The Swimmer (1968)

IMDb plot summary: A man spends a summer day swimming as many pools as he can all over a quiet suburban town.
Directed by Frank Perry. Starring Burt Lancaster, Janet Landgard, Janice Rule, and Tony Bickley.

What a strange and fascinating movie this is. It's vaguely fantastical, feeling almost like a Greek myth in its scope and themes. The final 5 minutes or so I found extremely moving and haunting. Burt Lancaster is incredibly good in this, charming but with a sense of being slightly "off," and this incongruity becomes stronger and clearer as the movie goes on. This is one that I think is going to stick with me for some time.

How it entered my Flickchart:
The Swimmer > The Wiz
The Swimmer > Cats (2019)
The Swimmer < The Grapes of Wrath
The Swimmer > Monsieur Lazhar
The Swimmer < Adaptation
The Swimmer < True Lies
The Swimmer > Flight
The Swimmer > The Shawshank Redemption
The Swimmer < Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Undead
The Swimmer > Nurse Betty
The Swimmer > Synecdoche, New York
The Swimmer > Brigsby Bear
Final spot: #540 out of 3104.

Wild in the Streets (1968)

IMDb plot summary: A young man gains significant political influence as the leader of a counterculture rock band with his rallying cry of voting rights for teenagers.
Directed by Barry Shear. Starring Shelley Winters, Christopher Jones, Diane Varsi, and Hal Holbrook.

This was a delightfully wild ride -- so wild I can't quite tell if it's actually cautioning its viewers against the rise of the young or mocking viewers worried about the rise of the young. But I found it to be so, so much fun, especially our 24-year-old protagonist's personal crisis toward the end when an elementary school child pronounces him "old." It's bizarre and weird and I had so much fun with it.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Wild in the Streets > Finding Dory
Wild in the Streets < Cats
Wild in the Streets > It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World
Wild in the Streets > Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Wild in the Streets < M
Wild in the Streets < Serendipity
Wild in the Streets < The Country Girl
Wild in the Streets > Ballet Shoes
Wild in the Streets < 9
Wild in the Streets > Marooned
Wild in the Streets > Say Anything...
Wild in the Streets < Inherit the Wind
Final spot: #953 out of 3103.

Dark of the Sun (1968)

IMDb plot summary: A band of mercenaries led by Captain Curry travel through war-torn Congo across deadly terrain, battling rival armies, to steal $50 million in uncut diamonds. But infighting, sadistic rebels and a time lock jeopardize everything.
Directed by Jack Cardiff. Starring Rod Taylor, Yvettee Mimieux, Peter Carsten, and Jim Brown.

I'm kind of fascinated by how criticized this movie was for being incredibly violent on its release, because it really didn't strike me as over-the-top. Guess that's me being desensitized. It was also intriguing watching this so soon after I watched Blood Diamond, which is a completely different country, but also features a morally questionable white man teaming up with a black man to go find some diamonds in a country torn apart by civil war. I guess some stories are universal -- there will always be people looking to get their profit out of everyone else's conflict. Anyway, the movie's not great. Not nearly as good as Blood Diamond.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Dark of the Sun < Muppet Treasure Island
Dark of the Sun < Blackadder Back & Forth
Dark of the Sun > A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935)
Dark of the Sun > The Goonies
Dark of the Sun > Men of Honor
Dark of the Sun < The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
Dark of the Sun < Intolerance: Love's Struggle Throughout the Ages
Dark of the Sun < Soylent Green
Dark of the Sun > The Boss
Dark of the Sun < Adam's Rib
Dark of the Sun > Animal House
Final spot: #2415 out of 3102.

Lady in Cement (1968)

IMDb plot summary: During an ocean dive, Miami gumshoe Tony Rome finds a woman's body with its feet encased in a concrete block and sets-out to solve the murder case.
Directed by Gordon Douglas. Starring Frank Sinatra, Raquel Welch, Richard Conte, and Martin Gabel.

