The Illustrious Jerry

No worries!  I was able to erase the subtitles myself:
 

 
Only problem is I can't match the font type for the second film in order to put a 2 underneath the title. Here it is for anyone who thinks they might be able to do a convincing job:
 

 
Thanks again for sharing, WampaRat!

A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001)
 
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you about the world."
 
I've always felt there was an important piece missing from my understanding of Spielberg's filmography. I could never quite figure out what it was, and I certainly didn't expect the answer to come from a film that had already been made. While there remains a handful of holes in my viewing of his work (A.I. being one of them for the longest time), I had long thought it likely that this void might only ever be filled by a new Spielberg project, a coda that had the opportunity to convey something truly and deeply retrospective (The Fablemans perhaps?). Nonetheless, I now realize that this unexplained absence I had once felt was merely an oversight on my part, and has been wholly remedied by what is surely one of the most reflective and rewarding films of Spielberg's career.
 
While many will revisit what may be one of our greatest director's most misunderstood films for its 20th anniversary this year, this was a first time viewing for me. It's hard to articulate the impact inherent in the nature of the material, so I will avoid diving too far into the many philosophical questions the film raises, but the endlessly captivating presentation is perhaps the single finest delivery that one could hope for. Spielberg, Williams, and Kaminski manage to communicate such immensely rich and complicated concepts in perfect synthesis, achieving a pure combination of music and images to create what some have described as "a glimpse into eternity" (such a phrase may read as cheesy hyperbole, but I doubt it has ever been more true).
 
As always, John Williams' contribution is nothing short of masterful. In many ways, A.I. is one of his finest works; a tone poem worthy of the concert hall. Williams' instrumentation is particularly dynamic, with piano, cor anglais, and wordless choir all playing vital roles that stand above comparison in his vast body of work. I'm not skilled enough to wax lyrical about the countless masterstrokes present throughout this score, although I would very much like to be able to. I will say, however, that Abandoned in the Woods is my personal favourite cue, as it splendidly accentuates a heartbreaking scene with equal parts tension and emotion. The way Williams' develops his leitmotifs really lends well to scoring moments such as this, as there is a remarkably effective sincerity to the emphasis his music provides that ultimately marks the argument of manipulation as void. His ability to develop thematic material in this manner has never been more subtle, and yet all of the power that would be expected in a more overt approach is completely retained, if not multiplied, as this fascinating catalogue of motifs weaves together to form one of Williams' greatest tapestries.
 
Janusz Kaminski gets a lot of flack for his work in the early 2000s, with an aesthetic typically defined by bright white lighting and intense bloom. With A.I., however, there's a clear and consistent visual purpose to nearly every scene, solidifying it as a definitive high for Spielberg's longtime cinematographer. DPs and directors can go their whole career without ever coming close to the superb symbolism constantly on display here. For example, the image of David's confused and estranged face framed through the empty eye of his replica (see top left); the same manufactured shell, yet seen through an entirely different set of eyes. Further emphasis on David's multiplicity is made apparent by another striking shot (see top right), with the camera constantly refuting his hopes for human individuality by repeatedly reinforcing that he is still one of many. A dinner scene offers yet another vivid image to dissect (see bottom left): a halo over David echoes the manufacturer's marketing of the boy as "the perfect child", yet it is the same thing that separates him from his adoptive parents in the shot. The depth of these stills alone is unmatched. The lonely and isolated image of David abandoned in the woods (see bottom right) is a lasting one, and it is important to note that it is seen not through the eyes of Monica, but through the soulless reflection of the car's side mirror. There is no other perspective to turn to, as Monica cannot bring herself to look back. 
 
I do not possess the ability to unpack in mere words the philosophical wellspring that is so crucial to this wondrously provocative narrative, and while there are certainly several equally valid interpretations to be compared and analyzed, the film ultimately requires a more independent and personal understanding. Nonetheless, there's no doubt in my mind that the efforts of all involved combine to create a truly astounding and transcendent experience. I look forward to seeing how my relationship with this film changes as I grow older, as I'm certain new nuances will come to the fore with age.
 
"Make a wish."
"It came true already."
 
P.S. I wrote about this film two months ago and for whatever reason I never posted about it here. Better late than never I suppose.

Sure, although @CGCJ was able to provide us with a breakdown of titles over the past week or so (here and here) and the album is out in places where it's already Friday, so we have the confirmed tracklist. I'll still put all that info together here for convenience, but I won't dive any deeper until I can hear the album in full. Anyway, here you go:
 
CHAPTER 5 
The Underworld - Fanfare for winds and strings when the Mandalorian arrives at the space station.
A Cautionary Tale - Mandalore flashback scene and a brief forging sequence with the armorer. 
Faster Than a Fathier - Montage of Mando and Pelli (the mechanic) repairing the Naboo starfighter.
Maiden Voyage - Mando takes the Naboo starfighter for a spin.
 
