The most scathing sports film out there; certainly the only one bold enough to depict self-sabotaging a potential career in the major leagues in a completely positive light. Has zero interest in being a crowdpleaser, instead opting for utmost truthfulness. Not only has maximum empathy for Miguel (phenomenally acted by Algenis Perez Soto), but also has pure bitterness towards the American capitalistic systems wanting to exploit him and then spit him out. The American Dream is nothing but a fucking…
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Beau Is Afraid 2023
A subtly devastating film about an anxious (and autistic-coded) individual struggling with mommy issues and sexual repression, Ari Aster’s third feature is a delightfully eccentric odyssey that is simultaneously one of the most anxiety-inducing and hysterical films I’ve seen in at least the past several years, taking influence from filmmakers including Charlie Kaufman, David Lynch, Todd Solondz, and even a bit Paul Thomas Anderson. Unsurprisingly so given both the flashes of it in his first two features and…
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Antiviral 2012
Some decent performances (Malcolm McDowell is especially very good) and intriguing ideas at play, but an incoherent mess and so flatly directed. While not without some interesting frames peppered in at times, this has a distractingly televisual aesthetic—I sort of get what they're going for, but I don't think they had the skill to pull it off back then—and even worse is the direction totally lacks urgency. Glad that Brandon Cronenberg would exponentially improve since as I love both Possessor and Infinity Pool, but it's easy to see why this didn't make much noise at the time.
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The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar 2023
In love with the production design and art direction here. One of Wes Anderson's best works, and certainly his most visually inventive work to date. Looking forward to hopefully watching Asteroid City by year's end even more now.
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In the Heights 2021
Remember when movie musicals used to be made by directors who knew how to shoot and stage them? (EDIT: All hail the GOAT Steven Spielberg for showing us there’s still hope for movie musicals; they just need to be directed by real filmmakers like himself more often.)
Looks and feels far too artificial for it to work, as it is so easy to tell what was shot on location and what was shot on soundstage. It doesn’t help that the…
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Irma Vep 1996
A satire on the filmmaking process and how misguided the film industry is, touching upon tentpole films and pointless remakes, female sexualization/male gaze, and the idea that many filmmakers make films out of their own selfish desires instead of making them for people to resonate with, to be challenged, or for artists to truly express themselves.
That said, it never once feels condescending and instead comes purely from a place of love and passion for cinema, and it’s all further elevated by wonderful work from Maggie Cheung (playing herself) and Olivier Assayas’s direction.
A must see for any film lover.
