Kieran Frost's "100 Greatest Films"

[Kieran_Frost]

Back in 2005, while I was halfway through my university degree(s) I made a concerted effort to watch all the "greatest films" of cinema. I had grown frustrated at having directors or other actors reference a film, or say along the lines of "that amazing moment in [INSERT FILM]... do it like that." So I compiled numerous lists from numerous "100 Greatest Films", ranging from AFI, BFI, Sight and Sound, IMDB, Empire, SFX, the Guardian, etc; and have systematically 'crossed off' the films once I've seen them.

But along with seeing them, I also started to compile my own list of what I thought were the '100 Greatest Films'. You'd be amazed how quickly you run out of 100 slots! Now (of course) this is all subjective; but I try to use a gage of: where appreciation and enjoyment collide to a very high standard. We all have films we love, but truthfully we also know they are pretty worthless (artistically). Similarly we have all seen films we appreciate... but CHRIST we'd never want to sit through again. The only other "rule" I have in place is no actor can be the lead in more than 5 films, and no director can have more than 5 films in the list (this is purely because, at some point, it's obvious you just have a perchance for said actor or director, and therefore your objectivity has become clouded).

I've been meaning to do a thread like this for ages; and put "reviews" of the newest films I've seen that either go into my "100 Greatest Films" list, or I watched because other lists rank it as 'one of the greats'. Anyway, that's my thread. Enjoy, don't enjoy; entirely up to you.

Kieran Frost's "100 Greatest Films"

1. 12 angry men (1957)
2. 1917 (2019)
3. the Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
4. the African Queen (1951)
5. Андрей Рублёв (1966) ~ Andrei Rublev ~
6. Alien (1979)
7. All About Eve (1950)
8. All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)
9. American Beauty (1999)
10. Apocalypse Now! (1979)
11. Beauty and the Beast (1991)
12. BEN-HUR (1959)
13. Billy Elliot (2000)
14. Birdman; or (the Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014)
15. the Birds (1963)
16. Blade Runner: the Final Cut (1982)
17. der Blaue Engel (1930) ~ the Blue Angel ~
18. the Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)
19. Brief Encounter (1945)
20. Bringing Up Baby (1938)
21. Brokeback Mountain (2005)
22. Cabaret (1972)
23. Casablanca (1942)
24. C’era una volta il West (1968) ~ Once Upon A Time in the West ~
25. Chicago (2002)
26. Chinatown (1974)
27. Cidade de Deus (2002) ~ City of God ~
28. A Clockwork Orange (1971)
29. Close Encounter of the Third Kind (1977)
30. the Devils (1971)
31. Dirty Harry (1971)
32. • the • Elephant • Man • (1980)
33. Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)
34. the Exorcist (1973)
35. Fargo (1996)
36. Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994)
37. Full Metal Jacket (1987)
38. the Full Monty (1997)
39. Gladiator (2000)
40. the Godfather (1972)
41. Gone With the Wind (1939)
42. Gosford Park (2001)
43. Gravity (2013)
44. Heat (1995)
45. the Hustler (1961)
46. In Bruges (2008)
47. In the Heat of the Night (1967)
48. It Happened One Night (1934)
49. Jaws (1975)
50. the King of Comedy (1982)
51. el Laberinto del fauno (2006) ~ Pan’s Labyrinth ~
52. the Ladykillers (1955)
53. the Lady Vanishes (1938)
54. Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
55. the Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943)
56. Life of Pi (2012)
57. the Lion In Winter (1968)
58. Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
59. THE LORD OF THE RINGS (2001 - 2003)
60. M (1931)
61. the Maltese Falcon (1941)
62. Marriage Story (2019)
63. M*A*S*H* (1970)
64. the Matrix (1999)
65. Mrs. Miniver (1942)
66. Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios (1988) ~ Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown ~
67. My Fair Lady (1964)
68. Network (1976)
69. Nora Inu (1949) ~ Stray Dog ~
70. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975)
71. On the Waterfront (1954)
72. Ostre sledované vlaky (1966) ~ Closely Observed Trains ~
73. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
74. Rain Man (1988)
75. Rebecca (1940)
76. Road Warrior (1981)
77. Secrets & Lies (1996)
78. Sense and Sensibility (1995)
79. Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi (2001) ~ Spirited Away ~
80. sex, lies and videotape (1989)
81. Shakespeare In Love (1998)
82. the Shawshank Redemption (1993)
83. Shichinin no samurai (1954) ~ Seven Samurai ~
84. Short Cuts (1993)
85. the Silence of the Lambs (1991)
86. Singin’ in the Rain (1952)
87. det Sjunde inseglet (1957) ~ the Seventh Seal ~
88. the Social Network (2010)
89. Some Like It Hot (1959)
90. Star Wars - Episode V: the Empire Strikes Back (1980)
91. the Terminator (1984)
92. There Will Be Blood (2007)
93. the Third Man (1949)
94. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017)
95. To Kill A Mockingbird (1962)
96. Touch of Evil (1958)
97. Unforgiven (1992)
98. When Harry Met Sally (1989)
99. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966)
100. Wo hu cang long (2000) ~ Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon ~

