tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-84832289052845908802024-03-18T17:01:52.568-05:00FREE CINEMA NOW"Liberating film and video from a prehistoric value system" since 2011. This site was founded by Writer, Video Essayist and Webby Award Nominee Nelson Carvajal. Contact: nelson@nelsoncarvajal.comNelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.comBlogger173125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-36352239136631004712024-03-07T08:00:00.049-06:002024-03-07T10:00:12.890-06:00The Best Films of 2023<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7nRxoActvBzIlSlKEMQ5W0X0dPjAOac811rNAkh2LRYK8d0fgT2aFtTe9HmW1sJYjYhoJhIgjjZWmss1Cl_iktWoBfdV_GqJ8APpxl9EYIaVMYUSojwjCnw92Plh3IkRa9YuS8B3cQCfOUq3s5lE_oVZiksnX9y8dS3Z4ykhQqIngca7xuaApviCCy8gf/s1200/GHvZ7SKXAAAjD_p.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="506" data-original-width="1200" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7nRxoActvBzIlSlKEMQ5W0X0dPjAOac811rNAkh2LRYK8d0fgT2aFtTe9HmW1sJYjYhoJhIgjjZWmss1Cl_iktWoBfdV_GqJ8APpxl9EYIaVMYUSojwjCnw92Plh3IkRa9YuS8B3cQCfOUq3s5lE_oVZiksnX9y8dS3Z4ykhQqIngca7xuaApviCCy8gf/w640-h270/GHvZ7SKXAAAjD_p.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><p>Better late than never.</p><div style="text-align: left;"><u>Special Citation Award</u>: <i>Beau Is Afraid </i>Directed by <b>Ari Aster</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">20. </span><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><i>Elemental </i>Directed by </span><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><b>Peter Sohn</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">19</span><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">. </span><i style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">Napoleon</i><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"> Directed by </span><b style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">Ridley Scott</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">18. </span><i style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret. </i><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">Directed by </span><b style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">Kelly Fremon Craig</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">17. </span><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><i>Priscilla </i>Directed by </span><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><b>Sofia Coppola</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">16. <i>Knock at the Cabin</i> Directed by <b>M. Night Shyamalan </b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">15. <i>The Holdovers </i>Directed by <b>Alexander Payne </b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">14. <i>Oppenheimer </i>Directed by <b>Christopher Nolan </b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">13. <i>The Iron Claw</i> Directed by <b>Sean Durkin</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">12. <i>Monster </i>Directed by <b>Hirokazu Kore-eda</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">11. <i>E</i></span><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><i>arth Mama</i> Directed by </span><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><b>Savanah Leaf</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">10. </span><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><i>Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie</i> Directed by </span><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><b>Davis Guggenheim</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">9. <i>Society of the Snow </i>Directed by <b>J.A. Bayona</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">8. <i>Killers of the Flower Moon </i>Directed by <b>Martin Scorsese</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">7. <i>Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One </i>Directed by <b>Christopher McQuarrie</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">6. <i>A Thousand and One</i> Directed by <b>A.V. Rockwell</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">5. <i>Ferrari </i>Directed by <b>Michael Mann</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">4. <i>Anatomy of a Fall </i>Directed by <b>Justine Triet</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">3. <i>Past Lives</i> Directed by <b>Celine Song</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">2. <i>The Zone of Interest </i>Directed by <b>Jonathan Glazer</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">1. <i>Origin </i>Directed by <b>Ava DuVernay</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhThiKSO0QJ1wQk4cgE-hMxCu58e3VDSuh-bSeTB7j2yIZpFlrm-fvloBQPRXGOeeAJIyX2JwXBPYQA9oADYMYmC8G3YS4xx6uaKpKnBwLbuma3GGvkJ1QM9IDkw7T6O-PD9Ugb01TNqdhpFpP_UMHzEKSlF8f5YghOvvSmQhNW7EeA4YHZlMj9j7S7b9g/s2400/Origin-Jon-Bernthal-and-Aunjanue-Ellis-Taylor.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1452" data-original-width="2400" height="388" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhThiKSO0QJ1wQk4cgE-hMxCu58e3VDSuh-bSeTB7j2yIZpFlrm-fvloBQPRXGOeeAJIyX2JwXBPYQA9oADYMYmC8G3YS4xx6uaKpKnBwLbuma3GGvkJ1QM9IDkw7T6O-PD9Ugb01TNqdhpFpP_UMHzEKSlF8f5YghOvvSmQhNW7EeA4YHZlMj9j7S7b9g/w640-h388/Origin-Jon-Bernthal-and-Aunjanue-Ellis-Taylor.webp" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Other films I enjoyed/didn't hate (in no particular order): </span></b></span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The Killer, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Telemarketers, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Blackberry, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">May December, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The Creator, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Leave the World Behind, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">A Million Miles Away, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">You Hurt My Feelings, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Maestro, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Somewhere in Queens, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Poor Things, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The Covenant, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Tetris, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Air, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Fair Play, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Flora and Son, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Pacifiction, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">American Fiction, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Flamin’ Hot, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Master Gardener, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The Boogeyman, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Next Goal Wins, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Talk to Me, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Scrapper, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The Boys in the Boat, </span><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, and </span><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">The Outwaters</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>And while I'm at it -- here goes the best television of the year:</b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">1. <i>Top Boy: The Final Season</i></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">2. <i>The Curse</i></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">3. <i>Fargo Season 5</i></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">The best of the rest </span></span><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">(in no particular order)</span></b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><b>: </b></span><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">The Last of Us, </span><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">Shrinking, </span></span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Barry Season 4, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Season 5, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The Mandalorian Season 3, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Ted Lasso Season 3, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Beef, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Bupkis, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Perry Mason Season 2, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Platonic, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Somebody Somewhere Season 2, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The Righteous Gemstones Season 3, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The Bear Season 2 , </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Only Murders in the Building Season 3, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Physical Season 3, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">High Desert, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Winning Season Season 2, and </span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Ahsoka</span></div>Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-83564082607297670852023-06-12T17:44:00.006-05:002023-06-12T17:47:27.664-05:00ALL QUIET ON THE WONDER FRONT<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdhLEJAT6QZfs07q2m9IdCwABXVpUgfqBwtwOOqxxsA2WN2ESe_6xYeRG8haXzCkIZbAoQxPzYeRTUfeLw8MfkydIKMZleg5lQz0X9E8NDxG9splzPc-yw22z254DnItEcs-zFYtsaDia81CyKKF3PPuaG5seiJz4Ysms68LzVnYuwuGJap1GBdRstPw/s1200/Photo%20Jun%2012%202023,%203%2011%2015%20PM.