By MSGR. JOHN MYLER
It was not a great year for films. Nevertheless, the annual long list of “Best Picture” nominees has been announced.
May I suggest the following as the best “surprisingly good” films of the year?
“THE IRON CLAW” is the true story of professional wrestling’s famous Von Erich brothers — but you don’t have to be a wrestling fan to appreciate the exhilaration and the heartbreak of the family that made the sport so popular in the 1980s. The Von Erichs — Kevin, Kerry, David, Mike and dad Fritz — struggle and succeed, only to bring on more struggle in this depiction that also includes a touch of the spiritual.
“MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: DEAD RECKONING PART ONE” is another in the line of “impossible missions” dating from its TV days through decades of Tom Cruise action movies. This one is constant action from the streets of Rome to the heights of the Alps, with edge-of-your-seat stunts and outstanding special effects, as Cruise and crew battle the nemesis of artificial intelligence. It’s hair-raising fun.
“THE ZONE OF INTEREST” has an unusual premise: What was life like in a family home and garden that share a wall with the concentration camp at Auschwitz? In this American/British/Polish production, the Nazi Commandant and his wife work to make an idyllic home — next to a place that’s the site of one of the horrors of history. Their lovely flowers bloom in the shadow of a crematorium. The film is chilling and provocative.
A few honorable mentions: “AIR” (the story of the family and the business behind “Air Jordans”); “ALL OF US STRANGERS” (about a troubled writer who seems to discover that his long-dead parents are living); “ANATOMY OF A FALL” (an intelligent French who-done-it and legal thriller that will keep you guessing); “THE HOLDOVERS” (the wry tale of a teacher — the excellent Paul Giamatti — who has something to learn from his students); and “PAST LIVES” (an achingly beautiful film about time and love and loss in South Korea).
May I also mention some 2023 films that were “disappointingly bad.”
“ASTEROID CITY,” famed director Wes Anderson’s chaotic and confused film about a group of stargazers in the desert. Meant to be quirky and funny, with a star-studded cast, it just becomes irritating.
“POOR THINGS,” the most over-praised, highly offensive film of 2023. Hinting at Frankenstein’s-monster — centered on a “poor, unliberated” young woman — “snob appeal” may win it many undeserved awards.
“SALTBURN,” such a disappointing effort from young director Emerald Fennell, whose “Promising Young Woman” was a 2020 breakthrough. A would-be shocker, it’s instead grossly twisted and extremely crude.
Finally, two of 2023’s “best” — “OPPENHEIMER” and “KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON” — were just too long and meandering. They desperately needed the help of an old but forgotten Hollywood artist: the film editor.
