- A Ghost Story (17, B): Some peaks and valleys, but as a temporal, sonic mood piece, I think it works splendidly, though others love it more. – 10/2/17
- The Little Hours (17, C-): Balances modern & period flourishes well. But craziness never feels that crazy. Loses steam as it goes, if anything. – 10/2/17
- Savage Grace (08, B+): Mannered tale of moneyed perversion only more fraught by keeping us so very off kilter. Incestuous. Cannibalistic. – 10/2/17
- No Country for Old Men (07, B): I like many scenes more than the whole, but still packs a punch. Third time least charming. Indelible sound. 10/3/17
- Spider-Man: Homecoming (17, B): I couldn’t believe it was so fun. And funny! Holland has charm for days. Standalones are really improving. – 10/4/17
- Arrival (16, B): No tweet. Watch it. – 10/5/17
- Girls Trip (17, B): More going on for its characters than a good time, but also the best time you could have. Thank you, ladies. Thank you. – 10/6/17
- Battle Royale (01, B+): Hyperbolic take on insane premise frightening and funny. Keeps hold of its targets without mocking the students. – 10/6/17
- Gaslight (44, B): Frequently commanding, missteps & wasted potential sitting with what’s great. Odd start, uneven middle, strong end. – 10/7/17
- The Ornithologist (17, A-): Thank God it’s on Netflix. I need more than one trip to wrangle its everything. Impossible to look away from. – 10/9/17
- Mars Attacks! (96, B): Sort of defines eccentric, often pretty fun. Wish it didn’t belittle most of the characters it killed. Ack ack. – 10/12/17
- Props to the Lisa Marie Smith sequence, Annette Bening, glittery capes & thongs, Brown & Grier, their kids, “Guess it wasn’t the doves”
- Blade Runner 2049 (17, B): Aesthetically dazzling on all fronts. Actors rarely imaginative. Not sure how worthwhile the story is. – 10/14/17
- The more I think about it, the more 2049 seems like squandered potential by mostly ignoring replicant deviancy and mechanical autonomy.
- Also why Ana de Armas feels like the only worthwhile performance. She blurs those lines, and by actually emoting – emphatically! – onscreen
- Dragon Seed (44, C-): Ghastly casting, lamely executed. Barely hums along on own terms. I regret paying for it. I regret, well. Everything. – 10/16/17
- (Talking to someone about Katharine Hepburn in Dragon Seed) I could not believe how bad the early going was. She barely looked anyone in the eye! I’m just grateful it wasn’t worse.
- Get Out (17, A-): How come Jordan Peele’s amazing direction is barely getting play? Why isn’t this a lock for Picture? How is it so good? – 10/17/17
- The Death of Louis XIV (17, C+): Last third clicked, for some reason. Narcotic. But if this lets you craft each frame as tapestry, so be it. – 10/17/17
- The lighting of faces and wigs and sets and fabrics, the blocking of actors, the texture of everything. So painstakingly styled to the art of its era.
- Atlantis: The Lost Empire (01, C-): No tweet. Not impressed. – 10/18/17
- Faces Places (17, B): Starts out awkward, but grows real flair, deepening relationships between Varda, JR, and their subjects. – 10/19/17
- The Road Movie (17, A-): First third blends absurdism, comedy, horror, spectacle so adroitly. Less funny as it goes, but never loses impact. – 10/19/17
- Human Flow (17, B-): I wish I liked it more, but this feels weirdly distant, and vague around politics & contexts damning the refugees. – 10/20/17
- Lightning Over Braddock: A Rust Bowl Fantasy (89, A-): Protests of dying town, dreams of con & director surprisingly well-suited together. – 10/21/17
- Spettacolo (17, C+): Study of autodramatic Italian village fine by its present, & by unclear future. Oddly skimpy on long, flavored history – 10/21/17
- Quest (17, B): Olshefski indulgent with close-ups and hand shots, but still emerges with a strong, often touching portrait. Great with PJ. – 10/21/17
- Since You Went Away (44, B): Too long, but it got me good. Corny, but still plenty moving, with a surprisingly sad core. Colbert a gem. – 10/21/17
- Mrs. Parkington (44, C-): Garson’s charm can’t carry through two shitty timelines, embarrassing dialogue, vile misogyny. Evaporates on sight. – 10/22/17
- Cameraperson (16, B+): No tweet. See it! – 10/23/17
- None but the Lonely Heart (44, B): Amazing that something where seams show so frequently, from all central parties, resonates so powerfully. – 10/24/17
- So, Barrymore’s gonna win the Smackdown right? I mean, Jones and McMahon are good, Moorehead’s a hoot. But that last scene! My goodness.
- Stagecoach (39, A): Even piecemealed for class, it’s power and velocity isn’t diluted in the slightest – 10/26/17
- To Sleep With Anger (90, B+): Quieter and more quotidian than I expected, but still a potent and compelling experience. Actors a huge plus. – 10/26/17
- Laura (44, A+): Perfect balance of baroque embellishments, unknowable characters, ornate style. A masterpiece, gloriously realized. – 10/28/17
- Days of Glory (44, A-): Surprisingly full probing of guerrilla ethics, tactics, politics. Better made, directed, and acted than I expected. – 10/30/17
- A lot of films look great next to Dragon Seed but this just overwhelms that similar kind of WWII story in so many ways.
- The cast is great, especially the leads, who sell their romantic and political maturation beautifully. Stellar child perf from Dena Penn too
- The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek (44, A-): Amazing that it exists at all, let alone in that year, with that tone. Cast, Sturges on fire. – 10/31/17
- Marjorie Prime (17, B-): Multiply centered structure seems to play with ideas, scenarios without committing. Strong finish. Smith! – 10/31/17
Like this:
Like Loading...
Related
It's Just Like The Movies 