Movies Graded

Director: Makoto Shinkai Stars:  Kenji Mizuhashi ,  Yoshimi Kondou ,  Satomi Hanamura Runtime:  63 minutes Synopsis:  Told in three interconnected segments, we follow a young man named Takaki through his life as cruel winters, cold technology, and finally, adult obligations and responsibility converge to test the delicate petals of love. Animation: 9/10 Screenplay: 7/10 Editing: 6/10 Score/Soundtrack:  8/10 Verdict:  "5 Centimeters Per Second" is the third Makoto Shinkai film I watch after "Your Name", which I loved, and "Weathering With You", which I was a little more mixed about. One thing these two films had in common was the addition of a fantastical element that drove the romance between the young protagonists. His 2007 feature does feel like a dream, even a nightmare at times thanks to its gorgeous animation and hypnotic score, but omits that supernatural touch. It's a grounded romance between two friends who had to deal with heartbreak at a very...

Director: Owen Harris Stars: Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Mackenzie Davis, Denise Burse Runtime:  61 minutes Synopsis:  When Yorkie and Kelly visit San Junipero, a fun-loving beach town full of surf, sun, and sex, their lives are changed. Performances: 9/10 Screenplay: 8/10 Editing: 7/10 Cinematography: 7/10 Score/Soundtrack:  9/10 Verdict: Most Black Mirror episodes are fantastic. Conceptually, it's one of the most exciting shows currently streaming and I recommend checking all of them out. Every segment can be compared to a shorter-than-usual feature film as each one of them contains different characters, stories, and ideas behind them. And to this day, my favorite out of all 22 episodes released remains "San Junipero", released in 2016 as part of the third season. The reason I love this episode so much is because it's one of the few that focuses more on the characters rather than the idea. It's a romance before anything else, a love story between two women who meet in a ba...

Director: Alfred Hitchcock Stars: James Stewart, Grace Kelly, Wendell Corey Runtime: 112 minutes Synopsis:  A wheelchair-bound photographer spies on his neighbors from his apartment window and becomes convinced one of them has committed murder. Performances:  9/10 Screenplay:  9/10 Editing:  9/10 Cinematography:  9/10 Score/Soundtrack:  8/10 Enjoyment Factor:  9/10 Verdict:  What's extraordinary about Alfred Hitchcock's "Rear Window" is the fact that it serves as two movies in one. I've seen it twice by now, and each time got a very different experience out of it. When I first watched it, about a decade ago when I was still introducing myself to the master of suspense, I was mesmerized by the mystery surrounding the film's claustrophobic setting. Entirely set in a small apartment, I had a lot of fun following James Stewart, Grace Kelly, and Thelma Ritter as they attempt to incriminate a neighbor who they suspect committed a heinous murder. As per ...

Director: Josh Boone Stars: Maisie Williams, Blu Hunt, Anya Taylor-Joy Runtime: 94 minutes Synopsis:   Five young mutants, just discovering their abilities while held in a secret facility against their will, fight to escape their past sins and save themselves. Performances:  3/10 Screenplay:  1/10 Editing:  3/10 Cinematography:  5/10 Score/Soundtrack:  4/10 Enjoyment Factor:  2/10 Verdict:  Three full years separate us from the exciting first look we got of “The New Mutants” and its release. Three full years of anticipation, behind the scenes problems, reshoots, and postponements gave the final entry in Fox’s X-Men universe (or Ex-Men) a cursed reputation. Now acquired by Disney, you can’t help but feel that it was dumped in theatres to close the chapter of an experiment that many were on board with. “The New Mutants” wasn’t only going to put an end to a universe beloved by many, but also stand on its own two feet by being the very first film in t...

Director: Harry Bradbeer Stars: Millie Bobby Brown, Henry Cavill, Sam Claflin Runtime: 123 minutes Synopsis:  When Enola Holmes-Sherlock's teen sister-discovers her mother missing, she sets off to find her, becoming a super-sleuth in her own right as she outwits her famous brother and unravels a dangerous conspiracy around a mysterious young Lord. Performances:  8/10 Screenplay:  5/10 Editing:  5/10 Cinematography:  6/10 Score/Soundtrack:  6/10 Enjoyment Factor:  7/10 Verdict:  For years now, Millie Bobby Brown has been labeled as her generation's Emma Watson. The young actress's charisma and wit are unmatched, making the role of Enola Holmes tailor-made for her as it very much reminded me of Watson's iconic role as Hermione in the Harry Potter franchise. Prior to it, she hadn't truly showcased the extent of her abilities on the big screen, only briefly appearing in the underwhelming Godzilla sequel released last year (an eternity ago!).   Th...

