I’ve heard some critics say 2022 wasn’t a strong year for new movies, a claim I wholeheartedly reject. In fact, I had to cheat and include 11 titles on my “top ten” list in order to fit everything I wanted. More on that in the coming weeks.
I was also dead set on fitting today’s movie into that top ten, but eventually the math just wasn’t there. But I wanted to write a bit about it, so please indulge this bonus entry in my year-end list, which will officially kick off tomorrow.
Here’s the second Random Weekend selection from Regina Spektor’s 2006 album Begin to Hope.
The last time she showed up, I remarked that the Random iTunes Fairy had a knack for picking the hits, as she surfaced ‘Fidelity,’ the only song from that album — or Spektor, period — to ever chart.
A little more than three years later, Spektor is back with a deep cut.
Wrapping up my week of personal Oscar nominations, today I’ll focus on the Best Director category. Then, over the next two weeks, I’ll count down my personal top ten movies of 2022.
I find this category the trickiest to evaluate. Given the importance of the director, one could argue that my five favorite movies of the year must also be the best directed. That’s definitely one way to go, though not the one I chose.
I’m sheepishly glad I haven’t watched Till at the time I’m writing this because I no doubt would have to find a way to fit Danielle Deadwyler into my five Best Actress nominations. And I had a brutal time compiling this list as it is.
I also have yet to see To Leslie, but I haven’t been lobbied by any A-list stars to vote for Andrea Riseborough either, so I don’t think she’d make my list.
My family holds an annual Oscar nomination pool, predicting the eight major categories, and invariably we all do very well in Best Actor. For some reason, great male lead performances are few and far between in recent years. I’m sure there’s an analysis to be written on that topic but I’ll save it for another day.
For now, I’ll give my own preferred lineup in the 2022 Best Actor category, starting with just a few honorable mentions.
Meet Me In Montauk 