Best of 2019: Film

1. To Dust: If you’ve ever watched The Frisco Kid, with Gene Wilder and Harrison Ford, and thought “I’d like to watch another Jew-Goy buddy movie that is funny, sad, touching, and distressing all at once", To Dust is the movie you’ve been waiting for. It features lots of very dry, absurdist old-school Jewish humor and Matthew Broderick as a total mensch. It is not like any movie I have ever seen, other than its tonal similarities to The Frisco Kid, and I spent much of the film in awe of how someone came up with the concept and script for this film. While there are a few CSI-esque graphic moments of decomposing bodies, To Dust excels at capturing the uncomfortableness and uncertainty that accompanies mourning, as well as the idea that comfort can come from the most unlikely and unexpected people and places.

2. Rocketman: This film is just as wonderful and magical as I hoped it would be. The acting is excellent. (Taron Egerton IS Elton John in so many moments, particularly the montages.) The costumes are absolutely brilliant. (I would like all of the glasses in this film please.) The music is transportive. (The only problem I had with this movie was that there weren’t enough songs, or enough of most of the songs that were included). It’s not quite a biopic, and it’s not quite a musical. Like Elton John himself, Rocketman is a creature of its own design that doesn’t see a need to fit in or tick certain boxes. 

3. The Peanut Butter Falcon: This is a very sweet film that blends personal journeys with physical journeys. All three lead actors -- Zack Gottsagen, Shia LaBeouf, and Dakota Johnson -- give deeply felt performances. Gottsagen (and Zak, the character he plays) has Down Syndrome, and while this does factor into the plot, it is not central to who his character is, nor is it central to how the other characters treat him. Rather, he is simply a young man who is unhappy with his circumstances and sets out to change them. LaBeouf is excellent as a man working through his own issues, who warms up to Zak's infectious optimism and belief that anything is possible. LaBeouf and Johnson have surprisingly good chemistry, and the three main characters make a compelling and likable "family" of their own choosing. Ultimately, The Peanut Butter Falcon is an uplifting story that captures the unique and authentic atmosphere of the Outer Banks, via a bit of Southern Gothic, a hint of Twain, and a pinch of Conroy.

4. Judy: This biopic of Judy Garland is full of tender and heartbreaking moments (such as when Judy goes to the home of and has dinner with a gay couple, when she calls her daughter long distance from London to acknowledge that she can't give her children what they need, or when she breaks down on stage), imbued with devastating emotion thanks to a wonderful performance from Renée Zellweger. The showstopping night club numbers of some of Garland's greatest hits are also a wonder to behold. The cinematography for these scenes is especially good, with the bright lights and vivid colors of the stage rendered with such clarity that they nearly pop off the screen. Judy is a beautiful film from an aesthetic point of view, but it is also beautiful because of the humanity that it captures in all of the characters. 

5. Love, Antosha: This film makes it clear that Anton Yelchin was a special, gifted, and bright young man who had a profound effect on anyone who knew him. As I watched this film, I was reminded of the meditation sessions I attended last year and the timeless lesson that it's important to do things with intention. No matter what challenges life hands you, it's always possible to find purpose and happiness in the finite time we are all given. Director Garret Price sums it up well in an article from Vulture: "The audience is not only learning about Anton and all his work, but it’s a very self-reflective film. People start questioning how they’re spending their time here on earth. Living life to the fullest, he was the definition of that.” I couldn't agree more.

6. Dark Waters: This movie is like a John Grisham book, except that this legal thriller is a true story. Dark Waters is an eye-opening story on many levels, both good and bad: from a corporate law firm standing behind a lawyer taking on a seemingly insignificant civil case, to a chemical that has irrevocably pervaded our human ecosystem, to the mechanics of the law and beyond. Mark Ruffalo is excellent as a good-guy lawyer fighting staggering corporate greed over a very long period of time, and one thing in particular that the film does very well is emphasizing just how long the case takes at each and every step along the way. Dark Waters is a must-see because it sheds important light on our country, our government, our industrial complex, and our society as a whole.

7. The King: While this Medieval king movie is not quite as good as Netflix's 2018 Medieval king movie, Outlaw King, it is still a high quality film featuring fine performances from a talented cast, including Timothée Chalamet, Joel Edgerton, Ben Mendelsohn, Robert Pattinson, and Sean Harris. Like Outlaw King, The King features raw, visceral, well-executed, and skillfully filmed battle scenes. Its Shakespeare-inspired plot delivers a gut punch at the end of the film (at least for someone like me who has never read or seen the plays of the Henriad). Thimothée Chalamet's performance is marvelous. Chalamet is an actor who is able to convey wisdom far beyond his years – and able to hold his own with veteran actors Joel Edgerton and Sean Harris. Indeed, the performances of these three men are the backbone of this film.

8. Queen & Slim
This film is a showcase for Daniel Kaluuya and Jodie Turner-Smith, who are both excellent. Queen & Slim is set up such that the audience gets to know their characters at the same time that the characters get to know each other, and both of these characters go through wonderfully subtle transformations over the course of the film. As the film itself acknowledges, Queen & Slim is a contemporary Bonnie & Clyde story, but there is something about the straightforward tone of the film, the quest structure, and the attitude of the protagonists that reminds me of Layer Cake as well. Like Layer Cake, Queen & Slim has a fantastic, highly evocative soundtrack that helps create mood and atmosphere. Additionally, Queen & Slim contains some of the most visceral gunshots I've ever experienced in a film; my body responded almost before the characters on screen did. Overall, this is a powerful film that puts its own brand new stamp on an old story.

9. Richard Jewell
Since I was just a kid when the Atlanta bombing occurred, I remember Richard Jewell as a hero; I didn't realize that he'd been vilified by the FBI and the media. This film powerfully captures how painful and disruptive it is to be on the receiving end of a hostile and invasive investigation without the luxury of being innocent until proven guilty. Paul Walter Hauser gives an Oscar-worthy performance as Richard Jewell; he is vulnerable, proud, and all together infallibly human. Sam Rockwell is terrific as Jewell's friend and lawyer; as usual, Rockwell makes acting seem deceptively easy. I can see why Clint Eastwood wanted to make this film and tell Richard Jewell's story: this is an example of the American justice system failing to operate as it was designed to, and a story has been overlooked for far too long.

10. Five Feet Apart: This film is totally soapy and sappy, but it's also really well acted, and I kind of loved it, even though (of course) the ending is sad. It's cool how the movie explores cystic fibrosis and ensures each character is more than their ailment. The film does a great job letting the audience get to know the characters as they get to know each other. On the other hand, the hospital and the nurses all seem way too nice to be at all realistic, and the parents were hardly around, which felt inauthentic. Even though Five Feet Apart has all the feels and I couldn't help crying during the final scene, I still felt a bit giddy as I left the theatre, which is how I feel when I've seen a movie that I truly enjoyed and connected with on some level. This film has a loveliness to it in its ability to balance fantasy with the reality of a difficult medical condition.