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The Irishman review: Scorsese does it again, but not in a way you’ve seen before

You wouldn’t be crazy to assume that Martin Scorsese’s latest foray into the world of organized crime, a world practically synonymous with the man at this point, would be a lot like his previous such efforts, such as Goodfellas, Casino, and The Departed. Those films are all fast-paced, exciting, relentlessly entertaining, universally appealing (well, except for Casino, which isn’t very good but maybe needs a rewatch. I addressed this in my Scorsese ranking article, which has been updated to include this film). The Irishman, while on the surface the same sort of movie as those, strikes a very different tone. And it does it masterfully, as great as the legendary director has been in a long time.

Let’s start with where The Irishman is the same as Scorsese’s prior gangster efforts. Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci are here, with both of them giving stunning and haunting performances (although the MVP of the film has yet to come). The film spans decades, is accompanied by voiceover narration, and contains lots and lots of violence. As you probably already know, it’s of certifiably epic length (3 and a half hours), which is a category none of its counterparts can touch it in. But that’s where the similarities pretty much end. The Irishman eliminates the atmosphere of excitement and action that defines Goodfellas and The Departed and the like. Instead, we’re treated to a mood of quiet reflection and the overarching theme of aging. In that sense, The Irishman isn’t a story about gangsters rising to and falling from grace, it’s a story about humans coming to terms with their own mortality and whether or not the lives they led were worth it.

The film opens with a tracking shot through the halls of a retirement home. The camera lands on Frank Sheeran (De Niro), who begins to recount a road trip he and crime boss Russell Buffalino (Pesci) took to a wedding. From the road trip framing device, we enter the story of Sheeran’s youth, and how he got acquainted with Buffalino. It began when he started allowing the meat truck he drove to be hijacked by mobsters, a charge he beat with the help of mob lawyer Bill Buffalino (a shockingly good Ray Romano). Bill introduces him to his cousin, Russell, who takes an interest in Sheeran immediately. Frank begins to take care of things for Buffalino and the mob, including several notable hits. Frank continues to rise in Buffalino’s opinion, while he also becomes more enamored with the mob lifestyle. In a critical early scene, Frank finds out his daughter, Peggy (Lucy Gallina as a child, Anna Paquin as an adult), has been hit by a grocer. Frank makes Peggy come and watch as he brutally beats the man, which visibly shakes Peggy. This begins a complicated relationship between the two of them that adds immeasurably to the film.

Frank’s relationship with Russell eventually results in his recommendation to take on the position of a bodyguard of sorts to Jimmy Hoffa. Hoffa is played by Al Pacino, who owns the thing from the moment he shows up. It’s a brilliant performance, equal parts typical recent-Pacino shouting and nuanced acting that’s better than he’s been in decades. His Hoffa is a creation of pure charisma without whom the film probably wouldn’t work.

Hoffa also strikes up a great relationship with Frank’s daughter Peggy- she’s closer to him than she is to her father (and much closer than she is with Russell, who she detests, despite her father’s protests). Hoffa takes complete control of the rest of the film, offering up some of its best moments, such as his nonchalant reaction to JFK’s assassination and his subsequent refusal to fly the flag atop the International Brotherhood of Teamsters headquarters at half mast. His confrontation with Anthony “Tony Pro” Provenzano (Stephen Graham, also excellent) will ensure you’re never late for a meeting (well, maybe a little late, if you account for traffic).

Frank, meanwhile, embarks on what has been (accurately) described as something of a mobster Forrest Gump. He’s present at several important moments in mafia history, claiming responsibility for notable killings such as that of “Crazy Joe” Gallo. De Niro plays these moments with alternating coolness and bravado that a lesser actor wouldn’t be able to muster at this point in their career. Pesci, meanwhile, is silent but deadly, in a role that could be considered against type due to his subdued nature. The film rolls along with typical Scorsese-an flourishes; for instance, at nearly every introduction of a minor character, a block of text appears with their name and the date and cause of their death. It’s funny, trust me. The de-aging effects don’t intrude at all, and while they may not be as effective as they should be, they get the job done.

So, if you have not yet seen The Irishman, maybe duck out here. I personally don’t think it matters all that much, but it’s your call and if I were in your position I’d probably stop reading. Your call. You’ve been warned.

The climactic event of the film is Frank’s killing of Hoffa, who, up to that point, had been maybe his closest friend. It’s built up to masterfully: Pesci turns his quiet demeanor into a frightening weapon to make it clear to Frank that he has no choice in the matter. Jesse Plemons fields unimportant questions about the logistics of a fish he transported in the back seat of his car recently (again, you have to trust me that it’s funny. Unless you’ve seen the film, in which case you know how funny it is). And then they’re alone. Frank and Jimmy walk into a house- we know what’s about to happen, Frank knows what’s about to happen, Hoffa is clueless. They enter, Hoffa sees it’s empty (a brilliant visual reference to Tommy’s whacking in Goodfellas, by the way), and he turns to leave. Frank shoots him twice in the back of the head.

The scene is heartbreaking for two reasons. The first is De Niro- Frank performs the killing with such resignation. He doesn’t hesitate for a second, he doesn’t try to say any last words to his friend, he just shoots him, like it’s business. Because, of course, it is. The second is Pacino. His portrayal of Hoffa is so masterful until the bitter end. His realization of his fate is accompanied by the directive to Frank that they should get out of there. It’s delivered in a perfect way- he can’t believe that his friend would do this to him, he doesn’t believe that he would, but yet it’s the only rational explanation. In Pacino’s voice, you can detect a sliver of doubt, of the thought that maybe Frank would turn on him. But mainly he really believes that Frank’s leaving with him, and that he’s leaving at all. It’s a masterclass in one line, and it’s a perfect finale to an epic performance.

After Hoffa’s killing, Frank’s relationship with Peggy ends. Of course, he doesn’t admit the crime to anyone, even comforting Hoffa’s wife (Welker White, superstitious babysitter Lois Byrd in Goodfellas) and telling her that he’ll turn up at some point. Oscar winner Anna Paquin notably doesn’t speak at all in her role as adult Peggy, save for in one scene (and even then, barely). She simply asks her father why he hasn’t called Hoffa’s wife yet. It’s a seemingly simple question, but everything about it- Paquin’s delivery, the emphasis on the character’s silence throughout the film- suggests that she knows exactly why. She knows what her father has done for a living for decades, and she knows that killing Hoffa is absolutely something he could’ve been ordered to do. There’s clearly no doubt in her mind that he did it. Despite this being the only scene in the film where she speaks, the character of Peggy is an essential one. Throughout, she casts knowing glances at her father, expressing emotions of deep anguish and sorrow at his intrinsic violence. His lifestyle fundamentally upsets her, and so she fears him. Yet she loves Hoffa. She has from her childhood, when he was the only one of Frank’s friends she would talk to, and to her adulthood, when she dances with him multiple times at a dinner honoring Frank. The camera focuses on her often, as if to exemplify her silent, contemptuous stares and her joy at Hoffa’s presence. It’s through Peggy that Frank realizes that what he’s done is wrong, and only after he loses her that he starts to look back and regret.

The ending of The Irishman echoes the endings of other Scorsese gangster films in a fascinating way. The film concludes with an elderly Frank Sheeran, alone in a nursing home, presumably on his last night alive. He asks the visiting priest if, on his way out, he could leave the door slightly open. The final shot is of Sheeran, sitting alone, viewed through the crack in the doorway. By this point, all of his friends and associates are dead, he’s been abandoned by his daughter, and he has nothing left. The message here is a new, and much darker, one for Scorsese. At the end of Goodfellas, Henry Hill laments the fact that he’s had to leave behind life in the mob, that he has to “live the rest of his life like a schnook”. Casino finishes with Ace Rothstein musing that Las Vegas isn’t what it used to be, comparing it to an adult version of Disneyland. Both of these men, Hill and Rothstein, miss their ideals of the Good Old Days, including the bloodshed that came with them. In The Irishman, Sheeran doesn’t look back on his past with fondness or loss, his overwhelming emotion is regret. The finale of the film, detailing Sheeran’s elderly life, drives this point home- that Frank regrets it all. He regrets his alienation of his daughter Peggy, he regrets the killing of his friend, he regrets all of his life choices. The difference between Frank’s perspective and those of Hill and Rothstein is that the latter two had merely finished their careers in the mob. Sheeran is at the end of his life. This perspective allows him to see the futility of it all. And that’s the takeaway from The Irishman: no matter who you are, and how you lived, it won’t matter once you get to the end. While Scorsese certainly hasn’t come to the end, of his career or his life, his observation gives his film a profound depth that he hasn’t achieved in his past similar work. That’s what makes The Irishman so different, and that’s what makes it so great.

Score: 5/5

Pain and Glory review: a poignant masterwork from a living legend

“You can’t write, you can’t film, what will you do now?”

“Live, I guess”.

This exchange occurs in one of the first scenes in Pedro Almodovar’s latest, Pain and Glory. Antonio Banderas’ aging director, Salvador Mallo, has reached a point where he can no longer work, and is faced with the a tough question: what do you do once your life’s work is finished?

For Salvador, the answer is give up. He develops a heroin addiction and shirks all of his responsibilities, notably a q&a after a screening of a film he made 30 years prior. He reconnects with and subsequently re-alienates an actor he fell out with. He bounces around, seemingly spectating his own life, living more in the past than in the present.

Banderas plays the role with an indelible sadness, a heartbreaking nuance that should absolutely net him at least an Oscar nod. But the film clearly belongs to its director. Here Almodovar offers up his most personal film, an introspection that almost feels like it shouldn’t have been made public. But there’s the underlying theme of the film- art is never for the artist. It’s always for the people, one way or another. Salvador’s deeply personal monologue, that he wants to keep private, is performed publicly. Salvador doesn’t attend the performance, but someone else does- his ex-lover, who features prominently in the monologue. He seeks out Salvador and they talk. In this conversation, it becomes clear how much he was affected by Salvador’s work. Salvador speaks on numerous occasions about his film “Sabor”, once saying that it had been deemed a masterpiece. He says this in a wholly indifferent, even resentful manner. He hates the performance that his lead actor had delivered, claiming that it resulted in an entirely different character than the one he had written.

