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Plot and Theme's Top Ten Films of 2022

People love lists, and none more than ones subjectively ranking assorted items (preferably related somehow). It is in that spirit that I have compiled my Top Ten Films released in 2022, especially now that I have seen some of the prestige films released near the end of the year. There are still quite a few movies that I believe might have shot at joining this list somewhere, but alas, we’ve…

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The Basics of Film Aesthetics

The Basics of (Film) Aesthetics

In the mission statement of this blog, I indicated that I would be approaching the field of film criticism from the perspective of a particular school of aesthetics – Romantic Realism. But, in order to establish what is meant by “Romantic Realism”, to explain its principles and apply its methods of analysis, there is a little background work that must be done first. There is a hierarchy to any…

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"Babylon": Damien Chazelle's Hollow Ode to Hollywood

“Babylon”: Damien Chazelle’s Hollow Ode to Hollywood

I’m not sure if you’re aware of this, but Damien Chazelle likes movies. Babylon, the director’s latest celebration of his own art form, is a monument to the indulgence of early Hollywood, documenting the seamy culture while celebrating the magical products that it produces. The result is an uneven and haphazard slog of over three hours, as we watch what amounts to a fever dream on a truly…

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"The Whale" Devastates with a Timeless Look at Choice, Forgiveness, and Love

“The Whale” Devastates with a Timeless Look at Choice, Forgiveness, and Love

The Whale fucking destroyed me. With about fifteen minutes to go, I felt the lump forming in my throat. After a tiny plot twist, things started getting blurry. During the climactic scene, the tears started flowing freely, and by the time the credits rolled, I was an absolute mess. I wasn’t the only one, as I heard sniffling from two others in my row. My tears continued on the way out of the…

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The Knives Out and Glass Onion Double-Feature Film Review

The Knives Out and Glass Onion Double-Feature Film Review

The “whodunit” style of mystery story has experienced a renaissance over the recent years with updated versions of the classic Agatha Christie stories like Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile having reasonable success with audiences. More thriller-style mysteries like Gone Girl and Where the Crawdads Sing have been adapted from popular novels and experienced similar success. Even…

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Avatar 2: The Way-off Water

Avatar 2: The Way-off Water

Avatar 2: The Way of Water is a three-hour Disney ride more than an actual film, and it feels as though the creators believe that’s plenty. Characters are drawn broadly and their motivations even more so. Plot elements are convenient, shoe-horned, and repetitious retreads of the first film, at least when they aren’t completely nonsensical. Themes are unchanged from the original, an afterthought…

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Project Announcement: "Viral Agents" - A Science Fiction Novel

Project Announcement: “Viral Agents” – A Science Fiction Novel

Since about 2015, I have been keeping jottings on various creative writing projects. Some are probably best suited to short stories, but I felt that others had a good chance to become full-fledged novels. In November of 2017, I wrote the opening scene to one of these projects in a fit of inspiration and creativity. Then I set it aside for almost four years. Partly this was because I wasn’t…

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National Novel Writing Month 2021 - a NaNoWriMo Victory Tale

National Novel Writing Month 2021 – a NaNoWriMo Victory Tale

For those of you not in the know, November is National Novel Writing Month, or “NaNoWriMo”. Created by the nonprofit organization of the same name, NaNoWriMo promotes creative writing throughout the world by sponsoring content, providing tools for writers, and hosting platforms for writers to record and share their progress towards writing 50,000 words in the month of November. This year I…

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State of the Blog - March 2020

State of the Blog – March 2020

March is underway, and it is time for a quick update here at Plot and Theme. As usual, February is a pretty slow movie month, so there wasn’t a lot that I saw, but hopefully that will be balanced with the plethora of interesting movies set to debut in March.

Would You Like To Know More?

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Plot and Theme's Very Favorite Films of 2019

Plot and Theme’s Very Favorite Films of 2019

Now that we’re squarely into a brand new decade, and I’ve had enough time to reflect on the films and flicks from the past year and draw up a preliminary Top 10 List for the year. Plot and Theme turns five years old in 2020, and while I am sure that some of my opinions from those first few reviews have changed a bit by now, I still like putting forth a contemporaneous “Best of” list while still…

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The Ignominious Return of My Questionable Opinions

The Ignominious Return of My Questionable Opinions

This will be a short entry, but at least it will be one.

Almost one year. That is how long it has been since I have posted an idea to Plot and Theme. The reasons I could list are all pretty banal: I had less time to write, it got less fun to write, and the movies felt less and less distinctive. But, all the while, I was still watching movies, still thinking about them, and in certain cases, still…

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"Widows": a Pulp Fiction with Class

“Widows”: a Pulp Fiction with Class

Steve McQueen’s work has always been weighty and dour, but with a distinct sense of purpose. Viewers are probably most familiar with the Best Picture-winning 12 Years a Slave, but McQueen’s other features depict a sex addict (Shame) and the Irish hunger strikes during The Trouble (Hunger). Widows, McQueen’s newest feature shares some of the dour coloring of his previous work, but is much more…

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"BlacKKKlansman" and its Multi-layered Performances Pop Off the Screen

“BlacKKKlansman” and its Multi-layered Performances Pop Off the Screen

Spike Lee’s BlacKKKlansman tells the true story of Ron Stallworth, the first black police officer hired in the Colorado Springs Police Department. Based on Stallworth’s memoir Black Klansman, the film follows the young upstart officer through the racial prejudices of the police department. When he is transferred to the undercover investigations department, Stallworth hatches a plan to infiltrate…

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"They Shall Not Grow Old" and Peter Jackson's Recreation of the Western Front

“They Shall Not Grow Old” and Peter Jackson’s Recreation of the Western Front

They Shall Not Grow Oldis a day-in-the-life of the British soldier during World War I. The documentary from Peter Jackson was commissioned by the Imperial War Museums and 14-18 NOW in association with the BBC to celebrate the centennial of Armistice Day. When these groups approached Jackson, they had only one caveat: Jackson must use their archived WWI footage exclusively. After a think, Jackson…

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Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse is Magnificent Movie-Making

Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse is Magnificent Movie-Making

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse doesn’t sound like it can possibly work. Columbia and Sony Pictures produces an animated Spider-Man film that is notconnected to the Marvel Cinematic Universe but instead deals heavily with “the Spider-Verse”, an infinite collection of realities each with their own specific Spider-Person hero. Who does movies that are their own thing anymore? What is it, 1999?…

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“Eighth Grade” and Adolescence as Performance

“Eighth Grade” and Adolescence as Performance

Bo Burham’s Eighth Grade is a coming-of-age story for a digital generation. But even though young Kayla Day (Elsie Fisher) must mature her way through a world of Snapchat and vlogs and the other trappings of Generation Z, her struggle is still timeless. Awkwardness knows no timestamp, and anxiety existed long before YouTube. Eighth Gradeis replete with superlatives, but it starts with the duo of…

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Hyper Sci-Fi Action Flick "Upgrade" Will Make You Laugh, Cheer, and Think (kinda)

Hyper Sci-Fi Action Flick “Upgrade” Will Make You Laugh, Cheer, and Think (kinda)

Leigh Whannell’s Upgradeis a wonderful and devilish little concoction of a film. At it’s center is Grey Trace (Logan Marshall-Green), an old-fashioned “works with his hands” kind of guy who restores old cars in a near-future where all of the cars drive themselves. After an accident leaves him a quadriplegic, one of his more wealthy and influential clients offers to help him by implanting an…