First Impressions: The FILMS of 2023

[A24 4,338]

Titles that sound like sentences out of a movie never sound good to me. But I'm certainly putting this movie on my list. 

[Edmilson 7,466]

Shaflop! Fury of the Movie Critics

 

 

This thing is over 2 hours long, but if you cut out the countless unnecessary stupid jokes, quips and pop culture references, you'd be left with about 80 minutes of material.

 

Zachary Levi is fucking insufferable, trading actual charisma for many, many, MANY silly jokes and a general LOL attitude that gets tiresome real quick. Just look at the poster above. I get this is supposed to be a child in an adult superhero's body, but it mostly sounds like old, rich adults' impression of what they think kids are and talk.

 

And it's sad that we spent so much time with Levi, because the character is much more interesting as a teenage boy who spent his entire life running from foster homes and trying to find his family, and now that he found one, he's afraid to lose them. As someone who think more people should consider adoption, this is a pretty neat thing that needs to be discussed in media.

 

Instead, we get Levi calling Lucy Liu "Khaleesi" because she flies on a CGI dragon.

 

Speaking of which, the CGI is fucking atrocious. How come this thing cost $125 million? It looks so, so bad. I've seen early 2000s movies with better special effects. Sigh

[Marian Schedenig 8,200]

7 hours ago, AC1 said:

Titles that sound like sentences out of a movie never sound good to me. But I'm certainly putting this movie on my list. 

 

I liked I'm Thinking of Ending Things. (I also liked I Am Not Okay with This, but that's a series)

[Glóin the Dark 1,222]

I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang’s pretty good.

[A24 4,338]

All way too literal.

 

 

Jaws > You're Gonna Need A Bigger Boat

 

Star Wars > May The Force Be With You

 

Blade Runner > More Human Than Human Is Our Motto

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Glóin the Dark 1,222]

There Will Be Blood > Oil

[A24 4,338]

Midnight Cowboy > I'm Walking Here! I'm Walking Here!

[Naïve Old Fart 9,537]

2 hours ago, Glóin the Dark said:

There Will Be Blood > Oil

 

THERE WILL BE BLOOD > I DRINK YOUR MILKSHAKE! 

[Glóin the Dark 1,222]

Just What Do You Think You Are Doing, Dave? is a great film.

[Naïve Old Fart 9,537]

"Jaws" > "Smile, you sonofabitch!" 

 

"Jurassic Park" > "That is one big pile of shit" 

 

Episode I > "Oops, this is not good" 

[Faleel 5,354]

The Last Crusade: This Is Intolerable!

 

@Naïve Old Fart:

 

Attack of the Clones: Can't Take A Hint, This Guy.

[Knight of Ren 789]

The Boy and the Heron

I got to watch Miyazaki's last (or perhaps latest?) feature in the european premiere in a film festival and I enjoyed every minute of it. I went in blind and I love all the different places the story visits, offering a poignant story with a fantastical touch that makes it very satisfying. I don't want to give away anything about the plot because I think it greatly improves the wonderment and element of surprise of what the movie has to offer.

 

I think if you're a fan of the director, you'll enjoy this one as it feels like a homage to his other works, with some thematic and visual references that offer a perfect closing chapter to his career (even if now it seems he won't be really retiring after all!)

 

Hisaishi's score works brilliantly in the movie, being much more subdued, but with some moments to shine through, especially in the use of the piano. There are a couple of motifs that develop throughout, and even if it's not as thematically complex as some of his other Miyazaki scores, it's still a brilliant effort from the composer that perfectly enhances the emotions of Miyazaki's spellbinding images.

[thestat 348]

It is so rare to see a new film nowadays that is in any ways interesting and not just 'content'. Struggling for 2023 films - Babylon was good, Evil Dead Rise works well, Guardians 3, have not seen Barbie or Oppenheimer

 

Only good film scores this year are The Flash and Babylon.....there.

[Edmilson 7,466]

Everyone should see Oppenheimer. It's a really great movie. The others you can skip.

