Alphabet Movie Reviews: GAME TIME!

A carefully curated list of my picks for best movies based on the alphabet.

I found a fun little game on Reddit and decided to take matters into my own hands. Naturally, this list was a slight challenge. (Funny enough, it was harder to pick popular letters like S or M, and far too easy to choose letters like U or Y.)

There were so many choices that I tried to scatter my favourite directors across the board for a little bit of everything.

So, to rectify the films I snubbed, I'm currently rectifying things as we play a new game,

'30 DAYS OF CINEMA'.

(Titles all contain links to the film's trailers.)

A- Aftersun (2022).

Aftersun will sit with you for eternity, pricking at your tear ducts whenever Under Pressure comes on shuffle. Charlotte Wells is unapologetically raw, tender, and contemplative as she recounts the story of her adolescence. I highly recommend reading my review of this masterpiece of a movie, or you could just watch it. 

B- Burn After Reading (2008).

This movie is an absolute trip! The Coen brothers at their best, and perhaps silliest. With a stellar cast, ridiculous plotline, and hilariously quotable dialogue, Burn After Reading honours storytelling that focuses on carefully crafted simplicity.

C- Clockwork Orange (1972).

An obscure telling of violence and the torturous pursuit to reform the trouble-minded into model citizens.

Kubrick creates a world of absurdism that truly honours the content and dialogue of the original novella by Anthony Burgess. 

D- (the) Dreamers (2003).

Bertolucci, Bertolucci!

The Dreamers follows the journey of three university students living in 1960s Paris, as they delve into a lifestyle of protest, cinema and literature, connection, love, and, of course, sensuality and erotica.

A definite must-watch for any fans of foreign films!

E- Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022).

My dad still hasn't watched this, and it's starting to feel like a personal attack...

I have a review of Everything Everywhere written during the 2023 Academy Awards season, so definitely check that out if you're curious! 

F- (the) French Dispatch (2021).

I sway back and forth on whether the French Dispatch or The Grand Budapest Hotel is my favourite Edgar film, it truly depends on the day.

Today, I chose The French Dispatch, and man, so carefully timed, styled, and cast.

A love letter to journalism (art, cooking, politics, and travel) all tied up in a quirky, colourful bow. 

G- Gone With The Wind (1939).

This movie has an interval, what a time for cinema! Even so, I skipped the break because I was so keen for the rest!

My grandfather once wrote about his experience watching Gone With The Wind in the cinema (old fuck lol), he said he was in tears, and now, I understand.

This is beauty, this is history!

Scarlett O'Hare is everything I wanted to be (minus the brattiness). Her dresses create timestamps by shifting tone and hues, style and patterns, giving us a subconscious understanding of the different eras of O'Hare, how they vary and emphasise her current state.

If you enjoy colour theory as much as I do, there are some brilliant video essays on the importance of costume design in Gone With The Wind!

H- Hot Fuzz (2007).

Ah, Edgar Wright! I don't know a soul who hasn't enjoyed the fuck out of Hot Fuzz. Wright consistently highlights the importance of good editing and timing- there are some amazing video essays on how he builds his stories atop a seamless plot, executing visual comedy in a way that is both entertaining and captivating. 

Before I forget, Shaun of the Dead is just as good, but Hot Fuzz took the lead for reasons soon to be explained by letter S.

I- In Bruges (2008).

This was the first film I added to the alphabet list because In Bruges lives within me rent-free. There is so much to say about McDonaugh’s dark comedy, plenty of angles one could review the content.

Here is my review where I delve into the themes of morality and mortality.

J- Jojo Rabbit (2019)

Goodness, Jojo Rabbit is an emotionally, playful, and heartwarming treat!

Don’t be fooled, this film is built on the basis of a horrific time in history, exposing the damages and heartbreak of growing up and raising children amid a genocide.

But Waititi also scatters Jojo Rabbit with lighthearted moments of humanity that bring the trueness and hope of humanness to the foreground.  

K- Killers of the Flower Moon (2023).

Killers of the Flower Moon is Scorsese’s chance to reignite the cinematic style of his earlier films.

Time is not of the essence, and he quickly proves this within the first act.

There is a lack of lagging, and every scene, sentence, shot, and sound is intentional and integral to the overarching narrative. Scorsese puts his all into his films, exploring stories and lifestyles unlike his own, carefully learning and curating an honest telling of moments lost in history.

L- Ladybird (2017).

It took me a lot of tries to create a film review of Ladybird in a way that perfectly encapsulates the beautiful relationship dynamics scattered throughout the story.

I felt like I was doing a complete injustice to Gerwig’s tender screenplay.

But, after much convincing, I finished my essay, and you can read that here.

M- Mary Poppins (1964).

Fun fact: when I was 6 and broke my arm, the first night was the worst, resulting in me being elevated on the couch, watching Mary Poppins. That bitch truly can do everything!

An absolute classic, there isn't much more to say other than reminding you to side-eye anyone who doesn't agree. 

