Occasions on which I’ve tried to order the chaos. Exercises in futility.
The top ten Portrait of a Lady on FireNever Rarely Sometimes AlwaysEmaBeanpoleA Hidden LifeLovers RockOverseasDick Johnson is DeadRelicAn Easy Girl Film Of The YearPortrait of a Lady on Fire Céline Sciamma's fourth directorial effort is some kind of masterpiece. The initially diffident, then slow-thawing relationship between painter, Marianne (Noémie Merlant), and subject, Héloïse … Continue reading The Best of 2020
Every year we go and see movies; moving images that move us, that tell stories, that ask us to feel something, invite us into their micro-climates. One of the most significant methods by which this collaborative art forms asks of our attention is through music. A score - and source music - can serve different … Continue reading The 2010s: Music at the Movies
Looking through the local cinema listings, it is will dismal acceptance that I note that A Hidden Life - the new opus from one of cinema's living legends - is not playing anywhere near me. A privileged woe, granted. Blame poor distribution, a lack of faith from cinema chains, or the happenstance of the first busy release … Continue reading Ranked: Terrence Malick
The top ten If Beale Street Could TalkUsMadeline's MadelineThe Farewell The Irishman/I Heard You Paint HousesEighth Grade Monos Burning Support The GirlsHomecoming - A Film by Beyoncé Film Of The YearIf Beale Street Could Talk "In a very real sense If Beale Street Could Talk is one of the most ecstatic expressions of romance to … Continue reading The Best of 2019
I posted a list like this, broken out into 5 parts, earlier this year, then took it down again. I was triggered by a couple of other publications that dared to make their lists so early. This is an updated version. Long, but snugly housed all in the one post. It just requires a lot … Continue reading The Best Films Of The Decade
Since 1988 Don Mancini has been writing the 'Chucky' movies; a horror franchise that grew - somewhat improbably - out of original flick Child's Play directed by Tim Hunter. Arriving after the slasher boom, Child's Play is one of several high-concept horror ideas dotted around the late 80's and early 90's, a time when the … Continue reading Ranked: The ‘Chucky’ Films
The top ten Phantom ThreadShoplifters120BPM (Beats Per Minute)SuspiriaAnnihilationThe Miseducation of Cameron PostWidowsBlack PantherFirst ManLady Bird Film Of The YearPhantom Thread "Despite their varying ways of hiding and protecting themselves, Reynolds and Alma are two of the most intimate and open characters that Anderson has yet presented us with, when wounded and when wicked." A beguiling, … Continue reading The Best of 2018
With The Ballad Of Buster Scruggs arriving on Netflix, it felt like time for a daunting career appraisal of the brothers Coen. Theirs is a cineliterate canon; a body of work in constant awe of past masters, yet imbued with their own inimitable style. Their reverence is transformed into the personal. Thanks to faithful work with … Continue reading Ranked: The Coen Brothers
As Phantom Thread readies for home release, I thought I'd indulge in a deceptively difficult and openly personal task; ranking the feature films of Paul Thomas Anderson. Expect a multitude of adjectives in my rundown below. The ordering you may well disagree with; everyone's preferences are different. What has struck me, however, is how good all … Continue reading Ranked: Paul Thomas Anderson
Though we're only a year and a half from bringing the decade to a close (at which point there'll be plenty of lists like this), the release of the impressive A Quiet Place spurred the decision to tally up the best horror films to have been released since 2010, according to The Lost Highway Hotel. So if … Continue reading 25 Best Horror Films Of The Decade (So Far)
The top ten Certain WomenThe Florida ProjectRawMoonlightJackieCall Me By Your NameGet OutThe Killing Of A Sacred DeerThe HandmaidenToni Erdmann Film Of The YearCertain Women "All three stories find Reichardt offering us women trying to progress with their lives in the face of absurdity. The tempo is steady and one can readily imagine a thousand other … Continue reading The Best of 2017
I thought I'd keep something I could update on a semi-regular basis on here, showing my favourite films from each calendar year, separated by year of production (differing from my end-of-year lists, which favour UK release). I'm going back as far as 1940 for now, largely because the number of films per year that I've … Continue reading List: Top 10 Films Of Every Year, By Year Of Production
The top ten Everybody Wants Some!!The Witch10 Cloverfield LaneThe RevenantAmerican HoneyEmbrace Of The SerpentQueen Of EarthSullyAuthor: The JT LeRoy StoryUnder The Shadow Film Of The YearEverybody Wants Some!! "Rather like how a wildlife documentary will show you the bizarre mating rituals of some flamboyant species or other, Linklater paints a studied picture of college life. … Continue reading The Best of 2016
Let us continue then. Compiling this list hammered home for me the diverse nature of the beast at hand. Horror has so many subcategories. Vampire pictures. Zombie pictures. Portmanteau films. Found footage. And horror arrives at different tempos. There are the zany comedies. The restrained chillers. The gonzo gorefests. The brutally nihilistic. And, as in … Continue reading List: 50 Greatest Horror Films (25-1)
October, capped as it is by Halloween, is the month most routinely turned to for horror. Some of you out there may even be entertaining yourselves with the 31 days of horror challenge that rattles routinely around social media this month. I've been contemplating a best horror films list for quite a while now, always … Continue reading List: 50 Greatest Horror Films (50-26)
