Hidden Figures

Poster for the movie ""

This was such a fun movie. It is indeed “based on a true story”, and an important one, but it never feels preachy or heavy in any way. The main three actresses are all excellent (there should be a special oscar for Octavia Spencer‘s loving-but-disapproving side glance), and Kevin Costner does his best trademarked 50s-man-in-crisp-white-shirt role since JFK. It would make a great double bill with The Right Stuff…

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Your Name.

Poster for the movie "Your Name."

If you are looking for something different, this is one of the best Anime films to come out in years. Its hand-drawn animation is stunningly beautiful, the main characters don’t feel like caricatures and the story is both funny and moving. This movie really felt like a breath of fresh air, and I can’t recommend it enough. Try and track it down, it is well worth it!

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Julieta

Poster for the movie "Julieta"

I confess that I have been unfaithful to Pedro Almodovar recently. I really had no interest to watch his latest movie, and I still haven’t seen the previous one either. If sometimes Almodovar is a bit too “out there” for you, this is one of his less brash and more nuanced movies. A beautiful and touching slice of life, wonderfully told, with two superb central performances, this was one of the best movies of the year, without a doubt.

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La La Land

Poster for the movie "La La Land"

We watched this last night, and I can’t get it off my head. From the director of Whiplash (who by the way, is 31 years old…) comes an all-singing, all-dancing hommage to the musicals of yesteryear. It is nostalgic, yet modern and fresh, romantic, but realistic, joyful and bittersweet at the same time. It is a masterpiece, and a tour de force from Emma Stone. This movie is going to win a ton of awards, and it will be all deserved.

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Arrival

Poster for the movie "Arrival"

The best movie of 2016. Don’t let yourself be discouraged even if you are not a fan of Science Fiction in general. This is about so much more than aliens. It’s not like anything you have seen before. It is touching, both tense and slow paced, a rare example of a big spectacle movie that will make you think long after the end credits roll. After Sicario and this, Denis Villeneuve is most definitely a director to watch for.

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Boyhood

Poster for the movie "Boyhood"

I realize that I haven’t posted here in quite a while, but it took a very special something to shake me up and bring me back here to share my love for a movie that has stuck with me, and that I still think about every day since I saw it three weeks ago… Filmed over twelve years with the same actors, this would be an amazing achievement in itself, but forget about the gimmick, this is not what makes Richard Linklater’s film special. It is all the small moments, the casual conversations, the stolen glances, the music, that all add up to a masterpiece. I didn’t want it to end. Try to catch it in cinemas, I doubt anything better will come out this year.

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No

Poster for the movie "No"

Once again this year we went on an Oscars movie-watching binge, and this one may have flown under the radar but it is well worth seeking out. A fun comedy about the Chilean referendum against Pinochet’s regime (maybe I am not selling this very well), it might look like it was filmed with an 80s Betamax camera (because it was, so that the archive footage fits perfectly with the rest) but it punches well above its weight.

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Stranger Than Fiction

Poster for the movie "Stranger Than Fiction"

I can’t believe I completely missed this one when it came out, and then never heard about it until a friend pointed it out today. And then I watched it. And I liked it. A lot. A huge lot. With a stellar cast, a wacky premise, but not as silly as it sounds, and a big heart, it just might very well be the best thing I have watched this year so far. Oh, and one more thing, if you want to be surprised, don’t even watch the trailer below, just dive right in, enjoy, and tell me what you think about it afterwards.

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Margin Call

Poster for the movie ""

I was skeptical. Especially after having endured Wall Street 2. How wrong was I. Finally, a movie about the financial crisis (and trading floors) that is not a caricature, is actually pretty close to the truth, and still a good movie to watch! With a phenomenal cast, a great script (with only a couple of clunky let-me-explain-to-you-what-is-going-on dialog moments), this was a very pleasant surprise indeed.

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Much Ado About Nothing

Poster for the movie ""

I watched it again with Christine the other day, and it is still one of the most delightful Shakespeare adaptations out there. Easy, breezy, fun, with a great cast (beautiful chemistry between Emma Thompson and Kenneth Branagh, of course, but let’s not forget Denzel Washington, Keanu Reeves, Michael Keaton and the very young Kate Beckinsale and Robert Sean Leonard), this is a great summer movie.

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The Thin Red Line

Poster for the movie "The Thin Red Line"

With a grand total of 5 films since 1973, you could say that Terrence Malick is not a prolific director. However, he definitely has a cult following and a unique style. Not to be mistaken for a war movie, this is much more than that. An ode to a Paradise lost, the folly of Man vs the beauty of Nature, love it or hate it (but how could you?), it will not leave you indifferent. Oh, and did I mention the insane cast?

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