Finding Vivian Maier (2013)

This is a fascinating movie made by a dedicated historian sleuth. It was just pure luck. He started by buying some boxes of negatives and he ended up collecting this woman's entire life. Going through the boxes (of a hoarder) and archiving all the items is a gargantuan task. Just by examining Vivian's things, he was able to learn so much about her, and yet so much of her is still shrouded in mystery to be lost forever. Her photography is stunning. She had a great eye. It's terribly sad that her work was never shared during her lifetime. It's really quite tragic. There is a bit of a sense that as a secretive woman she would never have wanted anyone to uncover these details about her; it's an intrusion on her privacy but it's so engaging and she's so eccentric that the viewer really wants to know what happened too. I'm not too bothered by it.

The Square (2017)

I don't think I fully understood the message of The Square. But the vignettes are hilarious. The monkey scene is absolutely absurd but you can't look away. I can understand some of the abstract "what is art" stuff, but what was he trying to get across in that scene? I like the scene in the Tesla where they're arguing over who will go inside the building. There are some funny situations. I'm just not sure they all come together.

Red Army (2014)

It's about hockey, but it's about more than just hockey. It's a classic Cold War documentary. The Cold War certainly reached the world of sports and the Soviets had the best hockey team in the world. The first part of the movie is about how they got so good. But then it becomes more of a fascinating look behind the scenes at the Soviet machine under which the hockey stars suffered. It's pretty short, packing in a lot of interesting interviews, even if you're not into hockey. At the highest levels, it was about ideology, but the players on the ice were only human and this movie gets to their humanity. I know they call soccer the beautiful game, but Soviet hockey was true balletic beauty.

Murder on the Orient Express (2017)

I like a good mystery, but the fun is in the buildup to the revelation. And everything before the revelation in this movie is kind of dull. Poirot interrogates all the passengers separately so all of the movie stars get a a little bit of screentime and a couple lines to say, but with every little reveal I'm like so-what. There are hints of Sherlock in the style, but without the likability of Sherlock. If you don't know the solution, it's kind of clever. But immediately after, I fell asleep. I admit, I don't know how the movie ends and I couldn't be bothered to go back and find out. At least it looked nice.

Game Night (2018)

Game Night is fun. It kept me awake on the plane. The premise is way out there, but the actors play along. Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams especially are quite good. It's kind of funny not in a haha way but in a situational absurdist way. It's so ridiculous, it works.

Incredibles 2 (2018)

What do you do in Bangkok? Go see a 4D movie! The 4D is super unnecessary, but it was kind of novel. During the Bao short and the first thirty minutes of the movie, there are 4D effects that are unexpected because they are mundane, but that kind of makes it fun and funny. It did make me smile. The latter half of the movie did not have as many effects. They and we maybe forgot about it.

The movie is brilliant. It is a modern day superhero movie. We needed to wait over a decade for this movie and it was well worth the wait to see our contemporary debates featured prominently. There is a dining table argument the family has over civil disobedience. A main theme of the movie is body cameras, a contemporary policing/vigilante proposal. And of course, you can't ignore the working mom and stay-at-home dad narrative. To top it off, the movie is hilarious. Brad Bird is an excellent director. But this film doesn't feel like a Pixar movie (nothing wrong with that) because it never reaches that emotional climax (nothing wrong with that either). The movie does throw a curveball by casting Bob Odenkirk, whose most famous role leads us to believe he was typecast. Spoiler alert, he's not. Michael Giacchino's music is lots of fun, kind of jazzy.

The Greatest Showman (2017)

Why is this movie so boring? I like a good musical but it's just really uninteresting. The music is drab. I don't know what everyone sees in "This Is Me." Pasek and Paul are responsible for La La Land and Dear Evan Hansen; they can't all be good, I guess. I get that it's a family movie, but it feels like a kids movie. There are so many good family movies nowadays that are not so kiddy. I can't pinpoint exactly what it is, but it is not made for us. There was so much opportunity to develop some of these characters, but they never really do. Zendaya, for example, doesn't have enough lines. The opening is the glitziest part of the movie. You expect the circus to have more spectacle.

Downsizing (2017)

Alexander Payne makes some weird stuff. The idea is novel. And there is a message about the environment, overpopulation and class. Matt Damon is charming and Hong Chau is very good. The accent is maybe overkill since we know she doesn't really talk like that (she was in Treme).  The original downsizing concept is interesting, but the class theme then begins to overpower the downsizing. After the first act, the rest of the movie didn't have to take place in miniature at all. This lack of cohesion is ultimately what sinks the film.

All the Money in the World (2017)

It will forever be known as the film Christopher Plummer reshot in Kevin Spacey's stead. And the film that Mark Wahlberg got paid to reshoot while Michelle Williams only got a per diem. But all this aside, the movie is actually really tense and engaging. Especially considering these complications, the movie is still cohesive. And Christopher Plummer is quite good, but I think Michelle Williams actually steals the show.

Jane (2017)

I'm really sorry to say that I fell asleep in the middle of this beautiful documentary on the fascinating Jane Goodall. The original score by Philip Glass is accompanied by newfound archival footage from the early years when Goodall first went to live among the chimps. Her research was revolutionary. And it was almost by chance that it happened at all. She was working for an anthropologist who sent her to Africa on a beautiful journey captured on camera. Narrated by Jane herself, you can't help but smile at nature at its rawest.

The Death of Stalin (2017)

The Death of Stalin, from the creator Veep, is hilarious. It is so witty and sharp. The funniest thing about it is how ridiculously realistic it is. We can imagine that all these crazy things could've farcically happened in the Soviet Union. They are preposterous situations that are simultaneously terrifying and funny. I actually laughed out loud on the plane. Steve Buscemi and Jeffrey Tambor have the perfect demeanor for political satire. The opening scene in which they must re-stage a performance they forgot to record for Stalin is brilliant.

Annihilation (2018)

I was freaking out while watching this movie, but I feel like I appreciate it so much more in retrospect. It is a trippy science fiction instant classic. Alex Garland has proven himself as a new master of unsettling sci-fi. The ending of this movie is open ended, but I'm somehow unconvinced of the open-endedness. Can we trust the Natalie Portman's biased account of what happened in the shimmer? Can we trust what we saw on screen? I don't know and it troubles me.

Ali Wong: Baby Cobra (2017)

We had to watch Ali Wong's first Netflix special before we could get to her new one. She is hilarious. We need more Asian Americans in comedy. She offers a refreshing voice and bravely delivers her set 7-months pregnant.