Movies Graded

Director: Frank Darabont Stars: Tim Robbins, Morgan Freeman, Bob Gunton Runtime:  142 minutes Synopsis:  Two imprisoned men bond over a number of years, finding solace and eventual redemption through acts of common decency. Performances: 8/10 Screenplay: 6/10 Editing: 7/10 Cinematography: 8/10 Score/Soundtrack:  8/10 Verdict:  I started getting into movies when I was in high school. It wasn't long after that I discovered the IMDb top 250 list and quickly scrolled to the top to see which film was deemed to be the best of all time by the website's community. It was the first I stumbled upon Frank Darabont's "The Shawshank Redemption" and immediately sought it out and watched it. I remember being disappointed by the end result. Not because the movie was bad, but rather because even though I hadn't been into the art of filmmaking for long, I still felt like I had seen much better crafted movies in that short period of time. Now, nearly a decade later, I decided to...

Director: Wim Wenders Stars: Harry Dean Stanton, Nastassja Kinski, Dean Stockwell Runtime:  145 minutes Synopsis:  Travis Henderson, an aimless drifter who has been missing for four years, wanders out of the desert and must reconnect with society, himself, his life, and his family. Performances: 8/10 Screenplay: 9/10 Editing: 8/10 Cinematography: 9/10 Score/Soundtrack:  9/10 Verdict:  Paris, Texas. The pause in the middle is almost a word of itself that, when hinted at, completely changes the meaning of the phrase. Without it, anyone's mind immediately travels to the French capital, but, with it, questions begin to arise. For a split second, you're left in a state of confusion, asking yourself why that dramatic halt is there, and that's pretty much what experiencing Wim Wenders' iconic film feels like. That sense of mystery is set up from the very first scene in which we see a man wandering in a state of shock in the Texan desert. He's dirty, tired, thirsty, and wea...

Director: Park Chan-wook Stars: Kim Min-hee, Ha Jung-woo, Kim Tae-ri Runtime:  169 minutes (extended edition) Synopsis:  A woman is hired as a handmaiden to a Japanese heiress, but secretly she is involved in a plot to defraud her. Performances: 10/10 Screenplay: 10/10 Editing: 10/10 Cinematography: 10/10 Score/Soundtrack:  9/10 Verdict: In 2019, "Parasite" propelled Korean Cinema into the international scene by deservedly being a box office hit and winning countless awards including the biggest of them all: The Oscar for Best Picture. Bong Joon-ho became an overnight sensation, and people started to slowly discover his very rich and diverse filmography. But Korean Cinema is far from being restrained to Bong's projects. From Lee Chang-dong to Kim Jee-Woon, the country is the birthland of many of today's most talented filmmakers. And with iconic films such as "Oldboy" or "Thirst", Park Chan-wook without a doubt belongs in that category. When it come...

Director: Rebecca Zlotowski Stars: Mina Farid, Zahia Dehar, Benoît Magimel Runtime:  92 minutes Synopsis:  Naima is 16 and lives in Cannes. She has given herself the summer to choose what she wants to do with her life. Then her cousin Sofia, with her alluring lifestyle, arrives to spend the holidays with her. Performances: 8/10 Screenplay: 7/10 Editing: 7/10 Cinematography: 7/10 Score/Soundtrack:  6/10 Verdict: Being   16 is tricky, and Naima won't tell you otherwise. The pressures of choosing a career path start to take a toll on high schoolers at that age as they start to realize that adulthood is knocking at their door. She's no different, and, like most of her peers, she's still confused as to what the future holds for her. That is until she receives an unexpected visit from her 22-year-old cousin Sofia whose mother recently passed away. Sofia's motto is "Carpe Diem", which translates to "Seize the Day" (if you've seen "Dead Poets Societ...

Director: Charlie Kaufman Stars: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Samantha Morton, Michelle Williams Runtime:  124 minutes Synopsis:   A theatre director struggles with his work, and the women in his life, as he creates a life-size replica of New York City inside a warehouse as part of his new play. Performances: 10/10 Screenplay: 10/10 Editing: 10/10 Cinematography: 9/10 Score/Soundtrack:  10/10 Verdict:  I've been dreading this day ever since I started writing about films. "Synecdoche, New York" is my favorite movie of all time, and I can't pinpoint exactly why. I don't even know how to put to words the effect it had on me and the reasons I hold it so dear to my heart, and I've always had the feeling that whatever I write about it won't do it the justice it deserves. Charlie Kaufman's directorial debut is certainly not for everybody, but I still vividly remember the first time I watched it, about three years ago, and thinking to myself that while I didn't...

Director: Duke Johnson, Charlie Kaufman Stars: David Thewlis, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tom Noonan Runtime:  90 minutes Synopsis:  A man crippled by the mundanity of his life experiences something out of the ordinary. Animation:  10/10 Performances: 9/10 Screenplay: 9/10 Editing: 9/10 Cinematography: 9/10 Score/Soundtrack:  8/10 Verdict:  In 1999, the world was introduced to Charlie Kaufman's genius with "Being John Malkovich", a magnificent film in which human beings are treated like puppets. About 15 years later, Kaufman came back with "Anomalisa", a movie in which, ironically, puppets are treated like human beings. Being only his second directorial feature and his introduction to stop-motion animation, a lot was at stake for the writer recently turned director. We are very quickly introduced to Michael Stone, voiced by David Thewlis, as he checks into a hotel called The Fregoli, a sneaky clue as to what the general themes of the movie are. To those who are not fa...

Director: Spike Jonze Stars: Nicolas Cage, Meryl Streep, Chris Cooper Runtime:  115 minutes Synopsis:  A lovelorn screenwriter becomes desperate as he tries and fails to adapt 'The Orchid Thief' by  Susan Orlean  for the screen. Performances: 9/10 Screenplay: 10/10 Editing: 9/10 Cinematography: 7/10 Score/Soundtrack:  7/10 Verdict: Three years after the success of "Being John Malkovich", Charlie Kaufman was given an impossible task: adapt Susan Orlean's "The Orchid Thief" into a movie. While writing the script, he started to notice how unfit for the big screen the book was and therefore decided, without telling anyone and with the conviction that his choice was going to end his young career, to turn the film into his personal struggle to adapt that book. In other words, he's the protagonist of his own story, which follows the difficulties he encountered while writing that very same script. It's half-fiction, half-autobiographical, and possibly on...