[Glóin the Dark 1,222]

To hell with Barbenheimer.

 

Bottomheimer is the double-bill of the year.

 

The Blue Caftan and Enys Men are good too.

[Brónach 1,302]

arent those from last year?

[Glóin the Dark 1,222]

You mean the ones I mentioned? I think the latter two had festival screenings in 2022, but no proper release (to my knowledge…).

[Brónach 1,302]

oh i dont know how to count that then

[Glóin the Dark 1,222]

Maybe my criterion is the one that’s out of sync, but I tend to discount things like festival screenings since they often happen a long time before very many people have a chance to see the film.

[A24 4,338]

7 hours ago, Glóin the Dark said:

Enys Men

 

Critics loved it, the audience hated it. Who to believe?!

[Glóin the Dark 1,222]

Me.

[Brónach 1,302]

I'll watch them, but count them as 2022 for consistency

 

(i have a list lol)

[Glóin the Dark 1,222]

You've probably already gathered that Enys Men is a very unusual film - not at all surprising that it isn't popular with general audiences. It has a non-narrative style comparable to the most abstract or surrealist films of, say, Nicolas Roeg or Alain Resnais.

[Jay 37,369]

Anybody here seen the film Lola?  @Glóin the Dark?

 

 

 

I heard about it on my movie podcast this week and I am super intrigued

[Glóin the Dark 1,222]

Hoping to see it shortly.

[Jay 37,369]

Ditto!

 

It's a $5 rental on Amazon

[Glóin the Dark 1,222]

Which podcast was it, by the way?

[Jay 37,369]

https://www.thefilmvaultpod.com/

[JNHFan2000 2,966]

The Creator

 

A film which feels like it was made for me. I loved it so much. I was hooked from the moment the newsreel in the opening began.

 

I thought the script asked so many interesting questions, but never gave us an easy answer, which I appreciated. The same goes for the ending. The film could've easily gone the "Hollywood way" with it's ending, but I'm happy they didn't. It packed quite the emotional punch.

 

Kudos to Gareth Edwards for his directing. This is one of the best looking films of the year. It's looks better than half the films this year and has more than half the budget. The way the VFX flows seemlessly into the real world is incredible. I never once not believed that what I was looking at wasn't real.

 

The cast also does a lot of heavy lifting. John David Washington gives his best performance here. Incredibly nuanced and beautifully brought to life. None of his emotions or actions felt out of place.
Gemma Chan, Allison Janney & Ken Watanabe are both really good.

 

But the standout is newcomer Madeleine Yuna Voyles. She absolutely blew me away. She's acting like someone well beyond her years. She moved me to tears twice and the final shot of the film with her is one for the ages!

 

I'll have more thoughts on Zimmer's score tomorrow (I loved it!!!)

[Raiders of the SoundtrArk 2,433]

The Creator

 

This film is visually trully beautiful, the photography with its chiaroscuros is wonderful. The characters design and sets are perfect with astonishing VFX (probably the best I've seen since Spielberg's RPO).

Acting is very strong especially Washington and Voyles (it's quite rare that a child actor gives a strong performance which she clearly did)

About the plot, well it's a pretty simple story which reminds me a lot of Edwards' first film Monsters. It drags a bit in length sometimes but overall it flows really nicely.

Finally the music is pretty much absent from the first hour and half of the movie and suddently is omnipresent at the end which gives me a weird felling but it's pretty nice overall

[Knight of Ren 789]

Watched a bunch of movies in a film festival and here are my thoughts on some of them:

 

Monster

The film surprised me a lot in the way it tells its story, being fragmented in three separate points of view. Each fragment is very different from each other in the emotions it conveys, and it constantly keeps you guessing and wondering what the film is really about, until the beautiful and emotional third act. It might feel a bit repetitive but the payoff is quite satisfying, Kore-eda's direction is beautiful and subdued and is accentuated by a beautiful score by the late Ryuichi Sakamoto.