N.B. the ones in BOLD won Best Picture at the Oscars

[Kieran_Frost]

MOST RECENTLY ADDED:
Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios (1988) ~ Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown ~
Short Cuts (1993)
Close Encounter of the Third Kind (1977)
Андрей Рублёв (1966) ~ Andrei Rublev ~
Birdman; or (the Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014)
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017)
1917 (2019)
Marriage Story (2019)
der Blaue Engel (1930) ~ the Blue Angel ~
Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)

MOST RECENTLY BUMPED OUT:
Children of Men (2006)
Se7en (1995)
der Name der Rose (1986)
Don't Look Now (1973)
Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo (1966) ~ the Good, the Bad and the Ugly ~
All the President’s Men (1976)
Black Narcissus (1948)
Ordinary People (1980)
Dog Day Afternoon (1975)
Mystic River (2003)

TOP DIRECTOR: Ang Lee directed 4 films (Brokeback Mountain, Life of Pi, Sense and Sensibility and wo hu cang long)
RUNNERS UP (with 3): Sir Alfred Hitchcock, Sir David Lean and Sir Ridley Scott

TOP ACTOR: Robert Duvall starred in 5 films (Apocalypse Now!, the Godfather, M*A*S*H*, Network and To Kill A Mockingbird)
RUNNERS UP (with 4): Sir Alec Guinness, Harrison Ford, Jack Hawkins (and Sir Anthony Hopkins… sort of… - voice of Oliver Reed in Gladiator)

OSCARS: 25 films won Best Picture
- 18 men WON Best Actor
- 14 people WON in the Best Supporting categories
- 12 women WON Best Actress

ERA
- 1 film from 2020's
- 7 films from the 2010’s
- 13 films from the 00’s
- 14 films from the 90’s
- 11 films from the 80’s
- 14 films from the 70’s
- 11 films from the 60’s
- 13 films from the 50’s
- 8 film from the 40's
- 8 films from the 30’s
- 0 film from the 20’s
- 0 films from the 1910’s

LATEST REVIEW

EVERYTHING, EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE (2022)
written & directed. Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert [nom.]
Starring: Michelle Yeoh [nom.], Ke Huy Quan [nom.], Stephanie Hsu [nom.], James Hong, Harry Shum Jr. and Jamie Lee Curtis [nom.]

ONE SENTENCE SYNOPSIS: Evelyn Quan (Yeoh) is a middle-aged Chinese American immigrant running a laundromat with her unhappy husband, Waymond Wang (Quan); but a seemingly innocent visit to IRS inspector Deirdre Beaubeirdre (Curtis) has far reaching consequences... that tears the multiverse apart...

THOUGHTS: Michelle Yeoh is just phenomenal as Evelyn! This role is NOT easy; being the same character BUT different, yet maintain that through thought…. while displaying fantastic martial arts and effortless comic timing mixed with honest emotional depth. To seamlessly switch from glamorous movie star Evelyn to the Evelyn who’s utterly forgettable running the laundromat, to same day laundromat Evelyn but slightly less liberated, to singer Evelyn, chef Evelyn, dominatrix Evelyn, to sausage fingers Evelyn, oh look she’s now a rock, a piñata, animated… It’s a lot! At times overwhelming but boy was it a fun ride! Irreverent and silly at just the right moments, breaking up the bits between fantastic fight choreography, moving performances and seemingly super complicated physics. The Daniels directors are not afraid to take a big swing, the biggest swing, even! And while at times it can be a little overwrought, overlong or trying to be too many things at once, I forgive those faults because they really went for it full throttle (plus being about the multiverse sort of gives you permission to be too much). Visually it’s a delight, the perfect blend of crisp but playful, with imaginative choreography and enchanting set-pieces. Special shout-out to Shirley Kurata for her costume designing debut! WOW!!! I was shocked to learn this was her first time, what magnificent, imaginative, creative work! Speaking of jaw-dropping facts: SEVEN PEOPLE were on the Visual Effects team. SEVEN! The fact they were not nominated at the Oscars was an insult. When you have a budget of $300 million and a thousand members of staff, shocker you get nominated for making something pretty (I'd bloody well hope so, for that money and resources). But seven? This is something very special! So to Benjamin Brewer, Jeff Desom, Ethan Feldbau, Evan Halleck, Kirsten Lepore, Zak Stoltz & Matthew Wauhkonen I salute you all, and your groundbreaking brilliance with less resources than most dramas. And if you don't believe me, the Whale (2022) has over 50 people listed on the special effects team. Elvis (2022) has over a hundred and fifty. Even Tár (2022), bloody Tár had over twenty five! The brilliance of what they accomplished with just seven people is staggering. As for the acting, I really have only positives to say about the entire cast; they shine: Jamie Lee Curtis was equal levels bold and disgusting; adding many layers to this literal ‘Karen’, Stephanie Hsu massively impressed me in her variety and monstrosity… and major major applause to Ke Huy Quan returning to cinema after so many years. You’d know him best as Short Round from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) or Data from the Goonies (1985); well he absolutely smashed it out of the park. Beautiful depth of feeling to his tragic, much overlooked and forgotten husband. My only con… the score’s a total non-entity. And that got nominated... but the seven people who did all those special effects... forrrrrrrrgetaboutit!

