Malcolm1980's 2019 Review Thread

[malcolm1980]

2/15

One Hour With You (Ernst Lubitsch) ***1/2 - A doctor is happily to his wife but when her flirtatious best friend comes to visit, he must fight hard to resist her advances. This is another one of those Ernst Lubitsch-Maurice Chevalier-Jeannette MacDonald Pre-code musical....and it's delightful. It is very funny (and as you can tell, surprisingly quite racy for its time, it could even be considered racy now) and the song numbers, while understated are also quite lovely. Maurice Chevalier is his usual charming self and you can see why he's been paired with Jeanette MacDonald quite often in this decade. I think it kind of fumbled in the end but still, overall a pretty good film worth watching.

[malcolm1980]

2/16

Alone/Together (Antoinette Jadaone) ***1/2 - An ambitious art student falls in love with a struggling med student and their romance hit a few bumps in the road. If there's anything that makes Filipino moviegoers flock to the cinemas, it's the romantic movies especially those featuring Pinoy love teams (yes, we STILL have those). This time it's Enrique Gil and Liza Soberano (a.k.a. LizQuen, I think...whatever!) But writer-director Antoinette Jadaone has a gift of imbuing these films with a much needed edge and intelligence. Like this one. Granted, in many ways, it's still your typical Filipino romance films but it's not afraid to go into more complex and sadder areas that make people think things through a bit and grounds it with more realism. I also kind of like ending. Seems like the "kilig" Pinoy romance genre is growing up thanks to Jadaone.

The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part (Mike Mitchell) ***1/2 - The continuation of the first LEGO Movie has the continuation of the adventures of Emmett and his friends as they face another threat. The worst thing I can say about this film is that it's not as great or as surprising as the first one (then again, few things are) since the novelty has worn (and the other two LEGO movies in between even lessened the novelty). What it does get right is that it builds and expands on the themes of the first one, making it a worthy enough sequel. There's still a lot of meta and pop culture jokes but they are actually clever and funny and never wears out its welcome while at the same time it crafts a fun narrative that's surprisingly also sweet and a lot of fun. Don't expect it to be good as the original though.

RBG (Betsy West/Julie Cohen) *** - It's one of this year's Oscar nominees for Best Documentary Feature and it's about United States Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and chronicles her life and career. Suffice to say, this is pretty much a straightforward documentary. I would say it's an almost fawning puff piece. Don't get wrong. I am a bleeding heart liberal who agrees with Ms. Ginsburg on basically everything and I think she's awesome. But this documentary could have really used a bit more complexity. Overall, it's still a fairly solid, well-made documentary that did made me appreciate her more.

[malcolm1980]

2/17

Vice (Adam McKay) **1/2 - A biopic of sorts which chronicles the rise of Dick Cheney, the infamous Vice-President who basically pulled the strings on the War in Iraq and other atrocities committed under the Bush administration and its ripple effects still affect us to this day. This is less a movie and more of Adam McKay's woke liberal cinematic essays that he also did with The Big Short. That's not to say it's bad but it's much wildly inconsistent here with its weird, distracting editing and its mish-mash of wanting to be a comedic satire and a straightforward serious biopic. There are good moments. Christian Bale looks so much like Dick Cheney, it's almost uncanny. While I agree with its politics, the film doesn't say anything I don't already know or already on board with. It's fine but it doesn't offer anything insightful like it wants us to believe.

Free Solo (Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi/Jimmy Chinn) ***1/2 - Alex Honnold is a mountain climber who specializes "free solo" mountain climbing, that is climbing without the use of ropes or safety harnesses and this film is about his attempt to free solo the 3,000 foot El Capitan rock formation in Yosemite National Park, something that has never been done before. This is one of those films I wish I saw on the very big screen (IMAX screens, to be exact). Those climbing sequences are spectacular and exciting featuring truly exquisite filmmaking. The film kind of slows down when trying to depict the everyday life of Alex Honnold though. He's a bit of a weirdo but not all that interesting beyond his passion for climbing and free solo climbing. Try to see this in the big screen.

[malcolm1980]

2/18

The Rider (Chloe Zhao) ***1/2 - A young man who has a passion for riding horses and works as a horse trainer and rodeo rider gets a debilitating brain injury. He struggles with the fact that he may never ride again. This film reminds me one of the reasons I love cinema. It allows me to take a glimpse and put myself in the shoes of people who are far different from me and live a far different life. Writer-director Chloe Zhao is a very empathetic filmmaker, based on this one film. It really makes you feel for this young man and get you into this world. The film is almost a biographical since the lead of this film is in the exact same situation as his character with whom he shares his name and he gives a very natural, assured lead performance, amazing from someone who has never acted before. This might make my final Top 10 of 2018.

[malcolm1980]

2/19

Hale County This Morning, This Evening (RaMell Ross) ***1/2 - This is a film which takes a glimpse into the lives of the people who live in Hale County, Alabama. Upon seeing this film, I will have completed seeing all five of the Best Documentary Feature Oscar nominees. I have to say I am a bit surprised this got nominated. Not because it's a bad film, quite the opposite, but it is rather experimental in form and structure. The result is a visually arresting and unique glimpse into the mundane, everyday lives of this section in the world and it is quite beautiful but also surprisingly emotional in parts (which I won't spoil here). This is definitely worth a look for people looking for something more unique in their documentaries.

