Malcolm & Marie (2021)

IMDb plot summary: A director and his girlfriend's relationship is tested after they return home from his movie premiere and face each other's turmoil during one long night.

Directed by Sam Levinson. Starring John David Washington and Zendaya.

This is a talky piece that would feel right at home in a black box theater. Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf comes to mind as an immediate comparison, but there's a possibility Malcolm and Marie still actually like each other, although that's heavily debatable. The two discuss a lot of things that make for interesting post-movie discussions, particularly about art and art criticism, but they spend most of their time digging deep at each other's insecurities and hitting hard whenever they feel even slightly attacked. Malcolm in particular is frighteningly volatile, especially showcased in a scene when he reads a review that praises his film but for what he perceives as the wrong reasons, and he goes on a multi-minute rant cursing all reviewers while Marie laughs because, for once tonight, his rage isn't aimed at her. The film doesn't wow me, but the performances are good and it definitely made me pay attention. And remember how much I've missed theater during the pandemic.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Malcolm & Marie > Arctic

Malcolm & Marie < Dark Passage

Malcolm & Marie < I Saw the Devil

Malcolm & Marie < Blood Diamond

Malcolm & Marie > Music Within

Malcolm & Marie > The Tree of Life

Malcolm & Marie > My Favorite Year

Malcolm & Marie > Les Miserables (1935)

Malcolm & Marie < The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Malcolm & Marie < Winnie the Pooh (2011)

Malcolm & Marie < Blow Dry

Malcolm & Marie < 101 Dalmatians (1961)

Final spot: #1488 out of 3372, or 56%.

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar (2021)

IMDb plot summary: Lifelong friends Barb and Star embark on the adventure of a lifetime when they decide to leave their small Midwestern town for the first time - ever.

Directed by Josh Greenbaum. Starring Kristen Wiig, Annie Mumolo, Jamie Dornan, and Damon Wayans, Jr.

I appreciated but didn't love Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo's previous writing collaboration Bridesmaids, but this one was right up my alley. It's like if Anchorman decided to cross over with... I don't know, some delightful movie about female friendship. There's such a great mix here of character-centric humor and just wild wacky moments that made me laugh out loud -- the romantic lead's musical number was especially a favorite of mine. But it also has such lovely warmth to it, even if the big cathartic moments come while the leads are being chased off a cliff by alligators rather than a more traditional dramatic setup. I did have to go back and edit this review pretty heavily because I just kept describing everything as "delightful," so I had to find some more creative words, but, really, that is the best word I could use to describe this film.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar > A Chorus of Disapproval

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar > The Heart is a Lonely Hunter

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar > Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar < Frozen

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar < 50/50

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar > Trust

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar > High School Musical 2

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar < Nativity!

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar > Shaolin Soccer

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar > The Fountain

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar > Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar > Adaptation

Final spot: #329 out of 3371, or 90%.

Onward (2020)

IMDb plot summary: Two elven brothers embark on a quest to bring their father back for one day.

Directed by Dan Scanlon. Starring Tom Holland, Chris Pratt, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Octavia Spencer.

Pixar is at its best when tapping into the human stories beneath the fancy trappings, and this does an incredible job with that. The fantasy quest here is the method of telling the story of two brothers growing up without a dad, and the method works well, but the reason the film succeeds is that the story underneath is strong. The world itself is one I would have dismissed as "lazy" if it weren't handled as intelligently as it is, but it works and helps support the primary story without ever overwhelming it. The characters are likable and relatable, and I definitely teared up at the end (though not the full-on sobbing Pixar films have occasionally reduced me to). A pretty solid entry for the studio!

How it entered my Flickchart:

Onward > A Chorus of Disapproval

Onward > Safe

Onward < Big Hero 6

Onward < Knights of Badassdom

Onward > Hidden Figures

Onward > The Butler

Onward > A Single Man

Onward < True Lies

Onward < Synecdoche, New York

Onward > The Farewell

Onward < Booksmart

Final spot: #653 out of 3370, or 81%.

The Little Things (2021)

IMDb plot summary: Kern County Deputy Sheriff Joe Deacon is sent to Los Angeles for what should have been a quick evidence-gathering assignment. Instead, he becomes embroiled in the search for a serial killer who is terrorizing the city.

Directed by John Lee Hancock. Starring Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, Jared Leto, and Chris Bauer.

