Wednesday, January 10, 2024

The top 10 best movies of 2023

It's that time of year again. At the beginning of 2023, I would have given my pick for #1 a 0.05% chance of even making my top 10 list, let alone placing #1. That is still the most shocking thing by far about this year's top 10 list more than any other year. I had made a prediction of Past Lives topping my list when I had first read glowing reviews from people who saw it at Sundance. It's close, but not quite there. Without further ado...

Honorable mentions:
Air, Dream Scenario, Dungeons and Dragons, Super Mario Bros, Saltburn, Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant, Bystanders, Oppenheimer, The Subtle art of not giving a fuck, A Man called Otto, Theater Camp, The Iron Claw


10. Cocaine Bear   ****

When it comes to campy as fuck movies with titles that describe the whole plot (ie: Snakes on a Plane, Sharknado), Cocaine Bear is like...The Godfather of campy as fuck, entire plot described in its title movie subgenre. It is exactly what it needs to be, it doesn't take itself seriously, the actors are much better than a movie called Cocaine Bear really needs, but fuck it they're great at their flabbergastation at at the absurd plot they find themselves in. The intentionally awful CGI bear wreaking havoc on people is absolutely fucking hilarious. This movie was just an absolute blast to see with a packed audience.  "Directed by Elizabeth Banks". I already respected her a lot, but now she's just a total bad ass. 


9. Flora and Son  ****1/2


John Carney is obsessed with the healing nature of music. Every single one of his movies are about human connection through music... and he's even created his own subgenre of the realistic, low key musical. His movies are always heartwarming and charming movies for people who typically roll their eyes at "heartwarming and charming" movies. All his films end with the emotion of wanting to hug people around you...too bad I watched Flora and Son alone. I'm okay with John Carney making this kind of movie for his entire career, I'll be back for them all. This movie was just absolutely fucking delightful, and Eve Hewson puts on the best performance of any John Carney movie. She's a force to be reckon with.


8. Cram  ****1/2


I was sent this screener and asked to write a review for WylieWrites, and I was shocked at how enthralled I was by this movie. This is a 44 minute movie and this is most likely the movie on my list that no one's heard of. I wasn't even sure where to find it, but you can rent it on youtube for $3.99. It's worth it!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rtlvu4Masu4

Instead of the usual haunted house, we get a haunted library, and it's a horror movie about procrastination. What a concept! When you say that everything's been done, no. Not this movie.  I don't remember the last time I saw a horror movie so catered to nerds and academics. Cracking jokes about MLA vs. APA citation? Fuck yeah. 

This is the worst fever dream imaginable to someone who's left his entire essay till the night before. This almost feels like if Lisa Simpson fever dream, if she was trippin' on DMT. And the horror movie filmmaking is effective, and despite a very low budget, you don't feel the low budgetness of it. Director Abie Sidell has made a very creative horror short, and my pick for best horror of 2023. 


7. Anatomy of a Fall    ****1/2

I'm actually shocked that a Palme D'or winner at Cannes has made my list. 9/10 times, Palme D'or winners are boring as fuck, and when I saw this was 2.5 hours, I really didn't feel like watching it. Turns out, I was very wrong. This is the best courtroom drama in a very long time. It's a family drama cleverly disguised as a murder mystery. It's not about whether she killed her husband; it's all about every single aspect of her life examined under a microscope, and all that we learn about their fractured marriage. The big argument wins the, "My butt cheeks were clenched for the entire" scene award. Holy fuck that was tense. 

While I wasn't totally sure how I felt about the ending as the credits rolled, this is a movie that really strengthened postmortem. The more that I paced back and forth thinking about it, the better it got. It will stick with you for a long time.

6. Jules      ****1/2

This is E.T. of the 2020s. An alien's ship crashes into the backyard of Ben Kingsley. He tries to report to the police that an alien landed in his backyard, but of course everyone in his small town thinks he's just an old man who's losing it. Turns out the alien is rather friendly, and unthreatening, so Ben Kingsley lets him stay at his house until he fixes his flying saucer. Turns out, he also likes to eat apples and has a thing about collecting dead cats. 

Jules is the most charming take on alien movies. It's ultimately a friendship movie between three old people who would never associate with each other if they weren't the only three people in town aware of the alien's existence, and the alien himself. It finds just the right level of ridiculousness in its plot, and they have some fun rules when it comes to this particular alien.

Ultimately this is a movie that explores old age and coming to terms with your mortality. As much as I was laughing at the absurdity of the premise, the drama hits really fucking hard and it may have been the biggest tear jerker of the year. This was such a surprise and criminally under-rated.


5. Past Lives  ****1/2

One of the most memorable theatrical experiences of the year was the last 10 minutes of Past Lives. I felt like the whole audience was holding their breath. Absolute silence, as I feel like everyone was just inching closer to the screen and no daydreams, texts, or anything was going to take anybody's attention from the gravity of this moment. What a complicated love triangle. What is she going to do? 
Most Hollywood romances will make it very obvious to the audience who we should be cheering for; not Past Lives. She has something great with her current husband who is so understanding, but she also has great chemistry with her childhood sweetheart from South Korea and there's no doubt they'd be together today if she hadn't moved to America. And when it comes to her choice, I like the fact that it's a feel good ending to some, and a sad ending to others. 

I even recall the moment where I really thought I could keep it together. If I try hard enough, I can usually hold back tears, but then the editor uses one quick flashback shot and in my head, I was thinking, "Well done editor, but fuck you. The floodgate has opened and there's no fucking way I'll be able to hold back tears from this point on." That's not to say that it's a sad ending or a happy one, it's bittersweet. It's complicated. In a genre that's usually obvious in how the audience should feel, this one is simply true to life. 

On another note: Did you know that Celine Song only did 2 re-writes of the script before it went to production? Like, what in the actual fuck?!?! 

3.   
4. The Holdovers ****1/2


I think this comment by Mike Wood on facebook perfectly sums up the movie, so I'm going to copy and paste his comment:

"This was incredible! Never too saccharine, never too grim, never too emotionally-manipulative — everything was “just right”. It deserves to become an eternal holiday classic more than anything I’ve seen since the decade it’s set-in."

This is the Christmas movie for people who hate Christmas movies. I hope this becomes the new Christmas classic that people watch every single Christmas.

I'm going to try to make it a thing. Alexander Payne has an almost perfect resume when it comes to low key dramedies, but this could be his best.

3.   3. Shortcomings ****1/2

Asian representation in Hollywood has come a long way, since Crazy Rich Asians showed that a movie with an all Asian cast can make fuckloads of money. Let's be honest, that movie was kinda lame, superficial and mediocre, but look where we're at now...Everything Everywhere All At Once, Beef, Past Lives, and Shortcomings. I mentioned Crazy Rich Asians, because Shortcomings sure loves taking the piss out of that movie. 

Shortcomings is an Asian mumblecore. I never saw that coming, but I'm so glad it's a thing and I really hope for more! It's Randall Park's directorial debut, and he absolutely knocks it out of the park. I swear, that pun was totally unintentional.  I didn't even notice until I re-read it. Anyways...

The dialogue writing is so fucking funny, so many great one liners, and insults that can only be traded by two best friends who know each other so well and have fun with pushing each other's buttons. Justin H. Min is so good, playing a Japanese film snob (I found him very relatable at times) and a totally insufferable prick. He has a lot of clever dialogue, but sometimes you just want to yell at this fucking guy. He has so much potential if only he can keep his fucking mouth shut! His girlfriend Miko is way too good for him, and he's on the verge of wrecking everything good in his life, but maybe that's what he needs for him to finally understand his own shortcomings? By the end, I kinda grew to love this prick and was truly rooting for him to turn his life around. This is the kind of coming of age story I want to see more from Asian filmmakers, and this is the kind of script I would love to be able to write myself. 


