Narcos (Season 1 & 2)

Carlo Bernard, Chris Brancato, Doug Miro, 2015-2016

IMDB

5/5

When I think about really detailed gritty crime dramas, I think of Jean-Francois Richet's Mesrine: Killer Instinct films. Split into two films, it's a biopic of "Public Enemy 1" Jacques Mesrine. Mesrine was a French gangster responsible for several bank robberies and kidnappings in France and Canada. He managed to elude the law and even escaped from prison. Jacques Mesrine and Pablo Escobar have a lot in common. They are both solitary figures both considered to be highly dangerous & sought after to their respective countries. They were both incredibly elusive and constantly in hiding. They both managed to escape from prison. They were both considered to be "Robin Hood" figures to the common people.

But Wagner Moura's Pablo Escobar will have more of a lasting impact on the cinematic landscape than Cassel's Mesrine. This is probably because through a television series, he's really able to cultivate the Pablo character and let it build rather than try to let it build through 4-6 hours of two movies. But the similarties between the two don't stop at the leading performances. They both have an elaborate backdrop. Mesrine in urban France. Narcos in urban Colombia. Through fly over shots of Colombia, tracking shots through the streets, it creates an detail rich world that pulls you in. As dangerous as the city may be there is still something that draws you back to it.

As each episode continues in Narcos, the stakes continue to elevate as does Escobar's wealth and influence. As his empire grows, his moral concessions do as well. Almost like Breaking Bad, he's a figure in slow deteriortion. Someone that has concrete morals at the beginning turns into a comprimised villain with blurred vision. Escobar is undoubtedly an interesting figure. Someone who has unimaginable wealth and power. Yet there is a hunger for more. More of what? Well, that's what the series is all about. Legacy, respect, family. These are all important things to Pablo. In a sense the money is just secondary. It really becomes a disposable thing. We are constantly seeing stacks and stacks of money thrown around like napkins through the series. Buried underground, thrown in bags, throwns in boxes. There's so much of it they don't even know what to do with it all.

I gave Mesrine 5 stars back when I reviewed the two films. I feel the same for Narcos. It's hard to find any noticeable flaws with this series. It's just so well filmed, so well acted, so well put together. Everything from the production design to the intricate sound design - it's all top notch. It's all just top notch. Call me a sucker for gritty crime dramas, I deserve it. Cutting my teeth with Scorcese's great body of work has set a certain standard. Narcos meets and exceeds these standards.

Season 2 manages to keep raising the stakes, the only difference being that we finally get to see some pieces of Escobar's empire finally breaking down. But the mystique around him builds. There are times that, even if you are aware of the historical facts, it feels like he's never going to be caught. One of the constant thoughts I have while watching Narcos is what if Pablo had never run for that political office early on? By doing that he put the spotlight on him, a spotlight that never went away. It seems possible that if continued to lurk in the shadows of Colombian society rather than trying to become such a mainstream figure that he could have gone on growing his empire and wouldn't have to spend his life on the run.

The Imitation Game

Morten Tyldem, 2014

IMDB

5/5

Just when you think that maybe the World War II period drama can't be approached differently on film, you see a movie like the Imitation Game come along. Starring Benedict Cumberbatch as tortured genius Alan Turing, the film focuses on his attempt to crack the Enigma code - the encryption language used by the German forces for all war communications. The British feel that if they can decrypt the code, they could win the war by anticipating all battle plans. Tyldem interestingly depicts Turing at three different stages of his life. So the story of Turing is told without linear narrative. It examines Turing in middle school at a British prep school. During this time he is bullied by his peers and is a social outcast. He has a very intimate friendship with his one friend whom shares the skill of cryptography, allowing them to secretly communicate with each other. It shows Turing in the main plot thread, when he working with a team of highly intelligent peers trying to crack the code. The third period is later in Turing's life - 1951 to be exact when a suspicious police officer starts to dig after discovering Turing's military records have been completely destroyed.

