16 Best Movies To Watch After Poor Things (2023)
Dune: Part Two
Similar2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), 2046 (2004), A Clockwork Orange (1971), A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001), Alien (1979), Aliens (1986), Back to the Future Part II (1989), Ben-Hur (1959), Beverly Hills Cop II (1987),
Blade Runner (1982) Dances with Wolves (1990), Dr. No (1962), Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007), Fantomas vs. Scotland Yard (1967), From Russia with Love (1963), Goldfinger (1964), Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2001), Jaws: The Revenge (1987), King Kong (2005),
Live and Let Die (1973) Mars Attacks! (1996), Metropolis (1927), On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969), Predator (1987),
Shaft (2000) Shrek 2 (2004), Shrek the Third (2007), Solaris (1972), Spider-Man 2 (2004), Spider-Man 3 (2007), Stalker (1979), Star Trek: First Contact (1996), Star Trek: Generations (1994), Superman Returns (2006), The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005), The Fifth Element (1997), The Handmaid's Tale (1990), The Man with the Golden Gun (1974), The Poseidon Adventure (1972), The Road (2009), The Thirteenth Floor (1999), War of the Worlds (2005), You Only Live Twice (1967),
Watch afterAmerican Fiction (2023), Anatomy of a Fall (2023), Dune (2021), Inception (2010), Interstellar (2014), Poor Things (2023),
StarringBabs Olusanmokun, Stellan Skarsgård,
Denis Villeneuve finishes his epic two-part adaptation of Frank Herbert's novel with sprawling scope and thorny politics.
It's really a miracle that the first of Denis Villeneuve's Dune films penetrated the public consciousness as well as it did. It was released amid a worldwide pandemic; it was an IMAX-ready blockbuster that was simultaneously dropped onto people's streaming subscriptions same-day; it's based on a dense, impenetrable sci-fi novel Villeneuve patiently chose not to wholly adapt in one film. The results, blessedly, were commercial and critical success and a host of technical Oscars the following year.
That success was enough to secure Dune: Part Two, a chance for Villeneuve to complete his vision of Frank Herbert's seminal work of political science fiction. Where Part One worldbuilds, Part Two barrels down the road of its inevitable conclusion in satisfying style, even as it makes some noted changes from the novel or any previous adaptations -- some for the better, some for the worse. Continue Reading →
The Beekeeper
The film's biggest highlight is the actor as an unlikely hero: a beekeeper-turned-assassin.
Bees, scammers, and a hive of lies. Jason Statham’s latest record-breaking feature The Beekeeper is honey-soaked, with wisdom that leaves the viewer wanting more and learning to be wary of scammers, stop elder abuse, and save the bees. As he aggressively fights to save the bees (and society) from total destruction, Statham serves up the same kind of grizzled Brit-buster vibes he's given us through decades of punch-em-up action. But this one's something special, a caper that leans into the meme of both Statham's curious star power and his apian brethren.
Directed by David Ayer, The Beekeeper tells the story of Adam Clay (Jason Statham), a beekeeper and retired member of the crime-fighting organization of the same name. But when his elderly neighbor Mrs. Parker (Phylicia Rashad) is subject to scammers and loses everything, Adam goes on a mission to find the scammers and kill their operation to “protect the hive.” His journey leads him all the way to the White House, even involving the FBI and CIA. Continue Reading →
Mean Girls
SimilarAustin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999),
Bend It Like Beckham (2002) Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2006), Bridget Jones's Diary (2001), Bring It On (2000), Chicago (2002), Enchanted (2007), Italian for Beginners (2000), Little Miss Sunshine (2006), Mary Poppins (1964), Paris Can Wait (2016), Shall We Dance? (2004), Shrek (2001), Sleepless in Seattle (1993), The Holiday (2006), The Party (1980), The Party 2 (1982), Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971),
Watch afterPoor Things (2023), Saltburn (2023), Society of the Snow (2023), Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023), Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), Wonka (2023),
StarringJon Hamm,
The Broadway adaptation defangs its best characters in a misguided effort to appeal to a new generation of viewers.