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="1200" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdhLEJAT6QZfs07q2m9IdCwABXVpUgfqBwtwOOqxxsA2WN2ESe_6xYeRG8haXzCkIZbAoQxPzYeRTUfeLw8MfkydIKMZleg5lQz0X9E8NDxG9splzPc-yw22z254DnItEcs-zFYtsaDia81CyKKF3PPuaG5seiJz4Ysms68LzVnYuwuGJap1GBdRstPw/w640-h360/Photo%20Jun%2012%202023,%203%2011%2015%20PM.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p><b>Edward Berger</b>'s <i>All Quiet on the Western Front</i> had a surprisingly successful night at the Oscars earlier this year, winning 4 Academy Awards, including Best Cinematography. My latest mashup reimagines a different -- if not more "wondrous" -- threat than the French Saint-Chamond Assault Tanks that were seen in the film.</p>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/835602430?h=9aa98df489" width="640"></iframe></div>Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-26025978077949972782023-04-08T10:26:00.006-05:002023-04-08T10:30:06.030-05:00DON'T WORRY BARBIE<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyfqoQSlN2DMrGX6DvRHr24ScRc1KXn7MMH1O2r991mhKM6Z-kQ7hRoAsXhE5rsYa0qSn85hQ7SkxqRZK-MoXV2PFZ56lNCNDiUj0B0itAnqPL5LSazGUqxGufyT6y3EZQAktA448nmlZDVdNwsPGKuN_Jk9c0fsWVqt8bXzXMUy6gF8lKLjHkhNSfbg/s2048/Photo%20Apr%2008%202023,%207%2059%2038%20AM.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyfqoQSlN2DMrGX6DvRHr24ScRc1KXn7MMH1O2r991mhKM6Z-kQ7hRoAsXhE5rsYa0qSn85hQ7SkxqRZK-MoXV2PFZ56lNCNDiUj0B0itAnqPL5LSazGUqxGufyT6y3EZQAktA448nmlZDVdNwsPGKuN_Jk9c0fsWVqt8bXzXMUy6gF8lKLjHkhNSfbg/w640-h426/Photo%20Apr%2008%202023,%207%2059%2038%20AM.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>My latest mashup trailer re-imagines <b>Greta Gerwig</b>'s <i>Barbie</i> in the fashion --pun intended -- of <b>Olivia Wilde</b>'s Don't Worry Darling, in that Barbie starts to suspect the outside world isn't what she thinks it is. In my vision, Barbie realizes that, outside of the Victory Project (a.k.a. Barbieland)...she's just a toy.</p>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/815869154?h=87dd35f6f6" width="640"></iframe></div>Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-41591595132436773202023-03-13T15:57:00.010-05:002023-03-13T19:17:05.585-05:00The Best Films of 2022<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNfz5ho_SXumSw92LeioLgl1VjUvQg_YGo09Mq8-rGsTba7lB9IuGU9ZjV-btHDA7GkvXAcl8WLDou-YqYNbl_Q8ifHB5Qg_4dj5N4aEZfAZy1ozsaq3wlOy9FoGpnnhV5yfRhQeRl1tlIZcSqSNy3Hd9AwQZ8YAMAMXRDIH49S1HNGnhfHStSgDj4BA/s2048/06tar1-1-fab5-superJumbo.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="858" data-original-width="2048" height="269" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNfz5ho_SXumSw92LeioLgl1VjUvQg_YGo09Mq8-rGsTba7lB9IuGU9ZjV-btHDA7GkvXAcl8WLDou-YqYNbl_Q8ifHB5Qg_4dj5N4aEZfAZy1ozsaq3wlOy9FoGpnnhV5yfRhQeRl1tlIZcSqSNy3Hd9AwQZ8YAMAMXRDIH49S1HNGnhfHStSgDj4BA/w640-h269/06tar1-1-fab5-superJumbo.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div>Now that the Oscars are over, here go my picks for the Best Films of 2022. <b>Todd Field</b>'s <i>Tár</i> towers over all others at number one. This is <b>Cate Blanchett</b>'s <i>There Will Be Blood, </i>an American epic -- but set largely overseas -- brimming with filmmaking bravado on Field's side and ferocious tragicomedy for its antihero Lydia Tár. By the time we get to its final shot, we've reached the cinematic mashup of Jordan Belfort asking an eager audience to "Sell me this pen" and Daniel Planview, drained, saying "I'm finished!"<div><span id="docs-internal-guid-20ab36c5-7fff-1c16-4efd-6f9fd2cb5638"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Tár</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Vortex</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Aftersun</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Bones and All</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>To Leslie</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Decision to Leave</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Broker</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>The Batman</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>EO</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Cyrano</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Happening</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Athena</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Ali & Ava</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Thirteen Lives</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Dos Estaciones</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Memoria</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Armageddon Time</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Nope</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Women Talking</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Top Gun: Maverick</i></span></li></ol><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Other films that I thought were enjoyable (even if only for some stretches of their running time): </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-style: italic; white-space: pre-wrap;">Smile, Emily the Criminal, Barbarian, Avatar: </span><span style="font-style: italic; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Way of Water, Everything Everywhere All At Once, Hustle, All Quiet on the Western Front, Father of the Bride (2022), The Good Nurse, Petite Maman, Triangle of </span><span style="font-style: italic; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sadness, The</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><i> Fabelmans, The Black Phone, Prey, She Said, My Policeman, Blonde, Living, Jurassic World: Dominion, DC League of Super-Pets, Ambulance, Elvis, Babylon, Three Thousand Years of Longing, Bros, Scream 5, Jackass Forever, The Greatest Beer Run. Confess, Fletch, White Noise, The Banshees of Inisherin, Call Jane, </i>and <i>The Whale</i></span></span></span></div></span></div>Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-24432775427201730262022-02-18T17:59:00.042-06:002022-02-18T20:49:22.475-06:00The 21 Best Films of 2021<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjJL1701TQ2mv0jMA43SD01o2zjeMeEP0mAKxvfEx1JtGahV0l6itujXu0zQuApVZNbjfbhbh69JmD2kvqTMLeuBquSs-nyiQngYlUP8bdooPRzlbdNtjS76qq3WJKbYEbGiMFk42VsQKkFPr9NcCd1lNl2Ig2BlS5rYGXXyKfDM_qizHY-nDrmrpjqJQ=s2560" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1073" data-original-width="2560" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjJL1701TQ2mv0jMA43SD01o2zjeMeEP0mAKxvfEx1JtGahV0l6itujXu0zQuApVZNbjfbhbh69JmD2kvqTMLeuBquSs-nyiQngYlUP8bdooPRzlbdNtjS76qq3WJKbYEbGiMFk42VsQKkFPr9NcCd1lNl2Ig2BlS5rYGXXyKfDM_qizHY-nDrmrpjqJQ=w640-h268" width="640" /></a></div><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Will movie theaters ever back to what they once were? The ongoing (and seemingly never-ending) pandemic tore a hole into the fabric of theatrical exhibition. I streamed more movies this year than any other. A lot of people did. The one constant is this: Whether you watch them on the big screen or on your phone, good films rise to the top. Here go my picks for the best films of 2021. (And some other notes too.) </span></span></h4><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Biggest Disappointments:</span></h4><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></h4><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>The Matrix Resurrections </i></span></h4><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Candyman (2021)</i></span></h4><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Don't Look Up</i></span></h4><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i><br /></i></span></div><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Special Citation</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">:</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i><br /></i></span></h4><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Kanye with Special Guest Drake: Free Larry Hoover Benefit Concert<br /></i></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Seanne Farmer</b> (director) // <b>Niklas Bildstein Zaar</b> (creative director)<div class="tenor-gif-embed" data-aspect-ratio="1.77778" data-postid="24089858" data-share-method="host" data-width="70%"><a href="https://tenor.com/view/kanye-west-free-larry-hoover-concert-yeezy-kanye-dancing-gif-24089858">Kanye West Free Larry Hoover Concert GIF</a>from <a href="https://tenor.com/search/kanye+west-gifs">Kanye West GIFs</a></div> <script async="" src="https://tenor.com/embed.js" type="text/javascript"></script></span></h4><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Best Needle Drop:</span></h4><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"Light House" by Future Islands in <i>Titane</i></span></h4><div><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='640' height='360' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dxmx_VdJcrVEyTphU3R6EAKEVi1XR8THQMHtQEtTPxuJFOjlcC2kBGTw4kl43EQx4PmEVuAHaPofzPlTx5DRA' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></u></span></h4><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u