For all his meditations (and there are many) on the nature of art and artistry, Almodovar’s true focus is on his life outside of film. The title of the film is Pain and Glory, and the nature of those two concepts is what’s so fascinating here. The film alternates between Salvador’s childhood and the present. In childhood, he was poor. His mother struggled to support him. Her relationship with Salvador’s father was rocky. In the present day, he’s an internationally renowned filmmaker. He’s wealthy. He’s grown up to be more successful than he could’ve imagined. But yet he’s in constant pain. His physical ailments ensure this, and as such he’s miserable. Beyond physical pain, he’s forced to deal with his shortcomings as a friend, a son, and a lover. Yet in his childhood, he was constantly happy. When his family moves into a tiny cave home, his mother is inconsolable. Yet all young Salvador can think to be is excited about the light that seeps in through a grate in the ceiling. He teaches a man much older than him to read and write. He receives a scholarship to a seminary. His childhood, which by all accounts should be painful, is glorious, and his adulthood, in which he’s a glorious, famous figure, is painful for him. There’s Almdovar’s paradox- pain begets glory begets pain. You can never truly be happy as an artist, no matter how many people are made happy by your work.

Yet in the end, it’s still all worth doing. This film’s final scene is (spoilers, if you believe that a film like this can be spoiled, which would probably make you wrong, but it’s your life I guess) the perfect way to end things. There’s a scene of young Salvador and his mother (Penelope Cruz, in top form) on the night before they move to a new village. Young Salvador asks if there’s a cinema where they’re going. His mother replies that she’ll be happy if they have a house. The camera slowly zooms out to reveal a boom mic operator- the whole thing is a film. Cut to Salvador calling cut. The film ends with the crew setting up the next shot. The message is clear- life as an artist may be tough, and art may be for the consumption of others, but it can also be catharsis, therapy, affirmation of life.

In his childhood, Salvador was drawn by Eduardo, the man he tutored. He feels a connection with Eduardo, and it is implied that he’s the person that made him realize his homosexuality. Eduardo attempted to send Salvador the drawing, but it never made its way to him. In the present, Salvador finds it at an art exhibition. He buys it. The inscription on the back is a message from Eduardo to Salvador. Salvador comments that the picture finally made its way to the person who it was intended for. The scene with Salvador’s ex-lover is another instance of this, in some way. The central thesis of Pain and Glory turns out to be that art may not be for its creator, but it’s always for someone. And that makes it important. Almodovar certainly seems like he’s making this film for himself. It’s pretty much autobiographical, and it contains all of his principal obsessions: mothers, hospitals, the theater, and Penelope Cruz. But really it’s for his fans, or anyone who might want a glimpse into the psyche of a genius. At least that’s how it ends up. Almodovar has crafted a(nother) perfect piece of art, and a beautifully intimate one. One of the year’s greatest films, in a year with no shortage of excellence. For all the reasons it’s worth watching- the excellent cinematography, the career turn from Banderas, its intricate and rewarding psychological nature, the excellent bits of animation- the only thing I feel is necessary to recommend it are the four words that appear on screen at its onset- “Un film de Almodovar”. It most certainly is that.

Rating- 5/5

The Greatest Horror Movies of All Time

Ladies and Gentlemen, IT IS HALLOWEEN. Well, it’s October, which to some people doesn’t mean much but in actuality, it’s officially the best holiday. It’s the most wonderful time of the year, a time of seasonal candy (the official position of this blog is pro-candy corn, by the way), scary movies, and the onset of flu and allergy season. That’s a bit of a bummer to end on, but the scary movies part is cool. Let’s talk about that.

What follows is a ranked list of the greatest horror movies ever. The most important thing to remember here is that this is in order of quality of horror movie, not quality of movie. Confused? Of course you are. Basically, the things that make a horror movie good (atmosphere, scariness, etc) are not the same things that make a regular movie good. So, movies like Psycho and Rosemary’s Baby are better overall movies than some of the stuff that they’re behind on this list, but not better horror movies. Also, as I have not seen every horror movie in existence, this is an incomplete list. So if your favorite horror movie isn’t on here, it could be for one of three reasons: I haven’t seen it (sorry, Night of the Living Dead, both Evil Dead and Evil Dead II, and The Fly, I swear I’ll watch you one of these days), I don’t consider it a horror movie (sorry, Shaun of the Dead, What we do In the Shadows, and A Quiet Place) or it isn’t good enough (sorry, Blair Witch Project and original Friday the 13th, you should’ve been better movies). With all that cleared up, let’s go.

Dishonorable mention: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

Sorry. I know that this probably undermines my credibility on the subject, but I HATED this movie. I’ve been meaning to revisit it for some time now, because maybe it’s far better than I remembered and maybe it is the terrifying classic that everyone says it is. I wanted to like it so bad, but I just couldn’t get into it. The characters aren’t developed at all, the nothing production values don’t work, and it just feels accidental. The one thing I will say on its behalf is the blood: many people have pointed out that, despite the film being famously gory, there is almost no actual blood shown. It just feels like there is, which is pretty impressive. Anyway, I felt like the absence of this film from the list deserved an explanation, as it’s usually a staple of lists like these. I will try it again, I promise.

30- 28 Days Later (2002)

Danny Boyle’s zombie movie (come on people. It’s a zombie movie. Don’t overcomplicate things.) reminded me a lot of Texas Chainsaw when I first saw it, largely due to the fact that they both feel like they were made for about three dollars and change. 28 Days Later, however, had the somewhat crucial distinction of actually scaring me. I liked this less than I felt like I should, but it still has some completely terrifying moments and a totally unique atmosphere. Cilian Murphy is brilliant.

29- It (2017)

There are two things that make this one special: Bill Skarsgard’s terrifying, unhinged tour de force performance as Pennywise the clown, and the opening scene (which is largely made special by said terrifying unhinged tour de force). The opening scene is among the likes of Halloween, Scream, and Jaws for the greatest horror beginnings, and it miraculously maintains all of its tension and horror on repeat viewings. I seriously watched it upside down, with no sound, on someone’s phone, having already seen it and it still terrified me. A total masterclass. Oh, and the rest of this thing is scary as hell too. Surprisingly strong performances from the child actors across the board, and Skarsgard is just incredible. I have yet to see the sequel, in large part due to the negative reviews and lack of a desire to lessen the impact of this film.

28- Don’t Look Now (1973)

This is maybe the least accessible film on this list, and the least conventionally scary. For most of its runtime, Don’t Look Now unfolds as a melodrama about a family dealing with loss. But slowly but surely, it transforms in to something very, very different. By the time it reaches its unforgettable conclusion, it’s straight-up terrifying, and you’re not even sure why. The use of the setting of Venice to make it creepy just works so well throughout the whole thing. Colored raincoat double feature with It would be cool.

27- Nosferatu (1922)

This movie spawned THIS and is therefore a masterpiece:

But also it’s unbelievably influential, super creepy, and holds up shockingly well. It’s also by far the oldest movie on this list, which I feel is impressive.

26- House (1977)

This is the weirdest movie I’ve ever seen, and I’ve seen Jodorowsky’s The Holy Mountain. And I love it so much. It’s an experience like no other, and I think it’s technically a horror movie, so it makes the list. I can’t properly contextualize just how weird it is, so the only thing I can recommend is watching it. Thank me later.

25- The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

The reason why this is so low is because it’s not totally a horror movie. You could make the argument that it’s more of a thriller, and you’d be correct. But it is at least partially horror, and that part provides the film with some of its best moments. Anthony Hopkins creates one of the greatest, if not the greatest, cinematic villains. Jodie Foster turns in a career-defining performance. It’s surprisingly quotable (even if one of its most famous lines never actually appears in it). It’s a masterpiece, and one of the best films on this list, even if it doesn’t reach the rank of masterful horror film.

24- Midsommar (2019)

I’ve written at length about Ari Aster’s latest masterwork, and despite its recency, I feel comfortable placing it on this list. Far more comfortable than I did at any point during this film, which can only be described as an ordeal. It’s a brutal and shocking viewing experience, and yet a singular and perversely beautiful work of art. It suffers from a similar problem to Silence of the Lambs, however. It’s a better film than many of the films that follow (including Aster’s own Hereditary), but not as good of a horror film. In relation to Hereditary in particular, I consider it a better film, but not as scary, and that’s a factor here. Still, mandatory viewing for those with strong stomachs.

23- Get Out (2017)

Yet another masterpiece that finds itself kind of low on this list for not being as great of a horror movie as it is a regular movie. Jordan Peele’s race relations horror film was a huge deal when it came out in early 2017, earning an Oscar win for best original screenplay (which horror movies don’t really win) and establishing Peele as an auteur to watch. The drama elements (and, to some level, comedy elements) may outweigh the horror ones, but this still feels like it’ll go down as a classic, and one of the most important films in the history of the genre.

22- Paranormal Activity (2007)

Found footage horror can be hit or miss. Ok, it’s almost entirely misses, but that’s what makes this film so special. It actually works, and it actually uses the format to its full potential. It’s so effortlessly creepy, and truly terrifying at times. You’ll find yourself doing double takes at stuff you may not have even seen. This film commands you to somehow pay attention to the whole screen, like a twisted version of Tati’s Playtime (nope, bad comparison, I take it back). The ending (I’m talking about the one where BIG TIME SPOILER ALERT she lunges at the camera) is one of the most terrifying things I’ve ever experienced, and it makes up in some way for the parts of the film that drag.

21- The Cabin in the Woods (2012)

Drew Goddard is one of the most unique and underrated directors working today, as evidenced by both last year’s criminally underseen neo-noir masterwork Bad Times at the El Royale and this uproarious horror-comedy. This film is basically a horror movie fan’s dream, subverting and gloriously blowing out of proportion every single genre trope. This is similar to Scream in that it’s best enjoyed after you’ve seen a bunch of horror movies, and in that it’s self aware but in a way that actually works. Oh, and it’s also scary.

20- The Omen (1976)

Perhaps the all time creepy kid movie, The Omen is probably to blame for any time you’ve looked at a small child and gotten creeped out. The legendary “all for you” scene is one of the eeriest ever created, Gregory Peck is here, and there’s a scene where a character gets decapitated by a sheet of glass falling off the back of a truck. There’s nothing not to like about The Omen, which is undeniably one of the creepiest films ever made.

19- Carrie (1976)

The very first Stephen King adaptation, Carrie is also notable for bringing widespread recognition to director Brian de Palma and star Sissy Spacek. Piper Laurie also gives one of the scariest performances of all time, and John Travolta appears in a role one year prior to Saturday Night Fever. Carrie also features one of the only valid uses of the split screen, and the final jump scare is one of the best ever. It has since (unfortunately) been remade twice, but nothing can take away from the iconic, classic original.

18- Eraserhead (1977)

Every time I hear or see the word “Eraserhead”, a part of my brain does the noise Sideshow Bob makes when he steps on a rake. David Lynch’s primal debut feature is one of the freakiest and most upsetting films ever made. It’s composed almost entirely of things you wish you weren’t looking at. This is rare among horror films because of the visceral level at which it upsets you. Lynch creates images that you never would’ve thought of and would’ve liked to have never imagined. Eraserhead is a horrifying, brilliant film unlike no other.

