Two weeks until the Oscars!! So my top ten will start. My Shadow awards will arrive later this week. Then my annual Oscar who will win; Who should win; and snubs. SOOOOO....
Here it is! My top ten!! 3 of the 10 are Oscar nominated films, so as always my 10 are different than the other snotty reviewers on the internet or in publications who fall in line with everyone else (Like the film C'mon C'mon) to make you think they are brilliant. My bottom line...was I entertained/and or did I learn something. I found this year, considering the online world and the news, I may have subconsciously leaned toward feel good films or films that gave me the feels
So....here I go...10-9-and 8!!!!!!
10
BELFAST
A wonderful little Oscar Nominated film that takes place in the late 60's in Belfast Ireland. We see the uprising between Catholics and Protestants, mostly through the eyes of a young boy.
This the a semi-autobiographical story written and directed by Kenneth Branagh. At first glance you think the story just lays there, however there is something more. It is an interesting story about family and property. As a neighborhood changes, do you stay with your piece of land you purchased or give in and move to brighter days somewhere else.
Branagh gives us a wonderful little script highlighted by really good performances:
Jude Hill as Buddy.
Caroline Balfe as Ma. Yes no name just Ma.
Ciaran Hinds as Pop. In an Oscar Nominated performance
Jamie Dornan as Pa.
Throw in Judi Dench; a lot of Van Morrison music; and filmed in black and white with a grey scale...you got yourself a lovely film.
Is it a reflection of our society today? As violence increases in the cities in America, people who love their home have to make the same decision sadly.
Belfast is available to rent/streaming.
My Number 10 Film....Kenneth Branagh's Belfast
Number 9
THE FRENCH DISPATCH
Okay..it is Wes Anderson. As in the past you either get him or you do not. I get him.
Is this better than Moonrise Kingdom or The Grand Budapest Hotel (Where rudeness is merely the expression of fear)? No. Still it is different and he took chances by delivering something different.
Here we, the viewers, get to see the last articles written for The French Dispatch Magazine.
So what we have here are three different stories:
1- Moses Rosenthaler( Benicio Del Toro) is a prisoner who paints using his muse, a guard named Simone (Lea Seydoux). This is the better of the three stories, with a lot of dry and slapstick humor. It almost makes fun of the art world.
2-The second story follows Zefferlli (Timothee Chalamet) who leads a group of uprising against the government. He gets help from reporter Lucinda Krementz (Frances McDormand), which is frowned upon by other protesters.
3- The kidnapping of a government officials child and his relationship with a chef.
Like all of Anderson's movies it has many of his regulars popping up with small parts:
Bill Murray
Owen Wilson
Adrien Brody
Jason Schwartzman
Jeffery Wright
Christoph Waltz
William Dafoe
Ed Norton
Saoirse Ronan
Tony Revolori
Just to name a few...
With some newbies like:
Elisabeth Moss
Henry Winkler
All three stories are not related. The only relationship they have is articles in The French Dispatch.
This gives the movie a chopped up feeling and makes the end feel flat. So during my first view I thought he struck out here, but upon further viewing I felt like, he is saying a lot in small increments. The death of magazines/newspapers; the absurdity of some protests; and what is value in art.
So it is slow, and odd, yet...it is Wes Anderson and I like it more and more with each viewing.
French dispatch is available on HBOMax
Coming in at number 9 The French Dispatch.
SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS
Yes a double surprise!!
Spiderman No Way Home, in my eyes, not the best superhero film of the year
Second...I put a superhero film in my top ten!! Me! The person who is very critical of Super hero film for their length and editing.
This film follows Shaun (Simu Liu) a valet driver in San Francisco who is hiding the fact that he is Shang-Chi, a master of weaponry based Kung Fu. He is forced to confront his past as he is drawn into the Ten Rings organization.
I went in knowing nothing about this Marvel hero. I walked out of the theater so happy to see a good Marvel film.
The cast..is perfect..
Simu Liu is perfectly stoic as Shang-Chi.
Akwafina as Shang-Chi's best friend adds perfectly timed humor and fun to the story.
Meng'er Zhang as Xialing Shang-Chi's sister. Oh my. can she be trusted?
The great Michelle Yeoh as Ying Nan is always fantastic.
Oh Ben Kingsley is back!!! As Trevoe Slattery!!
The script is perfect (until the end where it fell into a too long of and ending Marvel fight trap).
Director Destin Daniel Cretton gives us two of the best action sequences in years. A bus scene and a scene on some scaffolding...mixed with CGI and real sets, they are the amazing to watch.
What fun...even if your not a Marvel fan.
Shang-Chi is available on Disney+
So coming in at number 8...Shang-Chi And The Legends Of The Ten Rings
Okay there are 10-9-8 and I am just getting started.
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