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ewh111 · 7 years

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2017 Annual List of Favorite Film Experiences

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

With each passing year, I find it harder to keep up with new release films, as well as the growing queue of ones on my “To See” list. On the other hand, it feels like quality films are sequestered till the end of the year (nothing against summer blockbusters, but with a few exceptions, many are forgotten by the time you get back to your car) and the growing appeal and abundance of quality television fostered by its broader canvas for in-depth storytelling and character development is another distraction.

But that brings me to one of my favorite things about the holiday season in Los Angeles. The last six weeks or so of the year is filled with many appealing options as films jockey for exposure ahead of the awards season. And I have a great deal of appreciation and gratitude (and a bit of jealousy) for the many artists and others who have the passion to make these visions come to life for us to enjoy.

All the best for a wonderful 2018 and hope that you get a chance to see some of the films below that moved me in some way, sometimes filling me with emotion or awe, or provoking long-lasting thoughts, or just trigger the desire to re-experience and see it again. So, here they are, in no particular order.

Cheers, Ed

P.S.–I’ve gotten many requests to also review favorite meals of the year, so that might come in another post. :)

Indelible Coming of Age Tales

Call Me By Your Name — Northern Italy, summer, 1983. Having read the André Aciman novel, this was my most anticipated film of 2017. And it did not disappoint. This beautifully told and lushly shot coming of age romance features a remarkable and revelatory (and perhaps best of 2017) performance by newcomer Timothée Chalamet (also in Lady Bird), who achingly captures the universal yearning, passion, heartache, and torment of first love. Kudos also to Armie Hammer and director Luca Guadagnino. While many moments stand out, including the empathetic and compassionate speech by father Michael Stuhlberg (also in Shape of Water) that is the dream of every LGBT kid, it’s the minutes-long reactive close-up on Chalamet as the credits roll and song of yearning plays that devastatingly endures. My favorite of 2017.

Lady Bird — Sacramento, 2002. A semi-autobiographical coming of age in the suburbs tale featuring the humorous, turbulent, and affecting relationship between mother and daughter by Greta Gerwig in her directorial debut. With a fabulous performance by Saoirse Ronan as the head-strong teen who calls herself Lady Bird, a terrific Laurie Metcalf as her mom, and HW alum Beanie Feldstein ’11 as her best friend, this is the rare comedy that is smart, witty, and endearing.

Compelling Period Piece True Stories

Dunkirk — Dunkirk, France, 1940. A visually and viscerally compelling piece of filmmaking about the miraculous evacuation of 300,000 British troops from the doomed beach at Dunkirk, masterfully crafted by director Christopher Nolan via three intertwined timeframes (a week on the beach, a day by sea, and an hour in the air) that intersect and fold back and ultimately, come together in the end.

The Post — Washington, DC, 1971. Spielberg + Streep + Hanks = a highly timely and relevant telling of the Washington Post’s saga to publish the Pentagon Papers. Resonant on so many levels with urgent themes of today—the need for a free press, the role of women in a man’s world, and a judicial branch independent from an overreaching executive branch—all told with briskly entertaining and thrilling pace.

All the Money In The World — UK/Italy, 1973. I’ll admit that I was initially attracted to this pic to see how director Ridley Scott erased Kevin Spacey and recast Christopher Plummer in the role of billionaire J. Paul Getty and reshot major portions of his film six weeks before its release date. Hats off to him for pulling off a very engaging thriller depicting the notorious kidnapping of Getty’s grandson. Michelle Williams is spot-on as the mother who goes toe-to-toe with her infamously frugal father-in-law who refuses to pay ransom for her child.

Dark Master Works By An Irish Playwright and a Black Comedian

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri — Ebbing, MO, present day. Loved this very dark dramedy whose story emanates from a tragic event in a small town. There’s plenty of levity and wonderfully drawn characters via Martin McDonagh’s clever screenplay that mixes revenge, redemption, and moral ambiguity, featuring a trio of tremendous performances by raging mother of deceased raped daughter Frances McDormand, small town police chief and target of McDormand’s ire Woody Harrelson, and racist, violent, alcoholic mama’s boy police officer Sam Rockwell.

Get Out — Suburban countryside, present day America. A creepy, twisted, funny, scary, and subversive version of “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner” crossed with a little bit of “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” for the post-Obama era. A brilliant, provocative, and unnerving nexus of sophisticated horror, comedy, and extremely biting social satire by Jordan Peele in his directorial debut.

