Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing (1955)

IMDb plot summary: A widowed doctor of both Chinese and European descent falls in love with a married American correspondent in Hong Kong during China's Communist revolution.
Directed by Henry King. Starring William Holden, Jennifer Jones, Torin Thatcher, and Isobel Elsom.

(Mild spoilers.)

I am so torn on this movie. On the good side, I absolutely love the female lead. She's smart, interesting, kind, and even when she's making decisions that made me go, "You JUST MET this guy and now he's your whole world?" she staunchly defends her agency and her ability to make those decisions. That being said, though, William Holden doesn't hold up his end of the bargain. He has no personality other than to be vaguely charming, and while I feel like we get to know Suyin very well, it's hard to buy that she's been swept off her feet when I certainly haven't as an audience member. The ending is also much more melodramatic than the rest of the movie had been, even the love scenes, and it feels out of place and unresolved. Make our leading man more interesting and tweak some of the cheesy sentimentality, and I'd have been fully on board.

2.5 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Love is a Many-Splendored Thing > Camp Rock
Love is a Many-Splendored Thing < Eat Pray Love
Love is a Many-Splendored Thing < Strictly Ballroom
Love is a Many-Splendored Thing < Imitation of Life
Love is a Many-Splendored Thing > The Age of the Medici
Love is a Many-Splendored Thing < Lord of War
Love is a Many-Splendored Thing > The Illusionist
Love is a Many-Splendored Thing > Bonnie and Clyde
Love is a Many-Splendored Thing < Moneyball
Love is a Many-Splendored Thing > Rushmore
Final spot: #1102 out of 2420.

The Forest (2016)

IMDb plot summary: A woman goes into Japan's Suicide Forest to find her twin sister, and confronts supernatural terror.
Directed by Jason Zada. Starring Natalie Dormer, Taylor Kinney, Yukiyoshi Ozawa, and Rina Takasaki.

This movie was torn between two types of movies: a movie about ghosts with scary faces attacking people in the woods, and a psychological horror flick about ghosts slowly driving people to paranoia and insanity. The latter is MUCH more interesting than the former and allows the movie to build an actual creepy atmosphere rather than just relying on cop-out jump scares (or, worse, the many *completely* pointless scares in the first half hour that barely tie in to the plot, let alone the atmosphere). The movie does a better job of finding its way toward the end of the movie, but it takes too long to get there and spends too much time focusing on random creepy images when there are much scarier and more interesting possibilities just below the surface.

1.5 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
The Forest < Camp Rock
The Forest > Born Into Brothels
The Forest < Mickey's Christmas Carol
The Forest > Treasures of the Snow
The Forest < The Quiet Man
The Forest > The 39 Steps
The Forest > Rust and Bone
The Forest > The Muppet Christmas Carol
The Forest > Bus Stop
The Forest < A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
The Forest > Cruel Intentions
Final spot: #1590 out of 2419.

Ghost World (2001)

IMDb plot summary: With only the plan of moving in together after high school, two unusually devious friends seek direction in life. As a mere gag, they respond to a man's newspaper ad for a date, only to find it will greatly complicate their lives.
Directed by Terry Zwigoff. Starring Thora Birch, Scarlett Johansson, Steve Buscemi, and Brad Renfro.

I am... not entirely sold on the greatness of this movie. It all seems to ride on the strength of Enid's character -- and don't get me wrong, she's an amazing character, but the movie mostly leaves us in the same "What now?" limbo as she herself is. And it just left me feeling empty, like I'd spent all this time with her and rooting for her and then just... nothing. It's definitely a movie that could grow on me, but for now it leaves me a little cold.

3 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Ghost World > Camp Rock
Ghost World < Eat Pray Love
Ghost World < A Matter of Life and Death
Ghost World > Imitation of Life
Ghost World > Three Amigos
Ghost World < Wallace & Gromit in A Close Shave
Ghost World > Adam
Ghost World < The Ring
Ghost World < Rachel Getting Married
Ghost World < Lyle, the Kindly Viking
Ghost World > Swing Time

Final spot: #960 out of 2418.

Sleeping with Other People (2015)

IMDb plot summary: A good-natured womanizer and a serial cheater form a platonic relationship that helps reform them in ways, while a mutual attraction sets in.
Directed by Leslye Headland. Starring Alison Brie, Jason Sudeikis, Adam Scott, and Amanda Peet.

(Spoilers ahead.)