OVERALL
This is one of the most unique, daring and unapologetic films I've seen in such a long, long time. Nothing excites me more in cinema than not playing it safe, and this film is just... brilliant for that. The cast is perfect, I fell in love with all of them, with the whole film. It gave so many special moments, so many iconic images and ideas, that you just can't plan. Michelle Yeoh is a goddess, figurative (and literally) in this; not since Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) has a film so beautifully captured the colossal range of her talents and greatness. It's one of the best films I've seen in years.
~ rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ [grade: A++]


N.B. added to my "Top 100"

[Kieran_Frost]

TODO SOBRE MI MADRE (1999) ~ All About My Mother ~
director & writer. Pedro Almodóvar
Starring: Cecilia Roth, Marisa Paredes, Antonia San Juan and Penélope Cruz

One Sentence Synopsis: a grieving mother, Manuela (Roth) returns to Barcelona to locate the father of her recently deceased son; but soon discovers it is she who must repair the broken hearts and lives of everyone around her.

Thoughts: Winner of the 1999 Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, the title is inspired by All About Eve (1950) which Manuela's son is watching at the start. An utterly beautiful film, with a power house performance by Cecilia Roth. The film is, in many ways, a homage to theatre. Much focus is given to stage actress Huma Rojo (Paredes), as well as Manuela's own experience of stage in A Street Car Names Desire. LOVED the play at the end was the House of Bernard Alba, purely because I often compare Almodóvar to Lorca (the playwright of that particular piece). Not as incredible as Woman on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (1988); but I found it more powerful and pleasing that Volver (2006); though all three are wonderful. Special praise should also be given to Antonia San Juan as the hilarious and strong transvestite Lola (San Juan herself being transsexual). Beautifully written, wonderful pace, strong performances across the board, and excellent Almodóvar flare. I'd recommend it to everyone.
~ rating: 4 out of 5 [grade: A-]

[Kieran_Frost]

THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH (1952) [OSCAR]
director. Cecil B. deMille [nom.]
writer. Fredric M. Frank, Barré Lyndon & Theodore St. John [OSCAR]
Starring: Charlton Heston, Bette Hutton, Cornel Wilde and James Stewart

One Sentence Synopsis: Brad Braden (Heston) is the "boss man" of the world's largest rail road circus, determined to fill a whole season despite dipping box-office numbers and a dangerous rivalry between his girlfriend Holly (Hutton) and his headliner, the Great Sebastian (Wilde).

Thoughts: voted by Empire magazine as the third biggest Best Picture travesties (behind Braveheart (1995) and A Beautiful Mind (2001)); I wasn't expecting much. And to be honest... I was pleasantly surprised how good it was. Firstly, let's just get this out the way: MY GOODNESS Cornel Wilde was hot! He was ALSO really good. Jimmy Stewart... I used to really dislike him as an actor, but since seeing Harvey (1950), the Philadelphia Story (1940) and now this... I have to admit he's really good. He was excellent in this as the loveable (but NOT over-the-top, as so often he can be) Buttons the Clown. Most impressive of all were the set pieces. Like the chariot race in BEN-HUR (1959) all this is real; and from the elephants to the horse riding dogs, it was a true spectacle. Cecil B. deMille really did "bring the circus" into the cinema. At a few moments I think he languished on them (Jesus, how long did that parade of countries last?); but it had far more "delights" than dullities (I can make that a word, right?). My favourite moment was the trampolining between Holly and Buttons while everyone played music on their day off. It reminded me so much of the episodic novel the Circus In Winter; which focuses on a travelling circus when they are not on tour. As wonderful as the spectacle of circus is, seeing them just 'be' ordinary people on their days off was lovely.
spoilers:

Also Steven Spielberg often cites the climatic train crash as one of the major inspirations that led him into film.

end of spoilers Is it a masterpiece? No, but it's still a very good film, visually stunning and well acted. A little slow, a little indulgent, but some killer segments; such as the "high fly off" between Holly and Sebastian, or Klaus' chilling revenge on Angel. Worth a look, but not "a must see".
~ rating: 4 out of 5 [grade: B+]

[Kencana]

Wow! It's nice to know Kieran's favorite movie. I'm voting for Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi (2001). The Lord of The Ring is good, but I enjoyed Spirited Away very much.

