As 2022 comes to a close, the season of year-end lists begins, with critics and publications announcing their top 10 films from the last calendar year. And few publications’ annual lists carry as much gravity for movie fans as Cahiers du Cinéma, the critical stalwart of the French film world. So, what does the magazine have atop their best films of 2022 list?

READ MORE: ‘Pacification’ Review: Albert Serra Makes A Gorgeous & Grave Tropical Anti-Epic With Post-Colonial Intrigue [NYFF]

None other than Albert Serra‘s “Pacifiction,” fresh off its French theatrical release last month.

Continue reading ‘Pacifiction,’ ‘Nope,’ & ‘Licorice Pizza’ Top The Cahiers Du Cinema Top 10 Of 2022 at The Playlist.

Every Tuesday, discriminating viewers are confronted with a flurry of choices: new releases on disc and on demand, vintage and original movies on any number of streaming platforms, catalogue titles making a splash on Blu-ray or 4K. This twice-monthly column sifts through all of those choices to pluck out the movies most worth your time, no matter how you’re watching.

It’s a lighter than usual week on the disc and streaming front, but there are still plenty of treasures to nab – including last year’s best movie hitting the streamers, some genre gems from the boutique labels, and the welcome 4K release of a ‘90s classic.

Continue reading The Best Movies To Buy Or Stream This Week: ‘Heat,’ ‘Men,’ ‘Flatliners,’ & More at The Playlist.

Every Tuesday, discriminating viewers are confronted with a flurry of choices: new releases on disc and on demand, vintage and original movies on any number of streaming platforms, catalogue titles making a splash on Blu-ray or 4K. This twice-monthly column sifts through all of those choices to pluck out the movies most worth your time, no matter how you’re watching.

Your correspondent’s personal pick for the best movie (and best performance) of 2021 leads off this week’s disc and streaming picks, alongside Pixar’s latest, a jaw-dropping array of new 4Ks, two from Charles Bronson, the long-awaited Blu-ray debut of a Walter Hill favorite, a new set from a sexploitation pioneer, and much, much more. 

PICK OF THE WEEK: 

“Licorice Pizza”: Paul Thomas Anderson’s return to the ‘70s San Fernando Valley was one of last year’s best films, and dodged the feeling of “Boogie Nights Redux” by adopting an entirely different vibe – relaxed and rolling rather than coked-up and manic.

Continue reading The Best Movies to Buy or Stream This Week: ‘Licorice Pizza,’ ‘Turning Red,’ ‘Escape from New York,’ and more at The Playlist.

The Oscars were back in the Dolby Theater this year with social distancing and eight categories presented before the live show even began. While there was a joke about Samuel L. Jackson in hosts Regina Hall, Amy Schumer, and Wanda Sykes‘ opening bit, his Oscar moment presented by Denzel Washington, along with all the other Honorary Oscars were similarly not presented live. Despite containing one of the most WTF moments in Oscar history, the show oscillated between dragging and feeling weirdly chaotic.

Continue reading Oscars 2022: The Snubs & Surprises at The Playlist.

A weekend of multiple awards ceremonies meant a number of no-shows at the 2022 BAFTA Film Awards, but that didn’t diminish the star power across the pond. Lady Gaga, Benedict Cumberbatch, Tom Hiddleston and Emma Watson, among others, brought the paps to the BAFTA’s red carpet and, the BAFTA voters? Well, overall they spread the love, but Jane Campion and “The Power of the Dog” came out decidedly on top.

Continue reading ‘The Power of the Dog’ Takes Best Film At 2022 BAFTA Awards at The Playlist.

Perhaps the Best Picture race is truly over. When the 2022 Oscar nominations were announced Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog” landed 12 nominations including Best Picture, Best Director, Adapted Screenplay, four acting nominations, and Editing. The only contender with nods in the five key categories. It also earned Original Score, Sound, Cinematography, and Production Design nods. In fact, the only qualifying branches that didn’t recognize it were Costumes and Makeup and Hair.

Continue reading Is ‘Power Of The Dog’ Your Oscar Winner For Best Picture? at The Playlist.