17- A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

Yes, it may be super 80s and cheesy and yes, the impact may be ruined due to eternal sequels, but this holds up stunningly well. Krueger, although made cartoony by years of pop culture ubiquity, is still terrifying. The general premise is unbeatable. And the failure of every adult to function as human beings is an all time group of dumb horror movie characters and decisions. What’s especially clear from this film is that Wes Craven knows his way around a horror movie. This is far scarier still than it has any right to be, and somehow earned its place as a classic.

16- Phantasm (1979)

Phantasm! This movie is notable for being absolutely freaking bonkers and also ruling. The fact that it even got made illustrates how awesome hollywood was in the 70s. This gonzo psychedelic cult classic boasts one of horror’s greatest ever villains, and also manages to be truly frightening among all the entertainment. The less you know about this one going in, the better, so I’ll leave it at this: Phantasm is mandatory viewing for any horror enthusiast, and you should probably watch it even if you don’t like horror movies. Everyone should see it. Elect me president of the world and I will force everyone to watch Phantasm Clockwork Orange-style.

15- Us (2019)

Jordan Peele’s sophomore feature is (hot take alert) superior to its predecessor in almost every way. First and foremost, it’s scarier. It kind of has to be, as it goes full-on horror in ways Get Out doesn’t. Lupita Nyong’o gives one of the greatest performances (two of them, actually) of anyone in any movie ever. It’s unbelievable. Catching this the day it came out was one of the smartest decisions I’ve ever made- Us is an astounding piece of cinema, one of the greatest films ever made, and a masterwork of the horror genre. I refuse to say a single word against this movie. It’s flawless. It’s not higher because then I’d be subject to accusations of recency bias, which is a subject I will address later when I commit a pretty appalling act of recency bias.

14- Carnival of Souls (1962)

Herk Harvey’s 1962 cult classic is something of an oddity in terms of how it reached that status. It was conceived as part of a drive-in double feature, which bombed due to how weird it is. It drifted around in obscurity for decades, before people finally woke up and realized the truth: that Carnival of Souls is an eerie, atmospheric masterpiece. It’s everything every horror movie should strive to be- fresh, original, SO CREEPY, and bizarre. I saw this for the first time on a total whim, knowing very little about it, and not really knowing why. It was almost as if something drew me to it. It’s one of my favorite films ever, and if you saw it for the first time without knowing what you were about to see, you’ll understand why.

13- Psycho (1960)

You were warned that Psycho would be below some stuff it’s better than. Probably the greatest film on this list (its competition is basically Rosemary’s Baby, The Shining, and The Silence of the Lambs), Psycho falls here because it doesn’t hold up as a horror movie particularly well. Sure, it’s honestly really scary at points (RIP Arbogast), and it’s creepy throughout, but it works better as a mystery at this point. But Psycho is undeniable on this list, both for its influence and the fact that it’s just so damn great. There’s really nothing to say about it that hasn’t been said already, so I’ll leave it there.

12- The Conjuring (2013)

James Wan’s 2013 film is unabashedly scares over substance, but oh my god is it scary. Quite possibly the most terrifying film ever made, The Conjuring feels dangerous to watch. It can get you any time, from anywhere. Some of the jump scares are telegraphed, but it doesn’t matter. Two in particular (the hands in the basement and the demon on the wardrobe) rank among the absolute greatest of all time. Another thing it does well is invoke the season of fall. It uses the distinct setting to its advantage, and plays on the inherent creepiness of the time. It never misses an opportunity to try to scare you, and it never fails.

11- Scream (1996)

Craven’s crowning achievement, Scream is blessed with something many horror movies of its time were short on: creativity. The first horror movie to really be self-aware, it played on this then-untapped angle and converted it to the perfect experience for genre fans. It’s a loving tribute to horror that also succeeds at being scary in its own right- the legendary opening scene is one of the best ever, and the van jump scare is brilliant. It also features possibly the greatest screenplay in horror history courtesy of Kevin Williamson. The performances are all perfect. The rules are all spot on. Wes Craven himself plays the janitor dressed like Freddy Krueger.

10- Jaws (1975)

The movie that has made generation after generation afraid to go swimming is a mortal lock for the top 10 on a list of the greatest horror movies ever. The brilliance here is twofold- the use of music and the fact that the shark remains hidden. The musical element of the film wasn’t the first time music had been used in such a way (Psycho and M did it first, although only Psycho is a horror movie of those two), but it was certainly crucial in establishing it as a trope. The lack of use of the shark apparently wasn’t Spielberg’s first choice and was caused by mechanical issues, but it works well and has been used by many movies since (see Friday the 13th). While there may not be many moments that are actually, legitimately scary, anyone who’s ever been in the ocean can definitely say it’s terrifying.

9- Rosemary’s Baby (1968)

The controversy of director Roman Polanski can’t really take away from what an achievement this film is. It’s shocking, disturbing, and masterful. This is a film that haunts the viewer long after it finishes, and it contains brilliant imagery that sears itself into the brain of the viewer. It’s perfect in the way it portrays paranoia, betrayal, and bad neighbors. The film features a gloomy, sorrowful mood that persists throughout its runtime, and it’s a very different viewing experience than most other horror films. Mia Farrow is excellent, as are Ruth Gordon (who deservedly won an Oscar for her portrayal of villain Minnie Castevet) and legendary independent filmmaker John Cassavetes. The moral of the story is clear- never live in an apartment, never talk to your neighbors, and don’t mess with mysterious blocked off doors in your new residence.

8- It Follows (2014)

David Robert Mitchell’s 2014 stunner is an example of someone taking a genius premise and not only living up to it, but exceeding its potential. It Follows is a perfect movie, a brilliant and concentrated creation of pure terror and intensity. There’s no safety anywhere, there’s nothing you can do to truly escape. All you can do is run and hope. At some point I should write more about this film and how much I love it, because I really can’t fit it all in one paragraph. But It Follows is a modern classic, and I stand by its placement on this list.

7- Alien (1979)

Ridley Scott’s 1979 classic is one of the greatest horror films ever and one of the greatest sci-fi films ever, which is a winning combination. It starts off slow, and about halfway through kicks it up a notch and devolves into a pure hellscape, never to relent. The scares are truly excellent (the vent scene got me on my second watch, too), the acting is word-perfect (Sigourney Weaver is flawless), and the titular creature is one of horror’s greatest villains. It’s scientifically impossible to watch Alien and not love it. Trust me, I know science, I’ve seen Alien a bunch of times.

6- The Thing (1982)

John Carpenter’s classic film is brutal, intense, and terrifying from the very start up until the brilliantly ambiguous conclusion. Similar to Alien, it’s a masterclass in isolation. Yet for every scare built out of brilliant tension (holy hell the blood test scene), there’s one that’s just plain gross (defibrillator). This variety is what makes The Thing unique- it covers every possible base. The gross-out gory stuff is balanced out with steadily mounting tension. Brilliant acting and plotting create something unforgettable, it’s everything a horror movie can be and then some. It’s also one of two films in the top 10 to receive a razzie nomination.

5- Hereditary (2018)

Ari Aster’s films remind me a lot of Stephen King’s novels. They’re gruesome, upsetting, and hard to get through. They’re terrifying, abrasive, and yet totally brilliant. Hereditary is a perfect example of this. It’s terrifying in a way that so few films are: it’s atmospheric and the characters have an uncanny ability to scare you just by being themselves. It feels wrong throughout. It feels like you shouldn’t be watching it. Comparisons to Rosemary’s Baby and The Exorcist don’t feel out of place. This is a painful watch, one that’s regrettable and rewarding at once. Toni Collette delivers one of horror’s greatest performances. This is the film that, more than any other, feels like the harbinger of a new kind of horror movie. Something raw and unpleasant, but phenomenal nonetheless.

4- The Shining (1980)

The Shining is a horror film a la Kubrick, which means it’s meticulous and somewhat overwhelming. It’s the basis for my theory that every movie ever should have been directed by him- look at the set design, the camera angles, the performances (Nicholson’s career best). The hotel itself couldn’t exist as it’s depicted in the movie, it’s intentionally constructed impossibly to communicate a feeling of uneasiness and confusion. The scenes in the snow are the absolute best movies ever get. It’s an experience that never gets old, and it’s one that no movie, let alone horror film, has ever replicated or matched. It’s also a dark horse candidate for the best edited film ever, too. This is a particular brand of excellence, and a scary one to boot.

3- Halloween (1978)

John Carpenter’s seminal slasher classic is unique among horror movies in how little time it takes to get to the chase. It opens with a brilliant unbroken POV shot that depicts the first murder of the killer at the center of the film, then pans back to reveal a small child. It then goes to a mental facility in the middle of the night where said killer steals a car and escapes. The killing resumes again shortly, but not without abundant creepiness in between. Halloween unfolds exactly as all slashers should. It’s a perfect film, entertaining and scary in equal measure. It features both an all time great villain and an all time great heroine. It’s a rare movie that you feel you couldn’t add or remove a frame to or from. Every movement of the camera or one of the characters is essential, every line is perfect, every blank, emotionless Michael Myers stare is flawless. It doesn’t have the flash or elaborateness of some of the films that followed it, but it has more quality than any of them.

2- The Babadook (2014)

Remember the appalling act of recency bias I talked about earlier? Well, here we are. I firmly believe that The Babadook deserves this spot. It creates some of the greatest scares ever without any actual danger (the scenes with the book are unbelievably terrifying) and both central performances are crafted perfectly to achieve the desired results. Possibly the scariest film ever made, it’s also a cutting depiction of loss and parenthood. On the recency bias- the reason that films like this don’t make lists like this is due to reverse recency bias, the inability to admit that modern films are superior to some (admittedly great) classic films. This is honestly where I think this film should be. Watching it for the first time felt like what it must have been like to watch The Shining or The Exorcist in the years after their releases. This film will go down in history as one of the greatest examples of the genre and one of its defining works.

1- The Exorcist (1973)

Nothing can be said about The Exorcist that hasn’t been said already. I’ve even written extensively about it. But one universal truth that I feel can’t be overstated is this: The Exorcist is the greatest horror movie ever created. It’s terrifying, disturbing, unsettling, brutal, and masterful. If it feels too easy to call it these things, that’s because it deserves them to such a degree that saying it feels repetitive. This is a stunning epic of faith, terror, and pea soup that has managed to persist for four and a half decades on a legacy of horrifying excellence, a legacy that it deserves. This is the only answer. Horror cinema’s greatest masterpiece.