[Kieran_Frost]

SHORT CUTS (1993)
director. Robert Altman [nom.]
writer. based on the short stories by Raymond Carver
Starring: Anne Archer, Bruce Davidson, Robert Downey, Jr., Peter Gallagher, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Jack Lemmon, Huey Lewis, Andie MacDowell, Frances McDormand, Matthew Modine, Julianne Moore, Tim Robbins, Lily Tomlin, Tom Waits and Fred Ward

One Sentence Synopsis: the intersecting lives of various Californian suburbanites; where luck, death and infidelity rule their lives in equal measure.

Thoughts: intersecting films is a genre of cinema so rare to get perfect. From Crash (2004), Magnolia (1999), Love Actually (2003), Babel (2006), even Pulp Fiction (1994); I've never found one I can adore. Always one (or even two) of the stories let down the structure, or several of the performances let down an otherwise flawless ensemble. Short Cuts (for me) is the first time everything has worked, every story connects to me on some level. Firstly I adore that Altman DOESN'T try and have all the connections and overlaps be meaningful. Sometimes it's as meaningless as passing one another in a shop, or collecting photos at the same drive-in. They don't all end up having profound 'moments' as they overlap. And that's the second thing I love: there aren't really "profound conclusions". There is a very definite "climax" to the film, but the stories don't all conclude; they keep going (as it is in life). Thirdly I love how Altman can create so many beautiful (even fantastical) visuals, build in a very grounded world. From playing the cello as the garage fills with fumes, to the helicopters spray for medflies, or a body floating in the water, or a shot through a fish tank... it's all so stunning. I love the stories too, I love the clown obsessed with death, and the phone-sex worker picking her toes while she talks dirty to a client, I love the little doggie riding in the cop's bike, or Julianne Moore's amazing monologue while wearing only a blouse. Nudity is very prevalent in the film, but in all cases it was very "real." It wasn't to be sexy, it wasn't to be edgy, it was there to ground the film, to make nudity an everyday common thing (JUST as it is in life). I honestly have no complaints about the film, it was simply a masterpiece.
~ rating: 5 out of 5 [grade: A+]



N.B. on a somewhat odd side-note; Wikipedia's page on Short Cuts has a link that says "incest in films"... ugh, am I being really thick here, I don't remember ANY of the stories having that as a catalyst???

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Short_Cuts

[Kieran_Frost]

I still need to bump something out for Short Cuts (1993). I'm thinking Se7en (1995) or the Hustler (1961). Nora Inu (1949) is basically Se7en (conceptually); but beating it by about 45 years.

Wow! It's nice to know Kieran's favorite movie. I'm voting for Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi (2001). The Lord of The Ring is good, but I enjoyed Spirited Away very much.

YEY!

[JBatmanFan05]

MOST RECENTLY BUMPED OUT:
Se7en (1995)

Certainly one bump out I in like no way can see.


Very likely Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom would make my list (in addition to Raiders).

[Kieran_Frost]

BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER (2022)
dir. Ryan Coogler

I was so excited to see this, and for the most part it delivered. But it had in its court, for want of a better morbid analysis, extra emotional impact to play with as Chadwick Boseman actually died before filming… and I just never felt truly moved. I think it was a mistake putting the emotional weight on Letitia Wright’s shoulder. She’s not a bad actress, let me be clear, but that heartbreaking reality is so complex. I remember the episode of the West Wing where the cast had to ‘reveal’ Leo McGarry died (because the actor John Spencer, who played Leo had himself passed away), and it was so brutal. Allison Janney broke me. And this just… didn’t. Angela Bassett was a powerhouse and deserved that Oscar nomination (the first for the MCU), though I don’t think it’s a winning performance, personally. I wish we’d been let into how she felt, truly felt about T’Challa’s death, instead of reserving that primarily for Shuri. The set-up, the moving of chess pieces between Wakanda and Talokan (Atlanteans in the comics) was excellent. The first half was super exciting, but the showdown and resulting conclusion didn’t deliver. So much wasted potential. Ryan Coogler captures many things wonderfully, but his directing of action set-pieces is very tepid. It’s glorious being back in Wakanda but I wanted more, and they had all the ingredients to make something truly special… instead of something… good. Two final thoughts: huge praise to the designers, who smashed it out the park. Visually this is A FEAST! And a big shout out to Danai Gurira, who has made Okoye one of the most interesting, engaging and surprising characters to come out of the MCU.
~ rating: ★★★☆☆ [grade: B]

Certainly one bump out I, in like no way, can see.