What a strange tone this movie strikes. It's got all the trappings of a typical noir, including the far-too-many-characters and far-too-many-layers frustrations I have with most of them, but it's also got this extremely dry sense of humor that feels more overtly comedic than most noir detectives' cynical wit, and then we've also got this jaunty, almost goofy, soundtrack to go along with it. It definitely ends up feeling more like silly crime comedy than serious noir, but I can't quite tell if that was its intention.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Lady in Cement < Muppet Treasure Island
Lady in Cement < Spaceballs
Lady in Cement > A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935)
Lady in Cement < Anastasia
Lady in Cement > Gomorrah
Lady in Cement > In Cold Blood
Lady in Cement < Scarface
Lady in Cement > The House with Closed Shutters
Lady in Cement < One Hour Photo
Lady in Cement < Honey, I Shrunk the Kids
Lady in Cement > Move Over, Darling
Final spot: #2554 out of 3101.

The Polka King (2017)

IMDb plot summary: Local Pennsylvania polka legend Jan Lewan develops a plan to get rich that shocks his fans and lands him in jail.
Directed by Maya Forbes. Starring Jack Black, Jenny Slate, Jason Schwartzman, and Jacki Weaver.

I knew nothing at all about this real life person and found this story of his life pretty fascinating, if extremely forgiving of someone defrauding people out of their money. Jack Black creates a really relatable character here, hitting on both the lighter and darker moments of his psyche. It's an entertaining movie.

How it entered my Flickchart:
The Polka King > Cloak & Dagger
The Polka King < The Body Snatcher
The Polka King > It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World
The Polka King > The Long Day Closes
The Polka King > M
The Polka King < Zootopia
The Polka King < Freaky Friday (2003)
The Polka King < What's Eating Gilbert Grape
The Polka King < The Emperor Waltz
The Polka King > Under the Skin
The Polka King > Topsy-Turvy
The Polka King < The Happening
Final spot: #867 out of 3100.

Live a Little, Love a Little (1968)

IMDb plot summary: Photographer Greg Nolan moonlights in two full-time jobs to pay the rent, but has trouble finding time to do them both without his bosses finding out.
Directed by Norman Taurog. Starring Elvis Presley, Michele Carey, Don Porter, and Rudy Vallee.

This movie feels like an alien tried to write a rom com. I can sometimes get the style they seem to be going for, but it's all run through a filter of having no idea what people act or speak like. Every two minutes I was yelling at this movie, "Wait... What? Why?" and not even because they were making *bad* decisions, but because they were making *incoherent* decisions. So... yeah, this was pretty terrible, and not even a couple fun Elvis numbers could improve it.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Live a Little, Love a Little < UHF
Live a Little, Love a Little < Blackadder Back & Forth
Live a Little, Love a Little < Mr. Hulot's Holiday
Live a Little, Love a Little > Kate and Leopold
Live a Little, Love a Little > Stalker
Live a Little, Love a Little > Employee of the Month
Live a Little, Love a Little < Herbie: Fully Loaded
Live a Little, Love a Little > Tears of the Sun
Live a Little, Love a Little > The Painted Veil
Live a Little, Love a Little < Vera Drake
Live a Little, Love a Little < Freaky Friday (1976)
Live a Little, Love a Little > Made of Honor
Final spot: #2741 out of 3099.

Spider Baby or, The Maddest Story Ever Told (1968)

IMDb plot summary: A caretaker devotes himself to three demented siblings after their father's death.
Directed by Jack Hill. Starring Lon Chaney Jr., Carol Ohmart, Quinn K. Redeker, and Beverly Washburn.

