It’s New Years Eve Day and Netflix has dropped the long awaited season 4 of Cobra Kai. We’ll be binging it today and, maybe tomorrow depending on how things go, and doing a write up for each episode.
I watched season 1 back when this was on YouTube Red. It was a main reason why I purchased that streaming version of YouTube. I enjoyed season 1 but I did not return for season 2. When it came to Netflix, I still did not watch. When season 3 came out and everyone was talking about it, I decided to binge these two seasons at once. I was very pleased that I decided to so that. I really enjoyed those two seasons and I am looking forward to season 4.
At the end of season 3, having Johnny and Daniel come together with a common enemy was an epic way to leave off the season. However, I guess the idea that the long-standing rivalry would just go away was a pipe dream as Johnny and Daniel immediately clash over the differing styles. Maybe this was necessary, but it felt as if this was what the first three seasons were building towards and that it might have been a step back. It makes sense that we should see this conflict.
I did like how Hawk had to take some punishment. The biggest issue I had last year was that his face turn came out of nowhere and did not feel earned. The resentment from some of the other students and the senseis is real and was a nice addition to the story.
I also enjoyed the fact that Terry Silver did not just come running back when John Kreese called. They gave us a scene where Silver reflected on his past from Karate Kid 3 and was not happy about it. It immediately made him more of a real character than he ever was in the movie. In fact, they actually did too good a job, because I now am not sure why he makes the choice to return to Cobra Kai.
The end of the episode with the students working together to “build a bridge” was a great moment and showed Daniel and Johnny, who were about to give in to their baser instincts about each other, that this could work even if it was not easy.
Good start, laying the groundwork for what is to come.
We travelled back to 1930 for the next short, but this is no longer the silent variety as we saw with Charlie Chaplin or Buster Keaton. This short stars EYG Hall of Famers Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy.
Another Fine Mess started off with Laurel and Hardy being chased by a police officer whom Stan had insulted in the park. They hid out in a fancy estate owned by Col. Wilburforce Buckshot (James Finlayson). Col. Buckshot is heading on a trip and is trying to rent out his home. Stan and Ollie wind up taking the position of Buckshot and a butler (and eventually a maid) after Buckshot had left. When Lord Leopold Ambrose Plumtree (Charles K. Gerrard) arrived with his new wife (Thelma Todd), Stan and Ollie had to assume these roles to avoid being caught.
Laurel and Hardy are funny, and they know what they do well. I did think that there was too many pratfalls by Stan and there were a few jokes that were run into the ground (especially Lord Plumtree’s laugh), but when the comedy worked, it was very funny. I would say that Laurel and Hardy’s bits worked more often than not.
There was a reliance on dialogue in this film, which was not common for Laurel and hardy films. I welcomed it as I found that it was funnier, in my opinion, than a lot of the physical slapstick that was on display here. It will be interesting to compare this to other Laurel and Hardy shorts moving forward.
I enjoyed the ending of the film as it felt like one of the funniest bits from the physical comedy in the film. The image of the bicycle and who was riding it was very hilarious.
It was fun to see a different type of the early day films for the DailyView today and I am happy that Laurel & Hardy gives me another type of short to cover those days when a short film is needed.
I have not done a concert movie during the DailyView yet. Check that off the genre box. Today on Peacock, I took the time to watch Prince’s Sign ‘o’ the Times concert film.
I would not say that I was a fan of Prince. I like some of his music, particularly his earlier Purple Rain material. I was not aware of much of the album Sign ‘o’ the Times, outside of the song he did with Sheena Easton so I came into this concert film without any real expectations.
I quite enjoyed it.
The film was a lot of fun. It brought a ton of energy from Prince, and he seemed to be filled with joy (something that was not necessarily something he showed a lot of in his life). The music was exciting and filled with energy. Though a lot of it sounded alike, there were some amazing musical performances. Especially Shelia E’s amazing drum solo which just demanded your attention and powered through the middle of the film.
There are only so many shots that are available in a concert movie, which is a challenge for the filmmaker. Prince, who co-directed this with Albert Magnoli, did the best you could expect, but did not bring anything really new to the genre.
Because of this, the film will rise or fall with the music and fortunately, the music is exceptional. Well played, well performed and engaging. I bopped my head throughout the film despite not knowing many of the songs being performed.