Director: Céline Sciamma Stars: Zoé Héran, Malonn Lévana, Jeanne Disson Runtime: 82 minutes Synopsis:  A family moves into a new neighborhood, and a 10-year-old named Laure deliberately presents as a boy named Mikhael to the neighborhood children. Performances:  7/10 Screenplay:  7/10 Editing:  8/10 Cinematography:  7/10 Enjoyment Factor:  7/10 Verdict: It's no secret that I belong in the minority who wasn't crazy about "Portrait of a Lady on Fire". I watched it twice and cannot deny its craftsmanship (craftswomanship), but it just didn't resonate with me on an emotional level. Regardless, I was still eager to check out Céline Sciamma's other work but never felt the rush to do so. That changed today when I was looking for something not too long to watch. With a runtime of only 82 minutes, I decided to put on "Tomboy",  about a young girl who decides to adopt a male identity upon moving to a new neighborhood,  which is probably the director's seco...

Director: Kar-Wai Wong Stars:  Tony Chiu-Wai Leung, Maggie Cheung, Ping Lam Siu Runtime:  98 minutes Synopsis:  Two neighbors, a woman and a man, form a strong bond after both suspect extramarital activities of their spouses. However, they agree to keep their bond platonic so as not to commit similar wrongs. Performances: 9/10 Screenplay: 7/10 Editing: 5/10 Cinematography: 10/10 Score/Soundtrack:  7/10 Verdict: "In the Mood for Love" has quite the fitting title. Kar-Wai Wong's instant classic is deemed to be one of the best movies of the current century primarily because of its englobing mood surrounding an unconventional love story between two new-found neighbors. Set in Hong Kong during the 1960s, the film's biggest assets, in my opinion, are its cinematography and lead performances by Tony Leung and Maggie Cheung. The relationship they shared, initiated by the fact that their spouses were cheating on them with one another, felt so incredibly sincere and ...

Director: Tim Burton Stars: Ewan McGregor, Albert Finney, Billy Crudup Runtime:  125 minutes Synopsis:  A frustrated son tries to determine the fact from fiction in his dying father's life. Performances: 7/10 Screenplay: 8/10 Editing: 6/10 Cinematography: 9/10 Score/Soundtrack:  9/10 Enjoyment Factor:  8/10 Verdict: I can't remember the last time I watched a Tim Burton movie. Similarly to many fellow cinephiles, I once considered him to be one of my favorite filmmakers working today. I found his unique gothic style to be appealing, and his ability to turn a nightmarish setting into a dreamlike narrative was fascinating to me. In short, his movies were anything but forgettable, something that unfortunately cannot be said about his more recent projects (does anyone remember that a live-action remake of Dumbo came out last year?). However, there was always something about "Big Fish" that made it uninteresting to me. I don't know if it was the title, the poster, or ...

Director: Antonio Campos Stars: Robert Pattinson, Tom Holland,  Bill Skarsgård   Runtime:  138 minutes Synopsis:  Sinister characters converge around a young man devoted to protecting those he loves in a postwar backwoods town teeming with corruption and brutality. Performances: 9/10 Screenplay: 4/10 Editing: 5/10 Cinematography: 8/10 Score/Soundtrack:  7/10 Enjoyment Factor:  5/10 Verdict:  Four years ago, a relatively unknown director graced us with "Christine", one of the finest and most overlooked films of 2016. Antonio Campos immediately became a name that was constantly on my radar. And I couldn't contain my excitement when, a little over a year ago, it was announced that he was returning to his directing duties by helming a Netflix original starring none other than Tom Holland and Robert Pattinson. As days went by, my anticipation for "The Devil All the Time" grew bigger as more and more of this generation's brightest up-and-comers joined a proj...

Director: Stanley Kubrick Stars: Malcolm McDowell, Patrick Magee, Michael Bates Runtime:  136 minutes Synopsis:  In the future, a sadistic gang leader is imprisoned and volunteers for a conduct-aversion experiment, but it doesn't go as planned. Performances: 9/10 Screenplay: 6/10 Editing: 7/10 Cinematography: 8/10 Score/Soundtrack:  9/10 Enjoyment Factor:  5/10 Verdict: I first heard of "A Clockwork Orange" in high school. The terms "controversial" and "defying" were most associated with it and, being the edgy teenager that I was, I decided to give it a go. The world of Cinema was still new to me, and I was excited to finally experience my very first Kubrick project. 136 minutes later, I was confused and a bit disappointed. "Yes, there's a lot to appreciate about the film but it was overall kind of meh?" was my first reaction. That was about a decade ago, and I have since familiarized myself with both the art of filmmaking and Kubrick...

