RTD: Top 30 Countdown - 30-21

30)  THE TURIN HORSE (2011, dir. Agnes Hranitzky & Bela Tarr)

Humanity’s impending doom takes on the form painfully violent winds in The Turin Horse. In his final masterpiece, Bela Tarr takes us to Turin, Italy, bringing us into the rugged world of an impoverished farmer, his daughter, and their temperamental horse (the very horse that Nietzsche clung to before his mental breakdown in 1889). They struggle for survival day by day, out of contact with the outside world. Their farm filled with dreadful silence, as if serving a confirmation that God has abandoned them.

Bela Tarr is less a filmmaker than a prophet of the apocalypse. His most signature traits are bleak black & white imagery, weather as an apocalyptic allegory, and long, long takes that stretch for a desperate eternity. It is a style that is trying for detractors, yet mesmerizingly striking for fans. The Turin Horse is no exception to his track record, and while this is not Tarr’s greatest achievement (a title earned by his 1994 opus Satantango), The Turin Horse is perhaps the best starting point for his impenetrable filmography. It is not an accessible film by any means, but what you see is what you get, and what you get is a chillingly pessimistic yet beautifully accomplished swansong from Hungary’s greatest cinematic export.

29)  HER (2013, dir. Spike Jonze)

Her is one of the most bittersweet movies ever made, chronicling the lonely and introverted Theodore’s (Joaquin Phoenix) relationship with an AI console (voiced by Scarlett Johannson), set in a truly not-too-distant future. On one hand, it becomes a coping mechanism for Theodore after a recent divorce; on another hand, what feels and beats like a genuine romance charmingly blossoms from their interactions. All at once heartwarming and heartbreaking, Her emerges as one of the decade’s most memorable romances and one of the most unique studies of loneliness in film.

The future of Her feels all-too plausible, but I hesitate to even say it takes place in the future, because it all seems so distinctly familiar. I think this is one of the most genius aspects of the film – creating a future we could foresee (without feeling alienated) perhaps allows more room to warm up to the strange romance of its characters, the real focus of Her. Phoenix finds the right balance of sensitivity without making Theodore a joke; Johansson may not appear onscreen, but the commitment to her voice work births a strong presence. Though Her is undoubtedly a Spike Jonze movie, this finds him at his most refined, restrained, and heartfelt as a filmmaker.

28)  THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI (2017, dir. Martin McDonagh)

Sick of local law’s uselessness, a divorced mother grieving the rape & murder of her daughter takes matters into her own hands, and her method is one of stark originality: she rents three underused billboards, plastering a message that calls out the local police chief’s incompetence. What follows is a tale of intense personal anger – pointed both outward and inward – told not in black and white, but those shades of grey that such a heavy film like Three Billboards demands. Topping off Three Billboards is a collective of excellent performances, but then there’s Frances McDormand, and there’s no other way to put it: at the risk of sounding hyperbole, she gives one of the very greatest lead performances of all time.

She alone is reason enough to watch, but there is amazingly more to Three Billboards: it boasts one of the best scripts of the decade. Fearless in tackling touchy subject matter, it is peppered with a darkly quirky wit that the Coen Brothers wish they had the chops to write. It is also full of surprises that don’t jump, but rather creep up on you – the characters we think we hate grow on us, and those we thought we sided with show more disturbing colors throughout, never feeling heavy-handed. In its grey depiction of the social war between law enforcement and the downtrodden people, Three Billboards is one of those few movies I can say we need right now. 

27)  GRAVITY (2013, dir. Alfonso Cuaron)

A rookie astronaut becomes stranded in space after a routine mission goes horribly wrong. That, right there, is the entire plot of Gravity, one so simple and minimal that I was positive Cuaron wouldn’t be able to pull it off. At the risk of sounding melodramatic, I am honestly ashamed at these preconceived notions of mine, because Gravity gripped me by both the throat and the heart in a way few films have. Despite a setting, characters, and situation that very few of us can ever materially relate to, there is a profound, albeit subtle, universality to the stakes at hand.