2. Poor Things ****1/2

I love it when movies don't crumble under the weight of their hype. I saw multiple critics praise this as the best movie of the year. If only the movie was a bit shorter, it probably would have been my #1. Still though, watching Poor Things with a big audience truly was an experience. It's wild, weird as fuck, batshit crazy, but should we expect anything less from the director of Dogtooth and The Lobster? At the same time, Yorgos Lanthimos has never made a movie so epic in scale. If you thought Tim Burton was really good at world building, I think Poor Things is on another level. The set designs, the locations, cinematography, the mix of shooting styles...so much fucking imagination and originality. I can't even begin to describe the look, except that you have to see it for yourself. And I didn't think I'd say this either going in, but this is the funniest movie of the year, by a lot, and Emma Stone not only puts on the funniest performance of the year, but I may argue one of the best performances ever. From physical comedy, embodying the movements of the different phases of psychological development from infancy to adulthood to her brutally honest, no bullshit, straight to the point dialogue delivery.

Poor Things as an overall movie still is hard to describe. A borderline NC 17 rated, arthouse Barbie meets Frankenstein? Though instead of terrorizing people like the Frankenstein monster, Bella Baxter starts off with the mind of an infant to a true force of nature. Her inability to function in upper class society makes for some of the best fish out of water comedy, with this woman not yet grasping the concept of social etiquette. She does what the fuck she wants. If a baby is annoying her with crying, she'll go punch that baby in the face. Above being a comedy, or a fucked up visual odyssey, I think it's the best coming of age story. How Bella Baxter begins and the person she is at the end is truly something beautiful. I'll quote Emma Stone herself when she won her Golden Globe, "I think this is a romcom. In the sense of, Bella falls in love with life itself, rather than a person. She accepts the good and the bad in equal measure, and that really made me look at life differently; that all of it counts and all of it is important"


1. John Wick Chapter 4  *****

I I   I still cannot fucking believe that my #1 movie of the year is fucking John Wick Chapter 4. Did that mean 2023 was a weak year for cinema? No. This was a solid year for movies, but John Wick Chapter 4 just happens to be possibly the best action movie ever made, and I think that earns it the #1 spot. I'm still shocked. I thought it was going to be just a mediocre money grab.

By John Wick 3, I was getting a little tired of the series. Part 3 was waaay too fucking long and got tiresome at the end. So when I heard that John Wick Chapter 4 was almost 3 hours, my reaction was...what the fuck?!  It was such a deterrent that I didn't bother watching this at the theatre...that was dumb of me. 

Why didn't I see this visual spectacle on the big screen? Let's not even talk about the action yet. John Wick 4 is one of the most visually beautiful movies ever made. The cinematography, the colors, the visually stunning sets, the fact that the location scout discovered the most randomly jaw dropping locations in the world, the constantly gorgeous shot compositions. At times I didn't know whether I was more enthralled by the violence or the gorgeous light shows that were going on during action scenes. Pause the movie at any point, and that shot is a fucking painting. I hate that cliched phrase, but it's so true with this movie. This has to win for best cinematography and set designs. Don't pull the whole, "We don't recognize action movies" bullshit for best cinematography. 

As for the action scenes, I feel like Chad Stahelski had a mission to make the most epic action scenes of all time. The first three John Wicks are full of awesome action scenes, but part 4 simply out-does them all. Far more epic, visually stunning, and adding Donnie Yen to the mix truly surprised me. I expected a standard Asian martial artist, but he turned out to be maybe the single most bad ass action movie character ever. He's the best fucking character they ever introduced into the John Wick universe. 

Could this movie have been a bit shorter? Perhaps. But at 2 hours 50 mins, I was on board with all of it. The action is completely absurd, but I've never seen it directed with such style, beauty, and chaos. Nothing about this movie was half assed...well okay, perhaps the script. Not gonna lie there. Besides that though, John Wick 4 just looks like such a labor of love. It's almost as if Chad Stahelski is never going to make another movie again and he had to throw absolutely fucking everything on this one last movie. This is simply filmmaking at its absolute best.

Tuesday, January 10, 2023

Top 10 best movies of 2022

2022 is in the bag, and I think it was yet another really great year in movies. Just like the previous 2 years, the blockbusters were fine, but the indy films really fucking delivered. Quite a few of my picks have not made other top 10 lists, so I really hope you can seek out the movies on this list that you haven't heard of. 

Honorable mentions: Eternal Spring, Puss In Boots: The Last Wish, Barbarian, Deadstream, All My Puny Sorrows, The Middle Man, Decision to Leave, Hellbender

10.   Fire of Love ****

Fire of Love is in a class of its own of the best volcano romance documentary I've ever seen. The love story between two volcanologists who's ultimate passion in life is showing up to erupting volcanos to film them, study them, and look totally bad ass by standing dangerously close to the lava, which truly made for quite the butt clenching experience, watching this on the big screen. We also know from the beginning that their lives will be taken by a volcano, but these two wouldn't have it any other way. Dying of natural causes? Fuck that shit. 

Fire of Love was my favorite theatrical experience. I've seen plenty of footage of erupting volcanos, but never in this level of jaw dropping detail. It was the most overwhelming and immersive experience for both visuals and sound and I really hope that one day this movie returns to a theatre, but until then...whoever I know that has a sick ass home theatre with a giant screen and huge speakers...fuckin invite me over and I'll bring this movie, and some weed, and your minds will be blown.        

9.       Vengeance ****

The title makes it sound like another Liam Neeson type revenge action movie, but thankfully the writer/director is BJ Novak, and what an ambitious debut film for him. He truly has a lot to say about the current state of America, in one of the funniest movies of the year, that's also a murder mystery, a sorta revenge-ish movie and a satire that has fun poking fun at both Conservatives and Liberals. There's a fish out of water element of a Liberal podcaster who lives in New York City, trying to fit in with a family in a small Texas town. Yes, the movie has a lot of fun with redneck stereotypes, but we grow to love the characters and the bond that develops between the Liberal and the "crazy Texans", as they truly welcome him in as part of their family.   

I don't know if politics have ever been as divisive as they are now. There's no reason why Liberals and Conservatives shouldn't be able to get along, and nothing good will come out of the hatred of people with opposing political beliefs. 

One last thing I never thought I'd write...Ashton Kutcher deserves a fucking best supporting actor Oscar for the moment he shows up and blows everyone's fucking minds. Who knew that Ashton Kutcher had this in him?! 

8.       Babylon ****

If I can borrow from Adam Does Movies and modify his metaphor a bit, Babylon is the equivalent of Singin' in the Rain, Wolf of Wallstreet, Once Upon a time in Hollywood, and Barbarian having a giant orgy, and giving birth to a crack baby. I mention Barbarian, because Babylon has a roughly 20 minute stretch that was truly scarier and more suspenseful than any horror movie this year. The trailer is very vague about what to expect, but I did not expect the absolute batshit insanity that Babylon was. 

In the first 20 minutes of the movie, we already see an elephant shit on people, golden showers, men snorting cocaine off naked women, and orgies, in an almost X-rated version of the Great Gatsby mansion parties. While this is a love letter to the power of movies, it's also a hate letter to the bullshit of Hollywood. This is no masturbatory movie about the magic of cinema. We see how Hollywood corrupts people, and the rise and fall of actors who reach the top of the mountain, and then their depressing declines. I was not looking forward to a 3 hour movie. I walked into the movie in a tired, pissy mood, but 3 hours later, I walked out energized. I'm going to see this 3 hour epic again in the theatre.  

With Whiplash, La La Land, First man, and now this...every movie by Damien Chazelle truly is an event film to look forward to. 

7.       Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes ****1/2

What a strange, whimsical, unique, and incredibly well shot time travel movie from Japan. What would you turned on the TV and then saw yourself...two minutes in the future? What would you want to find out from your future self, and how might you capitalize on this? This is maybe the most low key time travel movie, taking place in real time, giving off the illusion that the whole movie was captured in one take. Where did the cuts happen? No fucking clue; they sure hid them really well. 

