Dominik. The New Zealand born director Andrew Dominik is a tough one. There’s his 2007 epic masterpiece that hits artistic heights that many, many directors on this list ahead of him never reach. But the drop off after that film for Dominik is steep. Dominik is anything but prolific (just 3 features total including his debut in 2000) and his resume is lacking. His second best effort is far weaker than other directors like Carol Reed (who gave us The Third Man). If Dominik is Ridley Scott (and he’s not)- he needs an Alien to his Blade Runner. Until then, part of me wonders if The Assassination of Jesse James isn’t the sum of magnificent parts (beautiful score, all-time work from an all-timer DP like Roger Deakins, dueling performances worthy of such praise from actors on the level of Casey Affleck and Brad Pitt). Is Dominik is the force behind it all? I hope he continues to work so we can find out.
Best film: The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
- Known at the time as a tumultuous shoot, box office bomb, and for being treated indifferently by the critics (68 on mc) it is now, rightly, largely, recognized as a masterpiece and one of the best films of the decade
- There is a folkloric importance or substance to the film
- Both Casey Affleck and Brad Pitt are revelations in the two leads, often paralleled and compared, and formally, beautifully woven together with dueling executions (both involving Affleck’ Bob Ford)
- It’s simply Roger Deakins’ greatest work. He’s practically came out and said as much about the night scene with the train robbery. It’s one of the most beautiful cinematic sequences and images I’ve seen
- The casting of the two leads is inspired. Pitt is a celebrity—a big celebrity- and this role/performance calls for someone of size— also, Affleck is the shorter, less handsome and less famous brother of Ben Affleck. It’s perfect.
- Nick Cave and Warren Ellis’ transcendent score is every bit the equal of Greenwood’s genius in There Will Be Blood. One of the greatest scores of all-time
- Sweepingly atmospheric exterior photography- largely in Canada I believe- Alberta
- The documentary-like voice-over (with heavy adjectives from the era) from outside the world of the film seems to have divided some critics—I’m an admirer of it.
- Pitt is elusive and terrifying. He’s always teetering on the edge. Filled with melancholy and obsessed with death
- Affleck’s Bob says to “Jesse” “how long you been studying me”- which is ironic of course
- The cast is a talented ensemble—it feels like a who’s who now with Renner and Rockwell. Paul Schneider is great, Michael Parks and Ted Levine in a flawed sequence with Carville
- It’s hard to find a two-person character study this good
- Many critics complain of the length of the film—and it is paced—but I don’t think there’s much wasted at all and at the very least you’re treated to some of the best photography and music you’ll see or hear
- Meditation on celebrity, obsession
- Again, the train arrival sequence deserves a 10 page paper. It’s a perfect orchestration of lighting, score, editing. It’s absolutely masterful.
- Series of freeze frames with voice over in the ending
- A masterpiece
total archiveable films: 3
top 100 films: 0
top 500 films: 1
top 100 films of the decade: 1
most overrated: Dominik doesn’t have a single film on the TSPDT consensus top 2000. Jesse James is underrated, Chopper is like #50 for the year 2000 on the TSPDT 21st century list which is pretty fair and Killing Them Softly isn’t there at all.
most underrated : The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. There are now six films from 2007 on the TSPDT top 1000 and one of them isn’t this masterpiece. That’s wrong.
gem I want to spotlight : Killing Them Softly
- Anytime you’re a director and Rex Reed calls you “pretentious’ you’re onto something as an artist
- The film is overt in its tones- cynical, political and nihilistic. I love all three. It’s not “what” Dominik is saying about the politics but how he says it I enjoy. It’s an ongoing visual and aural (not subtle) motif and caps it with that great ending line by Pitt. “In America, you’re on your own. Now f*cking pay me.”
