As with last year, school has decreased the amount of movies I get to watch or fun books I get to read—but nevertheless, here are my top picks from last year.
Top 10 Movies (from 2021)
10. The Power of the Dog – This is, without a doubt, a suspenseful and fine-looking film—even if it can be imbalanced and clunky at times. It’s at least worth the watch if you want to see Benedict Cumberbatch act like a cowboy.
9. The Green Knight – If a movie relies primarily on confusing its audience for its strength, then it is a trash movie, not worth anyone’s time. And for a moment, I was close to dismissing The Green Knight as such—of course, it wants to say something, but it is too opaque for me to care. But after time of reflection and hours more of conversation, I think it is safe to say that Lowery’s film safely passed into the realm of worthwhile think-piece (even if I’m still not 100% on what I think he is going for).
8. The Last Duel – While not perfect—and in some ways sacrificing some of the depth it built-up in favor of its third act—this most recent work by Damon and Affleck with director Ridley Scott is nonetheless immersive, emotional, witty, resonant, thrilling, and relevant.
7. The Tragedy of Macbeth – This reduced telling of a Shakespeare classic is dramatic and striking, immediately placing it among the best adaptations of the Bard.
6. The Suicide Squad – Compared to the two Guardians films, this is undoubtedly a lesser film. Those are both funnier and more emotionally resonant. But, rated on its own merits, James Gunn’s Suicide Squad reboot is nonetheless one of the most creative, funny, exhilarating—and still sweet—movies I’ve seen in a while. It stands out most as a major studio film that is completely the creation of its director.
5. Bo Burnham: Inside – Funny, catchy, impressive, and interesting as always—even if the layers of meta begin to crack under their own weight.
4. Dune – I, like some others, enjoyed the movie, appreciated the movie, but was not absorbed by the movie. It’s hard to say if its Villeneuve’s spartan aesthetic, my own expectation, or the source material itself, but I never achieved the zeal or suspense such a blockbuster as this demands. Again, that’s not to say it wasn’t excellent—it was. I will be the first to buy tickets for the sequel. (If for nothing else than to see how he handles the even more troublesome second half.)
3. Spider-Man: No Way Home – I can complain that Alfred Molina is not used properly, that I doubt the movie works for those not “in the know,” and that other plot elements are under-developed—but all of these would be missing how delightful, charming, and sincere most of this movie is. The interacting with and homages to the previous trilogies work wonderfully and even improve on the legacy of the Garfield era. Most importantly, this third installment addresses the character growth issues present in the previous two movies. No Way Home, save a poor title, is an excellent cap to the trilogy.
2. Nightmare Alley – This remake is (strangely) sluggish at times but simultaneously tightly scripted. It boasts del Toro’s signature flair for the visual and the graphic. And though the story is 70 years old, it should continue to be lauded for its drama and powerful sense of tragedy.
1. West Side Story – I’m not sure if I like it better than the original—I miss the dress shop, and some of the songs feel foreign to the world of the film. But the latter is only because this film so successfully builds the narrative of West Side Story; it’s a much fuller story than the original. The songs are still great, the visuals beautiful, and, for my money, it ends the short run of disappointments from Spielberg. It tops my list this year because it understands drama and excitement, and it uses all the resources at its disposal to make a movie deserving of its legacy.
Top 10 Movies (from any year)
10. Babe (1995) – Babe is heartfelt, sincere, and filmed to evoke nostalgia, drawing on the imagery of such great films as Gone with the Wind and the Irishman. It will also likely go down as the greatest real animal performance movie ever made. I’m glad I finally saw this modern classic.
9. Midnight Cowboy (1969) – Midnight Cowboy’s story is affecting in its tragedy. What makes it great, though, is its sheer grossness and its balanced use of non-narrative imagery.
8. American Animals (2018) – The style alone—the innovative blending of drama and documentary—on top of its objectively suspenseful plotting, makes American Animals one of the most delightfully interesting movies I’ve seen in some time.
7. Teen Wolf (1985) – As a whole, Teen Wolf is pure 80s fun with a strongly crafted story—even if some of its parts don’t hold up.
6. Police Story (1985) – In my opinion, the action-comedy of this first Police Story is better than SuperCop. Every scene is a feast for the eyes as you watch the expertly choreographed movement on screen.
