At least it wasn't 2024. I know it's all personal and subjective, and I'm sure I'm in the minority when I say this, but I thought last year was a drag for movies. I couldn't even squeak out a Top Ten of 2024. This year? Much improved! In fact, I think we uncovered a few... Continue Reading →
‘One Battle After Another’ Boldly Beats to Its Own Drum
One Battle After Another is a daring genre-bender — unmarketable by Hollywood standards — that demands to be seen in theaters for its subtle audacity and monstrous vision. That vision is Paul Thomas Anderson’s, and he has outdone himself again. Magnolia was a chapter in my life. That film cracked something open in me back in 1999 — a... Continue Reading →
Reely Bernie Faves: Magnolia (1999)
The chronological journey goes like this: During the summer of 1999, I saw the teaser trailer to Magnolia at the Movie Tavern in Aurora, CO. This was the shorter, ambiguous trailer that featured a woman shooting a stray warning bullet through the apartment window, only to coincidentally hit a body that was falling past the... Continue Reading →