29 Wednesday Dec 2021
Tags
I’ve watched over 50 films on Mubi this year. These are the 35 films I liked the most. Some of them are reviewed on here. If there’s any films you’d like me to review, please leave the title in the comment section.
29 Wednesday Dec 2021
Tags
I’ve watched over 900 films on Netflix over the years, and here are the 25 best I’ve seen in 2021. Some of them are reviewed on here.
03 Sunday Oct 2021
Posted in movies
Tags
a silent voice, amelie, captivated: The Trials of Pamela Smart, coda, don't breathe 2, film, film review, film reviews, horror, jungle cruise, marlee matlin, mary and max, movie, movie review, movie reviews, movies, o brother where art thou?, sidney poitier, stillwater
Don’t Breathe 2
When the villain becomes the protagonist. Don’t Breathe (2016) was an excellent entry to the home invasion genre with an amazing twist. Then The Quiet Place (2018) came out which followed some of the same patterns and everyone seemed to forget about Don’t Breathe. The sequel also has a crazy twist and is almost equally as brilliant. I’m devastated there won’t be another one.
7/10
CODA
I understand the pressure of being the kid who has to translate for their parents who don’t speak the language. Your family’s livelihood depends on you. It angered me when Ruby kept staring at her phone instead of interpreting for her dad. I know this is supposed to be a coming of age, teen movie, but the love plot was unnecessary. I was waiting for them to turn the sound off, and when they finally did, it was very much effective. Also, we all love Joni Mitchell, but Both Sides Now is not an audition song.
8/10
Stillwater
We’ve all seen that Amanda Knox documentary on Netflix and just by watching the trailer for Stillwater we can agree this is a rip off of her story. As shocking as Amanda’s story is, the film is even more unbelievable. They wanted to make it seem like a different story, by changing the location from Italy to France to start with and ended up going too far.
5/10
Jungle cruise
How is this not… a new instalment of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise? If you’re in the UK, go see it at Odeon and don’t forget to pick up your A3 poster. It’s the nicest one they’ve had in a while.
6/10
Amelie
I could watch 10 hours of 6 year old Amelie’s adventures. Also, I’ve never noticed the ASMR in the opening credits before. Maybe Youtube isn’t as useless as I thought? The cinematography is beautiful, but the subject matter is too light for me to find the film to be of essence. Watch Kieslowski’s The Double Life of Veronique instead.
7/10
Mary and Max
Two lonely people from the opposite sides of the world become best friends. I haven’t had a pen pal since I was twelve and now I really want one. The ending is soul crashing.
‘You are my best friend. You are my only friend. Your American pen pal, Max.’
9/10
A Silent Voice
I don’t believe the bully could ever become friends with the bullied, but all the talk about suicide is what makes this animation wonderful.
9/10
O Brother Where Art Thou
This reminded me of The Defiant Ones (1958) with Sidney Poitier and Tony Curtis and it was funny at times, but why was Holly Hunter in only 2 scenes?
7/10
Captivated The Trials of Pamela Smart
An HBO documentary about the first televised trial. This girl clearly didn’t understand she could go to prison for hiring someone to murder her husband. I’ve always loved Gus Vant Sant’s To Die For starring Nicole Kidman and never knew it was loosely based on Pamela Smart’s story.
6/10
10 Friday Sep 2021
Posted in movies
Tags
all good things, film analysis, film review, film reviews, jude, kate winslet, kathleen turner, kevin james, michael douglas, movie review, movie reviews, movies, musical, odprawa, paul blart mall cop 2, Rachel Griffiths, robert redford, sidney poitier, sneakers, the briefing, the mitchells vs the machines, the other guys, the producers, the war of the roses, will ferrell
Sneakers
I’ve only owned orange cars and that orange Volkswagen is hella pretty. According to IMDB, it’s the exact same car used in So I Married an Axe Murderer. The fact that only 3 of Sidney Poitier’s films are available on my services is a crime. Nonetheless, I’ll watch all 3 this week.
7/10
The Other Guys
I recognised Ice T’s voice straight away, and he’s not even credited for his narration. Foo Fighters’ My Hero plays as Samuel L. Jackson and The Rock jump to their deaths in the only interesting scene in the film.
2/10
The Mitchells vs The Machines
This was cute, but… furbys are not evil. They were the must-have toy of the late 90s and the film’s portrayal is disappointing. On the other hand, the film has an LGBT character, so all is forgiven.
‘You’ve inspired me to follow you on Instagram.’
