Little Women (2019)

Direction: Greta Gerwig
Country: USA

Greta Gerwig’s sophomore directorial feature, Little Women, is an inspired adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s 1868 semi-autobiographical novel of the same name, doing what few movies based on great books can do. The director adopts a flowing, leisurely style, preferring a breezy warmth and humor to the usual boring details and sentimental baits that, most of the times, inundate these period dramas.

This heartfelt, coming-of-age story, set in post Civil-War America, allows us to keep pace with the growth of the four March sisters, from childhood to womanhood. The brave, hot tempered, and independent Jo (Saoirse Ronan) is a talented writer and teacher in New York who refuses to comply with the established conventions regarding the role of women in the society; the slightly rebellious painter-wannabe Amy (Florence Pugh) competes with Jo for attention; the ambitious eldest sister, Meg (Emma Watson), is tired of being poor and just aims at a good marriage; and the quiet Beth (Eliza Scanlen), the shyest of the sisters, has in music her main interest in life.

Raised by their kind-hearted mother, Marmee (Laura Dern), they are all so different in nature, but also extremely united. Episodes of jealousy are frequently depicted with humor and involve the sisters' wealthy neighbor, Theodore "Laurie" Laurence (Timothée Chalamet), whose charms conquer Amy’s heart but not his best friend Jo, with whom he’s in love. Meryl Streep plays the sisters’ aunt marvelously, the family’s spinster who just wants to see the girls well married.

The pace is set to perfection and you won’t find one single dull moment here. Gerwig masterfully builds up this story with appealing ease and self-assurance, planting it over a solid structure that doesn’t shrivel at any stage. The camera lens captures everything that’s relevant with curiosity and spirit, and both director and cast fuel the proceedings with the more delightful of the touches.

This refreshingly smart take on Little Women reaches the dimensions of a new classic. It’s undoubtedly one of the greatest movies of 2019.

Dolemite Is My Name (2019)

Direction: Craig Brewer
Country: USA

Completely free of inhibitions and set to work at fast speeds, Dolemite is My Name is a facetious representation of the Blaxploitation cinema that emerged in the United States in the 1970’s. The biographical comedy stars an alive-and-kicking Eddie Murphy as the real-life title character, a comedian and ambitious go-getter whose real name was Rudy Ray Moore. Having exchanged his native Arkansas for L.A. to become a successful artist, Moore is not so thrilled with his big plans turned small life. That’s when a big idea comes up: to steal the rhyming Afro-American folklore material of the roofless Ricco (Ron Cephas Jones), polish it, and then create his own show.

Still feeling unfulfilled after the commercial success of his comedy records, Moore looks further and extends his ambitions to cinema. He acts for the very first time alongside his protégée Lady Reed (Da'Vine Joy Randolph) and under the direction of actor D'Urville Martin (Wesley Snipes), a stoned dude whose i-don’t-give-a-shit attitude has never discouraged him from pursuing his goals. The pimp character Dolemite is all about titties, wild action, and maladroit kung fu. Snoop Dogg and Chris Rock also appear in the film, playing small parts.

Director Craig Brewer possessed the right mindset to make this work, even when pushing the film into the excesses of its bravado. He creates a colorful frappé of successful gags and funny situations, and often employs Murphy’s black vernacular as a laugh inducer, pulling punchy satirical notes to the point of almost reaching the absurdity. The writing credits go to the team Scott Alexander/Larry Karaszewski (Ed Wood; The People vs. Larry Flint).

One can’t pretend that this Dolemite doesn't incorporates clichés, but we also can’t deny it’s an extremely entertaining exercise and an uplifting reference to this particular side of the African-American filmmaking culture.

One Cut of the Dead (2019)

Direction: Shinichiro Ueda
Country: Japan

Shinichiro Ueda’s low-budget One Cut of the Dead is an uneven, cunning, and riotous zombie parody conceived with obsession and commitment. It's possibly a new cult movie for the gorehounds,  These characteristics are also shared by the director within the film, Mr. Higurashi (Takayuki Hamatsu), and his family: actress wife Harumi (Harumi Shuhama) and perfectionist daughter Mao (herself). 

