Review: All the Money in the World (2017)

* * *
Director: Ridley Scott
Starring: Michelle Williams, Mark Wahlberg, Christopher Plummer

In the long run All the Money in the World may never quite get out from under the shadow that looms over it, destined perhaps to be best remembered as the answer to a trivia question, even though it has a lot more going for it than the behind the scenes saga about how it managed to come to the screen. It has a fantastic performance from Michelle Williams, for one thing, and a great one from Christopher Plummer, and both are just as impressive as director Ridley Scott's ambitious/crazy plan to reshoot parts of the film in order to excise original star Kevin Spacey but keep the film's original release date (the film was released right on schedule December 18th, despite reshoots taking place during the week of American Thanksgiving). This isn't to suggest that the fact that Scott actually pulled this off doesn't make for a grand technical achievement (not to mention one hell of a story itself), I just want to make sure to emphasize that the end result is more than just an exercise in trying to achieve what should be impossible on such a tight deadline.

Review: Darkest Hour (2017)

* * *
Director: Joe Wright
Starring: Gary Oldman, Lily James, Kristin Scott Thomas

Even once you've taken into account all of the elements that Darkest Hour has on its side before you've even watched it - the natural conflict, drama, and emotion that arose from the decision of the British government to oppose rather than appease Hitler and a larger than life protagonist in the form of Winston Churchill - it still manages to be an effective film. Conventional, yes. Crowd pleasing, certainly. But effective, nevertheless, because it knows what it has and how to use it. Built around a towering performance from Gary Oldman, Darkest Hour never becomes more than just what you expect it to be, but delivers exactly what it promises, which is a rousing historical drama that moves with clockwork precision through classical narrative beats. Nothing more, but nothing less, either.

Review: Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017)

* * 1/2
Director: Rian Johnson
Starring: Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher

I don't understand the amount of vitriol that has come from people who think The Last Jedi is the worst movie in the Star Wars franchise (is Attack of the Clones still a movie? Because no movie with the words "Star Wars" attached to it will ever be worse than that), but I have to confess that I also don't understand the amount of love it's received from people who think it's one of the best movies in the Star Wars franchise. It's a perfectly fine movie, one which left me largely entertained while also leaving me with some reservations, one which should not be inspiring people to make Change.org petitions (though whomever started the Porg one is a comedic genius whose time was well spent), but which shouldn't be inspiring people to bend over backwards with praise either. I didn't think it was great, I didn't think it was terrible, and my overall emotional response to it was pretty muted.

Florida, Nevada, and Online Film Critics Award Winners

Catching up with some of the awards given out over the holidays, here are the winners from the Florida, Nevada, and Online Film Critics:

Florida Film Critics Circle
Best Picture: Dunkirk

Best Director: Christopher Nolan, Dunkirk

Best Actor: Timothee Chalamet, Call Me By Your Name

Best Actress: Margot Robbie, I, Tonya

Best Supporting Actor: Sam Rockwell, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Best Supporting Actress: Allison Janney, I, Tonya

Best Ensemble: Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Best Original Screenplay: Get Out

Best Adapted Screenplay: Call Me By Your Name

Best Cinematography: Blade Runner 2049

Best Visual Effects: Blade Runner 2049

Best Art Direction/Production Design: Blade Runner 2049

Best Score: Blade Runner 2049

Best Documentary: Jane

Best Foreign Language Film: BPM

Best Animated Film: Coco

Best First Film: Get Out

21st Century Essentials: Carol (2015)

Director: Todd Haynes
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara
Country: United States/United Kingdom

Carol is a film that opens with an image of rigid uniformity, then tells a story about two women discovering their capacity to break away from the social conformity that surrounds them. Directed by Todd Haynes, Carol is a film of great restraint - told in passages of coded language and moments and as a story unfolding beneath a public facade - and incredible emotional resonance. One of the unlikeliest cult movies of recent years, Carol is an endlessly rewatchable piece of work that, despite its specificity of time and place, tells a profoundly human story about loneliness, desire, and love. Anchored by fantastic performances from Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara, this is a beautiful film that easily qualifies as one of the best not just of the last decade, but of the century so far.