Strange and Untraditional Love Stories

Phantom Thread —London, circa 1950s. I love Paul Thomas Anderson, and he’s made one strange but riveting movie here. A gorgeous Jonny Greenwood score swings from elegantly jazzy to intensely haunting, setting the mood for this darkly humorous film featuring hard to describe relationships (I hesitate to call it a love story) between an obsessively demanding and fastidious fashion designer (Daniel Day-Lewis supposedly in his last film role), his muse, and his ever-lurking sister/business partner and their respective emotional/psychological (and ultimately perverse) gamesmanship. And one may not listen to water-pouring or toast-buttering, or mushroom omelet eating in the same way again.

The Shape of Water — Baltimore, circa 1962. Mix in a large dose of Cold War thriller and Creature from the Black Lagoon, plus a little Busby Berkeley, and you either get a political allegory (marginalized “others” whether mute, black, gay, or non-human vs. the Man) or romantic fairy tale. Leave it to Guillermo del Toro to bring us the more “romantic” one in this strange love stories category, an oddly beautiful and enchanting interspecies romance between two mute and isolated beings, one a cleaning woman (a wonderful Sally Hawkins) and the other a Creature From the Black Lagoon-inspired merman kept in a top secret government facility. Arguably, the “monster” in this story is the intensely sadistic government agent played with gusto by Michael Shannon.

Bizarre Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction Tales

I, Tonya — Portland, OR, 1994. A stellar Margot Robbie plays the hard scrabble, trailer-trash, and ultimately disgraced Olympic figure skater Tonya Harding in this unbelievably crazy but true story of her life leading up to the infamous incident before the 1994 Winter Olympics. Told in zippy mockumentary style that is fun to watch, Allison Janney as her zany, abusive mother leads a supporting cast of inept characters involved in Tonya’s dysfunctional life. Directed by Craig Gillispie who also directed the offbeat gem, Lars and the Real Girl.

The Disaster Artist — Hollywood, 2003. Another bizarre, but true real life story about the enigmatic writer/director Tommy Wiseau who made one of the most absurdly bad films ever that eventually turned into a cult classic (The Room). Humorously portrayed by James Franco, who also directed this offbeat but unexpectedly poignant movie about making a movie, though it’s ultimately more about the importance of friendship, having dreams, and America’s fascination with celebrity and movies. (And the side-by-side comparison of scenes from the actual The Room and recreations in Franco’s film are hysterical.)

Docs About Felines and Cheating Russians

Kedi — Yes, this a documentary about cats, but it’s not just about cats. Rather it’s a meditative and heartwarming look at the community of felines that inhabit the streets of Istanbul, delving into their centuries-long symbiotic relationship with humans in the old city. The city is teeming with cats that are neither feral or domestic, each with different personalities and lives they share with the people they adopt. And therein lies the heart of this film, as the locals share their bonds and therapeutic experiences with these complex creatures, ranging from the mundane to the profound.

Icarus – Putin + mysterious deaths + performance-enhancing drug conspiracy = A fascinating and crazy documentary that plays like a spy thriller. It starts out as an odd personal experiment by the filmmaker/amateur cyclist mimicking Lance Armstrong’s doping regimen, but through sheer dumb luck and serendipity, he develops a friendship with Gregory Rodchenkov, the affable, eccentric, and charismatic camera-loving head of Russia’s Anti-Doping Lab…and, as it turns out, the country’s mastermind behind its decades-long state-sponsored doping program. It then becomes a terrifying race to uncover the world’s biggest sports conspiracy, implicating everybody including the Russian president (resulting in the NY Times exposé) while trying to save whistle-blower Rodchenkov’s life from the clutches of Putin.

Docs about Life and Death

Obit. —While it may sound morbid, this behind-the-scenes look at the NY Times’ obituary staff writers is enlightening and fascinating, and in fact, quite lively (even its peek into the “morgue,” the paper’s clipping archive). Beyond celebrities and notables, who makes the editorial cut in the pages of the NY Times obit section? And how does one get appropriately celebrated in death, warts and all. Now you can find out.

Chasing Coral – A wake-up call to the accelerating world-wide death of entire coral reef ecosystems by “coral bleaching.” This remarkably emotional doc follows a team of biologists, including a self-proclaimed “coral nerd” in a race against time to document this die-off with powerful visual evidence, and the result is an inspirational eco drama that moves you to act before it’s too late.

