Mini-Reviews - 2023 Edition

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Mini-Reviews - 2023 Edition

Same deal as last year, just a bit different. This article will contain Letterboxd links to concise opinions about films I can't afford the time to write 800+ words about due to work-life constraints, festival coverage, delayed release dates, vacations, etc. In most cases, these will be movies without that much of an impact on my year-end reflection of the best films I've seen in 2023. This section will be updated each time I add a new entry, as well as its date of publication, so these quick thoughts can be read by everyone at any time.

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Pain Hustlers (2023) - Review

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Pain Hustlers (2023) - Review

Directed by: David Yates

Written by: Wells Tower

Starring: Emily Blunt, Chris Evans, Catherine O’Hara, Chloe Coleman, Jay Duplass, Brian d’Arcy James, Amit Shah, Aubrey Dollar, Willie Raysor, Andy Garcia

Runtime: 122 min

Synopsis: Liza Drake (Emily Blunt) is a blue-collar single mom who has just lost her job and is at the end of her rope. A chance meeting with pharmaceutical sales rep Pete Brenner (Chris Evans) puts her on an upwards trajectory economically but dubious path ethically as she becomes entangled in a dangerous racketeering scheme. Dealing with her increasingly unhinged boss (Andy Garcia), the worsening medical condition of her daughter (Chloe Coleman), and a growing awareness of the devastation the company is causing forces Liza to examine her choices.

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Killers of the Flower Moon (2023) - Review

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Killers of the Flower Moon (2023) - Review

Directed by: Martin Scorsese

Written by: Eric Roth, Martin Scorsese

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Lily Gladstone, Jesse Plemons, Tantoo Cardinal, John Lithgow, Brendan Fraser

Runtime: 206 min

Synopsis: Based on David Grann's broadly lauded best-selling book, Killers of the Flower Moon is set in 1920s Oklahoma and depicts the serial murder of members of the oil-wealthy Osage Nation, a string of brutal crimes that came to be known as the Reign of Terror.

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Fair Play (2023) - Review

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Fair Play (2023) - Review

Directed by: Chloe Domont

Written by: Chloe Domont

Starring: Phoebe Dynevor, Alden Ehrenreich, Eddie Marsan, Rich Sommer

Runtime: 113 min

Synopsis: When a coveted promotion at a cutthroat financial firm arises, once supportive exchanges between lovers Emily (Phoebe Dynevor) and Luke (Alden Ehrenreich) begin to sour into something more sinister. As the power dynamics irrevocably shift in their relationship, the couple must face the true price of success and the unnerving limits of ambition.

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Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget - Review | LFF 2023

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Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget - Review | LFF 2023

Directed by: Sam Fell

Written by: Karey Kirkpatrick, John O'Farrell, Rachel Tunnard

Starring: Thandiwe Newton, Zachary Levi, Bella Ramsey, Romesh Ranganathan, David Bradley, Daniel Mays, Jane Horrocks, Imelda Staunton, Lynn Ferguson, Josie Sedgwick-Davies, Nick Mohammed, Miranda Richardson

Runtime: 97 min

Synopsis: Ginger (Thandiwe Newton) and Rocky (Zachary Levi) welcome a new little adventurer into their lives.

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The End We Start From - Review | LFF 2023

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The End We Start From - Review | LFF 2023

Directed by: Mahalia Belo

Written by: Alice Birch

Starring: Jodie Comer, Benedict Cumberbatch, Katherine Waterston, Mark Strong

Runtime: 102 min

Synopsis: After an ecological crisis, a new mother and her baby abandon their home in flooded London and flee northwards.

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One Life - Review | LFF 2023

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One Life - Review | LFF 2023

Directed by: James Hawes

Written by: Lucinda Coxon, Nick Drake

Starring: Anthony Hopkins, Johnny Flynn, Lena Olin, Romola Garai, Alex Sharp, Jonathan Pryce, Helena Bonham Carter

Runtime: 109 min

Synopsis: A British stockbroker visits Czechoslovakia in the late 1930s and forms plans to assist in the rescue of Jewish children before the onset of World War II, in an operation that came to be known as the Kindertransport.

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The Book of Clarence - Review | LFF 2023

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The Book of Clarence - Review | LFF 2023

Directed by: Jeymes Samuel

Written by: Jeymes Samuel

Starring: LaKeith Stanfield, Omar Sy, Anna Diop, RJ Cyler, David Oyelowo, Micheal Ward, Alfre Woodard, Teyana Taylor, Caleb McLaughlin, Eric Kofi-Abrefa, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, James McAvoy, Benedict Cumberbatch

Runtime: 136 min

Synopsis: A down-on-his-luck man embarks on a misguided attempt to capitalize on the rise of celebrity and the influence of the Messiah for his own personal gain.

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The Holdovers - Review | LFF 2023

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The Holdovers - Review | LFF 2023

Directed by: Alexander Payne

Written by: David Hemingson

Starring: Paul Giamatti, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Dominic Sessa

Runtime: 133 min

Synopsis: A curmudgeonly instructor (Paul Giamatti) at a New England prep school is forced to remain on campus during Christmas break to babysit the handful of students with nowhere to go. Eventually he forms an unlikely bond with one of them - a damaged, brainy troublemaker (Dominic Sessa) - and with the school's head cook, who has just lost a son in Vietnam (Da'Vine Joy Randolph).

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The Zone of Interest - Review | LFF 2023

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The Zone of Interest - Review | LFF 2023

Directed by: Jonathan Glazer

Written by: Jonathan Glazer

Starring: Sandra Hüller, Christian Friedel

Runtime: 106 min

Synopsis: The commandant of Auschwitz, Rudolf Höss (Christian Friedel), and his wife Hedwig (Sandra Hüller), strive to build a dream life for their family in a house and garden next to the camp.

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