The second film of Inarritu’s ‘hyperlink’ trilogy may occasionally feel overwrought by design, but the top-tier performances from Naomi Watts, Sean Penn and Benicio Del Toro give it the requisite emotional intensity to work.
This could be the ‘Mulholland Drive’ for this generation—a deliberately-paced hallucinatory deep dive into the physical and psychological realities of a world-famous (if fictional) composer-conductor that sees Todd Field and Cate Blanchett in extraordinary form.
Brando’s only directorial effort is truly exceptional—a soulful revenge Western with stunning picturesque imagery and a commitment to exploring and subverting the ethos of the genre.
Spielberg’s polished, but rather underwhelming workmanlike by-the-numbers tale of his formative years as a child and teenager chronicles the tension between family disputes and his passion for filmmaking.
It may be ambitious and sprawling to a fault, but Chazelle’s bravura direction and the top performances all-round keep this largely fictional tale of ‘20s and ‘30s Hollywood brimming with infectious energy.
It doesn’t reach the gleeful heights of the first ‘Knives Out’ mystery, and somewhat suffers from a regressive narrative structure that privileges explanations more than sleuthing, but it is still fun to see Daniel Craig being amused by it all.
Soderbergh’s take on the strip show dazzles with sights and sounds, but his film lacks dramatic substance.
With typical dark vibes set against the spectre of war and fascism, this stop-motion animated take on ‘Pinocchio’ from Del Toro impresses most with its strong writing and characterisations.
An interesting if somewhat inconsistent experiment with visual language and sound design as Van Sant collaborates with DP Christopher Doyle to capture an intimate psychical portrait of a teenage boy faced with an insurmountable psychological burden.
No doubt ahead of its predecessor both visually and technically, with compelling stretches of action and world immersion, but its storytelling depth and character development are unexpectedly shallow.
