Sam Writes Shit

1st: White Noise – Noah Baumbach (2022)
Paraphrasing from Adam Nayman: Noah Baumbach is clearly much better at making movies about people who read White Noise than making White Noise. Paraphrasing from myself: Not a particularly good film or good adaptation, but I enjoyed it more than expected.
Grade: C+

2nd: Magnolia – Paul Thomas Anderson (1999)
PTA’s version of coked-out movie but cut with with antidepressants 🐸.
Grade: B+

3rd: C’mon C’mon – Mike Mills (2021)
New year, same me (getting fucked up by a beautiful movie).
Grade: A

12th: 20th Century Women – Mike Mills (2016)
Mike Mills fuck me up.
Grade: A-

15th: Nuts in May – Mike Leigh (1976)
The only way this could have been better is if I randomly decided to watch tv in 1976 and this was on. Truly incredible stuff from Mike Leigh and the BBC.
Grade: B+

16th: Abigail’s Party – Mike Leigh (1977)
Mike Leigh is a motherfucker <3.
Grade: B+

18th: Brigsby Bear – Dave McCary (2017)
When you punish a person for dreaming his dream
Don’t expect him to thank or forgive you
The best ever friend movie crew out of salt creek
Will in time both outpace and outlive you
Hail Brigsby
Hail Brigsby tonight
Grade: B+

19th: Hard Labour – Mike Leigh (1973)
Missed opportunity to call this ‘Bleaker Moments’ and start the Mike Leigh Cinematic Universe.
Grade: B

19th: The Kiss of Death – Mike Leigh (1977)
There is a character in this movie who appears in multiple scenes just to have one line of dialogue, that being “alright.” His name is Froggy. Mike Leigh gets it.
Grade: B+

21st: Who’s Who – Mike Leigh (1979)
Even if it’s a miss there’s always something special. In this case, so many cats!
Grade: C

23rd: Grown-Ups – Mike Leigh (1980)
For being a great humanist, Mike Leigh sure doesn’t seem to like people…For the first hour or so I thought maybe he had made a movie that wasn’t going to resonate with me and them POW! that last act. Also, it must be asked. Is this part of the Adam Sandler Universe or the Secrets & Lies Universe?
Grade: B+

25th: Everything Everywhere All at Once – Daniel Scheinert, Daniel Kwan (2022)
My favorite universe is the one in which Gioia laughs and cries at all the same parts each time we watch this. Oh wait, that’s this one :)))))
Grade: A-

25th: Home Sweet Home – Mike Leigh (1982)
Fucking vicious.
Grade: B

25th: Four Days in July – Mike Leigh (1984)
Aye, a bloody way to finish these early Mike Leighs innit? Normally, I get about 85-90% of what these characters are sayin but this one I says to Gioia I says I can only bloody understand bout half of these characters, can’t I. Who knew I needed subtitles for my own bloody language? A right state that is. Still, a lotta laughs, I must admit. Especially the baby Hitler stuff. Come on.
ETA:
Sorry if this is offensive! What I’m trying to say is that I love Mike Leigh even when his movies are almost beyond comprehension. Okay byeeeeeee.
Grade: B-

27th: Possessor – Brandon Cronenberg (2020)
Planning on writing some more about this one, mainly, about how hard it fucking rips. But also had a thought that what if Brandon Cronenberg was still a filmmaker, but made little slice of life human dramas like a Linklater or Sciamma. That’d be funny, right? Okay, off to see Infinity Pool!
Grade: A-

27th: Infinity Pool – Brandon Cronenberg (2023)
this says it all.
Grade: B+

29th: Mr. Turner – Mike Leigh (2014)
Ah yes, the number one Mike Leigh stan here to say that I’ve never subscribed to the idea that Leigh’s cinematography and compositions were lacking. Not to get into a whole thing, but there’s a difference between something being flashy for the sake of being “interesting” and something actually suiting the material. That being said, what a fucking treat to watch Leigh flex every visual muscle he’s built up over the course of 20+ films. The cinematography, sets, costumes, and (of course) paintings are just masterfully done. What better way to showcase the life of a “complicated genius” than to consistently contrast the beauty of early 19th century life (landscapes, quaint towns, early industry) with the fucking decrepitness of early 19th century life (disease, filth, poverty, inequality). At the end of the day, there’s probably not quite enough ingenuity in the story for it to rank up with Leigh’s very best films (those of course being totally singular masterpieces). But from a technical standpoint, this may be as fine a film as he’s ever made.
Grade: B+

31st: Us – Jordan Peele (2019)
Seeing Us for the first time was one of my favorite movie-viewing experiences! My second viewing did not disappoint. First off, the screening was part of an SAIC Art History course and let me tell you, after a lifetime of not speaking in class, it was almost painful to just have to sit and listen through a really fascinating discourse. As for the movie…man, I just don’t get what people are not seeing in this one. Us has garnered a reputation as being Peele’s weakest film and the only way I can really wrap my head around that critique is as an acknowledgment of how magnificent Get Out and Nope are. But the push-back seems to go beyond that to a degree that I have a really hard time understanding. And look, everyone sees films differently, but for me, Peele’s main attraction as a filmmaker is that his films are as richly textured and layered with meaning as any director I can think of while also being incredibly effective as pieces of entertainment in their own right. Maybe that is a sliding scale depending on the viewer, but again, for me, Us navigates it pretty superbly. For one, I find the general concept of the film and many of its sequences to be truly frightening. And two, I just think there’s as much depth and detail and meaning in this film as anything I’ve seen. I feel like you could go on for hours exploring the ties to Reagan and the turning point in class inequality as the starting point of the film’s plot (when Adelaide first encounters Red), or even just the mechanics of the underworld’s tethering to those above.
Grade: A-

4th: Time Regained – Raúl Ruiz (1999)
Unintentionally, my viewing theme of the past month or so has become book adaptations. On TV, I had “The Rings of Power” and “House of the Dragon”. In film, I had “Meet Me in the Bathroom” plus two other Proust Adaptations (Volker Schlöndorff’s “Swann in Love” and Chantal Akerman’s “La Captive.”) And later this week, I’ll be seeing the ‘unadaptable’ “White Noise.” Overall, it’s been a fascinating period and one that’s made me interrogate what, exactly, a book adaptation is meant to accomplish. That thought has only been compounded by the fact that, aside from “Rings of Power” and “House of the Dragon,” these films have attempted to cover material that doesn’t exactly jump out as being easily translated to the screen. It seems to me, and here I’m really just spitballing, that most film adaptations probably intend to do one or more of the following:

1. Replicate the source material primarily as a conduit for fans of the book to engage with said material in another medium (War and Peace, My Brilliant Friend, etc.).

2. Translate the source material primarily as a means of introducing a book to a larger audience (Game of Thrones, Harry Potter, etc.).

3. Reinterpret the source material primarily as a jumping-off point for a new or independent artistic statement (Station Eleven, Stalker, etc.).