 

Bastarden

Danish period drama that is like a western in the topics and ideas it explores (ambition, pursuit of greatness, fighting against adversity), but set against the beautiful backdrop of the danish heath in the 18th century. The story is quite predictable, but everything is really well executed making for a gripping and entertaining movie. Mads Mikkelsen is great in this, and Dan Romer's score was a nice surprise!

 

The Killer

Fincher's latest film is a cold and clinical return to his roots, focusing on a merciless and calculating character perfectly impersonated by Michael Fassbender. The movie feels a bit boring or perhaps emotionally detached at points, and I feel the ending was quite disappointing, but Fincher's directing, the captivating cinematography and the break-neck editing make it entertaining throughout. The use of The Smiths on the soundtrack was a nice touch, but I found Reznor and Ross' score generic, bland and even distracting at times.

[Jay 37,369]

 

Boston Strangler

 

Decent serial killer investigation film with Keira Knightley and Carrie Coon as Boston Record American journalists trying to solve a series of murders in Boston (and eventually New York City and Ann Arbor Michigan) over several years.  Can't say it left much of an impression on me to say much about it all these months later, but it was entertaining enough at the time.  Nothing close to the brilliance of Fincher's Zodiac by any means, but got the job done.

 

It's on Hulu

[Brónach 1,302]

i have missed Monster in theaters, sad

[Jay 37,369]

 

Ghosted

 

Man, on paper this seemed like a sure-fire hit: Ana De Armas and Chris Evans in a sexy comedic spy action thriller, with the fun twist that De Armas is the expert spy and Evans is the kidnapped one.  But man, does it not live up to its potential.  It isn't funny enough, the action scenes and chases aren't exciting enough, and there isn't enough chemistry between De Armas and Evans.  There is one hilarious scene though, where a series of bounty hunters all played by big named actors in brief cameos all show up one by one before being taken out.  That was great.  But overall, not much special here.

 

It's on Apple TV+

[Jay 37,369]

 

Tetris

 

Very amusing film that tells the story of the guy who negotiated the rights to bring Tetris to the Game Boy in the late 80s, which is full of way more twists, turns, and crazy characters that you would ever expect just from reading that description.  Director     Jon S. Baird makes the story sing with constant interesting directing choices from cinematography to music to overlaid graphics to straight out turning some scenes into pixellated representations of what's happening.  It was really fun!

It's on Apple TV+

[Jay 37,369]

 

The Super Mario Bros. Movie

 

One of the few films I actually trekked out to the theater to see.  It was... fine?  It wasn't great, but it wasn't terrible.  It moved along at a brisk pace and was never boring, and was full of fun gags and callbacks to decades of games, from obvious references to really obscure ones, which I enjoyed.  But the story is a total nothingburger and it didn't leave me with any specific memories or wanting more.... with one exception.  Jack Black as Bowser was genuinely great in this, I loved his performance throughout and his big song.  Really good stuff there.  The rest, is forgettable.

[Faleel 5,354]

2 hours ago, Jay said:

 

The Super Mario Bros. Movie

 

One of the few films I actually trekked out to the theater to see.  It was... fine?  It wasn't great, but it wasn't terrible.  It moved along at a brisk pace and was never boring, and was full of fun gags and callbacks to decades of games, from obvious references to really obscure ones, which I enjoyed.  But the story is a total nothingburger and it didn't leave me with any specific memories or wanting more.... with one exception.  Jack Black as Bowser was genuinely great in this, I loved his performance throughout and his big song.  Really good stuff there.  The rest, is forgettable.

I liked that moment with baby Mario and Luigi, where there is no dialogue and just the music and the visuals.

[Jay 37,369]

Hmm, I don't even remember that part lol

[JNHFan2000 2,966]

The Burial

 

This is one of those films with which I am surprised at how little known the story is. I thought it was a great film that (with some changes for dramatic effect) portrays the conflict between big corporations and people very well.