CHAPTER 6
It's a Family Affair - Mando arrives on the Jedi planet and meets with R2. 
Life Lessons - Luke and Grogu meditate and lift frogs. 
A Gift - Mando sees Grogu from afar and passes on his gift to Ahsoka.
Teacher's Pet - Montage of Grogu and Luke's training exercises.
From the Desert Comes a Stranger - Cobb Vanth and Cad Bane have a standoff.
Two Paths Diverged - Grogu is forced to choose between Mando's gift and a lightsaber.
 
CHAPTER 7
In the Name of Honor - The various members of Boba's gang get into positions. I think it also includes the part where they are eventually ambushed.
Battle for Mos Espa - Mando and Boba start a shootout after being cornered by the Pykes.
A Town Beseiged - The big droid tanks begin to attack our heroes. Pelli rescues Mando in the streets and he is reunited with Grogu.
Final Showdown - Boba's rancor takes out the last big droid. Boba and Cad Bane duel.
Goodnight - Grogu uses the Force to calm the rancor to sleep. 
A Town at Peace - Short epilogue where Boba and Fennec walk through the liberated streets of Mos Espa. Mando and Grogu take off for the next adventure in the Naboo starfighter.
The Reign of Boba Fett - The chamber arrangement of Boba's themes that comes after the post-credits scene.
 
Hopefully this is helpful. Again, I won't be able to talk about the music itself in-depth until I can hear the album. I will post my write-up over the weekend.

My thoughts on the film and score:
 
Spielberg’s usual knack for sentimentality and wide-eyed wonder manifests itself so effortlessly in this tender autobiography about the healing power of art in a broken family. It feels like he’s been making movies for decades with this in the back of his mind, not as some grand end goal per se but as another big piece to fit comfortably into the later chapters of his oeuvre. There has always been a little spot in his filmography left open for this one. Those skeptical about the material will be happy to know that it plays less like the stock coming-of-age-meets-homage-to-cinema vanity project that you’re probably thinking of and more like a warm and fuzzy flicker of home movie memories from the all-time great.
 
The first hour or so is as close as the film gets to saccharine, not so much sweetened as it is a little corny, but never cloying. For anyone allergic to Spielberg in that general mode, this won’t change your attitude. The film fittingly grows up over the runtime, but still skillfully walks the bittersweet line between the dramatic weight and the tongue-in-cheek dorkiness of Spielberg’s youth from the get-go. It’s never self-serious and has a good sense of humour about itself without compromising the emotional resonance of the familial tensions. If anything, the lightness authenticates it. I’m not sure if it was just emphasized by the receptive festival crowd, but this might actually be one of Spielberg’s funniest, filled with lots of naturalistic sibling banter, interjections from old Jewish relatives, and the usual awkward teen moments. The monkey is good too!
 
After the wide-shot flourish of West Side Story, which naturally saw him throw his whole cinematic toolbox up onto the screen, Spielberg’s direction scales back and excels in the light touch of his patented formal economy. He’s still bringing the goods as necessary, from a couple of lasting compositions to one incredibly memorable visual gag, but don’t go in expecting any show-stopping long-takes. Ultimately the heart of the film is the script, co-authored by Tony Kushner but so clearly a personal outlet for Spielberg. Sure, the recreated anecdotes will be familiar to admirers of his work, but there’s a whole groundwork of thematic subtext there to deepen the scenes that would otherwise have us pointing at the screen DiCaprio-style. In fact, it's pretty remarkable how well so much of the stuff I "recognized" translates to the screen without that embarrassing feeling that it’s only there for the sake of it.
 
The performances are really solid in an ensemble sort of way. Obviously Paul Dano and Michelle Williams as the parents goes without saying, but the main guy who plays Spielberg at high school age is actually really good too. I recall some of the early reactions mentioning Licorice Pizza as a reference, which makes some sense considering how certain characters will just wander in, own the movie for a few minutes, and then leave (Judd Hirsch and David Lynch, baby!). Fortunately, that’s as far as the comparison goes though. I didn’t like the rose-coloured glasses the PTA film insisted on wearing but no matter here. 
 
