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Watched on Saturday June 7, 2025.

I enjoyed, but didn’t love this until the last twenty minutes. I was just blown away by the end, though.

This took like five nights to get through.

If you’re not a fan of Wes Anderson’s more recent work, then this probably isn’t going to be the one that brings you back. Fortunately for me, I’ve loved the recent stuff and thought this was very, very good. I thought this was a bit hard to keep track of until it came together at the end, though. Maybe that was on me, but I found it very confusing for large chunks.

I wish I saw this in theaters because I bet it would phenomenal. This looks so cool throughout. Hopefully Richard Stanley is given more opportunities to direct.

We were robbed of so many more Cazale/Pacino films. Cancer is the worst.

Watched on Wednesday June 4, 2025.

A really important story and I’ve been meaning to watch more African cinema. I thought there was chemistry between the leads and they anchor this story. I don’t know if this does much more than scratch the surface of its themes, though.

Punishing. In a lot of horror films, I ire that, but I mostly felt like I was being punished just for the sake of it here. I have zero issue with grief horror in general and that subgenre has given me some of my favorite films. This just felt hollow to me, though.  

Most of my issues come from the screenplay because it would be impossible to overlook how talented the Philippous are with the camera. The effects were great, too. 

Sally Hawkins does give a great performance and the others do their best with what they’re given. It just isn’t enough for me. I can’t see myself ever coming back to this one.

It isn’t near Scorsese’s best, but it’s still very good. It is very fair to say this was uneven, though. I didn’t realize before watching it that Schoomaker didn’t edit this, but it makes absolute sense because it’s not nearly as coherent as almost every other one of his films.

It’s a shame that this is overlooked because that DeNiro performance is stunning.

Parker Posey was made for this role.

Watched on Sunday June 1, 2025.

This has been on my watchlist since I created my Letterboxd and I’ve just been saving it. 

I don’t have a lot to add that hasn’t already been said better by others so I’ll keep it brief. This was even better than I expected and it deserves all the love it’s gotten. Everyone has mentioned how painterly it is and that’s true. The other thing that stuck out the most to me is how much was said with glances and looks.

10/10. This may be my #1 romance film.

A real mixed bag. This mostly felt like it was taped together haphazardly, though.

A brutal portrait of a family at the brink. This is unpleasant, hard to stomach, and unflinching. It feels weird to say I loved it because I found it unbelievably upsetting, but I was just much blown away. It’s an instant five star classic for me and I’m going to want to see all of Cassavetes’ work.

Jack Quaid is charming. This wears out its welcome after a while, though.

I wanted to love this. It is such an important story and unbelievably brave. 

The first act really worked for me and I was quite invested from the start. It just felt like the pacing was off after a bit and I’m not sure this really landed the plane for me.

I have a lot of love for the original, but I didn’t expect much out of this installment. Honestly, I was pleasantly surprised. I don’t think this will blow anyone away, but it’s a good time if you can look beyond the cliches.

I’m looking forward to Entwistle’s next film because I thought his visual style was quite interesting.

This is my first Malick film and I really ired it, but not sure if I loved every second. I think i understand why the scenes of the universe were here, but it mostly took me out of it. Still, I felt deeply connected to this and i left wanting to see more of Malick’s work.

I may feel very differently about the aspects I didn’t love on second viewing.

I just want Jenna Ortega to make better choices.

This is Kate Winslet and Jim Carrey’s movie, obviously. I don’t think this works without the Dunst and Wilkinson performances, though.

Single greatest ending in a comedy?

Pamela Anderson is stunning and Bautista delivers. I’m a fan of Shipka and Song in general and this is no different. It has all the ingredients for something I’d love. 

Unfortunately, I just found the camerawork unbelievably distracting. I didn’t expect it and maybe my mind was a bit too closed to it, but I couldn’t help leaving this dissatisfied. I wish that were different because the performances were quite good and Anderson was flat out great.

I was pretty excited to see Suzanna Son in something after Red Rocket. This was so disappointing, though.

The beginning pretty much delivered everything I could ask for, but this lost its way for me a bit in the second act. I still had a lot of fun — particularly with the great energy of an opening night crowd — I just hoped for a little more.

I did an impromptu Kit Zauhar double feature because I was so interested after seeing Actual People. This one worked even better for me and now I’ll see whatever she makes. I’d be most interested in seeing her take on a genre film, I think.

I thought this was pretty uneven, but it did have some moments and I left really interested in seeing more of Kit Zauhar as a director and actor. Some of the writing dragged the rest of the work down, though.

Toddler-approved.

Watched on Tuesday May 20, 2025.