I confess I almost stopped watching the film during its nonsense 37-minute opening sequence. Yet, after that bloody B-movie premise shot with a dizzying handheld camera, the hysterical horror farce started to make sense, following a clever structure and displaying occasional hilarious situations.  

A brand new TV channel dedicated to zombies hires Hirugashi to create a one-take-only episode to be broadcasted live. He can only use one single camera and his personality suddenly transfigures from kind-hearted to iron-handed. With limitations in both resources and time, he then goes into the process of gathering the possible cast and crew, including the actor Mr. Hosoda (Manabu Hosoi), who has an alcohol problem and lives in a happy-sad state, and sound technician Mr. Yamago (Shuntaro Yamazaki), who struggles with severe intestinal disorders.

Starring unknown actors, One Cut of the Dead is progressively enjoyable and it works, in part, because it doesn’t. After all, the whole movie is built on failure.

A Rainy Day in New York (2019)

Direction: Woody Allen
Country: USA

Once heralded as an inventive filmmaker, Woody Allen now definitely needs a break. It’s been a while since the prolific American director presented something original and fully consistent.

A Rainy Day in New York is another New York-inspired trifle, whose plot is not as shiny as its images. Made of coincidences, encounters, and imbroglios, the story is excessively fabricated to convince. Moreover, the film was discarded by its distributor, Amazon Studios, after Allen’s name has been involved in a sexual assault allegation and most of the actors had given their salaries to anti-harassment organizations.

Apart from the controversy, Allen pictured a young couple arriving in New York to spend an agitated weekend. He is Gatsby Wells (Timothée Chalamet), a clever New Yorker who wins at poker and smokes like a chimney. She is Ashleigh Enright (Elle Fanning), a not-very-bright journalism student from Tucson, Arizona, who gets hysterical with the opportunity to interview Roland Pollard (Liev Schreiber), an uninteresting indie filmmaker. While Gatsby ends up turning down the advances of a childhood friend, and now actress, Shannon Tyrell (Selena Gomez is just way out of line here), Ashleigh bumps into the celebrated actor Francisco Vega (Diego Luna), to whom she literally denies to have a boyfriend. 

The immature A Rainy in New York drags with boring developments that only make the film look duller and duller. Even if you’re into romantic comedies, you'll find a too contrived plot, incapable to provide a satisfying experience. The sharp and glowing cinematography by Italian Vittorio Storaro (Apocalypse Now; Last Tango in Paris) seems to be one of the few things that escape banality.   

Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019)

Direction: Céline Sciamma
Country: France

It’s the end of the 18th century. A talented Parisian painter, Marianne (Noémie Merlant), gets into a boat to a remote island in Brittany. She was hired to draw a portrait of a young aristocrat, Heloise (Adèle Haenel), who refused to pose for former painters. The portrait will serve to attract potential suitors, but Heloise has no interest in getting married whatsoever. Yet, by the will of the Contessa, her mother (Valeria Golino), it seems she has no way to dodge that destiny. The resistance/passivity duality that emerges from the situation naturally aggravates after painter and subject fall for each other.

With a quasi-literary essence, Portrait of a Lady on Fire emerges as a slow-burning period piece, perfectly cast and combusting with aesthetic sophistication. The simple, intimate plot is handled with authenticity by writer/director Céline Sciamma, who has here a major triumph after the positive impressions left with former works, Tomboy (2011) and Girlhood (2014). Behind the camera, she doesn’t wobble not for a second, demonstrating how confidently and stylishly she handles the material. There’s a smart parallel story involving abortion and stupefying moments of music. 

The painter’s recollection may be bittersweet, but for us is unforgettable such is the magnetic emotional resonance of Merlant and Haenel’s performances. They are extraordinary actresses.

I don’t remember the last time I was pulled into a quiet film this arrestingly. Hence, this is one of those cinematic treats to be remembered, not regretted. 