I adore the film, it's truly wonderful. It's just, sadly, it's by and large the exact same film as Nora Inu (1949). And I find Stray Dog more intricate in what it says and comments on, about society. Plus it came first, which generally gets a larger 'kudos' over more modern versions.

Very likely Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom would make my list (in addition to Raiders).

A sequel has to be truly, truly special to make it into my "Top 100". I think only one has? (and a trilogy, ha). The downside is most sequels, one some level, come from a desire to capitalise on success (RE: make more money) and recapture what made the first so good... neither of which are very worthy ideas when it comes to making original, innovative art. Though I think a few remakes are in my list, such as the Maltese Falcon (1941).

[Kieran_Frost]

ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT (2022) [nom.]
dir. Edward Berger
Writer. based on the 1929 novel of the same name by Erich Maria Remarque [nom.]
Starring: Felix Kammerer, Albrecht Schuch, Moritz Klaus and Daniel Brühl

ONE SENTENCE SYNOPSIS: Germany, 1917. A group of idealistic school friends enlist in the German army, spurred on by their school master on tales of glory and honour... determined to play their part in Germany winning 'the Great War'...

THOUGHTS: This is a difficult one for me to review, because it was a truly excellent film, but I love the original All Quiet On the Western Front (1930), it won Best Picture at the Oscars, it’s in my ‘Top 100’. I just can’t NOT compare them, esp. the ending. I have such sympathy, because the original film’s ending is often cited as one of the most iconic and brilliant shots of cinema. I think they were smart to not try and recreate it, but their substitute sadly didn’t work. And actually missed the whole point from the book, the seemingly peaceful final day was reported, so blasé, as “All quiet on the Western Front”. One final dig to the tragedy, to twist the knife. A big battle, which they did here, misses that cruelty. But… to the positives, of which there was a plethora. The transition from boys to men is so brilliantly done, a brutal portrayal of the economic necessity of war. Starting with the death of Heinrich his uniform removed, washed, sown up and delivered to a new recruit. Emphasising the callous ‘cannon fodder’ these boys enlisted in to. The music by Oscar nominee Volker Bertelmann is key to this energetic, modern exploration of a classic film. It’s jarring, intrusive, foreboding, insistent; capturing the director’s youthful hubris in this retelling. James Friend’s Oscar nominated cinematography is BEAUTIFUL!!! Favourable comparable to Roger Dealings’ sublime imagery captured in 1917 (2019); though the macabre brutality of corpses on corpses on corpses was more harrowing under Deakins’ eye. And the midway battle across No Man’s Land was INCREDIBLE! Truly war cinema at its finest. I think Felix Kammerer was excellent as our lead, but it is Albrecht Schuch’s performance as the nihilist Kat that stole the show (so happy to see he was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the BAFTAs). Lastly I want to celebrate the subtle use of food: it’s importance in the film, it’s necessity to life and forgettableness when in abundance… a brilliantly subtle metaphor for establishing injustice between troops and commanders. Not since Denethor bit into that tomato in the Lord of the Rings: the Return of the King (2003) has food so perfectly served as a comment on war.

OVERALL
As remakes go, it's probably the best remake of a masterpiece I've ever seen (Steven Spielberg, please take note, before you deliver more pointless cinema like West Side Story (2021)). It's not trying to give us the same beats and moments as the original, it's fresh and new and exciting in its bold retelling. The entire ensemble is excellent, major kudos to casting director Simone Bär, casting this many talented lads is NOT easy. I was impressed and in awe through-out by the acting. I don't think it'll win Best Picture at the Oscars, no film that has won Best Picture has ever won again; but I'm thrilled it's been nominated for 9 Academy Awards. Thoroughly deserved.
~ rating: ★★★★★ [grade: A]

[Kieran_Frost]

THE BATMAN (2022)
dir. Matt Reeves
At nearly three hours, this is unacceptably vague. Had this film had the same atmosphere, mood and energy (all very possible) but clocked in at 1hr 50mins I’d have no problem. In-fact I might have praised it. But I did NOT sit through 3 hours for the villain’s end game to make no sense, the finale to lack any real stakes and too much be set-up for the next one. At 3 hours long I expect some damn conclusions, thank-you very much! Performance wise, Colin Farrel and Paul Dano impressed, but had limited scope for true variety. Robert Pattison will probably never be, in my eyes, a great actor. I couldn’t decide if his vague, energy-less Bruce Wayne was revolutionary or just… incompetently delivered. Either way it led to some (unintentionally) funny faces. And that hair… big mistake. Huge. Cinematography by Greig Fraser was the highlight; gorgeous!
~ rating: ★★☆☆☆ [grade: C-]