- Visuals- dilapidated houses. Detailed costume and décor- Mendelsohn is sweaty and disheveled to say the least
- Opens with Obama, Bush speech during poker game (not realistic but we’re working on something here with Dominik)—the film is soaked in this financial/political speak stemming from the crisis in 2008. CSPAN on and talk radio
- 23 minutes in intro to Pitt in a 97 minute movie. Gandolfini is even later as “Mickey”- he’s very good as is Mendelsohn. It’s a superb ensemble. In 97 minutes Dominik packs in these three, Liotta, Sam Shepard (blink and you’ll miss him) and Richard Jenkins
- There’s gorgeous photography throughout. Liotta getting beat up in the rain is strong
- The single greatest scene is the killing of Liotta through the windshield (almost like a spider web in a very detailed slow-motion photography sequence). It’s a stunner
- Meticulously edited. The scene of Mendelsohn going in and out of sleep on heroin and sleep deprivation is a fine mini-montage as well
- Recommend and ultimately a little disappointing that after jesse james in 2007 Dominik can’t put together a top 10 of the year quality film
stylistic innovations/traits:
- Even the stylistic traits are tough to discuss because many only (or largely) pertain to his 2007 magnum opus
- myth-making of an outlaw in Chopper and Jesse James
- The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford is almost a miracle of beautiful images and sound
- Cleary Dominik is inspired by Malick in Jesse James– most notably Days of Heaven with all the wheat scenes, natural lighting choices and clearly the Sam Shepard casting is a nod to that
- Blurred lens in the montages of Jesse James with the voice-over—almost like a vaseline-used on the lens to create a focus on the center image- it’s formally sound where and when it’s worked in
- Train robbery scene in Jesse James is one of the great sequences in 21st century cinema- luminous
top 10
- The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
- Killing Them Softly
- Chopper
By year and grades
| 2000- Chopper | R |
| 2007- The Assassination of Jesse James | MP |
| 2012- Killing Them Softly | R |
*MP is Masterpiece- top 1-3 quality of the year film
MS is Must-see- top 5-6 quality of the year film
HR is Highly Recommend- top 10 quality of the year film
R is Recommend- outside the top 10 of the year quality film but still in the archives
Great analysis as always. I’m looking forward to seeing Blonde. Hopefully it will be more like Jesse James rather than Killing Them Softly in quality. Keep doing what you do!
@George— Thank you for the comment– and agreed– very excited for Blonde.
This cannot be true, someone who did The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford cannot be number 200.
You think he should be lower or higher? Also it’s just one MP. What else has he made that can compare? This isn’t a list based of of Masterpieces-per-movie ratio. If that was the case, laughton would be the GOAT for a lot of cinephiles. So would Jean Vigo.
I absolutely adore Guiseppe Tornatore who made Cinema Paradiso. However Paradiso was the only MP(for me) that he made. I wouldn’t have him top 200. Same with Dominink.
@Aldo where would you rank Dominik?
Actually, it’s hard for me to believe that after that movie I don’t have anything else.
It seems like a lucky break I don’t know.
it’s interesting how some directors produce a top 100 movie and then it has nothing else
Yup. For these directors there are flourishes of brilliance throughout their career but they never reach the heights of their career for reasons such as injury, illness, lucky break (or a display of extraordinary talent that is nearly impossible to repeat) etc.
Drake likes to use athletes/teams as examples sometimes and it can be used here to.i love sports (soccer) so I sometimes relate it to movies. Dominik is like Leicester city in 2015-2016. One lucky break/a display of extraordinary talent once caused Leicester to win the title when absolutely no one had predicted it. However all their main players left/got injured and they could never reach the same heights as their magical season and its highly unlikely they ever will.
« It was Jesse James that slit the boy’s throat »
Brad Pitt is incredible.
Teaser for Blonde has dropped:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnI2MyS6fgo&ab_channel=Netflix
Obviously excited as Dominik has a lot of potential.
@Harry- Very excited for this one as well. Dominik is not bashful- I think it called it a mix of Raging Bull and Citizen Kane and said it would be one of the 10 best movies ever made. I hope he’s right!
Finally dropped that trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIsFywuZPoQ
@Zane- I did catch this- very exciting. If Iñárritu has a film coming out this fall- I’m not sure anything could be more highly anticipated- but Dominik’s film would be right there after that.
Blonde received a 14 minute standing ovation. I also read this: “anyone expecting an idiot’s guide to Marilyn Monroe will be surprised or even appalled to see the late star’s life presented as a horror movie in the surreal, nightmarish style of David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive”
Exciting stuff. Out in next Friday if I recall correctly.
