Uploading a screenshot of a cut-off poem is bot behaviour and the antithesis of what this poem proselytizes. Not that the message aligns with my views at any rate.

I’m saddened to see for Kbin was the first instance I signed up on.

The worst movie of this week’s list if watched in many of the previous weeks would have been situated at the top; what a lineup!

My Dinner with Andre (1981)
My god. This enchanting, verisimilitudinous evening had me so spellbound, I desired to be a fly on the wall for every future conversation. Malle masterfully navigates the treacherous straits, avoiding both pretentiousness and the shallows of pseudo-intellectuals. It’s a film composited of the now rare authentic discourse without a hint of artifice or speciousness. There is no grand message being proselytized, just a stark tête-à-tête of two minds shown in this perfectly imperfect cinematic marvel.

Naked (1993)
A ravaging, unflinching descent into societal decay embodied by a loquacious nihilist known simply as Johnny who verbally eviscerates the perceived vacuities around him like a feral, intellectual schoolyard bully. This is a raw, ugly world, a X-ray exposing the festering wound of our collective spiritual homelessness. Johnny isn’t just lost; he’s the furious, articulate symptom of a world that discarded him, and which he, in turn, discards with vicious futility. The supporting cast is likewise absolutely brilliant. My singular gripe is the Machiavellian Jeremy subplot did not come to a head yet it barely dims this bleak, brilliant, essential mirror.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)
“We are infinite.” Rarely does a tagline resonate with such aptness. This beautiful coming-of-age tale flirts with familiar clichés yet endearingly embraces and transforms into a poignant film of self-discovery and healing. While the climatic revelation stumbles slightly, it does not diminish the film’s hopeful tone.

A Man Escaped (1956)
This film strips prison escape to its stark, exacting essence, unclad of superfluity, with every sound purposeful, shots only necessary, dialogue and voiceover laconic. The palpable tension stems not from visible villains, but from the solitary, agonizing precision of the attempt. The antithesis of Michael Bay, a symphony of restraint where silence screams louder than any explosion.

Harold and Maude (1971)
Young Harold, morbidly fixated on death finds unlikely kinship in ancient Maude’s - possibly cinema’s eldest manic pixie dream girl - vitalic whimsy. Eccentric, hopeful absurdism is its crux and its deliberate juxtaposition has a certain charm that earns its cult status. Understandably divisive, undeniably unique.

I unabashedly spent the most amount of time writing this week’s reviews, hopefully doing justice to these marvellous films.

That’s sad to hear. I most enjoyed the weekly movie thread where I could write review snippets and peruse (and find) new movies to add to the list.

That explains why I haven’t seen your reviews in a while. I am sure you’ve heard countless platitudes during this time so I’ll only add that I am truly sorry for yours and his family’s loss.

Thanks for putting The Ugly Stepsister on my radar!

Blue Valentine (2010)
This beautifully raw film looks at a relationship in stages juxtapositional. It’s euphoric, passionate, morose, and hopeful. It’s the nature of love in real life and for most of us, will cut close to the heart. It’s glorious.

That Thing You Do! (1996)
A classic tale of the 50-60s music industry done in the typical fun biopic style so much that I believed it was a real band. It is romanticist light fun and better than most biopics.

Terrified (2017)
An admirable attempt at the genre but falls to the classic pitfalls by the midpoint and logic goes out the window. The lingering scenes with the child was a clear high point of the film.
@kux@lemm.ee I finally watched it.

Vikram Vedha (2017)
I was recommended this as a film that tackles morality. It did not fulfill the promise as its characters and lessons are juvenile but it is an average action film with above par story for Kollywood (and Bollywood).

Elevation (2024)
Remove believable characters, modify the script, and you are now watching a (very) poor version of A Quiet Place. It fails on all fronts and is filled with tropes done poorly, which saddens me as I like Morena Baccarin.

Molly’s Game (2017)
A film that takes a subject I’m uninterested in and creates a compelling watch will always be appreciated despite its revisionist romanticism.

Carry-On (2024)
I did not expect this to be a Christmas movie nor to have this much fun with it. This is Die Hard modernized.

A Goofy Movie (1995)
This kids movie surprisingly holds up as an adult. I caught a glimpse of why this is supposedly a core memory for Millennials.

A Man Called Otto (2022)
Tom Hanks is a curmudgeonly widower whose neighbours are blissfully unaware as they cheerfully put up with him and life daily. It’s a decent redemption story but now I need to watch the original at a later date to see which I prefer.

To Catch a Thief (1955)
Little did I know I would be escaping into a romance novel with a sprinkle of mystery set in the idyllic Côte d’azur which most mesmerized me. If you’re expecting typical Hitchcroft, forget it for it’s a much lighter fare.

