In & Of Itself (Frank Oz, 2021): 5/5

Bullseye. Clever construction, tremendous execution. Plus magic! One of the best filmed versions of a show I've ever seen.

In & of Itself is, as advertised, poetry brought to screen. For the right, self-selecting audience, it’s as good as that sounds. DelGaudio blends heartfelt storytelling and modest spectacle to craft an immersive experience that — while surely more so in person — fully delivers on the screen. Even if you don’t totally buy in, there are some undeniably profound moments and takeaways, all delivered with precision.

I’ve said too much. Don’t read anything else about this before you watch it and just soak it all in.

My Psychedelic Love Story (Errol Morris, 2020): 2/5

I love Errol, but don't love his late-career tendency to center every documentary around One Big Interview with One Single Interview Subject, such that he has to work so hard to spice up the format with flashy visual flourishes and superimposed text.

Spirited Away (Hayao Miyazaki, 2001): 2.5/5

A dazzling mural of unctuous design and color; sadly, not much else. Studio Ghibli films just aren't for me. But the cute little bird and the fat baby mouse thing? I'm not made of stone. Extra half star.

Prevenge (Alice Lowe, 2016): 3/5

Ruth is a pregnant widow, whose unborn baby is guiding her to murder those connected with her partner's death. A unique dark comedy / slasher written, directed and starring Alice Lowe while seven months pregnant. As the story was written and filmed within the span of a month, it's understandably very rough around the edges and littered with odd choices, but the resulting film is surprisingly effective. Well-paced, the kills are grisly, and the deadpan humor is consistently funny. You're never really sure whether Ruth is possessed, or simply nuts.

I Know This Much Is True (Derek Cianfrance, 2020): 3/5

Adapted by writer-director Derek Cianfrance from Wally Lamb’s 1998 novel, HBO’s latest entry into prestige presents a massive canvas for Mark Ruffalo, who plays twin brothers Dominick and Thomas Birdsey. If nothing else, he deserves accolades for sheer endurance.

A stark, if lurid, illustration of the challenges, choices, and burdens imposed by mental illness, and as the story develops, we see how the brothers’ relationship has been molded by the constant battle to accommodate Thomas’s condition. A crushing and remorseless catalog of woes.

Stardust (Matthew Vaugh, 2007): 2/5

I admit to being generally allergic to this strain of cheeky fantasy, but even given that this seems totally bland. I will also admit that compared to the majority of Vaughn's work it's relatively innocuous.

My Favorite Wife (Garson Kanin, 1940): 3/5

Cary Grant’s wife Irene Dunne is declared legally dead after a shipwreck seven years ago.. he remarries... his legally-dead wife reappears..... he sees her at the hotel the night of his honeymoon to his new wife. And that’s just the first 30 minutes!

Also, the idea that Cary Grant would ever need to be threatened by another man is very funny.

Locked Down (Doug Liman, 2021): 1/5

This is a heist movie only in the sense that Doug Liman has essentially stolen both Warner's money to finance his jerkoff rich asshole COVID anxiety noodling and two hours of my time. Please god let me never see another Zoom call in a movie ever again, why does any director think this acceptable or interesting?

Ariana Grande: Excuse Me, I Love You (Paul Dugdale, 2020): 2/5

CVS brand HOMECOMING.

Uncle Frank (Alan Ball, 2020): 2/5

Alan Ball said, “I am going to create a GREEN BOOK that is GAY.”

rewatched The Apartment (Billy Wilder, 1960): 5/5

Amazing to think that Wilder's 1959–61 run overlapped with Hitch's from 1958–60. What a time to have been alive.

The House Bunny (Fred Wolf, 2008): 2.5/5

Kat Dennings shape-shifts into a Goth-Lizzie-McGuire halfway through this and it must be seen to be believed.

David Byrne's American Utopia (Spike Lee, 2020): 4/5

Church for the non-religious.

The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend A Broken Heart (Frank Marshall, 2020): 3.5/5

"To Love Somebody" is one of my all-time favorite songs.

Fatale (Deon Taylor, 2020): 2/5

Sometimes I just want late night 90s-esque steamy trashy thrillers, okay?

Hillary Swank has officially hit the “I don’t care” phase of her career. Also, Michael Ealy and crazy white people is now a whole sub-genre.

Pieces of a Woman (Kornel Mundruczo, 2020): 2/5

When Ellen Burstyn said “i don't like you” to Shia Labeouf I felt that.

Promising Young Woman (Emerald Fennell, 2020): 2.5/5

As a commentary on patriarchy, misogyny, the "nice guy," and rape culture, this works, but I don't know if it does as a story. If this was a dark comedy, a revenge movie, or a character study, it might've worked better, but instead, it attempts to be all three while never committing to any of them fully. The film ends up feeling more like a hodge-podge of ideas than a fully formed narrative. Since it never goes far enough with utilizing comedy, acts of revenge, or a deep character study to further its message and develop its themes, most of the commentary is done through confrontational dialogue. This preaching isn't bothersome considering the importance of the subject matter, but if you're a member of the choir then there is not much else here to grab onto, as every other aspect feels undercooked. I needed more of one of those three things.

An extra half star for Carey Mulligan though - but a demerit for Bo Burnham ugh ew tool.

(Ultimately though, if a survivor of sexual assault gets something out of this, then who gives a shit about my opinion.)

Minari (Lee Isaac Chung, 2020): 3.5/5

MVPs Will Patton and Youn Yuh-jung. You've seen this story a dozen times, but telling it from this perspective complicates every detail in so many thoughtful ways. Perfectly bittersweet.

Nomadland (Chloe Zhao, 2020): 4/5

You'd be forgiven for suspecting this for misery porn -- which don't worry it still occasionally is -- even given its very clear ecstatic truth aesthetic aspirations and wispy camera, but it makes a few narrative choices that I think take it in a more productive direction, and the idea that this character's lifestyle is at least in part a choice that's analogized with American pioneer spirit is pretty interesting.

McDormand is of course as good as you've heard, even during the part where she's shitting in a bucket.

What the Bleep Do We Know!? (William Arntz, Betty Chasse, 2004): 0/5

The Tommy Wiseau "Room" of documentaries. Of course one of the guys behind it joined the NXIVM cult. OF COURSE.

rewatched On the Waterfront (Elia Kazan, 1954): 4/5

Of the 100 greatest shrugs in the history of motion pictures, at least 45 are performed by Marlon Brando here.