@Matthew – “anyone expecting an idiot’s guide to Marilyn Monroe will be surprised or even appalled”
Sounds great, there is almost nothing that interests me less than a by the numbers biopic
I’ll take something like Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985) over any conventional biopic anyday of the week.
@Matthew- Exciting indeed. 28th of September streaming on netflix I believe. I wish the reviews were stronger- but still- something I’ll be trying to see as soon as possible.
Oh, right. So it has a limited release next Friday in New York. And then a couple more limited theatrical releases in other states on the 23rd. I thought it was releasing fully in theatres next Friday before hitting streaming on the 28th, but I was wrong
@James Trapp “ there is almost nothing that interests me less than a by the numbers biopic” im with you here
@Malith- thank you- should be fixed
@Drake – yeah it would be nice to see stronger reviews, then again
Blonde:
77 RT, 64 MC
Assassination Jesse James
77 RT, 68 MC
@James Trapp- That is certainly the example we’re hoping for. Killing Them Softly is 64 on MC as well though
@Drake – on the bright side, some of the chief complaints from reviews I’ve read include
The film’s length which is a little under 3 hours
The portrayal of Marilyn Monroe (not the performance which was highly praised)
The film’s dark tone which some describe as unrelenting
The over the top nature/lack of subtlety
Most of these criticisms don’t bother me. Based on the reviews it seems like worse case scenario it will be an ambitious miss.
It’s just because of the controversial portrayal of Monroe to be honest. I’m sure the craftsmanship is top tier, and a lot of critic scores and reviews are fueled by emotional responses and not an objective look at the artistic merit. Blonde has this written all over it, so the polarizing reviews don’t bother me personally
@Matthew – yep, agree 100%, these days everything has to be about politics and social issues so naturally this spills into other aspects of life and sadly the film industry is not immune. But I agree about not putting much weight into these types of critiques. In fact most of the negative reviews make clear that the craftsmanship is impressive so I am not too concerned either.
@Matthew and @James Trapp- I love the analytical reading of these reviews here- good for you. I saw two separate reviews that called it “a colossal downer” and one that said it didn’t really capture Marilyn’s sense of humor. While both could be true (I haven’t seen the film)– these are really just descriptions- I can’t imagine this is any sort of reasonable to examine or evaluate art. And by the way, both descriptions could be used to describe Raging Bull.
Mark Kermode gave it some nice praise today and compared it to Polanski’s Repulsion.
“The Assassination of Jesse James is a movie about fame disguised as a western, and Blonde is a horror movie disguised as a movie about fame”
I don’t see an option to respond to your last message so I’ll send it here. Thanks, I appreciate that. I also checked the flip side of critic reviews (user reviews on Letterboxd) and it is mostly the same thing. A ton of hate for the content, mostly for the “over-sexualization” and on-screen degradation of Monroe. I don’t really care to get roped into those debates but it has pretty explicitly been made known that this is NOT a real-life accurate depiction of her life, it is a fictionalized drama from the imagination of someone else based on how she thinks Monroe’s life might have been like. So this all seems a little overblown.
Just finished viewing # 1
I couldn’t help but think of Mank (2020) while watching this with from a visual perspective with the gorgeous black and white cinematography
I couldn’t help but think of Mulholland Drive from a thematic perspective with the sort of Hollywood nightmare concept David Lynch is able to achieve
This film is start to finish a visual treat, as stated above the heavy use of black and white is stunning. There is constant switching from black and white to color throughout the film (I’ll be honest, I am not sure exactly what the purpose of that was but it’s something Im going to think over)
The entire film has a fever dream vibe, hence the Mulholland Drive comparison
4 different aspect ratios used with most of the film is shot in 1.85:1
As mentioned on this page above I was not too concerned with the mixed reviews (currently around a 50 on both RT and MC) given that much of the negative focus was on the length (nearly 3 hours), unrelenting melanchology, and the depiction of Monroe as a perpetual victim.