Paramount’s new version of Tina Fey’s cult classic Mean Girls boasts a tagline many Millennials found downright offensive upon debut: “This ain’t your mother’s Mean Girls!” The movie, based on the Broadway musical adapted from the original 2004 film, makes it abundantly clear that it’s aimed directly at Gen Z from its very opening moments, which look like a vertical phone video straight out of TikTok. Fey, the writer of both versions of Mean Girls, hasn’t been without her fair share of controversies over the twenty years since the first film premiered. In a clear effort to avoid upsetting younger audience members who have grown up with more sensitive media, Fey kneecaps many of her own best jokes. The updated script is a wobbly attempt to satisfy fans of the original without offending newcomers. The set-ups where there used to be jokes still remain, but they’re empty husks strung together by mostly forgettable songs. Though not without its unique charms, the musical Mean Girls is glaringly unfunny.
The music, written by Fey’s husband and frequent creative collaborator Jeff Richmond, does little to make up for the chasms where cutting punchlines have been removed. Richmond can write excellent, hilarious songs like the ones in 30 Rock and Girls5eva, but his compositions here are basic and feel uninspired. Most of the sincere songs revolve around bland messages about self-esteem that lack any insight into the actual emotional experiences of teenage girls. Emo outcast Janis ‘Imi’ike (Auli’i Cravalho, Moana), formerly a supporting character, gets what feels like four separate songs about the power of Being Yourself. Only “Sexy,” a playful number about Halloween costumes performed by ditzy beauty Karen Shetty (Avantika), stands out. Continue Reading →
Snow
SimilarA Christmas Carol (1938), Apocalypse Now (1979), Batman Returns (1992), Ben-Hur (1959), Billy Elliot (2000), Brazil (1985), Contact (1997), Edward Scissorhands (1990), Finding Forrester (2000), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2001), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004), Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992), I Am Not a Serial Killer (2016), Metropolis (1927), Sahara (2005), Scrooge (1951), Shooter (2007), Sleepless in Seattle (1993), Talk to Her (2002), The Apartment (1960), The Art of Racing in the Rain (2019), The Bridges of Madison County (1995), The Holiday (2006), The Last Emperor (1987), The Party 2 (1982), The Tin Drum (1979), Wonder Boys (2000),
Watch afterAquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023), Interstellar (2014), Leave the World Behind (2023), Napoleon (2023),
Oppenheimer (2023) Poor Things (2023), Saltburn (2023),
J.A. Bayona directs a heartbreaking adaptation of a true-life tale of tragedy & miracles.
Though we joke about the smallest inconveniences rendering us helpless, in truth the human will to survive cannot be underestimated. When confronted with imminent death, we can and will resort to extreme means to escape it, sometimes in ways that might shock and horrify those who weren’t there. One such story was Aron Ralston, a hiker who was forced to break and cut his own arm off after he was trapped by a fallen boulder, as depicted in 2010’s 127 Hours. Another was a 1972 plane crash in the Andes mountains, after which the survivors, faced with subzero temperatures, no food, and no plant life or animals to be found, eventually resorted to cannibalism to avoid starvation.
The Andes plane crash story was adapted for film a number of times, including the trashy, exploitative Survive!, and 1993’s competently made but whitewashed Alive, in which Ethan Hawke was cast as a character named Nando Parrado. Now J.A. Bayona, whose 2012 film The Impossible was also a harrowing tale of survival, takes a turn with Society of the Snow, a gripping, heart-wrenching look at the emotional toll such an unthinkable event takes on those who somehow came out of it alive, if not exactly well. Continue Reading →
Ferrari
SimilarA Beautiful Mind (2001), Ali: Fear Eats the Soul (1974), Almost Famous (2000), Anna and the King (1999), Apollo 13 (1995), Belle de Jour (1967),
Boys Don't Cry (1999) Brubaker (1980), Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), Crash (1996), Dead Poets Society (1989), Donnie Brasco (1997), Driving Miss Daisy (1989), Enough (2002), Erin Brockovich (2000), Freedom Writers (2007), Gandhi (1982), GoodFellas (1990), Gridiron Gang (2006), La Vie en Rose (2007), Little Miss Sunshine (2006), M*A*S*H (1970), Manhattan (1979), Mississippi Burning (1988), Raging Bull (1980), Rosemary's Baby (1968), Schindler's List (1993), Shall We Dance? (2004), Sissi (1955), Stand by Me (1986), The Art of Racing in the Rain (2019), The Bridges of Madison County (1995), The Elephant Man (1980), The Godfather (1972), The Last Emperor (1987), The Pianist (2002), The Poseidon Adventure (1972), The Pursuit of Happyness (2006), The Straight Story (1999), Titanic (1997), West Side Story (2021),
Watch afterDune: Part Two (2024), Leave the World Behind (2023), Poor Things (2023), Saltburn (2023), The Killer (2023), The Marvels (2023), Wonka (2023),
Adam Driver does insightful, searching work as auto legend Enzo Ferrari in the filmmaker's study of a pivotal year in his life.
