2022 Ranked

“But Joe! you said you weren’t going to write a full review!” 

I did say that, because at the time, I was revolted by the idea of giving this movie one more moment of my time. But I changed my mind, for 1 specific reason: 

As I begin to hear more praise for this film, and as it starts to get awards nominations, I can already feel the self-doubt creeping in. I know that in a few months,…

A24 Distribution Ranked

2022 Ranked

My mind is blown, and my heart is shattered.

I expected this to be a bizarre trip of a film, I didn’t expect to be full-on sobbing through the entire final act.

The premise is like Christopher Nolan on drugs - difficult to wrap your head around, but extremely rewarding. There were a couple world-building details I still didn’t quite understand by the end, but I got most of it, and more importantly, it was…

Movies Adapted from the Stage

2023 Ranked

Tina Satter’s “Is This a Room” (the theatre piece this film is based on) was maybe my favorite show of that season, and remains one of my favorite theatre pieces in recent memory. Rarely have I been so close to the edge of my seat for the duration of a show. Rarely have I felt such a heart-pounding, visceral tension from something so comparatively simple and straightforward.

Because of that, it’s hard for…

Contemporary Live Action Disney, Ranked

2023 Ranked

(Low 2.5 stars - might lower to 2 later)

I mention CGI quality in a lot of my posts on here, because it feels like an increasingly central issue in Hollywood - both on the artistic side, and on the industrial side. Usually my comments about CGI are snarky footnotes in my posts, but this time I’m starting right off the bat: 

The underwater scenes in this movie are utterly hideous. Not only…

2022 Ranked

This is such toothless, self-indulgent nonsense.

The central “astronaut fantasy” concept is pretty fun, but the execution feels pretty superficial. And more importantly, it’s all but completely drowned out by an interminable flood of charmless, artless nostalgia-bait.

This movie is quite literally a LIST. A LIST of how things were different “back then,” of childhood memories, of family traditions, of historical context points. On several occasions, Linklater even descends to simply listing off iconic movies and TV shows…

I was there - literally!

2022 Ranked

I know it’s gauche, but how can I write this post without bragging that I was at this reunion concert? I even managed to spot myself in the crowd at 48:29!

It was one of the wildest nights at the theatre I’ve ever experienced.

A shit-show beforehand; the audience being left out in the cold, the show starting a full hour late, and the seating situation getting completely fucked up by management. The…