Atlantics (2019)

Direction: Mati Diop
Country: Senegal / France / Belgium

Set in a suburban coastal town of Dakar, Senegal, Atlantics is a downhearted love story turned into revenge ghost tale. Starring a fine cast of newcomers led by Name Bineta Sane, Ibrahim Traore and Amadou Mbow, the film marks the directorial debut of French-Senegalese actress Mati Diop (35 Shots of Rum; Simon Killer), who co-wrote the script with Olivier Demangel.

Souleiman (Traore) is an indebted young man who works long hours in construction. It’s been three months since he doesn’t get a paycheck. Desperate, Souleiman and his friends get into a small boat with the risky mission to cross the Atlantic Ocean and reach Spain. He does this in secrecy, without saying anything to his better half, Ada (Sane), who, despite madly in love with him, has an arranged wedding with the wealthy Omar (Babacar Sylla) scheduled within a few days. With no news from Souleiman, Ada is found impassive and disconsolate at her wedding party, a celebration marked by an inexplicable bizarre occurrence. The investigation of the mystery is entrusted to the rising young police inspector Issa Diop (Mbow), whose tenacity is disturbed by what looks like a virus.

With tranquil assertiveness, Ms. Diop sets a haunting, feverish atmosphere to immerse us in a story of life and death. The simplistic yet powerful plot emphasizes work exploitation and greediness, tragic relationships, immigration, cultural and religious traditions, and brings a very particular vision about things left unresolved in this world. Filmed with an astute sense of aesthetic and well acted, Atlantics is never scary in its phantasmagoria, but the message… the message is too strong to ignore. 

Tigers Are Not Afraid (2019)

Direction: Issa Lopez
Country: Mexico

Mexican writer/director Issa López has in Tigers Are Not Afraid her most compelling work. Having a hard time to fully engage during the initial low-key dramatic realism, Lopez gives the story a strange path and makes it evolve into a crescendo. In truth, the tale plays a much better game after transfiguring into an eerie ghost story. It also boasts this baffling mix of surrealism and symbolism throughout, like in a dark fairytale, without compromising the director’s sort of sneaky self-confidence in aiming at the unbearable, widening violence in Mexico.

With a devastated Mexico City as a backdrop, the film centers on the sensitive 10-year-old Estrella (Paola Lara), who joins a group of orphaned kids led by El Shine (Juan Ramón López). After their parents have disappeared and some houses destroyed, they live on the streets, looking out for food and finding shelter at abandoned places. During a cartel-related shooting outside her school, Estrella was conceded three pieces of chalk, each of them representing a magical wish, but they only seem to trigger unsettling stuff such as haunting visions of her dead mother, creepy augurs, and fantastic metaphoric signals.

The process of finding a proper balance between drama, surrealism and horror was a tremendous challenge, but Lopez, even if not really exceptional in that mission, was able to create an entertaining tale, deeply unnerving in concept and featuring a few decent chills.

The Two Popes (2019)

Direction: Fernando Meirelles
Country: UK / Italy / Other

In the agreeably conversational The Two Popes, Brazilian director Fernando Meirelles does a much quieter and static job than when portraying the slums of Rio de Janeiro in his masterpiece City of God (2002). However, his notable directorial work in this biographical dramatization bears no less responsibility since the film exclusively relies on the dialogue between two very different men of faith. Quick flashbacks also exist, yet they were never an added value to the impeccable writing material provided by Anthony McCarten (The Theory of Everything; Darkest Hour), who adapted his own 2017 play The Pope.

With the capacity of conquering more and more our interest as it moves forward, The Two Popes relies on outstanding performances from Anthony Hopkins as Pope Benedict XVI and Jonathan Pryce as Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio, now Pope Francis. Despite their discrepant personalities and vision, these men were able to open up with each other and discuss complex topics related to the Church as an institution, including some well-known Vatican scandals. They do it with honorable mutual respect and deep understanding. This posture should serve as an example for all the narrow-minded rulers of our tumultuous times. 