TOP GUN: MAVERICK (2022)
dir. Joseph Kosinski
There is very much 80s charm to this, which is a compliment, as it successfully harkens back to the original Top Gun (1986) without being ruled by it. BUT… oh, everyone had taken some delusion pills in praising this a wee bit too much. The dialogue is very ham-fisted, unsubtle, uncreative… and dated (and in this specific case, not in a good way). The story (FUN FACT: written by the son of Sally Field) was good, it’s purely the dialogue that failed. A lot of things don’t feel believable; a bar waitress being front-and-centre at an admiral’s funeral, for example. Or the fact Maverick still has photos in his locker from 30 years ago and seemingly NOTHING happened in his life or career since then to justify a photo, so that’s all we see on said locker. And very little is actually earned, instead we’re told (because that’s good writing ). The beautiful and talented Jennifer Connelly tries her best, bless her, but no-one could make that inorganic romance work. We get it Tom Cruise, you’re totally not gay, which is why you constantly smile at women every moment of the film to really show us how much you like them sexy lady mammaries. THAT SAID… overall I actually did enjoy it once it focused on the mission. The 80s cheese was charming: the by-the-book colonel who by the end gives a thumbs up, the handsome and cocky antagonist who bromances the f*ck out of camaraderie by the end, the 'you’re-not-my-real-dad' drama. All cheesy and I enjoyed it. And the action sequences are truly old school engaging and exciting. It’s a good film, it really is; but far from a masterpiece. And the shirtless volleyball, while appreciated, was sadly absent of homoerotic goodness that the original film just bathed in. In-fact the two times Tom Cruise hugs guys in the film, his crotch is weirdly and noticeably pushed away from them… which is totally normal. #justsayin’
~ rating: ★★★☆☆ [grade: B]


TURNING RED (2022)
dir. Domee Shi
This was an interesting one. I applaud the concept, I think it’s a great metaphor for puberty in adolescence and tackles some really wonderful issues for teenagers to see reflected on the silver screen (much like Inside Out (2015) teaching kids it’s okay to be sad sometimes, this movie de-stigmas periods). It’s an important message. The detailing and believability of the girls relationship was fantastic! And it remained funny and self-deprecating throughout, with gorgeous animation from start to finish. It was, in many ways, the strongest Pixar films since Coco (2017). But… it just didn’t give me the feels. The resolution, while bold and unexpected left a lack of emotional release. I was ready for something moving, I was ready to ball my eyes out… and instead, it was just… kind of sweet. Oh well. Still excellently made, very polished, very assured and Sandra Oh is fantastic voicing the overtly loving mother (SIDE NOTE: so beautiful seeing a positive parental relationship in animation… which is often a rare sighting). A very worthy achievement, just absent on the final feels which Pixar and Disney normally deliver.
~ rating: ★★★★☆ [grade: B+]

[Kieran_Frost]

EVERYTHING, EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE (2022)
written & directed. Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert [nom.]
Starring: Michelle Yeoh [nom.], Ke Huy Quan [nom.], Stephanie Hsu [nom.], James Hong, Harry Shum Jr. and Jamie Lee Curtis [nom.]

ONE SENTENCE SYNOPSIS: Evelyn Quan (Yeoh) is a middle-aged Chinese American immigrant running a laundromat with her unhappy husband, Waymond Wang (Quan); but a seemingly innocent visit to IRS inspector Deirdre Beaubeirdre (Curtis) has far reaching consequences... that tears the multiverse apart...

THOUGHTS: Michelle Yeoh is just phenomenal as Evelyn! This role is NOT easy; being the same character BUT different, yet maintain that through thought…. while displaying fantastic martial arts and effortless comic timing mixed with honest emotional depth. To seamlessly switch from glamorous movie star Evelyn to the Evelyn who’s utterly forgettable running the laundromat, to same day laundromat Evelyn but slightly less liberated, to singer Evelyn, chef Evelyn, dominatrix Evelyn, to sausage fingers Evelyn, oh look she’s now a rock, a piñata, animated… It’s a lot! At times overwhelming but boy was it a fun ride! Irreverent and silly at just the right moments, breaking up the bits between fantastic fight choreography, moving performances and seemingly super complicated physics. The Daniels directors are not afraid to take a big swing, the biggest swing, even! And while at times it can be a little overwrought, overlong or trying to be too many things at once, I forgive those faults because they really went for it full throttle (plus being about the multiverse sort of gives you permission to be too much). Visually it’s a delight, the perfect blend of crisp but playful, with imaginative choreography and enchanting set-pieces. Special shout-out to Shirley Kurata for her costume designing debut! WOW!!! I was shocked to learn this was her first time, what magnificent, imaginative, creative work! Speaking of jaw-dropping facts: SEVEN PEOPLE were on the Visual Effects team. SEVEN! The fact they were not nominated at the Oscars was an insult. When you have a budget of $300 million and a thousand members of staff, shocker you get nominated for making something pretty (I'd bloody well hope so, for that money and resources). But seven? This is something very special! So to Benjamin Brewer, Jeff Desom, Ethan Feldbau, Evan Halleck, Kirsten Lepore, Zak Stoltz & Matthew Wauhkonen I salute you all, and your groundbreaking brilliance with less resources than most dramas. And if you don't believe me, the Whale (2022) has over 50 people listed on the special effects team. Elvis (2022) has over a hundred and fifty. Even Tár (2022), bloody Tár had over twenty five! The brilliance of what they accomplished with just seven people is staggering. As for the acting, I really have only positives to say about the entire cast; they shine: Jamie Lee Curtis was equal levels bold and disgusting; adding many layers to this literal ‘Karen’, Stephanie Hsu massively impressed me in her variety and monstrosity… and major major applause to Ke Huy Quan returning to cinema after so many years. You’d know him best as Short Round from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) or Data from the Goonies (1985); well he absolutely smashed it out of the park. Beautiful depth of feeling to his tragic, much overlooked and forgotten husband. My only con… the score’s a total non-entity. And that got nominated... but the seven people who did all those special effects... forrrrrrrrgetaboutit!