style="font-size: 11pt;">Best Supporting Actress</u><span style="font-size: 11pt;">: Olga Merediz,</span><i style="font-size: 11pt;"> In The Heights</i></span></h4><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Best Supporting Actor</u>: Simon Helberg, <i>Annette</i></span></h4><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Best Actress</u>: Alana Haim, <i>Licorice Pizza</i></span></h4><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Best Actor</u>: Alessandro Nivola, <i>The Many Saints of Newark</i><br /></span></h4><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Before we get to 21 Best Films of 2021, here go some other films I enjoyed (in no particular order):</span></h4><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">A Glitch in the Matrix, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Father, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">No Time To Die, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Power of the Dog, B</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">eing The Ricardos, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ghostbusters: Afterlife, </span></i><i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Coda, </span></i><i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Zola, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">One Night in Miami, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Belfast, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Encounter, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Parallel Mothers, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">The French Dispatch, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Passing, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Velvet Underground, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">King Richard, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Justice League: The Snyder Cut, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Spencer, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Summer of Soul</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Pig, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">House of Gucci, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">17 Blocks, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Annette, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Woodstock 99: Peace, Love and Rage, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Locked Down, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sing 2, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">News of the World, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">In The Heights, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Queenpins, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Mauritanian, </span></i><i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">C’mon, C’mon</span></i><i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Tragedy of Macbeth, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shiva Baby, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Dig, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Tender Bar, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Bad Trip, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Cry Macho, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">tick, tick…BOOM! and Titane.</span></i></h4><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></h4><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Now onto the main show:</span></h4><h4 style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">21. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Pieces of a Woman<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">20. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Palmer<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">19. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Lost Daughter<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">18. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">No Sudden Move<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">17. Dune<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">16. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Judas and the Black Messiah<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">15. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Card Counter<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">14. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Many Saints of Newark<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">13. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Hand of God<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">12. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Last Duel<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">11. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">West Side Story<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">10. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stillwater<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">9. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Nomadland<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">8. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Green Knight<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">7. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Minari<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">6. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Old<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">5. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Nightmare Alley<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">4. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Drive My Car<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">3. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Red Rocket<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">2. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Quo Vadis, Aida?<br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">1. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Licorice Pizza</span></i></h4><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-8e54ecaf-7fff-d922-ea5f-117675cbf718"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhA6S7DPA5xT21jG3f007R_UpBR85m7yZ0xBCXaZlrVoGyhG5htf_eI4u2SBwvOlEzyncoLUxklzyBVQ--GUbtzdHMQFcSBp9UgMKyCOzPlDqwSJNrBxPCVbF-nHG58aQ8kjk5BEnatn8RsO3rK7HarUofZn53UxTGAOZpTALCOramRKbejyQDpbZOT4A=s1492" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="664" data-original-width="1492" height="284" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhA6S7DPA5xT21jG3f007R_UpBR85m7yZ0xBCXaZlrVoGyhG5htf_eI4u2SBwvOlEzyncoLUxklzyBVQ--GUbtzdHMQFcSBp9UgMKyCOzPlDqwSJNrBxPCVbF-nHG58aQ8kjk5BEnatn8RsO3rK7HarUofZn53UxTGAOZpTALCOramRKbejyQDpbZOT4A=w640-h284" width="640" /></a></div></div></span></div>Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-20403163029831216272022-01-28T22:40:00.004-06:002022-01-29T10:05:32.299-06:00Star Wars: Licorice Pizza<p> </p><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiOAhHO52eNERSIKLDtq02aLeLy1MPYfEsfl_RHZ6hEFaBdz2I6tUy2861I3aKTbrr6COoxMpXCBIpF9qJsFI7n-CrCdx7y9C9aqpfAtyXgc0y9XrjXquH_bBqZq00UjfgTJgzsXpw4QUTd1HYoSISEMLsAgu4N_eMSg49J39eXKc207hJa4OKDDldKeA=s1917" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1917" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiOAhHO52eNERSIKLDtq02aLeLy1MPYfEsfl_RHZ6hEFaBdz2I6tUy2861I3aKTbrr6COoxMpXCBIpF9qJsFI7n-CrCdx7y9C9aqpfAtyXgc0y9XrjXquH_bBqZq00UjfgTJgzsXpw4QUTd1HYoSISEMLsAgu4N_eMSg49J39eXKc207hJa4OKDDldKeA=w640-h360" width="640" /></a><br /></p><div style="text-align: left;">If we were living in the the movie <i>Minority Report</i>, <b>Paul Thomas Anderson</b>'s latest film <i>Licorice Pizza</i> would get arrested for "Precrime." At least in the court of (some) <b><a href="https://popculture.com/movies/news/licorice-pizza-movies-concerning-age-gap-blasted-25-year-old-dates-15/#2" target="_blank">public opinion</a></b>. Anderson's film -- which I think is pretty great -- has come under criticism for the age gap between its two lead characters (15-year-old Gary and mid-20-something Alana), who go back and forth between friendship and playing flirtatious footsie. At no point in <i>Licorice Pizza</i> do they do anything sexual. Their feelings are sincere and the physical attraction is sometimes there, but it's all never acted on. Does that make the movie immoral? I don't think so. Could Gary and Alana some day end up together? I could see that. And Gary would (presumably) be of age by that point. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">This age gap controversy had me thinking about a similar scenario...in <b>George Lucas</b>' <i>Star Wars: Episode 1 - The Phantom Menace</i>. In the <i>Star Wars</i> films, we know that Queen Padmé Amidala will eventually fall in love with and marry Anakin Skywalker (Darth Vader). So in <i>The Phantom Menace</i>, when they meet for the first time, the age gap is glaring: Anakin is very much a child and Padmé is an adult. No sexual line is ever crossed. Yet because it is a prequel and we know their eventual romantic fate, the age gap is very underlined. But does that make the movie immoral? I don't think so either.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/671376031?h=f07beb3729" width="640"></iframe><p></p><p></p>
Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-27739054996850989522021-07-01T10:20:00.005-05:002021-07-01T10:32:03.553-05:00Video Essay: Mare of EATStown<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0fHyfRH5VYXblxZROJJQ7t9wD5I-dZNXuymLFh5pGZlTBxw_DxGJNzyfizLPyBq-aPA5L-UbbkSNdDr3l7Pn1TGKQTeU47fmZypX3hhZEXSRhSL-zphUYrKa9moFcQ88p3vnDNTrZ-8xF/s2048/210458130_1964640657027015_2298416735514019934_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1020" data-original-width="2048" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0fHyfRH5VYXblxZROJJQ7t9wD5I-dZNXuymLFh5pGZlTBxw_DxGJNzyfizLPyBq-aPA5L-UbbkSNdDr3l7Pn1TGKQTeU47fmZypX3hhZEXSRhSL-zphUYrKa9moFcQ88p3vnDNTrZ-8xF/w640-h318/210458130_1964640657027015_2298416735514019934_n.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>Not since <b>Brad Pitt</b>'s performance as Billy Beane in <i>Moneyball</i> have I been this emotionally invested in what a character was always eating or drinking onscreen. </p><p>In HBO's <i>Mare of Easttown</i>, <b>Kate Winslet</b> plays Pennsylvania detective Mare Sheehan. (Winslet is brilliant in the role.) Like Billy Beane, Mare's approach and understanding of her immediate environment or dilemma is translated through what she's consuming; it's as if the food or drinks become company players in her stage drama. And it's not just food either; Mare vapes and smokes too. Anything she consumes becomes important in the moment. My ears are listening to the dialogue and my brain is processing the plot, but my eyes and salivary glands are licking up the drops of condensate beading down her bottles of Rolling Rock. </p><p>The foods become so integral to the Mare experience, to the unfurling of her character, that at one point she's even attacked by a full gallon of milk (it's thrown through her living room window). </p><p>For my video essay "Mare of EATStown" I placed as many of these scenes as I could find in chronological order. This is Mare's symphony.</p>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/568960674" width="640"></iframe></div>Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-46144112001926538872021-06-29T19:32:00.001-05:002021-06-29T19:32:11.658-05:00Watch: "The Many Saints of Newark: A Joker Story"<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR6ODDytBxT8KY3HwHUBZLJ1AjZIyAmTeMRUBaHWhqZCFn1QK4TLz91n7lOVP6ENMCxGzViLCYey2ti_AF2AwBgY-aIcH8Cw83GziLtvC9TCB-YHISGMecwdTGO1jaZhANrDw93pILvcNt/s2048/joker+many+saints.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1064" data-original-width="2048" height="332" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR6ODDytBxT8KY3HwHUBZLJ1AjZIyAmTeMRUBaHWhqZCFn1QK4TLz91n7lOVP6ENMCxGzViLCYey2ti_AF2AwBgY-aIcH8Cw83GziLtvC9TCB-YHISGMecwdTGO1jaZhANrDw93pILvcNt/w640-h332/joker+many+saints.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: left;">The teaser trailer for <i>The Sopranos prequel</i> film </span><i>The Many Saints of Newark</i> dropped today and #FilmTwitter has been pointing out how <i>Saints </i>is also being marketed as another <i>Joker</i>-esque origin story (C<i>ruella</i> did the same thing earlier this year). </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So I started the editing the two teaser trailers together and there definitely is some tonal overlap. Must be the hairdo. </div><p></p>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/569145467" width="640"></iframe></div>Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-1530585890731939012021-02-26T23:45:00.001-06:002021-02-26T23:45:27.554-06:00Watch: TOM & CHERRY (Mashup trailer of CHERRY and TOM & JERRY)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkLGFc0nUgjPy4z3ndtfCMisnGuLCUSRylhNxljmSdAmv3wVa2zftW5fKUcLWAI60yv0NA2NGGoMd5ynJIvgUEK4pWRhfgh3vxtIbjInvP4x_ZWi_OmU3Ad8xZd74UcUZOVHRc2Csn4oNU/s2590/Screen+Shot+2021-02-26+at+9.39.58+PM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1214" data-original-width="2590" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkLGFc0nUgjPy4z3ndtfCMisnGuLCUSRylhNxljmSdAmv3wVa2zftW5fKUcLWAI60yv0NA2NGGoMd5ynJIvgUEK4pWRhfgh3vxtIbjInvP4x_ZWi_OmU3Ad8xZd74UcUZOVHRc2Csn4oNU/w640-h300/Screen+Shot+2021-02-26+at+9.39.58+PM.png" width="640" /></a></div><br />Two big movie releases are available for streaming this weekend: <i>Tom & Jerry</i> on HBO Max and the <b>Tom Holland</b>-starrer <i>Cherry </i>over at Apple TV+. I couldn't decide which want to watch so I spent my evening editing their trailers together. <p></p><p>This is TOM & CHERRY:</p>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/517413312" width="640"></iframe></div>Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-28565064077929194712021-02-25T01:40:00.008-06:002021-02-25T01:46:00.125-06:00Watch: "Cruella Intentions" (Mashup trailer of "Cruella" and "Cruel Intentions")<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUZnDeFXIrNYqghSdXU9d-Los-bUuGCY6UCEWatN_U9Qlj2uzQKbbZ471GvrkC_UuQ81ejrQHkoS-HTTIhCp_RyzaWdDL6S9aHxhdyjHswS6eIvMDku_6AEIFwH32vVLhkVyhczr4R5tg2/s1920/cruella_intentions_pic.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUZnDeFXIrNYqghSdXU9d-Los-bUuGCY6UCEWatN_U9Qlj2uzQKbbZ471GvrkC_UuQ81ejrQHkoS-HTTIhCp_RyzaWdDL6S9aHxhdyjHswS6eIvMDku_6AEIFwH32vVLhkVyhczr4R5tg2/w640-h360/cruella_intentions_pic.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />The trailer for the new Disney live-action film <i>Cruella </i>dropped last week. While similarities between <i>Cruella</i> and <i>Joke</i>r have already been <b><a href="https://twitter.com/MattHighton/status/1362356277825986565" target="_blank">highlighted</a></b>, I thought about another twisted cinematic possibility: what if poor Cruella's traumatic roots could be blamed on <b>Ryan Phillippe</b>?<p></p><p>Picture the plot of the 1999 teen drama <i>Cruel Intentions </i>but instead of Phillippe's character seducing an unsuspecting <b>Reese Witherspoon</b> it turned out to be a young <b>Cruella de Vil</b> (<b>Emma Stone</b>)...who would eventually turn the tables on everyone and light this bitch up!</p><p>Check out my mashup trailer, <i>Cruella Intentions</i>!</p>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/516577823" width="640"></iframe></div>Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-82823915641572338762020-12-31T19:35:00.007-06:002020-12-31T19:53:13.982-06:00Top 20 Films of 2020<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxuXLEnElFIyymjd1f3nzKeEJaSOAtIpiwi-cIyoCQCo_aqJEEVpqHzR3suGdK8VFX2T4IKgKDutibtkN7gz9trbaBVPDoS6fqR5QYn4PKKHwQknAkiY3I60kRqKpeEWs-AUf-srsU_DYv/s1600/bacurau.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="641" data-original-width="1600" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxuXLEnElFIyymjd1f3nzKeEJaSOAtIpiwi-cIyoCQCo_aqJEEVpqHzR3suGdK8VFX2T4IKgKDutibtkN7gz9trbaBVPDoS6fqR5QYn4PKKHwQknAkiY3I60kRqKpeEWs-AUf-srsU_DYv/w640-h256/bacurau.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>For my previous list, I wrote that 2019 had been a "trying year." If I'd only known what 2020 had in store for everyone. The Coronavirus pandemic has changed the world in so many ways. Including how we watch cinema. Films we would normally seek out on the big screen were first experienced on our living room TV screens. Does that change the value of the content? I don't think so. More so than ever, I found myself devouring cinema at a higher rate. I needed movies to keep me from sinking spiritually. And I'm grateful that they were accessible, albeit on my phone, tablet or TV. <p></p><p>The "cinema" lives on.</p><p><u>Honorable mentions</u>: <i>Corpus Christi</i>, <i>The Trip To Greece</i>, <i>Capone, Never Rarely Sometimes Always, Let Him Go, Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado, His House, A White, White Day, Young Ahmed, The Way Back, The Trial of the Chicago 7, The Invisible Man, Greyhound, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime for Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, Beanpole, Totally Under Control, I’m Thinking of Ending Things, The Personal History of David Copperfield, The King of Staten Island, Greed, </i>and<i> Wasp Network</i>.</p><p>1. <i>Bacurau </i>Directed by <b>Juliano Dornelles and Kleber Mendonça Filho</b></p><p>2. <i>Sorry We Missed You</i> Directed by <b>Ken Loach</b></p><p>3. <i>Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets</i> Directed by <b>Bill Ross IV and Turner Ross</b></p><p>4. <i>Driveways</i> Directed by <b>Andrew Ahn</b></p><p>5. <i>The Last Dance</i> Directed by <b>Jason Hehir</b></p><p>6. <i>Martin Eden</i> Directed by <b>Pietro Marcello</b></p><p>7. <i>Da 5 Bloods</i> Directed by <b>Spike Lee</b></p><p>8. <i>Another Round</i> Directed by <b>Thomas Vinterberg</b></p><p>9. <i>Soul</i> Directed by <b>Pete Docter and Kemp Powers</b></p><p>10. <i>The Vast of Night </i>Directed by<b> Andrew Patterson</b></p><p>11. <i>Sound of Metal</i> Directed by <b>Darius Marder</b></p><p>12.<i> First Cow </i>Directed by <b>Kelly Reichardt</b></p><p>13. <i>Small Axe: Lovers Rock </i>Directed by <b>Steve McQueen</b></p><p>14.<i> Tesla</i> Directed by <b>Michael Almereyda</b></p><p>15. <i>Ema</i> Directed by <b>Pablo Larraín</b></p><p>16.