[malcolm1980]

2/22

Mirai (Mamoru Hosada) ***1/2 - After his parents bring home his new baby sister, a little boy grows jealous of her. This leads to a series of fantasy time-traveling adventures as he comes to terms with his new sibling initiated by the future teenage of his little sister, Mirai. This is the first non-Studio Ghibli anime film to get the Best Animated Feature nomination at the Oscars. It is a beautifully animated and absolutely lovely and sweet little film. I'm an uncle to two kids who are of similar-ish ages (my nephew was also 4 when his sister was born, and baby Mirai looks like my niece!) so I could definitely see the similarities and was witness to similar-ish incidents so I can't help but smile. It's no Miyazaki but it truly is a very good piece of work.

[malcolm1980]

2/23

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (Dean DeBlois) ***- The third film in the How to Train Your Dragon franchise has Hiccup and Toothless facing threats of a ruthless dragon hunter leading to them discovering the Hidden World that's a hidden oasis for dragons. This conclusion of the fantasy adventure series lacks the surprise and novelty of the first one and the surprising depth and complexity of the second one. It's just a plain, rollicking adventure that goes on a little too long. But the film manages to end the trilogy in both a narrative and emotionally satisfying way while the animation and visuals are still good and there still laughs and thrills to be had. Not as good as the first two, but fine overall.

The Favourite (Yorgos Lanthimos) **** - Oh, jeez. I loved this film. There are lines in this film where I thought to myself, "I wish I wrote that line" (people who know me can guess which! haha). It's dark, twisted comedy-drama about Queen Anne of England and the two ladies vying for her attention (and love). This is the latest film from Yorgos Lanthimos and it's probably his most "normal" film. But even then, his trademark demented humor, in-your-face style and fucked-up sensibility are still front and center. The three lead actresses, Olivia Colman, Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz all get plum roles and run away with it with delicious glee. It's wonderfully dark and also kind of sinfully fun. It is truly one of the best films of the year.

At Eternity's Gate (Julian Schnabel) **1/2 - Director Julian Schnabel has always given the tired sub-genre of the biopic a more artsy flair as evidenced by his previous biopics of poet Reinaldo Arenas (Before Night Falls) and Jean-Dominique Bauby (The Diving Bell and The Butterfly). This time, he takes on the life of Vincent van Gogh. This time it's a little less successful. It's a visually interesting film. There are some great moments in it. But it seems kind of, I don't know, tired, perhaps? Since we just had Loving Vincent the previous year and numerous cultural depictions of Van Gogh. Willem Dafoe, despite being too old in real life, does give a great performance and he's the reason to see the film. But overall, you're better off just watching other films on Van Gogh.

[malcolm1980]

2/24

Border (Ali Abbasi) ***1/2 - An unusual looking woman with an unusual ability who works in law enforcement meets a man with similar looks. Things happen. This is about as vague a plot description I could get without spoiling the film because part of what makes this appealing is finding out what deal is with these two characters and what exactly is going on...and it's quite surprising and imaginative, at least for the most part. The performances of the two leads as well as their convincing prosthetic makeup work is quite excellent (you see why it's nominated for an Oscar for the latter). It also contains one of the weirdest sex scenes I've ever seen (you'll kind of understandwhy this didn't make the Foreign-Language Film category). This is the last Oscar-nominated film I watch before the Oscars and it's a pretty good one.

[malcolm1980]

2/25

Ecstasy (Gustav Machaty) *** - A young woman marries an older wealthy man then begins an affair with another man. What better way to decompress from film awards season than with an older film? This film introduced the world to Hedy Lamarr. This is the controversial film that's one of the earliest to feature female nudity and explicit sexuality. It seems fairly tame by today's standards but I can't imagine the scandal this caused at the time. It's primarily known for those things but how is it as a movie? I would say it's pretty good. The plot is kind of a standard adultery drama but the film, beyond the nudity, is surprisingly experimental. It's not a silent film but there's limited dialogue scenes and there are some really cool cinematography and interesting visuals in it. Overall, a fine film.

[malcolm1980]

2/28

You Were Never Really Here (Lynne Ramsay) ***1/2 - A traumatized veteran tracks down missing girls for a living. But then stumbles upon a conspiracy involving a child sex trafficking ring and the governor. This sounds like one of those pulpy, Liam Neeson-kicks-everyone's-ass style revenge thrillers...and in a way, it is kind of and under a lesser filmmaker, there's a form of this where it probably would've been a B-movie Liam Neeson-kicks-everyone's-ass style revenge thriller. But in the hands of director Lynne Ramsay, it becomes a taut, meditative drama about violence and trauma. It also features one Joaquin Phoenix's career-best performances. This is highly recommended.

Sorry to Bother You (Boots Riley) ***1/2 - A young African-American man gets a job as a telemarketer and moves up along the ranks using his "white voice" while a telemarketer strike is going on. It only gets stranger from there. Writer-director Boots Riley's directorial debut is bold, brazen, ambitious and often hilarious film that tackles big ideas on both race relations and capitalism. It has a third act twist that despite me being on-line and in tune with the film world and this film being talked about a lot, managed not to be spoiled for me that simply made my jaw drop. It is ballsy, surprising and more than a little bit ridiculous but I deeply admired his audacity. This feels like an arrival of a new filmmaking voice. It's far from perfect and a bit messy but there's greatness in there. I can't to see where Riley takes us next.