Black Phone

A superb, anxiety-inducing horror/supernatural thriller by Scott Derrickson, based off a Joe Hill short story, with great performances by the two child leads - Mason Thames and Madeleine McGraw - and a scarily unhinged Ethan Hawke.

Heavier on the psychological suspense than true scary horror, the film took its time to establish its premise in the first act, but things got moving and the adrenaline started pumping once we hit the second act, and - boy oh boy! - the third act was just a non-stop, heart racing, pearls-clutching, twisty-bendy ride that led to, most importantly, a satisfying conclusion.

There were only one or two really good scares, but Derrickson had crafted an atmosphere that kept you engaged and almost constantly on the edge of your seats, and those good scares really earned their moments.

The screenplay was co-written by Derrickson and his frequent collaborator, C. Robert Cargill, and was unfortunately peppered with clunkers that was only saved by the actors’ delivery and Derrickson’s direction. Luckily, Hill’s story provided the backbone for the film and the premise itself was interesting enough to support the narrative through its 103 minutes runtime despite some of the unevenness. The atmospheric score by Mark Korven helped too.

Hawke was the biggest named star of the film and he reunites with Derrickson to create a psychotic villain that was creepy and unnerving and just evil. Although almost always hidden by a mask - a great and equally creepy mask! - Hawke still managed to exude an utterly menacing and terrifying presence through his speech, eyes and mannerisms. He was, at times, reminiscent of Tim Curry’s Pennywise. Especially with those damn balloons.

A brilliant theatrical experience with potential for a sequel, and for once, I might actually look forward to what could be next if it follows the two children. 

Empire of Light

Not even another brilliant performance by Olivia Colman - with one absolutely phenomenal scene at the end of the second act - and gorgeous cinematography by Roger Deakins - which, in all honesty, though beautiful may not really be his best work,  or Oscar-worthy - could save this very basic and uninspiring film. 

Written and directed by Sam Mendes, this film, for all its ambition, simply lacked depth and nuance. Mendes may not have been the best choice to tell a story about woman with mental health issues (?bipolar) or racism. In both cases, the rendering was superficial and slight, routine and insincere; most egregiously, the emotional beats were terribly manipulative and not earned at all. This was truly despite Colman giving a great performance and newcomer Micheal Ward in a potentially star-making turn. 

Colman's face was just a miracle of micro-expressions. She is capable of having so much emotions just dance and play across her face at any one time. It truly was a marvel. Even when she is still, her eyes and those micro-expressions just never stop. Shame she was let down by Mendes in one of his most middling scripts.

Ward was an interesting revelation and his chemistry with Colman was strong. He has the potential to go far in this industry.

Toby Jones was the other standout and his little moments were delightful. Colin Firth, not so much. What a waste of an actor.

Deakins' cinematography was gorgeous as always. Both his night-time outdoor captures and those indoor ones within the Empire Cinema and Colman's character's private space were beautifully lit and intimately captured. However, his Oscar slot might have been better served if it went to Hoyte van Hoytema for Nope, Janusz Kaminski for The Fabelmans or Claudio Miranda for Top Gun: Maverick.

Music was by Trent Raznor and Atticus Ross, and the piano-heavy score was lilting and fitting but also, unfortunately, unremarkable and un-memorable.

Empire of Light was an obvious Oscar-bait, but Mendes should have kept the story simpler and used the wonder of films as a more consistent through-line and a secondary plot that perhaps he was more personally in-tune with

Babylon

Without the heavy expectations of Oscars hanging over it, Damien Chazelle’s decadent, hedonistic depiction of early Hollywood, and inadvertently another love letter to the magic and wonder of movies and movie-making, was actually fairly entertaining albeit overly long at just over 3 hours. 

The end result were three storylines that were all underserved, unfocused and hollow, a waste of all three stars - Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie and an underrated Diego Calva - with the best moments actually being the scenes where Justin Hurwitz’s excellent, jazzy-focused, Oscar-nominated score, and Linus Sandgren’s brilliant but un-nominated camera work, took centre stage. 

