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| Mark Rylance in "The Outfit" Photo Credit: Imdb.com |
5) “The Outfit” - Eight years after Graham Moore wrote the historical thriller, “The Imitation Game,” he made an accomplished directorial debut with this intriguing and complex crime drama. The story takes place in 1956 Chicago and follows an English tailor named Leonard Burling (Mark Rylance), whose top customers are Irish gangsters. When he becomes mixed up in a dangerous web of deceit involving the mob, he will have to use his cunning in order to survive the night. Rylance gives a terrific calm-under-pressure performance as his character tries to outsmart the gangsters that threaten his life and livelihood, and he’s backed up by a great supporting cast, which includes Dylan O’Brien as a suave, yet coldblooded mobster; Zoey Deutch as Leonard’s loyal and clever assistant; and Simon Russell Beale and Nikki Amuka-Bird as tough mafia leaders. The screenplay by Moore and Johnathan McClain makes the most out of its limited time frame, single setting, and small cast to deliver a story that has many twists and turns that take this above your standard crime drama. All of this mixes with Moore’s tense direction as he makes you wonder who’ll still be standing by the film’s end. If you’re looking for a movie with fascinating characters getting mixed up in criminal-underworld thrills, this movie is a wonderful fit.
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| Mia Goth in "X" Photo Credit: Imdb.com |
4) “X” - Between this film, “Scream,” and “The Black Phone,” 2022 has been a pretty good year for the horror genre, but writer-director Ti West’s ‘70s-set slasher is the best of them. The story follows a group of friends in Texas who rent a house on a farm to film an adult movie. However, the owners of the farm soon make it clear that the group isn’t as welcome as they thought. While the friends at the center of the story have tremendous chemistry, the lead performance by Mia Goth stands out, with her portraying someone who wishes to be famous, but has more poignancy to her arc than we’re led to believe. West’s screenplay takes tropes of the slasher sub-genre and uses them in unique and subtle ways, all against a backdrop of a story that has some unexpected emotional themes, as well as a nice dose of humor. With clever nods to classics like “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre,” “Halloween,” and “Friday the 13th,” they’re excellent garnishes to West’s contribution to slasher films. Boasting scares, fun, and artistry, “X” checks every box.
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| Tom Cruise in "Top Gun: Maverick" Photo Credit: Imdb.com |
3) “Top Gun: Maverick” - In one of the biggest surprises of the year, director Joseph Kosinski’s action drama is a sequel that bests the 1986 original in every way. Tom Cruise returns as his star-making character, Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, who must train a new group of pilots for a dangerous mission. Cruise reenters this role with a tremendous sense of growth, showing a version of Pete who isn’t any longer a person who thrives on showing off his talent, but is instead someone who’s been shaped by the grief and experiences from his past and must make sure his pilots are ready for what they have to face. Although there are some fun callbacks to the first movie, this is a film that’s not trying to ride on the nostalgia of the original, but is instead trying to make a film that’s thrilling and emotionally gripping. Besides the great interactions of the characters, Kosinski and his team give us stunning flight sequences that use very little CGI. The amount of in-camera effects are breathtaking and are an example of the raw craftsmanship that’s still possible in big-budget filmmaking. This movie doesn’t just earn its wings; it earns the sky.
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| Alexander Skarsgård in "The Northman" Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com |
2) “The Northman” - After wowing audiences with two stellar horror movies, cowriter-director Robert Eggers went on a different path for his third movie, in which he brings us an unflinching revenge epic. His film tells the story of Viking warrior Amleth (Alexander Skarsgård), who seeks out his uncle (Claes Bang) to kill him and avenge the death of his father (Ethan Hawke) from years ago. Skarsgård delivers a brutal performance as someone whose unstoppable force can be felt throughout the film, but also manages to show the tragic side of his character as an individual who has faced immense hardship. Eggers and cowriter Sigurjón Birgir Sigurðsson take the common traits of revenge stories and give us a film that offers more than you’d expect, providing us with memorable characters and some intriguing revelations. As a director, Eggers not only offers gorgeous imagery, but also ferocious battle scenes, many of which are filmed in stunningly choreographed long takes. This movie shows Eggers’ unwavering self-assuredness of being able to expand his abilities as a filmmaker, embracing the scope with which he’s working and presenting a vision that imposes a thunderous force. You’ll be left overwhelmed and awed.
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| Stephanie Hsu, Michelle Yeoh, and Ke Huy Quan in "Everything Everywhere All at Once" Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com |
1) “Everything Everywhere All at Once” - Written and directed by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, this sci-fi comedy-drama is something that has to be seen to be believed. The movie follows laundromat owner Evelyn Quan Wang (Michelle Yeoh), who’s pulled into a journey to save the multiverse from a powerful enemy. Yeoh gives a performance that’s equal parts poignant and is-this-really-happening humor as her character tries to understand the rules of the multiverse and fix her broken family. Kwan and Scheinert tackle several genres and themes for this film, and they deliver on everything that they present. As directors, they craft fight sequences that do so much with a small budget, with each of these sequences being more unique than the next. This is a movie that boasts an endless sense of invention that doesn’t hold back its unabashed vision, creating an energetic ride that’s original and joyfully chaotic. You’re carried through a sci-fi adventure that’s loaded with ideas and possibilities, ensuring that you have a great deal about which to rave and discuss as you come down from the exhilaration that you experience. There isn’t anything like this movie that you’ll see in 2022.
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