Michael Mann’s 21st-century work is, first and foremost, a cinema of feeling. When it comes to the details, he remains as much of a nerd as he was when he choreographed the thrilling terror of Heat’s climactic blowout. But Collateral, Miami Vice, and Blackhat pay special mind to the senses, to connection. It’s Colin Farrell and Gong Li finding a rare moment of joy as they dance to live music in Havana. It’s Jamie Foxx, Jada Pinkett Smith, and Tom Cruise taking in the stillness of daybreak on an L.A. train. It’s Chris Hemsworth and Tang Wei clinging to each other on a near-empty subway as they try and fail to block out grief for survival’s sake. In Ferrari, it’s Adam Driver and Penélope Cruz sitting across from each other, laying out what they need from each other in their business partnership and estranged marriage.
But while Ferrari is unmistakably in conversation with Mann and his creative collaborators’ earlier work, it’s more emotionally reserved than much of his 21st-century filmography. While his John Dillinger picture Public Enemies is certainly a cousin (a period piece built on a specific period in the life of an iconic man), it’s as much about the time and place and the ensemble. Ferrari is, first and foremost, a character study. Continue Reading →
The Iron Claw
SimilarA Beautiful Mind (2001), A History of Violence (2005), Almost Famous (2000), Anna and the King (1999), Annie Hall (1977), Apollo 13 (1995),
Bend It Like Beckham (2002) Billy Elliot (2000),
Boys Don't Cry (1999) Caché (2005), Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), Donnie Brasco (1997), Driving Miss Daisy (1989), Erin Brockovich (2000), Forrest Gump (1994), Full Metal Jacket (1987), Gandhi (1982), Ghost (1990), Gridiron Gang (2006), I Stand Alone (1998), La Vie en Rose (2007), Little Miss Sunshine (2006), Manhattan (1979), Match Point (2005), Monster (2003), Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (2006),
Primal Fear (1996) Raging Bull (1980), Schindler's List (1993), Sissi (1955), Solaris (1972), Talk to Her (2002), The Art of Racing in the Rain (2019), The Big Blue (1988), The Devil's Rejects (2005), The Elephant Man (1980), The Fisher King (1991), The Irishman (2019), The Last Emperor (1987), The Party (1980), The Pianist (2002), The Poseidon Adventure (1972), The Pursuit of Happyness (2006), The Straight Story (1999), The Tin Drum (1979), Titanic (1997), Volver (2006),
Watch afterBullet Train (2022), Dune (2021), Elemental (2023), Poor Things (2023), Rebel Moon - Part One: A Child of Fire (2023),
StudioA24, BBC Film,
Sean Durkin’s biopic about the Von Erich wrestling dynasty features stellar performances in a script that can’t quite find its footing.
In 2008, Mickey Rourke made a surprise and stunning comeback in Aronofsky’s The Wrestler. His once pretty-boy face distorted from years of drugs and plastic surgery suddenly felt tailor-made for the role of Randy “The Ram” Robinson — a wrestler on the outs, clinging to the only thing he knows while the rest of his life crumbles around him. 2023's The Iron Claw offers us a similar story, right down to the comeback for its lead.
