There aren’t many marquee movies left to watch this year; Greta Gerwig’s “Little Women” and Jay Roach’s “Bombshell” both screened last week in L.A. and New York City. The reactions for both were mixed-to-positive, with Roach’s Fox News exposé gaining a little more Oscar traction than Gerwig’s film.
In the next few weeks, we will be getting press screenings for Clint Eastwood’s “Richard Jewell” and Sam Mendes’ “1917,” both are supposed to be unveiled in the third week of November. Other than that, most pundits have all but given up Rob Marshall’s “Cats (especially after that disastrous trailer), ditto Melina Matsoukas’ “Queen & Slim” which has already screened to good reactions but seems to be a non-starter according to some who were at that screening.
Todd Haynes’ “Dark Waters” is, supposedly, not going to AFI, nor is it being screened for critics this month. There are many unanswered questions about that film that will continue to be asked in the coming weeks. Why is Focus not building up buzz for a movie that looks like prime Oscar-bait on-paper? I’m hearing there is a reason and it has to do with the quality of the movie at hand. “Promised Land” 2.0?
I have narrowed down my list of films for 2019. The 40 essential movie experiences I have had this year:
The Irishman, Once Upon A Time in Hollywood, Uncut Gems, Dragged Across Concrete, Luce, Pain & Glory, Dogman, Joker, The Art of Self-Defense, Ford v Ferrari, Midnight Family, David Crosby: Remember My Name, The Farewell, American Dharma, Knives Out, Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Mickey and the Bear, Parasite, Avengers: Endgame, Gloria Bell Everybody's Everything, Triple Frontier, Ash is Purest White, The Man Who Killed Don Quixote , Hail Satan, Fyre, Diamantino. Booksmart , A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story, Us, Ask Dr. Ruth, Climax
The short version: "Woman Unknown" was a compromise. The jury deadlocked over "Possible Love" and "NAZA," not able to com to terms, fell back on their #3, May el-Toukhy's film.