Friday, January 31, 2020

RTD: Top 30 Countdown - 10-1



10)  HUGO (2011, dir. Martin Scorsese)
Yes, Martin Scorsese found a formula that has proven critically and commercially successful that started (arguably) with GoodFellas. From there, most of his most prominent work have been high-energy, kinetically stylized stories of the criminal underground. In spite of this, I don’t think Marty gets enough credit for the versatility in his catalog, and nowhere is that more evident than in Hugo, the story of an orphan boy, an automaton, and a journey through the history of cinema. In stark contrast to the vast majority of his filmography, Hugo marks Scorsese’s outing into not only strictly family-friendly territory, but also into the realm of 3D moviemaking.

It may sound like a shameful cash-grab, but Scorsese instead brings us a magical 3D wonderfest, using the medium as a celebration of the great distance cinema has reached in its century or so of existence, as well as excitement of the possibilities of the future. Call it a “Love Letter to Cinema”, but Hugo is not just mindless pandering to cinephiles; the story is captivating in that classically rapturous way, the characters are lovely, and the entire movie is spectacular in the most literal sense. Watching Hugo at home (I missed its theatrical run), its 3D-specific moments glare more than I'd prefer, but nothing could take away the magic that Hugo casted.



9)  MAD MAX: FURY ROAD (2015, dir. George Miller)
After three decades of silence, apocalyptic wanderer Max Rockatansky roared back onto screens in Fury Road, the fourth installment of the Mad Max series. Now played by Tom Hardy, Max escapes captivity and joins forces with Imperator Furiosa (Charlize Theron), who has gone rogue from the rule of a tyrannical army and is now on the run. What follows couldn’t be simpler: to put it bluntly, Fury Road is a two-hour car chase, and there’s no other way to have it. Despite such a bare-bones premise, Fury Road never stalls out, endlessly thrilling the viewer with explosive, gritty action.

Contrary to the usual tight-framed, handheld fare, George Miller widens his scope and beholds a spectacle that is breathtaking. Set to the backdrop of beautiful desert landscapes, Fury Road assaults the viewer with a barrage of awesome special effects and jaw-dropping stunt-work, all complimented by imaginative car & costume designs, always maintaining its exciting momentum. And then there’s Hardy and Theron, who are nothing short of badass with their grunts and growls that suggest a lifetime of survival in an unforgiving world. Topped off with an egalitarian message that is effectively profound (especially for a film of this kind), Fury Road is not only one of this decade’s most memorable films, but fully deserves its reputation as one of the best action films of all time.



8)  PARASITE (2019, dir. Bong Joon-ho)
After getting their feet in the proverbial door, the unemployed and impoverished Kim family infiltrate their way to employment into the other-worldly wealth of the Park home. Such is a very bare-bones premise for Parasite, and I dare not say anymore, as Parasite is one of the most singular and original movies in ages – the less you know going in, the better. From there, it is a genre-defying romp that twists and turns to mind-boggling degrees. Most remarkably, as off-the-rails as it becomes, Parasite never crosses the line into a muddled mess, thanks in great part to tight direction from Bong Joon-ho, debatably South Korea’s best cinematic export.

It’s definitely a mouthful of a movie, with commentary touching on class divide, the atrophic effect of frivolity, and the cutthroat nature that lurks within society, even at its most civilized – all without falling into patronizing clichés. It’s the kind of film that demands discussion afterward, but for those still reeling from Parasite’s singular chaos know they’ve seen a great film. Parasite is enthralling for every second of its runtime, thanks to flawless direction, crack technicality, and one of the best scripts of recent memory. Joon-ho’s filmography has one hell of a great track record, from the tense Memories of Murder to the thrilling Snowpiercer – Parasite just might be him at the top of his form.



