Big Fish is my favorite Burton film.

Russell has I Heart Huckabees, which I would argue is pretty perfect.

Yeah, those are mostly good films, but I wouldn’t call any of those masterpieces.

Black Swan has a great performance in Natalie Portman, but feels a bit thin as a film. Burton’s Batman has not aged well. Edward Scissorhands I like maybe the most out of the ones you mentioned, but not enough to say I loved it. And Heat…

There’s a lot of directors I would put here. Wes Anderson was already mentioned, but I’d also add Darren Aronofsky, Sofia Coppola, Alfonso Cuaron, Tim Burton, and Michael Mann. All have made very good films, and are clearly talented, but never anything that truly great.

I completely agree. I’ve liked most of his films, but never really loved one. Part of it is not just the way he treats his characters, but his actors as well. I feel like a typical Wes Anderson crying scene is distractingly unemotional from his actors. Rather than trying to go for realism Anderson emphasizes the…

Don’t get me wrong, Oscar Isaac is wonderful. The only reason a Most Violent Year is even watchable is because him and Jessica Chastain are amazing. But I feel the same way about Poe. The only reason he is watchable is because Oscar Isaac is playing him. The character himself I don’t find charismatic, even though…

(By the way Jesse, I’m really glad you have all this time to be arguing in the comments section. I hope I’m not coming across combative, I’m enjoying talking to you.)

I haven’t seen Infinity War so I can’t comment on that. I also prefer character work to plot work, but I fall back on plot when character work isn’t…

I can see what you’re saying, it’s not like there’s no evidence for it, but I think you’re reaching a bit. He says some things to her, but you can hardly call that training. It’s not really even about that. Except for touching base with the main characters of the older trilogy, Luke feels inconsequential. Which makes…

Not being a Star Wars fan I am the wrong person to ask. Personally, I would have loved it if Luke, Leia, and Han were long dead by the time of the Force Awakens. But that’s not the film we got. I have much bigger problems with the series than that, but since you’re talking Luke, let’s talk Luke.

I don’t mind grumpy…

Hello! I’m more of a lurker now. I’ve had some ugly experiences commenting on other sites, so I do it rarely now. Nice to see you though!

TFA is super unoriginal, I totally agree. But the characters are great, and I had a lot of fun with them in that film, which is another reason TLJ is such a disappointment since they…

Dowd, I know you reviewed Nymphomaniac for this site last time, and more positively than this film right now, but I’m curious in the intervening time how you feel about it? I loved it, so I’m curious if your opinion of Nymphomaniac has lowered and so this might be something I would like, or if you would still say…

All of the prequels have terrible scripts. I don’t remember them that well, to be perfectly honest, but the one thing I do remember is Anakin and Obi-Wan’s buddy cop comedy routine in the beginning of Episode 3 was atrocious. Easily as bad as anything in Episode 2.

Ok. I mean, I have reasons for thinking so, but I guess that’s not important for your snap judgments.

It helps me understand that your opinion is pointless if you think the ranking of Star Wars films is what defines film taste.

I think 2 and 6 have clear weak points which is why a lot of people rank them lower. The romance plot in 2 is maybe the worst part of the whole prequel series, but otherwise I think 2 has a lot more going for it than 3. 3 is a cartoon. It wastes the character work in 1 and 2, and it has terrible pacing, which is why…

Where do people like me who thought The Force Awakens was better than The Last Jedi fit?

Does it help if I rank the Star Wars films as:

This strikes me as super American. When I’m in Europe servers don’t tend to come check on you. They stand off to the side, near a door, and look around and wait for someone to call them. This way they are always available when you need something, and they never interrupt a conversation or come up on you mid bite.

I…

“This is where the A.V. Club again reminds readers that if your boss thinks it’s okay to scream at you, no matter the reason, then your boss is an asshole. (We’ll give Williams the benefit of the doubt and assume he was using a hyperbolic take on “a stern talking-to.”)“

That was weird. Does the AV Club usually do these…

What are the other things to criticize it for?

Not a fan either, although I did like the Pianist.

When I talk about the brilliance of Lawrence of Arabia that is one the first scenes that I mention. The cut is brilliant, but the lead up to it is brilliant too, because it works so well under the rule of three. Lawrence had used his fingers once before, and another soldier had tried using his fingers once before, and…