10 years old and it feels more timely than ever. I’m a bigger fan of Garland than most and this is probably my favorite of his work. 

For the most part, the direction, screenplay, and performances are pitch perfect. I’m just not quite sure if this fully stuck the landing for me. I’ll need to rewatch it and I could see my estimation of this changing either way.

Bad in the least interesting ways possible.

The Fernanda Torres performance is as good as everyone said. I don’t think this was quite as strong outside of it, but that was enough to make it very effective.

Its always a weird experience to watch something for the first time that you’ve had circled in your mind for a while. I don’t think I can properly rate it without a rewatch.

These are my favorite types of documentaries. It feels like you’re getting to know a stranger at 2:30am after everyone else left a party.

I wish I saw this earlier because I honestly had no idea how many films I love it influenced. I was most struck by what it lent to Ghost Dog and The Killer. 

One of the best in the franchise and great to see in a theater. Almost all of the set pieces worked and the opener was a real stand out. The effects were on point as well. 

It does drag just a bit and this shouldn’t be almost 2 hours long. You don’t come to this franchise for great performances and this wasn’t different in that regard. 

Still, I left completely satisfied and couldn’t ask for a lot more than what we got here.

I’ve seen this so many times, but it has been a while, and I kinda thought I was going to give it a 4.5 or maybe 4 coming into it. 

It is so clearly a five star masterpiece, though. It is just timeless and stunning. I was gripped from the start with too many great performances to even count.

Absolutely gorgeous cinematography.

I’m sad to say that this completely lost me in the second act. I could see what would appeal to others, but it just did not work for me.

Brutal. I was aghast for the entire runtime and I know it’ll stick with me. 

The director complicates the legacy and I’m sure that partly kept me from seeing this until now. The film is pretty undeniable, though.

It was so disgusting I had to shield my eyes at some parts. Great stuff!

Completely different than I expected it to be. I’m not sure it totally clicked for me, but it had its moments. I have absolutely zero interest in seeing the series, though.

I’m more of a Showa era fan, but this was pretty great. Maybe a good excuse to check out more of the Heisei era films.

Watched on Friday May 9, 2025.

I came in completely blind, but with pretty high expectations because I heard it was a different take on the slasher genre, plus it’s the same director as Tucker & Dale vs. Evil. I don’t think it quite lives up to Craig’s debut, but this is a great time. There’s a lot to enjoy here if you’re a fan of slashers or if you’ve grown tired of it.

Hmmm. I can’t say that Lumet got better at making courtroom dramas with age.

This was a really interesting film to see after Perfect Days. It seemed like they were in conversation with each other. In most ways, I was more impressed by Winter Sleep, but I also felt completely emotionally disconnected from it for long portions. I could see a lot of intentionality behind most of the choices I disliked here, but it didn’t change the fact that I really did not enjoy it. 

Still, it’s hard not to at least give it a positive rating because some scenes really landed with me and this is obviously impressive work.

There’s a ton to love about The Shout. The sound design, cinematography, and the performances are all standouts. I do think this is just a bit less than the sum of its parts, though.

Absolutely devastating. It makes the Trump istration’s consistent of Putin even more upsetting.

I know this is praised as a great film to go in blind for — and I completely agree — but this really does reward multiple viewings, too. Just a monumental debut for Cregger. I cannot wait for Weapons.

1. Nickel Boys
2. Anora
3. The Substance
4. Challengers
5. I Saw the TV Glow
6. Dune: Part Two
7. The Brutalist
8. The Wild Robot
9. Hard Truths
10. A Different Man

...plus 106 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

1. Sinners
2. Black Bag
3. Warfare
4. Presence
5. The Phoenician Scheme
6. The Ugly Stepsister
7. Clown in a Cornfield
8. The Wedding Banquet
9. Mickey 17
10. Final Destination Bloodlines

...plus 31 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

This is a work in progress and will almost certainly change. I adhered to the 1 director rule. 

This is completely unordered.

• Nickel Boys
• Anora
• Oppenheimer
• The Banshees of Inisherin
• Barbarian
• Silence
• Moonlight
• Carol
• Green Room
• Mad Max: Fury Road

...plus 15 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

1. Killers of the Flower Moon
2. Oppenheimer
3. May December
4. The Iron Claw
5. The Zone of Interest
6. The Holdovers
7. Godzilla Minus One
8. Beau Is Afraid
9. Barbie
10. A Thousand and One

...plus 87 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

My planned watchlist for 2025 Pride Month

• Portrait of a Lady on Fire
• Carol
• Moonlight
• All of Us Strangers
• Brokeback Mountain
• Party Girl
• The Birdcage
• Dog Day Afternoon
• Paris Is Burning
• Pride

...plus 12 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

1. Drive My Car
2. Licorice Pizza
3. Red Rocket
4. After Yang
5. We're All Going to the World's Fair
6. Titane
7. The Black Phone
8. The Tragedy of Macbeth
9. Language Lessons
10. CODA

...plus 17 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

This is unranked because I tried and immediately realized it wasn’t possible.