Every movie year of the 1990s, ranked

If you’ve seen any legitimate percentage of posts on this blog, you will be aware that I love ranking stuff. I also love movies from the 90s. I also love the concept of the best movie years. It’s a miracle I didn’t hit on this sooner. Anyway, since it’s been 20 years and everyone’s reminiscing about it, the question of “is 1999 the greatest movie year ever?” has been asked a lot. The question I ask back is- is it even the greatest movie year of the decade? Maybe. Read to find out.

10- 1991

Essential films: The Silence of the Lambs, Terminator 2: Judgement Day, Cape Fear, Beauty and the Beast, The Fisher King, Point Break, Boyz n the Hood, Barton Fink, Thelma and Louise, JFK, My Own Private Idaho, Bugsy, The Doors, Naked Lunch, Jungle Fever

The Silence of the Lambs is the big one here. After that, it kinda peters out. There’s a reason it became just the third film to sweep the big 5 oscar categories. Besides that, there’s Judgement Day, wildly considered to be one of the greatest sequels and action movies of all time. Barton Fink is one of the Coens’ most under appreciated works. Cape Fear is one of the all time greatest remakes and features an elite De Niro role. Oliver Stone had a big year with JFK and The Doors. There’s stuff from Spike Lee, David Cronenberg, the late John Singleton, Kathryn Bigelow, and Gus van Sant. That’s about it, which is still pretty strong considering how easily it’s the worst year on this list

Best Film: The Silence of the Lambs. How many films can spawn a legendary line that isn’t even in the movie, not even as a misquote?

9- 1992

Essential films: Unforgiven, Reservoir Dogs, Malcolm X, A Few Good Men, A League of Their Own, Glengarry Glen Ross, Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Scent of a Woman, Basic Instinct, Aladdin, Batman Returns, Wayne’s World, The Crying Game, The Player, My Cousin Vinny, Candyman, Howard’s End, Chaplin, Alien 3.

Despite being one of the weakest of the 90s, some great stuff came out of 1992. Lauded films by Spike Lee, Robert Altman, and Francis Ford Coppola (well at least it’s lauded in relation to most of his other stuff) were released. The best picture winner was Eastwood’s Unforgiven, which has been held up as one of his greatest works. A pair of famous quotes (“Coffee is for closers” and “YOU CAN’T HANDLE THE TRUTH”) and Danny Devito’s Penguin round out the reasons that this is still a great year. But the major thing here is the beginning of the career of one Quentin Tarantino. He broke onto the scene with Reservoir Dogs, an era-defining work and still one of his best films. Another career, that of the great David Fincher, began as well with Alien 3, albeit less auspiciously. You’ll see more of him on this list, though.

Best film: Reservoir Dogs, even leaving the influence of it out of it.

8- 1996

Essential films: Fargo, Scream, Independence Day, The English Patient, The People vs Larry Flynt, From Dusk Till Dawn, Mission: Impossible, Jerry Maguire, Trainspotting, Space Jam, Sling Blade, The Birdcage, Mars Attacks, Happy Gilmore, Romeo + Juliet, Swingers, The Rock, Bottle Rocket, Hard Eight, The Cable Guy, Black Sheep

1996 is notable because there’s a lot that’s entered popular culture due to sheer ridiculousness: see Burton’s Mars Attacks, Jim Carrey and Adam Sandler vehicles The Cable Guy and Happy Gilmore, and of course, Space Jam. This is a great year, not because of the great films, but because of the interesting ones. Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet is one of the weirder Shakespeare adaptations out there, and it also helped launch the career of Leonardo DiCaprio, The Rock is Michael Bay before the Michael Bay-ness of it all got to his head, The Birdcage is a Mike Nichols comedy about a gay couple, played by Robin Williams and Nathan Lane, From Dusk Till Dawn stars George Clooney and Quentin Tarantino, The People vs Larry Flynt is a movie by Milos Forman starring Woody Harrelson as a porn producer. The Mission: Impossible franchise started here, which is worth something, and Trainspotting launched the careers of Danny Boyle and Ewan McGregor. Cuba Gooding Jr won an oscar for Jerry Maguire. This year also saw the debuts of not one, but two legendary auteurs with the last name of Anderson. Paul Thomas’ Hard Eight and Wes’ Bottle Rocket are similarly shoved towards the bottom of their respective outputs today, but they mark the arrival of tremendous talent. The true greatness of this year lies in The Coen Brothers’ dark masterpiece Fargo and Wes Craven’s seminal (for better or for worse) Scream. Both movies are unique and original in tone (well, Scream was until they made 3 sequels and a million unofficial remakes) and carry this year.

Best Film: It’s Fargo, but the temptation to go with Scream just because is hard to resist.

7- 1993

Essential films: Schindler’s List, Jurassic Park, The Piano, The Fugitive, True Romance, Demolition Man, Mrs. Doubtfire, Groundhog Day, Dazed and Confused, Philadelphia, A Bronx Tale, Carlito’s Way, The Age of Innocence, Short Cuts, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, Coneheads, Super Mario Bros.

The inclusion of legendary classics Coneheads and Super Mario Bros help 1993, but despite these enduring masterworks, the year belongs to Stephen Spielberg. The man made his greatest, most soul-crushing work and one of his most exhilirating, dinosaur-oriented classics in the same year. That’s incredible. He deservedly took home Best Picture and Best Director for Schindler’s List, miraculously beating out Coneheads auteur Steve Barron (I had to look that one up). This year also features the likes of Robert De Niro’s directorial debut A Bronx Tale, Altman Resurgence staple Short Cuts, Jane Campion’s acclaimed historical drama The Piano, and Richard Linklater’s Dazed and Confused, which is notable for being one of the only Linklater films set over a rational period of time. True Romance is fascinating: written by Quentin Tarantino, directed by Tony Scott, and starring the likes of Christian Slater, Patricia Arquette, Val Kilmer, Dennis Hopper (who’s also Bowser in Super Mario Bros.), Gary Oldman, Brad Pitt, Samuel L Jackson, Christopher Walken, and James Gandolfini. Scorsese and Daniel Day Lewis teamed up to adapt Edith Wharton. Leonardo DiCaprio earned his first critical attention for What’s Eating Gilbert Grape. Groundhog Day is one of the funniest movies ever and it’s one of three contenders for the best Bill Murray performance (Caddyshack and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou). I left a lot out of that write up, but at least I got to make my jokes about the Super Mario Bros movie.

Best Film: Super Ma- Schindler’s List. I meant Schindler’s List.

6- 1998

Essential Films: Saving Private Ryan, The Thin Red Line, The Big Lebowski, American History X, The Truman Show, Rushmore, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Antz, A Bug’s Life, Armageddon, Deep Impact, Shakespeare in Love, Blade, Out of Sight, There’s Something About Mary, Pi

1998 is a year of doubles. Two famous war films in Saving Private Ryan and The Thin Red Line. Two movies about space rocks coming to destroy earth with Armageddon and Deep Impact. Two talking ant movies in A Bug’s Life and Antz. That’s a strange list. Darren Aronofsky also debuted with Pi and Edward Norton established himself as a force to be reckoned with in American History X. Steven Soderbergh made one of his most renowned films in Out of Sight. Rushmore is the first true Wes Anderson film and still one of his best. It also gave us the line “OR they?”, which is a gift to mankind. The Truman Show features one of the most prominent Jim Carrey Dramatic Roles and also Ed Harris. The guy who directed There’s Something About Mary also did the most recent best picture winner, so blech. Now here are, in rough order, the top 10 quotes from The Big Lebowski, with no explanation.

10- What do you mean I brought it bowling, dude? I didn’t rent it shoes. I’m not buying it a f**ing beer. He’s not taking your f**ing turn, dude.

9- Is this your homework, Larry?

8- Nice marmot.

7- Obviously, you’re not a golfer.

6- Eight year olds, dude.

5- Mr Treehorn treats objects like women, man.

4- Careful man, there’s a beverage here.

3- You want a toe? I can get you a toe.

2- It’s a league game, Smokey.

1- He fixes the cable?

Best Film: Lebowski. If you’d say Saving Private Ryan, which is truly a great film, then that’s just like, your opinion, man. Sorry.

5- 1990

Essential films: Goodfellas, Miller’s Crossing, King of New York, Misery, The Godfather part III, Ghost, Dances With Wolves, Edward Scissorhands, Tremors, Jacob’s Ladder, Total Recall, Home Alone, Pretty Woman, Wild at Heart

Before I get to the fact that this is indisputably the greatest year in gangster movie history, let’s go over the other stuff. Misery is a great adaptation of an incredible book that features some of the best casting (and acting) of all time. Edward Scissorhands is one of the Burton-est Burton movies, which is a good thing. Wild at Heart won David Lynch the Palme d’Or. And now on to the gangster movies. Goodfellas is maybe the best movie in the history of the genre, in addition to being perfect in every single possible way and the best movie in the history of the world (I like this movie). King of New York is a wonderfully bats**t piece of absolute art that I also love and will totally write more about. For now I’ll leave it at this- it treats Christopher Walken as a leading man, which is rare but awesome, it’s the most stylized damn thing in the universe, which is also awesome, and I spent the entire day after I first saw it wondering if it was actually that good or if I was just tired. I decided that it is, in fact, that good. Miller’s Crossing is the third major gangster movie, which is the Coens’ only foray into the genre. It’s brilliant, complex, and it contains a scene of Albert Finney gunning people down from a burning building while Danny Boy plays. A perfect film. The final major gangster movie is, of course, The Godfather III, which is significant in that it is a Godfather movie. The renaissance of such a fantastic genre is what carries 1990 to its position, but it’s kept here by the rest of the year.

Best Film:

4- 1997

Essential films: Titanic, L.A. Confidential, Good Will Hunting, Boogie Nights, Happy Together, Jackie Brown, Face/Off, Con Air, Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, Lost Highway, Amistad, Gattaca, Scream 2, Grosse Pointe Blank, As Good as it Gets, Batman and Robin, Starship Troopers, Men in Black

Titanic won every Oscar known to man and made 6 trillion dollars. Whatever. On to the good stuff. L.A. Confidential is history’s greatest police movie (I will absolutely fight anyone on this). Boogie Nights is history’s greatest porn movie (by which I mean movie about porn. I also don’t foresee having to fight anyone on this one). Happy Together is one of Wong Kar-Wai’s darkest films, and also one of his most haunting and excellent (if you don’t know that name, learn it- he’s gonna come up a lot in the upcoming paragraphs). Jackie Brown is admittedly minor Tarantino, but it’s still an excellent film. Lost Highway is admittedly minor Lynch, but it also contains these two scenes so all is forgiven.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdIlLn52Oak
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDilD3wAxt8

Austin Powers is one of the funniest movies ever made. Scream 2 is the only valid horror sequel. Con Air and Face/Off harken back to an era when action movies had intriguing premises. Batman and Robin gave us Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Mr. Freeze.