Those hoping to get recieve a history lesson with this film will be disappointed and not well serviced. There is an ample amount of artistic licence used with the Enigma story. In fact, only 41% of the story is actually factual as charted in detail on Information is Beautiful. If you can get past that, this is a surprisingly exceptional film. There is such a remarkable balance and pacing. The way that they depict Turing is as a distant, cold, arrogant genius that appears to be on the spectrum. Not exactly the hero that is easy to get behind. But by using his tortured childhood, along with the fact that he is forced to remain a closeted homosexual in his adult life - you are forced to feel sympathy for him. It's upsetting to be reminded of how horribly ostracized someone could be simply for their sexual orientation back then. Imitation keeps you in it's grip the entire length of the film. Of course you know how the war turns out, and you can make some assumptions as to how the film will play out in terms of their success in decipehring the code. But it's the execution of it all that makes it so excellent. The commanding officers breathing down their neck creates the ticking clock that maintains tension. The consistently rising death toll from the Hitler regime as he blasts his way through Western Europe raises the stakes to an ultimate high. And you just sit there on the edge of your seat waiting for a breakthrough. 

Synecdoche, New York

Charlie Kaufman, 2008

5/5

This is one of those films that after you process, it, it changes you. You want to tell your other movie-lover friends to go see it so you can gauge their reaction. They ask you “what’s it about?”. That’s the challenging task. “Okay, so it’s about a struggling playwright played by Philip Seymour Hoffman”. They reply “That’s it? That sounds kind of boring”. Your brain rattles, trying to come up with a better way to describe the film. “Okay, so it’s about a struggling playwright who works on an ambitious project after getting substantial funding and is able to recreate a miniature New York inside a massive warehouse that he purchases”. Closer. More descriptive, but no, that’s still not it. Maybe this is just another one of those films that you say “Just go see it.”

Synecdoche is one of those films sort of difficult to really discuss upon first viewing. It almost demands rewatching. The attention to detail, the exhausting carefulness that Kaufman clearly puts into his film. It’s one of those films that after looking back on it a few days later, there’s a dream-like quality to it. There is lingering imagery. Life and death. The fear of death, the neverending clinging to one’s mortality. Hypocondria, paranoia of being ill or falling ill. Parental pressures, the fear of losing your family or struggling to live without your family by your side. Career insecurities, self-doubt on the creative level. It’s also an examination of the American marriage, or at least a focus on a fading relationship. Complacency, marital boredom. Love lost, wandering eyes, jealousy. Kaufman is a genius when it comes to taking everyday life and completely manipulating it. Sometimes he is just toying with it slightly, with a minor hallucination. At others he is bending the world in different shapes and forms. He is an artist with a lot to say, and there’s not enough room in the massive warehouse to store it all. Hoffman’s Caden character is one of the more complex characters to come out of 21st century cinema. As he seems to grow more and more disconnected from reality, his artificial world seems to grow more elaborate. There are certainly people out there who will watch a film like this and pick it apart. It’s a complicated film. At times probably over-complicated. But that’s sort of what Kaufman has done with his screenwriting, so why would he not do the same thing while sitting in the directors’ chair? Nobody but Kaufman could conceivably make a movie quite like Synecdoche. He turns parts of upstate New York and New York City into an urban mind-field. The final result is some kind of surreal hybrid of Vanilla Sky, Being John Malkovich and Adaptation. And who wouldn’t want that?

Vanilla Sky

Cameron Crowe, 2001

Can I Stream it?

5/5

Publishing empire heir David Ames (Tom Cruise) struggles to put the pieces back together in his life after a horrible automobile accident with lover Julie Gianni (Cameron Diaz)

Cameron Crowe is an interesting filmmaker, having taken many directions over the course of his career. He pursued his heart with Say Anything. He pursued his love of music (and of course his own history of journalism for Rolling Stone) with Almost Famous. He pursued personal reflection and personal unraveling in Jerry Maguire. He mistakenly tried to make a more populist kid-pleaser picture with We Bought a Zoo, but that feels like a film that didn't ultimately become what he had originally envisioned. But Vanilla Sky is his most interesting work, his most ambitious work, his most under-appreciated. It's already such a bold move taking one of the biggest actors in Hollywood at the time (Cruise), and disfiguring his face. That aside, he also demanded a big performance from Cruise who really did deliver. There are so many elements at work, some of them so obviously personal to Crowe. The way that this movie looks at love and death, memories, blossoming love. It hasn't been done exactly like this before. The effect of our memories on our subconscious. The impact of dreams. The toxic elements of our life that we fall into. Societal structure, technology, it's really all there. People often criticize this film for being too convoluted, confusing. That's actually quite surprising, because the reveal at the climax really does lay everything out there. The film really builds and builds, getting more complex. The final moments on screen our so powerful and emotional. It should have you questioning your own life, your own existence.

Boyhood

Richard Linklater, 2014

Can I Stream it?