Interestingly enough, I think each of the three Proust adaptations I’ve seen has fallen into a different camp. “Swann in Love” felt like an attempt at introducing the novel to a larger audience. It was the most straightforward of the three films and as such, focused primarily on plot. “La Captive,” meanwhile, functioned as more of a springboard for Akerman to interrogate themes and ideas from the book, without being tied to the constraints of the work. And lastly, this film, “Time Regained,” at least on its surface, seems intended only for book readers. This, however, brings me to a crossroads because “Time Regained” is also unbelievably fascinating as a film in its own right. And again, I have to reiterate that this movie must be primarily intended for book readers because, otherwise, its plot is unintelligible. Because I have some self-awareness, I didn’t subject Gioia (or anyone else) to viewing this with me, but if I did, I would have had to pause the movie at the beginning of every scene to explain each of the characters and their relationships. With that being said, this was also easily the most ambitious and best adaptation I watched. First, judging from this film, Ruiz is a hell of a director. The scale, costumes, set pieces, and cinematography in the movie are all outstanding. Again, while Ruiz forgoes exposition or summary that would help with plot, he does a remarkable job at capturing and translating the themes of the novel into his film. Before this film, I was under the impression that for an adaptation to be successful it must function as both a representative of the original source material and as a stand-alone piece. This film has made me totally rethink that! Obviously, no studio is going to finance a film that is only legible to book readers, but I wonder if for many works, that would actually be the best approach? At least in this case, it allows for Ruiz to engage with the source material in a deeper and ultimately more impactful way than if he had to constantly transcribe this for everyone to understand.
Grade: B+

4th: The Squid and the Whale – Noah Baumbach (2005)
Ten years ago, I found this (while brilliant) almost unbearable to watch. Now, I find it to be one of the most darkly funny movies I’ve ever seen. Starting to wonder what’s happened to me in that intervening time.
Grade: A

6th: Crimes of the Future – David Cronenberg (2022)
Have a lot left to see, but this is far and away my favorite movie of 2022 thus far. Maybe it’s because I haven’t explored the rest of Cronenberg’s filmography (which I will obviously be doing starting now), but I just don’t know what else you could want from a movie. The obvious appeal going in was the body-horror, which is exquisite. But there’s so much else going on in this movie. This film does tone, story, plot, and world-building as well as anything I’ve seen in quite a while. The performances are all magnificent! In a stretch where movies are increasingly feeling smaller and smaller, I think I just needed something like this.
Grade: A-

7th: Bullet Train – David Leitch (2022)
This was better and more fun than I was expecting. My greatest takeaway, however, will be how far Brian Tyree Henry can carry even a pretty mediocre movie. This is why we used to have movie stars, folks!
Grade: C+

15th: Amélie – Jean-Pierre Jeunet (2001)
Caress me on the ghost train 🫠
Grade: B+

18th: Minding the Gap – Bing Liu (2018)
Struggle with what to say about this one. First, my sight & sound ballot must have got lost in transit, but had I received it, this would be my pick for a new addition from the 2012 poll. In all seriousness, this film feels so personal to me on a level I don’t really understand. I have no personal connection to the details or subject matter of the film. I wasn’t even ever a skater! Yet, each time I watch this, I am moved beyond any type of logical reasoning. Which is not to say that this film isn’t incredibly well-crafted, thoughtful, or full of intellect. It’s just that, for me at least, the movie bypasses the brain and goes straight for the heart.
Grade: A

23rd: Pather Panchali – Satyajit Ray (1955)
A truly beautiful film. One where everything from the story to the characters to Ray’s compositions exist in perfect harmony. I’m sure there’s a million things to dissect about how this was made from a technical standpoint, but it really feels like a movie that’s better understood on an emotional wavelength.
Grade: B+

23rd: The Rules of the Game – Jean Renoir (1939)
If this year has taught me anything, it’s that one must always invite a partner’s lover to social gatherings. To not do so is simply unheard of.
Grade: B+

23rd: After Yang – Kogonada (2022)
Favorite type of Sci-Fi is high concept, simple execution. After Yang obviously excels in doing that. I think what makes this a lasting film is that emotionality of it. The concepts / intrigue never surpasses the ‘human’ aspect of the story.
Grade: B+

24th: Misery – Rob Reiner (1990)
I don’t mean to sound degrading because I think this movie is legitimately great, but this is like camp executed at the highest possible level, to where I’m not even sure if camp is the right word. James Caan and Kathy Bates’ performances are legitimately insane and also perfect.
Grade: B+

24th: TÁR – Todd Field (2022)
Unironic “Now, that’s a movie!” I don’t know if all of it works, but I truly loved watching a director and especially Cate Blanchett just going for it. The second (I think) scene in which Blanchett is doing the guest lecture is probably my favorite scene of the year.
Grade: B+

24th: La Jetée – Chris Marker (1962)
Definitely didn’t sort the sight and sound poll by shortest length. Nope, not me.
Grade: B

25th: Side Effects – Steven Soderbergh (2013)
This movie is so insane that I thought it must be a true story. Alas it is not. I wish I could take a film course on the middle 10-20 (in terms of quality) Soderbergh movies. The guy is a machine.
Grade: B-

26th: Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead – Sidney Lumet (2007)
This is like a late-period record from a legacy band that has all the right players, and looks and sounds cool, and is good enough to be interesting but is also like 10% away from being legitimately good in its own right.
Grade: B-

26th: The Thin Red Line – Terrence Malick (1998)
Give me the five-hour cut. Also, flashback to 2019 when I thought Vampire Weekend somehow orchestrated a transcendent musical moment only to realize it’s a sample from this movie – also known as the thin red line of my vampire weekend fandom.
Grade: B+

27th: Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery – Rian Johnson (2022)
I loved one scene in this movie and everyone will know which one it is.
Grade: C

27th: The Game – David Fincher (1997)
My lifelong dream starting now is for a shot-for-shot remake with Tim Robinson in the Michael Douglas role: HAS THIS EVER HAPPENED TO YOU?
Grade: B-

28th: The Banshees of Inisherin – Martin McDonagh (2022)
They said there would be two deaths and I said, please don’t let it be these two characters…and it was those two characters. Feckin Hell.
Grade: B+

29th: City of God – Fernando Meirelles (2002)
Most unbelievable thing in this whole true story is that this guy got laid from interning at a newspaper
Grade: B+

29th: Close-Up – Abbas Kiarostami (1990)
One of the most unusual movies I’ve ever seen. I liked it 🙂
Grade: B+

30th: His Girl Friday – Howard Hawks (1940)
Tired: Ethan Hawke Birthday. Wired: His Girl Friday Birthday (everyone has to speak in witty repartee and also sabotage each other’s relationships).
Grade: A

Five years ago, I started this here blog with the idea that it would help me see, process, and remember all the films that were out there to be discovered. Since then, this blog has turned into all sorts of other things including tv reviews, book reviews, random thoughts, and coming soon…A bigger project to be announced (rhymes with v-look!).

Meanwhile, Letterboxd came along and made this blog look frankly archaic. More importantly though, it also made it way easier for me to connect with more people about movies (hooray!). At least for today, the blog lives on. And so, to commemorate, I am presenting the first (and probably last) ever SAMMIE Awards, meant to honor my favorite first-time viewings in the five years of this blog: a period encompassing countless movie theaters, living rooms, friendships, memories, and 827 (and counting!) film entries. 

To reiterate, these are not necessarily the best movies I’ve seen (although many are), but the ones that stand out five years later as the most impactful to me. Really, my hope is that they will serve as an opportunity to talk more about movies, generate new suggestions, and maybe even nudge something slightly up on your own watch-list. 

And so, without further adieu… The SAMMIES!

Zodiac – David Fincher (2007)

Screening #: 1
Date Watched: 1/1/2018
Where: At home, alone.
Original Review: Slow burn. Pretty terrifying. Gruesome deaths. Very freaky toward the end in that dude’s basement. “Not a lot of people have basements in San Francisco.”