Just as my film brain is always focusing on the camera movement and editing, my film score ears are tuned in to catch and place as much music as possible. Williams’ score is sparse but thoughtfully spotted and quite elegant in a sombre way, as KK has already mentioned. My estimate is probably not much more than a half-hour of original music, if even that much. It’s possible Williams wrote and recorded some other suites or arrangements intended for the album, but otherwise I imagine the OST will be a combination of licensed music and original score. There are a couple period needledrops from the radio, a number of classical piano pieces played by his mother (credits listed Satie’s Gymnopedie, and others by Beethoven, Haydn, and maybe Bach), as well as some diegetic Western music heard on records during the movie screenings (I recognized the villain theme from Bernstein’s The Magnificent Seven and the title melody from Newman’s How The West Was Won, credits also listed something by Victor Young, Max Steiner’s The Searchers, and more Alfred Newman- Captain From Castile may have been it). As far as Williams’ score goes, there’s one main idea for celeste, strings, harp, and what I think was an oboe or clarinet. It appears about three times in the film proper, and is also the basis for the 4 to 5-minute end credits suite, which is a unique recording and the longest piece of music altogether. That one is sure to get a lot of plays. All the players are listed, including a standard string section, french horns, and soloists on piano, celeste, and guitar. Whoever drew the Book Thief comparison was about as close as they could have gotten, even though this is still pretty unique territory from a functional standpoint. Being reminded of Williams' grace and deftness after the sequel trilogy years of wall-to-wall tentpole scoring is of course another testament to his genius. Certainly worth a closer listen.
 
Anyway, it was really cool to attend a TIFF screening for the first time and to have it be the new Spielberg/Williams collaboration of all things. I’ll definitely be seeing this again in November. My favourite part was the post-credits stinger where a silhouetted man clearly wearing a turtleneck appears in a doorway and we get a booming, "Hey Stevie, baby!" accompanied by a bass pizzicato Jaws theme before it cuts to black. Seriously though, count me as a Fabel-fan.

Judging by the interesting body language in this recently leaked image from the recording sessions, I'd say that's a fairly accurate conclusion.
 

Crazy how many people still think detached, performative Hollywood politics are a good litmus test for where modern liberalism is at. Not that detached, performative liberals aren't still a thing, or that Hollywood isn't at the same time capable of making an actual effort in the types of films and filmmakers they give exposure to, particularly those that have been all but non-existent historically. 
 
Point is, reactionaries thrive on taking whatever straw man they can find and running it into the ground so they can return to their comfortable seats. The Oscars tend to be a favourite because they're annual fodder and already pretty dumb to begin with. 
 
Lame as that may be, this thread also charts some insanely warped mental gymnastics, starting at "why does everyone make everything about race and gender, it shouldn't matter" before finally coming around to "my problem is actually just seeing other races and genders existing in media."
 
Also pretty typical that we still managed to get in a few knocks at today's accepted terminology, with most of the ones brought up being all-too-classic bad faith examples from the right-wing wolf-crying handbook. It may interest you to know that in real life, people prefer to be acknowledged the way they do, for one, because it's a way of taking back the decades and decades where they were exclusively referred to by demeaning slurs. I would say that's an extremely reasonable and simple request in response to ages of systemic mistreatment (which I'm sure if you perused today's headlines, you'd find still very much exists on a tragic scale).
 
Anyway, this is one of the basest back-and-forths in my time scrolling this forum, and in combination with some of the most dire, juvenile, bottom-of-the-barrel "differently abled" jokes I've encountered since maybe high school, it's doubly pathetic.

The assertion that people choose en masse to identify however they may because it's morally advantageous to them or because it fulfills some self-righteous image is frankly disgusting. That's a woefully armchair assessment disguised as a genuine attempt to get a finger on the pulse of the here and now. On an individual level, the identity age isn't some malicious smokescreen with an ulterior motive for a disproportionate or overcorrective response, however fragile your definition of that might be. Casting the persecution complex net over the reactions of marginalized communities and their allies to long and very real histories of victimhood is in itself a reinforcement of those injustices. I think you know better.

The assertion that people choose en masse to identify however they may because it's morally advantageous to them or because it fulfills some self-righteous image is frankly disgusting. That's a woefully armchair assessment disguised as a genuine attempt to get a finger on the pulse of the here and now. On an individual level, the identity age isn't some malicious smokescreen with an ulterior motive for a disproportionate or overcorrective response, however fragile your definition of that might be. Casting the persecution complex net over the reactions of marginalized communities and their allies to long and very real histories of victimhood is in itself a reinforcement of those injustices. I think you know better.

Crazy how many people still think detached, performative Hollywood politics are a good litmus test for where modern liberalism is at. Not that detached, performative liberals aren't still a thing, or that Hollywood isn't at the same time capable of making an actual effort in the types of films and filmmakers they give exposure to, particularly those that have been all but non-existent historically. 
 
