Swan's 2018 Film Diary

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Interesting, gave the first one three buckets and was gonna pass on the sequel but might give it a go sometime now.



Interesting, gave the first one three buckets and was gonna pass on the sequel but might give it a go sometime now.
Definitely do. If you even like the first a smidgen, you will definitely like the sequel. It improves on the first in every way IMO.



I really don't mind if you prefer not to do ratings. They're kinda arbitrary considering that everyone's rating system is different. Two people who find the same film 'ok' will probably have very different rating.

Also I'm so glad you enjoyed the Creep movies!



Keep your station clean - OR I WILL KILL YOU
I think The Shape of Water has a chance to be a big favorite of mine in years to come. There's a lot of stunning things in that movie.
I second this!



The Commuter -

(Jaume Collet-Serra, 2018)

[NEW WATCH]



2018 cinema kicks off for me with this trashy good time. Terrible film and Neeson really phones in his performance, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't have a blast. And those are some of my most cherished movie-going experiences.



You can't win an argument just by being right!
Sounds fun. Very encouraging.



You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.
@gbgoodies, have you seen either Paddington films? I recommend them if not.

@Swan, Thanks for the heads up about the Paddington movies.

I saw the first Paddington movie, and I liked it, but I didn't love it as much as I had hoped to. I think my expectations may have been too high because I loved Paddington Bear when I was a kid, so I went into the movie hoping the nostalgia factor would make it a favorite for me. (I think my old Paddington Bear doll is still up in the attic somewhere. )

I have the second Paddington movie on my watchlist, but I rarely go to the theater anymore, so it will have to wait until the DVD comes out.



Yeah, I can see that, but I do hope you'll watch the sequel. It's great and I think you will like it more than the first.



Taste of Cherry -

(Abbas Kiarostami, 1997)

[NEW WATCH]



Movies like this remind me of one of the main reasons I love cinema: to discover avenues of expression I have not seen before. This is the third Kiarostami film I've seen and it blew me away. I think one of his strengths, as far as I can tell, is pulling as much meaning as he can out of very light, minimal narratives. You could argue this movie is "uneventful". And while Ebert may have found it boring and gave it one star, I found it mesmerizing and very thought-provoking. I've heard Kiarostami spurs discussion, and I found that to be true watching it with my friend tonight. We would pause it once in a while and discuss things we had observed. And despite - or perhaps partly because of - it's brevity, this film seems to capture the entire essence of life and death in it's hour and a half runtime. I'm eager to delve more into this filmmaker's work now, including a much needed revisit of Close-Up. I know Kiarostami is polarizing but I don't think anyone should dismiss his body of work.



“Sugar is the most important thing in my life…”
Phantom Thread -

(Paul Thomas Anderson, 2017)

[NEW WATCH]

I thoroughly enjoyed this, stayed engaged from beginning to end. Still trying to figure out the ending and where the characters are, but satisfied regardless.


Cyril may be the best part.



Is The Commuter, Taken on a train? Only seen the trailer a couple of times, but that's what instantly came to mind.
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5-time MoFo Award winner.



Is The Commuter, Taken on a train? Only seen the trailer a couple of times, but that's what instantly came to mind.
There are a few similarities I guess but I'd argue they're different. This one is far sillier.



Taste of Cherry -

(Abbas Kiarostami, 1997)

[NEW WATCH]



Movies like this remind me of one of the main reasons I love cinema: to discover avenues of expression I have not seen before. This is the third Kiarostami film I've seen and it blew me away. I think one of his strengths, as far as I can tell, is pulling as much meaning as he can out of very light, minimal narratives. You could argue this movie is "uneventful". And while Ebert may have found it boring and gave it one star, I found it mesmerizing and very thought-provoking. I've heard Kiarostami spurs discussion, and I found that to be true watching it with my friend tonight. We would pause it once in a while and discuss things we had observed. And despite - or perhaps partly because of - it's brevity, this film seems to capture the entire essence of life and death in it's hour and a half runtime. I'm eager to delve more into this filmmaker's work now, including a much needed revisit of Close-Up. I know Kiarostami is polarizing but I don't think anyone should dismiss his body of work.
This may be my favorite of his. I am getting eager to rewatch some of his stuff, still a few more to see as well.
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Letterboxd



Yeah, I liked Close-Up a hell of a lot too but this might top that. To be fair I need to see more of his work to decide what my favorite of his is, but right now I think it's this.



Yeah, I liked Close-Up a hell of a lot too but this might top that. To be fair I need to see more of his work to decide what my favorite of his is, but right now I think it's this.
I love Certified Copy which was also the first of his I watched. So that may not be a coincidence. Haven't been disappointed by him yet though. His dialogue drives his films, you know that's right up my alley.



Molly's Game -

(Aaron Sorkin, 2017)

[REWATCH]



Raul - I don't even care for the movie but I like Chastain so much I went to see it again anyway. CHECK MATE.

Anyway, yeah, I liked this even less this time. It has a very interesting story behind it but the only thing going for it cinematically is really Chastain. I'm a Sorkin fan and I'm a little more understanding of him missing the mark as a director here since it's his debut, but I felt he missed the mark script-wise a bit as well. I'm not a fan when screenwriters spell subtext out too much via dialogue, unless it's done really well and feels appropriate. Here, Sorkin does it too much in an obtrusive way. I hate the father-daughter scene near the end because of that. At times it just feels like a TV movie with a great lead performance. Overall, it's entertaining, but quality-wise a disappointment.



My rating of it would probably drop on rewatch, too. I enjoyed the dialogue mostly (except for the daddy psyche session), but it doesn't feel like it has rewatch pull with me.