This movie is fucking hilarious. It's so much fun seeing these every day people trying their best to make sense of this time travel plot they've been thrusted into, and how they can best take advantage of this. It starts with one time travel television 2 minutes into the future, but are they playing with fire when they start adding more time travel TV's, pointing at each other, going further into the future? 

The third act is beyond silly and absurd, but the sillier this movie gets, the more fun it is. I think this may be my favorite time travel movie. 

6.     Stutz ****1/2

I think this is one of the most important documentaries out there. Jonah Hill has long suffered from anxiety and depression going from therapist to therapist, but one day he found Phil Stutz who's methods have greatly improved his life. With that in mind, he decided to make a documentary about Stutz and his methods, in hopes that his tools can help people all around the world. I am curious to hear from other psychologists what they think of Stutz's tools. 

It's a fascinating documentary, both in the subject matter and how Jonah Hill puts it all together. If you think you're going to sit through a 90 minute therapy session...Jonah Hill pulls a bit of a Charlie Kaufman, drastically changing the whole experience. At first I thought it was a bit pretentious, but watching it again, no, I think it makes the movie more honest. 

What really moved me is the genuine love and friendship between Jonah Hill and Stutz that goes well beyond a doctor - patient relationship. They're both very willing to reveal their vulnerabilities to the world, and the moments in their lives that forever shaped the people they've become. At times, Jonah Hill almost takes over as the therapist, as Stutz talks candidly about his vulnerabilities. As smart as he is, he's still every bit as flawed and insecure as the people he helps, and there's something humbling about that. Nobody has it all figured out. This is the bromance of the year, and you gotta love a therapist-client relationship, where the therapist can joke about banging the client's mom. 

5.       After Yang ****1/2

I think After Yang is the most human movie ever made about AI, and the most existential AI movie. With 90% of AI movies being about the dangers of robots going rogue and attacking us, here's a movie with quite possibly the most likable AI character ever, being an older brother to an adopted Chinese girl. If AI were given emotions, how would they feel, what vulnerabilities will they have, and how would memories shape and evolve them? 

Sadly Yang breaks down, but in attempting to fix him, they're able to access the memories that he deliberately chose to hold on to, some key interactions he had with every family member and we see what he considered to the be the most important moments in his existence. It's such a beautiful movie, filled with just wonderfully written poetic dialogue and this blurb is doing it zero justice.  

This movie was directed by Kogonada who also directed the criminally under-rated Columbus. He has such a unique filmmaking style with very interestingly framed shots, and his movies are slow paced, but profound and contemplative and I think they're ultimately about the beauty of human connections. I hope he keeps this exact style of filmmaking and I think he'd be an interesting auteur to study in film academia. 

"Did he ever wish he could be human?" 

"That is such a human thing to ask. We always assume other beings want to be human...what's so great about being human?!"

4.      The Fallout ****1/2

There have been quite a few movies about school shootings, but The Fallout is by far the best and takes the best approach. It does not feel exploitative in the slightest. In fact, the school shooting happens 10 minutes in, completely offscreen. We don't need to see it, because the movie's concern is about the trauma and grief of the teenagers that survive a school shooting and how fucking difficult it would be to simply move on with their lives. Everybody copes with the pain differently, but the sad reality is the PTSD that is likely to follow them for the rest of their lives. 

With that said though, it's not all grim, as the movie has its share of fucking hilarious and sweet moments as well. I get why a lot of people would not be in the mood to watch a movie with this subject matter, but for how frequently mass shootings happen and how little is done to fix the problem, I think movies like this are so important.This is the most powerful drama of 2022, and it's a shame that it's getting zero Oscar buzz.

    "Did you have the craziest nightmares last night?"

    "You have to be able to sleep to have nightmares"

3.      The Swearing Jar ****1/2

This is my pick for the best drama of 2022 and the best romantic drama/comedy I've seen in a long time (with such magnetic chemistry between the two leads and fucking witty dialogue writing). It's also in the subgenre of low key realistic musicals (the kind of musical that doesn't have the contrivance of people breaking into musical numbers that doesn't fit in with real life), popularized by the movie ONCE, but I think Swearing Jar is an overall deeper movie. It's unfortunate that The Swearing Jar has an awful trailer that makes it look like a Hallmark romance, but there are key plot elements that the trailer cannot give away.

It's a romance with an unconventional structure of time jumps and a slight puzzle element to it, where the audience needs to put the pieces together of what's going on. By the end credits, I was anxious to watch the movie again with my full knowledge of the entire picture. Despite knowing everything that'll happen 2nd time, it sure as hell didn't stop the water works. Canadian cinema has truly put out some real gems over the past few years. 

2.        Strawberry Mansion *****

I know that calling a movie the trippiest movie of the year, or the most 420 friendly, may not be the most intellectual reason to have it in my top 5, but I just loved Strawberry Mansion.  Surreal fever dream movies can sometimes decline in quality as you sober up, but not with this one.  I got so lost into the dream world of Strawberry Mansion that I never wanted to leave.  This is a delightfully trippy movie, and I don’t remember the last time I used that phrase.  

Utterly mesmerizing, stunningly beautiful to look at, insane, whimsical and, when it comes to movies that deal with dreams, Strawberry Mansion may be the most imaginative. Dreams are often fucked up, free flowing, non-sensical (though they make sense while dreaming), disjointed, sometimes long passages of life can take place when you've only been asleep for 10 minutes, and Strawberry Mansion just captures this better than any other movie I can think of.  

There’s a little Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (on LSD), a little David Lynch and a little Black Mirror. But, at the centre of this crazy mindtrip is an unusual, but beautiful romance.

1.        Everything Everywhere All at once *****

What’s left to say that hasn’t already been said about this movie;  a movie that is so unusual, so unlike anything else that’s come along in the last…well, forever.  Calling the writers/directors (The Daniels) outside-the-box thinkers is the ultimate understatement.  They are trillions of lightyears outside the figurative box…in another dimension…on DMT.  While most Hollywood movies play it safe, The Daniels tossed the rulebook in the garbage;  absolutely anything goes and, boy, do they take huge risks.  They’ve pulled off a movie that’s wildly entertaining, absolutely bonkers, trippy, absurdly silly, raunchy and, on the same token, mind-blowing, profound, contemplative, philosophical and tear-jerking. Everything Everywhere All At once truly is the most fitting title the movie can have. It kind of is about everything and it has almost every genre (I just wish they could have had a little bit of horror in it. That's my one nitpick). 

I've watched many video essays about this movie, and it's nice how everyone kind of takes something different out of the movie. I narrowed my praise to the originality, insanity and audacity of the movie, and just how fucking entertaining, and fucking hilarious it is. I've barely touched on the themes and there's a fuckload of them. I've watched video essays and it's great that everyone kind of took something different out of the movie. There's so fucking much to unpack, and I'm happy to see many different interpretations of what the movie meant to people.

I've seen this movie 3 times and each viewing has felt a little different. But still, one thing that doesn't change is just how wildly entertaining it is, and the family drama has never failed to hit me hard. Michelle Yeoh is great, but I think Stephanie Hsu is the actress who truly seals the deal here. This won't only be on my best movies of the decade list, but it's on my greatest of all time list too.

Other awards:

Best Horror: Barbarian
Runner up: Deadstream

Best Villain: The bounty hunter wolf from Puss in Boots: The Last Wish

Best Voice actor: Kevin McCann - Moral Conscience CricketPuss in Boots: The Last Wish

Best opening Credits: After Yang 

Trippiest movie: Strawberry Mansion
Runner up: Fire of Love

Best bromance: Stutz

Best Chemistry: Adelaide Clemens and Patrick J Adams - The Swearing Jar

Best Score: Babylon
No runner ups, no other score came close to this one

Best family movie (literally): Hellbender (Directed and written by a team of a husband, wife and daughter, and starring the wife and daughter, while the husband and older daughter play smaller roles in the movie)

Funniest performance: Joseph Winter in Deadstream
Runner up: Justin Long in Barbarian

Best animated movie: Puss in Boots: The Last Wish

Best villian: The bounty hunter wolf in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish

Best Screenplay: Everything Everywhere All At Once
No runner ups. This is a landslide win. I can't even fathom what the script of this movie looks like. 