Zac Efron may be fortunate enough not to have a tawdry past to overcome like Rourke, but he’s never really found his footing since leaving his teen heartthrob days behind. That said, thanks to complications from a broken jawbone, his face is radically different from the one we knew in High School Musical, even sparking gossip of plastic surgery gone wrong (another insult often lobbed at Rourke, though in his case it’s certainly true). But just like Rourke, his new jawline perfectly suits him in The Iron Claw, which may finally prove to be his breakthrough role as an adult, dramatic actor. Continue Reading →
Maestro
Similar9 Songs (2004), A Beautiful Mind (2001), A History of Violence (2005), Alex Strangelove (2018), Ali: Fear Eats the Soul (1974), Annie Hall (1977), Apollo 13 (1995), Belle de Jour (1967), Ben-Hur (1959),
Bend It Like Beckham (2002) Billy Elliot (2000),
Boys Don't Cry (1999) Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), Crash (1996), Desert Hearts (1985), Donnie Brasco (1997), Driving Miss Daisy (1989), East of Eden (1955), Enough (2002), Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), Gridiron Gang (2006), Manhattan (1979), Match Point (2005), Random Harvest (1942),
Rebecca (1940) Schindler's List (1993), Sissi (1955), The Bridges of Madison County (1995), The Elephant Man (1980), The Pianist (2002), The Science of Sleep (2006), The Straight Story (1999), The Tin Drum (1979), Titanic (1997), True Romance (1993),
Watch afterAmerican Fiction (2023), Killers of the Flower Moon (2023), Leave the World Behind (2023), Napoleon (2023), Poor Things (2023), Rebel Moon - Part One: A Child of Fire (2023), Saltburn (2023), Society of the Snow (2023), Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023), The Killer (2023),
Bradley Cooper pays respectful homage to Leonard Bernstein in this lavish passion project.
The problem inherent to most biopics is one of balance. Err too far on the side of worshipful and you get nonsense like Oliver Stone’s The Doors. Or you could swing in the other direction and you end up with an “oops, all warts” camp disaster like Mommie Dearest. Most linger somewhere in the middle, at a respectful distance, so that they’re ultimately kind of boring, and offer nothing new or particularly insightful about its subject matter.
Bradley Cooper’s Maestro, about the life of legendary composer Leonard Bernstein, isn’t boring. It’s too visually dazzling for that. It does not, however, leave one feeling like they’ve really gotten to know more about Bernstein other than he was a complicated, workaholic genius who struggled with his sexuality, which is all information that could be gleaned from his Wikipedia page. But it sure is lovely spending time in his world for a little while. Continue Reading →
The Color Purple
SimilarA Christmas Carol (1938), Apocalypse Now (1979), Belle de Jour (1967), Ben-Hur (1959), Billy Elliot (2000),
Blade Runner (1982) Blood and Chocolate (2007), Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), Chicago (2002), Contact (1997), Contempt (1963), Crash (1996), Dances with Wolves (1990), Desert Hearts (1985), Enough (2002), Eyes Wide Shut (1999), Gone Baby Gone (2007), I've Always Liked You (2016),
Jackie Brown (1997) Just Cause (1995), Lost in Translation (2003), Manhattan (1979), Metropolis (1927), Mystic River (2003), Oldboy (2003), Once Upon a Time in America (1984), Solaris (1972), The Art of Racing in the Rain (2019), The Bridges of Madison County (1995), The Cider House Rules (1999), The Elementary Particles (2006), The Fisher King (1991), The Irishman (2019),
The Name of the Rose (1986) The Party (1980), The Silence of the Lambs (1991), The Tin Drum (1979), Titanic (1997), To Die For (1995), Volver (2006),
Watch afterAquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023), Poor Things (2023), Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023), The Whale (2022),
StarringColman Domingo,
Blitz Bazawule's adaptation of the Alice Walker classic (and the Broadway musical) is a more joyful, celebratory film than its predecessor.
The Color Purple has taken on a musicality ever since Steven Spielberg and Quincy Jones adapted Alice Walker’s 1983 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel for the screen. When the first film was released in 1985, Spielberg already referred to it as a “musical.” In a behind-the-scenes interview about the film's musicality included in Warner Bros’ sumptuous new 4K release, Walker, Spielberg, and Jones conduct us through the “diverse places” that music appears in the original film. There are rail work songs, African dance, juke joint blues, and revival gospel; all tonally matched together in a near seamless “immersion” of sound.
