Teen Beach Movie (2013)

IMDb plot summary: Two surfing lovers, whose doomed relationship is nearing to a close, find themselves swept into a dimension-traversing wave that sends them into a beach movie musical in the 60's.

Directed by Jeffrey Hornaday. Starring Ross Lynch, Maia Mitchell, and Gracie Gillam.

Teen Beach Movie is a musical about a teenage surfer couple who are about to break up because the girl is going to finish high school at an elite boarding school. The day she's supposed to leave, the two get caught in a bizarre ocean storm that lands them in the middle of the boy's favorite movie: a 1950s teen beach musical. The two have to figure out how to get back home. This was a slow start for me, but once the teens actually end up in the past, it suddenly became so much more fun, and I thoroughly enjoyed it from there forward. It's got a great meta sense of humor while also thoroughly embracing the musical numbers. The songs are extremely well-written and very dynamically choreographed, which brings so much life to the story. The dialogue is pretty solid in its parody style, and the actors playing the feuding surfers and bikers absolutely nail the over-the-top acting style. The actual plot is much less interesting than the little side quests to sing and dance, so whenever it gets plot heavy I tune out a bit, but overall there is more than enough to like in this silly little movie.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Teen Beach Movie > Le voyage au Groenland

Teen Beach Movie < Safe

Teen Beach Movie > The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934)

Teen Beach Movie > All the Best: Fun Begins

Teen Beach Movie > Cats (2019)

Teen Beach Movie > Beyond the Sea

Teen Beach Movie > Barton Fink

Teen Beach Movie < Leaving Las Vegas

Teen Beach Movie > A Room With a View

Teen Beach Movie > The Nice Guys

Teen Beach Movie > Barbie

Final spot: #1010 out of 3972, or 75%.

The China Syndrome (1979)

IMDb plot summary: A reporter finds what appears to be a cover-up of safety hazards at a nuclear power plant.

Directed by James Bridges. Starring Jane Fonda, Jack Lemmon, and Michael Douglas.

The China Syndrome is a suspense thriller from the 1970s in which Jane Fonda plays a TV anchorwoman who is touring a nuclear plant when she and her cameraman managed to catch on film a near-miss accident. The plant assures everybody that nobody was ever in actual danger, but Fonda and her cameraman (Michael Douglas) are not convinced of this, and they tried to approach the manager on the floor (Jack Lemmon), who is also beginning to think there might be a cover-up. This is definitely steeped deeply in the fear of nuclear power, which was definitely more present the 1970s than it is now, and as such it feels a little paranoid, but it definitely addresses that the issue is hasty or sloppy fixes more than the inherent instability of the system itself. Lemmon is unsurprisingly the star here, with the final third of the film working especially well and keeping the energy tense through to the very end. While Fonda doesn't get a whole lot to play with, and her dynamic was Douglas absolutely doesn't work on almost any level, she does hold her own regardless and does a good job standing in for the average person finding himself in the middle of this. It's a beautifully taut story, and definitely worth a watch, especially if this is a genre that you find yourself drawn to. 

How it entered my Flickchart:

The China Syndrome > Love Exposure

The China Syndrome > Anna Karenina

The China Syndrome < Two Days, One Night

The China Syndrome > Onward

The China Syndrome < The Jungle Book (1967)

The China Syndrome > Civil War

The China Syndrome < The Bay

The China Syndrome < Beautiful Boy

The China Syndrome < Dawn of the Dead (1978)

The China Syndrome > Tickled

The China Syndrome > Good Will Hunting

The China Syndrome < Shakespeare in Love

Final spot: #676 out of 3971, or 83%.

Macgruber (2010)

IMDb plot summary: Former special operative MacGruber is called back into action to take down his arch-enemy, Dieter Von Cunth, who's in possession of a nuclear warhead and bent on destroying Washington, D.C.

Directed by Jorma Taccone. Starring Will Forte, Kristen Wiig, and Val Kilmer.