Additional Musings: My first movie review was not my most eloquent. That being said, it does capture pretty much everything that’s stuck with me about Zodiac through my now many viewings. To keep it short, Zodiac remains one of the most thrilling, compelling, scariest, and best films I have ever seen. 

Life is Sweet – Mike Leigh (1990)

Screening #: 106
Date Watched: 4/21/2018
Where: At home, alone.
Original Review (excerpt): Mike Leigh has such a unique and interesting tone in this movie. It’s a sentiment that I love. The performances are all really strange and cool. It’s a world of characters I’m not used to seeing in film. And even though I’ve never seen anybody like them, they feel incredibly real to me. 

Additional Musings: This was just my second foray into the world of Mike Leigh. It would have been impossible to anticipate what he would come to mean to me. Five years later, he is perhaps my all-time favorite director and while Life is Sweet may not be his best film, it’s the one that speaks most to me, precisely because of how odd, beguiling, and yet familiar the film feels. 

Tampopo – Juzo Itami (1987)

Screening #: 140
Date Watched: 11/9/2018
Where: At home with Bryce and Gioia.
Original Review: Incredible. Truly one of the most delightful surprises of a movie I’ve ever seen. It’s so much fun. Maybe one of my favorite movies full stop.

Additional Musings: Out of many, many wonderful film viewings, this might be my favorite. I have never been so rocked or delighted by what a film could be and I still have never seen anything quite like it. 

Burning – Lee Chang-dong (2018)

Screening #: 148
Date Watched: 12/2/2018
Where: At Music Box with Gioia and Max
Original Review: This film is so intricately written and paced out. Each line of dialogue is engaging and revealing, but not fully understood until the end of the film. It’s among the best-written films I’ve ever seen. 

Additional Musings: Strangely enough, I have not revisited Burning since this initial viewing. Perhaps I’ll do so tonight! Still, I’m not sure I can think of a better-written film I’ve seen since. The film is a masterclass in tone, information, and balance. It was also a strangely fortuitous viewing. We were running way late getting to the film to the point where I thought about calling it off. Instead, my brother, Gioia, and I sprinted through the snow to the Music Box and arrived just in time. Thank god!

Us – Jordan Peele (2019)

Screening #: 170
Date Watched: 3/29/2019
Where: At Logan Theater with Gioia
Original Review (excerpt): A really fun movie to see. The theater was packed and the reactions were loud. It’s not perfect, but I loved watching this movie, and I’ve enjoyed reading and thinking about it more ever since.

Additional Musings: It seems like most people, and I would be inclined to agree, now regard Us as Peele’s least successful film. Number one, even if that is the case, that is a remarkably high bar to have for your worst film. Number two, I still think this is the film of his that I’ve enjoyed the most. It’s not often that the best director in the world is also the most popular. At least for one sold-out screening at the Logan, that’s what it felt like to me. 

Parasite – Bong Joon-ho (2019)

Screening #: 253
Date Watched: 10/20/2019
Where: At Arclight with Gioia, Adam, and Alice. 
Original Review (excerpt): Yeah, I think this is a masterpiece.

Additional Musings: My original review for Parasite is my longest to date. Sadly, I’m not sure there’s much of it that’s worth sharing. I obviously love thinking and writing about movies, but a film like Parasite leaves me feeling words couldn’t possibly capture the brilliance of what was put on screen. Still, I’ll do my best: A few years later, I think Parasite is pretty clearly the best film in recent memory.

Minding The Gap – Bing Liu (2018)

Screening #: 297
Date Watched: 12/20/2019
Where: At home, alone. 
Original Review (excerpt): This movie destroyed me. It’s just one of those special ones. I don’t know if I can put into words what it meant to me. It’s the most human film I can remember watching. 

Additional Musings: Perhaps a slight inversion of my Parasite thoughts. This movie hits me on such a deeply personal and emotional level, that it feels almost impossible to express my admiration for how it is crafted, which is foolish because it is one of the most intelligently and pristinely made first films I’ve ever seen. I’ve watched it many times since and it still knocks me out every viewing. 

8 1/2  – Federico Fellini (1963)

Screening #: 336
Date Watched: 2/8/2020
Where: At home, alone.
Original Review (excerpt): I feel foolish trying to say much of anything about this. It’s that good. 

Additional Musings: What was going on with me in this period? I’ll try to say here what I couldn’t articulate then, Fellini is the best and 8 1/2 is probably his finest movie. As someone who loves crusty old movies, I can admit that at times, they feel more academic than enjoyable. That’s not the case with 8 1/2. Almost 60 years since it’s come out and I still haven’t seen anything else to rival the film’s spectacle and humor. 

A Brighter Summer Day – Edward Yang (1991)
Screening #: 350
Date Watched: 2/18/2020
Where: At home, alone. 
Original Review (excerpt): Edward Yang is a master. I don’t know if I’ve seen a film this ambitious, or frankly, this successful. 

Additional Musings: I believe A Brighter Summer Day is the finest film I have ever seen. In place of my own thoughts about why that is, I’ll include a quote from Yang himself that I find deeply meaningful:

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.”

Toni Erdmann – Maren Ade (2016)

Screening #: 363
Date Watched: 3/7/2020
Where: At Home with Gioia. 
Original Review (excerpt): Holy shit. I can’t believe how good this movie is. This absurdity obviously includes the big birthday party scene which, I can say definitively, is the funniest scene of all time. 

Additional Musings: This film is as good and smart as it is funny which is saying quite a bit considering this is probably the hardest Gioia and I have ever laughed at a movie. 

Beau Travail – Claire Denis (1999)

Screening#: 474
Date Watched: 11/14/202
Where: At home with Gioia. 
Original Review (excerpt): I can’t think of many endings that are more surprising and yet still suit the film perfectly. What an achievement.

Additional Musings: Ugh, that ending! Still perfect, which is not to say that the rest of the film is unworthy of it. On the contrary, the film might still be on the list even without its last scene. 

California Split – Robert Altman (1974)

Screening #: 571
Date Watched: 4/19/2021
Where: At home with Gioia. 
Original Review (excerpt): Each time I watch an Altman film I think he has to be the greatest director ever.

Additional Musings: The thing about Robert Altman is that he has at least 5 or 6 perfect movies which I love and which, any other day, might have made this list. And yet, California Split, which is probably not a perfect film, is the one I think about most often. And to be honest, that’s really what I’m trying to get at with this silly list. I moved to Chicago with no friends and no idea of who Robert Altman was. Then pretty quickly, I made a friend who insisted that I had to see Mash and The Long Goodbye, which I did. Then I made another friend who took me to a late-night screening of Short Cuts. Then, eventually, I met Gioia and we dove together into films like Nashville, The Player, McCabe & Mrs. Miller, and California Split. Meanwhile, it was my turn to share with her Mash, The Long Goodbye, and Short Cuts. And now, I’m here, writing to say that movies are amazing, but what’s even better is the people and connections you can make from loving them.