In an age where nearly every popular and cult film gets a Broadway adaptation, The Color Purple is a particular no-brainer. Celie’s journey of self-discovery through systematic abuses and struggles at the turn of the twentieth century lends itself to the kind of emotional bigness a musical requires. With music by the legendary Brenda Russell and the late queer songwriting icon Allee Willis, The Color Purple: The Musical also showcases a diverse range of musical styles and modes, especially those well suited for the stage, like swing and Greek chorus. Continue Reading →
The Zone of Interest
SimilarAli: Fear Eats the Soul (1974), Almost Famous (2000), Anatomy of a Murder (1959), Apocalypse Now (1979), Apollo 13 (1995), Belle de Jour (1967), Ben-Hur (1959),
Blade Runner (1982) Blood and Chocolate (2007),
Boys Don't Cry (1999) Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), Contact (1997), Contempt (1963), Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (2000), Cruel Intentions (1999), Dances with Wolves (1990), Desert Hearts (1985), Driving Miss Daisy (1989), East of Eden (1955), Enough (2002), Finding Forrester (2000), Forrest Gump (1994), Gandhi (1982), I Am Not a Serial Killer (2016), I've Always Liked You (2016),
Jackie Brown (1997) Just Cause (1995), La Haine (1995), Metropolis (1927), Oldboy (2003), Raging Bull (1980), Random Harvest (1942),
Rebecca (1940) Shall We Dance? (2004), The Art of Racing in the Rain (2019), The Bridges of Madison County (1995), The Elementary Particles (2006), The Elephant Man (1980), The Good German (2006), The Last Emperor (1987),
The Name of the Rose (1986) The Outsiders (1983), The Pianist (2002), The Silence of the Lambs (1991), The Straight Story (1999), The Tin Drum (1979), To Die For (1995), What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993), Wonder Boys (2000),
Watch afterAmerican Fiction (2023), Anatomy of a Fall (2023), Dune: Part Two (2024), Joker (2019), Napoleon (2023),
Oppenheimer (2023) Poor Things (2023),
StudioA24, Film4 Productions,
Jonathan Glazer's first feature in 10 years is a near-unclassifiable work of patience and intentional distance from its historical horrors.
What am I to say here? What can I say?
I feel as if I’m to say nothing at all. My mind has gone and I feel sick, and while that’s due to the film in question, another degree of it comes from a deeper truth. I feel wrong in my reaction to it; it can’t help but feel inadequate. The Zone of Interest has leveled me like few things ever have, but that’s not the point. That’s not its point. Continue Reading →
Eileen
SimilarA Christmas Carol (1938), Anatomy of a Murder (1959), Apocalypse Now (1979), Basic Instinct (1992), Ben-Hur (1959),
Blade Runner (1982) Blue Velvet (1986), Brubaker (1980), Con Air (1997), Contempt (1963), Crash (1996), Cruel Intentions (1999), Cube Zero (2004), Die Hard (1988), Die Hard 2 (1990), Don't Bother to Knock (1952), Dr. No (1962), Driving Miss Daisy (1989), Fargo (1996), Fried Green Tomatoes (1991), From Russia with Love (1963), Full Metal Jacket (1987), Goldfinger (1964), Gone Baby Gone (2007), Just Cause (1995), La Vie en Rose (2007), Memento (2000), Metropolis (1927), On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969), Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (2006),
Primal Fear (1996) Schindler's List (1993), Scrooge (1951), Solaris (1972), Stalker (1979), Talk to Her (2002), The 39 Steps (1935), The Departed (2006), The Devil's Rejects (2005), The Elementary Particles (2006), The Handmaid's Tale (1990), The Poseidon Adventure (1972), The Road (2009), The Silence of the Lambs (1991), The Thirteenth Floor (1999), The Tin Drum (1979), Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead (1995), War of the Worlds (2005), What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993), You Only Live Twice (1967),
Watch afterAnatomy of a Fall (2023), Interstellar (2014),
Oppenheimer (2023) Poor Things (2023), Saltburn (2023), Shortcomings (2023), Society of the Snow (2023), The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023),
StudioFilm4 Productions,
Thomasin McKenzie & Anne Hathaway burn up the screen in William Oldroyd’s unsettling thriller.