Well, it’s certainly that timer again. The 94th Academy Award ceremony announces its Oscar picks for 2022. It’s been a long and winding Oscar season, but this phase of the campaign is about to be over. Will Netflix and “Don’t Look Up,” “The Power Of The Dog” dominate? Will Disney find some redemption in Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story”?

Continue reading 2022 Oscar Nominations: ‘Power Of The Dog’ Leads With 12 Noms, ‘Dune’ Nabs 10 [Full List] at The Playlist.

On this episode of the Deep Focus podcast, my guest is none other than Alana Haim from the rock group Haim, but more appropriate for this conversation, she is the star of Paul Thomas Anderson’s latest film, “Licorice Pizza.” Anderson’s latest film is a nostalgic, shaggy return to his San Fernando Valley roots, but it’s really nothing like “Boogie Nights” or “Magnolia” and actually is more in line with George Lucas’ “American Graffiti”—a hangout movie— as if it were made by Lucas, Hal Ashby, and PTA’s beloved Robert Altman.

Continue reading ‘Licorice Pizza’: Alana Haim On The Secretive Mysteriousness Of Director Paul Thomas Anderson [Deep Focus Podcast] at The Playlist.

When Leonardo DiCaprio was trying to figure out what to do after “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” reports started coming up about some of the biggest A-list filmmakers working today trying to nab him for roles. One of those names was Paul Thomas Anderson, who was developing the film that would go on to be known as “Licorice Pizza.” The rumor went that DiCaprio passed on the film and his role eventually went to Bradley Cooper.

Continue reading Paul Thomas Anderson Says Leonardo DiCaprio Was Never Up For Bradley Cooper’s Role in ‘Licorice Pizza’ at The Playlist.

When it comes to content, 2021 was a year of massive highs and disappointing lows. As vaccinations began being implemented around the world, in-person festivals returned providing a euphoric celebration of cinema. And a rush into pandemic production by studios and networks in 2020 provided some unexpected standouts this calendar year (“Belfast,” “Squid Game”). Unfortunately, that content push also led to some films and television programs that resonated like a PTSD reaction to the aftermath of the 2007 WGA writer’s strike.

Continue reading Gregory Ellwood’s Top 10 Films and Top 10 Television Programs of 2021 at The Playlist.

“The movies are back, baby!” went the refrain this summer, up to, during, and continuously after the heavenly 10-day stretch around June where everything looked like it might really go back to normal, actual normal and not “new” normal; “new” normal is in no way preferable to “normal” normal, just like “new recipe” Butterfingers are trash compared to the genuine article. Be that as it may, enough folks insisted on the pandemic’s subsiding that the movies did indeed come back, and they brought with them another detail missing and longed-for in the sacred big-screen experience: Soundtracks.

Continue reading The Best Scores & Soundtracks of 2021 at The Playlist.

We celebrate the movies at this time of year, and in the wild rush to praise directors and actors for all that nifty directing and acting they did over the last 365 days, we all tend to forget that cinema is about more than just two sets of people. Just read Twitter. Who’s naming anyone other than auteurs and stars? How many times has Steven Spielberg’s name come up? How many times has Janusz Kamiński’s?

Continue reading The Best Cinematography Of 2021 at The Playlist.

We certainly have not resumed full normalcy as we continue to battle this pandemic, but at least we have movies—even more than last year. With certain reservations about how they were premiered, released, and distributed, this year in film brought back more festival favorites like Wes Anderson’s “The French Dispatch,” more massive franchise golden geese like Cary Joji Fukunaga’s “No Time to Die,” more awards-friendly fare that had been held over, like Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story.

Continue reading The 25 Best Films Of 2021 at The Playlist.

Do you hear that? Can you feel it underneath your seat? 2021 finally gave us the chance to return to cinemas, that rare gift where a handful of carefully curated trailers whets our appetites for the year ahead—without having to desperately refresh browser windows with a looming sense of dread with no end in sight. 