But not everybody’s interested in what lies “between the lines”, an understanding that Cuaron humbly proves throughout Gravity. At an air-tight 90 minutes, Gravity bedazzles with its spacious spectacle and special effects, perfectly encapsulated in the film’s opening shot alone. Adding to my surprise with Gravity are solid performances from Sandra Bullock and George Clooney – though nothing ground-breaking in the long run, they give the film their all despite such little material to work with. Unfortunately, I missed Gravity during its theatrical run – bar none, this is my biggest movie regret of the decade. Like the best of its kind, though, Gravity is enhanced by the theater, but does not depend on it. Even at home, it’s still mind-blowing.

26)  FIRST REFORMED (2017, dir. Paul Schrader)

In the face of a world approaching apocalypse by mankind’s very own hands, an ailing and tortured priest battles within himself the meaning of carrying out God’s confusing word in Paul Schrader’s First Reformed, one of the most haunting and soul-chilling movies in recent memory. Anybody familiar with Schrader will be right at home here: an existentially alienated man on the verge of externalizing his inner crisis. The twist here, though, is the application to the definition of faith, which makes for not only one hell of a soul-ringing movie, but a fascinating love letter to the faith-based dramas of Schrader’s affection, Diary of a Country Priest and Winter Light in particular.

Though First Reformed makes some of the most effective use of the usual Schrader template, there is no argument that the Godly weight of this film is bore by Ethan Hawke, who carries First Reformed in what might be the best lead male performance of the decade, one that goes about with a delicate dread that suits the film perfectly, set to the backdrop of a weary color palette and an exquisitely brooding score by dark ambient master Lustmord. Structurally, First Reformed is far from new territory for Schrader, but the religious makeup makes for an experience that is quietly dreadful and hauntingly masterful.

25)  A GHOST STORY (2017, dir. David Lowery)

Life goes on, whether we’re here or not, whether we like it or not. Take what you will from that. These are the very thoughts still cycling through my head after seeing A Ghost Story, certainly one of the most enigmatic movies to come out in a while. A man dies in a car wreck and spends the afterlife dwelling the space of his home, watching many generations come and go, all the while dressed in the classic bedsheet ghost outfit. Simply put; it’s a haunted house story from the perspective of the ghost. As simple as this is, A Ghost Story is one of those rare experiences at the movies that cannot be simplified upon mere synopsis, and can only be seen to be believed.

Despite such simplicity, it is one of the most profound and deeply touching movies to come out in the last 10 years, even stranger that it works exclusively off of its concept. Sure, there are some striking moments here and there, but there is nothing remarkable or particularly spectacular as far as cinematography or performances go, though Daniel Hart’s score is worth a listen. For some, this is a red flag (and this certainly had its detractors), but I found that all the more impressive. I’ve only seen A Ghost Story once, which was when it was released locally, but to this very day, I’m still haunted by it. 

24)  UNDER THE SKIN (2013, dir. Jonathan Glazer)

Scarlett Johannson plays not so much a character, but an enigma that is known only as the Female in Under the Skin. After coming to be and learning the everyday vibes of civilization, she stalks the streets of Glasgow in search of unsuspecting men, seducing them into a literal black void. Rinse. Repeat. Though there is a story that can be followed, it is one that isn’t so much told as it is meditated, and it makes for a film that is mystifying, head-scratching, even frustrating, but too irresistible and mesmerizing to be dismissed – it begs for and greatly rewards interpretation, but the mystery of the experience is just as alluring.

Under the Skin is a cold, alien film that Stanley Kubrick would be proud of, a feel that is fully encapsulated by Johannson, in perhaps the most left-field role of her career, but also vital to the film’s sexily pulling quality is superb cinematography from Daniel Landin, framing some truly unforgettable images, all set to the backdrop of Mica Levi’s electronic score, which is nothing short of haunting and hypnotic. Under the Skin is certainly not for everyone – my head still isn’t quite wrapped around it, but I’ll be damned if I wasn’t captivated from start to finish. 