Eileen will likely be lost in the holiday season shuffle among such spectacles as the upcoming Wonka and awards-friendly fare like Ferrari. On the other hand, it’s unclear under what circumstances Eileen would make a big splash. It’s an odd, occasionally off-putting little film that wouldn’t work as well as it does if not for the scorching chemistry between its two leads.
Based on Ottessa Moshfegh’s (also odd and occasionally off-putting) novel of the same name, Eileen stars Thomasin McKenzie as the titular character, a lonely young woman stuck in a miserable rut. Living in the most depressing town in Massachusetts circa 1964, Eileen is forced to take care of her alcoholic, mean-spirited father (a chilling Shea Whigham, still somehow not one of Hollywood’s biggest stars), a former cop who’s taken to waving his gun at their neighbors. Working as a secretary at a juvenile detention center, though she’s in her twenties she comes off as someone much younger, a meek and awkward child merely dressing up as an adult. Eileen also has a child’s taste for doing things like ignoring her hygiene, stuffing herself with candy, and compulsively masturbating, while maintaining a rich fantasy life involving rough sex with a detention center guard, or murdering her father. Her boredom has reached pathological levels. Continue Reading →
The Holdovers
SimilarApocalypse Now (1979), Brazil (1985), Donnie Brasco (1997), Driving Miss Daisy (1989), Edward Scissorhands (1990), Fargo (1996), Forrest Gump (1994), Full Metal Jacket (1987), GoodFellas (1990), Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992), I Am Not a Serial Killer (2016), Monster (2003), Mystic River (2003), Oldboy (2003), Scrooge (1951), Shrek the Third (2007), Solaris (1972), The Apartment (1960), The Departed (2006), The Fisher King (1991), The Party 2 (1982), The Poseidon Adventure (1972), The Silent Partner (1978), To Die For (1995), Wonder Boys (2000),
Watch afterAmerican Fiction (2023), Anatomy of a Fall (2023),
Barbie (2023) Killers of the Flower Moon (2023),
Oppenheimer (2023) Poor Things (2023), Society of the Snow (2023), The Killer (2023), The Marvels (2023),
StarringGillian Vigman,
StudioMiramax,
After stumbling with Downsizing, Alexander Payne bounces back with a gentle & witty comedy-drama.
The artist Dmitry Samarov one said to me that the ratio of good to bad late periods in an artist's life was depressing to consider. For every Sir Edward William Elgar there was an Eric Clapton (my example, not his), and that it was rare to see someone sharpen as they aged. Now, I like Dmitry and certainly respect his opinion, but I can’t help but feel that when film overtook painting as the dominant artwork that people engage with, the ratio shifted towards bizarre experimentation and welcome self-reflection as much as dull self reflection.
