Favorite films

Recent reviews

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  Disorder 2009

  ★★★★ Watched 07 Mar 2025

  The great underseen documentary of this century, a deftly edited symphony of urban cacophony, social dysfunction, and dystopian chaos captured on insanely grainy footage by amateur videographers in the wake of China’s rapid urban development. The aesthetic often forces you to think about what you’re actually seeing, which is precisely the right frame of mind to be in as you witness ten or so incidents of varying severity (and clarity) unfold in parallel. Functions like an avant garde work despite…

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  September 5 2024

  ★★½ Watched 01 Mar 2025

  Really contrived script, larding a breaking news docudrama with a strange sense of inevitability the film’s aggressive cutting and tight sets can’t overcome. But I would watch John Magaro say “push in, push in” all day. Who is doing more by doing so little right now?

Popular reviews

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  Old Joy 2006

  ★★★★ Rewatched 20 Mar 2014 1

  Research rewatch for an upcoming Reichardt retro piece. First time I've seen it on the small screen, which oddly serves to highlight how precisely constructed the beats in every scene are. This is a boon for the most part, though occasionally the effect is of watching a film of a short story. (This is one, but still.) The emotional distance/entanglements of the main characters have been superseded for me by the political motives/systems underlying them; Reichardt conceives and manages them…

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  Conclave 2024

  ★★★ Watched 02 Nov 2024

  Berger’s not a visual talent (this movie is too dim and its insert shots are hit and miss), but he pulls off an awesome tonal trick here, repeatedly lobbing grenades of absurdity (in the form of juicy twists and unexpected humor) into a story told in staid rhythms and hushed tones. (The sound design, full of Fiennes’ sighs, is terrific.) Winningly predictable in its political allegory until it suddenly is not at all (errr…). Great cast but the quiet MVP…