The Boy and the Heron (2023)
Not quite to the standard you expect from Studio Ghibli and it felt more like a last hurrah when I found myself noticing too many similarities between this and many of his previous works. It’s messy, it’s disjointed, it’s surrealistic, and it’s absurd; it’s Miyazaki turned up to 11 and seems to be made for the Miyazaki acolytes.

Plane (2023)
Plane promises the viewer will see Gerard Butler as a pilot forced to save his passengers in hostile situations alongside unlikely companions and it delivers precisely that.

My Blueberry Nights (2007)
Legendary director Wong Kar-Wai’s first foray into the western market and it is disappointing. Let me clarify, it’s not bad, yet it is knowing that it’s from WKW, like your straight-As student suddenly handing in a C. Everything seemingly felt contrived and I don’t know if it’s the language or the actors or both.

Jesus Christ Superstar (1973)
Superstars Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s style of composition is obvious in this operatic rock musical which is surprising given its shoestring budget as we are now accustomed to Buzzing blockbuster affairs in musicals like Wicked, Wonka, and even Joker 2. Despite it appearing as a college production at times, the Mystifying and energetic numbers and a dash of Hosanna ensures Everything’s Alright.

The Graduate (1967)
Watch this for its surprising cinematography, if you’re a fan of Simon & Garfunkel, and a specious glimpse of the 60s for its protagonist is anything but likable and its message is painfully dated.

Land of the Gods (Dev Bhoomi) (2016)
A simple story of the few days a man spends attempting to reconcile with his past set in the backdrops of the Himalayans and immersed in their Indic traditions.

Mayhem (2017)
Ignore the thin veneer of a premise and forget your logic and this movie succeeds in exactly being average on all fronts in this self-contained take of 28 Day’s rage virus.

Movies at the top of the list does not necessarily signify the top movie is a masterpiece while the bottom being a calamity, it simply means I enjoyed it more (or less) than the other movies of the week. Using a previous week’s review as a prime example, the gap between the best and worst movie of that week is <1 point on a 10 point scale.

The abomination that is Thor 4 at 3/5 while Deadpool 4 and GotG 3 at 2.5/5 are at odds with my scoring which calls into question how compatible his tastes are to mine.

Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
A symbiotic tale between Sidney Falco, a sycophantic press agent who will do anything short of murder to climb the “golden ladder” and J. J. Hunsecker, the powerful columnist who marionettes others in his machinations. There’s a lot to applaud from the cinematography to acting with special notice to its clever dialogue as it’s chock full of memorable lines (eg. “match me, Sidney”, “you’re a cookie full of arsenic”, etc.). An excellent example of film noir.

I Saw the TV Glow (2024)
A clearly divisive film as the friends I watched with did not enjoy it yet I did. One of their (many) criticisms was it should not have been labelled as “horror” to which I begrudgingly agreed as it’s not horror in the conventional sense. What it does beautifully is the 80s aesthetics coupled with its themes and allegories which can be interpreted in a myriad of ways so that where your mind is at that point in time will determine the enjoyability of this film.

The Last Duel (2021)
The unreliable narrator reigns in this Ridley Scott film reminiscent of Rashômon. The subtle retellings from one character to the next ensured the audience’s rapturous attention and despite it dragging in parts (a cut of 30-45min would be perfect) and the odd choice of speaking English in this medieval French setting, it was altogether enjoyable.

Piece by Piece (2024)
The entire movie is on how successful and wonderful and artistic Pharrell is through scenes of famous friends interviewed interspersed with his songs that sounds vaguely dissimilar. Yet another clichéd biopic that attempts to break the formula by using phantasmagoric Lego and fails as even the customary third plot point is woefully anemic. At least Lego visuals are still nice.

Movies at the top of the list does not necessarily signify the top movie being a masterpiece while the bottom is a calamity, it simply means I enjoyed it more (or less) than the other movies of the week. Using last week’s review as a prime example, the gap between the best and worst movie of that particular week is <1 point on a 10 point scale (low 7s - low-mid 6s).

That makes sense but it is prohibitively expensive at nearly $4,000USD which is more than double the price of every other foldable phone. None of the other ones are a trifold though.

Plus Huawei does not come with Google services preinstalled and requires additional steps to do so.

My friend actually has 2 (and 1 regular smartphone) and dailies the Galaxy Z Fold 6. She uses it for work and media consumption and loves it so much she’s mentioned wanting the Huawei Mate XT.

I see the appeal for people who wants/needs the screen real-estate but it isn’t required for regular users. Ultra/Pro models of phones being in a similar position of irrelevancy for people not obsessed with having the best camera.

It’s using global numbers so it would actually be #4 after Ne Zha 2, Détective Chinatown 1900, and Captain America: Brave New World. It is #2 domestic though.