Director: Arthur Jones Runtime:  92 minutes Synopsis:  Artist Matt Furie, creator of the comic character Pepe the Frog, begins an uphill battle to take back his iconic cartoon image from those who used it for their own purposes. Verdict:  The internet can be a wonderful place. It can be an infinite source of information and entertainment, a platform where billions of people around the world can connect, meet, or share their ideas. It's an essential tool to have in this day and age, one whose importance is exponentially growing with time. But, unfortunately, there's a dark side that comes with it, and that's the main focus of Arthur Jones' documentary "Feels Good Man". Matt Furie had no idea that his innocent creation would change the world as we know it. When he drew the character of Pepe the Frog, he was using the animation format to bring back to life memories of his. MySpace, at the time, allowed him to share his work with the world. One day, out of nowhere...

Director: Wes Anderson Stars: Ralph Fiennes, Tony Revolori, Saoirse Ronan Runtime:  99 minutes Synopsis:  A writer encounters the owner of an aging high-class hotel, who tells him of his early years serving as a lobby boy in the hotel's glorious years under an exceptional concierge. Performances: 9/10 Screenplay: 8/10 Editing: 9/10 Cinematography: 10/10 Score/Soundtrack:  10/10 Verdict: There's nothing quite like putting on a Wes Anderson flick at the end of a tiring day. They're a genre of their own, marked by their quirkiness, warmth, and pleasing symmetry. They're just a delight to sit through, and "The Grand Budapest Hotel" is no exception. Hailed by many, including the Academy, as being his best work to date, the film predominantly recounts the relationship between a hotel's concierge and his lobby boy during the 1930s in the fictional nation of Zubrowka. Starring a wide array of notable names that includes Ralph Fiennes, Saoirse Ronan, Jeff Goldblum,...

Director: Francis Ford Coppola Stars: Martin Sheen, Marlon Brando, Robert Duvall Runtime:  196 minutes (Redux Edition) Synopsis:  A U.S. Army officer serving in Vietnam is tasked with assassinating a renegade Special Forces Colonel who sees himself as a god. Performances: 10/10 Screenplay: 10/10 Editing: 8/10 Cinematography: 10/10 Score/Soundtrack:  10/10 Verdict: The horror of war is a haunting thing to reflect on, and I can't think of a better movie to illustrate why than Francis Ford Coppola's "Apocalypse Now". Set in the jungles of Vietnam, the movie is at its core about a Captain's mission to find a decorated Colonel gone rogue and terminate him. A fairly simple premise that has since been replicated in films such as Spielberg's "Saving Private Ryan". Despite a hellish production process that almost cost him his sanity, Coppola still managed to submit one of the better-crafted war movies of all time. Gorgeous cinematography, impressive practical...

Director: Maïmouna Doucouré Stars: Fathia Youssouf, Médina El Aidi-Azouni, Esther Gohourou Runtime:  96 minutes Synopsis:  Amy, an 11-year-old girl, joins a group of dancers named "the cuties" at school, and rapidly grows aware of her burgeoning femininity - upsetting her mother and her values in the process. Performances: 8/10 Screenplay: 7/10 Editing: 6/10 Cinematography: 6/10 Score/Soundtrack:  6/10 Enjoyment Factor:  7/10 Verdict: I sincerely feel bad for  Maïmouna Doucouré. The Frenchwoman's directorial debut went from being an acclaimed festival hit to being this year's most controversial film in a matter of days. Netflix's disgustingly misleading marketing effort to promote "Cuties", or "Mignonnes" in French, buried it as can be observed on its IMDb page where it holds an abysmal rating of 1.7/10 as I'm writing these words, making it one of the worst-rated movies on the platform. The reviews there are equally revolting as it's ob...

Director: Chris McKay Stars: Will Arnett, Michael Cera, Rosario Dawson Runtime:  104 minutes Synopsis:  A cooler-than-ever Bruce Wayne must deal with the usual suspects as they plan to rule Gotham City while discovering that he has accidentally adopted a teenage orphan who wishes to become his sidekick. Animation: 7/10 Performances: 8/10 Screenplay: 4/10 Editing: 6/10 Score/Soundtrack:  7/10 Entertainment Factor:  6/10 Verdict: One of my favorite animated movies of recent times is 2014's "The LEGO Movie". And a standout side character in it was the brick version of Batman whose hilarious self-awareness immediately turned him into a fan favorite. So naturally, a couple of years later, he was given his own spin-off in the form of a Batman parody. Out of all four LEGO-themed films that had a theatrical release over the second half of the last decade, this particular may honestly be my least favorite. Don't get me wrong, I still find a lot of it to be hilarious, but unfo...

