33rd Hall of Fame

Can we reveal who voted for which film? I'm confident there isn't any funny business about the ballots at this point. Just curious.

I'll be posting my ballot once the results are revealed. I think I've only put my recommendation first one time.

I didn't mean your ballots, your nomination

That caught me by surprise as well. And strangely, it fits.

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What I actually said to win MovieGal's heart:
- I might not be a real King of Kinkiness, but I make good pancakes

~Mr Minio

I just sent in my ballot. There is no bad film experience in the lot nor a complimentary diversity Hall of Fame. Great job everyone!! BRAVO

I'll be posting my final reviews throughout the weekend. This last one was a creeper that hit quite beautifully, and I need a little time before writing and posting.

All the ballots are in, so I'm fine with people revealing which film they nominated. Otherwise, all will be revealed during the big reveal.

When will the reveal be? I think Sunday night is a good time, say 7:30pm American East Coast time, which will be 4:30pm on the West Coast if there isn't some kind of daylight savings stuff mucking up my calculations. But that means the middle of the night for any Brits. It's so hard picking a good time from here - that's about the best I can do.

To everyone who participated - I hope I got through everything smoothly enough. Along with the issues that cropped up in the Hall of Fame itself, I became ill, and my sister nearly died during the time we were doing this - there were so many times I was asking myself if I'd get through this. But I got better, and my sister is okay - so thankfully I made it to the very end.

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Glad to hear your sister and you are OK now.

You're one helluva a trooper! I'm giving you the Silent Vamp Award...you don't know what that means. It's someone who goes way beyond the call of duty and hangs in there. Well done my friend!

That is a very rough patch to work through; honor and respect to you, sir. I am glad to hear both you and your sister are doing better.

God's Little Acre

I Loved this film. Full stop. I have no problem with comedic elements and dramatic elements intertwining. It helps that Anthony Mann was a fantastic director and we got a career performance out of Robert Ryan (I say that having seen 10% of his work). The film feels pulpy but with a professional touch, and that might just be because of the source material being directed by Anthony Mann. There is plenty of sex and violence, and dirty, sweaty, obsessed men. It's kind of interesting that three of the nominated films involved sweaty obsessed men trying to find something in the ground that would forever change their lives, none of which really work out for them in the end, but for very different reasons. For as goofy as some of the characters and their motivations might be, there is something to chew on for folks who like to do thinkin'. I found Ty Ty's handling of "God's Little Acre" to be particularly interesting with the way he would move it any time he thought he'd have to pay out any gold from it, while still not having to give up any of the crops that could grow there because he wasn't planting them anyway. I may have liked this film more than anybody else did here, but I think Anthony Mann's a great director and the film looked great, had an interesting story with fascinating characters, great performances and that classic x-factor that just can't be replicated.

That is a wonderful surprise, JJ. I did not expect so much love for God's Little Acre and appreciation for the full swing of the pendulum for the pacing from comedic to steamy drama.
Very cool.

There Will Be Blood (2007)

It astounds me that even after watching and rewatching several films, I am still dumbfounded by Daniel Day-Lewis's commanding and powerful intensity. Having immersed himself in and released such earnest emotion, it is no wonder he retired after Phantom Thread. Such massive output has got to wear heavily on an individual. TWBB is an extraordinary example of what he brings to a role and, thereby, a film.
This is around my third or fourth viewing, with the original viewings overwhelmed by the storyline. With this viewing I had reached that familiar zenith of truly soaking in every aspect and turn of events, including a renewed surprise at some of the forgotten parts.
I must also include Paul Dano's unabashed portrayal of creepy, unhinged behavior scarcely concealed by religious ardor. It has become a successful niche for him, and while repelling and sometimes annoying, I must give the devil his due. The man is no slacker.