7/10
Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2
A few years ago I attended the Security Awards in London and the ceremony was not even remotely as eventful as what is shown in this film. The IMDB page for Kevin James says his trademark is being ‘chubby, but athletic’. I guess this series is the proof of that? There are two reasons why I watched not one, but both Paul Blart films. The first one is that I watched all 9 seasons of King of Queens back in the day, and the second one is that I spent 8 years of my life working in security. I’ve met a lot of police academy drop outs who thought they were saving the world, when in reality they were all very much replaceable.
3/10
The Briefing (original title Odprawa)
A camera follows medical students as they learn their profession by making decisions, dealing with difficult patients, talking with patients’ families and fighting exhaustion. The ending is very abrupt and accompanied by annoying sound design. I feel like this could have been something if it was a bit longer.
‘Each one of you will have their cemetery, that’s for sure.’ (oryginal: Kazdy z Was bedzie mial swoj cmentarz, to jest pewne)
5/10
Jude
Cousins fall in love and feel they’re being punished when a tragedy strikes. Rachel Griffiths is superb as always in a supporting role.
6/10
All Good Things
I didn’t realise this was based on Robert Durst’s wife’s disappeareance. I watched Lifetime’s version of events in ‘The Lost Wife of Robert Durst’ just last week. All Good Things is definitely a step up, but it’s still not a good movie.
5/10
The Producers
I have never heard of this musical, but ‘Keep it Gay’ and ‘I Wanna Be a Producer’ are really good musical songs. Will Ferrell is the perfect weirdo for his role.
6/10
The War of the Roses
The first half of the film is a generic romcom, but the other half is Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner trying to kill each other and that is super fun!
5/10
09 Monday Aug 2021
Posted in movies
Tags
3 faces, alice guy blache, battle royale, be natural the untold story of alice guy blache, candyman, film review, film reviews, fraces ha, holly hunter, horror, legend, little house on a praire, little house the last farewell, melissa gilbert, michael landon, movie, movie review, movie reviews, movies, once around
Candyman
As glad as I am that this movie is a continuation of the 1992 film and not a remake, Candyman could really use another bonfire. I’m glad Tony Todd was in this one too, I was worried they had replaced him. I’m disappointed in myself for not figuring out the twist until the hospital scene.
7/10
The Night House
This may be the most tense cinema experience I’ve had in years, since Insidious probably. It’s scarier if you can’t see it. I liked the main concept, but the ending, although original, is a let down. On the other hand, the idea of a family member going to all that trouble to protect you is reassuring.
7/10
Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy Blache
If you’re a filmmaker or a film buff, you need to watch this asap. I will now go watch everything directed by Alice Guy-Blaché I can get my hands on.
8/10
Frances Ha
Frances is a typical millennial who wants to spend her 20s in New York, pursuing a creative career, but having to take various odd jobs to support herself. Frances Ha is a bigger love letter to New York than a Woody Allen film.
7/10
Once Around
Holly Hunter stars as a 20s woman in love with an old man. Her family do not seem to mind the age difference, but they sure hate his personality. I loved the idea of projecting old family videos on a baby bump.
7/10
Battle Royale
A story of Japanese teenagers forced to kill each other on a remote island. If you liked The Hunger Games, you have to watch this!
9/10
3 Faces
An Iranian girl got into an acting school, but her parents disapprove of such profession. Jafar Panahi is asked to help. I’ve been putting this one off since January, and finally found the time to watch it. The channel I DVR’d it from no longer exists too. I have now seen all of Jafar Panahi’s feature films and Crimson Gold is the only one I didn’t like.
6/10
Legend
Beautiful set design to a very average fantasy film. With long hair, Tom Cruise looks exactly like Camilla Belle.
6/10
Little House: The Last Farewell
What a depressing ending to the series. I wish they brought Harriet, Nellie or Mary back for the final episode/movie. Yes, my family did spent the entire summer rewatching nine seasons of The Little House on the Prairie.
9/10
27 Tuesday Jul 2021
Posted in movies
Tags
aurora teagarden mysteries, black widow, candace cameron bure, courteney cox, film, film analysis, film review, film reviews, films, horror, horror film, images, m. night shyamalan, mckenna grace, november, old, paris when it sizzles, the silence, troop zero, uncle frank
Old
Old is the film I’ve been looking forward to the most this year. I do however have to question the kids’ mental growth. A simple non-spoilery example is a 6 year old wouldn’t know what sex or prom are. The biggest con for me was the pregnancy storyline, which felt extremely forced and plain ridiculous. Cropped faces is one of my biggest pet peeves and there’s a lot of this sort of cinematography going on here. While the young actress looked a lot like Thomasin McKenzie, the adult version didn’t, they even forgot to give her green coloured lenses. Despite the aforementioned, I loved the concept and this was a pleasing watch.
