Top Films by Year
Top Films of 2020
Top Films of 2017
Top Films of 2015
Moonage Daydream – 5.5
A loud and frantic collage of David Bowie’s personae, songs and thoughts, in that order, without concern for dramatic arc or, even, chronology. You could watch almost any fifteen minutes of the two-hour-plus film and see all there is to see. The songs are different, but none play out at length. Greater attention is given […]
Woman King – 5
A charitable view sees this as a Marvel super-hero tale, ignoring the “inspired by true events” prologue, for there is not a believable action or bit of dialogue in the entire film. The battles are bloody and one-sided and the moral message is simplistic: “palm oil good, slavery bad.” A mature Viola Davis is rather […]
The Good Boss – 6
It’s obvious early on, despite Javier Bardem’s suavity, that the “good” in the title is meant ironically. His badness, however–again, maybe due to Bardem’s inherent charm–never seems that bad: how would you react to a maniac setting up with a bullhorn and banners in front of your front door, and the personal attention he gives […]
Funny Pages – 5
A celebration, I guess, of an oddball teenager who makes a series of bad decisions in service to his love of cartooning. Amusing, not funny. You don’t want to feel sorry for people, but overall the picture here is fairly sad.
Malik – 6.5
If I didn’t know “Malik” is Arabic for “king,” I would have thought it meant “Godfather,” so much does this two-hour, forty-minute Indian epic borrow from the Coppola classics, not only characters and plot, but several scenes that are direct lifts. (Then again, maybe in the Malayalam language that’s what it means.) Unfortunately, Fahadh Faasil, […]