Best film: Boogie Nights. It’s Anderson’s best work, and as much as I love L.A. Confidential, I love Boogie Nights slightly more.

3- 1995

Essential films: Seven, Heat, The Usual Suspects, Braveheart, Toy Story, Apollo 13, Clueless, 12 Monkeys, Casino, Billy Madison, Leaving Las Vegas, Jumanji, Tommy Boy, Before Sunrise, Fallen Angels, Sense and Sensibility

Or, The Year That The Academy Shafted The Actual Best Movies And Opted For An Insane Best Picture Slate That Included Freaking Babe. That was the original title, but they thought it was too long and so they changed it to 1995. For real, Seven, The Usual Suspects, and Heat were all famously shut out of the category, so they had to give it to Mel Gibson. Toy Story would’ve been a better choice, by a lot. 1995 also contained 12 Monkeys, a Terry Gilliam movie based on a famous experimental short film composed of still images. Casino is the one bad Scorsese movie, but the muffin scene is funny so there’s that. Linklater kicked off his legendary Before trilogy with Before Sunrise. Wong Kar-Wai made Fallen Angels, which is essentially a sequel/continuation of Chungking Express that also happens to be awesome. Tommy Boy is so good. Seven is Fincher’s first real movie, and contains one of the best endings ever. The Usual Suspects is weird to talk about now, given director Bryan Singer and star Kevin Spacey, but it really is a great movie. Billy Madison is the best Adam Sandler comedy.

Best film: Seven. Pitt’s performance in the finale might be the best acting of his career.

2- 1994

Essential films: Pulp Fiction, Chungking Express, Quiz Show, The Shawshank Redemption, Leon: The Professional, The Lion King, Clerks, Forrest Gump, Natural Born Killers, Dumb and Dumber, The Mask, Ed Wood, Ace Ventura: Pet Detective

This is a lot of people’s pick for the greatest movie year ever, and that’s not at all a crazy statement- it’s certainly up there. The sheer quality of the stuff towards the top solidifies it in the top 5 or so. It does kinda peter out after the first few, but it maintains quality enough to get to this point. Pulp Fiction and Chungking express are singular, inimitable masterworks from some of the greatest auteurs of all time. The Shawshank Redemption owns. Quiz Show also owns. Leon contains the best Gary Oldman performance. Forrest Gump… is here. The Lion King is one of the greatest Disney movies (and arguably the second greatest Shakespeare adaptation, after Kurosawa’s Throne of Blood). This was also the year Jim Carrey made it big, with the trifecta of Dumb and Dumber, The Mask, and Ace Ventura: Pet Detective.

Best Film: Pulp Fiction. But man, it’s tempting to go with Chungking.

1- 1999

Essential films: Fight Club, Being John Malkovich, Beau Travail, The Matrix, American Beauty, The Sixth Sense, All About My Mother, The Blair Witch Project, Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, Office Space, Magnolia, Bringing Out the Dead, The Green Mile, The Short Story, The Insider, South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut

Yeah, this is the winner. The Matrix changed Sci-Fi forever, The Sixth Sense launched the career of M Night Shyamalan (which only Haley Joel Osment can see now OOOOOOH BURN), Office Space is hilarious, and Being John Malkovich is a glorious piece of gonzo awesomeness that is one of my favorite movies ever. Spectacular work in foreign films as well- the legendary Claire Denis delivered Beau Travail, her masterpiece, and Pedro Almodovar was in top form with All About My Mother, one of his warmest, sweetest films and a straight up classic. Acclaimed films from directors such as Mann, PTA, Scorsese, and Lynch. The first Star Wars prequel came out. The Blair Witch Project is bad but it started a trend of a zillion other bad movies (found footage horror is a cancer) and made a ton of money because it lied to market it so I guess it’s Culturally Significant.

The two key films to understanding 1999 are American Beauty, the year’s best picture winner about how everyone sucks but everyone is also good at heart and so they all go to heaven, and Fight Club, David Fincher’s cult classic about a society gone to hell. I’ve written at length on my feelings on American Beauty and its falsehoods, misconceptions, and general crappiness, and I probably will again. The thing that gets me about these two films is society’s conception of them. Fight Club is seen by many as something endorsing the kind of actions seen in the film (both by people who want to see it that way and by people who are disgusted by it). American Beauty seems like it’s making fun of its subjects, until it becomes clear that it’s actually supporting them (why does this movie have to suck so much it makes me sad). The movie that is actually a satire gets no credit for it and the one that’s depressingly not is considered as such. And that’s the one that took best picture. Weird year. But an important one.

Best Film: There’s so much here and a lot to be said for and against it all. So let’s call it South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut.

92nd Academy Awards Preview

September is upon us, and has been for two weeks now, which means that it’s officially* awards season (*not officially). So, since this is a blog maintained by an oscars-crazed lunatic (my credentials include memorizing every best picture winner and also hating the whole thing), I’m going to go into depth, looking at pretty much every possible contender for awards. There’s so much to go through here, so this introduction is now over. On to the movies, of which there are several.

I will continue to update this post as awards season progresses.

The Two Popes- dir. Fernando Meirelles

Awards contending for: Best Picture, Best Actor (Jonathan Pryce), Best Supporting Actor (Anthony Hopkins), Best Director, Best Original Screenplay

This, in my mind, is the one to watch. Starring two beloved veteran actors playing noted figures and already getting rave reviews that indicate that it could contend for best picture. In addition to this, it has to be the heavy favorite for best actor for Pryce. He’s a fantastic actor who’s never won, and there is the Anthony McCarten effect- he’s penned the scripts for the last two best actor winners (Bohemian Rhapsody and Darkest Hour), in addition to 2014’s The Theory of Everything, which also won that award.

Harriet- dir. Kasi Lemmons

Awards contending for: Best Picture, Best Actress (Cynthia Erivo), Best Director, Best Original Screenplay

This is a biopic about Harriet Tubman, making it an immediate contender. Erivo was phenomenal last year in Widows and Bad Times at the El Royale, and seems like one of two major contenders for best actress (more on that later). And Lemmons has been around for a while and never contended for anything awards-wise. This one is a clear contender.

1917- dir. Sam Mendes

Awards contending for: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Cinematography (Roger Deakins)

Mendes has won already for American Beauty and this is his return to non-franchise movies after a couple James Bond movies. This is a serious best picture contender, but the one that it has to be the favorite for is cinematography. The legendary Roger Deakins finally won for Blade Runner 2049 two years ago and made his return this year with two movies. The first is The Goldfinch, which will not be mentioned in this preview due to being relentlessly crapped on by critics. The second is 1917, which is apparently shot in one continuous long take (or looks like it. Think Birdman or Rope). Maybe the academy won’t go for Deakins twice in such a short period of time, but that feels unlikely with this subject matter. Oh, and it’s a war movie, so that’s why it’s a best picture contender.

Marriage Story- dir. Noah Baumbach

Awards contending for: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (Adam Driver), Best Actress (Scarlett Johansson), Best supporting Actress (Laura Dern), Best Original Screenplay

The reviews for this one surprised me, not because they were overwhelmingly positive, I saw that coming, but because it could be a big contender. This film, along with The Report, is one of the roles that signals that it could be Driver’s year to win, but the biggest chance this movie has at an Oscar is Laura Dern, whose role looks like her strongest chance to win one of these (oh please please god please). It’s also one of Netflix’s many films of note this season, with The Two Popes being the strongest. But it’s about time that Baumbach had a contender, and this looks like the one.

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood- dir. Quentin Tarantino

Awards contending for: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Actor (Leonardo DiCaprio), Best Supporting Actor (Brad Pitt), Best Supporting Actress (Margot Robbie)

I’ve written extensively on this film, my favorite of the year so far, already. Suffice it to say that DiCaprio’s career best performance should garner attention, as should Brad Pitt’s co-lead turn that will probably be campaigned for as supporting. Robbie should and hopefully will contend for supporting actress. This might also be the one that gets Tarantino his picture or director win, as it’d be a fitting one to award him for. The screenplay rules too. I love this movie.

The Irishman- dir. Martin Scorsese

Awards contending for: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Actor (Robert DeNiro), Best Supporting Actor (Joe Pesci), Best Visual Effects

Scorsese’s three and a half hour (too short, if you ask me) Netflix mob epic should be interesting. No reviews here yet, as it hasn’t yet debuted. DeNiro’s performance should be one to watch, as should Pesci’s. The material is perfect for an oscar contender, and it seems like the kind of thing that Scorsese usually nails. The most interesting thing here, however, is visual effects. The de-aging has been the subject of a lot of the conversation around the film. It could make or break the whole thing, and it’s the first time something like this has been attempted. It could be a big contender in that category if it all goes well.

Parasite- dir. Bong Joon-Ho

Awards contending for: Best picture, Best Director, Best International Film

Bong’s Palme d’Or winner has been called the best film of the year by many critics. After Roma broke into the race last year, earning 10 nominations and 3 awards, the opportunity for a foreign film to win has never been more real. This is at least a lock for international film, which South Korea has never won. If it were to win the big one, it would be the second Palme d’Or winner to win Best Picture. The first? 1955’s Marty, the first Palme winner.

Ford v Ferrari- dir. James Mangold

Awards contending for: Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (Christian Bale), Best Original Screenplay, Best Sound Mixing/Editing

Logan director James Mangold breaks into the Oscar race with this racing drama. It looks like the perfect contender, boasting everything from a period setting to Christian Bale. It has received praise from critics, including some who have pointed out that it feels like a strong contender for sound awards.

Joker- dir. Todd Phillips

Awards contending for: Best Picture, Best adapted screenplay, Best Actor (Joaquin Phoenix)

Look, I’m not gonna get into the discourse on this one (mainly because I haven’t seen it yet). But it’s clearly a major contender after its Venice Golden Lion win (the last two winners of that were Roma and The Shape of Water). Phoenix is the strongest contender here: he’s overdue for a win and would be the second person to play the Joker to win an Oscar for it. The film’s best picture chances mainly hinge on whether or not it’s perceived as “too dangerous”, which, I’m sorry, is ridiculous. I know I said no discourse but if a movie is taken the wrong way by someone, it isn’t the movie’s fault. That being said, I haven’t seen it. This is one to watch, for several reasons.

The Report- dir. Scott Z Burns

Awards contending for: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (Adam Driver), Best Supporting Actress (Annette Bening) Best Original Screenplay

This sounds like a pretty standard Oscar contender- based on recent real events, well reviewed, about people searching for the truth about other people who are doing evil things and etc. Like I said, standard. But Driver rules and so does Bening, so I don’t know.