Jamie Foxx is on top form here. This is his best performance since Just Mercy in 2019 and maybe even since his Oscar winning performance for Ray in 2004. He does what he does best with so much energy, it's a joy to watch. Because of his big persona as Willie E. Gary, the quieter moments are all the more impactful.
Tommy Lee Jones gives a very nuanced performance and in contrast to Foxx, very quiet as Jeremiah Joseph O'Keefe. He does a lot with just his eyes and he has some really wonderful moments. It's great to see someone with such a long career to still be able to do something different.
I also really enjoyed the relationship between the two, very heartwarming.

There are 2 people in the supporting cast who I'd like to highlight. First off is Mamoudou Athie, who I first saw in The Get Down where he was excellent, is still excellent every time I see him. He does so much with a relatively small role, but still makes an impact and I hope gets a great leading role in the future.
The other is Jurnee Smollett. I still think Lovecraft Country is her best performance, but she's has a very powerful presence here. Everytime she's on screen she just oozes charisma and takes the attention away from everybody else (which is hard to with Foxx in the same room).

I love courtroom dramas, so this film is right up my alley in that regard. My favorite scene was probably the settlement negotiation at the end of the film. There is almost no dialogue, but it's a brilliant piece of filmmaking because of it.

 

Michael Abels' score is good. It's sparsely scored, so when it is there the impact is better felt. Starting to feel like more films should do that.

A film I feel everybody should watch. It starts off small, but grows into a story about what a big corporation does to, in this case, a large community of Black people. It's an important story and very well told.

[Schilkeman 964]

I tried to watch Haunted Mansion on Disney plus, but it was honestly so dark, I couldn't tell what was happening. I didn't get very far into it. In photography as well as music, contrast is important for creating and sustaining interest. This era of wallpaper scores and flatly lit (and color-graded) films can go away any old time. I also watched Caravan of Courage, and when the Ewok tv movie from 1984 has more interesting  photography than your nine-figure feature film, you done goofed, son.

[Jay 37,369]

 

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny

 

Another one I saw in the actual cinema this summer.  I never got around to saying much here about it, but I also don't know if I have any thoughts that haven't already been expressed a bunch around here.  I really didn't like how they turned our hero Indy into a sad old man with a dead son who had to win back Marion yet again, I didn't like how the villains murdered random innocents who had nothing to do with the things over and over again, I didn't like adding a sci-fi concept like time travel into the world (juts as bad as adding aliens in last time), I thought the de-aging in the prologue was terrible, I just generally didn't really like anything about this movie at all.  Except the score, which I quite enjoy!

[Glóin the Dark 1,222]

On 28/09/2023 at 3:18 PM, Jay said:

Anybody here seen the film Lola?

 

I saw this and found it very enjoyable. Somewhat more lightweight than the trailer suggests - there are several high-concept ideas on the table simultaneously and they don't seem to be explored beyond a superficial level.  I'd like to watch it again some time, nonetheless.

[Jay 37,369]

I liked it too!  The Back to the Future-esque song and dance number was really fun

[Glóin the Dark 1,222]

On the downside, I thought it really played fast and loose with the plot (in terms of believability), and the dialogue could sometimes have done with a bit more subtlety.

[Jay 37,369]

Yeah the same concept explored as a 3 season TV series could really work. With a slightly different ending so the entire thing doesn't have to be found footage 

[Ollie 1,059]

On 16/10/2023 at 1:44 AM, Schilkeman said:

I tried to watch Haunted Mansion on Disney plus, but it was honestly so dark, I couldn't tell what was happening. I didn't get very far into it. In photography as well as music, contrast is important for creating and sustaining interest. This era of wallpaper scores and flatly lit (and color-graded) films can go away any old time. I also watched Caravan of Courage, and when the Ewok tv movie from 1984 has more interesting  photography than your nine-figure feature film, you done goofed, son.

 

My wife talked me into watching Haunted Mansion the other day. I did change my picture setting to “theatre” and it helped with the darkness. But what could have been a very good dark comedy, Poltergeist with humor, was completely lost on the writers and production. Granted it’s based on a ride as Disney, but it was neither scary nor funny. 
 

The music also felt like a lost opportunity but at least it didn’t have the generic string chugging.

