I wonder when they’ll get around to doing a Letterboxd embed for WordPress. Well, until then, here are my twenty favourite films of the year, including category nominations. These will go into my OFCS ballot this week.
The fun stuff
Surprises from my Letterboxd year-in-review: While overall viewing is still trending down, it didn’t dip anywhere near as much as I’d expected (there was a point where I was convinced I wouldn’t break 100 watches this year). Watched more Michael Mann than I expected to. Still haven’t hit Greenland.
Surprise, generally: Spielberg’s West Side Story was the best film of 2021. Unfortunately, I saw it in March 2022. It was also the best film of 2022.
Michael Mann?: I’ll give a special jury prize to his novel, Heat 2, which is absolutely a novel and not a movie, but damn, it was a surprisingly big part of my summer, movie-wise. (It also spurred the Mannwatching, above.)
Was Phase 4 Good Or Not: Yeah, it was all right. It was weird and chancey and people definitely do not understand what these movies are for, or how they’re made (true of both the fans and the haters). Updated Marvel rankings here.
Accidental fun: One minute you’re watching Jurassic World Three, the next minute you’re fanficking a whole YA novel about Maisie that you still, seven months later, absolutely intend to write
I stopped writing Criterion reviews… and then I started again!!:
- In The Mood For Love (October)
- Boat People (February)
- Time (January)
Inadvertently defining my year: The transition to 4K. I got a promotion early in the year and upgraded my system, and though I am not much of an A/V guy I quickly became obsessed. Like, I just spent a hundred dollars on a 4K Frighteners from Germany. Help!