The picture reconstructs not only how the most recent papal succession took place, but also the beautiful and solid friendship established between the two popes. It was lovely to see how the visibly tired and lonely German-born Benedict, far more conservative in his approach to life and consequently lacking the openness and clarity the Catholic Church needs today, became receptive to the candid ideals of Bergoglio, a popular Argentine ecclesiastic with a casual, friendly posture, wide sense of humor, and love for soccer, pizza and tango. 

The confessions are the most powerful moments of the film, the trust is unbreakable, and I like to think that a divine hand was involved in this succession, ensuring a better future for the Catholic Church.

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Daniel Isn't Real (2019)

Direction: Adam Egypt Mortimer
Country: USA

For a low-budget film, Daniel Isn’t Real did a lot, revealing some refreshing originality when compared to other horror movies with more financial possibilities. Second-time director Adam Egypt Mortimer made some conceptual and technical advances since his 2015 debut Some Kind of Hate, sharing writing credits once again with Brian DeLeeuw. The latter is the author of This Way I Was Saved, the novel that served as inspiration for the film.

The central character is Luke (Miles Robbins), a college freshman experiencing mental problems. In his sad, solitary childhood, Luke often experienced abandonment, growing up with no father and worrying with his schizoid mother, Clare (Mary Stuart Masterson). His only company is Daniel (Patrick Schwarzenegger), a sinister imaginary friend who addresses him with authority, often pushing him to wrongdoing. Frightened of what his mind can do, Luke gets rid of Daniel for a certain period of time, but years later, following the suggestion of his unconventional psychiatrist, Dr. Cornelius Braun (Chukwudi Iwuji), he gives Daniel permission to follow him everywhere. This makes his mind spin out of control, threatening the relationship with his girlfriend, Cassie (Sasha Lane). Is Daniel a product of Luke’s mind or a supernatural demon looking for a weak host?

This violent, gloomy film got some deserved media attention thanks to the guts and gore, haunting atmospheres, and fine special effects. Whether this is your cup of tea or not, one must admire DeLeeuw for the mystic-induced creativity and Mortimer for the capably execution.

Uncut Gems (2019)

Direction: Josh and Benny Safdie
Country: USA

Uncut Gems generates a propulsive energy throughout that will make you invigorated. Kinetically shot and packed with restless, breathtaking sequences, the film is anything you’ve seen before. It’s also a showcase for Adam Sandler, who squeezing a lot out of the narrative, delivers his most dazzling performance since Punch Drunk Love.

Steeped in a busy, high-end New York atmosphere, the film marks another well-told chapter in the admirable filmography of the Safdie Brothers, authors of excellent indies about never-to-be-forgotten people - Daddy Longlegs (2009), Heaven Knows What (2014), and Good Time (2017). Once again, they teamed up with Ronald Bronstein for a brilliant screenplay.

The story centers on Howard Ratner (Sandler), a Jewish-American jewelry store owner whose hectic life feels like riding an ultra-rapid rollercoaster. Not even us, the viewers, have time to breathe when peeking at Howard’s tense affairs and inextricable predicaments. Because of his gambling addiction, rough debt collectors, who work for loan sharks, frequently stop by his office and give him a hard time. Moreover, most of his employees are unsatisfied for having to deal with his financial imbroglios on a daily basis; his wife, Dinah (Idina Menzel), sees him as an irresponsible imbecile, while his lover and store collaborator, Julia (Julia Fox), was found on the verge of cheating on him with the R&B singer The Weekend (himself) at the latter’s party. On top of that, he embarks on a risky business with the NBA player Kevin Garnett (himself), who got obsessed with an uncut Ethiopian opal.

Bursting with inventiveness and vibrancy, Uncut Gems is simultaneously nerve, guts, passion, and brain. A triumphant exercise in cinematic storytelling, stirred by the main character’s mercurial ups and downs. Very few recent films can boast this intensity, humor, and unpredictability. And the Safdies attained glory.