<i> Portrait of a Lady</i> <i>on Fire</i> Directed by<b> Céline Sciamma</b></p><p>17. <i>Uncle Frank </i>Directed by<b> Alan Ball</b></p><p>18.<i> Let Them All Talk</i> Directed by <b>Steven Soderbergh</b></p><p>19. <i>The Nest </i>Directed by <b>Sean Durkin</b></p><p>20. <i>I’m No Longer Here </i>Directed by <b>Fernando Frias</b></p>Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-154183322143973052020-10-15T01:42:00.008-05:002020-10-15T10:24:33.897-05:00Watch: "If Pride Rock Could Talk" (Mashup trailer of "The Lion King" and "If Beale Street Could Talk")<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2z_zkTSu4Fu_BnzBH3P_bgkd54nayeawvKyW_mrqgnqqY3utMUlza6UNkfRVTKZhzY0T1Yeuu85EDZiqupM0bHDRT0qkT5UJlSTTHGEIm7q71OBZcy3i00a2mvAfBIhqOdG7vER3EeSxP/s1920/priderockheader+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2z_zkTSu4Fu_BnzBH3P_bgkd54nayeawvKyW_mrqgnqqY3utMUlza6UNkfRVTKZhzY0T1Yeuu85EDZiqupM0bHDRT0qkT5UJlSTTHGEIm7q71OBZcy3i00a2mvAfBIhqOdG7vER3EeSxP/w640-h360/priderockheader+copy.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">When the <b><a href="https://deadline.com/2020/09/the-lion-king-sequel-barry-jenkins-moonlight-director-disney-1234586787/" target="_blank">news broke</a></b> that <b>Barry Jenkins</b> was going to direct the sequel to <i>The Lion King</i> (2019) for Disney, I have to admit I was a bit blindsided. Jenkins, whose <i>Moonlight </i>won the Best Picture Oscar, was far from the studio hires I would expect from Disney. But then I started to look on the bright side for Barry: our guy is going to GET. PAID.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">And now that some weeks have passed, I'm starting to wonder what a Barry Jenkins-Disney-photo-realistic film would actually *feel* like. Jenkins, a filmmaker of such tenderness, is sure to inject his DNA into this studio tentpole film...but how? </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I created this mashup trailer as a sort of vision board for <i>The Lion King 2</i>. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Here is <i>If Pride Rock Could Talk</i>.</div><p></p>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/468432400" width="640"></iframe></div>Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-42123835410958183472020-08-27T23:16:00.005-05:002020-08-27T23:19:21.620-05:00Watch: GOOD TIME BATMAN (Mashup trailer of GOOD TIME and THE BATMAN)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIXwSdRyRpNvJXTdFIVTK2dbxah4uUHk6p9fLBwcCGUJfO5FzqakoccIpF4sHwEqqj3dJuMGutLHSaEPmyFmiwdyleYIUGZLROBHVCthUB4TMwxh0n1Z8OdH9mabGg26kGsiZCV4qzEVIn/s1417/GOOD+TIME+BATMAN.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="538" data-original-width="1417" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIXwSdRyRpNvJXTdFIVTK2dbxah4uUHk6p9fLBwcCGUJfO5FzqakoccIpF4sHwEqqj3dJuMGutLHSaEPmyFmiwdyleYIUGZLROBHVCthUB4TMwxh0n1Z8OdH9mabGg26kGsiZCV4qzEVIn/s640/GOOD+TIME+BATMAN.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><b>Robert Pattinson</b> certainly has pivoted his acting career in the most prolific and profound way. Who would've thought the guy from <i>Twilight </i>would work with the likes of Cronenberg, Denis and Gray in just a handful of years?<p></p><p>I thought Pattinson deserved an Oscar nomination for his high-octane performance in the <b>Safdie Brothers'</b> masterpiece <i>Good Time</i>. In fact, <i>Good Time</i> was the first film reference that popped into my head while watching the new trailer for <b>Matt Reeves</b>' <i>The Batman</i> (which Pattinson also stars in). There's a shot of his Bruce Wayne looking pensively near the edges of the screen at one point. That shot reminded me of Pattinson's character Connie in <i>Good Time</i>. Then my imagination took over and I wondered about a cinematic universe where maybe Connie was the estranged twin brother of Batman. And maybe Batman needed help. And maybe Connie was the only person who could go the extra mile.</p><p>So I made GOOD TIME BATMAN. </p>
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/452439182" width="640"></iframe></div>Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-73510187737833281412020-01-07T16:51:00.001-06:002020-01-09T12:30:52.353-06:00The 35 Best Films of 2019<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBvS5kQNwRfnmfGLIsB_mnKZRa0i-PlaSOKOeWkEVxzAntnnRi4jRFgmyj_t8JoYlX-M1Xw6dhCeOX7Ohf6T4ikAwu4yVzAWcIOb3uRn3Zl3HOgS8NhvvN2U4LIxUejTww0F-JZUPsAuLr/s1600/pain-and-glory-trailer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBvS5kQNwRfnmfGLIsB_mnKZRa0i-PlaSOKOeWkEVxzAntnnRi4jRFgmyj_t8JoYlX-M1Xw6dhCeOX7Ohf6T4ikAwu4yVzAWcIOb3uRn3Zl3HOgS8NhvvN2U4LIxUejTww0F-JZUPsAuLr/s640/pain-and-glory-trailer.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">2019 was a trying year. The
movies have always reflected that state of the world, the state of ourselves.
It's no wonder that some of the year's finest films (<i>A Hidden Life</i>, <i>Waves</i>, <i>One
Child Nation</i>) deal with trauma through acts of forgiveness. This isn't a
rah-rah moment for the world. We are hurting. But through these gestures of
introspection and attempting to understand what could manifest such negativity
in our lives, we become a new kind of strength.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The cinema, once again, invigorates us.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">35. </span><i style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Atlantics</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> Directed
by </span><b style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Mati Diop</b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<o:p></o:p><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">34. <i>The
Two Popes </i>Directed by <b>Fernando Meirelles</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">33. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Souvenir</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Joanna
Hogg</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">32. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Report</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Scott Z.
Burns</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">31. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Pain and Glory</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Pedro
Almodóvar</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">30. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">High Flying Bird</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Steven
Soderbergh</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">29. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">American Factory</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Steven
Bognar </b>and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Julia Reichert</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">28. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Little Women</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Greta
Gerwig</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">27. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Toy Story 4 </i>Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Josh
Cooley</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">26. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Diane</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Kent Jones</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">25. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Us</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Jordan
Peele</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">24. <i>Ad Astra</i> Directed
by <b>James Gray</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">23. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Parasite</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Bong
Joon-ho</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">22. <i><o:p></o:p>The
King</i> Directed by David <b>David Michôd</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">21. <i>The Nightingale</i> Directed
by <b>Jennifer Kent</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<o:p></o:p><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">20. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Jojo Rabbit</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Taika
Waititi</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">19. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ford v Ferrari </i>Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">James
Mangold</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">18. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">One Child Nation</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Nanfu
Wang </b>and<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> Zhang
Lynn</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">17. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Dark Waters</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Todd
Haynes</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">16. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Mike Wallace Is Here</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Avi Belkin</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">15. <i>Birds of Passage</i> Directed