1st: Game Night – John Francis Daley, Jonathan Goldstein (2018)
Sneakily one of the best comedies of the last few years. The Jesse Plemmons stuff just kills me. Also, nothing funnier to me than people being in actual danger and thinking they’re not.
Grade: B+

2nd: Girls Trip – Malcolm D. Lee (2017)
Put Tiffany Haddish in every movie! The New Yorker had her role in this film among their ‘best performances of the 21st century’ list and I do not disagree. Also, the candle gag in this movie is an all-timer. 
Grade: B-

9th: Badlands – Terrence Malick (1973)
Did you know that Bruce Springsteen named his 1978 song “Badlands” after the title of this film, even though its lyrics have nothing to do with the actual movie? Meanwhile, his 1982 song “Nebraska” does nothing to anticipate the 2013 film of the same name but instead recounts the narrative and images from the film “Badlands.” Now, these are just a few of the many fun facts you will learn while watching a movie with–hey wait, please don’t go, I’ll stop, I promise!
Grade: A

13th: Meet Me in the Bathroom – Will Lovelace, Dylan Southern (2022)
The only thing that made me feel older than this doc was the time earlier this year when I got sick for a week from partying too hard at an Interpol show. Also, hate to pull this card, but go read the book. Nothing was probably going to live up to that mark anyways, but this was still a pretty poor effort in my opinion. 
Grade: C

14th: Swann in Love – Volker Schlöndorff (1984)
A surprisingly good adaptation! To me, it seems like Proust’s humor and vulgarity comes through for the most part, which, if you’re going to adapt his work is really the crux of it. I guess it’d be interesting to see if the film makes any sense to someone going in blind. But really, the only issue I had was the film deciding it needed to add some invented details into the last scenes to make the ending more poignant, which honestly kind of offsets the meticulous tone of this entire section of this book.
Grade: B

15th: Fresh – Mimi Cave (2022)
Sneakily one of my favorite movies of the year so far. Thought this was genuinely fun and surprising. It does a remarkable job at hitting just the right tone, to the point where in lesser hands I could see myself really hating this. The dancing sequence, for example, is a moment I really wanted to/expected to dislike, and yet, I must admit I found it delightfully charming.
Grade: B+

16th: La Captive – Chantal Akerman (2000)
Simultaneously impressed and perplexed by this, both as a standalone film and an adaptation. The Captive is by far the novel’s weakest section, which makes it especially interesting as one of the only Proust films. As such, Akerman takes a decent amount of liberties with it, changing the time period, characters’ names, and most importantly, the ending. Strangely enough, it all comes out to me as a mixed bag. There are aspects that Akerman keeps from the book that are marvelous (the casting of Albertine/Ariane is perfectly done). And yet, there are aspects from the original work that I don’t understand why she kept (this film, for instance, does little more than the novel in giving Albertine/Ariane any internal life or POV). Meanwhile, the changes Akerman makes are mildly puzzling to me. I’d like to reiterate again that this is the weakest part of the novel. In general, I have no problem with making changes to the book and, in fact, was hoping that Akerman would do just that in order to breathe new life into the story. Instead, I’m kind of left to wonder what her changes accomplish. One of the greatest aspects of the novel is its setting (in a specific time and place). Akerman still makes a period piece but sets the film decades after the Belle Époque. Likewise, much of Proust’s singular depravity and humor is removed from the film and in a weird way this change kind of makes Marcel/Simon more sympathetic (albeit slightly more pathetic). Akerman even arrives at the same ending as the book for this section but changes the specific circumstances. To what end, I’m not really sure. If anybody is still reading to this point, I would like to just say that I’m sorry. I know you don’t care! And also, I need to iterate that I love many of the specific bits of filmmaking in this. In general, I’m really excited to watch more of Akerman’s films and even to revisit this after I have more familiarity with her work. The film also just makes me wish for more adaptions of In Search of Lost Time. Clearly, there are endless possibilities for what you could do with it. Netflix should honestly give Luca Guadagnino ten hours to do it. Or let like seven directors make their own version of one of the novel’s seven volumes as an anthology!
Grade: B-

19th: John Wick – Chad Stahelski (2014)
Me watching this movie: twitter.com/OnlyZans/status/1569416356839280640?s=20&t=OAqfZa0VHshDyzELhLTLDw
Grade: B-

19th: Jungle Cruise – Jaume Collet-Serra (2021)
Watched the way god intended: on a bus from Boston to Maine. Listen, I do mind a silly little romp now and again. And I must admit that I found this movie charming enough to enjoy it. But this was really stretching the limits for how nonsensical a big-budget movie can be. 
Grade: C

25th: Ant-Man and the Wasp – Peyton Reed (2018)
Concord Coach Lines’ movie selection stays unbeaten. Love Paul Rudd. Especially loved the relationship with his daughter in this. But, like Jungle Cruise, this really stretches how much stupidity a viewer can take in one movie. 
Grade: C

25th: Triangle of Sadness – Ruben Östlund (2022)
This is a movie that’s going to suffer from preconceived notions about it being the palme d’or winner. But, if you can manage to watch this as a more typical European film about class, it’s delightful! I’m not sure it always has something insightful to say but, again, if you can just watch it as a comedy/satire, it’s a lot of fun.
Grade: B

26th: Cheavlier – Athina Rachel Tsangari (2015)
The letterbox’d reviews for this movie prove that users on this site don’t have a sense of humor and I’m mad about it.
Grade: B+

26th: The Menu – Mark Mylod (2022)
People who are saying that you can’t enjoy a movie and also think it’s not very good, go watch The Menu.
Grade: C+

27th: Fire of Love – Sara Dosa (2022)
The footage in this is honestly unbelievable. It makes me want to watch the volcano docs that this couple made. I also generally dug everything else about the film (the illustrations, narration, tone).
Grade: B

28th: X – Ti West (2022)
Feel like this is potentially a tricky one for me to review. To be clear, I really, really did not like it. Now, whether that’s because it’s a well-made horror movie that disturbed me or because it’s a bad film I guess is up for debate. But, I must admit that I kind of lean toward the latter. I don’t want to say that horror movies need to have a larger message or be more fun to work, but I guess I’m struggling to see the point in this one besides the fact that it’s gross?
Grade: C-

29th: Zodiac – David Fincher (2007)
Robert Graysmith: Born to detect, forced to cartoon. What can I say at this point? It’s pretty much just my favorite movie. 
Grade: A

30th: Confess, Fletch – Greg Mottola (2022)
I feel like however I write this, it’s going to come out as a backhanded compliment, which is unfortunate because I did really like this move! But I feel like 9/10 times these days, something like this would get turned into a miniseries and it would probably be pretty good. But, in all honesty, I was just delighted by the fact that this was a fun, simple, good, 90 minute movie. Sometimes that’s enough!
Grade: B-

 

 

 

 

2nd: Wreck-It Ralph – Rich Moore (2012)
Really, really impressed by this. As someone who doesn’t watch much animation, let me weigh in: this, to me, seems like exactly what you would want an animated movie to do (i.e. using it to explore a whole world/story that a non-animated film couldn’t). Even aside from that ingenuity, this film works because the story is good, the voice actors are great (John C. Reilly is perfect), and the jokes are genuinely funny.
Grade: B+

3rd: Ralph Breaks the Internet – Rich Moore, Phil Johnston (2018)
This movie really bothered me and then I read this piece by my friend, Max and he nailed down the critiques I was feeling but couldn’t articulate. His piece is specifically focused on the false dichotomy the film sets up around “toxic” masculinity, but I think these ideas could be applied to many different aspects of the film, such as the movie’s disingenuous critiques of Disney and the internet. So a really bad movie that led to some wonderful reading:
www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/15295036.2022.2067347?journalCode=rcsm20
Grade: D