READ MORE: The Best Film Posters Of 2021

That’s not to say we’re completely out of the woods, but it’s certainly offered a new sense of gratitude for the very best trailers of the year as we’ve been able to appreciate them the way they should be: big, loud, full of hope and optimism for the wondrous selection of movies this year and the next will have to offer us—wherever we watch them. 

“Licorice Pizza”
The first glimpse of Paul Thomas Anderson’s blissful valentine to the San Fernando Valley was teased in a small handful of cinemas around the world, building anticipation and then crashing into focus all at once—as the revered filmmaker has always done with his work.

Continue reading The Best Movie Trailers Of 2021 at The Playlist.

In our annual aggregation of some of the most respected Best Films of the Year lists, we like to highlight folks that offer unique opinions regarding cinema. We’ve already seen John Waters offer up a pretty offbeat Top 10 this year. And now, The New Yorker offers its Top 35 Best Films of 2021, with a healthy number of picks that will likely surprise people.

READ MORE: The Best Film Posters Of 2021

Sure, The New Yorker lists plenty of high-profile films in the Top 35.

Continue reading The New Yorker’s Best Films Of 2021 Include ‘Zola,’ ‘Passing’ & Quite A Few Docs at The Playlist.

Spotting and scrutinizing movie posters this year has felt brand new – like seeing the world with fresh eyes as we rush back into cinemas and can once again place faith in the pictures we see, knowing we will, finally, slowly, be able to bookmark these promises with a trip to the cinemas once more. That’s not to say we’re totally out of the woods yet – rather that there is simply more hope and excitement rather than just longing and loneliness as there was when we made this list this time last year. 

Right now, we celebrate – the colors, the emotion, the unexpected thrills and bold statements filmmakers are once more making with the first images we see of the movies we will so soon fall in love with.

Continue reading The Best Film Posters Of 2021 at The Playlist.

The National Board of Review is traditionally the first “awards group” (we use that term lightly with them) to announce their honorees for the season. This year, the organization somewhat surprised by selecting Paul Thomas Anderson’s “Licorice Pizza” for Best Film and Best Director. And, in a move that will raise some eyebrows, completely snubbed Jane Campion‘s highly lauded “The Power of the Dog.”

READ MORE: ‘Licorice Pizza’ Review: Paul Thomas Anderson Nostalgically Just Vibes In The Summery Cali ’70s Again

It should be noted, however, that NBR has a very spotty record picking Best Picture with only its 2018 winner, “Green Book,” taking Oscar’s top prize in 2019.

Continue reading ‘Licorice Pizza’ Named Best Film Of 2021 By National Board of Review at The Playlist.

It speaks to the month’s quality that to kick things off there’s the release of Jane Campion’s beauty, “The Power of the Dog,” starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Kirsten Dunst on Netflix following a limited theatrical run last month. December is positively overwhelming in titles to discover both big and small, from independent darlings that have danced the festival circuit all year to the latest – and last – Marvel film of the year, the much talked about “Spider-Man: No Way Home.”

We couldn’t even fit everything about to release on the below list (see reviews in each link) where applicable).

Continue reading 19 Films To See In December: ‘Nightmare Alley,’ ‘Don’t Look Up,’ ‘Tragedy Of Macbeth’ & More at The Playlist.

For purists and ride or die fans who like to quibble over such things, there are two Paul Thomas Andersons. One is the young, ambitious, hyper-caffeinated auteur behind “Boogie Nights” and “Magnolia,” full of confidence (maybe illicit substances, too), brio, and show-off-y talent (keyed up Scorsese-like camera moves and soundtracks and Robert Altman-like ensembles). The second version is the more relaxed and mature, some fans have dubbed the “Kubrick PTA,” the filmmaker behind more unhurried enigmatic works like “The Master” and “Phantom Thread.” Whichever one you prefer (and this seems to be a never-ending point of discussion between fans), Anderson’s latest effort, the whimsically titled “Licorice Pizza,” might be the great uniter.

Continue reading ‘Licorice Pizza’ Review: Paul Thomas Anderson Nostalgically Just Vibes In The Summery Cali ’70s Again at The Playlist.