5/5

Filmed over 12 years with the same cast, Boyhood focuses mostly on Mason (Ellar Coltrane) from age 5 to age 18 as he endures some of the most formative years of his young life in Texas.

Linklater has a really interesting voice when it comes to looking at the world. It's evident in virtually all of his films; a sort of rebellious, looking at the clouds, lost in the music abstractism. When it's channeled through the eyes of a young boy, it continues to be engaging and visceral. Boyhood is his boldest work.  The dedication and ambition to create a movie that spans 12 years is astonishing. The production has to run on the cast's good faith due to the fact that they can't secure contracts for that length of time. All during such a critical and sensitive time in young Ellar Coltrane and Lorelai Linklater's (his real life daughter) life. Time when they are distracted by so many other things. People their age are playing football one moment and in the school band the next. Constantly running on impulses. The 12 year production even involved having a backup plan in the event that Linklater suddenly died; Ethan Hawke would step in and complete the film.

Boyhood is a beautiful, heartfelt masterpiece. It's a complete coming of age tale combined with a turbulent family drama, and the scale of it is much bigger than some of the spotty acting that may be present at times. It plays out like a rock record with some goofs that were baked in to the final pressing. After all, Led Zeppelin's "Since I've Been Loving You" wouldn't be the same without John Bonham's squeaky bass pedal. Not only are you seeing young Coltrane actually age through the story but you are actually seeing the wrinkles on the faces of Hawke and Arquette appear over time, and with them the memories of their comprehensive characters develop. The chapters of their life unfold and you are there on the journey. The ebbs and flows, ups and downs. The more bountiful days, the more desperate ones. It's captivating, exhaustive, and just real. 

Silicon Valley (Season 1)

Mike Judge, 2014

Can I Stream It?

5/5

The pairing of HBO and the mind of Mike Judge kind of feels long overdue. One of greatest comedy writers of this generation, Judge is one who finds the funny in our modern human masses. In Office Space he explored the soul-drenching robotic routine of the corporate Cubicle universe. In Idiocracy he brilliantly laid out America's doomed future. Silicon Valley is semi-autobiographical, from Judge's own days of working in Santa Clara at startup video card company Parallax graphics. His short time there obviously equipped him with some lasting impressions, results that would come out twenty-seven years later in the form of a brilliant comedy. Silicon Valley feels like an Office Space meets The Social Network satirical piece. With clear nods to the Steve Jobs Apple-cult/culture and the bitter battles between the hungry tech giants, the series blends witty writing with a compelling David vs. Goliath story-line. It possesses all of the proper Palo Alto vernacular, all-while living out the Raman noodle to Liquid Shrimp geek dream. One morning you can be looking at empty Red Bull cans sitting in front of you in your tiny apartment. But you can quickly cash in on a sudden fluky but profitable concept and be sitting in an over-sized mansion the next with Kid Rock providing background sound for your beer-pong games.

The writing is so sharp, but the series also deserves praise for it's fitting casting decisions. Thomas Middleditch brings the right amount of awkward twitchiness to his Richard character. The reluctant leader of startup Pied Piper, he excels in programming but falls very short in the social skills. Richard is someone who could have easily been buried in the I.T. department of the aforementioned Judge classic Office Space. His compression algorithm app is also developed by ball-busting buddies Gilfoyle and Dinesh, once again making great casting decisions by having Martin Starr and Kumail Nanjiani playing the respective roles. The series also employs the comedic abilities of T.J. Miller, who plays a sort of creepy older brother to the group. Not really equipped with the same coding abilities but much better in social settings, he has more of a hanger-on role with Pied Piper but never falls short of being hilarious... strange beard and all. Fortunately it didn't take long for HBO to renew Silicon Valley to renew the series for another season. Every week it leaves you wanting more. In a way it feels surreal that we are already lampooning our own high-tech world. But there is no better person to do it than Mike Judge.

The Bicycle Thief

Vittorio De Sica, 1948

Can I Stream It?

5/5

Antonio's (Lamberto Maggiorani) sudden excitement from landing a new job putting up posters throughout the city is diminished when the bicycle he needs to complete his work on a daily basis is stolen.