Best Original Songs - The Swearing Jar (I want mp3s of all the songs)

Best Dramatic Performance: Everyone is high on Michelle Yeoh in Everything Everywhere, but I'm going with Stephanie Hsu. I was very surprised by her performance. 

Wednesday, January 12, 2022

Top 10 best movies of 2021

When it comes to raw, hard hitting, devastating dramas, 2021 may have been the best year for movies in a long long time. My top 3 are all dramas, easily earning a 5 star rating from me.  There've been previous years I hadn't seen a single 5 star movie, therefore I can't complain when this year gives me three. My top three movies may not be easy to sit through, but I really think that by the end...after all the tears are shed, you'll be glad you sat through it. They all tell beautiful stories about fighting through the worst pain that life could possibly throw at you, and the friendships and human connections that keep us going. 

On the other hand, 2021 was not the greatest year when it comes to blockbusters and escapist entertainment in general. I made many trips to the theatre and found myself in those cool Dbox seats for a lot of them...sadly, none of those movies made my list. Enough of my pointless talk, let's get to the list.

Honorable mentions: 

In the Same Breath, Titane, The Harder They Fall, Raya and the Last Dragon, One Night in Miami, Eternals, Sleepless, Dune, The Last Duel


10. Zola ****

It truly is a strange time we're living in when the source material for one of the best movies of the year is not a book, but a stripper's twitter thread. How much is true vs. how much she may have fabricated, I don't know, but it's one of the most intense movies of last year, and what feels like the most authentic movie about the world of sex work. This is the first feature film directed by Janicza Bravo; it's such a stylishly shot and edited movie, and who knows how good she'll get moving forward? If a small part of me felt let down by the ending, it's maybe just because I could have spent 3 hours with these characters.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24KbaKlCDDI

9 TIE: In the Earth **** and Prisoners of the Ghostland ****

I can almost give the same review to both movies as they are both easily the most, "what the fuck did I just watch?" (but not in a bad way at all) movies, but also the trippiest, batshit crazy, visually stunning fever dreams. In both cases, I won't pretend that I understood everything or deciphered all the symbolism and metaphors, but I had so much fun going along with the ride. Both movies are fucking hilarious and boy do both movies get some great sick comedy out of how much our protagonists suffer. Nic Cage's performance stands out the most of the two movies as he gives the exact over the top batshit crazy Nic Cage performance we all love from him, but the entire cast of In the Earth are also fantastic. These two would be a great double bill after you've blazed some really good shit.

Trailers:

In the Earth:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1EeY5lvIcg

Prisoners of the Ghostland:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CeIfnDc0jvA

7. Night Books ****

Just a quick note...the opening 10 minutes of this movie are fucking awful. Stick with it. It gets a whole lot better after. Alright...

Perhaps my love of this movie is a bit of a bias due to being a writer, but a horror movie about writer's block? Fucking love it! In my case, laziness is easily winning the battle over my writer's block...it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world if a witch kidnapped me and said that I better get the fuck back to writing, or she'll kill me. Kristin Ritter is maybe my favorite villain of the year. Hilarious when she shits all over the writing of the protagonist; on the other hand, ominous as fuck when you piss her off.

I saw a few critics compare this to Coraline and I agree. It's a kids horror movie, but I can see it being too intense for kids. I found this more suspenseful than most R rated horror movies this year. Especially those fucking spiders. Jesus. 

Most of all, I think the movie delivers a wonderful message to kids. The horror in this movie isn't just about writer's block, it's...imagine people throw away their true passions in life and who they truly are just for the sake of fitting in and being popular? Imagine the horror of that. 

I think it's a great message for kids...if they're not shitting their pants. 

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQO16k5Vdow

6. I Care A lot ****

Has there been any actress in the history of film who's better at playing a stone cold sociopath than Rosamund Pike? The fact that she makes it look so easy and can seemingly play this role in her sleep makes me think...maybe there's a tad bit of sociopathy in her? Who knows?

Although this movie has no likable protagonist and it was immoral sociopath vs. immoral sociopath, and hell, some people may be cheering for the Russian gangster over her.

I thought this movie was a lot of fun and so much more entertaining than your average big budget blockbuster! Sometimes it's more fun to have a morally deplorable protagonist. It makes for a great dark comedy. Most people will say Gone Girl is Rosamund Pike's best work, but I think she's better here.

5. The Climb ****1/2

What a unique comedy this is. It's kind of like an arthouse version of Step Brothers (sometimes as silly, but much funnier), with the filmmaking aesthetic of Children of Men or 1917, with the script formula of Boyhood. The opening scene of the movie may be one of the most impressive one takes I've ever seen.

It's a rare laugh your ass off while marveling at the absolutely stunning one takes of the movie (every scene is a one take). If there's something that maybe hindered this movie's chance of making it higher in my list, it did kind of lack an emotional connection to the main characters. 

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mr4MKhV5QVw

4. Riders of Justice ****1/2

After Denmark had won an Oscar for ANOTHER ROUND, they just may win another one with this movie. Simply put, it's the best revenge movie ever made.
The trailer makes it look like a standard revenge action movie, but it's far smarter and far more ambitious than any every other movie in this subgenre. While it has its super violent action scenes, it's also a drama about grief, a buddy comedy with a fucked up sense of humor, a philosophical dive into randomness, coincidence, the butterfly effect, and of course the act of revenge itself.

The friendships in the movie are beautiful and everyone is so flawed and scarred. The screenplay is so hard to predict and and oh the irony. Revenge action movies are fun, but this is the kind of movie that the genre has needed for a long time. This is like TAKEN with a PHD.

3. Mass *****

Talk about a drama that will stay with you well after its runtime. Just to set up the premise, here's a one location movie that very well could have been a stage play. It's a meeting of four people; the parents of a kid who was tragically killed in a school shooting meet with the parents of the school shooter. 

I love the awkward beginning; the church workers trying to figure out a good place to put the table and tissue box. "Do have enough food for them?" "Trust me, they're not going to touch the food." . Hell, even the small talk between the parents is awkward as fuck as the audience knows that once all that shit is out of the way, it's going to get intense as fuck, and it truly does. 

It's truly captivating once it gets going and it never lets go. I found myself hanging on every word, and felt the complex mix of emotions from both parents, experiencing a different kind of pain, and resentment. It's raw, uncompromising, poignant, but by the end, cathartic. The solution to it all is kind of beautiful, and as tough as it may be sit through, I almost felt a sense of relief that they all felt at the end.

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oU56Ns1nXsE 

2. Language Lessons *****

This is definitely 2021's biggest tear jerker. I did not expect the movie to hit me as early as it did, and once it does, it doesn't let go. I had to pause this movie on multiple occasions, take a short break then get back to it. With that said though, I think it's such a fitting movie for the pandemic. The world has done an awful lot of grieving over this fucked up time we live in, but what's the best way to get through grief? Friendships and human connection, and that's what this movie is all about.

I wasn't all that excited to get into a movie that's about a long distance friendship that's almost entirely video chats, but they are so creative with how they pull it off. I hope I don't make this sound like it's a misery porn movie. There's a lot of good comedy, and the chemistry is so good between these two unlikely friends who maybe never would have become friends if the tragedy had never hit. I think it's ultimately how you feel at the end, and I think I watched one of the most beautiful friendships in the history of cinema unfold. 