The opening credits definitely set a distinct horror-comedy tone for this movie! The rest of it doesn't quite live up to that, but it comes close at times, with lots of pieces that are really enjoyably ridiculous. My biggest complaint is that this bizarre disease is never really explained as much as I want it to be, it just speaks vaguely of them "regressing," which I guess doesn't mean becoming more childlike so much as becoming murderers. Overall pretty fun, more so with a group of snarky friends.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Spider Baby > UHF
Spider Baby < Cats
Spider Baby > Princess Mononoke
Spider Baby < Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Spider Baby < Poltergeist
Spider Baby < Dark Shadows
Spider Baby < The Gold Rush
Spider Baby < The Kite Runner
Spider Baby < Interiors
Spider Baby > Children of Paradise
Spider Baby > Loving Vincent
Spider Baby < Swing Girls
Final spot: #1156 out of 3098.

The Suburbans (1999)

IMDb plot summary: A 1980s one-hit wonder band named "The Suburbans" reform for a special performance at one of the ex-member's wedding. At the wedding, a young record company talent scout happens to be in the audience and decides to give the now forty-ish performers a comeback push. The film attempts to take a satirical look at the music business of the 1990s, and compare it to the simpler 1980s scene.
Directed by Donal Lardner Ward. Starring Donal Lardner Ward, Tony Guma, Craig Bierko, and Will Ferrell.

This has very strong That Thing You Do vibes, except with themes of re-discovering fame instead of discovering it. It's a cute but ultimately forgettable story, though I do like that I get at least a tiny piece of every band member's story and what they have going for them as part of this reunion. It was a fun fluffy Saturday morning watch.

How it entered my Flickchart:
The Suburbans > Pi
The Suburbans < Cats
The Suburbans < Girl Shy
The Suburbans > Inspector Clouseau
The Suburbans > Sleepy Hollow
The Suburbans < Die Hard
The Suburbans < John Carter
The Suburbans < Bridge of Spies
The Suburbans < Alice Adams
The Suburbans > Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory
The Suburbans > The Slipper and the Rose
The Suburbans > Cabaret
Final spot: #1252 out of 3098.

Anything Goes (1956)

IMDb plot summary: Bill Benson and Ted Adams are to appear in a Broadway show together and, while in Paris, each 'discovers' the perfect leading lady for the plum female role. Each promises the prize role to the girl they selected without informing the other until they head back across the Atlantic by liner - with each man having brought his choice along! It becomes a stormy crossing as each man has to tell his 'find' that she might not get the role after all.
Directed by Robert Lewis. Starring Bing Crosby, Donald O'Connor, Zizi Jeanmaire, and Mitzi Gaynor.

All my favorite classic musicals have both strong musical performances and a strong plot. This one has some of the former and absolutely none of the latter. It would have benefited from another tune or two, since the plot meanders a LOT. Bing Crosby and Donald O'Connor play nicely off each other, but after the first 30 minutes or so we barely get to see any interaction between them, it's all side plots and much less interesting romances. The songs are definitely the highlight here.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Anything Goes > October Sky
Anything Goes < Cats
Anything Goes < Girl Shy
Anything Goes > Arctic
Anything Goes < Sleepy Hollow
Anything Goes > Following
Anything Goes > 21
Anything Goes > Broken Blossoms
Anything Goes > The Matrix Reloaded
Anything Goes > 1408
Anything Goes > Cat's Eye
Anything Goes > The Fixer
Final spot: #1259 out of 3097.

Marjorie Morningstar (1958)

IMDb plot summary: While working as a counselor at a summer camp, college-student Marjorie Morgenstern falls for 32-year-old Noel Airman, a would-be dramatist working at a nearby summer theater. They pursue an on-again-off-again relationship.
Directed by Irving Rapper. Starring Gene Kelly, Natalie Wood, Claire Trevor, and Everett Sloane.

