Thanks to TIFF, I was able to get a jump on 2014 releases. And over the last couple months, I’ve continued my crawl. There is much I have been unable to see, but what I have seen has impressed — for the most part.
The two best films I have seen so far this year are Wes Anderson’s Grand Budapest Hotel — more on that soon — and Hirokazu Koreeda’s Like Father, Like Son. The latter just opened in Buffalo last Friday, and it’s a stunner. The Cannes prize-winner takes a rote plot — babies switched at birth — and handles it with subtlety and humor. There are no over-the-top dramatics or wild plot twists. Instead, it is a beautiful, moving, smart look at the reality of such a situation. Don’t miss it.
I will elaborate more on all of these soon, but for starters, here is my quick breakdown:
- Grand Budapest Hotel ****
- Like Father, Like Son ****
- Abuse of Weakness *** ½
- Stranger by the Lake *** 1/2
- Jodorowsky’s Dune *** 1/2
- Visitors *** ½
- The Lego Movie *** ½
- Breathe In *** ½
- Bad Words ***
- A Field in England ***
- In Secret ** ½
- Young & Beautiful ** ½
- Endless Love **
- The Bag Man – zero stars