There is a common refrain being heard around Hollywood these days and it’s not one that will make the Academy happy (and, no, it’s not about an Academy Museum which has only three floors of exhibits). As more and more AMPAS members screen this year’s crop of Best Picture contenders – and, granted, they are barely getting started – many are verbalizing their concern over the Academy’s decision to stick with 10 nominees this year.

Continue reading The Great Hunt For 10 Best Picture Nominees Continues [Contender Countdown] at The Playlist.

When you watch the trailer for the new Paul Thomas Anderson film, “Licorice Pizza,” the setting of mid-‘70s Southern California brings to mind films of that era and others from decades ago. It’s clear the filmmaker was influenced by his own youth as well as other teen films. In a new interview with Variety, Anderson explains which films influenced his “Licorice Pizza” and explains how Sean Penn’s inclusion is a long time coming.

Continue reading Paul Thomas Anderson Originally Wanted Sean Penn For Crucial Roles In ‘Boogie Nights’ & ‘Punch-Drunk Love’ at The Playlist.

We are mere days away from the release of Paul Thomas Anderson’s latest film, “Licorice Pizza.” Well, in select theaters at least. (The full release isn’t until December 25, but I digress.) However, it appears we now have more details on what songs will accompany the feature as part of the period film’s ‘70s soundtrack.

READ MORE: Paul Thomas Anderson Says His Family Is “Marvel-Obsessed” & Praises ‘Venom 2’ And ‘Shang-Chi’

According to Film Music Reporter, the “Licorice Pizza” soundtrack will be released by Republic Records and feature a ton of great artists such as Nina Simone, Sonny & Cher, David Bowie, Paul McCartney, The Doors, and many more.

Continue reading Jonny Greenwood Confirmed To Score Paul Thomas Anderson’s ‘Licorice Pizza’ As Soundtrack Details Emerge at The Playlist.

Unlike Adapted Screenplay, the Original Screenplay category is not only more competitive but likely more settled with at least three nominees. Paul Thomas Anderson has four, yes, four Screenplay nominations to date (split in Original and Adapted), but has never won. Will “Licorice Pizza” deliver him a fifth nomination? It looks like it. Kenneth Branagh‘s autobiographical “Belfast” is pretty much a lock for a nomination (he earned an Adapted nod for “Hamlet” in 1998) and it’s likely Zach Baylin lands a nod for “King Richard.” As for the rest?

Continue reading Original Screenplay Oscars 2022 Predictions & Contenders at The Playlist.

Paul Thomas Anderson last unleashed a film on movie audiences four years ago, and what a film 2017’s “Phantom Thread” was. The UK-set period piece was a bit of a departure for the director. “Thread” was Anderson’s first film set outside of California since “Hard Eight,” his 1996 debut. The film’s chamber-drama set-up and intimate look at domestic partnership also felt like an inversion of Anderson’s looser, Robert Altman-esque ensemble films.  

READ MORE: ‘Licorice Pizza’ Trailer Breakdown: An Intimate Mash-Up Of ‘Inherent Vice’ & ‘Boogie Nights’

Now, Anderson has gone back to his roots, as his next film, “Licorice Pizza,” looks to be a loosey-goosey, ’70s-set coming-of-age tale based in the San Fernando Valley.

Continue reading ‘Licorice Pizza’ Trailer: Paul Thomas Anderson Is Back With A Love Letter To Youth & Los Angeles at The Playlist.

As you might have read, Paul Thomas Anderson has finally unveiled a first look at his new film—though only in select theaters—now officially titled “Licorice Pizza.” Luckily, by attending a 35mmm double feature at American Cinematheque’s Los Feliz 3 location, yours truly was accidentally privy to the honor of seeing the trailer for PTA’s majestic-looking new movie. Twice.

Reportedly first shown in front of “American Graffiti,” in London, the film previously known as “Soggy Bottom” is clearly the auteur’s foray into the rebel teen genre.

Continue reading ‘Licorice Pizza’ Trailer Breakdown: An Intimate Mash-Up Of ‘Inherent Vice’ & ‘Boogie Nights’ at The Playlist.