Salt in Wound

Over the past couple of months I’ve noticed people in pajamas at the movie theater. At first I was annoyed (“People used to dress for Broadway!”), but I suppose whatever gets people to the cinema these days is OK by me. And I dare say that crowds are slowly returning even though A) films are jumping to streaming very quickly and B) many movies are freakishly long these days, and most simply aren’t good enough to fill those bloated running times. Anyway, here’s my annual recap of the films I thought were best last year, with the caveats that I didn’t see everything I wanted to, and, I might like something you didn’t and vice versa and we’re both right.

10) Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny Lots of early exposition and character intros, but when this movie finally starts to soar, it never looks back. Phoebe Waller-Bridge adds smarts and spunk to the crew, but it’s Harrison Ford who truly knows how to play the older Indy — knowing what’s important in life, and mourning what he’s lost. With 40+ years as a fan under my belt, I was very satisfied, and ultimately in tears.

9) Infinity Pool David Cronenberg’s son Brandon shows he’s a chip off the old creepy block. Alexander Skarsgård sneaks away from a tropical resort, runs into trouble with the island law enforcement, and… things get majorly f’d up. There is wonderfully disturbing content (almost too much), insane visuals, hallucinatory freakouts, ultraviolence, scary shit, all dancing around some heady ethical questions.

8) Beau Is Afraid In approximately 3 hours (uggh!), Ari Aster takes us from a dark comedy to a middle-class satire to an ethereal epic quest and beyond. If there’s a plot, it’s that OCD-troubled Beau (the great Joaquin Phoenix) must overcome his fears and anxieties to find his mom. It is sharp and surprising throughout, at times approaching perfect filmmaking, but can’t quite maintain its heady brilliance over (uggh!) 3 hours.

7) Barbie It takes a while to rev up, but Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach subversively explore the very complicated, genuine world of gender roles, misogyny, self-esteem, capitalism, inclusion, and much more and wrap it all in pink. Margot Robbie was born to play Barbie, Ryan Gosling is hilarious as Ken, but America Ferrera steals the show with a monologue on the countless contradictions society is continually forcing on women.

6) Have You Got It Yet? The Story of Syd Barrett and Pink Floyd They could make a documentary about the making of this documentary. The process began with Pink Floyd album designer Storm Thorgerson interviewing the surviving band members, as well as family, old friends, and notable fans. (His close relationship with the band granted him easy access.) Ah, but Thorgerson died in 2013, not before passing the torch to associate Roddy Bogowa. The long-gestating result is a definitive look at damaged genius Syd Barrett as well as a story of creativity, self-discovery, commerce, well-being, regret, and friendships.

5) Ferrari He’s got a fast car, but is it fast enough that he can fly way? Veteran director Michael Mann focuses on the challenging year of 1957 for Enzo Ferrari, confidently portrayed by Adam Driver. He is the beloved, worshipped “comandante” in his factory town, but can he keep his empire together, financially and personally? A lot depends on his wife and business partner Laura, via an unflinching performance from Penélope Cruz. Oh, and of course the racing scenes are completely thrilling.

4) Asteroid City Though Wes Anderson continues to experiment within the cinematic medium (here, it’s a story within a story), he still loves to surprise and delight us, and does so in a big way in this totally fun movie. Yes, there’s some serious stuff too — grief and recovery, parents and children — but mostly it’s zaniness, cool sets, gadgets, old-timey signs… details, details, details! And deadpan performances from Wes’s regular players: Jason Schwartzmann, Tilda Swinton, Edward Norton, Jeff Goldblum, etc. etc.

3) Godzilla Minus One Heading to the theater, I didn’t guess this would be in the upper reaches of my top films; I just love me some Godzilla! Recent American reboots have likely lowered my expectations for the Big Guy. But Japan’s Toho Studios show us how it’s done, crafting a movie that’s equally thrilling/terrifying and truly effecting, in its handling of guilt, PTSD, and makeshift families.

2) May December Director Todd Haynes employs his skewed, soft, beautiful take on filmmaking to humanize a tabloid tale while delving into issues of identity. Newcomer Samy Burch handed in a layered, emotionally complex script. And we expect top-rate performances from Julianne Moore and Natalie Portman, but Charles Melton is the real pleasant surprise here.

1) Killers of the Flower Moon Martin Scorsese recruited his most trusted associates — Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert DeNiro — to help shine a spotlight on a shameful, forgotten moment in American history. Lily Gladstone, playing the real-life Osage woman Mollie at the center of the tragedy, more than holds her own with the acting greats. The result is exquisite filmmaking — with lessons on greed and prejudice that unfortunately still resonate loudly today — from a true master of the medium.

Honorable mentions: Napoleon, Evil Dead Rise, The Elephant 6 Recording Co.

Worst movie: The Marvels. Second place: Ant-Man and The Wasp—Quantumania. Noticing a trend here?

New releases I saw this year: 33 (including 2 foreign films from 2022 not included in last year’s ratings: the truly excellent, highly recommended The Quiet Girl, and the very good, nuanced thriller The Night of the 12th.)

My best-of lists from: 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017/16, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009

You can check out all my movie reviews by clicking here.