#41 — The Martian (Ridley Scott, 2015) An earnestly ambitious actor, Damon is at his best when he hews closely to his established public persona, that of a mildly doltish yet laudably competent individual. That’s why he was so well-suited … Continue reading Top Fifty Films of the 10s — Number Forty-One
#42 — We Are the Best! (Lukas Moodysson, 2013) “Hate the Sport,” the signature song from Sweden’s finest teen punk trio, properly carries the rebellion of rock ‘n’ roll inside it. Written as a direct challenge to the bullying, patriarchal … Continue reading Top Fifty Films of the 10s — Number Forty-Two
#43 — Mudbound (Dee Rees, 2017) Ten years is a long time, so it’s hardly remarkable to survey that length of time in a chunk of cinema history and discern major differences between the respective creative landscape and the starting … Continue reading Top Fifty Films of the 10s — Number Forty-Three
#44 — The Shape of Water (Guillermo del Toro, 2017) The path always led to The Shape of Water for Guillermo del Toro. Across a career that begin firmly in the horror genre before expanding to other hybrids, practically of … Continue reading Top Fifty Films of the 10s — Number Forty-Four
#45 — Shutter Island (Martin Scorsese, 2010) Martin Scorsese didn’t owe us any more high art. That was clear. By the time the calendar flipped over to the twenty-tens, Scorsese had already amassed forty years of astonishing accomplishment, and he … Continue reading Top Fifty Films of the 10s — Number Forty-Five
#46 — Eighth Grade (Bo Burnham, 2018) Crafting a poignant, painful seriocomic film about the travails of middle school isn’t that novel of a feat any longer. The time-tested subgenre of coming of age films has long since expanded from … Continue reading Top Fifty Films of the 10s — Number Forty-Six
#47 — The Favourite (Yorgos Lanthimos, 2018) When powdered wigs, heavy dresses, and ornate waistcoats are hauled to set, the resulting movie is likely to be stiffened by affected refinement. Adhering to patterns set by countless period dramas before, action … Continue reading Top Fifty Films of the 10s — Number Forty-Seven
#48 — Baby Driver (Edgar Wright, 2017) Especially as they scale up, movies are monumentally difficult to make. Relying on a vast team of specialized collaborators practically guarantees that a long process will be beset by unfortunate compromises and the … Continue reading Top Fifty Films of the 10s — Number Forty-Eight
#49 — Melancholia (Lars von Trier, 2011) What happens when a cinematic provocateur turns their attention to the inner turmoil of a person? When the instinct to rattle the audience with a bleak consideration of the futility of existence manifests … Continue reading Top Fifty Films of the 10s — Number Forty-Nine
#50 — Mission: Impossible — Fallout (Christopher McQuarrie, 2018) In a cinematic era absolutely overrun with superheroes, how can a more conventional action movie titan keep up? Fictional demigods streak across the sky, routinely patching up the very fabric of … Continue reading Top Fifty Films of the 10s — Number Fifty
Coffee for Two 