Slow start this year. I think it's unlikely I'm going to surpass last year's total... my unwatched collection list is shifting towards having more TV than movies on it. Recently started Lois and Clark. Starting the year with 165 on the list; although I haven't yet added in the stuff I got since Christmas.
R1. The Illusionist (2006) - Starting with a rewatch. I still really like this film a lot. I know everyone prefers The Prestige, and I get it. But while I'm not going to say this movie is better, I definitely enjoy it at least as much. It has a really unique atmosphere and personality that strongly shines through. I'm a big Norton fan, though I think Giamatti and Sewell stand out more here. Jessica Biel is pretty forgettable, both the performance and the character. I still love the twist though. Sure it's pretty basic and nothing all too groundbreaking, but it really worked on me the first time, and it's still fun when you already know.
1. The Magnificent Seven (2016) - Although mostly well made, it's simply a pale imitation. I think some of the changes that they made were pretty good, such as the addition of the corrupt sheriff. But making it so that Denzel had a personal connection with the villain was terrible. It completely took the "this victory belong to the villagers" message of both the original and the original-original and kills it. Pretty much all the "villagers vs mercenaries" dynamic was removed really.
I enjoyed Peter Sarsgaard's performance, but sadly that was about it for acting. Denzel is always good, but he didn't really put a lot into this. Pratt was Pratt. D'Onofrio though... I don't know what to make of his performance. I loved and hated it at the same time. And then there's the music... this was, sadly, James Horner's last film, my favorite movie composer. Unfortunately his work is way overshadowed by the original iconic theme; which was used in the closing credits. Also, "it was... magnificent" may just be the worst closing line in any movie ever. It's a shame that having another teamup between Antoine Fuqua, Denzel Washington, and Ethan Hawke didn't lead to something excellent.
2. W. (2008) - Oliver Stone does his usual good job; I enjoyed the back and forth between showing his presidency and his pre-presidency. All the performances were very strong; though accurate voices and makeup almost made it seem more like a comedic impersonation than an actual portrayal. Maybe just because we're used to seeing political figured impersonated in comedy sketches. It definitely did a great job at humanizing him; especially regarding his dynamics with Bush Sr and Laura. But the actual story being told wasn't all that interesting; I guess it didn't seem like there was a lot to show there that made his presidency or him as a person unique.
This is the thread I'm making to list my 2025 movies
Re: This is the thread I'm making to list my 2025 movies
3. West Side Story (2021) - That's how you do a remake. Actually keep all the things that were great about the original, but still change just enough to justify its existence. I'm not completely sure it fully reached that second requirement; in general one could still just choose to watch the original instead and not be missing a whole lot. But some of the changes were great... my favorite was how they did "Cool" with the gun keep-away scene. It made a lot of sense to put it there. But I wasn't a fan of having "I Feel Pretty" be after the rumble. Just too much of a sudden tone shift. The choreography was still excellent, and I thought the costuming was especially great.
Re: This is the thread I'm making to list my 2025 movies
Scanned in all the new stuff. That 165 just went all the way back to 200 again. Will I ever break out of this 200 cycle?
Re: This is the thread I'm making to list my 2025 movies
4. Shenandoah (1965) - Quite good. James Stewart excellently plays a great character. I only bought this because I grew up in the Shenandoah Valley; it's neat to hear an unknown town like Winchester mentioned by name in a movie. It's a fairly depressing wartime drama; but it also has themes of hope and redemption.
Re: This is the thread I'm making to list my 2025 movies
5. Dream Scenario (2023) - Super weird, I really liked it. People need to make more weird movies. A fun and unique performance from Cage, though not necessarily his best work. It's a little hard to say if the film had anything deep or meaningful to say, but it certainly felt like it wanted to be deep. I do love how over the top everyone around him reacts, it's for sure an interesting concept just to have a movie where Nick Cage is the most normal person in it.
Re: This is the thread I'm making to list my 2025 movies
6. Once Upon a Time in America (1984) - Pretty much the masterpiece I'd heard it would be. 4 hours long but did not at all feel like it. The music was fantastic; Morricone never disappoints but this might actually be my favorite of his. De Niro was good, but James Woods really stood out. Even so I preferred the childhood sequences as a whole; all those kids were great.