6th: Moonage Daydream – Brett Morgen (2022)
Saw at Austin Film Society which was cool as hell! Hooray for awesome theaters! Thank you Mr. Linklater! Alas, this is one of the worst films I have seen in a while. Overlong, uninformative, and irritatingly tedious. Which, if you have David Bowie as your subject, tons of live footage and interviews at your disposal, and me as your audience (an unabashed lover of the “rockumentary”) and that’s my review, you’re in trouble.
Grade: D

14th: Soul – Pete Docter (2020)
Gioia was feeling unwell and requested a comfort movie. I chose this. She said she was thinking more of a comfort movie for her (aka something she had seen before and liked). I insisted that if she had watched this before, it would already be a comfort movie for her. She said “Okay, let’s watch it, I guess.” And what do you know? We watched it and she thought it was “pretty good.” I guess I’m a regular Marty Scorsese introducing the world to new films 🙂
Grade: A-

17th: Sleepaway Camp – Robert Hiltzik (1983)
Robert Hiltzik asking big questions like, “If a film is offensively bad can it also be badly offensive?” The answer may disturb you.
Grade: B

18th: The Blair Witch Project -Daniel Myrick, Eduardo Sánchez (1999)
Man, I would give anything to have seen this and thought that it was a real found-footage documentary
Grade: B+

19th: The Wicker Man – Robin Hardy (1973)
Man, I’m not one to get too bent out of shape by films drawing inspiration or retreading over similar ground as a predecessor. Still, it’s hard not to note how much a film like Midsommar or a series like The Third Day (both works that I really enjoyed) must have taken from this. Aside from originality, what I think most elevates The Wicker Man over more modern films, is how much fun this film is. There’s a playfulness here, one that is absent in pretty much every recent horror movie I’ve seen, that doesn’t detract from the story or its ending but actually adds to it.
Grade: B+

20th: Scream – Wes Craven (1996)
Usually not a fan of hyper-meta, we’re in on it too style movies, but this was genuinely a lot of fun! Thought the ending/reveal was particularly inspired which is kind of rare for a pulpy horror movie. Guess I have to watch like 6 more of these now!
Grade: A-

26th: Barbarian – Zach Cregger (2022)
Fun and surprising which I think is probably the most important criteria when it comes to a horror film. I must say, however, that I am way more compelled and interested by the first part of the movie (i.e. before the big twist) than the rest of it. To be honest, I would have much rather seen the rest of that movie than what follows.
Grade: B

27th: Malignant – James Wan (2021)
[Ray Romano voice] Frickin’ best movie ever
Grade: B+

28th: Malignant – James Wan (2021)
This is now my favorite movie.
Grade: B+

28th: House -Nobuhiko Obayashi (1977)
To be clear, I loved it. But would really, really appreciate someone explaining this movie to me like I’m five
Grade: B+

30th: Nope – Jordan Peele (2022)
First off, this movie made me realize that in the hellscape that is film/cinema in 2022 (in which movies can only be a) A TV Show B) A franchise spectacle devoid of thought. C) An art film), Jordan Peele is undeniably our most important director (i.e., can make a film that reaches the most people and is also full of thought and meaning, not to mention is a Black director that makes films either tangentially or directly concerned with what it means to be Black in America.) I will say that out of his three features, I “enjoyed” this one the least. I’m pretty confident that will change as I think about, read about, and rewatch this film more. To be honest, I’m really just waiting to read the twitter thread akin to the one that Peele himself retweeted about Us that opens up a whole new line of thinking/insight into the movie. Lastly, I’ll just say that despite everything I’m trying to explain/capture about Peele above, sometimes film is as simple as seeing something and feeling that connection. The best way I can explain that is in the moment when Holst arrives with his homemade camera, and OJ and Em finally have this release of emotion in hi-fives. I don’t know what else I can really say about it except that that moment was completely exhilarating to me and is easily my favorite movie moment of the year.
Grade: B+

31st: Shoah – Claude Lanzmann (1985)
In his essay, “From the Holocaust to ‘Holocaust,’ Lanzmann identifies a central tension in approaching this subject. Mainly that the Holocaust was at once a singular, incomparable event and also not an aberration or an anomaly. That in approaching this subject matter, one must realize that there is no understanding or generalization to make sense of it (or as Lanzmann puts it: Here, there is no why), and yet, one must also not allow for this lack of comparison, of generalization, of mystification to abdicate the personal and collective responsibility that humanity had in the systematic annihilation of six million Jewish people. There is a similar tension to the one Lanzmann identifies in the process of reviewing or discussing his film. In fact, watching this film for the first time 37 years after its release, I couldn’t help but note how all of my preconceived notions about the film had been based on these generalizations and legend-making of its existence (the 9.5-hour length, the 11-year production, the refusal to use archival footage) that not only distract but take away from this film’s very essence. I cannot emphasize enough that these aspects of the film are not extractable feats of filmmaking but the very core of its being. I anticipated in writing this review, I would assess and analyze the personal, emotional, and intellectual journey I had in watching this film (which is essentially what I try to do in writing any review). However, to me, this film, in its essence, is a transmission. And so, while I have an incredible number of thoughts and feelings about Lanzmann’s film, I think they’re best kept to myself. Sharing the specifics of what I think or feel about this film cannot replicate what watching it instilled in me. More importantly, they cannot function as a substitute for anyone else in place of watching the film. And so, I would really just implore anybody to watch this film and, as much as they can, to enter into it without hesitancy based on its daunting legacy. In that way, they too can receive this film’s transmission, at once a collective and singular experience.
Grade: A

2nd: Bull Durham – Ron Shelton (1988)
I wish I could write more eloquently about this film. To sum it all up, I think it’s just about perfect. The balance Shelton pulls off between sex, baseball, and story is absolutely remarkable.
Grade: A-

3rd: Happy Together – Wong Kar-wai (1997)
Nobody is as good at creating a world as Wong Kar-wai. For that reason, it took me a while to really sink into this film. But once I did, it was fabulous. I particularly loved seeing my guy Chang Chen in another film. Will definitely be rewatching this.
Grade: B+

3rd: Ocean’s Thirteen – Steven Soderbergh (2007)
Is this film series not actually very good? In retrospect, this film makes me appreciate Ocean’s Twelve more. To be clear, I had a good time. Maybe that’s all that matters?
Grade: C-

5th: Children of Men – Alfonso Cuarón (2006)
A really impressive film. In all honesty, I am not generally a fan of this genre of film nor the tone Cuarón uses in telling this story. And yet, I think the performances and filmmaking are so good, it totally compensates for it. I was really kind of blown away.
Grade: A-

9th: Prisoners – Denis Villeneuve (2013)
A film that felt specifically tailored to me. Literally said “fuck you” when those snakes came out. To be clear, I loved it. That being said, I feel like the ineptitude of this police department is (even for someone who believes police departments to be mostly inept) a stretch too far and one that keeps this film from being an all-time great next to, say, Zodiac.
Grade: B+