The annual Top 30 Best Movies List from EYG. Once again, this is all my opinions. If they’re different than yours, that is okay. There should be differences. (Oh, by the way, technically there are 32 films here)
I will remind you again as well that when it comes to the Best Movies list, the star ratings I give during the year are simply guides. A 4.5 star movie may be higher than a 4.75 film in the end. And that is OK.
Here we go….
#30. Mass. I just watched this the other day as I was finishing this list up and I wanted to make sure it had a place on it. Had I seen it earlier, this would have been higher. Emotional gut-punch of a film.
#29. Being the Ricardos. The Amazon Prime original tells the story of a week in the life of Lucille Ball when she was being looked at as a Communist. Greta performances, especially from Nicole Kidmon as Lucy and JK Simmons as William Frawley.
#28. Army of Thieves. The sequel of the film released this same year that we did not know we needed. An actual prequel to the Army of the Dead, this featured thieves instead of zombies.
#27. CODA. This is a great movie on Apple TV +. Featured Emilia Jones as the only non-deaf character in her family. Jones wanted to be a singer, but the family needed her translation skills. Excellent movie with powerful scenes.
#26. Godzilla vs. Kong. The ultimate showdown between the two alpha monsters shook HBO earlier in the year. There was a clean result too. Sure it is campy, but what did you expect? The monster battles continue to be the highlight of these flicks.
#25. Muppet Haunted Mansion. Debuted on Disney + around Halloween this year. It was an hour or so special that featured Gonzo the Great and Pepe the King Pawn spending a night in the Haunted Mansion. It had all the Muppet goodness, but some odd cameos.
#24. Boss Level. Unexpectedly awesome, it featured another version of the “Groundhog Day” style of film with Frank Grillo trying to make his way to the next day. Very entertaining.
#23. Raya & the Last Dragon. And early Disney film this year with the typically great animation and touching story. Raya tried to find the last dragon to save her world from the monstrous Druun.
#22. PG: Psycho Goreman. This one had no right to be as awesome as it was. On Shudder, two kids accidentally unearth an intergalactic overlord, which attracts those beings that buried him in the first place. Funny and exciting, Psycho Goreman is an unexpected treat.
#21. Pig. Nicolas Cage’s pig gets kidnapped )kidnapped? stolen?) and he goes after the thieves. Some thought this was going to be John Wick with a pig, but it was much more introspective than that. Nic Cage gave a powerfully emotional performance and this is much more of a character piece than John Wick.
#20. Free Guy. One of the biggest hits of the year, Free Guy’s success was unexpected. It had been pushed several times and, even when it was about to be released, people did not know about it. However, people knew about it after it was released. Ryan Reynolds plays Ryan Reynolds, but he does it well.
#19. Dune. A film that has now officially became a Part One, Dune is a excellent sci-fi film with great visuals. The story did feel incomplete, because, of course, it was. Denis Villeneuve has gotten his passion project so we’ll see how it continues.
#18. Ghostbusters: Afterlife. Probably one of the most nostalgic films this year. Paul Rudd, McKenna Grace, Finn Wolfhard along with some emotionally satisfying Deus Ex Machinas made Afterlife a lot of Ghostbusting fun.
#17. Mitchells vs. the Machines. From Lord and Miller, this animated movie was colorful, engaging, full of family fun and intelligent. If you missed this, Mitchells vs. the Machines is on Netflix.
#16. A Quiet Place II. A worthy sequel to the huge hit, Part II looks not only at the result of the first film, but flashes back to see how it was like when the aliens first arrived. The contradiction between the noise at the beginning and the silence at the end is compelling.
#15. A Boy Called Christmas. I am so glad that I ended up watching this. I had not planned on it, but I loved it when I did. It hit all the right emotional chords for me and I had tears in my eyes during the third act. Outstanding Christmas movie, right up there with Klaus.
#14. No Time to Die. The long-awaited next film in the James Bond franchise finally arrived, marking the final appearance of Daniel Craig as 007 in a grand and exciting way. It was full of action and a surprising amount of emotion. It provided a beautiful end to Daniel Craig’s run.
#13. Eternals. I was nervous about Eternals because, even though I am a huge comic fan, the Eternals were characters that I was not that familiar with. I found this movie to be much better than I thought it could be and way better than the critics did.