The rape scene was uncomfortable and terrible and I could have done without it. It made me question whether we were supposed find him redeemable at all. And that could have been the point, but it didn't really feel like it, it felt more like just a random act of violence that was given no more commentary than any of his other mobster activities. Any maybe it's just movies in general, but they have kind of taught us to still be on the side of gangsters who are murderers or worse then they're the protagonists of the story.
But that aside, loved it. Not sure how I feel about the theory that the 1960's sequences are an opium-induced dream. It makes sense, but I don't think it gave enough to make that kind of conclusion. I liked the 1960's sequences as a whole a lot, though I didn't much care for the very end with the whole Mr. Bailey stuff; it kind of felt like it came out of nowhere.
7. The Jesus Rolls (2019) - Ugh, I was expecting it to be pretty bad, but it was still worse than I expected. I've always really liked John Turturro, and this legitimately makes me lose some respect for him as an actor but definitely as a filmmaker. It just had nothing redeeming; the first 30 minutes is just filled with cringy "see, you remember that line from The Big Lebowski!" moments, there's no plot at all worth caring about, and the characters are all really dumb. The only positive I can give is the music from the Gipsy Kings.
The rape scene was uncomfortable and terrible and I could have done without it. It made me question whether we were supposed find him redeemable at all. And that could have been the point, but it didn't really feel like it, it felt more like just a random act of violence that was given no more commentary than any of his other mobster activities. Any maybe it's just movies in general, but they have kind of taught us to still be on the side of gangsters who are murderers or worse then they're the protagonists of the story.
But that aside, loved it. Not sure how I feel about the theory that the 1960's sequences are an opium-induced dream. It makes sense, but I don't think it gave enough to make that kind of conclusion. I liked the 1960's sequences as a whole a lot, though I didn't much care for the very end with the whole Mr. Bailey stuff; it kind of felt like it came out of nowhere.
7. The Jesus Rolls (2019) - Ugh, I was expecting it to be pretty bad, but it was still worse than I expected. I've always really liked John Turturro, and this legitimately makes me lose some respect for him as an actor but definitely as a filmmaker. It just had nothing redeeming; the first 30 minutes is just filled with cringy "see, you remember that line from The Big Lebowski!" moments, there's no plot at all worth caring about, and the characters are all really dumb. The only positive I can give is the music from the Gipsy Kings.
Re: This is the thread I'm making to list my 2025 movies
8. Session 9 (2001) - Really good psychological thriller. Fits in the horror genre in many ways, but also not in many other ways. Great filmmaking all around, from the performances to the sets to the sound design. I didn't know until after watching it that it was so old; I first heard of it just a few years ago. Also, I didn't realize it was directed by Brad Anderson, who also happened to make one of my top 2 films of all time, The Machinist. I wouldn't say it was quite as good as that, but you can definitely see some of the same ideas going on. I was hoping for a little more from the end... there was a moment where I thought they were starting to reveal a twist, which I would have loved, but it wasn't actually that. But still, nitpicks aside, it was just a really great movie.
Re: This is the thread I'm making to list my 2025 movies
9. The Equalizer (2014) - Yet another Antoine Fuqua and Denzel Washington teamup. This one was definitely better than The Magnificent Seven, but not as good as Training Day. Then again Training Day is a really high bar. This was quite a good movie; although it's a formula that we're now seeing all the time ever since Taken, it was still a good version of that formula. Denzel plays a more likeable and down-to-earth protagonist than John Wick or Nobody had. The action was all well done, but really it was the characters that made it enjoyable.
10. One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961) - IMDB and Wikipedia say this is the correct name of the movie despite it always showing up as "101 Dalmatians". That will be an interesting decision when I go to alphabetize it (once I'm finally moved into my new house). Anyway, it's pretty good. I did prefer the first act and last act; the actual rescue with all the different animals coming together just wasn't as interesting to me. The beginning was just solid storytelling about the dogs and people meetings, starting a family, etc. Also that fake-out about the stillbirth was quite dark and suspenseful. The final trek home through the snow was beautiful. And all around great music.
10. One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961) - IMDB and Wikipedia say this is the correct name of the movie despite it always showing up as "101 Dalmatians". That will be an interesting decision when I go to alphabetize it (once I'm finally moved into my new house). Anyway, it's pretty good. I did prefer the first act and last act; the actual rescue with all the different animals coming together just wasn't as interesting to me. The beginning was just solid storytelling about the dogs and people meetings, starting a family, etc. Also that fake-out about the stillbirth was quite dark and suspenseful. The final trek home through the snow was beautiful. And all around great music.