This movie wants to be Se7en so badly. And it definitely has a few moments of successfully latching onto those vibes, particularly in the third act. But it also doesn't have Se7en's clarity of purpose or story, so we get a lot of plot twistiness that doesn't go anywhere and some muddled character arcs. It was one of those films where afterward I went and looked up the plot on Wikipedia to explain the pieces I missed, and they didn't have much more information than I did. Both the lead actors pull out all the stops, and Washington is, of course, very good playing this sort of moral ambiguity. If you're a huge fan of the genre, this is a decent addition, but if you're looking for something above and beyond, this falls short.

How it entered my Flickchart:

The Little Things > Mudbound

The Little Things < Safe

The Little Things < Poltergeist

The Little Things > Away We Go

The Little Things < Dark Shadows

The Little Things < 7 Plus Seven

The Little Things < Girl Shy

The Little Things > Dakota Skye

The Little Things < 2001: A Space Odyssey

The Little Things < Toy Story 4

The Little Things > Oblivion

The Little Things < How Do You Know

Final spot: #1458 out of 3369, or 57%.

Backbeat (1994)

IMDb plot summary: A dramatization of the Hamburg, Germany phase of The Beatles' early history.

Directed by Iain Softley. Starring Sheryl Lee, Stephen Dorff, Ian Hart, and Gary Bakewell.

I knew virtually nothing about this time in the band's career, and the film does a pretty good job of telling it as a straightforward story without trying to make it "A Big Beatles Biopic." Yes, there are a few moments where they casually drop the name of a future song into the dialogue, but it feels surprisingly natural most of the time. Most importantly, Stephen Dorff as Sutcliffe and Ian Hart as Lennon really sell the story here. They bring these characters to life in a way that made me instantly sympathize with them and want to know where their journey would take them. The movie does a great job of centering the music as well, devoting plenty of time to showing the band performing (though of course not with any of the songs we know them from today, as this was before they were written). The editing, cinematography, and sound all combine to do a great job of showing off what made the Beatles special in those early days before we knew what they could do. It's much more engaging than most biopics. I'd recommend it.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Backbeat > Mudbound

Backbeat < The Heart is a Lonely Hunter

Backbeat > Lifeforce

Backbeat < A Serious Man

Backbeat < True Grit (1969)

Backbeat < Idiocracy

Backbeat > Cafe Society

Backbeat > New York Stories

Backbeat > Peeping Tom

Backbeat > Joe Versus the Volcano

Backbeat > Ghostbusters (1984)

Backbeat > Hamlet (1990)

Final spot: #1211 out of 3368, or 64%.

Rescue Me (1992)

IMDb plot summary: Fraser's unrequited love for the beautiful and rich Ginny gets a chance to prove itself, when she is suddenly kidnapped. He teams up with rebel Mac, who's got a score to settle with the kidnappers. Together they cross the country, looking for Ginny and the bad guys.

Directed by Arthur Allan Seidelman. Starring Michael Dudikoff, Stephen Dorff, Ami Dolenz, and Peter DeLuise.

This movie is SLEAZY. For one thing, the film's "hero" only sees the kidnapping because he'd gone to that spot to creepily take pictures of her skinny dipping. And then there are multiple scenes of grown adults hitting on these teenage characters (and more), which is just portrayed a totally OK, totally cool thing in this film, but I found it pretty horrifying. Some of the scenes with the kidnappers were mildly amusing, and the kidnapped girl definitely takes back her agency throughout the film, which is cool, but there's just a lot of stuff in here that has aged very uncomfortably and made it impossible to enjoy even if the rest of it were better. Which it's not. This isn't good.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Rescue Me < Mudbound

Rescue Me < The King

Rescue Me < Live Free or Die Hard

Rescue Me > Turner and Hooch

Rescue Me < Man of Steel

Rescue Me < Yes Man

Rescue Me < The Waiting Game

Rescue Me < No Greater Love

Rescue Me > Thr3e

Rescue Me > Chicken Little

Rescue Me < Reefer Madness (1936)

Final spot: #3147 out of 3367, or 7%.

Clear and Present Danger (1994)

IMDb plot summary: CIA Analyst Jack Ryan is drawn into an illegal war fought by the US government against a Colombian drug cartel.

Directed by Phillip Noyce. Starring Harrison Ford, Willem Dafoe, Anne Archer, and Joaquim de Almeida.

