Favorite films

Recent reviews

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  Pulse 2001

  ★★★★ Watched 12 Mar 2025

  Cure took me two viewings to really get on the wavelength of the film, so although my initial reaction is positive, I anticipate possibly liking it even more on a second viewing. Occasionally frightening, but more often creates a sense of dreadful foreboding. Liminal space aesthetic, except that Wikipedia tells me liminal space doesn’t feature living things/people. Very effective overall.

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  Suspicion 1941

  ★★★ Watched 13 Feb 2025

  While it presents as a Hitchcock thriller, it’s really more of a melodrama. It doesn’t fare well if compared to Gaslight, and Cary Grant isn’t used to his strengths. The ending is abrupt and doesn’t serve the preceding 95 minutes. Still enjoyed it well enough.

Popular reviews

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  Late Spring 1949

  ★★½ Watched 24 Jun 2020

  This is a story of a woman robbed of her agency and forced by her family into a marriage, but the final scene reframes the story, so as to make the audience think it’s really about parental sacrifice... yikes. I thought this film could benefit from a greater focus on Noriko, as opposed to her father, and further penetration into her thoughts. 

  We are supposed to take Noriko at her word that she is too worried about her father’s quality…

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  Punch-Drunk Love 2002

  ★★★★½ Rewatched 28 Dec 2019 6

  Sandler and PTA deliver something so unrelatable it works on a level of satire and almost farce and yet at the same time so human it’s lovable. I don’t know whether to laugh at Barry or cry for him, but this ambiguous (and unique) tone is part of what makes the film so great. Amazing score and amazing photography. Love this movie.