Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988) - A very enjoyable watch. You can see the ending coming a mile away, but that doesn’t make it any less satisfying. B
The Trial (1962) - Very exciting from an intellectual and technical perspective (not as exciting from other perspectives). B
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) - This is approximately the billionth comic book movie and the millionth Spider-Man movie, yet somehow it manages to give the impression that it’s the first and only - in other words, like nothing you’ve seen before. I’ve already seen it 3 times. A
Paper Moon (1973) - An entirely agreeable film, never depressing, never shmaltzy. Just fun and human. A-
Wizards (1977) - This is a real mess - and there’s a lot about that I appreciate and a lot that just kinda baffles me. C+
There’s Something About Mary (1998) - There’s definitely something charming about the very specific bonkers perspective on reality this presents, but otherwise it’s not amazing. C+
Mandy (2018) - Visually and aurally hypnotic in a way most films can only dream of. Ultimately more style than substance, but who gives a fuck if you’re into this kinda vibe. B
Crazy Rich Asians (2018) - Smarter than your average ‘rom-com,’ though not quite as funny as the best. A film that takes its “crazy” self and its (asian) characters seriously, even if it doesn’t completely interrogate the “rich” aspect fully. B
Shirkers (2018) - It’s always a sign of a good film when your biggest complaint is that you wanted more. And yet here I really do - I want to know more about this failed film, about these people, about their Singapore, about what happens next - but I’d suppose Sandi Tan feels the same way. There’s always things about life and ourselves and our experiences that we’ll never fully understand. Shirkers nicely captures that feeling in a little film canister. B+
Love Actually (2003) - Actually sucks. C
The Rider (2018) - A film with some gut wrenching emotional content that really sneaks up on you. A stark yet empathetic account of mortality and obsolescence. So, you know, fun stuff. B+
Bumblebee (2018) - Has a couple moments where it slips into the typical rockem’ sockem’ stuff, but otherwise it almost goes without saying at this point that this is easily the best Transformers film and probably the only one that won’t give you a migraine. The bargain bin Spielberg stuff is an effort I much appreciate, even if it often plays as trying hard to be such. Pleasant and very watchable. B
Won’t You Be My Neighbor (2018) - Feels a bit too much like Mr. Rogers greatest hits / a filmized summary of his Wikipedia page, but it’s still a decently made one at that that gets to show off a lot of what made the guy so adored. B-