7)  THE LIGHTHOUSE (2019, dir. Robert Eggers)
Shot in gorgeously bleak black & white, two wickies descend into Lovecraftian madness in the confines of a New England lighthouse in Robert Eggers’ sophomore effort, The Lighthouse. Here is a premise that bore the greatest of promises that only art house cinema could live up to, and combined with the phenomenal teasers, there was not one film I was more psyched for this past 10 years than The Lighthouse. By all accounts, I hyped this movie up so much that there was no way it could have met my expectations, but I’ll be damned that Eggers actually pulled that off, let alone making one of the best films of the decade.

The power of the film is ultimately anchored by career highlights for sole leading men Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe, but buoying The Lighthouse is a terrific production design and masterful atmosphere – gorgeous cinematography, hypnotically maddening sound design, and meticulously detailed set design (the viewer can feel the very setting) – further complimented by a singular personality that is commonly, if depressingly, absent from films of this kind. Though The Lighthouse may not have been the horror experience some expected, it is undeniably absorbing and breathtakingly tense (surprisingly rewatchable, as well), and with an openness to countless interpretations, The Lighthouse is absolute cinema at its purest form.



6)  INSIDE OUT (2015, dir. Pete Docter)
The human mind, and all of the emotions that ensue from its workings, is difficult enough for adults to comprehend. To break down and analogize that in a way that children can understand must be a task of towering difficulty. Believe it or not, Pixar pulled this off with Inside Out, gracing a film that's great for children and even better for adults. Though technically the story of Riley and her trouble in moving to a new home, the real action centers around the feelings within her – Joy, Sadness, Fear, Anger, and Disgust (taking on manifestations as characters) – and their frequent butting of heads in properly guiding Riley through this new chapter in life.

Inside Out is one of those strikingly universal films in which we all see ourselves in Riley one way or another. In turn, a whirlwind of feelings will flood the viewer. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry (among many emotions), and lucky for you, Inside Out knows exactly when and how to balance itself, never dwelling in one tone too much or too little. When you have the opportunity to wipe the tears from your eyes, you then get to enjoy the terrific imagination employed, the gorgeous animation, and the witty and engaging script. Inside Out won the 2016 Oscar for Best Animated Feature – rightfully so. If you ask me, though, I say this deserves to go down in history as one of the greatest animated films ever made.



5)  BLADE RUNNER 2049 (2017, dir. Denis Villeneuve)
I’ve talked enough about the past decade’s resurgence of masterful science fiction, but it all built up to this: Blade Runner 2049. Set some 30 years after the events of its predecessor, 2049 follows K, a replicant Blade Runner and his journey on the meaning of artifice vs. humanity, traversing a rain-soaked dystopia masquerading as Los Angeles. Like the greatest sequels, Blade Runner 2049 acts less as a next chapter than a whole new novel: while founded on the style and themes that made its predecessor a sci-fi landmark, it widens the scope of its material with a bigger story and expanded lore.  

Blade Runner 2049 is an entrancing and absorbing experience from start to finish, ultimately bolstered by the cinematography of Roger Deakins (earning his first Oscar here) as well as a mesmerizing score by Hans Zimmer and Benjamin Wallfisch, of which Vangelis would be proud. Make no mistake, though, the style harmoniously balances with its substance with a story that alluringly leads the viewer through many a twist and turn, complimented by a vision of the future that is, yes, bleakly plausible, but magnetic in its imagination and the special effects that bring it to life. Blade Runner 2049 may not be the sequel we deserve or needed in the first place, but I’m forever grateful it exists. 



4)  THE GREAT BEAUTY (2013, dir. Paolo Sorrentino)
Jep Gambardella has spent a lifetime wrapped up in the glam and glitz of the elite of Roman nightlife. That lifetime has led up to now: he has just turned 65. With the past behind him, the present surrounded by the aged aimlessness of his peers, and the future uncertain, Jep finds himself longing for something more, something beyond description – the Great Beauty, if you will. It is a journey that takes him through the antiquated streets of Rome through and through, one that Fellini would be proud of, marked with a profoundness amidst the superficial dazzle, making for one of my very favorites this decade.