This is, for the most part, your typical spy action thriller, and I will say up front that this is NOT my genre -- lots and lots of pieces, lots and lots of gun fights, lots and lots of names being thrown around and characters switching sides, none of which would be difficult to track if I cared, but I usually don't. It does delve into some interesting themes near the end about government overreach and abuse of power, but those are definitely meant to take a back seat to the action sequences. Harrison Ford is great here -- he so often gets to play tough and jaded characters in action films, but here he brings a refreshing amount of earnestness to the role, which is when I like him most. I'd expect fans of the genre to like this more than I did, but I can see what it does well.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Clear and Present Danger < A Chorus of Disapproval

Clear and Present Danger > The King

Clear and Present Danger < Wes Craven's New Nightmare

Clear and Present Danger > The Disappearance of Alice Creed

Clear and Present Danger > The Net

Clear and Present Danger > Pal Joey

Clear and Present Danger < The Woman in Black

Clear and Present Danger < Captain Fantastic

Clear and Present Danger < Another Thin Man

Clear and Present Danger < Spinning Into Butter

Clear and Present Danger < Birdman of Alcatraz

Final spot: #2157 out of 3366, or 36%.

A Room With a View (1985)

IMDb plot summary: Lucy meets George in a Florence pensione and the two share a brief romance before Lucy returns home, where she becomes engaged to Cecil. However, it isn't long before George unexpectedly enters her life again.

Directed by James Ivory. Starring Helena Bonham Carter, Julian Sands, Daniel Day-Lewis, and Maggie Smith.

This is based on a novel by E.M. Forster that I just read myself a few months ago, and I found it much more exciting and charming than I expected at first. The film does its best to capture that feeling of a turn-of-the-century romance, even including chapter headings in between its various scenes, and that's pretty delightful. On film, the romance feels a bit more expected than it did on the page, but that's not necessarily a bad thing, just a change. Helena Bonham Carter is a joy here, portraying exactly the right combination of independence and uncertainty as she navigates her own thoughts and feelings, and the rest of the cast is stellar as well. The two locations here are very much characters of their own, and the cinematography really lets them shine. A very nicely done film.

How it entered my Flickchart:

A Room With a View > Mudbound

A Room With a View < The Heart is a Lonely Hunter

A Room With a View > Lifeforce

A Room With a View > A Serious Man

A Room With a View > Sneakers

A Room With a View > Gremlins

A Room With a View > Match Point

A Room With a View > The Black Cat

A Room With a View < Jack Goes Boating

A Room With a View < Chronicle

A Room With a View < Long Day's Journey Into Night

A Room With a View < Munich

Final spot: #854 out of 3365, or 75%.

Never Rarely Sometimes Always (2020)

IMDb plot summary: A pair of teenage girls in rural Pennsylvania travel to New York City to seek out medical help after an unintended pregnancy.

Directed by Eliza Hittman. Starring Sidney Flanigan, Talia Ryder, Théodore Pellerin, and Kelly Chapman.

I'm impressed by how much story and depth we get to this character with so little dialogue. Autumn's refusal to speak more than one or two words at a time, and even those reluctantly, portrays so much about how guarded she is and how terrified she is to have to be in this situation and ask someone else for help. The movie doesn't provide any easy answers either. The title comes from a questionnaire one clinic's nurse gives Autumn to check for domestic violence or sexual assault, and it's clear that whatever caused Autumn's current situation, it's one where she feels very unsafe, and the film doesn't resolve that. We end with one crisis down, the next one just around the corner. It's a powerful but often deeply sad film.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Never Rarely Sometimes Always > Something to Sing About

Never Rarely Sometimes Always > The Heart is a Lonely Hunter

Never Rarely Sometimes Always < Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation

Never Rarely Sometimes Always < Knights of Badassdom

Never Rarely Sometimes Always < Beetlejuice

Never Rarely Sometimes Always > The African Queen

Never Rarely Sometimes Always > The Fault in Our Stars

Never Rarely Sometimes Always > The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes

Never Rarely Sometimes Always < Little Children

Never Rarely Sometimes Always > City Lights

Never Rarely Sometimes Always > Kismet

Final spot: #743 out of 3364, or 78%.

Hair (1979)

IMDb plot summary: Claude Bukowski leaves the family ranch in Oklahoma for New York where he is rapidly embraced into the hippie group of youngsters led by Berger, yet he's already been drafted. He soon falls in love with Sheila Franklin, a rich girl but still a rebel inside.