That opening sequence and the second scene that followed were major highlights that set the bar so high that unfortunately Chazelle was unable to meet again … until the final - albeit very self-indulgent and unnecessary - final scene. 

Chazelle simply tried to tell too much and wanted to make too many points in this film, and it would have been better storytelling if he had focused on just one of the three storylines: the silent movie superstar trying to transit to talkies (Pitt in a fun, self-deprecating yet ultimately self-conscious role), the ride and fall of a starlet who buckles societal conventions but end up buckling under it all (Robbie in a role that was perpetually at a 10 even if the scene did not require even a 5, who perhaps Chazelle needed to exercise more restrain and nuances over her character), and the supposed audience surrogate, an immigrant who rose within the ranks of Hollywood studios (a charming Calva, reminiscent of a young Antonio Banderas, who nailed the wide eyed wonderment but not so much the frantic energy of a power studio executive). 

If he has really wanted to explore all that, Chazelle would have been better expanding “Babylon” into a mini series which would have allowed these three characters and all the side characters to breathe and develop and seemed more human and relatable. 

Of the supporting cast, Jean Smart had one terrific, Oscar worthy scene. Both Li Jun Li’s and Jovan Adepo’s storylines were shoehorned in and wasted. In a series, they could have easily been one whole episode to themselves to show depth and layers, but here they were seemed performative, painted in broad strokes simply for inclusivity: Asian, Black and Queer. Chazelle had no business in telling those stories or at least he was no equipped to be the person to tell those stories. 

In that sense, Steven Spielberg’s “The Fabelmans” was a cleaner, more direct and accessible, and more emotionally resonant movie about the magic and wonder of movies than “Babylon”. 

The best aspect of the film was truly Hurwitz’s score. Even just closing the eyes and listening to the score for that three hours may have been a better overall experience. Although Hurtwitz really ought to reduce his derivations of his own Oscar-winning “La La Land” score. 

Sandgren’s cinematography was also excellent with a lot of interesting camera movement and angles. Many long shots that were immersive, dynamic and entertaining. Pity he was not nominated, though not sure who from this year’s list he should replaced. 

Just for the first 30 minutes itself, “Babylon” should be watched on a big screen. It had so much potential but Chazelle just could not streamline his vision to tell a focused story. 

The Whale

The Whale was a superficial film that thinks it is trying to say something deep and empathetic about how humans treat each other, but instead, Darren Aronofosky's vision came off as tone-deaf, unempathetic, one-sided and base, with an extremely manipulative third act climax that tried to erase all that had happened prior with a committed and showy - and honestly, unexpectedly sincere and forceful - performance from Brendan Fraser. 

That said, Fraser's role may be the loudest and showiest, and he is for sure the front-runner for the Best Actor Oscar for his transformative role - his comeback narrative and unexpected depth of performance definitely help in that regard too - but it was not the best acting from the cast. 

Before him, we had Samantha Morton, who like her turn in She Said, truly was a force of nature in her single scene. She came in and immediately stole the spotlight and attention from Fraser, and then...exit stage right. 

However, right at the top of the pack, was Hong Chau. She was incredible. She was magnetic and attention-grabbing without all the prosthetics and fat-suit; sincere and honest without the histrionics; a quiet, nuanced and highly engaging supporting performance that absolutely deserved recognition...and a win! Move aside Jamie Lee Curtis and Stephanie Hsu, the Oscar race should be Chau vs Angela Bassett with Kerry Condon as the dark horse.

This film was written by Samuel D. Hunter based off his own 2012 play, and this was another example of a stage-to-screen adaptation that perhaps should have been left on the stage. 

Aronofsky's direction did it no favour as the whole film was essentially filmed on one set/location but yet it lacked the kinetic energy and immediacy of a stage performance. And also the intimacy. Further, his direction and Matthew Libatique's cinematography added to the pervading voyeurism of spectacle of Fraser's character's morbid obesity and binge eating. There were no empathy - or sympathy - to the lensing, instead what was offered up were cheap, immediate, visceral elicitation of disgust. 