Rome is set to a canvas of lush colors and moody lighting in The Great Beauty, all shot marvelously with sprawling photography that wows the viewer with every single frame. A feast to the eyes, yes, but style in place of substance? Hardly. Sorrentino regular Toni Servillo carries the film with a charming swagger that exhibits a sense of humor as well as elder vulnerability. Assisting Servillo, as well as the film as a whole, is an excellent script that never lets up with witty humor and thoughtful musings on where this journey called life is headed toward. 



3)  THE MASTER (2012, dir. Paul Thomas Anderson)
Perhaps the trauma of warfare splits a man into two separate extremes – one that has been reduced to beastly primordial instinct; the other that passes off as intellectual as a guise to keep that beast at bay. Such is my personal interpretation of The Master, the story of Freddie Quell, a damaged war veteran with a desperation to fit back into society. Enter Lancaster Dodd, a culturally elite pseudo-religious leader. Quell is taken under his wing, tasked to perform strange and seemingly arbitrary rituals as a means to become civilized, but no matter what, that beast refuses to stay at bay.

The duality of man is no new territory for cinema, but few times has it been so simultaneously confounding and compelling as much as thisExcellent production design and alluring cinematography certainly play a part, but The Master wouldn’t be a fraction of what it is without the lead performances of Joaquin Phoenix and Philip Seymour Hoffman, who are at their absolute best here. Yes, The Master is a puzzling experience but it is the kind that allows a new layer to be peeled upon repeat viewings, becoming something different with each watch. P.T. Anderson is a filmmaker I’ve never been able to warm up to, but the towering mastery of The Master tempts me to reevaluate his entire output up to this point.



2)  THE TREE OF LIFE (2011, dir. Terrence Malick)
The works of Terrence Malick can perhaps be described as cinematic prayers, films that profoundly examines man’s place in the world, always at a crossroads between the path of nature and the path of grace. Malick films were always an event to look forward to from the start of his career, but everything was building up to The Tree of Life, his most obtuse and intense prayer to date. Malick ponders the entirety of existence, from the distant past of the dinosaurs to the far reaches of the cosmos, yet all of this is deeply rooted in the tribulations of the O’Briens, a humble family in suburban Texas circa 1950s.

It is certainly cinema at its most ambitious, artistic, and absolute, even taking home the coveted Palme d’Or – an award I’m commonly critical of, but I couldn’t think of a more fitting winner than The Tree of Life. Stylistically, this is Malick taking his trademark style as far as it can possibly go, and I’m prepared to say this is his most ambitious undertaking yet in an already audacious career. It is certainly one of the best-looking movies of recent memory, fondly recalling simpler times with a childlike wide-angle lens, exhibiting an exceptional cast that doesn’t deliver performances as much as they generate presences. It’s a film that’s borderline impossible to describe, but is imperative to be experienced.



1)  BOYHOOD (2014, dir. Richard Linklater)
The term “masterpiece” is undeniably overused, but I couldn’t think of a more appropriate descriptor of Boyhood, Richard Linklater’s coming-of-age drama that was 12 years in the making. They pushed that hard in the advertising, and that’s exactly why I was extremely skeptical of Boyhood walking in. Then I finally saw the film, and when it was over, after wiping the tears from my eyes, I realized that Boyhood has every right to boast about its lengthy production timeline. To maintain the consistency in tone, performance quality, and overall artistic momentum for such a period of time without fault is one of the greatest achievements in the history of the form, as far as I’m concerned.

And then there’s the film itself, which is ultimately most important. Complimented by a wonderful cast and Linklater’s Average Joe-brand of ponderousness, Boyhood is the coming-of-age drama to end all coming-of-age dramas, timeless and universal without exception. Despite a subplot involving an abusive stepfather that feels cheap and out-of-place, Boyhood lets the power of its scenario speak for itself, never derailing into contrived melodrama. Though the film has its detractors, their cases have failed to sway me. I was touched beyond description by Boyhood. Though we were brought many great films in the last 10 years, nothing won me over quite like Linklater’s magnum opus.

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