10th: Zero Dark Thirty – Kathryn Bigelow (2012)
First off, I honest to god did not realize the date when I watched this lol. Second, I don’t even know how to assess this as a “film.” Like if this were a fictional thriller, pretty good, not great? That all being said, this film is just way more fascinating as a historical document. The main thing that just floors me is how (needlessly) pro-Bush the film is. I don’t even mean that as a criticism just because I disagree with that narrative. I’m more surprised because usually political movies like this skew the other way, and I would guess that would be the case based on this release in 2012. But this film needles in all these pro-Bush narratives that really don’t have much to do with anything (multiple lines about how good the evidence was for WMDs in Iraq). Not to mention, the complete fabrication that we gathered the main piece of intel on Bin-Laden’s location via torture at Guantanamo. I also just can’t believe how many shots the film takes at Obama. 1. He’s not even in it. 2. His administration basically functions in the film as an obstacle the CIA has to overcome because they’re not “tough enough” on foreign policy. Which is like, not the critique I would have about his foreign policy in the middle-east. Anyways, I think a really fascinating double feature/ essay idea would be comparing this to The Social Network. Both are critically acclaimed movies from about the same time looking at very recent U.S. history. Both also play extremely fast and loose with historical accuracy. Looking 10 years back, it’s fascinating that Fincher at least seemed to anticipate the rotten core of Facebook wheras Bigelow’s narrative in Zero-Dark Thirty is like “We did it, Al Qaeda’s pretty much done now” which, uh, whoops! The last thing I’ll say is that this has to be one of the worst endings in a film I can remember. That the film concludes by having Jessica Chastain confirm that the dead target is Bin-Laden by looking at his bullet riddled face (which then triggers the confirmation to the president) is just amazing.
Grade: C

14th: Spencer – Pablo Larraín (2021)
Man, movies are really hard to make, and I genuinely don’t like ripping on them, especially when they’re made by capable people. I love Timothy Spall and Kristen Stewart. I also did, for the most part, like Larraín’s previous film. That being said, I thought this was pretty awful and would even wager was made with questionable intent. To me, it wreaks of a movie trying to do something edgy in order to feign the appearance of being profound. Whenever I struggle with a film, I try to parse the difference between whether the movie didn’t work for me vs. whether it was actually bad. Admittedly, Spencer is not a film for me. Sure, there are elements of the filmmaking that could appeal to me. One can certainly engage with the sets, costumes, performances (shout out again to my guy Timothy Spall), and cinematography. Fundamentally though, I believe they’re all built around a hollow center and thus cannot sustain the film. However, and I think this is the crux of my suspicion above, I don’t actually think this film is made for anybody. In fact, it seems intentionally designed to provoke without having a meaningful point of view of its own. And so, while that can make the film appear interesting for certain sequences or scenes, by the time Larraín reaches the end and attempts to elicit catharsis or larger meaning from it (something that did admittedly work for me in Jackie), it not only falls flat, but does so in a way that feels offensive to a viewer that earnestly tried to engage with the film.
Grade: D-

16th: Munich – Steven Spielberg (2005)
I hesitate to engage with the politics in this movie as I am woefully ignorant of the complexity involved in both this historical event and Israel’s history as a country in general. That being said, this movie is inherently political so here goes nothing. My general inclination is to compare this to the other historical/political thriller I recently watched, which was Zero Dark Thirty. And while clearing that bar may not be a firm indicator of success, I think it’s important to note that: 1. Munich, as a piece of filmmaking, is just a superior movie. Whether or not you agree with his messaging, Spielberg is far more nuanced and subtle than Bigelow in rendering a historical event as a piece of entertainment. To me, a central issue in Zero Dark Thirty (of which there were many) was that Bigelow’s broad, oversimplified storytelling could not overcome whatever disagreements you may have had with the film’s politics (which, to me, were ill-founded and badly disguised). 2. And again, with the enormous caveat that I know very little about the military operations of the Israeli government, Spielberg’s political messaging is far more nuanced and considered than Bigelow’s. Now, there may be some issues with the general positioning of making this movie and using Israeli assassins as your protagonist/POV characters. But at least the film’s central argument is that their operation was not heroic nor the “right” thing to do.
Grade: B+

17th: It Follows – David Robert Mitchell (2014)
I had been meaning to watch this film forever, only to realize when I fired it up that I was thinking of It Comes at Night. That being said, this is an original horror movie that is not only quite good but, I think, has occasional flashes of greatness. I particularly like the way in which Mitchell builds a stylized kind of alter-world which, frankly, is something that usually does not work for me (see my thoughts on Nicolas Winding Refn). For whatever reason, I buy into it here. And so, while I think there are some things that don’t quite add up in the film, it’s certainly unique and well-made enough to make up for them.
Grade: B+

25th: Benedetta – Paul Verhoeven (2021)
I will now be reading all the literature on / watching all the films by Paul Verhoeven. Made by almost any other director, I would have a lot of questions about this one. But, perhaps deferring to Verhoeven’s status as a filmmaker, perhaps deferring to my own repressed Catholic adolescent maturity, I’ll choose to ignore any doubts about how much I liked this.
Grade: B+

27th: Under the Silver Lake – David Robert Mitchell (2018)
Ah, methinks someone has read some Pynchon! What can I say? I really, really dug this. I’m not sure (yet) if it’s a great film, but Mitchell does a lot I really like (mainly casting Andrew Garfield and soundtracking Monster-era R.E.M. songs as classic hits). Hope it’s not sacrilege to say, but it really reminded me of The Long Goodbye or Inherent Vice without, to me, being derivative of those films. Most obvious mistake was having Sydney Sweeney as only the 20th billed role in the film but what can you do.
Grade: A-

28th: Shutter Island – Martin Scorsese (2010)
I feel like for every bad review I write, I qualify my critique by saying “movies are really hard to make!” Which is a sentiment that I really believe in and think it’s important to remember. Most people, even when a movie doesn’t work, didn’t set out to make it with bad intentions. Shutter Island, I think, is a good example of a movie that I don’t even think is bad, but is proof of how hard it is to get a film to work (even if you’re Martin Scorsese). In all honesty, I think there’s probably a good movie somewhere in here. I like the premise, I like DiCaprio and Ruffalo’s performances, I think some of the flashback sequences, especially at the war camp, are really chilling and quite effective. But, for whatever reason, there’s something that’s just tonally off about the film. It feels like, no matter how skilled Scorsese is as a filmmaker, he just can’t nail down the mood for this film.
Grade: C+

29th: Under the Skin – Jonathan Glazer (2013)
I feel a little negatively biased towards this film just because I have so frequently seen it listed as one of the best films of the decade or even 21st century. To be fair, there is always a bit of a disconnect for me when it comes to films that rely more heavily on visuals and aesthetics over character and narrative. Still, while I think the film does a lot of cool things and has a really intriguing premise, for me it does fall a bit flat in the second half. To be clear, I think it’s a solidly good film. Just not a great one.
Grade: B

6th: The Northman – Robert Eggers (2022)
I can’t believe this movie was so divisive. In all honesty, I don’t get it. Putting aside subject matter, I find Eggers to be such a compelling and capable filmmaker. I found the historical landscape and settings to be completely captivating. It makes me wish that historical epics were made more frequently.
Grade: B+

7th: Who Framed Roger Rabbit  – Robert Zemeckis (1988)
A big blind spot for me. Pretty good film! Makes me want to watch a bunch of “actual” noirs. And also loony toons.
Grade: B

12th: Come and See – Elem Klimov (1985)
I had this movie for two years and was always too afraid to watch it. And to be clear, it is pretty horrifying to watch and think about.  But! It is also maybe the most visually stunning film I have seen in a long, long time. I think what’s particularly amazing about it, is that it’s never too flashy or distracting where it gets in the way of the subject matter. But there are shots and sequences that are out of this world – to the point where I have no idea how Klimov made large parts of this film.
Grade: A