For a movie with a female title character, it's a little startling how little personality or agency Marjorie has by the end. The movie is absolutely in the "Difficult Geniuses and the Women Who Love Them" genre but it purports to be *her* story. It definitely isn't, and the only thing that does make her distinct from any other woman in this story is a subplot that just... simply disappears halfway through. Gene Kelly leans heavily into the romantic melodrama tone, but he's not a particularly compelling dramatic actor, and he's overshadowed by every other actor. Just kind of a strange messy movie, and it doesn't work well.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Marjorie Morningstar < Runaway Bride
Marjorie Morningstar < Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen
Marjorie Morningstar > A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935)
Marjorie Morningstar > Repo! The Genetic Opera
Marjorie Morningstar > Sans of Iwo Jima
Marjorie Morningstar < Out of Time
Marjorie Morningstar > Legendary Weapons of China
Marjorie Morningstar < Buzz Lightyear of Star Command: The Adventure Begins
Marjorie Morningstar > Young Mr. Lincoln
Marjorie Morningstar > Davy Crockett and the River Pirates
Marjorie Morningstar > Brother Bear
Marjorie Morningstar < Hercules
Final spot: #2385 out of 3096.

Jojo Rabbit (2019)

IMDb plot summary: A young boy in Hitler's army finds out his mother is hiding a Jewish girl in their home.
Directed by Taika Waititi. Starring Roman Griffin Davis, Thomasin McKenzie, Scarlet Johansson, and Taika Waititi.

I had a really good time with this, but it lands just shy of being amazing for me and I can't put my finger on exactly why. It did a good job of mixing humor with the necessary dark moments that have to happen if you're going to tell a quasi real story set in this world. I think this is one that for me I will enjoy watching any time I happen to see it, but I didn't love it as much as I hoped I would. There's nothing wrong with it, it just didn't "wow" me. It is easily the least annoying Rebel Wilson has ever been though.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Jojo Rabbit > Bolt
Jojo Rabbit > Manhattan Murder Mystery
Jojo Rabbit < The Grapes of Wrath
Jojo Rabbit < Philomena
Jojo Rabbit > Fruitvale Station
Jojo Rabbit > Detroit
Jojo Rabbit > Ghost Town
Jojo Rabbit > The Great Gatsby (2013)
Jojo Rabbit > The Basketball Diaries
Jojo Rabbit < Four Lions
Jojo Rabbit > Sanjuro
Final spot: #584 out of 3095.

Parasite (2019)

IMDb plot summary: A poor family, the Kims, con their way into becoming the servants of a rich family, the Parks. But their easy life gets complicated when their deception is threatened with exposure.
Directed by Bong Joon Ho. Starring Kang-ho Song, Sun-kyun Lee, Yeo-jeong Jo, and Woo-sik Choi.

I still feel like I'm processing this one, even a week after watching it. It feels like there's a lot of depth to it that I haven't really retained yet. So I feel almost like I can't say much about it yet because I feel like I only scratched the surface watching it. But I like it. I was looking up reviews after this and it talked about the title and how it was ambiguous who or what in this instance was actually the parasite, which I really like - especially taking it from the point of view that capitalism itself is the parasite here, feeding off everybody's conflict. I found several scenes in this striking enough that I think that they are going to sit with me even outside the context of the movie for a long time. The scenes showing their flooding house followed by this cheery birthday party where all of them are dealing with this horrible trauma but can't express it and have to put on happy faces... it's just devastating. I find the story and the telling of it very powerful, possibly for a long time to come. I think this is one that I want to rewatch, especially since it takes such a hard left turn partway through in terms of its tone. I would be interested to rewatch it knowing that was coming.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Parasite > Bolt
Parasite > Sneakers
Parasite > Citizen Kane
Parasite < Amahl and the Night Visitors
Parasite > The Fountain
Parasite > Throne of Blood
Parasite > That Thing You Do!
Parasite > The Fly (1958)
Parasite < Fright Night (1958)
Parasite < A Charlie Brown Christmas
Parasite < The Birdcage
Parasite > District 9
Final spot: #204 out of 3094.

This Boy's Life (1993)

IMDb plot summary: The story about the relationship between a rebellious 1950s teenager and his abusive stepfather, based on the memoirs of writer and literature Professor Tobias Wolff.
Directed by Michael Caton-Jones. Starring Robert De Niro, Ellen Barkin, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Jonah Blechman.