A truly minimalist story in which the plot could really be summed up by saying its a movie about a man looking for his bike. But of course it's more than that. The pursuit of this precious sole mode of transportation is so important. The Post WWII environment leaves a lot of specialized men desperately looking for work. Desperate to the point where they are stepping over one another in an effort to take what positions they can get. When he realizes that the contingency of his new position is that he needs a bicycle to make the rounds, the bicycle becomes more than just soldered pieces of steel with two wheels. It becomes an idol of his livelihood. He NEEDS this job to prove himself as a provider to his family. In that sense, Antonio is the post-war everyman. He has mouths to feed. His son Bruno (Enzo Staiola being the standout performance of the film) looks up to him, often literally looking up to him from a few feet below as he stands beside him. Bruno becomes his mouthy companion as he scours the city looking for the priceless piece. You get a feeling Antonio is fighting for his life. The city around him feels unforgiving. He fiercely searches for the bike, making sudden turns down stucco alleyways and meticulously exploring the local marketplaces. De Sica's simple story plays out on screen as anything but. The well-choreographed scenes literally come to life as the entire city is seemingly involved in the film, of course by no accident and a real testament to De Sica's abilities. A true needle in the haystack story. So much of the film feels ahead of its time, from the clean editing to the tracking shots. This is one of those classics that should just be in the annual rotation from this point forward.

House of Cards (Season 2)

Beau Willimon, 2014

Can I Stream It?

5/5

If the first season of House of Cards didn't draw you in, you are completely insatiable. If you were putting off watching it as it collects dust on your queue, stop what you are doing and go watch it right now. It's likely better than what you are watching. The writing, acting, cinematography just emanates excellence with every shot. Kevin Spacey is at his best, at a point where its so surprising to see him outdo himself so deep into his career.

The second season dives in deeper. The ante is upped. The stakes are higher. There is an increased sense of suspicion on many fronts. There are more eyes watching. More threats in play. There are more moving parts at work. If the D.C. machine is a well-oiled machine, Frank Underwood is the smart-chip on the motherboard. He paints a picture of a backroom Washington that feels so terrifiyng. Reinforces the idea that perhaps ignorance is bliss. Maybe it's better to have a low profile, be an anonymous citizen, as long as our homeland is safe. And Frank can keep it safe, as long as he gets what he wants in the process. The ghosts of Frank's past continue to collect and follow him. You can almost hear their cries in the empty wood-carved den of his Washington brownstone.

Frank Underwood has become even more powerful, while also somehow growing even more diabolical. He is perhaps one of the most chilling television anti-heroes ever, right up there with Walter White or Tony Soprano. Just give him the Emmy now. Robin Wright continues to be so cold and so completely calculating. They are the true perfect political pair, and their dynamic is almost a nod to Bill and Hillary Clinton (of course way darker), you would expect them to sleep in separate beds because sexual relations would be considered a downgrade to their relationship. Michael Kelly is possibly the most underrated actor in the series (possibly on television in general) as brain-child Doug Stamper. He's just another one of Frank's close loyal aides who will stop at nothing to maintain Frank's towering position in government. Frank will reel you in and take care of you until he doesn't need you anymore. One can only hope that you prove yourself worthy of being considered irreplaceable. House of Cards is unapologetic. Unforgiving. It's so well-written, so suspenseful. It's going to be so interesting to see where this show goes. Frank Underwood is a pure megalomaniac, and his hunger for power seems to be endless. There seems to be no limit to what his character will do to grow bigger, and it seems like the series is going to only provide great story to parallel that expansion.

True Detective (Season 1)

Nic Pizzolatto

Can I Stream It?

5/5

Detectives Rust Cohle (Matthew McConaughey) and Martin Hart (Woody Harrelson), opposite personalities, are paired up to track down a suspected serial killer that has recently killed a local Louisiana girl. 

There are monsters in the world. They are among us, lurking in the shadows. They prey upon women, upon small children. An ominous force. This evil immersed in the Louisiana Bayou adds a certain eeriness to it. It may be the soundtrack to the series, which at times sounds like Pink Floyd's The Machine. Or it may be the imagery, of the wicker bird traps suspended in the trees or the spooky mist that seems to float through the dark rooms. True Detective certainly knows the ingredients, and has all of them brewing. Junkies. Whores. Bible Thumpers. Junkyard Backyards. Wear and tear. Battered histories.

