Film Diaries

Hey guys! I know this isn't a brand new concept but I always wanted to do a ‘What have I watched recently’ type post, and so here we are. In case you aren't familiar with the format, essentially I will share my thoughts and opinions on some of the films that I have “recently” watched, and hopefully, you can add some of these to your watchlist, or avoid watching them altogether!

So the first film we’re going to talk about is Michihito Fujii’s ‘A Family’. Now I have had this film recommended to me a bunch of times by the Netflix algorithm, however, even after looking at the preview, it looked like your typical Yakuza film. But my god was I wrong. ‘A family’ is one the most unique films in the genre as it covers multiple generations and eras of the Yakuza. In the second half, the film reaches a new level that very few films have explored: The dying embers of the yakuza. The afterlife of its members, who have to deal with the consequences of being part of this organization and family. We see characters Being shunned by a society that doesn’t tolerate even the slightest form of divergence, especially for criminals. If you enjoy the classic elements of the Yakuza genre such as the violence, the bravado, and the brotherhood, but want to see a refreshing take on those films, then I highly recommend ‘A Family’.

Tales from Earthsea: Because of the incredible commercial and critical success of Studio Ghibli and Miyazaki, Tales from Earthsea has in many ways been dubbed the worst Studio Ghibli film and the one Ghibli movie that most fans wouldn't even bother to mention, which is why I wanted to watch it in the first place. Is it really as bad as the internet has made it out to be? Well, I am happy to confirm that, yes, it is. Is it the worst Ghibli film? Maybe, and hear me out, it had a ton of potential to be great in my opinion. The movie was inspired by a series of fantasy books known as the ‘Earthsea Cycle’ that were released between the late 60s and early 70s and follows the journey of a young prince called Arren, who flees his kingdom. It is your typical fantasy epic, with wizards, dragons, and all the jazz that comes with that, but the story and the world-building leaves a lot to be desired. The film, at times, is beautifully animated and has that classic Ghibli look, but it doesn't carry the magic that films like ‘Princess Mononoke or ‘Howl's Moving castle’ has, which are the two films I was constantly comparing Tales from Earthsea to as I was watching. I should probably mention that Tales from Earthsea was the directorial debut of Goro Miyazaki, son of Hayao Miyazaki, who famously walked out of the premier of his own son’s movie because and I quote ‘he isn't an adult yet’. Just type that into youtube and you’ll probably find the video.

Next up we have the third installment of the Tom Holland Spiderman franchise, Spiderman No way home: Look Spiderman and the marvel cinematic universe has been covered to death on the internet, and seeing as it came out 6 months ago, I don't think I am going to spoil much for anyone who somehow hasn't seen the film yet. But again be warned: Spoilers are incoming. I thought this film was the best of the MCU spiderman trilogy, the addition of Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield was incredible to see, especially seeing Tobey Maguies version of spiderman on the big screen gave me goosebumps. I loved the dynamic between the 3, and the interactions between the villains from all the Spider-Man franchises were hilarious. With the way Marvel studios ended the film, I am incredibly excited to see what happens next because that’s where we’ll see more of the traditional Spider-Man storylines and elements that we know from the past.

The Batman: Again, everyone and their mother has covered this film and you can bet your behind that I will too. I remember seeing a tweet from KK saying that this is the closest thing we have to the animated Batman series and you know what, he’s absolutely right. The look, the feel, and the overall presentation of not just the characters but Gotham as a whole is stunning. Even though people rightfully so idolize the Nolan franchise for its realism which was needed at the time, Reeves’s world is similarly grounded but embraces them for a lack of a better term the weirder elements of the comics. Gotham itself feels more alive, you have sets like the iceberg lounge that you probably wouldn't see in the Nolan Universe. I enjoyed Paterson's portrait of the character even though it is tough getting over the idea this isn’t the middle-aged billionaire playboy version of Bruce Wayne but a vulnerable young recluse who is battling his own demons. Overall, I really enjoyed this iteration of the caped crusader, despite the movie being too long in my opinion and the Riddler not necessarily being the best of villains.

Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy: Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy was the second film director Rysuke Hamaguchi released in 2021 before his critically acclaimed ‘Drive my car’, which by the way, if you haven't seen Drive my car, finish this video first and then go watch it. But I enjoyed WFF slightly more than Drive my car. WFF is an anthology film, meaning it is split into 3 episodes/stories, with different characters and storylines for each episode. These include an unexpected love triangle, an encounter between two college friends that turns out to be a misunderstanding, and a failed seduction attempt with unusual consequences. Each of these stories is accompanied by Hamaguchis signature long take style where you become completely absorbed into the conversations of these characters that are littered with little ironies, mystery, and ambiguity. Hamaguchi literally blessed us with two great films back to back in the same year. If you’re looking for a relaxing yet different film experience, then give this a try!

The tale of princess Kaguya: This was another Ghibli film that I had often heard about but not yet watched, just because at first I wasn't drawn to the story of the film or its animation. However one night I decided to give it a try and I am glad I did. The film is directed by Isao Takahata who was known for being a co-founder of Studio Ghibli and having directed films such as Tale of the fireflies, only yesterday, and my neighbors the Yamadas. In fact, Tale of Princess Kaguya wasn't just Studio Ghibli’s most expensive product but it is the most expensive Japanese film to date according to the infinite wisdom of Wikipedia. The film is set in the late 9th to 10th century and begins with a bamboo cutter discovering a miniature girl inside of a glowing bamboo, who he and his wife decide to raise as their own daughter, calling her Princess. It's a beautiful tale of the struggles of a young woman in a man's world, the struggles of parenting, and the tug-of-war between happiness and duty. If you haven't seen it, give it a try. It is beautifully animated and a great parting memento from an incredible artist.

