The Monkey King (2014)

IMDb plot summary: A monkey born from heavenly stone acquires supernatural powers and must battle the armies of both gods and demons to find his place in the heavens.
Directed by Pou-Soi Cheang. Starring Donnie Yen, Yun-Fat Chow, Aaron Kwok, and Yitian Hai.

Like so many Chinese fantasy films I've seen, this looks stunning. Lots of fairy tale elements to the images that really bring it home, and the scene where the titular character laments his murdered tribe is beautifully done. That being said, the movie as a whole doesn't really work for me despite liking so many individual elements and it's hard to say why.

2.5 stars.

The Monkey King < Trainwreck
The Monkey King > Seasons of the Heart
The Monkey King < A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
The Monkey King > The Secret of My Success
The Monkey King < Cellular
The Monkey King > Running With Scissors
The Monkey King > Dr. No
The Monkey King < I Remember Mama
The Monkey King > MASH
The Monkey King < Dr. Strangelove

Final spot: #1764 out of 2665.

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)

IMDb plot summary: The Griswold family's plans for a big family Christmas predictably turn into a big disaster.
Directed by Jeremiah S. Chechik. Starring Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Juliette Lewis, and Johnny Galecki.

I can see why people love this. Even when the jokes didn't land for me (frequently), I think it's an extraordinarily well-crafted comedy, building the chaos really well so that it never felt too zany too quickly. It's not at all my comedy style, but I can appreciate it for what it is. (As a side note, Clark would have been a much more likable character if we had not had that extended scene toward the beginning where he lied about being married so he could flirt with the checkout girl. Every interaction he had with his wife after that just made me feel sad for her.)

2.5 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation < To Be or Not to Be (1942)
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation > Seasons of the Heart
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation > The Day of the Triffids
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation > Everyone Says I Love You
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation < Dear Frankie
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation > Oblivion
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation < Battle of the Sexes
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation > Wedding Crashers
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation < Martian Child

Final spot: #1388 out of 2664.

Enemy of the State (1998)

IMDb plot summary: A lawyer becomes a target by a corrupt politician and his NSA goons when he accidentally receives key evidence to a serious politically motivated crime.
Directed by Tony Scott. Starring Will Smith, Gene Hackman, Jon Voight, and Lisa Bonet.

A fluffy, forgettable paranoid thriller. Will Smith, as always, is an effortlessly charming action star.

2 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Enemy of the State < To Be or Not to Be (1942)
Enemy of the State > Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland
Enemy of the State < The Day of the Triffids
Enemy of the State > Cinderella (1950)
Enemy of the State > Saturday Night Fever
Enemy of the State > Blackadder Back & Forth
Enemy of the State < Bowling for Columbine
Enemy of the State > Kiss Me Kate
Enemy of the State < My Girlfriend's Boyfriend
Enemy of the State < Mulholland Dr.
Enemy of the State > Over the Hedge

Final spot: #1693 out of 2663.

mother! (2017)

IMDb plot summary: A couple's relationship is tested when uninvited guests arrive at their home, disrupting their tranquil existence.
Directed by Darren Aronofsky. Starring Jennifer Lawrence, Javier Bardem, Ed Harris, and Michelle Pfeiffer.

It's hard to put into words how I feel about this one, but it's not like I could leave it NOT reviewed. The film feels like an emotional punch in the gut and is at times very difficult to watch, largely thanks to a heartwrenching performance from Jennifer Lawrence and a near-constant sense of stomach-churning nightmare surrealism. The images are so striking that it's almost disappointing to then resign yourself to the fact that this film has a definite *meaning*, particularly if, like me, you find Darren Aronofsky's official answer deeply unsatisfying. It's certainly a film that will sit with me but I don't connect with it the way I have many of Aronosky's previous work, since as a surrealist allegory it's limited on things like characterization.