7/10
Black Widow
So Florence Pugh is getting her own Marvel film? If you’re in the UK, Odeon is handing out A3 posters of Scarlet Johansson as the Black Widow, I recommend you grab one with your ticket. I haven’t seen all of the Avengers, because I don’t normally watch superhero movies, so the post-credits scene was a surprise to me. I originally went to see Black Widow because it stars Rachel Weisz, but I ended up enjoying the film quite a lot. The opening scene was probably my favourite and the opening sequence made me emotional partially because of Malia J’s lovely cover of Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit, making me already more invested in the superhero film than I ever thought I could be. Black Widow features multiple strong female characters and I had a lot of fun watching it. The Nirvana cover is going straight into my playlist.
8/10
The Forever Purge
I love the Purge series despite all of its flaws. It’s a brilliant idea, and The Forever Purge is one of the best ones in a while. There are no rules and people no longer want the Purge to be limited to a single day. My favourite moment was when they said they would open the Canadian and Mexican borders to those unarmed, it made me tear up.
6/10
Uncle Frank
I’ve always been a huge fan of Six Feet Under, so naturally I’ll watch anything written by Alan Ball. I cried a lot during the last 30 min or so. The film is nominated for an Emmy this year.
I’ve got two words for you, “no problem”.
8/10
The Silence
I seem to fall in love with every Iranian film I come across. The Silence is a beautiful and tender film about a blind boy.
7/10
Images
While I would rate Nashville, The Long Goodbye, Short Cuts and a few other films directed by Altman higher than Images, it’s still a really good psychological drama.
7/10
Troop Zero
If you like David Bowie’s music, you’ll enjoy this. This film clearly waited years for its realese, Mckenna looks about ten here. Mckenna Grace has been in almost 60 films and TV shows including The Handmaid’s Tale and I, Tonya, and I’ve seen at least 15 of them.
5/10
November
Back in 2005 I bought this on Ebay, but there was something wrong with my disc and the film would freeze halfway through. I still have that DVD and never got around to finishing this film, until now.
5/10
Aurora Teagarden Mysteries: Till Death Do Us Part
Did I see Candace shamelessly holding one of her children’s books in an early library scene? While her dress was lovely, this was probably the weakest instalment in the series. Aurora Teagardens are officially tied with Lori Loughlin’s Garage Sale Mysteries at 16 films, this will soon change with 17th Aurora arriving next month.
3/10
Framing Britney Spears
For a group of journalists, they didn’t do much digging, did they?
4/10
Paris When it Sizzles
My whole family hated this. Did they really have to act out the character’s entire script?
2/10
Runt Page
Wait, so this series was all a dream? The first instalment wasn’t on Filmbox, so I ended up looking it up on Internet Archive. The dubbing is distracting and the storyline is poor. It’s one of the weakest ones, but definitely not the most disturbing one.
2/10
For more, add me on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/joanneholly
23 Wednesday Jun 2021
Posted in movies
Tags
arizona dream, balto, cruella, destination wedding, dream horse, emma stone, fear street, fear street part 1, feart street part one: 1994, film, film analysis, film review, film reviews, films, here and now, johnny depp, keanu reaves, liam neeson, lords of chaos, made in italy, mayhem, movie, movie review, movie reviews, movies, natasha richardson, r.l. stine, winona ryder
Cruella
From the moment Emma Thompson appeared in that brown wig, I spent the rest of the movie thinking Helena Bonham Carter would have made a better Baroness. I went in a bit sceptical, thinking the film is just another excuse for Emma Stone to practice her British accent, but she is really good as Cruella. 101 Dalmatians was never a film I liked as a kid and at least Cruella is much better than both of the Glenn Close films.
6/10
Dream Horse
How did they get Toni Colette to star in this little Welsh film? This movie is a one time watch you’ll forget the minute it’s over and a film you would never check out if it didn’t star Toni Colette. They crammed so many British things into the first five minutes of this film, I thought for sure this wasn’t written by a British person, but to my surprise, I was wrong. Oh yeah, and I was the only person at my screening.