Others Worth Mentioning

Baby Driver (the soundtrack and editing alone are worth the thrilling 112 minutes of this stylish heist story about a young getaway driver); It (I don’t generally like horror films, but this retelling of Stephen King’s classic was one of the most engaging and well told of its genre); Star Wars: The Last Jedi (my favorite of the series); Loving Vincent (every frame of the film was hand-painted in the style of Van Gogh); Mudbound; Spider-Man: Homecoming (loved Tom Holland as the new Peter Parker); Beach Rats; The Big Sick; War for the Planet of the Apes;The Only Living Boy in New York; Wonder Woman; Spielberg; Battle of the Sexes; Stronger

In the Queue

Coco, Darkest Hour, Detroit, Film Stars Don’t Die In Liverpool, Downsizing, Molly’s Game, Florida Project, Victoria and Abdul.

Binge-Worthy Television

13 Reasons Why, Stranger Things 2, The OA, Mindhunter, Big Little Lies, Grace and Frankie

Trailers

All the Money in the World: https://youtu.be/KXHrCBkIxQQ

Call Me By Your Name: https://youtu.be/Z9AYPxH5NTM

Chasing Coral: https://youtu.be/b6fHA9R2cKI

The Disaster Artist: https://youtu.be/cMKX2tE5Luk

Dunkirk: https://youtu.be/F-eMt3SrfFU

Get Out: https://youtu.be/sRfnevzM9kQ

I, Tonya: https://youtu.be/OXZQ5DfSAAc

Icarus: https://youtu.be/qXoRdSTrR-4

Kedi: https://youtu.be/w9fwhVx9zR0

Lady Bird: https://youtu.be/cNi_HC839Wo

Obit.: https://youtu.be/BgpMNerK9cU

Phantom Thread: https://youtu.be/xNsiQMeSvMk

The Post: https://youtu.be/nrXlY6gzTTM

The Shape of Water: https://youtu.be/XFYWazblaUA

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri: https://youtu.be/Jit3YhGx5pU

#favoritemovies2017

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kevinpolowy · 7 years

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Our fearless picks for the 2018 Oscar nominations

Sam Rockwell and Frances McDormand in ‘Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri’ (Fox Searchlight)

The nominations for the 90th Academy Awards will be announced, per usual, at an ungodly early hour Tuesday (seriously, why?), and there’s plenty of suspense heading into the proceedings. Will The Shape of Water and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri continue to surge? Which actresses will crack the ballot in the most competitive races we’ve seen in eons? Will James Franco still make the cut despite allegations of sexual misconduct? Will Christopher Plummer be rewarded for taking over the role of the disgraced Kevin Spacey? And does the delightful and hilarious Tiffany Haddish stand a chance for the decidedly un-Oscar-y comedy Girls Trip? Read on for our fearless picks in the top 11 categories.

BEST PICTURE

The first piece of the Best Picture puzzle is figuring out how many nominees there will be. In the six years since the Academy rejiggered its rules to allow between five and 10 nominees, the final tally has ranged between eight (twice) and nine (four times).

The sure things are Fox Searchlight’s dynamic duo of The Shape of Water and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. Get Out, Lady Bird, and Call Me by Your Name have passionate support behind them (their diversity doesn’t hurt, either). Dunkirk and The Post haven’t been the awards behemoths they were predicted to be, but they should be safely in the mix, too.

That leaves seven films (The Big Sick; Darkest Hour; The Florida Project; I, Tonya; Molly’s Game; Mudbound; and Wonder Woman) jockeying for the final one to three slots. I see Florida getting some shine for the eighth spot. Although Molly, Tonya, and Wonder Woman all earned Producers Guild Award noms, and Tonya would probably be the favorite, I see the Academy embracing a streaming service and selecting The Big Sick (Amazon) and/or Mudbound (Netflix). For the fun of it let’s say there will be 10.

Predictions: The Big Sick Call Me by Your Name Dunkirk The Florida Project Get Out Lady Bird Mudbound The Post The Shape of Water Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Other contenders: Darkest Hour I, Tonya Molly’s Game Wonder Woman

Longshots: Blade Runner 2049 Coco The Disaster Artist Logan Phantom Thread War for the Planet of the Apes

BEST DIRECTOR

If there’s a big surprise brewing here, it could be The Florida Project helmer Sean Baker pulling “a Lenny Abramson” (no one saw the Room director making the cut in 2016). There’s a lot of goodwill out there for Baker between Florida and his 2015 indie darling Tangerine. I also could see one big snub in the form Steven Spielberg, the eight-time directing nominee who fast-tracked The Post into production as a clear rebuttal to President Trump’s war against the media. My best guess is that the Academy ultimately aligns with the Director’s Guild Award nominations.

