January watches in order, bolded are rewatches:
A Hidden Life
Lightning Over Water
The Headless Woman
Rocketman
Bio-Dome
All That Heaven Allows
Ali: Fear Eats the Soul
Far From Heaven
Sweet Smell of Success
Zama
Double Indemnity
Good Time
Raging Bull
Uncut Gems
Taxi Driver
Killer of Sheep
Bless Their Little Hearts
For Sama
Philomena
Goodfellas
The Quiet Man
Straw Dogs
Lots of great stuff, my favorite new watches were Sweet Smell, Raging Bull, and Bless Their Little Hearts. Got to see Charles Burnett in person at UCLA, so that was pretty cool.
Some expanded stuff:
Uncut Gems
Not gonna lie, despite loving Sandman's boisterous performance, Julia Fox's Hall of Fame worthy ass (before anyone gets on me, she's great in the movie!), and just KG in general, about two-thirds of the way through I was ready to write off the Safdie brothers as not totally for me (think Scorsese's Joker comment: "I get it. It's fine."), but then the final bet/climax happened and everything crystallized for me. It retroactively made the journey worth it. One of the best parts is how Arno starts getting into the game at the end too, the allure of sports betting succinctly captured with a mere tilt of the head. As an NBA fan, it's insane to think how far the league has come in terms of scoring/offensive output this decade, I almost laughed out loud when I saw the game was 53-48 with two minutes left in the third quarter. NOTHING EASY! NOTHING EASY! WE GOING TO GAME SEVEN BABY! GAME SEVEN! GAAAAAAME SEEEEEEEVEEEEEEEENNNN!
Taxi Driver
Last seen ~10 years ago. The broad-strokes are as masterful as I remembered, but the film is somehow even more gorgeous than my memory of it, and it's littered with tons of small character moments that I completely forgot about. For example, the gun salesman is an all-time one scene performance. "Ain't that a little honey." Or when the late night crew has a casually progressive conversation about gay people (I really dig Peter Boyle). The Kris Kristofferson part is also quite amusing considering they worked together before this. And though this is as far as can be from style over substance, what goddamn style! I realized about twenty minutes in that this movie is always going to be chased, never topped. That shot at the end of Betsy in the rearview mirror is as good as it gets.
All That Heaven Allows
"Look at that car."
"Look at that man!"
A personal favorite, first time on the big screen. What can I say, I pretty much adore every second this deliriously lush, socioeconomic affair of the heart has to offer. There's just so much to appreciate, from the bold color schemes (the highest of praises to the stained glass window in Kay's room, the rainbow lighting in that one scene is immaculate) to the idyllic New England setting, full of swanky cocktail parties, cozy shops, and endearingly garish Christmas decorations (Cary's tree might as well take up the whole living room); plus a vibrant cast of supporting characters to mine morsels of pointed humor from—geriatric Harvey, the rich busybody to end all rich busybodies in Mona, trustworthy Sara (Agnes Moorehead FTW), walking textbook Kay, always taking off her glasses to spout off some academic theory, and Ned, Cary's insufferable yuppie jerk son.
But above all else, the film belongs to Jane Wyman and Rock Hudson (Sirk too, obviously). Cary is such a lovely protagonist, trapped between personal interests and social norms, family and love. Just so easy to root for. And this time around I was acutely aware of how horny everything is—granted it was the 50s, this isn't exactly peak De Palma territory, but Sirk made sure he got as much mileage out of Rock's smoldering, chiseled face and 6'4" frame as he could. Instant attraction is a part of cinema, doubly so in the heightened playground of melodrama, but can you blame Cary for falling in love so quickly? I mean, look at that man!
As with previous viewings, I'm sure I looked like an idiot when the deer showed up at the end, sitting alone in the theater, smiling like a maniac. This nascent decade, let's all give into our emotions and live the lives we deserve.
P.S. The shot of Cary crying in the window + the shot of Cary's reflection on the TV!!!!!
Far From Heaven
What Carol is to winter, this is to fall; it opens on a tree in full autumnal bloom and never lets up, barraging viewers with one lush, period-specific detail after another, utilizing the season's emotive properties to accentuate a tale of transgressive love stifled by the suffocating mores of the time. It's a clear remix of All That Heaven Allows and Ali: Fear Eats the Soul, and while it's not quite on their level, the degree of separation isn't that large—Haynes does plenty of interesting things with the material, and his introduction of a gay subplot makes this a wholly unique affair. I forgot how bittersweet the ending is; there's a clear downward trajectory for the three couples at the heart of this cinematic triptych. Ron and Cary end up together in romantic bliss, Emmi and Ali end up together but with some compromises and the possibility of never-ending ulcers (yikes!), and here Cathy and Raymond are never even allowed a fair shot. Few tropes beat forlorn lovers looking at each other from opposite sides of a train window. And gee, is Elmer Bernstein's score amazing or what?!
Bless Their Little Hearts
Need to watch again to finalize my thoughts, I was kind of sleepy during the screening, but it's definitely amazing. A spiritual cousin to Killer of Sheep, the type of intimate black drama the powers that be don't want you to see, where black people are allowed to be three-dimensional characters with access to the full spectrum of humanity. We need more of these stories! There's a spousal argument that makes the much lauded Marriage Story scene look like child's play.
