November 2021
I'm not gonna lie, I was not that interested in seeing this. I liked Nomadland, Chloé Zhao done a terrific job with that film. I was intrigued to see Brian Tyree Henry's and Kumail Nanjiani, love 'Atlanta' (can't wait for season 3!) and really enjoyed 'The Big Sick'.
*
The first act and early half of the second were quite boring and cringe-worthy at times. But the 3rd act was absolutely excellent.
Beautiful on-location shots, reminiscent of Chloé's 'Nomadland'. The CGI is alittle hit or miss. Sometimes it's a little janky and weird. The next, it's gorgeous and jaw-dropping.
Brian Tyree's Phastos, Kumail's Kingo and also Chloe Ridloff's Makkari were my favourite parts of the film. I almost teared up at Phastos' passionate rant during the early part of the 3rd act.
I loved the intimidating sense of scale of the Celestials, they are absolute menacing behemoths and take up the whole screen everytime they appear. It'll be crazy to think what MARVEL Studios will do with 'The World Eater' Galactus!
I knew about Harry Styles' appearing during the mid-credits prior to the film's release because of leaks. But, HOLY SHIT! I did not expect to hear Mahershala Ali's Blade talking at the end of the post credits scene.
7.8/10
#5: Encanto
This was my last film of November. I honestly didn't know much about this film, especially since the teaser was released back in July this year.
*
I loved the 2D hand-drawn short film 'Far From The Tree', that played prior to this.
'Enchanto' is a visually spectacular musical and features some incredible songs to boot.
I was captivated by the animation and story throughout the entire runtime
7.5/10
#4: Ghostbusters: Afterlife
I wasn't too hyped for this, just never been much of a fan of Ghostbusters. I like the idea of this film though, about a group of youngsters uncovering the original team after many years of being inactive, becoming almost myth-like legends.
I thought it was cool that both McKenna Grace and Finn Wolfhard were portraying the grandchildren of the late Harold Ramis' character Egon, carrying on his on-screen legacy.
*
This was an incredibly fun and powerful continuation of the 1984 original film, reminiscent of movies from that decade.
I honestly didn't mind the 2016 reboot. But after seeing this, it's crazy how bad it was compared to this. The reboot from 5 years ago seemed very corporatised, 'Afterlife' was handled with care and feels like a return to form for the franchise.
It was a little tiring that any big actor(e.g Paul Rudd) or returning character came into frame and paused for a couple of seconds before talking, like they were in a segment on Saturday Night Live soaking in the crowd reaction.
Even after watching the scene multiple times through adverts and TV spots, I absolutely loved the adorable mini Stay-Puft Marshmallow men sequence. It was really hilarious how mindlessly gorey their deaths were, when they were so joyful.
Mckenna Grace had the best performance in the movie.
'Afterlife' done the absolute best CGI resurrection ever with Egon helping his granddaughter control the proton pack. It honestly puts 'Rogue One's Tarkin to shame, since he doesn't talk and is only there for a few minutes compared to the entire film. The shot of all the Ghostbusters standing together was so heartwarming and also heartbreaking.
I would love a sequel to this with the new generation.
8/10
#3: Last Night In Soho
I was really excited for this ever since it was announced, in January 2019. Edgar Wright is one of my favourite directors, his films 'Shaun of The Dead' and 'Hot Fuzz' are two of my all-time favourite films. I became even more ecstatic for this film when Anya Taylor Joy and Matt Smith were casted.
On my blog, nearly two years ago I made a list of my most highly anticipated films of 2020 and this film was on that very list. Obviously, it got delayed, like most 2020 films.
I loved the aesthetic of a "sinister under the surface" kinda vibe the trailers and marketing shown off.
*
This was pretty great. Another excellent film by Edgar Wright.
The introduction to the '60s version of London was very cool, with the warm radiating lighting hugging the screen compared to the harsh and quite bleek colours of the modern day.
The dance hall sequence transitions between Anya and Thomasin's characters were insane. It's incredible how it was actually all done practically. Even after I saw B-Roll footage of the scene and hearing Anya/Thomasin/Edgar explaining it during press junkets prior to watching the film, I was still blown-away.
Anya's, Thomasin Mckenzie's and Matt's performances were amazing.
Spectacular film by Edgar, can't wait for his next one.
8.3/10
#2: CRY MACHO
The idea of a "modern day" western film starring a 90 year old Clint Eastwood did seem quite intriguing to me, but at the same time, I also wasn't immensely hyped/interested to see it.
*
I did not expect to really enjoy this, I was pleasantly surprised.
It had a quite formulaic and cliched story, but I thought it was told absolutely beautifully.
7.5/10
#1: SPENCER
I loved how when Kristen Stewart was casted last year to play Diana, practically the entire internet doubted her. They thought she couldn't pull it off. Yet, 10+ months later, they were singing her praises.
Back in 2020, I, personally was really excited to see her perform her ass off, like she usually does.
She was amazing in 'Personal Shopper', 'Still Alice', 'The Runaways', 'Lizzie', 'J.T Leroy' 'Anesthesia', among many other films.
*
Man, this was so captivating! Hauntingly beautiful cinematography and score.
Kristen delivered an absolutely chilling and amazing performance as Diana. I think it got to the point where I was getting chills from each breath she took.
For weeks, if not months, I was confused/intrigued as to why people kept touting it as a "horror" film. After watching it, I totally understand now. The film portrays the 3 days Diana spends at the Royals as a literal waking nightmare with how frustratingly barbaric the way they methodically handle everything, trapped her in constant surveillance and Diana hallucinating a living Anne Boleyn, likening her tragic marriage to Henry VIII to Diana's marriage to Charles.
This truly was a powerful fable based on a true tragedy.
8.4/10
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