I forget sometime how great Leonardo DiCaprio was as a very young actor, not just as an adult. The choices he makes here are smart and precise as he captures the conflict between wanting to do the right thing and feeling angry at everyone all the time because puberty's a beast. Robert De Niro also tackles a tricky balance here playing the controlling stepfather as a realistic villian and not just a cartoon. We see all the small signs of his inflated ego and begin to realize just how dangerous it is for anyone to try and deflate it. Even if everything else is the movie were sloppy and awful, it'd be worth watching for those two performances. And the rest of the movie's pretty solid too, so it's definitely worth a watch.

How it entered my Flickchart:
This Boy's Life > Kung Fu Panda
This Boy's Life > Forgetting Sarah Marshall
This Boy's Life < Citizen Kane
This Boy's Life < Philomena
This Boy's Life < Fruitvale Station
This Boy's Life > Hairspray Live!
This Boy's Life > Mr. Brooks
This Boy's Life < Elf
This Boy's Life < The Great Race
This Boy's Life > Woman in the Dunes
This Boy's Life > The Graduate
This Boy's Life < Kuroneko
Final spot: #696 out of 3093.

The Beastmaster (1982)

IMDb plot summary: A sword-and-sorcery fantasy about a young man's search for revenge. Armed with supernatural powers, the handsome hero and his animal allies wage war against marauding forces.
Directed by Don Coscarelli. Starring Marc Singer, Tanya Roberts, Rip Torn, and John Amos.

Well, uh, so this is pretty terrible. Sometimes enjoyably so. There are so many nonsensical writing, directing, and acting choices. An early favorite is when Dar finishes a conversation with his father and goes to leave the village for something. At the gates, he turns and simply says, "Father," Dad looks up, Dar waves and leaves. In a better movie I'd think there was something being left unsaid, and I don't think that's it here, but I can't figure out what IS it! The idea of a hero who can magically talk to animals is kind of fun, and I like how many he's accumulated by the end, but it's pretty dumb and goes on way too long.

How it entered my Flickchart:
The Beastmaster < The Last Castle
The Beastmaster < Eddie the Eagle
The Beastmaster < A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935)
The Beastmaster > Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron
The Beastmaster < The Merchant of Venice
The Beastmaster > Aquamarine
The Beastmaster < Bye Bye Birdie (1963)
The Beastmaster > Cartel Land
The Beastmaster > Clash by Night
The Beastmaster > Chicken Little
The Beastmaster > Murder a la Mod
The Beastmaster < No Greater Love
Final spot: #2826 out of 3090.

Heartbeat (1946)

IMDb plot summary: In Paris, a young woman runs away from a reform school, joins a pickpocket academy, and finds herself falling for the handsome diplomat she's been blackmailed into stealing from.
Directed by Sam Wood. Starring Ginger Rogers, Jean-Pierre Aumont, Adolphe Menjou, and Melville Cooper.

The first third of this movie is infinitely more interesting than the final two. Ginger Rogers taking pickpocketing lessons from Basil Rathbone is so much more exciting than the bland romance that takes up the rest of the story. Once she leaves thievery school, we land on a fairly tedious romance with a weird amount of middle-aged men who all look the same making decisions about her life? Good beginning, mediocre middle and ending.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Heartbeat < Bolt
Heartbeat > Live-In Maid
Heartbeat < Twist of Faith
Heartbeat > Thank You for Smoking
Heartbeat < Where the Red Fern Grows
Heartbeat > Double, Double, Toil and Trouble
Heartbeat < The Lost Skeleton Returns Again
Heartbeat > Apocalypto
Heartbeat > Gladiator
Heartbeat > Elizabethtown
Heartbeat > What Women Want
Heartbeat > Bunraku
Final spot: #2053 out of 3092.