I can certainly understand why this film is a difficult watch for more casual movie fans. It is highly experimental and unquestionably style over substance. I don’t think some of the criticisms are entirely unfair. Clocking in at 2 hours 47 min I think it could be trimmed down 15-20 min without sacrificing the film’s impact. And yes there is absolutely an unrelenting horror to this film. It is a completely unconventional biopic which is a positive in my opinion but probably took some by surprise (although it really shouldn’t if you’ve seen The Assassination of Jesse James…
Verdict: HR/MS (tenative ranking, will probably try another viewing in a few weeks)
I just realized I forgot to specify this is my reivew of Blonde (2022) although I’m guessing this was pretty obvious but just stating for the record
Great stuff, agree with pretty much everything you said. I’d have it as an MS after one viewing but it’s only gotten better the more I’ve thought about it. Going to watch it again tonight and there’s a chance that I could move it to MS/MP border
MS for me. Reminds me of Mank too. idk why. Great movie et a great performance by De Armas.
@KidCharlemagne – a few similarities with Mank:
– black and white cinematography
– similar time period although Mank is a little earlier
– Hollywood setting
– They are both are based on real life celebrities (obviously Monroe was a much bigger one) with personal
demons, great performances in both
Of course some major differences
– Mank, while there is some melodrama, it is quite funny with Herman J. Mankiewicz’s humor and wit. Blonde,
on the other hand is relentlessly bleak
– The mood couldn’t be more different as Mank is light hearted at times, Mank is just such as great character
– Mank the character is an extrovert and seems to enjoy the sound of his own voice while Marilyn Monroe
appears to be is quite introverted (assuming the depiction of her was accurate)
I enjoyed both, I believe Blonde (2022) is the more ambitious of the 2 but if forced to pick I’d say Mank is the slightly better film (at least after 1 viewing) but this could certainly change.
Blonde’s one of the most experimental/unique and honestly cinematically ambitious movies to come out in awhile I think. I’m honestly dumbfounded and because of that I don’t have much to add lol. I don’t have many formed thoughts, so I’ll definitely have to watch it again to get a more complete look at it. I will say though, I definitely think I’m higher on it than others that have commented on this page, even if I couldn’t exactly articulate why right now.
Ana absolutely slaughters it.
@Matthew – I get it, it takes a bit to absorb and put thoughts together for this one. I watched it with my aunt Wednesday night then talked on phone about it for almost an hour today. Going into it I figured the worst case scenario was ambitious miss; I happy to say that it was ambitious no doubt but fortunately not a miss, at least not in my book.
I think Dominik captures a twisted version of the American dream similar to Lynch with Mulholland Drive. Only Blonde (2022) is way bleaker and completely unrelenting (which put off a lot of casual viewers). Billy Wilder’s Sunset Blvd (1950) is another, I love some of the overhead shots, particularly the one following Monroe getting off plane.
I think this is the type of film that is likely to improve from a critical standpoint over time. As mentioned before a lot of the backlash is related to social issues and depiction of Monroe and probably women in general during this time period. Over time I think its artistic merits will hopefully prevail.
Glad we are on the same page. It’s wildly experimental and ambitious in ways I haven’t seen before and I’m having a hard time grasping it fully with just one viewing. (It’s hurting my movie analysis ego a little bit haha.)
This is definitely of the lineage of Mulholland Drive. And really the Lynchian style in general. That’s a description and not a critique or meant to be a knock on Dominick’s vision, it’s Dominick’s own thing and I think there’s a grandiose about Blonde (if that makes sense) that was never achieved in a Lynch work (of atleast the ones I’ve seen, I’ve seen 5).
One specific moment that I’ll comment on right now was dissolve of the bed sheets turning into a waterfall, that blew my socks off. I rewinded it and watched it 4 times over right then and there.
I think Ana does a good enough job with a limited script, I don’t think she ever has a moment of total transcendence though. Imo it seems nearly impossible to transcend the Marilyn mannerisms/persona beyond parody or (even really good) mimicking if that makes sense.
I don’t think she’s merely “mimicking” here to be fair, there’s actually an interview where she said she didn’t want to mimick (or even think it was possible to mimick her completely). It’s obviously a much darker version of Monroe than we the viewers were ever able to see, and I think she captures the edge, trauma, and feverishness really really well.