Knives Out (2019)

Direction: Rian Johnson
Country: USA

With titles such as Brick (2005), Looper (2012), and Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017) as references, American writer/director Rian Johnson has proved to have a knack for action thrillers and sci-fi adventures. With Knives Out, he probes the crime-mystery genre with relatively good results. The film, admirable in its narrative construction and bearing some significant parallels with Agatha Christie’s detective stories, features a dream cast spearheaded by Daniel Craig, who, with a heavy accent, gives life to detective Benoit Blanc, a passive observer of the truth. This calm, patient man is hired by an anonymous person to solve the mysterious death of Harlan Thrombey (veteran Christopher Plummer), a wealthy crime novelist who supposedly committed suicide on the night of his 85th birthday.

The closest members of the family are automatically considered suspects and no exceptions are made. Among them are the defunct's avid children, Linda (Jamie Lee Curtis), Joni (Toni Collette), and Walt (Michael Shannon); the apparently indifferent grandchildren, Ransom (Chris Evans) and Meg (Katherine Langford), and his presumptuous son-in-law Richard (Don Johnson). In addition to minor personal conflicts with the patriarch, all of them had his large inheritance in mind.

Nonetheless, a key element for the enigma happens to be Marta Cabrera (Ana de Armas), Harlan’s faithful nurse and confidante, who pukes every single time she lies. This factor can be both incriminatory and intimidating. The point is: everyone lies at some point.

Finely calibrated in tone, the film announces the culprit way too early, and the filmmaker tries to mend faults by delivering some fast-paced moves by the end. He totally misses the humor, though. Everything is familiar yet everything is amusing in Rian Johnson’s composed puzzle.

The Good Liar (2019)

Direction: Bill Condon
Country: UK

Bill Condon’s The Good Liar is a colorless, shallow thriller that completely collapses in its attempt to combine con-artist entertainment and serious revenge tale.

Screenwriter Jeffrey Hatcher worked in the adaptation of Nicholas Searle's novel of the same name. Still, even with the leading roles in very good hands - Ian McKellen, in his fourth collaboration with the director, and Helen Mirren, were the elected ones - the film doesn’t break new ground and sort of freezes with limitations. In truth, the troubling twists of the plot feel more insecure than exciting, creating an off-putting distance between viewers and characters.

The story mostly concentrates on Roy Courtnay (McKellen), a perennial con artist who finds the perfect person to swindle. She is Betty McLeish (Mirren), a wealthy widow that incautiously opens the door of her house for him after a single date. Clearly, Roy is not the man he claims he is, but my inevitable curiosity went to the unsuspicious Betty. Is she completely transparent and as naive as she seems to be?

Torpid dialogues, an intrusive solemn score, an unsustainable crime without repercussions, a pointless trip to Berlin with staged developments, and a rushed revival of past occurrences are all aspects that help The Good Liar sinking deeper in the mud. Playing like a stage farce, this is one of those films where even the cast loses faith in a better outcome. 

Varda by Agnes (2019)

Direction: Agnès Varda
Country: France

In addition to an insightful posthumous documentary, Varda by Agnès is a compelling self-portrait of a singular filmmaker, photographer, and visual artist.

Agnès Varda, who passed away last March at the age 90, explains her points of view to a small crowd in a theater, complementing the verbal elucidation of her artistic processes with still photographs, archival footage and film excerpts. With genuine charisma and clarity, she remarks the triptych principle that always followed her work: inspiration, creation, and sharing. 

As an important figure of the French New Wave and a feminist visionary with progressive ideas, Varda makes a retrospective of her work, focusing on unforgettable fictional films such as Cléo From 5 to 7, Vagabond, Le Bonheur, and Jacquot de Nantes, as well as highly regarded documentaries like The Gleaners and I, The Beaches of Agnes (another mandatory autobiographical essay), and Faces Places, a recent activist endeavor made in collaboration with French photographer and street artist JR. 

This is a dignified farewell to a compulsively creative artist with a keen eye to capture the things of our world and the brain to produce relevant art from many different sources. If you’re already a fan, you’ll have guaranteed good time; if not, this might impel you to start digging Varda’s world.