by <b>Cristina Gallego </b>and<b> Ciro Guerra</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">14. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Marriage Story</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Noah
Baumbach</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">13. <i>Climax</i> Directed
by <b>Gaspar Noé</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">12. Joker </span></i><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Directed
by<b> Todd Phillips</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">11. <i>Dragged Across
Concrete</i> Directed by <b>S. Craig Zahler</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">10. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Transit </i>Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Christian
Petzold</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">9. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Waves</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Trey
Edward Shults</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">8. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Farewell</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Lulu Wang</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">7. Once Upon A Time In...Hollywood</span></i><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> Directed
by <b>Quentin Tarantino</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">6. <i>Uncut Gems</i> Directed
by <b>The Safdie Brothers</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">5. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Irishman</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Martin
Scorsese</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">4. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Image Book</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Jean-Luc
Godard</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">3. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1917</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Sam Mendes</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">2. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Honeyland</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Tamara
Kotevska </b>and<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> Ljubomir
Stefanov</b><o:p></o:p></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">1. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Hidden Life</i> Directed
by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Terrence
Malick</b></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixIT1TscqfBsVcnTlcrPoOkK2aFQDfGnAKVGugehkjoI9GliOq2TJHG1nYBYDNGOgyo0p8bdn_vNVjbYEWLHIfrzvGBYRL24-5sjUR3H_h7UtmTPVTVVnzQnBXaqdYH7bHPA-HummA2hFD/s1600/Hidden+Life+pic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixIT1TscqfBsVcnTlcrPoOkK2aFQDfGnAKVGugehkjoI9GliOq2TJHG1nYBYDNGOgyo0p8bdn_vNVjbYEWLHIfrzvGBYRL24-5sjUR3H_h7UtmTPVTVVnzQnBXaqdYH7bHPA-HummA2hFD/s640/Hidden+Life+pic.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-75722291763633720932019-11-27T17:14:00.002-06:002019-11-27T18:48:38.680-06:00VIDEO ESSAY: Scorsese's Second Take<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Martin Scorsese</b>'s new film <i>The Irishman</i>, which makes its streaming debut today on <b>Netflix</b>, is another landmark achievement from one of the world's greatest filmmakers. The film is also a reckoning for Mr. Scorsese.<br />
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The fact that <i>The Irishman</i> opens up with a long tracking shot (photographed by <b>Rodrigo Prieto</b>) is a deliberate nod to Scorsese's -- arguably -- most famous sequence: the long tracking shot into the Copacabana from <i>Goodfellas</i> (photographed by the late <b>Michael Ballhaus</b>). Nearly 30 years after that shot first dazzled audiences, Scorsese looks to be making an amendment to his visual thesis. Gone is the glory and glamour from the <i>Goodfellas</i> days. In <i>The Irishman</i>, melancholy oozes from the edges of the frame. Right out of the gate, we're introduced to the end of the road: a senior home where mob hitman Frank Sheeran (<b>Robert De Niro</b>) sits alone, awaiting his meaningless death.<br />
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When this shot is juxtaposed against the <i>Goodfellas</i> shot showing Henry Hill (<b>Ray Liotta</b>) taking his date Karen (<b>Lorraine Bracco</b>) through the side entrance of the club -- cutting through hallways and a busy kitchen and ultimately wowing her with his insider access and presence in this specific world -- we're seeing the beginning and end of an idea, of a career-spanning genre...of a lifetime even.<br />
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This is why I decided to show both tracking shots in two different contexts. The first section is scored by The Crystals' "Then He Kissed Me" (from <i>Goodfellas</i>) and the second section is scored by The Five Satins' "In The Still Of The Night" (from <i>The Irishman</i>). Watching it the first way, there's jubilance and promise. Watching it the second way, there's...well, you be the judge.<br />
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Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-41318918317915835572019-11-26T11:10:00.002-06:002019-11-26T11:12:57.785-06:00VIDEO ESSAY: Once Upon A Time...In The F.B.I.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Something I tend to do at some point in the evening, whether or not drinks are involved, is to make anyone who is visiting my apartment sit down and watch something I love or find compelling or just want to share because I think it's the most special thing. It could be a whole movie or a short film or a music video. Maybe it's an SNL digital short. Sometimes it could be a video essay I just cut and want some feedback on. The through line is always the same: it's the moving image that I always go back to, wanting to relish in experiencing it with other people.<br />
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In the months since first watching <b>Quentin Tarantino</b>'s <i>Once Upon A Time...In Hollywood</i>, his slow-burning cinematic love letter to Tinseltown in 1968, it's become fact that this movie serves the same purpose for Mr. Tarantino. It's not just a glorious "hangout movie" -- it's a glorious "hangout movie about watching movies -- and TV and commercials and even just listening to the radio." It's a motion picture that swears by Tarantino's most affectionate pieces of pop culture nostalgia from his youth. This is as close to being invited to Tarantino's home and rummaging through his media collection as most viewers will ever get.<br />
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And Tarantino's attention to detail is immaculate. Consider this video essay I just cut. It shows a side-by-side comparison between the original episode of <i>The F.B.I.</i> (which actually aired in November of 1965 -- not in 1968) starring <b>Burt Reynolds</b> and <i>Once Upon A Time</i>'s recreation (with <b>Leonardo DiCaprio</b> in place of Reynolds). There's something extra special about watching the original episode and then hearing Tarantino's screen characters laugh on the soundtrack. It's like two different eras of moving images speaking to one other. The ultimate hangout.<br />
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Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-16039348494200380802019-07-18T19:48:00.000-05:002019-07-19T15:06:18.182-05:00Watch: Gaspar Noe's ENTER THE CATS<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It's been quite the day for trailers. <i>Ad Astra</i>. <i>It Chapter Two</i>. <i>Top Gun: Maverick</i>. But I don't think anyone was REALLY ready for the promised "digital fur technology" of <b>Tom Hooper</b>'s <i>Cats</i>. The <b><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FtSd844cI7U" target="_blank">trailer</a></b> is pure nightmare fuel.<br />
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While watching it, the first thing that struck me was how dark and dreadful the film looked. Like physically and literally. I started thinking about how the film would probably be enjoyable while on some drugs. Then I started fixating on a shot of <b>Idris Elba</b> on top of a multi-colored lit building and the poster for <b>Gaspar Noe</b>'s <i>Enter The Void</i> suddenly popped in my head. And after that, there was no turning back...<br />
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Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-3634219832450319592019-07-18T10:07:00.003-05:002019-07-18T10:57:37.505-05:00Trailer Alert: James Gray's space epic "Ad Astra"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It's no secret that I <b><a href="http://www.freecinemanow.com/2018/02/video-50-best-films-of-2017.html" target="_blank">greatly admire</a></b> <b>James Gray</b>'s <i>The Lost City of Z</i>. So his upcoming operatic space drama <i>Ad Astra</i> has been of great interest to me. While the <b><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6AaSMfXHbA" target="_blank">first trailer</a></b> certainly was intriguing, the second trailer (which <b>20th Century Fox</b> released today) works like gangbusters. Tonally, it fits more in the Gray cinematic canon -- i.e. it's introspective, it has stirring orchestral music and focuses on another father-son dynamic. Think about it. <b>Joaquin Phoenix</b> felt an obligation to do the right thing for his cop father <b>Robert Duvall</b> in <i>We Own The Night</i>. Phoenix also felt an obligation to keep his father's dry cleaning business alive -- and therefore making his social and romantic life impotent -- in <i>Two Lovers</i>. In <i>The Lost City of Z</i>, a final father-son exploration back into South America proves tragic. And now <i>Ad Astra</i> stars <b>Brad Pitt</b> as an astronaut who goes looking for his estranged astronaut father (<b>Tommy Lee Jones</b>) in deep space.<br />
