Toy Story 4 2019 // USA // Josh Cooley Letterboxd (LINK) Before walking into the theater, I knew there were two significant questions the film needs to answer before I could decide whether TOY STORY 4 is a necessary extension of a beloved and cherished franchise which indisputably closed with a perfect, emotionally cathartic ending… Continue reading Toy Story 4 (Josh Cooley, 2019)
Toy Story 3 2010 // USA // Lee Unkrich Letterboxd (LINK) I’m still struggling in picking either TS2 or TS3 to be my favorite TOY STORY film (perhaps TS4 would solve my problem?). I like the general story arc in TS2, but TS3 has the best final scene, and visually it’s also the best and… Continue reading Toy Story 3 (Lee Unkrich, 2010)
Toy Story 2 1999 // USA // John Lasseter Letterboxd (LINK) In my opinion, TOY STORY is a great film, but TOY STORY 2 is a better film which assimilates all the best elements from the 1995’s revolutionary animation and expands and amplifies them into near perfection. It’s a rarity that I love the sequel… Continue reading Toy Story 2 (John Lasseter, 1999)
Toy Story 1995 // USA // John Lasseter Letterboxd (LINK) TOY STORY is unequivocally a ground-breathtaking film that perpetually changed the landscape of animation. It also set a high watermark for Pixar as we expect no less than a masterpiece from their output. Frankly, I have to admit I’m spoiled by Pixar which is partially… Continue reading Toy Story (John Lasseter, 1995)
Paranoia Agent 妄想代理人 2004 // Japan // Satoshi Kon 今敏 Letterboxd (LINK) This animated TV series is one hell of a psychological ride. It’s ecstatic, thrilling, bewitching, delightful, piercing, satirical, and appalling. It’s the pinnacle of Satoshi Kon, the genius who died too young. I would herald it alongside Fassbinder’s BERLIN ALEXANDERPLATZ (1980) and Lynch’s… Continue reading Paranoia Agent 妄想代理人 (Satoshi Kon 今敏, 2004)
Paprika パプリカ 2006 // Japan // Satoshi Kon 今敏 Letterboxd (LINK) PAPRIKA was Satoshi Kon’s last feature film made before his untimely death in 2010 at the age of 46. He had made 4 main animated features only, yet they are all masterpiece in my opinion, and MILLENNIUM ACTRESS (2002) is one of my all-time… Continue reading Paprika パプリカ (Satoshi Kon 今敏, 2006)
Perfect Blue パーフェクトブルー 1997 // Japan // Satoshi Kon 今敏 Letterboxd (LINK) This film is a perfect psychological thriller dealing with numerous social and personal issues that are still relevant today. The sexualization of women, the fetishization of idols, the online/real life stalkers, the misapprehension of identity with fantasy, altogether this 80-minute animation feels… Continue reading Perfect Blue パーフェクトブルー (Satoshi Kon 今敏, 1997)
#820 Fantastic Planet 1973 // France, Czechoslovakia // René Laloux Criterion Release Date: 21 Jun 2016 (LINK) In a distant planet called Ygam, humans (a.k.a. Oms) are treated as either domestic pets (tamed Oms) or pests by the blue-skinned fin-ears giants Draags. A slaved child grows up to become part of a rebellion and save his… Continue reading #820 Fantastic Planet (1973)
The Films in My Life (OnCriterion) 