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWga6ES5znU

1. Our Friend *****

Just like the #2 movie, here's another beautiful movie about friendship and human connection to get through the worst shit that life can throw your away. When I saw this in February, I kind of knew it would be my #1 pick at the end of the year. I later on went to read the Esquire article that the movie was based on and pleasantly surprised to see how little bullshit the movie made up.

This is the best drama ever made about cancer. While it depicts the details we've seen a lot, such as a mother/wife coming to terms with her death, trying to find a delicate way to break the news to her kids, the suffering and dissolution of her being, the husband/father who's in over his head, trying his best to be a good husband and dad, but silently drowning in his sorrows...we've seen this before. Ultimately the story is about Dane, the friend who really had no obligation to do what he did. He initially offered to stay for a few weeks to help the family out; the few weeks lasted until the bitter end. If he hadn't stuck around, who knows how much worse things would have been for that family?

There was no casting choice that possibly could have been better than Jason Segel to play Dane. It almost feels like the role was written for him, taking into account his sense of humor, charm and likability. I think it's easily the best performance of the year. Casey Affleck and Dakota Johnson are also great (it almost feels like Affleck can play this kind of dramatic role in his sleep), but this movie belongs to Segel. Despite all the tears you're likely to shed, it's still very entertaining and funny throughout.

I'm tired of this outdated way of evaluating people's worth in society, which is looking solely at people's jobs and how much money they make. In this aspect, Dane can be seen as a loser. He seems to have no direction and works a shitty retail job. On the other hand, when his friends need his help, he is the most selfless person imaginable. I wish this movie can be shown to everyone, because this is what truly makes a great person. If there were more Danes out there, the world would be a much better place. To take a direct quote from the real life Matt Teague's article:

"It was a routine death in every sense. It was ordinary. Common. The only remarkable element was Dane. I had married into this situation, but how had he gotten here? Love is not a big-enough word. He stood and faced the reality of death for my sake. He is my friend."


Some other awards:

Best documentary: In the Same Breath

Best action scene: The bus scene in Shang-Chi

Best performance: Jason Segel (Our Friend)

Best Chemistry: Mark Duplass and Natalie Morales (Language Lessons)

Best Villain: Kristin Ritter as The Witch (Nightbooks)

Best visual effects: Eternals

Best cinematography: Prisoners of the Ghostland

Trippiest movie: Tie: Prisoners of the Ghostland and In the Earth

Best ending: Language Lessons

Sunday, January 10, 2021

The Top 10 best movies of 2020

2020 may have been a shitty year in a myriad number of ways, but when it comes to movies...it was pretty damn good. I've got two 5 star movies in this year's top 10, and there were so many surprising obscure discoveries this year. There's a chance you haven't heard of a lot of movies on my list and that's a good thing. I hope you discover some new shit. 

Best Short film of 2020: 

2020 (a parody of 1917)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skgcruZichc

Definitely the best covid movie there is. It's a bit of a parody of 1917, using the single long take style, but the mission...get toilet paper. Everything that was batshit crazy about 2020 all captured in this comedy adventure in a slim 18 minute runtime, while managing to brilliantly reference 1917. Just like 1917, it's extremely well shot on a tiny budget (though too bad they couldn't do the camera in the water shot, but I imagine they didn't have the budget for that).

This movie should be the calling card of these filmmakers. If they can make THIS with a tiny budget, imagine what they can do with a hundred thousand dollars. A million. I'll be looking out for these guys. For now, they made the best short film I saw in 2020. 

AND NOW...The top 10 best movies of 2020 Extravaganza list! 

Honorable mentions: Banana Split, #Alive, Soul, Freaks, Birds of Prey: The Emancipation of One Harley Quinn, The Social Dilemma, Let Them All Talk, Relic, South Park's Pandemic Special

Thought I'd use the word extravaganza, a nod to the writers group I'm in, we call: The Fuck Robert Mckee Writer's group Extravaganza. Though on a resume, I go with our alternate name: Do the Write Thing. 

10. Big Time Adolescence ****

I went into this movie with zero familiarity with Pete Davidson and was pleasantly surprised to say...when it comes to crass, raunchy comedy, played way over the top, Pete Davidson has fucking nailed it. I'd be happy to see him play this character in every movie he's in, the way that Danny McBride kinda plays the same character in everything, but fuck it, he's great at it. 

And for those of you that have seen KING OF STATEN ISLAND and not Big Time Adolescence, get this movie immediately. I was so excited for a Judd Apatow - Pete Davidson collaboration, and his comedy just felt...neutered in comparison to Big Time Adolescence. 

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3PcDo4YcnY&t

9. Kajillionaire ****

I agree with the person who said that KAJILLIONAIRE is like America's answer to PARASITE and SHOPLIFTERS. Though if I had to pick a favorite of those 3, my pick goes to Kajillionaire. It's Miranda July, so it's definitely odd, awkward as fuck, has a quirky sense of humor that doesn't always work and has some very uncomfortable moments. At times I was on board, and at times, I wasn't sure, but it was always interesting.
But...I thought back to Robert Mckee's secret advice he gave Charlie Kaufman in ADAPTATION, "I'll tell you a secret. The last act makes a film. Wow them in the end, and you got a hit. You can have flaws, problems, but wow them in the end, and you've got a hit."

That's the ending of Kajillionaire. When people ask what are the best feel good endings of all time, Kajillionaire just might be in that conversation, and the movie builds up to its ending so well. Kajillionaire lingered in my mind for a long time after I watched it, and the more I think about the movie, the more things I appreciate. 

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-19tBHrZwOM&t

8. Palm Springs ****

It's another movie that follows the groundhog day formula, and you know what?  It's one of the best attempts at it (Edge of Tomorrow still reigns supreme). It's a romcom mish mashed with a science fiction, with a few very creative tweaks, making it a bit of a jigsaw puzzle to solve. If someone was like, "You wanna watch that Andy Samberg movie?", I'll probably react with a, "Uhh...what else do you have?" But he is shockingly good and so charismatic. Then you have Cristin Milioti, who I've never heard of, but I'll definitely seek out more of her stuff after this. Their chemistry is electric as fuck. 

Romcoms often get a bad rap, but there's so much untapped potential if writers can just think outside the box, mix it with other genres, and find unique ways to have a love spawn out of a crazy necessity and yeah...two strangers who find each other due to being stuck in a time loop is pretty damn creative, and it's easily the best romcom of the year.

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpBLtXduh_k

7. Love and Monsters ****

This movie gets my FUCK COVID FOR DEPRIVING US OF SEEING THIS MOVIE IN IMAX award. Come on Cinesphere! Once we're all vax'd by Moderna or those Viagra guys, bring this movie to the Cinesphere!

What a fun concept for a post-apocalyptical movie and when it comes to giant creature features, this is really fucking creative; a strange radiation that causes animals of all kinds to grow to gigantic sizes. The attack of the giant frog is one of the most fun set pieces of the year.

And the characters...they're really fucking good and same with the relationships between them. There's just something so likable about every friendship that happens out of necessity; survivors that happened to find each other, after all their loved ones were killed. This movie even has a scene where in the midst of all the madness, our protagonist goes into an empty house and encounters a super high tech robot, who's owners are long gone. The AI is happy to encounter a human being. Then they bond and have such a deep connection with each other and it is such a beautiful moment and I appreciate blockbusters that have scenes such as this one. It puts just as much focus on the humanity as it does the cool CGI.

It's my pick for the blockbuster of 2020. Try to watch it on a big screen. My friend watched it on her phone. I gave her shit for that. What the fuck?! 

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-19tBHrZwOM&t

6. Marona's Fantastic Tale ****1/2

I know that many people will pick SOUL as the best animated movie of 2020, but my pick goes to the very abstractly animated, existential dog movie from France. They're not trying to entertain kids; made obvious by starting the movie with a dog getting hit by a car and coming to the realization that he's going to die. His life then flashes before his eyes and we get to see his life story. They tell a grounded, realistic life story about an average dog, his birth and separation from his family, the joy and pain that he faced in life, his existential views on life, happiness, his relationships with humans, and his musings about humanity. Name another dog movie that goes this deep into a dog's psyche. 