Boiling Point: Boiling point is probably one of my favorite films that I watched this Year. The 2021 British drama film is entirely set in a high-end restaurant in London and follows a chef who has seemingly reached his boiling point as he and his staff navigate their way through one crisis to the other, including their own personal issues and demons. The entire film is filmed in a ‘one-take-shot’ style, which is probably one of the highlights of the film. Liste, I am not going to spend too long talking about this one, I really enjoyed it and people should definitely give it a try, especially as it beautifully captures the franticness of working in a high-end restaurant and has a great cast of characters.

Kenobi: Now unlike the other entries in this list, Kenobi isn't a movie, but the latest star wars tv show to land on Disney plus. I remember when they first announced the series and confirmed that both Ewan Mcgregor and Hayden Christensen would return as Obi-Wan and Anakin respectively, it was something that all of us prequel lovers were dreaming of. So, the series is set 10 years after the events of ‘Revenge of the Sith’ and follows Obi-Wan’s life as Ben Kenobi, watching over a young Luke Skywalker and evading the eyes of the empire and its inquisitors. Since it’s been several months since the end of the show, I have had a good chunk of time to let the show simmer with me and cement my thoughts on the series. Ultimately, I thought it was a great star war watching experience, again especially if you loved the prequels, you get a ton of new nuggets of information on Obi-Wan’s relationship with the force, order 66, the state of the galaxy right after the formation of the empire and of course the re-match between Darth Vader and his former master. Ewan McGregor does a great job in reprising his iconic role, and giving us those old-school prequel vibes, and seeing Hayden Christensen back, or at least in the Vader suit was amazing, and without spoiling too much, there was a particular flashback scene that was the cherry on top of the nostalgia sundae. Regarding the plot, well the main storyline of the show is once again an escort mission but this time Obi-Wan has to escort a young princess Leia back to Alderaan, which, look I get it, after the Mandalorian that trope has been squeezed dry. The pacing of the show has a lot to be desired especially earlier in the series, but the great epic moments that we see make up for some of those issues. There were great cinematic episodes as well that looked stunning and almost as impressive as the films, and incredible character moments such as the final showdown of the season. Particularly, episode 4 in which Obi-Wan infiltrates the inquisitor's stronghold, reminiscent of a level in Star Wars Fallen Jedi, is a great highlight and representation of the show's potential, despite some logistical issues in the plot. Star Wars under Disney has had a rough few years, especially with the sequels, however, I find they did a great job with this show and bringing back some of the most beloved characters from the prequels. If they do decide to make another season of the show, for example showing Obi-Wan’s journey of becoming one with the force and Vader’s further descent into the dark side, i would hope that we see further information about the concept of being a ‘force ghost’, possibly insight into the relationship of Sidious and Vader at this point, and just things that we haven't seen before in Star Wars.

High and Low: For a while now I have wanted to take a deep dive into Akira Kurosawa’s filmography, apart from the usual suspects, such as Ran, 7 Samurai, etc I wanted to watch some of his “lesser” known films, and one of those is High and Low. High and Low has become one of my favorite Kurosawa films to date. The film is essentially divided into two parts, in the first part we see a wealthy businessman who is played by non-other than Darth Vader to Kurasawa’s Sidious, Toshiro Mifune, btw: George Lucas was such a massive fan of their partnership that he wanted Mifune to play Darth Vader, google it, anyways, Mifune’s character Gondo, receives a phone call from a mysterious man claiming to have kidnapped his son, however, due to a mistake, the chauffeur's son has been accidentally kidnapped, yet the kidnapper still demands a ransom fee to be paid. Kongo is now faced with this incredible ethical dilemma of saving another man’s child and in the process financially crippling his family and company, or refusing to pay and being responsible for the death of a child. The entire first part of the film is filmed like a stage play with Gondo’s house serving as the only location. However, in the second part, we move away from the confines of Gondo’s house and into the world of the kidnapper.

The Tragedy of Macbeth: The Tragedy of Macbeth as the name suggests is another retelling or reimagining of the classic Shakespeare tragedy. This film marks the first time a film was directed by only one of the Cohen brothers, namely Joel Cohen. I don't think I need to go over the story as I am pretty sure everyone has probably watched some version of Macbeth. I am not gonna lie, one of the main reasons I wanted to watch this film wasn't necessarily due to Joel Cohen’s involvement or the star-studded cast, but mainly due to the minimalistic/fritz-lang-esque aesthetic of the film. If you haven't noticed from my previous video or the branding of the channel, I am a massive fan of that look and try to incorporate that into pretty much all aspects of my life, including my content. That also translates into my taste in cinema and it's safe to say that the tragedy of Macbeth is probably the peak of that kind of visual. Back to the film itself, one way of achieving that minimal/ removed sense of reality look was by filming on ‘sound stages’. Speaking of sound stages, the music/soundtrack complemented the visuals of the film well. Regarding the story itself, well I wouldn't say it is a groundbreaking re-imaging, the dialogue was intended to be as close as possible to the original play, which actually made it extremely difficult to understand at times. If nothing else, watch this film for the incredible performance by Katheryn Hunter'’’s portrayal of the 3 witches, I mean just the way she gracefully yet crippely switches between the 3 characters was masterfully done. The tragedy of Macbeth is one the greatest visual cinematic experiences I have had. Most of the film feels like a compilation of visually striking fusion between a play and a movie, if you want to watch something slightly different from everything else that's out there, I highly recommend it.

That's it guys! This was the first edition of the film diaries series. Please let me know what films from the list ended up on your watchlist or maybe even got removed. Take care!