On the cusp of 2025 I couldn't think of much particular from my year to celebrate. When writing this post in my head however, I found more than I had first thought. I've perhaps grown up a bit, had to be the level-headed, strong adult of the family (not a good idea by a stretch), been to Japan twice, been hospitalised then sick for an extended period, been on a date for the first time in literal years (and been ghosted for not the first). I've been told that I'm important, I've been told that I'm a MILFfucker (one f or two? Hopefully two).I watched an embarrassing number of Godzilla films, read more than I have in recent memory, enjoyed myself and went on self-planned (or more accurately poorly planned) adventures on holiday instead of just going to whatever wrestling was on and drinking an absurd amount of whisky. I saw Boris live. I despaired at the prospect (or lack of such) of my romantic and home life, at the increasing weight of my daily solitude and my inability to change either. I'm very lucky.
Sorry I'm so embarrassing it will happen at least 5 more times today.
In film terms I've watched 175, which is an acceptably healthy number, seen one (Elaine May's sublime A New Leaf, not from 2024) that I think might be one of the best comedies ever made. But my concentration levels are at, if not an all-time low then, something close. It bothers me greatly and I don't know how to get around it. The enthusiasm is still there in spades but the situation has to increasingly cinematic. My beloved Indian cinema is also entirely conspicuous by its absence, a few in particular having taken an increasingly nasty misogynistic bent. Pisspot.
2024
Eureka (Lisandro Alonso - Argentina/Portugal/France/Germany/Mexico)The Holdovers (Alexander Payne - USA)
All of us Strangers (Andrew Haigh - UK)
Kinds of Kindness (Yorgos Lanthimos - Ireland/UK/USA)
Robot Dreams (Pablo Berger - Spain)
Perfect Days (Wim Wenders - Japan/Germany)
La Chimera (Alice Rohrwacher - Italy/France/Switzerland)
Poor Things (Yorgos Lanthimos - Ireland/UK/USA)
Rumours (Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson & Galen Johnson - Canada/Germany)
The Boy and The Heron (Hayao Miyazaki - Japan)
Anora (Sean Baker - USA)
Julie Keeps Quiet (Leonardo Van Dijl - Belgium/Sweden)
Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person (Ariane Louis-Seize - Canada)
All Your Faces (Jeanne Henry - France)
The Beast (Bertrand Bonello - France/Canada)
Cloud (Kiyoshi Kurosawa - Japan)
Not 2024
A New Leaf (Elaine May - USA)
Godzilla vs. Hedorah (Yoshimitsu Banno - Japan)
The Unknown Man of Shandigor (Jean-Louis Roy - Switzerland)
Joker (Todd Phillips - USA)
Wolf Guy aka Enraged Lycanthrope (Kazuhiko Yamaguchi - Japan)
Love Happy (David Miller - USA)
The Skeleton of Mrs Morales (Rogelio A. González - Mexico)
Gemini (Shinya Tsukamoto - Japan)
Eight Hours of Terror (Seijun Suzuki - Japan)