#12. The Suicide Squad. This is so much better than the first film, Suicide Squad, and the main reason is James Gunn was in charge. I was a little disappointed with Starro, but the team’s chemistry overcame all of that and John Cena was great as Peacemaker.
#11. West Side Story. This was a great year for musicals. Steven Spielberg’s reboot of the Oscar-winning movie was not seen by a lot of people’s eyes, but they really missed out on something great. I preferred this version to the original and it had some great dancing and music.
#10. Belfast. Kenneth Branagh’s semi-self autobiographical film showed life in Belfast during the late 1960s. Funnier than expected, Belfast included some amazing performances, in particular from young star Jude Hill.
#9. Black Widow. Giving Natasha Romanoff a background and a “family” was great, if not too long overdue. This film introduced us to Yelena, played so naturally by Florence Pugh, as well as the Red Guardian himself, David Harbour. Scarlett Johansson was deserving of this film for years.
#8. The Rescue. I usually do not include documentaries on this list unless they are special. I had the Fred Rogers doc in the top ten a few years ago and now there is this National Geographic doc about the rescue of a group of Thai kids who were trapped in a cave that is quickly filling with water. This had more tension than most scripted movies this year. It is on Disney +, go see it.
#7. Fear Street trilogy. Yes, I kind of cheat here and I put all three films together, but it would be difficult to divide them into separate films. Fear Street 1994, 1978 and 1666 was so much fun and I really was looking forward to the release the following Friday of the next installment on Netflix.
#6. In the Heights. The second musical on the list (third if you count the Muppets) and the first one in the top 10 so far, In the Heights was such a joy and an amazing experience seeing it in the theater. Lin-Manuel Miranda had a big year and this kicked it off.
#5. In & Of Itself. Derek DelGaudio’s magic show on Hulu was more than a magic show. It was about family, it was about pain, it was about loss. It featured jaw dropping magic. It was one of the earliest experiences I had this year and it was amazing.
#4. Werewolves Within. A comedy horror film that was a mystery too. Could this town be dealing with a murderous werewolf? Or is there something less supernatural about the deaths happening? You’ll keep guessing all the way to the end of this great film.
#3. Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. The Master of Kung Fu’s debut in the MCU was brilliant. Shang Chi brought representation to the Asian culture and some of the best martial arts we’ve seen in a while (certainly the best from the MCU). Simu Liu was a wonderful casting as Shang Chi and Awkwafina made us all care about Katie. Plus, dragons!
#2. Tick, Tick…Boom. Andrew Garfield was unbeleivable in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s directorial debut in a musical about the writing of a musical. Garfield played legendary Jonathan Larson, who would eventually write the massive Broadway hit, Rent. This was before that as he struggled to get the attention he needed. Garfield won EYG Star of the Year and the Strangelove off the power of this performance.
#1. Spider-Man: No Way Home. This was probably a foregone conclusion, but the film was truly great and it was the best experience I had this year. Tom Holland gave his best performance ever and Willem Dafoe and Alfred Molina brought such deep feelings back to their famous roles. No Way Home has become the first film to break the $1B level (without a release in China) and it continues to make money. People talk about fan service all the time, but this film does not have much fan service (yes, the lawyer scene is fan service). Fact is, what many people are calling fan service is part of the narrative and not excess. This is how you do this effectively. Spider-Man: No Way Home is amazing and spectacular.
Yet, I had all kinds of problems with it. This is going to make it difficult for me to recommend this.
Paul Thomas Anderson has an eclectic list of films that he has directed over the years and this has that PTA feel to it.
Gary Valentine (Cooper Hoffman) is a 15-year old high school student who meets 25 (maybe 28)-year old Alana (Alana Haim) when she was at the school to do student pictures. They bond as friends and more and they spend the movie doing things around the San Fernando Valley, 1973.
One of my biggest problems with the movie was that there was really no narrative structure to it. It had a series of scenes, many of which were very entertaining, but had no narrative need for the movie. I guess the relationship between the two of them was the throughline of the story, but so many other scenes felt like distractions from that path.
Another major issue is the age difference between Gary and Alana. Alana was 25 (and at one point she slips and says that she was 28) and Gary is 15. That relationship is, at best, questionable. Neither of them are characters that I was rooting for to get together either. I actually couldn’t care less if they overcome the challenges that had been placed in their way.