23)  THE IRISHMAN (2019, dir. Martin Scorsese)

For the first time since 1995’s Casino, Scorsese teamed up with De Niro and Pesci once again for quite possibly their most epic undertaking yet: The Irishman, the story of Frank “the Irishman” Sheeran (Robert De Niro), a World War 2 vet turned truck driver turned hitman. After a chance meeting with crime boss Bill Bufalino (Joe Pesci), Sheeran finds himself steadily treading into the depths of the mafia, eventually leading to an association and friendship with union leader Jimmy Hoffa (Al Pacino). After complications surrounding the election of Kennedy, Sheeran is given his most difficult hit job yet – the assassination of Hoffa, which leads to his mysterious disappearance.

Yes, it is a very long movie (3.5 hours), but not one single minute is wasted. It is enthralling from front to back, resulting in a story that feels truly complete by its emotionally jarring ending. Though the mafia is familiar territory for Scorsese, The Irishman feels fresh, due to its handling of the subject, being from the perspective of an everyday joe who gets wrapped into this world. Additionally, the film is very tensely restrained, a welcome change of pace for Scorsese. The Irishman does not claim to be based on a true story, as it is only based on allegations of questionable legitimacy – but, man, is it a story that feels frighteningly plausible.

22)  EX MACHINA (2014, dir. Alex Garland)

The past decade was especially packed with terrific A.I.-centered science fiction, an already prominent theme in the genre, and one of the finest examples is Ex Machina, the debut feature from novelist Alex Garland. Set in the remote home of the crude yet genius search engine CEO Nathan (Oscar Isaac), Caleb, a young programmer (Domhall Gleeson), is invited to take part in Nathan’s latest scientific breakthrough: Ava (Alicia Vikander), a humanoid robot seemingly capable of feelings and emotions. As Caleb becomes more allured to Ava and her lifelike emotiveness, tensions begin to rise between him and Nathan.

On a budget of only $15 million, Ex Machina exhibits a single solitary setting, used to hypnotizing effect, inhabited by a cast of only four (including a particularly chilling Oscar Isaac). The only special effect is that of Ava’s cybernetic being, which surely earned the film an Oscar for Best Visual Effects. Despite the lack of usual sci-fi extravagance, Ex Machina is all at once fascinating, thrilling, and thought-provoking, allowing the viewer to become fully absorbed into its world without unnecessary distraction while never calling attention to itself. Topped by Garland’s Oscar-nominated script, Ex Machina is surely destined to be a modern sci-fi classic.

21)  HEREDITARY (2018, dir. Ari Aster)

The remarkably confident and expertly crafted debut from one of cinema’s newest horror auteurs, Ari Aster, came in the form of Hereditary, one of the very best horror films released in quite some time. Hereditary puts us into discomfortingly close quarters with a grief-stricken family, observing the tensions between their dysfunction as it reaches a boiling point toward off-the-rails chaos, keeping a close eye on the mother’s (Toni Collete) questionable stability. Like the best of horror, Hereditary’s scares are deeply rooted in human drama, sometimes becoming emotionally exhausting before anything begins to happen – in particular, there is a confrontation at the family dinner table between mother and son so venomous that John Cassavetes may find himself unable to watch.

Make no mistake, though; Hereditary is absolutely terrifying, thanks in large part to a visual style that takes on a curiously voyeuristic quality, as if it’s the POV of some kind of metaphysical puppet master, exercising its misanthropic sadism on the family at hand. But what truly makes Hereditary so gripping is a brilliant performance from Collette, who sears with grief to the point of madness. I admit it took some time for Hereditary to grow on me – I originally awarded it only 3 stars out of 4. Sure enough, it crept in on my subconscious and demanded a revisit. At that point did its excellence hit me, just like the best of horror.