Pain and Glory- dir. Pedro Almodovar

Awards contending for: Best International Film, Best Actor (Antonio Banderas)

Almodovar! The legendary Spanish director is already a 2-time Oscar winner- he took the 2000 International (then-Foreign language) film award for his classic All About My Mother. More impressively, his 2002 masterpiece Talk to Her won Best Original Screenplay, the first foreign language winner of said award since 1966. For his 2006 film Volver, Penelope Cruz earned a best Actress nod. So what I’m saying is, his films have shown an ability to earn Oscar nominations. Pain and Glory sounds like a deeply personal film in the vein of Fellini’s 8 1/2. It’s an international film nom lock and a legitimate Actor contender. Don’t be shocked if it can sneak into the screenplay, picture, or director race.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood- dir. Marielle Heller

Awards Contending For: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor (Tom Hanks), Best Adapted Screenplay

Heller directed last year’s Can You Ever Forgive Me?, which earned 3 nominations. That film, however, was not based on the life of a beloved historical figure (it handled the story of a generally derided one). This is a Mr Rogers biopic featuring Tom Hanks. This is an easy one. Also, Hanks has never been nominated for the Best Supporting Actor Oscar, this would be his first.

Jojo Rabbit- dir. Taika Waititi

Awards Contending for: Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay

Jojo Rabbit is, in the wake of its TIFF premiere, an interesting one. This is Fox Searchlight’s big contender this year, which automatically makes it one to watch. What We Do in the Shadows and Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi has, oddly, become an Oscar contender (YESSSSS), but things could get complicated: this has been getting seriously mixed reviews. Some critics are calling it brilliant, and some are calling it trash. The consensus emerging is that it contains a great use of a David Bowie song, so I’m trying to guess which one it is. Oh and also I’m worried that it’s gonna be bad, which would suck. This one is extremely interesting.

UPDATE: Oh boy. Jojo Rabbit just won the People’s Choice Award at Toronto. That solidifies it as a major player and a lock for a best picture nod. Last year’s winner, was Green Book, which… I don’t feel like talking about it but you all know what happened there. Jojo Rabbit instantly becomes impossible to ignore.

Judy- dir. Rupert Goold

Awards Contending for: Best Actress (Renee Zellweger)

Here’s the other half of the Best Actress race, along with Harriet. Zellweger is already an Oscar winner, but she hasn’t really been around for a while. This is a perfect choice for a comeback role- playing a famed tragic actress is total Oscar bait. That’s about all this one can contend for, though.

The Farewell- dir. Lulu Wang

Awards Contending for: Best Original Screenplay, Best Actress (Awkwafina), Best Picture

This is another interesting one. I doubt it can grab a picture nod, but it’s not out of the question. The other two listed awards are also maybes at best, but they’re conceivable. This one could really go either way.

The Lion King- dir. Jon Favreau

Awards contending for: Best animated feature (if they get off their stupid high horse and admit that it’s animated), Best original song (I’m pretty sure, I don’t have the energy to look it up for this movie.)

Blech.

Rocketman- dir. Dexter Fletcher

Awards Contending for: Best Actor (Taron Egerton), Best Original Song ((I’m Gonna) Love Me Again by Elton John and Taron Egerton), Best Sound Mixing, Best Sound Editing

Egerton is the biggest contender here. He’s playing Elton John and, unlike last year’s Best Actor winner who played a legendary singer, did his own singing (Not bitter at all). He probably won’t win, as the Best Actor race is crowded this year. Song is another one that it could potentially win, because, again, Elton John. This is, however, a biopic, so it’s gonna be hard to ignore come awards season. However, unlike Bohemian Rhapsody, this one isn’t a drooling celebration of how its subject matter was the second coming of Jesus Christ (NOPE NOT BITTER THAT IT WON FOUR OSCARS), it’s more of an accurate depiction of the ups and downs of his life, which could hurt it. Anyway I love this movie and I hope it wins everything.

Little Women- dir. Greta Gerwig

Awards contending for: Best picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Actress (Saoirse Ronan)

Adaptation of a beloved period novel directed by a former Oscar nominee and starring a beloved nominee (Ronan). This is a slam dunk for multiple nods, and it’ll probably be great. This is an easy one.

The Laundromat- dir. Steven Soderbergh

Awards contending for: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress (Meryl Streep), Best Original Screenplay

Although apparently, this one isn’t a big awards season priority for Netflix, it has an awards season pedigree- Soderbergh is always one to watch and that’s nothing compared with Streep’s stature. Another to watch, but maybe not a huge one.

Toy Story 4- dir. Josh Cooley

Awards contending for: Best Animated film, Best Original Song (The Ballad of the lonesome cowboy by Randy Newman and Chris Stapleton)

Pixar. Toy Story movie. 3 won for animated film, and the first two only didn’t because the award didn’t exist. It probably wouldn’t if they hadn’t existed. You can pencil this one in as the winner now.

Bombshell- dir. Jay Roach

Awards contending for: Best Picture, Best original screenplay, Best actress (Charlize Theron), Best supporting actress (Nicole Kidman)

Coinciding with the Roger Ailes miniseries starring Russell Crowe, this film about fox news employees rising up against the culture of toxic masculinity sounds like this year’s Vice- a film about the current political climate that should appeal to Academy voters. This is a bit of an unknown, as another one without any reviews out, so we don’t know how it’ll be received.

Us- dir. Jordan Peele

Awards contending for: Best Actress (Lupita Nyong’o), Best original screenplay

Nyong’o delivers- hot take time!- the greatest performance in horror movie history and one of the greatest ever (I’m a sucker for dual roles. My favorite Gyllenhaal performance is Enemy). If anything, actress and screenplay are this masterpiece’s only hope. In an ideal world, this would be a serious contender for best picture, Lupita would be a lock, and It Follows cinematographer Mike Gioulakis would get recognized for his stellar work. Give it all the Oscars ever. Sadly, that won’t happen. But for the moment when I was writing this paragraph it sounded like a reality, and that was fun.

Uncut Gems- dir. Josh and Benny Safdie

Awards contending for: Best Actor (Adam Sandler), Best Original Screenplay

Sandler’s dramatic roles have historically ruled (see Punch Drunk Love), and this sounds like his best shot at an Oscar. The Safdie brothers, known for 2017’s Pattinson-starring crime thriller Good Time, have, according to reviews, created a film that stays true to their distinct style and also has a shot at awards.

A Hidden Life- dir. Terrence Malick

Awards contending for: Best Picture, Best Director, Best cinematography

Malick’s best-reviewed film since 2011’s The Tree of Life is consequently his biggest contender. Yet, it’s kind of a longshot- Malick’s recent work hasn’t attracted academy attention and it isn’t really being pushed hard. Still, it’s definitely one to watch.

Dolemite is my Name- dir. Craig Brewer

Awards contending for: Best Actor (Eddie Murphy), Best original screenplay

Netflix’s Rudy Ray Moore biopic could land Murphy his second Oscar nod (after Dreamgirls). This would be his first lead actor nomination, which is realistic because it’s a biopic, which is the only way you’re allowed to be nominated for Oscars. Not bitter.

Hustlers- dir. Lorene Scafaria

Awards contending for: Best supporting actress (Jennifer Lopez), Best adapted screenplay

In the wake of the stellar reviews of this film, with some comparing it to the work of Martin Scorsese, Lopez has emerged as an Oscar hopeful out of the blue. If the Academy is as kind to the film as critics have been, more recognition could be in order, and the screenplay category could be the place.

The Lighthouse- dir. Robert Eggers

Awards Contending For: Best Actor (Robert Pattinson, Willem Dafoe), Best Cinematography

The Witch director Robert Eggers returns after four years with this awesome-looking psychological nightmare. I’m not sure if this can really break into the Oscar race, but maybe. And it’s gonna rule.

Just Mercy- dir. Destin Daniel Cretton

Awards Contending For: Best actor (Michael B Jordan), Best Supporting Actor (Jamie Foxx), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Picture

Foxx is the big contender here, but I don’t think you can rule it out for other awards. By the way, we’ve long ago reached the portion where all of these are longshots in everything, especially Best Picture. But this one feels like it could sneak in late.

Honey Boy- dir. Alma Har’el

Awards Contending For: Best supporting actor (Shia LaBeouf), Best Original Screenplay

This film, in which Shia LaBeouf plays his own abusive father, could get him some consideration. I’m not sure if it can get anything above that, but it’s worth noting.

Avengers: Endgame- dir. Anthony Russo and Joe Russo

Awards Contending For: Best Visual Effects, Best Picture, Best Actor (Robert Downey Jr)

Outside of visual effects, this probably won’t be nominated for anything. The best actor field is too crowded for Downey to sneak in, and it doesn’t have the cultural pull that brought Black Panther into the best picture fold. Still, it’s worth mentioning this because of its immense popularity and the fact that people think that it deserves Oscars because it capped off a 10 year run of superhero movies (not bitter. Although I did love this movie for that reason, even though I don’t think it should garner Oscar nods).

The Aeronauts- dir. Tom Harper

Awards contending for: Best Picture, Best Actress (Felicity Jones), Best supporting actor (Eddie Redmayne)

I think that this one is gonna get attention- it feels like the kind of bland period thing that the Oscars love. And apparently Jones is pretty good.

Motherless Brooklyn- dir. Edward Norton

Awards contending for: Best picture, Best Actor (Norton), Best Original Song (Daily Battles by Thom Yorke)

The reviews here aren’t very good, which isn’t a good sign, but the fact that it’s Norton’s passion project still holds weight. Apparently the song is great. I haven’t heard it but it sounds like it’s gonna contend.

Cats- dir. Tom Hooper

Awards contending for: Best Picture, Best Visual Effects, probably more

I’m dead serious. I had this pegged as best picture material since it was announced. It’s a musical, it’s directed by perennial Oscar bait peddler Tom Hooper, and it’s gonna suck (I was scared of this movie BEFORE IT WAS COOL). Then the trailer came along and made it a joke. But I still think it’s a contender for all the same reasons as before. And it’s guaranteed to win for DIGITAL FUR TECHNOLOGY.

This concludes the awards preview, in which I’ve covered 33 films. Which means I left at least one massive contender off that nobody sees coming. Because the Oscars are dumb. And yet I still love them. I’m gonna go lie down.