This is a really lovely romance movie with very likable stars and one of the most beautiful "love revealed" moments I think I've ever seen on screen. It does exactly what it is supposed to do and is by turns funny and touching. I don't pay attention to a lot of romantic comedies, but somebody somewhere had mentioned that this was a surprisingly good entry in the genre, and I have to agree. My only complaint would be that I wasn't sure the happy ending was actually necessary - I would have been almost as happy with the two forever off doing their own thing but better people because of their love and friendship for the other. That is a very minor complaint, though, and I'm certainly not going to deny it was incredibly satisfying to see the two leads actually end up together at the end. Overall, nicely done.

4 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Sleeping With Other People > Punch-Drunk Love
Sleeping With Other People > Argo
Sleeping With Other People < The Holiday
Sleeping With Other People < Kiss Me, Stupid!
Sleeping With Other People < The Secret Garden (1987)
Sleeping With Other People > Reservoir Dogs
Sleeping With Other People < Shall We Dance? (1996)
Sleeping With Other People < The Ghost and Mrs. Muir
Sleeping With Other People < Double Indemnity
Sleeping With Other People > 9
Sleeping With Other People < Moonrise Kingdom

Final spot: #563 out of 2417, which seems high, but I had no qualms with the match-ups, so I guess it's accurate.

Carol (2015)

IMDb plot summary: An aspiring photographer develops an intimate relationship with an older woman.
Directed by Todd Haynes. Starring Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara, Kyle Chandler, and Jake Lacy.

While I think this could be an interesting story, I was unenthused by the execution. It all just seems... drab, from the color palette to the muted acting to the unsatisfactory ending. Even Cate Blanchett, who is an excellent actress, seriously underwhelmed me and I was left caring not at all about either her or Rooney Mara. Disappointing, considering the source material and the creative cast behind it.

1.5 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Carol < Camp Rock
Carol > Born Into Brothels
Carol < Extremities
Carol < Treasures of the Snow
Carol > JFK
Carol > Spinning Into Butter (Another movie I wanted to be better.)
Carol > Camelot
Carol > Repo! The Genetic Opera
Carol > The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
Carol < The Three Faces of Eve
Carol > Superman Returns
Final spot: #1664 out of 2416.

Lovelace (2013)

IMDb plot summary: The story of Linda Lovelace, who is used and abused by the porn industry at the behest of her coercive husband, before taking control of her life.
Directed by Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman. Starring Amanda Seyfried, Peter Sarsgaard, Sharon Stone, and Robert Patrick.

(Mild spoilers ahead.)

While the pacing of this story gets a bit odd at the end, it is a fascinating tale, and Amanda Seyfried is especially good as the titular character. As her story unravels, she becomes someone we desperately want to root for. The story is also told well, divided into two parts -- the first an unusual fairy tale, the second a much darker reality. The juxtaposition of the two, and especially of Linda herself, is what makes this story interesting. It could have been handled less awkwardly, but the meat of the story is still good.

2.5 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Lovelace > Punch-Drunk Love
Lovelace < Eat Pray Love (Is this only going to get matched up against movies with "love" in the title?)
Lovelace < Strictly Ballroom (There we go.)
Lovelace < Die Hard
Lovelace > American Hustle (Which is too high up on my chart.)
Lovelace < 2012
Lovelace > Hoosiers (Though that one's due a rewatch.)
Lovelace < Bonnie and Clyde
Lovelace < Glory
Lovelace > Primal Fear
Lovelace < Ran

Final spot: #1110 out of 2415.

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984)

IMDb plot summary: Warrior/pacifist Princess Nausicaä desperately struggles to prevent two warring nations from destroying themselves and their dying planet.
Directed by Hayao Miyazaki. Starring (in the English dub) Alison Lohman, Patrick Stewart, Edward James Olmos, and Uma Thurman.

One of the bigger Studio Ghibli movies I hadn't seen yet, this is a fascinating post-apocalyptic story. Nausicaa is a great character, a bold and compassionate young woman who is easy to root for. The animation in this is fantastic, especially the intriguing creature design and the stunning flight sequences. It's one of Miyazaki's best stories as well, interesting and creative and very moving, especially in the final scene. Overall, one of the most likable Ghibli films I've seen.

4 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind > Punch-Drunk Love
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind > Eat Pray Love
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind < The Holiday
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind < Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind > Kiss Me, Stupid!
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind > Changing Lanes
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind > The Virgin Spring
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind < The Fountain
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind < Great Performances: Cats
Final spot: #391 out of 2414.