2023 was a spectacular year for movies; the best in recent memory. Click HERE to discover my top 44 films of this year. On each film’s thumbnail you can click through to my short thoughts. While you’re there, follow me on Letterboxd, the film logging platform, which is where I log not only current films but all the films I watch. It’s a fun platform.
Category: movie
Lots of New Films
BLONDE (Netflix)
***1/2
If Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis was a portrait of the artist without the pain, Andrew Dominik’s Blonde is a portrait of the artist as pure pain, a sum of trauma, grief, displacement and anguish almost without regard to talent. As such, it’s not a bio, but very much an adaptation of the novel that was its source material, and it certainly won’t be for everyone. Ana de Armas is pretty astonishing in the role of Norma Jeane and Marilyn Monroe, whom, the film posits, Jeane saw as an almost alien entity.
THE STRANGER (Cinemas from 06 October)
****
This is the kind of film Australia has done best since, pretty much, 2000: extremely dark tales of men with beards communicating in mumbling tones of great foreboding, sprinkled liberally with the f word. This is a good one and will truly reward you if you go in cold, as I did; you won’t be ahead of it, that’s for sure. There is no humour here: this is serious stuff, bleak, flinty, and rather great.
ON THE COUNT OF THREE
***
The central conceit of this challenging urban buddy flick – a pair of depressed friends make a suicide pact – could be reckless were the film’s seriousness of purpose not so pronounced. The debut feature from successful US stand-up comedian Jerrod Carmichael, this is a very dark comedy with a lot on its mind.
THE HUMANS
***1/2
Stephen Karam’s adaptation of his own play about a family gathering for Thanksgiving at a small apartment in New York City has grown on me. I found it rather involving but unsatisfying at first watch, but I partly blame myself: I kept waiting for the shoe to drop, and didn’t, perhaps, appreciate the waiting itself. It’s a low-key slow-build character piece, modest and contained but thoughtfully and at times inventively cinematic.
MOONAGE DAYDREAM
***1/2
An at times thrilling, at times exasperatingly over-produced experiment in cultural montage. Despite so much Bowie, you long for more Bowie, longer song snippets, more sustained footage and less stuff: less silent film footage, archival footage, added footage. At times it’s so overburdened with all that detritus that it’s frustrating, but, of course, Bowie shines through. Just.
THE QUIET GIRL
***1/2
This Irish-language tale of the summer a young girl spends with her mother’s cousin and her husband touches some moments of greatness and some of banality, but overall is moving and heartfelt.
YOU WON’T BE ALONE
***1/2
A unique take on witches and folklore. Writer/director Goran Stolevski is an Australian director, born in Macedonia, who made the film entirely in Serbia with a mainly Serbian cast except for Swedish actress Noomi Rapace.
The Conference, Emergency, What Josiah Saw
THE CONFERENCE
Cinemas from 11 August
* * * *
Compelling – indeed, riveting – staging of the Wannsee Conference, the Berlin lakeside gathering on 20 January 1942 where leading members of the Nazi regime including SS, Reich Chancellery, ministries, police and administration met to discuss the “Final Solution to the Jewish Question”. The screenplay is derived from the minutes of this meeting as recorded by Adolf Eichmann.
The film’s success lies in the fact that it never forgets that it’s the soberest, darkest of history lessons, while being just cinematic enough to be, for want of a better word, an ‘entertainment.’ It’s never dry, but it’s completely sober, and while the subject matter is of the world’s greatest abomination, the telling is tasteful, respectful and suffused with artistic integrity. Wrongly handled, this could have been exploitative or downright abominable in its own right; instead, it’s vital, important and true.
EMERGENCY
Amazon
* * * 1/2
Solid direction, strong performances and excellent writing in a college comedy thriller about the dangers young Black American men face from police officers. The central conceit – which I won’t spoil here – is treated matter-of-factly, which is itself the shocking thing, especially to those who live outside the United States. I read a lot about these issues and hope I have some understanding of them; this film certainly contributed to that, viscerally.
WHAT JOSIAH SAW
Shudder from 4 August
* * * 1/2
In Texas, adult children of a charismatic God-fearing patriarch must deal with his traumatic impact on their lives.
Pure, raw, undiluted American Gothic with all the trimmings. Here is a vibe, a voice, a style and a mood, all of a piece, managing to wear its influences proudly yet roll them into something original and fresh. Watch it late at night, in the dark, and get into its strange, strange vibe.
You can listen to CJ interview the writer of What Josiah Saw, Robert Alan Dilts, on CJ’s Movieland podcast:
https://open.spotify.com/embed/episode/038rjYUwYBxuyoi2WaGSVT?utm_source=generator
Benjamin Zeccola on Palace Cinemas’ Global Festival Slate (PODCAST)
Benjamin Zeccola is CEO of Palace Cinemas, who run an ongoing slate of international film festivals across Australia throughout the year, including the French, Italian, Spanish, German, Scandinavian, British, Irish and Japanese Film Festivals. On this episode of Movieland, Benjamin talks about the humble beginnings and current strengths of his festival slate, the audience demand for such content, the challenges and rewards of sourcing and programming so much global product, and why Australia just may be the best country in the world for seeing European cinema on the big screen. This discussion will also form the basis for a future article in Metro Magazine and is posted with Metro’s permission.
Ali and Ava, Full Time, Official Competition
Ali and Ava
Out Now in Australian cinemas.