"For a dog, happiness is different than it is for humans. We want things to stay exactly the same, where humans always want something new. You have a comfy bed, but humans always want what they don't have. They call it dreaming. I call it not knowing how to be happy." Quite profound.

To top it all off, the animations in this movie are so abstract and always beautiful to look at. In other words, it's the trippiest movie of the year and the best damn dog movie ever made. I think it'll stay that way for the rest of time. Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DweZRx-h588&t

5. My Octopus Teacher ****1/2

What a great accidental discovery. I turn on Netflix, not being sure what to watch. The movie that they had advertised on the main screen was The Octopus Teacher. Without hesitating, I hit play, knowing nothing about the movie. So, I love getting stoned and watching nature documentaries. The Octopus Teacher is the most unique one I've ever seen.

For starters, the octopus is the trippiest, most alien like animal on the planet. It starts off like a pretty standard nature documentary. Besides my going, "Wooaaah" at the crazy ass shape shifting, color changing, adaptive abilities of the octopus, it also has some of the most intense chase scenes of the year, where the octopus is the prey, fleeing, shape shifting and constantly outsmarting a hungry shark.

But, the heart of the story is the friendship that forms between the octopus and the documentary filmmaker. It's the most unusual friendship I've seen in a movie and it sounds silly, but god damn, this movie really tugged at my heart strings.


4. Come to Daddy ****1/2 Why didn't I see this movie at the Toronto After Dark Film Fest? And why wasn't this the closing movie of the festival? This would have been so much fun in a huge crowd, but don't get me wrong...still an awesome movie to watch at home. I say, if you're going to make a horror/comedy, go all the way with it. The more fucked up it is, the darker its sense of humor, the better. This movie goes all the fucking way, with maybe the most absurdly sick sense of humor of any horror movie. "Who was that man?" "His name is Jethro. He's my best friend." "Then why's he stabbing you with poo pens and chaining you up in the basement?" That line will make sense if you've seen it. Another thing I want to get at...Elijah Wood is the most perfect actor for this role, as a protagonist who's found himself in this really strangely horrific situation and has to learn how to go from being a timid boy to a killer.

Here's why Elijah Wood is perfect. You see, he played Frodo in the LOTR trilogy, who's arguably the most useless, absolute pussy of a protagonist maybe in the history of cinema (Sam is the real fucking hero, carrying Frodo's deadweight everywhere), and he never fucking redeems himself ever in the movie. So it's fitting to see Elijah Wood in this movie, where he starts off as a bit of a Frodo, but when that moment where he turns...that may be the best character arc. I think I both laughed and screamed in pain. Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PITkX6Ymqo&t
3. Why Don't you just Die ****1/2
This has been described as a Russian Tarantino which I suppose is quite accurate, except I think it's easily better than any Tarantino movie of the past decade. I can't say I was super excited to watch this, but then I hit play and it opened with quite possibly the best fight scene in the history of cinema. In fact, the fight scene is now on youtube; maybe this will sell you on the movie:


It's darkly funny at times, and a good story that unveils like a puzzle, piecing together everything that happened. Like Tarantino movies, this one jumps back and forth in time and gives every character their own backstory leading into the big climax. It makes no attempts at being overly convoluted which I appreciate. It's simple to follow the chronology of events that lead up to the big climax and there are some very interesting reveals along the way.

I was so absorbed in the movie that I almost didn't notice that 95% of the movie is all in one location. Just a friendly reminder that you often don't need a massive budget to make something great. Sometimes you just need creativity, outside the box thinking and fresh blood behind the camera. Why Don't you Just Die just may be the most aesthetically pleasing movie of the year, with such a unique, vibrant, energetic style of directing (I know it'll never happen, but if it were up to me, this would win the oscar for best cinematography). I think this movie may be more sadistically violent than what we've seen from Tarantino.

2. Spontaneous *****

2020 what a fucking year. SPONTANEOUS, a movie about a curse/virus in a highschool that randomly causes people's bodies to explode (or pop like a zit as the main character describes), is absolutely the perfect metaphor for the pandemic. I should preface this by saying that Spontaneous was shot before Covid, but it's hard not to think of Covid while watching this.

If I was given a premise like this, I would have written a very campy, gory, horror comedy catered to a midnight madness audience. Kudos to the filmmakers for thinking way more outside the box. Spontaneous really pulls off quite the balancing act of genres and tone. It's a bloody horror, a dark comedy, a romance with phenomenal chemistry between Katherine Langford and Charlie Plummer, and shockingly it manages to be the most tear jerking drama and coming of age story. To steal a quote from Addison Wylie's facebook, "it sports a really considerate alleGORY (eh?) about how teenagers try to comprehend sudden confusion and fear around inexplicable devastations and tragedies.

alleGORY. Sometimes the most obvious puns are the ones that escape us. It really is an accomplishment that Spontaneous just combines so many genres and yet the movie never suffers from tone whiplash. I can't think of a single drama this year that emotionally gutted me like Spontaneous...and it's a movie about exploding bodies. If I could pick only one movie to represent the year that was 2020, Spontaneous is it.

Trailer:

1. The Wave ***** When I saw this movie in January, there was no doubt in my mind it would be #1, and here we are today. I have seen The Wave 3 times this year, and I get a slightly different experience each time. So yeah, I picked a really trippy movie as my #1, and I suppose it seems typical of me, since I gave my #1 spot to Into the Spider-verse in 2018 and Doctor Strange in 2016. Well shit. Now I see a 2 year pattern of trippy movies topping my list. Well in that case, I better save some shrooms for whatever is my #1 pick for 2022. Moving on, look I didn't just pick it for being trippy as fuck. This is probably the funniest movie of the year, and it's not your typical drug humor. For the most part, saying that "tripping is fun" is an understatement. Probably 95% of my trips have been splendid, marvelously good times. But every once in a while you get that one bad trip, perhaps from the edible that had way too much weed and a bad trip is truly one of life's shittiest experiences. #firstworldproblems. Ask me to re-live my worst hangover vs. worst trip, I'll take my hangover any day. So with that said, I don't think any movie made me feel a protagonist's pain like this one as he trips on some unknown fictional hallucigenic...to which, great, they can be creative, make up their own hallucinations and their own rules, and maybe even throw time travel manipulation in there too. Yeah, our protagonist is a soulless prick for getting rich via finding loopholes to deny people their life insurance coverage, but that's part of the journey. He goes through a spiritual journey, like Ebenezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol...on a shitload of LSD laced with salvia, because why the fuck not? It's a beautiful movie to look at. And as a thriller, it's such a visceral experience. As I mentioned, the movie is so good at making you feel everything the protagonist is feeling, and a huge reason for that is Justin Long's performance. I always thought he was a totally mediocre actor, until I saw this. This is the best performance ever in a drug comedy. Donald Faison...I kept saying to myself, "Is that the guy from Clueless? Where the fuck has he been?" He is fucking great too! The single best scene of the year...the big board room scene. Our protagonist is about to deliver a presentation to the board of directors, that'll make a shitload of money for his insurance firm (but screw over a grieving family), and this is the presentation that'll make or break his career. He thinks his trip is over, but holy fuck is he dead wrong. I was excited as the scene started, but nothing prepares you for the batshit insanity that ensues. It is one of the greatest scenes in the history of cinema...talk about tripping metaphors. The experience of sitting through this movie is so thrilling, energetic and had me at the edge of my seat more effectively than any thriller this year, with a small pinch of mind fuckery. We've seen many drug movies and stoner comedies, but none of them are like the The Wave. Fuck Tenet. The Wave is the mind bender of the year, and feels like it's 2 hours shorter than Tenet.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zsi2-3lgcds&t

OTHER NOTABLE AWARDS:

Trippiest movie: Marona's Fantastic Tale
(honorable mentions: The Wave, Soul)

Best cinematography: Why Don't You Just Die!