True Detective is one of those once in a lifetime series that you encounter. Once you're done watching, you're a changed person. For better or worse. And it's very difficult to give it proper treatment here, because it's just so smart and so elaborate that a simple review won't be able to cover it all. We can discuss how it's helping to usher in this Matthew McConaughey renaissance (a.k.a. McConaissance) stage - where we are seeing an actor completely reinvigorate his career from god-awful rom-coms in the early 2000's to serious dramatic roles in 2013. We can talk about how the show is almost a blend of The Wire mixed with the under-rated and forgotten Carnivale set in the backdrop of a demonic Louisiana much like True Blood. But that still doesn't reveal enough of the show's attributes. On paper, the show probably appears to be just another detective drama. But oh no. The first couple of episodes show you great performances and great writing. At that point you know it's a show worth watching. And then episode four shows you the greatest single-take in the history of television. And then episode five shows you that everything you thought regarding the direction of the story could be all wrong, and that it might be serviceable to go back and re-watch everything that you have already seen once because it's just not enough. 

If we are living in the second Golden Age of Television, True Detective is certainly a harbinger of it. It is saddening to see such life changing series like Breaking Bad fade away into the past. But if this series is any sign of whats to come, we haven't seen anything yet. Or perhaps we are in the middle of watching one of the greatest series ever made right before our very own eyes, right now. At least it's only the beginning. How the hell are we supposed to let go of these characters to make way for completely new ones next season? 

Boardwalk Empire (Season 4)

Terence Winter, 2013

Netflix

5/5

Any fan of the Boardwalk series by now has come to expect a certain level of consistency. In the first three seasons, you learn a great deal about what happens. Authentic set pieces, comprehensive character structure, period music, short life expectancy. Terence Winter clearly has no problem developing a character and ending his or her life suddenly. It's one of the more gripping parts of the series. Swift bloodshed. Because of the historical element to the show, you are already aware of the fate of some. Some of the legendary names we've heard echo through American culture since we were children. But for others that's not the case. Other characters are more shrouded, but with large stories. Along with the consistency that the series provides, there's a real sense of accuracy. You are literally standing in the time period. There are so many ongoing story-lines, all equally alluring. It's difficult to find a flaw in Boardwalk. Perhaps there isn't one. The twelve episodes are constructed so perfectly. The season finale delivers and makes an impact. This series sits high on the shelf. It's hard to compare it to some of the better series to come out in the past ten years, probably because it's really carved out a nice niche. And it doesn't seem to be losing any steam either. And perhaps the only flaw of this amazing series is the wait time until the next season.

And so the series progresses on to the fourth season. Nucky continues to build his empire, and this season decides to expand to the Florida for assistance in efficiently importing his product. Al Capone is feeling like he is growing up and feeling like a big fish in a small pond faster than his boss Johnny Torrio would like him to, and begins to grow resentful. Van Alden is continuing to make new friends in surprising places, and in season four he finds himself getting the attention of the Capone's. Margaret is attempting to move on with her life, outside of the criminal world and in a more legitimate setting. Chaulky White is now running Nucky's old nightclub, an acquisition he made after his huge favor to Nucky last season. Gillian, struggling with her heroin addiction, finds new love that appears to be promising. We are introduced to new characters. The federal agents, led by young director J. Edgar Hoover, appear suddenly and are hungry to uncover the prospect of possible organized crime family. Dr. Narcisse is a new face to New Jersey, bringing with him a ominous energy that doesn't appeal to some, including Chaulky. The finale is heartwrenching and satisfying. It will stick with you. Or at least it should. 

Upstream Color

Shane Carruth, 2013

5/5

Kris (Amy Seimetz) gets abducted and gets put into a state of hypnosis from a mysterious plant extract. When she finally comes out of it, she attempts to piece her life back together. She encounters Jeff (Shane Carruth), who has endured a similar experience, and together they both try to make sense of their changed world.

When I watched this film for the first time, I made the mistake of taking periodic breaks from it. BIG mistake. While you may get away with that with some other films, this is a film built for one sitting. There's just so much there. It's just not going to be beneficial taking yourself out of Carruth's vision and stepping back in when you please, hoping to immediately reorient yourself. Therefore, I gave the film the honor of re-watching a second time and boy was I happy I did.

The film possesses qualities similar to Adaptation and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. It's a wonderfully shot film, which really gives the impression that Carruth has evolved with much of his film-making abilities since making the gritty low-budget sci-fi time travel thriller Primer. The visual elements of the film are excellent, at times very dream-like. Detailed interiors, blinding white light, molecular shots of the blue extract taking hold. Impressive editing. Carruth (deservedly) won the Special Jury Prize for Sound Design at Sundance. The soundtrack reinforces the hypnotic sensibility, with a resonating cadence similar to the soundtrack of The Assassination of Jesse James or the aforementioned Eternal Sunshine.