Going along with this, I was unsure exactly what the passage of time was like here. I got the implication that some time had passed during the film, but I was not aware what that time was supposed to be, which caused an even more problematic situation between the two people.
There are some great actors involved here with characters that were very funny, but just show up for no apparent reason. Bradley Cooper, Sean Penn, Tom Waits, John Michael Higgins, Maya Rudolph, John C. Reilly and Benny Safdie all had scenes in the film and very few of them had any sort of resolution or purpose for being there.
For example, when Gary was at a convention type affair selling waterbeds, the police grabbed him, cuffed him and arrested him for murder. They shoved him in the car and took him to the station. They dragged another person out in front of him and he said that he wasn’t the guy. So they let Gary go. I found that irreverent and funny, but it absolutely served no purpose to the film except as a funny segue. It was never referenced again. Maybe I missed the relevance but there were a bunch of other examples just like that which made me think that the randomness of the situation is what they were going for.
Again, I was entertained by the scene, but why was it here?
I did find the performance of Alana Haim to be great. She brought the right amount of confusion and anguish as well as joy that I related to her most of all. Her character was not vey likable, so it was her acting that brought me in.
The film was around 133 minutes and that felt too long. The middle of the film meandered a lot and could have benefited from some editing. Perhaps they could have removed a scene or two of unnecessary nonsense.
Maybe the idea behind it is that the world is full of ridiculousness and when you have a chance at happiness, you should not let it get away. Maybe.
While I did enjoy the overall haphazardry of the scenes, I do not think this is a good movie. Again, I feel odd because I did find much of this movie entertaining, but I would not recommend it to anyone.
The Wachowskis became a huge success after they created and directed the original Matrix. However, prior to the Matrix, they directed another film called Bound and it was great.
We meet ex-com Corky (Gina Gershon) who comes across Violet (Jennifer Tilly), who was dating a man named Caesar (Joe Pantoliano), who was involved with the mob. Corky and Violet form a sexual connection and begin to plot together on a theft of $2 million dollars that Caesar had to clean (literally). They planned on framing Caesar for the stealing of the mob money, but their plot does not go as smoothly as planned.
This was a fun, violent and dramatic story, with several twists and turns that you do not see coming. Gina Gershon and Jennifer Tilly have great chemistry with each other and Joe Pantoliano brings the menace of Caesar to the film. These three carry the heavy load of the movie and they do it expertly.
The plot works extremely well as every step feels as if it was beautifully laid out in the story and works no matter how implausible or unexpected it should have been. Everything works story wise.
The last 45 minutes or so of the film is as batshit crazy as you can expect, with anxiety and nerves off the chart. You are never sure what is going to happen or how, or if, they surviving this plan.
The style is well done and the film leads right into the Matrix success. Good stuff.
The amount of bad films that I saw this year was down. The fact is that I used to go to the theater to see nearly all of the new releases, no matter what. However, with the pandemic still a problem, if I saw that a film had low Rotten Tomatoes scores or bad word of mouth, I would not go to it. They were also less likely to be bought on a streaming service.
So there is only 20 films this year that make this list.
Through the year, I give star ratings for the films I review. However, those star ratings go out the window for the final consideration for this list. It may help me narrow the list down, but just because one film got 1.5 stars and another got 1.8 stars, it does not mean that is the order that I have it. Opinions on films can change as time moves on.
Finally, this is my list and my opinions. If you disagree, that is fine. It is your right. If you do not like Worst Films lists, that is fine too. You are entitled to your opinion. I disagree and that is my right.
Top 20 Worst Films of 2021
#20. Don’t Breathe 2. I loved the first film, but when they tried to make Stephen Lang’s character the hero of this film after his character was a murderer and a rapist in the first one. Lang was like a superhero too. He did not feel like he was blind. All in all, really disappointing.
#19. Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway. James Cordon’s vehicle was watchable the first time, but the new sequel was terrible. It had a ridiculous story with the humor very limited.
#18. Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins. I guess that new G.I. Joe series of films is a no go, huh? Snake Eyes was truly the villain of this movie and Stormshadow was the hero. Then, the fight scenes were unwatchable.
#17. F9. The Fast and the Furious films were never great, but it went completely off the rail this year. They sent the crew into outer space in a car. The long rumored trip to space actually happened.
#16. Voyagers. It was like Lord of the Flies in outer space, only with less tension or surprises. It was pretty dull too.