OVERALL
This is one of the most unique, daring and unapologetic films I've seen in such a long, long time. Nothing excites me more in cinema than not playing it safe, and this film is just... brilliant for that. The cast is perfect, I fell in love with all of them, with the whole film. It gave so many special moments, so many iconic images and ideas, that you just can't plan. Michelle Yeoh is a goddess, figurative (and literally) in this; not since Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) has a film so beautifully captured the colossal range of her talents and greatness. It's one of the best films I've seen in years.
~ rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ [grade: A++]


N.B. added to my "Top 100"

[R.E.B]

Kieran Frost's "100 Greatest Films"

1. 12 angry men (1957)
2. the Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
3. the African Queen (1951)
4. Андрей Рублёв (1966) ~ Andrei Rublev ~
5. Alien (1979)
6. All About Eve (1950)
7. All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)
8. All the President’s Men (1976)
9. American Beauty (1999)
10. Apocalypse Now! (1979)
11. Beauty and the Beast (1991)
12. BEN-HUR (1959)
13. Billy Elliot (2000)
14. the Birds (1963)
15. Black Narcissus (1947)
16. Blade Runner: the Final Cut (1982)
17. the Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)
18. Brief Encounter (1945)
19. Bringing Up Baby (1938)
20. Brokeback Mountain (2005)
21. Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo (1966) ~ the Good, the Bad and the Ugly ~
22. Cabaret (1972)
23. Casablanca (1942)
24. C’era una volta il West (1968) ~ Once Upon A Time in the West ~
25. Chicago (2002)
26. Chinatown (1974)
27. Cidade de Deus (2002) ~ City of God ~
28. A Clockwork Orange (1971)
29. Close Encounter of the Third Kind (1977)
30. the Devils (1971)
31. Dirty Harry (1971)
32. Dog Day Afternoon (1975)
33. • the • Elephant • Man • (1980)
34. the Exorcist (1973)
35. Fargo (1996)
36. Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994)
37. Full Metal Jacket (1987)
38. the Full Monty (1997)
39. Gladiator (2000)
40. the Godfather (1972)
41. Gone With the Wind (1939)
42. Gosford Park (2001)
43. Gravity (2013)
44. Heat (1995)
45. the Hustler (1961)
46. In Bruges (2008)
47. In the Heat of the Night (1967)
48. It Happened One Night (1934)
49. Jaws (1975)
50. the King of Comedy (1982)
51. el Laberinto del fauno (2006) ~ Pan’s Labyrinth ~
52. the Ladykillers (1955)
53. the Lady Vanishes (1938)
54. Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
55. the Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943)
56. Life of Pi (2012)
57. the Lion In Winter (1968)
58. Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
59. THE LORD OF THE RINGS (2001 - 2003)
60. M (1931)
61. the Maltese Falcon (1941)
62. M*A*S*H* (1970)
63. the Matrix (1999)
64. Mrs. Miniver (1942)
65. Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios (1988) ~ Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown ~
66. My Fair Lady (1964)
67. Mystic River (2003)
68. Network (1976)
69. Nora Inu (1949) ~ Stray Dog ~
70. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975)
71. On the Waterfront (1954)
72. Ordinary People (1980)
73. Ostre sledované vlaky (1966) ~ Closely Observed Trains ~
74. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
75. Rain Man (1988)
76. Rebecca (1940)
77. Road Warrior (1981)
78. Secrets & Lies (1996)
79. Sense and Sensibility (1995)
80. Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi (2001) ~ Spirited Away ~
81. sex, lies and videotape (1989)
82. Shakespeare In Love (1998)
83. the Shawshank Redemption (1993)
84. Shichinin no samurai (1954) ~ Seven Samurai ~
85. Short Cuts (1993)
86. the Silence of the Lambs (1991)
87. Singin’ in the Rain (1952)
88. det Sjunde inseglet (1957) ~ the Seventh Seal ~
89. the Social Network (2010)
90. Some Like It Hot (1959)
91. Star Wars - Episode V: the Empire Strikes Back (1980)
92. the Terminator (1984)
93. There Will Be Blood (2007)
94. the Third Man (1949)
95. To Kill A Mockingbird (1962)
96. Touch of Evil (1958)
97. Unforgiven (1992)
98. When Harry Met Sally (1989)
99. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966)
100. Wo hu cang long (2000) ~ Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon ~

N.B. the ones in BOLD won Best Picture at the Oscars

Have you viewed these films KF? Some of these might be to your liking.