Spirited Away: A Brilliant, Beautiful Film That Everyone Should See

I have decided to write about Hayao Miyazaki’s 2001 masterpiece Spirited Away. This is not for any particular reason. I just felt like writing about it. This, I think, is a good example of why the film is so great- it strikes you randomly, with no warning, and for no reason. What comes to mind, what you think back on fondly at random times, are the little things about the film- bits of story or random, totally unnecessary characters. Spirited Away is an astounding, terrifically moving work, and yet the little things are what stays with you the most. This is because, in a way, this is a film composed entirely of little things. That’s the beauty of it- for such a big film- big in terms of scope, in terms of the world it’s about- it’s a film made up of small things.

Miyazaki knew this. When he made the film, he knew exactly what he was doing. The small stuff was all intentional, to the point where it even has a name- Miyazaki has historically used the term “ma” to describe the small, almost unnecessary details and scenes that pop up so often in this film. The ma in the film is what makes it, it’s what creates the world of the film in such vivid detail. Well, that and the animation.

Ironically enough, Spirited Away’s animation style is the thing that probably drives the most people away from it, as a lot of American viewers are reluctant to watch anime films. If you number among these people, allow me to say that it’s your loss. LOOK AT IT.

Sorry, I got carried away. Anyway, it’s all hand-drawn. Ridiculous. Watch it now. Yet for all of its visual brilliance, that’s not all there is to this film. The animation creates a world, the story solidifies it and quickly proves that it deserves it. The characters are rich, and their motivations, although simple, drive the story forward in interesting ways. Take the character of No-Face. No-Face does not speak. No-Face is presented as completely outside of society. He’s completely alone, and yet he sees an opportunity for friendship and changes instantly. And then when that fails he loses it and eats everyone. Weird movie, but simple. In keeping with the contradictions of Spirited Away, the simplicity counters the intricacies of the visuals perfectly. Another contradiction is that Miyazaki stated that he made the film for 10-year-old girls, and yet it’s become beloved worldwide by every possible demographic. Roger Ebert, in his review, argued that it was because stories designed for specific groups of people have a greater inherent universality than stories intended for larger groups. Isn’t that what people look for in movies? A way into another reality? That’s what Spirited Away does better than almost anything else. It transcends everything it should be- a kids film, an anime film, and honestly something that probably shouldn’t exist (hand-drawn. The whole thing). So ignore whatever preconceptions you have about this film, track it down and watch it. It rules. Look at it.

The best Robert De Niro performances, ranked

Today, August 17th, is the 76th birthday of one of the greatest actors of all time. His career spans his early work with Martin Scorsese in the 70s to his more recent supporting turns in David O. Russell’s films. His roles have become iconic- lines, scenes, and moments have become so indelible that they’ve etched themselves into popular culture permanently. He needs no introduction, and yet I’ve given him one anyway because that’s just how great of an actor he is. So here are the top ten performances of the one and only Robert De Niro.

10- Jackie Brown (1997)

My initial feelings on De Niro’s role as Louis Gara in Jackie Brown (and the movie in general) were lukewarm. the further removed I get from it, however, the more I appreciate it. In ways similar to Casino (not on this list. That movie sucks.), Jackie Brown features De Niro in an against-type performance. His character here is more timid than you typically get from him. Louis is a unique character in the film for that reason. Every other character is a typically Tarantino-esque, suave, smooth talker that’s always thinking ahead. Louis is pretty much a loser. He’s responsible for many of the best and most shocking moments in the film (parking lot scene, above) that don’t belong to Samuel L Jackson’s character. He’s a welcome presence in the film, and an interesting part of De Niro’s career.

9- The Godfather part II (1974)

If the thing that sets the first Godfather movie apart is the presence of Marlon Brando, the thing that helps its sequel is De Niro (in the same role, fittingly enough). He won his first Oscar for his portrayal of Vito Corleone in his younger years. The most impressive thing about this part, in my opinion at least, is that almost all of his lines are in Italian. Additionally, he does a truly excellent job of maintaining the character that Brando established in the first film. Whenever he’s on screen, the film revolves around him. It takes skill to build on such an iconic character and make it your own, and that’s what De Niro does here.

8- The Untouchables (1987)

Enthusiasms, enthusiasms. What are mine? What draws my admiration? What is that which gives me joy? That would be De Niro’s brilliantly over the top performance as Al Capone in Brian De Palma’s crime classic. He’s unfortunately not in the film that much, but when he is the quality skyrockets. Which is saying a lot considering how great it is. De Niro delivers every line with an insane bravado that completely makes the movie and creates several classic scenes (I wanna go there in the middle of the night AND PISS ON HIS ASHES, etc.). There may be more nuanced performances in De Niro’s filmography, but I’m not sure if there are any that are this fun.

7- Mean Streets (1973)

Harvey Keitel may be the star of Scorsese’s early masterwork Mean Streets, but De Niro steals the film with this completely bonkers turn. Here he plays a lunatic that doesn’t quite resemble his later roles in The King of Comedy and The Untouchables, but possesses an air of sheer madness that might make you think he’d make a good Joker. This film served as the starting point for his career and a stunning breeding ground for talent (David Proval, Richie Aprile on The Sopranos, is here, as is David Carradine) that remains fascinating to watch today, especially because of De Niro.

6- The Deer hunter (1978)

The Deer Hunter is a staggering, massive, emotional epic that is sure to resonate deeply with any viewer. Everyone here is in top form. Christopher Walken gives his best performance ever (the Pulp Fiction fan in me hates to say that, as does the Annie Hall fan in me), John Savage is tremendously and impeccably broken, and Meryl Streep is Meryl Streep. De Niro is the center of it all. He’s responsible for the most intense moments the film has to offer (russian roulette with more bullets), some of the most resonant (his return home from the war), and some of the saddest (NICKYYYY). He displays a brilliant range over the course of one film. He undergoes one of the greatest transformations in cinematic history (maybe even the second best in the movie). It’s an epic performance that perfectly suits the epic film.

5- Cape Fear (1991)

Never in his career has De Niro simply been this scary. He brings a palpable menace to every scene, even when he’s being outwardly friendly. His scene with Juliette Lewis, where he poses as her drama teacher, is one of the best scenes of his career. The above scene in the movie theater is a classic. He’s the second best thing about one of the best remakes in cinematic history (the best being the Simpsons episode that parodies it, obviously). He simultaneously oozes evil and charisma in a way he’s never typically done. Similar to the way he expands upon Brando’s Don Corleone in Godfather 2, he builds his own character on top of Robert Mitchum’s in the original.

4- Goodfellas (1990)

That is all.

3- The King of Comedy (1983)

There are elements of Travis Bickle in Rupert Pupkin, De Niro’s unhinged title character. In fact, it could be said that he’s the anti-Bickle. Whereas Bickle’s worldview is dark and nihilistic, Pupkin is an eternal and relentless optimist and opportunist. Bickle’s obsession is with (as he sees it) making the world a better place, Pupkin sees the world as a perfect place already: he wrongly views it as a world where anyone, himself included, can make it. In this way, The King of Comedy is maybe a more cynical film than Taxi Driver. It’s occurring to me that this would be better as a full-length post, so I’m gonna stop for now. De Niro absolutely owns in this movie, and that’s really all there is to it.

2- Raging Bull (1980)

In Raging Bull, De Niro creates a character so repulsive and awful that it’s incredible just how empathetic you become with him. We revel in LaMotta’s victories and suffer with his lows. De Niro creates a character with so much depth, but whose only emotion at all times is rage. This is what drives his every action, his every explosion, his every fight. Raging Bull is a boxing movie in two ways- there’s the actual boxing, and there’s LaMotta’s tragic and constant fight with everyone in his life. De Niro here is a person who is constantly fighting, that’s his nature, that’s all he can do. And De Niro does it so well that it completely makes the movie.

1- Taxi Driver

When I started this post, it occurred to me that I’d have to pick between Raging Bull and Taxi Driver for the top spot. I thought I’d go with Raging Bull, but when I thought about it, I decided that Taxi Driver was the true number one. Travis Bickle is one of the greatest characters in the history of American fiction, and he couldn’t have been without De Niro (who improvised his most iconic scene). This role singlehandedly created an entirely new character archetype- “God’s lonely man”, which has been seen in the likes of last year’s terrific First Reformed and Jake Gyllenhaal’s character in Nightcrawler. But nobody (although Gyllenhaal and Hawke are both fantastic) has pulled it off quite like De Niro. His insanity here is not below the surface and malicious, it’s well-intended and right there for the world to see. This is a man who has nothing to lose. This is a character of unbridled depth and a performance of unparalleled skill. This is De Niro’s greatest contribution to film, to art, and to the world as a whole. Decades later, it’s the crowning achievement of one of the best careers in film history.

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Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Reviewed in Super-Spoilery and Obsessively Fanatic Fashion

As readers of this blog likely know, Quentin Tarantino is one of my favorite directors of all time. I, to some extent, love every one of his films. So his latest offering, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, was a big deal to me. The day leading up to it I could concentrate on nothing else (if we’re being honest, weeks is a more accurate term). My expectations were so high that anything short of a complete masterpiece would’ve left me disappointed.

Reader, I was not disappointed.

As for exactly where it ranks in Tarantino’s filmography, my updated ranking can be found here. But suffice it to say that it’s on the high end. It’s among my favorite Tarantino films, which places it with my absolute favorite films of all time. It dethrones Jordan Peele’s masterful Us as the best film of the year so far. It doesn’t merely create or recall a world, it is a world. A world so distinct and enjoyable that leaving it isn’t a lot of fun. So I’m not going to rush in exploring it.

Hollywood is many things, but the most notable thing it is is Quentin Tarantino’s depiction of an age that died with Sharon Tate in the summer of 1969. It’s also Tarantino asking us a question that many will find in poor taste: what if it didn’t have to end? Tarantino’s obsession with revising history began with 2009’s Inglourious Basterds, and it persists a decade on. The subject this time is the Manson family murders. Tarantino teases these throughout the movie, penetrating the deliberate atmosphere he creates with occasional reminders that there is a darkness lurking beneath the surface here. Take the sole appearance of Damon Herriman’s Manson- he can’t be on screen for a minute. For the most part his face isn’t even shown. But the scene is terrifying. This is the pattern Tarantino employs when he wants to build tension in this film- he relies on the history surrounding the events. One of the other brilliantly tense scenes involving the family is far less brief and far less vague- the danger is clear and present. This scene, in which Brad Pitt’s Cliff Booth visits the Spahn Movie Ranch at which the Manson family is residing, is a classic Tarantino masterclass in tension akin to the opening scene of Inglourious Basterds or the bar scene in Inglourious Basterds or the restaurant scene in Inglourious Basterds or the adrenaline shot scene in Pulp Fiction (you thought I was gonna go with Basterds again, didn’t you?). This scene is the centerpiece of Pitt’s performance, one of the best of his career. The other scene in which Pitt shows off his skill is the finale, which I will address later. But Pitt’s performance is one of many in the film. Margot Robbie is brilliant as Sharon Tate, 10 year old Julia Butters astounds in her tragically limited role, and stars who only appear in one or two scenes (Al Pacino, Kurt Russell, the late Luke Perry, etc) make strong impressions. But the film’s defining performance belongs to Rick f***ing Dalton himself, Leonardo DiCaprio. It’s his performance in this film that dethrones The Wolf of Wall Street‘s Jordan Belfort as his career best (something I’m proud to say I called from the first trailer). His meltdown in his trailer after flubbing his lines is an all time moment that will live on as one of the film’s most famous. The all-around great acting is what solidifies the film as a masterpiece, and it makes the film fun to watch even as it doesn’t really seem to be doing anything.