N- Nightcrawler (2014).

Jake Gyllenhaal at his least sane? Yes, please.

Nightcrawler is sick, it's fast, chaotic, and uncomfortably dark, as it rapidly increases in distortion until we, the viewers, begin to reciprocate the main character's mania, slipping down the path of delusion.

There aren’t many films quite like Nightcrawler.  

O- One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975).

This may be one of the saddest and most deeply impactful endings to a story so filled with dire desperation for understanding and fitting in.

Based on Ken Kesey’s novel of the same name, Kesey turns his first-hand experience into a greatly complex and thought-provoking tale of the taboo nature of mental illness.

The novel is just as incredible, if not more.

P- Pinocchio (2023).

While most of the world had decided Pinocchio was an irreplicable mess, Guillermo del Toro knew that wasn't the case.

With his incredible passion and understanding of monsters and the human condition, del Toro reinvents everything we thought we knew about the classic children's novel. 

I had plenty to say about Pinocchio, which you can find here, and I can't help but simultaneously plug my review for the Academy Award-winning romantic sci-fi, The Shape of Water.

Ya’ll, del Toro is currently making his version of Frankenstein!

My sister, Sof- who is a massive fan of both Mary Shelly’s novel and all things Guillermo del Toro- could not be happier!

Q- (all) Quiet on the Western Front (2022).

Did I slightly cheat with this one? Fuck yes. Do I regret anything? Fuck no.

All Quiet on the Western Front leaves viewers sorrowfully empty- a staple in my books!

In my Academy Awards review, we break down the film’s cinematography, colour grading, soubd editing and composure. 

R- Romeo and Juliet (1996).

This movie is so good, Shakespeare would have given it 5 stars!

Baz Luhrmann understood the assignment when he adapted this classic into a speedy, dramatic, visually captivating reinvention that can only be described as epic! 

I would be amiss not to highlight the brilliance that is Harold Perrineau as Mercutio, and John Leguizamo as Tybalt. 

S- Scarface (1983).

What else can we say about Scarface that hasn't already been rightfully praised? Brian De Palma truly aced adapting the 1930 novel by Armitage Trail into an exploration of refugees, poverty, gangsterism, drugs, and family, all occurring in the backdrop of sexy Miami.

He adds richness to the crazy timeline of Tony Montana in a way that certifies his unforgettableness.  

T- There Will Be Blood (2007).

Paul Thomas Anderson is one of my icons, a natural storyteller- a creative genius! Each film is so individual, with topics varying from oil mining to the porn industry, to cults, or even telemarket scamming.

But, they all have something in common, Thomas Anderson’s understanding of human connection is always forefront. 

There Will Be Blood was not what I expected- I don't really know what I was expecting- but Daniel Day-Lewis knew what he was doing, oh, that man.

Like I always say, he can have my drilling rights ;;) (I'll see myself out...)

U- Uncut Gems (2019).

I greatly admire Adam Sandler.

He has a knack for playing the straight man, and when he does, he totally embodies the character, building layers to emotional expression, creating natural pacing, easily adding levels to his performance.

Uncut Gems is so chaotic, heart-racing, and stressful as fuck.

Definitely underrated and definitely worth the watch!

V- Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008).

Amorous, artistic, adventurous, agitative, absolutely arousing! Perhaps words to describe Penelope Cruz? Perhaps the perfect summary of Vicky Cristina Barcelona.

Not only do Javier Bardem and Cruz have spine-tingling chemistry, but their performances elevate this simple screenplay into a tumultuous tale of passion and its eventual downfall. 

Also, fuck Woody Allan. It would be nice if could just choke to death on a chicken bone. 

W- Wizard of Oz (1939).

I was just a child, and nothing has quite left me in awe the same way the Wizard of Oz did.

Just the lore behind making this movie is complete madness- so much so that I feel it vital to link a video recapping it all.

Somehow, The Wizard of Oz managed to grace the screen, and has gone on to be a historical masterpiece. Rightfully so!

X- X-Men: First Class (2011).

This was a tossup. Do I choose the movie with Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, and James Marsden, or James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, and Nicholas Hoult? Today, X Men: First Class, perhaps tomorrow will be X2.

The X-Men franchise is totally underrated and really is just a cool supernatural universe in general. 

Y- You’ve Got Mail (1998).

If there’s one thing that gets me super giddy and mushy inside, it’s romcoms. Specifically, romcoms starring Meg Ryan.

A classic staple for the romance genre- my favourite Ryan-Hanks collaboration- and one of the best enemies-to-lovers dynamics in cinema so far.

You’ve Got Mail is a go-to when snuggled up in bed on a lazy or rainy day. 

Z- Zoolander (2001).

Is there anything better than the power duo that is Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson? Especially when they’re starring as silly supermodels, fighting the forces of an evil fashion genius? Nothing!

The plot is ridiculous, the dialogue is funny, and the actors are chaotically good, what’s more to love?