Matt's Musings

Back in 1998, the American Film Institute unveiled its list of the 100 greatest films as voted on by members of the cinematic community. The year, I'm looking at the films on that list, re-ranked according to my preference. Check back Fridays and Saturdays throughout the year as we walk through this list of classic films. George M. Cohan : My mother thanks you, my father thanks you, my sister thanks you, and I thank you. Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942) Original List Ranking : 100 Starring : James Cagney, Joan Leslie, and Walter Huston Director: Michael Curtiz About: This is a case where I'm a bit higher than the original list or even the revised list. Yankee Doodle Dandy, the story of composer and singer George Cohan, is on both lists. It even moved up in the 2007 revision, all the way to No. 98. It's a classic piece of Americana and a biopic that is is solid if unspectacular. I saw it a few years ago, and it feels like a solid, interesting, and patriotic film. It's not my...

The Academy Awards are coming on March 15. We got the final list of nominees on January 22, and between now and the awards I'll be looking at the 10 Best Picture nominees and their chances of winning an award. Sentimental Value Starring : Renate Reinsve, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleas, Stellan Skarsgard, and Elle Fanning Director : Joachim Trier Total Nominations : 9 Nominated For : Best Picture, Best Director (Trier), Best Actress (Reinsve), Best Supporting Actor (Skarsgard), Best Supporting Actress (Fanning), Best Supporting Actress (Ibsdotter Lilleas), Best Original Screenplay, Best International Feature, and Best Editing About: This was one of my favorite films of the year. It's likely in the Top 4 in the Best Picture competition, but I don't think it will win. However, I don't think it's a film that will go home empty-handed. The question is how many it can win, and where. I love the work of Trier, who is nominated as a director and writer. I don't think he'll...

This was a big week at the movies as Neve Campbell returned in Scream 7. I have my thoughts on that and other new films I saw this week below. You can keep up with everything I’m watching by following me on Letterboxd @knighthawk7734. Dreams (Theaters) Starring : Jessica Chastain and Isaac Hernandez Synopsis : Sometimes films touch on important subjects in unimportant ways. Often that subject becomes a plot device or something to frame whatever narrative they want to share. It can be a turnoff for viewers and derail even a well-crafted narrative. That’s the case with Dreams, a new film from writer/director Michel Franco that opens wide on Friday, February 27. The film touches on an important subject—immigration—but uses it as more of a plot device. Unfortunately, the plot it services isn’t worthy of exploration. The film begins with a border crossing. Fernando (Hernandez) is making his way from Mexico into California. He makes it all the way to San Francisco, where he arrives at the ho...

We’ve made it through February and the Olympics are over. That means we’ve back to the regularly scheduled flood of new series. Many new shows launched right out of the gate this week, with more scheduled the next few months. But what of these new series are worth checking out? Let this weekly post be your guide as I review the pilot and second episode of new scripted series this Winter. Don’t see a new show listed below? Check previous weeks. Mondays: CIA, Mondays at 10 p.m. on CBS (Premiered February 23) About : This new series is a spin-off of FBI. It’s focused on a joint FBI-CIA taskforce. The pilot set up the construct and the tie-in between FBI Agent Bill Goodman (Nick Gehlfuss) and CIA Agent Colin Glass (Tom Ellis). The first episode was about their uneasy partnership, setting the template for the series, and the shadow mission for Agent Goodman. The second episode continues that formula. A lot here relies on the uneasy partnership between Goodman and Glass. The actors are OK, a...

The Academy Awards are coming on March 15. We got the final list of nominees on January 22, and between now and the awards I'll be looking at the 10 Best Picture nominees and their chances of winning an award. Marty Supreme Starring : Timothee Chalamet, Odessa A'zion, and Gwyneth Paltrow Director : Josh Safdie Total Nominations : 9 Nominated For : Best Picture, Best Director (Safdie), Best Actor (Chalamet), Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Casting, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design, and Best Editing About : Marty Supreme is one of the most nominated films of the year, and a favorite for many. For me, it was my least favorite of the nominees for Best Picture. That has more to do with personal taste than craft, which is excellent. The question is how it's going to do in this competition. That's an open question. It received nine nominations, and should be in the race in many categories. But I wouldn't say it's a lock to win in any cate...

It's hard to believe, but 2011 was 15 years ago. Over the next few weeks I'm going to be looking at some stand out films from 2011 that are turning 15 in 2026. Today, it's a standout from the Fast Franchise. Dominic Toretto : The most important thing in life will always be the people in this room. Right here, right now. Salute, mi familia. Fast Five Starring : Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, and Dwyane Johnson Director : Justin Lin About : The Fast Franchise is a fascinating study. The original film was good, and iconic in its own way. But after a couple limp sequels, the franchise really took off with the fourth installment. That paved the way for Fast Five . Some view it as the best in the franchise, and it's tough to argue against that. It has some of the best action set pieces. It also has one of the best villains, expands the world in a creative way, and introduces Johnson as Hobbs. I love this film, and while it's not my favorite of the franchise, it's hard to ar...