Point is, reactionaries thrive on taking whatever straw man they can find and running it into the ground so they can return to their comfortable seats. The Oscars tend to be a favourite because they're annual fodder and already pretty dumb to begin with. 
 
Lame as that may be, this thread also charts some insanely warped mental gymnastics, starting at "why does everyone make everything about race and gender, it shouldn't matter" before finally coming around to "my problem is actually just seeing other races and genders existing in media."
 
Also pretty typical that we still managed to get in a few knocks at today's accepted terminology, with most of the ones brought up being all-too-classic bad faith examples from the right-wing wolf-crying handbook. It may interest you to know that in real life, people prefer to be acknowledged the way they do, for one, because it's a way of taking back the decades and decades where they were exclusively referred to by demeaning slurs. I would say that's an extremely reasonable and simple request in response to ages of systemic mistreatment (which I'm sure if you perused today's headlines, you'd find still very much exists on a tragic scale).
 
Anyway, this is one of the basest back-and-forths in my time scrolling this forum, and in combination with some of the most dire, juvenile, bottom-of-the-barrel "differently abled" jokes I've encountered since maybe high school, it's doubly pathetic.

The assertion that people choose en masse to identify however they may because it's morally advantageous to them or because it fulfills some self-righteous image is frankly disgusting. That's a woefully armchair assessment disguised as a genuine attempt to get a finger on the pulse of the here and now. On an individual level, the identity age isn't some malicious smokescreen with an ulterior motive for a disproportionate or overcorrective response, however fragile your definition of that might be. Casting the persecution complex net over the reactions of marginalized communities and their allies to long and very real histories of victimhood is in itself a reinforcement of those injustices. I think you know better.

Crazy how many people still think detached, performative Hollywood politics are a good litmus test for where modern liberalism is at. Not that detached, performative liberals aren't still a thing, or that Hollywood isn't at the same time capable of making an actual effort in the types of films and filmmakers they give exposure to, particularly those that have been all but non-existent historically. 
 
Point is, reactionaries thrive on taking whatever straw man they can find and running it into the ground so they can return to their comfortable seats. The Oscars tend to be a favourite because they're annual fodder and already pretty dumb to begin with. 
 
Lame as that may be, this thread also charts some insanely warped mental gymnastics, starting at "why does everyone make everything about race and gender, it shouldn't matter" before finally coming around to "my problem is actually just seeing other races and genders existing in media."
 
Also pretty typical that we still managed to get in a few knocks at today's accepted terminology, with most of the ones brought up being all-too-classic bad faith examples from the right-wing wolf-crying handbook. It may interest you to know that in real life, people prefer to be acknowledged the way they do, for one, because it's a way of taking back the decades and decades where they were exclusively referred to by demeaning slurs. I would say that's an extremely reasonable and simple request in response to ages of systemic mistreatment (which I'm sure if you perused today's headlines, you'd find still very much exists on a tragic scale).
 
Anyway, this is one of the basest back-and-forths in my time scrolling this forum, and in combination with some of the most dire, juvenile, bottom-of-the-barrel "differently abled" jokes I've encountered since maybe high school, it's doubly pathetic.

Crazy how many people still think detached, performative Hollywood politics are a good litmus test for where modern liberalism is at. Not that detached, performative liberals aren't still a thing, or that Hollywood isn't at the same time capable of making an actual effort in the types of films and filmmakers they give exposure to, particularly those that have been all but non-existent historically. 
 
Point is, reactionaries thrive on taking whatever straw man they can find and running it into the ground so they can return to their comfortable seats. The Oscars tend to be a favourite because they're annual fodder and already pretty dumb to begin with. 
 
Lame as that may be, this thread also charts some insanely warped mental gymnastics, starting at "why does everyone make everything about race and gender, it shouldn't matter" before finally coming around to "my problem is actually just seeing other races and genders existing in media."
 
Also pretty typical that we still managed to get in a few knocks at today's accepted terminology, with most of the ones brought up being all-too-classic bad faith examples from the right-wing wolf-crying handbook. It may interest you to know that in real life, people prefer to be acknowledged the way they do, for one, because it's a way of taking back the decades and decades where they were exclusively referred to by demeaning slurs. I would say that's an extremely reasonable and simple request in response to ages of systemic mistreatment (which I'm sure if you perused today's headlines, you'd find still very much exists on a tragic scale).
 
Anyway, this is one of the basest back-and-forths in my time scrolling this forum, and in combination with some of the most dire, juvenile, bottom-of-the-barrel "differently abled" jokes I've encountered since maybe high school, it's doubly pathetic.

