Wednesday, January 31, 2024

loneliness




So chuffed to hear a new single, "Loneliness," from Pet Shop Boys that demonstrates they are still going strong!





Their new album, Nonetheless, is due out April 26th.







Tuesday, January 23, 2024

the 2023 jdb awards!





Happy Oscar nominations day! 

Just for fun, here goes my personal award winners and nominees for film year 2023.


Picture














nominees














Director





Andrew Haigh, ALL OF US STRANGERS








nominees


Todd Haynes, MAY DECEMBER

Savanah Leaf, EARTH MAMA

Alexander Payne, THE HOLDOVERS

Ira Sachs, PASSAGES




Actor





Paul Giamatti, THE HOLDOVERS





nominees


Barry Keoghan, SALTBURN

Lio Mehiel, MUTT

Franz Rogowski, PASSAGES

Andrew Scott, ALL OF US STRANGERS




Actress





Teyana Taylor, A THOUSAND AND ONE








nominees


Lily Gladstone, KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON


Trace Lysette, MONICA

Tia Nomore, EARTH MAMA




Supporting Actor






Charles Melton, MAY DECEMBER





nominees


Robert DeNiro, KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON

Robert Downey, Jr., OPPENHEIMER

Milo Machado Graner, ANATOMY OF A FALL

Ben Whishaw, PASSAGES




Supporting Actress





Julianne Moore, MAY DECEMBER






nominees


Danielle Brooks, THE COLOR PURPLE

Hong Chau, SHOWING UP

Viola Davis, AIR

Da'Vine Joy Randolph, THE HOLDOVERS




Ensemble





KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON





nominees
 

ALL OF US STRANGERS

THE COLOR PURPLE

THE HOLDOVERS

MAY DECEMBER





Adapted Screenplay






Andrew Haigh, ALL OF US STRANGERS






nominees

Sofia Coppola, PRISCILLA


Christopher Nolan, OPPENHEIMER

Eric Roth & Martin Scorsese, KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON





Original Screenplay






Samy Burch, MAY DECEMBER 






nominees


David Hemingson, THE HOLDOVERS

Savanah Leaf, EARTH MAMA

Jon Raymond & Kelly Reichardt, SHOWING UP

A.V. Rockwell, A THOUSAND AND ONE




International Film













nominees


ANATOMY OF A FALL








THE ZONE OF INTEREST




Documentary









nominees


20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL

FOUR DAUGHTERS








Cinematography













nominees



Maria von Hausswolff, GODLAND

Ari Wegner, EILEEN

Robert Yeoman, ASTEROID CITY




Film Editing





Jennifer Lame, OPPENHEIMER






nominees


Kirk Baxter, THE KILLER

Keith Fraase, PAST LIVES

Xander Nijsten, OCCUPIED CITY

Thelma Schoonmaker, KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON




Score












nominees


Jerskin Fendrix, POOR THINGS


Joe Hisaishi, THE BOY AND THE HERON

Anthony Willis, SALTBURN




Song






"Wounded Heart," SILVER DOLLAR ROAD





nominees

"Dance the Night," BARBIE

"Out Alpha the Alpha," DICKS: THE MUSICAL

"Pharmacoliberation," ORLANDO, MY POLITICAL BIOGRAPHY

"What Was I Made For?," BARBIE




Art Direction / Production Design









nominees

ASTEROID CITY


KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON

PRISCILLA




Costume Design






Stacey Battat, PRISCILLA 





nominees


Sophie Canale, SALTBURN

Jacqueline Durran, BARBIE

Jacqueline West with Julie O'Keefe, KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON

P.C. Williams, POLITE SOCIETY






Make-Up & Hair






PRISCILLA




nominees








Sound Design





THE ZONE OF INTEREST





nominees

THE KILLER








Visual Effects








nominees

ASTEROID CITY

BARBIE


SOCIETY OF THE SNOW





Animated Film










nominees

THE BOY AND THE HERON









A look back at last year when BENEDICTION won Picture & Director for the late Terence Davies. 