Predictions: Guillermo del Toro, The Shape of Water Greta Gerwig, Lady Bird Martin McDonagh, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri Christopher Nolan, Dunkirk Jordan Peele, Get Out

Other contenders: Sean Baker, The Florida Project Luca Guadagino, Call Me by Your Name Dee Rees, Mudbound Steven Spielberg, The Post Joe Wright, Darkest Hour

Longshots: Paul Thomas Anderson, Phantom Thread Sofia Coppola, The Beguiled Patty Jenkins, Wonder Woman Ridley Scott, All the Money in the World Denis Villeneuve, Blade Runner 2049

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BEST ACTRESS

It was one of the strongest years for lead female performances in ages, a refreshing change of pace that potentially signals a shift in the industry. There seem to be four locks here: Sally Hawkins, who would earn her second nom for The Shape of Water; Frances McDormand, who would earn her fifth nom for Three Billboards (she won once); Saoirse Ronan, who would earn her third nom for Lady Bird; and Meryl Streep, who would her 21st (!!!) Oscar nom for The Post (she has won three).

The nail-biting comes with slot No. 5, where it looks like a head-to-head match between Margot Robbie’s twist on Tonya Harding in I, Tonya and Jessica Chastain’s commanding “poker princess” in Molly’s Game. Emma Stone coulda also been a contenda here, had more people actually seen her winning portrayal of Billie Jean King in Battle of the Sexes.

Predictions: Sally Hawkins, The Shape of Water Frances McDormand, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri Margot Robbie, I, Tonya Saoirse Ronan, Lady Bird Meryl Streep, The Post

Other contenders: Jessica Chastain, Molly’s Game Judi Dench, Victoria and Abdul Emma Stone, Battle of the Sexes Michelle Williams, All the Money in the World

Longshots: Annette Bening, Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool Gal Gadot, Wonder Woman Salma Hayek, Beatriz at Dinner Diane Kruger, In the Fade Brooklynn Prince, The Florida Project Daniela Vega, A Fantastic Woman

BEST ACTOR

Reel talk: This might be the easiest major award pool to predict. Gary Oldman won the Oscar back in September the minute critics first feasted their eyes on his scene-chewing, liquor-swigging Winston Churchill in Darkest Hour. Call Me by Your Name breakout Timothée Chalamet is a chic pick to pull an upset, and Get Out breakout Daniel Kaluuya’s awards stock has been rising by the week. You also have two of the best in the biz, Tom Hanks and Daniel Day-Lewis, at the top of their games in The Post and Phantom Thread, respectively. The wild card here is James Franco (The Disaster Artist), who faced sexual misconduct allegations the very week Oscar voting closed. While that may have affected late ballots, there’s a good chance many votes had already been cast.

Predictions: Timothée Chalamet, Call Me by Your Name Daniel Day-Lewis, Phantom Thread Tom Hanks, The Post Daniel Kaluuya, Get Out Gary Oldman, Darkest Hour

Other contenders: James Franco, The Disaster Artist Denzel Washington, Roman J. Israel, Esq.

Longshots: Chadwick Boseman, Marshall Steve Carell, Battle of the Sexes Jake Gyllenhaal, Stronger

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BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Given how things have shaken out in the awards season so far, we already know the race will come down to either Allison Janney (I, Tonya) or Laurie Metcalf (Lady Bird), so they’re in. Despite their film’s shaky chances of competing for Best Picture, Mudbound‘s Mary J. Blige and The Big Sick‘s Holly Hunter can pick out their dresses, too. That leaves The Shape of Water‘s Octavia Spencer and Downsizing‘s Hong Chau vying for the final position, though given how divisive the latter’s film has proven, odds favor the former. But don’t count out people’s (and some critics’ circles) champion Tiffany Haddish (Girl Trip), who could follow in the steps of Melissa McCarthy (Bridesmaids) and score a rare nomination for acting in a broad comedy.

Predictions: Mary J. Blige, Mudbound Holly Hunter, The Big Sick Allison Janney, I, Tonya Laurie Metcalf, Lady Bird Octavia Spencer, The Shape of Water

Other contenders: Hong Chau, Downsizing Tiffany Haddish, Girls Trip Lesley Manville, Phantom Thread

Longshots: Kirsten Dunst, The Beguiled Melissa Leo, Novitiate Michelle Pfeiffer, mother!

