McQueen continues the streak-- of one of the most promising starts to a career (he’s 11 years in now and 4 films) in cinema history He’s great at capturing places, a great photographer—this captures Chicago

Three for three here-- McQueen has made superb films, punishing films that are equally depressing and beautiful to look at McQueen uses long takes and duration for affect (the scene of Ejiofor getting flogged, the

A brave unflinching character study directed with such stylistic bravado New York City looks incredibly harsh here—severe- punitive— McQueen shows this with the lighting, the architecture, (that boat shot in isolation) but also in the

Stunning debut McQueen- up there with the best of the 21st century McQueen clearly shows off his art background- he does fine some amazing visuals in the most squalor of settings and utilizing whatever resources

Everything I’ve read talks about Julia Roberts- and she’s great here- but Esmail is the show-stopper. He looks like a real talent- some long lively tracking shots (especially the first and last hour of Homecoming).

It’s Lean’s third film, one before Brief Encounter (also 1945) and one and three years before his beautiful Dickens adaptations It’s more a Noel Coward film than a Lean film (though it’s beautifully shot) as

Heller is two for two in the archives with this and her debut from 2015- The Diary of a Teenage Girl – she’s not an overly strong director- but these are smart (and a little

It feels like a director swinging out of his shoes for a home run that doesn’t completely land—and that’s not the insult it may sound like—it’s ambitious—but I also think ultimately Guadanino’s 4th best film

Argento borrows from Bava, Hitchcock and Polanski (not to mention a whole heaping of German Expressionism) but this is it- a full-fledged masterpiece of the highest order and surely one of cinema’s most beautiful films

A magnificent narrative (Academy Award screenplay win) fueled by Crowe’s best work as a director, a perfect (or near- I have one nitpick) rock soundtrack, and tremendous ensemble performances Deserved supporting actress noms from both

April 2017 It’s certainly one of the most situation of situation comedies but it’s a hilarious take on nature vs. nurture A very strong comedic cast led by Eddie Murphy and Aykroyd Great visual gags

Jacques Audiard is a narrative master- he zags when you think he’s going to zag—from A Prophet to Rust and Bone he bends genres—watching The Sister Brothers here I was enjoying the hell out of