The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)

The Hunchback Of Notre Dame contains the best the Disney Renaissance has to offer. It has all time great songs, grand visuals especially in the realization of the titular cathedral in particular and two particularly strong characters in our hero Quasimodo and our hero Frollo. Even the more straight forward, and by nature blander roles, of Phoebes and Esmeralda have more character than they might have been otherwise. Of course the most overt tragic elements of the novel have been removed or changed yet the adaptation still succeeds in telling a darker story about Quasimodo's life, and as well as the particular motivations that compel Frollo. Unfortunately the worst is found in the three unfunny comic relief, in the worst possible way, gargoyles. They waste time with their shtick, but worst of all they horrible mess with the tone of the film. It honestly could have been the masterpiece of the Renaissance, but due to their inclusion it falls short.
4.5/5

Billy Budd

Billy Budd is exceptional and underrated film about a sea faring ship during wartime. Like Master and Commander it so effectively creates the sense of life aboard the ship. Even the smaller character seem vivid in part due to the performances as well as the terrific screenplay. It in addition to that creates well an understanding for the naval code and how it is that Robert Ryan's sadistic Claggart is even able to exist. It's a marvelous film though in the way the good vs evil originally conflict is set up between Billy who is innately good against the life loathing Claggart. It transitions well though to the secondary conflict of doing the right thing against doing the lawful thing. Both eventually build to very memorable and powerful conclusion to each.
5/5

There Will Be Blood

Ah the film that will eternally baffle me. Not in terms of its themes or its meaning but rather exactly how much I like it. In some viewings I will love the whole things from beginning to end, despite the seemingly purposefully polarizing nature of that ending. However in others I will have those moment were indeed seems as though Anderson allows the film to become indulgent in order just for there to be a scene of some Daniel Plainview madness which is not bad, nothing around Day-Lewis's performance can really be considered bad. Day-Lewis's performance is masterful in the creation of this self-proclaimed Oil man and his story is a fascinating one to be sure. The vision is without a doubt awe-inspiring more often than not. Another film where the technical aspects are impeccable and the score is mesmerizing. The film is perhaps a masterpiece I will view it as one now, I may not some other time, but now I will say that it is.
5/5

10 Rillington Place

10 Rillington Place is a brutally effective film by telling the cold harsh truth as straight forward of a fashion as it can. Richard Fleischer's direction here is downright brilliant by the way he neither sugarcoats nor glorifies Christie's crimes. He shows them as one unfortunately would imagine only shying away in one instance yet the implication of that moment is bone chilling even in the restraint. The most horrifying scene actually though is not one of Christie's direct murders but his indirect one as he bluntly depicts the injustice that feels so cruel because of how normal the whole event is. The performances here are strong with the standouts being John Hurt who is as heartbreaking as Richard Attenborough is terrifying. A message can be taken from the film yet it never enforces the idea the film believing its audience is intelligent enough to recognize it from the natural order of the proceedings. It's one of the great serial killer films ever made, and one of the most unnerving in its reality. As the man does not get caught by his guilt, or by a quick thinking detective,  but rather because he simply runs out of money.
5/5

Get Carter

Get Carter is very interesting film in the way it seems to pull you in with the promise of a glamorization of both the life of a criminal and revenge. It technically ends up delivering on neither of these promises yet that is what makes the film so effective. It gives the glimpse of why Carter is Carter. He is indeed a cool crook with Michael Caine giving perhaps one of his best performances. However these elements only hide the real seedy nature of the life that is bluntly realized by the victims of it. One victim forcing Carter is forced to see directly in a brilliant scene that relies on Caine's performance. The revenge though itself is not pretty as Carter ends up taking essentially no prisoners and there is a cold callousness as no one is allowed to escape his wrath which is painfully emotional. It's a terrific film as it coldly subverts the whole vision one might take of the film before watching it.
5/5

A Clockwork Orange

A Clockwork Orange now succeeds where Barry Lyndon faltered. Once again the film is visually striking as Kubrick's goes about creating a warped perspective fitting for a story of a very warped mind. This time though we have an alteration through the human element. The human element being that of psychopath, yet still human as played by Malcolm McDowell. McDowell's performance importantly anchors the film within Kubrick's imagery and the purposefully absurd performances from much of the rest of the cast. He brings us through Alex's journey in a captivating if rather disturbing fashion. The visuals never overwhelm the human element, instead that intertwine wonderfully(though that does not feel like the right word for this film), to create a great film.
5/5

Barry Lyndon

Barry Lyndon is a flawless film on the technical side of things. The cinematography, the costumes, and the production design are all immaculate. The story itself should be interesting in its focus of this conman making his way up through schemes and his personal charm. The problem is two fold, though in the end could have been solved by fixing only one side. As one would expect Kubrick is cold and clinical in his style. This usually works in his films as the emotions come from the performances. The problem is the emotional center should be Barry, but the problem is he's played the vapid Ryan O'Neal. There's no reason to believe he could charm or trick anyone as he seems quite happy to be just part of the scenery. He keeps the story from being engaging because he seems as detached as Kubrick is. Now this is not say the whole film does not work. Marisa Berenson and Leon Vitali do provide some emotional elements to the film, but neither are in the film enough to make up for O'Neal. There are still some exceptional sequences in there, the final dueling scene in particular, but the strengths cannot fully outweigh its fundamental flaws.
4/5