5. 22 Jump Street (2014) – This may be the last great comedy before the Marvel formula completely elbowed the genre out of theaters. I hope to see a return in the coming years.
4. Rango (2011) – I had heard it was good, but I was surprised by just how good it was. The story was strong and the writing witty, but what tipped it over the edge for me was the breathtaking animation for a 2011 film.
3. The Thing (1982) – Critically panned upon its release, it took some years for Carpenter’s best work to achieve the recognition it has today—and the wait was worth it. From the lighting to the score to the spartan plotting to the phenomenal effects, everything works to achieve this suspenseful masterpiece of science-fiction horror.
2. Good Time (2017) – Comparable in many ways to the Safdie Brothers’ newer film, Uncut Gems, their 2017 effort starring Robert Pattinson demonstrates similar uses of dramatic lighting, electronic scoring, and seedy backgrounds. This film excels even more than its acclaimed successor in its suspenseful use of sound design and the heart it finds in its unlikeable protagonist and take on Of Mice and Men.
1. Akira (1988) – My goodness—I knew it was good, but even with that knowledge, I was surprised by just how stunning this movie is. The animation is some of the best I’ve ever seen—maybe the best—and the visuals are inventive, weird, and wild. Moreover, the relationships feel real (even if the story is uneven at times), the world lived-in, and the politics relevant. Akira is a classic for a reason.
Top 10 Books
10. Kingdom Come, Mark Waid – This is the only fiction this year to make my list. I almost put Dune on here, but Alex Ross’s art in Kingdom Come barely edged it out. I can’t say that I was thrilled with the villains and the actual threat of the story, but the art was fantastic and the theme of traditionalism always makes for inspiring comic book reading.
9. The Preacher’s Wife, Kate Bowler – It feels scattered at times, but perhaps that is the cost of a work this exhaustive and dramatically narrated. For anyone interested in the world of mega-churches and conservatism, give this one a read.
8. Sapiens, Yuval Harari – The beginning section is the most fascinating and the best part of the book, likely due to my ignorance concerning prehistoric man. The remainder is still interesting—if for no other reason than its radically materialist conception of reality—but much more contentious, likely due to the reader’s familiarity with the subject matter.
7. Under Household Government, Michelle Morris – This is a fascinating lens into the society of early Massachusetts. Who knew Puritans could be so horny?
6. Christ and Culture, H. Richard Niebuhr – This is a classic of theology (with a much duplicated title). Even if Niebuhr doesn’t always play by the rules of his own argument, his taxonomy for understanding Christians’ relations to their social context is revelatory to this day.
5. Thinking, Fast and Slow, Daniel Kahneman – This book by Nobel prize winner, Daniel Kahneman, outlines the groundbreaking work of his career in psychology, leading to better understandings of the relation between our conscious and subconscious selves, our flawed conception of economics and statistics, and how we view our own lives.
4. Divine Economy, Stephen Long – Long’s work here is dense, thorough, and, most importantly, relevant to anyone interested in the broad categories of economy and theology. He tries to build his argument on superior theological grounds, which may anger some when it comes to economic principles.
3. After Virtue, Alasdair MacIntyre – After Virtue represents a seismic shift in ethical discourse and philosophy more generally. MacIntyre’s argument builds slowly as he promises to elucidate the failures of Enlightenment moral reasoning, but when he finally explains his case, built on classic Greek thinking, historical analysis, and robust analytical arguments, it becomes hard to disagree with his vision of the human telos and the virtuous life required to achieve that telos. The only criticisms I’ll note is that his critique of the Enlightenment seems overblown at times, and he too quickly dismisses the insights of more modern thinkers.
2. Atomic Habits, James Clear – I’ve read a few books on building discipline and healthy habits, but this one is by far the most well-written and most helpful.
1. The Claim of Reason, Stanley Cavell – Since this is my second foray into Cavell, the normal stylistic hang-ups and deficiencies can be glossed over. A unique issue with this work, though still minor, is the monotonous dealing with the problem of other minds. This all aside, Cavell engrosses his readers with everyday and idiosyncratic examples alike as well as a conversational tone as he wrestles with our understanding of words, conventions, and even ourselves.
Ultimately, it was a much better year for movies than last year, but I’ll definitely need to read books that are a little more breezy for 2022.