Crazy how many people still think detached, performative Hollywood politics are a good litmus test for where modern liberalism is at. Not that detached, performative liberals aren't still a thing, or that Hollywood isn't at the same time capable of making an actual effort in the types of films and filmmakers they give exposure to, particularly those that have been all but non-existent historically. 
 
Point is, reactionaries thrive on taking whatever straw man they can find and running it into the ground so they can return to their comfortable seats. The Oscars tend to be a favourite because they're annual fodder and already pretty dumb to begin with. 
 
Lame as that may be, this thread also charts some insanely warped mental gymnastics, starting at "why does everyone make everything about race and gender, it shouldn't matter" before finally coming around to "my problem is actually just seeing other races and genders existing in media."
 
Also pretty typical that we still managed to get in a few knocks at today's accepted terminology, with most of the ones brought up being all-too-classic bad faith examples from the right-wing wolf-crying handbook. It may interest you to know that in real life, people prefer to be acknowledged the way they do, for one, because it's a way of taking back the decades and decades where they were exclusively referred to by demeaning slurs. I would say that's an extremely reasonable and simple request in response to ages of systemic mistreatment (which I'm sure if you perused today's headlines, you'd find still very much exists on a tragic scale).
 
Anyway, this is one of the basest back-and-forths in my time scrolling this forum, and in combination with some of the most dire, juvenile, bottom-of-the-barrel "differently abled" jokes I've encountered since maybe high school, it's doubly pathetic.

Crazy how many people still think detached, performative Hollywood politics are a good litmus test for where modern liberalism is at. Not that detached, performative liberals aren't still a thing, or that Hollywood isn't at the same time capable of making an actual effort in the types of films and filmmakers they give exposure to, particularly those that have been all but non-existent historically. 
 
Point is, reactionaries thrive on taking whatever straw man they can find and running it into the ground so they can return to their comfortable seats. The Oscars tend to be a favourite because they're annual fodder and already pretty dumb to begin with. 
 
Lame as that may be, this thread also charts some insanely warped mental gymnastics, starting at "why does everyone make everything about race and gender, it shouldn't matter" before finally coming around to "my problem is actually just seeing other races and genders existing in media."
 
Also pretty typical that we still managed to get in a few knocks at today's accepted terminology, with most of the ones brought up being all-too-classic bad faith examples from the right-wing wolf-crying handbook. It may interest you to know that in real life, people prefer to be acknowledged the way they do, for one, because it's a way of taking back the decades and decades where they were exclusively referred to by demeaning slurs. I would say that's an extremely reasonable and simple request in response to ages of systemic mistreatment (which I'm sure if you perused today's headlines, you'd find still very much exists on a tragic scale).
 
Anyway, this is one of the basest back-and-forths in my time scrolling this forum, and in combination with some of the most dire, juvenile, bottom-of-the-barrel "differently abled" jokes I've encountered since maybe high school, it's doubly pathetic.

Crazy how many people still think detached, performative Hollywood politics are a good litmus test for where modern liberalism is at. Not that detached, performative liberals aren't still a thing, or that Hollywood isn't at the same time capable of making an actual effort in the types of films and filmmakers they give exposure to, particularly those that have been all but non-existent historically. 
 
Point is, reactionaries thrive on taking whatever straw man they can find and running it into the ground so they can return to their comfortable seats. The Oscars tend to be a favourite because they're annual fodder and already pretty dumb to begin with. 
 
Lame as that may be, this thread also charts some insanely warped mental gymnastics, starting at "why does everyone make everything about race and gender, it shouldn't matter" before finally coming around to "my problem is actually just seeing other races and genders existing in media."
 
Also pretty typical that we still managed to get in a few knocks at today's accepted terminology, with most of the ones brought up being all-too-classic bad faith examples from the right-wing wolf-crying handbook. It may interest you to know that in real life, people prefer to be acknowledged the way they do, for one, because it's a way of taking back the decades and decades where they were exclusively referred to by demeaning slurs. I would say that's an extremely reasonable and simple request in response to ages of systemic mistreatment (which I'm sure if you perused today's headlines, you'd find still very much exists on a tragic scale).
 
Anyway, this is one of the basest back-and-forths in my time scrolling this forum, and in combination with some of the most dire, juvenile, bottom-of-the-barrel "differently abled" jokes I've encountered since maybe high school, it's doubly pathetic.

Too vague and easy of a statement to misuse, given the recent crimes that we've just had here with yet more cases of police brutality and targeted mass shootings. One of them happened very close to where we live, so while the Hispanic community here would be too big to target in a similar manner, that obviously is going to make public travel a serious risk if this keeps happening.
 