* * * 1/2
Clio Barnard’s third fiction feature is a beautifully observed middle-aged relationship drama set specifically and precisely in Bradford in the UK. There, Ali (Adeel Akhtar) and Ava (Claire Rushbrook) meet in the turmoil of daily life. Each carry relationship baggage, emotional and physical, but, importantly, both are lonely: these are two characters who need each other. Barnard shows constant, enormous compassion not only for both of them but for all the supporting characters, some of whom aren’t tremendously likeable at first encounter. The screenplay doesn’t break new ground – this is highly trod territory, British regional social realism through and through – but the direction is intricate and thoughtful and the performances tremendous.
Full Time
Coming Soon
* * * 1/2
The Safdie brothers’ influence on this tense social-realist drama, written and directed by Eric Gravel and starring Laure Camaly, is undeniable, but that’s no bad thing; this takes their pressure-cooker style and applies it to a more universal situation. Calamy, as a single mother living outside Paris dealing with the disruption to her commute during a train strike, is sensational; she’s right at the front of the pack of screen actresses now. Funny she won her César for Antoinette in the Cévennes rather than a dramatic role like this, but c’est la vie. It’s a well-made film, although the constant pressures applied to Julie run the risk of becoming parodic (I’m looking at you, birthday present thing) and all too much. One thing’s for sure: it’ll make you feel less bad about not living in Paris.
Official Competition
Coming Soon
* * *
Penelope Cruz. Antonio Banderas. Oscar Martînez. In a satire about moviemaking. Boy, was I excited. And boy, was I disappointed. With these actors, this script, as flawed and obvious as it is, may have worked. But the direction is so heavy-handed and the editing so labored, the film is devoid of energy. Scenes drag, speeches drag, points are repeatedly pounded on the head. Somehow in the midst of it Cruz gives a great performance, and the framing is occasionally nice.
Compartment No. 6
Juho Kuosmanen’s COMPARTMENT NO. 6 is up there with Petite Maman as the best film thus far of 2022. I originally chose it at the Sydney Film Festival 2021 as armchair travel: when am I gonna take a train in the Arctic circle? As such it doesn’t disappoint: this is a film that really takes you places; the milieu is astonishing. But the characters are so richly drawn, and the performances so winning, I got a lot more than I bargained for. It’s rich, moving, funny and charming. It’s the kind of film cinemas are made for: watching it at home alone simply would not be the same. The visuals demand the big screen, the sound demands the big audio, and the story demands an audience: one falls for these characters collectively, incrementally, tangibly, audibly. It’s an experience. Don’t miss it.
My friend and colleague Octavia Barron Martin loved it too. Listen to us rave about it, and be a little more critical about episode 5 of HBO’s IRMA VEP, here on the Movieland podcast:
IRMA VEP (Movieland Podcast Episode with Octavia Barron Martin).
The HBO / Foxtel / Binge 8 episode film industry satire IRMA VEP is a funhouse of mirrors. It is a remake, by Olivier Assayas, of his own 1996 film, which was in itself a meta-take on the famous 1915 French silent film serial Les Vampires. CJ and Octavia gleefully go down the rabbit hole after viewing the first four episodes of the new show and the 1996 original film.
Best of 2022, So Far.
It’s the end of the first half of 2022. Here are the best films of the year so far, as released or screened in Australia. Many of these are now available on streaming. Enjoy. Don’t forget, when you look at this list, you can join Letterboxd and follow me there. It’s a film-logging platform that I recommend. CJ
Elvis (Discussion)
Octavia Barron Martin and I discuss Baz Luhrmann’s ELVIS on Movieland:
Elvis
* * * * 1/2
In an earlier life, I spent nine months (with some breaks) playing the ghost of Elvis Presley in Steve Martin’s play Picasso at the Lapin Agile. During the rehearsal period and then throughout the run, I immersed myself in all things Presley: I read the books, watched the specials and the movies and the documentaries, and, far most importantly, I listened to the music. I got obsessed, in a good way, and had a whale of a time. I appreciated the man from every angle, and in every way.
So too, clearly, does Baz Luhrmann, and his epic Elvis is a love letter to an artist he admires and obviously finds a deep connection with. It’s very Baz; like most of his work, the dialogue scenes are spare and fast, and deep characterization always gives way to visceral visual and audial spectacle. That’s his way, and that’s this film. Another could give us more insight into Elvis’ pains, traumas and (in particular) family relationships. This one gives us the talent and the sex appeal.
It also gives us The Colonel (Tom Hanks). It actually gives us too much Colonel, including the film’s absolute worst element (and essential misfire), a truly badly written, on-the-nose VO narration. Elvis is told from The Colonel’s point of view, in hindsight from a hospital bed, as an answer to his critics. The approach is valid, the writing is way off (which is not to say Hanks’ performance is; it’s fine, if a little fruity. But what in a Luhrmann film isn’t a little fruity?)
Love him or hate him, Luhrmann is a unique, visionary auteur, and one of very few on the planet who works on a mega-budget, populist, global scale. This is his best film since Strictly Ballroom; on its own terms,it is simply magnificent. It may be that the material is so suited to Luhrmann’s sensibilities; it is certain that Luhrmann found his perfect Elvis in Austin Butler. You spend the first half in awe of Baz but the second in awe of Butler, and that’s a compliment to both. The Vegas sequences are mind-bendingly well performed (and shot). This movie soars. Expect an Oscar for Best Hair and Make-Up and possibly Sound, and Oscar nominations for Best Film, Director, Butler, Tom Hanks, Production Design and Editing. Outstanding.