• Barbarian
• Silence
• Spirited Away
• Godzilla
• Green Room
• Killers of the Flower Moon
• Carol
• Halloween
• Scream
• The Godfather

...plus 28 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

1. Barbarian
2. The Banshees of Inisherin
3. Nope
4. Aftersun
5. Pearl
6. Deadstream
7. Hustle
8. How to Blow Up a Pipeline
9. Bones and All
10. Top Gun: Maverick

...plus 66 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

1. The Godfather
2. Rocky
3. No Country for Old Men
4. The Silence of the Lambs
5. Moonlight
6. The Godfather Part II
7. All About Eve
8. The Apartment
9. Anora
10. Oppenheimer

...plus 87 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

1. Killers of the Flower Moon
2. Barbarian
3. Nickel Boys
4. Anora
5. The Banshees of Inisherin
6. Oppenheimer
7. Nope
8. The Iron Claw
9. May December
10. Drive My Car

• Kotoko
• Cure
• A Record of Sweet Murder
• Audition
• Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
• Tampopo
• Samurai Wolf
• Intimidation
• His Motorbike, Her Island
• Youth of the Beast

...plus 22 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

1. Parasite
2. Klaus
3. The Irishman
4. Midsommar
5. The Lighthouse
6. Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood
7. Sound of Metal
8. Uncut Gems
9. Knives Out
10. Saint Maud

...plus 25 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

I’m setting these as my must watches for 2025. These are the major blindspots that I most want to check out.

• Cape Fear
• Gummo
• Make Way for Tomorrow
• Portrait of a Lady on Fire
• JFK
• Before Sunrise
• Paris, Texas
• Blade Runner
• The Candidate
• M

...plus 6 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

1. Silence
2. Killers of the Flower Moon
3. The Godfather
4. There Will Be Blood
5. Heat
6. Boogie Nights
7. The Godfather Part II
8. Oppenheimer
9. Lawrence of Arabia
10. Inglourious Basterds

...plus 5 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

My watchlist for Hooptober 11

Hooptober 11:

Six Countries:
Italy - Cemetery Man
UAE - Djinn
Mexico - The Bees
- Revenge
Ireland - Oddity
Spain - Slugs

Eight Decades:
1950s - Giant Gila Monster
1960s - Eyes without a Face
1970s - The Bees
1980s - Basket Case
1990s - Death Becomes Her
2000s - Murder Party
2010s - Revenge
2020s - The Substance

All of the films in a franchise:
Alien
Aliens
Alien3
Alien: Resurrection 

1 Wes Craven:
Swamp Thing

1 film caused by or worsened by weather:
Crawl

1 film that exists in at least 2 available cuts (you just have to watch one. Bonus if you watch them all.)
Alien3

1 film starring a Black woman:
Sugar Hill

1 Donald Sutherland film: 
Buffy the Vampire Slayer

3 New World Picture films: 
Sweet Kill
The Bees
Slugs

2 Indian films: 
Stree 
Bulbbul 

4 Italian films: 
Cemetery Man
Dark Waters
Deep Red
Dark Glasses

2 horror comedies: 
Death Becomes Her
Multiple Maniacs

2 films in Texas: 
Sugar Hill
Giant Gila Monster

1 Robert Wiene film: 
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari

1 Michele Soavi film: 
Cemetery Man

1 film from 2011:
Julia X

1 film from 1984: 
The Game

1 Tobe Hooper film: 
Djinn

• Eyes Without a Face
• Crawlspace
• Cyclone
• We Are Zombies
• Alien
• Aliens
• Alien³
• Alien Resurrection
• Swamp Thing
• The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari

...plus 37 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• The Virgin Suicides
• Marie Antoinette
• Lost in Translation
• Priscilla
• The Beguiled
• On the Rocks
• The Bling Ring

1. Certain Women
2. Showing Up
3. Wendy and Lucy
4. First Cow
5. Night Moves
6. Old Joy
7. Meek's Cutoff
8. River of Grass

1. Princess Mononoke
2. Ikiru
3. Drive My Car
4. Tokyo Story
5. Ugetsu
6. Seven Samurai
7. Perfect Blue
8. House
9. The Secret World of Arrietty
10. Shin Kamen Rider

...plus 6 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.