Of course, you only say this in regards to online discussion, where we're far more likely to discuss these things as if they're nothing. And maybe that's the big divide here: the subject of race should be nothing much to discuss, but because of the continued systemic abuse that occurs, our response to double down in our pride for our own kin eventually ruffles the feathers of those who are lucky enough to remain comfortable all this time.
 
Does it look like I'm happy to be discussing these topics? Absolutely not, but of course that won't matter to the few that have managed to live their lives much more worry free. And in that sense, I envy them, because I too want to live in the incredibly idealized world where these tensions could never apply to me. And yet I can't guarantee that, so it'll just now be a matter of me having to stand my ground while you and others (most likely unintentionally, to remain charitable) mock the suffering of those I admire greatly who still have a long way to just be allowed to simply live.
 
This will absolutely be what gets me warned, but I kind of don't care. I'm just as likely to leave as you are if I don't get banned, so make of that what you will.

It being New Year's Eve, I decided to make a best-films-of-the-year list, except not for the year that's about to end. 2020 is the year from which I've seen the largest number of films by a huge margin (around 175 now, I think). The twenty-four months since its end have given me the chance to watch most of the films of that year that I'm ever likely to, and also to see which of the best ones retain their impact over time and/or hold up on rewatching.
 
I couldn't decide whether to pick a top ten, top thirty, top fifty or whatever. For no good reason I've opted for twenty-five.
 
I'm counting a film as being from 2020 if (to the best of my knowledge) it had its first release in any country in that year, excluding special screenings at premieres and festivals. (Nomadland was originally a contender here as I'd read that it had had a limited release in Australia or New Zealand very late in 2020, but it seems that may have been a mistake and I'm counting it as a 2021 film instead.)
   
Saint Maud  (Rose Glass) First Cow  (Kelly Reichardt) Identifying Features  (Fernanda Valadez) Shirley  (Josephine Decker) Lynn + Lucy  (Fyzal Boulifa) Black Bear  (Lawrence Michael Levine) The Nest  (Sean Durkin) Atlantis  (Valentyn Vasyanovych) La Llorona  (Jayro Bustamante) Small Axe  (Steve McQueen) Riders of Justice  (Anders Thomas Jensen) I'm Thinking of Ending Things  (Charlie Kaufman) The Assistant  (Kitty Green) This Is Not a Burial, It's a Resurrection  (Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese) The Personal History of David Copperfield  (Armando Iannucci) Dear Comrades!  (Andrei Konchalovsky) The Disciple  (Chaitanya Tamhane) Promising Young Woman  (Emerald Fennell) DAU. Natasha  (Ilya Khrzhanovsky and Jekaterina Oertel) The Macaluso Sisters  (Emma Dante) Saint Frances  (Alex Thompson) Calm with Horses  (Nick Rowland) Sound of Metal  (Darius Marder) Asia  (Ruthy Pribar) Preparations to Be Together for an Unknown Period of Time  (Lili Horvát)

SCORES
Interview with the Vampire (Daniel Hart)
The Book of Boba Fett (Joseph Shirley w/ themes by Ludwig Göransson)
The Fabelmans (John Williams)
Succession: Season 3 (Nicholas Britell)
The Batman (Michael Giacchino)
Avatar: The Way of Water (Simon Franglen)
The Outfit (Alexandre Desplat)
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Ludwig Göransson)
 
Special mention to Austin Wintory's Traveler: A Journey Symphony.
 
TRACKS
- The Journey Begins from The Fabelmans
- Main Theme from Glass Onion
- The Run (Urban Legends) from Nope
- Leaving Home from Avatar: The Way of Water
- Can’t Fight City Halloween / The Bat’s True Calling / Catwoman Suite from The Batman
- Rigaudon / End Credits – The Raid from Succession: Season 3
- Vengeance Has Consumed Us from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
- The Book of Boba Fett / The Stranger / Train Heist / The Ultimate Boon / Teacher’s Pet from The Book of Boba Fett
- Are We the Sum of Our Worst Moments / The Fantasy of Happiness / Vicious from Interview with the Vampire
- Galadriel / The Stranger from The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power
 
I'm including The Book of Boba Fett and Succession: Season 3 on my lists because while both are 2021 shows, their scores were not released until 2022 and weren't on my list last year.
 