#15. Halloween Kills. So many things wrong with the new sequel. The trailers made it look as if this was going to be the final confrontation between Michael Myers and Laurie, but they never see each other in the film. “Evil dies tonight”? Nah.
#14. Woman in the Window. Amy Adams is an agoraphobic, alcoholic, pill-popping child psychologist who witnesses a murder across the street that nobody believes happened. A poor person’s Rear Window, Woman in the Window has so many ridiculous twists that it becomes idiotic.
#13. The Unholy. A young girl seems to have gained the power of healing from the Virgin Mary, but Jeffrey Dean Morgan has doubts. I wish I had doubts before seeing this.
#12. The Forever Purge. In a film all about the anti-immigration ideas, the Forever Purge wastes our time with silly characters and bad decisions.
#11. Space Jam: A New Legacy. In what turned out to be a basic commercial for HBO Max and the WB franchises, LeBron James added to the argument why Michael Jordon is better than he is. And they killed Bugs Bunny.
#10. Reminiscence. Hugh Jackman stars in this sci-fi love story about memory and searching the past for lost memories. This neo-noir wannabe is just a waste of time.
#9. Thunder Force. How can a film with Octavia Spencer and Melissa McCarthy be this unfunny? The worst superhero movie of the year would have been higher if it had not been for Jason Bateman’s Jerry the Crab character. The rest is terrible.
#8. Addams Family 2. I do like the character designs of the Addams Family in this animated film, but the story is so stupid and the character choices make zero sense. You should not have to dumb down the Addams Family to get kids to enjoy it.
#7. Monster Hunter. Another failed video game adaptation, Milla Jovovich plays the same character she has been playing since The Fifth Element. Oh, how I miss Leeloo.
#6. Mortal Kombat. Another failed video game franchise film. Mortal Kombat is dumb and dull. It takes too long to get into the story and it never gets to what we wanted to see.
#5. America: The Motion Picture. I hated this. I had hear some positive things, but it has ever bit of humor that I despite. I found it completely unfunny and mostly offensive. One of the worst animated film of the year.
#4. Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin. I have no doubt that this movie was, in no way, a Paranormal Activity movie. I believe they had a film and they tossed the Paranormal Activity tag on it to try and boost the film’s profile. It failed.
#3. The Devil Below. Honestly, any of the top three could have been #1. These are the three lowest rated films of the year for EYG. I am so glad this is the last time I have to talk about this movie.
#2. Infinite. I purchased Paramount + to see if this was as bad as everybody was saying. It is. Don’t watch it.
#1. Tom & Jerry. There is a reason why the old Tom & Jerry cartoons were shorts. This was just terrible use of these characters in a stupid film with a idiotic story. This was one of the earliest films of the year and ends it on the top of the worst list.
I am adding a second winner because I just saw this movie and had I seen it before, it would have been a shoo-in.
HERE is what was before:
Sometimes a movie does not have an obvious lead actor or actress and, instead, has a group of characters that all serve the story. The group is recognized with this award.
Previous Winners
The Avengers: Endgame Ensemble Cast of the Year Award
Previous Winners: Avengers: Endgame, The Trial of the Chicago 7
Runners-Up: Marvel’s Eternals is a perfect example of the ensemble cast. We meet a whole flock of new characters in Chloé Zhao‘s epic. James Gunn put out another great super hero…well, maybe a super villain… film this year called The Suicide Squad. It was a top notch ensemble too including Margot Robbie, Sylvester Stallone and John Cena, to name a few. West Side Story has a great ensemble for the remake of the 1961 Oscar winner. Fear Street was a three film series released on Netflix for three weeks with a group of actors who played different characters in the different time periods.
Winner: In the Heights
Lin Manuel-Miranda’s stage play made the leap to the big screen in 2021 and the cast was just tremendous. Along with Manuel-Miranda, there was Anthony Ramos, Leslie Grace, Olga Merediz, Jimmy Smits, Corey Hawkins, Melissa Barrera, Dascha Polanco, Ariana Greenblatt, Stephanie Beatriz, Rita Moreno, Marc Anthony, Gregory Diaz IV, Daphne Rubin-Vega, and Noah Catala.
GOING ALONG WITH IN THE HEIGHTS, THE TIE GOES TO….