Bacurau (2019)

Direction: Kleber Mendonça Filho and Juliano Dornelles
Country: Brazil

Acclaimed cineaste Kleber Mendonça Filho, the mastermind behind treasures such as Neighboring Sounds (2012) and Aquarium (2016) and one of the most important representatives of modern Brazilian cinema, teams up with co-writer/director Juliano Dornelles in Bacurau, a wildly entertaining and psychedelic Western crammed with snappy dialogue, permanent tension, and often brash, brutal situations.

The title of the film refers to the fictional remote village planted in a parched rural area of Northeast Brazil, whose small yet united population follows organized strategies to fight a bunch of American psychopaths led by the ruthless German-born Michael (Udo Kier). This group of invaders is secretly backed up by a greedy politician, Tony Junior (Thardelly Lima), who had fallen in disgrace in Bacurau.  

I should say that the characters are underexplored, but the fusion of gory Western a-la Jodorowsky, violent and witty thriller in the line of Tarantino, and poignant drama with a strong message of resistance to social issues, is enough to enjoy this fun ride from start to finish. Notwithstanding, two characters stand out: Domingas (Sonia Braga), a reliable, if bitter, doctor who becomes virulent under the effect of alcohol, and Lunga (Silvero Pereira), a ferocious warrior who promptly returns to the town where he grew up to protect its people from the evil foreigners.

Less offbeat and more fabricated than Filho’s previous directorial efforts, Bacurau still thrums with puzzlement and energy, relying on delicious and often mysterious details to succeed - the town’s disappearance from all maps, a drone with the shape of a vintage UFO patrolling the skies, a police car inexplicably abandoned, a puzzling deadly sport whose practice expands beyond the local, a bullet-holed water truck, and the capacity of response from a village that instantly morphs from lively active to ghostly to sanguinary. All of this comes bolstered with a tasteful soundtrack and an invulnerable belief in the power of the collective, which, in a way, serves as encouragement for the people to rebuff today's tyrannical Brazilian politics.

Dark Waters (2019)

Direction: Todd Haynes
Country: USA

Todd Haynes, who has built a name for himself with dignified dramas such as Far From Heaven (2002), I’m Not There (2007), Safe (1995), and Carol (2015), turns his eyes to a legal and environmental investigative story in Dark Waters, a non-fiction tale in the line of Erin Brockovich. The script, written by Mario Correa and Matthew Michael Carnahan (State of Play; World War Z), was based on a 2016 article published in the New York Times Magazine, informing about the 20-year battle of corporate defense attorney turned environmental activist Robert Bilott against the giant chemical corporation DuPont. The irresponsible men behind the cited company were accused of poisoning the drinking water of Parkersburg, West Virginia, with noxious chemicals.

Outraged with DuPont’s shadowy schemes to hide the truth from the Government, Bilott refuses to give up disclosing a sea of dishonesty, negligence, and corruption, even if that means to jeopardize his stable career, his relationship with his wife (Anne Hathaway), and his own life.

Mark Ruffalo brings the persistent attorney into being, but his performance, along with the rest of the cast, is colorless. Moreover, the film’s points are made obvious in an early phase, with the story dragging for an entire hour with monotonous dialogue. Although I found myself interested in the topic itself, the film fatigues in consequence of the heavy pace and lack of surprise. Dark Waters wasn't as twisty as it promised at the outset, a fact aggravated with a constant incapacity to depart from the conventional. 

Maybe due to the nature of the story, Haynes opted for a more mainstream approach in the filmmaking and storytelling. It was never gratifying.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (2019)

Direction: Marielle Heller
Country: USA

A flattering, good-natured crowd-pleaser, A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood has the heart in the right place, but doesn’t avoid some trivial sentimentality along the way. The film reconstructs the episodes involving real-life journalist Tom Junod and the popular children’s television presenter Fred Rogers. The former, portrayed by Matthew Rhys, sees his name changed to Lloyd Vogel in the film, while the versatile Tom Hanks fits perfectly in the role of Rogers, emulating his one-of-a-kind demeanor, in particular when shooting for the preschool program Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, a television landmark from the 60’s. The film was inspired on Junod’s article “Can You Say… Hero?”, published in Esquire in 1998. Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster co-wrote the script to be handled by director Marielle Heller (The Diary of a Teenage Girl; Can You Ever Forgive Me?). 