It's not just a film about an abduction, drugging and the recovery. It's about way more than just Kris' abduction. It's about way more than whatever trauma Jeff has also experienced. It examines a particular life force, and essence of being, a certain vein of existence. A frequency of sound, or many sounds. A connection with the animal world. A communication system one has with nature, similar to the plant system in Avatar but much more complex. I was guilty of thinking too abstractly the first time seeing the film, when the concepts of the film are actually much more literal. Shane Carruth is clearly a high-IQ filmmaker, capable of making intelligent films on par with Christopher Nolan, David Lynch or Darren Aronofsky. It will be interesting to see what kinds of films he continues to make, presumably with growing budgets.

Goodfellas

(REWATCHED)

Martin Scorcese, 1990


5/5

Scorcese's adaptation of the non-fiction book "Wiseguy" by Nicholas Pileggi. The story follows the rise of Henry Hill, from kid to adult, working for the Lucchese crime family.

Finding someone who has not seen Goodfellas would creative feelings of jealousy. I would want to immediately sit them down and play it for them. I would likely become hypnotized, like I usually am, and watch the entire film again. It's Scorcese's true masterpiece. His mafia symphony. His flawless gritty gangster epic. The single take scene with the camera panning through the restaurant. Ray Liotta breaking down the fourth wall. The resonating soundtrack that spans time, from The Moonglows to The Rolling Stones. The elevating strings of cigarette smoke, the bubbling meat gravy, the puffy lines of cocaine. After watching it for the tenth time, you still find little gems here and there that previously went unnoticed. Not only that, the surprise moments in the film that you've become to expect are still magnetic. Ray Liotta has never been better. Liotta, like James Gandolfini in his role as Tony Soprano, - provides such an impeccable performance that he is permanently type cast. The progression and deterioration of Henry Hill is so well detailed. The 146 minutes move so fast, you forget that you had to flip the DVD over to side B. I used to have dreams about this film. The number one rule for making a mob film is you have to create anti-heroes that have some kind of endearing quality that makes you invest in their character. Scorcese creates these characters that embed themselves into the fabric of your mind. The actors are so good in this film that they are cherry picked for future mob roles. The film currently sits at #15 on IMDb's Top 250 and is preserved in the National Film Registry in the Library of Congress.

Game of Thrones (Season 3)

David Benioff & D.B. Weiss, 2013


5/5

          There has been much bloodshed, and no end is in sight. Rumors of dragons continue to echo through the world. Many of the royal families have endured much loss and many of of them are struggling to find their way back to each other. The death of Ned Stark still lingers. While Daenerys slowly builds her army piece by piece, King Joffrey Baratheon becomes more consumed with his rule in King's Landing. Robb Stark seeks vengeance for his father's death, while Stannis Baratheon continues to plan his next move using darker methods. 
          Season 3 of Game of Thrones appears to have more gore and torturous violence than the previous seasons. The series is incomparable, and each episode could be on par with any feature film. The study on such a barbaric existence that it makes you question what your own life expectancy would be if you were there. The series continues to prove that it's another trophy on the shelf of HBO's achievements, with much company. Each episode has a $6M budget, and you can see it in the rich effects and detailed set design. Joffrey Baratheon is one of the most cruel and sociopathic characters ever put on the screen. Still laughing over the scene where Tyrion asks him "did you kill any puppies today?" You get a sense of the arch's that are bound to happen at some point in the distant future. Some of the scenes this season are haunting, and will certainly stick with you (especially one of the episodes in particular, which may be one of the most shocking of the series thus far). Intricate story and sophisticated character structure, distinguished imagery. It's certainly hard to find a flaw with this series, and it continues to maintain all of its qualities. It's gained much popularity - fortunately or unfortunately. I would imagine years from now my son (who doesn't exist yet) will be dating girls named Sansa and Cersei - and they won't be nearly as interesting as the characters on Game of Thrones.