The Lost Weekend (1945)
Aliens (1986)
Metropolis (1927)
A Star Is Born (1954)
The French Connection (1971) *The Car Chase sequence is legendary.
Cat On A Hot Tin Roof (1958)
Momento (2000)
Seven (1995)
Out Of Africa (1985)
Marathon Man (1976)
The Conversation (1974)
Three Days Of The Condor (1975)

[simbob4000]

The 2010s...of far.

Haven't seen as much new stuff as I would like, so some good stuff just might not be here because I just haven't seen it.

1. Django Unchained (Quentin Tarantino - 2012)
2. The Master (Paul Thomas Anderson - 2012)
3. 13 Assassins (Takashi Miike - 2010)
4. I Saw the Devil (Kim Jee-woon - 2010)
5. Big Bad Wolves (Aharon Keshales - 2013)
6. Short Peace (Hiroaki Andô, Hajime Katoki, Shûhei Morita, Katsuhiro Ôtomo - 2013)
7. Sightseers (Ben Wheatley - 2012)
8. Toy Story 3 (Lee Unkrich - 2010)
9. Spring Breakers (Harmony Korine - 2013)
10. Casa de mi Padre (Matte Piedmont - 2012)
11. Lawless (John Hillcoat - 2012)
12. The Wind Rises (Hayao Miyazaki - 2013)
13. Warrior (Gavin O'Connor - 2011)
14. Enter the Void (Gaspar Noé - 2010)
15. Our Idiot Brother (Jesse Peretz - 2011)
16. Frances Ha (Noah Baumbach - 2013)
17. The Snowtown Murders (Justin Kurzel - 2011)
18. You're Next (Adam Wingard - 2013)
19. The Act of Killing (Joshua Oppenheimer and Christine Cynn - 2012)
20. The Hunt (Thomas Vinterberg - 2013)
21. The Social Network (David Fincher - 2010)
22. This is the End (Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen - 2013)
23. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (Edgar Wright - 2010)
24. Bernie (Richard Linklater - 2011)
25. Mud (Jeff Nichols - 2013)
26. City Island (Raymond De Felitta - 2010)
27. Drinking Buddies (Joe Swanberg - 2013)
28. Time Traveller (Masaaki Taniguchi - 2010)
29. Burke and Hare (John Landis - 2010)
30. The Dictator (Larry Charles - 2012)
31. Tyrannosaur (Paddy Considine - 2011)
32. Blue is the Warmest Color (Abdellatif Kechiche - 2013)
33. The American (Aton Corbijn - 2010)
34. Attack the Block (Joe Cornish - 2011)
35. Get Him to the Greek (Nicholas Stoller - 2010)
36. The Wolf of Wall Street (Martin Scorsese - 2013)
37. The Gray (Joe Carnahan - 2011)
38. The Human Centipede II (Full Sequence) (Tom Six - 2011)
39. John Dies at the End (Don Coscarelli - 2012)
40. Cheerful Weather for the Wedding (Donald Rice - 2012)
41. Cyrus (Jay and Mark Duplass - 2010)
42. 127 Hours (Danny Boyle - 2010)
43. Super (James Gunn - 2010)
44. The Killer Inside Me (Michael Winterbottom - 2010)
45. Marwencol (Jeff Maimberg - 2010)
46. Best Man Down (Ted Koland - 2012)
47. Antiviral (Brandon Cronenberg - 2012)
48. Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning (John Hyams - 2012)
49. Karate-Robo Zaborgar (Noboru Iguchi - 2011)

[simbob4000]

For me anime is the stylized version of animation, with exaggerated expressions (SEE: below). Spirited Away is much more akin to Disney style animation (clean, cartoon realism). If you enter "anime" into google images (https://www.google.com/search?site=i...anime&imgdii=_) NOT ONE Studio Ghibli image comes up (despite being the most famous animated films from Japan). Why do you think that is?

Well then for you much of what people thought of as anime up until maybe the late '90s isn't anime. Stylistically Miyazaki's stuff looks like anime, has more to do with Osamu Tezuka than Disney movies, and while he might not go to the extremes of those faces, he does exaggerated expressions...in fact he does it way more then some anime does.