Meal Ticket

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (Coen Brothers, 2018): 3.5/5
Is Chapter 3, "Meal Ticket" (pictured above), a commentary on our current post-literate culture?   Yes, it is.

*They Shall Not Grow Old--3D (Peter Jackson, 2018): 5/5
The most powerful cinematic experience I've had in years.  Using documentary footage from the Imperial War Museum, this follows typical WWI British soliders from conscription to training to the battlefield.  Once they're at the Western Front, the screen opens up to 3D and color, and it's astonishing--like bringing the dead to life, and we are among them in the trenches.  Knowing how many of these smiling, eager lads (some as young as 16) would soon become cannon fodder moved me to tears.  The sound design adds realistic effects, and WWI veterans' recorded recollections provide wise, articulate narration.  See it in 3D in a theater if you can.

*Roma (Alfonso Cuaron, 2018): 3.5/5
The scene in the waves and the maid's confessional utterance were quite moving.  But this story of a poor indigenous housekeeper, played by a nonprofessional actor (conjuring up the humanistic approach of postwar Neorealism) continually felt at odds with the mobile, modernist, sharp-as-glass black & white cinematography (reminiscent of Antonioni's "modern discontent" trilogy).  Because the maid is given little dialogue and no agency or interiority, Cuaron's insistent camerawork kept reminding me that this is really his story about his family... and she is merely the quiet, noble savage upon which to project his memories of youth.  Confirms for me that Cuaron (like Inarritu and Nolan) is more technician than storyteller.

*Cold War (Pawel Pawlikowski, 2018): 3.5/5
Fast-moving story of amour fou between postwar Polish musicians shot in noirish black & white.  I like Pawlikowski's penchant for making short features (Ida--a better film--was 82 min., this is 88).  But in this case I sometimes wished I had a little more understanding about where the characters' brash decisions were coming from.

*The Favourite (Yorgos Lanthimos, 2018): 4/5
I still think Lanthimos is a misanthropic asshole who despises his characters and his audience, but this was tempered by its period setting, focus on the aristocracy, and the need to at least pay lip service to history.  A thoroughly nasty and enjoyable romp.

*Burning (Lee Chang-dong, 2018): 3.5/5
The story's lacunae and ambiguities, which continued to linger after an ending that felt forced, left me pensive but less emotionally engaged than Lee's previous efforts.  But this still had some sublime moments, especially a dance at sunset to Miles Davis's Elevator to the Gallows score.

*The Sisters Brothers (Jacques Audiard, 2018): 4/5
A Gold Rush-era hangout western in the vein of McCabe & Mrs. Miller, in which a pair of bumbling corporate hit men (John C. Reilly & Joaquin Phoenix) chase after a pair of erudite gentlemen (reporter Jake Gyllenhaal and inventor Riz Ahmed) and a potentially lucrative business secret.  Smart, violent, and highly entertaining, marred slightly by a soft ending.

*A Star is Born (Bradley Cooper, 2018): 3/5
In the opening scenes, two symbols foretell the fates of the protagonists: a hangman's noose, and a bag of cheese puffs.  But sometimes cheese puffs--like suicide--can be a guilty pleasure.

Whitney (Kevin Macdonald, 2018): 4/5
If you liked watching the Amy trainwreck, this has got all that, and more!  A charismatic prodigy from the 'hood, raised in church but attracted to the street; a controlling mother disappointed by her own professional singing career; a racketeer father and an entourage of parasitic family members; a jealous husband who enables the star's drug problem; and both good and evil lesbians!  Amidst all this wreckage, Whitney's 1991 Super Bowl rendition of the National Anthem is chilling and elevates her story to tragedy.

The Zen Diaries of Gary Shandling (Judd Apatow, 2018): 5/5
You won't be surprised to learn that Shandling was a self-loathing Jewish comic with a perfectionist streak that prevented him from marrying or enjoying anything.  And you won't be surprised that some of this had to do with a family tragedy early in his life.  But it's surprising to learn of Shandling's deep commitment to Buddhism, his generosity to so many people in his circle, and his passionate self-searching for meaning.  As one of those who benefitted from Shandling's friendship, Apatow provides unfettered access to Shandling's journals and produces the most intimate biography of a comedian you'll ever experience.