3 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
mother! > To Be or Not to Be (1942)
mother! < Zootopia
mother! < A Matter of Life and Death
mother! > Marathon
mother! < Laura
mother! < Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken
mother! > Adam
mother! < Who Framed Roger Rabbit
mother! < Seven Chances
mother! > Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire
mother! > Ghost World
mother! < Modern Times

Final spot: #1139 out of 2662.

Battle of the Sexes (2017)

IMDb plot summary: The true story of the 1973 tennis match between World number one Billie Jean King and ex-champ and serial hustler Bobby Riggs.
Directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris. Starring Emma Stone, Steve Carell, Andrea Riseborough, and Natalie Morales.

Fun, but the pacing is weird and ultimately it's going to be forgettable. I also somehow can't tell if Stone and Carell are really good in this or really not good.

2.5 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Battle of the Sexes < To Be or Not to Be (1942)
Battle of the Sexes > Passion
Battle of the Sexes > Mr. Pip
Battle of the Sexes > Rack, Shack & Benny
Battle of the Sexes > Music Within
Battle of the Sexes < Dear Frankie
Battle of the Sexes > The Whistleblower
Battle of the Sexes > Office Space
Battle of the Sexes < Cafe Society
Final spot: #1383 out of 2661.

What Lies Beneath (2000)

IMDb plot summary: The wife of a university research scientist believes that her lakeside Vermont home is haunted by a ghost - or that she is losing her mind.
Directed by Robert Zemeckis. Starring Michelle Pfeiffer, Harrison Ford, Diana Scarwid, and Miranda Otto.

I was hopeful for this one. I like Michelle Pfeiffer and Harrison Ford, I like Robert Zemeckis, I like psychological thriller/horrors. This, however, was better in theory than in execution. The dialogue is pretty clunky, the acting is very over-the-top, and the final chase scene was pretty clearly supposed to carry the rest of the movie but went on for far, far too long and required way too much suspension of disbelief. The movie would have been significantly stronger if it had ended about 15 minutes earlier. Still not a strong movie, but stronger. It's a bummer it didn't work for me, because I do like the premise, and the mystery unfolds in an interesting way, but it is regrettably sloppy.

2 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
What Lies Beneath < Trainwreck
What Lies Beneath > Passion
What Lies Beneath < The Day of the Triffids
What Lies Beneath > Cinderella (1950)
What Lies Beneath > Saturday Night Fever
What Lies Beneath < Alice in Wonderland (1999)
What Lies Beneath > Marathon Man
What Lies Beneath < Legend
What Lies Beneath < Defending Your Life
What Lies Beneath < Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
What Lies Beneath > The Toy That Saved Christmas

Final spot: #1722 out of 2660.

Batman Returns (1992)

IMDb plot summary: When a corrupt businessman and the grotesque Penguin plot to take control of Gotham City, only Batman can stop them, while the Catwoman has her own agenda.
Directed by Tim Burton. Starring Michael Keaton, Danny DeVito, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Christopher Walken.

Like most franchise movies, it's fairly difficult for me to evaluate this on its own as a partial story, much less to distinguish it from other movies in the series, but I think this is a pretty good one. It's definitely got a fun and distinct Tim Burton vibe to it, and the Danny Elfman score is great. Michelle Pfeiffer's Catwoman is my favorite part of the movie, though. She's got this amazing tragic arc that made me care about her in a way I didn't care about anyone else, and it made me far, far more interested in Catwoman as a character than I'd ever been before. Good flick, still going to confuse it with other Batman movies.

3 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Batman Returns > Snakes on a Plane
Batman Returns < Zootopia
Batman Returns < A Matter of Life and Death
Batman Returns > Marathon
Batman Returns > Laura
Batman Returns > Inside Llewyn Davis
Batman Returns > Journey to the Center of the Earth
Batman Returns < Dawn of the Dead (2004)
Batman Returns > Stage Fright (2014)
Batman Returns < Star Trek: Generations
Final spot: #1012 out of 2659.