26 Comments

"Before we leave the horror films of 2016, I will make the bold statement that the first Don’t Breathe is one of the most thrillingly crafted studio horror films "

That's the boldest statement since Lance said that with his shit, he would take the Pepsi Challenge with that Amsterdam shit any old day of the fuckin' week.

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Rod isn't driving a police car at the end. The door says "Airport" or something; it's a TSA vehicle.

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Anytime is the right time for a well-placed slap at NPR!

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Join us in a few weeks? By my calculation, you’ll be lucky to finish this project before the 2032 results are announced! (Not a criticism, just amused.)

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Very much agree with Scott re: Don't Breathe. I even like the sequel well enough as its own thing. One note: I believe Álvarez is making an Alien film - it's Noah Hawley who's doing the series.

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Jan 10, 2023Liked by Scott Tobias

I admire the way GET OUT implicates the audience. It's something that many horror movies attempt, perhaps to justify the violence they depict. GET OUT is much smarter about it, placing us right in the racial themes. There is a clear reason that Peele shoots Chris's tear-streaked face staring right at the camera. It's an unshakable shot and so well acted.

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I wonder if Get Out is destined to always be The One movie that is Peele's Consensus Best? I've loved all three of his movies but the trajectory he's on shows him getting more subtle and more shaggy plot-wise and I suspect Get Out's relative lack of those two things helped make it such a success (plus the first movie from him getting advance buzz as legit scary).

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Unrelated to anything written except a single, tangential note of a sentence...

Fwiw, Yi-Yi was on the 2012 poll (barely in the top 100).

Cross-checking it seems unclear if it's from the 21st century or not.

The BFI site says 1999, IMDb and letterboxd say 2000.

I guess there's also the wrinkle of people who count years starting at 0 or 1, but I'm going with the social convention that we start at 0 and 2000 is part of the 21st century.

Now if I could only remember much about the movie that I'm pretty sure I know I saw it the last ten years. Lots of people forgetting why they entered a room. I definitely remember relating to that part. Well, maybe I'll revisit it when you two eventually get to it.

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I’m so glad you guys are doing this. What a great idea. Great read too. Would def recommend checking out Ganja and Hess. Fabulous film. And Horror Noire is 100% worth the watch. It’s entertaining, informative, and you can come away with a really stellar To-Watch list.

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Jan 13, 2023Liked by Keith Phipps

To your note about the men being praised as if on an auction block: I appreciated on a pre-Nope rewatch how, while the grandpa in the gardener and the Olympic photos bring up tropes of black physical superiority and white physical insecurity, Stephen Root’s desire for Chris’s eyes reflects the liberal covetousness for the black *aesthetic sensibility*. They don’t just want to be strong like a linebacker, they want to possess the perspective and ornamental markings of black people. It’s very “House Dems wearing kente cloth.”

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No discussion about whether it was white liberal guilt that put this movie in the top 100? I (a white liberal, incidentally) am a big fan of it, but I believe a few hundred movies are better. Regardless the movie's quality, I think it got on the list in part thanks to some "Oh, here's a respected movie about racism we can easily embrace to symbolize our non-racism." sentiment, as well as some non-American voters who rejoiced to see a movie critical of America.

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