Monday, January 22, 2024

jeffery berg's top 10 films of 2023!


This is one of the busiest end-of-the years I can remember for prominent late releases, but many of my favorite films came out early on, and have subsequently (and sadly) been somewhat overlooked. A strong film year overall. 


10.




SHOWING UP


Kelly Reichart is a wonderful director who has been working a long time with modest budgets and stories that take on greater meaning. This one may be my favorite. A haunting, complicated, yet surprisingly (in these times) optimistic look at family, the creation and endurance of art (and the time it takes!) and friendship.  


9.




9.




A THOUSAND AND ONE


The ambition of this on-location NYC-set film of a mother and son by debut director A.V. Rockwell is impressive, spanning decades of the 90s into Bloomberg's early 2000s. Teyana Taylor is full-stop fantastic.

Other great NYC films this year besides this one and Robot Dreams include You Hurt My Feelings and the underrated Mutt.


 



 8.





OPPENHEIMER



Brooding and elegantly-filmed and edited (by Jennifer Lame) epic, with two particularly breathtaking sequences. A Christopher Nolan agnostic, I went in skeptical, and came out changed.




 



 7.




KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON


Another towering historical epic that's simultaneously entertaining, remarkably well-crafted, and terrifying. Listening to different interviews about the care and attention to detail on Martin Scorsese's movie has been enlightening. Also, Lily Gladstone is an amazing human being.



 



 6.




PRISCILLA


Sofia Coppola's deceptively modest, immersive portrait of Priscilla Presley during the courtship and marriage with Elvis. Beautiful music choices and exquisite, tactile aesthetics.



 



 5.



PASSAGES


Has there ever been a protagonist so destructive and frustrating? Probably. But Franz Rogowski's brilliant performance is so compelling and unique that he (and the characters around him, destroyed in his wake) becomes all you can think of watching this film. But the costuming, by Khadija Zeggaï, are also well-done, and enviable (for Ben Whishaw!) and aptly appalling (for Rogowski).



 


 4.





THE HOLDOVERS


Like his prickly characters, Alexander Payne can come off as kind of a pain in interviews, but it's hard to ignore his skill of creating rambling movies that probe the mishaps and follies of human existence with such grace, humor and specificity. Giamatti is a multi-dimensional curmudgeon. Discovery Dominic Sessa feels like a throwback to the story's time period. Laid-back yet steely, Da'Vine Joy Randolph seems to effortlessly create a much richer character than what was probably on the page of an otherwise brilliant script.



 



 3.



EARTH MAMA


Beautifully realized story of a young woman's decisions (and lack thereof, in a brutal American ecosystem). Different friendships between women are tested in ways not often seen in movies. Although acclaimed and released by A24, this ended up being one of the unsung films of the year.



 



 2.




MAY DECEMBER


Barbed, complicated tale of parasitic relationships. Absurdly strong, memorable performances across the board, including the surprisingly heartfelt, winning turn from Charles Melton. 


 




 1.




ALL OF US STRANGERS


A very complex ghost story that surveys mortality, desire, pop culture, and the trappingsof the past. Sometimes a movie feels cosmic, otherworldly. An indelible experience for me at NYFF.


 





  The best of the rest... other notable films of 2023 (in approximate order of preference):




Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret., Chile '76, R.M.N, Robot Dreams, Occupied City




20 Days in Mariupol, Four Daughters, Orlando, My Political Biography, Omen (Augure), Past Lives, The Zone of Interest




Monica, Mutt, Tori and Lokita, Godland



Green Border, The Killer, Anatomy of a Fall, Saltburn, Maestro, The Taste of Things



Fallen Leaves, The Blue Caftan, La Chimera, Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project, Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour, You Hurt My Feelings, Air, M3GAN



The Disappearance of Shere Hite, Theater Camp, Rotting in the Sun, Afire, Joyland, Talk to Me



Eileen, The Royal Hotel, Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie, The Color Purple, Bruiser


La Civil, Barbie, Dream Scenario, Perfect Days, The Blackening, Totem, Kokomo City, Society of the Snow


A look back at 2022!


-Jeffery Berg