14th: Amarcord – Federico Fellini (1973)
About halfway through, I thought to myself, this might be my favorite Fellini movie. By the end of the film, I think this might be my favorite movie full stop. I loved every single second.
Grade: A

21st: There Will Be Blood – Paul Thomas Anderson (2007)
In general, I think we as a society are a little too hive-minded about art. Meaning, that when you look at lists of the best movies or the best albums, they’re all way too similar. I’d love to live in a world in which, instead of always seeing Citizen Kane or The Godfather listed as the best films ever, there would be dozens of different choices depending on the publication or the perspective of the list-maker. That being said…I have a hard time arguing against the consensus that’s developed around this being the best film of the 21st century. I’m not saying necessarily that is. But, man oh man, is this film masterful. I think you’d be hard pressed to find a film with performances, filmmaking, and a score this compelling. There are some obvious (and I think intentional limitations). This is an extremely masculine movie. The POV is basically limited (like most PTA films) to difficult, genius, man-children. But, judging the film strictly on its own terms and what it sets out to accomplish, I think it’s damn near perfect. Whether that makes it the right choice as the best film of the year/decade/century/whatever, who can say.
Grade: A

25th: Not Fade Away – David Chase (2012)
A really fascinating film. The Sopranos is amazing, among many other qualities, for being so subversive. While nostalgia is baked into the fabric of that show, Chase always used it as a lens to juxtapose with reality, which is always inherently disappointing (e.g., Tony arriving at the end of something). Not Fade Away contrarily not only feels more earnest than The Sopranos but really leans into nostalgia in a more traditional sense. You get the idea that Chase does believe the 60s were a superior time, at least when it comes to rock and roll. And hey, who am I to argue with him? The look and feel of this movie is just exquisite. Ultimately, it’s a good film about a revolutionary time. Which, ironically, is pretty much the opposite of a revolutionary series about an ordinary time.
Grade: B

25th: Synecdoche, New York – Charlie Kaufman (2008)
Man, I am ill-equipped to discuss Charlie Kaufman. In almost all of his movies, I feel my admiration for his unique voice and singular vision eclipses any personal connection I have with the film. Synecdoche, probably because of Philip Seymour Hoffman, is the closest I’ve come to an emotional grasp of Kaufman’s work since Eternal Sunshine. That, in itself, really buoyed the film for me, But to feel more, I think I’d have to dig much deeper, which is not so much an indictment of Kaufman as it is of me and my limited attention span for films that value intellectualism over emotion.
Grade: B-

25th: Contagion – Steven Soderbergh (2011)
Is this my favorite Soderbergh? I think so! Even without the incredible prescience, he has in anticipating our own viral outbreak, this film is a masterclass in storytelling and pacing. Every scene is utterly propulsive, Soderbergh manages to split the narrative across an ensemble of loosely connected characters, and there’s not a weak plotline among the bunch. To me, this is the absolute definition of a rewatchable.
Grade: B+

26th: Ocean’s Eleven – Steven Soderbergh (2001)
A really fun, star-studded, Hollywood blockbuster and for sure the type of film I wish were made more frequently today. That being said, I’ve always felt that this movie never quite equals the sum of its parts. I really admire Soderbergh’s directions and his visual/stylistic nods to old Hollywood. The case is, of course, fantastic. And yet, I’m always left thinking this is just “pretty good.”
Grade: B

26th: The Devil Wears Prada – David Frankel (2006)
A big event movie I had missed and one that seems to have developed a bit of a legacy reputation. Now having seen it, I can confirm that it is a very pleasant movie. That being said, a few notes:
1. It is painful to watch the demarcation of good and bad fashion in 2006, a time who’s “fashion” has aged terribly.
2. A great example of a film full of “fake people” (with the exception of Meryl Streep / Anna Wintour). The main friend group in this film are all recent Northwestern grads where:
– Friend A is a New York City chef
-Friend B is a corporate office guy (okay, that adds up)
-Friend C is a well-known artist/photographer
-Anne Hathaway is a journalism major who ends up as assistant to the assistant at Vogue.
Nonsense!
Grade: B-

27th: Ocean’s Twelve – Steven Soderbergh (2004)
I admire the effort (or lack thereof), but it’s a no from me, dog.
Grade: C+

27th: Meantime – Mike Leigh (1983)
A special film. I think Mike Leigh has made better and more ambitious films, but this, to me, feels like the synthesis of his work. Everything here feels completely organic to the point where, each time that I’ve watched it, I haven’t known what I was watching until the very end. The film really is a masterclass in character building and conveying meaning through emotionality and performance.
Grade: A-

5th: Dekalog: Five – Krzysztof Kieślowski (1988)
Back to the Dekalog after a short break. Out of the films in the series thus far, Five certainly felt the most singular. This was the first one (at least that I can remember) to move between three primary perspectives in its narrative. More than anywhere else though, this film stood out for me visually. As opposed to the muted backdrops in the first four films, this one uses a lot of filters and effects to bring bright, vibrant colors into this world. Some of the shots actually reminded me of Badlands, which is something I would never have guessed from the first four films. Even taking into account these differences (which I think all work), the storytelling in this film remains as strong as in any of the others. The economy with which Kieślowski is presenting these incredibly intricate and nuanced parables is just masterful.
Grade: B+

6th: Dekalog: Six – Krzysztof Kieślowski (1988)
To me, this is the most provocative and best film in the series so far. I love how the film keeps upending any expectations the audience has for these characters or this story. In a series that’s set as a parable of the ten commandments, this film feels the hardest to pin down. At times it feels like it’s playing into some great moral lesson. At others, it seems to parody the very idea of doing something like that. This ambivalence is probably most deeply felt through the two lead performances which are just mesmerizing. It’s one of those cases where every aspect of the film is so finely tuned, the entire film is able to transcend into something greater than even the sum of its parts.
Grade: A

7th: Dekalog: Seven – Krzysztof Kieślowski (1988)
This reminded me of a darker version of Three Colors: White. I love the way Kieślowski weaves these fairy-tale elements into the film. I thought the more rural setting especially played into that.
Grade: B-

10th: RRR – S. S. Rajamouli (2022)
I want to start out by saying that I have not seen much (if any) Indian cinema before. I’m guessing that many of the features that most struck me about this film – the elaborate and colorful sets, the grand overhead shots, the dancing, the music – are traits that can be found in other Indian films as well (which pretty much means that I have more movie catch-up to do than I thought). Even removing those traits, this is still my frontrunner for movie of the year. It is a 3-hour historical-buddy-action-musical-epic in which everything works perfectly. I can’t even imagine the level of difficulty in pulling something like that off. Luckily, I didn’t have to because this movie is absolutely effortless to watch. Honestly, the highest compliment I can give it is that I haven’t been this wowed by action sequences since Lord of the Rings.
Grade: A-

13th: Dekalog VIII – Krzysztof Kieślowski (1988)
In terms of premise, this is probably the most broadly accessible film in the series and yet the least successful in execution. I don’t think it’s bad by any means. I just think the weight of its central conflict is so grand that it overshadows the uneasiness and nuance that defines Kieślowski’s best work. This film feels like it is yearning for resolution at every turn and that’s not something I want from Kieślowski or the series.
Grade: B