Lloyd got hurt in the feelings and lives an angry life. His estranged father, Jerry (Chris Cooper), became the reason of his frustration since he left home when he was just a kid and his mother was dying of cancer. While keeping rejecting Jerry’s attempts to reconnect, Lloyd earns a reputation as a bitter, contemptuous writer. To his surprise, he is assigned a challenging profile of Mr. Rogers, a shockingly affable human being who overwhelms him every time he talks about anger management, emotional control, forgiveness, toleration, and how to generally deal with feelings. It’s excused to say that the interviewer becomes the interviewee, with Mr. Rogers dodging the questions to focus on the sensitive aspects that most unnerve the journalist.

Heller brings intense close-ups into her attentive filmmaking methods, delivering a heart-rendering tribute to a man of generosity that, although singular, struggles with a somewhat overempathetic posture varnished with a beatific gloss. Sometimes flowing like a dream, the film is perhaps too ambitious in its aims, sermonizing more than harmonizing. It’s worth seeing for the positive messages and Hanks' notable performance.

Pain and Glory (2019)

Direction: Pedro Almodovar
Country: Spain

Pain and Glory is a stunning, confessional statement by the fabulous Spanish auteur Pedro Almodovar, who, at the age of 70, unveils his personal demons on the screen with respectable maturity. His story is strong, filled with weighty childhood memories, painful experiences, and unresolved relationships, all of them factors conducive to corporal pains, soul afflictions, and creative blockages.

Antonio Banderas is Salvador Mallo, a once successful filmmaker now confined to a life of reclusion in Madrid due to a restrictive aching spine, intrinsic asthma, panic and anxiety, and a multitude of other ailments, both physical and psychological. 

Emotionally insecure and under the effect of anxiolytics, Salvador often revives his childhood in his long naps, picturing episodes of the small village in Valencia where he lived in the 60’s. Most of those episodes involve his late mother, Jacinta (Penélope Cruz), and Eduardo (César Vicente), the first man he was attracted to at the age of nine. Curiously, some expressions of the young Salvador, performed by Asier Flores, reminded me of the protagonist of Cinema Paradiso, also called Salvatore. Evocation or coincidence?

At the same time that memories keep emerging from his subconscious, Salvador reconnects with the actor Alberto Crespo (Asier Etxeandia), with whom he fell out 32 years before. The latter had become as torpid as the director, and they both seal their fresh association with heroin. Addiction knocks on Salvador’s door, but an incidental visit from a former lover, Federico (Leonardo Sbaraglia), helps him put life in perspective.

We hadn’t seen an Almodovar so lucid and passionate for so long, in what is an earnest examination of himself. Pain and Glory is affectionately crafted with courage and intimacy, being nourished by Banderas’ focused performance in order to triumph. Emotionally, we feel we are stepping on familiar Almodovar ground, but there’s a new breeze in his storytelling and a functional plasticity in his filmmaking style that makes this film rising above any of his recent works. In the end, hope and confidence illuminate both Salvador and Almodovar, which is something to be delighted for. 

The Irishman (2019)

Direction: Martin Scorsese
Country: USA

Who, other than Martin Scorsese, would be able to direct a grandiose epic movie about the mob with such authenticity? The Irishman, his new engrossing gangster classic, is crammed with virtuosic actors with a vast experience in portraying roles connected to the organized crime. Robert De Niro and an unusually quiet Joe Pesci team up again under Scorsese’s guidance, 24 years after Casino and 29 after Goodfellas. Al Pacino joins them here to play a key role, and together, even functioning in a more restrained mode, they show they still have it. The film, hoisted by a sharp perspective of the Mafia statutes back in the 50’s, was penned by the awarded screenwriter Steven Zaillian (Schindler's List; Gangs of New York), in a compelling adaptation of Charles Brandt’s 2004 book I Heard You Paint Houses.

