This is a blog to keep me sane. Every film I see. Every day of the year. Some may be accompanied by a sentence, and hell, one or two may have an essay joining them. However, all will be here. Hope you don't mind going along for the ride. It should be one hell of a fun one.
#75 - The Grey (Carnahan, 2012)
Kind of brilliant. Hear me out. Featuring a top notch performance from Liam Neeson, who honestly gives one of his best performances in years, The Grey may look like and have been sold as nothing more than a wolf punching action film, but instead, it’s an introspective, Herzogian-style man v. nature battle, all blended perfectly with devastatingly haunting sound design and fantastic action set pieces. Now, while the ending will leave me, and I’m assuming most of those who see the film, wondering if it was all with it, I can say that it definitely was. THIS is what action films should strive to be. And who would have thought that this would come from the guy behind The A-Team. Fucking ACE.
Side note: Let me know what you thought, if you stayed until after the credits. To say that it changes the entire film, is kind of an understatement.
Grade - A-
NIC CAGE COVERS ‘I’m Sexy And I Know It.’ AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHA
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
#73 - Undefeated (Lindsay/Martin, 2012)
Opens in February. Tears will flow. Fucking great film. More soon.
Grade - B+
#72 - Crazy Horse (Wiseman, 2012)
Possibly the best film I’ve seen so far this year. From director Frederick Wiseman, the film follows those involved with The Crazy Horse in Paris, and it’s both a breathtaking look into the creative experience, and also a potent and moving love letter to both dance and the female form. Will have more to say soon, as a review will hit next week over at @CriterionCast.
Grade - A
#71 - Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close (Daldry, 2011)
Von Sydow is brilliant. The moments of emotional angst and, in a few cases, violence, are the film’s strongest sequences. Bullock steals the show, but is horribly underused, instead finding Daldry opting for an overbearing narration and a silly plot full of odd stylistic choices, leading up to the sourest of ending notes. Fucking hell. This movie definitely lives up to the hype.
Grade - D+
#70 - Princess From The Moon (Ichikawa, 1987)
THIS NEEDS TO BE A CRITERION RELEASE RIGHT NOW. Seriously, it’s such a fun, charming, and bewilderingly entertaining bit of feudal sci-fi. Plus it ends with Peter. FUCKING. Cetera.
Aardman does DC. BRILLIANT.
Watch David Denby, A.O. Scott and Dana Stevens talk this year's Oscar nominations on Charlie Rose...
Scene from Princess From The Moon. Currently available on @Criterion’s Hulu Plus page…
NIGHTNIGHT by DEDDY