That brings us to the basic narrative of the storytelling. Everything on screen was superficial and one-dimensional and expository. These characters, beyond the dynamic portrayals by Chau and Morton, were cliched and eye-rolling inducing. The younger cast, Sadie Sink and Ty Simpkins, suffered the most from this as they tried to mine their characters for some depth which only showed in their one small scene together that did not somehow involve Fraser. 

And then Aronofsky tried to salvage it all by having an explosive final act. Sure, that final act was a showcase for Chau, Morton and Fraser (and Sink - but not really), but the film really went all out with the emotional manipulation with the score by Rob Simonsen doing all the hard work to play and guide - more like drag - our emotions along until the face-palm moment of the closing seconds.

Maybe stick to this being a stage production.

Like I mentioned in the beginning, Aronofsky and Hunter thought they were trying to say something deep and profound about human behaviour, and maybe Hunter did in his original play, but on screen it was just a shallow wade in the baby pool. 

Avatar: The Way of Water [IMAX 3D]

James Cameron has gone and done it again!! That was an absolute, mind-blowing, utterly immersive,  cinematic experience like no other. It was exactly how I felt when I first watched Avatar the first time. This was what IMAX 3D is made for! There is totally no other way that this film should be enjoyed: on the big screen, in 3D. IMAX will really show off the scope and the scenes filmed in 48fps. 

Cameron has just propelled himself to the front of the Best Director race. This film is also now, without a doubt, a Best Picture nominee. Even if there were only five nominees, instead of ten, this would be in the race. It also has served notice to Tom Cruise's Top Gun: Maverick as the number one popcorn blockbuster for 2022.

Seriously, Namor and Talocan has nothing - absolutely nothing! - on the Metakayina and Pandora! The visual effects team are a shoo-in for the Oscar. Simply stunning and groundbreaking and mesmerising. All divers will totally get it. The underwater world has never been defined, enhanced, souped-up as realistic as this. The ocean battle was nail-bitingly epic!

As for the story itself, to be honest, we were not really here for that. There was nothing special or groundbreaking about the plot. Every single plot point and "twist" was telegraphed and predictable. But yet, Cameron still managed to have us by the leash as we followed through the simple - really basic - storyline for 3 whole hours. Why? Because the world that he has created was simply amazing and he just immersed us fully into this hyper-realistic, alien world that is being threatened by evil humans (read: White Capitalists)

And boy, these humans are vile and disgusting!

In a clearly demarcated case of good vs evil, it was easy for the audience to root for the Na'vi, but simply just that could be a bit too boring, so Cameron et al wove in some mystic elements, familial drama, internal conflicts, a bit of love and romance, and of course eco-conservatism. 

As for the acting, the performance capture was flawless but only Zoe Saldaña stood out. Sigourney Weaver was a tad distracting and Kate Winslet did not get much to do. Sam Worthington's character had less of an arc this time round, and Stephen Lang chewed his scenes up! The young stars, as the next generation, were really front and center, and they could have had a bit too much teenage angst. 

Then again, nothing could have overshadowed the visual effects and directing.

Undoubtedly, Avatar: TWOW will also scoop up almost every single technical Oscar nomination: Sound (Editing and Mixing) was incredible; Production Design was unbelievable; Editing was essential in the storytelling; Score was by Simon Franglen and it really befitted the film; and Cinematography by Russell Carpenter was just gorgeous and sublime!

Also, please give it up to the fantastic stunt team!! The underrated and undersung heroes of this film (and many others!!)

Avatar: TWOW has done - again - for cinema what Avatar did. It broke cinematic and technical barriers and reset the bar to a higher level.

I think I might just go watch it again! In IMAX 3D!

Bones and All

Through its meandering, and unnecessarily long 130 minutes run time, there were flashes of Romantic poetry and European/Italian romance, but those cinematic beauty were lost amidst a story that tried to do -and tell - too much. 

