The Official Review Thread of 2023

[anonymous1980]

DUMB MONEY
Cast: Paul Dano, Pete Davidson, Seth Rogen, Vincent D'Onofrio, America Ferrara, Sebastian Stan, Anthony Ramos, Myha'la, Talia Ryder, Shaleine Woodley, Nick Offerman.
Dir: Craig Gillespie

Based on a non-fiction book, this film depicts the GameStop stock short squeezing incident which took Wall Street and various billionaire hedge fund managers by surprise and became a viral phenomenon. I heard about this incident on Twitter like everyone else. I have very limited knowledge about stocks and finance and stuff like that but I understood enough of it that I had to laugh at what happened. I wasn't sure if there was a movie there but lo and behold, they did make a movie. Plus I've already seen the documentary so what does a narrative film have to offer? Quite a bit, as it turns out. This is an enjoyable satirical film with a fun ensemble. Though I don't think it says anything particularly new, it is still interesting story. I saw this on the plane on the way home and thank goodness it wasn't edited.

Oscar Prospects: Extreme longshot for Adapted Screenplay.

Grade: B.

MAESTRO
Cast: Carey Mulligan, Bradley Cooper, Matt Bomer, Maya Hawke, Sarah Silverman.
Dir: Bradley Cooper.

This is the film on the life of composer, musician and conductor Leonard Bernstein focusing both on his professional life and his relationship with his wife, Felicia Montealegre. While one is tempted to simply dismiss this as just another Oscar-bait biopic, there's still lots of admire in this film. Bradley Cooper's second outing as a filmmaker proves that he's got the talent. He infuses more style here than his previous film. Of course Cooper and Carey Mulligan's performances are impeccable (although I can see how some people think they're over-stylized). But even then, I think this film is better in individual scenes rather than as a whole. There are certainly great moments and scenes throughout the film but as working as whole I don't think the film's unique structure works completely. Overall, it's a good but not great film.

Oscar Prospects: I'm sure this will do well across the board.

Grade: B.

[anonymous1980]

GODZILLA MINUS ONE
Cast: Ryunosuke Kamiki, Minami Hamabe, Yuki Yamada, Munetaka Aoki, Hidetaka Yoshioka, Sakura Ando, Kuranosuke Sasak.
Dir: Takashi Yamazaki.

While dealing with PTSD and survivor’s guilt at the end of World War II, a kamikaze pilot meets and befriends a young woman who adopted a baby…then Godzilla shows up. I read that Akira Kurosawa wanted to make a Godzilla movie. I think this is about as close to it as it can get and it is absolutely brilliant. The Godzilla sequences are of course thrilling but the human story (unlike the American equivalent of this thing) is just as if not even more compelling than the action stuff. This is pretty much how you make a quality blockbuster. I found myself tearing up in parts. No joke. By the way, I’m currently writing while I’m in Tokyo. Yes, I saw a Godzilla movie while in Tokyo!

Oscar Prospects: Currently in the running for Best Visual Effects. But this wouldn’t be out of place in Picture, Director and Adapted Screenplay.

Grade: A.

[Sabin]

(EDIT TO INCLUDE IRON CLAW 12.27.23)

Couple reviews from the holidays...

I'm still wrestling with The Iron Claw but I think it falls under "I'd rather have the documentary" category. There's so much in this world that was left a frustrating enigma to me, namely what does wrestling mean: to Holt McCallany's domineering father figure, to the town, and to the world at large. When Lily James first asks Zac Efron out, it's confusing because it seems like he's a celebrity but also this is the first time this has happened to him. I think the take that Sean Durkin is going for is that this family is a cult, like Martha Marcy May Marlene, but I found it to be a one-note take on it and I was perpetually on the outside, like the whole movie was being shown to me. I think it might have been a more effective viewing experience for Lily James to be our protagonist or at least our POV so that we understand the world as well as the joy of brotherhood that is lost. I'm glad I learned about this story but I never felt in it like The Wrestler or The Fighter. It's the first sports movie in a while that made me hate the sport. It's depicted perversely as a ghoulish spectacle but not for a larger cohesive purpose. I think one's mileage may vary. I've met some people who really love it but I thought it needed a more conventional approach to understand what it was going for. I knew it was in trouble at the start of the second act when Jeremy Allen White showed up apparently from a long visit and my first thought was "Oh, he wasn't there all the time?"