I should probably start off by saying that I have no connection to the original character at all. I didn't watch a lot of SNL at that point in my life, so I don't have any touchstones. It does seem like a character that would make for a good movie, but the tone of this is a little weird. It's fairly light on the jokes, relying mostly on slightly hyperbolic depictions of 1980s hypermasculinity for its comedy, only to suddenly and abruptly lean really heavy into obvious gags. The whiplash between the two feels a little bit like the film couldn't quite decide whether it wanted to lampoon or playfully honor the 1980s action films, and while you absolutely can walk that line very well, I'm not sure that this captures that. There are one or two moments that made me chuckle, but for the most part most of these jokes don't land, and I don't have enough love for that style of movie to embrace the parody aspect of it. I enjoy that it's trying to do what it's trying to do, but it doesn't really work for me.

How it entered my Flickchart:

MacGruber < Le voyage au Groenland

MacGruber > One 2 Ka 4

MacGruber < In & Out

MacGruber < Water for Elephants

MacGruber > The Disappearance of Alice Creed

MacGruber < Treasures of the Snow

MacGruber > State Fair

MacGruber < Shrek Retold

MacGruber > The Rookie

MacGruber > Millions

MacGruber < Dallas Buyers Club

MacGruber > Darkness

Final spot: #2809 out of 3970, or 29%.

Shin Godzilla (2016)

IMDb plot summary: Japan is plunged into chaos upon the appearance of a giant monster.

Directed by Hideaki Anno and Shinji Higuchi. Starring Hiroki Hasegawa, Yutaka Takenouchi, and Satomi Ishihara.

Shin Godzilla is a Godzilla movie centered around the endless bureaucracy needed to address a national danger like Godzilla. Not the exciting military decisions being made -- we've had plenty of those stories -- but the exhausting process of having to run your every decision by five other committees, who in turn need to consult with three other interest groups, before you can make a tiny change that may or may not affect anyone. So much of this movie is a bunch of men in suits sitting on comfy couches as they wait for information to come in that will let them act. That could be tedious, but this film manages to make it tense. Add to all that the few moments when we *do* in fact get to see our monster: the character design on this thing is entirely terrifying. Creative and very uncanny valley in a way that I find chilling. It's overall a fascinating take on the story that works for me on a lot of levels, even though I'm not necessarily drawn into the Godzilla mythos on a whole. But this one is well done and held my attention.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Shin Godzilla > Love Exposure

Shin Godzilla > Anna Karenina

Shin Godzilla < Network

Shin Godzilla < Onward

Shin Godzilla < Destroy All Neighbors

Shin Godzilla < The Blue Angel

Shin Godzilla < Shallow Grave

Shin Godzilla < Fruitvale Station

Shin Godzilla > My Life as a Dog

Shin Godzilla < Autumn Sonata

Shin Godzilla > Kill Bill Vol. 2

Shin Godzilla > Fresh (2022)

Final spot: #981 out of 3968, or 75%.

National Theatre's Everyman (2015)

IMDb plot summary: Everyman is successful, popular and riding high when Death comes calling. He is forced to abandon the life he has built and embark on a last, frantic search to recruit a friend.

Directed by Rufus Norris and Nick Wickham. Starring Chiwetel Ejiofor, Philip Martin Brown, and Paul Bullion.

Everyman is the National Theatre Live filmed production of the 15th-century morality play, starring Chiwetel Ejiofor as the titular Everyman who is summoned to death, where he will have to account for himself and how he spent his life. He is allowed to look for someone to make the journey with him and vouch for him, but all the people and things he counted on in life reject him. This production is a fun updated adaptation, with interesting use of lights and sound to set the scene; I especially love the extended opening sequence that showcases Everyman's reckless party life before he's suddenly called to defend himself. Ejiofor plays the character with as much depth as the allegory allows for, but the design is really the star of the show here. It's never going to be my favorite play, but if you're looking for a fairly accessible version, this one captures its essence while mostly successfully modernizing it.