The narrative scuttles back and forth in time, telling how the Philadelphian truck driver and meat delivery guy Frank Sheeran (De Niro) gradually becomes an important figure in the Cosa Nostra criminal society after establishing solid friendships with the high-ranked mafioso Russell Bufalino (Pesci) and the powerful union labor leader Jimmy Hoffa (Pacino). Frank’s loyalty to the organization is put to a test when he is ordered to kill the ambitious, stubborn and difficult Hoffa, to whom he became very close.

Scenes of violent killings, tense meetings, and complicated negotiations take turns, oftentimes with a sardonic humor hooked up. Aging alone, Frank realizes that his old pals and family are gone and nothing good has left from his criminal life to be remembered. And that’s where the guilt bites hard. Deep down, he would like to be a better man than he actually is.

Clocking in at three and a half hours, The Irishman feels painfully real, adding new stimulus to a crowded genre where only true experts can succeed. Scorsese and this mind-blowing cast are all about perfection.

Marriage Story (2019)

Direction: Noah Baumbach
Country: USA

What makes Marriage Story so remarkable is the incredible capacity to balance a variety of moods with intimacy and candidness. The film is not just a showcase for Noah Baumbach’s competent writing, direction, and storytelling, but also for the gripping performances by Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver.

The narrative starts off with the married couple and protagonists, Nicole (Johansson), a talented actress, and Charlie (Driver), a rising theater director, telling us what they like about each other. Despite the still constructive feelings and words of praise written down for a marital mediator, it becomes quite clear over time that the divorce is an irreversible decision for Nicole. However, what could have been an amiable procedure if kept between them, becomes a costly, hostile, and inglorious coast-to-coast legal battle led by aggressive lawyers - formidably portrayed by Laura Dern and Ray Liotta.

Amidst all the susceptibility and suffering created by the situation itself, there are witty scenes, some involving Nicole’s family members - her mother Sandra (Julie Hagerty) and sister Cassie (Merritt Wever) - and a particularly awkward one marked by blood and deadpan humor. Everything works perfectly, except the redundant musical episodes, the only aspect I would discard.

Sporting that pungent emotional punch we seek to experience in a study of a decaying marriage, the film fulfilled my expectations and the audiences certainly won’t forget how heartbreaking a separation can be. Marriage Story is among the best of 2019.

The Nightingale (2019)

Direction: Jennifer Kent
Country: Australia / USA / Canada

The Nightingale is an intoxicating, brutally violent revenge tale written and directed by Jennifer Kent, a respected auteur whose knack for taut pieces is instantly confirmed. She first earned the world’s attention in 2014 with her first feature, The Babadook, embarking now on a feverish odyssey marked by rape, murder, racism, sexism, and human contempt.

The story is set in 1825 in Australia’s Van Diemen’s Land, a British penal colony, where Clare Carroll (Aisling Franciosi), a convicted Irish woman at the service of the British unit in charge, is sexually abused by the ravenous Lieutenant Hawkins (Sam Claflin), who repeats the action with further devastating consequences after being informed that his superior, finding moral indiscretions in his behavior, do not intend to recommend him for the rank of captain.

While Hawkins and the nasty Sargent Ruse (Damon Herriman) feast on their prey, Clare’s family is exterminated in front of her eyes. The images are harrowing and you'll likely feel absolutely deplorable with all the ruefulness and the ugliness of the acts.

Shaken by indignation and humiliation, Clare resolves to chase Hawkins, Ruse, and private Jago (Harry Greenwood) to the dangerous bush-ridden paths that take to Launceston. She wouldn’t have the chance to find them if not guided by Billy (Baykali Ganambarr), an expert Aboriginal tracker whose life is also marked by deprival and loss. The two forge a strong bond motivated by common misery and indignation, as well as an urgent sense of justice.

At some point along the route, Clare has a relapse and becomes fragile again, suddenly dominated by fear. This is utterly frustrating, especially when the two vile officers sexually assault a native mother that had crossed Ruse’s way. Billy, with a good help from the good spirits, is the only person she can trust to finish off the mission.

Already stamped as one of the toughest movies of the year to watch, The Nightingale is a dark thriller that, in addition to the valid script and qualified performances, relies on the naturalistic visuals to succeed.