The Quick and the Dead (1995)

IMDb plot summary: A female gunfighter returns to a frontier town where a dueling tournament is being held, which she enters in an effort to avenge her father's death.
Directed by Sam Raimi. Starring Sharon Stone, Gene Hackman, Russell Crowe, and Leonardo DiCaprio.

I missed the director title at first and found myself wondering early on whether I was supposed to be quite as entertained by the over-the-top broadness as I was. Turns out Sam Raimi directed it, so absolutely I was. I usually find westerns to be irritatingly samey, but the outlandishness of this murder competition, the heightened interactions between characters, and the melodramatic dialogue all combine to make a really enjoyable, very silly flick. I had so much fun.

How it entered my Flickchart:
The Quick and the Dead > Killing Season
The Quick and the Dead > The Awful Truth
The Quick and the Dead < Citizen Kane
The Quick and the Dead < Philomena
The Quick and the Dead < Hot Millions
The Quick and the Dead > It Happened One Night
The Quick and the Dead > Dust
The Quick and the Dead > Dark Passage
The Quick and the Dead < The Goodbye Girl (2004)
The Quick and the Dead > Elf
The Quick and the Dead > Akira Kurosawa's Dreams
The Quick and the Dead < Autumn Sonata
Final spot: #684 out of 3091.

Nine Queens (2000)

IMDb plot summary: Two con artists try to swindle a stamp collector by selling him a sheet of counterfeit rare stamps (the "nine queens").
Directed by Fabián Bielinsky. Starring Ricardo Darín, Gastón Pauls, Leticia Brédice, and Oscar Nuñez.

(Spoilers ahead.)

This movie has a very playful heist vibe-- well, mostly. I think it was partly the "grittier" cinematography that gave it an underlying sense of possible horrible ending. In a lot of heist movies you know that at least your main protagonist is going to, if not get away with it, get away relatively unscathed. I was less certain for the protagonist here, especially toward the end. But I should have trusted it more, because it really is a fun movie, if kind of a forgettable one.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Nine Queens > If I Forget
Nine Queens < Down With Love
Nine Queens < Mister Roberts
Nine Queens < Something to Sing About
Nine Queens > The Interpreter
Nine Queens > Last Holiday
Nine Queens > Closer
Nine Queens > The Beach
Nine Queens > The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934)
Nine Queens > Hellboy
Nine Queens < loses to Lucky Number Slevin

Final spot: #1354 out of 3089.

Rififi (1955)

IMDb plot summary: Four men plan a technically perfect crime, but the human element intervenes...
Directed by Jules Dassin. Starring Jean Servais, Carl Möhner, Robert Manuel, and Janine Darcey.

The first movie of my new movie challenge! I think I was expecting more of a fun vibe, and then it was definitely more noir, which I don't usually like, but it mostly worked here and I got more into the story than I expected to. I really liked how many long sections of the movie were almost entirely silent, especially during the heist. I can definitely see this film's influence on future heist films. Overall a decent movie, especially considering it's in a genre that often doesn't work for me.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Rififi > If I Forget
Rififi < The Shallows
Rififi < Mister Roberts
Rififi > Le Week-End
Rififi < Jeepers Creepers
Rififi > The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Rififi < Hedwig and the Angry Inch
Rififi > Children of a Lesser God
Rififi > Can't Hardly Wait
Rififi > Hamlet (2009)
Rififi > Resurrect Dead: The Mystery of the Toynbee Tiles
Rififi > A Song Is Born
Final spot: #1279 out of 3088.

Blood Diamond (2006)

IMDb plot summary: A fisherman, a smuggler, and a syndicate of businessmen match wits over the possession of a priceless diamond.
Directed by Edward Zwick. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Djimon Hounsou, Jennifer Connelly, and Kagiso Kuypers.

