It's that time of the year, and once again eccentric filmmaker John Waters has published his 10 favorite films of the year. It's become an annual tradition to get Waters’ list in early December —I’m not entirely sure why, but I’m not complaining either.
Waters always comes up with one of the most interesting top 10s of the year. It’s impossible not to respect his eclectic tastes. This year, Waters has actually mellowed down a bit. His list isn’t as out there as in previous years.
Coming off his “Liarmouth” movie being shelved, here’s Waters’ intro which, when reading it, you can’t help but think of the rough year he’s had in trying to mount his first film in over 20 years, and failing. Here’s to better times ahead.
The movie business as I knew it is now over. Except in New York City, where feel-bad, risk-taking, ratings-defying art flicks still play and I pay to see them in theaters. Thank you, distributors, from the bottom of my damaged little cinematic heart, for getting these films out there to the perverted public, who still demand to be startled and soothed by troublemaking directors from all over the world. Here they are — my ten best. See them and suffer … joyously.
1) Love Lies Bleeding (Rose Glass)
2) Queer (Luca Guadagnino)
3) The Brutalist (Brady Corbet)
4) Hard Truths (Mike Leigh)
5) Messy (Alexi Wasser)
6) Joker: Folie a Deux (Todd Phillips)
7) Femme (Freeman/Ping)
8) Emilia Perez (Jacques Audiard)
9) Babygirl (Halina Reijn)
10) Viet and Nam (Truong Minh Quy)
Notice how Waters has “Joker: Folie a Deux” on his list. That’s yet another marquee filmmaker going to bat for Todd Phillips’ critically panned sequel.
Finally, a love story I can relate to. So insane, so well thought out, so well directed, so much smoking! It’s “Jailhouse Rock” meets Busby Berkeley with a 9/11 “That’s Entertainment!” ending that will make you shake your head in cinematic astonishment. Stupid critics. Gaga so good. Joker so right. Die, dumbbells, die!
Waters’ rave follows those of Quentin Tarantino, Mark Romanek, Hideo Kojima, Jason Blum and Francis Ford Coppola. Maybe the film will have a long shelf life as there’s definitely passion for it in some circles.
Criterion's December lineup has some great additions to the library, but the title that jumped out at me is Werner Herzog's "Grizzly Man," which officially joins the Collection on December 8.