The ecstatic response for Godzilla Minus One on social media I think blows some of its pleasures out of proportions. For Godzilla fans (of which I'm not), it returns the franchise to its true roots. No quasi-good guy Godzilla, no bloated running time... Godzilla is just a metaphor for the nuclear age. He will destroy the world. Fuck him, make him die. For everyone else (but also Godzilla fans), it's a surprise that it's such a strong piece of storytelling. They found a good protagonist and central story that everyone involved clearly believes in (slightly to the detriment of the lagging second half) and it's surprisingly politically-minded to the mood of post-war Japan. Although there are visible VFX flaws on-screen from time to time (especially with the fish), it's just as much a masterwork of VFX on a budget as well as staging. Credit to the director on both fronts. Very new to the franchise overall but I thought it was a really nice surprise. Best seen in theaters.

I liked Ferrari more as it went along and reflecting back on it as a whole. I realized about a half hour into it that there wasn't going to be a plot. It's ultimately a movie about Enzo Ferrari's world, which is to say his responsibilities: to his company (in financial ruin), to his still-grieving wife (Penelope Cruz; over their dead son), to his mistress (terribly miscast Shailene Woodley; over their living son), etc. We've seen this film before. The story of a man whose world is out of balance due to myriad compromises. The big race isn't really more than a business tactic. Without giving anything away, he starts the film courting ruin at every turn and that doesn't change, but he changes, and by the end of the film his life is not in balance but it's getting closer. I liked that and I respected that. My problem with it (a few days later) is that a lot of the story elements are things we've seen before. I didn't learn anything about the business of racing besides what I observed. I don't need info spoonfed to me but I felt like there was a lot left on the table. I also think if someone besides Shailene Woodley was cast as Ferrari's mistress I might be brought more into his personal life but every moment with her just felt fake. Cruz is terrific. She really should be more in the Best Supporting Actress conversation. Anyway, I think it's a good film, maybe better than I thought it would be, but there's something lacking to make it great.

I'll also say that the older I get, the more I appreciate being pleasantly surprised by what a movie turns out to be. All I knew about Leo, the Adam Sander lizard movie, was that he was a grumpy old lizard who had spent his life in cage. I didn't know anything beyond that. When I found out it was a musical about how the kids bring him home every weekend and he helps them with their own unique-yet-timeless problems, I was pretty charmed. It's quite overlong at two hours but its a solid babysitter full of Robert Smigel humor.

[dws1982]

All I can think of is a lot of people didn't like Richard Jewell (I think that movie has problems but is also misunderstood) and maybe they got tired of her spending the better part of a decade in increasingly-unwatchable Ryan Murphy shows.

[Bog]

I know a lot of people don't much care for Kathy Bates these days, but I think she's terrific here

I totally agree. Along with the lead actress its Bates who stands out.

Forgive me for being a dunce here ...and for the potential derailment of the review thread...but what happened with her and what did I miss? I rarely think she's ANYTHING but exemplary and/or the best thing about most films/shows she appears ...

[Reza]

I know a lot of people don't much care for Kathy Bates these days, but I think she's terrific here -- offering genuinely affectionate companionship to Margaret, but also brazenly trying to co-opt her. And her transparent moments of martyrdom are hilarious.

I totally agree. Along with the lead actress its Bates who stands out. Certainly not Rachel McAdams - the raves for the latter are a total head scratcher.

[Mister Tee]

The book Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret came after my time -- I was already in college when it was first published, and, though I was certainly familiar with the catchy title, nothing else about it was ever part of my life. I can certainly see how fresh it must have felt in 1970, when much of the subject matter was unexplored territory in YA books. The intervening years have made all that seem mild -- any one episode of Sex Education would detonate the entire universe of the book/now movie. But there's still a sweet sincerity to the material that makes it feel worth our attention, particularly as emblematic of an era gone by.

Abby Ryder Fortson is an excellent choice for the half-title role: she's got a natural quality to her, and she's savvy enough for the audience to accept as our guide to this world...but at the same time awkward/naive enough that her behavior feels genuinely teen-like, not an adult's revisionist view of what she'd like her teenage persona to have been.

Rachel McAdams has a number of nice little moments -- her under-duress explanation of the rift with her parents, her final scene with Margaret where she's trying to have precisely the right reaction to a big moment in her daughter's life -- but I have to confess that, given the swooning many (including critics) have done over her performance, I expected a bit more: a truly big scene in the latter portion of the film. It's nice work, but I don't quite get the extravagance of the praise, and whether she gets a nomination is rather a matter of indifference to me.

