verse (lol I know) is like what I’m trying to get at:
“They come in for the feeding
Sit in stadium seating
They’re holding their hands out
For the body and blood now
We’re the directors
Our hands will hold steady
I’ll be John Cassavettes
Let me know when you’re ready
Man, we make our own movies”
Grade: B+