Mass
These four actors are so brilliant in this movie that they bring such emotion and such an amazing energy without any clear lead. This is the perfect example of an ensemble as they are special. The four actors are Reed Birney, Ann Dowd, Jason Isaacs, and Martha Plimpton.
Filling the year of 1948 in the DailyView is an influential film directed by Jules Dassin that tells the story of the investigation by the police of the murder of a young model. It is most widely known because it films its scenes on the streets and building of New York City instead of on a sound stage.
The police procedural, led by Detective Lt. Dan Muldoon (Barry Fitzgerald), slowly follows the clues, many of which are small and seemingly unimportant, to solve the crime.
While it was interesting with the way they shot this movie, it led to some distinct problems. Namely, the requirement that there had to be a ton of voice over because the original shots outside the sound stage was hard to hear, I assume. Many times voices did not match lips because the sound was too low. There were other times where the sound included too much of an echo. All of this was distracting.
There was also a voice over doing narration at sporadic moments though the film. That voice made it sound like a documentary at times.
I’m going to say that some of the acting was wooden and uninteresting. Barry Fitzgerald though was a fascinating lead actor, looking unlike your typical leading man. He also had a distinct voice that helped break up the monotony of the scenes.
When the acting wasn’t wooden, it was way over the top. There did not seem to be much in the middle.
The Naked City did win two Academy Awards, but they were for technical aspects cinematography and film editing.
I was not into this movie much and I did not enjoy the story or characters much.
I wasn’t expecting that. I had no idea about Mass when I saw it on Vudu for rental. I recognized the title during my research for potential Oscar winners. In fact, I remembered it from seeing Ann Dowd in consideration for Best Actress. I remembered Dowd’s name from the Live Different Stroke/Facts of Life special where she was Mrs. Garrett.
This wasn’t anything like that.
This was a story of two families who had been impacted a few years before from a school shooting. Jay (Jason Isaacs) and Gail (Martha Plimpton) were the parents of one of the victims while Linda (Ann Dowd) and Richard (Reed Birney) were the parents of the shooter. They were brought together as a way to try and find a way that they could move on.
This was as uncomfortable as you could imagine it would be. The pain, the grief, the anger and resentment all still raw like an exposed nerve.
Both couples started on eggshells, as you would expect. Before the meeting had been arranged, the psychologists had prepped them to not be judgmental or to interrogate each other. The couples tried desperately to cling to those rules of meeting, but they were not having much success because they needed more.
As it moved along, things started to become more confrontational, more tense, and these actors’ performances really started to rip your heart out.
Speaking of the performances, these four actors are just amazing. With a completely dialogue/conversation driven film, it depends 100% on the actors to carry the load and to keep the engagement of the audience and these four actors do so brilliantly.
As a teacher, this topic is one that hits home very hard and this was a difficult film to watch. It was painful, but so worth it. The idea of the shooter and a victim’s parents meeting is filled with dramatic tension and scenes.
Mass was compelling and tough. Seek it out if you want to search through your emotions.
1951 was a year that was missing a film in the DailyView. I found a classic to fill that missing slot giving me at least one movie every year from 1949-2020 in the binge so far. The classic that I found to fill the 1951 year was A Streetcar Named Desire.
The Academy Award winning picture was adapted from Tennessee Williams’s Pulitzer Prize winning play from 1947. The film version had a definite feel of a stage play being put on screen, which helped create the mood that makes the film so special.
The film starred Marlon Brando as Stanley Kowalski, Kim Hunter as his wife Stella and Vivien Leigh as Blanche DuBois, Stella’s Southern belle sister. Blanche arrived at her sister’s home in New Orleans, a rundown apartment where she lived with Stanley. Stanley did not take Blanche well, wondering how she lost her family estate, Belle Reve.
Stanley was crude and brutish, clashing often with the more gentile, ladylike Blanche. Stella was caught between them several times which made things more dangerous, since she was pregnant.
One of Stanley’s poker playing friend, Mitch (Karl Malden) took a shine to Blanche and saw a fellow lonely soul in the Southern belle. However, when Stanley discovered the truth behind Blanche’s past, everything was blown out of the water.