Elle Graham does a good job of playing a variation on McAdams' long-ago Mean Girls role -- she doesn't soften the character, but modulates her enough that we see both the insufferable teen Margaret will do well to escape from, and the frightened child that lurks within.

I know a lot of people don't much care for Kathy Bates these days, but I think she's terrific here -- offering genuinely affectionate companionship to Margaret, but also brazenly trying to co-opt her. And her transparent moments of martyrdom are hilarious.

If this were a lesser year, I'd be fine with this making the screenplay list. Given the present competition, I don't think I'd include it...but voters may disagree with me.

[anonymous1980]

CHICKEN RUN: DAWN OF THE NUGGET
Cast: Thandiwe Newton, Zachary Levi, Bella Ramsey, Miranda Richardson, Imelda Staunton, Lynn Ferguson, David Bradley, Jane Horrocks, Romesh Ranganathan, Daniel Mays, Peter Serafinowicz, Nick Mohammed (voices).
Dir: Sam Fell.

The sequel to the 2000 Aardman animated film has Ginger and Rocky raising a daughter and facing an even bigger threat of a larger, more high-tech chicken factory farm from Miss Tweedy. I have to say that while I liked it a lot, the original Chicken Run isn't my favorite Aardman animated film so I wasn't particularly asking for a sequel since where else can you go with that story? Well, the sequel is here and it's not bad. Though it's bigger in scale and has more intricate plotting, it's basically the same story. However, the animation is pretty spectacular and the voice-acting from a fine ensemble cast of actors is so fun that you don't mind for the most part. There are some truly clever jokes, gags and sequences here. But,yes, it is basically more of the same.

Oscar Prospects: The fact that it's Aardman and it's stop-motion could boost its chances but I'm doubting it.

Grade: B-

[anonymous1980]

ASTEROID CITY
Cast: Jason Schwartzman, Scarlet Johansson, Tom Hanks, Bryan Cranston, Steve Carell, Adrien Brody, Jeffrey Wright, Tilda Swinton, Matt Dillon, Hope Davis, Edward Norton, Liev Schreiber, Stephen Park, Rupert Friend, Maya Hawke, Jake Ryan, Hong Chau, Margot Robbie, Tony Revolori, Jeff Goldblum, Willem Dafoe, Grace Edwards, Ethan Josh Lee, Sophia Lillis, Aristou Meehan, Fisher Stevens, Bob Balaban.
Dir: Wes Anderson

Framed like a play being produced, this film tells the story of a widower taking his children to a science contest in the middle of a desert and then seeing a UFO. I personally don't understand people going in a Wes Anderson film and then criticizing it and getting mad at it for being Wes Anderson film. I say let Wes Anderson be. You either love his stuff or you don't. I happen to be one of those people who mostly love his work. I wouldn't rank this one as one of my top-tier favorites but it's still a really funny, superbly crafted and acted (by a huge ensemble cast of well-known actors who do memorable work even in bit parts) piece of work that's just a joy to watch (or torture for Wes Anderson haters) since he really doubles-down on his style here. So, yeah, I loved this. What else can I say?

Oscar Prospects: Deserving of Production Design, Costume Design and Cinematography nominations.

Grade: A-

[Mister Tee]

I remember, when I was watching Spirited Away back in 2002, thinking that Miyazaki was playing at a different level from any of the American animation creators (and, recall: this was a moment when animation had Hollywood so enthusiastic it created a new Oscar category for it). His protagonists were, like in much Hollywood animation, often children, and the milieu dipped into fantasy. But there was never the sense of formula playing out, as was true in even many of the better Hollywood efforts. His work seemed closer to literature or myth; his characters suffered deep emotional hurt, not temporary setbacks ameliorated in time for the finale. And the stories had a real sense of surprise; you could never settle in and decide you knew where he was taking you.

I thought of all this as pure asset, but The Boy and the Heron suggests to me there can be a downside. This film certainly doesn't let one settle in -- it keeps leaping to other dimensions, rarely explaining who these new character are or why they're part of the story; never even really coming together to give one the sense of why this is a story, and why it needed to be told. There are certainly wonderfully imaginative elements and images (I'm with okri on the fire), and I'm not unhappy I saw the film. But I came away with something of the feeling I have from recent Charlie Kaufman efforts: that he was going for something big, but hadn't sufficiently worked it out, and too much of it remained in his head rather than displayed coherently on-screen. The film seems to be some sort of metaphor for Mahito accepting his mother's death (and his father's rather quick replacement of her with her younger sister). But it's pretty vague on a lot of that -- I was constantly playing catch-up, trying to figure out who Natsuko was, how long had the father known her, etc. And what Miyazaki's ultimate feeling is about all this remained too murky for me to perceive. (I'll grant that I was a bit tired while watching the film today, and less patient than I might have been in better circumstances. But I don't generally miss the boat by that much.)

