……………………………………………………….

Best and Worst Films from September 2024

Best Films from September 2024:

3. The Kite Runner

This wasn’t the greatest month for me and I took a vacation, so I watched fewer films as a result. With that being said, a few films did appeal to me quite a bit with The Kite Runner surprising me as a solid adaptation of a beloved literary work. It is a surprisingly faithful movie, one that was so well cast and acted. It felt rushed at times and it wasn’t as epic as the material needed, but for the most part it satisfied me.

2. New Nightmare

New Nightmare was a groundbreaking horror movie in its post-modern meta elements. The plot where the Elm Street actors play themselves was so unique and thematically intriguing. The humor is too sporadic, but Freddy is much more serious and as a result creepier in this installment. His new look was also a success. The third act featured superb world building while the first half is quite fun in its self-aware tone. It might be the best Elm Street movie.

1. Dracula

1958’s Dracula just might be the quintessential adaptation of the eponymous classic. This is a rare film that is actually faithful to the Bram Stoker original while being immensely artistic and cinematic as well. Peter Cushing is a phenomenal Van Helsing and Christopher Lee is a very memorable Dracula. The sumptuous production design, gorgeous cinematography and a superb score led to a rich audio-visual experience. I watched this classy movie on a bus to my summer vacation and I had an absolute blast with it.

Worst Films from September 2024:

3. Salo, or the 120 Days of Sodom

This month saw three movies receiving a two-star rating from me. That rarely happens, but all of these movies most definitely deserved it. I do respect Pasolini for going there, but Salo is an experimental film that is too simplistic in its messaging and too graphic to be thematically effective. It ended up being sick just for the sake of being sick.

2. The Bikeriders

Hollywood loves to revisit and romanticize the fifties and sure enough this movie got strong production design, costumes, hairstyles and a fine soundtrack. But there is only so for that these technicalities can take you if you don’t have an interesting plot or characters that the audience will care about. The Bikeriders has neither. It’s such a slog to sit through.

1. Kinds of Kindness

Apparently, Lanthimos’ last film was just an anomaly or even worse a fluke as here he continued all of his worst tendencies as a filmmaker – his utter lack of humanity, misanthropy, nihilism and weirdness for the sake of weirdness. Kinds of Kindness is very well performed by its talented cast, but its tone is too cold and its plot was pointless throughout.