At its core, Luca Guadagnino's latest Silver Lion-winning film was a teenage love story with a cannibalistic horror bend, and yet he and screenwriter David Kajganich had to squeeze in elements of a horror comedy,  road trip buddy movie, coming-of-age story, all the while whilst trying to build up an urban fantasy myth and backstory. And lest not we forget the familiar strains of family drama and psychological crime thriller. Cutting out three or four of these strands and focusing on a simpler story would have made this film so much stronger.

This thread of young love was previously last explored by Guadagnino in his awards-winning Call Me By Your Name and the subliminally underrated series We Are Who We Are. So we know he has the chops to tenderly navigate the emotionally choppy waters of first/young love. 

And again, he had two great stars - Taylor Russell was charismatic and magnetic and definitely an actress to keep an eye out on, and Chalamet has already proven his chops (although to be honest, he has yet to really establish himself as an actor-actor). But where Guadagnino failed in this case was that firstly, their chemistry was fluctuating and at times absent; secondly, Guadagnino obviously favoured Chalamet who, perhaps unfairly and unconsciously, outshone Russell in a film that was ostensibly her story; and lastly, just not enough time was spent exploring their relationship to each other.

Hey, but at least we had Mark Rylance who dialled the creep-o-meter up to 12 and a creepily fascinating Michael Stuhlbarg in an entirely unnecessary scene of lore building that had no genuine pay off. And of course an almost unrecognisable Chloe Sevigny in an extended cameo as she waits for her next big thing.

The score was by Trent Reznor and Atticus Rose, and for once I struggle to remember any significant/memorable moment from it; cinematography was by Arseni Khachaturan and there were some beautiful lit scenes especially those in the golden/blue hours.

Bones and All will get some indie-awards love, but it will be a long shot for any Oscar glory. I would rather watch all 8 hours of We Are Who We Are again. 

Aftersun

A fantastic film! Easily one of the best films of the year!

Intelligently written and confidently directed by first-time filmmaker Charlotte Wells. Aftersun was an gently told but profoundly affecting story told in the fragmentary kaleidoscopic-like of memory recollection. The last 5-10 minutes were a tour de force of experiential storytelling, packing an emotional wallop without the sledgehammer and drama. Tears were freely wept.

The lean 109 minutes film was a visual and visceral experience of walking through one's mind palace through the fog and haziness of years. Wells had successfully captured through an unique cinematic language, the pain of memory and trying to capture what was lost and whether it had ever been found/had. The film continued to haunt long after the screen had faded to black and the credits rolled and as we ourselves searched our memory for what we had already seen to try to answer the myriad questions that creep in and permeate our thoughts. 

It forced us to question not just the film but also our own life experiences. Truly a formidable storytelling by Wells!

However, Wells storytelling only could have worked with the cast that she had. Newcomer Frankie Corio anchored the film as we wandered through her memories - specifically a summer holiday she shared with her father in Turkey in the early 90s. Corio was luminescent and effervescent and disarmingly charming, and her chemistry with Paul Mescal - as her father - was realistically natural.

Mescal was astounding! A finely tuned, nuanced performance that showed formidable range and depth. The darkness in him only became apparent as the film reached its final third and at the end, as we reconciled what we had just witnessed with the man we first saw in the beginning. 

Of course, this film was not without its fault and the most glaring issues were Wells' tendency to occasionally to squeeze as much directorial debut tropes as possible, and also the unsubtle use of foreshadowing and musical cues.

That said, the music by Oliver Coates were on point, but it was the cinematography Gregory Oke that really stood out as his camera weaved in and out, unobtrusively into our protagonists' private spaces.

Aftersun absolutely deserved all its accolades! But come Oscar time, it may eventually end up being too small. Although with Barry Jenkin as one of its producers, it may very well have momentum and stage some well-deserved upsets in Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography and Best Picture!

This is one film that I cannot wait to watch again!