Every year I post on here and hope someone reads it. Usually they do, not many but some do and it makes me smile. This year hasn't been a big one for smiling. In the past I've lamented how time constraints and changing life situations have affected my cinematic input and output, how I've watched far less and written about fuck all and sadly the trend has continued. In August 2017 I went to Japan, the realisation of a long-held, unbelievable dream, and had the added test of sharing 2 weeks of my socially awkward, self-reliant life with a group of people, most of whom I'd never met or even spoken too. This is a dreadfully trite phrase that I abhor using but it was truly the most joyous time of my life. This past June I tried another test, travelling to Japan alone, not speaking the language, not really knowing how I was going to cope and it was wonderful and I did cope and flourished. Other times of the year I didn't. I had the worst period of mental ill health that I've had in a long while, I came close to losing my job and I feel reduced, a redundant format of myself from when things were bad. But I'm trying. In films watched I beat last year, barely but I did and that's something. Last year I joked about promises for the new year, about how I was going to be better. In 2019 all I can say is that I'm trying. Here's my list1. Phantom Thread (Paul Thomas Anderson - USA)
2. Moon Maids (Tchidi Chikere - Nigeria)
3. Mulk (Anubhav Sinha - India/Hindi)
4. The Third Murder (Hirokazu Kore-eda - Japan)
5. Imaikkaa Nodigal (R. Jay Gnanamuthu - India/Tamil)
6. Bitch (Marianna Palka - USA)
7. Badhaai Ho (Amit Ravindernat - India/Hindi)
8. 2.0 (S. Shankar - India/Tamil)
9. Slava (Kristina Grozeva/Petar Valchanov - Bulgaria)
10. Happy End (Michael Haneke - France/Austria)
11. Kolamavu Kokila (Nelson Dilipkumar - India/Tamil)
12. 6.9 pe scara Richter Scale (Nae Caranfil - Romania)