Beau Travail

Outside of the gayness of this film, which is pretty damn gay: Just bunch of hunky dudes in the sun with their shirts off smashing into each other and yelling and in uniforms and weird shorts and tank tops and the camera lingers a little too long on their asses and abs and biceps and faces in a way that just lets you know that the two dudes at the top just want to f*ck the hot new stud. But we don't acknowledge that about ourselves so we do mean things like try to kill him in the desert by just leaving him there, stuff like that. It's a beautiful film, the landscapes all look great. The film also lingers on the desert, the ocean, or rocks or whatever, so super straight dudes like me who don't show emotions or weak shit like that have something appreciate other than those hot, hunky dudes in booty shorts and weird, scarred up faces. It is pretty cool seeing Denis Lavant in this, because for me he is just the Holy Motors guy. I don't really appreciate a woman directing a movie about men though.... (I'm joking...)

You're welcome.

Before CR admitted it, I thought this might be your nom.

Nope. Shoplifters is my nom, but if this little ditty pops up again in five years, it might be me.

Mona Lisa (1986)

A great unknown gem that I would've easily gotten into back in the day. There was a minor glitch in the wrap-up, but more of a "hmm" than any fundamental critique as the credits rolled.
Most of the Bob Hoskins films I'm familiar with are done here in the States, so my initial treat was seeing him before that in England, additionally, with the street ruthlessness of Michael Caine's gangster looking to keep shit tidy in his house. I'm a huge fan of Robbie Coltrane, so enjoying him as the friend who hears his friend's ongoing story was also a delight. Cathy Tyson was commendable in her regal, trying to keep it together, escourt trying to find a girl in more dire situations than her own.
It is a good blend of crime, human drama, and moments of unintentional moments of humor in difficult situations. The showcased destitute of SoHo's sex shops and streets are well-represented with actual locations.
A great addition to this HoF. Very cool.

Aftersun (2022)

This one hit home, so with the building tension and realization of the dad's depression and trying to brave it for the love of his unknowing daughter, so was my dread of how it would play out. In the end, tear-filled and emotional, I was very pleased and thankful for sharing one director's emotional autobiography, the last holiday she spent with her dad before he committed suicide, and her process of reliving it through old videos.
It's very heartbreaking, a slow gripper that catches you unaware. It's kind of hard to get further into a review without getting emotional again, so I will end with my appreciation for this final film on a list of very fine films.
BRAVO

I've some free time today and the reveal is still 4 hours away, so a few of my thoughts on the noms. In alphabetical order:

Aftersun (2022)...I feel bad about not liking this film, I know everyone else loved it and seemed deeply moved by it. I must be a hard nosed ass or really dense, because I didn't get the movie. I do think if I had read what the movie was about before watching, I would've appreciated it much more but it was a blind watch. Like I wrote in my review I never knew the adult woman was the grown girl and her dad had died and if you don't understand the movie it's hard to be moved by it. This is why I liked the old HoF tradition of a brief intro write up of the nom by the person who chose it.

A Man For All Seasons (1966)...This is my type of movie and that's why it worked for me.

Beau Travail (1999)...Like Aftersun I didn't understand what the movie was trying to do. So I didn't realize the story wasn't all important, but what was important was the visual representation of emotions and moments. Even though I didn't give this a good review, after reading other's interpretations of the film I decided it was better than I had thought and so I bumped it up to the middle of my ballot.

God's Little Acre (1958)...I must have weird movie taste because only JJ really liked this one and I know he likes weird ass movies...he said so once. I really enjoyed spending time in the world of Ty Ty and his clan.

Mona Lisa (1986)...This seemed middle of the road for me. Entertaining but didn't do too much for me.

Shoplifters (2018)...I'd be happy if this one won. It's a perfect example of a hidden gem, of course by now we've all seen it. But not a film I'd had heard of except when JJ picked it in that Movie Roulette thing we did...which was fun.

The Bank Job (2008)...This was also middle of the road for me, which is OK as we all like different stuff.

The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)...If you guys didn't guess I would love this, then I guess you haven't been reading my post

There Will Be Blood (2007)...I liked it and then again I didn't. I think another director could've made this to my liking but why should they!

Thanks everyone

Getting closer.

It starteth soon...