So, while I don't think the film is by any means bad, I have to rate it one of my rare disappointments, this year.

[gunnar]

The Boy and the Heron (2023) - 7/10 - While I liked Miyazaki's latest film, it was also a slight disappointment. I liked it, but not as much as I expected, though perhaps expectations are part of the problem. I thought the pace was too slow and the story seemed to lack a bit of the spark that most Ghibli films have. It does look very nice. I may like it more when I eventually rewatch it. I took my mom to see the subtitled version in the theater and there were four people in the audience, including us. I introduced her to a few Ghibli films earlier in the year, including Kiki's Delivery Service and My Neighbor Totoro. I think she liked this one more than I did.

[Okri]

I don't have a lot to say about The Boy and the Heron. It was beautiful to watch (the fire sequences in particular have an expressiveness I rarely associate with anime). It reminded me of my favourite Miyazaki (Castle in the Sky). The dialogue for anime films is rarely strong but subtitles help mitigate that. Alas, I saw the dubbed version so I had to refrain from laughing at certain points. The score is superb and I really hope Joe Hisaishi gets an Oscar nomination for it.

[anonymous1980]

WONKA
Cast: Timothee Chalamet, Calah Lane, Keegan Michael-Key, Paterson Joseph, Olivia Colman, Hugh Grant, Matt Lucas, Matthew Baynton, Jim Carter, Tom Davis, Rowan Atkinson, Natasha Rothwell, Sally Hawkins.
Dir: Paul King

This prequel to Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory chronicles how Willy Wonka rose to become the famous Candy Man he is known to be. This film caught me by surprise. I did not expect it to like it as much as I did. Granted, I’m not a mad devotee of the Gene Wilder version and I’m a fan of Paul King’s Paddington movies but still, it surprised me. Timothee Chalamet is quite excellent in the title role infusing his role with both heart and quirkiness with good singing and dancing to boot. He is also supported by a strong supporting cast who all seem to be having fun with their roles. I think this could be another family classic in the making.

Oscar Prospects: Production Design, Costume Design, Visual Effects, Makeup and Hairstyling and Original Song are all possible.

Grade: A-

[anonymous1980]

THEATER CAMP
Cast: Ben Platt, Molly Gordon, Noah Galvin, Jimmy Tatro, Ayo Edebiri, Caroline Aaron, Amy Sedaris, Nathan Lee Graham, Patti Harrison, Owen Thiele, Alan Kim.
Dirs: Nick Lieberman, Molly Gordon.

A performing arts camp struggle to keep open after its owner falls into a coma and the management of the camp is entrusted to her non-theater performer son. Done as a sort of mockumentary, this plot point is only used as a framework for a series of funny scenes involving the kids and the counselors doing their thing in the camp. I've never went to a performing arts camp but I do love theater and musicals so I found a lot of the jokes funny. The film perfectly balances poking fun at theater camps and being a love letter towards them. Granted, if a person is not into any of this stuff, you might find this a bit of a chore. But it's overall a solid, well-acted comedy.

Oscar Prospects: Original Song.

Grade: B+

[anonymous1980]

MAY DECEMBER
Cast: Julianne Moore, Natalie Portman, Charles Melton, Cory Michael Smith.
Dir: Todd Haynes.

A married couple who had a notorious tabloid past is forced to confront those issues when an actress who wants to play the woman in a movie wishes to do research on them. Even though I am generally a fan of the works of Todd Haynes, I found myself a little skeptical when I first heard of this film. Now that I’ve seen it, I shouldn’t have doubted. Todd Haynes has crafted an actual modern day Douglas Sirk film which combines melodrama and biting satire to create a film which deftly balances the campier, humorous elements with the darker, more serious issues underneath. The performances help sell this. Julianne Moore is of course always great in Todd Haynes films but I do think Natalie Portman’s performance surprised me most here. I think it’s her best in quite a while. But almost upending them both is Charles Melton whose complex performance grounds the film preventing it from being just a stylistic exercise. An excellent film all around.

Oscar Prospects: I think Melton and the Screenplay are the film’s best chances but it really should get more.

Grade: A-