Director: Paul Thomas Anderson Stars: Mark Reynolds, Burt Reynolds, Julianne Moore Runtime:  155 minutes Synopsis:  The story of a young man's adventures in the California pornography industry of the late 1970s and early 1980s. Performances: 9/10 Screenplay: 7/10 Editing: 7/10 Cinematography: 9/10 Score/Soundtrack:  9/10 Enjoyment Factor:  7/10 Verdict: When his mother throws him out of their house, another door opens for Eddie Adams. Jack Horner, phenomenally portrayed by Burt Reynolds, convinces him that he holds a gift that could make him a star in the Porn industry in which he is a respected director. Eddie, who changes his name to a more appropriate Dirk Diggler, seizes the opportunity and starts his climb to the top, aided by a crew that slowly turns into his new family. Taking place from the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s, one thing the movie absolutely nails is its depiction of that era. Authentic production values and a killer soundtrack truly immerse the viewer...

Director: John Cassavetes Stars: Gena Rowlands, Peter Falk, Fred Draper Runtime:  155 minutes Synopsis:  Mabel, a wife, and mother, is loved by her husband Nick but her mental illness proves to be a problem in the marriage. Performances: 9/10 Screenplay: 8/10 Editing: 6/10 Cinematography: 7/10 Score/Soundtrack:  9/10 Enjoyment Factor:  8/10 Verdict: This movie was referenced in Charlie Kaufman's "I'm Thinking of Ending Things", so I naturally had to seek it out and watch it. Directed by John Cassavetes, "A Woman Under the Influence" is an independent feature in every sense of the word. Initially supposed to be a play, it was then turned into a feature film considering how demanding the leading role was, but the director couldn't find a studio willing to invest in a project tackling a subject regarded as taboo at the time. A story about a middle-aged woman suffering from a mental illness? Too risky, they said. So Cassavetes, with the help of some allies (...

Director: Charlie Kaufman Stars: Jessie Buckley, Jesse Plemmons, Toni Colette Runtime:  134 minutes Synopsis:  Full of misgivings, a young woman travels with her new boyfriend to his parents' secluded farm. Upon arriving, she comes to question everything she thought she knew about him, and herself. Performances: 10/10 Screenplay: 10/10 Editing: 10/10 Cinematography: 9/10 Score/Soundtrack:  9/10 Enjoyment Factor:  10/10 Verdict:  There's Charlie the writer, and then there's Charlie the director. If you're watching Kaufman's third directorial feature expecting something in the lines of "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" or "Being John Malkovich", chances are you'll end up disappointed. "I'm Thinking of Ending Things" is much less accessible, and, similarly to "Synecdoche, New York", will probably leave the audience contemplating its meaning for a very, very long time. It's the type of movie that will start a lon...

Director: Niki Caro Stars: Yifei Liu, Donnie Yen, Li Gong Runtime:  115 minutes Synopsis:   A young Chinese maiden disguises herself as a male warrior in order to save her father. Performances: 4/10 Screenplay: 1/10 Editing: 3/10 Cinematography: 3/10 Score/Soundtrack:  2/10 Entertainment Factor:  1/10 Verdict: I hate it. I hate it so much. The live-action remake of "Mulan" is, unsurprisingly, yet another embarrassment to Disney's recent legacy. The original is a classic tale of bravery led by an iconic figure who defied gender expectations. It's a film that still holds up beautifully, one that can still be enjoyed by everyone, regardless of their age or gender. Through its musical choices and gorgeous cinematography, it turns the two-dimensional animation into a three-dimensional narrative assisted by multilayered, very likable characters. Before anyone points it out, the remake, unlike last year's "Lion King", does bring a few changes to the story by re...

Director: Tony Bancroft, Barry Cook Stars: Wen Ming-Na, Eddie Murphy, BD Wong Runtime:  88 minutes Synopsis:  To save her father from death in the army, a young maiden secretly goes in his place and becomes one of China's greatest heroines in the process. Animation: 9/10 Performances: 7/10 Screenplay: 8/10 Editing: 8/10 Score/Soundtrack:  8/10 Verdict:  I'm not entirely sure why Mulan is considered a Disney Princess. To my knowledge, she doesn't have any royal lineage and, spoiler alert, does not end up marrying a prince as many others did before her. She's just the daughter of a man whose military duty sounds like a death trap considering his age and medical condition, and a warrior who gave up everything to save her father from certain death. And that's what makes her one of my favorite Disney characters ever. Before the live-action remake potentially ruins my memory of her, I decided to rewatch the animated classic one last time. And I can confirm that it's a...