6/10
Fear Street Part 1 1994
Goosebumps books and TV show were a big part of my childhood, so I will always watch anything based on R.L. Stine’s work. I have never read the Fear Street books, but this film made me want to buy some of them and pretend It’s 2002 all over again.
6/10
Arizona Dream
Do you guys remember how big Johnny Depp’s career was in the 90s? Between What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, Edward Scissorhands and many other hit films, he was the A-lister people wanted to see in every film they watched. Arizona Dream, one of the few 90s films starring Depp I haven’t seen before is expiring from Mubi tonight. It has many memorable scenes, but since I’m a sucker for nostalgia, my favourite part is Depp’s character reminiscing about his childhood. I wasn’t paying attention to the opening credits and was nicely surpised when Lili Taylor and Faye Dunaway walked into the shop. Also, this made me want to act out the plane scene from North by Northwest just like the characters in this film. I need to get this on DVD.
8/10
Lords of Chaos
A good example of ‘necessary’ exploitation. I loved the film’s portrayal of self harm and that shocking suicide scene.
7/10
Destination Wedding
Keanu and Winona’s characters are skeptical and sarcastic and spend the entire weekend complaining and bickering. Apart from that, it’s a very average romcom.
5/10
Made in Italy
Liam Neeson and his son Micheal Richardson star as a father-son duo in a film about grief. There are parts that are painful to watch because of what happened to Natasha Richardson. It’s a touching little film you should check out.
6/10
Balto
I didn’t know this was inspired by a real story, nor have I ever heard of this story, as I’ve never been to Central Park, but this was a moving film for kids and the fact that it’s partly true gets an extra half star from me.
6/10
Here and Now
Replace Paris with New York and you have a US version of Cléo from 5 to 7.
4/10
10 Thursday Jun 2021
Posted in movies
Tags
a quiet place part 2, film, film analysis, film review, film reviews, films, michelle williams, movie, movie review, movie reviews, movies, my week with marilyn, peter rabbit 2, peter rabbit 2 the runaway, punishment park, rocco and his brothers, sound of metal, the last family, the passion of joan arc, zdzislaw beksinski
Sound of Metal
The film features excellent sound design and a beautiful performance from Riz Ahmed. There were three scenes I particularly liked, the one where we learn that he didn’t understand he would never hear the same despite the cochlear implants, when he finally found solace in silence and when that morning light hit her self harm scars. There was a pre-recorded Zoom Q&A after my screening, where Paul Raci talked about his day job of being an interpreter for 40 years and the differences between growing up with two deaf parents in 1950s Chicago, and living in more inclusive Los Angeles in the 90s. First film I watched at the cinema since the third lockdown started back in October! I’m glad I started 2021 with this one.
9/10
The Passion of Joan Arc
When I was a kid, older women would often say, ‘oh yes, after Joan of Arc’, when I introduced myself to them when accompaning my parents to the shops (I was born in a country where 92% of the populaton identify as Catholic, probably even more then. I do too, despite being the only kid in class to refuse to have their confirmation, because 15 was my time to rebel and I also disagreed with the church on a few things). No one’s mentioned Joan of Arc’s name around me in 20 years, but I still remember it to this day. I’ve seen this film before many years ago, it was on TV every Christmas and Easter, but I didn’t remember it well. I love all the close-ups and Maria Falconetti’s acting.
‘Why do you dress like a man? If we give you a dress, will you wear it?’
10/10
Punishment Park
‘Why do you dress like a man? If we give you a dress, will you wear it?’
7/10
A Quiet Place Part 2
I was supposed to see this on March 20th last year, but we went into the first lockdown a few days prior. Glad I finally got to see this. It’s obviously not as good as the original, but it’s still plenty eventful and I can’t wait for the 3rd one.
7/10
Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway
The soundtrack including a Green Day song took me back to the early 2000s. I didn’t grow up in the UK, so I haven’t even heard of these books as a kid, but how cute are these films?
7/10
Rocco and his Brothers
And this is exactly why I love Italian films. This movie is currently 146th highest ranked film on Letterboxd.
9/10
My Week with Marilyn
So this guy became famous by claiming he made out with Marilyn?
5/10
Blue Dessert
Blue Dessert has been on my watchlist since the 90s. This film is exactly what I was expecting, in a good way. You can find it on Amazon Prime.
7/10
The Last Family
Zdzislaw Beksinski has always been my favourite artist. His dark paintings are unique and truly exceptional. While this was a good film, I recommend you watch The Besksinskis A Sound and Picture Album documentrary instead.
6/10
Review this film 