2020 Blind Spot Series: Casino (1995)

When I sat down to watch Martin Scorsese's Casino I only knew that it was a gangster film and that it is considered by many the filmmaker's finest film. The latter is actually the reason I picked it for my Blind Spot as I was curious to see how it could be better than Goodfellas. Turns out, it kind of it as it's essentially Scorsese's attempt to remake his own Goodfellas and yet it stands out on its own as a refreshing, highly entertaining and fascinating crime film.

Thursday Movie Picks: Television Edition: 2019 Freshmen Series

A weekly series hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves

There's nothing I love more than binge-watching a new TV series. However, between work, films, life, rewatches — Breaking Bad and Orange Is the New Black —, and catch-ups — Barry and The Kominsky Method —, I didn't watch many freshman series last year. Only three as it turned out when I was trying to come up with something for this week. So without further ado nor much of a choice, here are my picks.

I Lost My Body (2019)

I didn't know what to expect when I sat down to watch I Lost My Body (French: J'ai perdu mon corps), one of the Oscar nominees for Best Animated Picture. My guess? That it'll be yet another solid film that doesn't stand a chance with the others. I couldn't have been more wrong as this French animated drama turned out to be a mesmerizing, touching and haunting journey about loneliness, loss, letting go and finding that part of ourselves that's missing.

1917 (2019)

Whenever a new war film hits cinemas chances are it's World War II-related. And how to blame those filmmakers? I'm the first who finds it a very, if not the most fascinating one. Sam Mendes goes against the crowd with his latest film 1917, a World War I film that can be described with two words, masterful filmmaking.

Thursday Movie Picks: Unforgettable Film Scores

A weekly series hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves

Hello and welcome back to the Thursday Movie Picks series. Thanks to Brittani over Rambling Film who suggested the theme, this week we are asked to pick three to five unforgettable musical scores. Since it was Damien Chazelle's birthday last Sunday — and I completely forgot to write the appreciation post I wanted to write in January 2019 — I decided to go with scores from his films, three unforgettable scores composed by Justin Hurwitz. 

Parasite (2019)

CONTAINS SPOILERS

This is that time of the year when the Oscar nominations are announced, I realize I haven't seen most of the nominees and start catching up — or at least I try — before the ceremony. Bong Joon-ho's Parasite was at the top of my list as it scored six nominations, including Best Foreign Feature and Best Picture. Needless to say, I had quite high expectations and, thankfully, the film didn't just meet them, it exceeded them as it turned out to be a complex, rather shocking and yet fascinating tale of the human condition.

Thursday Movie Picks: 2019 Releases

A weekly series hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves

As you probably guess from the title, the films we are sharing for this week's Thursday Movie Picks series were released last year. With the Oscar nominations having been revealed on Monday — I won't even waste time commenting on those because what's even the point? —, I'm picking three films that I loved and didn't get the attention they deserved, specifically in the acting categories.

Thursday Movie Picks: Favourite Films by Steven Spielberg

A weekly series hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves

Welcome back to another week of Wandering Through the Shelves's series Thursday Movie Picks. This week we are sharing our favourite Steven Spielberg movies. Keeping in mind that there's plenty of his films that I'm yet to see and that I don't consider this to be his best films, only my favourites as the title states, I leave you with my picks. 

Jojo Rabbit (2019)

Hunt for the Wilderpeople put Jewish-Maori filmmaker Taika Waititi on my radar but it's films like his debut Eagle vs Shark and the mockumentary What We Do in the Shadows — and the fact that he resurrected Thor — that made of him one of my favourite directors. Needless to say, I was very looking forward to his latest film, Jojo Rabbit, yet another film about World War II and the Holocaust. Only Waititi's film is not just another film that fits in that category, it is a brilliant, poignant film that manages to be incredibly hilarious and heartbreaking at the same time. 

Thursday Movie Picks: Escape

A weekly series hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves

Hello guys and happy new year! What a better way to kick off 2020 than joining Wandering Through the Shelves's wonderful weekly series, Thursday Movie Picks? As you've probably seen from the title, for this first week of the year we are asked to talk about movies involving some sort of escape. Without further ado, I leave you with my picks.

Monthly Recap: December 2019

First things first, Happy New Year guys! I wish you a year filled with health, joy and success and, as Joey Adams said, may all your trouble last as long as your New Year's resolutions. Unless you're one of those people who keep their New Year's resolutions.