FILMS
The Fabelmans (dir. Steven Spielberg)
Nope (dir. Jordan Peele)
Tár (dir. Todd Field)
Top Gun: Maverick (dir. Joseph Kosinski)
Avatar: The Way of Water (dir. James Cameron)
The Banshees of Inisherin (dir. Martin McDonagh)
Ambulance (dir. Michael Bay)
RRR (dir. S.S. Rajamouli)
The Batman (dir. Matt Reeves)
The Northman (dir. Robert Eggers)
Glass Onion (dir. Rian Johnson)
 
It's been an incredible year for populist cinema and I've enjoyed almost all of the big ones. Hoping to fill in the gaps with a few I still intend to catch in 2023, including but not limited to: White Noise (dir. Noah Baumbach), Decision to Leave (dir. Park Chan-wook), Aftersun (dir. Charlotte Wells), and The Eternal Daughter (dir. Joanna Hogg)
 
SPECIALTY LABELS
I was only able to buy Empire of the Sun from LLL this year, but I'd really like to nab Amistad and Jurassic Park soon.
 
Thanks for another year at JWFan! 

SCORES
Interview with the Vampire (Daniel Hart)
The Book of Boba Fett (Joseph Shirley w/ themes by Ludwig Göransson)
The Fabelmans (John Williams)
Succession: Season 3 (Nicholas Britell)
The Batman (Michael Giacchino)
Avatar: The Way of Water (Simon Franglen)
The Outfit (Alexandre Desplat)
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Ludwig Göransson)
 
Special mention to Austin Wintory's Traveler: A Journey Symphony.
 
TRACKS
- The Journey Begins from The Fabelmans
- Main Theme from Glass Onion
- The Run (Urban Legends) from Nope
- Leaving Home from Avatar: The Way of Water
- Can’t Fight City Halloween / The Bat’s True Calling / Catwoman Suite from The Batman
- Rigaudon / End Credits – The Raid from Succession: Season 3
- Vengeance Has Consumed Us from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
- The Book of Boba Fett / The Stranger / Train Heist / The Ultimate Boon / Teacher’s Pet from The Book of Boba Fett
- Are We the Sum of Our Worst Moments / The Fantasy of Happiness / Vicious from Interview with the Vampire
- Galadriel / The Stranger from The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power
 
I'm including The Book of Boba Fett and Succession: Season 3 on my lists because while both are 2021 shows, their scores were not released until 2022 and weren't on my list last year.
 
FILMS
The Fabelmans (dir. Steven Spielberg)
Nope (dir. Jordan Peele)
Tár (dir. Todd Field)
Top Gun: Maverick (dir. Joseph Kosinski)
Avatar: The Way of Water (dir. James Cameron)
The Banshees of Inisherin (dir. Martin McDonagh)
Ambulance (dir. Michael Bay)
RRR (dir. S.S. Rajamouli)
The Batman (dir. Matt Reeves)
The Northman (dir. Robert Eggers)
Glass Onion (dir. Rian Johnson)
 
It's been an incredible year for populist cinema and I've enjoyed almost all of the big ones. Hoping to fill in the gaps with a few I still intend to catch in 2023, including but not limited to: White Noise (dir. Noah Baumbach), Decision to Leave (dir. Park Chan-wook), Aftersun (dir. Charlotte Wells), and The Eternal Daughter (dir. Joanna Hogg)
 
SPECIALTY LABELS
I was only able to buy Empire of the Sun from LLL this year, but I'd really like to nab Amistad and Jurassic Park soon.
 
Thanks for another year at JWFan! 

SCORES
Interview with the Vampire (Daniel Hart)
The Book of Boba Fett (Joseph Shirley w/ themes by Ludwig Göransson)
The Fabelmans (John Williams)
Succession: Season 3 (Nicholas Britell)
The Batman (Michael Giacchino)
Avatar: The Way of Water (Simon Franglen)
The Outfit (Alexandre Desplat)
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Ludwig Göransson)
 
Special mention to Austin Wintory's Traveler: A Journey Symphony.
 
TRACKS
- The Journey Begins from The Fabelmans
- Main Theme from Glass Onion
- The Run (Urban Legends) from Nope
- Leaving Home from Avatar: The Way of Water
- Can’t Fight City Halloween / The Bat’s True Calling / Catwoman Suite from The Batman
- Rigaudon / End Credits – The Raid from Succession: Season 3
- Vengeance Has Consumed Us from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
- The Book of Boba Fett / The Stranger / Train Heist / The Ultimate Boon / Teacher’s Pet from The Book of Boba Fett
- Are We the Sum of Our Worst Moments / The Fantasy of Happiness / Vicious from Interview with the Vampire
- Galadriel / The Stranger from The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power
 
I'm including The Book of Boba Fett and Succession: Season 3 on my lists because while both are 2021 shows, their scores were not released until 2022 and weren't on my list last year.
 