Directed by Milos Forman. Starring John Savage, Treat Williams, Beverly D'Angelo, and Annie Golden.

There's a loose plot to this film, but mostly they just dance around doing drugs and singing protest songs. The stage version has even less of a plot, and I think the movie made some smart choices in narrowing the focus of the characters, even though the original creators didn't like how it focused on one small group instead of the broader picture. The film shouldn't have worked, like, at all, and yet... it mostly does. It's able to retain much of the dreamy nonlinear vibe through the staging of the musical numbers ("Manchester England" and the "Black Boys/White Boys" montage come to mind in particular) but then grounds the story in the choices of a few specific characters. The result is... kind of electrifying, and by the time it got to the end I was riveted. I really had low expectations of this one, as the show has never really gripped me, but this interpretation works for me.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Hair > Le Week-End

Hair > Safe

Hair < Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation

Hair < Knights of Badassdom

Hair < Beetlejuice

Hair < The African Queen

Hair > Primer

Hair > Sherlock Jr.

Hair < Out of Sight

Hair > The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes

Hair > Bandits

Final spot: #796 out of 3363, or 76%.

Nobody (2021)

IMDb plot summary: A bystander who intervenes to help a woman being harassed by a group of men becomes the target of a vengeful drug lord.

Directed by Ilya Naishuller. Starring Bob Odenkirk, Aleksey Serbryakov, Connie Nielsen, and Christopher Lloyd.

On one level this is just a typical action thriller. Critics have largely praised Bob Odenkirk's performance here, and I completely agree. He sells both aspects of his character's persona. The action sequences are that sort of high-octane extra-violent creativity most associated with directors like Quentin Tarantino. They're certainly fun to watch, but I found myself missing the movie that had been set up for me at the beginning. I don't think we actually need any more revenge fantasies for middle-class American fathers. I wanted to see the story of Odenkirk's character when he truly was nobody. As it became clear that it was going to become an action movie and was about to lapse into the familiar, I lost most of my interest in the character and his story. Funny how sometimes adding more action makes a story LESS interesting.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Nobody < Something to Sing About

Nobody > The Cheap Detective

Nobody > American Hustle

Nobody > An American in Paris

Nobody < Must Love Dogs

Nobody > The Kids Are All Right

Nobody > Zelig

Nobody > Trainwreck

Nobody > Lost in America

Nobody > Holiday Affair

Nobody > A Bridge Too Far

Nobody < The Muppet Christmas Carol

Final spot: #1788 out of 3362, or 47%.

Long Day's Journey Into Night (1962)

IMDb plot summary: At the end of a long and hot summer day, members of one family gather in a large house. Everyone has something painful and offensive to say, and their silence is even worse.

Directed by Sidney Lumet. Starring Katharine Hepburn, Ralph Richardson, Jason Robards, and Dean Stockwell.

This is often considered one of the greatest American plays out there, and there's certainly a lot to be gleaned from it, especially for any actors taking it on. You have to be prepared to lean back into this style, though. It's very reminiscent of the classical plays -- Greek tragedies come to mind most strongly -- with long poetic monologues taking the place of any semblance of realistic speech. Characters don't seem to be interacting with each other so much as existing out loud near each other, which definitely brings out the sense of isolation and "every man for himself" within this family. Lumet keeps the theatrical staging in translating it to film but makes incredible use of lighting to narrow in on these characters as they feel more and more trapped in the life they have. This film won't resonate with everyone but it definitely grew on me as I watched.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Long Day's Journey Into Night > Le Week-End

Long Day's Journey Into Night < Safe

Long Day's Journey Into Night > Event Horizon

Long Day's Journey Into Night > Murder on the Orient Express (2017)

Long Day's Journey Into Night > The Shallows

Long Day's Journey Into Night > Good Morning, Vietnam

Long Day's Journey Into Night > Cries and Whispers

Long Day's Journey Into Night > Look Out, Officer!

Long Day's Journey Into Night < My Name Is Joe

Long Day's Journey Into Night < Hoop Dreams

Long Day's Journey Into Night > The Game

Long Day's Journey Into Night > The Black Cat

Final spot: #850 out of 3361, or 75%.