[Jay 37,369]

 

Oppenheimer

 

Another film I actually saw in a cinema this summer.  I liked it a lot!  I didn't know much about Oppenheimer's life or the creation of the bomb, and it was interesting to learn about both.  Nolan jumping back and forth in time instead of just telling the story straightforward (as well as filming half the movie in black and white) needlessly complicated things, but not enough to ruin the movie.  There's so much good here, from a really impressive cast (for a while every few scenes brought another giant actor into the mix), and some of them do really great work like Florence Pugh.  I liked this film and would happily watch it again!

[KK 3,307]

 

Killers of the Flower Moon

 

This is an excellent picture. It's a brooding, operatic meditation on Scorsese's familiar themes of power and corruption but in a far more compelling spiritual context. De Niro is absolutely terrifying in one of his best roles in years (decades?) and Lily Gladstone just draws you in from her very first frame. Beautiful visual gestures disrupt the narrative, evoking the metaphysical qualities of Scoresese's often-overlooked 21st-century masterpiece, Silence. The framing of his subjects and narrative just goes to show that Scorsese, as an inherently cinematic filmmaker, has still got that spark in a way I feel his contemporaries have lost over the years (I'm looking at you, Spielberg). The unreliable narration of the events of this epic draws our sympathies in directions that make the experience thrillingly ambiguous and uncomfortable. And while there is a point where the investigation starts to draw the spotlight away from the magnetic Gladstone and become a third-act courtroom drama that I thought would actively decenter the Osage people, the film doesn't get "lost" for too long and brings us back on track with a very thoughtful coda. 

 

Robertson's score remains the only uninspired facet of this production. When it works, it works, albeit often too buried underneath everything. But either the film needed a score with real personality or should have played out with no score at all.

[Jay 37,369]

 

 

Barbie

 

The last film I've seen at the cinema.  Holy cow, I went with my wife and 2 friends of ours, and the four of us laughed our asses off the entire time, as did the whole audience.  This is a really funny film full of funny performances, especially Ryan Gosling, Simu Liu, Kingley Ben-Adir, Michael Cera, and Kate McKinnon.  Helen Mirren even got some good jabs in as the narrator, and the opening Lizzo song commenting on the action was funny too. The whole thing was just an enjoyable romp from start to finish

 

It will be very interesting to see what Gerwig does next!

[JNHFan2000 2,966]

Killers Of The Flower Moon

 

(Slight spoilers)

 

The whole world seems to absolutely love this film, so I must be missing something, because I thought it was awful. It looked very interesting but for me it just didn't work. And even thought I feel it should've been shorter, the runtime isn't my main issue (I don't care how long a film is). There are 2 big things (there is more) that made this film not work for me.

 

First: Scorsese has been talking in interviews about how they rewrote the film so it would be from the perspective of the Osage Nation's people. The film does a lot, but it doesn't do that. If that really were the case, Lily Gladstone would've been the main character, not DiCaprio and DeNiro. Gladstone, and the rest of the Osage Nation cast, get sidelined for most of the film. And everytime something happened with Gladstone's character it was always from DiCaprio's perspective. There were whole scenes where she was talking, but not shown. I thought it was really weird and quite jarring.

 

Secondly: The events depicted in this film are (obviously) absolutely horrible and I think it's good that at least some attention has been given to it. But I never once felt the stakes of the events. The murders of these innocent people is terrible and extremely difficult to watch, but the weight of it I never really felt. The one time I did feel it was after the house blew up and Gladstone has this cry of anguish, but it was too brief in my opinion.

 

The film is very well made, production, costumes and cinematography is beautiful. Performances are strong. Gladstone is the clear highlight in the scenes she does have. DiCaprio & DeNiro are both good but aren't doing anything I haven't seen them do before.

 

I did think the ending was quite surprising and good, but then Scorsese showed up himself and cemented my point about this film focusing on the wrong people
I really don't like writing negative reviews, because a lot of talented people always work very hard on these things. Maybe it's because I don't really connect with Scorsese's filmography overall.