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For me, this trailer gets everything about Gray's cinema just right. It's mysterious, beautiful, dark, surprising and deeply human. <i>Ad Astra</i> also stars <b>Ruth Negga</b>, <b>Liv Tyler</b> and <b>Donald Sutherland</b>.<br />
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Watch out for this one.<br />
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Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-87870024692406543442019-07-02T14:15:00.003-05:002019-07-02T14:27:04.726-05:00#InformedImages: Thom Yorke and Paul Thomas Anderson's "Anima"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b><a href="http://www.freecinemanow.com/search/label/Informed%20Images" target="_blank">#InformedImages</a> is a Free Cinema Now series that studies and brings to light influential films and other examples of moving images that informed and inspired specific visuals in later works.</b><br />
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<b>Paul Thomas Anderson</b> shocked a lot of cinephiles last week when he dropped a new musical short film -- <i>Anima</i> -- on <b>Netflix</b>. <i>Anima </i>is a creative collaboration with <b>Radiohead</b> frontman <b>Thom Yorke</b>; it immediately drew comparisons to <b>Buster Keaton</b> from several film writers. The Keaton comparison is fine and all but it is kind of a lazy summation in my opinion. To me, PTA's <i>Punch-Drunk Love </i>was more of a Buster Keaton homage if anything (just look at the sequence where Adam Sandler runs from the Four Blonde Brothers outside of a 99¢ Only Store).<br />
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I feel that <i>Anima</i> comes from a perfect storm of pretty random inspirations. Among them, some Bergman (<i>Persona</i>) and McQueen (<i>Shame</i>). The centerpiece of <i>Anima</i>, I believe, is a direct offspring of the 1989 Oscar-winning animated short film <i>Balance</i>. This extended sequence has Yorke and several other men in dark clothing try to retain their balance on a constantly shifting platform that hangs in a dark void.<br />
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Take a look at my latest <b>#InformedImages</b> video essay and see for yourself.<br />
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Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-9892634284262558972019-06-24T23:53:00.002-05:002019-06-25T00:19:38.602-05:00Watch: MIDTOYSOMMAR (Trailer mashup of TOY STORY 4 and MIDSOMMAR)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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While watching <b>Josh Cooley</b>'s <i>Toy Story 4 -- </i>perhaps the bleakest entry of the series (and that's not a bad thing) -- I remembered how insanely serious this <b>Pixar</b> flagship really is. I'm not kidding. Remember the theme of mortality during that incinerator scene in <i>Toy Story 3</i>? This is heavy stuff for the targeted children audience. <i>Toy Story 4</i> is no different — but instead of death it looks closely at the next scariest thing: breaking up with someone. In a lot of ways, this is *the* Woody entry in the film series, giving him a complete, fully-focused arc. Woody is poised with the dilemma of having to break up with Bonnie, his kid owner. And the ending is surprising and moving.<br />
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Then, making a complete 180-degree turn is <b>Ari Aster</b>'s upcoming "horror" film <i>Midsommar</i>. I haven't seen <i>Midsommar</i> yet...but I fully intend to, especially since I regard Aster's <i>Hereditary</i> as the best film of 2018. So, as many cinephiles can relate, I've been reading anything and everything about <i>Midsommar</i> in the days leading up to its nearing release date. It turns out, many of the <i>Midsommar</i> reviews reveal it to be a breakup film (much like my interpretation of <i>Toy Story 4</i>). Then I started to consider the festival backdrops for both films (a carnival in <i>Toy Story 4</i> and a summer solstice fest in <i>Midsommar</i>) and before you know it this mashup happened.<br />
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Suffice it to say, I had a lot of fun putting this one together.<br />
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Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-18389868044685517102019-05-08T00:41:00.001-05:002019-05-08T00:42:56.955-05:00Watch: PERFECT PIKACHU (Mashup of "Pokémon Detective Pikachu" and "Perfect")<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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On Tuesday May 7th, <b>Warner Bros.</b> and <b>Ryan Reynolds</b> <b><a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/full-detective-pikachu-movie-appears-youtube-but-a-trick-1208757" target="_blank">trolled the Internet</a></b> by pretending to upload the entire <i>Pokémon Detective Pikachu</i> movie to YouTube, a couple of days before its theatrical release. As I type this, the <b><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAA_yWX8ycQ&feature=youtu.be" target="_blank">YouTube video</a></b> -- which actually shows Pikachu working out to some 80s jazzercise music -- has 1,441,931 views and counting. It's a clever marketing ploy, feeding right into the piracy culture of the interwebs and poking fun at the rick-rolling clickbait urgency. </div>
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Within moments of watching this rick-roll video, I recalled the 1985 romance-fitness club-meet cute that is <i>Perfect</i>, starring <b>John Travolta</b> and <b>Jamie Lee Curtis</b>. Then the idea clicked to replace Curtis with Pikachu and...well...you can just watch for yourself...</div>
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Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-18524076358110097782019-04-11T13:40:00.004-05:002019-04-11T14:10:51.818-05:00#InformedImages: “There Will Be Blood” and “Narcos: Mexico”<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b><a href="http://www.freecinemanow.com/search/label/Informed%20Images" target="_blank">#InformedImages</a> is a Free Cinema Now series that studies and brings to light influential films and other examples of moving images that informed and inspired specific visuals in later works.</b><br />
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I remember the exact the moment it clicked together for me. It was about half an hour into episode 2 (directed by <b>Josef Kubota Wladyka</b>) of <i>Narcos: Mexico</i> on <b>Netflix</b>. The camera crept across the dry, desert landscape toward a hole in the ground, where Rafael Caro Quintero (a.k.a. Rafa, played by <b>Tenoch Huerta Mejía</b>) was digging furiously, in an attempt create a makeshift aqueduct to help grow his field of marijuana. It recalled images from the earlier sections of <b>Paul Thomas Anderson</b>'s masterpiece T<i>here Will Be Blood,</i> when Daniel Plainview (played by <b>Daniel Day-Lewis</b>) was digging for oil underneath the rocky ground. Then, as I continued to watch <i>Narcos: Mexico</i>, a more striking visual parallel to <i>There Will Be Blood</i> began to emerge. For example, as Rafa and his boss Miguel Ángel Félix Gallardo (played by <b>Diego Luna</b>) continued to grow their lucrative weed empire, their operations expanded to communities of workers (as seen by <b>Michael Peña</b>'s character Kiki Camarena in the episode directed by <b>Andrés Baiz</b>); it's similar to Plainview's promise of new communities to his oil workers. By the end of that episode, a common thread between two works was established. The moving images say everything.<br />
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Much like <i>There Will Blood</i>, <i>Narcos: Mexico</i> tells a similar story of being on the frontier of prosperity -- and the dark undercurrents of what happens when greed overshadows ambition and passion. By the time <i>Narcos: Mexico</i> nears its end (in an episode directed by <b>Alonso Ruizpalacios</b>), Gallardo finds himself in similar footing to Plainview, resorting to primal violence to establish dominance and reign (although it's an ashtray in place of a bowling pin). Because of these striking side-by-side moving images, one could see the tragic arc come into form: first there was drive...then discovery...then decadence...and finally downfall.<br />