The Place Beyond the Pines

Derek Cianfrance, 2013

5/5

          Luke is a motorcycle stunt rider who performs with a traveling carnival group. When he returns to Schenectady a year after hooking up with one the locals, Romina (Eva Mendes), he suddenly finds a reason to stay there. He soon realizes that he's not very equipped to make living there nor is Romina very inviting. He turns to crime to make a quick dollar, soon finding himself in the cross-hairs of rookie cop Avery Cross (Bradley Cooper).
          While Blue Valentine was saturated with melodrama, Cianfrance tones it down here to a digestible, sufficient level. Though he does play on familiar themes of relationships overlapping each other, difficulty of maintaining love. Monetary struggles. He also broadens the spectrum of a love drama by adding issues of heredity and predisposed personality traits. He is sharp in examining relationships from a realistic perspective, studying the not-much-explored gray areas. Love is not always conveniently timed, and its not unusual for relationships to overlap one another or for exes to resurface without an invitation. Cianfrance makes many bold moves in this film. Making a drastic turn halfway through the movie is ballsy, let alone some of the shifts in time.
          I don't agree with the comparisons that have been made to Drive. I think it minimizes Cianfrance's efforts here, and that shouldn't be done. Yes, Gosling is a stunt rider like Drive. Yes, he does that very Goslingy thing where he leans up against a wall looking cool. This time its a cigarette in his mouth, and not a toothpick. His character in Pines has more depth, more history. He's been through one hell of a life. The many tattoos are like chapters. He didn't live with the world's greatest father growing up, or hardly lived with any father. He is sensitive to people's condescending tone with him (ie. when Romina is talking to him in the diner). Upon hearing that he has a son he has the immediate reaction to be present in his life and the intention to be a provider, presumably not wanting to make the same mistakes his father made. 

          There seems to be some maturity seen from Cianfrance from his last effort. The pacing is effective, and never drags on. The use of sound was present but not overpowering. He let the scenes breathe a bit. For example, when introducing you to Robin (Ben Mendelsohn), he didn't just have him run into Luke at a gas station. He did a pan shot of him watching Luke race through the woods on the motorcycle. It gave you a feeling of uncertainty, uneasiness. Mendelsohn, a perfect pick for that role, is an impressive character actor. Interested in seeing more of him in future roles.
          The climax of the film was already very satisfying, and then the Bon Iver song "The Wolves (Act II & II)" played as the credits roll which pulled on my heart-strings. I would imagine there are people that will be critical of the last scene in the film. I found it to be imaginative and rewarding.

Oldboy

Chan-Wook Park, 2003


5/5

          Dae-su Oh is suddenly abducted and put in solitary confinement in what looks like a run-down motel room for 15 years. He is released without knowing why he was imprisoned. What follows is a pursuit of answers, and revenge. Chan-Wook Park delivers a masterpiece that is so well made, that it really sets the bar high for the Revenge-film genre. Every single element in Oldboy from the Cinematography (Chung-hoon Chung), Editing (Kim Sang-beom) to the Music (Jo Yeong-wok) is so impeccable and they all maintain a noticeable presence as you watch. There are fight sequences that will remind you of The Raid: Redemption coupled with imaginative visual elements reminiscent of Watchmen. The Korean landscape in Oldboy is bleak and paints a picture of a very scary world. A world in which if you live recklessly enough and without conscience, there are dark forces out there that can literally sweep you up in the blink of an eye. In Oldboy that sweep happened to come with a beautiful elevated shot as the camera ascended above a telephone booth on the rainy night streets. The artfully crafted blood & violence in the film is not overdone, very much unlike the over-gratuitous gore in Kill Bill. There were a lot of twists in the story-line that I didn't see coming, and the climax of this film is among the best I've ever seen. This film packs a punch, and does not dumb itself down. It will stick with you. I ended up watching it twice in one day and it was even better the second time around. I was very disappointed to hear that Spike Lee is filming a remake of this. Makes me wonder why we can't just let good foreign movies sit in the form in which they were originally created (Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Let the Right One In). 