This is a situation I didn't really know much about going into it, so it was good to watch this and get some perspective on it. Djimon Hounsou was nominated for an Oscar for this, and well-deservedly -- his scenes easily stole the entire picture. In particular the scene where he tries to reconnect with his child soldier son. It's really beautifully done. The movie as a whole focuses a bit more on the DiCaprio/Connelly parts than I'm particularly interested in but it mostly works.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Blood Diamond > Another Earth
Blood Diamond < What the Deaf Man Heard
Blood Diamond < Real Life
Blood Diamond > The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934)
Blood Diamond > I Saw the Devil
Blood Diamond > The Room
Blood Diamond > Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (1982)
Blood Diamond > A Few Good Men
Blood Diamond > Away We Go
Blood Diamond < Starship Troopers
Blood Diamond > Captain America: The First Avenger
Final spot: #1162 out of 3087.

Once Upon a Time ...in Hollywood (2019)

IMDb plot summary: A faded television actor and his stunt double strive to achieve fame and success in the film industry during the final years of Hollywood's Golden Age in 1969 Los Angeles.
Directed by Quentin Tarantino. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie, and Emile Hirsch.

(Spoilers.)

While this plays as the same sort of fictionalized version of real events as Inglourious Basterds, it's far less entertaining. There are no really engaging characters, and the ending that allows the "good guys" to win out is much less satisfying. It dances around trying to say something interesting about Hollywood's glorification of violence but never actually lands anywhere. There are some fun individual moments, but for a director who I've always found to be delightfully over-the-top, this film feels duller, and it suffers for it.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood > Peter Pan Live!
Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood < Cold Comfort Farm
Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood < Real Life
Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood < Absolute Power
Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood > Heat
Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood < Hans Christian Andersen
Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood > Finding Forrester
Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood < De-Lovely
Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood > The Sandlot
Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood > Blade
Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood < A Bug's Life

Final spot: #1413 out of 3085.

Beauty and the Bestie (2015)

IMDb plot summary: For an important case, a policeman needs the help of his former best friend to impersonate the daughter of a foreign dignitary in a beauty pageant.
Directed by Wenn V. Deramas. Starring Vice Ganda, Coco Martin, James Reid, and Nadine Lustre.

This is a very strange and wildly uneven movie, with some genuinely funny slapsticky moments alongside a lot of very uncomfortable ones. Apparently is the 3rd highest grossing Filipino movie, though, which is fascinating. Definitely not always my style of comedy but it's got some good moments and I'm glad I saw it.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Beauty and the Bestie < Frosty the Snowman
Beauty and the Bestie > The Return of the Pink Panther
Beauty and the Bestie < About Last Night...
Beauty and the Bestie > Stormy Weather
Beauty and the Bestie > Crash
Beauty and the Bestie < Tin Man
Beauty and the Bestie > Annie (2014)
Beauty and the Bestie > A Civil Action
Beauty and the Bestie > My Best Friend's Wedding
Beauty and the Bestie < Small Time Crooks
Beauty and the Bestie > The Irishman
Final spot: #1979 out of 3084.

King Kong Escapes (1967)

IMDb plot summary: King Kong is brought in by an evil ruler to dig for precious gems in a mine when the robot MechaKong is unable to do the task. This leads to the machine and the real Kong engaging in a tremendous battle that threatens to level Japan.
Directed by Ishirô Honda. Starring Rhodes Reason, Mie Hama, Linda Miller, and Akira Takarada.

This is really only for if you watched the original King Kong movie and thought, "You know what this needs? More robots." It's pretty silly in a way that I'm sure will appeal to monster movie fans but sits in a pretty neutral place for me.

How it entered my Flickchart:
King Kong Escapes < The Commitments
King Kong Escapes > Brokeback Mountain
King Kong Escapes > Candy
King Kong Escapes < She Loves Me
King Kong Escapes < Haxan
King Kong Escapes > Gozu
King Kong Escapes < The Disappearance of Alice Creed
King Kong Escapes < Blue's Big Musical Movie
King Kong Escapes < Jack Strong
King Kong Escapes < Ready Player One
King Kong Escapes > Trainwreck
Final spot: #1876 out of 3083.