This was an uncomfortable movie to watch since the physicality of Stanley (and even Mitch to a lesser extent) felt justified through much of the movie. The viciousness that he went after Blanche, (and Stella at times too) was treated as typical fashion whereas I absolutely found Stanley to be nothing more than an abuser with dreams of controlling and power. There were scenes where Stanley would fly off the handle over the littlest things and scream at the women in a manner to intimidate them. It was terrible.
It is a great performance by Marlon Brando, one that put him on the map, but the performance was terrifyingly realistic. Watching Stella cringe away from Stanley with every outburst makes me think that he was physical with her on a more regular basis than what we saw.
Karl Malden, Vivien Leigh and Kim Hunter all won Academy Awards for their roles in A Streetcar Named Desire. Brando was nominated but he did not receive the Oscar. Brando was virtually an unknown in this performance, but he went on a run of four consecutive Academy Award nominations with this one.
The black and white helped keep the tone of darkness and anxiety that was ambient throughout. You’re never quite sure what outcome was going to happen, but you could sense that it was not going to end happily.
A Streetcar Named Desire is a classic film with some powerful performances that does not allow the viewer to get comfortable at all. It deals with anger, physical abuse and mental illness all within the story and keeps you feeling confined.
Yes, nobody sets out to make a bad movie. Yet, it happens quite a bit. You cannot just brush it under the rug. Bad is part of life. And as anything else, movies are subjective and maybe what I think is bad is your favorite thing. More power to you.
Worst Movie: That will come to the Worst movie list in a day or two.
Worst Actor: Mark Wahlberg, Infinite. Wahlberg can be so goo. And then there is this.
Worst Actress: Milla Jovovich, Monster Hunter. She has never been good since Leeloo.
Worst CGI: Monster Hunter. CGI that is bad hurts this movie especially
Worst Sequel: Addams Family 2. Did not get any better.
Worst Superhero Movie: Thunder Force. Great year of superhero movies, and then there was this.
Worst Director: Tim Story, Tom & Jerry. Tim, Tim. Why?
My Favorite “Rotten” Movie: Eternals. I loved this. It was much better than I expected and I am surprised that the critics were not fans where the audience was.
Worst Movie I Did Not See: Dear Evan Hansen. This was a great year for musicals. And then there was Dear Evan Hansen.
Cashing a Paycheck: Bruce Willis (for his multiple direct-to-streaming films). Bruce seemed to have an unending list of movies in 2021 and none of them are heard of. This is the definition of cashing a paycheck.
Book was Better: Without Remorse. I have not read the book, but it would have to be better.
Worst Reboot/Remake: Tom & Jerry. Yup
Most Successful Bad Movie: F9. They went to space. In a car. ‘Nuff said.
Worst Movie Based on TV Show: Tom & Jerry. Tom & Jerry is all over this list. Foreshadowing, perhaps?
Worst Performance from Oscar Winner: Octavia Spencer. She was really slumming in this Netflix flop.
Worst Fighting: Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins. I could not see anything. The fight scenes are nearly unwatchable and when that happens, there is not much hope for Snake Eyes.
Previous Winners: James McAvoy (Split), Denzel Washington (Fences), Bryan Cranston (Trumbo), Michael Keaton (Birdman), Tom Hanks (Captain Phillips), Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln), Ryan Gosling (Drive), Rami Malek (Bohemian Rhapsody), Joaquin Phoenix (Joker), Chadwick Boseman (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom)
#15. Jonathan Majors (The Harder They Fall)
#14. Joaquin Phoenix (C’mon C’mon)
#13. Bradley Cooper (Nightmare Alley)
#12. Mahershala Ali (Swan Song)
#11. Tom Hanks (Finch)
#10. Jake Gyllenhaal (The Guilty)
#9. Daniel Craig (NO Tome to Die)
#8. Anthony Ramos (In the Heights)
#7. Jude Hill (Belfast)
#6. Nicolas Cage (Pig)
#5. Ryan Reynolds (New Guy)
#4. Benedict Cumberbatch (The Power of the Dog)
#3. Will Smith (King Richard)
Will Smith gives one of his best performances as the father of Serena and Venus Williams. This biopic takes a look at the way Richard kept his plan to bring his daughters to the top of the world of tennis. Richard Williams is a controversial figure and Will Smith brings him to life.
#2. Tom Holland (Spider-Man: No Way Home)
Tom Holland gave his best performance of his young career as we see his development of Peter Parker. His sixth appearance as Peter gives us the most emotion, the most powerful, the hero that Spider-Man is. With great power there must come great responsibility. The MCU Peter Parker finally learned that lesson and Tom Holland was right there.