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Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-47013779329154684752019-04-03T15:25:00.002-05:002019-04-03T17:20:27.765-05:00Watch: THE MASTER JOKER (Trailer mashup of THE MASTER and JOKER)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSp9CxcCv617y-8-cQDpE5uqvfAuWydOYNLerg8uESlZvqZTDZQdLP4KaE_kgzMXFsYm5FouBPLYiORX9XyFmJUVMxBB_nj6UR3IZDpBIPnQgyS6c5rvUlwXpyiYT6o3QvTn4eppvPI-vw/s1600/masterjokercover_FINAL+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSp9CxcCv617y-8-cQDpE5uqvfAuWydOYNLerg8uESlZvqZTDZQdLP4KaE_kgzMXFsYm5FouBPLYiORX9XyFmJUVMxBB_nj6UR3IZDpBIPnQgyS6c5rvUlwXpyiYT6o3QvTn4eppvPI-vw/s640/masterjokercover_FINAL+copy.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
At the end of <b>Paul Thomas Anderson</b>'s 2012 drama <i>The Master,</i> the protagonist -- or antihero? -- Freddie Quell (<b>Joaquin Phoenix</b>), an alcoholic and violent WWII vet who spent most of the film's running time butting heads with his post-war environment, almost seemed to be at ease finally.<br />
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With the first teaser trailer for <b>Todd Phillips</b>' <i>Joker</i> (also starring Phoenix) dropping online today, I couldn't help but draw a new cinematic connection. What my latest mashup trailer suggests is that since the 1950s, Freddie has grown into a new person...Arthur Fleck (a.k.a The Joker) in the 1970s!<br />
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Take a look and put on a happy face.<br />
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Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-30897004851803549552019-02-12T02:12:00.003-06:002019-02-12T02:14:25.986-06:00Watch: A Whole New IT (2019 ALADDIN Mashup Trailer)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSLvu2v7-GrN8A70qhnmlogFcoVolXfw3oBFL8mteuyoVNWLhZyc9_jbZX8WWpGB6M0KJNaJvqH_Uyy4mgu1e9VUwWZj7lDiQFu6uTAnmkWwqTPzZmezLVEqBuYUbgWth01auTRpOzfSij/s1600/lj1aiyr45xf01+copy.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1124" data-original-width="1600" height="448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSLvu2v7-GrN8A70qhnmlogFcoVolXfw3oBFL8mteuyoVNWLhZyc9_jbZX8WWpGB6M0KJNaJvqH_Uyy4mgu1e9VUwWZj7lDiQFu6uTAnmkWwqTPzZmezLVEqBuYUbgWth01auTRpOzfSij/s640/lj1aiyr45xf01+copy.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div>
2019 is proving to be "a whole new world" indeed! This past Sunday night, during a commercial break for the 61st Annual Grammy Awards, <b>Disney</b> dropped a surprise TV spot of their upcoming live-action remake of <i>Aladdin</i>. It gave us our first look at <b>Will Smith</b> as the Genie, a role made legendary by the late <b>Robin Williams</b> in the 1992 animated feature.<br />
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While it's unfair (and definitely too early) to say whether the film -- or Smith's complete performance -- will be a massive failure, it is fair to say that the visual effects rendering of Smith as the larger-than-life blue Genie is anything but impressive. In fact, it's a downright frightening creation. It's crude and looks like a movie meme brought to life.<br />
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After watching this new TV spot several times, I began to draw movie connections and then reimagined <i>Aladdin</i>'s Cave of Wonders as Pennywise the Clown's lair in the 2017 remake of <i>It</i>.<br />
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In short, Will Smith's Genie gave me more goosebumps than the clown.<br />
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Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8483228905284590880.post-82779652258632204822019-02-04T20:24:00.003-06:002019-02-04T20:24:15.751-06:00Finally, The 60 Best Films Of 2018<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrmamJQSNP203xoamHNNJhKC9xX9Ms-f1TZ99k8dGfuoXD6xnbUB1P-Txp5Sj1lf-39Zyjcvb9K86dngOT-fmnCgjcbYBoUZRWTK18uDS9Y1kI8X11lhTcgEauLPstFDgIVAJv3YPGG5Hk/s1600/hereditary.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="815" data-original-width="1600" height="324" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrmamJQSNP203xoamHNNJhKC9xX9Ms-f1TZ99k8dGfuoXD6xnbUB1P-Txp5Sj1lf-39Zyjcvb9K86dngOT-fmnCgjcbYBoUZRWTK18uDS9Y1kI8X11lhTcgEauLPstFDgIVAJv3YPGG5Hk/s640/hereditary.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
Don't @ me.<br />
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<ol>
<li><i>Hereditary</i> Directed by <b>Ari Aster</b></li>
<li><i>Shoplifters</i> Directed by <b>Hirokazu Koreeda</b><div class="MsoNormal">
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</li>
<li><i>BLACKkKLANSMAN</i> Directed by <b>Spike Lee</b></li>
<li><i>Three
Identical Strangers</i> Directed by <b>Tim Wardle</b></li>
<li><i>First Reformed </i>Directed by <b>Paul Schrader</b></li>
<li><i>Capernaum </i>Directed by <b>Nadine Labaki</b></li>
<li><i>Did You Wonder Who Fired The Gun? </i>Directed by <b>Travis Wilkerson</b></li>
<li><i>24 Frames </i>Directed by <b>Abbas Kiarostami</b></li>
<li><i>The Rider </i>Directed by <b>Chloé Zhao</b><div class="MsoNormal">
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</li>
<li><i>Annihilation </i>Directed by <b>Alex Garland</b></li>
<li><i>Happy As Lazzaro </i>Directed by <b>Alice Rohrwacher</b></li>
<li><i>You Were Never Really Here </i>Directed by <b>Lynne Ramsay</b></li>
<li><i>Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse </i>Directed by <b>Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey & Rodney Rothman</b><div class="MsoNormal">
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</li>
<li><i>Widows </i>Directed by <b>Steve McQueen</b></li>
<li><i>Don’t Worry He Won’t Get Far On Foot </i>Directed by <b>Gus Van Sant</b></li>
<li><i>Mission: Impossible - Fallout </i>Directed by <b>Christopher McQuarrie</b></li>
<li><i>White Boy Rick </i>Directed by <b>Yann Demange</b></li>
<li><i>Wildlife </i>Directed by <b>Paul Dano</b></li>
<li><i>Unsane </i>Directed by <b>Steven Soderbergh</b></li>
<li><i>Roma </i>Directed by <b>Alfonso Cuarón</b><div class="MsoNormal">
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</li>
<li><i>Blaze </i>Directed by <b>Ethan Hawke</b></li>
<li><i>If
Beale Street Could Talk </i>Directed by <b>Barry Jenkins</b></li>
<li><i>Últimos Días En La Habana </i>Directed by <b>Fernando Pérez</b><div class="MsoNormal">
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</li>
<li><i>Private Life </i>Directed by <b>Tamara Jenkins</b></li>
<li><i>Green Book </i>Directed by <b>Peter Farrelly</b></li>
<li><i>At
Eternity’s Gate </i>Directed by <b>Julian Schnabel</b></li>
<li><i>The Sisters Brothers </i>Directed by <b>Jacques Audiard</b></li>
<li><i>Leave No Trace </i>Directed by <b>Debra Granik</b></li>
<li><i>First Man </i>Directed by <b>Damien Chazelle</b></li>
<li><i>A Futile and
Stupid Gesture </i>Directed by<b> David Wain</b></li>
<li><i>The Ballad of Buster Scruggs </i>Directed by <b>Joel and Ethan Coen</b></li>
<li><i>Can You Ever Forgive Me? </i>Directed by <b>Marielle Heller</b></li>
<li><i>The
Favourite </i>Directed by <b>Yorgos Lanthimos</b></li>
<li><i>Minding The Gap </i>Directed by <b>Bing Liu</b></li>
<li><i>A Fantastic Woman </i>Directed by <b>Sebastián Lelio</b><div class="MsoNormal">
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</li>
<li><i>Loveless </i>Directed by <b>Andrey Zvyagintsev</b><div class="MsoNormal">
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</li>
<li><i>Searching </i>Directed by <b>Aneesh Chaganty</b></li>
<li><i>Cold War </i>Directed by <b>Pawel Pawlikowski</b></li>
<li><i>Won’t
You Be My Neighbor? </i>Directed by <b>Morgan Neville</b></li>
<li><i>Eighth Grade </i>Directed by <b>Bo Burnham</b></li>
<li><i>The Old Man & The Gun </i>Directed by <b>David Lowery </b></li>
<li><i>Borg vs. McEnroe </i>Directed by <b>Janus Metz</b></li>
<li><i>Paddington 2 </i>Directed by <b>Paul King</b></li>
<li><i>The Wife </i>Directed by <b>Björn Runge</b><div class="MsoNormal">
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</li>
<li><i>Lean on Pete </i>Directed by <b>Andrew Haigh</b></li>
<li><i>Blindspotting </i>Directed by <b>Carlos López Estrada</b><div class="MsoNormal">
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<li><i>Tigers Are Not Afraid </i>Directed by <b>Issa López</b><div class="MsoNormal">
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</li>
<li><i>22 July </i>Directed by <b>Paul Greengrass</b></li>
<li><i>The Mule </i>Directed by <b>Clint Eastwood</b></li>
<li><i>A Star Is Born </i>Directed by <b>Bradley Cooper</b></li>
<li><i>Bird Box </i>Directed by <b>Susanne Bier</b></li>
<li><i>The Death of Stalin </i>Directed by <b>Armando Iannucci</b></li>
<li><i>The Land of Steady Habits </i>Directed by <b>Nicole Holofcener</b></li>
<li><i>Game Night </i>Directed by<b> John Francis Daley & Jonathan Goldstein</b><div class="MsoNormal">
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</li>
<li><i>Shirkers </i>Directed by <b>Sandi Tan</b></li>
<li><i>Let The Sunshine In </i>Directed by <b>Claire Denis</b></li>
<li><i>Sorry To Bother You </i>Directed by <b>Boots Riley</b></li>
<li><i>Ralph Breaks The
Internet </i>Directed by <b>Phil Johnston & Rich Moore</b></li>
<li><i>Colette </i>Directed by <b>Wash Westmoreland</b></li>
<li><i>Boy Erased </i>Directed by <b>Joel Edgerton</b></li>
</ol>
Nelson Carvajalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03917462118247019339noreply@blogger.com0