4) The Ballad Of Buster Scruggs (dir. The Coen Brothers)
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, at face value, is an anthology film combining six practically separate Wild West tales into the binding of one, big storybook. Needless to say, the stories, which range from silly (Tim Blake Nelson as the headliner Scruggs duels foes behind his back) to poetic (get ready to listen to a limbless man hark “Ozymandias” over and over) to epic (the best tale takes place along the Oregon Trail), are all brilliantly written, each one glorifying a different aspect of the West.
But these stories morph into one another perfectly, are aware of yet dodge tropes, and are each assigned a team of actors which bring them to life. It’s the best western since last year’s Hostiles, and while I have a list of favorites among the stories, all of them are fun.
3) Sorry To Bother You (dir. Boots Riley)
Strange movies can be bad. But strange movies that are also as intelligent as they are original can be great. Sorry to Bother You is great. A strange surrealistic blend of some of our country’s social, economic, and racial tensions, it tells the story of Cassius Green (a magnificent Lakeith Stanfield) as he uses his “white voice” to move his way up the telemarketing company, Regal View.
Admirably taking a hard right turn halfway through the film into an exaggerated and nonsensical business world, first-time director Boots Riley commands an all-star cast (which also includes Tessa Thompson and Armie Hammer) in a movie that will surely be talked about for a long time.