FILMS
The Fabelmans (dir. Steven Spielberg)
Nope (dir. Jordan Peele)
Tár (dir. Todd Field)
Top Gun: Maverick (dir. Joseph Kosinski)
Avatar: The Way of Water (dir. James Cameron)
The Banshees of Inisherin (dir. Martin McDonagh)
Ambulance (dir. Michael Bay)
RRR (dir. S.S. Rajamouli)
The Batman (dir. Matt Reeves)
The Northman (dir. Robert Eggers)
Glass Onion (dir. Rian Johnson)
 
It's been an incredible year for populist cinema and I've enjoyed almost all of the big ones. Hoping to fill in the gaps with a few I still intend to catch in 2023, including but not limited to: White Noise (dir. Noah Baumbach), Decision to Leave (dir. Park Chan-wook), Aftersun (dir. Charlotte Wells), and The Eternal Daughter (dir. Joanna Hogg)
 
SPECIALTY LABELS
I was only able to buy Empire of the Sun from LLL this year, but I'd really like to nab Amistad and Jurassic Park soon.
 
Thanks for another year at JWFan! 

SCORES
Interview with the Vampire (Daniel Hart)
The Book of Boba Fett (Joseph Shirley w/ themes by Ludwig Göransson)
The Fabelmans (John Williams)
Succession: Season 3 (Nicholas Britell)
The Batman (Michael Giacchino)
Avatar: The Way of Water (Simon Franglen)
The Outfit (Alexandre Desplat)
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Ludwig Göransson)
 
Special mention to Austin Wintory's Traveler: A Journey Symphony.
 
TRACKS
- The Journey Begins from The Fabelmans
- Main Theme from Glass Onion
- The Run (Urban Legends) from Nope
- Leaving Home from Avatar: The Way of Water
- Can’t Fight City Halloween / The Bat’s True Calling / Catwoman Suite from The Batman
- Rigaudon / End Credits – The Raid from Succession: Season 3
- Vengeance Has Consumed Us from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
- The Book of Boba Fett / The Stranger / Train Heist / The Ultimate Boon / Teacher’s Pet from The Book of Boba Fett
- Are We the Sum of Our Worst Moments / The Fantasy of Happiness / Vicious from Interview with the Vampire
- Galadriel / The Stranger from The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power
 
I'm including The Book of Boba Fett and Succession: Season 3 on my lists because while both are 2021 shows, their scores were not released until 2022 and weren't on my list last year.
 
FILMS
The Fabelmans (dir. Steven Spielberg)
Nope (dir. Jordan Peele)
Tár (dir. Todd Field)
Top Gun: Maverick (dir. Joseph Kosinski)
Avatar: The Way of Water (dir. James Cameron)
The Banshees of Inisherin (dir. Martin McDonagh)
Ambulance (dir. Michael Bay)
RRR (dir. S.S. Rajamouli)
The Batman (dir. Matt Reeves)
The Northman (dir. Robert Eggers)
Glass Onion (dir. Rian Johnson)
 
It's been an incredible year for populist cinema and I've enjoyed almost all of the big ones. Hoping to fill in the gaps with a few I still intend to catch in 2023, including but not limited to: White Noise (dir. Noah Baumbach), Decision to Leave (dir. Park Chan-wook), Aftersun (dir. Charlotte Wells), and The Eternal Daughter (dir. Joanna Hogg)
 
SPECIALTY LABELS
I was only able to buy Empire of the Sun from LLL this year, but I'd really like to nab Amistad and Jurassic Park soon.
 
Thanks for another year at JWFan! 

My good friend died, yesterday.
He wasn't well known, he wasn't a celebrity, he wasn't a rich man, he wasn't a captain of industry, and he wasn't a mover and shaker. He was my friend, and I shall miss him.
I had known him for over 21 years. We met at work, and I soon found out that his two favourite hobbies were Star Trek, and Star Wars. We had many great times together, and with nary a cross word between us.
His all-time favourite film was STAR TREK II.
I'm not sure if I'll ever be able to watch it, again. If I do manage to watch it, I'll never watch it in the same way.
I loved my friend. I feel hollow. My world is smaller, without him.

In French, they translated "Short Round" by "Demi-Lune", which means half moon. Anyway, it means a part or half of something, because he's just a kid I think.

So glad to have met you all
 
This meeting made the evening even more special! I will need a few days to realize this really happened, wow.

We hugged! 😂 I needed one in that moment! 
 
Really great to talk with you. Sorry we didn’t manage to catch up after. 
Brilliant evening. Excellent strong Negronis 😄