It’s a complicated performance. When she’s not unleashing and going full batshit crazy, all of those feelings and trauma are being pushed below the surface and being attempted to be covered by the “Marilyn Monroe” character. By all the elegance, class and flirtiness of “Marilyn Monroe”, and I think those are more subtle/nuanced moments of superior acting. Maybe she doesn’t have one major, transcendent moment of acting but its a very studied and layered performance to me, and the performance can be greater than the sum of its parts if that makes sense
Drake,
Just out of curiosity what is the lowest RT score of a film you consider to be a MP? Or if you don’t know precisley what are some of the lowest ranked films that you consider a MP? Blonde (2022) is currently a 43 on RT. I don’t have it as a MP but who knows after more viewings. Right now I have HR/MS but will watch again in the next few weeks.
@James Trapp- sorry- just catching up a little here. I do not think there is a RT score that low on a masterpiece. I didn’t look at every one- but I looked at three that I was just curious about (The Birth of a Nation, The Cook the Thief His Wife and Her Lover, and Rumble Fish) and all were 75% or more positive. Again, I didn’t look at all the masterpieces, but I don’t see one close to that grade. Do you spot any?
@Drake – no worries, Iwas just curious after my 1st viewing of Blonde (2022)
The New World currently has a 63 on RT, I remember being quite baffled when I watched for the first time as I was not expecting it to be nearly on the same level as his other MPs and yet I came away debating if it was his best film (I currently have it at # 3 behind only Days of Heaven and The Tree of Life and just ahead of the Thin Red Line. Speaking of which The Thin Red Line has a RT score of 80 now but I know at one point it was like a 77 or 78.
I’ve only seen once and it was a long time ago but you have The Fountain (2006) as a borderline MP and it currently has a 52 on RT
I think Enemy (2013) is a MS but could move it up, it currently has a RT of 71
@James Trapp- The Fountain is a good pull on this one- nice work.
Interesting that Andrew Dominik, who was born in New Zealand and grew up in Australia now has two films that are steeped in American mythology. You have The Assassination of Jesse James (2007) set around one of the most notorious outlaws in the history of the American Wild West and with Blonde (2022) set around one of the most iconic American celebrities of the 20th Century. Even Killing Them Softly (2012) is a neo-noir, a very American genre.
Neat observation
I think you can see that with several directors; Chloe Zhao comes to mind.
@James Trapp – I think that you can add Killing them softly to this list. It’s ver much about America elections in background, Pitt whole America is a business monologue (love this scene – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5V6GHnxEJjg&ab_channel=CuriousWhale) .
I think that Chopper is his only “Australian movie” (haven’t seen it yet, so pure speculation on my part).
@Mad Mike- Yes, Chopper is biopic really about Australian Mark “Chopper” Read
Drake,
Have you had a chance to see Blonde yet?
If so, what did you think?
@James Trapp- I have- I caught it that first weekend it was streaming. I think it is easily archiveable and am decidedly on the thumbs up/fresh side of things vs. thumbs down/rotten. I think it is a tier below the best films of 2022- at least after one viewing. I hope to get to it again before February/March. I’m going to make that a priority
What do you think are the best films of 2022 so far?
@Alt Mash- 22 movies from 2022 in the archives as of today’s date- and have The Northman, Everything Everywhere All at Once and The Batman a tad above the rest- at least for now
Is Bullet Train in the archives? Did you manage to catch it.
I have it as R
@George- I skipped it in theater- but anything from the director of Atomic Blonde starring Brad Pitt will at least get a home watch- regardless of the reviews.
Did Tar miss the cut or have you not caught that yet?
I plan on catching it sometime early November, and am really excited to
@Matthew- I should be getting to it in November here as well- and like you- I am really exited.
@Drake
Have you seen any 2022 films that you consider to be a MP or even borderline MP?
@James Trapp- I have not, pretty confident we’re still without a masterpiece from the new decade.
I know this is a Dominik page but have you caught Decision to Leave yet? I have that as my only MP from this year (so far) and only the second MP of the decade. I think it’s far and away Park’s most formally accomplished work.
Also adding my 2 cents in on Blonde – one of the years best aswell. HR. Some of the scene transitions were breathtaking and just the ambitiousness of a work like this is commendable. Ana De Armes also blew me away.
@Joel I have not as of yet if you’re asking me. Excited to get to this one