Twister (1996)

I was terrified to watch this movie when I was younger, as I grew up in the Midwest where tornadoes were a fairly common occurrence, and though thankfully we never got this close to one, I was still so scared of them. This film sets up a series of properly terrifying scenes that hit home for me. There's one moment in particular where a character looks up at a black sky that seems harmless, only for a flash of lightning to suddenly illuminate the tornado RIGHT THERE in front of her. That is something directly out of my nightmares. The film is a wild ride that paces itself very well and delivers on those big scary moments, which is all it really needed to do it accomplish its goals.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Twister > The Major and the Minor

Twister > Kuroneko

Twister < Big Hero 6

Twister < The Talented Mr. Ripley

Twister > The Hateful Eight

Twister < Cats (1998)

Twister < The Red Shoes

Twister < The History of Future Folk

Twister > The Graduate

Twister > Take Shelter

Twister > Seeking a Friend for the End of the World

Twister < Hustlers

Final spot: #723 out of 3360, or 78%. That seems very unexpectedly high but it was a good time!

Sweet Charity (1969)

IMDb plot summary: Taxi dancer Charity continues to have faith despite endless disappointments at its hands, and hope that she will finally meet the man to romance her away from her sleazy life. Maybe, just maybe, handsome Oscar will be the one to do it.

Directed by Bob Fosse. Starring Shirley MacLaine, John McMartin, Ricardo Montalban, and Sammy Davis Jr.

This is a musical about a young dance hall hostess named Charity. She wants to find true love and get out of her job, which she finds degrading, but her optimism about the world leads to lots of disappointments, and we get to see a whole bunch of them. If you're thinking that sounds exceptionally depressing for a musical, you'd be right! It's based on the Italian film Nights of Cabiria, which I loved, but this one hit me on a very different level and I found myself unable to enjoy any of the big dance numbers because I remembered where this story was heading. Mild spoiler: The ending here is at VERY best, bittersweet, and at worst absolutely devastating. Shirley MacLaine does turn in a great performance, bringing a ton of energetic physicality to her role. The best parts of this movie, though, are the group musical numbers featuring stage veterans Chita Rivera, Paula Kelly, and Stubby Kaye, and for one number, Sammy Davis Jr. Those numbers are fantastic -- a nice distraction from the absolute non-cathartic misery of the core story. I sound more negative about this than maybe I should be, but I just had such a difficult time enjoying any of Charity's highs knowing the lows were on the way. I'm a little curious how I would have felt if I went in blind, but as it is, I certainly don't want to rewatch it.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Sweet Charity > Absolute Power

Sweet Charity < Kuroneko

Sweet Charity < True Grit (2010)

Sweet Charity > Tangled

Sweet Charity < Knight and Day

Sweet Charity > Battle of the Sexes

Sweet Charity < The Gold Rush

Sweet Charity < Guys and Dolls

Sweet Charity < Is It Fall Yet?

Sweet Charity < The Trouble with Harry

Sweet Charity < The Help

Sweet Charity > Liberal Arts

Final spot: #1416 out of 3359, or 58%.

Eat Drink Man Woman (1994)

IMDb plot summary: A senior chef lives with his three grown daughters; the middle one finds her future plans affected by unexpected events and the life changes of the other household members.

Directed by Ang Lee. Starring Sihung Lung, Yu-Wen Wang, Chien-Lien Wu, and Kuei-Mei Yang.

This is a slow, thoughtful movie that spends much of its time lingering on the sights and sounds of the father's cooking. Details of the various daughters' approaches to life and to their father unravel a little at a time, and sometimes interacting with each other in interesting ways. One daughter, for example, begins seeing the man who jilted her older sister years before without knowing it's him, and when she finds out, you are concerned for both of them and how this is going to play out. The final scene is very touching and beautiful and ends the film perfectly. Overall a really beautiful movie.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Eat Drink Man Woman > Raising Cain

Eat Drink Man Woman > Chronicle

Eat Drink Man Woman < Revengers Tragedy

Eat Drink Man Woman > The Muppets

Eat Drink Man Woman < William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet

Eat Drink Man Woman > Cats and Dogs

Eat Drink Man Woman < Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Undead

Eat Drink Man Woman < Thermae Romae

Eat Drink Man Woman < They Live

Eat Drink Man Woman < Jackie Brown

Eat Drink Man Woman < Queen of Katwe

Eat Drink Man Woman > Loving Vincent

Final spot: #575 out of 3358, or 83%.

