mm has written 129 reviews for films during 2020.

  • Devs

    Devs

    ★★

    I polished off the last 5 episodes last night and..... meh.

    Devs does a lot of things right, but unfortunately the things it does wrong (1 specific thing) are placed front and center. 

    The One Thing is that I just did not know what to make of Sonoya Mizuno’s acting choices or direction. Her Shatner-like line delivery and often vacant expressions flat out did not engage me as a viewer. Even at the end when shit goes down, she has hardly…

  • Hillary

    Hillary

    ★★★½

    Looking at the review spread for this one, it’s obvious that people’s opinions of Hillary are influencing their opinion of the documentary. Is that fair? Probably, because I certainly left this with the feeling that HRC was telling her story more than people were telling a story about her.

    My opinion of Hillary? Mixed. From a politcal point of view, I’m a pretty staunch Democratic Socialist, and 2 of my last three votes for executive office are for Bernie Sanders.…

  • Hamlet

    Hamlet

    ★★★★

    1 star per hour!

    It took me three nights to finish this, and it was well worth the investment. Hamlet is a visually impressive, impeccably performed experiment that succeeds bringing one of Billy Shakes most known works to film without a single line out of place.

    Loved it!

  • The Irishman

    The Irishman

    ★★★★★

    Criterion Collection.

    Now that it’s out on Criterion, I’ll take a break from this. I want to really build the anticipation before I watch it again in a few years, since I can already recite some scenes from memory lol.

    Any clumsiness you can attribute to the first couple thirds, whether it be youthifying, the actors playing younger than they are, whatever, is overshadowed by that last hour.

    That last damn hour. Good lord. I love it as your basic,…

  • The Irishman

    The Irishman

    ★★★★★

    I Heard You Paint Houses

    Well, it's official. I've spent a day of my life watching this, my (still can't believe I'm saying this) favorite movie of all time. I've written and talked about it a lot already, but for this entry, I want to hone in on the four things that make this so special to me.

    The Performances
    De Niro. Pesci. Pacino. 3 names that will never be forgotten as long as movies are made or even thought…

  • The Irishman

    The Irishman

    ★★★★★

    First movie of the year. First movie of the decade. First movie of the life, really.

    I honestly never thought something could challenge JFK as my favorite movie, but here we are.

    It’s what it is.

  • The Godfather Part II

    The Godfather Part II

    ★★★★★

    “Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners.”

    Michael Corleone pulls the world down around him. No one is safe from his rage.

    The Godfather Part II walked so Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again could run.

    P.S. The flashbacks rule. I’m just an idiot.

  • Malcolm X

    Malcolm X

    ★★★★½

    This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.

    I’ve been doing a lot of self-reflection, research, and setting up more monthly contributions to social justice organizations today. 

    So it made sense to cap it off with a portrait of a political figure that I must admit I knew a superficial amount of information about. A combination of the blame for that goes to a meh high school history curriculum (more analysis, less date/name memorization!!) as well as my own laziness.

    The ethical clash between King and X (who…

  • The Godfather Part II

    The Godfather Part II

    ★★★★★

    Long movies are the best movies.

    Things really fell into place with this latest viewing of Godfather: Part II. Yes, even the flashbacks I was meh on before have grown on me. Exponentially in fact.

    Literally the only fault I can find is the cut between the abortion scene and Vito arriving back in his hometown. It’s awkward to say the least.

    Everything else is simply some of the best filmmaking we’ve ever seen. This movie expands the scope of…

  • Avengers: Endgame

    Avengers: Endgame

    ★★★★

    NOTES REVIEW:
    - Clint’s sons put mayo on their hot dogs. They got what they deserved.

    - Really dig this low key opening of Tony and what’s her face hanging out, waiting to die.

    - “I dream about you. Cuz it’s always you.” Killer line delivery. Downey needs to get some serious dramatic roles now that he’s done with the MCU. Dude’s got chops.

    - “I lost the kid.” Jesus Christ, Downey.

    - I love how emaciated they made Stark.…

  • The Godfather

    The Godfather

    ★★★★★

    Watched as a lead up to Coppola’s new cut of III (which @mods should be on LB) and damn, what a picture.

    I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: absolutely nothing beats a death montage.

  • Interstellar

    Interstellar

    ★★★★★

    My first time seeing this in theaters since November 2014. 

    Man, what a powerful film. The kind of power that reminds me why I love movies in the first place.

    There’s a chance down the line (especially if I have kids) where this leapfrogs The Dark Knight as my favorite Nolan. (Edit: 8/30, it is now)

    Not loving this movie is baffling to me.

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