Best scene: The boardroom scene in The Wave

Best Ending: Kajillionaire

Honorable mention: 
Relic (truly the most haunting, fucked up ending images I can ever remember to a horror movie, but kind of beautiful when you think about it)

Best Villain: Jethro in Come to Daddy (gotta give it to the poo pen stabber)

Best Performance: I'll give this one a tie. Justin Long in The Wave, and Katherine Langford in Spontaneous

Best Documentary: My Octopus Teacher

Best Nothing happens, but still a captivating movie: Let Them All Talk

Best Foreign language film: Marona's Fantastic Tale

Sunday, August 30, 2020

Top 10 best movies of the first 2/3s of 2020

 This is definitely the strangest year to be doing this list. Despite the lack of movie theatres, I think 2020 still has delivered a strong list of movies; this year, there's definitely more obscure picks than usual, but by no means is that a complaint. And my pick for #1 just may be one of my favorite movies ever. 

Honorable mentions: 

Lake Michigan Monster, Guns Akimbo, Have a Nice Trip

10. The Half of It **** (Netflix)
While the trailer didn’t excite me all that much, from the first minute of the movie, I was glued to the screen.  It works as a romance, a friendship movie, a coming of age story, and 3 characters you just fall in love with by the end.

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-yhF7IScUE

9. Birds of Preyand the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn ****

It’s too bad this performed so poorly at the box office.  While at times the movie’s humor was not quite as clever as the writers would like to think, it’s a lot of fun and the best action movie of 2020 so far.  The action scenes are very stylistically shot and the hand to hand combat is so well choreographed.  It’s a turn your brain off and have fuckloads of fun movie.

8. Banana Split ****
While I seriously doubt that I'm the target market for this, this movie was just too damn charming to resist. It's a female friendship movie disguised as a romcom, and it's just absolutely delightful from beginning to end. This is a case where I feel the actors transcended the humor written into the script. Having two sisters scream, "You suck my dick!" "No, you suck my dick!" repeatedly at each other at the dinner table isn't exactly the most high brow stuff, but the actors made the scene work. 

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNS176v2bsI&t

7. Big Time Adolescence ****

I went into this movie with zero familiarity with Pete Davidson and was pleasantly surprised to say that he was absolutely fucking hilarious and knocked this role out of the park. I think he brings something unique to the raunchy coming of age teen comedy. He goes a little over the top, but for him it works. 
I can see him playing this type of character over and over the way Danny Mcbridge sort of plays the same character every time, but it never feels stale.

Shortly after this movie came Judd Apatow's King of Staten Island. Pete Davidson's performance in comparison was toned down and a subdued Davidson just doesn't work nearly as well. If you watched Staten Island your reaction was, "It was okay", watch Big Time Adolescence. It's fuckloads funnier and I'm disappointed to say that as a huge Apatow fan. 

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3PcDo4YcnY&t

6. Freaks **** (on netflix)
It really is best to go into this movie knowing nothing. Unfortunately the trailer gives way too much away and part of the fun of watching this movie is trying to decipher exactly what kind of movie it is, what genre, what kind of fucked up dystopian setting does the protagonist find herself in and which characters can the protagonist trust? 

It's a jigsaw puzzle of a movie. I had absolutely no clue where the movie was headed, and I loved the way the movie slowly unraveled all the missing information - piece by piece. It started off a bit slow, but by the end, boy did this movie grab me the balls and not let go until the credits rolled.

Trailer:
Nah, the trailer gives too much away. Just watch the movie.

5. Palm Springs ****

We've seen The Groundhog Day premise done a fair amount, but Palm Springs has a fresh spin on it and I think it's one of the best attempts at the formula (only movie I'd rate higher in this is Edge of Tomorrow). Calling it just a romcom would be selling it short, as it's also a bit of a mystery and science fiction with some very interesting twists...but it is easily the best romcom of 2020. Find me a movie couple in recent memory that has chemistry more electric than Andy Samberg and Cristin Milioti. 

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpBLtXduh_k

4. Marona's Fantastic Tale ****
We've seen so many mediocre dog movies from Hollywood that all follow the same formula. Leave it to France to make an abstractly animated existential dog movie; an attempt to realistically depict a dog's thoughts about life, death, their relationships with humans
and the things about us that make them scratch their heads.

"For dog, happiness is different than it is for humans. We want things to stay exactly the same, where humans always want something new. You have a comfy bed, but humans always want what they don't have. They call it dreaming. I call it not knowing how to be happy." Quite profound. To top it all off, the animations of this movie are trippy as fuck! I'd call it the trippiest movie of 2020 if it wasn't for my #1 pick. Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DweZRx-h588&t

3. Come to Daddy ****1/2
Why didn't I see this movie at the Toronto After Dark Film Fest? And why wasn't this the closing movie of the festival? This would have been so much fun in a huge crowd, but don't get me wrong...still an awesome movie to watch at home.

I don't expect to see a better horror movie in 2020, though it's ultimately the movie's comedy that seals the deal for me. I've seen a lot of funny horrors, but none with a sense of humor as utterly absurd as this one (and very much on purpose).

"Who was that man?" "His name is Jetrho. He's my best friend." "Then why's he stabbing you with poo pens and chaining you up in the basement?"

If you've seen the movie, you'll know what I'm getting at. Elijah Wood is fantastic. For those of you that got frustrated with Lord of the Rings and how much of a whiney, useless pussy Frodo was from beginning to end, this movie absolutely makes up for it. Elijah Wood starts off as a pussy, but his character arc is beautifully done and when that key moment happens when he has to adapt and turn ruthless or die, that moment legit had me screaming and laughing in pain. After this fucking pandemic is over, I hope I get another chance to see this in a big crowd. Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PITkX6Ymqo&t

2. Why Don't you just Die ****1/2

This has been described as a Russian Tarantino which I suppose is quite accurate, except I think it's easily better than any Tarantino movie of the past decade. I can't say I was super excited to watch this, but then I hit play and it opened with quite possibly the best fight scene in the history of cinema. I was hooked.

It has such a unique, vibrant, energetic style of directing (it deserves a fucking oscar for cinematography), and it may be more sadistically violent than what we've seen from Tarantino. It's darkly funny at times, and a good story that unveils like a puzzle, piecing together everything that happened. Like Tarantino movies, this one jumps back and forth in time and gives every character their own backstory leading into the big climax. It's simple and effective and the movie does not try to be over convoluted with it. It works.

I was so absorbed that I almost didn't notice that 95% of the movie is all in one location. Yet another example of how low budgets often lead to the best creativity. Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4u4cqCNDw0

1. The Wave *****

When the year is over, I'll say with 99.9% certainty that no movie will top this. I may have even placed this in my top 3 in my best movies of the past decade list had it come out in 2019.

It's easily the best drug trip movie ever made. The trip is so artfully done, trippy as fuck, absolutely fucking hilarious with the comedy coming out so naturally from the clusterfuck of a mess the protagonist finds himself in, and even basks in those little moments of social awkwardness of life.

I've never thought much of Justin Long as an actor, but holy fuck does he knock this role out of the park as a guy in over his head, over the worst drug trip imaginable. Another special mention goes to Donald Faison...I was like...is that the guy from CLUELESS? I've seen nothing of him, but he sure makes a great comeback as a best friend who's loyalty really is something.

Besides being trippy as fuck and hilarious, it's a gripping, tense as fuck thriller. I'm still not sure I 100% comprehend the whole plot as they do introduce a bit of a twilight zone-ish element to it, but I'll be happy to watch it over and over again to fully get it all. Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zsi2-3lgcds&t

Monday, April 6, 2020

Top 10 best movies of 2019

yeah yeah, I'm super late. But, I've done this tradition for a long time, and I ain't about to break tradition. I figure, better late than never. Even if just a few people read this, if I can get even one pair of eyes on some of these movies, I think I'm good.

