reed ๐โs review published on Letterboxd:
F I N A L L Y !!! ๐ญ
I knew this was gonna be my top movie of the year as soon as I saw the trailer! Steven Spielberg, as basic as it is to say, is my favorite director of all time. Heโs someone I trust with my time and energy. Someone who will never fail to inspire me and always have me leaving theater crying.
Hearing all of that stuff about him constantly choking up on set makes me so emo because I too wouldโve been constantly choking up on set. What a special moment to be able to direct this special picture about your life. It set a fire within me that no movie has done this year. It made me reallyย see that I need to pursue my dreams & get my ass in film school. That is exactly why this movie is my favorite of the year.
It felt like an incredible love note to cinema. A beautiful story and script transformed by these wonderful actors and their performances. Gabriel LaBelle is electric and should be one of Hollywoodโs next stars (and should be receiving all the Oscar buzz) and Michelle Williams is giving this character ever piece of her and portraying her so wonderfully. Paul Dano, Seth Rogen, Judd Hirsch all put in their best work. An incredible ensemble!
The technical stuff is always going to be way above par because itโs Spielberg. There are several scenes that really still stick out to me but the most prominent one of course has to be one of the scenes near the end at the prom. Janusz Kaminski gets the lighting just tight and frames this scene so beautifully. The ending scene is so special too. And that cameo!!
I canโt say enough good words about this film and I canโt wait to watch it again on a massive movie theater screen like it was meant to be seen on.
And Iโll also be researching film schools in the meantime. Thank you Spielberg for inspiring me. Iโve felt like Iโve been in such a rut but tonight I never want this feeling to leave me. I feel invigorated and ready to turn 25 on Friday and to take my life where I want it to go. โค๏ธโ๐ฅ
