Films That I Saw: November 2019

The year is almost over as I want to wish everyone who is on my good side a Happy Thanksgiving while I want those who are on my bad side to go fucking kill themselves. That includes El Pendejo who just continuously does stupid things as I’m so eager for impeachment to come sooner than later. I’m getting tired of stupid shit that is happening as I’m just fucking tired of a lot of things. I’m just glad that I’m still sane for some reason as I’ll give some of that credit to my nephew Mateo who has kept me busy lately as he’s only 7 months old yet has a lot more personality and energy that anyone that I’ve known. It’s one of the joys in my life that is keeping me sane as well as other little things. Eating Mexican food at Los Bravos, having a salad every once in a while, watching AEW Dynamite on Wednesdays on TNT is a new joy that I’m having, and watching Stephen A. Smith gloat over every time the Dallas Cowboys lose just as they lost big to the Buffalo Bills this Thanksgiving as it’s proof of how fucking awful they are and that Jerry Jones is an out of touch old fart.

In the month of November, I saw a total of 27 films in 14 first-timers and 13 re-watches with some of the being short films (most of them related to the MCU) while the highlight of the month has been my Blind Spot assignment in Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters. Here are my top 10 first-timers that I saw for November 2019:

1. Jojo Rabbit

2. Mamma Roma

3. The Man Who Knew Too Much

4. Paddington 2

5. The World

6. Agent Carter

7. Unknown Pleasures

8. John Ford, the Man Who Invented America

9. All Hail the King

10. Item 47

Monthly Mini-Reviews

Paddington 2

I admit to have not seen the first film as I had no interest in this but I heard a lot of praise towards this film as it had gotten all of these rave reviews so I checked it out. What I got from that film is that it was way better than it should’ve been as it is definitely the right film that is being made in these dark times. It involves the titular character who is accused of theft as he is sent to prison while the real thief is a has-been actor played with such glee by Hugh Grant is trying to find a secret treasure. With Paddington’s adoptive family trying to find ways to get him out of prison, Paddington through his kindness manages to make some changes in prison and bring out the goodness in those prisoners including Brendan Gleeson as a cook who had been framed for a crime he didn’t commit. It’s a film with gorgeous visuals as well as a lot of heart as it’s a film that manages to be so much more than just a family film.

The Battle of Midway

This 18-minute short film by John Ford during World War II capture the battle of Midway as it is actually happening as it was part of Ford’s way to help the military. Yet, the footage that Ford and other cameramen captured of the battle is quite gripping and it has this air of realism that a lot of war films lack. It’s a fascinating documentary film that is a must see for anyone into World War II or John Ford.

John Ford, the Man Who Invented America

A 55-minute documentary short about the westerns and American dramas that John Ford created from the late 1930s to the late 1960s is about the mystique of the man himself as well as his films. Notably in how much his films says a lot about America and how ahead of his time he was when it came to social and political issues that are more prominent than ever. Though Ford would be more conservative in his final years, the film does show a man who was more concerned with people in the stories he told as well as the fact that despite winning the Best Director Oscar four times. None of them were for his westerns as many believe that they’re his best work as it says a lot about ideals and the contradictions of these ideals.

Top 10 Re-Watches

1. The Leopard

2. The Avengers

3. Big

4. Gattaca

5. A League of Their Own

6. Captain America: The First Avenger

7. Monty Python's the Meaning of Life

8. Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit

9. Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang

10. Thor

Well, that is it for November 2019. Next month, I will make an announcement concerning the 2020 Blind Spot Series as well as what I hope to do next year while continuing work on the seven-part Marvel Cinematic Universe is Cinema series. Along with reviews of upcoming films such as Knives Out, The Irishman, Marriage Story, and Star Wars Episode IX: Rise of the Skywalker. I hope to catch up with some 2019 releases though I’m not sure what else to watch as I have a lot of films in or coming to my never-ending DVR list as I am having a hard time trying to watch them. Until then, this is thevoid99 signing off…

© thevoid99 2019