How it entered my Flickchart:

National Theatre Live: Everyman < Le voyage au Groenland

National Theatre Live: Everyman > One 2 Ka 4

National Theatre Live: Everyman > In & Out

National Theatre Live: Everyman < The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (2005)

National Theatre Live: Everyman < Camelot

National Theatre Live: Everyman > House of Flying Daggers

National Theatre Live: Everyman > Hang 'Em High

National Theatre Live: Everyman > Don Jon

National Theatre Live: Everyman > Isadora

National Theatre Live: Everyman > Till the Stars Come Down

National Theatre Live: Everyman > Ladies of Leisure

National Theatre Live: Everyman < Funny Girl

Final spot: #2359 out of 3969, or 41%.

Dope (2015)

IMDb plot summary: Life changes for Malcolm, a geek who's surviving life in a tough neighborhood, after a chance invitation to an underground party leads him and his friends into a Los Angeles adventure.

Directed by Rick Famuyiwa. Starring Shameik Moore, Tony Revolori, and Kiersey Clemons.

Dope tells the story of a nerdy Black teenager and his friends who get themselves into some deep trouble when a drug dealer plants his supply in the lead's backpack during a nightclub raid. It ends up being up to the teens to get the drugs back where they belong. This is the setup for a dark gritty dramatic story in many other people's hands, but in writer/director Rick Famuyiwa's hands, is a hilarious high school comedy. Shameik Moore is immediately charismatic as our lead character who finds himself in way over his head but makes the most of it, and each silly new obstacle the kids encounter heightens the stakes in a really fun way. The ending is maybe my favorite part, though -- I found myself nervous about how the movie would close its loop, and I didn't need to be, because it's the perfect ending for the movie we were given. A smart, funny movie that works beautifully.

How it entered my Flickchart:

Dope > The Bat Whispers

Dope > Kuroneko

Dope < Network

Dope > Nope

Dope > The Fabelmans

Dope < Romy and Michele's High School Reunion

Dope > The Kite Runner

Dope < My Life in Pink

Dope > Zero Effect

Dope > Cats and Dogs

Dope < Black Narcissus

Final spot: #577 out of 3967, or 85%.

The Spy Who Dumped Me (2018)

IMDb plot summary: Best friends Audrey and Morgan unwittingly become entangled in an international conspiracy when one of them discovers that the boyfriend who dumped her was actually a spy.

Directed by Susanna Fogel. Starring Kate McKinnon, Mila Kunis, and Justin Theroux.

The Spy Who Dumped Me is an action comedy starring Mila Kunis and Kate McKinnon as two best friends who suddenly find themselves in the middle of some international intrigue when Kunis finds out her ex isn't who she thought he was. While there's a lot about this movie that falls a little flat, where it works is in the chemistry between Kunis and McKinnon. They absolutely feel like genuine friends here, with a comfortable dynamic that shows off both of their characters' personalities, and the more heartwarming moments in the movie rely on that dynamic even more than the comedic moments. However, the film is definitely a little mixed in terms of tone, and there are a lot of strange missing steps, where characters who were adamant about something a moment ago now seem like they forgot what they wanted to do. Overall it feels like a film with a good start and a good center that was too rushed and needed a few more passes on the script. I like pieces of it, I just wish the film was... finished.

How it entered my Flickchart:

The Spy Who Dumped Me < Le voyage au Groenland

The Spy Who Dumped Me > Thirteen Conversations About One Thing

The Spy Who Dumped Me > The Happiest Millionaire

The Spy Who Dumped Me > The Good Dinosaur

The Spy Who Dumped Me < Home Again

The Spy Who Dumped Me < The Savages

The Spy Who Dumped Me > The Vagabond King

The Spy Who Dumped Me > A Hard Day's Night

The Spy Who Dumped Me < Inland Empire

The Spy Who Dumped Me > Stagecoach

The Spy Who Dumped Me > Rushmore

Final spot: #2178 out of 3966, or 45%.