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Best and Worst Films from March 2022

Best Films from March 2022:

3. Spring

Spring is by far the best Aaron Moorhead and Justin Benson movie that they made so far, thus it gets the third spot for March this year. It’s such an underrated flick. Not only is the mash-up of horror and romance genres terrific, but the Richard Linklater-inspired dialogue and screenplay really appealed to me as a big fan of his films. And it’s such a moving, wonderful film through and through.

2. The Batman

The Batman gets the second spot this month and it will undoubtedly be among my top ten movies for 2022 when all is said and done. I adored this film. Matt Reeves directed the hell out of it while the acting is tremendous from its very talented cast. Artistically speaking, the movie fires on all cylinders, but in terms of storytelling and superhero genre elements, this is finally an old-fashioned Batman detective story that we should have gotten years ago.

1. Far from Heaven

The best movie that I saw all month is Far From Heaven, a film that I ended up giving the perfect rating and I rarely do that nowadays. But it’s really that great. This is a film that honors the classic Douglas Sirk melodramas of the fifties while modernizing them due to the addition of current issues, such as race and sexuality. It never felt didactic, but just the opposite – it is both believable and very much in line with the era that it depicts in dialogue and in characters. Add to all of this the stunning cinematography and phenomenal acting and you’ve got one of the greatest movies of 2002.

Worst Films from March 2022:

3. Hocus Pocus

I really did not care for Hocus Pocus. I know that it has its fans, but this is such a campy, ridiculous, slight film that it’s difficult to enjoy it more. Bette Midler is fun, yes. The soundtrack is also fine. But the technical aspects are otherwise weak as is the characterization. I get its appeal, but for me it was too much campiness and not enough substance.

2. Wake Island

Wake Island is a typical US WWII propaganda picture that has a slapdash story, weak characterization and inferior direction. The movie looks good and its ending is admittedly quite effective, but it just remains an overly patriotic movie made just to promote the war effort and nothing more than that.

1. Peninsula

The first place for the worst movie goes to Peninsula, a disappointing sequel to a phenomenal zombie movie and by far the worst Yeon Sang-ho entry in his filmography. Gone are the memorable action set pieces, themes and characters and we’ve got a forgettable story and a mediocre movie overall that has some memorable moments and that’s pretty much it.