Take for instance 62 year old Alexander Payne, who, after the biggest disaster of his career (2017’s confused parable Downsizing), has started his fourth decade as a director by leaning hard back into what he knew (and what the royal “we” enjoyed) and rediscovered himself with The Holdovers, a movie no one can seem to stop comparing to Hal Ashby. No mean feat, of course, but even that sells its virtues short. This is no mere homage, no mere return to form, this is the movie that Payne’s been hoping to make since his 90s heyday, a film that earns both its jaundiced gaze and its catharsis. Continue Reading →
May December
SimilarAli: Fear Eats the Soul (1974), Anna and the King (1999), Billy Elliot (2000), Brazil (1985), Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), Dawn of the Dead (2004), Fargo (1996), M*A*S*H (1970), Mars Attacks! (1996), Monster (2003), My Own Private Idaho (1991), Oldboy (2003), Shaun of the Dead (2004), Stalker (1979), Talk to Her (2002), The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004), The Pursuit of Happyness (2006), The Road (2009), The Tin Drum (1979), Volver (2006), Wonder Boys (2000),
Watch afterAmerican Fiction (2023), Anatomy of a Fall (2023), Killers of the Flower Moon (2023), Leave the World Behind (2023), Napoleon (2023),
Oppenheimer (2023) Poor Things (2023), Saltburn (2023), Thanksgiving (2023),
In such films as Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story, Velvet Goldmine and I’m Not There, filmmaker Todd Haynes has taken the stories of famous people and utilized what we know—or think we know—about them to explore ideas about celebrity and our all-consuming need to render their often-complex stories into straightforward narratives. That strange compulsion to explain, understand, and commodify the lives of real people is at the heart of his latest work, May December, and it certainly seems to have sparked something in him because the end result is the strongest work that he has done in quite some time. Continue Reading →
Saltburn
SimilarBen-Hur (1959),
Bend It Like Beckham (2002) Billy Elliot (2000), Brazil (1985), Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), Copying Beethoven (2006), Crash (1996), Desert Hearts (1985), Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), Fargo (1996), Full Metal Jacket (1987), Klute (1971), Little Miss Sunshine (2006), Lost in Translation (2003), M*A*S*H (1970), Mars Attacks! (1996), My Own Private Idaho (1991), On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969), Paris Can Wait (2016),
Primal Fear (1996) Rope (1948), Shaun of the Dead (2004), Shrek (2001), Star Trek: First Contact (1996), Strange Days (1995), Talk to Her (2002), The Big Blue (1988), The Fisher King (1991), The Holiday (2006), The Last Emperor (1987), The Tin Drum (1979), To Die For (1995), Vertigo (1958),
Watch afterLeave the World Behind (2023), Poor Things (2023), Rebel Moon - Part One: A Child of Fire (2023), Society of the Snow (2023), Thanksgiving (2023), Wonka (2023),
StudioMRC,
With her first film, Promising Young Woman, writer-director Emerald Fennell took a storyline that was essentially a cloddish-but-glossy retread of such female-driven revenge sagas as Ms .45 and I Spit on Your Grave, infused it with insights regarding gender issues that would barely have passed muster in a 100-level college class and somehow rode it to inexplicable praise and an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. Continue Reading →
Once Within a Time
Watch afterAvatar: The Way of Water (2022),
Barbie (2023) Black Adam (2022), Black Widow (2021), Dune (2021), Inception (2010),
Oppenheimer (2023) Parasite (2019), Poor Things (2023), Society of the Snow (2023), Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023), The Batman (2022), The Whale (2022),
When Godfrey Reggio’s monumental experimental documentary Koyannistqatsi (Life Out of Balance in Hopi) first entered the zeitgeist, its radical nature as a postmodern film, with a thoroughly entrancing score by Phillip Glass, became intertwined with the rise of MTV and a new era of visual aesthetic being born within the music sphere. From the noise rock band Cows to electronic musicians Dr. Atmo and Oliver Leib to superstar pop singer Madonna, the film had an indelible effect on music and the music video. Continue Reading →
Jade
After the aggressively negative critic and audience response to 1980’s Cruising, William Friedkin took a curious “hell with it, I’m going to do whatever I want” approach to projects. None of what he directed over the next decade, save for To Live and Die in L.A., came close to receiving the kind of acclaim his early 70s career did. If anything, it seemed as though he had given up his precise, occasionally unreasonable eye for perfection in favor of churning out the most generic cable-friendly nonsense possible. Continue Reading →
Cade: the tortured crossing
Similar2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001),
Blade Runner (1982) Cape Fear (1991), Memento (2000), Strange Days (1995), The Matrix Reloaded (2003), The Matrix Revolutions (2003), The Shining (1980), The Silence of the Lambs (1991), The Thirteenth Floor (1999), Vertigo (1958),
Watch afterOppenheimer (2023) Poor Things (2023), Society of the Snow (2023), Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023),
Say what you will about independent film auteur Neil Breen: he has a vision. All of his movies have a common theme, in which a man with superhuman abilities (played by Neil Breen) directs those abilities toward vanquishing evil corporate and government entities. Many people die in the process, but in Breen’s vision it’s all in the name of world peace. What he’s trying to say isn’t all that hard to figure out: he thinks the world would be better off without corrupt CEOs and pass-the-buck lawmakers (and hey, I don’t disagree). Continue Reading →