Half a Sixpence (1967)

IMDb plot summary: Arthur Kipps, an orphan apprenticed to a tyrannical owner of a mercantile, has a sudden abrupt change of life when his wealthy grandfather dies and leaves him a pile of money.

Directed by George Sidney. Starring Tommy Steele, Julia Foster, Cyril Ritchard, and Penelope Horner.

Like so many musicals, this is a long movie to be able to fit in all the tunes, but not a single one of these songs is a throwaway. Even the songs that in ANY other musical would have been time killers at best -- I'm thinking particularly of "Flash Bang" and "Money to Burn" -- become absolutely enthralling to watch here. I attribute some of that to Tommy Steele's magnetic energy. It'd be easier for him to become just "too much" in a movie, but here he brings a sense of joy to every song he's in, and made every single song thoroughly enjoyable. The rest of the cast is pretty good as well, but it's very definitely Steele who carries the movie, and he does it well. It's the first musical I've seen in awhile where I left genuinely wanting to find a cast album and get to know those songs better. It's too bad this one isn't better known, it's delightful.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Half a Sixpence > The Testament of Dr. Mabuse

Half a Sixpence > Hoop Dreams

Half a Sixpence > He Loves Me... He Loves Me Not

Half a Sixpence < This Is Spinal Tap

Half a Sixpence < Shattered Glass

Half a Sixpence > Trust

Half a Sixpence < The Hunchback of Notre Dame

Half a Sixpence < The World's End

Half a Sixpence > Once

Half a Sixpence < I.Q.

Half a Sixpence < Inglourious Basterds

Half a Sixpence < A Simple Plan

Final spot: #366 out of 3357, or 89%.

Toys (1992)

IMDb plot summary: When Lieutenant General Leland Zevo (Sir Michael Gambon) inherits a toymaking company and begins making war toys, his employees band together to stop him before he ruins the name of Zevo Toys forever.

Directed by Barry Levinson. Starring Robin Williams, Michael Gambon, Joan Cusack, and Robin Wright.

This is an exceptionally odd movie. There are so many things that I think are meant to be whimsical or fun but are instead pretty terrifying. For example, there's a song about happy workers played in the factory early on that I think might be trying to convey a "Whistle While You Work" joviality but instead just creeps me out. The song later gets remixed as a dark electronic version as the new owner takes over, but that one isn't any creepier to me! I had trouble finding my footing in the film's humor, as well, I couldn't quite figure out how much of a manchild Robin Williams was supposed to be and couldn't get a handle on Joan Cusack at ALL (though the final few scenes with her helped). It has some good adventure sequences toward the end, but as a whole this aesthetic mostly misses me.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Toys < Raising Cain

Toys < Deceived

Toys > Jules and Jim

Toys > Brokeback Mountain

Toys > One 2 Ka 4

Toys < Get Smart

Toys < X2

Toys < Beaches

Toys > Throw Momma from the Train

Toys < Quitting

Toys < Howl's Moving Castle

Toys > Pontoffel Pock, Where Are You?

Final spot: #2614 out of 3356, or 22%.

Mame (1974)

IMDb plot summary: Following the death of his father, an orphan is sent to live with his free-spirited aunt.

Directed by Gene Saks. Starring Lucille Ball, Bea Arthur, Robert Preston, and Bruce Davison.

Lucille Ball plays the title character here, and while her singing chops aren't the best, she does bring a sense of tremendous warmth to this character which I haven't seen in other versions of this story. You truly feel Mame's generosity, which is important for the story's third act, where Mame is hurt that her nephew hasn't embraced those lessons of inclusivity and open-mindedness she tried so hard to instill in him. The songs are catchy and mostly pretty fun, with some good choreography and some weird choreography. There is an odd gap in the story at the end that made me wonder if I'd missed a scene. Mame does something outrageous, it blows up, her nephew is furious with her... and then it's suddenly six or seven years later and everything is fine now? It's an anticlimactic way to close out the story and is just plain confusing given the dynamic we'd been shown. The film definitely has its flaws, but if you like classic musicals, you'll probably enjoy this one.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Mame > The Testament of Dr. Mabuse

Mame < Chronicle

Mame < Harakiri

Mame > Burn After Reading

Mame < Rabbit Hole

Mame < Munich

Mame < The Last Unicorn

Mame < Blood Diamond

Mame > A Few Good Men

Mame < The Ladykillers (2004)

Mame > Stolen Kisses

Final spot: #1459 out of 3355, or 57%.