19th: Dekalog IX – Krzysztof Kieślowski (1988)
The most melodramatic film of the Dekalog? The stakes especially in this film felt particularly operatic. I suppose it does culminate in a suicide attempt borne out of miscommunication. Even with the change in tone, I thought the film worked at the same level as the rest of the series. I particularly admired the way Kieślowski weaves physical modes of communication (phones, postcards, notes) in a story in which the primary driver of the plot is a decision to leave things unsaid.
Grade: A-

20th: Dekalog X – Krzysztof Kieślowski (1988)
I’ve done it! I have watched the Dekalog. I love the decision by Kieślowski to end on the most comedic installment. Not that there’s a ton of comedic work in his catalog to choose from, but it reminded me of the playfulness in Three Colors: White. In some ways, I think this might be the most beguiling movie for me to assess. For the most part, it’s a pretty straightforward story. I knew how most of the film would play out after the first ten minutes. But even so, it was among my favorites from the entire series. There was something in the tone and the performances that just hooked me.
Grade: A-

23rd: Fellini Satyricon – Federico Fellini (1969)
Well, I love that at one point in history the best director in the world was able to make a grotesque, fever-dream, adaptation of a partially-surviving work of Latin. As for the movie itself…I loved that a little less.
Grade: B-

23rd: Clouds of Sils Maria – Olivier Assayas (2014)
The narrative complexity in Assayas’ work is so impressive. The setting of this film requires an invented play and bodies of work for two invented movie stars. The fact that he then uses this backdrop as a meta-commentary for the relationships between the three main characters is something else. The most impressive feat of the film is that it remains entertaining throughout and is never bogged down by its complexity or pretension.
Grade: A-

23rd: The Bob’s Burgers Movie – Loren Bouchard, Bernard Derriman (2022)
Just delightful.
Grade: B

24th: Ali: Fear Eats the Soul – Rainer Werner Fassbinder (1974)
First off, I would just like to acknowledge that while I believe this movie and Fassbinder are operating in good faith in addressing difficult and complicated subject matter, many of the racial elements in this film warrant deeper thought and discussion than I could possibly provide, both in general and especially in a short review. That being said, from a structural and compositional lens, this film is exquisitely made. I’m in awe of how deliberately Fassbinder moves through the story. It’s a script that’s deceptively straightforward, meaning that its directness comes almost as a surprise to the viewer. The two protagonists meet, they fall in love, they get married, there’s a backlash, things fall apart, and they’re reunited again (albeit with greater difficulty). Even better, this form allows for the complexity and nuance in both the subject matter and the characters to rise to the top of the story. It feels like the type of film that, because of its deceptive simplicity, is endlessly engaging.
Grade: A-

27th: Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai – Jim Jarmusch (1999)
I feel like many of the things I just said about Ali: Fear Eats the Soul can be applied to this film. Ghost Dog is another film that excels in its simplicity. I’m in awe of how Jarmusch makes long stretches of this film, without dialogue or much action, become so captivating. An enormous part of that feat obviously goes to Forrest Whitaker. He is mesmerizing in this role. To the point where I can’t imagine anybody else in it.
Grade: A-

28th: Phantom Thread  – Paul Thomas Anderson (2017)
Rewatch confirms this is my favorite PTA film (at least for now!). In all seriousness, nobody is better at centering their films on intense/mercurial relationships (at least from the POV of these delicate, man-boy types). To me, this is the purest expression of that idea in PTA’s filmography.
Grade: A

31st: The Story of a Three-Day Pass – Melvin Van Peebles (1968)
One day I too will write, direct, and compose the music for my debut film based on my own novel that I wrote in French. In all seriousness, as impressive as everything that Van Peebles did to get his film made, the biggest accomplishment is that it stands on its own merit. What I admired most is that Van Peebles takes a relatively straightforward story and uses the form to insert humor, levity, and the characters’ own subjectivity into the narrative. It’s an extraordinarily rich film without being a bore to watch.
Grade: B+

31st: Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story – Rawson Marshall Thurber (2004)
I thought this was the funniest movie ever made when I was 12 and think it’s still pretty funny at 30
Grade: B+

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+

6th: Richard Linklater: Dream is Destiny – Louis Black, Karen Bernstein (2016)
Overall a solid documentary. I obviously think the world of Linklater and his films. This movie does a pretty good job capturing what makes him and his body of work so special. I do think some of the framing within the documentary is a little misguided. Specifically with how much they focus on awards and box office returns.
Grade: B-

8th: Brigsby Bear – Dave McCary (2017)
I really, really like this movie. It does a remarkable job of balancing comedy within a pretty sweet story. I wish more films struck this tone.
Grade: B+

9th: Shithouse – Cooper Raiff (2020)
This really is one of my favorite movies in a while. Raiff is able to capture something meaningful and true in all of the awkward moments as this relationship is forming. It’s a sneakily ambitious premise. Like, I’m sure everyone would want to make a movie about a night where they fell in love but to actually execute it through all of those little moments is really difficult.
Grade: A-

10th: Tampopo – Juzo Itami (1985)
On the (albeit too rare) occasions that I am asked for a recommendation of where to start with art-house or foreign cinema, Tampopo is always my first answer. But, let me also add that if I were to find myself in a situation in which some alien needed just one example of film excellence across the entire canon, Tampopo might still be my choice. Why? Because watching Juzo Itami’s 1985 “Noodle-Western” is an almost celebratory experience. I can’t think of another film that shows such reverence for cinema, westerns, friendship, sex, and (of course) food while never becoming pretentious or inaccessible.

To that point, Tampopo is also the uncommon film that is as rewarding on an initial viewing as it is on a rewatch. One of the great charms of the film is that it is so unique, there is no way I could possibly spoil a first viewing. Seriously, for those of you who have seen this film, where would you even begin? And yet, miraculously, having seen Tampopo before doesn’t detract from any subsequent viewings but only adds to them. On my latest rewatch, I was particularly struck by how the ramen lessons in the movie apply as much to the viewer as to the main character. By the time we reach the end of the film, without having the ability to even smell or taste the ramen on screen, we can tell whether or not it makes a worthy bowl. It’s an extraordinary feat of filmmaking that one can hardly notice for all the fun Tampopo is having.

That does, however, bring me to the one obvious downside to this film, which is that despite everything else Tampopo can do, it cannot physically put ramen in your stomach. I would offer one solution to this problem: Have your favorite spot ready to go for as soon as the movie is over. Otherwise, whether this is your first viewing or your tenth, the film will leave you with a painful longing for an honest bowl of noodles.
Grade: A
*Written for Culture Barren

13th: Cha Cha Real Smooth – Cooper Raiff (2022)
Shithouse is my favorite debut in quite a while. Raiff more than delivers on that promise here. What I’m most impressed by is how deftly this film navigates a hyper-specific tone. It manages to be earnest, awkward, and authentic all without becoming saccharine or boring. In the Richard Linklater documentary, there’s a hilarious point made by Ethan Hawke about how all of Linklater’s films are centered on pretty basic things that we’ve all thought of as ideas but are impossible to actually pull off as a movie. I feel the same way about Cha Cha Real Smooth.
Grade: A-

14th: A Scanner Darkly – Richard Linklater (2006)
This is an interesting film in Linklater’s career. It comes right in the middle of his worst stretch of movies (between Bad News Bears and Fast Food Nation) and doesn’t especially fit with the themes and ideas he’s most well-known for exploring. I actually think it’s a pretty well-made movie. Still, I can’t say that I especially connect with it. Maybe that’s just the subject matter?
Grade: B-