#1. Andrew Garfield (Tick, Tick…Boom)
Our EYG Star of the Year, Andrew Garfield wins the prestigious Strangelove Award. His work in Tick, Tick…Boom, the story of the creator of Rent, Jonathan Larson, is just amazing (no pun intended). Who knew he could sing the way he did? Apparently not even Garfield. Andrew Garfield has always been known as a top actor, but this film put him on a new level.
Previous Winners: Frances McDormand (3 Billboards Outside of Ebbing, Missouri), Viola Davis (Fences), Charlize Theron (Mad Max: Fury Road), Rosemund Pike (Gone Girl), Sandra Bullock (Gravity), Berenice Bejo (The Artist), Michelle Williams (My Week with Marilyn), Yalitza Aparicio (Roma), Renee Zellweger (Judy), Viola Davis (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom)
#15. Rooney Mara (Nightmare Alley)
#14. Tessa Thompson (Passing)
#13. Emma Stone (Cruella)
#12. Naomie Harris (Swan Song)
#11. Rosamund Pike (I Care A Lot)
#10. Megan Fox (‘Til Death)
#9. Jennifer Hudson (Respect)
#8. Margot Robbie (The Suicide Squad)
#7. Emilia Jones (CODA)
#6. Angelina Jolie (Eternals)
#5. Nicole Kidman (Being the Ricardos)
#4. Jessica Chastain (The Eyes of Tammy Faye)
#3. Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow)
The long overdue Black Widow MCU solo movie finally hit the big screen this year and Scarlett Johansson delivered. She had great chemistry with Florence Pugh, David Harbour and Rachel Weitz. She looked like she should be leading a MCU movie. It is a shame that Natasha died in Endgame because her solo movie status just started.
#2. Kristen Stewart (Spencer)
Kristen Stewart has come a long way since Twilight. Her brilliant take as Princess Diana in Spencer this year was haunting. She showed the problems that Diana had to face within the Royal Family and how her marriage with Charles caused her such emotional problems. Kristen Stewart gave her career defining performance in Stewart.
#1. Rachel Zegler (West Side Story)
Rachel Zegler is a star. This was her big screen debut and she became the first debut performance to win The Liz Award. She was a light through Spielberg’s West Side Story. You could not take your eyes off of her in every scene she was in. Her voice is beautiful and she has that “IT” factor. She has a long career ahead of her.
Previous Winners:Patrick Stewart (Logan), Michael Shannon (Nocturnal Animals), Sylvester Stallone (Creed), Edward Norton (Birdman), Jared Leto (Dallas Buyers Club), Christoph Waltz (Django Unchained), Andy Serkis (Rise of the Planet of the Apes), Richard Grant (Can You Ever Forgive Me?), Robert Downey Jr (Avengers: Endgame), Sasha Baron Cohen (Trial of the Chicago 7)
#15. Jimmy Smits (In the Heights)
#14. Ben Affleck (The Last Duel)
#13. Jon Bernthal (King Richard)
#12. John Cena (The Suicide Squad)
#11. David Alvarez (West Side Story)
#10. David Harbour (Black Widow)
#9. Robin de Jesus (Tick, Tick…Boom)
#8. Delroy Lindo (The Harder They Fall)
#7. Andrew Garfield (The Eyes of Tammy Faye)
#6. Troy Kotsar (CODA)
#5. Ciarán Hinds (Belfast)
#4. J.K. Simmons (Being the Ricardos)
#3. Eugenio Derbez (CODA)
Eugenio Derbez gave us a wonderful performance as the music teacher from CODA who inspired Emilia Jones to continue to push through the challenges. He did it with humor, dedication and a brilliant performance.
#2. Tony Leung (Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings)
Legendary Tony Leung brought more humanity to Wenwu than you ever expected and he made you think that Wenwu had relatable reasons for what he was doing. He is one of the best of the Marvel villains this year.
#1. Willem Dafoe (Spider-Man: No Way Home).
Then there is the top Marvel villain this year. Norman Osborn ditched the Power Ranger mask and became much more terrifying as the Green Goblin. Willem Dafoe was absolutely on fire during this film and he deserves this place.
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EYG- Embrace Your Geekness 