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Given how things have shaken out in the awards season so far, we already know the race will come down to either Willem Dafoe (The Florida Project) or Sam Rockwell (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri), so they’re in. Rockwell could very well cancel out his esteemed costar Woody Harrelson. It’s also unlikely we see more than one supporting actor from Call Me by Your Name, and as powerful as Michael Stuhlbarg’s speech is in the closing minutes of the film, I think it’s Armie Hammer time. If Harrelson and Stuhlbarg do get overshadowed by the cast mates, then I see the final nod going to Christopher Plummer, whose nomination for his 11th hour reshoots of All the Money in the World would be both a tribute to the beloved 88-year-old pro and a slap to Kevin Spacey, whom Plummer replaced.

Predictions: Willem Dafoe, The Florida Project Armie Hammer, Call Me by Your Name Richard Jenkins, The Shape of Water Christopher Plummer, All the Money in the World Sam Rockwell, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Other contenders: Woody Harrelson, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri Jason Mitchell, Mudbound Michael Stuhlbarg, Call Me by Your Name

Longshots: Ben Mendelsohn, Darkest Hour Ray Romano, The Big Sick

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BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

It was a great year for writer-directors, and there could very well be four people up for both Best Director and Best Original Screenplay (del Toro for Shape of Water, Gerwig for Lady Bird, McDonagh for Three Billboards, and Peele for Get Out). It would be highly surprising (and highly disappointing) not to see the fifth spot go to the husband-and-wife writing team Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon for their deeply personal (and deeply hilarious) script for The Big Sick.

Predictions: Guillermo del Toro and Vanessa Taylor, The Shape of Water Emily V. Gordon and Kumail Nanjiani, The Big Sick Greta Gerwig, Lady Bird Martin McDonagh, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri Jordan Peele, Get Out

Other contenders: Paul Thomas Anderson, Phantom Thread Steven Rogers, I, Tonya Liz Hannah and Josh Singer, The Post

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

It was also a great year for female writers. If my predictions hold true, five of the 10 films nominated for their screenplays would have been written or co-written by women (that includes directors Sofia Coppola and Dee Rees getting in here for The Beguiled and Mudbound, respectively). That’s the most since… ever? (We’ll report back.)

Predictions: Sofia Coppola, The Beguiled James Ivory, Call Me by Your Name Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, The Disaster Artist Aaron Sorkin, Molly’s Game Dee Rees and Virgil Williams, Mudbound

Other contenders: David Scarpa and John Pearson, All the Money in the World Scott Frank, James Mangold, and Michael Green, Logan Stephen Chbosky, Steve Conrad, and Jack Thorne, Wonder

BEST ANIMATED FILM

It’ll be an honor just to get nominated in this category for anything not called Coco. But in a down year for major studio animation, expect a heavy dosage of lesser-known, arthouse, and foreign titles like The Breadwinner, Loving Vincent, and Mary and the Witch’s Flower.

Predictions: The Breadwinner Coco The Lego Batman Movie Loving Vincent Mary and the Witch’s Flower

Other contenders: The Big Bad Fox and Other Tales Despicable Me 3 Ferdinand In This Corner of the World

Longshots: The Boss Baby (hey, it got a Golden Globe nomination) Captain Underpants

BEST DOCUMENTARY

Expect two highly respected women from two very different walks of life to square off here: Jane Goodall, the primatologist and subject of Nat Geo’s acclaimed doc Jane, and Agnès Varda, the beloved French filmmaker whose latest, Faces Places, could earn her a second Oscar this year (she earned a lifetime achievement statue from the Academy at November’s Governors Awards).

Predictions: Chasing Corral City of Ghosts Faces Places Jane Last Men in Aleppo

Other contenders: Human Flow Icarus An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power Strong Island

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BEST FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM

Angelina Jolie’s Cambodian genocide drama First They Killed My Father didn’t make the short list, but there’s still plenty of star power here, with likely nominees including Sweden’s The Square (featuring Elizabeth Moss in an English-speaking supporting role), Germany’s In the Fade (with a killer performance from Diane Kruger), and Chile’s A Fantastic Woman (lead by a breakout performance from transgender actress Daniela Vega).

Predictions: A Fantastic Woman Foxtrot In the Fade Loveless The Square

Other contenders: The Insult The Wound