Unlike my best of the decade list, I'm going to aim to keep these thoughts super short, maybe with the exception of #1. Here we go:

Honorable mentions:
Brightburn, 1917, Parasite, The Two Popes, Alita: Battle Angel, Knives Out, Toy Story 4, Missing Link, Spiderman: Far From Home

 10. Fighting with my Family ****
Never thought I'd see the day a WWE film makes it on my list. Yeah I guess I'm biased being a huge wrestling fan, and yes its structure is cliched, but god damn it, I had a huge smile on my face from beginning to end, and with lots of laughs. Utterly delightful, Paige's family - holy fuck! I'd watch a reality show of them. And easily the funniest work from Vince Vaughan in ages. 

9. Paddleton (on Netflix) ****
This movie demands patience. It is very leisurely paced, but when the credits roll, this movie really sticks with you. It may be depressing as fuck as it's about coming to terms with death, but an absolutely beautiful male friendship at the centre of this, with quite a unique moral conundrum. I picture myself in the shoes of Ray Ramano's character...could I do that for a best friend? 

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rs9YpUktrWw

8. Polar ****
Many people loved John wick 3, but I think Polar takes the cake for the best brutally violent action movie of the year. Fuck the rottentomatoes critics. This movie was so much fucking fun, great action scenes, Mads Mikkelsen needs to be given more opportunities as an action star, and their meta joke referencing John Wick may be the funniest gag of any movie this year. Sequels please!! 

7. Marriage Story ****
Noah Baumbach directed a divorce dark comedy gem in The Squid in the Whale back in 2005, though if something stopped that movie from greatness, it's not a movie I connected with emotionally. Then he made a bunch of movies that never measured up to Squid and the Whale's sorta greatness; same flaw, couldn't connect emotionally, but often, couldn't give two fucks about the characters. Then there's Marriage Story, I think it's his best movie, and finally a Baumbach movie where I could feel the characters' pain even if they live very privileged lives, and maybe even shed a few tears with them. It's Baumbach's most Hollywood movie, and in this case, that's a good thing. 

6. The Irishman ****
I think it's Scorsese's best movie since Goodfellas. Is the 3.5 hour runtime justified? Yeah, kinda. Maybe could have been a tad bit shorter, but I was never bored. In fact, I would argue that Irishman ramps up the tension and suspense to a higher degree than any other Scorsese movie I can think of. While I originally thought Irishman suffered from Return of the King-itis, another review put it in perspective. The long ending is actually a fitting end to all Scorsese gangster movies, and this should be Scorsese's sendoff to gangster movies for good. 

5. Dolemite Is My Name ****1/2
So many people live such different lives, yet 90% of Hollywood biopics feel the need to follow the same formula of alcoholism, depression, strained relationship with parents and drug addiction. Dolemite is such a breath of fresh air. It's the most delightful, feel good, inspirational movie of the year; I love an inspirational story about a struggling comedian who finds his voice and just wants to spread his brand of fucked up humour, and super violent, organ ripping kung fu fighting to the silver screen. Eddie Murphy gives such a high energy, hilarious performance reminding us of just how fucking good he is when he isn't taking shitty PG rated roles. And what a character! 

I also think Da'Vine Joy Randolph deserved an Oscar nomination. While Eddie Murphy is the main star, she gets the single most touching moment of the movie. 

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ws1YIKsuTjQ

4. The Art of Self Defense ****1/2

A great martial arts dark comedy double bill would be The Foot Fist Way followed by The Art of Self Defense. I love how little the trailer gives away. This was a movie where when I started it, I had no clue fucking clue where the movie was going nor did I care to try to predict it. I just went along for the ride. While it's not as laugh out loud funny as Foot Fist Way, its plot and structure is sure as hell far more fucked up and unconventional than Foot Fist Way. 

Self Defense has a pitch black dark sense of humour, and a great satire on toxic masculinity. Jesse Eisenberg was robbed of an Oscar nomination. I think this is his best work, that plays to his super awkward guy schtick better than any of his other roles, and his character transformation is fantastic. 

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Bms6Hba-3A

3. Shadow ****1/2

Zhang Yimou is known for giving film nerds metaphorical orgasms with some of the most beautiful colour palettes in the history of cinema (ie: House of Flying Daggers, Hero). When Shadow hit TIFF, a movie of muted colours, almost black and white I'm like...what the fuck? Why are you muting your greatest strength, motherfucker?! With that said, Shadow still manages to be one of the most stunningly beautifully shot movies of last year, with its Chinese ink-brush painting style. Shadow is full of mystery, with a very intriguing plot, plenty of twists, and while it may take a while to get to the epic battle scenes, when they come...HOLY FUCKING SHIT!! No Hollywood action movie of last year even came close. Flying Daggers is still my favorite of Zhang Yimou, but I think I'll place this 2nd. 

Trailer:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGetemRDuVY

2. The Farewell ****1/2

...Based on a true story actual lie...that's refreshing.
This movie almost takes an opposite approach of Joy Luck Club, a movie that most critics loved, but I think was a completely over-rated emotionally manipulative, schmaltzy as fuck melodrama that had the subtly and tact of a soap opera. The Farewell takes on a very depressing subject matter; a grandmother dying of cancer, but her family in China chooses not to tell her, and make up a fake reason to go to China and see her one more time before she dies. 

You can see where most average filmmakers will turn this into an overly emotional manipulative drama, but credit to the screenwriter and director for taking a surprisingly light hearted, comedic, and uplifting approach to such a grim subject matter, while also exploring culture clashes between the east and the west, and the justification for lying to a cancer patient. I loved spending time with these families, and all their funny little idiosyncrasies and dynamics. They understand that you don't need to force feed tears to the audience. We just need to spend time with these characters and the tears will come naturally. More dramas need to study The Farewell. 

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RofpAjqwMa8


1. The Death of Dick Long *****
When it came to #1, it was really no contest. When I saw this movie, I knew it was going to get my #1 spot. This movie doesn't just win for the twist of the year, it's the twist of the fucking decade.
This is a movie barely anyone has seen, but the #1 movie I'm dying to see people's reactions for. I almost wish there were hidden cams for audience reactions. Nothing will prepare you for a dark comedy like this one.

When you watch the trailer, it looks like a FARGO type movie. A mysterious death, with his friends trying to cover it up. I know this formula, and I thought I knew the kind of crime thriller I was in for, and I'm glad to say I was completely wrong. Dick Long is such a refreshingly original film. For one, I think it may have the best ensemble cast of unknown actors. Every single performance is so fucking good. Its depiction of small town life in Alabama where everyone knows each other feels authentic. I have so much respect for this movie because it's fucking hilarious, yet the movie never once feels like it's trying to be funny. All the comedy feels like completely natural reactions to the shitstorm the characters find themselves in, and the hilarious stupid ways they try to cover up their crimes. But hey, I can laugh at these characters, but if I found myself in a situation where I had to cover up a crime, would I be any smarter? I don't know.

Especially if you're tired of the same old shit and want something different, watch this. It's one I'm so eager to discuss and know how you reacted to it and know just how much your jaw dropped.

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGBe8xsWGlo

My secondary awards:

Trippiest movie & best use of 3-D:
Spider-man: Far From Home

Best Ending:
The Farewell

Honorable mention: Little Women.
To credit Tom Bown for this observation, I love the way that Greta Gerwig pulls a Charlie Kaufman on the book's ending.

Best Ensemble cast:
The Death of Dick Long

Best Twist:
No brainer, Dick Long. I'm genuinely intrigued at how everyone will react to the twist.

Best Horror:
Brightburn

Best actor:
Jesse Eisenberg in Art of Self Defense

Best actress:
I was originally gonna go with Awkwafina in Farewell, or Saoirse Ronan in Little Women, but... no.

Virginia Newcomb - Death of Dick Long.

How do you prepare for a role like that?!