That’s where I think people will be divided on this film. For the vast majority of its runtime, nothing really happens. It mainly consists of its characters hanging out and enjoying 1969, or at least Tarantino’s 1969. But even if you (wrongly) dislike this part, you’re bound to like what happens in the film’s brutal finale. The murders at the film’s center finally happen… kind of. The day before the Manson family members descend on Cielo drive is gone over in meticulous detail, with every action of Dalton and Booth and Tate and her housemates described by Kurt Russell’s narrator. Then it gets dark. Cliff smokes an acid-dipped cigarette and takes his pitbull for a walk, Rick gets even drunker than he already is and relaxes in his pool. But not before taking some time to scream at some hippies that he doesn’t want doing drugs in his neighborhood. The hippies, of course, are members of the Manson family, intent on committing the murders the film has been building up to (a TV in the final segment of the film even announces that what is happening next is “the moment you’ve all been waiting for” in an extremely self-aware and tongue-in-cheek moment). Cliff gets back just in time, resulting in a brilliant and quintessentially Tarantino sequence involving pitbull maulings, the consequences of the acid-dipped cigarette, and Chekhov’s flamethrower. It’s glorious. It’s fantastic to see the Manson family get what they deserve, and it’s exhilarating to watch Tarantino’s cinematic prowess make it happen.

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is essential viewing for anyone who loves movies, the era of history in which it’s set, and especially those who love the work of Quentin Tarantino. If it is indeed his last film, it’s hard to think of a more fitting finish. It’s full of references to his previous work (Antonio Margheriti!) and it’s so distinctly Tarantino-esque that, maybe more than any other of his films, you’d be able to figure out who directed it in the opening five minutes. It’s been over a week since I saw it for the first time, and I still haven’t all the way processed how great it was. This film is perfect. If you haven’t seen it already, go do it. Something this good doesn’t happen often.

The greatest scores in movie history

A great score has more power to make a film great than almost anything. Think about Spielberg’s masterworks: Jaws, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Jurassic Park. The odds are pretty good that music popped into your head. Think about the shower scene in Psycho, a scene so iconic that it only needs those three words to appear in your head. Now think about the music that goes with it. That’s what makes a score great- when it transcends its role and becomes an essential part of the viewing experience. Here are some such scores, ranked in objectively correct order (except probably not).

Really quickly- an honorable mention to Nicholas Britell’s score for If Beale Street Could Talk, the best score of last year. Completely robbed of the oscar. Also a best picture nod. Go watch this film.

10- Jurassic Park (John Williams)

John Williams is gonna be pretty represented on this list. 4 out of the 10 entries are his scores (and 4 out of the 6 scores on the list composed by people named John). His Jurassic Park score is as iconic as the rest of them- the theme song is perfect for the atmosphere of wonder Spielberg conjures up in the beginning of the film. It’s one of Williams’ best themes, which as you’ll see, is saying a lot.

9- Halloween (John Carpenter)

Creating one of the most iconic and terrifying villains in horror movie history is no small feat, and it probably couldn’t have been done without the brilliant theme that director/composer John Carpenter cooked up. Extra points for the fact that Carpenter himself did it, he’s done a lot of his own scores throughout his career. The most notable exception is probably The Thing, which was scored by Ennio Morricone, who makes this list multiple times and very nearly made it for his truly excellent Thing score. Said score, by the way, was nominated for a razzie award. Wild.

8- Raiders of the Lost Ark (John Williams)

One of the most legendary action and adventure films of all time holds that position because of its score. Try to imagine the boulder scene with any other music. You can’t. Physically impossible. It’s around this point that I’m realizing that my argument for Morricone being better than Williams in terms of film score composers is in bad shape.

7- The Untouchables (Ennio Morricone)

Here he is! The legendary Ennio Morricone’s career has spanned decades, culminating in his long-overdue first Oscar win for The Hateful Eight in 2016. One of his career highlights is the 1987 Brian De Palma film The Untouchables. Morricone uses his score to add excitement to action sequences, menace to Robert De Niro’s indelible Al Capone, and overall further one of the greatest gangster films of all time.

6- The Godfather (Nino Rota)

Speaking of all time great gangster movies, here’s The Godfather, a film that certainly needs no introduction. It’s one of the most perfect films of all time, right down to the ionic theme music. Watching The Godfather for the first time, you realize that the hype is all true the moment that theme kicks in for the first time.

5- Jaws (John Williams)

Jaws has to be one of the most well-known films of all time, and yet the thing it’s most known for, the most ubiquitous aspect of it in popular culture, is the theme. It’s the go-to for any situation in which something is approaching something, or something scary is about to happen. It’s as used as the Jeopardy theme. It wouldn’t be a bad bet to say that like 90% of the world’s population knows it. When I write “Duuuuh nuh” the odds are good you think of Jaws, and that’s why it’s an all time great score.

4- There Will be Blood (Johnny Greenwood)

There Will be Blood is a film about greed and its destructive power over people. Director Paul Thomas Anderson conveys this through haunting imagery, brilliant writing, and a career best performance by one of the greatest actors of all time. But none of it would really work without Radiohead guitarist Johnny Greenwood’s score. Famously ineligible for an oscar nomination, the score is unique among ones on this list in that there’s no one piece of music that jumps to mind. It works because it’s perfectly suited to the film, it complements it incessantly and continuously drives it forward. It’s an overpowering score, creating an atmosphere so totally essential to one of the greatest films of the 21st century.

3- Star Wars (John Williams)

HEEEEEEERE’S JOHNNY! Williams’ highest entry on this list is his only listed one not in collaboration with Steven Spielberg. It gets this ranking simply because of how linked it is to such an iconic film. In short, without this score, there is no Star Wars as we know it today. And without Star Wars as we know it today, the movie world (and actually, probably, real world would be quite different. Nobody tell Danny Boyle.

2- Psycho (Bernard Herrmann)

There are no words for how hard is was not to put this at number one. This score changed everything. It was the first time music was fully entwined with drawing emotion out of the audience. The shrieking strings in the shower scene are legendary, featuring prominently in every one of the many (many) parodies of it. The theme that plays over the opening credits is iconic. It’s the best work the legendary Bernard Herrmann ever did, and he did the scores for Citizen Kane, Vertigo, and Taxi Driver, among other things. He also did the score for Twisted Nerve, which is only notable because the theme is the song that Elle Driver whistles in Kill Bill. So the guy is a legend. And Psycho still stands out as his greatest achievement.

1- The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly (Ennio Morricone)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1PfrmCGFnk

Ennio Morricone’s legendary score for Sergio Leone’s masterpiece The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly gets the top spot on this list for a few reasons. It’s the only score on this list that I felt absolutely required two videos, and it’s the only score ever that I have listened to on spotify (it came up as suggested and I decided to go with it). It completely makes the film, which would be great otherwise but not nearly on the same level. The legendary final scene (one of the best ever) wouldn’t be the same without it. It features The Ecstasy of Gold (second video above), which is one of the rare pieces of film music to transcend its film and become used regularly in other ways. The theme is absolutely iconic. The whistles are so famous that hearing them reveals to anyone what movie is being watched. It’s impossible to imagine the film with any other score, and that’s why it’s number one.

Midsommar review

Through two feature films and several shorts (of varying notability), Ari Aster has shown that he is a really, really good filmmaker. Yes, he’s most notable for his work in the horror genre, but his films transcend that. They’re obviously terrifying and horribly upsetting, but underneath that there are films that work just as well as dramas. Hereditary and The Strange Thing About the Johnsons are horror films, but they’re also melodramas about family and loss. They’re also incredible. Something definitely happened to Aster, but man does he know how to make a movie. And Midsommar is his best one yet.

Midsommar opens on a snowy day in the dead of winter, which is the most badass way to possibly open a movie with (a variation of) the word summer in the title. And then Aster gets down to business, as a double murder/suicide occurs within the first, I don’t know, ten minutes? From there it becomes clear what the movie is about- Dani (Florence Pugh, in an absolutely unbelievable performance) and her boyfriend Christian (Jack Reynor), and their deteriorating relationship. This simple domestic conflict is typical for an Aster film, but two things set it apart from Hereditary quality-wise. These things are as follows: The first is that it’s absolute art. Not that Hereditary isn’t, it’s just that Midsommar is on another level. The second is that it’s totally batsh*t. It’s a bright, colorful nightmare with dementedly brilliant drug trip sequences and the single wildest sex scene in cinematic history. Pawel Pogorzelski’s cinematography is at its best.

I mean, come on. But there’s more to Midsommar than how it looks. The drama created by the relationships between the characters propels the film to greatness (oh by the way, here’s where the spoilers start, so if you intend to see Midsommar, which you should, read no further). I already talked about how the core of the film is Dani and Christian’s relationship. But there’s so much more at play here. Mark (Will Poulter, who provides the movie with most of its shockingly plentiful humor) and his reluctance to have Dani join them on their trip to Sweden, Christian leaching off of Josh’s (William Jackson Harper of The Good Place) thesis topic, and Pelle (Vilhelm Blomgren) trying to bond with Dani over their past experiences of loss. These relationships end, respectively, with death by an unknown cause followed by the removal of his face, death by head trauma on behalf of someone wearing a mask of said face, and the decision to condemn a cheating boyfriend to death by burning while inside of a disemboweled bear carcass. That’s why Midsommar works so well- the events of the film are gloriously over the top and upsetting (I’m not going to talk about the ritual suicide scene except to say this: WHYYYYYYYYYYYY AHH GOD WHY), but it’s all rooted in human conflict and human emotion. This is where Ari Aster shows why he’ll be so successful in whatever genre he decides to work in next. It’s why Midsommar is his best film, one of A24’s (the best movie studio in the world, by the way) best, and the second best film of the year so far (it doesn’t quite reach the level of Us). Midsommar is such a masterpiece because, for all of its horror and fantastical elements, it’s very much of this world.

Rating: 5/5