Half Term Report 2019

WHOOOOOAAAAHHHH, WE'RE HALF WAY THERE-ERE!!!  WHOAH-OH!!!!

I don't apologize for that at all.  Anyway, we're halfway through the year, so I thought I'd do a quick top five of my favourite films I've seen at the cinema this year.  Will I still think these are the top when it's time to do my top ten of the whole year list?  We'll see then, but for now, let's start with...

5. The Kid Who Would Be King

I was hmm-ing and haa-ing about whether this or SHAZAM! should have this spot, as I adored both, and if I was doing a top ten I would have both in here, but in the end I put it down to a dice-roll as to which one I should talk about.  I'm glad it came out with Kid, as while SHAZAM! has done alright business, and proven that DC are getting a better idea as to which direction to take their superhero properties, this one was kind of a disappointment at the box office.  Well now it's out on home video, let's see if we can make up for that.  Joe Cornish's long awaited follow-up to Attack the Block carries a lot of the same energy and style as that one, but with a much more kid friendly approach.  In fact, I've seen him in interviews this year in person, where he's mentioned that one of the goals in this is to make the sort of film with kids as the heroes you really don't get much anymore.  Seriously, back in the day you had E.T., Flight of the Navigator, The Goonies, and plenty more that were aimed at kids starring kids; that's just not the case anymore.  This is one reason I put SHAZAM and this together, and why they make for a great double bill.  TKWWBK is a tonne of fun, with well realised fantasy aspects, a strong message of unity for Britain and fighting the forces that would separate us, good use of the Arthurian myth (which funnily enough Hellboy would do in a very similar, but not nearly as good, way a couple of months later), and an incredibly fun climax.  Now the main question is, with this excellent cast, who's going to be the future Star Wars lead, DC Superhero, and Doctor?

4. Godzilla: King of the Monsters

I don't think I've seen a blockbuster that has divided people quite as much as this one in quite a while; those who love it really love, those who don't really don't.  Myself, who thought the 2014 Godzilla was OKish, and who really dug Kong Skull Island, I absolutely adored this one.  It was clear that there was a distinct mission statement to this one, namely to put the God back in Godzilla, make the titans feels less like big animals, more like the stuff of legends.  They do that literally in the scenes of the ancient temples to the titans and such, and narratively in the way they are filmed.  Just shots like Ghidorah and Rodan's awakenings, or Mothra unfurling her wings have a superb sense of grandeur to them.  I had good hopes for this one since I read that it was Mike Dougherty (Trick 'r Treat, Krampus) behind this, and he did not disappoint; let's hope Godzilla vs. Kong is a good follow-up.  Oh, and the thing I love most from this film?  All the fan-art of Mothra and Godzilla as a couple it's inspired, that gives me life!

3. Toy Story 4

Like a lot of us, I was very nervous about this one, as the end of Toy Story 3 is a fantastic culmination to the trilogy, and while I did enjoy the specials Toy Story of Terror and The Toy Story that Time Forgot (which are worth seeking out if you haven't seen them yet), a fully fledged new entry to the series was another matter.  I didn't have to worry though, as whilst I don't think this is nearly as "tight" a screenplay as the others in the series, this does provide for an excellent coda for Woody as a character, giving him an ideal end for this character arc.  It also carries on the Toy Story traditions of oddly existential concepts (Forky does indeed raise all of the questions), nods to the horror genre (perhaps the most overt yet), and fun new side characters.  Of course Keanu Reeves as Duke Kaboom is a blast, I really loved Ally Maki as Giggles, but of course the show is stolen by Key and Peele as Ducky and Bunny, especially in their mid-credits scene.  I wonder how much of the audience will be weirded out when they find out Bunny directed Get Out and Us?  Oh, speaking of...

2. Us

Now this one hasn't caught on to quite the degree that Get Out did, but I really adored this one.  Jordan Peele is definitely a filmmaker who is using every one of his films to say something, to use the opportunity to give a strong allegory.  In this case, it touches upon a lot of issues of society structures, the idea of a literal under-class being in the shadow of the literal upper-classes, leading to a grand action, a statement against the way things are.  Of course it doesn't just give you a speech about it for 116 minutes; it delivers a real thrill-ride along the way, paying homage to a bunch of horror classics, and other bits of media, along the way.  (Next time you watch this, play close attention to the VHS tapes you see near the start).  Get Out famously managed to be a rare horror film to get Oscar recognition; if Lupita Nyong'o doesn't get a Best Actress nod for her pair of performances here, it will be more validation of my longstanding ennui with The Academy.

1. One Cut of the Dead

As you probably know, I am a sucker for films about filmmaking, so naturally I am going to be drawn to something like this, but One Cut is something truly special.  It acknowledges that even getting a cheap p.o.s. zombie flick made is a full group effort, that finishing one is truly an achievement, especially if you have some hefty restrictions to meet.  This became a massive word of mouth success in Japan and around the world for good reason; it's just a lot of fun.  The opening of the one-shot zombie tale is very well done; it might not look like it was at first, but as the later stages of the story reveal, there's a tonne more to it then it seems.  It has great characters, pokes fun at "standard" zombie fare, perfect gag set-ups and pay-offs, and introduces us to a vital new aspect of martial arts; POM!  Check this out if you haven't already!

So that's my pick for the top five I've seen so far this year.  Of course things may change by the end of the year when I do my final top ten; for example, In Fabric would have been on here as a 2019 release, if it wasn't for the fact that I saw it last year at LFF.  Mind, if I was to see it on the big screen again before the end of the year, well in time for the top ten list... excuse me, I have a little errand to run.