Searching for Sugar Man

Malik Bendjelloul, 2012


5/5

          Rodriguez was one of the best singer-songwriters to come out the 1970's, and nobody knew who he was. His albums never experienced commercial success. Although he sounded very similar to Bob Dylan, he never came close to gaining the same level of fame. His music had soul. You hear themes of struggle, love, desperation. He faded into obscurity in the United States, but unbeknownst to him - he was a HUGE musical figure in South Africa. In South Africa, he was bigger than Elvis. South Africans found comfort in his music while they were in the oppressive grips of apartheid. He inspired them... and he never knew it.
          This is the best documentary that I've seen in 2013 thus far. It deservedly won the Oscar for Best Documentary. I had heard so much buzz on this film that I wondered if it could live up to the hype. It exceeded my expectations, and you are better off going into this film knowing NOTHING. Go in blindly because there are some really great twists that add to the already compelling story. It's also well shot. Great pan shots of Detroit city streets, empty parking lots with glowing street-lit snow piles. Deteriorated motor city brownstones with plywood windows. Beautifully gritty stock video footage of 1970's Detroit, displaying theater-fronts with unlit marquees and newspaper littered streets. It even shows you historical poverty-stricken sections of Detroit, reminding you that their economic woes are not only limited to this past decade. Rodriguez came from a blue collar working American family, pouring years of sweat on the Chrysler assembly line. That only adds to the irony that someone who is arguably MORE American than Bob Dylan never caught on with the American people. What was it? Was it his ethnicity? Was it because the name Rodriguez doesn't have that Rock and Roll edge to it? Did people just write him off when they heard his name, like he was a Latin-American musician? I wonder if he appeared today, would a more open-minded American public be more receptive to his music?
          My biggest question that went unanswered was what happened to the band-members? You hear Rodriguez' music, and while the vocals and the songwriting is very prominent - there is also impressive musical work going on as well. Where are those people now? Are they still in the music industry? Did they feel ignored by America like Rodriguez did?
         

Louis C.K. - Live at the Beacon Theater

Louis C.K., 2011


5/5

You are doing yourself a great disservice if you have not seen Louis C.K. perform. You're missing out on someone who is in their prime, performing at the top of their game. He is writing a new hour, EVERY YEAR. He throws away the old hour completely, even though that material was KILLING in front of crowds of 2500 people or more. This is unbelievable considering there are many stand-up comedians who are still using the same material they were using a decade ago. He's raising the bar, and inspiring the stand-up community. I don't believe any stand-up would argue with you if you said hes the best stand-up out there right now. He's put in his time, he deserves every minute of this success.

Mesrine: Part 1 - Killer Instinct

Jean-Francois Richet, 2008


5/5

If Scarface and A Prophet had a baby, it would be Mesrine. The comparison may be a bit misleading, because this film is on a different level than Scarface. It's one of the best gangster films I've ever seen. Its the biopic of Jacques Mesrine, a real-life notorious French gangster. The setting is in the late fifties through the late sixties. Vincent Cassel plays Jacques Mesrine, and its the best performance I've seen from him. All of the acting in this film is spot on. There a noticeable Scorcesian sense of grittiness. Cinematography is perfect. Not one bad shot in the film, and the scenery in France, Spain and Canada only added to the overall beauty. I really enjoyed the opening of the film with the split-screen multi-angle shots. Because the film's timeline spans across a decade, there are some sudden jumps but it always remains fluid. It doesn't dumb itself down for the audience, one of my favorite qualities of foreign films. Jacques Mesrine is a fascinating character. There is a warm-hearted innocence to him early on in the film but that quickly washes away and gives way to a dark, depraved core. He doesn't mind blood on his hands, and develops a distorted set of principles. He is abusive, doesn't respect women, and is over-compensating for his fathers pacifistic dynamic he had with his mother. I won't detail any of the film because I do not want to give away any plot points at all. I can't wait to jump into part two. Had no idea it was a two part series until the final credits started rolling.

Homeland (Season 2)

Howard Gordon & Alex Gansa, 2012

5/5

There isn't much to say about season 2 of Homeland, because it just remains consistent. Its AS good as Season 1. There is still such a perfectly placed amount of tension where it needs to be. The acting is near perfect. The casting director deserves an Emmy. The story-line continues to be compelling. The cinematography is great. The small additions to the cast in this season only made it better. This show might break into my top 10 television series of all time.

Jiro Dreams of Sushi

David Gelb, 2011

5/5

I tried and can't come up with any justification for not calling this a perfect documentary. Beautiful images of sushi that will make you crave it as you watch. You could have easily convinced me to hand over the $300 for one of Jiro's masterpiece 15 piece meals. Jiro is a man who lives to work, not works to live. He has spent his entire life perfecting his sushi craft. He is a man who is so committed to mastering his skill he rarely takes a day off and at 85, has absolutely no plans to retire. The end-result is a one month backlog of customers who cannot wait to have Jiro coldly stare at them from the other side of the bar while they indulge in whats likely the best sushi in the world. The classical music that constantly played in the background so perfectly augmented the Japanese landscape.