10. The Last Duel
The Last Duel is a historical action drama film directed by Ridley Scott from a screenplay by Nicole Holofcener, Ben Affleck, and Matt Damon, based on the 2004 book The Last Duel: A True Story of Crime, Scandal, and Trial by Combat in Medieval France by Eric Jager.
I would not have added this to my list if it wasn’t that the events leading up to the duel are divided into three distinct chapters, reflecting the contradictory perspectives of the three main characters. This is a depiction of every human story, when there exists different perspectives about them from the same members of the event, sometimes contradictory. I think that applies to all stories from history. If we keep that in mind when reading stories from history, we will give some space for difference in prespective.
9. Good Luck to You Leo Grande
It is a sex comedy-drama film directed by Sophie Hyde and written by Katy Brand. The film stars Emma Thompson and Daryl McCormack and examines shame about human sexuality and the tabu around sex working. An eye opening tinder experience that can have a positive effect on reconsidering many things, from sex work, to admiration of one’s older body.
8. La Perfumes
A french comedy where the highly articulated refined sensibility of the perfumer finds its weird working match with the divorced father fighting for custody driver.
I liked this film mostly because of the experience of the perfumer and the her sensitivity to smell and the interpretation of the various smells. Also a clash of class that is taken positively and with comedy.
7. Flee
Flee is a Danish adult animated documentary film directed by Jonas Poher Rasmussen. An international co-production with Denmark, France, Norway, and Sweden, it follows the story of a man under the alias Amin Nawabi, who shares his hidden past of fleeing his home country of Afghanistan to Denmark for the first time.
The film had its world premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival on January 28, 2021, where it won the Grand Jury Prize in the World Cinema Documentary section. It was released in theaters in the United States on December 3, 2021, by Neon and Participant, and was selected as the Danish entry for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film, where it received one of the five finalists and became the second foreign-language animated film after Waltz with Bashir (2008), along with nominations in the Best Documentary Feature and Best Animated Feature categories, becoming the first film ever to be nominated in all three of those categories at the same ceremony.
Converting an audio interview into an animated film was very beautifully done in this movie and it will stand as a model that will be followed by many in the future when all of the important recordings that we have can be utilized in similar way.
6. Trois fois rien (Three times nothing)
Three Times Nothing is a Canadian-French comedy film, directed by Nadège Loiseau about three homeless men who unexpectedly win the lottery, and struggle to figure out how to claim their winnings without a permanent address.
Beautifully sentimental and full of life.
5. 4th of July by Louis CK
Fourth of July is an American comedy drama film directed by Louis C.K., and written by Louis C.K. and Joe List. The film stars List as Jeff, a New York City-based jazz pianist and recovering alcoholic who visits his family in rural Maine for Independence Day, and confronts them about the emotional traumas he experienced with them starting when he was a child. It was directed and produced by Louis C.K., who self-financed the film.d
This film is a beautiful and raw realism Louis CK style depiction of family. After all, family is family, and the American democracy is a resemblance of this mess of a family, that at the end of day, is still bonded together as one family.
Very well done film by Louis CK with his simple yet deep sense of humor.
4. A Hero
A Hero (Persian: قهرمان, romanized: Qahremaan) is a 2021 Persian-language drama film written and directed by Asghar Farhadi, and starring Amir Jadidi, Mohsen Tanabandeh and Sahar Goldoost. In June 2021, the film was selected to compete for the Palme d’Or. At the 2021 Cannes Film Festival, the film won the Grand Prix. It was selected as the Iranian entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards, but was not nominated.
A Hero is a depiction of the romanticizing of the hero narrative after events reveal the human face behind it, and the complex social intertwining events that form it. I say:
Maturity is when you realize there are no heros or sinners.
This film shows that.
3. Loving Adults
The first Danish Netflix film, kept its Danish film making depth, but consented to some Netflix touch of commercialism by adding violence and additional thriller elements to satisfy the American audience.
The film is about a man caught between two loves and turns into a hostage. Love can turn into hate, and loving someone can turn into a crime. This is about our-lives and how many of our relationships are a compromise, and sometimes they are just a truce or cease fire relationships. The movie exaggerates this theme so we can all see it, ending with the ultimate sacrifice.
2. Triangle of Sadness
Triangle of Sadness (French: Sans filtre, lit. ‘Without Filter’) is a Palme d’Or 2022 internationally co-produced satirical black comedy film written and directed by Swedish director Ruben Östlund in his English-language feature film debut.
This is a very well done movie that combines comedy with drama in a satirical criticism of today’s world. It is a modern Lord of The Flies. It combines the criticism of modern class segregation, to all our corrupted morality, and hypocritical values. It exposes it all, and it can be disgusting to see it, and the movie pushes that too.
1. Tar
Tár (stylized as TÁR) is a 2022 drama film directed, written, and produced by Todd Field. The film follows the life and downfall of a renowned female composer-conductor, portrayed by Cate Blanchett, in her pursuit of maintaining her status and image. Blanchett won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress.
The film is one of the best well acted well directed films about modern topics of cancel culture, power abuse, and the Art vs. the Artist. Must watch. Delicate psychology surrounds the eariness of the film that is combined with powerful music. Our sensitivities clashing with coldness of our industrial desires.
Wissam Charafeddine 